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perditaalottachocolate-blog · 4 years

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The Collector 2

Summary: When Adrien and his cat leave for university, the Agreste mansion suddenly becomes a very empty and quiet place. What better way to bring back some joy and laughter than to take in a new cat? Or two? Or three? Five at most. But why stop at five when you have such a fine feline collection? Besides, Gabriel has never known when to stop, has he?

Part 3 of the Felinotherapy Series. Also on AO3 / Fanfiction.net

(Part 1 - “New Kitty on the Block”) (Part 2 - “Felinotherapy”)

Happy Birthday, @goblin-alchemist! I hope you like your Gabe gift, wink wink.

An enormous thank you goes to @sheeoni , for her invaluable beta-reading assistance!

>^.^< >(^w^)< =(^ ‘ x ‘ ^)=

It started innocently enough. Adrien graduated from lycée and left for Cambridge, taking Lady Noir with him. She was his cat, after all. Gabriel never would have thought that their absence would bring such silence and emptiness. The mansion was a huge house; one teenager and one cat couldn’t possibly have made such a difference. And yet, even with Emilie at his side again, Gabriel felt something was missing. Was he turning into an old softie after all these years? Nah, impossible.

Still, even Nooroo’s mood seemed more wistful. Lady Noir was like a younger sister to him, and she certainly knew how to keep the violet sprite occupied. After Gabriel had dropped his second gig as a supervillain, both of them suddenly gained plenty of free time—more than they could fill with work. Seriously, had Gabriel known supervillainy was such a demanding job, he’d have been more reluctant to terrorize a city in search of magic jewels—which he had never gotten in the end, anyway.

Although not obtaining their Miraculous had stung, Gabriel took solace in the fact that nobody had discovered he was Hawkmoth since he'd just stopped appearing. Despite akumas no longer being a threat to the city, Ladybug and Chat remained in the public eye, and had apparently become a couple. It didn't take long before their relationship caught the attention of the media, and in their eagerness to supply the public with breaking news, they'd prioritized the superhero couple over figuring out what had happened to the gaudy akumas and the apparent shortage of supervillains.

While Gabriel still had his fashion empire, his brand and his family, Nooroo did not have any job other than being a kwami. And maybe Gabriel should have let him slumber inside the Butterfly Miraculous, but the truth was he’d grown used to the magical company. The sight of Nooroo frolicking with Lady Noir had always warmed his heart; he liked having the sprite around.

So in the end, it was that need to fill the gaping hole left by Lady Noir that brought it upon them.

=(^ ‘ x ‘ ^)=

It was a chilly evening but Gabriel decided to take a stroll nevertheless. His steps took him to Champs Élysée. Just as he was walking by a dark alley, he heard a faint squeal. He stopped, intrigued. Nooroo popped his head out from Gabriel’s pocket and listened intently.

Something mewled miserably behind the trash bins and cardboard boxes that occupied the narrow space. The containers shook and another desperate wail broke the silence.

The sound was so doleful Gabriel’s heart clenched. His empathic powers weren’t even required for him to know the creature needed help. Yet the alley was dark, and he couldn’t find the source of the noise.

‘Can you see anything, Nooroo?’ he asked his companion.

The kwami shook his head and, without further prompting, he flew to investigate the stash of boxes. He phased through the cardboard just as the first droplets of rain splashed on the pavement. Gabriel reached for his umbrella, but before he could open it, Nooroo called him.

‘In here, Master!’ He hovered over one of the containers. ‘I need help, she’s trapped.’

She?

Careful not to make a sound, Gabriel creeped closer and raised the box. Underneath he found the most pitiful cat he’d ever seen. It was a bit bigger than Lady Noir and more round in shape. Its fur was dull, dirty and wet. Gabriel could only guess the cat’s hide must have been silver once, as it looked a bit like a Russian Blue, but now it was a toneless grey.

The cat looked tired and scared, but it didn’t flee at the sight of a huge man. Maybe it was already done with running, and was just seeking help?

‘We can’t leave her like this, Master,’ Nooroo turned to Gabriel with his big pleading eyes.

‘Can you understand her?’

‘Not really, just her emotions,’ the kwami admitted. ‘She’s scared and exhausted.’

Gabriel could clearly see it for himself. He crouched and extended a hand. The cat sniffed it once, twice, then tilted her head to rub against his skin.

Slowly Gabriel took off his jacket and placed it on the ground. ‘Can you tell her we can help her if she comes with us?’ he asked Nooroo.

The sprite pursed his lips. Then he flew to the jacket and plopped himself in the center waving invitingly at the cat. Hesitantly the animal followed and settled next to the kwami.

‘I’m going to take you somewhere safe and dry,’ Gabriel promised softly. ‘We’ll take care of you.’

Gingerly he wrapped the jacket around the cat and Nooroo. Pressing the bundle to his chest he walked back to the mansion as fast as he dared.

When they returned home, Emilie gasped at the cat’s state; she barked a few orders to the staff. Soon, a bath and fresh towels were ready, followed by a nourishing meal and a comfortable basket where the now fluffy and content cat finally found some rest.

Chomp Élysée—what Gabriel had decided to name her despite Emilie’s complaints—turned out to be a grateful companion. She wasn’t as lively as Lady Noir, preferring to nap in sunbeams instead of chasing Nooroo over in Gabriel’s study. She purred up a storm when petted, but she always hid her tummy and chomped on anyone who dared to try and stroke the area. She also ate twice the amount Lady Noir would typically consume, which was reflected in her round shape.

‘You need to restrict her diet, dear, or soon she won’t be walking but rolling,’ Emilie would chide Gabriel, but every time Chomp Élysée came demanding food, he simply could not refuse her; the cat’s distressed look in the alley was still too fresh in his memory.

Maybe he was going soft after all? But Chomp’s happy purr and easy company finally brought back some of the lost joy from his and Nooroo’s life.

>^.^<

They say the more you do something, the easier it becomes. It turns out this same principle works for cats very well. Gabriel had never been more reluctant than when he’d decided to allow Lady Noir into his home. It had taken a lot of time for her to weasel her way into his heart and heal his soul. Taking Chomp Élysée in was a bit simpler precisely because of the Lady Noir experience. Moreover, Emilie didn’t object to the mansion’s newest dweller, and even helped take care of the cat.

So it really wasn’t such a big surprise when a few weeks later, Gabriel arrived home with not just one but two scrawny striped cats. Emilie didn’t say a word, yet her look was more guarded this time. However, an unexpected ally—Chomp Élysée—left his wife no choice but to accept the newest additions to their flock. The grey cat inspected the pets, gracing each with a friendly lick over their pink noses. She took them straight to her bowl. She held Gabriel’s eye as she allowed the hungry kitties to devour every bit of food in there, including two helpings. Then she nudged them in the direction of her basket and curled with them as the proudest mother hen. It was a miracle in itself that three cats could even fit in there.

Thus it was settled that the Agreste family had just gained two new members: Pusskin and Shakespurr. The cat corner in Gabriel’s study expanded to accommodate two more pets, their beds and a cat tree. Unlike Chomp Élysée, the new cats knew how to have fun. Suddenly Nooroo had his nubs full with keeping an eye on the feline writers.

That was also the last time Emilie allowed for punny names, which was a shame because Gabriel had enough for a herd. Purrudence, Tabbytha, Margaret Scratcher, just to name a few for the ladies, or Fuzzinator, Catapult and Miraclaws for the boys. Such a waste. Even Clawsby was out of the question.

