overture | newsies imagines

ben tyler cook || 8 letters

you lay silently upon the bed beside your boyfriend, ben. your bodies were inches away from each other, afraid to touch what you were unsure was even yours.

it was your first time ever actually laying down in a bed with him, which seemed sill to be nervous about. but you were anxious as hell, because you were so afraid that you do something that would turn him off.

he was feeling the same way; frightened that grabbing her hand would make her upset.

they'd both agreed on a slow-taken relationship months ago when they first got together. both of them had been hurt enough in the past that rushing into yet another relationship was scary.

but she first started regretting the decision a month or two into the relationship.

ben had seen her cry so many times, and she had seen him upset just as many. she knew him better than anyone else, and he knew her better than she knew herself. it made her so, so happy to have clicked with someone the way you had with ben.

and that right there was the scariest feeling ever.

she stared up at the ceiling, her shoulders tense and her teeth biting down into the skin of her bottom lip. her fingers tapped gently against the bedsheets, afraid to grab his fingers.

ben wanted to tear away the slow part of their relationship and say exactly what he felt, what he'd felt for so long. he'd said them before, but he'd never truly meant them until now. every other girl who he'd ever treasured had been honeymoon stage relationship that never moved past anything.

but, with her, he could see the future clearly.

ben's hand held the bedsheets that she were tapping on- rapidly now- in his hands. he wanted to intertwine his fingers with hers. to kiss her skin and predict their futures through the palm readings written on your palm.

she closed your eyes tightly and scooped his hand into hers. she quickly intertwined their fingers. her shoulders lost their weight when he squeezed.

ben let out a deep breath he didn't know he had been holding.

it felt like the imprints on their skin lined up perfectly, like he was growing to be apart of her. when her hand was in his, he learned overtime that he felt whole.

wasn't that a sign for him? a sign that gave him the final impression that his feelings were genuine?

he should just speak his mind.

ben sat up hastily, not yet releasing her hand from his.

"what's wrong?" her hands began sweating, the anxiety rushing back.

ben sighed, his mouth moving, but the words stuck in his chest. he grabbed her other hand, causing her to roll forward onto her knees.

"y/n," he sighed, his hand moving up to cup her cheek.

"yeah?" her eyes moved between his, swimming in the ocean that took up the aerial space of his pupils.

"i-i think-" he cut himself off, wanting to be sure that he said it properly. "i love you."

she counted the 8 letters behind her eyes, wondering why the simplest of words could have such an impact on her soul. it felt like she was floating above the bed, somewhere in the clouds with ben intertwined in her heart.

"i love you, too," she whispered, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulling him into a crisp kiss.

why was it so hard to say?