#marko purisic fanfic

[caribbean1989]

Stage Fright - a Baby Lasagna fanfiction

Who: Marko Purisic / Baby Lasagna Request: maybe smt where you work for esc and marko has a panic attack before going on the stage and your there for him calming him down and stuff. just angsty with lots of comfort. Requested by: anonymous. Word count: 2010 Warnings: contains descriptions of panic attack / anxiety / stage fright. Lots of angst, but also some comfort 😇

A/N: I usually write footballer imagines and fandom whump, so writing something like this is quite new to me. Hope you'll like it, let me know what you think of it 😇 If you want me to write more like this, you can always make a request through my Asks 😉

This story can also be found on my AO3 account, here. For more information on my Baby Lasagna fanfics, see this masterpost.

At your job working backstage at concerts and events, you were one of the people making sure everything went smoothly backstage, and that the performers had all they needed. This month you would be working at the Eurovision Song Contest. 

Today was the biggest day of all: the final.  You felt confident. Everything had been rehearsed endlessly, the semi-finals had already gone well, and you had built up a good relationship with most of the performers and their entourages. 

It was a nice group of artists this year, but one still was your personal favourite: Baby Lasagna. At first you were drawn to the Croatian candidate because of the rather unusual name, but you quickly learned he went by Marko off-stage, and was somewhat different from the other participants. He was a flamboyant personality on-stage, which proved to be the complete opposite of how his personality was off-stage. 

You didn’t need long to see Marko was actually rather shy, could be very insecure, and was humble and polite. There was a cheeky side to him as well once you got to know him better. You liked that about him, and, without actively trying to, you already formed a rather close friendship with him in only this short time of working together. 

That was why you immediately knew something was wrong when you found Marko sitting alone on the day of the final, huddled away from everything and everyone.  He sat amongst crates of sound equipment, on the floor, in a dark corner of the backstage maze, hugging his knees. His hands were clamped so tightly around his legs that his fingers had turned white, and he trembled like a leaf in the wind.  Marko had chosen a spot far from the foot traffic from and to the stage, hidden even from his own entourage, and it was a small miracle that you stumbled upon him like you had. 

"Marko?" You lowered yourself onto your haunches in front of him, but mindful to keep enough distance between yourselves so not to frighten him or make him feel more uncomfortable.

He looked disheveled, only vaguely aware of his surroundings, and surely not in control of his emotions.  In this moment he was not the extroverted Baby Lasagna, he was introverted Marko. The eccentric costume he wore on stage was replaced by regular jeans and a black hoodie. The make-up wasn’t applied yet, which might be a good thing, because you saw the tears on his face. The haunted look in his eyes scared you, worrying you even more about his well-being. 

Suddenly your mind went to a line from the song he was performing with here this week. 

My anxiety attacks.

Whilst Rim Tim Tagi Dim had people dancing all over the world, you couldn’t help but notice its darker meaning, too. And it clicked into place for you now. That line about anxiety wasn’t just a line. It actually held truth for Marko, and the proof of that was right in front of your eyes with him having a serious panic attack. 

"Marko?" You repeated softly.  His gaze flickered to you, but he didn’t acknowledge your presence in any other way.  "I need you to talk to me," you nudged carefully.  Marko swallowed hard. He made every effort to get himself to speak, but couldn’t. The words he meant to say got involuntarily silenced on their way to his mouth, and, finally, he just sadly shook his head. Fresh tears fell as he rested his forehead on his knees, shrinking even more into himself. 

Your heart broke for him. It was hard to believe you only met him a week and a half ago, with how much you already cared for him. 

Marko shivered in his hoodie. His breaths became even more rapid and shallow, accompanied by the occasional wheeze or whimper. He was losing more and more control over himself with every heartbeat of his racing pulse. Where first maybe only his hands had shook, there now wasn’t a muscle in his body that wasn’t shaking. He raised his head and looked up at you again, this time really seeing you. 

Marko’s lower lip trembled, and it took effort, but finally he got some words out. "Help me…" "I’m trying," you answered helplessly. You wanted nothing more than to help him, take him out of this panic attack, but you really had no idea where to begin. "Do you need me to bring someone from your team over?" "No!" Marko nearly jumped a foot into the air at the mere idea of that. "They don’t need to see me like this. I’m a mess, I…" "Calm down, calm down," you tried to ease. "We can do this. You and I, we can get you through this."

Having suffered from panic attacks yourself, you suddenly remembered what your sister used to do for you to get you to calm down. "Marko." You got his attention. "I want to try something to help you calm down. Are you okay with me touching you?" He still was in the height of his panic attack, with fear wild in his eyes, but he still nodded his head. He wasn’t sure what you had in mind, but he trusted you.

You scooted closer to him, fully sitting down on the floor by his side. Marko trembled heavier than ever and he was truly hyperventilating now. Tears sparkled in his eyes, but he gave in to you. He wanted for you to offer comfort and take him out of this anxiety. 

"Close your eyes," you said softly.  Marko hesitated for just a second, but slowly closed his eyes. He didn’t know you for that long, yet you felt secure and safe to him. "Whenever you’re no longer comfortable with anything I’m doing, you need to tell me," you insisted, "and I’ll stop immediately." Marko gave you a strained nod, but he surrendered to you. 

