#[chanting] book club book club book club

[inspiredwriter]

😁Welcome to Teddy Bear Club🐻

Club members:

Baloo from The Jungle Book,

Mate from "The Elm-Chanted Forest",

and Raphael from "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles"😁😆

(Fangirls, Raph promises to be honey bear for you all😏🍯🌹)

@kawaiibunga @sivy-chan-blog @hedgehog-dreamer @swagtreecrown @narwals14 @angelcatlowyn @dai-su-kiss @janet-the-dark-queen @turtle-babe83 @foxflamewarrior @cowabunga-doll @turtlesmakemehappy @zowise2912 @wolfroks @sharpwindow @androidships007

[babydxhl]

@arkhampsych| sc. 

It's the beeping of a monitor more than anything else that has her driving her thumbnail — barely aware of the motion, aggression more casual than breathing — into the tiny space between the page number and the bottom margins, the cheap paperback flinching under the force.

Beep. Beep. Her gaze flicks down the length of the infirmary, the unseen source of the sound behind a curtain at the far end, and then back to Crane.

"Come to gloat?" Her tone is curt — there is a kind of brisk disinterest that's become second nature to her interactions with the man. The hunger strike of a few days prior hadn't come to anything, only constant supervision, food forced down her throat. She supposes if there'd been space, she would have only ended up in solitary, but as it was—

Beep. Beep. She lifts the book in her lap, knees shrouded in a scratchy, thin blanket. "'Now you have destroyed all my happiness'," she reads, solemn, watching him over the top of it.

"'You have ruined all my future. It is horrible to think of! I am in the power of an unscrupulous man — he can do what he likes with me, ask anything he likes of me, give me any orders he pleases.'" Beep. Beep. The book drops back down with a soft thwip of starch. "'I dare not refuse.'"

"Do they let you read Ibsen in medical school? Or did they burn it while they were beating you over the head with Freud?"

[soggyriceee]

being a stripper wasn’t something you had enjoyed. you didn’t enjoy having a 5 year old at home, wondering why your best friend is home to babysit more than you are. you didn’t enjoy selling your body for a couple hindered bucks. but it was what made you money, made you be able to afford a roof over your sons head, school clothes and supplies, food.

you didn’t enjoy being knocked up at the early age of 18. the father of course fleeing, neglecting any and all contact with you or your family.

but what you did enjoy. was him.

“good evening, scarlet.” he would say softly, always grabbing your hand and placing a kiss on it. his eyes would then run down your frame, taking in how you were wearing the new lingerie he had brought you the previous Sunday night.

“good evening Konig.” you would respond, hiding the smile that crept onto your face. your heart beat for this man. every sunday you expected him, your face lighting up when you’d seen his name booked on your private room list.

every sunday, you’d give him your body. and he’d return the favor with gifts, money. you had opened up to him about your life the first night he had finally booked a private room with you, tired of having to share you with all of other men in the club. this was months ago.

his hands wound grip your waist as he bounced you up and down on him, his eyes hooked to your wet lips, your nose your eyes. he felt brand new with you. like a teenager, it was exhilarating what he felt everytime he’d slide his cock into you.

he loved how he was the only one who got to see you like this. see you so vulnerable so weak beneath him. he loved how that tough , independent women in you disappeared as soon as he touched you.

“let me take care of you.” he would whisper in your ear, feeling his orgasm creeping up on him quickly. “i-i can.. take you away from all of this.”

your eyes would open, looking down at his almost pleading eyes. you’d felt his cock twitch once, then twice inside you. “k-konig don’t come in me.” you’d warn, trying to fight against his tight grip. but you failed miserably.

but for some reason it made you so much wetter.

his hips bucked up into you, his whimpers growing louder as his fingers dug into your skin. “i-i love you… i wanna take care of you,” hed whimper again, “l-let it happen baby lemme take care of you.”

before you could fully comprehend what he had said, his hips would give one final thrust , konig chanting your name softly.

you were slightly in shock with what had just happened. konig and you had strictly avoided this. his come inside you. but what had you even more shocked. was that he said he loved you.

he’d place on last kiss to your lips, then your nose. “i meant it. i love you.. i’m gonna take care of you.” he said.

and then, he’d then turn, grabbing his ring off the glass table and sliding it onto his finger before walking out. that was two weeks ago. and the last time you’d heard from him since

yall i don’t condone cheating at all i just was at work and had this random idea for a little short story PLZ DONT CHEAT ON UR PARTNER😩✋🏽

[saigethearies]

osamu and you leave your daughter with her uncle atsumu for the weekend. chaos ensues.

___

“i woulda felt better leavin’ her with kita or aran.”

you let out a snort at your husband’s statement. “over your own brother? her blood relative?”

you and osamu were driving to a weekend getaway in the mountains. while the two of you were excited for a break and some quality time, there was no denying that there was some apprehension in the car.

it was the first time you’d be away from your baby daughter. as great as a vacation sounded, it would be a lie to say the two of you weren’t reluctant to go.

in order to ease your nerves, a suitable babysitter was chosen.

only osamu didn’t have a lot of faith in your choice.

“exactly, he’s ma brother, so ‘m the only one who understands just how much of ‘n idiot he truly is.”

“but you saw how happy he was to offer to watch her! atsumu loves being a uncle, he won’t half-ass taking care of her. besides, if he ends up needing help your mom is just a call away.”

“ma’s hostin’ her book club this saturday, she can’t just drop everythin’ if tsumu’s dumbass ends up needin’ help.”

you let out a sigh. “samu, just try and relax. i’m sure everything over on his end is fine.”

____

“COURT BABY! COURT BABY! COURT BABY!”

hinata and bokuto chanted as they watched your daughter crawl across the shiny floor of the msby practice gym.

having grown tired of the play mat and toys her uncle atsumu had laid out for her, the little one decided exploring her surroundings would be far more exciting.

“she’s crawlin’ earlier than most babies would,” atsumu chimed proudly. “must’ve got ma athlete genes.”

sakusa rolled his eyes from behind the fake blonde.

“she’s really going fast! let’s time her to see how quick she can move!” hinata suggested, fascinated by the little human on the ground.

“we’re supposed to be doing passing drills-“

“GREAT IDEA HINATA!” bokuto shouted.

“i give up,” the masked brunette said, moving to sit down on the bleachers since apparently no one was going to actually bother to follow instructions.

atsumu smirked while watching his teammates fawn over his niece. he knew it would be a good idea to just bring her to friday practice. the vibe for fridays was always a little more laid-back, and he knew having a cute little baby around would earn him brownie points with his excitable teammates. who didn’t love babies?

his brown eyes shifted over to sakusa momentarily, who was gazing at his niece with a look of disdain on his face.

okay, maybe he didn’t enjoy kids, but the rest of the team sure did!

“hey hey hey, baby miya! let’s see how quick you can crawl to your uncle tsum-tsum!”

atsumu grinned, moving to kneel on the ground so he can encourage his niece to move towards him. seeing the familiar face of her uncle- who shared a face with her father- had her happily babbling away as she pushed towards him.

“awe, she’s trying to talk!” hinata cooed, lip wobbling as he watched the precious exchange.

“alright, everyone,” a voice boomed. everyone turned to see a muscular figure with a head of spiky black hair enter the gymnasium.

“your coach asked me to come over to ensure you boys were actually practicing,” iwaizumi hajime (27) athletic trainer stated. “i have some specific stamina exercises i want everyone to participate in. we’re gonna start by-“

movement in the lower peripheral of iwa’s vision caught his attention and the former ace found his gaze turning toward the floor.

“…why the hell is there a baby here?”

“don’t fuckin’ curse in front’a ma niece!”

“you just- nevermind,” iwa grunted, trying to be as patient as possible considering there was a literal infant present.

slotting his clipboard into the junction of his shoulder, the athletic trainer bent down to gently pick up your daughter. balancing her on his hip as if he’d done it a million times before, he turned back to the team.

“alright, jumping jacks and high knees, i want those heart rates getting up!”

before atsumu could open his mouth, iwa shot him a pointed look.

“i’ll hold your niece, miya, now get moving.”

the squeaking of shoes against the linoleum floor began to sound off. after ensuring everyone was properly following his instructions, he turned to the baby in his hold.

everyone knew iwaizumi was tough, but few knew how much of a complete softie he could be at times. giving your daughter a small smile, he lifted his hands to wave his fingers at her, to which she smiled back and tried to mimic his movements.

he let out a light laugh. “motor skills coming along there, i see-“

“iwaaaaa-chaaannnnn,” a voice sounded off from behind him.

iwaizumi froze. that voice, that stupid nickname, he knew it from anywhere. he began to turn his head to look behind him, gradually as if he was moving in slow-motion.

there was no way…

“guess who flew all the way from argentina to surprise you with his presence,” oikawa boasted as he stepped into the room. “that’s right, me-“

the seijoh grad fell silent as his chocolate colored eyes fell on the small human in his best friend’s hold.

oikawa blinked once. twice. three times. then-

“since when did you have a kid?”

“tooru, this isn’t-“

“how could you keep this from me?”

“will you please just-“

“a whole child? when?”

“shittykawa just shut up-“

“STOP CURSIN’ IN FRONT’A HER!”

“-and listen to me for a second!”

oikawa finally stopped his tirade, moving towards iwaizumi to study the baby in his arms. he bent down to be eye level with her, the both of them staring at each other curiously.

the brunette hummed to himself, reaching a finger out to poke your daughter’s cheek. “she doesn’t look like you.”

“wow, what an observation, it’s almost like she’s not my kid.”

“then who’s is she-“

“she’s my niece,” atsumu growled out, pushing oikawa away from the baby he was prodding at. he fixed the other man with a glare, well aware of who he was and what position he also played. the fact that this potential rival thought he could casually touch his flesh and blood had the fake blonde heated. “i’m takin’ care’a her for the weekend, which means i ain’t letting no lesser setter lay’a hand on her.”

“lesser setter?”

“oh boy,” iwa said, moving away from the two ego-fueled players. he could tell they were about to scuffle and he couldn’t let a baby be anywhere near that.

placing your little girl safely to the side, iwa crouched in front of her, sounds of “never saw ya at spring nationals” and “let’s see what your stats are, huh?” airing in the background.

“you stay right here, i’m gonna go get them to knock it off.”

standing a few meters away from all the chaos, sakusa watched as iwaizumi tried to wrench the two setters apart. sighing, he shifted his gaze to your daughter sitting unattended on the ground, babbling at nothing in particular.

sakusa grimaced. he really didn’t like babies. they were so…germy. and gross. but, he supposed the babies themselves couldn’t really help that fact. it wasn’t their fault they were so little and had such new immune systems.

a shadow then loomed over your daughter, bokuto and hinata standing over her. now that iwaizumi was too distracted to lead them in workouts, the two’s attention was back on the infant.

“i know!” bokuto exclaimed. “let’s do passing drills with baby miya! we can pass her back and forth to each other!”

“she’ll feel like she’s flying! like she’s a little crow!”

“or an owl!”

“you two will be doing absolutely no such thing with this child,” sakusa interjected, scooping your daughter up and going to sit down on the bench with her.

“but ki-“

“no.”

he wasn’t a fan of babies, but considering your daughter’s uncle was currently holding oikawa in a headlock, sakusa figured he could keep an eye on her for just a few minutes. it wouldn’t be too much longer before iwa finally decided he’d had enough and smacked the shit out of both of them.

hearing a little gurgle from below him, the brunette cast his eyes downwards. your daughter’s sight was transfixed on him, a smile coming onto her face when she saw she had the spiker’s attention.

from behind his mask, sakusa felt the corners of his lips twitch upwards.

okay, maybe babies were a little cute.

[soft4gguk]

to build a home | chapter fifteen

Pairing: Jungkook x reader. ceo!jk + dilf!jk x nanny!oc

Genre: strangers to lovers. angst. fluff. smut.

Word count: 12.2k

Warnings: oof. let me keep it brief so i don’t spoil too much! it’s angsty. a looooong walk down memory lane. reminiscing. its kinda sad. but lucy’s holds oc through it all! bathroom quickie lol. unprotected sex (do better ok). a lil choking. a lil spanking. jk being an ass man!!!!! team mingyus u get to see ur boy!!! big gasp towards the end. 

Author’s note:  oh, boy! what have i DONE? lol. i’m not gonna say much. only that i love y’all with all my heart and i truly cannot wait to book club the fuck out of this chappie. sending x’s & o’s your way, always!!!!! <33333

This is a work of fiction. Please respect the members and their privacy. x

Chapter Fifteen

In the forty minutes you sleep, you manage to dream. It’s soft, tender and blue. It’s the ocean and Jungkook’s face, the sand on your toes, on your hands, falling from your fingers and getting caught in the wind, some landing on your face. He calls your name, beckoning you over, smile inviting as he walks backwards into the vastness of the sea. You smile, on your feet in no time before you’re running towards him, feet splashing salty water all over as you join him. You’re in his arms the second you’re close enough to him, legs wrapped around his waist as he lets his body fall into the water, deep, blue, your body never letting go of his. 

Your eyes open gently, head on his chest in the same position you’d fallen asleep in. Soori’s babbles coming from the baby monitor sound muffled as you incorporate yourself back into consciousness. Jungkook’s body is warm against the palm of your hand, breath steady as his chest rises and falls. You look up at him, not ready to leave his side, not ready to do what your brain demands of you the moment you start slipping into wakefulness. You close your eyes, snuggle your head in his chest once more, arm wrapping around him as you pull him closer to you ever so gently. He reciprocates your actions in his sleep, arm wrapping tighter around you as his head sinks further into the pillows. Soori’s not crying, you could probably stay like this for twenty more minutes, wrapped in his arms, closing your eyes and letting your mind and body be consumed with him so you don’t have to think. To really think. 

But you know it’s no use. You know that it’s over, whether you grant yourself the thirty minutes or not. It makes your heart ache, too weak to feel anger anymore. Too weak to even protest and try to put up a fight. You feel tears well up in the corner of yours eyes, and if you let them fall now, they won’t be able to stop. You pull away from him, your movements gentle as to not wake him up. You feel the bed move, making you stop in your tracks and glancing back to make sure he’s not awake. He simply lays on his side, snuggling himself into a pillow, his breathing letting you know that he’s still in deep sleep. You let yourself look at him, taking in his face, his body. He’s so beautiful it hurts. He’s so beautiful your heart begins to regain its strength some, becoming aware of him, swimming through the mud, about to beg you to keep going. But your brain is faster as you close your eyes, turning around and heading for the door. God, it hurts. It hurts to wake up, it hurts to walk. It hurts to feel him all over your body, the traces of the night you just shared still taking over your senses. His smell, his touch, the exhaustion that takes over you that borders as sweet because your body remains in that fucked out bliss only he knows how to put you in. 

The most reasonable part of you begs you to be strong. 

The most tender part of you begs you to turn back around.

You leave his room. 

You’re basically on your tiptoes, closing the door behind you gently, abstaining from making any noise. You think you manage pretty well, chanting victory a little too soon as you turn around and pretty much jump in place, hand coming to your mouth as you let out a yelp at the sight of Lucy standing in the hallway. 

“Good morning,” she says, jutting her hip out and tapping her feet on the ground as she crosses her arms in front of her body. 

“You scared the living shit out of me,” you whisper yell at her. 

“Of course I did, because you just got caught.”

You sigh, admitting defeat. “Come get Soori with me. She’s awake.”

“Will you explain?”

“Yes.”

“Okay,” she says, opening the door to your room. “Put some pants on first. And panties.”

“Shit,” you say, looking back at Jungkook’s room. 

“No use now. He’s got himself a souvenir.”

“Don’t be witty right now,” you tell her, rummaging through your bags to find a pair of pants. And panties. 

“___, you were bawling your eyes out last night. I was literally scared you’d put yourself through dehydration or something. So imagine my surprise when Jimin wakes me up in the middle of the night to tell me that it sounded like someone was doing construction work inside of Jungkook’s room.” 

You bring your hand to your mouth, eyes widening in surprise at her words. “Oh my God.”

“Relax. He went to get a glass of water, we couldn’t hear anything. I’m sure nobody did.”

“Thank God,” you sigh.

“That is not the point. What is going on, ___?”

“It’s a long story,” she’s about to protest, “I’ll tell you over breakfast. Let’s get Soori first, though.”

She lets out a sigh of relief. “Let’s.”

~

And so you begin the recount of events. 

As you get Soori out of bed, you begin to tell her about that night, omitting any explicit details, of course. You tell her how you told him you loved him, tell her about his silence, about the way you dismissed your words in fear he wouldn’t reciprocate them. She passes you one of Soori’s sundresses, a cute black and white polka dotted one. 

“And what happened then?” She asks, rummaging through the suitcase Jungkook had packed for her and looking for a bow to match. 

“He didn’t say it back.”

“Oh,” she says, face falling even though she knew that much would be true. 

“Yeah. I guess at first I was just trying for it not to… hurt as much as it did. Sunday was nice, we spent the whole day by the pool with Soo. I don’t know. It almost made me feel like I could live with it, you know? With the fact that he hadn’t said it back.”

“Yeah, I get you. We like to tell ourselves lies to keep our feelings at bay. It’s a woman thing.”

The three of you sit on the floor, Soori in the middle as you brush her hair and get to work on her little pigtails whilst Lucy plays with her, helping her stack her pink wooden cubes on top of one another. You tell her about your rollercoaster of emotions, going through a failed attempt at suppressing your feelings, then the feminine rage all the way to the sadness plummeting so hard through you it made you restless. 

“I should’ve known. Nobody sings Good Luck, Babe by Chappell Roan like that for no reason.”

You laugh, albeit weakly. “Don’t feel bad. I knew that the moment I told you, it’d be real.” 

“No, I get that. But I just can’t believe that you went through all of this by yourself. I wish I could’ve… been there.”

You put a hand on top of hers, Soori following in your steps as she puts her chubby hand on top of yours, making the both of you laugh. Lucy looks at Soori, then back at you, concern lacing her features as she asks,

“Then what happened?”

You make your way down the stairs, Soori on your hip as she babbles sweet nothings to her giraffe and Lucy follows suit. You tell her about the book you’d found in Jungkook’s living room, the one filled with pictures of him and Ira. 

“God, they were really in love, weren’t they?”

“Yeah. Seems like it.”

“What on Earth happened?” Lucy asks, making her way into the kitchen, reaching down to pick Soori’s giraffe up that she’d dropped, smiling at her as she places it back in her hands. 

“That’s the thing, I don’t know. I have no clue about what could’ve possibly driven her to…,” you halt your words, not wanting to finish the sentence in front of Soori, as oblivious as she was right now as you sat her down on her high chair. 

“Jimin has said things to me,” she starts, her words a bit weak. “I mean, nothing much. Or too specific. But he told me Jungkook tried. He told me he really tried. He was a good partner to her… just like he’s a good dad to Soori.”

“You know, it’s funny. I never once for a second thought he wasn’t.”

“I did. I mean- you know him better than I do. And it all sounded so complex to me I thought that maybe he’d driven her away. But Jimin- he talks about Ira with so much spite. Almost hatred. And they used to be close. I mean, she’s in a picture frame at his parents’ house, for God’s sake! He made them remove it, of course, but-” you take her words in, looking into her eyes. “I don’t know. He tried and she left. That’s all I’ve gathered from what he’s said.”

“Yeah. I guess the picture book really made me realize that… they’d loved each other. Very much.”

“What happened then?”

You look at her, a bit of shame lacing your features. You look at the kitchen counter, remembering that night. 

“Well,” you start and your tone of voice gives you away. 

“Oh, brother.”

You tell her about that night, in code, of course. Tell her about how it’d been a weak moment for you, how the little altercation you’d had before had set the mood for the tension to be released in one way or the other. And well, you were only human. A bit weak at times. You also tell her how it made you feel even sadder, though. How having him physically but not emotionally was really beginning to take a toll on you the more you pondered on your situation. You both get started with breakfast, cutting Soori’s fruit and putting some on her high chair before you get to frying eggs, mashing avocados, toasting bread, making coffee. You tell her about your sad girl hours, well into the night. 

“I’ve stalked all of Jimin’s exes on Instagram. It was pure torture. I can’t imagine having so much access to her on Google. I think it would send me spiraling,” she says, passing you the spatula. 

“Oh, it did. The worst part is that I couldn’t hate her. I mean, there she was, on my phone screen, looking perfect with her sweet, low voice, saying all the right things. How can I hate her?” You flip your egg.

“I’ve heard a lot of those things are fabricated, though.”

“I don’t know, Lu. The way Mai and Taehyung talk about her in that book… it was all adding up.”

She sighs, taking a sip of her latte, passing a tiny square of avocado toast to Soori that she’d cut up. She takes it, smiling at her, making her swoon. She gets your attachment to her now. She’s so sweet. 

You decide to take breakfast to the garden, the morning serene before you, sky settling into darker shades of Blue. The waves of the ocean can be heard from where you stand and the air feels fresh, clean. You tell her about Jungkook closing his deal, about the night you’d called her in a desperate bout, asking her what to wear. You tell her about Lily. She understands, doesn’t judge when you tell her how jealous you’d felt, how it’d made your blood boil as she threw innuendos at him. 

“Oh, I would’ve-,” she looks over at Soori, who blows a raspberry before shoving a piece of egg right into her mouth. “She would’ve heard a number from me, certainly.”

“What can I say, though? Yeah, Lily. Don’t flirt with my- my boss! Who I have romantic feelings for because he talks to me so very sweetly and he,” you look down at Soori. “He is really good at… frolicking me.”

She lets out a loud laugh, hand covering her mouth as she’s mid bite. “Fair enough. Ugh!”

You laugh a little, too. Your heart finding respite in your best friend. “I know. So annoying.”

“I mean, he is quite handsome, ___.”

“Yeah. I never wanted to get a paper bag over his head more.”

She chuckles at your words, shaking her head before she’s sighing for what feels like the millionth time today. “Then what happened?”

You look up at her, bringing your iced coffee to your lips and taking a sip. 

“We frolicked.”

“___! What is it with this vicious cycle you’re in?”

“I don’t know! It just keeps happening! In my defense, he just… frolicked me with his-,” you point at your tongue. “That’s all we did.”

“That is not the feminist act you think it is.”

You chuckle. “Trust me, I know.”

“But then again, I can’t blame you.”

“You should.”

“I would never.”

You smile at her. It’s almost funny, the way your chest feels a little lighter, the way you can laugh through it all, even as you walk down memory lane on some of the saddest days of your life. Lucy was magic. 

“I was emotionally hungover the next day. All I could think about was how I was standing under Ira’s shadow. How maybe… I don’t know, he’d never be able to love me the way he loved her.”

“I get that. I mean, those are some big shoes to fill. And it has nothing to do with you. It’s more so all the years they spent together, everything they went through, you know,” she nods in Soori’s direction, “the whole ass child they had together.”

“Yeah,” you sigh. 

“So… what exactly happened yesterday? You were in pretty bad shape.”

You tell her about Mingyu. About what Jungkook said to you. She flinches, eyes squinting as she viscerally reacts to his low blow. 

“Ouch.”

“Yeah. Ouch.”

“So much to unpack here.”

“Good luck trying.”

“I mean, he was jealous. Dare I say, he is jealous. And I mean, I can almost understand him. Not saying you did anything wrong, but he did walk inside his kitchen and there you were, drinking peppermint tea with his friend, wearing his navy blue Ralph Lauren sweater!”

“It was bad judgment on my part, I can admit. But also, I didn’t mean for it to mean anything. I was just… cold. And dumb.”

“You are not dumb. He’s dumb! Because if he would’ve been aware of you, if he got his head of out his ass then he would’ve been the one drinking peppermint tea with you and you would’ve been wearing his navy blue Ralph Lauren sweater. I bet you they have the same one.”

Her words make you laugh. “His words sure did sting, though.”

“Duh, no wonder. He was a bit brutal.”

“Like, does he really think I would do something like that?”

“And what if you did? I mean, ethically speaking, flirting with your boss’ friend is wrong. But, flirting with… a guy. At a BBQ? What’s wrong with that!”

“He’s his friend, Lucy.”

“And that’s what he gets for not making it exclusive and going back and forth with his little boy feelings! Playing with yours in the process!”

“It’s more complicated than that,” you defend.

“___,” she huffs, taking your hand in hers and looking into your eyes. “You are in a situationship.”

