By Hand
Part 1
pairing: Carmen Berzatto x female!reader (uses she/her pronouns, Y/N)
warnings: Use of alcohol, smoking (it's bad for you o.k), profanity (so many f#cks but none given), mentions of sex, smut eventually in future chapters, NSFW, minors DNI and so forth
summary: You go out to a bar to celebrate your new massage therapy job with your best friend, and meet some new ones. One is loud and obnoxious and the other is short and quiet but hot af. You'll never guess who is who!
A/N: This is set a few months after the end of S1. Carmy has been talking to his family and friends more, getting used to socialising again. His character is hopefully less monosyllabic, still a bit shy, but slightly loosens up after a few beers and is more hopeful about life in general. Also, he really needs to get laid.
-----
"You want another drink, Y/N?" asked your best friend Sara as you sat at the bar.
"God, yes- gimme something ridiculous this time, with fruit and a parasol and shit. Surprise me- I'll get the next ones, 'k?"
She was already waving to get the bartenders attention as you casually swivelled on your barstool and surveyed the room, taking in the black booths with faded red velvet seating dotted around the perimeter of the large, currently empty dancefloor.
This wasn't high class by any stretch, but the price was right.
In a booth near the bar, you noticed a couple of guys drinking beers.
One of them was taller, with dark hair and a 5- o'clock shadow.
It was his friend, sitting directly across from him that really caught your attention.
He had large expressive eyes, emphasised as he glanced up at his friend as he listened. His hair was tousled, made more wild each time he ran his fingers through it.
You watched as he fidgeted with his beer bottle, peeling off the label piece by piece in between sips.
He was wearing jeans and a slightly crumpled white shirt, sleeves rolled up. His arms were painted with tattoos, too difficult to make out from where you were sitting. You observed the taller guy gesticulating wildly, slapping the table every now and then- maybe to make a point?- and talking so loudly you could actually make out what they were saying over the hum of the bar.
"...I'm just sayin', why not cuz? Meatballs and spaghetti, meatball subs- 'balls are great with everything! I think it would taste fuckin' good if you combined them, ya know. Like, cut up lil' bits of bread and mix it in so you get a meat ball sub and spaghetti at the same time."
The guy he was talking to had a small smile on his lips. "Ya mean croutons, Rich?"
"No, not fuckin' croutons! I mean the bread pieces... mixed in...ah, what the fuck would you know anyway, Carm? Probably rather serve caviar or rich people shit than real food..."
The guy call Rich folded his arms and leaned back, apparently annoyed.
His friend raised his eyebrows and nodded slowly.
"You try it, Rich. Lemme know how it turns out. My round, yeah?" he said as he stood up, sidling out of the booth.
He took one last sip from his bottle and glanced over to the bar, meeting your gaze.
-----
Sara tapped your shoulder, bringing your attention back to reality.
"Voilà! Look at this! I even got them to add a crazy straw- they didn't have any sparklers, sorry babe, " she said with a joking apologetic tone.
"I'll survive somehow, thanks honey."
You took a sip and were immediately hit with so much sugar and alcohol it almost knocked you off your bar stool.
"Sara, what the hell is in this?!" you said between coughing and laughing.
"The bartender said it was a magic potion. I figure he must be right, it's his livelihood after all."
"It tastes good! It's just... intense. Thank you, for real. We gotta celebrate, huh?"
"What are you celebrating?" said a quiet, warm voice to your right.
"Oh my god.. hi.. I mean, yeah, we are celebrating, for sure..."
You rambled as the guy you had been unintentionally staring at across the room was suddenly right there, casually leaning his muscular arms against the bar as he glanced shyly at you.
"-Hi, this is Y/N, I'm Sara! She meant to say that we're celebrating her new job. This girl here is officially a massage therapist, starting Monday!"
You blushed at both your friends' pride in your achievements and how you had felt completely tongue tied at the handsome strangers question. What was the matter with you?
You were usually confident when talking to new people, even if you would consider yourself a bit of an introvert deep down. Wasn't alcohol this strong supposed to give you liquid courage?!
