#stuck together

Do what you want, as long as you stay here

A Miguel O’Hara x fem!reader fanfic

Miguel is Readers best friends fiancé’s older brother, who she’s had a crush on for a long time. After a weekend celebrating the engagement, Reader and Miguel are stuck on a jouney home together.

———————————————————————-

It was a long night for Amaya's engagement party.

My best friend, Amaya, had gotten engaged two months ago to her fiancé Gabriel, and it was officially the time to celebrate.

It was hosted at her grandparents' lavish estate in Cape Cod.

I had visited there enough times to know that it is insane, her grandparents have that kind of old money where you know they’re rich, but they don’t really talk about it kind of rich.

I live in Manhattan, so I drove with Amaya the night before the engagement party, and helped her set it up.

The party itself was fun, there were maybe two hundred or three hundred people inside the house. It had a cozy feel to it, everyone laughing, drinking, eating, all around their grandparents house that had their spring wedding theme to it, besides it being December.

The music was soft, light, in the background just enough for it to not be annoying if you were talking to someone.

I didn’t mind it for once, I actually stayed by Amaya for most of the time, mingling when I had to, and typically I hate parties.

I enjoyed being around Amaya's family, also.

Besides her mother in law, Conchata, and her current husband, Tyler Stone, of course.

I talked with her aunts and uncles, her siblings, Gabriel's mom and dad, as well as his cousins.

I also had two small conversations with Gabriel's other brother, Miguel.

I had a thing for him when I first started being Amaya’s friend six years ago, when I was a sophomore in college.

Amaya was already dating Gabriel, and I had met Miguel for the first time at a party Gabriel was hosting.

I thought he was sooooo fine, and then immediately got sad when I saw he was talking to some girl that looked like a model.

Dana, or something.

He dated her for a little bit, they were on and off, and I never tried to get with him, since he and Dana had this ‘doomed but end goal’ relationship.

But.

He was and still is hot.

————————————————————————

I was at the dining table, where a spread of foods and snacks were set out.

I was sent on a mission to appease my starving friend who was stuck talking to a million people about the wedding coming up in the late spring.

I was balancing a plate of food on my arms, trying to pick from the spread what I remembered she liked, as well as dodging people who kept standing and talking at the table.

I picked out a few foods for her and a plate for Gabriel as well, when someone scooped some candied oranges onto the plate for Gabriel.

I looked up to see who it was, sure enough, Miguel was there.

“He likes these.”

He was standing close enough that I could smell his scent, evergreen and cinnamon, pretty festive.

He put some other food onto the plate for me.

“Are you sure or are you trying to trick me?”

Amaya is pretty specific when it comes to her food, and most of the time she isn’t a fan of most tastes.

He scoffed like that was the stupidest thing ever. “Why would I fuck with you like that? It’s food.”

“Sorry. I appreciate it.” I was thankful, I actually didn’t know what Gabriel liked.

I stared at him for a few seconds, and his brows scrunched at me, before he walked away into the swarm of people.

I decided not to do anything about it, because he’s always been that way, ominous.

————————————————————————

The next time I saw him, everyone was gone.

Amaya and Gabriel were sleeping in the guest room, drunk as hell.

The other guests who were close to Amayas’ grandparents were too drunk to drive or able to call an uber to their motels.

I had cleaned up a little bit, before me and the other people who were sober decided it was enough for the night, it was three am.

I had wrapped myself in my coat, and decided if I was to spend the night in Cape Cod, I’d enjoy the ocean.

I picked up some soda that Amaya and I picked out, wrapped myself in my coat and scarf, and walked out to the backyard.

The way the house was faced, the backyard was able to see the ocean, and I loved it.

Their backyard had a gazebo, an outdoor sitting area, and a closed up pool.

I sat on one of the chairs in the sitting area, the sharp cold from the sea hitting my face, but I didn’t mind.

I poured myself a glass of the soda, sipping on it occasionally.

It was maybe twenty minutes after when I heard the door sliding open, and I saw him again.

He was in his coat and gloves, walking over to me.

He sat down in the chair next to mine, and for a long time, we both didn’t say anything.

The wind cut through our silence for a bit, and I just kept drinking.

“She really appreciates you, y’know.”

His voice was low and gravelly, making my head swarm.

“I know.”

My eyes had started to water from the cold, and I kept having to wipe the fallen tears on my scarf.

