#she is overthinking which music to play on their shared earphones even though he’s off with the fairies

[teeth-draws]

Hhhhighschool au bus ride with trouble from @shepherds-of-haven ;;;; haha

[junetuesday]

sweetener - [eleven] *updated*

Déjà Vu

Pairing: Tom Holland x Female Reader - uni AU

Word Count:  10,510

Warnings: fluff, smut, swears, food, 

A/N: here it is - the complete chapter 11! as always thank you for the lovely comments and support, please please please let me know what you think!!

Add yourself to my taglist(s) 

Updates: at the will of the cosmos 

⠀You woke up the next morning feeling lighter - not physically, Tom's arm was actually weighing pretty heavily across your middle, but like, emotionally. Spiritually.

You'd been going back and forth for days about whether or not you should ask about what you'd seen on Instagram, and after much deliberation you'd decided not to. Instead, you would just be Chill. A Cool Girl. Someone who would go over and hang out, play it by ear - Go With The Flow, as it were. All you brought with you to Tom's besides your usual day-to-day handbag stuff was your pill and a toothbrush, because you were like 90% sure you wouldn't be staying over on account of how c a s u a l you were being (but even Cool Girls get fed up of brushing their teeth with their finger or making do with mouthwash).

Pretty soon after you got there, though, that all went out the window, because then you were kissing him and all you could think about was who else he might have done this with. Who else had twisted their fingers into his curls? Who else had felt his breath hot on their neck, his teeth nipping at their skin? Who else who else who else - and more importantly, when was the last time they did it? Boxing Night? Was he texting you while trying it on with Her - did he even have to try? Or was she an old standby? And old flame that never really went out? Was she the Cool Girl you couldn't even pretend to be for one evening?

That was all by-the-by now, though, all water under the bridge. Admittedly you probably could have picked a better time to bring it up, but Tom had been so sweet about it that you didn't even feel that stupid for asking. You did feel a little embarrassed for worrying about it at all, but not because of how he'd responded, more just because it was like, 'of course it's nothing, dummy.'

All concerns about ex-girlfriends pushed aside, you spent the morning watching the latter half of Tropic Thunder (which you definitely had not fallen asleep during the night before), eating leftover pizza for breakfast, and trying to mentally prepare yourself to get dressed and go home. You were very reluctant to change out of Tom's pyjama bottoms, soft and warm and comfy as they were, but you did it eventually, pulling on your leggings instead with much moaning and groaning. You couldn't quite bring yourself to leave exactly as you'd come though, sheepishly asking to borrow Tom's AU hoodie again. You offered to give back the zip-up one you'd had for the last few weeks, but he refused to take it back (which you were secretly very grateful for because aside from anything else it made a very handy layering piece), so when he dropped you home that afternoon you had both it and your bra stuff inside your bag. Though you could have happily stayed the rest of the evening, you both had Sunday night/new term prep things to do, plus Tom had his weekly FaceTime call to his parents (read: dog) to make, so it was not to be.

Come Monday afternoon you were settled in the silent study section of the library, your morning lectures already a distant memory as you sat cross-legged making flash cards. Dressed comfortably in thick leggings and Tom's AU hoodie, your shoes lay abandoned beneath your seat in favour of a pair of fluffy slipper socks. Music played through your earphones, your phone placed on the desk next to your iPad and a selection of coloured pens. You knew Tom had a lecture sometime today, and you'd told him when he asked where you were sitting, but your brain was so chock-full of facts and references and supporting arguments that you didn't put two and two together that he was going to come and find you until you felt a hand on your arm and practically jumped out of your own skin.

Heart hammering, you looked over your shoulder to see Tom standing right behind you, biting his lip to try and stop himself from laughing out loud. You glowered at him as you took out one earphone, brow furrowed and jaw set.

"Sorry."

He was whispering, but it was just as loud if not louder than his regular speaking voice, earning him disapproving looks from some of the other students sitting nearby. You couldn't keep yours up for long though, your frown melting away into a grateful smile as he set a large takeaway coffee cup on your desk, 'VL' scrawled on the side in black marker.

Rather than garner your own looks of disdain from your fellow library-goers, you sent Tom a quick thank you text while he set his stuff down at the empty space beside you. Tom's phone lit up on the table with your message, his backpack open in his lap stopping him snatching it up in time before it vibrated loudly.

Shaking your head, you laughed under your breath. You sat up straighter as you popped your earphone back in, rolling your shoulders back until you felt them click - you'd been hunched over for way too long, who-knows-how-many-hours having gone by since you first set up camp in the library. Out of the corner of your eye you saw Tom set his phone back down, and a moment later two ping!s sounded in your ear.

Messages Tom Holland Youre welcome +1 more message

You sipped on your coffee as you opened the messages, smiling to yourself before replying.

Youre welcome How do you work in here its too quiet

I like the quiet Group studys too loud and distracting

You highlighted a few words on your flashcards while you waited for Tom to finish getting out his stuff, another ping! in going off in your ear once his laptop and a notebook were set out on his desk.

I'm distracted by the quiet

I don't think that's even possible

It is Its happening to me right now

You snickered under your breath, rolling your eyes when Tom glanced up at you instead of replying to his text. You watched out of the corner of your eye as he plugged his earphones into his laptop, putting one into each ear before turning it on. Evidently, however, he hadn't plugged them in properly because the startup sound chimed loudly, echoing across the silent room. You tried not to laugh as he scrambled to ram the jack into the port - though you needn't have bothered, people were already glaring at you and shushing. Shaking your head, you turned back to your flashcards. Time to focus - until: ping!

i dont belong here *facepalm emoji* 🙈

Do you wanna just go to group study?

Three dots popped up, disappeared, reappeared, then disappeared again - you looked to your right and saw Tom's thumbs hovering over his phone screen as he considered the proposition. He seemed to make up his mind after a moment, because he started typing again.

Nah I'll survive

You're so brave

I know

OK stop distracting me I'm here to learn.

You cringed internally as the second message sent - you hadn't meant to put a full stop, you hadn't meant to be that stern about it - though you really did need to get back to work--

Are you sure it's not the quiet that's distracting you??

Nevermind. Note to self: stop overthinking punctuation.

Hmmmm no I'm pretty sure it's u

Fine X

With that you both got back to work - well, you got back to work, Tom started work. Slowly but surely you made your way through the topic you were working on, with only minimal distraction from Tom. It wasn't even his fault, he was actually studying away in his own little world, but that in itself was distracting. You couldn't help but sneak the occasional glance at him - his glasses slipping down his nose as his face scrunched up in concentration, his hair a curly, fluffy mess. He looked very cute today - though, if you were honest, you would have to say he always looked cute, especially with his shorter hair. You obviously didn't say it to him, but you had been a little disappointed when he'd told you he'd gotten it cut. Playing with the soft waves had quickly become one of your top five things to do, and then he'd just gone and cut them off?? On closer inspection though, it was actually really nice - somehow making him look both older and more boyish at the same time. More than once you'd found yourself longing for exams to be over if for no other reason than to see how he'd style it for a night out.

Brief hair-appreciation breaks aside, though, you were pretty good at staying on track, and you decided to reward yourself with a social media break. You sent a screenshot of a meme to Tom as you scrolled through your feed, and after a few minutes a notification ping!ed in your ear once more.

Omggg stop distracting me I'm here to learn

You looked over at him, but Tom was staring resolutely at a journal article on his laptop screen, a smirk curling the corner of his mouth as he avoided your gaze.

Shut up I'm on a break

Hmm ok sure How's it going?

Alright You?

Yeah actually maybe this quiet thing isn't so bad

Right? It's called focusing

Wow You're so wise

I try 🦉 *owl emoji*

After exchanging a few more memes, you both got back to work for another hour or so. By then, though, you were getting peckish, and your stash of study snacks had long since vanished. You considered venturing out to the newsagents on campus, but one look outside at how dark and windy it was squashed that idea, the thought of icy wind on your skin enough to put you off the walk there and back. It wasn't far, but you decided if you were going to go outside then it would be for a one way trip home. Tom had pulled a share bag of crisps out of his backpack about half an hour ago, though, so perhaps all was not lost - perhaps he had more hidden away somewhere, so you sent an investigatory text.

Need more snax

Same Ive run out

...or not.

Got stuff at home though?

hmm is this just a way to get me to go back to yours?

You looked over at him to see his reaction, just catching him smirking to himself before he replied.

...maybe...

Did it work?

Depends...what kinda stuff?

Super noodles?

😍⠀*heart eyes emoji* sold

You'd pretty much finished the topic you were working on anyway, so you both packed up your things to head home. Tom took your empty snack packets and coffee cups to the bin while you changed out of your fluffy socks and back into proper shoes, and was waiting by the door for you with a smile. Neither of you spoke as you made your way down the stairs and out of the library, as if you were both still in Quiet Mode after being in silent study for so long. By the time you got out to Tom's car, though, conversation had started to flow - mostly about how dark it was and how ready you both were for spring - and more importantly, for exams to be over.

"...I feel like my brain is just fried," you sighed as you got into the passenger's seat.

"I can just take you home if you want?" Tom offered, tossing his backpack into the backseat. "If you wanna just chill or whatever, I have work tomorrow anyway so..."

"No I didn't mean - can we just watch a movie or something?"

"Yeah, sure," Tom nodded, starting to drive as he spoke. "What's next on the list?"

"Don't mind - something I don't have to think too much about, you know? Something chill."

"Spirited Away's pretty chill? I mean, her parents get turned into pigs but like visually it's pretty relaxing."

"I'm sorry, her parents get what?"

"You'll see," he laughed when he saw your expression, confusion and concern written plainly across your features.

You narrowed your eyes at him, humming skeptically. Tom just laughed again, which wasn't very reassuring, but a deal's a deal and you said you would watch all the movies he chose, so you didn't really have much choice.

"Fine. Are you alright to drop me home after, though?"

"Oh, uh, yeah, sure I can-"

Tom was facing away from you, about to pull out onto the main road off campus, but you could hear the confusion in his voice though you couldn't see his face, so you rushed to clarify.

"Just, you know, 'cause you said you had work tomorrow so I assumed you wouldn't want me to stay..."

"I don't mind," he shrugged, looking over at you with a small smile. "Either's fine. I do have to get up at like half seven though, just to warn you."

"Oh. Ew."

"Yup."

"Uhh," you clicked your tongue as you thought it through, weighing up the pros and cons in your mind. "Yeah okay, I'll just come on campus with you if that's okay and then I can put in a full shift at the library."

