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“you’re my person, resting bitch face and all.”
pairing: conrad fisher x grumpy!reader
tw: insecurities on grumpy’s part, conrad’s family being a little afraid of grumpy, sweet!conrad, conrad hyping up the fam and then being #disappointed and #letdown, domestic vibes!!! also, conrad calls grumpy ‘big bear’ bc they’re physically intimidating but so so sweet once you open them up🥹
you’re used to feeling like everyone can’t stand you. all your life, it’s been a whirlwind of “you should smile more, you look scary” or “you think you’re so cool, don’t you?” it’s a fact you’ve long since accepted, but there are times when it stings.
falling in love with conrad fisher certainly wasn’t what you expected. you met in biology class, where conrad utterly embarrassed himself when you were assigned as partners. you, in natural fashion, assumed he was afraid of you— just like most people. quite the opposite, to your surprise, because conrad thought you were the most beautiful creature he’s ever encountered. his breakup with belly still lingered in his mind, guilt wracking his whole being every time his mom called. conrad really didn’t think she’d make it through the remission, that susannah fisher would even be calling him a year later. prom was an utter failure, in his eyes, and conrad couldn’t stand it.
then, there’s you. two rows ahead, one seat left. you’re perfect. answering cold-calls with little effort, remaining expressionless when the professor confirmed the answer’s validity and applauding. the way you wrote in messy scrawls; barely comprehensible yet the kind of writing conrad wouldn’t mind tattooing across his chest. how your eyes would scan over a page in the textbook, like you didn’t even have to actually read it to understand. you’re everything belly is, and everything she isn’t.
comparison is cruel, conrad knows, yet he can’t help himself. this girl, almost cousin-like, was branded as his soulmate for years and years. his own mother, laurel, steven and jere… shit, even the cotton candy man on the boardwalk could see it. now? conrad fisher doesn’t know anything about isabel conklin anymore, or really anything at all. just you. irresistible, intelligent, grumpy you.
the relationship is a slow start— considering you don’t necessarily believe that the poster boy of northeastern culture is even remotely interested. however, conrad is nothing if not persistent. he’d lost that side of him for a while, but meeting you had it swinging back into full force like a pendulum. you asked him once why he chose you. out of all the students at brown, why pick the one person who seems to scare everyone off? “you are the easiest decision i’ve ever made. when i saw you… i just knew. i knew that i wanted it to be you.” conrad was so sickly-sweet that you wanted to hit something. cuteness aggression, you suppose.
once school ended, conrad immediately knew he wanted you to come along with him to cousins. he was privy to the ins and outs of your relationship with your parents— and who was he to deny you of the summer house’s magic? his radiant mother, a survivor in her own right and gentle with fragile things like you. laurel; steady and intelligent, the kind to be genuinely interested in your hobby of reading foreign texts. and, of course, he can’t forget jeremiah. his baby brother, the good-hearted son who can make anyone feel loved. conrad’s best friend, steven, who has no issue jumping into a heated debate about comics and moves on within minutes after. and… belly. agreeable, easily inspired and always appreciative.
hesitantly, you accept. it’s not like conrad would throw you to the wolves— you ask him to jump and he says, “how high?” conrad welcomes your acceptance with a hug that twirls you both around, then peppers kisses all of your face. “you are gonna have so much fun, big bear. i promise. if it sucks, then we’ll run away to new jersey. you just can’t break up with me because i’ll cry.” conrad says, his smile beaming in a way that makes you feel faint. god, he was so good at easing your mind. like conrad said, if it sucks, you can leave. it wouldn’t be so bad, right?
what’s that saying about hope? it breeds eternal misery? yeah, that’s what the trip to cousins was looking like so far. the drive was fine, conrad insisting that you remain player two while he drove all the way from brown to cousins. “baby, you’re gonna be exhausted.” you tried to reason with him, but each attempt was met with an offended glare. he’d pick up your hand and press a kiss to your knuckles, “i’m a selfish man, honey. i like seeing pretty things in the passenger seat.”
it’s not until you actually sit down for pleasantries over dinner that shit goes south. “so, what brings you up north for school? there have to be some great colleges around where you’re from, right? especially closer to your family.” susannah questioned— and you can tell that she’s genuinely curious. it still feels like a dig at you. as if there isn’t an acceptable enough explanation why you chose a school so far away. you shrug, “most of the schools where i’m from don’t have russian as an elective, and that’s one of the languages i’m currently studying.” that answer is what makes the conklin siblings and jere share a look. what kind of person makes an effort to learn various languages at the same time?
then, the question of how you and conrad came to be. you weren’t entirely surprised that it was belly who asked, considering that she dated conrad for a while. still, you could detect a certain grate in her voice that didn’t necessarily match the way she was holding jeremiah’s hand under the tablecloth. if belly broke up with conrad and then scurried over to his brother, why did it matter how you met? you can tell conrad noticed it too, as he quickly draped an arm around your shoulders.
