braiden: you had recently gone out to one of before you exit's shows to support your boyfriend and your best friends. knowing it shouldn't have gotten you down, it did anyway as a fan proceeded to gossip to her friend about you in the crowd. "i honestly don't understand why braiden got together with (y/n). i mean, yeah, she's pretty and all, but she never stops running her mouth! he's a quiet guy, and i wonder if he ever just gets so fed up with her that he's actually happy to leave her when he goes on tour." you absolutely knew that what she said wasn't true, but you couldn't help but let it get to you a little bit. the more and more the thought swam around in your brain, the more you began to believe it. after the show, braiden comes up to you and hugs you from behind, settling his head in the crook of your neck. "how'd we do tonight?" he asks, and you could hear the smile in his voice. "great." you croaked out, not wanting to speak much more. thankfully, he didn't notice. later in the night, however, he did. since you didn't live far from the venue he was playing, he decided to be a gentleman and walk you back home. "are you feeling okay? i haven't heard you utter a word all night." he over exaggerates, while swinging your intertwined hands lightly. "i'm fine; i just don't have much to say tonight." you lie. stopping dead in his tracks, he turns to look at you in the face. "(y/n), i know you. you always have something to say." "well i don't tonight." you snap, and he looks taken aback. you sigh, and hang your head a bit. "alright, i'm not okay. i heard someone in the crowd tonight say something about how i don't shut up and how you probably don't like it." he takes two fingers and raises your chin slightly, to be able to look into your eyes. "to be honest, i love your voice. i can't get enough of it. listening to you talk is one of the best parts of my day, and not hearing it tonight definitely made me a bit sad. i could get lost in a voice like yours, so please, tell me how your day went. i need to know, for real." laughing a bit, you reach up on your tiptoes to give him a small kiss. "thank you for not finding me annoying." you mumble. "what was that? i couldn't hear your beautiful voice!" he teases, grinning a bit. giving you that validation that the gossip was false, you felt a lot better about yourself.
toby: tonight was your date with toby, the one you've been planning for ages now. he's been on tour and performing everywhere, so it's hard for you guys to see each other. disaster strikes as you're getting ready for your date, though. you had just gotten out of the shower, getting ready to put your makeup on until you begin to look in your makeup bag. "where is it?" you say, beginning to panic as you shuffle through the small blue bag. your heart races as you dump out the contents, and frantically look for your foundation, which isn't there. "that's it, i'm not going." you mumble aloud to yourself, grabbing your phone. as you dial toby's phone number, you can't help but to feel a bit bad that you're cancelling on your boyfriend over your biggest insecurity: your freckles. the phone begins to ring, and he picks it up in no time. "hi, baby! are you ready early?" he asks, his voice filled with joy. "i, uh, no. that's why i was calling you. i just got really nauseous, and i don't think i can go on our date tonight. can we have a rain check?" "o-oh. yeah, sure. we can reschedule. anything for you!" he sounds disappointed, but tries to cover it up towards the end. "thank you. i'll talk to you tomorrow, okay?" "alright, feel better." "thanks, i'll try." you reply before hanging up. you end up sitting on your bed, watching netflix for a while before the doorbell rings. trudging to the door, you open it without looking through the peephole at who it was. bad decision. "(y/n)? are you okay?" toby asks, holding flowers, your favorite blanket, and a small stuffed dumbo that he had gotten for you in disney world. as a reflex, you slam the door in his face, but his foot catches it. "baby, what's wrong?" "don't look at me!" you yell, running quickly into your room and throwing the door closed. he then drops his things on your couch and runs to your room. "(y/n), what's wrong?! did i do something? was it bad for me to show up?" "yes!" you reply, your voice giving it away that you're crying. picking the lock, he opens the door to see you on the floor, head in your hands. "what did i do?" he asks, crouching down next to you. you look up, and his face flashes from hurt to amazed. "am i too ugly for you now?" you cry. "no, i've just never seen you without makeup. you're gorgeous without it. and your freckles-" "don't say another word." you seethe. "they're so beautiful and unique. i could sit here and stare at you for hours! why did you hide these from me?" he asks, brushing his thumb across your cheek. "i hate them, and i didn't want to make you suffer and look at them too." "shh. they're perfect. don't be ashamed of them; they make you more beautiful." he reassured you, kissing them lightly. and from that moment on, you began to wear no foundation. his words made you truly feel beautiful and embrace your natural beauty.
