astra90x

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 23 - POV Outsider

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 890

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

With winter slowly fading into spring, the young adult quartet of Pelican Town has started spending more time outside. Instead of crowding into Sebastian’s basement or making a ruckus in the side room of the saloon, now they can be found outside by the river, or down on the pier. 

Today, the group is in the cindersap forest, as the trees provide a large amount of shade for the ever-warming sun. While Sebastian and (Y/N) are below one of the trees, leaning against the trunk, Abigail and Sam are a little further off, lying on the bank next to the pier in the forest lake. 

Abigail is on her back, pointing out clouds to Sam that could be interpreted as random shapes. He sits next to her, his guitar propped against his knees, plucking at the strings absentmindedly while he listens

It’s when Abigail spots a heart-shaped cloud that she sits up, shifting closer to Sam and nudging him with her shoulder. 

“Love is in the air,” she quips, pointing up at the cloud while unable to suppress the grin from finding humour in her own joke. Sam’s eyes trail up to the sky, and when he spots the cloud, his mouth quirks up into a smile. 

“Symbolic,” he says. When Abby gives him a confused look, he tilts his head backwards in the direction of Sebastian and (Y/N), leaning against a large oak tree. (Y/N) seems to be mock-offended at something Sebastian said, so she shoves him on the shoulder playfully, cackling with laughter when Sebastian shoves her back. 

“I should have guessed.” Abigail chuckles a little as she continues to watch the pair, who seem completely ignorant to anything outside of each other. “You sense the same thing I do, right?”

Sam deadpans a look at Abigail, causing her to giggle. “How could I not? Do you realize how much they flirt? The only ones who don’t know about their feelings for each other are themselves!” Right on cue, (Y/N) says something inaudible, and a dusting of a blush appears on Sebastian’s face, which he tries to hide behind a laugh. 

“How long do you think it’ll take them to figure it out?” asks Abigail, rolling over so she’s lying on her stomach, kicking her feet into the air behind her. “My bet’s on never.”

Sam shakes his head. “They,re stupid, but they’re not that stupid,” he says. He thinks for a moment, then adds, “...actually, maybe they are. But perhaps we can… give them a little nudge?” 

Abigail’s eyes flash and her mouth stretches into a grin. “What did you have in mind?”

Before Sam can say anything else, (Y/N) and Sebastian stand up from their spots under the tree and walk over to the dock stretching out over the lake. The two of them sit at the end with their legs dangling out over the water.

Sam and Abigail look at each other. No words exchanged. They both know what to do. 

Nonchalantly, Sam stands, stretches, then starts to make his way over to the dock, whistling to himself as he goes. He’s halfway down and neither Sebastian nor (Y/N) have noticed him yet. 

It only takes a few more seconds before he reaches them, and he kneels down behind them, a little too close to (Y/N) for it to be natural. With a small, “Hey guys, what’cha doing?” he leans over hard, his shoulder makes contact with (Y/N), and she tumbles into the water. 

Sebastian screams “Sam, you dumbass!” right as Sam starts stammering apologies, but with a quick look back at Abigail, the slightest smile is present on his face. Sebastian looks down at the water, where (Y/N) has yet to resurface, and without even hesitating, he strips off his hoodie, then his shirt, and dives in after her. 

They’re both under the surface for ten, maybe fifteen seconds, before the water stirs and the two of them burst through it, gasping for air. (Y/N) starts to stammer, “M-My leg got caught on something at the bottom…” but Sebastian shushes her and together they make their way to shore. 

Sam starts to apologize again once they make it to dry land, but (Y/N) quickly dismisses it, saying, “It was an accident, don’t worry!” Sebastian seems a little more reluctant to let it go, but seeing (Y/N) so unbothered seems to calm him a little bit. They use Sebastian’s shirt to pat off their wet skin, then drape it over a tree limb to dry in the sun. His hoodie he gives to (Y/N), and together, they return to the base of the tree they had been sitting next to before. Sebastian shirtless, (Y/N) wearing his hoodie, and both of them sitting much closer than they had been before. 

Sam returns to Abigail, who discreetly gives a fistbump as they observe their friends. They’re so close together that their shoulders are touching, and they keep fussing over each other, making sure that the other is alright. There’s definitely some bonding happening. 

Sam and Abigail just go back to conversing about what happened. It may have not been the best method they could have picked, but their plan clearly worked. Now to keep it up until their friends finally realize their feelings for themselves…

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Hello!! Normally I'm too anxious to interact with anyone but I wanted to say how much I loved reading through your flufftober fics. I binged all of them in one day (didn't hit like on all of them at the time because I was worried I'd spam you) and they're all so good!! The way you portray Sebastian and the progression of their relationship is phenomenal, reading them honestly made my day!!

I hope you're having a great day, your writing is absolutely amazing and even helped calm my anxiety after a long day. Remember to take care of yourself and not get burned out!! 🌺

I am so, so incredibly touched by things like this. I’m very glad you liked the story, because I sure as hell loved writing it, especially knowing that there are people like you who appreciate it. Thank you so, so much. ❤️

I apologize that it’s been months and I haven’t finished the prompts. The writing caught up with me quickly and I soon found myself overwhelmed by it. I’ve been trying, though, but between work and writers block it’s been a rough process. I promise I’ll have something new out eventually though. <3

Thank you again, you have a great day too!

[astra90x]

I'm gonna sit here like I totally didn't binge read all ur works in the span of a day, totaaaallly 😁

I’m not going to lie, I got a notification every time you liked one of my posts and it put a smile on my face every time ☺️

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 22 - “Have you heard?”

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1138

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

The rest of winter passes by in an absolute flash, and before you know it, it’s the week leading up to the feast of the winter star. It’s a huge celebration for the entire town, and on top of that, every single person gets to anonymously get a gift for another member of the town. The person you’re making your gift for is sent to you through the mail by Lewis, and this year, you have Penny. 

Though you’ve been in town for almost a year, you haven’t had all that much interaction with Penny. You’ve run into her a few times when she was teaching Vincent and Jas, but she never really had time to chat, and the only other time you’ve ever talked is when she was reading by a tree outside Sam’s place and you asked her about her book. You do have a baseline idea of what she likes—literature, teaching, family—but you’d like to learn a bit more about her so that you can get her something you know she’ll really like. 

You’re not sure about how you’ll learn more about Penny without asking her directly and giving away your secret, but then you remember that Sam is decently close with her. Though you probably shouldn’t tell anybody else who you’re getting a gift for, you figure you can break the rules a little bit to get Penny something she’ll love instead of having to just guess. 

Once you’re finished with your morning duties, you pull on some nicer clothes to get out of your muddy work overalls and head into town, arriving at Sam’s house a few minutes later. Jodi lets you in when you knock, letting you know that Sam is in his room. You knock on his door next, and he answers with a look of both surprise and happiness. 

“(Y/N)!” he exclaims, stepping aside to allow you entry into the room. “Nice of you to visit, what’s up?” 

You step past Sam and into his bedroom, where you sit on the stool next to his keyboard and watch as he flops down onto his bed. “I actually came by because I need your help.”

“Yeah, no problem! What can I do for ya?” 

It’s hard to deny that Sam’s eagerness is really cute, and it’s really nice of him to want to help you out with absolutely no hesitation. Feeling better about requesting this of Sam, you start to explain your predicament. He furrows his brow in thought. 

“Well, she’s mentioned to me before that she loves this one quote by, um, I think it was Paulo Coelho? ‘It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.’ Maybe you can do something with that?” 

You think for a moment, and then you remember that back home, tucked away in an old jewelry box that you never open, you have a heart-shaped locket that would be just the size to fit that quote. That seems like something Penny would like. 

“Thank you, Sam, that’s actually perfect,” you say. He grins. 

“Awesome, I’m happy I could help!” His grin quickly fades though, and he purses his lips slightly before adding, “I’ve been having so much trouble with mine. I got Pierre, I have no idea what I would get him aside from money.”

“I’m afraid I don’t know enough about Pierre to help you out,” you admit. “Maybe a nice bottle of wine? Something like that always goes appreciated.” 

Sam nods. “That’s a good idea, actually. I just wish I was as lucky as Sebastian, it’s easy to make a gift for a close friend.” 

“Oh, he must have Abigail, right?” 

“No, Mom has Abigail.” Sam pauses for a moment, but then his face jerks into one of pure “oh shit,” and it’s only because of his reaction that you put two and two together. Sebastian only really has three close friends, and if he doesn’t have Abby or Sam, then…

“Does that mean Sebastian has… me?” you ask. You don’t figure Sam will answer honestly, because it’s supposed to be a “surprise” and all, but the way that Sam’s body seizes up for a moment gives you the only answer you need. “How did you find out?” 

Sam opens his mouth to say something, and it looks like he’s going to try and deny your claim, but after a moment, he just sighs and says, “He told me. Figured it was alright since we didn’t have each other.” 

