Prompt: Ringo loves you, but he is too scared of rejection.
Era: 1963
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Y/N P.O.V. :
Today I'm hanging out with the lads at Ringo's flat. I haven't seen them in a while because they had been in Hamburg following their dreams. I missed all of them so much, and I'm excited to hear about the trip. I jumped in my Volkswagen Beetle and drove towards the flat. The drive was quite relaxing for me. I was about to knock on Ringo's door when I heard shouting:
"John, you daft sod!"
Well, I'm definitely at the right flat. I knocked on the door and waited. Suddenly, there was a loud thud.
Ringo P.O.V. :
The lads and I were so excited to see Y/N that we all ran to the door. Of course right before George got there, he slipped and fell. Oops. His fault for being lazy and leaving his shoes in the middle of the hallway.
I opened the door wondering if she still looked the same. I was quite mistaken— she wore a beautiful pastel purple shift dress that complimented her gorgeous Y/C eyes and teased Y/C hair.
Paul snickered.
"Earth to Ringo... Ritchie..." Said someone. I wasn't paying attention.
"RICHARD STARKEY DO YE NEED A HEARING AID!!?" Screamed John right into me right ear while clapping in front of me face. If me drumming hasn't already destroyed me hearing, then John definitely just did.
"Oh, sorry Y/N, ye look so different that I could barely recognize ye." I mumbled, clearly embarrassed by John.
"Is that a bad thing?"
"No, ye look great." I said trying to appear confident.
Then I realized she was way out of me league. She'd never like me back. I felt a frown forming.
I have had a huge crush on Y/N since I turned 16. Unfortunately I have put off telling that to Y/N— she'll just reject me and then I'll be frustrated. I'm short, me nose is kinda big, and I'm not as good looking as John, Paul, or George. I haven't told the lads because I don't think they can keep a secret.
John P.O.V. :
We all hugged Y/N, and when she hugged Ringo I winked at her. For tonight the lads and I —minus Ringo—have planned a surprise performance for Y/N. When Ringo was showering last night, Macca and I called Y/N and chatted with her for a bit. George was too busy eating crisps. Anyways, she confided to us that she has liked our dear friend Ritchie for quite some time: since she turned 14 and Ringo was 16. We told George right after we got off the phone. Macca, Joj, and I are going to play a couple non-gushy songs to avoid suspicion from either person. Maybe we'll even have Y/N play the piano, but she gets shy sometimes playing in front of others. Then we'll sing Words of Love by Buddy Holly. If Ringo doesn't get the hint, we'll play She Loves You. That's quite a blatant clue. But with Ringo, who knows if he'll get it. Just kidding. I love Ringo, he's like a brother to me. I want him to be happy, and I want Y/N to be happy as well.
"Hey, let's go over into the living room!" I said nonchalantly. It took a lot of willpower for me to not laugh evilly.
Y/N P.O.V. :
I walked over to the living room. I had a little surprise of my own for the boys. I've sorta gotten over my stage fright, but only for small groups of good friends. I sat down at the piano bench.
"Hey Y/N, what're you do—"
"Shut up Macca!!"
Paul was interrupted by George.
I ignored that comment and replied "I need some singers."
All the lads but Ritchie wanted to sing. I was hoping he would be more confident because I love his singing voice. I began to play Jailhouse Rock by Elvis.
Once the song was over, Ritchie clapped and gave me a thumbs-up. Maybe I'll play for him more often. I loved performing with the boys, but I can't do it for large groups like they do. That takes a lot of bravery.
"Ok, I'm going to sit down now because my hands hurt." I hopped onto a comfy chair near Ringo's.
John, Paul, and George played a couple of their songs. For some reason, Ringo wasn't in the mood to play the drums. His smile transformed into a permanent frown once the lads started to strum their guitars. I wondered why he was acting so weirdly.
Next, the boys start playing Words of Love. As I listened, the lyrics registered in my head:
Hold me close and tell me how you feel
Tell me love is real
Words of love you whisper soft and true
Darling, I love you
Let me hear you say the words I long to hear...
