Carpe Diem

Seize the mf day, girls.

[dead3ve]

All I’m thinking about is one if not all poets meeting someone that fits the stereotype of shy goodie two shoes and as they get to know them they say the dumbest and weirdest shit known to man and I mean dumb jokes both sexual and not and giggling when they remember doing something stupid yet funny(gn reader pls?)

Charlie Dalton x gn!shy!reader

Summary: When Knox makes a phone call to Chris, Charlie suddenly became aware of the humor within the newest addition to the poets.

Warnings: they/them pronouns, I did sort of stray a little from the ask, apologies. allusions to oral sex (nothing between the characters, just a crude joke)

"She's gonna hate me." Knox spoke defeated. Frantic.

All the poets had chased Knox from the cave and all the way back to Welton, where they waited for Knox to make the most important phone call of any boys' life. One to a girl.

Charlie Dalton had been leant against the wall, the newest dead poet behind him, leaning into him slightly. Dalton didn't seem to mind. The new student had grown slightly attached to him due to his humor and loyalty.

He stood up for them when Dr Hager had a go at them for practicing silence rather than knowing the answer. Charlie made some remark about a plane coming straight for the window, throwing himself under his desk. That landed him a detention and the student some relief. What made Charlie like them after the fact was that they caught him at dinner that evening and asked him about the plane.

"You think Vietnam's coming over here?" They spoke quietly and only to Charlie.

Charlie raised a brow in surprise at the dark joke. He spoke quietly in response, hoping to maintain their engagement, "Look at who we'd have fighting for us," Charlie gestured to the rest of the table being the other poets, "We'd be winners, babe." Charlie winked at them before turning back to his food, satisfied with the laughter they brought from the shy new student.

Since then, they'd been exchanging little quips to each other. Flirtatious some, and others not. Just wanting a smile from each other.

Once Chris had finally answered the phone, Charlie moved closer to Knox so he could hear Chris. The new poet felt colder without his bright presence by them.

Knox detailed what Chris had offered through the phone, "She's glad I called!" He whispered to the group animatedly, "Would I like to come to a party?"

Charlie quickly whispered 'say yes' excitedly. The new poet could only assume most of his time not at Welton was at big, exciting parties. Soon, the group found out it was at Chris's boyfriend's house. Charlie started speaking to Knox as if he were being an unaware child.

"So, you don't really think she means you're going with her?" Charlie spoke with a rhythm there. Purposefully slowing down the sentence so Knox could hear his daftness.

Knox hesitates for a moment, refusing to be the wrong one, despite the fact many of the group hadn't really been involved with girls.

"Well, of course not Charlie but that's not the point." Knox was firm in his words.

Charlie looked at the other poets, seeing if they felt the same way. He saw the new poet and their smile hidden behind a bitten lip. He smiled briefly, tried not to flush red and turned back to Knox.

"The point, Charlie... Is... That she was thinking about me."

The new poets jaw dropped slightly. They couldn't believe his thought process. He was most likely invited so there'd be some numbers at Chet's house. Charlie smiled at their face. Knox continued.

"It's gonna happen guys. I can feel it."

The new student could not feel it. At all. Knox had moved to walk past the poets now. Charlie moved to be close to the new student again. Knox turned before leaving down the hall, stating:

"She is going to be mine."

The other poets chased after him. Charlie and the new student turned to look at each other. They laughed in the sudden silence. At the grandeur of Knox's love for Chris.

Then the new student spoke in a loud sing-song tone, "Delusional!"

Charlie laughed in response. He brightened at their volume. It made him fall harder for them when he could see they trusted him.

"He's gone, y/n," Charlie had taken their hand then as he spoke. He pulled them down the hallway towards study hall, "And I don't think we're getting him back."

The pair were still laughing when they walked into the common room that held study hall. The poets looked up at the noise. Charlie's laugh wasn't so different, but the ringing one that bubbled more than burst from their chest caught their interest. They all turned back quickly when they realized it made them silence, wanting to keep the joy for as long as possible.

Soon, the pair had settled. The new poet helping Charlie with his history assignment as he groaned frustratedly with his head in his hands. They let them ramble about the Civil War, pretending to listen when really Charlie was looking at them with furrowed brows and a pouted lip.

How could someone be so pretty when talking about the old, wrinkled, wig wearing founding fathers?

The new student stopped talking when they noticed Charlie's pinched brow. They smiled at him softly.

"What?" They spoke with a cheeky look in their eye, "You don't swing that way, Charlie?"

Charlie laughed in response, leaning closer to the poet, then taking their pen.

"Just dont care much for the textbook." Charlie spoke quietly now. He gazed at them. He pushed their hair behind their ear.

They moved into his hand slightly, looking at him the same way. Peaceful. Satisfied. Longing, but not a desperate longing. They knew they could take their time. That was until Cameron interupted.

"Hey, y/n! What'd you get in English the other day? I can't figure out how to please this guy."

God, Cameron's nasally voice and stupid questions irritated him. He was going to respond with some of his quick wit, but the new poet beat him to it.

"Did you try sucking it?" They spoke bluntly, head not looking up from their paper.

There was silence. Then Charlie managed to take out Cameron with another witty swing, laughing through his statement of:

"Yeah, ass licking might be your thing too, try that next time, Cameron!"

[dead3ve]

Hii hello, I’ve been loving your writing lately so I had a little req in mind :3

With a gen!neutral reader that’s an exchange student or just a new student from a European country, still settling into the school ^_^ Mixing in things like getting used to new environments, maybe having an accent or struggling with English could be a sweet little thing to add to make it more interesting.

Charlie x G!neu preferably, but whatever you see fit works wonders🫶🫶

Charlie Dalton x gn!reader

Summary: Charlie finds himself totally enamored by the new foreign student. The foreign student finds themself enamored by him.

Warnings: Inaccurate foreigner experience. (I don't know the American experience or the European experience) I do not know what it is like so I'm sorry if this offends.

Charlie was running late. Something that occurred often considering his lack of passion for learning. His lack of passion for Welton.

The rarity of this though, was that Charlie was running late to English. He usually made an effort to attend Mr. Keating's class, as it was the only subject he enjoyed and found of value.

During his speed-walk down the hall, he caught the murmurs of a feminine voice from the gap of an open door. It was a smaller room. Wasn't meant for a full class. The voice wasn't in English. This caught his interest. He slowed and stood behind the open door, so he'd remain hidden but still be able to see the people in the room.

The feminine voice belonged to a teacher. One of the newer staff at Welton. They were sat on the top of a desk, talking down towards another student. That student was sat hunching in on themselves, clearly unhappy, uncomfortable. Arms folded, picking at the pills of their uniformed, knitted jumper. The teacher, Ms. Danfords, started speaking after taking a deep, patient breath.

"If you want to be a part of your classes, you have to know the basics of writing and speaking in English. You're not practicing."

The hunched body at the desk spoke back in a foreign language sounding of harsh, round vowels and a bitter tone. Ms. Danfords spoke back in a commanding tone in the same language. The student quickly grabbed their books and made their way towards the doorway where Charlie stood.

They brushed past him. High shoulders, teary eyed, small, frustrated pants from their mouth. He heard a quiet "Pardon," as they passed him.

It fascinated Charlie. The round shape of the 'o' and the long sound of the 'ar' as they spoke to them. The length and cut of their hair. A different cut and shape but so flattering. Something he hadn't seen in popular American magazines.

He trailed after them for a few steps, absolutely fascinated until he realized how strange he would have seemed following a near-weeping stranger.

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Charlie's thoughts had been consumed by the single word. "Pardon" was repeated throughout his mind. He was sat in silence, biting his nails for most classes during the day. The poets knew something had happened. Whether it was good or bad, they couldn't tell.

The last period of the day had finally arrived. Charlie, along with Neil and Knox sat down for mathematics. Another hated concept of Charlie's.

Charlie was slumped in his chair, thumb nail in his mouth and knee bouncing, when they walked in. The upset, new student from when Charlie was on his way to English. He watched as they took the seat right in front of him. He sat up, suddenly pin straight.

Neil took notice and leaned over to tap Knox on the shoulder and draw his attention to Charlie. They both snickered. and nodded in the direction of Charlie's neighbor. They realized what was wrong. Charlie was romantically interested. Charlie pulled a stern look, silently telling the boys to stop it.

Charlie leaned forward in his chair, chest against his desk in front of him, ready to speak his first words to the new student. That was until Dr. Hager walked in.

The new student flinched at Hager and then flinched again at the proximity of Charlie behind them. Charlie quickly gave a "Sorry" and sat back in his chair. Rigid, cringing from the interaction.

Little did he know, the student had suddenly realized who it was behind them. The boy who was meant to be funny, but they didn't understand his jokes. The boy who spoke to fast for them to understand, yet he was the most interesting. The handsome boy that was so concerned at seeing them crying. They were invested in knowing this boy.

The wide vowel he spoke when apologizing to them. 'Sorry'. It sounded so different. So nasally. So modern. Whatever Dr. Hager was talking about didn't make sense, and this time it wasn't because of the language barrier.

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Soon, they found themselves slowly turning in their chair. Just a little. They wanted to see the boy again. Charlie's cocked brow and half smile.

The boy looked up as he heard their chair squeak. His pencil in his hand frozen above his exercise book. The pair both froze in silence. Looking at each other. The girl was biting their lips. Fearful of what he thought of them.

Weak, sad, foreign, strange.

Charlie was thinking of something charming to say to them.

I like your hair. Never seen anything like it before.

