#borhapparker's borhap secret santa

[hearts-hunger]

queen winter moodboards || cuddly cosy with roger ↳ borhap secret santa gift for @shutupanddontjudge​ ♡

[forever-rogue]

Not a Chance

Summary: Y/N’s caught the eye of one particular Ben Jones (Hardy), but she’s not too smitten, while he’s very keen on her. Winter cuteness and shenanigans ensue!

A/N: This is my gift for the lovely @acdeaky for @borhapparker‘s Secret Santa event. Katie, you’re so sweet and kind, and I really, really hope you enjoy this! As always, thoughts and feedback are encouraged and welcome :)

Word Count: 6.5k

Pairing: Ben Hardy x Reader

Warnings: None

MASTERLIST

»»————-　♡　————-«« 

"Psst," you tried to ignore her and continue on cleaning the dirtied counter, but you knew she wasn't about to let it go. She had that tone in her voice and you knew exactly what that meant. When she realized you were blatantly ignoring her, she stood right next to go and tugged on the sleeve of your sweater, "psst, I know you're ignoring me. It’s going to work forever, you know.”

"What is it, Nicole?" you finally hissed, throwing the rag down and raising an eyebrow at her. The grin on her face stretched from ear to ear as she looked pointedly over your shoulder.

"In the corner," she said quietly, looking between the corner of the small cafè and you. You rolled your eyes dramatically, signaling that you weren't to give in and look, "just take a peek. I promise you won't regret it! Talk about babe o’clock.”

"Babe o’clock, really? What could possibly be so important that it's got you so excited?" you acquiesced to her demand, otherwise you just knew you’d never hear the end of it. Turning around and scanning the almost empty place, your eyes quickly landed on what Nicole had been playing at. You let out a long sigh - more of a combination of a ground and exasperation than anything before turning back to her, "that was what you wanted me to see?"

"Umm, excuse me?" her eyes widened with shock and surprise at her lack of excitement at her discovery, "have you gone blind? He's absolutely gorgeous! Look at that hair, and those dreamy eyes, that smile!”

"He's average at best," you lied, trying your best to keep your face neutral and keep yourself from sneaking another peak. She was right though - he was definitely gorgeous, and you were sure that he knew exactly what hold he had over women, "I go to university with him. I know exactly what he's like. And it's not something I'm interested in."

"Complete asshole?" her expression wavered as she grabbed your discarded rag and took over the cleaning. Whatever matchmaking scheme she had come up with had been quickly dashed. You shrugged lightly as the bell over the door jingled, and a few other boys came in, talking loudly among themselves before heading over to babe o’clock. You scoffed before mentally bracing yourself to deal with the rowdy bunch. They looked exactly how you pictured his friends would look.

"Not exactly," you responded to her, flicking your eyes back over to the table, and you founded him staring back at you. He smiled lightly before raising his hand and giving you a small wave. You didn't return the gesture and instead turned back to Nicole, "just not my style or crowd. Plus, his friends seem...a little annoying. Do me a huge favor and deal with them?"

"Seriously?" she didn't try to hide her annoyance. You nodded as you started to take off your apron and tossed it onto the counter, making it a point not to look back in their direction. As much as you wanted to admit you had thought he was attractive for the longest time, you weren’t about to admit that out loud. 

"I'm off in less than five anyway," you grinned at her, "I think you can handle it! Just turn on the charm - they’re rowdy uni boys, it’s not going to take much to impress them.”

"You're the worst, Y/N!" she groaned at you as you headed into the back to clock out for the day. You knew she was joking so you have her a big grin and mouthed a soft thank you. The bullet was dodged for now, and hopefully forever. 

You’d never seen him come in here before and you’d been working at the little coffee shop near your school for several years now. You wondered what suddenly had made him come in after all this. Not that you cared...not that much anyway. 

»»————-　♡　————-««

Over the next several weeks, things were largely uneventful, except for the uptake in business, since Christmas was just around the corner. The cold weather always caused people to stop whenever they got the chance as it provided a nice reprieve from the cold and allowed them to enjoy a delicious coffee or tea as they de-thawed from the biting weather.

The one constant that you hadn’t expected came in the from of one Ben Jones. He’d started to come around on almost daily basis, or at least whenever you seemed to work, head usually buried in a book or hands flying furiously across the keyboard of his laptop. He made it a point to sneak glances at you, not even bothering to hide the fact that he was shamelessly staring at times. 

Nicole kept encouraging you to go and talk to him, that he was clearly smitten with you, but were insistent that he was just studying for winter finals. He could easily do that at home or the library she kept reminding you, but you played it off, sure that he just wanted the warmth and comfort of the small cafe.

But sometimes you weren’t so sure yourself...but surely he wasn’t there for you, right? And you still weren’t about to confide in anyone that you found him attractive with his pseudo-ethereal looks, glowing smile, and whimsical laugh. He was from a different crowd from you, and you weren’t about to overstep and try to become a part of his world.

You sighed and looked at your watch, getting discouraged when you saw that it was still almost another hour before you were off. It was a Friday night and the cafe was open late, but business was slow for the first time all week, and time was dragging on. There was only so much wiping and standing around you could do before it got boring.

“Y/N,” your boss, John, interrupted your thoughts, waving his hand in front of your face. He was a kind man, a retired musician who had decided to open a small little shop in his golden years. You always enjoyed working with John, usually finding yourself listening to him talk about his youth and all the shenanigans he and his friends had gotten into. You snapped back into attention and gave him a shy smile, “go on and clean down the tables and everything in the back. It’s slow enough to justify some deep cleaning, don’t you think?”

“Deacy,” that was his nickname and he loved when people called him by it; it always brought a smile to his face. You swallowed the lump in your throat when you realized the spot he had indicated; it was right by Ben naturally, “it’s Friday night, is it really the time for torture?”

“What else are you doing to do right now?” he asked, and you realized he was right, “I can handle the customers that come in. Besides, the time will fly by if you’re actually doing something.”

“Haha,” you rolled your eyes at him before ducking under the counter and grabbed a few cleaners and rags to get going on your assignment, “I’d tell you shove it, but you are the boss man.”

“You’re lucky you’re my favorite,” he winked at you as you begrudgingly made your way over to where Ben was. You had already decided that if he was going to try and speak to you, you’d only provide simple one word responses. Short, sweet, and to the point. A perfect solution to your little predicament.

Humming slightly under your breath as you started to clean, you trained your eyes on the table. Ben’s eyes had wandered over to you as soon as you had started walking over and prayed that his paper or whatever he was working on would be more enticing. But once again, you were proven wrong.

“Hi,” it was soft and you weren’t sure at first if he had said anything, but the way his green eyes met yours told you he did. You suddenly found yourself lost for words, opening and closing your mouth a few times, “I-I’m Ben. I don’t know if you remember-”

“You’re in four of my classes,” there was your voice, and you internally cringed a little bit at your outburst, “I know who you are. Everyone does.”

“Oh,” his smile flickered ever so slightly at your response and you felt bad. It hadn’t meant to come off as condescending, but apparently you had, “I just...we haven’t really spoken much, so I wasn’t sure if you knew...”

“Do you even know my name?” you weren’t sure if he knew the answer, but you were genuinely curious. You remembered you were wearing a name tag and quickly covered it up, giving him a cheeky look, “no cheating!”

“Y/N,” he answered quickly, “Y/N L/N.”

“Well, you’ve got that correct,” interesting  you thought to yourself. You weren’t sure he’d ever paid much attention to you at all. He smiled, clearly pleased with himself, “is there anything I can get you? I’m, ugh....pretty busy and don’t have time to chat.”

“Really?” he raised an eyebrow at you, and realized that the excuse was pretty lame. You bit your lip and nodded weakly as you scanned the almost empty place. John was intently pretending not to watch the two of you as he whistled to himself. 

“Uh huh,” grabbing the rag, you scrubbed the table, “sorry!”

“You can get me one thing actually-”

“Oh?” you momentarily wondered if he was going to be cheesy and ask for your number. Not that you’d give that to him...not at this point anyway.

“What’s your favorite color?” it was a surprising question and you definitely weren’t expecting it. You put your hands on your hips and stifled a small laugh, “what?! I’m being serious.”

“Seriously serious?”

“Dead.”

“Yellow,” you answered honestly, watching his face light up. It wasn’t a color most people favorited, but it always managed to cheer your up and brightened your day.

“Yellow’s a pretty one,” he replied, “like you.”

“Very subtle, Ben,” you groaned as a light blush crept into his cheeks, coloring them a soft shade of rose, “now get back to studying. I’ve got work to do anyways.”

You quickly scurried away from him, and back behind the safe refuge of the counter, heart thumping wildly in your chest. John was bemused, and just shook your head at him.

“He fancies you,” he stated simply, cleaning under the items on the counter. You sighed heavily at his astute observation.

“Not a chance,” you answered, biting the inside of your cheek in order to keep from smiling too much, “he’s just a customer.”

“Mhmm,” he wasn’t discouraged, “a customer that comes whenever you’re working and just told you that he thought you were pretty. All very subtle signs.”

“Stopppp,” you groaned at him, “otherwise I’ll quit here and now!”

“Okay, okay,” he laughed, “no need for the theatrics. I’ll stop for now...just remember, no making out on the job. No one needs to see all that PDA!”

“JOHN!”

