Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Dusk was gathering under the trees as the last glance of sunlight faded from the sky. The air was getting chilly, filled with the fresh scents of spring. (Y/N)'s shoes thudded over the concrete, always in a hurry, regardless of how much time she had on her hands. God, this city could look so nice during the day and so scary after dark. Especially this park. But it was a shortcut, at least by five minutes, so (Y/N) clenched her bag and kept a straight face as she hurried through and out to the streets again.

She was headed for the local Walmart to get some snacks. Going a whole day without eating sucked and she usually didn't mistreat her body this way so now her cells were craving every sweet thing in existence.

(Y/N) walked inside with a sigh of relief. Instead of heading directly to the snack aisles, she got occupied by the CD selection. Was it awful to buy CDs at Walmart when there were so many amazing music stores around LA? Maybe. Whatever. She inspected the Metallica 'Kill 'Em All' CD, tracing a finger over the red blood on the cover. She didn't own it yet for some reason, this particular album, so hell, why not. It was on sale anyways.

(Y/N) yawned and turned around to continue her journey through Walmart. She looked down at her phone, checking Instagram as she turned the corner of an aisle and bumped into someone.

"Ahh!" She let out a loud yelp and flinched backwards.

"Whoa--" The guy looked equally surprised. "Am I really that scary?" He asked with an awkward chuckle.

(Y/N) blinked a couple of times. Hang on, he sort of was. The guy had black hair and piercings-- let me rephrase that. The guy was emo. Like, textbook emo. And had the bluest eyes she'd ever seen. She cleared her throat when she realized she'd been quiet for a second too long. "Jesus, man, I'm sorry. I'm so easily startled. I was looking at my phone. My bad."

"No, I'm sorry for startling you." The man's eyes flickered from (Y/N) to the CD that lied on the floor. He reached down to grab it and hand it back. "Sorry." He said again.

"I'm sorry." (Y/N) apologized back, just as awkward as him. "Thanks." She said as she received the CD back.

".... Metallica, huh?" He said after pausing a beat.

"Yeaaah." (Y/N) nodded. "Walmart has a serious collection, you know? It was on sale and everything so I was like, 'why not'."

"Cool, cool. Good album."

(Y/N) cleared her throat again. "Yeah. Anyways. Sorry again." She said before she padded past him, hugging the CD against her chest. Gosh, she felt stupid. Jesus Christ. Bumping into a dude and dropping something and having him pick it up. What a fucking Wattpad moment, huh? She groaned as she darted through the aisles, quickly picked out some snacks and payed for the stuff before she went outside into the fresh night air again.

Los Angeles was still pretty new. (Y/N) moved there to study just a few months ago, settling into a new apartment and getting to know the ways around the big city. She'd managed to make friends pretty fast and she'd always been good at adapting. She worked as a barista, basic and simple, and had some fun coworkers there that made it easier during stressful shifts.

It was completely dark by the time she got back to hers. She jogged up the stairs to the fifth floor and unlocked her door, ready to eat and sleep.

~~

"Brooke, you'll be the only one I know there."

"(Y/N), you get so extroverted when you're drunk, it's not gonna be an issue." The blonde girl gave her friend an affirmative smile. "Besides, who wouldn't want to talk to you."

"Maybe not jealous LA girls." Ayanna interrupted, finishing off her lip gloss, staring at her reflection in the Uni bathroom mirror.

"Stop it, Ayanna. They're all cool." Brooke hissed before turning back to (Y/N) with a polite smile on her face again. "It's gonna be fun."

LA house party with a bunch of random people this Friday. Whoo, exciting. Well. It could be. (Y/N) was just pretty tired from studying and working, but she was free this Saturday, so she could deal with a hangover.

"I can come over at like, 6 or 7PM and we can pregame and do our makeup. Alright?"

"Ahh, I'm so jealous." Ayanna sighed. "My mom won't get me off the hook for this stupid family trip. I don't want to miss out on all the fun with you guys."

~~

Wednesday went to Thursday, and Thursday to Friday.

Brooke came around 7.30 and the girls opened up a bottle of wine and started getting ready together, bumping some random 'Girl's Night'-playlist on Spotify while chatting and laughing. Brooke and (Y/N) had clicked instantly. She was a genuine girl with a big heart, like, the kind that are very rare to find. They had the same morals and silly humour.

"I saw a Pinterest outfit that inspired me." (Y/N) explained.

"You're so real for that."

"Or at least inspired the vibe, sort of." She made a little twirl, showing off a pair of jeans with a cute shirt and jewelry and accessories that would tie it together.

"Girl, you're the prettiest woman I know." Brooke's eyes weren't lying, they stared at her in awe.

"Brooke, you're the prettiest woman I know." (Y/N) replied. i love girlhood

(Y/N) and Brooke called an uber around 9.40PM. It was a fifteen minute drive to the Hollywood Hills area, up the canyon neighborhood to a nice two storey house with a gate.

"Wow, who lives here?"

"His name is Jayden. He's super chill." Brooke explained as she blipped in a code and the gate unlocked for them to slip inside. They walked up the gravel path and adrenaline from loud music and cheering voices started to pump through their veins.

It wasn't supposed to be a huge party, yet it seemed like there were a lot of people there. (Y/N) followed Brooke inside, stopping every now and then for Brooke to greet friends and introduce (Y/N) to the new faces. The wine from earlier made it a bit less awkward than how it could've felt, and (Y/N) was happy to be taken to the kitchen for another drink.

"Wow, hi, I'm Eric. What's your name?" A guy's gaze was locked on (Y/N), reaching a hand out.

"Hi." She replied and shook his hand. "I'm (Y/N). Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you! (Y/N), that's a pretty name." He had a big toothy grin on his face. Dude didn't look half-bad, maybe just wasn't (Y/N)'s type, but she always liked to make friends.

"So--" She was about to continue a friendly conversation when Brooke yanked her arm.

"Here ya go." She said, offering her a drink.

(Y/N) smiled. "Thanks, Brooke."

"Let's go. I gotta introduce you to someone else." Brooke lead the way through the house, saying hi to others she knew until they found the person she was looking for. It was a nice girl their age and they hit it off well, chatting for a while and exchanging socials.

The night went on with more drinks and fun people until (Y/N) headed out a balcony for a smoke. She opened the glass door to see another person already there, doing what she had in mind. He looked over his shoulder to see who just came through the door.

"Hii." (Y/N) said.

"Hey, you." He replied. It was an alternative looking dude, like many of the people here. He had a dark brown mullet-like haircut and a nose ring on the same side nostril as (Y/N).

(Y/N) picked up a cigarette, put it in her mouth and patted herself down for a lighter. Hang on. She went over her pockets again, a little bit more rigorously.

"Need a light?" The man suddenly asked, hand stretching out to her, flicking the light repeatedly in her face.

She snorted and nodded, leaned forward for the cigarette tip to reach. She took a deep breath. "Thanks, dude. What's your name?"

"It's Jake. You?" He asked.

"(Y/N)."

"Nice to meet ya, (Y/N)." 'Jake' said with a little smile.

"Nice to meet you, too." (Y/N) leaned on the balcony fence, exhaling a big cloud of smoke as she glanced down on the view. It was nice, out over the hillside with LA ahead, the pretty lights glowing. "Are you having fun tonight, Jake?"

"I am." He said, also leaning on the fence. "There are a lot of people here. All kinds of different people. It's a good vibe, you know?"

"Definitely. Mixing all sorts of people." (Y/N) agreed. "You from LA?"

"Yes. Or-- no, I mean, I live here now, but I'm from a small town in Kansas, originally."

"Kansas, huh?" (Y/N) nodded. "I'm from (whatever city/country) but I moved here a couple months ago to study and uh, see the scene, I suppose."

"That's awesome. Do you like it?"

"So far, absolutely. It's crazy fun." (Y/N) nodded. "Bunch of cool people and cool places."

Jake nodded, taking another drag from his cigarette. "Totally agree. I live here with my best friend now. Like, a fifteen minute drive from here."

"Hey, I also live about fifteen minutes away from here." (Y/N) looked back at Jake, the glowing amber tip lighting up his face ever so slightly. "In a little flat. Alone." She added. "I'm studying psychology and sociology."

"Wow, you're smart, huh?"

"I wouldn't go that far." She joked and he chuckled. "What do you do?"

"I'm a typical LA guy." He said, flashing his eyebrows. "I do music and Youtube."

"Alright, sick." (Y/N) tossed her cigarette in the ashtray, and Jake did the same.

"Nothing requiring brains, with other words." He joked.

"Pfft." (Y/N) giggled. "You kidding me? I can't believe how creative and innovative you've gotta be to do that sort of stuff." They headed for the door, walking back inside again. "I could never."

Jake chuckled, following tightly behind, not really ready to lose her in the crowd. "Ah, shush." He brushed the compliment off. "School sucked. I'm not stupid-- believe it or not, I just found my call in life with Vine back when it was still up and going."

"Ohh, Vine." (Y/N) giggled and smiled over her shoulder. "You do you. It's really impressive how people come up with new creative content. Y'all gotta be clever."

"Thanks." He said, following her through the living room down the stairs. "Where you going?"

"I was gonna find my friend." She stopped, realizing that she'd just gotten a new tail.

"What's their name?"

"Brooke. Brooke Parker?"

"Hm, don't think I know her."

"Oh, she's my best friend, a lovely girl." (Y/N) explained, walking again. "Wanna say hi to her?"

"Sure, yeah." Jake said.

"I'm pretty sure she's--..." (Y/N) stopped in her tracks as her gaze landed on Brooke in a sofa cuddled up with this guy she had talked to earlier. "There."

Jake peeped beside her. "Oooh." He realized.

"Well, I'm not gonna interrupt that." (Y/N) decided.

"Better not, haha. Uh... Want another drink?" He suggested.

"That sounds good."

Jake nodded and this time he lead the way over to the kitchen. He grabbed two plastic cups and looked at the options of alcohol. "What do you want?"

"Ohh. Whiskey maybe."

"Good choice." He said and picked the bottle up to pour it into their cups. "Want to mix it with something?"

"Drinking it straight sort of gives you a rockstar vibe, doesn't it?" (Y/N) joked.

Jake chuckled. "That's what I'm saying." He gave her the cup.

"Thanks." She took a sip, resisting the urge to show any emotion or wrinkle her nose.

"Yummy." Jake wiped his mouth and they both giggled.

"You seem cool. Tell me more about yourself." (Y/N) said.

And he did, not too detailed, he just mentioned his siblings and parents, that he also liked music and that LA was a fun experience. This was a person (Y/N) could definitely imagine being friends with; he was funny and chill.

Suddenly someone tapped her shoulder and she turned to see one of the girls she'd been introduced to earlier. "(Y/N)!! Come here, I gotta show you this!" She pulled (Y/N) by her waist, and (Y/N) gave Jake an awkward wave goodbye before she disappeared into the crowd of people.

She sort of regretted not getting his Snap once an hour had passed without seeing the guy again. (Y/N) looked at her phone. The screen read 1.17AM. Really, already? She scoffed and turned her phone off again, looking up at the girls she was chilling with. The last drink she had was the whiskey from earlier so it was about time to get a new one. (Y/N) excused herself from the girls to do so, going over to the kitchen to grab a beer can from the fridge.

She headed out of the kitchen and right when she was about to turn the corner, she collided into some dude. They staggered backwards, beer spilling out over (Y/N)'s shirt, making her yelp and gasp from the cold liquid sinking through the fabric to her bare belly.

"Holy shit, I'm so--" The guy stopped mid sentence and (Y/N) looked up to see a familiar face. The emo from Walmart!!

"Again?" She said with a playful smile.

"I'm so, so sorry." He didn't return the smile, just looked rather stressed without a hint of comedy. "Shit."

"It's fine, don't worry." (Y/N) promised.

"No, come here." The guy said, motioning with a hand for her to follow, which she did, though a bit reluctantly. He opened the door to a bathroom and went to grab a bunch of paper in his hands.

"Look, dude, it's fine." (Y/N) giggled, putting her hands up in the air. "It's fine, I swear."

He groaned, feeling so utterly stupid.

(Y/N) only giggled with a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders. "I'm fucking soaked, dude. There's no use in trying to... wipe it off. I was about to call it a night anyways."

"What time is it?"

"Almost 1.30 I think. Not too late. You seem to have a good party going on, though." She said, referring to the guy's drunken state.

The guy smiled awkwardly. "Once again, sorry. If it leaves a stain, just, give me a call and I'll pay it for you."

"If you wanted my number you could've just asked." (Y/N) joked.

The guy once again gave an awkward forced chuckle. "I'm Johnnie." He introduced himself.

"(Y/N)." She offered another smile. "Anyways. The beer will probably go away with a wash. Don't stress it, Johnnie."

"Hm. Beer?" He said, raising an eyebrow.

"What." (Y/N) lifted a challenging eyebrow back.

"That's gross."

"Gross?" She scoffed.

"Kinda did you a favor there, spilling it out."

"Pffttt." She snorted. "Shut up. Beer's good. You're just not old enough to appreciate it."

Johnnie snickered. "26 years young."

"Some people mature late in life." (Y/N) replied. "It says a lot about a person, what their drink of choice is."

"Yeah. Fuck Zodiac signs, what's your beer of choice?"

(Y/N) stiftled another giggle, happy that he was easing up a bit. "Are you into that sort of stuff? Zodiac signs?"

"Not really. It's a bit fun though."

"What are you?"

"I'm a Virgo."

"Virgin? That's not what I asked." She said, adding a dramatic scoff of distaste.

"Wait-"

"Just kidding, just kidding." She assured him. "You look like one."

"... Like a Virgo or a Virgin?" He asked, an amused smile on his face.

She smacked her lips. "Both, I'd say." Then she shook her head immediately. "I'm just kidding. I'm sorry. I meant like a Virgo." He laughed along.

"So you think Virgos usually look like emos?"

(Y/N) nodded and they both instantly snickered again. "No, I have no idea what Virgos usually look like. All I know is that my mom's one and she's a--... Never mind."

"I feel like you're judging me based off of my Zodiac sign." Johnnie said and they laughed again.

"I like your style. It's sick." (Y/N) admitted, tugging at her wet shirt. "I do want to get home and get changed though."

Johnnie nodded. "Understandable." He said and they stepped out of the bathroom and went for the main entrance of the house, (Y/N) ordering an Uber on the way.

"You seem like an interesting person. Funny." (Y/N) said as she put on her coat. "Maybe--"

"Johnnieeeee!!!!!" A voice yelled, cutting their conversation off. It was the guy from earlier, Jake! "Johnnie, I've been looking for you for the past thirty minutes. What have you been up to-- (Y/N)!! I've looked for you, too!"

"You met already?" Johnnie asked.

"Yes, we smoked together." Jake wore a huge smile. "She's my new friend. But I lost you!!"

"But now we're reunited." (Y/N) said, a bit sarcastic. "So, you two are friends?"

"Yes, he's the one I live with." Jake explained. "You guys-- what happened to your shirt, (Y/N)?"

(Y/N) snorted, looked at Johnnie, and then back to Jake. "Your friend seems to have a habit of bumping into people. Second time this week." She explained.

Suddenly Jake's jaw dropped and he turned to Johnnie. "Wait, is this the Metallica chick?" He gasped.

(Y/N) frowned in confusion while Johnnie's eyebrows rose to the top of his head, disappearing behind his bangs. "Jake--"

"Holy shit, dude, you were right; she's gorgeous! I thought maybe you made it up or something." Jake turned back to her. "Johnnie bumped into you at the store the other day, right?"

(Y/N) snorted, confused but somewhat amused, "Yeah."

"Wooow. What are the odds of meeting again?"

"Must be faith, huh?" (Y/N) joked with a little roll of her eyes. "My uber's waiting for me, guys. I need to go. But it was really nice to meet you."

"Wait, hang on, your Snap. Or number. Something." Jake stopped her, waving his phone in the air. "Type your number in. If you want to, I mean."

"Course." She smiled and went on to do so before leaving the party.

 

i dont know man

Chapter Text

(Y/N) dug her head deeper into her pillow, trying to ignore the buzzing of her phone next to the bed, but to no use. She gave in with a loud groan and looked at the screen. Brooke.

"Hi."

"Good morning! How are we feeling today?"

"You just woke me up, so, right now? Not too good."

"Heheh. Sorry. It's 11AM."

"On a Saturday."

"Wanna grab lunch? Talk about yesterday?"

"Just give me an hour to wake up and shower." (Y/N) spent a couple more minutes mentally preparing before she climbed out of bed and into the shower, recalling the chronological order of yesterday's events. Lots of nice people and cute faces.

She and Brooke met up at a fast food restaurant and sat there for two hours chatting and eating. Brooke had gone home with the dude she was getting cozy with, and it wasn't the first time. Call it a situationship if you will, but (Y/N) would rather categorize it as two people about to enter a real relationship and still being a little scared to put a label on it.

~~

Johnnie stretched out in the bed. He blinked his eyes open before he slowly scrambled himself up into a sitting position. The little wet spot on the sheets where his head had lied made him wipe a hand over his mouth, sticky saliva stuck to his cheek. Ew. He cringed and looked over at his phone. 2.34PM. Apparently he hadn't even bothered to take his jeans off when he and Jake came home last night, cause he was still wearing yesterday's outfit. Time to resume life.

The room was dark because of his drawn curtains. Johnnie slowly rose out of bed and into his bathroom and shower, rubbing off what was left of his makeup and that wasn't much, probably cause he'd been sleeping on his face. When did they leave? Hm. Sometime after 2. The party went on until 5AM but they got tired and honestly a bit bored. Not that Jayden or the rest of the people there weren't great-- they were. But eh. Got a bit boring.

Johnnie got into some comfortable clothes and walked into the kitchen where Jake was sat with his phone. "Mornin', Johnnie. Finally awake and ready to start your day, at... 3PM?"

"Fuck off."

"I want to order takeout so badly but I've been waiting for you to wake up. What do you want to eat?"

"I'm not very hungry. I might throw up."

Jake rolled his eyes. "Come on, dude. You'll want mine if you don't order your own."

"No, I won't."

"I waited all this time for you to wake up just for you to say no? Pfft, no way, dude. I'm ordering for you then." Jake decided and went on to do so.

Johnnie sat quietly in the chair next to him scrolling through Instagram, trying to ignore his headache.

"How long do I have to wait until I can call (Y/N) up?"

"Huh?" Johnnie didn't look up from his phone.

"The girl from yesterday. I want to hang out with her but I think it's too early. Right? It's weird."

"Besides, everyone's probably tired and hungover."

Jake nodded. "I could like, ask if she wants to grab food with us tomorrow."

"I guess."

"Or is it too early?"

"Stop worrying about it being too early, Jake."

"But it's sort of weird."

"Maybe text her."

"You should."

"Me?"

Jake nodded. "You're the one that bumped into her first. It's only fair."

"I don't mind at all. You go ahead and do it."

~~

When (Y/N) moved to LA she thought she'd meet an interesting boy in no time. The city was gigantic and that meant a gigantic amount of people, too. Even 3,849 million, to be exact. However, no one had truly caught her attention just yet. She wasn't sure if she had a type, it was more about the vibe, and she had met several different vibes here so far. Surfer dudes, skaters, funny guys, frat guys, band guys... LA had them all, but not a single decent man, apparently.

It was always something that rubbed her the wrong way. Maybe their ego was too big, boys are usually pretty selfish without being aware of it. That was a common irk, too; no self awareness. Bad boring humour. Disrespectful to women. And so on. It's not like (Y/N) thought that she herself was perfect without an irk or annoying habit, but she was sure about who she was and what she stood for. And she wouldn't waste her time laughing at unfunny jokes or trying to find an alright photo to show her friends without having to explain that he looks better in reality even if he didn't. And (Y/N) didn't have a need to date someone. In fact, she liked being alone. It was just tiring to share a place with someone or spend so much time together. Plus, she had amazing friends who helped set the bar high.

She wouldn't go out on dating apps or actively search for someone. If (Y/N) was gonna fall in love, it was going to be natural; like something out of a movie. With someone who'd be her bestfriend. And that would happen when the universe thought it was right or whatever. Boyfriends or girlfriends weren't an issue in (Y/N)'s life, cause she was sure she didn't need one. She wasn't looking.

Today was Sunday and the weather fit the stereotype. Rainy, dull and gray.

"A Caramel Frappuccino for you." (Y/N) gave a polite smile to the customer on the other side of the counter without getting anything in return, not even eye contact. She sighed audibly. Maybe the person was shy, maybe they just didn't give a fuck about manners. Regardless, it was nice to get a smile, at least.

"What're you doing this Tuesday?"

(Y/N) turned her head to look at her coworker, Kevin. He was a few years older than her with blonde curly hair and big brown eyes. He was cute, sure, but he was a pain in the ass. "I'm probably busy studying."

"You sure you can't take the night off? No one forces you to study during the night."

"You just say that cause you never got past freshman year of high school. You don't know what it's like to go to university, Kevin." (Y/N) replied as she wiped the counter with a blue cloth and Kevin let out an amused snort. "I am, in fact, forced to study 'during the night'."

"Yeah, right, whatever you say, sprinkles."

"I-"

"I would suggest you skip study club on Tuesday and spend the night with me instead."

"Excuse me-"

"I am going to Lancaster with my pal."

"What is there to do in Lancaster." It was more of a statement rather than a question.

"You won't know until you get there." Kevin wiggled his eyebrows as he watched her clean.

(Y/N) let out a scoff. "That is not tempting at all, Kev." She declared, "I don't want to know what mischief you and your bestie are up to. Besides--" A familiar jangle of the door bell caught her attention. Two middle-aged women walked inside the coffee shop chattering. "On you." She said and Kevin let out a loud groan.

"It's a scavenger hunt." Kevin explained.

"A scavenger--" (Y/N) covered her mouth to stiftle a giggle.

"Oh, shut it. The prizes are really cool." Kevin whispered before he took the womens' orders.

Right. Sit in a car with Kev for what, over an hour, to go on a fucking scavenger hunt with him and his friend? What even was a scavenger hunt? Never mind. She really didn't want to know. (Y/N) yawned and looked at her phone. Only twenty minutes left of her shift.

"Where were we?" Kev interrupted her peace of mind again.

"At that part where the conversation was about to end. So, you know..."

"You're so bitchy today."

(Y/N) scoffed. "Bitchy? It's called 'take a hint', Kevin." She explained.

"Are you working on Wednesday?"

(Y/N) sighed but nodded. "Between 2.30 and 7PM."

"Dang it. I have my shift between 8AM and 1."

"That's because you don't go to uni."

"Shut it with the uni boasting. I know you're a smart girl. That's why I need you for the scavenger hunt. I think..." Kevin's yapping blended out with the store music as (Y/N)'s focus shifted to something else, to the phone in her hand, and the text on the screen.

'Hi! I'm Jake from the party. If you remember me. I wanted to ask if you'd like to hang out with me and grab a bite. I've been dying for some Domino's if you're up for it.'

(Y/N) narrowed her eyes and thought for a moment before she saved the contact as 'Jake from the party' and decided to reply.

'hi Jake! that sounds great. when and where? :)'

She sucked at choosing stuff. Absolutely hated it. So she thought she'd force him the responsibility of choosing place and time, since he was the one initiating a meetup. He'd already chosen Domino's so. (Y/N) hadn't really thought about Jake since Friday. She assumed Jake was a friendly extrovert who probably talked to everyone, and that she wasn't anyone special that night. Apparently he wanted to hang though. And she definitely did, too.

"(Y/N)? You listening?"

"What?" She looked up from the phone to Kev when the door bell did a little jingle again. "On you." She said.

"Again?"

The phone buzzed in her hand and she looked down at the screen.

'Great! You know there's a Domino's above Koreatown and Wilshire Center. Is that close to you?'

"(Y/N), more customers in coming, I need you." Kev interrupted.

(Y/N) went on to deal with them before she replied to Jake. 'Yeah, it's not too far.'

'I could pick you up if you'd like or we can meet up there in an hour'

They agreed to meet up, and (Y/N) counted the minutes until her shift was over so that she could get home and shower and get dressed before she took her own car to the pizza place.

Jake was excited. He was happy she said yes, cause first of all she was really pretty, and honestly, she looked like a busy lady at that party. People greeting her and literally yanking her away from him.

Johnnie was not about to join today. He'd preferably stay at home though Jake tried to somewhat force him with, saying that they both obviously wanted to get to know this person. And he wasn't completely wrong; Johnnie was sort of interested in the girl he'd bumped into, but he wasn't that interested.

Jake entered the Domino's and scanned the building with his eyes, realizing she wasn't there yet. So he sat down at a table to wait, looking down at his phone when someone sat down opposite to him.

"Hi." It was the familiar face of (Y/N).

"Hi!" Jake smiled back.

"Have you been waiting, or...?"

"Not at all. I literally just got here." Jake assured her.

"Ah, good."

"Maybe Domino's wasn't super classy but fuck, I've wanted pizza this whole week. Yesterday we had some Popeyes, like, real good hangover food."

"Ooh, nice. Me and my friend Brooke went out and got some food too." (Y/N) replied, sitting straight in her chair. "Debriefed the night's events."

"Hehe. Did she go home with the guy? Oh, or maybe that's not my place, to... uh, ask... I didn't mean-" Jake's smile disappeared, fearing he had said the wrong thing.

(Y/N) cut him off with a giggle. "Don't worry. Yeah, it's not the first time. They're a thing, sort of. Did you guys have fun after I left?"

"Meh." He shrugged. "We left shortly after, too."

The two got up to order their food and then settled down at the same table again. They hit it off well, chatting on without any awkward silences and bouncing off each other really good.

"To be fair I also thought that, first. I mean, it makes sense with the name, doesn't it?" (Y/N) swallowed another (now cold) bite.

Jake snickered in reply with a shrug. "I guess so. But it was still hilarious though." He sipped on his straw. "Aaanyways. You seen this-- Look." He picked up his phone to show a picture of a news article. "Dude. I literally thought we were over this."

"Whoa. They for real?"

"Apparently! It's hard to believe!"

"You shouldn't get surprised anymore yet you still do." (Y/N) shook her head as she chewed on her pizza.

"Aw, dude, it's already been over an hour." Jake realized.

"It's getting late." (Y/N) agreed. "This was super nice though."

"I've had so much fun." Jake smiled.

~~

A few days passed. (Y/N) and Jake kept contact over text messages. It was kinda weird that they hadn't exchanged any other socials, but hey, LA was a weird place and people had their reasons.

It was Wednesday and (Y/N) had two hours left of her 5 hour shift at the coffee shop. Wednesday afternoon was always busy with people coming in and out all the time. (Y/N) was leaning over a table to wipe it clean and pick up the two empty cups that had been left behind.

"Excuse me." Someone tapped her back gently.

It caused (Y/N) to make a little hop on the spot and gasp in surprise, swinging around to see whoever had scared her. "Oh!! Johnnie-- right?"

It was indeed the emo guy from the party, and from Walmart, and now here; in her coffee shop, startling her yet again. He chuckled awkwardly. "(Y/N), hi... I'm sorry for scaring you." He said politely.

"Don't be." (Y/N) let out a little snort. "I don't-- I'm not that easily startled, I just... I don't know."

"It's just me, huh?"

"No, that's not what I meant." She immediately shook her head. "Sorry."

"I was just going to ask if this table was free."

"Yeah." (Y/N) nodded. "Go ahead."

She was about to leave him there when he opened his mouth again, "Wait, uh, so, you... work here?"

"Yeah. I've been working here for a bit over a month now. It's easy money, you know? And hours I can manage while studying."

"Okay. I've been here before but uh, don't think I've seen ya. What do you study?"

"Psychology and sociology. It's nice to have a job on the side to get some cash in. It's just... It can get pretty busy. Don't tell my coworkers but there's this super cozy library five minutes away that I'm considering applying for. But there's a little less pay."

Johnnie relaxed when she chatted on. (Y/N) seemed friendly and open. "Would you rather work in a library?"

"Oof. It sounds awfully nerdy, does it not?" She snorted with a shrug. "I just, I feel like it would be peaceful and cozy. I could sit and read a book while the hours passed. Or maybe I'm romanticizing the idea of it. It's sort of corny, isn't it? Maybe. Yeah, definitely. Anyways. Cool shirt. I gotta work. That rhymed. Bars, yo." (Y/N) mentally facepalmed. What the fuck kind of ramble was she doing? "Okay, I'm leaving." She decided and did so without another word. She had said enough.

Johnnie chuckled and looked down at the shirt he was wearing. A black Slayer merch t-shirt. Usually Johnnie would've wanted to sit alone in peace and drink his coffee and work on his computer in silence with headphones on, but honestly, he wouldn't mind (Y/N) to have stayed a little longer, maybe rambled a little more. He wasn't quite sure why he found her interesting. She was probably just one of a thousand LA girls.

(Y/N) spent the following half hour behind the counter taking orders and avoiding the area of the coffee shop where Johnnie was sat. When he walked out, he gave her a little smile, more polite than friendly, and she let out a sigh of relief as he disappeared behind the door.

That night she studied and fell asleep to some series on Netflix. Class started early the next morning and Brooke was waiting for her.

"Me and Ayanna wanted to go out on Friday. You're coming, of course."

"Girl, I'm not even joking, I have so much to do." (Y/N) excused. "Plus, I got a shift on Saturday."

"When?"

"Starts at 12."

"Then it's fine." Brooke ignored her claims of being busy. "You're coming. We'll just go to a bar and have a drink and talk, okay? Nothing crazy."

(Y/N) groaned. "You always say 'nothing crazy'. Yet, for some reason..." She said, sketching something on her notebook as she tried to fight the urge to say 'alright, alright, of course I'm coming'.

"That's cause crazy's fun, at least a little." Brooke insisted. "Come on. We won't be out late."

...

"Alright, alright. Of course I'm coming."

"Yay!!!!"

~~

Friday came around and on the way home from Uni (Y/N) got a text from Jake.

'what's up? whatchu doin tonite'

She replied with, 'I'm going out for drinks with some friends, you?'

'me, too, I was gonna ask if you wanted to come join! where are you guys going'

'We were gonna go to Snake Pit but maybe barhop, I'm not quite sure. You?'

'Snake Pit's cool. we were thinking R Bar.'

'R Bar's nice, too. Maybe we can send each other a text later and see where we're at :)'

'yes, that's sounds cool!!'

(Y/N) unlocked her apartment and went inside. She was gonna have a shower and study for an hour, then get ready for the night with Ayanna and Brooke, putting on makeup and styling her hair. What to wear, what to wear...

She settled on a pair of nice jeans and a flattering shirt for a night out, together with a necklace and some earrings and a leather jacket on top. One thing about LA is that you call ubers wherever you're going. Walking alone is rarely smart. The neighborhoods differ a lot from block to block and you're better off safe than sorry.

The streets were busy with people happy to be out and about in the cool spring weather. Finally you wouldn't have to suffer to wear skirts or dresses, the temperature was almost pleasant. (Y/N) and Ayanna and Brooke ordered drinks at Snake Pit and babbled on.

Chapter Text

Everywhere by Fleetwood Mac played on a suitable volume where you still could talk without having to shout and the Lemon drop martinis tasted perfect. The cocktail joint was typically this crowded a Friday night but the three managed to get a table.

"Then she said that it was a good idea to cut my bangs and I don't know if she said that cause she's praying on my downfall, or cause she just sucks at advice." Ayanna said. "It's gonna be awful to style frickin' curly bangs each morning!"

"I think you'd probably look cute in it." (Y/N) said, tilting her head as she imagined her friend with bangs over her forehead. "I love bangs and layers. If you don't have any, what are you even doing?"

"Exactly! I agree." Brooke nodded. "At least with our hair types. Layers always look good."

(Y/N) sipped on her straw. "It makes a positive difference on most people. At least I believe so."

"Me, too."

Ayanna shrugged. "I mean, it is hair, and it does grow out."

(Y/N) looked down at her phone. The clock was only 9.30PM. She sent Jake a little text asking him what he was up to. It didn't take long for him to reply with,

'yooo i'm still at r bar, you??'

'still at snake pit! i think we might leave soon though'

'come to r bar'

'maybe later!!' She turned her phone off and looked up at the girls to join in on the conversation again and finish the drinks. They all agreed to move on to the next place, a nice pub down the street that was somewhat smaller than Snake Pit but somehow just as crowded. Ayanna saw a dude she knew and wanted to talk to so she did just that while Brooke and (Y/N) slurped on Vodka Red Bulls and watched from afar.

~~

Johnnie sipped on his Jack and Coke. It was his fourth drink of the evening. The bar was blasting some worn-out pop song that came out last summer and the atmosphere felt thick with the amount of people cramped inside. It was fun, though. Him, Jake and two friends were hanging out tonight.

"Generally boasting about it, too, dude, it was insane." Jake was passionately talking about some internet subject.

"I know, insane." Johnnie agreed as though he had listened to a word his friend had uttered in the past minute. He needed air, just a little breathe break, and that's what was on his mind. "Guys, I'll be back in a second." He decided and got up and left before they could protest or ask further questions.

He dodged drunk people on his way, avoiding unintentionally flailing arms and stumbling feet. A pretty intoxicated woman almost walked into him.

"I'm so sorry!" She said. "Wow, aren't you something? Hey, what's your Snap?"

"I don't have one, sorry." He lied as he quickened his pace, pushing past a guy to finally reach the exit with a 'phew'. He put his hand on the handle and pushed it and realized someone was on the other side just about to open the door, too. Which meant that he almost slammed the door in her face. "Shit, I'm sorry, I didn't hit you, did I?" He asked.

"No way." Came the delayed response and it made him frown in confusion before his eyes moved up to her face. It was (Y/N)! She was looking gorgeous tonight. "Johnnie, this is a strange habit of ours."

"I don't know, I sort of don't mind it." The alcohol was the only thing letting him respond like that.

"I do." She said with a grin. "Sooner or later this habit will end up in a concussion."

Johnnie gave her another once over. Boy, oh boy, was she a stunner.

"And we'd want to avoid that, right?" (Y/N) added after another second.

This made him realize what he just had so obviously done and he cleared his throat, embarrassment burning his pale cheeks. "Right. Yeah. Seems unnecessary, right?"

"Exactly." She said, still smiling. "Where you going?"

"For some fresh air." He explained, still embarrassed, kind of wanting this interaction to end.

"Hm. Okay. Can I join for a smoke? Or will that... ruin... your fresh... air? Or does fresh air mean smoke?"

"You're welcome to join." Johnnie quickly replied, even if his brain was still begging for him to part ways with her already. They moved from the door to the side of the street, Johnnie with his hands in his pockets meanwhile (Y/N) fished up a pack and a lighter.

"You want one?" She asked.

"No, thanks."

"Okay." (Y/N) lit the cig in her mouth and exhaled loud in satisfaction. "I'm not really a smoker. You know."

"Mhm, only at parties?"

She shrugged. "Isn't that what everyone says. I don't know, I just like always having a pack with me."

"I don't know if you realize this but that's like, the first step to getting addicted. Feeling like you always need a package even if you don't feel like you need to smoke."

"Uh, no. Pfft." She said defensively with a smile on her face. "I swear I couldn't get addicted if I tried."

Johnnie scoffed and snickered. "That's what everyone says."

"But in this situation it's actually true." (Y/N) flicked her cig before taking another drag. "Nah. I'm kidding."

"I hope you are."

She giggled, arms crossed as she started to kick the edge of the concrete a little. "You ever been addicted to anything?"

"Me?" He shrugged. "I used to smoke."

"Ooh, so you're talking from experience." (Y/N) nodded her head.

"Riiight." He smiled back at her. "Wouldn't want you following in my footsteps."

"What, do you turn emo if you smoke too much?"

He let out a snort and a short snicker. "Yeah, so like, stay away from those little cancer sticks, dude."

"You've got such a Californian accent. You've gotta come from around here."

Johnnie nodded. "That's correct, dude, and in the summer and stuff, I like, love to go surfing, bro, I love the beach and riding the waves. I feel like I'm one with nature, dude."

(Y/N) giggled at his exaggarated Californian accent. "I'd love to see you on a surfing board."

"You don't think I could do it?"

"Honestly, no." She giggled again. "I don't feel like you're the kind of person to go surfing."

"Wow, you're so judgemental, you know that?"

"Pffttt." (Y/N) took another drag of her cigarette. "You got a picture or something? Proof that you're a real California guy?"

"A picture of me surfing?"

"Yeah."

"Is this really about the California thing, or do you just want to see me shirtless?"

(Y/N) scoffed, a bit surprised by the bold joke. "Ah, you got me." She said with a giggle, rolling her eyes and shrugging in defeat. "No but, where are you from, originally?"

"I am from California, you were right."

"Yeah, but like, where?"

"You want the exact coordinates where I was born?" He said with a snort.

"Yes, and the numbers on the back of your credit card, while you're at it."

Johnnie laughed before he said, "I'm from San Jose."

(Y/N) gestured with a hand for him to go on. "I want to know who you are."

He sort of hesitated again, but then realized that he really liked that sentence, especially coming out of her mouth. "I grew up there with my parents and a brother and sister. Dropped out of high school and moved to LA when I was 17."

"A high school drop-out, huh?"

"There you go judging me again."

"Literally not!" (Y/N) shook her head. "I'm the last person to judge anyone, I swear. You could come and confess to murder and I'd listen to your explanation without bias. Kind of."

Johnnie snickered lightly and looked out over the street and then back at her again. "I struggled a lot with dyslexia and what not."

"I see." (Y/N) nodded, something a bit more serious in her eyes as she went on, "Man, I was struggling so bad in high school. Family issues and what not. " Then she smiled again, "I was very emo. Emotionally I mean. I had so much absence, dude, I was never in school."

Johnnie hummed softly, happy that she answered his vulnerability with a dash of her own.

"The thought of getting away from home motivated me to really fight hard to fix my grades and I managed to get my shit together, and I got into a good Uni here and moved." (Y/N) explained. (hope it's somewhat relatable, if not, sorry!)

"I'm glad to hear that it worked out."

"Sort of." She shrugged and then sang dramatically with a hand on her chest, "It's never over!" Then she grinned, took one last drag of her cigarette and dropped it. "Jeff Buckley. If you didn't get the reference."

Johnnie laughed. "Lover, You Should've Come Over."

"See, you got it, with that banger music taste." She grinned.

He was fighting back a grin himself, trying to keep it at a smile. "You're here to find Jake, aren't you?"

"That's right."

"Wanna head in and find him?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll just order a beer on the way." She said and slipped inside as Johnnie held the door open.

"Disgusting." He followed her through the crowd of people, kind of finding it hard to keep up with her quick pace.

"You're disgusting." Came the comeback.

"Can't argue with that."

(Y/N) gave him a quick glare over her shoulder as she continued her way over to the bar and leaned forward on the sticky counter until she got the attention of one of the bartenders. "Hi! I'd like a (type of beer) and a strawberry daquiri, please."

"Coming right up."

"Are you here alone?" Johnnie asked, mainly to get a conversation going again.

"No, my friends are at the bar next door. I was just gonna come by and say hi to Jake when I got stuck with you." She said with a playful smile.

"What a bummer. You might never get away."

"That's what I'm scared of."

Johnnie snickered. "Why does everyone always say that?"

(Y/N) let out a loud giggle but before she could reply, the bartender gave her the two drinks. "Thank you so much!" She said sweetly before turning back to Johnnie again, handing him the strawberry daquiri with a proud grin. "Here you go, princess."

"Pfft." Johnnie snickered but accepted her offer. "I'll pay your next round. Thanks." Now he was the one to lead her over to the table where Jake and their two friends were sat.

"(Y/N)!!" Jake lit up and he hopped out of his seat to hug her. He smelled like booze and cologne. "How are yaaa?"

"I'm great, you?"

"Just awesome. Sit down!!" Jake introduced her to the other guys, Sloan and Eric, and they all got along nicely. The four friends were close and all had the same humour, and (Y/N) seemed to fit the group as well. Also, the alcohol made everything even funnier, and (Y/N) found herself genuinely laughing from the bottom of her belly several times, which was pretty uncommon. You know how even when things are funny or entertaining, you still gotta force a chuckle? That's what it usually was like. It probably had to do with exhaustion and mental health, she figured, cause why couldn't she genuinely laugh when she found things funny? Anyways, tonight she did.

