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twistedminutia · 1 day ago

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A Million and One Minutia: Merry Christmas

Ace, Deuce, and Grim learn about Christmas. Find the rest of the chapters here and crossposted to AO3 here.

The winter is biting cold after the long stay at Scarabia. I hunch my shoulders against it, wrapping my thin jacket tighter around my body. It, like all my other clothes here, was scavenged from the lost-and-found and old uniform repository. Most of it doesn’t fit me. Though, the coat being oversized is kind of an advantage, since it means Grim can slide his way into it. Having a warm fuzzball next to my chest does wonders.

I wasn’t expecting to see Deuce and Ace until the winter break ended. Even when I called them, I wasn’t really thinking they’d come- I kind of just wanted moral support. But I’m glad they’re here now, even if they did show up after everything was resolved. I feel a bit guilty about that, really. I didn’t really comprehend how difficult it is to get to Sage Island without the magic mirror, and I certainly don’t have the funds to pay them back for all the fares they racked up getting here. They told me it was fine, but I still feel bad.

Last I saw them, they were debating whether or not to stay for the rest of the break or make their way back home. They didn’t get round-trip tickets for anything, since they weren’t sure how long it would take to wrap things up, and they can’t use the magic mirror as long as Headmage Crowley isn’t here. I told them I’d be fine if they went home, but I suppose there’s the travel expenses to go back. They’re able to stay in their dorms over break- apparently they don’t lock them. Maybe the mirrors keep out interlopers.

But, them being here is kind of nice, even if it’s only for a day or so. I have something I want to do.

After getting a Lilia jumpscare and having the feast the ghosts helped orchestrate, I gather my preparations. They’re not good, I’d say. But I don’t have a lot of money, and I couldn’t afford anything else. Hopefully they’re appreciated.

I have weird dreams, because why wouldn’t I, but I resolve to set them out of my mind when I head toward the Hall of Mirrors. Grim trudges along behind me, grousing about how early we’re up (it’s well past 10). Sassy is even further behind us, chasing the occasional snowflake.

As I’ve done many times before, I head through the mirror and out into the spring-esque air of Heartslabyul. I don’t really understand how the weather works in any of these pocket dimensions. It seems like there isn’t any, and each place has a ‘set condition’ that the dorm is always in. I envy it- if only Ramshackle wasn’t so open to the weather.

I step up and knock on the door a few times. “Why are we here?” Grim complains. “You never told me why we had to come all the way to Heartslabyul.”

“It’s a surprise,” I say.

“Unless the surprise involves another feast, I’m not interested,” Grim says.

“It’s not a feast, but there is something for you,” I say. Grim perks up instantly.

“Yeah? What is it? Let me see!” He makes a grab at the bag in my arms and I hurriedly yank it out of the way.

“You’ll get it in a minute, we just need to wait for-” The door opens to reveal a somewhat disheveled Deuce.

“Gray?” He straightens up, blinking in clear surprise. “And Grim? What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you,” I say. “Did you just wake up? It’s way past ten.”

Deuce blinks sheepishly. “We’re on vacation…”

“I brought some stuff,” I say, hefting the bag. “Can I come in?”

“Sure, of course.” Deuce steps out of the way and I step into the Heartslabyul lounge. Ace is there, wearing a loose T-shirt and shorts. He blanches the second he sees me.

“Deuce! Warn a guy!”

“It’s just Gray,” Deuce says. He looks marginally more put together than Ace, wearing actual pajamas.

“Yeah, but still. I’d like to be dressed before entertaining someone,” Ace complains. I place my bag down on a table.

“You can go get changed,” I offer. “I was just stopping by to drop some stuff off.”

For all his complaining, Ace doesn’t leave the room, instead perking up at the mention of stuff. “What is it?” He attempts to peek into the bag and I ward him off.

“I will give it to you. Don’t grab.” Ace’s stomach growls as I ward him off, loud enough for me to clearly hear it. Deuce’s stomach follows not a moment later and both of them cringe. “Have you guys not eaten yet? How late did you get up?”

“It’s not that,” Deuce says. “It’s…” He glances at Ace.

“They cleaned out the kitchens before everyone went home,” Ace says. “There’s basically no food in the dorm.”

“Oh,” I say. “I didn’t even think about that.” Crowley arranged for food for me, and for the other dorms where students were staying, but Heartslabyul is completely empty. It makes sense that they wouldn’t have anything left.

“It’s okay,” Deuce says. “We didn’t think about it either.” He shrugs. “I guess I kind of rushed in without thinking again.”

“It’s no problem,” I say. “C’mere, Grim. We’re heading back to Ramshackle.”

Grim practically deflates to the floor. “What? We just got here! Now you want me to go all the way back?”

“Aw, if poor little Grimmy too tired to walk anywhere?” Ace teases. “I figured you’d have problems with those short little legs of yours!”

“Myah!” Grim complains, fluffing up. “My legs are perfectly sized! I bet I could beat your long legs any day of the week!”

“Ha! Bet you’re wrong!” Ace eventually goes off with Deuce to get changed, leaving Grim huffing and puffing around the lounge.

Grim does end up beating Ace back to Ramshackle. He’s surprisingly fast when he gets down on all fours, and his small size lets him scramble beneath or around obstacles that trip Ace up. Deuce might have beaten them both, given he’s in the track and field club, but he walks next to me, occasionally offering to hold my bag.

Once we’re back at Ramshackle, I fire up the stove and make cinnamon pancakes. They’re a luxury I usually wouldn’t bother with- I barely bother to eat breakfast at all, honestly, subsisting mostly on the lunches the school provides- but I feel like it makes sense for this. Getting the ingredients meant blowing some of the not-very-generous budget Crowley gives me, but I made sure I had some money set aside.

“Give me some!” Grim protests near my feet. I nudge him away.

“You had some earlier.” He whines and complains. “You can have some after Ace and Deuce have eaten.”

“It smells good,” Deuce says as I place some on his plate.

“Yeah, I didn’t know you could cook,” Ace says.

“Mostly only breakfast stuff,” I say. Suddenly having to cook all my meals, not only for myself but also for a whiny little monster was a bit of an adjustment. An adjustment that involved me frantically trying to source meals that were cheap, quick, and not going to kill my housemate. Not that the last bit ended up being an issue- I’m starting to think Grim could eat rat poison and not have anything worse than a mild stomachache.

The boys stuff themselves and even the ghosts show up to enjoy the smell of the breakfast. Grim barely finishes licking his plate clean before he turns to me. “Okay. Where’s the thing you said you were going to give me?”

Ace perks up as well. “Yeah, didn’t you say you had stuff for us?”

“Yeah, yeah. Can’t even wait five minutes,” I complain, but there’s no heat behind it. I grab my bag and fish out the parcels. “Sorry the wrapping’s so awful. I can’t believe how expensive wrapping paper is.”

None of them seemed put off by the fact that the gifts are wrapped in old assignments and twine. Grim rips into his with such enthusiasm he nearly tears the present underneath. Deuce is much more careful with his unwrapping, apparently determined to at least save the twine, if nothing else. Ace pulls the twine away and shuffles the paper aside to reveal a tiny hedgehog, pale pink, dangling from a keychain. Beneath it is a small pile of cookies.

Deuce picks up another hedgehog, this one pale blue, from his own gift. “It’s cute,” he says. “Did you make it?”

I nod. The pattern was something I found free online, though it meant having to pay to print the pages off in the library. And, when you get free reign of the lost-and-found, sometimes there’s cool stuff in there. I had to unwind an old sweater for the yarn, and the keychains were scavenged from toys people had lost. The cookies were actually the hard part- I had to go hunting for a recipe that made them taste at least close to how I remembered them.

Grim, meanwhile, examines his own present. “How’s this supposed to work?”

