A/N: Tis the third day of shipping week, and I'm already exhausted. Well, today's theme is "pets," but as you can see, I decided to switch that up with "pet names." But then this story got out of control, so apologies in advance if you're confused by the end of it. Anyways, enjoy it!
Disclaimer: The following is a non-profit, fan-based, fanfiction. Elena of Avalor belongs to the Walt Disney Corporation and Craig Gerber. Please support the official release.
Pet Names
"See you at dinner, Nomes!" Cried out Scarlet Turner, Naomi's mother.
Naomi blushed and then growled as she saw the smirking face of her coworker/somewhat of a friend/possibly a best friend/definitely annoying rival Estéban as she climbed into the carriage. He, unwillingly, volunteered to pick Naomi up from her house after she said that both her parents would be too busy to drop her off in the morning. He would've let her suffer, but Elena decided that Estéban needed to 'bond with Naomi after the immense fight you two had' or something stupid like that. But he supposed he didn't have a choice; they were close to bursting into another argument when a very important royal dignitary was visiting. So, he could see Elena's worries. So, he reluctantly agreed. Now he's starting to like his decision just from today's exchange. "'Nomes?'" He snickered.
Naomi kept blushing, but she didn't remove her angry face from Estéban's smirking one. "Yeah, it's a pet name my parents gave me. What of it?!" She said defensively.
"How in the world did your parents come up with a name like that? Were you shorter than the other kids when you were little?" He jested.
Naomi growled. "How they came up with it is none of your business!"
Estéban laughs. "Alright, no need to get all fussy...Nomes." He smirks.
Naomi wanted to tackle him, but they were in an open aired carriage, so that wouldn't exactly be a good decision. But she swears she will get revenge on him somehow.
A month passed, and Naomi decided not to get revenge on Estéban. Surprisingly, he chose to keep her little pet name a secret from the people who don't know it already, Elena, Gabe, and Mateo being the only three who do know about it. And with that, they started to respect each other a little more than they did before. And hey, little progress is still progress. Although that still doesn't mean he didn't tease her by calling her that from time-to-time.
Naomi was waiting for the carriage to pick her up from school, her parents too busy to take her to the castle again, although not really in the mood for more Grand Council decisions. She had a terrible day at school. The other students are still jealous of someone like her getting picked to be part of the Council instead of it being one of them. She never really told anyone about what was happening, but that's only because it never really bothered her. They mostly just threw petty insults and glared from afar, and she can handle all that. But today, they just went too far.
"Oh, does the little GNOME need help reaching that book?"
"Look at the tiny little GNOME; I bet she can't even reach the top of a barrel."
"Does the little GNOME need a booster seat to see over the Grand Council table?"
Somehow. Somehow everyone found out her parents' pet name for her and are now using it to tear her down. She didn't show her dissatisfaction in front of them, because she was better than that. But, right now, she felt like she was on the verge of tears. Naomi never felt so humiliated before, how could they take something that she loves and ruin it for her? How did they find out?! Was it Estéban? No, not even their little bicker thing would be enough for Estéban to tell anyone her pet name from pettiness. He's better than that.
Naomi was so focused on trying to figure out how everything happened today that she didn't realize that she was crying, or that the carriage was here, or that someone was standing in front of her. "Naomi?"
Naomi looked up at the, surprisingly, concerned face of Estéban. Naomi said nothing as she just ran inside the covered carriage, embarrassed that Estéban saw her like this and will probably tease and torment her for the rest of the ride.
She had her forehead resting on her pulled up knees as she continued crying. Then she felt Estéban sit next to her and felt the carriage moving. Great, here come the insults!
"Did something happen? Did someone hurt you? Do I have to get the royal guard involved?" Estéban asked, sounding concerned.
Naomi sniffed as she looked to his face, no sign of his teasing attitude anywhere. Naomi shook her head. "Nothing happened."
Estéban gave her that look. "Oh really? Then what's with the tears?"
Naomi put her head down again. "It's nothing! Why do you care?!"
Estéban sighs. "Naomi, we may fight and argue, but that doesn't mean I want to see you hurt! Do you think I'm that terrible?"
