A/N: This is 100% inspired by a short reel that dropped into my Facebook feed; said reel will be described in somewhat detail at the very end of this (long) one-shot. If you want to see it, let me know in the comment, and I'll share the link.
And since my brain can't stop CaptainSwan-ify just about every little idea, this happened. Despite real life throwing rocks and mud in my system, I still write, not as much as I really want to… I have a CS secret Santa fic that I want to continue writing, and finish at one point… will be my project this year. (Along with some personal wins like a debut novel releasing in 1 month, self published)
Thank you ultraluckycatnd for beta reading this, fixing my punctuation and grammar flaws :D LOL
Enjoy.
Captain TikTok
Having just turned in her midterm history assignment, Emma slumped back on the couch and opened her phone. Time to update herself on her social media. Scrolling through the first few videos on her TikTok, she noticed a pattern in the suggested content it showed. All centered on sailing or pirates. "What the hell?" She shifted forward in her seat. "I don't need... oh damn." After a series of horrible Jack Sparrow cosplayers trying to mimic Johnny Depp, another guy showed up, doing some crazy workout routine. She'd seen it done before, but this guy definitely tried to dress up as some sort of hot pirate. "Shite. That's freakishly hot. How the hell can he move, dressed like that?" The guy wore some tight leather pants with a red brocade vest over a sculpted but otherwise naked upper body, his biceps bulged under the routine he did. "Wow, how the hell did he just..." The pirate leapt to his feet, while still hiding his face under a tricorn hat. Then he continued to do more crunches and pushups against the crates in the background, giving her a spectacular view of his backside.
The video looped back on repeat, and she just kept gazing at the flexing muscles and smooth movements he did with such effortless ease, not even breaking a sweat.
"How…"
"Oh, what have we here?" Ruby's voice punctured the strange bubble Emma had been in.
"Shite." Emma turned off her phone and glared over her shoulder at her roommate.
The brunette smirked her usual wolfish smile, waggling her eyebrows. "Watching pirate porn?"
"Shut up," Emma grumbled and pushed her hand through her hair. "I think my phone has picked up on all my pirate searches I've done this past week." Emma groaned and pointed to her phone. "You'd be surprised how many still try to impersonate Jack Sparrow."
"Not sure I like the loony pirate, but the dude there on the video you looked at? He looked yummy."
"Yeah…" Emma trailed off and grimaced, her fingers itching to turn it back on and make sure she could hit the subscribe button on this guy.
"So what's his name?"
"Don't know." Emma snatched up her phone and swiped it open. She sighed in relief; her phone hadn't malfunctioned and reset the reels. The guy started up his routine once more, and Emma sensed Ruby settle into the couch beside her.
"Hot_Cap_Hook," Ruby read and nudged Emma. "Does he get a new follower?"
"Perhaps." Emma tried to feign indifference but when she turned to look at her friend, she knew Ruby had her figured out. They'd been friends since elementary school and moved through high school together before settling in at the same college. Emma was taking her major in criminology with history as her minor focus. Ruby was studying to become a veterinarian and having design as her minor.
"I'm going to follow him, that's for sure." Ruby found her phone and searched for the profile. "Hot damn, will you look at all those videos?"
Emma glanced over at Ruby's screen, and sure enough the guy was a very expert content sharer. She pressed the follow button on her own phone and scrolled down his feed; he seemed to have a nautical theme. He'd shot some of his videos out on a sailboat.
"So you gonna hang out here tonight with Mr. Hot Hook here, or are you in the mood for some social stuff?" Ruby asked.
Emma grimaced; she was tired after her midterm project, but she wanted to celebrate her turning the paper in. "Let's go out."
"I'll text the gang and see who else will join us."
"Great, I'll hit the shower and get ready." Emma rose to her feet and walked towards her room. She glanced over her shoulder and asked, "The Rabbit Hole?"
"You bet your pretty ass." Ruby winked and texted furiously on her phone.
Their group of friends had a group chat, so it was easy to put a call out for some celebrations. Everyone had turned in a midterm paper this week.
Two hours later, Emma followed Ruby into their little dive bar. It had charm and chic written all over the decor, and knowing the owner was a big win for everyone.
"Oy, Liam, the usual, please!" Ruby called out and slipped up on an empty bar stool.
"Good evening, ladies." The curly-haired man smiled. "What's the occasion?"
"Do we need one?" Ruby smirked.
"Nope." He started pulling down glasses from the racks above him.
"But we just freaking finished our midterm papers." Ruby lifted her hands in victory.
"That's cause for celebration for sure." Liam grinned as he poured them both their usual tap of beer. "Will it just be the two of you, or will the rest of the gang join in?"
"As far as I can tell, we'll all be here."
"Even Killian?" Liam lifted an eyebrow and smiled.
"Yup, even your brother."
Emma took her beer and took her first sip as she turned around to face the bar room. She smiled as she spotted David and Mary Margaret walking in, arms wrapped around each other, only having eyes for each other.
"Those two are so freakishly in love," Ruby whispered in Emma's ear, then she leapt down from the bar stool and waved them over. "Ahoy there, me mates, let's find a table shall we?"
