watermelon smiles (ryan ross x reader)

~chapter three~

// edited: 9/10/2018
reasons/fixed: i hated the way most of this was written, so i fixed ryan's POV A LOT. it now shows how awkward he truly is. please read this chapter or YOU WILL BE REALLY LOST. plus, i fixed plot holes everywhere. i thought i was going to fall through the damn floor. //

January 3, 2000 - Ryan's P.O.V.

I ran my sweaty hands through my dark brown hair that sat in a mop on my scalp, nervous for the day ahead. Today was the day that I'd see (Y/N) again. And Brendon. And Spencer. And Jon. And she'd hopefully - well, not hopefully but it would be nice. I guess. - be sitting with me (and, well, the other guys, too) at lunch. It's totally cool. Nothing new. It's just like hanging out with the... buddies. The dudes. The bros. Just bros bein' dudes. Dudes bein'... bros.

I exhaled in exhaustion. I had to be honest with myself: I wasn't used to being around girls in such a vicinity, even though I felt like I should be comfortable around (Y/N) as Brendon talks about her all the time. But, for some reason, I couldn't seem to put my finger on why I was so nervous about seeing her today. Like, I'm not sexist or anything! I just... never really hung out with them is all. I never really clicked with any specific girl, or any person until I met Jon and the gang, platonic or otherwise. Not to sound cliche or anything, but my best friend for these past few months was my brother's old Gameboy. I sigh. Again. Even in my head I ramble a lot.

"Just focus on getting ready, Ryan." I said to myself, turning on my shower. A shower should help take some things off my mind.

*****

I towel-dried my hair first and then blow-dried it, leaving it in a soft wavy-ish pile on top of head, all-the-while quietly singing some annoying pop song that I had stuck in my head.

Hey now, you're an all star. Get your game on, go play.
Hey now, you're a rock star. Get your show on, get paid.

It truly was awful.

I proceeded to get dressed, pulling on a plain navy shirt, and a pair of black skinny jeans that previously lay on my floor. Glancing up at my glowing alarm clock, I noted that it was 5:57 and that I'm supposed to meet Brendon at the bus stop at 6:00. I quickly buttoned my jeans and grabbed a pair of socks out of my drawer, rolled them on, slipped my Vans on, grabbed my bag, and headed out into the wintry morning. Whew.

The sun was just barely peeking out from behind Sunrise Mountain, casting its first golden rays across the city. The dark navy sky was illuminated with brilliant shades of pink, orange, and yellow, replacing the neon glow that was there minutes before: it was like the day had met the night. The purple mountains surrounding the valley had started to glint with golden light. Who knew something so beautiful could happen in Vegas?

Someone whistled and it echoed down the empty street. I stopped gazing at the sky and looked down the road to see Brendon and (Y/N). Brendon was jumping up and down, trying to flag me down like a maniac. (Y/N) was giggling at him as she stood on her toes, waving at me with a smile evident on her face. It made my chest do this weird thing...? No. That can't be it. She can't be it. I must be getting sick.

She was actually dressed today and she looked absolutely... I don't know exactly how to describe her. She didn't look bad! Not at all! That's not it! She looked... nice, to put it simply. She'd picked out a light blue sweater and paired it with black leggings, fuzzy brown winter boots, and a pair of grey gloves.

I ran toward the pair of them at top speed and skidded to a halt when I reached them. I accidentally kicked rocks at them.

"Hey!" Brendon yelled. "Watch out!" (Y/N) was still giggling.