AUTHOR'S NOTE
season three! 🥳

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DISCO NIGHTS !
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
BEDROOM EYES

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DELANEY RAISED HER eyebrows as she trailed behind Jess. "Did you bring me back any souvenirs?"

"What?" Jess shot her a bewildered frown as he continued walking around the diner, stopping to occasionally refill people's coffees.

"A big apple? Keychain? Anything 'New York'-like?" Delaney was right on Jess' tail, causing him to speed up his pace.

"Why would I have gotten you anything?" Jess' frown deepened as he glanced between her and the sight in front of him so he didn't trip. "I came back months ago."

"Yeah, and I gave you months to fish out all the pretty souvenirs that you should've gotten me, which you still haven't handed over yet, so I'm just chasing that up." Delaney pressed further.

"Get away from me." Jess shot her a warning glare as he sped up his pace even more, Delaney speeding up hers too as a consequence.

"Jess, come on, give me a souvenir," Delaney sang, purposefully irritatingly, right as Maeve appeared from the back room.

"Invest in a leash." Jess snapped as he glanced at Maeve on his way, still trying to escape Delaney.

Maeve let out a wholly amused laugh at the entire debacle. "She wants her souvenir, Jess."

"Preferably a shiny one." Delaney beamed.

"How many times do I have to say that I didn't get any?" Jess emphasised the words out of pure frustration as he hardened his glare on Delaney.

"I know you bought something for Maeve, so give whatever it is to me, instead." Delaney continued to badger the boy, still following right behind him.

"What makes you think that I got anything for Maeve?" Jess furrowed his eyebrows at Delaney.

"Probably a Smashing Pumpkins vinyl or something," Delaney pretended to be deep in thought as she continued to trail after him. "I'll take it, though, I can give them a shot."

"Go away." Jess commanded as he shot her another grating glare.

"You didn't deny it..." Delaney widened her eyes as she stopped at a table and slumped down in a seat in front of it. "Oh my god, did you actually get her a Smashing Pumpkins vinyl?!"

"No, I didn't get her anything," Jess almost rolled his eyes as he finally exhaled a breath and stopped behind the safety of the counter, then turning to face Maeve, who was at the end of it. "I seriously didn't get you anything."

"I didn't expect anything." Maeve's eyebrows lifted in response.

"If you said you wanted something, I would've considered buying it." Jess clarified.

Maeve just shook her head as she held his gaze. "It's a good thing I didn't want anything, then."

"Did you want a Smashing Pumpkins vinyl?" Jess' eyebrows raised this time.

"Nope," Maeve shook her head as she quickly refused. "I'm good with the CD."

Jess slowly nodded, keeping his eyes on her as he eventually replied. "Okay."

The diner's door suddenly chimed open, catching the group's attention and revealing Flynn striding through it nonchalantly.

"Hey, Flynn." Maeve sent the boy a tight-lipped smile as she approached him and leaned up to plant a kiss on his cheek.

Delaney gradually approached Jess, patting his shoulder as she kept her gaze on the couple. "Should've gotten that Smashing Pumpkins vinyl."

Jess tore his eyes away from Maeve and Flynn as he turned to face Delaney, sending her an unamused look at the words. Before he could correct her on the fact that he had no obligation to get her anything, Maeve saved the day.

"Jess, I have your copy of 'The Bonfire of the Vanities' at home, remind me to give it back to you before the festival." Maeve absentmindedly called as she turned around to face Jess while she took two plates and moved to hand them over to the customers who ordered them.

"I can't later, I'm meeting up with Shane." Jess answered as he grabbed the coffee pot and began to refill customers' cups, starting with Delaney when she held her cup out, practically in his face, as soon as he took ahold of the vat.

Sending her a disturbed frown, Jess just silently poured her coffee, shook his head, and ignored her wide smile as he started his usual rounds.

"What time? You can just come over beforehand for two seconds to pick it up." Maeve lightheartedly shrugged, Flynn furrowing his eyebrows as his eyes darted between the pair.

Jess stopped to glance at Maeve, and when she just continued to hand people plates of food, he continued with his previous task. "Okay."

"What?" Flynn interjected.