Instead, Charlie suddenly remembered their previous panic. Their sad eyes and hunched shoulders. He was suddenly asking if they were okay.

"I'm fine." They spoke defeatedly. Maybe Charlie did see them as sad. "I'm sorry you saw that, Charlie."

"I'm sorry you find this so difficult." Charlie spoke in a whisper. Sincerity was heard in his voice. It made them feel better and give a small smile to the boy.

Their lips caught Charlie's attention when curved into a smile. He smiled back, toothier this time, still focused on the curve of their mouth. Charlie suddenly had a thought. A very good one.

"How come I haven't seen you at study hall?" Charlie questioned quietly. Dr. Hager was blabbering on still. It was pure luck Charlie hadn't been shut down by the girl or Hager.

The girl looked away slightly. "I don't know..." They hesitated. The classroom was already a foreign land most of the time. They didn't want to put the students who used study hall as a break in an uncomfortable situation. "It would be hard for me."

"C'mon," Charlie had leaned forward in his chair, it squeaked noisily.

This interrupted Hager.

"Dalton," Dr Hager's stern voice echoed in the silent classroom. Most students looked up. Those who didn't stopped working to listen. "Mingling or equating, Mr. Dalton?"

"Uhm..." For the first time, Charlie sweated under the question of a teacher, longing for a comeback. "Both?" He was questioning himself at this point.

"Dr. Hager," A third voice shocked Charlie. It was them. The European he was slowly befriending. "I didn't understand something. He was helping me."

"Well," Hager hesitated. For the first time, someone had made him fumble over his persecution of punishments against Welton students. "Perhaps ask me for confirmation next."

Heads bowed again, back to their books as Dr. Hager turned back to the chalk board. Charlie stayed looking at the back of the student's head. He was amazed, shocked at how they'd shut Hager up. Suddenly, the girl turned to look at him again.

"If I go to study hall..." They hesitated. Was this a stupid idea? They thought. Before they continued, Charlie butted in.

"I'd sit by you." He spoke quickly, he tried to rectify his offer, thinking of it as too forward. "But if you want me to do that, I mean."

The European smiled softly at them and nodded. "I think I would like that, Charlie."

[dead3ve]

Hii, I have a Charlie Dalton x fem!reader request/suggestion. Maybe something like Charlie tries to impress the reader with his rebellious acts, but what really wins her over are his genuine moments of vulnerability or support of his friends 🌸

Charlie Dalton x fem!reader

Summary: The request! And also, the scene where God calls him.

Warnings: The scene after where God calls him, and Charlie gets the paddle :(, no use of y/n, reader referred to as a girl, wears the uniformed skirt.

The reason for the limited number of female students was because the education board wanted a smoother transition process when making Welton Academy a co-ed school.

Did the new girls excite the boys? Yes. Was it any different? Not really.

Within the first few weeks of the school term, Charlie managed to make the prettiest of the girls laugh. Since then, he had become addicted to the sound.

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Mr. Keating had taken the students out of class to recite poetry and play soccer. An interesting mix of activities. Each student would recite a line or two of poetry and then kick the ball. When Charlie reached the front of the line, he took a confident stance, puffed his chest and he yelled his passage of "To indeed be a God!" He then kicked the ball.

He could hear laughter from several people, mainly from his friends. The laugh that was the most noticeable to Charlie was a ringing, girlish giggle. It bubbled from their chest and made Charlies neck warm under its collar. They had been stood behind him the whole time and he didn't notice how pretty they were. He had been craving the sound of their laugh since that lesson.

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The article in the school newsletter had been a popular topic among the student body. Charlie's plan was going exactly the way he wanted it to. All of the students were seated in the assembly hall, and Charlie had the phone prepared and his dialogue ready. The girl Charlie needed to impress was sat behind him around the other new girls.

Mr. Nolan was speaking in his calmy-furious way. Then suddenly, a phone was ringing. The silence turned into confused murmurs and chuckles in the assembly hall.

Charlie turned around in his chair to look at the girl. He sent them a wink and stood, phone in hand. The wink had made their stomach flutter and breath hitch. The girls around them had laughed and hollered at the interaction. But when he stood, the butterflies stopped. The butterflies turned into a nauseous feeling. This wasn't going to end well. That was when they heard Charlie's charismatic voice.

"Welton Academy, Hello?" The girl's knee was bouncing, "Yes, he is. Just a moment." The back of the girl's neck was sweating.

"Mr. Nolan, it's for you." Charlie moved his arms to gesture the phone towards the stern man stood on the stage before the lectern, "It's God. He says we should have more girls at Welton."

The girl's brows drew together as laughter erupted. They turned and looked around at some of the other students. They saw Charlie's friends, Neil and Todd and two redheads. Their postures were shrinking and their faces falling. Hands covering faces in shame.

While the hall was loud in laughter, Charlie sat back down. He turned to look at the girl to see their reaction. His brows also knitted together at their reaction.

There was no smile or laugh.

A frown. An awfully confused, gorgeous frown was what Charlie saw instead.

When Charlie caught their eye, the girl's gaze pulled away and lowered towards their skirted knees. They were considering whether or not the rebellious boy was worth the girl's attraction. They were wondering what he had done to himself and his friends.

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The girl had asked Neil Perry what Charlie had done when they were in the boys' dormitory hallway of Welton. He'd told them about the cave and the poetry.

Then he told them about why he probably pulled this stunt to impress them.

"What?" The girl's brows raised and pulled tightly together. They had grasped Neil's arm, wanting sincerity. "You're joking, right?"

"I wouldn't put it past him," Neil spoke with the needed sincerity, "He's liked you for a while now. I'm sorry I had to tell you." A small, apologetic smile was on Neil's lips.

The girl had turned away from Neil and slammed their back against the wall. They'd winded themself, a breath escaping them as they stood in shock.

The boy they liked was trying to impress them. He was trying to impress them by being a dumbass. Their heart fluttered. They turned to look at Neil with red cheeks.

"Do you mind if I stick around until he comes back?" The girl spoke quietly with a red face.

"You're welcome to," Neil gave a sad smile at their red face, "But he might be upset. Facing Nolan..." Neil didn't want to bring up 'the paddle' around the girl.

"Thank you, Neil." They gave him a sad smile back. Then they excused themself to wash their face under a tap. They were flustered from the conversation.

When they were walking back towards the boy's dorms, Charlie was walking slowly down the opposite end of the hallway, he went to turn into his dorm, but Neil began to talk to him in the doorway. The girl could no longer see Charlie, and because Neil said he might be upset they stopped, not wanting to overstep. Whatever was said ended with Neil smiling. That made the girl's heart flutter.

Once Charlie's door had closed with a solid clunk, the girl's feet moved quickly. They had stopped in front of Neil. They were frantic with their questions.

"Is he okay? What did Nolan say? What did Nolan do?" Their voice was growing in volume as they spoke. They were getting nervous. The girl's head was turning between Neil's face and Charlie's closed door.

Neil had to take the girl by the arms to calm them down. "He's going to be fine, okay?" Neil spoke softly, with confident reassurance. "If he's at study hall tonight, one of us will come and get you. You should rest, okay?" This made the girl release a relieved breath.

"Thank you, Neil," The girl pulled away, stepping towards the exit of the boy's dormitories, "If you get to speak to him, tell him I'm worried."

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When Neil and the girl walked into the common room where the boys usually held study hall, they were shocked to find it so quiet. The boys had fallen silent because Mr. Keating was there.

"Phone call from God. If it had been collect, that would have been daring." Mr. Keating finished the sentence with a smile. The boys laughed at his comment.

When Mr. Keating walked out of the common room, silence turned to the girl. The boys dispersed around the room, all the while, the girl stared at Charlie who was sat on a plush, leather recliner. When the girl took some steps towards him. He was looking towards them with hopeful eyes.

"You know that was really stupid, Charlie." The girl spoke quietly with little conviction.

Charlie pulled his gaze away from their face. He couldn't bear to see the disappointment. Charlie looked at the tip of the girl's shoulder instead as he spoke in an apologetic whisper, saying "I thought it would've made it you laugh."

The girl sat on the arm of the couch, facing Charlie. Charlie's gaze failed to meet theirs until they ducked to see his brown eyes. The girl knew he was sorry. Sorry for almost exposing his friends. Maybe even sorry for himself.

"You make me laugh. Just not when you're hurting your friends in the process." Charlie had placed his elbow on the arm of the couch next to the girl's knees in order to cup his face in his hand . He wanted to look at the girl.

"I'm sorry," Charlie was still speaking quietly. Both to preserve his emotional control and to keep the girl by his side, not wanting to scare them off, "It won't happen again." He finished the sentence with one of his winning smiles.

The girl's heart fluttered, and they smiled back. They had to look down at their lap, or else they would have been too overwhelmed by him. That was when they realized there was a bongo drum on the floor by Charlie's recliner. They picked it up and released a breathy chuckle.

"This is what makes me laugh, Charlie." They spoke while looking down at the instrument. They had missed Charlie's story and what the bongo drum was used for, but the girl knew it would have been funny.

Charlie then told them the story of what happened in Nolan's office. He told them about the paddle. Charlie made the girl frown in pity for him and then laugh with joyful tears in their eyes. For the rest of study hall, the two were sat in their own world on the leather recliner. Sudden, girlish jolts of laughter were heard, pulling students away from their books and pens. The boisterous voice of Charlie Dalton was a constant distraction.

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At breakfast the next day, in between staring at the girl and eating from his plate, Charlie was planning on how to ask the girl out on a date.