Mary Margaret walked over to Emma and gave her a hug. "Did it go okay with your paper?"
"Yeah, just happy it's over. Luckily, it was a subject I really liked." Emma shrugged and nudged Mary Margaret's arm. "Let's go to the others."
Moments later, Elsa and Anna walked in, Anna holding hands with her boyfriend Kristoff. They hugged all around the table, and Elsa offered to get drinks for her sister and Kristoff.
Emma shared a smirk with Ruby; they all knew their tall blonde friend had a crush on the bartender.
Before she had time to keep tabs on how well Elsa did with Liam, she noticed Killian walk into the bar. He wore his usual loose gray t-shirt and a flannel shirt. When he spotted the group, he grinned and waved at his brother behind the bar.
"Hi, glad you could come," Emma said and smiled up at her friend.
"Will kicked me out." Killian grimaced and rolled his eyes, pushing up his glasses. "I'll be bunking out with Liam up at the loft." He pointed upwards to the tiny flat Liam lived in above the bar.
"What has the prankster done now?" David asked from across the table.
"Apparently he has a hot date with a librarian…"
Davis spluttered into his beer hearing this, along with everyone else giving Killian a surprised look.
"I'm bloody serious, you should have seen the bloke whenever we went to the library to study for our midterm. The wanker got nothing done but drooling over this new chick they hired." Killian shook his head and plopped down on the chair next to Emma.
"Hope he treats her well," Mary Margaret mumbled into her own beer.
Everyone knew Will Scarlett was a man with commitment issues, but Emma hoped their friend could find someone to settle down with in time.
"So how did it go with your midterm?" Killian leaned closer as everyone around the table discussed Will's new love life.
"Think it went okay. I got around to all the points I wanted to focus on." Emma smiled and leaned back in her chair. "And you?"
Killian rubbed behind his ear. "Aye, I think I managed well enough."
"Come on, you'll be doing more than well enough," Emma chastised and nudged his arm with her elbow. "After all, you're the brains in this group."
"Are you calling me a nerd, Miss Swan?" He frowned, looking at her over the rim of his glasses.
"Maybe, but you're m... our nerd." She shifted in her seat, grabbing her beer. She'd been friends with Killian and everyone else here since freshman year; they'd been through so much together.
"Thanks… I guess." He gave her a wry smile and took a drink from his beer.
She smiled at him fondly. Killian was so down to earth and, in truth, somewhat of a nerd. She knew he was a huge fantasy fan and did some tabletop Dungeons and Dragons stuff with a few of his fellow literature mates.
He'd been the guy picking her up when Neal abandoned her; the asshole left her to fend for herself in the next town over. The relationship with the much older Neal had been doomed from day one, but as a freshman, his sweet-talk blinded her. Emma had cried her eyes out the entire trip home, while Killian just kept silent and listened. Not once did he come with some meaningless good advice about what to do with the asshole. He'd silently driven her home and helped her inside the apartment she shared with Ruby. Ruby had taken over, and they'd done a proper trash talk about the asshole all night.
The night was lively, and everyone had a great time. They took turns challenging each other in a game of darts or pool.
In the few moments she had to herself, she caught herself taking a peek at the TikTok profile she'd stumbled over earlier. Damn, that guy could control his body, doing all sorts of workout routines. Some clearly inspired by what currently trended on TikTok, including a few jump rope reels. The hot pirate seemed to be multi-talented.
When a chair scraped over the floor nearby, she quickly shut down the app and stuffed her phone back in her pocket. She gave Mary Margaret a smile; the petite, pixie-cut woman was clearly drunk off her ass by now.
"Know, what?" Mary Margaret slurred and leaned closer to Emma, nearly toppling over had it not been for Emma's quick reflexes.
"What?" Emma asked.
"I love David soooooo much." She lifted her hand between them, her eyes almost going cross-eyed as she focused on the hand. "I wish... *hic*... wish he'd put a ring on it, you know..." She braced herself on the table.
"I'm pretty sure he'll do that one day." Emma patted her friend's shoulder and grinned. "That guy is so in love that nothing will keep you guys apart."
"I know." Mary Margaret sighed and looked towards the pool table where David and Killian currently had a match going on. "He's such a charming and perfect man."
"Had this been a cartoon, you'd have hearts flying out of your eyes," Emma laughed.
"My Prince Charming, yeah." Another deep sigh as Mary Margaret's head dropped to her arms resting on the table. Then she rolled her head to focus back on Emma. "You found your prince?"
Emma grimaced. "Nope, and you know I'm not looking."
"Oh, she's looking at something." Ruby's voice interrupted as she dropped on the chair beside Emma with a huge grin plastered all over her face. Then she leaned closer to Emma and loudly whispered, "Have you checked up on hot_cap_hook's latest video?"
"No!" Emma said in a clipped tone, glaring at Ruby. "Don't even go there; I don't need everyone to know."
"Know what?" Anna came skipping with Kristoff in tow.
"Seriously." Emma glared around the table, now quickly filling with her friends. "Just drop it, Rubes, please." She shot a death stare at her old friend.
"Oooooh, do tell," Mary Margaret slurred and shifted forward in her chair.
