outerbanks imagines.

begin again-jj

{this imagine is playing on the song begin again by taylor swift.
it's linked above if you'd like to listen & read along!
<3}

y/n l/n looked at herself in the mirror and took in a deep breath in,
checking every angle of herself to make sure she looked perfect for the night ahead.
her makeup looked right,
her outfit looked stunning,
her hair was beautifully done,
but still something felt wrong.
and that's when she finally realized what it was:
the high heels on her feet.

i don't like them on you.
they make you look too tall.

y/n shook away the voice of her ex-boyfriend from her head then quickly took the shoes off in a moment of insecurity.
she then replaced them with a flatter heel that returned her to her normal stature.
when she checked the time to see that she was already running behind schedule,
y/n quickly grabbed her purse and went out the front door.
she began driving carefully,
though going a bit over the speed limit to arrive there on time,
and listened to the song play from her phone and into the speakers.

this song is awful.
i don't get it.

y/n groaned at the ringing of her ex-boyfriends voice again,
making her change the song.
she didn't think she'd last the night without hearing his taunts.
tonight was y/n's first date with someone new after a rough relationship was left behind.
to say she was terrified didn't nearly do her anxiety justice.
she thought she had healed from all the damage inflicted on her by him,
but it seemed all of it was becoming undone the closer she arrived to her destination.
y/n then walked into the restaurant and saw that she arrived five minutes ahead of the set time.
she expected the boy she was meeting to be late;
she was waiting on the excusing text from him.
but instead,
her peripheral caught him standing up from a table adjacent to her.
he waved in greeting.
y/n couldn't help but smile at this.
she walked over to where he stood and said a small,
"hey, jj."
"hey, you. you look amazing."
she hugged him cordially,
feeling the warmth he offered in return.
her cheeks were burning at the suddenness of it all.
when she pulled back,
she said,
"thank you. so do you."
and it was true;
jj looked so handsome.
he wore his best outfit for the evening.
it warmed y/n's heart to know how much effort he was putting into their date.
he winked at her in thanks,
bringing light to those bright eyes of his that could make every worry of hers disappear.
he then pulled her chair out for her and said,
"here. let me help you in."
y/n took his extended hand and allowed for him to seat her.
she felt a flutter begin in her ribcage.
"thank you. you don't know how nice that is."
jj took his seat across from her and replied with,
"it's what a wonderful woman like you deserves. it's the least i could do."
she couldn't remember when the last time she had been around such a gentleman was.
the conversation between them continued for a while longer,
and y/n soon began to warm up in his company.
she suddenly didn't feel so frigid;
being with jj was easier than she could have ever imagined.
"and that was the end of it?"
jj asked as she neared the end of her story about an eight year old y/n seeking revenge on her neighbor.
she shook her head.
"no. it ended with me cutting the flowers up in her garden. she was pissed, i'll tell you."
jj threw his head back laughing like a little kid.
it made y/n hide her laugh behind her hand rather sheepishly.
"i think it's strange that you think i'm funny,"
she admitted with a sigh of swelling elation.
"why's that?"
cause he never did.
"i don't know. but it's nice...thank you."
"just giving credit where credit is due."
jj reached for her hand across the table and allowed for their fingers to thread themselves together.
she felt a wave of flame begin where his skin touched hers.
y/n had been spending the last eight months thinking all love ever does is:
break, burn, and end.
but on a wednesday in a cafe,
she watched it begin again.
***
jj and y/n had only gotten closer as the days went by.
after their date in the cafe,
she had fallen harder than she anticipated.
how could she not?
jj was practically heaven sent;
the angel she'd been waiting for.
"i don't think i've met a girl with as many the neighbourhood records as me."
jj said after she allowed him into her room.
he was currently hovered over her vinyl collection,
examining them for any recognition.
y/n laid herself on her bed then smiled.
"i do."
"yes, you do,"
he agreed with a tone of ease,
walking to where she sat to place a gentle kiss to her lips.
"who introduced you to the neighbourhood?"
jj asked while now sitting beside her on the bed.
"my best friend. she and i used to listen to them for hours together. studied with them playing in the background, in the car, in the shower, you name it. we even went to a concert together."
"yeah? how was it?"
"so good! seriously, it was life changing."
y/n then caught onto the look in jj's eye;
attentive and drawn in.
she couldn't help but turn away from his lingering gaze and hide her cheeks that were now aflame.
jj turned y/n's head back towards him with the slight influence of his finger to her chin.
when she met with him again,
his thumb didn't move away from her face;
she felt goosebumps rise to her skin beneath his caress.
"why are you coming off a little shy?"
"i don't know...not used to this attention, i guess."
jj nodded,
having some understanding of her previous relationship,
then kissed the corners of her lips to soon place a soft kiss to the center of them.
"you know...i've been spending so much time thinking all love ever does is break, burn, and end. but in that cafe....i watched it begin again. all thanks to you, j. i...i can't thank you enough."
"i'm with you every step of the way, l/n. you can count on me."
they soon met in the middle for a kiss of promising,
she felt every doubt inside of her fade.
***
when y/n and jj had finished their date,
celebrating their anniversary together,
they walked outside to be met with the fresh, salty air of the outerbanks.
it was a beautiful night,
bright and warm,
almost like the boy beside her.
they were walking to her car when y/n suddenly felt the impression of her ex's name rise against her tongue.
she nearly wanted to spit it out,
tasting how acrid it was in her mouth after all this time.
but before she could say anything harmful,
jj began to speak,
"yesterday, the pogues and i watched this new movie that came out and man, it was great. it was so action filled and gore-y! i think pope even got a little nauseous."
the two of them laughed at this,
distracting y/n from whatever she'd been struggling with before.
jj then draped an arm around her and pulled her close to plant a kiss to the top of her head.
"what's past is past,"
y/n mumbled against his chest where she was free to inhale the scents of his cologne,
washing away whatever lingering memories there were of her ex.
and suddenly they were gone to be replaced with the savoring love of jj maybank.
y/n didn't know what the future had in store for them,
but she was confident they would face it together and fall in love even more.
after so long of being hurt,
tossed aside,
and loved to a limit,
here she was:
being loved with a full heart.
just when she thought love was completely hopeless,
she watched it begin again.
—
an:
hi guys !! <33
it's been so so long since i've written an imagine to play from a song like this!
it was so fun to write and this song makes me scream it's so good
anyways,
i hope you enjoyed <33
please lmk what you thought !!!
i love to hear feedback !
as always,
stay safe and healthy <3
i love u !
-e