Dive Deep into Creativity: Discover, Share, Inspire
I love Luke so much 🤍🤍
Prompt: The reader and Luke pretend to be dating so that the rest of the team will stop trying to set Luke up on blind dates.
Word count: 3k
Warnings: none
You've really done it now, Alvez, Luke thinks to himself.
Of all the names he could have blurted out, he just had to choose yours. God, the Queen of England would have been better.
He thought back to the conversation in the bullpen that had started this whole mess.
"I-I can't go out with your friend," Luke stuttered, wishing his coworkers would stop pushing him to go on all these blind dates just because he was single.
"C’mon, Luke-” Tara pressed. “She’s smart and accomplished. I think you two would really hit it off-"
"Because I'm seeing someone," he blurted out spontaneously, mind racing to come up with a name.
Tara and JJ all looked taken aback, then suspicious, their eyes narrowing in unison. Tara raised her brows, "Oh? Who?"
Luke’s mind went blank, his brain nearly sizzling as it worked fast to come up with something. He should have chosen someone random- the girl who always walked her dog by his house, or the one who made his coffees in the morning. Someone the team didn’t know. Hell, a completely made up girl would’ve been better.
Suddenly, a warm smile and deep, sparkling eyes flooded his mind, and Luke couldn't stop himself. "Y/N."
JJ’s jaw dropped, a gasp escaping her lips. "Y/N?"
Instantly, Luke’s entire insides flood with regret.
You worked in the Counter-Terrorism division of the Bureau. Luke first met you in training at the Academy when he joined the FBI. You had become quick allies, before graduating and moving on to your assignments.
There had been a time, in the Academy, when Luke had a thing for you, quickly reigned in by your charm. He admired your work ethic and constant ability to make him laugh.
But everything changed once you finished the Academy. You remained in Quantico while Luke traveled with the Fugitive Task Force, gradually losing touch.
It was only recently, with Luke joining the BAU, that you two were able to reconnect. Now that he was stationed in Quantico full time, you actually saw each other quite frequently. At first, just in passing- a consequence of your offices being so close to one another. But, as time went on, you started rekindling during work gatherings and even meeting for drinks after hours. Your friendship with Luke was easy and natural. You even were introduced to his team- who all took a quick liking to you.
Sometimes Luke thought you were closer to Penelope, Tara, and JJ than you were to him. He cringed realizing they would never buy it. "Yeah," he confirms anyway.
"Luke," Tara said slowly, "why haven’t we heard anything about this?"
"We... wanted to take things slow,” Luke lied. “It just... sort of happened."
“Well, I mean, it’s about time. I think Pen called this months ago,” JJ said.
Luke’s face flushed bright red.
"We have to tell her," Tara agreed.
“Yeah, Luke, you should bring her to Garcia’s house party this weekend. I’m sure Matt would love to meet her.”
Great.
Luke slid off the desk he was kneeling on and nodded in confirmation, “Yeah, great idea,” he lied again. He wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans; positive this whole thing was going to bite him in the ass.
...
The next morning, Luke arrived at the Bureau early. He needed to talk to you before anyone else could.
He had a hunch that he might be murdered today.
You were heading for the elevators when it happened. You had your head down and were 20 minutes early to work, per usual. Normally, you didn’t encounter anyone on your way inside of Quantico. But you let out a startled squeal when suddenly, someone threw their arm between the closing metal doors, forcing them to reopen. Breathless from the scare, you quickly turn to realize it was Luke. You let out a sigh of relief before playfully shoving his shoulder.
“God, you scared me,” you said.
But Luke didn't laugh. Instead he tugged on his shirt uncomfortably, an awkward smile on his face.
“What’s the matter with you?” you asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
“So, uh-” how the hell was Luke supposed to casually bring this up? “It’s a funny story really..”
“Spit it out, Alvez,” you said, you immediately could tell something was up. Luke was never this fidgety.
He bit his lip harshly. “The entire BAU may or may not think we’re dating-” he spit out quickly. “That’s not true-” he corrected. “The entire BAU definitely thinks we’re dating.”
You gawked at Luke, not entirely processing what he had just told you. “What?” Your cheeks were growing hot with embarrassment. “Why?”
Luke offered a brief, cheeky smile, one that was layered with guilt. "See, now that's a funny story-"
"Spit it out, Alvez."
“-Because I told them we were.”
Without even thinking you turned and pressed the stop button on the elevator, locking the two of you into place. This conversation was going to take a lot longer than the minute it took to bring you to the fourth floor.
“You what?” You gasped.
“Like I said- it’s really, kind of a funny story-”
But you cut him off. "You have ten seconds to explain before I strangle you to death in this elevator.”
Luke’s eyes widened with shock, even though that was exactly the reaction he expected.
“Talk. Now.” You demanded, cornering him.
"Tara was trying to set me up with one of her friends- and to get out of it I told her I was already seeing someone. When she asked who, I panicked and said you."