“Here, it kind of buttons in the front…” I drape it over his… shoulders? And then fasten the button. It’s a bit lumpy, and not the cleanest work, but it’s the best I could do with scavenged yarn and a single crochet hook. “You kept complaining about being cold. I figured a little shawl-thing would be better than your ribbon. You don’t have to stop wearing it! I know it’s important to you.” I did my best to make sure his magestone and ribbon wouldn’t interfere with the shawl. It looks like it worked okay. The bow’s a little scrunched and partially hidden, but it’s nothing too awful. Grim pats at the shawl, smoothing down the lumpiness that inevitably cropped up from my poor stitchwork.

“What are all these gifts for?” Ace asks. “Just thanks for us rushing to your rescue?”

“Well, they can be for that, too,” I say, still helping Grim adjust his shawl. “But it’s actually for Christmas! Merry Christmas!”

Deuce and Ace glance at each other. “Er,” Deuce says after a moment. “What’s Christmas?”

“It’s a holiday where I come from. And in the area I live, it’s pretty popular. There are a lot of traditions for it, but the big one is exchanging gifts.” I shrug. “I know you guys don’t celebrate it here, but I thought I could at least celebrate it a little.”

“How come Ace and Deuce got cookies and I didn’t?” Grim complains, having finally noticed.

“You ate half the cookies I baked when I baked them,” I say. “That was your share.”

“Myaahh!” Grim whines.

“Gray,” Deuce says, ignoring Grim. “Thank you. I’m glad you wanted to share the holiday with us.”

“Yeah, thanks for the gift,” Ace says. “You said there were a bunch of ways to celebrate, yeah? Do you do stuff other than gifts?”

“Yeah, it’s mostly decoration stuff,” I say. “There’s a tradition where you set up a pine tree in your house and decorate it with a bunch of lights and ornaments.”

“A tree?” Ace interrupts. “Why a tree?”

“Oh, uh. That’s a good question. I’m not sure. I know that it used to be more of a tradition where people went outside to decorate the trees, then they brought them inside, but I don’t know how it started specifically. It’s weird, I know, but I enjoy it. Sometimes you can decorate with other things, too, like pine wreaths. Um, hanging stockings by the fireplace was a thing, so people can put presents in those.”

“Why stockings?” Deuce asks.

“I think it used to be shoes, because it was like you were hiding little presents somewhere, then it kind of changed to stockings over time? I’m not sure.” I’m half making things up at this point. But I don’t want to sound like I don’t know what I’m talking about. “There’s the myth of Santa, too.”

“What’s Santa?” Grim asks, having settled next to me. I shoved the rest of the pancakes toward him at some point and that seems to have calmed him down.

“It’s a myth about a magic old man who brings presents to kids on the night before Christmas. There’s a lot of movies about it, actually. He’s got a sleigh pulled by flying reindeer- hey!” I cut off because Ace has burst into laughter.

“What kind of a myth is that? Why flying reindeer?”

“It originated in an area with reindeer, I don’t know! Yes, it’s kind of silly, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a fun myth.”

Deuce looks contemplative about something else. “You said your world doesn’t have magic. How does Santa have magic?”

“I said it’s a myth, too. It’s not real. I mean, everyone pretends it’s real for kids, so they believe, but it’s not actually true.”

“If there’s no magic, how come kids believe it?” Ace asks.

“A lot of kids believe in magic, before figuring out it isn’t true,” I say.

Ace shrugs. “Eh. I guess kids are kind of stupid.”

Deuce pets the little hedgehog with one finger. “It sounds like an interesting holiday. Do you do anything else to celebrate?”

“I mean, we did a bunch of different things together. My family, I mean. We baked a lot of cookies together. The ones I gave you are a similar recipe. And we decorated together. And, uh. We had a tradition where the night before Christmas, we got together and we watched a movie and we had hot chocolate. It was… it was nice.” My stomach twists abruptly. I don’t know if I’m ever going to celebrate with them again.

Ace and Deuce exchange looks again. “Hey, that’s no problem!” Ace says. “I brought my laptop, and the internet’s pretty good on campus. We can take some hot chocolate mix and milk back to Heartslabyul and have a party there!”

Deuce looks at me hopefully. “We can check out some of the movies you mentioned wanting to see.”

“We have to watch Murder at the Midnight Mansion,” Ace says. “It’s a classic.”

“It doesn’t sound like a very Christmassy movie,” I laugh. “But I think I’d like that.”

I don’t know if Ace and Deuce were planning on going back home today, but they don’t. We spend ages at Heartslabyul, watching movies on Ace’s laptop and only pausing for a few snack breaks. We even manage to get a delivery service to bring some food up to Night Raven, which saves us the trouble of making dinner. It’s late by the time I head back to Ramshackle.

Grim huddles under the covers as I finish brushing my teeth and getting ready for bed. He’s so busy snuggling for warmth that I almost miss it when I climb in with him.

“Are you still wearing the shawl?” I ask. Come to think of it, he was wearing it when we were at Heartslabyul, too. I’d assumed he’d wear it for a bit, to be polite, then wriggle out of it as soon as no one was looking.

Grim fluffs his fur, then hunches in on himself, hugging the shawl to his body. “It’s cold! The Great Grim needs to be warm!”

I laugh. “Okay, okay. I’m not going to make you take it off.”

Grim waits for a moment while I settle into bed. Then he murmurs, almost as an afterthought, “I don’t remember ever gettin’ a gift like this before. So… so don’t you think I’m going to give this up so easily!”

“I didn’t ask you to give it up,” I say. Grim huffs and curls up, turning his back to me. His fur along his spine is puffed up in a little embarrassed ridge. I could tease him more, but I let him be.

“Merry Christmas, Grim,” I say as I settle down next to him. After a moment, he shuffles closer and settles into my arms.

“Merry Christmas, Gray,” he whispers back, almost too soft to hear. The draft room is cold, but Grim’s small body is warm in my arms and it’s easy to settle into sleep with that little comfort.

#twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland fanfic #a million and one minutia #ace trappola #deuce spade #grim twst #twst yuu #yuusona

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cherryblossomcowgirl · 2 days ago

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No Caller ID

*Inspired by Megan Moroney’s “No Caller ID”*

WC: 2.4k

WARNINGS: Angst; place crash / ejection; injuries; fear of death; cursing (I think?); broken heart

I sigh and check my phone. *No Caller ID* AKA Jake. Hitting ignore, I slide it back into my pocket. Bradley raises an eyebrow, “Who was that?” I roll my eyes, “You know who.” He runs his hand through his hair, “Y/n, you’re my best friend and I can’t believe that I am about to say this… have you spoken to him?” I shake my head, “Why would I? I think he made his decision pretty clear.” Bradley shrugs, “Then why is he still calling you?” I scoff, “To torture me.” Bradley lets out a long sigh, “You coming out tonight?” “Maybe after dinner.” He raises an eyebrow, “James?” I smile proudly, “Date number 4!” “Well, I am happy for you. I’ll let you know when we get to the bar.” We hug and Bradley heads out to his Bronco. I rush to get ready for dinner, praying I don’t get another call from Jake. So far I’ve ignored each one, but he’s chipping away at the walls I worked so hard to build up. I know if I answer and hear that southern drawl, I won’t be able to say no. I’ll go right back to him, the man that broke my heart. After changing my outfit too many times, I jump in my car and head to meet James.

Dinner was amazing. James is tall, dark, and handsome. He runs a private security firm. He’s so attentive to everything I say and do. But my brain wanders throughout dinner, wondering why I don’t feel a spark. The first couple of dates I told myself it would come with time. As we walk out, he places his hand on the small of my back. Nothing. My phone buzzes and I check it. “That was Bradley, they all just got to the bar. Would you like to come with me?” James smiles, “Lead the way, pretty girl.” We walk up the street to the Hard Deck and I warn James about my friends, “They’re a lot… but they grow on you.” He wraps an arm around my shoulder, “I’m excited to meet them.” The squad is by the pool tables, like always. James grabs us drinks and I introduce him. “Bradley, Nat, Bob, and Javy.” They smile and wave. We start a game of pool and James starts making his way around the group, trying to get to know each person. How am I not head over heels for him? Bradley stands beside me, “He seems nice.” I take a sip of my drink, “He is.” He raises an eyebrow, “So you’re barely smiling because you’re just… so happy?” I smack his arm, “Shut up. I am happy.” I scan the room, absentmindedly. Bradley clears his throat, “That’s like the 4th time you’ve looked for him. He got called out for something tonight. He’s not coming.” I scoff, “I wasn’t… that wasn’t… I don’t care.” Bradley hits a ball in the corner pocket, “You don’t sound too convinced.”

