vigilickme

Call It Fate, Call It Karma

Part two: Whoever The Fuck

Part 1

WC: 3.6k

Summary: When Adrian finds out about your boyfriend, he decides to do some investigating.

Tags: MDNI! Adrian Chase being Adrian Chase, awkward flirting, dick jokes, mentions of violence, eventual smut, coworkers to lovers, jealousy, reader has a shitty bf, girly!reader, checkmate!reader, AFAB!reader, fem!reader

A/N: Hey guys!! I apologize for part two taking so long! I had a seriously busy month and also got stuck in the middle of this chapter. Buttttt I’m super excited to get this story moving! I really hope you guys enjoy it, let me know what you think!

Working at Checkmate has been an absolute dream so far. You’ve never felt so accepted by a group of people. Everyone who works with you is strange for one reason or another, which makes you feel like you can be yourself.

Arguably, the strangest of them all would be Adrian Chase.

Which is exactly why you find yourself spending so much time around him.

“That one is a complete chode!” Adrian is hysterically laughing as he draws cartoonish dicks all over the conference room whiteboard.

You’re having a similar reaction to the prank you guys planned together. The pink white board marker feels heavy in your hand as you consider whether or not to use your artistic abilities, or to dumb it down. “Do you think a hyper realistic penis would be pushing this too far?”

His eyes light up in excitement, he looks completely tickled by this entire thing. He pops the cap back on his teal marker, stepping away from the board that is now filled with silly looking penis drawings. He shakes his head, gesturing to the board. “Oh my god, please do it. I failed art class in high school.. so..”

“I took AP Art.” You respond with a smirk, which seems to make his smile widen even more so. His head tilts as your marker makes contact with the board.

This is one of those talents that you can’t brag about very often, so you’re taking the opportunity. It’s not your fault you’re an amazing artist! Watercolor is more your speed, but hey! You can draw a dick too!

You slap a hand over your mouth, unable to stifle your immediate laughter. The whiteboard looks absolutely obscene. The pink colored dick you drew is absolutely massive. Did you subconsciously draw the ideal penis? I guess you did. It’s gorgeous, it’s beautiful, it’s-

“What the fuck! That looks exactly like my dick!” Adrian folds over, wheezing with laughter. To him, it’s fucking hilarious that you accidentally replicated his genitals in pink dry erase fashion.

Your eyes widen. Of course, he doesn’t have a care in the world that he just told you what he’s packing. Your eyes flickers between the raunchy drawing, and his laughing form. No fucking way! I mean.. he does have that hung smile…

What the fuck? Stop thinking about your coworkers dick!

You clear your throat and try to hide how visibly flustered you are as you try to change the subject. If you get any more details about his appendage, you might just destroy your life. “Okay, let’s get back to work before anyone notices.”

The next meeting was one for the books. Chris and Fluery thought it was absolutely hilarious. Sasha and Harcourt did not, but they were hiding smiles as they erased it before the meeting.

You and Adrian exchanged a few grins throughout the meeting, because nobody could figure out who did it. Either that or they didn’t give much of a fuck.

Other than the occasional prank, you spent most of your time on your phone and computer. Your desk had only become more personalized. To put it simply, it looked like Elle Woods materialized into real life and personally designed your desk herself. Honestly, that was exactly what you were going for.

Most jobs you’ve had consisted of nobody taking you seriously. You were either deemed to be a bimbo or eye candy. But here, everyone knew your worth. You brought organization and peace of mind to the office. Along with lots of glitter and joy, which to everyone here, only made you better.

It took awhile for you to conceptualize the fact that nobody was going to drop their pens and ask you to bend over and pick them up so they could stare up your skirt.

You wouldn’t be a laughing stock like you were in the past.

“Could someone tell Barbie to get me a coffee?”

“Why do you care about security, you’d make a perfect housewife!”

“You should stay back today and help me unwind after the stressful day I’ve had.”

The harsh words flutter around in your brain on this specific Thursday while you’re getting set up for the day. You’re zoning out again, reminded of the harsh words you’ve received from past coworkers. How dumb they made you feel, how useless they thought you were. You’d cry on your way home every single day, and you don’t exactly have a good support system.

Your boyfriend sees you as something pretty to have on his arm, so why don’t you just-

A massive stack of papers is dropped on your desk with a heavy thunk. “These are all of our latest case files. Can you sort them by importance?” A rare smile graces Emilia’s face as she raises her eyebrow in question.

“It’ll be done before lunch.” You reply with a glimmer of appreciation in your gaze. She didn’t even question if you could handle it.

As you flick through the papers, taking stock of how much work you have to get done, you hear the door swing open. He’s a little late, as always.

Adrian is holding two drinks in his hand, and he’s walking up to your desk with a cheerful expression. “Happy Thursday! I got you a coffee!”

You feel your cheeks burn as he sets the cup on your desk. He didn’t get coffee for anyone else, and he’s giving it to you like it’s the most casual thing in the world. “Thank you Adrian! You didn’t have to do that! I woke up late today, how’d you know I didn’t have time for coffee?”

His gaze quickly averts to the floor as he searches for words, his brain seemingly failing him. “Uh- ha! Lucky guess!”

“You’re the best.” You mean it, he is the best. What a coincidence that the one day you miss your alarm and had to rush in here, he has a coffee waiting for you. Wow, must be the universe or something.

He nods and bites the inside of his cheek before shuffling away and sitting at his desk, keeping his eyes glued to the screen.

As you take your first sip, you snap your head in his direction. How on Earth did he know how you take your coffee? It’s such a specific order-

He glances at you and shrugs, loudly whispering. “By the way, I remembered your coffee order because you mentioned it one time. Totally not a stalker or a pervert.”

He seems to be oblivious the fact that he whispers at the same volume he speaks at, but you think it’s endearing. You loudly whisper back to him. “Thank you, you’re sweet.”

Those words will keep him going for the rest of the week.

You finished your sorting project before lunch, just like you promised. It’s impressive really, your ability to be so organized. You have about an hour to catch up on emails and basically dilly dally.

It’s then that you notice the real sticky note on the edge of your keyboard.

‘Are you coming to happy hour? :p’

You don’t have to wonder who it’s from. The handwriting gives him away for one, and who else would leave a note when his desk is 10 feet away.

You decide to humor him.

Pink glittery ink drags across the sticky note as you etch the words: ‘I can’t tonight :(‘

It paints you to admit it, but your boyfriend is supposed to pick you up today and he’s going to spend the night. You took an Uber to work this morning because he wanted to pick you up and see where you work, so you don’t really have a choice.

You walk past Adrian’s desk, sticking the note to his monitor as you make your way to the break room. If your back wasn’t turned, you would’ve caught the dejected look on his face.

Happy Hour sounds perfect, amazing actually. But you promised your boyfriend, Brad, that you’d spend time with him tonight.

In his words, “You’re all into your new job and new friends, I’ve barely seen you.” So, guilt is the main thing driving you to see him.

You know it’s wrong, you shouldn’t be giving your own boyfriend a pity hangout. Unfortunately your brain refuses to do any critical thinking on the matter, what if he’s the best you can do?

The last hour of your work day crept up on you, around 4pm everyone is mostly chattering among themselves trying to agree on which bar to go to.

You try to tune it out, FOMO is already setting in. You focus on typing up mission plans and adding final touches on recent reports.

But you can’t focus, because every time you look up, you catch Adrian staring at you. He sort of does that a lot, it seems. But especially over the past few weeks it’s only gotten more frequent.

You brush it off, he’s probably zoning out. No other reason. You meet his gaze, smiling shyly before you duck your head down to hide how much it affects you.

You steal a few more glances, every time you catch him staring, he looks away. He starts whistling, or acting like he was looking at something else. See? It’s not on purpose. Obviously.

As you log off your computer, you see Brad’s car arrive in the parking lot. You start throwing everything into your purse so you can leave quickly without too much questioning. Your plan to be subtle flies out the window when the front door swings open.

Brad is smiling at you, it’s not warm. It’s the type of smile that says ‘Look at my cute girlfriend at her cute little silly girl job’. You can tell he isn’t coming in here because he missed you, he wants to see why this job has been stealing so much of your time.

“Hey Brad, ready to go?” You speak softly, ready to just go home and hopefully have a wholesome romantic night together.

Brad has other plans. “Hey babe!” His voice booms through the office with the subtlety of a car crashing into a house.

You feel your cheeks heat up as your head automatically snaps in Adrian’s direction.

It must be your subconscious or something, but you feel caught. You hadn’t mentioned Brad to anyone at work, not exactly because you’re hiding it, but because you wanted to be your own person here.

Your eyes catch Adrian’s confused expression, but you don’t get to stare for long. Brad pulls you into his arms and presses his lips onto yours.

You immediately try to pull away, you hate PDA, especially at work. He shoves his tongue down your throat, which makes you jerk your head back and play it off like you’re giggling. “Hey! Um, let’s go?”

Your cheeks burn with embarrassment as Brad pulls you out of the building by the hand. You turn around to wave goodbye to everyone.

Most of your coworkers are smirking, thinking the whole interaction was sort of funny. Adrian has a blank expression on his face, one you’ve never seen before, one that makes you feel sick.

Why does this feel so wrong?

———————————————————————

The bar was pretty empty, which meant Adrian and all of his coworkers could be as rowdy as they pleased. Well, all of his coworkers but one.

