In between- Spoke x oc!Fem

XXIX

Later that evening, when we all got home and had a shower, Ro and I found ourselves alone in the kitchen, away from the chaos of the group. He had been quieter than usual during the stream and volleyball game, and I couldn't help but wonder if something was on his mind.

"You and Spoke seem... close," Ro said, his voice casual but with an edge of curiosity.

I paused, not expecting him to bring it up so bluntly. "Yeah, I guess we are."

He raised an eyebrow, leaning against the counter. "You like him, don't you?"

The directness of his question caught me off guard, and I fumbled for an answer. "I mean... I don't know. It's complicated."

Ro gave me a knowing look. "Complicated, huh? You two have been acting like something's going on for a while now. Everyone sees it."

I felt my cheeks heat up again. "It's not like that, Ro. We're just... figuring things out."

"Figuring things out?" he echoed, clearly skeptical. "Avs, you know I'm not the nosy type, but if you're not careful, you're both gonna end up in a weird situation."

I sighed, grateful for his concern but also unsure of how to explain it. "I know. I just don't want to rush into anything. We've got a good thing going, and I don't want to ruin it."

Ro nodded, his expression softening. "Just make sure you both know where you stand. Things can get messy if you don't."

After the talk with Ro, my mind was still spinning. His words made sense—things could get complicated between Spoke and me if we didn't figure out what exactly was going on. But I wasn't sure if I was ready to have that conversation just yet. Not when everything felt so easy and fun.

When I rejoined everyone in the living room, Spoke was already seated on the couch, scrolling through his phone. The rest of the gang was scattered around, half-watching some show on TV, while others were looking through clips of the stream earlier. Bacon and Leo were clearly plotting something mischievous, and Peentar kept glancing between Spoke and me with a knowing smile.

"Look who's back," Spoke teased as I sat beside him, a little closer than necessary. His arm brushed against mine, and I felt that familiar spark again.

"Missed me?" I joked, trying to keep things light despite the heavy conversation I'd just had with Ro.

"Maybe," he replied, his grin widening.

Before I could respond, Bacon interrupted, jumping up with a grin. "Okay, okay, serious question time."

I raised an eyebrow, instantly suspicious. "Um, what now?"

Bacon exchanged glances with Leo and Peentar, who were both smirking. "So, Avs... Spoke..." Bacon started, clearly trying not to laugh. "Are you two dating or what? Because, like, it's painfully obvious to all of us."

I nearly choked on my drink. I glanced at Spoke, but he didn't look nearly as embarrassed as I felt. Instead, he was smiling, like this was all some inside joke.

"We're not dating," I said quickly, trying to sound as casual as possible, but I could feel my face heating up.

"Okay, so what's going on then?" Leo chimed in, leaning forward eagerly. "Because the way you two act... there's definitely something."

I hesitated, unsure of how to answer. Spoke, however, seemed to have no such trouble.

"We're... figuring it out," he said, echoing my earlier words to Ro, but with an easy grin that made it sound way less awkward than I'd managed.

The gang erupted into teasing comments, playful groans, and exaggerated "oohs" and "aahs."

"Figuring it out? That's the biggest non-answer ever," Peentar laughed, shaking his head.

"You might as well be dating at this point," Derapchu added, crossing his arms. "Just saying."

I shot Spoke a look, but he only shrugged. "They're not wrong."

My heart raced. Was he being serious, or was he just playing along with the teasing?

"Anyway," I said, trying to steer the conversation away from us, "what about you guys? Any secret relationships we should know about?"

Thankfully, that seemed to shift the focus, and soon enough, everyone was teasing each other instead of us. But even with the laughter filling the room, I couldn't help but feel the weight of what had just been said. We weren't dating, but it sure felt like something was happening between us—something that was becoming harder and harder to ignore.

After everyone had settled into their rooms or scattered around the Airbnb, Spoke and I ended up outside on the small patio. The air was cool, the kind of crispness that comes after a long day. The sky was clear, with stars scattered across it like tiny pinpricks of light.

I sat on the edge of the patio, my legs dangling over the side, and Spoke sat beside me, close enough that our knees touched. Neither of us spoke for a while, just enjoying the quiet after all the noise and teasing.

"You okay?" Spoke asked, breaking the silence.

I nodded. "Yeah. Just... thinking."

He glanced at me, waiting for me to say more, but I wasn't sure where to start. The whole day had been filled with moments—moments that felt like they were leading up to something, but I didn't know what. And then there was Ro's advice, still fresh in my mind. Was it time to talk about us?

"You've been quiet since the kitchen talk with Ro," Spoke said, surprising me. "He said something, didn't he?"

I sighed, pulling my knees up to my chest. "He just... asked about us. If we were dating."

Spoke didn't seem surprised. "And what did you say?"

"I said we're figuring it out."

He chuckled softly, leaning back on his hands. "That's pretty much the truth, isn't it?"

I looked at him, searching his face for some kind of clue. "Is it?"

For a moment, the playful look in his eyes softened. "I mean... we're not dating dating. But we're also not... just friends anymore, are we?"

There it was. The thing we'd been skirting around for what felt like weeks now. I took a deep breath, trying to put my thoughts into words. "No. I guess we're not."

Spoke leaned forward, his arm brushing mine as he turned to face me fully. "I like where we are right now, Avs. I don't want to rush anything, but... I also don't want to pretend like nothing's happening between us."

My heart fluttered at his words. This was exactly what I'd been feeling—like we were in this in-between  place, something more than friends but not quite defined. It was scary, but also exciting.

"Me too," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper.

We stayed like that for a while, just sitting close, letting the night wrap around us. Neither of us needed to say anything else right then. We didn't have to figure everything out all at once. For now, it was enough to just be here together.

I YAP: 

Guys I've been cooking on the word for this story I swear I'm posting them all today!!!!! Also tysm for 1.9k reads ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