di laurentis — nishimura riki.
in which you and riki have nothing to do with each other, until you suddenly do— better yet, you always have.
pairing nishimura riki x female reader wc 2.3k genre crack, angst, hurt-comfort, fluff (sorta) warnings emotional breakdown, profanity, mentions of bullying note i have been OBSESSED with the off campus series, and allie & dean’s dynamic is everything to me, so i had to write about it (in my own non-smutty way 🙂↕️🙂↕️)!! all similarities in concept are credited to off campus <3
it started at your place.
at the beginning of your freshman year of college, instead of moving into a dorm, you settled for an apartment you’d been saving up money for. of course, being only eighteen, you didn’t have the money to pay full price, so you moved in with jungwon, a sophomore at your university who was also, like you, extremely broke.
jungwon had his fair share of friends, but it was clear to you who his closest friends were, since they’d always show up at his apartment to hang out. unfortunately for you, being jungwon’s roommate meant you had to deal with the noise and natural racket that came with a bunch of guys.
at the beginning of the school year, he brought jay over. then, it was jay and sunoo. then, finally, around spring time, he brought over riki, completing the friend group that constantly spent time at your place.
you were polar opposites, you and jungwon. it was even worse with his friends. they were all outgoing and active, sociable to a degree you couldn’t even begin to imagine for yourself.
you were a homebody, never going out unless truly forced to, and only really had jungwon as a friend. you were more intrigued by the academic aspect of university, paying no mind to what happened socially.
you were fine with the life you led, content with the incredibly small circle you kept. but it didn’t stay like that forever.
you came home after classes with a digital project assignment due in a week’s time. your charger had broken a few months prior when you slipped an open cup of water on it, so you’ve been borrowing jungwon’s from time to time.
sunoo and jay were with jungwon on the couch, riki nowhere to be seen in the apartment. you gave them a small nod greeting before walking over to jungwon.
“mind if i grab your charger for a project?”
“yeah, no problem! it’s in my room.” you made a line to jungwon’s bedroom door, opening it without hesitation—
“jesus!” you whispered harshly, startled by the shirtless man standing in front of you, “i-i’m so sorry—”
“hey, it’s alright,” riki let out a chuckle at your flustered expression, obviously unaware that he was in the room before you went in. “i was borrowing a hoodie from jungwon,” he pointed at the black hoodie lying on the bed, “it’s cold as shit in this apartment.”
you had your back turned from him, stiffly shuffling around the room trying to find jungwon’s charger. “you can blame the cold on jungwon, he’s got an… intense sweat problem.”
“tell me about it, i work out with the guy.” at this point, riki had noticed how deliberately positioned you were, shielding your eyes from his bare chest. he’d already put on the hoodie, but didn’t feel like telling you. “jungwon seriously sweats so much,” he continued.
“gives dams a run for their money, yeah?” he can hear the slight smirk in your voice, and his interest in you piques. he’d always known you from what jungwon has said about you, that you’re a bit of a workaholic when it comes to school, but talking to you like this made him wonder what you were like outside of studying.
“where is the damn charger?” you whisper to yourself, opening jungwon’s desk drawers frantically. his charger was always in a different place whenever you’d go to borrow it, so the search for it was always a test of patience.
you felt a tap on your shoulder, turning around to find a fully-clothed riki, standing behind you with the charger dangling in his hands, “looking for this?”
you sigh in relief, going to grab it when he holds it up, higher than you could reach with nothing but socks on. “seriously, dude?”
“tell me, [name],” he smirks, “why is it that we haven’t spoken until now?” he tilts his head to the side, holding the charger up higher whenever you try reaching for it. “i’m not a big friend person— would you give me the charger?” you reach for it again to no avail, for your height is no match for riki’s. “i want to be friends with you, truth is.” he spoke again. “you seem cool to hang with.”
“i have nothing to offer you in the friendship department,” you deadpan, completely resigned from the conversation, “i don’t do friends.”
“make an exception for me then.”
“oh come on,” his voice feigned disappointment as he playfully pouted, “don’t you want your charger?” he dangled the charger in the air once more.
you crossed your arms, “there’s no correlation there at all.”
he shook his head, “oh, yes there is,” his smirk returned again, mischief written all over his face, “if you want your charger, you’re gonna have to give me your number.” you gasp softly, before you roll your eyes at him as you take your phone out of your pocket, handing it to him. “seriously, i’m tired of you.”
he giggled as he punched in his digits, “you’ll love me soon enough.” he looked down at you with a soft smile, and you met his gaze with a scowl.
“what’s taking so long?” jungwon walked into the room and paused, puzzled at the scene in front of him.
“i was helping her with the charger,” riki explains quickly, frozen in place as if he got caught committing a crime.
“oh, alright,” jungwon shrugged his shoulders. “well, hurry up, then. the game’s about to start.” riki slid past you, heading for the door, “coming.”
jungwon left the room, but as riki made his way to the living room, he turned around, winking smugly at you before shutting the bedroom door behind him.
that was how it was for a while-- winks and stolen glances that nobody would see, or a secret bump of the hip whenever riki passed you in the kitchen. the two of you were friends, and though you hated to admit it, you really enjoyed riki's company.
the two of you would often hang out in secret, after riki caught you studying in the library one day and decided that he'd accompany you as much as he could. you two would leave the library together, hanging out around the area until he walked you to your apartment, waiting a few minutes after you went in to go in himself.
you could've told jungwon that you and riki were friends-- there was no reason not to, after all. but friendship was fun when you were sneaking around, and dating was even more of a thrill.
it had been two years since then, and you were currently in your junior year of college. you and riki started dating about a year after becoming friends, and were nearing your one year anniversary in a week. the two of you had already planned out what you were doing for your anniversary, and you personally set out on your own to buy your boyfriend a gift before the day came.
you stopped at a shoe store, hoping to pick up a pair of shoes that you knew riki had been wanting for months. as you were walking up to the cash register, you are stopped by a group of some five girls, girls you knew very well.