From the outside, the night seems to be going great. I think everyone likes James and James seems to like everyone. But there is that part of me wishing Jake was here instead. Then another part of me that is angry at that part of me for wanting him here. I stare in the dirty bathroom mirror, “He left you. Move on.” When I walk back out, I stand beside James. He puts an arm around my waist and pulls me in close. NO SPARK. I sigh at myself. My phone rings and I ignore it, assuming it is *No Caller ID*. When it starts ringing again I pull it out and my heart drops. I drop my phone and James picks it up, “Why is the Navy calling you?” Bradley’s head whips towards me as I answer, plugging one ear so I can hear. “Hello, Ms. Y/n Y/l/n? I am calling from Coronado to let you know there has been an incident. We need you to come to the hospital on base as quickly as possible.” I can’t breathe, let alone respond. My drink falls from my hand. I wince at the sound of glass shattering on the floor. The voice on the other end starts speaking again, “Ma’am? It’s about Lieutenant Seresin. You are listed as his emergency contact. Are you able to come to the hospital at Coronado?” “Yes.” I croak out. Bradley grabs my arms, “What’s going on?” I’m shaking and I can’t stop, “It’s… it’s… he’s… there’s been an incident…” James clears his throat, “What’s happening?” I turn to meet his eyes, “It’s… Jake…” Nat grabs my purse and hands it to Bradley, “Get her there, now. We will pay the tabs and head over. Someone call Maverick.” The room around me is spinning and I try to focus on each step as we make our way out the door. James turns to Bradley, “Can you please explain what is happening?” Bradley speaks quickly, “There must have been a crash or an ejection.” James runs his hand through his hair, “Who is Jake? Why is she his emergency contact?” Bradley takes a breath, “Jake and Y/n… Jake is… He must not have changed the paperwork.” A look of sadness washes over James face, but I can’t even respond. I’m sitting in the passenger seat of the Bronco and all I can think of is Jake. Every call I declined. Every text I ignored. James turns to me, “Give me a call when you get home safe.” I nod and try to smile, but it comes out looking pathetic. Bradley jumps in the Bronco and starts the engine.

I run through the hospital hallway, frantically counting the rooms until I find 34. Jake is lying in a bed, looking pale and weak. He turns his head towards the door, “Y/n?” I stand by the edge of the bed, “Jake, what happened?” He winces and touches a spot on his head, “They called you?” I sigh, “Apparently I am still your emergency contact. What happened?” “Ejection. Landed in trees and then fell from those onto rocks.” We sit there for a moment in total silence. His hand is shaking, so I put mine on top of it. “Jake, you’re freezing.” I check the closet, grabbing him a blanket and carefully placing it over him. He looks up, green eyes piercing mine, “I’m sorry that I forgot to change the paperwork.” I shake my head, “Don’t apologize. Did they say how long you have to be here?” He groans, “Just overnight if all my scans come back clear.” The rest of the team files in as I grab another blanket and pillow from the nurses station. Once everyone has had a minute with him, I get comfy on the couch. He looks over at me, “What are you doing?” “You think I would leave you here? All alone?” He shrugs, “I don’t know what to think.” I know exactly what he means. I ignore him for months but here I am now, sleeping on a sofa in his hospital room. I rub my face, “We can talk about it in the morning.” Jake nods, “Goodnight, Y/n.” “Goodnight, Jake.” I quickly pull out my phone, letting James know I’ll be at the hospital tonight. He reads it, but doesn’t respond. I screenshot it and text Bradley.

Me: What does this mean?

His response is almost immediate.

Bradley: That Jake is important to you and now he knows it too.

I turn off my phone and bury my face in the blanket. James is nice. James is sweet. James is successful. And handsome. And ripped. I should want James. But Jake is Jake.

Sunlight peaks through the paper thin hospital curtains and I rustle awake. Jake is still passed out, thanks to the medicine. I check my phone, still nothing from James. A doctor walks in, waking Jake up. “Hi Lieutenant. We got all of your scans back and you are good to go. Bruised and scraped up, but as long as you take it easy for a couple weeks you will heal up just fine. I’ve got some medicine for you to help with the pain.” Jake thanks them and I grab his bag. He raises an eyebrow, “What’re you doing now?” “Driving you home. You can’t drive with the medicine you’re on.” He nods and goes into the restroom, changing into normal clothes. Jake walks out cautiously, like every step hurts. I take his arm and swing it over my shoulder, giving him some much needed support. “Thanks.” He murmurs as we head to my car (that Bradley and Bob had so graciously dropped off). When we reach his apartment, I get him set up on the couch. I head into the kitchen to grab him water and some food. Tears fill my eyes when I see his fridge. Every photo is still up. Each Polaroid. Each strip photo from the state fair to my friend’s wedding. I set Jake’s things in front of him, sitting down by his feet. He takes a sip of water but his voice is still hoarse, “Can we talk now?” I look down at my hands, “Sure.” Jake takes a deep breath, “You decline every one of my calls, but you show up at the hospital?” The tears are still there from before, but now they’re right on the edge of my waterline. I blink and one falls, “I wanted to answer each one, but I couldn’t.” “Why?” I place my hands in my lap, “You made your choice and it wasn’t me. I was trying to move on.” “Did you?” His green eyes look… hopeful. Another tear falls, “I thought I did, but I don’t think he’s too happy with me right now.” Jake raises an eyebrow and I sigh, “The hospital called when we were out and I shut down. Bradley had to bring me here.” “And he’s upset with you?” I put my elbows on my knees and hide my face in my hands, “I think so. My reaction wasn’t really a reaction you’d have for a friend.” A small smile spreads across his lips, “So you didn’t tell him about me? Worried he’d know he’d never compare?” We both chuckle and I roll my eyes, “They must’ve given you some good medicine, huh?” He laughs so hard that he winces, “But really, why didn’t you tell him about me? Did he meet the rest of the squad?” I nod, “I couldn’t tell him about you. Usually you don’t start off a relationship talking about the person who broke your heart.” Jake’s sighs and reaches for my hand. I let him grab mine, wrapping it in his own calloused one. There’s an immediate current of electricity running between us. He notices my reaction and smirks, “That’s why you couldn’t tell him about me.” A blush colors my cheeks. My phone rings and it’s James. “I have to take this.” I take a deep breath and head into the kitchen. “Hi James.” “Hi Y/n. How is he doing?” I am shocked he asked, “He’s okay. He had to eject and didn’t have a very good landing.” James grunts, “Well I am happy he’s okay. Can I ask you something?” “Of course.” There’s a pause, “There’s no way I can compete with him, right?” I try to find words but I can’t. He sighs, “I can’t say that I’m not disappointed, Y/n. I really like you. Give me a call if you change your mind.” He hangs up and I close my eyes, wondering what the hell I am doing.

