#jan maas is like “hi! do i know you?” and she’s like “…no?”

[etoile-gracieuse]

i had a Ruff Day so i am going to think abt my self indulgent 'american women's soccer player is jamie's half sister from a one night stand no wants to think about. chaos ensues' au

[its-time-to-write]

hi!! love your work!! what about a jamie tartt piece where reader is a theatre actress or something more “nerdy” and the team finds out??

I am SO SORRY that this took so long to write!! Thank you for requesting!!

damned if i do give a damn what people say

No one can figure out how you and Jamie met. Every time they ask, they’re given a different answer.

“She’s my old forensic optometrist.” “He ran over my goldfish with his car.” “We met years ago while skydiving underwater and just reconnected.”

No one is quite sure the real answer. You and Jamie have been together exactly two months and one day, and it feels like you just appeared from out of nowhere, brought to life by Jamie’s need to never fucking be alone.

It’s not till you’re out at Ola’s with the team when Keeley says, “Ohmigod no fucking way, I know who you are!” that they piece it together.

“You’re on West End! You’re in their production of Midsummer Night’s Dream! Rebecca took me two weeks ago, and I can’t fucking believe I didn’t recognize you! You literally have one of the biggest roles, and you’ve been right in front of me the whole fucking time! I really enjoyed it, by the way,” she continues, “Usually don’t like Shakespeare, but I actually understood it this time!”

You feel like you’re melting from embarrassment, shrinking into Jamie’s arm thrown around your shoulders.

It’s one thing to be on stage, saying someone else’s words to strangers you’ll never see again. It’s another thing entirely to use your own words in front of people you desperately want to like you.

Richard overhears and says, “Oh, that’s how I know you! Jan Maas, Isaac, and I saw it a week and a half ago. It was well-written, for an Englishman.”

“Hold up, bruv,” Isaac interjects, “is that how you two met?”

You shrug, but Jamie isn’t letting you shirk away from this conversation.

“That’s right,” he says proudly. “Keeley was always on me to be more cultured and shit, so I thought I’d go see a play. Made Sam go with me.”

Sam nods from the other side of the table. “She walked on stage and I literally thought he was going to jump up and propose. He was starstruck.”

The group laughs. The idea of Jamie Tartt being starstruck is something else.

“Hold on Jamie,” Ted calls from across the room, “I thought you didn’t like the theater?”

Jamie shrugs. “I don’t. Fucking hate it actually, just didn’t hate that one. Went and bought a ticket every night I was available, just so I could see her. Figured, what’s the point in being a famous footballer if I can’t land a pretty actress?”

Your face is on fire. On stage, it’s covered with thick layers of makeup. You do not feel comfortable around all of these athletic, beautiful, self-assured people. You feel comfortable putting on the disguise that is Helena of Athens. Her cry to the weary night had resonated in your soul the first time the stage manager brought Jamie backstage for a tour. Your heart had picked up to an unhealthy pace the moment you locked eyes, something that was not unnoticed by your romantic costar, the actor playing Demetrius. He had elbowed you and then made himself blessedly scarce, taking note of the way Jamie’s eyes had been scouring the room for you as soon as he walked in. 

He told you later that he scared off the rest of the cast and crew, threatening them with hellish rehearsals and the promise to eat Indian food while in full costume if they “didn’t leave you and that bloody gorgeous footballer alone. I mean, come on people, do you really want her to be single forever?”

You bought him an expensive coffee and $60 foundation as a thank you. He made you promise to invite him to the wedding.

You’re shaken from your thoughts by Ted saying, “Well, isn’t that just the gosh-darn cutest thing I’ve ever heard. You’ll make Jamie a theater nerd yet. Have him singing show tunes on the pitch.”

“You already make us do that, coach,” Jamie retorts, and the room descends into laughter. You join in, feeling comfortable with where you’re at; Jamie’s arm on your shoulder, your hand on his thigh, accepted by the people he loves.

[crazyk-imagine]

Mended Relationships and the Future

Pairing: Jamie Tartt x Fem!reader Characters: Fem!reader, Ted Lasso, Coach Beard, Keeley Jones, Jamie Tartt, Rebecca Welton, Isaac Mcadoo, Colin Hughs, Sam Obisanya, Dani Rojas, Jan Maas, Roy Kent, literally all of the players (I just can’t think of their names) Warnings: Slight angst, fluff, cursing, mentions of pregnancies, mentions of reader not taking care of themselves (don’t do this), Jamie being sweet, reader and Jamie being dummies for a second, the team being so goddamn adorable, the team gives such family vibes, Jamie pretending the reader and he are engaged so he can stay with her, Ted and Beard are a powerful duo, this is my favorite TL fic that I’ve written Word Count: 3,783

A/N: Bits and pieces are based on this post

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You walk into the coach’s office with your hands in your hoodie pocket, clutching onto your phone to keep your hands busy. "Why did you wake me up and force me here, Ted?" 

"That's not a can-do attitude." 

Your expression doesn't change, if anything, you look more tired and drained. Another reason why the mustached man got you out of your home. "Ted." 

He sighs. "I wanted to check in on you, haven't seen you in a minute." 

You sigh. "I would prefer it if I were in my bed right now to be honest with you." 

"After we go out to lunch." 

"I want to be out of here before I run into..." You pause when you almost say his name. "You know what- I'm just- I’m gonna go." You barely turn around and hear the door open. 

It takes you less than a second to duck, which makes Ted feel a little bad but doesn't change his mind. 

He knows you two need to talk, especially when neither of you want to admit who broke up with who... or why it happened. 

Your emotions take a toll on your body again and you crawl towards the trash can, dry heaving until you feel it coming up (again). 

Beard kindly closes the door before anyone could walk in or hear you as Ted rubs the space between your shoulders. 

"How long have you been feeling like this?" 

You shrug. 

"How long?" He asks again. 

"A few weeks." 

Ted glances over at his long-time buddy with wide eyes. "Please don't get upset or take offense when I ask this but have you-" 

'Play dumb. Play dumb.' "Have I what? Use words, my brain isn't functioning off your noises." 

"Is there a possibility that you could be, you know, with child?" 

Your head snaps up. 'He knows.' "Why would you ask that?" 

"You have a few of the signs." 

"When was the last time you went to a doctor?" Beard chimes in. 

"A while ago." 

"So, you know?" 

"Whether or not I'm pregnant with my ex-boyfriend’s baby, who coincidentally told me he doesn't want kids just as I wanted to tell him I do. Yeah, it was right as I was about to tell him I am with child, which is why I've been dodging all of you but you and Beard here," you point to Ted's sidekick, who waves. "Dragged me out of my house." 

"Oh, honey." 

"Does he know?" Coach beard intervenes (again). 

"What do you mean?" 

"You said, you wanted to tell him... did you?" Ted politely asks. 

"He broke up with me, so I didn't give him my surprise, but I tell people it was mutual because he asked me if," the tears roll down your cheeks. "If it was okay. The fucking ex-cockiest player of all, asked me if I was going to be okay, so of course I said yes and then he left. We haven't spoken since." 

"He should know." 

"I know but he is scared to death to have his own kids. Why would I-" You scoot back and rest your head against the wall. "I want to go home. I have a few things coming later today and I need to be there for them. It’s time I start," you take a deep breath. “Getting things ready.” 

"We can get those later, I've gotta make sure you're okay right now." 

"I'd be better if this nausea, vomiting combo would go away." 

"Do you want me to have Keeley get you a ginger ale or something?" 

"Yeah." 

The door opens and there she is. She stares at you with the same look she gives you every time you throw up. "I had a feeling you were going to need this." 

-

Jamie sees what he imagines is a glimpse of you sitting in his coach’s office. He furrows his brows, wondering if it was really, you or if it's a figment of his imagination... again. 

It wouldn’t be the first time this week. 

-

"What?" She practically screams when Ted tells her on behalf of you, the Jamie not knowing part; she already knew you were pregnant, but she thought he knew and decided not to be in either of your lives. Now she feels a little bad about not being nice to him. 

You bury your head in your hands. "Shut up. Don't shout anymore, please." 

"Can you blame me? That's big fucking news babes. I thought he already knew." 

"Yeah, I know. Just, shut the door please." 

She doesn't, so you push yourself up and close the door. 

You sway as you take a step back, “oh, boy.” You can hear their voices but not hear their words. You feel yourself falling backwards before it fades to darkness. 

Ted and Beard catch you, carefully laying you down so the latter can call for an ambulance. 

Jamie steps closer to the office, sensing something’s happened. He opens the door and his jaw dropped as he’s about to ask what's going on until his eyes land on you. 

He immediately falls to his knees beside you, holding your face in his hands, not caring about the rug burn that’s going to ache later. "What happened?" 

No one responds. 

"What fucking happened?" 

Ted doesn't feel he should be the one to tell him and does all that he can to try and calm down his player. "She's fine, she probably didn't have enough to eat for breakfast, is all." 

"Bullshit. She's done that before and never fainted before." He stares down, studying your face. "So, why is she fucking unconscious?" 

-

You don't know anything that happened within the last few hours. 

All you know is that there is an annoying beeping sound coming from the side of you and your one hand is warmer than it normally is. 

You slowly open your eyes, blinking multiple times as you try to adjust to the lighting. You look for the source of the warmth and find Jamie, holding your hand with his head rested on his arm with his head facing you. 

The door opens and you find Ted peaking in. 

The way his shoulder sags in relief makes you feel bad. 

He tiptoes closer and lets you know what happened. 

"Why is he here?" 

He smiles as he peaks over at the sleepy man. "He didn't leave your side." 

"How did he know?" 

"He came in as we were calling for an ambulance. You scared him, he would barely let the paramedics help." 

"Isn't family only allowed in here?" 

"Apparently you two are engaged." 

You owlishly blink. "What?" 

"He said you two were engaged and he needed, no, no. That's not right, he demanded, there it is. He demanded to be in the room with you. I wasn't here for most of it. In the room I mean but I think he knows because he looked very shocked and then came in here when they told him he could and hasn’t left since." 

The coach ignores the fact that your heart monitor spikes as you ask, "he knows?" 

"I think so." 

Jamie moves a little in his sleep. 

"That's my cue to leave." 

"Wait- no. Ted. Come back." You glance between him and Jamie. "Ted," you hiss. "Come back here." 

Jamie squeezes your hand as he slowly begins to wake up. 

You look back at him just in time to hear the door close. You throw your head back and sigh. 

"Sweetheart?" 

You slowly turn your head to stare at him, your eyes becoming sad. 

His shoulders sag in relief as a slow sigh escapes his parted lips. "How are you feeling? I should- I should go get the doctor, shouldn't I?" 

You reach for him, grabbing onto him before he could leave. "Jaim. Jaim?" 

He doesn't turn around but settles back into his seat. 

"Jam-Jam?" 

A sniffle fills the room. 

"Jamie, look at me." 

He shakes his head. You tighten your grip on his arm, ignoring the familiar burning sensation in your nose. "Jamie, I need you to look at me." 

"Why?" He sniffles, staring at you with his now, bloodshot eyes. "Were you ever going to tell me?" 

"Don't throw that question my way, Tartt." 

"No more, Jam-Jam?" 

"I was going to tell you." 

"What? After the birth?" 

"I'm more tempted to now." You wipe the stray tear that tipped past your eye lid before he could see. "I initially planned on telling you right when you broke up with me but, we see how well that turned out." 

“Wh- is that what you had been trying to do the whole time?” 

You nod and lean forward, drawing him into you; needing to comfort him and be comforted all at once. 

He moves closer to you, closing his eyes at the feeling of your hand against his face; something he hasn’t felt in what feels like, forever. He hadn’t realized you were wiping away his tears. 

“I wanted to figure out the best way to tell you because, I mean we hadn’t exactly talked about us having kids before and I kind of figured that with everything that went on with your dad. I thought it was going to make it hard for you to think that you could be a good dad. Which, I think is stupid.” 

He opens his mouth to ask what you mean until you continue. 

“I mean, how could you not be a good dad because personally I think you’d be absolutely fucking phenomenal.” 

“Yeah?” 

You nod, “big time. You’re already doing better than your dad.” 

“What do you mean?” 

You smile and sniff. “You’re not making any of the stupid decisions he has.” 

“I made one.” 

You tilt your head. “What was that?” 

“I broke up with you. I just-” He pulls back from you (something he does when he feels like he’s undeserving of something). “I thought- I thought you were pulling away to break up with me and you couldn’t figure out how to do it, so I-” 

“So, you thought breaking up with me first, was a better option?” 

He nods, scratching his head. 

“Come closer.” 

“I don’t want to hurt you,” he weakly argues. 

“Come here.” 

He scoots the chair closer. 

“I need you to be honest with me when I ask these questions, okay?” 

He nods. 

You sigh through your nose and reach for his hand. “Is there any part of you that does not want to be a part of either of our lives?” 

“No.” 

“Do you want to be with me?” 

“Yes.” 

“Are you going to leave any time soon?” 

“The fuck do you take me for? I’m not going to leave you ever,” he stands up and bends down, staring into your eyes before leaning down to kiss you. “Okay? I love you too fucking much to let you go again. I hated being away from you.” 

“Same here but, I’m really happy you’re here… even if it was because I fainted.” 

“Speaking of, why did that happen exactly?” 

“I- well- I hadn’t had anything-” 

“Let’s just cut the bullshit, have you been taking proper care of yourself since we were separated?” 

You shamefully shake your head. 

He doesn’t show his disappointment, but you know it’s there. 

“I’m sorry,” you sniffle. 

“Hey, hey. Don’t cry. Isn’t that- crying is stressful on the baby, ain’t it?” 

“Not so much- I mean, maybe?” 

“Okay, well.” He grabs your hands, bringing your attention to him. “Let’s take a few deep breathes so we can calm down for Baby Tartt.” You can’t help but chuckle. “Do do do doo.” 

“Listen to you. Guess I rubbed off on you, eh?” You roll your eyes, not believing that for a second. “Does any of what you’ve said within the last two minutes sound anything like what your dad could say?” 

“Not in the least bit.” 

“See, exactly. It further proves you’re different and how much you’ve grown from the cocky man who couldn’t care less about anyone else.” 

“Hey. That’s someone we don’t speak of.” 

“Of course,” you salute him. You two can barely keep your amusement to yourselves and break into a fit of smiles and giggles. 

He stares at you, watching as you wipe your cheeks and leans up, kissing your forehead before placing his on top of your head. “I was,” he hesitates to finish his sentence. 

You nod and cup his cheek, letting him know you’re there, a simple gesture to let him know you want to hear what he has to say. 

“-so scared when I saw you lying there unconscious.” 

Your heart drops at the way his voice cracks. “Jaim. Jaim. Look at me.” 

