The Tattoo // Joshler AU

Chapter Nine

Josh's POV

"TYLER!" He turned, and ran over to me, throwing himself into my arms. My head rested comfortably on his shoulder, and our arms wrapped around each other. I inhaled his soft scent, feeling his breathing, the steady rhythm soothing me. "Josh." He lifted my head gently, his gorgeous eyes searing into mine. I felt my heart race as I rested my head on his shoulder, feeling his soft breath wash over my neck. "I love you, babe." His lips brushed against my ear, sending thrills down my spine. His arms pulled me closer to him, intertwining our bodies. It felt perfect, like it was meant to be.  "I love you too." I went onto my tiptoes, engulfed in the depths of his eyes. He was captivating, and I couldn't look away.  He gently lifted my chin, his long fingers stroking down the side of my face softly. My eyes fluttered shut, my head swirling in the overwhelming sense of calm and love radiating from him. "Happy birthday, Josh." With those words, he took my wrist, clasping our hands together, a loving smile making it's way onto his face. "Soulmate."

I bolted upright, my heart racing. I was awake. What? Why was I dreaming about Tyler being with me on my birthday? I know it wasn't because I had feelings for him or anything because our relationship was strictly platonic.

Sure, in the dream, he made my head spin, and his eyes almost drowned me in their utter perfection. But, a guy can appreciate an attractive guy, right? It didn't mean I had feelings for him. I'm a grown man, I can control my own feelings.

I made my way to the most important room in my apartment, the kitchen, just grabbing some cereal. Then I, completely gracefully, flopped onto my couch, picking up my laptop. I quickly checked my Twitter and Tumblr notifications, retweeting and reblogging a few things, before turning to my phone.

I had two texts, one from Debby and one from Chase, but I ignored them for now, mostly because he called me.

Tyler called me.

What do I do? Do I call him back? My god, Josh, of course you call him back, that's what most normal people would do, isn't it? But what do I say?  

Completely without my permission, my finger swipes right, and I was calling Tyler. The ringing tone started, and my hands were shaking for some absurd reason. I couldn't be nervous, all I was doing was calling a good friend, right?

"Hi, Josh!" Oh god, he picked up. My thoughts were all scrambled, and I stayed silent for way too long to have been considered normal.

"H-hi, Tyler!" I stuttered. Josh Dun does not stutter. He sasses and cackles, but never stutters.

"So, I was, um, wondering if youwanttohangoutoday?" He said the words in a rush, almost as if he was nervous. Very funny, Josh, why would someone as perfect as him be nervous about talking to you? 

"Sure, Ty. Be at mine at five, if you missed me that much!" That was better, the usual sassy Josh re-emerged. See, Tyler didn't affect me at all.  Maybe a little.

"O-okay. Bye, Josh, see you then." I sat back, confident in myself, before I realised that the guy that I'd just had a romantic dream about was going to be at my apartment in five minutes.

I frantically ran to the bathroom, making sure my hair was presentable, before I dressed myself properly, and stuffed all miscellaneous items under my bed.

The doorbell rang, right on time, and I almost ran to the door, only stopping once I registered what I was doing. After internally berating myself for being so eager, I casually opened the door, only for my jaw to just drop. 

Tyler simply just stood there, being all perfect, with those incredible eyes and, oh, he was biting his lip. My cheeks flared, the heat practically emanating from my face, just displaying my embarrassment for the world to see.

"Hi." He pulled me into a hug, and I could feel his heart beat against my chest. I pulled away, and he took that as his cue to grab my hand, and drag me through my own apartment to the living room.

He fell back onto the couch, making himself comfortable. I raised my eyebrow at him, internally chuckling at how at ease he was in my apartment. He caught my eye, and went bright red, obviously thinking about how forward he'd been.

I full-on cackled at the sight of his head bowed, causing him to look up and glare at me. I just laughed harder.  He threw one of my cushions at me, before he spotted the giant jar of peanut butter that I'd been snacking on the night before.

"Can I have some, Josh, pleeease?" He pouted and widened his eyes, silently pleading. Trust me, with that face, I would've let him eat my entire apartment. He's so adorable... No. We are not going down this route. We're just friends. I didn't like him like that.

Well, maybe a little. But that didn't matter. He has Jenna.

"Yeah, fine." My lips quirked upwards, happy with my cocky tone, and Tyler nodded, a shy smile on his face. I liked it. I grabbed two spoons from the kitchen before heading back. Once back in the lounge, I tossed one to Tyler. He dropped it.

That little twink couldn't even catch a spoon. 

I settled into the sofa next to Tyler, who was alternating between scrolling through his Instagram and glancing up at me. A comfortable silence descended over us, both of us completely content with the other's company.

"So," he finally said, breaking the silence, "Do you want to watch a movie?" The words tumbled out of my mouth before I could stop them.

"Yes, a Disney one of course." I covered my mouth with my hands, cringing at what I'd just admitted to. I, Joshua Dun, a 24-year-old man, watched Disney. Not only that, I knew all the words to nearly all the songs. A laugh escaped Tyler's lips, filling the room with the wonderful sound.

"Disney it is!" He looked just as excited as I was. We turned to the TV, him grabbing the remote and scrolling through my movies, most of which were, in fact, Disney. He flicked through them, stopping at possibly the best Disney movie there is. "Frozen."

My face told him my answer. The movie started, and the only noise was our spoons dipping into the peanut butter and the movie playing through the TV.

"Josh?" I made a small sound, showing him that I was listening to him, and not the song currently playing, 'Love Is an Open Door'. "You're my best friend." At that declaration, my heart sank.

Best friend. Right.

He wasn't interested in me at all. He has a soulmate. He saw me as his best friend. Not potential soulmate, or even slightly attractive, possible hook-up. Friend. Once again, Josh Dun was stuck in the inescapable void of the Friend Zone.

I felt sick. Only earlier, I had admitted to myself that I liked him. Was I not good enough? Of course I wasn't good enough, I was just me, and he was incredible, gorgeous and hilarious.

"Josh?" His voice roused me from my dramatic internal monologue. My head rose, to see him unlock his phone. His background was a selfie of him and Jenna.

Oh right. He has a girlfriend, a soulmate. I never even had a chance. Well, if I can't be his boyfriend, I can definitely take the title of best friend. Having him around, being unable to tell him how I feel, is better than not having him at all.

"Yeah, Ty," I looked over at him and plastered on a forced smile. What the hell. He's got a soulmate anyway. "You're my best friend too." 

And that was all he'd ever be.