You can’t help but smile. Though the secret has been spoiled for you, the idea that Sebastian will be the one giving a gift to you makes you feel really amazing, for some reason. Screw the secret. 

“Do you know what he’s getting me?” you know you shouldn’t try and spoil the secret even further, but curiosity won’t allow you to let it go. Unfortunately though, Sam shakes his head. 

“All I know is that he’s been busting his ass to make whatever it is he’s making for you,” Sam says. “Ever since our people got revealed, he’s been shutting himself away in his room more than usual, and the only times he’ll reply to my texts are to tell me that he’s too busy working on your gift to hang out.” 

Though you were smiling before, now the only thing you’re experiencing is shock. Sebastian is really putting that much effort into you? It’s really touching that he would care enough to want to make you something big, but it still feels like too much. 

“Um, wow…” is all you can manage to say. “I didn’t know he cared that much.” 

Sam laughs. “Have you heard the way he talks about you? Of course he cares, he adores you! You’re one of his best friends!” 

Best friends, you think, and though the words bring a warmth into your heart, there’s something hollow there as well that you can’t quite place. You don’t dwell on it, though, because Sam keeps talking. 

“I know he’s not the affectionate type or whatever, but I’ve known the guy long enough to know how he feels about people, and you’re special to him.” Sam puts an arm around your shoulder, squeezing it affectionately. “Trust me on that one.” 

Your mind wanders back to all the moments that you and Sebastian have shared over the past seven or eight months. Him helping you take your revenge on Pierre, watching a meteor shower together, bringing you soup when you were sick, locking yourselves in your barn, bringing him hot chocolate on a cold winter’s day, and then to just a few weeks ago, when he kissed you on the cheek to give you good luck for the ice fishing competition. 

Maybe you can see why Sebastian thinks you’re special, because when you relive every important moment the two of you have shared, you realize just how special he is to you, too. 

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Hey, I just wanted to let you know that I mostly lurk on this site, but I adore all of your Sebastian Flufftober posts! You really capture him well, and they always feel so natural! It's hard for me to find fics that I really like with him, but so far your stuff has definitely been my favorite!

Keep up the great work! I can't wait to read more!

This is so sweet, thank you so much! I've been having a really lazy evening and I've been putting off writing even though I really should be writing, but this comment motivated me to actually get some work done. The support from all of you keeps me going. <3

[astra90x]

You should definitely post all the chapters of the Flufftober story into one big fic once you're done! It'd be so nice to be able to read it all in one go over and over again lol

I've actually been posting it on Wattpad (though I'm a little behind on the days, it keeps slipping my mind), so when I'm finished, I'll release a link to the story and anyone who wants a full version can read it there. :)

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 21 - Kiss for Good Luck

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 952

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

The time has come again for another of Pelican Town’s yearly events, and this time, it’s the Festival of Ice. The festival has a few different events, but the event you’re looking forward to is the ice fishing competition. Over the past year you’ve gotten increasingly good at fishing, especially in the Winter when you haven’t been able to farm to pass your time. Even though Willy will be participating as well, you’re fairly confident that you’ve got it in the bag. 

The festival starts at 9:00, but you still have to finish your chores before going, so you don’t get there until almost 11:00 when the place is already bustling with energy. You spot your little friend group standing over by the ice sculptures, so that’s where you head first. 

“(Y/N), you’re here!” Abigail says when you join in with the trio. “You’re participating in the ice fishing competition, right?”

“Absolutely I am,” you respond. “Looking forward to kicking some ass!”

Sam laughs. “Well, we’ll be rooting for you! I’ve seen you fishing outside my place sometimes, and you seem really good! This should be a breeze!” 

“Yeah, you’ll dominate,” agrees Sebastian. “Are you all ready to go?” 

You gesture to the fishing rod poking out of your backpack, and in addition to that, tucked away at the bottom of your bag is a styrofoam container filled with all the best bait you’ve been able to gather over the past week. You’re determined to win this year. It’s so close to one year since you moved here, and proving that you’ve made progress by coming first would be a great way to finish off the year. 

You make small talk with the group for the next twenty minutes until you hear Mayor Lewis announce that everyone competing in the ice fishing competition should make their way to the middle of the festival, where a small lake has frozen over and the contest will be held. You, Willy, Pam, and Elliott, the four contestants, all gather in front of Lewis, where he explains the rules of the contest and lets you know that you’ll have two minutes to get ready before you start. 

Heading to your designated hole in the ice, you start to get your stuff together, anxiously awaiting for the competition to start. Once it does, you’ll have a measly ten minutes to catch as many fish as possible. It shouldn’t be too difficult, as the lake has been pre-filled with an abundance of fish, but the narrow time restraints still make you nervous. 

A throat is cleared behind you, followed by a simple, “Hey.” You recognize the voice, but are still pleasantly surprised to turn around and see Sebastian standing there. 

“What are you doing over here?” you ask. You had been in the middle of trying to fit a worm onto your hook, but you toss it back into your little worm container so you can talk to Sebastian without being distracted. 

“Just wanted to see if you’re all prepped,” he replies, though he hesitated a moment before responding. Not only that, but his cheeks are flushed pink, and he keeps fidgeting with the sleeve of his hoodie. 

“Getting there.” You squint slightly at Sebastian, who only looks more nervous, and he freezes when Mayor Lewis announces, “Thirty seconds!”

Sebastian takes a deep breath. “Just… good luck, okay?” He turns to leave, but then, in a flash, he leans towards you and plants a kiss on your cheek before he rushes off. 

You can feel your face start to burn like it’s close to a flame. Even though there’s less than twenty seconds left and you need to get ready, your mind is blank and you can’t seem to force yourself to move. Ten seconds now, and the only thing you manage to do is stop your fingers from quivering just long enough to pierce a worm onto your hook. Showtime. 

~~~

You come dead last. 

It’s not because of a lack of skill, or because you were unprepared. No, it’s because of that damn kiss. Your mind was wandering so much that you barely even noticed when a fish would bite at your line, and when you did notice, your hands fumbled so much that you couldn’t reel it in before it slipped away. By the end, you only managed to catch one fish. 

You hang your head in shame as you walk back to your friends after the competition. After boasting so much about your ability to win, it’s a little humiliating to have lost by such a margin. However, like the amazing friends they are, instead of dwelling on the loss they sweep you away to enjoy the rest of the festival together, distracting you from your failure. 

When you get home at around 10:00, you drag yourself inside, slip your backpack off your shoulders, and then collapse into bed. Today has been exhausting, mentally and physically. You’re more than ready to just fall asleep and let it be over. 

However, before you can get up and start to get ready for bed, your phone buzzes, so you blindly reach back and slip it out of your pocket, clicking it on to see who’s texting you so late. Your phone shines with the name “Seb 🐸.”

You swipe open the phone and read the message, which says, I’m sorry for the kiss earlier. Didn’t realize it would give you the opposite of good luck. 

Smiling, you type back, It’s alright, there’s always next year to show off my fishing talent. :)

Sebastian’s next response takes a while longer, but eventually, a message pops up. Was the kiss, like, okay? Was it weird?

It wasn’t weird, I liked it. 

You hit send with a shallow breath, hoping that admitting your favour for the kiss isn’t weird in itself. It takes another few minutes for Sebastian to respond, but when he does, it makes your heart flutter.

Good, because I liked it too. <3

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 20 - Bedtime Stories

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 862

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

Usually, with how much work you do in a day, falling asleep is more than easy. You work your body to its limits to keep your farm going, and when your body gets the opportunity to rest, it embraces it gratefully. However, as you’ve gotten deeper into winter, and you’ve spent more and more time each day sitting inside or doing things outside that require little energy, you’ve found it increasingly harder every night to fall asleep. 

Tonight has been the worst of it, so far. You’ve been in bed since midnight and it’s almost one o’clock now, but you still don’t feel any closer to falling asleep. Your eyelids want to do anything but close. Sighing, you roll over for the millionth time, trying to get comfy enough to become tired. 

After another twenty minutes and still no luck, you eventually decide to just give up and grab your phone. If you’re going to be awake, you might as well do it scrolling mindlessly through social media. 

However, when you pick up your phone, you realize that it’s opened onto a conversation you had with Sebastian—the one after your Solarian Chronicles game. You flick through the messages, a smile forming as you reread what was your first “real” text conversation with him. You’ve had a few since, but none as long at this one. It’s wonderful to read through your old messages and realize how far you’ve come. 

You move your finger to the corner of the screen to exit your messages, but through your half-lidded eyes, you miss the button by a fraction of an inch and hit the one next to it instead. 

The call button. 

Oh no. 

The phone starts ringing before you know what’s happening, and you frantically move to hang up, but your finger is hovering just over the button where you hear a low voice say, “...hello?” 

“Um, hi,” you reply quietly. You’re a little afraid that Sebastian will be upset with you for interrupting his night, so you add, “I didn’t mean to call, sorry.”

“That’s alright, I wasn’t asleep yet.” Though you don’t doubt that Sebastian was up this late, the grogginess of his voice implies that he’s at least in bed. Your guilt doubles. “Why are you up so late, though?”

“I’ve been having trouble sleeping for days,” you groan. “Tonight’s been the worst of it, I don’t even feel tired yet.” 

“I’d offer to sing you a lullaby if I thought that would help,” Sebastian chuckles. You resist the urge to blurt out that a lullaby from Sebastian would help. Anything to hear that singing voice again. “Is there anything I can do, though?” 

“Mm, I don’t know,” you respond. You like the idea of Sebastian helping you to sleep, but over the phone, you don’t know what to suggest. Options are, unfortunately, limited. 

“Would it help if I told you a story?” 

The suggestion catches you a little off guard, but after considering it for a moment, you think that listening to Sebastian talk would relax you enough to help you sleep. 

“If you have one to tell,” you reply. “And if you don’t mind, of course.” 

Sebastian laughs. “Not like I’m doing anything else with my time. If it’ll help, I’d be more than happy to.”

You settle down into your covers as Sebastian’s end of the phone goes silent, but after a minute, he says, “Ah, okay, I know what to tell you. I hope you don’t mind nerd stuff.”

“Nerd stuff is great.” You can almost hear Sebastian’s smile as he launches into a story. It sounds like one of his Solarian Chronicles campaigns, with a storyline involving a kidnapped princess, a brave knight, and a dragon. Not only that, but he names the princess (Y/N), and the knight Sebastian. You figure he’s only doing it to add some extra personality to the story, but it makes your chest feel warm and fuzzy anyway. 

Sebastian describes the adventure for almost half an hour, and though you’ve gotten incredibly invested in the story, you can feel your tiredness growing with each passing minute. First, you submit to closing your eyes, then you have to fight to keep your consciousness as sleep creeps its way in. Eventually, you’re unable to fight any longer, and you drift off to the lull of Sebastian’s voice. 