Your nostrils flared and Luke thought he could almost hear your teeth grinding. "Why wouldn’t you just say no to the date?" You asked. “Instead of lying?”
“Because it never stops- every gathering, every party, they’re trying to set me up. It’s like I scream lonely or something.”
Your mouth tightened but you stayed quiet.
“I needed something that would shut them up for good. Or at least a little while.”
"And so you said you were dating me..."
Luke sighed. “I know it was stupid. But I’m tired of going on meaningless dates that never turn out good. I just needed a break... I mean, it's exhausting, really- and never ending. But I get it- I mean, I get it's not fair to you. But I panicked- and just reacted." God, he was blabbing. "But I’ll tell them it was a lie, I’ll go on the date-”
You crossed your arms. "You done?"
Luke nodded. You waited a moment, mulling the whole thing over in your head.
It shouldn’t be that big of a deal, right? Except, it was. Because back at the Academy, when you and Luke first became friends, you had developed a small, barely-there, tiny crush on Luke. However, now that he was stationed in Quantico and you two were seeing each other more often, your crush had only grown into a full fledged, real-life feelings.
But the thought of Luke going on another blind date made you cringe, so without giving yourself a chance to do the responsible thing here, you blurted out a quick, “Okay.”
“Okay?” Luke said in disbelief.
“What would I have to do?”
“Uh-” Luke stammers, like he’s still in shock. “Garcia’s party- You could come to Garcia’s party with me.”
"Garcia’s party then," you declared. "We pretend to be together for the party."
Luke’s eyes met yours and he gave you a convincing smile. “Are you sure?”
You shrugged before pushing the button to start the elevator back up again. “Yeah, what the hell?”
…
You pulled into the driveway of Garcia’s home and both of you sat in the car, tensed.
“I’m sorry again about this. I shouldn’t have dragged you into this mess. I owe you one. I just… didn’t want to do the blind date thing and you’re the only person I’d feel comfortable doing this with and-“
You cut Luke off and slid your calm hand over his shaking one. You hope the small admission was lost somewhere in Luke’s rushed, jumbled apology.
“Luke, it’s fine. I wouldn’t have said yes if I didn’t want to say yes.” You squeezed Luke’s hand, gently demanding for him to look up and into your eyes.
Luke obliged.
“I’m happy to be here with you. There’s no one else in the world that I’d rather be in a fake relationship with.”
Luke thought that, ‘or a real relationship’ was hanging somewhere in the air between them. But neither of you had the courage to admit it.
You squeezed Luke’s hand again before hopping out of the passenger’s side, going to the backseat to collect the bottle of wine you’d brought.
To say Garcia was excited to see the two of you holding hands on her doorstep was an understatement.
“Oh my gosh,” she said, looking shocked. “Oh my gosh. You guys are so beautiful together. I always had a feeling about this. Made for each other, you two. I called this.”
“Hi Penelope,” you said through a smile.
She waved you in excitedly, and you and Luke exchanged glances before following her into the house.
Luke carried the bags in and you carried the wine. Luke couldn’t help but think that this is probably how it would go if you two were really dating. Luke doing all the heavy lifting of the bags, and you letting your friends whisk you into the kitchen to chatter about something.
Luke shook the thought out of his head.
...
“So tell me about how you guys got together,” JJ asked later in the night.
Penelope’s eyes widened and she hurried to set down her glass before flailing her arms. “Oh, oh, oh!” she bounced excitedly. “I want to know too!”
Everyone in the room’s attention turned to you. You opened your mouth to speak, but hesitated.
While you floundered in your explanation. Luke wished he could go to you, wrap an arm around your waist, steady you and remind you that it was okay.
Luke was midway through the thought when he realized that oh… he could actually do that right now.
He crossed the room in a hurry before wrapping a steadying arm around your waist. He pulled you into his side, smiling at you as he felt you lean into his body, one of your arms snaking behind him to grip his hip.
Luke could get used to this.
But he won’t be getting used to this. Because this is just for the party and then you and him will go back to being just friends.
“It uh-” Luke fumbled with his words, too distracted by the way your fingertips felt against the flesh of his hip.
But you swooped in to save him, jumping into your story quickly. “It happened after work a little while ago. We were riding down in the elevator together and he finally just asked me out.” Luke squeezed your arm, as your voice trailed off. You looked up at him, smiling. “It was an easy yes from me, I’d been waiting for him to do that for a while- pretty much since the day we met.” You let the moment carry you through the story, let your real, raw feelings show, for once. And you hoped that Luke was listening to every word. You hoped it registered to Luke that not all of this was for show.
It took a small whimper of a sob that came from Garcia's mouth to snap the two of you from your trance.
“Oh, you guys. I’m so happy for you both. This is wonderful. From the way Luke’s always talked about you, I figured that he was just in his own head again… he’s been head over heels for you for quite some time –“
“Oh wow, Garcia,” Luke choked on his words, his eyes wide. “That reminds me, we brought your favorite wine! Let’s get that opened, yeah?” His skin was the same shade as the Pinot Noir he was currently reaching for.
