hey, big guy

John was a bit surprised by her forwardness, but pleasantly so. Fawn’s smirk was contagious, only making him smile in return with cheeks lightly flushed — he could play that off from the champagne. “Of course it’s not a problem,” he chuckled. “This is just news to me, is all.” As the nerdy brother, he didn’t get complimented for his looks often; there was always more focus on his intelligence. Fawn was different though, and seemed to notice things about him others may not have.

She was so cute as she continued on about Gruff, though he almost felt a little bad, as he suddenly felt like he was bumming her out by bringing up her dog’s absence. Should he change the subject to make her feel better? However, the brunette seemed to light up as she thought of an idea for them all to spend the day together tomorrow, including Gruff, and John was delighted by the idea. Now he didn’t feel so bad about bringing up her four-legged friend. “I’d really enjoy that,” John agreed, wrapping his pinky with hers to solidify the idea. She had a hopeful sparkle in her eye that was just too irresistible to say no to.

Before they could fully plan their day tomorrow, as John’s head was already mentally thinking of ideas for them to do with Gruff, others began to count down to midnight to remind them of the time. He couldn’t believe it was already here! Their pinky promise soon turned into holding hands, and John nodded at Fawn’s question. “Really,” he reassured her, stepping closer as she pulled him in. They counted down with the rest of their friends, eyes never leaving each other. “3… 2… 1… Happy New Year,” they both said in unison. John leaned down to press his lips against hers, immediately noticing how soft they were and how good she smelled as they were so close together. It was a kiss that probably lasted a little longer than a normal New Year's kiss, neither in a rush to pull away so soon. John grinned as they pulled away, the commotion of the party merely background noise as they were more focused on each other. “That was a lovely kiss,” he complimented genuinely, his hands still holding hers.

#( i love you; gruff : answered )#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: john )#john1

With the promise to spending the first official day of the New Years with her and Gruff, Fawn’s eyes twinkled. There was nothing more she wanted than to be getting the opportunity to spend the whole day with John. Actually, there was one thing that could make things even better, she thought, as her gaze once again fell back towards his lips. Spending the entire day with him would be great, but being with him would be even better. And she hoped it’ll be more than just one day they’ll spend with one another.

The feeling of her lips pressed against John’s was exactly like how she imagined it would be. His lips were slightly chapped but she didn’t mind the feeling, so focused on how receptive to kissing her back he was that the brunette decided to risk it a little further by leaning in even more and deepening the kiss. Fawn wanted more. But their kiss couldn’t last forever and they needed to breathe, and so, the pair broke away. A grin soon bloomed right back onto her face at his compliment, hands squeezing against his own as the brunette had no intentions of letting go even with their New Years kiss done and over with. “It was,” she agreed “and I wouldn’t mind doing it again if you’re ever up for it?” and there she was, not bothering to beat around the bush with her intentions anymore. If John hadn’t already guessed she was interested in having something more than just wanting to get to know him, then hopefully her insinuating that she wanted to keep kissing him would do the trick. But Fawn was fine if he didn’t get it right away. She’ll just have to keep showing to how much she liked him if that was the case.

~ THE NEXT DAY ~

For the rest of the night, the celebrating of the New Years continued, but eventually Fawn needed to head back home to her beloved Gruff. But the brunette didn’t leave without planting a playful kiss against John’s nose, reminding him of their promise to spending the day together and even going as far as to say she’ll message him as soon as she wakes up. And message the Darling she did, for the minute after her eyes had opened, she had her phone in hand. Questioning him if he was awake, she smiled when he sent her a text not long after, confirming that he was. But just as she was writing her response to him back to meet up for breakfast, the brunette felt her beloved Rottweiler's cold nose press against her shoulder, gaining her attention. “We’re going to have a special friend spending the day with us, Gruff.” Fawn commented, lifting a hand to give him a good scratch behind the ear. “You, me, and John.” She added, using her free hand to hit ‘send’ on her text message.

