ap41cu5

[ap41cu5]

Caught Between the Lines

summary: Chris has a fear of failure, often characterized through inaction. Which is why he's never taken the opportunity to confess to you, his best friend ever since his early childhood. Stuck, and sure that you could never love him in the way that he loves you, he turns to Josh, his other close friend who advises him to set his sights elsewhere. To distract himself. Torn that Chris seemingly has feelings for someone else, despite loving him in silence for so long, you're stuck between a rock and a hard place, settling for remaining silent. But unbeknownst to either of you, this was all a result of Josh's plan.

warnings/tags: chris hartley x reader, reader insert, use of (first name), fluff, slightly suggestive, slow-ish burn, mutual pining

short author's note: chris is a bit ooc and honestly this is not my best work, but i've been quite busy recently and i was hoping i could deliver something at least somewhat up to par! i dont know how much longer ill have free time for, so i really hope you enjoy this even though its not my proudest work. very sorry if it seems rushed </3

One-shot requested by @ilovetheriddler

word count: 5.5k

Catching snowflakes in the palms of your hands, the gentle winter winds making your ears sting, and in the distance, the steadily approaching figures of two of your good friends, Sam and Chris.  

Pressing your knees together as the frigid temperature continued to seep its way through your thick leather coat, your eyes seemed to linger on Chris’ steadily approaching silhouette. He always did have this.. warmth to him. Safety. He’s trustworthy, reliable, funny, smart, who could ask for a better best friend?

“Hi, Chris!” You hear Ashley greet him.

Your head snaps toward her, your gaze tentatively switching from Ash to Chris, Chris to Ash, Ash to Chris.

“Hey, Ash,” Chris greeted back, standing over her. “So, how’re you doing?”

“Mm, good! But, a little cold…” Ash replied, as you couldn’t help but notice the way that she looked at him. 

Their conversation seemed to fade into the background as your thoughts raced. They’d been spending an awful lot of time together. You’d heard so from Josh.

It was gut wrenching. What did she have that you didn't?

That soft smile he wore, that undoubtedly cute, toothy grin that creeped onto his face whenever he’d beat you at one of those stupid video games of his. It hurt like hell watching him smile at someone like that, someone who wasn’t you.

“Hey, you uh, you doing alright?” Chris gently placed a hand on your shoulder, his warmth somehow soaking through the leather of your coat and your knit sweater underneath.

You flinched, “oh, uh, yeah. Sorry,” you apologized, patting Chris’ hand.

Heat rose to your cheeks as your heart seemed to begin pounding against the inside of your chest.

“Jeez, (First Name). You were really out of it just now, everything okay?” Ash inquired, painfully considerate.

It was hard to hate Ash. She was very sweet, and even though buried deep in some crevice of your psyche, you were pissed at her for what felt like stealing your best friend. You were jealous, no doubt. But you just couldn’t hate Ash. She was as good a friend to you as everyone else was.

You couldn’t blame her, you couldn’t find the heart to. If anything, you blamed yourself. Spent all these years admiring him in silence, not daring to ever act on those feelings that had been brewing inside of you for God-knows-how-many years. Maybe if you’d acted sooner, things would’ve ended up differently. But you hadn’t. Only the pages tucked inside of your diary knew about how you truly looked at him. The longing looks, the warmth of his inside of his bedroom, the Star Wars figurines scattered on his dresser, the cold plastic of his PS3 controllers, the late nights you’d spend playing video games only to wake up on his shoulder. The little things that meant so much more than it would if he were just a friend to you.

“Yeah,” you glanced up at Chris, “yeah, I’m alright.” You replied, refusing to maintain eye contact with either of them.

Chris sighed, “You sure, you know I’m always here if you ever need to–”

“I’m fine,” you quickly dismissed him, gently removing his hand off of your shoulder. “Shouldn’t you be helping Josh? He’s waiting for you.”

His lips pursed as he felt a pang in his chest at your unusually cold exterior. A million thoughts ran through his mind, wondering if he did something to upset you. He quickly debated in his mind whether or not to ask, but you were right. Josh was waiting for him.

“Yeah, yeah I guess he is. I’ll uh, I’ll see you,” Chris dejectedly stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets, turning to join Josh.

The snow crunched beneath their shoes as they scanned the perimeter of the lodge, looking for some way to enter, snowflakes gently dusting the tops of their heads.

“Uh, hey, Josh?” Chris murmurs, the frigid temperatures painting the tip of his nose pink.

Josh turns, “somethin’ up Cochise? Didn’t look very happy after you saw (First Name) just now.” Josh observed.

“I– uh, I don’t know if you’d noticed this, but I sure did.” Chris paused to momentarily stop in his tracks, “(First Name) seems to be… kind of blowing me off, I guess? Or at least, avoiding me recently.” He sheepishly rubbed his neck, his voice laced with uncertainty.

Josh shook his head with a playful scoff, turning to continue walking as Chris hesitantly followed behind him.

“Looks to me, like you make her nervous,” Josh replied, half-shouting as the wind slightly picked up.

“What?” Chris shook his head in confusion, “I don’t– I don’t know, man…”

“What does it matter, anyway? I thought you were goin’ for Ashley?” Josh chimed, “And you saw her just a few minutes ago, she looked pretty hot, didn’t she? Just wanna rip that parka right off of her–”

Chris grumbles, “can you chill, man? I mean– I don’t know– I know you told me that I should just go for Ashley instead, and she’s cute I guess, but I just– as much as I try to focus on Ashley, it just still bothers me that (First Name) has been putting this.. distance between us, y’know? She’s been my best friend for almost as long as I’ve known you, and I guess I’m just– I’m not used to not having her around all the time. I even tried calling her while I was at the cable car with Sam. Even she was surprised that (First Name) didn’t pick up.”

“Woah, woah,” Josh turns. “What are you trying to tell me? Don’t tell me you’ve still got the hots for (First Name),” Josh impishly teased.

 

“No! No, that’s not what I’m saying at all, dude,” Chris jolted, rather unconvincingly as he tried to dismiss Josh’s accusation.

“Right, right…” Josh nods, clearly not convinced, “just sayin’, all I’m seeing is two dorks who keep dancing around each other, too pussy to say anything.”

“I dunno, I just don’t think she could ever… like me, like that.”

Rolling his eyes with a groan, “my God, man!” Josh facepalmed, “what is stopping you, seriously? Listen, dude. Look around you, do you see any parents? Just think, you and her alone, dripping with possibilities! Erotic possibilities–”

Chris promptly cut him off, “could you just cool it for a sec? If I try something like that I don’t even know if she would want to be my friend anymore. That is like twelve years of friendship just thrown down the drain. ” Chris interrupted him, the stress almost making him break out in a sweat if it weren’t for the icy cold breeze.

“You gotta buck up, bro. Grow a pair,” Josh shrugged. “Just sayin’, I think if you have any chance of finally getting some, your best bet is on Ashley.”

Chris grumbled. He didn't just want to 'get some.' What he wanted was unattainable, painfully so.

“So how are we planning on breaking into my parents’ lodge, bud?”

“Wait, I didn’t say I had a plan–” 

Josh continued walking up the path, “you sounded like you had a plan. You better deliver, Cochise, or else you got five lovely ladies who are gonna be freezing their buns off, and last time I checked, that's not a good way to get laid.”

“Well shoot, nobody likes cold buns.”

You could feel your muscles growing tense as your body continued to shiver, impatiently waiting for Josh and Chris to find a way to finally get the door open.

“We’re freezing our buns off out here!” Ashley comments, the wind picking up as if on cue.

It was true. Even though your fleece lined leggings underneath the cute skirt you decided to wear, you were quite chilly. Anyone would be, and you could feel your fingertips growing numb as you rubbed your hands together in an attempt to generate any sort of warmth.

“WoOooOOoOOoo!” You heard Chris muffledly clamour from behind the door.

You mentally cursed yourself for laughing.

“Oh– Chris–!” You were supposed to be blowing him off, but here you were, folding under zero pressure.

“Aw, how’d you know it was me?” 

“I am going to set the lodge on fire while you’re trapped in there!” You added, peering at him through the window.

He sighed with relief to himself to see that you were finally treating him normally again. It had only been a couple of days but to him, it felt like a couple of years.

“You wouldn’t dare!” Chris teased back with an almost cartoon-sounding British accent. 

“Oh but I would,” you added. “I’m gonna turn you into a stew and eat you!”

“Ooh, very scary, (First Name). I’m shakin’ in my boots.”

You shook your head, “ohoh, when I get my hands on–”

“Uh– hello! Hate to interrupt but shouldn’t you be like, getting the lock open or something?” Sam interjected, folding her arms.

“On it!” Chris jolted, quickly leaving to find the spray-on deodorant. 

Sam sighed, turning to both you and Ashley.

“Feels like we’ve been out here for ages,” Sam leaned against the doorframe.

Ashley grumbled, “what is taking Chris so long?”

Sam’s gaze immediately averted towards you, “speaking of Chris,” she turned to face you. “How are things? Between the both of you?”

Uh oh.

Chris definitely picked up on your change in behavior towards him.

“Uhh,” you scrambled for something– anything– to say, “they’re fine, I suppose. Why do you ask?”

“No reason!” She replied, suspiciously quickly. 

She swiftly turned to face back towards the door, her pink backpack nearly hitting you in the face.

She quickly tried to shift the conversation, “really wish Chris would just get the darn lock open already!”

You didn’t reply, only inquisitively looked over at Ashley, whose gaze was fixated on Sam. She held a certain expression, lips slightly pursed and eyebrows raised, as though she wanted to ask why she’d question you about Chris. You felt a twinge of guilt, but in the end, you knew that Chris was hers.

Minutes passed of awkward silence and intentionally avoided eye contact amongst the three of you.

My God, Chris, please just come get the lock–

And as if on cue, the door finally swung open.

“Thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week,” Chris bowed, earning an eyeroll from both Sam and Ashley.

“Oh, yeah yeah, took you long– EEEK!” You and Chris both shrieked as you jumped back, almost bumping into Sam, a furry, small brown critter scurried out from the lodge behind Chris.

Sam and Ashley both laughed, “what was it? Are you both okay?” Ash’s eyes darted between you and Chris.

“It was like a bear, or a tiger, or something–” Chris stammered.

Sam giggled, “aww it was a cute little baby wolverine!” 

“Don’t worry buddy!” Josh chimed, just appearing from around the corner once he’d heard Chris’ voice. “You’re gonna be a big boy soon.”

Josh patted you and Sam on the backs with a soft smile. Finally entering the lodge felt like a dream. The harsh winds finally weren’t cutting across your skin and the temperature, although still freezing, wasn’t accompanied by snow and occasional hail.

Chris promptly shut the door behind you, as you saw Josh, his hands on both Sam and Ashley’s shoulders, as the three of them went on ahead.

“Whew! Let's go get a fire goin',” Josh leaned his head down as he gently nudged Sam and Ashley along.

You turned back around to Chris, who was standing idly against the doorframe. His gaze had already been fixed on you. He shifted awkwardly through the thick silence.

It was oddly comfortable, you noticed. Even though your heart was definitely beating harder than it was just a few minutes prior and your cheeks felt flushed, you wanted to remain stationed in his presence, even if all it was was just looking into those eyes of his, decorated with slightly curled eyelashes. 

Your eyes wandered his face, your eyes lingered on his lips for just a second too long as you internally prayed he didn’t notice.

His hair was slightly askew and his glasses were slightly uneven, not going unnoticed by your observant stare. Without even giving it a second thought, you reached your hand up towards his head, pinching the side of his glasses between your thumb and index fingers.

“W-what are you–” Chris immediately felt himself tense up as your hand approached the side of his face, “oh,” he added with subtle disappointment.

The poor man probably thought you were about to kiss him.

“Thanks,” Chris looked away into some random corner of the room, too scared to look you back in the eye.

The amount of times Chris’s thoughts wandered into such uncharted territory was beyond countless. If he had a dollar for every time he’d even just considered all of the different possibilities about what it could possibly be like to plant just one kiss onto those pretty, often glossy lips of yours, he’d be set for the rest of his life.

