Work Text:
You were exhausted. You’d just worked your last shift of six nights in a row. In addition, you were studying to get your nurse practitioner’s certification. You had spent literally zero time on yourself in weeks. As such, your two best friends John and Jesse had decreed tomorrow movie night. You’d been too tired to argue. Besides, they’d been reviewing all of your work for your classes and you owed them. If they wanted takeout on your couch while you laughed at cheesy horror movies, so be it.
You shrugged off your coat and put it on the hook by the door, hanging your bag beside it. You couldn’t even think about food until you got some sleep. Your scrubs were stripped off as you shuffled to your bedroom, tossing them in the hamper when you arrived. You plugged your phone into the charger beside the bed before taking a shower just long enough to rinse away the hospital.
You collapsed onto the cool sheets of your bed with a groan. Your eyelids were heavy but the persistent buzzing of your phone kept you from sleep. A sigh left your lips as you fumbled for the device, squinting at the brightness of the screen. The group chat with Jesse and John showed messages from both of them.
Jesse’s message was first: don’t forget to send those case study files before you crash so we can look at them. You said it’s due Monday.
John’s followed immediately: what he said. It’s my turn to pick the movies. No complaining.
You typed a tired response through blurry eyes. I am fucking exhausted. Give me a minute to send the folder. We can talk about it tomorrow.
The message got a thumbs up from both of them. You clicked on the most recent folder in your documents and sent it to the group chat. Your silenced phone barely touched the nightstand before you slipped into sleep.
***
When you woke, you blinked away the lingering weariness. A glance at the clock showed it was almost 4:00 pm. You felt much more human than you had this morning. Your hand reached automatically for your phone and noted with surprise that you had a dozen new notifications, most from the group chat.
Your brow furrowed and you wondered if the boys were arguing over what to get for dinner again. You wiped the remnants of sleep from your eyes and sat up. You tapped the chat to open it.
The most recent message was from Jesse.
Don’t get lost in your head. We’ll see you tonight.
Odd. You scrolled upward trying to make sense of the conversation. And then you saw it—the string of thumbnails. Photos. Your photos. Oh no. no. no. no.
You clicked each of them open in turn hoping you were wrong. You in black lingerie against white sheets. Another in only red panties with an arm strategically placed across your chest. One of you nude from behind, looking over your shoulder with a coy smile and a finger in your mouth.
It was a favor for a friend that wanted to practice her boudoir photography skills. You’d hoped it would make you feel more confident about your body. And you loved the photos, loved the way you looked in them, but you certainly hadn’t meant to send them to your friends. Shit.
You thought back to this morning. You’d sent your most recent file, forgetting Mia had sent the photos toward the end of your shift. Fuck. What was wrong with you?
Your eyes scanned through the messages that followed.
Shen: Not the case study but I am not complaining. Holy shit.
Jesse: These are stunning. Very tastefully done.
Shen: Beyond stunning. Jesus. You can kill me for it later but I’m going to be thinking about these while I sleep.
Jesse: I don’t think that was a necessary comment.
Shen: what? I’m just being honest.
Jesse: we’ve talked about his before. We don’t always need to know everything you’re thinking.
Shen: lies.
Jesse: Listen, sweetheart, we can talk about this later.
Jesse: don’t get lost in your head. We’ll see you tonight.
Oh god. They thought you’d sent them on purpose.
Your hands trembled so badly you nearly dropped the phone. You felt utterly exposed despite being alone in your bedroom.
I am so sorry. Those were NOT mean for you guys. Sent the wrong folder. Please forget you ever saw them.
You stared at the message after sending it, watching as the read receipts appeared almost immediately.
Shen: pretty sure that is physically impossible. Sorry babe
Nothing from Jesse.
You allowed yourself a brief fantasy of strangling John before sending another message.
This is so embarrassing.
The typing indicator appeared and disappeared again. You swung your legs over the side of the bed, suddenly needing to move, to do something.
Jesse: you have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about.
You sucked in a breath. You knew they were trying to make you feel better. To act like it was no big deal but you couldn’t. God, you had never something so humiliating in your entire life.
We should cancel tonight. I don’t think I can face either of you right now. I am so, so sorry.
There was no response from either of them. You groaned and tossed the phone on your bed before burying your face in your hands. Of all people, why did it have to be them? Hell, at least if you’d sent the photos to Abbot or Robby you’d just never look them in the eye again and it would be fine.
John and Jesse were your best friends. You spent most of your time with them. And truth be told, you had a bit of a crush on the both of them. So, of course that’s who you had humiliated yourself in front of, the two men that would never let you ignore them so you could forget this ever happened.