Despite struggling with the concept, Tink was trying to understand the point of view Fawn was sharing with her. Logically, she got the point being made: she was holding herself back from potential happiness with someone else by holding onto her feelings for Peter. Emotionally, though? She couldn’t come to terms with the thought that her affections for him were entirely doomed; she still had hope, slight as it was, that he could love her back, so it seemed pointless to give up on her love and try to replace it with another while there was still another option. Something big would have to change for her to think her chances of moving on were better than her chances of getting what she wanted. But Fawn continued her campaign, adding that she needn’t look far for someone to try dating casually.

“Tootles?” The suggestion seemed at first so random that it might have been plucked out of a hat, but Tink was too analytical to assume that Fawn had really chosen it arbitrarily. She knew that tone of voice—feigning nonchalance to hide that there was something more hidden behind her words. Her friend wanted her to think the idea was being casually brought up, but she knew better. She just didn’t know why. Why would Fawn want her to try going out with Tootles? He was one of her closest friends, if the goal was to date someone she was already familiar with, but…He was one of her closest friends. That made it way more complicated. Without even getting into the possibilities of what could go wrong if they did attempt to go out, there was the problem of how they would get to that point in the first place. “What makes you think he would want to date me?” Tink asked, translated: What do you know that I don’t know?

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tink )#tink1

If Fawn felt like she should’ve worded her pervious words better, than what she had just suggested was the brunette being completely blatant. She tried to come off pretty nonchalant while mentioning Tootles name to Tink, but she knew her best friend pretty well— Tink would get the memo without her needing to explain it. So when the other repeated his name back to her and then making a follow up question of “What makes you think he would want to date me?”, Fawn smiled. “Why wouldn’t he?” She responded right back. There were so many reasons why a guy like Tootles would want to date Tink. For starters, her best friend was attractive so the physicality alone was a reason for him to be interested, but she wasn’t about to say that. She didn’t want her friend to think that looks is the only thing she has going for her, especially when knowing Tink, she would then question why Peter wasn’t interested if her attractiveness was all she needed. No, she needed to begin at the point she knew will appeal to Tink the most.

“You’re extremely smart and resourceful, Tink.” Fawn claimed, tilting her head towards the side. “Tootles is the kind of guy who would notice that about someone, especially when that someone is a person he’s known for so many years, like you.” She then said, emphasizing the word ‘notice’ as a small dig towards the fact that though Peter has known Tink for just as many years (longer even), he wasn’t exactly the type to focus on the beautiful brain that Tink has inside of that spunky head of her’s. “And he’s always on your side for just about everything. And I mean everything— not once have I ever seen Tootles disagree or not back you up on something. Unlike with Peter, who you gotta admit, has not only disagreed with you on certain things but has even dismissed you on some of them too.” Fawn shrugged. “And just the way he looks at you…”

She might have expected Fawn to say as much. How do you know if you’ve never even tried? had practically been Tink’s motto her whole life; it was only right for her friends to turn it around on her when she wasn’t living up to that creed. Just when exactly had Fawn become more adventurous than her? Maybe she always had been in matters like this, well-known to follow her heart rather than her head. Tink had thought it through, however. “It wouldn't be fair,” she concluded. Even her friend had listed the reasons herself, not doing a great job at convincing her that it was a great idea by citing drama and the ethical dilemma involved. “Using someone else’s feelings as a distraction…If I hurt them, I wouldn’t know how to fix it.” She could repair anything metal or mechanical; people were different. Tinka Bell had never been a people person.

Tink began tugging on her bangs as she gave this conversation so much thought. It wasn’t that she was closed to all suggestions—she was a solution-minded person generally. Of course in this situation the one solution she wanted was for Peter to magically return her feelings without her needing to even confess, but if that was as unlikely as it seemed, she was willing to hear Fawn out. She just didn’t see how dating around was a viable answer. “Am I supposed to go out with someone who already likes me, even if I don’t know if I like them yet? Or with someone I don’t even know and who doesn’t know me?” Neither option sounded right to her.