“Yeah,” you murmured, “of course.”

Your hand lingered for a moment, fingertips just barely grazing his cheek, and finding comfort atop his shoulder, he took a sharp, deep breath in.

Physical contact wasn’t uncommon between you two, you were always play-fighting and whatnot, but something about this was different. Perhaps it was the cold finally getting to him, the lack of sleep he’d gotten the night before from the mixture of excitement and (mostly) anxiety about seeing everyone again since Hannah and Beth’s disappearance, or maybe it was the twinkle in your eyes that he’d never seen before. The way your eyes lingered on his form, the slight tilt of your head, the way the moonlight shining through the window highlighted the soft hue of your cheeks, the scent of your perfume filling his head with a multitude of thoughts that stretched past the bounds of just friendship, or maybe he was finally experiencing the feeling of just sitting and looking at you, with you staring right back at him.

It’s not like he’d never taken moments to just look at you before, with your eyes precariously meeting his, but they never lasted for this long. You’d both often break the eye contact after not even 3 seconds had passed.

Apparently, blowing him off for just a few days was too much for you. You really did miss him that much, and right now, the only people on the planet were just you and Chris. 

Your other hand found itself placed atop of his other shoulder, “y’know, Chris, I’m really glad you cou–”

“Hey Chris!” You and Chris jumped at the sound of Mike’s voice down the hall, “Josh and I kinda need help getting this fire started, could you come help us out man?”

You immediately pulled away from Chris, all the confidence you held just a few moments ago seemed to get swallowed up by the sudden change in atmosphere as you fiddled with your skirt.

“Sorry, I’m sorry, about that. I don’t know what came over me, truly. But, um, yeah you should definitely go help them out. I think we could all appreciate some warmth,” you stammered, already trying to make your way to the door.

You felt awful. What about Ashley? You were all over Chris just now because you’d somehow forgotten, in that fleeting moment, that he was in the process of trying to form a relationship with Ashley. 

“Wait!” Chris exclaimed, “please just wait a sec.”

You froze.

Taking a shaky breath in, you hesitantly turned back around to face him.

He paused, as if searching the room for the words to speak, “I’m sorry, really sorry, if I did anything to upset you recently. Maybe I’m just making shit up in my head but, I dunno, I thought you were avoiding me for a little while,” Chris shrugged, sheepishly.

You felt yet another rush of guilt, “oh, Chris, I’m–”

“Chris! Could you please hurry up and get over here!? We’re kinda freezing our asses off!” The both of you heard Mike shout down the hallway again.

Chris groaned, rubbing his temple with his finger as you heard him mutter under his breath something along the lines of ‘really goddamn important, but what-fucking-ever.’

“I promise we can talk about this later, okay (First Name)?” Chris placed a hand on your shoulder, “I mean seriously, how have Josh AND Mike not figured out how to get a stupid fireplace running?” 

You scoffed with a bit of a dejected smile.

In all honesty, you hoped later would never come.

How were you going to explain to your best friend that the reason you started pulling away from him was because you still had prominent, blaring feelings for him? And now he was going after someone else, and you couldn’t handle it. For your own selfish reasons, it felt easier pushing him away first before he had the chance to. And Ashley- oh, Ashley. You didn’t want to hurt her. You knew you’d be angry, you knew you’d be hurt, as if you weren’t both of those things already. But you didn’t want to blame her for it.

“Yeah. Later,” you nodded, refusing to look up at him.

You felt your body tensing up all over again as you shuffled around him to get through the door, your skirt almost getting caught on the edge of his jeans. Bits of snow fluttered off the sleeve of his coat as you pushed past him, hoping you didn’t look as uptight as you felt.

Chris watched as your silhouette disappeared around the corner as he lingered by the doorway. His forehead thumped against the wall with small, repeated ‘thuds,’ as he groaned into his hands.

“God, I’m such an idiot,” Chris grumbled.

Everyone’s heads turned to face you, partly hoping it was Chris finally coming to help save the day, and while not necessarily disappointed, sighed with annoyance that he hadn’t come over yet.

“Hi (First Name), where the hell is Chris?” Mike asked, his hand slapping the side of his thigh.

Immediately turning to face him and doing your best at putting on some kind of smile for the time being, you replied with a nod, “he’s coming.”

“Better fuckin’ be,” Mike muttered under his breath with his lip bitten with impatience.

The mahogany floor clicked under your boots as you made your way towards Sam, who was sitting patiently on the stairs. Jess greeted you as you passed by with a wave and a smile, earning a grin from you.

“Hi, (First Name),” Sam softly greeted you, patting the empty spot on the stairs beside her.

Joining her with a gentle smile, the stairs even colder than they looked, you rested your head on her shoulder, letting out a sigh you hadn’t even realized you’d been holding in.

“Chris bothering you?” Sam asked, as if reading your mind.

You froze, eyes widening and heart practically stopping.

A long few seconds passed, “I’ll take that as a yes,” Sam added, leaning her head against yours.

You groaned into your hands, “was it really that obvious?”

Sam giggled at your flustered state, “painfully.”

Although you never admitted it directly to her, Sam knew all this time about your potent feelings for the nerdy man. She didn’t even need Josh to gossip to her about it, she could tell just from your mannerisms whenever she saw the two of you together. Pretty much everyone in the group knew, or at least had a strong suspicion, but knew you’d probably die of embarrassment if you ever found out.

“You guys are always together, always messing around with each other. I don't think I’ve ever seen you guys spend this much time apart. What happened?” Sam asked, just barely above a whisper, ensuring no one else could hear your conversation.

“I just,” you paused to look around the room. “I just, I regret not acting on my feelings sooner, ya know? Maybe things would’ve turned out differently? But I don’t know, I don’t even think he could ever like me back anyway. And even though–” you cut yourself off. 

Harshly exhaling through your nose, “even though at this point I’m probably– I don’t want to get in the way of him and Ashley.”

You felt a weight finally being lifted off your shoulders as you finally told someone, that wasn’t your diary, how you felt.

You clutched your knees in your hands.

“I trust you not to tell anyone?” You asked, looking up at her.

With a pitiful look in her eyes and a sigh, she grumbled, “god damn it, Josh.”

Josh?“Josh? What are you talking about?” You replied, confusion evident on your face.

Sam seemed to contemplate for a moment, looking up at the ceiling.

“Josh is an idiot. If anyone is to blame, please blame Josh,” Sam sighed. “If you want my advice, you should talk to Chris about this.”

“Sam, I don’t know if–” 

She cut you off, “(First Name), I need you to trust me on this.” She held both of your hands in between hers.

You paused for a moment, “I’m scared, Sam.”

She caressed the back of your hand with her thumb, “I know, I know. I know how big of a risk this feels like. But you need to trust me. You’re my friend, I’d never advise you to do something that would hurt you.”

“But what about Ash?” You added.

“I need you to do me a favor, and stop thinking about Ash. Put yourself first every now and then! You’re always too wrapped up thinking about other people even at your own expense. Take my advice, talk to Chris. He’s understanding and sweet, you know that better than any of us,” said Sam.

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m just scared of.. pushing him away,” you replied.

“Jeez, how much longer is this going to take?” You and Sam heard Chris from across the room.

“My money’s on blankets for everyone!” Ash chimes.

Josh stood back up, the floor creaking beneath him.

“Alright, you know what, peanut gallery? I’ve got an idea for you two,” Josh smiled smugly at Chris and Ashley.

“What?” asked Ashley.

Josh glanced over at you, just momentarily scanning your face for some sort of reaction. “Okay, well I’m pretty sure that somewhere in this crazy place we used to have a… spirit board.”

“Wait, are you saying… we should have a seance?” Ashley inquired, slightly perturbed.

“Hey, Josh?” Sam got up from the stairs, motioning for you to follow along. “No hot water’s kinda major oversight, don’t ya think?” 

Josh turns to Sam, his eyes lingering on hers just for a split second. “Yeah, yeah. Just gotta fire up the boiler. It’s in the basement. You guys see if you can find the spirit board,” Josh points to the hallway to Chris and Ash.

“I actually think that, um,” Sam interjected. “Ash, would you please clear the table upstairs? Just, make sure it’s ready for once you guys get the spirit board. And, (First Name) and Chris, could the two of you actually go and get the spirit board instead?”

Josh and Ash both seemed confused, looking over at Sam with a bit of a bewildered expression.

Sam mouthed to Josh, ‘trust me.’

Josh shrugged, ultimately deciding not to put up a protest.

“Alright, sounds good to me. That good with everyone else?” Josh around to everyone, scanning the room for any possible objections.

“Okay then,” Sam dismissed everyone. “I’ll see you guys later. Josh, I’ll join you down in the basement.”

“Alright, I’m down for a ride-along,” Josh pointed with his head towards the opposite hallway.

After a few moments finally passed, he looked back to make sure you and Chris couldn’t hear the conversation he and Sam were about to have.

“What was that?” Josh asked in a hushed whisper, brows knit.

“Your plan is stupid, Josh!” Sam shook her head, “all you’re doing is putting a rift between them by encouraging Chris to pursue someone else!”

“Look, you and I both know that Chris doesn’t have the balls to say anything to (First Name) himself. All I’m doing is giving (First Name) some… motivation. Just givin’ her a little nudge to get the ball rolling,” he replies, grabbing a flashlight from the drawer nearby.

“And before you say anything, Ash is in on it. I wouldn’t use one of our friends like that,” Josh cautiously added before turning back around.

Sam only shook her head in response. That plan that he had was worse than she thought, God-fucking-awful was what it was.

“I hope you know what you’re doing, Josh.”

The library was for-some-odd-reason, the coldest room in the entire lodge. Your breath visible even in the dark room, accompanied by Chris’ flashlight aimlessly wandering the surrounding bookshelves, looking for wherever Josh kept that, by Chris’ words, ‘stupid frickin’ mythical piece of wood,’ AKA the spirit board.

“Gosh, feels like we’ve been searching forever,” you got up from the drawer with a stretch and a yawn.

You’d been unusually talkative since the two of you were sent on this small little mission together. There was almost hardly any silence between the two of you, but half of the shit that was coming out of your mouth was random, with almost hardly any correlation between each new fact or trivia that you happened to mention. 

Were you hoping he didn’t notice? Yes. Did he? Also yes.

Were you talking so much in hopes to distract him from the promised ‘let’s talk about this later’ situation earlier? 100% yes.

“Would you look at that?” Chris whispered to himself. “I finally found what we’ve been looking for!” Chris announced from the other side of the library.

He held up the board in one hand, the box looking worn down and busted. Its age was evident just from the box’s exterior.

“Awesome!” You grabbed the board from his hand, “now we can get back to the others!”

“Wait– (First Name),” Chris gently grabbed your arm, his flashlight fumbling out of his grasp and thudding against the carpet.

You turned back around, the soft iota of candlelight from the nearby nightstand just barely illuminating Chris’ face. 

“Would you please just– just talk to me?” Chris unconsciously closed some of the space between the both of you. “You’re my best friend, the person I’ve been closest to for all my life. Nothing could ever change that.”

That was the problem.

You didn’t want to just be his best friend. You wanted to be his.

“No, Chris, please,” you shook your head, emotions swelling throughout your body.

“Chris, you don’t understand,” you backed away from him, your shoulder thudding against the wall.

“Then help me understand,” he pleaded, his hands making their way up to your shoulders.

“I– I,” Chris stammered, licking his lips as if to gather courage for what he’s about to say next.

“I want to be there for you, always,” he paused. “I want to know what’s going on with you, inside that big noggin of yours.”

His comment earned a small smile from you, of course not going unnoticed.

“Big or small, I want to be there through it all. Through thick, and thin.”

Your chest swelled, and now more than ever, it was you and him against the world. And you loved the feeling, the exclusivity, the excitement. The rush of blood every time he was near, the safety and comfort of his presence.

“Oh, Chris,” you murmured, slowly lifting your head to meet his eyes.

‘I suppose now would be the time to take Sam’s advice.’ You thought to yourself.

