Swipe Left {Rowaelin Fluff AU}
A/N: We’ve been writing some aaangsty shit lately, and we needed a break to get some fluff out. Enjoy!
As always, written along side the loml, @tacmc.
Attention, all passengers. All flights departing from Adarlan have been delayed, due to inclement weather. Please see the nearest information screen for more details.
Aelin dropped her head in her hands and groaned. She knew she should have taken the direct flight from Wendlyn to Terrasen, rather than booking the one with a layover in Adarlan. She knew she should have, but instead she decided to save a few bucks, and booked the cheaper flight, with the longer travel time.
And now Adarlan was experiencing some of the worst weather she’d ever seen.
As she looked around for an information board at her gate, a brilliant flash of lightning raced across the sky. The accompanying rumble of thunder shook the airport and Aelin begrudgingly accepted that grounding the flights may have been the right thing to do.
She sighed and pulled her phone out, noticing a text from Lysandra. She opened it, finding a picture of her feet shoved in the sand and a drink in her hands, with a text that read, Got my beach, got my beer. All I’m missing is you, bitch. What time do you get in?
She sighed and replied, Flights out of Adarlan we’re just grounded. No clue.
Her best friend’s response was short, sweet, and to the point:
Aelin laughed to herself, but closed out of her messages and began to peruse her social media apps, eventually opening Tinder.
She made a face, looking around the airport and thinking about how stupid it would be to thumb through her possible matches while in a another country. Especially one she wasn’t staying in for very long.
And then decided, why the hell not.
A blonde man who looked far too much like her cousin was the first that popped up.
Then a young man with striking blue eyes, raven black hair and a mischievous grin graced her screen. Mmm, maybe…, she thought to herself, scrolling down to read through his bio. Loves dogs, an avid reader, and-.
Nope, to the left he goes. A doctor.
Aelin wasn’t sure she could handle dating another doctor.
On and on she went, finding a flaw in nearly every profile she looked at.
Doesn’t drink enough. Swipe.
Too young, she thought, swiping left at the photo of a teen in his high school basketball uniform. He’d definitely lied about his age to get on here.
And then she was pinned in place by the most striking pair of green eyes she’d ever seen.
And those cheek bones, by the wyrd, she was jealous.
She scrolled through his pictures, wondering if the silver hair was natural or if he had to dye it to keep it that shimmering hue.
Gods, he was gorgeous. She looked through his pictures again, every single one of them a candid, but couldn’t help but hear that little voice in the back of her head.
He’s definitely too good to be true.
Scrolling down, she decided to read through his bio.
11th grade history teacher by day.
Whiskey aficionado and trivia extraordinaire by night.
Aelin blinked at the short and sweet description the man had written for himself and after swiping through his pictures one more time, decided there was no way this guy was real.
She was sure that whoever this Rowan guy was, he may have been an eleventh grade history teacher, and he may have been kickass at trivia, but there was no way in hell he looked like that. No, she was sure that was just some poor, unsuspecting model, with the most kissable, gorgeous face she’d ever seen, who’d had pictures lifted from his personal Instagram. She even thought about trying to reverse image search the model to see if she could figure out who he was. If she did, it would only be fair of her to let him know.
But until then, she wasn’t exactly in the mood to be catfished…again.
She swiped left, sending him to the pile of men she’d rejected.
“Ouch, so that’s a hard no, then?”
The voice came from behind her and Aelin whirled, so fast that her blonde hair fanned out around her.
That hair. Those eyes. That damn bone structure.
Aelin blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”
The man - Rowan, she realized - chuckled. “Can’t say it wasn’t entertaining watching you swipe left on the entire male population of Adarlan.” He smirked. “But after spending so long on mine, I thought you’d at least swipe right.”
Aelin was still stunned. “Fuck, you’re not a catfish?”
A silver brow arched and he chuckled again as he said, “No, definitely not a cat or a fish. All male.”
“So you teach teenagers?” She asked, gesturing to him. “So that’s your real job, even with a face like that?”
He asked, “A face like what?”
“You’re gorgeous,” Aelin said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world, then she realized what she’d said. She covered her face with her hands, feeling her cheeks and the tips of her ears reddening.
But his grin only widened as his eyes narrowed, the most ridiculously handsome, smug look crossing over his face. “Do you judge everyone so harshly? What? I can’t be pretty and smart?”