Adrian had been moping around for the first hour or so. Had you mentioned your boyfriend before and he hadn’t remembered? That’s impossible. He remembered everything about you. Why hadn’t you mentioned him?

Maybe you liked keeping your relationship private? Or perhaps your boyfriend is a piece of shit and is holding you hostage, he should probably go to your house and check on you-

“Shots!” Chris’s voice booms as he approaches the table with a tray of tequila shots.

Adrian stays staring at the table as he picks at the beer label. He’s barely even had a few sips, it’s so not like him! He loves getting hammered with his number one BFF!

Speak of the devil, the BFF in question seems to notice. “Adrian? Let’s do shots?”

“Huh? Oh! Uh.. No thanks bro.” Adrian finally glances at Chris and is surprised to see that his expression is laced with concern.

Chris knocks his shot back, contemplates for a moment, and then takes Adrian’s shot too. He winces as the burn hits his throat, then he blurts it out. “What’s your problem man? Mad that your work wife turned out to be off the market?”

“No! What? That’s insane-“ Adrian gestures frantically with his hands as he tries to defend himself. Is it really that obvious? Fuck!

Chris cuts him off with a pat on his shoulder, eyes full of recognition. “I’m sorry dude.”

Adrian is at a loss for words. Chris knows him so well! This is why they’re BFFS!

But if Chris referred to you as Adrian’s so called work wife… maybe that means you like him too? He can’t stand to see you with that Brock guy or whatever the fuck his name is.

He almost vomited as he watched whoever the fuck shove his tongue down your throat. You looked so uncomfortable- Ha! That could qualify as assault! He could totally kill your stupid boyfriend..

Unless that would make you upset? Maybe he should just check on you. Yeah. That’s a good idea!

Good thing he already knows where you live.

He needed to keep an eye on you, for safety of course! Or if you didn’t have time for coffee in the morning… he just checks in occasionally! A drive by of sorts!

Adrian stands up so fast the entire table wobbles. He throws a couple of bills next to his completely full beer. “It’s okay. I’m gonna head out. Catch you guys later!”

He throws up a peace sign as he sprints out of the bar, ignoring the questions from the rest of the group.

Thirty minutes later, Adrian is fully dressed in his Vigilante attire and crouching on your fire escape. He wants to make sure you’re okay, this is totally not weird.

He peers into the window for the fil second time today and can’t help but smile as his eyes land on you. You look fucking perfect.

Here you are, in your kitchen, wearing pajamas, and is that- are you baking? He squints his eyes and watches as you line up cookie dough on a baking sheet. Fucking adorable.

You have a relaxed smile on your face, and a little flour on your cheek. God he wants to reach out and gently brush it off for you. He wonders why you’re alone, where’s the so called boyfriend? It seemed like he was staying at yours tonight.. Why isn’t he dancing along with you and watching how cute you look how you bake?

“Babe! Can you grab me a beer?”

Oh. That’s why.

Adrian clenches his jaw and has to force himself to pry his eyes away from the gorgeous sight of you. From his viewpoint, he can see your kitchen and connected living room.

The living room that has a recliner chair with your stupid ugly boyfriend sprawled out on it. He isn’t even looking at you. He’s watching some dumb football game and asking you for beer? What a lazy piece of shit!

“I can’t! I’m making a surprise for you!” Adrian’s heart clenches as he hears the excitement in your voice. But you sound sad or something, maybe disappointed. Hopefully you’re disappointed with your idiotic boyfriend.

Adrian watches as you finish baking the cookies and place them onto a plate. You’re so meticulous in the way you arrange them perfectly. His knuckles turn white from the iron grip he has on your windowsill.

He sees you walk into the living room, “Ta-da!” You say as you offer the cookies to your good for nothing boyfriend.

Adrian almost sees red when whoever the fuck sighs in response to your surprise, and asks for a beer yet again.

He wants to break the window and choke this guy out until his eyes bulge out of his skull when he watches you walk to the kitchen with your head down.

The way your face falls breaks Adrian’s heart. He watches you box the cookies up and put them away. You wordlessly hand your imbecile of a boyfriend his stupid beer.

His masked face is practically pressing against the window now, but he doesn’t care. He can’t seem to leave, not when you look so sad.

Through the window, he sees how upset you are. How does the motherfucker not notice?

Adrian’s eyes are fixed on you as you trudge your way to a barstool and open your laptop. Your back is to the window, giving him a perfect view of your screen as you type in your password and log in.

He was about to leave, he really was. Browser history is private after all! But then he notices you looking through a very familiar email thread.

Is that? No way. Fuck yes! Adrian resists the urge to fist pump as he watches you aimlessly scrolling through your email thread with him. In the reflection of the screen, he sees you smiling softly.

Adrian doesn’t quite know what to make of that, but he does know that at least his emails make you smile.

After the information he discovered, he decides to book it back to the bar to celebrate! This is a great sign! All he has to do is get you to dump what’s his face, then make you love him instead!

It’s simple!

After avoiding a bunch of questions from his Checkmate buddies who were still at happy hour, he was able to let loose for a minute. Mostly to get his mind off of the fact that you’re still with that guy for the time being.

10 tequila shots and a few karaoke love ballads later, Adrian is staring at his phone.

His emails made you smile… he likes your smile! You had a hard day, maybe this will help! It’s totally not unprofessional or anything. He’s being a good friend!

He tells himself that this is an amazing idea as he tries to type out a coherent email with his blurred vision and uncoordinated fingers.

Sending this email in the morning after sobering up is out of the question. Drunk Adrian decides he must make you happy immediately!

From: [email protected]

Subject: happy hoor

Desr my lovely receptionist,

I wsh u came to happy hour! I took a lot of shpts and I want to see ur pretty smile

Love,

Asrian

Sent from my iPhone

———————————————————————

It has been quite an odd morning for you.

First of all, your boyfriend was still asleep when you left, presumably skipping work today. You usually wake him up and kiss him goodbye, but not today.

Second of all, when you checked your laptop this morning, there was a very interesting email from a very drunk Adrian.

You blushed when you saw it, you couldn’t believe it. But he was just drunk, that’s all. However, it made you smile.

On your drive to work you don’t turn the radio on, you need to think. Think about how Brad totally blew you off last night. Has he always been so unappreciative? He didn’t even notice the new pajamas you were wearing.

You felt completely heartbroken last night as he ignored your sweet gesture. It wasn’t the first time, but it might be the last.

You’re not stupid, your boyfriend kinda sucks. Also, you’re thinking about your coworker too much for it to be just friendly.

You re-read his email 5 times this morning. Maybe you shouldn’t read into it so much, but at this rate, he’s nicer to you than your own boyfriend.

But you still have that deep rooted fear. Maybe this is all you deserve, this is the best you can get, just settle.

You’re just as confused as you were at the beginning of your drive as you roll into the Checkmate parking lot.

So much for clarity I guess…

Work starts off normal, for the most part. Everyone in the office seems a bit sluggish. Chris showed up wearing sunglasses. Economos is asleep at his desk. Emilia hasn’t spoken a single word today- the list goes on.

Adrian however, seems completely wired. He’s sitting up straight, tapping his foot, eyes glued to his screen. You tried to smile at him as you came in, but he hasn’t even glanced at you. Weird.

Maybe he’s embarrassed about the email he sent you? He probably regrets it. Or it could’ve been meant for someone else. But what other receptionist does he know? Why is everyone so weird today!

You try to ignore it, but you can’t! After pulling up the infamous email and reading it over 10 more times, you finally cave.

A glittery pink gel pen glides onto a sticky note on what feels like its own accord. The message you write feels like one you couldn’t stop yourself from admitting. ‘I want to see your smile too :)’

You fold it up and throw it at his head. Usually, you’d be more subtle. However, everyone is so out of it today and doesn’t even notice.

“Ow, fuck!” Adrian exclaims as he rubs the side of his head. You can’t help but giggle knowing that it definitely didn’t hurt him, it just startled him.

As he reads the note, he freezes for a moment and you swear you can see his cheeks start to bloom red. His face stretches into that perfect grin of his as he finally (finally!) turns to face you.

He opens his mouth to whisper something to you, but it cut off by the sound of the front door flying open with the force of a tornado.

Wait. What the fuck? Why is Brad here? Maybe you forgot something- No… nope. He looks pissed. Why’s he holding your laptop?

“Which one of you is [email protected]?”

Oh. That’s why.

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Call It Fate, Call It Karma

Part one: Jitters and Bunnies

Part 2

WC: 3.1k

Summary: You get a new job as a receptionist at Checkmate. When you’re introduced to a particularly cute coworker, Adrian, you have to decide if it’s better to stay in your comfort zone or take a leap.

Tags/warnings: Eventual smut MDNI, workplace romance, friends to lovers, coworkers to lovers, girly!reader, receptionist!reader, afab!reader, awkward flirting, undertones of cheating, Chris isn’t in Salvation bc I love him, swearing, no use of y/n

A/N: I’ve been so excited to get started on this! I have so many ideas for this storyline, any and all feedback is super, super appreciated. Your comments keep me going fr. Also yes this fic is named after a song. Enjoy!!

Perfectly manicured fingernails tap restlessly on your steering wheel as you sit in your car, waiting to be exactly 5 minutes early to your new job. Your heart rate is speeding up, both from excitement and nerves.