“Oh, God,” you gasp.

“With a grown ass man. A twenty eight year old male Paris Hilton.” You store that remark for when you need a laugh in the future, right now you’re too busy digesting her words. “Who also happens to be your boss. The person that puts food in your plate.”

“I know!”

“Yeah!”

“God!”

“Christ, even!”

“Fuck.” you whisper.

“I take it you guys didn’t really talk about what happened last night, you just got to… frolicking?”

“Yeah.” You lower your head in shame. “I just- I told myself that it was going to be the last time. That I’d confront him today- well, confront is a big word. I don’t want to fight. I don’t want to make this any harder than it already is. Plus, I have to think about Soori. I can’t leave her. We’re just gonna have to learn how to be civil about all of this.”

“So you’re breaking up with him?” She sounds surprised. You frown.

“Breaking up is a big word for Elmo. We are not together.”

She decides to store your remark for a future laugh, she’s too busy digesting your words right now. “Just like that?”

“Just like what, Lu? I mean, what else is there? I- I pour my heart out to him. I tell him I love him. I give him all the time in the world for him to say it back. Say anything back! And nothing. He doesn’t love me. And it’s hurting me, Lucy. It’s hurting me so bad. The uncertainty, the hiding, the back and forth. I don’t think I can take it any longer.”

Lucy takes it all in. Sees the pain in your eyes, hears the desperation in your words. She feels it, too. Not just because she’s your best friend, and truly, genuinely believes you guys are connected through celestial magic, but also because she knew the feeling a little too well. The heart ache, the restless feeling that takes over you when love isn’t reciprocated, the anxiety of it all. She knows what it feels like to be so close to giving up. 

“You’re right,” she says. “You’re right, ___. You don’t deserve any of it. You don’t deserve having to sit through the uncertainty, you don’t deserve to be with someone that keeps you a secret. You don’t deserve to feel any of what you’ve felt in these past couple of weeks.” Her saying the words back to you hurt more than you uttering them, and it makes you realize that you were perhaps hoping she’d say the opposite. “It must’ve been horrible – to bare your heart out to him like that and not hearing it back. It must’ve been horrible to have to see him every day. For him to be completely oblivious towards your feelings.” 

“Yeah.” Your words are faint, barely there. 

Matter of fact, Lucy knows what it’s like to give up entirely. To completely submit yourself to what you so strongly believe is fate. She thinks of Jimin, a smile forming at her lips like muscle memory at the mere thought of him. She thinks of how deflated her heart felt the day she met him, how her pillow had been silent witness to her tears just the night before after she’d longingly stared at her computer screen, some love story making her crave what she thought could only be found in movies and fairy tales. She’d given up, yes. She’d sworn off men, had encouraged herself to be a little more realistic. To use her logic when it came to romance. 

Jimin had dismantled all of that with only five words. 

“Hi. I’m Jimin, and you?”

“But I don’t think you’ve tried hard enough.” Her words make you flinch, looking at her with confusion, feeling a little defensive from the get go. “Listen to me. Yes, you did the big, brave thing. You told him you loved him, you sat through the dismissal his words provoked, you cried all the tears and sang along to all the sad songs in the world. You probably watched Pride and Prejudice a couple of times, too.” It frightens you a little, how she knows you so well. “And that’s all valid. And honestly, fuck him for making you feel like that. I hope he steps on a lego, like, every day for the rest of his life. But also,” she pauses for a bit, leaning closer to you. “You didn’t talk to him. You didn’t tell him any of this that you’re telling me. Yes, he’s oblivious, but your silence basically encouraged it. Yes, he’s dense but you didn’t open up to him enough so as to know if it’s coming out of malice. Which, frankly, I don’t believe. As much as he is not on my good graces right now,” she rolls her eyes, “I don’t think he meant to… hurt you.”  

“I know, but-” you don’t know, actually. Your silence proving that much and so she continues.

“That day… when he showed up at our door, I didn’t know what was happening. All I knew was that my best friend was in bed, feeling sad, and wouldn’t tell me why. And then I opened the door, and there he was, looking all… sad. I almost wanted to slam the door on his face because I knew he was the reason, it all made sense to me right then and there. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t because he looked like he knew he’d… lost something. Something he wasn’t quite sure he could get back. He looked scared. And so I let him in.” 

“He did a shitty thing that day.”

“I know. It was very shitty. I truly hope the legos aren’t upside down. But,” she takes a breath, collecting her words for a second. “I guess, ever since that day I’ve been trying to decipher him. To decipher what he feels for you. It’s quite hard since, you know, you guys have to hide from the world or whatever. So I’ve taken to just… observing him. I’ve taken to looking at him when he’s looking at you. You barely notice, and I’m almost glad you don’t. I feel like if you would you’d break the little magic the moment holds. Maybe he’d shy away from the way his eyes get all shiny and he smiles in a way that lets me know he’s not really aware of it. And so a part of me is relieved, because I know that whatever it is, the feeling is pure. I went up to your bedroom yesterday because when I looked at him… he looked just the way he had that day in our front door.”

“Do you think he loves me?” 

Lucy’s heart breaks a little when you ask her, ever so faintly, a question that she doesn’t think she can answer. But nonetheless, she smiles, taking your hand in hers. 

“I don’t know. I don’t know if he loves you, ___. I don’t even know that he knows. Or that he can even become aware of it after all he’s been through. All I know is that you haven’t tried hard enough to figure it out. And it should never take a toll on your heart. It should never break you the way it did. But also, I think the reason why it did is because you had to carry the weight of it alone. I think… I think he would’ve at least been willing to help.”

“I don’t know, Lu…”

“Yeah. You don’t. Nobody knows. That’s the tricky side of it all. The one we run from the most because it means that we have to be even more vulnerable. Because we know we’re risking even worse of a heart break. But, could you live with yourself knowing you didn’t at least try? And I mean, really tried.”

“No.” The words come out of you before you can even think her question through. 

“Then you owe yourself at least that. Not him, not even my sappy, romantic self. You.”

You smile at her, lacing your fingers through hers. “What if I try and I’d been right all along?”

“Then I’ll be here. We’ll sing Chappell Roan together and I’ll make sure to scatter the legos all over his house myself.” Her face grows proud as she says this. 

You laugh. “I love you.”

“I love you.”

Soori shrieks, making you both turn, laughing at her reaction. You walk over to her, taking her in your arms as you kiss her, swaying from side to side. She whines a little bit, voice muffled with the way you squeeze her cheeks with your kisses. 

“You’ll grow up and have the bestest friend ever, too, Soo Soo.”

Lucy looks at the two of you, can feel the way you radiate love. The way your whole face lights up as she brings her little chubby hand to your cheek, shrieking in excitement at your words that she doesn’t even understand, but that are coming from you. In that moment, she knows she’d given you the right advice. She knows it. She sees it.

From where she stands, the future paints itself rosy shades of pink. 

~

You feel your heart slowly mending itself, regaining its strength as the minutes pass and you bask in the sun, in Lucy’s words of comfort and her wise advice. In Soori’s little antics as the two of you play with her, letting her dip her toes in the water on the shallow end of the pool. You lather her body in sunblock and Lucy laughs at the white patches you intentionally leave on her cheeks. 

“She’s the most sensitive there,” you defend, running the lotion down her arms. 

“Okay, mommy.”

“This is my job, you know? Keeping the baby safe,” you mock defensiveness.

“Oh, please. Get so very real right now, ___.” 

“I am,” you laugh. “Although I will admit I do happen to love keeping the baby safe.”

She takes Soori in her arms, letting her splash about with her feet as she places her between her legs. “It’s okay, Soori. I’m the fun auntie.”

You look at them, a smile on your face as you revel in Soori’s sounds of excitement and Lucy’s tender nature towards her. You love seeing everyone melt for her, give her love and attention. 

“Ah, there you guys are!”

The three of you turn around, a smiling, pyjama-clad Jimin walking towards you. 

“Good morning, babe!” Lucy waves at him, bringing Soori’s little arm up, making her wave, too.

“Hi,” you say, a little shyly, all things considered.

“Good morning, ladies. Good morning, princess Soori.” He kisses Lucy’s lips, then Soori’s forehead. 

“How’d you sleep,” Lucy asks him.

“Good. Would’ve been better if I hadn’t woken up to an empty bed.”

“Sorry! Got hungry. Needed breakfast real bad.”

“You guys had breakfast already?”

“We’re on baby time,” you say, looking down at Soori whose arms are reaching out for Jimin. 

“Come here, baby,” he says, picking her up. 

“Gahhhh, my ovaries!” Lucy’s cries are dramatic as she throws her body back, falling on the grass, making you chuckle and raise your eyebrows at her. 

“Anytime, babe. I keep telling ya,” is all Jimin says, making you widen your eyes in shock. 

“Quit saying that, oh my God,” she whines. 

“Mr Jeon Jungkook has been looking everywhere for you,” he looks at Soori, looking at you next, “and you.”

“Oh, he’s awake?”

“Yup. I heard he had a long night,” he says, a little smirk forming at his lips. Your blush is so evident it actually makes him feel bad. 

“Jimin! Leave her alone,” Lucy says, coming to her feet. 

He laughs, throwing his head back. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

“I’m gonna…,” you point towards the house, ready to make your exit.

“You may be excused.” Jimin’s words earn him a scowl from his girlfriend, which humors him further. 

When you make your way back inside the house, you see Jungkook as he enters the living room. Eyes swollen, groggy with sleep, running a hand through his hair to try to fix his bedhead. And as much as your heart aches at the sight of him still, you also can’t help but smile, still in the high Lucy’s words had left you in. 

“Hey,” you say, making him look at you. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” he walks towards you, hand reaching for yours, holding it for a second, squeezing before he’s letting go. The act alone is so gentle you think you could cry. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

You shrug. “Wanted to let you sleep in for a bit.”

“I should’ve let you sleep in.”

You shake your head, smiling at him. “It’s okay. We’ve been having a nice morning. Lucy joined us, we had breakfast outside. They’re by the pool now. I lathered her in sunscreen, don't worry.”

He smiles. “Thank you.”

You look around for a second, finding a door next to the hallway that leads to the kitchen. “What’s in there?”

He follows your line of vision. “A wine cellar.”

“Can we go there? Just for a minute,” you ask, and although your question makes him curious he simply nods, letting you lead the way. 

The door gives way to a spiral staircase, a bit narrow and small. You hold onto the railing, a particular yet pleasant smell invading your senses as you begin to descend. It’s woodsy, a little musky and fruity. It’s a bit chilly, too. 

“You’re really into wine,” you tell him, eyeing the many shelves stacked with bottles of all kind. White, red, pink, a couple of bottles of champagne. 

“Yeah,” he says, looking around, too. “I guess I’ve become my father.”

You laugh. “I like that about you.”

“What? That I’ve become my father?”

“No!” you say and he laughs at your reaction. “That you know a lot about wines.”

“Hm,” he hums, grabbing you by the waist and bringing you closer. “I can teach you if you want.”

“Go on.”

“Okay, so, the temperature in this room remains at a perfect 12 degrees celsius at all times. This prevents the wine from oxidizing,” his words falter a bit as you bring your hands to his hair, fingers massaging his scalp gently as you listen intently. “The cooling system is quite particular because it keeps the humidity in the air at a steady 60%. The temperature the wine is stored in really affects the complexity and balance of the-,” he groans in satisfaction as your fingers hit a particularly sensitive spot. “Wine.” 

“Jungkook,” you look up at him, eyes dreamy and hazy. 

“___,” his voice hold the same nature. 

“Can you kiss me? Can,” you sigh, “can we kiss, a little, right now?”

“Yeah, baby. We can kiss a little right now.”

Your eyes lock on his, blinking slowly as you take in the way he takes you in. His eyes are shiny, and they smile before his lips do. You close your eyes, falling into him a bit before he’s catching you with his lips on yours. His hand comes up to your cheek, fingers snaking through your locks of hair as he brings you closer, sighing against your mouth. Your arms wrap around his waist, hands coming up inside his shirt, his skin warm at your touch. His teeth close around your bottom lip and you give him full access to your mouth, tongue meeting his, but it’s ever so slow. Tender, almost. 

It sort of dawns on him right then and there, something he’d been missing from you, making him realize that this is the most he’s gotten of you in a while. And he doesn’t mean your body, or your touch, or a kiss. No. He means the way you fall into him, the way you look at him, the way you ask him for affection in that way that he loves, so supple and pliant, almost shy. The way you hug him to you feels different, only there’s nothing different about it, it’s just been a long time. Jungkook can’t make much of it, mind too wrapped around your lips, just like his mouth, but it doesn’t miss him, how much he’s missed you and how suddenly the realization hits. 

“You want breakfast?” you part your lips from his and he pouts with his eyes still closed.

“I was in the middle of it.”

You laugh, shoving him playfully. “We can’t hide in the wine cellar forever.”

“All I need is, like,” he presses his hips against yours, “twenty minutes.”

You gasp. “Jungkook!”

“I just woke up! You took advantage of my vulnerable state.”

You roll your eyes. “I just wanted to kiss you a little.”

“Fine,” he huffs, mocking annoyance, the frown between his eyebrows falling when you put your lips on his one last time. 

Perhaps you’re playing with fire. Perhaps you’re stalling, buying yourself time before you have to put your plan in action, before you have to do the real hard work, thread the words needed to do it all. The courage, too. Perhaps you’re savoring the moment just in case this is your last. You try not to think about it too much, staying in the bliss you just put yourself in. You decide you’ll tell him once you’re both back from the beach. On tuesday, when he comes home from work. You’ll have time to craft a sensible plan, find the right words, benefit from Lucy’s sound advice a little longer. 

Yes. Tuesday it is. 

“What are the plans for today?” you ask as you make your way up the stairs.

“Pool party, burgers and, me personally, winning every game of Badminton.”

You laugh, nodding your head slowly. “I’ll be rooting for you.”

“Aw,” he coos. “My little cheerleader.”

“I can hear your thoughts, Jeon.”

“I can see you in a mini skirt, ___.” 

“Hey, I might. Just for you,” you say, looking back at him as you make your way to the kitchen. 

“Ah, you spoil me.”

You turn around, pointing a finger at him. “That’s true actually.”

“That’s true actually,” he mimics your voice when he says this, making you shove him playfully and open your mouth in shock. 

“Dada!” Soori’s sweet voice makes him turn around, a big smile on his face as she enters the living room in Jimin’s arms. 

“There you are, my little princess!” She falls into his arms the moment he’s close enough for her to, wrapping her chubby arms around his neck. “Aw, thank you, baby. You’re so sweet. Good morning.”

“Nana,” she says, pointing at you. Lucy and Jimin smile, although you don’t notice, too hyper fixated on Soori. 

“You wanna go with Nana?” Jungkook leans over towards you, handing her over before he’s pulling away playfully. She whines. “Alright, alright. I’m sorry,” he says, laughing. 

“Come here,” you tell her, arms outstretched and she falls into them swiftly. She giggles some, clapping two times before she’s turning back to Jungkook, shooting grabby hands at him.

“That’s what I thought.” He takes her into his arms. 

You gasp, feigning offense. “Traitor!”

“You guys are cute.” Jimin voices his thoughts out loud, unable to contain them as he takes the sweet scene in. He doesn’t voice how happy it makes him, though. He doesn’t tell you guys that seeing the three of you together like that makes him feel like he’d found the last piece of the puzzle – one he couldn’t when Ira was around and his expectations of seeing his best friend in a loving family dynamic sort of tumbled when she wouldn’t play her part. 

Jungkook looks over at him, smiling as he bounces Soori in his arms, whose already looking at you like she’s about to betray him this time. He smiles, silently agreeing with his friend, almost as if he understood what he was thinking. Almost like he was feeling it, too. 

~

“A tankini? Really, ___?”

“It’s cute! Plus, it’s appropriate for the job. Soori tends to tug at my clothes at times, I can’t wear a bikini.”

“No, no. I get that much,” Lucy says, “but a tankini?”

“It was on sale!”

“You get away with too much by being drop dead gorgeous and having the face of an angel.”

“Your compliments won’t make me want to wear my tankini any less.”

“I beg of you, don’t wear the tankini.”

“But it’s pink,” you protest, spirit a bit deflated although you know she’s kind of right. 

“May I?” She points at your suitcase and you nod, plopping down on the bed a little dramatically. “Okay, I see the potential,” she says, throwing shirts and dresses around. “This!” She holds a white strapless one piece swimsuit. It’s one of your favorites – simple but cute. 

“That one gives me a wedgie.”

“Something’s got to give!” She throws the bathing suit at you. “Also, don’t blame the swimsuit blame your thiccy.”

“Did you just call my ass thiccy?”

“Yeah, I got it from Jimin.”

“Ew,” you say, looking at her. “Ew.”

“Here,” she says, throwing an oversized blue button up shirt your way. 

“What about pants?”

“Use that as a dress!” You’re about to protest, “and that’s final.” 

You throw a firm nod her way. The shirt was long enough to pass as semi-modest so you opt out of protesting. 

“So,” she says, sitting on the spot you’d left empty on the bed as you begin to change. “Have you decided about when to talk to him?”

“Yeah,” you say, pulling the bathing suit up your body. “Tuesday. Tuesday after he comes home from work. I’ll have it all perfectly rehearsed in my head.”

Lucy smiles. “That’s good. The both of you will be well rested after this weekend and you’ll be able to have a sensible talk.”

“Yeah, exactly!”

“Do try to, you know, sleep at night.”

“Shut up. I’m feeling fine! Running on caffeine and adrenaline, but fine.”

She laughs. “Ready?”

“Ready!”

“Let’s go.” 

“Wait,” you say, making her turn around, confused. She lets out a nod of understanding when she sees you grabbing Mingyu’s sweater, which you’d neatly folded to give back to him. 

“Everything’s gonna be okay,” she reassures. “It’s gonna be a good day!”

“God willing, Lucy Lu. God willing.”

You sigh, giving yourself a little pep talk for courage before you exit the room, ready to take on the day. 

~

The rest of the morning, as well as the beginning of the afternoon, had really catered to your inner child. Yes, it was your job to take care of Soori but the rest of the kids seemed to love you just as much and so your hands had been full. You’d swam in the pool with them, built sandcastles, played mermaids and even had a little water balloon fight that seemed to interest both the children and the adults alike. By the time noon hit and Jungkook and Taehyung were starting to roll the burgers around, you’d been convinced to sit at the kid’s table. Which wasn’t a table per say, as they’d wanted to have a little picnic and so you’d found yourself sitting on one of the many beach towels they’d retrieved from inside to make their own picnic blanket. 

It’d been sweet and fun, exactly what you needed after having to walk down memory lane this morning. And in a way, it added to the lighthearted mood you’d ended up your talk with Lucy in. Kids were easy – well, kids came easy to you. You found them to be less complex than people gave them credit for. They were easily entertained as long as you were willing to step inside their little world, which at times played out to be more entertaining than your own. 

By the time 3 p.m. rolled around you could start feeling the shift in atmosphere, though. They were exhausted, you included, as a sleepy Soori fuzzed about in your arms. 

“I think it’s time for a nap, kiddos,” Mai says, her words followed by whines of protest from the kids. 

Sun acts as the voice of reason, though, as she says, “but can we keep playing afterwards, auntie Mai?” she pleads, turning to you, “will you still play with us after nap time, ___? Pleeeeease.”

“Of course,” you tell her, free hand caressing her hair. “Plus, it’d be funner then because you guys will have more energy.”

“I am a little tired,” Dae says, his Rs running a bit, making him sound ten times more adorable. 

“See? We all need a nap. You guys can go inside the play room and make it a little mid-day pj party, how about that?” Mai’s idea comes as a success, the kids jumping with excitement, some even hugging her. She turns to you, voice a whisper when she says, “I’m kinda badass at this.”

Your lips form a pout and you nod at her. “You are.”

She smiles at you before she’s officially on nap duty, gathering all the kids and bringing them inside the house. You bounce Soori in your arms, her eyes half closed already, head wobbly as she fights to stay awake. You give her a kiss on the cheek, making your way to the sunbeds where the boys are drinking beers and talking about some game they’d watched the night prior, the team scoring the winning goal only three minutes before the game was over. 

“___!” Jin says the moment he sees you, making them all turn their heads in your direction. “Aren’t you god sent? I think my kids like you more than me today.”

“My kid likes her more than me at least once a week,” Taehyung says, smiling at you. 

“Thank you, thank you. I do birthdays, weddings, baptisms.” You say, making them all roar out in laughter. 

“You do have that midas touch when it comes to kids, ___.” Hobi tells you, leaning back and taking a sip of his beer. 

“I probably enjoyed that more than they did.” You smile, feeling a bit shy under their praise. 

Jungkook smiles, feigning a casual front as he takes a sip of his beer, eyes on you. Wet hair, a little ruffled from the day’s activities. A big blue shirt that’s mostly wet, too, and that bathing suit that as modest as he knows you tried to aim for, does very little to keep him away from what he knows is underneath. Your cheeks are officially crimson and your body golden. He can’t help it when his eyes travel down, the softness of your skin drawing him in. You’re nothing if not perfect and if he were to reach out, he could run his hand down your leg. Not sexually, per say. Just… touch. Touch so as to let you know what he thinks. What he feels. 

He composes himself for a second before his eyes are on Soori. “She ready for a nap?”

“Yup.” You nod at him, looking at Soori under your nose. She smiles and when you follow her line of vision you see that it’s Yoongi and his silly faces that pull it out of her. “I can go put her down, if you want.” 

“No, let’s go together,” he says, standing up, coming down to kiss her chubby cheek. He turns to his friends one last time, bowing before saying, “gentlemen, I’ll be back. Take this time to decide who’s ass I’m beating next in Badminton.”

As you turn around and walk towards the house, you can’t help but laugh at the remarks that follow, his friends absolutely going ham on him, all lighthearted blows he opts to ignore with a chuckle of his own. 

“You’re like the meme of the girl standing in front of the burning house.”

He looks at you, frowning in confusion. “Excuse me, what?”

“Oh my God, you’ve never seen the meme of the girl standing in front of the burning house?”

“No, but that sounds horrible. Was she okay?” You laugh as you turn to him, noticing the way real concern laces his features.

“It’s funny! It’s like a cult favorite, too. I’m pretty sure it’s been around for a while. Like back in the 9GAG days. You know, B.C.” You smirk his way, not missing the way he rolls his eyes at you. 

“Hey, I loved 9GAG. It was funny.”

“Of course you did.”

You step inside the house, walking in front of him and laughing when he pauses in his steps and says, “what’s wrong with 9GAG?”

“Nothing,” you tell him, smiling and dragging him upstairs by the arm. “It’s always an honor to be in the presence of people that have witnessed history.”

“Shut the fuck up,” he tells you, chuckling at your little bout of wittiness. 

You make it inside of Soori’s nursery, promptly changing her diaper and getting her into a pair of dry pyjamas. She falls asleep halfway into this, making you both laugh and bask in a quiet satisfaction at realizing just how much fun she’d been having. When you put her in her crib, you take a second to just look at her, neither of you saying much, simply taking her in. 

“She’s perfect, huh,” you whisper. 

“She’s so perfect,” he whispers back.

Jungkook smiles at her before turning to you, wrapping an arm around your shoulders and kissing your cheek. It all feels… domestic. Tender, lovely and sweet. The knot in your stomach that’d been growing bigger and bigger for the past couple of weeks begins to break, slowly, releasing a small army of butterflies that seem to both excite and calm your nerves. You kiss his cheek, basking in the bliss his proximity brings. 

“Let’s go back,” you tell him, “you have asses to kick.”

He smiles, lips coming to yours in a quick peck. “You should relax. Drink some wine with the girls, get some sun.”

“If I have one sip of wine and lay by the sun I’ll probably end up like her,” you say, looking down at Soori.

“Do it, baby. I got her.” 

The knot breaks entirely, wings fluttering violently as they’re freed after so long. 

You’re in love. 

~

You’d taken Jungkook’s advice, laying on the sunbeds with the girls, glass of wine in hand as you snack on the fruit platter Mai and Seulgi had prepared. You’d even fallen asleep for all of fifteen minutes, which had recharged your battery more than you’d originally thought. You’d think it’d be quieter with all the kids sleeping, but the boys and their very serious game of Badminton kept the ambiance just as loud as before. At one point, you’d all taken the roles of spectators and cheerleaders, rooting for your competitor of choice. Jungkook won, yet again, and you didn’t miss the smile he shot your way, overly confident in his skills. Overly confident in his ability to pull reactions out of you. This one in particular he’d found adorable, seeing the way you flustered at his actions, hiding your face in your hands for a second before you went back to feigning nonchalance. 