Tom just looked at you with an expression not unlike the one you'd given him about his parents-turning-into-pigs comment.

"O...kay? Personally I think I'd rather stay in bed but up to you."

"Ugh, I know," you sighed, "but I found a whole extra set of lecture notes that I'd forgotten about so-"

Tom gasped, cutting you off. "Did you...did you make a mistake in your plan?"

"No! I just...need to rearrange some things..."

You shrugged defensively, scowling as Tom grimaced.

"...I dunno...sounds pretty serious..."

"Stop making fun of my plan!"

"I'm not!" He laughed, dodging your playful swat at his shoulder. "It's a great plan I'm just worried for ya..."

You just scoffed, crossing your arms and looking out of your window grumpily.

"No but seriously, thanks for doing one for me. S'actually been really useful."

His softer tone made you look way from the window - you couldn't see much besides your own reflection anyway because it was so dark outside - but you still glowered at him.

"What?" he smirked, "I'm being serious!"

You tried to keep up your fake-bad-mood, but it was no use - even in the low light of the car his easy smile was enough to win you over. You sighed exaggeratedly, which only made him smile more.

"You're welcome, I guess."

As Tom stopped the car at a red light, you thought through your plan in your head, trying to work out where you could fit in the extra topic. You thought if you did a few extra hours tomorrow you should be fine, so it would actually work out well if you went into the library earlier. Plus you'd be able to get a good spot - at this time of year the good spaces would all be gone by 10am. The only problem was you didn't have any stuff with you.

"Do you mind if we stop by mine first so I can pick up some stuff?"

"'Course," Tom nodded, pausing when he realised your house was in the complete opposite direction. "Uh..."

Raising his hand apologetically in his rearview mirror, he pulled a possibly illegal move when the light changed, making a quick detour to your house. It wasn't too far away though, so it wasn't long before you were pulling up outside your front door. You got a nice view of his profile when he twisted in his seat to look back while he parked, and his hand on the back of your headrest made him feel even closer to you than he actually was, so all in all it was a pleasant experience.

"Sorry about this," you muttered as you lead the way into your house and up the stairs to your room.

"No worries."

After depositing Tom in your desk chair, you grabbed a bag from the back of your door to quickly chuck stuff into. Just the essentials - your pill, a change of clothes, more revision stuff, deodorant, a couple of pairs of (cute) knickers, plus a little bag of make up and skincare bits you gathered together off your desk. You hesitated by your pyjama drawer but decided you'd just borrow Tom's instead of bringing your own - they were way comfier, after all.

Half an hour later you were dressed in said pyjamas on Tom's bed, tucking into a steaming bowl of Super Noodles and watching Spirited Away. To Tom's credit, the movie was actually quite relaxing - and you managed to see most of it, which was a first. There were a few bits about halfway through that you missed because your attention was more focused on Tom's lips on yours, but nothing went further than his hand up the front of your shirt or yours down the back of his sweatpants because in all honesty, you were both just too tired and snuggly for anything more than a leisurely boob/bum fondle.

By the end of the movie you were lying with your head on Tom's chest, struggling to keep your eyes open.

"That was good, good choice," you murmured, stifling a yawn. "Need to go brush my teeth and stuff."

You expected at least a sleepy grunt in reply, but Tom said nothing. You said his name, but still there was no response, just the steady beating of his heart and the even sound of his breathing beneath your cheek. With great effort you pushed yourself upright, twisting to look at him.

Oh.

His head tilted awkwardly to the side, Tom was sound asleep. His lips were parted slightly as he breathed slowly, his glasses askew where they'd slipped down his nose as he slept. If your phone hadn't been charging on the other side of the room, you'd have loved to take a sneaky picture - as it was, you had to make do with a mental photo. You figured you had probably best take his glasses off for him though, just so they didn't get broken. Slowly, carefully so as not to wake him, you pulled the frames off his face. His nose twitched as he stirred slightly, and you paused, frozen. You really had tried not to wake him, but apparently you'd been unsuccessful.

"Sorry," you whispered as his eyelids fluttered open.

"S'okay," he murmured, sighing sleepily as he rubbed his eyes.

Once you'd leaned over him to place his glasses on his bedside table, Tom rolled onto his side, and you suspected he was already asleep again by the time you'd gotten out of bed and turned the TV off. It was, predictably, freezing outside of Tom's bed - but you hadn't made him drive all the way to your house for you to pick up stuff just for you to not use it, so you dragged yourself up the stairs to the bathroom, toiletries bag in hand.

When you returned, face cleansed and teeth minty-fresh, Tom was in the exact same position you'd left him in, fast asleep on his side, facing away from you. You slipped beneath the covers after turning off the lights, sighing appreciatively at the warmth that immediately engulfed your body as you lay down, pulling the duvet up under your chin. You lay on your side, a few inches between you and Tom as you debated your next move. The last few times you'd shared a bed, you'd either fallen asleep on him or with him spooning you - now that you thought about it, he'd never fallen asleep first. Even that first time you stayed over, you'd fallen asleep with your back to him - admittedly because you actually couldn't think of a single thing to say after you'd kissed, so after you'd just stared at each other in the half-light for what felt like an eternity you just smiled sleepily and rolled over to sleep.

But that was then. It was different now; by now you'd spent two nights as close to him as was humanly possible, waking up each morning with his chest to your back and his arm around your waist, legs tucked in behind yours and face buried in your neck. It seemed only sensible, then, that you should return the favour. So, you shuffled closer until your bent knees slotted in behind his, wrapping your arm around his waist and resting your hand on his stomach. You weren't quite sure what to do with your other arm, trapped between your bodies and the bed, but you were too warm and snuggly and sleepy to care too much about it.

You woke up the next morning to the alarm on Tom's phone going off, blaring out some repetitive ringtone from his bedside table. You'd had to reposition at some point in the night when your right arm had gone completely dead, but when you'd turned over onto your other side Tom had turned with you, so you were still cuddled up together.

Rolling over to face him as he twisted to silence his alarm, you blearily opened one eye. You just grumbled as Tom lay back down on his back, sleepily rubbing his eyes.

"I'm gonna go shower," he yawned.

"Mmmkay," you nodded, stifling a yawn of your own. "I'll get up in a sec."

Tom yawned some more as he got out of bed, and though he did set the duvet back down where he'd been laying it was too late, the cold had already gotten in. Your personal heater no longer in situ, you grumbled again, rolling back over and wrapping the duvet tighter around yourself. You really were going to get up soon - even if you weren't going to shower you'd still probably take longer to get ready once you put some make up on, and you didn't want to make Tom late for work. Still, you could just close your eyes for a moment...

Somehow a moment turned into several moments, and you must have fallen back to sleep, because you woke up ten minutes later when Tom's bedroom door slammed shut behind him when he came back from his shower, wearing a dressing gown and a towel around his shoulders catching drips from his wet hair.

"Hey," he kept his voice low as your eyes blinked open. "Do you want a coffee or anything?"

You shook your head, making a humming noise that you hoped sounded like "nuh uh".

"Are you gonna get up?"

You nodded, humming again - this time in a more affirmative tone.

"You can just stay here and work here if you want?"

You shook your head again, but this time you made the effort to use actual words - even if only to try and convince Tom that you were awake (you could work on convincing yourself later).

"No, I'll-" you paused to yawn, sitting up in the bed. "I'll get up."

Sitting up was a start, but that was about as far as you got, sitting and staring into space while Tom got his work clothes out. You half-watched him put his boxers on under his dressing gown, and your eyes focused a bit more once he took it off altogether - but all too soon he was covered up in jeans and one of his signature too-tight t shirts, and without that to keep your mind active you were sleepy again.

"You're not getting up, are you?" Tom laughed, standing by the side of the bed and looking down at you.

You pouted, frowning. You really did mean to, honestly, but here you were still in bed and Tom looked like he was almost ready to leave. It wasn't even 8am, and you could already tell it was going to be cold and miserable outside, and the more you thought about it the less you wanted to get up.

"Do you mind?" you slipped back down the bed, pulling the covers up to your chin.

Tom shook his head, droplets of water from his still damp hair splattering on your face and making you grimace.

"Sorry - 'course not. Just go back to sleep and then work here."

It sounded reasonable enough - hopefully you wouldn't be as distracted as you were when you tried to work at your own house because you didn't have any of your stuff there, so you couldn't procrastinate by tidying your room or something like that.

"...okay, fine." you sighed, turning onto your side and wrapping yourself up in the duvet again.

Already half asleep the moment your head hit the pillow, you listened to Tom pottering around his room for a minute or so before he said your name.

"Hmm?"

"I need to dry my hair."

You groaned exaggeratedly, pulling the covers up over your head in response. You heard him laughing for a second before the sound of the hairdryer drowned him out - though to his credit, it was only for a minute and then he was done. Poking your head back out of the covers, you watched him sit on the edge of his bed to put his shoes on.

"'Kay so...I gotta go..."

You nodded, not sure what to say. It felt a little strange, him leaving you alone in his house.

"So uh... Haz and Adam are here but they'll be asleep, but I'll text them and tell them not to come in and bother you."

"Thanks," you nodded again - in all honesty you'd forgotten about his housemates, so it was a good job Tom mentioned them - even if it did make it feel even weirder, being left alone with them somewhere in the house. "What time do you finish?"

"Half two," Tom got to his feet, getting his stuff together. "Be back by three."

"Cool." You didn't really know what else to say other than that, and you were still half asleep so more words wasn't really an option.

"So, uh...bye..."

"Bye," you smiled sleepily as Tom leant down and pressed a kiss to your forehead, smiling back at you before he left the room.

You sighed contentedly as his bedroom door shut behind him, and you barely even registered the front door open and shut before you were sound asleep again.

Thankfully, when you woke up a little while later you felt much more alive. You had a text from Tom when you checked your phone, explaining which cupboard and which shelf in the fridge were his and that you could eat whatever you could find. You could hear movement in the living room next door, though, and you didn't particularly want to meet anyone just yet - especially Adam, because you didn't really know him. Though, maybe it would be worse if it was Harrison because you did know him - either way, you decided to wait for now.

With great effort you got out of bed, deciding to get dressed and ready to make yourself more presentable for when you did leave the room - and to make yourself feel more productive. After dressing in an outfit that was remarkably similar to the one you wore the day before, putting on some make up, and opening the curtains and making Tom's bed, you took the plunge and hurried upstairs to the bathroom. You managed to get in and pee and brush your teeth without bumping into anyone, but you were pretty sure you heard noise in the kitchen on your way past so you decided to avoid that for now.