You moved slowly, making sure not to make any unexpected movements which would cause Marko any more fright.  You placed one of your hands flat on his chest. Only now you realised how heavy this panic attack actually was for him. His chest heaved and trembled under your hand, and now that you were closer to him, you heard the whimpers that were hidden in the wheezes of his breathing.  With your other hand you picked up his wrist, gently pressing two fingers against the pulse point. As you had expected, his heart was racing. 

"I need you to focus on my hand on your chest." You kept your voice as calm and serene as possible. Marko dipped his head once, eyes still firmly pressed shut.  "Whenever I press into your chest, I need you to breathe in through your nose, and try and press my hand away with your chest," you instructed, "when I release the pressure, you exhale slowly through your mouth." Marko wanted to speak, show you he had understood, but he found his words once again stolen from him by the panic attack. Instead, he dipped his head once again, but it was all the confirmation you needed. 

You slowly and gently pressed the palm of your hand a little firmer into his chest.  Marko took a shaky breath. He did his best to get his lungs to fill properly and get his chest to give counter-pressure against your hand, but couldn’t quite manage.  "It’s alright," you eased him, "take your time. Just focus on the rhythm of the pressure of my hand and try to breathe with that." You felt how Marko was really trying to, but also how he wasn’t succeeding yet. His inhales were broken by shudders, and his exhales disrupted by sudden and involuntary gulps.  "That’s it," you encouraged anyway, "easy does it."

Your hand never left his chest as you gently applied pressure and released it, with Marko doing his utmost best to get his breathing to fall in sync with it. You spoke soft encouragements, yet the silent moments in between were filled with Marko’s quiet whimpers.  It didn’t matter to you how long it would take, you would help Marko through this. 

---

Eventually, you sat with Marko like that for well over 30 minutes. There was no reason to rush anything. Soundchecks for the grand finale of tonight wouldn’t be starting for another few hours, so you gave him all the time he needed to pull himself out of this panic attack.

Marko’s pulse had returned to a regular, calm rhythm, as had his breathing. His trembling had subsided, but he sat beside you looking worn out from everything he had just gone through. 

You gently let your hand fall away from Marko’s chest for the first time again. You kept a close eye on him, but he was able to keep his breaths calm by himself now. "Open your eyes," you said softly. Marko slowly did so. Even though the area where you sat was dimly lit, he still squinted at the light. He ran slightly trembling fingers through his silvery hair, before he finally looked up at you sitting next to him. 

"I’m sorry about that." Marko sounded tired. "No need to apologise." You shook your head. "May I ask what happened?" "This happened." Marko chuckled wryly, motioning his hands to the area around you. "I’ve never performed at an event of this magnitude before. And… well, my stage fright took the better of me, I guess. It does that sometimes."

The airiness with which he spoke of his stage fright was pitiful, almost like it was the most common thing in the world for him. "But it doesn’t often get this bad, I reckon," you said sympathetically.  "No." Marko sighed heavily, running his fingers through his hair once more. "It doesn’t usually lead to a full-blown panic attack, and certainly not like this one, but, apparently, big stages lead to big anxiety." A dark chuckle followed. "That’s not even remotely funny," you scoffed. Marko gave a one-shouldered shrug. "I’m used to it by now."

He shifted his body, grunting softly as he stretched his cramped legs out in front of him. He leaned his head back against one of the crates behind him and glanced up at the ceiling for a moment. 

"But what you did really helped me." He spoke after a few seconds of silence. "I’m not quite sure I would have gotten through this one on my own, so I’m really grateful." You shrugged. "I’ve got a bit of experience with panic attacks as well, I’m afraid. So I know how bad they can get."

Marko’s gaze slowly shifted back to you. "Yourself or helping someone deal with it?" "Myself, unfortunately." You sat back into a more comfortable position, too. "Some events in life leave more scars than you can imagine," you added darkly.  "I’m sorry." Marko shortly rested a hand on your arm in support.  "What I just did with you, my sister used to do that for me whenever my anxiety flared up," you explained, "it always helped me through it, so…" You let your voice trail off.  "Well, tell her it’s a good technique." Marko winked lazily. "And I’m glad you’re the one who found me just now. Thank you." The sincere thankfulness was in his voice and in every fibre of his being. 

The two of you talked for a while longer, before Marko slowly hoisted himself back onto his feet. He looked steady again, ready to go, and a glimpse of the extroverted Baby Lasagna shone through the cracks again. 

"Will you be alright?" You stood back up, too.  "Yes." Marko nodded confidently. "I know it sounds strange, especially after what you’ve seen just now, but it feels like I needed to get this out of my system in order to be ready for tonight." You chuckled, glad to see the sparkle of joy back in his eyes, instead of the sparkle of tears and panic. "Come see me if anything threatens to overwhelm you again." Marko nodded gratefully. "I sure will."

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

We Won This Together - a Baby Lasagna fanfic

Who: Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic Request: i would like to ask you if you could do a enemies to friends to lovers fanfic about Marko x female reader. Like the reader is representing Switzerland (sorry Nemo- is till love him 🫶🏽) and both her and Marko are always high on the odds. Like one day it is her song and the other day it is marko’s the first and so on. They always have a small competition going on between them. And for example during the finale she would look at marko and wink at him every time Switzerland got 12 points. And even during free time between the semifinals and final they would always tease each other and so on. Like even the journalists would always ask them questions about each other and they would answer with full of sass. Requested by: @wife-of-jonathan-kent Word count: 1277 Warnings: none

With the bookmakers there had only ever been two songs which were tipped to win the Eurovision Song Contest this year: yours and Marko's. Both of you were participating with similar types of songs: rock genre, sung in English, and both containing a piece of dance that was already being mimicked everywhere. Every day it differed who was leading the polls, you or him.

