⋆｡°✩°｡⋆ Confession ⋆｡°✩°｡⋆
tags; elliot x reader, gn!reader (only pronoun used for reader is 'you'), pre-established friendship, reader is insanely in denial about their feelings, happy ending, valentines confession, not in the forsaken realm (you decide if its pre- or post-), takes place in the work at a pizza place map but i never explicitly said that so it's going in the tags, no tw, 1.4k words
Golden rays of sunlight shone across the vast sea in front of you, refracting off the rippling waves. The sun was halfway past the horizon, bathing the sky an ombre of blues and pinks. Occasional wisps of clouds streaked the sky. Other than that the whole of the atmosphere was visible to you.
You lent against one of the trees on a grass patch by the sandy beach. A gentle breeze flowed through the air, and the green leaves rustled. Some way in front of you, a wooden pier had been built on the beach. No boats were docked there at this hour.
This morning Elliot asked you to meet him right here. He had texted you only once very confidently. "i have a surprise for you!!! meet me by the pier at 6 :D", his message read.
Since it was Valentines day, you had half expected something like this. You had even spent your whole day speculating what the surprise could be? Maybe a dramatic monologue confessing his undying love? (Of course, you instantly dismissed this idea as simultaneously a joke and impossible, because obviously you guys were just friends!)
But what wasn't normal was for Elliot to be late; that's just not something he was, considering his job. So, where was he?
Checking your phone again, the time flicked back at you: "6:23". You were really trying to be generous to him, messaging him twice yet receiving no response. There was definitely a chance work had kept him for overtime. Since the sun was showing no sign of stopping its slow decent, you were going to have to leave eventually.
Minutes stretched onwards. "6:23" became "6:30", which became "6:37". By now the sun was three-quarters gone. The sky had deepened to a dark royale blue, allowing the first few stars to shine through.
You sighed. You didn't want to believe Elliot would no show you like this. Surely, he was ultra-swamped in work. (Or, perhaps he got cold feet- but it definitely couldn't be that because in no way at all was he going to confess, or anything like that. Obviously.)
Kicking at the grass, you looked around one more time. Seems like you were going to have to accept the loss. Stuffing your hands into your pockets, you began your trek back home.
Out of the blue, you suddenly heard the roaring of an engine. It sounded quite far away, but was getting louder.
You perked up. Now you were sure the sound was getting closer. You identified it as the engine of a motorcycle. This had to be Elliot, because who else would be out at this time? You dashed a few steps back to where you were waiting before, eager to see him.
Rounding a corner, Elliot came into view. He was atop his personal red motorbike, but had strapped one of the boxes that the company mopeds used to hold orders on the back. You could just make out his work uniform, looking much more dishevelled than usual. He was also going much faster than was probably safe.
He ground to a halt in front of you, skidding a meter or two. Immediately, he leaped off his bike and basically ran the ten steps between you and him.
"I. Am. So. Sorry," he wheezed before you even had a chance to open your mouth. "It was hell at work. Literal hell and horror. Of course it was! Everybody and their parents thinks it's nice to go out on Valentines! No consideration for the workers!" He gestured wildly, emphasising his point. "Idiots come in five minutes before we close: 'Oh, hi, sorry I know you have almost finished shutting up the kitchen but can we have two pepperoni?' And, the ovens set on fire again- I thought we had fixed that. Guess not! Gotta find the fire extinguisher somebody has run off with because not having one on hand in a kitchen is perfectly safe! And-"
You put up your hands, signalling for him to take a breath. He stopped as quickly as he started, meeting your eyes. They had that usual spark, yet it was dimmer than usual. There was no way he was lying.
Truly, you had never seen Elliot looking this downcast. Your heart ached for him. Something deep down cried out, begging you to make him feel better somehow. Seeing him like this was awful.
"Elliot, if it was out of your control, it's ok. I'm sure you didn't decide to be late. You don't have to justify yourself to me," you reassured him calmly, placing a hand on his shoulder.
He deflated, and relaxed into your grip.
"I know," he muttered. "It's just... I had something really nice planned. I was gonna set up a picnic. Y'know, on the beach. That's why I asked you to come here. I made your favourite pizza. And I was- actually, nevermind."
You furrowed your brows. "What was that last thing?"
"Seriously, it's nothing. It's silly now. I shouldn't have said anything, sorry."
Releasing your grip on his shoulder, you crossed your arms and took a step back, leaning against the tree behind you. It was difficult when he was like this- trying to deny that something was wrong. A feeling of warmth rose in your chest. All you wanted to do is help him, but to do that you needed him to tell you what was wrong first.
"None of your problems are silly. You can tell me anything, really. I'll always support you," you said.
Elliot looked completely torn. Again struggling to meet your eyes, he wrung his hands. Then he took off his cap and ran his hands through his blonde hair. Opening and closing his mouth a few times, he finally decided on what to say, although it seemed as though he was forcing out each word.
"I was... going to ask if you wanted to be my Valentine."
Judging your surprised reaction as rejection, Elliot immediately started backpedalling.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, it was so stupid, I know," he stepped forward, gesturing like he always did when he was stressed, "I didn't want to say anything because I didn't want to ruin what we had. You can just forget all this, I promise I won't say anything again-"
"Elliot!" you tried to interrupt as politely as you could. You knew when he was in a spiral sometimes he just needed to be stopped. He looked at you, genuinely distressed, eyes glossy.
"Elliot, yes, I want to be your Valentine," you said. The words felt insanely weird to say, but once they had left your mouth, a wave of relief washed over you. Finally, you could be true to yourself and to him. "I think I was in denial about my feelings for you. I didn't even know if you liked me back, either. At the end of the day, I feel the same," you admitted.
A smile of real happiness broke out across his face. The relief you felt must've been shared with him as well. Without warning, he dragged you into a tight hug. Despite your surprise, you hugged him back for as long as you could before he started squishing you uncomfortably. You had to wriggle out of his grip.
"That's- wow- that's- I don't think you understand how much I wanted to hear that. I'm glad, I think- actually I don't think there's a word for how I'm feeling right now. It feels amazing." He met your gaze properly, the light in his eyes gleaming with joy. "I feel like I should say thanks. Thank you?"
You burst out laughing. "Ew! Don't say thanks, that's weird!" you snapped jokingly.
By now, the sun had fully sunk below the horizon. The sky was almost fully black, holding onto a few of the final rays of light. Warm yellow street lamps that lined the roads had automatically turned on sometime during your interaction.
"I don't know about you, but I'm in the mood for some pizza right now. Want to come back to my place?" You suggested.
"But the one I made you is cold now."
"Whatever. We can reheat it in the microwave."
The two of you walked over to his bike. Elliot nodded towards the back seat.
author's notes: did you notice the decreasing quality as the fic went on? yeah thats because i genuinely can't write dialogue even if i was being hung over a waterhole infested with sharks. loving the white room syndrome. sorry its so arr 😭💔 also i suck with endings so if the ending feels like crap thats because i just can't do it omggg
anyways I was actually struggling to come up with a fic idea for elliot. I knew I wanted to write something about him but I couldn't decide what. literally I spent like 45 mins looking a pictures on pinterest to try and find inspiration but eventually i just told myself to start writing and it would come. and it did kinda come! I'm happy with most of this fic except for the amount of dialogue which is definitely not my strong suit, but literally whatever i've written way worse. hope you enjoyed tho!!!
oh also the banner was originally a profile pic created by: https://ca.pinterest.com/haruko_official_/