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[dead3ve]

Could you write a Meeks x reader story where they often see each other at the school library but have never actually spoken. And one day the only free table is the one reader is at, so they sit together and kinda bond? ✨ (fem!reader preferably, but if you prefer gender neutral that’s also good)

Steven Meeks x fem!shy!reader

Summary: The request!!! <3

Warnings: no use of y/n, reader referred to as a girl, swearing

For several weeks, Meeks had watched a girl in the Welton library.

He spent his mornings before school in the library watching them from his table. Then, the pair walked silently to breakfast together in the following hour. At breakfast, once they went their separate ways, Meeks would look between heads and shoulders to catch a glimpse of the girl from her table.

What Steven didn't know was that they were also watching.

They were looking at his hands when he turned the pages of his textbooks and when he readjusted his glasses. In Latin, they were fascinated by the way his mouth moved and how the foreign language came so easily to him. They often wondered what his hair would feel like, as it was the back of his head they saw so often in English.

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The issue today was that there were no seats available in the library. Groups of students had taken all of the girl's usual spots, leaving a space at a table next to Steven Meeks. This sent their heart into an unsteady beat. Where else could I go? They were thinking quietly to themself, juggling the several books in their arms. The common area would be busier than here. The girl looked back over to Meeks where he was looking straight back at them. Shit. Meeks stood and walked towards the girl at the doors of the library. Double shit. I hope he doesn't want to talk to me.

"Do you want to sit with me? It's busy today, isn't it?" Meeks spoke gently to the girl. Almost as if approaching and coaxing a skittish mouse.

The girl's shoulders relaxed, and a soft breath escaped them. They were relieved he spoke kindly. Nodding their head with a sense of relief, they followed Steven back towards his table.

In silence, Meeks kept on working and the girl set up her schoolwork. They had Latin due in the next period. A task on spelling. Shit again. They had to make a fool out of themself when sat next to the prettiest, smartest boy in the whole school. The girl looked over to see what Steven was doing. Maths. Calculous looking crap. God, I'm such a fool!

They put their head down and tried to actually do the work, rather than copy from the textbook the girl had placed in front of themself. That was when Meeks looked up. He saw their furrowed brow and thumbnail between their teeth. Their pencil was hesitating in their dominant hand. He smiled and looked at what they were working on. It was the Latin homework he'd already finished. He read one of their answers.

"You need an 'i' there." He had his face resting against his hand. Steven had spoken in a daze. He hadn't realised he had stopped writing to watch them.

The girl looked up, sheepish. "I do?" They leant back defeated in their chair. Their gaze had turned into an angry look towards their paper, with a jutted, pouty lip. Meeks tried not to smile at their cute unsureness.

"Yeah," Meeks moved his chair closer to theirs. "You're not far off. Do you mind?" Steven had taken their pencil and gestured towards their work. They wanted to say Yes! Fix all of it! They gave a small nod instead, sliding the paper over to him.

Meeks explained their misspelling. Gave some tips on how to fix it too. They were hanging on to every word. By the end of his explanation, they had their head cupped in their hands so they could comfortably ogle the boy while he talked.

Meeks looked up and blushed in surprise. Steven didn't realise he was being watched. He released a breathy laugh and leant back in his chair now that he had finished. The girl pulled back their paper to read the corrections the boy made. They smiled softly. To think he would have made me feel stupid.

"Thank you, Steven," The girl looked up at him with a smile and a mischievous look in their eye. "You're better than Mr. McAllister."

Meeks laughed at that. He was laughing to hide his blush. Steven like the way his name sounded when toned by their voice. He liked the way they sounded when they laughed too. It was ringing in his ears, making his neck warm. Meeks didn't want the discussion to stop.

"Is there any other Latin you're struggling with? Or Maths? I'm really good at trig," Meeks poured on about what he could help the girl with.

"Latin... More Latin, please." They spoke looking at him. They were basking in the way Meeks mouthed every word, English or not. Their body had leaned onto the table to view the boy better.

Meeks blushed. The prettiest girl he knew wanted him to talk about what he knew. Steven's elbow moved to point against the table as he rested his head in his hand. He wanted to gaze at the girl as he spoke.

"You know, your name wouldn't have half the letters it does in Latin."

[dead3ve]

Hii, good luck in your exams! ✨

Who do you write for out of the dps fandom?

Thank you for the luck! I need it lmao :)

I write for Neil, Meeks, Charlie and Todd <3

Outside of Dead Poets Society, currently I write for Billy from Billy the Kid, and Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker.

[dead3ve]

tasm!Peter Parker x shy!fem!reader

Summary: After Peter fails English, the teacher pairs him with the English whiz of the class. They, however, are very shy. After several lessons with them, Peter has only just started to gain full sentences from them, but has been pining over them for much longer.

Warnings: Reader uses they/them pronouns. no use of y/n.

Peter was meant to be reading.

He wasn't. He was staring. Listening to their fingers clack on the laptop in front of them.

They turned to him suddenly, seeing the book disregarded underneath Peter's chest as he leaned his head on his hands to look at them.

"Did you finish reading?" They asked, eyes still on the screen of the laptop. They spoke quieter than usual because the pair were in the library. It was unnecessary to Peter; they were already very quiet.

Peter couldn't even find it in himself to lie to them. He opened his mouth to answer and then closed it and opened it again. He released a guilty, breathy chuckle as he shook his head.

"I got halfway; I think." Peter spoke with a laugh still. His neck was warm in embarrassment for being caught ogling the girl.

The girl smiled at him, not minding that he didn't read the work. They passed him their notes and took his book and circled where he was going wrong and provided tips for where he went wrong. They gave Peter their book, hoping he would understand having all the information in front of him. The text was a difficult read. Even for the girl when they were sat next to such a pretty boy.

Peter hadn't really comprehended anything from the girl's book.

There were pretty arrows in all different colors and words that had bubbles and clouds drawn around them. He hadn't even read the summary they had written on the next page. The swirl of their 's' and the curve of their 'o' had made him flustered and distracted.

The girl looked back up once they were ready to give Peter's book back.

"Here." They'd closed the pages over their thumb so Peter could take the book and find the page. Peter liked that. "Tell me what that's about, Peter." They'd asked softly.

"Hm?" Peter looked at them after taking his book back. He gave theirs back gently before he could fake an answer. "It's about people..." He began. Peter then trailed off and looked back down at his pages.

Peter had the same swirls of color and words over his book now. He smiled as he looked at the pages, turning a slight pink in the cheeks. They were somewhat simpler than their notes. They had made it easier for him to understand.

"Anything else, Peter?" The gentle voice interrupted his internal monologue of "I love you".

He looked up at them like a deer in headlights. Suddenly, he had to ask a very important and academic question, so the deer-like daze was broken and turned into a charming smile.

"I think this would be easier if we did it at my place." Peter spoke in a whisper. He lowered his head to meet theirs when they looked away after the flirty statement.

The girl went red. Heat was warming their face from Peter's gaze and smile. They crossed their legs and looked at their laptop. "If I look at Peter for one more second, I think I'll faint." They thought to themself.

Peter mistook it for something else. Something negative and hurtful.

"I didn't mean it like that." He spoke quickly. "I meant so we could do the work at my place." He had taken their hand by that point. Squeezing it in reassurance.

That had disappointed the girl.

"Oh." They released the small noise sadly. "Okay" they closed their laptop and rested their head on their hand that wasn't in Peter's grip. Their eyebrow had knitted together slightly.

Peter's other hand found their face and his thumb met the middle of their brow and softly smoothed it. He didn't think he had flirted that badly.

"If you want, we can ditch the English work and watch a movie." Peter leant down again to meet their gloomy eyes as he whispered to them. The next part was spoken as if it was only for them to hear, "I asked because I thought you liked me..." he was growing quieter in his admission and he broke eye contact with them, growing nervous.

"I do!" They admitted it too loudly, with urgency and surprise. People in the library gave them dirty looks. The silent girl had broken broken the silence. They admitted it quieter the second time, saying, "I like you..." The girl searched for his eyes desperately, "Do you like me, Peter?"

He flicked his head up so urgently, his neck must've hurt. "Yes!" He spoke with a smile drowning the word. Peter squeezed the hand he was holding.

Suddenly, he stood from the table and started to pack up his things, packing them without care, scrunching things into his bag.

The girl was confused. They'd both just told each other they had feelings for one another. Why was this his reaction?

Peter had moved to packing their things, this time with gentle hands. He knew where all of their pencils, pens and highlighters went in their pencil case. He closed their laptop and put it into their case. That was when he looked up at the girl.

"What movie will it be?" He asked. He hadn't realised why the girl had stopped. He was so innocently unaware of the gravity his admission had on the girl.

"You like me, Peter." They were telling themself rather than Peter. They needed the confirmation more. Someone as kind as him had fallen for someone as quiet as them. They needed Peter to show them.

At that, Peter realised his fault. He put down their laptop that was now safely in its flowery laptop case. Peter brought his left hand to their cheek and lightly dragged his thumb across their cheekbone. His right hand had caught their hand and brought their knuckles to his lips.

He then whispered into their hand "I do." He pressed his lips again to their hand Peter then went back to packing their bag. "What was the movie?"

[dead3ve]

Neil Perry x shy!gn!reader

Summary: After his success in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Neil needs to prove he's worthy of other lead roles. It's hard to do this when there is an unhelpful, pretty distraction trying to help him with his audition material.

Warnings: Reader pronouns they/them. no use of y/n. Reader referred to as pretty, partner. Kissing!! no smut.

Neil Perry was gorgeous.

