"I really like tacos. Like, a lot. But I like you more than tacos. Is that okay? Because tacos are really amazing, so if I like you more than tacos, that's a lot. And-"

"I like you more than tacos, too. But I'm never letting you drink again," you said, one hand holding a tight grip around your very drunk best friend's waist to prevent him from falling over while the other rummaged through his jean pocket for his house keys.

When your fingers slid into his pocket, Josh immediately let out a horrified gasp and attempted to swat your hand away.

"(Y/N), no! That's for after we're married, silly."

"Relax, Josh," you giggled slightly at his reaction, "I'm just looking for your keys; I'm not trying to sleep with you."

"Oh, okay. Then you can scratch in my pockets all you want," he beamed at you.

Shaking your head and smiling to yourself, your fingers searched for the keys once more, Josh humming softly while you did so. Eventually, your fingers came into contact with cool metal and you retracted your hand so that you could unlock the door; struggling to support Josh as you did.

Opening the door and flipping the light switch, you half dragged Josh into the house. As soon as he was inside, however, it was as if he regained all sense of balance, resulting in him sprinting up the stairs to his bedroom, giggling like a little girl all the while. Letting out a deep sigh, you trudged your way upstairs, mentally cursing Brendon for bombarding Josh with alcohol.

Walking into the room without knocking first was the worst thing you could've done at this point, because as you did, Josh let out a high-pitched scream, causing you to stumble back a bit in shock as he attempted to cover his bare chest with a pillow.

"(Y/N), I'm not wearing a shirt! You can't see me like this!"

"Josh, you let thousands of people see you without a shirt on virtually every night," you said tiredly, rolling your eyes and running a hand through your hair.

"Oh, yeah. I do do that," he giggled again.

"Okay, my love. You need to get to bed."

You took him by the hand and led him to the bed, pulling the covers back before gently pushing him onto the mattress.

"(Y/N)?" he whispered, looking at you through his eyelashes.

"Mm?"

He extended his arms towards you. "Can you cuddle me?"

"You want me to cuddle you?"

He nodded eagerly in response.

"Okay, Josh."

He smiled happily and pulled back the covers so that you could climb in next to him. As soon as you lied down, his colourful arms snaked around your body, pulling you closer as he nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck.

"You smell like vanilla," he mumbled.

"Yeah."

"I like vanilla. It's so... vanilla-like."

"Goodnight, Joshua."

~

Flipping the last pancake onto the serving plate, you began setting the table for you and Josh to have breakfast. Pouring two mugs of coffee, you looked up just in time to see Josh walk into the kitchen, looking like a train wreck.

He looked like hell as he made his way over to you, rubbing his eyes and groaning.

"Morning, sunshine," you beamed cheerfully, causing him to flinch and cover his ears with his hands.

"Shh," he whispered, placing a finger on his lips, "There's no need to shout."

Trying your hardest to hide your amusement, you handed him two aspirins and a plate of bacon.

"Grease helps with a hangover. Oh, and I made some pancakes," you gestured for him to sit down at the table, "Vanilla flavoured. Ya know, since you like vanilla so much," you smirked.

His hand froze mid-air with a piece of bacon in it and he grimaced as he turned to look at you.

"Oh, no. What did I do?"

"Nothing," you sat down opposite him, "Well, nothing bad."

He stared at you as you sat down, eyes wide and pleading with you to elaborate.

"You just asked me to cuddle with you, that's all. Then you told me that I smell like vanilla and that you like vanilla," you took a sip of coffee, "Oh! And on the way in from the car, you delivered a long speech about how you like me more than tacos. Which according to you, is a lot."

Josh just sat there staring at you for a long while. So long, in fact, that you thought he'd gone mute.

"Erm... Earth to Josh?" you said, waving both hands in front of his face.

He let out another long groan and dropped his head into his hands. "Ugh, (Y/N), I'm so sorry," his voice came out muffled, since his hands were blocking his mouth, "I really didn't mean to do any of that. I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable and I understand if you never want to speak to me again. Oh my gosh, I'm never drinking again. Ever."

"Josh, it's okay, really. You're quite an amusing drunk, actually. And a pretty amazing cuddler."

His face turned almost as pink as his hair.

"I can't believe you stayed with me even after I embarrassed myself like that," he said shyly, avoiding your eyes.

"Of course I did. I wasn't going to leave you alone while you were like that. You would've died," you said jokingly, "Besides," you shrugged, "you'd do the same for me."

Josh stared at you with an expression that you couldn't read.

"What?"

"Hm?"

"Is there any particular reason why you're staring at me?" you asked quietly, shifting awkwardly in your seat.

"It's nothing. Just," he reached across the table to hold your hand, "I'm so unbelievably happy that I have you."

You felt a flutter in your stomach at his words and you couldn't stop a smile from forming on your face. He was wearing a smile small too, but it soon disappeared as his eyes flicked from your eyes to your lips; the movement was so quick and subtle that you almost didn't see it.

Almost.

Your body seemed to move out of its own free will, and before you knew what was happening, you were leaning in.

But so was Josh.

Right before your lips could come into contact with his, Tyler walked into the room. You and Josh immediately recoiled from each other, but not fast enough.

"Who wants tac- OH!" he came to a sudden halt in front of the breakfast table, mouth hanging open and blinking rapidly as he stared at the two of you in shock, dropping the Taco Bell bag he had in his hand. "Well... this is awkward."

A heavy silence fell over the room before Tyler spoke once again.

"So..." he said, rocking back and forth on his heels.

"I should go," you said, standing up from your chair.

"No, you really shouldn't. Don't go," Josh immediately responded, jumping up from his chair too.

"Yeah, I really should."

"No, please don't. Tyler can go."

"Um, why should I go? I just got here,"

"Because you're the one who made it awkward," Josh countered.

"I made it awkward? I wasn't about to kiss anyone!"

"GUYS!" you threw your hands up, "I'm leaving, okay."

You grabbed your phone and your bag from the kitchen counter and walked over to Josh.

"I'll see you two later, okay?" You gave him a quick peck on the cheek before doing the same to Tyler.

You began making your way down the hallway to the front door when you heard Tyler exclaim in pain.

"OH MY GOODNESS, JOSH. ITS NOT MY FAULT YOU TOOK THIS LONG TO KISS HER. YOU DON'T HAVE TO TAKE YOUR SEXUAL FRUSTRATIONS OUT ON ME."

Stifling a laugh, you slipped out the front door; the faint scent of vanilla still lingering behind you.

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Thank you for reading x