saturday mornings are for pancakes // a dream x reader fanfiction

CHAPTER 40: CHOCOLATE CHIPS

The smell of pancakes is what wakes me up today, which is strange because I'm usually the one who makes pancakes on Saturdays. I lay in bed for a little bit, but the sound of the fridge opening and closing only to open again causes me to stumble out of bed to check on the kitchen.

I peek around the corner. Clay's brows are furrowed in concentration as he watches a pan on the stove. I watch him poke the pancake a couple times, realizing it's not ready to be flipped. He sighs and takes a step back to lean on the island. That's when he meets my eyes.

"Morning," he says. It must be the first words he's said all day because his voice was a bit croaky. He clears his throat. "Hope it's okay I took over pancake duty this Saturday."

"Of course." I shrug. "Um, thank you for making them, I guess."

"No problem." He goes to flip the pancake now. "You can sit down and wait if you'd like."

"Sure." I sit down at one of the barstools, watching as he carefully places the pancake back onto the pan. His shirt is wrinkled, and he wipes his hands once he's done flipping. It's a small thing, but it just all feels so.... normal. Like maybe this is what we were supposed to be doing this whole time.

Then he turns around. He lets out a deep breath as he glances around the kitchen. He counts things off on an imaginary checklist in a way that only means that this breakfast means more than I had thought. It wasn't some sort of absentminded thought he had.

Now my chest builds in panic, waiting for the other shoe to drop on this quiet moment. I bite the bullet, knowing it's coming sooner or later. "How was your date last night?" I ask.

Clay's entire face erupts into a smile. A pang of jealousy hits me, but also something along the lines of being happy for him. Yes, I have feelings for him, and it kills me every time I see them together. But aren't we supposed to be happy for our best friends?

I take a deep breath, preparing myself to be happy for him no matter what. Just like I would if this was any other friend.

"It was great," he explains, "She's in my room sleeping still, so I'm hoping to surprise her with breakfast in bed."

Except I wasn't prepared for that.

"Oh," was all I could say at first. I swallow once. "Well, that's.. that's super cool. You guys seem happy."

This makes him somehow smile even more. "y/n, I haven't been this happy in so long. Natalie.. Well, she's everything I could ask for in a girl, and I just can't believe I let myself lose her all those years when we were teenager, you know?"

He's not lying. He's glowing. Happiness is practically oozing out of him at the moment. I remember that we're supposed to be happy for our friends, even though that seems impossible right now.

"Well I can tell you're happy," I finally say, "and that makes me happy."

"Thank you," he says, and I can tell he means it.

I clear my throat, desperate to change the subject. "Are there extra chocolate chips?" I ask.

He nods his head once. I watch as he grabs a bowl and pours the chocolate chips in. "What about you?" he asks as he works, "You should go on some dates."

I laugh. "Yeah, we'll see about that one."

He turns his head towards me. "What's wrong with being in a relationship?"

Nothing as long as you don't have feelings for your best friend. "Nothing," was all that I say though, "Just not for me at the moment. I've been focusing on work."