After a few much needed moments to gather myself, I walk back into the living room. Jake raises an eyebrow, “How’s James?” I snap, “He’s gone because he doesn’t think he can compare to you, Jake. Because even though I have tried to move on, you have some hold over me! You left me! You packed your things and left me A NOTE! And here I am, like some lovesick loser, running to your side to help even though you probably don’t even want me here.” Jake’s face falls, “Y/n, I do want you here. When you walked in those doors at the hospital, I couldn’t believe it. I regretted what I did the moment I did it. That’s why I’ve been trying to call you. I never stopped loving you.” I wipe the tear rolling down my cheek, “How can you love someone and treat them that way?” He takes my hand and moves me to sit beside him, “Y/n, I wanted you to have a normal life. I thought if I left, you’d find some guy with an office job that could be there for you everyday. The deployments, the trainings, the danger… I didn’t want that life for you.” “You don’t get to make that decision for me.” His rough hand caresses my cheek, “I’m so sorry that I did.” I sit there in silence, trying to figure out what to make of all of this. As much as I wish I hated Jake, he’s been on my mind since the day he left. I’ve searched for him in every man and all I’ve found is disappointment. Jake’s voice brings me back, “Is it too late for us?” I shake my head as another tear falls, “I think I would’ve waited forever until I found you again. No matter how angry I was. I knew if I answered the phone, you’d break down my walls instantly. I was just scared.” He furrows his brow, “Scared of what?” “Losing you, again.” His green eyes stare into mine, “If you give me another chance, I promise that I will do my best to show you how much I love you every single day.” I smile, “And you’ll rub my neck every night?” He chuckles, “Just like the old days.” I giggle, looking down at our hands intertwined. My smile falls and Jake notices, “What’s wrong?” My voice comes out a whisper, “I thought you were going to die thinking I hated you. I kept telling myself I should’ve just answered the phone.” He pulls me into his chest, “I’m here baby, okay? I’m not going anywhere. I love you so much.” Jake leans in, kissing me gently. His lips are just like I remember, soft and sweet.

#glen powell x reader #jake seresin x you #hangman x reader #hangman x you #jake seresin fanfiction #jake seresin x reader #top gun maverick #hangman fic #top gun

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seitmai · 2 days ago

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Many thoughts...

Even now the apartment felt quiet. Elena was at work and it was just you. The silence was deafening. Elena had asked if you wanted her to stay a couple night to keep you company but you lied and said you were fine. Last night you had just stared up at the ceiling until exhaustion finally took over.

🥺🥺🥺

Your mom shook her head “No we didn’t, we knew that you clearly didn’t want to be around him and we respected that”

As it should be!

“Thank you and I’m so sorry that the wedding has been called off, I know you guys have put a lot of money into it” you sighed, guilt wracking your body. “Sweetpea, money means nothing if you’re unhappy, we’d rather you be happy than marry that piece of shit because of the money that’s been spent,” your dad told you. “And look the wedding wasn’t going to be until spring so we might be able to get some of the deposits back,” your mom said “Why don’t you leave that with us to sort and you just focus on yourself and your happiness” “Thanks Mom,” you said before chuckling quietly “I don’t know why I was so scared to have this chat” “You never have to be scared to talk to us, the only person who should be scared is that piece of shit, I swear he’s dead when I next see him” your dad swore.

Urgh I feel like she really needed this talk with her parents and they couldnt have reacted better 🥹🥰

“A mutual connection helps, makes it more believable. If fans and media outlets can easily trace how they would have potentially met then they’re more likely to believe it. So in this case if it was someone a fellow teammate knew, there’s a clear link, if you pick someone who has no connection to the player people are going to be suspicious” you continued. “And you’re close with Elena and Chris aren’t you?”

Oh oh 👀

As you walked back to your desk you wondered which of the team needed a PR relationship. You barely knew any of them, so you could only go on what El had told you. Chris was out for obvious reasons, from what you knew of Curtis you doubted it was him. Ari came to mind but you instantly shook that thought from your head. Not because you didn’t think it was him, but because you didn’t want to work with him. You settled on Johnny instead, even though El said he was a bit of a secret softie he was known as a player.

I love that Johnny’s secret softie side isn't as secret anymore 🤭

You nodded to yourself, yeah it had to be Johnny. You instantly thought of different strategies for him, where to stage the dates. He’d be an easy client too, the only problem would be getting him to keep it in his pants. You just hoped that whatever reason he had would be incentive enough to keep him in line.

I mean, a valid concern 😅

Ari hated physio, he swore it was just the medical team’s excuse to get some revenge.

I get it Ari, I truly do (coming from a person that definitely needs physio but chickens out all the time because I know it will hurt like a mother fucker to get better longterm🥲)

“i know, i just haven't seen her to apologise” he sighed glancing down at his hands. “Haven’t seen her or avoided her?” Elena asked with a brow arched “She was in the gym on Monday” “I was at my 1-2-1 analysis while she was there” Ari reasoned “getting ripped into by your dad for that yellow” he added a pointed look. Elena shrugged “You deserved it”

Elena is not holding back and I love it😅

Elena nodded “It is criminal that you haven’t been picked yet” she hummed “Don’t worry I’m sure whatever Y/N has cooked up will work, she’s the best around” she winked before pointing at him “Just don’t make her life difficult, she’s been through enough shit” she warned.

What agreat friend she is!

Ari held his hands up in surrender. He still didn’t know the full picture, only that you were back on the East Coast without your engagement ring. He’d asked Chris what had happened but he said it wasn’t his story to share “I swear, I won’t” he promised “You can beat the crap out of me if I do”

Oh I'm sure she will

Ari huffed as he walked out, he wanted to stop doing stupid shit too.

You and me both lol

“I wanted to apologise for the other week, I was out of line” he apologised “I was tired and was having a shitty day and I took my anger out on the first person I came across” “That’s no excuse” you pointed out as you looked down at your feet.

Period👏🏻

That response was closer to what he expected from you, the words were right but the delivery was off. The words should have been sharper, not downtrodden.

Yes!! Hopefully their back and forth will come back soon too 👀

He reached out to put a hand on your shoulder, feeling the need to provide comfort in any way he could. He wanted to ask what happened, what he could do to make it better and bring back the version he knew.

🥹🥹🥹

The smile on Steph’s face widens “Well we want this to work so I’ve brought in the best” she grinned before turning her attention to you “Y/N will be the perfect match” “Excuse me?” you squeaked in surprise. Ari frowned, you had clearly been blindsided by this idea. Something that didn’t sit right with him, it wasn’t fair on you.

“Is there any evidence of your relationship online?” Steph asked, her head tilted in question. “Uh- no, I- I deleted everything,” you said your voice cracking. “Well that’s one less thing to worry about, plus it's not uncommon for people to get into a relationship soon after another” Steph points out.

Wtf Steph! This feels like some workers rights violation but I guess pr relationships are not covered in that 🥴

He's a good one!

Ari’s heart broke, as much as he would love just the chance to be your boyfriend even if it was just pretend, he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. Ari took a moment before turning and looking at you, hoping his expression conveyed how sincere he was “I’m in if you’re in” he said softly “I need this and I trust you, but if you really don’t want to do it then we don’t have to”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Ari said moving to crouch in front of you, keeping enough distance between the two of you to make sure you were comfortable “Take some deep breaths,” he told you, when you didn’t respond he put a cautious hand on your knee “deep breaths sweetheart”

🥺🥺🥺

“You’re doing this for a spot on the national team?” you questioned “Seems a bit extreme” Ari let out a small chuckle “Yeah well I’m pretty desperate, it’s been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid, a dream that hasn’t happened yet” he admitted.

He really wants it

You took a couple of moments before admitting “My fiance cheated on me with the wedding planner” “The fucker” Ari growled making you jump “Sorry” he apologised taking a deep breath to calm himself “Well dating a sexy rugby player is a great way to say fuck you to him” he then smirked.

Fair 🤷🏻‍♀️

You rolled your eyes “Yeah but Johnny’s not the one who needs it” you muttered making Ari grin. This was the side of you that was missing, it wasn’t completely gone it just needed coaxing back out.

Just like Ari, I love and miss this side of her!

You shifted in your seat, glancing down at your fiddling fingers unable to focus with his intense gaze “I don’t know, it might be too expensive this year” “I could help if-“ Ari started but you interrupted. As much as you wanted to see your parents for Thanksgiving, you didn’t want to owe Ari money.

He's really sweet 🥺

You were grateful for the slight change in topic but the only thing left to discuss was the part that made you the most uncomfortable. Public displays of affection. You knew you couldn’t outright ban it but you just weren’t sure how you felt about Ari holding you and kissing you.

I know how I would feel: absolutely fucking great 😅🤭

You looked over at Elena and felt instantly guilty “I know and I’m grateful for what you guys have done but sports PR is a bit of a step-down, I’m staying on the east coast though so we’ll be able to see each other easily” Elena gave you an understanding smile “Guess I can live with that” she playfully rolled her eyes.