Even though it was difficult, and even though it felt almost wrong, you decided to trust Sam. You took every upcoming thought that might consider the worst of the worst outcome, and buried them. Shoved them aside, because right now, with that look in his eyes and the feeling of his hands on your shoulders, the word ‘no’ seemed to vanish from your vocabulary altogether.

“I.. uh,” you gulped. “I just didn’t want to… get in the way of you and Ashley.”

His eyes scanned your face, as if trying to piece together the information in his head.

“Me– me and Ash? What are you– what do you mean?” Chris replied, brows knit.

You let out a frustrated sigh, “you know what I mean! I heard from Josh that you and her had been spending a lot of time together.”

His eyes slightly widened in disbelief, “he said that to you? Josh?”

It was all starting to slowly come together in his mind. Josh did this on purpose. He planned this.

“What– what are you– what are you saying?” Chris asked, his heart pounding so loud in his chest he could almost hear it.

You gruffly sighed, pushing his hand off of your shoulder, “you know what I mean, Chris!”

“No, no, don’t do that. Please, (First Name),” Chris was practically begging. “I need to hear you say it. I need to know that you’re saying what I think you’re saying because–”

He cut himself off, taking a moment to sigh into his hands.

“Because if I’m wrong, and I ruin this– this closeness that we have, that I wouldn’t trade for the goddamn world,” he gulped. “I don’t think I would ever forgive myself.”

Your voice seemed to get caught in the pit of your throat. Time seemed to stop. And just like that, the whole world seemed to vanish all over again.

Chris stared, with this deepness in his eyes, at you. His shoulders rose and fell with a certain intensity, only continuing to grow with every second that passed without an answer.

With trembling hands and shallow breaths, you gave into that tiny voice in your head. That tiny voice that had been telling you for years to just get on with it, to finally let yourself drown in him. 

And that voice was screaming at you to just say ‘fuck it’ and do it.

Your legs moved on their own, stationing yourself just inches away from him as you sloppily tossed the spirit board onto some random section of the floor. One of your hands found itself at the base of his neck, slowly moving upwards towards his jawline, softly tracing it with the back of your fingertips.

You heard him make a soft, indelible noise, his eyes widening and his jaw practically hitting the floor.

Your other hand rested itself just beneath his collarbone, gently caressing his chest. You could feel it rise and fall with each breath, quick, fleeting, heart pounding with excitement, before suddenly pushing him backwards, setting him off of his balance. His back hit the front of one of the shelves with a ‘clunk!’, the books rattling and a soft gasp escaping his lips before you sharply sealed them with your own.

He groaned, almost inaudibly, his arms finding solace wrapped up in your warmth as he pulled you in closer.

And he kissed you back. It was slow, gentle, messy, and alluring, begging for more.

His arms tightened around your waist, pulling your body flush against his, needy and impatient. 

You don’t know how long he’d been waiting to do that, how badly he needed you. How he couldn’t tame the thoughts that caused his mind to race even past what it would be like to just kiss you. Your presence haunted him, during the busy days, during lecture hall, during the boring nights when he was alone in his deafeningly silent room, in his shameful, unruly dreams.

It was all you. He was yours, and always was yours, whether you would’ve even liked it or not. He fell hard before he even knew what that meant. 

The both of you finally pulled away for air, cheeks flushed and breath just barely ghosting over his neck.

“Maybe.. maybe Josh’s shitty plan wasn’t so bad after all,” Chris’ voice was breathy, the purr in his voice sending a chill down your spine.

You only laughed in response, planting a soft peck on his cheek.

“Speaking of Josh,” you looked down at the floor where you’d sloppily dropped the spirit board, “you think they’re waiting for us?”

Chris immediately jolted, “oh, shit!” He gently put his hands on your waist, steadying you onto your feet so you were no longer leaning on him.

He quickly scrambled to pick up the spirit board and the flashlight, “how long have we been in here for?”

Smoothing out your clothes, which had gotten mildly messed up, you replied, “hell if I know. We should probably get back before they get suspicious.”

Turning back around to face you, holding an expression of dissatisfaction, he planted one more kiss onto your lips.

He lingered, barely able to contain the part of himself that wanted to drop the board and the flashlight all over again just so he could hold you, but mustered up the strength to finally pull away.

“This,” he paused with a shy smile, “this we should definitely continue later.”

You gazed up at his towering figure, “that sounds lovely.”

[ap41cu5]

Hi I saw u wanted Chris reqs 😋😋😋 What kind of thing r u interested in writing?? I have tons of requests I’d love to send

hello anon! im willing to write fluff, smut, most tropes, etc. go ahead and just send me any requests you might have and ill get to writing! the more specific your request, the more I can guarantee I'll write something up to par <3

[ap41cu5]

Chris Hartley requests pls and ty <3

hi guys, ik hardly anyone really read most of my works but im back now!! back from what was previously intended to be fully putting writing fanfiction behind me LOL but here we are, ive fortunately-unfortunately fallen for a new video game character from Until Dawn. I just love his silly personality and nerdy antics <3

if anyone is a fan of Until Dawn feel free to send me any requests for him! I love writing and i have a good chunk of free time on my hands now since im not in school at the moment :p

[ap41cu5]

bby u r my anGELLLL

[ap41cu5]

thanks so much for the tag!! :3

Lowkey - Rochelle Jordan

Stuck Next to You - Tiishe

Something You Know - Blood Orange

Strangler Fig - The Crane Wives

BOOGIE - BROCKHAMPTON

I Don't Wanna Be Me - Type O Negative

William, It Was Really Nothing - The Smiths

Coming Home - beabadoobee

Hard Times - Paramore

Eyes Without a Face - Billy Idol

anyone is free to join!! <3

@finniestoncrane left this open for anyone to do, so here I am!

go to 'on repeat'/heavy rotation playlist on spotify/apple music/wherever you listen to music, throw it on shuffle, and share the first 10 songs you get!

1. Love you to death - Type 0 Negative.

2. What once was - Hers.

3. Koolaid- Bring me the horizon.

4. Come on Eileen - Dexys Midnight Runners.

5. Anthems for a seventeen year old girl - Broken Social Scene.

6. Drowing in an empty sea - Deceits.

7. Monolith - Twin Tribes.

8. Chicago is so two years ago - Fall out boy.

9. G.I.N.A.S.F.S - Fall out boy.

10. Modify - Lemon Demon.

I'll tag @ap41cu5, @standard-human, @nshtn, and anyone else who wants to do this!

[ap41cu5]

lars x reader fluff? maybe after a long day they just chill and cuddle and unwind? a bath would be so cute

Bubbles

Lars Pinfield x Fem! Reader Rating: Fluff Genre: Fluff One-Shot Word Count: 1370 Short Synposis: lars feels bad about not helping during the battle against garraka due to his encounter with pukey. him and the reader have already been dating for some time now, so they both go home and have a nice bath together and cuddle afterwards :3 super fluffy and lars is super soft in this <3 apologies if he seems OOC at any point during the fic!

“I.. apologize for not being available during the whole Garraka mess.” Lars stiffly apologized, “Pukey caught me at a bad time. And now I’m– well– covered in puke.”

You glanced over at him from the driver’s seat, the corners of your mouth curving upwards into a small smile.

“Don’t worry about it, Lars. We were all able to handle Garraka fine, with the help of Nadeem’s powers that is.”

He shifted in his seat, a slight hint of guilt still seeping through his normally stoic expression.

“And– uh– thanks for driving us home, as well, love,” he added, some of the slime in his hair dripping down his cheek.

“You’re so mushy all of the sudden!” You laughed, “you drive us home all the time. It’s probably a good thing you let me drive. Wouldn’t want any of that gunk getting all over the steering wheel,” you chuckled, attempting to joke with him.

He didn’t respond, only looking down at his feet. The car freshener doing a so-so job at covering up the stench of vomit emitting from Lars’ soaked clothes and hair.

You sighed, “it’s been a long day. Why don’t we take a bath once we get home? I’ll help you wash all the gunk out of your hair.” You suggested, hoping for a more positive response.

“That sounds.. quite nice, actually” he admitted.

Now that was the Lars you knew and loved. He always got so mushy around you, not that you were complaining. 

The whirr of the car’s engine soon came to a halt as you pulled into the parking lot of both yours and Lars’ shared apartment. Lars tried his best not to get too much of the green slimy substance coating his uniform on the car door, but unsurprisingly failed. His footsteps made a wet, squelching sound with each step towards the apartment. 

“Hold on just a sec!” You quickly interrupted Lars just inches before his puke covered shoe made contact with the inside of the apartment.

“Take your shoes off outside. I’ll throw em’ in a pillowcase and toss them in the wash,” you said.

He nodded, and luckily his socks were unscathed for the most part. He shut the door behind him as he tried not to drip all over the floors.

“Go ahead and take off your uniform. I’ll go throw it in the wash,” you instructed, helping him with the zipper.

He nodded, carefully stepping out of the black jumpsuit.

His clothes underneath seemed to be relatively unscathed as well. His loosely fastened tie paired with a button up and jeans appeared relatively clean, a vast contrast to his jumpsuit.

“Could you go put your dirty clothes in the wash while I prepare the bath for you?” You requested.

“Sure, love,” he replied, making his way to the laundry room.

You kicked your shoes off, shuffling to the bathroom to start the water. Kneeling beside the bathtub, you even did the courtesy of putting a bit of your floral scented soap in the water to turn it into a soft scented bubble bath. The bathroom mirrors started to fog up a bit as the bathtub filled up further.

“Lars! The bath is ready!” You called for him.

“Coming!” You heard a muffled shout back.

He seemed to sniff the air a bit as he entered, “hibiscus?” 

“Spot on, Pinfield,” you teased, standing up. 

“Let’s get these clothes off so we can get you washed up,” you added, undoing his tie for him.

He lightly chuckled as he undid his belt, “I really don’t deserve you, now do I? You’re the one who went and fought Garraka with the whole lot of them and you’re the one pampering me?” 

“I can stop if you’d rather pamper me instead,” you smugly grinned.

“We can take turns,” he hastily stammered.

You laughed, leaning in to plant a kiss on his cheek before he quickly stopped you.

“You really don’t want to risk getting any of Pukey’s gunk in your mouth. Trust me,” he warned.

You quickly nodded, grateful he stopped you. 

He finished getting the rest of his clothes off as he sunk into the warm bath. He sighed in relief as he felt his muscles start to relax.

“Have I died and gone to heaven?” He asked as he rested his head on the back of the wall.

You snorted, “just wait until I start washing your hair.”

You carefully took his glasses from off his nose, keeping a mental note to wash those later.

You squirted some shampoo onto your hands before carefully running your fingers through Lars’ grimey hair. You winced at first, the slimy feeling of whatever it was Pukey spat onto his hair felt gross against your fingers. But you loved him, so you pushed through. Making sure to wash every drip of muck out of his blonde curls.

“Mmm, that’s lovely,” he murmured as you massaged his scalp.

His eyes were calmly shut, his breathing slow and steady.

The sight was almost adorable, “don’t fall asleep on me now. I still have my turn in the bath. And your shoulder massages are to die for.” 

“Why don’t you join me?” He suggested, his eyes fluttering open.

“Join you?” You said, grabbing a washcloth from the counter.

“Yeah! Why not? We could wash each other,” he suggested, looking up at you.

You shrugged, “I suppose I don’t see why not.”

After grabbing a change of clothes and disposing of the ones you had on, you carefully lowered yourself in the tub beside him.

“Oh, that really is lovely,” you murmured, the warm liquid allowing your muscles to relax.

He poured some water onto the back of your hair, “isn’t it?” He replied.

His fingers ran through your hair and down the back of your neck as he carefully rubbed your shoulders.

“Your shoulders are quite stiff. Been stressed lately?” He asked.

“Of course. Garraka could’ve killed us all had Nadeem not been there,” you replied, melting into his touch.

“I’m relieved that you’re alright after that whole mess. I know I must’ve said that a million times already, but I mean it,” he planted a kiss on the top of your head.

“I love you,” you replied.

“I love you too, darling.”

“Let’s watch some TV when we’re done? Maybe some Mythbusters?” You suggested.

“You know me so well,” he replied as you leaned back into his hands.