"Oh, if you must know, Emma here..."
"Stop speaking, please." Emma pushed at Ruby. "What I do in my time is my own private business. Thank you very much." She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at her friends. The male group all looked a little sheepishly at her outburst. Killian gave her a curious look that she honestly wasn't ready to decipher right now. Every woman in the group looked even more curious, but Elsa gave Emma a sympathetic smile; she was always the most sensible of them all.
"Whatza look'in at, Ems?" Mary Margaret poked at Emma's arm. "You found the dirty pages online." The woman gave a little snicker and covered her mouth as she gasped. "You looking at porn-oooo." The word dragged out in a low whisper as the drunk woman leaned even closer to Emma.
"Mary Margaret, leave poor Emma alone." David saved the day and hauled Mary Margaret away from Emma. He looked at her over Mary Margaret's head and said, "I'm sorry; I think it's time we go home."
"Nooooo!" Mary Margaret whined and pushed his arms away. "Wanna kno' wha' Ems lokin' at?" She gave Emma a pouty look that made her look far younger than her age. "Pwetty plwease?"
Emma sighed and glared at Ruby, the sole reason for her predicament right now. Then she looked at her friends. "Nope, I'm not watching porn."
"It could be porn." Ruby fanned herself. "Phew. One hot dude on TikTok doing these workout videos."
"There's plenty of those out there," Anna interjected and ignored her boyfriend's indignant huff.
"This guy is a multi-talent, I tell you that, and wearing these tight leather pants," Ruby said. "His theme is pirates and sailing, and I tell you that guy is one hell of a hot pirate."
"Show us." Anna clapped her hands, but when Kristoff grumbled again, she turned to him and whispered loudly, "I know you look hot in leather, so don't go being all jealous here. We're trying to learn something new here about Emma."
"Sssssho' us," Mary Margaret begged.
Emma glared at Ruby and whispered, "I hate you."
"Nah, you don't. You just don't like showing off your dirty lingerie." Ruby waggled her eyebrows. "But come on, Emma, the ladies will love the dude too." She looked around the group of women, two of them in a serious relationship. "We can all use some chill time to just drool over some hot dude." Pointing at David and Kristoff she said, "You have nothing to be jealous about, gentlemen; your girls love you."
Emma shook her head and smiled. Give it to Ruby, making sure no one got angry with their significant others. She sighed and dropped back in her seat. "Okay, show them. I need a drink anyway."
Ruby squealed and found her phone as Anna and Mary Margaret pressed closer around her, getting a good look at the screen. Elsa stood behind Ruby and feigned uninterest in the screen, but as Emma watched her friend, she saw Elsa smirk and a blush creep up her pale skin.
"They are fucking nuts." Emma grumbled and found her way to the bar. "I need another one." She waved at Liam, who gave a nod in understanding. Emma leaned back against the bar top and looked back at the group of friends; that was when she realized someone was missing.
"Here you go, Emma."
"Where's Killian?" Emma took the beer and searched over the bar; perhaps he went to the bathroom.
"Said he wanted to go to bed." Liam shook his head as he busied himself with wiping down the bar top.
"He never said goodnight." Emma worried her lip with her teeth. "He always tells us when he leaves." She looked back at Liam.
Liam shrugged. "Hey, I don't know what goes on in his head all the time; he got tired, or so he told me."
"Did we do something to offend him?"
"I'm sure it's nothing." Liam waved her off. "You know how he gets."
Emma pursed her lips and nodded; she'd seen Killian draw back from their social circle of friends a few times. Both he and Liam had some serious baggage from their childhood he was still trying to process. So it wasn't unusual for him to avoid their social gatherings.
"Yeah." Emma found her credit card and pointed to her beer. "This is my last, so I'd like to pay my tab."
Liam nodded and took her card to swipe it through the machine; he gave it back to her with a smile. "Don't worry, he'll come around, he always does."
"Yeah." Emma took her beer and cautiously walked back to the table, the four women still pouring over the TikTok app on Ruby's phone. Squeals of delight reached her even as she walked towards them. Emma noticed quite a few other guests giving their group some curious stares.
"Have you seen this one, Emma?" Ruby asked and flipped her phone towards Emma.
Emma leaned closer and bit the inside of her cheek to prevent her from groaning out loud. The hot pirate captain hung by his arms from some sort of rigging on a ship, as he made some sort of mime-like movement with his legs, as if he walked up a set of stairs and down again, while he kept holding himself off the ground using only his arms. The beat of the music matched his every move, and he made it look so effortless.
"That looks so cool." Anna gushed. "How do you think he does that?"
"Loads and loads of training," Ruby sighed and fanned herself again. "Damn, he's freaking good."
Emma tried to wave her off with a flippant answer. "Come on, there are a lot of dudes out there doing all that he's doing."
"Emmaaaaa," Ruby dragged out her name and tutted. "You and I both know we have seen no one doing a full-on pirate theme like this."
"Didn't you just write a midterm on pirates?" Anna giggled and pointed to the screen. "You could have used him as inspiration."
"No, I could not! I was doing a midterm paper in history, not some fantasy story of pirates doing—" Emma pointed to the phone, "that."
