What If It's All A RomCom? - Ted Nivison x Reader

Chapter 14: Honey, Blunts and Lust (Lemon)

I didn't have a lot of time to see exactly what Ted was smoking, but I knew he definitely had something. I watched with a curious smile as he quickly stuffed something into what I could only assume was an ashtray hidden behind some knick-knacks on his bedside table, fanning his hand back and forth to clear any smoke around him. If he was trying to hide all of this from me, he was doing a poor job. It was kind of funny, actually.

"Shit--okay, don't tell Tanner." Ted spoke up with a nervous little shake in his voice, holding the palm of his hand out like he was trying to de-escalate the situation. I wasn't sure why he was so nervous, but it made me laugh a little, making sure to close the door behind me as I step into his somewhat misty room.
"Dude, I'm not gonna narc on ya." I reassure him with a relaxed chuckle, crossing my arms in front of my chest. "I already knew you smoke.."
"No, it's--" Ted closed his eyes and let out a little chuckle, looking a bit relieved as he moved off his bed. "Tanner doesn't know. I'm supposed to be smokin' outside."
I raise my head a little and make an 'Oh' shape with my mouth, nodding slowly. My eyes glance over at the window, seeing that it was wide open. At least Ted was decent enough to air everything out.

"Have you really been smoking in here for the last hour?" I ask with a knowing smile, turning my head to look at Ted again.
"Shit, has it been an hour?" Ted anxiously slips his hands into his pockets, then takes them out to feel his back pockets--even though he has none--turning his head around to look back at his bed. "Fuck."
"You could've texted me, yknow. I would've just come in here.." An amused smile creeps along my lips, raising my brow as Ted moves over to his messy bed, slipping his hands underneath to try and search for something.
"I would've. I should've--I-I--" Ted is a bit more relaxed, but he's still stuttering. I can't help but wonder if something is wrong, watching him take in a deep breath to calm himself. "I can't find my fuckin' phone."
Both of my brows raise up, I'm visibly surprised. A sudden sharp laugh leaves me, keeping my arms crossed in front of me.
"How high are you, dude?" I ask through my laughter, moving over to his bedside table. Ted defeatingly sits at the edge of his bed, watching me move his stuff aside so I could get a look at his ashtray. It was hardly dirty, he had probably just bought it. There was only one joint crunched up in there, pretty small. He had just about finished it before I walked in. I glance over at Ted. He's watching me like he's anticipating some sort of discipline. It makes me let out another laugh.

"Last timed I checked, isn't weed supposed to help you relax?" I ask him, turning more towards him. "Why you lookin' at me like that?"
Ted's nervous expression flickers into curiosity. I watch his eyebrows furrow a little and a small smile creeps along the corners of his lips.
"'Last time'?" Ted repeated, his eyes narrowing at me a little. "You've...never given off the smoker vibe."
"Mm, probably because I don't smoke.." I scrunch my nose a bit as I reply. "Not anymore, anyways.."
"Yeah? What made ya stop?"
"I just...got bored of it."
"You got bored of getting high? I've..never heard of that before."
"Okay, well, it stopped feeling...interesting, I don't know."
"It stopped feeling interesting."
"Yeah, I'd usually smoke alone and it stopped being interesting."
"....You wanna make it interesting?"

Ted pulls out a fully rolled joint from his front pocket, raising his brows with a enticingly optimistic smile. How he managed to keep that in there so neatly was beyond me, but I was impressed, and....curious.
"Didn't you just smoke that one?" I ask with a light chuckle, gesturing to the crunched up joint in his ashtray.
"That was like...less than half a joint. I can't even feel it." Ted admitted with a dismissive scoff, gesturing his hand down a bit. "It's not one of those obnoxious strands either. It'll smooth us out."
"If you can't even feel it, what were you doing in here for the last hour?" I ask, crossing my arms in front of my chest. I see Ted's expression change. It's very subtle, but I notice it. His eyebrows relax but his eyes widen a little, though he's still smiling at me. It's like I caught him, and he knows it. Either he's purposely downplaying how high he really was for the last hour, or he wasn't really high and he had another reason for being in here alone; a reason he seemed hesitant to share. I wish I could read his thoughts, ease whatever anxieties he had about being completely upfront and honest with me. It's moments like these that remind me how...oddly secretive Ted is about some things.