#<- prev tags that is absolutely true

[i-might-be-vanny]

"this character is so problematic!" that character you're showing me is 12 years old

“ugh this character is so annoying and immature” this character is 14

[dabihaul666]

haha who in league

[kquil]

POLY MARAUDERS | HEROES IN TATTOOS PRT.8

08 : TONIGHT

CHPT. SUM. : you finally get to call them yours and they finally get to call you theirs and it's amazing! but something's missing...and it absolutely has something to do with the ache between your legs! 

LENGTH : 6.1k

TAGS. : very suggestive chapter ; boys and reader being horny for each other ; but do we blame them? no. we. don't! ; james being a pest ; sirius being a hot biker ; remus being a gentleman ; reader being a brat ; remus not being a gentleman anymore ; prologue to nsfw chapter

← PREV. : 07 | APOLOGIES & COMFORT | SERIES M.LIST

You don’t know what you expected when the boys slowly began integrating you into their already-established relationship. In the beginning, you were worried about feeling like an outsider. From what they’ve shared with you, the boys have been best friends since their secondary school years, meaning that their history with each other was deeply rooted and you were intimidated, to say the least. You’re just a simple girl they helped protect from a creep a year or so ago. You couldn’t possibly stack up to the type of love they have with each other.

This was a reasonable insecurity to have, the boys understood that and were always there to reassure you of its negligible influence. And when their words weren’t enough, they happily showered you in affection, from loving kisses to warm embraces. They flirted shamelessly, left lingering touches scorched along your exposed skin and pulled you into kisses that ranged from feather-light to deeply passionate, they were eager to kiss and squeeze that vulnerability away until it no longer remained in your beautiful eyes. And you appreciate them so much for their efforts.

Not a second goes by when you don’t feel loved by them, or underappreciated. The love you reciprocated, although much softer and, somewhat, apprehensive, always made them melt into your arms. It was quite the trial considering how much bigger these men were compared to you. But you didn’t mind. Their warmth and weight against you only reinforced the realness of the situation, your situation, your relationship.

This was a dream come true – the best-case scenario for the mounting love you were amassing for each of the three tattooed and pierced men working at the parlour. If you told yourself this would be the outcome months ago, you wouldn’t have believed your ears.

“You’ve got that starry look in your eyes again, dollface,” Sirius chuckles as he presses a loving kiss to your fluttering eyelids, “what are you thinking? Hmmm?” The tattooist currently had you in his lap, disregarding the clock face on the wall. He was supposed to be preparing for a client who would be arriving soon but, instead of being a responsible tattooist, he had himself preoccupied with you.

“Sirius, you’ve got a client coming soon,” you pout, appearing more stressed over his appointment than he is.

As dramatic as always, Sirius put on a big show of missing you, his arms flailing about with his voice fluctuating in his theatrics, “But I’m feeling very deficient in vitamin ‘you’, sweetheart! I need to get my necessary second dose,” you roll your eyes at his playfulness and quietly argue about how this wasn’t his second dose.

“Rather, it’s been your fourth or fifth dose already,” giggling, you endeavour to kiss his pout away before trying to leave so he could have the time to prepare for his appointment while you caught up on your university assignments. Next thing you know, he has you nestled into his lap with your coursework papers set aside and your laptop closed shut. All your attention needed to be on him; he wanted it all.

“We have eight minutes,” he wagered deviously.

You’ve come to find out that Sirius was pretty spoiled when it came to affection. The distinction becomes even more apparent when you compare him to Remus and James. Thankfully, that translated into Sirius happily initiating affection as much as he pleads for it. He’s just this handsome, broad man with the most beautiful grin and the prettiest grey eyes separated by his perfect nose – he’s irresistible, really. And you know that he knows it too; all he has to do is pull those puppy-dog eyes and he gets anything and everything he wants. It’s almost frustrating how he wins your favour each time but you never regret giving into him.

No. Never for Sirius.

…Or Remus. Or James. God, you love these men so damn much!

“Doll?” he tilts his head adorably, a habit he’s picked up from the personified golden retriever himself – James.

“It’s nothing,” you hum, combing your fingers through his hair and pressing a kiss to his slightly scratchy jaw. His stubble was growing out ever so slightly and began to cast a light shadow across the lower half of his handsome face.

“Can’t be nothing,” he protests, delivering a loving nuzzle into the crown of your hair, “are you falling for me?~ Tell me the truth, beautiful girl,” he’s as playful as ever, an expert in heating up your cheeks for his own entertainment, “I know you’re shy but you’re also very honest, hmm?” you don’t respond and keep your focus trained on the rose tattoo creeping up his neck, with its expertly shaded thorns and petals. “I might just give you a reward if you’re honest with me,”

With a small smile, you peek up at him from beneath your lashes. The shadows they cast over your vision distract from the obvious pink hue exploding across his cheeks as soon as he catches your gaze, god! Could you get any more beautiful? You need to stop looking at him like that but also, please keep looking at him and never look away again! “I’ve already fallen for you, Sirius Black,”

Sirius’ jaw goes slack as his playful demeanour collapses under you. The prettiest smile he’s ever seen stretches across your plump lips, so kissable and laced with a shy playfulness he’s fallen in love with.

You drive him absolutely mad…

… and he loves it!

James adores scooping you up into his arms. Not only is your resounding squeal the most adorable thing he’s ever heard but he just cherishes the feel of you tucked up in his embrace. For the first time, he fully understands the expression of describing one’s significant other as their whole world. Because when he has you giggling in his arms, clinging to his neck and nuzzling your face into the space under his jaw, James feels as though he’s got the entire world in his arms – he can accomplish anything and everything he sets his mind to. With you in his arms, he’s invincible; there’s a power that surges through him, a little like adrenaline but not quite so. It’s more powerful. He doesn't know what it is or how exactly to articulate its distinctions but he feels its fullness and capabilities like no other. He is the ruler of an empire, a conqueror with his perfect queen ruling beside him.

He is the leading character of a poignant Shakespearean play with you as his equally established partner. He is one half of a star and you are the other. Each is a ridiculous example but each also feels so fitting.

Of course… Only you could have ignited such an unfounded emotion within him.

“You feel it too, right Moony?” James whispers whilst he and the tall body piercer observe your happy movements gracefully puttering about their upstairs office, organising stacks of paperwork for them.

“Love?” Remus asks. It should be the obvious answer – you’re the protagonist of their conversation after all – but astute to James’ unique expressions for the natural and mundane, the brunette knows it’s going to be one of those times when James strongly feels a certain way and finds it hard to put into words. It makes Remus smile knowing that it’s about you – it’s surely something he can sympathise with James on.

“I guess but… it's different, somehow,” he doesn’t quite know how to articulate it, he just feels it. In his chest, in his fingertips, in his throat, in his stomach, even in his toes – he feels it everywhere. How could he not? Just looking at you, James can already justify that what he was feeling was perfectly admissible, whether he could put it into words or not. What he feels is true, it’s real and it gets stronger (almost achingly so) whenever he looks at you. The apple of his eye… never had an expression fit so well.

“I understand,” Remus voices after a deep, rumbling hum. His gaze soon turns to the tattoo artist beside him, fond eyes softening and stepping much closer to him, “I feel it too — for her and you, and Sirius,”

“That’s a given,” James grins boyishly up at his best friend and precious lover before he’s pulled into a loving kiss.

Tucking your chin a little over your shoulder, you glimpse the inviting image of your two lovers locking lips. It was heartening to see that their love for one another hadn’t changed because of your recent entanglement with them too. There was always a little corner of worry in your heart for potentially breaking their bond due to your interference.

The last time you let that same emotion control you, the aftereffects were explosive and unnecessarily wounding to all parties so you keep the emotion in check often, the boys too. But there was no complete dismissal of it. As much as you adore the boys and their love for you, you also adore their love for each other. It was incredibly inspiring to see what they had built together. Their parlour, their love, their quaint, shared flat.

But now, you also had the privilege of seeing them share more intimate acts of love and it was leading to a bad habit, a bad staring habit. So much so that you didn’t notice the two breaking away from each other until their devious smirks were solely directed at you.

“Care to join us, my dear?” Remus calls his voice like a hypnotising whisper, pulling invisible strings to shift your feet forward and lure you in. In no time at all, you’re close enough for the two to lock you between their strong, tattooed arms and finally launch their attack. You’re not complaining.

You’re so grateful to be able to join in their love and be with them like this. And you’re curious about what the four of you would end up building together one day. Rather than a small flat, maybe a house? A family? With kids? Fur-babies? A cat or dog? Maybe both? Regardless, one promise was absolutely certain: a happy life that’s bursting at the seams with love – it was a very compelling thought.

Finally winding down for the night, you separate from the boys and remain tucked away in their neatly prepared spare bedroom. James and Sirius were proud to announce that they had tidied the place up for you; Remus would have contributed as well if it weren’t for him being the main man who handled the paperwork for the parlour.

You thanked the two for their thoughtfulness with a kiss but also kissed Remus for his hard work in ‘keeping their business alive’. It was a cheeky remark but one that got an adorable pout from James and Sirius along with a well-humoured laugh from the tall brunette himself. There was a love in his eyes that made you weak in the knees, his chocolate pools staring down at you, threatening to drown you in their warmth, his fingers ghosting the skin of your chin and ever so gently tilting your face to admire your features better. He moved as if he were propping up a delicate art piece, not wanting to press too harshly but enough to warrant a sensitive and lingering touch.

“You spoil us,” he utters as a heat blooms across your cheeks and a small peep pushes past your lips. Mistaking your incoherent squeak for verbal thought, Remus bends down at the waist with curious and furrowed brows, “What was that, my dear?” James and Sirius lightly snicker to themselves from the interaction. You would have scolded them for their childish behaviour if Remus didn’t have you melting into a puddle from doing absolutely nothing!

“I-It’s nothing, Rem,” thankfully, he didn’t need much convincing. Having him that close was intimidating – you just can’t believe that this beautiful, soft-spoken, loving and gentle giant of a man is yours.

The boys had allowed you to use the bathroom first and followed after you for their night routine. From where you sat at the vanity, you often catch yourself smiling and sometimes even giggling when you hear their antics echoing through the hallway. It was all very amusing and you had to bite your lip when thoughts of normalising this scenario into a nightly routine materialised in your head. It was still early on in your otherwise unconventional relationship and you didn’t want to risk anything. An eagerness for more was healthy but over-eagerness wouldn’t be worth potentially commencing an accelerated rate of negative interactions.

Going through your nightly skincare, you hum a soft tune to yourself. It felt like you were at your own flat, getting ready for bed as if it was any other night and the familiarity was surprising. You didn’t feel out of place at all despite the new environment. Although, you wouldn't expect anything less from your boys. They really knew how to make you feel welcome. At least you know that you’ll be sleeping restfully tonight.

“Almost ready for bed, Angel?” James’ sudden appearance in the doorway makes you tense before playfully pouting at him, especially when he has the gall to giggle at your startled reaction, “Awww~ don’t be like that, love~” he coos, walking up to stand behind your seated form. He, too, bends at the waist to kiss behind your ear and trail loving pecks down your neck to the slopes of your shoulder.

“My night routine is meant to be relaxing, Jamie,” you huff but he can hear the smile in your voice and looks up with his beautiful eyes, meeting your gaze in the vanity mirror. Slowly, he pulls his lips away from your exposed shoulder.

With a devilish smirk, he brings his lips to your ear and whispers, “I can help you with that…” You feel his feathery touch tracing the curves of your waist, coming up from your hips, “Relaxing, I mean~”

“James!”

He throws his head back with a laugh that makes his shoulders shake and his pretty curls bounce ever so slightly. He’s risen to his full height now and resists the urge to caress the skin of your cheek, respectful of your freshly applied skincare — he’s had to put up with Sirius’ grumbles and whines after mistakenly kissing his still dewy, moisturised cheek on previous nights. And James wouldn’t want to ruin your first night here like that. He’s no amateur. Instead, James concedes to caressing your hair and placing a loving kiss onto your crown. He loves the combined smell of your hair products and natural scent. It’s solely you; a fragrance that could never be contained in a bottle, which is, both, a pity and a relief. A pity that he can’t carry a small bottle around whenever he’s missing you horribly bad. But a relief that something so intimate about you couldn’t be shared beyond him, Sirius and Remus. James would rather set the world ablaze before that ever came to fruition.

“Alright, my love, I’ll leave you be…” you begin to sigh in relief until, “-for now~”

“James!” you giggle sweetly, and he joins you not too long after, “You’re such a pest!”

He cackles adorably as he walks back to the door, making his exit swift and injury-free – he, just barely, evades your swatting hands. The two of you gradually allow your shared merriment to fade into a comfortable silence. You return to completing your skincare routine while James remains at the doorway.

From afar, the tattooist quietly admires your figure, elegant and so… so girly as you go through your nightly regime. It wasn’t a bad thing seeing your femininity shine through was refreshing. Sure, Sirius partook in the same self-care religiously, at the start of every day and the beginning of every night but you, with your cosy pyjamas, fuzzy slippers, panda ears headband and prettily laid out products, have James bewitched; entranced in the most blissful way. He likes seeing and observing you like this. So comfortable that there isn’t a single change in your routine; so comfortable that you’re humming to yourself; so comfortable that you look like you belong here. Truthfully, he’s wanted to ask you to move in for quite some time now but understands the importance of going at a steady pace and one that everyone agrees on.

You all finally have each other to call your own, that’s what truly mattered at the end of the day. So he holds himself back.

The routine you have is quite thorough so you’re not one to exclude your neck area or chest. As you adjust your clothes to prep your neck and chest area, James glimpses more and more of your skin each time. Naturally, his cheeks colour a soft pink while his thoughts are gradually consumed by all the things he wants to do to you — bending you over every piece of furniture in the flat, not discounting the walls or the carpeted floor, even atop and inside his beloved car. Every hot and crude detail is uncensored, the images that flash in his head are dangerously explicit and encompass you wholely. Your pleasure is his top priority. He’ll have you moaning in his ear, panting for breath as he goes faster, harder, whatever you want, as long as you keep singing for him. Singing until you’re screaming and reaching your peak over and over and over—

“The door locks, y’know,” James mentions casually, not surprising you as much this time. Although his random comment does make you raise a brow.

“Oh?” you apply your berry-flavoured lip mask and smile at him through the mirror with a hint of curiosity, “Okay, thank you for telling me, Jamie,” it still wasn’t clear to you what he was trying to get at with his casual but warning remark.

“Are you going to lock it for the night?” his question makes you stop for a moment, what was he trying to say? “I think you should lock it, angel… you don’t want any surprise visitors — it’s hard resisting you this long,” he had a teasing smile on his lips but there was a dark look in his eyes that made you shudder. That’s what he meant…

“A-alright,”

He pauses, appearing to contemplate something as he leans forward but ultimately decides against his earlier intentions and straightens his posture accordingly, “that’s my good girl,” you watch his sly smirk disappear from the vanity mirror. It takes you a few moments longer to return to your skincare routine.

Sirius smirks at you with an amused glint in his eye, “do you want to sit on it?” he asks, his big hand gently patting the seat of his bike. Being able to see right through you and read your inner thoughts was one of Sirius’ many talents. It amazed you but also made your cheeks flush in embarrassment. Were you really that transparent and readable? To Sirius, you were, but that’s only because he’s grown to have a keen eye for you and your little quirks; he finds them adorable and adores being able to read your thoughts, so that he knows he’s catering to you well.

Your hesitation is obvious. It’s not like you haven’t ridden on his motorbike before; you’ve ridden on it plenty of times. However, it was usually with you seated behind Sirius. For a while, you contemplated whether or not it would feel different to be the actual biker. You didn’t know how to ride a motorbike so you were secretly hoping that Sirius would allow you to hop on after he did his routine motorbike maintenance. It was common to do these checks and services every 6 months, but because Sirius used his motorbike so often, he tracked the regular services based on the miles he covered. He’s already crossed 4000 miles so his bike was due for some maintenance already.

“Are you sure?” you ask in a voice that’s so soft and sweet, Sirius can’t help but temper his smirk into a warm smile.

“It’s safe, sweetheart, and I wouldn’t have offered if I wasn’t okay with it,” the bright grin you gifted him made Sirius question why he hadn’t thought to make such an offer sooner. It was clear that you were interested in his bike but he didn’t know whether or not he was deciphering your intentions correctly, until now. With a skip in your step, you make your way over as Sirius chuckles to himself.

You’re just too cute~

“Thank you, Siri,” you reach up to cup his jaw and gently guide him down to press a loving kiss against his cheek.

“Anything for you, Doll,” he kisses your cheek as well, just before you get the chance to pull too far away from him. Sirius then guides you onto his motorbike, offering to stabilise you with his hands on your hips as you get settled on the seat. With his strength alone, he takes the bike off his kickstand and straightens it from the back so that you can experience what it’s really like without the bike being slanted to the side. The tattooist is much taller than you and so you aren’t able to fully flatfoot your feet, instead your toes barely brush the ground. Seeing that you’re able to just swing your feet back and forth, a quiet giggle escapes you – music to Sirius’ ears.

“This is fun!” you cheer softly, still quite shy as you glance over your shoulder with a flutter of your lashes, meeting eyes with the inked-up biker, who was grinning brightly at you. His strong arms are on full display, tattoos and all, as he holds the bike straight and steady from behind. He’s dressed in a simple black tank top and loose grey joggers. It’s a style that James often wears around their flat but you’re not surprised that Sirius was able to pull off the look too. With a face like his, you can easily determine that he’d suit any style he tries on.

“Why don’t you try pretending you’re actually riding it by grabbing onto the handles,” he encourages, excited. Having James, Remus and you as his loves were heaven on earth, but being able to share one of his favourite hobbies and his beloved motorbike fostered a different kind of haven in his heart. It’s overflowing and shows easily in his voice.