>(^w^)<

Someone would say that three cats were a crowd (that someone being Emilie), so the circumstances of the next arrival were a bit unclear. One day a golden maine coon—Croissant, by Emilie’s insistence—just showed up at the mansion’s door. He regarded the Agrestes with his astute green eyes and took over as if the house had been always his. Gabriel supposed Emilie allowed this because the maine coon was basically a feline version of Adrien—from the slender posture to the fine blond fur, from the poised manner to the unnerving green gaze, there was something in Croissant that made it impossible not to fall under his charm.

Of course, the fact that Croissant curbed Pusskin and Shakespurr’s temper helped a lot. Croissant hadn’t done anything in particular, yet he became the ultimate leader of the feline family. It took one growl from him and the mischievous kitties toned down their shenanigans in an instant.

And since Croissant was definitely Emilie’s cat, she couldn’t really object when he brought Macaroon home. She was without a shadow of a doubt his partner and shared his intelligent gaze. Her eyes were deep blue. She must have been of Birman breed—not the kind usually associated with strays. Emilie and Gabriel went through no small amount of trouble to find out if anyone was looking for a lost maine coon or a birman cat, as they didn’t want to be accused of stealing other people’s pets. However, in the end it seemed both Croissant and Macaroon had no previous homes or owners.

Five cats became the point where Emilie drew the line. True, their house was big, and with Adrien abroad they had a substantial supply of space, time and love to share, but enough was enough.

‘We don’t want them to take over, do we, dear?’ she jested observing the cat colony in Adrien’s room, that had been redecorated to suit the feline needs.

Confident that the cat limit was firmly established, Emilie left for England to check on their son and to spend some time with her sister.

Gabriel decided not to tell her that barely three days after her departure he’d agreed to foster Athos, Portos and Aramis (at least he’d kept his promise with their names). It really wasn’t like he’d had any choice in the matter: Gorilla found the first one wandering around the patio, Nathalie then located a box with the second one next to the dumpster. The third decided to sleep under the limousine’s hood and it was a miracle he was discovered before he was grilled on the engine.

The three musketeers were black with white collars and paws. They might have been brothers with their identically fluffy tails and impressive whiskers. They preferred Gorilla’s company, yet since his wife was allergic to cats, Gabriel graciously decided to let his bodyguard keep them in the mansion. There wasn’t much difference between five and eight cats, after all.

=(^ ‘ x ‘ ^)=

What was a lonely ex-villain supposed to do in an empty house? Spoil his cats of course! If it wasn’t for Nooroo and Croissant’s joined efforts, the pets would have walked all over him—especially Pusskin and Shakespurr. But somehow, the cats could always pick up on Gabriel’s mood and knew not to push him beyond his limits.

Besides, whenever he felt wistful or sad, at least two felines accompanied him. Emilie had been gone for about a week when he let Chomp Élysée into his bed and the other cats followed. He loved how soothing a cat’s purr was. Chomp would settle at the foot of the bed, while Croissant and Macaroon took over Emilie’s side. Pusskin and Shakespurr each secured Gabriel’s legs, while Athos, Portos and Aramis usually fought for a place on any of the pillows. And once Gabriel sank his nose into the soft black fur of a musketeer, there was no way he could throw the cats out of his bedroom. Goodbye, headaches— welcome, good night’s sleep.

Gabriel’s only complaint was that Chomp would wake him up at dawn with a bite on his big toe, demanding that he feed her, while rousing the rest of the feline family in the process. Gabriel would then descend the stairs to the kitchen, knee deep in cats, who rubbed at his shins affectionately—not so subtly urging him to move faster.

One day though, Chomp Élysée didn’t wake him. Gabriel blinked the sleep away from his eyes, gently lifted a sleepy Portos from his chest, and looked around. No sign of Chomp in the bed. Gabriel appreciated routine greatly, so immediately he started to worry. He went to the kitchen, the rest of the cats at his heels. He picked Chomp’s favorite food and banged her bowl loudly and repeatedly, but she didn’t come. He left the other cats wolfing down their breakfast and set to look for his first cat.

When he finally found her, in her basket, under his desk, the mystery of Chomp Élysée’s recent appetite and shape was revealed. Gabriel was now the proud owner of twelve cats.

>^.^< >^.^< >^.^< >^.^<

The kittens were the cutest thing Gabriel had ever seen, baby Adrien excluded. Chanel, Dior, Givenchy and Ricci—absolutely punless nods to his favorite designers—were four little balls of grey fluff. They had him wrapped around their tiny claws in a blink.

Having them around was so much fun. He could watch them play for hours, with their wee fluffy tails and clumsy movements, sweet mewls and an appetite for life rivalling their mother’s drive for food. Gabriel began to reminisce on how he used to watch little Adrien the same way. He briefly wondered when his son and Marinette would produce a grandchild for him—not that he’d ask, mind you. They were still so young, barely starting their adult life. Besides, he had sworn he’d never be one of those parents, but still it would be delightful to hear baby steps and giggles echoing in the mansion’s cavernous hall. For now Gabriel settled for miniature paws and excited squeals of the four most adorable designer kittens ever.

Yet good things rarely last long. Just as Chanel and her siblings got bold enough to start exploring the mansion, with their mother’s tender supervision, Emilie announced her return. Not only that, she bore auspicious news of Adrien and Marinette’s engagement (yay! one step closer to that grandchild). The happy husband-and-wife-to-be were returning for their break at the same time as her, and Emilie already decreed a dinner with the Dupain-Chengs should be held at the mansion upon their arrival.

Under normal circumstances Gabriel would be overjoyed to finally get his human family back. There was just one teeny tiny problem—he was eight cats over the limit his wife had set. He was almost sure he could persuade her to keep what he started to think of as probably the biggest cat herd in Paris, but the dinner party was something of an obstacle. Not the best way to introduce new and unauthorized members of their household. He needed a cunning plan.

That’s when Nooroo stepped in with his brilliant idea: Gabriel just had to transfer the surplus cats to the only place in the building no one would visit—his former lair. Before Hawkmoth had risen to power it had been a neglected sunroom, forever waiting on renovation, but now it would do nicely as the cats’ den with a special nursery section for his little treasures.

Nathalie and Gorilla turned out to be very helpful in furnishing the ex-lair. With some broom work and a fresh coat of paint what was once an akuma hatchery became a feline paradise. Cat trees, scratching posts, tunnels, shelves, beds, baskets, fountains, toys—only the best for Gabriel’s kitties. The team effort allowed the cats to be moved a few days before Emilie’s arrival, giving their pets the necessary time to adjust to a new place.

The plan worked like a charm. The cats were happy to explore their new playroom and they didn’t even feel inclined to leave the lair. They had everything they needed there. Gabriel had his favorite armchair installed in the sunroom as well, so that he could spend some time watching the cats, and maybe even take a comfortable nap during his lunch breaks.

>^.^<

The celebratory dinner was in full swing and Gabriel was nailing it. He had finally found a worthy match for his pun game in Tom Dupain. The resulting pun-off was definitely the highlight of the evening. The ladies were chuckling, the youngsters were groaning. The only present felines included Lady Noir, who meticulously inspected every corner of the dining room, and Croissant with Macaroon. The two cats decided to act as the guard of honor for Emilie, flanking her chair and chirping happily at their favorite human’s return. The looks on Marinette and Adrien’s faces were priceless.

Everything went smoothly until Lady Noir’s tail turned into bottle brush. Croissant and Macaroon exchanged worried looks. Then all three cats bolted for the door and disappeared. Gabriel seemed to be the only one to notice. He surely was the only one to understand where they’d gone. He excused himself from the company in order to check on the situation in the secret room.

