Work Text:
Taylor & Ben
The door to her room opened yet again for the third time in ten minutes. Sometimes, she really wondered if she was the only one out of the two of them who has been gifted with patience. She glanced up at an impatient and glaring Tyler staring back at her. Yeah, she really was the only one.
“Taylor,“ he whined and dragged her name out, throwing his head back like a toddler who was throwing a tantrum. The chances of Tyler recreating one were very high in that moment. She just rolled her eyes and looked back at the two matching papers in her hands, nervousness and anxiety filling her.
She planned this day for two whole months, recreating every possible scenario in her head, - even one where the phantoms would randomly show up and the lead singer turned out to be one in disguise - and figuring out how to ask her crush out.
Originally, her plan was to meet up with him some time, taking him to one of his favourite places, (their local record store) and romantically get down on one knee, pull out the two concert tickets and beg him - she would definitely do that - to go out with her to that concert on a date.
This was supposed to happen a month ago tho. She tried exactly twice in that time and chickened out every time, always ending up texting Aiden for advice, and now she can confidently say he doesn’t have any good advice. Now, she’s sitting on her bedroom floor, five minutes before they‘re supposed to meet up with the others, one day before the concert and has yet to ask Ben.
Ben Clark. The boy she has been intrigued by since the day she met him, and has had a crush on since he first saved her from a phantom by punching it. The boy who was always so nice and helpful, and yet the world was so cruel on him. The boy who makes her heart flutter with every smile directed towards her and the boy who would do anything for his friends and family. The boy who-
The tickets were ripped from her hands.
What the heck!?
She gazed up to find her annoying twin brother standing in front of her, looking at her with his eyebrows raised, the tickets between his index and middle finger. Rude.
“Are you okay? You were zoned out and started grinning like a mad man.“ He questioned with a very obvious annoyed tone, but with a hint of worrisome. She sighed quietly, he always worried way too much about her.
“I‘m fine,“ she replied as she stood up. „And don’t take my tickets, weirdo.“ She snapped as she snatched her The Neighbourhood concert tickets back. He just held his hands up defensively and backed away a few steps.
“Alright Mrs. Clark, I will leave you to it. Oh, and by the way, we‘re already late so you better hurry up. We don’t wanna keep them waiting any longer,“ he said as he slowly strides out of the room.
She straightened the tickets again before carefully placing them in the envelope, where she already wrote the words Will you go on a date with me? on. Tyler helped her with it. He was the second person she told about her crush on Ben, and even if he was overprotective at the start, she managed to calm him down, arguing that Ben was a good guy and wouldn’t hurt her.
„You mean you don’t wanna keep your boyfriend wait any longer. I mean, we don’t wanna have him expire from lovesickness before you even get out the door,“ she snarled, which earned her a thrown up middle finger before her brother left her room wordlessly, already texting Logan.
She took one last look at the envelope, before nodding to herself and following Tyler out.
She could do this.
She could not do this.
Her leg was bouncing up and down under the table and she was starting to seriously sweat. Every time she even thought about going up to that masterpiece of a boy who was sitting one chair over - she wanted to sit in the chair next to him, but Aiden got there before her, which made her kick him under the table - she got scared and stayed seated.
She glanced back up to Ben again, who was showing one of his drawings to Logan right now. From her own experience, she could tell that it probably was something gorgeous again, maybe a lake with the sun shining right on it ,surrounded by trees that had all kinds of colours. Okay no, she was getting off track here.
How was she even supposed to do this? She couldn’t just walk up to him and say Hey Ben, I have this huge crush on you and I bought us concert tickets, because I stalked your Spotify playlists for weeks and found out who your favourite band is. I also am like, really obsessed with you, by the way. Wanna go out? She cringed internally and shook her head. Only a miracle could save her now.
