Work Text:
“Hey Sara! Wanna go to karaoke today?”
Sara looked up from her lunch, smiling at her best friend. “I thought we were saving karaoke for this Saturday?”
“Well, yeah,” Joe laughed, scratching a spot on the back of his neck. “But… I heard they, uh, switched up the furniture or something?”
“I see,” Sara replied, her smile widening. “Why not?”
“Sweet! Thank you, Sara!”
A few hours later, Sara stood at the gate of the school, waiting for Joe. Normally, it was the other way around, but she got out of Yearbook Club early today.
Joe came running up to her, slinging his book bag over his shoulder. “Sorry for being late! Track kept me a while, haha!”
“It’s fine,” Sara said.
They set off down the sidewalk, chatting aimlessly while they went to their favorite karaoke place.
“Hey Sara,” Joe said. “Can I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”
“What animal is the Pink Panther?”
“A- Wait, I’m sorry, what?” Sara laughed.
“What animal is the Pink Panther?” He repeated.
“Joe, please tell me you’re not serious,” Sara said, trying to hide her smile.
“Like, it’s just a question I’ve had for a while! Do we really know what animal the Pink Panther is-?”
“Joe, say that again but slower.”
“Do we really know what animal the Pink Pant- oh my God.” Joe’s eyes widened at his realization, and Sara had to fight back her laughter.
“Please tell me that was just a bit,” she said.
Joe folded his arms across his chest, face flushing. “Of course it was! I was just testing you!”
She chuckled. “Sure you were.”
“I was! I swear!” He replied, throwing his arms up in the air.
Sara started laughing, and their walk continued.
It didn’t take much longer to get there. Sara has always thought the place was a little run-down, but it had good prices at least. Their conversation remained nearly unbroken until they got the key to their room. Joe quickly took it from the attendant, trying to hide the number on the tag.
“Sara, you’re not gonna believe it.”
“Try me!”
Joe hid the key behind his back, starting backwards down the hallway. Sara followed him, trying to see behind him for the key.
“I said, you’re not gonna believe me!”
“Come on, it can’t be that bad, right? It’s not like we-“ Sara stopped, face flushing. “No way.”
Joe sheepishly held out the key, letting her see the tag on it that just held the number 5. She took the key, turning redder than before.
“You’re kidding.”
“I wish I was!”
Sara thought about the last time she and Joe had been at karaoke. She distinctly remembered hearing the couple in the next room over getting… a little too comfortable.
“They put us there?!”
“Shh, shh,” Joe laughed. “It’s fine, it was only one time, right?”
He took the key back from Sara, unlocking the door and letting her walk in first.
Sara picked up the microphone off of the table. “Do you mind if I go first?”
“Go for it!” Joe plopped himself down onto the couch.
Sara scrolled through the list of songs, trying to find something she knew. Eventually, she just chose an easy one that she had memorized.
“Don’t mess up,” Joe joked, a smile on his face.
“Don’t jinx me!” Sara huffed, pressing the button on the music player.
Peppy music started to fill the room, set to max volume. Sara let out a little cry of surprise and turned it down.
“Do you think-“
“I don’t wanna know,” Sara laughed, restarting the music.
Sara started to sing along to the music, quietly at first, but gaining her confidence fast. Joe tapped his foot along to the beat, watching her. As the song continued, she started to move a little with the music, smiling at Joe as an invitation to join in. The song moved into an instrumental bit, giving Sara a moment to breathe.
“You’re a real idol!” Joe laughed.
“Oh really?”
“Yeah!”
Sara laughed, getting an idea. She leaned up against the CD player, resting her free hand on the fast forward button.
“It’s a long song, huh?” Joe said. “You sure you’re okay? I can grab you a water if you want.”
“I’m fine!” Sara smiled. She straightened herself up, sneakily pressing the forward button as she did. The music scratched to a halt, then a new song started up. It was much faster than the previous one, and Sara tossed the microphone to Joe.
“Wha-?!”
“Why don't we be idols together?” Sara said, picking up the other microphone. “Let’s make it a duet!” She held out her hand to Joe with a smile on her face.
How could he say no to that?
He took her hand, smiling back. Sara pulled him onto his feet, already singing her part. The cheerful music filled the room as the pair sang their hearts out, both smiling wide. If Sara didn’t know better, she’d say that this was a scene out of High School Musical. The rest of the world seemed to melt away as the two focused on each other. Sara wanted to stay like that forever.
The song ended much faster than Sara wanted. She looked back at Joe, who was fanning himself with his hand, face flushed red.
“Oh, gosh, are you okay?” Sara asked, concerned.
Joe laughed. “Yeah! It’s just kinda hot, y’know?”
“They’ve really gotta invest in an AC system,” Sara chuckled.
“I know, right?”
And so it continued. The hour passed like it was seconds, and they didn’t even realize at first that it was up until an attendant came knocking at the door.
“Excuse me, but if you’re not going to pay for extra time I’m afraid you’re going to have to leave.”
“Oh crap, sorry!” Sara said, opening up the door and handing them an extra 10 dollars. “Here, keep that, we’re just on our way out, I’m sorry.”
“It’s no problem, Miss. Have a nice day!” The attendant smiled and disappeared down the hallway.
Sara took Joe’s hand and the two left karaoke. It was already pretty dark out, so the two stuck to the sidewalk. As they passed under a street lamp, Joe stopped and turned back to Sara.
“Hey,” he started.
“What’s up?”
“That was… really fun.” Joe looked down at their interlocked hands. “And, uh,” he laughed a little, looking away for a sec. “Can I tell you something?”
“Of course,” Sara replied, smiling.
“You know you’re my best friend, right?”
Sara nodded.
“Well… I wanted to know…” he said, squeezing her hand. “What if we were more?”
“Like…” Sara said. “Best best friends?”
Joe turned beat red, letting go of Sara’s hand. “Oh yeah that’s totally what I meant,” he laughed nervously.
“Wait…” Sara jolted as the dots connected. “Oh my God, wait, you mean like- like boyfriend and girlfriend?”
“It’s fine if you don’t want-“
Sara burst out laughing. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry! I swear, I’m too dense for my own good.”
“H-huh?” Joe turned back to Sara.
“Joe,” she started, smiling. “I’ve liked you for a long time. Of course I’ll be your girlfriend.”
“W-Wait, really?”
“Yeah, really!”
Joe pulled Sara into a tight hug. “Oh, thank you, thank you!!”
She giggled. “What are you thanking me for?”
“Saving me from a lifetime of embarrassment, of course!” he replied.