Stars Align: Part 2
Pairing: Bradley Bradshaw x Reader
Warnings: Angst, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Mentions of Abuse, Violence, Angry Bradley, Alcohol Misuse.
Bradley stood looking at you in awe and shock. He couldn't believe his eyes. In front of him stood a gorgeous woman, breathtakingly beautiful, and surprisingly confident having just nearly fallen. The woman in front of him was a stark contrast to the shy girl he'd known years ago, yet she was exactly the same somehow.
"Birdy is that really you?" He blinked as his strong beefy hands held you in place.
You chuckled, your mouth curling into a grin as you looked into the familiar brown eyes that kept you sane throughout high school.
"It sure is, but I'm having a hard time believing it's you, Brad." You took in his enormous stature, tanned muscles bulging under his tight shirt sleeves, sweat glistening off of his exposed chest under the colourful lights. He now had a strong moustache, a chiselled jawline replaced his chubby cheeks, and his mop of dark hair now neat blond-chestnut curls, complimenting his sun kissed skin.
You and Bradley stared at one another for what felt like forever, before he huffed a laugh of disbelief, shook his head, and pulled you in for a hug, the familiar feeling catching you off guard and you sucked in a deep breath. He still smelled the same, like tobacco and cedar wood, just without the sweaty teen boy odour.
You gingerly wrapped your arms around him and squeezed, you forgot how much you'd missed him.
You must have been holding one another for a long time, because Gabby suddenly cleared her throat and pulled you from your bubble. You pulled away and looked at her awkwardly as she raised an eyebrow at you.
"Been here literally 2 minutes and you've already pulled." She scoffed jokingly.
You laughed, "Uhm, Gabs this is Bradley, my old best friend I was telling you about."
"Hi." Bradley smiled and stuck out a hand. She shook his hand and mouthed a not so secret 'wow' at you. You rolled your eyes and turned to Bradley.
"What are you doing here?"
"Oh, it's my friends bachelor party tonight, he's around here somewhere." Bradley scanned the room but came up short. "What about you...two?"
"I just moved here, Gabby's showing me around, I guess you could say." You chuckled awkwardly.
"I'll... let you two catch up. I need the bathroom anyway." She winked at you as she handed you her drink to watch.
"So, you're not in New York for long then I'd imagine?" You asked.
"Nah, just until after the wedding. I'm out of here Monday." He explained as you walked a little way out of the crowd to a quiet corner. You nodded.
"That's a pity, would be nice to catch up. Look Brad, I'm sorry I stopped responding to your texts, I-"
"Hey, say no more. Life gets busy, I get it." He gave you a reassuring smile. Bradley had no idea just how busy and crazy life had gotten after you moved. "While you're here, do you wanna go for a drink?"
"What you mean, like, now?" You asked. "Aren't you here with your friends? Plus I'm with Gabby, I shouldn't..."
You thought for a moment, and nodded. "Yeah, okay. I'll have a few drinks with Gabs, and you can come grab me when you're finished?"
Bradley nodded and bit his lip to stop a grin, "Good. We've got a lot of catching up to do, Birdy. I've missed you." and like the old days, Bradley ruffled your hair and left. You huffed and fixed your hair just as Gabby came back from the bathroom, and you struggled to keep your focus on her for the rest of the evening.
You'd just finished getting ready, your baby pink prom dress looked super cute and your mom had loosely French Braided your unruly waves. She'd skilfully applied makeup so that your skin looked flawless and your eyes popped. You'd never felt more beautiful, and suddenly you felt less nervous. Maybe Bradley would see you and forget all about Michelle.
The doorbell rang and your dad went to answer it, you could hear him and Bradley talking about the latest football game.
"You ready?" Your mom grinned, "You look beautiful, pumpkin."
You nodded with a grin and you walked to the front door. Bradley turned as he saw you and his jaw dropped.
"Jeez, Birdy, you look pretty." He breathed.
"Oh shut up." You blushed, "You look nice too. But what's with the red tie, you look like a rooster." You teased. Bradley scoffed with mock offense.
"Right, Birdy and Rooster, get out of my house." Your dad laughed. "Have a good time, but make sure she's home by 11, son."