He found all thirteen cats in the lair, all right. Thirteen tails bristled and lashed behind them. In front of them, on the window frame was a pigeon. And not even Mr. Pigeon, just one of those flying rats. It dawned on him that this was the reason for their odd behavior, and Gabriel snorted out a laugh at the ridiculous sight. Unfortunately, it startled the bird, and the stupid creature decided the safest plan of action would be to dive inside a cat lair.

Thirteen pairs of eyes followed the pigeon’s trail inside the dome; thirteen throats uttered a growl. Within seconds, the cats sprang into action, and all hell broke loose! The pigeon, sensing eminent danger, did the only sensible thing it could—it decided to hide in a nest. Only it wasn’t a nest, but the neatly trimmed hair of one Gabriel Agreste. The man yelped, the cats attacked.

Gabriel went down under the onslaught, losing balance thanks to a vicious kitten which attacked his shoelace (as if it had anything to do with the pigeon taking refuge on his head). The bird apparently had enough brains to know when it was outnumbered, and finally flew outside, leaving the man and his cats in a disoriented heap of limbs, tails and claws.

And then someone cleared their throat.

Gabriel raised his eyes to the door. Everyone was there—the Dupain-Chengs, Adrien, Marinette, and Emilie. Tom and Sabine wore matching grins, while the kids were rather horrified.

Emilie smoothed her dress and raised a brow—it meant an inevitable private conversation would soon follow. For now, however, his wife slid back into the perfect hostess routine. Well, almost.

‘And this, Sabine, used to be our sunroom, where my husband now keeps his hoard of cats,’ she said without batting an eyelash.

‘Awwww,’ Sabine coed, as Gabriel started the process of untangling himself from the said hoard by removing Dior from his jacket’s pocket.

Tom released a mischievous chuckle and stroked his mustache. He looked Gabriel straight in the eye and said, ‘I believe, dear Emilie, the proper name is a meowntain.’

The designer bristled at that; he had just been humiliated in front of his guests! His secret was out, but he saw a chance to save his face. He couldn’t allow for anyone to defeat him on his own turf!

‘I’ll have you know,’ he drawled, pulling himself up to his full height and brushing cat hairs from his clothes, ‘this is not a meowntain.’ He wrinkled his nose in disgust.

‘This-, ‘ he proudly opened his hands and gestured to the feline paradise and his collection of pets, ‘-is haute cature.’

-(^The End^)-

#gabriel agreste #miraculous ladybug #goog guy gabe #ml fic #emilie agreste #nooroo #gabrielie #catpics #felinotherapy series #a birthday gift for Remasa #perdita writes #cats

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cloudyyoonji · 4 years

Text

Lovelorn.

Hwang Hyunjin X Reader

REQUESTED BY ANON

Summary: Lovelorn; The state of being sad because of the problems love brings. Stupid projects mean even stupider decisions when your in college.

Genre: Super fluffy! College Fluff!! _____________

“What about proving gravity wrong?”

The boy across from can only groan, folding into a pile on his notebook, pen falling from his hand.

“You’re seriously so dumb,” Hyunjin groans into his sleeves. “You know this project is like half our grade right?”

“No shit sherlock.” You spit, rolling your eyes as you lean back into your chair. “I seriously think we’re going to fail this unit. There’s seriously nothing.”

“Hey!” Now he’s sitting up, eyes wide. “I’ve given plenty of suggestions!”

“Hyunjin, being able to resist eating an open pizza box for 24 hours is not proving anything wrong.” “Hey, it shows that we've got strong will power!"

You groan now, throwing your head back.

On the unlikely chance to choose your partners for a project, you were both stumped with the project question of ‘Prove me wrong’, the topic as widespread as the question.

Just what were you proving wrong? Whatever you two wanted to prove wrong.

Hyunjin sits up suddenly, eyes wide with the essence of ‘eureka’.

“What if we did an article on celebrity lives? Like the whole dating for publicity thing?”

His voice grows more excited as the words pour from his mouth, the cogs clearly turning in his brain.

“What if we proved that fake dating doesn’t always lead to love like people seem to think it does?!”

You watch him for a solid minute, trying to wrap your head around this concept your best friend was suggesting to you.

Fake dating? Would people even believe that you two would date?!

“Fake dating? I mean...” you trail off, fiddling with your ring, eyes averted to the table.

“Y/N! It’s perfect!” The boy exclaims, grabbing your shoulders over the table. “Just think of it! It’s perfect, we can use extra media, like vlogs and shit too! We both know that there’s no risk that we could fall in love, so why not?”

You couldn’t argue, even as you looked him in the eyes.

He was right. He was always right.

Plus, you two could use the bonus points of the extra media in the presentation.

“Fine,” you hold out your hand, catching his in a firm handshake. “I swear that we will prove that this fake dating shit doesn’t end in love.”

“Here’s too that.”

13 days. That's all would only be.13 days of fake dating your best friend; Hwang Hyunjin.

_______

What had you expected?

Things run as they normally do during the first 24 hours of the project. Honestly, if fake dating Hyunjin was going to be this easy, you would’ve signed up for this years ago.

With no relationship knowledge under your belt, you certainly knew that having a relationship couldn’t be this easy, right?

Though you two were set on making an “itinerary of dating” for your project, you were happy with the way things were going. At first, you’d thought that this whole relationship thing was going to be overwhelming, and astoundingly difficult. But, things were still oddly normal around you two.

That is until he pulled the camera out.

Amidst a vlog type video, he looks over at you, the movie on the television loud in the background.

“What?” You groan, covering your face, trying to shy away from his camera lens.

“We should start the project. That involves filming the process, remember Y/N?”

You groan in response, now pulling the blanket over your body, one hand still covering half your face.

“Hey! We should cuddle, just like normal couples do when they watch movies.”

Now your hand drops, Hyunjin’s camera capturing both your faces to gauge your reactions to this whole fake dating scenario.

“I searched it up and found an article that said the first thing a lot of couples do is cuddle, and hold hands. It’s like the building blocks of a relationship.”

“Aren't Chan and Felix coming over soon though? Aren’t you guys studying?”

“Yeah, but we have to tell them at some point. Remember, we’re dating now.”

You’re silent, pulling the blanket closer to your body now, eyes meeting his.

“Can you put the camera away? This just feels so wrong.”

He sighs, lowering his phone to press stop on the video, eyes back on yours.

“We have to document this Y/N.” “I know,” you say defensively, curling tighter into your legs. “But it's just...”

Now he’s concerned, pushing himself across the couch to sit down next to you, a hand resting on your shoulder.

“Hey, if you’re not comfortable with this idea, we can just change it.” “No, no, no. It’s not important. Let’s just drop it.”

His head drops to catch your eye, concern written on his features. “Y/N, what’s going on? You can tell me you know.”

You sigh now, eyes closing as you let your body relax into the pillow behind you.

“I don’t know if I’m right, for this project, I mean.”

He’s confused, silence urging you to continue on, explain more.

“Hyunjin, you’re experienced. You’ve been in a relationship. I’ve never been in a relationship in my life. I have no experience. You know? I don’t know what to do, or how to act! It’s all new to me!”

You sigh, trying to gather your thoughts.

“I just don’t think I’m the right partner for this idea.”

“Hey,” he takes your hand now. “I don’t care that you’re not experienced. I didn’t pick you for experience, I picked you because your my best friend, and we can learn together.”

He moves a little closer, catching your eye again.

“I’ll show you. I’ll be your teacher. You know what, don’t think of this as a project, but rather ‘Relationship Advice 101: The Basics’ okay?”

You smile at the name, looking at him properly now.

“You’d do that?” “Of course.”

The conversation stops there, comfort setting in as your big secret is finally off your shoulders, lightening your load and mood as your eyes trace back to the movie, interested in the characters.

