the party is loud, warm, a little messy — bodies everywhere, music bleeding into laughter, beer cans clinking against the concrete. rafe tried to act normal for maybe the first hour. tried being social. tried being charming.
then the alcohol hit him just right.
now he’s sitting on the floor between your legs, back pressed to your thighs like that’s the most natural place in the world. your knees frame his shoulders, your hands resting lazily on his chest while he leans into you, loose and heavy and completely unbothered by anyone watching.
he’s drunk-drunk. the clingy kind. the kind that forgets the room exists.
“baby,” he murmurs, head tilting back so he can look up at you, eyes glossy, smile soft and stupid and in love. “stay. don’t move.”
you laugh, fingers sliding into his hair, scratching lightly at his scalp. he hums at the touch immediately, eyes fluttering closed like a cat that just got exactly what it wanted.
someone walks by, says his name. rafe doesn’t even flinch.
you feel his hand find your knee, fingers curling possessively like he needs the reminder that you’re real, that you’re there, that you’re his. his thumb rubs absent little circles through the fabric of your pants, slow and comforting, not even trying to be subtle.
“you’re so warm,” he mumbles, pressing his cheek to your thigh. “this is better than standing.”
“you’re drunk,” you tease.
“mm,” he agrees easily. “drunk and married.”
that makes your chest ache — the way he says it like a fact, like a badge of honor. like nothing else in the room matters more than being yours.
your fingers trace the line of his jaw, thumb brushing over the corner of his mouth. he catches it with his lips, kissing it softly before resting your hand against his cheek, grounding himself there.
the party keeps going. music gets louder. people get messier.
rafe doesn’t move.
he stays right there between your legs, head tipped back against you, breathing slow, trusting, clingy in the way only he gets when he’s had too much to drink and too much love for one body to hold.
summary: the cheerleading squad needs to raise funds, and a certain quarterback is feeling generous.
content warnings: original afab!reader, football captain!rafe & head cheerleader!reader, use of petnames (sweetheart), 18+ MDNI - suggestive af
length: 1.5k words
The football season had barely started, but the cheerleaders never did as well with donations as the actual team, with all their boosters and wealthy alumni. You'd been roped into helping out with the kissing booth by your best friend during welcome week festivities, something you hadn't been planning on attending yourself if she wasn't making you do this.
It wasn't as busy as you expected it to be, probably because most of the crowd consisted of nervous freshmen who were still trying to find their way around campus. You were working the first shift, which was mostly just sitting around and gossiping with the other volunteers, with only a few students walking up and deciding to pay the premium.
"Oh shit! Is that who I think it is?"
The familiar voice traveled across the field as a cluster of football players approached, Rafe leading the pack with his eyes already locked on you. He shot you his signature grin when he saw you standing there, under the kissing booth sign, stalking towards you like a predator locked in on its prey.
"Must be my lucky day," he declared.
"Wow, Rafe. You're so desperate. You're making yourself a charity case now?" you quipped, taking a step back and crossing your arms over your chest to put some distance between you.
He placed his hands on the table that was separating you, stretching out his arms as his large frame towered over yours. His bangs fell onto his face, which only emphasized how devastatingly handsome he was despite being truly the bane of your existence. Even with his varsity jacket on, you could see his biceps bulging through the leather sleeves, as if they were trying to burst through the seams.
"Is it just you, or the entire goon squad?" you seeked out, gesturing over to the group of guys he had in tow.
"You really gotta ask me that?" he feigned dramatically, clutching his chest like you wounded him. "I don't like sharing when it comes to you."
"I'm just trying to make money here," you shrugged.
"Yeah? For what? More books or something?"
"Actually, it's so the cheerleaders can come on the road for a few games," your bestie piped up. "Not that you'd be interested in that..."
"That's definitely a cause I can get behind," he replied.
"Hurry up and make up your mind," you provoked. "I don't make anything from chatting. I'm sure there are plenty of paying customers who'd be more than happy to take your place."
"Depends," he retorted, making you suspicious.
"What do you mean 'depends?'" you mimicked, making him chuckle.
"Well, $5 gets me a kiss. What if I wanna take you back to my place?" he surveyed.
"Fuck off, Rafe," you laughed in disbelief, shaking your head at the bold proposition. Not that it was new behaviour from him.
"I'm being serious," he maintained.