“Okay!” eagerly, you lean forward to grasp onto the handles and, with a feverish buzz, pretend you’re actually riding the bike out on the road. From backpacking behind Sirius so often, imagining the shift in positions and being the actual biker was quite easy. What a thrill! No wonder Sirius makes up any excuse to be out on his bike.

Yes, you’re still stationary but it’s just too easy to imagine everything, from the wind in your hair to the adrenaline pumping through your veins, encouraged by the rapidly passing views on either side of you. A view of the seaside at sunset is very appealing but winding country roads also offer great scenery. You can hear your heartbeat rising to match your vision and you have to bite your lip to contain an elated laugh. There’s no need to embarrass yourself even more, especially with Sirius behind you.

So stuck in your pretending, you miss Sirius’ partially restrained groan of frustration from behind your leant-over figure, “Fuck. Me…” he has the perfect view of your ass. And when you’re bent over his bike like this, his joggers tighten up around his crotch alarmingly fast. Never mind that the joggers were already very loose-fitting, he can’t help himself when you’re offering him such a spectacular view. And to have it be on top of his motorbike too…

The things you do to him… the things he would do to you.

Suppressing another groan, Sirius hurries to free his kickstand and lean his bike over before you realise what’s happening. It takes a lot of strength and agility but his focus has narrowly concentrated on you and nothing was going to get in his way. He has to resist going all the way – for now – but that doesn’t mean resigning himself to zero contact at all.

“Siri–?!” you squeal in surprise when he lifts you off his bike and positions you in a way that forces your legs to wrap around his hips from fear of falling, while his arms circle your hips, “what’s this all about?” you give an adorable tilt of your head as you look down at him, perched a little higher on his torso so that your hands could place themselves on his sturdy shoulders while his arm provides a sort of seat for you underneath.

“I’ll show you what this is about,” his voice is several octaves lower, barely recognisable from where they resonate at the far back of his throat. His big hands grab the globes of your ass and lower you down from your upper perch so that he grinds your covered pussy lips against his erect cock. Even through the fabric of his joggers, the sheer size of him is obvious and it’s mortifying how wet you get. He keeps you pressed against him as he swallows your shocked gasp, prying your lips apart with his tongue so he can explore your sweet mouth.

“...you can’t be showing your perfect ass like that – so pretty on top of my bike – without facing the consequences, dollface,”

“But!” you manage to protest between his eager lips, “but you said–!”

“I know what I said,” he bites at your lower lips and grinds against you, “I guess we’re both at fault that I’m like this right now, huh, baby?” he pulls away to suck and nibble on your neck, loving the moans he draws from you, “Nothing a little loving can’t fix, right?”

He won’t go too far… just a little grinding here and there while he devours your pretty little mouth. That’s all he’s asking for. And, being the lovely, kind princess that you are, of course, you oblige him.

“A-alright…” you conceded, finally trying to match his level of eagerness when his lips connected with yours once more.

“That’s my girl~”

The initial week everything came to a head, where all was revealed and you ended up spending the night at the boys’ flat, only for disaster to hit in the form of your period the next day was weeks behind you now. You're surprised that a week after that – when you had finally gotten off your dreaded period – Remus didn’t pounce on you. Nor did James. Or Sirius. Now an entire month has passed and still nothing. James and Sirius have been more impassioned than Remus but it appears as though they’re more united than ever on the simple fact of ‘going easy’ on you.

The tall brunette insinuated such provocative things that night. Thinking back to that moment makes butterflies explode in your stomach, all while a ravenous heat spreads chaotically throughout your body. That same heat then stubbornly settles between your legs and in your lower belly. You’re ashamed to admit that you were really looking forward to what Remus planned on doing to you…

But now he’s being the perfect gentleman again and you don’t know what to do!

You love how gentlemanly he is, kissing you sweetly on the cheek, whispering loving, poetic words only for you to hear, listening to anything and everything you wanted to say with the utmost attention and interest, pulling doors open for you, doing little favours that made your days go by smoother and so much more. It felt incredibly unreasonable to complain when there was nothing to complain about! Though… were you really complaining? If you think about it, all you would be doing is expressing your opinion and providing some constructive criticism for what you want out of the relationship – there’s nothing wrong with that, is there?

When you officially became theirs and them, yours, it was established and emphasised heavily by Remus, himself, that communication was key to having a successful and loving relationship. If something was wrong, you could go to them without any hesitation; they promised to never disregard your worries or dismiss them apathetically. And you made the same promise to them, in return. If they were ever feeling insecure about something in the relationship then they could communicate any concerns they have to you without feeling an ounce of fear. By verbalising your, somewhat, embarrassing internal torment, you’d be keeping your promise and prioritising communication — just like you all promised each other!

So you have nothing to worry about…

It’s just a little hard to verbalise that’s all…

…maybe you should wait until after dinner tonight? Remus looks a little busy right now…

“Don’t look at me with those eyes, pretty girl,” Remus’ low, bordering seductive, voice tenses your nerves, pulling a lazy chuckle from the back of his throat at the adorable sight of your surprise, “you’re distracting me,” he emphasises his statement with the tap of his pen onto the papers laid out before him. Despite his comment, however, he doesn’t sound angry and he’s not frowning either. Instead, Remus has his chin in the palm of his hand and tilts his head at you, smiling fondly at your visage.

“You look like you don’t mind it,” you shot back, voice shy but quippy, parallel to the defiant folding of your arms.

Remus throws his head back with a laugh before shaking his head at you. His smile widens and he bites his lower lip to force it down just a little bit. As you put on a playful pout, your earlier thoughts slipping from your mind, the tattooed body piercer rolls over to you on his wheeled office chair.

Reaching you in a few long strides, knee to knee, he disregards your sassy comment and simply asks, “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

A heat crawls up your neck and settles on the apples of your cheeks as your earlier contemplations return. It’s a little hard to muster up your courage to speak right now. And, conveniently, the carpeted floors look very interesting all of a sudden.

“I-It was nothing,” you unfold your arms and fidget with the hem of your pleated skirt; your gaze still fixed onto the office’s dark grey carpet.

He quirks a brow but doesn’t say anything despite the question evident in his chocolate-brown eyes. His gaze holds onto your own, the small smile on his lips calming your earlier taut nerves. In your peripheral, Remus slides his fingertips over the skin of your thighs, his movement careful and feathery until he hears you suck in a sharp breath. As soon as your eyes widen, shocked by his unexpected touch and you release a sharp gasp, Remus throws all care out the window. He proceeds to slide his grip under your thighs and, hoists you up and over to sit on his lap. Thankfully his office chair doesn’t have any armrests so he’s able to comfortably seat you there, pretty as can be.

“You’re sure you can’t tell me?” he asks in a murmur, muffled by the skin of your temple as he presses a soft kiss there.

“It’s really nothing!” you squeak, avoiding his eyes and missing his fond smile as he watches you fumbling with your hands. He keeps you perfectly seated on his lap from where he firmly grips your outer thighs. Your skin is so soft and smooth with the perfect amount of fluff, to fill it in – he loves all of you but if he had to choose, he’d say your thighs were his favourite feature.

“You can be honest with me,” you don’t answer, tucking your flustered face into the crook of his neck instead. Fondly, he begins to caress the back of your head with one hand, the other still on your thigh. He lowers his voice into a quiet murmur so only you can hear, “Why don’t you whisper it to me instead?”

Funnily enough, his suggestion, no matter how simple, was convincing. It was meant for his ears only and you didn’t want to risk anyone else hearing your inner thoughts out loud. Also, the idea of whispering your carnal contemplations felt… safer somehow. Intimate too but you ran with it, your thoughts begging to be released.

Leaning up, you place one hand on his broad chest, the other on his shoulder so as to position your lips beside his ear with enough stability, “I was just thinking about…umm,”

“Hmm?...” you feel his thumbs caressing the skin of your thighs — a comforting gesture that you feel embarrassed for being unsuited to your pending admission.

“About you…”

Something flashes in his eyes, “...What about me, my love?” he hopes to god he hasn’t upset you.

You pause to muster up enough courage, “...about what you said you would do to me that night…” Hopefully, he knows what you’re referring to because you don’t think you’ll be able to articulate his exact words or the entire situation properly. You’re already far too sheepish.

Holding your breath, you wait for some sort of reaction, maybe a spoken word? Something… But Remus’ lips are sealed shut and there’s only silence. Your heart hammers in your ears as you slowly pull away from the safety of your lover’s neck and peek up to gauge his reaction, only to find that his face shows no emotion at all. You’re tempted to whisper his name, a soft prompt and an indirect request for some sort of answer when he’s suddenly pulling you into a deep kiss. One hand cups your jaw as the other explores your curves. His movement and the feeling he imbues in the kiss – all of it points to an impatience and a vicious need, the need to have you in every way possible.

Remus explores the lines of your shape but makes a small sound of displeasure when his hands are unable to sneak up the AC/DC graphic shirt you stole from Sirius as it’s tucked into your pleated skirt. Quickly, he moves his large hands back to your exposed thighs. You hold your breath as you feel his warm touch move up your warm skin, far enough to sneak past the hem of your pleated skirt.

“Please…” Remus relishes in the moan that parts your delicious, bruised lips, “I can take it! Please please please,” you gasp and pant, your shaking voice emphasising your desperation for more. You’ve waited so long, you’ve been so patient, you’re ready for this! The feel of his lips against your skin is addictive but your addiction is insatiable from that alone and you beg for more.

“Are you sure about that?” Remus’ lips make it to the shell of your ear, where his husky voice whispers as he grabs at your ass. With his hands full of you, he pulls you in to grind his bulging hardness against your puffy, lower lips and dampening panties. He relishes in the moans that you can’t contain behind trembling, kiss-bitten lips and smirks when he hears the click of the office door opening.

“She’s ready for us then?” James asks, the smirk on his lips obvious through the smug tone of his voice.

“It’s about damn time,”

Remus smiles as you tuck your flustered face into the crook of his neck and gives your ass a reassuring squeeze beneath your skirt, “Tonight, sweetheart,”

You pout at his remark and pull away with a huff, “No!” you protest defiantly, “Now!” You’re tired of waiting! And what’s the use of their upstairs, private office space if you can’t do private things in it?

“Don’t be a brat, dove,” Remus warns, the usual warmth leaving his eyes as Sirius and James step into the room and close the door behind them but don’t step an inch closer.

“But I’ve waited so long, please Rem, I promise I can take it—” you squeal loudly when a harsh slap hits your ass. So caught up in your needs, you completely missed how Remus used one hand to lift your skirt while his other prepared to deliver penance.

“Rem–!” ignoring your whining, he sits down to bend you over his lap and continues beating your ass despite your shrieks of pain. It wasn’t until you were a whimpering tearful mess that Remus finally relented, his big hand returning to their gentle touches as he comfortingly palms your sore ass. He’s sorry. But you were being a brat.

“Brats don’t deserve to get what they want, even if they say please, do I make myself clear?”

Unable to vocalise properly through your tears and pitiful whimpers, you simply nod your head but squealed when Remus cupped your tender asscheek and gave it a firm squeeze of displeasure, “Y-yes sir,”

“Good girl,” Remus hums softly,

NAVI. | SERIES M.LIST | NEXT : 09 | THE NIGHT... →

A/N : next chapter will be where everything goes down my loves! i hope you're prepared and i'm sorry for making you all wait this long; what can i say? i love a good slow burn smut hehe~

again, i'd like to remind everyone that i have discontinued all my taglists but made a side account for you to follow so you can be notified whenever i post something new, just turn on notifications @thekqipond

please like, comment and reblog to show your support, i'd really appreciate it! property of kquil ; all written content is mine and no one else's unless stated otherwise ; do not steal, plagiarise, modify or translate to other sites

[ivysprophecy]

please please please

word count; 1644

summary; turning off your phone and shutting out the world isnt the best way to handle your problems but its what you do. and jjs had enough of it.

warnings; i dont think there is any? mentions of anxiety attacks? tagging @murdockcastleslut @kimoralov3 @arkofblake

masterlist

prev. | next

divider by @bernardsbendystraws

"well hey there stranger"

i turn from my book to look behind me, seeing the boy id been actively avoiding for the past two days. carrying his surf board.

i shouldve remembered he'd come here to surf. i just wouldn't have guessed this early in the morning.

"hey jayj."

"oh thats all i get? 'hey'? no 'i miss you so much'?" he sets his board in the sand taking a seat next to me on my blanket.

guess im not finishing my book today. "oh my god jj! youre here! ive been dyingggg to talk to you! i cant believe youre really in here in the flesh! there. better?"

"oh dont be like that- cmon mama whatd i do?" i feel bad with the genuine concern on his face.

okay was ghosting him out of nowhere awful of me? probably. i just didnt know what else to do.

after that night at the bonfire i realized that with my feelings for him growing it wasnt a good idea for us to continue our casual... something. it played with both our emotions. it isnt fair to either of us.

especially after his 'i love you'. that really did it in for me.

"you didnt do anything jj. trust. i just... ive been in a funk. needed some me time thats all."

"well... do you still need your 'me time'?" he looked so hopeful. how could i say yes? where jj maybank is concerned ill easily fold every time. "cause you havent answered my texts so i couldn't ask you to surf with me this morning."

"... i dont have my board. but i suppose i can hang out with you for a little while."

"im honored," he smiles laying back on his elbows, "but really. are you good? i like to think i know you pretty well and this whole MIA thing was not normal."

turning to face him more, i sigh, what the fuck am i supposed to say? 'yea im just so in love with you i cant be around you' yea that would go over really well.

"i dont know. just gotta lot of stuff goin on. you dont have to worry though. im good."

"well do ya wanna talk about it?"

"trust me jay you dont wanna hear about my problems. theyre trivial at best."

"what are friends for if not for listening?" he nudges me with his shoulder urging me to talk. i really dont think i can do this. i was not prepared.

"youre not a very good listener," i point out, to which he immediately takes faux offense. jaw dropped and everything.

"oh thats just not true! i can listen!"

i run a hand through my tangled hair in frustration. this cannot be how i tell him. it just cant. i came here to get away from thinking about this and now hes right here in front of me acting so unserious while im spiraling.

"jj i really appreciate how eager you are to help me but its really not necessary. i didnt really prepare myself and its just too much-"

"prepare yourself? mama what the fuck are you talking about? does this have to do with that night after the bonfire? i mean obviously it does who am i kidding you havent talked to me since then. did i do something wrong? was- was it bad?" he leans in closer, lowering his voice thats laced with worry and guilt.

oh my god that is the absolute last thing i expected him to say. shit i really fucked this up. and honestly just not true.

"what? no! no jj you didnt do anything wrong and it was perfect. promise," i try to reassure him but i know deep down hes gonna over think this whole thing if i dont tell him straight up

i may love him but i never said he was the brightest in the bunch.

"okay so whats the problem?"

"the problem is that it was perfect," i cant help but let out a sigh before hiding my face in my hands as the words leave my mouth.

god my heart is racing, im not ready for this conversation. maybe if i pass out i wont have to. yea if he has to call an ambulance then we can avoid this all together. but an ambulance is also like five grand so...

shit.

"... youre mad at me because you had a good time?" his face contorted in a weird fixture of confusion.

"no! no- god youre so dense sometimes!"

"mama i dont have a fucking clue what youre saying! how does that make me stupid??"

i hide my face in my hands again trying to compose myself because what the fuck kind of confession is this?

"jj im avoiding you because ive been developing feelings for you and i cannot in good conscience keep being so casual with you and sleeping with you knowing this and i know that you do not want anything serious so i figured id just make it easier for the both of us and just take myself out of the situation entirely so that nothing bad happens and i cannot stop fucking talking so please for the love of god say something or do something because i feel like my heart is about to beat out of my chest and-"

oh my god im getting my book moment. he just kissed me to make me stop talking!!! oh my god hes kissing me.

is this where i kiss him back?

of course i kiss him back!! what the fuck!!? and oh my lord does it feel nice, so so so nice.

the way his tongue presses against mine, the way he cups my jaw and pulls me close to him. it was slow and confident and loving and everything he knows i like. his hands find my hips like muscle memory, pulling our bodies together, eventually having me on his lap. where he takes my hands and places them on his chest so i can feel his chest rise and fall with deep breaths.

“… mama you need to learn to breathe.”

“that’s not funny right now jj. im actively having an anxiety attack, horrible thing to say really."

"what're you so anxious about? i think we're havin' a pretty calm conversation, dont you?"

"i mean yea- but thats not-" he interrupts me while shaking his head with a shrug.

"listen, i get why youre a little nervous to say that, all things considered. but i thought it was pretty obvious i was into you, i just didnt wanna push you because you made your boundaries clear so i just took what i could get."

my eyes bug out of my head in shock. am i the dense one? i mean yea hes a really good kisser and i can feel he cares deeply about me when we do stuff and makes me feel safe and supported but that doesnt mean-

yea im stupid. he all but outright said it. actually he has. thats what started this panic.

"... okay yea- maybe. but you agreed they were a good idea so i figured that meant you wanted them there too. and i dont know- it just kind of got overwhelming and i didnt wanna be one of those girls who expects something huge after sex so... you know what i mean? and truthfully youre not what i expected for me."

"what does that mean?" his face showed a little offense.

"i just mean- ya know. for one i didnt expect to love my best friend. and then on top of that i didnt think id love a guy who was a treasure hunting, or- adrenaline junkie i should say."

he leans back putting some space between us, "is that supposed to be a bad thing?

"no! no jay im not saying this right- i-... youre a fighter and youre adventurous- a lot of things im not. if that makes sense. all im sayin is a few years ago i wouldnt have expected to be here. but i like it here. love it here even," i smile at him teasingly trying to ease his worries. the last thing i need is to say the wrong thing right now.

"so what youre saying is that you love me?"

"youre such an idiot."

'but do ya? because i think you do mama."

i roll my eyes chuckling, "yea. yea i do maybank," i press a small kiss to his cheek leaning back into him.