"Fuck, a massage chick? You give happy endings, sweetheart?"
Rich was suddenly right in between you and Carm (what kind of name was Carm anyhow?), elbowing his way in and leaning one arm against the bar, totally blocking Carm with his back and looking at you and Sara with a shit-eating grin on his face.
Great, this guy must think he is a real comedian, you thought. As if you hadn't dealt with jokes about hand jobs, 'happy endings', and God knows what else for the last three years as you studied to get your degree. You were used to people assuming it was a front for sex work. What they didn't know was that you didn't care- sex work was real work too, it just didn't happen to be your line of business.
Before you had a chance to respond, Carm rolled his eyes heavenward and hissed at him-
"Fucks sake Rich, don't be such a fuckin' creep!"
"I was just sayin', you know.." Rich was still smiling but looked slightly less certain of his comedy act.
''It's ok,' you interjected- ' l get that a lot. People make assumptions, I'm used to it. I start work for the Cubs Monday as their in-house sports massage therapist. I'm pretty sure handys weren't detailed in my contract, but you know, I can always check it again", you said with a bright smile and a wink, surprising both Rich and Carm.
Carm, wide-eyed and blushing slightly at your candour, had a small smile as he took a drink of his new beer, passing one to Rich.
"Fuck cuz, this one can bite back! I like it!" said Rich, grinning and elbowing him.
"And so can I, asshole- so back off the lame-ass jokes if you know what's good for you!"
Sara piped up beside you, narrowing her eyes at Rich and stepping closer to him, sizing him up.
She had always been a fierce defender of you no matter what. You loved her, but it could be a bit much sometimes- especially when you felt like you could manage shit yourself.
Rich put both hands up in apology.
"Whoa whoa whoa ladies, take it easy. Look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot, ya know. Start over? I'm Richie, and this is my cousin, Carmy," Rich finally turned slightly to allow an eye line between you and Carmy.
You felt electricity down your spine as you locked eyes with him again for the briefest moment. Close up you could see his eyes were a clear azure blue, his wild wavy hair laced with gold. Would it be weird to run your fingers through it right now? Yeah, probably.
Carmy cleared his throat.
"You wanna join us over there? Promise I'll try and keep this fucko under control."
"Fuck you, Carmy."
"Thanks, cuz."
You and Sara looked at each other.
You desperately wanted to talk more to Carmy, and you tried to convey your approval to her through a meaningful look. Thankfully, your years of silent communication worked this time.
"Sure thing," she said. "Y/N, you good?"
"Cool" you said with a smile, as nonchalantly as you could.
You looked at Carmy again.
Fuck, he was gorgeous. His arms, his profile- he had an aqualine nose, which reminded you of a Roman statue-, those eyes- it suddenly dawned on you that while you hadn't gone out tonight to hook up, you would be absolutely fine with it if it involved him.
You bit your lip and stared at your drink for a moment, trying to gather your composure, and trying to mentally erase the myriad dirty thoughts that had sprung up there.
-----
You were sitting between Richie and Sara, with Carmy by Sara on the edge of the booth. You hadn't been quick enough to ensure you were sitting right by him, damn it, and Rich had made a big deal about standing up and making room for you to scooch in.
Probably took too long trying to regain your composure at the bar....
"So what do you do, Carmy? Also, that is an um, unique name?"
Keep your cool, Y/N. Ask normal questions. Don't ask him if he wants to fuck you in bathroom. Not yet, anyway.
"It's short for Carmen," he replied.
"Carmen. That's cool, and you are a...?"
"He make sandwiches and fucks shit up most of the time," interjected Rich, trying to pull focus back on himself.
"Pretty big words coming from you, with your chivalrous introduction to us, buddy" retorted Sara.
"I'm chivalrous as fuck, honey. I pull out chairs and open doors and shit for chicks, ain't that right Carm?"
"Oh yeah, all the time." Carmy looked amused by the idea.
