Bookmarked - A Rodrick x Reader Fan Fiction

Chapter 20 - Pizza by the Slice

You were doing it. You were actually doing it. Walking outside in a city at night.

You had your guard dog, Rodrick, who was keeping up his promise, but not letting you leave him. What. So. Ever.

Rodrick kept his arm around you at all times now. Either your shoulder, your waist, your hand; he was on you in some way. It felt comforting knowing he was now trying to make sure you felt safe. You wondered if he felt bad. You had told him on the way here that you were scared to walk alone at night and then the Bodega thing happened.

He must feel awful about the situation because he was all over you. He was right, he wasn't going to let you out of his sight.

You had enjoyed the attention though. Even you could admit that all of that was a nice feeling.

You had come across a small pizza shop on the corner. The red of the brick seemed to glow from the yellowed light of the sign. The shop seemed bustling on the inside and even on the outside, stood customers. You could smell the pizza even from where you stood. Rodrick brought you into the shop, the smell was amplified now.

The shop was loud, from either customers ordering, speaking at their tables, or from the employees yelling out orders. Rodrick had found a table for you, somehow. He made sure you saved your seats so he could order. He left behind his backpack, which held your drinks from the Bodega. You place them on the table and watch as he heads to the counter.

He quickly makes his way to the line and to the register. He gets you two slices of pizza. Once he places them on the table, they're plain cheese.

"How often do you come to New York?" You ask, eyeing those around you. New York had lots of different kinds of looking people. Most people in Plainview all looked about the same.

"Any chance I get. I actually bartend on the weekends here. I just want to get out of Plainview. I have some money saved. Once I start bartending full-time, then I'll move out here." He takes a large bit of the pizza, practically eating half the slice.

"So, you want to be a bartender?" You ask, then taking a bite as well; this one much smaller than Rodrick's.

"I actually want to be a musician. But that's a bit harder to pay bills on. I sometimes play in the bars I work at." You remember that from Rowley's letters. Something about a band. He was a roadie or groupie, one of the two.

"What instrument?" You wonder what he could play. Was he any good? Would you ever hear it?

"I play backup drums for bands who need one, but I also learned guitar and piano recently. Trying to expand my talents. Also keeps my mom from freaking out about me still living at home." He leans back in the booth, his arms stretching over each end. You could see him being a musician quite clearly now. He had long fingers for the piano. He seemed to love Rock which made sense for drums and guitar.

"I did wonder about that. So, you live at home to save money?" You ask, wiping your mouth with a napkin. You always had this fear of something being on your face whenever you ate. It was just something embarrassing to be worried about. And let's be honest, if this really was your first real date, you would be even more worried.

"Well, yes and no. I am saving money, but I think my mom needs me to stay at home. Things between her and my dad have been... weird. Manny, my youngest brother, the one you met; he's been really bad at preschool. Like biting and hitting and even locked the teachers out of the classroom once... So it's been a strain on their marriage, but like, no one wants to hear about that." He scoffs at his last sentence. But it made you think of your own life, your own parents' marriage. You would want to hear.

"I want to hear about it... Is their marriage... Affecting you? Or your brothers?" You ask, hoping he would open up to you. There was something so innocent about sharing things like this. But also so vulnerable. Would Rodrick open up to you? He brought it up, so maybe it's something he wants to talk about.

"I mean, me? Not so much. I just feel like my mom needs me there as a second parent. My dad works and then goes to the basement and plays with his civil war figurines. Which before you even ask, he's interested in the side that won." He puts his hand out as if to stop you from asking. He was right, you were going to ask. It's good to know his dad isn't a racist.

"What about Greg?" You probe farther, hoping he'll answer. This was a very different side of Rodrick. It was mature and thoughtful.

"Well, he was my age when things started to turn bad between them. I mean, it wasn't bad, but they kept secrets from each other, mostly about us. Then Greg started to go through puberty more and Dad found him insufferable. Greg would lie, just like I did, and I don't think my dad could handle another me." Rodrick looks towards the rest of the restaurant, away from the conversation. Maybe he was feeling uncomfortable talking about these things?

"I thought you were one-of-a-kind, Rodrick Heffley?" You joke with him, hoping to lighten the mood a little. Your hand reaches towards him, even though his arms are on the back of the booth seat.

"You're right about that," he smirks at your words. He reaches his hands out, wrapping themselves around yours. "But I think now that Manny is reacting badly, he just wants to be done with this whole fatherhood thing. I don't think he likes any of us. He might like Greg the most. But even that's not saying a lot." Rodrick fidgets with your rings on your fingers, as if trying to distract him from this conversation.

"My parents always wanted kids. They had so much trouble conceiving and then I was born. They were so excited. They were happy I loved school and stayed out of trouble. I don't think either one of them wants adult-me, however. I'm not as easy to control like when I was ten. You know that I'm stubborn and will do whatever it takes to get what I want." You think back to your earlier conversation, where he called you stubborn. He was right. And it was your downfall. Your family's downfall, really.

"You honestly think that?" He squints his eyes at you, not believing a word from your mouth. He probably thinks you had a privileged life. And for a moment, he would be right. But not even your family was perfect.

"Yeah, I broke up my parents' marriage in the name of science. To get my name published in this psychology study. That's the whole reason I'm staying with Rowley for the summer." You lean back in your seat, trying to slump into the booth. Rodrick held onto your hands, not letting you go. It was now your turn in the hot seat.

"What did you do? It can't be that bad." He leans forward, whispering, as if you were about to expose the biggest secret in the world. And maybe you were.

"I proved that the dad that raised me is not my biological dad."

Authors Note: 

Oh my gosh, it has been so hard holding onto y/n's secret. I was hoping that any of you would figure it out, but no one did. Many of you thought she slept with her professor! Haha, did you see that coming? Thanks for reading once again, please leave comments or like or whatever, it really helps motivate!