He was in his element and speaking words seemingly straight from his heart, not from memory. The look in his eye was both passionate and depicting the emotion of the scene, desperation. Suddenly he lost the shimmer in his eye and looked blank, mouth bending into a small frown. Neil still stood handsomely, with his sharp bone structure and confident stature, despite this.

"Line?" Neil asked quietly, as if he was trying not to break the scene and trying not to be impatient about it. "Honey?" He called for his partner's endearingly, almost concerned that they were not responding. Neil turned to look at them, shoulders going lax as he took some steps towards them.

His turn to them made them jump and fumble with the script to find his line. They muttered a meek "sorry" and continued turning the pages of the script, trying to find where they were meant to be up to.

As the pages brushed against each other, Neil dragged a chair over to theirs so he could sit closer to the page turner. He gently put his hand over his partner's, stopping them from flipping the pages of the script. This made them stop moving completely.

They looked up at Neil with wide apologetic eyes, "I'm sorry." They spoke with a guilty smile, sighing the words under Neil's loving gaze, growing flustered.

"It's ok." He spoke into their hairline, lips tickling their skin. They could feel his smile and they were definitely forgiven.

He began pressing kisses down their hairline to the side of their face. It was making them giggle. The giddy feeling paired with the affection was making them grow red in the face. Eventually, Neil's lips pushed against the corner of their mouth, just catching their lips in the kiss. This made them turn their body towards Neil's on the desk chair they were sat at. They prepared for a kiss on the lips, knowing full well they were not going to initiate it, but wait for Neil to bring his face to theirs.

Neil knew this too. They'd done it many times before. He decided to tease though. He just simply sat and smiled at them. Admired the innocence of their expression and the heat of their cheeks. He put a hand onto the thigh that they had crossed impatiently. Neil gave a gentle squeeze and a smile. His partner folded their arms at that and looked away. No matter how shy they were, stubbornness prevailed, despite the potential loss of needed affection.

This made Neil laugh. He wrapped a hand around their waist and pulled them and their chair closer to himself. Once moved, one of his hands around their waist grazed lightly up their body and eventually cupped the side of their face, gently moving it to face his. The first thing they saw was Neil's charming grin and brown eyes.

"Have you got the line?" He teased, releasing small giggles and raising a brow as he spoke.

Their partner rolled their eyes but nuzzled into Neil's warm hand and relaxed into his grip on their waist. Neil gave a cheeky squeeze at the fat of their hip in response.

"You're not going to get any loving at this rate, pretty." Neil spoke in a whisper as he pressed his nose into theirs. He was contradicting his words.

They leaned into him, on the edge of their seat.

Their hands unfolded and found their place at Neil's shirt collar. An anchor for them when they were this close. Their thumbs methodically grazed against the tough fabric of the collar. Their knees were next to his, like four comfortable friends.

With half lidded eyes, they muttered "It's hard to keep up when all I want to do is look at you, Neil."

At that, the boy's hand that was cupping their jaw pulled their face towards his own. His lips found theirs. He ensured they could feel the love he had for them. He assumed it was translated because his partner's body slid further into his and a small sigh was heard from their lips in between the lip lock.

One of their hands left his collar and moved to the back of Neil's neck. Not far, but far enough to show the boy that they were comfortable as they had started fiddling with the short brown hair there. Neil pulled back at that. He smiled down at his partner with awe. He put his head into their shoulder, pressing kisses into their clothes. When their hand suddenly stopped, due to the surprise of the loving movement, he lifted his head to kiss them again, but before he did, he whispered onto their lips "keep doing that, pretty."

Their second hand left his collar and joined the other in his hair. Neil released an airy groan, like he was being lightly tickled. He went back in for another kiss. A needier one. Both of his hands left their face and hip to find warmth under their thighs. He was gently pulling them towards him, encouraging movement from their seat to his lap.

It worked.

With his hands helping, they moved to his lap. The kiss somehow continued as his partner moved into their new seat. Their hands ended up cupping his face and his ended up travelling from their waist to their thighs.

It was just the two of them in the study hall room, as it was only 2:00 pm. His partner liked it this way. It was when they were most confident. When they were safe with him, in his embrace, without other daunting gazes.

A few minutes later, Richard Cameron walked into study hall that afternoon. Neil fears he'll never recover from the two seconds of kissing he witnessed.

[dead3ve]

Hi! I was wondering, could you write a Steven Meeks x female reader where Meeks suggests that they go on the school roof and stargaze? He then brings the radio with them, and they slow dance together. They have just started dating when this imagine is set!

Thank you so much!

Steven Meeks x Fem!reader

Summary: The request!! You're welcome cutie <3

Warnings: They/them pronouns. no use of y/n. fem!reader. reader referred to as girl, pretty.

It was early days. Despite this, Meeks needed this to be forever.

He had never been on a high like this. Meeks would wake up in his bland, depressing dorm room next to a snoring Gerard Pitts and want to get out of bed to go to school. Steven found himself more patient when helping his friends with their schoolwork. He already was very patient but was somehow more so, putting their grades before his, though his 1st place never moved. The Dead Poets found Meeks more sociable too. Meeks found himself reading more and more poetry in the cave, laughing more too. He was becoming less nervous in the face of rebellion.

Tonight, the face of rebellion made Steven's knees weak and cheeks red.

They wore one of their softest woolen jumpers and held a blanket with folded arms when they found Meeks at the top floor of the school. Meeks watched them walk down the hall. He was stood holding the radio, which was wrapped and hidden in his red and black Welton coat. Meeks had a picnic blanket under the other arm too.

"Hi." Meeks said softly. He was slightly taken aback when they continued walking into his chest for a hug. Steven whispered another "hello" into their hair, resting an arm around their neck despite his full hands. They looked up at him with their chin pressed against his chest.

"Hey, Steven." They were grinning as they said it. Steven's freckled, pink cheeks were making a flutter grow in their stomach. "Where are you taking me? And what's the risky business with the blanket, handsome?"

Meeks, somehow, was growing even more red in the face. He couldn't tell if it was from the innuendo or the nickname. It may have been both. Either way, he gently pulled the folded blanket from their grasp. He readjusted the coat-wrapped radio, picnic blanket and regular blanket in his hold and then looked up at the girl.

"Follow me." Steven said simply and smiled. He began walking, and the girl matched his pace and gently held his left, folded arm. They would have taken his hand if he hadn't taken everything to hold. So chivalrous of him.

Meeks continued further down the hall and turned to push open a tall door. It opened and released a cool breeze onto the girl's face. The cool wind was sharp against Steven's burning cheeks. He continued out onto the roof, consequently dragging them with him due to their hold on his arm.

The girl hadn't seen this part of the school yet. So big and green in the heat of the summer. The light from inside the school allowed a slight golden glow to touch the first few meters of grass before the night took over. They looked over the school grounds, releasing Meek's arm as he began to put everything down. The school wasn't as threatening from the roof. There was more charm to it when above everything.

The view was distracting the girl, allowing Meeks to lay out the blankets and set up the radio in secret. Steven turned on the radio, which released a blaring static noise that made the girl turn instinctively from the fright. Meeks smiled at their cute jump.

Steven made quick work of changing the static to music. He turned the noise down slightly as he flicked through stations. Whilst he did this, the girl knelt and creeped forward, intrigued by the noisy device. They silently watched Meeks work the machine. He found something that sounded romantic. Slow with a 3/4 beat. Steven then looked up to his curious partner.

"Do you like it? Pitts and I have been working on it for a while." He spoke softly, losing confidence in his creation. Steven's gaze was tracing the girl's face as he asked, needing their pretty confirmation.

They smiled up at him and moved to sit closer to him, legs touching. They placed a hand onto his thigh. "You made a radio?" They asked incredulously, squeezing his leg and smiling in awe at the genius.

"Yeah." He chuckled in relief. He understood their surprise now. Sometimes, people got used to his smarts, people disregarded his greatness. It felt good to have it appreciated. His small chuckle made them release an airy laugh too as they leaned into Meeks. The mellow music continued.

"Dance with me, boy wonder?" They whispered into his shoulder. Almost as if they were going to be let down.

Steven took the hand on his thigh, squeezed it and stood, pulling them up with him.

The girl wrapped their arms around his neck, excited to be close to the boy they liked so much. Meeks placed his hands innocently around their waist resulting in an eye roll from the girl. Steven wanted to be polite. They wanted to be loved on. They then pressed themself into Steven.

"Hold me, handsome." They demanded it with a groan. Steven then readjusted his hold and made it a wrap around their waist, making sure their bodies were touching as they swayed. This brought a smile to their lips and blush to Meeks' face.

"Is this alright?" Meeks whispered, gazing at their face. His eyes were drawing his attention to their lips. His fingers were methodically grazing their side.

"Yeah. Perfect." They spoke gently, in a quieter whisper. They were looking at Meeks' lips too.

They ran a hand through his red hair, by his ear so they could cup his face. They both pushed their face forward hesitantly at the same time, their noses lightly touched, making them pull back slightly. The touch was a surprise. Their swaying lessened. The girl pushed forward first the second time and a kiss ensued.

It was gentle. When they pulled back, Meeks followed forward, wanting more of their mouth. More of them. The swaying had stopped completely at this point. The focus was on the lip lock. The focus was on each other.

The kiss wasn't an ask for anything. The new relationship wasn't ready for that. The kiss was a promise. The promise saying "I like you. A lot. One day, it will be more."

Eventually, the pair had to pull away, short of breath. Meeks let out an airy laugh and pressed his forehead against theirs. The girl felt Steven's warm breath against their face as he sighed. The song had ended, and something much faster had begun. This made Meeks snap out of his love-drunk state. He took the girl's hands and helped them sit on the picnic blanket.

