...And Ben Feels Fine
Rating: PG
Timeline: From I'm Leslie Knope to The Smallest Park
Summary: Ben during the break-up.
Notes: For a tumblr prompt of Ben crying.
The first night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben does some work at his desk, reads a little, and then is in bed by eleven-thirty. He tells himself that this is good, he’ll get more sleep in his own bed every night. He’ll no longer have to check his clothes for stray blond hairs before sitting down with Chris for a meeting.
He’ll be much more well-rested without her tossing and turning next to him and talking in her sleep about campaign platforms and waffle-stealing raccoons.
It’s fine. It’s just fine. It is fine.
The sixteenth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben commandeers the living room from his roommates and sits on the couch while they do god knows what in their room. He watches a few episodes of Farscape on his new 'thank you iPad' from Tom.
When Leslie calls his cell phone, he lets it go to voicemail even though he does really want to talk to her.
Ben listens to her message a few minutes later and she sounds very drunk. Like ridiculously, he-hopes-she-remembers-to-take-aspirin-before-bed drunk. Leslie tells him about Tammy2 and Swanson family moonshine.
She says that she misses him--misses the way her sheets used to smell like him.
Then Leslie says something fairly odd and sexy about his “gumdrop caboose.” Her praise about his butt is cute and so uniquely Leslie-like that Ben kind of chuckles until he realizes that the noises he’s making sound a lot more like crying than laughing.
He wipes his eyes and decides to go take a bath.
The fifty-third night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben puts his signed copy of Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America on his bookshelf.
It’s been on the table by his bed for the last couple of nights, but he decides to put it out of immediate view. So, it’s new spot is between The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer and the twelfth edition of Managerial Accounting, where he won’t be tempted re-read her inscription over and over while he lies in bed.
To Ben:
I’m glad you decided to stay in Pawnee.
Love, Leslie Knope
He goes back and forth between being disappointed that she didn’t say more, to being relieved that she didn’t say more.
It’s easier to just not think about it and shove the book in between his ex-favorite TV show and his ex-favorite accounting textbook from college.
His ex-favorite secret girlfriend.
The eightieth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben wears his new Batman costume around the house. He decides that the one good thing about having insane roommates that dress up and role-play all the time, is that they don’t think that him wearing a super hero costume is all that weird.
The one hundred and second night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben accidentally breaks Andy’s nose. After they get back home from the emergency room and everyone has left, he still feels so bad that he offers to clean up after the Halloween party that he wasn’t even invited to.
Three hours later, as Ben tries to get smooshed up butterfingers out of the carpet and who-knows-what off the couch cushions, he decides that he’s kind of an idiot.
Ben kisses Shauna Mulwae-Tweep on the one hundred and twelfth night after breaking up with Leslie.
After walking away from her at Mick Jagger’s rundown gas station, he meets up with Shauna outside of E 720’s End of the World party. They decide to go get a drink at a bar instead of going inside.
Shauna’s tall and brunette and has a kind smile. She laughs at his accounting anecdotes and is obviously interested in him.
Ben kisses her in the bar’s parking lot but he goes home alone.
The one hundred and twentieth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben knows he can’t spend anymore time with her. He just can’t. It hurts too much and it’s not getting any better. If anything, it’s getting worse.
Even the weight of a daily five-minute, fun conversation at work feels like it will be unbearable.
He gets into bed that night and does not at all think about Leslie in her red blazer, all impassioned and beautiful, surrounded by the world’s flags as she yells about waving his decapitated head on a stick. Except that he super does.
One hundred and thirty nights after breaking up with Leslie, Ben uses his fingers to slowly move her soft blonde hair out of the way, before he kisses her neck.
Leslie’s all naked and warm, and her hips are pushing into his. Ben’s lips are on her earlobe, her chin, her mouth, her tear-stained cheeks--anywhere he can press them as they move together on her bed.
The first morning after getting back together with Leslie, Ben makes banana chocolate chip pancakes with her in her kitchen, and then they hold hands while they eat.
It’s better than fine.