»»————-　♡　————-««

You were working a morning shift, a rarity for you since you generally had classes in the morning, but Nicole had asked you to cover a shift for her and your class had been cancelled, so you figured you might as well. It was a chilly morning, a fresh layer of soft snow covering the ground, and a few people milling about, drinking their coffees and eating pastries. 

It nearing Christmas and you had the spirit running throughout your body, so much that you had even decided to let Christmas music flow throughout the cafe. John had decked the place for the holiday, no corner left un-decorated, and he’d decided to be extra, just like his old friend Freddie had always been, and put up mistletoe in several strategic places. You had sighed and complained heavily at him, but he had carried on, a smirk on his face as he blissfully ignored your grievances. You knew exactly why he did it too. You had no doubt that it was all for a certain customer named Ben Jones.

He’d continued to hang around the cafe, and by this point you were sure it wasn’t just for the study environment. It was often crowded and loud at the times he came, times you generally worked, and you could tell he wasn’t that deeply engrossed in his work. The semester was pretty much over and since you shared a lot of classes you knew there weren’t many more assignments left, only a few finals coming up, but you knew those would be easy. Maybe Nicole and John had been right in the first place...what if he was there for you? 

At this point, you didn’t even mind seeing him almost every day; he’d become the most steadfast part of your day and as it turned out, he was often the best part. 

Sometimes when it was really busy there would only be a few rushed exchanges, but if it was slower, there’d be deeper more intimate conversations, which, truthfully, you didn’t even know he was capable of at first. He’d ask you all sorts of things about yourself, like your favorite flowers, songs, movies, what your family was like, what you wanted to do in life, what you planned on doing after graduation, and what kind of pizza you favored. At first you had played it off and tried to seem disinterested, but soon enough, you weren’t even bothering to hide how happy you were to see him. There was something about him that you just couldn’t get enough of, and you wanted to everything about him too.

“Not a chance, Y/N,” you whispered to yourself as you set a freshly prepared cup of coffee onto the bar for whoever had ordered it, “he’s not here for you.” 

“What was that?” the voice that had become oh so familiar over the past several weeks interrupted your thoughts as your eyes flicked up to meet Ben’s. Both of his hands were behind his back, and unless you were hallucinating, you were sure he seemed nervous.

“Nothing,” you lied, trying to figure out what he was hiding, not even bothering at this point to hide your smile, “whatcha got, Benny boy? Something good I hope?”

“I hope you like them,” he finally revealed what he had been hiding from you. It was a beautiful bouquet of all colors and shades of daises, the majority of them were a wonderful yellow. Your heart seemed to burst as you looked between him and flowers, “well...do you like them?”

“Yes,” you admitted as you walked around the counter and stood in front of him, taking them out of his hands and giving them a good smell before clutching them to your chest, “I love them. Thank you so much...but to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“No reason in particular,” he said sheepishly, “just felt like doing something special for the prettiest girl.”

“Oh? Who should I give these to then?”

“Shut up,” he joked, nudging your arm slightly as you both laughed, “I dunno...just wanted to give you a little something special.”

“They’re lovely, really. Thank you, Ben,” you weren’t sure if you should hug or kiss him, not wanting to overstep your boundaries. So you shyly stuck out your hand, settling on giving him a handshake. He was just as surprised as you at the lukewarm response, but he took your hand in his and gave it a firm squeeze. 

“I guess I should let you get back to work,” he said quietly, not wanting to end the conversation, but not wanting to drag it out either.

“Guess I should go and work,” you could feel a pair of eyes on your back and you just knew that John was watching what was going on, probably silently celebrating since this is what he had expected to happen all along. You grabbed his coffee and handed it to him, hand trembling slightly with nerves, “well, I hope you enjoy...”

He took it with a grateful smile, about to turn away and head to the table that had become his unofficial spot, but something compelled him to turn around and stay, “Y/N?”

“Yeah?” your heart was starting that same rapid beating, butterflies all in your stomach. There was something about damned smile and those gorgeous eyes that made you weak in the knees; you had sworn you wouldn’t give into him, and yet here you were, putty in his hands. 

“Are you free tomorrow evening?” he blurted out suddenly, his voice climbing about an octave higher than normal as he anticipated your response.

“Yes,” you answered before you could even think about it. Even if you had thought about it, it wasn’t going to be a no anyways.

“Great,” he bit his lip and you thought you had almost died and gone to heaven. You were sure there was almost no better sight in the world, “then it’s a date...”

“It’s a date,” you repeated, feeling like your face was about to break in half from the giant grin, “oh! Actually I work till 6, but we could do something afterwards?”

“Absolutely.”

“Great! Is there someplace you wanted to meet? ‘Cause I kinda feel you’ve got this whole thing planned.”

“How about I pick you up?” he suggested, “and if you must know, I do have something in mind. It’s only taken me what...about two months to pluck up the courage to actually ask you out? Needless to say, I’ve had plenty of time to think about all of this.”

“I knew it!” John had somehow inched his way closer and become privy to your entire conversation. The two of you turned to face him, and as much as you tried to be annoyed, the both of you couldn’t help but giggle. John gave you a gaptoothed smile before going back to the espresso machine, pretending to be engrossed. I guess they were right after all you thought to yourself. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow then,” you turned back to him and he bobbed his head up and down, “thank you again for the flowers. I’m sure Deacy is going to arrange them perfectly in a nice vase for me, aren’t you?”

John played deaf as you exchanged a look with Ben. Ben reached over and brushed a lock of hair behind your ear, his fingers brushing lightly against your cheek and causing a jolt of electricity to flow throughout your body, “see you tomorrow, love.”

He turned on his heel and left, turning around to shoot you one last wink before disappearing outside and into the lightly swirling snow. You watched him go, rooted in your spot as you swayed lightly on your feet. Was this real life or fantasy?

“I hate to say I told you so, kid,” John reached for the flowers so he could store them properly for you, seemingly approving of Ben’s choices, “but I told you so. He is completely smitten with you.”

“How do you even know that?” you followed him behind the counter, your face feeling warm, “he just seemed so...”

“Interested?” he suggested and you wrong nonchalantly as you hopped onto the counter, “how was it not obvious to you? No man comes to the same place to study as frequently as he did.”

“Oh. Oh?”

“Besides that,” he started arranging the flowers, “he asked about your schedule ages ago. And about what your favorite flowers were.”

“He what!?”

“Don’t act so shocked,” John seemed right pleased with himself as you tried to keep yourself together, “maybe you should have listened to me.”

“You’re the worst, Deacy,” you shook your head at him, wondering when and how you had warranted a wing man such as him, “the absolute worst.”

“Whatever you say,” he snorted, “you know, all this reminds me, I should go and get some flowers for Veronica. We’ve got a date this weekend, but I think she’ll enjoy some now!”

“That’s disgustingly cute,” you reminded him. He always beamed like no other when he talked about his wife, or any of family; he really was the gentlest soul, “tell her I said! And Cam and Luke! I’ll hold the fort down until next shift comes in.”

“You’re the best kid!” 

»»————-　♡　————-««

The rest of the day, and the next day if you were being honest, were filled with nervous anticipation as you tried to figure out what Ben had possibly planned. For a second you wondered if this was some sort of colossal mistake and he was planning on kidnapping you, but you quickly pushed that out of your mind.

Was it something formal or fancy? If you dressed up would it end up being over the top and ridiculous? But if you went too casual would you look silly and out of place? You let out a long sigh as you flopped onto your bed and buried your face into your pillow. You never would have cared this much with anyone else, but suddenly with Ben you were over-analyzing every little detail. Who would have thought?

After calling your best friend and trying to get her reassurances and opinions, you settled on a silver dress that had some gold details on it. That way you figured it was ever so slightly festive, and could be either casual or more dressy. If you continued to think about it anymore, it would drive you crazy, so you decided to let it be. Whatever happened at this point would happen.

“My, my, my,” Nicole was practically beaming at you when you walked into work, looking way more done up than necessary for a regular shift a. You shrugged lightly before turning around and giving her a twirl, “you look stunning!”

“Really?” you asked her nervously, “I probably spent way too much time thinking about this stupid outfit. I’m actually nervous!”

“Just relax,” she encouraged you, “it’s just Ben. And it’s not like you haven’t already spent ages talking to him.”

“I know,” you walked behind towards the back to go and clock, hoping the time would go by quickly, “and yet that’s why I’m nervous!”

“You’re a bad ass, babes,” she reminded you. You gave her a nervous little smile as you ducked into the back, “you’ve got this!”

The majority of the afternoon was busy and it didn’t give you much of a chance to indulge in your own thoughts as you flitted from customer to customer. Busy was good, but it did make the time go by quickly. And as the time for Ben to pick you up came closer, your nerves grew exponentially.

“Hey,” Nicole whispered under her breath as she gently nudged your arm. You looked up to follow her line of sight, and immediately felt like the wind was knocked out of you at the sight. Ben had come in and he looked even better than he normally did, if that was possible, brushing a few flakes of snow from his golden hair. She sighed wistfully before turning back to you, “you are so lucky.”

“I suppose I am,” you responded, looking back down at the counter, trying not to get caught staring, even though you knew it didn’t really make a difference at this point.

“Go on,” she pushed you towards and him but you reminded rooted in your spot, “Y/N! Go say hi, I can cover the counter!”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive!”

With that, you tiptoed around the counter and walked over to Ben, who was sitting near the back, a smile etched on his face as he scrolled through his phone.