He shakes his head. 

You don’t push any further and instead opt for bringing him closer, letting him rest against your chest, squeezing you in a hug. 

It takes a few minutes before Jamie manages to calm himself down enough to revert back to your adorable boyfriend. “Oh, shit. I didn’t hurt the baby, did I?” He asks, now scared to touch you. 

“No. You didn’t.” 

You hold out your hand for him, “do you trust me?” 

He nods, “’course I do.” 

“Give me your hand.” 

He slowly inches his hand closer and closer to you. 

You huff and reach for him. “Are you ready?” 

He doesn’t move or make a noise as you place his hand over your belly. “Am I supposed to be feeling anything?” 

“Other than knowing the fact you are going to be a father soon enough, no. I’m not that far along for us to feel any kicking.” 

He bends down as a breath of relief escapes him. “Thank god, I thought I was supposed to feel kicking or something and I didn’t, which scared me the hell out of me because I thought he already hated me.” 

“He?” 

“I mean, hello,” he gestures to himself. You roll your eyes and take your hand back from him. “You’re so going to be cursed with girls.” “How can you say that?” 

“Have you met yourself?” 

“I have and we’re actually quite happy together, sorry for the late notice, sweetheart.” 

You close your eyes and let out a dramatic sigh. 

Ted peaks his head in through the door. “I see you two have talked things out? Hopefully, if not. No pressure. Well, maybe a little seeing as I have everyone waiting in the hall.” 

“Everyone?” You repeat. 

The coach nods. “Give me second.” He looks back over his shoulder, pretending to count, “one, two, four. Yep, everyone.” 

You place your hand on your forehead. “Suddenly the thought of everyone knowing makes me nauseous.” 

“Hey, hey. Look at me.” 

You turn your head and look at your favorite person ever… for now. 

“If we can get through the team being little shits and the press making unnecessary comments about our relationship, we can get through the team knowing.” 

“We can?” He gives you an affirmative nod, “we can.” 

“We can.” 

“Atta girl.” 

“Alright, guys. They said okay,” Ted waves everyone in. 

“I suddenly realize how many of you there actually are,” you comment. 

Sam, Dani, and Colin chuckled. 

“As captain, I feel like it’s my duty to ask,” Isaac leans closer to you, talking to you in a softer tone than his normal one. “How are you?” 

You smile, “I’m better now.” 

“Good, that’s what we like to hear. Ain’t that right, team?” 

“Yes, coach!” 

“And now I’m scared.” 

“Oh, don’t be scared especially when you’re carrying a special bundle of joy,” the mustached man points out. 

“Oh fuck.” 

“Something the matter, Roy?” Ted asks. 

“Yeah. She’s carrying Tartt’s baby.” 

“I’m pretty sure they covered that topic back in school but continue.” 

“There’s going to be a baby brought into the world soon.” 

“Yeah?” Ted glances over at Beard, who shrugs. 

“With his blood coursing through its veins,” he points to your ex-not-ex-boyfriend. 

It’s quiet for three seconds before everyone groans and rolls their eyes, they think about what it could be like with a baby Jamie. 

“Hey, hey now. Let’s not think about something as crazy as that because this baby is a good thing.” 

“Yeah?” Jamie whispers, glancing back at Ted, not letting go of your hand. 

“Yes, it is,” the coach nods. “You’re going to go through one of the many joys life brings you.” 

“What’s that?” 

“Fatherhood… that, may or may not mix with a lot of uncles and two aunts who decide they want to spend time with the little booger.” 

“Would one of those many figures happen to include you, coach?” 

“No,” Ted shakes his head. 

“Not at all, Beard.” 

The door opens and heads turn. 

“Hi, I’m just here to-” The nurse takes note of the number of people in the room. “I’m sorry but I’m going to have to ask anyone but the father and mother of the child to leave.” 

“Is it not believable that a woman could have this many boyfriends?” Jan asks. 

“Shut up.” A shoe aimed at his head, hits the wall and lands on the floor with a thud. 

The guys decide it’s time for them to leave, which lets you two see the few things the team has gotten, and it makes you tear up, freaking Jamie out. 

And he doesn’t want to admit it out loud, but it was really nice of them team to do. 

“Should we open some presents?” Ted softly asks, placing one in your lap. 

“Didn’t the nurse just kick you out.” 

“I’m your dad.”

 “We’re your dads,” Beard adds. 

You glance over at Jamie. 

He shrugs, not completely hating the idea of having these two around. “I would’ve liked to know about my new parents beforehand. What’s next? Roy’s my uncle.” 

“No, he’s a granddad more than anything,” Jamie chimes in. 

You wipe your cheeks and smile at him before gently pulling the tissue paper out of your way. You pull out a onesie that looks normal, until you unfold it and inspect it. You sniffle as you hold it up for Jamie to see. 

He doesn’t realize why you’re crying until he reads what the back of it, “Tartt 9”. He doesn’t feel the tears trickling down his cheeks until you wipe his cheeks. 

“Jaim?” 

He shakes his head and pulls you in for a hug, kissing the top of your head, over and over again. 

Ted smiles behind his phone. 

“We should probably give them some time alone.” 

“You think?” He asks. 

Beard nods. 

Ted sighs, “okie dokie.” 

They hold their hands up to wave, only to find your face squished against Jamie’s chest, barely able to wave them off. 

You and Jamie wind up opening every one of the other gifts, enjoying each other’s company after being apart for so long. 

“I think we should name it Jamie.” 

“Baby Tartt is not an it, it’s a baby,” you argue. 

“And we’re not naming them Jamie.” 

“Why not? It’s a good name.” 

“I’m not saying it’s a bad name but, we want our little pumpkin to be able to grow into their own, right?” 

“We-” He sighs, thinking about it, already knowing you were right. “Yeah.” 

“Good.” 

“Was that everything?” 

“I don’t know.” He glances over, finding a bag left on the floor, partially hidden so you couldn’t find it unless you were really looking. He grabs it and sets it in your lap. “What do you think it is?” 

“I don’t know,” you shrug and move it closer for him to open (feeling you’ve done enough of the unveiling with presents). 

He pulls a figure out of the bag. “A bike?” Jamie brows furrows together in confusion until he thinks about it. The light bulb goes off in his head, everything clicking together, and he smiles. 

“Is there a card?” 

“I hope so.” 

Now you’re confused. 

He pulls out what looks like a plain index card. “Free one learn how to ride a bike pass.” He chuckles. 

“I’m lost.” 

“Remember how I told you I had something funny I wanted to tell you a couple months ago, but I couldn’t because the shithead was making me train, even though Ted gave us the night off.” He huffs and sits back in the chair. 

“Okay, I don’t need the background information, just give me the synopsis.” 

“Right,” he straightens his back. “I taught Roy how to ride a bike in memory of his granddad.” 

“You did?” 

“Yeah,” he nods with a smile. 

“And he let you?” 

“Not without trying to hurt me but I did it.” 

“I’m so proud of you.” 

“Yea- really?” 

“Of course, I’m proud of you. You taught the world’s grumpiest man how to ride a bike and lived to tell the tale.” 

“I guess you’re right.” 

“Of course, I’m right.” 

“I hope the baby doesn’t get your cockiness.”

“My cockiness? What about yours?” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, sweetheart.” 

“You lie.” 

He fake gasps and slaps his hand on his chest. “I take offense to that.” 

“I’m not sorry.” 

“You should be. We don’t want this one’s first word to be a lie.”

“It wouldn’t, don’t be mean,” you whine. 

“I’m not. I’m just being me.” 

“Yeah, and that’s mean.” 

He smiles and shakes his head. 

You start folding a few of the blankets the guys got, feeling the need to do something. “Hey, look. They got one with sharks.” 

“We don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl.” 

“Girls can like boy things too.” 

“Do you really want to be asked if we have a boy or a girl every day.” 

“Don’t be mean.” You smile, holding it close to your chest. “I like it. Baby Tartt, do do doo doo. Baby Tart, do do doo doo.” 

He groans, “please stop.” 

“Never.” 

You stiffle a yawn. 

“Come on,” he takes away the few things on your lap and blanket from your hands. “You need to rest.” 

“But I don’t want to.” 

He smiles at the whining tone in your voice. “I know but it’ll do the two of you well.” 

“Fine,” you tell him with a pout. “But sit by me. I… I’ve missed you.” 

“How can I say no to my girlfriend?” Jamie settles beside you and lets you lay against his chest. 

As you sleep and he’s bored, searching through the hospital’s shitty channels, he stumbles upon something interesting, an old childhood show he used to watch. 

You open your eyes to hear the song you briefly sang earlier. 

“Doo doo. Baby Tartt, do do doo doo.” 

“Jam-Jam?” 

“Hey,” he clears his throat. “How are you feeling?” 

“Better. What were you doing?” 

He shrugs. 

You smile and snuggle back into him. “I won’t tell anyone.”

[ofstarsandvibranium]

omg please write more of the jamie x mcadoo!reader i love the protective family member dynamic!! especially with a character like isaac!🤍

Meet Cousin McAdoo

Fandom: Ted Lasso

Pairing: Jamie Tartt x F!Reader

Summary: You're visiting your cousin, Isaac, in Richmond for a few weeks. During your stay, you become familiar with the little city as well as its very own AFC Richmond football club.

A/N: I was going to do a bunch of headcanons but i suddenly got bit with the writing bug and it ended up being a full fledged fic. Whoops!

Isaac walks into the locker room with a determined look on his face. A majority of his team was already there, so he stands in front of everyone and hollers, "Oi! Listen up!" he waits until he sees that all eyes are on him, he continues, "My cousin is visiting Richmond for a few weeks. She's comin' over here so I can show her around. I want all of you," he points around the room, "to be on your best behavior. Understand?"

"What's happenin'?" asks Jamie as he walks in.

"Isaac's cousin is visiting, so be your best behavior," Sam says, catching the striker up.

Jamie grins, "Aren't I always on me best behavior?"

The guys roll their eyes as Jamie makes his way to his cubby, getting ready for practice.

Everyone's on the pitch when Higgins comes out, "Sorry, team, can I have a moment?"

"WHISTLE!" Roy yells, which causes everyone to pause.

Higgins speaks up, "Isaac, your cousin is here."

Isaac looks confused, "She's not supposed to be here until tomorrow."

"HI ISAAC!" you yell from Rebecca's office window. You're waving your arms excitedly.

"I thought you were comin' tomorrow!" He yells up at you.

"Surprise!" you're giggling, "I'll be down in a bit!"

Isaac nods and gives you a wave.

The boys are back to practice when you join Roy on the sidelines of the pitch, "Nice to meet you, Coach Kent," you don't offer a hand to him. You know, from what Isaac's told you, he isn't fond of touching people.

He nods and grunts, which you don't take personally.

Isaac, lightly jogs over to you, "Hey, cousin!" he goes to hug you but you stop him.

"Ew! Don't hug me, weirdo. You're all gross and sweaty."

"Pft," he puts out his fist and you fist bump him, "It's good to see you."

"Thanks for letting me stay with you while I'm here."

Isaac shrugs, "Of course."

"WHISTLE! WHISTLE!" Roy cries out and you look at him, bewildered, then back to Isaac, "Does he-"

"He's allergic to metal," Isaac answers swiftly.

"Interesting," you say with a nod.

"Take a five minute break!"

At Roy's words, Colin comes up to Isaac's side, "Hi! I'm Colin. Isaac's-"

"Best mate! It's so nice to meet you!" you shake his hand and the rest of the boys follow.

You meet Jan Maas, Richard, Sam, Dani, etc. etc. The meeting goes by quickly as Roy yells for everyone to get back to drills.

Isaac gives you a wave as he heads back onto the pitch. You stand on the side watching everything.

"Isaac," Dani catches his Captain's attention.

"Yeah, bruv?"

"You and your cousin do not look alike."

"We're not blood related. Her aunt married my uncle. We're cousins by marriage but still family nonetheless."

"Your cousin is very attractive," Jan Maas states in his usual Dutch bluntness.

Isaac's eyes narrow at Jan Maas and grabs his shirt by the collar, "Don't talk about my cousin like that."

Jamie joins in, "But he's right, Isaac. Your cousin's mad fit!"

Isaac pauses his drill and looks at the boys around him, "You all listen to me and listen well, none of you are worthy enough for my cousin. So stay away. Got it?" The angry and protective look on Isaac's face was enough to make the guys nod and scurry away, not wanting to be the receiving end of their captain's potential anger.

____________________

After Isaac's showered and changed, he gives you a tour of the place. His knowledge is lacking since there are certain places he hasn't been to before, but he tries his best. When he tells you the team has a therapist, you're very impressed, especially since Isaac admits to going a few times himself. You find it very admirable.

The tour then ends at the locker room after Isaac makes sure that everyone's decent.

You pout a little, "Dammit, Isaac, I wanted to see some fit naked footballers!" Isaac looks at you with disgust while some of the guys chuckle.

"You still can if you want!" Bumbercatch responds, but gulps after Isaac shoots him a look, "Just kidding."

You snort, "I was joking too, but thanks for the offer." You nudge Isaac, "Can we grab something to eat now? I'm starving."

"Yeah! Actually," he turns to Sam, "Are we good?"

"A table is already waiting for you at Ola's."

"Sweet. Thanks, bruv!" Isaac goes over to Sam and they do a typical 'bro hug'.

"It was nice meeting all of you! I'll probably see you again during my time here!" you wave at the team and they all wave back as you and Isaac exit the locker room.

All eyes are following you out. You look back and your eyes catch the blue-gray eyes of none other than Jamie Tartt. He gives you a shy smile and you give him a wink before you continue following Isaac out.

"Oi!" Colin thumps Jamie's head, "Isaac said to be on your best behavior."

"All I did was smile at her! She's the one that winked at me!" the striker explains, defending himself.

"I'm keeping an eye on you Tartt," Colin says before walking out of the locker room as well.

[alwritey-aphrodite]

The Worthwhile Fight

Chapter 6 of There’s Nothing Like This

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Jamie Tartt x fem!footballer!reader

Warnings: none :)

Word Count: 2.5k

Author’s Note: we’re entering the home stretch now folks - only two more chapters!

After the gala, things seem different, on and off the pitch. While you were winning games before, now that you were truly unified and working together seamlessly as a team, you were practically unbeatable. You’d started spending more and more time with Jamie, and when you weren’t together you found yourself thinking of him, and you rationalized it by telling yourself that you thought about Mackie all the time too.

Deep down, though, you knew it was different.

More often than not, you and Jamie spend your nights together, relaxing in front of the TV and letting yourselves unwind after all the training you do during the day. You’d been trying to be better to yourself, allowing rest days at the gym and icing your body and taking it easy when you need to, but most of the time, you’re continually pushing yourself past the breaking point, and you know everyone around you notices.

