Warnings: rejection, angst with a happy ending
Word count: 1937
Other: E/C is eye color
This was requested by IntenseGaze
Eomér has tried all his life for you to see him in a different light, not as a friend, but as something more. You, on the other hand, are oblivious and fall for someone visiting Edoras.
You had been Eomer's and Eowyn's best friend as long as he could remember, and as you grew, his feelings had matured. Nowadays, he spent quite a lot of time trying to impress you, trying to get your attention, trying to make you see his feelings. But so far, you were (frustratingly) oblivious and treated him the same way as you always did. He didn't blame you, you had been friends for so long that you probably thought of him more like a brother than someone you could fall in love with.
Eowyn, Eomer and you were standing outside, talking about the feast that was being held this evening. You and Eowyn were talking about the dresses you would wear, and Eomer was watching you. He couldn't help it, his eyes always seemed to be drawn toward you, and now the evening sun was making your hair shine and your eyes appear even more vibrant than they actually were.
"Eomer?" Your voice pulled him out of his trance, and he blinked multiple times to organize his thoughts and he saw you and Eowyn looking at him expectantly.
"What?" He asked, having no clue what you had asked him.
"We just said it's getting late and we need to go and get ready for the feast. We didn't want to leave you alone here, but soon, we would have. Y/N called your name four times." Eowyn pointed out and you reached up lightly and kissed his cheek as a goodbye.
"I'll see you at the feast." Eomer just nodded and you and Eowyn made your way inside while he stayed where he was, looking around him but not paying attention to anything, he was too incased in his thoughts. The kiss was a gesture you had been doing for years, but it still made his heart pound and his brain to stop working.
- -
Eomer sat slightly away from all the commotion, watching sadly as you conversed with Aragorn with a big smile on your face. It wasn't hard to see that you had fallen head over heels for the dark-haired man that had arrived a few days ago. Every time you smiled at him or laughed at something he had said, Eomer felt a prick at his heart. It was the evening and you had been conversing with Aragorn for most of the night. Eowyn kept appearing and disappearing into your company, as her duties kept making her leave. You could see her annoyment every time someone called her name, you could see from your best friend since childhood that she had clearly fallen for Aragorn.
Which was... unfortunate, because you had fallen for the dark-haired man as well. It wasn't a burning feeling like you would explode if you didn't reveal your feelings for him, but you certainly liked him. He was handsome and polite, but also mysterious, as you noticed he didn't reveal much about himself, he just mostly asked questions about you and your life, and Eowyn's when she was there. You answered them happily and asked him small questions to get some information out of him as well. You were starting to feel more at ease in his presence, normally you were very nervous when talking with a man. Or anyone you didn't know well enough for that matter.
- -
EOMÉR'S POV
Eomer watched as you and Aragorn continued conversing. His nervousness grew as the conversation progressed. First, it was just about you paying attention to another man and him fighting with his feelings, and the fear of you choosing him was overwhelming. Then, it was the fact that you seemed uncomfortable as the conversation moved on. First, it seemed to be lighthearted but as time passed he began to notice that the smile was leaving your face. His brows drew into a frown as your smile faltered, and you took a step back, looking quite distressed. Aragorn was saying something to you, Eomer couldn't hear what over the loud crowd, but obviously the words hurt you. Eomer had been friends with you for so long that he knew what you looked like when you were hurting inside and wanted to hide it.
Aragorn gently grabbed your hands but you took a step back, causing Eomer to stiffen. If there was any sign that he needed to step in, he would do it in a heartbeat. But it seemed the situation didn't require it as after you had pulled your hands free from Aragorn's hold, you curtsied t him stiffly and then the two of you went your separate ways.
Eomer let out a breath of relief that something had seemed to gone wrong between you and Aragorn. He felt horrible about feeling this way, but he didn't think he could bear the thought of you in someone else's arms. His feelings of relief were pushed aside when he noticed you making your way through the crowd hastily. Eomer could see the tears in your eyes and heard you sniffle, and his heart felt cold. He would tear the norther ranger apart if he had done something to distress you, never mind that he was the true king of Gondor. He stood up and hurried after you, following you to your room as that was the place you went when you were not feeling well.