"I've passed the acceptable 'borrowing period' at this point, Flynn, and it'll just be five minutes." Maeve could practically sense the possible storm that would've erupted if she hadn't interjected, and she stopped beside her boyfriend, who was sitting in the seat beside Delaney at the counter, gently squeezing his shoulder as she did so.

"And you can't just bring it here? He has to go to your room?" Flynn's eyebrows deeply creased inwards as he glanced up at her.

"I'm right here." Jess almost rolled his eyes as he walked past the pair, his unsavoury tone just as dissatisfied as his expression was.

"And we sure like being constantly reminded of it." Flynn viciously snapped as he sent cold daggers Jess' way.

"Not helping," Maeve shot Jess a momentarily pointed look, earning herself raised-eyebrows from Jess, who held his free hand up in a faux-surrender motion, and she then decided to conveniently step in again, successfully coaxing her boyfriend's attention towards her. "Flynn, relax."

"If he tries anything-" Flynn tried to protest one more time.

"He won't," Maeve immediately cut him off, exasperation lacing the words as she was starting to get tired of his unnecessarily possessive attitude. "Shane exists."

"Again, I'm right here." Jess blew out an irritated breath as he walked past them again.

"Again, you're not helping," Maeve warned in a deadpanned tone before she turned to face Flynn again. "You trust me, and I trust you, right?"

Flynn let out a breath as he tried to calm down, the boy nodding after a few seconds. "Right."

"Okay, so don't worry about it." Maeve managed to finally convince him, the boy just sighing and looking away as he forced himself to get over the fact.

•

"So, when are you meeting up with Shane?" Maeve started curiously as she walked into her room, Jess following an appropriate distance behind her.

"Just before that stupid festival." Jess answered as he slowly made his way over to her desk, wanting to see what she had been working on, while Maeve went straight to her bookshelf in search of his book.

"You're going to that?" Maeve's eyebrows shot up as she briefly turned around to face him during her search.

"Shane wants to," Jess succinctly explained. "I'm not surprised you're going."

Ignoring the first part of the sentence, a smile appeared on Maeve's face at the second part as she turned to face her bookshelf again. "Of course I'm going. Even though the town always puts on these crazy events, they're all fun. I have to give Taylor that, at least."

Jess hummed in strained agreement as he went back to surveying her desk.

Noticing a polaroid picture on top of a stack of textbooks on Maeve's desk, the boy furrowed his eyebrows as he picked it up, bringing it up so he could observe the subjects within it properly.

Once Jess realised that it was Maeve beside Flynn in the picture, bright smile widely spread across Maeve's features and lighting up her entire face, he stopped, forcing a teasing smirk to appear on his lips as he glanced at Maeve again and held up the picture tauntingly. "Aw, well isn't this just the most adorable picture?"

Maeve turned around to look away from her bookshelf, inquiring expression now rapidly shifting into one of frustration as she approached Jess to try and take the picture out of his hand, who had now moved his arm slightly backwards to purposely aggravate her even further.

Maeve shot a deadpanned, unenthused look his way, narrowing her eyes as she came to the unfortunate realisation that she would have to play this little game with him in order to take the photo back. "Jess."

"Maeve." Jess' tone matched hers as his eyebrows, just barely, quirked upwards.

As she moved closer towards him, she finally had a moment to survey his mischievous face, which wasn't really too different, apart from the fact that his eyes had stood out way more than usual.

Maeve hadn't noticed, or payed attention to, the intricacies of Jess' eyes before, as odd as that sounded. She hadn't noticed how they were slightly downturned, or how his irises were a particularly alluring shade of hazel that she hadn't found captivating before.

Maeve's mind seemed to replay the term 'bedroom eyes'—a descriptor that she had recently read an author mention—, and, now that she had a chance to survey Jess' after a prolonged period of not seeing him, she finally managed to find someone who accurately corroborated the characterisation.

It was scary, to Maeve, that someone could perfectly associate with the term.

Slightly furrowing her eyebrows at how her mind had seemed to wander away from, and betray, her, Maeve managed to put a stop to the unprompted thought pattern before it could cross over into uncharted territory.

As Maeve blew out a breath and drew herself out of her own head, she jolted forwards to try and take the picture from his hand, Jess stepping backwards hurriedly and already foreseeing the movement.