You smear sparkly berry pink lipgloss onto your lips, rubbing them together to get an even coat. When you flip up the sun visor mirror, the signage on the front of the building is now visible.

CHECKMATE

MAKING THE WORLD BETTER

God, you sure hope so. After interning for A.R.G.U.S. you almost lost faith in humanity. Sasha Bordeaux was the one who reached out and asked you to work for this new startup security company.

You worked under her for a while, becoming acquaintances. She knows you aren’t very experienced, but she noticed very quickly that you share the same values as her.

That paired with the fact that they needed a receptionist who knows how to keep secrets.

So here you are, after doing mountains of onboarding paperwork and signing multiple NDA’s, it’s time for your fresh start.

Your clock reads 8:55am.

It’s time to go. You pull your keys out of the ignition, numerous glittering keychains jingling as you put your keys back into your purse. Stepping out of the car, you readjust your outfit.

The grey pinstriped pants you picked out this morning swish together as you walk, complimenting the click-clacking of your mauve pink kitten heels. The button up sweater matches the shoes perfectly. Your cherry on top is arguably too much jewelry, but you love jewelry!

You smile at your reflection in the tinted glass front doors, you feel ready. This feels like your life might finally start making some sense.

As you take a step inside, you’re met with the smell of fresh paint and gunpowder being masked with a lavender air freshener.

Sasha greets you with her sophisticated smile, shaking your hand. “Welcome, we’re so happy to have you here. This is Leota, she’ll be giving you the tour.”

You lock eyes with the other woman who you now know to be Leota, and her smile instantly calms your jitters. She greets you with a warm hug that you eagerly return. “You’re going to be so helpful around here! Come on I’ll show you around.”

“Okay! Thank you so much!” You’re a little bit nervous still, but the atmosphere of this place is already multitudes better than the cold, heartless energy at A.R.G.U.S.

“This is the main office area, we mostly just communicate with clients and write up reports here.” You look around at the row of desks, spotting a few familiar faces from your previous job.

Langston, Harcourt, and Rip. The latter two give you a nod and a small smile of acknowledgment, you didn’t know them super well but you’ve been around each other. Langston whistles at you. “Happy to see that pretty face again, Mmhmm!”

Sasha flicks a paper clip at his forehead with shockingly remarkable accuracy, glaring at him in a way that tells him not to fuck this up.

You just laugh it off, you’re used to his antics and know he means no harm. Fluery is an oddball, but at least he’s nice.

You’re introduced to a few more people, Chris Smith and John Economos. You can tell Chris wants to act the same way as Fluery, but is stopped by a look that could kill from Emilia. Instead, he shakes your hand. “I bet you’re a very kind and intelligent woman.”

“Thanks?” You reply with a confused giggle, he seems to mean well. John gives you a salute and goes back to typing away on his computer.

After the rest of the tour, you see the break room, conference room, training area, and finally your desk. It’s C-shaped, angled towards the main office area but still facing the front door.

It’s mostly empty, but you’re excited to change that. “Can I decorate?”

“Girl, you can do whatever you want to it. We’re just grateful to have someone helping us answer all these calls and keep us organized.”

Your smile widens even more. You like Leota, she even told you that you can call her Ads or Lee. She overshared about her life: dogs, ex-wife, interests, etc. You decide not to call her Lee because her ex-wife used to. Ads seems like someone you can be yourself around.

“Good because I may or may not have gone overboard buying office supplies and decorations!” You speak honestly, remembering the box of goodies in your trunk that you ultimately decided not to bring in right away.

Leota laughs with you, placing a hand on your desk and nodding. “By all means, go nuts!”

———————————————————————

By 9:30, your desk is completely decked out. You set up your pink rotary phone, which is now fully functional thanks to Economos. There’s a little bowl on your desk that you filled with candy and mints. The drawers have been stocked with sticky notes, glittery gel pens, and notebooks. You changed the background on your computer screen, set your password, and got all set up. You sit back in your chair, beaming.

A.R.G.U.S. never would’ve given you this much freedom. They were also never this welcoming. After the tour, a few of your new coworkers stopped by your desk to talk to you some more. You’re flooded with relief, you got out of a bad situation, and it’s seeming to pay off.

As you begin checking emails, your brain wanders to your other bad situation, but you know you can’t leave that one.

Before you can fall down the familiar spiral, the door slams open with an obnoxious bang, snapping you out of your thoughts.

Your heart jumps to your throat, not from being startled, but something much scarier: Seeing something you want that you can’t have.

The first thing you notice about him is that he’s adorable. Tall, sandy blonde curls, dorky wire rimmed glasses, and a long sleeved maroon polo shirt. “Hi guys! Sorry I’m late, I was getting donuts. You know in movies how there’s always a guy bringing donuts into meetings, I wanted to be that guy!”

Your eyes finally drop from his blinding smile down to the two boxes of donuts he’s holding. You can’t help but match his grin, as if this job couldn’t get more entertaining.

He’s met with a few ‘thank you’s’ and nods of acknowledgment, but also a few eye rolls.

You’re still staring at him like an idiot, your pen slipping out of your hand and clattering onto your desk.

The man turns towards you, finally noticing the brand new face at the formerly vacant desk. He’s never seen someone more beautiful in his entire life.

His excited expression gets impossibly more prominent as he walks over to you, dropping the donut boxes onto your desk, right next to your bell.

He freezes for a moment, looking down at his feet, then back to you, then his eyes dart all around your desk. He sees the bell, and looks like he just solved an equation in his head as he nods affirmatively and dings the bell with one finger.

“Is this how I can start a conversation with you? That’s fucking cool, it’s like an on button!” He’s very animated when he talks, his hands flapping and expression shifting to fit every word.

You laugh softly, and the man quickly decides it’s his new favorite sound. You shake your head and respond. “It’s mostly for decoration, but you can use it as an on button too I guess!”

“Sick! I’m Adrian by the way, I sit right there!” He’s ecstatic that you’re laughing along with him and seem happy he’s talking to you too.

You follow the line of his finger with your eyes, flicking your gaze to what you can assume is Adrian’s desk. It’s decorated too, you notice. There’s some nerdy looking action figures and a framed photo.

You had wondered who occupied the desk closest to yours, and you’re happy to find out it’s Adrian.

After telling him your name, you gesture between his desk and yours. “Yay! We’re desk buddies!”

“Yeah! Hey can I have one of these?” He points to the candy bowl.

“Sure!” You nod happily.

“Thanks, well I have to go do job stuff now, but maybe later you can quiz me on animal facts?”

You watch him pop a piece of cherry taffy into his mouth, drawing attention to his plush pink lips. His jaw flexes as he bites into the chewy candy.

You school your expression, opting for a neutral smile as you try to will your cheeks to cool down. You fiddle with the little stuffed bunny that’s slouched at the base of your computer. “Sounds good! It’s really nice to meet you, Adrian!”

He walks away from your desk, but stops halfway, turning around on his heel. “Whoops! Forgot these!”

He’s so damn cheerful, you watch him pop the lid open with that dopey grin on his face as he hands you a pink sprinkled donut. “This matches your outfit, here!”

You glance down at your sweater, he’s right. That frosting matches your attire perfectly. “Woah it totally does, thanks so much!”

He gives you a nod, he looks like he wants to say something else, but he shuffles back to his desk taking the donuts with him.

Damn, you think to yourself, when was the last time your boyfriend paid attention to the outfits you wear?

The first few hours of work went smoothly, whenever you had questions, everyone was happy to help. You spent a lot of the day answering emails and organizing files.

Your main responsibility was to answer phone calls and redirect them to the correct person in the office to talk to, or just answer general questions. Most of the conversations you had were brief.

Anytime someone raised their voice at you over the phone, you’d stay calm. Adrian, however, would tense up and stare at you, as if he wanted to reach his hand through the phone and choke out whoever was on the other line until they turned blue.

That wasn’t the only time he’d look at you. You’d notice the way he’s always swiveling back and forth in his chair. Every time his body turned even slightly in your direction, he’d shoot you a smile. You couldn’t help but smile back.

Adrian couldn’t stop stealing glances at you. He notices the way your lips seem to shimmer under the fluorescent lighting, the way the color of your sweater brings out your eyes, how sweet and patient you are to all the clients over the phone. He even thought the little stuffed bunny on your desk was cute, you sort of remind him of a bunny too.

You were a lot more subtle with your ogling, opting to peek at Adrian when you knew he wasn’t paying attention. If you craned your neck you were able to see his screen. He spent an entire hour researching bunnies for some odd reason.

In fact, you aren’t sure if he’s really doing any work at all. From the NDA’s, you already know he’s Vigilante, so you’d guess he’s more useful in the field than the office.

You stare at him and his screen as he starts writing an email. It’s impossible to make out the tiny words on the screen, but you see him type and backspace over and over again. You squint your eyes as you try to see what he’s typing-

Ding!

Right, you’re supposed to be checking emails too. Bringing your attention back to your computer, you straighten your back and open the new email notification.

From: [email protected]

Subject: Hi

Hi! 🧜‍♂️

From,

Adrian

You stifle a giggle as you read the email, the emoji is weirdly endearing to you. As your eyes flick up again, you see Adrian already grinning at you. Shaking your head, you return the smile and reply to his email.