Once they sat, Meeks laid down, pulling the girl down with him so they could lay with him. They cuddled into his chest and pulled the blanket over themself and the boy. Meeks wrapped an arm around them, pressing his lips to their forehead. The fingers on the girl's shoulder tapped to the beat of the song as the pair looked towards the sky. Meeks' other hand pointed towards the sky.

"There's Leo." He traced it a few times for the girl to see. He whispered the following question into their hair, asking "What sign are you?"

He then traced that sign for them as well.

[dead3ve]

Charlie Dalton x fem!shy!reader

Summary: Charlie Dalton has never been good at math. When Welton allows the new female students to join the boys in study hall, Charlie is suddenly entranced by the possibilities of numbers. He isn't really, it's more the girl silently teaching him.

Warnings: frick you cameron. No use of y/n. They/them pronouns. Reader referred to as girl.

Cameron was not correct. Even Charlie could see that. Both him and Neil were sat together, trying to prepare for the upcoming test with Cameron, who was being unsurprisingly useless.

The room was unusually quiet, considering it was study hall, when the boys would let loose before lights out. Maybe the boys were on their best behavior due to the presence of females. It was exciting. They were all new and different and pretty.

There were two girls sat at the same table as Neil, Charlie and Cameron, just further down at the other end of the table. Charlie could tell they were friends due to how closely they were sat together. One of them was whispering to the other behind their hand. The two suddenly began to laugh. It was a belly laugh. The kind of laugh that makes you hurt in the stomach afterwards. Charlie caught the whispering one's smile. Bright and wide and capturing. He couldn't look away. His ears were wishing silence from Cameron and Neil. Charlie wanted to only hear the ring of their laugh from now on.

"What's so funny?" Cameron asked accusingly. A crease had formed in between his eyebrows. The sound of laughter was disrupted.

The girls suddenly went quiet. The one with the enchanting smile looked down at their books again. Smile becoming a downturned lip and a furrowed brow. It made Charlie stop smiling with them, since joy had left their face, it left his too. The other girl next to them abruptly picked up her books and stood from the table.

"We were going to ask for help, but I don't think we don't need it." She began to walk away after her sudden outburst. She turned on her heel to look back at Neil and I, then said "I wouldn't listen to Cameron. They're much smarter anyway." She had pointed a thumb at the girl sat in front of her books, and then she marched away.

Charlie was the first to move, wanting to get to know the girl. Neil shuffled closer after Charlie, not wanting to be left behind with the wrath of Richard Cameron, who was left with a slightly dropped jaw in reaction to the sentence pointed at him.

Charlie lowered his neck, trying to lock eyes with the girl, but they didn't want to meet his. Too fearful of his charming gaze. He watched as they picked up his exercise book and then make markings in pencil wordlessly on his page over his incorrect workings. They then took Neil's book after that and did the same thing. Both Charlie and Neil watched as they worked in silence. Neil was looking at where he went wrong on the page. Charlie was looking at the girl.

He ran his eyes over the slope of their nose and pucker of their lips. The way their jumper held their shoulders and the way their hand held the graphite pencil as it ran across the gridded page.

Neil took his book back and got up, thanking the girl before he left. Probably to find Cameron and to make him see reason. Charlie stayed put though. He watched them attempt to continue their work. He noticed they weren't working writing anything on their page. They were doing the same questions that he and Neil were and they managed to do those on less than 15 minutes. What had made them slow down?

"Can I help with anything else?" They asked quietly. So quietly Charlie almost missed it.

They had turned to face him when they asked the question. It was the first time they looked at Charlie and they knew they shouldn't have. They already knew of Charlie, the boy who spoke loudly from the back of the classroom with a witty remark. The same boy who asked for girls at Welton via God in that assembly. But they had not realized the boy was so handsome. With a sharp jaw and mellow brown eyes. They let their eyes trace the length of his shoulders and the spread of his white t-shirt across his chest. This was bad. They had it bad and Charlie could tell.

Charlie played on their interest.

"You should come to study hall more often. I'd rather see you than Cameron." Charlie spoke with charisma but quietly. He wanted to charm them without scaring them off.

This made them blush and face their book again. But their sunny smile returned. Their heart was thumping in their chest. They could feel the swarm of butterflies tickling their insides.

"Numbers aren't your thing, are they Charlie?" They asked. They then picked their pencil back up and continued to write down questions and answers, knowing that their feelings weren't completely one-sided.

Charlie leaned his elbow on the table, allowing him to cup his jaw in his hand. He rested his head in his hand and let their eyes wander their figure and their hands as they write.

"Is it that obvious?" Charlie mumbled, smiling wide whilst gazing at them. This was bad. Charlie has gotten it bad, and they knew it too.

[dead3ve]

William Bonney x fem!reader

Summary: Billy returns home after a two-day trip with his gang and finds his girl sweating and shivering, sick in their bed. Billy, due to the events of his past, does everything in his power to try and get them healthy again.

Warnings: they/them pronouns. No use of y/n. Reader referred to as girl, woman, sweet girl. Reader wears feminine clothing (nightgowns). Fever is implied, mention of throwing up. Mentions of death (Billy's family, reader doesn't die). Slight nudity (reader takes a bath). 1880s bath (taps don't exist yet).

Billy had frozen in the bedroom doorway.

He was looking down at the lump on his bed, covered by the bedsheets. They were breathing slowly and through their mouth. The head popping out from the blankets was glowing with sweat. The heat must've been too much suddenly because they began thrashing the blankets violently from their body.

"Hey, sweet girl." Billy cooed as he gently pulled the blankets from their body in a much calmer manner. He noticed they wore their cream nightgown that he loved so much. It was sticking to their skin because of the sweat layering their body. "What's happened?" He cupped their cheeks, noticing how warm they were, and frowned in concern.

"You're home." They sighed, leaning into Billy's hand closest to the pillow. They wanted to rest. It was all they could do. Their body was in between hot and cold with hot flushes and sudden shivering. They couldn't stomach anything, nor could they breathe through their nose. The only thing to do was rot lonely in bed.

"You're warm. How long have you been like this, honey?" Billy was pushing the hair stuck to their sweaty face behind their ears. Once he did that, he slowly helped them sit up. Knowing his girl, Billy knew that they wouldn't have gotten out of bed for a while.

"The night you left. I threw up before I went to bed." Retelling the story made them feel slightly queasy. They grew worse after two days passed. "How was your trip?" They asked with closed eyes, body slumped against the headboard of the bed.

"You've been in bed for two days?" Billy was frowning. Moreso at himself than at his girl. If he knew, he would have turned his horse around so quickly. He would have only been away a few hours, rather than two days.

They slowly lifted their body forward and let the top half of their body fall into Billy's chest. He held them tightly with his arms around their waist. They had their arms around his neck. Billy held them, petted their hair with one hand and squeezed their hip with the other.

He thought about what his mother did for Billy when he was sick, before she died. She would draw a bath, make sure he felt at least clean before he went back to lying in bed. This made Billy release his hold on the girl.

"How does a bath sound, beautiful?" He spoke brightly, encouragingly, hoping his partner would accept the offer. Billy softly pushed them back down into their bed, letting them relax while he prepared the water.

He must've been too young to remember the effort of running a bath. Pumping the water, carrying the water to the house, heating the water, pouring the water, then repeating the process to slowly fill the tub. Billy didn't regret the action of drawing the bath for the sick, beautiful woman in his bed, it just made him respect his deceased mother more than he already did. It made him miss her more than he already did. He eventually had the bath ready, so he went to get the girl waiting for him.

He found them asleep again. They were laying on their stomach, on top of the covers with their head buried into their pillow. Billy laid down on his stomach closely next to them and pushed his face into their neck to wake them up by pressing soft kisses there. They softly groaned and wrapped their arms around Billy's neck, pressing their body into his.

"Your bath is ready, sweet girl." Billy mumbled into their hair.

He stood, lifting them with him. Once he got them to the tub, he helped them with their nightgown, pulling it over their head. Billy then helped them into the tub with his hands around their naked waist. He made sure they didn't slip while bending their knees to sit. He watched them relax against the back of the warm tub, a sigh leaving their stuffy nose. Their eyes closed and their neck relaxed against the edge of the tub. He kissed their forehead before he walked away from them, getting another nightgown for when they had finished their bath.

When he returned, he planned on running a bath sponge over their soft skin. He stole a bar of nice smelling soap in the city for the girl when he was away. So, Billy found their bath sponge and retrieved the bar of soap from his saddle bag quickly.

When he walked back into the kitchen, where he set up the bathtub, the girl opened their eyes at the sound of his footsteps. They saw the sponge in his hand and smiled.

"Are you joining me, handsome?" They smiled cheekily as they spoke. Their voice sounded clearer. The steam from the water must've cleared their nose a bit.

"I wasn't going to. I was going to sit next to you." Billy was smiling at the small joy he had brought them. He placed the sponge into the water and began unwrapping the paper around the lavender scented soap. "I'll join you if it will make you feel better, honey. But no funny business. I'm trying to make you healthy again."

"Then get in. No funny business, I promise, cowboy." They smiled up at the standing boy, who was smiling at them because of the nickname. They placed their wet hand on their lower thigh, squeezing. Billy could tell they were happy he was home.

They watched as Billy placed the bar of soap by the tub and the nightgown on the kitchen counter. He began to take off his clothes. Every navy blue and brown layer lead closer to his pale skin. God, they had missed him. The way he was so caring and gentle. The way he smiled over his shoulder at them when he buttoned or unbuttoned his shirt.