And time passed a little too fast without (Y/N) checking her phone. 3 missed calls and 7 text messages. Damn. "I just gotta call my friend." (Y/N) excused and got up and out of the bar for some quiet. "I'm so, so sorry. I lost track of time. Where are you guys?"

"It's cool, I'm just happy you're okay, you scared us!" Brooke sounded relieved.

"I'm sorry."

"It's fine, (Y/N). We're at Lodge Downtown."

"Either I'll come to you or I can introduce you to my new friends. They're awesome."

"Girls' night..."

"Jesus Christ, you're right! I'll be there in five. I just gotta say goodbye to them." (Y/N) hung up and scurried inside.

The boys had ordered a round of shots, five of them, waiting for her return.

"Guys, I really gotta go. I've had so much fun though." She excused.

"Aw, man, really?" Jake said, his smile dropping.

"Already?" Sloan whined.

"Take the shot at least." Johnnie ordered and picked one up to hand her.

She shrugged and took the glass, fingers brushing. "Thanks, Johnnie." She said.

"One, two, three!" Jake counted and they all swallowed their shots.

Eric gritted his teeth and exclaimed, "Ahh!!" and Sloan coughed a little.

"Thanks, guys." (Y/N) smiled at them. "See you." She gave them a little wave of her hand before she turned around to leave, a bit stressed to return to her friends.

"We gotta hang out again!" Jake called as she disappeared. Then he turned to Johnnie. "Man, she's like, super fun, right?"

"She's cool." Johnnie said half-heartedly. Well. She did stand out from the crowd. A lot. She was like, entertaining and extremely socially competent from what he'd gathered so far. Plus, she was very attractive. She'd probably be great for Jake, he told himself.

~~

Rain was pinging angrily against the glass windows. Despite its force, it gave a soothing calming effect on (Y/N) who was up studying late behind her laptop screen, the blue light reflecting onto her face and making her even more tired. Social-cultural anthropology and all its quirks. (Y/N) was very happy with the classes she was taking. The subjecs were truly interesting and that's what made it okay to sit up at 2AM to study. She sort of had to if she wanted to pass and not fall behind. But her eyelids were oh, so heavy, and her brain oh, so tired. It wouldn't really do her any good to force herself to stay up even longer. She picked up her laptop and blew out a candle on her desk before she stepped over to her bed and cuddled down under the sheets. She put on some movie on a streaming device and stretched her jaws out in a big yawn.

A couple of days had passed since the night out. (Y/N) realized it was her turn to invite Jake to hang out, and she was definitely planning on doing so. Maybe tomorrow after school or something. It was a friendship she'd like to pursue.

Plus, his friend was kinda intriguing. Johnnie. He was funny. Really funny.

Jake beat her to it though. He sent a message the following evening.

'yoo wanna eat sum'

(Y/N) felt a little dumb to not have texted him first. 'I was just about to ask you dude. Read my mind'

'ayeee perfect. what do we feel like'

She thought for a moment. 'Do you like sushi? or would you rather have something more foody idk'

'sushi sounds great. you know some place?'

Okay, great. Yeah, she knew a place. They met up and ordered, hung out for an hour. Like the other times, the vibe was vibing, and they had a lot of fun. And it felt so good to meet a guy who was just out to be friends! Often boys had other intentions whether they knew it or not, but Jake and (Y/N) were platonic.

Chapter Text

The smell of roasted coffee beans saturated the air. For a split second Johnnie's gut feeling almost convinced him to do a 180 out of the café, but then again, he really needed caffeine, so he persuaded himself to walk over to the counter.

And there she was. In her little work outfit, her (h/c) hair up in a ponytail and bare face without makeup, looking like a ray of sunshine on this gray day.

"H--" Johnnie cleared his throat when his voice failed him. "... Hello."

(Y/N) didn't look bothered to see him. Not at all. Either she was really good at her customer smile, or, you know, she actually wasn't surprised, nor did she care. "Hey, you. What can I do for you today?"

"Just a... cappuccino, thanks."

"Coming right up." She prepared his drink. "How're you today, Johnnie?"

He kind of liked his name coming out of her mouth. "I'm alright. Just tired of the weather. I don't think LA has been this rainy in forever."

"Maybe I brought it with me when I moved here." (Y/N) joked.

"Screw you for that."

She giggled. "It's kind of cozy, as long as you don't have any business outside."

"I guess." Johnnie said.

"I'm looking forward to summer though."

"A burning 100 degrees, sweat and heatstrokes. Yeah, excited."

"Well, what weather do you like, then?" (Y/N) reached her hand out with the steaming cup of coffee.

Johnnie took it carefully as he snorted. "No, I-... I like summer."

"Good, otherwise LA wouldn't be the place for you, right? And you've been here for many years. Since you were 17, yeah?"

He smiled with a shrug. She remembered. "True. I'm not really complaining about the rain, either. It's kind of cozy... you're right."

"I'm always right." (Y/N) said with a playful smile. "Actually, that's a lie. I'm wrong all the goddamned time. I was wrong about thinking you'd order a Matcha Frappuccino, for example."

Johnnie scoffed. "Matcha Frappuccino?"

"Kidding." She said with another smile. "You seem like the guy who'd order a plain coffee."

"You mean I'm basic?"

(Y/N) looked him up and down. "Obviously."

Johnnie grinned. She was forward and easy to talk to.

"Anyways. Hope it taste good." (Y/N) said, saving him from awkward silence since he couldn't come up with a reply quick enough.

"Thanks, (Y/N)." He said before leaving. He was on his way to run some errands but wanted a coffee on the go, and just so happened to be close to the local coffee shop where (Y/N) worked. It took some bravery to go inside when he saw her through the big glass windows, fearing it could get awkward since they really only have had full conversations while drunk.

Johnnie traced the top of the carton mug as he walked down the street.

~~

(Y/N) picked at her nails. It'd been a quick week so far, being Thursday already. She was hanging out at a friend's house and it was getting late.

"I just don't think he likes me like that." Tina said. She was lying down on her sofa, upset over this boy. "I don't know. Or maybe he's playing hard to get."

"Honestly, Tina, boys are usually simple." (Y/N) said carefully. She leaned back in the armchair. "I feel like he's just a dick. Obviously he likes you or he wouldn't want to hang, but he clearly isn't ready for a relationship."

"You're right." She groaned. "I just... wanted him to..."

"I know Tina. But you've gotta meet halfway, and he isn't even going half a quarter." (Y/N) stood up. "I really need to get going. But you can call me whenever. Fuck him, Tina. Me and Brooke are going to a party tomorrow, you should come with. Maybe find someone fun."

Tina lit up, smiling wide. "Thank you, (Y/N). You're the best. Goodbye."

(Y/N) smiled back as she zipped her jacket up. "Bye, Tina." She closed the door gently and stepped down the stairs to the bottom floor. Tina was another sweet girl she'd gotten to know these last months. Shallow wasn't the right word, but something along the lines of it.

Most people around (Y/N) were young adults. Everyone's just tryna figure their stuff out, and (Y/N) wouldn't judge. She spent an hour up studying before she went to bed, just to wake up at 6.15AM the next morning to get ready for early class.

"You think Tina can come with us tonight?"

"Tina? It's that girl who's also from Orange County, right?"

"Yes, you've hung out with her before, Brooke."

"Riiiight! Tina. She's cute." Brooke nodded. "Sure. I'll text Jane."

(Y/N) leaned back in her chair. They were waiting for a 2 hour lecture to start, the teacher seemed to be late. "What're you wearing?"

"A dress."

"You think jeans will do?"

"Maybe a skirt."

"It's just a house party." (Y/N) argued. "I'll wear a cute shirt with jeans.."

Brooke shrugged. "Alright, you do you. Leo is going to be there."

"Ohh. So I might lose you about twenty minutes into the night?"

"Har-har." Brooke elbowed her friend.

"I asked Jake if he was going to show up. He knows Jane, too, you know. He said maybe."

"Jake, huh? He's so handsome."

"We're just friends, but yeah, he's cute."

Brooke let out a little groan. "I can't believe it. You meet someone you click with and you find attractive, yet you don't wanna pursue anything but a friendship."

"Jake and I have an awesome friend dynamic. But that's just all."

(Y/N) picked out a cute shirt with a nice pair of jeans and as per usual she added jewelry and accessories to look less bland. She did love dresses and skirts, but sometimes she struggled with feeling comfortable in that kind of clothing. Regardless this outfit was fire.

She hopped into an uber that pulled up to the adress. The familiar feeling of excitement started to bubble in her body as she approached the house, voices and music blasting from inside. She texted Brooke before she opened the door and went in to greet everyone she knew.

Lots of familiar faces. (Y/N) even recognized some social media influencers. It was nothing unusual for parties like these. She connected with a dude that was pretty big on TikTok, a funny guy with beautiful blue eyes. They hung out for maybe fifteen minutes until Brooke found her and they went to get something to drink.

"(Y/N)!" A girl in the kitchen called.

"Serena! Hi, girl!" (Y/N) hugged her acquaintance and they small-talked for a while. The houseparties were nice like this; everyone invited was usually cool. "Jake!!" She exclaimed when she saw her friend about to pass by.

"(Y/N)!" He yelled back at her and pulled her in for a hug.

"You came!!" She hugged him back.

"I did." He asserted with a smile. "And I'd like something to pour my drink in. Are there any... there." His gaze stopped on the red cups on the kitchen table.

(Y/N) stepped aside for him to grab one when she saw Johnnie and another guy belonging to their company. "Hii! How're you tonight?"

"Good, thanks, you?"

"I'm--"

"(Y/N), come on, we've gotta find Tina." Brooke tugged at her arm.

"Brooke," (Y/N) leaned in to whisper in her friend's ear, "Don't be rude." She cleared her throat and looked at Johnnie again. "This is Johnnie, and..."

"Name's Corey! Nice to meet you girls." The guy, 'Corey', introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you, too." (Y/N) smiled.

"Yeah." Brooke flashed her white pearls before grabbing (Y/N)'s arm again. "We need to find our friend. See you around!"

(Y/N) followed Brooke out from the kitchen and through the house. "Do you know she's here?"

"She texted me asking where you were."

"Oh, damn. I haven't checked my phone in a minute." Sure enough she had a missed call and some text messages from a worried Tina that was feeling lonely. They found her with some new friends though, and hung out for a while, drinking and laughing. "I'm gonna go for a smoke."

"I'll pass." Brooke said and Tina gave an apologetic shrug of her shoulders.

"Not even gonna keep me company?" (Y/N) scoffed, putting on an offended act before stepping away from them to go out.

"I'll keep you company. What are we doing?" Some random guy jumped in on the finished conversation making her stop again.

(Y/N) squinted her eyes for a brief moment. "Caleb, right?"

"Ayyee, you know my name. (Y/N), we have some lectures together."

"Ohh! I don't think we've properly met though." She shook his hand.

"No, but I've definitely wanted to." Caleb did not want to let go off her hand.

(Y/N) gave him an irresolute smile, glancing down at their hands, and then back at him again. "Well, now we've done it, right?"

"There are other things we could do-"

"Yeah, uhm, can I have my hand back?" (Y/N) forced a nervous giggle.

"Or we could-"

"Johnnie!! Hiii!" (Y/N) saw a potential save and Johnnie spun his head around to the sound of his own name. (Y/N) yanked her hand not only once but twice until Caleb lost his grip.

Johnnie seemingly caught on in an instant. "(Y/N)! How's it going?"

"We were gonna smoke, right?"

"Wait, (Y/N)-" Caleb tried.

"Yes, let's go." Johnnie stretched his hand out to her and she grabbed it. He lead the way through the mob and (Y/N) followed without looking over her shoulder. They stopped at the front door where Johnnie let go off her hand.

"Thanks, dude." She cleared her throat.

"'Course. Was he a weirdo?"

"N-- I don't know. He was being weird. Probably just pretty drunk." (Y/N) excused with an untroubled shrug.

Johnnie nodded. "Alright, yeah, that's not an excuse to make someone uncomfortable though. Anyways. Were you gonna smoke?"

"Yeah."

He opened the door. "Let's go then."

This made (Y/N) smile. She picked up a cigarette while they walked out on the porch where two others were smoking. They stepped to the other end to get some privacy.

Rain was mizzling down and a fragrant and sweet smell of distant wet flowers permeated the air. It was a nice change from the sweaty thick atmosphere back inside. (Y/N) took a deep drag from her cigarette, blowing the smoke out through her nose.

Her eyes fixed on his bare arm. "Hey, that's uhh... Daniel Johnston, right?"

Johnnie's eyes widened slightly and he looked at his arm and extended it for her to see the tattoo clearly. "Yeah, that's right."

"Hi How Are You." (Y/N) said. "That's cool."

"Thanks." He was clearly a bit surprised that she got the reference.

"And a Mickey Mouse one." She smiled as she continued to inspect his tattoos. "Ohh, an evil one."

"Creepy, right?"

"Very." She giggled. "A little bat."

"Yes, from Batman Beyond. Used to love it when I was small." Johnnie explained. He picked something up from his pocket.

"Mh-hm?"

"I don't know. I remember thinking he was a badass kid. More relatable than Bruce Wayne, you know?"

"Christian Bale is pretty hot, though."

Johnnie snorted before he put a cigarette of his own to his mouth.

(Y/N) gasped, pretending to be shocked. "Is that a-- Johnnie! That's bad!! It'll kill you!"

"That's the whole point." He joked.

"Johnnie-" The two of them snickered.

"Oh, I don't smoke." He then said.

"Are you gaslighting me?"

He snorted again and took a drag. "Only sometimes at parties, right?"

"Riiiiight. Hang on, a Donnie Darko tattoo? The Frank bunny." (Y/N) pointed out another tattoo she saw and recognized. "That's dope, dude."

Johnnie smiled with another nod. "Thanks. Doing an entire tattoo tour, are we?"

"Heh, I'm sorry. I just-- I haven't really noticed them before, I guess. And I recognize some."

"No, no, it's alright."

"I just imagine everyone asking for a fucking tattoo tour, right?"

"You got any of your own?"

"No." (sorry if you do.) "I got a couple ideas though. But they're expensive, man."

"Yeah, that's an issue."

(Y/N) sighed. "I want them to look cool. See, I love patch work and stuff, but I don't want to regret them, but honestly I don't really care too much about the whole, 'ooooh, maybe I'll regret them'-part. It's whatever." She explained, thinking about it as she spoke.

"I'd recommend you think them through first..." Johnnie said. "You seem smart, so I'd assume you'd do so, but I thought I was smart, too, and did some stupid shit."

"Hm? Like what?"

His expression shifted from humorous to serious to humorous. "Well, uhh... My... My ex girlfriend... You know Lazy Town, right?"

"Yeah?"

"My ex tatted the guy, the villain guy... onto my leg."

(Y/N) giggled, covering her mouth with a hand. "You serious? Man, you gotta show me."

Johnnie let out a little groan and a snort before he reached down to pull his skinny jeans up. "I don't know how clearly you can... see it... but..."

"Ahh, that's amazing!" (Y/N) couldn't stop herself from laughing. "She did a good job. We are number one. Love it."

He snickered and struggled a little to pull the leg down again. "Yeah. It's like, if you're gonna get undressed with a girl for the first time, and you gotta explain that you got a Robbie Rotten tattoo..."

"And then explain that your ex-girlfriend tatted it on you..."

The two of them snickered meanwhile the rain intensified above them.

"Nah, that's awesome." She giggled. "I used to have a crush on Sportacus, man."

What Johnnie had assembled from these minutes was that he probably wasn't her type.

(Y/N) flicked her cig and breathed out a big cloud of smoke. "This fucking weather."

"I'm not kidding when I say it's the worst I've ever experienced since moving here." Johnnie agreed.

"Yo, this is super random, but... When I was like, really small, my friend... I had a friend who.. You know how kids think they have abilities sometimes and that magic is real and so on?" (Y/N) remembered a memory she'd forgotten. "So I had this one friend who for like, a while, believed she actually could control the weather. This is so fucking random but she also used to tell me she saw people and heard voices and so on. And I was like, 'that's so cool, dude, wow, you're all spiritual and stuff', but it... turns out she was fucking schizophrenic." (im sorry this is a real story lmao)

Johnnie let out a snort, then a loud laugh, then said, "Am I allowed to laugh?"

(Y/N) snorted, too. "I wonder what she's doing today. Her parents got divorced and she moved away when we were maybe 10 or so. She was cool. You know. Besides. The stuff. Hey. Something completely different though. You been to Sunset Strip?" She was pretty drunk.

"Yeah, several times."

"I went to the Whisky a couple of weeks back and checked the street out. The disappointment! I don't know what I expected. Probably more cool people. Rockers and stuff. Not a single one. Besides inside the Whisky, there were some old rockers there."

"You expected a street as busy as in 1987?"

"No. I mean. Maybe. I was hoping for it but I've heard it's long gone and forgotten. But still. I imagined at least some cool people, you know? It's kind of ironic that you'd find them here, at some LA party, rather than the good old bars. It's a shame, really."

Johnnie shrugged and put his cigarette out in the ashtray on a table. His hair was messy and tousled from the rain, and he ran his hand through it to get some volume back, and (Y/N) realized she found him very appealing right now. How drunk was she, again?

"Sorry, am I rambling?" She cleared her throat and stubbed out her cig, too.

"Not at all." Johnnie quickly replied. "I'm very much enjoying it. It's kind of... rainy... here, though."

"You don't say." (Y/N) smiled, his validation offering relief. "Let's get back inside."

"Grab a drink?" Johnnie suggested a bit carefully.

"Sure."

The two walked back inside to the loud music again, some alternative pop song blaring from the speakers. "How do you know Jane?"

"We know each other through our mutual friends. Hung out a couple of times. You?"

"Also mutual friends. She's nice."

"Yeah." (Y/N) looked down at the different options of alcohol. "Maybe like, a glass of wine-- Or a shot? A shot and wine for me, I think."

Johnnie shrugged. "That'll do. How much have you had so far?"

"A couple of drinks and shots. Nothing crazy. How 'bout you?"

"The same." He poured up wine from the box while (Y/N) prepared shots for them that they swallowed before grabbing their cups and moving away from the kitchen. He was sort of hard to read, (Y/N) thought. "So, tell me more about yourself."

"What do you wanna know?" (Y/N) would rather listen to someone talk about themselves than talk about herself. She was eager to shift the conversation over to Johnnie.

But he was persistent. "What do you like? Apart from coffee, psychology and sociology."

(Y/N) felt a smile tug at the corner of her lips. "That sums me up." She said but then went on. "Man, I like everything, dude. Music, I really love music. Art, books. Pop culture's fun and I just like to keep myself updated on what's going on, you know." Was she basic? "I used to draw a lot when I was younger. A lot."

"What made you stop?" Johnnie kept his head slightly tilted while he listened.

"Hm. Life, I suppose." She shrugged. "You know how it is. And if this was 1987, I'd 100% just do music, man. Now, what do you do?"

"I do music and some social media stuff."

"Like Jake, huh?"

"Yeah, kind of."

"Cool. Speaking of which."

Johnnie followed her gaze over to the person in question. He was in a hurry to get somewhere, strolling along the wall of a corridor. "Jake?" Johnnie called.

Jake stopped in his tracks, looking around until he saw the two of them. "Guys! I--" He put a fist over his mouth, "I gotta..."

"Ohh." (Y/N) mumbled as Jake continued his way to the bathroom.

"What time is it?" Johnnie asked, looking disgusted, too.

"Uhh... A bit past 12. Maybe someone should check on him?"

Johnnie let out a tiny sigh. "Probably, yeah."

(Y/N) gave him a little glare when he didn't move from the spot. She followed where Jake had walked and knocked on the bathroom door.

"It's open." Jake's voice was weak, just loud enough for her to make out the words.

She cautiously opened the door, glimpsing inside. "Jake?" She saw him hunched over the toilet seat, head dipped inside. "Oh, you dummy." She cooed and stepped over to gently gather his hair and get it out of his face.

Jake retched, his shoulder blades bopping up and down with the sound of vomit splashing into water.

(Y/N) felt her own stomach grow weak but braced herself. "You idiot." She mumbled when he puked again.

"I didn't even--... *vomit noises*... I didn't even drink much." Jake explained, his voice echoing inside the toilet. "Oh, God."

"Ah, of course not." (Y/N) kept her eyes elsewhere while she held the hair in a collected bun in his neck.

"At least I'm not crying. I've probably seen Johnnie drunk-cry three times."

"That's absolutely not even true." Johnnie defended himself from where he stood over at the closed door, his arms crossed as he watched the scene.

"It's alright Johnnie, it be like that sometimes." (Y/N) said with a teasing smile.

He rolled his eyes. "It's not--" and was cut off by another loud vomiting noise.

Jake dry-heaved and wretched a couple more times before he finally lifted his head. "I'm pretty sure I'm done." He coughed a little.

"You ready for another drink, or ready to go home?" (Y/N) asked.

"Another drink!"

"Oh, no, you won't," Johnnie shook his head. "You're going home."

Jake got up to his feet with a loud groan. He stumbled and almost fell over but (Y/N) caught him and offered a supportive shoulder for him to lean on. Johnnie took his other side and the two of them lead the poor guy over to the exit.

"Alright. I'll call an uber." Johnnie said and stepped away.

"Hey, (Y/N)?" Jake mumbled, still leaning on (Y/N).

"Not so close. You smell like puke, Jake." (Y/N) pushed his face away and Jake let out a loud giggle.

"Wanna come over to ours?"

"Tonight?"

"I'm not that drunk. I just wanted someone to touch me. I can walk on my own." Jake joked and (Y/N) snorted.

"The uber'll be here in like, five minutes." Johnnie returned from the phone call. "How're you holding up, Jake?"

Jake smiled. "(Y/N)'s coming home with us."

"No--"

"Come oooon."

"Jake, my options here are to either stay and party with my other friends, or take care of my drunk friend, who already has a friend to take care of him, so..."

Jake groaned again, loud. "What, you'd rather hang out with them than me?" He said offended.

"Yes." (Y/N) replied without hesitation. Then she shook her head and giggled. "I'd love to see your place someday--"

"So come with uuuus."

(Y/N) looked from Jake to Johnnie, frowning slightly. She was pretty wasted herself. And following these two hilarious guys home was actually a fun thought. She tilted her head at Johnnie to check with him, and he shrugged and nodded.

"It's a bit messy, our place, but yeah." He approved.

"We've got snacks and drinks." Jake tried.

"Not that you need more to drink." Johnnie mumbled.

"Alright. Sure." (Y/N) gave in.

Chapter Text

Jake opened the car door before the uber even fully stopped. He darted up the short driveway to unlock the door and hurry over to the bathroom.

Johnnie and (Y/N) followed, (Y/N) giggling meanwhile Johnnie worried that this would be an awful experience for her.

"He drove like crazy! I'm gonna give him the worst rating ever!" Jake coughed from the bathroom.

"He was super chill, stop." (Y/N) yelled back as she took off her jacket. "I loved him."

"I was fighting so hard to not puke all over his car, dude." Jake continued complaining as he wandered out to the living room. He wiped his mouth.

"Ew, Jake, shower, or something." Johnnie groaned.

(Y/N) giggled again, her eyes scanning over their home. "What a nice place you've got!"

"Thanks." Jake coughed.

"Want something to drink? Eat?" Johnnie realized and walked over to the kitchen with (Y/N) following.

"What do you have?"

"We've got some fun liquors. Oh! I can mix you a drink!" Jake followed too, apparently. "Let me get you something to drink. Please?"

"Pfft, sure, thanks. If you wash your hands first."

Johnnie grabbed some snacks and placed them on the coffee table by their couch and armchairs meanwhile Jake DJ'ed and prepared a scary-looking potion.

"I made one for you, too, Johnnie." Jake said.

"Wow, thanks." He did not sound too excited.

(Y/N) sat down in an armchair while the boys took the sofa. "This looks like something a witch made."

"Wizard. Taste it. It's good!!" Jake encouraged.

(Y/N) and Johnnie exchanged unsure looks as they took a sip from the mixture. They tilted their heads at each other and nodded in unison. "Hey, it's actually pretty good." She admitted.

"Told ya!" Jake looked proud. "You can barely taste the alcohol, and it's enough to get you plenty buzzed."

"Ooh, that's dangerous." (Y/N) said and sipped on it again before placing it on the coffee table and grabbing some Cheetos to snack on.

"You shouldn't let Johnnie mix your drinks though. It's always 70% alc and 30% else."

Johnnie snorted. "Actually, I can make some pretty good stuff. I know some good drinks."

"Alright, he's not lying." Jake agreed with this tone he sometimes did.

"Sometimes you speak with this poetic cadence and I absolutely love it." (Y/N) commented.

"What, you mean like this?" Jake did the voice again.

"It sounds kind of authorative." (Y/N) tried speaking like him and it made the two burst out laughing, with Johnnie giggling on the side. "Oh! This song's a banger."

"Electric Light Orchestra. Showdown."

"They've made a bunch of cool songs. Some weird ones, too." (Y/N) raised an eyebrow. "What else do you guys listen to?"

"Just take a guess." Johnnie suggested. "I'm sure you'll hit it right on."

"My Chemical Romance. Pierce The Veil. Panic! At The Disco." She recited every emo artist she could think of. "Misfits? Black Veil Brides. Fall Out Boy. What else is there. Paramore? Blink-182."

Johnnie snickered and Jake snorted. "Honestly, yeah, you got it. Seriously though; I listen to anything and everything."

"Wanna queue something?" Jake suggested.

"Nah, it's alright. You got some good music playing."

They spent the next hour sipping on their drinks and babbling and laughing. Like, laughing a lot, all three of them. It graduated to Jake nodding off while Johnnie and (Y/N) kept an active drunken conversation going.

"I don't know, man. I can't bowl. And it's like, annoying if you go bowling with your homie and they're good at it. Like, chill out, bro." (Y/N) shrugged.

It made Johnnie laugh. "Terrible first date idea."

"Right? It's not even fun. Bowling sucks, man. Hey, one time a guy wanted to take me for a pool date. Like, play pool, you know? Not swimming. Pool."

"Yeah. How'd it go?"

"It didn't. I didn't go. Like, pool?? I haven't-- I don't know how to play pool, man, I'd just... I got performance anxiety and backed out."

Johnnie snickered again.

"Besides I didn't want to go anyway. Maybe it could've been fun. Or maybe if you're going with friends. I don't know. I don't like the whole expectation of going on dates with new people. It's like, you're just meeting to see if you're compatible. I just like to hang out with friends. I don't know." (Y/N) reflected.

"I get that. Totally. I agree. I haven't really met anyone new since my last ex and that was years ago. Four years ago now. My mental health's been shitty. I haven't really been... I haven't-- I don't know. I just don't think I've been in a place to date." Johnnie leaned back in the sofa with a big yawn, stopping himself from oversharing anything more in this intoxicated state of mind. "But hey. We could have fun playing pool though."

"We definitely could." (Y/N) agreed, yawning, too.

"You tired?"

"Yeahh. What time is it?"

Johnnie checked his phone. "3.30AM."

"Jesus." (Y/N) yawned again.

Which made Johnnie yawn. Again. "We have a guest room. The bed's not made though. I'll fix it." He got up from the couch and (Y/N) followed.

"I can make my own bed," (Y/N) insisted when Johnnie went ahead.

"You're our guest."

"I'm not disabled." She grabbed a pillow and a pillowcase. "By the way, I snore pretty loud, or so I've been told. So if it gets awful, just... honestly throw me out. Or throw a grenade inside the room. Whatever you prefer."

Johnnie chuckled. "That's alright."

"Oh, no, I mean, like, really loud. It's not alright. It can be a problem."

"I'll live."

"Maybe." She puffed up the two pillows and turned to Johnnie. "There we go."

"Just let me know if you need anything else."

"Thank you." (Y/N) smiled.

"Something to sleep in maybe?"

(Y/N) looked down at her outfit. Jeans and a tight shirt. "Yeah..."

"Maybe a tee?"

"That sounds good."

"Be right back." Johnnie disappeared out of the room.

(Y/N) sat down on the edge of the bed and played with a string on her shirt. These people seemed so nice and they had so much fun tonight. Especially Johnnie and her, since Jake dozed off and thereby forced the two of them to bond.

Soon Johnnie returned. "Catch." He warned before he threw a t-shirt at her.

Which she did not catch, it just landed on her face, and she shook it off. "Thanks." She said as she inspected it. My Chemical Romance. It made her giggle and she looked up at Johnnie again who was grinning. "Perfect. Really though; thanks."

"No problem. Goodnight."

"Goodnight." The door closed and (Y/N) was left alone. She changed into the shirt and took off her jeans before she got comfortable under the sheets and instantly fell asleep.

~~

For a moment (Y/N) was confused. She blinked repeatedly, as to really wake up, cause clearly she was still dreaming. Did she follow some guy home? No way in hell. Where in the world was she--... Oh! Right! Now she recognized the room and the actions leading to this destination.

(Y/N) got up and put on her jeans. She looked at her reflection in the mirror in the room, relieved to see that yesterday's makeup had survived pretty well, even if her hair was a bit messy. Not that she really had anyone to impress.

Muffled voices came from the other side of the door. (Y/N) opened it and peeped through the sliver before she stepped outside. The sound of her footsteps made Jake and Johnnie turn their heads from where they stood in the kitchen.

"Morning!" The two of them greeted.

"Good morning." (Y/N) replied while she padded over to them. "What time is it?"

"12.10."

"God." (Y/N)'s eyebrows drew together.

"It's not too late. I just woke up." Jake admitted.

"We didn't want to wake you." Johnnie explained. "But there's coffee and breakfast if you want."

"Coffee would be nice." (Y/N) decided.

The three sat down in the couch and armchair to drink their coffee and talk. They all were pretty hungover and tired, went over the events of the night and laughed quite a bit.

Johnnie didn't have much from yesterday's makeup left. His waterline was a little smudged with black color but that was it. He stretched out in the sofa with a big yawn. For a second (Y/N) wondered if he really had such blue eyes or if they were contacts.

"It's the most low budget thing ever."

"Right? But it's still scary."

"No, (Y/N), it's the worst horror movie ever created." Jake argued.

"No, not worse than fucking Jaws or the-- uh!! Winnieh the Pooh, bro, the one..."

"Oh, God, blood and honey." Johnnie snickered.

"Yeah. Exactly. That's the one." (Y/N) nodded.

"I remember I watched the trailer, it was--"

"It looked like it was made in iMovie!!" (Y/N) finished Johnnie's sentence.

"That's exactly what I was gonna say. It was terrible."

"Scary, though." She stuck her finger up in the air to strengthen her point.

Johnnie and Jake snickered. "Not at all."

"They literally waited for the day when the rights for Winnie expired and were like, 'finally we can make that Winnie Slasher movie we've been planning on!'"

"Pfffft." Jake laughed while shaking his head.

Y/N) smiled back at him and took the last sip from her second cup of coffee. The clock was almost 2PM now and she was wondering when she was supposed to leave. Not that she wanted to, more like, what's appropriate? And well, she really wanted a shower. She picked her phone up realizing she hadn't checked on the rest of her friends since yesterday and opened some snaps from Tina and Brooke and a few others.

(Y/N) didn't check her volume first, though, so the loud yells of Brooke trying to sing along to California Love by 2Pac almost made her and everyone else in the room deaf. The shocked faces of Johnnie and Jake made (Y/N) burst out giggling as she fought to lower the volume, and you know Snapchat, it doesn't always catch on with the speed of light.

"I'm sorry." She giggled.

"That just might've been the real Tupac. I've always said he faked his death." Jake joked. "Wow, what a voice."

"Pffft! It's Brooke from yesterday. She seemed to have fun." (Y/N) explained and turned the phone off again. "Anyways, guys, I really need to shower. Until then I'll feel like I smell like Frank Gallagher. Booze and cigarettes."

The boys snickered. "You need a ride home?" Jake asked.

"That'd be great."

"Then we can see where you live. Your home." Jake nodded.

"So we can stalk you. I'm kidding." Johnnie added to the suspicious comment and they laughed.

"For real though. Thank you for inviting me back here. I've had so much fun." She continued and they all got to their feet.

"Of course." Jake responded as they walked toward the door. "You're welcome anytime, (Y/N)."

Johnnie silently hummed in agreement while nodding.

It wasn't a long drive to her apartment and the ride there was fun. They all agreed to hang out again before she got out of the car and waved goodbye.

"Man, she's so funny." Jake said as they headed back to theirs. "I think Tara would love her, right?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe I should introduce them in the future. Or maybe Tara will steal her."

"Or I will." Johnnie joked, completely sarcastic.

"I hope she's genuinely this cool. People have their sides. And, I mean, I know we're not famous, but she acts as though she has no idea who we are. Like, she really doesn't know."

"Dude, like, 99 out of 100 times we don't get recognized. Or 999 out of 1000." Johnnie reminded him. "It's not weird. We're in LA. Everyone's an influencer or wannabe something."

"I know, I know."

~~

It was a sunny day. Sometime near the shift from April to May which meant that purple and white lilacs were blooming in the park together with pink weeping cherry trees and summer was creeping closer with each minute.

(Y/N) took a deep breath. The smell of fresh flowers and grass filled her nose and she exhaled with a vowel. She picked a stem from a plant and twirled it between her index and thumb. "Hey, you know what I think?"

"What?" Jake lifted an eyebrow, turning his head to her.

"That spring is so nice. And people who don't take time to enjoy spring or sunny weather are missing out on something. It's a religious experience, really."

"You know what I think?" Johnnie asked.

"What?"

"That your mom's house is nice. Now that's a religious experience."

(Y/N) gasped and tossed the stem at him. "Fuck you."

Johnnie snickered as he watched the plant completely miss him. The three hadn't met since the party when (Y/N) slept over last weekend. Now they were on their way to buy wine before going out tonight again.

"I agree."

"About my mother?"

Jake snorted. "About spring. It's lovely. Everyone's been cold and depressed for months and then the sun decides to show up and warm everyone."

"LA's always warm." Johnnie disagreed.

"Actually," (Y/N) said, "There are mountains in LA that get a sprinkle of snow in the winter."

"Actually," Johnnie mimicked her, holding up a finger in the air.

(Y/N) squinted her eyes at him. "Watch it, cunt."

He snickered and gave her a look. "Or what?"

"You don't want to know." (Y/N) warned sarcastically as the three continued their walk out of the park toward the liquor store down the street. The crunch of gravel under their shoes turned into solid asphalt thuds. "Ohh. Like two years ago, I had my airpods out in the cold. Like, the charging case with the earphones inside. Had it out on a bench for an hour or so."

"Okay."

"And the case died from the cold. I'm not even kidding."

"How old was it?"

"Maybe, like, a year old? I couldn't charge it afterwards. Ever again."

"RIP, man." Johnnie said with an empathic gaze.

"Rest in piss." Jake murmured, also pretending to look sad.

The three cackled as they slipped through the store's door and found two bottles of wine to buy. Saturday evening. Specifically 7.47PM. They had a group of mutual friends going to this club down on Long Beach and decided to pregame together and hang out.

(Y/N)'s hands stilled, and she opened the oven. A waft of hot air warmed her face and she leered into the orange glow inside. "I think they're done, yeah." She closed the door again and the hinges squeaked. "Do you have a mitt- an oven mitt somewhere?"

"Just take it with your hands." Jake said with a roll of his eyes.

"Yeah, what are you, a pussy?" Johnnie agreed while he handed her a mitt.

She giggled as she put it on and used it to bring out the tray of pizza rolls. "Heeere ya go."

"I'm so fucking hungry, dude." Jake said and immediately grabbed one from the tray, and just as quickly dropped it to the floor with a loud yell. "AH! Mother of--"

"Idiot." Johnnie said and took another sip of his glass of wine.

"What did you expect?" (Y/N) asked, trying to hide her grin while she watched her friend shake his burnt hand in the air.

Jake chuckled. "You think I can still eat it?"

"5 second rule, or 10, or however long it's lied there." (Y/N) joked. "Honestly don't-"

Jake picked it up and took a bite. "It's fine. My hand isn't, though. I think that's, like, third degree burns, or... Wow. It really burnt the skin off my finger."

"Aww." Johnnie cooed. "You want me to blow on it?"

"Shut--..." Jake flashed his eyebrows at him. "Yoo, I think I burnt my dick, too..."

The three laughed out loud, the wine probably making it way funnier than it really was. They settled down in the sofa and continued the conversation while finishing the second bottle and chewing on pizza rolls. It was nice to be back in their house and it was nice to be hanging out with the two boys again.

They arrived at the club at 11PM and their group disbanded the minute they stepped foot inside, or, well, at least (Y/N) disappeared and Johnnie and Jake stayed together as they found a few of the mutuals sitting in a booth with drinks in their hands.

"Let's order something and then we'll return." Jake suggested and they did so, ordering two Whiskey Sours before returning to the group and settling down.

Meantime, (Y/N) was catching up with a couple acquaintances. She'd been to this club once before and it was a big place with two big floors and three bars. The familiar voice of Nelly Furtado was singing loud on the second floor, making it hard to hear what one other said, but that wasn't really relevant when dancing your heart out to Maneater.

(Y/N) was twirling around with two girl-friends after taking two tequila shots each, moving around each other while avoiding the opposite sex trying to steal a dance from one of them.

"You wish you never ever met her at all, you wish you never ever met her at all..." (Y/N) giggled when she almost bumped into one of the girls, and the song ebbed out and into a remix of Heads Will Roll, and they danced the entire song, until Shut Up And Drive came on and the girls decided to head for a table and breathe for a moment.

And order another round.

So did Johnnie and Jake. They ordered a shot and another Whiskey Sour and went back to the booth where the friends were sat.

"And maybe that would-..." Johnnie's ears faded out the voice of their friend Ben when he noticed a familiar face emerging from the crowd of people. (Y/N) really was gorgeous tonight. Hot. Johnnie didn't usually think of her in any... sex appealing way, but with a few drinks he couldn't really push that thought back. Not that it mattered. He had lots of attractive friends. Her (e/c) eyes darted over the interior of the club, brows slightly knitted, until her gaze fixed on the group over at the booth and she immediately smiled and headed their way.

"Hii!" She did a little wave of her hand.

"(Y/N)! Long time no see!" Ben stood up to hug her. "Sit! What's up tonight?" Corey also greeted her with a smile.

She sat down with them and they chatted on for a while before she leaned closer to Jake. "Cig break?"

"Read my mind." Jake replied quickly and slapped Johnnie's thigh. "Let's go, dude." The three went out to the outdoor space for smoking.

(Y/N) used her pink lighter to light everyone's cigarette before she did her own. "I thought I saw [cool tiktok celebrity] but it wasn't him."

"Bummer."

"Yeah. No. Or yeah. I don't know. I feel like he'd be mean in real life? I wouldn't exactly interact with him either way. But the guy was a total dupe of him, dude."

"Why didn't you talk to him then?"

(Y/N) scoffed. "I'm here to have fun with my friends, not meet some guy, dude. Besides, they're all sweaty and gross, anyways. Including you two. Just kidding."

"No, you're probably right." Jake joked and the three chuckled.

"Actually I think you're clean girls."

"We are?" Johnnie raised an eyebrow and inhaled more nicotine.

"Course we are. We shower at least once a week." Jake grinned.

"Stop it or she'll believe you."

(Y/N) giggled and shrugged. "I had this one girl in class in high school who showered about two or three times a week and said she didn't smell like anything, but!! She... did!! She smelt a lot!"

"What was her name?" Jake asked.

"Sarah."

"Don't be like Sarah, kids." Jake snickered. "Didn't anyone tell her?"

"I don't know, man, I hope so, it's kind of hard to tell someone that they uh, stink. You know?" (Y/N) said with another giggle. "I don't know. You never know how people have it at home and so on. And we weren't friends. I'm not exactly gonna walk up to her and tell her that she smells, man. I don't know, dude."