"Yes sir, have a good night!" Bradley waved goodbye to your parents and you shot them awkward looks, telling them to close the door and go inside.
You mom pulled your dad inside and shut the door.
Bradley helped you into his truck, carefully lifting your dress so it wouldn't rub against the dirty sides, and even went so far as to buckle you in. Your faces were inches apart, and you scanned the face you'd gotten so used to for the millionth time, only he seemed different now.
As he climbed into the front seat, he stopped to look at you for a while.
"What?" You asked, feeling self conscious suddenly.
"Nothing, you just really do look pretty. Didn't realise you could clean up so good." He grinned as he started the truck and pulled away.
You scoffed, "Speak for yourself, Bradshaw. Other than the tie you look like a real man."
"I am a real man, thank you. If only you could see what's under these pants, you'd be-"
"Ew, shut up." You smacked him playfully on the arm and Bradley laughed.
You pulled up to Michelle's house and you waited in the car as Bradley walked up the long drive to her front door. He knocked and Michelle walked out, looking stunning in a figure hugging red dress, her boobs almost spilling over the top.
You sighed as you watched Bradleys eyes light up as they walked down to the car. Michelle stopped in front of your door, looking at you expectantly. Bradley moved around her to open the back door for her to get in, but she didn't budge.
You looked at her and rolled down the window.
"Hello, aren't you gonna... you know?" Her voice was steely and bored.
"You want me to move?" You asked in disbelief.
"Well yeah, I am his date. What are people gonna think when they see me climbing out of the back of this thing?" she scoffed.
"Okay." You mumbled, unbuckling your seat belt.
"No, Birdy. Michelle, she's already sitting there, it's not a big deal, can't you just climb in the back? It's less than 2 minutes to the hall." Bradley argued, and you stopped in your tracks.
Michelle raised her eyebrows at him, and immediately you sensed the energy shift.
"No, it's fine." You opened the door and hopped out, Michelle immediately taking your place.
"What are you doing? That's always your spot." Bradley whispered to you as you climbed into the back.
"Keeping the peace." you whispered back.
Bradley huffed out a sigh and shook his head, crossing over to the front and climbing in.
The drive to the school hall was silent and awkward, and you noticed Bradleys eyes flitting to you in the back seat through the rear view mirror every so often.
When the car stopped, you hopped out, and Michelle waited for Bradley to cross to her end and help her out of the truck.
The three of you walked towards the school, and as more people came into view, Michelle's energy shifted again. She was all smiles as she hung on to Bradleys arm, you awkwardly falling behind.
"Smile for the camera Brad." She forced through her grin, and planted a kiss on his cheek as the school reported snapped a picture.
This would be a long evening and you knew it.
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The night moved quickly, and the drinks were flowing as you and Gabby took to the dance floor. You lost yourself in the music until you were out of breath and beckoned for Gabby to join you outside, but she gestured to the guy she was dancing with. You nodded and went out to the balcony.
The night air was beginning to cool and you welcomed the goosebumps that covered your too hot skin. Your feet were killing you, so you leaned against the balcony railing to take some of the weight off of them.
As you watched the people on the street below, you gradually regained your breath. You stood up to go back inside, but you felt a body bump up against you.
"Oh sorry." you apologised for them, as you stepped away, giving the drunk man a polite nod.
"Wait, baby, where are you going? I was hoping to get to know you, been watching you all night. You dance real good." The man slurred, grabbing your wrist.
You pulled out of his grip, "Sorry I have to get back to my friend." You turned to walk inside, but he suddenly wrapped a hand around your waist and pulled his hand against your stomach until you were pressed up against him.
You writhed against him, but his grip was too strong.
"Let go." You demanded, "Get off of me." You tried to pry his hands away, but even in his drunken state he was too strong for you.
"Come on, lady, I just wanna buy you a drink, stop being such a fuckin' prude." He struggled against you, his hot breath gliding across your cheek.
"I said get OFF!" You elbowed the man in the chest and he loosened his grip as he gasped, and you went flying away from him.