“Hey guys, Logan and me are gonna go now. We have a date night planned and don’t want you single bitches there, so bye!“ Tyler announced as he stood up, grabbed Logan’s hand and nearly bounced out of the diner they were at. She caught him giving her a secret thumbs up just before he exited the building, right before turning back to his boyfriend.
She was really happy for them. Ever since their dad died, Tyler didn’t really allow himself to do anything fun. It was always about taking care of her and mom, but never about taking care of himself. She always knew he wasn’t really happy. She could see it in the tight smiles or in the behaviour changes, but then Savannah happened, or Logan happened, and for the first time in a very long time, her brother was happy again (apart from all the trauma Savannah caused him).
But just sometimes, late at night in her bed when she couldn’t sleep again, she felt jealous of their relationship and wished that she could also have someone like that. Someone that takes care of her and that she takes care of. Someone where she felt happy and content and fulfilled and just be herself around. And then Ben came along, and she finally felt… well, everything. He was her safe place.
She would love for him to be her boyfriend, only for that, she has to actually ask him on this date.
“Hey Ashlyn, I heard they got these banger banana milkshakes here. Can we go get two?“ Aiden interrupted her train of thoughts, giving Ashlyn his puppy eyes and jutting his bottom lip out. He looked absolutely ridiculous. She would laugh, if she wasn’t on the verge of a breakdown.
Ashlyn took one look at him, before rolling her eyes and standing up. Aidens eyes literally started glowing and he was grinning like a psycho. He winked at Taylor, before he also stood up and sprinted towards Ashlyn, nearly running a grown man over. Why was he even winking at-
Then it all clicked in her head.
Sneaky bastards.
She turned towards Ben, who was the only person left of their little friend group and had an adorable confused look on his face, but he still smiled at Taylor. It‘s either now or never. Now or never.
“Hey Ben, so… um. I wanted to ask you something.“ she laughed awkwardly as she pulled the envelope out of her bag. Great Taylor, that was smooth. Real smooth.
“I wanted to give you this, but before I do that,“ she started panicking and started shaking her hands. What was she doing? Just give him the damn envelope. „I just wanted to say that you don’t have to do anything that you don’t wanna do. You have rights and you can totally say no.“
What the fuck, Taylor.
She just smiled - or at least she hoped that it looked like she did - and handed him the envelope. Ben already had one eyebrow raised at her, concern written all over his face. Right, she was probably scaring him or something. He took the envelope with a little caution, and read the words, written in her best handwriting if she might say so, on it. His eyes widened and he froze.
Oh God. OhGodOhGodOhGod. That‘s not good. Mission failed. Did she just embarrass herself? Does she have to change her identity now and move to another country? She heard that Spain was great and had good food. Maybe she could live on the beach there? Yeah, maybe-
Someone took her hand gently and placed a second hand on it. Oh, okay.
She stopped for a second. She gazed up and was met with light brown eyes looking back at her. She could feel herself being trapped in it‘s gaze. They were so beautiful.
But there was also a smile. A smile she has seen and studied thousands of times and could draw from memory if she wanted to. She felt herself smiling back, unable to hold it back.
Ben carefully unwrapped his hands from hers and took his notebook and pen in his hands. She watched every movement carefully, still frozen in place. He quickly wrote something down, before a blush made its way on his face and he shyly looked to his side. He turned his notebook so she could see what was inside.
Her smile turned even bigger when she read the words Yes I‘d love to go on a date with you. She squealed and without even thinking of it, she wrapped her arms around him and engulfed him in a hug. When she‘d realised what she had done, she wanted to back away, when there were suddenly also arms wrapped around her waist which kept her in place. She started blushing furiously, before just letting herself be and resting her head against his chest, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.
She could definitely get used to this.
She was officially freaking out.
Her whole room was covered with clothes, yet she didn’t have anything to wear. A real girl struggle. She would‘ve worn jeans and a black top with an oversized jeans jacket, but that felt way too basic. She didn’t have any merch, so that idea also flew out the window. The other tops were either too fancy or too boring, so nothing felt right.
