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sluttywoozi · 2 years

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Like A Domino | Part 1

Keep Falling, Like a Domino || bsk x fem!reader

Summary: Seungkwan falls for you a bit more with every date you have. And by you, he means you and someone else. He’s just the bartender.

Rating: T | Word Count: ~4.4k

Content notes: from Seungkwan’s pov, lots of inner monologue bc I imagine he always has something to say, he’s simping so hard for reader, he is down astronomically

Reader notes: fem!reader, wears makeup, bad luck w blind dates, perceiving at all times

Content warning: alcohol, swearing, so much pining, suggestiveness

This is the fifth time Seungkwan has seen you this month. You, with your perfect hair, your flawless makeup, your beautiful clothes. You, with yet another douchebag who couldn’t be bothered to look away from your cleavage long enough to know what color your eyes are. He really doesn’t understand it, but he supposes it’s not his business to understand anyway.

Except he wants it to be his business.

Seungkwan wants to sit next to you at the bar, not serve you drinks from behind it. He wants to make you laugh with his words, not with his incredulous and judgmental looks at your dates. He wants to walk you home at the end of the night, not cash you out.

But you only ever come here for a date. You always show up by yourself, giving him a sweet smile and just a bit of hope, and choose the same stool and order the same drink. You talk with him, sharing bits and pieces of your respective week, and enchant him just a bit more every time with your humor and expressive eyes. And without fail, ten minutes later, some buff guy with good hair strolls in, claiming the stool next to you and a kiss on your cheek.

The beginning of your dates usually goes the same: generic getting-to-know-you questions and your quiet wit flying over their heads most of the time. Seungkwan always catches it though, chuckling to himself when he thinks he’s out of view.

This time, he looks up to see you watching him with a peculiar look on your face. You turn your eyes back to Chad, but not before flashing him a small smile.

Your conversation goes like this for a while, Trent doing a lot of talking and little to no listening. The bar picks up a bit and he gets busy serving other customers. He’s not trying to eavesdrop but through shaking drinks and shouted orders, he hears a bored, “Wow,” or, “That’s crazy,” from you every now and then.

Soon after, your eyes are boring into him, practically begging for another drink so you don’t have to listen to this idiot sober. He’s already halfway done making it and brings it over with a smile and a flourish, setting it down gently in front of you and leveling an unimpressed look at Zach. You muffle a giggle when your date doesn’t even notice, too busy checking his cryptocurrency standings to notice the bartender glaring at him. You catch Seungkwan’s eyes, mouthing "Check in thirty, please." He nods quickly in agreement before moving to the other end of the bar and setting a timer on his phone.

Hands busy making drinks, Seungkwan lets his mind wander. He wonders how long you’ll persevere. Five dates this month and you’ve gone home alone every time. He’s not sure how you’re meeting these men, if it’s an app or matchmaking friends. But he is sure that none of them are right for you. Seungkwan shakes his head a little, reminding himself you don’t actually know her. Maybe she likes this! Maybe she thinks it’s fun! Or maybe she’s coming to see you-

His phone vibrates on the marble, spooking him out of his spiral. He stops the timer, seeing that it’s almost nine now and his shift will be over soon. He adds up your drinks, giving you the discount you don’t know he gives you.

The please keep coming back discount. The your dates suck discount. The date me instead discount.

As always, Seungkwan clumsily draws a little caricature of your date, surrounded by bitcoins this time, and rings up Cody’s drinks, drawing a frowny face that only he can see in the bar’s logo. Placing the receipts in separate folders, he glides over to you. You sigh in relief and reach your hand out when he arrives, thanking him with your eyes and gently taking the bill.

Seungkwan sets Tyler’s bill down in front of him and turns to walk away, hearing a faint, “Dude, we didn’t ask for the bill yet.”

He doesn’t bother stopping until he hears you say, “Wait, Seungkwan!”

He freezes.

Is this the first time you’ve ever said his name? He doesn’t have a name tag on, they’re not required for bartenders. So how do you know his name? Why does it sound so sweet coming from you? Why hasn’t he turned around yet?

Seungkwan visibly restarts himself before spinning on his heel and walking back over with raised eyebrows and a politely giddy smile. He hopes his eyes aren’t sparkling too much and that you can’t hear his heartbeat, because he knows he can feel it and it’s about to beat out of his chest and he needs to calm down before you say something else and kill him.