“Hey stranger,” you joked softly as you waited for him to notice you. It only took a millisecond before he put his phone and looked at you, eyes widening in surprise. You could feel your entire face heating up under his gaze.

“Wow… you look beautiful,” he jumped up almost instantly and tucked his phone into his pocket, giving you his full attention. He looked just as handsome as ever, all done up in a button down and dress pants, his golden mane expertly tamed. Had he always been so good looking?

“So do you,” you managed to blurt back at him, “well handsome anyway. I’m glad I decided to dress up since you haven’t exactly told me what we’re doing.”

“It’s all a surprise, love,” he shrugged as he raised his eyebrows at you. He paused for a moment before casting his eyes upwards. It took you a moment before you realized what he was doing, but followed his gaze and spotted what had caught his eye: a beautiful fresh bundle of mistletoe.

“Of course,” you laughed nervously, “all courtesy of John.”

“You know what mistletoe means, right?” his voice was low as he stepped closer and grinned at you. You nodded as you felt yourself leaning closer into him, your body naturally responding.

“I think it means you’re supposed to kiss me,” you whispered back at him, the two of you grinning at each other like shy little schoolchildren. You were sure that you had everyone’s eyes on your back and you thought about turning back and telling them to go away, but decided against it, too enthralled in the moment. 

“Is it okay?” he asked quietly and you found yourself only able to nod in response. He put his hand on the side of your face, skin so much more delicate than you would have thought, before you leaning down slightly and gently pressing his lips to yours. 

You thought your heart might burst with happiness as you leaned into him, not wanting the moment to ever end. He tasted sweet, almost like cocoa, his plush lips softer than your dreams even, to put it simply: perfect.

“Wow,” whether or not it accidentally came out, you weren’t sure but you found your hand going to face as he just grinned at you, “oops?”

“No oops,” he said as you heard the sound of clapping coming from behind you. You turned on your heel and found Nicole and John watching the two of you chattering among themselves, “umm...I guess they’re supportive?”

“They’ve been waiting for this moment, I think,” you admitted as you shook her at them and gestured for them to go away, “should we go...before they decide to come with us? Last time I checked this was supposed to be a date, not a friendly outing.”

“Sounds perfect,” he agreed, giving you that million dollar smile you already adored, “I’ll wait outside for you. Do you have a coat?”

“Yes,” you answered, “I’ll be there in just minute!”

Rushing back behind the counter you dashed into the back and quickly clocked out, taking your apron off and hastily grabbing your stuff, throwing your coat. You shook your head at your boss and friend before shouting, “I swear there better be no stalking on this date, or I’ll quit and never speak to either of you again.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Nicole grinned at you, giving you a cheery wave as you dashed out and in the chilly evening, “have fun, lovebirds!”

Snow was lightly falling from the sky as you stepped outside, Ben waiting there for you. It was the perfect, if not overly cliche, moment, “hey!”

“Hey,” you beamed as you almost skipped over to him, taking his outstretched hand in yours. He wasted in no time in lacing his fingers through yours, “so what did you have in mind for this evening?”

“I was thinking, and tell me if this horribly cheesy or not, that we could go and look at all the Christmas lights and displays,” he swallowed the nervous lump in his throat, “and then we can go and get dinner? I have this place I really like and I think you’d enjoy it too.”

“That is all terribly cheesy,” you agreed as you stepped in stride with him, body pressed against his as much as closely as possible, “but I love the sound of it all. Lead the way Mr. Jones!”

“I was hoping you’d say that,” he seemed visibly relieved, “but first, we need to make a stop at my favorite, well second favorite, cafe. They had amazing everything there, and I think you’d like it. You said you like cocoa, right?”

“I did,” you grinned, happy to see that he remembered all these little things about you, “I’m impressed, you actually have quite the memory!”

“Don’t let this pretty face fool you.” he threw his back with laughter, “I’m actually smarter than I look.”

“Please, carry on and continue to impress me,” you said as he came to a stop in front of a small, quaint looking little shop. It looked old, like it was straight out of a vintage Hollywood movie, and you could already tell you were to like it, “okay, I’m already impressed!”

“I was hoping you’d say that,” he opened the door for your and ushered you inside, the delicious smelling space, “now let’s this date started properly.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

The next several hours were spent walking around hand-in-hand as Ben led you around the best Christmas and light displays around downtown London. It was almost as though he had intricately planned every step and turn and made sure you were going to be dazzled, and you definitely were. 

There were moments when you weren’t sure if you were more amazed by the lights or Ben; the way he talked about anything and everything that crossed his mind, or how his face lit up at every little display of lights, how he actually had paid attention to all the things you had told him over the last several weeks. It was all like it was almost meant to be. 

“Y/N?” you hadn’t realized you had tuned out of what he was saying, just staring at him as he told you a story. You shook your head and tuned back in and turned to him, “thought I lost you there for a moment.”

“Sorry,” you felt your cheeks heat up, “I was distracted by...”

“The lights?” he teased, but you both innately knew what you had actually been distracted by, “I can understand. The...lights are quite beautiful.”

“The lights,” you bit your bottom lip and Ben couldn’t help but stare, enthralled by your every move, “are pretty.”

“It’s getting chilly,” he swayed lightly on the balls of his feet, “are you ready to go and get dinner? It’ll definitely help us warm up.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

“This is your favorite place?” you asked, looking around the quaint little restaurant. It was cozy and had a warm feel to it, and you were mildly surprised to find that he liked a place such as this. It seemed out of character for him, but you realized that there was a lot to him that you didn’t know yet. The more you got to knew him, the more he realized how much you actually did like him. He was much different than you had originally thought he would be.

“Is it that surprising?” he teased, nudging your leg with his under the table. You just shrugged at him, “did you really think I was just some silly jock?”

“I mean...kind of?” you admitted, poking around at the food on your plate. Needless to say your first impression of him had been wrong, very wrong. He was much more than just a pretty party boy, he was a kind and gentle soul who genuinely cared for you. You finally met his sage eyes and found him watching you curiously, "I guess I was wrong after all. You have definitely proven me wrong in all the best ways possible."

"I'm glad to hear that," he took a sip of the wine he had picked and shot you a wink, which made melt in your set a little bit, "you have not proven me wrong at all."

"Oh?" you snorted lightly as you sat back in your seat and waited for him to expand further.

"Nope," he took a bite and chewed it as slowly as possibly, purposeful with every movement. You crossed your arms over your chest and raised an eyebrow at him, and he finally swallowed, with a little bit of laughter, "I always knew you were smart, funny, wonderful, and pretty."

"Shut up," you blurted out without even thinking about it, garnering the attention from the people at the nearby tables. Ben's shoulders shook with laughter as you cleared your throat, "I mean, what, really? I'm just...me. I'm nothing special."

"See, that's where you're wrong," he insisted, leaned in from across the table, "you are amazing though. Just because you don't see it, doesn't mean that others don't. I don't necessarily think incredibly highly of myself, but the why you make me feel is incredible."

"Oh? Really?" your voice cracked ever so slightly as your stomach seemed to do somersaults, "I mean, I like you, obviously, so yeah."

"I like you too, obviously," he confessed, although at this point it wasn't really much of a confession, "at the beginning there, I wasn't sure if you were ever going to actually going to give me the time of the day!"

"So you did come all the time for me," you realized that John hadn't been lying the whole time after all. Ben's face couldn't have been redder has he nodded and stared at his plate, "holy shit."

"Holy shit good or bad?"

"Holy shit good," you grinned at him, "definitely good."

"I mean, I thought it would be obvious that I wasn't studying that entire time!"

"It was...but you know, you can never really tell," you stuck out your tongue at him, "what if you had been there for someone else?"

"Who else was there?!"

"I dunno, Nicole?" you tried to downplay how excited you were, knowing guys like Ben usually went for all the other girls, not you generally. But the fact that you were here with was evidence that not everything was at it seemed, “she’s pretty, funny, nice.”

"That may be trust, but she’s not you. It was you," he said, "always you."

"That's super cheesy," you found yourself shyly giggling at him, "like mega, almost Hallmark status. But it's cute. You're cute."

"Yeah?" he seemed unsure of himself at first, but the grin that was pulling at the corner of his face suggested that he was indeed very pleased, “like honestly?”

"Obviously,” you took your wine glass and clinked it against his before bringing it to your lips and taking a sip. You took your time tasting the liquid before washing it down, “I’m a busy person, Ben, just like I know you are, and I don’t like having my time wasted or wasting my time. And this? This is definitely not a waste of my time.”

“I’m glad you feel that way,” he let out a low sigh of relief, his nerves visibly calmed, “because I really don’t wasting time either, and you are definitely not a waste of time either. I like giving you my time....this is cliche? This is terribly cliche, isn’t it?”

“The most cliche thing I’ve ever witnessed,” you agreed, “but it’s Christmas time and life is all sort of a big cliche, isn’t it? I think we should toast to that.”

“To Christmas time cliches?” he asked as he held up his glass and you followed suit. You nodded and tapped your glass against his, letting a pleasant sound ring between the two of you.

“To Christmas time cliches,” you agreed and the two of you drank hearty sips before setting the glasses back down, “to this one and hopefully many more cheesy cliches to come.”

“I like the sound of that.”