You set yourself up at Tom's desk, getting all your stuff out of your bag and spreading it across the surface. There wasn't an awful lot of stuff in Tom's room, just the standard furniture you assumed was provided by his landlord plus his TV and PlayStation, but he did have a few bits and pieces on his desk - deodorant, two bottles of Versace The Dreamer (one almost empty and one unopened), a tube of moisturiser, and three different hair products were all clustered together in one corner, while a neat stack of dvds and video games sat in the opposite corner. Cute.

You didn't manage to get too far into work before your tummy started to rumble, though, and that combined with the fact that your brain was struggling to function without coffee meant that you had to accept that you were going to have to finally bite the bullet and go out in search of sustenance. You hovered by the door, listening hard for any signs of life on the ground floor - and, hearing none, you made a break for it.

The coast was clear as you peeked around the doorway into the kitchen, so you made your way in to look through the cupboard Tom had told you was his. Among packets of noodles and tubs of protein powder was a loaf of bread that looked like it would be edible, so that was a start. You popped two slices in the toaster and boiled the kettle - Tom had offered you a coffee so there had to be some around there somewhere, right?

You were just grabbing a mug from the cupboard above the sink when two startling things happened at once: a) the toaster popped rather more aggressively than you were expecting, and b) a voice behind you said your name. As a result you dropped your mug in the sink - which, luckily for you was half full of dirty dish water, so instead of smashing the mug just bobbed on top, a rather unappetising tide mark now decorating the ceramic in addition to the 'UNT' text printed on the side (which you hadn't actually noticed before. How tasteful.)

"Holy shit," you breathed, looking over your shoulder to see Harrison standing in the doorway. "Don't do that!"

"Don't do what?" he laughed. "You're the one suddenly in my kitchen."

Heart hammering in your chest, you rolled your eyes as you attempted to regain your composure.

"Now I've lost my mug," you sighed, turning back to the sink.

"That's actually my mug," Harrison corrected as he reached past you to take out another from the cupboard. "But those aren't my dishes so I will not be touching that."

Fabulous.

You just nodded, stepping aside and pulling open drawers to look for a knife to spread the Nutella you'd found in Tom's cupboard onto your toast. Harrison pulled out yet another mug - for a house with no glasses there was certainly no shortage of mugs - and set it beside your plate.

"That's one of Tom's so you may as well use it."

"Cheers."

It was actually not that awkward as you both made your breakfasts - Harrison made you a coffee while he was doing his own, and you only bumped into him once when you were putting the Nutella back in the cupboard and he was going to put the milk back in the fridge.

You left the kitchen together, and you were planning on retreating to Tom's room to get back to work when he started talking again, leading the way into the living room and sprawling out across one of the sofas.

"So, how's it going? You're welcome, by the way."

You hovered in the doorway for a moment, mug in one hand and plate in the other, but Harrison was looking at you expectantly as he munched away on his cereal so you figured you may as well eat breakfast with him. You hadn't seen him in a while anyway, now that your joint assignment was finished and with it being Christmas break. But then you absolutely had to get back to work.

"Oh, uh," you started as you sat on the opposite sofa. "Yeah. Alright."

"Alright?" He prompted you for a more in depth answer, but you'd just taken a big bite of your toast so you wouldn't have to say anything else, so all you did was hum in response.

"Mmhmm."

Harrison rolled his eyes, but in a surprisingly tactful move he actually took the hint and changed the subject. You sat and chatted for a while, and he was telling you about the true crime documentary he'd watched the night before when your mind began to wander.

"...so they go into the neighbour's house right, and holy shit, right, I'm talking like proper serial killer shit, like wall-to-wall-"

"Wait, what did you mean 'you're welcome'?"

"Like even the bathroom was- what? Oh," he scoffed. "I set you up with Tom."

"...did you?"

"Uh, yes? I gave you each other's numbers."

You chuckled, frowning as you tried to think it through. Harrison had given you Tom's number, that was true, but you hadn't even used it. Tom didn't even know you had it, you'd just started talking on Snapchat and then you gave him your number when you switched to text. But Harrison said he gave you each other's numbers, so did that mean Tom had your number the entire time?

You just hummed, deciding this wasn't the time to discuss it, nor the person you wanted to discuss it with.

"Right. So, sorry, what was in the bathroom?"

"Ugh," Harrison groaned, setting his empty bowl down on the coffee table and picking up his mug of coffee instead. "You're so annoying, d'you know that? Both of you - I still haven't forgiven either of you for leaving me on read before Christmas."

"What?" You frowned again, scoffing when you realised what he was talking about - the emoji texts. "Oh, well what were we supposed to say to that? Like, 'yeah, just finished actually, cheers for asking'?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Harrison shrugged. "So you're sleeping with him, then?"

"Uhh, I-" your mouth hung open, your mind drawing a blank as you scrambled to come up with a response. You assumed Tom had told him because they were best friends, right? Had you just put your foot in it? Shit shit shit -- well, no, you were there, wearing his hoodie, clearly having stayed over the night before - it was pretty obvious, right? Though to be fair, you hadn't done anything last night, so it was possible that you weren't sleeping together, better play it safe--

"That's none of your business."

"Ugh," he sighed again, clearly exasperated at the lack of intel he was getting from you. "Lame."

"Anyway, how's it going with Liv?" you asked pointedly.

Harrison raised his eyebrows at you and took a long, looong sip of his coffee before replying.

"That's none of your business."

You stared at him aghast as he got to his feet, walking past you and out into the hall without another word. You followed him into the kitchen, dumping your plate next to his bowl on the counter.

"Lame."

He just scowled at you as he passed you, presumably going back up to his room. As irritating as that was, you supposed you did deserve it, having just done the exact same thing to him. In any case, it was past time you and your coffee got to work, anyway.

Once you got going you actually ended up having a pretty productive day - you got far more done than you thought you would have, and the lecture notes you'd found last minute turned out to be pretty useless anyway, so your plan wasn't messed up too much.

By the time Tom got back from work you were nearly done for the day. He brought you back a vanilla latte (in a travel mug so it was still hot), plus the sandwich and cake you sometimes bought from his work when you'd forgotten to bring lunch from home (a.k.a 90% of the time you eat lunch on campus because you never remembered to bring lunch from home unless Liv made it for you). You got to eat lunch with him, then, but he had some work to do so you only took a little break before moving to his bed to finish up your flashcards so that he could have his desk back.

You'd noticed a game in the stack on Tom's desk that you'd been playing with your cousins over Christmas break, so once you finished your work you asked Tom if you could play while he worked - you needed something to entertain you, after all. He set up a new profile for you, before getting back to revising - he had to put earphones in so he could focus, which you did feel a bit bad about, but he promised he didn't mind.

Almost two hours passed in comfortable silence, except for the sound of your game and the occasional burst of TV laughter or voices coming from the living room next door. Tom helped you out on your game a few times while he was taking a study break, other times he just watched you play. By the time he was finished for the evening, spinning his desk chair around to face you with a dramatic sigh, it was long since dark, the curtains once again pulled shut.

"You done?" you asked, glancing over at him but not wanting to take your eyes off the screen for too long because you were at a crucial point in the game.

"Yep."

"Okay..." you trailed off, your focus shifting back and forth between Tom and the game. "Two minutes..."

He didn't seem to mind anyway, just spinning his chair back around and scooting closer to the end of the bed to watch the screen. You could see him looking over at you every now and then out of the corner of your eye, but you were too intent on finishing what you were doing. Thankfully, though, it didn't take long before you were done, setting the controller down on the bed once you'd saved.

"Okay, hello."

Tom scooted his chair around to face you where you sat cross-legged on the end of his bed, taking his glasses off and setting them down beside the controller.

"Hi," he smiled, resting his hands on your knees as you wrapped your arms around his neck. "You have a good day?"

"Yeah, actually. Didn't get off to the best start..." You narrowed your eyes at him when he gave you a look that plainly said 'you might say that, yeah'. "-shut up. But I was actually very productive, thank you very much. What about you?"

Features relaxing back into an easy smile, he nodded.

"Alright, yeah."

"How was work?"

"Eh, work was...work," he shrugged. "Would've rather stayed in bed with you."

You nibbled on your lower lip, biting back a smile as he moved his hands further up your thighs.

"How about that stuff?" you asked, jerking your head in the direction of his desk.

"Yeah, alright," Tom nodded again. "Think I'm gonna be ready for next week."

"That's good," you murmured, your fingers toying with the curls at the nape of his neck as you talked.

"Yeah - you?"

"Mmhmm, yeah." In all honestly you had been a little stressed, but that was to be expected, and hearing Tom refer to exam week as next week was a little alarming, but overall you were feeling pretty good. As prepared as you could be, and uni work aside you were...happy, really. "Yeah, I'm good."

"Good."

With that, Tom leaned forward and pressed a kiss to your lips - and then another, and then another. Your grip on his hair grew tighter as his lips prised yours apart gently, his hands continuing their way up your thighs until they were on your waist -- and then all of a sudden you were on your back and he was on top of you, your legs wrapped around his waist and his tongue eagerly exploring your mouth (well, you had been there almost 24 hours now, so it was about damn time).

He'd just turned his attention away from your lips and to your neck, pulling your hoodie aside to kiss the sensitive skin below you ear, when a thought popped into your head. Why these things always seemed to come to you when you were in the middle of Stuff, you did not know, but it was there now and it didn't seem like it was going away any time soon.

"Hey, so I was talking to Harrison this morning..."

Tom just hummed against your neck, seemingly waiting for you to finish your sentence before properly replying - which was fair enough, really, his mouth was preoccupied.

"He said he gave you my number."

"Uhh," he paused, kissing your collar bone. "Yeah, I guess he did."

"So when I gave you my number," you pressed on, though he was making it hard to concentrate. "You already had it, but you pretended you didn't?"

He laughed against your skin at that, a breathy chuckle that tickled your neck before he sat up to see your face.

"Maybe? You had mine too, though."

Your hands dropped from his hair to his shoulders, holding him away from you to stop him going back to kissing your neck.

"You knew I had your number?" you gasped, an incredulous smirk on your lips.

"Yeah, but, I didn't - I didn’t know if you wanted it or if Haz just gave it to you... and I couldn't just text you randomly like, what if you didn't want me to have your number?"

You frowned slightly, your smile fading into an expression of genuine confusion.

"Why wouldn't I want you to have my number?"

"I dunno," Tom mumbled. He wasn't looking directly at you anymore, he was looking somewhere around your right shoulder instead. "I didn't, I dunno, know if you were... into me...like that."

Oh.

