Summary: Janus crushes on Logan from afar. He finally gathers the courage to ask him out on a date with some encouragement from his best friend, Remus. For @loceitweek2022! *:･ﾟ✧
Characters: Romantic Loceit and Remus as your friendly neighborhood hype man
Genre: College AU, Meet Cute, Library, Romance, Dating, Demisexual Character, Janus pining hardcore
Rated T for language and sensuality
Janus Moretti was pining.
It all started at the beginning of the semester. Janus normally didn't normally leave his apartment to do homework, but Remus had invited a few people from his rock band over, and it was hard to concentrate.
The student library was nice. It had three floors and there was a coffee shop inside. Optimal place for peace and caffeine.
Janus settled at a table and cracked open his laptop. Then, he saw him—a boy with fawn-colored hair and glasses, working inventory from a metal cart. He ran long lines down the spines of each book he came across with great care, as if understood how important and precious each one was before returning them to their rightful place on the shelves. One day, Janus caught a glance at his nametag—Logan.
And, well, that was it. Every single time Logan walked by, his heart squished in his chest. There was something about him that made Janus want to do incredibly sappy things, like press his fingertips between his eyebrows until the furrow melted away or buy him coffee.
Janus' eyes drifted across the room. Logan usually wore button downs, always tucked into a pair of tight jeans and paired with a necktie, but today he was wearing a sweater. It was cobalt and brought out just how bright blue his eyes were.
"Damn it," Janus muttered. "He's so hot."
"He looks like he has a stick up his ass if you ask me."
Janus thwacked Remus on the arm with The Art of War. "Don't bad mouth my crush!"
A slow smile stretched across Remus' face. He was sitting across from him and working on a neon green lollipop, shiny and round like a marble between his teeth. Several piercings dotted his ears, but he wore a dangly silver one shaped like a morning star that glittered whenever he moved.
"I'm just saying," Remus said, wagging the lollipop at him. "He looks uptight as fuck. Who the hell can stand to sit up straight all day like that? I've never seen him slouch once."
"So what? He has impeccable posture."
"Oh, so posture is hot, now?"
Remus rolled his eyes. "You have no clue what you're talking about."
"I have taste is what I have."
"Then do something about it. Go talk to him."
"Yeah, it is. You just go up to him and open your mouth and say stuff."
Easy for Remus to say. He always spoke his mind without caring what other people thought. Sometimes, it was more of a case of brain to mouth filter, but other times, Janus really wished he had his confidence and his ability to bounce back so quickly when things didn't go according to plan.
"I don't even know if he's gay," Janus hedged.
"You'd find out if you asked him out."
"Oh, sure." Janus flicked his wrist. "Let's just gamble all of my dignity and pride. Toss it at the wind!"
"He's got an Apple watch," Remus pointed out.
"The wristband is a rainbow."
"That still means nothing."
"Listen, if you ask him out, I'll back you up. If it goes wrong, I'll create a diversion and pull the fire alarm or something. And if he's an asshole, I'll throw a book at his head."
"A real big one. Full of manners and etiquette or some shit."
"Remus, you are not going to throw a book at him."
"Fine. I'll pull the stick out of his ass and beat him with it."
Janus gave a heavy eye roll.
It wasn't as if Janus was shy. He wasn't. He knew how to charm his teachers into accepting a late assignment, how to make someone blush and how to deliver a powerful speech that had everyone holding their breaths and leaning forward in their seats. He was good with people. Sociable. Smooth.
But this ... this was different. This was a like a grade school crush. Janus hadn't had one of those since, well, grade school. Sure, he dated before, but he only went out with men he met online or in class. It was easy to flirt when the person was clearly into him, but Logan was a complete stranger. Janus had no idea how to approach him.
"So," Remus said. "You gonna do it or not?"
"Yeah, being a little chicken shit."
Janus kicked him in the shin without any malice. Remus cackled out a loud laugh.
Janus froze. Slowly, he turned his head to see Logan standing nearby with the book cart, his beautiful pink bow of a mouth twisted into a frown.
"Can you two please keep it down? We are in a library."
Janus' palms started to sweat. How long had he been standing there? How much had he heard? Had he heard anything at all? Panic flared inside his chest, his tongue moving before his brain could fully process the situation and blurted out: "Yes, sir."
Remus lost it. He fell against the table and started shaking with laughter.
Janus closed his eyes. Fucking hell.
The innuendo was clearly lost on Logan because he looked sincerely confused. "You don't have to call me sir. I cannot be that much older than you."
"I, uh ...Yes. Apologies."
Logan shrugged. He sent Janus one last puzzled look before wheeling the cart away.
As soon as he was gone, Janus dropped his burning face into his hands and groaned. He wanted nothing more than to melt into the floor and die.
"Well," Remus said, still snickering. "That went well."
Janus swatted him with the book again.
A week later, Janus and Remus stood outside of the library and underneath an awning to get out of a storm. The rain was coming down hard, bouncing against the pavement like silver coins and drumming over their heads.