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tink )#tink1

So maybe she could have worded that out a little better, Fawn thought as Tink’s rebuttal on using someone else’s feelings as a distraction. “I didn’t mean it like that, Tink.” The brunette countered, only for her to pause for a quick second to clear her thoughts. How can she explain it where her friend would get what she’s trying to say? It wasn’t that she wanted Tink to go date other people and play with their feelings when she knows she can’t feel the same for them, but more on the matter that she wanted her to realize there were so many fishes within the sea to choose from outside of Peter. Casually dating was a thing, and Fawn thinks that as long as Tink was honest with whoever she tried to get with and there was some mutual understanding between them, that it wouldn’t hurt for her to see who else may be right for her.

“You can casually date someone without the fear of things getting serious.” Fawn tried to explain. “I’m not telling you to jump into a relationship with someone just because they have feelings for you even though you don’t feel the same. All I’m saying is that there are so many people out there that you can get to know and even connect with— people who you might end up falling for even harder than you have for Peter. But you won’t be able to find that out if you let yourself hold out for him forever.” The brunette claimed, once again sighing at her friend. Fawn felt like she still hadn’t been able to get her point across just yet, trying to figure out what else she can say that could push Tink into at least considering in the idea of dating someone. No— have her at least considering the idea of getting to know someone else in a deeper level to the point where maybe she would be okay with potentially dating them. “You just gotta start slow.” The brunette then ended up saying. “Don’t even need to try looking for anyone new, or better yet, how about someone we do know that way you can at least have the comfort of being familiar with them? Like, I don’t know, say— Tootles maybe?”

"Hotshot?" John repeated in surprise, an eyebrow quirking up as he met Fawn's gaze again. The brunette's wink only made his smile grow wider. Whether she did stay by his side the rest of the night or not, he certainly wouldn't feel stuck with her, more than welcome to have her company any time.

John listened as Fawn explained her reasoning for leaving her dog at home, noticing how her eyes lit up as she talked about Gruff. However, the sigh that followed made it obvious that she missed her pet, and John nodded in understanding. "That makes sense. The apartment is quite crowded tonight, so it would probably be difficult for him to enjoy the holiday," he agreed. If she had brought Gruff, she'd likely be busy calming him down all night, which would mean John wouldn't get to talk with her like he was now — he'd of course offer her a hand and help with her pet however he could in that scenario, though it would still be a distraction from enjoying the new year celebration together.

"That's what I've been told," John chuckled as she complimented his brain, watching as Fawn leaned into him. Not only did he learn that he was on the list she mentioned, but he was apparently at the top. "I'm flattered," he admitted with a nervous smile. "Perhaps we should make a pact, to spend more time together in the new year." The suggestion was casual, but John meant it genuinely. He was just as interested in spending more time with Fawn, so why not? With the countdown to midnight getting closer and closer though, the conversation began to focus more on the present than future plans. "Of course I do," the Darling brother confirmed that he wanted to ring in the year with her, followed by a smile as Fawn confirmed the same. John watched as she stepped forward to stand in front of him, his eyes gazing down to her lips as soon as she suggested a midnight kiss. With a nod, he grabbed Fawn's hand in his and grinned. "I'd like that a lot."

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: john )#john1

Rather than saying anything, the brunette merely smirked at him as he repeated her words. Hotshot. Cutie. Hell, she could even combine the two and call him a hottie— all three were very fitting when it came to describing him. “I think you’re hot, is that a problem?” Fawn questioned, saying it as if it was the most casual thing in the world. Which if anyone asked her, it was.

As sad as it was that she wasn’t heading into the new year with Gruff, the fact that John seemed to be content in going into it with her was more than enough to make up for it. “Yeah, it was for the best that he stayed home. Believe me, he put on a good fight trying to convince me with those big ol’ puppy dog eyes of his, but I couldn’t bring him knowing he’ll end up all tense and uncomfortable here.” Fawn sighed. Not only is she going to have to make it up to Gruff once she get’s back home, but even tomorrow she’ll need to make the best day ever for him during the first day of the New Year. But now that she was also admitting to how she wanted to get to know the Darling even better this upcoming year, a new thought came to mind. Maybe John wouldn’t mind spending time with both her and Gruff tomorrow as well? He smiled nervously at her admission, flattered even before suggesting they make a pact to spend more time together. This caused her to grin once again. “How about we start tomorrow?” She outright asked, before holding her pinky out towards John to solidify their pact. “What do you say? You, me, and Gruff?” With wanting to spend the party with him, with the hopes of getting to kiss him, and now the two of them making a pack to spend more time together in the new year, maybe requesting to start the very next day was too much. But even so, she stared up at him expectedly yet hopeful he’ll say yes.

