â drive me home | ethan winters
summary: after a rough day at work, you get drunk at a bar with friends. when most of your friends leave, ethan wintersâwho you never really paid attention toâstays to ensure you get home safe.
warnings: alcohol, readerâs friends do leave her alone, reader is flirty, no use of y/n
note: this is not incredibly well written because i just needed to write something cute with ethan winters (missing him like a motherfucker đŹ) also, my requests are open!
You really hadnât meant to get so drunk. Itâs just, with the day youâd had at workâcomplete with getting caught in the rain on the walk there, which meant you were stuck in wet clothes for most of the day, as well as forgetting your lunch on the kitchen counter, and then your coworker had to leave for a family emergency, and you were left to finish their share of workâyou really, really needed this. Just one night out, you told yourself. Just a few drinks with your friends.
A few turned into too many, and before you knew it, you were shitfaced on a Friday night at the busiest bar this side of town. Most of your friends had tapped out around drink five, citing plans in the morning or fatigue from the work day. Youâd been sad to see them go, but you didnât take them up on their offer to take you home. This bar was your him, as far as you were concerned, and if you could still remember the soaking wet chill of that morning, you werenât ready to leave.
Your group dwindled from seven to four, then four to three, then three to two. Soon enough, it was just you and Ethan in a corner booth, with water in his hand and your poison of choice on the table in front of you.
You didnât know Ethan very wellâhe was a friend of a friend, dragged out by his roommate to âget laidâ. At least, thatâs what your roommate leaned over and murmured to you when he walked in and claimed a seat next to you. Youâd never paid much attention to him beforeâin what world is dating a blonde man a good idea, youâd once jokedâbut under the dim lights, he looked pretty.
His blonde hair was a little tousled, most likely from the winds that had persisted long after the rain had stopped, and when he greeted the group, his cheeks were rosy. His eyes crinkled when he smiled, laughing nervously at his roommateâs encouragement to go mingle. He had sat down right next to you, comfortable close enough to feel his warmth. You stared, too many drinks in to hide your attraction.
When your friends started filing outâyour roommate had gone home with some handsome stranger with an eyebrow piercing and brown leather jacket, good for herâhe stayed.
âAre you sure you want another?â He asked, and you werenât sure youâd ever heard him speak. He wasnât shy, not really, but he seemed content to let his roommate do the talking. He blended in with the group at events like this, or at least he had, before tonight.
You shrugged, resting your cheek on your palm and swirling your drink around. âHow many⌠will that be?â
âYouâre at seven, I think. Pretty impressive,â he smiled. âYou donât normally drink so much.â
âYou pay attention to how much I drink?â You hiccupped, leveling him with a teasingly accusatory pointer finger. âPrett-y creepy.â
He blushed a little, and you giggled when you spotted it. You felt warm, and loose, and free, under the influence of alcohol and Ethanâs soft gaze.
âIâm observant,â he said, setting his water on the table. âAnd youâre easy to observe.â
âWhatâs that supposed to mean?â You huffed, nudging his boot with your sensible heel. âIâm an open book, or somethinâ?â
Ethan shook his head. âNo, I just⌠no, nothing like that.â
Your brow furrowed,, and you took a swig of your drink before looking at him again. âSo what? You like lookinâ at me?â
He looked away, fidgeting with his water glass. âYeah, I guess.â
You sat up fast, and regretted it because the room spins a little too fast, and now youâre nauseous. When finally you stamped down the urge to gag, you nudged his boot again.
âReally? You think Iâm, what? Preeeetty?â You sing-songed, wiggling in your seat.
He stifled a laugh when you faltered, clutching the edge of the table for balance.
âSomething like that, sweetheart,â he said, taking your drink away. âI think you may need to be cut off.â
You whined, reaching for the drink back, but gave up halfway, too tired and dizzy to attempt a rescue mission. You dropped your head onto his shoulder, looking up at him with a pout.
Maybe itâs because he knew you probably wouldnât remember it tomorrow, but he didnât try to hold back his affectionate look, or his ruffle of your mussed hair.
âWhy donât I drive you home?â Ethan whispered, rubbing his hand up and down your bare arm.
You shivered, and he must take it to mean you were cold, because he shrugged off his jacket and draped it across your back.
