Work Text
They’ve wrapped up there little ‘interruption’ on In Control and Ryan feels high of off the banter. All five of them get on well, and any chance to rile Steven up is hilarious. They’ve left the room but he can still hear Andrew’s deep voice rumbling on about Mayor Whiskers. Shane's arm is nudging him, It’s not a forceful nudge, but enough to get Ryan to stop in the hallway. Shane’s never been intimidating even with his height, he’s too dorky looking to look threatening, but the way his eyes are sparkling means mischief.‘So Kelsey huh’ is not what Ryan expects Shane to say and the puzzled noise that comes out of his mouth is the most suitable reply.‘Kelsey what?’‘Ryan Ryan Ryan, how about you entertain a little theory that Kelsey might just be into you’.He wants to say to tell Shane that he’s wrong or that’s bullshit, but instead, a coy smile comes over his face.‘You can play bashful Bergara, but you can’t hide’Ryan just walks away ignoring Shane dramatically shouting ‘You can’t hide’ down the hallway.
The camera crew leave pretty quickly when they’ve finished filming, it’s a long shoot and its no surprise everyone has gone out probably to pee or grab a snack before de-rigging. Steven corners her almost the moment everyone else has left the room. In her face until all she can see is two-thirds of the Worth It team looking at her. Andrew’s hovering behind Steven, eyes looking curious over Steven’s fading lavender hair.
‘You’re not exactly subtle’Andrew grumbles a ‘Steven’ that sounds like a warning, which just serves to fuel Steven’s fire.‘Eyeing up Boo-gara like that’Andrew took a sip of his water at the wrong time and is choking and spluttering in the background, Steven pays him no mind and just smiles the most knowing smile as Kelsey feels her cheeks blush up. She tells herself to maintain eye contact with Steven but can’t help averting her eyes. It’s more of a confirmation than saying anything and the moment she looks at the floor she knows it will be impossible to outright deny things.Steven’s whole face has lit up, radiating smugness. ‘It can be our secret, but good luck editing your heart eyes out of that’. Andrew drags Steven away before the taller man can do any more damage. And Kelsey is left trying to hide the blush, even when Andrew pokes his head back around the door, ‘Steven’s right though. You might need to tone down the heart eyes for Ryan’
The thing is, she didn’t realise she was giving Ryan that much of a look until she’s editing the episode. Watching herself watch Ryan, there's no surprise Steven and Andrew noticed, because she has eyes for no one else in the room, which is poor taste for a host. But Ryan’s arms are just so worthy of heart eyeing over. The button-up shirt he's clad in wasn’t anything materialistically stunning, but the package underneath makes it, especially with the hint of strong chest just peeking out from behind undone buttons. And she’s definitely been paused on this frame for way too long. The finale is going to have to go up with the heart eyes intact, there’s no editing around it. Kelsey knows what the fans are like and just finds herself hoping that they’ll be too distracted with some weird shipping of the Worth It/Unsolved boys to even pick up on her looking at Ryan.Yet her minds still floating away as she watches the export file bar crawl across the screen. Part of her thinks that she and Ryan would work well together, something about them both being Disney kids at heart. They could do a date at Disneyland, spend the time pointing out favourite rides, his hand would probably feel amazing intertwined with hers. She’s not super vain, like some people who populate Buzz Feed, but her and Ryan would look amazing in photos, real Instagram worthy. All of sudden the little boop chime of a finished upload sounds in her headphones, and there's not time for thinking of hypothetical dates when there's files to organise and things to schedule.Kelsey resigns herself to nothing really coming of it, it's just a passing crush. And then one day she gets to her desk and finds her reusable coffee cup filled up with what smells like her Starbucks favourite, a Peppermint Mocha. Underneath is a Post It is written in unfamiliar handwriting in black sharpie.
Thanks for letting us on In Control,
Ryan.
