Say Less - Aj Shabeel
Summary: Aj gets jealous after seeing you with Duke Dennis, only to awkwardly confess he likes you when he can't take it anymore.
Pairing: Aj Shabeel x Reader
Genre: Fluff, Jealousy, Light Angst
Masterlist
You weren't flirting.
You were laughing. There's a difference. Right?
Duke Dennis was funny. Chill. That kind of easygoing where you could talk to him about anything and he'd just get it. Like when he started roasting British slang and you tried to defend Aj's use of "dead food" only to realize halfway through... no, yeah. That was indefensible.
But in your defense, Duke Dennis was funny. He had that quiet confidence, the southern drawl, and the kind of chill that made you feel like you'd known him forever. Plus, it wasn't that deep.
Except Aj was acting like you'd just proposed marriage.
You were all filming in some bougie rented London house, white marble everything, velvet couches. AMP x Beta Squad. Pure content madness. You were helping out behind the scenes, technically but the cameras were rolling so constantly you might as well have been part of the shoot.
You sat on the counter, legs swinging, trying not to feel too aware of the camera guys walking around or the fact that Duke smelled kind of nice. Like cologne and trouble.
Then he said something stupid like
"Wait, y'all really call fries 'chips'? That's disrespectful" Duke said, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
And you laughed.
That kind of laugh. Head back. Hand to your chest. Full, ridiculous, joy-in-your-teeth laugh.
And that's the exact moment Aj walked in.
You didn't see him. Not right away.
But you felt it.
Like someone cranked the temperature down 20 degrees.
He didn't say hi. Didn't look at you. Just grabbed a Red Bull like it was personal, cracked it open like he was mad at the tab, and walked back out like he didn't even see you sitting there.
You blinked. Looked at Duke.
"Was that... weird?" You asked.
"Dunno but he definitely didn't dap me up" Duke said as he shrugged.
Your smile faded a little.
Okay... that was weird.
By 2 pm, you were ready to throw something.
Aj wasn't talking to you.
Scratch that---he was actively avoiding you.
He cracked jokes, sure. Played up for the cameras. He was loud, animated, classic Aj but when you tried to join the conversation, he hit you with one-word replies.
You'd tried three separate times to start a normal conversation. Once while walking past him, once during a group take, once when you offered him a crisp. You were met with,
"Yeah" Aj said, flatly.
A nod.
And your personal favorite--a grunt.
You offered him snacks. He took them without eye contact.
You said "nice shot" after a challenge. He grunted.
You caught him once, across the room, jaw clenched, watching you laugh at something Duke said. Like he was trying to calculate whether to flip a table or not.
You were used to Aj being playful. Loud. Goofy. Calling you "chatty lil ting" and telling you to "shush" whenever you got too passionate about something dumb like oat milk or zodiac signs.
This Aj?
Silent, serious and standoffish.
And maybe it was dumb but it was getting to you.
What did you even do?
Okay, yes, you had been talking to Duke. But it wasn't flirting. Not like, actual flirting.
Just... smiling. Talking. A little hair touch. A shoulder graze. A playful mic fix.
Oh no.
Maybe it was flirting.
You chewed your lip and caught AJ watching you across the room, eyes dark, jaw tight, like he was plotting your execution and Duke's at the same time.
You looked away. Immediately.
He was definitely mad.
Chunkz noticed too.
"Your boy's brooding over there" Chunkz whispered as he leaned over
You snorted.
"He's not my--" You said, mid eye roll and then you paused.
Was he?
It wasn't until later, after most of the crew had gone for a break, that things finally cracked.
You were helping Duke fix his mic. The battery pack had slipped from his hoodie, and you were reaching up, fingers brushing the collar, when you heard footsteps.
You glanced up at Aj.
He didn't say anything.
Didn't move either. He just stood there.
Silent.
Watching.
"Yo, what's good bro?" Duke said, casually.
Aj barely nodded.
You stepped back quickly, heart thudding against your ribs like it wanted to break free and escape the awkward tension.
"Hey" You said, voice light.
"Everything okay?" You asked.
