Love is hard (Josh Dun x reader)

Love is hard - Chapter 6

Dinner went as expected. Maddie and Ashley caught up, having known each other for years through their brothers, still occasionally laughing and joking about 'your zoo-boy', as they called Brandon. Jenna and Kelly were happily chatting with each other, while Tyler and his dad conversed, mostly about Tyler's music. Josh sat furthest away from you, on purpose you suspected. He joined the conversation between Tyler and Chris from time to time, but mostly sat in silence. You were quieter than usual, getting annoyed by Maddie and Ashley's jokes and feeling you screwed things up with Josh, even though it was in no way your intention or your fault. "Thanks for the lovely dinner. We should be going now, I'll call you soon." Tyler said to his mom after dinner and coffee. Jenna, Ashley and Josh got up as well, going around the table to say goodbye to everyone. You frantically tried to think of something to say to Josh before he left, thinking you had approximately 5 seconds to say something when he'd come over to hug you. He hugged Maddie, who sat next to you and turned to you. "Can I just..." you softly started, trying to look in his eyes. "Bye, y/n." Josh simply said, ignoring your words completely, leaving without even looking at you. Ouch.

"I'm sorry we teased you about that Brandon guy so much." Maddie said that night when you were in bed. "It's okay, I know you're just joking around." You answered, unable to stay mad at Maddie. "Can I ask you something?" she replied. "Sure, as long as it's not about Brandon." You both giggled. "No. Well, he has a little to do with it." "Okay, go ahead." You answered, getting a little anxious about the upcoming question. "I think... well, I noticed that after the whole Brandon thing, you were like, you know, kinda trying to talk with Josh and like, looking at him the entire time. And I was just thinking... uhm... Are you, like, into Josh or something?" Maddie stammered. You couldn't see her in the dark room, but you were sure Maddie was looking towards you, probably just as anxious as you were. You stayed silent for a few moments, wondering what to answer. "To be honest, I think I might be kinda into him. He's just really... funny and sweet and friendly and interesting." You blurted out. "And hot." Maddie added. "And hot. Definitely hot." You laughed, relieved Maddie didn't seem to be mad. "Look, I'm going to be honest with you. I get it, really, Josh is a nice guy. But truthfully, I don't think he's ready for something serious. And with his traveling schedule and your plans for university, I'm not sure it's a good idea to start something...unpractical." Maddie said. "Oh." You said, flabbergasted. You'd been afraid she wouldn't like your crush on her almost-brother, but her words still shook you. "Well, there's no sense in this talk anyway. You probably saw what happened today, and I clearly messed up." You added, sadly. "Maybe it's for the best. Don't worry, you'll find someone nice. Maybe you should try and find Brandon online!" Maddie said, laughing, trying to lighten the mood. "Goodnight."

You barely saw Madison that weekend. She made plans with her 'old' friends from high school and didn't bother to invite you along. Both of you sensed something changed after your late night talk about Josh. You were disappointed she didn't consider your feelings and clearly disapproved, and she was probably disappointed in you too, or mad. Or both. You texted Josh on Saturday, just saying hi and asking if he had any plans for the weekend. He didn't respond. You had heard Jenna and Tyler were away for the weekend, so you didn't bother texting either of them, not wanting to disturb them. You even texted Ashley to check if she wanted to meet up. She clearly wasn't your first choice, but you didn't want to spend the whole weekend alone in a, still, new town. She didn't respond either, making you wonder if she spoke with Maddie and was mad at you too now. Not wanting to sit at home alone all day, you got dressed and walked to the mall. After an hour of window-shopping, you went to the top floor Starbucks for some much needed coffee. The place was really crowded and standing in a long line, you glanced around the shop, already looking for a place to sit later. Your heart started pounding when you saw Josh and Ashley sitting in the far corner, drinking coffee and talking. They hadn't seen you yet and while waiting on your order you tried to make up your mind; were you going to leave before they saw you, sit somewhere and pretend you didn't see them, or walk over and say hi? You remembered your unanswered texts, and not wanting to embarrass yourself or make it awkward, you opted to get your coffee and leave.