Your body relaxed, your smile returning as you brought your hands back up to his hair, rubbing his earlobe with your thumb gently.

"I was." His eyes shifted back to yours, and you laughed nervously. "I mean, I still am."

"Yeah?" he smiled, one corner of his lips hitching up higher than the other.

"Yeah," you nodded - as if the idea of you being anything other than into him was absurd.

"Cool."

You smiled against his lips as he leaned down to kiss you, and you could feel that he was too - until he pulled back at the last second.

"Oh same, by the way-"

You pulled him closer to cut him off, laughing when he carried on talking into the kiss.

"-just in case-"

"Yeah, I got it," you murmured, cutting him off with a more forceful kiss.

Keeping one hand in his hair, you moved the other down over his back and tucked it into the back pocket of his jeans. You grabbed his bum through the denim, pulling him closer as your legs tangled together. Grinding against each other, Tom went back to kissing your neck as your body curved towards his.

You felt his arms wrap around your body as he moved to switch places - with one hand on the small of your back and the other between your shoulder blades he rolled you both over until you were on top of him. Straddling his hips, your chest pressed to his as your hands steadied yourself either side of his head. You ground down onto him, feeling him hardening through his jeans.

He grunted softly into your mouth as his hands pulled you closer - one on the back of your neck and one moving across your back, over your bum and coming to rest in a firm grip on the back of your thigh. You melted into his touch, your body responding to his instinctually. Heavy breaths and soft moans passed between your lips, nothing else except the menu music from your game and the dull drone of the TV next door filling the room.

You squeaked against his lips when he squeezed your bum roughly with both hands, before pushing up the sides of your hoodie and t shirt. You sat up enough to let him pull them both off over your head, holding his face in your hands as you leaned back down over him. His lips back on yours, Tom reached around your back to unhook your bra before flipping you back over onto your back. He tugged off his t shirt while you did the same with your bra, both soon tossed aside.

You sighed as he began kissing down your chest, your fingers brushing through his hair as he kissed between your breasts. His hands had just moved to the waistband of your leggings, poised to pull them down, when booming laughter echoed from the living room through the wall behind your head. Your breathing hitched and your eyes went wide as it dawned on you that while you were lying on Tom's bed, half-naked, his two housemates were probably less than two meters away, only a thin wall between the head of Tom's bed and the back of the living room sofa.

"Can we, like," you laughed awkwardly, your face heating up at the thought of them overhearing anything. "...put the TV on or something?"

"Yeah, 'course," Tom's tone echoed yours as he crawled off you, reaching for the controller at the end of the bed.

You sat up and wiggled out of your leggings while he switched apps to Netflix, putting on a random episode of Friends before getting up and setting the controller down by the TV. He paused for a moment, then turned the volume up a few levels before turning back to you.

"Thanks," you smiled, grateful for the background noise of Central Perk.

Tom climbed back on the bed, and was almost back kneeling over you when another thought occurred to you.

"Is your door locked?"

Tom opened his mouth to say something, closed it again, looked over at the door, and then sighed before getting up and locking it.

"Now it is."

You just smiled appreciatively, shuffling over to meet him where he now sat on the edge of his bed. Threading your fingers through his hair, you tilted his face to yours to kiss him - softly at first, though it quickly grew more needy. He twisted his body towards yours as his arms looped around your waist, your hand trailing down his bare chest to unbutton his jeans. Guiding your body down so that you were on your back again, Tom kissed along your jawline while you palmed his cock through his boxers. You giggled breathily as he sucked on your skin when you gave his balls a (gentle) squeeze, your laugh morphing into a moan when he dipped his hand inside your underwear, his fingers just brushing over your clit before he pushed one inside you. Pulling down the waistband of his boxers, you wrapped your hand around his length as his finger slid in and out of you, his palm rubbing against your clit with each movement. His lips traveled down your neck and shoulder, kissing and sucking the tops of your breasts as you worked his cock. Both his and your movements began to speed up, your breathing growing heavier and more laboured -- until the mattress started to creak beneath you.

You hadn't noticed it last time, safe in the knowledge that you were home alone - but now, with Harrison and Adam in the next room, you were hyper-aware of every sound.

"Wait," you breathed, placing a halting hand on Tom's chest. "D'you hear that?"

He sighed heavily, dropping his head to rest against your shoulder.

"Sorry," he mumbled against your skin, before pulling back to take his hand from between your thighs, sitting back on his heels and looking around the room. "Erm, I guess we could...go...on the floor...?"

You shuffled up the bed out from under him, your arms instinctively crossing over your bare chest as you peered down at the floor to inspect the carpet. You'd seen worse, admittedly, but you didn't particularly want to put your bare arse on it, either.

Your thoughts were evidently written on your face, because Tom said hopefully:

"I can put a towel down?"

"Sure," you laughed. Why not, eh?

You grabbed a condom from the top drawer of Tom's bedside table as he got up to get a towel from inside his wardrobe, shuffling to the end of his bed to wait while he laid it down on the floor.

Eyebrows raised, Tom grinned at you as he gestured to the towel once it was laid out between the foot his bed and his desk, pushing his chair aside with his foot.

"Perfect," you laughed, standing up as Tom took off the rest of his clothes and wrapping your arms around his shoulders once they lay abandoned on the chair. "Sorry."

"S'okay," he shook his head with a smile, placing his hands gently on your waist. "I don't really want them to...hear anything either."

Your eyes fluttering shut as you kissed, you wobbled a little as you both dropped to your knees, and you felt his cock press against your hip as you went. It felt a little bizarre - kneeling on a towel in the middle of Tom's bedroom, you in just your knickers and him completely naked - but at least you didn't have to worry about the bed making noises, and you were much further away from the living room in general now, so all in all you decided it was better.

You weren't too sure where to go next, but thankfully Tom took the lead, his hand making its way back between your thighs and into your underwear. His fingers sliding between your folds, you took a deep, shaky breath in and out as he started to play with your clit. Your tongue worked with his as you kissed, your hands resting on his shoulders to steady yourself as you parted your legs further to let him push two fingers inside you. You moaned into his mouth as he curled and uncurled his fingers, his fingertips brushing over That Spot inside you. You almost whimpered when he suddenly pulled his hand away, but once you realised it was just to take your underwear off you scrambled to help - you forgot you were even on the floor of his bedroom, all you cared about was getting that contact back.

His fingers teased your entrance once you got back to your knees, making you lean in to murmur in his ear.

"Do that again," you paused -for dramatic effect- to press a kiss to the edge of his jaw. "-please."

You heard him breathe out a chuckle, but he did as you asked and slipped two of his fingers back inside you again. You hummed appreciatively as he curled them inside you, just like he did before - only this time, he didn't uncurl them fully, just moved his fingertips back and forth over That Spot. You did you best to carry on kissing his neck, but you were having trouble focusing on anything other than the warm tightness building deep in your abdomen, so you were essentially just pressing your open mouth to his neck as his fingers continued to work inside you. Your walls beginning to clench around his digits, your nails dug into his skin as you tried to steady yourself with your hands on his shoulders. Your hips jerked as you felt yourself getting closer and closer until your eyes scrunched shut and you had to bury your face in the crook of his neck, pressing your lips against his shoulder to keep yourself from moaning out loud when he began to rub firm circles on your clit. Your thighs tensed around his wrist as you started to come, but he continued his movements all the same, drawing out the full length of your orgasm until your body finally relaxed, your lips lazily resuming their work of scattering kisses across his collar bone.

You sighed against his skin as his hands moved to your waist, guiding your movements. You both shifted, albeit a little jerkily on your part, until you were straddling his thighs, his legs stretched out in front of him as he reached for the condom where you'd left it on the floor beside you. You watched intently as he rolled it onto his length, nibbling on your lower lip as you eyed his nimble fingers.

Once the wrapper was tossed aside, you got to your knees once more, replacing his hand with your own to line his cock up with your entrance. Arms stretched out behind him to prop himself up, Tom leant back as he watched you lower yourself down onto him. You pressed your lips together as you placed your hands back on his shoulders to anchor yourself, closing your eyes as you felt him filling you up.

Rolling your hips slowly, you adjusted to the feeling of him inside you. Tom just watched you, that easy smile on his lips as his eyes trawled up and down your body. You arched your back slightly, sticking your chest out as you slowly started to ride him. He took the not-so-subtle hint, reaching out to touch your breast. He tweaked your nipple between his thumb and forefinger, the palm of his hand warm against your skin as he kneaded your breast firmly.

As if on autopilot, your hands weaved their way into his hair, your fingers tugging gently to tilt his head up so you could kiss him. Your movements were slow, purposeful - Tom thrust up into you occasionally, but he mostly let you take control, your hips grinding steadily against his. And while it felt good, and every now and again you felt his cock nudge That Spot inside you, it wasn't long before you found yourself wanting more.

You shifted your rhythm, your movements growing faster with jerk of your hips. Your forehead resting against his, you looked down between your bodies, watching the muscles in Tom's abdomen tense as he began to match your thrusts. His hand moved from your breast to grip your waist, guiding your movements. Better, but not quite it.

"Hang on," you muttered, your hips slowing once more.

"Hmm?"

Tom looked up at you through heavy lids, and you couldn't help but kiss him then, your hands on his face pulling him closer. His tongue explored your mouth eagerly, and you began to roll your hips again instinctively - which reminded you of what it was you actually wanted to do, so you reluctantly pulled back far enough to murmur against his lips.

"Can we...reposition?"

You felt him laugh against your lips before he replied.

"Sure," he mumbled back, matching your low tone. "What did you have in mind?"

"Uh..." You paused, debating how to say it - or whether to say it at all, or just do it and hope he caught on. So far he seemed bright enough, you reasoned, so you decided to just go for it. "Like..."

Tom slipped out of you as you got to your knees and climbed out of his lap, turning away from him. You looked back over your shoulder at him to check he was following before you bent over - he was, already getting to his knees, so you continued. You felt so very exposed, then, on all fours on the floor, feeling cool air on every single inch of your skin - literally, e v e r y w h e r e. It wasn't for long though, because after a second you felt Tom positioning himself behind you, his hands warm on your waist.

Rubbing the tip of his cock along the length of your pussy first, he pushed inside you with a quiet grunt that you just about heard over the TV. Any awkwardness or uncomfortableness you felt was quickly forgotten as he bottomed out, and you remembered exactly why you wanted to switch positions.

"Better?" he asked quietly as he began to thrust into you.

"Mmmhmmmmm-"

Your hum of confirmation became distorted as you felt his cock hit That Spot inside you. Moaning under your breath, you moved to meet his thrusts, feeling him hitting deep inside you each time. His hands gripped your hips, pulling you back towards him and keeping your movements in time with his.