The color drained from my face. Last night I had told John and Macca that I had a crush on Ringo. Had they told Ringo? I looked over at Ringo. His sad expression hadn't changed. I tried to keep calm.
After the song, I told the lads I needed to talk to John and Macca in private. Ringo and George went into the kitchen. Typical.
"What the hell are you doing?" I hissed.
"What do ye mean?" whispered Paul.
"Tell me how you feel? Did you or did you not tell Ritchie that I have a crush on him?"
"I didn't tell him, don't worry. I had a plan to make hints subtly throughout songs. We're pretty sure that he likes you too," John stated.
I blushed.
"How do you know? Did he say something?"
"No, but it's pretty obvious to us that he likes ye! He never shuts up talking about ye!" Paul whisper-screamed.
"Shhhhhh!!" John and I yelled.
"To be honest, Y/N, we are pretty sure he didn't get the hint yet. We were going to play She Loves You next."
"You what?"
"Ye heard me. It's pretty obvious that you both have a huge crush on each other." John replied.
"Oh, my God, I think I'm going to faint" I said. "I never liked anyone as much as I do with Ritchie. He's my childhood best friend, for God's sake. If my friendship with him were ruined, I'd never forgive myself."
John and Paul hugged me. They were pretty much the brothers I never had.
"Ok. I'm so sorry, Y/N. We need to talk to Ringo, just the lads, because he's not being himself right now. He loves drumming, but he wouldn't even play with us tonight."
They left to cheer up Ritchie, and I went outside to take a walk around the neighborhood.
Paul's P.O.V. :
John and I needed to find out what was wrong quickly. We found him sitting alone on a couch, head in hands.
"Hey Rings?" I tried to get him to look up at us.
He slowly tilted his head to face us. He looked so awfully miserable that I started to feel upset myself. What the bloody hell happened to Ringo?
"Ringo, what's up with ye? Ye refuse to play the drums, but ye love drumming. Ye are barely talking to Y/N, but she's ye best friend. Ye smile all the time, but the majority of tonight, the only facial expression I've seen is a frown. Rings, we are very worried about ye." George stated sadly.
Ringo started to speak up.
"All right, I'll tell ye all what's wrong. When Y/N first walked into my flat today, I just couldn't get over how pretty she looked—"
"I knew it!" Yelled John excitedly.
"Anyways, I realized that she's way out of me league. She's been me best friend for years, and I've loved her since I was sixteen. Ye lads can get anyone ye want because ye are good-lookin' but I'm not. I'm short, me nose is huge, and everything else about me is ugly." Ringo explained.
I looked at John. He looked at me. George looked at us. We grinned.
"Why are ye smiling? I just told a sad story about my insecurity." Ringo asked, upset.
"Oh Ringo, ye are so clueless." I started.
" She loves you yeah, yeah, yeah!" George, John, and I sang happily out of tune.
"She what?"
"Ye heard us. She loves ye too. Now man up, go outside, and go sweep Y/N off her feet." John encouraged him.
Ringo ran out the door.
Ringo P.O.V. :
I saw Y/N in the distance walking by herself.
"Hey Y/N!" I called out, hoping she heard me. Y/N jogged towards me.
"I have a confession to make, Y/N. I've loved ye for a long time, and I don't want to lose ye. I was too scared of being rejected, so I didn't tell ye. But I had a little help from my friends though. A certain someone told me that ye might have feelings for me too."
"That swine. Lennon! It's okay though because I truly do have feelings for you."
I inhaled before asking the big question.
"Will ye be me bird, Y/N?"
Her reaction was priceless. She hugged me super tightly, paused, and planted a long kiss on my lips. I grinned into the kiss. All me dreams were coming true, and I couldn't be happier.
"I think we have one more thing to do before I go home. I think a prank is in order for a Mr. John Winston Lennon" She smirked.
We walked back to my flat holding hands, brewing up a wonderful scheme to get back at John.
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Important A/N: Sorry I took a bit to update— I had so many ideas! I hope you liked it!
Do you guys want a part two?
I'd love to get some requests! Peace and love, Emily🌸
