hi everyone! this is my first jatp multi-fic story, of which i am so proud of it!
it's also posted on ao3, as well as on my tumblr with some extra special features (such as twitter and instagram profiles)
you can check it out at my tumblr: ruzek-halstead, under my luke & julie masterlist located on my profile :)
just a few things before you read:
- since this show is relatively new, we don't even have last names for half of the characters so i made up nick's last name (inspired by new girl's nick miller - one of the best tv characters of all time)
- please be mindful of the tags (there's nothing explicit - just minor non-con elements, so just keep that in mind before reading)
- the high school names are derived from she's the man (quite possibly one of the best movie's ever made)
- i also tried to be mindful of the age group of this fandom, so i hope everything is appropriate enough - i really tried!
anyway, i hope you all enjoy!
"Go Nick! You've got this baby!"
Julie rolled her eyes as her best friend Carrie screamed her support for her boyfriend directly in her ear.
She was never overly fond of these school events, what with all the testosterone, but Carrie made sure to drag her along to this soccer game. It was a friendly game, mostly for practice, but there was nothing friendly about it. Cornwall High School has had a rivalry with Illyria High School for as long as she can remember; it'd always been talked about in the local news. And now that she was a senior, it still hadn't changed.
She didn't know many of the Illyria students. All she knew was that her best friend Nick (who was also the captain of their soccer team) had an intense rivalry with Illyria's team captain, and so she had no choice but to support him and hate Illyria's soccer team too.
It's friendship; you don't question it.
"Yes baby, GO!"
Julie rolled her eyes again, shoving Carrie away from her. "Shit Carrie," she snickered, "stop screaming in my ear!"
"I'm sorry," Carrie replied sheepishly, "but I have to make it loud so he thinks I'm paying attention and actually know what's going on."
The girls pass the time by chatting about their latest English essay due this weekend; Carrie had most of it done already, while Julie merely had her topic picked out. It was then that they heard the tell-tale sounds of a goal. Carrie straightened instantly, getting ready to jump to her feet and cheer on her team, but was instantly silenced by the sea of red cheering excitedly. Player number seven, dressed in a red jersey with the name Patterson had scored a goal against Cornwall, and they were most definitely not shy about it.
Julie watched as Illyria's team players gathered together for a group tackle (they literally tackled each other to the ground; seriously, what's the appeal?). Player number seven, who she could now identify as Patterson, was smiling proudly, appreciating all the attention from his teammates. She recognized him as the team captain that Nick loathed.
Nick may hate him (which by extension, means she does too), but she had to admit, he was unfairly attractive. Like so much so, that it pained her to actually have to hate him so much (he had the cutest smile). But from what she's heard from Nick, Patterson was a bit of a douchebag; however, Nick was a teeny bit biased.
"Damn, I'll be hearing about that later," Carrie huffed, eyeing her boyfriend on the field. Nick was wearing a royal blue jersey with the number fourteen and even from their distance away, they could pick out his sagging shoulders.
The referee blew the whistle for half time shortly after Illyria's first goal and within seconds, Carrie was already tugging on Julie's sleeve. She knew there was no point in fighting the tiny blonde, but she also wanted to check in with Nick, since she didn't get to see him before the game. So, Julie allowed herself to be dragged down the bleachers to where her team was hydrating and cooling themselves down.
"Hey babe!" Nick greeted Carrie with a cheery smile, much to the ladies' confusion. "Jules, you came!"
Carrie shared a hesitant look with Julie. "You're not upset about Illyria's goal?"
Nick's jaw clenched so quickly, Julie would have missed it if she blinked. "There's still time to turn it around; it's just a friendly game."
Julie raised an eyebrow.
"Fine. Coach said I have to 'be the bigger person' and 'set an example' or we'll be banned from finals if there's so much as one fight."
Julie laughed, "there it is."