Aelin’s hands slid off her face as she met his gaze, once again. “I never called you pretty.”
“But you called me gorgeous,” he countered, and at her scowl he breathed a laugh. “I’m Rowan.”
“I know,” she said, and held up her phone. “I cyber stalked you, remember?”
“Ah,” he said, leaning forward. “I can’t deny I did the same to you, Aelin.”
Oh, she liked the way her name sounded on his lips. His voice alone, that accent, had her toes curling.
“Did you swipe right?” She asked, slipping her phone in her back pocket.
Rowan smirked. “Guess you’ll never know, since you decided to swipe left.”
He adjusted the laptop case on his shoulder and winked, before walking over and sitting down at the closest plug, leaving Aelin staring.
How to unswipe left on tinder.
The question she typed in her browser mocked her and she sighed.
She picked at her unappetizing chicken - she thought it was chicken, at least - she’d picked up in the airport food court and looked around. The place was packed, travelers from everywhere stuck here until the storm passed. Almost every table was occupied, though she had gotten lucky and found one of the small ones by the wall. She was inclined to stay here until her flight finally departed, but she figured she could at least go to the bar until her flight and give someone else her table.
She was putting her trash on the tray, getting ready to get up when a head of silver hair sat down at the table across from her.
She blinked, watching his every movement as he plopped his tray down on the tabletop. He, unlike Aelin, went with burrito. After consuming her chicken…ish lunch, the burrito looked wonderful. She eyed it with envy.
“May I join you?” he asked, not bothering to wait for her to reply as he unwrapped the burrito from the foil and taking a bite.
Aelin opened her mouth to reply, but her lips snatched shut. She had already finished eating, was ready to go waste her time elsewhere. “I was headed to the bar.”
Rowan nodded, slowly, as he took another bite. He waited to swallow before asking, “So, first you swipe left, then you don’t want to eat with me? Apparently I need to take a hint. Then again…you did say I was gorgeous…so.”
Aelin was caught somewhere between wanting to run and hide, and wanting to jump his bones. The latter was more appealing, but the former felt easier, all things considering.
She pursed her lips. “Did you swipe, right?”
The gleam in his eye was wicked. “Have lunch with me.”
She exhaled through her nose. “Fine.”
Rowan raised an eyebrow. “Don’t act so excited about it.”
Aelin closed her eyes and sighed. She was being a bitch.
Well, she was a bitch, but she was letting her bitch show.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “You kind of…caught me on an off day.”
He looked around while he chewed,at their surroundings, at the people around them. “Yeah, I think we’re all having an off day.”
Aelin let Rowan eat, not asking him questions every few minutes, despite wanting to, though she did respond to his while he quietly ate.
He asked what she did for a living, she said she didn’t know because she was on the way home from graduating college. He asked what her degree was in, she said literature and English education.
He was balling up the aluminum foil and standing when he asked, “So you have a degree in education but you don’t know what you want to do for a living?”
They grabbed their various bags and carry-ons and she shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so.”
He said, obviously, “Have you thought about teaching?”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course, I have, but I have more passion for literature and English than I do for standing up in front of a classroom full of kids only to be disrespected and unappreciated.”
Rowan looked at her, thoughtfully. “I had the same fear when I began, once I got my degree. But, I fucking love history, and my kids, for the most part, are great. If you choose to become an educator…well, the vibe of your classroom is in your hands.”
Aelin’s eyes narrowed but she didn’t protest. “Come get a drink with me.”
Rowan arched a brow. “Is this a date?”
Aelin put a hand on her hip. “Did you swipe right?”
He tilted his head. “Let me buy you a drink.”
“You said you’d tell me if I had lunch with you,” she laughed.
“I didn’t, actually.” He was smirking and Aelin wanted to wipe it off his handsome face, in whatever way she could. “I just mentioned that you should eat with me after I asked and you chose to.”
Aelin opened her mouth to disagree but then snapped it closed. He was right. “You tricked me.” He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.
She stopped walking and he stopped and turned. She narrowed her eyes at him and said, “Tell me if you swiped right and I’ll have a drink with you.”
She crossed her arms, waiting.
Rowan just arched a brow. “Come on. I’ll tell you after the first drink.”
Aelin’s mouth fell open, but Rowan was walking away, down the terminal. Aelin wanted so desperately to grab him by the shoulders and shake him until he confessed, but she didn’t. Unable to control herself, she only walked after him, intrigued.