However, it seems your ‘Relationship Advice 101: The Basics’ class was about to begin, the boy tapping your shoulder before patting the space next to him, urging you to move closer.

Shooting the boy a questioning look, you scoot over, throwing half the blanket over him as you do so.

He wraps his arm over your shoulders, pushing you a little closer to him.

Ah, cuddling. The first building block of a relationship.

Its still, awkward even, for a few moments, both of you watching the movie, tense bodies brushed together.

“Hey,” Hyunjin’s voice is gentle, nowhere above a whisper, his tone something you’d never heard before. “You can relax a bit, you’re really tense.”

“How?” You ask, unsure of how to get comfortable in such a position with someone who was only your best friend.

“Well, you can move more into my chest more, so you’re comfortable. Just try and find a position that’s comfortable for you, don’t stress about me.”

Giving an apprehensive nod, you turn into him more, a hand coming to tentatively rest on the boys' chest, head pressed to his shoulder. His grip on you readjusts as you do, strangely comfortable.

You let out a nervous smile.

“This is kind of nice.” “Cuddles are always nice.”

And just like that any means of conversation diminishes between you both, gaze on the movie.

But even your gaze on that diminishes, as does your ticking mind. Your body relaxes more into Hyunjin as your brain shuts off for the night, worries as light as the night air. ____

The sound of a ringing alarm draws you out of your dreams, a hand trying to find your phone in amongst the blanket.

The sound is cut off, making you give a small sigh of relief, settling back into your comfortable position.

“Y/N.”

You groan in response, fingers twisting with the blanket.

A hand comes in contact with your arm, shaking your body slightly. You shoo it away, eyes clamped firmly shut.

“Y/N, we have things to do today.”

It's like all at once you’re hypersensitive of the owner of the voice, extremely aware of the grip in your arm, and where your head is rested.

Opening your eyes you see Hyunjin in the same position that he was when you’d fallen asleep last night, your head still rested comfortably on his shoulder, hand splayed out on his chest. However, his attention is on his phone, fingers typing a response back to someone.

You rip yourself from him, eyes wide. He only gazes at you nonchalantly, sitting up.

“You fell asleep.” “And why didn’t you wake me?” You ask, eyes wide as you search for your phone.

Your roommate was going to kill you for this.

“You never get any sleep,” He tells you, soft tone enough to stop your franticness for just a second. “I didn’t wake you because you needed to sleep.”

Giving him a small smile, your fingers find your phone, however, your gaze remains on the boy, eyes smiling at him.

“You’re too kind Jin, but what am I going to tell my roommate. She’ll fry me for this.” “We’ll we are ‘dating’ now, so you’ll just have to tell her you spent the night with your boyfriend.”

His comment makes you splutter, eyes wide. “Spent the night!?”

Hyunjin only laughs at your state, pushing himself into standing position to tap your shoulder reassuringly.

“We have a big day today, I’ll meet you at your apartment so we can work on this itinerary shit. The group wants to catch up too, Chan and Felix are asking questions."

Groaning as he leaves the room, you in turn also push yourself off the couch, gathering your things as you prepare yourself for the walk back to your dorm room.

“See you soon then, Jin!” “Bye Y/N!”

Nobody questions a thing.

From Hyunjin’s hand in yours to the way your roommate smiled when he’d come knocking at your door, your relationship seemed to be believable in the best way possible.

Even your friends, when you’d sent the girls a frantic text on the group chat and shyly nodded to Hyunjin’s group, had congratulated you both in open arms, and the countless ‘I knew it’ statements.

Any anxiety about actually getting away with the project had completely faltered, all you guys needed to do was keep the ‘dating itinerary’ safe away from the eyes of absolutely anyone.

You guys had planned to go on three dates for a more reliable experiment, your last date being a somewhat fancy one for a more memorable experience.

Any time in between the dates was filled with having coffee at the local cafe or watching a movie together. In the meantime, the day would be filled with working on the project together, linking the videos to the PowerPoint slide, writing a reflection, cross-linking with social theories.

It was a good plan, bound to work. It had to work.

_____

iii

It was working. Everything was going smoothly.

Four days had passed without a hitch, your credibility growing when people saw you holding hands in public, or when you’d hug each other goodbye for the day only to reunite at the coffee shop some 8 hours later.

But your anxiety had ridden dangerously high when you’d received a text from Hyunjin during your lecture, reading “My dorm. Now. Urgent.”

What had happened? Had your idea been canned by the teacher? Was he hurt? Did he not want to continue the experiment?

Packing all of your things on the sound of the bell, you bolt off towards the dorm rooms, arriving at Hyunjin’s in no less than 3 minutes.

You knock on the door, hard, eager to get inside.

It opens, a mildly stressed Hyunjin standing in its wake, his hair tousled as if he’d been running his hands through it over and over.

You’d seen him like this before, but there was something about the crease in his forehead that makes your heart sink a little.

With a wave of his hand, you’re invited inside, following him into the small kitchen, where Jisung, his roommate is sitting.

Giving him a confused side gaze, you sit down as he does, waiting for someone to speak.

Jisung holds up a piece of paper, one you instantly recognize, one that was an important piece in your experiment.

“So you two aren’t together?” He asks, eyes tracing from Hyunjin to you.

You don’t quite know how to answer, eyes wide as you look to Hyunjin.

“I’ve explained it to him, briefly. I thought that it might help if you explain too.”

“Oh...” you trail off, thumbs fiddling together.

“Yeah. We’re not. Look Jisung, I'm sorry we lied to you. It’s for a project you see, we have to prove something wrong, and we chose to prove that fake dating doesn’t always equal in two people falling in love as everyone thinks.”

He nods at this, processing.

“And you guys obviously need everyone believing your dating for this to work right? All your friends? And the boys?”

You both nod.

“Right. Okay...” the boy trails off, sliding the sheet of paper back to Hyunjin. “I’ll keep your secret. Don’t stress. You guys look so pale right now.”

You and Hyunjin seem to let out a breath at the same time.

“Thank you.” You whisper, hands pressed together as you smile up at him.

Jin smiles too, patting the boy's arm as a sign of thanks.

“Well, it seems that you guys have a date to get to right? Today’s what, day four? You should get ready.”

Giving you both a smirk, he hits Hyunjins arm as he gets up with a wink.

The other boy groans at this. “He’s going to tease me about this non-stop now that he knows what we’re doing.”

You shrug nonchalantly, your own small smirk on your features.

“Sorry buddy, I have to get ready for our staged date.” “I’ll meet you at 6 then? At your dorm?”

You nod, bidding him a cheeky goodbye, yelling out to Jisung as you’re leaving too.

At least the situation had become somewhat lighter, right? Now that Jisung knows, this experiment could only go the way you both wanted it too, to prove your points that love doesn’t always have to bloom between two close people.

In an hour and a half, you’ve wiped off the grime of the day, replacing it with a skirt and some hoop earrings.

On cue, you hear Hyunjin’s knock at the door right at 6pm.

Shuffling to the door, you open it in a quick motion, struggling to get your earring in.

“Hey, come in, I’ll just be one second.”

You skip back to the kitchen, earring finally in place, grabbing your bag off the bench as Hyunjin waits in the doorway.

“Did you film anything beforehand? I did a short one just about the fact we were going on a date.”

He nods, eyes wandering around the dorm room nervously. You sneer, hitting his side as you open the door.

“She’s not here, I wouldn’t talk about something like this if my roommate was in the other room.”

“Well, I wasn’t sure if you’d told her, after Jisung and all.”

You shake your head, locking the door before following him down the halls.

“Where are we going?” “You’ll find out.”

You let him lead you through the buildings, going up some stairs and through some overpasses, unsure of your final destination.