Now you were all scattered around. Some in the pool, some by the beach, a couple of you still in the sunbeds, soft music playing from the speakers. It was rather blissful, if you were being honest. 

You’re in the middle of small, lazy talk with Mai when you suddenly remember,

“Oh, I have to get Soori’s swimming diapers. She ran out but Jungkook said he had spare ones somewhere…”

“Oh, yeah,” Mai says, “he keeps them in the pool house. Go inside the bathroom, they should be in one of the drawers.”

You smile at her, thanking her before you’re making your way to the small, white house that sat at the end of the big backyard. Making your way inside you see that it’s mostly for storage. Floaties, surfboards, spare sunbeds. You notice that the door to the bathroom is open slightly, but don’t make much of it as you walk towards it. Both you and Jungkook let out a loud scream when he appears by the door frame. 

“Holy fuck.” You whisper yell, hand on your mouth. 

“You scared the living shit out of me.” His own hand comes to his chest, leaning against the counter and steadying his breathing.

“Me? You scared the living shit out of me! Why are you in there with the lights off like a crazy person?”

“Why didn’t you turn the lights on when you came in like a normal person?”

You both stare at each other for a second too long before you’re breaking out in laughter. 

“I came to get Soori’s diapers,” you tell him, mid-chuckle. 

He raises his hand, showing you a handful of diapers. “Me too.”

“Ah,” you say, walking closer to him. “Great minds think alike.”

“Mhm,” he leans against the counter once again as you stand in front of him. “My heart’s beating so fast, dude.”

You laugh. “You’re so dramatic, dude.”

“Hey, you can’t dude me.”

You roll your eyes at him playfully. “Fine. You’re so dramatic, Jungkookie.”

“I’m not! Look,” he takes your hand in his, bringing it to his bare chest and placing it over his heart. He’s still wet from the pool, skin warm from the sun. His heart is beating a little irregularly, you must admit. 

“I’m sorry,” you say, adding to the drama of it all as your voice grows soft. “I’ll put a bell around my neck the next time so I don’t startle you.”

“Ha ha, funny.”

“Oh, I am.”

You can’t explain it, but the air shifts around you. Jungkook can’t explain it either, but he welcomes it. 

“Yeah?” 

You smile, cheeks growing red for whatever reason. Or perhaps for all the right reasons. He can dismantle you with a few words and that’s one your favorites by far.

“Yeah,” you breathe, eyes growing heavy as his own look into yours. In a matter of seconds they’re landing on your lips. And then he’s kissing you. 

The kiss holds the same nature this morning’s had, perhaps a little less playful. A little more intentional. Like you’re both finding a means to an end just so you can bask in the journey of getting there. When you sigh into his lips, Jungkook brings you closer, hand on your cheek as he parts your lips with his tongue. The kiss grows heady, your fingers carding through his wet locks and his hands land on your waist, squeezing some before he’s turning you around until you’re leaning on the counter. The swiftness with which he handles your body has a moan escaping your lips and he feels the way you smile against his mouth. He pushes his hips into yours, drunk on you already, determined to pull those little sounds out of you. 

“Wait,” you say, parting your lips from his, laughing a little when you see his flustered state, lips red and swollen in his signature pout. “What if someone walks in?” He smiles, eyes not leaving yours as he leans to the side and closes the door, locking it in a beat. He’s about to kiss you again but you interrupt him. “Soori?”

“Baby monitor in my back pocket.” He kisses you. “We’ve got like, twenty minutes give or take.”

You laugh, kissing him back, arms wrapping around his neck as you breathe into the kiss in giddy anticipation. “Think you can make me cum in twenty minutes give or take?”

He pulls away, but it’s only an inch. He scowls, a smile on his lips that takes your breath away. “Is that a challenge?”

The air shifts yet again, air growing dense this time. “Yeah,” is all you can muster.

“What do I get?” 

You hum, pretending you’re deep in thought. “Me?”

“I’ll do it in ten.” 

You laugh, sweet music to his ears and his smile meets yours in a kiss. It’s deeper this time, grows sloppy soon enough and Jungkook wastes no time as his hand cups your tits over your bathing suit, grunting a bit at the fabric getting in the way before he’s pulling it down in one swift movement. He brings his mouth to your nipple, expert little sucks that have you throwing your head back as your fingers pull at his hair. You lean back, head hitting the mirror as your breathing grows heavier. When you come back up, you push him back with a hand to his chest as you come to stand in front of him. You erase the frown from his face the moment he sees the way you roll the white fabric of your swimsuit down your legs, leaning back against the counter. 

“Better than the mini skirt,” he says, towering over you as he pushes his hands against the counter. 

You bite your lip, smiling at him with dark eyes before you’re turning around, your hands falling in front of you, tits pressing together as you push your ass back against him. You look at his reflection on the mirror, giggle a bit when you catch him staring, lust filled eyes scanning over your body. 

“Like what you see?” your voice is teasing, cocky even, and it comes to no surprise when Jungkook’s firm hand comes to your waist, holding you in place before he delivers a hard smack to your ass. The pain translates to pleasure in a brief yet delicious second, eyes closing as you moan and bring your body forward. His hand lingers for a while, softer this time as he caresses the warm skin before his fingers travel south, parting your slit and drawing lazy circles against your clit. 

“You’re so wet, baby.”

“Fuck, I am,” you pant, head lolling forward as you breathe into his touch. 

“You’re a little brat today,” he says, matter of factly, staring at your reflection in the mirror as his fingers expertly pull little moans from your lips. 

You look up at him, fucked out eyes pleading, “need you inside me.”

“Yeah, baby?”

“Yes,” your words get caught up in a whiny moan when he pushes two fingers inside of you. “Please.”

“That’s more like it. So pretty when you ask nicely.”

His eyes don't leave yours and you see the way he pushes his swim shorts down slightly, wrapping a hand around his cock before he’s lining himself against your entrance. He teases your hole with the head, smirking at the way you squirm in his hold at the mere action. He wishes he could tease you further, but Jungkook’s time is limited and he knows that much. He pushes his cock inside of you, gasping when he bottoms out. His hips pick up the pace right away, wasting no time as he starts fucking you the way he does when all he wants is to make you cum, perfectly angled so he hits all the right places repeatedly. 

“Fuck, that feels so good, baby,” you mumble, words breaking at the intensity of his thrusts. You close your eyes, try to steady your breathing out but he has other plans as his hand wraps around your neck, pulling you up some as his fingers close around your throat. 

“Keep your eyes open.” 

He looks at you through the reflection in the mirror, takes you in as he fucks you, a low groan escaping his lips when he feels you clench around him. His face contorts in pleasure, a grin pulling at his lips when he realizes you’re already close. The hand that wraps around your throat tightens, applying more pressure at the flesh, making you feel a bit lightheaded in the most perfect way, aiding to the way your senses zero in on him and the way he makes you feel. You know you’re close the moment your tummy tenses, his cock massaging your g-spot with each push and pull of his hips. 

“Oh my God,” you breathe out, hand clasping around his own as you make him press harder. “Don’t stop.”

He moans at your actions, at the way you beg for more with your body when your words fail. He keeps that exact pace up, thumb and middle finger pressing into your throat a bit deeper, just the right amount to have your eyes rolling to the back of your head and your body falling back into him, head on his shoulder as you cum around his cock with a silent moan. The sight before him feels straight out of the craziest of his wet dreams and it makes his cock throb inside of you as your walls milk him through your orgasm. 

Your body shakes a bit as you fall on top of the counter, your hand coming to his hip to get him to stop moving for a second as you cringe a bit in overstimulation. 

“Victory is sweet,” he says, bringing his hand to your back, fingers running down your spine in a soothing manner. 

You smile at him. “I was confident all along. Just needed an excuse to get you to fuck me.”

“Aw, baby. All you had to do was ask.” 

He pulls your body up, hands on your hips as he turns you around and sits you back on the counter. He lets out a low grunt when he pushes his cock back inside you, your pussy pulling him in right away and he knows he won’t last long. 

“Fuck, you feel so good.” 

You giggle, brains completely fucked out before you say, “we’re having a quickie in the bathroom.”

Jungkook scoffs, hands closing around your tits, hips thrusting into you slower, letting himself enjoy it. His head falls, eyes fixed on the way his cock pushes inside of you, moaning at the sight alone. His gaze travels up, taking you in. It’s so hot inside the bathroom he can feel the way his body sticks to yours every time he fucks into you. A single drop of sweat falls from your chest, traveling between your tits before it lands on your navel. His eyes close in a mix of bliss, disbelief and pleasure. 

“You’re so sexy, baby. Shit, I’m so close.”

“Cum for me, Kook. Need it so bad.”

Your arms wrap around his neck, bringing him closer to you as you kiss him, lips locked in his as he breathes out into the kiss, little whines leaving him as he lets himself fall into the feeling completely. You become conscious of him, let yourself enjoy him in this state, when he’s so close to letting go he grows a little desperate, hands all over yours, needy sounds passing his lips, hips lazily moving into you. 

“Fuck, I’m gonna cum,” he says against your lips, pulling away so he can bury his head down the crook of your neck. He gets carried away – too carried away. His cock throbs inside of you, hips slowing down their pace as his body tenses for a second. He’s about to let himself relax, let himself cum, and it’s then that he realizes he’s still inside of you. “Fuck.” he looks down, pulling out and wrapping a hand around his cock, pumping once before he’s cumming on your leg. You bring a hand to your mouth when you notice, trying to muffle your laughter. “Shit, that was close.”

“Yeah,” you say, bringing his face to yours. “Got carried away?”

“Yeah. Completely let go of the principles of conception for a good minute.”

You laugh. “No conception would’ve taken place. It would’ve been a creampie at the max.”

“Don’t say the word creampie, my dick just jumped and we can’t go again.”

“You’re such a boy,” you say, bringing your lips to his. 

“I’m a man,” he protests, words muffled by your kiss. 

“Mm, yeah you are. You’re also a daddy so let’s get those diapers inside.”

“Don’t say the D-word, my dick just jumped for real and we really can’t go again.”

“Oh my God. You’re so filthy minded!”

You push him off of you playfully, pulling his shorts up before you’re doing the same with your previously discarded swimsuit, jumping a bit as you roll it past your ass. Jungkook smirks at your struggle. 

“Mmmm,” he hums. “Do that again.”

“Have I ever told you you’re an ass man?”

“I’m a you man, baby.”

“Shut up.”

“Shut me up.”

“Oh my God!” 

You both laugh at your flustered state that only seems to edge him on further, but it’s short lived. Your hands land on the door knob of the pool house at the same time, making you giggle before your smiles are falling as you realize that you’re about to do the walk of shame and have no idea how to get out of it.

“Shit,” you say. 

“Shit, indeed,” he says back. 

~

To your fortune, the walk of shame isn’t that bad. It isn’t bad at all, actually. The kids had woken up from their naps and had everyone’s attention so nobody noticed your absence much. To your misfortune (and Jungkook’s) it doesn’t take you long to realize that Mingyu keeps Dae entertained as they play around with water guns. 

Jungkook lets out a big sigh that you don’t miss before he’s clearing his throat and saying, “hey, bro. You made it.”

“Hey,” he says, a little too giddy for his friend’s liking. “Yeah, sorry I’m late. Went on a hike this morning, could barely move afterwards.” He waves at you, a smile on his face.

“Gotta work on that stamina,” Jungkook says, mostly playfully with a little hint of something else. 

“You should come with me the next time, we can work on it together,” he bites back, no hint of anything but playfulness in his words. 

His eyes land back on yours and you give him a tight lipped smile, taking the diapers from Jungkook’s hands before you’re letting him know that you’re gonna go get Soori. He smiles, feels the need to pull you closer, give you a kiss in front of everyone, take your hand in his. Anything. But he doesn’t. He just nods and then you’re on your way. He doesn’t miss the way his friend’s eyes scan over your body, a stupid smile plastered all over his face that makes his blood boil a little. 

You don’t really notice it, though, making your way inside the house and going up the stairs to make it to Soori’s room. She’s awake, jumping a little when she sees you walk inside the room. 

“Hi, baby,” you coo. “Did you have a good nap? Are you ready to keep having fun?”

“Nana,” she whines, making grabby hands at you. 

“Come here.” You get her out of the crib, taking her to her changing table before you’re getting her swimming diapers on and putting her in a clean swimsuit with cute daisies printed all over it. “You’re so cute.” You kiss her cheeks repeatedly until she gets ticklish, pushing you away as she cackles.

You sit her against your hip before you exit her nursery, walking the long hallways and going down the stairs as you sing her a little song she babbles along to. It’s then that you brave yourself for what you’re about to do, walking inside the kitchen, quickly finding Mingyu’s sweater that you’d left on top of the breakfast table this morning. It’ll be quick and harmless. You’ll just hand it over to him, thank him and go about your business. 

It’s a good plan. A great plan even. It’s also a plan that crashes down before it can even take off as you see him make his way inside the kitchen. 

“And so we meet again.” He smiles when he sees you, looking down at Soori and smiling even wider. 

“Hey,” you say, a bit nervously. 

“Came to get some beers, the boys are out.” He walks closer to you, hand coming down to rest on top of Soori’s head as he caresses her hair softly. “Hi Soo Soo.” She smiles, falling into his arms as quickly as he reaches them out towards her. It’s in that moment that you realize that he’s closer to Jungkook than you’d originally thought. He has to be if Soori’s this comfortable around him. 

“Thank you,” you say, passing his sweater over to him. 

“No worries. Sure you don’t wanna keep it? It’s gonna be just as chilly tonight.”

“No, that’s okay.”

“You kinda disappeared last night,” he says, bouncing Soori on his hip, looking down at her so as to not have to look at you when he says this. 

“Yeah, I was really tired, couldn’t get to bed soon enough.”

“It was nice getting to talk to you. I was looking forward to today… just so we could do it again.” He laughs a little, shaking his head at his words. He doesn’t mind your silence, though. “I was thinking… maybe we could grab a coffee when we’re back in the city?”

“Coffee,” you say, and he can’t tell if it’s a question or a statement. 

“Or dinner! Or a movie, or something. Just… hang out. Get to know each other.”

“I’m sorry… I- I don’t think that’s gonna work.”

He smiles. “Yeah, perhaps me asking you this right now isn’t the smartest move, huh?” He looks down at Soori. You’re silent yet again. “Perhaps I’ll leave it up to fate.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. Perhaps we’ll bump into each other in some random place like the grocery store or in the middle of a really busy street and… I’ll ask you again. And perhaps you’ll say yes.”

You feel bad. You feel bad because as dense as you might be when it comes to receiving attention, you don’t fail to see that he likes you. Genuinely, sincerely likes you. Or at least likes the idea of you enough to want to pursue it further and get to know you. 

“Or hey,” he says, making you look into his eyes again. “Maybe I’ll make my own fate.”

~

“Sorry what,” Jungkook’s head turns so fast he’s sure he’s given himself whiplash, grateful to not have taken the sip of beer he’d planned on the moment he started talking because he’s sure he would’ve spat it out. 

Mingyu’s idea of making his own fate was… something, to say the least. And so there he was, next to Jungkook as they both started the fire for the grill, asking him to be his wingman. 

“I mean, perhaps it was a bit wrong of me to ask her out while she’s on, you know,” he says, looking at Jungkook and pointing at him with the tongs, “the clock and whatnot. But fuck I don’t know. She’s just so-” he sees the way Jungkook looks at him in shock and it makes him chuckle. “Am I making any sense right now?”

“No.”

“Yesterday- we hit it off. But you know, it was casual. We barely got to know each other in a,” he pauses for a second, and every pause makes Jungkook’s blood boil further. “Deeper level. So I tried to not look into it that much. But then I got home and got in bed and all I could think about was her. Like, fuck, I felt eighteen again. She’s so beautiful. She’s so fucking sweet. And so I knew it couldn’t end there. So I just asked her out.”

“When?”

“In the kitchen, when I went to get the beers. She was giving me my sweater back and I thought to myself, might as well.”

“And what did she say,” Jungkook asks. 

“She said no. She said she doesn’t think it’s gonna work.” Jungkook lets out a breath he very much knew he was holding. “But I blame myself for that. I mean, I get why she wouldn’t agree to it right now. She’s technically on the clock, like I said, and I get why it could be perceived as inappropriate.” 

“Yeah,” Jungkook says, eyes a little lost, quite literally begging for the earth to swallow him. 

“But that’s where you come into the picture.”

“How exactly do I come into the picture,” he says, but what he really thinks is, I already am in the picture, dumbass. She’s mine. He also realizes this would be an extremely childish thing of him to say.

“Well, you know, we’ve been friends for so long. You can put in a good word for me, sort of encourage her to-”

“You want me to encourage my nanny into going on a date with my friend?” His words have edge to it but Jungkook doesn’t care anymore, not that Mingyu seems to notice, too caught up in the visions of a future with you he’s formed inside his head. 

“Well, when you put it like that it sounds like a lawsuit waiting to happen, I get it,” Jungkook scoffs. “But, you know, maybe you could do it in a lighthearted manner. Like, yeah he’s a great guy! You totally deserve to be happy! You know, kinda like… a brotherly figure. Yeah! That’s it!”

“You’re fucking insane.” Now he really doesn’t care that his words have bite to them. And Mingyu’s head is still way up in the clouds for him to notice they do. 

He chuckles. “Maybe I am. But she’s…,” his eyes find you in the crowd, “different. She’s special you know?” 

Yes, I know, is what Jungkook wants to say. But instead he says nothing. 

Mingyu looks back at him. “But hey, I’ll find a way. I’m telling you, man. This was written in the stars. Luck is on my side. Then you can play cupid,” he says, patting his back. 

Jungkook laughs faintly. Not because anything’s funny, but because he’s glad the conversation is over. 

“I’ll be right back.”

“Sure, I’ll get this started,” Mingyu says, motioning to the grill. 

Jungkook tries to stop it, but he can’t help it. He feels the way his heart constricts inside his chest. He’s angry, furious even, but he can’t do anything to release said anger. He had to sit through that conversation and pretend like his friend’s words were only fucked up because he was trying to get with his nanny, not because he was trying to get with his- 

Girlfriend.

Jungkook wants to call you his girlfriend but he knows he can’t. He knows he has no right to call you that because you aren’t his girlfriend. Because Taehyung was right – you guys weren’t exclusive. You didn’t owe him anything. Not a title he hadn’t asked for. Nor loyalty. Nothing. If you wanted to, you could very well accept Mingyu’s proposal. He was there, at your disposal, and perhaps even in ways Jungkook hadn’t been. He’d been straightforward with you. Bold, even. Jungkook almost had to admire it. He’d gone up to you and simply… asked you out. Showed interest, shot his shot. He liked you. He liked you and Jungkook knew he liked you in a way that you deserved. The realization sinks into him, a punch that knocks the air out of him as he makes his way through the garden and out into the beach. 

He’s so caught up in his own thoughts that he doesn’t notice you noticing him. But you do. You notice the way he talks to Mingyu, see the way his eyes grow darker with each passing second. You see the way he pushes the anger that threatens to leave him away. See the way he makes his way through the garden, steps a bit lost, like he doesn’t know where he’s going. You see the way his face falls with every step until they land in what you can only describe as sadness. The moment he’s out of sight, you excuse yourself from the conversation you’d halfheartedly been in, and go after him. 

He faces the ocean, takes in the sun as it begins to set, the air growing colder around him, the breeze making the waves choppier before they break at his feet. His mind is blank now and he’s almost grateful, his thoughts unable to attack him any further. All he can focus on is the sky turning colors and the ache that grows inside his chest. 

“Jungkook.”

Your voice is a whisper that gets caught up in the wind and for a second you think he doesn’t hear you, but then he’s turning his head around, eyes on yours as you make your way to him. The sand feels heavy on your feet, almost like it wants to stop you. But once you’re face to face with him he smiles. He smiles and you almost want to buy it but you know it’s not fully there. Nonetheless, you smile back. Your lips pulling up with the same nature as his. 

“Hi,” he says, looking at you for what the eternity of a second can hold before his gaze is back to the blue of the sea and the pink of the sky. 

“What happened?” You don’t have to pretend like you don’t know something did. You see the way he smiles again, only this time it holds something more. Bitterness, perhaps. 

He doesn’t look at you when he says, “Mingyu told me.”

“Told you what?”

“About him asking you out… he really likes you, you know?”

“Jungkook, I’m sorry. I- I said no. I told him-”

“I know,” he says, and it’s soft, holds no anger or resentment. “I guess that I’m just realizing that if you hadn’t said no… I couldn’t really hold it against you.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Your voice grows faint, a silent plea. You want him to look at you. 

“I can’t pretend like you owe me anything. And that’s on me, I guess. No- I know. I know it’s on me. And so I guess it’s catching up to me.”

You scoff, turning your face away from his, your own gaze fixated on the sea. The sky paints itself orange. You wrap your arms around your body, shaking your head in disbelief. 

“You still don’t get it, do you?”

He’s silent, and for once you welcome it. You don’t think the words you say next could leave you if he weren’t. And although brave, your voice is soft when you say,

“Jungkook, I love you.” You feel it when his eyes are on you. “I love you,” you shrug, a faint laugh leaving your lips. “I love you in the heat of the moment and I love you in the warmth of it. I love you when it’s cold. I love you when it’s freezing, even. I love you. And you don’t get it still. And perhaps I should try and find better words in hopes that you’d understand but I’m afraid that all I have is…,”

You pause, look into his eyes. 

“I love you.”

~

★taglist★

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[avayarising]

Deaths of Dick Grayson

Part of the Batfam Death Project.

Dick has died four times and travelled to a world of the dead twice. Total time dead: up to several weeks.

Verifiable deaths

1. Killed by the Joker (Emperor Joker, 2000)

Dick was killed by the Joker after Joker stole reality-altering powers from Mxyzptlk and remade the universe to his liking.

It’s unclear exactly how he died, but Joker kept Nightwing’s dead and rotting corpse alongside Tim’s and Jason’s.

Dick was brought back to life when the universe was restored by Mxyzptlk and Hal Jordan (as the Spectre) after Superman defeated Joker.

Time dead: unclear, but it appears to be multiple days and theoretically could be several weeks.

2. Briefly killed by Mr Fun (Batman: Family 2:7, 2003)

Dick was killed by Mr Fun, a skilled assassin working for a gang boss calling herself Athena (who was also CEO of Wayne Enterprises and trying to bring it down from the inside). Mr Fun crept up on Nightwing, hit him in the head with a golf club and then, while he was concussed and disoriented, used pressure points to stop his breathing and heart.

Cass fought Mr Fun off Nightwing, but Mr Fun shot her off the roof with one of dead Nightwing’s wrist rockets. When Cass recovered, Mr Fun had left (to kill the person they were supposed to be guarding). She returned to Nightwing and resuscitated him using CPR, which apparently cured his head injury too.

Time dead: long enough for Cass to fight off Mr Fun (which wasn’t easy) and recover from being shot down, and then give Dick CPR, so probably a good few minutes.

3. Killed and raised by Lex Luthor (Forever Evil 6–7, 2014)

Dick was hooked up to a murder machine involving a bomb wired to his heart, such that it could only be disarmed by killing Dick. Lex Luthor stopped his heart by making him swallow a pill.

Batman of course then started going feral on Lex until Lex persuaded him that he could bring Dick back, which he did with a shot of adrenaline to the heart.

Time dead: long enough for Batman to get in a good couple of punches on Luthor, plus time for Luthor to detach Dick from the machine, so probably up to two minutes.

4. Beaten to death by groblins (Dark Nights: Death Metal 7, 2021)

Dick, along with other members of the Batfamily, was overwhelmed by a swarm of ‘groblins’: mindless evil Jokerised Robins invading from the Dark Multiverse, led by the Robin King (an evil child Bruce Robin). His death happens off-panel but we see his corpse lying on the ground.

(Then Bruce, who was already dead and a Black Lantern, raised his dead family members as zombies.)

Dick was restored to proper life when Wonder Woman, powered by the determination of her friends, defeated the evil Batman Who Laughs and persuaded the gods to remake the multiverse as it was before the evil universes invaded the good ones.