"does this mean youll let me make you a maybank mama?" his eyebrow was quirked up as he teases his question.

"lets not get ahead of ourselves. how about we take this slow?"

he looks down at my button up shirt i was wearing over my bikini to shield me from the ocean breeze, and i could tell he was debating taking it off of me. giving me that same look he always does.

"slow? mama i dont think we're gonna be too good at that."

"all 'm sayin is we dont have to jump the gun, we both admitted it, doesnt mean we gotta change the way we act or announce it or nothing. we can just enjoy this ourselves ya know?"

"you embarrassed of me mama?"

"not at all baby, just want you all to myself. is that too much to ask for?"

he shakes his head leaning up against me, our faces inches apart, "nah i dont think so. i like the sound of that."

i meet him the rest of the way pressing his lips to mine, smiling into it. pulling him as close as humanly possible. i need him under mind skin, in my blood, you know?

"i do too, so we agree? we'll keep this between us for now?"

"whatever you want mama. yes maam."

[potterhead0taku]

Why are we so keen to see our favorites suffer????

woah this character is so cool i wish they were covered in blood their whole body trembling with a look of absolute horror on their face as theyre struggling to breathe in panic

[soap-ify]

mdni.

YOU'RE AN ANGEL, I'M A DOG | simon 'ghost' riley x reader

05 — i'll meet the judgement by the hounds.

chapter summary — a fool and a coward, that's the realisation you had come to.

tags / cw — no smut, fluff, a bit domestic honestly, basically reader's drunk and simon takes care of you, bittersweet, simon opens up... a bit, angst, suicidal thoughts, very subtle religious references if they even count as one, simon's in denial and reader is on the verge of losing it all. [4k words]

masterlist | ao3 | prev | next

Simon had come to the conclusion that you were a snake, and your love was your poison. Maybe he really was a coward for being afraid to let your venom drown into his veins.

“Remind me to never take you out for drinking again.”

If it weren’t for Simon holding you carefully against him and walking through the street, you’d surely have collapsed on the ground all drunk and worse, thrown up by now.

It was a little mistake. One drink became two, and then three. You had forgotten about your tolerance, and here you were now. It’s all because of Simon. That’s what your excuse was, blaming it all on him. Which was true in all honesty, you had gotten too excited about this little hangout.

“You’ll never go out with me again?” Completely mishearing his words, you looked up at him with wide eyes, tears already approaching. Yeah, you were completely drunk. Simon froze, his heart tearing at the sight of your incoming tears, even if they were just due to your emotions being all over the place now. Emotions that had always been there, hidden deep within.

His first instinct was to ignore your words and just keep walking, his heart begging for him to comfort you. But again, how does a killer comfort an angel? How would the moon comfort the ocean, while being so far away?

“I didn’t say that.” He gruffly replied and continued to look ahead, not daring to meet your eyes anymore.

O Angel, let me fall on my knees, kiss your fingers, and weep for forgiveness. So you may hold my absolution, and make me man again.

“C’mon, we gotta take you home.” Simon internally cursed himself for not taking you both to the bar in a car. He hadn’t considered the possibility of you being a drunk mess. Do I ever consider anything?

“No!” Your loud whine echoed in the empty pavement, and he could barely hold in a chuckle, deciding to bite his bottom lip beneath his mask. “Can’t we spend more time together, Si?”

I’d spend a lifetime with you. But god forbid he ever said those words. Not to you, not to anyone. “S’not like m’gonna die or somethin’, or that you’ll never see me again.” Simon grumbled and tightened his hand around your waist, accommodating your wobbly body, guiding you.

Simon wished he could take your hands and sway around with you, let both of you move into a sweet dance, with the stars praising you. A performance for the cosmos. He wished he could hold you when you throw yourself over him, to let you never escape his embrace. Lovers forever tangled.

He wished.

He wondered what something like that even would look like. His dad never danced with his mother. He remembers his mother looking at him, holding in her tears and forcing a smile. “I promise your dad loves me, just as much as I love him. He's just… exhausted nowadays.” He wished his mother didn’t consider him a naive — a child.

Simon doesn’t think he was ever a child. A child is innocent, his very first cry was a sin.

“Simon?” Your voice snapped him out of the reminiscence he was trapped in. He let out a soft grunt, urging you to continue.

“Have you… Have you ever seen a ghost?” You burst into laughter at your own poor attempt at the joke, a rapid change of emotion, though in your defence, it’s definitely very funny. Your free hand tried to wipe the tears as you continued laughing, and Simon swore that this was truly the angels’ hymn eliciting from your mouth.

“Do I count?” He grinned behind his mask, the side of his eyes crinkling a bit. You quickly shook your head and stared at him with determined eyes, fully set on your question. “In that case, no. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one, love. But if I do, I’ll make sure to tell ‘em you said hello.”

If it was someone else like Kyle or Johnny who would be laughing about this joke, Simon was sure that he would have said something snarky or just straight up ignored them. But not with you, never with you.

“You’re the best.” You beamed, his heart squeezed painfully.

“We’re almost there.”

Upon arriving at your apartment complex, he dropped you off outside your apartment’s front door, the only thing in mind being to flee quickly so your sweet smile doesn’t taunt him anymore. Though he simply couldn’t, your fingers not letting go off his forearm at all. Too exhausted to figure out if it was intentional or not, he sighed under his breath and turned over to face you, brown eyes having a slight shine in them due to the hallway’s light.

“C’mon, you gotta go in and rest.” He couldn’t figure out why his breathing was falling short. Was it the alcohol? He barely drank anything.

You, on the other hand, tried your best to not look up at him and meet his eyes, knowing that it would shut you up. Like the intimidating gaze of a god, a warrior. You had to speak your mind, had to know about something, to ease the storm in your head.

“Are you getting bored of me?” These words slipped out of your lips as a meek whisper, forbidden.

It was a sickening feeling that ensued within Simon after that, as if something was grabbing his heart and trying to rip it out of his chest. Inhale, exhale. He didn’t know what exactly horrified him. Probably the fact that he knew what had caused you to think like that. The perfume.

O Angel, let me carve my heart out with a knife and hand it to you as an offering — apology. So may your hands embrace it and take me home, with thee. So may your fingers caress my cheek once again, and let my blood paint my skin.

“No.” He was embarrassingly quick to reply, fingers curling up into fists by his sides as he inhaled sharply. How could he put such thoughts into your head? How could I? Only a devil, the most evil being, could commit such atrocity.

You paused at his words, not knowing what else to say. No? Then why was that perfume there? You didn’t want him to think you were dumb enough to not notice that. “You’re lying…” Your voice cracked, and it was no longer the alcohol playing you like a puppet. It was you now. You felt like your own marionette. Stop speaking, fucking stop. “I am not dumb, Si. I saw that p-perfume on your couch the other day. Is that why you got mad at me?” God, stop talking please. “You could have just… said that you prefer other girls. Am I… Am I making a fucking fool out of myself here?” It terrified you, your own emotions terrified you. Your voice was rising just a bit, and all your feelings had their hands wrapped around your throat. Controlling you. You didn’t want to speak, didn’t want to say it out loud. You weren’t used to being so open about your mind, and now you felt like nothing but a cat shivering under the rain — alone and abandoned. Vulnerable, naked.

Maybe you and Simon weren’t so different after all. Vulnerability — just why did it terrify humans? Were the angels and the gods just as opposed to vulnerability?

“Oh, l-” Love. It almost slipped off his tongue, and he didn’t know if you even wanted him to call you that right now. The thought alone made him shudder uncomfortably. He didn’t know what to do — stuck in between two roads. Should he lie? Or tell you the truth? — That it was just one time, a drunken act that is nothing but lamentable to him.

Why were you both even acting like an actual couple right now?

He swallowed the lump that threatened to torture his throat, exhaling softly. “I was drunk, and it happened. She probably left her perfume accidentally.” He spilled the truth out. Just the way a mature person would. Don’t be fucking daft, Riley. His eyes assessed the subtle twitch of your brows at that, your lips quivering. He wished he could just lean in and kiss all the tears away, despite them not having landed on your cheeks. Hopefully they won’t.

“Oh…” Your response was too short, unsure and reluctant. It made Simon feel as if he had sinned once again, chains threatening to drag him into the darkest depths of Hell. Home — the one he was familiar with.

You swallowed nervously and looked down at your feet, your hand long having stopped holding his arm. Instead, your fingers were fiddling with one another anxiously. Why did you feel as if you were betrayed? A desperate cry for love, you wished you could say it to him. To his face, sob and scream about what you felt. He was the only one who understood, who was willing to understand. He was the only one who ever was, and who ever will be.

The agreement. It was no longer just fucking, it never was. Not since the day you saw him with Kyle, not since the day he talked with you after Kyle gestured at you. Never. Could he also see it all the way you did?

Your silence was a clear indicator of the fact that you were lost in your thoughts now. Simon’s eyes softened up, and before he could think rationally, his body reacted on its own and embraced you tightly against his chest, strong arms wrapping around you protectively.

“Fuck…” He cussed under his breath, despising how his voice was thickening up with emotion. He hugged you like an old dog messily giving affection to its owner. My angel, my angel. I sinned, I have sinned. I am sorry.

He pulled you impossibly close, as if wanting to mold his body into yours, to become one. He could be with you forever in that way, to be your breathing and you his heartbeat.

You didn’t even feel confused at his rapid action at all. Just broken, so broken. He was the hammer that had finally hit the dam, and broke it. “W-Why?” Your voice wavered and mixed into a sob, your hands tightened holding onto him, fingers threatening to dig deeper as you let your head rest against him, tears tickling your skin. “I am so tired… So tired, Si. I hate you…”

“Do you want me to leave?” His hold tightened despite his words.

“No.” Your words came out a bit more forcefully than you had intended, too anxious to let him go. You felt his right hand leaving your back, a soft whimper leaving your lips once you felt his lips, bare and real, pressing a soft kiss on the top of your head, soon realising that he had taken his mask off. Too shy and messy in tears, you made no effort to look up at him and instead continued to cry, emotions desperate to keep pouring out and leave the imprisonment of your body. His hand continued to rub the back of your head while his other held your lower back, both of you unknowingly taking a few steps back and forth together, unable to stay still. It was as if you both were dancing slowly, like lovers.

“Alright. Hand me the keys, love.” You tentatively grabbed your keys from where you had kept it and handed it to him, your hands quickly latching onto him again. He carefully unlocked the front door of your apartment and led you inside, being extra cautious so he doesn’t accidentally step onto your feet. Closing the door by kicking it gently with one leg, he gently guided you towards the living room, easing you down onto the couch.

“Do you remember that creepy guy that came into the cafe?” Your voice was still shaky from crying, eyes all glossy as you finally looked at him, heart skipping a beat. Despite already having seen his face the last time, you still weren't used to it. Were you blessed?

He silently nodded and took a seat beside you, his arms leaving your sides so his large hands could cradle your face, thumbs tenderly wiping the drying up tears away while you talked, eyes looking everywhere but at him due to the sudden proximity. He didn't mind it at all, simply adored your sudden sheepishness.

“I still get scared at the thought of him… I don't want anyone like that to visit the cafe again. I-I don't think I can handle it.” Your voice gradually got quieter by the end, nibbling on your bottom lip. Oh, dear. Simon hadn’t told you that he had already beat that creep up. Now he somewhat wished that he had killed him instead. Surely Price would back him up if he made up some reason, yeah?

Your shoulders visibly eased up at that, your mind clearing a bit. Probably sobering up? You were sure that you weren't going to pick up a bottle of alcohol after this. Leaning into him, you decided to rest your head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat. Expecting a soft, calm rhythm — you were instead met with a fast thump, your brows furrowing though you decided not to comment on it.

“He wouldn't. No one will ever treat you like that again, love.” As long as I am here. Possessive yet guilty. He was vaguely promising to be by your side while always avoiding you, protecting you from himself. From the ugliness within him. No angel must spare a glance at a stray, especially not one used to violence.

His hands were playing with the fabric of your shirt now, mindlessly toying with it, feeling the texture under his skin as he gently tugged onto it. It felt oddly comforting, both of you not mentioning what happened outside the apartment a few minutes ago.

You looked up at him again, your eyes falling onto his lips this time. A bit chapped with a small scar adorning the side of his upper lip. You couldn't help but smile at the sight, leaning forward to place a bashful kiss on top of it. Simon let out a soft grumble at that, tilting his head to the side so he could kiss your lips properly, eyes fluttering shut alongside yours. He could taste some hints of your salty tears, his hands holding your waist while your hands held the back of his neck, letting his lips devour yours.

He held onto you gently, not wanting to be tight despite every fiber within him wanting to hold you fully against him once more, like a hound too eager to please.

Once he pulled away from the kiss, his heart skipped at the sight of your lips being all glossy. Ethereal. Your lips twitched into a giddy smile, and he could swear that he felt the heat radiating off you once it crept up onto your face. It felt soft, everything felt too soft and warm. The gentleness threatened to suffocate him once more, a mocking reminder of him being undeserving of such tranquility. He was supposed to be wed to the war, to violence. To the bloodshed that haunted his dreams. Not whatever this was.

But he refused to get up, not wanting to see any more of your tears. “We have to get you to bed. You need sleep.” He spoke quietly, a soft sigh leaving his lips once he felt your forehead pressing against his, letting you lean into him.

“Will you join me?” You normally would have never asked something like that, but the way he was holding you almost made you believe that he was willing to warm up a bit more with you.

Simon frowned at that, pulling his head back slightly. “We can't, you're drunk.”

Realising that he misunderstood you, blood rushed to your cheeks and you looked away in embarrassment, your voice getting timid. “No… I meant sleeping together. Nothing else.”

He paused, eyes softening up as the implication dawned on him. Sleeping together. Innocently domestic — something you both had never touched. He wanted to reject, to say that it’d be better for him to just leave. That could have been the better option anyways. Though he couldn't bring himself to refuse you, too enamoured, as if trapped in some spell by you.

“Fine.” He clicked his tongue in a poor attempt to appear reluctant, masking his inner eagerness. Helping you off the couch, he led you towards the bathroom first, opening the tap. “Let's wash your face first, yeah?”

He did everything — getting you in comfortable pajamas once he finished helping you clean up, even helping you in preparing the bed. Everything. It made you feel as if you were cared for, as if he was the warmth you had ached for throughout your life. The felicity had long spreaded within you once you laid down on bed, watching him lay down beside you.

He was tense, visibly so. You tentatively scooted towards him, a hand reaching out to settle onto his chest, to feel his heartbeat once again. Maybe in this way, you could sync your heart with his, build your own little bubble. Or was that too much to hope for?

“Thank you…” It just slipped out of your mouth like a soft prayer — a hidden whisper to be close to him so more.

“S'nothing.” His eyes looked over at you, taking in the contentment etched onto your face. He wanted to wrap his arms around you and hold you against him, to let you melt in his embrace while you slept. No. That's too much, that's crossing a line. A line made up in his head.

You're building your own grave, Simon. He despised his own mind for mocking him like this, for littering his head with unwanted thoughts. Just one night.

“Sleep now, love.” He whispered quietly, watching you reach over to turn the lamp off. You shuffled besides him again, letting the blanket cover you up.

Simon doesn’t remember the last time he had slept so nicely, your soft breathing his lullaby.

Upon waking up alone on your bed, a heavy feeling of dread settled on you alongside a throbbint headache. Had he left? Wasn't it just getting better?

Holding your heart together from cracking it with every strength you had, you tried to take a few deep breaths. Don’t panic, don't-

The sudden clinking sound from outside your bedroom made you jolt, and only now could you notice the pleasant aroma of something cooking. Sheepishly, you slid off the bed and tiptoed over to the door, poking your head out to look around. Able to make out some of Simon's figure through the open door of the kitchen, relief flooded deep within you. He's here.

“Good morning, Si…” You greeted him once you entered the kitchen, standing besides him, rubbing the weariness off your eyes. He gave a soft grunt of acknowledgement, focusing on cooking some breakfast.

“Your whole kitchen needs some restocking.” He mumbled, sparing a small glance over at you. You stayed quiet, a bit embarrassed by his observance. You were planning on restocking it soon, anyways.

The morning went by like a pleasant breeze, your mood ever so joyous today. You felt light, as if floating on the clouds and reaching the stars, as if becoming one of them, alongside Simon. He hadn't mentioned much about last night at all, even gave you some pills and an offer for a head massage. You had declined it, mostly because you didn't want to show how greatly affected you were by the subtle signs of care laced in his actions, despite it being already evident all over you.

You didn't know what had driven you to act in the way you did in the afternoon. Maybe you shouldn't have opened your mouth, just kept it shut and complied.

“Si, I um… I want to talk to you about something.” You paused the monotonous movie literally none of you were actually focusing on, turning over the couch to face him, your fingers tightly curled on your lap, digging into your flesh.

Maybe it was just your heart acting out, feeling as if things had changed. Foolishly clinging onto the thin strong of hope, never learning. Never learning that touching stray dogs was bad, they had fleas. Fleas that had already infected you, threatening to devour you.

“I think… Uh- I was wondering- I just-” Fumbling over your words, all you could hear was the loud beating of your own heart, each nerve of yours set on fire. Anxious, too anxious. You wanted to throw up. “I wanted to tell you that I really… like you, and-” Your words drowned into heavy silence once you took note of just how silent Simon was, how he was frowning.

A fool. A fool who dreamt too much, who was too lost amidst the heavenly clouds of tranquility. A fool who did everything to avoid reality — that's what you felt like.

“No.” His reply was rather abrupt, clear. The subtle smile on your lips fell, and Simon wished to do nothing more than drown into a river. “You don't like me.”

“I-I do!” Unbelievable, did he not believe that you like him? Even love him.

“You shouldn't.” That came out more roughly than he had intended to, a little snarl escaping his throat. “We've already discussed it, this is nothing.’