She took one of the pillows on her bed and started screaming in it.
She planned this day for so long, how did she forgot to plan an outfit for tonight? Ben probably wore a t-shirt and jeans and still looked like the most beautiful person that ever walked on earth.
It‘s not fair.
She threw the pillow across the room, without even looking where it goes. Right in that moment, the door opened and whoever came in, made an oof sound right as the pillow hit them. She looked up to see her brother standing at the door, a smiling Ben behind him who was clearly amused. Embarrassed, she quickly stood up and shoved nearby clothes under her bed, which had no use since 98% of her room was still covered in them.
“Hi! I didn’t see you there. Or hear you, for that matter,“ she stuttered out pathetically, trying to sound cool and casual - it was not working. Tyler held the pillow, visibly angry, and threw it back at her. Thankfully, she caught it before it could hit her in her face.
“Yeah. I just wanted to say your date is here. Have fun, but be careful and don’t stay out too late.“ He turned around to face Ben, trying to intimidate him, even though he was two inches shorter, and poked a finger in his chest.
“Take care of her and bring her back by eleven. If you even so much as look at her wrong, I‘ll torture and kill you in the most disturbing ways, that even Jeffrey Dahmer would be scared of me. You understand me?“
Ben looked visibly scared and just gave him a thumbs up. Tyler mumbled a „good“ under his breath, before he retreated back to his room. Taylor just rolled her eyes. „He always does this. Being overprotective, I mean. He doesn’t mean what he says, but I know that he trusts and likes you, so don’t worry,“ she reassured Ben, and motioned for him to come in.
He carefully tried avoiding all of the clothes on the floor as he was making his way towards her, it was a sight to behold, truly. When he was standing in front of her, she noticed that he held a bag in his hands.
“What’s that?“ she curiously pointed at it, already imagining what was in there. Food? Money? Guns? Okay, maybe no guns, but who knows. This is America after all, and everyone knows the stereotypes about quiet kids.
The boy in front of her started blushing, and looked down at the bag before he held his hand out, wanting her to take it. She glanced up at him for a second, but he avoided eye contact at all costs, blushing even more now.
She started smiling, before taking the bag out of his hands and reaching inside. Whatever was inside, it felt smooth and kind of like cotton… like a t-shirt. Why would he give her a t-shirt?
That question was answered when she pulled it out and she realised what kind of shirt it was. It was a black TNBH shirt, with the I Love You Album cover on it. But what really made her heart flutter, was that Ben wore a matching one. Now she was the one to blush, unsure of what to do. Ben must‘ve also felt similar, because he also just… stood there.
Then, Taylor started grinning, feeling like she won the lottery and hugged Ben quickly, before grabbing her favourite black jeans, similar to the ones her date wore, and rushed to the bathroom to change.
Her heart was beating a million miles per hour and she just couldn’t stop smiling like an idiot. She looked into the mirror and yeah, she looked ridiculous, but all of her late night wishes were beginning to come true, so she felt like she had the right to look so stupid.
After she changed in record time, she ran across the hall again to her room, to see Ben standing in the exact same spot where she left him, his cheeks being a bright pink. He looked so cute, it should be criminal. Her heart did weird things again, before she snapped out of it and made her presence known.
“The stadium where the concert is being held isn’t far from here. Do you want to walk there, maybe? I could also blackmail Tyler to drive us, but traffic is getting bad and I don’t know how long it‘ll take us to get there.“
He turned to her, the pink turning into red when he saw her outfit, and started nodding. The more time she spent with him, the more she realised that she would go to war for this boy. Was that normal? Frankly, she didn’t really care.
She grabbed the concert tickets and her phone from her nightstand, before walking with Ben out of her room. They walked past the living room and as she was already half out of the front door, she suddenly stopped when she realised something and did a 360, startling Ben in the process, and took four steps back to look into their living room.
