Trauma At Its Finest (Lip Gallagher X Male Reader)

Ch 8. Life Experience Gained

It's late at night, and everyone is asleep. However, one person in the household suddenly wakes up. It's Kevin, who needs to use the bathroom. Once done, however, he hears the TV from downstairs. Knowing that V is asleep, he concludes it's his younger brother watching TV. He decides to check up on him.

Kevin heads to the stairs and walks down. Instantly, the sound of the TV cuts off. Standing on the stairs, he looks at Y/N, who appears a bit caught off guard.

"Can't sleep?"

"Yeah. Wanted to watch some TV before going back."

Kevin narrows his eyes, reading more into Y/N's words. "It's porn, isn't it?"

Y/N raises an eyebrow. "Uh...?"

"It's alright." Kevin walks further down the stairs to join his brother on the couch. "V and I used to do it all the time. Nice of you to not do it while we're here, though."

"Kevin, it isn't—"

"I'm not mad." Kev assures, grabbing the remote. "Look, I'm cool with it."

However, when he turns on the TV, he doesn't expect to see what Y/N was watching.

"'Cause you know that if you live in your imagination, tomorrow you'll be everybody's fascination. In my victory, just remember me when I make it shine!"

As Kevin sits there, his mouth half open, Y/N looks away, clearly embarrassed. As the intro ends and an episode of Victorious starts, the taller man slowly turns to his younger brother.

"I don't know how to react." Kev says. Y/N stands up, ready to walk away, but his older brother grabs his wrist.

"Hey! What's wrong?"

"...It's just embarrassing." Y/N mutters.

"What is? Watching some TV show made for kids?"

"It's not that." Y/N responds, avoiding Kev's gaze. The older man remains curious. Eventually, the younger brother sits back down. "I sometimes like to fantasize... if life could be different."

"Everyone does that. Why are you embarrassed about it?"

"Well... I always wanted... I always wanted to go to high school." Y/N admits after much hesitation.

This revelation breaks Kevin's heart a little. "You never went to high school?"

"No..." Y/N quietly responds, his face turning away. "I always watch those dumb series and movies about American high schools... but... I kinda wanna live like that. ...Stupid drama, hooking up with some popular boy, having a friend group, bullying the teachers. I... always wanted that."

Y/N doesn't expect Kevin's reaction.

"Aww. That's sweet."

"Shut up."

"I just didn't expect that from you." Kev says with a kind smile, finding this admission makes Y/N a bit more relatable. "Your secret is safe with me."

"Thanks..." Y/N appreciates the gesture, though he's still flustered about his guilty pleasure.

Kevin looks back at the TV, deciding to spend some quality time with his brother. "So, what's this show about?"

-

For whatever reason, Y/N's confession keeps bothering Kev's mind. He feels like this is the first time he might be able to help his younger brother with something personal. It pains him that the Russian never had the chance to experience high school, even though he knows real high school sucks and is nothing like the movies and series. As Kevin's mind races through different ideas to help his favorite guy fulfill his dream, he finally lands on one.