Pushing open the door, he gestures for you to walk past him, your eyes wandering over the rooftop location.

Sitting down on the bench seat, you can't but help marvel over the view.

“I come here when I’m stressed.” The boy tells you, eyes wandering over the horizon of the university campus.

“It's beautiful up here,” you comment. “Very calm actually.”

“The sunset should be soon. It’s really nice from up here. I thought that this might make an alright first date for my fake girlfriend.”

You can hear his smile, even see the way his eyes are shining. He was happy, happy that he was making you happy perhaps. After all, he was teaching you all these things.

Was this what a first date always entailed? So many questions yet so many answers at once?

He was right, as always. There was something about the way the sunset looked from up here that set it apart from everything in your life. Encircled in orange and pink hues, you two watch as they fade to a shining purple, the night peaking from under the clouds magnificently.

You’re mesmerized, not just by the light show, but by Hyunjin's sincere gesture.

“So this is what a date is like.” You speak, eyes never leaving the beauty of the sky.

“It sure is,” the boy answers, turning to look at you. “Fake or not, I thought you’d actually like this.”

“I love it. Thank you.”

And with that, you two walk back through the nights breeze, lead back through the buildings to your dorm room.

“I know I'm not the best fake boyfriend, but I’m glad that you liked it. It’s the best I could figure out without making it too awkward between us...” Hyunjin trails off, a hand resting on the back of his neck.

But you smile, sincerely, throwing your arms around your best friend to trap him in your tight embrace of a hug.

A hug you rarely gave to anyone.

“Thank you again.” You mumble, pulling back with a wide smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He nods, features mirroring your own smile. “I’ll see you then.”

____

It seemed that your ‘date’ with Hyunjin hadn’t solved all the problems in the world like you’d originally thought, but rather the stress of any college student had hit you like a ton of bricks.

Bad test scores. Money trouble. Lack of concentration. Lack of sleep.

All combined together, you were sure that this was a horseman of the apocalypse, a fifth more unforgiving one that was reserved just to torture college students.

Sighing into your notes for the hundredth time, your attention came to rest on your phone, the text from Hyunjin almost comforting in its own strange way.

“Okay, 4 days of M.I.A studying is enough. Date tomorrow. Wear something pretty. I’ll come to get you at 1.”

You texted a reply, sighing as your head hit the desktop.

Now you couldn’t get him off your mind.

That was an issue you were sure you wouldn’t have to face in this experiment. After all, you two were only friends, right?

When this experiment finished, things would go back to normal, as if they never happened. You’d been sure of it.

But 7 days in, you really weren’t so sure. Your heartfelt a certain way around him, and when he’d grab your hand, you had to will yourself back to civilization, back to the reality that this was only - and would only -be an experiment for your project.

Nothing more.

Surely your feelings were just all part of the experience, the learning of the way of relationships. Perhaps Hyunjin simply was just a good boyfriend.

But not yours. He wasn’t your boyfriend. He is your friend. Nothing more, nothing less.

Shaking the thoughts from your head, you blink up at the 11.57pm illuminated on the screen of your phone, eyes tired.

Perhaps you should go to bed. It seemed tomorrow was going to be the biggest day of them all, and you’ll need all the extra sleep you can get.

So you abandon your papers, and climb into bed, thoughts of Hyunjin never leaving your mind.

___

Slapping a hasty snooze on the alarm that has already rung its fourth course, you push yourself up into sitting position, head in your hands, tiredness sitting on your chest.

Perhaps all those sleepless nights had finally decided to make their presence known. And all on this particular day.

Groaning into your hands, you run your fingers through your hair, grabbing your phone from the nightstand.

You have 5 hours. Five hours to wake up. Five hours to get yourself ready. Five hours to wipe off all your grime and prime yourself up for a fancy date.

A date with Hwang Hyunjin - your best friend, your fake boyfriend.

You were never the best with girly things, especially not your appearance.

Upon opening your closet, it was clear that you were out of your depth. Unable to separate the whites from the pinks, you hailed your roommate in a mild yell, your crossed armed stance never faltering even when your roommate throws clothing at you to try on.

Rather, your roommate takes the lead now, prepping you prime and pretty for your date, the dress something from her wardrobe, hair and makeup complete with her signature style.

1pm comes, Hyunjin's knock at the door only a few minutes late. Your roommate is the one who answers it, greeting him with a smile, yelling for you to - as she puts it - “Hurry your ass up.” and “not keep your beautiful boyfriend waiting."

Even just the sight of him makes your heart flutter. Tall, dark and handsome, the boy looks considerably attractive in his suit.

Silently, you swear at yourself for the thought. You can’t think about this, not now. Not whilst you two were so close in proving your points.

Hand-pressed into yours, he gingerly leads you to his car.

“So where are we going?” “You’ll find out.”

You huff at his tight lips, wishing that he’d at least give you a hint, eyes staring eagerly out the windshield.

Pulling up some 10 minutes later at a lake, he gestures for you to get out, a smirk on his features when he sees your surprised expression.

So you open the door and climb out, never once breaking eye contact with the beautiful view as you wander forward, Hyunjin close behind.

“Wow.” you breathe, turning back around to face him, seeing that a blanket has already been laid down, but the boy is hidden behind the screen of his camera, lens focused on you.

“Hey! You didn’t tell me you were filming!”

He laughs at this, head popping out to face you.

“I couldn’t disturb how marvelled you are.”

You smile at this, eyes lingering on his for a moment before switching towards the open picnic basket.

The camera is abandoned from his grip, hand held out to you now.

With a small smile, you sweep your hair behind your ear, taking his hand as he guides you towards the blanket, gesturing for you to sit.

With tousled hair and cheese and crackers, you watch the afternoon roll by over the lake.

His phone is abandoned on the blanket, the containers empty.

You were both quite comfortable, leaned back, light on the conversation.

As the breeze hits your skin in goosebumps, you cross your arms in an attempt to keep out the cold.

“Here.”

Hyunjin already has his jacket off when you turn to face him, body close to yours as he throws it over you shoulders, fingers fastening one of the buttons.

“No one has ever given me their coat before.” You tell him, cheeks tinted a heated pink.

“Well,” he looks at you now, leaning back onto his arms, head lulled to the side to face you. “Everyone is just a douche bag then.”

Giving him a small smile, you look down at the coat.

“Thank you for this though. It’s beautiful.”

“You’re more than welcome.” He pauses, making you look at him, but his eyes are trained on the horizon before you. “You know, I think that you deserve to be treated like this at least once in your life.”

You don’t quite know how to answer, eyes faltering as he turns to face you, cheeks burning red.

And it isn’t the last time you do exactly that.

As the day dissolves into the evening, you find yourself relaxed into his shoulder, heart beating nervously in your chest as his head pressed against yours, legs sprawled out against yours but crossed at the ankle.

“I know I’ve said this,” you whisper, “but this is seriously the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me, fake or not.” “You’re most welcome Y/N.”

Head pulling away from yours, you two find yourself in that same scene that was in every romantic movie you’d ever seen.

That one look that is so adorning, so love-filled. The one look that builds the tension in the air, but just the right amount.

You also know what comes after this type of look.

This was easily where you two were meant to kiss, bodies moving closer like magnets, the kiss sweet.

But this time, it’s not like that.

Breaking away from your eyes, the boy looks back at his car than to his watch.

“We should probably head back. It is sort of late.”

You nod in agreement, aware of the awkwardness in his voice, helping to fold the blanket as he packs up the basket.

Even the ride home is awkward, just what you were initially afraid of.

Determined to break the tension, you suggest walking him back to his dorm, which he only laughs at.

“You know that it’s normally my duty to do that.” “Well Mr Hwang, I want to break this tradition of yours.”