Sounds like a plan, even is Elena is not particularly amused

Ari with his long legs had no issue keeping up with you, following you at the door and towards your car. His jeep parked next to yours, you had expected him to be more of an Audi kinda guy. You had seen more sides of him since landing in Boston than you expected. The angry, grumpy side, the cheeky side and a really calming and sincere side.

Many great sides imo

Ari smirked down at you “private displays of affection” You let out a scoff that sounded more like a squeak “Definitely not” “C’mon we can call it practice, the only reason I play well on game days is because of practice” he points out “It’ll mean you’re not as awkward when it happens” “What about you?” “Trust me the last thing I’ll be feeling is awkward” Ari’s smirk grew as he stepped closer and cupped your jaw “one kiss” he promised with a whisper before leaning in.

Oh he's going all in from the beginning 🤭🥰

Boston Bears: Fake Out - Rugby Player! Ari Levinson x Reader (Part 2)

Summary: After a week back on the East Coast you start your new job at the Boston Bears only to find out your boss has an interesting job for you.

Word Count: 7.6k words

Warnings: Language! Angst! Mention of Cheating! Sexual Tension!

Rugby Explained

Dividers by Me!

Fake Out Series Masterlist /Boston Bears Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 2

You were sat with your chin resting on your knee, on Elena’s bed which technically was your bed now. You glanced around the room which was now yours, the entire apartment was yours. The first thing Elena did Tuesday morning was put your name on the lease and take her name off. That evening she started packing up her stuff and helped unpack yours.

It didn’t feel like your apartment though. You wondered whether it would when she was fully moved out and only the small collection of your belongings remained. But then it would just be as empty as you felt, most of your things were back in LA and you wouldn’t get them back for another couple months.

You were pulled from your thoughts by your laptop coming to life. A video call from your parents. You’d been expecting this, your mom had texted you yesterday to ask what was going on. You hadn’t felt ready to tell them yet so you said they could call you today.

“Hey mom, hey dad” you forced a smile as the call connected and you saw the concerned faces of your parents.

“Hey sweetpea, how you feeling?” Your dad asked with a sympathetic look.

You let out a weak chuckle “shit” you admitted. There was no point denying it, they knew how you felt even if they didn’t know why.

“Has this got something to do with Dan calling us to ask if you were here?” Your mom asked softly.

You nodded, you expected that too. Dan had called Elena Monday evening, she played dumb and said she didn’t know where you were and if she did she wouldn’t tell him “did he tell you why?”

“No he didn’t, he just asked us to call if you turned up” your dad told you.

You scoffed and shook your head. He didn’t tell Elena what he’d done either, didn’t admit his mistake “Did you tell him I was with El?”

Your mom shook her head “No we didn’t, we knew that you clearly didn’t want to be around him and we respected that”

“Thank you” your voice felt weak as you looked down “The um- the wedding’s off… he’s been cheating on me with the wedding planner”

“The motherfucker!” Your dad growled shooting up from his seat, only sitting down when your mom grabbed the back of his sweater and tugged him to sit back down.

“More like wedding planner fucker” you joked weakly.

Your mom sighed “I’m so sorry sweetheart you don’t deserve that, he doesn’t deserve you either”

“Is El looking after you?” Your dad asked.

You nodded “She’s at work now but yeah she has, she’s given me her apartment and her and Chris got me a job working in the PR department with the Bears, I start tomorrow they’re gonna give me a bit of an induction ahead of the game again Washington on Friday night”

“That’s good, will you be travelling with them?” your dad asked.

“No the PR and comms team takes it in turns to go on the road and report back, I’ll just be shadowing the team who stay in Boston and post updates on the match etcetera” you explained.

The new job was a bit of a step down, not just in pay. You’d gone from one of the best PR firms on the West Coast that handled movie stars to being a PR and Comms staff for a sports team. But it was just temporary, you’d find something with better pay once you were a bit more settled.

“Well I’m sure you’ll smash it darling” your mom said, making you snort quietly they’d been living in the UK for less than a year and the British vernacular had already snuck in.

“Thank you and I’m so sorry that the wedding has been called off, I know you guys have put a lot of money into it” you sighed, guilt wracking your body.

“Sweetpea, money means nothing if you’re unhappy, we’d rather you be happy than marry that piece of shit because of the money that’s been spent,” your dad told you.

“And look the wedding wasn’t going to be until spring so we might be able to get some of the deposits back,” your mom said “Why don’t you leave that with us to sort and you just focus on yourself and your happiness”

“Thanks mom, that would be really helpful,” you said, a lump of emotion forming in your throat.

“What are you going to do about Christmas? You’re more than welcome here” your dad said.

“I don’t know, I’ll have to look into it, money is gonna be a bit tighter now and I don’t know what my work commitments will be” you sighed with a shrug of your shoulders.

“That’s okay let us know as soon as you know what you’re doing, you know we’d love to have you” your mom smiled.

“Thanks Mom,” you said before chuckling quietly “I don’t know why I was so scared to have this chat”

“You never have to be scared to talk to us, the only person who should be scared is that piece of shit, I swear he’s dead when I next see him” your dad swore.

You chuckled “that’s good to know, so how is rainy Britain?” You asked to change the topic.

You and your parents caught up for the next hour or so, by the time you finally ended the call you felt so much better. You wished they were here to hug you and make you feel better but just talking to them did enough to make you feel a little less empty. It made taking on the next chapter of your life less scary.

Your first couple of days working at the Bears had been a whirlwind. While you were mostly shadowing over the weekend it still felt like you had been dropped in the deep end. The entire office was a hive of activity during the game. You were used to this level of activity being a bad thing because it meant someone was having a PR disaster. But in this new world, it was a good thing because it meant the team was winning.

You had to admit the excitement was a little contagious, the entire PR team were avid fans. Cheering and complaining at the ref as the game played on the big screen. You didn’t know much about the sport nor the players so you couldn’t follow it very well. You did see Ari get sent off for a yellow, one of your colleagues said he was lucky it wasn’t a red but there was enough mitigation that his high tackle remained as a yellow. What that actually meant you had no clue.

It was Monday morning when your new boss, Steph called you into her office.

“Is everything okay? I haven’t done something wrong have I?” You asked as you followed her into her office.

“No, no, you’ve been great! Frankly, you’re overqualified” She smiled as she sat down “I just want your input on something that’s all” She gestured for you to sit.

“Oh I’m very flattered, I know I don’t know much about the rugby world,” you said bashfully as you sat.

Steph smiled softly “You’ve done a lot of PR work with celebrities back in LA right?” She asked leaning back in her chair.

“Yes my company worked with a lot of celebs” You nodded shifting in your seat.

“Did you do a lot of PR relationships?” She then asked.

You nodded your head again “Yeah there are not as many PR relationships in Hollywood as people think, but I have worked on quite a few”

“Good, so what makes a successful one?” She asked.

“Um well, it depends on what image you’re trying to get across” you explained.

“Someone settled, someone you can trust and is moving past their wildcard days” Steph supplied gesturing with her hands in a vague manner.

“Right well you want someone who is that kind of person, no one who grabs the spotlight for the same reasons you’re trying to fix” you told her.

She sat forward and started taking notes “What else?”

“You have to make sure the people are well matched, if one of them has a clear type then you need the meet that type. So if someone has publicly said they like a woman with curves you can’t set them up with a Victoria’s Secret model” you explain.

She hummed studying you for a moment before returning to her notes “Anything else?”

“And you’re close with Elena and Chris aren’t you?”

Your brows furrow for a moment confused as to what the relevance was “uh yeah Elena is my best friend, I don’t know Chris that well though” you shrugged your shoulders.

“Okay” she hummed tapping her pen against her chin in thought.

“Are you considering it for one of the players?” You asked.

“Yes, I’ve never suggested one before though, usually you just send the players to charity events but he needs a long-term solution” she explained.

“Well if you want I could maybe take the lead, or advise?” You suggested.

A smile tugged at her lips “I’ll keep that in mind, thank you for your insight I have a lot to think about before my meeting with him tomorrow”

“No worries glad to help, is there anything else you need?” You asked.

