I just left work y'all and I've been busy all day! To check my phone and see all this love yall showing me really means a lot. When I say I was literally shaking getting this ready to post for y'all last night omg 😭😭 Glad to see how it's looking so far! I really do appreciate the love 🥹🫶🏾
Next post will be Saturday and I'm doing it black board style and posting it at 11:59 😂😂 I'm pacing myself by setting scheduled days to drop cause I wanna make sure y'all don't just get all you can read fanfic overload but also quality work with the genuine editing and research that you can connect to.
Themes - Junior high/puppy love vibes, fluff, teenage development/emotional situations
This is a cupid classic feature.
I tried to eliminate majority of the errors so if you find any don't be hesitant to let me know. I don't mind the feedback or corrections. HAPPY READING !
To everybody else, Roman is the talk of 8th grade. He’s known for being the top athlete in baseball and football, along with his cousins Jimmy and Jey. However, a certain student council president sees him as just Roman, her boyfriend/biggest headache. Let’s play this track and see where we end up. Here’s I Don’t Mind…
Spring Semester 1999
Students crowd the union area during lunch as their classmates campaign for council positions to hold for their freshman year next semester. The campaign season brought out the good candidates, but one lunch table had a line so long you would’ve thought Destiny’s Child was eating there. Instead, it’s the girl adored by all, known as Erin. Not too far from her and her campaign team (dance team sisters) is a table filled with her close friends Jimmy, Trin, T, and Jey, not to mention the one and only Roman. Supposedly, but seems like the table is missing someone today.
Erin lost count of how many cupcakes and buttons she handed out after they opened the third case to pass out to the bulk of the 8th-grade student body. She knew that her classmates recognized her hard work and the achievements she held as serving as their president for the current school year. She alone organized a Spring Break Beach Rally, Fall Fest, Winter Formal, and the best Homecoming any Jr. High could have. While taking pride in that, she didn’t realize that they held it in high regard as much as she did by crowding her campaign table for next year. Next year will be big for them as teens and as students. It would be the beginning of their high careers and journeys of discovering their identities as individuals. Big moves for a big group of kids. She appreciated all the support, but even the greatest leaders get a lil tired here and there. Which led to her taking a break under the guise of checking on her friends and a special someone else.
“Hey y’all”
The group responded, followed by Jimmy cracking a joke as usual “I know Madame President not sneaking away from her adoring fans.” Everybody instantly started cracking up, knowing that their introverted friend was not used to being swarmed by a crowd like this
“Mind yours, Jimmy! I’m not sneaking away…I just came to check on everyone, that’s all. Speaking of everybody, where’s Roman?“ At that statement, the boys fell silent, which led the girls to look at each other with concern.
Trin, knowing that Jimmy would be the easiest to crack, stepped in, “Jerdy, what’s going on? I know Roman is your cousin, but we’re just a lil concerned, that’s all. Do you know where he is?”Proving them right, Jimmy caved. “ He’s in the field house inside the weight room. Warning tho… when his dad dropped him off this morning, it didn’t look too good." That changed the once silly aura surrounding them into tension with the friend group, knowing what that meant. Those close to the family knew that Roman was being raised with love, of course, but also with the weight of becoming the best, whether that was being the best son, athlete, scholar, etc. His father didn’t care what it was; he had to be the BEST at it.
With that information, Erin made a beeline for the field house to find the boy who occupies a good amount of space in her brain and her heart. Erin grew up with the boys in the same neighborhood. Their friendship began due to them beating up a group of boys at the nearby park who were pulling on her pigtails. From that day forward, they became her protectors, and in a way, she protected them as well. Especially Roman. As they all grew older, that protective instinct brought them to the conclusion of their feelings for each other during the summer heading into their 7th-grade year. Something that both sets of parents knew would eventually happen. Reaching the door of the field house, the loud bass of “Hate Me Now” by Nas thumping inside led her right to a certain mean mug she had been looking for 10 minutes earlier today.
“Ro…”
“Ro…”
“ROMANNNN”
“WHAT”
The bass that was developing in his voice was still taking time to get used to, but the demeanor was the main factor that threw her off during this exchange between the two.
“I just stopped by to check on you. I noticed you weren’t at the table today with everybody else.”
“Obviously, I’m fine, you can leave.”
“Wassup with you? I know you probably had a rough morning with your dad and all, but you don’t have to be mean to me. That’s not like you to be rude.”