He seemed to notice but not say anything.

“I just feel like she may not tell you enough.”

Why did he care how his soon to be sister in-law treated me?

“You don’t have to tell people you appreciate or love them. Sometimes they just know.”

He sat back in the chair, and I swore from the corner of my eye I saw him lift a corner of his mouth to smile.

We went back to our silence, and I started to get anxious.

I knew I got even more awkward around him, and to be more honest, I definitely did not want to tell him what I feel for him.

So, we both decided to stay quiet again, and about a quarter of the way done, I glanced over at him and gave a nod, walking into the house.

The worst part about it is that I almost fell trying to walk the stone sidewalk, and I could tell he looked.

I grabbed one of the chairs beside me to stabilize myself since I was so tired, and I swore under my breath for embarrassing myself.

I brought my stuff inside and washed my glass, throwing out the soda can in the recycling bin.

Where I was sleeping for the night was the basement couch, and I wrapped myself in a throw blanket.

I thought of him, the pout he always seemed to have.

I wondered why he was alone, why Dana wasn’t with him.

Amaya told me Dana was going to be there.

I secretly smiled to myself, but wiped it off.

It wasn’t my business to find humor in others' despair.

————————————————————————

When I woke up, I smelled bacon cooking upstairs, a small headache hurting my head from how early it was and how late I stayed up.

The basement was nice, cozy, and dark, and I didn’t want to move, but the smell enticed me to no end.

My eyes drifted to the coffee table in front of me, where I saw a smoothie that looked like it was made maybe an hour ago, a cup of water.

With a hum I sat up, taking a sip of the smoothie. Tasted like a green machine, but with protein powde

I showered in the bathroom in the basement and dressed in there, walking upstairs with the empty water cup, sipping on the smoothie.

I saw everyone sitting at the dining table, and made eye contact with Miguel, before he looked away as soon as his eyes met mine.

There was an open spot next to her younger cousin, I think he’s maybe seven?, and her aunt that was really sweet and was one of the group of us that cleaned up last night, so I took it, setting my cups in front of my plate.

Her family had already started their deep conversations, and it felt like if I joined, I’d be stuck in a molasses of philosophy, so I didn’t. I liked to listen more than I liked to be in on conversations, but her younger cousin next to me was really interested in what I do.

I’m a neuroscientist, and I guess this eight year old is also interested in psychology that he just wants to keep asking question after question.

He was funny, actually.

He kept asking ‘why’ over and over which made me laugh really hard after the nth time, and got the attention of the people around me.

For once, I didn’t care, and the little cousin laughed with me.

I was so caught up in my shared mirth that I didn’t notice a pair of dark brown eyes watching me.

————————————————————————

At around two in the afternoon, I had cleaned up my area in the basement and packed.

I had to start my journey back to the city sometime.

Since Amaya was staying for a little bit longer, I had to figure out my situation. Most of her family lived around the area or lived in Boston.

Her mother in-law and father figure in-law lived in New York, but I would rather die than stick myself into that situation.

My only other option was Miguel.

Con,

stuck in a car with him.

Pro,

stuck in a car with him.

————————————————————————

I said goodbye to my comfy couch bed and crazy bathroom I had to myself, and lugged my stuff up.

I went upstairs to ask Amaya, and she said she already asked Miguel, since she knew who I’d most likely pick out of the horrible and scary options.

I saw Miguel outside, packing up his stuff into the trunk of his Mercedes-Benz. I'm still jealous that he can afford that kind of car and keep it, especially in the city.

I borrowed someone’s shoes to put on, and wrapped my sweater around myself, and walked out with my stuff.

He seemed to have noticed me, and took the heaviest bag from my shoulder before I could protest, and put it into the car.

I stood there, awkwardly watching him pack the rest of the stuff, placing my other bag in the trunk when he told me to.

“I hope you don’t mind.” I spoke up. He looked busy organizing the bags to optimize the most amount of room, like my dad would do.

He let out a breath.

“It’s just driving you home. We live near each other."

‘Just driving you home.’

Except for me, it’s staying in a car for four hours with a man I had a crush on since forever.

I nodded, and turned to walk back inside.

I told myself it was because it was freezing and I didn’t put my coat on, not because I was mad he didn’t like me like I like him.