Right there, in the middle of their glass table, was a huge bouquet of flowers. Her favourite flowers. Blue and Red roses. Dozens of them, in a vase. She loved them, but they were too expensive to buy, so she never had any in her house.
She spinned towards Ben, who was smiling at her and rubbing his neck awkwardly. No, he didn’t… - he couldn’t have done this, right?
„Did - Did you… buy these. For me?“ she nearly whispered, unbelieving. This was one of the best and most thoughtful gifts anyone has ever given her. She didn’t even talk about her favourite flowers in detail with anyone, she just casually mentioned it in front of the group one day when they passed by a flower shop and that was it.
Ben just nodded quickly and then looked at her with his big brown doe eyes. Disbelievingly, she took slow steps towards him, and stopping right in front of him. Her eyes were wide and she felt like her heart just might explode. It was such a simple gesture, and yet it meant so much to her. She didn’t know why, she just knew.
She carefully cupped his face with her hands, touching his burning face like he was something delicate that should be handled with care. In a way, he was. She just looked all over his face, searching for something. They both didn’t say anything, just staring into each others eyes. The world felt like it stood still for a moment, them being the only ones there right now.
When she found what she was looking for, she just smiled and intertwined their hands together.
“Thank you,“ she said and dragged him out of the door. They both knew the message behind the flowers, but neither of them said anything. They both knew, after all.
Three hours.
They waited three hours in line before they even entered the stadium. It was loud and everyone was excited. There were people everywhere and the vibe was good. It was exactly her kind of crowd.
Sadly, she can’t say the same for Ben. The poor guy was bumped into more often than not and he didn’t really like overcrowded spaces, which Taylor should’ve considered from the start and apologised about twelve times and Ben reassured her every time that it was okay and she shouldn’t worry about it.
Because she didn’t want to get separated - and maybe for her own personal enjoyment - she held Ben‘s hand the whole time until they were at their assigned seats, where they had a perfect view on the stage.
On their way there, Taylor saw Ben looking at the records they sold there and immediately dragged him towards them to buy one for him. He insisted that he can pay for himself, but Taylor wouldn’t have any of that and reasoned that it was „a thank you for the flowers“.
They had about an hour before it started, and she complained about her hair being in her face all the time, because of the wind. As a result, she now sat on her chair talking about how she found out out that Tyler and Logan were together, (she found them kissing in his bed. Those were the most awkward twenty minutes of her life after that) while Ben braided her hair and listened attentively.
When he was done, she grabbed his hand again and rested her head on his shoulder, - she loves physical contact, sue her - when a young woman, about twenty five years old, stopped in front of them. She had blonde hair and she was smiling down at them.
“You guys are a really cute couple. I wish my boyfriend would‘ve came with me to this concert,“ the woman said, already walking away before Taylor even had the chance to answer. They both started blushing again and she sat up straight, not wanting to make Ben uncomfortable, if he already wasn’t.
Were they even together? They were on a date, but did that already count as dating? Probably not, she doesn’t even know if she wants to be in a relationship with her. Oh God, what if he‘s too uncomfortable now and doesn’t want to be together with her. What if he just left now? She would cry for days probably. Lord, she could never look him in the eye again. That was-
A squeeze brought her back.
She looked down to her hand, only to see that they were still intertwined together. She panicked for a split second, wanting to take her hand back, but Ben just held it tighter, looking towards the stage where the concert was just starting now. She couldn’t see him very clearly, but she could’ve sworn that she saw a smile on his face.
If he was being calm, she could totally be calm too. She took a deep breath, before also looking towards the stage and enjoying the concert she payed for. Besides, she wasn’t alone there. This was her first ever date, and she would enjoy it.
The concert was amazing.
The previous two weeks, she studied every song and every lyric so she could sing every song by heart. Turns out, it payed off. At every song, everyone was screaming the song out and danced to it. Somewhere in the middle of the song Flawless, she and Ben stood up and jumped up and down to the beat, both of them smiling and Taylor laughing.
It was truly an amazing experience.