His free hand came up in front of him to defend himself, other hand holding the polaroid as he leaned back even further and slightly tilting his body to the side in order to securely block her access to his hand.

Jess' teasing smirk grew as he knew he was successfully getting under her skin, the boy internally revelling in the fact that he was pissing her off.

Maeve slightly tilted her head, feeling frustration bubble up in her body, although she told herself she would not give up until she got her photo back. "Give me-"

As Maeve stepped forwards yet again, unconsciously grabbing Jess' unoccupied wrist and pushing it down and away from its position previously obstructing her view of his face, she leaned forward, reaching up to successfully snatch the photo from his grasp and being completely oblivious to the fact that she was now very close to his face. "The photo!"

Jess' eyes were entirely focused on Maeve's face at the action, likely internally mapping every feature, and he internally praised the fact that Maeve seemed to be entirely unaware of the fact.

Moving back once Jess ultimately let her take the picture from his hand, Maeve grinned in accomplishment, substantially moving back and releasing Jess' wrist as she placed the photo back down on the desk and raised her eyebrows at him authoritatively. "Don't touch anything else."

Jess held his hands up in a mock surrender motion as he leaned against Maeve's desk. "As you wish, princess."

Maeve shot him another warning look before she went towards her bookshelf again, pulling out his book and making her way back over to him, holding it out so he could take it from her hand. "We should probably get back to Flynn and Shane, they've been waiting for a while."

Jess' eyes slid down to the book as he eventually took it and stood up. "Yeah. Sure."

•

Delaney, Maeve and Flynn slowly walked throughout their colourful town, which was entirely decorated with festive food stands, blooming flowers, stripy ribbons, pastel-toned seats and drink carts, and even a whole pinstriped band that was repeatedly chanting the same, annoying song over and over again.

"This is amazing." Delaney marvelled at the vivid sight as they continued walking.

"It's something..." Flynn stated as he linked Maeve's hand with his, eyes dancing around the sparkly, embellished gazebo, bubbles floating into the sky.

"Hey, look, Rory's back." Maeve spoke up after a few seconds as she gestured to the spot a fair distance away from the group with her head, Rory completely engrossed in conversation with Dean as happy smiles were painted across their faces.

"I'm glad," Delaney replied, the girl then cringing as she let her eyes wander to a particular tree across the street from them. "Ew, do they ever get tired of sucking each other's faces off?"

Maeve turned to look in the direction of the girl's eye-line, only to be met with the disheartening sight of Jess passionately making out with Shane, his hands sliding around her back to secure her in place.

When Jess' hands lowered to the back pockets of Shane's jeans, Maeve finally casted her eyes away, the girl squeezing Flynn's hand as she plastered on an uncaring attitude. "I'm just glad they're not doing it in the diner for once."

Flynn gently nudged Maeve's waist as he tried to change the subject. "Hey, maybe we could find a tree to do that against."

"That's disgusting," Delaney shot the boy a disturbed glare. "And I can't be stranded here alone, so you're not going anywhere. I don't want to resort to third-wheeling Dean and Rory."

"Who are also making out." Maeve slightly squinted as she gestured to a bench, Rory and Dean doing just that.

Flynn let out a wholly entertained laugh, eliciting Delaney to throw her hands to the sides. "Come on, what is wrong with everyone?!"

"It's probably the lazy-hazy-crazy days song, getting everyone in the mood," Flynn teased as he glanced at Maeve, whose eyes had somehow floated back to Jess and Shane during the distraction. "Maeve?"

Maeve snapped out of her, seemingly bothered, gaze as she pulled on Flynn's hand to coax the group to continue to walk.

"Taylor, this is amazing." Maeve then confidently spoke up as the group passed by Taylor, who was the ringleader for any town extravaganza.

"Why, thank you, Maeve," Taylor proudly smirked at the group. "At least one person admires the effort."

"Your effort is admired, Taylor, don't worry." Delaney chimed in as she shared a glance with Maeve, then rolling her eyes at Taylor.

"I'm glad I took some pictures before, this whole setup is so cute." Maeve then smiled as the group continued their previous trail.

"Make some copies please!" Taylor called out.

•

AUTHOR'S NOTE
season three calls for a new gif!

© voidvaleska