You had met Marko a few times before the Eurovision, back when he was playing guitar for the band Manntra. Somehow, you had had the feeling he didn't really like you. He didn't speak much and kept mostly to himself, so you weren't quite sure what to think of him either.

But your opinion on him changed rather quickly when you got to know him better during the Eurovision. In the days leading up to the big final, the whole world seemed to go crazy for both your songs, and the media wanted nothing more than to get the two of you together for interviews.

That was how you learned that Marko's behavior, which you had interpreted as hateful and rude, was in fact caused by his shyness and lack of confidence. You were the complete opposite of that: outgoing, strong-minded yet bubbly, and not backing down from any challenge. You realized that his behavior towards you before, was probably because he was somewhat intimidated by the whirlwind that was you.

Slowly, Marko started to open up to you, and you got to know the other side of him. The side that was joking, rather cheeky and funny, and the two of you were getting closer.

---

Today was the big day: the final. Both you and Marko had performed rather early in the show, and now began the long wait in the green room. Your delegation and Marko's were assigned booths next to each other, so you chatted happily with him all during the evening.

"According to the last polls, you're back on top," Marko winked. "For now," you teased, "but I know you can have me switching on positions at any moment." Marko mulled over your words, whilst frowning at the big screen which showed the live show. "I might," he finally grinned, "but maybe I like you on top."

You nearly spit out the sip of water you had just taken. "Mr. Purisic!" You laughed. "Go wash that mouth." He chuckled cheekily. The shy, silent Marko of earlier in the week had disappeared completely, and you were glad to see he apparently felt confident and safe around you now. And you had to admit: maybe you felt some things for him as well.

Your conversation was cut short by the results ceremony starting. "Good luck." You winked at Marko before returning to your own entourage. "You, too," Marko answered sincerely. "May one of us win."

---

The results ceremony was a rollercoaster. Just as with the bookmakers, you and Marko were constantly switching for the number one and two position. Every country was either giving their 12 points to you or him, and the difference in points between the both of you was only marginal.

Even though nerves coursed through your body, and you were sure Marko's as well, you and Marko started a running gag. Each time one of you got the 12 points, you made a joking or teasing gesture to the other one. It went from a wink to a hand kiss, and from a thumbs up to the sign of the horns. Each gesture was met with loud cheers from the crowd, who had fully fallen for the obvious connection between you and Marko by now.

After all the jury votes had been announced, the difference between you and Marko was only 20 points. Right now, you were in the lead, but everything was still possible with the televotes still to be announced.

As was to be expected, you and Marko were the last two to receive your televotes. The show's presenters were building up the tension, and you actually feared you might faint from the nerves.

You startled slightly when someone suddenly grabbed your hand. It was Marko. Probably against every regulation, he had sat down next to you in your country's booth. "We've done this together so far," he chuckled. You felt his hand tremble around yours, and you knew he was just as nervous as you were. The beads of sweat standing out on his forehead betrayed the downright panic going on in his head. You couldn't blame him, you were feeling the exact same thing.

"And the winner is..." This was the moment. It was either you or Marko, and, frankly, you were happy with either result. It was far more than you had expected anyway, so you would gladly take a second place as well. Marko's hand tightened around yours. He gave you a terrified smile as you looked at him, a look, you were sure, was mirrored on your face.

"The winner is..." The presenters were making you wait for it. You and Marko both squeezed each other's hands half to mush with nerves. And just when you thought you were going to pass out with the tension, the presenters suddenly exclaimed the result.

"Switzerland is the winner!"

It didn't immediately land with you. You heard the words, saw them on the big screen, but somehow they didn't make sense yet. Marko was the first to wrap his arms around you, hug you and congratulate you, before he retreated and left you to celebrate with your team.

Everything was a blur after that. Every person you came across congratulated you, as you went back out on stage to accept the trophy and make a short speech. The winning performance of your song you gave wasn't even an active memory. You sang and performed completely on auto-pilot whilst in your head you were still coming to terms with what had just happened.

Only when you stepped off the stage, clutching the trophy in your hands, was when the rollercoaster of emotions of the past weeks finally came out. Everything you had ever worked so hard for, suddenly burst out of you in a waterfall of tears.

There you stood, backstage, crying into your hands covering your face, with loads of crew still hurrying around you.

"Hey." You felt arms snake around you and pull you into a warm, loving hug. You half-opened your eyes and immediately recognized the white lace of Marko's costume.

Marko gently held you in his arms as you now buried your face into his shoulder and continued sobbing. "I'm sorry I beat you," you sniffled. Marko's chest shook under your face with his rumbling laughter. "No, no," he said softly, "I'm glad I lost to you."

You slowly lifted your head to look at him. Your make-up was all smudged from crying. "Nice look," Marko teased. You laughed, trying to undo some of the damage with your sleeve. "Jerk."

"But I mean it." Marko's tone turned sincere. "I don't mind losing to you." He slung an arm around your shoulders and pressed you protectively against his side. "Maybe we can agree that we won this together?" You suggested with a grin. "I like that." Marko smirked happily.

There was a moment of hesitation on his face, before he slowly leaned in to give you a kiss. He went slow enough that you could have protested at any moment, but you weren't even thinking about it.

Marko released the kiss, but kept his face close to yours, looking deeply into your eyes. "Because, let's face it," he grinned, "I might not have won Eurovision, but I surely won something else."