"If I had known it was going to rain today, I would have brought an umbrella," Janus complained. He was soaked and wanted nothing more than to slip into something warm and comfortable, but their apartment was quite a walk from here.
"I like it," Remus said. He reached out his hand to catch some of the raindrops like a little kid. He was soaked too, his black leather jacket slick with water and his violet eyeshadow smeared.
"Let's just go inside. We can get coffee and wait for it to let up."
"Good idea," Remus said. "Maybe your Pocket Protector boyfriend is there."
God, he hoped not. Janus would like to look at least halfway decent around his crush. They stepped inside of the library and a rush of warmth instantly seeped in Janus’ skin. He took off his beanie and ran a hand through his damp hair.
And of course, there he was—Logan, sitting at the front desk and reading a book. Everyone else on campus must have gotten the memo about the rain because there weren't too many students here today. His back was straight as a sword, brows furrowed in concentration and beautiful as always.
Remus beamed. "Well, well. Look who's here!"
Janus internally groaned. He hiked up the collar of his jacket and passed Logan as quickly as possible to get to the stairwell. Remus' combat boots echoed as he followed him down to the café. There was no line. The barista punched in their orders and brought them their coffee fairly quickly.
Hot liquid slid down Janus' throat and warmed his insides. He was still soaked. Water dripped off of his clothes and formed a puddle on the linoleum floor.
"Sooo?" Remus prompted. "What are you waiting for? He's clearly not busy."
"He's reading. That means he doesn't want to be disturbed."
"He's reading because he's probably bored out of his mind at work, you dumb ass. Maybe it'd make his day to have a cute boy hit on him. Ever think about that? Huh? Did ya?"
"Now you sound like your brother."
"Yeah? Well, you sound like a wuss. Wuss, wuss, wuss. Mr. Wussyman."
Janus rolled his eyes. "Oh, very mature of you."
"How about this? If you talk to him, I'll give you five dollars."
"Now you're bribing me to talk to my crush?" Janus tossed his head back. "Ha! Please. That'll never work." He took a long sip of his coffee. Swallowed it slowly. Then, "Make it ten."
"Fine. Anything to get you to move your ass already. I'm sick of your pining."
They shuffled back up the stairs. Janus stalled by following Remus to the horror section and browsing for a book to check out. Finally, he settled on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and made his way to the front desk.
Janus cleared his throat. "Hello."
Logan startled. His eyes immediately glanced over the scar on the left side of Janus' face. It was silver now, a jagged line that slashed from his eyebrow down to his jaw. At a distance, it was hard to make out, but it was much clearer if you were standing next to him. The eye on that side was a bright gold, compared to the right, which was a solid walnut brown. They had never been this close to each other before, let alone talked, aside from the please be quiet incident. This was the first time Logan was really seeing him.
Logan set his book faced down on the desk—The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. "Apologies. How can I help you?"
Janus pushed his book at him. While Logan got to work on checking Janus out, Janus leaned over the desk, trying to appear casual. "So ..." he began.
Logan gave him a sideways glance. "You're dripping on Arthur Canon Doyle."
Janus jolted back. "Sorry." Another puddle was forming at his feet. He scuffed at it with his shoe. "Do you come here often?"
Logan frowned. "I work here."
"Welp!" Janus snatched his book and forced a cheery grin. "Bye!"
He ran out the library with a bruised ego, internally kicking himself for trying such a cheesy pick up line. Remus paid him only twenty-five cents for such a poor attempt and boilsted up his confidence for when they returned a few days later.
It was another rainy April afternoon. Once again, Janus hadn't checked the weather before leaving his apartment and entered the library looking like he'd just walked off of an intense ride at Splash Mountain.
Janus hastily wiped water off his face. "Maybe he isn't here today."
"Check again," Remus said. He hooked his fingers under Janus' chin and forced him to turn his head. "Calculator Watch at twelve o'clock."
Logan was working inventory again. Outside, the rain hacked against the windowpanes and slid down the glass. Thunder roared, followed by an explosion of lighting, so intense, Janus could feel it in his bones. The lightning illuminated Logan's profile between the aisles, his hip pressed against the side of the book cart and reading the back of a novel, too absorbed in his own world to even acknowledge the storm.
Janus took in the pieces of him—his soft brown hair brushing over his eyebrows, his broad shoulders and long legs, and it felt as if he had been zapped. "Fuck."
"Not yet," Remus said. He gave him an encouraging little push in Logan's direction. "Go talk to him. I'll be hanging around. Moral support."
"No problem. Gonna grab the biggest, fattest dictionary here. Best to be prepared, in case it goes awry."
Janus was too nervous to even make a comment on that. It took another push from Remus to get his legs moving in Logan's direction. He sucked in a deep breath, pushing down the butterflies in his stomach and plastered on his most charming, practiced smile.
"Hi." Logan turned his head. "You are dripping on the books again."
Janus immediately stepped away from the cart. "Sorry."