So he lets you, basket abandoned in the car, the sound of your clacking heels in the car park almost as loud as the silence between you as you two walk.

Pulling out his keys he unlocks the door, pushing it open just a crack. “Why don’t you come in?”

You look up from the floor, eyes wide. “You’re sure?”

Perhaps you say it a little too eagerly, because his eyes cresent into moons, smile wide as he nods.

Throwing the keys somewhere on the bench, you’re invited into the familiar room, the boy waving you to follow him to his room.

“You left something here when you were the other day.”

“I did?” You question, racking your brain for what it might be.

Plopping onto his bed, you watch as he wanders around the room, racking through the draws of the tallboy.

“Ah!” He exclaims, holding out something in his palm to you. Two little gold hoop earrings lay flat, your eureka moment hitting you as you remember taking them off when you two were watching movies.

“Oh! I remember taking them off!” You exclaim, taking them wide a wide smile. “Thank you!”

He smiles, plopping down next to you, shoulder touching yours, sleeves now rolled up at his elbows.

“You look tired,” Hyunjin tells you as you lay your head on his shoulder, eyes slowly closing as your body relaxes.

“I am tired.” You reply, mumbling.

His head comes on top of yours again, his body relaxing too. “Me too.”

You’re not sure how long you two are sitting there, but you’re awoken by some shuffling.

Eyes opening, you realize that you’ve both fallen asleep, Hyunjin’s head still rested on top of yours, breathing slow in your ears.

In the crack of light peaking through the doorway, a tired Jisung passes along the doorway, shoes in his hand.

Upon seeing your open eyes, he presses a finger to his lips, smile wide at the sight of you two.

Within a haze of sleep, you smile back too, eyes closing once more as sleep bites at you, luring you back into the darkness, and the arms of none other than Hwang Hyunjin.

___

The countdown is slowly diminishing before your eyes, mind stuck on passing your exams, rather than your project with Hyunjin.

If you didn’t think about him, that would make this ordeal easier, right?

It would make the project easier to present. It would fill the “going back to friends” with some normality that you could fathom.

Everything was ready to go, other than your hypothesis.

It seems that falling for Hyunjin was easier than you’d thought.

“Y/N! You have to come to the party!”

You roll your eyes at the boy, taking another swing of your coffee.

“But why? You know I hate them! Chan’s parties are just too much most of the time!”

“Because now that you’re my girlfriend, you have to come to the party’s I’m going too! It’s like the code!”

You roll your eyes again, shaking your head.

Hyunjin stops your walking with a hand on your shoulder, pleading look glinting in his eyes as he presses his hands together.

“Please? Come with me? I’ll buy your coffee for a solid month. And you can choose the next movie on movie night!”

This makes you smile a bit, the offer a ray of sunshine in your broke college lifestyle.

“Fine. Only because I have no money,” you tell him. “But you have to promise to actually do that.”

“Of course, I promise.” The boy says, wrapping his pinky with yours.

Splitting ways, you head off to your next class, the remainder of the day a headache and a half. The last thing you wanted to do was collect yourself for a party after such a long day.

Sighing to yourself, you throw your bag at the bed, getting yourself ready for the night ahead.

Upon arriving at the party, you’re beginning to realize just how shit parties are when your sober, you early morning presentation holding the two of you captive, locked away from any of the drinks.

Weaving through the flurry of people, you crane your head for even a look of Hyunjin - or any of the boys for that matter, music as loud as the swaying bodies and terrible singing.

“You’re Hyunjins girlfriend right?”

Whipping around to the girl who has tapped your shoulder, you ignore the urge to roll your eyes, Clarissa and her so-called possy knitted together tightly behind you. If college was high school, these girls would be the “popular group”, the biggest bitches to have ever walked the earth, living proof that people don’t just grow out of wanting to stick their noses into everyone’s business.

“Yeah,” you nod, pulling to the side of the room. “I am.”

She smiles, one of those honey smiles, sticky with fakeness. “Good. But, you know. I’ve been asking around, and it seems that you two have never actually kissed.”

Is this girl serious? She’s wasting her time buy inquiring if you and Hyunjin have kissed?

“Just so you know, it’s none of your business.” You tell her, a lie on your tongue. “But yes, we have kissed, in public too, Clarissa.”

“Well that’s a relief,” she sweats, giving you another sugar-coated smile. “Because there’s a rumour going around at the moment, but I’m glad you can dispel them Y/N.”

“What’s the rumour?”

Hyunjins body is close to yours, hands resting on your shoulders, voice loud as he speaks.

You can almost hear the venom in his words, see how his eyebrows are raised in false interest.

“Oh,” she sighs, eyes flicking to the side before she leans in, hand half-covering her mouth. “People think your fake dating.”

“Well, that’s bullshit and you know it.” His words are straight to the point, hand taking yours. “The boys are over here, come on.”

And so you let him whisk your anxious self away, her words fresh in your mind.

Your whole cover could be blown with this one rumour, whether she knows or she doesn’t, you have to make sure she doesn’t let this one slip. But how? You weren’t quite sure.

Rolling your eyes at your lack of solutions, you shoot a friendly smile at the group, who grow closer with every footfall.

“What the fuck did Clarissa want with you?” It’s out of Felix’s mouth as soon as you’re close enough to here him, a disgruntled groan leaving yours as a response.

“That bad?” “Worse.” You answer Minho, a hand running through your hair. “She was telling us that there’s a rumour that we’re fake dating.”

Chan’s eyebrows furrow, the party holder putting his cup down. “That’s complete bullshit. There’s no rumour.”

You nod in agreement, giving him a half-smile.

“Ah, so that’s why you two have a stalker.” Jisung is leaning on the counter, cup tilted in the direction of someone, both you and Hyunjin turning to stare down a grinning Clarissa.

This girl was going to be the bane of your soon-to-be hangover.

You groan, quickly plucking up Chan’s abandoned up, and swallowing whatever it’s contents is the boy giving you a surprised look.

“Hey, we’ve got a presentation tomorrow.” Hyunjin tells you, hand on your shoulder.

“Doesn’t matter. The only way to get rid of Clarissa is to get drunk,” you wiggle your fingers. “Then she’ll magically fade into the distance.”

“Okay okay, You're officially cut off madame. No alcohol for you tonight.” Chan tells you, stealing his cup back, eyes narrow.

You sigh, nodding, Hyunjin patting your back softly.

The conversation drifts, you sitting down on one of the chairs, eyes watching over “Queen Bee” and her crew with a narrowing intensity.

“Hey, stop! Don’t stress about her!” Jisung’s fingers come in front of your face, your gaze going to the boy.

“It’s sort of hard not too.” You whisper, lips tight as your eyes wander around the group.

He gives somewhat of a sympathetic smile. “I know. But it’s only a few more hours. Don’t stress about it. Everything will go fine tomorrow.”

You take his words with a smile, eyes landing on a quiet Hyunjin who stands across from you, fingers fidgeting with his ring, spinning it around.

Catching his eyes, you stand, wandering to his side.

“You okay?” “Yeah. I’m fine.”

Concern bubbles in your chest, but you know that now is not the right time to address it, perhaps you’d catch him later and ask again.

“Oh, you’ve never seen them kiss either? How interesting!”

You don’t even bother looking behind you, rolling your eyes at her words.

“Don’t listen to her, She's bullshit.” You tell Hyunjin, eyes landing on the boy.

But now he seems more uncomfortable than before, jaw clenched, eyes avoiding as if he’s weighing up something in his mind.

“Fuck it.” As soon as the words are out of his mouth, he’s turning to you, body close, as his lips touch yours.