Naomi lifted her head slightly to see that Estéban, looked genuinely hurt at the prospect that she might've misunderstood their weird friendship. Then she fully raised it as she shook it and started wiping her eyes. "No, I just had a bad day today." She sniffed.
"Do you want to tell me what happened?" He asked as he pulled out a handkerchief and gave it to her.
She took it and wiped her face. Then blew her nose. Then she shook her head. "Not really." She sniffed again.
"Well, if whatever happened today happens again, don't refrain from telling anyone. Okay?" Estéban asked.
Naomi slowly nodded. "Okay...would it be weird if I asked you to hug me?"
"Yes, very."
"Jerk."
"I just answered truthfully." He smirked.
Naomi growled but was starting to feel better. It's strange; this banter session is helping her feel better. She flinched a little when she felt Estéban wrap an arm around her shoulder. He pulled away and held his arms up in surrender. "I thought you said it'd be weird if I asked you to hug me!"
"I did. But I never said I wouldn't do it." He stated.
Oh. Now Naomi was even more embarrassed. It took a few minutes before she was comfortable enough. "Can... you hug me?"
"Don't you want to wait for Elena?" He asked, playing and look coy.
Naomi whined. "Please? I had a terrible day!"
"Oh fine, if I must." He gives her a gentle one-armed hug.
Naomi rested against his side. She was surprised by how gentle Estéban is being. She's seen him like this with Isabel from time to time, but with anyone else? With her? She's even more surprised that during this whole ride, they haven't had their usual bicker session. She sighs in content.
"Feeling better...Nomes?" Well, he ruined it.
She, gently, pulled out of the hug and sat across from him. "You just had to say that."
Estéban looked confused but didn't press her. "Alright, I don't know what triggered that reaction, but I still need to know: Are you feeling better now?"
Naomi sat in thought. She does feel a little better. But something was strange. She didn't feel hurt when Estéban called her Nomes. She thought her schoolmates would've ruined it forever. But when he said it, it didn't hurt at all. It just felt like his typical way to tease her. Naomi wondered why that was, but it might just be that she's used to Estéban's teasing. Or, it could be that he's not using it to hurt her intentionally. Either way, she does feel better, even if a little. "Yeah, a little." She said softly.
Estéban nodded. "Well, a little is better than not at all."
Naomi nodded a little. "Yeah...thank you."
Estéban widened his eyes. "Oh, well, you're welcome." He said awkwardly.
"No really, thank you," She said. "you helped me a lot right now."
Estéban sputtered and looked away. "Well, that's only because we have important Council business at the palace, and we can't have you distracted by whatever happened to you."
Naomi smiled. "Sure, it is."
The probability of Estéban being a best friend to her just slightly increased.
A week later, she told everyone what happened, but not to worry about it. She was able to deal with it and ignore it, even had a few snappy comebacks to give. Must've been training from all those bickering sessions she and Estéban have all the time. She's going to have to thank him soon. Either way, it was a good week.
Two years since the incident, the friendship between Estéban and Naomi grew. In fact, it grew from a bickering friendship, to a bickering relationship. Yup, the two of them are officially dating. But there was a problem: Estéban came up with a pet name for her, and he made it only to annoy her. And the worse part is, she hasn't been able to come up with a pet name to annoy him.
Right now, Naomi was in the library reading a book she pulled out randomly, not paying attention to its contents. Her mind's been wandering to the backtalk and insults she's heard from her former schoolmates about her relationship with Estéban.
"It's obvious she's only dating him for her benefit."
"I bet she's gonna spend all her time shopping with the royal family's money."
"Does she even love Chancellor Estéban?"
Naomi groaned. Why do their words hurt her so much?! Why can't they mind their own business?
"Hey there Nomey." Said the smooth annoying tone of her boyfriend Estéban, standing behind the couch she's sitting in.
Naomi growled a little and turned her head towards Estéban with a pout. "I told you not to call me that."
Estéban put an index finger to his chin. "Hmm, I could, but where would be the fun in that?" He asked with a smirk.
Naomi growled again. "One of these days, I'll find a pet name that'll embarrass you."