»»————-　♡　————-««

“Well, this is me,” you had made to the front of your apartment building much faster than you would have liked. The walk back from the restaurant had been pleasant, a peaceful quiet falling between the two of you as you walked hand in hand, Ben occasionally humming along to the Christmas music that flooded from every shop and home. 

“You live close to me,” he mused as you started to make your way up the steps, “I live a few blocks down. Good to know I can come and bother you pretty much whenever.”

“Ha ha,” you waggled a finger at him, unsure of what to say, but also not wanting to end the evening. If you could have had it your way, it would never have ended. He seemed to notice your reluctance in letting him leave, so he took a step up so he was almost eye level with you, staring at you with such an intensity that you were sure he could see into the depths of your soul, “well...I guess this is it.”

“Don’t make it sound so permanent,” he joked, subconsciously licking his lips, which you definitely noticed, “it’s just for tonight. If you’re working tomorrow, I have a lot of studying to do, or if you’re off, I have a lot of movies that need to be watched, and blankets that to be used sooo....”

“It just so happens that I’m off tomorrow,” you grinned at him, “and I think that a movie marathon sounds pretty good. It just so happens that I can make a mean bag of microwave popcorn.”

“Oh?” he threw his head back with laughter.

“Oh yeah,” you tried to keep a serious expression on your face, “you know, unwrapping it, sticking it in the microwave, and pressing the button...it’s hard work. But I’ve got it down, pretty well, not to brag or anything.”

“I’ve very much like to see those skills in action.”

“I guess you’d better come and pick me up tomorrow, huh?”

“How does noon sound?”

“Perfect to me,” you bounced on the heels of your feet, “I’ll see you then.”

“Yes,” he took a deep breath before giving you a small wave and turning to leave, “good night, Y/N.”

“Good night Ben,” you said quietly as you watched him leave, while you didn’t mind the sight, you still didn’t want him to go. When he was almost halfway down the block, you ran off the stairs and after him, “Ben!”

“What’s wrong?” he asked as turned to find in front of him, breathless.

“Nothing,” you admitted, “it’s just-”

Before you could say anything, Ben’s hands were on your hips and he pulled you into his body and crashed his soft lips onto yours, giving you a passionate kiss. You only took you about a second to respond, snaking your arms around his neck and keeping him pressed against your lips. 

When you finally pulled apart, you were both red faced and breathless, a dusting of snowflakes covering both of you. 

“This might be the most cliche thing of all,” he laughed as he brushed some of the flakes from your locks, “you actually came after me-”

“You kissed me,” you reminded him, raising a eyebrow, “technically. You just beat me to it.”

“And it started snowing,” you reached up and wiped some of the snow out of his locks, “almost too disgustingly cute.”

“But perfect,” you whispered softly.

“But perfect,” he agreed, “absolutely perfect.

»»————-　♡　————-««

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[queer-heart-attack]

Driving Home For Christmas (Roger x f!reader)

Summary: Twas the night before Christmas, Roger's on his way home to you for Christmas and takes a detour down Memory Lane.

A/N: I usually write on my writing side blog @roseskiesandbutterflies but I’m using this for the Secret Santa so here we go.

So here is my gift for @borhapparker ‘s Secret Santa! I wrote this for @benders-diamond-earring so please let me know what you thought of it! Sorry, it’s very late. Christmas ended up being busier than expected. I am aware the song was not released at the time this is set but oh well.

Also merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates it and for everyone who doesn’t, I hope you have a good week! Also, I hope everyone has a great 2020 too.

Warning(s): swearing, cigarettes

Inspiration: the song, the complete lack of Christmasness around here made me want to create some goodness

Word Count: 1.3k+

Taglist: @briarrose26 @bhmay @bijoukitty @benders-diamond-earring (just for this but let me know if you want to be on it permanently)

Ask to be on my taglist! Let me know if it’s for a specific fandom(s). All of them are in the bio of my writing side blog @roseskiesandbutterflies

*24th December 1975*

As the last chords of God Save The Queen rang out, and as the audience filtered out of the venue, the four members of Queen had taken their last bows and were now leaving the stage, some more reluctant than others. They were all buzzing, the adrenaline rush of perforing radiating from them in waves. Nothing could prepare them for the thrill, its sheer power still shocking them after five years of performing together. Unfortunately, the high had to wear off somehow and Roger was usually the first to suggest celebratory drinks of some description. However, this night was different, for it was Christmas Eve and Roger was quite frankly itching to get home. He loved a good drink as much as the next guy but tonight, he had priorities for once in his life.

You.

You had been a whirlwind presence in Roger’s life the second Miami introduced you as his new assistant back in 1973. He had made the grave mistake of underestimating you when you first arrived, thinking your personality would reflect your stature. He could not have been more wrong and he was secretly grateful for it. You had been the change he needed without either of you realising it.

"Gentlemen," Miami addressed the band, formal as always. The replies he received were far from it but well-meant all the same, "I want to introduce a new colleague of mine to you all. Her name is (Y/N) and she is going to be working with me for the foreseeable future," he then turned to the young woman who had entered the recording studio by then, "(Y/N), this is Queen, I'm under the assumption you are aware of who everyone is?”

The woman in question, (Y/N), blushed ever so slightly before confirming Miami's statement, "Hi, I'm working mainly as Jim's assistant but if you need anything, you can always ask me."

The band shared a look as if they could read one another's minds, before reaching an apparent conclusion. Roger piped up, pissing off Brian who the lady assumed had been elected to speak first, "Miami."

There was nothing she could think of to say in response to that and it must have been evident on her face as Freddie quickly jumped to her rescue, "We call Jim Miami instead, darling. Bit less boring, wouldn't you agree?"

She glanced at Jim, no sorry Miami, who merely shrugged his shoulders in response as if to say he had had no say in the matter. She redirected her attention to the boys to see Freddie elbow a now tomato-faced Roger. She shot the latter a reassuring smile which for some reason only deepened his blush and made (Y/N) giggle to herself.

Even now as he was trying to find the shirt he had discarded a while ago, he was thinking about you, although missing you immensely might be the better phrase to use. The packing-up routine passed by in a blur and at some point he was so unresponsive that he might as well have been a ghost. This alarmed all except for John, as he was the only one who was used to Roger acting in such a way. He was the only one who knew firsthand what that glazed look meant, having been with Veronica for quite some time. While Brian and Freddie kept trying to catch his attention in fear of Roger droppng some seriosuly heavy equipment on his own sodding foot, John merely took the case Roger was holding from him and said, “Go find your love before you crash into something.”

Only then did the other half of Queen understand what was going on and chased Roger out like a mother would to her child who was late for school. Calls of “let us know when you’re home!” and “damn you and your love life!” soon faded into background noise as Roger somehow found his car and quickly drove off. 

He suddenly found himself cursing the late London traffic as, soon enough, he found himself at the first of many standstills. Realising that what should be a relatively short journey was going to be anything but, he flicked his car radio on to fill the suffocating silence that had fallen like a blanket. The voice of Jean Challis pierced through the quiet, talking animatedly about Christmas shopping before introducing the next song, of course it had to be a Christmas song, which was the one Elton John released last year. Roger lent back in his seat, knowing he was going to be here for a while. The bright crimson tail lights of the car in front of him were blinding him to a degree where he was seriously considering putting on his godforsaken glasses to avoid permanent damage to his already shitty sight. Even with the radio on, he found his mind drifting off again.

You wandered onto the balcony, needing some fresh air and a break from the roaring party inside. Although fresh air was off the table the second you opened the door; a dragon’s breath worth of cigarette smoke blew into your face. You coughed far more dramatically than necessary as you already knew who the perpetrator was.

Roger fucking Taylor.

“Thought I told you to stop with the smoking, Taylor,” you reprimanded him, trying to sound as much like a disappointed parent as possible.

“Thought I told you to stop catching me out, (Y/L/N),” he turned his head to look at you, the smug smile he wore was wiped away as soon as he saw you actually struggling to breathe, “Are you OK? Shit,” he quickly threw the cigarette off of the balcony. He moved forward as if to help you, but suddenly stopped, unsure of what to do.

“I might as well smoke the damn things myself the amount of smoke I inhale thanks to you,” you joined him properly on the balcony, leaning on it with your forearms. The view wasn’t much, just the rather shabby garden of whoever’s house this was. Roger’s snort caught your attention and you couldn’t help giggle yourself, which then turned into a chuckle from Roger, a breathy laugh from you, another snort from Roger which then set you both off into fits of laughter. After a while you were breathing heavily to regain some kind of control, “I don’t even know what’s funny,” and you were off again.

He gave you the most serious look and said, “It’s not the alcohol is it?” and you couldn’t help but laugh at his deadpan-ness. 

After a further couple of minutes, you saw him reach for a cigarette from his back pocket so you swatted his hand away, “Not on my watch, mister,” you eyed him suspiciously as if he’d just stolen the crown jewels, “What is it going to take for you to stop for good?”

He tapped his fingers on the iron railing of the balcony for a moment before replying, “I don’t think I could just quit like that,” there was a hint of shame in his eyes so you decided to let him off a bit.

“OK then,” you thought for a second, “What would I have to do to get you to smoke less?”

An idea flashed in his eyes, though it was gone in an instant and instead replaced with amusement, “Go on a date with me and I’ll consider it.”

It was only meant as a joke, you knew it really, maybe it was the alcohol or the amount you cared for him or the fact that you knew deep down you treated him differently than you did the rest of the band, but you somehow found yourself saying, “Alright then.”

