bobby kennedy x bestfriend!reader
summary: you’re hurt by bobby’s obliviousness to your feelings.
word count: almost 2.1k
{warning: bobby is clueless, and a tiny bit of jfk x reader}
Being family friends with the Kennedys came with their pros and cons. A con was having to sit next to Mr. Kennedy during mass and enduring his dreadful touch during the sign of peace.
It all didn’t matter when you got to hang out with Bobby afterward. While the rest of your families mingled the two of you got to sneak away privately.
You naturally bonded as Bobby was attentive to your endless talking. Although he scolded you for being such a gossip, he never stopped you from sharing.
“Guess who Marie saw with another girl at the movies an hour after their date together? Can you believe that man?”
Bobby would slowly turn toward you, raising his eyebrows.
“Shocking,” he said flatly.
“You don't care at all.”
“I care deeply.” He replied monotonously.
“You didn't even ask who it was.” You cried in disbelief.
“I was hoping you'd tell me without me having to encourage this behavior.”
You narrowed your eyes. “You're impossible.”
“And yet you tell me everything.”
Unfortunately, he was right.
Bobby slowly began opening up to you too, and your weekly sailing trips became a time to debrief and relax. The two of you spoke honestly and could never seem to keep a secret from each other.
It broke your heart to hear how much he fought for his father's attention.
One afternoon, after Bobby had spent nearly ten minutes complaining about something Jack had done, you leaned back against the side of the boat.
“You know,” you said, “for someone who claims to find his brother annoying, you certainly talk about him a lot.”
Bobby frowned. “I don't talk about him.”
“You just did.”
“That was different.”
“Of course it was.” You remarked.
“It was.” He explained defensively.
You smiled. “Whatever you say, Admiral.”
That became your joke after Bobby had confidently insisted he knew exactly where he was steering the boat, right before getting the two of you hopelessly lost at sea.
From then on, whenever Bobby acted overly confident, you would simply say, Whatever you say, Admiral.
And without fail, his ears would turn slightly pink and a shy smile would appear on his lips.
Hours spent sailing and talking strengthened the bond between the two of you. It created inside jokes no one else understood during dinner.
Bobby would gently grab your hands to help you out of the boat, and before heading inside, you always combed and tamed his wind-swept hair.
“Hold still,” you said one afternoon, pushing his hair away from his forehead.
“I am holding still.” He said whilst moving his head.
“You're moving.”
“I haven't moved.”
“You're literally talking while I'm trying to fix it.”
“That doesn't require movement.”
You rolled your eyes. “Whatever you say, Admiral.” and Bobby immediately went quiet. You smiled.
The fun didn’t stop with Bobby at dinner. Together y’all would play footsies underneath the table. Once you almost got caught when Jack suddenly yelped “Ow!” and your eyes grew wide, realizing you kicked the wrong brother.
Jack rubbed his shin dramatically. “I think Miss___ is trying to break my leg!”.
Bobby snickers across the table from you but you kick that smile away. He cleared his throat and tried to look innocent, but you caught the corner of his mouth twitching again.
“Careful,” Bobby murmured. “She's dangerous.”
You narrowed your eyes at him. “Don't start.”
His smile only grew.
….
It wasn’t abnormal for Bobby to be away on trips. Time would be restored when he updated you on the fun or not so fun things he got to do around the world.
You were excited to hear about his trip to South America. While the two of you were sailing when Bobby offhandedly mentioned that he had also gone to New York.
“Oh?” you asked. “And what exactly were you doing in New York?”
He shrugged, keeping his eyes on the water before replying. “Things.”
“Wow. Thank you for the description” you said sarcastically.
“Your welcome” he dryly replied with a smile.
“What kind of things?" you finally proclaimed.
Bobby glanced at you, and there was something almost amused in his expression.
“You really are a gossip.” he joked.
“You brought it up!” you insisted.
He laughed quietly before continuing.
And then, as casually as if he were telling you what he had eaten for breakfast, he spoke of an actress who he secretly took to dinner behind his father's back.
Your smile faded. Bobby didn't seem to notice the change in your demeanor, too focused on sailing.
You stared at him. “That was it?” you asked.
“What?”
“You're just going to say that and then continue steering the boat?”
He glanced over. “What else am I supposed to do?”
The ache in your chest surprised you.
You suddenly developed a deep interest in the water, turning your head away from Bobby and hardly uttering more than two words at a time.
Eventually, he briefly peeked at you as he asked, “Are you alright?”
“Fine.” You sharply replied.
“You've said three words to me in the last ten minutes.”
“That's not true.” You remarked as you crossed your arms.
“Fine counts as one of them.” He insisted worriedly.
Bobby looked at you for a moment before turning back toward the water.
“Whatever you say, Admiral” you muttered with a role of your eyes.
His head snapped toward you.
“What does that mean?”
“Nothing.”
“You're using it wrong.”
“You would know, wouldn't you?”
He stared at you.
You stared back.
Then Bobby slowly turned around slightly hurt by your attitude and continued sailing.
The rest of the trip was painfully awkward without your voice lightening the atmosphere.
Finally, when you reached shore, Bobby stuck his hand out for you to grab. You looked at it. Then, pettily, decided to ignore it and climbed out yourself.
Bobby remained standing there with his hand awkwardly extended.
You quickly rushed away not even bothering to check if he was behind you. By the time you reached the stairs of Hyannis you could finally hear Bobby’s footsteps jogging behind you.
As you turned around you quickly noticed the frown on his lips, immediately making your stomach twist for a second. He stared into your eyes when he sincerely asked, “Did I do something wrong ?“.