There’s what looks like a love heart drawn in pink, that’s been scribbled out by the black.She opens a Slack chat with just Ryan and sends a thank you, figuring that if she does it through proper office channels she can’t mess up and say anything incorrect. Except she’s getting an iMessage reply.
Ryan Boogara: 11.58am
Hope that’s the right flavour, pretty sure you said on the gram it's your fave
Kelsey Impicciche: 12.00pm
It’s perfect, thanks for being on again the final cut looks great. Automatic ratings hit since no thanks to you ghoul boys.
Ryan Boogara: 12.02pm
:D It’s all Shane’s charm really
She’s halfway through typing ‘Actually the only problem with the video is Shane barely fits in the frame’ when she realises there's typing bubbles on Ryan's side, her thumb hovers over the send button and pushes it the same time another message comes through.
Ryan Boogara: 12.05pm
Look this might be forward and your welcome to shoot me down, but how would you feel about going to get coffee with me.
There’s a warm blush spreading through her face probably super evident on her pale skin, she’s hiding her phone like she has something to hide, which in a way she kind of does. The mocha tastes amazing and the cup is a good way to hide her face while she wills the blush to go down. Her phone flashes up with another message.
Ryan Boogara:12.07pm
Shit that was probably super inappropriate ignore me.
Kelsey Impicciche: 12.07pm
It’s okay, actually, I would love too.
Ryan Boogara: 12.08pm
👍
Fuck sorry wrong emoji
Coffee actually goes really well, Kelsey has a sneaky suspicion that Ryan put aside his war of words with Steven to get the other man’s recommendation on good coffee shops.It’s really nice inside, minimalistic and cosy, fairy lights and a good selection of cake. She spent about an hour panicking over which jumper she should wear and is happy she chose a neutral soft beige knit that swamps her frame yet artfully falls off one shoulder paired with the skinny jeans that highlight her butt perfectly (never mind how grateful she is that the eyeliner gods shined down on her for once). She figures that Ryan probably chose the coffee shop with her in mind, but he still looks good in a dark black button up shirt, that’s just this side of too tight against his arms. While he’s up ordering for them (his treat), she can’t help staring at his ass in his tight jeans, and wonders if Steven told Ryan about the way she was eying up his arms, or worse, Ryan watched the video and saw her checking him out.The date part is nice, conversation flows easy and suddenly she’s looking at the time and realising they’ve been sat for an hour and a half just talking and the coffee shop is getting ready for closing. She leaves a good tip in the jar on the way out. When they get outside, they find dark looming skies, just waiting to burst with rain. Ryan looks at her and grabs her hand just as the first drops fall from the sky. He’s pulling her along the street to were he’s parked his car, speeding up the pace as the drops get thicker. She slams into the car first shouting ‘I win’ and Ryan’s laughing and all she wants is to kiss him, its movie perfect, L.A in the rain. Ryan’s hair has gone flat in the rain, he looks gorgeous, smiling at her as she leans against his car. ‘Can I kiss you’Words fail her, and she has to resort to nodding. Strong tanned arms come either side of her, and then Ryan’s mouth is on hers. It feels good, perfect even, like the rain coming down in buckets doesn’t matter, because this is their impenetrable moment. He’s pulling back and every part of her wants to chase the feeling of his lips, but then he’s giving her such a look of want and lust. Kelsey hates that Ryan melts her insides so easily and pulls away for her own sanity.
She holds his hand over the gearbox the entire drive back to her apartment. Tries to act like the goodbye kiss they share in the car isn’t the best kiss she’s ever had in her life.