Sometimes, when he sees the way you favor your left leg and how you unsuccessfully try to wiggle out the pain in your foot, Jamie will gently take your feet into his lap, kneading and soothingly rubbing at your sore muscles until you feel like you could cry from relief. You can never seem to find the words to thank him, so instead you’ve started keeping his favorite snacks around and letting him choose the movie or show you watch together.

It’s like everyone around you knows something you don’t with the looks and glances you get walking into Nelson Road as you talk with Jamie. Whenever you enter the dressing room, you feel your teammates eyes boring into the back of your head, even as you get dressed and try to ignore the uncomfortable sensation and the heaviness it creates in your chest.

As a team, you continue to do better and better, winning match after match and soaring through the ranks. The team’s very first year in the league, and you’re predicted to finish first, despite what many of the sports columnists have to say. It amazes you, how so many people could continue to say nothing but negative things about your team when you’ve been winning left and right, knocking even Arsenal back to second place.

Thankfully, everyone at Nelson Road has been doing their part in keeping the positivity alive, shouting the praises of your team whenever they’re asked. If given the opportunity, the players on the men’s team would talk about you for an entire interview, doing whatever they could to counteract the never ending criticism.

“They’re all good players, some of them are better than my teammates,” Jan Maas says currently on your TV and you can’t help but to laugh at his typical Dutch bluntness. All of the boys have gone to bat for you, whether it’s on instagram or a TV interview, a quick comment to a fan or an answer to a reporter. Sitting on your couch as you mentally prepare for the day, you’re a little overwhelmed by the love you feel from everyone at Nelson Road.

Keeley, who has been grinding nonstop ever since she came up with the idea for a women’s team, has organized a photo shoot for you and some other women in the league, as a part of a campaign to get more young girls interested in soccer. As much as you coveted these match-free weekends, you’d do anything Keeley asked and anything to hopefully improve the public’s opinion on women’s soccer.

When you arrive at Nelson Road, though, you’re shocked to see a familiar car and a familiar man coming out of the building.

“Last I checked you played on the men’s team,” you quip when you’re close enough not to yell across the parking lot. Jamie jumps, then a smile overtakes his face when he realizes it’s you that’s talking.

“I was trying to do some training, got kicked out when Keeley needed to set up the lights and shit,” he tells you, coming to a stop next to you instead of continuing on his way to his car, “want me to stick around? I can drive ya home when you’re done?” It’s a little shocking, how sweet that offer is, and you’re almost brought to tears by his thoughtfulness.

“Jamie, this could take hours, go enjoy your Saturday,” you reply, despite the strange urge to take him up on the offer.

“Maybe we could grab dinner, when you’re done?”

“That would be nice,” and it’s a little shocking how much you mean that, so he gives you one last dazzling smile before continuing on to his car and you head inside for the photo shoot.

Once inside, you’re bombarded with hair and makeup and jewelry and your Richmond kit, all thrown at you with lightning speed while you try and introduce yourself to the players around you. It’s intimidating, to say the least, being in the same room with players you still idolize, and it’s hard not to feel like an imposter, hard not to feel like you don’t belong. The girls are all very sweet, and by the time the actual photo shoot rolls around, you’re all laughing and joking like you’ve known each other for more than five minutes.

There are individual shots and group shots, shots on the pitch and shots in the dressing room, action shots and posed shots, all with Keeley shouting encouragement from behind the photographer. Even though you all play on different teams, it’s impossible not to feel a sense of comradery with the girls, all of you hyping each other up during solo shots despite the fact that when next weekend rolls around, you’ll all be willing to do whatever it takes to win.

With all the positive energy and the whirlwind of the camera flashes, the afternoon passes quickly and before you know it, you’re being shooed out of the dressing room so the camera crew can take down their equipment. When you make your way out into the parking lot, hair still styled and makeup still near perfect, you’d been so focused on the photo shoot that seeing Jamie’s car waiting for you sends a shock through your body. Before you’re able to doubt yourself, doubt if this is really a good idea or not, you clamor into the passenger's seat, still riding high on the energy of modeling.

“You look nice,” Jamie says as you buckle your seatbelt, stealing a few glances as he pulls out of the parking spot, “how did it go?”

“Really good, I think,” you reply, trying to fly past his compliment and not stray into self deprecation, “everyone was super cool and Keeley seemed happy.”

“Good, good,” he adds before you fall into a comfortable silence and you feel yourself truly relaxing for the first time since you left your house. You’re not sure what it is, but something about just being near Jamie makes you feel calm, makes you feel like nothing could possibly go wrong. It’s very similar to how you feel when you’re with Mackie, but there’s something different that you can’t quite put your finger on.

“I hope this is ok,” Jamie says, breaking the silence as he pulls to a stop outside of a little pub near the Richmond Green. It seems quiet and quaint, and just by looking at the outside you can already tell the food will be your new comfort food while you’re away from home.

“It’s fancier than we normally do,” you reply, even though you’re already reaching to open the car door and already dreaming about the meal you're about to eat, missing the way Jamie’s cheeks and nose and ears tinge pink momentarily.

“Figured we could do something other than takeout, celebrate a weekend off,” he shrugs, acting nonchalant and as if he hadn’t sat awake in his bed planning this moment the night before, planning taking you out to a real restaurant, if only to show you his favorite spots around Richmond. You don’t seem to mind, though, and the second you walk into the pub and can smell the delicious food, you’re sighing in relief and Jamie can’t help the way his heart melts a little.

The pub is busy, but the older woman behind the counter simply nods at Jamie and he directs you to a booth in the back, one that’s more secluded than the rest and you wonder how often he comes here.

“Just let me know when you know what you want, I’ll go up and order and then Mae’ll bring it over,” Jamie says, fiddling with the corner of the plastic menu while you look yours over.

Feeling a little overwhelmed and out of your element, you set your menu down and turn to Jamie, surprised to see him already staring at you with a soft gaze.

“Just get me whatever you think is the best,” you tell him, and with the way he smiles at you, half proud and half embarrassed, you’d let him make every decision for you.

Sliding out of the booth and promising to be right back, Jamie leaves you alone with your thoughts, alone to study the room you’re in. You’re not alone for long, though, before three men approach your table with varying giddy expressions.

“You’re that striker? For Richmond?” The shortest of the three asks, and you ignore the swell of pride in your chest when he doesn’t specify that you’re on the women’s team: you simply play for Richmond. Nodding, you try not to grin as the trio turns to each other in excitement, looking seconds away from bouncing up and down when Jamie approaches the table again.

“Oi, dickheads, get lost,” he tells the group, and they hurry to scramble away, waving goodbye and chattering about meeting both of Richmond’s strikers in one day.

“It’s very refreshing to cheer for a team that wins consistently,” you hear one of the three men say as they disappear back to the bar, and you’re grinning when you look back at Jamie.

Despite all the time you’ve been in Richmond, this was your first encounter with real fans, with people from the community who supported you. It didn’t matter that you played on the women’s team, it mattered that you were a Richmond player, practically a god to the fans in the pub, and it made a little bubble of hope grow in your chest that there were more people like those men out there, who supported you through and through.

Almost as soon as the men leave and Jamie gets settled again, the older woman from behind the bar, who you assume is Mae, is bringing over pints and piles of food, brushing off your thanks with a smile and a wink and you’re already planning your next visit before trying any of the food.

“I might’ve went a little overboard,” Jamie says sheepishly as he surveys the plates that take up most of your table, “I just wanted to make sure there’d be something you like.”

Your heart stutters in a way that’s been happening more and more lately, increasing with the amount of time you spend with Jamie, but you ignore it in favor of digging into the mountain of food in front of you. It’s all wonderful, the perfect comfort food to put you in a good mood to start off your week, but you might enjoy the company more than the food.

After you’re finished and Mar waves away every attempt on your end to pay the bill, Jamie drives you home as you continue your meandering conversations from earlier in the evening, and you find yourself a little sad when he pulls up outside of your door.

“Thank you, for hanging out with me and for the great dinner,” you tell him as you gather your bags, the exhaustion of the day starting to hit you.

“We’ll have to do it again sometime?” It comes out more like a question, even though you’re almost certain Jamie was trying to sound confident and sure of himself, but you nod enthusiastically anyway.

Sending you on your way with a wave and completely ignoring your insistence to pay him for half of the dinner you’d shared, Jamie drives away and leaves you all by yourself for the first time since morning. You feel calmer, though, more open to spending the rest of your Saturday evening with only your thoughts for company, so you let yourself enjoy an extra long shower while you scrub away layers of makeup and hair gel and sweat from the photo shoot.

Stepping out of the shower, you’re met with a series of texts from Keeley, along with a few of the unedited photos from earlier.

I’m not supposed to share these - oops ;)

Smiling, you scroll through the few pictures she’d sent and you almost can’t believe it’s you looking back. You look powerful and strong and badass, like the type of player a little girl could look up to, could aspire to be. It makes you more emotional than you thought, and you sniffle a little as you thank Keeley for sending you the pictures.

It’s in that moment that it hits you that you’re doing so much more than playing soccer, you’re breaking boundaries and becoming a role model and being the person that you’d used to dream about being. The thought was always dormant in the back of your mind, that being a female athlete was always about so much more than sports, but staring at a professional campaign picture of you looking tough and confident, being there for little girls to look up to, solidifies those thoughts.

Feeling a little emotional, you settle on your couch with a fluffy blanket and some snacks, flipping through channels for something comforting to watch when you accidentally land on a channel with Jamie’s face staring down at you. The clip is from yesterday, because you remember the blue hoodie he was wearing, and the reporter must have stopped him as he left training.

You’re about to text him to let him know that apparently you can’t escape him and change the channel when you hear your name and a question that makes all the joy drain from your body.

“… is the female version of you?” The reporter asks from behind the camera, and your heart sinks as you wait for Jamie’s response because as much as you want to, you’re unable to look away.

“Mate, she’s scored more than me, she’s leading in assists this season, I think I’m the man version of her,” Jamie replies before he rushes away, looking beyond irritated and upset.

It shouldn’t surprise you, his response to that question, after all the support he and the other Greyhounds have given your team, but something about that specific question made your stomach drop. Hearing Jamie’s response, though, seeing the anger flash in his eyes on your behalf, elicits a completely different feeling.

Your heart is racing and your head feels fuzzy and it’s getting a little hard to breathe and you can’t think of anything other than Jamie and that’s when it hits you like an unexpected pass, like a tackle from an aggressive defender.

You’re in love with Jamie Tartt.

Tags: @andr0medafallen @whimsical-roasting @sokkigarden @hopefulromances @buckychristwrites @guccilongboard @onceuponaoneshot @presidential-facts @yepyeahuhhuh @allthefandomtherapy @gibby31 @buddyjuststop @ellietartt @cancvr @brianandthemays @sonyume @aiyaiy @captainfrisbee @dalebo3 @theloud-yet-quietone @imsoluckyeverythingworksoutforme @rockchickrebel @legobatmans9thab @curlypeter @lostinwonderland314 @yokolesbianism @jamietarttdodo @fan-goddess @innocentbi-stander @skewedcherries

[izzyspussy]

Rating Ted Lasso Characters Based On If They'd Respect My Pronouns (Correctly)

Roy "We Stayed At GAY Til 3AM And Then We Had Crepes With Some Drag Queens" Kent: 11/10 no fucking shit. He would defend me from misgendering also, even if we weren't friends. He's the very embodiment of that guy who fought the trans guy and then fought the authority figure who scolded him for hitting a girl.

Nate "Genius (Code for Autistic)" Shelley: 11/10 are you kidding. If only quarantine had happened in his universe he'd have pronouns too. Also his girlfriend obviously already does.

Jamie "Prettyboy" Tartt: 11/10 duh. No, he doesn't know off the top of his head what part of speech a pronoun is, but only because nothing in the universe could matter less. And much like Roy, if he saw someone else being contrarian for the purposes of being a prick for absolutely no earthly reason, he would be eager to do something about it.

Keeley "Just The Tip" Jones: 11/10 did you see her. Never have I personally received more solidarity than from (butches and) full tilt Barbie Girl femmes like Keeley. She may be cis and she wears "women's" clothes, but she's still doing drag every day. She gets it.

Colin "Right by This Pink Triangle?" Hughes: 11/10 obviously. He would be so good at not making a big deal out of doing it correctly himself or correcting others, because he knows what it's like to just want to live your authentic life without being a spectacle.

Coach "You Should See Him In Drag" Beard: 11/10 which you should've guessed. Look at him. Look at him with your heart. You know he has pronouns you've never even heard of that he takes out for special occasions.

Ted "We Don't Not Care" Lasso: 11/10 why is this even a question. Practically the entirety of Ted's goals in life are to be respectful and kind and help others do the same. Sometimes that's hard and he fucks it up, but this is easy. C'mon.

Sam "Social Justice Warrior" Obisanya: 11/10 like. Obviously. I have nothing else to say, like. Obviously. Obviously.

Bumber-"Impending Class War"-catch: 11/10. If anything, given the opportunity, he would encourage me to have more pronouns.

Dani "Joy" Rojas: 11/10. These are getting very simple now, and require less and less explanation. He promotes joy. What else do you want.

Rebecca "Ask Your Daughter What It Means" Welton: 11/10. She's a cutthroat and a genuine feminist. She doesn't care if a bunch of freaks are scared of strangers' genitals, and she's certainly not going to let something so petty get in her own way.

Jan "I've Run Out of Fun Epithets For Everyone And He Wouldn't Mind This Unfun One That's Blunt About That Fact" Maas: 11/10 of course. There's no logical, moral, or social reason not to, and there is a wealth of evidence supporting gender affirming behavior.

Isaac McAdoo: 11/10. And he would (unnecessarily) instruct all the other lads to do it too. He might struggle with it at first if we had known each other previous to my transition, but not out of malice or negligence, and once he got on track he'd stay there for life.

Leslie Higgins: 11/10. He's a jazz musician with ten thousand gen Z children. He knows at least as many trans people already as any natural member of the queer community.

The Rest of The Lads: 11/10. We all know this to be true. Next.

Georgie Tartt: 11/10. Have you seen her son. She's prepared for this.

Sharon Fieldstone: 11/10. Have you seen her do her job. She's good at it.

Dottie Lasso: 9/10. Her heart's in the right place and that matters! She is inescapably Midwestern in both the good ways and the bad ways, though.

Jake: 8/10. Have you seen him do his job. He's bad at it.

Rupert Mannion: 6/10. He's a trans inclusive misogynist lmao. He also will treat correct pronoun usage as a privilege if he gets butthurt enough.