If you would like to make a request for a fanfic, you can do so through my Ask Box. Please do read this post, to see some topics I won't write about.

[caribbean1989]

It's Better Together - A Baby Lasagna fanfiction

Who: Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic Request: maybe the reader is representing another country (doesn't have to be a singer maybe in the team) and after the behaviour of isreali's team (as many people said they treated them bad) she isn't feeling well and marko helps her and supports her. Requested by: anonymous Word count: 916 Warnings: some implied swearing and rudeness.

A/N: Thank you so much for your request. I have changed it a little bit, so it's not specifically about the Israeli team being the rude one, but it can still be read as such.

If you want me to write more Baby Lasagna fics, you can always make a request through my Ask Box. For more information on my Baby Lasagna fanfics, see this masterpost

It had always been your dream to represent your country at the Eurovision Song Contest. This year, your dream came true true when you were selected as the contestant for your country.

After months of preparations, the moment was finally there. As soon as you'd arrived in Malmö it was everything you had hoped for and more. Your fellow contestants were really nice and supportive, the organization was flawless, and so far you were really enjoying yourself. You weren't the favorite with the bookmakers, but they still tipped you for a top 10 candidate.

The schedule was demanding, though. Each day was filled to the brim with rehearsals, interviews and other press-related obligations. Some of the interviews were fun, others were dull, but today you had had an interview with a journalist who was flat-out rude and even somewhat hostile. During the interview you were able to keep your cool, but it took every ounce of your self-control to do so.

Immediately after you were done, you stalked out of the room and made straight for the contestants' lounge. That area was only accessible to the performers, and strictly off-limits to any kind of media-personnel. Since it was late in the evening and most of the other contestants had already finished their duties for the day, you expected it to be empty. And some alone-time to cool off was just what you needed.

Without even checking if someone else was in the lounge when you stepped in, you angrily slammed the door closed behind you, and loudly released an entire string of curses in your native language.

A startled gasp from further down the room made you realize that you weren't alone after all. You let your eyes roam over the dozens of sofa's and armchairs crammed into the lounge, and indeed found one, halfway down the room, occupied. It was Marko who sat there. Your little outburst had clearly startled him, and he had jumped up from his seat. He now stood looking at you a little wide-eyed.

"I'm so sorry about that." You passed a hand over your face and took a few deep breaths to calm yourself down. "I survived," he chuckled, before a frown crossed over his face. "Are you alright?" "Yeah..." You sighed. It wasn't truthful, but you didn't want to burden him with your troubles.

But Marko wasn't so easily fooled. He cocked his head slightly to the side, and gave you an intense stare for about a second. "No, you're not." He stated quite confidently. You couldn't help but laugh. Of course you had met Marko in the previous days. You liked him, and you had had a few nice chats with him, but you two didn't really know much about each other. So the confidence in his statement surprised you.

"Please, don't take this the wrong way." Marko immediately second-guessed himself. "But I think you still look... upset." He wrung his hands together, clearly uncomfortable by his own words and wondering if you were going to get angry with him now.

"You're right," you finally confessed. You weren't nearly alright yet and still way too upset by how the journalist had treated you. Yet, you were strangely relieved that Marko was here and had seen that you were still distraught.

"Maybe you should sit down." Marko quickly recollected himself. You nodded quietly, before walking over to where Marko had been sitting and throwing yourself down in the armchair opposite him. "Here." Marko handed you a bottle of water and sat down as well. You gratefully accepted the water, taking a few sips of the much needed hydration.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Marko smiled shyly. "It's just... this journalist." You shook your head. "The interview I've just had was awful. So rude and disrespectful." "Ah..." Marko understood immediately. "I know exactly who you mean. If it's any consolation, he's rude to everyone. I had to do an interview with him yesterday, and... let's just say that I was glad when it was over."

Marko's words did make you feel a little better. If someone could be rude to a gentle soul like Marko, they were just mean and heartless.

Suddenly you remembered that tomorrow you had another, even longer interview scheduled with the same journalist. "Oh, no!" You buried your face in your hands. "I totally forgot I've got to do more press with that guy tomorrow." To your surprise, Marko chuckled softly. "You and me both. Quite literally actually." "What do you mean?" You looked up at him. Marko smiled crookedly at you, giving a one-shouldered shrug. "You and I are teamed up for press tomorrow."

You blinked stupidly at him for a few seconds. You needed a moment to remember that Marko was indeed right. In your fury and frustration that fact had completely slipped your mind. "So sorry," you mumbled, "I forgot about that." Marko smiled another shy smile. "It's fine."

For a few moments there was silence between the two of you. "I'm glad we're teamed up for tomorrow." You broke the silence. "You're a good guy, and I feel really at ease with you." Marko blushed slightly red. "Me, too. And if anyone is rude to us tomorrow, I'm sure we'll be able to get each other through." "Absolutely," you nodded happily, all the anger of just now quickly draining from you.

And suddenly, tomorrow's press day didn't seem so bad anymore, because you knew Marko would be there with you.

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

Break - a Baby Lasagna fanfic

Who: Marko Purisic / Baby Lasagna Request: this was written using the photo below as prompt. The photo is as voted for by you 😇 Word count: 677 Warnings: none

A/N: this is the first Photo Prompt. If you like this concept and would like me to do this more often, just let me know. If you have a photo or GIF you would like me to write something based upon, you can send it in as well😇

Interviews and media appearances had never been Marko's favorite part of his new-found fame. Even though he was getting better at them and less nervous about it, an entire day of interviews still drained him of his energy.

