At First Sight.

“You’re so fucking lucky that I love you.” Elise said, shooting a look her best friend Eleanor’s way. She knew that she probably could have figured out a way to weasel her way out of this situation if she really wanted to, but she’d known Eleanor since they were both eight, and she knew that more effort would be required than she was willing to give in order to come up with a really good excuse. The brunette could be pretty fucking relentless when she wanted to be, and she’d been badgering Elise about her thesis film project for months now. Ever since she’d come up with the concept really, and at first Elise had flat out denied her friend’s suggestion, but Eleanor had continued to bring it up over the course of the fall semester, and the early months of the spring semester, and now here she was. Getting ready to kiss a complete stranger. Things could have been a lot worse truthfully, but Elise had never been one to go out and kiss a random guy she’d met at a bar, let alone someone she literally was going to be introduced to all of maybe a minute before she was swapping spit with them. It sounded a lot worse when she put it that way…You better get a fucking A on this project, Eleanor, or I swear to fucking God…

---

Dan could tell that Josh was pissed at the lot of them. Truthfully, it hadn’t been the drummer’s idea, it was all Max and Matt, but he did think that the singer needed to stop posting such cryptic things on social media, and that he needed to move on. The whole situation was fucked, and he felt bad that things had gone south the way that they had considering the pair had been together for as long as they had and Josh was certain that he’d be spending the rest of his life with the bird, but sometimes life really fucked people over. In this case it had, but wallowing around his flat, writing really depressing songs, and posting equally as depressing shit on Twitter wasn’t going to make things any better, and he did think that the singer needed a push to get back out there and look for someone else, but maybe this wasn’t the best way to go about it. He’d tried telling the others that, but Max had pretty much insisted that it was precisely what Josh needed at the moment, and of course he never would have agreed to this if any of them had told him what was going on, but the drummer was pretty damn certain that this simply wasn’t going to end well at all. “It could be a lot worse, mate.” He said. “The lot of them were only looking out for you.”

@ peter parker.
Eleanor smiled at Elise with puppy dog eyes, "You know you're my favorite human being in the whole world, and I am really appreciative of you doing this for meeeeee." She said happily as she set up her camera in the white room. Eleanor had been working on this thesis for months on end, and she was already really proud of it. She was surprised at the number of people who signed up for this, besides Elise, and how many had actually shown up, "I'm really looking forward to this. I've randomly paired people up by drawing names out of a hat. You got some bloke named Josh." Eleanor explained. The rest of the volunteers were filling out paperwork. When she was finished setting up her camera, she motioned for Elise to follow her into the other room, "Welcome everyone! I wanted to start out by saying thank you all for signing up." She started doing a headcount before realizing one of the guys wasn't supposed to be there, "Did you sign up? I don't remember seeing your face." She pointed to the brunette with short hair.

---

Josh rolled his eyes at Dan's words, "This is awful. I can't believe you all signed me up for this. I was doing things my own way. I was fine." He complained. Granted, Josh knew that things were anything but fine with him. He was an absolute mess. Things had gone down really badly between he and Abigail, and he had been very sad recently. He knew the lads were only trying to cheer him up, but this wasn't the way to do it in his opinion, and it was causing Josh to now be sour about this whole thing he's been volunteered for. He finished filling out his paperwork just as the girl who was running this experiment walked in with a blonde girl at her side. Josh listened as she spoke before she pointed at Dan, "He's my mate who signed me up for this. He's just hanging around because he's my ride." Josh explained. The girl nodded before she started giving off the rest of her spiel about how this experiment was going to go.

Elise rolled her eyes when she saw that Eleanor was giving her puppy dog eyes. She was about to tell her friend that shit didn't work on her, but if she were actually immune to it, she wouldn't have been roped into this situation at all. "Like I said, you're lucky that I love you." The blonde said with a slight shake of her head. "You better have paired me with someone who's on the same level as Sebastian Stan or Chris Evans on the attractiveness scale, just saying. You're best friend privileges will be revoked if you didn't." She followed her friend into the other room where all of the other participants were filling out paperwork. She scanned the room, wondering which one was this Josh guy she'd been paired with. She looked in the direction Eleanor was looking when she asked some guy whether or not he'd signed up. Her gaze stopped on the one explaining that the other was only there because he was his ride. At least she wasn't the only one who hadn't exactly been given a choice about doing this.

---

"Because wallowing about in your flat, posting depressing shit on twitter is definitely equivalent to being fine." Dan said, shooting a look his friend's way. He might not have thought that this whole thing was a good idea, but he really did understand why the others had decided to sign Josh up for this. Enough was enough. The way the singer had been acting was starting to get a bit worrisome, and he really did hope that the lads were right and he just needed a push of sorts to get him out of the funk he'd been in since the breakup. He looked over to the doorway when the door opened, watching as a blonde and brunette walked in. He wondered which one was the one behind this little project, though he received his answer shortly after when the brunette spoke up and began explaining everything about the experiment she was conducting though not before she locked eyes with him briefly and asked if he'd signed up or not. Josh was quick to respond to her question, and Dan simply nodded, honestly a man of few words at times. It was honestly a pretty cool concept, though he would never willingly sign up for it. "Who d'you reckon you've been paired with?"