You should have shut up at that, should have somehow sewed your lips together and quieted down. You couldn't, instead growing more agitated, more on edge. “You can't say that, Si! D-Don't you see whatever it is that we're doing?” You whimpered in exasperation, trying to keep your voice from trembling, miserably failing. “I care for you! I do, and you care for me too. I can see it…” Vision progressively growing blurrier with incoming tears, you looked away and tried to ignore the sting in your eyes, your breath shuddering. Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Simon was at a loss of words himself, his heart aching to kiss your tears away and plead for forgiveness. He was a cruel, cruel man. Cruel for being so terrified, cruel for being so persistent.

O Angel, forgive me for I can't let you love me, for light should never kiss the shadow.

“You shouldn't…” He repeated his words again, his voice quieter, weaker. A plea, a request. You shook your head, a sob erupting from your throat as you tried to reach out for him.

He pulled away just as quick, your hand never meeting his. An ocean that could never touch the moon, a man that could never touch a star.

“I need to leave.” Hastily he turned around and walked out of your apartment, leaving you speechless, hand still shamefully held out. Frozen and alone, unloved.

Simon Riley was a coward.

Simon had lost count of how many bottles he had drank by now. Feeling horribly, horribly similar to his father. A drunkard, disgusting. He thought the alcohol could wash his emotions away, drown them hopefully — all it did was make him even more vulnerable, his glossy eyes staring off at a distance.

Weak. Ironically enough, this brute was nothing but weak. Everyone should be laughing at him, you should be laughing at him. Laugh at him for not knowing how to love properly, for being so quick to run away.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his phone ringing, making him click his tongue in irritation that soon melted away once he noticed the caller ID.

Price.

He picked it up and listened to his captain's words, each syllable both a stab and a blessing.

A deployment again, finally.

notes — i apologise for uploading it after A WHOLE MONTH. blaming it on the writerphew, a deployment! this could mean many things. also a heads up that either chapter 6 or chapter 7 will be the last one (made some changes to my plan!)

[winwintea]

ᴍᴀʀᴋ ʟᴇᴇ ᴠꜱ. ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ: y/n’s gang and the exes

Y/N ↬ a girl with a LOT of emotional baggage, just recently broke up with chenle after realizing he was toxic, moved to canada as a way to cope (?? why though) unfortunately for her chenle has formed a league of evil exes as a form of revenge on her and her life will not be filled with any peace any time soon.

WINTER ↬ minjeong, aka mark’s ex, who dumped him suddenly one day. now goes by the stage name ‘winter’ and has completely reinvented her image. currently dating jaemin, and also in their own band together

JISUNG ↬ y/n’s first ex, and a professional dancer/choreographer, has no clue why he’s here but he’ll try his best, 22 year old boomer

HAECHAN ↬ y/n’s second ex, very much a whore, currently in a boyband (except think 90s boy bands bc im obsessed with nsync* and backstreet boys rn)

JENO ↬ y/n’s 3rd ex, rapper and dj, bit of a pushover (poor baby), don’t bully him he’ll cry (literally)

SOYEON ↬ Y/N SO FUMBLED HERE. y/n’s 4th ex, very passive aggressive lesbian, full time assassin part time pop-punk soloist🤷‍♀️ so there’s that

JAEMIN ↬ y/n’s 5th ex, basically mark 2.0, a bassist for winter’s band, and photographer! probably way too obsessed with himself but it’s ok it’s na jaemin

RENJUN ↬ y/n’s 6th ex, solo singer, his voice is literally so angelic, biggest idgaf person ever, also really good friends with chenle

CHENLE ↬ y/n’s 7th and final ex, not in the music industry, but the ceo of a very wealthy company, did not take the breakup well and posted a drunken rant on reddit only to find that all of y/n’s previous exes responded. and so the league of evil exes was formed as a way to get back at y/n

HENDERY ↬ y/n's best friend hendery, trust fund kid so he followed her all the way to toronto bc he has nothing else to do with his life, probably a walking hazard idfk someone come get their man

ZHANGHAO ↬ y/n's new friend, whom she met after moving to toronto, here to absolutely mother. very baffled at y/n's love life, thinks she's the most interesting person he's ever met.

Y/N and MARK'S private accounts

prev ↤ masterlist ↦ next

SUMMARY ↬ mark has never wanted anything in his life. the lead bassist for 'dream on', unemployed, and quite literally a loser, mark expects he's hit rock bottom from here. that is until you, the girl of his dreams quite literally skates out of his dreams and into his life. mark has never wanted anything more. but is love really worth the emotional baggage when you have seven evil exes, who each possess superpowers and are intent on defeating him?

GENRES ↬ social media au (smau), fluff, angst, drama, fantasy au, band au, scott pilgrim au, explicit(?), gay people (ten) help mark find true love

TAG LIST ↬ @lyvhie @h-aechanie @aquaphoenixz @galacticnct @spiderm444rk @nerdsungie @nanaxwi @lotties-readings @nessaassen02 @alethea-moon @222brainrot @kittydollzz @n0hyuck @dudekiss3r @wony1e @whr4nakin @chenlesfavorite @onlyhyunjin (if your username isn’t in blue/grey, please check your visibility settings so i can properly tag you <33)

[hippolotamus]

Seven Sentence Sunday 🥂

tagged by @weewootruck @eddiebabygirldiaz (definitely go check their snippets!)

Still in the rework phase. Please take this snippet of come close (let me be home) (prev snippets here) under the cut for the sake of your dash 😘

“I know it’s tough, kid. I’m sure this isn’t easy for you,” Bobby says, leading them through the crowd to a table near the back. “Athena won’t steer her wrong, though.” “I don’t doubt it, Lor- Bobby. I just didn’t think it would be this difficult, honestly. I want her to be happy, but–” “You want to keep her safe.”  “Exactly!” Evan accepts a champagne flute, noticing Bobby takes a lemonade for himself. “I guess I always felt like I had no say before, even though I knew Lord Kendall was a terrible choice. It’s difficult not to want to be more involved this time.” “That’s understandable. Commendable even.” Bobby pauses to take a sip of his drink before cryptically adding, “Sometimes no matter how much we try to protect the people we love, it’s never enough.”  Evan thinks there might be a story there, but doesn’t press for more information. He’s not going to ruin any trust being built by prying into his host’s past. He also tries not to think too hard about how true Bobby’s statement has been in his own life. Instead he shifts his focus back to where Maddie is talking with Athena, smiling at all the right times and looking like she’s genuinely enjoying herself. He walks with Bobby to rejoin their small group, handing a glass to Maddie.  “Anyone promising?” He asks, when suddenly a familiar face catches his eye across the room. It’s the man from the park, surrounded by a mob of enthusiastic socialites not so subtly shoving their dance cards at him.   “I know him,” Evan murmurs without thinking.  “Viscount Diaz?” Bobby questions.  Athena cuts in before Evan can answer. “I didn’t realize you had met. I know I certainly didn’t make the introduction. Bobby, did you?” “Not that I recall, my love.” “I, uh-” Evan gulps down the last of his champagne, feeling his cheeks flush. Apparently his etiquette has slipped his mind, causing him to forget how important it is that any introductions are made through Athena or Bobby. “I must be mistaken then.”  “He is handsome,” Maddie whispers, leaning in close.  “Y-yes, I suppose he is,” Evan mumbles, feeling his cheeks flush.  His sister’s observation isn’t wrong. Still, something about her acknowledging the obvious fact, coupled with the man – Viscount Diaz – being here at all doesn’t sit right under his skin.  “Your sister could do much worse than the Viscount,” Athena comments, looking quite pleased with herself. “He’s an honorable man with plenty of land and income. I daresay he would make an admirable choice. In fact, I’m not sure why I didn’t consider it before.”  “May I have this dance?” A gentleman – thankfully not the Marquis or the Viscount – approaches Maddie, extending his hand. He’s of average height and build with mousy brown hair and a forgettable face. As far as Evan can tell there is absolutely nothing noteworthy about him. Nevertheless, Maddie smiles and accepts his hand, letting him lead her to the floor as the music begins.

so many of you have recently posted so absolutely no pressure tagging @shortsighted-owl @stereopticons @elvensorceress @disasterbuckdiaz LOML @lizzie-bennetdarcy @vanillahigh00 @rmd-writes @welcometololaland @apothecarose @jesuisici33 @daffi-990 @callmenewbie @giddyupbuck @wikiangela @jamespearce9-1-1 @spotsandsocks @exhuastedpigeon @lemonzestywrites @thewolvesof1998 @steadfastsaturnsrings @loserdiaz @heartshapedvows @underwater-ninja-13 @fortheloveofbuddie @eowon @watchyourbuck @monsterrae1 @spagheddiediaz @chaosandwolves @wildlife4life @buddierights @911onabc @the-likesofus @spaceprincessem @fionaswhvre @barbiediaz @honestlydarkprincess @pirrusstuff @gayedmundodiaz @theplaceyoustillrememberdreaming @maygrantgf @statueinthestone @indestructibleheart and anyone else who wants to share 💖

[yourheartinyourmouth]

and if you just don’t be negative in general. it sucks when you’re depressed as fuck and you just want to indulge in some quality negativity, but i promise you it wins you no friends or admirers, and it significantly drags your mental health down. you do have to work to suppress those thoughts, ignore them, and grit your teeth and actively have “fake” happy thoughts. it sounds so stupid and made up, but the thoughts you allow into your brain really do make all the fucking difference.

learning that self depreciation isnt cool and just makes the people around you uncomfortable unironically improved my mental health a lot. like if you just stop saying negative shit about yourself you will genuinely like yourself more and other people wont be repulsed by your attitude and you will have more friends. it's true.

[noirvette]

WE NEVER EXISTED

[band smau]

[FOURTEEN]

masterlist.

prev. | next.

extra.

note: the black italics is Michael singing. The lyrics aren't in order though haha

"You guys out there don't mind if we play a cover right?" Michael calls out to the crowd. The crowd responds with loud cheers.

The guitar strum of 'Black Hole Sun' by Soundgarden starts to fall over the crowd's ears. The crowd cheers in delight at the prospect of this particular cover. From the sidelines as you watch the band; Graveyard Soldiers, your openers for the night play, you couldn't help but get into the groove of Michael's captivating voice.

"In my eyes"

Michael, last name unknown, he keeps it mysterious like that; is the band's front line singer, and electric guitarist. Last member, and from what Kyle told you was the whole reason this band (Graveyard Soldiers, not your band) nearly didn't happen.

"In disguises no one knows"

Pete Thelman, back up singer and plays the bass guitar, you and him had a fun time talking about what were the best bass guitarists of all time earlier. Second member, he was awkward, but overall a refreshing person to talk too.

"Lies the snake"

Henrietta Biggle, lead guitarist and sometimes keyboardist. She kept to herself mainly, but loved to talk to about music with you and Nichole. First member, she started this band to raise money to help find her missing brother. You remember the day he went missing, your band even helped pitch in with money before.

"Boiling heat.. summer stench"

Firkle Smith, drummer; absolute menace. He was scary, intimidating in a way you'd never thought was possible. He was nice, polite when needing to be but you know what they say about how the eyes are windows to the soul... He was the third member to join.

"Call my name"

From the corner of your eye you can spot Kyle walking over towards you, "They're good yeah?" He tilts his head towards the Graveyard Soldiers.

"Yeah! I'm really loving their style, I've heard their eps and now that they got an album, I'm excited to listen to more of their stuff." You gush.

"And I'll hear you scream again."

Kyle hums and you see his face become more serious, "Stan told me that Cartman's worming his way into causing havoc for you, that true Y/n?"

"Won't you come?"

Sighing, you look away from him and back towards the stage, "I really don't know. Cartman's never really interacted with me too much before, now he's tagging me in an update about his podcast? He even called me like four days ago. I'm sure it was a misclick, considering I say his name pop up for maybe three seconds before it disappeared."

"Cold and damp"

"God I hate him so much. You'd think he'd leave us alone, but he uses our band as a way to gather more fame for himself. Miserable bastard."

"For honest men"

You've never really seen Kyle badmouth anyone, sure for Cartman it's warranted and you've heard of the weird friendship they used to have, before it fell apart suddenly in high school. However it's still a bit surprising to you, seeing as Kyle makes it a point to be amicable towards everyone, even if he's not the biggest fan of them.

"In my youth, I pray to keep"

"It's fine, Kyle. He's a dickhead sure and he's the world's biggest attention seeker but that's all he really is. An attention seeker. No matter what he's going to do tonight, I'm not letting his bad mood ruin one of our best nights."

Kyle sets his hand on your shoulder and squeezes, "If he continuously causes trouble for you, let me know. You've helped me out a lot Y/n, let me return the favor. Besides, beating up Cartman is an easy task, it's refreshing seeing him get knocked down a peg."

"No one sings like you anymore...

Black hole sun"

Kyle removes his hand from your shoulder and you can still feel the warmth of his hand. "Thanks Ky, I doubt I'll need you to go extreme like that but if he becomes an even bigger thorn in my side, you'll be the first to know."

"And wash away the rain"

A bemused smirk dawns Kyle's face, "First? To know? Over Nichole?"

You chuckle, "Okayyy.. so maybe not the exact first, but it's the thought that counts? Right?"

"Won't you come?"

"Yeah, maybe when you're not lying.. miss L/n," Kyle teases,.

Your face holds one of mock annoyance as Kyle teases you and as Graveyard Soldiers do the instrumental part of the song you and Kyle just stand there, looking at each other.

"Hang my head... drown my fear... till you all just disappear"

"They're ending soon, make sure to do your last tune in." Kyle softly says.

"Won't you come"

"Got it captain!" You head further in towards the back to quick test your guitars, leaving Kyle to himself.

"And wash away the rain?"

Kyle turns to the band performing as Michael repeats the last lines of the post chorus.

You had decided to not bother checking twitter nor Cartman's podcast episode during the set change, the whole band decided against it, not for a lack of curiosity, but considering set changes were so hectic. You were curious, the nausea feeling of not knowing the answer to any form of a question of "why" eating at you.

You weren't even sure if Cartman had gone live, you doubted it, the crowd was just having a fun time talking to each other from what you saw when you peeked around the curtains earlier. Some people were on there phones but you doubt it was for Cartman.

In all honesty, you didn't need the stress of Cartman in your mind. What you needed was to give South Park the best god damn show you've ever done. You've grown a lot since your last big performance here, hell the whole band has grown.

So instead of giving Cartman another thought, you focused your mind on the set change.

Set changes were annoying, it's why Clyde actually hated having opening bands or opening for other bands like you have done in the past. Of course, opening bands were good in your eyes, it paved the way to allowing the crowd to experience new bands or genres.

"Dude, where did you put my drumsticks?" Clyde asked one of the stage workers in passing.

"Clyde. They're on your seat on stage." The worker replied, you could hear the disbelief in their tone. You couldn't help but feel bad for them.

With that, the worker left and Clyde was standing there like an idiot, but he was your guys' idiot and you had to let him do his own thing.

However, Clyde had a point to complain, the backstage workers going insane as they try and get everything put together properly did take a toll on you even. The quick instrument check before they were put up on the stage by the stage crew. Lights crew making sure they'd have no problem.

You could see Craig was munching on some crackers, having the time of his life knowing all he had to do was go on stage and take pictures of the band and the crowd and then call it a night.

Beside him, Nichole was going insane on making sure the stage looked absolutely perfect even though it'd be too late to change anything right now.

"Y/n! You don't think the stage is ugly right? I've been staring at this one sheer cloth placement that Craig took a pic for me, bless him, anyhow for like twenty minutes. It just looks off to me." Nichole rushed over to you, a picture on her phone that Craig took.

You look down at the picture, "Nicky.. the cloth is fine, besides Craig took the photo at angle look," You gently grabbed her phone and tilted it to the right, that way the picture was centered.

"Oh thank you, I was nervous that it was off center this entire time, I was about to jump on stage to fix it. Good thing I didn't it was just Craig's poor photography skills."

Craig looked at the two of you with a pointed look of "What the fuck" written all over his face; "You know, how about you guys find a NEW photographer then."

"Nooooo! Craig I'm sorryyyyyy." Nichole drawled. And the two started going back and forth.

Kyle looking lost as he ran out of things to do but you could see stress and worry marks all over his face as he ran through every scenario in which the band suddenly had the worst experience performing. Stan not caring about anything, he was really just taking in everything while he was doing last minute vocal warm ups.

You hadn't bothered to say anything to Kyle as he was trying to do something; not because you didn't want to but because you're not even sure Kyle would hear you. Whenever he got into this stressed manager mode (or as Clyde would call it; normal Kyle Broflovski), he tended to tune people out.

Tweek was playing with Craig's camera, or.. a spare. You doubt Craig would ever let Tweek handle his camera. There were three things Craig loved in the world; Tweek, his guinea pigs, and his camera.. but no matter how much Craig loved Tweek that camera did cost a whole lot.. and it was Craig's profession.

The lights were dimming out.. which meant go time. Everyone else paused and got into show business mode. You shook the nerves out of your body. No matter how many performances you did, you doubt that you'd ever go on stage without some sort of performance anxiety.

"Good luck guys! Have fun out there!" You hear Kyle call out as you all start to head out onto stage.

"You too!" Clyde responds before smacking his forehead with his hand.

From the podcast studio, Cartman and Heidi go live.