Jake and Johnnie snorted. "There's always those kids in class that smell. I was probably one of them." Jake joked and they laughed again.

"Have you heard-... Do you listen to Hole? Probably not. Courtney Love has this one song called, uh, Softer, Softest."

"Ah, yeah, that song's about me." Johnnie joked and the three laughed again. "You were saying?"

"It goes, like, 'pee girl gets the belt', right? And I was like, 'what the fuck is that supposed to mean, why is she singing about piss girls', so I searched it up on Genius, you know? And it's such a sad backstory. Like, it says something like, 'you know that girl in your class that smelt like piss? I was her', which is heartbreaking, cause..." (Y/N) stopped herself from talking more. "What the fuck am I even saying, guys. Anyways. It's a good song but the lyrics are obviously strange. But it's a good song. I promise."

Johnnie and Jake snickered loud again. "Go piss girl Courtney. Am I right?"

"Pfffft." (Y/N) grinned. "Courtney Love slays, really. She's iconic, plus, she's really hot."

"Second that." Johnnie flicked off the ashy tip of his cigarette before bringing it back to his mouth.

"Talking about piss, I really, really need to." Jake admitted. "Or I'll be that guy who smelled like pee the entire night. I'll be right back."

(Y/N) snorted again while Jake walked quickly back inside. She turned her head to Johnnie who was already looking at her. "It's kind of--"

"Hey, you got a light?" A tall man interrupted her. He was probably a couple years older and pretty good-looking.

"Uhm, yeah. Here." She handed him the pink one from earlier and he lit his cigarette but didn't leave the two of them.

"So, what's your name?" He asked.

"I'm sorry, I'm talking to my friend here. Could I have my lighter back?" She was giving him a polite smile while trying to keep her tone as friendly as possible.

The man looked a bit bothered. "Whatever." He handed it back.

"You're welcome." She still smiled, but now her words were a bit sharper to reflect his response. He gave a little glare before he turned and walked away. "Was that rude of me?"

"What? Not at all." Johnnie scoffed. He felt relieved that she didn't strike up another conversation while he stood there so he'd look stupid.

"Okay." She put her cigarette out in the nearest ashtray. "Good. Wanna go inside and get another drink?"

"Yeah, let's go."

Chapter Text

The atmosphere was hot and full of pespiration and arms wailing. The beat of the loud song revved up the soul, like heartbeat on a loudspeaker. Johnnie followed (Y/N) up to the bar where they ordered...

"Hi!! Two sambucas please." (Y/N) smiled at the bartender before she payed before Johnnie could even react.

"I'll pay the next round." He said from behind.

"Don't worry about it."

They got their shots and gulped them down. Johnnie's head felt light and his body buzzed and he realized he was more than just tipsy.

"I think--" (Y/N) stopped midsentence, her jaw dropping, "They're playing Trap Queen? Oh, my God. Do you dance, Johnnie?"

"I-- I don't..."

"Come oooon."

"Sorry."

(Y/N) rolled her eyes and looked over to the guy next to her. "Do you dance?"

"Hell yeah." He replied, and Johnnie watched as the two disappeared into the crowd to do just that. Dance. His eyebrows probably kissed his hairline and he instantly regretted his answer and swore he'd never say no again if she ever asked. Maybe another shot would make him more chill. Or two. He ordered two.

(Y/N) was enjoying the fun dance with the attractive man she spontaneously paired with. He was about yay tall, handsome with beautiful dark eyes and a nice smile. That's something about night clubs. You really don't have to talk or laugh or tell jokes, a look says it all, and the look he was giving was pretty obvious; the man liked what he saw and was enjoying this more than her. She could tell that he had some musky Sauvage on to hide the smell of sweat, but honestly, the cloud of weed encompassing him covered it better than anything else.

"What's your name?" He called over the music.

"It's (Y/N), you?"

"(Y/N), wow! Beautiful. I'm Derek."

"Thank you, Derek. I'm-" She was cut off by a hand on her shoulder dragging her backwards and she turned her head to see a familiar girlfriend and they carried on with the dancing until Fetty Wap was over and the DJ put on Give Me Everything by Pitbull.

"Jake!" (Y/N) noticed the familiar face and left the girl to dance with him.

"(Y/N)!" He turned away from the people he was vibing with to dance with her. "What's ahhh?" He yelled drunkenly.

"Pitbull. Smash or pass?" She yelled over Pitbull's rap.

"Obvious smash." He yelled back.

The two laughed as they moved to the music, the sticky floor causing mild resistance each time a shoe stepped up and down.

Jake said something inaudible so (Y/N) shouted, "What?"

"Did you lose Johnnie?"

"He didn't want to dance."

"He'd need to be heavily persuaded. Not worth a try. He's not a great dancer."

"Neither am I, I hate dancing unless I'm drunk. And I gotta be pretty drunk to get to it. So, yeah."

Jake grinned at her. "I should find him."

"I'll come with. I'm not feeling like dancing to Tiësto right now."

"Pffffttt!" He snickered before they withdrew from the dance floor to find their friend. They located him over in a booth with Ben and some girl (Y/N) didn't know. "Hii guyys."

The night moved on. (Y/N) was sipping on a Vodka Cranberry.

"You're always supposed to use sunscreen though." The woman, Miranda said.

"Right? I've heard that you're supposed to use it through winter as well. If you want nice skin when you're fifty." (Y/N) strengthened her new friend's point.

Jake shook his head. "That's just over the top, dude."

"Right?" Johnnie scoffed.

"Not if you're planning on being a milf, it isn't." (Y/N) frowned at him.

"Exactly." Miranda agreed. "I had this friend who got sponsored by a vitamin company and tried them out for 6 months. They were supposed to-"

"-I had a friend who tried to overdose on vitamins." Jake cut her off.

There was silence for a few seconds.

"Damn. What did she get-- better?" (Y/N) finally said.

It took another second before the company got the joke and they burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. What happened?" (Y/N) stiftled her giggles.

Jake shook his head, still snickering. "I'm pretty sure she just fell asleep, man."

"That's actually so depressing." (Y/N) realized. "Either she knew nothing was gonna happen or she was so desperate to... You know.."

"..." Jake was quiet but then they laughed loudly again and Johnnie gave him a side eye before giggling along.

"No way they're playing Poison, dude." (Y/N) gasped at the sound of the tune and got up to her feet. "Come on, emo boy."

Johnnie felt his belly drop but he stood up and nodded. "But I can't-"

"Come on." She grabbed his wrist and lead him away from the booth and through the horde of people in the club to the dance floor.

She turned around to face him and Johnnie really wasn't sure what to do next. Luckily (Y/N) took the lead and grabbed both of his hands and drew him closer. The strobe lights illuminating the club flickered over them, casting glimmering colors over (Y/N)'s pretty face and bare arms as they moved to the music.

"One look, could kill..." (Y/N) clutched her fist against her chest and dramatically sang along, "My pain, your thrill... I wanna love you," She let go off his other hand, "But I better not touch!" She turned away from him, a hand on her forehead as to check for a fever, "I wanna hold you, but my senses tell me to stop!"

Johnnie held his breath when (Y/N) faced him again and cupped his jaws with her hands, "I wanna kiss you, but I want it too much, I wanna taste you, but your lips are venomous poison!!" She giggled and Johnnie grinned back at her before she twirled him around and forced him to move way more than his comfort zone would've allowed on his own. Or with literally anyone else. Those shots propably did help. It was sort of like the awkwardness was wearing off, Johnnie was actually having fun.

(Y/N) raised her hand with his, indicating for him to spin. "Come on, dude."

Johnnie let out a giggle that was drowned out by the next verse of the song and he leaned down to fit under their hands and spun around, which made him chuckle a second time. The dance continued, the two of them giggling as they swayed around.

"I hear you calling, and it's needles and pins..." (Y/N) sang along, "I want to hurt you, just to hear you screaming my name.." With that sentence, Johnnie realized he had his hands on her hips, on the sliver of exposed skin between the top and the skirt she was wearing, but his imagination didn't get the chance to go anywhere weird cause he had enough on his mind trying to keep up with her energetic dancing.

"You're poison, running through my veins, you're poisoooon..."

Johnnie and (Y/N) broke into laughter as the song faded into Like A G6. They stopped and looked at each other, catching their breaths between giggles. For a split second Johnnie thought she had some magic aura around her cause she was practically glowing and he had never seen such a pretty girl and he definitely had enough to drink cause what the fuck was his brain thinking right now?

(Y/N) said something he couldn't quite make out.

"Sorry?" He asked and leaned down to her level.

He smelt like cologne and cigarettes and hairspray. In other words good. She closed in to his ear and said, "This DJ is fucking deranged, I love it!"

Johnnie chuckled back and leaned into her ear, "How do they go from Alice Cooper to this?"

"Should be illegal." (Y/N) giggled in his neck before he leaned out of the position and she dragged him with her out of the multitude. "Smoke?"

"Sure, yeah." He nodded and followed her like a happy tail to the smoking area.

It was way calmer out here, faint music playing from the open door and placid discussions going on between the smokers outside. (Y/N) picked up two cigarettes and was about to put one of them in his mouth when she gently tapped it against his lip piercings. The sensation made Johnnie's belly flutter a little.

"Does that ever get stuck? In like, places."

"Places?" He said with a flash of his eyebrows.

"Pfft." She placed the cigarette between his lips and went on to light it. "I mean, clothes and stuff. When I had a septum it got stuck in the caps of cans. All the time."

"Septum?"

"I used to have one when I was a teen." She explained.

"Oh." He nodded and breathed in tobacco and nicotine. "Well, yeah, or, not that often. Not really, no. Or well."

(Y/N) snorted. "It's a simple question, really, man."

"I don't know! I think maybe in the beginning when I wasn't used to them? Which was almost 10 years ago now?"

She looked a little puzzled and amused at the same time, smiling at his confusing answers. "How do you even kiss people with that?" She joked.

"I don't." He joked back and the two of them snickered loud.

"I wanted snake bites."

"See, you don't really look like the type who'd have emo piercings, (Y/N), I'd take you for the Miranda-kind, really." Johnnie admitted. (sorry if you're super alt irl lmao)

Miranda was a very sweet girl, sure, but she was sort of... an influencer-girlie, if you know what I mean. The type who always had a phone in her hand and sometimes looked at it instead of looking at the person talking to her...

"Now look who's judging. Man, I wasn't goth or anything, I was just cool. I am cool. I swear I'm still cool." (Y/N) explained and flicked her cig to ash it.

Johnnie grinned again. "If you say so."

"Piss off." She smiled playfully before she tilted her head slightly. "You got a plug on that ear, right? Can I see?"

"Uhhh," He nodded and (Y/N) reached her hand forward to tuck the air behind his ear to expose it. He swallowed, acting unbothered.

"Does it hurt to stretch it out that much?"

"I-I mean, uhm, that depends on how... fast you, how much you, like, do it. You can't just... stretch it out all at, uh, at once, you know." He wasn't good at acting unbothered.

"Ohhh, okay." She carefully touched the plug to get a better look at it. She'd never seen one up close. "You got, what, three piercings on that ear?"

"Uhh... Yeah, I think so." He nodded again and (Y/N) lowered her hand and took a step back. Johnnie let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "Scary, huh?"

"Really. Sort of looks like you'd bite."

"I promise I won't. Unless you want me to." It kind of just slipped out, the flirting. He realized it maybe overstepped a line and went on to add a very cringe bark, "Arf, arf."

It made (Y/N) cackle. "Alright, reel it in, Cujo." The two snickered and (Y/N) tossed her cigarette. "I never watched Cujo. I was too scared when I was a kid and never summoned enough courage, I guess. I can't stand animals being hurt so I think that just stopped me."

"I get that. You like horror movies?"

"Wanna know a secret? I'm a little bitch." (Y/N) confessed. "Total fucking pussy, man."

Johnnie snorted loudly. "That's not a secret."

"Shut up."

"Pfffttt."

"Didn't even watch the Winnie horror movie."

"That is actually quite wimpy of you. But hey, I didn't, either."

"... So how could you argue about it being awful if you didn't watch it?"

"The trailer was enough! Besides, you tried to argue about it being scary when you didn't even watch it."

"I didn't watch it cause it looked scary!"

"I didn't watch it cause it looked awful."

The two stared at each other for a moment before laughing drunkenly together again, before (Y/N)'s gaze moved from Johnnie to someone behind him. "Derek!! Hi, again." She waved and Johnnie's eyebrows furrowed when he realized it was the guy she had danced with earlier.

"(Y/N)! Thought I lost ya there. Do you have a light?"

"Sure, yeah. How's it going?"

Johnnie felt his mouth twitch and he forced a friendly smile and said, "I'll find Jake, (Y/N). See you!"

"Oh-- Okay!" (Y/N) smiled back and continued the convo with Derek.

Derek seemed to be a good guy, (Y/N) thought. In her drunken haze she listened carefully to his choice of words, as she always did with men, much more judgemental regarding them than women. He was charming, charismatic, flirty. And he was hot. But (Y/N) wasn't here to find a bed to sleep in, she was here to hang out with her friends.

And she preferred that emo guy's company more than this one.

Derek and (Y/N) smoked another cigarette together before she said, "Alright, I should go find my friends again."

"Hang on, I've gotta get your snap." He handed over his phone.

"Well, uh, sure." (Y/N) added her Snapchat on his phone and smiled at him. "See you, Derek."

"You better add me back."

"We'll see about that." She winked and turned around to head inside again, ignoring Derek's friend request and instead texted Jake. He was on the second floor with Johnnie and Ben so (Y/N) followed his description and found them in a booth again.

"What time is it?" Ben asked.

"Uhh. Soon 2AM." Which meant they'd been here for 3 hours.

"When is this place closing?" Jake wondered.

"5AM." Ben replied.

"Then we're in no hurry." Jake established.

(Y/N) shrugged and leaned back in the booth with a sigh. "I'm kinda tired, man."

"Tired?!" Jake sounded offended. "You can't be tired! Let's order a Vodka Redbull for you. Come on."

"No, Jake, I'm-"

"Nuh-uh!" Jake stood up and nodded for her to follow. "Seriouslyyy. You're not boring, are ya?"

"I kinda am." She said, not getting worked up about his attempt to trigger her.

"Bro."

"Alright, alright."

Johnnie watched as they got up to order . He sighed and looked at his almost empty glass of Jack and coke.

"How'd you meet that girl? (Y/N)." Ben asked.

He looked up from the glass to his friend. "Huh? (Y/N)? Uhh, fun-- weird story. We just kept on bumping into each other. I bumped into her in a store and then we both showed up for this party, uhh, Jayden's, you know. You weren't there. I bumped into her again and she spilled her drink on herself."

Ben laughed. "Really? That's actually, it sounds like a bad book."

"Right?"

"She's, are you or Jake, like...? You know."

"What?"

"Trying to, get with her, or... You know."

"No, not at all." Johnnie shook his head in defense. "We're just friends, all of us."

"Alright, good to know. She's hot." Ben said. "... Right? Really hot." He looked at Johnnie for confirmation.

"Mhm." He nodded.

"And fucking funny. What a gal." Ben continued. "What's her IG?"

"I'm not sure, dude." Johnnie admitted and Ben pouted. "I'm serious. Jake has her number and that's it."

"What? Is she famous? Like, some model?"

Johnnie shrugged and shook his head. "I don't know. Ask her, dude." For some reason it started to rub Johnnie the wrong way. Ben annoyed him right now.

"Okay, okay." Ben got the hint and shuffled in his seat.

Ben was right. (Y/N) was hilarious and made them all laugh a lot. She stayed for maybe 20 more minutes before she started to look slightly restless and glanced at her phone.

"I'm thinking about going soon, guys." She finally said and took the last sip from her drink.

"So that redbull did not help." Jake groaned.

"For a while, it did." (Y/N) shrugged. "It's 2.24AM."

"I got something if you need to wake up." Ben suggested.

(Y/N) understood what he meant. "I'm good, man. What I need is my bed."

"Weren't you gonna crash at ours?" Jake looked confused.

"I-- We never said that." (Y/N) lifted her eyebrows.

"You could always crash at mine." A drunk Ben promised.

"Yeah- no." (Y/N) gave him a little side-eye but then turned to Jake again with a comedic timing that made him and Johnnie snicker. "I don't recall agreeing to that. Besides, I gotta study."

"But you can-" Jake was about to say something.

"It's the weekend at 2.30 in a club and this girl's talking about studying?" Ben tried to cut in on the conversation again. "Live a little, sweetie. Like I said, I'll call us a cab and you can sleep at mine's when the night's done. Or we could continue the night there-"

"Can you not talk for a moment?"

Ben laughed and made another attempt, "Don't be like that, mama-"

"Mama?"

"--Hush. I just think it's a little too early to think about leaving and too late to think about studying."

"But no one asked for your opinion, did they?" The middle-school comeback made the boys laugh once again. "I'm sorry, Ben, but dial it back, babes."

"She called me babes!" He whispered jokingly to Jake and Johnnie.

(Y/N) scoffed with a roll of her eyes. "It's the definition of rejection." She got up to her feet. "Anyways. I'm calling an uber. Are you guys staying longer?"

Johnnie and Jake looked at each other. Honestly Johnnie could take it or leave it. Stay or leave. He shrugged.

"Ah, what the hell. It's getting late." Jake decided.

"What?! Really??" Ben whined. "Wow."

"Sorry, babes, but these ladies are getting tired." Jake said while he and Johnnie stood up. (Y/N) giggled and gave Jake a look before the company moved toward the exit. There were people in every direction but (Y/N) moved swiftly through the club and down the stairs and lead the way out.

"I'll call-" (Y/N) started but Johnnie interrupted.

"I gotcha." He put the phone to his ear to call an uber, while Jake and (Y/N) picked up a cigarette and started smoking.

"Wait, what the fuck?" (Y/N) looked baffled.

"What?" Jake asked innocently.

"No, no, no, don't try to 'what' me, what the-- your fingers literally--... do it again!"

Jake shrugged. "What, this?" He bent his fingers into an uncomfortably strange position.

(Y/N) gasped. "What!!"

Johnnie finally turned off his phone and looked at them to see what the fuss was about.

"He did... Johnnie, look." She pointed to Jake's fingers.

"Ugh." Johnnie responded with disgust. "I know, dude, he's double jointed. It's terrible."

"Ooooh." (Y/N) squinted her eyes. "How does that even work. Like, hypermobility. Does it hurt?"

"Not at all. I think it might hurt some people though. Not me." Jake shrugged and lowered his hand.

"Huh." (Y/N) nodded slowly. "That's crazy. Is it genetic? I mean, it must be. Or are you, like, inbred or something?"

They laughed before Jake replied, "It's genetic, man, but I am white trailer park trash, so..."

"Oh, pfft-..." (Y/N) covered her mouth when she giggled. "My father's my brother and so on." They chuckled before she continued, "I'm sorry, man, I'm kidding. Your fingers are really cool. Just, don't, like, do it in front of me ever again. I swear they're really cool, though."

Some more chuckling before the vehicle arrived and they hopped inside. It was a fun ride back to (Y/N)'s apartment where she got off and then Jake and Johnnie continued back to theirs.

~~

Chapter Text

"Headache?" Kevin had a smug grin on his face.

(Y/N) didn't reply. She put the bottle of water down on the counter. Yeah, headache. She fell asleep at 3AM and woke up at 10 to go to work, so it could've been worse, but it was still bad enough to leave her head pounding.

"Rough night?"

Now she gave him a glare.

"I'm kidding, Jesus." Kevin chuckled lightly. His smirk was yet to fade, even when the doorbell rang and (Y/N) didn't make any attempt to tend to the customers, he smiled and took them for her. He was being nice today.

She took a lap to gather dishes from the tables while he stood lonely at the counter. Man, she drank a lot yesterday. A lot. She remembered having an amazing time though, and remembered dancing and laughing. But she didn't remember ever adding 'Derek' back on Snapchat and now he really wanted to take her on a date. And it made her a bit anxious. See, once again back at that whole 'expectation'-thing. Going on a date as though to perform to make a good impression. She couldn't recall feeling any extraordinary chemistry with Derek yesterday. He was attractive and charismatic, yeah, but that's about it. But shouldn't that be enough to entice her to a date?

(Y/N) sighed as she put the dishes in the sink and returned to Kevin to help out with the incoming customers. Afterwards she turned to him. "We were over at Avalon in Hollywood. Stayed there to, like, 2.30." She explained with a friendly tone. "I'm usually good at forcing myself to drink water when I come home, despite how drunk I am. But yesterday I didn't. I pretty much fell into my bed, lucky I set my alarm before going out."

Kevin chuckled. "Yeah, I could tell."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You look pretty tired."

She scoffed playfully as if she got offended.

Kevin cleared his throat, "Like, you're slouching and you always keep your back straight, dude, and you're unusually quiet. I mean, often you at least pretend to laugh at my jokes or hum when you listen."

"Okay, okay, you know me so well." (Y/N) rolled her eyes.

"Was it fun, then?"

"What?"

"Yesterday."

"Oh! Yeah, I had a very good time. Hung out with some new friends. Drank a little more than I was planning on. But I'm here now and I'm working, right?"

"Yeah, you're all good." Kev grinned again. Kevin was a good coworker. They did have fun together and (Y/N) was pretty comfortable around him by now. He was a very open person and maybe (Y/N) would've thought about hanging out with him outside of work if he wasn't so... He had been into the sigma-hype and had a view on women that (Y/N) didn't quite agree with, even if it wasn't horribly incel-problematic.. She chose who she hung out with and she had plenty to pick from. And his cheesy pick-up lines and his bottomless flirting could sometimes make her snap at him. He wasn't always very respectful. But hey, he was funny and helped pass time.

"Do you even think it really helps? Drinking water? I mean, I think, if you've drank that much, nothing can really save you." (Y/N) wondered. "But you get so dehydrated from drinking and that's one of the things that makes you hungover."

"I think water helps." Kevin replied. "Met any cute boys?"

"A couple."

"Tell meee."

(Y/N) giggled and shook her head. "There were a few. I don't know though."

"Hey. I'm always here if you need a cute boy."

~~

Johnnie stretched with a yawn. It was a Wednesday afternoon. He had just ended a livestream and needed coffee, so he got up and out of his room to head to the kitchen. "Hey, Jake, want some coffee?"

"Uhh, yes, please." Jake yelled back from wherever he was. "Tara's coming over for a while. So you know."

"Alright, cool." He called and went on to prepare coffee.

Soon Jake joined him in the kitchen and the two went on to chat. "Maybe do one tomorrow or something?"

"Yeah, I think tomorrow's fine by me. I've got a pretty clear schedule."

"Perfect." Jake sipped on his cup before his phone buzzed. "Text from (Y/N)! She wants to hang tomorrow."

"We just said we'd film a video."

"So? We could do it in the morning-"

"No way, dude."

"Johnnie." Jake groaned and chuckled. "What if we film a video in two days and then-"

"Jake, come on, man, we're not gonna re-schedule a video because you want to hang out with some girl."

Jake scoffed. "Don't say it like that. We're all friends, dude."

"Tell her we can hang out on Friday."

"Alright, alright." Jake gave in.

~~

Friday came around. (Y/N) picked Johnnie and Jake up at their place. They had agreed to order food and go for an evening drive. Jake took the front seat and Johnnie sat in the middle of the backseat.

"Alright. What are we feeling like having for dinner?" (Y/N) asked. "And does anyone want to be DJ?"

"You DJ."

"Alright but I'm shuffling random songs."

"Hmmm... I could go for, like, a big fucking hamburger."

"No, dude." Johnnie shook his head.

"Riiight. Johnnie doesn't like hamburgers, (Y/N)."

"What?" (Y/N) looked at Johnnie in the rearview mirror. "You know, I could act like that's outrageous just to get to bully you, but honestly, hamburgers are overrated."

Johnnie chuckled and broke eye contact in the mirror, looking through the window straight forward instead. "See, Jake? Finally me and (Y/N) agree on something."

"You two are idiots." Jake declared. "What do you want to eat, then?"

"Maybe like, weens."

"Wee-what?" (Y/N) looked back in the rearview mirror with a confused expression.

Johnnie frowned, reflecting the same confusion. "What? Like, hot weens."

"Hot what?" She scoffed with a giggle before looking back on the road as she aimlessly drove through south central.

"Wings." Jake let out a loud laugh. "Hot wings. Buffalo wings. You like hot wings, (Y/N)?"

"I don-- I guess." She was still confused. "Weens? I thought he was talking about fucking... wieners, dude, I was like, 'who are these people? are they suggesting a fucking ride to a gay strip club or what'!"

"That does sound cool." Jake pretended to think for a moment. "Where's the nearest one?"

"There's this shady one five minutes away from here. My uncle used to take me there when I was younger." Johnnie joked and the three laughed.

"Alright. Hot weens it its." (Y/N) giggled and steered the way to the fast food restaurant.

They continued driving through LA while listening to music and eating their hot weens.

"Nah." (Y/N) used yet another tissue to wipe her hands. "Guys, I can't eat this while driving, I'm ruining my car."

"Pull over." Johnnie flatly suggested.

"Uh, yeah. Where though." She looked around.

"Yeah, this isn't exactly what you'd eat on a first date." Jake said, staring down at his own sticky fingers.

"Yeah, cause, imagine after and the girl.." Johnnie mumbled through a mouth full of chicken.

(Y/N) nodded empathically. "That would hurt, yeah." The two snickered while it took Jake a moment to understand and then he laughed, like, five seconds later. "Alriiight. Here's a lonely parking lot."

"Not suspicious at all." Jake commented.

"Nuh-uh." She turned the car off and grabbed another wing, some Frank Ocean song playing in the background.

"Aw, man, they burnt this one." Jake realized and waved with the wing in his hand. "Woow."

"That's fucked up, dude." (Y/N) swallowed a bite. "But please don't throw that around my car."

"I won't--" He dropped it, but in his own lap, and gasped shocked.

Johnnie and (Y/N) burst out laughing. "You've got sauce all over your face, too, dude." Johnnie snickered.

"Well, usually I have sauce on your face every fucking night!" Jake replied as he wiped his face and lap with a tissue. This made (Y/N) laugh even louder.

"Yooooo." Johnnie raised his eyebrow. "Don't say that in front of her." He joked.

"Pfffttt!" (Y/N) kept a hand over her mouth as she giggled. "You need another tissue, Jake?"

"Yes, please." He groaned. "You know, sometimes... Wait..." He dug his hand into his pocket. "Someone's calling. It's Tara." He declined the call to continue cleaning himself but the phone kept buzzing. "Alright, wait."

(Y/N) paused her music and she and Johnnie listened to Jake humming, a distressed voice coming from the other end of the call but they couldn't make out any words.

"Alright, of course. I'll come over, yes, just wait a moment." Jake hung up and turned to (Y/N). "Can I ask you a favor?"

"What's up?"

"My friend's upset. Her dog isn't feeling too good. I know it sounds silly but..."

"Not at all, dude."

"Alright, could you please drop me off at her place? She needs some comfort."

"Of course. Where does she live?"

Jake conducted the way to her apartment and (Y/N) stopped the car outside.

"Just tell me if you need a ride home." (Y/N) offered.

"Thank you, (Y/N). Johnnie, talk to you later." Jake closed the car door.

(Y/N) looked at Johnnie in the rearview mirror. "..."

He cleared his throat, thinking of what to say next.

"... You wanna sit in the front?" (Y/N) asked.

"Uhh. Yeah." Johnnie agreed and clumsily got out of the car and into the seat next to her.

"I hope the dog's fine."

"Me, too."

"... Do you know her, too?"

"The dog?"

"The... friend..."

"Oh!..." Johnnie let out a forced chuckle. "Yeah, yes. Yes, we're all friends."

(Y/N) nodded and started driving again, "How did you meet?"

"Uh, she's uh, Jake's ex, actually. So that's how." Johnnie explained, glancing out the window as they rolled forward. He wasn't quite sure if she was going to drop him off at home or where they were going.

"Ohhh." (Y/N) nodded again. "So-" She stopped as she recognized the next song playing on the stereo. Aneurysm. "Uhh, maybe that's not the vibe."

"Nirvana.."

"Nooo, I don't, I never listen to them anymore. I used to when I was going through my teenage angst era, dude, but I feel like everyone has a Nirvana phase. It's good music though. I love Kurt. And Dave and Krist." (Y/N) changed the song and Lana started singing. She changed again and She Wolf turned on. That'll do..

"Is your playlist bipolar, or..."

(Y/N) giggled and gave him a little side-eye. "Stop." She smiled. "I told you I'm shuffling songs, man, I don't know what's coming next."

Johnnie snickered and she hummed along to the song, moving slightly in her seat to the beat of the music. "What time is it?" He asked.

"What, you wanna leave already? Am I that boring?"

"No-"

"I'm surprised you even agreed to hang out with me..." She shrugged. "Boys usually don't want to hang out with girls like me." It was a bit of a wild card to choose, since the chances were that he wouldn't get the joke.

But he of course did. Johnnie scoffed as he caught on. "Girls like you?"

"Genuine, funny.. Caring... Loyal, genuine... Funny, talented..."

He snickered.

"Brave, cool, loyal.." She continued, picking up her phone to put on 'All Girls Are The Same'. "You look too beautiful to be out with an ugly girl like me anyways..."

Johnnie ended up laughing from his stomach, shaking his head. "I wasn't, it wasn't me hinting about wanting to leave, dude."

"You're just saying that... Okay. Where we going then?"

"Hmmm. First of all change the song."

"Yes, sir." She giggled and shuffled to Black Hole Sun, and Johnnie gave an approving nod. "Call me crazy, but-"

"Crazy."

(Y/N) smacked her lips and tapped a finger on the wheel. "But, I think I'm actually memorizing the roads around this town. You know?"

"Crazy. I've lived here for so many years and I still don't know my way around downtown."

"Do you usually drive around downtown?"

"No. I don't have my license."

"Really? And you're calling me crazy." (Y/N) giggled. "I'm kidding. It's nothing wrong with that. But where I'm from, it's like, 'whaaat, you're 12 and you're not practice driving yet?'.."

Johnnie giggled. "I get that. People are super eager to get their license here, too. I don't know man. Regardless I don't think I'd usually drive around downtown even if I had a license. You do that?"

"I don't-- know." (Y/N) shrugged. "Sometimes. Or not, like, drive around in circles, man. I drive around LA sometimes listening to loud music. That's like, the biggest reason I even got my license. I was like, 'I can't wait to go for midnight drives and blast bangers so loud that the vehicle shakes from the bass'."

Johnnie snickered again. "See, that's the only thing that gives me the slightest motivation." He half-joked.

And they did that. Drove around LA for probably 40 minutes, listening to bangers and chatting on, the minute of awkwardness in the beginning long forgotten. Johnnie and (Y/N) seemed to have a good dynamic and clicked. Really clicked.

(Y/N) pulled the car over outside his and Jake's place. "Alriiight. See ya. It was nice hanging out."

"It really was." Johnnie agreed, maybe a bit too polite for the setting since they seemed to have passed that 'acquainted'-level and moved up to friends. "Just text me if you want company on your midnight drives. I'm probably up."

(Y/N) giggled and was about to say goodnight when she realized, "I don't even have your number or anything, you liar."

"You're right. Uh." Johnnie was still unsure whether to mention that he had over a million followers on Instagram or not. 1.8 to be precise.

"Here. Type it in." She gave him her phone and he did what he was told.

"There we go."

"Perfect. Bye, Johnnie, see you."

~~

A few days passed until Sunday afternoon came around and (Y/N) sat with her phone in her hand fresh out the shower. (Y/N) had checked up on Jake to see how the dog was feeling the day after he went to support his friend. Puppy was fine, thank God. She hadn't texted Johnnie though. And she was the one with his number. And she wanted to get to know him better.

She settled on, 'Hi. What're you doing? It's (Y/N) :)

It took ten minutes for him to reply with,

'Hi, you. Nothing at all. What's up?'

She wasn't sure what she was going to say. Hm. 'I'm bored. wanna do something?'

'Have you eaten today?'

'Not in a 'have you eaten uwu'-way but do you want to eat something?'

'Hahaha, not for a while, so yeah, I'm hungry. You seem to be a picky eater tho and I'm not so I'm gonna ask if you've got any suggestions?'

'Haha uhm you know Hart Park?'

'yeah'

'We could go to this food place next to it they have different meals it's really good'

Well, a mystery food place. Perfect. 'Alright, I trust you'

They met at the said address. Johnnie looked emo per usual but with barely anything dark around his eyes. The slightest smudged eyeliner but that was it. He was a bit worried she'd think he was too much, since she had a different style. So he lowered the emo-measure just for today even if he believed she didn't mind.

"Alright, you guys eating here or taking with?"

The two looked at each other. "You know, we could eat in the park." (Y/N) suggested.

"Sure. Yeah, uh, we'll take it with us." Johnnie smiled at the girl taking their order.

The evenings were getting warmer. A pageant of smells floated in the spring air and a horde of dandelions littered the lawn. Bees were buzzing over fresh flowers and the trees were growing lush with green leaves. So it was suprisingly quiet in the park today, considering the great weather.

"You know what happened to me the other day?" Johnnie said.

"No, I don't." (Y/N) replied with zero interest. "Hey. Look at that dog. Isn't it cute?"

"Fuck off." Johnnie snickered before he went on. "Okay, so, when and, alright I w-sjw." He stuttered so bad.

"What? Pfffffttt." (Y/N)'s snort unraveled into laughter and Johnnie laughed along.

He scratched the back of his head, still grinning, "Quiet. I was at Target to get some stuff, right? And outside on the-"

"How did you even get there? Walk?"

"Shush. I was gonna-"

"Really though. Do you walk around LA?"

"There are stores everywhere in LA! You don't have to drive if it's a 5 minute walk."

"And then you'll have to carry all your groceries, right?"

"I'll live if it's five minutes to the nearest store." Johnnie scoffed. "Okay. Me and Jake, were at Target to get some stuff. Right?"

"Right. So he drove."

"... And me and Jake were leaving and out on the parking lot we met this old lady who needed help to find her car. We spent probably ten minutes helping her out. It took ages." Johnnie chewed on another fry.

"Wow. That's how long it would've took for you to walk back and forth to that store. Far, huh? Ages even."

"It's all subjective. That's past the point." Johnnie glared at her before feeling a smile tug at his lips again.

"Alright. I'll admit that's sweet of you. To help her out." (Y/N) said and leaned back on the bench, looking up at the setting sun. "Have you ever helped an old lady over the street or does that only happen in movies?"

"I feel like that's some 90s type shit."

"Yeah. At least before the 2000s. The good old days when kids weren't always looking down at their phones and actually saw and helped the elderly." Even if she was joking, she had a point. "It feels sort of weird. Sort of offensive to be like, 'hey, ya need help to get over this crosswalk, ma'am', like obviously she has two legs... you might as well just call her old instead... Uhm. Like. Why do they even need help over the roads?"

"Yeah, right? Just look left and right and walk over. Jeez. How hard can it be."

"Totally. I mean, it's pretty obvious with the red or green light telling you when you can go or not." (Y/N) shrugged and the two chuckled.

"Have you ever ran a red light?"

"No. Honestly." She shook her head. "Is that a dare?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Bet."

"Pfft."

"You don't think I'll do it?"

"Don't, seriously." Johnnie snickered.

(Y/N) giggled. "We made a bet, Johnnie, and I don't ever lose those. Just kidding. I lose bets all the time."

He laughed again and almost choked on fries causing him to cough uncontrollably.

"Jeez, dude, it wasn't even funny." (Y/N) giggled as she watched him struggle. "Dude, are you-- are you okay?" She stiftled her laughter as she patted his back.

Johnnie kept on snickering and coughing, bending forward over his lap and plate of food as she kept on giving gentle pats while laughing along.

"Drink your Dr. Pepper." She said and he picked it up from the grass beside the bench and gulped it down. She lowered his hand from him.

He let out a deep sigh when the coughing seemed to ebb out. "Holy fuck, man."

"I thought you were about to die. Don't scare me like that."

Johnnie chuckled again and it made him cough... again.

"Alright, now it's getting old."

It set him into another round of laughter. They hung out there for a while, talking and cracking more jokes before they went their separate ways again.

~~

The coming week was pretty busy. Study and work, study and work, study and work. (Y/N) and Johnnie texted a bit back and forth, staying in touch every other day or so. That Thursday she really couldn't sleep, no matter how hard she tried. So at 11.45PM she called Johnnie.

"Why are you up?" Was Johnnie's first sentence.

"Can't fucking sleep, man." (Y/N) replied. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

"Nope. Same here."

"Wanna carpool?"

"No."

"... Damn, okay, I didn't want to, anyways. It was just a prank."

"I'm just kidding." Johnnie snickered through the phone.

"Me, too."

(Y/N) picked him up and the two of them put on old 2010 nostalgia and sang along while driving through the city, out to Laguna Beach, following the road along the shore.

"Do you ever go to the beach?"

"Do I look like someone who goes to the beach?"

"I don't know. Do beach people usually look a certain way?"

"Do you usually see emos at the beach?" Johnnie said and the two laughed.

"I don't think I ever have, actually." (Y/N) realized. "Maybe I've just been to the wrong beaches."

Johnnie grinned, glancing at himself in the side mirror through the window. He looked kinda rough from sitting in front of his computer since he woke up all the way until she called.

"Oh, do you see that? A red light." (Y/N) turned her head to face him with a playful smile.

"You fucking won't-"

"Watch me." She stood on the gas and the car accelerated quickly.

"(Y/N), for fuck's sake!" Johnnie groaned.

Then she hit the brakes and stopped just in time with a giggle.

Johnnie snorted. "Pussy."

She scoffed and turned her head back to him. "You-!! Don't test me."

"Alright, alright, please don't kill me tonight. It would feel kinda useless after all these years of trying to find joy to live."

(Y/N) snickered. "Yeah, it would suck to pull a Vince Neil on ya already. We haven't even gotten to know each other yet."

Johnnie snorted at the Mötley Crüe joke.

"Joi de Vivre."

"Joy de What?" He raised an eyebrow.

"It means zest for life."

"Zesty? Dude, what are you, gay?"

(Y/N) giggled as she continued driving. "French, it's a cute phrase, isn't it?"

"Maybe if you pronounce it right. Your French sucks."

"You suck."

"Yeah, and I'm fucking good at it. Ask your dad." He said with a grin and they both cracked up again.

God, (Y/N) had the prettiest laugh ever. It was awfully contagious. And man, did she make him feel good. At peace, sort of. She had this vibe that made him relax and live in the moment. Easy and quick with the jokes. A chill person. You know?

"How do you pronounce croissant?"

"Croissant."

"And Melbourne?"

"Melbourne."

"Exactly. With your American accent. So why would you pronounce Joi de Vivre with some try-hard fucking upperclass French-style accent?"

Johnnie scoffed.

"Exactly. Joi de Vivre." (Y/N) rolled her eyes.

"Zesty for life."

They laughed for the millionth time that night and drove for maybe 20 more minutes before she dropped him off and went home to hers.

~~

Chapter Text

The sky looked as blue as a cornflower without a single cloud planning to cover the sun. It shined brightly and (Y/N) kept her eyes shut while she sunbathed, feeling the heat on her face. Chill hip hop played from the open window and (Y/N) hummed along to a Kanye West tune. She rested her back against the wall of her apartment building, sitting criss-crossed on the fire escape.

"Are you ready to go, (Y/N)?" Brooke called from inside.

"Uh, yeah, I'm waiting for you." (Y/N) shouted back.

"I'm reaadyyyy!"

"Okay, okay, chill." (Y/N) took another moment to enjoy the sun before she stood up and slipped through the window, making sure to close it. She lived in a good neighborhood but LA was LA. You could never be too safe.

Brooke and (Y/N) were going to have coffee at this little café on Venice Beach. It was now the middle of May which meant it wasn't quite hot enough to swim or drink margaritas on loungers but soon enough.

(Y/N)'s nails tapped over the hot porcelain. "I always liked him, though, he seemed like a good guy."