Shut up Rich, you thought, just give me a chance to actually talk to this guy. You tried again.
"So, where do you make these sandwiches?"
"It's called- well, it's gonna be called 'The Bear'...it was my brothers place."
You didn't miss the 'was' in that sentence. And definitely didn't want to pry into why Carmy's brother was no longer around to run it.
He had a soft, forlorn expression, his eyes darting up at the ceiling as he had another sip of beer. This guy seems kinda sad, you thought. And kinda fidgety, as he once again started peeling the label off his bottle. Sara and Richie started talking about the sandwiches at the restaurant, and you half listened as you sipped at your drink, becoming increasingly mesmerised by Carmy's hands. You noticed small scars on them as you watched him, his elegant fingers moving precisely to strip the label.
"You ever heard what they say about people who peel the labels off bottles? Apparently, it's a sign they really need to get laid, get out all that tension," said Sara with a smile and a wink to you.
"Car-my! It might finally happen for you, little cuz!"
Richie grinned and slapped the table. Looking at Carmy, you couldn't imagine he was a virgin, but he did seem to be filled with pent up energy- what from you had no idea. Sara added-
"You know, massage is pretty good for relieving stress, right Y/N?"
"It's true, I can't deny it," you said, smiling as you glanced at Carmy. He was blushing slightly but was looking at you with a sparkle of curiosity, maybe something more.
"You know, uh, I like for real could probably use some. My neck feels really tight, hopefully I haven't fucked it or something- I think I lifted a delivery weird a few days ago and it's legit been kinda sore." Carmy rubbed the back of his neck and winced slightly.
"You haven't been to a doctor?"
"Nah, hoping it'll get better on it's own."
"Well, I would be happy to offer my services. At a price, though- nothing comes for free, y'know."
Carmy smiled at you, his eyes alight.
"Yeah? What's the damage gonna be?"
"I wanna try one of your sandwiches for a start, they sound fucking delicious."
"For a start?" a small smile played on his lips again as he took another sip of beer.
"I have a couple other ideas," you murmured, almost to yourself.
"I need a fuckin smoke, cuz- you ladies wanna join us?" Rich cut into your thoughts.
"I'm reformed, but thanks," you replied.
"I'll get the next round when we get back, ok?" said Carmy, glancing at you again.
'Sure," you smiled at him. He excused himself, Rich following him, talking loudly about the best one night stand he had ever had.
"The tits on her, Carm! Fuckin' melons...."
They didn't take their jackets at least, so thankfully Carmy wasn't so embarrassed by both Sara and Richies making fun that he decided to go home early.
As the front door closed behind them, Sara leaned in.
"Verdict Y/N? The tall one is so fucking cocky, and the short one is pretty quiet."
"And fucking gorgeous. Swap seats with me. I need proximity. Have you *seen* his eyes?!"
"I've seen you burning a hole in him with yours." she said, as you edged over her to switch places.
"Fuck off. Oh god, am I that obvious?!"
Sara chuckled.
"You're fine, Y/N. He was looking over at us when we were at the bar."
"Really?!"
"Well, either us or the bartender."
"I'll take those odds. I think Richies into you, he keeps looking at you."
"I noticed. He has a smart mouth, but he is sort of funny - we can't tell him that, though, or he'll never shut up."
"They're coming back - do I look OK?" You suddenly felt that spark again as you saw Carmy walk back over, adjusting your dress.
"You're hot, Y/N" she responded.
"Thanks, babe."
Carmy reached the booth and leaned on the table, a smile quirking at the corner of his mouth as he observed you had swapped seats with Sara.
'What's your poison?' he said, looking directly at you. You rubbed your thighs together under the table - just a look from this guy sent fire to your core.
"Surprise us," you said with a grin.
"Yeah?" he smiled and drummed his fingers on the table- "You got it."
-----
Part Two coming soon!! Feedback welcome🙏 🩵
@cool-girl-is-hot @drunkenhills I finally published lol @heardchef your GIF game is 🔥 thank you!!! xx