He let out an agitated breath before responding with “ Sorry, we can’t all be perfect like you. What happened this morning is none of your concern. I’m fine in here alone. I need to focus on preparing for the game on Saturday. “
“You don’t have to pretend to be tough, Roman, and you know that! So drop this wannabe tough ass act you got going and talk to me instead of pushing me away.”
“THAT’S THE PROBLEM NOW! If I weren’t babied by you, I would actually be able to focus instead of being told how you keep distracting me all the time.”
That blow to Erin’s little, timid heart was enough for the girl to know she had to walk away before they went too far. Feeling defeated, she left him with her final words.
“I didn’t think caring about you bothered you so much. If you want space…cool…Imma give you all the space you need.” With that, she left the fieldhouse. That left the disgruntled boy to face the battle occurring between his mind and his heart alone.
Roman was the captain of his baseball team for his age division, and this weekend would be the FYBL (Florida Youth Baseball League) Championship Game. Even though his cousins were on another team, the boys used their love for the sport to enjoy the game while having fun with each other. Like everything else in life, he was pushed by his father to be the best at it. That led to this morning’s scolding in the car because of him being distracted from the goal his father set for him due to the fact of him not completing his morning workout because of oversleeping. Being the love struck teen he was, he decided to sneak out after his parents went to bed and go to Erin’s house to help with her campaign posters which lead to them getting distracted and slow dancing the night away until the quiet storm DJ said it was after midnight which alerted him to sprint back next door and hop into bedroom window to get as much sleep as he could before morning came.
Roman knew that his words upset his girlfriend, but right now, he had to get back on his dad’s good side. Sure, his dad was tough on him more than the typical parent, but when he made him proud, it made him forget about all the torture his confidence endured while being given the tough love his father provided. It formed him into a competitive little boy who slowly turned into a stoic machine of athleticism. His mind and body developed into one setting only - BE THE BEST! and right now, he had to get back to that, even if that little voice in the back of his mind told him to drop everything and chase after the girl who was his first thought in the morning and his final thought of serenity as he fell asleep at night.
Roman soon wrapped up his workout and freshened up for his next class, Pre-AP US Government— a class that he shared with the whole group, currently, his heartbroken girlfriend included. As he walked into Ms. Smith’s classroom, he noticed the table they all shared looked different. He soon looked around and noticed that the three girls that are usually occupying it with him and the boys were now seated across the classroom. He was sure it had something to do with the heated exchange between the young couple.
Sitting down in his seat, his thoughts were interrupted by a very upset Jimmy, “You mind telling us why we walked in here to mean mugs and our group being split like we’re in family court. “ Not far behind him came Jey, “ Yeah, I tried to go over there and talk to T, but felt like I was finna step on a landmine if I got any closer.”Roman waited until they were instructed to start on their group work and then began to explain what happened in the weight room. Once he reached the end of everything, he waited for them to offer their usual feedback. Jimmy, being the goofy but level-headed one, kicked off the advice.
“ I know ya pops big in this whole be the best thing, but you know that you don’t have to do that with the crew, right? We're cool with you just being Roman uce, nothing more, nothing less.” That sentence alone caused a pang in Roman’s heart, hearing those words that he wished came from his father instead of his cousin.
Jey, not far from his brother, followed up with his own advice, “Yeah, we know you wanna be the best and all, but sometimes it’s ok to just be normal, especially when it comes to ya girl.”
Jimmy chimed in, “ Yeah, especially a girl who left her campaign event just to make sure YOU were ok, along with everything else she does just because she cares about you. “
Roman came to the realization that he had messed up and knew that he had a serious amount of making up to do, which would be hard considering the two angry girls who would be heavily guarding their friend, knowing the status of her emotional state due to her boyfriend. He then formed a plan that he shared with his cousins, who hoped along with him that the plan would work.
The day passed by, and soon school came to an end. Erin had to attend a meeting to receive the rules for Friday’s assembly, where the students would deliver their speeches to their classmates. While she was in the meeting, the rest of the group stood outside waiting for her while going over the plan set for tomorrow. The girls came reluctantly due to all the begging the twins did in between classes, all the way to dismissal.
