#jatp fluff

You are hanging in the shadows on the side of the stage in a café when a guy with a microphone walks onto the stage.

“Okay, it looks like we’re closing the night out with one more group,” the guy says. He looks down at his notepad. “Julie and the Fat Ones.” The crowd snickers as you watch Julie walk past the Dirty Candy girls and walk onto the stage.

Julie finds her way to the piano and puts her microphone on the stand above the piano. “Hi,” she says into her microphone. “It’s actually ‘Julie and the Phantoms’.” No one reacts. “Okay.”

She begins to play the piano and sing. From hearing practices in the studio, you know how talented Julie is. Her vocals are amazing.

And she doesn’t know you exist. You’ve kind of stayed away from her but you’ve sat outside the garage, listening in to band practices. You’re only here for Luke. He’s a ghost, yes, but so are you. You met him when walking the beach one night. He poofed to the beach out of nowhere, scaring you, and the two of you have grown close in the few weeks since that happened.

You think he has a thing for you, and you definitely have a thing. Who wouldn’t? He’s cute, funny, and extremely talented. When Luke’s not with his band or writing songs for Julie and the Phantoms, he’s usually off somewhere with you.

The crowd watches Julie as she sings alone on the stage with the piano. Some sway their heads to the beat.

Until the beat drops and the guys appear on the stage.

I got a spark in me Hands up if you can see And you're a part of me Hands up if you're with me Now 'til eternity Hands up if you believe Been so long and now we're finally free

Luke’s singing into his mic along with Julie, who gets up from her seat at the piano. The crowd electrifies when the guys appear on stage with their instruments.

You smile and sway a bit to the beat yourself.

We know we can make it We're not falling down under Close my eyes and feel my chest Beating like thunder I wanna fly Come alive Watch me shine

Luke and Julie look at each other as they sing their little duet together. You stop swaying and watch them, seeing the look on Luke’s face.

Then it hits you that he definitely doesn’t have a thing for you. He absolutely has a thing for Julie though.

After repeating the refrain, Julie turns toward Luke. Luke quickly runs over and shares a microphone with Julie as he repeats back to her what’s sung to him.

I got a spark in me I got a spark in me And you're a part of me And you're a part of me Now 'til eternity Now 'til eternity Been so long and now we're finally free

After repeating the refrain again, the guys and Julie begin harmonizing and Luke walks over to the side of the stage you’re on. He plays guitar in front of the crowd in front of you. He looks at you and meets your eyes.

You look away and he goes back to his microphone. After singing a line, he backs away from his mic and looks at Julie. A small smile forms on Luke’s face as she sings the final line in the song. Luke looks at her in awe as she sings.

The song ends and the guys poof off the stage. You poof away, slightly jealous. You poof to the beach where you and Luke first met.

With a sigh, you sit in the sand by the water. The moonlight lights up the beach a bit and you watch the waves crash. You bring your knees up and rest your chin on your knees.

It hurts, knowing the guy you have a crush on likes someone else. It hurts more than most people know.

Plus, Julie is a Lifer. You don’t know why Luke likes a Lifer considering the circumstances.

With a sigh, you rest your forehead on your knees and close your eyes.

You hear a whoosh noise and a “hey Y/N”. Luke’s here. He found you. You don’t know why you came here of all places. He knows he can always find you here.

“I thought you’d be with the band,” you tell him, your voice monotone.

Luke says, “I was able to celebrate with the band. I wanted to come celebrate with you, Y/N.”

Still slightly hurt, you say, “Yeah, well, I’m not really in the mood for a celebration, Luke.” You haven’t been able to look up at him. You’re too afraid you’ll cry if you look up at him and you won’t want to cry in front of him. If you cry then you’ll have to explain why and you don’t want to explain why.

He sits beside you and says, “I saw you poof out after our number. Did you need to leave to go somewhere?”

You sigh and say, “I needed to get out of there. It was stuffy.”

“Then why did you look away from me when I made eye contact with you when I was on stage?” he asks. “Did I do something to hurt you?”

Getting slightly annoyed, you say, “No, Luke. You haven’t done anything to hurt me.” Sarcasm is laced in your voice.

Luke picks up on the sarcasm and asks, “What did I do, Y/N? Please, tell me, because I don’t like it when we fight.”