————————————————————————

I said goodbye to everyone, some people I wouldn’t see probably until the wedding, so I hugged them tighter.

Her grandma and grandpa gave me a bag of cookies, since I had mentioned to them I love their cookies, her Abuelo Renato telling me to keep Miguel in check during the car ride.

I laughed, and went to hug Amaya and say bye to Gabriel.

Miguel was talking to Gabriel, so it was a little awkward to say bye.

Amaya and Gabriel walked us out, and I got into Miguels’ car, he got in, and we were off on our little adventure.

————————————————————————

About an hour into the car ride, we both got a warning on our phones that there was a severe snowstorm heading to our area in about three hours.

We chatted about if we should keep going or find a place to stay, and I said sometimes storms could come faster, and he countered that they could come slower.

We’d also be in New York in three hours, so we just kept on pushing.

He let me monitor his music and skip when I wanted, but his music was close to my taste so I didn’t skip often.

My eyes drifted to him one time, and I paused.

He looked so focused.

I don’t know why, but him driving just was so fascinating to me.

I started to worry that he’d get tired while driving, so I spoke up.

“Hey, if you get tired I can drive.”

He looked over for a second, and gave me a look.

“No.”

I kept pushing, even if he sounded annoyed already.

“I just feel bad if you drove the entire time while I sat here.”

He let out a breath through his nose, tilting his head while driving to crack his neck.

I allowed myself to look at him again, and when I did, his eyes met mine in a brief moment.

I looked away, and glanced out the window.

My brain led me on a journey throughout my feelings of him over the years. They eventually led me to the path of letting go, since he was perpetually in love with a woman who was so toxic for him.

My eyes shut after a few moments, sleep taking over me despite my anxiety of being around him.

————————————————————————

The next time my eyes opened up, it was an hour later, and I woke up from a swerve of the car.

Miguel let out a loud curse, his hands working with the wheel to stabilize it.

My brain didn’t think as fast as to what was happening, and my breathing stilled as well.

It was packed snow, pouring down from a dark abyss that was the night sky's clouds.

It was hard to see in front, maybe ten feet, which was horrible for even the best drivers.

The snowstorm had hit earlier like I had thought.

When Miguel finally got the car to listen, he pulled it onto the side of the highway.

Both of our breaths were heavy, staring blankly.

“Qué mierda, pinche cabro…”

His swears drowned out in my head as I thought about our situation.

We were stuck.

On the highway.

In a snowstorm that was going to last until tomorrow afternoon.

I pulled my knees up into my chest, resting my head on them for a moment to calm down, so I won’t start yelling at him for not listening to me.

An argument really wouldn’t help our predicament.

A minute later, I let go of my legs, looking over at him.

He was on his phone, his jaw clenched so hard it looked like it hurt.

“What are you doing?”

I tilted my head, trying to peek at his screen.

“Looking for a fucking motel or something.” He mumbled under his breath.

I sighed, and looked at my phone as well.

We were lucky enough to have some sort of a signal.

Positivity was always my go to.

I found an Inn about a mile and a half away, straight out of a cheesy holiday movie.

I wanted to make sure he can try and find something closer, so I stayed silent for a few moments, noticing how he kept scrolling through lists of places.

“I found a place.”

His face whipped over to mine, taking my phone out of my hand.

It seemed like he liked the place, because he put directions for it, and started driving again.

When we finally got there about fifteen minutes later, we had to drive incredibly slow to be safe, Miguel estimated where a parking spot was.

It looked like there were a ton of cars.

Fuck, maybe I shouldv’e checked if there were rooms open.

The Inn itself looked really cute and welcoming, there were reindeer decorations at the main window, and I internally smiled at how something this cute could be at our convenience.

Miguel however, was not as festive.

He pulled the key out of the car and put on his gloves, stepping out.

I took a moment to put on my scarf, putting my hands into my coat pockets, and followed him inside.

The chirp from his lock system on his car behind us, and I looked back to see the snow still piling on.

————————————————————————

We walked in, and it smelled like grandma's house and cinnamon.

It was a giant mansion of a home turned into an inn, and it had an old vintage feel.

The main room was holiday themed and ginormous, with a grand staircase that probably led to the upstairs room.

The walls were dark brown wood, and had snowflakes and fake snow on the ledges, along with what looked like family or old photos of the inn.

I was in a winter wonderland.