From: [email protected]

Subject: Hi!

Hi Adrian,

You must be really bored, huh?

Best,

Your desk buddy

As you hit send you try to focus back on your tasks. It’s your first day after all, you can’t mess around too much. But, his goofy antics are making the day go by a lot quicker.

Another notification comes through. You consider ignoring it for now, but curiosity gets the best of you. How could you possibly ignore him when he’s practically wagging his tail at you right now.

You peek around the office, everyone else is either talking to each other or have their eyes glued to their computers. Nobody can tell you guy aren’t really working.

From: [email protected]

Subject: Important work stuff

Nope! Not bored anymore, I’m talking to you! Can you do prank calls on your phone?

Love,

Your desk buddy

Eyes widening when you read how he signed his email, anxiety wracks through you. Love? Maybe he’s joking around. You shouldn’t take it so serious, but still. That could get you in trouble.

Your mind drifts back to your familiar problem, your boyfriend.

He’s okay, he’s a simple choice. The type of guy that keeps you in your comfort zone. He has jealousy issues, and a lot of other issues actually. But you love him. Yeah, you love him.

Love is supposed to be hard. That’s what you’ve always been told, stick with people you love even when times get tough. You don’t want to end up alone, and you know your boyfriend is probably the best you can do.

Why does it feel so hard then?

He’s barely happy for you about your new job, he’s rarely happy period. But, he buys you things, not things you really like but whatever. Your parents like him, he’s an easy choice.

You don’t want to think about him right now, the thought of change is really scary after all of the changes you’ve already made recently. Your relationship is the only familiar thing in this new life you’re building.

Ugh, but don’t you deserve some excitement? It’s not like you’re cheating, you’re making friends with your colleagues! It’s networking.

You pick up the phone and type in the proper extension number.

Adrian perks up when he hears his phone ringing. He never gets phone calls! Maybe someone needs him for a super cool spy mission or something. He picks up the phone and forces a serious expression only his face. “Hello, you’ve reached Adrian at Checkmate.”

You’re slouching in your chair as you try to hide the fact that you’re speaking into your phone. “Is your refrigerator running?”

You hear Adrian shift around in his chair before responding. “Great question. I’m not with my fridge right now so I’m not sure. Why? Is there a new wave of fridge related crimes?”

“Then you better go catch it!” You try to change the tone of your voice so he doesn’t recognize you.

Adrian speaks very seriously on the other line. “Got it. I’ll definitely go catch this criminal. Do you have any information on them?”

You facepalm. Maybe you should’ve picked a different prank call bait and switch, because he’s taking it a bit too literally. You giggle and sit up straight, looking at him.

“Adrian it’s me, I’m trying to prank call you.”

“What?” He looks like a confused puppy, tilting his head and pressing his work phone to his ear. Scanning the room and looking for answers, he sees you.

It seems to click in his mind what you were trying to do, and he bursts into maniacal laughter. He throws his head back, which highlights his prominent Adam’s apple.

His laughs are so loud in your ear that you have to pull the phone away a bit. You hear his cackles echo through the office as well as the delayed laughing through your phone.

Everyone looks up from their desks in confusion, but not surprise as they watch Adrian lose his mind over your failed, yet successful prank.

You bite back a smile as you watch him catch his breath. You feel eyes on you too, and you turn away, trying to act like you’re on some type of business call.

Adrian finally gets a few words out through his wheezes. “Ah! That’s too good!”

Through the phone, the heavy breathing and his out of breath voice make you feel hot all over. You slam your phone back into the holder, you can’t think like that. This is just friendly stuff, right.

Lunch break came exactly at the right time, saving you from another unhealthy train of thought.

You sat in the break room with Leota, and the third seat was quickly stolen by Adrian.

Chris looked shocked to see that his best friend wasn’t sitting with him today, but after a moment he gave Adrian a not so subtle wink.

“Did you know that bunnies can live up to 50 years?” Adrian looks over the moon to be telling you this information. His green eyes are practically sparkling.

Ads starts to respond. “Adrian I don’t think that’s-“

“I didn’t know that!” You know it’s not true, but you hated the way his face dropped when Leota was about to tell him he got his facts wrong.

The smile he gives you in return makes your heart feel like it’s being squeezed.

The rest of your lunch is spent listening to Adrian spout off bunny facts. How did he know it’s your favorite animal? Some of them don’t sound true, but you like listening to him talk.

Ads listens in pure amusement and disbelief, but she laughs along anyways. She’s had enough bunny facts for the day, however. “So, how’s your first day going?”

“Great! I’m still figuring some things out, but I think it’s going to be a good fit.” You swallow and force yourself not to look at Adrian right now. You refuse to admit that you think he might be a good fit too.

Leota’s face lights up and she claps her hands together once. “Nice! How have the clients been treating you?”

“Most of them are pretty standard interactions, only a couple of Karen’s so far.”

You make a face suggesting you’ve had some sour people on the phone today.

Adrian leans across the table to speak again. “You were doing great! I heard you being all professional and shit, you’re so nice to everyone.”

“Thank you!” Is he throwing sweet compliments like that at everyone or just you? You shouldn’t care. You’re in a relationship. Still, your teeth dig into the skin of your cheek, suppressing a smile.

A team meeting was held at the end of the day, filling you in on all of the current projects that were being worked on. Everyone at this company seems so… real. There’s no cold shoulders, this feels like a family.

As you leave for the day, you see Adrian staying back to undoubtedly go patrolling with Peacemaker. You wave the two men goodbye.

Adrian Chase. What an interesting guy. What an interesting, handsome, gorgeous, funny-

You blast the radio in your car before you let yourself go down that rabbit hole.

On the way home, you feel fucking amazing. Best first day ever, that’s for sure. For the first time ever, you feel excited to go back to work tomorrow.

Definitely just because you like the job, no other reason.

Yet, as you try to drown out the confusing feelings you’re having with Britney Spears, you can’t get the image of Adrian’s pretty green eyes out of your head.

Tomorrow Problem pt. 2

Part 1

WC: 6.4k

Tags/warnings: Smut MDNI!, Adrian Chase is a munch, fluff, premature ejaculation, first date, Checkmate roommates, fluff, AFAB! reader, no use of Y/N

A/N: Thank you all so much for the support on part one! It hyped me up so much I banged this chapter out immediately. I hope you guys like it!! Please give me feedback and let me know if you want more parts :)

Sunlight seeped in through the sheer lacy curtains covering your window, the brightness felt like an assault on your sleepy senses. When your eyes open, you’re met with the initial shock of being in an unfamiliar place until reality sets in, and the events of yesterday remind you of your new residence.

Yesterday... Oh fuck. This is now a today problem.

As you shift around in your sheets, your mind replays that fucking kiss. Your heart flutters when you think about it. Is that an anxious flutter or something else?

A few minutes of pure contemplation pass, trying to figure out how to go about this situation. You come up with nothing and decide to just wing it. The more you think about what to do the more nervous you get, so might as well just figure it out as you go. You’re going to try to have a normal Sunday.

You step out of your room, stretching your arms above your head as if you’re trying to snap your body into reality. You pass one of the bathrooms on your way to the kitchen, noting that you can hear the shower running.

The kitchen is quiet, until you hear Leota’s comforting laugh, and as you come closer Emilia comes into view. The pair are seated on barstools at the kitchen counter, sipping coffee. Leota’s eyes light up when she sees you. “Hey girl! I made coffee if you want some.”

“She’s not drinking that unless you have ice cubes and a disgusting amount of sweetener.” Emilia remarks with a barely masked smile in your direction.

“Aww you noticed!” You say in a sweet teasing tone as you grab a glass out of the cupboard and begin to assemble your coffee. “How’d you guys sleep?”

Leota pipes up first, using her hands as she talks to add emphasis to every word. “This place is amazing! I slept like a baby last night.”

“I slept pretty good once I was able to tune out the sound of John’s snoring.” Emilia replies with a playful eye roll as she takes another sip of her coffee.

You still your movements for a moment, listening. You can faintly hear snoring sounds from down the hallway that tell you Economos is still sleeping. Chris is probably still asleep too, knowing he likes to sleep in. You laugh slightly and right as you’re about to reply, Harcourt asks a question.

“How was it sharing a wall with Adrian?”

That stops you in your tracks, your eyes widen and a familiar flush rises to your cheeks. You search for words for a moment, trying to cover up your flustered state. As you drop a few more ice cubes into your coffee, you clear your throat to respond. “Good! Yeah it was good. He was silent, it was fine!”

Dead silence. You lift your gaze and are met with both women staring at you in a way that tells you they’ve both already read you like a book. You think about talking again, but snap your mouth shut as you remember you cannot possibly lie to these two. They somehow have the restraint to not push the topic, but shift the attention onto something else. More like someone else.

“Speaking of Adrian, have you noticed the googly eyes he’s been giving you recently?”

Adebayo speaks with a suspicious lilt to her voice, paired with a smile that says she’s onto you.

Emilia cracks a similar smile now that the elephant in the room has been addressed, and her eyes bore into you like laser beams. “That fucker has been giving her googly eyes since the day they met.”

Your jaw drops, but you quickly snap it shut as you desperately try to keep an air of nonchalance. However, the heat in your cheeks is completely giving you away. “No way! We’re just friends, great friends, maybe even best friends!” Your forced laugh definitely sells it as you practically choke on your coffee.