The girls all chuckled and returned their focus to the screen as Emma sat down to finish up her last beer. She tried to ignore the sighs and groans from her friends as they drooled over yet another video of the hot pirate. Ruby gracefully shared her screen with Emma from time to time, and Emma tried to feign a sort of indifference whenever a new video played. Each time something stirred inside her, her cheeks warmed, and she got more and more restless. She tried to drown it all in the beer, and when she'd emptied the bottle, she nudged Ruby. "I'm heading home; I paid off my tab and could really use some sleep."
Ruby agreed and opted to turn off her phone and proclaimed, "Let's go home, roomie."
They said their farewells to everyone else and waved at Liam, who smiled and called out, "Goodnight, I hope you had fun."
Their apartment wasn't far from the Rabbit Hole, so the two friends walked in the crisp air and talked about school work and how wonderful it was to have finally finished their midterms.
Emma lay in bed that night with her phone in her hand, and she'd opened TikTok and scrolled through the suggested profiles' videos. Several more workout dudes showed up on her feed, but she ended up going back to hot_cap_hook's profile and scrolling to his early videos. His feed started four years ago, damn, he'd been busy—almost a new video each week. In the early stages of his profile, it was grainy shots with far too much shadow where she could hardly pick out his sculpted body. But it gradually got better, and she ended up scrolling through his profile for another hour before going to sleep.
College life as a senior was brutal the closer to finals they got. Emma and Ruby powered through many sleepless nights as they studied for their exams. Spending endless hours at the library, where they did indeed witness firsthand how Will had charmed the new librarian the college hired at the start of the year. Belle French was the complete opposite of Will, but they seemed to hit it off.
Emma kept her focus on schoolwork, ignoring Ruby's attempt to set her up with various men she thought Emma would like. She went out with a guy named Walsh, but he ended up being more of a creep than a love interest. He had an unhealthy interest in woodwork and monkeys. Emma never really understood how the two things could be such a huge part of the man's life.
It was the week before their graduation, and Emma sat at Granny's diner, waiting for Ruby, Killian, and Will. It was Ruby's grandmother who owned the diner, so she'd placed a cup of hot cocoa on the table while Emma waited for her friends.
She found her phone and headphones and scrolled through her social media and ended up on TikTok again. The past couple of months she admittedly had become rather addicted to seeing what hot_cap_hook put up each week. She would never admit to anyone that she'd spent long hours going through his entire catalog of videos. It was borderline stalking, or so Ruby would call it, but hey, the dude put himself out there for the world to see, so he had to be okay with girls ogling his moves. She didn't know what she liked the most, the slow-paced clips of him working on a small sailboat, wearing nothing but his leather pants, or the fast-paced workout stuff he'd clearly picked up from other profiles. Even doing some duets with a few fellow jump ropers. It was frustrating how well he hid his face; all she'd been able to see was a hard-chiseled chin covered in a few days' worth of scruff. It could be literally anybody.
His latest video started with a fully dressed ensemble of him wearing a long leather duster over his usual red brocade vest. And leather pants. A tricorn hat firmly pressed over his head and as he moved through a basic dance routine, he'd kept his head held low. As the music picked up, he turned his back to the camera and dropped the duster on the floor. His next move had Emma gasp, "Damn, how is that even possible?" The guy jumped up and one-handedly made the first leap on the salmon ladder in the background. The loud clank of the metal bar hitting the curved hooks had Emma jump in her seat. Then she watched him do five more jumps, still with only one hand. He leaped down and landed in an elegant crouch, which really showed off his shapely behind.
"Shit." Emma rubbed over her face and was disappointed in finding the video had ended.
"Why the long face, girl?" Ruby's voice startled Emma, so she dropped the phone to the table, and when Ruby saw what Emma had been looking at, she grinned. "Yup, that was super hot, yeah." Ruby scooted in to sit next to Emma. "Bet he's been doing some crazy ass training to pull that one off."
"Yeah…." Emma quickly plucked her phone from the table and turned it off when she spotted Killian and Will enter the diner.
"I'm famished," Will grunted and settled in the seat opposite Emma, and Killian slipped in next to him.
"You're always hungry," Ruby laughed and picked up the menu from its holder by the window.
"Damn right, I am." Will gave a quick glance at the menu before giving it to Killian.
"Thanks mate."
"You look tired, Killian," Emma said with worry. Her friend looked like he hadn't slept for days.
Killian rubbed over his face and groaned. "These finals have been draining me," he grimaced. "Can't wait for it to be over." He looked over at her with a grin plastered over his sweet face. He pushed his glasses up and asked, "So is everyone ready to order?"
Emma and Ruby nodded, and Killian waved to Granny, who came to their table with a smile on her face. "Now what can I get you all?"
Everyone made their order and talked about what they wanted to do this summer. Ruby was keen to go on some sort of trip with her new boyfriend. "You know Graham's never been across the state line; can you believe that?" She looked at Emma with raised eyebrows.
"The guy is too down to earth to think about crossing state lines and all that. Are you sure you can convince him to join you?"
"That bloke will go wherever Ruby waggles her little finger," Will chuckled and Ruby rewarded him with a swift kick to his shin.
