STICKY NOTES // JSchlatt X Reader

18

"Bitch, you better put that red shell down right now!"

A slow smile stretched across your face as you drifted around a corner of the course. Right now, Schlatt was ahead, but only barely. If you could win this race, you would win the cup.

You threw the shell and sped past him as it hit his kart, sending him spinning out. 

"Motherfucker!" Schlatt yelled, gripping his controller tighter and kicking one leg out so that he pushed you almost out of your seat.

"Hey!" You said, barely managing to stay seated and keep your eyes on the screen. You hit one of the jumps, getting another boost and speeding towards the finish line, Schlatt gaining on you.

You crossed the line barely ahead of him and Schlatt went into a rage, cursing the controller, the game - anything and everything in the vicinity, while you laughed and laughed, watching him absolutely lose it.

When he finally stopped, he dropped his head into his hands and sighed. "Good game."

"You almost had me there at the end." You said. "Another, or-?"

Schlatt rose from his seat, going to grab the camera and turn it off. "I think that's probably enough. Plus, I'm getting hungry anyway."

"Alright then." You said, setting your controller down. "I'll probably get going-"

Schlatt turned to you, setting the camera down with a puzzled look on his face. "You don't want to stay for lunch?" 

"Oh, uh," You paused. "I didn't realize you wanted me to."

Schlatt rolled his eyes. "Because I'm just going to kick you out of my house as soon as we're done filming." He scoffed, heading past you towards the stairs that led back up into the rest of the house. "C'mon. I'll make grilled cheese."

You pushed down the surge of fuzzy feelings that erupted in your chest and followed him up the stairs with a smile, definitely not thinking about how he had just offered to make you lunch.

Schlatt's kitchen was on the smaller end - but then again, he was just one person. You took a seat at the small island, propping your elbows on the granite as you watched him move around to the fridge and then the pantry, gathering what he would need. 

"When he knows how to make grilled cheese." You joked, watching him grab plates and start up the stove. 

Schlatt glanced up at you as he laid the sandwiches out. "You say that like making a grilled cheese isn't an intense process."

You laughed. "It's literally just bread and cheese-"

"Just?" Schlatt interrupted you. "No, not 'just', okay? This is an art."

You raised your hands in surrender, backing off as Schlatt got to work.

You watched the methodical way he buttered the bread and sprayed down the pan, taking two different types of cheese and making up the sandwiches. Then they went in the microwave for a few seconds, melting the edges of the cheese before he dropped them in the pan and they began to actually grill. 

He watched the sandwiches like a hawk, flipped them when they turned golden brown and were cooked to perfection. In turn, you watched his intense focus, mapping out the features of his face while he wasn't paying attention to you, satisfying those feelings that pooled in your stomach and told you to take in every detail while you were still here. 

"Viola!" Schlatt said, turning off the stove and dropped two perfect grilled cheese sandwiches on their respective plates. He slid one over to you with a self-satisfied smile on his face. "My masterpieces."

"I'm impressed." You said. "This is the most elaborate grilled cheese I've seen in a while."

"Try it," Schlatt prompted. "You'll be blown away by my otherworldly cooking skills."

You picked up half the sandwich and took a bite. The cheeses were perfectly melted and the bread was buttery crisp. "Wow." You said around your bite. "I didn't know I was eating lunch with the next Gordon Ramsay - this is great."

Schlatt smiled to himself, sliding his own plate over to the barstool next to you and plopping down, taking a bite. His free hand came up to scratch as his jaw and hovered for a second. "I keep forgetting I don't have the chops anymore." He said.

"Postpartum depression." You joked. 

Schlatt laughed, still running a hand along his clean jaw. 

"Hey, if it's any consolation though, you went up like five hot points." You said, taking another bite of your sandwich. "Maybe six, since you make a killer grilled cheese."

Schlatt glanced at you, a mischievous smile coming to play on his lips. "Hot points, huh? What does that put me at now?"

You took another bite of your sandwich. "Uh, I don't know, pretty high, I guess." You hoped you didn't sound too nervous, but there was something about that smile-

"So, hypothetically, if I had been clean shaven for the love or host, would you have still hosted me?"

A surprised laugh burst out of you. "Ouch, low blow." You said. "But uh... probably?"

Schlatt frowned. "You still would have hosted me, even though you said I look better without the chops? Geez, I must come off as a massive piece of shit-"

"It was more that I didn't know you." You interrupted him. "If I had known you before Austin put me on the show - if this meetup had happened before then - I would have chosen love. You're actually kind of growing on me."

Schlatt fell quiet for a second, and a slow smile twinged at the corner of his mouth. "Yeah?"

Nerves flared in your stomach. "I mean, probably." You said, taking another bite of your sandwich to distract yourself. 

Schlatt just hummed, taking a bite of his own food. You could feel him looking at you from the corner of his eye as he ate, and the butterflies that had taken a semi-permanent residence in your stomach were going insane - not making it any easier to actually enjoy this delicious sandwich that he had made you. You glanced over to see him still looking at you - a sort of soft look in his eye.

The butterflies increased tenfold.