They don’t rush into anything. Office romances are something to be entered with caution. But it’s nice to arrive to her desk to find a different style coffee every morning, feels like a secret office crush. There’s an unspoken agreement to take it slow, but it's hard when she can still feel the imprint of Ryan’s kisses on her lips from weeknd dates or Ryan pulling her into empty offices for chaste kisses. Steven appears one day, on a fly by trip to the office and just gives her an enthusiastic thumbs up, Andrew beside him with a knowing grin.Coffee dates are good, and then they're turning into dinner dates. It’s hard to keep it all off social media, every part of her wants to scream ‘I’m going on dates with the hottest guy in Buzz Feed’, but instead she uploads her outfit for the dinner date onto Instagram with her generic caption style, this time ‘Sometimes I feel like I’m in a movie’. Ryan likes it suspiciously fast. When the night comes to a close and there outside her house, Ryan walks her to the door.‘Do you want to come up?’He pushes a kiss onto her cheek, ‘Work tomorrow, its pretty late already’ he pauses for a second, before adding in a lower tone she hasn’t heard before. ‘I’d rather make it more special than that’She’d pegged Ryan Begara as a lot of things, but never as a hopeless romantic. It’s probably the sweetest thing any guys ever said to her. Her playlist seems to sense the mood when she turns it on, shuffling straight onto A Whole New World. The apartment is the only thing that bears witness to Kelsey dancing in her dress, twirling around as she goes through her nightly routine.Shane pulls her aside the next day and she feels a dark pit hit her in the stomach for a second, Ryan’s never hinted at something official in their sprawling conversations over dinner and coffee, but still Shane has the protective best friend look on him.‘If you hurt him ya-da ya-da’ Shane’s probably the most self-aware of how un-threating he actually is, and the goofy comedic nature probably doesn't help. That night she gets a message from Ryan asking if she wants to come to see Aquaman that weekend, but that it will be a double date with Shane and Sara. She send's back yes and tries not to panic about it, Shane and Sara are the god-tier office couple, the holy grail that all other office couples want to aspire too. They end up going for a run with their dogs before the weekend, and she’s not exactly at her most glamourous with ruddy cheeks from exhaustion, but Ryan still looks at her like she’s perfect. It’s not how she pictured being asked to be his girlfriend, but its certainly memorable. Standing In the park having paused for breath, all three of the dogs yapping playfully around them, he kisses her cheek when she says yes, before launching them back into a jog.
Aquaman turns out to be great, Sara’s seems excited to have someone else to share the Ghoulfriend/Girlfriend mantle and apologises for what she describes as ‘Shane’s probably useless don’t hurt Ryan talk’. Kelsey realises that Sara's probably more of a threat if she breaks Ryan's heart, and the ghoulboys friendship runs pretty deep so Kelsey figures Sara's also looking out for Shane in that sense. Shane and Ryan sit next to each other with a giant tub off popcorn leaving Sara and Kelsey on the respective sides of their boyfriends with there own smaller tubs of popcorn. It’s a chill night, oddly perfect for a double date and when Shane uses his long arms to snap a selfie off all four of them in the cinema lobby, Ryan gives a head nod that it’s okay to upload it to gram town. Her phone vibrates with the notifcation that of being tagged in a picture,
It’s in Shane’s stories, with the Classic font saying ‘Ghoulfriends and Girlfriends’. Picture Ryan’s arm is wrapped around her body and he’s looking at her the way she looked at him back in In Control (Sara only smiles knowingly as Kelsey screenshots it and sets it as her phone background)The four of them split an uber and since the Rubin/Madej household is closer, those two are dropped off first, all four share goodbye hugs. The uber's dark and the drivers waiting to know the final destination for the two of them. Ryan looks at her and says’s ‘My roommates are out’ and her stomach does a flip and that’s how they end up at Ryan’s. The apartment is suspiciously clean, Ryan’s giving an awkward laugh. There's a realisation that he cleaned for her, roommates are probably out on Ryan’s behalf. She really does feel like she’s being treated like a princess, shiny shimmering and splendid. The reference spilling out across her brain making her titter into