@ peter parker.
Eleanor grinned widely at Elise's words and nodded, "I tried my hardest. I know how much you love those two." She replied with a small laugh. She paused before looking down at her clipboard, "So this shouldn't take too long, so we might as well get right into it. Robbie and Natalie, you two are first." She spoke before she looked at Elise, "Just sit tight. I've got you down last because this way you can just head back to my flat with me when you're done." Eleanor explained before following the two she had just called into the filming room. After about twenty minutes of calling names and walking back and forth between the rooms, it was finally the last pairing. Josh and Elise. Eleanor was hoping that her friend would approve of the lad. Eleanor didn't fuss too much because the two were likely never to see each other again, but Eleanor still tried, "Josh and Elise. You're up." She called into the room, having left the door open from the last pairing.

---

Josh rolled his eyes at Dan's words before he sighed, sitting down on one of the chairs offered. When Dan asked him who he thought he was paired with, Josh shrugged, not really caring who he was paired with but more worried about getting this over with, "That blonde that came out with the girl running this whole thing was pretty fit." Josh stated quietly seeing as she was seated not too far from him. After that, he didn't say much to his friend but instead watched as pairs of people started slowly leaving the room and the building they were holding this in. Eventually, it was just him and the blonde left. The brunette girl called the last remaining pair into the room. Elise. It was a pretty name, and he didn't think he had ever met anyone with that name before. He stood across from her as they positioned themselves in front of the camera, "I'm Josh. Obviously." He introduced and smiled slightly at her. Could he be any more awkward?

Elise knew that Eleanor had drawn all of the names from a hat, and the pairings were completely randomized, she was just ragging on her friend a bit and giving her a hard time. Truthfully, none of the guys in the room were all that bad looking. Some were better looking than others, but she didn't see any who she would mind kissing. Of course, she didn't like the idea of kissing a complete stranger still, but it was what it was at this point. "Good, I can only endure so much of your torture for so long." She told her friend with a grin before Eleanor was calling the first pair into the other room. She sat there for a little while, playing around on her phone to pass the time, all the while wondering who she was going to end up making out with soon enough. As the number of people in the room began to dwindle, she glanced around, surveying who was left. Soon enough, it was just her and the guy who's friend had tagged along with him since he was his ride. Well, he wasn't bad looking, so she supposed she wouldn't mind kissing him. Maybe this won't be too bad. She thought to herself as she walked into the other room and they both positioned themselves in front of Eleanor's camera. "Elise." She said, sticking her hand out with a smile. "Should we just..." She trailed off a bit at the end before taking a step closer. His eyes are really blue...

---

"The one running this whole thing is pretty fit as well." Dan murmured to his friend with a slight grin. As the time passed, he watched as pair after pair entered the room. He was really curious to see who his friend was going to be paired with. He really did find this whole thing to be rather interesting. Especially being that there were plenty of people out there today who didn't seem to care if they knew a person well before hooking up with them. This was a bit different than that though, and he honestly was interested in seeing the final product once the girl running this thing finished editing and everything else. He was sure that each person would handle this sort of a situation in his or her own unique way. Some people would definitely handle it better than others would. Before he knew it, Josh and the blonde from earlier were the only two left besides him. "Have fun, mate." He said, hitting Josh's shoulder lightly before his friend and the blonde entered the other room.

@ peter parker.
Josh smiled and shook her hand quickly before she spoke once more. He laughed lightly before shrugging, "Yeah I guess that's probably just easiest." He replied before he took a step closer and cupped her face in one of his hands, pulling her closer as he pressed his lips to hers. He felt awkward because she was essentially a total stranger, and he didn't usually do things like this, but he couldn't deny that this kiss was definitely a good one. Josh had felt something different from this kiss, not that he would admit that aloud and sound like a complete creep, but his mood had definitely changed when his lips met hers. After a few moments, Josh pulled away and smiled at her, "Nice." He said before he closed his eyes lightly at how awkward he was. He could have said something totally different and would have sounded less weird. He wanted to facepalm himself. He looked over at Eleanor and raised an eyebrow, "Was that good? Did you get it?" He questioned almost hoping that her camera had shut off or something, so he would have to kiss Elise again.

----

Eleanor pressed record and lined up her shot so Josh and Elise were in the center. She kept rolling as the two kissed, trying to keep the smirk off her face as the interaction happened in front of her. She looked down at the viewfinder quickly before she waited for them to finish. When Josh looked over at her and asked if she got it, she smirked and nodded, "Yeah, I got it, but I mean if you want to kiss her again don't let me stop you." She joked with a smile. Eleanor looked out at the waiting room and saw Josh's friend sitting there, "Josh, does your mate want to participate in the experiment? Technically there are two people here that could still go." She questioned. She wouldn't say it aloud, but Josh's friend was really fit, and Eleanor definitely wouldn't mind kissing him for the video, or in general really.

