#kiara

TLK: Protective

Something meant for Mother's Day with Nala being protective of her cubs.

pairing: jj maybank x fem!reader

desc: reader gets injured while surfing and asks for jj, but they've been secretly dating.

details: secret new relationship and reveal, surfing accident, hurt/comfort, fluff, platonic!john b x platonic!reader, platonic!pope x platonic!reader, platonic!kie x platonic!reader

SONG: You Found Me by The Fray

au college! rafe cameron x female reader

synopsis: Y/n has always lived her life for the people she loves. Putting their needs and wants before hers. But as she gets entangled with a guy named Rafe Cameron, everything changes and challenges everything she knew.

themes: College romance, friends to lovers, slowburn, angst, fluff, yearning, mental health, autism, drinking, friendship, dorm

a/n: aahhh i never really realised how nerve-wracking it is to put out my work and honestly this series is....gonna take a while because i really love a good storyline and depth...i promise to publish blurbs and drabbles soon (even though it's already sitting in my notes BAHAHAHHA) Also apologies if the grammer is weird!

w/c: 2.6k

Prologue, Part One

Part One: First Encounters

An awkward silence seems to fill the room. She stands by the door with her hand on the doorknob, still taken aback by the sudden and unexpected appearance of the two unfamiliar guys who were sitting on the floor. She keeps quiet, not knowing how to react. 

Truthfully, y/n and her roommate didn’t really get to know each other. When it was move-in day at the dorm building, they didn’t see each other because y/n had to deal with Michael’s care facility before she could settle in the dorm. She even moved in late. Ever since then, it has been just hi’s and bye’s between them. 

All three of them get up to approach y/n as she quickly closes the door behind her. She takes a big gulp and closes her eyes with her back facing them, just so she can mentally prepare for socialization. She turns back around and slightly fakes a smile. She looks up to see Kiara standing in front of her, with the guys hovering behind her. She tucks in her curly hair behind her ear and smiles warmly at her. She introduces the guys and y/n to each other. 

The three of them have known each other since they were in middle school, being from the same city and all. Rafe and Pope were a year older than Kiara, so they were like big brothers to her. Apparently, they have made a promise to each other that they would enrol in the same college so that they could stay together as a group. At this point, they’re more like siblings. Y/n wishes she had friends like that but she mostly kept to herself throughout middle and high school. She couldn’t really seem to fit in with the others. She was always too nervous around people. Just like right now. 

“Well, it’s great to finally meet Kie’s roommate”, Pope smiles at y/n. She nervously smiles at him. She admits to herself that she feels like a phantom in their dorm because she’s rarely around, but instead working at her part-time jobs. 

Before she can reply to him, he speaks up again, “We’re sorry to intrude your dorm this late…we’re just chilling around”.

She chuckles, mentioning that she doesn’t mind them at all. However, she would love to freshen up and lie down on her bed after spending the whole day outside. Fortunately, Kiara tells her that they’re leaving for a party just around the block, not far from their campus. Y/n looks at their outfits and it is apparent that their night is not over yet. On the other hand, she notices that Rafe is particularly quiet while the other two keep talking to her. He didn’t even talk at all. She doesn’t mind it at all, but she was just curious to know what he would sound like. There is no doubt that she finds him attractive with his lovely green eyes and broad shoulders. Even so, her mind is focused on her bed, which is just behind them. 

To make it even worse, Kiara asks her if she wants to come along for the party. She swears she could just lie down on the floor right now and sleep, so she politely declines her offer. After a while, they start to make their move. Pope opens the door and the rest follow behind him. 

“I hope to see you around more often”

She smiles at Kiara’s words. She seems sweet. Rafe is the last one to close the door.

“Sweet dreams, y/n”

His smile disappears behind the door. Her heart stops for a second. And there was the voice of Rafe Cameron. Not only did he decide to speak at the very end of that whole interaction, he shot her a smile that seems rather dangerous. She shakes her head before she thinks too much about it. 

As sad as it sounds, y/n never really interacts with people. She tries but every interaction she had in her life left a weird feeling in her stomach. It's just her, not because of the others. But mostly, it was all just insults thrown at her about Michael. Hence, that whole interaction really catches her off guard. But of course, there are very few that leave a good impression on her.