You were shocked at yourself with that and if Roger’s face was anything to go by, then so was he, “Wait are you serious?”

“Are you?” the response was quick and testing. You needed to know his real intentions.

He visibly gulped, almost like a cartoon, then said, “Yes. Yes I am.”

I know it’s quite short so sorry about that, but I wanted to write at least half of it so you know I hadn’t forgotten or anything. Let me know if you’d want the rest of it because I’d be more than happy to do so.

[acdeaky]

the end of the night

warning: fluff, angst, use of strong language, dialogue heavy at parts

note: happy secret santa to @yourlocalmusicalprostitute ! here's a fic with joe, even though i know you said about wanting john! i couldn’t put john with the idea i had, so i went with joe! i hope you enjoy, mwah 💋

word count: 2.0k

the last year of your life had been one of the best for your career and your personal life. you and joe had celebrated your two year anniversary with a special trip to paris. after news got out that you were to be in a highly anticipated film being released in december, you had half a dozen auditions for new projects, two of which you got accepted for. 

the year previous had been amazing for you as well, especially the second half. filming began on your first main role in a movie and to say you were excited was an understatement. you were ecstatic. joe helped you through sleepless nights filled with nerves and/or excitement, he spent countless days on set with you and kept you company on your breaks, as well as doing his job too. 

somehow, each day you two spent together throughout the past two years, you had fallen more in love with joe - something which you didn't think would be possible. but it happened. and the excitement of your premiere caught up with you throughout the press tour. and, once again, joe was there by your side for every moment. 

you’d enjoyed filming and promoting this movie that you forgot about the christmas release date. throughout the entire month of december, running up to christmas that is, you felt like you’d done nothing but work. it slipped your mind that the days to christmas were counting down, until it got to the premiere.

december 19th: you and your cast mates were lined up along the red carpet, smiling and waving at the cameras. joe was by your side the whole night. he chatted with you and the interviewers and watched as your face lit up while meeting and talking to fans. you both were in a state of bliss that night, smiling and getting along with your cast mates.

but after the joy had settled and everyone had gone home or back to their hotels, it was a different story.

stumbling into your hotel suite, you and joe giggled hysterically, the amount of alcohol you had had finally taking affect. you had shown him something on your phone in the lift and both of you were still laughing at it. it wasn’t that funny, but joe was trying to keep you happy before saying what he wanted to say.

“i’m gonna hop in the shower,” you managed to say through light giggles, pulling off your shoes and then carefully tried to unzip your dress from the back. “do you wanna join?”

“no, love, i’ll let you have one.” joe smiled, walking over to help you.

“if you’re sure, baby.” joe only nodded in reply as you glanced over your shoulder. the zip of your dress was down at the bottom after joe helped and you easily slid out of the short sleeves and let the dress rest in a puddle at your feet.

stepping out of it, joe reached down to grab it, holding it delicately and laying it across the back of the sofa of the suite. as a thank you, you kissed his cheek lightly, resting your hand on his blazer clad shoulder.

“don’t worry about taking this off and joining me at any point, joey. i’ve missed you,” your hand moved down from his shoulder over the lapels on his blazer. the fabric was soft, good quality shit, and running your thumb over the front brought you back to earth. “i won’t be too long.” and with that you turned around from him, waltzing into the oversized bathroom and stripping off the rest of your clothes before stepping into the shower. 

joe never joined you. he stayed inside the bedroom of the suite and took off his blazer, laying it over the sofa next to your dress. he toed off his shoes and placed them next to yours which had been carelessly thrown at the foot of the bed. his tie joined his blazer over the sofa, but joe kept his shirt and trousers on, not fully ready to undress just yet. 

there was something he had to do. 

just like you had said, you weren't too long. you dried off in the bathroom, sneaking into the bedroom to grab some pyjamas and quickly getting changed. after hanging the towels up, you stepped back into the bedroom, pulling the fluffed up white covers back and called to joe. 

“baby? are you coming?” was all you said. joe suddenly appear from the living area of the suite, his once crisp white shirt now slightly creased and untucked from his trousers. “i thought you'd be ready for bed?” you asked sweetly, snuggling further down into the sheets and silently beckoning him to bed. 

“i will, i will, i just- i need to talk to you a minute.” joe just sat on the same side of the bed as you, his fingers and thumbs twiddling as he tried to calm himself. 

“joey, what's wrong? has something happened? are you okay?” a million thoughts and questions raced through your head. the silence coming from him was the first thing that worried you; joe was barely ever quiet. 

“im fine, love, i just wanted to talk to you about something.” joe’s head was still down, his voice coming out at almost a whisper. before you even replied, you shifted forward, grabbing one of his hands and placed it in-between both of yours. all of your attention was on him now; his posture and attitude worrying you, his behaviour extremely unusual. 

“okay,” you said with a shaky breath. “go for it.” 

“i love you. so so much. and you know this, but i just wanted to say it. these past few weeks, hell these past two years, i’ve be so unbelievably proud of you, of what you're achieving and what you've achieved. but honestly? i miss you, a lot. like, a hell of a lot. you’ve been there, of course you’ve been there, but you haven’t been here completely. part of your mind has always been thinking go work, or the next step, and i feel like we’ve not spent time together like we have done before. christmas is in less than a week and the minimal amount of presents we’ve bought is ridiculous. and i'm not blaming you, i never would. god, i can't blame you when you’ve been caught up in work because that's your job, it’s what you do.” joe had to breathe for a minute. he still hadn't looked up, his eyes were still fixed on where your hands were encasing his. 

“as much as there's been an us lately, there also hasn't. the bed feels empty even when you're in it next to me. the house seems quiet even when you’re downstairs rehearsing to watching TV. there's just been something not right and i didn't want to say anything earlier because i wanted you to enjoy celebrating the movie, because you should, instead of thinking and worrying about what i've said. i'm not trying to make you feel bad or guilty, because i just couldn't do that to you, but i just had to say this. i had to say something.” 

“fuck, i'm so sorry.” was the first thing joe said when he finally looked up at you. you knew exactly why. your face was definitely a deeper shade of red to match your bloodshot eyes. there had definitely been at least three tears that marked your face and fallen onto the cotton sheets below. joe knew what you looked like when you cried, he had seen it happen so many times before. but every time that happened, the first thing he would do would be pulling you into his arms, a hand stroking the back of your head as he whispered sweet nothings into your ear. 

this time, though, he did none of that. just like you, his eyes were bloodshot and there was guilt behind them. you saw it as soon as he looked up at you. you think that was why he pulled his hand from between yours and shot up so quickly. his hands ran through his hair, pulling it this way and that way. 

you sat motionless on the bed. your hands were still where joe’s left them, your face was in a state of shock, in fact, your whole body was. the only sounds came from joe’s laboured breathing and the few outside noises of cars and noisy pedestrians passing by outside. 

that wasn't what you were expecting. 

it wasn't what joe was expecting. 

but it happened. 

it took a few minutes for you and joe to come out of your heads and acknowledge each other, it was your short sniffles that brought you back to earth. joe’s movements stilled as he faced where you sat on the bed. his eyes were even more bloodshot than before and his hair was so dishevelled. all you want to do was reach out and kiss his tear stains away, but that wouldn't work this time. 

“you don't need to be sorry,” came your broken voice, disrupting the near silence in the room. “you're right. i’ve been so interested in work and this movie and movie forward in my career that i forgot about everything else. i’m sorry i haven't been here as often, or as present as i should be, like i used to be. without realising it, it’s just happened. and i’m sorry, joe. i’m sorry i haven't been there properly, or fully. i’m sorry for making you worried and making you feel like this. seeing you like this just breaks my heart. and it’s all my fault.”

joe stayed stood there, taking in the words you said and the sight before him. after everything tonight, after all the laughter and love received by the both of you, the end of the night turned into something out of your personal nightmares. without saying a word, joe finally move forward. his body practically crashed onto the bed and he pulled you into his arms once again. he sat with his legs over the bed, pulling you onto his lap and wrapping his arms around you. 

“its not your fault, it’s not.” he whispered over and over again in your ear, his hand stroking the back of your head. both of you stayed there for what seemed like hours, crying into the other’s shoulder and readjusting your grips periodically. 

“i love you so so much, and we’ll figure this out together, yeh?” joe whispered into your ear after a few moments of silence. at some point, he begun rocking you backwards and forward, settling your crying and calming your breathing. no words could leave your mouth, making you nod your head in agreement. “lets get you back into bed.” 

joe’s movements were slow as he lifted you off of his lap and into the sheets. he helped you lay down fully before pulling the sheets over the rest of your body. instantly, you snuggled down into them, making yourself comfy and waited for joe to join you. he finally removed his shirt, placing it and his trousers over the back of the sofa. joe didn't even bother changing into his pyjamas; all he did was pull out his pair of sweatpants, pulled them on and crawled into the bed next to you. 

as soon as he settled, he pulled you close to him. your chests were pressed together as his arms rested around your waist and your arms rested are his shoulders. it was the low sounds of joe’s breathing and his sweet nothings that sent you off to sleep. just before you fell asleep, you made a mental note to be more present, to be there for joe when he needed you. 

an “i love you.” was whispered just before you fell asleep. 

that night could be classed as one of your bests and one of your worsts, but with joe there by your side for the whole thing, nothing else compared (even if you did end up crying one way or another). 

