Norton x reader || highschool AU

Baseball Norton! Feat. B-Tier Babes!

Gosh I love Norton so much,,,

I know that highschool baseball games only go to seven innings but shhhhh

it makes for better plot

"Seriously? I do so much for the yearbook and I don't even like sports!" You complained, packing your stuff to head to the game anyway. You were known as the best photographer on the Yearbook staff, and everyone admitted it. As half of the staff was going to be absent for a school trip, it was up to you to take pictures of your school's baseball team. Instead of going to your car as you normally would, you took the back exit of the school and headed to the baseball field. The game wouldn't start for another two hours, but you wanted to find a good spot for picture taking. After unpacking your camera and your new lens and taking a few practice pictures, you were approached by a few people you've seen around school, but never interacted with. Well, you recognized the face of Margaretha, who was a well-known dance captain at your school, along with two new faces. Norton Campbell and Naib Subedar. You learned that these three were best friends and always attended each other's events.

"Why don't you sit with us, (y/n)?" Margaretha offered, leading you to a spot with a perfect view of the field. You gasped and thanked her profusely while setting up a small tripod in case your arms got tired. She only laughed happily in response and started a new conversation with her friends, bringing you into it as well. The four of you made a few jokes and got to know you a little bit more before Norton had to go warm-up. Waving with enthusiasm, he slipped through the gate and into the dugout. You took a few pictures of the boys, but saved the battery for the main game, since you were told that they were long. As you turned your camera off for the time being, you caught Naib and Margaretha whispering about something. You didn't want to bother them, but at the same time, you wanted to know what they were keeping from you.

"Is everything alright?" Innocent curiosity filled your voice as you hoped you weren't making them uncomfortable. They decided to take the opportunity to tease you instead of reassuring you.

"Yep, we were just talking about how you were eying up Norton." You regretted saying anything as your face was more red than the opposing team's uniforms. Speaking of the opposing team, they were up to bat. You were grateful for the distraction as you didn't want to stutter any more contradictions to Margaretha's false observation. You tilted your camera towards the pitcher's mound, and noticed your new friend Norton about to throw the first pitch. You snapped a picture, then ten more as he threw the first pitch. As you looked through the group pictures, the first stood out to you, further contributing to your blush. Staring directly at the camera with one eye closed in a wink frozen in time, Norton stood with a smile. You mentally noted to save that for yourself later. The other two realized your sudden lack of communication with them.

"Sorry if we made you uncomfortable." Naib was going to continue, but your smile cut him off.

"No worries, I'm alright. It's just teasing!" You scratched the back of your neck and hoped they didn't notice how flustered you were. Luck was on your side as they changed the topic, now discussing interests outside of school. Obviously, you mentioned photography, while learning of Margaretha's gymnastics tournaments and of Naib's interest in boxing. As the game progressed, you took many great pictures, and you were able to show off your talent. By the end of the game, you looked through your selection of photographs and realized the majority of them were of the cute boy who kept looking into the camera. You smiled to yourself and shook your head. This just means you had to go to more games, which you no longer had a problem with. Before heading home, you congratulated Norton and praised him for his work, which gave the team a win.

"Great job, Norton!" You exclaimed while packing your things and following him out. He returned a grin from ear-to-ear.

"Thanks!" He scratched the back of his neck and took off his cap. "Can I walk you to your car?" He offered, holding out his hand. You began to become nervous again.

"It's uh, really far away, you don't have to." You tried to convince him otherwise; he just laughed and took ahold of your hand. Leading him across the parking lot, you two began to talk. You didn't stop talking even when you arrived at your spot.

"It was really nice to meet you Norton, thank you." You began, eager to get back home and upload your pictures but still wanting to stay with him. "We should hang out again. When's your next game?" As if on cue, he pulled out a schedule from his bag. Looking over it, you noticed all of the games he would be in, home and away. You smiled in response, and thanked him again. He grinned back and left with a swift kiss placed to your hand. You left school with a raging blush across your face.

When you arrived home, without hesitation, you went to your room and began to upload the photos from your camera to your computer. Skimming through, you pulled the best ones into a seperate folder, and deleted the not-so-good ones. Then, you came across your favorite picture. Instead of transferring it to your computer, you moved it to your phone. You kept your phone with you the entire night.