He reached into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out his wallet and folding it open to show off a stack of cash sitting there. Skimming his thumbs over the edges of the crisp bills, as if openly taunting you with it. You could hear all the other cheerleaders whispering to each other, scowling at you as they questioned why he hadn't taken notice of any of them.
"What about $100?" He proposed, unable to hide the disgust on your expression.
"No fucking way," you immediately refused.
"So, less than what you get for five? You should rethink your business model-"
"Whatever you pay, all you get is a kiss," you didn't budge, not missing the flicker of disappointment that flashed across Rafe's face.
"I just want to make a generous donation,"
"Nothing about you is generous, Rafe."
"I'm sure if you asked any girl I've been with, they'd disagree."
"Cute."
"Don't sound so jealous, sweetheart," he warned you. "I might believe you're secretly interested."
"Well, I'm not," you asserted. "And I'm not interested in your bribe either."
"I'll kiss you, Rafe," one of the other volunteers interjected from behind you, batting her lashes at him.
"As great as that sounds, there's only one woman I'm trying to impress tonight."
The girls around you awwed as he gave you a smug look, as if their encouragement was what would sway your decision. You were used to his constant flirting, usually just being subjected to it between practices or when he'd track you down at a party, but you knew you wouldn't be getting out of this as painlessly as you usually could.
"You can't brag about this, you know," you contended. "I'm still not kissing you because I want to."
"Of course not. That would be too easy," he remarked, his smirk growing. "But it definitely won't hurt my chances of convincing you to do it again."
"Let's just get this over with," you rolled your eyes.
He leaned in at a frustratingly slow pace, stopping just before your lips touched so you'd have to be the one to actually make the first move, knowing you couldn't turn him away. You weren't totally sure what your game plan was, and you couldn't deny how hard it was to keep your composure when he was close enough for his breath to mix with yours.
You went to give him the same rehearsed kiss you'd given to the other men who had visited the kiosk, boring and prompt. A short peck. Then Rafe cradled one of your cheeks and deepened it, and you couldn't hold yourself back anymore. Your hands flew to his chest, not to shove him off but to find your balance.
He slipped his tongue into your mouth, catching you off guard and making you gasp softly in reaction. You could feel him smiling triumphantly as he kissed you, quick to bite down on his bottom lip in retaliation, only for a husky moan to escape him instead. Not that he seemed as flustered about it as you were.
You were brought back to reality when his teammates started hooting and hollering, reminding you of the fact that you currently had an audience. When you went to end it, though, he pulled you back in for one more chaste kiss. Your breath hitched in betrayal as he drew away from you, lingering there for a few more seconds.
"Come on now," he muttered against your mouth, speaking so low that only you could hear him. "You can't tell me you don't want to do that again."
"That's not how this works, Rafe," you lightly scolded, trying your best to keep your tone steady despite the wildfire burning beneath your skin.
"How about this," he initiated, drawing your gaze back to his lips as he licked them. "If you hit your goal tonight, I get to take you out when you come with for the next away game."
From the lack of traffic flowing past the booth, you were pretty confident that you could take that bet and easily avoid the consequences. Even with all the cash he had, it would take a few thousand to cover it all. But this was Rafe, and you couldn't help but suspect that it was a trap.
"And if we don't, you lay off this year," you negotiated, the corner of his mouth quirking up as he nodded in agreement. "Fine."
"Wanna seal it with a kiss?" He attempted.
"Bye, Rafe," you shut him down sweetly, plucking a random bill out of his wallet. Ooh, it was a $20!
The football players continued hyping up their captain as he jogged back over to them, Rafe peeking over his shoulder and winking at you as they disappeared back into the carnival. And of course, you couldn't just push it out of your mind once he left because your friends wouldn't drop the subject, none of them understanding why you were always so cold toward one of the school's top athletes.
It wasn't even an hour later when your bestie's cell started going off. You'd switched with one of the other volunteers not long after your encounter with Rafe, and it hadn't gotten any busier since then, letting you eavesdrop on one side of the unusual phone conversation that was happening nearby.
"Holy shit!" She blurted out suddenly. "Sorry, sorry. But, you're being serious? Wow, alright. Thanks, I'll let them know."
Her attention shifted to you as soon as she hung up the call, instantly giving you a bad feeling, which was only amplified when she dismissed you all for the night. She explained that she'd spoken to our coach, who'd informed her a football donor had 'unexpectedly' decided to contribute more to cheerleading, which in turn meant there was no need to keep fundraising.