Estéban chuckled and playfully patted Naomi's head. "I'd like to see you try Nomey." He had to duck from the punch that almost hit him. "Well, looks like I got to go." And he dodged a book that Naomi threw at him and left the library.
One day, she will get her revenge, and it will be sweet.
"Hey there Ban-Ban." Naomi said to Estéban when she found him making something in the kitchen.
Estéban tensed up and looked over at her, seeing the smirk that he usually wears on her face. "Where did you hear that?" He asked, his terror slipping out of his voice.
Naomi giggled. "Turns out your Abuela is a great source of embarrassing information when needed. Apparently, it's the name Isabel used to call you when she was too young to pronounce your name fully? Oh, but now it'll be my pet name for you." She smirked triumphantly.
Estéban just stood there dumbfounded and betrayed. "Abuela, how could you?" He asked quietly.
Somewhere in the palace gardens, Luisa Flores sneezed.*
Naomi walked over to Estéban and poked his chest. "Now I have an embarrassing pet name for you. How does it feel to have your girlfriend use it against you, hmm?" She snickered.
Estéban growls. "Oh sure, use my family history against me, Nomey."
Naomi frowned. "You did it first, Ban-Ban."
"Nomey."
"Ban-Ban."
"Nomey!"
"Ban-Ban!"
"Would you two kiss and get out already? The kitchen staff needs to prepare lunch." Armando called out to the bickering two, with the kitchen staff in tow.
The two looked at them with blushes covering their faces. Naomi was the first to leave the kitchen, Armando's statement about her and Estéban kissing to end an argument making her face redder than ever.
Come to think of it, the two of them haven't kissed yet. And that's fine by her; she's heard tales of what Shuriki did to Estéban. She wasn't going to instigate anything. She doesn't want to make him relive awful memories. He never stepped on her toes, so she won't step on his. Still though, she thought, stopping in the middle of the hall to bring her fingers to her lips. I guess it wouldn't be so bad to kiss each other. Someday.
"Nomey!"
"Ban-Ban!"
"They're at it again." Mateo said, leaning against the table in his workshop, watching Naomi and Estéban calling each other names.
"What are they fighting about this time?" Olivia, Mateo's apprentice, asked.
"That is a mystery we shall never know Olivia. Now, let's get back to our lesson."
"Okay!" And the two went back to what they were doing, ignoring the arguing couple in the library.
It was a dark night in the library. Naomi was trying to read a book to calm her nerves. But she couldn't focus. Her former schoolmates have to ruin everything!
"Oh, look, it's the GNOME. Shouldn't you be guarding someone's garden?"
"I can't believe Chancellor Estéban would date you; you're too small and GNOMEY."
"No wonder the two never kissed, she's probably too GNOMISH for his tastes!"
Naomi didn't realize she was crying until she felt someone wiping her tears away. She looked up and saw that it was Estéban, who looked concerned. "Naomi?"
Naomi said nothing as she put down her book and just hugged Estéban, crying into his chest. Estéban carefully hugged back and rubbed her back in circles. "Why are they so mean? What did I ever do to them?!" She sobbed.
Estéban only continues to rub her back. After a while, Naomi pulled back and started rubbing her eyes. Estéban pulled out his handkerchief and gave it to her, her taking it to dry her eyes and blow her nose. "Better?"
Naomi sniffed and wiped away the remaining tears. "A little, yeah."
"Want to tell me what they said?"
Naomi shook her head. "It doesn't matter; it's just stupid rumors and gossip."
"Which usually doesn't get to you this much. What did they say?"
"It's nothing important."
"Why not?!"
"Because I said so, Ban-Ban!"
Estéban growled a little. "There's no need for name calling, Nomey."
"You just did it!"
"Only because you did it first!"
"Ban-Ban!"
"Nomey!"
"Ban-Ban!"
"Nomey!"
"Ban-MMF!"
Naomi got cut off as she felt Estéban kiss her lips. Naomi's eyes were wide. She had no idea what to do; she never kissed before. This was her first kiss...ever...and it came about from an argument. Yeah, that sounds about right.