For the second time that evening, you collided into someone else, and looked up to see concerned, familiar eyes. Bradley scanned your face for a second, and once he was sure you were ok, he turned his attention to the man.
An angry scowl you had only seen once before appeared on his face as she crossed the balcony and lifted the man by his shirt.
As the man dangled a couple feet off of the ground, he whimpered. Your jaw dropped at the sheer strength Bradley possessed. You guessed those muscles weren't just for show.
"If I don't see you leave in the next 2 minutes, I swear to god I'm gonna ruin that pretty boy face of yours. You touch my girl again, or any other girl while I'm around, that's end game for you, buddy. Got it?" He growled.
The man nodded, "I'm sorry, I- I didn't know she was spoken for, honest." He whimpered, and Bradley threw him to the ground.
The man hurried to his feet and passed you. Sure enough after a couple minutes he exited the building quickly and you watched as he ran down the street below, before turning your attention back to Bradley.
"That was incredible." You mumbled.
"Are you okay?" Bradley asked, crossing the balcony to inspect you fully. His hands smoother over your bare arms and then his hands cupped your face.
"I'm ok, Brad, he literally just grabbed me, I'm fine." You pushed his hands away.
Bradley nodded, and let out a breath of relief as his big hands ran through his curls.
"You ready to go get that drink?"
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"Oh my god, Y/N! You look so pretty!" Sophie from your English class commented.
"Thanks Soph, so do you!" You turned and made pleasant conversation with Sophie and another girl, while Bradley did his rounds with Michelle and her friends. It was all fake smiles and posing for pictures, and Bradley found himself growing bored quickly.
"Hey, I'm gonna go grab some soda, you want one?" Bradley offered, and Michelle nodded, turning back to her friends.
"You look hot, girl, and so does Mr Bradshaw over there, did he get... bigger, over the summer?" Jessica asked Michelle, their whole group giggling.
Michelle rolled her eyes, "Ugh, maybe, I don't know. I'm having the worst time. His little friend is tagging along as a pity invite. It's like having his little sister along for the ride."
"Y/N Y/L/N." she pointed to you in the corner of the room. "I doubt I'm gonna get my V card swiped tonight, wanna ditch?"
Bradley hadn't noticed when Michelle and her friends slipped out. Jessica had a fake licence, and they'd decided to buy some drinks and hit a house party instead.
When he turned around, she was gone, and he scanned the room for her. When he saw you, he immediately crossed over to you and handed you your soda.
"Thanks, 'Rooster'." You said playfully, as you opened the can.
"Have you seen Michelle anywhere?" He asked, distracted.
You shook your head, "Last place I saw her was over by the DJ booth talking to her friends. Maybe ask the DJ?"
Bradley nodded and walked over as you stood against the wall and watched your school mates dancing and chatting away.
A few minutes later, Bradley stormed over to you.
"Did you find her?" You asked over the music, Bradleys eyes were dark and his eyebrows were creased, he was pissed.
"What did you say to her?" He demanded. You straigtened.
"What did you say to Michelle? The DJ says she was talking about you and then wanted to leave." his face was red now, and his chest was heaving.
"I didn't say anything to her, I've literally just been standing here the-"
"You must have done something. God, that's just like you, Y/N. Just because you didn't get asked to Prom you thought it would be better to scare her away so I'd be all yours instead, didn't you? Didn't you?" He demanded, and you were too shocked to say anything. Bradley took this as confirmation.
He scoffed and his hands fell to his hips as he nodded.
"Yeah, of course you did. Thanks a lot, you ruined my fucking night."
You watched as Bradley stormed out of the hall, and hot tears rolled down your face, ruining your perfect makeup.
"Y/N, are you okay?" Sophie asked, having witnessed the whole thing, gently taking your arm and pulling you to a table to sit. You wiped your eyes and nodded, your eyes trained on the door, hoping Bradley would come back in for you.
After a few minutes, Sophie having done her best to console you, you excused yourself and walked outside. You looked around for Bradley, but he wasn't among the few students and teachers outside, so you crossed the lawn and made your way down the sidewalk to where Bradley had parked the truck.
Your lip quivered as you realised, dread suddenly washing over you. Bradley had left you behind.
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