She surveyed the crimson team a few feet down and quietly admired how unbelievably attractive they all were. Aren't boys supposed to be awkward and dorky looking in high school? She took notice of the team captain sauntering in their direction with some lackeys. Julie instantly knew it was a recipe for disaster.
"What's the matter, Miller?" Patterson sniggered with a malicious bite in his tone. "Need your groupies to console you before your unavoidable loss?"
Immediately, Nick threw his water bottle to the ground and charged in their direction. "Are you fucking kidding me, Patterson?" He snapped, as Julie, Carrie and a few of his teammates held him back. They cannot afford to get into any more fights.
"Who are you calling a groupie?" Julie whirled around and barked at him. If Patterson was surprised at her response, he didn't show it. "Now, shut the hell up before I go over there and shove my foot up your ass!"
She could hear howls from all around her, including from Patterson's lackeys. The captain himself just smirked as he backed away, hanging off his taller blonde friend. Then he had the audacity to drop his right eyelid in a wink.
"Ugh!" Julie groaned, whirling back around in disgust. "What a douchebag."
Nick threw an arm around Julie's shoulders and pulled her in for a hug. "Thanks for that, Jules," he murmured softly, "or else I definitely would've punched him and gotten suspended."
"Anytime bro, you know I've got you," Julie replied, bumping fists.
Carrie smiled fondly in their direction, "wow, how did I get so lucky?"
"Not sure," Nick quipped, "because we definitely got the short end of the stick."
He doesn't move fast enough when Carrie aims a punch at his gut.
The game ended 2-0 with Illyria taking the win. It was a tense finale, but everyone left the field in one piece and ready to blow off steam in other ways. A Cornwall student was throwing a party in their house (re: mansion) and both teams were invited out of respect.
It was honestly a recipe for disaster but Julie was excited.
So, when she arrived, she headed straight for the kitchen to grab herself a soda. She already knew Carrie would be spending most of her time with Nick, but it was alright because Julie respected that and she honestly liked being a free spirit at parties. She could mingle with whoever she wanted and do whatever her little heart desired.
She noticed Illyria's students celebrated their victory in a respectful manner, which was surprising to everyone. It seemed as if both team's players were getting along, and that was highly unusual and unexpected.
But Julie was alright with that. She highly expected someone to bust out the karaoke machine, because there was nothing better than watching soccer players absolutely butcher everyone's favourite songs.
She decided to venture throughout the house and look for familiar faces. She spotted Nick and Carrie dominating at the beer pong table (they were playing with soda of course; while they could all be relatively reckless, none were above the law). She watched as Carrie sank the winning cup and Nick wrapped her up in a spinning hug.
They're absolutely adorable, Julie thinks as she takes another sip of her drink.
"Hey!" She heard a soft voice from her right and turned to see a tall blonde boy with a friendly smile; he was the one Patterson was hanging off of earlier when he winked at her. "Sorry to bother you, I'm Alex."
Julie shoots him a nervous smile, curious as to why the hell he went out of his way to talk to her. "I'm Julie," she replied, shaking his outstretched hand. "You're on Illyria's team, aren't you?"
Alex nodded his head. "Yeah. My best friends and my boyfriend are on the team too," he explained. "I just wanted to apologize about what happened at halftime."
Julie blinked in surprise. "Oh," she mumbled dumbly, "it's alright. I'm pretty good at dealing with ignorant douchebags." She doesn't think she's said anything wrong until she sees Alex's awkward smile. "Oh no, was your boyfriend the ignorant douchebag I told off?"
"No," Alex laughed, "I'm dating the goalie, Willie."
Julie breathed out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God."
"That ignorant asshole is Luke," he explains, grinning mischievously. "He's my best friend, even though he definitely is a dumbass sometimes. But really, most of the time, he's a total sweetheart."
Julie's nose scrunched up in disgust. "I wonder why I didn't get that vibe at all?"
Alex laughed, stealing a glance behind Julie. "He really is," he rushed, "and I'm so sorry but he's coming over right now."