You’d always expected that kissing Hyunjin might feel like fireworks or explosions of some kind. But it was neither of those, rather a calmness, a safety net. It felt right. It was as if your world had been spinning around you, but suddenly just fell into place, into a perfect rhythm.

And this was it. You’re kissing Hwang Hyunjin, your best friend. And nothing would ever be the same again.

___

vii

“Oh, okay.” Jisung’s comment is all you hear, your eyes wide on Hyunjin, barely focused.

“I’m going to leave now.”

Although it’s clearly shut up Clarissa’s commentary, you can’t quite comprehend the last few seconds, bag slung over your shoulder, back turned to the group as you make your way, quick smart, out of the party.

Your mind screams at you. This was a dealbreaker, a complete and utter violation of what you two had agreed to.

How are you supposed to get up in front of your entire lecture hall in less than 9 hours and blatantly lie about your feelings to the boy standing next to you?

The wind runs up your skin as you walk back to your dorm, heart beating heavily inside your chest, swarming with various emotions.

Anger. Rage. Jealously. Hurt. You hurt more than anything.

“Y/N!”

You don’t dare slow your pace at the sound of your name, wind-cold, eyes teary.

“Y/N! Hey, wait up!”

He’s closer now, footsteps echoing across the courtyard.

“Wait,” A tug at your arm, stops you completely, body turning to face the boy. He breathes heavily, eyes focused on you. “Please wait.”

Somehow, your heart still falters at his whispered words, eyes glued to his even in their watery state.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.” He starts. “No,” you interject, voice cold. “You shouldn’t have.”

“Believe me, Y/N. I know,” he looks around now, letting a small sigh slip through his lips. “But, hell, something just came over me. I don’t know if it’s just the fact I was too immersed in this fake dating business, or if it’s just the timing, but Y/N, you should know I wanted to kiss you.”

You’re silent, eyes downcast.

“And I know that it wasn’t the right time, nor place, but Y/N, I think that I’ve messed this project up entirely because I just can’t keep lying to you, or myself for that matter.”

“What are you saying?” Your words come out a little harsher than you intend, but your bitterness seems to just flow out of your mouth. “That you like me? That you’ve been making up this crummy bullshit excuse of “oh I don’t feel anything for you.”? Do you know how much that hurt me? That I’ve been feeling like absolute shit because I’m holding this burden of the fact I’ve caught feelings for you?”

“No, I-”

You cut him off in an instance. “This is over, Hwang Hyunjin.”

Turning away, you walk off from the boy, heart hammering in your chest, but he’s quick, arms wrapping around your waist, body pulling you into a back hug, chin pressed against your shoulder.

You’re voice only cracks as you try to scold him, body giving up on fighting his grip.

“I know I’ve ruined everything,” he says, voice barely above a whisper. “But Y/N, I really like you a lot, and I hate seeing you this upset because of me.”

At first, you say nothing, trying to calm the wave of emotions splaying over you. But that only leaves one remaining, on the rocks, for all to see.

“I like you too.” You manage, letting a small smile slip onto your features.

With the boy pulling away, you turn to face him, no longer boiling with anger nor sadness.

“Can we do this again?” Hyunjin asks eyes lit up in a smile. “I’m Hwang Hyunjin, you’re once fake boyfriend, and certainly an asshole. But, I’d really love to be your real boyfriend, if you’ll allow me to be.”

You crack a wider smile, giving the boy a small laugh.

“But what about our project?” “Fuck the project, all that matters is you at the moment.”

And with that, he pulls you into another kiss, just as sweet as the first.

Pulling back, you smile up at him, cloud nine flooding your vision. “Fine, Mr Hwang Hyunjin,” You whisper.

“I’ll be your actual girlfriend.”

137 notes · View notes

boww-tiez · 5 years

Text

Spend Some Time

Back again! This one’s a bit different. Set in the past. Colby is like seventeen, and so are you, setting is around 2014. It’s more of a fluffy friendship fic with a bit of cute romance at the end because I’m a sap. Involves some 2019 Snapchat as well since I did not have Snap in 2014 and I don’t know any differences between then and now. Anyways, please enjoy!

Warnings: Some swearing (probably? It’s late rn)

Word Count: 2,492

I just want to spend some time alone with somebody...

You added the sentence to your Snapchat story, the background just a photo of your wall- too dark in the room to make out details, so it was just a black screen. You flopped back against your pillows with a groan. It was late, twelve AM at least. You didn’t think too much of the snap, you hadn’t really expected anything to come out of it. People posted things like that all the time, right?

So, you were very surprised when something hit your window after about ten minutes of playing on your cell phone. The quiet clinking noise of the object made you sit yourself up on the bed. Curiosity got the better of you, so you slowly walked towards the window- hesitant of seeing some kind of threat waiting outside the window like in all the stupid horror movies your friends made you watch.

You didn’t know what you’d expected to find outside your window at twelve AM, but it certainly wasn’t your neighbor. Colby stood close to your house, staring up at your window with a grin.

“What are you doing?” You laughed after opening your window.

“I’m getting your attention,” Colby explained. He fidgeted with a small pebble between his fingers before lifting his hand and throwing it at your window effortlessly. The little rock clinked perfectly against the glass, missing you entirely before dropping to the grass.

“Hey, quit it. My mom will be pissed if you crack the glass,” you laughed once more. You were shocked, quite honestly. You didn’t know what was happening, or why it was.

You and Colby were friends, of course- you were neighbors who were both seventeen and the two of you had lived side by side for as long as you can remember. But, the two of you hadn’t been close since the start of high school. Colby had met Sam and the two were practically inseparable- and the Vine thing took up a lot of his time. The two of you simply went different directions.

“What are you doing here?” You asked finally. Colby was stood waiting, eyes searching the ground for another pebble.

“We should go out,” Colby said, eyes shining in the dark as he glanced at you.

“Now?” you questioned, confusion in your voice.

“I just want to spend some time alone with you,” Colby grinned. It took you a second, but you couldn’t help but shake your head and laugh at yourself as you linked his words back to your Snapchat story.

“Colby, my mom would never let me leave,” you raised an eye brow at him, leaning forwards to rest your elbow on the window sill, and your cheek against your palm.

“And you think my mom would?” Colby snorted a laugh, launching another pebble at you. You caught the small stone, setting it on the sill as you smiled at the boy on the ground. “Come on, Y/N. Live a little. Sneak out. Come hang out with meee...”

After a moment’s thought, you swung a leg out the window and carefully crawled down the side of your house. You relied on the gutter pipe, as you shimmied down the two-story house. Colby helped you safely to the ground by a gentle hold on your hips when you were in arm’s reach.

You quietly adjusted your clothing, pulling your sweatshirt down, and attempting to wipe off the dirt from some moss that had been on the pipe off your pants. You looked towards Colby, who slowly lifted his finger to his lips and he held his hand out for you to take.

When your hand landed in his, he tightened his grip and pulled you quickly from your yard. Colby opened to the passenger’s side door of one of the cars in his driveway, and gestured for you to get in. You slipped into the seat, pulling your door shut as Colby rounded to the driver’s side. The two of you remained silent as Colby started the car- both wincing as the vehicle hummed to life.

“So, what are we doing?” You questioned, once Colby had turned off your guy’s street.

“You know, I’m kind of hungry,” Colby tilted his head, eyes drifting off the road to glance at you before shifting back, “how about some Don’s?”

“I’m always up for some McDonalds,” you grinned.

It was still pretty unbelievable. Colby was literally going out of his way, sneaking out of his house- all because of a Snapchat story? The two of you barely talked face-to-face, both busy with your own lives.

