hi are you still writing for james beaufort ?
The best friend - James Beaufort
Main characters: James Beaufort x reader
Genre: fanfiction, fluff, TV show
Word count: 1.999
Summary: An insight into James and Y/N's relationship. Or is it more?
James rang the bell of the property and waited for someone to open the door. He looked around; this house always reminded him of Downton Abbey for some reason. Because of him, people called it the Downtown Abbey house. The door swung open a minute later, and Y/N’s dad smiled. “Hello, mate,” he welcomed James. “Come in.” He was wearing a kitchen gown.
“Hello,” James replied, entering the house. “Thank you. Is she upstairs?”
Y/N’s dad nodded. “She just came back from work,” he said, and they walked through the hall together. When James wanted to walk up the stairs, Y/N’s dad asked: “Will you be staying over for dinner?”
“If it isn’t a problem?” James showed a small smile.
“Of course not! I will peel just a few more potatoes.”
“Thank you,” James replied and nodded.
He walked up the stairs, and as he reached the first floor, he heard some music. A steady beat of rap music filled the hall, an unexpected soundtrack for this place. James knew instantly it wasn’t coming from Y/N’s room; rap was the one genre she couldn’t stand. This had to mean her older brother was home. James smiled, remembering the countless times he and Y/N had joked about her brother’s eclectic music tastes. He approached Y/N’s room, knocking gently before pushing the door open. He found her lying on her stomach on her bed, looking exhausted. She barely reacted to his presence, only turning her head slightly so she could see him.
“Hey,” she mumbled, a yawn escaping her lips.
“Hey,” James replied softly, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. “Long day?”
“The longest,” Y/N sighed, her voice muffled by the pillow. “I don’t think I’ve moved since I got home.” She followed his every movement, taking off his jacket, tie and shoes. He walked over to her bed and sat on the edge. “What a surprise to see you here,” she mentioned.
“I haven’t seen you for a while, so I thought, let’s check up on the best friend,” he said and ran his hand through his hair.
Y/N padded on the mattress beside her, inviting him to lie beside her. “The best friend saw you last week,” she replied.
“Which is a while back. The best friend and I used to see each other every day.” James lay beside her, placing his arm behind his head when his head hit the pillow.
“That’s a few months ago,” she shot back.
“And?”
They looked at each other for a few seconds. The corners of Y/N’s lips started to curl up, which also made James smile.
“How are you?” Y/N then asked, her voice softening since it was a deep question for James.
James looked away from her, focusing his eyes now on the desk, which was full of stuff. It wasn’t like Y/N to have a messy desk. “I’m fine,” he breathed.
“Sure?”
He nodded slowly.
“And school?”
“The usual.”
“Good.”
“Ja.”
After a few minutes of silence, James turned his head to Y/N. He scanned her face; she was zoning out. He reached out to brush a strand of hair from her face. They shared a quiet moment.
Suddenly, an alarm went off. James looked around the room, trying to determine where the alarm came from. It was an alarm from a phone.
Y/N softly groaned and stopped the alarm. “Time to get up,” she said and pushed herself up. “Otherwise, I will be doing nothing for the rest of the evening.” She turned around and sat on her bed, stretching her arms and shoulders. When she heard a snort next to her, she turned to James. “What?”
“You never fail to surprise me with your strange habits,” he laughed, sitting up.
She smiled and shrugged. “I guess I’m strange.”
“Luckily.”
They both got up from the bed.
“Your life would be so boring without me,” she cheekily replied, making a bun in her hair.
James squinted his eyes. “Hmm, I’m not sure.” He showed a playful smile. “Perhaps…”
She raised her eyebrows. “Perhaps what?”
They held their gaze for a few seconds, their playful tension palpable. Smiling, they moved closer without realising it, their connection deepening with each passing moment.
James finally broke the silence, his voice soft and filled with affection. “Perhaps my life would be incredibly dull without you.”
Y/N’s eyes sparkled with amusement and something deeper. “Good to know you’re aware.” She switched the light off and opened the door to the hallway.
“How was work, by the way?” James asked, closing the door behind him. Together, they walked down the stairs to the living room.
“Busy,” she sighed.
It was hard to admit, but James was jealous of Y/N in almost every way possible. One of them was the freedom she got from her parents. She had the freedom to explore her passion and what she wanted to do in the future. Y/N was currently in her gap year, working as a barista in a cafe in the next town. Her parents were very supportive of her decision. However, she had to work for at least four days. It didn’t matter what kind of job, but she had to work.
“But it was fine. For some reason, we had a very long rush hour. The time flew by,” she continued, sharing some weird situations with some customers.
When they arrived at the living room, the doors to the terrace were wide open, and in the distance, Y/N's little brother and sister were playing football in the garden. They also walked to the terrace but decided to sit on the lounge set.