James Tartt: 3/10. He'd respect a trans man who performed masculinity to his standards, but he is definitely afraid of girlymen and women who are better than him (most women).

[onceuponaoneshotfanfic]

A Little Love

Part of my 900 Followers Celebration! Request: Hiya 😊 Your Roy fics are THE BEST!! It was so hard narrowing down the prompts, but would you please write something for Roy from whichever one of these inspires you most? Thank you 💕 “You have NO IDEA how long I’ve wanted to do that” “you have no idea how long I’ve wanted you to do that” Roy Kent x Reader 1.2k words Warnings: Language, fluffy fluffy fluff

Rebecca’s assistant. Rebecca’s fucking assistant. If he wasn’t so damn lovesick, Roy would marvel at how almost funny it was that he kept falling for women who were close to his boss.

But he felt much too tortured for that. He had to watch you trail after Rebecca day after day, and, even worse, he had to make small talk with you whenever you came down to his office on some errand for Rebecca. He loved and hated it. The way you smiled radiantly at him. The way you held his eye confidently when he managed to speak. The way you laughed at the stupid shit he said, as if Roy Kent was capable of being funny. The way you sometimes swayed onto your tiptoes when you spoke to him, almost as if you were trying to get closer to him. The way your fingernails tap-tap-tapped on the shell of your tablet, something he didn’t realize was a nervous habit of yours.

The best and worst thing about match days was that he barely saw you. You were usually in Rebecca’s office before the game, and then you’d head to the owner’s box with Rebecca and Keeley, reminding Roy of a princess in a tower, far out of reach from a grumpy old knight like himself.

Today, however, he really, really wanted to see you. With a win, the Greyhounds would perform a miracle and be named the Premier League champions. And, for some reason, he felt sure that seeing your face- even just a glimpse- would be enough to ease his nerves.

“Good morning, Coach!”

Roy whirled around. There you were, adorable in your Richmond sweater and ponytail, beaming at him.

He cleared his throat, nearly dropping the playbook he held in his hands. “Morning,” he grunted.

You were undeterred by his gruff greeting; you were quite used to it by now. It was charming, in Roy’s grumpy way. You liked it. It probably helped that you thought he was ridiculously handsome, but no one needed to know that, least of all Roy Kent.

“I, er, just wanted to say good luck today.” Your hands fiddled with the cuff of your sweatshirt- another nervous habit. “Big day.”

No matter how the match went, Roy already felt really fucking lucky thanks to the way you gazed up at him. “Thanks,” he managed. “Means a lot.”

You looked as if you were about to say something more, but you stopped; instead you simply reached out and gave his hand a small squeeze. “I’ll see you later,” you chirped, not bothering to look at his reaction to your small touch.

If you had, however, you would have seen Roy Kent blush harder than he had in his entire life.

~

“Let’s go Greyhounds! Go Roy!”

Amused, Beard turned around, pushing his sunglasses down as his eyes scanned the owners’ box. “Sounds like you have a fan, Coach,” he hummed, raising his eyebrows at Roy.

Rolling his eyes, Roy glanced in the direction Beard had been looking in. Sure enough, there you were, your smile radiant even from the pitch. “She’s just being nice,” he grumbled. Still, he gave a little wave in your direction, which you returned with unashamed enthusiasm, ignoring the knowing looks Rebecca and Keeley shared.

“You should ask her out, Roy,” Nate murmured as the coaches watched the starting lineup take their places on the pitch. “She obviously likes you.”

“’m not asking her out,” he growled, trying to focus his attention on the pitch.

Beard tsked at him. “Guess we can let Jan Maas know he can go ahead and ask her out, then. Said something about it being more respectful to wait for you to get rejected first, since you’re his manager and all.”

“Fuck Jan Maas,” Roy spat, forgetting where he was for a moment.

“What, Coach?”

Oops. Right, Jan was on the bench. “Nothing,” he barked over his shoulder. He looked back at his fellow coaches. “I’m not asking her out,” he repeated. Still, he couldn’t help taking one last glance at the owner’s box before giving his full attention to the match unfolding in front of him.

~ Roy didn’t know the last time he felt so elated. He watched with glee- actual fucking glee- as his team shouted and jumped into each other’s arms, their mouths wide with joy. They’d done it. He’d done it. A.F.C. Richmond were the champions of the Premier League.

He had let Nate jump into his arms, and brought Beard into a tight embrace, and even squeezed Jamie Tartt around the waist. Now he was standing on the pitch, watching the celebrations around him, when he saw you practically skipping arm-in-arm with Keeley, eager to join the team in their reveling.

When your eyes found his, your entire face lit up. He couldn’t help but notice the way Keeley shoved you in his direction with a wink; there was something sweet and childish in the action, like kids on the schoolyard around Valentine’s Day.

And he felt just as nervous as a boy waiting for his crush, standing still as a statue as you walked through the throngs of jumping and hugging people, not stopping for anyone who tried to hug you. Your feet carried you straight to Roy.

“Congratulations,” you said, gazing up at him.

In the same moment you opened your arms for a hug, he stuck his hand out for a handshake. Fuck fuck fuck.

You stared down at his hand and gave a little twinkling laugh. “Feeling a bit formal?”

“Fuck, sorry.” Roy reached out and pulled you into a hug. Your hair smelled great. Of course your hair smelled great. It smelled like fucking lavender and sunshine and every good thing a prick like Roy didn’t deserve.

Although he released you from the hug, you still held onto his arms, nervousness crossing your expression, something Roy couldn’t remember ever seeing before.

“Should let you go,” you hummed, eyebrows knitted together. “Your girlfriend’ll probably want to come give you a big kiss on the pitch. Be all cute and romantic.”

Roy cleared his throat, wondering if his beard was doing anything to hide his blush. “I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Oh.” You gave his arm a squeeze. “So, who’s going to kiss you, then?”

“Jamie, if I fucking let him,” Roy snorted, rolling his eyes.

Your teeth caught your bottom lip. “Think he’d be mad if I beat him to it?”

Before Roy could ask what the fuck you meant, you pushed yourself on tiptoe and planted the smallest kiss to Roy’s lips. Instinctively, his hands returned to your waist, holding you still so he could properly return the kiss, unsurprised and overjoyed to discover that you had the softest lips he’d ever felt.

When you pulled back, your smile was somehow brighter than he’d ever seen it. Roy let out a dry chuckle. “You have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that,” he confessed, his thumb stroking the material of your sweatshirt gently.

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted you to do that,” you countered with a giggle. “Think I could get another?”

He nodded and pulled you tight against himself. “Oh, definitely.”

[whimsical-roasting]

“Coach Ted, how do you feel about group cohesion and dance breaks?”

thinking about random moments shared in the jamie tartt x psych major!reader fic i have in my head... just cute shit tbh

okay so the reader has been with the Richmond club for a solid few months, she’s a familiar face and friendly to the team but not super close with everybody, minus Colin and surprisingly,,, Jamie hehe

the team seems to be having a serious tie-streak going on, and they’re all kinda bummed by it

Ted’s obviously still Ted, unwavering winners mindset that basically means ‘do your best, give yourself a pat, shake it off, and repeat’ - with the addition of a smile ofc!

the reader has been doing readings for her org psych class and knows that raising group morale is necessary but also so so hard.

sometimes motivational speeches just don’t cut it yknow?? sometimes you gotta think outside of the box to fix the vibes and spread positivity

so there she is, standing in the coach’s office with a bluetooth speaker in her hand, nervously waiting for it to be her turn to speak

“Coach Ted,” she calls him in a manner that’s playful but still professional - he’s insisted on just Ted in the past and she’s complied but for serious conversations, she enjoys leading with a ‘subtle sense of professionalism’

“Coach Ted, how do you feel about group cohesion and dance breaks?” she asks, fiddling with the speaker in her hand

“Well darlin, I love a good flash mob. Gosh, those folks must keep in touch, right?” He directs his eyes to Beard, who peaks over his book and replies affirmingly, “a bond has been formed,” causing both you and Ted to smile

“Well, less flash mob but more like... a bi-weekly dance break?” she continues as Ted’s eyes land on her again. “I know the boys are bummed with the tie-streak and I was reading in my org psych textbook about the importance of autonomy in decorating our workspaces, and how group morale helps cohesion which’ll lead to better attitudes and hopefully better performance - not that our performance has been poor, it’s been great, I’m proud of the boys really! But, it sucks to see them bummed out...So maybe a twice-a-week-song-dance-break will lift spirits??” 

she’s rambling. she’s nervous!! it’s a good idea tbh but still, sharing means being vulnerable and the potential of getting rejected

Ted politely waits for her to finish, nodding along and then grins, “sounds wonderful darlin! Hey, maybe you can get the boys to give some song suggestions to help with the whole autonomy thing you mentioned.” 

she’s happy !! grinning as she steps out to the locker room, dragging out the whiteboard from the corner and scribbling in a lil corner of it

Jamie’s eyes follow her silently. truth be told, they followed her when she entered and disappeared into the coach’s office. but he smiles a lil seeing her grin at herself

when she’s done with the whiteboard, she calls for attention and lets the boys know to write down their suggestions, and she’ll choose two songs for the week randomly!! she emphasizes nervously that it should help according to her textbooks and Jamie is silently nodding, eyes drifting to her hands as she fiddles with the whiteboard marker

Dani is the first to speak, “pardon me, can it be Spanish songs too?” and she smiles really big, “anything you like!!” 

Isaac adds, “yea bruv, I fuck wit Bad Bunny” and there’s a wave of approving noises from the rest

SO, the plan has been implemented, and it’s frickin working!!! 

the boys always look forward to whose song is chosen - lots of rap, some taylor swift, Work Hard Play Hard makes them go nuts, some musical songs from Colin but it’s okay cause the lads are hyped over Hamilton 

Ted gets into it!! dancing!! Dani and Jan Maas share an imaginary mic!! it’s great, but Jamie’s favourite part is seeing her join them in the locker rooms for every dance break grooving to the music

one day SHE chooses the song... “Keep Your Head Up” by Andy Grammer cause the team seemed extra tired and bummed

everyone’s like ??? who chose this?? she’s like ‘me. I did.’

she’s trying to break the tension, so she takes her imaginary mic and goes to Ted, then Colin, then Sam, and soon everyone’s into it - just happily singing and dancing

she somehow ends up next to Jamie, shoulders bumping. she’s swaying as she faces him, playfully mouthing the lyrics to him as he smiles with a slight blush (not that she notices cause she’s blushing too)

they’re both dancing close to each other, and she lightly pokes his chin when the song goes, “you gotta keep your head up”, reaching up to pull down his headband at, “and you can let your hair down,” grinning at him when he’s like ‘hey!! :o... >:)’

the song ends, and they’re still laughing at each other, holding hands...a bit longer than they should tbh hehehe. Jamie loves her energy and kindness, it matches his goofiness and makes him wanna be a better person

but anyways!!! they pull away, hoping no one notices.. some do but don’t say anything

[jamiesfootball]

🌹🪻🌸🌺🌷🌻🌼💐🥀🪷

A bit of a longer snippet to go with that bit of the funeral I just posted:

The person Roy doesn't expect to see is-

"Jan?" he says, baffled at the other man's presence. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

He means no offense; Jan doesn't take it as such.

"Here for Jamie," the taller man shrugs. In the few months since they've crossed paths, his hair's added in a few streaks of grey and the scribbles of a beard have taken shape on his face. "I'm the pool cleaner."

"You're the what?"

"I clean out the scum. It's part of the plan." Jan jerks his head at something over Roy's shoulder. "See those two men over there?"

The two men in question are stood by a small table. In awkwardly fitted suits, they blend in with the crowd more than Jamie's people do. From Roy's understanding, most of them were from some sort of support group-

("A.A. He was making another go of it, I guess.")

-but he hadn't heard of anything that would require Jan Maas to be stationed like a bird of prey perched on a wire ready to strike.

Roy studies the men as they shake hands with another guest. They have the same grief-scrubbed pallor that Roy's gotten used to seeing around hiss own home these past few weeks.

"Those are the dead man's friends," Jan says without an ounce of pity in his heart. "My instructions are to keep them away from Jamie. If I see them moving in, I'm to stop them by any means necessary. Beard is also on pool cleaner duty. See- he is on the other side of the room so that we both have eyes on them."

"Is that what he's doing." He'd wondered why Beard was stood off in the corner with his arms crossed and a wild glare on his usually mild face.

Now Roy follows his line of sight, and he can see he's looking at the two men. One of them glances up and blanches. He quickly turns away with a look of panic on his face.

It almost seems as if they know each other.

Roy frowns and makes a note to talk to Beard about that later.

"Dani and Keeley are on bumper car duty," Jan continues explaining. "See how they are each of them hanging off his elbows? If anyone comes close to him, they will bump them away and explain that he doesn't wish to talk to anyone."

Keeley really had planned for everything, hadn't she? Except-

"What about me?" Roy asks. It's stupid, but the thought of being left out leaves him feeling sore. He's been fucking useless throughout the entire lead up. If there's a job here today that needs doing, then Roy wants to do it. "I'm here too. What's my duty?"

Jan looks at him as if he is, truly, stupid.

"You are on Jamie Duty."

[makethatelevenrings]

Somewhere Only We Know - FOUR

Chapter Warning: swearing, spoilers for 2x03, mediocre writing

Series Masterlist

“Fucking hell,” you grunted as you tried to balance a camera bag, your work bag, and the box of treats in your hand while simultaneously attempting to lock your car door. Glancing over your shoulder, you realized with dismay that after succeeding at this, you would somehow have to open the door to the training facility.

“Oi, babes, let me get that for you,” Keeley, your hero and savior, called. She exited her own car and took the large box out of your hands which considerably lightened the load on your arms.

“Y’know, if you needed me to kill someone, I would do it without question,” you gasped out as you finally locked the door to your car. She grinned and bumped her shoulder against yours.

“Good to know. I’ll keep that in mind. What’s today’s treat?”

“Blueberry and strawberry muffins. Blue and red, like Richmond’s colors.”

“Fucking brilliant. Have I told you that yet? You’re fucking brilliant.”

“You’re just trying to butter me up for more sweets.”

Keeley batted her lashes at you and shrugged. “I might be, but I’m not lying. I wouldn’t be opposed to some brandy snaps if you ever make those.”

You chuckled. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

Keeley led the way to the locker rooms through the maze of halls. The blonde announced herself with a loud “knock, knock” before she pushed her way in. You set your camera bag and work bag down so you could take the box and free up her hands.

“Sam, I think I have something you might want to see,” Keeley exclaimed. “You want to look at your photos from the Dubai Air shoot?”

He had taken the photos a few weeks ago and they had the edits done in no time, giving you and Keeley a chance to come up with a few ideas on how to promote it.