Time dead: somewhere from quarter of an hour to an hour? Or perhaps a lot longer, if it took longer to rebuild the world. It’s always a little tricky to be sure when world remakes are involved.

Afterlife visits

A trip to Dis (Titans 1:4, 1999)

Dick, along with the rest of the Titans, signed a magic book created by a demon called Goth that summoned them to Dis, a region of Hell. Goth had positioned himself as an actor and superstar and got his fans to sign the book, then led them in a chant to transport them to Dis.

Kory was amongst those who had signed the book and was transported, so Dick and the rest of the Titans went after her.

They discover that the way to get out is to find things to care about, and spend some time individually persuading people to care one at a time, but they start to lose hope, infected by the aura of apathy in Dis. Kory, who is less affected, attacks Goth and throws him down from a height, causing his fans to return to the mortal world because they are worried about Goth and the Titans to return because they are worried about Kory.

Time in afterlife: looks like several hours.

Hell heist (Nightwing 4:103, 2023)

Raven created a portal to bring Nightwing, along with Beast Boy and Cyborg, to Hell to find Blockbuster’s contract with the demon Neron, wherein Blockbuster sold the soul of his firstborn daughter, a nine-year-old called Olivia.

They found the contract and returned to the mortal realm, also courtesy of Raven. (Turned out Neron’s contract was easy to thwart: Dick just had to become a foster parent and assume legal guardianship of Olivia. Neron tried to tempt Dick with super powers, but while Dick very much enjoyed the free sample he was not even briefly tempted to give up Olivia for them.)

Time in afterlife: probably a few hours of travel, fighting, and research.

Batfam Death Project Masterpost

[harringtonstilinski]

...Ready For It? (Eddie's Version) - Eddie Munson (Smut)

Author: @harringtonstilinski​ Characters: Eddie Munson x Henderson!Reader Word Count: 8,372 Warnings: fluff, shy/innocent/virgin!henderson!reader, multiple uses of the word chuckle Requested: no | yes; i hope it meets your expectations, @fandom-princess-forevermore!! Smut: no | yes; protected p in v, oral (f receiving), virginity loss, A/N: Hi, friends! Just like with my first Steve fic (what seems like forever ago), my first Eddie Munson fic is a smut piece!! Even though Eddie's still in high school when this is based, he and reader are roughly the same age; around their early 20s. Vecna isn't in this because fuck that piece of shit, lol. If you like this chapter, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox. As always, read at your own risk and enjoy 😊

eddie munson masterlist

Eddie fucking Munson. The boy you’ve had your eye on since you first noticed him in the library during study hall your freshman year. Now that Dustin, your little brother, is in Hellfire Club with him, your crush on him grew.

You were currently with Dustin and the Hellfire Club at their latest meeting, sitting in the corner of the room with a book in hand, minding your own business as you read the words on the pages, but as Eddie’s voice rang out, you looked up at him through your lashes, watching him speak to the group.

“The hooded cultists chant, hail Lord Vecna. Hail Lord Vecna,” he said. “They turn to you, remove their hoods. You recognize most of them from Makbar. But there is one you do not recognize, his skin shriveled, desiccated. And something else. He is not only missing his left arm, but his left eye!” He covered his left eye with right hand, his left arm behind his back.

The group exclaimed their protests as you looked on, confused. You never sat in on the campaigns, but Dustin had begged you to and said that you could bring your books to read, so you caved. 

You and Eddie locked eyes for a moment, a small smirk on his lips as he watched your cheeks flush the smallest amount before you cast your eyes back down to the pages of your book.

“Vecna’s dead!” Jeff exclaimed.

“He was killed by Kas,” Mike added.

“So it was thought, my friends,” Eddie said. “So it was thought.” Grabbing a playing piece, he stood up a little straighter and said, “But Vecna lives.” He placed the playing piece where he needed to on the board.

You looked up again as his voice captured your attention once more as he said, “You are scared. You’re tired. You are injured. Do you flee Vecna and his cultists, or do you stand your ground and fight?” After a few seconds of silence, he added, “Come on.”

Dustin looked back at you with pleading eyes, but you shrugged your shoulders, looking back at your book when your brother turned back around to face the group, silent for a moment as he thought before he spoke up saying, “I say we fight.”

Deciding to speak up, you quietly said, “To the death,” while keeping your eyes on your book.

“To the death,” Dustin and Mike agreed.

“To the death,” Erica added, the entire group looking back at you as they chanted, “To the death!” 

Eddie, however, just looked at you with that smile of his as you shyly smiled and sunk more in the chair you were occupying, going back to your book. His laughter caused you to sneak a glance at him once more, that shy smile coming back to your features.

He sat back down, his smile bigger than ever as the group continued to chant, your brother yelling it out. A chuckle sounded from you as you went back to your book. 

Dice and gaming pieces hitting the board, protests and happy exclaims sounded as you flipped through the pages, immersed in the story you were reading about two lovers. You hadn’t realized that you were biting your bottom lip from the steamy scene you were reading when you looked at the Dungeon Master over the edge of your book as he laughed at something to do with the game.

“Time out! Time out!” Doug exclaimed before he, Gareth, Mike, Dustin, Erica, and Jeff gathered into a huddle to talk out what to do within the game. You couldn’t help but overhear their conversation.

“Guys, I hate to say, but we have got to flee,” Gareth said.

“I conquer,” Doug said.

“Did we just agree with Y/N to the death?” Erica asked.

“That wasn’t literal,” Gareth replied.

Jeff spoke up next, adding, “Vecna just decimated us. We can’t kill him with two players.”

“You too?” Dustin asked. “He has 15 hit points left. Don’t be pussies.”

“Dustin!” you chastised.

“Pussies?” Gareth said.

“Gareth!” you chastised… again.

He looked at you, saying, “Really?” before turning back to the group, saying, “ ‘Cause we’re not delusional.”

“Delusional?” Erica said. “How about not cowards?”

You jumped as Eddie’s voice rang through your ears as he said, “Hey!” He looked at you as he was sitting on the balls of his feet in the chair, an apologetic look on his face before he turned to the group, saying, “If I may interrupt, gentlemen, Lady Applejack.” He moved to sit down with the group turning to look at him as he said, “Whilst I respect the passion, you’d be wise to take Gareth the Great’s concern to heart. There is no shame in running. Don’t try to be heroes. Not today, ‘kay?” 

He smiled and you felt something deep in your core as you looked at him, your bottom lip back between your teeth. You were thanking the Gods above that he couldn’t see the motion through your book.

Dustin held up a finger, saying, “One sec,” before turning back towards the group. “What do you think, Mike?”

“How many hit points do you and Applejack have left?” the Wheeler boy asked.

“Twelve,” Dustin and Erica replied.

“It’s risky as hell. But you’re the ones on the battlefield. So it’s your call.”

“What do you say, Lady Applejack?” Dustin asked.

“You really gotta ask?” Erica replied.

After a couple of seconds, Dustin said, “Screw it,” and the group turned back to Eddie, your brother saying, “Let’s kill the son of a bitch.”

As they stepped closer to the table, Jeff said, “The chances of success are 20-to-1.”

Holding a finger in the air, Dustin said, “Never tell me the odds,” to which you giggled at, your eyes never having left the words in front of you. “Give me the D20.” Dustin held his hand out, which caused you to look back up from the pages as Eddie smiled again and threw the die at your brother.

Dustin rolled the die and released it onto the board. You watched as Eddie stood to watch the die before saying with two headbangs, “That’s. A,” before shaking his head while saying, “Miss!”

“No!” came from everyone but Dustin, who exclaimed, “Shit! Shit!”

Laughing again, you pressed your forehead into the middle of your book, looking back up at the group as Dustin and Erica switched places. The youngest Sinclair rolled the die in her hands with Gareth and Dustin exclaiming a “please” and “come on” before tossing it onto the board, everyone watching with anticipation.

“Crit hit!” Erica shouted, the six of them jumping happily at their win.

Eddie stood up straight, saying, “What? What?” before clapping his hands once and bending over, a happy look on his face as he looked over towards you as he added, “That’s why we play.”

You didn’t know that was looking at you, you were too immersed in your book again to see or hear anything that was going on. What you also didn’t notice was the fact that you were lowering your book as you continued to read, your lip still in between your teeth as the characters in your book were getting it on.

As they started to pack up, you couldn’t help but picture yourself doing these steamy scenes with Eddie. Yes, you’d develop a little crush on him since you’d been bringing Dustin to Hellfire. He’d also dropped Dustin off at home sometimes, talking with your mom in the living room. He’s even been over for dinner a few times!

Those nights he’d stay to hang out after dinner, you’d be curled up on the couch next to him with a book, a decent amount of space in between the two of you to not make things awkward.

Eddie kept stealing glances at you that night, a crush of his own developing that night. When he kept smiling at himself while looking at you, he couldn’t help but think of having you leaning against him, a book in your hand as you read to him.

He also couldn’t help but think of all of the ways he could pleasure you, like the characters in your books. Once or twice, he’d sneak a glance at your pages, seeing what you were so immersed in. Eddie always knew that when you read those scenes, your lip would go in between your teeth. He always wondered what scenario you pictured or who you pictured while you read.

Eddie was brought from his thoughts when Dustin called your name, saying with a smile that it was time for you to go home. You put your bookmark in your book to keep your place before standing from the chair, your shirt having risen a little bit.

Eddie couldn’t help but look at the small bit of your exposed skin, a tingling sensation happening below his belt. Shaking his head from his thoughts, he took a deep breath and released it, grabbing his D&D book to shut it just as you were looking over at him.

You watched him for a second before saying to Dustin that you’d be at the car in a moment before he nodded and walked off with his friends, happy about the events that occurred during the game.

Walking to Eddie, you placed your hand on the table as his back was turned, picking up one of the pieces of the game. “What is this?” you asked, quietly. 

Even though he knew you were there, he still jumped as he turned to look at you. Placing a hand on his heart and the other on the table, he took in a deep breath as you lightly chuckled.

“Sorry,” you said.

Shaking his head, he said, “No, it’s fine.” He sighed, loudly, which made you chuckle again before he stood up straighter, looking at the piece in your hand. “That, uhm…” he started, bringing his hand to rub at his chin. A nervous tick you noticed he had. “That’s Vecna.”

You looked at the playing piece, an eyebrow cocked. “The… thing they were fighting tonight?”

He chuckled and crossed his arms. “Yeah. The thing they were fighting.” Looking at you, Eddie couldn’t help but smile the tiniest bit at you as you handed him the piece. 

“Uhm,” you started, feeling a small spark run through your hand as Eddie’s fingers grazed yours. “I-I think Dustin was going to see if you all could come and hang out at the house for a little while since it’s Spring Break now.”

“Y/N/N! Eddie!” Dustin called.

“Speak of the little devil,” you and Eddie said in unison. You looked at each other and started laughing. 

Ignoring the two of you, Dustin rolled his eyes and asked, “Hey, Eddie, did you want to come to the house and hang out for a little while? You could work on a new campaign!” You watched as his eyes lit up with that suggestion.

Sighing, Eddie scratched at his cheek, feigning thought as Dustin practically begged him to say yes, a chuckle coming from the other male with a nod. Your little brother almost jumped in excitement at his friend’s answer. 

After he had packed everything up, Eddie walked with you down the hallway, attempting to make small talk. “You’re not gonna, like, hide away in your room all night, are you?”

“Uhm,” you stuttered. “I-I’m not sure. You guys coming over is more for Dustin than anything.”

Eddie stopped walking as soon as the two of you made it outside, gently grabbing your elbow to make you stop and face him. He tucked a piece of loose hair behind your ear before cupping your cheek. Shaking his head, he said, “You don’t have to be shy around us. Especially me.”

You felt your breath hitch a little as he took a step closer to you, your head tilting back to look at him. As you looked into his eyes, you couldn’t help but want to kiss him, and you almost did until Dustin’s voice called for you, your head snapping his direction.

With a sigh, you pulled away from Eddie, looking at him shyly before starting the walk to your car. “I guess I’ll see you at my house?”

Nodding, Eddie replied with a yeah before scratching at the back of his neck. He couldn’t help but feel a little jealous when you saw Steve walking to his own car before you ran up to him, giving him a hug.

“How’s my favorite bookworm?” Steve asked, setting you back on the ground.

“I’m good, a little tired. How was the game?” you asked.

“It was awesome. We won!”

“What?!” you squealed, excitedly. With your hands on his shoulders, you jumped a little, saying, “That’s amazing!”

“Yeah, Lucas made the winning shot,” Steve smiled, holding your waist. 

You looked around for the oldest Sinclair with a big smile on your face. “I need to go congratulate him!” Looking back at Steve, you hugged him again, bidding him a good night before you found Lucas, running to him and giving him a hug.

Lucas welcomed it, his eyes locking with Eddie’s, a knowing look on both of their faces. When the two of you pulled back, you wrapped your arm around his shoulders, walking to your car with him. You always took him from Hellfire, so taking him home from the game shouldn’t feel any different, but he kindly declined, saying that he was going to the after party at Benny’s.

You told him to be safe before making your way to your car, getting into the front seat of the car but not before looking at Eddie with a small smile. Once you were on the road, you could feel three pairs of eyes on you. Jeff and Gareth in the backseat while your brother occupied the front. 

“You and Eddie almost kissed,” Dustin said, a smile on his face.

“What?” you chuckled. “No we didn’t.”

“Well, if that’s not almost kissing,” Gareth said.

“Then the stolen looks all night were just stolen looks then,” Jeff added.

You looked at them in the rearview mirror before looking at your brother, shaking your head. “Whatever, losers.” When you looked in your side mirror, you saw headlights gaining up on you, a small smile coming over your features as they slowed down. You could faintly hear a guitar solo sounding from Eddie’s van. 

A laugh came out from you as he stuck his hand out of his window, making the rock on symbol. The boys laughed along with you as you put your eyes back on the road. As the boys were talking about the night and what they plan on doing while hanging out in either Dustin’s room or the living room, you couldn’t help but let your mind wander.

Not being able to stop yourself from letting your mind go there, you thought about your book and what the characters were doing. All the sex you had read about, the thoughts that ran through your mind about you and Eddie doing those things. 

You’d never have sex before; yes, you were a virgin. You were also shy; not wanting to change in front of anyone in the locker room when you were in school. When you were home alone, you wouldn’t even run across the hall to your bedroom to get dressed after your shower. And you were innocent, but not as innocent as some people might think. Since your books had a lot of sex in them, you knew about certain positions… but that’s all you really knew about. You’ve heard girls talk about giving a blowjob, but didn’t stick around enough to listen to their explanations.

Pulling into your driveway, you were pulled out of your thoughts as the boys cheered at the fact that your mom bought more chips the other day at the store. You made a mental note to pick more up when you went within the next couple of days.

After you had walked into the house, you did exactly what Eddie asked you about at the school. You went to hide in your room. Once you had your favorite record on, you took off the jacket you were wearing to drape over your vanity chair. 

Before you could get sucked back into your own little bookworld, your landline rang, a groan coming from your throat, which was the wrong time for Eddie to walk up to your door, his cock twitching a little at the sound, his mind immediately going into the gutter.

Picking up your phone, you said into the mouthpiece, “I swear to all that is good in this world, Steven-”

“It’s Max.”

“Oh,” you sighed. “Sorry, what’s up?”

“I need to you come by.”

Sitting up, concern started to flow through you as Dustin yelled your name before opening your door as you replied back to Max. “What happened?”

She sighed before she replied, “Mom went on a bender again. She ended up calling from some rando’s house.”

Before she even finished her statement, you were up and putting your shoes and jacket back on. “Don’t say another word. I’m on my way.” After she gave you her thanks, you hung up the phone, and turned around to walk out of your room but stopped once you saw the Hellfire Club looking at you with confused looks, concerned looks… worry.

You chuckled and shook your head. “Don’t worry, it wasn’t Steve.” Hearing a breath of relief, you looked up, locking eyes with Dustin. “Oh, don’t act like you wouldn’t leave the house to come with me if it was him.”

“Then who was it?” Dustin asked.

Looking at each boy before stopping on Eddie’s eyes, you sighed. “It was Max. Her mom went out and didn’t come home. She wants me to go over.” You grabbed your book before walking towards your door, placing your hand on Dustin’s shoulder. “I’ll be back later.” Looking at each boy again, you gave a stern look to each of them as you said, “Don’t. Go. Into. My. Room. Period.”

Eddie chuckled, gaining your attention. “I won’t go in because I’m taking you to Max’s.”

Now it was your turn to give him a confused look. “What are you talking about? You’re staying here to hang out with Dustin and your friends.”

“No, I’m taking you to Max’s house. I live across the way from her. I don’t mind.”

“Eddie,” you softly said, tilting your head towards your shoulder. 

“No, really. I don’t mind. Besides, if you're coming back then I have to come back.”

You sighed, giving in. “Okay. Let’s go then.” 

The boys parted like the Red Sea as you walked out of your room, Dustin shutting the door behind everyone. 

“Oh, Y/N/N,” your mom said. “Where are you going?”

Scratching between Tews’ ears, you answered your mom. “Going to check in on Max. She said her mom went out.” You only told your mom what information you wanted. “Eddie’s gonna take me over there, but I should be back later.”

“Okay, honey. Just be careful.”

“I will, Mom.” With that, you and Eddie walked out of your house after he bid your mom a good night. 

Once the two of you made it to his van, he opened the door for you, holding his hand out of you to take. “M’lady.”

You chuckled, taking his hand in yours before getting into the seat, giving your thanks. Knowing Eddie, you knew he probably didn’t turn his music down before he got out, so you leaned over the middle console, turning the volume dial to the left, knowing it had turned down a little.

When he got in, he put the key into the ignition and turned the key to crank the engine. He was already prepared to apologize, the words on his tongue, but he was cut off when the sound didn’t come through the speakers, his eyes on the radio.

You laughed out loud at his reaction, covering your mouth as you did. “I turned it down when you closed the door.”

“Without it being on?” he asked, incredulously.

Nodding, you smiled. “I do it all the time in my mom’s car after Dustin’s been in it. I think you’re influencing him a little with the loud music.”

While you were explaining all that, Eddie had backed out of your driveway, driving towards Forest Hills, the trailer park he and Max lived in. “I hope it’s a good kind of influence.”

You chuckled, looking down at the cover of your book. “Well, considering I also listen to metal music, I would say it’s a good influence.”

Eddie’s heart and cock swelled at hearing you say that. He knew that you listened to all the popular music on the radio, having heard and seen you jam out to Madonna a few good times. 

The both of you were comfortable in the silence that had surrounded you. Eddie didn’t want to ruin it, but his next words slipped out before he could stop them. “I’m glad you came tonight. I didn’t think you’d stay.”

“I wasn’t planning on it,” you say, honestly. “I was just gonna drop him off and have him catch a ride home from Steve, but he practically begged me to stay, so… there I sat all night. Nose stuck in this book.” You chuckled breathily, slightly holding up your book.

“What’s it about?” Eddie asked.

You looked at him with wide eyes. “My-my book?”

Keeping his eyes on the dark road, he nodded. “Yeah. I wanna know what has captured your attention.”

Taking a deep breath, you sunk a little lower into the seat, the action not going unnoticed by Eddie.

“You don't have to tell me. You can tell me to fuck off, for all I care.”

“I would never do that.” You were quiet for a moment before you quietly added, “I’m not a mean person.”

“Am I?”

You looked at him and sat up straighter. “What, mean?”

“Yeah.”

“No.”

He sighed. “People like to think I’m mean and scary.”

“All because you play D&D?” you asked, an eyebrow cocked.

Stealing a glance your way, Eddie nodded his head, saying, “Yeah.”

That angered you. Eddie was one of the sweetest people you’ve had the pleasure of knowing. So, for people to call him scary and mean was downright… well, mean! You decided to voice your opinion on the matter. “Well… they’re just mean! And can fuck right off!”

Surprise flew Eddie at hearing you cuss. He smiled, and once again, his cock twitched in his pants, a bulge starting to appear, and he was thanking all the higher powers above that you couldn’t see it.

The two of you made small talk as he drove to his trailer, the sound of your laughter something that he was loving to hear from you. He wanted to hear it for the rest of his life. Once he parked in front of his trailer and got out, he walked over to your side, helping you out the same way he helped you in.

You walked over to Max’s house, knocking on the door. As you waited for the redhead to open the door, you looked back over at Eddie’s, seeing that he was standing on the small slab of concrete at his front door. Giving him a small smile, you looked back to Max’s door as it opened, the teenager looking at you with relief in her eyes.

She grabbed your arm and dragged you inside, shutting the door behind you. With her hands on your shoulders, she looked you deep in your eyes asking, “Two things. One; why are you with Eddie ‘the Freak’ Munson? Two; I need relationship advice.”

“Okay, one; he’s not a freak. You’re reading way into what the popular kids are saying. Two; I thought you and Lucas were broken up?”

“We are,” she answered, completely disregarding the fact that you just defended Eddie. “But, a part of me still loves him. Like, I can’t stop thinking about him. I want to be with him, but at the same time I don’t want to be with him. I’m still fucked up from Billy’s death. Like - do you see my dilemma here?”

You chuckled, sitting down on the couch, placing your book on your lap. “Max, listen. If you still love Lucas and want to be with him, but you’re not totally sure if you want to be with him, just continue this little break you’re on. Hang out with him as friends first, and if your feelings are still there, then just talk to him about it. You can’t keep being radio silent on him forever. He’ll eventually move on if you do.”

She sat next to you as you spoke, thinking your words over. “Would you be mad if I said I called him right after you, and asked him to come over?”

“Why the fuck would I be mad?”

“Eddie know you have a mouth on you?” she asked, a playful smile on her lips.

You started to stutter over your words, not sure how she knows about your crush. Sighing, you said, “Fucking hell, Dustin.”

“Can’t keep his mouth closed for shit,” she chuckled.

“I’m gonna kill him.”

Looking over at Max, you couldn’t help but let out a laugh, her own joining yours. A knock interrupted your moment with the girl that was like a little sister to you, as well as El. Standing, you placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her an encouraging smile and gentle squeeze. “Just talk to him.”

She nodded her head as another knock sounded, which caused you to sigh. “Alright, Sinclair. I’m coming.” Opening the door, you were met with a very confused Lucas. “I thought you were at Benny’s?”

He shook his head, pointing towards Max. “She called. Said she wanted to hang out.”

“Awwww,” you happily whined, putting a hand on your chest. “You ditched your asshole friends to hang out with your ex-girlfriend? Lucas Charles Sinclair-”

Holding his hands up, he scrunched his face and said, “Please don’t full name me. It sounds weird, and makes me feel like I’m in trouble.”

Chuckling, you walked by Lucas, squeezing his upper arm. “Talk. And listen.”

He nodded as you walked down the steps that led up to Max’s trailer. Looking straight ahead, you sighed as you looked at Eddie’s trailer, deciding to walk over and knock on his door. You had to take a step down as you heard his footsteps. 

Opening the door, he smiled and held his arms out as if saying welcome. You chuckled and stepped into his trailer, turning to look towards Max’s, seeing her and Lucas watching you. Sticking your tongue out to them, you closed the door and turned to face Eddie.

He was standing in the middle of his living room, an amused smile on his face.

“What?” you asked, holding your book to your chest.

“Really? Sticking your tongue out? At two teenagers?”

“I’ve known them since they were pre-teens, it’s fine.” You waved him off and looked around, smiling a little to yourself. “I know this is probably a stupid ass question, but do you live here alone?”

Eddie chuckled, looking down. “No. I live here with my uncle. He’s working nights again.”

You nodded your head, looking around.

“I know it’s not fancy or anything–”

“It’s nice,” you whispered. You looked at him and he at you. It was like there was a magnet between the two of you, pulling you to each other. Nothing happened yet between the two of you, but you were both panting from anticipation. His hands on your face, yours on his waist.

“I just have two questions,” Eddie whispered. “Have you had your first kiss yet? Has anyone made you feel good?”

“Yes to the first,” you replied, breath hitting Eddie’s face. “No to the second.”

He pulled back a little. “You’re a virgin?”

You nodded, looking at him. “No one ever felt right.”

“And I do?”

“The rightest.”

He chuckled, resting his forehead on yours. “I don’t think that’s a word, babe.”