Over the course of the next few months, your best friends became Margie, Naib, and Norton. It was like you were always a part of their friend group in the first place. If one of them had a game, match, or tournament, you were right there cheering beside them. Of course you took pictures as well. Everyone in yearbook was surprised to see your sudden interest in something you previously didn't care for, but they were happy for you nonetheless. As time went on, you grew to know the true, less flirty Norton. Instead of the mindless romantic gestures he would throw at you, he became more intricate, and you learned of his deepest secrets and fears, as well as him learning yours. Some days, you thought back to your first meeting and found it silly that you became so flustered around him, but other days, you wished that you could have more with him, and you regretted forming such a deep, unbreakable friendship. Despite all this, you were grateful to have him as a friend. That was, until the day things changed between you.

It was the last game of the season, which meant two things: Norton was determined to make the last game his best, and the weather was going to be cold. As the game began, you offered your extra blanket to Margaretha and Naib, who accepted it graciously, but by the second inning, the three of you were huddled together like sardines in a can. Thankfully, you had no need to take pictures, since you and your team had gathered everything needed for a perfect yearbook, but you had your camera anyway, just in case. By the time the sixth inning rolled around, you all had had enough of the weather. Though the skirt you were wearing wasn't very protective, you pushed off the blankets covering you and marched to the stands, hoping to distract yourself with photography. You were so focused that you didn't realize that the game had passes half-way through the seventh inning, meaning that the players from each side were allowed a break. You only noticed that the game had stopped when Norton was in front of you.

"Aren't you cold?" He brought his hands to yours, playfully rubbing them as if it would warm you up. You gave him a light-hearted glare, but it went unnoticed. Instead, he took a seat next to you and pulled you on his lap, something you were used to, seeing as though he would do it anytime you sat next to each other during the others' games. You didn't notice his blush as you turned your head to the scoreboard. Your team only ahead by a few points. Soon, Margie and Naib came up to you with four drinks in hand, handing one to you and one to Norton. Silently, the four of you sipped on delicious, warm hot chocolate, with Norton occasionally switching hands, leaving the warm one to rest on your waist while the other held his drink. As much as you enjoyed this moment, the players were being called back.

"Norton, don't you have to go pitch?" You didn't want him to leave, you were so warm, but he had to go. Sighing, you both got up and separated. As you watched him disappear behind the fence, your friends almost smacked you, but settled for a stern talk instead.

"Why did you push him away?" Naib whisper-yelled at you, causing you to whip your head around to face him. Margie continued for him,

"You seriously don't see the way he stared at you? And don't pretend like you don't look at him the same way!"

"We are just friends, and we are going to stay that way. I don't know what you two are talking about." You denied. Little did you know, Norton was in the dugout getting the same pep-talk. After a little bit of convincing, you decide to go find Norton and tell him of your feelings. As you marched towards the field, you ran into him, determined to look for you. Without thinking, he grabbed you by the shoulders and took your lips in his. You kissed him back with no hesitation. Cheers were heard from both sides of the stands, as well as from the players on the field. Neither of you wanted to let go of each other, but it had to be done to finish the game. Slightly dazed with a large grin, you sat back down next to the people who got you this far. No words were exchanged. They only chuckled at the lovestruck expression overtaking your features, but when the game started back up, you were the loudest voice giving Norton your full support. At the end of the game, Norton's team won by a landslide. It took every fiber of your being to restrain yourself from running up to him and squeezing the daylight out of him while peppering his face with kisses. You didn't have to restrain yourself any longer as he gestured for you to run to him. He was slightly bent down with his arms wide open, ready to catch you. You did what you had always dreamed of. Catching you in his arms, he lifted you up and spun you around, turning bright pink at the sound of your giggles. You suddenly became serious as you took his face in your hand, still suspended in the air by his arms. You started by planting a soft kiss to the tip of his nose, then you moved to his cheeks and forehead. After a long-awaited moment, you brought your lips to his. Impatiently, he set you down and took your hands away from his face, alternatively placing them on his shoulders. He caressed your cheeks with his hands that were still slightly warm from his gloves and pulled you into a deep, loving kiss, lasting long enough to warm you both up. Suddenly, you were glad that you took the same car to the game, as you wanted to keep this up as long as possible. On your way back, both Margaretha and Naib teased the two of you for how long it took for you to get to this point. You only brushed off their comments, laughing along with them and Norton, hand-in-hand.