SUMMARY: how does he behave with a crush? what’s stopping him from professing his love?
CHARACTERS: ace, leona, jade, jamil
GENRE: fluff, light angst, headcanons
WARNINGS: none
NOTES: men who yearn are men who EARN
reader gender is not specified, reader is not specified to be yuu
❤┊ACE TRAPPOLA
ACE WITH A CRUSH..
…would be such a tease. deflecting all his emotions and feelings at you whenever asked a question in order to protect his own heart.
“oh? you want to share food with me? what are we, a couple?”
it’s a bit selfish of him, but even if it gives him a small, even slight sign that you may reciprocate his feelings.. he’ll do it.
ever the hopeless romantic, ace tends to daydream. imagining the days that maybe you do come around and decide to take a chance with a guy like him.. the dates you could have, the time you could spend.. it makes him giddy just thinking about it.
ace just can’t help himself! the longing stares, the jokes, the laidback atmosphere, can’t you just imagine having those days for the rest of your life? hopefully with him?
he’d never admit it aloud, even if it lurks in every corner of his brain, how each beat of his heart screams and begs to be known. it’s not that he doesn’t want to, but that he doesn’t know how to.
you’re just out of his league. not that ace is insecure or anything, but this school is filled to the brim with so many exceptional and talented students and bachelors. movie stars, entrepreneurs, royalty? how is he supposed to compete with that? he can’t. so he doesn’t.
it kills him, but what can he give you that the other guys can’t? the answer is nothing. he’ll never be able to provide you with status that the royals can, he can never give you the stardom the actors can, he can never give you the wealth the entrepreneurs can.
ace doesn’t believe you’d spare a guy as average as him a second glance, so why bother with the chance of heartbreak?
he’s a good for nothing npc who can’t compete.
he’ll stick to his fantasies, to that perfect reality in his mind where he can skip that rollercoaster of emotion and preserve his heart at the risk of losing it all.
🦁┊LEONA KINGSCHOLAR
LEONA WITH A CRUSH…
…would absolutely hate it. he doesn’t hate you, obviously, but he hates how he somehow let his guard down enough to allow you to ignite sparks in his heart. it seemed like one sick joke and this was the punchline.
as soon as he realized what he was feeling, he started avoiding you like the plague. it’ll pass eventually.. he thought, as if never seeing you again will let these aching feelings pass over. in the end, it ultimately ended in failure as he yearned more and more for your company.
it’s subtle, but he’s less snappy with you when compared to others. leona never truly pushed you away, maybe a small remark or two, but nothing too apprehensive.
“stay if you want. not my job to boss ya around.”
he’ll do anything and everything he can to get you to look his way, whether that be showing off his strength in a sly manner or showcasing his brains in a quick game of chess.
if there’s one thing we know about leona? he’s feelings avoider final boss. he’d rather die than openly admit he is in love, which means he’d never ask for advice. maybe it was out of embarrassment, but it is more or less out of pride.
his feelings, the ones locked away and kept deep inside his inner chambers, are encased in a delicate glass casing. they’re fragile, delicate, ready to shatter in a moments notice.
why would he risk such a gut wrenching feeling if in his mind, he doesn’t deserve you? he can’t give you the world if you asked, he can’t pick the stars in the sky for you, cause to him? that’s not enough. what he’ll do will never be enough. he will never be enough. it will never be what you truly deserve.
🐬┊JADE LEECH
JADE WITH A CRUSH…
…would be so infatuated with you. this racing feeling in his chest, pittering and pattering, how could he not be intrigued? he starts following you around more often, literally a leech.
“oya? walking to class? allow me to escort you. what gentleman would i be if i didn’t?”
the origin of his feelings are still unknown.. after all, not long ago did he think of you just to be some pawn in a larger scheme. yet you ensnared his heart and left him bare with these overflowing feelings of pure adoration, he must know more about you.
jade tends to stare, and not in that cute oh ive gotta turn around before they notice stare, but that deep, analytical, i need to know every thing about you kind of stare.
his love speaks volumes, and i mean that quite honestly. just knowing you listen to what he has to say, the things that interest him more than anything, could he fall any deeper for you?
he never even considered such a complex emotion to even reside within him, but even geniuses make a miscalculation or two.
unfortunately, it is a well known fact that eels are cowardly. they hate confrontation and only strike when success is a guarantee. so with jade? he’ll hint, but he’d never act on his feelings until he knows for sure you reciprocate.
even so, there’s an underlying insecurity that he never dares admit. jade puts up a carefully crafted facade, one to gain respect and trust of each character around him. as embarrassing as it is to admit, he created one specially for you, to hide his imperfections.
this mask he puts out is to protect your heart.. or so he tells himself.
what happens if you discover his true nature? would you stop being around him? could he afford to lose such a precious treasure like yourself? would anybody be able to measure up to that pedestal he put you on?
he wants you to see the him he worked so hard to build, to rely and seek out for him. he wants you to reach out for his hand and ask for his help.
🐍┊JAMIL VIPER
JAMIL WITH A CRUSH…
…would be in such deep denial. he couldn’t fathom it at first, falling in love. a waste of time and a nuisance.. it just wasn’t something he thought he’d ever concern himself with.
to think you somehow broke through the impenetrable walls guarding his heart.. truly a force to be reckoned with. however, not only did you destroy all the defenses surrounding his heart, but his mask of perfection.
jamil prides himself on his abilities, even if he doesn’t get to showcase them to their full potential. he knows he’s capable, and doesn’t mind showing off a little if it means he can impress you.
unfortunately, there seemed to be a dire miscalculation he failed to account for.. he was incredibly prone to mistakes around you. it was laughable, he accounted for every possible situation and fumbled the bag each and every time.
he tried dancing to impress you, playing it off as if it were nothing. not only did he trip over his own feet, he fell face first on the ground in front of you.
“i-im fine! i was being reckless.”
how humiliating it was to look like a fool everytime you crossed paths, he should just bury himself under the ground so he’d never need to face it head on ever again.
as much as he’d love to run up to you and pour his feelings out onto a silver platter, to free himself from the restricting confines of feeling the need for perfection or excellence, it was impossible.
he’d be asking for far too much.
if he were to confess, what happens next? at the end of the day, his life is in the hands of the asim family. could he really subject you to such a draining and crushing demand?
it’s for the best if you found someone better. someone who won’t restrict you from achieving your goals, your dreams.
for your sake, he keeps it under wraps, he denies the possibility of a future with you because he knows that you’d be stuck with him in that hell. you deserve to be free, to live your life, to be happy.
A/N: couldn’t decide what i wanted to write so i just did a little dump of ideas teehee
#project hail mary
#the amazing digital circus