Finally, you look at him. He has a look of worry on his face and you respond with, “Why do you have a thing for a Lifer? You know she’ll grow old and you won’t.”

A smile forms on Luke’s face and he asks, “You think I have a crush on Julie? No. Kinda ew. She’s my bandmate and is more of a sister than anything to me. She’s a lifer and I know she’ll grow old and I won’t. Why do you think …” He trails off, realizing the answer. “You have a thing for me, don’t you? That’s why you’re acting like this and why you poofed out of the café after ‘Finally Free’ was over.”

You jump into immediate defense mode, saying, “No! I don’t have a thing for you, Luke. Nuh uh. Gross. You’re, like, my best friend. Bleh.”

He laughs and says, “You definitely have a thing for me, Y/N. I can tell. You got all jealous and left right after the number was done. That’s why you asked why I liked Julie when I don’t.”

“Stop!” you say, getting up and stepping back from Luke. “I don’t have a thing for you, Luke. You’re cute and all, plus really talented and really funny. But I don’t have a thing for you.”

Luke smiles up at you and say, “You definitely do. Why are you all the way over there then?”

You make a face and say, “You have cooties.”

The guitarist laughs and says, “We’re not in second grade, Y/N. I don’t have cooties.”

“Fine,” you admit. “Maybe I have a very very small thing for you. Like it’s so small that it’s practically nonexistent.”

He laughs and gets up, standing in front of you. You sigh and Luke says, “That’s okay, Y/N. I have a very very small thing that it’s basically nonexistent for you too.”

Your jaw almost drops when he makes that comment. He just admitted he has feelings for you, and you’re still standing like eight feet from him.

He doesn’t like Julie. He likes you. You’re shocked by this because you really thought he liked Julie.

“I’m embarrassed now,” you tell him. “I really had it in my head that you were into Julie.”

Luke smiles and asks, “How that you found out I’m not into Julie?”

You blink at him and reply with, “I’m still not sure because it was really deep in my head that you were into her.”

The lead guitarist of Julie and the Phantoms steps closer to you and he says, “I am definitely not into Julie. I am definitely into you, Y/N. How could I not be into you? You’re very cute, you make me laugh, and the little cheek dimple you have when you smile is my favorite thing ever.” You smile when he says that to you. “Yeah, just like that.”

Your heart races in your chest as you slowly ask, “What happens now?”

Luke steps closer to you again, singing softly, “I got a spark in me. And you’re a part of me. Now til eternity. Been so long and now I’m finally free.” He meets your eyes and looks at you so intensely that you shiver.

He stands a few inches away from you now instead of eight feet away. You continue staring up at him. “I, um,” you stammer. “Luke.”

“That’s my name,” he jokes.

You roll your eyes at him before saying, “I can’t stand you sometimes.”

Luke lets out a soft laugh before he says, “Yet you haven’t poofed away or anything.”

Your eyes are still on Luke’s as you say, “I can if you want.”

“I don’t think so,” Luke sternly says before he takes your face in his hands, pulling you toward him. Your lips collide with his and you gasp.

Luke is kissing you. You’re kissing Luke. This is a thing that is currently happening.

You kiss him back almost immediately and melt against his body. The kiss is soft and sweet, and it feels like you’ve done it a thousand times. Butterflies flutter in your stomach as he kisses you.

After a few seconds, Luke pulls back from the kiss and you look up at him. “I should’ve asked if that was okay,” he stammers. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t think-” You cut him off with a second kiss. He smiles against your lips as you kiss him. He now knows it was okay that he kissed you first.

The kiss continues for a little bit before you pull away. Luke looks down at you and says, “I want you to meet the band, Y/N.”

“Okay,” you say. “Take me to meet your band.”

He smiles before poofing away. You poof right behind you, both of you meeting outside the garage you’ve sat outside of dozens of times, listening to Luke practicing.

Luke walks through the door. He says, “I have someone I’d like you all to meet.” You walk through the garage door. Julie and his bandmates all sit scattered throughout the garage. Julie looks at you, obviously being able to see ghosts.

“This is everyone,” Luke says. “That’s Julie, Reggie, and Alex.”

You wave hello to everyone and Alex says, “We still don’t know her name, dude.”

