Joe Keery Imagines

Interview Nerves-Keys

I looked around the room, my nerves jumping around like they were inside a bounce house. I looked down, unable to stop my hands from shaking.

I knew how important this interview could be for our game, but I'd much rather be doing this over the phone. I tried taking slow breaths to calm my nerves like Keys taught me, but it was useless.

I glanced up to see Keys perfectly calm as they put his mike on. He was smiling widely, talking to the assistant. Keys and I have been best friends since we were little, completely inseparable. We grew up coding our own games. Eventually, one of them became an actually decent game.

We workshopped it and just sold it to Soonami. When Antwon first reached out to us about buying our game, it took a lot of debating and questions before we finally decided to sell it to him.

"Does your mic feel okay?" Someone asked me.

"Oh umm, yes," I struggled to answer. "I'm fine. Thank you."

"This is going to be great for our game!" Keys laughed. He looked over, his smile slightly faltering when he saw me nervously playing with my hands.

"Do I look okay?"

"Of course," he said instantly. "Y/N, are you okay?"

"I don't know if I can do this," I whispered. He jumped out of his chair and was in front of me in seconds. He reached forward and gently grabbed my hands in his.

"Hey," he whispered, "you are going to be amazing."

"I can't do this, Keys," I said shakily. "I'm not meant to be in front of the camera. I sit behind my computer all day, writing codes and building games. Not. . . this."

"Y/N," he whispered, "I am going to be right next to you the entire time."

"Promise?" I asked under my breath.

"I promise."

* * * * *

"We never dreamt this would've happened," Keys laughed. "I mean, Life Itself, it's essentially a fishbowl game. People aren't playing it, they're watching it grow. It's a strictly observational experience where computer-generated characters interact and evolve. I thought we'd be lucky to give it away."

"That's what's so charming about Keys," I sighed and gently cut him off, "he's clueless about his own genius."

"No, Y/N is the genius," Keys corrected. "She built the AI engine from the ground up."

"So, to get a little personal," she said slowly, "what's the thing that gets you up in the morning?"

"Medium coffee, cream, two sugars," I said instantly. I glanced at Keys to see him already watching me. The way he was smiling made my heart do a little flip. I resisted the urge to clear my throat as I looked anywhere but at my best friend.

"What's the other thing? Oh, yeah. An insatiable thirst for validation."

"She's not kidding," Keys laughed.

"I'm not," I added quickly.

"How about you?" The interviewer asked Keys.

"Code," he answered instantly.

"Code?" She asked

"Code," I copied, teasing him.

"Code, yeah," Keys chuckled.

"Here we go," I sighed.

"Cause it's not just zeros and ones," Keys continued seriously, "it's hidden messages. I like to think of myself, actually, as not a code writer, but an author. I just use zeros and ones instead of words cause words will let you down. But zeros and ones, never. Zeros and ones are as cool as shit."

"He's not kidding."

"I'm not."

I don't know why but something about the way the interviewer was smiling at Keys made my once fluttering stomach, turn sour.

"No, I've gotta ask," she said, pretending to sound like she was hesitating. "There is a lot of chemistry between the two of you. Has this evolved into more than that?"

Keys and I looked at each other with matching red faces. We opened and closed our mouths, unable to figure out what to say.

"Well," I said under my breath.

"We're just. . ." Keys struggled.

"Friends?" I asked. "I mean. . . We've been friends for, like, ever, but. . ."

"That's not to say that we don't. . ." I held my breath, waiting for Keys to finish his thought.

When he didn't, I whispered, "We don't?"

It felt like we were both holding our breaths as we stared into each other's eyes. I saw someone move out of the corner of my eye, a different kind of embarrassment swallowing me.

"We should talk about this later," I whispered, turning back to the smiley interviewer.

"Definitely," Keys said under his breath.

Throughout the rest of the interview, Keys and I blushed whenever we made eye contact. Things were a little tense for the rest of the interview. The tension changed, filling with relief when things started to wrap up.

"Well, thank you both for coming," she smiled.

"Thank you for having us," Keys said politely.

Things were still awkward as the crew took the mics back. I could feel Keys watching me as I slipped on my jacket, but I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I was too embarrassed. So, instead, I avoided it. I started to leave when he caught up to me.

"Y/N," he whispered, grabbing my wrist. "Can we go get a cup of coffee?"

"I don't know," I stuttered. "I should probably get home before. . ."

"Please," he gently cut me off. "There are just some things I need to say to you."

* * * * *

Keys and I went to grab a coffee before walking around the park. Neither one of us said anything during the first few minutes. Keys finally broke the silence when we hit the one-mile mark.

"I wanted to talk to you about what the interview brought up," he said. He grabbed my hand and pulled me over to a nearby bench.

"Keys. . ."

"Please let me get this out," he gently cut me off. "I think she was right. We've been best friends our entire lives. There is a chemistry between us, one that I can't ignore anymore. I know this is risky but I have to say it. Y/N, I care about you. A lot. More than just as your best friend should. I care about. . ."

"I love you, Keys," I blurted out.

"I love you too," he chuckled.

Keys reached up and gently cupped my face. I held my breath as he leaned in and pressed his lips to mine. The sparks went crazy as our lips touched. We slowly broke the kiss, both of our faces bright pink.

"Your hand is warm," I whispered, making Keys laugh.

"That would be because of the coffee."