“Ooo, yes please. I am very nervous, but also very excited. That’s similar to whenever Colin drives me anywhere in his Lamborghini.”

“Ah, it’s true. It’s way too much car for me,” Colin agreed. Having witnessed him trying to back out of a parking space yesterday, you knew it to be true. The boys gathered around to look at the photo and, of course, they all started ribbing him. In the short time you worked here, you quickly learned that these boys cared deeply for one another but didn’t hesitate to tease them endlessly. Despite the fact that you were still unsure about your place at AFC Richmond, you were warming up to them and, in turn, added onto the teasing when you had the chance.

“Sam, how does it feel to be the new face of teenage vandalism?”

“It’s remarkable. I feel honored,” he jested in earnest.

“Bro, why are you wearing your kit on the plane?” Bumbercatch added.

“It’s the only way they know he’s a footballer.” Jamie Tartt’s insufferable voice piped up above the crowd. Every head turned towards him, including yours. From what Colin had told you, Jamie hadn’t been the kindest guy in the locker room and it certainly seemed as though he had it out for Sam. Probably because Sam was a damn good player and Jamie was, well, an insecure twat.

His face fell and he recognized that his joke didn’t land. It’s hard to land a joke if all you were known for was cruelty. Hefting up the box in your hand, you lifted the lid to display the muffins inside to the boys.

“A little Richmond treat,” you announced before slamming the lid down before Jan Maas could grab one. “That you will receive after practice because there is no way in hell I’m being blamed for you all puking on the pitch.”

“But…” Bumbercatch whined.

“No.” You were firm but your eyes glinted with humor. “If you puke, you owe me a hundred. Do you want to be indebted to me?”

“No, ma’am,” they mumbled and began to disperse. You headed into the office to give Beard a muffin and to also store the box away until after practice. Keeley instructed the boys on joining Bantr as you placed a muffin on his desk.

“Your blueberry muffin,” you announced.

“I could kill a man for your food,” he replied, practically pouncing on the treat.

“I’m…not sure if that’s a joke or not.” But you thanked him nonetheless and tucked your box into the hiding place Beard made for you with the promise that he got first dibs. You walked back out into the locker room just in time to see Jamie fucking Tartt standing up and opening his big mouth. Oh, this had to be good. You leaned against the doorframe to the office and watched him put his proverbial foot in his mouth.

“I know I wasn’t the greatest teammate. I did some shitty things. I said some shitty things. But I want each and every one of you to know that I’m truly sorry and I’m ready to do whatever it takes to make it up to ya. Yeah?.” Was this some kind of Twilight Zone? Or was Jamie Tartt actually apologizing for his behavior?

Silence met his declaration and you almost started to feel bad for the guy when Colin piped up.

“You called me a jaundiced worm.”

“Right, yeah. I’m sorry about that, Colin.”

“In a profile for my hometown paper.” You held back the snort of laughter that threatened to escape you. Sure, Colin was probably the closest friend you’ve made on the team next to Keeley, but jaundiced worm was kind of funny.

“You hit on my mum,” Bumbercatch interjected. “In front of my dad.”

“I apologize for that, Bumbercatch. Please tell your father I’m sorry. And give Janice me best, yeah?”

You muffled your laugh into your hand and turned so your back was to the team. Christ, that was funny as hell. The room descended into shouts, both French and English, as everyone tore into Jamie. Hell, you did start to feel bad for the guy. But he asked for this.

Ted directed the team to go outside for practice and you pushed off the wall, intent on following so you could get some good shots for the various social media platforms. Grabbing your bags, you sidled up next to Colin.

“A jaundiced worm?” you choked out through a laugh. “I’m sorry. It’s not funny. It’s a creative insult, though.”

“My da thought it was next to the funniest thing he’s heard since Thatcher croaked,” he complained.

You patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, if you were a worm, I’d still be your friend.”

A sniffle from behind you drew your attention to Dani who wiped a tear away. “That was a beautiful thing to say.”

That set off another round of laughter but this time Colin joined in. At least you were able to make him laugh after all the chaos. Practice wasn’t bitterly cold this week, but you were still bundled up in a jacket, gloves, and a Richmond beanie. You wished bitterly that you had a hot coffee or tea right now, but you knew they would be waiting for you back in your office. Fumbling with your camera, you tried to keep your fingers from growing stiff from the cold. Your focus was on the screen in front of you to see if you had enough photos from today so you could go inside.

That’s when you heard someone shout your name.

Your head snapped up just in time to see a ball flying towards you. With a yelp, you ducked and it slammed into the wall behind you before bouncing back and hitting your legs. It stung but it wasn’t as bad as a direct hit.

“Are you alright?” Sam exclaimed as he jogged over. You scooped up the ball and tossed it towards him. He caught it easily, but didn’t leave. This team was full of softies.

“I’m fine, Sam. Truly. I guess that’s a sign I should head in and start editing these.” You lifted your camera with a shrug and then bent down to pick up your bags. Before you straightened up, another voice joined Sam’s.

“I am so, so sorry,” Jamie Tartt apologized. “The ball just got away from me and I put too much power behind it and-”

“It’s not a big deal. No harm, no foul, right? I’m fine. Seriously.”

Sam shot Jamie a dirty look but you didn’t want that. You didn’t want the boys blaming Jamie for a genuine accident. You knew that standing on the edge of the pitch was always a risk. And you hadn’t been paying attention. That was your fault, not his.

“Go practice before Nate blows his whistle,” you said. Maybe you could go get some work done at the cafe Keeley introduced you to. That would get you away from the prying eyes and constant questions. As much as you appreciated working at Richmond, you weren’t the kind of person who would delve their entire being into their work. Everyone here seemed intent on being close-knit and connected. You were just the girl that posted shit on Twitter.

Keeley approved your idea of working at the cafe and reminded you that you didn’t need to constantly update her on your whereabouts. She was a very chill boss and if you kept delivering quality content, she really didn’t care where you got your work done. That found you at a small table tucked into the corner with your laptop in front of you and a half-drunk vanilla latte clasped between your hands. Steam curled off the top of the mug and you inhaled it, drunk on the heady scent of coffee and the warmth it provided.

You were so engrossed in your work that the plate being laid in front of you made you nearly jump out of your skin. Heather, one of the baristas, grinned at your surprise but apologized.

“I didn’t order this,” you protested.

“I know,” she retorted and jabbed her thumb over her shoulder. “He did.”

Jamie Tartt stood at the counter with a to-go cup dangling in his hands and a sheepish smile on his lips. He had some stupid baseball cap on his head that proclaimed him as an ICON and his flashy clothes made you roll your eyes but you gestured for him to join you.

“I just wanted to apologize for almost hitting ya,” he explained. “And I figured you like pastries and stuff so…yeah.”

“Sit down if you’d like,” you offered. He fidgeted for a moment before accepting your offer and sitting across from you. “I’ve been meaning to set up a meeting with you, to be honest.”

“With me? What’d I do? Don’t tell me the jacuzzi pictures are back.”

You suppressed the urge to roll your eyes once more and sighed. “No, I meet with everyone to discuss their social media presence, goals, and management they might work with. It’s to make sure I can cater to you all while building a steady presence.”

He sat back, his eyebrows raised, and nodded. “That…is smart. I’ve got a manager but, I don’t know, I’m not really sure he’s helping me.”

“Is he the one that convinced you to do a reality show?” You hid the disdain over that choice well because he clearly didn’t notice.

“Nah, that was all me. I won’t be doing that again, by the way. I don’t really have any goals, yeah? Nothing for the socials, that is. I should but…” He shrugged. “Gotta figure out what I’m doing with the team first.”

The day’s events flashed through your mind, from him being absolutely demolished in the locker room to the boys ignoring him on the pitch. Jamie looked genuinely defeated by today. His shoulders curved in, giving him the appearance of a boy protecting himself against the world. Something told you that it was a familiar position for him to be in.

“Have you ever considered that the team needs to see you be part of them rather than just hear apologies and see no change?” As you spoke, you unwrapped the muffin and cut it in half before putting one half on the wrapper and placing it in front of you and pushing the plate with the other half in front of him. Jamie opened his mouth to refuse, but you merely raised an eyebrow. He gratefully broke off a piece and ate it, chewing on the sweet as though he was chewing on your words.

“I dunno. I don’t think they’ll ever see me as anything but the twat I was.”

“Then make them see.”

Doubt painted his features, but you weren’t going to entertain his insecurities right now. Instead, you flipped your laptop around and showed him the photo you were editing. “Got any caption ideas for this?”

The two of you sat in the small cafe for nearly three hours, drawing up ideas for posts and analyzing pictures. Jamie was a genuinely funny person when he wasn’t insulting someone and you found yourself laughing at his quips more than you expected.

By the time you realized the sun had set, it was well past the time you normally get home. “Shit, I better get home. I need to prepare stuff for my other job.”

Jamie silently stood as you packed up all your stuff. You expected him to just say his goodbyes and leave you there, but he surprised you once more. He carried the dishes up to the counter and then doubled back to help carry your camera bag and laptop case, leaving you with just your purse.

“It’s dark. I’ll walk you to your car,” he explained.

“Thank you.” He acknowledged your thanks with a dip of his chin and then followed you outside into the cold winter air. You really needed to pull out your bigger coat because it was just going to get colder. Your teeth were chattering by the time you reached your car parked on the street. Jamie stowed your bags in the passenger seat and then he stepped back from your car and shoved his hands in the pockets of his hoodie.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said. You couldn’t stop the small smile from slipping across your lips.

“Yeah. Have a good night, Jamie.”

He waited until you were in the driver's seat before he walked off in search of his own vehicle. Cranking the heat on high, you took a moment to relax back against the soft fabric of your car seat and exhale a deep breath.

Maybe Jamie Tartt wasn’t the twat you thought he was.

Maybe, just maybe, you should practice what you preach and give him a chance to show you that he’s changed.

Tag List: @shiptheship​ @teigo-the-explorer​ @geeksareunique​ @queenofthekill​ @actuallybarb​ @for-fucks-sake-im-alive @maggiecc​ @alipap3​

[hopefulromances]

can i get “I’m the only one allowed to say that about them.” with roy and f reader please?

Omg yes pls!

You and Roy entered the dining room, arms wrapped around each others waists in the annoying way that only couples madly in love do. It was richmond's annual charity ball and you and Roy liked to come together and bet on how much each lad would go for.

You thought it was rather barbaric but Roy insisted that it was the only way he could survive these things. The ballroom was gorgeous and you quickly spied Keeley by the bar instructing some press to wait outside.

You squeezed Roy's waist to gain his attention. "You gonna be alright while I go say hi to Keeley?"

"Course I will, I'm not a fucking toddler," he grunted back, relasing you from his grip.

"No, but you act like one sometimes when you're grump," you teased, reaching down to grab his hand. You kissed the back of his hand with a wink. "Back in a sec."

And you were off, squealing hello to Keeley. He watched you with a fond smile, wondering how he was so lucky to get someone like you. He made his way to the bar and ordered your drink, something too fruity for him to stand except when it was made by you.

"Oi, is that (Y/n)?" Isaac's voice from a bit away caught Roy's attention. "She is right fit, bruv."

"Don't let Roy hear you say that," Colin hissed, smacking Isaac on the back side of the head.

"What! I'm just saying what we're all thinking."

"Isaac is right, (Y/N) is quite beautiful," Jan Maas joined in.

Roy frowned and spun around to find the group just behind him, staring directly at you.

"OI!" He shouted, causing all of them to jump. Colin just about jumped into Isaac's arms nudging him in a 'I told you so' kind of way. "What the fuck do you think your saying?"

"Nuthin! We weren't sayin' nuthin!" Isaac defended, trying to maintain his cool. "We just think that (Y/N) is looking stunnin' tonight is all."

The boys all nodded in agreement.

"I'm not fucking stupid. I'm standing two fucking feet away," Roy barked, glaring at them "I’m the only one allowed to say that about them, you got that?"

"Yes, Coach!"

"Now fuck off, all of you"

The boys scattered, running into each other as they all tried to leave the situation. You came upon them as they were leaving, trying to exchange hellos but none of them would so much as look at you. You looked at Roy suspiciously.

"What did you do?" You sussed, narrowing your eyes at him.

He turned around and grabbeed your drink to hand to you. "I got you a drink."

You shook your head at him, but couldn't help the smile that came over your face. "I like you a lot."

"Yeah I know," He grumbled, pulling you back towards him. "I like you a lot, too."

[asteria-argo]

🌹🌹🌹🌹

behold, some Skye and Jan interactions because I've seen a couple of people being excited for those.

“tall man.” Ms Goodwin says, finally acknowledging the team by nodding over to Jan Maas, who nods back slightly. Ms Goodwin grins at him, giving him a little wave. “good morning, tall man.” “I do have a name.” Jan says, Ms Goodwin merely shrugging in response. “I’m sure you do but alas, I do not remember it.” she says “I’m shit with names, I’ll get it eventually. I called Jamie, Phil for like four weeks before I actually remembered his name.” “his name is Jan Maas.” Jamie supplies for her, sitting beside her with his own mug now in hand. Ted is a little surprised at that, though he can’t pinpoint why. Jamie had never met Jan Maas before, as far as Ted knew, certainly not at Richmond, and he’d never seemed like someone who would concern himself with learning people’s names unless he had too. “and no you didn’t.” “I know, I was lying to make him feel better.”

[rqgnarok]

if requests are open, can i request jamie having a lightbulb moment realizing he’s into a male reader who’s very obviously shy/in love with jamie please? it doesn’t have to be that he realizes he likes guys but it could be? if you’re uncomfortable writing mlm relationships you can completely ignore this! no pressure ^_^ thank you!!

thank you for this! i've been itching to write jamie x m!reader! i hope you enjoy <3

"Don't get it, bruv," Isaac grumbles. "You buy 'em flowers, you take them to dinner, and they still won't get the hint. Women are fuckin' complicated."

"Men aren't exactly a walk in the park, are they?" Colin grumbles, his arm around Michael as his boyfriend presses a smiling kiss to his cheek, already familiar with this story. "This guy here spent months, months! Taking me out on dates before I realized we were dating."

"That might just be a you thing, hermano," Dani snickers, the guys laughing with him. "But I agree with Isaac. I always do the same when I have a crush on a girl: I make her a playlist of Mexican baladas and cook recipes from scratch. They never get the hint."

"Open communication is sexy," Michael pipes up behind his beer and murmurs of agreement fill the restaurant.

It's late, close to midnight, but Sam's always lenient enough to lend them the space for as long as they want. Everyone shares their own techniques of conquest: Rich gives them an expensive wine from his personal collection, Van Damme writes them notes about every little thing and leaves them scattered where they can find them, Jan Maas starts reading up on Dutch poetry.