~~~

Sebastian keeps talking for another few minutes before he realizes that you’re asleep. He quiets his voice down and slowly phases out his words so as to not stop abruptly and wake you up with the sudden silence. He listens to your rhythmic breathing for a moment and smiles softly to himself. 

Though Sebastian isn’t feeling super tired himself yet, he gently sets his phone to the side and gets himself comfy within his bed, not doing anything except listening to you on the other end of the phone. He knows that he should probably hang up now that you’re asleep, but for some reason, he can’t bring himself to. 

He sits silently for what must be at least twenty minutes, just enjoying your invisible presence, until he too falls asleep, the phone call still active. 

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 19 - Hot Chocolate

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1312

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

Winter has only started a few days ago, and already, a few centimetres of snow have dusted the ground and a bitter chill has taken permanence in the air. The few plants you had remaining from the end of autumn have shrivelled up into nothing, so for the past few days, you’ve been relying on your animals and your frequent visits to the mines to keep your income steady. Luckily, with all the free time you have now that you don’t have crops to tend to, you have much more time to do other things. 

It’s particularly cold one day, with sharp wind and flurries of snow swirling down from the sky, but you’re still out and about, wandering around town instead of shutting yourself away in your farmhouse. You’ve got a scarf and hat on, anyway, so that’s keeping you warm, though you did forget to take gloves with you so you’re trying your hardest to fit your hands within your sleeves, desperate to keep them away from the bite of winter. 

It’s around 2:00, which means that the saloon is open, so you decide to escape there to, at the very least, bring some warmth back into your fingers. A warm air consumes you the second you open the door, which is such a sudden and stark contrast to the cold outside that it almost hurts. Gus hears the door open and greets you with a smile, saying, “(Y/N)! It’s been a while, what can I do for you?” 

“Just trying to get out of the cold for a moment,” you admit, rubbing your hands together and breathing on them to try and heat them up slowly. “Not much business today, it seems.” 

“Snow always keeps people out,” says Gus. “Nobody wants to leave their houses when it’s warmer inside. So it is nice to see a friendly face!”

You smile, but then, feeling bad that you only came in for the heat and not to purchase anything, you ask, “Have anything warm to drink?”

“I could get you some hot chocolate, if you’d like. Perfect for weather like this!” You’ve barely had a chance to nod before Gus has turned away and started preparing your drink. 

A few minutes later, you’ve got a warm to-go cup clutched in your hands, making them feel much, much better. Your nose has cleared up a little too, after it had become so stuffy outside. You pay Gus and bid him farewell, feeling that you shouldn’t be taking advantage of the saloon’s heat any longer. 

Outside, the slow has cleared up a little, and the wind doesn’t feel as sharp, so you figure that maybe you can head down to the beach and visit Elliott. He’s pretty isolated out there, being far away from the town and the snow making it hard to fight through the sandy beach. Not that he minds the isolation, since it gives him an excuse to write, but you still think he might enjoy some company. 

The beach isn’t quite as bad as you expected, though it is still difficult to wade through the three inches of unplowed snow. You’re halfway across, fully intent on heading to Elliott’s cabin, but something in the distance catches your eye: a figure sitting at the end of the pier. 

You wonder who would be crazy enough to want to sit outside by the ocean in this weather, but upon a closer look, you recognize the near-black hair and dark purple sweater. It’s Sebastian, which, to be honest, checks out. If anybody would be on the beach during this weather, it would be him. 

Your mission to visit Elliott is going to have to wait, because now, your curiosity is piqued, and you want to know what Sebastian is doing out in weather like this. You follow the imprint of his footsteps that haven’t quite been snowed over yet and make your way down the pier. 

When you start to get close, Sebastian turns around, looking a little surprised to see you. You suppose that’s fair, it probably isn’t common to see other people on a beach during snowfall, but you have discovered that both you and Sebastian have a tendency to find each other even under strange circumstances. 

“You know it’s snowing, right?” says Sebastian as you reach him. He’s brushed away the snow at the edge of the pier to make a spot for him to sit, and even though he still seems confused as to why you’re there, he uses his hoodie sleeve to swipe away the snow next to him, allowing you to join him. 

“Oh, really? I hadn’t noticed,” you reply, taking the seat he’s made for you. It’s pretty damp from the snow-soaked wood, and a shiver immediately runs through you, but the hot chocolate in your hands helps to keep you warm. “What are you doing out here?”

“Well, I like coming down to the beach during bad weather, because there aren’t usually other people here and I like watching the ocean alone,” Sebastian explains. He pauses for a moment, then adds, quieter, “But I don’t mind your company, if you want to stay.” 

“I’d love to.” 

Sebastian doesn’t reply, which you think is reasonable. The ocean is best enjoyed in silence. Watching the waves lazily roll in, lapping gently at the posts of the pier, feeling the spray coat your ankles that are dangling below… it’s tranquil, even as you get increasingly colder. 

You do notice after a few minutes that Sebastian seems to be even colder than you are. His leg, which is ever so slightly touching yours, is shaking, and he keeps having to bring his reddened hands up to his face to breathe warm air onto them. You think of the cup of hot chocolate still held warm in your grip, and figure that he might need it more than you do. 

“Take this, you look freezing,” you say, pushing the cup into Sebastian’s direction. “So long as you don’t mind drinking after me, that is.” He must really be cold because he shakes his head, mumbles, “Thank you,” and takes the cup with little hesitation. After a small sip, he already looks a little better. 

The stark contrast between holding a hot cup to suddenly having your hands exposed to the cold air hurts, and soon, you find that your fingers are tingling. You try to hide this from Sebastian since you don’t want him to worry, but eventually, he notices the way you’re rubbing your hands together and how your breaths have become more shuddered. 

“Share this with me,” he offers, removing one hand from the cup and holding it out to you. You reach out to take it, but instead of removing it from his grip entirely, you both just sit there, one hand each on the cup of hot chocolate. Whenever either of you wants a sip, both hands follow. 

This has solved the problem of one of your hands being cold, but with the other, you’re back to the method of trying to fit it into your sleeve to confine it to the warmth of your coat. As it did earlier, this method fails. 

Suddenly, you feel a slight touch against your hand, and when you look down, you see Sebastian’s fingers ever so slightly brushing against yours. He’s still looking straight ahead at the ocean, refusing to acknowledge you, as he gently moves his hand so that his fingers lace with yours. Immediately, the heat of another person makes your hand feel better, and the blush that has risen to your cheeks helps your face feel warmer too. 

Sebastian doesn’t say anything and neither do you, you just sit in a silent agreement, holding the cup of hot chocolate with one hand each and holding your other hands together, the cold now forgotten. 

❤❤❤❤❤♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 18 - Soulmate AU

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1321

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is the only chapter this month that is a one-shot, rather than trying to incorporate a Soulmate concept into the entire story. Enjoy!