As the girls approached the boys sitting on the bench, Trinity decided to send her warning to the three of them. “We're only helping because Jimmy said you would do anything to win her back, and we know how she feels about you. So make this quick because we’re riding home with my mama today, and we gotta help Erin get an outfit for tomorrow. “
“I know I'm the last person y’all wanna help right now, but I really am sorry. I think this plan will help show her that. Tomorrow is the last day for all candidates to convince the class to vote for them, and this plan will guarantee a 100% win if we do it right.” Time passed by as each person was assigned their role for tonight and tomorrow, ending right on time as Erin came out of the building and Trinity’s mom pulled up for the girls. While walking to the car, Erin noticed the girls hugging their boyfriends and yelling a brief “we’ll call you later,” which led to her making eye contact with Roman. She quickly looked away and got inside, greeting Trin’s mom and appreciating the silence that followed.
The girls successfully had a quick trip to the mall, where they found Erin a nice outfit, and were dropped off at her house, where they would be staying for the night to help her prep for tomorrow’s big day. While getting her hair braided by her older cousin, Erin didn’t notice her friends taking turns sneaking off to her room to orchestrate their parts in Roman’s big plan. Next door, Roman used the excuse of doing a group workout session to go to the twins’ house, where they would complete their parts of the plan. As it got later and later, the girls helped Erin finish practicing her speech while finishing up some final posters they would hold up with the rest of the dance team at the assembly. Her nerves got the best of her, thinking about the outcome of tomorrow’s election. All official members would be announced during Lunch since they would hold the assembly during 1st period for all 8th graders.
“Girl, can you lay down! You bout to pace a hole in the floor.”
“ Leave her alone, T ! She’s just a lil nervous, that’s all.”
“I’m more than a lil nervous… I’m A LOT nervous! If I lose tomorrow, it will be the biggest embarrassment to ever happen at the end of the school year. “
“Good thing you’re not losing tomorrow then. “
“ You don’t know that. “
“YES WE DO,” the girls said in unison
“How ?”
“Don’t worry about that, just know that tomorrow is going to be perfect.”
“Exactly. Now, can you please lay down? I need my beauty sleep, and we also have to wake up in time to help each other get dressed for tomorrow, remember?”
“You’re right, just a few nerves, that’s all.”
“You sure those nerves are just about the election tomorrow, or is a certain someone playing a part in those nerves?”
“NO!… He said he wanted space, so I’m giving it to him.”
"Righttt…”
“Unless you heard something different after schoo-
“I KNEW IT! You two just can’t stay away no matter what.”
“That’s not true…just forget I said anything, goodnight.”
Little did she know the girls had been waiting for her to go to bed first so they could use Trin’s flashlight to send Roman his signal once the light went out. An hour after she laid down, four clicks of the flashlight gave the signal that had Roman appear at the window faster than Flo Jo herself. The boy stood there nervously as he handed Trin the purple hyacinth to place on Erin’s computer desk. Just as she got ready to close the window, he stopped her.
“Trin”
“Yeah?”
“What if my plan doesn’t work?”
“Even Ray Charles can see how crazy you two are over each other. Don’t worry, it’s gonna work. Also, wear something with white, grey, and black in it tomorrow, that's the look she went with for her outfit. BYE “
With that, the group of teens fell into the land of dreams, and only one thing was on everyone’s mind - TOMORROW. Something that was quickly approaching.
Next Morning
The loud bass from her TLC CD, along with her two friends yanking the cover off, was enough to make Erin realize it was time for her to get her day started.
The girls proceeded to rush her into the bathroom so they could start their morning routine, and Trin remembered something as they started helping her take her rollers out of her hair.
“Hey girl, can you go see if I left my Noxzema on your desk? I think I forgot to bring it in here last night when we were unpacking for showers. “
“Sure, be right back.”
As Erin approached her desk, she noticed something standing out next to her computer - a single purple hyacinth. They had been studying those in her science class for a project, and she remembered that while researching, she came across an interesting fact. Hyacinths symbolize forgiveness, especially purple ones that express deep regret.
Forgiveness
There was only one person in her research group that she shared that fact with, and had a mom who was friends with the lady who ran the flower shop not too far from their neighborhood. Roman. With all of this in mind, she hurried back into the bathroom and finished getting ready with newfound happiness that her friends seemed to notice. The two girls waited for their friend to come out of the bathroom so they could help her style her braids for the day. She stepped out just as they were getting ready to call her fully dressed - https://pin.it/5zCYwxOPo
“Now that is slammin girl, it looks like you stepped out of Clueless or something.”
“Definitely meets the Ashley Banks look you were going for.”