Leota snorts and covers her mouth as she laughs so hard she has to clutch her stomach. Emilia laughs too as if that’s the most obviously false thing she’s ever heard. This woman is a human lie detector. “You like him.”

You gasp in response to Harcourt as if the mere idea of her words has scandalized you. “I do not!”

But you can’t even keep a straight face as the words leave your lips, quickly joining the two women in their laughter. You’ve been caught. This may be the first time you’ve admitted it to yourself, and now your two best friends know too.

You want to shut it down though, the last thing you need is these newly realized feelings becoming some big thing. You aren’t even sure what you want to do about it yet. So, you bring out the big guns. “Anyways… Harcourt, how are things with Chris?”

“Fuck off.” She deadpans back to you, but there’s a twinkle in her eye. You smile back at her, maybe the two of you are in more similar situations than you care to admit.

Leota practically howls with laughter as she watches this exchange unfold. You’re giggling to yourself too. As you take your coffee and begin walking back to your room, you deliver one last parting statement. “Keep your mouths shut, I don’t like him like that!”

You don’t turn back to hear their responses, just continue walking to your room so you can get ready for your day off. You’re stopped in your tracks as the bathroom door swings open and almost whacks you in the face.

Right as you’re about to curse out whoever scared the shit out of you, the words die on your tongue. How could you possible come up with words when you’re face to face with a half-naked Adrian Chase?

Both of you freeze for a moment as your eyes take in the sight in front of you. A deep blue towel is hanging low on his hips, perfectly showing off his defined V-line. His abs are highlighted by tiny droplets of water trailing down his body and being soaked up by the towel. His arms, oh my god his arms. One hand is holding the towel to keep it from slipping. You realize his other hand is on your shoulder steadying you as he almost knocked you over. He looks like sex on legs, with his perfectly toned body on full display and the fact that he’s wet only makes him more tempting.

You finally make eye contact and you almost wish you hadn’t because his curls are wet and clinging to his forehead, his glasses are fogged, and he’s smiling like he’d been hoping to run into you. His scent meets your nostrils, flooding your senses with his familiar smell. It’s something crisp and clean, with a hint of his pine aftershave. You can even faintly catch the smell of his spearmint toothpaste, and is that.. vanilla? Did he use your shampoo?

“Hi!” He says cheerily, which snaps you out of your lovesick thoughts like a bucket of ice water being dumped on your head. You swallow, your mouth suddenly feeling dry. Your knuckles are turning white from how hard you’re gripping your iced coffee. Your fingertips are turning cold and damp from the condensation on the cold glass. Why does he seem so unphased and confident, he’s so blissfully unaware, or at least that’s how you see it.

“Hey!” You spit the word out which takes a miraculous amount of effort in your flustered state. Instead of continuing a casual conversation like a normal person, you slip out of his comforting grasp and book it to your room. You can hear Emilia and Leota laughing in the kitchen, no doubt seeing the entire ordeal.

You feel guilty for closing the door on him like that, but you just need a minute to breathe. What the actual fuck is going on with you? You’ve never had an issue keeping your cool. Adrian is one of your closest friends, but after last night, you feel your nervous system collapsing in his presence. You need to get your shit together, he likes you and you obviously like him. Do something about it.

As you sit on your bed and stare at the wall, you hear familiar voices in the kitchen. Adrian’s tone sounds confused as Adebayo and Harcourt are probably giving him some type of advice.

———————————————————————

About an hour has passed, you’ve fully gotten ready for the day and tried to get your mind right. This proved to be very hard especially when you were brushing your teeth. Steam from his shower lingered in the air, and you noticed little doodles he traced onto the fogged up mirror. How did you never notice how fucking cute he is?

You took a shower as well, which reminded you of the fact that he was in this exact shower not so long ago. You feel like he’s plaguing your thoughts. Ever since your lips touched his you can’t swallow these feelings down anymore.

Emilia had popped her head into your room a few minutes ago letting you know that they were going grocery shopping since your fridge was still practically empty. You threw some cash her way to contribute to the cost. You should be home alone.

You enter into the common area dressed and ready for your day, planning to hang out and wait for everyone to come back. If you took a little extra time getting ready and picking your outfit, that’s not anyone’s business.

When you see Adrian on the couch playing on his Nintendo Switch, your heart seizes in your chest. You remind yourself to calm the fuck down, it’s just Adrian. “You didn’t go grocery shopping with everyone?”

His head pops up comedically fast when he hears your voice, responding immediately. “Nope!” He pops the ‘P’ sound. “They told me to stay back and keep you company.” He looks completely oblivious to the fact that your roommates were obviously scheming something.

“Oh! That’s sweet of you.. how was your first night in the new place?” Your mind drifts back to the sounds of him pleasuring himself last night. You swallow those thoughts down as you sit next to him on the couch, clasping your own hands together and placing them in your lap.

“Good! Yeah, good. Were you crying last night or something? I heard noises from your room.” Said with complete sincerity. If he didn’t look so earnest you’d think he was messing with you. But no, he’s looking at you with those big green eyes. He’s completely unreadable which is both endearing and completely frustrating.

You stutter for the right words for a moment. So he did hear you moaning last night, great. It feels like you guys are tiptoeing the line of a very awkward conversation that you definitely don’t want to have right now. “No, I wasn’t in pain.. I was.. I was asleep.”

“Really? Because I was jerking off and I swear I heard you making noises or something.” Adrian speaks through a laugh as if he’s talking about the weather and not the fact that he casually admitted to jerking off.

Your jaw is on the floor at this point. What the fuck do you even say to that? “Yeah I thought I heard that.”

“I thought you said you were asleep?”

“I wasn’t.”

“Oh!”

A few moments pass where the two of you are just staring at each other. Normal communication feels impossible at this point. You’re about to change the subject when he speaks again, leaning in conspiratorially. “That’s pretty fucking cool though, did you hear me say your name?”

Oh okay I guess there’s no boundaries about this stuff, you should’ve known. He’s not shy about anything. The only time you’ve ever seen him be shy is last night before he kissed you. Might as well match his energy. “I did hear that. I think we came at the same time.”

Finally, you’ve gotten a reaction out of him. His jaw drops slightly and his cheeks flush. God he looks so cute when he’s flustered. Now that you’ve seen him like this, you want to see it all the time. You smile at him warmly, waiting for his response.

It seemed to click in his head what exactly happened last night, and his pants look like they’re getting tighter as it dawns on him. He not so subtly places a throw pillow on his lap and readjusts in his seat. After a few seconds of rebooting, his wide grin returns. His eyes crinkle as he talks excitedly. “Are you serious? Next time just knock, no need to use your hand when my mouth is right here.”

He’s so unintentionally good at flirting simply because he has no filter. And god it’s working on you. A giggle slips out of you, which makes him smile grow impossibly wider. “I’ll take you up on that.”

He looks so happy that you think he might jump up and do his butt dance. Adrian looks giddy at the fact that you basically agreed to let him go down on you sometime. As he opens his mouth to talk, the front door swings open.

Chris is carrying every single grocery bag while Emilia, Leota, and John trail in behind him. “I fucking told you guys I could carry them all at once!” He says as he ungracefully slams everything down onto the counter.

“Nobody disagreed with you” Economos deadpans in return.

“Shhh just let him have it.” Leota whispers to John as they all start unloading groceries and putting them away. It doesn’t go unnoticed that everyone is glancing at you and Adrian and raising their eyebrows. Chris recreates the motions of intercourse with his fingers and then points at the two of you, earning a smack on the arm from Harcourt.

“So, what have you two been up to?” Chris says as you and Adrian make your way to the kitchen to help everyone put things away.

Adrian’s eyes light up immediately, excited to share the news with his BFF. As he digs through a grocery bag and begins putting away an absurd amount of Malt-O-Meal, he blurts, “Dude, so she just said she’d let me eat-“

Standing behind Adrian, you wrap your arm around him and slap a hand over his mouth. You respond a little too loud. “Eat! We’re going to eat dinner together later. Isn’t that right Adrian?” You crane your neck to look at him desperately, hoping he understands that he needs to keep your conversation to himself.

Everyone perks up when you say that, smiling like a bunch of kids in a candy store. You immediately realize your mistake when Economos opens his mouth. “You two are going on a date?”

With his mouth still covered, Adrian can only nod enthusiastically. He could easily wiggle out of your hold, but it seems like he doesn’t want to. Especially because you can feel his teeth against the palm of your hand. He’s fucking smiling. “Yeah, I guess you could call it that.”

“It’s about fucking time.” Emilia actually sounds happy for you when she says it. You see her giving Chris a look with an unreadable expression on her face.

Chris doesn’t notice, he looks ecstatic at the news that his two friends might finally get together. “Hell yeah! Nice job thimble.”

“Stop calling him that!” You say a bit too defensively as you finally release your hold on Adrian. He seems a little let down that he isn’t at your mercy anymore.

Instead of perceiving your defending as a sweet gesture, Chris barks out a laugh. “Woah, woah, so you’re saying you can confirm it’s not a thimble?”

You walked right into that one. You roll your eyes, but there’s no real annoyance behind it. Before you can spit out another defence, Emilia beats you to the punch, literally. She punches Chris in the arm again, which shuts him up.

