Work Text:
High school AU
1944
Juniper bent over her garden and pulled out some weeds. Then wiped some sweat from her forehead.
"You know I can borrow you some weed spray or something?" A deep voice with a hint of a Midwestern accent called. She looked up from her garden and saw where it was coming from.
The obnoxious neighbor boy always causing some sort of a ruckus.
"Yeah? Well, I'm fine," she tossed the weeds aside into a pile standing up. She pushed her brown hair out of her face and crossed her arms. The neighbor boy was tall and thin with short brown hair falling in his face.
"Joe," he walked over holding out his hand, "Joseph Liebgott."
"Juniper Luz, but I'm sure you already knew that," she shook his hand reluctantly. He did know that already, his best friend was Juniper's twin brother.
"You could say I knew your name already doll," Joe smirked at her. He reached to tuck some hair that came out of her braid behind her ear.
"Don't," she put her hand up blocking his hand. He rolled his eyes.
"Don't play hard to get," Joe pouted and crossed his arms taking a step back.
"Okay well Lieb, George is inside. So you can leave me alone or I can tell him his friend is harassing me." Juniper smirked and pointed her finger at him.
"Joe! What're you doing here?" George pushed the door open interrupting the argument between the two.
"I was Just asking Juniper where I could find you," Joe shot a wink at her.
"Is she being mean?" George asked walking over and pushing his hair out of his face.
"No," Joe giggled and shook his head. He took a glance down at Juniper's chest as she was wearing a button-up.
"Okay well I'm going inside," juniper picked up her pile of weeds and threw them into the garbage can before letting herself in.
"We're you hitting on June?" George looked at his friend.
"Pshh, no. A dame like her must already have a boy." Joe huffed stuffing his hands into his pockets.
"Okay, just don't hit on my sister and she's single but don't take that as an advantage." George looked at his friend.
Juniper stood in her room looking at the jewelry laid on her vanity. She couldn't deny that Joseph was cute and she might have a crush on him.
Joe sat at his desk with his sketchbook out looking at the girl through her bedroom window. He smiled as he started to draw her.
He watched her clean up her room then read a book at her desk. Not once noticing the neighbor boy peering through his window at her
Joe finished his drawing and shut his sketch pad as his mother called him down for dinner.
"What do you want Liebgott?" Juniper didn't even have to look up from her garden to know the pesky boy was back to hassle her.
"To ask if you wanted to be my date to the movies," Joe tapped his foot against the grass as he waited for the girl to answer.
"If I say yes will you leave me alone?" June stood up and looked up at the boy with doe eyes.
"Yeah, and I bet I can get you to fall in love with me." Joe crossed his arms looking at her.
"Whatever what time and what movie?" She raised her eyebrows.
"I'll find us a time and movie in tomorrow's newspaper and then we'll talk." Joe took a step closer to Juniper.
"Alright," she crossed her arms trying to appear tougher. She even wore pants instead of skirts and dresses which wasn't common.
"It's a date," Joe smiled at her showing off his lopsided smile.
"No it's not, now go home Liebgott." Juniper smiled and pushed him back towards his lawn.
"Aw come on Luz," Joe pouted as he took a step backward.
"You're a pain in the ass there Joe," June took another step towards him and tripled over Joe's shoes and they both went tumbling back into Joe's lawn. Their faces were close together and Juniper's hands were on his chest.
Joe smiled and kissed her. She was as surprised as he was when she kissed him back.
They pulled apart as George pulled into the driveway. Juniper pushed herself up and off of George.
"What the hell Joe!" George jogged over and pushed his friend back, "I told you to not try to get with June!"
"George stop I tripped and we fell it's all!" June grabbed George's arm and stopped him from punching his best friend.
"Is that true Joe?" George looked at her then Joe.
"Yeah," Joe sighed looking at the ground.
Juniper rolled her eyes and pulled her brother inside with her. A smile then crept onto Joe's face as he went inside.
Of course, the Luz's had invited the Liebgotts over for dinner.
They all ate silently as Joe occasionally kicked Juniper under the table.
"What!" Juniper broke her silence as Joe kicked her again.