"Now you shut up about my Graham. He's the nicest guy I've ever been with."
"And the oldest," Killian mumbled, taking a sip from his soda as he gave Ruby a weary look.
"So what of it?" Ruby glared. "He's only five years older than me."
"Nothing, I've been with... eh, never mind." Killian's face turned beet red, and he shifted nervously in his seat, glancing towards the kitchen. "Where's our food?"
"Oh, hold your horses, clever boy, what did you just say? Who have you been with that we do not know about?" Ruby leaned over the table and gave Killian a hard stare. "Do share with the class, Mr. Jones."
"Ruby, leave him alone." Emma nudged her friend with her elbow. The conversation was clearly getting a little uncomfortable for Killian; he kept scratching behind his ear, giving Ruby weary looks.
"Thought we knew all about our quiet prep boy here," Ruby grinned.
"I just…"
"Aww, what can it hurt, mate? Tell them, it's not as if it's any recent events after all. How long ago was it? End of freshman year?"
"You know?" Ruby exclaimed and glared at Will as if holding this secret to himself was the biggest crime of all.
"We're mates. We talk, ya know. We don't just grunt and drink beers," Will scoffed.
"Could have fooled me," Ruby smirked but sobered. "I'm glad you found Belle, though. Congrats on sticking with someone that long. She seems to be good for you."
"Aye, she definitely is," Will smirked.
"So who were you together with back then?" Ruby turned her focus back on Killian.
"Bloody hell." Killian rubbed over his face again. "Her name's Milah. She worked at the bookshop I worked in during my first years at college. We hit it off from day one."
"Uh, do tell." Ruby rested her elbows on the table, cupping her face, giving Killian her undivided attention.
"We spent a fair amount of time together. She worked at a bar downtown, so she had her afternoons off."
"A bar?" Emma asked, giving him a curious look. "So she was older than you."
"Aye, you could say that." Killian rubbed behind his ear.
Will spluttered. "A fair bit older, I'd say." He nudged his friend and laughed.
"How much older?" Ruby asked, her eyebrows lifted.
"Twelve years or so," Killian mumbled.
"Shut up!" Ruby slammed her hand onto the table, toppling over the menu holder. "Are you serious? You shagged up with a woman in her late twenties when you were a freshman?"
"Aye, so what?" Killian glared at her. "I've seen you with guys older than you."
"Not twelve years," Ruby dodged but grinned. "I'm not opposed to the age difference; I'm just shocked that you…" She dropped off as she waved her hand towards Killian. "You're the sweet, innocent prep boy in our group."
"I'm not a prep boy," Killian grumbled and pushed his hand through his hair, making it stand up at odd angles.
"He's our certified nerd," Will bellowed and wrapped his arm around Killian, giving him a head noogie.
"Piss off." Killian shoved at Will, but there was something twinkling in his eyes as he looked over at Emma and Ruby. "I just like to keep things to myself, you know."
"We know Killian, and we all like you for who you are." Emma leaned over and patted his hand; the warmth from his skin sent a jolt of tingles up her arm. What the hell?
He kept his gaze on Emma when Granny came with their food.
They ate the food and kept quiet for a while, but Ruby picked up on their conversation again. "So no new cougar on the line, Killian?"
"Ruby!" Emma exclaimed and threw her fries back on the plate. "Seriously, why do you need to nitpick into what Killian does or doesn't do with his spare time?"
"I'm just curious. Jeez Louise, take it easy."
"For the record, there are none in my life." Killian gave them both an uneasy smile.
"Awe, that's a shame," Ruby sighed.
"Ya interested in our nerd?" Will laughs.
"Nah. I got my man, remember?"
"Graham is a nice bloke, quiet." He lifts an eyebrow in surprise. "Not exactly the type you usually go for."
"Elsa dragged me to the Rabbit Hole a few weeks ago, just the two of us," she sighed. "She needed a wingman."
Emma chokes on her milkshake. "So she finally plucked up the courage to ask Liam out?"
"That was her plan," Ruby smiled. "Think they have a date after the finals."
"And you snatched up the other bartender." Emma shook her head. "I can't keep track of you guys anymore." She sighed. "I'm happy for you guys, though."
"So you got anyone you want to woo?" Ruby nudged Emma's arm. "I'm good at being a wingwoman, you know."
"No thanks, no one right now." Emma leaned back in her seat, watching her friends cautiously as she fidgeted with her phone laying on the table.
"Oh yeah, you got the hot pirate captain you swoon over." Ruby laughed and pointed at Emma's phone.
"You still drool over some hot dude doing workout videos?" Will smirked and waggled his eyebrows.
"Shut up." Emma glanced over at Killian, who seemed awfully quiet now that the talk had turned away from his lacking love life. Why did they have to speak about her nonexistent romance?
"To be fair, he is hot!" Ruby reasoned with a grin.
"Yeah…" Emma mumbled and pushed her hand through her hair.
"Shame he keeps hiding his face," Ruby sighed dramatically. She looked at their two male companions. "Why would a guy do that? I mean, he's obviously ripped to the core, and by the looks of his scruffy chin, I'd bet he's hot."