After about 30 minutes passed, you laid curled up on the couch while Lars went to go grab popcorn so you could both watch TV together for the rest of the night.

The night was peacefully silent. The sound of cars passing by was strangely few and far between, but it was nothing to complain about. The small lampshade on the small coffee table stationed beside the couch created just the right amount of light, making it dark enough to relax but light enough so you could see.

You idly flipped through the channels, hoping to see Mythbusters come on sooner or later.

“Here you are, love,” Lars handed you a bowl of popcorn as he grabbed a blanket to place over the both of you.

“Mythbusters on?” He asked as he took a seat beside you, cuddling up to your resting form.

“No, doesn’t seem like it. I’ve been flipping through channels for a minute now and nothing,” you replied.

“Eh, that’s alright. I was only looking forward to the cuddling bit,” Lars said, his arm wrapping around your waist as he big spooned you.

“You really are just a big teddy bear, aren’t you?” You jokingly remarked as his arm snaked around your waist and he buried his head in your hair.

He let out a muffled grumble in response as he took in your scent. You weren’t sure if he had even heard what you said as his breathing slowed, and grew more steady. You could feel him slowly drift off to sleep as he unconsciously cuddled further into you. His warmth on top of your comfy position on the couch only made it harder to stay awake and sleep beckoned for your arrival.

He really is just a big teddy bear under all that sarcasm and callousness. 

[ap41cu5]

i just finished life is strange and my brain chemistry is permanently altered oh my gof 😭😭😭

immediately fell in love with warren graham tho he's so silly I love him <33

might start taking requests for him tbh :0 i love how nerdy and selfless he is

[ap41cu5]

ONE OF US ONE OF US ONE OF US (lars pinfield fan!!!!) if you’re still taking requests, could you possibly do one where lucky teases lars on his obvious crush on the reader/character? and reader/character picks up on his nervousness and awkwardness?? sorry if it’s a bit vague. remember to take care of urself and thank you in advance <3 :)

Stifled

Lars Pinfield x Fem! Reader Rating: Slight NSFW - Suggestive Themes Genre: Fluff Word Count: 2464

A/N: thanks so much for your request anon! i really hope this is what you were looking for. ive noticed im struggling to write him completely in character, but i did my best! i hope you enjoy <3

“Oh, please. You totally do! There’s no point in denying it anymore!” You heard Lucky exclaim from the other room before she was hastily hushed.

“Would you keep your voice down!?” Lars seethed as he attempted to hush Lucky. 

You were quite literally just one step away from the door, but clearly you were about to walk in on a conversation you weren’t supposed to be hearing.

At first the plan was to come back later, but the next thing you heard immediately motivated you to stay. While you normally weren’t the type to eavesdrop, maybe just today you’d listen for just a few seconds longer.

“Well, it’s not like it matters anyway! You always get so nervous and uptight around her. If I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought you hated her,” Lucky commented.

Who are they talking about? 

Shooting her a glare, he refused to answer and only turned back toward his desk.

“Don’t you have work to be doing?” He irritatedly asked, his tone making it clear that he wanted her to leave.

Lucky hopped onto one of the tables, “why? You want me to go so that you’ll both get some precious alone time once she gets back?” Lucky teased him, a smug grin plastering across her face.

Lars has a crush. The realization struck you right in the gut, one of your hands clutching the side of your uniform. 

You couldn’t help the fact that you liked him. There was something about his high intelligence, his attentiveness to detail, and occasional sass that drew you to him, despite him always acting standoffish whenever you were around. 

The possibility of him catching feelings for someone else broke your heart. You couldn’t stand the thought of him being with someone who wasn’t you.

“Alright, fine, I’ll go. But I can already smell the look on your face once she gets back!” Lucky giggled on her way out the door.

You immediately began to panic. You could hear her footsteps rapidly growing closer, and there was nowhere to hide in the sector of the lab you were in. So you took the only choice you had and tried to walk through the door as casually as you could muster.

Taking a quick deep breath in and walking in through the door, you were immediately met with Lucky’s face just inches away from yours.

An awkward split second passed where you both just stared at each other before she finally said, “(First Name)! Funny seeing you here!” She raised her voice, making sure Lars could hear her.

“I work here,” you chuckled, “I just got back from my lunch break.” You held up a paper bag containing your leftovers.

She animatedly nodded, “I see, I see. Well, I’ll catch you later, (First Name)!” She slipped past you, “have fun, Lars!”

She gave Lars a knowing look as she walked off, shooting you a quick wink as well.

Lucky was always energetic and cheerful, but she carried a much more playful attitude than usual. Your interest piqued, especially given the previous conversation they had. 

You placed your lunch bag down onto your desk as you turned your head to look at Lars. The moment you looked over, you saw his head shift back down to his desk, as though he was already looking at you. Part of you immediately pondered what that look could have possibly meant, but you tried not to overthink it. He probably wanted to see who was approaching, as if Lucky somehow hadn’t made it obvious enough. But you tried not to overthink it. Last thing you’d want would be to get your hopes up only to get shattered once you found out who it was that Lars truly had feelings for.

Despite all of your jumbled thoughts and feelings, you felt a bit bored. You finished the majority of your experiments earlier. You had astute problem solving abilities, but Lars was the one case you just couldn’t crack. 

You just couldn’t understand why he hated being around you so much. You were almost always nice, polite, and sweet. And every morning for the past couple of months, you’d arrive at work with a fresh cup of coffee sitting atop of your desk. He had taken the time to memorize how you liked your coffee, and that had to mean something, didn’t it? He couldn’t hate you that much, could he?

Approaching his desk, wandering eyes took a curious peek at what he was working on.

“How’s your experiment coming along?” You asked from over his shoulder.

He immediately seemed to be startled by your presence. The contraption he had been so carefully inspecting clattered to the ground as he flinched, hastily spinning around to face you.

You couldn’t tell if you were imagining it, or if his eyes seemed to soften just for the ephemeral moment they met yours. His expression quickly went from surprised to a mix of embarrassment and fear. A notably unfamiliar expression from him.

“What do you want?” He awkwardly cleared his throat before quickly turning back around.

Just for a second could you see a soft hint of blush tinting his cheeks as he made a clear effort not to look at you. But what did it mean? Why was he so nervous all of the sudden?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” you meekly apologized. “You seem a bit uptight. Is everything okay?”

He huffed, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, sure,” you replied, sarcasm evident in your voice.

“Maybe you’re just more annoying than usual,” he spat, giving you the cold shoulder.

You sighed at his unsurprisingly cold response.

“Have I done something?” You asked, feeling a bit remorseful.

He seemed to tense up all over again at the question as he fumbled with whatever tool he had in his hand at the moment.

“No, everything’s fine. There’s something I must tend to,” he paused for a half second, presumably to come up with a place. “In the bathroom.”

A few seconds passed where you couldn’t find the words to respond. He’d been acting so awkward lately, more awkward than usual.

“...In the bathroom?” You reiterated, unsure if you really heard him correctly.

“Yes– yes, in the bathroom. Now, if you’ll excuse me,” he hastily set down the tool, the other gadget he was holding fumbling out of his grip and clattering onto the surface of his desk.

His boots squeaked against the tile flooring of the lab as he made a beeline down the hallway to the restroom. 

You couldn’t help but feel a bit heartbroken. The way he acted so disgusted with you to the point where he couldn’t even stand being in the same room as you made you sick.

“Gee, what’s his deal, am I right?” You heard a voice emerge from behind you.

“Oh, hey Gary,” you greeted him, unable to hide the pain in your voice.

“Agh, don’t sound so disappointed!” He gave your arm a light pat as he crunched on an apple, “seems like he’s like that with everyone. If you ask me, though, I get the feeling he likes you too.”

You scoffed, almost laughing at his response.

“I highly doubt that, Gary. You saw how he acted around me. It’s like he hates me, or something!” You groaned into the palms of your hands like a petulant teenager.

He leaned closer to your ear, “let’s keep this between us, but for him to get all awkward and riled up like that? That’s gotta mean something. Take it from me, he likes you.”

You sighed. While he did sound convincing, you really didn’t want to get your hopes up.

“Yeah, I guess so. I hope you’re right,” you replied, until it finally dawned on you.

“Wait, how did you know I liked him?” You asked, brows furrowing.

He wheezed in response, nearly choking on a bit of his apple.

“Well, shit, is everyone in this lab oblivious, or what?” He chuckled, “trust me, though! I’m a guy. I know how guys act. I mean, he brings you coffee every morning, for Pete’s sake.”

“That’s exactly what makes him so confusing! He took the time out of his day to memorize how I like my coffee, and yet every time I try to talk to him he acts like– he acts like I’m some sort of pest!” You couldn’t tell if you were angry or sad, probably both.

“That’s what I’m telling you! He just doesn’t know how to act around you.” He took another bite of his apple, “I’ve gotta go help Trevor with something back at the firehouse. I’ll catch you later, (First Name),” Gary took his leave, making his way down the hall.

You sat back down at your desk, sinking into your chair as his words replayed in your head. Was it really true? Could it be possible that the person Lucky was teasing Lars about just before your arrival– was it you?

After what seemed to be a few more minutes, Lars finally returned to the bathroom and began working on his usual projects. You decided to leave him alone, sinking into your own work, or at least trying to. But you couldn’t help the fact that Lars was living rent free in the back of your mind, hindering your focus at every opportunity.

Looking back down at your paper, you finally came to terms with the fact that no matter how hard you tried, you wouldn’t be able to get any work done until you found out the truth. No matter how painful that truth may be.

“Lars?” You called out, turning in your chair.

“What is it this time?”

You huffed, part of you wondering if you should have just taken that response as an answer in itself.

“Why do you hate me so much?” The question came out sounding far more vulnerable than you intended.

He sighed, one of his hands messily making its way through his hair.

“I don’t,” there was a painfully long pause, “hate you.”

That response in itself was enough to surprise you. But you wanted more.

“I don’t understand.” you replied. “You avoid me at almost every chance you get, and you’re always mean to me. You bring me coffee every morning and yet every time I try to get closer to you, you push me away.”

You heard him groan, his head in his hands as he exasperatedly threw his head back. 

“You’re intolerable,” he said. “I hate the way that you bite the tip of your pen, I hate how you twirl your hair around your fingers, I hate your stupid sense of humor, I hate–” 

You were about to open your mouth and you weren’t sure if you were about to tell him to go fuck himself or that you hated him just as equally. Neither of which you would’ve actually meant, but you could feel yourself grow hurt, angry, and confused all at the same time with every word he said.

He seemed to contemplate whether or not to continue, “I hate how beautiful you are without even trying! Do you know how hard it is to focus whenever you’re near me?”

Oh.

It all made sense now. You felt your fists unclench and timed seem to slow down as your brain needed time to process what he just said.

Your legs seemed to move on their own as you approached Lars’ tense form. His hands clutched either side of his desk as his head hung low.

“Lars–” your voice was low and gentle.

“Please don’t say anything,” he pleaded. “I know you must be repulsed by me and that’s no one’s fault but my own–”

You’re not sure what came over you, but you quickly tilted his head towards you, standing on your tippy toes as you pressed your lips against his. His breath seemed to get caught in the pit of his throat as he stood completely frozen.

You quickly pulled away the moment you didn’t feel him kiss back, “I’m sorry, I should’ve asked–”

Your apology was quickly interrupted by the feeling of his hands tenderly gripping the sides of your face as he pulled you back in for another kiss. One of his arms wrapped around your waist and gently pressed your body up against his, a low grumble escaping his chest.

Your tongue gently grazed his bottom lip, requesting an entrance as you felt him exhale against you. He melted into you as he pressed your back against the front of his desk, one of his legs finding their way in between your thighs. Your hands made their way into his soft blonde curls, gently tugging on them as he let out another groan. Your bodies felt like they were melting into one other, like you belonged with each other. 

“Do you have any idea how painfully irresistible you are?” He grumbled into your skin, his lips pressing against the lower part of your jaw.

You sharply inhaled through your teeth. The feeling of him kissing down your neck sending a shiver down your spine.

“I hadn’t realized you were so pent up,” you replied, nails digging into the back of his uniform.