Once he was naked, they moved forward in the tub, to make room for Billy, who sat behind them. Some of the water rose and spilled over the tub. This made them laugh, which then made Billy laugh. Once they leaned back into Billy, he picked up the bar of soap and placed it onto his girl's naked chest. He watched their eyes brighten at the lavish stuff.

"What's this, Billy?" They asked, laying their head back on Billy's shoulder to look at him. "Smells nice." They were smiling at him.

"Found it in a store in the city. Thought you might like it." Billy was mumbling into their hair as he spoke. Simultaneously, Billy was making circles onto the girl's chest with the bar of soap.

"It must've been expensive." They had closed their eyes and gone lax under Billy's slow, cleaning hands. He had picked up the sponge from the water by then and was squeezing warm water onto the skin of their bare chest.

Billy thought about how he stole the bar from the shop and smiled. They don't need to know that just yet. If they did, he might not stay in the bath with them. So instead, he said:

"Anything for you."

[dead3ve]

Hi! I absolutely love your writing! I was wondering, if you are interested, could you write a Todd Anderson x shy female reader where they go on a picnic and when the sun begins to set, they read each other poetry they wrote for one another? They would be dating at that point! Thank you so much!

my first request babyy!! thank you so much <33

Todd Anderson x fem!reader

Summary: In the beginning, Todd was shy, closed off and cautious around girls. All of a sudden, he's found himself bathing in the glow of a sunset, reciting his written words to who he wrote about.

Warnings: they/them pronouns used. no use of y/n. First Todd Anderson fic. Reader referred to as girl. kissing

It had taken Todd weeks to flirt with his partner. Initially, the girl was the one to take Todd's hand, or hold his face, or pull him into the kiss. Todd's partner was the one to make him flustered. He rarely ever saw them blushing because of his actions.

However, Todd was witnessing his girl blushing, looking down and fiddling with the gingham picknick blanket as Todd recited one of his longer poems to them. They couldn't look at him, due to the heat in their face and beat of their heart, so they looked at the setting sun. The poem was about their relationship. It was about the first time they snuck out of Welton together without the other Dead Poets. Todd's partner took him dancing. It was the first time Todd had felt brave.

The girl remembered the way Todd was able to hold their waist without having to ask. He was able to nuzzle into their neck without hesitation as they slow danced. It was the first time Todd kissed them. The first time they were kissed by Todd. Not the other way around.

Once he finished his poem, Todd looked up from his notebook and looked at the blushing girl. Their head was looking towards the sun and their lips were smiling. Thier left hand was resting on Todd's thigh. He could feel their joy from their fingers.

"I didn't know you wrote about me, Todd." They spoke in whispers. The way Todd usually spoke when he was feeling anxious or shy.

Todd put his hand out and pulled their face back to his. Something they had done to him many times. "I write about things that inspire me." He smiled at their red cheeks, giggling slightly as he talked. He enjoyed the girl's growing shyness.

His partner scooted closer to Todd, making sure that their legs were touching. Todd put an arm around their waist once they were settled. He hadn't felt in control before he met his girl. They allowed him to have that in between his confident friends and his careless parents.

"I wrote that short story about you." They'd admitted it into Todd's shoulder. Their voice was muffled into the knitted jumper. "Mr Keating asked me about it after he marked it." They spoke the rest of it into Todd's jumper as well. Their warm breath kissed Todd's skin through his jumper.

"Really?" Todd spoke into their hair. "What did he say?" He asked, speaking into their hair. At that he began pressing kisses onto their hairline.

His partner squeezed themself into Todd's chest, turning their face up to Todd's to receive a kiss on their lips, blush still bright on their face. Todd smiled and did what they'd silently asked for, leaning his head down to press his lips to theirs. Todd wrapped his arms around them, settling into the kiss.

"Mr Keating told me I was good for you. That we were good for each other." They were mumbling against Todd's lips. "Said he hadn't seen you so vocal in his class." They went back to kissing Todd once they finished their sentence.

Todd thought about the lesson while they kissed. He'd only said two sentences because he had answered two questions. Todd hadn't really said anything in comparison to his friends and classmates. He pulled away from the kiss suddenly, making a small smacking sound from the pair's lips. Todd looked his partner in the eye.

"I only said two things that lesson." Todd asked raising an eyebrow. He had been quiet, how was he being loud?

"Exactly. That was more than usual, handsome." They brought back their flirty charm saying this. His partner pulled Todd's face back down to theirs, making sure the kiss continued throughout the sunset, wanting to bathe in the warmth of the final rays of sun, and Todd Anderson's tight embrace.

[dead3ve]

William Bonney x fem!reader

Summary: Billy's friend gets wounded during an attempt to steal some cattle. He's heard of a doctor who lives nearby who treats outlaws. He flirts with the woman who saves his friend and ends up pining over them.

Warnings: blood and gore slightly. They/them pronouns. reader referred to as doctor, woman, lady. Reader wears 1880s clothing (skirts). Whiskey is used to treat wounds (wild west.) First billy fic. Sorry if it's bad :) they'll get better <3

Billy saw the house as he and his horse galloped down the dusty hill. His friend was laying horizontally over the white horse. The wind was harsh against his face and his hands were slippery with red blood on the reigns. Billy swore every few meters as he approached the house.

Suddenly, the front door of the house whipped open. A woman ran through the open door and towards the gate. They pushed the wide gate open, allowing Billy to ride into the house yard. Billy pulled his friend off of the horse, once he stopped in the yard, and the lady closed the gate. The woman approached the other side of the wounded man to assist in walking him into the house with Billy. Once they were inside, Billy was led to a kitchen with a wooden dinner table. He laid his friend down gently on the table after being told to do so.

He leant over his friend, grabbing his shoulders. "You're going to be fine." His reassurance turned into firm yelling. "I promise, you'll be fine." He felt like the gun shot was his fault.

"Mr, you need to get out." The lady had grabbed Billy by the shoulders and began to pull slightly, attempting to encourage him away from the table. He wasn't going to move. "Your friend won't be alright if you don't let me save him." Their voice had raised. It was firmer than his voice. Their grasp on Billy's shoulders squeezed.

Billy stepped away at that. He left the kitchen and walked out of the house. He paced the house yard impatiently as his friend was treated. He went from pacing to petting his horse. The process was repeated several times.

The woman worked. Whiskey had been poured, both for cleaning the patient and to help sooth him. Blood had been lost. Most of it on clothes and the table. Once the sun had fallen behind the hills, the wound had been stitched up and the man had fallen asleep. The woman stepped outside, hoping to see his friend in their house yard.

Billy looked up as he heard the front door open. He had been pacing the length of the lawn. He saw the woman wiping her hands down with a bloodied kitchen cloth in the doorway. Their skirt and shirt had been soiled with blood. It looked bad. Billy stepped onto the verandah, needing to hear about his friend's health. The way he grasped his hat mournfully gave that away to the woman.

"Your friend's asleep. He's going to be just fine, Mr." They spoke softly, gently, not wanting to stress Billy further. His shoulders relaxed. "What's your name?"

"Billy." He spoke plainly and breathily. His chest rose and fell with relief. He smiled when you gave your name and thanked you for saving his friend's life. He held your bicep when he said thank you. Billy needed you to feel his sincerity.

"Come in Billy. I have dinner on the stove and a spare room that you can stay in until your friend is well again." The woman stepped to the side of the doorway. Billy walked in. He took of his shoes, not wanting to dirty the woman's floors. Once he stood from his shoes, the woman pointed down the hallway, directing Billy towards the sitting room.

Billy walked in to find a small living room. He sat down on the plush couch. He sank into it, feeling relaxed for the first time in hours. He could smell the food the woman had prepared. It smelled like stew. Something harty. Billy heard the lady walk into the living room so he sat up straight, eager to eat. They gave him a full bowl of stew and Billy took it with a grateful smile. His hands brushed theirs as he took the spoon from their gentle hand. He gave a soft "thank you" as they sat down next to him.

"Could you tell me what got your friend shot today, Billy." The woman asked softly. Billy looked down at his bowl of food. He was shot because they were stealing cattle. That's something that shouldn't be shared with this woman. The woman placed a hand on Billy's biceps, softly squeezing in reassurance. "I only treat outlaws, Billy. I've kept a few secrets."

This made Billy trust the woman. He was in a nice house, his friend won't die, he's being fed and kindly looked after by a pretty woman. Billy looked at them with stern brown eyes.

"Farmer caught us stealing cattle." Billy spoke quietly. He didn't want to scare the doctor's touch away from him. "The man shot at us as we rode away."

The woman frowned at Billy after that. "I'm assuming you're fine? No scratches or scrapes."

Billy smiled at the concern. He shook his head but the woman's eyes were perceptive. They noticed the grazes on his hands. Billy fell trying to get his friend onto his horse. The woman placed their dinner on to a small table next to the couch, and raced back to the kitchen to get the whiskey and some cloth. When they came back in to the sitting room, they opened the bottle and pressed the cloth to its lips. Then they tipped it upside down, evenly wetting the fabric with alcohol.

"You don't have to do this, Miss" Billy spoke quietly, looking at them work. He was finding himself enjoying the look of the woman. Especially when they were focused, due to the stern brow and tight jaw. "I already have to pay you for my friend. "

"Give me your hands, Billy." They spoke firmly as a response to Billy's soft politeness.