Miguel looked back at me, and before I realized it, his fingers were brushing the snow off of my hair.

My face flushed, but I doubt he noticed it from how my face looked because of being cold.

He dropped his hand as soon as it did what it needed to do, and he shook his hair from the fallen snow.

There was a clerk at the desk, a younger man, and we both walked up to him.

“Hello, do you have a reservation?” The clerk looked from me to Miguel, then back to me.

I took it as my chance to speak.

“Uh, no, but we were stuck in the storm, and we were wondering if you had any rooms left.” I sounded like a toddler trying to order ice cream. Hopefully that’s not how I actually sounded.

He hummed, tapping on his computer.

It must have ticked Miguel off enough that the man took too long, because his finger started tapping on the counter.

The clerk seemed to notice, his eyes flicked to his finger, then back to the screen.

It looked so staged that he didn’t have to take that long, and my face broke out into a smile.

“Yes, we do. There is our honeymoon suite still available.”

We paused to let him continue, but when the clerk looked back up at us, we exchanged glances.

“Just one?” Miguel spoke up, looking down at the clerk over the counter. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. The suite.” The clerk reminded me of some annoyed squid and I almost laughed, but let it drop so I could help our situation.

“How many beds?”

“Just one, ma’am.” I internally sighed, and Miguel's jaw ticked. He clicked on more information for the room, and looked up at Miguel and I. “A king bed, one full bathroom on the third floor.”

I bit my lip, strumming my fingers on my hip.

Miguel looked a little upset, but sighed. “Is there another place closer to here who might have two rooms, or at least, two beds?”

Ouch.

The clerk, Jeremey, I finally noticed his nametag that blended into his sweater, shrugged. “None that I could think of that are somewhat clean. The weatherman said not to drive, anyways.”

Miguel let out a breath through his nose, pouting his lips, but inevitably reaching into his coat and pulling out his wallet.

I grabbed mine from my purse as well, and Miguel and I handed our cards at the same time, our fingers almost touching.

I looked at him, and him at me, and he took my card out of my fingers, holding onto it so the only option an unamused Jeremey could grab was his.

I let out a small ‘hey’, but he didn’t notice.

We heard the chime of the card being accepted, and Jeremey looked up with a smile.

“Alright, that’s room three-o-eight on the third floor. There’s a staircase right there that leads up to the third floor, or an elevator down the hall if you need it.”

We both said our ‘thank you’s’ as Miguel handed me back my card, and Jeremey handed Miguel’s card back.

“Goodnight, lovebirds.” Jeremey handed us the key with a small smile.

I let out a stifled laugh and turned away, but Miguel was already walking to the entrance.

I followed him, tilting my head. “Where are you going?”

“We need our bags. Less you got everything in there.” He nodded his head to my purse, and I gave him a look. “S’what I thought. Stay here.”

He started to walk out, putting his gloves back on.

I started to walk back over to the receptionist desk, resting my arms against it. Jeremey looked back up at me. “Can I help you?”

”Yeah, uhm, is there still food service? I forgot to ask.”

He nodded, handing me a menu. “If you call, they’ll send it. They don’t close the kitchen until ten tonight.”

“That’s late. I hope they don’t tire themselves out.” I hummed, taking the pamphlet, skimming through it. “Thank you.”

“They’re fine. We set out beds for them in the fridge.” His nonchalanted jokes were so funny, I had to break out a smile.

Miguel returned with four bags, two of mine and two of his, and set them down.

I reached for mine, to which he shooed my hand away, picking all four of them back up, two on his shoulders and two in his arms.

He started walking to the stairs and I eyed Jeremey, who looked at me and flexed. I don’t know why it was funny, but I laughed really hard I cried, and Miguel didn’t say anything.

I bet he thinks I’m crazy.

At this point, I might go crazy being in a room with him.

A honeymoon suite!

The same bed!

I forgot, I have to call Amaya about how we were doing. I guess I’ll do that later.

————————————————————————

We got up the stairs to our room, 308, which was the last one at the end of the hall, and Miguel unlocked it, holding the door open for me.

I thanked him, walking inside.

It looked exactly like I thought.

A Winter Wonderland.

I can’t imagine what this place looks like in the fall.

The room was large, there was a couch, an armrest and a larger tv, a sort of living room. It was decorated like it was in a snowstorm in a forest, just like the lobby.