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When Sebastian hears that a new farmer is moving into town, he’s less than thrilled. Aren’t there enough people in this town already? he thinks. And why choose Pelican Town, anyway? There’s nothing here. 

All Sebastian wants to do is keep counting down the days until he can move out of here. Zuzu city is waiting for him, and it's there that he knows he’s going to find what his destiny has always led to. A job, friends, a life. But most importantly, at least to Sebastian, is his soulmate. 

Everybody is born with a line of writing on their wrist, and that line displays the first words your soulmate will ever say to you. For years Sebastian has dreamed of finding this person, somebody who truly understands everything about him and he can just be himself with. Sure, he loves his friends, and he can’t deny that he once had a crush on Abigail for a little while, but they didn’t always get everything about him. His work, for example, or the fact that he prefers to stay in rather than go out and face the world. Sebastian just wants somebody who will do that stuff with him. 

He looks down to the writing on his wrist, reading the printed words for the millionth time. You must be Sebastian, I’ve heard loads about you! He wonders again what the scenario will be. Maybe his soulmate has heard about him through his job, or he’ll meet them through a mutual friend. Whatever happens, Sebastian just wants it to happen soon. 

As per usual at 8:00 on a Tuesday night, Sebastian is standing by the lake next to his house, losing himself in a cigarette. It’s been a little over a week since the new farmer has moved in and he hasn’t really seen much of her yet except for glimpses passing by, and he doesn’t mind. The less he has to worry about other people, the better. 

Sebastian’s thoughts are interrupted by the crunching of gravel behind him, and when he turns, he sees the very person he was just thinking about: the farmer. He groans a little internally but decides that he should be polite and deal with an introduction, at the very least. He can avoid her as much as he wants after that. 

Sebastian opens his mouth to make some sort of sarcastic comment about why the new farmer would ever want to move to Pelican Town, but before he can, she grins and starts to speak. 

“You must be Sebastian, I’ve heard loads about you!” 

…

Oh. 

Oh no. 

Sebastian’s previous comment has completely vanished. He has no idea what to say, what to do, all he can think is soulmate soulmate soulmate. The farmer seems to be waiting for him to say something, but he doesn’t know what to do. He always thought his fate was going to be in Zuzu city, away from here, but this seems to have tied him down pretty concretely. 