Another knot of pleasure was twisting inside you already, your clit starting to throb with every thrust. You dropped down onto your elbows heavily, reaching down with one hand to touch yourself. Your fingers rubbing over your clit, you pressed your lips tight together to stop yourself from moaning aloud. Somewhere above you you heard Tom swear under his breath, his movements speeding up as he fucked into you harder and faster while your fingers on your clit pushed you closer and closer to the edge. You arched your back as he gripped your hips tighter, pulling you up and back onto his cock again and again until you let out a muffled moan as you came, your legs trembling as Tom ground against That Spot inside you while your fingers continued to work your clit.

Your fingers slowed as he pulled out suddenly, pressing a kiss to your shoulder. On shaky legs you got to your knees and turned over, letting out a surprised squeak against Tom's lips when he cupped your face firmly and kissed you hard. Your brain, pleasantly hazy, was slow to catch up, but your body responded for you. You wrapped your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist as he laid you down on your back, easing back inside you.

You almost started to giggle as he kissed your neck, his hair tickling your cheek, until he started thrusting into you again and you were anything but laughing.

"Oh fuck," you whimpered, your head tilting back and your eyes squeezing shut as Tom's hips snapped against yours, faster and faster until they came to a stuttering halt, his breath hot on your skin as he came with a heavy groan into the crook of your neck.

Your chest heaving with laboured breaths, you gave another surprised squeak when Tom slipped his hand in between your bodies. You expected him to pull out, spent, but his fingers found your clit instead, and you were so sensitive that he'd barely touched you before you were coming for a third time. Clenching around his cock, your nails digging into his skin as you gripped his shoulders, you kissed him hard to try and stifle the moans that were desperate to spill from your lips as he worked you through your orgasm again.

"Holy shit," you breathed once you pulled apart. You wiggled and squirmed beneath him, the feeling of his fingertips on your clit suddenly far too intense once your body began to relax - but with him on top of you, your knees hitched up either side of his hips, there wasn't a lot you could do about it. Tom chuckled against your lips, but graciously moved his hand away to hold your waist instead.

"Thanks," you sighed, smiling. "Too much of a good thing, you know."

Tom chuckled at that, nodding sagely.

"That was, uh..." you trailed off, unsure of how to finish that sentence. Fun? Good? Nice? None of those seemed fitting, so you just smiled and nodded instead. "Yeah."

"I agree," Tom chuckled again, looking up at your fingers as you pushed his hair back off his forehead, ever-so-slightly damp with sweat.

"...I think I would like to get off the floor, though."

"Oh shit, yeah, 'course-"

Tom helped you up once he'd gotten to his feet, and after a quick scan of the room you found some of your clothes. Extracting your t shirt out from inside Tom's hoodie, you pulled it over your head while he sorted out the condom - and as you were putting your knickers back on, you caught a glimpse of the TV.

"Aw, I love this episode."

"Ah yeah-" Tom looked over his shoulder at the screen while putting his own underwear back on. "Classic."

You knew you needed to go and pee, and besides that things just generally felt a little...stickier than you would like, but right then you'd much rather have sat in bed and watched 'The One Where Ross is Fine' than put clothes on to scurry upstairs to the loo while hoping you didn't bump into either of Tom's housemates on the way. Tom must have seen you hesitating, hovering at the end of the bed like you were about to sit down, because he laughed and asked if you wanted to restart the episode.

"Do you want to go to the bathroom first?" he asked after you nodded.

You just nodded once more, and he laughed again.

"Go on, then; I'll restart."

Of course, by the time you came back downstairs feeling much fresher and looking slightly more presentable, wearing clean underwear along with Tom's hoodie and his pyjama bottoms, you'd realised you were starving. So, it was over an hour and a half later when you actually settled down to watch Ross drunkenly forget about his fajitas, having made and eaten dinner with Tom and Harrison - who, if he had heard anything untoward through the living room walls, had seemingly decided not to bring it up. You were grateful if that was the case, of course, but it seem pretty unlike him not to bring something like that up, so you reasoned that he probably hadn't heard anything at all, which made it much easier for you to relax and enjoy your baked potato.

"I should probably go home," you yawned as the last scene faded out, the countdown to the next episode flashing up on the screen in its place.

"Why?"

Tom's voice sounded so innocent, so genuinely questioning as you sat up on his bed, that you couldn't help but think that actually, that was a pretty good point - why did you need to go home?

"I...need to shower?"

"You can shower here."

Excellent counter argument, to be fair.

"I...have a lecture tomorrow?"

"Me too, I can drive us in."

Solid rebuttal. You looked between Tom and the TV - the countdown was already down to 5 seconds, and you couldn't think of any other reasons besides the fact that you kind of needed to poop, and you weren't quite ready to do that at his house yet, but you'd rather not tell him that so you were left with little choice but to sigh, shrug your shoulders, and say okay.

It would come to you the next morning, when you went to get dressed after your shower and realised you'd run out of clean underwear, that you hadn't really brought enough clothes with you to stay for two nights, but for tonight you were content to rest your head back on his shoulder and let the next episode play.

⋘TEN | TWELVE ⋙

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[heyyyharry]

Chapter 12: Ex’s And Oh’s

(from the My Girl Trilogy: Be My Only)

…in which their relationship is no longer a secret.

AU: actor!Harry, older!Harry, younger!Y/N, (4-year age gap).

Chapter 11: When The Morning Comes - Harry has a special surprise for his girl.

Wattpad link

A/N: I was going to include some flashbacks, but I thought they would fit the next chapter more so I decided to save them for the next chapter. Enjoy!

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Y/N still couldn't believe this was real. It seemed like it'd only been yesterday that she and Celine had been two little girls dreaming of growing up, now here they were, at Celine's wedding. Twelve years had passed like a beautiful daydream.

The ceremony was held by the lake behind their secondary school. On that sultry day in mid-July, the lake was as flat as a giant mirror and the air was pungent with the fragrance of jasmine. The last time Y/N had been here was with Harry for their first date, so now she was trying not to think about the events of that night while being surrounded by Celine's and Amala's family.

Before the ceremony, Celine had insisted that she and Y/N got ready together. They'd done each other's makeup and put flowers in each other's hair like when they were little. And Y/N had cried a lot despite having told herself not to shed a tear before the 'I do's. Celine had tried to comfort her, but in the end, both of them were crying.

Nine-year-old Celine had wanted to become an actress, and nine-year-old Y/N had wanted to marry the boy next door. Even though that dream didn't come true for Celine, she had found her new dream in Amala. Now Y/N couldn't help but wonder if it would be the same for her. She hoped she was a different case, because she couldn't imagine standing at the altar with anyone else but the boy next door named Harry.

With wind in her hair and a smile on her face, she looked around, at the dresses and the suits and the faces of the attentive guests. If Harry had been there, he would've been watching her instead of the brides, and she would've motioned him to stop staring, knowing for certain that he wouldn't.

But Harry wasn't there. Instead, she spotted another familiar face at the third row across the aisle. Isaac pressed his lips into a small smile and waved at her as she did the same. With his golden hair pushed back, he shone among the guests, and she thought that blue suit looked great on him. It was a shade darker than the color of his eyes but it helped brighten them, and even from this distance, she could see those eyes sparkle in the last pink light of the day.

It was hard to tell if he'd been watching her this whole time, or they had just made eye contact by accident. However, she didn't allow herself to overthink. She was just glad that he'd decided to come.

"...with the joining of hands and the giving and receiving of rings, I now pronounce you, partners for life."

All the guests got up for a standing ovation, and petals were tossed in the air as everyone was cheering for them. Breaking the kiss, Celine enthusiastically told all the bridesmaids to take a couple of steps back. This was definitely Y/N's favorite part of a wedding. Although she wasn't going to participate, she still wanted to see the single ladies fighting each other for a chance to be the next bride. It would be hilarious.

On the count to three, the bouquet was thrown above them, and all the bridesmaids except for Y/N rushed forward, attempting to grab it. Ironically, it flew straight toward Y/N. She caught it with reflexes so fast that she didn't realize she'd had it in her hand, until one of the girls said, "Y/N is next!" And everyone was clapping and whistling for her.

Holding the flowers and smiling from ear to ear, she turned around, once again, making eye contact with Isaac. Both of them shared another awkward smile before looking away, and didn't exchange a word until the wedding reception.

The night was falling, but the guests hadn't lost their energy. The room which held the wedding reception buzzed with the excited chatter of adults and the laughter of little children running between tables. Soft music was playing while couples were slow dancing near the stage, as were Celine and Amala, who had got lost in their own world with their heads on each other's shoulders. Y/N was one of the few who stayed seated, for she didn't have to be on the dance floor to have fun. She was fine here, with a drink in her hand, observing the others and mumbling the lyrics of the song she knew by heart.

Beauty queen of only eighteen She had some trouble with herself He was always there to help her She always belonged to someone else

"Hey."

The voice grabbed her attention. She looked up, blinking fast as Isaac towered over her and offered his hand.

"Dance with me?"

"Only if you don't mind me stepping on your feet." She beamed.

Shaking his head, the man chuckled. "Let's step on each other's feet then."

I drove for miles and miles And wound up at your door I've had you so many times But somehow, I want more

The last time they had slow-danced together had been at her father's wedding a year ago. Neither of them was good at it, but they had gotten much better since. In the middle of the room, they swayed lightly, not skillfully, but at least they knew what they were doing. Her hands were placed on his shoulders, and his on her waist.

"I love this song," he spoke, breaking the silence between them.

"You know this song?"

"Of course I do."

As if he feared she would not believe him, he started singing along with the wedding singer. His voice was low and soft, almost similar to Harry's singing voice, but at the same time, very distinct. It was strange that she'd never heard it before.

"I love Maroon 5," he confessed with a bashful grin. Y/N should've known that already, but sadly, she didn't. He had never mentioned it until tonight.

So now it was clearer why they hadn't worked out. They didn't know each other as much as they thought they did.

I don't mind spending every day Out on your corner in the pouring rain Look for the girl with the broken smile Ask her if she wants to stay a while And she will be loved And she will be loved

"You've gotten so good, Smiley."

The comment made her chuckle. "At dancing?" she gasped. "God no! I think it's you who's gotten so good that you think it's me. I'm not even comfortable in these heels."

"Oh." The man tilted his head to look at her feet, his brows arching when he saw the Christian Louboutin shoes. He must've known how expensive they were from the first glance since he worked for fashion magazines, with A-list models. A student like her could barely afford her own rent, let alone these shoes. She was glad he didn't ask her how she'd got them.