Ryan’s mouth as he pulls her into a kiss. She’s never brought up the obsession she has with Ryan’s arms, afraid that she will just say absolute nonsense for hours on the way they look. Yet she’s convinced at this point he’s worked out how much she loves them. Because he picks her up, with permission, into a bridal carry. She’s not exactly heavy but he does it with such ease. Gently ducking both there frames down through the bedroom door.His room is clean as well, he’s set up candles and has a diffuser going, he sets her down gently on his bed and pulls a matchbox out and lights the candles. It's soft and romantic, Kelsey feels like she’s in her least spectacular outfit. Just a cute button up blouse and a skirt, it’s a reasonable outfit for cinema-going, she’s just pleased that Kelsey 4 hours ago decided to put on good underwear becuase she never thought they would end the evening like this, but it feels right somehow. There’s a faint smell of popcorn lingering in the room from them both and it’s mixing with the smell of lit candles and a freshly blown out match.Ryan’s turning to her, his outfit for the night had involved another button up shirt, classic Ryan tight jeans with his hair artfully styled. It hits Kelsey that he dressed up for the night, and that fact makes her tingle more than anything else. He strolls back to the bad, looking at her in such a way.‘Kelsey you’re beautiful’ And then he’s sitting next to her.Kelsey in her guiltiest dreams and post-date ‘moments’, had always imagined Ryan to be frat boyish in the bedroom, hard and fast kind of guy. What she finds is that he’s a real conscientious lover. Asking for permission before initiating kisses, always looking out for signs that she’s okay and content. His hands, warm and calloused come up around her face and tilt her head so they are both staring at each other. It’s not a moment of weakness, more just good old-fashioned honesty spilling from her lips when she say’s ‘You make me feel like a princess’.Kelsey can’t help herself but to surge into kissing him when he replies, ‘you are’.They’ve yet to go beyond just making out, but here, in Ryan’s bedroom surrounded by candles, there’s a different pace to things. It’s either that or Kelsey’s realisation that she can finally see Ryan topless that means clothes go flying pretty quick. Kelsey’s shirt goes first, Ryan’s eyes are like saucers as he sees the lilac lacy bralette that covers her. That’s when Kelsey learns that Ryan’s a sex talker, most of its nonsense words of praise, but the fully formed sentences go through her like shudders. ‘Wow. Can I?’ and how can she say no and then his strong hands are rubbing gently against her nipples, Ryan is watching her reaction’s carefully, the bralette needs to be pulled over her head, so she pushes him back and divests herself off it pretty quickly. Ryan’s eyes somehow go even wider, and she wants to kick herself when she finds herself saying ‘I know I’m pale, but don’t give me the ‘just seen a ghost look’’, he’s laughing into hysterical giggles and takes a minute to hear her say 'take your shirt off' over his own giggles. All of sudden there's span of tanned chest and perfect pecs in front of her and holy shit Ryan Bergara is her boyfriend and she can touch, so she does. They spend a while exploring each other, gentle touches and heavy petting until both of them are just down to there underwear. Kelsey can feel how damp her panties are, lace isn’t the most suitable barrier to how wet Ryan is making her feel. But it's not like the boxers Ryan is wearing are doing anything to hide how hard he is.‘Kelsey holy shit can I eat you out’, she probably replies yes or something to that reason, but can’t remember when Ryan’s diving into her lap so fast. Tongue doing something that makes her eyes roll back in her head even through the fabric. ‘Take the panties off please Ryan baby’. Said panties fly across the room pretty quick after that, and lilac lace falling somewhere on the floor as Ryan proves himself a pro at giving head. She’s specific, a can’t cum unless someone’s touching her clit kind of girl and it’s been a while since she’s been with someone who can actually get her off. Ryan works it out pretty fast, licks her clit with a perfect sloppiness, sucking in just the right way. His two fingers and a tongue into her when he brushes over her clit trying to reach for her breasts. It’s the perfect amount of contact, sending electricity through her spine and making her clamp her thighs around his head. The sight of Ryan between her thighs, soft hair and glassy eyes is an image that will probably crop up in her head for just about forever. Ryan gently removes his fingers and gives a parting lick to her wet mound.