Not knowing what else to do and fueled simply by the panic in his brain, Sebastian pushes past the farmer and walks as quickly as possible back into the safety of his house. 

~~~

Her name is (Y/N).

He finds out through Sam, who’s already had a few conversations with her. According to him, she’s pretty nice. 

“You should talk to her, dude,” says Sam. He’s laying back on his bed, throwing a ball at the ceiling, while Sebastian sits behind Sam’s keyboard, absentmindedly pushing random keys to make a plucky tune. “I know you’re afraid of people or whatever, but she’s really cool. Our age, too.”

Sebastian hasn’t told Sam or Abigail why he hasn’t talked to (Y/N) yet. He doesn’t know how to casually bring up the fact that he thinks she’s his soulmate. Sure, an introduction such as the one she gave isn’t exactly uncommon, but the exact phrasing and circumstances make it really hard to deny. 

But the thing now is that Sebastian doesn’t know what to do next. He already ruined his chances for a natural first meeting, and he knows now that whatever words he chooses to say to the farmer next are the ones that are going to be written on her wrist. Does he try to be smooth? Direct? The pressure of trying to figure out the perfect thing to say is slowly killing him. 

“I’ll talk to her eventually,” he says. Sam shrugs but doesn’t push any further, something Sebastian is thankful for. “We’re still going to the saloon tonight, yeah?” 

“Of course.” Checking his phone, Sam adds, “We should probably be going now, actually. Abby’s meeting us there in five minutes.”

Sam pulls himself out of bed and exits the room, Sebastian following behind. The saloon is just across the square from Sam’s house so they’re there in thirty seconds, and when they enter, they’re both surprised to see Abigail there already. Not only that, but she’s not alone. 

“Look who I ran into on the way here!” Much to Sebastian’s dismay, the new farmer is sitting next to Abby on one of the couches in the side room of the saloon. She politely waves, and though she looks nothing but friendly, Sebastian can feel his throat tightening. What the fuck am I supposed to do. 

“Oh, hey, (Y/N)!” says Sam cheerfully, walking in first to give the farmer a fistbump. Even though it comes slightly out of nowhere, she complies happily. It’s kind of cute, actually. 

No, it’s not cute. Fuck off, brain. 

Sebastian realizes that it’s too late for him to run out of the saloon, so reluctantly, he walks forward and leans against the pool table instead. Abby, Sam, and (Y/N) have already started a conversation, which leaves Sebastian time to figure out what he’s going to say. 

He’s so deep in thought that it takes him a while to notice that (Y/N) is staring at him, and it looks like she has been for a long time. There’s a curious smile on her face, and she appears almost like she’s studying him, but in a good way. It surprises Sebastian, a little. Considering his first reaction to her friendly introduction was to push past her and walk away, her opinion of him doesn’t seem to have lowered. 

“You haven’t met (Y/N) yet, right, Seb?” asks Abigail, turning away from the new farmer to look at Sebastian instead. He feels like his heart is going to beat out of his chest, or at the very least, he’s going to be sick. His body doesn’t know what to do and his mind is equally as confused. “Sam and I will play a round of pool while you two get to know each other!” 

(Y/N) looks up at him expectantly, like she’s waiting for him to speak first. Sebastian supposes he should, considering it is technically his turn for an introduction. He still feels panicked, but he also knows that he can’t hold off forever. 

“I think she already knows me more than she expects.” 

The reaction is instantaneous. (Y/N)’s mouth falls open slightly and her eyes dart to her wrist, then back up to Sebastian’s face. She seems unsure of what to do. A million emotions cross her expression all at once, until finally, her smile returns.

“I think I might,” is all she says in response. Sebastian’s heart lurches slightly at the way she’s looking at him now, with the kind of fondness that he’s never seen from anybody before, let alone a stranger. It’s exciting in a way that’s completely new. 

Though Sebastian always imagined his future away from Pelican Town, somewhere big enough that he could merge in with the city life and disappear in the way he’s always wanted to, looking at (Y/N) now makes him realize that maybe sticking around wouldn’t be so bad. 

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 17 - Animal Shelter

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1051

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

You’ve grown accustomed to getting letters from the people in Pelican Town, usually shopkeepers advertising their new products or Mayor Lewis reminding you of the upcoming town events. However, you didn’t expect to get a letter one morning from Marnie, telling you that she found a stray cat in the forest and thinks it might be a good fit for your farm. 

You never considered having a pet around, aside from your chickens and cows (who can’t really be considered as “pets”), but maybe it would be nice to have a cat. You’ve had the occasional rat problem, which a cat could help solve, and it would be nice to have a friend to keep you company. 

It doesn't take long to finish your chores in the morning, and since you don’t have anything else on the go for the rest of the day, you figure that at the very least, you could go down to Marnie’s and check it out. See if you like the cat enough to take it home. 

You tug on a jacket and head out the door, only realizing how overgrown the bottom half of your farm is when you have to fight through branches and try not to trip over stones on your way to the south exit. You should probably work on clearing some of this up when you get home. 

Finally managing to fight your way through the forest, you emerge next to Marnie’s ranch, and from there it’s only a matter of rounding the corner and heading inside. Within, you find Marnie in the kitchen, waiting for some food to cook in the microwave. She doesn’t seem to notice your arrival so you pipe up, “Hey, Marnie!” and she turns around with a jolt.

“(Y/N)! You startled me,” says Marnie, a hand over her chest. “I should have known you would be stopping by, though. You got my letter?”

 “I did,” you reply, pulling the folded letter from your pocket. “You said there’s a cat here?”

“There is indeed!” The microwave beeps but Marnie silences it, leaving whatever food was inside to sit as she bustles away in the other direction. She comes back a minute later, a small orange cat held in her arms. “He wandered into my barn the other night, and he seems healthy. If you promise to take care of him, he’s all yours!” 

You gently reach your arms out and Marnie hands the cat over. He’s pretty tiny, but not quite a kitten, and he lets out a chirp of curiosity as you let him sniff at your hand. 

Without warning, a door to your left opens. You glance up as you’re expecting to see Shane or Jas, but you’re really shocked when you see Sebastian instead. 

“What are you doing here?” you both ask, almost in sync. He smiles. 

“Shane ran into me in the town square and since he knew I was good with computers, he asked if I could find out why his TV wasn’t working,” Sebastian explains. “All he did was somehow unplug the HDMI cable, it was an easy fix.” 

“Well, I’m here for this little guy,” you say, raising your arms a little to call attention to the animal held in them. Sebastian’s eyes widen a little; you don’t think he noticed the cat before that. “Might be bringing him home with me today.”

“That’s really sweet,” he says, stepping forward a little and holding out a knuckle for the cat to sniff. It wiggles a little in your grasp to try and get closer to Sebastian. 

“Do you want to hold him?” you ask. Sebastian looks a little taken aback, but then nods, bringing his hands up and very carefully taking the cat from you. Instantly it starts to purr, obviously content to be wrapped within Sebastian’s sweatered arms. 

“I’ve always wanted a pet,” he says, stroking the cat under its chin. “Though maybe not a cat. I’ve always liked the idea of a frog or a lizard.”

“That fits,” you agree, laughing. Sebastian seems happy you think so, because his soft smile grows a little. 

“Do you have a name in mind?” he asks. 

“I haven’t really had time to think about it,” you admit. “Have any suggestions?”

Sebastian thinks for a moment. “Well, considering the season, would Pumpkin be too corny?” 

You look down at the orange cat. He is pretty pumpkin coloured, and it will remind you of the season you got him. Not to mention that pumpkin soup is one of Sebastian’s favourite foods, which will make you think of him and this moment. 

“I like it,” you say. “Are you ready to come home with me, Pumpkin?” 

Sebastian takes that as a sign to hand the cat back over to you, his warm look never fading even when Pumpkin leaves his arms. “I hope you don’t mind if I stop by to visit him sometimes, I think I’ve already gotten attached.” 

“I don’t mind at all,” you reply. Pumpkin purrs. “I think he’ll be happy to see you too.” 

“Awesome.” Sebastian checks his phone, frowning a little. “I should be heading out, I’ve got some work to do, but it was nice to see you.”

“Take care, I hope I’ll see you soon!” You grab one of Pumpkin’s paws and move it up and down in a wave. Sebastian gives him one last scratch on the head and then he’s gone. 

Marnie reenters the room a moment later (when was it that she left?) and gives you some instructions on how to care for the cat, then sends you on your way. You decide to take the long way through town so you don’t have to fight through the overgrown half of your farm with Pumpkin, and as you walk, you can’t shake the image of Sebastian holding the cat so gently and lovingly. As if you didn’t find Sebastian cute enough already. 

However, that’s not the only thing you’re thinking about. You’re also incredibly happy to have a pet now! It gets lonely on the farm sometimes, especially during times like your sickness a few weeks ago when you were stuck there, and the idea of having a friend makes you really, really happy. It’ll make your life just that little bit brighter. 

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 16 - “I hate you” — “I love you too”

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1222

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

You’ve never really considered yourself a tabletop board game person, but when Sam invites you along to his session of Solarian Chronicles with Sebastian, your curiosity is piqued enough for you to say yes. 

The next Thursday evening, you meet up with Sam and the two of you walk to Sebastian’s house together, where they’ll show you the ropes of the game and you’ll run through a very basic campaign together. It is exciting to be trying something new for once. You hope you’ll enjoy it and maybe this can be another weekly activity on top of Fridays at the saloon. 

When you get to Sebastian’s house, he opens the door before you even reach it, beckoning you inside with a wave of his arm. He seems to be quite excited because he doesn’t even wait for you before hurrying into the basement. 

Sebastian’s room looks mostly the same as usual, except for the table he has set up in the corner, which is now full of papers and miscellaneous dice. Sebastian and Sam both sit down, looking very comfortable, so you follow their lead and sit down as well. 

“Welcome, (Y/N), to your very first game of Solarian Chronicles,” says Sebastian. “I set up a campaign for us to play today, and it’s a short one, so we should be able to get through it all in just a few hours. 

“How do I play?” you ask, looking confusedly at all the random papers and dice of all sizes that you’ve never even seen before. 

“It’s pretty simple, I’ve already made a few character sheets so you just have to choose whether you’d rather be a warrior, healer, or wizard.”

“Warrior sounds pretty straightforward. Just stabbing things, right?”

“...sure. But once you’ve got your class picked, we’ll run through the campaign, and you’ll have to make decisions for your character and determine how well they go by rolling dice.” Sebastian gestures around the table at the dice strewn around. “The most common is what we call a D-Twenty, twenty being the best number and one being the worst.” 

“Sounds simple enough.”

“It’s not too bad,” Sam assures you. “I want to be the healer though, if she’s being the warrior. 

“I’ll take the wizard, then.” Sebastian gathers together some of the papers and taps them on the table to straighten them out. Once he makes sure that everyone is ready, he starts to read. 

The game is pretty easy to get the hang of, and two hours later, when the three of you are walking into the boss’ castle, you actually feel quite excited to be taking down the imaginary antagonist. Sebastian doubles up on leading you through the castle by reading his sheets of paper and fighting along with you, which is impressive, how he manages to switch between both so seamlessly. You figure that he must have gotten used to it, having only Sam to play with him. 

After a trek through the castle, you finally make it to the boss room, where Sebastian describes a large demon creature made of fire and smoke. It gives a little bit of dialogue, but then Sebastian has you all roll dice to see who goes first in battle; highest number gets priority. 

You end up going first with a roll of 17, and you decide to go a simple route and aim to stab the demon in the heart. Sebastian asks you to roll the dice to see if you hit, which you do with a 16, and then you get to roll for damage. 