"Yet no one is ready to commit!" Brooke groaned, talking about the situationship she'd been going through. "I mean, he's not the one supposed to reject me!! It's embarrassing."

"Brooke, it isn't embarrassing, it's part of life and the only embarrassing thing is the way Leo's acting. That's embarrassing. A grown-ass man acting like a 17 year old boy."

"I know. Thanks, (Y/N)." Brooke sighed.

(Y/N) lowered the cup from her mouth after having a sip. "And I get it. When you got vulnerable with him and actually tried to define your relationship, he turned you down, and that hurts, far beyond just bruising your ego. I understand. And either you give him time to think about it or you move on and find someone actually worthy of your time. Who in their right mind would let themselves fumble a girl like you?"

"Alright, alright, thank you. I mean it." Brooke laughed and shook her head. "What about your guys?"

Ugh. 'How's it going with the boys?', 'got any boyfriend?', etc. Worst questions ever. "My guys?"

"You and all your hoes that you never allow past first base."

"Pffft." (Y/N) shrugged. "I think I'm pretty bitchless right now."

"Nate? Derek? Johnnie? You've been hanging out with Johnnie recently, right?"

"A few times, yeah. We spoke on the phone for like an hour yesterday and we've gone for a few car rides, but like, I can count them on one hand. Last time was last week."

Brooke wiggled her eyebrows. "Ooooh."

"Stop, no, not like that."

"Of course not. Ugh. When will you allow yourself happiness."

"I'm very happy being by myself. You should learn that, Brooke. Being okay with being by yourself."

She scoffed. "Yeah, rather be by myself than with you, bitch."

(Y/N) giggled and shook her head. "I think Johnnie's super cool. Right? We've got the same humor and we laugh, a fucking bunch."

"And we don't do that?" She acted offended. "You're trading me for him? Getting a new bestie?"

"Shush." (Y/N) giggled. "And I think he's cute, too. But he's not my type, alright? Plus I don't know him that well. Yet."

"Alright, alright." Brooke gave in.

"But like, he's smart. Unlike most guys. When was the last time you met a decent man with a good sense of humor and self-distance and self-awareness? Never." (Y/N) thought, once again gently tapping her fingernails on her cup while watching the vibrations stir around a current in the liquid. "He's intelligent, like, on the same wavelength."

"Holy shit, that's something I've never heard you say about a man." Brooke half-joked.

(Y/N) looked up from the cup with raised eyebrows. It was true. "Pfft, right? Johnnie's a super cool guy. With good political and social views. Jake, too. They're two good people."

"I really want to hang out with them. Can't we have a party?"

"... The four of us?"

"No, we invite a bunch of people."

"Not at-"

"Your house-"

"No-"

"Come on, your-"

"Nuh-uh, man, not my house!" (Y/N) did a quiet Jesse Pinkman reference that made Brooke laugh. "For real, though, not my apartment, I swear to God my neighbors will make sure I get kicked out. They've complained about my music already."

Brooke rolled her eyes. "Never mind. We could meet up at a bar or something. Or we'll show up at the same party. Ask 'em what they're doing this weekend."

"Jesus, alright, alright." (Y/N) sighed. "I can ask him, if we hang out tonight."

"You're spending the night with him instead of me? Wooow."

"Shush!" (Y/N) giggled.

~~

It was one of those bad nights. Probably soon 12.30 and Johnnie couldn't quite pinpoint what caused it or why he felt that way this particular night, but anxiety gnawed at his stomach while he tried to occupy his mind with another round at the game on his computer. Blue light reflected his face, a harsh contrast from the dark room, forcing him to squint his eyes.

Buzz, buzz. He glanced at his phone, eyes going round when he saw the notification from (Y/N).

'you up?'

'that sounded like something a man would send to his sidechick at this time'

'i know it's fucking super late but are you awake*'

Heh. (Y/N) could text him anytime. He replied with, 'Lol 💀' and then 'Yeah you?'

'nah'

'cant sleep wanna go for a ride?'

Johnnie smiled. He'd been hoping that she'd ask him again. 'I'll pass'

'fuck you'

'pick you up in 15?'

'Ok then🙄'

And like an angel sent from God she arrived with snacks! (Y/N) brought both candy and chips(crispswhatevah) along with The Velvet Underground and suddenly everything felt okay again. Johnnie relaxed in the front seat next to his (still new) buddy.

"And we went to this café, right?" (Y/N) told him about her day. "And I kid you not, there's a puppy on the loose. It runs straight at me and Brooke, and Brooke, the fucking pussy she is, almost freaks out, screaming that it's gonna bite. Which is like, textbook, WikiHow to get bitten if you're actually getting charged at by a mad dog, but this was a puppy."

Johnnie snickered. "What breed?"

"I'd guess some sorta spaniel, the cock one, you know."

"Ahhh, that one."

"Suuuch a cutie. Not the kind that looks like it has brain damage, not the American one, but the other one. Bri'ish one. English cocker spaniel."

Johnnie laughed again. "Alright, alright. What happened next? Did she get bitten?"

"Pfft, nah, it was a puppy, dude. He was just happy to be out and about, ya know? Finally off the leash. Off the rails, even. Enjoying freedom. So he ran for us and headed over to me who probably looked way more approachable than Brooke crawled up in her seat hyperventilating. His owner was this elderly man who dropped the leash when he was answering a call."

"Old people and their fucking phones. Am I right?"

(Y/N) rolled her eyes with a nod. "For real, dude, on God." He chuckled again. "Anyways, the owner thanked us but really I was supposed to be thanking him, blessed with puppy kisses on Venice Beach drinking coffee and enjoying the sun."

"I think a lot of people would've been upset. Like your friend."

"Brooke's scared to death of dogs." (Y/N) snorted. "She got bitten when she was like, 16, and hasn't moved past that ever. She still has a scar on her arm from it."

"Damn. Me, too. But for other reasons."

"Me, three." The two laughed again. "Kiiiiddiiiing."

"Totaallyy me too. But yeah, some fears just stay there, don't they?"

She nodded and said, "I suppose so. But puppies? Like, really, dawg?"

Johnnie chuckled again. "Fair though if she was attacked."

"Probably cause she was screaming. If I was a dog, I'd bite her, too."

Another laugh.

"So what about your day?"

"... Mine?" Johnnie cleared his throat. What did he even do? He'd sound unemployed regardless of how he worded it. "It's been a chill day, dude, did some paperwork and sat behind the computer." Was the most grown-up way to phrase it.

(Y/N) nodded. "And-" She was cut off by a loud honk from the car behind her. "Huh? What'd I do?"

"You're going 20 in a 30."

"Really- oh." (Y/N) picked up the speed. "Usually it's the other way around for me."

"Mhm?"

"Yeah, especially in like, you know, outside schools and stuff when it's 10mph and you accidentally drive 30 and it's just like going fucking bowling, man."

Johnnie let out a loud snort followed by giggles.

"Wow, the guy's still like, licking our fucking asses, dude, the car's right behind-- I swear to God, he'll bump into us anytime."

Johnnie held another giggle back. "Jesus Christ, that guy's pissed."

"Is it a cop? Fuck. Throw the fucking, hey, check my glove compartment quick, I got like three bags of cocaine there. Just kidding. Is it a cop though? Or a pissed middle aged man?"

Johnnie snickered and shrugged, glancing at the rearview mirror. "I just think it's a pissed middle aged man."

"Jeez, man. I'm just a girl. Can people stop taking out their own personal issues on others."

"Probably not."

"Should I just hit the brakes. Stop in the middle of the road."

"He probably has a gun."

"Good point. Me, too, though. He can probably tell from my fucking Pontiac GTO from 1967. Tango is, takes two. How do you say it? It takes two to tango." (Y/N) really was great at yapping if she felt comfortable around someone. Her mouth would say any thought that occurred in her brain without thinking first. "And you don't wanna dance with me... Ohh! Banger."

Johnnie scoffed and shook his head in amusement as she put on Jealous Girl by Lana Del Rey.

"You know when you've saved an unreleased Lana song on Spotify and then suddenly, like, the next day when you put it on, it's changed into some cover sang by a girl in cursive?"

"I can't relate, no."

(Y/N) giggled before she sang along. And (Y/N) really could sing. She had such a nice voice. "You don't wanna mess with me, mess with me... Cause I'm a jealous, jealous, jealous giiiirl... If I can't have you baby, if I can't have you baby... Come on, man, you know the lyrics."

"I'm sorry, no."

"Uh? Everyone knows the lyrics, Johnnie."

"... Baby I'm a gangster too, and it takes two to tango..."

"YEAH!"

(Y/N) sunk under her sheets around 2AM that night. Her and Johnnie had stopped in a parking lot and chilled before going back home to theirs again, talking about mostly surface level subjects and laughing.

(Y/N) liked being alone, she really did, but sometimes it wasn't very good to be alone with your own thoughts. So it was pretty cool to have a good friend to call up and hang out with even if it was in the middle of the night. She had Brooke, sure, and several other friends. She wasn't really lonely. But sometimes it still felt that way. Sometimes it felt like her brain was just wired that way. And fucking hell, falling asleep was always a struggle. But tonight she instantly did as soon as she closed her eyes.

~~

 

Johnnie woke up around 1PM the next day. He stayed snozing in his warm bed for another ten minutes. Finally he swung his bare feet to the carpet and stepped out to the living room to realize that Jake was livestreaming.

Right. Johnnie had to prepare for one, too, later this evening and he needed a shower.

He snuck past Jake and his audience without getting noticed. Stopped to take a look at himself in the mirror while he waited for the water to heat up. Ew. He needed to dye his roots. His blonde streaks were growing back. He was out of black hair dye though and today wouldn't be the day he went to the store to buy more.

Johnnie stepped in under the water and let the steam envelope him. Thought a little about last night. It always took quite some time for him to come out of his shell but somehow (Y/N) was speeding up the usually tough process. Her presence was very welcoming and she had this natural way of never making anything awkward, like she had no qualms about anything. She wasn't afraid of silence but silence rarely took place between the two of them.

It sort of reminded him of when he first started hanging out with Jake. A friend that you just want to be around, even if you're not doing anything in particular. Johnnie didn't want to be pushy or take up too much space, but (Y/N) had been the one to ask if he wanted to hang out the last times.

So the next day he asked her for a ride to the store to buy some hair dye.

~~

 

"Alright, turn around." (Y/N) ordered when they got out of the car.

"Stop it." Johnnie groaned but followed orders.

She let out a quiet giggle and used her hands to gently part the wispy hair on the back of his head to see clearer. His obsidian bird nest did in fact have blonde streaks telling on him being a bottle black. She snorted.

"Shut up." Johnnie batted her hands away and turned around to face her again.

"It kinda looks like you're balding."

"Hey." He pointed with his finger in the air. "Shut up."

(Y/N) giggled another time before she started walking to the entrance of the store. "Let's fix that, hun."

Johnnie followed after, catching up to her side, a slight feeling of excitement coming along with that last pet name.

"What're you doing tomorrow? Saturday evening?"

"Uhh, I think Jake mentioned a party..."

"Yeah, the one near Marina Del Rey." (Y/N) nodded. "We don't need a cart, do we?"

Johnnie shrugged. "Nah. Uhh, are you going to that party?"

"Not sure yet. Brooke wanted to go and Jake asked whether I was going to or not. How bout you?"

"Not sure yet."

(Y/N) yawned. "Hey. Look." She pointed to the shelves to the right which were stacked with books. "Have you seen the uhh, ASMR videos on TikTok that are called, like, 'public ASMR'?"

"I don't think so."

"Duuude. They're so satisfying. There's this girl that goes around tapping on stuff in stores."

"Really."

(Y/N) gave him a glare before looking back at the books. "Hey, one for you."

"... The Bible in 52 weeks...?" He smacked his lips before he joined her on the aisle and picked out a random book. "Wow, one for you!"

"... Wha... The 2024 Old Farmer's Almanac Trade Edition?" She burst out laughing and Johnnie couldn't stop himself from joining in. "Hey, uhhh, are there any childrens' books here that teach you how to read or spell?"

"Hey, uhhh, fuck you." Johnnie scoffed and the two fell into another round of laughs.

(Y/N) put the bible back in its place and continued their mission. "I need to listen to ASMR when I go to bed. I'm not even joking. Like, I need to have at least something in the background, whether it's a podcast, music, ASMR."

"I'm the same." Johnnie admitted. "Except for that ASMR part."

"Oh, my God, I always wanted one of those fucking robot dogs when I was little. You see that dog toy? They still sell those? Damn. Ohh! A sword." (Y/N) picked up the Minecraft sword and swung it his way.

"Okay, Steve, cool it." He used a finger to point the tip of the sword another direction and put his hands up. "I have a wife and kids."

"Now I know you're lying."

Johnnie chortled while she swung the sword in the air a couple more times before she put it back.

"Are we going to get hair dye or what?"

"Nah, we're going to the brony convention in Liechtenstein. My Little Pony?? That shit still exists?" She scoffed in disbelief as she picked a colorful pony up.

"Brony conven--..." Johnnie laughed as he watched her inspect the toy.

"Man, I fucking hated Fluttershy, that fucking little bitch. Such a whiny fucking pussy. And Twilight. The perfect little A student cunt."

"Okay, okay!" Johnnie grabbed her arm to yank her away from the toys. "Rainbow Dash was cool though."

"Yes. Rainbow Dash was a cool motherfucker. Lesbian icon." She agreed.

"Hey, crazy idea."

"I love those."

"We buy wine and you help dye my hair at my place?"

(Y/N) grinned. "Then we gotta get snacks."

Johnnie and (Y/N) gathered their items and Johnnie insisted on paying. He sent a text to Jake letting him know that she was coming along back home.

"We're actually moving soon." Johnnie said when they stepped inside. "I haven't really started packing but... eventually."

"Ohh! Exciting. How come?"

"It's just time for something new. Like, a new chapter, kinda. It's a nicer place, too."

"I like this place. It's nice. But yeah, that's thrilling!" They placed their stuff on the kitchen island. "When I first moved to LA I shared a tiny apartment with this girl for a short while until I found my own. Her name was Charlotte. We still talk. I mean, it wasn't ages ago."

Johnnie hummed as he opened a bag of snacks.

"... You're not moving away from LA, are you?"

"No, no." He shook his head.

"(Y/N)!!" Jake emerged from somewhere, waving both of his hands.

Johnnie flipped the bag of chips upside down over a bowl and poured up three glasses of wine while Jake and (Y/N) chatted. "I bought this chocolate bar for you. It's Reese's."

"Pinch me I'm dreami-"

(Y/N) went ahead and pinched Jake.

He gasped. "You bitch."

"You told me to." She shrugged innocently.

Johnnie and Jake exchanged quick looks. See, that was a normal reaction to the phrase, but still, it's something they'd joked about in videos before. Sus.

"Whoa, Jeez, I'm sorry." (Y/N) put her hands up in the air when the quiet men made the atmosphere uncomfortable. "Go ahead and arrest me for doing what you asked." Did he actually get offended?

He didn't respond, just looked back at her.

"Dude. Are you-"

"Get out." Jake said, pointing to the door as he walked over to the couch to pick something up.

(Y/N) raised her eyebrows, looking from Johnnie to Jake to Johnnie to Jake. "Okay, honestly I can't tell if you're joking, what's going on, did it hurt? Did I hurt you? I'm so sorry- Dude-- Wait, wait, wait."

Jake aimed a gun at her. A toy gun.

"Dude, stop, stop, stop-OW! What the FUCK!" The bullet hurt like a motherfucker! It hit her shoulder and she immediately hopped over to Johnnie to use him as a human shield while Jake continued shooting. Her hands grabbed Johnnie's shoulders from behind, hiding close to his body.

"Jake, stop- Fuck!" Johnnie let out a squeal. "I didn't do anything! Jake!"

"Say you're sorry, (Y/N)!" Jake kept the gun aimed.

"I've already said I am!! I'm sorry!" (Y/N)'s head peeped over Johnnie's shoulder. He could feel her breath against his skin when she said, "I'm sorry for fucking pinching you, alright? Truce?"

Jake squinted his eyes with his jaw tightened.

"Truce??" (Y/N) repeated.

"Truce."

"Phew." (Y/N) sighed and suddenly got awfully aware of how close she was to Johnnie. She let go off his shoulders and stepped away from him. "Okay. Now where's the hair-- OW! JAKE!"

Chapter Text

"The first time I helped bleach someone's hair was with my friend when I was like, 14." (Y/N) said, in the middle of applying black hair dye onto Johnnie's head. "It looked awful, dude. Maybe I have some picture from it. Like actually insane. Her hair was 10 different shades of purple, yellow and white. Or 50 if you will."

"That's great, (Y/N), I feel great."

She giggled, dividing his hair into another section and applying the mixture there. Johnnie was sitting on a chair borrowed from the kitchen watching their reflections in the bathroom mirror to make sure that she was doing it right.

(Y/N) looked concentrated on her job. The air was thick with the sweet scent of the dye as she worked on his hair, their camaraderie evident in every shared glance and shared giggle."And she... you could just

pull her hair out."

"(Y/N)..."

"It's okay! I swear. That was ages ago." (Y/N) promised, giving his reflection a playful smile and he glared back. "This is going great." She looked down again and used her hands to massage his hair and stepped over to his frontside, blocking the mirror from his sight. He looked up at her, his big blue eyes still worried. "I said it's going great. Stop it."

Johnnie chortled, really enjoying her hands in his hair. It felt great, at least. He gulped. "Otherwise you're paying for my trip to the hairdresser."

"It's black box dye, Johnnie, how could it possibly go wrong? And your hair's already black." (Y/N) giggled again, pulling his hair back, revealing his forehead.

"That's why I have bangs, to hide that thing."

"Hm?"

"My forehead, (Y/N)."

She let out a chuckle, rearranging his hairstyle to a middle part. "Stop. You know model agencies look for people with big foreheads? Not that yours is that big."

"But it's at least, like, average, right?"

(Y/N) let go off his hair with yet another giggle. "I think I'm done." She said and pulled off the plastic gloves from off her hands and tossed them in the trash.

No, Johnnie thought, you can't be done just yet, but was cut off by her singing with the speaker.

"She blushing, all red, wanna rush and go to bed." She reached for her wine glass and leaned against the bathroom sink behind her. "So she says, she in love with a rockstar, rockstar, wanna smoke my weed, so she asks me where the tops are, tops are..."

"Top drawer." The two sang along to the Mac Miller song.

"Hoooneyy I need ya nooow. You had a weed phase?"

"Yes." Johnnie nodded. "Like, back in high school. And again just some years back. I don't really do it now though."

"Oof. I guess I missed the part when you were funny." (Y/N) commented but then shook her head. "Just kidding. I never really had one of those phases. I never got the whole thing I guess. I haven't smoked a ton of times but literally whenever I do, I just go anxious as fuck."

"Really? Same here. Don't feel good at all." Johnnie agreed, still looking up at her from his sitting position.

(Y/N) nodded. He was awfully pretty. She usually wouldn't really mentally acknowledge it, kinda pushed the thought back, but the wine forced her to... well... mentally acknowledge it. But she'd kept her eyes above his bare chest ever since he took his shirt off to dye his hair. Until now. A little glance down to his collar bones.

Her eyes quickly darted up to his neck and then his eyes. "Wow. Imagine, okay, imagine you wake up next... Uh."

"Take your time."

"Stop. I don't know how to word it in a comprehensible way." (Y/N) giggled. "Okay, so imagine waking up next to you."

"Oh, my God, what a nightmare, I'd kill myself."

(Y/N) scoffed and the two broke into laughter.

"That was pretty comprehensible." Johnnie said with a wry smile.

"You didn't let me finish!" She grinned and raised the glass to her lips.

"Finish?" He lifted an eyebrow as he came up with a reply, "Sorry, kitten, but daddy-"

(Y/N) cut him off by choking on her wine, coughs combined with laughter making Johnnie join in.

"You okay?" He wondered between chuckles as he stood up to check on her.

"Y-... Yeah." She assured him, downing the last wine in the glass to stop the coughs. "I'm getting us more wine. Hang on."

(Y/N) left him alone in the bathroom for a moment together with Mazzy Star. He studied his own reflection. The messy wet hair, his pale face, the tattoos on his chest. 'Imagine waking up next to you'. Wow, man. Thanks.

"Holy fuck. What was I even talking about before." (Y/N) reappeared.

"Waking up next to me."

She snorted, coughed and shook her head. "I was gonna say the spider on your neck. Wake up next to you and you just see the spider and you're like, 'aah', you know? 'Ohh, a spider! Ah!'.."

"You know the chicks dig it, right?"

"Chicks dig it?" That sent (Y/N) into orbit again. "Why would you ever say something like that." Her contagious laughter was accompanied by his.

"I was sarcastic!" Johnnie defended himself.

"I literally thought you were serious. Ya know the chicks dig it, right?"

He shook his head, still grinning from ear to ear.

(Y/N) narrowed her eyes and tilted her head slightly. "That must've hurt."

"I can confirm."

"Like hell."

"Meh." He shrugged.

"Oh, stop it, don't try to act cool, dude. No need to do that around me. I know you're a wimp. I'm guessing that felt like the devil himself nibbling up on you. Or Dracula."

"I feel like that would've felt way better."

The bathroom, now a makeshift salon, bore witness to not just a hair fix-up but another bonding experience between two people, a kaleidoscope of memories etched in every tinted strand. (Y/N)'s smile was radiant and genuine. She was so beautiful. Come on, there's gotta be a spot left that she missed, right? Just some excuse to make her touch him again.

"Or what do you think?"

Holy fuck. Johnnie realized his mind was somewhere else and he hadn't heard a single fucking word of what (Y/N) just said while he stared at her. "What?"

She giggled. "Isn't that what they call it? Raccoon hair? You know?"

"Ohhh. Yeah."

"Raccoon tail hair. That stuff."

"What about it?" Johnnie sat back down on the chair.

"You should totally do a strand. I could fix it."

"Uh. No. You could not."

"Schh. It would look cool. Pink and black."

"I've had red and pink hair before."

"Wow."

"Is that an ick?"

"Pffft." (Y/N) shook her head. Her mischievous smile stayed put but her eyes sort of shifted into something more serious as she said, "Johnnie, you're like, the most interesting person I've met. I'd like to know more about your lore. I wanna know everything about you."

He simpered, trying to push back a bigger smile. Those were nice words to be told. "I don't think there's much to say but I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

There were a million things (Y/N) would like to know. "Tell me something I don't know."

"Uhm." His brows drew together when he thought for a second. "I'm supposed to wear glasses."

"Oh! What, you can't see?"

He shook his head. "If I want to drive I need to wear glasses."

"So wear glasses for fuck's sake."

"Yeah, it's not like that's all that's stopping me, it's like, first I gotta learn how to read, too, so..." The two giggled.

"What else? Tell me something deep."

"Me and your mom."

"I'm not even gonna laugh."

"Okay, okay. I don't know. I guess it's like, I consider you a friend and someone I hope will stick around."

"Mhm."

Johnnie wondered if those five glasses of wine were catching up to him. He reached for his refilled sixth glass and took a couple big sips. "Like I've said I dropped out of high school when I was like 15. It's been bad. You know? Depression and anxiety and stuff. But, hey, it's better now, I'm much better, like, I don't wanna scare you away, alright? I just-- It's part of me, I guess."

(Y/N) let out a soft chuckle, "I'm not easy to scare. Or, hang on." The two laughed, recalling their first encounters literally consisting of him startling her. "Seriously though, Johnnie. All I can say is that I relate. I don't want to sound bitter cause I truly am not, but it's like life's been giving me the shortest straw since I popped out my mama's coochie. It has sucked."

Johnnie chuckled as well, a mix of relief and amusement. "Right? I feel like, throughout the years, anxiety's really..." He punched the air to demonstrate, "Fucked me up, you know? It's bent me over, it's stuck its whole fist up my ass..." The two laughed again. "And throughout the years I've tried a whole bunch of medicines. Like, meth, crack..."

"Yeah, and heroin..."

"Fentanyl..." They snorted again. "Wait, I don't think those are medicines, actually, I think those just count as drugs... Kidding. Some prescriptioned stuff."

"Crazy thing about antidepressants is that they don't really make it go away, and it's like, for me it's been impossible to tell what's what. If it's helping. If it's not."

He nodded. "Exactly. If it's a bad week, or a good day, or whatever."

"Right?! I guess I decided it didn't work for me, I stopped a few years back." (Y/N) revealed. "I think my brain's just wired that way. I'm not sure if it's ever gonna go away. Cause I've been like this my whole life. Obviously it's gotten better. It's been bad. You know? I'm not the type of person to feel my feelings or be like, 'oh, today i'm a little sad, bohoo'... But... Sometimes I feel like I really should be happy by now. Life's good now. I have good friends. A nice place. My money's alright even if it's always a struggle to be studying and I'm just starting to get my life together. Independant. Happy."

"But it's always there. Life's good for me, too. I have great friends and I'm moving to a nice place. Not that this isn't nice, but." He pondered a little. "I'm just always a fucking ball of anxiety, dude. It's better, yeah, but it never goes away."

"And sometimes you believe for a day that it's gone. Or maybe you forget it for a brief moment. But it always comes back. Or it never actually ever goes away." (Y/N) reached for her glass of wine and almost spilled it over. "Holy shit."

Johnnie laughed.

"I'm fucking drunk." (Y/N) stated and took a sip before carefully placing it back down. "My dad was a dick. I'll never understand how you can be so upset with a child. A child that never ever wanted to do anything wrong and did everything to please you." She shrugged, a vague smile still on her lips, keeping the deep-talk light-hearted.

"I feel like everyone who wants to be a parent should go do a test first. Like, to see if they're suitable."

"I've been saying that! It's insane how literally anyone can have kids! It's terrible."

Johnnie pressed his lips together. "What about your mother?"

"I don't know. She grew bitter. Tired." She shrugged. "I understand her. I understand my father. That's what frustrated me when I was younger. That I was so desperate to understand the world and my parents, yet they never had any interest in understanding anything about me. How can you live a whole lifetime without realizing there are other people who experience their own lives?"
[i hope you cant relate to anything i really hope you had great parents and a good childhood!]

"It is frustrating. People are frustrating. I'm glad you're away from that. Physically at least." Johnnie agreed. "My father died when I was around 12." He shared. "I was already having a rough time in school, having meltdowns and being depressed. He was only 50 when he passed, because of cancer."

"Oh, Johnnie." She cooed.

"Don't, it was a long time ago. But it's like, part of my lore, you know?" He picked up his glass of wine again. "I'm sorry about your dad, (Y/N)."

"I'm sorry about yours."

"To deadbeat dads, am I right?"

(Y/N) snickered and grabbed her own glass again to toast it with his. "To deadbeat dads." A gentle clink of glasses echoed the sentiment of shared vulnerability and connection.

"You think it's been 30 minutes yet?"

"Mhm. Let's get it out." (Y/N) helped rinse his hair over the bathtub, black water going down the drain as their conversation continued. This was the first man she had ever been truly vulnerable with. Talked about emotions. Even if they hadn't closed in on any trauma-deep level it was still something she kept quiet about, you don't brag about a bad childhood. You try to hide it, push it away, forget it in your daily life so that it eventually affects you less and less. But it affects you all the time. It has shaped you as a person and you will find parts of it in all your future relationships. Small pieces and reminders of how you became the person you are.

As the night continued on the sofa in the living room, the discussions meandered through the realms of nostalgia, dreams, and everyday anecdotes. They found solace in the simplicity of being together.

The time ticked to 2AM and they agreed they couldn't stay awake any longer and threw in the towel. (Y/N) got cozy in the guest room while Johnnie crawled into his own bed.

Anxiety would always follow after opening up about yourself. It was part of it. For some reason it didn't feel as bad this time, with this person. Probably because they were hammered off of wine.

~~

The soft murmur of morning light seeping through unfamiliar curtains gently coaxed (Y/N) into wakefulness. As her eyes reluctantly fluttered open, a moment of confusion hung in the air and the initial haze of sleep left her momentarily disoriented.

A slow realization dawned as her memory pieced together the events of the previous evening together with the pounding headache; a dull throb pulsating in rhythm with her heartbeat, and her desert-dry mouth.

Holy shit. Johnnie. At first a gut wrenching anxious rock hit her belly. Oh, my God, she should totally just sneak out without anyone seeing her. Say she was in a hurry or something. Did she do anything dumb yesterday? Say something stupid? They got plenty fucking drunk. She could still recall every moment up to her passing out in bed and she couldn't think of anything weird. In fact, all she could remember was having a great fucking time. So (Y/N) calmed herself down before she got up. Checked herself in the mirror. Smudged makeup. Messy hair that she put up in a ponytail before she walked outside to a bright kitchen and living room where Jake was chilling on the couch.

"Mornin'!"

"Heya." (Y/N) looked at her phone. 10.40AM. Cool. "Did we keep you up last night?"

"Not at all. I was dead at 11PM, dude. Like actually dead asleep. When did you guys hit the sack?"

"Hit the sack?"

Jake winked.

"Stop, Jake." (Y/N) sat down on the armchair next to him, drawing her knees up to rest her chin on them. "He was looking really slutty yesterday though. Not gonna lie. Shirtless when I was dyeing his hair."

"Did you see the tattoo I've done on him?"

"You've tattooed him?"

"Yeah. You didn't see it?"

"I didn't look." (Y/N) blinked. "It's like with women. You don't look below their neck even if they're wearing a shirt with cleavage."

"Are you comparing Johnnie to a girl with boobs?"

"Yes. Anyways. Where is the tattoo?"

"On his right side above his hip."

"Obviously I wasn't fucking looking there."

Jake rolled his eyes. "You should next time."

"Alright then. I guess I'll have to do it, for you." She yawned. "I'm actually fucking parched."

"We've got some stuff in the fridge. Sodas and energy drinks and water. Just feel at home."

"Thanks, Jake." (Y/N) stepped over to the kitchen and opened the fridge, grabbing a bottle of water before returning to her position in the armchair.

Jake's brows knitted as he read something on his phone. "You ever been to Coachella?"

"I haven't."

"We should go this summer. It's fun if you make it fun."

"I'm totally up for it. Even if I don't look like it right now." (Y/N) stretched in the armchair. "I fucking need to study."

"Are you going to Marina Del Rey tonight?"

"Unless Brooke actually manages to convince me, I don't think so."

"Come on."

"If I do come, I'll be driving and probably only hang around sober for an hour before leaving again."

"That's better than nothing. You can give me and Johnnie a ride there."

"No promises. I gotta go home and study and nap then."

"You do that. Johnnie usually doesn't wake up until afternoon."

"Tell him to come tonight."

"You know what I'm gonna tell him? I'm gonna tell him you being here was all a dream and he only hallucinated hanging out with you."

"Jake!"

~~

(Y/N) spent the whole afternoon thinking. About life, friends... Boys... Johnnie... There's gotta be a catch, right? Boys aren't just... chill. There's gotta be something. Suddenly this new kind of approach had turned on a lamp in her mind that let her see their relationship in another light, one that really endorsed his attractive appearance and actually fucking great personality. He had many layers to him and his personality, and was both intellectually and emotionally intelligent.

Stop.

He was an aweeesooome potential bSf, right? (Y/N) was happy to have met a new FRIEND that seemed to get it. At least try to get it, even the things that he couldn't relate to.

(Y/N) decided to skip the Marina party that night. Her mind was spooking her a bit. She was sure this little butterfly in her belly would pass within a day or two.

'do you still have your hair left?'

'Fortunately for you I still do'

'You didn't come to the party at marina yesterday'

'i was too fucking hungover. was it fun?'

'Yeah you totally missed out on something great..'

'Just kidding it wasn't that fun tbh'

Chapter Text

In the cozy warmth of the kitchen, (Y/N) fumbled for a mug and prepared a simple cup of coffee. The aroma filled the room as the caffeine kickstarted her morning, a subtle energy seeping in.

Rock music blared from a nearby speaker, adding a lively soundtrack to her routine. With swift, practiced motions, she applied makeup, nodding to the beat of the music. She always found a touch of excitement in the routine of getting ready.

The morning air was crisp and carried the scent of dew-laden flowers and the faint promise of a sunlit day. The streets, still quiet from the remnants of the night, gradually stirred to life. The palm trees swayed gently in the breeze, their fronds catching the first rays of sunlight as if heralding the arrival of a new month. The first day of June.

"Sometimes it makes me wonder if that's all there is to their lives." Ayanna yawned. "People are stupid."

"Real." (Y/N) replied, leaning back on the park bench they were currently sat on.

"We're all going to Santa Monica tonight, right?" Brooke wondered.

"Dude, we literally have an exam on Monday."

"So? That's like, three whole days from today."

(Y/N) sighed. She could study while being hungover. Or she could just stay sober. The girl hosting the party was this friend of theirs that they really liked called Chloe.

"So what are you guys going to wear?" Ayanna asked.

"The time's already 8.05! We gotta go to class, dude." Brooke realized. "But I'm going to be wearing something cunty. You know that one dress I bought like, last week? The red mini one. (Y/N), do you think Jake or Johnnie will be there? They know Chloe, right? If they know Jayden they know Chloe. Can we go to some bar first and hang out? There are nice ones around Santa Monica Beach. Maybe Johnnie and Jake wants to join."

"Guys, I'll skip the bar. I just wanna go straight to the house party." Ayanna instantly shook her head.

(Y/N) shrugged as they walked into the uni building. "I don't know what they're up to tonight. They haven't mentioned any party. But neither have I."

"Do it. You still haven't introduced us."

"Uhm, actually I have." She reminded Brooke.

"But like, properly. I want to know who's been stealing my best friend lately."

It was true. (Y/N) had been spending more time with the boys. With Johnnie. They'd been texting, going for a few drives and gone out to eat.

She called him. Turned out the boys were invited to the same party but had a lot on their plates right now so they weren't sure whether they'd turn up or not. (Y/N) suggested they all went out to some bar and Johnnie suggested 'The Gaslite'... interesting name.

"Is that like, foreshadowing? Should I be worried about our relationship?"

"What? What are you even talking about? You're crazy."

(Y/N) laughed through the phone and said, "Alright, the Gaslite it is. And then we'll see if we feel like going to that party or not. I'm so excited for you to meet Brooke again. You'll love her."

~~

 

Johnnie wasn't very excited to go out tonight. Jake almost had to drag him out to the uber.

Seated in the back, Johnnie absentmindedly gazed out the window, his thoughts drifting. Tonight's outing wasn't exactly his idea, and the prospect of heading to the bar didn't fill him with much enthusiasm. However, the girl at the bar had piqued his interest.

(Y/N). You know when you've just met a person, yet you still feel like you've known each other your whole lives? He was growing more and more comfortable with her each time they met and he had really taken a liking to his new friend. Friend.

Jake, on the other hand, was oblivious to Johnnie's mixed emotions. He enthusiastically discussed plans for the evening and the potential for a great night out. Johnnie listened, offering intermittent nods and half-smiles. Jake knew Johnnie's struggles with new connections. It took time and patience to really get to know the guy, so he was surprised with how close the two had got in such a quick time. He also knew Johnnie's struggles with feelings and relationships and he knew (Y/N) wasn't looking for anything romantic. But Jake did notice their obvious chemistry and it only made him excited for them.

Jake ordered drinks while Johnnie surveyed the bar. There (Y/N) was, engaged in conversation with her friend at a corner table.

Summoning his courage, Johnnie joined in on the small talk with the friend Brooke, trying to find a way into the conversation without appearing too eager. The laughter and banter created a lively backdrop and Johnnie began to feel more at ease. The night unfolded with shared stories and laughter. Brooke was cool.

Jake shook his head, in a fashion argument with Brooke, "You underestimate the power of cargo pants. They're like a Swiss army knife for fashion."

"Right, because everyone needs extra pockets for their collection of rocks and random trinkets. Very practical, Jake." (Y/N) cut in and Brooke giggled.

"You mock now, but when I'm carrying snacks, a water bottle, and a spare charger, you'll be singing a different tune."

"That's what bags are for." Brooke rolled her eyes.

"On a real note I think cargos can look great." (Y/N) admitted.

"Exactly, (Y/N)." Jake grinned. "Anyone else wants a Jack and coke? I was thinking 'bout ordering."

"I'll come with." Johnnie offered. "One for everyone?"

"Sure, thanks."

The boys disappeared and Brooke turned to (Y/N). "They are great!"

"Right? They are."

"Great and hot. Do you still have that shirt?"

"... What shirt?"

"The 'I love emo boys'-shirt?"

(Y/N) snorted as she recalled the croptop tee from Cherry Kitten. "Jesus Christ. Maybe somewhere. I've thought about it, too."

"Hey emo boy, hey, hey, hey emo boyyy."

"Alright, enough." (Y/N) giggled. "Don't look but that one old guy that just walked past us is staring."

Brooke turned her head directly to the man, still smiling from their earlier conversation. Unfortunately the man took it as a que that he was welcome over. "Oh, no."

"Fuck." (Y/N) muttered.

"Is this seat taken?" He offered them a sly smirk. He was way too old to be trying to pick up young girls at a bar like this. Or anywhere. The man had a receding hairline with balding spots, an expensive long-sleeve shirt with too many buttons up and a pair of sunglasses. He looked rich but... like he was decaying.

"Sorry, yes. It is, we're here with our friends." Brooke explained.

"Well, I can't see them right now." The guy got comfortable in the chair opposite to the girls where Jake had sat. "Two beauties like you can't be sitting all alone on a night like this."

"Actually we're not alone-" (Y/N) tried.

"You look lonely to me. Can I buy you a drink?"

"Oh, thank you for the offer, but you took our friend's seat-"

The man cut her off again. "Now where have you been all my life?"

"Well, we probably weren't born yet for two thirds of it." (Y/N) replied, now mildly annoyed.

The man laughed. "I'm not that old, sugarpie."

"Sugarpie?" (Y/N) snorted. "That kind of proves you are."

He laughed again. "You're right. I could be your dad or even grandpa, couldn't I?"

Brooke let out a disgusted scoff and (Y/N) responded with, "We're not interested. Could you leave our table?"

"Don't be so quick to turn a guy down. I'll buy you a drink, alright?" The man was mainly focused on (Y/N) now, a bit intrigued. He was obviously quite drunk and she felt bad for anyone who'd have to call this guy grandpa.

"No thanks. We're saying no." She clarified.

"Just one drink. I'm sure you'd change your mind."

(Y/N) raised her eyebrows, remaining calm. "I'm asking you to leave us alone."

"And I'm asking for one chance. I don't think I've ever seen such a beautiful girl. What a body."

"Please leave us alone. We're uncomfortable."

"I'll buy you however many drinks you want. Whatever you want. Okay?"

"Are you serious? I can't-"

"I'll get ya whatever you ask. I've got some tricks up my sleeve, sugar, I promise you won't regret it."

"First of all, I want to see nothing more of your old half-rotten body, your repulsive hairy chest is way more than enough. Second, the fact that you're trying to buy a night with a random woman at a bar and you claim you've got tricks up your sleeve?" (Y/N) tilted her head. "I doubt a man who has to pay girls to get them to touch him has ever made a woman come."

Something sinister flashed in his eyes behind those sunglasses. He was definitely not used to girls talking back, and probably more used to being able to buy whatever he wanted.

"I feel-"

"Who do you think-"

"Don't interrupt me. I'm sure you don't have anything interesting to say. I feel awful for the girls you've managed to convince and I hope you're at least smart enough to know that literally not a single one of them has actually been the slightest attracted to you. At least take a shower and wash your fucking dick before attempting to pick up girls. I smell you from over here." That was a lie, maybe she overdid it, she didn't care. This was a creep.

"Yeah... Now can I have my seat back?" The familiar voice of Jake. He was standing behind the man, Johnnie next to him.

"She's been very clear, hasn't she?" Johnnie commented.

The old man got up, gave (Y/N) a glare and then left without another word.

"I really want to give you an applause but at the same time that wasn't funny at all and he was incredibly creepy." Jake said as the two boys sat down and placed the four drinks on the table.