She also made sure that Ben would enjoy himself. He didn’t scream the lyrics, but he still lip-synced sometimes and grabbed her hand and started dancing to Sweater Weather with her. Ben seemed so happy the whole time, which made her even more happy. She loved seeing him happy, after all.
They also swayed to Cry Baby and RIP 2 My Youth, and she could see a tear rolling down his face, which only made her remember all of the horrible things he went through before he and Aiden moved here. She just held his hand tightly and inched closer to him, hoping to provide some comfort. He seemed to appreciate it, so Taylor would see it as a win.
After the concert ended, they both made their way out of the stadium, trying not to get separated. Thankfully, Ben was a really tall guy, which made him stood out and was easier to find. She felt really tired after the adrenaline wore off, and her legs couldn’t keep her upright for much longer anymore.
She stood on her tippy toes to get closer to Bens ear so he could hear her, due to all the noises around them. Ashlyn would really hate it here.
„Could we take a break somewhere? My legs are about to give out any moment now,“ she yelled in his ear. In response, he bent down in front of her, motioning for her to get on his back. She just laughed at that, but climbed up his back anyway. She shrieked when he stood up and secured her with his hands, like she weighed nothing.
Her cheeks turned pink, but she still laughed. She felt extremely tall now and could direct him to the exit easily. Once they made their way through the swarm of people and outside the stadium, she told him that he could let her down, to which he did as told.
The walk home was quiet, but comfortable. They walked next to each other, just enjoying the presence of each other. Taylor was thinking of how she would like to do this again, as soon as possible to be honest. She was already imagining how their next possible date would look like, when Ben suddenly stopped next to her and turned to face her.
She also stopped in front of him and gave him a confused look. The boy looked a little sheepish to the ground, before carefully grabbing her hands again and facing her. He looked hesitant, and she didn’t rush him.
„I really like you Taylor. Would you want to be my girlfriend?“
Taylor froze.
He talked. He actually used his voice to talk to her. She sometimes imagined what his voice sounded like. From the way Aiden described the day it happened, she thought that his voice was barely there, a whisper of what was once so mighty, but nothing could‘ve prepared her for this.
His voice sounded beautiful.
His voice sounded like a sirens call, luring you in and drowning you in it. Sure, it was scratchy and there were a few voice cracks, but she‘d be lying if she said she wouldn’t die in the most brutal way to hear it again, because she would. Over and over again. His voice sounded perfect and like music to her ears. If she would ever hear him singing, she thinks she might not survive it, she barely survived as of right then.
She was so busy fawning over his voice, that the actual words didn’t register to her, until Ben was already starting to panic, fear in his eyes, and letting her hands drop. When she realised what was about to happen, she grabbed him by his shoulders and stopped him from moving.
“Don’t go!“ she begged, and after a moment he surrendered, standing still. Okay, she was really going for everything now.
„I didn’t mean to scare you. It’s just- your voice. It‘s beautiful Ben, just like you.“ she admitted, not caring that there are probably people around them. She could tell he was shocked by this, but let her continue.
“I‘ve liked you for so long, longer than I was even conscious of probably. And actually, I wanted to ask you to be my boyfriend, but you beat me to it,“ she playfully rolled her eyes, but it resulted in Ben smiling at her, finally relaxing under her touch.
“But I‘m still gonna do it now, because you will not sabotage my carefully thought of plan. So,“ she cleared her throat dramatically, earning a laugh from Ben. She blushed bright red at this sound. There was a lot to unpack there, but she’d do that later.
“Ben Clark, will you do me the honour of being my official boyfriend? I must warn you tho, if you say yes, you‘re stuck with me forever. No take backs,“ she added and was already giggling. God, what was this boy doing to her?
“Yes.“
And well, that was all she needed to close the gap between them and kiss him. She could now say, that The Neighbourhood was her new favourite band. Nothing could beat the music, that some might call was just Ben talking, she could now listen to more often.