In response, Julie whirled around to see Luke, roughhousing with a tall brunet dressed in flannel and another tall boy with his dark black hair tied up in a man bun,
"Hey," the boy with the man bun greeted Alex, kissing him on the cheek; she assumed that was Willie. He quickly turned his attention to Julie and shot her a friendly smile (why were they all so nice? She's supposed to hate them!).
The boy in the flannel started waving at her manically, even though he was only a little distance away. "Hi! I'm Reggie!"
She smiled back politely, and her eyes flickered over to Luke. He doesn't seem to recognize her until his green eyes make eye contact and realization dawns on his features. "Oh hey! I know you! You're Miller's groupie!"
Julie watched as Alex's facial features drop and he reaches across to slap Luke upside the head.
Julie rolled her eyes, because just one short conversation with Luke, and she remembered why she disliked (most) Illyria students. "And I'm leaving," she responded in a clipped tone. "It was nice to meet you!" She directed towards Alex, and shot the remainder of the group a warm smile.
"Uh — yeah," Alex replied, surprised she was singling him out. "We should hang out sometime! If you're uh — up for that," he trailed off, scratching his head. Julie smiled and moved along. "No? Okay."
She continued to wander the premises, finding an isolated corner behind the pool. It was a small garden and she was admiring it, while trying not to trip and fall. She had a habit of being the clumsy one out of her friend group.
"Hey cutie," she heard a deep rumble from behind her. "What're you drinking?"
Julie whirled around (much too fast apparently) because the unknown figure grabbed her forearm to keep her upright. She didn't recognize who he was, but she noticed the Illyria keychain hanging out of his jacket pocket.
"Thanks," she mumbled breathily, moving uncomfortably away from the unknown man. The corner she was in was mostly deserted, but there were still a few people around. She kept her face calm and passive.
His eyes dart down to the red solo cup in her hands. "May I?"
She glanced down at the cup and thrusted it in his direction. If he wanted it, he could have it because she was definitely not taking it back after some stranger helped himself to it. "Yeah, take it. It's all yours," she replied, shooting him a small smile. "I should probably go find my friends…"
"Oh, don't leave yet," he insisted in a gravelly voice. "We should spend some time together." Julie was starting to feel slightly uneasy. "Or we could get out of here, go somewhere quieter; have our own party."
Now Julie was starting to get annoyed.
"No, thank you," she pushed away from him to try and place some distance between them. She didn't know who he was, and he was getting much too close for comfort. "I have to go."
The stranger latched onto her wrist with an iron tight grip; Julie's eyes widened. "You can't leave yet," he emphasized in a menacing tone. "You don't just lead someone on like that and leave."
"Excuse me?" Julie snapped angrily, attempting to rip her arm away from his grasp. "What the hell? I literally just met you."
The unfamiliar stranger still didn't let up. "You mean you didn't come out here to a deserted corner so I would follow you?"
Julie's eyebrows narrowed at the stupidity of his statement. "Of course, I didn't! Now, let go of my arm, I'm leaving!" When he didn't let go, she huffed in frustration. "Dude, I'm serious. Let me go right now!"
It felt like she was trapped in a game. She could see the stranger's eyes and the unhinged glint in them, and she could feel his grip tightening ever so slightly. She was positive she could just throw her knee up and nail him in the groin to make a quick escape, but she found it ridiculous that it would have to get to that point.
Her mysterious stranger seemed to find this amusing, because he was smirking like all hell; Julie wanted to throw up.
She noticed he was starting to inch forward, and she could feel her brain starting to shut down. She could feel the panic bubbling in the pit of her stomach and all she could do was thrash around wildly in hopes that she could escape his grasp.
"Stop moving!" The stranger hissed, gritting his teeth in frustration.
Julie was five seconds away from kneeing him in the groin and making a run for it when she heard a familiar voice.
"Hey O'Donnell! What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
The stranger holding onto her arm instantly straightened and Julie felt herself stop moving as well. When she peered around O'Donnell, she spotted Luke Patterson. She let out a nervous breath at seeing a familiar face.
