AS FRIENDS ( A Jeffery Bezos x Reader Fic )

CHAPTER 7: Get 'Em, Jeffery!

There was a cold wind that blew your H/C hair around your face and into your E/C eyes. It was one of the first things you noticed when you stepped out of your car. The second thing you noticed was the picturesque view of the long wooden docks stretching out over the murky grey sea, hundreds of white masts stretching out to brush the sky. The masts were attached to the many sailboats docked in the harbor, bobbing in the current.

Looking down the walkway, you noticed that Adam and his trademark fashion waist pack were nowhere to be seen. The only other person nearby was a man sitting on a bench, legs crossed and gaze wistfully focused on the ocean.

He must have noticed that someone else had arrived - perhaps it was the creaking footfalls of boots on wood, maybe the stirring of gulls around them. Whatever it was, their eyes locked and held for a long, elastic moment.

Jeffrey rose, hands in his coat pockets. "Y/N. I'd hoped you would come."

"You told Adam to invite me, didn't you?"

He shrugged elegantly. Looking for it, you couldn't believe you hadn't seen it before. The soft hands, clean nails. Perfect posture and that smooth, silvery voice. Everything screamed a man who had never had to want for anything. Rich white boy, you thought to yourself.

Well, that wasn't true anymore - if you had anything to do with it, his life was about to get a whole lot harder. Jeffrey spread his hands and made a pacifying gesture. "He couldn't make it today, I'm afraid, but don't worry."

"Why?" you demanded.

Jeffrey chuckled. "Something about 'marching'. I think it has something to do with the band he plays with."

"I had forgotten about that."

"Me too. It doesn't matter now. Why don't you come along with me? I've always wanted to go on a boat ride into the sunset."

"Urm..." you said, slightly irritated with the way he was treating the situation. "I'd rather not." Not with you, at least.

"Think of it as more of a friends thing, if that helps," Jeffrey suggested. "You may not want to date me anymore, but at least you can enjoy my company. You must be lonely."

"I'm not!"

"Of course, of course. I'm just teasing, you know."

"I have friends other than you and Adam, you know. They called and texted me every day, unlike someone I know."

"I've already apologized for that," Jeffrey said irritably, mouth pressed into a thin line. "There's no point in bringing it up again and again, it's not going to change the past. What's done is done, Y/N."

"It might change the future," you snapped. Jeffrey ran a hand over his bald head and sighed.

"Look, I won't do it again. I know how upset it's made you."

"That's good," you muttered. "I'm so glad you realise this now."

You shivered, the cool breeze brushing across your skin. You should have brought a jacket, you thought regretfully.

A slightly solid weight settled on your shoulders. Jeffrey wasn't looking at you, but it was obvious that it was his jacket that he had given to you. You breathe in the familiar scent, swallowing your pride and putting it on. It wasn't a crime to be warm, to accept a jacket from your not-quite ex-boyfriend.

The small shiver that ran down your spine wasn't entirely from the cold (moreso the idea of wearing Jeffrey's jacket once more), but Jeffrey didn't seem to notice. He simply rocked back and forth on his heels, humming along to a tune that was probably stuck in his head.