TAGLIST: @captivq @kimiesstuff @bwljules @the-cooler-kira @1one1person1 @kenny-the-ken @neenieweenie @n0tangeliccc @frogindisguise @revzxn @mirophobic @gonefiishiing @musiclovebot @bootsieboo @bonez4brainz @s0l4riss @1996kj @sweetadonisbutbetter @scinclaitnoir @okarigold

[eternity-death]

prev anon here. will just take on 🫧 as a marker.

prev tags “if sunday actually dies”: i’m literally so worried about sunday and the chances of him dying.

leaks ahead.

speaking of, i saw old oti’s letter & it had me going insane imagining a grieving sunday and what acting out of line could/will do, considering the control (a key component of sunday’s when we take his leaked personality into accoumt) over his emotions is fraying, but such only emphasizes that he wants to take control of the situation regarding robin’s death. now, i saw this in between loading screens in-game, and they’re mentioned, but the dreammaster is the true mastermind behind penacony, and old oti warns sunday to act with caution. actually, i wrote a little something to help me summarize old oti’s letter:

The Dreammaster, being higher in rank, is the one who is displeased with his actions. Sunday is the head of the Oak family, but from what we’ve seen, this role does not exert his control over things; it only exerts control over him.

speculations (this is a LONG ask, op i’m sorry)

honestly… perhaps i’m reaching for the moon, never mind that i don’t know how to articulate this properly so if anyone’s out there, please help me make sense of this or clear away the “yapping” spectacle i’m about to showcase here.

but looking back at this summary, this kind of bears a resemblance to ena the order and their assimilation into xipe (aeon of harmony), who the family follows. we already know that xipe is comprised of many entities, ena being “enormous in size” as a part compared to the others xipe has assimilated yet nevertheless “swallowed”. in relation, sunday is only one of the local leaders of penacony as robin said, and oti warns he could get impeached, right? he’s still a part of the whole despite his notable influence. . . . i can’t stress how much i feel i can explain this better.

matter of fact, ena has similar traits to sunday (albeit initial personality leaks) as it is. mentioned to be a “control freak” (herta tells trailblazer, “they could not tolerate any disorder”), to be “absolute, just, and magnificent” (tying this back into sunday being halovian, how they “seem born into the love and admiration of other species and peoples”), to be all-seeing (both have eye motifs, sunday knew about firefly’s death).

even more of a stretch, but ena is a puppet and if we go back to sunday taking after them. well. are you picking up what i’m putting down? (hint: it’s a death flag. after all, to be controlled…and for the family to be fixated on a collective ambition versus an individual’s desire that’s interfering with such ambitions. this isn’t their harmony. his dedication to robin can be considered self-serving, and so doesn’t align with their goals . . . mind overloaded. no more can be said at this time.)

tldr: “it’s all nonsensical! / what is it saying! / i can’t make sense of it either.” the skeptic in me loves looking for nothing …

This reminds me of this theory I saw (I encourage everyone to read it bc it’s so incredibly thought out and all the connections made by op are insane).

The person who made that theory noted that Ena is probably way more involved with The Family than we thought. They also came to three conclusions, one of which is Sunday being used as a sacrifice.

Adding to the sacrifice thing I’m once again reminded of the Dominicus-Sunday theory that Dominicus might possess him/take over his body.

Much to think about… food for thought… something to chew on even if the flavor is foul…

[cheerscoops]

Wherever You Point To I’ll Find ~ Steve Harrington x Chrissy Cunningham

Nobody expected a budding romance between Steve and Chrissy when they were invited on this graduation road trip. But, as the two spend more and more time together away from the pressures their families, they just might find that they’re the perfect match.

masterlist | prev. | next

Tags: modern au, road trip, mutual pining, fluff, angst, discussion of mental health and body issues, eventual smut, adult themes and swearing throughout

Word Count: 12.2k

It was nearly impossible for Chrissy to get Steve up for the day, and she really only had herself to blame. Instead of staying up after the sunrise, she’d pulled him back to bed because she wasn’t ready for him to stop holding her just yet. She’d had the realization that admitting her feelings to him could make this all go away if he didn’t feel the same way about her, and she selfishly wanted to hold on to the daydream of being his for as long as she possibly could. And if that meant snuggling up to him in bed for just a little longer, that's exactly what she was going to do.

But a quick glance towards the clock on the nightstand told her that Nancy and Eddie would be expecting them downstairs for breakfast soon, and that meant that getting ready for the day and making sure their bags were packed was a necessity.

“We really should be getting up now,” she told him. “Unless you want Eddie to break the door down and drag us out.”

“I'd like to see him try.”

He hugged her to his chest a little tighter, making no moves to get up.

“Or maybe Nancy will have him hotwire your car and leave us stranded here.”

“They wouldn't. They like you too much.”

“But they don't like you enough?”

“Not as much as they like you.”

Chrissy rolled over in his arms to face him - their faces so close that their noses were practically touching - and frowned at him.

“That's not true. You were part of this trip from the start, so you're clearly the favorite.”

“Don't make me force you to put another dollar in the jar.”

“That was not a dig at myself, and you know it. You can't make me give you a dollar for that.”

“Yes, I can. That's the beauty of the jar. I made it, so I get to make all the rules. Perfectly sound logic if you ask me.”

“You're terrible.”

“Am I really all that bad?” he asked.

She knew that the smile on her face betrayed her true thoughts, but she took a page from Eddie's book and committed to the bit.

“The absolute worst actually,” she teased.

“It must really suck for you to be trapped here then. Since I'm obviously so repulsive,” he teased right back.

“Careful, Steve. This is the second morning in a row where you've refused to let me get out of bed. I'm starting to think you might have ulterior motives here.” She repeated his words from the night before hoping that he'd stay in on the joke with her.

“Maybe I do.”

And just like that, the teasing nature of their conversation was gone, and this all felt far too real and intimidating for her. It would be so easy for her to admit that she wanted him to have ulterior motives. That she had them, too, and that everything in her was screaming to tell him how she really felt. Her gaze flicked down to his lips for just a moment, and she was struck by just how easy it would be for her to close the almost nonexistent gap between them and kiss him. She could feel his warm breath on her skin, and every second that she stayed quiet felt like an eternity as she struggled between what she wanted to do and what she should do. And while what she wanted was for him to kiss her until she was breathless and stupid enough that she forgot her own name, she knew that what she needed to do was get out of that bed immediately and put some distance between them before the impulsive parts of her ruined everything.

She couldn't tell him how she felt while they were in bed together. Logically, she knew that Steve was nothing like Jason, and she didn't think he'd try to pressure her into something more if she admitted her true feelings, but that fear was still there with its ever-present and aching gnawing feeling. And she couldn't explain these fears without telling Steve about her whole messy relationship, and that would mean admitting things to him that she'd never told anyone. Not even Eddie who she normally told everything, and he was the one who'd held her hand through her breakup. She couldn't be that open and vulnerable with Steve until she knew for sure that she could trust him with her heart.

She also knew that they had to get out of bed, but if that happened because Steve was pushing her away in disgust or anger over the fact that she wouldn't put out, it would absolutely destroy her. She wasn't equipped to handle that kind of rejection. Not when she knew they still had so much time to spend together on this trip. She still planned on telling him how she felt that day, but this wasn’t the right moment no matter how much she wanted it to be.

So, instead of doing what she really wanted, she let her panic take over as she lifted Steve's arm off of her and climbed out of bed.

“I'm going to go get dressed,” she said as she grabbed her bag off of the spare bed. “You should probably do the same.”

She avoided looking at him as she ran into the bathroom, but if she'd turned to face him for just a moment, she would have seen him looking confused and a little hurt by her actions.

***

Steve spent the better part of the morning silently kicking himself for whatever he did that scared Chrissy away. He was just keeping up with what he thought was a bit of playful flirting, but the second he tried to hint at how he really felt, she froze on him and ran away. He’d been thinking that she felt the same way, but now she had him second guessing every interaction he’d had with her and looking for anything he could have missed that would have resulted in her fleeing the bed like he really was repulsive to her.

He was so deep in thought that he barely spoke during breakfast, and he didn’t react at all when Eddie convinced Chrissy to put on his personal Motionless in White mix. He almost missed Nancy asking him to stop for a bathroom break, too, but Eddie kicked the back of his seat and snapped him out of it for long enough that he was able to find a decent place for them to stop.

Chrissy ran off to the bathroom with Nancy, and as soon as they were out of earshot, Eddie was practically diving over the center console to climb up into Chrissy’s seat.

“What is up with you today?” he asked as he situated himself. “You’ve been zoned out this whole time, and we were starting to worry you were gonna crash the car.”

“It’s nothing,” Steve replied. “Just something stupid.”

“Well, is it stupid, or is it nothing? Because I don’t think it can be both.”

“I think I messed up with Chrissy, and I don’t know what I did, so it’s messing with my head a little.”

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

“That depends on how much of a dick you’re going to be.”

“How much of a dick I am depends on what you did to her.”

“That’s the thing. I didn’t do anything to her. At least, I don’t think I did.”

Steve let out a frustrated sigh and ran a hand through his hair.

“Are you really sure she likes me?” he asked after a moment. “I know you said she was interested the other day, but I’m getting whiplash from how back and forth she seems to feel about me.”

“What’s happened since we last talked about this? Give me the cliff’s notes version.”

Steve laid it all out in the most basic of terms. He told Eddie about their heart to heart on the beach and how they had bonded over their shitty parents. He told him about the joking and the tickle fights and falling asleep cuddling. The only thing he left out was Chrissy’s wish from the sunrise. That felt almost too personal to share. Like it needed to be kept a secret for just the two of them or it wouldn’t be as special. But everything else was laid out for Eddie to decipher for him.

“And when she asked me if I had ulterior motives, I said that maybe I did, and that’s when she freaked out, and it’s been killing me that I can’t figure out what happened. There was this split second where I thought she was gonna kiss me, but she didn't, and I don't know how I could have misread the situation that badly.”

“So let me see if I have this straight,” Eddie said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “You thought that trapping Chrissy in bed with you and then telling her you had ulterior motives for doing so was a good idea? Even though you know she scares easily and has been shy about even holding your hand for prolonged periods of time?”

“Well, when you put it like that, I might actually be the biggest idiot on the planet.”

“Maybe not the biggest idiot, but yeah, I think you’re going about this all wrong. Nancy and Chrissy would both probably punch me for using such bullshit reasoning, but Chrissy isn’t like the other girls you’ve tried to hook up with lately, and you’re operating under your normal King of Hawkins High methods that had all those other girls falling at your feet and swooning even though you were wearing that ridiculous sailor suit. Maybe just apologize to her for making her uncomfortable? I don’t know. I’m rooting for you, but short of grabbing you both by the back of the head and forcing you to kiss like a couple of real life Barbie dolls, I’m not sure what else I can do to help since you won’t let me talk to her for you.”

Before Steve could respond, Chrissy was opening the passenger door and frowning when she saw Eddie was in her seat.

“It’s my turn to ride shotgun,” Eddie told her. “I wanna be the passenger princess.”

“But I like sitting up front with Steve.”

“Tough.”

“Fine. I’ll just tell Nancy you didn’t love her enough to help her decide what drink to get when she specifically asked me to go get you for her.”

“You're evil.”

“I learned from the best.”

“Touche. I’d probably be proud if I wasn’t the one on the receiving end of this.”

Eddie hopped out of the car allowing Chrissy to take her seat back. As soon as she’d shut the door, Steve turned to her.

“Listen. I’m sorry about -” was all that he managed to say before she placed a hand on his shoulder and stopped him.

“Don’t apologize,” she told him. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I think I’m the one who owes you an apology actually. I can’t get into it now because I really don’t want to end up talking about it in front of Eddie and Nancy, but I need you to know that me running away this morning had nothing to do with you and everything to do with me. I promise I’ll explain myself eventually, but for now, can this be enough?”

“Yeah, it can be enough,” he told her. He moved to rest his hand on her knee, his thumb absentmindedly rubbing the skin there. “So, what I said didn’t upset you?”

“I promise it didn’t. Have all the ulterior motives you want. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have them too.”

“Really?”

Chrissy didn’t have time to answer before Nancy and Eddie got back in the car, and Steve didn’t dare press her about it in front of them. He was just happy that she was willing to open up to him about whatever was bothering her even if he had to wait to hear her explanation.

They settled back into their normal driving routine for the rest of their trip to DC. The only noticeable difference was that Steve’s hand barely left Chrissy’s knee for the duration, and neither of them was complaining about that. Little did they know that it had caused a frenzied group text between Eddie, Nancy, and Robin. They were oblivious to the effect that their budding courtship seemed to have on their friends.

When they arrived at the bed and breakfast that Nancy had selected for them, Steve and Chrissy both tried to hide their disappointment at the fact that they weren’t going to be sharing a room this time. They knew that sharing at the last place was only going to be a one time thing, but knowing that did nothing to stop the longing.

Chrissy was the first to finish settling in, so she went out to the common living area to wait for the others. There was an old couple sitting on one of the plush sofas, and they immediately started fussing over her as she took a seat in one of the armchairs.

“Oh, look at her, Fred,” the woman said. “She's like a little doll. Isn't she just darling?”

“Yes, dear,” Fred said as he glanced up from his paper. “Absolutely darling.”

“I’m Ethel, and this is my husband Fred.”

“I’m Chrissy. It’s lovely to meet you,” Chrissy replied with a small smile.

“Oh, she’s so polite,” Ethel said. “It’s lovely to meet you, too, dear. Fred and I are both retired, and we just love spending our time at little bed and breakfasts like this because we always meet the most wonderful people. We saw you check in with your friends. What brings your little group here?”

“We’re celebrating our high school graduation,” Chrissy told them. “Well, Nancy, Eddie, and I are, at least. Steve graduated last year. I think everyone just wanted one last big adventure before we all separate in the fall.”

“How exciting! What are you planning on studying in college?”

“Theater. Maybe with a minor in education or childhood development of some sort? I just know that theater is my real passion, and I’d like to do something with it for the rest of my life.”

“An actress! Oh, my Kenny would just adore you. Don’t you think that Kenny would adore her, Fred?” she asked her husband who just nodded in response. “Our grandson is about to start his third year of pre-med at Harvard. He wants to be a pediatric surgeon, so you know he’s smart and good with kids. And just so handsome, but maybe I’m biased because he’s my only grandson. You’re not dating either of the boys that came here with you, are you?”

“Eddie is basically my brother,” Chrissy told her. “And he’s Nancy’s boyfriend, so I’m definitely not seeing him.”

She hesitated when it came to putting a label on Steve though. She was already confused about why she was being so open with this random elderly couple, but Ethel reminded her of her own nana, so she guessed that was why it came so easily. But how could she tell them that she and Steve were in this weird limbo of not being together but acting like they desperately wanted to be? She could barely work out what was going on for herself let alone explain it to complete strangers.

“And Steve is -”

“You’re talking about me?”

Chrissy was interrupted by Steve entering the room and moving to perch on the arm of the chair that she was sitting in. He smiled down at her as he asked his question.

“Just telling my new friends Fred and Ethel about how you’re the worst person I’ve ever met,” she teased beaming up at him.

“So mean.”

“I think I’m the nicest person ever actually.”

Steve stuck his tongue out at her, and she responded by doing the same.

“You see how she treats me?” Steve asked the older couple, keeping his tone teasing and light. “The absolute disrespect.”

Chrissy reached over to tickle his side, and Steve flinched before sliding off of the armrest and onto the seat with Chrissy. While the chair was slightly larger than normal, it wasn't really big enough for two people to share comfortably if they were sitting side by side. Steve made quick work of maneuvering the two of them so that Chrissy was sitting sideways with her legs draped over his lap, and she instinctively curled into his side.

“If you're done being a menace, can I get back to talking to my new friends?” she asked. “I feel like we're being awfully rude.”

Steve made a show of acting like he was pulling a zipper closed across his mouth and gestured for her to continue talking.

“What I was trying to say is that Steve and I didn't really meet until this trip, but I've been enjoying getting to know him better along the way,” Chrissy told the older couple.

“How far into the trip are you?” Ethel asked.

“A week. We’ve got two more weeks of adventures planned, and then it’s back home for the rest of the summer.”

“Only a week? I would have assumed the two of you had known each other for much longer than that with how comfortable you seem to be together.”

“Permission to speak?” Steve asked.

Chrissy nodded.

“I can’t speak for Chrissy,” he started, “but I personally feel like I’ve known her a lot longer than that. She’s just really easy to talk to, and she makes everyone feel like they’re the most important person in the room when she’s focusing on them. I’ve really been enjoying getting to know her better, too, and as we spend more time together, I only want to know her more.”

Chrissy could feel her heart getting ready to burst. She felt the same way about Steve, but she hadn’t been able to find the words to articulate it.

“Okay, maybe you aren’t actually the worst,” she teased, trying to hide the fact that his words had her glowing.

“You’re not so bad yourself.”

“Aren’t you two just the sweetest?” Ethel said, interrupting their moment. “So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?”

“The Natural History Museum for sure,” Steve told her. “And then maybe another museum or two before dinner if we have the time? Depends on how soon we can get there.”

“Where are Eddie and Nancy anyway?” Chrissy asked. “I didn’t expect them to take this long to settle in.”

“When I left them, Eddie had taken off his pants and declared that he was taking a nap instead of going to any museums, so I‘m guessing that Nancy is trying to get him up again.”

“Sounds about right.”

The two continued talking to the elderly couple for a little while longer. It was mostly Ethel asking questions about their plans for the rest of the trip and a little about Chrissy’s college plans and the jobs that Steve was applying for once they were back home, but Steve spent the entire time doting on Chrissy. When she’d curled into his side, he’d wrapped an arm around her waist, and his other arm laid over her legs. Every so often, he’d pull the hem of her skirt down to protect her modesty when it rode up due to the way she was sitting, and every time he did so, she could feel electricity wherever his fingers grazed her thighs. It was such a simple gesture, but it meant so much more to her than she could say. She felt cared for in a way that was so unfamiliar to her that it almost made her sad. To think that no one else had ever taken her comfort into account without her even having to say anything was heartbreaking, but it was hard for her to feel anything but warm and fuzzy when Steve was holding her like this.

When Eddie and Nancy finally made their way out to the sitting area, Chrissy was reluctant to get up. It wasn’t like she was going to confess her feelings for him right there in front of their friends and two relative strangers, but she longed to stay sitting there with him holding her like that. She couldn’t admit it out loud, but this was slowly becoming her new favorite place to be, and she wanted to spend as much time there as humanly possible. She just hoped that he felt the same way.