“What gate are you flying out of?” Rowan asked as she caught up to him.
She knew exactly which gate it was, but she wanted to see if she could make him squirm. “C.”
She kept her head straight, didn’t glance over at him as he looked at her. She just asked, “You?”
That half smile returned and she knew that he knew she was trying to mess with him. “C, as well.”
They got to the bar and sat down, being waited in quickly, despite the larger than normal crowd. Aelin ordered a jack and coke and Rowan a 7&7.
The bartender gave them their ID’s back and said, “Thank you, and happy birthday, Miss Galathynius.”
She cringed as Rowan turned to look at her. “It’s your birthday?”
She lifted her hands and gave a half-assed attempt at spirit fingers. “Surprise.”
He stared at her for a moment before he said, “You should’ve said something.”
“What’s the point?” she muttered.
Rowan blinked, still watching her through his side-eye. “What do you mean?”
Aelin snorted as their drinks were slid in front of them. “I was supposed to be celebrating my birthday at home, with my best friend on the beach; but, instead, I’m here, stuck at the airport. I don’t even remember the last time I’ve had an interesting birthday.”
Rowan nodded. “If it makes you feel any better, I spent my last birthday in the hospital.”
“What?” Aelin asked, sipping her drink. “How?”
“Horrible food poisoning,” he laughed. “I’ve never been that sick in my life.”
Aelin shook her head. “Maybe we can celebrate our birthdays together.”
Rowan chuckled. “My birthday was five months ago.”
Aelin took another drink and set her glass down. “And?” She shrugged. “It’s someone’s birthday everyday. Why not make it yours?”
Rowan eyed her for a moment, his lips teasing the edge of his glass. Then, he said, “Alright. Fine. Today is both of our birthdays, what should we do?”
“Raise hell, obviously,” Aelin answered, shrugging, as she took a sip from her glass.
Rowan only grinned. “And what does raising hell look like to Aelin Galathynius?”
She smirked, but a thunder clap drew her attention to the windows they sat across from, to the storm raging outside. A crease formed between her brows. “Definitely doesn’t look like an extended layover in Adarlan.”
Rowan watched her, wanting to brush back the hair that slipped from behind her ear. He turned to the bartender and said, “Two shots of Gentleman’s.”
Aelin’s eyebrows raised. “Well, that’s one way to wake hell up.”
The small glasses were set in front of them and Rowan said, “To raising hell, Miss Galathynius.”
Aelin rolled her eyes and threw the shot back.
The bourbon warmed her entire body and she shook her head, blowing out a sharp breath. Rowan was watching her, a small smile on his face. He paid up their tab and they made their way over to the information board by the bar entrance.
“Has yours been updated?” Rowan asked, scanning the flights.
Aelin found hers instantly. “No, still just delayed.”
“So,” she began. “What’s next on the birthday agenda?”
An easy smile spread across his face as he said, “Presents.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Presents?”
They walked over to one of the small convenience stores tucked in between the Starbucks and the restrooms. “Since today isn’t actually my birthday, I don’t get anything. But you do.”
She looked at the glorified gas station snacks lined up in the fancy shelving. “Oh goodie, a Snickers bar and the latest issue of Erilea Weekly.”
“Is that what you want?” He asked.
She laughed. “Not really. I don’t need anything though.”
“Everyone needs something on their birthday.” Aelin glanced up at him and he was looking down at her.
You could kiss me, she thought. That would be a pretty good gift.
Instead she said, “Okay, then surprise me.”
Rowan’s smile grew. “Gladly.”
Rowan took a step and Aelin followed, but then he froze, and blinked. “What are you doing?”
“What do you mean what am I doing?” Aelin asked, taking a step back, confused.
But Rowan only arched a brow and grinned. “If I’m going to surprise you, you can’t see what I pick out. Go away.”
Aelin snorted but sighed. “Fine. My gate is C-17. I’ll be there when you’re done.”
Rowan’s smile was triumphant. “See you there.”
Aelin headed back to the gate, sitting by the window and watching the storms swirl around them. She felt her phone buzz in her pocket. It was Lysandra, but no picture accompanied her text this time.
How goes the long, boring wait?
She sighed. Long and boring. I have company though.
The text immediately showed “Read” and the grey typing bubbles reappeared.
Aelin smirked and typed back. I swiped left on him.
The bubbles reappeared and left and reappeared. I’m not following.