And sure enough, there was a knock on your door at 6:30 sharp. You didn’t need to look to know it was at least one of them, probably both. You weren’t prepared for this mentally or emotionally. They needed to just leave you alone for the next millennia or so. “Go away. I canceled,” you yelled down the hall.
“I have a key,” John yelled back in a singsong voice.
You heard a murmuring from the other side of the door and figured Jesse was telling the other man to behave.
“We brought your favorite,” Jesse’s voice said next.
Knowing they wouldn’t leave even if you ignored them, you closed your eyes, took a deep breath and opened the door with as much dignity as you could muster. You stepped back to let them in, not meeting either of their eyes.
They went through the normal movie night routine, kicking off their shoes, shedding their jackets, grabbing plates from the kitchen. They retreated to your living room and you followed along behind. Your hands twisted in front of you and you still refused to meet their gazes directly.
They exchanged a look that you didn’t try to interpret. “Okay, let’s get this out of the way,” John said. “Sit.”
When you didn’t follow his instruction, Jesse grasped your hand lightly and pulled you down to sit on the couch beside him. Heat flooded your face. John sat on the coffee table in front of you and said your name.
You merely hummed in question.
He scoffed in annoyance and placed a finger under your chin to lift your head. “Stop hiding. You have nothing to be embarrassed about.”
You rolled your eyes. “That’s easy for you to say.”
It wasn’t until John leaned forward and put his hands on your knees that you realized Jesse still had a hold of your hand. They exchanged another look.
“We have two questions,” Jesse said, running his thumb across your skin. “Then we never have to talk about it again if you don’t want to.”
You sucked in a deep breath and nodded once. “Okay.”
“First, who took the photos?” Jesse asked, voice lower than it had been, rougher.
“My friend Mia.” You shrugged one shoulder. “I thought they’d be fun.” And god, now you wished you’d never agreed to it but you wouldn’t tell them that. This was embarrassing enough without your word vomit.
“Alright,” John said, squeezing your knees. “And who were those pictures for exactly?”
You narrowed your gaze and tilted your head as you studied John’s features trying to figure out where he was going with that question. “No one. She wanted to practice boudoir shots. I was just helping her out. They weren’t meant for anyone to see. Ever.”
John’s lips curled into a slow smile and you felt Jesse relax beside you. “That’s good, baby,” John said, leaning closer, hands slipping up to midthigh. You sucked in a sharp breath. He’d never called you that before. Babe, sure, but never baby.
You licked your lips. “Why?” your voice was barely above a whisper.
His smile widened. “We’d hate to think we had competition we needed to get rid of.”
Jesse groaned beside you. “He’s right, but he could have worded that better.”
Your breath caught as you looked between the two of them. “Excuse me?” The words came out higher than you’d intended, confusion evident in your tone.
Jesse leaned forward, pulling your hand into his lap to hold it between both of his own. “We’ve been dancing around this for months. You know we have. There’s always been something between the three of us.”
“I don’t understand,” you said, though you were certain you understood perfectly. You couldn’t believe it, but you understood it.
John gripped your thighs. “Then let me be clearer. Those pictures didn’t show us anything we haven’t already imagined. They just confirmed what we already knew, that you’re just as beautiful underneath those scrubs as we thought you’d be.”
“Both of you?”
Jesse slid closer so his leg pressed against yours. “We’ve talked about it. About you. We’ve been waiting for the right moment, but you beat us to it.”
“That was an accident,” you protested weakly. “I was exhausted. I didn’t mean to send those.”
John shrugged. “Happy accident then.” He seemed to have the same nonchalant attitude as always, but there was an intensity in his gaze you’d never seen before.
“We can pretend it never happened,” Jesse offered. “Go back to just being colleagues. Just friends, if that’s what you want.”
You thought about the long shifts at the Pitt. The way John would always order you coffee when he got his own. The way Jesse would help you study, asking you questions whenever the two of you had a free moment. You thought about the casual touches that lingered a second too long, the inside jokes, the movie nights that ended up with you in the middle of both of them on the couch as you talked into the early morning hours.
“I don’t know what I want.”
“Yes, you do,” John said. “You just haven’t let yourself admit it yet.”
Jesse’s fingers tightened on yours. “We can take it slow. Figure it out together.”
Your gaze traveled from Jesse to John and back again, searching their faces for any sign of mockery or deceit. You found nothing but anticipation. A smile transformed your face as you realized you could have everything you ever wanted with just one word. Yes.