Today was filled to the brim with interviews and other guest appearances for the upcoming Eurovision Song Contest. Around mid-day there was a two-hour break for lunch, but Marko chose to retreat into his dressing room. He could eat there, too, and he was in desperate need of some time alone.

"Do you need me to get you something else?" You handed Marko his lunch. You and the rest of the team would be going out for lunch, but you easily saw how Marko had no desire for that at all. "No, I'm good," Marko answered. He sat himself down in the comfortable armchair in the dressing room.

You made absolutely no objection to him wanting to be alone for a little while, and gladly granted him this quiet time. "I'll come get you when it's time to go again," you announced, before leaving the dressing room and closing the door behind you.

Marko blew out a deep breath as soon as the door closed and he was finally alone. He loved and valued each and every member of his team, and he was glad they respected and understood his wish to be alone from time to time.

Marko silently ate his lunch. He had been hungry, but he was even more tired. The clock in the dressing room told him he had another hour and a half until his next interview.

He yawned. Maybe he could take a short nap before he had to go again? There wasn't a sofa in the dressing room to lie down on. Marko looked around and finally pulled another chair closer. He slouched down low in his armchair, stretching his legs out on the second chair, and closed his eyes. It wasn't the most comfortable position, but Marko was so tired, he still fell asleep in a matter of minutes.

---

You weren't even that surprised to find Marko asleep when you returned to his dressing room about 30 minutes before the interviews were scheduled to resume. He didn't make a secret of the fact that doing many interviews wore him out, so you knew a day like this, with interviews from morning until evening, wasn't easy for him.

You half expected Marko to wake up from you entering the dressing room, but he didn't. You quietly closed the door behind you, before turning around and watching Marko for a few seconds.

He sat slouched down as low as he could without falling out of the armchair, legs stretched out onto another chair, and fingers locked together as his hands rested on his stomach. He slept soundly, not disturbed by your presence at all.

Unfortunately, you had to go and wake him up. The next interview would start soon, and he might need a few minutes to properly wake up again and get himself ready.

"Marko." You lowered yourself onto your haunches beside the armchair, gently stroking his arm to give your words some extra strength. "Wake up, honey, it's almost time to get going again." Marko stirred and groaned softly, before slowly opening his eyes. He blinked up at you without moving for a few seconds.

"Five more minutes?" He mumbled with a sleepy grin. "Fine by me," you chuckled and got back up on your feet. "But you have to be at the next interview in 15 minutes." "Alright." Marko blew out a deep breath. He pushed himself upright with a soft grunt.

You laughed at Marko's obvious reluctance to get up and moving again. "I'm sorry," Marko smiled shyly, "I should be more professional about this, but you know my opinion on these media days." "Hey, I'm not judging. I completely understand and you surely don't have to hold back for me." You smirked. "Was it a good nap at least?" Marko chuckled, nodding his head. "Yes, it absolutely was."

If you would like to make a request for a fic, you can do so through my Ask Box. Please do read this post, to see the topics I won't write about.

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

Confessions - a Baby Lasagna fanfic

Who: Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic Request: i wanted to ask if you could write another one where marko and reader were friends when they were younger but they haven't seen each other in a long time because they fought and the reader left. they are both on the esc 2024 and they meet again. there is a lot of hostility between them but after marko sees the reader crying after some bad things that people are saying about the reader and due to the stress he comforts her and they become closer. Requested by: anonymous Word count: 2017 Warnings: contains short description of physical attack (trust me, it's not what you might suspect and also nothing too bad or worrisome 😇), furthermore lots of angst.

A/N: I changed this request up slightly for it to suit my idea a little better. Hope you don't mind. Also, this request got a little away from me, hence the word count 🙈

Several years ago, you and Marko had been very close friends. Until a big falling out, right after you had announced your engagement to your then boyfriend, had driven you and Marko apart. That argument was the last time the two of you had ever spoken to each other. Soon after, you moved away, and it turned out to be the last time you had seen Marko as well.

That was why it came as a bit of a nasty shock to you, when you learned that Marko was one of your fellow-contestants at this year's Eurovision Song Contest. After years of living in Croatia, you had now moved back to the UK, your native country, and represented them this year.

The Eurovision was going well for you so far. You had caught Marko casting you a few glances, but other than that there was no contact, which was perfectly fine by you. That was, until two days before the grand final, when you were involved in a nasty and scary incident.

You were on your way to an interview, along with several other contestants, including Marko, when suddenly an unknown man came running at you. The man was waving with something that looked like a wine glass. Instinctively, you knew this was no joke or media stunt. This was an attack.

You immediately backed away, but with lots of people there, you didn't have much space to go anywhere. The man growled something incomprehensible, before throwing the glass at you. You ducked, protectively raising your arms over your head. Several security guards did all they could, but even they could not prevent the wine glass hitting you and breaking into pieces.

Before you could even fully begin to comprehend what had happened, you were hauled away from the scene and ushered into a side room. "Stay here until we've given you the all-clear," one of the security guards urged you. You nodded meekly, too shaken up to protest to anything.

The door swung closed behind the security guard, leaving you alone in the room. You only now realized it was a small break room, probably for the journalists and their crew.