You had gone with your festive Star Wars sweater that had Darth Vader on the front wearing a Santa hat similar to the one perched on Charlie’s head. The red and green font across the front read, “I find your lack of cheer disturbing”, and it was one that you had adored ever since your other friend, Owen, had bought it for you the year before. 

“Is he here?” you asked, and Charlie nodded, the smile on his face growing as you both heard Owen’s voice fill the air. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll be fine! I’ll just be hanging around the mistletoe waiting to be kissed.”

“I think he’s still a little bummed that he’s one of the few people here without a date,” Charlie chuckled, and you giggled yourself, despite your heart falling in your chest. You knew exactly how he felt as this was the first year in a couple that you were showing up to Christmas parties by yourself as well.

Your last boyfriend, Jake, had recently broken up with you in October just before Halloween. You had been devastated, as the two of you had already put together your coordinating costumes and you had been looking forward to the holiday season together. You were sure that, when he ended things, your holidays were going to be ruined, only to be proven wrong when Owen had shown up at your apartment that Halloween in his bright yellow jacket and short shorts, ready to pull you out of your own personal misery. Surprisingly, it had worked, and now you knew that you owed him a holiday saving grace.

“I guess I’m gonna go find him,” you told Charlie a few seconds later, and he nodded as you assumed that he went to find the girl that he had been talking to for the last few weeks that he had brought along as his date for the night.

It didn’t take you long to find Owen, as you headed down the hallway in the direction that you had heard his voice. The familiar blonde was leaning against the wall, his phone in his hands as his finger swiped across the screen, seemingly lost in his own little world.

“That doesn’t look like mistletoe to me,” you teased, as you referred back to his previously shouted words, and Owen looked up at the sound of your voice. 

“Yeah, well, I needed to say something to help myself feel better in the midst of this little Christmas love-fest,” he replied sarcastically, as his eyes trailed down to your sweater. A smile immediately formed on his lips as he pushed himself away from the wall and slid his phone into his pocket. “Wow, what a great sweater. Whoever picked that out must have great taste.” He was teasing now, and your heart lifted as it seemed that whatever little mood Owen had been in was starting to dissipate.

“I know, I’m quite the sweater connoisseur if I say so myself,” you teased back, and Owen rolled his eyes playfully.

“Right, cause you picked it out,” he drawled and you grinned even more.

“I did actually. Just a few minutes ago.” This earned another eye roll from your friend before he gestured back the way you had come.

“Did you want to get a drink?” he asked, and you nodded eagerly. Your first mission had been to find him, and now that you had, you were ready for a drink.

The two of you headed towards the kitchen while Owen started ranting at the lack of single people that had shown up to this particular party.

“I know it’s like, cuffing season or whatever, but come on. Does everyone have to be in a relationship?” he groaned as he leaned against the kitchen counter while you poured yourself some punch. You were thankful in that moment that he couldn’t see the look on your face, as your back was to him, because you were sure that there had been a quick flash of hurt that had formed on your features at his words. It wasn’t like you didn’t agree, but it was a painful reminder that you were also newly single, and you were one of the few that was spending the best holiday, in your opinion, alone.

“Come on, it can’t be that bad,” you replied when you turned around after regaining your composure. Owen had a red cup in his hands now that you knew was filled with the same liquid that was in yours, but he didn’t seem to pay it any attention as his eyes scanned the room. There were a few people hanging around, but they were all so engrossed in the conversations they were having with their dates that none of them seemed to notice either one of you.

“I mean, it’s fine, obviously. Like, good for them. But you can’t blame a guy for hoping for a romantic Christmas miracle.” There was a flash of something in his bright blue eyes when he looked over at you, but before you could place it, it was gone.

“Romantic, eh? Oh, Owen, I didn’t know you were into stuff like that,” you teased, and the corners of his lips turned up slightly as he finally lifted his cup so that he could take a small drink.

“A guy can dream sometimes. I blame the holiday atmosphere,” he responded coolly, and you nodded as you tried to quell the racing of your heart with a sip of your own punch. The feeling was one you had been experiencing a lot since Halloween night, primarily when you were in Owen’s presence, but you pushed it aside and ignored it, just as you had been for the last several weeks.