One short walk and a metro ride later, the group was standing on the front steps of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

“How long do you think you guys will want to spend here?” Nancy asked.

“That depends on how long my secret mission is going to take,” Chrissy said with a shrug.

“It’s not going to be in the natural history museum,” Eddie replied.

“You don’t know that! They could have it here to throw me off!”

“Have what here?” Nancy asked.

“She saw a picture of the Smithsonian’s Muppet storage cabinet online, and she’s convinced that she’s going to be able to find it while we’re here even though it’s probably in a storage facility somewhere and not one of the actual museums,” Eddie told the group. “And while I am typically not above causing a little chaos and potentially breaking into somewhere I’m definitely not allowed to be, I’m pretty sure Wayne would kill me if we got arrested all the way out here.”

“Eddie Munson is actively discouraging me from getting arrested? I never thought I’d see the day,” Chrissy teased.

“Laugh it up. Just imagine how your parents would react if you got arrested because you were trying to steal one of the Fraggles.”

“Party pooper.”

“How about two hours?” Steve suggested. “And if we’re done looking around before that, we can just text the group chat and meet up sooner?”

He leaned in towards Chrissy to whisper in her ear.

“Plenty of time to see the museum and look for your Muppet vault,” he told her. “I’ll make sure you don't get caught. I’m stealthy. Like a ninja.”

Chrissy giggled and pushed him away before beaming up at him. She’d happily let him in on her secret mission even if she knew she wasn’t actually going to be able to find them. He was playful, and he let her be silly in a way that she never got to act in public.

Steve took Chrissy’s hand in his and laced their fingers together.

“We’ve gotta act like we’re actually here to see the museum at first,” he said in a hushed voice. “Blend in with the crowd a little so they don’t realize we’re looking for the perfect heist.”

“Where do you suggest we start?”

“I’ve got the perfect spot.”

Steve led Chrissy through the rotunda and into the David H. Koch Hall of Fossils. It was hard for her not to notice the way he lit up the second they were in the room, and he was eagerly pulling her over to a display where they’d set up a t-rex skeleton to look like it was attacking a triceratops.

“Did you know that the t-rex was actually super smart?” he asked her, not looking away from the fossils in front of them. “I know that a lot of mainstream media likes to play them off as mindless predators or play up the comedy of the whole big head and little arms thing, but their brains were actually twice the size of most other carnivores. And they were fast, too. Not the fastest dinosaurs by any means, but they were fast enough that they could probably catch most humans.”

A quick peek at the plaque in front of them told Chrissy that Steve hadn’t just read this information. It was just something he knew, and he seemed so excited to share this knowledge with her. She tried to pull her phone out in time to snap a quick picture of him looking at the dinosaur bones, but he turned to her before she could, and the photo she ended up getting was of him smiling at her instead.

“Still trying to take sneaky pictures of me?” he teased.

“You just looked so happy,” she told him with a tiny shrug. “I wanted to capture that moment for you.”

Steve pulled Chrissy away from the exhibit to sit on a bench nearby where they could still look around the room.

“Can I tell you something that I’ve never told anyone else before?” he asked her.

She nodded.

“You know how much you love the Muppets?” he started. “Well, that’s how I feel about dinosaurs. That nanny that I told you about got me into them. I was supposed to be taking a nap, but I was an absolute menace as a four year old, so I was not doing that, and I snuck down into the living room to find her watching Jurassic Park. Most kids that little might have been scared, but I was fascinated. I stayed out of sight for the entire movie, and she didn’t realize I was there until I popped up during the credits and asked if we could watch it again. I think I scared a few years off of her life actually.

“I had all of these questions about dinosaurs that she couldn’t answer because the extent of her knowledge began and ended with Jurassic Park. But, maybe a week later, she showed up with this illustrated encyclopedia of dinosaurs. I think I had her read something from it to me every day until I was old enough to read it by myself. I was the dinosaur kid after that. I watched every single one of the Land Before Time movies, and the only things I ever really wanted for gifts were more dinosaur books and dinosaur toys. I had this massive box full of dinosaur figurines, and I gave them all different voices depending on what I thought they would sound like. Because the t-rex had such a big brain, he was sophisticated and British, and the apatosaurus talked kind of like Eeyore because they moved really slow. Just weird little connections I made in my head, you know? I wish I still had them saved because I thought they were the coolest things ever, but my parents threw them out as soon as they decided that I was too old to be playing with toys. Same goes for my illustrated dinosaur encyclopedia.

“And those things are replaceable, so I can always buy new ones to give to any kids I have in the future. I stopped being mad about my mom throwing away stuff years ago because it was pointless when I knew she’d never change. The thing that still upsets me though is the broken promises. Every year, my parents would take me on one family vacation. They took all sorts of trips by themselves and left me with my nanny or by myself once I was old enough to be left alone. But this one trip was the only time I was included, and my mom would always ask me where I wanted to go and what I wanted to do. My answer was always the same: I want to go somewhere where I can see dinosaur bones in person. And every year, I was disappointed. We always went skiing or to some all-inclusive beach resort or something else that was equally boring to me, but my mom would always promise that we’d do what I wanted the next year. I think I was thirteen when I finally stopped believing her.

“That’s when I made a promise that I’d take myself to see the dinosaur bones the first chance I got, and I’d only go with people who were special enough to make it a good experience for me. This is the first time that I’ve actually gotten to see any in person.”

If she thought she could have gotten away with it, Chrissy would have stolen Steve’s car just to race back to Hawkins and destroy something that would have hurt Mrs. Harrington as much as she had clearly hurt her son. But then she was struck by the fact that Steve said he’d only take someone special to see this with him, and she felt her heart swell.

“So, you think I’m special enough to share this experience with you?” she asked.

“Well, yeah,” he said as he squeezed her hand. “I thought I’d made my feelings for you pretty clear by now.”

That was all she needed to hear in order to give herself the final push towards acting on her own feelings. Without hesitation, she leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss against Steve’s cheek. He responded by fully turning towards her and cradling her face in his hand, brushing his thumb along her cheekbone.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked.

“Please,” she replied, giving a slight nod.

Her ‘please’ shook him to his very core, and he wasted no time in closing the small gap between them. The instant their lips touched, they both felt fireworks. Maybe it was because they’d both spent the last two days agonizing over and wishing for this very moment, but it was everything that they’d been hoping it would be and more.

When Steve pulled away, he was all smiles.

“Wow.”

“Wow is right,” Chrissy added, unable to contain the giddy giggles that were bubbling up inside of her.

“You know, if taking you to see the dinosaur bones with me was what I needed to do to finally work up the courage to kiss you, maybe it’s not so bad that I had to wait this long to see them.”

Chrissy didn’t respond. Instead, she just pulled him back in for another kiss, positively beaming as she felt him smile against her lips.

“This does make admitting how I feel about you way easier,” she said once they'd pulled apart again.

“Oh yeah? And how do you feel about me?” he asked.

“Are you really going to make me say it?” She could feel a blush warming her cheeks as she started to get shy on him again.

“I think I need to hear it for me to believe any of this is real.”

“This feels so juvenile to say like we're kids on an elementary school playground or something, but it's the only way to accurately describe the way that you make me feel like I have an army of butterflies in my stomach every time you look at me. But the very real truth is that I have a little bit of a crush on you.”

“Only a little bit?”

“Okay, maybe it’s more than a little one,” she said, looking down towards her lap. It was almost as if she’d forgotten where they were for a moment, and she was feeling so exposed because all of this had happened in public. Logically, she knew that no one in the museum cared about what she was doing, but she couldn’t help but feel like everyone was watching her.

Steve placed a finger under Chrissy’s chin and tilted her head back up to face him.

“Don’t disappear on me,” he told her.

“I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about. I was just worried you were going to run away from me again.”

Chrissy took Steve’s hands in hers and took a deep breath.

“This is hard for me,” she told him. “Public displays of affection are hard for me. Whenever the last guy would kiss me in public, it always felt like he was doing it for show or because he was obligated to look like he loved his girlfriend and never because he actually wanted to be kissing me. I was just a pretty little prize for him to show off, and I have a hard time allowing myself to be wanted because of him - no matter how much I actually desperately want you to kiss me again.”

The second they were back in Hawkins, Steve was keying Jason’s car, egging his house, blasting polka music outside his bedroom window at 3 AM - anything he could maybe convince Hopper to look the other way on. How anyone could treat Chrissy like that was baffling to him. Every time she gave him the slightest hint about how Jason used to treat her, the anger he felt bubbling inside him grew stronger, and it only made him want to protect her more. To show her that she deserved to be treated so much better than she believed she did. It was his new goal for the rest of the trip and then for as long as she would allow it after that.

“We don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with,” he told her. “We can just get up and look at the rest of this exhibit. I’ll info-dump about dinosaurs a little bit because I can’t help it, and maybe I’ll let you hear what I think all of them would’ve sounded like. And then we can look around the rest of the museum until it’s time for us to meet back up with Nancy and Eddie. I just wanna hold your hand and keep spending time with you - if that’s okay with you of course.”

“That sounds perfect,” she told him. “Really. Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. But before we do that, I’d like to kiss you again. Not to show off to all of the other people in this room and not because I feel obligated to, but because it’s the only thing that I’ve been able to think about since we were interrupted on the beach the other night, and I really desperately want to kiss you just as much as you really desperately want to be kissed.”

Chrissy leaned in on instinct, but Steve paused just as their lips were close enough to touch.

“And for the record,” he whispered just loud enough for her to hear him, “in case it wasn't already abundantly clear, the feeling is mutual. I have a pretty massive crush on you, too.”

***

When they made their way into the gift shop after they were done looking around the museum, Chrissy ducked away from Steve for a couple minutes. She was on a mission, and since that mission was getting a small gift for him, she didn’t want him to see what she was doing and stop her.

She found what she was looking for in one of the far corners of the gift shop: a bin filled with small dinosaur figurines. She pulled out two matching t-rexes and purchased them without a second thought. It was only once the bag was in her hand that she realized how intimate this gift seemed to her now. He’d literally said that he’d wanted to save his childhood figurines for his own kids. They’d only just shared their first kiss. It was way too soon to give him something so meaningful. She shoved the bag into her purse and told herself to stop getting ahead of herself. She could save them to give to him later.

Just as she’d calmed herself down, Steve approached her holding a bag of his own. He pulled out a small plushie of a capuchin monkey and handed it to her.

“For me?” she asked.

“It made me think of you,” he told her. “Because it’s tiny and cute just like you are.”

“Thank you,” she said as she stood up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “But I’m not that tiny.”

“You just stood on your tiptoes to reach me. I’m pretty sure you’re that tiny.”

“I am a perfectly normal height thank you very much.”

“For an adorable woodland critter maybe,” he teased.

He took one of her hands in his and laid it flat against his palm.

“I mean, just look at how small your hands are compared to mine. You’re all little.”

Chrissy marveled at just how tiny her hand looked in comparison to his, but she couldn’t let him know just how much this size difference affected her.

“I bet you do this with all the girls,” she said as she smirked up at him.

“Maybe,” he replied before moving to lace their fingers together and hold her hand. “But none of the other girls ever made me smile the way you do.”

He brought their linked hands up to his face and pressed a soft kiss to the back of her hand.

“That was smooth,” she said, looking away from him slightly in an attempt to hide the fact that he had her blushing yet again. “Very smooth.”

“Only for you.”

****

When they met back up with Eddie and Nancy, Steve and Chrissy neglected to tell them what had occurred between them in the fossil room. It wasn’t that they were trying to hide what happened. It just slipped their minds to fill their friends in on the new development in their relationship, and with Steve being respectful of Chrissy’s uneasiness with PDA, it looked as if nothing had changed between them to the uninformed observer. They were just holding hands and teasing each other the same as always.

Maybe Nancy thought it was a little suspicious when Chrissy rested her head on Steve's shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her in their booth at dinner, but she just assumed that they'd developed a certain level of comfortable closeness at this point. Eddie had filled her in on the fact that they'd shared a bed again the night before even though they didn't have to, so this just felt like a natural extension of that. Plus, she didn't want to say anything that would push Chrissy to retreat back into her shell.

It was only when they were back at the bed and breakfast for the night that they realized something had changed between them. They were all standing outside the girls’ room to say their goodnights before separating for the evening. Without thinking, Steve gave Chrissy’s hand a little tug so she’d turn towards him, and then he pulled her in for a goodnight kiss. She melted in his arms, and he couldn’t stop smiling when they pulled away.

“I’ll miss you,” he told her as he wrapped her up in a hug.

“We’re only going to be separated for a few hours.”

“That’s so long though.”

“So needy,” she teased, burying her face in his chest to hide her blush as she hugged him. “I’ll see you first thing in the morning.”

When she hid her face, Steve remembered that Eddie and Nancy were definitely watching them, and he loosened his hold on her.

“I'm sorry. I think that was maybe too much PDA.”

“Maybe a little bit, but I liked it.”

She stood on her tiptoes to give him another quick kiss before reluctantly removing herself from his arms. She barely had time to utter out a quick ‘goodnight' before Nancy was pulling her into their room and ushering her to sit down on one of the beds.

“What was that?” she asked as she moved to sit down next to Chrissy. “What happened between you two?”

Chrissy grabbed one of the pillows and hugged it to her chest.

“He took me to see the dinosaur bones with him,” she said. She was positively glowing with this giddy little lovestruck look in her eyes.

“Is there something secretly romantic about fossils that I'm unaware of?”

“Maybe not to most people, but it was magical. He was just - I don't know. I can't put it into words. I've just never felt like this before, and it's exciting and terrifying and wonderful. So, so wonderful.”

She fell backwards on the bed and moved the pillow to hide her face. Even during the times where she’d thought things were going well between her and Jason, she’d never felt this giddy about any of their interactions. All she could think about was how Steve smiled into every kiss, and she couldn’t wait to feel that again.

She only removed the pillow from her face because her phone pinged with a notification about a text from Steve.

Steve: what would you say to a breakfast date tomorrow morning?

Steve: just the two of us? in our pajamas obviously.

Chrissy: I’d say that sounds wonderful.

Steve: perfect. meet you in the lobby at 7?

Chrissy: see you then

Steve: good night gorgeous

Chrissy: sweet dreams

“You really like him, don’t you?” Nancy asked, taking in the way Chrissy was beaming at her phone.

“I really do. He's kind of the sweetest, isn't he?”

“He can be. What’s he texting you now?”

Chrissy turned her phone towards Nancy and let her read their recent exchange.

“Okay, that’s actually really adorable,” she said once she was done reading. “And he’s getting up early for you which you should know is a very big deal. Steve doesn’t get out of bed before ten unless he absolutely has to.”

“I figured as much. He’s been very cuddly and reluctant to get up the past couple of days.”

“And I’m sure that had nothing to do with the fact that he was snuggled up to the girl he was crushing on,” Nancy teased.

Chrissy moved to hide her face behind her pillow again, but Nancy pulled it away from her and tossed it aside.

“You know, you could bunk with Steve for the rest of the trip if you really wanted to. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind at all, and it seems to me like that’s something that would make you very happy from just how pink your cheeks are right now, so I’d be happy to switch rooms with him.”

“Oh, I couldn’t ask you to do that for me. I don’t want to make things difficult for anyone else.”

“Ask me to do what? Share a room with my longterm boyfriend who I love very much? I’m pretty sure I’ll find a way to survive that torture. You don’t have to decide right now. Sleep on it and let me know sometime tomorrow. I just think continuing to share a room would make the both of you really happy. Anyway, you can use the bathroom first since you’ve gotta wake up early for your date.”

“I’ll think about it,” Chrissy said as she got up from the bed to grab what she needed for the bathroom. “And thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’m really happy for you.”

As Chrissy went through her nighttime routine, she couldn’t help but think about Nancy’s offer. She knew that she was going to miss being able to snuggle up to Steve while she had her bed all to herself that night, but she also felt that it was maybe too forward of her to decide that they should share the same room for the rest of the trip. That could potentially lead her into situations that she didn’t know if she was ready for just yet, and she’d hate to ruin whatever she and Steve were now simply because she’d set him up to be disappointed about how far she was willing to go. She also couldn’t help but think that it was selfish of her to want to share her bed with him without being willing to do everything that sharing a bed with him could lead to.

That didn’t change the fact that that was what she wanted though. She wanted to fall asleep in his arms just like she’d done for the past few nights, and she found herself hoping that he wanted that, too. She’d broach the subject with him at some point the next day and see how he felt about it. If they were feeling the same way, maybe she could work through her roadblocks enough to allow herself that bit of comfort.

***

Chrissy ended up making it to the lobby before Steve did, so she took a seat on one of the sofas to wait for him. No one else was out and about that early other than the front desk staff, so she busied herself with scrolling through her instagram feed while she waited. Anything to distract herself from the fact that her mom would have dropped dead from the shock of seeing her willingly go out in public in her pajamas. Normally, she would have been a little self-conscious about it, but Steve had already seen her in her Barbie t-shirt and plaid pajama shorts when they’d shared a room. Plus, he was going to be in his pajamas, too, so she had no real reason to worry. She could be calm and collected about this.

Soon enough, Steve was sitting down next to her and wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her onto his lap before he’d even said hello.

“Well, hello to you, too,” she giggled as Steve leaned in to kiss her cheek.

He responded by burying his face in her neck and hugging her a little tighter.

“I thought we were going to breakfast?” she asked.

“In a minute,” he replied, making no moves to loosen his hold on her. “I didn’t get my Chrissy cuddles this morning, so I’m not ready to get up yet.”

“Did you really miss me that much?”

He nodded.

“My bed felt really empty after sharing with you the past couple nights. Feels like my whole day started out wrong.”

“I feel the same way,” she admitted. “It was weird not having you there.”

“Think Eddie would notice if I smuggled you into our room tonight? We could wait until he was asleep, and you wake up earlier than he does anyway, so you could sneak out before he gets up. It’s the perfect plan.”