The worst of the scare was wearing off, but you were still shaking all over. You only now took a look at your forearms, which had taken the worst of the hit from the wine glass. There were a few scratches, which were only bleeding a little, but you were glad to learn everything was only shallow, nothing too bad or worrisome, and it would probably not even require treatment. You sighed heavily, releasing some of the tension. This could all have been a lot worse.

A soft knock on the door announced the arrival of someone. "Come in," you answered, turning around to see who it was. You had expected anyone, but certainly not the person you found yourself face to face with now: Marko.

"What do you want?" You bit to him. You immediately turned your back to him, and sank down on a chair at the large table in the middle of the room. "I saw what happened," Marko said softly. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him again. "Congratulations," you grumbled, "and with you half the world did." Marko took a few hesitant steps towards you, but still kept his distance. "I just needed to make sure you're alright." Your head snapped up as you glared at him. "I'm not, but you can still go now."

Where you had expected Marko to retreat, he instead stood frozen. He looked at you, seemingly endlessly, with a look of utter sadness and confusion on his face.

"You're hurt." He finally recollected himself. "We need to clean those cuts." Before you could stop him or tell him it were only a few minor scratches, Marko had already taken a bowl from a cupboard, filled it with water and collected a stack of paper towels. He took a chair and sat down in front of you, your knees now only inches apart.

"May I?" He held out his hands, indicating for you to place your injured arm in his palms. You hesitated, confused by his sudden concern for you after all these years of not speaking to each other, but you did stretch out your arm eventually.

The moment Marko's fingers touched your skin, it felt so familiar and trusted. You had forgotten the softness of his hands and the gentleness with which he handled things. You desperately wanted to hate the feeling of his fingers brushing gently over your skin, or how his breath tickled as his face was close to your arm to have a good look at the scratches, but you couldn't get yourself to dislike it.

The confusion over your own feelings, combined with the scare of the attack, made that you suddenly found tears streaming down your face.

"It's alright." Marko handed you one of the paper towels to dry your tears. "You don't have to keep your tears in for me." You scoffed through a sob. "I just don't understand..." "They're saying the guy that attacked you was some lunatic." Marko kept his focus fully on gently wiping clean the scratches on your arm. "No, you idiot." Your voice turned colder now. "I don't understand since when you're talking to me again."

Marko froze at those words. He had expected you to say many things, but not this. He might have foolishly hoped for you to just forget about your big fight and continue like nothing had ever happened, but this meant you surely weren't going to.

It took Marko half a minute to get himself to move again. He gently let go of your arm and placed the bowl of water on the table. Pushing his chair back a few feet, he created a little more space between the two of you. You watched him silently. He had to address the elephant in the room sooner of later, and you had the distinct feeling he was mustering up the courage to do so.

"I owe you an explanation," Marko finally started. "I didn't treat you so well the last time we saw each other." "No shit." You snapped at him. "You acted like a complete and utter moron!" Marko hung his head, visibly hurt by your comment. "Okay, I deserve that," he mumbled. "Yeah, you deserve that!" Years of frustration started to pour out of you now. "You were my friend, my best friend, and all of a sudden you're mean and distant. The things you said... I can't even repeat them, so much they hurt me! And I don't even know why! What gave you the right to do that to me?!"

Your voice got more raised and angrier with each word. You released all your hurt, anger and frustration with Marko, and threw out everything you had wanted to hurl at him for a long time. With each word from you, Marko shrunk more in on himself. His head hung, shoulders slouched forward, and quietly accepting this scolding.

You finally fell silent. Tears stained your face, but it was strangely relieving to have all this finally off your chest. Even though Marko sat silently, staring down at his own knees, you still saw how his lower lip trembled. He was making every effort not to let the tears fall, but he wouldn't be able to hold them back much longer.

As if in slow-motion, Marko raised his head. His eyes locked with yours. The emotions slowly crept to the surface of every inch of him, no longer able to be held down.

"I'm not going to make excuses for what I did and said back then," he mumbled, voice shaky. "Because nothing will ever make that right, but... let me try to explain anyway." You glared back at him. "Sure. So why did you do it then?" Marko swallowed hard, looking more uncomfortable in his own skin than you remembered ever having seen him. He took a breath a few times as if he meant to speak, but didn't.

"I..." Marko finally found his voice. "B-because I was in love with you." "You-- you what?" You stammered. Both of you stared at each other, utterly thunderstruck. You because of this confession you'd just heard, and Marko because he finally spilled a secret he'd kept for so long.

"I was in love with you," Marko repeated, "and when you told me about your engagement, I just... realized all hope for me of ever having a chance with you was gone. And that hurt." Marko looked down at his knees again, nervously wringing his hands together. "I had missed my chance with you. I guess I was jealous and hurt about that... and I took that out on you. Which I should never have done."

All the anger drained from you in a heartbeat. Many reasons for your falling out had crossed your mind over the years, but never this. And even though it explained a lot, even from before your falling out, it had just never made sense to you until now.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?" You stammered in a small voice. Marko shrugged. "You had a boyfriend. I didn't want to confuse you or ruin our friendship." "And you ended up failing at both," you chuckled wryly through a sob. Marko nodded, tears spilling from his eyes now, too, but he smiled.

"And then I saw you were going to be here at Eurovision as well," Marko mumbled, "and I thought I would be alright with it, but..." He fell silent. You didn't speak, because you suddenly realized what he was about to say. "But when I saw you, I..." Mark swallowed hard. "I realized that I wasn't over you. Even after all this time... I'm still in love with you."