“I’m buying, since I forced you to sneak out,” Colby told you, as he pulled into the drive thru lane. You went to argue, but the McDonalds employee interrupted you. Colby took that as a win as he flashed a victorious grin your way.

“Hmm, twenty nuggets-” Colby continued to list off your guy’s order. You were kind of surprised that he still remembered what you like from McDonalds- the last time you’d gone together probably would’ve been eighth grade. He got every detail right, down to the kind of fountain drink you liked. Colby paid, flashing you a grin as he swiped his debit card.

The two of you waited, filling the car with laughter and friendly banter as your food was being made. You were both in light, happy moods when finally, a paper bag was passed through the windows and two medium fountain drinks followed shortly after.

“Where do you want to eat?” Colby questioned. You shrugged, maneuvering the bags so they were in between your feet, safe from falling over and spilling everywhere.

You watched quietly as Colby lifted one of the drinks, taking a sip, before handing it to you.

“I wish they’d say which was which- that's your drink,” Colby laughed. You laughed as well, taking a drink and humming at the taste of your favorite soda. You swapped the two drinks so Colby’s was now in the cup holder closer to him, and yours in the cup holder nearest to you.

The two of you settled into a comfortable silence. It was nice to just be in the company of your oldest friend, listening to the hum the car engine and watching each streetlight pass by- the relaxing pattern of on and off light and dark.

“Think we should eat here?” Colby asked when he parked the car. You’d barely noticed you’d stopped, having zoned out in the peaceful atmosphere.

You glanced around your surroundings quickly, a small smile curling on your lips at the nostalgia of the parking lot.

“I haven’t been here in years,” you told him. The playground looked much older than you remembered- weathered down by the climate of Kansas.

“The last time I came here, was... well, it was with you, I think,” Colby informed, a cheeky smile on his face, “you good staying here? We can go somewhere else if you’d like?”

“Let’s eat here. Then I’m sure I can still beat you at a race to the slide.” You grinned, reaching down to pick up the bags.

“Okay now, we both know one of us always won those races, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t you.” Colby smirked, taking a fry from the bag and popping it in his mouth.

“Oh, you are so on, Brock. I’ll beat your slow ass just like I always used too.”

“We’ll see about that!”

----

“Okay, Okay- you win! I surrender,” Colby gasped, huffing out a deep breath.

You laughed, hopping onto the top of the play structure and leaning over the edge to mock him. The place was abandoned, neglected over the years. It definitely wasn’t as popular as it used to be, but the late hour ensured that the two of you would be alone.

“Aw, Colbs, was I too fast for you?” You teased in a baby voice.

“Yeah,” he whined with a playful pout. You giggled, sitting down and sliding down the slide that had been a lot more thrilling a few years back.

“That was anticlimactic,” you mumbled, looking up at Colby who was stood in front of the slide.

“Y/N, you’re the same length as the slide now,” Colby laughed. These slides were meant for toddlers. He reached forwards to help you up, and you dusted off your ass after letting go of his hands.

“You know what never changes?” You grinned, rocking on your feet in excitement.

“No, what?”

“The swings! Come, come! I’ll beat you again Colby!” You took off without waiting for Colby to reply. You beat him again, of course. You seated yourself on the flexible plastic seat, kicking yourself off to just barely swing yourself back and forth as Colby finally arrived at the swing set.

“Colbs, you should push me! Remember when you did that when we were little? Your mom always thought it was adorable.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Colby groaned, but you could hear the smile in his voice. You felt Colby’s hands grasp the chains of the swing on either side of you, and then he was pushing you forwards. You couldn’t help but smile- you had missed swinging, and you had missed Colby... a lot more then you thought you had.

You felt tingles run up your spine as his hands settled against the small of your back for those few seconds it took for him to push you forwards again. He repeated that a few more times until he was happy with your height before seating himself next to you and attempting to catch up to you.

“You know, I haven’t just chilled like this in forever,” you told Colby, turning to look at him, only to see him already looking at you.

“Yeah, I know what you mean. High school has been hectic. And Sam and I are crazy busy with Vine and everything,” Colby explained, lifting his hand from the chain of his swing to push his fair out of his face.

“How is that Vine thing?” You questioned. You had seen some of them- or, well, all of them. But you didn’t really understand the app.

“It’s actually really good. Sam and I are gaining followers like crazy- and my Twitter is starting to take off as well.” Colby beamed. He looked so happy talking about his social medias, and his smile made you happy.

“That’s great to hear,” you smiled. You were happy that he was happy, but also sad that his apps were taking him away from you- and Sam was too, but every guy needs a guy best friend. You really couldn’t fault Sam for taking up Colby’s time.

The two of you sat on the swings for a while. Swinging at the same time. Changing so you were passing each other in the middle as you went opposite directions. Attempting to link hands and swing left and right instead of back and forth. And just having a good time overall until you both started getting tired of kicking your legs out.

“We should head back soon,” you yawned; feet brushing against the ground, slowly stopping yourself.

“I had one more thing I wanted to do, but we can do that here too,” Colby informed, standing up from his swing. He once again held his hand out, sending you a small tired smile. You took his hand and he pulled you up off the swing as well. He led you to the car, but gestured to the hood, instead of the door.

“Let’s watch the stars,” he whispered, voice low as he pulled himself onto the hood- patting the spot beside him before leaning back to his back was flat against the windshield.

You copied him, resting up against the windshield as well, but letting you head fall to his shoulder instead of the hard glass. Your sides touched and the cool metal of the car cooled your body.

“I love watching the stars out here, they’re always so bright and beautiful.” Your eyes trailed the night sky, searching for any constellations, but coming up empty. You shifted your gaze to look at Colby, who was looking up.

It felt different being around him now. He was different. He was more... grown up? You had always had the slightest crush on him- and it seems that now it was starting to bloom into something more. Colby had always been your friend; he was always there for you- even now. That innocent little snapchat story- anyone else would’ve looked right past it, but Colby was here with you now- hours past curfew.

“Hey, Colbs...” you mumbled softly. The boy looked towards you, focus shifting from the sky to you, “I wanted to thank you for tonight... I was just feeling a bit down earlier. I didn’t expect anything as amazing as this to come from my Snap.”

“Y/N, I’ve actually been looking for an excuse to come over and talk for so long...” Colby admitted, looking down at his lap before glancing at you, “There’s actually something I’ve wanted to ask you for so long.”

“What is it?” you tilted your head, full attention on your friend.

“Well, heh. I’ve kind of liked you for a while now. Sam has been trying to get me to grow a pair and just ask you out- but I wanted it to be something more special than just texting you, or asking you out at your locker.” Colby confessed, his cheeks brightening to a pale pink colour. “Your snap just seemed like the perfect opportunity to spend some time with you... I’ve missed you. I don’t want to not see you all the time like we’ve been doing since high school started.”

“I missed you too, a lot actually. We used to be so close, and then we just kind of drifted. We’ve always been friends, no matter how long we go without talking and... truth be told, I’ve liked you for a bit now too...”

“Really?” Colby perked up, eyes bright and smile wide. “Do you want to be my girlfriend then?”

“I do,” you grinned. You leaned up to press a kiss to Colby’s cheek, then a little further to lightly peck his lips.

“I should get you home now, our parents will freak out if they find us gone- and it is almost three in the morning.” Colby spoke, voice low and sad. He slid himself off the hood, moving to stand in front of you.

“Maybe we can hang out tomorrow or something? Or do something with Sam?” you suggested. You had met Sam before, you had classes with him and he seemed like a nice guy, so you were open to hanging out with the duo. “Maybe you guys can even teach me Vine?”

“Anything for my girl,” Colby’s replied, grin wide as he helped you off the car with a quick peck to your cheek, “anything for you.”

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