Closing your eyes, you smiled. “It is. Now, kiss me.”

You didn’t have to tell him twice. As soon as his lips met yours, you were a goner. Arms snaking up his body to wrap around his neck while his slid down your body to wrap his arms around your waist before squatting ever so slightly to place his hands on the backs of your hips, you already knowing to jump.

Wrapping your legs around his middle, he turned and walked the two of you into his bedroom, your lips working in tandem with his steps on his neck. 

Eddie groaned as he placed your back on his mattress, your lips never stopping their assault as he breathed out, “Fuck, baby.”

It was your turn to groan as the telephone rang, Eddie’s forehead meeting your shoulder. “I should just ignore it,” he said.

“Yeah, maybe,” you breathed. You went to kiss him again when the phone rang again. 

He sighed. “I’ll be right back.” Looking at you, he smiled. “Don’t go anywhere.” Lifting himself from you, he walked out of his bedroom, giving you a chance to look around as you sat up on your elbows.

“Y/N/N,” Eddie said, walking back into his room. “It’s for you, too.”

You got up from his bed, confused before you walked over to where his phone was, picking it up from where Eddie had placed it. “Hello?” you sighed as you felt Eddie’s chest on your back, the neckline of your shirt being pulled from where it sat on your skin, Eddie’s lips meeting the juncture of your neck and shoulder.

“Cast protection!” Dustin exclaimed from the other end of the line.

“Wh-what?”

“Jesus, Y/N/N. Cast protection!”

Eddie started sucking where his lips were, a sigh falling from your lips. “Fuck off, Dustin,” you said before hanging up. Bringing your hand to rest on the back of Eddie’s head, you gasped as you felt his teeth sink into your skin. “Eddie!”

“Yes, princess?”

“Do more, please. Wait, what did you just call me?” You turned to face him, an amused smirk on his face. 

“I called you princess.”

“No one has ever called me that before. Where did-” Your words got stuck in your throat as your eyes widened. “You read my books.”

“Only the good parts.” Putting your face in your hands, you groaned, embarrassed. “Oh, my god. I’m mortified.”

He chuckled. “Don’t be.” He rubbed his hands up and down your arms. “Did you know you bite your lip when you read those steamy” - Kiss to the top of your head. “Hot-” Hands on your face to lift your head up. “Erotic-” Kiss to your forehead. “Smutty-” Kiss to your cheek. “Fucking scenes?”

Without another word, you wrapped your arms around his neck again, crashing your lips to his in a heated, passionate kiss. Eddie turned you both around to walk you backwards into his room, where your back met the mattress again after your shirt was stripped from your body.

Before he was able to crawl over you, you wrapped your hands on the hem of his shirt, lifting it to reveal his bare torso and tattoos to you. One of a spider and the other of a skullish looking head with red eyes and tongue, hair looking like it was blowing in the wind. You traced your fingers over the permanent ink. 

“You like ‘em?” Eddie asked, watching your eyes. When you nodded, he cupped your cheek with his left hand, your eyes landing back on his. “I have three more.”

“Really?” you breathed.

He smiled, softly, sitting on his knees in between your legs to guide you to sit up. “Right arm.”

You looked at his right forearm, seeing a demonized marionette doll connected by strings to what looked like a clawed hand. “Looks like a witch’s hand,” you whispered. Flipping his arm over, you smiled a little at seeing the bats you always saw. “Bats.”

Eddie twisted his arm a little to give you a view of his tricep. 

Confused, you asked. “What’s this one?”

“It’s a wyvern,” he said. “It’s a dragon with two legs. Part of D&D.”

Your smile returned as you look at him. “It suits you.” 

“Thanks, princess.” He kissed you, softly this time as he reached behind you to unclasp your bra. Feeling the material go slack against your chest, you pressed your arms to the cups, keeping the material in place. 

Eddie noticed your hesitation, bringing his hand back to cup your cheek. “Hey, look at me.” Once your eyes met his, he shook his head, his hair moving with the motion. “Please don’t hide from me. You have nothing to hide. No reason to be shy.”

“But you’re the fir-” You stopped yourself, your shyness peaking through.

“I’m the first to see your tits?” He was so quiet as he spoke, your head nodding ever so slightly. 

“Comes with being a virgin, I guess.”

“Then we’ll take things slow,” he said, rubbing his thumb along your cheek. 

All you saw in his eyes was honesty and respect when you looked into those chocolate orbs you were quickly falling in love with. “Thank you,” you smiled as you added, “Dungeon Master.”

Eddie laughed, hanging his head for a moment. That gave you the opportunity to let out a quiet breath and release your arms from your breasts, your bra falling into your lap. Once Eddie saw the material, he slowly looked up at you, his eyes on your chest for a moment. 

When he looked at you, he slowly laid you down onto your back, bringing his hand down from your cheek to your breast.

Your breath hitched as you watched him place a kiss on your areola. Closing your eyes to savor the moment, you drew out a gasp with your back arching a little as Eddie’s lips wrapped around your nipple, lightly sucking and licking the hardening bud.

“You like that, baby?” he asked, taking the bud back into his mouth.

“Y-yes,” you stuttered. You could feel your core reacting to his tongue and lips. “Please keep going.”

Eddie snickered, pressing kisses to your breasts as he switched, taking your left bud into his mouth to give the same attention he gave to the right. 

“Fuck, your mouth is amazing,” you sighed.

He released your bud with a soft pop, bringing his face back up to yours, his hair falling on either side of his face to create a curtain or veil around the two of you, blocking out the world around you, even though it’s just the two of you in the trailer. “You haven’t felt what it can do yet,” he smirked.

You giggled as you watched him kiss down the valley of your breasts and stomach, stopping when he reached the top of your jeans, looking up at you as he unbuttoned and unzipped them, sitting up on his knees. This time, you saw his erection straining against his jeans. “Happy to see me, Eddie, or do you have a really big joint in your pocket?”

“Oh, little Eddie is very happy to see you, baby.”

Laughing, you lifted your hips off the mattress so that he could take your jeans and panties off in one fell swoop. Your nerves set in again, and Eddie could tell that you wanted to close your legs, so he quickly but gently put his hands on your knees to keep them from moving.

“Remember what I said, baby? You don’t have a reason to hide or be shy.”

His words put your nerves at ease as you released the breath you didn’t realize you were holding as he spread your knees apart, his eyes downcast to your glistening core. “Shit, baby,” he murmured as you scooted up the bed to give him room to lay down. Once your head hit his pillow, you tilted your head to get a good look at him. “All that for me?” 

Nodding your head, you took a deep breath as he laid on his mattress, arms wrapping under your thighs, his rings digging deliciously into your skin. 

“Fuck me,” he whispered, kissing the inside of your left thigh. When he kissed your right, his eyes locked on yours as he turned his face towards where you wanted him most. “You ready, baby?”

Releasing a shaky breath, you nodded. “Yes.”

Looking down at your pussy, he pressed a light kiss to your clit, a small gasp sounding from you before you released a breathy chuckle. Once, twice, three more times he kissed your clit before lightly licking a stripe up from your entrance back to your clit.

“Oh, my god,” you moaned, hands gripping the sheets. 

“Think you can handle it a little rougher?” he asked before kitten licking your clit again.

“Y-yes, Eddie, fuck,” you breathed. You thought you heard him growl before sucked your clit in his mouth, licking it like it was an ice cream cone on a hot as shit summer day. “Oh, my god!” you moaned, loudly. 

He released your clit, continuing his licks as he circled your entrance with one of his fingers. “Have you ever fingered yourself?” he asked, sucking on your clit again. 

When you looked down at him, you grabbed the sides of his hair, pulling it away from your body, holding it in place at the crown of his head. He looked at you as you took one of your hands away, nodding. “Yes. You can… f-finger me, Eddie.”

Since you had a light hold on his hair to keep it out of his face, he was able to turn his head to the side to kiss the inside of your thigh as he inserted a finger in your dripping cunt. “How many?” he asked.

“Two,” you whined as he pumped his finger in and out of you. “Sometimes three. Just depends.”

“Think I’ll stick with two for now,” he said, rising to rest on his hand that was now flat against the mattress. He pumped his fingers in and out of you at almost too fast pace for you, but at the sight of slight discomfort on your face, he slowed his pace to a more perfect one; not too fast, not too slow… just right. “You like that, baby? That the right pace for you?”

You nodded, running your fingers through his hair that was dangling over his shoulder. “S’good!” Placing a hand on his neck, you brought his face closer to yours, pressing your lips on his after his hand moved from beside your waist to beside your head to better balance himself. You all but squealed when you felt his thumb on your clit, your release coming on fast. “Please don’t stop, You breathed. “I’m so close, Eddie. S’close.”

“You gonna cum all over my fingers, baby? Do it. Cum for me.” Eddie bent down the small distance to your breast, taking your nipple back into his mouth to help your release come a little fast.

“Fuck, don’t stop,” you breathed, putting your hand on his forearm, lightly squeezing. “I’m gonna cum. Don’t stop.” You took a deep breath, releasing it as you exclaimed his name. “E-Eddie!” 

“That’s it, baby,” Eddie cooed, watching as he slowed his hand to a slower pace to help ride out your high. Once he was sure you were calm, he released his fingers from your core, placing them in his mouth to lick himself clean. “Damn, you taste incredible.”

You immediately kissed his mouth, tongues tangling together as you tasted yourself on him. “Fuck, I do.”

“You’re dirty,” he chuckled. “I like it.”

“I’ll cum in your mouth next time,” you smiled.

“There’s gonna be a next time?” 

“Well, I hope so!”

He was quiet for a moment before you squealed as he all but rolled on top of you, careful not to dead weight you. “Damn, I’m a lucky Munson.”

“You’ll be even more lucky if you stuck your cock in me,” you smiled. Placing your hands on the waistband of his pants, you repeated his earlier motions in taking off your jeans and panties. “Jeans and boxers off.” Flashing him your pearly whites had him laughing lightly, getting off the bed to take off his jeans and boxers and to retrieve a condom. 

You moaned as you watch him pump himself a few times before opening the foil packet to grab the latex out to roll it onto his hardened cock. “Fuck, Eddie, that’s hot.”

He settled himself between your legs again, the both of you getting into a somewhat comfortable position. Gathering your wetness that was still leaking out of you, Eddie lined himself up to your entrance before looking up at you. “Before I slide in, I’ve gotta ask; are you absolutely sure about this?”

Without missing a beat, you said, “Yes,” while cupping his cheeks. 

He nodded, looking down once more before his eyes came back to yours. “Ready for it?”

Nodding, you took a deep breath, feeling the sting of Eddie’s cock entering for the very first time. You held your breath as you tapped his shoulders, Eddie stopping all movements.

“Breathe,” he whispered, kissing your cheek. 

“What’s in?” you whispered back.

“Just the head.”

“Fuck, it’s huge.”

Eddie looked at you, feeling bad that you were in pain before he tried pushing himself in a little more, watching as a tear leaked from the corner of your eye and down to your ear. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispered. Kissing the corner of your eye, he took a deep breath of his own. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you breathed. “Try some more.”

He carefully and slowly pushed into you more, a shaky breath coming from your lips. “I’m s-”

“If you say you’re sorry one more goddamn time, Edward, I will have you pull out and I’ll be known as the half-virgin Henderson.”

He chuckled as you turned your head to look at him. “Yes, ma’am.”

“Kiss me.”

Not missing a beat, Eddie placed his lips on yours as your hands went to his waist and pulled, his cock pushing into you more until he was fully sheathed. 

“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck,” he groaned. “You feel incredible. So fucking tight.”

“You did it, Eddie,” you whispered. He looked at you as you smiled. “You took my virginity.”

“You’re happy?”

Nodding, you sniffled lightly, bringing your hands from where they had fallen onto his shoulders back to cup his cheeks. “Because it’s you who took it. I wouldn’t have wanted it to be anyone else.”

“Not even Harrington?”

“Steve?” You giggled. “Steve is just a friend. A really good friend. Since I met you, I’ve wanted you to be the one. And now look! We’re connected.”

With a cock brow, he lifted up a little. “Are you quoting your book?”

Looking around at the ceiling in thought, you thought about the words you’d read just almost an hour ago. “Oh, fuck!” Realization hit you like a bus. “Fuck. Ignore that. Come here.” You brought his lips back to yours, a heated kiss shared between you two. “Please move. I’m good now. Just needed time to adjust.” Your words were pretty much cut off as Eddie pulled his hips back and slowly pushed them forward. 

He did this a few times before you asked him to move a little faster. A light sheen of sweat started to coat your bodies as he moved faster and faster until he was slamming his hips against yours at the perfect pace.

When you announced that your release was coming again, his fingers met your clit, rubbing in circles until you were chanting his name like a prayer. “Eddie! Eddie! Eddie!”

“That’s it, baby, cum for me again. I’m so close.”

Three more thrusts is all it took for the dam to break within you again, your second orgasm of the night hitting, your walls fluttering and tightening around Eddie’s cock, sending his own release into the condom. 

Once you both were calmed down, he gently pulled out, a hiss coming from him while an almost pained groan sounded from you. He kissed all over your core as an apology before saying it, dipping out of the room with a smile on his face as one of his pillows was thrown at his face by you.

When Eddie came into his room, he had a warm cloth in his hand, ready to help clean you up. “This is called–”

“Aftercare,” you said, rolling your eyes. “I may have been a virgin, but I wasn’t stupid. I’m still not!”

He chuckled before reaching down to grab his Hellfire shirt to hand to you, as well helping slide your panties back up your legs to sit comfortably on your waist. Once he had his boxers on, he laid in the bed beside you, bringing you to cuddle against his side.

It was silent between the two of you as you both laid there, thinking about the events that just transpired. With a smile on your face, you tilted your head back on his shoulder, bringing your arm to rest on his chest to play with his guitar pick necklace. 

“Thank you,” you whispered.

“For what?” he asked, fingers lightly running up and down your arm.

“Giving me the best night of my life.”

He looked down at you, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “You’re welcome, m’lady.”

For some reason, that pet name had you jolting upright in his bed, the word, “Shit,” escaping your mouth. Jumping from the bed, you grabbed your bra and put it on before finding your jeans and putting those on. Without a word, you tossed Eddie his clothes and a random shirt you found on the floor. “Get dressed.”

“Why?”

Stopping your movements, you looked at him as he put his jeans back on. “You have to take me back home. Remember? I told Dustin and my mom I’d be back!”

That seemed to get his ass into gear because within the next few seconds, he had written a note to his Uncle Wayne and was out the door and driving down the road to your house in a comfortable silence.

What made you smile was the fact that Eddie’s hand never left your thigh, his thumb rubbing back and forth, even with your fingers laced with his. It put a smile on your face that you never wanted to leave.

Once he parked in your driveway, you didn’t move. When he tried to remove his hand from your thigh, you tightened your grip on his hand. He looked at you, the smallest of worry laced in his eyes.

“We should talk,” you said, a small smile on your face. “About us. Like, what we are.”

Eddie leaned closer to you, his head tilted a little in your direction. “Well, how about I call you my girlfriend, you call me your boyfriend, and we’ll call it even?”

Giggling, you looked dead in his eyes, your smile never faltering as you replied, “I like the sound of that.”

Walking into your house, the Club met you in the living room, a smile on their faces, cheers all around as they noticed your fingers laced together.

“It’s about time,” Gareth exclaimed.

“Congrats, man!” Jeff said, clapping Eddie’s back.

You looked at Dustin, who had a look on his face that you couldn’t decipher. Sitting next to him, you placed your arm around his shoulders. “What’s up, kid?”

He looked at you, eyebrows up in worry. “You and Eddie? Really?”

“Yeah?”

Looking down at his lap, he whispered, “I always thought it’d be you and Steve.”

Chuckling, you wrapped your arms around him, giving him an awkward hug. “I love you, Dustin. Steve and I are just friends. Always have been. We talked about it, sure, but I didn’t like his King Steve attitude, so we just remained friends. He’s my best friend now because of how he took you in.”

Dustin looked at you. “What about Eddie? You were so shy around him.”

“I’m shy around everyone,” you retorted. “But Eddie’s different. You know how when you saw Suzie for the first time, how your heart almost exploded?” At his nod, you continued, not realizing that Jeff, Gareth and Doug had sat on the floor in front of you, listening to your story as Eddie leaned against the wall by the door, watching your interaction. “That’s how I felt when I first saw Eddie. Seeing him those nights that I stayed during those nights you wanted me to, I kept having that… heart exploding feeling. I had tonight during Hellfire.”

“So, since the two of you went to Max’s and then had sex after, what does that make you two now?” your brother asked.

Mortified, you widened your eyes. “How do you know about that?”

“Y/N/N, I’m not stupid.”

Narrowing your eyes, you asked, “You’ve read my books?”

“I think everyone in this room has,” he chuckled. “You’re not subtle when you’re reading those scenes.”

“Anyway!” you exclaimed as everyone laughed, your own chuckle sounding from you. “Eddie and I… we’re… together.”

Cheers were heard all around, Jeff and Gareth all but tackling you to the couch, Eddie’s voice sounding over the noise as he said, “Alright, get off my girl!” He pulled to your feet, wrapping an arm around your lower back, his free hand resting on your hip as you wrapped an arm around his neck, your free hand resting on his shoulder. “You ready for this wild ride with this bunch?”

Nodding, you brought the hand that was resting on his shoulder to wrap behind his neck at the same moment he wrapped his arm around your waist, hands resting just above your ass. “The wildest.”

Eddie dipped his head with a smile, meeting your lips in a sweet, passionate kiss… before Dustin’s groan broke it up, leaving the two of you laughing.

“Quit making out with my sister!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N 2:  hi, friends! let me know what you thought about my first eddie munson fic! again, please do not hesitate to reblog and give some feedback, whether it be in the reblogs, comments, or my inbox.

Additional Notes: 

~~~

Forever / Everything Taglist: @stiles-o-dylan24 @stixnstripesworld @fandom-princess-forevermore @quanticobae @mischiefandi @kellyashcroft @lauren-novak​

If you’re tagged and didn’t want to be, please let me know.

Italics wouldn’t let me tag!

~~~

*Please don’t post my writing anywhere else without my consent. The author of this work will always and forever be @harringtonstilinski​.

All characters, story lines, and plot aside from y/n and her storyline & plot, are all of the work of The Duffer Brothers.

*These works contain material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited.

No part of these works may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher.

Posted on January 9, 2024

[ceesimz]

I Did It All.

"Alexia Putellas, what do you have to say about leaving the pitch for the final time?"

Twenty years done, not enough. Twenty years more, too much. A discrepancy far more complex than it needs to be.

Days spent treading the same grass that legends of the past had once done, winding and weaving fluidly through near faultless defences, roars of awe following as stars returned back to their rightful place in the sky with each jump of celebration.

Nights spent in clubs and restaurants, surrounded by people high on glory with medals around their necks, a privilege some may argue wasn't warranted. Though, when stadiums filled to their capacities chanted just one name over and over as if it was the holiest sacrament of Catalunya, fighting against that was as close to blasmephy as one could get.

To now slip off into the unknown, leaving behind only a name that no longer gave way to the presence of a figure the fields didn't deserve. The future would never know her, only her name, only her stats, only her achievements. Perhaps it was best to keep it that way.

Decades of critics speaking in such a way it was almost sacrilegious, months of shame in the media for purely being a human in the worst era of her life, weeks of slander and insults for fighting for rights in a system built to spite her, twisting her kindness into a weakness. But always, the rightful figure rises, pulling the sword from the stone and raising it to the skies in triumph. The crown could get heavy, but not once did it falter. Not once did it fall.

With the final few imprints of her boot studs as she stepped off of the turf, she simply relinquished the responsibility and handed the legacy over to the next generation, trusting them indefinitely to carry the honour in the same way she did. It wasn't just the handing over of a torch; it was the exchange of a rite of passage, a way of life, and a promise to uphold the standards of excellence and righteousness she had engraved into the sport she gave her life to. This passing of the baton wasn't solely focused on the end of something though, no, it was the beginning of something far more important than people could understand. It was time for the up-and-coming stars of the sport to take the pen and write their own chapters into the history books, encompassing the opportunity to build something even more empowering than those before them.

Allowing the armband she had worn with great pride to slip off her arm, she shed the weight of a thousand battles, all of the lessons she had learnt from each victory and each defeat now etched into every fibre of her being. The world watched as she exited the field for the last time, an understanding wordlessly divulged between millions at the recognition that this was a landmark moment.

Kaleidoscopes of nostalgia flitted past her eyes as if it were an old film roll, freeze-frames of time portraying unimaginably euphoric moments. Only for them to never be experienced again. Though every cheer, every chant, and every image of a shirt worn with her legacy stitched into the fabric of it, flooded through her veins, and would for evermore.

The high regard her peers held her to, whether she had come across them on the pitch time after time or never met them at all, was a testament to the irremovable mark she had left on the beautiful game. Other countless memorable figures that were desperate to meet her, brands desperate to work with her, all these examples of her undeniable impact.

Alexia Putellas never cared about being immortalised in her sport. She was just a girl from the outskirts of Barcelona, chasing a dream with her loved ones holding her hand along the journey. Some of those hands had slipped away as time went on, but that meant she only gained more guardian angels to watch over her. With a family as tight-knit as hers, each member past and present a constant reminder of her purpose, she never lost faith. Sure, there were moments where it faltered a little, but no matter how much people tried to make a mockery of her failures, she would step back up; each comeback better than the last.

Her longevity was unrivalled, performing to the highest standards near enough all the time, even when others didn't deserve to witness it. Still, she gave away every part of herself to a sport that tried to silence her and failed to give equity until the latest moment possible. Always undervalued and unappreciated in her place of work, but did that stop her? Dampen her spirits? No, of course it didn't. And she had ample evidence to prove it; awards, trophies, medals, and most importantly to her, an easier path paved for those following in her footsteps.

The final chapter was about to finish though, the book of a near flawless career soon to slam shut.

Football would feel the loss of her absence, but like the story of Ozymandias, the dust will blow over and erase her stature, the nature of the sport will run its course and she'll be a figment of the past. Her time had come, and she had done everything and more of what she needed to do.

She moved from an ever-present figure to just a silhouette with a few steps.

Here, now, at the crescendo of a note-worthy career run, there was only one way to answer such a question.

"I did it all."

[madelynraemunson]

CALL ME WHAT YOU WANT 𓆩♡𓆪

(strip club owner!eddie x fem!exotic dancer!hargrove!x reader)

𝐌𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐍 𝐀𝐔 18+ MDNI

Book #1 of the Hellfire Gentlemen's Club series (completed)

* loosely inspired by Sara Cate’s “Salacious Players Club” series

🔥 EXTRA CONTENT HERE 🔥

↳ chapters: 001, 002*, 003** , 004**, 005 , 006 , 007* , 008**, 009, 010, 011, 012* , 013**, 014** , 015, 016** , 017, 018, 019, 020*

* = somewhat smutty chapters , ** = smut chapters

Summary: 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐘 𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐓. After getting kicked out by your brother, you have no other choice but to take off your big girl pants and add stripper to your resume. Desperate to pay the bills and support your little sister, are you willing to accept the risks that come with such a perilous profession? With the stage name ‘Shy Girl’, you take the leap of faith, weaponizing your divine femininity to steal the hearts of all the bachelors in Hawkins — including Eddie Munson’s, the owner of Hellfire Gentlemen’s Club.

warnings & disclaimers — slow burn, eventual smut (a lot of it), voyeurism, mutual pining, sexual tension, jealousy, drug/alcohol, profanities, sexual harassment, domestic violence

Welcome to Hellfire.

theme song: meet you in hell by jade lemac “Look me in my eyes. I know that you’re scared. You see yourself and you cry for help. Look me in my eyes. Tell me it’s not fair. If you taught me well, I’ll meet you in hell.”

Chapter 001: Wolves

The Hargroves are cursed. Generationally, that is. One night Billy takes it too far, costing him the only thing he had left... his sisters.

TW — abuse, domestic violence, blood, profanities, implications of infidelity, death

word count: 8.5k words

author's note: there are four different acts to this introductory chapter :) so much foundation to lay down and i spent forever on this to craft it perfectly for you guys. thank you for being as excited about this fanfic as I am releasing it. i hope you all enjoy! -madelyn

tags: @changemunson , @the-fairy-anon , @ali-r3n

_______________𓆩♡𓆪_______________

"Once I ran to you. Now I run from you."

