Pairing: Tyler Joseph x Reader

Word Count: 1572

Warnings: Angst

Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this one! :)

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"Think fast," Tyler said, seconds before a tennis ball was flying at your face. To anyone else, Tyler's antics might have been an annoyance, but you had known him long enough to grow used to it. You reached up and caught the ball before it smashed into your nose. Tyler sighed, "I'll catch you off guard one of these times."

You were currently sitting in Tyler's dressing room, hanging out with him before tonight's show. It wasn't often that you had the chance to do so, but since they were playing in your shared hometown of Columbus, Ohio, you had managed to get the night off work so you could join them.

"It's been four years and you've never caught me off guard once, what makes you think it will happen now?"

"I'll find a way. Maybe I can distract you with my good looks."

You laughed and playfully threw the ball at Tyler. He jumped out of the way before grabbing his white button down from the clothing rack. The tennis ball hit the wall with a dull thud and rolled along the floor.

Tyler laid the shirt out on the table and turned so that his back was to you. You watched as he stripped off his tank top and tossed it aside, trading it out for the button down. He hummed quietly as he worked away on the buttons.

"You got pretty quiet," Tyler said. "Everything ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just enjoying the view."

Tyler looked at you over his shoulder, the smile and blush on his cheeks clearly visible. You bit down on your lip and avoided his gaze.

You and Tyler had always had a weird relationship. Blatant flirting had been a staple of your relationship since day one, but there had never been any sort of label on it aside from "best friend". Sometimes you entertained the thought of a relationship with him, but somewhere along the way the idea always seemed to unravel. There was something that wouldn't work, someone who wasn't ready, a tour that would keep you apart for too long.

So this is what you had.

"Can I ask you a question?" you filled the silence that had formed.

Tyler finished the last button of his shirt and turned around, his painted hands fiddling idly with the collar.

"Sure."

"What do you consider me?"

Tyler's eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Like... us. Who am I to you?"

You watched as Tyler swallowed hard. His hand moved from his collar up and around his neck, rubbing at the back of it. He pressed his lips firmly together before releasing them again.

"Who do you want to be?"

"I'm asking you."

Tyler rolled his shoulders, shifting his eyes around the room. You had only meant it to be an innocent question, but Tyler's reaction made it clear that it was more than that. Maybe it should have been left unsaid.

"You're my friend," he finally answered. "My best friend."

You hesitated, thinking over the next words to come out of your mouth. There wasn't much time before Tyler would have to be onstage and you didn't want to leave him mulling over some half-finished discussion about the nature of your relationship.

"Is that all?"

"I go back to my original question," Tyler said. "Who do you want to be?"

That seemed to be the million dollar question.

"Tyler! Five minutes until we're on stage!"

Tyler reached his hands into his hair, grabbing at the strands with his fingers. His eyes squeezed shut, closing out the world around him. You stood up and closed the space between the two of you, gently grabbing his wrists and pulling them down towards you.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring this up right before you went on stage. I thought we had more time."

"It's not you," he shook his head. "There's just... a lot of questions."

"We can talk about them after the show. You need to focus right now."

"You're right."

Tyler started to reach for his tie, but you caught his hand. "I've got it."

He watched as you carefully flipped up his collar and slid the tie around his neck. Tyler was usually very particular about how his tie was done so that it was able to be undone easily during quick changes, though he had confessed to you once that you were the only person who was able to do it better than him. You could see him biting back a smile as you smoothed his collar back out.

"I'll make you a promise," you said as he grabbed his jacket from where it was thrown over the back of a nearby chair. "By the time you finish the show tonight, I'll have an answer to your question."

"I'll have an answer too."

You shook your head, "If you're not careful, you're going to end up confessing your true feelings to the arena instead of singing song lyrics."

"Ok, no answer then."

"Just focus on the show."

"I can do that."

You leaned towards Tyler and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek. He smiled and wrapped his arms around you, pulling you into his chest. He smelled like a mix of laundry detergent and cologne.

"Alright, if I don't get out there I'm going to get yelled at," Tyler said, finally releasing you.

"You've got this, Ty."

"And so do you," he grinned.

After a quick fist bump, Tyler grabbed his mask and pulled it on while he ran out of the room. You hung back for a moment, not wanting to get caught up in the chaos of last minute changes and preparations. Once the show had started and things had settled down, you would take your place to the side of the stage to watch the show.

And think of your answer to Tyler's question.

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Tyler was beaming as he made his way off stage, heading straight in your direction. As soon as he was close enough, he threw a sweaty arm around your shoulders and pulled you into his side. You laughed and made a show of trying to push him away, even though you were enjoying being close to him.

"What did you think of the show?" he asked, grabbing a water bottle with his free hand. He reached all the way around you to unscrew the cap.

"I have to admit, I was kind of distracted the whole time."

"By my good looks?"

"No."

"My beautiful voice?"

"No."

"By Josh?"

"No," you laughed. "I was thinking."

Tyler nodded as he chugged his water. You hadn't initially realized that he was leading you back to his dressing room until your dark surroundings changed into the white concrete walls of the backstage hallways. Your heart started to pound in your chest as you realized the once-distant conversation was quickly becoming a reality.

Tyler removed his arm from around you once you reached the dressing room, instead moving to grab a towel to wipe away some of his sweat. You took a hesitant seat on the couch, not quite relaxing back into it.

"Whenever you're ready," Tyler said, rubbing the towel along his forehead. "Let me have it."

You clasped your hands, nervously rubbing your thumb along the side of your finger. The answer was so clear in your head, but you were unsure of how Tyler would react when you finally said. It was a feeling that you had never expressed out loud before, not even to yourself. It had stayed buried deep inside your heart.

"I want us to be more than friends."

Tyler's eyebrows raised and he slowly dropped the towel away from his forehead. You started to rub at your finger harder, patiently - or rather, impatiently - waiting for his answer.

"You do?"

"Mhmm."

Tyler bit down on his lower lip, shifting his gaze away from yours.

"You aren't scared?"

"Scared of what?"

"That we might," Tyler paused, rubbing a hand along his forehead, "that we might ruin what we already have."

Your eyebrows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

"You mean so much to me, Y/N, and I'm terrified of messing that up. What if we do this for real and then it all goes down in flames? Am I just going to lose you forever then? The thought of it just..." He shook his head.

"But who's to say that something won't happen even if we aren't dating? The future is unpredictable and relationships can change in an instant. I don't think it's fair to either of us to throw away a chance at a great relationship just because we're afraid that we might lose one another in the process."

Tyler spoke softly, "I don't want you just to be a memory. I want you to be here, in my life, forever."

"I will, Ty. That's a promise."

Tyler was on the couch next to you in an instant, wrapping a hand around the back of your neck and pulling your lips to his. You caught yourself with his t-shirt, clutching it in your hand so that you could hold him close. His lips were soft and tasted faintly of sweat, but you couldn't bring yourself to care.

"I love you," Tyler whispered into the space between your lips.

"I love you too."

With that, he pulled you into another kiss and held you close. It was the first of many happy memories.