“Thanks, I think I’m just gonna leave my braids down, wear my black headband to pull everything together. “
The girls grabbed everything they needed for the assembly and their backpacks and made their way to school.
While Erin was in the gym with the rest of the candidates, practicing their speeches for the principal. The rest of the group was running around putting together the finishing touches of the plan. Soon, the bell for 1st period rang, and all the 8th grade students made their way into the bleachers in the gym.
“Students, please get settled as we begin our assembly and remain respectful as we listen to the speeches written by your classmates. We will have voting ballots brought to your 2nd period, and official council members will be announced at the union during lunch. “ The students buzzed with excitement, adding to the competitive spirit.
Time went by as each student went up to give their speeches, and finally it was Erin’s turn. As she began her speech, she heard the sound of a flash go off, which made her look toward the bleachers, where she saw a sea of White, grey, and black, along with Vote 4 Erin buttons, which she knew she didn’t make yesterday. That caused her to beam with joy, knowing she had so much support behind her. What surprised her was when boys from both the football and Roman’s baseball team came down and slowly made their way behind the podium to stand behind her. She held her composure and delivered her speech. As she came to an end, she turned around and noticed that all the mini boards they carried formed a giant sign that had her campaign slogan on it. The gym roared with applause and adored the gesture made by the young men. Her eyes filled with happy tears as she approached the twins, whom she spotted as she walked away from the podium. She instantly ran to hug them.
“Y’all did this for lil ole me.”
“We played a part in it.”
She turned around just as Trin said, “ Yeah, we had our hand in it too, but we didn’t plan it.”
“Well, who did?”
In the corner of her eye, she spotted it again- a purple hyacinth- which made her fully turn around and make contact with a familiar pair of brown eyes she adored.
“It was you.”
“Yeah, it was me. I’m sorry for how things went yesterday. I was wrong to take everything out on you and tell you to leave me alone when the truth is I don’t want you to leave me at all. I felt bad knowing that I hurt you, especially with you having such a big day coming up. So I decided that I would do what I should’ve been doing in the first place- support you. “ He stepped closer and held out the flower to her. “I was hoping that you would forgive me and accept this along with my apology. I heard you started a flower collection recently.”
That caused her to blush so hard that if she were light enough, you would think she was a cameo apple. “ I bet you did. I accept your apology, Roman, and I appreciate you putting this together for me.”
“Anything to get you to smile again”
The day passed by, and soon the kids left their 3rd period, rushing to the union to make sure they didn’t miss the announcement. Erin and the rest of the group got there early due to a phony office pass Trinity made while working in the office. They stood there encouraging her as she anticipated the results. Everyone calmed down as the principal came out with the microphone system. “Attention, everyone! Here are the names of the officers for the 9th-grade student council. “
Name after Name passed by, and finally, the moment everyone was waiting for came. “Pulling in 80% of the votes for the student body, your 9th-grade class president is…”
“….”
“Lady, you better come on, it’s pizza day, and they brought a cookie tray, I’m ready to eat.”
“Shut up, Jey.”
“My bad.”
“Mr. Fatu, let’s not earn Saturday detention with an important game coming up. As I was saying, your president is… MISS ERIN AMOS! “
The friend group celebrated with each other and congratulated Erin on winning. Everything felt complete for her in that moment. The rest of the day passed by for the group, with the boys getting checked out to get haircuts and everything else for tomorrow, and the girls sitting in the art room during their free period, making posters for the big game.
Saturday came faster than expected. The boys were already there, stretching with their teams and warming up. The twins were talking with their mom when Roman spotted his mom’s Escalade pull up. He was excited for his family to be there, especially with all the work he had been putting in outside of practice. Only as his family got closer to their seats, he noticed the most important person was missing- his dad. That’s another thing him and his cousins shared their frustration with the wrestling business constantly snatching away the core moments meant for father and son. Memories barely being patched together by the love they received from their mothers. As he approached his mom, he waved at his siblings, and the excuses started to pour out faster than rain.
“Sweetheart, your dad really wanted to come, but he had a scheduled appearance and he-”
“Just couldn’t miss it cause he’s the champ….I know, Mom.”
“I’m sorry hun, honestly. Hey, when you win, I’ll let you host movie night at our house tonight with everyone, deal?”
“Deal!”
Roman ran back as he heard his coach blow his whistle to gather the team before the game started. 5 minutes later, and the battle of champs began.
