It’s Nice to Have a Friend - Jschlatt
Reader has been lonely their whole life. They have never been in a relationship. They don’t understand why no one will love them but their best friend, Schlatt has always been in love with them.
Schlatt lets you both in. “What are you doing here?” He asks Ted.
“I’ve been on a roadtrip with Tucker and I just dropped him off. I thought while I was in New York, I would come visit my buddy, Schlatt,” Ted says.
“Why didn’t you at least call first?” Schlatt asks.
“I wanted it to be a surprise. I just didn’t think you would be having company.” Ted turns to look at you.
“Oh I can go home, so you two can spend some time together,” you say. You are still wearing your backpack full of your sleepover necessities, so it would be easy to just leave.
“Nonsense. We can all hang out together. What did you crazy kids have planned anyways?”
Schlatt gives you a look like he wants to keep some things between you two. That thing being the coloring books in your backpack. “We were going to order some sushi. Not sure what else,” you tell Ted.
Ted nods. “That sounds great. I’m just excited to get to know Schlatt’s best friend.”
“Let’s go to the living room,” Schlatt says. The three of you take a seat on his couch while he orders the sushi on DoorDash.
“So (Y/N), what do you do for work?” Ted asks you.
“Oh cool. Did you dye your own hair? I like the blue tips.”
“Oh yeah I did. Thank you. I have a pretty lenient schedule. Gives me more time to do my various hobbies.”
“What are your various hobbies then?” Ted asks, focusing on you.
“Oh god. I have so many. I crochet, I read, I play piano and I recently started coloring,” you tell him.
“Interesting. How do you have time to do all that?”
“I create my own schedule so I can work as many or as little hours as I choose. I’ve been at my shop for a while so they let me do what I want,” you tell Ted.
“That’s one thing I like about YouTube. I can pretty much work whenever I please.”
“Yeah it’s good for you since you barely upload,” Schlatt replies.
You let out a laugh. Ted looks between the two of you. “I upload. I just don’t want to spoil my viewers and make them get bored of the incredible content I make.”
“I must admit. As one of your viewers, it’s a little treat when you actually post,” you tell him.
He gives you a big smile. “Thank you. I’m glad to know I have such good looking viewers,” Ted winks at you.
Schlatt narrows his eyes at Ted as you blush a bit. “So Ted, how was your road trip?” Schlatt asks, getting the attention off of you.
“It was really fun. Tucker and I just drove around the US, exploring random places. Have you ever taken a road trip?” Ted asks you.
“Unless you count me helping Schlatt move back to New York. Not really. I’ve never really had the time or the money to do so,” you admit. Schlatt had promised you a trip to Japan at some point. However, you told him you wanted to raise the money yourself. You knew Schlatt would pay for everything, but you didn’t want to use him.
“You should go on one! They are a lot of fun! You could join me on my next one. I’ll even let Schlatt come along,”
“They don’t want to ride in your old truck. They might fall through the hole in the passage seat,” Schlatt chimes in.
“I’m not that tiny,” you pout.
“And I’m not huge, Toots,” Schlatt says. You flip him off.
The doorbell rings, alerting you all that the sushi had finally arrived. Schlatt gets up to answer the door. Ted turns to face you. “My truck does not have a huge hole and you’re welcome to ride in it any time,” he tells you, loud enough for Schlatt to still hear him.
Schlatt returns and places the sushi on the coffee table. “I got a lot of different rolls so we can all just share. That’s usually what (Y/N) and I do anyways,” he says.
“Awesome. Thanks Schlatt,” Ted says. “What was Schlatt like as a kid?”
“Not much different than he is now. He has always been quiet, but also Incredibly funny. He also was just as loyal and dependable as he is now. I have always been proud to call him my best friend,” you admit. Even though it may be sappy, you never pass up the opportunity to brag on your best friend. You had said similar things to Paige at work. You hated being single some days, but you hated Schlatt being single even more. He’s such a great guy who deserves to be loved by someone.