(Y/N) shrugged. "Actually it was kinda fun." The company snickered. "How much of that did you witness?"

"Most of it I think." Johnnie replied, then his expression shifted to more worrysome. "We were about to interfere but you were handling it and... you know... we didn't want to step in cause..."

"She's used-- we're used to creepy guys. It's LA for fuck's sake." Brooke smiled. "It's part of it. This was just a rich guy trying to buy a good night. It can be fun to hurt their egos. Amusing."

Jake snorted. "They're awful. And it's awful that you're used to it. Though, I must say hearing you talk back was amusing, (Y/N). You're awesome."

"Amusing as long as they don't try to get seriously dangerous." Johnnie added. "You never know. People are scary."

"Yeah, that's the thing." (Y/N) gave him a nod before she sipped on her drink. "I hope his ego got bruised."

"Oh, it did. It was pretty funny." Brooke giggled. "Sometimes I freeze when I get caught off-guard. (Y/N)'s usually too nice but she's quick and I think we were both too repelled by this guy? Oh!! The song... Have you guys seen Saltburn? It was kinda strange."

"Jacob Elordi, dude..." (Y/N) let out a groan with a roll of her eyes before she stood up together with Brooke, both seemingly in unspoken agreement. Some party remix of Perfect (Exceeder) was playing in the bar and obviously you couldn't not dance to that song.

Jake and Johnnie exchanged looks as the girls disappeared to the dance floor. "I really want to introduce her to Tara, dude, I swear they'd get along so well. Wanna dance?"

Johnnie snickered. The alcohol was giving him a light buzz, or well, he was actually quite tipsy. All of them were at this point. This night had been very fun so far. Except for that creep of course but other than that, they had a great time. Brooke was cool and it was nice to get to know (Y/N)'s friend better. (Y/N). She was pretty fucking badass. Jacob Elordi. Johnnie didn't look like Jacob Elordi. A good reminder that this was a friendship and wouldn't be anything else. A good reminder for a drunk Johnnie. And that did feel good. There was no pressure in their relationship. No motives, no nothing. She didn't have any platforms or any huge social media. She wasn't even aware of his internet existence. They just liked each others' company.

Johnnie glanced out to the dance floor. The air was filled with the thumping bass and electronic melodies as the crowd moved in unison to the infectious rhythm.

Amidst the sea of bodies, there she was. Her silhouette emerged, accentuated by the vibrant hues of the neon lights. (Y/N) looked like a carefree spirit, exuding both confidence and this undeniable magnetic presence. The song changed to Blue Monday and he saw her face light up again in response.

"You look at her like she's a goddess, Johnnie." Jake suddenly interrupted.

Johnnie spun his head around to his friend. "What??"

"Staring in awe." His friend had a teasing smile on his lips.

"I'm not."

"Don't worry, I get it, I get it." Jake sipped on his Jack & Coke. "She's quite special, huh?" He tried to fish out more information about Johnnie's feelings.

"She is." Johnnie gave in with a sigh. "She has this great personality and she's-- her humor, she's hilarious. And she looks amazing. Ah, man." He let out another sigh. "Coolest friend ever. I just-- I don't know, I get nervous sometimes, and I don't know why, cause we're just friends... you know. But how could you not get nervous around her when she's... so.." Perfect?

Jake chuckled. "Go for it, man."

"Stop it. I don't need your drunk advice." Johnnie scoffed, snapping out of his drunken rambling. "If I listen to you I'll ruin the friendship. Besides, she's obviously not into me like that. And I'm not into her like that. It's not a crush or anything. I just admire my friend. Okay?"

"Whatever you say, dude." Jake rolled his eyes. "Cheers." He said and they clinked their glasses together before taking another sip.

"Guys, isn't it weird? Dancing." (Y/N) and Brooke were back and sat down, a little out of breath. "Isn't it pretty fucking weird?"

"It is." Brooke agreed.

"Who created... who started dancing?" (Y/N) furrowed her eyebrows while she thought.

"I just think it's something people always have done." Jake shrugged. "It's probably more complicated than people just going 'let's dance'."

"Well, I get that it's a cultural and social practice with ancient roots but, it's presumably impossible to pinpoint accurately when people commenced dancing." (Y/N) shrugged back. "Isn't it kinda cute that humans were like, 'yeah, dancing is an integral part of ceremonies and rituals in initial human societies' and now we have clubs?"

Jake snorted, lifting an eyebrow, "Whoa, okay Ms Yap Queen." He joked and the table laughed. It was a change of pace to hear her speak like that instead of saying 'dude', reminding them of the vocabulary she actually could use.

"It is a weird thing!" (Y/N) defended her statement. "Like, everyone's just agreed to have dance floors and like, dance with each other. It's weird."

"I love it." Brooke giggled.

"I do agree." Jake admitted. "Kinda the same as singing. Why do we love to dance and sing?"

"Very deep." (Y/N) pressed her lips together. "Anyways. Ayanna-- uh, our friend just texted and asked when we were gonna show up. It's already 11.30, guys."

"Jeez, 11.30?" Jake scoffed.

Johnnie looked at him and then back to (Y/N). He was tired, not too excited about joining for the party.

"Come ooon. You're coming. Right?" (Y/N) looked back at him with a mixture of anticipation and confidence in her eyes, as though she knew she had them convinced already.

The house was about a 10 minute walk from the bar they were at, so they decided to get there on foot. The quartet of friends meandered down the busy streets, laughter echoing against the urban cityscape until it faded out into a residental neighborhood. Tipsy giggles and playful banter filled the air.

"I'm not even kidding, my high school PE teacher asked me if I smoked cigarettes cause I had such terrible stamina." Brooke breathed. "Slow down!"

"Come on, Brooke." (Y/N) looked over her shoulder. "Ayanna is waiiitiiiing."

"Wa-waitiiing." Jake sang. "Hang on. We could do harmony. Sing."

"Waiiii-... Sing then, I thought we were doing harmony?" (Y/N) frowned.

"One, two, three, waiiit-- Okay. One, two, three." Jake and (Y/N) harmonied the melody as they walked down the street.

"Girl, I can't even walk up a single flight of stairs without getting an asthma attack." Brooke called. Johnnie stopped and waited for her. "Exactly! THAT'S HOW YOU TREAT A LADY!!"

(Y/N) and Jake stopped and looked over their shoulder. "You should train your asthma, you know."

"You don't get how asthma works. Plus, my back hurts."

"Well, you don't walk with your back, now, do you?" (Y/N) questioned. "And you don't walk with your lungs either. Exactly. You got two perfectly cable-.. perfectly capable feet."

"Actually, it's one's trachea that asthma really affects."

"... So you walk with your trachea then?" (Y/N) said fighting back a grin and the group drunkenly laughed and continued walking. Brooke gave her a nudge with her elbow and (Y/N) nudged her back. "Kiddin'."

"You're unforgiven."

"So I do dub thee unforgiiiveeeen." (Y/N) sang. "What I've felt, what I've known, never shiiine doin what I've shooown... Never free, never me..."

"So I dub the unforgiiiveen." Jake sang along to the Metallica song.

(Y/N) turned around to walk backwards and face the group, "That fucking guitar solo is amazing, dude. Favorite Metallica solo."

"(Y/N) has tried to convince, not only one but two boys at two separate times, that you can't be entirely straight cause Kirk Hammett exists."

"For real though. How can you as a straight man not be a little gay for him."

"Didn't he get a child at like 60?" Johnnie asked.

"Right? Last year." (Y/N) nodded. "But I mean the 80s or 90s Kirk. The one with eyeliner and piercings."

Johnnie arched a brow at her but she seemed oblivious to her statement.

"So I dub theee unforgiiveeen-- hey. Aren't we.." (Y/N) turned around again and retook her position between Jake and Brooke. "Aren't we here yet?"

"It's like, the next house."

"The houses here are real nice."

Jake nodded, agreeing with (Y/N). "For real."

The stylish house lied nested just by the beach but all Y/N) could hear was the loud music coming from inside as they stood in front of the porch.

They spent the first half hour saying hi to people they knew and the next hour splitting up and hanging out with different friends. At some point (Y/N) texted Johnnie to see where he was, and if he wanted to smoke, and yes he did, and he made his way out to the patio on the backside where they'd meet up. Johnnie almost tripped over the doorframe on his way out and it caused (Y/N) to giggle as she witnessed the scene already waiting for him on the terrace.

"You good?" She asked with a teasing grin.

He replied with a glare and reached a hand forward with a double wiggle of his middle finger and ring finger.

"Huh??"

"Cigarette." Johnnie's brows creased.

She snorted. "Sheesh." (Y/N) concentrated on fishing two cigarettes out her carton and handed him one. "I think-- If you try to not focus on the music and the people around us you can hear the waves."

"Mhm." Johnnie leaned down and forward an waited as she lit his cig.

"Hang on." She flicked the light a few times more and he glared at her again. "I'm sorry!" She rolled her eyes and attempted again, now succeeding. "Wanna head to the beach?"

Chapter Text

(Y/N) and Johnnie stood side by side, each holding a cigarette that sent tendrils of smoke into the air.

"Let's go." (Y/N) took the lead. With a mischievous glint in her eyes, she motioned toward the garden that lay beyond the patio's edge. Johnnie followed her, excited for adventure and together they navigated through the shadowy contours of the garden.

The soft crunch of gravel beneath their feet gave way to the hushed whispers of bushes as they brushed past. The sound of music still echoed over the neighborhood but now the sea was louder.

Emerging from the foliage, they found themselves in front of the threshold of the open shore and slowed down the pace, walking next to each other. (Y/N) stumbled out of her shoes and Johnnie did the same, leaving them behind in the sand. The moonlit expanse stretched before them and the rhythmic ebb and flow of the tide beckoned them closer. The beach, bathed in silvery light, awaited their presence as they ventured onto the sand, leaving behind the lively echoes of the house party for the serenity of the shore.

"I fucking love LA." (Y/N) uttered before she took another drag of her cigarette before tossing it.

A playful breeze, tinged with the saltiness of the sea, weaved through Johnnie's hair. He had a grin on his lips and his heart was beating fast.

"Do you think it's too early to swim?" (Y/N) wondered as they reached the water's edge and changed direction to walk alongside it.

"I mean, it is June."

"Which means?"

"It's summer."

"Summer?"

"I'd say so."

"Hmph. It's not I-want-to-kill-myself-hot yet though."

"Just you wait. Your first summer in LA."

"Meh. How bad can it be." (Y/N) shrugged. Their fingers occasionally brushed when they drunkenly walked side by side, every now and then avoiding the waves lapping at their feet.

Palm fronds rustled together with the faint upbeat melody of a Steve Lacy song that soon changed to the original Little Bit by Lykke Li.

"Oh my God," (Y/N) stopped and turned her head to him, "Who plays this at a house party. I'll go back and give them a kiss, swear to God."

"Whoops, it was me."

"Hehehe. For real though, you think it's swimmable? The sea?"

"Santa Monica is seriously the beach around LA with most shark attacks."

"So, like, what, 1 attack ever since the year of 1969?"

"Probably."

(Y/N) glanced out over the water. "I'll take my chances."

"I'll have my phone ready to film it."

"Thanks." She took a step to dip her toe and check the temperature. "It's actually not too cold."

"Okay, no, stop."

"Don't be boring." She grabbed the end of her shirt, ready to pull it off over her head.

"Look, (Y/N), as much as I'd like to see you take that off, I don't think it's a good idea." Johnnie warned, reaching forward to grab her wrists and stop her.

She grinned with a giggle, "See, you actually don't want me to die, huh? I knew you cared."

"N-.." He cleared his throat and let go off her, rolling his eyes. "I was juuust kidding. Go ahead for all I care." He joked back.

(Y/N) smiled playfully before she turned around to skip out in the shallow water.

Johnnie laughed as he followed, catching up with her when they reached knee-high and grabbed a wrist again. "Stop, stop. Look! Look." He pointed at nothing to scare her, and it worked.

"WHAT WHERE" She yelped and hopped backwards, water splashing around their legs as she bounced right into Johnnie's arms and he wrapped them around her waist to keep them both from losing balance, laughing loud. "I hate you." She cackled.

Johnnie snickered along, the back of her head leaning against his throat and under his chin, smelling like sweet schampoo and warmth and peace. "Seriously, my jeans are fucking soaked."

"You could take them off. Problem solved." She moved forward a bit, Johnnie following, their bodies still pressed together, his chest against her back.

He was a bit confused by this kind of intimate interaction and assumed that she was very drunk. Just like him. He stopped her by strengthening his grip around her slightly. (Y/N) turned around and pushed herself off of his chest, rolling her eyes with a smile before she walked past, back to the shore. He quickly followed and the two resumed sauntering along the shoreline again.

(Y/N) looked up to the night sky. "Do you... Look. When stars twinkle."

"When stars twinkle."

"Is that like, the star burning?"

"Burning?" Johnnie squinted his eyes as he studied the stars above. "I think it's the earth's atmosphere that uhh, effects the starlight. Winds and stuff. Temperature and densities."

"That makes sense." (Y/N) hummed, eyes kept upwards as she sat down on the bank. The stars were glittering like scattered spacedust and her head was spinning. "I was terrified of space when I was young. It made me so anxious. Gave me existential crisis thinking about it. But I'm definitely gonna have a telescope in my house when I get rich. Like Patrick Bateman. You know?"

Johnnie chuckled, sitting down next to her. "Becoming Patrick Bateman sounds like a good goal."

"I know, right?" She giggled and sank down into a lying position, hands resting on her belly. "I don't think I've, you know when you wish upon a star? I've never ever had anything actually happen."

"I knoow." He lied down too. "It's as though the opposite happens. The opposite of what you wish for."

"Yes! I fucking hate falling stars, man, they're a scam."

"Fuck stars, dude."

The two giggled and lied there quietly for a moment. With each gentle advance and retreat, the sound of the waves brought a sense of tranquility to the moment, together with a calm Beach House song from the party. Master Of None, or which one was it?

"I could fall asleep right here." (Y/N) mumbled.

"Real." Johnnie shifted a little. "You know any constellations?"

"Only some basic ones. Like, the big dipper." She stretched her hand up, pointing at the clear stars.

Johnnie hummed, "Yeah, that's the most basic one. There's Cassiopeia." He pointed, too.

"Wait, where?" (Y/N) wondered, lowering her hand.

"There." He kept his finger pointed.

"You're pointing at a million stars, dude." (Y/N) scooted closer, her head now pressed against his, to try and see where he was pointing his finger from his angle.

"It's five- it's the five uh, stars, you know." Johnnie explained, heart thumping in his chest.

"There are millions of stars, dude." She said but then giggled. "Kidding. I think I see it."

Johnnie's hand dropped down to his chest, not sure what to say next.

"There's Virgo."

"What, where?"

"I don't know." (Y/N) sat up with a yawn. Looked down at him. "There. Har-har. I'm kidding. I wish I knew other cool ones though. Cassiopeia is a pretty name, isn't it? It's really beautiful."

God, she was beautiful. "It is." He said, his big blue eyes blinking at her. "I'd like to know more constellations, too."

"Hence why I'll buy a telescope one day. So I can show you all the stars, Johnnie." She said with a drunken giggle and climbed to her feet again. She placed them on each side of his legs, standing over him. Johnnie swallowed when she leaned forward to grab his hands and then she helped pull him up from the ground. "Come on, let's head back, man."

Once there (Y/N) checked her phone. 3.13AM. She walked inside the house that seemed to be even more crowded than before, pushing past bodies as she tried to find anyone familiar. Somewhere on the way she seemed to have lost Johnnie, who had been stopped by acquaintances while (Y/N) continued moving through.

"Hey, (Y/N)!" Someone called.

"Oh, Ciara! I haven't seen you in ages!"

"I've missed you!"

She spent maybe ten minutes small-talking before someone else yelled her name. It was Jake who stood next to a short girl with dark hair and eyes.

Jake motioned for (Y/N) to come closer and (Y/N) excused herself from her friend. "Hi, (Y/N)." Jake said. "This is my friend, Tara."

"Hiii Tara!" (Y/N) greeted the new face.

"Hi (Y/N)! I've heard a lot about you." She smiled.

To Jake's delight the two hit it off and he left the girls to get to know each other. They headed over to the kitchen to get another drink and stood there giggling and chatting when another person came up to them. (Y/N) had seen him on TikTok before but couldn't remember his name. He was real pretty though.

"Hellooo. What's up?"

"Hii Tara." He had black hair with stunning blue eyes. "And hi...?" He reached a hand out to shake hers.

(Y/N) smiled friendly and gently shook his hand, "(Y/N)."

"I'm Carrington. Nice to meet you." He let go off her, remaining eye contact until Tara interrupted.

"So, (Y/N), as I was saying..." Tara went on with her story and (Y/N) giggled when she finished the punchline. They chatted for a moment, the three of them, before Carrington disappeared again and the two girls hung out for a while longer.

They had found a quiet balcony with outdoor furniture on the second floor. (Y/N) thought this girl was very interesting. She was charismatic and they connected quickly.

"And that's like, not even the half of it!" Tara snickered. She glanced down at her phone and grinned even bigger. "Hey, Carrington wondered what your Snap was. I haven't even gotten it yet."

"Mh-hm?"

"Yeah. He thought you were really cute. Like, gorgeous. You want his Snap?"

"I don't--... know." (Y/N) smacked her lips.

"You don't know? He's hilarious. I promise he's a cool guy."

"I don't doubt it, I just... He's got a huge TikTok following, right?" (Y/N) shifted a little in her seat. "It feels kinda weird. I wouldn't ever date a... celebrity or... influencer. You know?"

Tara shrugged. "Why?"

"It would be too hard when you yourself is just a 'normal' person. You get put in the public eye even if you don't want to. And uh. The fanbase. Imagine all the judgemental people. The ones that are mad that you stole their baby from them. And you're definitely not the right person for their baby, right?"

"I understand that. It's logical. But I still think you should try being more open-minded."

(Y/N) gave her a suspicious unsure look.

"Come on. You could try." Tara encouraged. "You're hanging out with Johnnie, and Jake, right? So what's the difference here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Heheh, I know they're not huge but they're still, like, well-known." Tara focused on her phone again. "I just meant that, if you can be friends and hang out with influencers I don't see why you wouldn't add Carrington on Snapchat."

Obviously (Y/N) knew that Jake and Johnnie did Youtube and music and they knew a lot of people around LA, but she never stalked them or even really checked them out. Everyone in LA were wannabe influencers.

Tara looked up from her phone to see why (Y/N) hadn't replied. She was met by a puzzled face. "Ohh... You're not... Have you checked their stuff out?"

"... No?"

"You're serious?... You are. Uhm, have you not seen any Youtube video or sum?"

"Not really. I mean, everyone in LA at these parties wants to be famous. They're models, or TikTokers, or Youtubers, or music producers or singers. I just figured... You know. It didn't matter. It really doesn't matter to me." (Y/N) explained.

Tara grinned at her, happy with her authenticity. "I love that. I know it can get hard to meet new friends once you have a following. What do you do? You gotta be a model, right?"

"No, girl, pfftt. That's you." (Y/N) snickered drunkenly while shaking her head. "I don't do anything but study and work at a coffee shop, dude. I'm assuming you model, right?"

"I got a following from my Instagram model pictures, yeah."

"I understand why. Plus, you seem fucking awesome." (Y/N) yawned, realizing she was getting pretty tired.

"You seem awesome. Thank you. I've got a Youtube channel as well." Tara yawned, too. "It's 4.20." (Y/N) giggled at the number and Tara cackled. "It's like, 'going home'-time, isn't it?"

"It really fucking is." (Y/N) stretched and got up to her feet.

"They really didn't tell you about being like, half-famous?" Tara wondered as she followed her new friend back inside.

"They didn't." (Y/N) replied.

"Oops."

(Y/N) was very unsober so she wasn’t really capable of connecting any dots and honestly it didn't bother her that much. It was kind of weird that they hadn't mentioned their following but at the same time that probably made them humble. They hadn't tried to hide anything though.

The music was loud and made (Y/N) even more dizzy. She texted Brooke to check on her and she replied quickly that she had made up with Leo and probably was going home with him. Alright, you do you.

Chapter Text

Johnnie regretted waking up as soon as he did, which was closer to 3PM. He forced his way out of bed while he tried to remember the night, the beat in his head the rhythm of the regretful thoughts running through his mind.

First of all, shower. Get the sand out of his hair.

Jake said that (Y/N) had left around 4.30, sharing an Uber with Tara. They had hit it off apparently.

Now the problem was that Johnnie had no idea where to go from here. He was pretty confused with his feelings. (Y/N) was a special person, they had these sweet moments together and she was incredibly attractive, so how could you... well... not be attracted to her? But it didn't mean anything, right? Now this whole thing made him anxious, which was silly, cause they were just friends.

~~

It felt a bit weird after that scene on the beach. Three days had passed and (Y/N) hadn't texted Johnnie anything. I mean, it shouldn't have felt weird cause they were just two friends being silly but it made her a bit uncomfortable. Cause she like, got a buzz in her belly. And she hadn’t felt butterflies since forever. But what made her more uncomfortable was his and Jake's Youtube channels with over 2 million subscribers. And what made her even more uncomfortable was Trisha Paytas suddenly popping up on her FYP lipsyncing(terribly) to Pierce The Veil with Johnnie and Jake.

(Y/N) efficiently gathered her belongings and slung her bag over her shoulder and walked quickly out of the lecture hall.

"(Y/N), hang on." Someone yelled from somewhere behind and she stopped to look over her shoulder.

"Brooke, hi."

"I was waiting for your lesson to be done. How are you?"

"Good. You?"

The two continued the walk out the building and through campus. "So that's what I've been doing today." Brooke finished a long monologue of basically nothing. "Wanna hang out?"

"I have a shift in an hour and I gotta study tonight." (Y/N) explained.

"Alright, you fighter. Could I get a ride home though?"

"Of course." They reached her car and (Y/N) tossed her bag in the backseat.

"You've been a bit quiet these last few days... are you, like, mad at me for going back to Leo?"

"What?? No, of course not. You said he improved and had been thinking so I trust you on that. As long as you're happy."

Brooke was quiet for a moment. "Did anything else happen?"

"No-..." (Y/N) sighed. "I don't know. Not really. I'm just a bit confused."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"I don't-... know." She sighed again. "Did you know that Jake and Johnnie are like, a big deal on social media? They're like, super popular. I didn't know. Their friend, who's also, like, famous, told me. And it feels weird that she's the one who said so and not them."

"Ooooh. What?" She shrugged. "I mean, we probably meet a lot of people who don't flex on us with their followers."

"Yeah, but, me and Jake... and J-. and Johnnie... Are good friends. It's weird."

Brooke nodded. "Yeah, I guess. That's kinda weird. But they didn't lie about it or anything. Right?"

"No, not at all, they mentioned working with social media and doing music and maybe I'm a bad friend for not checking them out. Or maybe they think I know. We've never talked about it ever."

"You should bring it up."

"In a chill way."

~~

Johnnie squinted at his phone's screen. A short text with a link to a video on TikTok.

'explain this?😭😭'

"Guys, (Y/N) just-..." Johnnie wasn't sure why he was internally freaking out about (Y/N) sending him a video from his TikTok account with Trisha, it literally made his head feel dizzy and heart race.

"What?" Jake asked.

"She sent me a video from my TikTok." He finished his sentence.

"She did?" Tara looked up from her own phone, waiting for more information. The three were hanging out in the apartment.

"Yeah, she just sent the one... With Trisha..."

Tara giggled loudly and Jake chuckled.

"Saying... 'explain this'... with crying emojis... Is-is she mad? Guys, is..." Johnnie sat up straight in his seat. "It's so weird that we haven't like ever addressed anything."

"Chill, dude, she's-..." Jake watched Johnnie's fingers dance across the screen. "Johnnie." The soft staccato of keys being tapped came to an end.

'That is the weirdest way for you to find my account if that's the first vid your seeing (Y/N) I apologize'

"What did you type?" Tara asked, her teasing grin now dropping.

"I just said--"

Pling.

'it's the first vid to show up on my tik tok but to be honest tara told me at that party last weekend. i really had no clue you had such a huge following. it's kinda weird i've managed to miss it.' i'm sorry about that. i didn't figure

Johnnie read the conversation out loud and looked at Tara, not sure how to feel.

"What?" She said. "It's kinda weird you didn't tell her."

"It just never seemed relevant." Johnnie replied.

"And it still isn't I think." Tara looked at Jake. "But it's weird she didn't know."

"It's not like we've kept it a secret or anything. It just never seemed relevant." Jake looked to Johnnie.

"I thought she... We had a moment at that party and I was scared I had like, I don't know, scared her off a bit or something, we didn't really do anything, we just... looked at the stars on the beach and... we... I... I thought that was why she's been all quiet but I'm guessing it's cause she didn't know how to handle you telling her, but--..." Johnnie stopped his rambling. "Jeez."

Jake blinked.

"I guess it's relevant in the sense that the girl said she'd never date a celebrity, so you don't have to worry about that." Tara joked with a giggle. "I'm sorry-- I mean, I didn't mean it like that. And it's good she knows, right? She would've found out soon enough which I still think it's weird you guys didn't like, boast about it."

"When do we ever boast?" Jake challenged.

Johnnie replied with, 'I wasn't sure if you knew or not to be honest and it's weird I never really mentioned it I'm sorry'

'it's chill, dude, dw!! yeah just strange I never knew cause, you know, it's a pretty big part of your life and stuff'

'I know. I think I've just been happy to have made a new friend without them knowing my channel or well I wasn't sure if you knew or not. It's like either you knew and didn't care or you didn't know and you still wanted to get to know me'

'I'm also glad to have made two great friends. this doesn't change anything, right?'

'You're the best.'

Phew.

[chewy chapter but you had to have 'the' conversation alright]

~~

It felt... okay. Okay to know how popular the guys actually were. Kinda cool? And weird to know that they chose to hang out with (Y/N). Out of all people in LA. Cause there were way cooler people to hang with(sorry). Anyways. They texted a bit back and forth. Followed each other on social media, could now send memes and tiktoks to each other. Facetime a few times and had lunch the other day. Like real friends. And the next day Johnnie called.

"What are you doing?"

"Studying."

"I'm working on this one song and I need your opinion."

"I want to hear, but I'm uh, studying, Johnnie."

"Can I come over? You can study while I bring my guitar."

Hell yeah. "Alright, sure. The code to the building is (yours! comment below and the address😊)."

Johnnie showed up about 20 minutes after that.

The late afternoon sun filtered through the sheer curtains of (Y/N)'s cozy apartment, casting a warm, golden coat across the room. With a soft exhale, she set down her textbook, feeling the weight of impending exams bearing down on her shoulders.

As he reached her building and climbed the stairs to her floor, Johnnie couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation in the pit of his stomach. He had heard (Y/N) talk about her apartment before, but he had never seen it for himself. What was her home like?

When he finally reached her door and gave it a light knock, Johnnie felt a bit nervous as he waited for her to answer. And when she swung the door open, a grin of his own reflected the sight before him.

"Hiii (Y/N)!!"

"Hi dude. It might be a bit messy here.."

"It's fine. You've seen ours. And now we're moving and it's even worse."

(Y/N)'s apartment was like a cozy sanctuary nestled in the heart of the city. The warm, inviting glow of candles flickered in every corner and the soft hum of a record player filled the halls, lending an air of nostalgia to the space.

As he stepped inside, Johnnie's eyes wandered over the furnishings and personal touches that adorned the room. A white rug lay on top of her couch with pink throw pillows, inviting guests to sink into its plush depths. Potted plants lined the windowsills, their verdant leaves adding a burst of life to the space.

But it was the little details that truly captured Johnnie's attention – the carefully curated collection of artwork that added to the walls, the well-loved books stacked haphazardly on shelves, the faded concert posters that served as a testament to (Y/N)'s love of music. The perfect person to ask for help!

As (Y/N) ushered him further into the apartment, Johnnie couldn't help but feel a sense of warmth and belonging wash over him. In this cozy haven of candles and records, he knew that he was exactly where he wanted to be – surrounded by the comforting embrace of friendship he valued. And he wondered why they'd never been here before.

She turned off the record and sat down criss-crossed in the sofa as their chatting went off, attention somewhere completely else but the notebook in her lap.

"I like that flannel by the way. You sorta look like the guy from Adventure Time. Marshall, or what was his name?"

"Hahah, yeah, Marshall Lee I think. I've heard that one before when I've worn this shirt in videos." Johnnie shifted in the armchair.

"I always found Adventure Time a bit... eerie if that makes sense? But I had a huge crush on Marshall Lee, not gonna lie. Anyways, of course you've heard that in your videos. I can't believe we've known each other for— okay, not for ages, really not that long… but we know each other kinda well by now, right?"

"I'd like to believe so.“

"Right, I feel the same. And I've still been oblivious to it?" She stretched out in the sofa with a yawn. "Crazy. I feel like you looked familiar but I'd say that's just the style you have.”

"Are you... Like, how do you feel about it?"

"The style? I was intrigued when I first saw you in that store, I think it's super cool."

"I meant..."

"I know. I'm joking." She sat up straight again, a more serious look to her face. This conversation face-to-face was inevitable. "I don't mind, Johnnie. There's always influencers at the bigger parties and to be honest I usually uh, avoid them. I don't mean to be judgy but have you ever met more shallow people? That's the only thing I don't like about LA."

"I get that. I agree."

(Y/N) shrugged, tugged at the end of her notes, trying to find the right words to express her feelings. "I mean, there's a lot of things in LA that I don't like. Shallow influencers is probably the smallest problem in our society." She corrected herself. "And you're not like that at all anyways. Neither is Jake or Tara. Like, the nicest people I’ve met." She looked up from her notes. "And I've never been affected by your— I haven't even noticed it."

"Hey now. I might not get recognized on the daily but I swear it happens. Sometimes." Johnnie offered a careful grin.

She giggled, relaxing her shoulders again. "I'm totally cool with it dude. Just fucking weird I didn't... know. Anyways. How you feel about it?"

"I'm glad you're not making a deal out of it. Like you said it's a big part of my life. My uh, it is my life." Johnnie shrugged. "I'm just scared sometimes that people will want to hang out with me just because of it. Or if they'll get scared. Like you said you usually avoid getting to know people like… me.."

"In our case I just think you're a little too cool to be making time to hang out with me." (Y/N) joked and picked up her pen.
Which was insane to Johnnie's ears cause he felt that way about her hanging with him. And his brain told him that there was no way she could ever like him. He wasn't her type. But she looked so beautiful there in the sofa and he had to tell himself that they actually hadn’t known each other for that long. “But yeah, it would've intimidated me to know from the beginning."

"Don't say that." He pouted and she scoffed. "I feel like my emo style would've scared you off if anything."

"Yeah. It's kinda scary. Lucky for you I loved The Vampire Diaries and Twilight."

"Even if you look like the type who'd love Mean Girls and Pretty Little Liars."

(Y/N) gasped. "Hey! I definitely do not. Or well. I do love Mean Girls. Now sing your original, vampire boy." She picked up her pen to actually start with the studying. (Get it like original as in the vampire diaries get it? Get it? Haha😂😂)

Johnnie let out a snort before he cleared his throat and went on. "Good little girl, always picking a fight with me."

She gasped again, looked up from the notebook.

"You know that I'm bad, but you're spending the night with me… What do you want from my world?" A teasing but genuine smile spread across his lips. "You're a good little girl.."

"Shut up Johnnie." She giggled.

He snickered. "Don’t you know I'm a villain?"

"Enough." (Y/N) covered her mouth to stifle another giggle.

"Every night I'm out killing, sending everyone... out runnin?? Like uh, children?" He tried to recall the rest of the script from the show.

"... I got demon eyes?"

"Right, and they're lookin right through your anatomy."

"You've got a thing for me girl, it's apparent." She finished with another snort. "I don't know if I ever told you this but I did think you had contacts the first times we met. You've got the bluest eyes I've ever seen, man." She said and pulled her legs up to a criss-cross pose again, eyes down on her sheet.

"You're being nice. What's up? Are you gonna cut me off after this? Breaking up?"

(Y/N) snorted and shook her head. "You never know."

"Stop."

"I'm kidding. You know that. It's cool with the whole famous thing. I don't mind."

(I didn't know Donald glover did his voice I used to love the character and his voice dude)

Johnnie nodded. "Okay, so this is what I've been working on. Be honest, straight up." He started strumming the acoustic melody.
It sounded sweet, nice.
"Blood red sheets are my favorite... I could be your-... hang on." He snickered.

"What.. Oh! Blood red— perfect after that vampire segment." She fell into laughter herself.

"I'm sorry. Here we go." Johnnie cleared his throat again. "I want your... this is not a love- I’m not serenading you by the way."

"So you're not flirting?"

"Would you like me to be?"

"Just sing the song."

Ouch. "I want your heart, I want your brain... and that body, cause you got me going too insane. You can't control me." He continued.

(Y/N) reminded herself that he actually had to have wrote this song about another girl and it was a good reality check that their flirty banter was about two friends having fun. Their dynamic worked like that. Actually just like Johnnie and Jake. This wasn’t different.

“She makes me nervous. The way she gives me purpose. You’re getting close now, I’m not myself now. You make me nervous…” Johnnie barely dared to look up from his guitar and felt like a goddamned high schooler. This wasn’t the song he was planning on playing and it was less ready than the melody he actually came here to show her. With his heart racing, he looked up to see a pair of eyes sparkling with admiration and affection. It made his throat dry.

Then she quickly spoke, “Aye, you know I’m a rock girl, but that was a banger. I liked it. I’d listen to it.”

“You would?” Thank God. “Cool. I was sure you’d bully my ass for a corny love song.”

“I knew you were a real softie so I’m not surprised” She teased. “You think zombie love is corny?”

“A little.”

“Nah, I’ve read poems of like, cannibal love. You know the type I mean?”

“Yeah, exactly.”

“I find it beautiful. It’s like, ‘I like this person so much I want to devour them’. Maybe a bit psychotic and unhealthy but hey. I think it’s beautiful, or maybe that’s the wrong word, but you know.”

Johnnie liked this girl a lot. “Thanks, (Y/N).” He said. “Jake does more punk. Have you heard his stuff? It’s pretty good. Closer to rock maybe. We’re working on a song together right now.”

“I haven’t checked it out but I’d probably dig it.” (Y/N) finished a sentence in her notes and looked up at him again. “You’re very welcome to swing by whenever and show me music, you know I’m a music nerd. But I’m also a study nerd and it’s not going so good. I just wrote down what I said instead of what I was supposed to. My professor will freak out if he reads about cannibals instead of cognitive processes.”

Johnnie laughed. “Alright, I’ll stop yapping and just play. If that’s not bothering?”

“It’s not. I’m loving this.”

And it was a cozy vibe, a real cozy one. All that was missing was a fireplace. Getting over that little bump about hanging out with a famous guy just made them closer.
They sat there for probably another hour, studying and talking and strumming some more. Johnnie listened to (Y/N)’s work and she listened to his, jumping from psychology to music and everything in between. Though the banter kind off wore off and they kept it friendly.
And then he left and (Y/N) studied some more before going to sleep.

[im so sorry this took ages cause my laptops freaking out again]

Chapter Text

As the day progressed, (Y/N) grew restless, mind spinning while her body worked on autopilot taking orders. It was a busy Thursday and (Y/N) couldn't say no to stepping in for a sick colleague.

"Thank you!" A cute guy just bought decaf coffee.

"No problem." She gave him a smile before she turned to the next person in line, an old lady. Old ladies could either be the best ever or the worst. "Thanks, yeah, my day's going good, too. Here's your Pistachio Latte."

She let out a quiet sigh and turned to her coworker after dealing with the others in line. "Hey, Phuong, how's your lil sister doing?"

"Thanks for asking (Y/N), she's sound again. It was a sinus infection! Girl, her face was all swollen. I don't know if you've heard of sinus infection?"

"Yes I have! I had a friend who had the same thing like a few years back. He was suffering!" (Y/N)'s attention turned to the people coming inside the coffee shop and the two girls turned to take care of them. These were the first rude people to come in today. Two grown women.

"They had sticks up their asses." Phuong whispered when the women walked out again. She was a few years younger than (Y/N) and a super sweet girl.

"For real, dude." She giggled back when someone showed up at the desk again.

"Hey, uh, miss?" It was the decaf dude from earlier.

(Y/N) tilted her head with a polite smile ready for this man's opinion or insult. "What's up?"

"I uh, I know this is old school but could I have your number? Or instagram or something. Unless you're not single. I mean, you look- you're beautiful. I thought I'd shoot my shot."

She furrowed her brows briefly before smiling wider. "Uhm, that's really sweet! And yeah, I'm single. Sure, you can have my IG." She gave it to him while her coworker helped another customer.

"Great, thanks. Hope to hear back from you."

"Have a good day. Bye!"

Phuong playfully tugged at (Y/N)'s sleeve. "Oh, my God!! He was so cute!!"

"Right?"

"I wish guys came up to me and asked for my number. All I ever get are old men catcalling me."

"Oh-... That's just awful. It's terrible and you gotta be careful. Like this guy. He seemed nice but who knows?"

"It's sucks that we need to be so careful."

What kept (Y/N) motivated to push through the day was her evening date with Brooke and a few other girlfriends. They were having dinner at a nice place down in Long Beach. (Y/N) had been spending a lot of time with Jake and Johnnie these last two weeks so they were very happy to get together again.

And it was fun to catch up with them again! The night went on and at some point (Y/N)'s phone plinged.

"Ohhh guys. This one guy at work today asked for my IG and he just messaged me asking if I want to have coffee some day when I'm off.."

"Ihhh!!! Is he hot? Show us his profile."

"He has like 100 followers and no posts."

"That's a green flag. Isn't that just your type?"

(Y/N) snorted and shrugged. "I guess so. He was very cute. Maybe looked a bit like a frat boy."

"Hm... red flag?"

"Maybe."

"What are you gonna reply?"

"I'm not gonna reply yet. I don't know. Do I want to meet him again?"

"Yes!" The girls simultaneously yelled a little too loud.

"Schh!!" (Y/N) really wasn't sure whether to meet up with the guy or not. She wasn't searching to date anyone but the fact that the guy dared to walk up to her and ask her out was pretty impressive and flattering. Or maybe he was a frat guy used to getting whoever he wanted.
Whatever. Maybe it would be good to get her mind off of Johnnie.
Not that he was a problem but she didn't like the unfamiliar feeling she was developing for him.

~~

As they strolled through the park, sipping coffee and nibbling on muffins, (Y/N)'s laughter rang in the warm afternoon air. With a contented sigh, she found a cozy spot on the lush green lawn and lay back, soaking in the golden rays of the sun.

Johnnie settled beside her, his gaze drifting over her features glowing by the sunlight while she kept her eyes close as she sunbathed.

"And it was—" Johnnie's story was cut off by the joyful shout of children in the background playing in the park.

"Jeez." She took a judgmental sip from her coffee.

"They're children, let them live."

"Someone should teach them a lesson."

"They're playing."

"So?"

"You're totally right. Let's go there and mug them."

"That's more like it." (Y/N) opened one squinting eye to look at him as she giggled, the other closed, avoiding the direct sun.

Johnnie snickered, grinning back at her. "I used to— Hold on— w- AHHH!!!" The scrawny grown man jumped to his feet, dropping his coffee, screaming loud.

"Jesus, dude, what the—" (Y/N) lied put, watching the man sprint away from her. "WHAT?"

"BEES!"

(Y/N) sat up, scoffed and then fell into laughter. "Johnnie, Jesus!" She looked around at the peaceful bees buzzing over flowers in the afternoon air. "You're such a little bitch."

"Let's GO!"

She giggled again before standing up and going his way. "You're worse than the kids."

"I think I did you a favor and scared them off actually." He looked at the quiet kids staring at them, wondering what the hell was going on. "BEES! Guys, there are BEES here!!"

This sent the kids looking at each other before scurrying over to their parents that sat at some benches further away.

"Johnnie! Shut up!"

"Hey, you're the one who complained about the kids."