When Estéban pulled away, they both were blushing madly. Estéban cleared his throat and shifted his eyes away. "Sorry, it just felt right."
Naomi tilted her head. "You're sorry? You're the one who was tortured by Shuriki."
"But you're the one being ridiculed now." Estéban said, looking back at her. "You don't think I hear the same thing when people gossip?" Naomi gave him a pointed look. "Okay, Doña Paloma may have had a hand in informing me. But still." He grabbed Naomi's hands. "Why do you always hide these things happening to you? Why torture yourself holding in all your pain?"
Naomi squirmed a little. "I don't know. It just doesn't seem as important. It's just stupid gossip."
"Words can hurt as well. Trust me, I know." Estéban learned his forehead against her's. "Shuriki said many many hurtful things to keep me in line. They all worked. They all hurt, which means that those gossipers words hurt you too. Naomi, I told you everything Shuriki did to me, why do I not get the same courtesy?"
Naomi sighed. "I don't know. Ugh! This is all so stupid!" Naomi felt Estéban squeeze her hands a little. "I guess, I'm just used to dealing with it myself without help. This never really happened before I moved here with my parents, and I've barely paid attention to it when I was still in school. And you know me, I barely ask for help with anything." She looks at Estéban. "I guess I'm too stubborn to ask for help."
"Of course, you're stubborn; you decided to say 'yes' when I asked you to court me, another stubborn person." Naomi laughs a little. Estéban smiles a little. "And now I'm using my stubbornness to figure out why you won't talk to me. And I'm not leaving until you answer me."
Naomi grumbles a bit before sighing. "I guess, somewhere deep down, I believe them."
Estéban raised a brow. "Eh?"
Naomi groans and pulls her hands away to cover her face. "I think they might be right! I don't belong here. I never belonged here. I don't deserve Elena's friendship. I don't deserve this Grand Council position. I don't deserve you." She puts her hands down and looks at Estéban. "What do you even see in me? I'm just a girl from the port."
"Of course, you are, you are from the port."
Naomi gave him a pointed look. "Gee, thanks."
"Let me finish." Naomi settles. Estéban moves from his kneeling position to sit next to Naomi. "Yes, you are a girl from the port. You are also one of the realest people I've ever met. You aren't afraid to tell people when something's wrong. You have impressive insight into people. And not to mention, you aren't afraid to go toe-to-toe with me. I look forward to our arguments every day."
Naomi rolled her eyes. "You argue with Doña Paloma too, why not date her?"
"Because she doesn't give me the same happy, teasing feeling I get when I argue with you. Also, if she and I were to get together, we'd most definitely kill each other in a week." He winks.
Naomi blushes. "I guess those are good points." She said in a tiny voice.
"And," Estéban says in a smooth tone as he hugs her and leans into her ear. "she doesn't squirm when she's nervous like you do. And I find that...adorable." He breathes a little on her ear.
Naomi's entire face is red, and she punches Estéban's chest hard. "Ugh!" He slides over a bit and holds his chest. "Okay, I went too far with that." He said in a strained tone.
Naomi's first reaction was supposed to be something akin to worry and to check if he was alright. But that's not who she is. Her actual first reaction was bursting out laughing. "Hahaha! Your face right now is priceless! Hahaha!" She continues laughing.
Estéban wanted to be mad, but he couldn't. He loved hearing her laugh, even if it's at his expense. He smirked. "I'm so glad my pain has brought you joy." He says playfully.
After Naomi calmed down, she smiles. "Thank you."
Estéban gave her a smirk. "Well it's not like I had a choice, your crying would've disturbed the entire kingdom's rest."
"Hey, I don't cry that loudly." She pouts.
"Oh yes, you do." He chuckles.
Naomi stops pouting and only smiles. Then she rested her head on Estéban's shoulder. "Ban-Ban."
Estéban smiled as well and rested his head on her's. "Nomey."
And the two just stayed in the library for the rest of the night.
A/N: Well, that's the end of this story. This was hard to write for some reason so again, sorry if the ending confused you. See you next time, and try not to get yourself killed. ;)
*In Japanese culture, it is believed that if someone sneezed out of the blue, it means that people are talking about them.