"If they hurt you, you could just take them off," he said, making her giggle.

"Then I'd be too short for you and it'd probably strain my neck."

Isaac laughed as the girl scrunched up her face. If she'd been honest though, she would've said Harry had bought these for her, and it wouldn't feel right to promise to wear them and then discard them halfway through the wedding reception. She couldn't bring up Harry without making this awkward for them both.

"Are they a gift?"

"From a friend, yeah."

Isaac didn't comment on her vague answer and went on, "they're probably in the wrong size."

"No, they fit perfectly." She shook her head, trying not to sound so defensive. "It's psychological, I think. I'm probably not used to wearing such expensive shoes."

Isaac snorted, saying he understood and then added, "it might be difficult to walk in them now, but as long as the shoes fit you and you love them, you will get used to them."

She knew he was still talking about her shoes, but her mind instantly linked his remark to something else. And now she couldn't stop thinking about it as they kept on dancing, using the music to fill the missing conversations.

And she will be loved...

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Meanwhile, dusk was slowly falling in the city of Paris.

As the street lights clicked on, Harry crossed the Seine and walked right down the centre of the street, not far away laid The Eiffel Tower. Every time he came to Paris, he would just wait until sunset to stroll around the city. Paris looked magnificent at night and he always enjoyed the evening chill more than the warmth of the day.

He used to date a French model, and this was Ruby's second home, so he knew pretty much everything about Paris. But this time, the city of love felt like a stranger. Whenever he was missing someone, all the places he knew so well would become unfamiliar. No matter if it was Paris, London, or even his hometown Holmes Chapel. Without her, everywhere would be foreign.

Walking past a crowd of tourists, he turned up the music playing through his earphones, quickened his pace and a corner of his mouth quirked up as Love Song by Lana Del Rey came on. Before he left, Y/N had made him a playlist so that every time he listened to it, he would think of her. They didn't share the same music taste, but slowly and strangely, these songs began to grow on him, and now he knew all the lyrics and some of them had become his favorites.

What was she doing now? He wondered while waiting for the green pedestrian traffic light. He hoped she was laughing and drinking with her high school friends, and for once didn't have to worry about anything or anyone, even him. But then again, his possessiveness took over, and he couldn't help but fear that she would have too much fun with Isaac. Friends or not, he didn't like to see them together, and that was something he could and had only admitted to himself.

He and Ruby had been a mistake from the start. Isaac and Y/N, were different. Isaac had (maybe still) truly loved Y/N, and she could always go back to him if it didn't work out with Harry. The thought frightened Harry, making him feel like their relationship was hanging by a thread, especially now that a photo of them kissing had got out. It was always the things he couldn't control that hurt him the most. So what if his love wasn't enough to keep her? What if they had to say goodbye when they still had so much love for each other? What would he do with all that love if she was no longer there to receive it? There was no way he could give it to someone else. It would always be her. It had always been her.

He snapped back to reality when a taxi driver cursed him for crossing the road a few seconds too soon. Quickly, he apologized and dashed forward before he got run over. It wouldn't have been right to get through a day in Paris without coming across a grumpy taxi driver. Welcome to France, he thought.

Fifteen minutes later and he was back to his hotel. He had to be on set at 6 AM, therefore, he should go to bed early. The wedding reception would keep Y/N busy, so he might as well have some alone time for himself, even though he'd rather see her face and hear her voice.

But right as he entered his room and shrugged off his jacket, the loud ringtone made his steps falter. He pulled out his phone from his pocket and heaved a long heavy sigh at the name.

Ruby.

He should've blocked her number a long time ago, but then again, he remembered that he'd tried and he couldn't. So he hesitated, staring at the screen while the ringtone kept on playing. Half of him wanted to ignore it, the other half was worried that she might be in trouble.

It had been that way from the start. Her seeking help and him coming for the rescue. He had gone through hell and back for this woman but when would he ever learn?

With a sigh, he picked up, and she greeted him with the breathy sound of his name. "Harry..." she sniffled. He guessed she was three sheets to the wind now. "I need to talk to you. I know I shouldn't be calling you when I'm like this but...fuck...I'm sorry...I just—What does she have that I don't?"

"You're drunk, Rubes," his voice was strained and his eyes squeezed shut as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Hang up the phone and go to sleep."

"Can't..." She chuckled wryly. But right before he could scold at her, she hung up, leaving him startled. Then, there was a knock on his door.

"Harry."

It was Ruby. She was right outside. Harry was agitated as she knocked louder and the called his name more desperately.

When he opened the door, she lost her balance and stumbled forward, thank God he was there to catch her. His arm came circled around her waist and pulled her up before she hit the floor. Kicking the door closed, he helped her stand with her back against it, but she moved closer, attempting to kiss him. He reared back from her in an instant, grabbing her wrist and pushing her away.

"God, you're a fucking psycho," He murmured, taking her upper arm. "Let's go. I'm driving you back to your hotel."

"No!" she screamed, shoving his chest back. Anger crossed his face as he caught her arm again. The helpless look in her bloodshot eyes instantly brought him back to their first night together. In only a matter of seconds, the memories flashed before his eyes, freezing him to the spot.

He saw them sitting in a bar. It was 3 AM, and she refused to go home. Her boyfriend at the time had never hurt her the way her stepfather had when she was sixteen, but his words had hit like a fist. As someone who had been physically abused since she was so young, she'd grown used to physical pain. There had been a period when she'd been addicted to inflicting pain on herself. People would call her brave for surviving, but little did they knew, it was the unseeable wounds caused by those painful memories that killed her every day. She'd seen a few different therapists, but eventually found better comfort in the wrong places — in the drinks and cigarette smoke.

That night a few years back, she had been crying, and he had held her in his arms, and the next thing they knew, they were fucking in his hotel room. For them, sex had never been sensual and slow, it had always been hot, hard and intense. He had thought that if he couldn't have her love, mind-numbing sex would do. But he regretted it now. All of it.

He knew when she came here, she had expected a different ending to their story. But it had begun with alcohol, a distraught Ruby, and sex, so it would just end the same. Only this time with her being drunk and heartbroken. He couldn't give her that one last thing she needed.

"You don't love her...you...you can't..." She shrugged his hand off to claw at her throat and sink to the floor, sitting with her knees to her chest.

"Yes, I do," he said. He hated that he hurt her, but those were the words she needed to hear right now. He just couldn't figure out how to make her understand them.

"You're lying," she trembled, shaking her head nonstop. "You can't love her...She just...She'd been missing from your life for years and then came back out of nowhere and suddenly she's the love of your life?! It doesn't make sense."

"Stop," he warned, still she kept going.

"What does she have that I don't?"

"Don't talk about her."

"She's a fucking child. She doesn't know how to handle you."

"Fuck you! What did I just say?" he finally snapped, his eyes darkened with rage, but it didn't scare Ruby as she pushed herself off the ground and stepped toward him.

"We were perfect together."

She attempted to touch his face, but this time, he grabbed her shoulders and pinned her to the wall. As he looked into her eyes, he felt...nothing. Where there used to be love, which turned to hate, which turned to guilt, then pity, now was just a void. From the consternation swimming in her eyes, he thought she was gradually seeing it through, and if he let go, she might just collapse.

"Being with you was like waiting for a bomb to go off," he began, his voice was brittle and lifeless. "I always felt like I loved you more than you loved me. I loved you so much, so fucking much that I would've died for you, Rubes. I would...I would've died for you..."

"Har—"

"You had a choice and you chose to leave. So now it's time for me to choose. And I choose her."

When Harry finished, he stepped back, letting her go as his arms came down to his sides. Although she managed to stay on her feet, she looked no better than a corpse as she gave him a quivery smile. "So would you die for her?"

"I would live for her," he said. "She saved me."

Ruby couldn't have expected that response, so she just stared at him open-mouthed, stuttering, pallid. She looked at her toes before glancing back up to catch his eye. "I'll go now," was all she could say.

"I could give you a ride."

"No, thank you." She waved him off. "I'll call my chauffeur."

Just like that, she was gone, and he felt a sense of relief as the door fell shut.

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That night, Harry could barely sleep.

He knew he'd done the right thing, and there couldn't have been a better way to cut Ruby off for good. But now that it was over, he was even more alarmed than before. Lying awake and staring at the ceiling, he imagined dark clouds forming above his head, and his intuition told him something bad was about to happen. It was only a matter of time before it did.

And it did.

One of the guests at Celine's wedding had posted a photo of Isaac and Y/N slow dancing at the wedding reception. The person had tagged Isaac because she or he had easily recognized 'the famous photographer'. Isaac had fans, many of which were Harry's too. And one should never underestimate the power of social media. It took only one second to share a post and ruin someone's life. By morning, the photo and many theories had surfaced the internet as some people had discovered that Y/N was the same girl he'd kissed at his birthday party.

It was during his lunch break that his manager texted him about 'the new photos'. He hadn't gone on the Internet for two days so he didn't know what Jeff was talking about. But now it finally dawned on him that 'the new photos' was the reason his co-stars had been treating him differently. They had been nicer than usual, and he had been too ignorant to notice.

Scanning his eyes around the room, he began to feel on edge as if all the surrounding whisperings were about him. The many disembodied voices were penetrating in his ears, so he snuck through the fire exit door and found himself sitting on the staircase, checking his phone. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so afraid to go online, for he wasn't new to the toxicity of the internet. Still, it wasn't just him this time. He'd also dragged Y/N into this mess.

There wasn't just one, but five different photos of them at his birthday party, taken from the same angle as the one that got leaked a while ago. But these were in much better quality. Harry could only scroll down to the fifth comment on the post of the update account, when he began to feel dizzy. Some assumed Y/N was cheating on Isaac with him. Some suspected that Y/N was just another one-night stand. But the majority believed that she was using him.

For them, Harry Styles, the man who had stolen somebody else's fiancée and never had a relationship that lasted more than a couple of months, was incapable of committing to someone who loved him as much as he loved her. Years of media training had prepared him for worse scenarios than this, and normally, the women he'd been with would've been used to this too.

But his Bambi wasn't like them, or him. She was the little girl next door he'd grown up with. The same girl who wore dark clothes so she wouldn't stand out in the crowd. The same girl who kept a journal because she wasn't comfortable sharing her thoughts and feelings with just anyone. The same girl who enjoyed midnight car rides because she found solace in being alone and invisible. That was why he'd been doing everything in his power to keep her safe, and he'd thought she'd be the safest when she was home with her father and her friends. These photos, unfortunately, had proven him wrong.