Eventually, the two of you moved into the living room where most of the rest of your friends seemed to be, and you took the next few minutes walking around and saying hello. You didn’t miss how Owen stayed close behind, though you were sure his reasoning for it was because you were one of the only other single people around, and he didn’t want to get stuck with a big group of couples where he had to pretend like he didn’t feel incredibly awkward being alone.

“Oh my god, look at you!” Savannah cooed when she saw you. “And look at your sweater! Wait, is that the one Owen got you last year?” When you nodded, a small gasp slipped from her lips as she grabbed your hand and quickly pulled you to the other side of the room, away from everyone else. The movement startled you, and the wild look in her eyes made you nervous.

“What are we doing?” you asked apprehensively, just as Savannah spun back around to face you.

“Is there something going on with you and Owen?” The question caught you off guard, but also made your heart clench at the same time. 

“No? Why would you say that?” you asked, and Savannah gave you a pointed look. You had no idea where all of this was coming from, and it seemed like a stretch to say that it was caused simply by your choice in sweaters for the evening. It wasn’t like it was the first time you had worn it out.

“Ever since Halloween, the two of you have seemed… different. I mean, I always thought that Owen had a thing for you, but Jake was always there. But now that he’s out of the picture-“

“Wait,” you interrupted, your hand coming up to stop her. “What do you mean, you always thought Owen had a thing for me?” Your heart was racing again, and when Savannah gave you a sympathetic look, you couldn’t help but glance over your shoulder to try to find the boy in question.

Owen was standing a few feet away, talking with Charlie and Charlie’s date, but the second your eyes landed on him, his eyes lifted to meet yours. It was as if he could feel you looking, and a smile immediately blossomed across his features just before you turned away.

“See, things like that! He’s always looked at you with literal heart eyes, and I was sure as soon as Jake broke up with you, he was going to make his move. I think he’s just been hesitant because he doesn’t want to rush you.” 

You couldn’t believe what Savannah was saying. You and Owen had been friends for a while now, and there was never a time where you thought he might like you. Sure, the two of you had grown quite close, but you just thought that your friendship was special. When he came to cheer you up, he was just being a good best friend. There were no other emotional motives, right? No, there couldn’t be.

“Savannah, I think you’re reading a little too much into our friendship,” you sighed, as you tried to reason with both yourself and her. “Owen doesn’t like me like that.” 

“But how do you feel about him?” she pressed, and that was the topic of conversation you really didn’t want to reach. While, before Halloween, you had never seen Owen as anything other than your closest friend, recently you had started seeing him differently. It all started with the fluttering in your chest when he was around, and slowly it had progressed more and more, but you had gotten quite good at suppressing it. You thought, at first, that it was just because you were lonely after having been in a relationship for over two years. But now, as the feelings grew, you weren’t so sure that could be to blame any longer.

“We’re just friends.”

It was clearly not the response Savannah was looking for, but just before she could protest further, she glanced over her shoulder, and another smirk formed on her lips.

“Hey, what are you guys talking about over here? I hope it’s more interesting than what Charlie and his date are carrying on about.” Owen’s voice made your heart stop, and when you felt his arm brush against yours, you did your best to hide your immediate emotional reaction.

“I was actually just about to go and get another drink. I’ll catch up with you guys soon,” Savannah told him before giving you a quick wink and walking off. You and her were going to have to have a serious conversation about subtlety later on.

“What was that about?” Owen asked, as you turned your attention to him. 

“Your guess is as good as mine,” you replied quietly, before lifting your cup to your lips once more. You hated that you felt a little weird standing alone with Owen now, and you did your best to shake the conversation you had just had from your mind. “Did you want to maybe go find a game to play?”

“I thought you would never ask,” Owen responded brightly, and you couldn’t help but smile as you both went in search of something to entertain yourselves.

There were several different games that were being played throughout the house, but eventually, you and Owen found a game of charades that you were able to insert yourselves into. Anytime you had played this game, it had always been with Owen because Jake thought that it was stupid. More times than not, you and Owen won, and it had become an almost unsaid rule that you would be partners anytime you played.

“This isn’t fair,” Tori groaned as you jumped from your seat on the couch in victory when you and Owen won. “It’s like you two can read each other’s minds.” 