The subject gets changed and you spend the next 10 minutes arguing over whether bread belongs in the pantry or the fridge with your beloved roommates.

After things quiet down a bit, Adrian tries to quietly talk to you. The thing is, he’s a very loud whisperer and has no idea that he’s being loud. “Wanna go at 7?”

All 4 of your other roommates snap their heads in your direction. You pretend you don’t notice and loudly whisper back. “Yeah 7 works for me.”

He practically beams at you and looks like he wants to keep talking, but gets distracted as everyone else starts making lunch all together.

After eating lunch everyone hangs out together in the living room. Everything feels normal. Even though everyone is aware that there is something happening between you and Adrian, it’s not as big of a deal as you thought it would be. Nothing changed, and that makes you feel so much better. Maybe this isn’t a bad idea after all, you probably should’ve given in a long time ago.

———————————————————————

You’re in your room getting ready for your date with Adrian. You put on a little extra makeup, your lips are glossed, and you put on a casual teal dress. You aren’t sure when you became the type of person to wear a man’s favorite color for a date, but here you are. As you finish putting on your jewelry, you realize you can hear Adrian fussing around in his room too. You spray some perfume on your pulse points and dig through your purse to check the time on your phone.

It’s 6:59.

You should probably think about meeting him in the living room or something. How do dates work when your date in question shares a wall with you? You feel your chest start to burn with nerves. It’s been awhile since you’ve been on a date. This one in particular feels very important. Deep down you’ve always had a thing for him, and you’re relieved to finally be able to explore it. You’re a little jittery, but ready to just see what happens.

It’s 7:00 now, you decide to go see if he’s ready to go. You open your bedroom door and immediately get startled by someone standing there. After the initial shock wears off, you’re happy to see Adrian.

He’s standing there with his fist in the air as if he was about to knock. He’s dressed nicer than usual, wearing dark wash jeans and a black sweater. He smells like cologne, which makes you want to yank him in your room and fuck his brains out. Then you see the bouquet of deep red roses in his hand. “You look so pretty! I got these for you, I thought they’d match your bed..”

God you love seeing him blush like that. You carefully take the flowers from him so you can find a vase to put them in. “Adrian that is so sweet, thank you. I didn’t know you were such a gentleman!”

He stands in your doorway as you get the roses situated on your nightstand, making a mental note to add more water to the vase later.

Adrian shifts his feet, smiling bright as he speaks. “You’re welcome! I mean, that’s kind of rule number one for a first date. I’ve seen the movies and stuff.”

Ever the rule follower, of course Adrian Chase would be the type to stay in line with first date guidelines. Maybe chivalry isn’t dead.

The two of you quickly make your way out of the loft, trying to avoid the hoots and hollers of your roommates. You miss the fact that Adrian is pumping his fist behind you as the two of you walk out the front door.

———————————————————————

The drive was relatively quiet, maybe because you’re a little nervous. It could also be the fact that his playlist is banging so there was no need to talk. Adrian also didn’t trust himself to open his mouth without blurting out where he’s taking you and ruining the surprise.

As you pull into the parking lot, a familiar restaurant comes into view. It’s a nice little Italian place that you mentioned wanting to go to months ago. Your heart flutters at the fact that he remembered such a small thing you said.

“Don’t move!” Adrian blurts as he puts the car in park as he practically rips his seatbelt off and bursts out of the car. He runs around to the passenger side and calmly opens your door, bowing like a prince. “M’lady…”

You can’t help the giggle that escapes you as you step out of the car, you curtsy in return. “Why thank you, good sir.”

The two of you make your way into the restaurant and get seated at a quiet table towards the back. He pulls your chair out for you. You try to think back and remember a time when any man has been this sweet and attentive on a date, and you come up blank.

You both decide it’s a good idea to split a bottle of wine because “Why the hell not?” You guys also ordered a few appetizers to split and now you are sitting together, alone, with no distractions.

“So, this is a real date right?” He says it with complete seriousness, as if he’s afraid this is all a big joke.

“Yes! Of course this is a real date. I think this has been long overdue. Especially because of… well, basically everything that happened yesterday.”

Your server drops off the bottle of wine at your table. Adrian uncorks it and pours you a glass without a second thought. He sighs in relief. “I‘ve been wanting to ask you out for so long. I guess I didn’t technically ask you out, but whatever we’re still here!”

You stop in your tracks for a second, how long has he liked you for? Thinking about it makes you feel all fuzzy as you sip your wine.

His face looks slightly confused for a moment, he presses his lips together and tilts his head before talking again. “When you say ‘everything that happened yesterday’ do you mean the fact that we made out or the fact that we were parallel playing with ourselves last night?”

A sudden burst of laughter almost causes you to spit your wine out. “Both. But mostly the first part.”

“That was fucking awesome, right?” He leans a little closer to you over the table, smiling as if the two of you are spilling secrets.

“It was definitely awesome, that’s why I’m glad we’re doing this.” A genuine smile graces your face.

Appetizers soon arrive at the table. The two of you finish the bottle of wine way too quickly. The slight buzz is making you loosen up a bit and really just enjoy yourself. The two of you cleared all of the plates and are absolutely stuffed, and a little bit tipsy.

“Adrian, I can’t believe you remembered that I wanted to try this place.” You say with a big smile as you reach across the table and place your hand on top of his.

“I remember everything you say.” He says it a bit incredulously, as if it’s obvious that he’d pay attention to everything you do. He laces your fingers together and stares at your interlocked hands in awe. He uses his free hand to push his glasses back up his nose.

“You’re really good at this stuff, do you go on a lot of dates?” You try to look unbothered, but the way your hand squeezes his a little tighter might be a dead giveaway.

“No, not really. I made everyone give me advice on how to not fuck this up, I hope it’s working.” The bill gets dropped off, he swipes it before you even get a chance to look at it.

“I never really go on dates either, but I’d say you’re killing it.” You peek at the bill as he signs it and see that he left a 25% tip. Why is that so hot?

As the two of you leave, he offers you his hand again as he walks you to the car, you’re both giggling and joking with each other how you always do. But now, there’s affection underneath it all.

You’re definitely a little more buzzed than he is, due to his healing factor and the fact that he’s made of pure muscle. He’s definitely okay to drive, while you’re tipsy and all smiles.

The quiet on the way back is comfortable. Your fingers are still laced together, his thumb is rubbing circles on the back of your hand. When you tilt your head to look at Adrian, you can’t help but admire him.

His fingers are tapping the steering wheel to the rhythm of whatever is playing on the radio. The way his eyes are dutifully fixed on the road, but he sneaks a few shy glances at you. His Adam’s apple looks edible at this point. He’s beautiful. “Adrian, you’re so handsome.”

A blush creeps up his neck as he fails to bite back a smile. “Thank you!” He basically sings in response.

Pulling up to the familiar Checkmate parking lot, you feel a little sad that this date is coming to an end.

Adrian doesn’t hesitate to sprint around the car to open the door for you again.

The air is thick as the two of you make your way upstairs to the loft. He pauses by the front door, looking like he’s searching for words.

You beat him to it. “I had fun with you tonight.”

His eyes crinkle from how much he’s smiling “Yeah, yeah, I did too. Would you want to do it again soon?”

“Of course I would.” You twiddle your fingers, waiting for him to open the door so you can both go inside your home.

“This is the part where I’m supposed to walk you to your door and kiss you goodbye, but I’m realizing that won’t really work-“

You don’t let him finish, you wrap your arms around his neck and close the distance.

This kiss is different from last time. It’s softer, sweeter. It feels genuine, like you’re saying everything you don’t know how to say to him out loud.

After a second of initial shock, he gently places his hands on your waist and kisses you back. He tilts his head and locks lips with you as if you’re made of glass.

A few moments pass, he smiles against the kiss which causes you to do the same thing. You peck the corner of his mouth one more time. “Let’s go inside.”

As soon as he opens the door for you, all of your roommates are staring at you with their jaws dropped.

“What?” You ask the group with utter confusion in your tone.

Economos is the first to speak, completely dead pan. “You guys know we have a Ring camera, right?”

“Now we do!” Adrian blurts with absolutely no shame. His hand is still on the small of your back.

You clasp a hand over your mouth after hearing that everyone saw both of you kissing. You are not a fan of PDA.

“Goodnight!” Is all you can think to say before pecking Adrian on the cheek and scurrying off to your room.

———————————————————————

Hours have passed since your date and the Ring camera situation. You’re a little embarrassed, just because it was a personal moment. You could never be embarrassed of Adrian.

Tonight made one thing clear as day, you have some serious feelings for that fucker.

You showered, cleaned up your room, debriefed with the girls a bit, and you still can’t stop thinking about Adrian Chase.

Laying in your bed, your thoughts of sweet budding romance shift into something hungrier. The kiss tonight was so perfect, it made you want more. He smelled so fucking good earlier, and looked even better than he normally does.

The thought of Adrian makes a familiar heat bloom between your legs.

As your hand begins to slip into the waistband of your underwear, you realize you’re in the same situation you were in 24 hours ago. You’re reminded of what Adrian told you earlier.

Before you can talk yourself out of it, you’re jumping out of bed, walking down the hallway and knocking on his bedroom door.

He answers it a little too quickly, looking a little tired but nonetheless happy to see you. The fact that he’s only wearing plaid pajama pants makes your situation more dire.

