tyler galpin relationship headcanons
pairing: tyler galpin x gn!reader ; genre: headcanons/mini drabbles, once again interrupting your regularly scheduled hotd programming lmao ; tag(s): i love morally grey villains with complex backstories and tortured eyes!
before his mother’s death, tyler was the golden boy next door, known for playing as the starting quarterback for jericho high school’s football team and being a cocky, arrogant figure that roamed jericho’s streets
basically, a textbook normie that grew up entitled and restless from the encouragement of his father, the sheriff, and felt that he deserved the world in a sleepy little pilgrim town
you didn’t think it was possible to be an outcast in a school for outcasts, but you had a tendency to horribly misdeliver when it comes to expectations
your brother, xavier thorpe, was widely regarded throughout nevermore, having dated the elusive bianca barclay and playing into his mysterious bad boy artist persona, often blowing you off to hang out with rowan, his girlfriend, and the nightshade society
unlike him, your powers manifested in a different creative medium other than art, music
you had the power to invoke strong emotions with your instruments, namely the violin, often being used to calm, impress, and tranquilize by principal weems
like tyler, you felt like a pawn in somebody else’s game
you were there when tyler and his friends vandalized your brother’s mural and though at that point, you and your brother weren’t necessarily on the closest terms, you still felt the pain he inflicted, staying wary and steering clear from the prejudiced sheriff’s son
something inside him went with his mother the day she died, and the easygoing, popular tyler galpin disappeared
he looks back on his past with a fair amount of shame, regrets some of the cruelty he exhibited but harbors unspoken pride over the fear he incited in others
imagine your surprise when you walked into the weathervane and your latte was being served by none other than tyler galpin
you had heard about his fall from grace with the mayor’s son and his goonies, thought nothing of it and mildly took pleasure in knowing he’d been toppled off his exorbitant ego
now face-to-face with him, you could hardly recognize the boy who used to torment your brother. you didn’t expect to see a boy going through grief and pain, certainly not putting on a smile and asking you what kind of latte art you wanted on your mug
he was trying, that much you could tell
“i just want to practice,” tyler smiled crookedly, looking down sheepishly almost as if he was scared. no, not scared. embarrassed. “gotta be a good barista since i just started, y’know.”
hesitantly, you agreed. “an autumn leaf would be nice.”
“you might be overestimating my abilities just a tad bit, thorpe.”
your trips to the weathervane became a bit more regular, since usually the cafe would be near empty after school and you’d use it as a study spot, humming and writing down sheet music when you got bored
tyler was a constant fixture at the weathervane and you once asked him if he was the only person that worked there as a joke. he laughed, but averted your eyes. “my dad doesn’t really stick around at home anymore, so why not spend it somewhere making money and hanging out with a dork like you?”
“who said i was a dork, galpin?” you rolled your eyes. “this isn’t hanging out, this is just me taking advantage of the fact that normies can’t handle caffeine after 4 o’clock and this cafe happens to have a good selection of pies. now get me another coffee. with a cat design this time.”
over time, you started staying until close, hanging around while he’d mop, sweep, and count the drawers and he’d recite from the study guides you prepared from your classes, quizzing you, challenging you, and occasionally making fun of the course content
sticking around until close turned to him driving you back to the gates of nevermore, and you’d groan and stick your head in your hands when tyler would blast shitty, cheesy pop songs and the dirty dancing album, “i’ve had the time of my liiiiiiife, and i’ve never felt this way before—“
“galpin, please stop assaulting my ears with this garbage, i’m begging you, no stop turning it up—“
turns into picking you up after school and heading to the weathervane together, because everybody knows you had nothing better to do. certainly not join the nevermore hummers or your brother’s weird culty secret society
one night, you’re sitting at your usual booth, trying to ignore tyler’s shitty spotify album (now playing: sunny days), when tyler plops down in front of you with a leftover cupcake from the display case
you raised an eyebrow, “what the hell is this?”
“it’s a cupcake, don’t you guys at nevermore ever have dessert? or is that too… human for you guys?”
you flicked him in the arm for that. “what’s the catch?”
“why do you think everything always has a catch? can’t i just be a nice upstanding citizen giving my friend one of the greatest gifts life has to offer?” at your persistent glare, he withered. “fine. i think you and i should go to the homecoming dance together.”
you? at a normie dance. fat chance. but something in the way tyler looked at you under those red neon lights, something pleading and hopeful in those blue eyes, you felt yourself saying yes without even thinking about it. why not?
you couldn’t help the excitement that pulsed in your veins, the outfit you picked out for that night, and the eagerness in preparing for what came that night. visions of a dance around a dimly lit high school gym, hushed whispers, a kiss at the end of the night—
no. you couldn’t get your hopes up like that. but as you walked down the stairs and met his eyes from the doorframe, you felt your heartbeat thrum faster. how could you not? with the way he smiled and looked down and told you “you’re gorgeous. absolutely stunning,” in that genuine, hopeful tone of his that made you wanna leave everything behind and go with him anywhere and everywhere
the dance went about as well as you thought it would’ve. you may blend in for a singular moment, but the fact remained. you were not one of them.
“galpin,” you had turned to him with tears in your eyes, hands fisted at your side and desperately wishing you could disappear like you did at nevermore. “you and i both know i don’t belong here. this is your world, not mine. they’ll never see me like you do.”
“maybe they won’t,” tyler took one step closer, another step, closer and closer until he infiltrated your space and you could see the dimples on his cheeks, the concerned furrow of his brows and the way he leaned down to cup your chin in his hands. “maybe they will.”
“but the truth is, none of them would ever deserve you anyway. i don’t care about any of them or their shitty, stupid ideals. i want you in my world, all the time. i wanna see you every moment of every day, i wanna see you when you get excited about perfecting a piece and the silly thing you do with your eyebrows when you finally understand whatever weird concept you’re learning at evermore, i want to be there when you’re sad or upset. i want to see it all, good and bad, if you’ll have me.”
“can i kiss you?” you could sense the fear in his voice, the nerves and the hopefulness evident in his eyes. how could you ever say no? nodding, shaking your head yes, no longer containing the grin that engulfed your face. you pulled him in, pressing your lips against his, and it felt right.
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