At some point it's Jamie's turn to share, and he shifts a little in his seat at the sudden attention.

"Um, well," he stutters, playing with his napkin and ripping it into small pieces nervously. "I get touchy, I guess? Like, not in a creepy way, I just. More casual contact, you know? Like I'm drawn to them. And I laugh. I laugh a lot. Everything is funny, all of a sudden."

"That's everyone with a crush, though," Colin reasons. "There's gotta be something specific, no? Michael started wearing funny socks when we were dating, for some reason."

His boyfriend pipes up in offense, cheeks coloring. He says something about Colin listening to Britney Spears and binging The Kardashians when in love, which, for some weird ass reason makes sense.

Still, the momentary lapse in conversation isn't enough for the attention to slip off him, and Jamie keeps being badgered for information until he cracks. "Alright, alright! I guess I. I don't know, I. You know how I hate sharing my food. I guess I don't mind much when I'm... you know. In love and shit."

Finally, that's enough for the guys to move on to their next victim, but Jamie's thoughts stay stranded on his own answer. How did he know? He used to share plates with Keeley when they were dating, though his jaw would always clench a little in annoyance whenever she dipped in her fork without asking. It was a sanitary thing, really.

No, it was (Y/N) who sneaked into his mind when he said that. But that's different, ain't it? They've been friends forever, and it's different with guys, right? So what if Jamie doesn't care when he steals some of his chips or when he steals half of his sandwich when they're lazing around at his place? It doesn't have to mean anything.

But less than fifteen minutes ago he'd slapped Moe's hand away when he reached for chin chin out of Jamie's plate. And, like, Moe's his mate, Jamie would go to war for Moe, but still. Still.

"Shit," Jamie says softly to himself, the puzzle pieces inside his brain slipping into place. Again, a little louder. "Shit."

"What's wrong with you?" Isaac nudges his shoulder, quietly, thank God. Jamie can't bear to invite his entire team into his sudden romantic realization.

"Nothin', nothin'," he thinks about afternoons spent with (Y/N) in comfortable silence when everything else in the world was wrong; his mind too mean, the fans too opinionated, his efforts on the pitch not good enough. Fuck, Jamie has been a proper dumbass, hasn't he? "Just- I gotta go. There's somethin' I need to do."

He says his quick goodbyes and pokes his tongue out playfully when it gets a bunch of boos and disappointed whines from the guys. The cold Richmond air hits him full in the face as he leaves Ola's, brows furrowed as he texts.

hey u still up?

Jamie bites his lip as a response comes through seconds later.

yeah? Thought you were out w the boys tonight

His fingers hesitate before pressing down on the screen, fear be damned.

just left

any chance i can come over?

(Y/N)'s texts are quick, casual.

Of course. always

Everything okay?

Against all odds, Jamie smiles. He has a growing suspicion the night might turn out better than he ever hoped.

alls brilliant

ill be there in 20

[sortofanobsession]

Roy/Jaime idea: Roy eats something and has a severe allergic reaction to it and Jaime is the one to run and get an epi-pen to save his life, and looks after Roy once he comes out of hospital. Jaime stays with Roy, and winds up never leaving.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. It's been a bad week for me trying to focus. I've only had one allergic reaction to medication as a toddler. I don't remember it. I wasn't there for my nephew's two anaphylaxis events. So I'm just going off what little I do know. Not sure if this is even a real allergy. I have external allergies, like contact allergies and a horrible reaction to bug bites, but that's not the same. I just imagine what that would be like in your throat and oh yikes.

Not beta read

Ao3

Ted Lasso Masterlist

Word Count: 6k+

Paring: Roy x Jamie (Romantic), Roy x Phoebe (familial/platonic, protective), Jamie x Phoebe (platonic, protective) Roy x AFC Richmond Himbos (platonic)

Content warning: Allergic Reactions, anaphylaxis, Hospitals, needles, epipens, medical emergencies, ptsd, trauma reactions

The press will make it seem like I ended your career and then you

Roy does not like people knowing about his life. He likes keeping it that way. 

In a rare week where they end up having an extra day off after one of their games gets moved for a different game to be televised. The team only has a half day of training, and they meet up in the afternoon. Roy picks up Phoebe from school and joins them later in the day outside an unusual cafe. One of the guys hands them a smoothie, some fruity concoction a few of them insists Phoebe will like. And it's fine until Roy tells Phoebe to get her bag. When Phoebe looks up at him, she shouts. Jamie and Isaac are on their feet as she scrambles to get her bag. 

"What was in that?!" Phoebe asks. 

"Fruits and veggies," Someone says. And Jamie gets a good look at Roy and curses. She adds, "He needs to lie down." Jamie and Isaac do as she says and get him flat on the ground. 

"Phoe," Jamie starts to ask if she has an epipen but she ignores him. 

"What kind?" Phoebe shouts. “He has allergies.”

"Call an ambulance," Isaac shouts. 

"Colin already did," Jan Maas says. "He is talking to them now."

Phoebe panics as she looks up at Jamie. “I can’t find it.”

“Does he have one?” Jamie tamps down his inner panic and focuses on what needs to be done.

“Glovebox,” Phoebe says.

“Sorry, mate,” Jamie mutters as he awkwardly gets Roy’s keys out of his pocket and sprints to the G Wagon. He makes a bit of a mess, but he finds an epipen. He rushes back and drops down beside Roy. With little work, he preps the pen and slams it into Roy’s thigh. “You can kick my arse if it bruises when you aren’t half dead,” Jamie says as he looks Roy over. He looked awful. His face was swollen, and his color was off. “But you don’t get to fucking die on me, mate. The press will make it seem like I ended your career and then you. Those pricks love making drama out of shit.” He isn’t sure if he’s talking to keep Roy focused on him being annoying or to make himself feel better. 

“Someone see if anyone has another,” Colin says. “Lady says it might not work.”

“Bruv,” Isaac smacks Colin and gestures to where Phoebe stares at him with wide eyes. 

“But I’m sure it’ll be okay,” Colin adds.

“He’s a fighter, Phoe,” Jamie says, trying to get her attention off of Colin. “Now, what’s he allergic to?” 

Phoebe looks up at Jamie. "He can't have some leafy veggies like he can't use whistles," she tells him. "That's what mum says, at least." 

"I got it, Phoe," Jamie says before focusing back on Roy. "Rough day, coach?" Roy glares at him. "When this is over, I'm going to ask your sister what else you haven't told the team that might actually kill you. So far, it's whistles and kale or some shit because clearly you can't be trusted to tell me." Roy growls, but it comes out half wheezed. Jamie takes Roy's hand and puts his fingers on his wrist. His pulse is fast and all over the place, but it's not terrible. "Just try and breathe, ya prick. Don’t want to traumatize the kid any more than she already is.” 

Colin comes over to hand Jamie his phone, but Jamie just hands it to Phoebe. "Tell them what you told me." It's good for her to have a task to keep her focused. And she knows more than most of them do with this. Jamie can tell the swelling must ease some because Roy looks a tiny bit better. Jamie takes off his jacket and puts it under Roy's head. "There nice and comfy now, innit?" Roy glares at him again, but Jamie takes his hand again. His grip shifts to hold it in one hand, and still feel his pulse. His other hand goes into his pocket and pulls out his phone. Jamie unlocks it and hands it to Colin. "Do me a favor and call Phoebe's mum. She's in there as Roy Kent's fit sister." 

That earns a grunt from Roy. Jamie smirks. "I know. You'll cut my eyes out." He squeezes Roy's hand. "You can yell at me when you can breathe properly again."

"Fuck you," Roy manages now that the epinephrine is working. Jamie grins and carefully sets Roy’s hand down. 

"Good news, lads, he lives," Jamie says, standing up. They cheer. "Still going to the A&E," Jamie insists.

Phoebe gives Colin back his phone and moves to sit beside her uncle. She takes the hand that Jamie doesn't keep using to check his pulse and holds it tight. Jamie leaves for a second and comes back.

"I'm okay, kid," Roy says. She hums but doesn't say anything. 

"How ya doing, coach?" Jamie asks. 

“You lock my fucking car?” Roy asks.

Jamie chuckles. “Yes, I locked your fucking car. Now answer my question.”

"I'm fine," Roy insists. Jamie huffs another laugh. He uses a bandana to wipe the sweat off Roy's now less pale face. Roy grimaces. 

"It's clean. I swear," Jamie says. "Can't have big bad Roy Kent looking sweaty, might make some poor medic swoon."

"You're fucked in the head, Tartt," Roy says.

"You don't know half of it," Jamie grins.

"I'm fucking glad for that," Roy grumbles. 

"Oh, trust me, you'd enjoy some of it," Jamie adds with a wink. And Roy glares at him. 

"He seems fine to me," Richard laughs from where he and Colin stand behind Jamie. 

"Yeah, but unless one of you has another epipen, then we better hope that the ambulance doesn't take forever," Jamie says. 

"I told you, I'm fine," Roy attempts to get up, but Jamie and Phoebe stop him.

"Sorry, Coach," Jamie says. "Doc's orders."

When the paramedics get there, Roy cooperates because Phoebe looks like if he doesn't, she might cry from where she holds onto Jamie's hand with both of hers. Jamie is knelt down to her level and clearly trying to comfort her. The medics let Jamie go with them to look after Phoebe. 

Phoebe stays with Jamie in the waiting room when they reach the hospital. 

"You good, Phoebs?" Jamie asks when she sits down. 

"Yeah," She says.

"You sure?" He asks again. "Cause you don't have to be. Sure as hell scared me."

"You didn't seem scared," Phoebe says. 

"Got years of practice looking tough on the outside," Jamie says.

"Uncle Roy says it's because your dad is a…well," she pauses.

"Bad word, innit?" Jamie grins. 

"It is," she admits.

"Well, my old man is a bad word," Jamie says.

"Mine was too, so we have that in common," she states. 

"We do," Jamie says as he throws his arm around her shoulder and pulls her into his side. "But you're a way better kid than I was. 'Lot smarter than I was. But we don't need bad dads with your Uncle Roy around."

"He's going to be okay, right?" She asks.

"Your mum's here, 'course he'll be okay. Be back to his gloomy and grumpy self in no time. A quid says he's already trying to convince them to let him go because he's fine, and your mum will have to put him in his place."

"You're on because he's not going to argue if mum is working because she is already busy, and she won't put up with nonsense." 

"Oh, fair point. Guess we'll see."

Roy might yell at Jamie for gambling with his 8-year-old niece, but Jamie will take that lecture. She isn't as worried or upset as she had been when they got there. So he doesn't regret it. They argue over what the waiting room TV should be changed to, despite neither of them having control over what is on. They both send Keeley texts from Jamie's phone, and they end up looking at magazines and saying who on the team would wear the outfits in the photos and ads. 

"Mum!" Phoebe runs over and hugs her mother when she approaches them.

"How is he, doc?" Jamie asks. 

"On the mend," she assures him. "Should be able to go home soon. But someone will need to look after him. You up for that?"

"Me?" Jamie asks. He figured Keeley would be the one to do it. 

"I think you can handle it," she says with a sly smile. "And I know you'll actually fight him if he tries to do something he shouldn't. He is not the easiest of patients."

"Giving the nurses trouble?" Jamie asks, glancing at Phoebe.

"Ha, no, not in my hospital. He knows better," She says.

"That's fair," Jamie says. He digs a coin out of his pocket and hands it to Phoebe. Phoebe's mum shakes her head. "You guys can head back and see him now." She has a nurse take them to Roy's room.

"Uncle Roy!" Phoebe hurries over to him when they get there. 

"Hey, kid," Roy says. 

"How do you feel?" She asks. 

"Like I don't need to be here anymore. I'm sure there's someone out there that could use this bed more than me."

"You just want to get out of here before the press finds out you're here," Jamie says as he sits in the chair by the bed.

"Probably already on the way if Jamie Tartt was loitering around the waiting area," Roy states.

"Hey, someone had to keep Phoebe from getting bored," Jamie says.

"Fuck off. I'm sure she was the one entertaining you. You can't sit still for five minutes. You can barely sit like a fucking adult." 

"Wow, rude, and two quid on your tab, for shame, Uncle Roy," Jamie grins.

"Fucking nightmare," Roy mutters. "Anyone tell you when I could fucking leave?" 

"Mum says soon, but you have to go home with Jamie," Phoebe says.

"Fuck no," Roy says. 

"Uncle Roy," Phoebe says and gives him a look she probably learned from her mum. Jamie hid his smile behind a drink he had gotten when he had gotten Phoebe food since she didn't actually get to eat at the cafe. He always found it insanely adorable how much sway she had over her uncle. And honestly, it was something Jamie could just sit all day and watch. Because getting to spend a day with his childhood hero and someone he cared for was just something special to Jamie. To see such an honest and genuine version of Roy fucking Kent. Times like these he secretly enjoyed. Although he could have done without the gut-wrenching fear of losing Roy to something as stupid as a fucking smoothie. If Roy didn’t start carrying an epipen on him at all times, Jamie would because they had in a very bad spot if Jamie hadn’t found the one in the glove box. 

Jamie listened to Roy and his niece argue. 

"What do you think, Jamie?” Phoebe says.

"I'm pretty sure my coach yells at me if I ignore my doctor's orders," Jamie points out, making direct eye contact with Roy. "And that coach is usually you."

Roy groans. "Fucking, fine." 

They settle in and watch some cartoons Phoebe picks on Roy's phone while Jamie just scrolls through his. He texts the team to let them know Roy is fine. And after a couple of hours, they get to leave. Jamie insists Phoebe come with them for the night to “help”. He'd left both his and Roy’s keys with the team. Isaac said they’d get Jamie’s car back to Nelson Road, but they’d drop Roy’s at the hospital so they had a ride home. Isaac assured him Colin wasn’t allowed to drive either of them. Jamie loves his teammates, and he lets them know how thankful he is in texts.

Roy is exhausted and feels like shit, but he is happy to be home. Even if Jamie was now in his home. Roy unceremoniously drops down on the sofa. Phoebe is quick to sit beside him, and he smiles when she snuggles into his side. They had a fucking terrifying day, and the look of absolute fear that Phoebe had during the entire incident was burned into his retinas. It would probably haunt his fucking dreams.  

“Here,” Jamie says, handing Roy a glass of water and the meds Roy's sister insisted he takes when he gets home. Roy’s neck and throat fucking hurt as he looks up at Jamie. 