“Hey, what is it?” He’s loudly whispering again.

“Remember what you said earlier, about how next time I should just knock on your door?” You say all of that in one exhale as you fiddle with the hem of your tank top.

He looks up at the ceiling for a second, wracking his brain. His head snaps back to you and he nods furiously. “Yeah! Are you saying you want me to go down on you?”

His literal way of speaking and thinking both flusters you and turns you on even more. “That is what I’m saying…”

“Hell fucking yes! This is the best day ever!” He wraps an arm around your waist and tugs you into his room.

“Are you sure?” He looks like he’s buzzing with energy now, but holding back just in case.

You don’t answer directly, instead opting for pressing your lips onto his and humming an affirmative.

He responds immediately, licking the seam of your mouth which you happily open up for him. His tongue feels velvety smooth against yours, and he tastes like spearmint.

The two of you stumble towards his bed, you land on top of him. Spreading your legs to straddle his hips, you’re diving back in to kiss him again.

He groans against your mouth. It sounds so much better up close than it did through your wall last night.

He mumbles against your lips as if words are bubbling out of him without control, but he doesn’t stop kissing you for a second. “You’re so fucking pretty, I want to make you feel good, can I do that please?”

You’ve never heard him sound so needy before, it makes your skin feel like it’s on fire. “Yes, yes, yes.” You mumble between kisses.

He flips you onto your back and starts kissing down your neck. “Adrian..”

“Holy fuck please say that again.” His hand slips under the hem of your tank top.

Your back arches against his touch, and you nod your head to let him know it’s okay. “Adrian, please touch me.”

“Fuck.” He sounds like he might explode as he lifts you up a bit to peel your top over your head.

Adrian completely freezes for a moment. He’s absolutely awestruck. He readjusts his glasses and doesn’t break eye contact with your boobs. “You are gorgeous. Wow, look at you…”

His eyes are wide and entranced as he admires your topless form. You open your mouth to respond but the words die on your tongue as his tongue licks a trail between your breasts.

“These are the best tits I’ve ever seen in my life. I feel like I won the lottery right now.” His words vibrate against your chest as he sucks your nipple into his mouth, squeezing the other breast with his hand.

Your hands grip onto his bare shoulders, gazing at him with a sultry look in your eyes. “Keep going.”

“With pleasure.” His hand slips under the waistband of your shorts. “Can I?”

“Fucking please.” Desperation usually isn’t your go to, but duty calls.

His hand slips under your shorts and he runs his calloused fingers over the soft cotton of your panties. He stills when he feels how wet they are. “Holy shit you’re soaked! Is this because of me?”

“Yes Adrian, I don’t know if you’ve noticed but you’re super fucking hot.” Your hips roll forward, begging for his touch.

“Can I keep these?” He taps on the wet patch on your panties.

“You can have whatever you want just please touch me.” Your chest is heaving, you need something, anything.

“Yes ma’am.” His deft fingers slip your shorts and underwear off in one go. He takes your soaked panties and slips them under his pillow.

“I’ve wanted to eat your pussy since the second I saw you.” He slings your legs over his shoulders and presses your thighs apart with his hands.

“It’s so pretty.” He trails his fingers up the inside of your thighs.

“You’re so pretty.” From your point of view, Adrian Chase looking up at you from between your legs might be the prettiest thing you’ve ever seen.

His thumb drags from your entrance to your clit, smearing your arousal all over. He rubs his thumb in gentle circles. “Does this feel good?”

“Yes, really good.” Understatement of the century. It feels amazing, especially when paired with the sight of Adrian’s mouth practically watering over you.

“Tell me what feels good, please.” He lowers his head without breaking eye contact as he licks a stripe up your pussy.

“Fuck that’s perfect.” You don’t even recognize that tone of your voice.

His lips wrap around your clit, sucking it and working you with his tongue at the same time.

A moan escapes your lips and you open your legs up even more.

He groans against you. “You taste so good, I would eat this pussy for breakfast lunch and dinner.”

This man has a weird way of dirty talking, but you’re into it.

“You’re so good at this…” Your hands grip at his sheets as he buries his face between your thighs.

He notices immediately since he’s been paying attention to every little reaction you have. He’s trying to learn how to please you. He takes hold of your hands and guide them to his hair.

You get the idea, gripping onto his dirty blonde curls and gasping in pleasure when he pulls back a bit to rapidly flick his tongue against your sensitive bundle of nerves.

Your hips stutter as his tongue works magic on your pussy. The moans coming out of you are uncontrollable at this point. You open your eyes to see that he’s fucking grinning at you.

He looks absolutely blissed out, his hands are gripping your thighs as he nods his head up and down while he pleasures you with his tongue.

Adrian’s pupils are blown out, cheeks flushed, glasses fogged. Every time you moan, he does too.

“Just like that, that feels so good Adrian.” Your eyes clench shut as pleasure builds up deep in your gut.

His fingers tease your entrance, his tongue doesn’t let up. It’s delivering freakishly precise flicks on the exact spot that you need it. “Look at me, please I want to see your pretty eyes.”

You force your eyes open, mouth agape as you watch him lick and suck on your pussy. A moan gets caught in your throat as two of his fingers slip inside of you with no resistance, curling to hit that perfect spot.

“Jesus Christ, Adrian!” You whine.

His eyes light up as he watches you fall apart. He is ecstatic to be worshipping you between your legs the way you deserve. His hips press against his mattress, desperate for any type of friction. “Look at you, you’re fucking stunning.”

“I’m so close, please don’t stop!”

“Oh my god, come on my face. Please, please, please, holy fuck.” His words are muffled against your folds.

The vibration of his spoken praises is exactly what sends you right over the edge. Your fingers yank on his sandy colored locks, pulling him impossibly closer.

He can’t breathe and that’s exactly how he likes it, he groans against you as you pull his hair and grind against his mouth.

Your walls clench around his fingers as his name is ripped from your mouth. Your moans come from deep within you, whining as he works you through your release.

Your back arches off the mattress, eyes rolling to the back of your skull. You feel his body tense up between your legs, but his tongue and fingers don’t let up.

Finally, you pull him up and kiss him so fiercely you think you might’ve drawn blood. The taste of yourself on his tongue is addicting.

You pull away to catch your breath, chest heaving. “Adrian, you’re fucking amazing and definitely getting that second date.”

“I would do that for hours if you let me.” He says the words between gasps for air. Those earnest green eyes tell you he means it.

“Can I suck your dick?” After what he just did to you, he deserves the craziest head ever.

“No need… I already uhh..” He trails off and suddenly can’t keep eye contact.

You flick your gaze downward and see the wet patch on the front of his pajama pants. He looks a bit embarrassed.

Your eyes light up, nobody’s ever gotten so turned on just from going down on you before. “That’s the hottest thing a man has ever done.”

“Really?” He smiles a shyly and looks at you again.

You kiss the dimple on his cheek. “Really. Next time, I want to make you come myself. Deal?”

He rolls out of bed to head to the bathroom. “Is that a joke? Deal!”

He returns a minute later wearing a different pair of pajama pants. You’ve put your clothes back on. He climbs back into his bed with you, turning on his side and brushing a strand of hair away from your face. “Wanna sleep in here tonight?”

Your stomach flutters, this feels more intimate than anything else that’s happened in the past 24 hours. And yet… “Yeah, I do.”

You rest your head against his chest and let him wrap his arms around you. He kisses the crown of your head. “Did you know otters hold hands in their sleep so they don’t drift away from each other?”

“No, I didn’t know that. That’s super cute!” You smile against his bare chest, nuzzling closer to him.

His hand trails down your arm until he reaches your hand. He interlocks your fingers together, holding your hand.

Adrian Chase is a hard puzzle to solve. But comparing the two of you to otters and holding your hand as you drift off to sleep together is the closest thing to him saying that he really, really likes you.

Taglist: @v1gilanteloser @mystic-mara @harrysrosetatto @pieolsen @mrsbhang

Tomorrow Problem

Part 2!

Tags: MDNI! Slight smut, masturbation (him and you), kissing, Checkmate roommates, awkward dialogue, girly!reader, fem!reader, no reader description other than afab

Hey!! This is my first fic I’ve ever written, all feedback is much appreciated! I completely wrote this on a whim with no plans in mind, I just love the idea of the 11th Street Kids living together. Not proofread. I could DEFINITELY write multiple parts if anyone is interested. :)

After a few months of having Checkmate up and running, you all collectively realized that you had far too much space in the building.

The first floor was occupied by desks, offices, training rooms… but the second floor? Vacant. It was spacious, containing numerous rooms and the Checkmate team was at a complete loss of what to fill it with.

That was until your lease ended. Adrian decided he didn’t want to live with his mom anymore. Economos had been talking about moving closer to work. Chris felt haunted by memories living in his dad’s old place. Adebayo hated the sudden changes that came with living alone. Emilia was hesitant but eventually caved.

You all agreed amongst yourselves that it would be easier.

You’ve been a part of this found family for a while now. You were brought onto this team originally as a data analyst, but after shit hit the fan you discovered you aren’t so bad in the field either. Turns out saving the world can bring a group of people closer together in ways you wouldn’t expect.

For example: roommates.

————————————————————————

The loft is filled with chatter, bickering, nonsense, and utter chaos. Chris’s voice booms above everyone else’s “Dibs on the biggest room!”