- 

TAGLIST: @never-kept-the-same-address @j0hn-deaky @sohoneyspreadyourwings @brian-maybe-not @deakysbabybooty @1001-yellow-daffodils @retromusicsalad @hardcoredisneynerd @painkiller80 @leatherjacketmazzello @scarecrowmax @mebeatlized @seesiderendezvous @alright-mrfahrenheit @someone-get-a-medic​ @miamideacon​ @chlobo6​ @teenagepeterpan​ @spacedustmazzello​ @deakysgurl @forever-rogue @xcdelilahxc @keepsdrawing​ @igotsuckedintothevoid @kill4hqueen​ @supersonicfreddie​ @laedymoon @inthedayswhenlandswerefew @warriorteam1924​ @painandpleasure86 @boomerangbassist @mamaskillerqueen 

[isitstraightvodka]

Golden

pairing: gwilym lee/reader

warnings: none!

A/N: hi honeys! this is my secret santa gift for @supernaturalee​, hope you, and everyone else, enjoys it! i haven’t written for gwil before so be gentle with me xx

you didn’t know the man across the hall, not by name or by choice, the only thing you knew was that he was a beautiful man. you would catch yourself staring a moment too long when he passed you in the entrance, you would find yourself remembering the warmth of his smile whenever he greeted you good morning with a coffee in hand. he was new and a little shy, hence why you hadn’t found out his name, but you were very curious to put a name to a face. however the way you discovered it wasn’t the one you had wished for.

it happened in the morning when you were in a rush to get to work, you had no time to drink your coffee in your apartment so you rushed out the door with it, you didn’t look where you were going and you heard a splash and an ‘oof’ in a deep voice. it took you a few seconds to realise what had transpired and when you did, you wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. your coffee had splashed all over a quite expensive-looking sweater, leaving a dark stain on the pale grey fabric, you immediately went into apology mode, your hands trembling as you stuttered out “i’m sorry, i’m sorry, i’m so sorry!” mutiple times. it was when you felt a hand on your shoulder that you looked up, to see the man who you’d be eyeing since you moved in. 

“don’t fret love it’s only coffee.”

you’d never been this close to him, you were lost in his features that you barely heard what he had said. glasses perched on a slim nose, stubble on its way to becoming a beard, gentle blue eyes which seemed to twinkle with kindness, tousled brown hair that looked so soft to touch. you had to gulp to regain your surroundings and find your voice.

“i’m in a rush, i’m really so sorry.”

“love really, it’s okay, worse has happened to me.” he smiled at you, which made you crack a smile back. you bent down to pick up your cup when he spoke again.

“you live in number three, right?”

“yes, that’s me.”

“i’m in four.”

yes i know, i’ve seen you. you were glad your voice didn’t betray and say that out loud. you tucked your hair behind your ear, your other hand trembling in your now-empty cup. you were at a loss for words when he introduced himself.

“i’m gwilym.”

finally a name! you smiled a little and slid your hand into his, much larger, yet so soft. you could almost feel your heart beating out of your chest because of one touch. you returned the courtesy and said your name, to which he responded with “beautiful name love.” your eyes fell upon his sweater again, remembering the silly mistake you made.

“oh god your sweater…let me buy you a new one.”

gwilym almost laughed and narrowed his eyes, brushing his hand over your shoulder, shaking his head, pushing his glasses higher up his nose.

“nonsense, you don’t need to do that.”

“but this one’s ruined.”

“and you spilt your coffee, i think you need one.” he said and you could’ve sworn there was a hint of a smirk on his lips.

“oh it’s…just coffee.”

“and coffee washes out love. tell you what…if we get coffee, you can help me pick out a new sweater.”

his offer, to anyone else, would be too forward but to you, it was something you had been wondering about since you laid eyes on him. you couldn’t remember the last time you went out for a coffee, with a guy, you didn’t even want to remember because it was far too long. and you couldn’t deny the fact of tiny butterflies beginning to flutter in your stomach, despite having known gwilym for five minutes. you clutched the cup to your chest and nodded.

“okay, that would be lovely.”

“gwilym love, my name’s gwilym." 

"okay gwilym.” his name rolled off your tongue rather sweetly, something he really enjoyed hearing, from you. then you remembered you were late for work.

“crap crap i’m late! i’m so sorry gwilym i need to-”

“go, of course. i’m sure you’ll see me around and we can organise that coffee date, yeah?” he adjusted his coat and smiled at you, leaving your cheeks a little more red than usual. you nodded and quickly started to make your way down the stairs, as fast as you could. you didn’t really care that you were late, it was worth it to find out his name, and the one thing that was now swirling around in your head.

he called it a date.

[assembledherethevolunteers]

It’s Late

A/N: Hi all! Okay, this is my entry for @borhapparker ‘s Secret Santa! This is for @zestysexmachinefromzanzibar I really hope you like it and Happy Holidays!

Pairing: 70s Brian May x fem!reader

Warnings: Smut, some fighting

You tightened the blanket around you and glanced at the clock.  ’11:45’.  You sighed.  Brian had told you that he would be home over three hours ago.  The two of you were going to celebrate Christmas tonight after he got back from the studio because on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day would be spent with your families. 

You stood up from the couch and walked over to the piano that was in the sitting room.  You ran your fingers over the polished wood.  Well, it was one way to pass the time. 

You sat down at the piano and adjusted the blanket so it was like a cape.  You slowly began playing a Christmas song, hoping it would help you get in the holiday spirit.  Brian had been so busy recording the new album and planning his new tour that he’d barely been home.  You missed him.  It made it hard to get excited about the holidays when you were doing most of the holiday things, like decorating and shopping, by yourself. 

You were so focused on your playing that you hadn’t heard the door open.  Brian leaned against the doorframe, watching you play.  He was exhausted and stressed.  Playing, recording, arguing, it took all of it out of him.  However, hearing you play made him relax.  Just being around you made him relax.  He started humming along as he quietly walked over to you and sat down next to you on the bench. 

“Hi, dove,” he whispered.  You barely heard him over your music. 

“You’re late,” you replied, not looking at him or stop your playing. 

“I know,” Brian leaned his head on your shoulder.  “And I’m sorry.”

“Let me guess, Roger had a problem with something or other.  Or was it Deaky this time?  Or Fred?” 

Brian was quiet and pulled his head up.  You played for a few more moments before you finished the song and then turned to him, waiting for an explanation. 

“I know you’re upset,” Brian began, but you cut him off.

“Oh, I’m more than upset.  I had dinner ready, Brian.  It’s cold now.  I’ve barely seen you in weeks and I just…” you felt tears come to your eyes.  You stood up and walked away, not wanting to let him see you cry.  “I thought tonight was going to be for us, and now you’ve got to be back in the studio in what? Nine hours?  And you’ll need to sleep.  Let’s just to bed.”  You started towards the bedroom.  

When you were half way there, you felt a pair of arms around your waist.  

“I’m very sorry, let me make it up to you,” Brian whispered against your skin before he placed a kiss to your neck.  

“Brian, you can’t just mmm…” you closed your eyes as he continued kissing around your neck.  “You can’t just come in and think something like this is going to work.”  

“If you want me to stop, I’ll stop,” Brian continued nipping and sucking at your neck.  

You opened your mouth and instead of something you wanted to say, a groan came out.  It had been a long time since you and Brian had done anything like this. You felt heat already pooling in your stomach.  

“That doesn’t sound like you want me to stop.”

You felt Brian smirk against your skin.  You really didn’t want to let him win yet, but damn was it working.

“Bri,” you moaned.  

“Yes?”

“Bedroom.  Please.”  

Brian pulled you the rest of the way to the bedroom and into a kiss.  You wrapped your fingers in his dark curls and deepened the kiss.  

“Fuck, I’ve missed you,” Brian whispered as he slipped your shirt over your head.  

“I’ve missed you t…”

Brian cut you off with another kiss.  He licked into your mouth as you unbuttoned and slid off his shirt.  The two of you quickly undressed each other, barely breaking your kiss.  Suddenly, Brian pushed you on the bed.  

“What…?”

Brian crawled up your body and leaned over you.  

“Like I said, let me make it up to you,” he started kissing down your neck and chest.  

You hummed as he brought one nipple into his mouth and brought one of his hands to your other breast, kneading it.  

You groaned and leaned into his touch.  He continued down your stomach, and skipping over where you wanted him most and kissing your inner thighs.  

“I thought you were making things up to me,” you whined.  Brian chuckled.  

“You’re right,” Brian replied and suddenly his tongue worked its way through your folds.  

You sucked in a breath and wrapped your fingers in his hair.  

He continued working at your core and the coil in your belly continued to tighten.  His lips found his way to your clit and you moaned.  Brian slid one finger into your throbbing core.  

“Bri…I’m almost there,” your voice was high pitched and breathy.  

“Let go, love,” Brian whispered before he went back to your clit.  He slipped another finger in and curled his fingers.  

The coil in your belly finally snapped.

“BRIAN!” You cried as you rode out your orgasm on his fingers.  

Once you came down, Brian pulled away and smiled up at you.  You saw your juices on his chin and you pulled him up for a kiss, tasting yourself on his lips.

“Merry Christmas, darling,” Brian whispered.  

“You still have some making up to do,” you told him.

Brian chuckled slightly and kissed you again.