“I have an even better idea, but I think you need to take me to breakfast before I share it.”

“I think that can be arranged.”

Steve stood up and pulled Chrissy up with him. With her hand in his, he started to head towards the door, but he paused about halfway there.

“Wait. I haven't given you a real good morning kiss yet,” he said as he turned towards her.

“We should probably fix that.”

“Yeah. We probably should.”

Steve leaned in to kiss her, and when she felt him smile against her lips, she couldn't help but smile in return. She didn't think she'd ever get tired of how happy every kiss seemed to make him.

“Much better,” he said as he pulled away. “Now, we can get breakfast.”

One quick car ride later, and they were parked outside of a cozy-looking diner. Steve got out of the car first and jogged over to Chrissy’s side to open her door for her.

“How'd you find this place?” she asked.

“You think I didn't do research for this?” he asked. “This is technically our first official date. I’ve gotta do things right.”

Until that moment, it hadn’t occurred to Chrissy that this was their first date even if that probably should have been obvious to her. Even with him calling it a breakfast date in his text, she hadn’t connected the dots and had been thinking about this as just another instance where they were exploring somewhere separately from their friends. The aquarium and the natural history museum hadn’t been dates either, but both of those excursions had ended with Steve gifting her a plushie which was a very date-like thing to do. Hearing him actually call this one a date changed everything, and it only made her more self-conscious about the fact that she was wearing her pajamas in public. But, Steve was wearing his pajamas, too. If he could go out in public like that without caring what other people thought, she could do the same. And, as he took her hand in his to walk her into the diner, she only felt more confident in that fact. He wasn’t embarrassed to be seen with her looking like that. He wanted people to know they were together. That was all the reassurance she needed.

As they walked into the diner, Steve noticed that Chrissy’s eyes lingered on the chalkboard sign out front that was advertising that day’s special: blueberry pancakes with maple syrup and homemade whipped cream. But, when it came time for them to order, she chose a small fruit and yogurt parfait instead. He had a feeling he knew what was going on in her head. From what she’d told him on the beach, he knew she was probably hearing her mother berating her for even thinking about ordering something with that many calories. He briefly thought about making her put a dollar in the jar for that, but he was afraid that that would make whatever issues she had even worse. He didn’t want to take that risk, so he just ordered the special for himself instead. He thought that maybe he’d be able to convince her to have a couple bites of his breakfast because he’d been able to share food with her like that before.

“So, you said that you had a better idea than me sneaking you into my room every night?” he asked her, trying to keep her from focusing on the food that they’d just ordered.

“I do,” she told him. “I was talking to Nancy last night, and she said she wouldn’t mind switching rooms with you if we wanted to share for the rest of the trip. It doesn't necessarily mean that anything needs to happen between us other than what we've already been doing, but I feel really comfortable sharing my space with you. So I was thinking that I’d maybe really like that to be an every night thing if it was something you’d like, too.”

“So, you’re saying that I would get to wake up snuggled up to the most beautiful girl I know, and I could do that every single day for the rest of this trip? Yeah, I think that’s something I’d like.”

“Oh, good. I was hoping that would be your answer,” she said with a teasing smirk. “I could really use my own personal space heater again.”

“Mean,” he said with a teasing smirk of his own. “I call you beautiful, and you only wanna cuddle with me because I’m warm. So mean.”

“That’s not the only reason.”

“Oh, yeah? What other reasons do you have?”

“You keep trying to get me to say things that you know are going to fluster me. Maybe you're the mean one.”

“Or maybe I just think you're especially beautiful when you're blushing,” he told her.

“Well, if that's the case,” Chrissy began, her cheeks already starting to get a little pink from his compliment, “I'll just say that if I told you what I really wanted to do before I got all up in my head yesterday morning, you wouldn't be calling me mean.”

“You’re definitely still mean,” he told her.

“How do you figure?”

“You told me that when we don’t have access to anywhere private enough for me to ask you if you’re willing to show me exactly what you were thinking. So cruel.”

Chrissy didn’t have time to respond because their waiter chose that moment to reappear with their food, and Steve watched as she stared at his plate of pancakes and the sides of sausage links and hash browns they came with before resigning herself to her own breakfast. He could almost see the disappointment on her face when she took a bite of her parfait and realized it didn't taste anywhere near as good as she knew the pancakes did.

He was careful about what he did next. He took a couple bites of his breakfast before cutting a small piece off of one of the pancakes.

“You’ve gotta try these,” he told her as he pushed the piece towards the edge of his plate. “They’re maybe the best pancakes I’ve ever had in my entire life.”

“That’s okay. I’m happy with what I ordered.”

“Are you sure? I think you’ll really like them.”

“That’s practically a third of one of your pancakes,” she said as she eyed the piece that he was offering her. “I’m not taking that much of your breakfast.”

Steve cut a single bite off of that piece and made sure it had a little bit of syrup and whipped cream on it before offering the fork to Chrissy.

“Just one bite then,” he said.

She ignored his offer and went back to twirling her spoon around in her yogurt.

“What’s this?” he said as he lifted his fork and started twirling it in the air in front of Chrissy. “Could it be the Pancake Express getting ready to pull in at Cunningham Station?”

It was then that he chose to start making train noises which set off Chrissy’s giggling.

“You’re so embarrassing,” she told him through her laughter as she reached out to take his fork. She ate the bite he’d given her, and he couldn’t stop smiling over the way she closed her eyes to savor the taste.

“Best pancakes ever, am I right?” he asked as he took his fork back.

“That was pretty delicious.”

“It’s a good thing the Pancake Express made it to you. I was afraid it was going to get derailed.”

“You’re such a dork,” she told him, giggling over his theatrics again.

“Maybe, but you like me, so what does that say about you?”

“That I have excellent taste when it comes to total dorks, obviously.”

“Obviously. I shouldn’t have even had to ask.”

He nudged Chrissy’s foot with his under the table, and she nudged him back before they went back to eating their breakfasts. She never outright asked him for another bite on her own, but she did accept a couple more bites from him when he offered them, so he was counting that as another win.

When it came time to pay for their meals, Steve told the waiter that it was all going on one check, and he wouldn’t let Chrissy share the tab.

“Absolutely not,” he told her. “I invited you on this date, so it’s my treat.”

“Then I’m buying you lunch,” she insisted. “I’m not letting you waste all of your money on me when I’m perfectly capable of treating you, too.”

“We’ll see. But you’re putting a dollar in the jar for thinking that me treating you is a waste of money.”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t notice that. And anyway, that’s not what I was trying to say. I just meant that you don’t need to constantly treat me to things just because we like each other. I’ve been paying for myself for ages. That doesn’t need to change.”

He wanted to ask her if that meant Jason never treated her on their dates, but he knew she didn’t like talking about him, so he didn’t want to be the one that brought him up. That had to be her choice.

“I know that I don't need to treat you to things, but I want to. I won't do it constantly if it makes you uncomfortable, but if I ask you on a date like this, I'd like to buy your breakfast.”

“I don't want things to be unbalanced between us,” she admitted. “I don't want you to end up resenting me because I can't reciprocate in the ways that you might want me to.”

Steve frowned, his brow furrowing. He reached across the table to lay his hand in front of her with his palm facing up and waited for her to place her hand in his. He gave her hand a small squeeze and started gently brushing her knuckles with his thumb.

“I don't want you to think that anything I'm doing is because I'm expecting something from you,” he told her. “Buying your breakfast came with zero expectations just like every one of the plushies I've given you or the snacks I’ve offered you. I do these things because I like you, and that's one of the ways I've always expressed that to people in the past. If it's too much for you, I can stop. The last thing I want is for you to be uncomfortable. I just want you to know that there are no strings attached to anything I give you.”

His words were almost enough to make her cry. She couldn't count how many times she'd been given something only to be told that there were expectations attached to the gift. A sweater from her mom, but she was only allowed to wear it if she lost five pounds. Money to go out with her friends after a basketball game paired with the knowledge that she’d have to show her mom the itemized receipt to prove she hadn't wasted it on junk food. And then any little thing Jason gave her came with the expectation that she'd put out for him. He'd been tolerant of her not being ready to let him touch her in certain ways in the beginning. He'd found her bashfulness somewhat endearing at first, but his patience eventually ran out, and then he started refusing to pay for her on dates because she wouldn't take her shirt off in front of him. It got to the point where she was afraid to even ask him for a stick of gum because she knew that even that would prompt him to request an uncomfortable amount of PDA.

She was so used to every gift holding a ‘but’, and yet Steve was sitting there telling her that this would never be the case with him. It all felt too good to be true.

“So you won't get upset with me if the only way I can show my thanks is with my words?” she asked.

“I promise that won't happen. I just want you to be happy.”

He gave her hand another little squeeze, and this time, she squeezed his hand back.

“Okay. Thank you for taking me to breakfast then,” she told him. “I’d still like to treat you sometimes though. It doesn't have to be lunch today, but I want to be able to treat you, too.”

“How about you buy me breakfast tomorrow then?” he suggested. “We can take turns.”

“I’d really like that. Only if you can manage to get yourself out of bed though. You seem to have an extra hard time getting up when we're sharing a bed,” she teased.

“I don’t remember hearing any complaints about that from you.”

“Oh really? Because I seem to recall me referring to you as the absolute worst.”

“So mean. I changed my mind. I don't wanna share a room with you anymore,” he teased right back.

Chrissy stuck out her lower lip in a pout that made Steve have to resist the urge to lean across the table and kiss it away.

“But then neither of us get any morning cuddles, so really, you’re just punishing yourself here.”

“You do make a good point there,” he said, making a show out of looking as if he were having a hard time making his choice. “Alright. We can room together.”

Chrissy’s expression instantly brightened, and Steve couldn’t help but smile back when she was beaming at him like that. He’d do anything to keep that smile in his life.

***

When they arrived back at the bed and breakfast, Steve offered to walk Chrissy back to her room but paused at the front desk when he realized he’d left his room key in the car.

“It’s okay,” she told him. “Go back and get your key. You don’t need to walk me to my room.”

“Well, yeah, I know I don’t need to. But I’m trying to do this whole first date thing right, and the clearly established rules of the first date say that I’m supposed to walk you to your door where I might be lucky enough to get an end of date kiss.”

“We’re already doing things a little different than a normal first date, so I’m giving you permission to break the rules. You could always give me my end of date kiss right here.”

“Even though it's PDA?” he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“I think I can make an exception,” she told him. “My uneasiness hasn't disappeared overnight or anything like that, but I'm starting to maybe feel a little more comfortable with it. With you, it doesn't feel so scary.”

That was all Steve needed to hear for him to close the gap between them and lean down to kiss her. She tasted like strawberries and the maple syrup from his pancakes, and he could have spent the entire day falling into that kiss. Sure, he'd kissed plenty of other girls before, but none of them seemed to get him the way that Chrissy did. That only made kissing her even more thrilling, and he couldn't help but smile against her lips. It only egged him on when he felt her smile back.

“Thanks for letting me take you out to breakfast,” he said once they'd pulled apart.

“Thank you for taking me,” she replied. “I had a really nice time with you.”

“I wish it didn't have to end.”

“We're meeting right back here in an hour. You won't even have time to miss me.”

“You underestimate just how much I like spending time with you.”

A blush started to bloom on Chrissy’s cheeks, and he would have kissed her right then and there if he didn't think a second kiss would have toed the line of too much PDA.

Instead, he let her give him a quick hug before she headed off to her room leaving him to retrieve his room key from the car.

When he made it back into the bed and breakfast, he heard someone calling his name as he was walking through the lobby, and he turned to find the old couple that he and Chrissy had spoken with the day before sitting back on the same sofa.

“We hear someone went on a little date this morning,” Ethel said as she motioned for Steve to join them. “We passed Chrissy in the hallway on our way down here, and she was positively glowing. She's just absolutely smitten with you. I can tell.”

“You think so?” he asked.

“I know so. Girls don't get that dreamy look in their eyes for nothing, you know.”

“Well, that's a good thing then because I really like her, too.”

“It is disappointing that I won't be able to pass along my grandson’s number to her, but I think she might have already found her perfect match in you, and I wouldn't dare try to interfere with that.”

“Can I offer you a little bit of advice?” Fred asked. “Use a cheesy pick up line on her. That's how I won this one over, and we're going on fifty-three years of wedded bliss.”

He leaned over and planted a loud kiss on his wife’s cheek.

“Oh, Fred,” she said, swatting at his thigh. “He's always been a corny one, but I've always loved a guy that can make me laugh.”

“I'll definitely give that a shot,” Steve told the couple. “Any other tips you might have for me? I wanna make sure I do things the right way with her.”

“The fact that you're even asking is proof you're already doing everything right,” Ethel told him. “You're a nice boy. Just keep doing whatever you just did on that breakfast date. It's clearly working from how happy she was when we ran into her.”

“Thanks. I appreciate the advice.”

Steve didn't have to wait very long for the perfect opportunity to put Fred’s advice into action. When he finished getting ready for the day, he headed back out to the lobby to wait for the rest of the group and found that Chrissy was already waiting there. She was scanning the selection of brochures and fliers that was set up next to the front desk. He moved to stand next to her and leaned into her space.

“Sorry, but do you have a map in your purse?” he asked. “I think I just got lost in your eyes.”

She turned to face him, and her nose was all scrunched up as she tried to hold in her giggles.

“That was so bad,” she told him as she took his hand in hers.

“But it got you to initiate holding my hand, so I'm pretty sure it worked,” he teased.

“Well, yeah. Of course, it worked,” she teased right back. “I thought we'd already established that I like dorky guys?”

He leaned in to kiss her cheek, but she pouted when he pulled away.

“You missed.”

“I missed?”

She nodded.

“My lips are a little further to the left actually.”

“My mistake. These are your lips, right?” He kissed the tip of her nose. “No, that can't be right. Here, maybe?” He kissed her chin. “That didn't feel right either. Let me try again.” He kissed her left eye that time and then her other cheek, her forehead, and her right ear. He relished in the way she laughed a little bit more with each misplaced kiss.

“I think it's hopeless,” he finally said with an exaggerated sigh. “I'm never going to find them on my own. I think I need your help.”

“Such a colossal dork,” she said with an eye roll before standing up on her tiptoes to give Steve a proper kiss.

After their kiss, he moved to stand behind her so she could lean back against his chest and he could cage her in his arms. He snuck a quick glance back at the seating area where he saw Fred and Ethel giving him a thumbs up.

***

After a long day of touring monuments and a couple more museums, Nancy and Steve swapped rooms with the agreement that these would be the sleeping arrangements for the rest of the trip no matter where they ended up staying. In Steve’s opinion, it was the pretty perfect end to an already great day. Chrissy had held his hand through most of their adventuring, and she’d slowly started to be more comfortable with accepting affection from him in public. She’d even requested kisses from him on more than one occasion.

But maybe his favorite part of the day had been when they stopped at The Good Stuff Eatery for lunch. It was a restaurant owned by a former Top Chef contestant that Eddie insisted they had to stop at. He and his uncle were big on watching cooking competitions together, and he’d promised Wayne that he’d stop there to give him all the details about the food. When they were waiting in line to order, Chrissy had tugged on his hand to get his attention.

“Share a milkshake with me?” she’d asked. “I heard the toasted marshmallow shake is to die for, and I really want to try one, but I’ll never be able to finish one on my own.”

“Can we get two straws and be sickeningly cute?”

“Of course.”

“Then my answer is yes.”

Chrissy had beamed at him and kissed his cheek again, and he had to resist the urge to tell her how proud of her he was. There was a part of him that knew that she wasn’t allowing herself to have a whole milkshake because of her mother, but the fact that she wanted to share one with him was progress, and he couldn’t be happier that she wasn’t depriving herself of the things she wanted to try.

When the two couples had separated to go to their own rooms for the rest of the night, neither Steve nor Chrissy felt ready to go to bed yet.

“How do you feel about going on another little adventure?” Chrissy asked as she exited the bathroom after changing into her pajamas for the night.

“What did you have in mind?”

“I noticed this cute little outdoor seating area when we were leaving this morning, and I was thinking that maybe you’d wanna sit out there and look at the stars with me?”

Steve got up from where he was lounging on the bed to grab his windbreaker and slip on his shoes.

“Lead the way,” he told her.

Chrissy took him by the hand, and they made their way down to a patio off of the building’s back entrance. There was a swinging bench seat with a few plush pillows, and there were fairy lights strung up around the space.

“It’s perfect, right?” Chrissy asked as she pulled Steve over to the seat.

“Definitely.”

Steve draped his jacket around Chrissy’s shoulders before sitting down on the bench and pulling her to sit down with him. He kept one leg firmly planted on the ground to rock them back and forth a little. Chrissy let out a content sigh as she curled into his side and rested her head on his shoulder.

“Are you a shooting star?” Steve asked her. “Because I can’t help but wish you were mine whenever I look at you.”

Chrissy covered her face with her hands as she started giggling.

“That was too corny,” she told him. “Who would have thought that Prom King Steve Harrington was such a dork?”

“I may be a dork, but what does it say about Prom Queen Chrissy Cunningham that my dorky lines have such a big effect on her?”

“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “I wasn’t the prom queen, so I don’t think those terms apply.”

“I find that really hard to believe. You’re pretty much the quintessential prom queen. How could they not elect you?”

“Well, I think you kind of have to go to prom to be elected.”

“You didn’t go to prom?” That fact shocked him. He thought everybody went to their senior prom. Especially popular girls like her. “Why not?”

“I don’t know. Jason had just dumped me two weeks before, all of my friends already had dates, and I didn’t really feel like finding a new date or crashing Eddie’s with Nancy. Plus, Jason found a new date immediately, and I really didn’t want to be forced to watch some other girl hang all over him all night. My parents were out of town for something with my brother, so I just stayed home and watched a bunch of Fraggle Rock in bed. It’s really not that big of a deal.”