“Can I give this to you?” You hold the bill back out to him, credit card sticking out and your eyebrows pitched together in hopeful desperation.

A smile pushes up Seungkwan’s cheeks as he giggles and takes the bill from you before turning to Nick and, with a blank face, asking, “Are you done?”

Brent pulls a face, shaking his head and saying, “Yeah, I guess so.” He carelessly shoves the bill across the bar and Seungkwan’s lips purse, snatching the bill and sending Derek another glare. He’s about to run your credit cards when he hears it.

“Thomas looking motherfucker.”

Thomas looking motherfucker.

The words echo in his head as his eye starts to twitch. Seungkwan turns slowly, seeing your face screwed up in incredulous anger and your mouth opening to defend his honor. He’s crossed the bar before he knows it, shoulders squaring and hands bracing on the counter before asking, in a deadly calm tone, “What the fuck is up, Kyle?”

Kyle just leans back in the stool, meeting Seungkwan’s eyes for the first time, and smugly says, “What are you talking about, dude?”

Seungkwan shakes his head sharply, “No, what did you say? What the fuck, dude, step the fuck up, Kyle!” He raises a brow and crosses his arms, running his tongue along the inside of his lip and shifting his feet like he’s liable to lunge at any second.

(You’re staring in fascinated horror, knowing you don’t want to defend Kyle but also not wanting Seungkwan to lose his job but also wanting to see how well he can throw a punch and also wondering how he knew your date’s name.)

His coworker, Vernon, arrives to take over the shift, cutting the tension. Seungkwan visibly deflates when he squeezes his shoulder and asks, “You good, man?”

Seungkwan just nods profusely, pasting a fake smile on his face and finally running your card. He mechanically walks back over to you, eyes still screaming in anger, and hands you your credit card. He stays for some reason, glaring daggers at Kyle and rolling his shoulders periodically.

Kyle glares back, resting his elbows on the counter and settling in. You and Vernon share a look, you raising your brow as if to ask is this normal and Vernon, face twisting in amused concern, shakes his head back at you. You stare at the counter for a second before nodding your head and grabbing Seungkwan’s hand from across the bar.

He startles, eyes now wide and staring right at you, though his body is still turned toward Kyle. You smile in a soothing way and he feels the tension bleed out of his shoulders, a sigh escaping when you squeeze his hand.

“Walk me out?” You ask with gentle eyes and a soft voice. He’s nodding before you’re done talking, as if in a trance, and he reluctantly drops your hand to round the bar.

Kyle is still complaining, Seungkwan’s not sure what about as he can’t hear anything but his own heart beat, hands sliding your coat on and handing you your purse. He hears Vernon say something to Kyle about belligerence and swearing at staff and calling the police but it doesn’t register, your hand finding the crook of his elbow and your feet falling into step with his. By his next breath, he’s holding the door open for you and you’re sending him another smile and a sweet, “Thank you.”

The cold outside is a shock to his system, yanking him out of whatever stupor you’d put him in. He shakes his head to clear it, fixing his hair in nervousness before asking where you were headed. You point at the building next to the bar, “This is me!”

He blinks at you. And blinks again. And steps away.

“You live here?!”

You nod cautiously, eyeing him in confusion. He really hoped the walk would be a bit longer and he’d have more time to talk to you. More than the fifteen feet you got.

He smiles though his heart is dropping, nodding to himself and forcing out, “That’s good! This is a great neighborhood! Very safe!”

He’s still nodding when your face softens, you seem to realize he wants more time with you. “But… we could always talk a turn around the block?” You ask sweetly, shoulders, eyebrows, and corner of your mouth turning up in sync.

Seungkwan’s expression smooths out, his heart warming with fondness for you and his stomach flooding with butterflies. He nods gratefully, adding in, “Yes, please, I would love that,” just for good measure. You smile back and weave your arm back through his, squeezing his forearm gently.

“Shall we?”

“We shall.”

Seungkwan hasn’t seen you in two weeks.

He’s starting to panic a bit, running over the bits of conversation he can remember, wondering if he said or did something to make you uncomfortable. You seemed fine at the end of the night, happy even, as you both slowed to a stop outside your building.