“Spent so many late nights where you were all I could think about. You have no idea how frustrating that was, do you?” his leg pressed against you, making you squirm.

“Why d’you think I kept trying to get closer to you? I love looking at your stupidly handsome face,” you murmured, licking your lips and going in to kiss him again.

“That right?” his head was tilted as his teeth sunk down on your lower lip.

“It is,” you felt yourself growing needy.

“Ahem!”

The sound of someone loudly clearing their throat could be heard throughout the lab as you both quickly pulled away from each other. Eyes darting to the source of the nose, you were both met by sight of Winston standing in the doorway.

“I was about to congratulate the both of you on your latest findings, but it seems like the two of you are.. busy right now.” He bore an awkward expression, “look, I’ll come back another time. But please not in the lab. That’s disgusting.”

You awkwardly chuckled, “yeah, no. Of course. That’s– we’re at work that would be so unsanitary. And gross. We would never–” Lars had to interrupt your awkward rambling by giving you a quick nudge.

Winston gave the both of you an awkward nod as he quickly walked off.

“Would you want to get takeout on the way home? I can drive you,” Lars meekly suggested.

You couldn’t fight the smile that pricked at the sides of your mouth, “that sounds lovely, Lars.”

[ap41cu5]

Hello! I just finished watching Ghostbusters Frozen Empire because of your recommendation, and OH MY GOSH!! Lars is absolutely the type of character that i find attractive!!

I actually have a request for him! Here me out, A Lars and Female Reader, where she's his apprentice/assistant, and she secretly has feelings for him. But she feels guilty about it because he's essentially her boss! And she keeps having fairly sexual fantasies about him, normally when she's asleep or zoning out. But then, one day, he actually makes a sudden move on her, and she genuinely believes that she's simply having another fantasy again!

Reverie or Reality

Lars Pinfield x Fem! Reader Rating: Slight NSFW - Suggestive Themes Genre: Fluff Word Count: 2922 A/N: i hope this was what you were looking for! since ive never written for lars before, i dont know how in character he is, but i hope you enjoy!

His hands gently held your waist as his lips gently pressed into the soft skin of your neck. Your nails dug into the back of his uniform as you winced under his touch.

You carefully took in his scent, the feeling of his hands around your waist as they slowly–

“Could you grab me the syringe?” Lars requested, holding his hand out while his eyes remained fixated on the petri dish in front of him. 

Your eyes shot up and you were immediately broken out of your trance. You quickly brushed away any thoughts regarding the wildly inappropriate fantasy as you quickly got up from your seat. Pulling your goggles down so they hung loosely around your neck, you quickly set down your marker and rummaged through the tool tray. 

As the main parabiologist, Lars mainly took on the hands-on aspects of each project. He would directly manage and study the biology of any and all possessed objects you encountered, while you calculated the physics and math behind it. Your job consisted of serving as both a theoretical physicist as well as Lars’ apprentice. Both of which you didn’t mind, and quite enjoyed. Math was always your forte, and working with Lars was always enjoyable. You loved learning new things, especially from him.

Listening to him ramble on about science and how fascinating he thought it was with that same glint in his eyes as usual, there was something about how passionate he was about the paranormal that made him vastly different than any other scientist, or even any other person, that you knew of. He was sweet, had a delightfully dry sense of humor, not to mention easy on the eyes.

Hastily rushing through the tool tray, your fingers finally met the plastic surface of the syringe as you quickly placed it in his outstretched hand. Your fingers just barely brushed over one another’s, momentarily causing your breath to get caught in the pit of your throat. 

As his eyes never left the microscope, he motioned for you to come closer. You quickly scurried beside him, the smell of his cologne being an all-too-familiar scent. 

His fingers were curled around part of the microscope, the veins in his hands being strangely attractive as he pushed his glasses back up his nose. His lips were slightly parted, and his waist was notably narrow. 

He stepped aside, “have a look through the microscope.”

You almost didn’t hear him with how good he looked at that moment, the lamplight highlighting his features as he looked back at you. It took you a few seconds to process his request, your eyes momentarily traveling down to his lips before you hastily nodded and positioned yourself in front of the microscope. 

Lining your eye up with both of the lenses, you observed the spore-like objects in the petri dish.

“Just looks like regular fungus,” you commented.

“Give it a moment, now,” he replied, his eyes glued to you as he waited for your reaction.

A sudden purple, plasma-like substance seemed to shoot throughout the fungi, immediately sparking your interest. A small gasp escaped your lips as you quickly adjusted the zoom knob in an attempt to observe a larger area of the dish rather than the single, concentrated area. 

“Fascinating…!” You whispered under your breath, craving to see more.

“That was paranormal energy. I collected it off of our latest subject. I wanted to see if the paranormal energy was concentrated down to the cellular level, and it seems we have our answer. Why it only travels in spurts rather than a constant wave is still a mystery, however. But I’m working on it,” Lars explained, laying a hand on your shoulder.

His touch immediately made you tense up as you bit the inside of your cheek. 

“While you’re here, why don’t you take some of that serum I made the other day and try dropping it into the dish again?” Lars suggested, giving your shoulder a gentle pat.

You scoffed, “so it can explode in my face again? I really don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“It’s all part of improving. You want to learn more about parabiology as my assistant, no?” he nudged you, pointing to the bottle of green serum.

Giving him a hesitant nod, pulling your goggles back up as you carefully reached for the serum, grabbing the pipet next to it. You could feel your heart pounding in your chest, desperately hoping you wouldn’t create another huge mess like last time. While Lars didn’t seem too worried about it, part of you really wanted to impress him, to be someone he could admire in the same way he was to you. 

You gulped, carefully measuring to make sure you had exactly one drop in the pipet before you dropped it into the petri dish. You could feel Lars’ eyes on you, and you weren’t sure if his presence was more comforting or nerve-racking. 

Your hand trembled above the petri dish as you painstakingly held the pipet at just the correct distance. Like ripping off a band-aid, you finally squeezed the liquid out of the small tube, as the singular drop landed in the petri dish with a faint “ploop!” sound. 

Prepared to back up and get a faceful of fungal matter, the substance in the petri dish only exhibited a small ‘poof!’ as a miniscule smoke cloud shortly followed. 

Immediately, your face lit up as you quickly turned to Lars.

“I did it!” You celebrated, a big smile gracing your features.

“See, I knew you could do it.” Lars lightly smiled back at you, your eyes traveling back down to his lips again before you quickly looked away.

“I– uh, was there anything else you needed?” You quickly asked, praying to God he didn’t notice the subtle glances you’d take at him.

He seemed to think for a moment, “yes, actually. Could you please disinfect the syringe from earlier as well as this scalpel?” Lars asked, handing both of the tools to you.

“Yeah, yeah sure,” you stammered, quickly making your way down the hallway to the disinfecting station.

Letting out a breath you didn’t even know you were holding in, you felt as though your knees could give out at any moment. Your hands were trembling and your face still warm, your infatuation with him was truly getting out of hand. 

Turning on the water, you sprayed some of the sterilization liquid onto the scalpel first, carefully spreading it across its metallic surface. 

This is getting out of hand. I can’t feel this way for him. We’re nothing more but coworkers. He’s my boss, I’m his assistant. Maybe even just an apprentice, at this point. But he’s just.. so…

No– no! How would he feel if he found out you were thinking about him in such a manner? He’d be disgusted! I’d need to find work elsewhere, no doubt. He’d never want to see me again! I really, really need to control–

“Ouch!” You winced, a small patch of red forming on your fingertip.

Looking down at the scalpel, then back at your finger, you realized that you accidentally nicked yourself while you were embarrassingly deep in thought about the man you were working under.

“(First Name)? Are you alright back there?” You heard Lars shout from the lab.

“Uh– yeah! Yeah, I’m fine! Sorry, I’ll be over in just a second!” You unconvincingly called back, rummaging through all the different cupboards looking for a pack of band-aids. 

Lars took off his goggles, growing curious and a tad bit worried. It never took you this long just to sanitize used tools before, not to mention you sounded awfully suspicious just then.

You groaned, Lucky never reorganized the drawers after she used them, making it impossible to find the god forsaken box of bandaids. You could feel the blood dripping down your hand as you stood back up to search the upper cabinets. 

“Damn it, Lucky,” you swore under your breath as you stood on your tippy toes, searching the very top of the cabinet.

“(First Name)?” Lars inquired, approaching you from behind.

Your head immediately shot towards him, stumbling back a bit. You hadn’t even noticed him approaching.

“Sorry, sorry. I don’t mean to take so long. I just accidentally nicked myself with the scalpel. But it's no big deal, I just can’t find where Lucky put the band-aids for the life of me,” you exasperatedly sighed, ripping open another drawer.

He sighed, taking a few steps closer. “Let me take a look,” Lars gently requested, holding one of his hands out. 

“No– no, really it’s alright, you don’t have–”

“(First Name).”

You gulped at his stern tone, hesitantly holding your hand out for him to take.

He sighed, his thumb gently tracing your palm as he patted down the cut with a paper towel, soaking up all the excess blood. He slowly brought your hand up closer to his face, his eyes meticulously scanning the small cut. The feeling of his hand against yours made your face beet red all over again as you prayed he didn’t notice that you were trembling.

“Just, relax,” he reassured you, grabbing a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and pouring some of it onto a cotton ball.

“This is going to sting a bit, okay?” He braced you before he gently dabbed the ball of cotton onto the cut.

You winced, struggling not to pull back as he gently blew on the cut. He continued for a few seconds until the stinging finally subsided.

He held your hand by the wrist as he tossed the cotton ball into the trash can, grabbing a box of bandaids out of his pocket.

“You just carry band-aids around?” 

“You can never be too prepared,” he shrugged. “Don’t touch any of my experiments, alright? We don’t want that cut getting infected with whatever germs those ghost-infested objects may carry.”

You nodded, following him back to the lab. His touch was comforting, too comforting. You liked him too much– way too much. 

Stretching, you returned to your desk, mapping out any equations that needed to be solved. You sighed as you tried to keep a steady grip on your pen, the pressure on your fingertip causing it to ache. 

“Where’d everyone go?” You inquire, looking around the empty room, leaving just you and Lars alone together.

“They left ages ago. It’s nearly midnight. Had you not realized?” Lars replied, taking a granola bar out of his desk.

Late nights weren’t uncommon with Lars. Going home early for either of you was amongst the rarest of sights to behold.

“No, I guess I must’ve lost track of time,” you replied, fighting to keep your eyes open.

He glanced back over to you, “you look tired, (First Name). Why don’t you head on home for the night? You deserve it.”

“No, no, I’m okay. I just need to finish up these last few equations and I’ll be on my way. Promise.”

Lars sighed, taking one last worried glimpse at you.

“Alright, but only because you promised,” he remarked before pulling his goggles back on.

Begrudgingly getting up out of your seat, you grabbed a marker and began solving the last equations up on your whiteboard. With a sigh and a hand tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, you got to work. 

The only sound breaking the deafening silence was the noise of your marker squeaking against the white board along with the occasional yawn from either of you. 

But it was just so hard to focus.

The way he so carefully held your hand to tend to your cut, he didn’t have to, but he did. He was gentle with you, and sweet. At this point, you were almost certain your feelings for him stretched beyond just the point of infatuation. Far past the point of just infatuation. 

The countless times you’d spaced out during a project thinking about him was awfully embarrassing, and frankly you don’t know how no one around you noticed. Or even how he hadn’t noticed, for that matter. But you weren’t complaining in the slightest. He’s your boss, you can’t imagine how disgusted he would be if he ever found out how you truly felt about him.

“(First Name)? You alright over there?” Lars inquired, looking up at you from his station.

“Yeah-! Yeah, I’m fine,” you replied, confusion lacing your voice.

“You’ve been staring at the whiteboard for the past 5 minutes,” he added, taking his goggles off from around his neck.

Shit. 

You felt your face grow hot with embarrassment as you quickly turned back around to face the whiteboard.

“I’m alright! No need to worry!” You stammered.