“we met in bio class! project partners and i, um, completely embarrassed myself because i drew the anatomy of a cell wrong and y/n basically berated me.” conrad answers, practically beaming at the memory and you return his smile— just not so pearly and bright. considering everyone’s reactions, ‘berating’ probably wasn’t the best way to word it. sure, you might’ve teased him a little, but you didn’t mean it to be rude. you’re just… blunt! still, this feat did not absolve the issue, as steven kept forcing a laugh and laurel continued to share glances at susannah like ‘are you thinking what i’m thinking?’ jeremiah tried to steer the conversation away from the story, but it was too late. belly had this glint in her eyes, like she couldn’t believe you dared to treat conrad fisher any less than perfect.
and that’s what made you so confused! why did she even care? they weren’t dating anymore, and she was fucking his brother! besides, you didn’t break up with him at prom. you met him months after susannah miraculously survived, and you transferred in, for fuck’s sake. how was any of it fair?
after dinner, you made sure to thank susannah and lie about how you had the best time. you were so excited for the next few weeks, and blah, blah, blah… conrad makes the excuse of helping you ‘settle in’— and you know it’s code for him apologizing about the dinner that transpired. you’d already headed for the room you’d be sharing, while conrad searched for a water bottle you could use for the night. (you didn’t drink too much water, and conrad made it his personal mission to keep you hydrated.)
he’s about to enter the living room where his mother and laurel are, then he stands in the archway. “i just don’t know, laur. they seem… standoffish, like you can’t even look at them the wrong way without a flippant answer.” his mother spoke, her voice hushed as if she didn’t want anyone listening. conrad knew his mother was good, that’s all she’d ever been. but, like jere, she could be easily intimidated. surely, laurel would step in and ease her nerves, and remind his mother that you’re adjusting to this dynamic. laurel sighed, “i know, beck. belly wasn’t the most genuine she’s ever been, but it felt like every question asked was met with a ‘too cool for school’ attitude.”
conrad stops listening when he hears the voice of his mother say, ‘it was easier when it was him and belly.’ he can’t just stand there and listen to his mother and his second mother rip on you. conrad eases up the staircase with a swelling in his lungs, like he shouldn’t have even asked you to come with him. all conrad wanted was to share some of the magic and wonder cousins offered— the kind of love his mother could give to anyone. and he was wrong. so incredibly wrong. it wasn’t like conrad didn’t pick up on the dinner conversations; he could hear the passive-aggressive undertone whenever belly spoke to you, and the way his mother kept sharing side eyes with laur.
you’re laying in his bed, scrolling through a reddit thread of a stephen king novel you’d found in a dingy thrift store. upon him entering, your eyes flicker over to conrad, your handsome man. reliable, intelligent, so kind. you’ve gotten used to everyone writing you off, but conrad doesn’t. he sees you, every scar and stare of you that he can’t stop memorizing. “you okay, lovely? you were downstairs for a bit. i thought you were right behind me.” you ask, somewhat concerned as conrad moves to stand in front of you. sitting up, you’re looking up at him while conrad starts to stroke at your shoulders.
“i’m really sorry, bear. i thought dinner would be fine, that we’d have a good time and it’d be great. they were just so… awful and i’ve never seen them like that before. jere and steven were fine, laur too, but belly and my mom? i don’t even know, baby.”
your heart breaks. you weren’t by any means as outgoing as jere, but you weren’t rude. forthright? 100%. but, not rude. not intentionally, at least. your face can’t help the way it rests, and that’s not your fault. surely, conrad lingered downstairs because there was another conversation about you. you could feel it in the way his blue eyes were glossing over, like he couldn’t believe he’d done something so horrid. with a sad smile, “it’s okay, connie. ‘s not your fault that i’m like this. definitely not the kinda person you wanna bring home to mama.”
conrad’s hands travel from your shoulders to your jaw, almost lifting your head up to place a stern kiss to your lips. conrad is definitely the more passionate one in the relationship, but this feels different. he’s molding you to him, using every bit of his strength to cradle your body to his in this awkward position. when conrad pulls away, he gazes into your eyes and runs his thumb over your temple. “i don’t care what they say. i’m with you, not belly or anyone else. you’re my person, resting bitch face and all. and if they can’t accept that, then… fuck ‘em. we’re the only people in my movie anyway.”
instantly, your heart seems to mend itself. it’s nice, so nice, to have conrad. you know he wasn’t always this golden boy, especially when he found out that susannah’s cancer was coming back. but, conrad fisher is kind. at his core, so instilled in him that you can’t ever reach it or steal it away. trying to hold back thankful tears, you kiss him again. then again, until you’re peppering kisses all over his face. “i love you, you know that, right? you’re really the only person who’s taken a chance on me.” you murmur, eyes glittering in a way that only true adoration can make.
laughing, conrad slips his shoes off and climbs into bed. he’s tugging you to his chest, with your cheek scrunching up into your eye. was he disappointed by his family? yes, 100%. how could they not see you for what you are? you’re so sweet like this— unafraid to speak vulnerably and really open up. it just takes a while to uncover it. he’s spent months chipping away at your many layers, and conrad fisher couldn’t be more content with what he found underneath.
“i love you, big bear. and i’ll make sure they know that.” he presses a kiss to your forehead, while you snuggle into his side and prop your phone up to scroll reddit again. conrad doesn’t know if he’ll ever get over this. just the two of you, tangled together and existing. like he told you, it’s just you and him anyway. who gives a fuck about anyone else?
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ac speaks!
hi! i hope you enjoy the first pairing of grumpy! i know in my og grumpy post, i mentioned grumpy with jere, and while i still believe that, jere pissed me off in the last episode so i’m minding my business for right now! but pls let me know what you think🥹