But it was a big deal. It broke Steve’s heart to think that she had missed out on such an important event because of whatever bullshit Jason had put her through, and the worst part was that she didn’t even sound sad about it. She’d just accepted that skipping prom was the logical thing to do in her situation even though it wasn’t. She never should have had to make that decision in the first place, and now he was trying to figure out how to throw her a makeup prom once they were back in Hawkins.

He couldn’t just let that information linger though. He didn’t want there to be a cloud hanging over their otherwise perfect day because of what she’d just admitted to him. So, without thinking, he got up from the bench and pulled out his phone. He opened up the link Chrissy had shared to her musical theater playlist, and he chose a song that he remembered her gushing over when she was telling him about why she loved Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella so much. As the opening bars of “Ten Minutes Ago” started to play, he offered Chrissy his hand.

“May I have this dance?” he asked.

“What are you doing?”

“This is the bed and breakfast prom, and you’ve just been crowned prom queen. As your king, I think that means we’re supposed to share a dance.”

 “You really don’t have to do this,” she told him. “It’s okay that I missed prom. I’m fine.”

“I know. I just want you to know that it’s okay if you weren’t fine. And I know this isn’t the same, but maybe it makes up for what you missed just a little bit.”

Chrissy’s lower lip quivered as she took Steve’s hand and let him pull her in for a slow dance. She’d shoved herself into a box where she felt like she had to be agreeable and give up things that mattered to her for so long that that was all that she knew how to do. And now, Steve was slow dancing with her under the stars because he was adamant that she didn’t have to do that. She didn’t have to give up the things she wanted, and she was allowed to be disappointed. What she wanted mattered, and that realization was enough to make her cry.

As the song came to an end, he gave her a little twirl before pulling her back against his chest. She wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest, willing herself not to cry as he held her tight against him. She was not going to ruin this beautiful moment with tears. She couldn’t.

When she’d finally composed herself and looked up at him, he was gazing down at her as if she was the only thing that mattered, and it made her feel like her heart was going to burst out of her chest.

“How are you even real?” 

She wasn’t sure if she’d even said that out loud at first, but then Steve let out a small laugh and hugged her tighter. He leaned down to kiss her, and she melted into him.

Chrissy Cunningham was special, damn it, and he was going to do everything in his power to make her realize that.

[sojourner-between-worlds]

I was tagged by @vaschenko-chao ! Thanks!

Rules are: Post gifs from your 10 favourite shows without naming them, then tag 10 people.

Feel free to comment or send me an ask if you recognize any of these shows! I'm always willing scream about them hehehe (<- stolen from prev but absolutely true! lol)

Tagging (no pressure!): @dangerously-human @womaninwinter @inkblackorchid @afairmaiden @theboredandkindaweirdhisotrian

@nothinggold13 @thetranslucentwallaby @awfullybigwardrobe44 @she-is-amused @shitpostingkats

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[nomatterwhatnomatterwhere]

What a ( Not so) Strange World X

So… I know I said I wouldn't be long, but hey…life happens I guess? I've had the chapter set at 1777 words for longer than I'm willing to admit, so let's briefly explain why I'm late: I'm a fucking dragon.

Okay, let's move on to the slightly longer version eh? I'm moving, so I've been messing around the house and realising I own more stuff than I thought I did or didn't even remember existed. Kind of like a hoardin dragon.

So, having some slightly more important priorities than publishing the chapters of various works, I kind of forgot that I actually had to publish those chapters.

I don't want to bore you with my misadventures, although I may need to complain to someone about it because, really, I could write a comedy series about it.

I apologise, again, for the delay, but I would also like to thank all the people who have started following the story in the last period. I was buried by notifications, and it was also thanks to this that I was able to complete the chapter.

So many thanks for your patience, ( if you have some left over can you lend it to me? I swear I will give it back to you. No? Anyone? Sigh)

Ohh right ! Before I forget, since you asked so nicely I couldn't help but accommodate you (sorry I didn't answer right away) so well, anyone who would like to be tagged please don't mind letting me know

@jessiegerl

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"No kiddin! He collared me for eating one slice of tart! All his 'rule obsession' is outta control!"

It was true that 'Riddle' seemed a bit too rule-obsessed, but Ace wasn't really the best person to complain: if Riddle was rule-obsessed then Ace had no conception of what rules were - and probably broke them unknowingly for that very reason.

"Ace I don't thi-"

You were about to let Ace in on this too, but you interrupted yourself when you noticed both Cater and Trey stiffen slightly, realising that who was probably 'Riddle' had approached the table.

"My 'rule obsession' is 'outta control', is it?"

Yep. Definitely Riddle.

And Ace was talking bad about Riddle, to Riddle.

While he was talking you couldn't help but think how much he looked like a child; he was cute, he looked like a doll. When Ace had asked him to take off his collar, you had to restrain yourself from snorting: it was a definitely absurd request.

( seriously Ace, after breaking rules and bad-mouthing the Housewarden, did he really think Riddle would give him his magic back? Naive)

You knew that Riddle was absolutely serious while scolding Ace, but all you could see was a child playing at being an adult - little did it matter that Riddle was older than you - and he was absolutely adorable

( He had adorable little cheeks! You wanted to pinch them. But you were keen not to have any dog collars around your neck, thank you).

You agreed that 'tolerating rulebreakers' might have taken the campus down a path you didn't feel like going down, but you didn't think this was the worst habit the HeadMaster could have.

There was something wrong with that thing and you couldn't help but worry

( worrying about you, about Yuu's safety, about Yuu's survival, about Yuu in general… and even about the evil weasel, in part… and maybe the Problem Child ™ … maybe, you weren't sure Ace deserved to escape the destruction he was causing)

Regardless of what Ace thought of Riddle - to which you could now even attach a face, yay - you didn't think the HouseWarden's thinking was so wrong.

If there were rules, it was only right that they should be obeyed... after all, they existed for a valid reason - right? - and if those rules were broken, then it was only fair that those responsible were punished.

Moreover, at least in Ace's case, Riddle had also been respectful of his education, since his punishment did not affect his school results.

( And you actually rather agreed with Riddle: The problems that an Ace without magic could create were certainly less dangerous than those that an Ace with magic would have caused.

He would still have created problems...might as well limit the damage).

"Now as per rule 339"

" 'The post - meal beverage is to be lemon tea with two sugar cubes' I know, I just don't have a clue where to find the sugar... or tea to be honest, I haven't seen a kettle around, and my sense of direction would allow me to get lost even in an empty room."

You hadn't realised either that you had interrupted Riddle, or that you had said all this out loud, or that the table's attention was on you... you didn't think you had spoken so loudly, but at that moment you cared about your survival.

You apologised to Riddle, smiling rather embarrassedly at him, because really, you hadn't made a fool of yourself yet today.

To your surprise, the boy took it rather well: his eyes were slightly wide, but he hadn't shouted at you…

( Now Ace could have said that Riddle was playing favorites? The situation seemed that serious to you)

After announcing that he was going to get sugar, and saying goodbye to the others, he asked you if you wanted to follow him.

And of course you gave him an affirmative answer.

You were a little afraid to leave Yuu, but Cay and Trey wouldn't let anything bad happen. Although you hoped nothing would happen in general.

So slightly reassured by the thought that in case something happened Yuu would be safe, you got up to follow Riddle.

(You were fully unaware that as you walked away, the negative comments about Riddle were only just beginning.

You were, on the other hand, fully aware that someone was abusing sugar, if Riddle's gritted-tooth comment was anything to go by)

You and Riddle had walked in silence along the path leading from the table where you had lunch to the entrance of the Cafeteria, where on a well-decorated table, away from the buffet area, was everything you needed to prepare tea and other beverages.

( Maybe you could have made yourself some hot chocolate? It's been a long time since you've had some).

Riddle had been kind enough to boil water and brew tea, adding sugar to your cup for you.

"Do you follow all the rules to the letter?" you asked after thanking him for the tea, and were not surprised by his sign of assent.

"But all of them? Like for Rule 529 'If you eat steak on a night with a full moon, a cat must play the violin' does the cat get charmed into doing it? Or is it trained?"

He thought about it for a moment before answering

"It hasn't occurred to me to put this rule into practice yet, but I am convinced that there are both trained and enchanted cats"

"It's interesting how seriously you take these rules" the boy was about to reply but you continued "No offence, it's just that sometimes it's hard to follow them all perfectly, isn't it?"

( You didn't have to tell him that it had taken you quite a while for your sugar cubes to reach two. You weren't particularly fond of sweets as a child.

And that had earned you a few feeding lessons from Queenie who had taken your low sugar levels to heart.

Although your eardrums were still suffering from it, those were the first loving cries you had been given).

"With a little bit of effort you can succeed at anything if you want to" he was looking at the table where your group was.

"Ace isn't bad" he looked at you in profile as you continued " At least, I don't think so, it's just… that he doesn't think enough before he speaks, I don't think he wanted to wrong you"

It was true. You didn't think Ace was bad…just tremendously insensitive and stubborn.

(And maybe a little stupid.)

"To me, however, he doesn't seem to understand what the problem is," and you nodded knowingly.

"I don't think he understands the point of those rules . Or the rules in general, for that matter." and here you saw Riddle smile slightly.

"I'm not going to take his collar off just because someone intercedes for him."

"And that wasn't my intent anyway. But if he returned a tart and apologised, he should be allowed back in the dormitory, right?"

You honestly knew Ace would cause more trouble, but as long as he caused it out of your sight - and possibly away from Yuu - it was fine.

What was not fine at all was the thought of Ace staying in Ramshackle Dorm.

One night had been enough, and you didn't want to leave Yuu at the mercy of two and a half Problem Children™.

"Those tarts had been prepared by Trey for the upcoming Unbirthday Party being held at Heartslabyul, but I guess it can still go well."

Riddle had noticed how your eyes had lit up at the mention of the Unbirthday Party: you looked like a child who was ashamed to ask his parents for a toy.

And indeed it wasn't too far from reality.

You knew all the rules of the Queen of Hearts, but you'd never had the chance to attend a real Unbirthday Party, but you could sense that they were an important celebration, at least for anyone who was part of Heartslabyul, and you would have liked to attend, but to invite yourself was rude, no matter what world you were in.

However…

"Um..so if, um, we showed up to this Unbirthday Party, obviously dressed formally, and with this tart…could we strangers attend as well?"

Riddle peered at you for a few moments.

You seemed to know and apply the rules as much as he did, you had been polite in your manners and your eyes were shining for him to actually say no to you.

( And besides, there was no rule forbidding people from attending Unbirthday Parties, otherwise Che'nya would have been 'off with his head' more times than was humanly possible )

"As long as the rules are adhered to, there should be no problem."

You had greeted him all smiling after thanking him, bouncing away.

You were a ball of brightness. You weren't bad to be around.

You, on the other hand, thought your group of friends - could they even be called that? - were trying to get rid of you, as the table where you had lunch was totally empty.

Rude. Very rude.

Rook hadn't helped either. At your look of "you've got something to say abou it?" he had merely shrugged.

You didn't believe him for half a minute.

( You were right not to believe him. Rook knew perfectly well what was going on, but it would have been fun to see how you would have behaved)

It was only thanks to two Beastmen who were complaining - one of them - about an interrupted nap and someone who smelled "not - magic - at- all" that you realised which direction to go in

(even though it didn't reassure you at all).

Why were they in the Botanical Garden, of grace?

(On thinking about it, it made sense that they were going to retrieve the tools to collect chestnuts from there, but you didn't know that the bunch of idiots - Yuu excluded - had decided to make a Chestnut tart)

Which by the way, how did they think you were going to reach them - because it was obvious you were going to reach them - without knowing where they were going? With magic?

(Well, maybe so, but you didn't know how to cast such precise location spells yet).

You found them heading for the kitchens with several baskets of chestnuts - they'd made you wander the campus for nothing then - and filled you in on their intentions.

Honestly speaking, making chestnut tarts for an Unbirthday party didn't really seem like the best idea, but it had been Trey's idea and you doubted Trey had really wanted to get his freshmen into even more trouble than they already were.

Besides, if Riddle himself had requested such a tart, there shouldn't have been a problem, right?

(Although this did raise a few questions - which you kept sweeping under the carpet - such as, 'if Riddle is so bound by the Queen of Hearts' rules, how come he agreed to this crazy idea? )

After the chestnuts had finally been shelled and the two freshmen from Heartslabyul had been made fun of, you realised - Trey realised - that it was time to go to the school store to get some more cream, and while you were at it Trey asked Deuce to pick up a few more things.

You quickly pulled back: you had already walked enough around campus, this time you were going to pass.

After Yuu, Deuce and Grim came out you could "admire" Ace falling asleep on the table - with even a little bit of drool, how horrible.

"And he complained about our Dormitory, he can really sleep anywhere," you said looking towards Trey, who had a slight smile on his face as he approached you, leaning against the counter you had vacated.

"Thanks again for looking after him"

"It wasn't like we had a choice anyway. He did it all by himself. When he comes back to your dorm it will be terrible for you," you said, shaking your head.

There was a moment of awkward silence, or at least, that was what you perceived and you felt like you had to do something.

"When you make the muffins could you let me know? I'd like to help out."

And of course that something had to be awkward, damn you

Trey merely nodded.

You were about to open your mouth again when he anticipated you 'I didn't think I'd see you again. Certainly not under these circumstances," he chuckled.

"Well, um, I don't think anyone expected to see me again under these circumstances."

So you told him a very short version of your little trip from the RSA to the NRA, ignoring how he tried not to laugh openly, as Che'nya had.

You just couldn't help it. Trey had become even more handsome over the years, it was almost unfair.

Surely he had a girlfriend or something. That was even more unfair.

Your teenage self couldn't realise she had a crush on him when you had a chance!

You must not have been very subtle as you looked at him because, without missing a beat, he asked in the quietest tone in the world.

"You seem to be looking at something you like?"

Your shout - it wasn't a shout, it was an embarrassed and indignant babbling nonsense - had managed to wake Ace - who for once wasn't at fault - just minutes before Yuu, Deuce and Grim returned.

Deuce didn't look too good, but at that moment you didn't really care.

Your only thought at that moment was where you could dig yourself a hole to bury yourself from embarrassment.

(You were so engrossed in your thoughts that you didn't even notice how red the tip of Trey's ears were when he asked you that question, nor how from that moment on he would not only continue to glance at you, but also to make eye contact with you.

Which failed miserably because you didn't look up from the ground for another second.

In spite of everything, however, he was happy to still have the same effect on you. They were satisfactions).

Omake

While you were following Riddle around the Cafeteria, you didn't notice what was going on around you.

But Riddle did.

And he hoped you didn't ask him why he had suddenly changed direction.

But just as you wanted to survive Ace, Riddle wanted to survive Floyd Leech.

Riddle knew it was him. He had a sixth sense for when the merman was around.

And in Riddle's opinion it was never good to be near the Octavinelle trio

[haewho]

𝑃𝑅𝑂𝐹𝐼𝐿𝐸𝑆 > lovelies

HAN YN > our main character and the sweetest girl in school. once told an old man he could have her seat on the bus, turns out he was wanted for jaywalking in like 15 countries. is han yujin’s sister and holds him very deeply to her heart. has a huge enormous crush on sunghoon and is willing to see past his wrongdoings, in short, she’s delusional.

CHOI YUNJIN > yn’s best friend and probably her biggest supporter. literally hates everyone except yn and MAYBE jeonghyeon. despises sunghoon bc he has yns full attention and she thinks her best friend deserves better.

LEE JEONGHYEON > yn’s other best friend and probably the closest person to her. has known yn since they were in middle school after she cheered him up bc of a bad test score. has a subtle and small (literally gigantic) crush on her but ultimately just wants her to be happy. supports the jini hateful era agenda.

HAN YUJIN > yn’s brother and her reality check. never misses the chance to tell her she’s delusional and to wake up but does it out of concern. loves his sister more than anything and doesn’t believe she deserves an asshole like sunghoon. the dumb in the dumb dumber dumbest trio. lowk ships jeonghyeon and yn but thats a story for another day.

PARK GUNWOOK > yujin’s best friend and wingman. literally so adorable. believes he is the male incarnation of sana from twice. the dumber in the dumb dumber dumbest trio. close to yn and considers her the sister he never had.

KIM GYUVIN > yujin’s bestfriend and the slowpoke of the group. literally can’t comprehend simple multiplication. close with yn and jeonghyeon bc they helped him around the school when he first transferred. calls them his parents unironically. the dumbest in the dumb dumber dumbest trio.

KIM MINJEONG > yn’s neighbor and karina’s gf. has absolute 2019 humor. can’t text normally unless she’s quoting a video meme line. is somehow related to sunghoon even though she absolutely hates him for how stuck up he is. will support her gf and yn in whatever they say. can be a mom when she wants.

YOO JIMIN > yn’s close friend and winter’s gf. literally hates winter’s humor but she doesn’t mention it and just laughs bc she loves her. kinda down bad ngl. a dad. hates men (literally just sunghoon).

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[ summary ] > han yn was known in her school as an absolute sweetheart, sunghoon on the other hand was known as the football player with a cold heart. despite this, yn seemed to have the biggest crush on him, while sunghoon despised the young girl, i mean how can anyone genuinely be that happy and keep a smile on their face even as they have a milkshake spilling on their head (courtesy of sunghoon)! will yn be able to conquer his heart and experience a true first love or not? 𓇢𓆸

[ author’s note ] > i gave up at the end, sorryz…𓇢𓆸

[ taglist ] > @enhaz1 @alicesolengg @flmtunes @jrjr289 open! 𓇢𓆸 (non-bold means i cannot tag you, please check your settings!)

© haewho. 2023

[blindhades]

thank you for the tag this was fun <33

tags: @thesunkeptrising @i-cross-my-legs-justlikeaqueer @king-nyx @firebrand-witch

i made a quiz: what does your soul smell like? (friendship/ relationship compatibility in the results!)