American Gods Oneshots

Rejection: Technical Boy - American Gods

Technical Boy x friend!reader, romantic

Done for the January challenge last year by americangodschallenges on Tumblr and edited by the amazing, wonderful, lovely dragon430 on Tumblr. Seriously, none of this would have been possible without her. Thank her, guys, thank her.

TW/CW: Rejection, arguments, yelling, physical violence (it's brief but it's there), and insults.

Word count: 3.8+K

•

Technical Boy laughed as if you'd told the funniest joke in the world. His chuckles bounced through the house, the echoes only hammering the spear of pain farther into your heart. After a few minutes, he finally quieted down, realising you weren't laughing with him.

"Oh, you're serious? Okay, wow. Not expecting that." He shifted in his place on the sofa, lifting his free hand to count his reasons. "Um, first of all, ew. Second of all, never say that again. And third of all, that is so gross, why would you say that in the first place?"

The sound of disgust in his tone was the last hit needed to drive the spear completely through your heart, shattering it into a billion, microscopic pieces. You knew he didn't like you the way you felt for him, but you still found the courage to tell him. It was stupid, but you wanted him to know. After years of being friends, you thought he should at least know that you had developed more intense feelings for him. Yes, you expected him to reject you, but you never thought he'd be so harsh about it.

"Okay," your voice bubbled out as a quivering whisper, too filled with conflicting emotions to come out steady. "I should go. I have to work in the morning." Standing to leave, you looked at him over your shoulder to see if this was just some sick joke of his.

He just stared at his phone and scrolled aimlessly. Without looking up, he questioned why you'd be leaving now. It wasn't that late, and he knew for a fact, you always worked the late shift. You said yourself that you hated waking up early. He had no remorse for his words, and that broke your heart even more.

As the door slammed shut behind you, Technical Boy rolled his eyes. He'd see you tomorrow. He always did.

•

Water flooded out of the tub faucet. The cool water quickly warmed itself, and you couldn't be more thankful for it. Taking off your clothes, you stepped in, closing the curtain behind you and turning the showerhead on.

Your heart squeezed in your chest as you breathed heavily. The water's warmth and a thick layer of steam surrounded you, helping your body untense slowly but surely. But as your mind relaxed, the more it decided to bring up the memory of Technical Boy's rejection.

Sinking to the warming, slick floor of the tub, you pulled your knees to your chest and wrapped your arms around them. Gently, you laid your head down and cried.

You hadn't expected him to like you back. That would have shocked you more than him hugging you. Still, his cruelty stung. His disgust burned you. He didn't need to go that out of his way to hurt you, to reject you. A simple no would have sufficed.

Water continued to cascade down. It did not judge your tears or your pain, one of the only things that wouldn't. It, simply, was there, basking you int its warmth and surrounding you with the calming noise. The noise did not muffle your sobs, but it did make you feel less alone.

•

Hearing someone knocking at your door, you walked over, brushing away leftover tears and water droplets. Opening it, shock ran through you as you watched as Technical Boy stood there, scrolling through his phone. You didn't open the door fully, not wanting him to see it as an invitation.