Will shrugged. "Perhaps he's got a scar or a lazy eye, or something. I don't know. If it was me being so famous online, I'd show my face."
"Would you?" Ruby asks, looking at Killian.
Killian gulped down and looked at them with what could only be described as dread, but he gave them a tight smile. "I don't know; there could be loads of reasons to hide his face. Some don't like the limelight, or as Will says, he could have some sort of scar that he doesn't want the world to know about." He rubs behind his ear again and tucks into the rest of his food.
"Hmm yeah…" Ruby mused and glanced over at Emma. "I bet you'd go out with him either way."
"What?" Emma feigned anger and refusal. "I don't know who the guy is. I never go out with anyone I don't know."
"Narrows the field down quite a bit there, Ems," Will laughed as he finished his food and took his drink.
"Whatever. You know what I mean. I'm not actively looking, but should the chance arise, I wouldn't be opposed to finding someone."
Ruby hummed in acceptance as they all finished their meal and emptied their drinks. They parted ways, and Ruby and Emma walked back to their place, ready to hunker down and finish their final exam in two days. Then graduation and whatever life came up with for them.
TWO WEEKS LATER
Graduation was over before they could even blink, and everyone had spent the past week celebrating, hanging out, and moving out. Killian and Will had lived on campus and were actively searching for a place to live. While they waited, Killian bunked down with his brother—not the most ideal place as it was tiny. Ruby had convinced her Granny that Will was the perfect candidate for the small room with a tiny kitchenette that was behind the diner. He'd promised to step in on busy days at the diner and help fix things.
It was a Friday afternoon, and Emma was contemplating if another night at the Rabbit Hole was worth the hangover she'd have in the morning. She picked up her phone and was about to open up the group chat when she noticed a notification on her TikTok app stating that hot_cap_hook had posted another video. Her thumb moved on its own accord and pressed the notification.
The video started with an empty door frame, then a dude with his face bowed low hidden under a ball cap walked in. He wore a grey t-shirt, hands clutching the hem of the fabric. The music was a slow, pulsing rhythm. Seconds later, the guy moves his hand upwards, and there's some transition happening as he loses the shirt in the process. The movement of his head is so quick that Emma doesn't get a clear view of his face. "Damnit," she grumbles, but her eyes capture the next transition with the guy back in his gray shirt. In the next move, he does a pose with his side turned to the camera and his arm resting against the doorframe. Same transition happens; the shirt is gone, and all his ripped muscles are on full display. He moves back to the starting position as the shirt reappears on his body.
"Show me your face," Emma mumbled, painfully aware that she sounded like a petulant child. His next pose is full front, one arm above his head, cap still hiding his face, but the editing of the clip has removed the shirt again.
Returning a beat later to start, dressed in a shirt again. Head still angled, so his face is not visible. Then he moves again, twisting at his waist, showing off the rippling muscles of his back. Yeah, the shirt is gone again.
The music kept playing as he moved into this starting position once more; this time he slowly tilted his head upwards, showing more and more of his scruffy face, some rather familiar lips, and with a flick of his hand, the cap was gone.
"Killian!?" Emma screeched and nearly dropped her phone. "What the hell?"
Killian smiled—Oh yeah, this was her friend—and shrugged, raising his arms as if to say surprise. The video ended with a text: Emma, will you go on a date with me?
She barely registered that the video goes in a loop and the whole thing shows again. Even after three times her brain doesn't seem to compute that it's been her friend Killian who's behind hot_cap_hook all this time. She can barely breathe as it is, and her head swirls with thoughts: How have we never seen Killian shirtless? How did he become so ripped? Dang those muscles. She flashed through all the clips she's seen on his profile page, all showing a guy becoming better and better at all the workout routines he did. Finally she turned off the screen and slumped back on the couch, her mind still spinning.
"Emma… Emma… You'll never guess what?" Ruby came barreling into their apartment.
"What?" Emma squawked; her throat felt like sandpaper.
"Are you okay there, girl?" Ruby looked at her with worry.
"Yeah." She looked up at her friend. "What did you want to share?"
Ruby pointed to her phone in her hand. "You'll never guess who your hot captain is."
"Killian," Emma mumbled and squint at her friend, who dropped her jaw.
"You know?"
"Just saw the video," Emma sighed wearily. "How have we never..." She waves her hand aimlessly in front of her.
"That guy has some serious explaining to do when I get my hands on him." Ruby fanned herself with her free hand. "Phew, who would have thought our nerd was that ripped? Day-um…"
"I know! I still can't believe it," Emma mumbled and flicked her thumbnail over the edge of her phone case.
"Aaaaand…" Ruby pointed at her, "He wants to go on a date with you!" she squeals.
"That's so freaking crazy," Emma mumbled and rubbed over her face before looking at her friend again. "Why?"
Ruby rolled her eyes. "Are you asking why he would go out with you?"
"Yeah?"
"Girl, you got to be blind if you haven't noticed how he follows your every move whenever we hang out with the gang." Ruby settled down on the other end of the couch, curling her feet under herself.
"Seriously?"