You grinned as Owen lifted you from your feet and spun you around quickly in a tight hug before setting you down, his arm remaining wrapped around your waist as he turned to face his friend. 

“You just wish you had a connection like us,” he taunted, and even though you knew that he was just being cocky, you still felt another pull in your chest as you slowly moved out of his embrace. He didn’t seem to notice what you were doing, which you were grateful for, as you didn’t move too far out of his reach for it to be obvious.

“We’re just really good at being on the same wavelength with these things,” you added, and Tori gave you a look that was similar to the one that Savannah had given you earlier in the night.

“Clearly not all things,” you heard her murmur, but you didn’t ask for her to elaborate because you were sure that you could already guess what she meant.

“I’m not really ready to go watch everyone be all couple-y again just yet. Did you maybe just want to… walk around?” Owen asked when the rest of the charades group started to disperse. You nodded, though you weren’t sure where exactly you were going to walk as the house wasn’t that big, and it was too cold outside to walk around out there. However, Owen reached out to take your hand as he guided you back down the hallway, away from everyone else, and you didn’t pull away as you followed him.

“You know, I thought this party was going to be a drag as one of the few single people here, but it’s actually been quite fun,” Owen mused as you walked through the hallway. You nodded as you looked up at him, your fingers still laced with his. 

“You’re welcome,” you joked, and when he looked down at you, he laughed.

“I mean, obviously I’m having a good time because you’re here. We just hadn’t talked about the party or anything, so I didn’t know… I wasn’t sure…”

“Wasn’t sure of what?” you asked, as his voice trailed off and he seemed to get lost in his thoughts. Owen’s gaze was fixed on the floor in front of him while he walked, and he didn’t look back at you when he spoke again.

“I wasn’t sure if you would find someone else you could bring so you wouldn’t feel lonely too.”

Your heart jumped in your chest, as you let your eyes scan across the various pictures on the wall as you passed.

“And who in the world would I bring on such short notice? It’s not like I’ve been hanging out with anyone since Jake broke up with me. No one but you, anyways,” you replied, and it took half a second after the words came out of your mouth for you to realize how bad it sounded. “Which I’ve loved, of course. I love spending time with you.”

Owen slowed to a stop in the doorway for the stairs that led to the basement as he dropped your hand and lifted his to rub the back of his neck nervously.

“Actually, about that…” he started, but before he could continue any further, there was a gasp from behind you, and when you both turned to see what was wrong, you were surprised to see Savannah at the end of the hall, a wide smile on her lips.

“What’s going on?” you asked nervously, but instead of responding with words, Savannah just pointed above your head. You and Owen both looked up at the same time, and your stomach rolled when you saw the familiar green plant dangling from the doorway above you.

“Mistletoe,” you whispered, and Owen inhaled sharply from next to you. You hadn’t actually thought that anyone would have put up mistletoe, as it was incredibly cliché, but it was also no surprise that since they did, it would be over a high traffic area like this particular doorway. You hadn’t known about it, and it was clear that Owen didn’t know about it, and now, you felt stuck.

“Umm,” Owen started again, and you looked up at him to see that his cheeks were flooded pink, and you were sure there was embarrassment and awkwardness written all over your face.

“We don’t have to do this,” you replied quickly. “We can just pretend like we never saw it.” When you glanced back down the hall, you saw that Savannah was gone, which was also surprising given that you were sure she would have loved to witness this particular moment, even though you weren’t sure which way it was going to go. It was probably for the best that you didn’t have any kind of audience when you had your heart broken in the middle of a Christmas party.

“I mean, it is tradition,” Owen spoke up a moment later, and you gave him a quizzical look. “I mean, this isn’t how I really saw this happening, but now that we’re here…” His words only confused you more as you tried to piece together exactly what was happening.

“How you saw what happening? Getting a kiss under the mistletoe? Of course, I’m sure it wasn’t with me,” you laughed half-heartedly, and the small smile on Owen’s face quickly disappeared as his blue eyes bore into yours.

“That’s not what I meant,” he insisted, his voice serious now as he took a half-step closer to you. “You’re the only person I could ever imagine wanting to kiss under the mistletoe.”

A shiver ran down your spine at the look he was giving you now, and you found it hard to formulate a response. You had no idea what was happening, and even though Savannah had insisted there was something that Owen felt for you, you hadn’t really allowed yourself to believe it. However, if you truly had heard his words correctly, maybe you were the wrong one.