[xuxibelle]

Stay

Pairing: Ben Hardy x Reader

Word count: 903

Warnings: Fluff

Requested: No. This was for @borhapparker​’s borhap secret santa where I got paired with @drummerqueenrmt​ as the person to give my gift to! Merry Christmas and I hope you like it! <3

Summary: Y/N gets kicked out of the apartment she’s living in with her boyfriend and she hasn’t seen her best friend in 6 months.

Taking a deep breath, you try to steady your nerves before you raise your hand to knock on the door in front of you. You knew it was late and you were taking a chance of no one even being home, but you were here anyway, knocking and waiting. After what felt like a very long minute, you heard footsteps and the door being unlocked. You looked up as the door was being opened.

“Y/N…?” You met the green eyes you hadn’t seen in over 6 months. “What are you doing here?”

“I can’t sleep… Can I stay here?” You bite your lip nervously as you gauge his reaction. You knew that he knew something was up, but he wasn’t pushing it... yet.

“Of course… You know you can always stay here.” He opens the door and lets you in before locking it again. Walking to the couch to take a seat, you start to sniffle as you try to hold back the tears before he joins you. “Are… are you okay? Why are you crying?” 

“He kicked me out, Ben…” you half sobbed as you looked at the floor. You felt the couch dip as he moved closer to you and pulled you into a hug, rubbing a hand up and down your back.

“It’s ok.”

“No it’s not… He made me give up all my friends… I haven’t seen my family in two weeks!” Tears were pouring down your face at this point, but he didn’t care. 

“No, it’s ok, really. We can fix this now. You’re away from him…” Ben pulls back to look at you, wiping away the tears. “I’ll take you to see your family tomorrow after you’ve rested, and then I’ll take you anywhere else you want to go.”

“You would do that?” Ben nods his head as he smiles at you.

“Of course I would.”

“But I was so horrible to you.”

“No, Y/N… that wasn’t you. You didn’t do anything. That was the jerk.” You pull him back into a hug, making him laugh. The next day, true to his word, Ben took you to see your family, where you explained what happened and they thanked him for bringing you to see them. After going a few other places, you go back to his place to relax. “So now what?”

“I don’t know… I guess I go stay with my family?” You shrug your shoulders as you turn to look at him. “I see the wheels turning in your head… what are you thinking?”

“You could just stay here…” 

“What…? Are you serious?”

“Yea… Why not? We were best friends before that dick made you stop seeing me and I have an extra room.” You thought about what Ben was suggesting before you looked back at him. “It would be better than moving back in with your parents…”

“Ok… fine. You got at that point.” You laughed as you threw your hands up in defeat. A couple weeks later, Ben walked in to find you asleep on the couch. Not wanting to wake you, Ben lifted you and took you to your room. As he was walking back out your door he heard your voice.

“Wait”

“Are you okay?”

“Nightmare. I was trying to stay awake til you got home”

“Was it like the ones you used to have?” You nod your head quickly. “Is there something I can do to help?”

“Can you… can you stay?”

“You want me to stay in here with you?” You nod your head again.

“Please.”

“I can do that. You be okay while I go change real quick?” You nod your head one last time and give him a small smile. Ben was back quicker than you thought he would be and crawling into bed beside you. “Okay. Come on, love.” Ben held out an arm as he waited for you to scoot closer to him. “Better?”

“Much. Thank you.” After a few minutes, you still weren’t able to fall back asleep and Ben could sense it. 

“You wanna talk until you fall asleep?”

“We could try, if you want.”

“How was your day? Do much of anything?”

“Not really. Pretty much stayed around here. You?”

“Did some stunt scenes today, so that was fun.” You felt him laugh a little and you looked up at him. You always loved when he laughed. “What?”

“Nothing. You just always look happiest when you laugh” Ben tucked a strand of hair behind your ear as he smiled down at you.

“Can I ask you something and you be honest with me?”

“I’ve always been honest with you”

“You have, I know…. Why… did you come here?” You bit your lip nervously as you searched for an answer. You knew why, but you weren’t sure if you were ready to fully say it out loud. “It’s ok. You can tell me anything, you know that.”

“I didn’t have anywhere else to go...I couldn’t go to my parents. I couldn’t tell my family what he did. You were the first person I thought of…” You feel him run his fingers through your curls as you begin to relax. You look back up and meet his eyes again. “I… I’m in love with you” Holding you in place, he presses his lips to yours in a soft kiss before he pulls back and looks at you.

“You’ve always felt like home to me.”

@definitely-not-black-cat​ @sebastiansloserclub​​ @sunshine112​​ @bringmethehorizonandpizza​​​  @empressdreams-deactivated201910​​  @justasmisunderstoodasloki​​ @bisexual-sk8r​​ @devildisguiseasangel​​​  @marvelownsmyentireass​​ @bearsbeetsbarnes​​ @justkeepdreaminganddreaming​​  @wheres-mccall​​ @uglypastels​​ @wazzupmrstark​​ @yanii-the-hippie​​ @thejemersoninferno​​ @marvelgirl7​​ @funnygirlthatgab​​ @youngmoneymilla​​ @geekandbooknerd​​ @sinner-as-saint​​ @littledarlinwrites​​  @littledarlinhavefaithinme​​ @superrezzy00​​  @pleasantlyshamelesswizard​​ @neversatisfiedgirlfics​​ @petersparkers​​ @peeterparkr​​ @saintlavrents​​ @wwesmutdonedirtcheap​​ @hollandbabyyy​​ @parkerpuff​​ @wrestlersownmyheart​​ @neversatisfiedgirl​​ @skymoonandstardust​​

[sadprose-auroras]

‘Tensions’ - Joe Mazzello X Reader

(If anyone knows who made this gif, please let me know so I can credit them!)

Hey pals, this is my secret santa gift for @seven-seas-of-fuck-you​ as part of @borhapparker​‘s secret santa! I hope you like it! Please keep in mind, I have absolutely NO idea how acting or filming movies works 😂

-

You bounced up and down on the balls of your feet, simultaneously attempting to get out your nervous energy by doing so, while taking long, deep breaths. You’re capable. You’re talented. Nerves can be productive. You’re going to be amazing. Perhaps the main reason you were so anxious was that you were shooting your first scene with your incredibly attractive, incredibly sweet, ridiculously charismatic co-star. The first time you met at your chemistry reading, you were surprised you made it through without fainting from how much you were positively swooning at his genuine smile and kind words towards you. 

This time, when you saw him come onto set, he immediately spotted you and smiled, and you couldn’t help but grin back, your cheeks heating. He gave you a little wave and came over.

“Hey, Y/N!” 

“Hi Joe-oh!” You were cut off by him wrapping his arms around you by way of greeting and you blushed, awkwardly returning the hug and clearing your throat. When you pulled away, a sheepish smile on your face, you coughed again, and internally cursed yourself. You’re an actor, for fuck’s sake. Act cool.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, perhaps sensing your anxiety. It wasn’t helping that his gaze was locked on you and his features softened in empathy.

“A bit riled up, but I’m looking forward to it,” you said with a smile, “How are you feeling?” That wasn’t a lie. You knew this was what you were born to do, and you decided in that moment that you weren’t going to let some hot co-star affect you. A small voice in the back of your mind nagged about your contradictions; you were supposed to be flustered by him in this scene, it was meant to have sexual tension, but you pushed it down. 

“Me too. I mean, it’s just another day, but this is what I love,” he said, and you nodded and agreed. You couldn’t help but wonder if him pointing out that it was “just another day” was overcompensating for something.

After five minutes or so longer of the two of you diving into a conversation about the scene, joking around and having a laugh (your senses of humour were very compatible, you noted), it was time to start; you were called to get in your positions, and you scampered to do so, trying your best to ignore all the hustle and bustle around you and get into character. 

“Action!”

With that, Joe’s loud voice commanded the room, and he stood up and whipped around to face you, standing with your face buried in your hands exasperatingly. “Just tell me what you fucking want! I’m not a mind reader!”

“Well maybe if you were more perceptive, Kyle, you would know what I want! I couldn’t be more obvious!”

Yourself and Joe were playing off each other perfectly, it was hard to believe this wasn’t real despite all the camera crew. 

“What. Do. You. Want…?” Each word hung in the air for a few moments, and his tone had dropped significantly. Both of your breathing was heavy, and you moved closer and closer to each other. Your heart was pounding in your chest, and it quickly crossed your mind how glad you were for your next line.

“You.” It was barely above a whisper, and, as per your director’s instructions, the two of you leapt at each other halfway through the word, grasping handfuls of each other’s clothes as you kissed deeply, making sure to let out gasps and breaths. You tried to ignore how much the noises he was making made your skin tingle and your insides melt. Just as you pushed him gently back onto the bed, the director yelled, “Cut!” 

You clambered off him a couple seconds later, giving him a small smile, unable to stop yourself at the sight of his disheveled clothes and hair and red, swollen lips. 

“Good job guys, that was great! Take five.” 

-

“Hey, you were great in that scene!” You looked up from your phone, smiling when you saw Joe. 

“Thanks! So were you.” Whether or not he was implying you were a great kisser you weren’t sure. All you knew was that you really, really wanted to kiss him again. 

“Yeah?” The corner of his mouth went up, his eyebrows raising, and you felt your cheeks heating up yet again, nodding. 

“Yeah, you’re great at the whole ‘mad’ thing,” you gestured vaguely, and he smiled adorably. You grinned back sheepishly, shrugging slightly as if to dismiss your comment.