A lit up evergreen stood at one of the windows, and I walked up to look out the window.

It was still pouring snow outside, and I shivered at how cold it looked.

At the end of the wide room, there was the bed.

It looked large enough for the both of us.

The bathroom was near the bed, and it had a tub and a shower.

Oh yeah.

I will be taking a bath.

Miguel walked behind me, setting the stuff down on top of the beds, unamused to the festivity that surrounded us.

He sighed heavily, laying down on the couch.

I noticed him trying to search for something throughout the room from where I was standing, the window. “I got a pamphlet for some food service.”

He lifted his head up to look at me.

“Give me it. Go shower, I can order.”

I huffed, trying to find the pamphlet I stuffed into my coat pockets. “A please would be nice.” I mumbled.

He seemed to hear it, because he let out a small ‘please’.

I smiled to myself, and finally found the now crumpled pamphlet, handing it to him. “May I have the garlic parm french fries?”

He let out a sound, taking the menu and reading it for himself. “No.”

I rolled my eyes, muttering a ‘fuck you mean, no?’, and started to shuffle through my bag for my shower stuff.

I took my stuff and got into the bathroom.

I stayed in the tub for a while after washing my body.

I didn’t want to wash my hair yet, even though the snow made it a little frizzy.

I then forgot to call Amaya, so after I got out and wrapped my robe around me, unplugging the drain, I grabbed my phone from the sink and called her.

She picked up after my second call. She always does. I call her the two ringer, except I would if I didn’t find it rude, so I keep it to myself.

“Hey, you home yet?” The facetime showed her eyeballs and forehead, in the basement of her grandparents.

“No, we got stuck in the storm. It came really early.”

“Oh shit, thought you’d be in New York by now. It hasn’t started snowing yet, but it’s supposed to this hour.” She sipped some drink on Facetime, and I laughed.

Oh shoot I forgot to tell her.

“Hey, so you know how we’re stuck?”

“Yeah? What’d you guys end up doing.”

I hesitated, hiding my smile.

“We went to an Inn. It’s pretty nice.”

“Yeah? Did he let you get the bed away from the door? Hopefully he’s a gentleman like Gabriel.” I giggled like a school girl, and she noticed. “What?”

“There was only one room available.”

She pinched her eyebrows. “Okay…?”

“With one bed.”

Her mouth dropped, and I squealed silently, lowering the volume on my phone so Miguel might not hear. “No fucking way.”

My amusement fell as soon as I realized. “Hey, is he with Dana right now?” God, this sounds stupid. I sound so hopeful.

“Uh, I could ask Gabriel.”

I had to cut her off, Gabriel has a running mouth.

“No! It’s okay.”

She looked at me sideways and I gave her a reassuring smile.

“Okay… But I still want you as my sister in-law, so don’t give up. Love you, keep calling me.”

I let out a shocked gasp. “Love you too.”

We mutually hung up, and I looked at myself in the mirror after I wiped it off.

My hair was in a bun to protect it from the water, me wrapped in my robe. The hot water still gave my skin a flush, but it was good.

I got into my pajamas, some light blue pj shorts I almost always wear for sleeping, and one of my navy t-shirts from a concert I went to.

I might get cold, but when I sleep, I’d rather be cold than warm.

When I got out of the bathroom, the smell of food hit me.

My stomach started growling instantly, and I practically dropped my stuff off on my side of the bed, looking at the food service tray that was behind the couch.

Miguel’s gaze was glued to the screen, the Knicks were playing the Celtics tonight, so I doubt I will get one word from him.

My eyes went back to the tray.

There was a little note that had a heart, and the tray had rose petals.

Right, the honeymoon suite asked for room service.

I uncovered the food, to find my garlic parm fries, some chicken tenders, and then what looks like chicken parm and spaghetti.

Must be his plate.

I went over with the plates, handing him his with a fork, to which he let out a small ‘thank you’.

I wanted to sigh at how short our interactions were, but every time I remember he’s in love with someone.

My throat started hurting at how fast I was eating, and I had to take a moment to stop, placing my plate on the coffee table.

The cheers from the tv kept me occupied.

It was the second quarter, three minutes to half time, and the Celtics were up on the Knicks by fourteen points.

I let out a small hum, tilting my head. “Tough game.”