"You better let her go unless you want me to knock you on your ass."
Julie shot O'Donnell a smirk as she finally rips her arm free of his grasp. She can see the marks he left on her skin and she wants to punch him in the throat.
"We were just having some fun," O'Donnell replied, clearing his throat and meeting Luke's eye line.
Julie scoffed; she can feel her confidence growing once again now that she feels more comfortable. "Having some fun, my ass!" She shouted in retaliation. "You are disgusting, get the hell away from me!"
She watched in satisfaction as he backed away, like a puppy with his tail between his legs.
"This isn't over," Luke threatened in a low voice; Julie had to strain her ears to hear it. "Get out of my sight."
Julie straightened her clothes angrily; she was annoyed that happened and she was annoyed she wasn't able to fend off his advances with the same badass energy she tried to exude in everything she did.
"Hey, are you alright?"
She nearly forgot about her saviour until he spoke again. He stood a few steps away from her; he seemed hesitant to approach her, maybe because she was just manhandled by some stranger and he didn't want to startle her.
"Yes, I'm fine," she replied softly. She's perfectly aware she's supposed to hate him, but she can't think of a single reason why she should right now. "Thank you."
"Please, don't thank me for that," he sighed in disgust, "I would do that for anyone. It just isn't okay."
There was a comfortable silence present between them, as they just stood there, listening to the distant thumping music. She couldn't help but notice he looked really good; he was wearing a white band t-shirt with the sleeves cut off (that did wonders for his bright green eyes) and simple black jeans. She really couldn't remember why she was supposed to hate him.
"You're one of Miller's friends, right?" He asked, looking to continue the conversation. He still kept his distance, and he was looking at her almost as if he was shy. Julie didn't believe a good looking guy like that could be shy around anyone.
At the reminder of Nick and the rest of her friends, she also remembered how he referred to her earlier. "Yeah, I'm one of his groupies," she teased with a smirk.
"Ah, I'm sorry about that," he apologized, scratching the back of his head with a forced, painful smile. "I tend to say stupid things around pretty girls."
The smirk Julie was wearing instantly dropped. She's all good with fun and games when flirting, but as soon as it gets serious and someone shows an interest in her, she shuts down and becomes as socially awkward as they get.
She's positive she's going to say something stupid.
"Save it for your groupies, Patterson."
There it is.
He doesn't seem phased, mostly just amused. "I gave them the night off," he chuckled. "My name's Luke, by the way."
"Hmm?"
"Luke Patterson."
"Ah yes, you're my best friend's rival," Julie recounted, feigning innocence. "Oh, he would absolutely die right now."
Luke smirked, finally moving closer in her direction. "You really think he'd mind if I were talking to you?"
Julie seemed oblivious to his obvious interest in her. He was moving closer, maintaining eye contact and admiring all of her features. "Are you kidding? The only reason he didn't beat your ass earlier is so they didn't get banned from finals," she explained, "but clearly I had no problem holding my own when it comes to pretentious, pretty boys."
"Honestly, all I took away from that was that you think I'm pretty," he admitted honestly. "And that you're a badass."
Julie's smile dimmed slightly, remembering the earlier events that transpired.
"Hey," Luke murmured softly, reaching a tentative hand onto her shoulder. "What happened before was not your fault. I have no doubt in my mind you would have kicked his ass to hell and back. I can't imagine how you felt, but I'm really glad I was here."
Julie glanced at his hand on her shoulder, but he didn't move it. "I'm glad you were here, too."
His hand gently trails down her arm, to where a large bruise is already forming on her wrist.
"You still haven't told me your name."
She sent him a shy smile. "I think you're going to have to fix me a drink first if you want to find out."
Luke's smile widened, and Julie momentarily forgot to breathe because he had the most beautiful smile she had ever seen.
"Challenge accepted."
and here is the prologue!
stay tuned for future chapters :)