Garcia smiled and nodded, clapping her hands together before shuffling off to grab three wine glasses from the cupboard. But you were looking up at him with a blinding grin.
Just for show, Luke thought. Just for show.
Penelope returned with a handful of glasses, which she filled with a generous serving of wine and held hers up like she was about to give a toast. Luke groaned. He hadn’t anticipated how much his team would dote over his fake relationship.
“To you, Y/N. For making my Luke the happiest I’ve ever seen him, and for so many years to come.”
You all clinked your glasses and sipped (in Luke’s case, chugged) before Garcia led them into the living room.
Luke found himself sitting on the couch listening to Rossi tell stories about his early days with the BAU. Somewhere during the story your fingers laced together.
Luke wasn't sure when it happened or who initiated it.
But he certainly wasn’t complaining.
…
“God, how he drooled over you. I swear, his jaw dropped to the floor anytime you entered a room.”
Luke was going to kill Rossi.
You, on the other hand, were laughing hysterically on the couch next to him. Luke was far past the mortification of it all at this point. His team had graciously taken it upon themselves to test if he could actually die of embarrassment. He assumed they’re about halfway there.
Somewhere between the stories of Luke’s desperate pining over you and your fond smiles, Luke had refilled his glass of wine.
He wished he had something stronger, because wine wasn’t exactly cutting it for him in this mess of a conversation.
You, however, looked happy.
Your second glass of wine had caused your cheeks to gently flush, while your full grin was on display.
“Time for cards!” Garcia announced as she waved everyone into the kitchen.
Before standing up, you leaned into Luke’s side. “You okay?"
Your voice was soft. Luke pressed closer to you without thinking about it.
“Yeah. I-I’m fine, just… don’t listen to them, okay? JJ and Rossi are trying to wind me up, and Garcia’s just happy that I’m with someone. I promise I’m not some… some like.. I didn’t… what they said-"
There was no way to explain what the team had said that wouldn’t result in Luke lying to you. All of those stories were true, they just sounded more pathetic when they were told all together like that.
You shook your head and grinned.
“It’s okay. Besides, if we were actually dating, I think I would be a little angry at you right now for not making a move sooner.” You winked before standing up, holding your hand out for Luke to take.
Luke pushed himself up from the couch and linked his fingers with yours again, grabbing his glass of wine because he would probably need that to get through this night alive.
…
“She’s good for you, Luke. I’m glad that you finally mustered up the courage to ask her out.” Rossi clapped Luke on the back as he and you gathered up your things at the end of the evening.
All Luke could do was nod and smile in return.
You, on the other hand, were in the middle of a shockingly long hug from Garcia, who was making you promise that you’d visit soon.
Luke bites his lip, wondering if maybe this whole thing had gone too far. How was he supposed to keep up this facade when he showed up at work the next day and everyone asked about you?
He was still thinking about it when the two of you got into the car.
You exhaled a breath of relief as soon as you sat down. When you look over, Luke’s staring straight ahead, his jaw clenched.
“What’s wrong?” you asked.
Luke shook his head, chuckling uncomfortably. He stared down at his lap for a moment.
You shifted in your seat, angling your body so that you were facing him.
“Tell me,” you urge, your voice softening.
Luke met your gaze, his lips turned into a small smile. “I’m just thinking about what I’m going to tell the team tomorrow.”
Your confused face urges him to continue.
“I don’t know, I mean they love you- I think more than they love me. They’re gonna be asking about you all the time. Do we fake a breakup now?”
Without thinking, you reached out to cup Luke’s cheek before leaning in and kissing him, softly and gently.
You didn’t want to pull your lips away, and suddenly, Luke was kissing you back. Only when you were desperate for air did you pull away.
“Were they looking?” Luke asked quietly, still keeping his soft brown eyes locked on you.
Narrowing your eyebrows, you shake your head. “No,” you tell him. “No, they weren’t looking.”
Luke’s mouth formed into an ‘O’ shape, his jaw dropping slowly.
“Luke-” you said slowly, hoping that you weren’t painfully misjudging the situation. “I think we both know that tonight wasn’t fake. Tell me if I’m wrong.”
You both looked at each other in fond silence before Luke nodded slowly, too shocked to speak.
“Am I wrong?” you asked, your confidence fading quickly.
Luke shook his head, “No,” he blurted out. “No, you aren’t wrong.”
With a grin you just couldn’t wipe off of your face, you nodded again. “Good,” you whispered.
Luke licked his lips, only now realizing how dry they were. “So maybe we don’t have to have a fake break up?” His sentence finished as a question.
“Luke Alvez,” you said, scooting even closer towards him. “Are you finally asking me out?”
Luke nodded while simultaneously closing the gap between the two of you, pressing your lips together in a sweet kiss. You were both smiling into each other’s touch.
When you finally break apart, your face was flushed and you were out of breath. You smiled, little tears gathering in your eyes that Luke swiped away gently with the pad of his thumb.
“It’s about time,” you told him smugly.