Fawn smile widen even more, delighted to hear his confirmation as she now stood before him. And as the sound and commotion of the others about how the countdown to the New Year was about to begin, it didn’t escape the brunette’s notice on how the Darling’s gaze fell to her lips before he nodded and took her hand. ’50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45….’ Taking a step closer, her face was now inches away from his as she peered up at him. ’33, 32, 31, 30, 29….’ “Really?” She asked, wanting to give John one final chance to back out from kissing her the closer they got to the ending of the countdown. But just as everyone around them started to count down from 10, the brunette used their connected hands to tug him down closer to her. ’10, 9, 8, 7, 6…” And with one final look, Fawn smiled at John once more ‘5, 4, 3, 2,…’ and just as the countdown hit ‘1’ She leaned in but not without whispering “Happy New Years~” before kissing him.

“If it were that easy,” Tink said with a sigh, “I would have already done it. I can’t just…turn off my feelings. Or make my heart feel something for someone else if it doesn’t.” She spoke with certainty, as if she had ever truly tried the approach of moving on from Peter by catching feelings for somebody else. In truth, she just didn’t want to. She had too much faith in Peter Pan to give up on him yet—and maybe he was leading her on, intentionally or not, but she had never confessed what she really wanted from him and thus he had never truly rejected her. It was too dangerous to think of how things would change if he did break her heart, so Tink didn’t let herself ask him for too much, and made it impossible for herself to even consider moving on. She wanted to stay in his light as long as possible. She didn’t just want to be loved; she wanted to be loved by him. This was the part she couldn’t say aloud, even to Fawn. That she loved him. Even if her heart was always displayed on her sleeve, saying it aloud would make it too real, tangible and fragile.

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tink )#tink1

With a frustrated sigh, the brunette shook her head at her friend. Figures Tink would say it wasn’t easy. And she get’s it, letting go of someone you’ve been in love with for so long was a hard thing to do. Hell, she can’t even say so much against that claim when Fawn herself has it pretty bad for a certain middle child Darling boy, but then again she wouldn’t exactly classify her feelings for him as love yet. She liked John a lot— way more than she’s ever liked someone in a long while, but even with those feelings for him, the brunette still was able to go out and date other people just in case it turns out that he didn’t like her back. Why? Because she knew that if she found herself as crazy for him the same way Tink was for Peter, that there was no way she’ll want to move on from John even if he didn’t feel the same as she did. But that’s also why Fawn really wanted her friend to move on. She didn’t want Tink to be miserable and miss out in life just because of Peter. “Have you ever tried?” The brunette decided to ask, trying to keep herself calm. “You know you can still have feelings for someone and be with other people at the same time? May not be the most ethical thing to do, and admittedly can stir up a bit of drama if push comes to shove, but maybe in the process you’ll find that you can feel the same way for someone else too. Stronger even. If you just give it a try.”

sweetfridays

♡ antonia gentry via tiktok ( antoniabgentry )

#( come on; fawn; listen to your head. heart gets you in trouble : visage )

The Darlings only had minimal time to get to know Tink's friends thus far, possibly due to Tink's indifference toward his sister. They were all acquainted, but it would certainly be nice to get to know them more, especially Fawn. It was pretty obvious that John and Fawn always left each other smiling and blushing after each of their interactions — still, he had his own doubts, that maybe he was reading too deep into it because she was always like that.