That was the final straw for you. You broke down sobbing, letting go of all your emotions at once, from the attack, but mostly from everything with Marko.

"Oh, sweetheart!" You jumped up from your seat and flung yourself at Marko. You wrapped your arms around him and hugged him tightly. Sobs wracked Marko's body now, too, and you felt him shake in your arms. You realized that Marko was just as hurt from all this as you, and for the first time in years you felt that warm, comfortable feeling again you used to feel when you were around Marko.

For several minutes, you and Marko just held each other. Neither of you spoke, but the both of you cried. Marko finally was the one to gently pull himself out of your embrace. "We shouldn't be seen like this." He wiped the tears off his cheeks. "By whom?" You, too, dried your tears. "Your fiancée," Marko answered, "or, well, he's probably your husband by now."

You didn't answer right away. "Uhm..." You sat down opposite Marko again. "He's... not anything to me anymore." Marko looked up at you. The tiniest sparkle of hope lit up in his eyes. "I caught him with another woman." You explained even before Marko could ask. "A few months after we got engaged." "Oh..." Marko mumbled. "I'm sorry about that." "No, you're not." You chuckled jokingly. "But that's okay."

Marko reached out to take your hand. "I know this might not be the time." He started off. "But will you give me another chance? At friendship at least." You had expected the question, but it still surprised you.

"I made many mistakes," Marko continued, "but I'm willing to set them all right. I don't want to rush you into anything, but, please... just have a drink with me at least?" "Yes," you answered. You surprised even yourself with your lack of hesitation. Marko squeezed your hand, and you had to admit: it felt good, trusted and secure.

There was still a lot to repair between the two of you, but you had a good feeling that things would be alright. And where you were only friends before, it might even turn into more this time.

If you want me to write more Baby Lasagna fics, you can always make a request through my Ask Box.

For more information on my Baby Lasagna fics, please see this masterpost.

[caribbean1989]

Baby Lasagna fanfiction masterpost

Since I'm getting quite a few questions about which requests I have pending and when the next fic will drop, I have created this masterpost for my Baby Lasagna writing. This way, you will always be up to date 😁😇🥰

Below the cut you can find all information about my Baby Lasagna fanfiction: how to make a request for a fic, what is pending and when the next fic will be posted. 😇

PLEASE NOTE: THIS POST HAS BEEN MOVED TO MY BABY LASAGNA SIDEBLOG. YOU CAN FIND IT HERE

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

Black Out - a Baby Lasagna fanfic

Who: Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic Request: pls could you do one where marko faints after a big performance? maybe he goes a bit too far in the performance and the reader is there as first aid? Requested by: anonymous Word count: 1217 Warnings: contains descriptions of fainting / passing out.

If you want me to write more Baby Lasagna fics, you can always make a request through my Ask Box. For more information on my Baby Lasagna fics, please see this masterpost.

Marko knew what was about to happen to him the moment his performance in this final Dress Rehearsal for the Eurovision Song Contest was coming to an end.

He had given this performance, the one the juries from all countries would be basing their points on, more than his all. He had sung, danced and pranced around as if his life depended on it, and Marko realized in the back of his mind that he had pushed himself over every limit he had. He would surely be paying a price for it...

And indeed.

As soon as he struck the final pose of his performance, he felt the world spinning around him. Every muscle in his body either trembled with fatigue or felt like jelly. Marko knew he had gone too far. And even though it had been worth it, he knew he would end up on the floor sooner or later.

With the last of his strength, Marko managed to walk off the stage in somewhat of a straight line. If anything, he wasn't going to collapse in front of the judges and an entire arena filled with people.

He stumbled into the security of backstage. Just one step out of view from the audience was when his muscles refused to cooperate with him any longer.

Marko just registered sagging, almost gracefully, to his knees. He felt so dizzy now, like all the blood had drained from his face, and black spots were blurring his vision. He tried with all his might to hang onto consciousness, but the battle was already lost.

Not a second later, the world around him went dark, and Marko toppled sideways and fainted completely.

---

Marko wasn't sure how long he had been out for. There was a flurry of things happening around him when he regained consciousness somewhat. He couldn't see it, because he wasn't quite able to open his eyes yet, but he heard it. There were hurried footsteps, alarmed voices, and items being moved around.

Amidst the chaos, there was one act of comfort and peace: someone slowly rubbing circles between his shoulder blades.

Marko marginally opened his eyes. He was lying on his side on the floor, exactly where he vaguely remembered going down. His head rested on something soft, possibly a jacket or a vest which served as makeshift pillow. He felt sore from his fall, and was sure he'd earned himself a few bruises.

Marko found his wrist in someone else's hand, with fingers pressed gently against the pulse point, and discovered someone was sitting on the floor with him.

He opened his eyes a little further, shifting his head slightly to be able to look up at the person sitting next to him: you. Marko recognized you. He had seen you all week here backstage as part of the medical team that was always on standby for the contestants and the audience.

Marko stirred, rearranging his body somewhat, as a soft groan rolled off his lips, which caught your attention.

"Marko?" You moved your hand from his back to his shoulder, and leaned in a little closer to him. "Can you hear me? Are you back with me?" Marko nodded minutely. "I think so." His voice was flat and lifeless, but at least he was responding. "Don't move just yet," you soothed, "lie still for a little bit longer." Marko hummed softly in reply. He didn't feel even nearly ready yet to get back up, and he was glad you apparently saw it, too.