Your eyes were sparkling up at him, your cheeks creased with a smile and your hand trailing from the crook of his elbow down to wrap around his fingers. You swung his hand with yours as your conversation reached a natural conclusion, your eyes glancing up at your building then down to his lips then back to-

Wait.

Down to his lips? Were you looking at his lips? Did you want him to kiss you? Is that why you haven’t been back, because he didn’t kiss you goodnight? But it wasn’t a date… but maybe you wanted him to kiss you anyway?

He’s spiraling again when Vernon shakes his shoulder, voice exasperated with how many times he’d said Seungkwan’s name in an effort to get his attention.

“Bro, what’s up with you lately? You almost got in that fight, you’re zoning out all the time, and my mojitos are better than yours, which is just wrong,” Vernon says with concern clear on his face.

He must be really obvious if even Vernon has noticed something is off.

Seungkwan sighs, head dropping back to his shoulders before he grits his teeth and decides to tell the truth.

“I’m in love. And she doesn’t love me back.”

“Well, that sounds a bit dramatic.”

“Vernon,” Seungkwan whines and slap his arm, “I’m trying to be vulnerable here, you asked me what was wrong!”

Vernon laughs, apologizing through giggles and a hand over his mouth. “Sorry, sorry, I’m sorry! I’ve just never heard you talk about anyone before, you don’t even check out cute customers. Except for that one whose date you almost fought.”

His eyebrows shoot up and his mouth drops open, before he lets out a long Ohhhhhhh.

Seungkwan looks at him nervously, as if waiting for judgement. Vernon just shrugs and asks, “Do you think I’ve never had a crush on a customer before?”

This is a shock to Seungkwan. Vernon is always that perfect blend of professional and laidback, while Seungkwan is a perfect blend of professional and high-strung. Vernon has never given any indication he found their customers attractive, he seemed like he didn’t even notice them beyond their order most of the time.

“You’ve never mentioned anyone before.”

“Yeah, because I have a new crush every week. Keeps things interesting!” Vernon says with a smile.

Huh.

This throws Seungkwan for a bit of a loop. How is Vernon able to avoid getting attached? Is it that none of his crushes are regulars? Maybe he’s able to forget his crush when they leave, in preparation for a new one. Seungkwan doubts he’d be able to forget you at this point. And he doesn’t want a new crush.

He just wants you.

It seems the universe agrees because that’s when you walk in, hair mussed from the wind and coat on. A smile lights up your face when Seungkwan locks eyes with you and you practically skip over to the bar.

You look different tonight. You always look beautiful but usually it’s in a dangerous way, like if he got too close he may catch one of your sharp edges and pop like a balloon. Tonight, you look soft. Ethereal. Like you walked out of a dream and into his bar and into his heart and now he knows he’s never getting rid of you.

You sit in a different spot tonight, too. Directly in front of him, right where he usually stations himself for the night. Hooking your purse on the back of the stool, you turn to him with a grin and ask for a rosé spritzer.

A rosé spritzer.

WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?

Seungkwan is beyond unsettled now but tries to hide it. Luckily, his back is to you as he’s mixing up your spritzer with trembling hands and a heart that feels like it just might escape his chest. He turns around to set your drink in front of you and your eyes shoot up to catch his as you smile again.

You were looking at the bar, he guesses. The marble is especially shiny tonight, he just polished it and he’s glad you like it as he’s the one who picked it out. He would choose something much lighter for your kitchen, something airy and more durable, maybe a quartz.

“Bro, she was totally staring at your ass,” Vernon says from over his shoulder. Thankfully, you’re looking at your phone now, because Seungkwan’s eyes blow wide open. A deep gasp leaves his body, his hands clutching onto Vernon’s shoulders and practically dragging him down.

“Do you really think so?” Seungkwan asks urgently.

Now his heart is racing, imagining you, staring at him. Staring at his ass. Intentionally.

He presses a hand to his chest and thinks, this can’t be healthy. Hearts aren’t supposed to do this, why aren’t my vitamins working? What do I even take fish oil for if not this?

Vernon lets him take a soothing breath before removing Seungkwan’s hands from his shoulders and saying, “You really are in love, huh?”

“I tried to tell you! I wasn’t being dramatic!” Seungkwan nearly yells, lit up with passion and vindication. Vernon shushes him, shooting a look over at you to remind him that he needed to be chill.