Billy held his hands out in front of himself, hovering in the air between the two. The doctor pulled them down to their lap so his hands could be still and so that they could work precisely. Billy watched as they worked. Looked at them. He talked to the woman while they worked. Told stories of his travels and of his friends. Some of which, the woman had treated before. It was safe to say Billy had charmed the woman, and the woman's hospitality was charming him.

The woman gently wrapped Billy's hands in clean, white bandages, once they finished with the whiskey, saying the wound needs to stay clean. Their healing hands lingered on Billy's. Billy squeezed their hands as a response.

The couple must've sat like that for a while. Both looking at each other. The woman was originally looking for more injuries, but it turned into committing Billy's features to memory. Billy was doing the same thing. Hoping that when he closed his eyes that night, their face would be the one he would see.

Footsteps down the hallway startled them. The two jumped away from each other as Billy's friend appeared in the living room. Billy's friend gave him a smirk.

"I think it's past your bedtime, Kid." His friend spoke cheerfully, despite the pain in his stomach. "Let's leave the lady to rest, Billy"

[dead3ve]

Steven Meeks x gn!reader

Summary: While the sun is still warm against the cold autumn wind in September, Steven's s.o wanted to study outside. The studying turned into basking in each other's presence whilst watching the geese on the river by the school.

Warnings: They/them pronouns. Kissing. No use of y/n.

Meeks was trying to study. His hands were very against his schooling.

Meeks' left hand was in his laying partner's hair, swapping between gently removing the knots from their hair and soothingly scratching their scalp. His right hand was trying to hold the pages of his textbook flat so he could highlight the words at the same time whilst using the same hand.

Steven lifted his hand from their hair, so he could highlight the sentence without struggle. He shouldn't have done that.

"Steven," They lengthened the name, making it sound nasally and needy. "Stop doing that. You're smart enough." They turned onto their stomach as they spoke, making the sentence shake as they talked. They rested their head on Steven's thigh and looked up at him.

"You know how Hager is," Meeks smiled at them before looking down at his book. "And there is that essay Mr Keating wanted." Meeks' eyebrows pinched together as he thought of what he needed to do.

His partner noticed the list forming in his head. They pushed themself up into a seated position and made sure their thigh was touching Steven's crossed leg. They sat on their knees and moved their face closer to his focused one. They waited for him to turn. Meeks wasn't going to, as his reading was more important.

They first put their lips to Steven's freckled cheek and pressed a gentle kiss. He continued to read. Then, they put their lips to his jaw, pressing another kiss, firmer this time. Their hand made its way to the other side of Steven's face to push him into the kiss. This made Meeks turn red, but he still continued to read. Finally, they began to pepper kisses down Steven's neck and a hand had found its way to Steven's shirt buttons. This made his breath falter and his hand stop moving across the page of his book.

"Steven, you have study hall tonight." His partner was talking into his neck. Meeks could feel their warm voice against his pale, freckly neck. His top two buttons were undone at this point, their hand was placed inside of his shirt on his naked collarbone. "You have me now." After this sentence, the kisses began to be open-mouthed. Steven took a sharp breath in.

His hands were no longer in his control. They were moving up his partner's back, one holding their shoulder and the other placed around the back of their neck. Steven's thumb was smoothly caressing their neck. His hand at their shoulder moved to their jaw and brought their face to Steven's allowing their lips to meet.

The sun was warm on their skin and the Autumn breeze was cooling. Welton was in shades of red and brown with the falling of leaves. Colors that highlighted Meeks' orange.

Suddenly a flock of geese flew over the couple's heads. Steven would have been content continuing the kiss, but the geese were too distracting for his partner. Their head followed the flight and landing onto the river. They cuddled into Meeks' side, closing his book and tossing it at his feet, ensuring he wouldn't pick it back up.

Meeks turned to his partner, putting his nose into their hair. "Did you know a group of geese is called a gaggle?"

[dead3ve]

Neil Perry x fem!shy!reader

Summary: The Dead Poets are all attending one of Neil's plays. However, Neil's friends don't realize they aren't the special member of the audience.

Warnings: Established relationship. No use of y/n. Charlie flirts before Neil does. Reader reffered to as girl

You were clapping and smiling at your boyfriend who was bowing on stage. He was having the time of his life and by proxy so were you.

The applause grew louder as a group and formally dressed boys stood and began animatedly cheering, all of them whooping and hollering for your boyfriend, Neil Perry.

The curtain closed and the lights went up. People began filtering out of the auditorium. Talking began and the noise made you wait for silence to sound before you entered the even louder foyer.

As you sat in your seat patiently, holding the flowers you brought for Neil, pink roses, in your lap, a boy approached you. He had hair similar to Neil's in both color and style, but he walked with more swagger than Neil did.

"Did you enjoy the play?" He leant his side into the chair in front of you. He asked with a flirty tone. It made you blush, look away and scrunch your eyebrows. You wanted nothing to do with his flirting. You wanted to give Neil his roses and tell him how great he was.

This thought made you get up and leave the auditorium quickly, entering the loud and warm foyer. You would have usually found the nearest bathroom to hide out in, until it would be quieter, but Neil was right there, talking with some rich looking lady. The flowers you were holding were brought closer to your chest as you locked eyes with Neil over the shoulder of the woman he was talking to. You watched him excuse himself with his polite, charming smile and begin to approach you. Once he was stood in front of you, the flowers pushed out from your chest and into Neil's. He looked down at them and smiled as you rushed into Neil's chest as well, wanting to hug him and tell him how incredible he was. Neil's arm went over your shoulders and his lips pressed into your head.

"Thank you. I didn't need these." He spoke softly, with a smile gracing his lips. Neil couldn't keep his eyes on one thing. They went between the flowers and your beaming face. He was in awe of his partner, who was so generous and caring.

You were looking up at Neil from his chest, telling him how incredible he was. Every line was delivered perfectly. He knew when to and how to respond to other characters. Your rambling halted when suddenly there was a loud and exaggerated applause. The same young boys and the older man that were cheering for Neil in the auditorium were doing it now. You turned to see the commotion; Neil kept his hand on the small of your back as the boys circled around Neil, telling him how amazing he was as well.

It was then when you realized, these were his school friends. The one flirting with you must have been Charlie. You'd heard Neil refer to him as the 'womanizer' of the group once. You looked up at Neil and saw him smiling at all of his friends. "He must be grateful for all of this." you thought.

Who he called 'Captain' offered his hand to Neil. Neil took it and smiled wider at the man. The man must've been Neil's beloved Mr Keating.

"Congratulations, Mr Perry. A great show." Mr Keating spoke with joy and a subtle tone of authority. "This must be the girl we were talking about." The teacher turned to me.

You blushed at this. You knew Neil talked to Mr Keating often, but not about you. Neil introduced you to everyone. You ended up giving a small wave as you tried to press yourself into Neil's side. Other names were thrown into the circle, and you tried to remember them.

Knox, another boy who had similar hair to Neil spoke up. "You know Neil, if they didn't come find you sooner, you might've lost the girl." Neil looked confused at Knox, and then he looked with frowny eyebrows at me. The group began to laugh at that. Knox explained himself, stating "Charlie tried talking to them in the auditorium, when the play finished."

Charlie smacked Knox in the chest after that. Neil laughed at the exchange. You put your arms around Neil's waist and squeezed. Neil said softly to you, "You ran didn't you." Neil was giggling softly. He turned to the boys, "They did the same this with me when I first talked to them." The boys all laughed and looked at the two. They hadn't seen Neil so peaceful before. The boys all liked it. They liked them together.

"We're going to get some dinner at the restaurant down the street. You're welcome to join us, lovebirds." Mr Keating had spoken. He winked cheekily at us. You turned to Neil laughing at his favorite teacher with him.

Neil took your hand and lead you out of the foyer and into the cold night, pulling you further into his side to keep you close and warm.

[dead3ve]

Charlie Dalton x fem!reader

Summary: Charlie Dalton, who hates many of his classes at Welton, often finds himself outside of the school with permission and without. Charlie finds himself off campus, this time with permission, but doing something rather offensive to Welton's reputation.

Warnings: kissing (no smut), they/them pronouns, no use of y/n, reader is referred to as girl

Charlie Dalton was a flirt first and a saxophonist second.

He was originally off campus to accompany a music student in their vocal assessment. The two had been rehearsing for weeks. Between rehearsals, the couple were behind the closed door of the girl's small bedroom, sharing silent confessions, and locking lips in heated acts of teenage love.

Charlie at this moment, had pressed them against their bedroom wall between his arms, and his uniform shirt had three buttons undone, revealing his pale chest to the girl. They were clutching onto Charlie's collar with desperation and their chest was rising and falling with a small pant.

They had been engaged in a heated kiss before this small break, so they stood looking at each other. Each pair of eyes looking at the other's face.

"I need to sing, Charlie." The girl was whispering. Like they didn't want to admit the fact they were not being productive. Their fingers were pushing softly Charlie's chestnut hair away from his face.

Charlie leant into the girl, groaning in protest. His chest and hips pushed into theirs, caging them to the wall, as Charlie whined in defience.

"You sing for two hours every week with me. Let me have at least one hour with your mouth." Charlie spoke in low rumbles with a cheeky grin on his lips. Those lips were mumbling against theirs by the end of the sentence, asking for more kisses.

Suddenly, the two were kissing again. Tongues running over each other's lips and teeth. Charlie's hands were beginning to travel south, running over their shirt and then sliding underneath it. His hands didn't travel higher, they only held onto the skin of the girl's waist, caressing the skin comfortingly as they kiss deepened. The girl had their hands gripped on to Charlie's hair, making sure he didn't pull away from their lips.