"I wouldn't expect anything less," he smiled in response, watching as she nudged him before comfortably wrapping her arms around his. She did it so casually, as if the gesture meant nothing at all, and his heart nervously fluttered. Still, he welcomed the action, playfully letting his hip bump into hers. Fawn seemed to know how to bring out his silly side. "I'm surprised you didn't bring him tonight," John admitted as she brought up Gruff, but as she continued, his eyes met hers curiously. "May I ask if I'm included in that list of certain people?" She couldn't be more obvious, but perhaps he just wanted to hear her say it. It would help him confirm some of his lingering suspicions, maybe give him the extra confidence boost. Which, speaking of .. Fawn mentioning midnight once again brought John back to his initial predicament. He glanced around, noticing that everyone was getting more comfortable with the person they were pairing up with. John smiled at Fawn's question — he knew where she was getting at, but he still wondered if she was just doing it to be nice. "I do .. It means everyone's starting to pair off .." he trailed off, meeting her gaze curiously again. "You're sure you wanna ring in the new year with me?"

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: john )#john1

Her smile grew into a grin as he bumped his hip against hers, not exactly the response she had expected to get from him, but she took it with stride as she liked it either way. “Good because you’re stuck with me for the rest of the night, hotshot.” Fawn remarked with a playful wink. But she meant it, if John let her, she was more than willing to spend the rest of this night with him. Even after New Years finally hit—whether he wanted to kiss her or not, she would gladly accompany him until it was time for the party to come to an end.

“Ugh, I know! I should’ve, and I would’ve but sometimes Gruff doesn’t do well among bigger crowds, and since they’re some newer faces around who don’t know him yet, I didn’t want to scare anyone off, you know?” The brunette explained, sighing a tad when recalling those huge puppy-dog-eyes her beloved Gruff had given her when he found out that she was leaving for the night. Obviously, she was planning on heading back home and once she does, she’ll give him a good old cuddle and even have him sleep on her bed with her so they can celebrate the first official day of the new year together. But she didn’t want him accidentally scaring away any of her friends partners, and maybe she didn’t want any interruptions in case a New Years kiss with a certain glasses wearing brunette were to actually happen. And as he eyed her curiously, Fawn grinned once again when he caught on with what she was getting at. “You really do have such a big brain in there, don’t you.” She complimented, leaning in onto him as she did so. “You’re actually on the top of that list of certain people if you’re okay with knowing that.” The brunette confirmed, her cheeks heating up a little as she genuinely did wanted to hang out and get to know John some more within the upcoming year.

The time was only getting closer, and by now everyone was paired up with someone. Fawn did not move from her position next to the Darling, and as he glanced back at her with curiosity again, noticing all the pairings himself, he then questioned her if she was sure about ringing in the New Year with him. At that, she smiled. “Don’t you want to ring in the New Year with me?” She questioned him in return, somehow not feeling discouraged by him asking her that nor at the possibility of his answer to that. From their entire interaction so far, the brunette was confident that John didn’t mind ringing in the New Year with her. But whether he was okay with kissing her for it was a different question. “I do— want to ring in the New Year with you.” Fawn elaborated with a nod, before moving forward so she now stood in front of the Darling instead of besides him. “I would like to kiss you into the New Year as well, if you’re down with that. We don’t have to if you’re not, we just talk but I think kissing you would be really nice.”

@ffcwn said: "You deserve to be happy because you are an impressive, thoughtful, and special person… not to mention, you have a rockin’ bod."

Tink blushed at the compliments—flattered, proud and embarrassed at the same time, which all culminated in her being a little lost for words. She never knew whether to preen or demur when faced with such glowing praise, so she got stuck in the middle making awkward replies like, “That’s nice of you to say…” She hadn’t been fishing for her friend to say all that about her when venting about her romantic woes, but it made sense that Fawn would want to assure her of all her positive traits to counter any negative thoughts she was possibly having. In truth, Tink recognized herself for how great she was; it wasn’t insecurity that troubled her. It just stung that the person she really wanted to notice all those good things about her was the one who, if he did notice, still never wanted anything more from her than what they already were. “I am happy,” she added. “For the most part. I just think I could be happier if he cared about me like I care about him...It’s hard to let go.”