Timeline: From I'm Leslie Knope to The Smallest Park
Summary: Ben during the break-up.
Notes: For a tumblr prompt of Ben crying.
The first night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben does some work at his desk, reads a little, and then is in bed by eleven-thirty. He tells himself that this is good, he’ll get more sleep in his own bed every night. He’ll no longer have to check his clothes for stray blond hairs before sitting down with Chris for a meeting.
He’ll be much more well-rested without her tossing and turning next to him and talking in her sleep about campaign platforms and waffle-stealing raccoons.
It’s fine. It’s just fine. It is fine.
The sixteenth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben commandeers the living room from his roommates and sits on the couch while they do god knows what in their room. He watches a few episodes of Farscape on his new 'thank you iPad' from Tom.
When Leslie calls his cell phone, he lets it go to voicemail even though he does really want to talk to her.
Ben listens to her message a few minutes later and she sounds very drunk. Like ridiculously, he-hopes-she-remembers-to-take-aspirin-before-bed drunk. Leslie tells him about Tammy2 and Swanson family moonshine.
She says that she misses him--misses the way her sheets used to smell like him.
Then Leslie says something fairly odd and sexy about his “gumdrop caboose.” Her praise about his butt is cute and so uniquely Leslie-like that Ben kind of chuckles until he realizes that the noises he’s making sound a lot more like crying than laughing.
He wipes his eyes and decides to go take a bath.
The fifty-third night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben puts his signed copy of Pawnee: The Greatest Town in America on his bookshelf.
It’s been on the table by his bed for the last couple of nights, but he decides to put it out of immediate view. So, it’s new spot is between The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer and the twelfth edition of Managerial Accounting, where he won’t be tempted re-read her inscription over and over while he lies in bed.
To Ben:
I’m glad you decided to stay in Pawnee.
Love, Leslie Knope
He goes back and forth between being disappointed that she didn’t say more, to being relieved that she didn’t say more.
It’s easier to just not think about it and shove the book in between his ex-favorite TV show and his ex-favorite accounting textbook from college.
His ex-favorite secret girlfriend.
The eightieth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben wears his new Batman costume around the house. He decides that the one good thing about having insane roommates that dress up and role-play all the time, is that they don’t think that him wearing a super hero costume is all that weird.
The one hundred and second night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben accidentally breaks Andy’s nose. After they get back home from the emergency room and everyone has left, he still feels so bad that he offers to clean up after the Halloween party that he wasn’t even invited to.
Three hours later, as Ben tries to get smooshed up butterfingers out of the carpet and who-knows-what off the couch cushions, he decides that he’s kind of an idiot.
Ben kisses Shauna Mulwae-Tweep on the one hundred and twelfth night after breaking up with Leslie.
After walking away from her at Mick Jagger’s rundown gas station, he meets up with Shauna outside of E 720’s End of the World party. They decide to go get a drink at a bar instead of going inside.
Shauna’s tall and brunette and has a kind smile. She laughs at his accounting anecdotes and is obviously interested in him.
Ben kisses her in the bar’s parking lot but he goes home alone.
The one hundred and twentieth night after breaking up with Leslie, Ben knows he can’t spend anymore time with her. He just can’t. It hurts too much and it’s not getting any better. If anything, it’s getting worse.
Even the weight of a daily five-minute, fun conversation at work feels like it will be unbearable.
He gets into bed that night and does not at all think about Leslie in her red blazer, all impassioned and beautiful, surrounded by the world’s flags as she yells about waving his decapitated head on a stick. Except that he super does.
One hundred and thirty nights after breaking up with Leslie, Ben uses his fingers to slowly move her soft blonde hair out of the way, before he kisses her neck.
Leslie’s all naked and warm, and her hips are pushing into his. Ben’s lips are on her earlobe, her chin, her mouth, her tear-stained cheeks--anywhere he can press them as they move together on her bed.
The first morning after getting back together with Leslie, Ben makes banana chocolate chip pancakes with her in her kitchen, and then they hold hands while they eat.
It’s better than fine.