“Am I? I guess because it’s the exact opposite of my personality,” he chuckled, and you nodded.

“Yeah I’ve noticed. I can’t imagine you hurting a fly,” you teased, and he laughed good-naturedly as he sat down next to you.

“Trust me, I’ve killed many-a-flies in my day,” he said, and you both burst out laughing.

“Oooh, a bad boy, eh? Exactly my type.” Fuck. Why did you say that? Then again, why not? Why were you hesitant? He was exactly your type, and you’d be spending a lot of time together. Why not go for it? 

Just as you’d come to this conclusion and turned to face him, he seemingly was on the same wavelength. He rested his hands on your waist as your lips molded together perfectly as if they were made for each other. This kiss was more hesitant, sweeter, and even better than the previous ones. Because it was more real. And, contrary to your expectations, it didn’t dissolve the tensions between the two of you. Only heightened them. And, you decided, that wasn’t such a bad thing. 

[seven-seas-of-fuck-you]

Pub Meetings

Queen x reader 

American Reader lives in London, meeting new people, awkwardness

For my lovely @picking-up-the-glass​ as part of @borhapparker​ ‘s secret Santa. I hope you enjoy it as much as I had fun writing it!

Ah Christmas, the greatest time of the year. Or is it? Nah I’m just kidding it’s great! The lights, the department stores dressing up their displays like Santa’s workshop, the music no matter how catchy and annoying it may be at times. Family…

Christmas used to be like that. Before I moved to England. I had fallen in love with this beautiful dreamy, cloudy and most certainly rainy city. Christmas in London is so picturesque just like the movies. It’s already my fourth year here and I am still not over it. I pinch myself every morning. I love to walk down the endless rows of merchants in Covet Garden, looking over the endless goods some more exotic than others. I came to a stop at one stall that wasn’t there last year. No one was to be seen inside as I looked around. There were clothes of every colour and pattern, nearing a rack in the back I could hear voices.

“Bloody hell Rog. I’m telling you we need a mirror for our customers.” I hear one voice exclaim.

“I’m telling you Fred, I don’t think we do. It’s enough to carry all the clothes every week. I don’t want to carry a mirror. What if it breaks in the van?” The other voice sounds rather done with the conversation. I hear shuffling and move back to the front near the dresses.

“Hello love, if you need any help us know.” I turn to see two men, a blonde and dark brown almost black brunette. I smile at them and grab a dress that I was keen on and would go with my style.

“Thank you, I was wondering if you had a mirror. I would like to see this on.” I smile at the dark haired man who looks back at the blonde with a knowing look.

“Most unfortunate darling but we don’t have one. But I believe it would look splendid on you.” He gives me a closed lip smile that was genuine.

“Oh that’s quite alright. I do believe so as well. If you don’t mind me asking, I didn’t see your stall last year. Why is that? You have such beautiful clothes.” I ask and the blonde pipes up from the back making me move farther into the stall. There’s just something about these two that makes me feel at home. I’m not sure what it is.  

“You see we’ve been on a waitlist just to have a stall at Covet Garden. It’s very highly sought after. Every year we put in to be here and this is the first year, we’re very lucky I would say.”

“I would say as well.” I agree. I pay for the dress and learn their names. Freddie and Roger. I head back to my dorm after some more shopping around. I am greeted by my lovely room mate Kaitlyn who as I came into the flat was in a messy rush.

“Kait, what’s going on?” I called at her as she flitted from the bathroom and her room.

“There’s a band…. at the pub…. popular... we’re going.” Was all I heard as she finally settled in her room looking through her jewelry box.

“Say that again?” I manage to find a spot on the bed since it was a war zone of clothes everywhere.

“I said, there’s a band that I heard was amazing from Janet and are playing at the pub, anyone that’s popular is going to be there and we’re going.” She put on her final touches and I continued to stare at her.

“Well, aren’t you going to get ready?” She looks at me from her mirror as I am snapped out of my day dream.

“What, oh yeah. Be ready in a shake.” I leave her be to get ready. I wore my new dress and large overcoat since it was snowing out. I kept my hair the same as earlier that day, light curls with my signature bumper bags.

We arrive at the pub and it was packed. Normally there’s maybe forty people at max on the weekends, this was definitely not forty people. I manage to find us a table while Kaity goes to get us a drink. The pub is buzzing as I look up to the stage which is adorned with a drum set and some other instruments.

“It’s pretty packed aint it?” Kaity says as she sets down our drinks. Lemonade for me and a pint of beer for her.

“Yeah more than usual. What’d you say the bands name was?” I ask her and she pointed to the drum set.

“Ah, smile? Funny name.”

“Funny name good band.” She smiles and then the pub is in an uproar. I look back to the stage and four men have taken to it. I don’t recognise them at first, until the lead singer addresses the crowd.

“Hello lovelies!” I immediately smile as I see both Freddie and Roger. I don’t know the other two. Freddie scans the crowd and he stops when our eyes meet. He smiles even bigger and starts to perform.

Oh my God they are amazing! Their energy, Freddie’s energy. He just commands that stage, I couldn’t take my eyes off of his for a second. The way he plays off of the others like a well oiled machine. When they finish and leave the stage I feel sad.

“Oh wow they were amazing!” Kaitlyn exclaims as people start filing out of the pub. We stay seated at our table.

“Yeah they were. So amazing!” I agree with her as more people continue to leave.

“Y’know I did see a certain singer keep looking at you.” Kaitlyn says. I look at her like she’s lost her mind.

“You’re joking! Besides I don’t think he’s my type.” I smack her arm.

“Who’s not your type?” My head couldn’t have turned faster. I look up to see none other than Freddie standing over me and Kaitlyn. She is beyond shocked while I am now more amused.

“Well, you. I would say you’re not my type. But maybe your Kaits type. Huh Kait?” The mention of her name has her attention as she starts blushing and giving me the ‘I’ll kill you’ look. Freddie simply laughs and grabs a nearby chair to join us.

“May I?” He asks before he sits with a beer.

“Of course!” Kaitlyn exclaims and I scoot my chair to make room, “By the way I’m Kaitlyn and this is Y/N.”

“Pleasure is all mine Kaitlyn, Y/N I told you that dress would look lovely on you.” Freddie takes a sip of his beer. I nod in agreement. Kaitlyn however looks confused.

“I feel as though I’m missing something.”

“Oh, I met Freddie earlier today when I was out shopping. They have a stall over in Covent Garden.” Kaitlyn simply says ‘oh’

So what did you think of our show?” Freddie asks both of us to try to break the air I go to answer but Kaitlyn beats me to it. We sit and talk for what seems like hours. We notice that the pub is trying to close.

“Well ladies this has been an absolute pleasure.” Freddie kisses both of our hands after we step outside.

“Agreed.” I say.

“Maybe we can all meet up again. I’ll even bring the boys for you to meet. We could go get coffee?” Freddie asks hopefully. Me and Kaitlyn both look at each other then nod.

“That sounds great. How about next week?” I ask.

“Sounds amazing” We part ways and I could tell that this was the start of something wonderful.

[borhapparker]

Hey are you tagging your entries to your secret Santa?

i’m going to be reblogging all the entires. but the two main tags if you participate are:

#borhapparker’s borhap secret santa

and

#borhapparker’s marvel secret santa

if you mean another secret santa, i’m not participating myself in any hahaa (except for the marvel one)

[isitstraightvodka]

Merry Christmas!

Hey, so I’m your secret santa... I hope you enjoy your gift. I wasn’t too sure how to go about it and it’s not super personalized, but I tried getting some vibes in there I thought would be nice.

💛💛 happy holidays babe

OMG I LOVE IT! thank you so much honey 😍😍 xx

[acdeaky]

Hi it's me 🎄!!! I really hope you enjoy your present, and that you have a wonderful day. And obviously, it's me, not a secret anymore!

patrica! omg. thank you, thank you, thank you! i haven’t even read it yet, but i just know it’ll be amazing 💛

[zestysexmachinefromzanzibar]

I LOVE THIS!!!!!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Thank you so much!!!!!!! Happy Holidays to you too😁😁😁😁💕💕

It’s Late

A/N: Hi all! Okay, this is my entry for @borhapparker ‘s Secret Santa! This is for @zestysexmachinefromzanzibar I really hope you like it and Happy Holidays!

Pairing: 70s Brian May x fem!reader

Warnings: Smut, some fighting

You tightened the blanket around you and glanced at the clock.  ’11:45’.  You sighed.  Brian had told you that he would be home over three hours ago.  The two of you were going to celebrate Christmas tonight after he got back from the studio because on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day would be spent with your families. 

You stood up from the couch and walked over to the piano that was in the sitting room.  You ran your fingers over the polished wood.  Well, it was one way to pass the time. 

You sat down at the piano and adjusted the blanket so it was like a cape.  You slowly began playing a Christmas song, hoping it would help you get in the holiday spirit.  Brian had been so busy recording the new album and planning his new tour that he’d barely been home.  You missed him.  It made it hard to get excited about the holidays when you were doing most of the holiday things, like decorating and shopping, by yourself. 

You were so focused on your playing that you hadn’t heard the door open.  Brian leaned against the doorframe, watching you play.  He was exhausted and stressed.  Playing, recording, arguing, it took all of it out of him.  However, hearing you play made him relax.  Just being around you made him relax.  He started humming along as he quietly walked over to you and sat down next to you on the bench. 

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