You could just barely hear the sound of Lars’ boots tapping against the floor behind you as you tried as hard as you could to solve the next part of the equation. But it was like your mind blew a fuse and you couldn’t think at all, even the skills required for basic arithmetic escaped you.

“What’s on your mind?” He asked, his hand finding its way to your shoulder.

You couldn't find the words to respond, like you were in suspended animation. You stood frozen, marker in hand and eyes glued to the whiteboard.

“(First Name),” he paused, “you’ve been acting differently for a long while now. And I.. have a theory.”

You hesitantly turned to face him, setting your marker aside. 

“Oh– it’s just– it’s nothing, really!” you stammered, hoping to come up with something coherent until your rambling was quickly interrupted by the feeling of Lars’ tucking a strand of your hair behind your ear.

“You’re a terrible liar,” he murmured as his thumb gently traced along your jawline.

What is happening!? Does he really feel the same way? No, I must’ve fallen asleep at my desk after he helped me with my cut! Does this mean I’m lucid dreaming? But this dream feels awfully realistic. There’s no way..!

“L-Lars..?” you murmured, just barely above a whisper.

“It appears my hypothesis was correct,” he replied, his eyes studying you.

This isn’t real. I’m asleep, I’m dreaming, I have to be! 

His thumb traced along your chin, then gently traced along your bottom lip.

“I hypothesize,” his eyes traveled down to your lips, “that you, (First Name), have feelings for me.”

What a realistic dream. Okay, I’ll bite.

“And if I do?” 

His expression quickly changed to a bit of surprise, you were almost never this forward. 

“You’re feeling awfully bold right now,” he commented.

“Awfully. I’m surprised I haven’t woken up yet,” you mumbled to yourself.

He quickly pulled back, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

“What?” He asked, his head tilting.

You paused for a moment until it finally dawned on you.

“Holy shit– holy shit, this is real,” a hand slapped over your mouth as you felt your face burn in pure embarrassment.

You were just about ready to dig yourself a hole under a rock and live there for the rest of your life.

“You’ve been dreaming about me?” Lars inquired, an all-too-familiar smirk appearing on his face.

You grumbled into your hands, not daring to look at him.

He chuckled a bit, “there’s no need to be embarrassed now, is there? I’m sure you’ve already figured out by now that I feel the same way.” He gently pried your hands off of your face.

You stared down at the floor, your heart beating out of your chest as he carefully pulled you closer. 

He gently pushed your chin upwards, “look at me, (First Name).”

You gulped, your eyes darting around the room before finally landing on Lars’ eyes.

“Would– would it be alright if I kissed you?” He asked, his face ever so slightly heating up at the request.

You’re not sure what came over you, but you didn’t even give it a second thought before you quickly thrust your lips into his. He stumbled backwards a bit, but quickly steadied himself as his arms snaked around your waist, pulling you flush against his body.

A groan escaped his lips as he melted into you, one of his hands gently tugging on the back of your hair. You both pulled away just for a split second for air before you quickly enveloped each other in another kiss. All the pent up desire you had for him seemed to flow out of you, every inch of him taking over your senses.

“You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for this,” he grumbled, planting a chaste kiss just below your ear.

You whimpered at the contact. The feeling of him kissing your neck was better than you could’ve ever imagined. Your fingers intertwined with his soft curls, gently tugging on them, eliciting a low groan from the significantly taller man. Each kiss sent a shiver down your spine, hitting you directly in your core.

He quickly pulled away, his breathing was heavy and his cheeks were flushed.

“We.. we should stop. I’d– I’d like to take you out first. At least before we do.. anything,” he explained, pushing his glasses back up his nose.

Your neck felt cold without his touch, but you agreed anyway. A small smile graced your lips as you looked back up at him.

“I’d love that,” you stood up on your tippy toes, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Tomorrow, 8 o’ clock? I’ll pick you up,” he added, one of his hands resting on the base of your neck.

You beamed, “I would love that.”

[ap41cu5]

Lars Pinfield Requests PLSSS

guys i just finished watching ghostbusters frozen empire and i immediately fell in love with lars oh my LORDDDDD

guys please give me requests for him i wanna write for him so badly but i have no prompt ideas!! so pls send me some i would love to write for him :3

gif creds 2 @/theladyigraine !!

[ap41cu5]

Tantalization

Joseph Oda x F! Reader Rating: Smut Genre: One-Shot NSFW Smut Word Count: 4068 Short Synposis: Joseph and the reader are on a nice dinner date. His unwavering respect for you almost got him to resist how badly he wanted you. Almost.

For: @foamimi !! Please let me know if you would like any adjustments!

“You know, it’s.. really nice seeing you relaxed like this.” You paused to sip the rest of your wine, “you look good when you finally have your guard down, and you’re not all serious and uptight like when we’re at work.”

Your words slurred and your cheeks flushed from the alcohol, you tucked a strand of hair behind your ear. Your dangly diamond earring became exposed from behind your (hair color) locks as you looked up at him through your eyelashes. 

Joseph bit the inside of his cheek. “..is that so?” He replied, twirling a bit of his pasta onto his fork.

“It is.” You replied in a low tone, crossing your legs underneath the table, “you just have such a pretty smile. And quite a nice laugh, if I may add.”

The inside of the restaurant was undoubtedly romantic, candle lit and dark. With low tunes of some classical piece softly playing in the background. He wasn’t sure if it was just the candlelight, or perhaps even his imagination, but you had a certain twinkle in your eye that he hadn’t noticed before. A sort of sly, yet charming eloquence which held his psyche in a bind.

You rested your chin on your fist, taking a long moment to observe him. Joseph seemed to take a moment to chew his pasta, looking down at his food as he felt his face heat up slightly.

“You’re drunk, (First Name),” Joseph responded, fighting the blush on his cheeks as he looked everywhere but up at you.

“Oh, come on. I’m just being honest.” You chuckled, “so.. you gonna invite me back to your place after this?” You half-jokingly teased as your hand snaked its way over to Joseph’s, your fingertips just lightly grazing his wrist.

Joseph nearly choked on a piece of shrimp.

“W-what..?” Joseph asked, coughing into his fist.

Joseph’s face was beet-red at this point as he quickly reached for his water, the ice clanking around in his cup as he gulped down the chilled liquid. 

You couldn’t help but laugh at his delightfully animated reaction. With his face all beet red as he almost choked on his food, it somehow only added to his charm. Nearby customers glanced over at him, some with looks of concern while others looks of annoyance.

But, you couldn’t blame them. This restaurant was meant to be quiet and romantic, with everyone keeping to themselves and making a clear effort not to disturb those around them. 

“Gosh, I didn’t expect you to be such a prude, Joseph,” You lightly teased him, gently pressing the front of your kitten heel into his ankle.

Joseph couldn’t fight the warm, fleeting feeling that stirred inside of him. But you were clearly drunk, and anything you said or did while you were intoxicated was indisputably inappropriate– and maybe even illegal had Joseph decided to take advantage of it. But Joseph wasn’t that kind of man. Never was, never will be. You were his best friend and a damn good detective. He couldn’t let some one-time fling get in the way of that. Especially not while you were drunk.

You immediately took note of his tense expression, taking that as your cue to stop. You retracted your leg and leaned back against the cushioned bench you sat on.

“Is everything alright over here?” A voice cut through the tension between the both of you.

Neither of you had even noticed the man approaching the table. Your head snapped over to the sound of the voice, and you very quickly realized it was just the waiter.

“Yes, yes we’re alright. Thank you,” Joseph quickly dismissed him, quickly putting on a relaxed facade.

The waiter took another glance at you, then back at him, as if he didn’t buy it at first. But gave you both a nod and left, seemingly giving you both the benefit of the doubt as he left the both of you to your own.

The moment he left, Joseph didn’t care to hide the frustrated expression that laced his features. You heard him sigh as he agitatedly took another bite of his food. You noticed he intentionally avoided your gaze, opting for staring down at the table rather than at you.

“Joseph? Are.. you okay?” You worriedly asked, your mind moving at a million miles an hour trying to figure out what you could’ve done to upset him.

“God, (First Name), just don’t– just don’t make jokes like that!” Joseph exasperatedly sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

You froze. Your intention was never to upset him. You never would have had the courage to blatantly flirt with him had you been sober, and clearly letting yourself beyond the point of just tipsy was a huge mistake.

“I’m.. I’m sorry, Joseph. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, or anything, I don’t– I don’t know, maybe I’m just drunk. I won’t do it again,” you apologized, shifting in your seat.

“It’s not that! It’s just– it’s just not funny. You just don’t say that kind of stuff to a guy when you don’t mean it,” Joseph grumbled as he rubbed his temple.

“I mean– it’s almost insulting! You’re my best friend and an excellent detective. And I don’t appreciate it when you patronize me like this.” He paused for a moment, a soft grumble escaping his pursed lips.

“But at the same time, I know you’d never say things like this if you were sober. It’s just confusing, and I don’t know how to feel.” Joseph’s feelings seemed to unravel in that moment, coming out in the form of word vomit.

You leaned closer to him, your interest piquing.

“You really think I’m not serious about you?” You inquired, your voice lowered as you gazed up at him, unconsciously batting your eyes.

Joseph scoffed, looking off to the side.

“God, don’t look at me like that. You’ve been giving me that look since we got here. You just– you really know how to push my buttons,” Joseph grumbled into his fist, the nails of his other hand digging into his thigh.

You pushed the toe cap of your shoe into the front of Joseph’s. You watched him take a deep breath in at the contact, his brows furrowing.

“Why must you toy with me like this?” Joseph whined.

You leaned in closer, your head tilted to the side as you closely examined Joseph’s features. That look in his eye, those pursed lips and those furrowed brows of purely sexual frustration. It was almost funny.

“Joseph..” you whispered, trying to finally get him to look you in the eye.

He gritted his teeth as he finally relented, his head finally turning back to face you. It took every ounce of self control in him not to just lean in and kiss you right then and there. He had never been so thankful for the sheer presence of a table before– his pants embarrassingly tight given what little it took to get him to that point.

You were just so captivating, too captivating at that. He tried so hard not to think of you as anything more than a coworker– or even a friend. But his efforts were to no avail. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t help but admire you. The way you’d laugh, or even the way you’d make him laugh, your exceptional deductive abilities, that spark in your eye whenever you came across a challenging case, the way you’d bite the tip of your pen whenever you were just plain stumped, the way you always knew the right thing to say to him as if his thoughts were written across his forehead. 

‘How could he not fall for you?’ Was a question he always seemed to ask himself, but could never find the answer to, no matter how hard he scrounged every facet and corner of his brain. 

Joseph pulled his eyes upwards from the table to finally meet your penetrating gaze. 

“(First Name)..” Joseph whispered back to you, his eyes momentarily traveling to your lips.

“Are you ready for the bill?”

The familiar voice from earlier broke through the thick atmosphere as you both immediately pulled away from each other. Startled, you quickly reached down into your purse in search of your wallet.

“Uh– yeah, yes, we are,” you stammered, rummaging through the various items scattered about your bag.

“Were the both of you planning on splitting the bill?” The waiter asked as he took Joseph’s card.

“No, I’ll be covering for the both of us,” Joseph quickly replied before you had the chance to interject.

The waiter already took his leave and was walking away by the time you finally found your wallet.

“I could’ve paid my share, Joseph,” you murmured, closing your purse.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s only proper,” sighed Joseph as he got up from his seat.

You stumbled a bit as you tried to stand up, your head still fuzzy. Joseph, being the gentleman that he is, quickly rushed to your side to help you steady yourself.

“Oh, (First Name),” Joseph sighed, “I’ll drive you home, alright? Come on, let’s go.”

Joseph grabbed your purse for you as he carefully walked you out of the restaurant, the scent of his cologne only making your knees go even weaker. The feeling of his arms wrapped around you as he took great care not to let you trip only made you fall for him even harder. 

Opening the car door and guiding you into the passenger seat, the nearby streetlight just barely illuminated the inside of the car. He quickly grabbed the seatbelt and buckled it in for you, and gently placed your purse by your feet.

“Thanks,” you meekly thanked him, your face heating up at the kind gesture.

Joseph nodded in response, shutting the car door as he made his way to the driver’s seat.