"Dead serious." Ruby waggled her eyebrows. "I'm just extremely shocked that the guy is so freakishly famous on TikTok... Have you seen the number of followers he has?"
"Yeah, some 500,000." Emma frowned. "Why didn't he just say something to me?"
"Who knows, perhaps he cared for the privacy of keeping his identity a secret online, it can go bananas out there, you know."
"Hmm." Emma shook her head, "But that's not what I meant... I meant, why didn't he just ask me out or give better clues he likes me?"
"What do you feel?"
Emma groaned. "I don't know." She pressed the heels of her hands against her eyes. "All I know is that I care for him. I enjoy hanging out with him. He's fun, intelligent, considerate, nice, and sweet." She dropped her hands in her lap. "Sure, I've felt something between us, but I always thought it was this sort of friendly chemistry."
"It's seriously been far too long since you experienced love."
Emma grimaced and slumped back on the couch. "Not since Asshole Numero Uno ruined everything for me."
Ruby winced at the mention of Neal, and Emma couldn't blame her friend; everyone had witnessed how messed up Emma had been afterwards.
"What are you going to do?"
"I guess I'll have to speak with him." Emma worried her lip between her teeth. She did not know what to even say to the man once she was face-to-face with him.
"Gotta give it to ya, little brother, you got some balls posting that video." Liam opened two bottles of beer and gave Killian one before settling down behind the desk in his tiny office at the back of the bar.
Killian took several long gulps of his beer before slumping back on the worn-out couch. "It's younger brother," he mumbled and closed his eyes.
"You've been pining for the lady Swan for years, mate. It beats me how you never asked her out before."
"I'm not pining; I just bloody well like her." Killian rubbed over his face before looking at his brother again. "I've been trying to come up with a smooth way of letting her know, but the moment I start speaking, I stumble over my words and I change the conversation."
"So revealing your identity on your very popular social platform seemed like the right way to do it?" Liam smirked and rested his chin on his folded hands.
"The workout videos were my vent; the thing I could have to myself and knowing that people liked what I did was a bonus." Killian shrugged, recalling when he shot the first video almost four years ago. It had been a spur-of-the-moment thing; he'd worked out for several years already, not something he flashed around to his friends. The workout routines kept him sane after the shitshow their father had thrown at them after their mother died. Liam knew this and supported Killian, and when Killian showed him the videos he'd done, Liam offered to help with some of the tech stuff. Better lighting for one and camera movement.
"I can't believe it took this long for your stuff to show up on everyone's phones." Liam shook his head and lifted an eyebrow. "What if your lady hates you now?"
"You think she would?" He gripped the bottle tighter, his knuckles turning white.
"Emma is a strong and self-persevering woman who takes no shit from anyone." Liam shrugged. "Can't blame her, her past is less than perfect."
"Aye." Killian shifted forward in his seat and rolled the bottle between his palms; he was restless and needed to vent some of the pent-up energy.
There was a knock on the back door, and Killian gave his brother a weary look, "Expecting someone?"
"Nope." Liam rose from the desk and strode out into the hallway.
Killian stood as well, his gut telling him he already knew who the visitor would be. His heart did a somersault when he heard Emma speak with Liam. Setting his beer on the desk, he rubbed his sweaty palms on his jeans.
"Killian, you have a visitor," Liam proclaimed in a far too formal tone.
Killian ignored his brother. "Emma?"
"Hi." Emma stepped around Liam and smiled. "Thanks, Liam."
"Think that's my clue to leave you two alone." Liam winked.
"Git," Killian grumbled. "Piss off."
Liam closed the door behind him, leaving Emma and Killian alone.
"Hi." Emma wrapped her arms around herself, biting her lips nervously. "So I saw an interesting video today." She shifted her stance to rub her palms over her hips, before slipping her hands into her back pockets and taking a deep breath.
"Aye, I…" Killian faltered. How the hell could he ever make her understand how much she meant to him?
"Kinda took me by surprise, you know." She tilted her head as she looked at him, her green eyes sparkling in the overhead light.
"I'm sorry… I… it…"
"Killian!" Her voice lifted as she took another step towards him, his pulse quickened.
"Aye…"
"I have a lot of questions."
"I know and I'm so…"
"Don't!" She lifted her right hand towards him and said, "No apologies. Yeah, I have questions, but let me just say this one thing before going further."
Killian nodded in understanding, holding his breath.
"Yes, I would very much like to go on a date with you."
He blinked several times while he tried to sort through what her words meant. "You… do?"
"Hmm." She moved in closer and placed her hand on his chest, now he was certain his heart might leap from his chest if she moved closer.
Gulping down, he mumbled, "But I'm sure you want answers too?"
Her finger tapped over his heart. "Yup. First, how the hell have you never told us you're TikTok famous?"
Killian rubbed behind his ear. "I'm a private person, you know that?"
"I do." She smirked and scratched her fingernail over his shirt, sending shivers down his spine. Gods, he could smell her perfume, hot-wiring his faculties with its flowery scent laced with cinnamon.
"What else?"
"Uh?" She blinked, looking up at him.
"What else do you want to ask me?" He lifted an eyebrow, and his mouth lifted in a smile, she'd clearly lost her focus for a moment.