Holding the phone at his ear, he shoved his other hand into his messy curls and kept on muttering "pick up, pick up, pick up", until she did.

"Harry." Her wheezy voice almost made him cry.

"Baby, are you okay?"

"Yeah," she said, but with a sigh. "Celine showed me the photos, but I haven't read anything people say."

She sounded calmer than he'd expected, which was worse. If only she'd burst into tears or got angry and blamed this all on him. At least then he would've been able to tell what she really felt. "I'm so sorry, love..." he said, lowering his voice to a whisper. "I'll figure something out. I just...God...I wish I could be there with you."

There was a long pause, yet he knew she was still there because he could hear her breathing. She just needed a bit of time to think before speaking up. "It must be the same person who posted the first photo. They were just waiting for an opportunity to release these..."

"I think I know who it is..." He was out of breath, and he could imagine the look on her face as she murmured cautiously, "who?"

His girl would hate to hear this as much as he hated to say it. But secrets had hurt them more than the truth had, so he didn't see the point of keeping one from her now. Especially now.

"Ruby came to my hotel room last night," he blurted. His shoulders were tight and his hands were clammy as he rambled on, "she was pretty unstable so maybe it was her, but I don't know for sure...She's not here today for me to ask but—She was drunk, and she tried to k-kiss me and...and I told her I loved you...and asked her to leave, I just—God, I would never do anything to hurt you."

"Did she kiss you?"

"No, love..."

"Did you...want...to kiss her?"

Y/N had remained calm since the moment she answered his call, but for this question, she sounded disheartened. Her voice was taut and feeble, and he wouldn't have been able to hear it if it hadn't been dead silent here.

Harry felt a lump in his throat as he pondered her question. "How could you ask me that? Don't you trust me?"

"I do, I do...but...I don't know...Nevermind."

"No, do not do this right now, Bambi!" he snarled with fear that she might hang up. "You either talk to me or I'm catching another flight home tonight!"

He knew she was still unsure when she took another deep breath, but he also knew she wouldn't risk having him fly back just to get an answer out of her.

"You..you loved her a lot," she said. Those simple words were enough to break his heart. He felt sick in his stomach as he pictured her smile falter and slowly fade.

With hesitation, she continued, "last year, on the night I left, I heard you say to her you'd always love her. And sometimes, just...randomly, I would think about it and...it would make me sad. I know you love me, and I know you mean it. But it hurts to think that the reason she keeps holding onto you is that she knows she'll always have you."

"That's not true, Bambi," he almost choked on the words. "She doesn't have me, baby, you do..."

"I've been telling myself that but, well..." she trailed off and laughed wryly. "Would you have come to her last night? I mean, if she hadn't come to see you."

"No."

"Would you have wanted to?" The left side of his chest pained as she began to sound like she could cry. "Fuck, why am I like this? You're the one dealing with those photos of us and I—God, I'm so fucking petty."

"No, don't—don't say that. Just...don't say that about yourself. Do you understand?" He exhaled, gripping his phone with one hand and his hair with the other. "Today, I love you, and only you. Tomorrow, I'll love you, and only you. Same goes for all the days after that until forever. Yes, I loved Ruby. And last night, she was in my room, asking me to take her back. But when I looked into her eyes, I felt nothing. I could never feel anything with her again now that I have you, and you have me. All of me. I promised that I wouldn't run to her again, and I didn't, and I wouldn't have done it last night."

Silence.

"Are you still there, baby?"

"Yes."

"Are we...okay?"

"Yeah, we're okay...Sorry, I'm just—" she stuttered, and the next thing she blurted out wasn't something he would ever expect to hear, "Harry, I'm scared."

The last time he'd heard her say those two words were almost ten years ago, when she nearly broke her neck from falling off the ladder of their treehouse. Being scared was one thing, but it took a lot of anxiety and distress for her to admit it. And to think that the last time she'd been this scared was when she almost lost her life, really tore him apart. Why did he have to be so far away when this happened?

"I'm here, kid. I'm here with you..." His jaw tightened as he rubbed the heel of his palm against his forehead. "Once upon a time, there was a boy and a girl, and no one else. Remember?"

"Yes." Though she sounded subdued, he could hear the faint smile in her voice. "It'd be so nice if...if we could just go back to the other night in your backyard and stay there forever. In our world."

"I would love that." He chuckled, attempting to keep his voice light. "Don't be scared, my love. I won't let anything bad happen to you, I promise."

[whatadaze]

*CLIP DROP* hahaha ok but seriously you guys want angst and all of a sudden i’m writing essays. this is what happens when my angst mode is activated. ya’ll created a monster. (catch up here)

22:34: Hey is everything okay?

22:34: I think I just saw you leave the party. Call me?

22:36: Or text me!  Either one’s fine.

******

09:16 Still alive?

******

12:49 You know, it’s kind of an asshole move to just ditch someone like that.

******

20:23 Sorry. Just let me know you’re okay and I’ll stop bothering you.

******

“Ha! This is hilarious,” Janna says, opening and closing her mouth as she watches her deformed face on the phone screen. “Snapchat filters are the best invention of our time. No doubt about it.”

Isa laughs alongside her as she tests the filter out too.

“Wait I have a good idea,” she says, turning on some music. “Look it’s even funnier if you start lip syncing.”

The two girls giggle over the phone and sing along to the music as they record themselves.

Liv isn’t really in the mood to indulge in their weird form of entertainment and instead, unlocks her phone for the millionth time.

No new messages.

She lets out a tired sigh and leans her head back against the window, trying not to overthink what the silence might mean. God knows she’s already racked her brain over it way too many times this past weekend.

Now, she’s just being pathetic--sulking over a boy who is clearly not interested in her. No matter how much she was in him.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Yasmina asks, pulling the earphone she had been sharing with her girlfriend out of her ear.

Her question catches Engel’s attention anyway.

“Is everything okay?” she asks, taking her earphone out as well.

And now the attention Liv had been wanting to avoid is on her. She tries to come up with some shit excuse, but honestly, she’s too tired and frustrated to do so.

“It’s Noah.”

“Noah?” Janna asks, sitting up from the bench. “That painter kid, Noah?”

“Noah Boom?” Yasmina asks seriously. “I didn’t know you knew him.”

Liv shakes her head. “I don’t,” she says quickly. “I mean, I thought I did. Fuck, I don’t know.”

"Shit, I thought I saw him at the party but I just thought he was tagging along with Gijs,” Janna says, her brows raised as she musses up her hair. “But YOU invited him, didn’t you!?”

Liv glances over at Isa, the only one who actually knew there was something going on between her and Noah, but she remains silent.

“Wait...” Engel says slowly. “Noah was at the party?”

Liv nods her head.

“He-”

Engel stops mid-sentence and glances over at her girlfriend. After exchanging a look that only they seemed to understand, Yasmina’s eyes widen.

“What?” Liv asks, straightening up from her slouched position.

Yasmina gives her girlfriend a nod before Engel finally says,

“Haven’t you heard?” she asks, glancing at each of the girls. “Noah’s mom passed away. I heard it happened Friday night.”

Liv’s mind flashes back to the look on Noah’s face when he saw who was calling him, the way his body seemed to slouch forward as she peered down at him over the railing, and his retreating form slowly fading away into the darkness.

And suddenly, everything seemed to make sense.

******

Liv goes to his place immediately after school.

She doesn’t need the navigation anymore and her legs seem to have a mind of their own as they quickly pace down the sidewalk and towards the elegant townhome that she now knows to be his.

When she walks up the steps leading up to his front door, she feels a heavy lump form in the back of her throat. She’s nervous, but picturing Noah hiding away in his room pushes her to go up that final step and ring the doorbell.

She hears the chimes echo throughout the house but unlike before, the door remains closed. Her persistence gets the best of her and she rings the doorbell a second time. The familiar chime echoes again but Noah still doesn’t answer.

Liv takes a few steps back and peers up at the window she knows to be attached to Noah’s room. She frowns when she sees that the curtains are drawn.

She bites her lip, contemplating on whether or not she should try again.

Her eyes flicker between the doorbell and then back up at his window before finally deciding it might be best to leave him alone.

After all, she wasn’t really anything to him anyways.

******

The next day, Liv misses her stop and somehow ends up in Noah’s neighborhood again.  

At first, she didn’t think to go to his place, but the little voice in her head tells her that maybe he’s feeling a bit better. That she will ring the doorbell and he will answer.

And she tells herself that over and over again as she walks over to his house.

She swallows down her nerves as she takes each step leading to his front door and lets out a deep breath as her finger press the doorbell.

By now, she feels like she has the melody of the chimes memorized as she hears it ring through the door.

After no answer, she rings it again.

And then again.

But there’s still no answer,

and Noah in sight,

so she leaves.

******

“I just sent a email to Musikk Records,” her dad says over the phone. “Let me know if you hear back from them, okay? I know that you have the talent so it would be a shame if they didn’t meet with you.”

“Dad, I-”

“Listen,” her dad cuts in. “I have to go. But call me back when you hear from them. Love you.”

Her dad hangs up before she can even utter another word and suddenly her head is throbbing.

When her class got out early, Liv was looking forward to the extra time, but then her dad called and suddenly, she wished she was back in class so she didn’t have to pick up.

She puts on her earphones but doesn’t play any music, not really wanting to listen to anything at the moment. She found that if she has earphones on, people are less likely to approach her and right now, she wants to be alone.

As she pushes open the door leading out into the courtyard, her eyes immediately fall onto a boy sitting contently on the bench, far from the crowd of students bustling around. She stops in her track and watches the small smile form on his face as he flips through the pages of the book sitting on his lap.

And suddenly, she’s a bit jealous.

Liv used to feel the same way whenever she listened to her music but these days, it gives her a headache and all she ever wants to do when the topic is brought up is run away.

She misses feeling like that--oblivious to the people around her, smiling at the small things that used to give her pleasure, and getting lost in her own little world.

And before she knows it, her feet are carrying her towards him.

******

Liv pulls up her unfinished essay and stares at the ten words she had managed to type this weekend.

Needless to say, her mind wasn’t super focused on schoolwork, instead choosing to think about a certain boy every five seconds.

(Just like it is now.)

And how can she not? She stares at his raven sketch every morning when she gets ready, she thinks about him when she makes her morning tea, and when Ralph handed her a piece of his toast this morning, she almost cried.

She didn’t know who she was anymore.

“Liv?”

The sound of Isa’s voice followed by the rapping on her door pulls her out of her thoughts. Her friend opens the door and pops her head in, her curls flying every which way as she invites herself inside.