“Wow, don't get all soft, Toots. Don’t let them lie to you, I’ve always been an asshole. They’re the one who’s all those things and so much more,” Schlatt says, making your heart skip a beat. When he says things like this, it makes you jealous of his future partner. You know he’s going to be such a great husband to his spouse.
“You do seem really great (Y/N). I’m glad I got to meet you tonight,” Ted tells you. You feel your cheeks getting redder. Ted is obviously flirting with you right? You weren’t the best at judging if people were flirting, but you felt like he was. Ted is a very good looking guy and one of Schlatt’s friends so maybe you should flirt back.
“You seem really great yourself, Ted. Glad that you interrupted our hangout,” you tell him.
“Ted, were you planning on staying the night?” Schlatt asks.
“I was hoping I could. I have my bags in the car,” Ted says.
“That’s fine. It’s just (Y/N) was going to spend the night and they usually sleep in the guest bed.”
“I can sleep on the couch. I am tiny after all,” you say. Schlatt’s couch is comfortable and you don’t mind.
“You’re not sleeping on the couch. Ted can sleep on the couch.”
“How about Ted takes the guest room and we can share your bed? We used to do it all the time when we were kids. I always stay on my side of the bed so it won't be an issue,” you offer.
Schlatt doesn’t look convinced. “Or we can share the guest bed,” Ted says to you.
“(Y/N), that’s a great idea. We did it all the time as kids. Why not as adults? What’s the worst that could happen?” Schlatt says.
The three of you decide to watch a movie. Schlatt lets you choose and Ted agrees. That is how you end up watching Tangled. Even though you don’t know Ted very well, you don’t let that stop you from singing along. You smile to yourself when you hear Schlatt humming to himself. The singing keeps you awake. A few times during the movie, your hand accidentally touches Ted’s as you both grab for some sushi. He lets you have it every time.
After the movie, you all get ready for bed. “Night Schlatt, Night (Y/N), sleep tight,” Ted says, before going to the guest room.
“Good night, Ted. It was nice meeting you,” you tell him, going to Schlatt’s room.
“Ted’s single right?” You ask Schlatt, while washing your face in his on suite bathroom.
“Just wondering. Did you see how he was flirting with me tonight? Maybe he was just being nice, but it really seemed like he was flirting with me.”
“I think he was just being nice, Bub. He has a flirty personality.”
You sigh. “You’re probably right. I just thought maybe. He’s your friend, so he’s obviously a good guy. He’s also pretty attractive.”
Schlatt just looks at you. “He lives way too far away. You don’t want your first boyfriend living across the country. You need someone who you can go on dates with and that will spoil you here.”
You just nod. “You’re right. I was just being optimistic. Thank you for always looking out for me.” You kiss him on the cheek as you walk back into his room. You miss the way his entire face turns red and the way he stays paralyzed for a second.
He takes a deep breath and walks into the room. You have already tucked yourself in. You have unintentionally put yourself on the opposite side that Schlatt usually sleeps. He makes his way into the bed and lays beside you.
“You know you can take your shirt off. It’s not like it’s nothing I haven’t seen before,” you tell him. He nods, before pulling his shirt off. “Comfy?”
“Awesome. I sleep like a rock, so don’t worry about me cuddling you in the middle of the night. Also sorry if I snore,” you tell him.
He laughs slightly. “It’s okay. I’m sure I snore as well.”
“Night Toots,” he says. After a little while when he thinks you are asleep, he mutters softly, “I love you.” Before pressing a gentle kiss to the top of your head.
You lay still, pretending to be asleep. Surely he means it in a friendly way, right? You choose to ignore it and drift off to sleep.
A/N: ahhh I love writing this story!! Parts might start being not as frequent as I have to go back to work next week. Boo!! Anyways thank you so much for enjoying this! Let me know what you think!