And Seungkwan knows how to be chill. He can be so chill. He can be chill and calm and normal and-

“You just gotta go talk to her. Shoot your shot before her date comes.“

“Are you crazy?!” Seungkwan whisper shouts. “I can’t go talk to her, I’ll combust on the spot. Do you not see me right now?”

Seungkwan’s sure Vernon knows what he’s referring to. His eyes are bulging, his heart beating wildly and his chest expanding with rapid breaths. He itches to get into his calf raise position, knowing it’ll calm him down and help with the puffiness. He can’t do it in front of you though, he always makes a weird face and he’s not ready for you to see him like that yet.

Vernon eyes him with a bit of judgement but mostly concern. “Why don’t you take a trip to the freezer and cool off for a second, okay?”

Seungkwan nods, more than he needs to, and tries to compose himself before shooting you a smile and heading to the back.

The icy cold restarts him, just like it did when he walked you home all those days ago. Has it really only been two weeks? It feels like it’s been an eternity of keeping his eyes on the door, glaring at anyone who sat in your spot, and tearing up whenever someone ordered your drink.

He’s aware he’s being ridiculous, he barely knows you. All he has are the small conversations you share before your date shows up, and the little bit of time he had with you two weeks ago. That’s not enough to fall in love.

Is it?

His hands are starting to shake a little with the cold, indicating it’s time to get back to work. He dusts off his dress shirt and fixes his hair as best he can, hoping his cheeks haven’t flushed too much in the chilly air. He prepares himself to re-enter the bar, knowing that when he goes through the door you’ll be charming your date and probably hoping he doesn’t suck as much as the last one.

Seungkwan squares his shoulders and takes in a deep breath, opening the door and going back to the bar with false confidence. His facade breaks when he realizes there’s still no one next to you.

Did your date stand you up? You’ve been here for at least twenty minutes already. You don’t look disappointed but you do look happy to see him. He cautiously walks over to you, seeing that you’re barely halfway done with your drink and wondering why you tried so hard to catch his eye.

When he comes to a stop in front of you, he smiles apprehensively and you beam back and suddenly his brain is empty. You ask him how he is and he answers somehow, forgetting the words said as soon as they leave his mouth. He must be saying normal things because you’re still nodding and smiling, and now asking follow up questions oh god oh no.

He forces himself to return to his body, checking back into the conversation and catching your next question.

“So, I know you’ve been working a lot. What do you like to do when you’re not working?” You ask sincerely, like you actually want to know.

Oh, you know, I read, I listen to music, I take walks. I daydream about reading and listening to music and taking walks with you.

“I try to keep busy! I work out a bit, I’m working on my reading list now, and I always try to stay up to date on my favorite groups and their music.”

The conversation carries on like this for a while, Seungkwan ignoring every other patron in the bar and silently thanking the universe that Vernon was scheduled tonight too. He learns more and more about you, falling a bit further with every question and answer.

He can’t stop thinking about it though. Did someone really stand you up? Who would have the audacity? He wonders if he could find them, he just wants to have a little chat, no aggression or animosity here, definitely not.

“So where’s your date tonight?“ Seungkwan asks abruptly. Your mouth is still open, you were mid-sentence and he feels awful for interrupting you but it was driving him crazy.

“Oh, um, I actually don’t have a date tonight,” You answer a bit shyly, looking up at him through your dark lashes and scrunching your mouth to the side in a half smile.

Sirens are going off in his head, there’s a fuzziness taking over his body, and it feels like his throat has been stuffed with cotton.

“You don’t have a date? You always have a date,” He forces out, cringing internally at the hostile and somewhat disbelieving tone.

Your shoulders lift in a shrug, eyebrows raising with them and your half smile growing. “I did some… re-evaluating after my last date. And didn’t feel like setting a new one. I think I might’ve found someone I’d rather spend my time with.”

Seungkwan’s heart splits right down the middle, but he tries to be happy for you. It must’ve been exhausting, going on date after date with asshole after asshole. He’s glad you’ve found someone in the two weeks you’d been gone, really, and wonders if you came here tonight to tell him you wouldn’t be coming back.

He supposes it’ll be easier to get over you if he doesn’t see you often. Though, your time away before only saw you burrowing deeper into his heart. Which is concerning, for him, personally.

You should be fine though.