She cleared her throat. "Oh, yeah." She smacked his shoulder. "And why the hell have you never shown us how freaking ripped you are under all those grey T-shirts and flannel?" She flipped her fingers over the hemline of his flannel shirt.
"Ouch, easy there." He rubbed over his shoulder. "You have a pretty nice right hook there, Swan."
She smoothed her hand over his shoulder, her fingers digging into his flesh as she moved closer.
"Emma?" Her name stumbled over his lips when her breath warmed over his neck. "What are...?"
"Trying to decide if I should kiss you now or wait until our first date."
"Bloody hell." He clenched his hands, trying to control the urge to reach out to her. Fearing she wasn't ready, despite her proximity and talk about kissing.
"What do you say?"
"Uh?"
"Kiss or no kiss?"
Killian groaned, he damn well knew what he wanted to do right now, but he didn't want to ruin what they'd built up in the past years—a close friendship. Had he ruined it all by uploading that reel instead of just coming clean with her face to face? Taking a deep breath, he asked her just that.
She pulled back slightly and looked up at him for a moment. "I liked it happening this way." Biting her lip she smirked. "You have no idea how many nights I've drooled over your reels. Seeing your face on there for the first time, damn that was like a supernova going off inside me."
"That intense, uh?" He lifted an eyebrow.
She shrugged. "I guess it also made me realize that I've fancied my best friend for years now."
"Aye?" A grin spread over his face at her revelation.
"Yeah, and a date sounds like the perfect first step."
"So no kiss now?" He licked over his bottom lip, and his heart flipped when her breath hitched in her throat.
"Damn it all to hell." She moved in swiftly, pressed her lips to his, and wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close.
Killian wrapped his arms around her waist and groaned into the intense kiss, his nerves hot-wired and sparks flickered over his skin, feeling her soft lips move over his.
She took a deep breath. "Wow, that… that was…"
"Hopefully not a onetime thing?"
"Nope, not a chance in hell, buddy. You're stuck with me." She cupped his cheek, and her thumb rubbed over his cheek. "I should have guessed it was you from the scruff." Shaking her head, she chuckled. "You really surprised the hell out of everyone."
"Everyone?"
"Well, at least Ruby knows..." She grimaced, "But knowing her streak of running with gossip, I'm fairly sure there's a lively discussion going on in our group chat by now."
"Bloody hell." Killian groaned and pressed his forehead against hers. "Everyone will know we're going on a date."
"I don't think we'll be able to hide this."
"Didn't really think that through now, did I?" he grinned.
"Nope, but hell if I care what they know. All I care about is you and me together, on a date, hopefully really soon."
"I'll make some plans and let you know." He pushed her blond hair behind her ear. "I really like you, Emma, and I want to make this right, and we'll go as slow or as fast as you're comfortable with, aye?"
"I like the sound of that." She pressed her lips to his in a quick kiss. "Can't wait to go on a date with you, hot_cap_hook."
Killian groaned. "Don't call me that."
"Hook, then?"
"Aye, whatever." He pulled her closer and cupped her face. "Can I kiss you again?"
"Whenever you want to."
This kiss sparked even more fire over his skin, and when she pressed herself closer to his form, he groaned into her mouth. Everything around him evaporated, all he felt was her warm body against his, and the rush of his blood in his ears was the only sound he paid attention to. It burst into a supernova when her tongue swept into his mouth, and he knew he would forever fight to keep her in his life.
"Damn it! Knock it out, little brother!" Liam's voice burst their heated bubble with a loud snap.
"Bloody hell, have you never heard about bloody privacy?" Killian glared at his brother over Emma's shoulder. The git had the nerve to lean against the doorframe with a knowing smirk plastered over his smug face. "And it's younger brother!"
Emma had pressed her forehead against his chest, clearly trying to hide her heated face.
"Well, I have the bar filled with your little group of friends, and they are eager for an update." Liam laughed when Emma swirled around with a panicked look on her face.
"They would never."
"Oh, they are out there, the lot of them, and they want some gossip." Liam lifted his eyebrow. "What should I tell them?"
"To keep their noses out of other people's business," Killian bit out as Emma moved to stand beside him, her arms wrapped around his waist.
"We might as well go out there."
"They'll eat us alive, especially Ruby."
Emma placed her hand on his chest. "I know, but they won't relent before they know all the deets."
Killian leaned closer and whispered, "They don't need to know that sparks fly and supernovas explode when we kiss."
"Yeah, let's keep that to ourselves." Emma laughed and tugged him along. "Ready?"
"Nope." Killian groaned and placed a quick kiss on her temple before following her out to feed the curiosity of their friends. He imagined it was to be expected when he had spent the past four years hiding his social media from his friends. Ripped body and a love for pirates included. He smiled as they walked out of the office and whispered again, "So should I wear the pirate gear for our first date?"
Emma paused her steps, her face heated before she squeaked out, "I would not mind an encounter with the hot Captain Hook."
Killian laughed as they moved down the dark hallway towards their friends. He was already planning the details for their first date. He knew it was going to be a wild ride, and he already had ideas for more workout reels in the future.
THE END