♡

Duality of man. Mom was always a firm believer in that notion. In fact, she always used to say, "Inside of you, there are two wolves: a good one and a bad one. Depending on which mouth you feed, one will triumph the other.”

It became more evident when she died.

“YOU FUCKING SLUT. GRAB YOUR SHIT AND GO.”

Once identical in every aspect, the differences between you and your brother slowly began to unravel over time.

Being ‘good wolf’ was impossible while living under the same roof as Billy. So you settled for neutral wolf instead. Meanwhile, the big, bad wolf possessed him at age 15, when he realized hitting your father back would get him to back off.

It was 2010, post-homecoming game.

Dad nearly flung Billy into another dimension when he came home. The preferred alternative would have been attempting to reason with one another, but it just wasn’t something that was normalized in the Hargrove household. Communicating with words was a daunting task; but not nearly as daunting as accountability.

“I’M DONE WITH YOU, BILLY. GRAB YOUR SHIT AND GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY FUCKING HOUSE.”

“I’m a literal minor, you can’t do this, Dad!” Billy wailed. "PLEASE!"

Over a football game.

The Friday Night Lights were a staple of Vista Palms High School. That and all of its nacho-eating, pot-smoking, LMFAO-playing, neon-filled goodness.

"C’mon V-P, c’mon, let’s beat S-D!” For weeks Billy had been chanting that mantra. There was no clearer indication that it’s where he would be the night of the championship game. He didn’t communicate it, of course, but it was implied. But still, it didn’t cross Dad’s mind.

Any parent who thought their child was coming home on time — and sober — that night was a foolish one. Especially if their kid was a sophomore with senior status.

“You sure as hell don't act like one,” Dad spat. “Coming home, acting all grown." Little did Dad know Billy was there for community service. Billy was a good student. More than anything he wanted a full ride to a UC, mainly to get away from home. Either that or military. Maybe then, walking on eggshells and being accused of something he didn't do — like drinking and doing drugs — would be a seasonal occurence instead of daily. "ACTING LIKE YOU PAY THE BILLS. YOU DON'T. YOUR MOM AND I DO.”

Dad knew he hit a nerve. It was his signature move aside from alienating his victims to establish control. While the feeling of getting your wings clipped really did you in, reactive abuse was Billy's top trigger, especially when Mom was mentioned. After all, Billy was the one who found Her.

Through glassy eyes and gritted teeth, Billy closed up his fists before mustering up the courage to say, “I’m…not…calling Sue... the operative word.”

Dad snarled. “Like there’s anyone else physically here you’ve reserved that title for?”

Oh.

"This tainted love you've given-"

Billy took the bait, lunging forward to grab Dad. As if on cue, Dad winded up his arm, assuming his usual position. You managed to assert yourself between in hopes of stopping them. Suddenly the back of Dad's hand collided with your cheek, sprawling you onto the couch. Billy watched horrified while you fought to keep your eyes open, growing anxious when all you could hear was the room pulsating around you at the highest frequency you had ever heard in your 15 long years of life. Enough was enough.

One punch. Bridge of the nose. Game over. The control Dad had over you both had ceased.

Billy rushed to your aid while Dad took a few moments to gather himself. It was then his beat-in, throbbing eyes realized that the little boy he mercilessly pushed around was no longer there. His own little Frankenstein had taken his place.

"I gave you all a boy could give you"

"Oh my god, Sissy," Billy cried, crouching down to run a soothing hand through your hair. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," you sniff, wrapping a hand around his arm. "I'm fine, Billy. I promise."

"I'm not gonna let that son of a bitch hurt you ever again," he vowed. "I'm gonna fuck him up and anyone else who tries."

"I love you, Brother."

"I love you, Sissy." The magnitude of power that surged through Billy melted into every neuron in his body, the warmth of its adrenaline imitating a tender — long overdue — embrace. He became fully enveloped in what was like an electric current, its tide higher than any wave he's ever surfed. It became more exhilarating than cruising down the I-5 in his Camaro at 130 MPH, and more intoxicating than any keg of beer he's ever swigged at a Wanna-be Project X Party.

It was the rush Billy had been searching for his whole life.

Every high Billy ever pursued before that rapidly declined in value. He would trade in anything for the static that had encoded itself into him. He felt untouchable, a luxury your father couldn’t afford his wife and children.

"YOU PUT YOUR HANDS ON HER AGAIN, YOU'RE DEAD DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"

From that day forward, feeling respected was a freedom Billy was not willing to sacrifice, ever.

"Take my tears and that's not nearly all-"

But now Billy is the abuser, something you never imagined happening given his innately soft personality.

"Oh, tainted love. Don't touch me! Please.”

Slapping. Biting. Choking each other out. Pulling each other’s hair. Calling each other names. Spitting. Throwing things. Who would’ve thought the Hargrove twins were capable of the same horrors as their parents?

Yesterday was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Billy’s voice, like nails on a chalkboard, clawed at your brain in agonizing intervals.

“That’s all Max is. A pathetic little liar.”

“She will do anything for any bit of attention…even whore herself out to all the men in Del Mar.”

“You can get out. And stay out. Since you wanna act so grown all the damn time.”

He became the very thing — or person rather — he sought to destroy. The very person who indirectly, but explicably killed your mother.

And deep down you feared that if you and your stepsister Max don’t get out of that house, you’d both suffer that same fate.

“It's fucking JULY and 90 degrees out!” your sister retaliated. “What do you want me to wear to the beach? Fucking sweats?"

Max was out with friends the night prior. They hosted a birthday bonfire for her at the beach. She broke curfew and got a ride home from a friend. A guy friend. Billy wasn’t having it.

Max always got the short end of the stick. She was an easy target for Billy’s antics. Being the literal carbon copy of the woman he hates the most didn’t make it any better, and neither did taking the bait whenever Billy dealt it to “keep the peace”. Max believes being and acting helpless would get Billy to back down. It was far from the truth. In reality, she was feeding him his supply.

And what a volatile supply it is.

Mom also had another saying: "Anger is just grief with nowhere to go".

So you watched Billy and Max go back and forth with their pickleball tournament-o-insults, shouting at one another to their lungs’ capacity, their dead, black pupils strangling each other mentally while they gathered the physical strength to do so as well. You kept an arm halfway up and torso slightly turned in case you needed to butt in.

“I do this because I love you, Maxine,” Billy insisted. “So just SHUT UP and stop being a little cunt. Okay?”

“You stop being a presumptuous asshole first,” Max fired back. “We’re fighting again — why? Because someone with a penis drove me home? And we broke curfew by 10 minutes? I don’t control traffi-”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” he dismissed her. “Just say you wanted some dick and call it a night.”

Classic slut-shaming, as if Billy’s Instagram following wasn’t all models, strippers, and OnlyFans girls.

Before you could even process what was happening, the blurbs of their argument skidded to a halt when Max finally broke. Billy watched in subtle amusement as she screamed, her fist meeting the wall repeatedly out of frustration.

Reactive abuse is Billy’s favorite abuse tactic.

“Someone who’s not guilty wouldn’t react like this,” Billy quipped in a sing-song voice, eyeing the new hole in the dry wall that Max had created.

There was no sense in backtracking if Billy already got what he wanted. Max just needed the last word. Before any of you could process it, an acrylic storage box soared through the air, hitting Billy right in the groin. He roared in agony while Max attempted to collect herself off to the side. She still saw red.

That’s when the knife came out.

One slice to the brow and it was over. To ensure the last word was his to keep, Billy ended up chucking a knife at your sister.

“OHMYGOD!” Max shrieked repeatedly, entering the ‘freeze’ stage of her shock. “OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD, I’M BLEEDING! I’M BLEEDING, THERE’S BLOOD!”

It was then you realized, the little boy you vowed to protect and refused to leave behind was long gone. Dad’s essence had taken his place now.

“You just don’t know when to FUCKING STOP, do you?” you exclaimed, putting pressure on Max’s eyebrow with a washcloth as she wailed. Suddenly it was Dad you were talking to. They had the same apathetic, dead look in their eyes. “I don’t care who said or did what, throwing a fucking KNIFE?”

“Me?” Billy tutted. “You wanna call me crazy, who did that?” He was referring to the hole in the wall. “And who was the one to throw shit first? EXACTLY. EXACTLY.”

While Billy was technically correct, he would never admit to what he did to provoke you two.

“So you can both get out if you’d like. Be my fucking guests.”

You and Max exchanged one look. The look. It was time. You both were ready and now had the green light. Now was the chance to bolt without immediate consequences.

So you and your sister spent several minutes rummaging through your pre-packed belongings while Billy continued to shit-talk aimlessly around the rental you shared. The place soon reeked of cheap bud and gas station gin. Trash bags were soon filled with your favorite clothes and you shoved them into as many of your childhood suitcases as possible. Struggling to see past your tear-coated eyes, you reached for your books, the ones you've hollowed out 300 pages deep to pocket all the tips from your waitressing job, and shoved the loose bills into your crossbody. You’d sort through them later. Lastly, you popped the cap off the bottom of your salt lamp. There was a pre-paid Visa you bought several months beforehand waiting for you. With trembling hands, you grasped it and whispered a gratitude to the Universe before tucking it neatly into the back pocket of your Levi’s.

When it was all said and done and everything was loaded into your car, you focus on the hole in the dry wall one last time.

Never again.

Billy was complacent throughout the entirety of the event. You glared at him while he continued to soothe himself with drugs and alcohol, refusing to own up to the irreversible damage he caused your little family.

“SIS,” Max boomed from outside. “LET’S GO!”

A part of you used to pity Billy, but now his destructive behavior took away any ounce of guilt you felt for leaving him.

You never fought back until you had no other choice. Similarly, and tragically, Billy shared that very sentiment.

Who the villain is in the narrative relied solely on whose lens you are looking through.

It took you by surprise all the time. How could identical twins, who grew up in the same environment, end up so different from one another?

“I love you, though you hurt me so. Now I’m gonna pack my things and go." - Tainted Love by Soft Cell

There are two wolves inside of everyone.

——————————𓇼——————--------

"Are the pieces of you in the pieces of me? I'm just so scared you're who I'll be. When I erupt just like you do, they look at me like I look at you" - DNA by Lia Marie Johnson

The heart-wrenching ballad by Lia Marie Johnson dissolves as you crank the dial to the left. Music is always depressing when Max has the aux chord.

"Did you hear what I said?" you question her.

Max abruptly sits up and reorients herself, attempting to shrug off the trance “DNA” had put her in for a few minutes.

"No, sorry. What'd you say again?"

"Do you need a bathroom break?"

"I'll go at the airport.”

"Okay, but if you change your mind and decide to take a leak one last time, I'll be happy to oblige.”

Swami’s is also an exit away and you’re just fixing for a hot meal before takeoff. But you don’t directly say that. Besides, Max loses her appetite when she’s upset and may only have room for shitty airplane food.

“I’ll just eat on the plane.”

Stale pretzels and flat soda it is.

Despite the decrease in appetite, Max is holding up well. As well as anyone-who-was-nearly-stabbed-by-her-brother-and-is-now-moving-states-away-from-everything-she’s-ever-known-with-her-sister could be.

It wasn’t your first choice to leave California. In fact, you did everything you could to avoid it. But nonetheless, anyone with a conscious and only $4,000 to their name would make the wise decision to move away to somewhere more affordable.

Enter your online friend, Robin.

Working ungodly hours six days a week to pay the bills took up so much of your time that you had no friends in San Diego — albeit high school friends who would have never guessed how you and Billy turned out. Those friends had happy families anyway. They couldn’t hold space for you. Your online friend Robin, who you met on an art forum, however knew your family dynamic and was there for everything. But she lived in Indiana with her partner and was never able to offer you any physical comfort.

You entertained Robin’s idea of moving to where she lives, a small town in Indiana called Hawkins just 20 minutes southeast of the city. Living under the radar to get your ducks in a row seemed like such a perfect plan, but you didn’t want to do so at the expense of Max losing her only support system she had outside of you.

Moving would’ve also meant pulling her out of school, which wouldn’t be possible because Billy was her legal guardian. Now that she’s graduated high school, and today is her 18th birthday, the game has changed completely.

“Donovan texted me happy birthday,” Max reports, finally disclosing a fragment of her inner conscience. “Thought it was sweet.”

You can’t help but smile. "You thought he wouldn’t?”

She refrains from rolling her eyes and shifts them towards the rocky beach cliffs outside her window.

“You know,” you add. “I really think you two could make long distance work. I’ve never seen so much chemistry between two people before.”

Max scoffs. "Yeah right. Long distance with a guy going to Santa Barbara for college?” She fiddles with the strings of the knit poncho resting atop her lap. “I'd be breaking my own heart."

You bite your lip to stop the waterworks. Max doesn’t deserve any of this. She deserves to enjoy bonfires with her skater friends, surf all the tubular waves, and go on all the nature hikes without worrying about her stepbrother’s codependent-fits-of-rage waiting for her when she comes home. She deserves to eat fried funnel cake at the county fair and share a kiss with the boy of her dreams atop a Ferris wheel on the 4th of July. She deserves a San Diego summer, not a summer spent in hiding from her abuser in the middle of buttfuck nowhere.

Max decides to change the subject.

“So what’s Robin like? Your online friend.”

“She’s very sweet,” you breathe. “Been, uh, telling her about Billy for a long time now. Her arms have been open since day one.”

“And her girlfriend?”

“Vicky’s the best,” you insist. “A match made in heaven for sure. It’s like they’re the same person, just different font.”

You get a giggle out of Max. Her laughter during such a turbulent time is like music to your ears. The non-depressing kind.

“I’m really sorry I couldn’t get you a gift this year.”

She side eyes you.

“What are you talking about? You quite literally gave me the best gift of all.”

“Did I? What did I give you?”

“You gave me safety.”

And with that, you give yourself a mental pat on the back, confident you made the right choice despite how foreign everything currently felt. The conversation dies down while you and Max ride on, driving further and further away from the Park and Ride you spent the night at, off Coast Highway, and onto the I-5 one last time.

Boarding the plane is a swift process. Your plane is a two-seater, so Max gets the window and you get the aisle. After receiving your snacks and drinks, you decide to play white noise and dissociate for the next five hours. It’s safe to do so, anyways. Liminal spaces were not something you took for granted.

Meanwhile, Max looks out the window, watching as the world she has come to know her whole life shrinks right before her eyes, before disappearing underneath a quilt of soft white cumulus clouds.

“This is 18.”

Goodbye, San Diego.

—————— ✈︎ ———————

Hello, Hawkins.

“Please, make yourself at home,” Robin incites, trudging through the miscellaneous projects that sit at her feet. “As if we weren’t DIY freaks enough, the pandemic really just amplified that.”

The pandemic was a hard time for everyone. You lost your fine dining gig and abruptly switched to UberEats to adjust to the flow of takeout. Billy couldn’t go to the gym, his happy place, and it took a toll on him mentally. Max broke quarantine multiple times to see Donovan, which didn’t sit well with your brother. He of course lashed out on her and also proclaimed that people like her were the reason why America hadn’t opened up yet.

“And I get no time at the gym!” Billy screamed. “So now I have to do this—”

You learned that a decent lamp costed $70 that night.

That wasn’t your first rodeo though. You and Billy grew up replacing furniture all the time. You two would gather up your money and spend it on replacing whatever needed replacing for Mom’s birthday. She always wanted to make your house feel like a home. Feel lived in. You and Billy thought you were heroes doing it, but it dawns on you now that you two were just babies.

“Oh!” Vicky interrupts. “Before we forget…”

You and Max watch her as she scrambles around, looking for something that she seemed ecstatic about.

“Happy birthday, Max!”

“No way, Kate Bush!” Max exclaims as she accepts the gift, an original Kate Bush vinyl record of her album Hounds of Love.

"Wow," you beam, rubbing your sister’s back. “Way to fuel her 80's hyperfixation, huh?"

“We found this at the thrift store,” Vicky boasted. “Knew we had to get it for ya.”

“It’s the real deal too," Robin adds. "Look, printed 1985.”

“It’s perfect,” Max gushes. “Can’t wait to play it on my Crosley.”

She thanks them both and hugs them before running back to the living room to get the rest of your belongings. You listen as she hums some of Kate Bush’s discography along the way.

You then observe Max as she unpacks her things one by one, slightly peppered with remnants of the California sand and the snobby fee it took to ship it all here via cargo. She then proceeds to sit on the new bed to check the springing quality, testing its bounce factor and comparing it to that of her old bed.

You let out a bittersweet sigh.

Suddenly you're eight years old, doing the same thing at the local motel Mom managed to snag a couple nights from when Dad trashed the house.

You turn to look in the mirror atop your new dresser.

Suddenly, you're Mom. Quite literally. You both have the same wavy blonde hair, scattered freckles across your nose that Billy used to call “stardust”, and the same tsunami blue eyes. It makes it no wonder why you and Dad never got along. You are Mom’s spitting image — and Billy is Dad’s.

Funny how life turns out.

You graze the crows feet at the outer corner of your eyes, realizing now how many years have silently passed you by, and then take note of the stress-defined scars in the form of eye baggage from all the sleepless nights that came as a souvenir.

You’ve put up with so much. For so long. The trauma is starting to manifest itself physically.

Robin snaps you back into present day. "So I was thinking we go to Applebee's for dinner, walk around Old Town, get you guys settled and unpacked when we return, Jenga at night, and then-"

She stops when she sees the horrified expression on your face.

“Hey…” the pitch in her comforting, raspy voice heightens. “What’s the matter?”

Your voice breaks. “It’s…” you manage. “It’s been a lot.”

Robin pats your back. “I know. I’m so sorry.”

Without looking, Robin snags a few tissues from a box laying around and gives them to you. You blot the tears away, careful not to mess up the makeup you had on with the intention to make you look less…dead.

“Sue didn’t even call and wish her happy birthday. Her own mother.”

“I’m so sorry,” Robin repeats.

“Every day I watch Max store her trauma in the box... and just shove it into the corner where it gathers dust,” you continue. “If she doesn't unpack it..."

You didn’t even want to think of the collateral damage you and your brother caused her. A part of you wants to think Maxine has remained untouched from that side of you, but the dry blood on her outer brow was a reminder that it was far too late to shelter her from that.

"You see yourself in her."

"And my mom in myself,” you admit. “Now more than ever.”

You rub your eyes.

“I’m rambling, I know. It’s just… SO aggravating. Max deserves better.”

“She’s handling it really well.”

“We don’t know that. I know Max. She’s a pro at hiding her feelings.”

“She’s being strong for you, like you are for her. It’s very endearing, whether you both admit it to each other or not.”

She rubs your arm.

“For as long as Vicky and I are here, you and Maxine have a soft place to land. We are here for you. Y’all are safe.”

You two glance over at Max, who is now unpacking your Zen Basics Himalayan salt lamp. She sets it on top your new bedside table, a reupholstered one whose old wood was painted over by an earthy olive green, the old hardware replaced by eccentric shaped, neutral-toned knobs. Her Crosley sits on your floor, now playing a track off Kate Bush's vinyl while she stares out the window. Your new view for the foreseeable future.

Can't you see where memories are kept bright?

Tripping on the water like a laughing girl

Time in her eyes is spawning past life

One with the ocean and the woman unfurled

Holding all the love that waits for you here

Catch us now for I am your future

A kiss on the wind and we'll make the land.

Dinnertime comes fast, but you blame it on the time zone difference. You call shotgun and ride with Robin in the passenger seat, catching up with your best friend while Vicky and Max watch YouTube shorts in the backseat.

Robin gives you a backstory of everything you pass on the way to Applebees, from the schools to churches to family-owned gas stations. She and Vicky seem to know everyone by a first-name basis, naming random people off and knowing exactly who that is every so often. You try to stay engaged, but the only thing on your mind is where you’re going to apply for a job.

Robin drives into a plaza next.

"This used to be a mall, but now it's completely empty," Robin continues pointing to an empty building with remnants of a star symbol etched on it. "E-commerce really turned this strip into a ghost town."

"So basically, if I wanted a job, it would have to be any of these food places, an office of sorts, or an off-brand Blockbuster store?"

"Family Video is closing too," Vicky chimes in. "It's sad. But I guess Hawkins needs yet another overpriced coffee shop."

"You could always work at the gentlemen's club," Max jokes, pointing off to the side.

You turn to where she’s pointing and take note of the matte black rectangular building by the Sizzler’s. It didn’t seem out of place, but the silhouette of an exotic dancer with devil horns gave the sinister establishment away. You couldn’t read the name of the club, but a part of you tries to.

Robin slightly turns and nods in that direction. "Oh yeah. I heard the girls there make bank in tips."

“I made bank in La Jolla doing fine dining,” you point out. “Maybe I can do the same thing here. But at a similar establishment.”

“Fanciest restaurant you’ll get here is Benny’s,” Vicky says. “You’re gonna have to go to the city for fine dining. I don’t think the commute is worth.”

“Guess stripper is your best option,” Max nudges you.

You shoot a glare her way. “Very funny.”

"I know, I was joking," she scoffs. "Billy would kill you anyways."

Billy would literally go insane if you dared to work at a strip club. The slut-shaming would never end. Not that he never slut-shamed you anyway. There was always something for him to be misogynistic and hypocritical about.

Then it hits you. Billy isn't here. And you really need the money since in this day and age, $4,000 meant nothing. You peer over at the gentlemen's club one last time as it shrinks out of view the further Robin drives.

HELLFIRE.

-----------𓆩♡𓆪------------

Dungeons & Dragons.

Of course one of the very few strip clubs in Hawkins has to be the dorkiest.

But you understand the vision. Beyond the cobblestone entrance, the veil between real life and fantasy thins.

As you near the club with nothing but a purse and car keys in hand, you notice that there’s already security by the door. You’re surprised to see a leaner guy, tall and slender with soft blonde hair and a soft grin to match. He catches sight of you and greets you with a nod.

“Good afternoon,” he says. “How are you today?”

“I’m good,” you nod. You reach for your wallet and give him your ID. Typical screening process. “Yourself?”

“Not too shabby,” he replies.

He examines your ID card. You notice his surprise when his eyes slightly widen before retracting shortly after. You guess that he was wondering why you are here out of all places. You peer over at his name tag while he concludes his screening. Henry.

Upon verification of your identity, the friendly security guard returns your card to you.

“Let me give you a wrist band.”

He motions for you to hold an arm out. You extend your right arm to him and watch as he gracefully pulls a paper wristband out of his pocket, clasping it into place with the side that read “21+” facing upwards.

You take the time to admire the gentleness of this man. The softness of his face. His dreamy gaze.

“Any weapons on you?”

“Uh…” you stammer. “Just pepper spray?”

A laugh escapes from his nostrils. “That’s fine, my dear.”

“I hope I don’t have to use it.”

“Don’t worry, darling. Under my watch, you won’t.”

Henry gently strokes your hand before motioning you inside.

“Enjoy the show.”

“Thanks,” you smile politely.

It’s a slow afternoon, but granted no one goes to a strip club at 2 PM. The Hellfire Gentlemen’s Club was comprehensively laced with playful innuendos. The accent wall by the entrance showcases an array of chains and handcuffs. Kukris, nun-chucks, and flails all of different variants and sizes are displayed on the walls, the point of balance being a vintage pulp print of a metal puppeteer. On the print, "OBEY YOUR MASTER" is written in edgy bubble letters.

Kinky.

And there’s a bonus of this themed club: the ladies are dressed in cloaks. You watch as beautiful women from all walks of life strut around the joint, leaving the clients with only their imagination to guess what’s underneath the tantalizing, medieval velvet.

There are LED signs that lit up corners of the space, indicating what they were for. KAS’ KORNER: GRAB A BITE, DRAGON'S BREATH: HOOKAH LOUNGE, and POTIONS — the bar.

You catch a glimpse of the private show rooms, or at least what you think are the private show rooms.

The LED sign to those rooms read, "I PUT A SPELL ON YOU AND NOW YOU'RE MINE."

The general seating area for the main event reads VECNA’S LAIR.

The Dungeon Master of this joint thought of every possible detail he could and ironed it into perfection.

Surely, someone who truly plays would adore every aspect of all the details, but it was evident that everyone came here for the same reason:

Girls, girls, girls.

You walk over to the bar to see two men conversing behind it.