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tink )#tink1

“I mean it— you are one of the best people I know and you’re smoking hot, Tink!” The brunette claimed as she stared at her best friend. Fawn wanted to be frustrated at her, not understanding how in all of these years, Tink couldn’t just move on from a guy like Peter. Not to say he was a bad guy because he actually wasn't, kind of annoying and very childish at times, but not a bad gut at all, so she can get why her friend liked him so much. But after years of being so obviously in love with him to the point where she knew her friend would go to the depths of the oceans for him if he asked her to, the animal loving girl felt like it was high time for Tink to move on from that guy and start going for someone who felt the same as her. Like Tootles, a guy who Fawn knew would absolutely care for Tink in the way she wanted to be, if only her friend could see how gone for her he already was rather than continuing to look through those Peter shaped rose-tinted glasses. “I get it, I do— but don’t you think instead of waiting for the day where he cares about you the same way you care about him, that you should instead be looking at others? You know, find someone who will care for you the same way you want to be care for? You’ll be way more happier then.”

toddtootles

He stayed silent as Fawn continued, attempting to keep his expression serious despite wanting to giggle. Tootles shook his head — no, he didn’t need her to spell it out. He was somewhat smart enough to figure it out, and hot according to Fawn … And Tink? He wasn’t sure he believed that. “No way..” He attempted to brush her off in disbelief, though the look he gave her suggested that he wanted to believe it. Could it really be true? Even still, there was obviously someone else who had Tink's mind preoccupied... Regardless, he couldn’t help but trust Fawn’s words, considering she was one of Tink’s close friends. He rolled his eyes with a smile. “Alright, if this backfires on me later, you're to blame," Tootles teased. He couldn't help but be curious too, his smile turning to a sort-of smug one as he continued, "So .. when were you two talking about me?"

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tootles )#tootles1

Fawn scoffed at his attempts of disbelief, as if her telling him any of this wasn’t her way of trying to encourage Tootles into finally making a move on Tink. “Yes way— you gotta believe me.” She claimed, shaking her head at him. She could see that he did wanted to believe her, but there was still some resistance in his eyes, and at that she wanted to roll her eyes. Don’t get her wrong, she can understand why Tootles didn’t want to fully believe her when everyone knew how in love with Peter Tink has been for so many years. But when there are facts proving that Peter only sees Tink as a close friend, and that things seemed to be stagnant with no plans of them moving forward, Tootles might as well swoop in and sweep her best friend off her feet so Tink can finally be with a guy who does want to be with her. And so, Fawn shot in an unimpressed look, only to grin when he rolled his eyes and finally gave in. “Fine by me because it won’t backfire on you! I can guarantee you that Tink will agree to kiss you by the ending of the night!” The brunette reassured, even if said promise wasn’t a hefty one considering how Peter was spending most of his night with Wendy already. “Oh— so now you’re curious, huh? But yeah, we do sometimes.”

It was exciting to have everyone under one roof for New Years Eve. John had helped some with the party planning of course, ever the organizer, and so far it seemed like a great success! John was even pleased to see that his sister was having a good time, noticing that Wendy and Peter were keeping each other company most of the evening. As midnight drew near, it was obvious that everyone was coupling off one way or another. This was the part where John wasn't really sure what to do now — on one hand, it wasn't his main priority for John to score a kiss at midnight, but on the other hand, was he going to be the odd one out if he didn't? Wendy and Peter were paired, Tootles and Tink, Cubby and Sly had their girlfriends .. John chewed on the inside of his cheek as he mentally weighed his options.

He met Fawn's gaze from across the room as he began contemplating his next move, a nervous smile forming. John was always the put together Darling, the smart one who was almost always sure of himself. It wasn't until he met Tink's friend that he suddenly questioned if that was even true about himself. Something about her always had him fumbling and unsure of himself, whether it was her natural flirtiness or just the way she always seemed to surprise him. She kept him on his toes, watching as she came over to him without a second thought. John wondered if she was just coming to check on him out of kindness; logically, it didn't seem likely that Fawn actually liked him as more than a friend. Her flirtiness was just natural with her personality — it wasn't just special for him.

Her response only confirmed his suspicions, that she was coming over because he'd been caught alone, but that didn't mean that he didn't welcome her company. "Of course not," John smiled again, watching as Fawn slid right by his side. "A new year is always exciting — it's the perfect time for resolutions and new beginnings." He didn't intend to bore her with his resolutions, the mention of midnight reminding him of his initial conundrum. "How about you? What are you looking forward to?"