“No thanks, can you go with the team who will be filming training content? Familiarise yourself with that?” She suggested.

“Of course” you nodded before getting up from your seat.

Ari grunted in pain as Elena dug her hand into the back of his shoulder “Jesus fuck woman” he complained, fists clenched “Do you get off on torturing people or something”

Ari hated physio, he swore it was just the medical team’s excuse to get some revenge.

“It’s your own fault you’re here” she pointed out as she continued to work on his shoulder.

He knew she meant his high tackle that resulted in a yellow card and sore shoulder “There was mitigation” he reminded her.

“You were lucky, if Chris hadn’t tackled him too your shoulder would have gone straight into the wolves’ head and it would have been a red” Elena pointed out as she finally stopped working on his shoulder.

“Like I said mitigation” Ari said as he sat back up sending a smirk her way.

She rolled her eyes “That’s not the only reason I’m pissed at you” she said with a pointed look as she grabbed a towel and wiped her hands clean.

Ari dropped his shoulders with a heavy sigh instantly knowing what she meant again. You. You had been on his mind for over a week now. He was pissed off at himself for the way he treated you, he kept replaying the situation to see what he could have done differently. In the perfect situation, you would have ended up in his arms as he comforted you. He wanted to apologise and make it right but he also didn’t want to make it worse.

“i know, i just haven't seen her to apologise” he sighed glancing down at his hands.

“Haven’t seen her or avoided her?” Elena asked with a brow arched “She was in the gym on Monday”

“I was at my 1-2-1 analysis while she was there” Ari reasoned “getting ripped into by your dad for that yellow” he added a pointed look.

Elena shrugged “You deserved it”

“Whatever” Ari huffed as he pushed himself off the medical bed “Look I promise I'll apologise to her now, I’m heading up to the PR office for a meeting after this”

“What do you need PR for?” Elena asked her brows furrowed.

“I want to make the national team this summer, your dad said I need to improve both on and off the pitch” Ari explained as he grabbed his top and pulled it back on.

Elena smirked “Good, now go on and stop doing stupid shit,” she said waving him out of the medical room.

Ari huffed as he walked out, he wanted to stop doing stupid shit too. But that was easier said than done. He’d been told that he was hot-headed for as long as he could remember, there were times when it felt like he blacked out and one came back around after he’d done the stupid shit. Like the fight he started at the cup final, he remembered seeing Bryce make the illegal tackle on Chris and then the next thing he remembered was Bryce on the floor below him as he landed multiple blows to the face.

He’d always been like this. Like there was pent up anger he had at the world. He could blame the first five years of his life for that. He was signed up to play rugby at the age of 7 at the advice of his teachers to try and work through a lot of that anger. Rugby helped a lot, it gave him somewhere to direct his anger and frustrations and work through it in a healthier way.

It didn’t take away all the pressure though, evident by the way he shouted at you. Another moment when his frustrations got the better of him and he blacked out. He just hoped that you would accept his apology.

He spotted you as soon as he stepped into the PR and Comms office. He couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips as he looked over you. You were standing at a coworker's desk, looking over his shoulder at something on the screen. You had a contemplative look on your face, your red-tinted lips pursed. You listened to whatever your co-worker was saying before nodding your head, arms crossed over your chest. You were wearing a red sweater that seemed a little baggy on you but still looked incredible. Especially with the black skirt and knee-high boots you were wearing.

When you finished what you were saying you finally looked up and over at him. The expression on your face became guarded as you studied him. He expected you to tilt your head up in defiance but you did the opposite. Your chin dropped as you went to move back to your desk, shoulders turned inwards.

Ari internally cursed at himself, he’d fucked up majorly if you weren’t fighting back against him like you did back in LA.

“Y/N,” he said as he stepped in your path.

“Ari,” you said forcing a smile as you looked up at him, which was wrong you should have crossed your arms and arched an unimpressed brow at him.

“I wanted to apologise for the other week, I was out of line” he apologised “I was tired and was having a shitty day and I took my anger out on the first person I came across”

“That’s no excuse” you pointed out as you looked down at your feet.

That response was closer to what he expected from you, the words were right but the delivery was off. The words should have been sharper, not downtrodden.

“You’re right it's not,” Ari said before holding his arms out “So c’mon rip into me” he invited with a playful smirk “We both know how well you can do it, knock me down a peg or two”

You studied him for a moment. Ari could see the gears turning in your head which made his smirk grow. He knew you were going to come out with something brilliant, something that would knock a less confident man out. He couldn’t wait. He wanted to see that side of you again, he wanted to play.

“I’ve got work to do” you muttered as you dropped your gaze and stepped around him.

Ari frowned as he turned around “Y/N” he muttered in disbelief, his hands dropping back down to his side.

“I’m busy Ari and I’m sure you have training or something” you sighed as you refused to look at him as you gathered a notebook from your desk.

“Y/N c’mon” he pressed stepping in your way as you went to walk away again, “I said I was sorry, why are you still freezing me out?”

“Apology accepted, now leave me alone I have a meeting” you said looking up at him with a tired expression on your face.

Ari’s brows furrowed in concern as he took you in, how tired and worn out you looked. It made his fists clenched. Whatever happened back in LA did this to you and he wanted to know what so he could beat the crap out of it.

“Y/N,” he said softly.

He didn’t get the chance though, before his hand even made contact he was interrupted by Steph “Ah Ari, perfect timing, we have the perfect strategy for you” she smiled from her office.

He didn’t look away from you so he saw how your brows furrowed in confusion, looking over at Steph and then back at him.

He let out a quiet sigh as he took a step back “Glad to hear it” he said as he turned and walked towards her office.

He stopped though when she said “Good, right c’mon Y/N” She waved for you to join.

He looked over his shoulder and saw you take a deep breath as you looked down at your boots. The fake smile plastered on back on your face when you looked back up and said “Of course”

Ari blinked in surprise when you walked past him into Steph’s office. You didn’t know he was your meeting and clearly weren't happy being trapped in a small office with him for the next half an hour or so. Evident by the way you sat in one of the furthest away chairs.

“Right I have decided on the best strategy for you, and I want to remind you that you said you’d do anything” Steph said as Ari sat down in his chair.

“That doesn’t concern me at all” he smirked as he leant back.

“Trust me this will work” Steph smiled “We’re going to set you up with a PR relationship for the rest of the season”

Ari arched a brow, he wasn’t expecting that at all. He expected lots of charity work, which he wouldn’t have minded, but not this “a relationship?”

“Yes, we want to portray you as settled or at least settling, what better way to do that than a relationship” Steph said with a proud.

Ari nodded slowly as he took in the information “With who?”

The smile on Steph’s face widens “Well we want this to work so I’ve brought in the best” she grinned before turning her attention to you “Y/N will be the perfect match”

“Excuse me?” you squeaked in surprise.

Ari frowned, you had clearly been blindsided by this idea. Something that didn’t sit right with him, it wasn’t fair on you.

“Yes you said so yourself, there needs to be a mutual connection and you were the only person we found that had one” Steph explained as she gestured over to you “Plus you know how to do this better than anyone, I trust you to take lead on this”

“Steph this isn’t going to work” you stuttered sitting forward in your chair “I’ve just broken off an engagement, no one would believe this”

“Is there any evidence of your relationship online?” Steph asked, her head tilted in question.

“Uh- no, I- I deleted everything,” you said your voice cracking.

“Well that’s one less thing to worry about, plus it's not uncommon for people to get into a relationship soon after another” Steph points out.

“There must be someone else” you pleaded.

Ari’s heart broke, as much as he would love just the chance to be your boyfriend even if it was just pretend, he didn’t want to make you uncomfortable.

“Not someone who fits the criteria you gave me, and we need this to work for Ari” Steph sighed, her voice sympathetic “you’ll be in charge and will take the lead on it so you’ll have control over what happens, you can make it suit you, I only ask that it's believable” she continued before turning her attention back to Ari “what do you say?”