“What are you doing here?” Liv asks, moving her feet off from her desk.

“Ralph let me in,” she explains.

Isa walks across her room and sits on the edge of her bed. Her eyes seem to be studying Liv as they examine her from head to toe.

“What?”

Her friend shakes her head and her lips form a thin line.

“I saw Noah today,” she finally says.

This catches Liv’s attention and she tilts her head.

“He was at school?” she asks.

Isa nods her head. “Didn’t look too well, honestly. But yeah, he was there.”

Liv doesn’t know whether to feel relieved or sad or angry. She wishes that she was the one who saw him. She wishes that he would’ve reached out to her and told her that he was okay,

or that he wasn’t,

or that he wanted to be alone,

or that he didn’t.

She just wanted him to talk to her.

“So...d-did you say anything to him?” Liv asks, trying to control her shaky voice. “Or did he say anything to you? I mean-”

“He’s fine,” Isa tells her, reaching over to squeeze her knee.

Liv didn’t even realize she was shaking her leg.

“I felt like you should know that he’s alive,” she continues. “And he is. So, stop worrying so much okay? I don’t think I can stand looking at your chipped nails for much longer. They’re driving me crazy.”

Liv looks down at her nails and she feels a smile form on her face.

Because even though Noah hasn’t reached out to her yet, she knows that he’s okay.

He’s alive

And for now, that’s enough.

[ad-renalyn]

Possibilities

Chapter 4: Keys

Chapter [1, 2, 3] 

A/N: more of Luka x Reader interaction! Kagami introductory and a bit of our marshmallow blonde boy <3 

It’s been 9 years since you were taken in by the Couffaines’ for a month. There has been a great deal of change since then, though that significant month became the most eventful time in your life.

During that one month, celebrating what suppose to be your special day at a funeral was unexpected. It was glum, silence was deafening but the Couffaines and your parents friends were present, everyone expressing their condolences. All the while Luka was there comforting you, in fact ever since you opened up to him about the accident one night, he became protective and supportive of you.

                                                 ~~~~~~~~~~

Dark clouds coupled with strong winds started rolling in during the day, alarmed, you kept checking the weather out the window hoping it would get better.

“Hey, you alright?” Luka questioned, not looking away from the screen as he continue to fumble with the controller.

“Mhm…just thinking it's gonna be bad tonight” You said, hugging your knees against your chest.

He replied with a hum focusing back on his game, you shook your head trying to keep anxiety at bay, continuing to watch Luka playing his game to distract yourself. Night-time arrived and you start to feeling restless noticing that it only got worse, you let out a sigh heading up to your shared room paying no mind to Luka who’s playing with boxer on the couch, missing the concerned glance he gave you as you walk pass them.

There are things that you didn't like growing up like Brussels sprouts, bugs, clowns and many more. One of them being thunder and lightning, unfortunately for you that seems to be what the world has to offer tonight.

You accidentally slam the door shut in panic, making Luka get up from his seat to go to you. You made sure the windows were tightly shut close, the blinds pulled down along with the heavy curtains over it. You took Luka’s headphones from his desk and put it on before hopping on the bed and wrapping yourself in the blanket, not caring that the headphones are not plugged on any device as long as it drowns the noise from your surroundings.

Luka knocked on the door a couple of times, worried that there was no response, he immediately swung the door open but not enough to hit the wall. Confused, he stood there assessing the situation: A messily wrapped human burrito with headphones on. Chuckling, he walked over to check on you.

With your eyes closed while reciting the multiplication table in your head in attempt to distract yourself as well as having a noise cancelling headphones on, you didn’t hear Luka knocking nor walking in. You flinch hearing the muffled sound of thunder, burying yourself more under the covers. Luka being the attentive lad that he is, understood the situation and quickly went over to where his instruments are in the room, he flipped the switch on and lift up the cover of his keyboard revealing the white and black keys.

You felt the covers being shifted, you slightly open your eyes and saw Luka tucking your sides making you into a perfect human burrito, not too tight but not too lose. You feel your cheeks warm in embarrassment, you open your mouth ready to say something but he noticed you first.

“Comfy?” He beam at you, he saw the confusion in your face before taking off the headphones from you chuckling. He stood, towering over you “Look (Y/N)....I'm sorry I didn't notice it sooner” He said with a sigh, scratching the back of his head with a sad smile on his face which made you blush even harder.

“But it’s not your fault, there’s really no need to apologize..plus it’s not like you knew about it in the first place” You said, shaking your head. You both look into each other’s eyes with gentle smile on your faces before Luka let out a guffaw. You watch him with wide eyes, unsure what just happened and with his contagious laugh, you end up joining him.

“I-- Oh god.. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-” He exhaled, calming himself down “It’s alright, if I’m where you are I’d probably do the same..burrito moment I guess?” You giggled, slowly sitting up wiping your eyes as it forms tears from laughter. You momentarily forgot about your fear until both of you hear a distant rumbling.

“Here, wear this and get comfy, I just need to set up something for a sec” He handed you the headphones back and made his way to where the keyboard is, you put on the headphones placing one cushion properly on your ear and the other just behind your ear, in case he wants to converse you won’t miss it. You watch him with curious eyes as he takes out a jack splitter and earphones. He plugged in both head/earphones in the jack splitter, he wore one of the buds in his ear and pressed down on a key testing the volume. He chuckled, amused with your surprised expression before playing a couple of notes to test it out further.

“You good?” you can hear the glee behind his soft voice and you nodded bringing the covers over your shoulders instead of laying back down. He started playing, you watched him, you can see how happy he is in his element. You caught yourself blushing as you gaze at him and felt your heart skip a beat, afraid that he’ll turn to you, you averted your gaze before sinking yourself in the covers further feeling confused and unsure about your emotions. Luka started humming as he plays the keyboard, you closed your eyes captivated by his music.

You felt safe and secure and just then and there, you start to open up. Like box being opened, bit by bit you open up to him, he didn’t stop playing nor did he say anything, just like the first night you cried and him being in the room but still found comfort in his presence. Though this time not a tear was shed, in fact you felt at peace with yourself after keeping the thoughts in your head and letting it out. You knew he was listening intently as you notice some off key notes when you talk about the recent events.

“Thank you, Luka”  You said in a soft voice, adoration in your voice.

The music stopped so did the storm outside, you turn to his direction ready to ask if he’s alright, only to be met with his ocean blue eyes in front of you. He knelt down, slightly leaning on the edge of the bed as you both stare into each others eyes. You can clearly see the pained expression on his face before pulling you into a tight hug.

And just like that, right there and then, you realised how much you like this boy.

“I'm so sorry” you hear his voice crack as the words left his mouth. You can feel your heart thumping loudly when he finally pulled you in for a tight hug, you hugged him back as he utter words of comfort in your ears. And just like that, the wheel started turning.

                                                   ~~~~~~~~~~

“(Y/N)?.... Earth to (Y/N)!” you blinked seeing a hand being waved on your face pulling you back from your thoughts.

“Err..sorry, sorry, here now” you said with an awkward smile “Sorry, what were you saying?” You look down poking around your food. You’re currently with your friend Kagami, you look at her while eating your omurice as she rambles on about her kendo classes and the girl she’s taken a liking to. You let out a giggle as she talks of the mystery girl, fumbling on her words with pink tint on her cheeks.

“Ugh...how do you approach someone?!” she questioned with an exasperated sigh placing her head on her hands “Help (Y/N)!”

“Well, have you tried saying hello? That’s how a person usually approach someone” you deadpan before popping a spoonful of omurice in your mouth.

“Oohh wow! I’ve never thought of that. AT. ALL!”

“Look, stop overthinking things, it’s not like you’re gonna get married after saying ‘Hi’ to her or something...that’s if you EVER get to say that” You let out a laugh while she scowls at your remark. Kagami breathed out deeply, calming herself “Okay. Fine. You’re right...baby steps..ugh emotions!” She cringed at herself “Alright, thanks (Y/N)..gotta run now though, Kendo calls, catch ya later?” She got up from her seat picking her bag up before giving you a hug, you hugged back and nodded “Go get you some!” you wink at her with a big grin on your face, she rolled her eyes at you and huffed before leaving you at the cafeteria “Mata ne~” you said, earning a wave back from her.

Food all consumed, you get up taking your things with you before heading out of the campus, saying ‘goodbye’ and ‘see you later’ to other students you're acquainted with.

You're currently a student in Seikei University majoring in Cultural Studies, since you moved from Paris to Japan, you've taken quite a liking to Japanese culture, which pushed you into taking up the course.

You have been living in Japan for a while now, in Kichijoji to be exact, which is in the west side of Tokyo. Unfortunately you're not in contact with either Luka and Luciano ever since you moved from France, though you still wonder about how they're doing from time to time especially the dark haired boy that you used to know.

It didn't take you long to figure out that you had feelings for Luka, to be fair he didn't make it hard for you to fall for him either, he was very comforting, selfless and always treat people with kindness. You knew deep down that it was that one night when you opened up to him that you became aware of your feelings. Afraid that you'll be rejected, you didn't confess to him at all, for all you know he only sees you as a friend or even as a sister.

Luka introducing you to one of his friends named ‘Marinette’ didn't make you feel any better either. Truth be told, after meeting her you realised that Luka acts differently around Marinette compared to when he was with you.

You shake your head trying to trying not to let your thoughts consume you as you go out and about. As you pass a konbini [convenient store] you did a double take on one of the many posters that’s plastered on the window as you noticed a familiar face.

You stop on your tracks, skimming through the poster you read the words ‘catwalk’/ ‘[date]’/ ‘Gabriel’/ ‘[place]’/ ‘Adrien Agreste’. You analyse the photo on the poster, it's a headshot of Adrien with a split lighting, you can see that the theme of the photograph is dark and alluring, he had a smirk on his face while biting his lower lip, there's no doubt that puberty treated him well, too well if you'd say so yourself. This wasn't the same boy you used to see the face of back in Paris, this is definitely a Man.

You take out your phone taking a picture of the poster to put up in your social media

“... He got his sides shaved?! @adagreste let me breathe?

.

.

P.S. When/if you're in Tokyo, eat curry.”

You tweeted before putting your phone away continuing on your journey home.

A/N: I really enjoyed writing this chapter, with fluffs and goofy Kagami <3 hope you like it too! 

Sorry for the grammar errors and tenses (I suck at that one big time!)...I edited this already but I feel like there’s still errors in there but can’t figure where (English isn’t my strong suit >.<”) 

Nonetheless, I hope you reblog my fic if you like it :3 <3