Cow Chop Imagines/Reader Inserts

Love, It's Safe Out Here Now

LindseyXPan!Reader, T, 4200 words (hey finally it's a little shorter than usual!), warnings for coming out, assumed heterosexuality, brief alcohol, mostly background NovaHD

There's a note from me about coming out as some form of queer/LGBTQ+ in the end notes for anyone interested. This story is only one depiction of the process and of one person choosing to do it.

Thank you so much to theelegantwalrus for the fantastic prompt they sent me: "I have a request! Reader is a closeted pan gal with a raging crush on Lindsey but doesn't want to come out because she's scared that no one will take her sexuality seriously 👌" I had a lot of fun writing this one!

Reader has been into Lindsey for awhile, a LONG while. Between being terrified of coming out, not knowing if anyone will even understand her sexuality, and dealing with everyone assuming she's only into guys it's needless to say that she hasn't been given the chance to do anything about it. So she pines from afar and relies on Aleks to be each others supports while they both crush on coworkers. When Aleks comes out it only makes staying closeted harder, until one fateful dinner.

Glad I got another one out relatively close to the last one! I'll try and keep up the pace before mid-semester crunch. Thank you all and feel free to send more prompts!

I hope you all enjoy <3

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Tonight. It was going to be tonight, it had to be. I clutched my phone in one hand and a bottle of Mike's Hard while leaning against one of the walls in Lindsey's apartment. The music wasn't too loud but everyone was laughing and joking throughout the place. I was standing with Brett and James but I kept looking over at Lindsey.

I had barely taken two sips of the drink in my hand and it felt like I couldn't keep anything down. She kept glancing back and giving me wide toothy smiles and I was starting to think she thought the ones I gave back were forced.

Brett nudged me lightly, "Who do you keep looking at?" I looked up at him, startled.

"N-no one, just you know, watching." I shrugged but my answer didn't satisfy him. He narrowed his eyes at me and tried to stand in my spot to see who was in the direction I was facing. "Oh come on quit it." I said, forcing my voice to stay light and clear.

He teasingly threw an arm around my shoulder, "No you come on Y/N, which guy is it?" I sighed deeply. He jostled me lightly, "Well? It's high time you finally meet someone dude. I don't think you've dated anyone since we've met."

I rolled my eyes, "I was dating someone just before we met during the move. I've been on a couple dates here and there since them."

James spoke up before Brett could, "What kind of guy is your type then? I know a couple of dudes from the racetracks who seem pretty nice."

This was it. This was my opportunity. I could so easily say, "I'm actually not interested in dating guys right now, but if you know any girls who are also attracted to girls then that would be cool." I had practiced it in front of the mirror so many times. I had my definition of my sexuality down to something that anyone could understand.

My shoulders hunched slightly as all that came out was, "I like guys who can make me laugh, similar interests are always good too." I wanted to leave so badly.

James started rattling off people he knew with Brett chiming in comments while I barely listened. I looked over at Lindsey again and her smile made me feel like sticking around at the party was worth it.

.

"Why are our coworkers painfully straight?" Aleks whined with his head in my lap. I sighed and took a sip from the glass of wine I had poured the second Aleks texted me asking for to come over and bitch about stuff. I flipped through the channels while my dogs curled at my feet.