‘Next time I want to see how long you can finger fuck me’It’s sexy, the way Ryan groans and has to grasp the base of his cock through the boxers. There’s an evident damp patch at the top of the fabric, and she thinks ‘I did that’ and then thinks ‘fuck me’.‘You did do this, and now you can have this’, which means evidently that she said her thoughts out loud. When his next sentence is ‘I want you to ride me’ she can’t help but feel the way her body leaks out more fluid. 'Yeah please is that okay', it feels silly to her to be asking Ryan permission for something he requested, but her voice is breathy and she still feels orgasm weary. Ryan's turned to the drawers and is rooting around for a condom and all Kelsey finds herself lying there wondering if Ryan has spare sheets available because the wet patch she is going to leave behind is not going to dry quickly.It's the first time she sees Ryan's dick, its thick and heavy between his legs, average length but girthy. He's rolling the condom on and all she can think is how much she wants to blow him. There's a comfort knowing that this isn't a one time thing, that as a couple they might have a little longer shelf life, there needs to be no rush to this she can blow him later. Ryan's doing that thing with his arms again 'come on gun show Bergara', and it feels good to be giggling as she slides down onto him. He's filling her perfectly and she can’t help but lean down to kiss him. The movement shifts the angle which causes a moan to erupt from her and in-between kisses and breaths he keeps saying her name, like it’s the greatest gift he’s ever been given, to just repeat ‘Kelsey Kelsey Kelsey’ as they grind into each other slowly.Time for sweet moments is passing and slowly Kelsey finds her grinding picking up the pace. She leans back up and Ryan spreads his hands on her thighs. He helps her out, gauging her rhythm quickly and canting his hips up to meet her.‘Do you think you can cum again’‘Holy shit Ryan please yes’ and his fingers are finding her clit easily. The second orgasm splits her apart, seeing stars kind of bullshit. She’s aware enough to know her thighs are going crazy, shaking with the sensation and she’s pretty sure Ryan is manoeuvring her. By the time she’s fully aware Ryan is sat up and her legs are folded around him. It means their bodies are closer, but he can’t get as deep inside, but it seems to be doing the job.‘Still with me?’She figures a kiss is as good answer as any. Ryan proves his strength, lifting her up and down and shifting them about. Kelsey knows her body is still orgasm loose, and she’s aware of mumbling incoherencies. Ryan groans, gruff pants, she can’t feel the actual act of cumming, not through the latex barrier, but she can feel the way his dick pulses inside of her.They sit there, just snuggled close, connected in every way until Ryan’s gone completely soft and slips out. He plants a soft kiss in her hairline and pulls them both up.‘Are my boxers and shirt good enough for my princess to sleep in’‘Sounds perfect’He shuffles them towards the bathroom, lets her go first while he grabs boxers. She’s finished peeing by the time there’s a soft knock on the bathroom door.‘Come in, it’s okay’Everything falls into domestic territory pretty quickly, Ryan puts the pile of clothes he’s carrying in one hand onto the toilet seat and the bunch off rolled up tissue paper he’s holding into the bin. He produces a toothbrush from a cupboard and they both get dressed and brush teeth in comfortable silence.The bedside lamp is all that illuminates the room, Kelsey wonders if she peed for a really long time or Ryan has practised blowing out candles, getting pyjamas out and replacing bedsheets in the shortest time possible. The bed is cool when she clambers into it, the soft light makes Ryan look incredible in his sleep pants, all toned abs and big arms. When she say’s ‘I love you’, she finds that she means it, that it doesn't feel too early to be saying the L word, instead feels like the most perfect timing. Ryan smiles and climbs in next to her, letting her cuddle on to his chest.‘Love you too’.Out of all the things that had crossed her mind about Ryan, she never expected to wake up and find out that Ryan is most definitely the little spoon in bed. She pulls him closer in her giggles and plants a soft kiss on his back, smiles at his little early morning grumble, and is grateful for inviting Ryan back on to In Control, even if she had to show the internet her googly eyes.