“Thanks,” Roy says as he takes them. Jamie just nods and goes to sit in an armchair. Roy shakes his head as Jamie tucks one leg up under him. He really couldn’t sit like a normal person, could he? At least the striker had taken his shoes off. But Roy didn’t really mind. Jamie had saved his life and taken care of Phoebe. Jamie could fucking key his car, and Roy would probably let him, today at least. Jamie pulls out his phone and starts typing away at it. After a few minutes, he looks up at the TV and then at the pair on the sofa. Phoebe had turned some kid show on that Roy’s tired brain couldn’t be bothered to remember the name of. “You guys hungry?” Jamie asks. 

Roy doesn’t exactly feel like eating. But he hadn’t eaten shit at the hospital. 

“You eat?” Roy asks Phoebe.

“Some,” Phoebe says. Roy looks at Jamie. 

“She wasn’t exactly hungry, but I did feed her,” Jamie says. He gets up and hands Roy his phone. It had a soup and sandwich place they often got delivered to Nelson Road pulled up. “Your sister says you can’t have much, nothing pointy or crispy, but mines is already in. Add whatever.” Jamie heads back towards Roy’s kitchen. Roy could remember a time that having Jamie Tartt doing anything in his house would have annoyed him, but honestly, he was glad Jamie was there. Roy’s too fucking tired to think about much. He decides to heed his sister’s warning and gets a soup he doesn’t hate. He lets Phoebe pick what she wants before ordering it. He’ll find out how much he spent on Phoebe earlier and pay Jamie back later. When Jamie is gone for a few minutes, Roy considers getting up to see what he is doing, but Jamie returns and hands him a mug of tea. 

“Figured you probably don’t keep whatever you’re allergic to in the house, so it was safe to make this. Might help your throat,” Jamie says. “Or make it worse, I’m no expert.” He hands a mug to Phoebe, who thanks him. Roy looks down and can tell that Jamie made her one of the fruity herbal teas that he keeps mostly for Phoebe, and that makes Roy pause. Because Jamie clearly has thought about a lot of details, Roy didn’t expect him to. He hadn’t asked for tea, but Jamie’s right. It might help. He knows Phoebe shouldn’t have caffeine this late in the day, especially after all the chaos of the afternoon. Her bedtime was only an hour away. Jamie had obviously considered that. And Roy has never been so glad to have Jamie around. Ever. Roy takes a drink and relaxes because whatever Jamie adds to it does actually help. He could fucking hug the man if he wasn’t so fucking knackered. And that was fucking weird. He fucking wanted to hug Jamie Tartt. Because he can remember the feeling of Jamie’s hand in his. It had been an awkward hold because Jamie had his fingers on his pulse point, but it had been more comforting than it should have been to him. 

Jamie doesn't let him do shit. Doesn't even let him answer the door when the food is delivered. Jamie has Phoebe make sure of it, and it suddenly makes sense why he insists she joins them. Jamie knew Roy wouldn't make too big a fuss if she was there. She had been through enough for one day. 

And Roy knows how that feels because Jamie may not have looked panicked while Roy was struggling to breathe. Roy could tell. Jamie’s eyes had been wide and filled with concern. The way Jamie’s hands had gripped him tight. It screamed, 'Don't leave me.'

After Phoebe goes to sleep, Jamie sits on the other end of the sofa and sighs. 

“You good?” Roy asks.

Jamie pulls a leg up on the couch and angles himself more towards Roy. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but fuck you for not actually having that stupid epipen on you. Because fucking hell, mate.” Jamie runs a hand through his hair. “That can’t happen again. Was fucking terrifying.”

“Not exactly a fucking walk in the park for me either,” Roy says.

“I get that, but if you don’t start carrying one, then I will, because yeah, fuck that. Not doing that again.”

“You’re serious?” Roy stares at him. 

“Fuck yes,” Jamie says, leaning forward. “I meant it. You don’t get to die on me.”

“Because the press will blame you,” Roy remembers.  

“No…because…well, forget it,” Jamie sighs. “It’s late, and you should probably get some sleep.”

“What were you going to say?” Roy was surprised. Jamie usually isn’t one to hold back when it’s just the two of them. 

“Because believe it or not, I do care about you,” Jamie admits. “Now go the fuck to bed. Because you're going to fucking need it. And so do I because I already know the team’s going to annoy you if you’re knackered. You’ll call drills and ‘m not doing those fucking knackered.”

Roy nods and says, “Fair play.” 

They say goodnight. 

Roy wakes up to the smell of fresh coffee and leaves his room to find Jamie and Phoebe making breakfast. Roy stops and takes in the scene in front of him. Jamie is making eggs, and Phoebe is buttered toast. Jamie had said something funny because Phoebe is laughing, and Jamie looked proud of himself. Roy gets a sudden feeling of want. And he isn’t exactly sure what that means. Obviously, coffee and food that wasn’t fucking liquid. But that wasn’t the kind of want this was. He wanted this to be a regular thing. To spend time like this. Jamie and Phoebe got on like a house of fire. And that made him insufferably endearing. Because Phoebe liking Jamie means a lot more to him than Roy even thought possible. And Jamie likes when people are happy. Roy used to think Jamie just liked the attention because of his ego. But now, Roy knows that it’s not his ego. Jamie is actually a people pleaser. Jamie craves validation. And fuck the way Jamie grins when looks at him like he is actually happy to see Roy. And Jamie said he cared about Roy. Fuck, it is too early for this many feelings. 

"Morning, Coach," Jamie grins. Roy just grunts. "For the man that bangs on my door at 4 a.m. almost every day, you aren't looking much like a morning person." Roy flips him off as he gets coffee, and Jamie laughs. Phoebe giggles too. And Roy gets the strangest feeling in his chest. It stops him in his tracks. The sound of Jamie and Phoebe laughing in Roy's kitchen, even if it is at his expense, gave him fucking butterflies. That was not a feeling Roy was expecting first thing in the fucking morning. He nearly jumps out of his skin when a hand touches his shoulder. He turns, and Jamie looks at him. The jovial mood is gone, replaced by a look of concern on the striker's face. "You good? Jokes aside, you gave everyone a hell of a scare yesterday. If you're not feeling it today, you can-"

"I'm fine, Tartt. Try not to burn my flat down making breakfast," Roy says to redirect the conversation because there was no fucking way he was going to tell Jamie that it felt like his skin was electric where Jamie touched him. Fuck. Roy needed to get his shit together. This was Jamie Tartt—Prince of all pricks. But Jamie had stayed with him since Roy started having trouble breathing. And if he wasn't with Roy, he had been with Phoebe. Never leaving her until she was safe and no longer afraid. Phoebe had told him when Jamie had gone to meet the takeaway delivery driver at the door after they got home that Jamie had kept her busy and made her forget how worried she was when they were waiting at the hospital. That he only left her if he absolutely needed to and always made sure someone on staff knew she was alone so they could at least check on her. Luckily they all knew her mum, so they didn't really mind a few minutes if Jamie needed to make a call or use the loo. But he only did that once or twice because he didn't want to leave her alone in case something happened. And that hit Roy hard. Jamie really did give his all to the people in his life. He cared about Phoebe. He had no obligation to do what he had done, but Jamie didn't seem to hesitate. Just like jamming the needle into Roy's leg. No hesitation because when Jamie Tartt cared, he went fucking hard. Just like on the pitch. Nothing else mattered. He's thinking steps ahead, analyzing threats, and coming up with contingencies. Give that anxious energy of his a task, and it gets done. Not always the conventional way, but it gets done. And his current task was breakfast for the three of them. 

Roy’s sister came round to pick up Phoebe after they ate. 

Jamie cleans up the mess he made for breakfast, despite Roy’s protest. Jamie just shrugs him off, saying it’s just to keep busy before they head out to training. 

Roy drives them both to training.

Roy finds himself watching Jamie more than usual as the team trains. 

Jamie goes over as they break for lunch. 

“I’m fine, Jamie. You don’t have to babysit me anymore,” Roy assures him as they head inside.

“Great, so does that mean you have no interest in getting lunch with me?” Jamie asks as he heads to the locker room. 

Unlike the last couple of meals, Roy does have the ability to say no. To spend time without Jamie, but the more Roy thinks about it, he actually wants to go with Jamie. So Roy follows Jamie. 

“I could eat,” Roy says and is glad he did because Jamie fucking smiles at him. And Roy’s stomach flips when Jamie nods. 

Roy finds that lunch is an easy affair. They get food at the canteen and find a table. It’s nothing out of Roy’s normal day, but it feels different. It feels comforting. It helped to calm the nerves he’d had since he walked through the locker room doors, and the team bombarded him with questions. His fellow coaches kept telling him to take it easy. The med team checked in with him multiple times, and Roy just wanted things to be normal. The only person that wasn’t actually acting insane was Jamie, but Jamie had been with Roy since he first realized what had happened at the cafe. Jamie had a front-row seat to Roy getting better. And Roy realizes how much Jamie has actually been dealing with while helping Roy. He’d been the one in contact with the team. He was the one fielding two dozen people wanting to know how Roy was doing. Jamie had kept his bosses in the loop and kept anyone from bothering Roy while he was recovering. Roy set his sandwich down and looked at Jamie.

“You alright?” Jamie asks, now studying Roy closely.

“I didn’t thank you,” Roy says bluntly. 

“For inviting you to get lunch where we both work?” Jamie asks.

“For fucking everything. For saving my life. For taking care of Phoebe. For dealing with these idiots,” Roy says, gesturing to the team members scattered around the tables of the canteen. “I’m a fucking prick for not thanking you sooner. So thank you, Jamie. For making sure I didn’t die because of a fucking smoothie.” 

“Don’t mention it,” Jamie says. 

“But I should. You didn’t have to do any of it. You could have just done nothing like most of the people there. The cafe workers barely did shit. You did it. And that’s not something I’m going to just write off. You saved my life. No one has to put on fucking suits and dress shoes for another funeral. You kept me alive. I owe you-”

“You don’t owe me shit, Roy,” Jamie says earnestly. “You’ve fucking seen me at my worst, and you didn’t hesitate to help me. Fucking hugged me, and you don’t hug anyone. You make sure I don’t fuck up and that I keep getting better. The fact you get up at fucking 3 a.m. so you can help me when you really don’t have to. You have done so fucking much for me, even when I used to be such a fucking prick. I can’t ever-”

“You’ve made me better too. You get that, right?” Roy says in all seriousness. “You challenge me the good way, always keeping me on my fucking toes. My sister and Phoebe think you bring out a fucking passion that I’d lost, that and Phoebe is fucking thrilled and keeps asking me if you’ll help her learn to ride a bike.” 

“Fuck yeah,” Jamie smiles. “If I could get your stubborn arse to do it, she’ll be a delight.”

“Guess I have to buy her a fucking bike now,” Roy grins.

“Fuck off,” Jamie laughs. “You’ll fucking love every minute of it.”  

“Fucking shops always upsell that shit,” Roy laments and goes back to eating, awkward feelings discussion seemingly over.”

Jamie ends up looking through bikes online and which shop to go to. Jamie doesn’t need to go with them, but he’s apparently going to. And Roy is oddly fine with the idea of Jamie joining them. To see Jamie and Phoebe doing mundane shit like he had that morning made Roy’s stomach flutter in a good way. 

Roy’s flat is too quiet. He wouldn’t have minded the quiet less than two days ago, but after having Jamie and Phoebe there to fill the space had been something he didn’t know he wanted. Even when Phoebe hadn’t been there, Jamie had. Even when he was just doing dishes, Jamie just had a way of filling the space, making it feel less empty. He would chat with Roy or just fucking exist, and that was enough to make it feel less lonely. And Roy couldn’t believe he was missing Jamie fucking Tartt. He might regret it, but he ends up texting Jamie and making plans for training the next morning. Because Jamie had missed one morning, and Roy was not going to be the reason Jamie slacked off. Jamie hadn’t argued. 

The next few days, Roy finds himself talking to and texting Jamie more than anyone else.

Keeley grins as she approaches Roy before their match against Brighton. 

“What?” Roy grunts. 

“How you feeling?” She asks.

“I’m fucking fine.” Roy is so tired of answering that question. He grunts and waves her off. 

“That’s good. How’s Jamie?” She grins.

“He’s fucking ready to fuck up Brighton,” Roy states. “How else would he be?”

“You tell me since you have been chatting him up,” Keeley studies his reaction. 

“Fuck off,” Roy glares at her. “I have not.” 

“So you haven’t been texting him for the past few days? Like actually texting him when you don’t need to.” Roy just grunts. “Admit it, Roy-o.” Keeley smiles. “You-”

Roy pulls her aside into his office and closes the door. 

“Whoa,” Keeley says, looking positively giddy. “You actually do have feelings for him, don’t you?” 

“Keeley, you can’t-”

“I won’t tell anyone, but you have to tell him,” Keeley insists. “Roy, he fucking adores you. Always has, but after that shit with his dad at Wembley.  And whatever happened in Amsterdam, he rarely talks about anyone else or anything. It's football, whatever PR I am helping him with, maybe his mum and you. I don't know how much he has told you, but that man fucking cried when he got home the other day. Like it was over 24 hours later, and it's like he finally could process everything. And the idea of losing you fucking hit him like a bus." 

"He did not tell me that," Roy says. 

"Of fucking course not. He probably thinks you'd think he's needy or too clingy."

"Fuck," Roy says as he sits down. He'd thought a lot about Jamie the last few days. But the idea that Jamie could feel the same way had never crossed his mind. Sure, Jamie said he cared for Roy. But they were mates now, and that was enough for Roy. Or it had been. "You really had to do this right before a fucking match," Roy says with a glare at Keeley.

"Sorry, not sorry," Keeley says and goes off to find Rebecca. 

They win because Jamie Tartt is a fucking mastermind on the pitch. Knows exactly where the ball needs to go and how to get it there. And Roy couldn't be more proud of him. As Roy makes his way out onto the pitch, he has the urge to fucking kiss the striker in front of a stadium full of fans. And that is a very fucking bad idea. So instead, he hugs Jamie and tells him he did fucking great. 

When the team makes it to the locker room, Jamie is flying high on the win and the fact Roy had actually smiled at him and hugged him. And Jamie doesn’t think his day can get better. But Roy drags him into the boot room, and before Jamie can say anything, Roy says he wants to kiss Jamie. Jamie just fucking nods, and then Roy fucking kisses him, and Jamie wonders if he is the one that almost died a few days ago because this has to be a dream because Roy has him backed against one of the shelves. One hand is in Jamie’s hair, and the other gripping his hip, and Jamie can only pull him closer and kiss him back. The door opens, and an amused Will walks in. Roy goes to pull away, but Jamie won't let him. 

“Don’t mind us, Mr. Kitman,” Jamie chuckles as he steps to the side and takes Roy by the wrist. Roy says nothing and refuses to make eye contact with Will as Jamie drags him out of the room. “Want to get out of here?” Jamie says lowly to Roy, looking up at him from under his lashes. And Roy answers him by gripping his face and kissing him again.