Ari took a moment before turning and looking at you, hoping his expression conveyed how sincere he was “I’m in if you’re in” he said softly “I need this and I trust you, but if you really don’t want to do it then we don’t have to”

You sat there stunned, staring back at him with a look of panic in your eyes.

“Why don’t I leave you two to talk it through some more and get back to me when you’ve come to a decision” Steph said as she stood from her chair and strode out of the room.

Once she was gone Ari turned to look at you, your hand was resting on your heaving chest, the look of panic in your eyes getting worse.

You finally responded to him and took the deep breaths you needed, your eyes finding his. He watched as the panic slowly faded from them with every deep breath you took.

“Feeling better?” he asked after a moment.

“Not really” you admitted as you shook your head, “I thought it was gonna be Johnny that needed this not you” you muttered as you rubbed your forehead “and that I would just be leading it not actually part of it”

“Yeah, I didn’t like how she blindsided you with that” Ari told her earning a huff of a laugh from you.

“You could say that again” you mumbled “What do you even need this for? I mean you got yellow cards recently but I thought those weren’t a big deal”

Ari nodded his head “Normally they’re not, but if I don’t reign myself in this season I won’t make the national team, the head coach is gonna be watching me and I want him to know he can trust me” he explained.

“You’re doing this for a spot on the national team?” you questioned “Seems a bit extreme”

Ari let out a small chuckle “Yeah well I’m pretty desperate, it’s been a dream of mine ever since I was a kid, a dream that hasn’t happened yet” he admitted.

“Right” you muttered looking down at your fiddling hands.

“Can I ask what happened back in LA?” Ari asked, causing your eyes to shoot back up at him.

You took a couple of moments before admitting “My fiance cheated on me with the wedding planner”

“The fucker” Ari growled making you jump “Sorry” he apologised taking a deep breath to calm himself “Well dating a sexy rugby player is a great way to say fuck you to him” he then smirked.

“There she is” Ari whispered earning a small confused frown from you “Look I won’t lie to you and say I don’t need this because I really really do, but considering all the shit you’re going through and the fact I don’t think you’ve actually accepted my apology” Ari continued “it's up to you, take the time you need to think it through and I promise if you decide to do this I won’t make your life difficult and I’ll do whatever you say”

You took a deep breath and nodded your head “Yeah okay… I’ll think it through and I’ll um get back to you”

“Great, that's all I can ask for” Ari said standing back up “And look I’m sorry about your fiance, he’s a dick and clearly insane for not realising he already had the most incredible woman on the planet” he said, Your lips parted in surprise as you stared up at him.

You went to say something but Ari didn’t want to hear you turn him down so he just flashed you a smile and walked “See you soon” he said as he stepped out.

You thought about Ari’s proposition all day and still couldn’t come to an answer. You thought it would be a simple answer, a straight-up no, but you couldn’t bring yourself to say it. There was a small niggling thought at the back of your mind that was holding you back.

So instead of going straight home after work, you went to Chris and Elena’s house to talk it out with them. Hopefully hearing them say it was an insane idea would reassure that little thought and you could just say no.

So here you were sitting on the couch, feet tucked up beneath you as you cradled a cup of tea. You would have preferred a glass of wine or something stronger but you needed a clear head, drunk decisions were almost always bad decisions.

“Right, so what is it that Steph wants you to do?” Elena asked as she sat down on the adjacent couch next to Chris, their dog Dodger jumping up to join them.

“She wants me to be Ari’s fake girlfriend for the rest of the season” you sighed, running your finger around the rim of your mug.

“Why you?” she questioned.

“Because I stupidly gave her the perfect criteria and I match it” you scoffed shaking your head “the mutual connection, someone who’s looking to settle down” you didn’t say the part about being his type because you weren’t quite sure what to do with that information yourself.

“And there’s no one else?” Chris asked as he scratched Dodger behind the ear.

“Apparently not” you shrugged, “Steph said she trusted me because of my expertise in the area”

Chris hummed and nodded his head “What did Ari say about it?”

“He’s in, said he’s desperate to make the national team and is willing to do whatever it takes” you sighed, taking a sip of your tea.

“Makes sense, he’s 30 now, will be 31 by the next world cup and 35 at the one after, but he might have retired by then” Chris shrugged “This might be his last chance”

You let out a small huff “Thanks that doesn’t make me feel guilty at all”

Chris gave you an apologetic smile “Sorry, it’s just that being his captain I want to see him make that team, it would be awesome to play alongside him at the world cup”

“Why is it that you don’t want to do it? I mean before last week you two seemed to get on pretty fine” Elena asked as she sat forward a bit.

That was another problem. You two did get along well, too well. You could recall the first time you saw him, you noticed him the moment he walked into the hotel. It was like a moment in a romance novel when the female lead sees her love interest and the whole world stops for a moment.

You’d looked away before he spotted you, you were engaged and couldn’t be ogling other men. When he came over and shook your hand it made your entire body jolt and your next breath felt like the very first. You tried to put up a front and push him away but he kept coming straight back and you felt your resolve breaking. You had felt so guilty at the time, especially when you had a less-than-innocent dream about him that night.

You had tried to forget about him, but he seemed rooted in your mind. When you watched the livestream of the cup final you told yourself it was for Elena’s sake, even if you had told her you wouldn’t be watching. But deep down you knew it was because of a large man with gorgeous long locks and a thick beard.

“Because I just got out of a long-term relationship” you landed on with a sigh “I can’t just fall back into another one”

“It's not a real one though” Elena pointed out “You’ll still be single, and you’ll have time to be single for a while without interference and find who you are without Dan”

“I guess” you sighed.

“And we both know Dan is going to work out you’re here if he hasn’t already, if he saw you had moved on with a big beefy rugby player he’s gonna be too scared to try and win you back” Elena added.

“You know when I came over I expected you to agree that it was a bad idea” you pointed out over the top of your mug, taking another large sip.

Elena chuckled “I’m sorry but I wouldn’t be a good friend if I straight up lied to you” she pointed out “I understand where you’re coming from but I can see how this benefits you too”

“Yeah and frankly i don’t think you could find someone better to do this sort of thing with” Chris added.

“You really think you should do this?” you sighed.

“I think you should at least give it a go” Elena nodded.

You took a deep breath. Everything they said was true, yeah you would be in a fake relationship in person but in private you would be single and undisturbed. Ari would provide you with that privacy, and in return, you could help him achieve his childhood dream.

“Okay fine I’ll do it” you sighed in resignation.

Elena smiled back excitedly “Yes this is gonna be great!” she grinned “You should let him know now”

“Not now, we’ll have to go over the rules and the plan,” you said shaking your head.

“You could invite him over here? Go over it together with us?” Chris suggested with a shrug of his shoulders.

“You’re not going to drop this are you?” you sighed knowingly.

“Nope. please this is so exciting! It's like something out of a movie!” Elena grinned.

You rolled your eyes “Fine, but I don’t have his number so you’ll have to call him”

“Sure not a problem” Chris said reaching into his back pocket to grab his phone.

Faster than you expected Ari was knocking on the front door. Dodger instantly ran to greet him, you could hear Ari’s deep chuckle down the hallway. Chris and him were chatting as they walked towards the living room. You noticed that his long hair was damp, it wasn’t raining so you wondered whether he’d just gotten out of the shower when Chris called. The mental image of Ari in the shower flashed through your mind, your mouth went dry at the image, all the moisture travelling elsewhere. You cleared your throat and shifted in your seat as you pushed the mental image from your mind.

Ari’s gaze shifted to you and a lopsided smile grew on his lips “Y/N” he greeted.

You cleared your throat again “Ari”

“Chris said you wanted to talk to me about the whole fake dating thing,” he said as he walked over and sat on the same couch as you.

You took a deep breath, which you quickly regretted because even though he was sitting on the opposite end of the couch you could smell his body wash. It was pine with a hint of citrus, it was fresh and comforting all at the same time.

“Uh yeah, I uh thought it over and I think we should do it but we have to lay out some rules” You shifted and turned towards him, fidgeting with your hands in your lap.

