ʚ ═══･୨ Hey Jude ୧･═══ ɞ
( Reader x Zanka )
♡ A/N: TYSM for 13 followers, and all of the love on my first two Gatchiakuta fics! It means so much for the support. Please don't forget that my inbox is open for any fic requests, or even headcanons!
♡ Word Count: 1.5k
♡ Content: Enjin is fatherly towards reader and brotherly towards Zanka, Cursing, Reader is gender neutral, fic if based off of the song Hey Jude by the Beatles.
♡ Synopsis: “You have found her, now go and get her.”
Zanka Nijiku was not a lover boy. That much was certain. He was tough, a growing man who wanted to be the best of the best inside of the cleaners. He wanted to be strong, to earn praise, and to most of all, make Enjin proud.
Some would say that Zanka has done most of that, but to Zanka, he hasn’t done any of what he strived to do with his life.
He was always hard on himself, lacked the confidence that he needed to up his strengths–and, most of all, he never believed in himself.
Maybe that is why Zanka undermined his feelings for Y/n. The cleaner whom he had always felt weird in the chest around.
In Zanka’s eyes, Y/n was everything that he could not be. They were strong, confident, and almost always had Enjin beaming at them with a smile of a proud father-figure. Zanka was utterly infatuated with Y/n.
“Ya know you’re starin’ don’t ya, Zanka?” A voice shattered every thought out of Zanka’s mind–, he felt his heart drop as he turned his head, coming face-to-face with none other than Enjin himself.
A cheeky smile grew on Enjin’s face at the flustered sight of the teen, slowly, he turned his gaze, looking over towards whatever–or, whoever it was that had Zanka’s attention the way that they did.
When his eyes met none other than Y/n, his grin only grew wider.
“Y/n, huh…?” Realization crept up in Enjin’s head as he turned to gaze once more at Zanka.
And boy, was Zanka flustered.
“It is not what it looks like, Enjin, I swea-” Zanka was cut off by Enjin holding one finger up in response, ultimately silencing Zanka.
“I have been waitin’ for this day forever– Honestly Zanka, I really thought you weren’t interested in anyone! Now, for it to be Y/n of all people? Makes me happier.” Zanka’s heart sped up at Enjin’s implications.
“Now wait just one second-,” Zanka pursed his lips, crossing his arms over lovey Assistaff as he scooted away slightly from Enjin. “I am not interested in anyone, certainly aint Y/n either.” God, he wished his heart would stop racing anytime he heard their name.
Enjin raised a blonde eyebrow at Zanka in response. “You really gonna deny it?”
“Yes.”
Rolling his eyes, Enjin turned in his seat so that he faced Zanka directly. He crossed his own arms over his chest, puffing it out to seem more mature–and more intimidating to Zanka.
“Ya gotta let people into your heart Zanka. Then, you can make yourself feel better, ya know? Less lonely, less distant from everyone else. Hell, maybe you’ll be even nicer to Rudo if you got yourself a partner, especially one as sweet as Y/n.”
Zanka could feel his brow twitch slightly in annoyance. Blue eyes looked away from Enjin’s golden orbs, instead moving to gaze over to where you sat between Rudo and Riyo. The three of you were eating true delicacy from the slums, laughing over your plates as you guys joked between one another.
“Y/n, Y/n, look at this!” Zanka scowled just a bit in jealousy, watching as Rudo held up his pretend pizza he had made out of his table scraps. He scowled even more once he watched you laugh just a little bit. “That’s funny, Rudo.”
“I can be funny…” Enjin laughed quite loudly at Zanka, who had not even realized that he had said his thoughts out loud.
Pale cheeks turned red in response, god Zanka was a mess.
He hung his head in shame. “Maybe you’re right, Enjin..”
A large hand clamped over Zanka’s shoulder, Enjin smiled as he gently rubbed it. “I’m always right, Zanka. Maybe you should go talk to them about how ya feel, maybe they like ya too. Ya never know.” Enjin pulled his hand away, shrugging his shoulders as he spoke.