"I was joking! You're gonna get some angry parents to mug us-"

"BEES-"

(Y/N) took a step closer to put her hand over his mouth. "Shut up!!" She giggled.

Johnnie snickered under her hand before he bit it gently, sending her yelping away.

"You animal." She said holding back another laugh before fake punching his shoulder.

"Suit yourself."

"You started it??"

Johnnie shrugged. "Tomato, tomato."

"Wh- HUH?" (Y/N) looked at him with a grin of confusion before they both burst into laughter again. "No, hang on." She patted his shoulder repeatedly to get his attention. "That's a Karen approaching."

"We can handle that."

"Let's just go, man." She grabbed him by his wrist to hurry the fuck away from the open lawn and through the small patch of trees before they returned out on an LA street.

Johnnie stumbled after her until they reached the street and she let go. "Idiot."

"Dumb bitch." (Y/N) glared back at him.

"You can't take back what you say when you're angry."

She giggled again, that sweet warm way from her belly. "Weren't those muffins good by the way? We get 50% off everything at the store but those I took for free."

"You little thief. They were amazing."

"If you come at the end of my closing shift I can sneak you some. I haven't seen you there in ages."

"I don't want to look desperate." He joked. Their voices and steps echoed against the pavement, the sound of car horns and distant chatter blended in with their synced walk. They automatically always kept the same beat, it was something both of them noticed but never acknowledged.
The distant smell of street food combined with jasmine from the park behind them gave (Y/N) a sense of real summer creeping in.

"Even though we just ate those I still want to eat something real tonight."

"Course."

Johnnie shrugged and asked, "How about we order or something and watch a TV show or something?"

"Or something something. Sure, sounds nice. Yours or mine?"

"Mine's still a mess. You need to come visit though. I haven't really set up all my shit yet in my room so it looks kind of empty. But we've got a pool if you want to use it."

"Are you saying that cause you want to see me in a bikini?"

"Oh no, you got me there."

(Y/N) giggled. "We could try cooking something. Aye, have a wine night and do something from scratch?"

"Sounds too complicated, (Y/N). But I can sit and get drunk and watch if you do the cooking?"

"You're right. Let's get some takeout."

~~

Johnnie stretched out in the sofa with a yawn. His belly was full and his head a bit dizzy. They had just washed their makeup off after a long evening of talking and eating. It was closer to 1AM already and they were getting sleepy.

"Bro. Listen to this. Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. That one was kinda fire, right?" (Y/N) returned from her room, notebook in her hands. Somehow the girl still stressed about school even at this drunken state and hour. Uni was a fucking handful at the moment. "I need to write the good ones down."

"Stop with the quips and stop studying."

"Says the high school dropout. Yeah, I'll take advice from you." (Y/N) moved his legs aside and he almost slipped down from the couch but scrambled up to a sitting position.

Johnnie scoffed as he picked up his phone to look up famous quips. "Alright, alright. Listen to this. 'In the end, everything is a gag.' - Charlie Chaplin."

"That's—" (Y/N) looked up from her own phone with distaste. "You definitely have had a gag ball in your mouth before."

"No, I haven't, just different kinds of balls. My uncle used to—"

"No- shut up." She threatened to throw her pencil at him.

"You're so violent." He snickered with a flinch.

(Y/N) drew her legs up in the sofa and turned to face him, lying down diagonally, head on the armrest, carefully stretching out her legs in his lap. "You're the only one who brings it out of me. Seriously."

"I thought it was boys who bullied the girls they liked, not the other way around." The drunken words came out before he could stop them, his whole body tense, staring down at her legs for a second too long.

"That's sexist. Watch your mouth or I'll help you with your gag ball debut."(Y/N) warned.

"Say less, I'll continue."

(Y/N) giggled and shook her head. "Jesus Christ."

"... 'If you want breakfast in bed you can wake up in the kitchen.' Here's a Spider-Man one! 'Who are you under that mask? I can't-'"

"Stop reading quips and I'll stop with the studying."

"Deal." Johnnie put his phone down and had to blink a few times to focus on the show on the TV, reminded of the glasses of wine he'd consumed, and that Jamaican Coffee (Y/N) had done for him(it tasted awfully much like rum and awfully little like coffee). He finally relaxed a little as he got more used to her body over his. Her legs in his lap. Her legs were in his lap. Her calves. Or feet. Almost. Oh, my God. Relax.

"It's the stupidest assignment anyways. Find an old quip quote and break it down into a million pieces to figure out what it means. Sounds more like philosophy than psychology."

"Drop it and enjoy the evening instead."

"What's there to enjoy."

Johnnie glared at her.

"I'm kidding."

He glared harder, eyes squinted, brows drawn together.

"I'm kidding! Johnnie, it's all just banter, I don't mean anything I say." (Y/N)'s eyebrows drew upwards and her grin faded. "I fucking love hanging out with you, dude."

"Awwwwwwww."

"Shush." (Y/N)'s worried expression dropped into a grin and now she was a bit too aware of her legs stretched out over his thighs.

"Wanna be in a video sometime?"

(Y/N) scoffed loudly, then snorted and looked back at him. "Don't ask that again."

"I guessed. You're really funny though. People would like you."

"People would be annoyed with me and would definitely say that— they'd probably think we were lowkey... you know. And they'd either hate it or like it."

Johnnie shrugged, wallowed in the realization that (Y/N) had pictured them together, then also realized that she sounded very against it. "Stop it. They'd love you. All I know is that people love you. Everyone has always been happy about Jake and Tara, no one's jealous or bad about them."

But this wasn't the same cause they weren't a couple. "I don't want to. I don't want rumors. But thanks for the offer, Johnnie." She picked up her phone and opened TikTok. "I'm not anyone and I don't want to be." The drunken friends continued trying to say the right things.

"I get that. It's fine. Sorry." He suddenly felt a bit stupid, knowing that this girl wanted to stay away from that world. And she'd never date someone in that world. "I just promise everyone would like you. I really, really do." He immediately sobered up a bit.

"Don't apologize. It's super cool that you're giving me that choice but honestly I think we're pretty wasted and uhh, we shouldn't make promises wasted. What was it you said earlier? You can’t take back what you say angry. Nor drunk.”

Johnnie swallowed. "Sorry."

"Don't... apologize, silly." (Y/N) giggled. Yeah, she was pretty wasted, cause she had to ask this, "Anyways. I've been meaning to ask. That song you showed me?"

"Yeah?"

"Who's uh... you never tell me much about your love life."

"That's because I don't have one."

(Y/N) snorted and gave him a soft kick before she pulled her legs back away from him and sat up straight to reach for her glass of wine on the coffee table. "Right. With your following and all the crazy chicks commenting... how could you not have one?"

Johnnie shrugged. "It's not that easy. I couldn't just date a fan, man. It's weird that people can find out so much about you from the internet while I don't know anything about them. It's like, oh, they can stalk my videos from 7 years ago and know things I don't even remember."

"I understand. Or, I understand as much as I'm capable of."

"Yeah. It's a weird dynamic... I don't know. I don't like the thought. It feels distasteful. I just want to meet someone naturally."

"And have you?"

"I—.."

"I mean. The song's gotta be about someone. I'm happy if you've found someone. I think a girlfriend would do ya good." She suggested with a teasing grin. "I'm just disappointed you wouldn't tell me you're seeing someone.” Cause she was starting to like him. “We're like, besties now. We should tell each other everything." Smile, smile, smile.

Johnnie was... puzzled. She seriously had no clue. That was good! Perfect. "Well ..." his voice gave in and cracked and he cleared his throat and swallowed. "You know... I just, yeah, a girl inspired the song. We're not dating. I don't know.  It's a song about a cool girl who inspired me."

(Y/N) felt her heart drop. Damn. She was right. "Ahh, that's so exciting, Johnnie!! If she made you write such a heartfelt banger she's gotta be cool. I hope it works out. Do you have a picture?"

"... No."

"Alright mystery man. I respect your privacy."

Johnnie wanted to laugh and facepalm and everything in between. "I'm not sure if I'm ready for a relationship anyways. And what about you? You don't talk about your love life either. I've only like, seen you roast or uh, reject men."

"Pfft. I guess." She shrugged, thinking of a response. "I  usually only have girl best friends and I still find it a bit weird to have met men that are so in touch with... well, everything. I mean.. You. And Jake." A short pause. "Hm. I guess there was this guy at the coffee shop like two days ago. He asked for my IG and then direct messaged me."

"Oh." Johnnie blinked. "You gave him your IG?"

"Yeah, he uh... seemed cool. But he ordered decaf. Why drink coffee if you just order decaf anyways? Something's not right, I'll tell ya..." She said with a forced laugh.

"Because you're trying to quit caffeine." He said with a monotone voice.

(Y/N) nodded slowly. "Riiight.. Still suspicious."

"So are you gonna see him?"

"I wasn't planning on it." (Y/N) mumbled, eyes back on the phone in her lap, trying to not show how an invisible cupid sort of forced their hand right through her stomach and ribs to rip out the butterflies and crush them in its palm and stomp on them and—

"DAAAAARLIIIIIING!!!!!!" A familiar guy with piercing blue eyes showed up on her FYP.

Johnnie and (Y/N) exchanged surprised looks before bursting into laughter. Carrington's boyfriend POVs.

"I fucking love his TikToks, man."

"Tara told me he asked for your Snap."

"... She tells everyone everything, huh?"

Johnnie shrugged. "She's the best, but she's chatty. And we're best friends, so, you know.."

"What else did she say?"

"That you declined Carrington's offer cause you wouldn't want to date a “celebrity”. And that you were hilarious and she really liked to talk to you."

(Y/N) narrowed her eyes, delusional thoughts creeping in for just a second before she stopped herself in her tracks. "Wow. I'm guessing you best friends tell each other everything."

"Pretty much."

"It kinda hurt a bit that we're not there yet." It kinda just came out. She was hurt tonight and wanted to go to sleep. For a second somewhere between the flirting and the wine she wondered if maybe they'd sleep in her bed tonight. Not fuck. Of course. Just like besties sleep in the same bed. Now, that didn't seem to be happening.

"You confuse me sometimes." Johnnie murmured.

Was he serious? "You confuse me."

"I'm drunk, I'm sorry."

"You're right. Good talk anyways. Uhh. I'll bring you a blanket and pillow. If you can fit in my loveseat."

"Loveseat?"

"That's what you... the tiny sofa.."

Johnnie grinned. "Sure. I'll just fold myself twice and it'll work."

"It's not that small. You tryna get into my bed?" (Y/N) stood up and took the last swig of her glass.

He winked. "It's like, at least queen size. It just needs its king."

"I hate it when you talk. Okay. You stay on your side, you dog."

"Wouldn't want to get in the way of you and decaf boy."

"Stop. I said I wasn't gonna see him." (Y/N) lead the way over to her bedroom and walked over to her closet. "Wanna borrow something? We're probably the same size."

"Shut up. You got bigger tits than me."

"Johnnie!"

"Pfftshs..." He snickered drunkenly as he walked over to the bed and facepalmed into her pink sheets that smelt like laundry detergent and blue skies and clean girl.

"Stay that way so I can change." She ordered, watching the boy sprawled out on her bed, his messy hair fallen in disarray around his head.

"I'm too tired to move." He mumbled back through the thick fabric and that was such a lie cause he'd gladly have a peek but he respected her and every other person on this planet.

"There we go." She put on a band tee and a pair of pajama pants. "Move over so we can lie under the sheets, please."

With a groan he made a stupid decision and rolled off the bed with a yelp and a bang as he hit the floor.

"Joh-!!"

His face popped up over the edge, eyes barely visible behind black bangs. "I'm okay."

"You fucking..." She sighed and giggled and climbed into bed, pulling the sheets up to her face, head spinning terribly now.

Johnnie carefully got comfy on his side of the bed. "This bed is the best bed I have ever been in. It's so cozy." And he'd gladly make it a habit.

"Pfft." She turned off the lamp on the nightstand, leaving them in darkness, except for the faint moonlight crawling in through the slips of her curtains.

"I'm glad I know you, (Y/N)."

"Me, too." She quietly replied.

There was so much but still nothing more to say. Somewhere (Y/N) probably realized the girl in the song was her. She didn’t want it to be her while she still wanted it to. Why didn’t Johnnie say so? Probably cause she put him on the spot and literally didn’t let him say it. She didn’t want him to. She didn’t want to let him in and she didn’t want to get hurt and she definitely didn’t want to lose her best friend.

Chapter Text

They couldn't ruin the easy companionship they cherished. Cause somehow they both kinda wanted to believe that the feeling went both ways but this was way too confusing and Johnnie had this tiny feeling of her playing a game. Flirting. Backing away. Or maybe she was just afraid, too. He couldn't rush it. He wouldn't.

And when (Y/N) woke up and found herself curled up on his chest, she didn't jump away instantly. She felt her heartbeat race but Johnnie's steady breaths lulled her back into a state of calm. For a fleeting moment she allowed herself to savor the intimacy. Lying there with a man she trusted and a man she still couldn't help but like-like.

Parts of their conversation gradually pieced itself together and she kinda wanted to cringe and err, rip her hair out. What was she doing? She almost fucked it all up yesterday asking about the song when he clearly didn't want to talk about his dating life. A delusional part of her wondered if she'd put him on the spot but the other part told her that was silly. She didn't want to date him or kiss him or play with his hair or lie cuddled up on him-

What if he actually liked her and they were going through a stage in their relationship and now she fucked it up- she didn't want to date him. She couldn't. It wouldn't work out.

Another breath and then she'd move. Just another one. Okay. She lifted her head up from off him, wondered how to get out of his arm cradling her back, slowly drawing her own arm back from across his chest.

"You don't have to— I'm... awake." His raspy morning voice was a contrast from his usual sort of quiet one.

(Y/N) swallowed and pushed her upper body up to look down at him, still leaned over him with his arm slowly dropping. "Oh. Hi."

"I didn't want to wake you up, sorry." Johnnie figured he should've pretended to be asleep but nah. Not even teasing. Just straight up. No awkwardness.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not like you don't have enough pillows."

She smiled carefully and moved away from him to sit up. "You're right. And my pillows are probably comfier than your chest."

"Obviously."

"Sorry. I'm kidding."

"I know you are. Always."

What's that supposed to mean? "Fucking hell. My head."

"Yeah."

"Man, I need water." She murmured as she glanced down at him. He looked awfully kissable-

"I probably won't be able to eat today. I feel awful." He said, stretching a little and putting his arms and hands up behind his head, elbows pouting out.

(Y/N) swallowed, trying not to blush about them being there in her bed. "Well. I could eat something. And drink water, dude."

"Water's not even good."

"Insane." Then she decided to lighten up the situation and leaned a little closer to whisper, "Hey, bro... we didn't... you know..?"

Johnnie snickered. "Then you'd remember it."

She scoffed and picked up a pillow to gently hit his head and he laughed and put his hands up to protect his face.

"Alright, alright, chill." He giggled.

"What time is it anyways?" She dropped the pillow on his face before she stretched for her phone on her nightstand. "11.40 AM."

"Wow, I'm up early." He said as he threw the pillow at her but she dodged.

"You for real? I thought this whole 'I wake up in the afternoon'-thing was an act."

"Not an act."

"Insane. I hate missing out on the day."

"I know." Johnnie shrugged and yawned and sat up in the bed. "Oh my God, babe, you're so special and productive and everything I want to be. Stop boasting about your great sleeping schedule. Jesus."

(Y/N) scoffed again before sharing a laugh with him. "I could help you fix your problems. Sleeping schedule and dehydration."

"Great. Cause I got a session in the studio on Tuesday in the morning that I really need to get to."

"Ohhh! Exciting."

"Yeah." Johnnie yawned again, reminded about the conversation about the song yesterday. How the hell would he move on from this? This was flirting. Right? He had never had such a huge problem with reading someone's intentions. He'd assumed she was just like Tara; a natural flirt. He wasn't. So this was him flirting. She knew that, right?

(Y/N) got out of bed and stepped over to the mirror. "Fuck me."

I would. "Huh?"

"I look like I've been through 2 years of war in the cold Russian taiga forest, having to hunt birds by hand and bake bread from trees and my own yeast to feed my four kids."

"Whoa. That was oddly specific."

"It was very disgusting. What I meant to say is that I look very hungover." What.

Johnnie snickered. "That's better." And with some uncertainty he added. "You're always pretty, hungover or not."

(Y/N) swallowed and looked at his reflection in the mirror, sitting in her scrambled sheets with his big blue puppy eyes staring back at her. No. "Right. You're sweet. I think I'll hop in the shower."

"Are you kicking me out? Wooow."

"Yeah? Since you haven't left yet, I guess I'll have to. You know you're supposed to be gone before I wake?"

"Pffftt." He laughed at the banter. "Kinda hard when I've got you all cuddled up on me"

"Excuses, excuses." She rolled her eyes and left him alone in her room to head to the bathroom to shower.

"I think I said the wrong line." Johnnie called. "Say the shower thing again."

... "I'm... taking a shower?" She yelled back.

"Without me?"

"... There's a fire escape right in the living room. You can jump from there."

Johnnie giggled, lied back down in her bed again and snuggled up with the blanket, breathing in her scent again, reveling in the heat from where she laid. If they obviously had a thing for each other, why couldn't they just...?

(Y/N) had never found herself in this situation before. You know that one meme with two wolves fighting inside of you? Yeah, hers were fighting about letting someone in or not. An emo youtuber? What the fuck? This was the last person she'd ever see herself be into. Crazy.

She pretended that the water could rinse of every single thing she said wrong yesterday. It was weird being two adults who just couldn't fucking communicate. Do. Not. Ruin. A. Good. Friendship.

Johnnie eventually got up from the bed and stepped over to her desk, piled high with books and papers, casting a glance to the door before opening a notebook labeled 'Cognition'. His eyes wandered over the hastily written words.
Cognition, the process of acquiring, processing, and using information, lies at the heart of human behavior. In the realm of behavioral science, cognition serves as a foundational concept, offering insights into how individuals perceive, think, reason, and make decisions. This work explores the significance of cognition within the framework of behavioral science, examining its role in shaping human behavior and informing interventions aimed at promoting well-being.

He let out a sigh and closed the notebook again. The faint sound of running water was still going, leaving him alone with his thoughts in her room. A mixture of admiration and self-doubt washed over him. How could someone so intelligent ever see him as more than just a friend? Man, what a corny thought. Johnnie sighed again and returned to the bed to sit down on the edge of it and check his phone. Realized he'd posted something on his private story. Just a picture of their glasses of wine with the TV in the background. What was he— a teenage girl? At least it wasn't anything embarrassing.

The photo had drawn attention though and sent people replying to his story. Yet another sigh before he half-swiped on some of the replies, mostly being the question of WHO he was hanging out with.

Just (Y/N).
Ok babes a lil update I’m so sorry it’s so so short but I’m tipsy rn I don’t have time

Chapter Text

(Y/N) tapped her fingers on the wheel, preparing to leave the car. She took deep breaths, iiiin and ouuut, breathing in a square just like a therapist had taught her when she was 13, and surprise, it didn't help this time either. Breathing exercises were bullshit. Okay, okay, chill. She took a sip from her energy drink. It probably didn't help with the anxiety but she needed caffeine for this 2 hour long exam.

The sun was shining on a clear blue sky and LA was gradually heating up with every day passing by. And exactly two days had passed since (Y/N) woke up on Johnnie's chest with the worst hangover of her life. Everything had been normal. Nothing weird, nothing awkward, just normal conversations over the phone.

Speaking of the devil.

'Good luck on the exam today (Y/N)'

(Y/N) couldn't help but smile at her phone. He remembered. 'thanks. about to throw up dude'

'You got this babe'

'Lunch afterwards?'

'yeah, I'll come pick you up.'

'Just send a text when your on your way'

The exam went fine. (Y/N) managed to control her nerves and sort out her mind. She felt a sense of relief as she cruised through the bustling streets toward her friend's location. The palm trees along the road swayed gently with the breeze, casting playful shadows over the pavement. (Y/N) narrowed her eyes behind sunglasses. She wasn't all that familiar with Johnnie and Jake's new address. It was a beautiful house, an upgrade from their last place. She hopped out her car and stepped over to the entrance, giving the door a couple knocks.

"(Y/N)!! Hi." Jake welcomed her inside. "How're ya?"

"I'm good! Had an exam."

"So I've heard." He lead the way over to the kitchen. "How'd it go? And do you want coffee? I just made some."

(Y/N) nodded with a warm smile. "Yes, please." She said and he proceeded to pour up a cup. "I was really stressed out about it, it's an important part of the program so you know, I couldn't fuck it up. And I don't think I did."

Jake smiled back at her and handed her the cup. "Course you didn't. You probably-"

"Jake?" The familiar voice of Johnnie rang through the house before he appeared from behind the wall. With a nonchalant air, the half-naked man strode into the kitchen, only to stop in his tracks when his eyes landed on (Y/N). Johnnie was apparently fresh out the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist and his black hair hanging in damp strands. Rivulets of water traced down his neck and shoulders. And down his collarbones. And his belly. His happy trail-

"Hi, Johnnie." (Y/N) said cooly, keeping her gaze up.

"Whoa, you're early. I didn't think you'd be here until like, another 30 minutes or something." Johnnie cleared his throat.

"Riiight, I forgot to text you." (Y/N) nodded and took a sip from her coffee, leaning against the counter behind her.

Johnnie nodded and swallowed, "I'm done in like, 15. Just gonna get dressed and uh, fix my face a litte."

(Y/N) let out a soft giggle. "Alright, dude. I got Jake keeping me distracted so it's no stress."

"Yeah, you better keep an eye on her." He looked to Jake. "Who knows what tomfoolery she'd get up to without parental supervision."

Jake grinned at Johnnie before he disappeared behind the wall again. Jake turned to (Y/N).

"Lucky I'm not a guy cause I'd be so fucking bricked up right now." (Y/N) whispered jokingly. "Just kidding." The two snickered loud. "Anyways, the exam went okay, and I actually have a good feeling about it. Which is unusual. It's almost, though, it's almost like, when you have a good feeling, it went bad, and when you think it went bad, it went good. So who knows, really."

"I do not miss school, dude." Jake groaned. "Brutal to start off the Monday with an exam like that."

"Right? Anyways. What have you been up to lately?"

Jake went off about his collab with the Sturniolos and then his videos with Tara, about his coming plans and exciting news. He talked nonstop for a bit over 15 minutes and (Y/N) listened with interest until Johnnie reappeared, this time fully dressed and with a hint of black around his eyes.

"You guys don't invite me out anymore." Jake said with a mutter as the two friends walked towards the door.

"You'd just feel even more left out." (Y/N) replied with a playful grin, then shook her head. "I'm sorry. You can come along now of course. I miss hanging out with you."

"If I call Tara we can make it a double date and no one will be left out." Jake said.

Johnnie snickered. "Yeah, bring your ex to a double date."

"Just don't forget about me, (Y/N)." Jake said dramatically. "Just kidding. You guys have a great time while I'm here, all alone, in this house. All alone. Just alone with my thoughts."

"Jake-"

"All alone."

"I said you could-"

"With my thoughts. Alone."

"But-" (Y/N) was about to say something more when Johnnie snickered and grabbed her jacket's arm to pull her out of the house. "I feel sorta bad for him." (Y/N) giggled as the two of them walked up to her car.

"Don't." Johnnie relaxed in the passenger seat. "How'd the exam go?"

(Y/N) started the car and glanced at the rearview mirror before reversing out on the street. "I hope it went good. I was so nervous about it, dude. But I have a good feeling. I think it went good."

"I wouldn't trust that feeling if I were you." Johnnie said. "I feel like you're usually wrong, so..."

(Y/N) scoffed and gave him a glare.

"I'm just kidding." He grinned with his crooked teeth. "You know I think you're the smartest person ever."

"That was the right response. Where are we going?"

"I don't know. What do you feel like?"

"Not this again. Why can't you just pick a place?"

"Why can't you?"

"Johnnie."

"Okay, okay. I don't know. Freakin'..." Johnnie frowned as he tried to decide. "Uhhh. Why don't we try a new place?"

They settled on trying a nice restaurant on Playa Del Rey with a view over the beach.

"I don't get how she tolerates him." (Y/N) said, holding the straw to her virgin Pina Colada between her index and her thumb. She sat relaxed with one leg crossing over the other, the gentle breeze tousling her hair as she chatted with her best friend. With each gust, strands of her hair danced around her face, framing her features like a soft halo while the sunglasses perched atop her head stayed put.

Johnnie shrugged. "I think it's just their dynamic. It's his humour."

"It's a bit too sexualizing at times." (Y/N) shared her opinion. "I don't know. As long as they're both in on it."

He nodded and leaned back in his chair as he took another bite from his food. "I get where you're coming from. Me and Jake have commented on it, too. But she's a tough girl, I promise she can draw a line."

"Obviously, yeah. But it's also hard in a setting like that."

"For sure."

"I really need to get nail polish remover. Can we go after this?"

Johnnie nodded. "Sure."

"Look." (Y/N) leaned forward over the table, hands stretching out to show her nails. "I should just get acrylics, I know. I will in like, two weeks. But until then I need to at least try and keep them alright."

Johnnie inspected her nails. "Look at mine, though. They're terrible." He put his on top of hers, palms pressing over the back of (Y/N)'s hands. The black polish was chipped and his nails unkempt.

"Johnnie." (Y/N) said, looking from his hands to his eyes. "That's icky."

"Okay, they're not that bad, you're overreacting."

"We're so gonna have a girls' night and fix our nails together."

"Ohh, are we gonna share secrets and gossip?"

(Y/N) turned her hands to hold his, palms against palms, fingers intertwined. "And watch Mean Girls and braid each other's hair."

Johnnie snickered and shook his head. "That just sounds like a regular boys' night." He said, gently holding (Y/N)'s hands as he added, "Does that mean I get to sleep in your bed again?"

(Y/N) scoffed and pulled her hands away from him. She grabbed her glass and took a sip from the drink.

"Cause in that case, I'm totally up for it."

"Why don't--"

"Johnnie!! Johnnie Guilbert!" Someone shouted and the two friends perked their heads that way to see two girls, probably around the ages of 15-17, approaching. "Oh, my God, I can't believe it."

Johnnie cleared his throat. "Hi, guys."

The girls were very excited to see their fav celebrity. "So sorry for interrupting, we just got so..."

"You're fine." Johnnie promised as they finished taking photos.

"Who are you? Oh! That sounded rude! I'm so sorry. I don't recognize you." One of them turned to (Y/N). "Are you famous too? You look famous. You're absolutely stunning."

"Whoa, thanks, no, I'm just a... normal person." (Y/N) said, eyes going from Johnnie to the girls.

"You're insanely pretty."

"That's so kind of you. Thank you."

"Are you dating?"

Johnnie took the turn to reply, "I don't think that's an appropriate question to just ask," He said. "And we're-"

"I'm so, so sorry. So sorry!" The girl apologized. "We'll get out of your business. Thanks so much for the selfie! I didn't mean to be rude. I'm so sorry."

"It's alright, it's alright."

The two girls scurried off and Johnnie turned to (Y/N) again. "I'm... Did that make you uncomfortable?"

"No, it's fine." She replied with a gentle smile. "They were sweet."

"I know you want to stay away from that sort of stuff."

(Y/N) shrugged. He was right. And this was a good reminder of that part of his life. "It's alright. Hey, it's almost t-shirt weather. Soon summer. Oh! I'll give you twenty bucks if you go for a swim."

"Shut up."

"Thirty?"

"Fifty."

"Deal."

"Okay, but you gotta give me the money first."

"Piss off."

Johnnie snickered. They left the place after being there for over an hour and went to the local Target to get some items.

"Are we having a sleepover?" Johnnie asked as they strolled through the aisles.

"Uhh, sure."

"That didn't sound too-- that's like saying, 'you can come if you want'."

(Y/N) halted and turned to him. "Please, please spend the night with me Johnnie, please, I need you-"

"Shush! Jesus." Johnnie snickered and elbowed her, stopping her mid-pleads. "I got-- tomorrow I have a session in the studio, dude, I'm recording one of the songs."

"Ohh, right! Exciting." They continued their walk.

"Sooo, if you give me a ride..."

"You need to get your driver's license."

"I am. I'm planning on it."

"I'll believe it when I see it."

"Can I drive? If we go to mine and grab some clothes and then back to yours."

"I feel like we're always staying at mine."

"We've only done it once."

"Done what."

"Stayed at yours!"

(Y/N) shrugged. "We usually don't sleep over."

"We should. You know."

"What?"

"What? You're being weird."

(Y/N) scoffed and elbowed him, and he elbowed her back. "Idiot."

"Dumbass."

"Little bitch."

"Jesus!"

"Satan."

"Shut up, (Y/N)."

"Make me."

"You are really fucking- you're quirky today, huh?" The two of them looked at each other before bursting out laughing. "You sure that Pina Colada was virgin?"

"Just as virgin as you, Johnnie."

"In that case it must've had many hoes. That explains it."

The two giggled again. "Alright, alright. What else we need. Nail polish remover. Snacks?"

"A sweet treat is a must."

They walked out of the Target, arms laden with snacks for their impending evening. The air was filled with the scent of pavement heating up mixed with fresh blooms.

"You know, I've driven before."

"If you fuck up my car, so help me God."

Johnnie settled behind the wheel and gripped it. "Just don't yell at me if I do anything wrong."

"Pfftt." She giggled. "God, I remember when I first started practice driving with my dad. I actually used to have nightmares about driving and crashing and stuff."

"PTSD?"

She snorted. "For real." She put on the seatbelt. "Not very pedagogical. Or educational. Anyways, I don't believe in that whole generation-thingy, so I'm breaking the pattern, I'll be gentle with you."

"Aww. Thanks." He turned on the engine, looked around the parking lot before starting the route back to his again.

(Y/N)'s tension slowly began to dissipate. Johnnie wasn't a beginner to this. He could steer around without a problem. They picked up some clothes and a guitar from his place before going back to (Y/N)'s as the sun began to set on the horizon.

"Ahh, it's a nice sunset." (Y/N) commented, looking out the window while she put the stuff down on her little kitchen table. "I fucking love-- you know, I have like, zero fucking selfies in my phone, it's mostly sunsets and screenshots."

"Is that so?"

"Mh-hm." She hummed and picked up a carton of cigarettes. "I love my fire escape. It's getting warm enough to sit out there again." She walked toward the window and opened it to climb outside.

Johnnie was less graceful as he followed with his guitar, half-stumbling out the frame, (Y/N) supporting him on the other side with a giggle.

"You good?" She asked and let go off him when he nodded. They sat down and leaned against the wall behind them, (Y/N) lighting her cigarette while Johnnie tuned his guitar. "This actually is lovely and I need to document it." She mumbled as she picked up her phone to capture the moment with a video. "Golden hour moment. You're looking gorgeous."

Johnnie looked up from his guitar with an amused smile and a roll of his eyes before he continued with the tuning.

(Y/N) put the phone away again and exhaled a big cloud of smoke. "I fucking love sunsets."

Johnnie went on to play a recognizable melody.

She scoffed and turned to look at him. "Sunsets, we wander through a foreign town... Strangely, there's nobody else around..."

"So you open your dress and show me your tits..."

The two stopped to laugh together, (Y/N) facing the sky again, eyes closed as she bathed in the last rays of the day. "I love Cigarettes After Sex. All their songs sound the same."

"What else do you like?"

You. "Hm. Play something cool."

"Pfft. Okay." He thought for a second before deciding on Cooler Than Me. "If I could write you a song, to make you fall in love, I would already have you up under my arm... I used up all of my tricks, I hope that you like this..."

"But you probably won't, you think you're cooler than me."

"So us coded."

(Y/N) snorted and took a drag from her cigarette. "Okay, what else?"

A pause before he started strumming a sweet melody. "And I'd give up forever to touch you, cause I know that you feel me somehow."

She turned her head to look at him again, heart dropping.

"You're the closest to heaven, that I'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now..." He kept his eyes down on his guitar as he played.

"Bro. You're gonna make me fold."

Johnnie let out a loud snicker as he looked up to her. "Aw, shucks, can't let that happen." He switched riff to Weezer's Say It Ain't So.

(Y/N) giggled together with him. "Flip on the telly, wrestle with Jimmy, something is bubbli-i-i-ing, behind my back."

"I always forget that you were born to be a singer."

"Whoa- pfft." She cleared her throat and drew her knees up to rest her chin on them. "You remind me a bit of like, if you were... I never experienced this but people have their stories about going back to a guy's place just to have him play the guitar for you to try and charm you. You know what I mean?"

"Yes, that's exactly what I feel like. Red flag?"

"Icky red flag."

"That's two icks today. It's not looking good for me, huh?"

"Pfft. Believe me, Johnnie, you've icked me out so many times that it's like, neutral. Plus minus zero. Just kidding. You're actually never icky. Which is kinda funny."

Johnnie grinned, thought for a second and played Whistle by Flo Rida. "You sure?"

"Are you kidding me."

"Can you blow my whistle, baby, whistle, baby?"

(Y/N)'s lovely laughter rang out, making it impossible for Johnnie not to join in just as loud. "I've tried to learn to play the guitar but I just... can't. It's like, I don't even have especially small hands or anything, but I just can't reach the strings on the fret, dude."

"Give it a go."

"I'm good. I like listening to you play."

"Come ooon."

"No. Besides, it's getting a bit chilly out here." She got up to her feet and Johnnie followed, preparing to climb through the window again, this time just as elegant as last(almost falling over). "What song are you recording tomorrow?"

"Uhh, the uhh, the one I showed you last week. You know?"

"The one about bloody sheets?"

"Yeah, the period song."

"You finished it?"

"Yeah."

"Show me?"

No! He shrugged and shook his head. "You'll hear it when it's out, when it's released, like everyone else."

"Wow. You sure know how to make someone feel special." The two snickered and sat down in the armchair and sofa, keeping the distance although the banter they had kept going today had been more than just friendly.

Johnnie yawned. "Man, I could fall asleep here and now. Been up since 9 this morning."

"But we haven't even painted our nails yet. That's the whole point of this evening."

"You're so right."

With every brushstroke (Y/N) applied to Johnnie's nails, he relaxed a little more, the flickering candlelights on the table casting a warm glow over her features, kinda like the sunset did an hour ago. It felt more intimate than it was. His hand resting in hers as she continued to delicately paint his nails black, both sitting on the floor.

"I still think we should've gone with pink, though."

"I go with red sometimes."

"Not cunty enough. I think hot pink is your color."

They snickered and (Y/N) let go off his hand. He inspected the neat artwork she'd performed. "Alright, not bad."

"They have never looked so clean and taken care of."

"You're right."

(Y/N) giggled before humming along to the Beatles song in the background as she went on to remove her polish and redo the process. "You know, I used to be able to play Michelle on the guitar. A few years back."

"Miiichelle, my belle...?"

"Yes."

"You've got a guitar right there."

"The nail polish."

"So you've actually played before?"

"I wasn't very good, but I tried." She admitted, legs criss-crossed. "Had an electric but I'm sorta, like... When I try new things and I'm not a pro at them, I tend to give up. You know?"

Johnnie snickered and nodded. "You can't be an expert at something if you're new at it."

"I know. But my brain doesn't. I don't know."

He stretched for the guitar in the sofa behind him that he was leaning against. "It's just the technique to try and reach the right strings. It's a thing of experience." He explained.

"It's frickin' hard though. I think you need to have some sorta talent to get good at it. Some people just don't."

"Your nails are probably dry by now." He handed the acoustic over to her together with a pick.

"Jeez." She cleared her throat, suddenly feeling pretty small and shy. "Uhm." Fingers were clumsily positioned over the fretboard, struggling to produce a clear chord. "Wow."

"It's alright, just get familiar with it." He gently guided.

(Y/N) continued with her struggle, stiftling a laugh but finally breaking out in snickers when failing to play Teenage Dirtbag. "Damn, this is awful."

"Teenage Dirtbag, huh?"

"How the fuck could you tell." She snorted.

"Okay, look. Here." Johnnie summoned all his courage to give his lap a little pat.

"What?"

"Just, let me show you." He said.

(Y/N) squinted her eyes with playful suspicion before she climbed over to his lap, feeling his chest against her back. "Now we're locked in for real." She joked and felt his breath against her neck as he laughed.

"Alright, here." He gently adjusted her hand placement on the guitar, his touch reassuring and steady. "There we go. Good job."

(Y/N)'s tense body was pretty much pressed against his, heartbeat racing like a rabbit as she tried to focus on the music and not on... Johnnie.

"You just strum, and I'll take care of the rest." He mumbled, his chin resting on her shoulder to see the fretboard while she plucked at the strings. "That's right, you're doing great, (Y/N)." He encouraged.

"Don't you dare say good girl." She whispered back and the two giggled. "Alright, I got it. Her name is Noelle, I have a dream about her. She rings my bell, I got gym class in half an hour... Oh, how she rocks, in Keds and tube socks... But she doesn't know who I am, and she doesn't give a damn about me..."

"Aaand the rhythm changes..." Johnnie kept one hand on the fret and one resting on her thigh.

"I got it." She assured him and went on with the chorus, "Cause I'm just a teenage dirtbag, baby, I'm just a teenage dirtbag, baby... Listen to Iron Maiden baby, with me... Ooohhh..."

"Perfect."

(Y/N) stopped the melody, gulped and reminded herself to breathe properly. She needed to get away from his lap or she'd pass out. "Teamwork, am I right? Teamwork makes the dream work. Work together, dream together." She pushed away from him, guitar still in her arms as she settled down opposite to him instead of on him. "I think I got it." She went on to strum the song effortlessly.

Johnnie's jaw dropped slightly as he watched her shapeshift into an experienced guitarist right there in front of him. "What?"

She gave him a cheeky smile before shrugging. "I think I just needed to get in the zone, you know."

"(Y/N)."

"I'm still struggling." She said before continuing to play People Are Strange by The Doors, stumbling a bit over the chords.

"You're a fraud."

"I only wanted an excuse to have your arms wrapped around me." (Y/N) joked. "The Doors made some really good songs but also fucking weird ones. And a con with the band is the fact that uh, Jim Morrison was the uh, lead singer."

Johnnie shook his head slowly.

"That's about all I can remember though. I haven't played in ages." She stopped and handed him the guitar back. "I do have my old electric somewhere in this apartment with an AMP that I haven't unpacked. It's a Gibson. Les Paul. The only good thing my dad gave me."

"A Gibson? Wow."

(Y/N) shrugged again and moved over to curl up in the armchair again while Johnnie stayed on the floor. "I haven't gone to a concert in ages. We should."

"For sure."

Chapter Text

The gentle light of dawn seeped through white curtains, and were probably the cause for (Y/N) to blink her eyes open and wake up before the sound of an alarm. She stretched out under the warm sheets, a bit reluctant to get up. And it took a few seconds before her brain reminded her of the man beside her. She glanced over. Fast asleep. A sigh of relief because of the fact that she wasn't near him this time. Though it wouldn't have been too bad to wake up like that again- shut up.

(Y/N) got up. She quietly snuck out, grabbing an outfit on the way before hopping into the shower. She and Johnnie had stayed up for another hour before going to bed, where they had kept the conversation going before dozing off. She was still a bit perplexed about his intentions. They weren't exactly talking it out. And the fact that they kept the flirty banter going must mean that Johnnie's not serious, right? Gahh. Since when did (Y/N) worry about boys like this? Stop it queen. You guys are besties. Hey, remember yesterday when you sat in his lap? That was probably your que to fucking kiss him. It was a pretty bold move for Johnnie and she knew it must've took courage for him to ask. Hey, remember when those girls came up yesterday and asked about your relationship? Yeah... It's not the life for you.

Johnnie instinctively reached his hand out to the bedside table, fumbling for his phone to shut the dramatic alarm clock off. His eyes gradually acclimated to the bright light streaming in from the windows. What room- riiiight. He looked over to see that (Y/N) wasn't there and with a small frown he blinked away the last vestiges of sleep and sat up, scanning the room for any sign of her.

Already up.