You pick up the D20 once again and shake it around in your hands, feeling somehow that a lot is relying on this dice roll. Your hands separate and the D20 falls to the table, clinking a few times on the surface before landing on…

…a natural 20. 

Sebastian’s jaw drops, and he scrambles for one of his papers, asking, “How much is your attack modifier!?”

“Um, plus four, I think?”

“You just one-shot my fucking boss!” Sebastian drops the paper he had picked up, staring at you in complete disbelief. “I had this whole ass boss fight planned and you killed him in one hit!” 

“I’m, uh, sorry?” you say, unable to hold back some snickers when you see Sebastian’s face. Sam snickers beside you as well. 

“I hate you so much,” groans Sebastian, his head falling down to rest on the table. “This was going to be so cool.”

“You don’t hate me!” you argue. “You’re just mad I dominated during my first campaign.”

“Exactly. Hatred.” 

“Oh, shut up. You know you love me.” The words are out of your mouth before you really think about them, and both Sebastian and Sam look at you in slight surprise. “Like. You know you like me. Fuck.” 

“Aww, Sebastian, she loves you,” teases Sam. You shoot him a panicked glare.

“I said he loves me!” you cry. “And I didn’t even mean that!” 

“It’s alright, (Y/N),” Sebastian chuckles. “But since you’ve defeated my boss, yada yada, final dialogue, campaign over. Good job.” 

It’s a little underwhelming, after a whole adventure just ending it like that, but you’re still pretty content. Checking the time though, you realize you should be heading home if you want to get a good night’s sleep. You inform Sebastian and Sam of this. 

“I’ll see you out,” says Sebastian, standing up from the table with you. “Back in a second, Sam.” 

You head up the stairs to the main level of the house, Sebastian following right behind, and when you get there you discover the notable absence of anyone else. Usually Robin is at her desk or Demitrius is in his lab, so it’s strange to see the house empty. 

“Mom and Demitrius are outside,” Sebastian explains. “They like to sit by the cliff together in the evenings.”

“That’s really cute,” you answer, but the roll of Sebastian’s eyes shows that he doesn’t agree. You figure it’s a touchy subject so you distract him by saying, “Thanks for having me over.”

“I just hope you had fun, even though you ruined my awesome boss fight,” Sebastian replies with a grin. “But anyway, thanks to you too for coming.”

“Have a good night, Sebastian.”

“Yeah, you too. Get home safe.” Sebastian opens the front door for you and you wave goodbye, departing out into the night. 

When you get back to your house, you pull out your phone and see that Sebastian has messaged you. It’s one of the first times he ever has, aside from the occasional text asking if you’ll be going to the saloon or something similar. When you check the message though, all it says is, I don’t actually hate you. 

I know, you text back, but thanks for clarifying anyway :)

You don’t expect another reply, but your phone buzzes just a few seconds later. You’re sure you liked the game? It wasn’t too nerdy or anything?

You look at the time, realizing that it’s already past nine and you’re feeling pretty tired, but talking to Sebastian seems like a better option than sleeping. You reply, and within another few seconds, he’s gotten back to you, and you’re having a full-on conversation.

You both wake up the next morning with your phones still clutched in your hands.

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 15 - Accidents Don’t Just Happen Accidentally

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 2002

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

Every morning, after checking over your crops, your next stop is always to head to your barn. It’s been a few months since you got your first cow, and now you’re the proud owner of three (two brown, one white) and even a goat. You spend about a half hour milking them all, making sure they’re fed, and giving them the love they deserve. Even though they can’t be considered “pets,” you love them as if they were. 

You get to the barn a little later in the morning than you usually do, since you had to collect some of your eggplants and put them away, so the cows are even more excited to see you than usual. The goat is still warming up to you as you’ve only had her for a few weeks, but she still trots over to sniff curiously at your feet before prancing away again. 

“Sorry I’m late, ladies,” you say as you drag your stool and bucket over from the corner of the barn. “I hope you guys are ready to be milked.” 

One of your cows, Lola, moos softly at you, so you take that as a sign that she wants to be first and set the stool up next to her. You give her a few pats first and then start to knead her udders to make the milk spurt out. 

You’re halfway through the process when you hear a knock on the door of the barn. Glancing back, you see Sebastian. Not exactly the optimal time for him to see you, while you’re wearing your dirty work overalls and are covered in the spray of cow milk, but it’s nice to see him anyway. 

“Hey, what are you doing here?” you ask, directing your voice towards him but turning your attention back to milking the cow before she gets too impatient. 

“Just wanted to see what you were up to today, thought maybe I could stop by and get a sample of farm life,” replies Sebastian. “Am I interrupting anything?”

“Not at all, you’re free to come in if you want to.” You squeeze the cow’s udders one final time and then give her a light pat on her haunch to let her know that she’s free to go. “Just don’t close the door behind you, the inside latch is broken so it’ll lock from the outside.” Sebastian nods and heads inside, crouching down next to you on the stool so he’s close to your eye level. 

“You do this every morning?” he asks as you stand up from your stool and lead the next cow over. 

“Yup! It’s hard work, but it’ll keep my income steady during the winter when I can’t grow crops, and these animals are like my family.” You stroke the cow standing in front of you as you sit down again, then get to work milking. Sebastian watches curiously. 

“This doesn’t hurt them?” he asks, watching your fingers work on the udders. 

“Not at all,” you respond. “Would you like to give it a go? It’s easy once you get the hang of it.” 

“Oh, um, sure.” You stand up and gesture to the stool, where Sebastian sits and looks at the cow in front of him, seeming completely lost. “Do I just… pull?”

“Don’t pull, squeeze.” Leaning forward over Sebastian’s shoulder, you demonstrate how he should be moving his hands. Then, to get him started, you gently take hold of his fingers and show him where to place them. He starts to follow your instructions and lets out a gasp when the milk squirts out and splatters all over him. 

“You might want to aim a little further down,” you say, unable to suppress your laughter. Sebastian rolls his eyes but tries again, this time managing to get (most of) the milk into the pail. 

You’re so distracted watching Sebastian milk the cow that you’re half a second too late to notice creaking from behind you. You turn just in time to see your beloved Lola nudging the barn door shut with her nose, locking it from the outside. 

“Lola!” you scream, but it’s already too late. She looks over at you curiously with her big, dark eyes, acting as if she didn’t just trap you inside your barn. Sebastian has stopped milking his cow, and he’s now staring, mouth slightly agape, at the closed door. 

“That’s bad,” he says simply. You spin around to look at him, panic evident on your face.

“Please tell me you brought your phone.” 

Sebastian shoves his hands into his hoodie pocket, but his face falls. “Shit, it was dead, so I left it at home.”

“Mine is in the house, I never take it out with me when I’m doing chores,” you say. “Fuck!”

“Take a deep breath, we’re going to be fine,” assures Sebastian. “It’s a small town, someone’s going to notice we’re gone and come looking at some point.” 

“Yeah, you’re right. I need to calm down.” You close your eyes and take a deep breath in. You’re going to be okay. 

“I can try the door if you want. See if I can jimmy it open,” suggests Sebastian. You don’t think there’s much point, but you nod, so Sebastian gets up and heads to the entrance of the barn. You, meanwhile, still have to get your cows milked, so you sit down on the stool and focus your energy on your chores. 

You finish the third cow (the goat is still too young to be milked, so no need to worry about her) right as Sebastian comes back from the door, shaking his head. 

“No luck. I tried shifting the door to reach the latch outside but it won’t open enough.”

“It’s okay, thanks for trying.” You give the third cow a light pat and she saunters away, heading to the trough in the back to get a snack for herself. “I’m really sorry you’re stuck in here.”

“It’s not your fault, no need to be sorry,” replies Sebastian. “We just have to make the best of it, right?” 

“Right.” You take note that Sebastian is still standing, and you lift yourself off the stool, gesturing to it. “You can sit if you want, I’m okay to stand.”

“Even though I spend most of the day in front of a desk, I’m still capable of standing,” he responds, his tone humourous. Instead of taking the stool, he walks over to one of your cows and asks, “Can I pet her?” 

“Of course! She likes being scratched around her ears the most.” Sebastian brings both hands up and starts to stroke the cow behind her ears. She closes her eyes and leans into him with a look of bliss on her face. It’s pretty adorable, how happy they both look.

Meanwhile, you spot Lola laying down on the floor on the other side of the barn, so you walk over to her and lower yourself to the ground, using her large body as a backrest. She turns to look at you when you sit down and you stroke her neck, smiling a little. 

“I forgive you, Lola, I know you didn’t mean to lock us in here,” you say. She moos at you in response, almost like she understands. 

You hear footsteps and look up in time to see Sebastian sitting on the floor to your left, leaning against Lola as well. He drums his fingers on his knees but doesn’t say anything, even though he looks like he wants to. 

“I just remembered that Elliott is supposed to be coming over for lunch, so we’ll probably only be in here a few more hours,” you say. Sebastian nods. 

“I wasn’t super worried,” he replies. “I could be doing worse things today than hanging out with you and some cows.” He reaches back and strokes Lola, a look of contentment on his face. 

“I think she likes you,” you note, to which Lola moos in response. You rub the space between her ears and smile fondly at her. 

How does she respond? By leaning her head in and giving you a hard shove with her nose, pushing you right into Sebastian. 

Even though the push wasn’t too forceful, it catches you off guard enough that you topple over, landing half in Sebastian’s lap. He jerks slightly in surprise but still manages to break your fall with his arms. 

“Oh my goodness, I’m sorry, Sebastian,” you apologize, pushing yourself off of him and shooting a dirty glare in Lola’s direction. “I have no idea what’s gotten into her, she usually doesn’t misbehave this much.” 

Sebastian doesn’t get a chance to respond because Lola flicks her tail at Sebastian, hitting him hard in the arm and causing him to recoil enough that he almost falls on top of you, too. You’re sitting close enough now that your thighs and shoulders are brushing together. 

“Lola!” you scold. “What is with you today!?” She moos softly again, craning her neck to prod you with her nose once more. The coldness of it naturally makes you move away, pushing you even further into Sebastian. 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she’s trying to push us together,” Sebastian says. Though his words seemed to cause no reaction within him, you instantly feel blood rising in your cheeks. Looking back at Lola, you’re suddenly a little intimidated by the intelligence you see behind her eyes. 

“She’s just being naughty,” you reply. “I’m sorry, once again.”

“It’s alright, I don’t mind.” Sebastian’s hands are still on his knees, something that you only notice when your fingers brush against his. His hand stiffens slightly, and he says, “You’re freezing.” 

It is pretty cold in the barn since it’s a chillier day outside and you haven’t had a chance to buy a heater from Marnie for the upcoming winter. Plus, you’re only wearing a t-shirt under your overalls, since you usually work up quite a sweat doing your farm work. 

“I guess I’m a bit cold.” You bring up your hands to rub your arms, trying to generate heat, but it doesn’t work as well as you hoped it would. And now that you’ve noticed the cold, it’s impossible to ignore. 

“That’s not going to work, you know,” says Sebastian. “Come here.” 

You’re not sure what Sebastian means by that until you feel him shift next to you, and his sweatered arm makes its way around your shoulders. He pulls his hoodie down over his hand and uses it to rub some warmth back into your skin, doing the same with his other hand and your left arm. 

You think your face might actually be on fire. 

The feeling of Sebastian so close to you, cradling you in the way he is to try and warm you up, it just feels so… intimate. You allow yourself the pleasure of closing your eyes and leaning in a little closer until your cheek falls onto Sebastian’s chest. He takes a breath, surprised, but it’s half a second before he relaxes again and continues to run his hands up and down your arms. 

It’s so comforting, so safe, to be like this, that you barely even notice yourself growing tired until you drift off to sleep. 