He’s gorgeous, so after hardcore staring at this face, I decided I didn’t want to get catfished.
And then I turned around and found him standing there, looking just as pretty as his pictures.
She hit send and waited, anticipating Lysandra’s next question.
She laughed, knowing that Lysandra was probably driving Aedion insane with her commentary.
She replied, Rowan. And no, I don’t have a last name, but I think he’s flying into Orynth and he’s a history teacher.
The message sent and Aelin waited for her reply. The message was read, but nothing came in.
Twenty minutes later, when Lysandra hadn’t texted back and Rowan hadn’t shown, Aelin began to chew on the inside of her cheek.
She suddenly felt ridiculous. Most likely, Rowan had used it as an excuse to get rid of her. They were strangers, and nothing more. He wanted to get her a gift? Bullshit. He probably thought it was pathetic that she was spending her birthday alone in an airport and was getting a laugh out of the whole scenario.
Aelin rose to her feet with the intention of grabbing her bag and going to the ladies room just for something to do, but then she saw him coming toward her, a shopping bag in hand.
“Going somewhere?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.
She dropped her purse back into the seat she’d been occupying. “Just to the ladies room.” She smiled sweetly, hoping he didn’t realize she’d been about to bail.
Granted, she thought he’d bailed on her.
He nodded. “Well, then, I’ll be here.”
He sat down in the spot next to the one she vacated and smiled at her.
Aelin began to walk away, but she turned and looked back at him. “By the way, you’re not, like, a serial killer that’s going to sell my organs on the black market, right?”
Rowan laughed, the sound rich and full and reminded Aelin of a bonfire on a crisp Autumn evening. “No, I’m not a serial killer and no, I won’t sell your organs on the black market.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Or the white market?”
He shook his head, chuckling, “How about this? I have no intention of causing you any bodily harm or removing your organs from where they already are.”
Aelin smiled and nodded, and continued into the bathroom. When she was washing her hands, her phone vibrated again and upon she pulling it from her pocket, she discovered why Lysandra had gone dark.
His name is Rowan Whitethorn. He’s twenty-eight, fit as fuck and looks like he could fuck you into a fit. He’s a teacher at Orynth Prep, where he’s also the coach of the varsity baseball team. His birthday is January seventh and he has a kitten named Snowball.
Aelin sighed and shook her head, laughing at her best friend.
You’re terrifying sometimes, you know that, right?
Then about twenty pictures flooded her inbox.
She had done a thorough job, Aelin had to admit. The few pictures she sent of Rowan shirtless certainly proved her “fit” comment. She didn’t feel the least bit shamed as she zoomed in on his washboard abs.
Aelin couldn’t help but stare, and gape, before she shoved her phone back into her pocket and went back out toward the gate, where Rowan was still sitting, scrolling through his phone. The second he sat her coming, his phone was put away.
“I was beginning to think you got lost,” he said, cocking his head to the side.
Aelin cleared her throat. “I- yes, I did.”
His eyes flicked to the bathroom, which was a direct line to where he was sitting.
She sat and tucked the loose hairs behind her ears. “So what’s my present?”
She smiled and he couldn’t fight the tugging on the corners of his own lips. He handed her the shopping bag. “Happy birthday, Aelin.”
She opened it up, first pulling out a stuffed teddy bear, that was red and gold, the colors of Adarlan’s flag. In the center of its stomach was a big gold heart. She laughed. “Cute.”
He shrugged as if to say, I know.
She reached in and pulled out a t-shirt that read I’d rather be spending my birthday on the beach, but I’m stuck with a hot piece of ass at the airport.
Aelin threw her head back and laughed. “Where did you find this?”
He was chuckling himself. “You can convince people to make anything for the right price.”
She shook her head and pulled the last item out of the bag. It was a glass shot glass. Aelin didn’t even read the text printed, because Rowan said, “I was hoping you’d take a shot on me and let me take you to dinner.”
Aelin stared at him, blinked, then howled. Rowan watched her as she laughed, heartily, his slow grin spreading.
Once she calmed down, she wiped at her eyes and said, “Well, I can’t say no to that, can I?”
Rowan’s eyes were soft as he said, “I was hoping not.”
Aelin put her gifts back in the bag and said, “Thank you, really. This was sweet.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, softly. “Is that a yes to dinner, then?”
She smiled, and took his hand, resting on his lap. “It’s a date.”