He locked eyes with you. Hard stare. No smile.
Then turned around. Walked off.
You didn't think. You followed.
He was outside by the catering table, fork in hand, stabbing a piece of grilled chicken like it had personally offended him.
You approached, arms folded.
"Aj" You said.
He didn't look at you.
"Aj, are you gonna tell me what's going on, or should I keep guessing?" You asked as you stepped closer.
Still no answer. Just chewing. Aggressive chewing.
"Okay, are you mad at me or just passionate about attacking your lunch?" You asked as you sighed, exasperated.
"Why don't you ask Duke?" Aj said, without even looking up.
You paused.
"Sorry--what?" You asked.
"Man's clearly got your attention. Thought you might be busy with him" Aj said as he shrugged, still chewing.
You blinked. The tone was cold. Dismissive. Weirdly quiet for Aj.
He finally looked at you. Sharp eyes. Lips pursed. Voice calm, but only barely.
"I'm not in the mood for games" Aj said.
"Neither am I" You shot back, pulse rising.
"But you're acting like I just kissed him on camera or something" You said.
Despite all that, Aj still said nothing. That's when it clicked to your brain.
"Wait, are you jealous?" You asked slowly.
"Jealous of what?" Aj asked as he scoffed.
"You tell me" You said as you crossed your arms.
He finally looked at you. His jaw was tight. Eyes unreadable.
"You were flirting" Aj said.
"I was talking" You said as your brow shot up.
"Nah, that was flirting. I know what I saw" Aj said.
"You saw me helping him with a mic, A. Not giving him a damn lap dance" You said.
"Don't do that" Aj said as he raised an eyebrow.
"Don't do what?" You asked.
"Act like I'm mad for no reason. You know what you're doing" Aj said as he stepped forward, just slightly.
You stared at him. The tension was thick now. Your heart pounded.
"I wasn't doing anything you don't do when you're around girls on camera" You said.
"That's content" Aj shot back.
"And me smiling at Duke was what? Betrayal?" You said as he tilted your head.
He didn't answer.
You took a step closer. You could smell his cologne now. Something sharp and clean, like citrus and ego.
"Why does it bother you?" You asked, voice lower.
"Seriously" You added.
Aj blinked. Swallowed.
"Because I like you" Aj muttered.
Silence.
You blinked.
"What?" You asked, barely heard anything.
Aj ran a hand over his face, like the words had exhausted him.
"I said I like you. And it's annoying. And I didn't expect it. And I don't want to see you giggling with some other guy, especially not in front of me" Aj said.
You just stood there.
Completely frozen.
He looked at you again. Softer now. Frustrated but honest.
"And yeah, I was jealous. Happy now?" Aj added, quieter.
Your brain completely short-circuited.
He liked you.
Aj Shabeel liked you.
And he was jealous.
And he looked good when he was jealous.
And--oh no. You were smiling.
"And it's pissing me off that I finally admit that to myself and you're over there smiling at another man like he invented laughter" Aj said.
You stared at him. The annoyance. The jealousy. The pout.
And then-- God help you-- you smiled.
"Okay" You said softly.
"Okay what?" Aj said as his eyes narrowed.
"I like you too, dumbass" You said.
Pause.
"You do?" Aj asked in confusion.
You nodded.
He stared at you, expression slowly morphing from angry to confused to--smug.
"So... you were tryna make me jealous?" Aj asked.
"No!" You said as you laughed.
"Oh-- okay" Aj said as his grin cracked through.
"You were sulking over chicken, Aj" You said with a smile.
"Yeah, well. You're mine now, so..." Aj said as he stepped closer. His voice dropped.
"Oh, now?" You asked, smirking now.
"Yeah, say less" Aj said, smiling back at you.
- end -
Hello lovelies!!! I'm sorry that the consistency wasn't really that good anymore. I have lost motivation writing, I hope u can understand it. That doesn't mean that I won't write for them. I will but probably slower updates and shi.
I hope y'all have an amazing day, absolute love and guidance.
As I said everytime, send in some request and ideas!!