~~~

When Elliott opens the barn door a few hours later, wondering where you had gone, he’s surprised to find not only you, but Sebastian as well, leaning against a cow by the far wall of the barn. Not only that, but all three of you, cow included, are asleep. Elliott smiles a little to himself. 

He figures he can always come back another day for lunch, so he grabs a rock, props the door open, and leaves again. But he can’t shake the expressions he saw on both yours and Sebastian’s faces. Though you were both asleep, it was impossible to deny the affection that was clearly there. Elliott knows a budding relationship when he sees it. 

❤❤❤❤♡♡♡♡

[astra90x]

I just want to make a small intermission post to thank everyone so much for all the support of my flufftober story. I’ve fallen in love with writing it, but reading all your comments and realizing that you guys love it too has had such a great effect on me. I literally cried reading some of your comments because they were so sweet. 

I hope everyone enjoys what’s coming, I love every one of the people who reads and finds joy in my story, so I want to do my very best for you. 

Cheers!

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 14 - Truth or Dare/Twenty Questions

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1330

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

Warnings: Cursing

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

Thanks to the strength of sheer willpower and friendship, you manage to get over your sickness by Friday so you can head to the saloon and have your usual night with Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian. Now that you have a true friend group in town, you don’t want to miss out on anything within it for any reason. Saloon night has become your driving force for getting through the week. 

It’s a nice fall evening, a little chilly but nothing that a fluffy sweater and scarf can’t solve. Plus, it isn’t a far walk to get to the saloon, and the trees with their changing colours are enough to keep you occupied anyway. 

The sun is almost set by the time you get to there, a strong reminder that the days are getting shorter and that winter is coming soon. Now that’s something you aren’t looking forward to. Winter for a farmer isn’t exactly easy, but you’ll still have cheese and mayo from your cows and chickens and jam from your leftover fruits to get you by until spring. 

You open the door to the saloon and a sharp wind follows you inside, causing Pierre to shoot you a dirty look since he was the one who got the brunt of the cold. You shrug apologetically (but not that apologetically, you can’t control the weather) and push through the other people in the saloon to get to your friends. 

Sebastian spots you first, and he greets you by saying, “You look considerably healthier than the last time I saw you.”

“Colds are no match for my immune system,” you respond. It’s only then that you notice that the group isn’t playing pool or fiddling with the arcade machines like usual, they’re all sitting on the couches in the corner. “We’re not playing anything tonight?”

“Mixing it up a little,” replies Abigail, patting the couch next to her to signal for you to sit down. You do. “We’re going to play truth or dare!”

“Because Abby is a child,” adds Sebastian. 

“I am not, truth or dare is just fun,” argues Abigail. “Plus, it’s better to play as adults because we’re more creative and can do more stuff.”

Sebastian rolls his eyes, but he still looks to be onboard. Abigail claps her hands together in excitement. 

“(Y/N), you’re going first. Truth or dare?”

“Oh, um…” you hadn’t expected to be put on the spot right away, and wanting to ease into things before you get too crazy, you weakly mutter, “...truth?” 

Abigail ponders for a moment, but finally asks, “Have you ever had a boyfriend?”

“That’s such a middle school question to ask,” Sebastian says, but Sam silences him with a smack to the side. 

“Shut up, Seb, it’s fun.”

You can’t help the heat rising in your cheeks as you reply, “Well, um, I’ve always been too busy to worry about having a dating life…”

“That makes all four of us, then,” Sam says, leaning over to give you a fistbump. “Well, unless you count the girl that Sebastian dated for three weeks when he was in eighth grade.”

“I told you to never talk about Rebecca,” grumbles Sebastian. Sam just laughs. 

“Yeah, whatever,” says Abigail. “(Y/N), you have to ask someone now.”

“Right, um… Sam, truth or dare?”

“Dare!” 

You look around the saloon, trying to think of something to make Sam do, and your eyes land on Emily behind the counter. “Go use your best pickup line on Emily.” 

Sam’s eyes widen a little, but he still gets up off the couch and walks to the bar, calling Emily over when he can catch her attention. From across the saloon, you hear him say, “On a scale of one to ten, you’re a nine and I’m the one you need.” 

Emily pauses for a second, but it’s only a moment before she bursts into laughter. “Oh, Sam, that was adorable!”

Sam doesn’t seem to know how to react as Emily works to silence her giggles, but eventually, he just shrugs and says, “Glad you liked it,” before awkwardly turning and walking back to your group. You and Abigail are both laughing as he plops back down next to Sebastian. 

“Shut it, that was the dare,” Sam shoots. “Now Seb, truth or dare?” 

“Dare,” replies Sebastian. “Just don’t make me talk to anyone.”

“That’s the whole point of the game, dumbass,” says Sam. He thinks for a few seconds, then a wicked grin breaks out on his face as he says, “Let (Y/N) sit on your lap for the next few rounds.” 

Sebastian looks mortified. 

“You can’t—that’s, uh—I don’t—” Sebastian stammers, but finally he manages to spit out, “Don’t drag her into my dare!” 

“We’re all playing, it’s not like we’re bringing her in off the street,” argues Abigail. “Unless she’s truly uncomfortable with it, she’s got to do it.”

All eyes turn to you.

“Well, I…” you pause. You don’t want to be the one to ruin any fun. After all, it’s only a few rounds, right? “I don’t mind so long as Sebastian doesn’t…”

Sebastian opens his mouth to say something, but he’s interrupted when Sam exclaims, “Great! Go on, (Y/N).” 

You shakily stand up, noticing how your legs feel more numb than they did two minutes ago, and close the distance between you and Sebastian. You scan his face to look for any signs of discomfort or annoyance, but he seems fine, just a bit nervous. He sits up a little straighter, then tilts his head towards his legs as permission. 

You hesitantly lower yourself onto Sebastian’s lap, sitting as close to the edge of his knees as possible due to immense awkwardness. 

“That looks insanely uncomfortable,” notes Sebastian. “You can move back a bit further if you’re okay with that, I promise I don’t bite.” 

It is pretty uncomfortable barely supporting yourself on Sebastian’s knees, so you shift back until you can feel his breath on the back of your neck, causing the hair there to rise. You clear your throat to hide the shuddered breath that escaped your lips. 

Sebastian moves on to ask Abigail a truth question, but you barely hear what it is because you’re so focused on him underneath you. You’re hyper-aware of every movement, no matter how small. A small shift in his legs feels like a shock of electricity. You’re not sure what the hell is wrong with you. 

What makes it worse is that after a few minutes, Sebastian wraps both of his arms around your waist and leaves them relaxed in your lap, whispering that it’s more comfortable than having them at his side. You’re very thankful that he can’t see your face at that moment. 

Everyone gets a few more turns, but you don’t have the mental capacity to pay attention to them. Nothing else really noteworthy happens, anyway. But when it starts getting late and it’s time for you to go home, you find that leaving Sebastian’s lap is almost as difficult as sitting there in the first place. 

Sam and Abigail are busy chatting when you finally stand up, Sebastian standing up only a second after you. He leans in and quietly says, “You know you only had to sit there for a few rounds, right? Not the whole game?” 

“Oh!” Shit. “S-Sorry, I guess I forgot.”

“You don’t have to worry about it,” Sebastian assures you. “I didn’t mind at all.” 

The way he’s looking at you is making you want to bury your face into a pillow and scream, but you just awkwardly say, “It’s late! I should be getting home and going to bed.”

Sebastian chuckles. “Sure thing. See you tomorrow, (Y/N).”

You wave goodbye to Sam and Abigail before you leave, and on the whole walk home, the only thing you can think about is Sebastian. Damn this boy for having such an effect on you. But still, while it’s annoying to have nothing but the raven-haired guy on your mind, you can’t force yourself to think of something else. 

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 13 - Secret Family Recipe

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 967

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

You knew that spending all of your time outside in the increasingly colder weather couldn’t have been a good idea, which is more than confirmed when you end up in bed with a horrible case of sniffles and a throat that feels like sandpaper. It’s been ages since you’ve gotten sick and you feel like your body is compensating for all the missed years by trying its best to destroy your very spirits right now. Everything hurts and life is miserable. 

You dread to think of what will happen to your farm while you’re bedridden, but Marnie has agreed to stop by and care for your animals, and your sprinklers should handle the crops well enough for the few days that you’re sick. Even though you would love nothing more than to get out of bed and back to work, you fear what more strain would do to your already weak body, so you resign yourself to your bedroom and pour your energy into getting better.

Being in bed is boring, though. Elliott came by to visit once, but he didn’t stay for long so that only occupied thirty minutes of your two days being ill. Otherwise, it’s just been a whole lot of browsing your phone and staring at the ceiling. 

On the third day, however, you get a knock on the door that you weren’t expecting. It’s 12:30, so too early for Elliott to visit since he usually likes to come by in the evenings. It isn’t Marnie either as she’s usually finished up with the animals by 10:00. 

“Come in,” you croak. The hoarseness of your voice surprises you, but to be fair, you’ve barely spoken at all in the past few days, and your cough hasn’t helped. Luckily though, you managed to get your voice loud enough, and the door creaks open. It’s Sebastian. 

“Hello,” he says simply. He seems reluctant to actually step into your house, so instead, he stands just outside, leaning forward enough for his head to peer around the corner. 

“You’re allowed to come in, you know,” you tease. 

“Right, sorry.” Sebastian awkwardly steps inside and shuts the door behind him, and now that you can see his full body, you realize he’s holding onto a glass container, filled with something that looks like soup. He continues through your living room and enters the bedroom, but doesn’t go far past the door. “I, um, heard you were sick, so I thought I could stop by and see how you’re doing.”