One looked to be in his late 20s, with scruffy chestnut brown hair, some tired eyes, peach fuzz, and a patterned shirt decorated in a kaleidoscope of colors — a shirt meticulously calculated by quite possibly a girlfriend.

The other looked like he had another year left before being allowed to be behind that counter... of course judging by the “Hawkins High School class of 2021” on his insulated water bottle in his hand, a cracked iPhone in the other, and Beats with a small basketball sticker on it.

When you appear in their periphery, the conversation between the two gradually comes to a stop.

“Whoa,” the younger man hums. “New face. Welcome.”

“Hi. What do you recommend?”

“In terms of what?” the younger man questions slyly. There’s a timidness to the young man’s spirit, making his flirtatious demeanor somewhat dorky. The age appropriate bartender nudges him.

“Drinks, hotshot,” you refrain from chuckling. “Drinks.”

“Depends what you’re into,” the younger man replies, the slyness continuing. “If you’re into light liquors, Jonathan can make you a mean Cîroc with pineapple juice. But if you’re more into the dark stuff…”

He gestures up and down on himself.

“Then look no further.”

“That was very painful to listen to,” the older one who you assume is Jonathan cringes. “Can you get anymore corny?”

“Ta-ha!” the younger one tsks. “He said could I get any more corny. Can you get any more bitchless?”

“I have a girlfriend, Lucas.”

“Emphasis on the singular sense.”

“Nance is all I need.”

"Nancy is all you can pull," Lucas chuckles. "With that goofy ass shirt, man. Stop playing with me."

So you weren’t the only one who thought the shirt was absolutely ridiculous. It had "Bad Bitch Repellant" written all over it.

Jonathan whacks Lucas with the cloth that was sitting atop his shoulder. You request a double Tito’s straight on the rocks from Jonathan to which he automatically starts to make. Lucas continues to interrogate you.

“As you heard, my name is Lucas. Lucas Sinclair.” He extends his hands to you. “But my favorite ladies call me 'Dark Chocolate'. You can call me, 'The Man of Your Dreams' though.”

You take the youngster’s hand in yours and shake it. His heavy locker room cologne makes your nose swell, an uneven mix of what you believe is Axe and — is that Dior?

You tell Lucas your name then hit him with a, “But you can call me ‘When You’re Thirty’.”

Lucas laughs at your joke, beaming up at you as he does so. Then he nods to communicate a gracious fair enough. The flirting, you could sense, was in good nature, playful.

“It was worth a shot,” he shrugs. “Do you have a younger sister by any chance?”

“Oh in your dreams, mister.”

Jonathan chuckles and rubs Lucas’s back.

"That’s enough man, can you go buss that table over there?"

Lucas gives a thumbs up before putting his Beats on and walking away. You divert your attention back to Jonathan who is now done with making your drink.

“Alright… I got a Tito’s double shot — straight — on the rocks,” Jonathan announces as he slides your vice on over. He studies you as you take the drink and request to keep the tab open. “I’m inclined to ask. Are you okay?”

When you’re not around Billy, you wear your heart on your sleeve. It wouldn’t hurt to trauma dump on a stranger. Especially one who asked.

“Pretty far from okay,” you answer before chugging it. “Can’t you tell? It’s 2PM and I’m consoling…” You slosh the drink around in your hand. “…my man Tito.”

“I see that.”

“It’s been a long day,” you continue. “It’s my second day in Hawkins so I thought I’d scope this place out. Dilly dally for a bit.”

“Second day?” Jonathan questions. “As in…ever?”

“Yeah, just moved here.”

The bartender looks around as if he’s missed something. “But…why?”

It’s a fair reaction. If the welcome sign is correct, Hawkins only has a population of 1,314 people. 1,316 now including you and Maxine.

“My friend lives here and convinced me to make the move,” is what you explain, though it only seems to make Jonathan more confused. “Couldn’t take the heat Cali was dishing out. Hawkins seemed like the perfect place to slow down.”

“Oh man,” Jonathan mutters. “California to here, what a change.”

“You lived here long?”

“Lived here my whole life,” he answers as a matter of factly.

“What made you get a job at Hellfire?”

Jonathan didn’t have to think. “I love booze.”

You laugh together, raising your half-empty class to clink his invisible one.

“I hate 9-5s,” Jonathan draws on. “Working from home ‘bout damn near drove me insane, don’t know how my mom does it with such ease. My boss here smokes me out on occasion and my friends make me nachos.” He smiles. “Can’t think of anything better.”

“There we go.”

"I’ve also just been looking out for women my whole life," he adds. "Bout time I get some financial compensation for it, no?"

“Amen to that,” You chug the last of your drink. “Thanks for your service.”

"Pleasure is mine. Anything else I can do for ya?"

You think. "Hm, probably not you, but maybe the hiring manager can do something for me."

"You're looking to work here?" he clarifies as you nod. "Oh sweet, you're going to wanna talk to Eddie. He's the owner."

"And a dweeb," says a significantly younger looking fellow as he slides into the conversation.

“Here we go.”

In front of you now is a gentleman around Lucas’s age with wild curly brown hair. You watch as he helps himself to a club soda, dunking three large wedges of lemon into his cup as well.

The guy offers you a playful, pearly white grin. “Eddie may own a nice club with some smokin' hot babes, but he's got no game whatsoever."

“Hey Dustin.”

“Sup, man.”

“You think so?" you challenge him.

"I know so,” the boy who you now know as Dustin insists. “Can't talk up a chick to save his life."

"Yeah," Jonathan says, half-jokingly. "He's the bitchless one."

Dustin glances between you both, slightly puzzled.

You shake your head. "No way."

"I wouldn't say he's that bad," Dustin says. "I actually think he's seeing someone casually. But in general, dude's got zero rizz."

"Projecting are we?" Jonathan nudges him.

“HELL. NO.” Dustin booms. You attempt to refrain from laughing. “My game is what got me the baddest gal at science camp. Eddie? Clumsy as hell, stutters on his words, he's got the anxiety level of someone who drinks cold brew on an empty stomach… Now that I say it out loud, I think he does drink cold brew on an empty stomach. Some chicks dig it though, which is good for him.”

Curly was fun to observe. Once he’s done talking down on the club owner, Dustin politely walks over and shakes your hand, bowing to you like you’re a princess of sorts. You later find it that like Lucas, Dustin works as a bus boy and server, and his girlfriend makes sure that he remains in Kas’ Korner at all times. Dustin has about two years left before legally being permitted behind the POTIONS bar, but that doesn’t stop him from using it as his own storage shed.

You watch as he grabs some deodorant and hair pomade from an old shoe box under the counter.

“Anyways, later,” Dustin holds up a peace sign, starting towards the door. “I'm not on today, I'm just hitting the gym with Steve."

“Later, man!” Jonathan calls after him.

“Deuces. Say hello to Dark Chocolate for me.”

Before he could get any further, the loud swinging of a door closeby causes him to halt in place.

“ALRIGHT!” a loud, gruff voice booms from that direction. “Which one of you shitheads forgot to take inventory on the 10th?!”

You can’t help but turn your body towards the ruckus. And to your own pleasant surprise, you don’t regret it. Emerging from the door comes the possible shift lead, a tall and broad man with medium length wavy brown hair, chocolate-colored, youthful doe eyes that contradicted the deep lines on his face, bleach white Chuck Taylor’s, ripped black jeans, and a Hellfire Club baseball tee with the logo smack-dab in the middle.

The man looked to be in his mid to late 20s, with an assertiveness in his stride. His lips, a perfectly formed bow with a smirk-like undertone. The cool rings that rest upon his fingers look icy as they sway at his side, shining in contrast to his dark clothing.

The man is too tunnel-visioned to see where he was going. But that doesn’t stop Dustin from looking absolutely mortified.

“The 10th and the 11th,” the man clarifies. “So for all we know, we might need new kegs and ground chili, which is one more thing I have to d-”

Finally he looks up, with you being the first thing he sees. Proximity taking him aback, he snaps out of his stress-induced trance and softens up at the sight of you. You meet his eyes, big and beautiful with long wispy lashes and you can’t help but mimic the flutter in your heart in the form of a smile.

“Whoa.” He says, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Whoa, indeed.

“Sorry about that.”

“It’s Eddie’s first day back, he tends to get a little in the zone,” Dustin explains.

Eddie.

Does that mean…

“Are you the hiring manager?”

You didn’t know who you were expecting, but it certainly wasn’t the man in front of you. He must be proud of himself, having such a successful business so early in the game.

Eddie gathers himself quickly.

“Dungeon Master, hiring manager, manager, owner, sanitations, re-stocker,” Mr. Jack-of-all-trades confirms. “I do it all.” He grimaces at Dustin. "Since you know, some people don't wanna work."

"You said I can have off!" Dustin exclaims defensively. "I worked for you before the weekend already and I wasn’t even on the 10th and 11th, fuck outta here."

All it takes is a scowl his way from the boss and Dustin is radio silent. The look on Eddie's face definitely said "Watch your tone". Eyes are all on you once more soon after.

Eddie’s gaze softens when he looks at you.

“Were you…looking to apply?”

“Yeah,” you reply sheepishly. “As a dancer. I’d like to perform here.”

“You don’t sound too confident.”

“Some guys like shy girls,” you shrug.

He laughs, a dark honey kind of laugh that just oozed from the back of his throat. “That they do.” His voice deepens drastically. Eddie studies you. “Any dancing experience?”

“Dancing, yes.”

“Stripping experience?”

“None.”

“Hm,” Eddie says. “What do you have experience in?”

“I danced for a bit…I have good core strength,” you explain vaguely. “And I’ve worked in the restaurant industry so I’d say customer service is my superpower.”

Eddie soaks in the information.

“I know how to talk to people,” you continue. “I know the right things to say. Favorite pass time is upselling drinks. And dessert…”

You wait for Eddie to take the low hanging fruit. He doesn’t.

"Any experience with the pole?”

Your cheeks grow hot. You decide to lie.

"No.”

“Kinda essential for this profession, sweetheart.”

"I know," you respond humbly. "I wouldn’t doubt it for a second..." you scan the room. “So uh, do I need a permit to perform here?”

“Nah, Hawkins is a lawless wasteland pretty much,” he sighs placing his hands on his hips. “And my club does things a little different anyways. The ladies also don’t pay to perform, we pay them to.”

Shit. Strippers pay to perform at venues?

“The dining experience is what brings the base revenue in,” Lucas explains, returning from wherever he had been. “The ladies are a luxury.”

“And should be treated as such,” Jonathan chimes in.

“I take it you don’t work at any other clubs?” Eddie questions judging by your wide eyes attempting to take in every bit of information that has been dumped on you. The man sees right through your mask.

“No, but I-”

“I personally like to give everyone a chance,” Eddie says. “So don’t worry babe, you’re good. Even though you don’t have any experience, your energy tells me that you have potential. Wanna show us what you can do?”

Your heart sinks. The handsome club owner called you babe. And you’re also being asked to perform with the little experience you have — in front of girls who had tons of experience.

“Here? Now?”

Eddie nods.

You weren’t prepared to dance today. But with your sister and the mountain of debt on your mind, you are willing to do anything. So you walk over to Jonathan and tell him what song you feel most comfortable performing to and stretch as he takes the time to find it. When all is said and done, you make your way to the icy pillar made of chrome steel that was calling for your attention.

You exhale deeply.

Back to the old stomping grounds. The last time you worked with a pole you were wearing Heeley’s and light up sneakers. Of course in place of the horny spectators there were playground supervisors, and the only “bars” there were monkey bars. Oh, and you were 8, not 28.

The slut-shaming still existed, though. One time a boy told you that you were acting like a ‘hoe’ for trying to do a trick upside down. To Billy’s retaliation though. Before you knew it, the same boy was being shoved down and dragged across the wood chips, acquiring a series of splinters along the way. Admin phoned home. You and Billy got spanked. But, of course, Billy had no regrets. While you both cooled off together, you remember him grazing your hand, telling you he’d beat that kid up “a gajillion times over”.

He kept that promise. Except as you two grew older, it was you he was doing it to. A gajillion times over.

You laugh at the bittersweet nostalgia.

“Whenever you’re ready, babe,” Eddie says.

You give Jonathan a thumbs up to play your song selection. Soon, Hellfire Gentlemen’s Club is filled with the catchy, seductive tune that is Layla by Eric Clapton.

You start with a small stroll around the pole. Then a dramatic dip to flaunt your bouncy golden locks. Soon, the women of Hellfire gather around with the men following soon after to watch you work your magic in Vecna’s crowded Lair.

If muscle memory is in your favor, they are in for a good show.

What will you do when you get lonely

No one waiting by your side?

You've been running, hiding much too long

You know it's just your foolish pride

Eddie claims a seat at a throne directly in front of the pole. He studies your technique, your movements, your facial expressions. You aren’t sure if reality is projecting onto you or if you’re dizzy from all the spinning, but you almost see a slight smile spread across the club owner’s face. It prompts you to keep going.

Layla, got me on my knees

Layla, begging, darling, please Layla

Darling, won't you ease my worried mind?

It’s a lot harder, your techniques and tricks. Most likely since you weigh more than 50 pounds now and had to exert more energy to keep yourself balanced an aligned. But nonetheless, you persist.

Tried to give you consolation

Your old man had let you down

Like a fool, I fell in love with you

You turned my whole world upside down

You buck your hips upward from you back arch to go into an upside down position. It earns you some hooting and cheering from the crowd.

“You better work, mamas!” a dancer cheers.

“I KNOW THAT’S RIGHT!”

“YOU GO GIRL!”

“YAAAS!”

Layla, got me on my knees

Layla, I'm begging, darling, please Layla

Darling, won't you ease my worried mind?

Eddie watches intently, leaning backwards with his hands clasped forward. You feel his eyes burn through you, from the top of your head down to your toes. You feel as if he’s mentally scoring you like you’re at a competition, but the sisterhood that cheers you on makes you feel slightly less intimidated.

“SHE’S SO GOOD!” comes a high-pitched voice in the crowd. “I FREAKING LOVE HER!”

You turn to look at your own personal cheerleader, a bright-eyed cute little redhead with pigtails with an outfit that looks like an ode to Britney Spears’ “Hit Me Baby One More Time”. She has cherry hair ties that hold her two pigtails at the bottom.

You watch her clap and jump up and down, cheering you on with a beam in her eyes that made you feel like your souls have been friends for decades.

Motivated to attempt more risqué moves, you jump into the splits before kicking your legs around to end on your knees.

Clapping and whistling erupts from the lair. Once it dies down, Eddie stands up, offering you a delighted series of slow claps as he makes his way towards you.

"That was really good, Shy Girl. I like how you finished your set."

“Aw, thanks Eddie.”

He walks around you.

"Go like this?" Eddie does a stretching motion, lifting his hand up.

You imitate him and reach up.

"Okay, and... turn like this? Then pop your ass out a bit more."

The word rolled off the club owner's tongue like it was nothing. It was done in a way that was professional, a hint of respect in his tone with no sort of ulterior motive.

You swallow hard, attempting to internally tame the goosebumps on rising upon your skin. He’s just giving feedback, he’s just giving feedback. This is a professional line of work.

You do as he says as he circles around you, fingers grazing on the cool floor of the stage just inches away from your thighs. He taps them in thought.

"For a beginner you’re pretty damn good,” he says.

“Yeah?” you look up at him and smile.

“Yeah,” his voice deepens. “You’re a natural. All that shyness just went away.”

Well, it’s about to return, you think to yourself.

“Are you sure you haven’t done this before?”

“Not in this specific setting.”

There’s a slight shift in his eyes as his imagination wanders. The dimples at the side of his mouth concave slightly.

“I gotcha.”

Eddie clears his throat. “So uh, when can you start?”

Today is Wednesday. You have tomorrow, Friday, and the weekend to settle you and Max in and make any last minute stops. Then the appointment with the other loan officer and DMV appointment on Monday. Tuesday afternoons are dry — everywhere so that left the earliest you can start as

"Next Tuesday? In the evening?"

A soft snort escapes from the club owner’s nose.

"Driest night of the week," he comments, looking around his club.

He turns back to you.

"But a good time for orientation. Works for me, Shy Girl. Can I call you that?”

You smirk. “So I got the job?”

He nods.

“Then you can call me what you want,” you smile shaking his hand. “In this case I’m Shy Girl Hargrove.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he smiles. He knows you’re flirting. Eddie accepts your hand and shakes it firmly.

“Eddie. Pleased to formally meet you. And welcome to Hellfire.”

You two exchange contact information for professional purposes before he leaves. You study Eddie as he sees himself out, planting a firm, teasing smack on Lucas’s stomach on his way and whispering something to Jonathan as well.

Your cheerleader from the crowd excitedly makes her way over.

“I know a dancer slash gymnast when I see one,” she chirps. “I’m Chrissy. Stage name is Cherry.”

You two shake hands and exchange further compliments with one another. Your heart swells when you realize you’re slowly starting to find community.

“It’s so nice to meet you.”

Others come and say hello, but you’ve tuned out all the faces because all you can think about is Eddie. His demeanor. The way he carries himself. His presence alone was something so intoxicating that it lingered around the place in his absence.

Your heart flutters.

“Oh, Hargrove!” Jonathan says. “Before you go I just wanted you to know that you don’t have to worry about the drink.”

“Oh?” you respond. “No?”

“Eddie says it’s on the house.”

You smile and Jonathan returns the favor, making sure you see him when he voids your entire tab. As you wave bye to all your spectators, you release a grateful sigh. You felt very humbled about this new, yet unexpected beginning.

The happiness soon wears off when the events that just unfolded dawn on you. Suddenly, the flutter in your heart moves to your stomach, settling in a way that feels eerie. The unknown is pestering you again. Wrong, but oh so right and necessary.

You take in the area around you. You have a place to call home. You’re a stripper now. Your boss just bought your drink. You’re going to have money coming in. Oh, and YOU’RE A STRIPPER NOW.

Then it dawns on you. You need to go shopping.

[maxsimagination]

𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹 - 𝗹.𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘇𝗲

summary: champions league final vs. lyon, a version where they win.

𖦹 masterlist

𝗜𝗧 𝗪𝗔𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗬 of the finals for the women's champions league and i was super nervous. it was barça versus lyon and i had been selected to be in the starting eleven. i could never have imagined that i would ever be here, soccer was my dream when i was a kid, and now here i was. 21 years old, almost 22, and already playing a finals match.

from the moment i signed with barça, i knew this club was it for me. it was everything i had ever imagined and more. my teammates were amazing and they felt more like family than anything.

lucy was the first person i met at barça, she showed me around and introduced me to the rest of the team. we got along like a house on fire, the whole team was rooting for us when we finally got together. that was almost a year ago, and to say that lucy was nervous because of the age gap was an understatement.

it was a laughable matter to me because i had assured her that her age only made her that much more attractive to me. along with her abs. she had grinned down at me with a cocky expression in response to my words.

all these thoughts flowed through my mind as we drove to training. ona and kiera met us when me and lucy walked in together, exchanging fist bumps and hugs. there was an air about the team, something like confidence but with a hint of nerves. i must have been the only player that was actually freaking out, i was still new and much younger than some of the other girls.

i knew soccer but this is the finals we were talking about. lucy must have been able to sense the tension in me, because she came closer to my side and wrapped a hand around my waist.

"we can do it, you can do it." she whispered in my ear. it was like our mantra, a chant we whispered when we were nervous. i smiled up at her, so thankful i had her by my side. "thank you, luce." "okay lovebirds, let's go!" ona yelled out, herding is out of the changing rooms.

i just laughed at her antics and walked out with them. we got going immediately, jonatan had us going hard, but not too hard as to wear us out for the game in a couple of hours.

——

we had just gotten to the stadium we'd be playing at, there was no one in the stands at all, they'd cleared it for an hour so we could warm up in peace. everyone else had their own pre-game rituals but the only one that i took on was laps around the field. i had my airpods and my music so it was a perfect fit.

i took off around the track, music blasting in my ears. it was a calming sensation, just running with nothing else going on around you. it helped me focus.

i kept running, until it was almost too much, finishing my warmup and stopped over by lucy, who was sitting on a soccer ball and fiddling with her water bottle. and she called me weird. "hey. you ready to crush lyon?" "fuck yea." she stood up to tower over me and the whole team was ordered off to the change rooms.

the fans were starting to trickle into their seats, and soon it was a full house. every seat booked out. my nerves were at an all time high.

everyone was almost ready and i put on my lucky boots, lucy had gotten them for me for my birthday last year and i'd won every game in them since. finally everyone lined up in the tunnel, ready to run out.

a hand on my back that i knew was my girlfriend, reassured me that we could do it. we could hear the commentators announce our team, and we started jogging out onto the field. everyone made it out and we all got into positions. the starting whistle was blown and we were off.

——

it was half time, and the score was 1-0 to barça. with me and kiera in the mid field and lucy and ona defending, we were almost impossible to get through. kiera had gotten the ball from lyon, racing up the field and passing it to me. i took off and weaved my way towards the goal. their goalkeeper saw me coming and i knew i didn't have a clear shot.

kiera was there so i shot it back over to her, she kicked it forward but it hit a defender, ellie carpenter. she managed to get it away from the goal, but not far enough. i got it back again and booted it straight towards the net and it went in.

first goal of the game and i was elated. i ran down the field, straight for lucy, who caught me when i jumped towards her. we were now getting ready to head back out there for the last half. lyon was getting more aggressive, violent even. the weren't afraid to push, shove, trip or pull.

they tried everything to score a goal and eventually they succeeded. it was wendie renard who kicked it in, assisted by vicki bècho. i was getting pissed off now too. we just needed one more goal and we were in the lead.

it was the 60th minute of the game and i had the ball, racing down the field again. i was so close, and i had a clear shot, but just as i was about to kick, there was a shooting pain in my left leg. i fell to the floor and turned to see selma bacha run off with the ball.

she had sunk her cleats into my leg on purpose. the medics came running on to inspect the damage and what needed to be done. lucy was right by my side the second i went down.

eventually they helped me off the field and subbed patri on so they could ice my leg properly. i sat on the sidelines for a solid 15 minutes and did warmups to make sure i could go back on. they called aitana off so she could get a rest and i ran back on.

my teammates all gave me high fives as i ran past, happy i was back on. we only had another 15 left in the game before it went to extra time so i was desperate to score another goal.

we were so close to getting the ball back and when we did it was alexia, our captain, who was streaking up the field. not surprisingly, lucy was close behind her, and so were me and kiera. alexia couldn't get a clear shot so she passed it to me then to kiera. i moved further back on the field in case it rebounded again.

kiera still had the ball and was trying to play it around the lyon defenders, but they weren't easy to break. she kicked it back to lucy who took the chance to score and shot it straight into the net. 

i was overjoyed and ran back up the field to where lucy was, screaming "that's my girl!" and just in time too, the last minute ticked over and the ref called it game over, we won. i slammed into lucy and she almost lost her balance but held onto me anyway.

i was probably more happy than she was, based off of my reaction. she had saved the game and scored the game-winning goal. all of our other teammates ran to us, including the ones on the sidelines and we all had a group hug.

it was the best experience ever, winning the champions league and scoring a goal in the final game. and i did it with lucy by my side.

——

the ride home was amazing, everyone was so happy and lucy had the happiest expression i'd seen. we made it back to our hotel for the night and everyone immediately went to their own rooms, they were that tired. i refused and tagged along with lucy to her room so we could celebrate together.

we were comfortable together, lying on the bed in each others arms. i had drifted off into my own world just thinking of the huge accomplishment both me and her had achieved.

"what are you thinking of over there?" lucy's voice cut through my daydream. "you." i had a cheeky grin on my face to tease the older woman more. "oh really?" her eyes were sparking with desire as she turned on her side to face me. i shrank underneath her intense gaze.

"what about me, love?" i couldn't even get any words out, my throat had gone dry. lucy took things into her own hands and leaned forward to kiss me. it turned into an heated make out, our tongues battling against the other. she won that match and i opened my mouth to deepen the kiss. when we pulled apart, she only uttered one thing before diving back in.

"that's my girl."

[nightfoot]

One of my favourite bits in Thud! is when Detritus shouts at Vimes about how he treats trolls.