- -
BACK TO YOUR POV
You didn't expect it to hurt this much, but after being rejected time after time after time, your limit had been reached and you slumped onto your bed into a crying heap. It seemed like everyone praised your beauty, but every time you allowed them to come and converse with you more deeply, they disappeared. Perhaps that was the reason the whole ordeal with Aragorn hurt so much. You had allowed him closer, and he had joined you, only to drop the fact that he was taken upon your head. It wasn't his fault but that didn't make the hurt go away.
"Y/N?" Your door creaked open and you lifted your eyes to see who it was. Your red and puffy eyes met Eomer's but dropped back at your lap. Eomer immediately entered your room, closing the door behind him and hurried next to you on the bed.
"What's wrong?" He knew what was wrong, or at least mostly, but he didn't want you to know that he had been keeping an eye on you for the most part of the evening.
"N-nothing." You muttered, trying to keep your voice even, fighting to hide the turmoil of emotions that raged inside you.
"Y/N, I saw you run here, clearly distressed, and when I come here, I find you crying. Something is definitely wrong." You sighed, your breath hitching, and you lifted your eyes to his. As your glossy E/C eyes met his brown ones, you collapsed into tears, falling against his shoulder as yours shook with your cries. Eomer was caught off guard when you suddenly just fell against him, but catched you with ease and wrapped his arms around you gently, holding you against him.
It took you quite a while to calm down, and you were hiccuping and wiping the tears off your face in his gentle hold for a while before you could form words.
"What is wrong with me, why doesn't anyone want me?" Your voice sounded so defeated, Eomer was lost for words for a while. You slowly pushed yourself up from his hold and settled to sit next to him, your eyes tightly at your hands again.
"Why do you ask such a thing?" He was shocked, not fully comprehending the situation. How could you not see how perfect you were?
"Everyone I allow close to me showers me with compliments but then they just vanish, leaving me all alone. Is there something so horribly wrong with me that they don't want to spend time with me?" Your voice turned into a wail and you buried your face in your hands as the tears started flowing down your cheeks yet again.
"There is nothing wrong with you, Y/N. You are perfect." Eomer gently pulled you into a hug, and you exhaled slowly, trying to stop the tears from falling.
"Then why doesn't anyone love me?" You asked, voice flat. Eomer didn't think for a second before he answered you.
"I love you."
There was a deafening silence after his words.
"W-what?" You were stunned, you could barely form words.
"I love you. I have loved you since we were teens." You lifted your eyes to meet his yet again, and his eyes seemed glossy as he returned your gaze.
"Me? You love me?" You asked, still trying to wrap your head around the situation.
"I have loved you for s-so long." He muttered, his voice breaking at the end of the sentence.
"Why didn't you tell me?" You whispered, trying to understand why he had hidden his feelings for all there years.
"I tried giving you hints. I didn't want to complicate things with a direct confession." You stared at him for a moment and gasped as you realized what he meant. The roses he had given you, one every Saturday. The occasional poems and ballads, the sweet compliments whispered at banquets and feasts.
"I've been so stupid." You muttered, running your hands through your hair and then covering your face with them.
"No, you haven't." Eomer tried to console you, but your head shot up.
"Yes, I have! How could I have not seen that the thing I needed the most was right next to me all along?" Your voice was raised, and you looked at him, exasperated and without thinking, you smashed your lips to his.
When there was no response, you hastily pulled away and shuffled away from him, muttering.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over m-." You were cut off as he wrapped his arms around your waist and yanked you to his chest, connecting his lips with your in the process. It was your turn to be stunned, but you melted into the kiss soon enough and savored the feeling of his lips against yours. Your hands wrapped around his neck to pull him closer and his beard scratched your face lightly, but it was a rather pleasant feeling.
You parted from the kiss, panting, and red-faced but remained so that your noses touched.
"Never apologize for kissing me," Eomer muttered, his lips brushing against yours. Your blush deepened and you let your head drop to his chest, that was familiar yet different.
"What happens now?" You asked, and he rested his chin on your head, wrapping his arms around you tightly.
"I don't know. What do you want to happen?" He asked, and you lifted your head so you were facing him.
"I don't really care. As long as I can stay with you." You muttered, dropping your head to his chest again. He wrapped his arms around you and lifted you up, making you squeal as you landed on his lap. His arms wrapped around you tightly and you felt his lips on your forehead.
"I don't plan on ever letting you go in this life."
Oh lord, I don't know why I had so many issues writing this, I just did. But it's done now and I like how it turned out!