“I, I don’t understand,” you replied lamely, and Owen’s hand reached out for yours once more, this time more hesitantly than the first. You could see the conflict in his eyes, and while you were hopelessly confused, you could make this emotion out better than the rest. He was nervous. 

“You know that I would never, ever want to do anything to ruin the friendship that we have. But, I’ve pretended like I don’t have feelings for you since the first day we hung out, and I gotta be honest, kissing you here, right now, would possibly make me the happiest I’ve ever been.”

You didn’t know what to say. Savannah had been right. You thought that you were so good at reading him, and yet you had missed the mark completely on how your own best friend felt about you. Sure, he was an actor and you were sure that he was great at hiding his feelings, but you felt quite dumb that you hadn’t noticed before. Not that it would have mattered then. But it sure mattered now.

There were a few, long seconds that passed between you as his confession hung in the air before you made your next move. He was waiting for you to make the call on what happened next, and instead of spilling your heart to him with words, you leaned up onto your tiptoes, curled your free hand around the back of his neck, and pressed your lips tenderly against his. 

You could feel him kiss you back immediately, and his free arm snaked around your waist, pulling you closer to him as you smiled against his lips. It felt perfect, though incredibly cliché, but you wouldn’t have had it any other way. Owen had been the one that had always been there for you. He had been the one to cheer you up after your first heartbreak, and he had been the one to stitch the pieces of your heart back together. The connection you shared was deeper than friendship, and you saw that now. You could feel it pass between you as your kisses continued, and even when he pulled away to rest his forehead against your own.

“For the record, you make me the happiest I’ve ever been as well,” you whispered, causing an even bigger smile to form on Owen’s features. 

“Maybe coming to the Christmas party alone wasn’t such a bad idea after all,” he mused, and you giggled as you buried your face in his neck. “Even better, now I don’t have to leave that way.”

Butterflies raged in your stomach as he kissed you again, but then a few seconds later, the sounds of someone clearing their throat behind you caused you to jump. Both you and Owen turned to see who had just walked into your moment, and you were greeted, once again, by Savannah’s smiling face.

“Just friends, huh?” She asked simply as she slipped past you, and you hid your face in Owen’s shoulder. You could feel him look down at you and then back at your friend, but he didn’t say anything as the blonde disappeared down the stairs. 

When you looked back up at Owen, he was smiling down at you, and your heart skipped in your chest as you immediately smiled back. 

“What do you want to do now?” You asked, and Owen pulled you closer with the arm he had wrapped around your waist before pressing a gentle kiss to your forehead.

“We can do whatever you want. I already got my Christmas miracle. I’m good to go.”

He grimaced. “Sorry didn’t mean to scare you,” he apologized.

“Didn’t Julie just tell you guys off about boundaries?” You narrowed your eyes at him.

He looked slightly guilty. “Yes, but there’s an exception today,” Luke hinted.

“And what would that be?” you grumbled.

“Because you’re all upset and shit,” he explained.

You half expected him to be joking but he was looking at you with complete seriousness. You felt your heart melt a little bit.

“And why do you know that?” you asked out of curiosity.

“Because you’ve been moping around all day!” Julie exclaimed. You turned to see your sister in the doorway.

“I have not!” you defended yourself. You looked to Luke for support but he was seemingly very interested in looking out your windows.

“Y/n you have barely left your room today, so you’re hanging out with them till you stop being a sad bitch,” she demanded.

You started to say how uncalled for she was being but she just ignored you and walked out.

You groaned and flopped back down on your bed. Luke’s lips twitched up in a way that you could tell he was trying not to laugh at you. “Oh no, I’m gonna need backup, aren’t I?” Luke rhetorically asked.

Before you could utter an ‘I’m fine’ the three were in your room. “Y/n you know what always makes me feel better when I’m sad?” Reggie asked. You rolled over to your side. “What Reggie?”

He started backing into a corner of your room. “Doing cannonballs.” He started sprinting over to your bed and you quickly rolled off with a yelp as you hit the ground.

Luke high fived Reggie, “Nice, we got her off the bed,” he cheered.