You didnât answer, so he tried again. âHm? That sound okay, sweetheart? Youâll be much more comfortable in your own bed.â
You nodded, nosing at his shoulder. You were fading fast.
âOkay, letâs get going then,â he murmured, helping you up and offering you a handâfor balance, the rational part of you said, like it mattered. His hand was slightly calloused, and his thumb swept over your knuckles as he led you out to his car.
Ethan opened the passenger door, herding you into the seat. When you were safely in, knobby drunk limbs and all, he leaned down, fastening the seatbelt across you. Your heart drummed in your ears when his fingers brushed your side.
Once he was in the driverâs seat, he handed his phone to you. âType in your address, sweetheart.â
You obeyed, albeit clumsily, and handed it back to him. Your head lolled to the side, resting against the seatbelt as he pulled out of the parking lot.
The drive was a blur of streetlights in the night and the soft acoustic music of whatever was on the radio. Too soon, he pulled into your driveway.
He opened your door for you, offering his hand again, which you gladly took. âCan I have your key?â
âTrying to stay the night?â You slurred, bumping his hip with yours.
He laughed, bumping your hip right back. âNo, sweetheart,â he said. âJust gonna get you tucked in safe.â
You nodded, fumbling around in your purse for your key and handing it to him. He unlocked the door, leading you inside the doorway.
Ethan guided you to lean against the wall, bending down to unclasp your heels. You lost your balance when the first one came off, and he grabbed your waist to stabilize you before taking the other off.
âYouâre okay,â he said, righting himself and putting his arm around you. âLetâs just take it slow. Which way to your bedroom?â
You pointed to your door, and he helped you walk to it, bumping the slightly ajar door open. You collapsed on your messed bed, sighing exaggeratedly. Itâs so comfortable, you almost fell asleep right hereâŚ
Ethan smoothed a hand over your hair. âLetâs get you under the covers, yeah?â
You made no move to comply, instead whining softly and looking at him pleadingly.
âOkay, sweetheart, I get it,â he laughed, gathering you up in his arms and lifting. You squeaked, one hand fisted in his shirt, and he only shushed you. âIâm not gonna drop you.â
He set you down gently on the bed, pulling the sheets and comforter over you gently. âSee? Much better.â
You hummed, already falling asleep.
âRest,â he murmured, brushing your hair behind your ear.
Before you know it, youâre out.
The next morning, you woke to the sound of keys in the front door. You tried to ignore it, but your roommate called out for you, and you decided itâs time to greet the day.
Your head was killing you. You stumbled out of your room, meeting your roommate in the kitchen. âGod, itâs so bright. And so early. And I drank way too much.â
Your roommate groaned. âTell me about it,â she shook her head, opening the fridge and getting out the orange juice. âDid you get home okay last night? You were kinda wasted. I didnât realize how plastered you were until I sobered up. I shouldnât have left you.â
âDonât feel bad about that. It was my own fault,â you said, rubbing your temple. âI got homeâŚâ
How did you get home? You remembered your roommate leaving, the. your other friends had gotten an Uber, and youâŚ
âYou got home, what? Youâre being mysterious,â your roommate teased. âDonât tell me if you donât want to. Keep your secrets.â
You rolled your eyes, taking the cup of orange juice she held out to you.
âOh! What ended up happening with Ethan? Did he go home with anyone? Matteo was really trying to get him to meet someone.â
You remembered, in a flash, Ethanâs jacket draped over your shoulders in the bar, his hand in your hair, his fingers brushing your waist as he buckled you inâŚ
You bit your lip. âAbout Ethan⌠do you have his number?â
Your roommateâs eyes lit up. âNo way.â
âForget I asked,â you groaned, getting up from the kitchen barstool.
âNo, no, wait,â your roommate grabbed your arm. âI have it. Iâll text it to you.â
You didn't have the courage to text him until later that night, after your roommate had dragged you into watching some trash reality show while you ate dinner. As soon as you shut the door to your room, you opened your messages and typed in his number.
Thanks for taking me home last night.
No problem. You donât have to thank me for that.
Well, I did. Deal with it.
Would you want to get dinner sometime?
If I misread the situation, just ignore me.
The response was immediate.
Iâd love to, sweetheart.