“I already called fuckin’ dibs!” Emilia shouts back.

You’re leaning against the counter top just watching it all unfold. The cool temperature of the marble under your fingertips is weirdly calming as madness ensues all around you. You make a mental note to thank Leota for getting such nice amenities installed.

“Aren’t you going to pick a room?”

When you turn in the direction of the voice, you’re met with big green eyes and a wide grin belonging to none other than Adrian Chase.

“Nope! I’ll just take whichever one nobody else wants.” You’re honestly just happy to be there, and would rather not face the wrath of Emilia Harcourt right now. So you’re waiting for everything to die down a bit.

Adrian furrows his brow and presses his lips together, darting his eyes around the room. His gaze lands on your stack of boxes and his grin returns.

“I’ll get those! Can you just take the room next to mine?” He doesn’t wait for a response. He’s picking up a massive stack of boxes with strength that still manages to boggle your mind and walking down the hall towards your apparent new room.

Biting back a smile at how eager he is to please, you follow him. He gently sets the boxes down ever-so-gently onto the ground. The room is actually very nice, considering you almost took last pick.

Unbeknownst to you, Adrian threatened to murder anyone who took the room next to his unless it was you.

Of course you wouldn’t know that, not when he’s giving you those puppy dog eyes that are basically begging to be helpful in any way…

“Well! I guess I’ll start unpacking now..”

Adrian nods and smiles at you expectantly, standing in the corner of your room as he waits patiently for your next move. It seems to hit him all at once what you meant by that. “Oh! Well I’m right next door if you..” He trails off and sharply walks out of the room… But you could’ve sworn you heard him say “This is fucking awesome!” Under his breath.

————————————————————————

After a few hours of work, your room is complete. A deep cherry red duvet adorns your bed along with a couple of throw pillows and blankets. Your walls are filled with knickknacks- mostly posters of bands you like and some art pieces you’ve painted throughout the years. A couple of framed photos join the collage on your wall as well.

You have a vanity right next to the window for good lighting, all of your perfumes, makeup, and hair products perfectly organized and in place. Lace curtains hang over the windows, a big cozy rug on the floor, it’s perfect!

Like clockwork, the second you’re finished you hear an extremely familiar knock on your door. “Come in, Adrian!”

“How’d you know it was me?” He blurts the second the door is ajar, looking at you with his big dumb eyes and that adorably confused expression on his face. When did you start thinking he was cute? Is this a proximity thing?

A giggle escapes you when you see how genuinely baffled he is. “Because you have a very specific knock.”

His jaw drops slightly as he whines “Why does everyone say that?” He almost looks offended. His mood flips immediately when he actually takes a second to look around your room. His eyes light up and that big goofy smile returns.

“Woah, it’s like a fucking princess lives in here!” He starts looking at every little thing in your room, like he’s trying to memorize it.

“Who needs this much lipgloss?” He asks with a wheeze of a laugh, he’s not making fun, just genuinely tickled by all of the things in your room.

It’s comedic how he seems absolutely shocked that your room is girly. You watch as he opens your closet and giggles even more. “Adrian, haven’t you ever been in a girls room before?”

He spins to face you and smiles incredulously as he shakes his head. “Duh! I’m not a fucking loser, but I’ve never been in your room before. It’s so.. you! It even smells like you in here!”

You flop back onto your bed, still giggling at his antics. You absentmindedly pick at a loose thread on one of your blankets as you respond a little coyly. “Oh really? And what do I smell like exactly?”

“I don’t know, like a sex bomb or something.”

Your fiddling hand freezes. How does he manage to say such insane things so casually? You begin to feel heat rising to your cheeks. Sure, he’s said some weird stuff before. But nothing like that, it almost sounds flirty if you squint. You aren’t sure why you care if he’s flirting with you or not, but why do you kinda want him to? “A sex bomb? Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

He flops onto the bed right beside you, staring at you with those eyes that make you wonder if there’s anything going on in that head. You know there is, but you just can’t get a read on him. He props his elbow onto one of your pillows and rests his chin on his hand. “Yeah, obviously. It means you smell sexy, and so does your room.”

“Oh! So this would be a good room to fuck in?” You’re testing him at this point. You could play that off as a joke, or maybe he’ll take the bait. A slow smirk stretches across your face as you tilt your head and look at him through your lashes.

“Any room with you in it is a good room to fuck in.” He says with a shrug, but you can see him fidgeting with his fingers. Is he nervous? Have you ever seen him nervous before in your entire life? He has this oblivious confidence all the time, except when it comes to you, apparently.

A huff of a laugh escapes you. You weren’t expecting him to say something so direct, but you should know by now to never try to guess what will come out of his mouth. You turn your head towards your closed door, trying to listen for any noise. You hear some movie blasting from the living room, meaning everyone else must be occupied.

“Well, I’m here now aren’t I?” You tentatively reach out to run a finger down his bicep, watching his expression.

Instead of squirming away from touch like he usually does, he leans closer to you. His hand lands on your waist, dragging you closer to him. Laying on your sides facing each other, he can almost feel your breath on his face. “Yeah, you are here now…”

He speaks the words as if they’re a punchline, god what a dork. But he quickly recovers by slowly leaning in and pressing his lips to yours.

A shocked gasp leaves your lips, and he takes the opportunity to lock your bottom lip between his teeth. You squeeze his bicep, and you feel him fucking grinning against your mouth. The kiss starts slow, explorative, and languid. His hands gently run along your jaw, rubbing circles onto your cheeks with his thumbs.

But the second you run your hand up the back of his neck and gently pull on the hair at his nape, the kiss turns hungrier. It’s a clashing of teeth, a sloppy meeting of your lips. His hips involuntarily grind against your thigh, letting you feel just how hard he is under his jeans.

“Fuck- sorry-“ He pants against your lips, but as you pull him closer and kiss down the column of his neck, all the tension in his body fades away. When your lips suckle a particularly sensitive spot under his ear, he lets out a delicious groan.

You pull away, chest heaving. You’re trying to clear your head. It’s literally day one of living with everyone and you’re about to have a roomies with benefits situation with Adrian of all people.“Adrian- this might be a bad idea.”

His hand is still stroking your back, but as soon as he sees your hesitance, he backs up and gives you space. “We don’t have to! We could just.. go watch the movie?”

You look at his earnest eyes, he looks so eager to please you. God, this is definitely a bad idea. All you want is to climb on top of him and rip his clothes off. But this could really complicate things. You’re coworkers and roommates, this is practically a recipe for disaster. “Yeah let’s do that.”

————————————————————————

Hours have passed since your little… incident.. with Adrian.

The two of you joined in for the second half of the movie, enduring a few knowing glances from your roommates. Oh you’re so fucked. Chris even high fived Adrian, it’s almost like everyone is in on something that you have no inkling of. Regardless, Adrian still sat next to you on the couch. He made no moves to try and get in your pants, but you did rest your head on his shoulder which he excepted dutifully.

Lying in your bed, you find it hard to relax. You’re still so worked up from earlier. But you feel so conflicted at the same time. Sure, Adrian is cute. Of course he is, he’s fucking gorgeous actually. But you’ve always ignored that fact. Maybe you’ve repressed it a lot more than you thought. He’s a psychopath, yes. But he’s also such a fucking sweetheart. He’s always offering to help you carry things, or hold the door open, or share an animal fact with you. Of course you listen to everything he says and hang onto every word.

Do you like him?

Your spiralling is rudely interrupted by a strange sound, a very familiar, delicious sounding groan. Your eyes snap open, it’s almost like your consciousness is haunting you with hallucinations of that lovely sound. Then you hear it again.

Sitting straight up, you lean against your headboard to press your ear against the wall. You hear more groaning, and the unmistakable sound of skin on skin. He’s jerking off. Heat rushes between your legs the second it clicks in your brain what he’s doing.

You need to stop listening, this is wrong! But, fuck he sounds so hot. You barely register the fact that your hand is slipping under the waistband of your panties. You stifle a sigh as you tend to the unrelenting horniness that’s been brewing in your gut since the second he walked into your room earlier.

Your mind is flooded with thought of his lips. How good they felt on your own. He was a remarkably good kisser, which you weren’t sure you were expecting. He was so calculated and meticulous in the same way he is on missions. It felt like Adrian did reconnaissance on your lips before he kissed them.

You get carried away pleasuring yourself while listening to his whining and moaning through your wall. At this point you can’t even get yourself to feel bad about how perverted this is, you’re too far gone. You feel yourself getting closer and closer to the edge, picturing what would’ve happened if you stayed in your room earlier instead of watching the movie.

That’s when he moans your name.

It was clear as day, and once he started he didn’t stop. You hear his voice breaking as he chokes your name out over and over again. That does you in, your orgasm washes over you. Your head clunks against the wall, unable to hold yourself up. A few moans slip out of your lips despite your efforts to hold them back as your climax pulses on.

After coming down from your high, you take a steadying breath. It’s then that you realize you can’t hear him anymore. Huh, he must’ve finished too.

Which means he probably heard you, too. Fuck.

Exhausted from the long day of moving, and way too many thoughts swarming through your brain, you finally slump onto your bed and start to drift off.

Maybe Adrian heard you, but that’s a tomorrow problem.

The fact that you made out with him is also a tomorrow problem.