As the game went by, both teams were tied 8-8, which is fair considering the two teams combined contained half of the Fatu/Anoa’i athletes in their family. It came time for Roman to bat, and he made his way up from the dugout. As he was walking, he heard a familiar voice, “GOO ROMAN! I’M SO PROUD OF YOU!” He turned around and spotted Erin right in the center of the bleachers. There she was, his favorite girl, holding a poster with his name and number while cheering for him, slowly losing her voice. He sent a wink her way, which of course made her blush, and finished his walk up to bat.
As he gripped the bat, everything that had happened this week flooded his mind, and he swung with all his might. The sound that everyone heard had them losing their minds. He was in a daze until he heard “ ROMAN GET YOUR ASS TO HOME AND STOP DAYDREAMING!” He ran, pushing himself as hard as he had all week. The burning sensation he felt in his legs didn’t matter as he made it to the home plate, and realization set in that he hit the game-winning home run. Soon, everyone ran out onto the field to congratulate him as the coaches ended the game. As he weaved his way through the crowd, only a few people were on his mind. He found his family first. “Congratulations, sweetie! I’m so proud of you, champ! I know you wanna talk to your friends, so we’ll be in the car when you get done.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Roman spotted the crew waiting for him by the entry gate, with smiles on each of their faces.
“Congratulations, Uce”
“Yeah, man you were amazing out there.”
“Congratulations, Roman,” both girls said briefly
“Thank y’all, I appreciate it! I’m hosting movie night later at my place, and my mom is in the car calling everybody folks, so make sure y’all pack for the night when y’all get home.” That added to the excitement the group of teens already felt. As the twins guided their girlfriends over to talk with their mom, that left the two lovebirds alone. Roman couldn’t help but stare at Erin in awe of her in her simple but cute outfit she put together 3 different times this morning before almost running late (https://pin.it/2tDHsFO0k).
“Hey”
“Hey, champ. I see you saved the best for last.”
“Maybe I just wanted some alone time with the prettiest girl in Florida.”
“Stop it…but no, you were amazing out there, I’m proud of you.”
That caused Roman to blush. “Thanks. Are you coming to my house tonight? It could be sort of a celebration for both of us.”
“Handsome boyfriend, awesome friends, and unlimited food? I might be there before you.” The two shared a laugh before Roman stepped closer. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, what is it ?”
“Would you have really cared if I won today?”
“Nope, still would’ve loved you the same,” she said with no hesitation
“So you don’t mind me being just Roman and not the superstar everyone wants me to be?”
“Nope, "I Don’t Mind”
Thank you for tuning in to my first post as a writer. 🥹 I hope you all enjoyed this story and were able to connect with it in a way. Please leave any thoughts, suggestions, feelings, etc. I hope you all enjoy and thank you for tuning in to 99.5 - Brown Sugar Beats Radio ! What's that phrase ? 😉🩷
I just wanna say I appreciate all the love I'm receiving dearly! 🥹 It means a lot to a lil country girl like me fr ! With that being said, MY FIRST SHORT IS DROPPING AT MIDNIGHT ! So be ready to feel some nostalgia and reminisce on back to those puppy love days tonight 🥰
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Hello beautiful people! I made this account two years ago and I interact here and there on here but this summer I set a goal to come out my shell and do what I intended the 1st time which is create. I've been writing since I was in the 6th grade, but I stopped in high school due to life kicking ya girl down. Recently, my spark came back to me and I've decided to share my gifts with my fellow readers and authors. The inspiration behind this recent spark of creativity was writers such as @trippinsorrows @raya-hunter01 @thediaryofego @sayyestoheav3nn and so many more. As I post my work on here, I don't mind any CONSTRUCTIVE Criticism to develop me into a better writer. However, the nonsense will be shut down immediately none of the bs will be tolerated. For everyone else, please do leave feedback, how you feel connecting with the work, etc. 💕
I am a AFRICAN AMERICAN Southern woman boo so some of my slang might be different but the AAVE will be present. I love all shades of women but just to let you all know all of my characters are beautiful BLACK queens! I feel like I didn't have that as an option as much growing up so this is my way of gifting myself that. ✨
Can't wait to experience this journey with you all !
Today's generation will never know the feeling of clicking the polyvore link attached inside of a chapter and having to lock in that outfit in your mind for about two pages or arguing with your homegirl about which girl you were in the fanfics because everybody wanted the prettiest outfit and they would be color coordinated to a T!! Do ya hear me 😭😭