The interior was neatly kept and clean, organized. It smelled of a mixture between Joseph’s cologne and his scented car freshener. His signature leather gloves that he always wore into work were neatly splayed atop his dashboard.

Joseph quickly entered the driver’s seat, letting out a sigh as he moved his gloves from his dash to the glove compartment. Adjusting himself, his pants somehow just as tight as before, he hoped to God that by some miracle you wouldn't be able to see the obvious bulge in his pants. He quickly put his key into the ignition as he began to back out, the lights from the restaurant slowly beginning to fade into the background of your peripherals. 

While Joseph’s attention was on the road, you took your chance to admire him. He had a noticeably nice side profile, a nicely shaped nose along with a defined jawline, and the way his fingers were curled around the steering wheel. You couldn’t help but allow your eyes to travel south, to which you were met by the protruding tent in his pants.

Your eyes widened slightly. 

He was enjoying this just as much as I was, if not more, you thought to yourself as you returned your gaze back up to his face. His facial expression was surprisingly stoic despite his physical situation.

Either you were feeling surprisingly bold today, or the alcohol really did seep into your brain. You hadn’t even given it a second thought before your hand found its way to Joseph’s thigh. You immediately felt him tense up at the contact as he sharply inhaled through his nose.

“(First Name),” his voice trembled, “I’m driving.”

“And?” You murmured as your hand snaked its way into his inner thigh.

You just barely heard Joseph swear under his breath as he bit the inside of his cheek. It took every ounce of self control in him to resist the urge to stop the car and take you right then and there.

His grip around the steering wheel reached unnerving levels as he felt your hand inch closer to his crotch. Part of him wanted nothing but to give into his unearthly urges and find an empty parking lot, but the other part of him greatly valued his dignity.

“Dammit, (First Name). Just– please let me drive and we can–” he sharply inhaled at the feeling of your hand cupping his clothed erection. “Fuck..!”

He harshly pressed down on the gas pedal, causing you to lurch backwards at the sudden increase in speed. Your head shot up to look at him, his gaze never once leaving the road.

“God, (First Name),” he paused as he squirmed under your touch, “the things you do to me..” 

“Joseph– slow down a bit,” you murmured, debating whether or not to remove your hand.

“Maybe you should have thought about that before you decided to– to tempt me. More than you already have tonight.”

You heard the tires let out a loud screech as he sharply made a right turn, a passing by streetlight just barely illuminating his pale features. You took a moment to look up at him before the moment was harshly interrupted by Joseph slamming on the brakes, the both of you staggering forward as he hastily put the car into park.

You hadn’t even noticed that he parked in front of your apartment building until he quickly undid both yours and his seatbelts, quickly taking your side to help you out of the car.

You slung your purse over your shoulder as Joseph gently took your hand to pull you out of the car. Joseph took extra care to make sure you didn’t trip by making sure your arms were locked together tightly.

Fumbling with your keys for a moment, you finally got the door open. Finally going inside and kicking off your heels, which made walking there a million times harder, you waited for Joseph to follow you inside.

Turning back towards the door frame, Joseph stood idly outside.

“...Joseph? Aren’t you coming in?” You asked, holding the door open for him.

He cleared his throat, “It’s.. probably best that I don’t. Have a good rest of your night, (First Name),” he waved you off as he turned to take his leave.

“Wait..!” You quickly hurried over to grab his arm.

He stood stiffly in place, unsure of what to do.

“We were having such a good time before I– before I started making those flirty remarks. I didn’t mean to upset you, really! Let me make it up to you!” You insisted, holding his elbow with both of your hands.

He sighed, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. He seemed to think for a moment, before he finally turned back around to face you.

“I’m not.. upset, so to speak. It’s just– look, (First Name!) You’re drunk! And the type of advances you’ve been making towards me– I just– you have no idea how hard it is to control myself when it comes to you.” “Joseph, I’m only tipsy. I’d be way more incoherent if I were any more intoxicated.” You chuckled.

“I’ve known how I’ve felt about you for a long time. Probably since we’ve been working together,” you sandwiched one of his hands in between yours, “I like you, Joseph. I really, really like you– maybe even love. So please, will you stay the night with me? I can make us some tea, put on a movie, if that’s what you’re comfortable with.”

His shoulders seemed to relax. Perhaps he had overreacted. He contemplated what to say, or even what to think for a moment.

He laid his other hand against yours, “do you.. really mean that?”

“I do,” you replied, giving his hand a squeeze. “So, come on. Spend the night over.” You gently pleaded.

Joseph let out a soft sigh, laying one of his hands on your cheek. 

“Well, how can I say no to that?” He softly smiled, “I love you too, (First Name).”

His thumb caressed your cheek as you both held each other’s captivating gazes. Something in him compelled him to slowly lean towards you, his eyes traveling down to your lips. He gulped as he watched you subconsciously lick your lips as he gradually grew closer. You could feel your body shiver under his touch, and you weren’t sure if it were the cold nighttime weather, or if the alcohol was finally beginning to subside.

Closing your eyes as he inched closer, you felt his lips finally press against yours. They were soft, warm. Inviting. The kiss you shared felt like a personification of home. A home you never knew you needed until your paths finally crossed.

You could practically hear your heart beating with how rapidly it was pounding against the confines of your ribcage. His hand slid down your cheek and rested against your neck, his thumb running over your jawline.

You both pulled away for air, your eyes never leaving one another’s as he quickly pulled you in for another kiss. You felt your body grow warm as you snaked your arms around his shoulders. Both of his hands gently rested on the sides of your hips as he smoothly pulled you in closer, his warmth completely enveloping you.

You softly tapped his bottom lip with your tongue, requesting an entrance to which he happily obliged. Your tongue made its way over to his, just lightly grazing over it before he sharply pulled away.

Your heart stopped for a second. 

Joseph awkwardly cleared his throat, “I…uh,” he paused as he sheepishly licked his lips, “I’ve never.. kissed anyone. Especially not like that. So.. I don’t know if I’ll be any good at it..?” He mumbled, a slight hint of pink dusting his cheeks.

“That’s alright,” you quickly reassured, closing the distance between the both of you. “We can practice together.”

He gulped, his eyes widening in anticipation as he swiftly enveloped your lips in another tender embrace.

His lips were already slightly parted, allowing for your tongue to just barely make its way into his mouth. He was very awkward, but you didn’t mind.

“Just relax, baby,” you softly whispered against his mouth. 

You weren’t sure where the pet name came from, but you certainly weren’t complaining given the effect it had on Joseph. You felt him sharply inhale against your lips, like you flipped a switch. He instantly grew more assertive, and he naturally began to figure out how to properly kiss you in the manner you suggested. Emotions seemed to pour out of you, as if with each passing moment he was exploring each and every one of the thoughts or feelings you had for him. Each frivolous secret being carefully unlocked.

A soft moan escaped your lips as the entirety of your being seemed to melt into his touch. He softly bit your bottom lip as he slowly pulled away from the delicate exchange. His lips found their way to your cheek as he slowly trailed kisses down from the corner of your mouth down to your shoulder. Each kiss felt like gentle fireworks with the electric sensation that they set off inside of you. 

You couldn’t help but let out another soft groan as you tugged on the back of Joseph’s hair in pleasure. You could feel him press his aching erection against your waist from the confines of his slacks. He whimpered against your skin, taking extreme care not to be too rough with you.

“(First Name),” Joseph groaned as he looked back up at you with pleading eyes.

You gently pointed his chin back towards you with your thumb, harshly pushing your lips back against his as you directed the both of you backwards into your apartment. You sloppily shut the door behind you. Joseph immediately pushed you up against the back of the door, his lips immediately planting kisses on your neck as you felt him softly grind against you.

“My God, you have no idea how difficult you are to say no to, do you?” He whined as he used one hand to adjust himself in his slacks.

He’d been on edge since the beginning of that evening. It was like you were dangling yourself in front of him despite him thinking he would never be able to have you– to be with you– to have the chance to give you the entire world which you so deserved. 

Your good nature was etched into the very fibers of your being and it was the primary reason as to why he was so completely, utterly enamored by you. And seeing you in that dress, it was like seeing a goddess in the flesh. 

“You’d better get used to it,” you replied, tugging on his tie and dragging his head down to yours.

You really did always know how to push his buttons.

“Don’t count on it.”

He positioned his knee in between your thighs, lightly applying pressure as he gently rested his forehead against yours. Capturing each other in the tenderness of your gazes, his leg just barely created any friction against your heat, making you writhe. You groaned through your teeth, grinding against his thigh as your nails dug into the surface of his white button up shirt.

“J-Joseph..” you sputtered out, “let’s go to my bed.”

Joseph nodded, backing up as you grabbed his hand. The second you both got into your bedroom, he quickly shut the door behind him and drew you in for another kiss. Quickly hitting the light switch, his arms snaked their way back around your waist as he gently guided you backwards onto the bed. 

He knelt on top of you, his chest rapidly rising and falling with each breath. He gulped, his eyes slightly widened as he looked down at you. He licked the inside of his cheek as he positioned his knee back in between your thighs, applying just the slightest bit of pressure. He knew just what to do to make you squirm and crave for more.

“It’s hard to believe that this– that this is your first time,” you groaned as your back arched into his thigh.

“I’ve.. done some research,” he meekly admitted, breaking eye contact for only a moment.

 A smug smile graced your features, “that is so like you.”

Yanking on his tie, his lips slammed back into yours as your legs wrapped themselves around his torso. One his hands slowly made its way up your thigh, the skirt part of your dress riding up as his fingers lightly grazed your skin. His fingers rested on your hip while his thumb felt for your underwear, gently pulling them down. You winced under his gentle touch, wanting badly to feel him explore your body further.

A soft whimper escaped from your throat as his fingers slowly drew themselves closer to your writhing heat. You could feel how wet you were already. You don’t know how long you’d been craving for this– craving for him. Every aspect of his personality and even his physical appearance was like a breath of fresh air. You felt like you could just kiss him forever, melting into him and absorbing his warmth.

His fingers inched their way underneath your panties. The feeling of his fingers immediately being covered in your slick made him groan, his pants growing even tighter. If that was even possible.

His index finger traced along the outer area of your entrance before carefully sliding it inside of you. Your warm inner walls hugged his finger, sparking his curiosity as to how you’d feel wrapped around his cock.

You couldn’t help but moan as he curled his fingers inside of you, your back arching into his hand as he pumped his fingers in and out of you. The sinful noises escaping from your lips made his head spin, his lips slightly parted as he drank in your erotic expression.

He could feel your walls slowly begin to tighten around his fingers. In response, he quickly pulled his fingers out just before you finished, undoubtedly irritating you, and making you want more.

“Fuck, Joseph..!” You grunted, your nails digging into his back.

You allowed one of your hands to travel south, giving his clothed erection a nice squeeze as you quickly tried to undo his belt. Pulling it out through his belt buckles and tossing it onto the floor beside you, it landed with a loud “clunk!” as you immediately went for his zipper. 

Seeing you so worked up and aroused only made Joseph want you more. He immediately unzipped your dress, looking up at you as if asking if it were okay. You nodded in response, pulling the dress off of yourself.

Joseph had to take a moment to stop and admire you for a moment, his eyes traveling up and down your body. You looked so heavenly in just your bra and underwear. And.. was that a matching set? You had been waiting for this, maybe even expecting it.

The way he stared at you, it was like he didn’t know what to do with his hands. Like there was too much of you he wanted to feel at once and he wasn’t sure where to start.

Joseph took it upon himself to undo his pants himself, his erection creating a large bulge in his boxers. The feeling of his aching arousal being released from the confines of his pants sent a wave of relief over him. Pulling his boxers down, his erection pointed upwards proudly in a curve.

You couldn’t take it anymore. Your legs wrapped back around his torso as the base of his erection rubbed against your heat. The base of his cock got coated in your wetness, making his eyes roll back as he felt you tug on his hair. 

“N..need you so badly, Joseph,” you stammered, your lips slightly parted.

He whimpered, “I love you, (First Name).”

He lined himself up with your entrance, doing his best to be gentle at first. The last thing he wanted was to hurt you, and he wanted you to enjoy this just as much as he was.