Logan didn't respond. The button down he was wearing was well fitted and tucked into a pair of very tight, dark jeans that accentuated his waist and it was just—not fair. Not at fair all. He lifted on his toes to reach a higher shelf, his sleeve shifting down to reveal a stretch of pale skin.
Janus was surprised. "You have a tattoo?"
Logan whirled around and slapped his hand over his forearm. "Yes."
"I'm at work. It's inappropriate."
Janus snorted. "A tattoo doesn't make you less professional, in my opinion. I pointed it out because I thought it was cool, not to get you in trouble. What is it of?"
Janus smiled in an attempt to be reassuring. "It wasn't a trick question."
The pink faded from Logan's cheeks. He slowly removed his hand to reveal a simple chemical formula in black ink. "It's acetylcholine," he explained. "It's a neurotransmitter that plays an essential role in attention, learning, and memory."
"That's interesting," Janus said, because it was. "Do you like science?"
"Yes. I am majoring in Neuroscience."
Holy shit. "That sounds really hard."
Logan shrugged. "Not really. I enjoy the classes."
Okay, okay, so he didn't just look smart, but he was smart. Double whammy in Janus' book.
"Hi, sweetie!" A blonde boy with curly hair stepped next to Logan. He wore a pair of light blue overalls and rounded glasses. A folded umbrella with frogs on it dripped at his side. "You forgot your lunch."
The blonde, or Patton, apparently, smiled and handed him a lunch box. "I see you're busy with someone, so I'll get out of your hair. I'll see you later?"
Patton beamed. He gave Janus a polite nod and disappeared.
Heavy disappointment sank in Janus' gut. Of course Logan had a boyfriend. Of course.
But well ... he supposed he couldn't know that ... for certain. At the same time, he wasn't quite sure how to ask. He supposed the only way was to be upfront but god, that was so awkward. Then again, this whole thing was already awkward enough. If he didn't say something then Remus was going to beat his ass, and Janus would always wonder what if. Besides, he had already committed to this stupid thing. If Janus further embarrassed himself then it wouldn't be the end of the world. He would just die in a hole somewhere, but he would be fine. All fine.
Janus crossed his arms and leaned against the bookshelf. "So was that your ..." He hesitated. "Boy ... friend?"
Logan gave him a strange look. "No. What gave you that impression?"
"He calls everyone sweetie."
"Ah," Janus said, trying to ignore the swell of hope blooming in his chest. "Nice. Very, uh. Good."
"Soooo, do you have one?"
Remus popped out around a bookshelf behind Logan and flashed a wide, goofy grin. He gave a thumbs up.
Janus shot him a very pointed look. Logan's brows twitched inward. He began to turn around to see whatever it was Janus was looking at, and Janus panicked, his mouth moving before his brain could kick in, blurting out, "Are you gay?"
Logan fwipped his head up. A faint blush seared his cheeks. "I don't see how that is any of your business."
God. This was going horribly.
"Apologies. You're right, it's not my business, I meant no offense. It's just—I am. Gay, I mean. Very gay. I was wondering if you were, too. You don't have to answer, I ... I'm sorry."
A long pause. Logan crossed his arms. "Fine. I'm gay."
This was going wonderfully! Remus popped out again and flashed another thumbs up. Instantly, Janus' confidence was back up.
"Excellent! Do you want to go to Lou Malnati's sometime?"
Logan frowned. "Are you making fun of me?"
"I—what? No! No, I'm asking you out."
Logan's frown deepened. "Why? You don't even know me."
Because you're cute and smart and have impeccable posture, but instead he said, "I know. That's the point. I want to get to know you."
"Because you think I'm attractive?"
"Uh, yes? Yes, definitely."
Logan took a second before responding. He shelved one of the books with a loud clunk-ing noise before turning to face him. "I need to make some things clear first before I give you my answer."
"If you are asking me out for sex, it is not going to happen."
Janus choked. The unscarred side of his face burned pink. Still, Logan pressed on.
"I also will not want to kiss you on the first date. Maybe not even the second or the third or even the tenth, if our courtship gets that far. If I eventually do feel a sexual attraction towards you, I may choose then to engage in sexual activity, but there is also a chance that I will never wish to engage in it, despite an emotional component on my part."
It took Janus' brain a second to catch up to all of that. "Okay, are you saying you're ... ace? Is that right?"
The word rolled around in Janus' head. He knew what that was. He'd just never met anyone who identified that way before. "Okay. Okay, cool."
Logan lifted his eyebrows. "Cool?"
"Yeah," Janus said, shrugging. "I still want to take you out. I know you don't know anything about me but ..."
"I don't even know your name."
"Janus," Logan repeated. "All right. As long as you are 'cool' with it, I accept your offer."
A/N: I wasn't going to post anything because this is unfinished, but I figured I could share this as a WIP. ^_^ This takes place in the same universe as my Prinxiety fic, A Lesson In Love and Romance, which you can read on AO3. Rating and details are subject to change after I complete the entire fic. There is a playlist which you can find here in the meantime, if you would like.