He’s processing, wondering if there’s any real science behind Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and if he could get his hands on it somehow. Wondering if, maybe, he’s just meant to be alone and lonely and heartbroken for the rest of his life.

You must see the panic in his eyes and the tension in his form, fuck is he tearing up? Of course he is, because you lay your hand gently on his, stilling his fingers where they tap incessantly at the bar. You lean down a little to catch his eyes, smiling gently at him before saying, “It’s you, by the way.”

“What’s me?” He chokes out, fake smile back on his face.

“The someone I’d rather spend my time with. It’s you,” you say a bit bashfully, not that he notices because once your words register it feels like he’s left his corporeal form, his soul ascending to the heavens and shooting through space. He thinks he can almost see the end of the universe when he realizes he should probably respond to you, he’s already left you hanging too long. You’ve been bold, now it’s his turn.

He takes a deep, steadying breath before responding, “In that case, maybe… I could be your date tonight?”

Your smile is blinding. He feels his heart flip as his own smile grows, and the giddiness bubbles out of him in a laugh. “I’m off at nine and I know a great diner down the street, is it too late for pancakes?”

“Hmmm, it may be too late for pancakes but it’s never too late for waffles.”

“You’re a waffle person? This isn’t gonna work out,” he says with a smirk and a look up and down. He’s feigning turning away when he catches your exaggerated pout out of the corner of his eye and immediately spins back.

“Kidding! You could hate iced americanos and I’d still like you,” Seungkwan says shyly, shifting up and down on his toes. You lean forward on your elbows and say, “What’s an iced americano?”

He really doesn’t know what to do with that. He’s floundering a bit when he sees you cover your mouth in a giggle, eyes full of mirth.

“I know you’re kidding but just in case you’re not, I think I may need to take you out for coffee,” Seungkwan says with authority. He’s getting more confident now that he knows his feelings aren’t one-sided.

“I agree, maybe tomorrow morning?” You ask with a smirk and a raised eyebrow, hoping he’ll catch your drift.

(He does not catch your drift.)

“Yeah, I tend to be more of an early riser and my vitamins make me nauseous sometimes so like 11ish could be good?”

Your eyebrow falls, along with your smirk as you suck your lips into your mouth and squint a bit at him. He’s confused by your reaction, you seemed excited about getting coffee before but maybe you’re a tea person? His favorite coffee shop has tea though, he’s brought his friend Minghao there before and the man is like a tea sommelier-

OH.

OH. YOU MEAN-

He flushes from head to toe, he’s pretty sure you can see the red travel from cheek to collarbone down to where his chest is covered by his button down. He can’t even form words, his mind swimming with images and ideas and wishes and desires. Things he thinks about late at night, when he can’t sleep, when he’s lonely, when he’s sad. Things he never thought he could have, things you seem to be offering him right now.

He clears his throat and straightens his collar before saying, “So, just to clarify, you mean-“

“I mean I want to go get waffles-“

“Pancakes,” he interjects.

“I want to go get waffles with you,” you carry on as if he hadn’t said anything. “And I want you to walk me back to my place, and I want you to come up this time. You can kiss me goodnight at the door, or you can come inside. It’s up to you.”

Seungkwan feels like he might pass out. You did want him to kiss you that night. You do want him to kiss you tonight. You want him to do more than kiss you, you want him to come insi-

Nope, can’t follow that train of thought right now. He must stay focused.

He’s still trying to compose himself, willing his blood to return to the places it’s meant to be, when Vernon claps him on the shoulder. “Clocked you out, my guy, you’re good to go.”

Seungkwan jumps about a foot in the air but the shock was just what he needed to clear his head and formulate a response. He thanks Vernon before smiling brightly at you, eyes shining, and asking, “Pancakes?”

“Waffles,” you nod, slipping off the stool and waiting for him to grab his coat and come around to you. You’re smiling shyly, your boldness spent, as he helps you put your coat on and hands you your purse. He gently takes your hand and places it in the crook of his arm, steering you toward the door and holding it open for you. You thank him with a kiss on the cheek this time and he feels euphoric. He practically drags you down the street to the diner, desperate to get both out of the cold and one step closer to kissing you.

Part two

AN: I wrote this in like two days and i'm really happy with it, i am so soft for seungkwan, esp bartender with a crush!seungkwan.

please feel free to come chat in my inbox! i want to interact!