“Of course, like Steph said you’re in charge and I’m your puppet” he smirked reclining back, arm resting across the back of the couch.

Your gaze shifted to his hand, his long thick fingers which were now much closer to you. You hadn’t noticed how large his hands were. Your mind started down the rabbit hole again, you wondered how warm and comforting they were. How they might feel against your body… holding you…

“So what rules have you got in mind?” Ari’s fingers drummed against the couch breaking you out of your trance.

“Right yes rules” You cleared your throat, shifting further away from him “Well obviously we cannot tell anyone about this, the fewer people that know the better”

Ari nodded “of course, I’m assuming you two won’t say anything” he glanced over to Chris and Elena.

“Lips are sealed” Elena confirmed, “what about your parents though Tommi?”

You shrugged your shoulders “with them in England it should be fine, especially since we’re gonna take this slow, a whirlwind romance doesn’t sell settling down” you looked over at Ari who was rubbing his hand over his beard “what about your parents?”

“Same as you, they’re travelling” he hummed “How slow are we taking this?”

“Uh well we need to lay some groundwork first” you explained “like establishing that I’m here in Boston not LA”

“What about your ex? Are you sure you want him to know that?” Ari frowned, hand dropping back down to the back of the couch.

“Not really, but I’ve blocked him and any of his friends so I should be fine,” you told him.

Ari tightly nodded “As long as you’re sure, so what’s after that?”

“Uh well, maybe a social event that we’re both at, somewhere where we can appear in the back of photos chatting?” you suggested.

“Johnny is throwing a Halloween party next week? You could be my plus one” Elena suggested.

“What about me?” Chris huffed looking over at Elena.

“You have your own invite meatball” Elena slapped his chest, shaking her head at him.

“Okay yeah that works, there will be group photos and we can be in the background of a couple” you nodded thinking it through in your head “It’ll establish a when and where we met”

“But we met back in LA, don’t tell me you forgot that lunch?” Ari pointed out, a fake look of hurt on his face.

You rolled your eyes “It will establish it for people online” you clarified before taking another deep breath “And then after that, we need a time where we meet up, maybe as a four?”

“We can go to brunch?” Chris suggested.

“Perfect, and then we just need to go out a couple of times just us two but we can decide on that later, are there any events I should be aware of?” You asked glancing around at everyone, only allowing yourself to look at Ari for a second or two.

“Only Thanksgiving and the Christmas charity dinner at the beginning of December, the rest of our events are at the end of the season” Ari explained.

“You don’t go home for Thanksgiving?” You frowned, you couldn’t imagine not spending time with your family for Thanksgiving. Although it didn’t look like you’d be able to fly to England to celebrate with your parents this year.

“It depends on what day the match is that weekend, if it’s Sunday or Saturday some players do go home to family but if it’s Friday like it is this year my dad organises a team Thanksgiving for players who don’t have family in the state” El explained “players can bring a friend or their partner”

“Are you going to your parents?” Ari asked grabbing your attention.

You shifted in your seat, glancing down at your fiddling fingers unable to focus with his intense gaze “I don’t know, it might be too expensive this year”

“I could help if-“ Ari started but you interrupted. As much as you wanted to see your parents for Thanksgiving, you didn’t want to owe Ari money.

“No it’s fine, me going to this player's thanksgiving is good for PR, it can essentially confirm the relationship and then we’ll make our official outing as a couple at the charity dinner” you said with a sharp shake of your head.

It looked like Ari went to argue but when his eyes met yours his mouth snapped shut. He cleared his throat and nodded in agreement “sounds like a good plan… what else do we need to discuss?”

“Right” your voice came out strained so you cleared your throat “Of course we will have to do some PDA but we should ease into it as a normal couple would and we should clear it with each other beforehand”

Ari nodded “Understandable, I’m not one for big displays of public displays of affection”

You breathed out a sigh of relief even though there was a small part of you that was ever so slightly disappointed. You pushed that part away though, you had just gotten out of a serious relationship, you needed to be single for a while and focus on yourself. Even if you did have to be in a fake relationship to do so. The irony was not lost on you.

“Cool I think that’s it for now, I’ll um plan out more of the strategy for later on is there anything you want to ask?”

“What’s the end date on this?” Ari asked.

“Well I guess once we know if you’ve made the team we can start putting things in place that lead to the eventual breakup” you shrugged “which works nicely since I’ll probably want to move onto a better-paid job in New York or something”

Ari frowned “You don’t plan on staying here?”

“You just got here” Elena pouted.

Elena gave you an understanding smile “Guess I can live with that” she playfully rolled her eyes.

You smiled back before shifting your gaze back to Ari who still looked unhappy at the idea of you moving. For whatever reason you had no clue. You could practically see the cogs in his head turning as he looked back at you with an unhappy frown. It made your hands itch like you wanted to reach out and comfort him. It made you quickly jump up from the couch, you needed out. Especially when Ari’s frown changed to one of concern at your sudden motion.

“Right if that’s everything, I’m gonna head home because it’s been a long day” you ran your hand through your hair, pushing it from your face.

Ari slowly rose from the couch “Me too, I’ll walk you out” he said barely looking away from you as he said “Thanks for having us Evans”

Both Chris and Elena had amused looks on their faces as they looked up at you “sure we’ll see you both at the Halloween party” Chris nodded.

“Thanks, I’ll see you tomorrow El” You cleared your throat and grabbed your bag and made a swift exit.

You couldn’t forget the way he put his hand on your knee and calmed you down with just that gesture in Steph’s office earlier today. The way he had apologised and told you how blind your ex was. An apology that you had yet to officially accept. You paused as you reached your car, you couldn’t go into a fake relationship and not accept his apology.

With a deep sigh, you quickly turned around. Ari’s brow quirking in surprise as you looked up at him “I accept your apology for the other day, you had a bad day and so had I, it’s all water under the bridge”

Ari nodded “My bad day was no excuse, I am really sorry and I promise not to hurt you like that again” he held his hand over his heart.

“Thank you… I’ll um see you at the party or at work I guess” You nodded, and just as you turned back towards your car Ari spoke up.

“Hey I know you said about asking before doing public displays of affection, but what about the other kind of PDA?” Ari asked.

You frowned in confusion and turned to face him “What other kinds?” surprised to find him a couple of steps closer.

Ari smirked down at you “private displays of affection”

You let out a scoff that sounded more like a squeak “Definitely not”

“C’mon we can call it practice, the only reason I play well on game days is because of practice” he points out “It’ll mean you’re not as awkward when it happens”

“What about you?”

“Trust me the last thing I’ll be feeling is awkward”

You thought about his reasoning. You had seen plenty of fake couples who couldn’t sell it because they seemed uncomfortable in each other’s presence. The slight flinches here and there.

“Fine but you have to ask” you huffed starting to turn back towards your car.

“Good, so can I kiss you?” Ari asked

“Now?” You squeaked.

“Yeah I don’t see why not” he shrugged “It's dark, no one’s around, seems pretty perfect otherwise I’d have to sneak to your apartment or something and risk getting caught and that’ll blow the going slow part” he sighed.

“Fine! One kiss” you snapped glaring up at him.

Ari’s smirk grew as he stepped closer and cupped your jaw “one kiss” he promised with a whisper before leaning in.

Your intention had been to pull away a second later. It didn’t need to be anything more than a peck. But it was like your mind shortcircuited and instead of pulling away you stepped forward. Your hands moved to rest on his chest as he tilted your head back, his other hand moving to the small of your back to pull you closer.

You had planned to be the one to pull away but when Ari did you found yourself chasing his lips.

“I’d say that was a perfect practice attempt,” he said, voice low as his thumb brushed over your cheekbone.

That snapped you back to reality. You scurried back until your back hit your car door. Your hand touched your lips as they continued to tingle.

“Yes, right. Bye. I’ll um see you at work or the party or” you didn’t finish your sentence. You just got in the car, slammed the door shut and drove off as quickly as you could.

You glanced in the rearview mirror as Ari disappeared into the distance. You could see him laughing as he shook his head, watching you go.