Instead of being honest you sarcastically said, “nope” and turned right around to go inside.
Behind your back he murmured, “That’s obviously a lie”. Which made you whip your head around to finally look him in the eye and say “Bobby”.
“What?”
“You’re annoying me”
“I haven't even done anything.”
“Exactly.”
He stopped walking.
“So I did do something.”
You didn't even bother answering.
-----
At dinner, you completely ignored Bobby from underneath the table. He sent little nudges against your foot beneath the tablecloth, but you chose to retreat your feet further beneath your chair.
He even mentioned one of your inside jokes. “Father was telling me how to get somewhere earlier,” Bobby said, trying to sound casual. “I almost asked him if he was an admiral.”
On a normal day Bobby would expect to hear the sound of your laughter yet the table went silent.
Mr. Kennedy and Mrs. Kennedy stared at him and his siblings all looked confused.
Bobby awkwardly laughed. No one joined him. His buck teeth disappeared behind his lips as his smile faded.
You felt a small chip in your heart at the sight.
But instead of giving in, you slowly lifted your leg and nudged Jack. He stuttered in the middle of his usual debate with his father, making you chuckle.
Jack glanced toward you and you slowly brushed your foot against his shin. He raised his eyebrows in amusement in response.
Throughout your time with the Kennedys, you mostly hung out with Bobby and his sisters. Even though they were older now, it seemed Jack still thought of Bobby as his annoying little brother, and the two hardly spent time together.
Jack started to sneak glances at you from across the table, that you returned. You didn’t bother to look at Bobby, but you already knew he would be watching.
As dinner wrapped up you knew Jack would question your sudden flirtatiousness from underneath the table.
When you finally glanced at Bobby you noticed his concerned look. You pushed away the ache in your heart and quickly grabbed Jack’s hand and said “Let’s chat outside”. Jack looks surprised before allowing you to pull him away.
Leaving Bobby stunned at the unexpected closeness between his brother and best friend.
------
Sitting in the sand and chatting with Jack was fun. But it wasn't the same as talking to Bobby. With Bobby, you could say anything. You could complain about someone, make fun of him, talk about your family, or simply sit in silence without feeling like you needed to fill it.
With Jack, it was mostly small talk. You complimented him on the good points he had made during his debates with his father. “You were impressive tonight,” you admitted.
Jack smiled. “That's because I knew you were watching.”
You rolled your eyes. “Confident.”
“I've been told.”
“That must be exhausting for everyone around you.”
He laughed. Jack was charismatic and attentive, but you were starting to get slightly put off by his constant glances toward your lips.
As Jack lay on his side and leaned on his forearm “I thought you were going steady with Bobby?” You quietly murmured back, “Bobby and I are only close friends.”
Jack watched your face.
“Is that what you tell yourself?” He joked.
You frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”
He gave a breathy laugh. “Nothing.”
“Jack.”
“I'm just saying,” he replied, “I've known my brother his entire life.”
Your stomach dropped slightly. “And?”
“And I've never seen him look at anyone the way he's been looking at you tonight.”
You looked away. “He's probably annoyed with me right now.”
Jack laughed quietly. “No.”
“He should be.”
He questioned, “Why?”
You didn't want to answer.
Jack silently studied you for a moment. “So he wouldn't mind if I did this?” As he slowly brushed the hair away from your face and leaned in closer.
For a brief moment, you considered it. Maybe kissing Jack would finally prove that Bobby was only your friend. Maybe it would make the ache in your chest disappear. Maybe…
Before your lips could meet you broke away quickly by the sudden bristle of the beach grass. Thankful for the interruption, “Sorry” you giggled awkwardly, “Let’s head back inside”
Jacks stared at you for a second before smiling knowingly. “Right.”
You stood up first and reached your hands out to help him, being mindful of his back.
But as you walked toward the house, you couldn't stop thinking about Bobby. Not Jack, who you were one second away from kissing. But Bobby, who was probably alone spiraling about your sudden attitude today. The realization made your stomach turn.
As you entered the house, you noticed your family saying their goodbyes and thanking the Kennedys. You joined in, saying goodbye to each Kennedy one by one. But there was no sign of Bobby. The absence of him made you nervous.
Your awkward conversation with Jack had only made you more thankful for Bobby and his company, even if you had spent all night convincing yourself it was just friendship.
“Looking for someone?”
You whipped your head around.
Jack stood behind you with an amused expression.
“No.” you lied.
He smiled again, “You're terrible at lying.”
“Goodnight, Jack.” And you walked away before he could say anything else. But before you reached the door, you heard a familiar voice from behind you. “Leaving already?”
You froze.
Bobby stood near the hallway, his hands shoved into his pockets. His hair was still messy from the wind. You suddenly had the ridiculous urge to fix it. “Apparently,” you said.
There was a pause.
Then Bobby looked down at the floor.
“Did I really do something?” Your anger softened immediately. You swallowed. “No.”
He looked up. “Then why have you been treating me like I did?”
For once, you didn't have an answer.
Bobby waited.
You looked at him; at the stupid wind-swept hair you always fixed and the expression on his face that told you he genuinely had no idea what had happened between the two of you today.
You sighed. “Maybe you should figure it out, Admiral.”
Bobby blinked.
You walked past him before he could respond. But this time, you didn't make it very far before hearing him laugh softly behind you.
And for the first time that night, you smiled at Bobby too.
a/n: if anybody is reading this. lmk if ya'll have any ideas for a part 2, bc im plotting something but im always open to ideas!!
