STAY
In which a confession to Anthony Vaughn leads to inevitable tension
Anthony Vaughn x Reader
You were sulking in your room, feeling bad for yourself when you got a call from Harper.
“Y/n, what ya doing?”
“Just laying in bed wishing the earth would swallow me whole”
“Right…well as much fun as that sounds, get dressed. The girls and I are on our way to come get you”
“Um to take me where?”
“Ants throwing a party while his moms out of town”
You scoff. The last place you wanted to be was near Anthony.
~Two days ago~
“Hey Ant can I talk to you”,you asked, fidgeting with your hands. “Yea of course. What’s up?”,he asked as the two of you walked outside, away from the chatter of the hallway.
“So we’ve been hanging out like one on one a lot recently. And I really like you Ant. I mean I wasn’t gonna say anything just in case I was getting the wrong signal you know”,you said looking up at him with intention behind every word. “Oh-I-. Uh.”,he had nervously chuckled.
Your heart had sank, what was funny about you expressing your feelings. “Oi, what are you two doing out here”,Spider burst outside through the double doors. “Nothing. We were just talking”,Anthony voiced quickly. So quickly that it stung quite a bit. Did you embarrass him? Did he hate being seen with you?
Your mind ran rampant.
“Okay well we’ve gotta go. See ya”,Spider nodded before dragging Ant away by the shoulders , leaving you standing there wondering why the hell you even attempted to tell Anthony how you felt.
-End of Flashback-
You told him how you felt and he didn’t even say anything. Well more like Spencer pulled him away before he could say anything but the silence was enough of an answer for you.
“I’ll pass.”,you sigh. “Too late, we’re already outsideeee”,you hear Amerie on the other end of the phone. “Ugh fine. But I’m not staying the whole time”, you groan. “Yesssss! Okay hurry up “,Harper says before you hang up.
You get into your usual party clothes, a white crop top with fishnets over it and a mini skirt, pairing it with Ameries boots she left in your room. You grab your purse and let out a deep sigh before heading out to Missys car.
“Wooo woooo. There she is!”,Sasha smiles at your appearance. “Okay hot mama”, Amerie laughs. “Oh shut uppp”,you laugh before getting in
/\~/\/\~/\~/\/\~/\/\~/\ /\/~/\/\~/\
You make your way over to the drinks before surveying the party. It was loud and weed smoke filled the air, clouding it in that thick fog.
You had to stop letting your friends drag you to parties when you knew you didn’t wanna really go. Especially when you weren’t in the best head space. “Why are you sulking?”, Harpers voice pulled you from the safe space you called your brain. “I-um. No reason. I just wasn’t feeling too good earlier I guess it kinda carried over”,you give a shrug. You hated lying but you couldn’t explain the actual reason…that you’d been rejected by Anthony Vaugn of all people
“Come dance with me?”,she holds out her hand. You can’t resist. Harps was your girl. And she’d been through so much without anyone by her side that you couldn’t fathom ever leaving her hanging or alone again.
The two of you dance to the rock music that seems to be blasting in your ears. And for a second you felt all the tension and anxiety you felt about Anthony just flow from your body and melt off.
That was until you felt a familiar sturdy pair of arms wrap around your waist. Your body shivered like it remembered all the times before you’d been like that.
You turned to see Ant looking down at you before pulling away from him. “Hi.”,you said shortly. “Hey..”,he says like it’s a question. “Did you need something?”,you raise an eyebrow with a harsh tone. You hated to do it but you had to protect yourself first so that meant your walls had to go back up.
“Uh yeah, I was wondering if we could talk alone”,he voices. “Um sure”,you swallowed. You look over at Harper who’s looking between the two of you, wondering what the hell is happening. “I’m gonna go talk to him. You good?”,you asks, looking for anything in Harps eyes that might suggest she’s not.
“No,no I’m good. You go talk. I’m gonna find Ams”,she suggests before heading through the crowd.
You turn your attention back to Ant before he grabs your wrist and leads you to a quiet back room. “Whaddya want?”, you ask, crossing your arms over your chest. “I wanna talk to you. You haven’t been answering my texts and calls..”,he fidgets with his wristband. “Yea I’ve been busy. Y’know, homework and maths”,you lie through your teeth. Your schedule was free-er than a bird.
“Y/n what’s wrong. What’d I do?”,he asks, puppy dogs staring deep into your soul. You usually can’t resist but as of right now you’re holding your ground. “You didn’t do anything. You feel how you feel and I can’t fault you for that.”, you start.
“But I can’t just act like my feelings don’t exist. So it’s better if we just keep the conversations to a minimum”, You say firmly, so much so that it shocks you “What? No I don’t wanna do that.”, He states. “Y/n I’m sorry that when you told me I kinda glitched. It’s like my brain couldn’t process that this great girl liked me and wanted to be around me you know.”.he explains.
“I shouldnt have left you just standing there. I’m sorry. It wasn’t on purpose with like bad intentions”,he adds. “I don’t know Ant, maybe it’s a sign.”,you sigh. “Y/n I know it’s a long shot but I mean give us a try”,he says looking over to you. “I…I can’t”,you sigh before pushing past him. You make it through the party, texting your groupchat that you left early.
~/\/\/\/\/\~
You let out a deep sigh as you lay in one of Anthony’s practice jerseys that was left in your room. Even when your heart felt like it was shattered in two, you couldn’t help but feel the need to be close to him.
You hear a tap on your room window, and hop up expecting it to be Ams or Harps. “Hey”,you say lifting up your blinds and window frame before looking up to see Ant staring back at you.
“What?”,you take a step back. “I need to talk to you”,he says seriously before climbing through the window. “Sure just come on in uninvited”,you roll your eyes. “You’re in my jersey”,He smiles down at you. “You said you’re here to talk so talk…”,you groan.
“Look , I know you’re upset and you have every right to be Y/n. I just didn’t know how to respond in the moment. And when Spider pulled me away I thought it was best that I didn’t turn around and say anything. But I promise you Y/n, I really like you. ”,he explains. “You didn’t know how to respond because you don’t feel the same way. And that’s okay Anthony. You don’t have to lie to yourself or me.”,you explain, arms crossed.
“You know maybe you should just leave”, You sigh.
“Do you really want me to go?”, Ant asks before taking a step towards you. The tone shifts, this isn’t regular Anthony.
The air stills and the tension thickens between the two of you. “Ant..I-“,you try to mutter out. “Answer the question. Do you want me to go?”,He says getting even closer to you. The two of you are now just barely inches away from each other.
Your pace quickens and your throat gets dry. “Y/n, if you want me to go..then I’ll go. But I need to hear you say it.”,He stares into your eyes.
“You’re the only girl I want to be around and be with”,he starts. “I never want to hurt you and I’m sorry if I did but I love you-“
Before he can finish his sentence you grab him by the hem of his shirt and pull him into a kiss. “I love you too. Stay.”,you smile up at him.