“You guys couldn’t have done that in a way that didn’t potentially send her to the hospital?” Alex asked. He pulled you to your feet, and you squeezed his hands gratefully.

“Meh, it was the more fun way,” Reggie shrugged.

Alex rolled his eyes. “Now come on, we’re going to the studio,” he told you.

You groaned, “No thanks, I’m just gonna stay here.” You could tell by the looks on their faces, that they were not going to give up that easily.

“Y/n I will carry you down there,” Reggie threatened. He crossed his arms, and Luke put his arm around him in agreement. You hopefully looked to Alex for defense but he shook his head at you.

“I’ll come on my own,” you agreed, not wanting to risk them dropping you.

Luke and Reggie shared a glance before trailing behind you to the studio. “Okay, so what do you guys want me to do in here?” you asked, as you walked through the doors.

“Well it’s more of what we want to show you,” Alex half explained.

You raised your eyebrows in confusion.

“We were waiting for a specific time to show you it, but we decided what better time than now,” Luke continued. Whatever it was, they all looked antsy to show it to you.

“So what is it?” Their excitement was starting to pass onto you.

“You have to close your eyes!” Reggie suddenly remembered.

With tight lips and suspicious eyes, you analyzed the three of them. Despite your love of the three you did not trust them for a second.

Luke tilted his head down and glanced up at you. “Come on y/n, you’ll be fine,” he insisted.

You nervously let your eyes shut. You could hear the three shuffling around, and you were pretty sure you heard someone trip; which you had to stifle a giggle at. You felt someone nearing you and you accidentally held your breath.

“Okay y/n you can open your eyes,” Reggie called out.

You opened them to see Alex hiding something behind his back, he pulled it out to show it to you. It was a black cropped leather jacket with little studs scattered on it, he turned it around to show the back which neatly said 'sunset curve manager' in white paint.

You took it into your hands. “Did you guys make this?” you asked in amazement.

“Well, we needed a little help from Flynn, but yeah the four of us made it,” Alex admitted.

You felt your eyes start to heat up. “Thank you guys.”

You couldn’t help but let your mind wander to how much time and effort they had probably put into your gift. Even though you weren’t actually a part of their band, they truly cared about you as if you were. You hugged the jacket to your chest, “I’m literally never taking this off,” you laughed, as your eyes started watering freely.

“Oh no, she’s crying. This is supposed to make her not sad,” Reggie joked. Luke mockingly elbowed him in the ribs.

“Do you need a hug?” Alex offered with open arms.

“Yeah, I’ll take one,” you agreed. You wrapped your arms around him, his sweatshirt was nice and soft, but still cold, since he was a ghost. You hoped you were leaking your tears onto his clothes.

“Can we get in on the hug?” Reggie hopefully asked.

“Sure,” you responded. Before you could move to let them in, they decided it was just best to squish you between them. Luke was to your left and Reggie was to your right. They all tightly squeezed you, as if it was the last time they were gonna get a hug. You could feel all of their hands against your back and you let yourself relax into their arms. As much as you were enjoying the closeness, after a while, it did feel like they were cutting off your air flow.

“Guys, I think you might be killing me,” you announced.

“Oh trust me it’s not that painful you’ll be fine,” Alex told you. You couldn’t currently see his face, but you were certain that he was smirking.

“I love you guys, but I’m not dying today,” you retorted.

They all backed up to give you some room to breathe. “So you wanna talk about what’s wrong?” Luke suggested.

You took a moment to put your feelings into words. “I don’t know, I guess I don’t really have a reason; I’ve just been really down today,” you admitted.

“You know what helps me with that?” Reggie asked.

You turned to him with wide eyes. “Reggie if you are about to almost land on me again I swear to god,” you threatened.

Reggie couldn’t help but laugh at that, and you heard Luke snicker. “No, I was going to say watching a comedy tv show,” he explained.

“Oh, nevermind then,” you backpedaled.

“Come on, I’ll set up the projector,” Luke offered.

“I really don’t want to bother you guys though,” you brought up.

“It’s not bothering if we want to spend time with you, and besides you would really be letting them down they haven’t been able to have a movie night in weeks,” Alex said.

“Are you manipulating me into self care right now?” you questioned.

Alex shrugged and his lips quirked up. “Maybe a little bit.”