"holy shit, [name], is that really you?" you froze, stopped dead in the tracks by a voice that sent chills down your spine. all of the memories began flooding back, the high school memories that you'd long since hid away in your head. "we missed you at home, you know?" the girl in the middle spoke with a fake pout, putting a hand on your shoulder.
"it's not the same anymore without our best friend." you had remembered it all now. the deceit, the bullying, the rumors, all the reasons why you refuse to trust, the reasons why you refuse to let anyone in, they were all standing right in front of you.
"you look so good now! finally got rid of those glasses, yeah?" one girl said, giggling as she said it.
"oh my gosh, and your curls, they look so much better now! better than that burnt mess from high school, right?"
you tried to speak up, to fight back the way you should have all those years ago. “i-i-”
“are you saying something, [name]? got something to say?” they all laughed in your face, high-pitched cackles ringing through your ears.
you felt yourself coming undone, tears stinging your eyes. you turned on your heel, speeding out of the store and into your car before they could see you break down.
“i’m not going to cry,” you repeated to yourself as you drove home, trying to keep in the tears that threatened to spill. “i won’t cry,” you told yourself as you reached the entrance of your apartment. your mantras weren’t doing much for the overwhelming lump in your throat, and you would’ve broken down right then and there if not for the men staring at you from the couch.
“[name], you good there?” jungwon didn’t know much about you, but he could tell when your gloomy attitude wasn’t your usual gloomy attitude. still, you put a smile on your face, nodding quickly as you muttered a soft “i’m okay.”
you made eye contact with riki, and you could practically hear the gears turning in his head. you knew he didn’t believe you—he knew you better than anyone— but there was nothing he could do since everyone was watching, since everyone was unaware of your secret.
you went straight to your room, and you couldn’t keep it in anymore. tears began spilling from your eyes, soft sobs leaving your lips as you curled up onto your bed.
you told yourself that they didn’t affect you anymore, you swore down that you had grown past high school, but perhaps some things would never change.
you weren’t much of a crier, but tonight your tears lasted lengths you had never gone to before. you stopped for nothing, even when jungwon came knocking at your door.
“hey, [name], we ordered pizza—” he stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed your bloodshot eyes, the way you sniffled as you looked up at him. “woah, are you okay?” he immediately walked up to you, putting a hand on your shoulder. “do you need anything?” jungwon was obviously not experienced in comforting women, but you were thankful for his attempt.
you were starting to calm down, but jungwon coming in forced you to revisit everything that stirred you in the first place. you burst out into another wave of tears, covering your face as jungwon backed up, startled.
riki would know what to do right now— he’d be able to comfort you the way you needed him to. he’d tell you that everything would be okay and hug you until you fell asleep. you appreciated jungwon’s company, but he’s not what you want, what you need right now.
“j-jungwon… i need you to call r-riki.” you uselessly wiped tears from your eyes. jungwon paused.
“riki? like nishimura? nishimura riki?”
“like— like my riki? the riki outside right now?”
“jungwon, please,” you let out another sob, and jungwon got flustered again, awkwardly opening the door to grab riki.
it took no time before riki walked in, immediately making his way to you. “baby, hey, talk to me.” he took your face in his hands, wiping your tears with his thumb. “jungwon, give us a second, okay?”
“i don’t even— alright.” he puts his hands up in resignation, leaving and closing the door behind him.
when it was just you two alone, you completely let yourself go. you told riki everything; how a group of girls befriended you in high school, how they betrayed you, bullied you, spread baseless rumors about you, and made your life a living hell until graduation. the whole time, he kept you close to him, arms tightly wrapped around your waist as he ran his hands along the small of your back.
“it’s okay, i’ve got you,” he’d say whenever you started to tear up again, his patience being something you were extremely thankful for. even after you calmed down, he stayed with you. he didn’t let you go, not even when you fell asleep.
he spent the night there, right by your side.
the sun’s early morning rays shone through your window, illuminating your room with the warmth it offered. you stirred, slowly blinking your eyes open and taking control of your surroundings.
riki groans from beside you, eyes squeezed shut in attempt to shield them from the sun. you turn to look at him, “riki?” you call out.
“hi,” he slowly opens his eyes, rubbing them to get a better look at you. “you’re awake.”
“did you stay the night?”
“i wouldn’t be here if i didn’t.” he cupped your face in his hands. “how do you feel?” he asked.
you remembered last night, how terrible you felt, and then you remembered riki’s comfort, and you didn’t feel so bad anymore. “i feel a lot better now.” you smiled and riki mirrored you, grinning just as wide.
“okay!” jungwon burst through the door, catching you and riki by surprise. “fucking hell, jungwon!” riki cursed.
“nope, you don’t get to have emotions right now,” jungwon waved an accusatory finger at the two of you, “i want an explanation! for this! and i want to know how long, and how, and everything!”
you and riki snickered at jungwon’s performance, but he did have a point. an explanation was way overdue, and you two definitely had a lot to tell him.
it’s about time you let him in on your secret, anyway.
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