Warnings: Angst, profanity

Word Count: 2200

Request: hi! if requests are open can I request a josh fic where they were really close friends for years but then he got a really controlling girlfriend and he stopped talking to y/n. after like 2 years he broke up with her and tried to become friends with y/n again but his ex girlfriend was blaming the reader for the break up so y/n got in an argument with josh about the fact that she didn't want to get involved and then he confesses that he's in love with the reader? you're so talented btw

Author's Note: Sorry this fic is late, I got caught up with school work and totally forgot I needed a fic on Thursday night! I wrote this one a little differently than I normally do, so I hope you enjoy it! :)

*     *     *

Two Years Ago

y/n: josh?

y/n: are you going to tell me why you didn't show up to lunch yesterday?

y/n: this is the third time you've bailed on our plans without telling me

y/n: is something going on that i don't know about?

...

y/n: ok

*     *     *

Four Months Ago

The sun was shining on your back as you walked through the park, enjoying your Saturday off and getting some fresh air after spending the week in the office. Music playing through your headphones was also helping to block out the world around you. It was a nice way to unwind after a stressful week at work.

There was an empty bench beneath a tree, so you decided to sit down and rest for a little while before you continued your walk. You grabbed your phone from your pocket, deciding that it was as good a time as any to catch up on any notifications you may have missed. Knowing your boss, there was inevitably some side project that he would want you to take on and finish before work on Monday. Even if you didn't want to do it, it was better to know now and give yourself plenty of time to complete it.

To your surprise, there was a text from an unknown number on your screen, bearing the simple message of "hey". You weren't one to typically answer those types of texts, but there had been an influx of new people at work and your boss had been quick to hand out your personal number in case they "needed anything."

y/n: who is this?

You set your phone down in your lap while you waited for an answer; you didn't want to sit around staring at your screen. This was still meant to be a relaxing walk, after all.

unknown: you really don't know?

A chill ran down your spine, but you decided to push forward in the conversation. An old friend, maybe?

y/n: no, sorry.

unknown: it's josh. josh dun?

Shit.

You shut your phone off, wishing you could pretend that you hadn't just seen his message. The last time you had spoken to Josh was nearly two years ago, if you could even call it that. He had essentially ghosted you after he started seeing his girlfriend with zero explanation. You had tried to maintain the friendship for a few months, but after all of your texts and calls went unanswered, you finally gave up. The two of you hadn't spoken since.

josh: this is y/n, right?

Your hands shook as you typed your response.

y/n: yeah

y/n: why are you contacting me?

josh: it's a long story. can i call you?

y/n: i'm on a walk right now. i'll call you when i get home.

You got off the bench and started walking in the direction you had come from.

*     *     *

You paced the length of the kitchen with your phone clutched in your hand, occasionally stopping to take a drink of water. Even after spending the entire walk home trying to figure out what you felt about hearing from Josh, you were still conflicted. On one hand, you were excited to hear from the guy you had once considered your best friend. On the other, you were furious that he had disappeared without a trace and decided to randomly come back years later. You had gotten so used to life without him that you weren't sure that you were ready for a life with him again.

If that was even what he wanted.

You decided to put an end to your worrying and call Josh. The phone only rang a few times before he picked up.

"Hello?" Your heart skipped a beat at hearing his voice again.

"What the fuck, Josh?"

"Well that's not the reaction I was expecting."

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you expect me to be all happy and relieved that you finally decided to contact me? You dropped me out of nowhere, with no explanation, and then moved halfway across the country. Who the hell does that?"

"Listen, Y/N, I can explain."

"Then you better start explaining fast because I really don't have the patience for this."

"Ok." Josh took a deep breath. "You remember my girlfriend?"

"The one you started dating before dropping me? Yeah, I remember," you snapped.

"Yes, ok, listen. That was the problem. Things were ok for the first couple months and then she got really... controlling. One of the first things she said I had to do was stop talking to you, and I went along with it. I know it's stupid, but it was easier than trying to fight her on it. I thought it would get better with time. I really did. I never meant to stop talking to you for years, Y/N."

You took a deep breath. Although Josh's actions had hurt you, you could understand where he was coming from.

"But you did, Josh."

"I know, and I'm so sorry. I regret it every single day. That's why I'm reaching out to you now."

"Thank you for apologizing."

"You're welcome."

"Is... is she still in the picture?" you asked.

"Yeah. I've been trying to put an end to things, but it's not easy, as you can imagine."

"Right."

"Can I ask you something?"

You took a deep breath, "Sure."

"Do you think that there's a possibility that we can be friends again?"

You paused, listening to the static of the phone call.

"Yes."

*     *     *

Two Months Ago

Bad idea.

Bad idea.

Bad idea.

"Hi," you smiled as you pulled the front door open. "How are you?"

Josh looked almost surprised to see you. He stared at you for a moment before he finally started to smile, holding his arms out.

"I'm ok, how are you?"

You accepted his hug and pressed your face to his chest. He smelled different than you remembered.

"I'm alright. Come in."

After spending the last couple months catching up via texts and phone calls, you finally told Josh that you felt ready to see him in person again. He had caught a flight back to Ohio the next day and now he was standing in your entryway.

"Do you want anything to drink?" you asked.

