Seeing her upset was more crushing to him than he had ever realised.
When the hell did Jeff Winger get so soft?
He had known this woman for six fucking years, and she still did a number on him. What the hell was up with that?
You're in love with her, you jackass.
Of course, he was going to squash down the little voice in his brain, and ignore it. If he listened, he'd freak out. If he freaked out, he would end up drinking alone. And tonight, all he really wanted was a drink with Annie Edison.
It had just been a stupid play, and he knew in the past he would have said as such. Jeff five years ago, would have offered a scathing 'Annie, you're being ridiculous' but now he cared too much.
Now she wasn't a kid anymore. Plus, the feelings he felt for her these days were so far from any shade of annoyed, it wasn't even funny.
"Hey, I know this great bar for people that don't hate themselves. What do you say?"
Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her smiling, and it seemed to light up the whole room. Who needed some ridiculous rendition of the Karate Kid, anyway? He was definitely going to take her mind off it.
"Milady."
"Milord."
This time, he didn't care that the group were all around them. It didn't matter to him that he was walking out of the theatre arm in arm with her. Why would it?
The looks that followed the duo were lost on both of them; Abed's blank 'Is that finally happening?' stare, along with all the other knowing looks.
- The only thing that resonated with either of them was Britta's muttered "aha, I knew it!" which sent the pair into a fit of laughter the moment they were outside of the building.
Blue eyes were fixated upon him, and both bodies were still. Annie was watching Jeff cautiously, now that their laughter had died down.
Clearly, they'd both been a little too amused by their friend's reaction, but what did it mean? She'd expected Jeff to bat it off straight away, but he hadn't. There'd been no quick 'this isn't a date!' rushed in, nor him changing his mind.
Her stomach flipped nervously, as their gazes slowly locked, and her smile became a little shier.
Annie Edison may have been 24; she may have grown up a lot, and learnt far more about herself and the world…but the butterflies Jeff Winger gave her still left her feeling like the nervous little eighteen year old she'd been while preparing for the debate.
The way he made her feel was likely never going to change.
It was all so relaxed.
Even after that little exchange, Annie didn't feel the need to ask 'what is this?' and he didn't feel the need to step in and nervously stammer out that it wasn't a date.
They'd come a long way, and this evening didn't seem to be filled with any pressures or labels. If anything, it was as if six years of friendship had built up to this.
It was not, of course, the first time they'd hung out together without the rest of the group, but it was the first time they'd sat opposite each other in a bar; it was the first time he'd grinned as he pointed to a booth, and the first time he'd told her to sit while he got the drinks. It was the first time he'd ordered an appletini both without asking first, and without cringing as he relayed it to the bartender. Tonight was definitely a first, and neither one of them had a damn thing to complain about.
As he slid down opposite her, Jeff felt his knee bump against hers beneath the table, but that only caused him to grin.
"I'm so glad the Dean wasn't around to see me carrying this across the place. He'd be swooning." He was only happy that the remark that tumbled out, as he placed her drink in front of her, was met with a giggle. She'd looked so crushed back there; he'd have done anything to elicit that sound.
"You remembered,"
"I always remember,"
Worryingly, it was true. He may have painted himself to be an uncaring dick in the past, but he struggled not to take in the things she said. Her favourites were plastered all over his brain, and he knew that, out of everyone, she was the one who he paid the most attention to. Even when he tuned out, feigning that he was interested in his phone, the things coming from Annie tended to pique his interest more than all else.
How the hell had it taken him so long to realise he felt anything for her? Jeez.
4 drinks later, and they were certainly cosier.
Sitting opposite each other in the booth had, at some point, dissipated into both sitting around the side, thighs touching unforgivingly.
Although his arm had started off as being loosely draped over the back of the seat behind them, it was now slung over her shoulders. Neither of them seemed to mind.
If anything, they were both content. There was no pressure to move away from each other, yet there was no screaming desire to throw caution to the wind and aggressively make out somewhere between the booth and his apartment, either. In this moment, neither one of them was anything but comfortable. He was almost positive he could spend the rest of his life like this.
"One more drink,"
The slurring made it obvious that Annie wasn't fantastic at handling her booze, but the scotch had gone straight to his head, too. A little alcohol on the brain wasn't ruining anybody's perfect time, although pulling himself away from her may do just that.
"Your wish is my command, milady."
The fifth round of empty classes lay dormant on the tabletop, as the duo looked at each other. Both were intoxicated, but both were also well aware that they should have done this a long time ago.
What had taken so long?
Sadly, he was about 99% sure it was the worry of what others would think. They'd always been so private; always hidden any interaction from the rest of the group, but the ability to care about any of that was long out of the window now. Neither Britta nor Abed were going to mind, and nobody else even mattered. Their group of seven had become four, and he couldn't keep putting things off. One by one, his friends were leaving, and if he didn't act soon, Annie would be gone before he could tell her that this meant more to him than a few drinks with a friend.
He had bought every drink; he had kept his arm tightly around her shoulders ever since he'd returned from bringing the fifth back. He didn't even try to make it subtle; he'd simply sat himself back down, and pulled her small frame against him. It felt as if they belonged like that.
She was drunk, and she knew it. It wasn't the first time she'd had this much to drink, but it was the first time she and Jeff had been alone, and the first time she'd truly just felt free from the alcohol. Her brain felt fuzzy, yet clearer than ever before, at the same time. So much had fallen into place lately; and tonight only proved that her feelings for Jeff Winger were not something that were going away anytime soon.
"I think I'm in love with you,"
The words fell out without context or forethought. Annie couldn't remember what he'd been saying prior to that moment, but all of a sudden, it didn't matter anymore.
He didn't bail; he didn't excuse himself and bolt.
"I think I'm in love with you, too."
Drunk or not, six years had built up to that very moment. This was certainly in progress.