Johnnie extricated himself from the tangle of soft blankets and padded out of the room to find her in the kitchen, hair still wet from a shower. "Morning."

"Good morning." (Y/N) greeted back.

"When'd you wake up?"

"Like, ten minutes ago. I just got out the shower so I haven't made any breakfast yet. But I made coffee."

"That's fine with me. I'm uhh, usually not up this early, so I usually... skip breakfast."

(Y/N) snorted. "I know. Here ya go." She handed him a cup with freshly brewed coffee, steam heating up his chin as he went in for a sip. "I wasn't sure what you'd eat anyways, you picky fuck."

”I'm not hungry. You?"

"Not yet." She shook her head. "Or maybe for a cigarette."

"Coffee and cigarettes for breakfast, huh?"

"So Lana Del Rey vinyl." (Y/N) put on her coat and swiftly swung out the window, Johnnie following carefully.

His back slid down the wall until he was sat and he took another sip from the coffee as he checked his phone. "Jake's birthday is next week."

"I know, June 11th - right?"

"Yeah. We got this kinda spontaneous idea to book a few days in Miami at some hotel."

"How nice!" (Y/N) lit her cigarette.

"And you gotta come, too. We haven't decided anything yet but if we're going, you're joining."

(Y/N) was quiet for a moment before turning her face to his, "Miami's super expensive, Johnnie. I couldn't afford... I can't spend that much money on that."

"That's no problem, (Y/N), we'll cover you."

"No way." She scoffed and shook her head.

"Come on."

”No Johnnie. I can't let you do that. It's Jake's birthday, not mine."

Johnnie shrugged and sipped on his coffee, glancing out over the city from the high view of her fire escape. "See it as a gift for all your birthdays I've missed."

(Y/N) once again took a moment to respond. "Johnnie..." She sighed. "You're the sweetest ever, but I can't accept that."

"It's just for a few days."

"But the hotel, drinks, eating, the flight there."

Johnnie shrugged again. "It's gonna be so much fun."

"I'll see what I can do." (Y/N) sighed, ashing the tip of her cig on the edge of the metal floor they were sitting on.

"Just remember I gotcha if you can't cover it all."

"You're too nice. You know that?"

"Usually you say the opposite." Johnnie grinned at her.

(Y/N) smiled back, realizing just how lucky she was to have met this man. "Actually what did I do to deserve you." She silently mumbled when breathing out smoke.

"What did you say? Didn't quite catch it."

"I just said-.." She glanced at him to see a cocky smile on his face. "Fuck off." She giggled and he laughed along.

"Anyways, I think we'd better get going soon. So that I don't end up late."

"Right." (Y/N) nodded. "I just gotta get some makeup on."

"Me, too."

Usually (Y/N) preferred to do her makeup in her bathroom. The lighting was really good. But now the two of them sat in her bedroom, (Y/N) at her desk and Johnnie in her bed, chatting and applying makeup. Just like any of her other girl friends. Imagine dating someone who was better at makeup than you. She scrunched her nose at the thought. Johnnie wasn't better than her so it was okay. Stop. That wasn't the problem here.

"Not sure. This is a busy week." Johnnie mumbled, focused on applying eyeshadow around his eyes, making sure to blend it out. "Got some paperwork this week. I need to do a stream tonight and then a video with Jake tomorrow. His birthday is on Monday, you know? So we'll be leaving on Friday and be back in LA on Sunday."

"I think I could possibly join you on Friday to Saturday but that's it. Not another night in Miami for me."

"I think it’s more worth the money if you stay all weekend.”

(Y/N) nodded and started to pick up her scattered brushes to organize her mess on the desk. "Yeah, please send the entire plan so I know what I'm getting myself into." She said.

"Course." Johnnie rubbed his finger over his eyelids for a messy effect. He blinked a few times and looked to (Y/N). "We could share a room to save money."

"Riight." She replied with a smile as she stood up.

"Actually ask Tara. Me and Jake will probably be sharing a room."

"Good idea. Alright, let's go."

The two friends got into (Y/N)'s car, and she dropped him off outside the studio before hurrying to Uni and her first lecture. Miami. It felt impulsive, spontaneous. But God, how fun. Was it really worth spending her savings on, though? Yeah! You gotta live. And definitely while you're still young. She texted Tara asking about the trip.

'You're coming along!! YAY!!!! Of course we can share a room!'

~~

The recording went good. Johnnie was excited but hella nervous about the song dropping. He was sure his fans would eat it up but what made him anxious was (Y/N) hearing it. Writing a song about the crush on your best friend wasn't that smart. But nobody knew, not even her.

He leaned back in his chair, eyes on the chat on his stream, skimming over the quick comments, barely making them out. It was a strange phenomenon, this last year. Him and Jake really blew up and it could be very overwhelming at times. Often, actually. And it was difficult to hear everyone's opinions. Impossible to avoid.

"No, chat, I don't-- We're celebrating him here and then we're going for a trip. He's so excited." Johnnie replied to someone asking about Jake's birthday. "We're a group of friends going to celebrate him."

Despite his best efforts to maintain a usual level of engagement, his mind was drifting off with an undeniable sense of distraction.

"Who's coming along on the trip?" He read another comment. "Uhh, it's me, Jake, Tara, a couple other friends. It's gonna be really fun. We're like, what, 8 people? I don't-- we're not gonna vlog anything, no. Just live in the moment. Sometimes that's important. We might post something but. I'm not sure."

~~

(Y/N) handed the two teenage girls their drinks before tending to her next customer. The atmosphere on this particular Saturday evening was bustling, the low music blending out with clinking coffee cups and voices gossiping and laughing. Through the café windows, golden light shined in, reminding her that she soon would be done for the day. The clock on her wrist revealed the time being 5.30PM. Just another 30 minutes.

"What're you doing tonight?" Kevin asked as he gently put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed past (Y/N).

"Uhh, nothing. Just going home. Studying probably. You?"

He nodded as he prepared a Frappuccino. "I'm not off until we close at 9, but after that I'm gonna go for a Buffy trivia game with some friends."

"Buffy as in Buffy Vampire?"

"That's right."

"Oh! Cool."

Kevin shrugged and nodded and gave the cup of cold coffee to his customer. "I'm already hyped for Halloween, man. I know what I'm gonna be."

"Buffy the Vampire slayer?"

"It's a surprise."

"Why, you're gonna show up to work in your Halloween costume?" (Y/N) decided to grab an iced Chai latte and a pesto Ciabatta with as she finally clocked out. The streets were dark when she arrived at her apartment with people out on the sidewalks, ready for a fun Saturday night. (Y/N) hopped straight into the shower before settling down in her sofa with her laptop, notebook, coffee and sandwich.

When her phone suddenly interrupted.

"Hi, Tara."

"Hii girl! What're you doin' right now?"

"Uhh, studying. What's up?"

"Oh! Are you staying in tonight?"

"Yes, that's my plan. I need to study."

"Ohh! Can me and my friend Sophia come over and pregame? We were gonna ask you to go clubbing with us. I promise we won't annoy you or anything."

Tara and Sophia didn't annoy her, of course not, but they sure did interrupt her studies. Sophia was coming to Miami, too, and it was nice to get to know the girl, and get to know Tara better. Both were super fun.

"So, like, what's the deal with you and Johnnie?" Tara inched closer on the sofa, leaning in to hear (Y/N)'s answer clearly.

"What deal?"

"Girl, don't act dumb." Tara raised her eyebrows expecting a real answer.

(Y/N) frowned and shrugged with a shake of her head. "Tara-- what are you implying here?"

"You're spending so much time together. Whenever Johnnie talks about you it's like he's got these rose-colored glasses on. Something's different in his eyes or something. Pffft. I mean, he also bullies you, but in a loving way."

"He talks shit behind my back?"

"No!!!" Tara laughed loud. "I just-... I'm sure he's into you. Just so you know."

"... Ew. No! No, no, I didn't mean it like that--" The three girls broke into laughter again. "I literally didn't mean it like that, it just came out. I don’t know. The thought is scary. I love Johnnie, he's the best ever, we're super good friends. But that's all. Wouldn’t want to ruin that.”

"Whatever you say. But he’s really cute though. And he’s a good man, and those are rare. Like, genuinely good.” Tara shrugged and leaned back again. "Then we gotta find some hot rich guy in Miami for you. Right, Sophia?"

"Obviously. You're a catch so it's not gonna be hard. Obviously."

"Jesus, chill with the matchmaking!" (Y/N) covered her mouth when she giggled. "What's up with your dating life anyways, Tara?"

The three girls spent two hours chatting and giggling while listening to music and drinking wine together in (Y/N)'s living room before it was time for Tara and Sophia to move on with the night.

"You sure you don't wanna tag along?"

"I really gotta save for next weekend, dude. You guys have fun!" She closed the door behind them with a sigh.

~~

Cool evening air gusted through the open window, and Johnnie reminded himself to breathe, staring at his ceiling with tired eyes. Anxiety had gnawed in his core the entire day and he couldn’t exactly pinpoint why. Or well, he was anxious about the trip. He was the worrisome type and had the tendency to think, and overthink, and sometimes his mind spiraled and it left him gasping for air.

But he reminded himself to breathe, the worst of the panic was over and he was back in his room and in front of his computer again, with headphones on listening to some calm song - probably too calm(sad), and it was kinda making him feel worse.

Johnnie groaned and twisted in his chair before standing up and collapsing in his bed. You know what would’ve been nice? To be in someone else’s bed. Hers. He groaned again, burying his head into his blanket and trying to recall the smell of hers, and then groaned a third time cause what the fuck, get yourself together. But it would’ve been nice with her company. See, Johnnie had plenty of friends, but few he was oh, so very close to.

He could call Tara up. Or just go to the next room and find Jake.

He rolled over on his back and picked his phone up from his pocket to switch songs. For some reason he decided to check out (Y/N)’s playlists. He already followed some, cause (Y/N) the music lover took pride in her music taste and discussing songs was a reoccurring topic between them.

Why did she have multiple guys following her Spotify?

Johnnie frowned as he went through the profiles. Then he turned his phone off and groaned a forth time. What was he— 16? Grow the fuck up, man.

~~

Unfortunately (Y/N) couldn’t join the gang for drinks on Monday, due to work and school. She came by to leave a gift and a cake and congratulate him. Tara was already there of course and (Y/N) hung around for an hour before she had to get going.

And suddenly (Y/N) felt less apprehensive about the whole Miami thing and actually excited without that tang of sour consternation listing all the negative things she’d have to worry about sooner or later. Later.

She listened to a podcast as she went through her drawers and garderobe, causing a whirlwind of vibrant fabrics over her bedroom floor into different piles of “yes” and “no” and “wash” and “maybe”. And she’d need to bring jewelry and maybe a bikini. Was it hot enough to swim in Miami in June? Yeah, of course, the weather app told her. Bikini. She’d have to be in a bikini among all those pretty model girls and boys and— they were friends, and no one would judge, and it didn’t matter, but then again anxiety came nibbling on her happy spirit.

(Y/N) sat there still on her bedroom floor for a moment feeling like a teenage girl preparing mentally to go swimming for PE class and suddenly she wanted to skip like she always did back in high school. Although (Y/N) was aware that she was gorgeous with a beautiful body, it still freaked her out a little.

No, don’t let insecurities caused by the patriarchy to stop you from enjoying life. Nuh-uh. You are way past that. And Miami would be fucking amazing. !!!

Chapter Text

The week passed by quickly. A little too quick, cause suddenly it was Friday morning and suddenly (Y/N)'s feet were planted on Miami International Airport. She followed her company through the sliding glass doors and was immediately slapped in the face by warm summer air. It was damp and thick with the scent of hot asphalt, and (Y/N) took a deep breath of the unfamiliar humidity.

"Florida, baby!" Tara yelled from beside and she turned her head that way.

"It's fucking hot." (Y/N) replied with a smile.

"You're fucking hot, babes." Tara winked. "We gotta stop by the shops on our way home." She was referring to the airport shops. The airport was huge with many stores and places to dine, but the group had no time for that today.

"For sure. I saw some real cool lookin' stores. I need a new handbag anyways. I think they had some Louis Vuitton back there." Sophia agreed.

"They have everything. We gotta check it out." Tara said.

(Y/N) swallowed, eyes drifting over the busy streets. The sound of their luggage wheels rolling across the pavement was drowned out by bustling people and rushing cars.

Tara stopped to wave at someone. "There she is! Look, the car over there." She pointed to a Lexus with a woman leaning against it, waving back at them. "Alyssaaaa!!"

The warm dampness clung to their skin as they loaded their bags into the trunk while chatting with the friendly new face. Alyssa seemed super chill, just like the rest of the girls. The loud conversation continued all the way from the airport to the hotel they were staying at.

"I can't wait to shower." (Y/N) breathed after they had made themselves at home in their hotel room; Sophia, Tara and (Y/N) were sharing a room together. They were slumped out on their beds and resting under the air conditioners.

"You go first and I'll go after." Sophia said, not looking up from her phone.

"We've got like, 4 hours before dinner."

They took turns showering, primping and swapping stories and sharing secrets as they got ready for the night-out with songs playing in the background that they all could sing along to. The hours flew by quickly and suddenly they were in a hurry to hop in the elevator and rush out of the lobby to flag down a cab on the side of the street.

Though (Y/N) usually took the role of having things under control, like addresses and clear plans, she really enjoyed not having to care about that. Tara had everything under control.

Arriving at the restaurant, they stepped out to the sidewalk, the warmth of the evening immersed them once again.

Johnnie and Jake were already there, standing out on the street smoking a cigarette and awaiting the girls. And Johnnie's heart surely skipped a beat when his eyes landed on the silhouette of the approaching trio. His eyes locked onto (Y/N).

First of all, wow. Second of all? Wow.

Like a doll. A real life doll, face carved out to perfection, her beautiful eyes and smile captivating him yet again, like she'd done a thousand times before. Her dress hugged her figure delicately, accenturing every curve, and Johnnie reminded himself to keep his eyes up.

"Hi girls, how was the flight?" Jake asked and everyone took a turn to hug each other in a greeting.

"I think it went pretty smoothly, right?" (Y/N) said, looking at the girls for approval.

"Yes, it was a quick flight." Sophia agreed.

"I ordered a margarita before we landed. For the nerves, ya know." Tara said with a giggle.

Johnnie squinted his eyes briefly and nodded to Tara. "Yeah, I hate flying."

"I think it's kinda cool." (Y/N) shrugged. "God, the air here is like, thick, dude."

"Right? Super tropical. Can barely breathe." Jake agreed. "Let's go inside and eeeaat!"

The group of five went through the doors of the restaurant and were met by a hostess who lead them to their booked table, and sat down to continue chatting and going through the menu.

At first, Johnnie was a bit careful to join in on the conversation, even though he was surrounded by close good friends. It took a couple sips from the drink he ordered before he really got going, too, and the dialogue went on zealously between them all, bouncing off each other and laughing maybe a little too loud for the fancy restaurant tonight, overwhelming the clinking cutlery.

"Just imagine that, dude." Johnnie swallowed another bite from the dish he ordered.

"Right? Craziest-- imagine that alibi, it would've been the craziest alibi ever." (Y/N) agreed and the group cackled along.

"Your honour, make it make sense." Johnnie snickered.

"Your honour, I checked his snapmap and he was at the rodeo show and did the Wild Cow Milking." Sophia joined in.

"Fucking insane."

"Western people are crazy. Like Wild West people."

(Y/N) shrugged. "But I want to try it out for a day. So fucking badly. You ever seen those TikToks? Like, 'Summer in Western America'."

"Yeah, I get the appeal." Sophia said, chewing down another bite.

"You've seen that, uhh, what's it called. Dutton. Yellowstone!" Jake asked.

"It's cool, I've seen some of it." (Y/N) shrugged again. "Ionow. I think my call in life is to ride horses into the sunset in RDR maps with a pipe in my mouth."

"Ride on those crazy cows?"

"Hell yeah. It can't be that hard to stay on for like, what, 7 seconds?" (Y/N) grinned and the girls giggled. She sipped on her drink. "My food is amazing, man."

Tara agreed quickly, "Yes, mine's also great!! Lovely place. And lovely service."

After spending a couple hours eating, it was time for their next stop and the final destination of this hectic day; a night club, picked out by Tara. It loomed ahead down the busy street with neon signs and loud people all out to party. Outside they met up with the rest of the gang, five new faces (Y/N) hadn't seen before, and then they made their way past the imposing bouncers and into the pulsing aura of Miami's nightlife.

The atmosphere was a vortex of sound and motion, overwhelming to say the least, and (Y/N) found herself following Tara and Johnnie and this guy named something (Y/N) couldn't quite remember, to the bar for shots. Two each to start off. Tequila. This was gonna be a long night, wasn't it?

Tara and (Y/N) easily navigated through the throngs of dancing people. (Y/N) looked over her shoulder to see that they'd lost Johnnie and the dude, so she stopped in her tracks to let them catch up before grabbing Johnnie's wrist to not lose him again.

He followed her like a tail, an exciting thrill rushing through his belly as he watched her hair swing with her movements, every now and then exposing her bare upperback. They were headed for the stairs to check out the other two floors of the big night club, scurrying up the steps and looking down at the dancing bodies below.

They reached the second floor and found Tara parked at the bar here, ordering something else to drink, and (Y/N) joined next to her to order the same pink Gin drink she just did, and Johnnie felt a hint of disappointment when she let go off him. Did he have to get lost again to make her touch him?

"This place is something else, right?" Tara shined with excitement.

"It's fucking huge, dude." (Y/N) nodded back.

Johnnie considered ordering something but decided not to, cause something told him that maybe it wasn't a great idea. He tried to keep up with Tara and (Y/N) who weaved through the crowd with bright smiles baring their teeths. And Johnnie was so glad that they got along so well. Tara was a great girl. Great. So funny and cool and just, nice. And so was (Y/N). She had everything, didn't she?

And now she was gone, somewhere along the crowd.

(Y/N) had her hands busy dancing with these two new girls she stumbled upon on the dance floor. Two great Miami girls, rocking it out on the dance floor, funny as hell, matching her vibe. Tara and everyone else was long gone at this point and (Y/N) was just moving around with the strangers, the club bringing everyone together. They decided to go to the bar to order a shot each and then headed back to continue dancing their hearts out.

Over and over (Y/N) had to reject drunken men pushing upon her, twirling around with her two new-found friends. Until she realized that she probably should find Jake cause he's the one she was celebrating.

He was on the first floor, dancing together with this one girl (Y/N) couldn't recognize, so she figured it was best to leave them at it. Cigarette. Oh, my God, a cigarette, YES. She made her way out to the cig area, where her eyes landed on this one dude in his 20s with a mullet and a stache, smoking with a friend.

"Hiii, you got a lighter?" She asked innocently as though she didn't have one tucked in her bra already.

And he did, and they hit it off, small talking and smoking two cigarettes. Before Sophia came outside, too, and grabbed her attention. (Y/N) kept her company before they headed inside again to continue the party, dancing with Jake and two friends, enjoying the music and the vibe.

Sophia eventually rushed to the bathroom for a ski-break whilst (Y/N) stayed out dancing, her head not even comprehending what was going on. Miami was so fucking fun. And everyone were high and hot. And happy and glad.

Even Johnnie, who found himself chatting with two stranger girls, making them laugh and giggling along to their jokes. Their hands were creeping up on him as they blushed within his presence, and over and over he had to fight back the thought of 'where is (Y/N)?'.

"Hey, what's up? Cigarette?"

Johnnie kind of flinched at the touch of a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see (Y/N) looming above him. Did he manifest her? "(Y/N)! Hi! Yes!" He said and stood up and excused himself from the girls. He grabbed for (Y/N)'s hand as she turned around, and she gripped him back, fingers enterwining as she lead the way through the roaring crowd and out.

Cool air hit his face as she slowed down the pace and turned around and let go off him. Shucks. "My pack got stolen out my back pocket." Johnnie said.

"For real? Pfffttt." (Y/N) couldn't help but laugh, before she picked up a cig from her carton. Johnnie stretched out his hand but she ignored it and put it gently in his mouth and lit it with her hot pink light. "Here ya go, babes."

"Thanks."

"Ahhhh." She exhaled. "You havin' a good time?"

"Yeah, this is awesome."

"Right? What time is it, anyways?"

"Uhhhh..." Johnnie checked his phone, which wasn't stolen, at least. "2:43."

"WHAT? Already?" (Y/N) was really surprised. The hours just ticked by. Dancing with Jake, ordering another shot, meeting up with Tara in the bathroom, going out to dance again, finding new friends, ordering another shot for Jake, dancing with Sophia, going to the bathroom with her, dancing with new friends... 2.43 already??

Johnnie grinned back at her, enjoying the buzz in his head as he inhaled the cigarette and exhaled up into the sky, his nose pointing up. (Y/N) found herself watching him intently, how his jaw was lit up by the lights outside, sharp as a knife, and the contrast between his jet black hair and bright blue eyes creating a striking visual allure. He was such a beautiful man.

Her heart fluttered when he directed his face to hers again with innocent eyes, and they found themselves staring at each other, eyes darting from eyes to lips to eyes. "I'm glad you convinced me along." (Y/N) quickly said, just to say something.

"Of course. It would've sucked if you weren't here."

"Pfft, right." She giggled with a roll of her eyes. "... By the way, how drunk are you on a scale from one to ten?"

Johnnie waited a second before answering, "Like, 6, maybe. I should take it easy."

"Hey, you only live once. Yolo. And how often do you go to Miami?" (Y/N) challenged, exhaling a plume of smoke into the night air. And Johnnie really believed she looked like something out of a romantic novel. Her dilated pupils looked back into his, her tousled hair wild from dancing but still falling perfectly around her face, like a model. "Let's order a shot and dance."

"(Y/N)-"

"I rarely order shots. But I feel a bit cray cray tonight. I think anything can happen in Miami. Lessgoo." She said and was on her way inside again, Johnnie straying after, he didn't need any more convincing. (Y/N) navigated the way through the pulsing crowd with deft agility while he stumbled and almost bumped into multiple dancing bodies until they reached the bar.

As they waited for their shots, he stole a fleeting glance at her, watching how the lights casted shadows and highlights across her features, and he realized how fortunate he was to know this woman, this person with the greatest personality and otherwordly beauty.

And only (Y/N) could drag him out to the dancefloor and force him out of his comfort zone. Her energy was so positive and welcoming and just pure fun tonight, and he relaxed and moved along, despite his usual reservations. He tried to emulate her steps, but his motions lacked the same fluidity, causing him to probably look awkward and occasionally stumble, which only made them laugh even more, just getting more encouraged by (Y/N)'s infectious enthusiasm and unwavering support. She still somehow managed to make fun of him while supporting him.

And with each sway and shimmy of her hips and every graceful twirl, Johnnie swore she couldn't get any hotter. That was until she said something inaudible, so he said 'what', and she grabbed him by his throat and pulled his head down to her level, to speak in his ear, and he had to concentrate on her words, cause his heart was beating so damn loud.

"Met any girls tonight?"

Was this her friendzoning him again? Or was she just thinking about the girls he was with earlier? He frowned and yelled back, "I'm not really looking, but there are probably a bunch of nice ones here."

"Cool." She yelled back and they pulled out of the close position, but still keeping close as they continued dancing to the white girl music the club was playing, and inching closer, and Johnnie found his hand just above her hip, and in the drunken state of mind trying to really acknowledge how close they were. His hand moved to the small of her back to draw her even closer and she didn't object, just gave in to his touch. And he took the chance to let his other hand trace over her side, a delicate unsure touch but he needed to feel cause this was his chance to.

That's when the DJ turned on a remix of Candy Shop and they had to stop and laugh out loud. (Y/N) leaned onto him, nose against his chest and shoulder as she giggled, and his arms embraced her and held her for the following seconds until she pulled away with a huge smile.

"That's our que to find our friends, I think." She checked her phone. "Tara's messaged me. It's 3:30." The flickering strobe lights created an aura around her and he really didn't want this moment to be over yet, just a little longer, just a little closer. But then she turned around and weaved through the crowd, and Johnnie had to rush after her to not lose her.

They met up with Tara and the others to check in on everyone, and everyone was having a total blast. Tara needed to piss, so Sophia and (Y/N) went along with her, catching up on whatever's happened so far.

Jake elbowed Johnnie to get his attention. "You having fun?"

"Yeah, dude. This night has been great."

"Aaaand how's it going with (Y/N)?"

"It's impossible to read, man." Johnnie admitted, slurring a little, realizing that he maybe shouldn't have taken that last shot. "She looks at me with these eyes that, you know, she looks like she wants me, you know? But then again, that's how she looks at everyone?"

"Not at me, man."

Johnnie shrugged. "I think she's just drunk."

"Yeahhhhh, let's ignore all the hints." Jake said sarcastically.

"But they are such mixed hints- mixed signals. She's already like, declared that she doesn't want any relationship with someone who's-"

"Let go off that, man, it was ages ago." Jake cut him off with a groan. "Hey, I met this one girl who I really vibed with, and I got her Snap."

"That's great, man!" Johnnie listened to Jake tell him about this new woman, and Jake was excited in this cute little boy-crush-way, the way that Johnnie probably talked about (Y/N) at times.

Another hour passed before they got two separate ubers back to the hotel. The girls stumbled through the lobby and laughed through the elevator and then passed out in their beds.

~~

Steam billowed out of the shower, creeping along the edges of the glass enclosure and spilling out into the bathroom beyond. The surface on the mirror was obscured by the condensation that gathered upon it, making it impossible to see anything, so (Y/N) did her makeup on her bed while Tara showered. She was the last one to do so since she took the longest, and she had probably been in there for twenty minutes already, the open door letting her chat with her friends.

Sophia let out a sigh. "I'm starving. I'd order some Uber eats if I was in LA."

"I fucking love hotel breakfasts though, dude." (Y/N) replied as she filled in her eyebrows. "They're the best."

"They're the best!" Tara yelled in unison from the shower.

"Yeah, and we're like, almost done, so you better hurry." (Y/N) yelled back.

"Yes, yes, I'm soon done. I need to dry my hair and at least get some makeup on. But it's not worth a full face since we're going to the beach. Right?"

"It would be stupid to do a fucking full face if we're gonna sit in the sun?" Sophia questioned back.

"Okay, okay!"

The hotel breakfast buffet was the best. The girls had on their cute sundresses with bikinis beneath, while the boys looked a little rough from the long night, tired with shrubby hair. They debriefed, laughing loud and nibbling on their picked out food and sipping on expensive tasting coffee. God, the hotel was beautiful. And sitting there with her friends was awesome.

"So the hotel has its own private part of the beach," Jake said when Tara asked, "It's not too busy, and there's a bar where you can order smoothies or drinks or ice cream."

"Yayy!" Tara chimed.

(Y/N) swallowed a bite from the melon she was chewing on. She was checking on some messages from people she apparently had given her number to. People she'd probably never meet again, but were temporary best friends throughout last night. She turned off the phone and put it down on the table, looking up again, to see Johnnie already looking at her.

Instead of breaking eye contact they both lifted an eyebrow at each other before grinning. "You're coming along to sunbathe too, right?"

Johnnie clicked his tongue with a shrug. "We'll see. Aren't you hungover? I'm like, deathly hungover."

"Surprisingly not that bad. My head's fine, I'm just tired, feeling a bit slow. Ya know?" She replied with a shrug back at him. "I'm not weak, like you."

He rolled his eyes and finished his cup of juice, stretching out in his seat with a yawn. "Maybe I just drank more."

"I think we drank about the same amount."

"Then you'd feel worse."

"Or maybe I'm just not a little bitch."

"No, you're just a bitch."

"Thank you."

Johnnie frowned in confusion, opened his mouth to reply but then closed it again.

(Y/N) shrugged with a giggle. "I feel like that's always a compliment coming from a man."

"What?" He frowned harder, "You're putting me in the same category as... men?"

"You are a man." Then she shook her head. "Just kidding. You're not. You're more like a boy."

Tara seemed to be done with her conversation with Jake and turned to Johnnie and (Y/N). "Are you guys still hungry? Or shall we go?"

"Let's go."

"Yes, let's go." Johnnie said to Tara but then whispered to (Y/N), "I hate you."

"You know you love me." (Y/N) whispered back as the group got up to their feet.

They split in the lobby, guys going up to their room while Tara, Sophia and (Y/N) headed for the beach, settling down in their sun loungers with a Pina Colada each.

Chapter Text

The enclosed beach was quiet, only interrupted by the sound of rolling waves and the laughter of three girls tanning in the blinding sun. The sand was white and the ocean brightly turquoise and Miami was probably just the place to be.

(Y/N) reached for her lime daiquiri and took a refreshing sip before leaning against the lounger again. "I thought the clubs in LA were nicely taken care of."

"Right? But Miami's like, you can't compare it to the LA scene." Sophia agreed.

"They're not even in the same playing field." (Y/N) nodded, eyes closed as another balmy breeze offered momentarily relief from her cooking skin. "I still love LA clubs, they're good as well, but Miami's..."

"Heaven." Tara finished the sentence. "I love you guys. This is the best ever. I am actually so happy right now."

(Y/N) giggled, but agreed with a hum, just like Sophia did too. "I love you, too. It's been super nice so far."

"Annnd tonight we're gonna go to a bar." Tara reminded them. "I don't care if you guys are tired or hungover, we're here now and we're gonna fuck this opportunity in all holes."

"Jesus Christ." In the same moment as someone said this, (Y/N)'s closed vision seemed shaded, and she opened her eyes to see Johnnie blocking the sun standing by her lounger. He wasn't looking back at her, but at Tara, and Jake was next to him.

Tara sat up straight in her chair and sipped on her daiquiri. "You guys gotta try the Pina Colada here. It was amazing." She said.

"How many drinks have you had so far?"

"Hey! It's hot, we need to stay hydrated." Sophia joked. "Just kidding, it's only our second. We ordered some daiquiris. I've got a banana one."

"Strawberry." Tara said, sipping again before putting it back down on the little table next to her.

(Y/N) picked her own one up to give the straw a sip before extending it out to Johnnie. "Taste it, mine's lime, it's so good."

Johnnie looked down at her which he had avoided until now, cause he knew the girl was half-naked, or, well, just wearing a bikini, and it was lowkey freaking him out, and now he looked at her, and he felt his stomach both drop and rise at the same time, or maybe something else was rising, and-- "Thanks." He said and took a sip, and that meant that he just shared saliva with (Y/N), and-- "Yeah, it's good." Lucky he missed the part where they put on sunscreen!

(Y/N) looked up at him through her lashes, noticing his nervous manner and she wasn't 100% sure what was causing it, cause this emo boy was usually not hanging around the beach and obviously out of his comfort zone, or if her skin-showing-state was making him uncomfortable. She listened in on Tara's conversation and turned her head to look at her.

"Sooo lunch in an hour and then what? Shopping?"

"I don't really wanna go shopping." Jake shrugged. "You girls can go."

"Nooo, we're here to celebrate you."

"I think you guys should do whatever you want to, explore Miami a bit." Jake said with a genuine smile. "If we eat lunch together with the others first."

"And then maybe we can split up again." Johnnie said.

"What, you tryna shake us off?" (Y/N) questioned with a playful smile.

"Get rid of us?" Tara added with faked offense.

Johnnie looked at (Y/N) and then to Tara, "No! I-I just-"

"We're kidding Johnnie." Tara cleared up and looked back at Jake. "We'll eat and then we can decide what we wanna do."

"Alright. See you outside the hotel in an hour then."

"We go with Alyssa and you two go with the others, yeah?" Sophia asked.

"Mh-hm." Johnnie nodded, "See you guys."

"See you." Jake said.

And Johnnie stole one last glance at (Y/N)'s body hoping she wouldn't notice, trying to imprint her glowing skin in his memory in the most respectful way he possibly could.

~~

It was a nice long lunch at another classy restaurant and (Y/N) really enjoyed getting to know the others. Of course Jake only hung out with fun cool people, so it wasn't really a surprise, but considering (Y/N) kind of judged every influencer for being shallow and chronically online, she was caught a little off-guard. They were so nice.

Tara, Sophia, (Y/N) and Alyssa spent a few hours going around shops in this big mall and trying on clothes. Of course (Y/N) made sure to send photos to her friends back in LA, especially to Brooke, trying to keep contact as she made new friends.

Afterwards they retreated to the hotel room to redo their makeup and put on outfits for the night. Finally, with their hair styled, makeup perfected, and outfits on point, they made their way out of the hotel, the anticipation of the night's adventures palpable in the air.

Johnnie and Jake were already standing outside, ready for the evening. "Did you buy anything?"

"I found a dress and a shirt!" Sophia said. "I can show you guys later."

"They were super cute." (Y/N) added on.

"I bought another lighter as well since I lost mine last night." Tara said. "But that's all."

That made Johnnie frown momentarily, "Ah, fuck, I think I forgot my pack of cigs."

"I have." Jake offered.

"Ahh, I really want my own." Johnnie replied. "I'll be fast, hang on." He said and headed for the hotel.

"I'll come along." (Y/N) offered her friend and hurried after, catching up to him. "Are cigarettes really that essential to a none-smoker?"

Johnnie elbowed her gently as he watched the numbers of the elevator go down until it finally reached their floor. "The Uber driver can wait a minute."

"That's not very nice." (Y/N) followed him inside the confided space, casting a glance at the mirror in the elevator. "Jesus Christ. Do I look hungover? Ahh, that's not good."

"(Y/N), you're as good as good gets." Johnnie replied without thinking. "You definitely don't look hungover at all. Not even tired. I'm amazed."

(Y/N) tilted her head at the compliment, the subtle tension growing with each millisecond as they looked at each other. She broke the silence with, "I'd say the same about you but I'd be lying."

Johnnie wasn't wearing any dramatic makeup, he just had some slight smudged eyeliner around his piercing eyes and probably some color corrector. "If I was in LA I'd stay in bed all day."

"But we're not in LA." (Y/N) reminded him and the doors opened behind her. She turned around and stepped out.

"I know that, dummy. But if we were, I'd be fucking this- I'd be sleeping through this fucking day. My head hurts so bad that I'm considering scheduling a new goddamned piercing-- a 9mm bullet through my fucking brain."

"Language, Johnnie, Jesus." (Y/N) whispered with a sharp tone as they passed a couple in the corridor.

Johnnie stopped outside his room and fiddled for his card in his pocket. "Or maybe just make it simple and grab a fucking gun myself. I love that we can buy guns so easy in the US. Isn't that so smart? We can fucking-"

"Johnnie!" (Y/N) snapped in a whisper, pointing at the couple that were still within hearing range. "You're gonna scare everyone at this hotel."

Johnnie found it a bit too entertaining to annoy (Y/N). With the same high voice, he continued, "We can get whatever fucking--"

(Y/N) pushed past him when the door unlocked, grabbing his wrist and pulling him with inside, the door shutting.

"OR MAYBE--"

(Y/N) put her hand over his mouth, pushing him against the door behind him. "Shut up, idiot!" She giggled, her body pressed against his, chest against chest, hips against hips.

Johnnie swallowed under her hand, his fleeting gaze accidentally catching a glimpse of her cleavage, and up to her eyes again, and then back down, and then the image of her on the beach, and Jesus Christ, he was such a boy--

"John..." (Y/N) looked down and then up again when she felt something poke against her foreside. "Johnnie!!" She gasped and hopped backwards. Yeah, a boner. [sorry johnnie i hope he never reads fanfics]

"Oh, my God, (Y/N)--" He didn't really have anything to say in defense. "I'm sorry-"

"Pfft!!" (Y/N) gasped again and scoffed. "You're kidding me."

He shrugged and fought to find the right words. "I-I-I... Fuck, I don't--" Sweat drops were probably forming under his bangs. "I'm so sorry, I-"

"Terrible, Johnnie!" The grin on her face was a mixture of amusement and teasing, and decreased into a playful soft smile as she took a step closer to him again.

"I--..."

(Y/N) tilted her head with an innocent look on her face. "Do I make you nervous?" She put a finger on his waistline, causing Johnnie to blush even harder.

"S--I-I..."

She scoffed, pulling at his pant's waistline and letting go, making it slap against his skin(and making him groan silently) and shook her head with a giggle. "Get your fucking cigs, dude. The Uber's waiting. We don't have time."

Johnnie swallowed, stepped past her to find the carton on his nightstand. What if they had time? Would she-- "Don't you dare make fun of me." He whispered, trying to establish some level of control again, though his cheeks burned with embarrassment.

"You're cute when you're flustered."

The vibe had shifted since yesterday. Maybe it was the Florida air and the crazy partying and the substances or the pregaming, but the tension was growing.

... This was just purely embarrassing though, Johnnie thought.

(Y/N)'s mind was spinning. Did this mean that Johnnie-- well, obviously he was attracted to her. Obviously. Maybe this was her cue to get down on her knees. Uhm, no. Don't do anything you'll regret. Would you regret it? Jesus. Standing in the small elevator space again did not help the electric air between them. How did one move past what just happened?

"Are you really that suicidal today?"

"Even more now!" Johnnie said and it caused (Y/N) to giggle, and then the two laughed as they walked through the lobby and out to the gang.

"Everyone, Johnnie just--" (Y/N) started the sentence and Johnnie slapped his palm against her mouth. "Johnnie, my lipstick-" She mumbled under the pressure of his hand, then licked it, which made him pull his arm away with an 'ewww, (Y/N)!!' and then they snickered again and (Y/N) gave his shoulder a gentle punch.

Thank fucking God (Y/N) was so chill, Johnnie fought back a sigh.

"Guys, we don't have time for you goofin' around, the Ubers are waiting." Tara said.

And the girls piled into their awaiting Uber, embarking on the next chapter of their Miami adventure. (Y/N) quickly forgot about the incident while warm air encased them as they rolled down the windows, seeking relief from the lingering heat of the packed car. With the wind tousling their hair and the city lights flashing past, they sang along to the radio, hopefully not annoying the driver too much. He seemed chill with a big smile on his face. Occasionally they leaned out of the windows, capturing snapshots of the nightlife whizzing by, the pregame back in their room just spurring on their energy.

It wasn't a long ride, and soon they were stepping into the said bar, sitting down next to the guys and joining in on their convo. Johnnie looked up at (Y/N), and then immediately away, and (Y/N) was reminded of their little... bump.. earlier, and stopped herself from snorting as she switched her focus to the currently talking guy in the group and hopped in on the subject.

Tara tugged at (Y/N)'s shirt and motioned for her to follow, and they walked over to the bar. "I want to order like, birthday cake shots. You think we can do that?"

"Probably, I feel like this place can do whatever you want." (Y/N) said and they went ahead to order a shot each, well, two for Johnnie. The bartender gave them a 'birthday discount' with a wink to the two attractive girls. He was cute himself.

"He was so hot."

"Right? I would've!... Yo, we should've asked him to play Birthday Sex." (Y/N) whispered back.

"OH MY GOD!" Tara scoffed. "You're so right." They snorted and shook their heads and returned with the tray to the table and the group cheered.

An hour passed quickly. Their faces were flushed by alcohol and infectious laughter. Alyssa recounted a hilarious story from her trip to Key West last month, gesturing animatedly as she spoke, making the group snicker, and (Y/N) added onto the joke, making everyone laugh out loud.

Jake and Johnnie occasionally chimed in with their own witty remarks and Tara's belly hurt from laughing so hard. Their laughter was almost harmonizing with the background music and in this moment, life was pretty perfect, with perfect friends, an accepting safe zone where everyone was locked in. :D

Jokes and anecdotes flew back and forth like playful sparks, igniting bursts of laughter and sparking lively debates about everything from politics to pop culture.

Another round of shots, and then they were off to bar hop, waddling down the busy street to the next intriguing place. It was a nice pub with cool looking people. Fortunately there was a table big enough for their big group and they settled down with a drink each to continue the chatting.

The night deepened and with each round of drinks inhibition melted away, and that's probably the only reason Johnnie dared to say, "I'm coming with", when (Y/N) reported that she was getting another drink for her and Tara.

They leaned against the bar waiting for their drinks. "Cigarette after this?" (Y/N) asked.