“I’m doing alright, aside from the fact that I can hardly breathe,” you laugh. “It’s hard to be stuck in bed, though. I don’t like leaving the farm.”

“It looks good out there if that makes you feel any better,” Sebastian says. “And, um, I brought you something. Maybe this can make you feel better too.” He finally steps forward and holds out the glass container to you. “I know it’s a cliche to bring a sick person soup, but it seemed like it might be nice, especially since you don’t have anyone here to cook for you.” 

You lean forward out of bed enough to take the container from Sebastian, and when you bring it closer to your face, the delicious scent of pumpkin fills your nose. 

“Did you make this?” you ask. You’ve hardly seen Sebastian eat anything on his own aside from poptarts and Ritz crackers, it seems hard to believe that he would cook something on his own, especially something for you. 

“I did, yeah,” Sebastian says bashfully, his hands clasped together in front of him as he fiddles with his fingers. “It’s mom’s recipe, technically, but I am the one who made it.”

“You didn’t have to do that for me.” As much as you appreciate the gesture, you can’t help but feel a little bad. He didn’t have to take time out of his day to cook for you, though it is incredibly sweet that he did. 

“Well, I want you to get better,” Sebastian replies. “Plus, as I said, you don’t have anyone here to cook for you. I couldn’t have you starving.”

It is true, you haven’t had the energy to make food for yourself so you’ve been living off toast and saltines for the past few days. That just makes the aroma of the soup even more inviting. 

“Thank you, then. This means a lot,” you admit. “Do you think you could do me one more favour, though?”

“Yeah, of course.”

“Get me a spoon?”

Sebastian laughs. “Of course.”

“They’re in the drawer next to the fridge.” He flashes a thumbs-up and backs out of the room, and you can hear him rummaging around in the kitchen for a moment. Twenty seconds later, he’s back, and he hands you a spoon. “My knight in shining armour.”

“Just glad I could help.” 

You pry the lid off the glass container of soup, and immediately, the smell gets mouth-watering. You lower the spoon into the liquid and then lift it to your lips, taking a small sip just in case it burns. However, it’s the perfect temperature for consuming, and your eyes light up at the wonderful flavour. 

“I’ll assume that you like it,” says Sebastian, his expression amused as he watches you take another spoonful. You nod eagerly. 

“It’s amazing,” you confirm. “Thank you so much.” 

“Hey, I just want you to get better.” Sebastian tilts his head back to the door, his lips pursed a little. “I should probably get out of your hair, though. Leave you to recover properly.”

“Right.” You can’t help but be a little disappointed that Sebastian is leaving, but you understand that he probably has other places to be. “I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Okay. Just be sure to get better by Friday so I can whoop your ass in pool.” He smirks playfully, then gives a trademarked one-flick wave and leaves your house. You take another sip of the soup, and you can’t tell if it’s the food or the company that’s got you feeling better. 

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

[astra90x]

Flufftober Day 12 - “You Kept This?”

@flufftober

Fandom: Stardew Valley

Pairing: Sebastian x Reader

Word Count: 1210

Reader Pronouns: She/Her

This is one chapter of an entire linear story! It can be read separately but is better when read as a whole. Enjoy!

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡

Ever since you had Robin renovate your house, cooking has become one of your new favourite things. You have no idea how you managed to live before, only eating granola bars or fresh produce without having any way to prepare it. But now that Robin has blessed you with a gorgeous kitchen, you find yourself excited to try out all the newest recipes you suddenly have access to.

As well, because you’ve been spending more time in the mountains lately, you’ve become acquainted with the old man who lives in a tent up there, Linus. He’s full of old stories and is a pleasure to talk to, and he seems to appreciate your company as well, as one of the only people who understands his choice to live off the land rather than in the town with everyone else. While you’re fishing at the mountain lake in the evenings, Linus has become one of your favourite people to talk to. 

While watching you fish one night, he tells you about a recipe he used to make, which involves cutting up raw fish into thin slices. It’s a dish called sashimi, and to you, it sounds both excellent and easy to make, so you figure you’ll give it a go. 

Early the next morning you head to the river in town to catch a salmon, which doesn’t take long, and then you lug the large fish back to your farm so you can make the dish with it. You make sure to be careful while cutting the salmon, watching a YouTube video while you do to make sure you’re using the correct method. It takes a while because you’re trying to make it perfect, but by 11:30, you have a plate of sashimi big enough to feed a family. Maybe you should have gone with a smaller salmon…

It would be unfortunate for this to go to waste, you think, looking at the huge plate in front of you. I think I remember Sam saying something about Sebastian liking Sashimi, should I bring him some?

It is late enough to be eating lunch by now, so you don’t think it would be too weird if you brought Sebastian some of the sashimi to share. Maybe it’s just an excuse for you to visit the raven-haired boy, but it’s also an opportunity to do something nice for him, so you figure why not?

Packing two servings of the sashimi into a Tupperware container, you tuck it carefully into your backpack—along with two pairs of chopsticks—and then exit your house, heading to the mountain path that you’ve gotten so used to walking on in these past few months. Five minutes later, you’re knocking at Sebastian’s door, and Robin answers with a grin. 

“(Y/N)! You know you don’t need to knock,” she says, stepping aside to let you in.

“I figured I should be polite,” you explain. “Plus, I’m not here for shop reasons, I was hoping I could visit Sebastian.”

“Of course. He’s downstairs, like always.” Robin shakes her head slightly. “Tell him to come up and visit his poor mother at some point, I haven’t seen him in days.”

“Will do. Thanks, Robin.”

You squeeze past Robin and turn down the staircase to the basement, and when you knock on the door, you hear the sound of shuffling and then the door creaks open just enough for Sebastian’s eye to peer through. When he sees it’s you, he pulls the door open more, looking relieved. 

“Hey, (Y/N). I thought you were mom,” he says. “What are you doing here?”

“I brought you lunch, just in case you hadn’t eaten.” You shrug the backpack off your shoulders and reach into it, pulling out the container of sashimi. “I know you’re working, but I was thinking maybe you could take a break and share with me?” 

Sebastian’s face lights up when he sees the contents of your Tupperware container, and he quickly steps aside to let you into his room. 

“This is nice of you,” he says, sitting on the couch next to the door and gesturing for you to sit next to him. “Sashimi is one of my favourites.”

“I’ve heard. And I figured you would be busying yourself so much that you wouldn’t give yourself the chance to have lunch.” You take the seat next to Sebastian and pop open the container, handing him one of the pairs of chopsticks. He wastes no time in taking the first piece and taking a small bite.

“This is amazing,” he says, his mouth still full of fish. “Have you made it before?”

“First time,” you reply, taking a piece of sashimi for yourself and trying it. It’s really good, surprisingly. Putting care into things does pay off. 

Together, you and Sebastian manage to finish off about two-thirds of the sashimi, but you’re too full by then to eat the last portion. Sebastian insists that you take it home, at first, but you still have a huge amount that you left at the farm. 

“You like it more, anyway,” you say. “Consider it a gift.”

“Strange gift, but alright. Thank you.” Sebastian puts the lid back onto the Tupperware container. “I’ll give this back to you, promise.”

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” you reply. “I’m sure I have a million more back home.”

“Yeah, but maybe you’ll miss this one.” He puts the container down on his desk and stands up, moving to his bedside table and rummaging through the top drawer. After a moment, he produces a sharpie. An obnoxiously hot pink sharpie. 

He brings it back over and picks up the sashimi container, taking off the sharpie’s cap with his teeth and writing on the side, “(Y/N).”

“There, now I won’t forget,” he says through the cap still in his teeth. He turns to you and his eyebrow furrows slightly when he sees the way you’re staring at him. 

“That’s the marker from Pierre’s store, isn’t it?” 

Sebastian spits out the cap and looks down at the sharpie. “Um, yeah, it is.”

“Why did you keep it?” You gesture towards it. “I highly doubt many situations call for that colour.”

“Well,” Sebastian starts, fiddling with the cap by pushing it off and back on again. “It was just a nice memory, helping you out. I wanted something to commemorate it.”

You don’t know what to say. It’s sweet that Sebastian enjoyed helping you so much that he wanted something to remember it by. And really, it was the first time you two had really interacted, aside from the coat-swapping incident. That sharpie could almost be seen as the start of your friendship. 

“I think it’s nice,” you say finally. “I’m glad you enjoyed breaking and entering enough to want a keepsake.”

Sebastian chuckles. “It was criminal activity in the name of justice, that makes it okay.”

“Either way, I appreciate that it was the main thing that brought us together.” You reach over and tap the lid of the Tupperware container. “Now you have an awesome friend who makes you awesome meals.”

“If you continue making me sashimi, I’ll gladly be your best friend for life.”

Honestly? If that’s the price of a friendship with Sebastian, you’ll gladly keep paying it. 

❤❤❤♡♡♡♡♡