James leaned back, the cushions soft against his back. “Sounds like you had quite a day.” He looked at her, admiring her resilience and positive outlook. He wished he had the same kind of freedom and support to pursue his passions without the weight of expectations bearing down on him. He unbuttoned the buttons of his sleeves and rolled them up his arms.
“Ey,” Y/N mumbled and picked up a lost button from the sofa. She held it up between her thumb and wise finger. “Just because you don’t like it, you don’t have to sprinkle it around,” she smirked and grabbed his arm left, unfolding the sleeve, checking if it belonged to this side.
“I just wanted to mark my territory.”
“Like you haven’t done that enough here,” she replied. She rolled the left sleeve up again, unfolding the right side. “Bingo.” She gave James the button. “Let me get the sewing kit.”
“It’s alright. I will let someone fix it at my place. Besides, I have enough white shirts.”
“It’s just a two-minute job. Besides, I know it is a new white shirt, and it’s too good to just throw it away because one button is missing, James.”
Before he could say anything about it, she had walked away. The left corner of his mouth curled up, and he looked at the button. He could hear her talk to her dad in the distance. He still heard some soft beats from the music upstairs, and he heard the sibling dynamic between the kids playing football.
Y/N sat down beside him again. “Arm,” she said and made a gesture. She opened the small box, probably an old cigar box and got a needle and some wire.
James placed his arm on her lap. “Don’t poke me,” he reminded her.
She took a deep breath and lifted her head, straightening her face. “Shit, there goes my plan.”
“I need to stay away from you.”
She licked her lips and casually shrugged. “I know where to find you,” she said.
“Oo, now I’m scared.”
Y/N pointed the needle at him and laughed. “As you should.”
“Aah, no, I don’t want to die. Don’t do it to me,” his voice raised, but his face stayed neutral.
She sighed and sewed the button back on the sleeve. “Hopeless.”
The music became louder. The loud music was blasting from his speaker when the Y/N’s older brother stood in front of the lounge set. He was moving along with the beat, standing in front of Y/N and James purposely. Y/N gave him a side eye, which gave him a satisfied reaction; he smiled.
“Turn that music down, mate,” Y/N’s dad said and put some plates with cutlery on the table outside. “Put on a chill playlist and set the table, will you?”
“Si Señor,” the brother said. He looked at his little sister and James. “The best friends are together again,” he said and walked over to James. “Hey, man.” He wanted to go for a handshake, but it was a weird high-five since Y/N was working on James’ right hand.
James returned the high-five with a chuckle, the easy banter between them adding to the relaxed atmosphere. “Hey, good to see you,” he greeted Y/N’s brother.
“Likewise,” the brother replied, shooting James a friendly grin before turning to Y/N. “So, what’s the occasion? You two planning a secret rendezvous or something?”
Y/N rolled her eyes, but there was a playful glint in them. “Nothing like that. Just fixing James’ button.”
“Ah, the old ‘sewing buttons’ trick,” the brother winked. “Classic move. By the way, Y/N, where is mum?”
“Work,” Y/N replied. “Well, I think she will be home any second now.” Looking up, she saw her mum walking in the living room. “Speaking of the devil.” She nodded towards her mum.
“Ah, mother!” The brother said, widening his arms and greeting his mum.
Y/N bit her lip while focusing. “Oh, this is light pink wire,” she mumbled and looked sorry at him. “Sorry. I can do it over with white wire.”
James widely smiled and shook his head. “It’s fine,” he mentioned. Every time that I wear this shirt, it will remind me of you,” he winked.
“Sure,” she dodged his words. “Anyway, will you be joining us for dinner?” A smile curved on her lips.
“Would love to,” he smiled. He didn’t want to say that her dad already invited him, since she looked excited when asking.
Y/N nodded and continued sewing.
They fell into a comfortable silence, the music now a soothing background melody as they finished sewing the button back onto James’ sleeve. Once they were done, Y/N leaned back, admiring their handiwork.
“James, sweetheart,” Y/N’s mum cheerfully said. “It’s good to see you.”
“Good evening,” James politely smiled.
“Looks good as new,” Y/N declared, a satisfied smile on her face as she rolled up his sleeve again.
“Thanks, Y/N,” James replied, giving her a playful nudge.
The entire family gathered around the dining table outside and made sure the table was all set. They all sat down to enjoy the dinner Y/N’s dad had prepared. James felt a sense of gratitude wash over him. Surrounded by the warmth of Y/N’s family. The conversations they held during dinner were filled with laughter and funny expressions.
Then Y/N’s mum wanted to invite James for tomorrow. “We are going to sail tomorrow. Would you like to join? Maybe you can ask Lydia, too,” she proposed.
A sparkle came in Y/N’s eyes when she looked at James, hoping he would say yes. “We can pick Lydia up tonight, so you both can stay here for the night. Then we don’t have to rush tomorrow morning,” Y/N proposed while looking at her parents, who seemed to agree.
“Yes, I would love to. I will be there, but I will ask Lydia,” James widely smiled.
Click here to read part 2
558 notes
·
View notes