"Exactly my thought."

"Always on the same wavelength."

Are you sure? Johnnie wondered if she felt the same chemistry simmering between them. Why couldn't she just make a move already? Johnnie had made plenty before, and she had dodged them all, so the teasing she did earlier in his hotel room was pure evil.

"I fucking love these people we're hanging with. Really dig 'em all." She said, watching the bartender mix the last drink.

"Right? Such a good vibe. Jake's loving it."

"Yeah, he seems to really enjoy it."

"Believe me, he is."

"And so am I." She thanked the bartender and looked back to Johnnie before leading the way back to the table. Another fifteen minutes passed before Johnnie did the smoke sign to (Y/N), and she nodded and they got back up again, walking to the outside and stepping away from the entrance of the pub.

"Whaaat time is it?" Johnnie mumbled as he picked his phone up to check. "Just a bit past 12."

"Another long night, huh?" (Y/N) said, enjoying the slight added euphoria coming from the nicotine and tobacco.

Johnnie put the phone in his pocket and looked back at her. "I feel better now, at least."

"Alcohol does the trick. Best way to cure a hangover."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He rolled his eyes with a small smile on his face.

"Sometimes I feel like I understand alcoholics."

"Shut up, (Y/N)." He said and they snickered. "Not funny."

(Y/N) shrugged. "Sorry, sorry. Man. I don't understand how you can live with being, like, a celebrity."

"Celebrity? In that case an F-list celebrity." His joke made her snort, and still, after being friends for quite some time now and always laughing together, it still gave him this sense of validation that no one else could.

"I'd get cancelled everday."

"Look, sorry to disappoint, but you're not that controversial." He said and she giggled again. "I mean, you joke, but every single one of your opinions-"

"--Are right. I'm just always right. Right?"

"--Are objectively rational and intelligent."

"Wow."

"But you're definitely not always right, though."

"That just means that you're irrational whenever you disagree with me. That's basically what you just said."

"Don't twist my words."

"Did not." (Y/N) crossed her arms, exhaling another cloud of smoke. "You said that my opinions are always objectively rational and intelligent, but you don't always think I'm right-"

"That's not what I said-"

"You know I'm right."

"You know you're right."

"That's-- Okay, yeah."

"Agree to disagree."

"We just agreed?"

Johnnie shrugged and snickered drunkenly, almost stumbling into (Y/N) and realizing he was plenty tipsy at this point. "I think you could tell me that grass is black and I'd trust you without checking."

"Hey, I saw a TikTok the other day where a guy said that, well, basically, 'if you like someone, you become completely gullible and kind of believe whatever they say'. Or like, that's a sign of someone liking you."

"Well, yeah, but you don't believe anything I say."

"Hm. Right. And you're just pretty gullible. Maybe he was wrong-"

The twos' heads spun around to the sound of their friend group coming out the doors. "Guys! There's a karaoke bar just down the street!" One of the guys yelled.

"We're gonna sing!" Tara added on.

Johnnie and (Y/N) exchanged quick looks before following the company to the next place.

It was another big bar with both private rooms and a huge area with open karaoke going on, drunken tone-deaf people shouting their lungs out to cliché songs that everyone knew. What a fucking vibe. Tara and (Y/N) immediately joined the clung of people sharing two mics singing 'Unwritten' by Natasha Bedingfield whilst Alyssa and Sophia went to the bathroom for some snow and the guys sat down at a table.

(Y/N) was laughing at a joke Johnnie did before she replied with a sharp defense, and the banter went on, making them snicker more. Sophia grabbed her attention and showed her something on her phone, and (Y/N) giggled, before one of the guys called (Y/N)'s name to ask her a question, and they went on to talk.

At some point, (Y/N) found herself with a mic in her hand, singing some well-known old pop song together with Johnnie and Jake, giggling mostly but also managing to form a word every now and then, and (Y/N) reminded the boys of her talent for singing. Jake was loving everything about this trip, and what would make him even happier was for Johnnie to actually confess his feelings for his best friend( Y/N not Jake ) and he pushed them together. Johnnie put his arm around (Y/N)'s waist and continued singing, the two of them sort of pretending to be in a music video, acting out the words with dramatic passion.

They finished the song laughing together, Johnnie keeping her close as they returned the mics to the bartender for the next people to sing.

"Another beer?" Johnnie asked as the two took a step away from each other.

"Honestly, what time is it?" (Y/N) replied with a question back.

"Uhh, 2.40."

"Jesus Christ. We're gonna be projectile vomiting for the whole flight back, man."

Johnnie shrugged. "You're right. But when will we be in Miami partying again, huh?"

"Okay, you're right." She said, and the two sort of looked at each other in silence for a moment before Johnnie went ahead and ordered for them. They stood there chatting whilst waiting until the bartender gave them their drinks.

"Uhh, should we head back to the gang?"

"Hold on, they're singing Summer of '69!!"

"What did you say?? You wanna try 69? (Y/N)!!"

She scoffed and giggled, shaking her head. "Shut up." They stayed put by the bar as she grabbed one of his hands to sing to him, "Standin' on your mama's porch, you told me that it'd last forever!"

"Oh, and when you held my hand," Johnnie grabbed her other and held them up between them, "I knew that it was now or never!"

"Those were the best days of my life." She said and they once again shared a moment of silent looks as their hands sank. "Uhh... I'm getting... Kind of tired."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I mean, I don't know about the others, but I could get back to the hotel after this uhh, last drink." (Y/N) said carefully, letting go off his hands to reach for her beer and take a sip.

"Oh!... Uhh, me too. I uhh, I'm ready to head back, too. Yeah." Johnnie's heart skipped a beat and he took a couple sips from his beer.

(Y/N) nodded and hummed along to the Bryan Adams song as she lead the way back to the group and officially reported that they were ready to call it a night.

The response was of course negative, "Already? It's only 3AM! Boring!" But they respected it, not really thinking anything of it. Last night was rough and 3AM was reasonable...

Chapter Text

Their laughter and shared jokes with friends at the bar had masked the electricity that sparked between them whenever their eyes met. But now, in the intimacy of the Uber ride back to their hotel, with the music and intoxication filling the air, that tension was impossible to ignore.

(Y/N) bit her lip nervously, unsure of how to navigate the uncharted territory between them when the Uber slowed to a stop outside their hotel.

As they stepped out into the warm night, she couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted between them, something irrevocable and undeniable. Keep your head straight, (Y/N), don't do something you'll regret. Don't make decisions drunk. Don't.

They thanked the driver and half-stumbled out the car, continuing their talk. "I think-- It's a gesture, right? And it's noted.

"For sure." Johnnie nodded, following (Y/N) up the road to the hotel entrance. "But she... It's, it doesn't really... change things."

"Sorta like putting a bandaid on but there's still blood gushing out everywhere." (Y/N) agreed. "But at least she acknowledged it."

"I swear you just get everthing."

"Haven't I told you I'm a witch?"

"A bitch? That's no secret really, no need to say it out loud."

(Y/N) giggled, then stopped in her tracks. "Yoo, the beach." She looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Now?"

"Hell yeah."

"Hell yeah, brother."

"When does the sun rise?" (Y/N) asked as she switched directions.

Johnnie picked up his phone to search this up. "It's only 3.37. Not for a few hours."

They strolled down the deserted path leading to the private beach of the hotel, the melody of waves crashing against the shore getting louder and louder, a soothing lullaby in the stillness of the empty beach.

They reached the secluded stretch of sand and (Y/N)'s eyes sparkled with excitement as she spotted the empty loungers scattered along the shoreline. With a playful grin, she made a beeline for one of them, kicking off her shoes and sinking into its inviting embrace.

Johnnie followed suit, settling into the lounger beside her with a contented sigh. The cool night air caressed their skin, carrying with it the salty tang of the ocean and exotic palm trees.

And here the conversation continued, peace settling over their buzzing heads as the world stood still for just a moment. "You know, Tara said it was shark season."

"All the way to September."

"So that means no swimming?"

"Unless you want to lose a leg."

"Actually," (Y/N) pointed a finger up in the air, "There are like, zero attacks even-"

"Aaactually..." Johnnie mirrored her nerdy ahh movement and it made them both laugh out loud.

(Y/N) stiftled another giggle. "Shut up. Hey. Where does a mansplainer get his water?"

"What?"

"From a well, actually..."

A few seconds of silence passed until Johnnie got the joke and it sent him laughing out loud.

(Y/N) giggled along. "Okay, it wasn't that funny. Yo. I promise the water is probably amazing. Like, warm. Amazing temperature."

"Don't you fucking dare." He snickered.

"Why doesn't anyone wanna go skinnydipping with me?" She clicked her tongue with a disappointed shake of her head.

"Uhh, keyword there, you never mention you'd be naked."

(Y/N) giggled and casted him a glare before looking up to the sky. "Aw. You can't really see any stars."

"It's Miami. Too many city lights."

"How come we could see them in LA? Do you remember uhh... That party at the beach?"

"Yeah. This is kind of a deja vu of that."

"We could see stars there."

"Light pollution should make it impossible. Luck?"

"Hm. Strange. Well. I want to go to like, I don't know. Some woody state. Foresty. With mountains and go camping. And see the stars."

"Connecticut has nice forests."

"Aren't they flat?"

"I don't know. Oregon."

"Oregon. I want to go there."

"We should."

"I still remember they were playing like, Little Bit and some Beach House song."

"At the party?"

She sat up straight in the chair, looking over at him. "Yeah, in LA."

"Yeah." He mumbled back. "I remember that." This scene was giving him flashbacks, and he wondered if maybe he could change the ending this time, do what he wanted to do that night. Kiss her.

(Y/N) stood up and started padding toward the shore. "You know."

"What do I know?" Johnnie followed, feet sensing the sand beneath getting damper and damper as they drew nearer to the water.

"I don't... know." She said and dipped a toe into the sea. "Hey, look, you can see the horizon getting brighter on the other side." Barely, but yeah, they were on the east side of Florida, right where the sun would rise.

Johnnie hummed as he admired the beautiful ocean ahead of him. "Honestly, let's just stay and watch."

"Yeah. Imagine we fall asleep and someone sees two bodies on shore just... Limp."

"It would be a cool prank. We should set our phones up to record."

"Have you seen those videos on TikTok to the ASAP Rocky x I'm God song where it's just, people watching the sun rise at the beach? Or set."

"Yeah. But I have like, 2%."

"Me, too." (Y/N) admitted as the sat down next to each other. "It would've been cool to capture it though."

Johnnie picked his phone up to at least take a photo of her.

"No-- Johnnie, I look awful. I've been out partying all night."

"You don't look awful."

"No photos of me in this state."

"(Y/N), you're the most gorgeous girl I've ever met." Johnnie said, lowering the phone again.

(Y/N) scoffed and looked out at the beach, avoiding his gaze. "Joh-"

"Just a little photo of us."

"Alright, if you never show it to anyone ever."

"Deal." Johnnie leaned closer to take a photo, and then he put his phone down again. "Memories, ya know?"

"Did anyone vlog anything of this trip? I just know Tara's been taking photos and videos. I mean, me, too."

"No real vlog footage but, well, memories, I suppose."

(Y/N) nodded. "I feel like we don't have super many videos of each other."

"Right. Kinda sad. Or maybe not?" Johnnie shrugged. "Living in the moment and what not?"

"Perhaps."

"You can't just say perchance."

"Perchance we shan't consume the media we approximately-"

"Schh..." Johnnie cut her off snickering. "Though I'm guessing that's why you didn't know I had a media presence?"

(Y/N) grinned as she lied on her back in the sand. "It's still funny we even met. Literally bumped into each other."

"I think about that sometimes." Johnnie admitted, mirroring her move and lying down next to her. "Like, if I walked down that aisle 30 seconds earlier or later, we wouldn't have seen each other. And I literally wasn't gonna go to that party where we met again. I wasn't. I had no plan on doing so."

"How come you did?"

"I honestly don't know."

They lied there quietly for a moment. Each wave rolled in like a gentle hush, its foamy crest glimmering in the moonlight that was slowly fading, welcoming a new day on the far horizon ahead of them.

"I just remember thinking that you looked like the coolest person ever and that I probably had fucked up my chances to get to know you."

(Y/N) felt a soft smile tug at her lips.

"Firstly making you drop your album and then spilling out your beer all over your pretty outfit. The fucking embarrassment."

"See, the difference between you and I, is that I find things funny, while you find them embarrassing or cringe." (Y/N) joked, turning her head to him. "Hey. It's a way to get one's attention."

He didn't look back at first, just kept on looking up to the sky. "Literally forcing it." They chuckled. "I sorta miss our night drives though."

"You gotta get your license. Then we can compete." (Y/N) looked back to the sky, too.

"Compete? You mean, like, street races?"

"Red light race."

"You dumbass."

"I've done it a few times and I have never lost."

"Well. What do I get if I win?"

"Hmm."

"Okay, look. If you win, you get to slap me. If I win, I get to kiss you."

(Y/N) was a bit surprised, but immediately snickered. "So you want to get slapped, huh? What are you, a masochist?"

Johnnie snickered back. "It's a win-win situation for me."

She let out a gasp and turned her head to him again.

"I'm kidding!"

"... Such a little prankster." (Y/N) closed her eyes facing up again. "... Do you think we'd still meet if we didn't uhh, bump into each other?"

"Probably." Johnnie replied without thinking. "I hope so. Cause I think I'd miss you, even if we never met."

(Y/N) opened her eyes again. Oh, Johnnie. She sat up, blinked a few times, looking at the sunrise on the skyline. "I think sunsets and sunrises are my favorite colors."

Johnnie lied put, watching her in his peripheral vision, head spinning. "Real."

(Y/N) giggled at his reply and glanced down at him. Don't do anything you'll regret once your sober. Don't. She looked away again, starting to get awkwardly uncomfortable by the situation, knowing that she should kiss him but she really, really shouldn't. So she cleared her throat and was about to scramble to her feet when Johnnie sat up and reached a hand out for her arm, understanding the dilemma in her head.

(Y/N) looked back at him, holding his gaze, a hundred thoughts running through her mind at once. And then his hand let go off her arm, and found its way up to cup her cheek. And (Y/N) couldn't help but give in to his touch and lean in for a kiss. Their lips met softly, carefully, then pulled away to check the reaction, hesitation in both their eyes. But then (Y/N) grabbed him by his jaw to kiss him again, closing the distance between them, this time sure of what she wanted, and Johnnie thanked all the different Gods from all different religions that this was finally happening.

(Y/N) turned her upperbody to face his and leaned over him as he slowly sank down to his back, (Y/N) on top. The kiss deepened, getting more and more passionate, tongue meeting tongue, the world around them fading into insignificance cause right now, this was everything that was going on, everything that mattered.

(Y/N) nibbled at his lower lip and piercing, making Johnnie's belly flutter before she pulled away, still leaning over him. Her hair tickled his neck and jaw as they caught their breaths. "I--" Johnnie didn't let her speak her mind just yet, afraid she would change her mind, so instead he pulled her back in for another make-out session, her hands in his hair and his hands over her waist and ribcage.

And truly this was something (Y/N) had wanted to do for so long and she didn't want to stop just yet, but they were drunk, and the scene was just perfect and she wondered if she'd do the same thing even if she was here with a girl best-friend cause the beach looked like a movie and she wasn't thinking straight! She pushed the thoughts back as she moved down from his mouth to his neck, leaving kisses and soft nibbles, hearing him exhale sharply and grasp for her hair with a groan.

"(Y/N)..." He mumbled and she moved up to kiss his lips again, and he held her face near, heart literally exploding in his chest until she drew away, and he felt a hint of disappointment as he looked up at her.

She narrowed her eyes slightly, letting her hand slip down his forehead to cup his cheek. "I like you so, so much." She said quietly.

Johnnie wallowed in this moment, the words finally coming out of her mouth, her touch against his skin. "Good, cause I really like you, too."

She smiled and snorted before giving him a soft kiss. "I just... Don't know where we would go from here."

He felt a tiny dagger twist in his heart, fighting back the urge to frown, as she moved down to rest her head on his chest. He put his arm around her, caressing her hair. "I don't know either, (Y/N), but that doesn't mean we can't try. What would be different? We're just two best friends who, you know..."

"Want to kiss each other?" She mumbled into the fabric of his shirt.

"Well, I'd like to do more than that, too, but..." He said and she snorted. "Let's just see where it takes us, alright?"

"But..."

"(Y/N), what's..." He sighed.

"I just don't want to lose you. If we... You're my best friend, I tell you everything, we-"

"What would change?"

"..." She shrugged. "I guess nothing. But..."

"Why are you looking for faults? You want to find something wrong."

"No, I don't."

Johnnie thought for words before he opened his mouth again. "There's no need to be scared, (Y/N), I-"

(Y/N) shifted before she pushed herself off his chest. "I'm not scared, Johnnie." She stated, which was a terrible lie. "I'm just not sure. Not sure of how I feel."

It wasn't a dagger twisting in his heart, it was a giant fucking spear. And while those words semi-broke his heart, he still couldn't help but admire the awfully beautiful goddess above him, as the sun began to appear on the horizon with colors of oranges, lemons and grapefruits. "What?"

(Y/N) shrugged, sitting up straight to get space between their bodies. "I'm drunk, Johnnie. You are, too." She explained. "I don't think we should... Come on. Not like this."

"But..." Now he frowned, sitting up, too. WHAT?

She shrugged again.

"(Y/N). You can't--..." He scoffed. "You can't just... Do stuff and then..."

"You know it wouldn't work, right? Look, we're besties, and I love your company. I love you, just not like that."

Johnnie had to remind himself to breathe and took a deep breath, sobering up on the spot as he took in the words she just said. He nodded slowly. "... You're right." Hell no. "I love you too, as my best friend. But. We're drunk. And you're gorgeous. The prettiest friend I have. So I got a bit carried away."

"Yeah. Exactly. You're the most beautiful man I know. How could I not... You know. We're on the beach while the sun is rising. It's like something out of a book or movie. Right?" She glanced out over the sea, pink lemonade clouds blossoming above, sending golden sun rays dancing over their faces. "You're a good kisser though."

"I'd say the same about you, but I'd be lying." Johnnie joked, trying to hide any sign of literal heartbreak. "I'm kidding. I wouldn't mind doing it again. As friends though." And he tried to tell himself that this was like the times he and Jake had kissed. Right? RIGHT?! Jesus Christ.

"Pfft." She snickered and got up to her feet. "My phone's dead, but I'm guessing it's time to get to bed."

"Me, too." Johnnie replied as they started the walk back to the hotel. Surprisingly it wasn't awkward. They were very close friends, and somehow managed to look over the whole incident as they drunkenly laughed and talked as though nothing had happened.

The hotel room was still empty when (Y/N) returned. She charged her phone and retreated under the covers, horrible anxiety hitting her belly like a rock. A big rock. Not one of those small pebbles but like, getting squashed by a huge boulder falling down from the sky. A meteor. Ten minutes later, two giggling girls came in, hushing each other and trying to whisper as they also settled in their beds. Phew. (Y/N) was kind of relieved she came back before Tara and Sophia. She didn't have to explain anything then. What was there to explain? Johnnie had agreed with everything she said.

~~

Chapter Text

What the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck.

(Y/N) had been awake for probably fifteen minutes by now, recalling yesterday's events in chronological order, step by step, word for word, as far as she could remember. It wasn't until she heard one of the other girls get out of bed and to the bathroom, that she got up as well, only to look out the window and see a gray day.

Seriously? She checked her weather app, reminded that June was one of the 'wettest' months in Miami. Grappling with a wave of hangxiety, she stood by the window, brows furrowed as she watched the sky shrouded in a veil of rain. Beyond the glass, the beach stretched out, a quiet expanse beneath the gray clouds, while distant buildings stood as silent sentinels against the gloomy backdrop.

The rhythmic patter of raindrops against the windowpane served as a somber soundtrack to her bleary-eyed morning. She did this to herself. Man, she'd been acting a bit unhinged these last couple days. The shame and anxiety over the way she had acted around Johnnie made her want to roll into a ball and never, ever talk to him again.

On the other side, they were best friends, and it wouldn't change a thing. She tried to tell herself that, she really did, but the memory of their kiss could really make her pull out all her hair.

The bathroom door opened and she turned around to see Tara. "Good morning!"

"Morning, Tara." (Y/N) replied with a forced smile.

"Shitty fucking weather."

"Right? Couldn't it hold back for just another day?"

"So mean. Feels personal." Tara rolled her eyes but grinned immediately after.

It did feel personal. "I think I'll hop in the shower."

"You do that. I'll go after you."

The water cascaded down around her like a cleansing veil. As if seeking to wash away the shame and regret that clung to her skin, she stood beneath the stream, her head spinning with the echoes of last night's indulgence.

Why did she have to fuck up a good thing? Nahh. It was probably fine. She and Johnnie were good friends. It'd be like normal.

So why did her heart start racing when she, Tara and Sophia took the elevator down to the breakfast buffet to eat with Jake and Johnnie? As she approached the table, her heart fluttered nervously in her chest, unsure of what to expect. She could play it cool. Play it off. Act as nothing.

Johnny thought the same thing. Just be cool. Pretend as though nothing happened. Maybe she didn't remember. Right? But when the black-haired boy looked up from his seat, his breath got caught in his throat at the sight of her . Despite the signs of a wild night etched across her features, she always wore her raw beauty that shined through even in this hungover state. And he remembered her soft lips. And how she-

"Mooornin'." Jake interrupted.

Johnnie cleared his throat. "Good morning. Slept okay?"

"Barely slept," Tara replied as she glanced around the restaurant area, "Oh, my God, I'm going for pancakes."

"Me, too." Sophia agreed.

"Hell yeah." Jake grinned at them. "They were super good. In fact, so good that I'm going for another round." The three moved away toward the pancakes, and (Y/N) and Johnnie watched them pad away, then turned to face each other.

(Y/N) bit her lip. It wasn't like her to be awkward. "So, uhm. The weather's awful, right?"

"Really? The weather?" Johnnie offered her a careful smile.

"It is, though." (Y/N) insisted. "I mean it's uhh, it's still warm outside, but it's damp as hell, and raining like... hell."

Johnnie nodded and took a sip from his coffee. "Kinda cozy."

(Y/N) swallowed, nervously scratching her fingers on the chair in front of her. "Hey, look, I don't know what got into me last night." And by acknowledging the situation she probably made it worse, instead of just acting like nothing... like she planned..

"Me, neither." He said with an uncomfortable flicker of his eyes. "No worries."

They stood there in silence, and regret, until (Y/N) looking at her hands said, "I think I lost one of my rings down by the beach."

"You did?"

"I assume so." (Y/N) shrugged and stretched out her arms for him to see her hands. "My favorite one, of course."

Johnnie grabbed her hands to inspect them. "Ohh, the one with the small crystals or like, stones?"

"Yes, exactly." She sighed.

"Do you, uh, know where you got it?"

"It was a gift from my sister. I don't know."

"That sucks, man." Johnnie let go off her soft hands. "I'd offer to come search but I'm pretty sure it's..."

"Yeah, I don't think it would be possible to find it in the sand. Anyways. Gonna get something to eat."

"You do that."

She turned around, lump in her throat as she headed to the coffee machine. Fucking hell. 'It wouldn't change a thing'- my ass. Things felt different. Weird. Maybe it would take a day or two. It wasn't a big deal, really. It wasn't weird kissing your friends. Right? Come on. Pretend like nothing.

Once back in LA, (Y/N) returned to her normal activities the following week, distancing herself from Johnnie and Jake, still keeping in contact with Tara but focusing on her other friends, and uh, quite frankly, her life without the youtubers.

Chapter Text

Months passed. August faded into September. School was busy with assignments and exams looming for autumn. The days were still warm as ever, leaving a heat-haze resting over the busy streets of Los Angeles, the hot air like ripples over the concrete. It was as if the pavement itself pulsed with warmth and distorted the air like the inside of a microwave.

Despite a busy schedule with school and work, (Y/N) made sure to make time for friends, too. Friends as in Brooke and their girl-gang, and a couple new friends she'd made over the weeks. Hell, she'd even gone on two dates with this guy she met at a bar back at the end of July. But nothing she'd pursue, despite Brooke's encouragement and the fact that he truly seemed like a good guy. She still had contact with Tara and Jake, sometimes met up to have a chat over a bite of food or coffee or maybe a margarita.

Johnnie.

They hadn't really stayed in touch.

(Y/N) wasn't really sure why. Or, of course she knew, cause she'd spent a lot of nights awake lying on her back staring up into the ceiling and praying to go back in time. By now she was pretty much over it. She knew it would've never worked out. And Jake, Johnnie and Tara had blown up even more on social media, and she wasn't very interested in being a part of that. Don't get her wrong; (Y/N) loved her friends, but it was a very special thing to be around social media influencers. Not that she really noticed when around them, but just the fact that she knew. Pictures and videos and phones up in your face. It wasn't her cup of tea. She'd known that from the start.

And though she'd still tell herself that she was over Johnnie and the way she messed up their friendship, it still hurt a little when he popped up in her feed.

The soft glow of the setting sun cast a golden hue over (Y/N)’s apartment. On the couch, (Y/N) and Brooke sat cross-legged, sharing a bottle of wine that sat half-empty on the coffee table. The air smelled faintly of sweet Moscato, and both girls had a light flush on their cheeks.

Brooke tossed her head back, her hair spilling over her shoulders as she laughed, “No way! He actually said that?”

“I swear!” (Y/N) replied between giggles, shaking her head in disbelief. “I thought I misheard him. But nope. That’s exactly what came out of his mouth.”

Brooke took another sip of her wine, shaking her head as she rested her chin on her palm. “I can't believe he went through all that just to come up with something so stupid."

“Stupid is putting it kindly,” (Y/N) said with a grin, leaning back into the plush cushions of the sofa. “He was absolutely fucking..."

"No slurs in this household."

"I wasn't gonna! This says more about you than me!"

Brooke giggled. "God. Hm. By the way, have you made up your mind about the party on Friday? Everyone's gonna be there. It's to celebrate Angel's birthday."

"Angel's the prettiest name."

"Hello, answer my question."

“Okay, okay,” (Y/N) said, "I mean, yeah, we need to celebrate her. Though I've only hung out with her twice. But sure. Come by and mingle a bit."

Brooke leaned in, pouring herself another glass, and then refilling (Y/N)’s without asking. “Good. It's gonna be great. I'm 99% sure that Johnnie's coming, too. Nisha told me so. Maybe you'll finally have time to talk."

(Y/N) rolled her eyes. "There's nothing to talk about and I definitely don't want to bring anything up. It was ages ago, and we've moved past it. I'm over it, it wasn't that deep, really."

Brooke shrugged, a knowing look in her eyes. "No, definitely not deep to lose your best friend. Girl, you two were... I thought you were endgame, man. You complemented each other so nicely. I was so happy that you met a good guy. Sweet boy Johnnie."

(Y/N) waved a hand dismissively, trying to brush off the weight that came with the name. “I think you're the one who needs to let it go, Brooke... There are a million other guys. Of course it sucks to lose your best friend but hey, I've got you, right?” She took a long sip from her glass, more to fill the silence than anything else.

Brooke tilted her head, unconvinced but not pressing the issue. “I know. I'm sorry for bringing it up again. I just think it's sad that you guys haven't hung out afterwards or like, talked, more than over Snap. I just want the best for you. You know?"

“Oh, trust me, I know,” (Y/N) replied, laughing lightly. “But we've been over this a hundred times and I like where I’m at right now. Just focusing on me, you know?"

Brooke gave her a playful nudge. “I know, (Y/N). Friends come and friends go, however sad that is. Is typical here in these LA parts.."

(Y/N) chuckled softly, swirling the wine in her glass. "Yeah, it’s like there's always someone new coming into the picture, and before you know it, they're out just as quick. LA feels like a revolving door sometimes."

Brooke nodded, taking a sip. "Exactly! It's all so... transient. But hey, I'm here to stick around forever. If you don't find a guy 'til you're 40 and I'm still single, you've promised me your hand in marriage."

(Y/N) giggled. "You got my word, pooks."

“So,” Brooke started, “are you planning on dressing to kill at Angel’s party? Because I’ve got this dress that’ll knock people out when I walk through the door. You’ve got to bring the heat too."

~~

 

(Y/N) did put a bit of effort into her outfit. It was a beautiful top, showing just enough cleavage to be hot and classy at the same time, and a skirt and heels. Angel was a very happy birthday girl. She welcomed (Y/N) with open arms, hugging her tightly before pulling away, still holding onto her arms.

"You look gorgeous, (Y/N)!"

"Angel, you're completely stunning," (Y/N) replied with a high-pitched voice, reflecting her excitement, "Congrats, hun! Here's my gift." She slipped out of Angel's grip to reach inside her bag and bring out the small beautifully wrapped box with a silver ribbon tied perfectly around it.

Angel’s eyes lit up with excitement as she took it from (Y/N). "Oh my God, you didn’t have to! But I’m so glad you did," She pulled (Y/N) into another quick hug before stepping back to admire her. "Seriously though, you look amazing! Come on in, feel at home! There's all sorts of drinks to get in the kitchen and snacks and whatever you need. Mi fridge is tu fridge or whatever."

(Y/N) laughed, "Thank you, Angel."

(Y/N) made her way through the hallway, the thump of the bass vibrating through the walls as the music played loudly. Laughter and conversations spilled from every room, creating a lively buzz that made the whole house feel electric. Brooke was right beside her, chatting excitedly as they wove through the clusters of people already gathered. (Y/N) could hear just about every other word or so coming out of Brooke's mouth, but nodded and hummed anyways.

As they reached the kitchen, (Y/N) could see it was packed. A group of people hovered around the island, mixing drinks, while others lingered near the fridge, trying to make room for themselves among the chaos. It smelt like cocktails and freshly popped popcorn. This party was way bigger than (Y/N) expected it to be. Jesus Christ, her head was already hurting, as if she'd speedran a hangover by just looking at the people there.

"Let's get ourselves a nice drink. Or maybe a couple of shots first." Brooke said, grabbing (Y/N)'s arm to pull her along to the counter. Said and done, a couple shots first, and then Brooke mixed two drinks for them. "We need to say hi to everyone."

They walked around the rooms to greet the people they knew and get introduced to new faces, and there were plenty there. The house was big. Angel was a model and influencer, and her home reflected that lifestyle. And her friend group that was insanely huge.

"(Y/N)!!" It was Tara's familiar voice.

(Y/N)'s head swung around to see the short girl waving at her as she approached. "Hi, Tara! Oh, you're so pretty, what a nice skirt!"

The two girls hugged. "There are so many people here, oh my God, it's wild." She said. "Have you seen Johnnie and Jake? I've lost them."

"Uhm, no, I haven't said hi to them yet." (Y/N) replied, throwing a quick glance around the living room that they were currently in. "I've been here for like an hour now."

"Me, too. I'm like, pretty tipsy already. Wanna do shots?"

"I shouldn't, cause I'm tipsy too, but yeah, let's go."

Tara grabbed (Y/N)’s hand with a giggle, pulling her toward the kitchen again, weaving through the crowd with surprising agility for someone who claimed to be tipsy. “Alright, tequila it is,” She declared, grabbing the bottle from the counter. She filled two shot glasses to the brim and slid one to (Y/N). "Let's gooo!"

“Cheers to... what, getting even more lost in this crazy party?” (Y/N) joked, lifting her glass.

“To surviving this!” Tara laughed, clinking her glass against hers before they downed the shots. The familiar burn of tequila hit (Y/N)'s throat, making her wince slightly. Disgusting.

Just as they finished, a familiar voice came from behind. "Whoa, tequila without me? Rude."

(Y/N) turned around to see Jake grinning, a drink in hand. "Jake!" She exclaimed, stepping over to give him a warm hug.

"How're you tonight, (Y/N)?" He replied, hugging her tightly back. They went on to small-talk for a couple of minutes in the chaos of the kitchen, yelling over the music and surrounding conversations. It was always nice to meet Jake. Nothing ever changed despite weeks of less contact. He was just always a friendly happy guy. Sometimes (Y/N) wondered if Johnnie ever talked to him about them. Maybe. Maybe not. Jake didn't give any hints at least.

(Y/N) finished filling a red cup with wine before she turned back to Jake and Tara. "Guys, I should really find Brooke, I haven't seen her in a minute. Need to keep her from causing too much chaos, you know."

Tara giggled. "I'll see you later, okay? You go find her."

(Y/N) gave them a little nod with a smile before she squeezed out of the kitchen. Really she just wanted to get a cigarette by herself. Some fresh air, cause this atmosphere was suffocating her. Vaping or smoking was nothing compared to the thick, thick mustiness of a party in LA where you put too many people into a space that's not even supposed to hold half of them. She finally reached the door and stepped outside on the patio. God, were there people everywhere? She sighed as she glanced out over the lawn.

"Hii, (Y/N), right?"

(Y/N) frowned in brief confusion as she tried to recognize the face that had just said her name. "Uhh, yeah?"

"It's Theo, we talked a bit at a party a couple of weeks ago."

"Oh! Theo! Right!" She half-pretended, relaxing a little with a chuckle. "How you been, man?" The two of them exchanged some words, before she excused herself. She just needed a little air. Quiet air without having to open her mouth for anything else than a drag. Maybe there was a balcony. Yeah, of course Angel would have a balcony. She turned back around to retreat into the house and get up the stairs, glancing around the second floor. Hmm. Maybe this way. She turned a corner and--

"Ouch!"

(Y/N) blinked, rubbing her shoulder that bumped into something. She looked up from her arm to see, "Johnnie."

Johnnie looked as surprised to see (Y/N) as she was to bump into him. He steadied himself with a hand on the wall. “... Hi, (Y/N)."

She was silent for a second before she replied. Johnnie's hair was its usual self; messy and black and long. His clear blue eyes were highlighted by a line of eyeliner that accentuated their intensity as they looked back at hers with a huge deal of uncertainty. "That's actually, like, quite funny." (Y/N) said. "Bumping into each other?"

"It's just like at that party..." Johnnie carefully smiled, recalling their second time meeting all those months ago. "You didn't spill anything on you this time, did you?"

(Y/N) looked down at her top. "No, you're safe."

"Phew." He exhaled in relief. Probably mostly because the tension was clearing off. "I'm... uhh..."

"I was gonna go for a smoke, trying to find Angel's balcony." (Y/N) quickly said.

"Uhh, I think it's that way," He pointed the other direction of the hallway.

"... Okay. Thanks." (Y/N) nodded slowly, lingering a second too long before she nodded again and turned around to walk there.

"Uhm, (Y/N), can... do you mind if I join?"

(Y/N) paused, her hand already on the door handle. She turned back to look at Johnnie, who was fidgeting slightly, his eyes searching hers with a mix of hope and apprehension. "Sure, if you want to," she said, her voice softer than she intended. As they made their way toward the balcony, she cleared her throat. “So, how’ve you been?” she asked, trying to bridge the gap between them.

"It's--" Johnnie had to clear his throat as his voice faltered, "It's been good, uhh, I mean, it's busy, but it's pretty good."

"Glad to hear." (Y/N) replied as they stepped outside. The city stretched out beneath them, glittering in the distance, and for a moment, she let herself breathe. The noise of the party wasn't exactly muted out here but it was way better than inside. "Same for me. Everything's awesome but busy." She pulled out two cigarettes and handed him one.

Johnnie took the cigarette with a grateful nod, their fingers brushing briefly. “Thanks,” he said, managing a small smile. He pulled out a lighter, lighting his cigarette before offering the flame to (Y/N). They stood together by the railing. "It's still so damn hot even though it's like, uhh, what is it, 11.30PM? Damn."

"Right? Ah, I'm enjoying every second of summer though, man. But I burnt my back so badly. I'm sure you can see it." She briefly turned around to show her back.

"Jesus Christ," Johnnie scoffed when he saw the tan lines over her shoulders. Without thinking he traced a finger over her skin. "It must hurt!"

"Yeah, when you touch it," (Y/N) replied and turned around with a giggle.

His expression turned from worried to scared, "Oh, I-I'm sorry, I don't know why I--"

"It's fine, dude, Jeez." She chuckled again. "So, what is new? We've missed at least four chapters of each other's lives, right?"

Johnnie took a deep breath. "Uhm, yeah, at least. I'm..." He trailed off with a shrug. "It's, I... Life, you know?"

"Life, indeed." (Y/N) nodded. "I'm sorry I've been bad at reaching out. It's just... life."

"Life."

The two stared at each other before they laughed together, a good genuine laugh. "Hey, I'm happy to hear that you're doing well though. I've of course seen some stuff on like, TikTok, and your Instagram. With Carrington moving in and all. I mean, that's old news now, but, we haven't... spoke... so.."

"Yeah, heh." He awkwardly chuckled, taking a drag from his cigarette. "... The Miami incident." He finally acknowledged.

"The Miami incident."

Johnnie took another deep breath, as if to prepare himself before he talked again. "(Y/N), I'm very sorry how everything turned out. I'm sorry if I was out of line that night." He cautiously began.

I love you, just not like that, was something that had played on repeat in Johnnie's head every night since it happened. Just not like that. She didn't like him that way.

"And, I'm sorry I fucked up our friendship. I don't know how it could go so wrong. I got the wrong idea. I really, really liked you. You know?"

"... Johnnie.." (Y/N) felt her stomach drop.

"I was completely head over heels, man, uhh, you know, really..." He said, then paused, gathering his thoughts. "We never really talked about it. But I guess it was good to get space between us, cause I don't think I could've been your friend after that. Cause I still liked you so much. So that's why I didn't reach out more. I'm sorry I ruined it."

(Y/N) gulped. She looked at him. The burning feeling in her chest wasn't caused by alcohol or smoke. Was this actually what heartbreak felt like? Every emotion rushing back all at once. The memories, all the time they spent together.

"I just wanted to say that. I thought you understood that the... uhh... Zombie song, was about... you.. I'm sorry."

She let out a tiny sigh and shook her head. "Johnnie, you didn't ruin anything. I was... I fucked it all up. Gosh, I was fucking infatuated with you. I have never been into anyone the way I liked you." Maybe the alcohol made her too honest. "I just freaked out. I wasn't sure what to do. I think I was hoping that you'd say something or reach out cause God forbid I'd be the one to do that. I just figured you realized something or whatever. Maybe I was a bad kisser. Just kidding. It's like, people always say that boys always go after the girl they like and that you should never have to second guess it as a girl and maybe I applied that to you. Which is fucking stupid cause I know you and it doesn't apply to you."

Johnnie silently listened. All he ever wanted to hear. This was so unfair. She couldn't just do this. She couldn't show up to the party looking like a goddess and tell him what he so desperately wanted to hear that night at the beach. She couldn't just ruin everything again.

"I'm so sorry." She said with a shrug. "I really am."

He tilted his head slightly, at a loss for words. "Oh, (Y/N)."

"I miss you. I miss us." (Y/N) shrugged casually. "I miss my best friend. I wish we could just go back to hanging out like normal." Which wasn't entirely honest cause obviously (Y/N) wasn't over him. Everything she ever felt was back and all she wanted to do was hug him, breathe in his scent, feel his warmth against her.

"(Y/N), I've missed you so incredibly much, too. I definitely--" The door opened behind them and they both turned their faces to see a very pretty girl appear.

"Johnnie!" She smiled at him, walking over to take a place next to him and hug his arm. She gave his cheek a little kiss. "I was looking for you. God, I had another drink, which wasn't smart! Hehehe. Who is this?" She turned to (Y/N). "My, you're beautiful!"

"Oh, thanks!" (Y/N) said. That's the second time within a couple minutes that her stomach dropped. "My name is (Y/N), a friend." She clarified, smiling at the girl. "I recognize--... you're the girl from Stranger Things! Chrissy!"

She nodded with her sweet smile still plastered on that pretty face. "Oh, (Y/N)! Johnnie's mentioned you before." She reached a hand out to shake hers. "Chrissy, or Grace. I prefer Grace, hihi. Anyways, Johnnie, Tara was wondering where you disappeared. I didn't interrupt anything, did I? Can you come back inside baby?"