“Get your shit,” Roy says. “And get your arse in the fucking car.” Jamie fucking moans into Roy’s mouth when he kisses him one last time. Earning a few interesting looks from the nearest players, but no one says anything about it. No one gives them shit. And Roy can appreciate that. Jamie quickly gets out of his sweaty kit and shoves his jacket in his bag because fuck that. He’s in a hurry, and Roy is watching him with amusement because he is less than graceful as he hurries. They don’t say a word to anyone as they leave. They barely say anything until they are locked away in Roy’s flat. 

“You know the entire team will know by tonight, right?” Jamie says as he kicks off his shoes and tosses his bag near the wall. 

“Fuck ‘em,” Roy says as he takes his jacket off and tosses it aside. 

“Rather be the one fucked,” Jamie grins, and Roy growls. “That’s some articulate response there, coach. Didn’t quite get that, did you-” Roy cuts Jamie off with an aggressive kiss. It’s all passion and teeth as he bites Jamie’s lip. Jamie gives him what he wants and opens his mouth to him. Roy pins him to the wall and fucking explores Jamie as well as he can while they are both fully clothed in the fucking hallway. And as much as Jamie would happily let Roy fuck him against the wall in his entryway, he knows Roy’s knee is fucked, and he wants Roy to actually enjoy being with Jamie. So Jamie has to pull away. Roy growls when, again, Jamie slips out from between him and where Roy had him pinned. But his annoyance is gone when he looks over at Jamie. Jamie is already pulling his shirt over his head and heading down the hall. 

“You coming or what?” Jamie smirks as he tosses his shirt at Roy. Roy catches it and drops it on top of Jamie’s bag, and follows Jamie down the hall. He tugs his own shirt off as he reaches his bedroom and tosses it aside. Jamie’s trackies are gone. Roy can understand why Keeley went back to Jamie for a good time after they broke up because fucking hell, Jamie Tartt had to have been sculpted by a higher power. And Roy doesn’t hesitate. He’s on Jamie before the smug prick can make a joke about Roy eye fucking him. A breathless laugh is all Jamie manages as Roy gets Jamie in his bed. Jamie is less talkative in bed than Roy would have thought. Sure, he had a fucking dirty mouth, but Roy fucking loves the wordless noises that Jamie makes as Roy methodically takes him apart and fucking ruins Jamie Tartt. The way Jamie moans his name pushes Roy over the edge, and they both end up panting for breath side by side in Roy’s bed. But that has an unexpected reaction from Jamie. Roy had expected him to maybe be a cuddler. Jamie is on his side and looking down at Roy, studying him. And Roy realizes Jamie is a lot less relaxed than he was a second ago. 

“What?” Roy manages to ask. “What’s wrong?” And Roy is unnerved when Jamie just shakes his head lays down with his head on Roy’s chest. Jamie is silent. His ear was over Roy’s heart.

And Roy gets it. Roy had been trying to catch his breath. The last time Jamie heard him struggling to breathe was far less enjoyable for both of them. So he runs his fingers through Jamie’s hair silently. But he knows he has to say something when he hears Jamie sniffle. 

“It’s okay, I’m okay,” Roy says, wrapping his arms around Jamie to emphasize his point.   

"Sorry," Jamie mutters.

"Don't be," Roy says honestly. 

"That's the thing, I know you're fine, I really do." He shifts so he can see Roy. 

"Bit better than fine," Roy grins.

Jamie huffs a laugh, but it seems half-hearted.

"I know but-"

"But it is an impulsive reaction. No rationality to it. Just you hear it, and you can't help but react."

"Yeah, fucking annoying," Jamie laments. 

"It's fucking adorable," Roy says.

"Is not," Jamie says. "Me being stupid afraid is not adorable."11

"It's a trauma reaction, Jamie," Roy tells him. "PTSD shit. You can't predict what triggers that shit. You know that. I think it's adorable because it means even when you aren't worried about what is going on, part of your brain is still making sure I'm not dying."

"Well, it doesn't feel adorable," Jamie sighs. Move until he can tuck his head into Roy's neck. Roy holds him close. 

"I'm sure it doesn't," Roy agrees. "But we can work on it. If it's trauma-based, then it'll get better in time."

"Except it could fucking happen again," Jamie points out.

"And we'll fucking deal with it again if it does."

"Roy," Jamie moves to get up. And Roy lets him because he knows Jamie does not do well if he can't move. 

"Jamie," Roy says back, and it somehow sounds like a challenge, and Jamie doesn't know what to say now. Roy shakes his head and disappears into his bathroom. He tosses something Jamie catches on muscle memory alone. Jamie looks down, and it's another EpiPen. 

"There, and there's a new one in the glove box, and Gayle got two more for Nelson Road. They already have them for public first aid. One is in my desk, and the other is in the treatment room now too. Does that make you feel better?" 

"It does a bit," Jamie says. 

"Just a bit?" 

"Means you took what I said seriously," Jamie says.

"Of fucking course I did," Roy says as he starts to put on a pair of pants. "Did you think I would just shrug it off?"

"Maybe," Jamie says as he gets partially dressed. 

"Well, I didn't because it fucking sucked for me but also for you and Phoebe. And the team." 

"You also could have fucking died," Jamie says flatly, and Roy goes over to him and pulls him close. 

"But I didn't because of you. And I'll try and make sure it won't happen again. Can't fucking guarantee anything, but I will try because I don't want any of you to worry."

"I'm going to worry, just like you do," Jamie says. "Because I care."

"And it blows my fucking mind you do," Roy admits. 

"Fuck it," Jamie says and drags Roy towards the ensuite. "We're going to shower, then getting food, and then get fucking dirty again." 

"Sounds good to me."

[faramirsonofgondor]

Ted Lasso Thoughts: Jamie & Apologies

I haven’t seen a lot of people talk about this but can I just say that even though Jamie was like a total fucking prick in season 1, he honestly didn’t deserve a lot of the treatment he got from the team, especially in season 3. It was honestly kind of a toxic work environment for him because I don’t think he thought he was allowed to set boundaries with other people and express his emotions completely. Like obviously he spent some of his time in therapy learning how to express how he felt with his father and how to set boundaries with him specifically, but I don’t think he ever really learnt how to do that with the team and everyone else in his life (Ted, Roy, Keeley, etc.) Also, I don’t see many people bringing this up either but it grates my nerves so badly in season 3 when Jamie brings up his concerns about Zava and they’re all just like “well, you’re being hypocritical.” But he’s not. Because he fixed his behavior. It’s honestly so unfair for them to constantly throw his old behavior back in his face when they’ve already “forgiven” him. If they actually forgave him, they wouldn’t feel the need to constantly bring it up. The team and the coaches’ opinion of him is very clearly important to him and how he reacts to others. When Isaac and everyone got mad he wasn’t scoring goals in 3x07, he makes this face like he’s a bit hurt and he disagrees with what they’re saying, but he never responds to that. However, if Jamie had acted that way to any of them….

I know Ted was really trying to help and give Jamie a second chance when he invited him back to Richmond, but he definitely needed to clear things up with him because it seems like Jamie is just letting everyone walk all over him? Like he may not be bothered with their behavior, but I honestly think that deep down he doesn’t think he’s allowed to be, which is such a fucked up notion. Just because you were an asshole before doesn’t give everyone else around you the right to be an asshole to you and only you later on. Like I really can’t find any instances of the team or coaches getting rude or aggressive like they do with Jamie, besides maybe when everyone tells Jan Maas to shut up.

I just really hate the way they handled this, especially considering Jamie is a survivor of abuse and likely has a hard time even recognizing toxic behavior, letting alone standing up for himself. Like they could have at least had one person acknowledge that Jamie didn’t deserve to get constantly yelled at (by Roy, by Ted, by his father, by his team mates). I’m not saying what happened between Isaac and Jamie was a common occurrence but the fact that nobody said anything? Along with the fact that nobody apologized or checked in on Jamie after the whole Zava ordeal?

I 100% mean it when I say that Jamie deserves an apology from almost everyone in the show. Did Jamie fuck up sometimes? Yes. Did he constantly over apologize for it? Yes. Did anyone apologize to him? Maybe a couple of times. But I can list at least 10 things off the top of my head that no one addressed or apologized for:

1) Keeley & Roy never apologized (at least on screen) for what they said at the charity auction.

2) Ted never apologized or addressed walking away from Jamie when his father was abusing him.

3) Rebecca never apologized to Jamie for getting rid of him with no reason or warning (the least she could’ve done was tell Jamie she was the one who did it)

4) The team (Isaac specifically) never apologized for blaming Jamie for their relegation when he literally did his job? He wasn’t even the one who scored the goal? And some of the shit they were mad about was super fucking petty too? Like Richard being super upset that Jamie cupped a fart and put it in his face but that’s literally just peak sibling behavior tbh, not really “bullying”.

5) Ted, Beard, and Nate never really addressed or apologized to Jamie for not stepping in when Jamie was getting shit on when he came back? Like instead of telling the team to knock it off, he just does his Led Tasso thing? Which might’ve helped but it didn’t really address how they were treating Jamie?

6) Roy never apologized for not coaching Jamie and acting immaturely. Like that whole humiliation thing was so weird and uncomfortable. I know a lot of people play off as some kinky thing, and maybe it was partially, but it’s also really shitty of Roy to that, especially considering the power imbalance between them. Like, Jamie was genuinely trying receive feedback and instruction from someone who’s meant to his boss/coach, and Roy uses his power to humiliate Jamie, knowing that Jamie was actually just looking for help, and then he refuses to actually give Jamie any feedback. Like he does eventually, when Ted steps in (for once), but he’s still kind of vague and insulting when he does it. And he never acknowledges what he does?

7) Roy never actually addresses the fact that he “forgave” Jamie during 2x11. This isn’t actually that big of a “Jamie deserves an apology” situation. But I think it Roy should’ve at least told Jamie he was forgiven. Like he just yelled “Fuck!” and left him? Idk I just think it would’ve been nice for Roy to actually talk to him and not leave him floundering for understanding.

8) The coaches never apologized to Jamie for ignoring his concerns about Zava and calling a hypocrite. I’ve already talked about this earlier so I’m not really gonna elaborate. But I also think they should’ve stepped in after Zava stole Jamie’s goal ( like actually addressed it, not have Roy do some half praise/half insult invite to private training)

9) Ted never apologized for the shitty unsolicited advice he keeps giving Jamie about his dad! Please for the love of fuck Ted, just be quiet on this matter. I’m not even going to in depth on this one cause it speaks for itself.

10) James Tartt Sr. never once apologized for all the fucked up, monstrous, evil, god-awful shit he did to Jamie. This man committed every single type of abuse (emotional, physical, mental, sexual). And while it’s EXTREMELY unrealistic for him to apologize to Jamie for any this, they should not have even considered having Jamie forgive his father if he wasn’t going to apologize in the first place.

Anyways, Jamie deserved better and I will be forever mad that he did not get all the apologies he deserved.

**Also I would like to say that this isn’t me criticizing the characters themselves, but their actions and behaviors. I don’t think that these are necessarily toxic people (besides Jamie’s dad and Zava), but that they just have some toxic behaviors, which has led to an unhealthy dynamic between themselves and Jamie. There are plenty of moments when the characters (mainly Roy) notice their behavior towards Jamie and correct it or acknowledge it, but there are also MANY MANY moments where they don’t. There are also times where Jamie seems very uncomfortable or upset but doesn’t say anything (which can be attributed to the unhealthy dynamic between himself and others due to the fact that he doesn’t think he has the right to point out other peoples flaws or the ways they’ve hurt and are hurting him)

[moon0fairy]

Ted Lasso 3x06 commentary !!!!!

• very sad atmosphere oh boii ok so we‘re already in Amsterdam

• Jan Maas speaking dutch!!

• „this is a pretend conversation. You‘re a pretend person with a pretend job. And I‘m having a really hard time pretending to give a shit.“ and Jan‘s smile hsksks

• NIGHT OUT IN AMSTERDAM

• JACK AND KEELEY FLYING TO NORWAY TO SEE THE NORTHERN LIGHTS DAMN SAPPHICS REALLY DO MOVE FAST

• uhhh damn Rebecca that was subtle commentary to Roy👀

• „no curfew tonight“ and Beards eyes getting subtly bigger

• Dani I love you

• Roy is in a biig mood

• JAMIE KNOWS HIS HISTORY FACTS (someone has energy)

• not Rebecca going on the bike side of the road (i don‘t know the right term in english)

• well damn ….

• bike lane thank you unknown man

• Ted texting Rebecca but she lost her phone so he spends the whole night with Trent instead-

• „you know I wanna try something new“ like going to a gay bar-

• TRENT CRIMM I SAW YOU

• Trent I would go to every museum with you

• higgins don‘t say that

• Jan suggesting a club with a lot of women and Colins saying immediately afterwards that he can’t make it and Trent looking up (I‘m in pain)

• sipping his tea because he knows the tea👀

• that boat house looks very comfy (funf fact: I actually always dreamt about living on a boat like this)

• ohhhh we‘re getting Ted high??

• Get Dani his tulips🥺🥺🥺

• Colin sneaking out👀

• THE LEOPARD SHOES, Detective Trent mode activated

• He seems nice and I feel like they stray away more and more from Ted and Rebecca idea as a couple

• Ted, if you don‘t want that… I mean I could… I would drink it for you

•. Colin storyline here we go

• Trent showing up behind him I‘m gonna pass out

• nooo Colin🥺🥺🥺

• oop-

• Roy doesn‘t know how to ride a bike either?????

• damn Roy that was a lot opening up

• we really thought we‘re getting a romantic „Ted teaching Trent how to ride a bike“ but we‘re getting Roy and Jamie instead-?

• Trent coming out story I can‘t believe this is actually happening omg

• trying not to tear up challenge failed

• „ I used my Holmesian powers of journalistic deduction“

• Ted going to a Van gogh exhibition oh no more tears incoming (apparently for Ted too)

• oh no they‘re still arguing over food?😭😭

• Isaac is going through it

• Jamie opening up too and Roy apologizing to him

• not the American bar😭 (homesickness? Foreshadowing that he will go to america again in the end?)

• oh no the tea is kicking in

• love the triangle history

• pillow fight in the lobby, Trent and Colin enjoying the gay club, Roy and Jamie seeing a windmill, this is amazing

• That foot massage was uhm, no comment (good for you Rebecca)

• Beard apparently had a good night🥴

• oh so he experienced a placebo effect

• Triangles to try angels jdksks

• Coling touching Trents arm oh they‘re besties now 🥺

10/10 episode no further comment needed