“How would I even go about speakin’ to them, I mean, I can hardly hold a conversation with them as it is, Enjin. And plus, I hardly even speak to them anyways…I’d probably get rejected.” Zanka knew deep down that if you had rejected him, he probably would never love again. And, he did not want to fail at getting the one thing that he wanted–as much as he did not want to admit it. You.
Humming softly, Enjin lit a cigarette, balancing it between his lips as he placed a hand on his knee, manspreading as he leaned back.
“Y/n talks about ya an awful lot.” Zanka felt his heart skip a beat. “But I don’t even talk to her really…What do they have to talk about regardin’ me?” He gazed down at the table, placing his palm flat down on it and scratching gently at the surface.
“How cool they think you are, and how strong they think you are.” Enjin shrugged, taking a drag off of his cigarette, before offering it to Zanka. Zanka curled his lips in disgust, almost offended that Enjin even offered him a drag off of that thing.
“They think I’m cool?”
Enjin nodded, blowing out smoke as he took another drag. “In their opinion, you’re the coolest. Plus they love your hair, always askin’ me how you get it the way you do.” Zanka’s cheeks flushed as he reached a hand back, gently smoothing the back of his mullet down just a bit. “My hair…?” Enjin smiled and nodded.
“So, in my opinion, I think maybe they have a little thing goin’ on for you too, Zanka. Go and get them.”
Hours seemed to have passed before Zanka could get Y/n alone inside of HQ. but once he did, boy, he was determined not to get interrupted. So, that is how Zanka found himself inside of Y/n’s own room, fiddling with his Lovely Assistaff as he stood practically centimeters from where Y/n sat on the edge of their.
“What did you want to talk about, Zanka?” God, your voice practically reduced Zanka to mush.
Zanka could feel his heart rate pick up. Was he really going to do this? It was now or never.
“...Like you-” His voice came out barely above a whisper. Y/n furrowed their brows in concern, getting up to move closer to Zanka. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear what you said, Zan…” God, you were calling him Zan? Cute.
Clearing his throat, Zanka gazed down, bashfully hiding his face behind Lovely Assistaff. A few minutes passed of Zanka gathering his thoughts, and in a second, he had moved his head to now gaze right at you.
“I like you, Y/n. And if you don’t like me back, that’s fine. But I hope that you highly take into account the way that I feel abou-” He was cut off by the feeling of arms wrapping tightly around him. If Zanka were clumsy, he would have lost his balance, but swiftly, his arms wrapped around Y/n and his Assistaff, bringing them close to his chest in an instant.
“You like me?!” Y/n’s face was flushed with absolute happiness. Zanka was surprised.
“I didn’t realize ‘till today…Enjin was talkin’ to me bout it and i don’t know…It made me realize that I don’t want you with anyone else but me, Y/n, maybe that is selfish..but I don't give a damn.”
Zanka swore he could see tears brimming your eyes. In an instant, he reached up, cupping your face and wiping at them, brows furrowed in worry. “Don’t cry…Hey, hey…If you don’t like me back Y/n, you don’t gotta force yourself too…Just don’t cry, okay?” His voice was soft, his little accented drawl coming out softly as he carefully pulled Y/n close to him.
“I love you too, Zanka! I didn’t think you liked me at all, and–” Y/n paused to hiccup, sobbing as they wiped at their tears themself. “I just…It made me sad, and I told Enjin about how I felt, and I guess maybe that’s why he talked to you today–, but god, I spent so long awake at night thinking about what to say to you, how to make conversation–but, I didn’t think that you could ever love someone as plain as me.”
Zanka felt offended by their own words about themselves. In a second, he tilted Y/n’s chin up, and ever so gently, Zanka left the sweetest little kiss upon their lips. His eyes fluttered shut, as did Y/n’s as they melted into the kiss.
Slowly pulling away, Zanka rested his forehead against Y/n’s own. “I could never love someone as much as I love you…”
Y/n’s bottom lip trembled, and gently, they buried their face into Zanka’s chest, hugging him impossibly tight to them as they cried.
And Zanka let them–for finally, he had them.