It took him a minute to register, or get out of his zone, and he glimpsed over at me for a few seconds, letting out a small ‘mhm’.

We were left in silence, the game the only thing making sure my brain didn’t go insane.

My leg started bouncing for a minute, before words flowed out of my mouth. “It was nice of you to buy the place, but I could have chipped in, y’know.”

He didn’t have to look at me, but I doubt the halftime ads were more riveting than this conversation. “It’s fine. I didn’t want you to, anyways.”

My brows pinched, and my head turned to face him. “Why?”

“The room was eight hundred dollars. I didn’t think it would be fair to make you pay for half.”

I tilted my head. ‘The fuck?’

“What does that mean?” My voice started to get more and more irritated.

‘Was he calling me broke?’

He seemed to notice how I was responding, and leaned back to face me. “No, just wanted to be polite.”

My teeth sank into my tongue so no more words flowed out.

My eyes peeled back to the screen.

Maybe these ads were more interesting than this conversation.

His fingers strummed on the arm of the couch, still looking at me. “I’m sorry, it sounded ruder. It’s just… I don’t know.” He drowned out.

“You thought I couldn’t afford it?” God, I still sounded mad.

His head tilted a small bit in a nod, and I scoffed.

“Why would I offer to pay if I couldn’t?”

“I don’t know, you’re just a nice person.” He sounded defensive, like he was upset that I was upset. His unwanted compliment shocked me enough for him to continue. “Look, I didn’t want to offend you. I’m sorry.” His dark gaze was still on me.

I lifted my eyes to his, then back to the screen. “S’okay. I didn’t mean to sound so angry. It was nice of you.”

The way his eyebrows lifted up a miniscule amount made me wonder if he’d ever heard an apology.

The conversation had cooled, and we both didn’t need to say anything more.

Time went on, and it was now the fourth quarter, with one minute left.

Knicks - 114

Celtics - 108

My mouth lifted up in a smile, as I thought about making him jokingly mad.

I decided to proceed with my malicious plan.

“I think Celtics got it.” I offered my fake peace so nonchalantly that I saw him take a double take.

“No the fuck they don’t.” His defensiveness and higher pitched voice made me laugh, my eyes watering at how hard the humor hit me. I guess it was funny enough that he joined in on the mirth, laughing into the hand that was just rubbing the headache away.

“I swear, I would’ve thrown you out the window.”

My smile was so wide it probably reached my ears, as I looked at him.

His face looked less…

Ominous.

He finally looked like someone real.

Someone who isn’t being cheated on, on the regular.

The thought made my smile drop, and I looked back at the screen.

————————————————————————

Dana was Dana.

She was smart, yeah, pretty, definitely, but not a great person for Miguel.

From what I heard, Gabriel and Dana had gone out in their freshman year of college, but then after meeting Miguel, Dana dropped Gabriel for Miguel, and Miguel loves her now, I guess.

So, very weird on Miguel’s part.

I have heard from multiple people at multiple times that Dana has cheated on Miguel, but Miguel is just so in love with her that he listens to her apologies.

I’m not really one to talk, I took back my ex who cheated on me, but I broke up with him after a week, so I guess I have experience to judge.

I met Dana once, at Gabriel's birthday party two years ago.

She was there with Miguel, who looked super unhappy at his own brother's birthday celebration.

She was kind of short with me, and clung to Miguel. I remember seeing her hand clench his arm and wish it were me. I was too drunk to remember anything else that happened that day.

————————————————————————

Miguel seemed to notice my quietness, and nudged my shoulder with his finger.

My daze was broken, and I turned to face him again, letting out a hum.

“Knicks won.”

“Oh.” I looked back at the screen.

114-110.

He tilted his head at me.

“Something wrong?” I shook my head. “Then why do you look sad?”

‘I didn’t know you knew what human emotions looked like.’

I decided to ask about Dana.

I’ve never personally talked to him about it, but we’re just friends. It’s fine.

“Uh.” I started, but as soon as his eyes met mine I paused. I gulped down my feelings, and continued. “Where was Dana?”

The air in the room shifted.

I saw him tense up, his eyes on the interviewer asking a player from the Knicks about the game.

I felt so stupid.

After a few minutes, I started eating my food again. My stomach felt queasy, and I didn’t know if I was still hungry, going to throw up, or was anxious from that question.