At first, his size sent a wave of pain throughout your lower area as you clawed into the back of his shirt, tears pricking at the corners of your eyes. He made sure to go slowly, gently pumping in and out of you to give you time to adjust. The pain blurred into pleasure as you begged him to go faster.

“You’re so, so beautiful,” Joseph said in between moans.

The noises of his hips slamming into yours combined with each other’s stifled moans was sinful and you prayed your neighbors couldn’t hear you, but that was the least of your concerns right now.

Joseph whimpered, his hands clenched into fists around your bed sheets, “I-I’m gonna– I’m gonna cum..!” 

You could hardly form words as his erection slammed into you as you felt the knot within the pits of your stomach about to finally come undone, and he pulled out just as you finished. As your wetness pooled under you, Joseph came onto your torso. The white liquid coated your breasts as well as a bit of your stomach.

He allowed his body weight to fall beside you, both of you trying to catch your breath as you laid beside one another.

“I love you, Joseph.”

“I love you, beautiful.”

Joseph got up to your bathroom, finding some paper towels as he cleaned you up and gently tucked you in. He climbed in after you shortly after, borrowing your biggest shirt and pajama pants to change into.

Falling asleep in his arms was far better than you could have ever imagined.

[ap41cu5]

Hello

I love your fanfic soooo much I started to waist my time at work reading it and I’m obsessed, wanna ask if there’s a chapter 5 for ( The Rookie Detective ) or not ?

Thank you so much

hi thank you so much for your question!! 🌸🌸🌸

i havent updated the rookie detective in awhile now since i havent had any new ideas for chapter 5, but im super glad to hear that you're enjoying it!

since im working on a different fanfic thats been requested of me, i am going to try to finish that one first but i will definitely brainstorm ideas for the rookie detective :3

since my chapters tend to have really high word counts (typically ranging from 4k - 5k) it will take me awhile to upload the next chapter, but i will definitely get to updating it! please expect the next chapter to be posted within the next week or so <33

[ap41cu5]

OMGGGGGGG I LOVE THIS SM IM SOBBING

‧₊˚ im sooo normal about this game‼️

▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○ ▪︎ ○

haven't posted anything recently cause i've been exclusively using my free time to play tew1 for like a month now. this is a cry for help i just CANT STOP. i love it so much. gnawing at the bars of my enclosure rn

ngl i hate that first drawing cause it did NOT turn out how i wanted and i abandoned it like 39894 times but oh well + some kinda old joseph stuff i never properly posted. can u guess who my fav character is😁😁

anyways. this one goes out to the other like 5 people who still care about this game in the year 2024 lmao

‼️ remember u can check my Instagram / Twitter if u wanna see more of my stuff & interact with me (´ ∀ ` *) i'm way more active over there!!

[ap41cu5]

original post was done by @finniestoncrane but i was tagged by @ilovetheriddler! thanks so much for tagging this was a fun little activity to do since ive been a bit bored lately :3

Put your music playlist on shuffle and put the first five songs in a poll, and let people vote on which one they like most!

i swear my music taste isnt this basic spotify just hates me rn LOLL

[ap41cu5]

can you do joseph x reader when the reader have a nightmare when reader wake up from the nightmare but she doesn't wake joseph up because she doesn't to bother him but he can't sleeping without her and he comfort her

Plagued Dreams

Joseph Oda x F! Reader Rating: Fluff Genre: One-Shot Fluff Word Count: 1173 Short Synopsis: The reader wakes up from a nightmare that used to persist often in the past. The incident causing the nightmare had troubled her for months and she had seemingly recovered from it. But the nightmare returned, and the reader, who didn't want to wake up her fiance (Joseph Oda), begins to have a meltdown in the living room. Joseph hears her cries and immediately goes to comfort her. A/N: im gonna be honest this is not my best work and i am so sorry that i posted this so late but i do hope that you enjoy this nonetheless! i havent had much time to write as usual, and i apologize if this fic isnt as long as you were hoping

“Holy shit, oh my God..” you whispered to yourself, your head aching as you rubbed your temples.

You had just woken up in a cold sweat, gasping for air as the sheets clung uncomfortably to your body.

What the hell?

You couldn’t wrap your head around it. You had gotten over it years ago, so why did it come back now? You hadn’t even thought about the incident in months. Why was such a tragic memory coming back to haunt you?

It wasn’t your fault. It was never your fault, so why was it that you could never shake the feeling of guilt that washed over you whenever it was mentioned?

You looked over to Joseph, who was peacefully lying beside you, the sheets sloppily thrown on top of him and one of his arms carefully wrapped around your torso. His lips slightly parted and his head tilted, even lightly snoring. The clock on his nightstand read: 3:23AM.

You were always so grateful to be engaged to a man like him. He was smart, had a delightfully dry sense of humor, beyond compassionate, sweet, and such a gentleman. He always had a knack for reading you like a book– like all of your thoughts were written above your head for him to see. You balanced each other out wonderfully, rendering the both of you the perfect team.

You moved to gently shake him, but checked the clock one last time before your hand had the chance to make contact with the resting man. The small lettering beside the time read in all caps: TUE. That’s right. It was a Tuesday morning, meaning you both had work. It wouldn’t be fair to wake him up and have him miss out on sleep because of you. 

Carefully retracting your hand, your eyes still scanning his sleeping form, you gently took the covers off of you and got up out of bed. You gently lifted his arm off of you and placed it atop your pillow, hoping he wouldn’t notice the difference as you began to make your way towards the living room.

Carefully shutting the bedroom door behind you, you immediately headed for the kitchen to treat yourself to a cold glass of water. 

The cold liquid made your throat ache as you gulped it down. It was oddly refreshing, and seemed to clear your head during the brief moment. The night was silent, the only sound rushing through air being the occasional buzzing of cars passing through the intersection outside the kitchen window. 

Placing your glass in the kitchen sink, you made your way towards the couch. Maybe watching a bit of TV would help put me back to sleep, you thought. Plopping down on the couch and grabbing the remote, you flipped through a couple channels before finally settling for the news. Since it was three in the morning, you had a feeling nothing good would be on anyway.

You tried as hard as you could to focus on the news, but the incident refused to leave your fatigued, debilitated mind. Images seemed to flash through your head, no matter how badly you tried to think about anything else. Nothing seemed to work. It was suffocating. You hugged your knees as you felt your chest begin to tighten. The low sounds emitting from the TV seemed to fade into nothingness as everything around you seemed to crumble from beneath your fingertips. Your breathing became heavy as you tried your hardest to snap yourself out of it. Tears cascaded down your cheeks and the walls seemed to cave in around you. 

“(First Name)?” The sound of Joseph’s voice seemed to cut through the haze of your anxiety.

He quickly took your side, wrapping one of his arms around your back as his other hand moved to cup your cheek.

“Hey, it’s alright. I’ve got you,��� Joseph quietly muttered to you as he gently pulled you towards him.

The feeling of his arms around you immediately helped you to ground yourself again. His embrace was warm and his words were comforting. You turned, slowly wrapping your arms around him as you sobbed into his chest. 

Joseph stroked your hair, “It’s alright, you’re alright. I’m here,” he whispered into your ear. 

He laid backwards onto the couch, allowing for you to lay on him as you held him. His scent was awfully soothing, and his warmth only added onto it. His arms were carefully wrapped around your waist as he pulled you in. One arm placed around your hips, the other gently rubbing your back.

“It wasn’t your fault. It never was.”

At this point, you were squeezing him. Your head buried in his chest, your legs wrapped around each other’s, his head in your hair. 

It always took you a while to finally calm down whenever you’d experience any panic attacks or meltdowns related to the incident. But Joseph was always there for you, every step of the way. Willing to do whatever it took to help you calm down no matter how long it took. He never grew impatient, not once. 

He grabbed you a couple of tissues to blow your nose with while he wiped away your tears. 

“Why didn’t you wake me up, (First Name)?” Joseph asked, his thumb wiping away a tear as he caressed your cheek.

You sniffled, “I.. I didn’t want to bother you. You looked so peaceful while you were sleeping, and– and you’ve had to do this for me so many times already. And you have work in the morning–” “(First Name), I will always be here for you whenever you need me. I love you, (First Name). I’ve never been more sure about anyone else before. You are the most sweet, thoughtful person that I know. That’s the reason that I’m marrying you,” Joseph tilted your head towards him.

You chuckled, “you’re so sweet, Joseph. I love you so much, I really don’t deserve you.”

“You never give yourself enough credit, (First Name). I know better than anyone how amazing you are. I can say with full confidence that you deserve the whole world and more. I love you, (First Name),” Joseph murmured, cupping your cheek in one of his hands.

Taking one of your hands in his, he gently coaxed you back up onto your feet.

With one arm around your waist as he began helping you back towards the bedroom, he gave you a kiss on the cheek.

“Let’s head back to bed, my love. And after work, why don’t we visit that new cafe that just opened up? It’s been awhile since we’ve gone on a proper date, and I think you deserve the treat,” Joseph gave you a slight smile as he tucked you in.

Climbing into bed beside you, you immediately wrapped your arms around his waist to cuddle him. With your head on his chest, listening to his steady heartbeat, and one of his hands gently stroking your hair, you felt yourself almost immediately drift back off to sleep. 

[ap41cu5]

Hello! I hope that you're having a fantastic day! I was curious if you've started watching Gotham, and if so, then what are your thoughts so far?

hi thank you so much! I hope your day is going splendidly as well 🌸🌸

I just began watching gotham yesterday! ive just watched the first three episodes and im hooked 😼 i would watch another episode but its almost 4am at the time of me posting this LOLL

I quite like James Gordon's character and im also curious to find out more about Barbara and Montoya's relationship while they had been dating! while the riddler has only had just a few minutes of screen time so far, im also looking forward to seeing more of his character as well! he seems so silly 😼

[ap41cu5]

☆ Most of my fics are usually going to be female reader inserts. But unless requested otherwise, I will still be happy to provide! Gender neutral inserts likely will not be an issue. The only gender insert I cannot guarantee the quality of would be male reader inserts. However, I will try my best if it is requested of me! ☆ I tend to frequently shuffle through fandoms/characters that I like! But chances are, most of my fics/posts are going to be about Joseph Oda from The Evil Within. ☆ I have a lot of freetime now due to being on break. However, when I do begin to get busy again, I cannot guarantee that I will timely deliver requests. While I do try to get to every request I receive, I have a bit of a busy schedule and cannot guarantee I will get to them. I'm sorry :( ☆ NSFW/SFW is always specified in my work and will be highlighted in red.

☆ Below the cut are rules, characters, and all of my fics listed!

☆ Find me on AO3

My fics:

★ = personal favs!

Joseph Oda (The Evil Within)

SFW:

The Rookie Detective (Series likely to be discontinued)

Written on Paper (SFW Fluff One Shot) ★

Plagued Dreams (Short SFW Fluff One Shot)

NSFW:

Overdue Exchanges of Affection (NSFW One Shot)

Released Tension (NSFW One Shot) ★

Tantalization (NSFW One Shot) ★

Lars Pinfield (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire)

SFW:

NSFW:

Reverie or Reality (Slight NSFW - Suggestive)

Stifled (Slight NSFW - Suggestive)

Chris Hartley (Until Dawn)

SFW:

Caught Between the Lines (SFW Fluff One-Shot)

Characters I am willing to write for (but are not limited to and list is subject to change):

The Evil Within

Joseph Oda ★

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

Lars Pinfield ★

Until Dawn

Chris Hartley ★

Mob Psycho 100

Reigen Arataka ★

Resident Evil

Ada Wong ★

Arcane

Viktor ★

☆ Please be polite and as specific as you can with your requests!

☆ I will write:

Most cheesy romance tropes. Ex: friends to lovers, love at first sight, one bed (SFW or NSFW), etc.

Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Jealousy, Platonic Themes

Smut, suggestive themes, violence, death

☆ I will NOT write:

Incest, CNC

Extra Info:

If gender is not specified in a request, I will more than likely assume that it is for a female reader insert. Please make sure to specify so I do not make any mistakes!