[OLD] the music freaks oneshots

★ 21: Gifts

ships : hailey x ?
genre : fluff
second fanfic entry let's go >:D

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Hailey woke up to gentle rays of sunshine warming her skin in an otherwise dim room. After a few seconds of resting, she pulled the cotton candy pink blanket off of her and turned to find a pair of beady black eyes gazing at her.

"Ah! What the—oh."

The eyes belonged to a mocha-colored teddy bear that she had never seen before. A deep rose-colored ribbon with gold trim was tied around its neck. She picked it up, feeling the bear's soft fabric.

"Aww... who gave this to me?"

She was then startled by another pair of eyes, this time lavender and human.

"Z-Zander? What are you doing in my room?" she asked, backing away as far as she could from him without falling off the bed.

He laughed. "Relax. That bear," he gestured to the toy in Hailey's clutch, "is a gift from someone who wishes to remain anonymous until the end of the day. They asked me to give it to you."

"Oh." She looked at the teddy bear, who was smiling at her. She smiled back. "That's nice."

She got out of the bed and set it down on her desk. "Now get out, Zander, I have to get ready," she ordered, jokingly waving her hands to shoo her stepbrother out.

#

Before the stepsiblings entered their school, Zander reached into his backpack and pulled a small keychain out.

"Here," he said, handing it over to her before stepping through the double doors into the building. "It's another gift!" he called out without looking back at her.

She examined the trinket hanging from her finger. A light red heart-shaped crystal glinted in the sunlight. The way it gently swayed from side to side was almost hypnotizing.

"Hailey! Hey!" she heard a familiar voice call out, breaking her out of her small trance.

Lemon eyes and autumn locks made their way toward her, bringing a spirit of warmth and friendliness. Luke waved at her with a wide grin on his face. The skip in his step made his wine-colored scarf bounce up and down.

As he neared Hailey, he noticed the keychain in her hand. "Oh, who gave that to you?"

"Zander won't tell me."

"Huh. Alright." His eyes quickly turned their focus to the school. "Well, meet you inside?"

"Yeah, okay."

#

The third gift of the day had almost flown off the lunch table where it was found. Hailey held the thin paper in her hands, drowning out the room's noise as she tried to read it.

I don't need to say much in this letter
And I'm not the best with romance
But I wish we knew each other better
Maybe today, we'll get the chance

I do know you, and you do know me
Not every detail, but just enough
You're a great singer and pretty and sweet
And it was enough for me to fall in love

I think to you, I'm just a friend
So you may not expect me
But if you want to know who I am
Meet me in the courtyard near the big tree

She couldn't tell whose handwriting it was; the person made it look generic.

Below the poem was a note:

I couldn't fit this in the poem but meet me there after school!

"Jeez, they could've at least tried to fit it in the poem," Milly said from beside her.

"Hah, like you could do any better," Zander retorted from across the table.

"Um, well, I'm sure they tried. This mystery person seemed to have put a lot of effort into these gifts," Luke said with a faltering smile, stopping the fight. "So, will you meet this person?"

"I will. They seem pretty nice." Hailey noticed the clock on the other side of the room telling her it was time for the club to practice. "Come on, let's head to the music room now," she told her friends, standing up and neatly folding the letter to fit in her pocket.

#

It's almost time to meet this mystery person, but they'd left one final gift before the big reveal.

In Hailey's locker was a small container of candy and a card. 

Happy Valentine's Day, Hailey!

Here's one more gift before we meet <3

(Zander helped put it in your locker, don't worry)

While the handwriting could've been anyone's, she already had her suspicions as to who this mystery person is. She smiled as she pocketed the items and began to exit the hallway.

"See you!" she quickly said to her friends as she left.

She stepped out into the courtyard, where fresh air, warm sunshine, and lively chatter surrounded her. She walked past students and stopped in the cool shade of a tree that must've been five times her height.

Then she waited. A minute passed, then two, and then three.

She heard a rustle, then footsteps. She felt a tap on her shoulder and was greeted with a voice as sweet and smooth as honey. "Hi, Hailey."

She turned around, and her guess was confirmed.

Lemon eyes and autumn locks stood in front of her with a wine red scarf flowing in the gentle breeze. Luke wore a nervous grin on his face. He held a bouquet of red and pink roses with slightly shaky hands.

"Well, Hailey, if you couldn't already tell... I really like you. Maybe I'm even in love. And I know you don't see me that way, but I hope I could cheer you up with these gifts."

Hailey smirked. "See, that's where you're wrong."

"Wait, what?"

She took the bouquet, held it behind her, and inched her face closer to Luke's, where she spotted pale warm cheeks turning red like the roses.

"I do like you," she said, calmer than he could ever be right now.

"R-really?"

"Mhm!"

"I... I don't know what to say—"

Hailey embraced him with one arm. "Then don't say anything. Just enjoy this moment with me," she said, voice barely above a whisper.

Luke let out a relieved sigh and smiled. "I'd like that."

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author's note :
Because there's only a day left for the contest, this is my last fanfic submission lol. Hope you like it! Happy Valentine's Day! 💝

(It's about time I wrote a Lailey fic lmao)