He didn’t speak until a few minutes more, his voice way more vulnerable.

“She, uh, I… disinvited her.” I didn’t speak, just in case he wanted to add more.

Unfortunately, I had to prompt him.

“Did she do something?” I felt hesitant to push it.

He let out a small laugh, “What didn’t she do?”

I began to feel worse.

‘Why did I have to bring her up?’

I didn’t push for any more, and I guess he didn’t want to say anything else.

I saw him wipe his face, and the guilt ate at me.

I put my hand on his shoulder, but took it off when his eyes met mine again.

My emotions just can’t take it when he looks at me like that.

We sat in our silence again, with both of us eating and watching the recap for the game.

————————————————————————

That night I really didn’t want to go.

Dana gets weird around Gabriel

I made the mistake of telling Dana, and of course, she wanted to see her ex, so she said yes.

It was going to be a long night.

We arrived late, as per her request.

It was just a small house party at Gabriel's girlfriend's house.

I forgot how rich her family is, she has her own two story in Manhattan in a nice borough.

Dana held onto my arm the entire night, following me around as I tried to find my brother, or at least someone I recognized.

That’s when I saw her.

Amayas’ best friend.

She looked completely sloshed. But I guess the party started three hours ago, so it makes sense.

She was stumbling into people, drink in hand, and her angry pout on her face.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen her drunk.

Tipsy, definitely.

High, yes.

Not as drunk as this.

I guess she recognized me in the sea of people, so Dana and I made our way to her.

When we met in the middle, she had a bright smile on her face.

“Oh my gosh, hi! You must be Dana.” She had a stupid giggle that came with it.

Dana met her personality with her own, and took her friendliness as a competition.

Her hand tightened on my arm, and you two introduced each other.

She started talking about how Gabriel was looking for me earlier, when Dana interrupted, saying that she wanted to find Gabriel.

I apologized to her, and walked away with Dana.

We found Gabriel, he was almost as drunk as you, if not more.

A sober Amaya was at his side, monitoring him and other people at the party.

I chatted with my brother for a bit, he was definitely uneasy at Dana being there, and so was Amaya.

I guess Dana had enough, so she pulled me down to her lips, and whispered that she was overwhelmed.

Dana and I found a room upstairs where she locked the door.

She always found sex at parties taboo, which made it more fun for her.

I didn’t turn her down.

When I was balls deep inside of her on someone else’s bed however, she moaned out the name “Tyler”.

I paused, grunting, “The fuck?”

She must’ve heard me, and kept her pornographic moaning facade up, but I stopped moving.

“What did you say?” My eyes pierced at her.

She looked up at me with a teasing smile. “Nothing, baby. C’mon.” She wrapped her hands around my arm. Her touch felt like a burn, I moved my arms to get her off of me.

I clenched my jaw so hard my teeth could’ve broken, and I pulled out of her.

She let out a shocked gasp, and sat up like she didn’t just call out some guy when I was fucking her.

I stuffed myself back into my boxers and put my clothes back on, shaking my head.

I heard her call me a bitch, but my feet were already walking away and down the stairs.

My brain worked so hard, I didn’t register my shoulder checking a bunch of people.

No one said anything when they got a glance at me, though. Perks of being over six two.

I grabbed two cans of some beer that was around, Gabriel’s favorite, of course, and went out the back to the quiet.

There were a couple people out there, chilling on the porch chairs and couch, but I walked past, sitting down with a huff on the lowest step that led to the grass.

I opened my can, taking a long sip.

This wasn’t the first time I knew she cheated.

This is the third time.

The first time we broke up, the second time we had been back together for a while.

I found her with the second guy, actually.

And I guess she thought me fighting the guy fucking my girlfriend was so hot, that she needed to keep me.

I let out a scoff, resting my head between my knees, my fingers threaded on top of my head.

A few minutes after being in this position I heard some steps, and I shifted up.

I heard a tumble at the first stair leading down, and there she was, drink in hand.

She let out a stupid smile. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.” She slowly crept down the stairs, sitting the farthest away she could’ve on the last step with me.

I let out a small huff. I peaked at her red solo cupped drink, nodding my head to it. “How many is that?”

She hummed, looking up to the night sky, to mentally count. “Maybe four? I dunno.”