"I'm ok, thank you."

"Alright."

The two of you sat down on opposite ends of the couch. Despite your easy conversation over the phone, you felt tongue tied now that Josh was actually sitting in front of you. Had it really been two years since you were in the same room?

"Your house is really nice," Josh said. He was nervously twisting his fingers.

"You don't have to make small talk with me, Josh. But thank you."

He turned to you with a partial smile.

"Two years later and you can still read me like a book."

"Your facial expressions tell me all I need to know."

"All of it?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

"All of it."

"Noted."

You were unable to stop a smile from creeping across your face. Of course you and Josh would act like you hadn't ever spent any time apart. Isn't that how you had always been?

"Hey, what did you tell your girlfriend about going to Ohio?"

"She thinks I'm here to work on the album with Tyler. The only reason she didn't sneak on her own flight here is because her best friend has a bridal shower tomorrow that she refused to miss, although there were a couple times that she almost bailed to come with me."

"Yikes, I'm sorry."

Josh shrugged, "It's ok. Knowing that things will be over soon makes it easier."

"What are you going to tell her?"

"The truth."

"Which is?" you asked.

"I shouldn't share. It's kind of personal."

"It doesn't have anything to do with me, does it?"

"No," Josh shook his head, "no."

"Good, because I don't want to be in the middle of all that. Apparently she already had enough reasons to not like me."

"I never understood that. How could anybody not like you?"

"No idea," you laughed, "but they do."

"I don't." You turned towards Josh, expecting him to be laughing, but his face was completely sincere. "Not in the slightest."

"Thanks, Josh. I appreciate that."

*     *     *

One Month Ago

Ding.

Ding.

Ding.

Ding.

"What the hell?" you muttered, pulling your attention away from your laptop long enough to check your phone. There were four messages, all from Josh.

josh: i'm sorry

josh: i'm so sorry

josh: i didn't mean for her to find out

josh: it was an accident

That didn't sound good.

y/n: slow down, what are you talking about?

josh: [sent a link]

You clicked on the link, which took you to an Instagram post made by Josh's now-ex girlfriend, as he had informed you last night. The picture was of her, and the caption spanned most of the rest of your screen. Your stomach sunk as you started to read it.

As many of you know, for the last two years, I was dating @joshuadun. I THOUGHT we were meant to be, but apparently he wanted to dump me because he was in love with someone else. Of course, he wouldn't tell me who that was because he's a lying, scummy, piece of shit that led me on for absolutely no reason. Since he won't tell me, I'll let all of you do my digging for me, starting with @y/n. They were friends before I started dating him and they randomly decided to "reconnect" a few months ago. Suspicious, huh? Anyway, I'm going to be taking a little social media break for my mental health, but feel free to DM me with anything you find. Hugs and kisses xoxo see you soon!

You dialed Josh instantly.

"Hi, Y/N."

"What is going on?"

"I'm sorry. I was packing up my things this morning and left my phone on the bed while I went into another room to grab something. She snuck in and saw a message from you and started screaming at me, accusing me of cheating on her."

"Is it true?"

"No, I would never cheat on her," Josh said, immediately getting defensive.

"Not that part. When you were at my house, you told me that you were going to tell her the truth. She said in her post that you told her you were in love with someone else, and she thinks it's me. Is that true? Are you in love with me, Josh?"

Your question was met with silence. You had to double check that he hadn't hung up on you.

"Josh?"

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"Yes," he took a deep breath, "I'm in love with you."

"You've got to be kidding me."

"What?"

"What do you mean what?" you snapped. "You stopped talking to me out of nowhere, randomly came back years later claiming you wanted to be friends again, lied to me when I asked if the truth had anything to do with me, and then publicly dragged me into the middle of your breakup! I asked you for one thing, Josh. One. I didn't want to be in the middle of it, yet here I am."

"I'm sorry, it was an accident."

"I just need to go. I'll talk to you... I don't know when, but I need a break from all of this. Bye, Josh."

You hung up before giving him a chance to say anything else.

*     *     *

Present Day

Josh was sitting in front of you.

You were nervously picking at your jeans, trying to find the right words to say. The two of you had been having conversations here and there over the last month, but you still felt bad about the way you had reacted when the drama with his ex happened. There had been more going on than you thought under the surface, and as a result Josh had gotten all of your stress dumped on him.

It was long past time you actually explained that to him.

"Are you going to say anything?" he asked.

"Yes, I just need a second," you said. "I'm sorry."

"Take your time."

You nodded. Josh idly tapped his fingers on his legs.

"Ok. I think I'm ready."

"I'm listening."

You looked up at Josh, meeting his eyes. His eyebrows raised slightly.

"First, I just want to apologize again for how I reacted when all the drama happened. I had a lot going on and you were an easy target to take my stress out on. I thought it was just frustration at first, but after some thinking I realized it was a lot more than that."

You waited for Josh to say something, but he stayed quiet.

"I love you too, Josh."

"You do?"

"I pushed it down for a long time for a lot of reasons, but the fact of the matter is that I love you. I can't deny it anymore."

Josh leaned forward and wrapped his arms around you, burying his face in the crook of your neck. You held onto him tightly.

He smelled just like you remembered.

"I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too," you smiled.