There was a sudden knock on the girl's bedroom door. The two pulled their lips away but didn't let go of each other at that point. Only stopping to be cautious.

"Honey, Charlie's teacher is here to take him back to the school." Their was mother outside of the bedroom. She spoke kindly, oblivious to the fact they had done nothing productive for 2 whole hours.

"Shit." Charlie whispered to himself. He brought his hands away from their stomach to re-do his buttons. As he did this, the girl's hands went back to his hair to shape it into a neater fashion that looked less romantically suspicious than it did at this moment. "I'm so sorry. I didn't even open my saxophone case." Charlie looked apologetically at the case.

The black instrument case was lying on the girl's baby pink comforter. They approached Charlie as he went to pick up the sorry instrument, holding his blazer by its shoulders for him to put on. Charlie put his arms through the sleeves and turned to look at the girl.

"Next week I promise we will have this up to scratch." Charlie meant it. He was looking at them seriously, one hand on their shoulder. Charlie gave them a quick wink and a kiss on the cheek and began to move past them and out the door, until he heard a meek "Charlie?"

He turned so quickly; he nearly fell onto the girl's scratchy, grey carpet. "Yeah?"

"You're welcome here more than once a week, you know? For more than music too."

[dead3ve]

Steven Meeks x fem!reader

Summary: Steven Meeks and some other Welton academics are present at a competition they have been winning for 5 years. Welton lost the History prize to another private school, housing young women, breaking Welton's winning streak. One of the women makes Meeks lose all concentration, causing Welton also lose the Mathematics award as well.

Warnings: reader uses they/them pronouns, referred to as a female, girl, women. Meeks is pining. No use of y/n.

The hall was loud. Meeks was sweating. The noise wasn't helping him solve difficult equations. With time running out he was growing nervous. Restless. He was the math genius at Welton, and he was struggling to even think. Gerard Pitts and Richard Cameron were doing more than he was.

The hall, where the competition was taking place, was asked to quieten down. A man who was round and grey-haired was talking into a microphone. He announced "The Excellence in Historical Writing award goes to the Ladies' College. We ask for two student representatives to approach the front to receive their award."

The hall erupted into applause. The Ladies' College table began to holler and cheer for their friends who stood. One of the two who stood wore the dull, navy-blue uniform of a lengthy skirt and boxy button up shirt with a heavy blazer and made Meeks turn as red as his hair. Their joy and confidence that radiated off of them made Steven feel the same way. Once they were at the stage holding the award and smiling for a photo, Meeks smiled too. The hall was quiet at that point. Quiet enough for Meeks to hear a faraway "Thank you." from the awarded girl and snickering from Pitts who was sat next to him.

Meeks stomped on his foot under the table.

Cameron was sick of his teammates being distracted by things as simple as girls. "If you're so interested in her, go and say something. You're not doing anything here, Meeks." Cameron was frustrated, talking through his gritted teeth.

"Yeah, Meeks. I'll go with you. They're at the food table with their friend." Pitts offered, attempting to sooth Cameron's insult.

Steven weighed the options out in his head. He could nail the exam, which he wasn't sure he could do because of the distracting beauty of the History girl. Or he could attempt to meet the girl, and maybe, with some charm win her over. Both, to Steven Meeks were very poor options at the time, but he decided the latter had slightly better odds with Pitts by his side.

Pitts and Meeks stood up from their table and approached the food tables where the girls prepared slices of cakes and tea for their table. Pitts went to make a cup of tea, putting him in place for a conversation.

"How is your team looking for math?" Pitts asks the girls' friend as he stirs sugar into his tea.

The girl Meeks failed to acknowledge began to talk animatedly to Pitts about the poor questions chosen for the examination. Pitts became too engaged in conversation to help Meeks, leaving the red head to stand awkwardly in front of the girl who drew his interest initially. Meeks couldn't bring himself to say anything. Maybe it was nerves. Maybe her presence was so important and radiant that it shouldn't be ignored with talk.

"You're here for math?" A quiet question left the girl's mouth. They also held a cup of tea, and they took a sip after asking the question.

"Yeah, yes." Meeks fumbled his answer. Wringing his hands tightly as he spoke. "Did you do the History essay?"

They smiled at that. They blushed and looked at the wooden floors beneath them. "Yes, I did." They looked back up at Meeks with excited eyes, "Sad I took the Welton crown?"

Meeks smiled at that. They were playful. Steven let out a small laugh of relief. "No not at all. Suits you more than us." Meeks looked at the girl, cautious of their reaction, hoping he hadn't put his foot into his mouth like he so often did.

They smiled, blushed then took a step closer to Meeks. "What's your name? I'd also like to know if you're bribing the math win from us, considering you are charming me." They spoke, knowing their words, confidently.

Meeks blushed, turning red again. He began to laugh at their statement. "It's Steven Meeks and this isn't a bribe. My friends saw me looking at you and made me leave the table because I was slowing them down. You were a pretty distraction." Meeks couldn't believe what he was saying. He was not one to do this.

Suddenly, the girl pushed her arm towards Meeks, with a pen extended in their other hand. "Can I have your phone number, Steven? The school one or your family's one. Do you board at Welton?" All of these fretful questions were asked as Meeks quickly wrote the school's phone number down onto their skin in a hurry to calm them. He gently let go of their arm and held the pen back at them.

"I board at Welton, but we leave the campus on weekends. Maybe you'd want to join me one weekend?" Meeks was asking a girl out on a date. He was red in the face and still sweating. It was no longer loud in the hall though because all Meeks could hear was their acceptance to the proposed date.

Cameron suddenly turned Meeks with a firm hand gripping his shoulder. "What are you doing Meeks? We just lost the Math prize. Dr Hager is going to kill us." Cameron was angry at Pitts but more so Steven. He began to drag Meeks away from the two girls by the collar of his blazer. Cameron couldn't handle more homework. Meeks could, if he got to see a pretty girl because of it.

[dead3ve]

Neil Perry x fem!shy!reader

Summary: When Welton's sister school burns down, the female students end up residing at Welton as well. Neil Perry, one of Welton's finest, begins to take a liking to one of the quieter ladies.

Warnings: This is a first post :) reader referred to as female, lady, girl. gender neutral (they/them) pronouns used. No use of y/n. shy reader insert

Neil Perry was waiting outside of the ladies' quarters. The refurbished section of Welton now dedicated to the housing of the new female teachers and students was so affectionately named the 'ladies' quarters' thanks to one Charlie Dalton. The same Dalton that had forced Neil to wait for a certain lady to exit her room. With a book in hand, Neil contemplated whether or not the girl would like his attempts of flirting.

Neil had taken a liking to this girl. They were quiet, but knowledgeable. He knew this because Neil sat next to them for his beloved English class with Mr Keating, where whenever a question was asked a whispered and correct answer comes from the desk to his left. Once, Neil caught their eye when they were whispering the correct answer. They blushed and turned to look straight down at their desk for the rest of the lesson. Neil did not wish to offend them, just to simply admire them and their mind. So, after class he caught them by the elbow, and asked "Why don't you speak in class? Your answers are always right." Neil was left holding onto the elbow of the girl whilst they looked up at him with eyes so full of longing, and a mouth sealed shut by the restraints of fear.

They responded with a meek "I'm not always right."

Neil watched the girl pull away from his hold and hurry along after their friends, each of the ladies' heavy, uniformed skirts grazing the others' as they walked to their next class.

Neil looked down at the book he had bought for the girl in his hands. A special edition of one of their favorites, according to their friends, who all giggled at Neil's shy appreciation of the girl.

Down the hall, the thick clunk of school shoes approached Neil. He looked up after being in a romantic daze. He saw them. In their regular school skirt and button up shirt. They wore a cardigan though. Autumn had entered the hallways of the school. Neil stepped into the middle of the quiet hallway.

"Hi." Neil said. The girl faltered in her walking. Slowing her approach, seeming like they were questioning that Neil was actually there to see them.

"Hi." The girl began to speed up again, once they realized he was here to speak to them.

They stopped in front of him and smiled. Big and shy and bright all at the same time. The book in Neil's hands caught the girl's attention. The colors were so clearly representing a certain franchise and the picture on the front seemed to depict a familiar character. Neil noticed their eyes wandering and smiled at their silent curiosity. He held the book out to her.

"It's for you." Neil said with a smile on his lips as the girl went to take it cautiously with a small grin. Not because they were scared of Neil, but because they did not know if they were overstepping. They were very interested in the boy, after all.

Neil, realizing that they might not understand the display of affection being attempted, decided to pull the book back to himself before they could take it.

"It's yours, I promise. But I am giving it to you because I like you, and maybe we could go get a coffee sometime?" By the end of the sentence, Neil was losing confidence. His voice grew higher, making a slight crack in the middle of the word "sometime".

Unbeknownst to Neil, who was looking down at the cover of the book held in his hands, they were beginning to smile wider as he grew more nervous. Eventually the girl took the book from Neil and began to walk away from him. Neil stopped thinking. Stopped moving. Did they not like him? Was the book the only valuable thing presented? Did Neil get the wrong idea?

"You said it would be mine. I'd like to read it so I can tell you about it on our coffee date." They spoke loud enough for Neil to hear. He was stood maybe 2 meters away, back turned from the girl. They spoke loud enough so Neil had to have heard them.

Neil turned and took a breath when he saw them looking at him already with a bashful grin and pink cheeks. The book clutched against her chest. Neil took two paces towards the girl. He pushed some fallen hair behind her ear, making her pink cheeks turn red. Neil asked:

"Sit next to me in study hall?"