"I do need to ask you a few routine questions." You spoke softly. "Is that alright with you?" "Yeah." The word was a breath off Marko's lips, but you heard it. "Can you tell me where you are?" You started. "Arena," Marko mumbled back. "Day of the week?" You continued. "Friday." It cost Marko some difficulty to speak, but he managed to give you the right answers.

You gave him a little breather before you asked your next question. "Are you experiencing any chest pains or shortness of breath?" You asked calmly. Marko slowly shook his head. "No." You hadn't quite expected him to. You still had your fingers pressed against his wrist to feel a steady pulse, and his breathing looked calm and regular as well. "Any injuries?" You had already done a quick check on him just now, but had not been able to see anything that worried you. "No," he answered softly.

Marko shifted his legs a little. He gradually looked more lucid, and had his eyes open. A grimace crossed over his face as he stirred. You had seen it. "Painful?" "Yeah. Bit sore from going down, I guess." Marko's voice became clearer, and the words came easier to him again. "What happened to me?" "You fainted. Probably because of overexertion, possibly overheating." You were confident on your diagnosis. "I saw your performance. It rocked. Maybe a bit too much." You added with a chuckle. A small smile played on Marko's lips. "Too much of the good thing, huh?" "Definitely." You smiled. "Combined with having done that already about a dozen times this week, and the fact that this arena is not exactly cold, I guess it all became a bit too much. Seriously, though, I have no reason to assume anything more worrisome is going on." "That's a relief." Marko visibly relaxed a bit with that knowledge.

You gave Marko another few minutes to lay down. By now you could almost have a normal conversation with him again, even though he looked absolutely spent. You gently let go of Marko's wrist, trusting he would be fine. "Would you like to try to sit up?" You asked. "Yes, please," Marko nodded.

He moved as if in slow-motion. Clearly, he wasn't entirely trusting his own body yet, being very gentle in case it would betray him again. You, too, sat ready to catch him for if he would faint again.

Marko slowly propped himself up on one elbow, before carefully using his arms to push himself into a sitting position. He took it slowly, but he seemed alright. "You good?" You eyed him attentively. "I'm good." Marko's voice sounded tired, but his posture held a little confidence in himself again. He ran both his hands through his hair and blew out a deep breath.

"Here." You handed him a bottle of water. "Thanks." Marko gratefully accepted it from you. "What do I need to do now?" "Rest," you answered straight away. "Plenty of rest, and make sure to stay hydrated. So cancel whatever plans you have for the rest of the day, go back to your hotel and take it easy."

The apprehension was clear on Marko's face and you easily recognized the most burning question on his mind. "You'll be alright to perform in the final tomorrow," you eased him with a wink. Marko chuckled in relief. "You had me worried there for a second."

You rose to your feet and helped Marko get up, too. He looked steady again, and you were confident he would be perfectly alright after a good night's sleep. "Just take it easy for a little while, and I'm sure you'll be able to give another amazing performance tomorrow," you assured him. Marko smiled gratefully, reassured. "Thank you, and I certainly will."

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

Baby Lasagna fanfiction masterpost

Since I’m getting quite a few questions about which requests I have pending and when the next fic will drop, I have created this masterpost for my Baby Lasagna writing. This way, you will always be up to date 😁😇🥰

Below the cut you can find all information about my Baby Lasagna fanfiction: how to make a request for a fic, what is pending and when the next fic will be posted. 😇

Last updated: 3 June 2024

MAKING A REQUEST Making a request is fairly simple, just send a message to my Ask Box.

When making a request you don’t have to write out an entire storyline (if you do want to, that’s fine of course 😉), but some details as to what you would like to read would help me a lot to write something you like 😇

Please note: I have a demanding, full-time job and a rather time-consuming hobby, therefore I don’t always have as much time to write as I would like. I also put a lot of time and effort into re-reading my writing and making sure it presents nicely, so please be patient when making a request 😁😁

OFF LIMITS TOPICS Unfortunately there is a few topics I will not write about (under any circumstance):

Children / babies of any ages

Pregnancy / implied pregnancy / desire to get pregnant.

Violence, abuse, etc.

Infidelity

Smut / implied smut

The reader being related to other famous persons.

Song / lyric requests

PENDING REQUESTS: The following requests have been made and are pending / currently being written.

You and Marko both being contestants and the shared favorites for the win. You and him are teasing each other about it.

Reading is having and panic attack. Marko is there to help her. (This will possibly turn into a sort of continuation of Stage Fright).

You and Marko are both fans of each other, and finally meet at the Eurovision. You’re both very shy, but after a few interviews together, the audience thinks you might be heading for something more.

Waking up with Marko the morning after the ESC final.

POSTING SCHEDULE: The following fics will are written and scheduled for posting:

18 June -> Break The first of the Photo Prompts 😇😁

26 June -> We Won This Together You and Marko are both favorites for the ESC win. Where you didn't really like him before, that changes during the course of the ESC.

POSTED FICS: You can find all the posted fics on my Writing Masterlist

[the-baby-lasagna-blog]

Welcome to the blog!

Hi and welcome to the blog!

My name is Sarah and I hail from The Netherlands. This blog is dedicated solely to the one and only Baby Lasagna / Marko Purisic 😇.

What can you expect on this blog? Well, everything Baby Lasagna related of course 😉 I mostly make gifs, post photos and write fanfics.

MY GIFS For all the GIFs I have made, see this link.

BABY LASAGNA FANFICTION For more information on my Baby Lasagna fanfics, please see this post.