"June," Mr. Luz warned his daughter as Joe snickered and she glared back at him.
The adults talked amongst themselves as George, June, and Joe had to clean up dinner.
"You're such an asshole," June rolled her eyes as she scrubbed plates.
"You're the worst ever," Joe remarked as he helped George clean up.
"That's not what your mouth was saying when you kissed me." Juniper huffed and flicked some water at Joe.
"Well you kissed back their sweetheart," he smirked.
"Well you kissed back," George said in his best Joe impression which caused Juniper to laugh at her brother. George always knew how to get the crowd laughing with his impressions. "What I'm getting at is that Joe isn't allowed to go around kissing my sister."
"Shut up George I can take care of myself and kiss who I want. Even if it's Liebgott." She crossed her arms.
Juniper sat at the small desk in the den of her home as she held the phone to her ear. Talking to none other than Joseph Liebgott. She giggled as Joe said something witty.
"So did you find a movie?" Juniper asked.
"Yeah, I think The Philadelphia Story if that's okay with you?" Joe asked her sitting in his kitchen spinning the phone cord in his hands.
"Yeah, I love Katharine Hepburn!" June smiled and yawned.
"You should get some sleep doll," Joe smiled leaning against the wall.
"What about you?" She sighed leaning on the desk.
"I'll get some sleep too, goodnight Juniper." Joe smiled into the phone.
"Goodnight Joe," she smiled and hung up.
"What're you doing up?" George came down the stairs.
"Just talking to a friend," she shrugged and stood up walking to the kitchen to get some water.
"Which friend?" George asked grabbing a cup himself.
"None of your business," she waltzed out of the kitchen and back to her room. She took a drink of water and set it on her nightstand. Crawling under the covers and pulling her lamp cord to turn it off. That night she dreamed about Joe.
Joe knocked on the Luz's door as he waited for Juniper to answer. He held the drawing of her and a rose that he picked from her garden.
"Hi!" June opened the door looking up at Joe.
"Oh Uhm I drew you last week and I thought you might want to have it," Joe handed her the piece of paper. She looked down at it and smiled wide.
"Joe this is amazing! I didn't know you like to draw!" She looked back up at him.
"There's a lot you don't know," he then handed her the rose.
"This Is from my garden isn't it?" She giggled setting the drawing and the rose on the stand in the mudroom.
"It could be," he took her hand as they walked to his car. Joe opened the door for her, she thanked him as she got in and he shut the door.
"So we graduate next year," June hummed and leaned her head against her hand, "What're your plans?"
"I Uh I think I'm gonna drive a cab for my uncles' cab company but my dream is to own my barbershop." Joe smiled as he rested one hand on the steering wheel as he drove them to the movies.
"Oh cool! Have you cut hair before?" Juniper smiled.
"Yeah I cut my sister's hair sometimes," he shrugged.
"Well, I'm sure you're great at it." She sighed.
"What about you?" Joe glanced over at the pretty girl sitting in the car next to her.
"I Uh wanna major in psychology at Berkeley," Juniper smiled playing with her braid resting on her shoulder, "My uncle came home from the war with quite a bit of shell shock and what I've heard is there's not a lot of therapy kind of help. So I just I really wanna help people."
"That's cute," Joe parked his car and got out rushing to June's side to open the door for her. They walked in and got their tickets and went to the theater.
They sat in the back and as the war bond advertisement commercials rode Juniper rested her head on Joe's shoulder.
Joe took the opportunity to put his arm around her. She smiled to herself and kissed Joe's cheek quickly. The tall boy's face lit up a bright red. He smirked to himself, he then took the favor and kissed her cheek.
Halfway through the movie, Juniper looked at him. "Whats up June?" He whispered.
"Nothing," she cupped Joe's face and smashed their lips together. June pulled away and they both caught their breaths. She could still feel his plump lips on his.
"I liked that," Joe smiled.
"It was better than our first kiss," Juniper giggled before kissing him again.
"Wait Juniper," Joe pulled away and held her hand.
"Yeah Liebgott?" She looked up at him.
"Will you be my girlfriend?" He asked her moving some loose strands out of her face.
"Yes," she giggled and kissed him once again.