“Wow, that’s a low blow for you Alex,” you scoffed. He just shrugged again. But his plan worked, you sat yourself down on the floor, and gladly took the blanket Reggie gave you.

“So what are we watching?” Luke asked the group of you.

“Parks and Rec?” you suggested.

“Sounds good to me,” Alex agreed, and Reggie shook his head.

Luke managed to have minimal struggles getting the show to play but he eventually did and came to sit next to the three of you.

It didn’t take long for all of you to be in a big cuddle pile on the floor along with various pillows and blankets. You were pretty sure Reggie was snoring by the fourth episode. Luke and Alex were practically laying on top of each other. Reggie’s head rested on top of your legs and Luke’s arm was resting on top of your stomach. In that moment you were perfectly comfy and completely happy. The blissful happiness wrapped a warmth around your body, that felt very similar to the hug from earlier. The warmth gently put you to sleep within minutes.

You awoke what felt like minutes later to the lights being flicked on. “Y/n Dad says it’s time for dinner!” Carlos called.

You groaned, “Carlos I was sleeping.”

That did not make Carlos look any more sympathetic. “And we are trying to be eating,” Carlos retorted. The boys started stirring at hearing speaking.

“Fine I’m getting up,” you surrendered.

“So?” Carlos questioned.

“So what?” you asked, as you grabbed your new jacket.

“Did they make you not a sad bitch?”

“Carlos! You can’t say that word!” You heard Luke start loudly laughing behind you.

“Well did they?” he intently asked.

You each took a spot around the table. 

“Everyone ready?” Flynn asked.

“Wait, we need a clock. Or a timer,” Luke pointed out.

You, Julie, and Flynn stared at Luke before remembering in the 90’s smart phones weren’t all that big.

“I’m setting a timer on my phone. It’ll beep when it’s been an hour,” Flynn explained.

“Man, we missed out on all the good inventions,” Reggie said.

“Okay. On your mark. Get set. Decorate!” Flynn shouted.

—

“Hey!” Luke shouted as you grabbed the icing he was also reaching for. 

“Hey is for horses,” you said.

Luke narrowed his eyes at you. “Don’t use it all. I need it for my house.”

“You think it’s gonna make your house look better? Because it’s not,” Alex taunted.

“Hey!” Luke shouted, and proceeded to launch a gumdrop at him.

Alex retaliated with a handful of powdered sugar.

“Alex!” Julie screeched as it got all over the floor. “You’re cleaning that up.”

“Luke started it!” He said.

“Nuh uh, you started it!” 

“Oh my god you guys are like children!” Flynn rolled her eyes.

You finished making icicles hanging down from your roof before passing the icing off to Luke. “For the record, I think yours looks pretty good,” you said.

“Hey you hear that Alex, Y/N thinks my gingerbread house is the best,” Luke twisted your words.

“I didn’t say it was the best. I said it looked pretty good,” you corrected.

“As your girlfriend, she’s obligated to say that,” Reggie said.

Luke scoffed, “Don’t be jealous, Reginald.”

Flynn’s phone started ringing, signaling the end of the hour. 

“Nooo. I’m not done,” Luke pouted, but set the bag of icing down.

“It’s because you were too busy fighting,” Julie said.

“Wait… who’s judging our houses?”

“Carlos,” Julie laughed. “And he’s a tough judge, so good luck.”

—

Carlos walked around the houses, expecting each one carefully. Like a true judge he took notes on a piece of paper and clipboard, tapping his pen to his chin as he observed each one.

“Okay. In third place we have,” he spoke dramatically, crossing to where Alex’s house was. “This one.”

“Yes!” Alex said, giving himself a high five.

“In second place is… this one.” Carlos pointed to Julie’s house.

“Second place!” She said with a smile. 

“And… the first place overall gingerbread house winner of the 2020 gingerbread house making olympics is...”

You all laughed at his title.

He walked towards your house and pointed at it. “This one.”

“I won!” you yelled.

“What?!” Luke yelled along with you. “Nuh uh! Mine was clearly better.”

“Sorry Luke. Better luck next time,” You said, patting his shoulder and giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Congratulations Y/N,” Carlos said. “And as the first place winner you get to decide which one we get to eat. And pick fast, because I’m hungry.”