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: john )#john1

Unlike Tink, Fawn never had an issue with the Darlings. Of course, the Lost Boys who were adopted into the family didn’t count, for they were friends of Peter’s long before ever meeting the Darlings or getting adopted by them, and a friend of Peter’s usually meant a friend of Tink’s as well, which in return extended to Tink’s own band of friends in which Fawn was a part of. There was only a select few who Tink didn’t get along with despite being considered a friend of Peter’s, and among those were the three biological Darling children. Scratch that— it was more Wendy than anyone else. John and Michael weren’t much of an issue for her friend, and because of that, the brunette was able to familiarize herself with the two Darling brothers. But if she ever had to choose between the two on who she wanted to get to know more of, the one Fawn’s been itching the most to get to know was John.

Eyeing him from where she now stood besides him, a smirk formed onto the brunette’s face. Though she couldn’t considered them as close, Fawn isn’t going to lie— she's into him. There’s something about John that peaked her interest since the moment they first met. Maybe it had been the way she had him flustering when she had playfully flirted, expecting for him to blush in response at most or even flirt back like many others do, but when his face had shifted into a bright maroon color and he had fumbled with his words, Fawn just knew she needed to see that kind of reaction from him again. And so flirt with him again and again she did, putting more effort than she normally would when she flirted with a friend, only for her to be pleased with every reaction she gotten from him and had even playfully teased him about it in return. It came to a point where Fawn even felt proud of how she can make John get this way—he was such a put-together guy, so it felt almost like an accomplishment of some sorts that she was the one who could get him that way. She wondered what kind of reaction she could get from him if she did more than just flirt.

“Wasn’t going to leave you alone even if you did minded.” Fawn remarked, playfully nudging him on the arm with her hands before wrapping them around it. She gave him a questioning look as if to make sure it was okay—she enjoyed the reactions she got from John, but she didn’t want to do anything that’ll make him uncomfortable while she was at it—before smiling. “I’m not looking forward for too much. Maybe spending another whole year with Gruff and seeing if I could get him a long-term buddy since I know he can get a little lonely sometimes when I have no choice but to leave him at home.” She replied with a shrug, taking note how much closer to midnight it was getting. “Oh, it would also be nice to get closer to more people this upcoming year. Get closer to certain people.” As she said that, she stared back up at John once again, praying he would get the hint on what she meant by that. "There's like five minutes left until midnight.....you know what that means, right?"

toddtootles

"I don't know. Just be hot." -@ffcwn

Tootles looked at Tink's friend with a confused smile, as if trying to decipher what the hell Fawn meant from that. Tink wasn't shallow like that, right? It couldn't be that easy. "I don't think it really works like that," he answered with a chuckle, though he was still looking at her with narrowed eyebrows, as if wondering if it really were that simple. Maybe the brownie just had him overthinking. He thought it would help shut his mind up, but instead it only made his thoughts louder. He chuckled again, his smile growing. "Seriously, that's the best advice you got?"

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: tootles )#tootles1

When she realized he didn’t get what she had meant, the brunette rolled her eyes at him and shook her head. “Come on, do you really need me to spell it out to you?” she began, now staring at him with a look of disbelief as there was no way Tootles didn’t get what she meant by telling him to ‘just be hot.’ Obviously, Fawn wasn’t saying that because she thinks her best friend was shallow. Tink was a lot of things, but caring about someone’s look wasn’t one of them, not when it came to her being interested in them. Otherwise, her friend would have moved on from Peter a long time ago when there were way more hotter people out there for her to be into. One of them, for example, was the guy she was currently standing in front of. “What? You don’t like me telling you to be hot? You are. So, I don’t see why that’s such a big deal, and it’s not like I haven’t heard Tink comment on your attractive looks before!”

“So, what do I owe this pleasure?” -John ( @darlingbcy )

With most of everyone coupled up even long before the countdown to midnight began, it was obvious who was planning on kissing who once the New Year hits. Even Peter, who was the biggest wildcard of their bunch in terms of how he could’ve celebrated this upcoming year, had attached himself to Wendy for most of the night and with the way the two had been mingling with one another, it was safe to assume that Wendy was who Peter wanted to kiss at the struck of midnight. A realization that no doubt had pained one of her closes friends if the looks she had seen Tink give the pair was any indication. But after giving some advice to Tootles and encouraging him to go up to her best friend—both as a means to distract her but also because he sure as hell would be able to cheer her spitfire of a friend up—that then left Fawn back to her current own dilemma. Who should she kiss at midnight?