Her fingers lifted the cup to her lips, and I reached over and took it from her. “Yeah, you’re good.” I had an interest, and sniffed your drink. My nose hairs burned, and I coughed a small bit.

‘This smells like a doctor's office, how are you conscious?’

She didn’t argue, just started staring at me, blinking every so often. I started to get creeped out after ten seconds, “Are you staying at Amaya’s? You cannot drive.”

She nodded.

I looked away, to the backyard. It was nice, and for this location it was pretty good.

“Are you okay?”

My head whipped back around to look at her. She was looking at me like I had told her the secrets of the universe.

I gulped the beer down, nodding my head.

“What happened with Dana? I saw her and she like… didn’t, I dunno.”

I let out a quiet laugh, then it died off after a split second.

Maybe she won’t remember this. If she did, I wouldn’t care. Amaya probably told her about Dana’s tendencies, anyways.

“She moaned another guys’ name.” My eyes peaked over at her, and she looked disgusted.

My lips curled into a grin, and I turned to face her entirely.

“M’sorry.” My heart wanted to break inside my chest, she sounded really sad, like it had happened to her.

“It’s fine,” I shook my head, hoping to get rid of the sticky, gamy residue that thinking about Dana gave me right now.

“What about you?” I lifted a finger to point at her, taking a sip, to change the conversation.

Her head tilted, and it took a few seconds to click. “Oh.”

“You don’t have to say.” I shook my head.

“No, I mean, I don’t really have anything.”

‘Lucky you.’

It went silent after a few moments, and I didn’t mind. She normally did this around me, and after knowing her for a while, she did it often around others.

I just started thinking about what I’m going to say to Dana next, probably break up, when her sleepy voice came up again.

“You don’t deserve her.” She lifted your knees up to her chest, resting her chin on them. “Dana is an ass. And why did you even start dating her? She was your brother's first. I know he didn’t like her all that much, but still, isn’t there boy code?”

Normally, I get irritated at the people who talk about my girl like that, but at that moment, I felt so numb.

I didn’t know what to respond to at first, or if I could.

Her last line made me laugh, but then I had to think about it.

“Yeah, no. No boy code, I guess.” I finished my can with a chug and set it down, picking up the unopened one.

I tapped my finger against it, thinking.

‘Why do I like her? She’s funny, she’s smart, she’s really nice when we’re good.’

“Fuck,” I’m in love with her, that’s why.

I turned to look back at her.

She was just watching the sky, humming along to the song that was playing inside.

‘Why the hell did she get this drunk? Wasn’t Amaya or one of your other friends watching you?’

Amaya told me she was definitely a lightweight, but she also only drank at parties that she’d rarely go to. I was just hoping someone would watch her.

Definitely not one of the people in there.

My brain faltered for a second when I mulled over the thought of taking care of her for the rest of the night, but remembered that Dana left abruptly.

“I really need to find Dana.” I stood up, looking down at her.

She looked back up at me, and I had to turn before I felt bad.

I couldn’t.

I need to find Dana.

————————————————————————

“She cheated on me.”

His voice cut through the sounds of the movie I put on.

I turned to look at him, and from the way he said it, and the nonchalant way he looked, he was used to saying that.

I took a breath, hesitating to respond.

He’s never told me about Dana in person, and I just felt awkward to talk about someone I barely know.

“But I’m still with her.”

I stayed silent, it was all I could do at the moment.

“Yeah. Pathetic.” He sat back up.

“No. It’s not.” I shook my head.

I felt so bad that I wanted to reach over and give him a hug, but didn’t.

He paused again, scoffing. “You don’t understand.”

Ouch.

I didn’t know if I wanted to tell him my personal life yet, so I didn’t.

It wasn’t my place yet.

“That doesn’t mean that I can’t try to,” I lifted my shoulders into a shrug.

He looked back over to me.

His gaze felt like it was locking me in place.

He stood up, placing his finished plate onto the tray.

“I’m gonna shower.” He called out over his shoulder, and I sat up on the couch to look at him.

“Okay.”

I sat on the couch for a while, watching the movie with dull eyes.

When I felt my eyes start to droop, I stood up and brushed my teeth to wake myself up and to prep for bed.

Why didn’t I just stay with Amaya.

——————————————————

BROKENWOOD FIC WEEK 2025

DAY TWO: STUCK TOGETHER

AO3 COLLECTION: Brokenwood_Fic_Week_2025