Elise was a little nervous. It wasn't every day that she kissed a complete stranger, and she knew that there weren't any stakes involved in this, it was all just for Eleanor's film project, but that didn't make this situation any less nerve-wracking. Josh was cute though, and he really did have nice eyes, and he didn't seem as unhappy about all of this as he had when she'd noticed him earlier, so that was a good sign at least, right? A nervous laugh fell from her lips when he took a step closer to her and cupped her cheek. She brought her arms up around his neck loosely, reciprocating the second his lips touched hers. The kiss was a little bit awkward at first, as most first kisses usually were, but there was something there that sort of lingered when they both pulled away. She smiled at him and laughed at his comment. "Yeah..." She breathed. If Elise was being totally honest, she kind of wanted to lean in and kiss him again, but she wasn't going to. "El!" She hissed at her friend, her cheeks heating up a bit, when she made the comment about not stopping Josh if he wanted to kiss her again. Her eyebrows rose when the brunette asked Josh if his friend wanted to participate. What was she up to?

---

Dan waited in the other room for his friend. He knew that Josh wasn't pleased that the lads had signed him up for this thing, and while Dan didn't really know if this was the best way to go about things, he did think that it was important for his friend to get back out there. If this was how they were all going to get him to stop sulking and posting pissy and depressing shit on social media then so be it. If that didn't end up happening though then the singer was likely just going to post more pissy and depressing shit. Josh had thought the blonde was fit though, so that was at least a good sign. He couldn't see his friend not at least enjoying the kiss to an extent. Little did he know that he was about to get dragged into the little study as well.

@ peter parker.
Eleanor smirked at Elise's reaction before Josh raised an eyebrow at her question and shrugged, "I'm not sure honestly, you could ask him." Josh replied as he looked over at Elise, "So how did you manage to get dragged into this?" He questioned. Eleanor poked her head out the door and looked at Josh's friend, "Hey, Josh's ride, you wanna participate in the experiment?" She questioned, "There's one girl left to be paired with if you want. All I have to do is click record and then stand in front of the camera." She suggested. Josh looked over at his friend and smirked before he nodded eagerly at him, knowing that Dan thought Eleanor was fit, "Go ahead, Mate, it'll be fun." He teased since he was volunteered unwillingly for this experiment. Eleanor was more than willing to participate in her own project if it meant she got to snog Josh's friend. She had never really been against doing "crazy" things like that, which is why the idea came into her head in the first place for this project. Josh was in a completely different mood than when he walked in, and he knew that it was because of getting to kiss Elise. There was something different about her, and he was really grateful that he got to be paired with her.

"El's my best friend." Elise stated, punctuating her words with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "She's had this concept thought up since the fall semester, and she's super fucking persistent, and finally wore me down and convinced me to partake in this whole thing." She had to admit, she was kind of glad that Eleanor had wore her down. The blonde had eyes. Josh was extremely attractive, she couldn't deny that fact, and, truthfully, she couldn't stop thinking about the kiss they'd just shared. He was a really good kisser, and there had definitely been a spark of sorts. But he was still pretty much a complete stranger, and she could get to know him sure, but he hadn't seemed all that pleased that his friends had signed him up for this thing, so there was a good chance that he wouldn't want to get to know her after today. She knew that she was likely overthinking all of this, and it wouldn't hurt to ask, but she was never really all that forward.

---

Dan looked up from his phone when the brunette called to "Josh's ride" obviously know that she was referring to him. And even if she hadn't referred to him in such a way, he was the only one in the other room right now, so she was obviously talking to him. His eyebrows rose at her words. She wanted him to participate in her little social experiment, he hadn't expected that in the slightest, but he did think the whole concept was rather interesting, and she was rather fit and he wasn't going to lie and say that he would mind kissing her. "Why the hell not?" He stood up, a faint grin tugging at the corners of his lips.

@ peter parker.
Eleanor grinned widely at his words before she waved for him to come into the other room with her. She went over to her camera and pressed record before she walked around in front and stood on where she had marked the X. She stuck her hand out with a goofy grin, "I'm Eleanor, thank you for participating in my experiment." She said with a grin before letting out a small laugh. He was definitely fit, so this wouldn't be a challenge for Eleanor. Granted, she didn't just go around kissing strangers, but it was definitely adventurous enough for her to want to do, so she was down for it. She wasted no time with small talk before she snaked her arms around his neck and planted her lips on his.

---

Josh nodded as Elise spoke, "Oh she played the best friend card, did she? That's rough." He replied with a small laugh. He really enjoyed talking to her, and he was really glad that she seemed like she was enjoying talking to him, "Looks like we're gonna be here for a little bit longer now." He said as he motioned to Dan following Eleanor into the recording room, "Dan thinks she's rather fit, so I'm sure he's having the time of his life right now." Josh spoke. He looked at his shoes briefly, wondering if it would be too forward of him to ask if they could stay in contact. He figured he didn't really have anything to lose because they were practically strangers, so it wasn't that big of a deal, "So, we've now kissed, but I don't really know anything about you, would you want to keep in touch and possibly meet up sometime for like coffee or something?" He asked as he scratched the back of his neck awkwardly.