There was only a handful of choices left, and none of them were bad ones. She could go up to one of the twins—or even both and just make sure to plant a big one on their cheeks rather than lips in fairness as she was sure neither Duke or Benji would mind if she asked. Or maybe she could go up to the youngest Darling, Michael, and give him a small peck instead? She bets his reaction to even just a small kiss would be fun, and from that thought alone, the brunette almost considered it. But as she looked around the room for him, another Darling caught her eye. John. Standing at the other side of the room, she watched as the person he had been conversing with walk away (the person most likely heading towards the partner they were planning on kissing for the night), leaving the middle of the biological Darling siblings alone. Staring at him, it struck her that he was an option as well. It also hit her that this could be one of her only chances to actually get to kiss him if she were to go up to him and ask.

Without a second thought, Fawn made her way to him, and once her eye caught his, the brunette smiled. “Noticed you were left alone, and thought 'we can't have that', so I came over to join you. You don't mind, do you?.” She replied, sliding into place right next to him. “That, and it’s almost midnight. A brand new year, you excited?”

#( and yet; head is making me talk to myself; out loud; in the forest : interactions )#( c: john )#john1

pixiehollovv

actual cutie pie

#( come on; fawn; listen to your head. heart gets you in trouble : visage )

hellshee

Antonia Gentry photographed for ELLE Magazine

#( come on; fawn; listen to your head. heart gets you in trouble : visage )

mortyfields

@ffcwn (cont. from here):

Instead of saying anything in return, Fawn snorted before shooting Morty a knowing look. As his recently turned ex-girlfriend yet still date for the night, one would think that after noticing the amount of times his eyes would stray away and stare at a certain dressed in blue and blonde haired girl, that it would annoy Fawn since he wasn’t paying much attention to her. If anything, the brunette should’ve maybe even been kind of jealous that he was looking at another girl who wasn’t her. And yet— there was no jealous feelings there. That was more Tink’s kind of brand anyways, even though she can admit that it was kind of annoying with how many times Morty had gotten distracted since arriving to the ball. Almost as if he wished he had asked her to be his date for the this masquerade ball rather than agreeing to come here as friends with Fawn. Why he didn’t do so, she wasn’t about to question it, but what the brunette will do is say this to him. “You’ve been staring at her the entire night.” She commented, now smirking at him. “I think everyone here can see how transparent you’re being right now. Which leaves me to say— go talk to her! You look like you’ve been dying to anyways.”

“Maybe I’m waiting for her to talk to me,” Morty retorted, lifting his chin pridefully as if the idea of playing hard to get with one of his close friends wasn’t a ridiculous concept in itself—let alone with the addition of the fact that she was also his ex girlfriend and had already found him hard to want. Who approached whom shouldn’t even be a detail that mattered this many years after their secret high school breakup, not when they were still good friends and had been all along, but Morty could get like this sometimes over petty things. He had always felt he was the one more invested in his relationship with Bubbles when they were together; should he also be the one to give more focus to their friendship and go out of his way to reach out to her every time they were at the same party? He wasn’t obsessed.

Although, Fawn’s assessment didn’t paint a flattering picture if she thought everyone could tell that he was looking at Bubbles…He never even realized he glanced at her that often, but that very thought prompted his eyes to flash in her direction once again, finding her immediately as if he was always acutely aware of her presence in a room no matter how crowded. “Whatever. I’m here with you. You have my full attention.” Morty pulled his gaze back to Fawn and smiled, deciding that he would focus on his date tonight and talk to his other ex if he happened to have an opportunity. Fawn didn’t even seem jealous that he’d been neglecting her so far if her encouragement for him to go talk to another woman was a sign, but now he had a point to prove—that when he took a girl for a date he treated them well regardless of any agreed-upon lack of romantic intentions. They were still friends after all.