She buries her head into her pillow as the sunlight sneaks into the dorm. It was already morning. She turns around to face the ceiling and slowly opens her eyes. She rubs her eyes slowly and reaches out for her phone on the nightstand beside her bed. She scrunches her eyebrows together as she squints her eyes. She woke up earlier than she had expected, and maybe it’s because she has always woken up early in the morning. She looks at the empty bed beside her and realises that Kiara’s not in. And that means she has the dorm to herself. 

Y/n snacks on her microwaved pasta while doing her school assignment on her laptop. It was one of the rare days where she didn’t pick up a shift in any of her part-time jobs. She just wants to catch up on weeks worth of lectures. It is quiet. No orders from customers, no lectures from professors, just her and her slides in the bed. If she could, she would just ignore her lectures, head straight to the bed and sleep the whole day.

In the late afternoon, the door opens and finally comes Kiara. Y/n turns around in her chair. Kiara greets her and plops onto her own bed as she takes off her shoes. She seems tired, having spent the entire night out. She moves around in the dorm, trying to get her stuff together for a shower.

“So do you have any plans later?”, she asks. 

Y/n is in a daze. She didn’t think about going out at all. Kiara sits down on her bed and seems to be deep in thoughts. She presses her lips into a thin line.

“Do you perhaps….wanna hang out with me and the guys?”

“Hang out with…you and Pope…and Rafe?”

She nods enthusiastically and her eyes start to sparkle, hoping that y/n will say yes. She has always been wanting to spend some time with y/n, considering she never really gets to see her in the dorm. It would be even much better if they become good friends. Y/n blinks as she hesitates to give her an answer. She nervously laughs and reluctantly agrees. 

Kiara squeals with excitement and goes over to her drawer to pick out clothes for later. It’s like she never sleeps. Y/n shakes her head, confused as to what she signed herself up for. She doesn’t even know where they’re going. She stands up and cautiously approaches Kiara to ask her. 

Apparently, Rafe is having a housewarming party in his new apartment. Y/n widened her eyes due to the fact that he could even afford such a place in New York, considering he is still in school. Some, if not all, may accuse Rafe Cameron as a trust fund baby. Kiara mentions that his family owns a huge construction and manufacturing business in the city. Must’ve been nice.

Y/n looks in the mirror as she fixes her hair and clips her long fringes behind her ears. She thought to herself that it must feel nice to have a place of their own at such a young age, but how awfully lonely it would be. She had no doubt that Rafe’s nights would be lonely, being a financially comfortable college guy in NYC. She starts thinking about all the girls he’ll bring to his apartment to hook up with, or parties that he will throw. Just like this housewarming party.

Y/n and Kiara walk along the hallway. She slightly furrows her eyebrows as she could hear music and people talking. No way that he would invite the whole college to his apartment. She gently holds Kiara’s arms, and stops them before heading closer to his apartment just in front of them.

“Is there gonna be a lot of people?”

“Oh yeah! Rafe’s in the hockey team so they’re probably in there with their own friends”

“But I thought it’s a housewarming party…”

Her face immediately drops at the thought of being in a small space with many people. Not to mention, people around her age. She brings her hand up to her chest and starts to fiddle around with her necklace anxiously. She takes a big gulp as she tries to process this information. Kiara notices and hugs her to reassure that she wouldn’t leave her side. Y/n highly doubts that. She forces a smile. Her mind is now filled with endless thoughts, even some being how to leave the party politely.

They arrive right at his doorstep and Kiara rings the bell. Rafe opens the door and shoots them a warm smile. Kiara shoves a  glass of wine as a housewarming gift into his arm and he gladly takes it, placing a hand on his chest and smirks. They went in and y/n jaw drops. The apartment looks so cozy and homely. Nothing that she had expected from Rafe. 

She can see movie posters and odd trinkets all around the apartment. Honestly, she thought the place would be like a finance bro cave with white walls everywhere and not a single trace of personality. He brings them around and sees that Pope is already in the kitchen, helping Rafe to prepare the food he had bought for the party.  She hears 2000s rnb and indie music playing in the background. 