As much as you wanted to pretend it was a coincidence, you had a sneaking suspicion that it had to do with the arrogant quarterback who was confident enough to challenge you. And of course, because he couldn't stop himself from gloating, his name popped up on your phone screen in your Instagram messages, confirming exactly what you'd assumed.
rafecameron99: Make sure to pack something nice for our date next road trip 😉
note: a little blurb i've had sitting around that i decided to clean up for valentines day! hope you guys enjoy!! if you want a part 2/continuation/have any more requests for football captain!rafe & head cheerleader!reader, send them over!!!! 💞💞💞
very random thought: which of team prime would like capybara's?
Mhh I have no idea why I think firstly to Arcee for no reason XD
But anyway, I've decided to took this question as an opportunity to draw some of the team Prime and make excercise and makes most of them interacting with Capybara... because, why not?
Him being comfortable in the adult bar and unfazed being in the red light district a bit later during the roppo ichiza arc even tho he's a minor, a kid, aside. Suo clearly FLINCHED when he realised where he'd arrived, what location nirei had led him and sakura to. His expression also looks kinda blank and like. GENUINELY SHOCKED. the second he realised they were standing right in front of the red light district, aka keisei street's, entrance gate. he flinched, his natural looking smile or otherwise his smile mask disappeared and was instantly replaced by a forced and fake one. The manga lines also indicate him coming to a sudden halt, a sudden "stop". akin to the phrase "stopping in your tracks". his calmness clearly looking like a facade and his eye turned into that same boba eye as when nirei had mentioned his "dislike of natto".
These two are the only instances where he makes this EXACT SAME EXPRESSION WHEN ALSO CLEARLY FLINCHING, FEELING SHOCK. And if we connect his expression turning like the one in this panel to these two times, it becomes really questionable because if he showed the same body language+ expression when his "dislike" for natto was revealed, does this imply him disliking the unexpected encounter with the red light district? Or is it not about a red light district generally but KEISEI street specifically that he dislikes? Or is it not dislike but that there's a reason for his hesitation and shock? Of course we know that natto has some sort of traumatic relation with him/his past so does his reaction being the same imply that adult places/red light district/keisei street are a part of that trauma/past too? Because that really looks like a trauma response in every way (personally I believe it's the red light district generally). Also notice how he immediately asks nirei for confirmation of the address even tho suo definitely knows and trusts nirei with handling things. Had it been another situation, he would've smiled and went along. No confirming things. But here he still asks. As if he didn't want to go further or would've wanted to avoid it. But because nirei confirmed it was the right place and it would seem suspicious or off if he'd tried to avoid the place- or even if that's not the reason, he simply wouldn't want nirei or sakura questioning his hesitation or unusual behaviour- so he later puts on his usual smile mask+ calm exterior and goes along.
Which leaves me questioning a lot of things. Like was he internally "actually comfortable" there or had he "adjusted" by the time they'd reached the adult bar tsubaki was at? Or was that calmness a facade to mask his uncomfortable feelings, to hide his past, his hesitation, his trauma? But then again nirei's been canonically revealed to read him PERFECTLY so him noting that suo was too used to this/or too calm can't be a mistake, can it? And if the suo slave theory isn't right cuz he's an rc officer, this means he's connected to all that trauma in some other way. or is the slave suo theory right and he was in a similar position BEFORE becoming an officer for the rc, before he was the rc's Sun Fei? Or did he actually go through all that trauma or unpleasant experience even being an officer of rc, in his early days or smth? Or did smth happen when he was neither a slave nor rc's officer but just in the past which made him traumatized? Did that happen when he wasn't suo hayato or Sun Fei but just an unnamed kid? Or is/had someone he'd really cared for been/is the one in that position which is why he dreams of ending slavery?
So many questions but it's fun thinking about everything so I'll keep thinking (meaning I'll keep yapping like a crazy person)
Celebrini trained his son for this, which is largely why Macklin can play at this level at this age. But his readiness for these persistent monumental accomplishments is merely a byproduct and not the intended aim. Celebrini didn’t set out to sculpt a hockey star, one who can run with the big boys even though he just became of legal age to drink back home in B.C. That Macklin is here, doing this, is cosmic fortune, an alignment of excellence not even a father could imagine.
— Macklin Celebrini's Olympic success is surreal even for his accomplished, stoic dad, by Marcus Thompson II.