Surprisingly, it isn’t the music that’s loud, but the voices instead. As she tries to familiarise herself in the environment, she can’t help but notice the people. Bunch of friends in every corner, having conversations and laughing among themselves. She can feel eyes on her as she walks through the room with Kiara beside her. 

They eventually settle down on the couch. Y/n bites her lower lip as Rafe brings them a can of beer. She looks at the beer and realises she has never drank alcohol before. She looks around and opens the can, pretending to drink it. And then the worst thing finally happened. Kiara was eventually whisked away by her other friends, leaving y/n alone. She tries to reach her hand out to Kiara but she quickly pulls it back. She fiddles with her necklace again. Rafe and Pope are nowhere in sight. She looks around again and she can feel the walls caving in. She closes her eyes to calm herself down, but she can only hear the noises getting louder. She scratches her forehead, hoping it will go away. But she can’t take it. She opens her eyes and it only makes the room spin for her. She immediately gets up and puts the can on the table in front of her. She hurriedly slithers among the crowd of people and leaves the apartment. Before she presses the first floor in the lift, she sees the button for the rooftop. 

She opens the door and gasps. She can see the city’s skyline. All the lights from every building just shining,  giving the illusion that the city never sleeps. She covers her mouth and chuckles. She goes closer to the edge of the rooftop and puts her hands on the railing. She takes a deep breath and smiles. All the nervous system got out of her. The wind blows through her hair, causing it to fall onto her face. She laughs as she tucks in her hair behind her ears. She keeps her sight on the breathtaking view in front of her. She has never seen the city like this. 

It only makes her wonder how much she has missed ever since moving there. Her eyes softens. She folds her arm as she starts thinking. She could never take the time to admire the city, when all her days are filled with school and work and visits to Michael’s facility. She never has time for herself.She can’t afford it. She inhales and tilts her head just a little, never leaving her sight on the skyline. A wave of sadness crashes through her, realising that she can never truly be as free as she wants. But at the same time, she knows how incredibly fortunate she is. Being in the city of dreams, working her way up to a future that could help her family. 

She hears the door open and turns her head around immediately. It’s Rafe. Her mouth widens a bit, shocked to see him there. But somehow he doesn’t look too surprised to see her there.

 “Y/n? I thought you left”

He walks up to her. He settles beside her, putting his arm on the railing. She looks around and realises that it is just the two of them on the rooftop. She starts to feel nervous around him. She tries to avoid his eyes.

“I… almost did..”

“Well… I’m glad you didn’t”

It hits her. He’s on the rooftop instead of his apartment. She looks at him, puzzled. She hesitates to speak up.

“Why aren’t you in your apartment?…It’s your housewarming party”

He looks back at her and she quickly looks out to the skyline. It’s like a reflex. He presses his lips into a thin line and shrugs his shoulders.

“I just needed some fresh air“

She slowly turns her head back to look at him. They eventually made eye contact, and somehow it doesn’t feel too nerve-wrecking for her. She thinks that maybe it’s because she understands how it can get overwhelming with crowds. It must have been exhausting for him to entertain all these people in his home. She just never expects it from him. She doesn’t know why. A smile starts to crack up on y/n’s face.

“Thanks for coming. I know parties aren’t really your scene”

“H-how did you know?”

“I saw that you kept playing with your necklace the whole time you were in there…must’ve been nerve-wrecking being in a room full of people you don’t know”

She slightly opens her mouth and her eyes start to panic, wanting to say something. She shakes her head and starts waving her hand around. She doesn’t want him to think that she hates the party. He laughs at her reaction, putting his hand on his chest and pulls his body back.

“I’m so sorry..I didn’t mean to-I just”

“It’s fine..I completely understand”

He tries to reassure her. He understands her. Somehow, he finds it nice to find someone introverted because most of his friends love to socialise and just get out there. They’re big social butterflies but sometimes it’s hard to keep up. Kiara and Pope knows about this particular demeanor of his, so they never force him to do anything he doesn't want to. With y/n, he feels like he doesn't really have to talk a lot with her. She nervously laughs again and looks back out to the view in front of them.