“What you doin,’ Mister Vimes? Why you go on askin’ questions? Wi’ the dwarfs you have pussy feet, must not upset ’em, oh no, but what you do if dey was trolls, eh? Kick down der door, no problem! Mr. Shine bring you Brick, give you good advice, an’ you talk like he bein’ a bad troll! I’m hearin’ now where Captain Carrot, he tellin’ the dwarfs he the Two Brothers. You fink that make me happy? We know dat lyin’ ol’ dwarf lie, yes! We groan at it lyin,’ yes! You want to see Mr. Shine, you show humble, you show respec,’ yes!” [...] “Should I take anything, Sergeant?” The troll thought about this. “No,” he said, “but maybe dere’s some finkin’ you could leave behind.”

It feels like it's not just Detritus pointing out that Vimes doesn't respect trolls, but also Pterry acknowledging that he hasn't shown much respect to trolls, either. Dwarf culture has been extensively built up, we've dived into the lives and perspectives of werewolves and vampires and feegles and golems and anthropomorphic personifications, but despite being present in the series from the very beginning, there's no troll book.

A few pages later, I once again feel like Mr. Shine is talking to the reader as well when he tells Vimes how little he really knows about trolls.

“You really know very little about us, Mister Vimes. You see us down on the plains, shambling around, talkin’ like dis. You don’t know about the history chant, or the Long Dance, or stone music. You see the hunched troll dragging his club."

This little bit fills me with so much longing for a troll book he never wrote! I want to know about the history chant! I want to see the Long Dance and read about stone music!

We're told frequently that the trolls in Ankh-Morpork are operating at a slower processing speed but that they thrive in the icy mountains, and I'm so sad that we never got a book set in a troll cultural centre.

[maybe-moonchild]

9/27/2011

WC: 2.4k

Students cheered and shouted as they gathered across the quad, whatever had caught their attention obscured by the circle of bodies . When you looked up from your book, you wished you were more surprised at the sight of Flash’s first slamming into the side of Peter’s face. He went down hard but you were barely watching, already rushing to shove your things into your bag. 

You managed to shove your way to the front of the circle just as Peter shoved himself up off the cement. His eyes met yours and his face hardened immediately . The distraction cost him, preventing him from noticing that Flash was lunging forward for a body slam. 

There was a murmur of ‘Oohs’ from the crowd as they both wrestled on the pavement. Even at 15 years old, Flash Thompson was a force. His extracurricular activities included basketball, football, and beating up classmates. Some days it was really hard to justify being his friend. 

Today was one of those days.

“Alright, Flash! That’s enough,” you called out over the chanting. Before you could stop yourself, you shoved through the crowd to grab his arm. Flash managed to land another blow to Peter’s face before he stopped mid-reel.

“Knock it off!”

The sharp look on your face was enough for him to let out a groan at your intervention. He flashed you a sheepish grin, waving you off and rolling off of Peter. Katie smacked the back of his head before Flash could fully dust himself off. Not like she really cared about what he just did; she didn’t like when his stupid antics drew the attention of the entire school. 

“What?” Flash asked innocently as the crowd started to dissipate. The lunchtime show was over and would be forgotten by tomorrow morning.

Katie just rolled her eyes, likely having found the whole situation to be a waste of time. “You’re such a moron.” 

No one paid any mind to Peter who winced as he sat up. 

Flash noticed the dirty look you sent him. As Katie started to drag him back towards your usual table, he shrugged. “Sorry. Just having some fun.” 

Your face flushed from second hand embarrassment because of your friends. You knew what Peter thought about them even if he’d never actually said it outloud. You knew even more what he thought about you without ever speaking it outloud. 

He hadn’t needed to. 

Not when him pulling away at the beginning of last year said more than enough. 

When you’d started high school last fall, you’d told yourself that you would join at least one club and one sport. Even if you sucked at it, you wanted to be involved with the rest of your class. You just didn’t realize that cheerleading…  Well, you were pretty freaking great at it. With the gift of yellow and blue pom poms came the gift of attention, of eyes on you. You didn’t exactly mind it. 

It also came with the gift of Katie Douglas. Even in fourth grade, Katie’s face was always one of distaste, boredom, or a glare. If anyone thought her completely vapid, they were wrong. She was a natural born genius at anything to do with engineering. So when you both managed to snag spots next to each other on the bleachers the first day of cheer tryouts. Katie was gripping the seat so tightly you were shocked she didn’t crack a nail. You made a joke.

It wasn’t a funny one. 

But she laughed. 

When you both made the team, she invited you to the mall. 

With Katie came Flash Thompson.

Flash was lucky if he had three brain cells on a given day and he always used his fists before thinking. Befriending him was never intentional. When you got invited to an upperclassman Halloween party, Peter skirted around your extended invitation. He’d been pulling away for weeks but you tried to push through because you were trying to balance him, home, cheerleading, and new friends without letting any of them get dropped 

If Peter had been at that party, then there was a good chance that the senior dressed as someone from Jersey Shore wouldn’t have approached you. He wouldn’t have tried to coerce you into taking a shot while invading your space. But he did. It was Flash that shoved him back, towered over him and scared him off. He had a lot of moments like that where he was painfully kind… only for him to do something painfully stupid and barbaric the second after.

But they were your friends now.

Peter was the one that stopped answering your calls or you would catch him peeking out from his bedroom window after May had just told you he wasn’t home. 

Peter glanced at the hand you extended towards him, your eyes apologetic and hopeful that he would accept it. He didn’t take your hand. Instead, he opted to haul himself to his feet on his own and wipe the blood on his lip with the sleeve of his sweater. 

“Why’d you stop him?” He didn’t look up at you as he pretended to brush dirt off his jeans. He wasn’t going to thank you for stepping in.

You stiffened at the sharpness of the words. So sharp you couldn’t seem to look at him, jaw clenched so tight to hold in a scoff. He’d gotten taller since last year, the sleeves of his sweater just an inch too short from where they should have ended on his wrists. 

“Oh. Sorry,” you draw out sarcastically, your hip jutting out and your hand settling on it. “I didn’t realize I was just supposed to let him keep punching you in the face.”

“What? Did you want me to thank you?” Peter asked with equal sarcasm. 

Your face fell. You didn’t know why you expected some sort of banter that maybe bordered on bickering. No, this was anger, directed at you and you alone.

“No, I don’t,” you admitted, kicking at a pebble and trying to force down the white hot shame eating you alive. 

Someone called your name but you both turned toward the sound. It was Flash, his arms waving in the air to get your attention from the other side of the Quad. Katie sat perched beside him on the lunch table, giving you a look that clearly translated to ‘why are you still talking to Peter Parker… in public?’.

You shake your head to tell them to leave you alone but the damage is surely done. Peter just scoffs. That sound makes you feel even worse. He won’t even look at you, instead inspecting his camera to ensure it isn’t damaged. 

If it is, you won’t forgive yourself. Not when that was his prized possession, a memento from his dad. Relief slammed into at the same time it slammed into him when he confirmed that it was not broken from the fight. 

“You okay?” You tried to meet his eye and took half a step closer. His guard was up, blood accumulating in the cut in his lip and purple blooming on his cheekbone. “I uh… can walk you to the nurse.”

Peter raised an eyebrow at your offer, his expression cold and his lips pulled into a thin line. His thoughts and emotions were always so clearly plastered on his face. It's clear from his expression that he was not interested in your offer. Before he could get a word out, Flash interrupted again, calling out to you from his spot standing on one of the tables benches. 

You turned around and waved a hand dismissively in their direction. Some of the other kids you usually sat with looked like they were getting ready to go dick around off campus. Flash and Katie seemed determined to wait for you. They always did. It was why their faces scrunched up in confusion when you turned back around. 

“You sure you don’t wanna go to the nurse?” You kept your tone and face soft to avoid setting him off. “Might wanna put an icepack on your cheek.”

Peter looked like he was about to say something, but then decided not to with a shake of his head. 

“I'll be fine. You shouldn’t be seen talking to me anyway.” It stung and you hoped that it at least made him feel better. “See ya around or whatever.”

You swallowed a million things you wanted to say as you watched him collect his discarded backpack from the cement. The dig did what he’d hoped. To remind you that you had shitty friends that beat him up or made faces when you talked to people that weren’t deemed cool enough. 

Peter was already stalking off towards the school before you could respond. Fuck it. With a scoff, you decided to go after him. 

“Hold on a second!” You called out, jogging to catch up until you were hurrying beside him. “First of all, I talk to whoever I want. Second of all, I’m trying to make sure you’re okay after getting pummeled into the ground.”

“I’m not your problem. You should go be with your friends,” Peter shot back, head staring straight ahead in the hopes that he didn’t have to look at you. He hated looking at you now.

“Well I'm not. I'm right here talking to you.”

“So are you here to make yourself feel good? Trying to be all friendly and help me out so, at the end of the day, you can tell yourself that you’re not like them?” He let out a scoff, shouldering open the door without holding it for you but you managed to slip right in behind him. 

Those words made your face scrunch up in offense but you swallow it down. You have to. A part of him is right. Not because you were doing this to make yourself feel better but because you did tell yourself that. 

“Hey-”

Peter kept going without a glance in your direction. “I’m fine. Would hate to harm your important reputation.” His pace didn’t slow in the hope that he could leave you far, far behind. 

“Can you just stop for a second?” You reached out, hand hooking around his arm in the hopes that he would just listen. You were surprised when he actually slowed to a stop without turning around. A muscle in your jaw ticked at the sight of the back of his head, silence hanging in the air as you collected yourself. 

“I’m not doing this to make myself feel better,” you said tensely, dropping your voice to keep anyone wandering the halls from overhearing your conversation. It had nothing to do with not wanting to be seen with him. You’d never cared about that. You just didn’t need people to know you chased after him because he refused to speak to you. 

Maybe that was a shallow thought. You did have some semblance for your reputation. Thoughts like those had been ingrained in you. 

“I’m doing this because I care and I want to make sure you’re okay.”

It’s clear that he didn’t really have a response to that, the frown on his face said it all. Peter looked down at your hand on his arm, but didn’t make a move to yank away. 

“If you actually cared you would have talked to me all this time,” Peter muttered under his breath. His bitter attitude just made you throw up your free hand in exasperation. 

“I have tried to talk to you,” you reminded him, a sharpness in your voice and the grip on his arm forgotten. “You’re the one that will barely look at me or say more than a word without bolting.”

It wasn’t like you just decided you were too cool during freshman year and threw him to the curb. 

“Why would you want to be seen with me anyway?” Peter mutters, clearly agitated and a little annoyed. He pulled his arm away from you to shove his hands into his back pockets. 

You didn’t reach out to touch him again, instead letting your arms fall to your side. This time when you looked away and pressed your lips together, he actually looked at you. 

“I don’t care about that stuff,” you said quietly, face screwed up in hurt. “I don’t care about what they say because I think it’s all stupid.”

You wanted to say that you cared about him. That you never stopped caring about him. 

Peter narrowed his eyes at you before letting out a scoff. Sure, maybe a part of him wanted to believe it but he wouldn’t let himself be hurt by you again. Not when it had always been you and him against the world. Then, the start of high school filled your schedule with things that weren’t just him.

You were busy Monday through Friday from after school until six at night- and if there was a football game, then you were gone until almost midnight. He didn’t go to the games to watch you cheer and he certainly did not go to the after parties you invited him to. Newer and cooler classmates asked you to sit with them at lunch. He turned that down too and opted to spend that time in the darkroom. There were only a few times that you forgot about your plans with him only to call later that day and apologize religiously. It didn’t matter, after the first time, he avoided you for a week. 

Then the next week. 

Then the next.

He spent the entire ninth grade dodging you. 

And then all of tenth grade so far doing the same thing. 

“So you don’t care about what other people think?” He crossed his arms over his chest. “That’s a load of bullshit. Isn’t that what you’re all about? Being liked? Being friends with the right people?”

That hurt. That hurt so badly you had to step back and you really couldn’t seem to pull your eyes away from the floor. You worried your bottom lip between your teeth, willing your mouth to move and disagree with him. 

But you kinda deserved it.

“Right, sorry,” you breathed out after a long moment. The tight lipped smile you gave him barely even resembled a smile from how forced it was. “I won’t keep you any longer.”

“Whatever.” He was already turning around and slipping down the hall before you had finished speaking.

[ambiguouslady42]

Pairing: Yuji Itadori x GN! reader

Genre: Fairy-Tale Fluff

WC: ~2K

Synopsis: You attempt a spell and are consequently turned into a frog. My take on the Grimm Fairy Tale, The Princess and the Frog with JJK. Thank you @awkwardchick87 for the suggestion!

Tags: @pixelcafe-network, @interstellar-inn, @hayatoseyepatch

@purpleqilinwrites, @jellyfishart, @peachsukii, @stunies.

That fall evening, you were hanging out with your friends at your school’s Paranormal Club. You loved talking about the weird and the unusual. On this particular evening, you found the Book of Spells. Unfortunately, since you and your friends had no familiarity with the Latin language, you had no idea what you were getting yourselves into. 

You set the book in the centre of the table with lit candles surrounding it. You found a page that had a picture of some animals. You kept thinking, "This probably won’t work, but it’ll be fun just to attempt to use it.” As your friends discussed how all of you were going to perform this spell, you finally decided that you would chant the spell on your own. You weren’t afraid, but your body was coursing with excitement and anxiety. If it worked, you wouldn’t know what the outcome would be, but if it didn’t, you could just laugh it off. 

As you stared in front of the book, you began reciting the incantation. You were struggling with Latin, but you were able to try to sound out the words. Your friends began to record you and they were laughing at your attempt to read. You were nearing the end of the incantation when there was suddenly a bright light that illuminated everything. Their phones that they used to record were only able to catch the bright flash, but couldn’t see you. The moment that your friends were able to catch a glimpse of what had happened, you were no longer in sight. They called out your name, but no response. 

You noticed that the desks in this room looked larger than usual. You thought you had just shrunk, but in your attempt to move, you notice that you’re leaping. You begin to panic and start to call for your friends. As they hear you, they cannot see you. Their first impression is that you turned invisible, but as they come into view, they suddenly look larger than usual. When you attempt to call their names one more time, they look down at you and begin to scream. 

“Wait, what’s wrong? What do you see?” you yell out. You feel scared. 

Your friend takes a photo of you and then shows it to you. You realize that you turned into a frog. You scream at the top of your lungs, but to them, your scream just sounds squeaky and small. You question how could this have happened, but you know the answer to your question. Placing their hands on the floor, your friend offers to pick you up. You leap into their palms and begin to cry. You don’t want to be a frog forever. Your friend begins to run their finger on your head to console you. You’re panicking at the thought that you’ll be like this forever, but their touch is comforting. 

“What are we going to do?!” you beg to ask. 

“We don’t know, but we definitely will not be touching that book again.” your friend responds.

The despair continues to build in your mind. You worry about staying like this permanently and you begin to wonder what your life will look like. 

“It’s a good thing you’re sleeping over at my house. I can make you a makeshift home in an empty aquarium that I have. We will figure this out, I promise.” your friend reassures you. 

“I just don’t want to stay like this forever. What will my life be like now?!” continuing to cry, but accidentally ribbiting as you’re struggling to calm yourself. 

“We’ll figure it out, we promise, just calm down. It’ll be better in the morning”, are the words that your other friend shares as well. You have complete faith in your friends and trust them to be there with you, thick and thin. You end up falling asleep on the way back to their house. 

The next morning you find yourself inside an aquarium with some water. You feel sad because you feel that this is what the rest of your life will be like. However, your friend continues to give you a pat on your back as she comes in to check on you. You see an empty box next to your makeshift home.

“We’ll put you in here while we go to school”. Your friend calmly tells you. 

You sigh heavily as you know you’re about to go in a box, like some type of wild animal. The box wasn’t uncomfortable, it was padded with a blanket padding the bottom. It was warm and better than touching the water. You hated knowing that you were slimy to the touch, but you were comforted in that your friend was not afraid to touch you. 

On the way to school, a couple of your schoolmates begin to tease your friend and ask her what’s in the box. 

“That’s none of your business,”  they shout. 

“Come on let us see!” You begin to feel the box rocking back and forth as there’s a tug of war on who is holding the box. The light from the sun shines on your face as you look up to see at the faces looking down at you. 

“Eww! What are you doing carrying a frog?” yells one of the bullies. As they’re about to grab you with their dirty hands, you choose to leap out of the box. Landing safely on your feet onto the street, you begin to leap as far as you can. You are terrified and have no idea where you’re going, but you need to get away from everyone. You felt that you needed the moment to recalibrate yourself and your thoughts. 

You find yourself leaping as far as your little legs could. You notice there are cars everywhere and lots of heavy foot traffic. You observe a bush nearby and decide to hide out there and take a breath. You ran away because you were overwhelmed; you were under attack. This was the best option at the moment, but now your friends may be worried for you. 

As you hide in the bush and sigh, you begin to hear 3 different voices just right outside of your hiding place.

“Come on, you can help me with my shopping right now,” says a voice. It sounds very feminine. 

“I’m on my way back, I’ll see you later,” says one person.

“Wait! Don’t you want to go see Human Earthworm 4?! The next showing is in the next 20 minutes,” says another. 

“Eww no, I’d rather be doing anything else, but that.” says the feminine voice.

Your eavesdropping makes you realize that you’ve been dying to go see this film. You wonder if it would be strange to approach this person to ask if you could tag along. Although, the thought dissipates as you realize that you’re still a slimy, ugly frog. 

“Ugh, what am I going to do? This is hopeless,” you say aloud. 

“Wait, who said that?” you hear a voice. 

“Oh no! You can hear me?!” you reply.

“Yeah, of course I can. However, I can’t see you. Would you come out, please?” says the voice, in a gentle manner.

You hop out of your hiding spot and muster the courage to get their attention. 

“I’m down here,” you yell out. 

“Oh cool! A talking frog?! Are you a curse or something?” says the boy with pink hair. 

“Is it a curse?! I don’t know, I did something last night, and now I'm this super ugly frog. I was a human before!” You attempt to explain yourself. 

“Oh! I see! I’m sure there’s a way to reverse this. Although, I want to go catch this movie”. 

“I know. I overheard you wanted to go watch Human Earthworm 4. I’ve been meaning to watch it too!” 

“Oh cool! Another interested person!” he says excitedly. “I’m Yuji, by the way!” 

You tell him your name. His excitement for this movie makes you feel nervous but in a good way. Maybe you can finally get to go to the movies with a cute boy. 

“Hey, can I make a suggestion?” you ask him.

“Sure!” he responds with excitement in his voice.

“Can we go watch this movie together? Then after, we can figure out how you can help me out?” You feel what the equivalent of blushing would be, but you’re a frog, so you don’t know what that looks like.”

“Are you sure?” he asks.

“I think I just need this distraction,” you respond.

“If you say so.” Yuji picks you up and holds you gently in the palms of his hand. You feel that currently your life is in the hands of this stranger, but he seems trustworthy and you feel that he can keep you safe.

He carries you to the theatre. Before he can get to the box office, he places you in his pocket. This prompts you to giggle as you realize that he is sneaking you into the theatre. He purchases only one ticket. You can feel the footsteps that he is taking to enter the theatre. You can smell the popcorn as he walks into the lobby. You hear him order a bag of popcorn and a drink. As you feel the steps once again as he’s on the move again.

“Hey, you’re free to come out now.” He whispers.

You’re able to leap out of his pocket. You land safely on the empty, velvet seat next to him. You look up and see that he’s staring at the screen. He is eating the popcorn when he realizes that you’re looking at him directly.

“Oh? Do you want some? Here” he extends his fingers to hand feed you the popcorn. If the circumstances were different, this interaction would be considered romantic. However, a frog and a human on a date doesn’t sound like a fairy-tale at all. 

“Thanks for sharing, Yuji. I appreciate that. I’m excited to be here with you.” 

The lights begin to dim as the movie starts. You and he are the only beings present in this theatre. Once again, the circumstance arises that this would be romantic if you weren’t a frog. The movie itself is romantic, despite that the protagonist is turned into a worm. You find it comical that the worm-human hybrid can find love and have a family. Maybe staying with Yuji as a frog wouldn’t be such a bad idea, but you’d love to be a human again.

As the movie concludes, you observe Yuji wiping a tear. 

“Are you okay?” you ask him.

“Yeah, it was just such a romantic movie. I’m happy I didn't watch it alone,” he confesses.

“Oh me too. My friends didn’t want to go watch it when I recommended it to them.” you share with him. 

“I had an idea. What if I gave you a kiss like in the story The Princess and the Frog?” Yuji asks

You feel nervous about this proposal. You haven’t been kissed by anyone before. However, the thought of being kissed in hopes of being turned back into a human seemed exciting too. 

“Well, if you want to kiss an ugly frog, you may.” Indicating your consent to a kiss. 

“It doesn't hurt to try.” He says happily. He stands up to pick you up with his hands. He places the most gentle kiss on your lips. Suddenly, a bright light begins to flash again. Yuji covers his eyes as the flash is blinding to stare at. When the flash dissipates, he observes to see a human standing in front of him. 

“I’m so glad you’re cute” he smiles. 

As you’re blushing, you look at him. “I’m so glad you’re my prince charming, how can I repay you?” 

“How about another kiss?” He leans forward to plant another gentle kiss on your lips. 

“Let’s go on another date next time.” You mention as you gaze up at him.

“Deal!” as he gives you a thumbs up.

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

You tell Hobie about your crush on him.

The next day, DiscoSpider is walking towards you.

What could she want, of all things? Was she going to confront you? Was Diane going to get all pissy about someone other than her liking Hobie too?

The look on her is stern. You expect something snarky or jealous - but no.

She has a gift for you.

It's a folder of notes. About Hobie.

"I have a PowerPoint presentation too, if that makes it easier." She says. She's here to tell you everything you need to know about Hobie and being a fan of his.

You chuckle nervously.

She's explaining to you how he likes his Earl Grey. She has an annotated binder of his lyrics that she'd like to decode with you 🥺 Do you wanna join her Hobie Brown lyric-analysis-club? (please say yes)

What's your t-shirt size? She'll have to get you a band tee for you to wear to the concert. You're coming to his concert, right?

If you are, you should come a bit early. Gwen told Diane about k-pop fan chants last week and now she's written some for Hobie so please come early so you can practice the fan-chants ☺️ It'll make her very happy.

Also HERE - You should totally read these super cool, super technical anarchist political theory books! And of course we need to get you your own copy of the Anarchist Cookbook. She's dog-earred Hobies favorite passages to reference.

You are overwhelmed. Your arms are sore and full of books. This girl is crazy.

"Uhh, why are you doing this?" You ask.

"Well, you said you liked Hobie. And I like Hobie. And Hobie deserves the best fans in the world - so we have to stick together, y'know. He needs all the help he can get and deserves the best fans in the world! ☺️ Do you agree? 👀"

You nod, afraid of what she might do if you said 'No.'

"Does Hobie know you have all this?" You ask.

Diane's face goes blank. She stops and looks you in the eye.

"No." She says. "And I don't like snitches."

There's a beat of silence between the two of you. You think she's serious.

"Anyway, can't wait to see you at this week's Lyrical Analysis meeting! Bye!"

And she leaves you to your Hobie studies.

You simply assume that girl must be off her rocker. (Or on her rocker, pun intended 🎸⚡️)

[woso-dreamzzz]

Hello , may i ask why long live song is princesse song ? I love long live song. It reminds of the past memories so much.

Okay, this is going to be a really nerdy analysis of the song and how it relates to Princesse's life:

I said, "Remember this moment" In the back of my mind The time we stood with our shaking hands

Could be applied to any of Princesse's career moments but specifically her debut for Arsenal, which really set in motion her becoming world class

The crowds in stands went wild We were the kings and the queens And they read off our names

Thinking of these lines and Princesse's first Champion's League win with Barcelona and walking to collect her medal with Natalia as the crowds chanted their names

The night you danced like you knew our lives Would never be the same

Going back to that night, Magda and Pernille were drunk and decided they wanted to have a baby together. Their lives were literally changed forever

You held your head like a hero On a history book page

These lines, of course, being applied to Princesse's number one idol, Zećira. She was Princesse's hero. She's the one that made Princesse want to be a keeper

It was the end of a decade But the start of an age

Pernille and Magda's careers coming to an end and then Princesse's career beginning

Long live the walls we crashеd through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

The kingdom lights being the lights in the sold-out stadiums Princesse plays in I was scrеaming, "Long live all the magic we made"

Going back to young Princesse playing football in the garden with Magda and Pernille And bring on all the pretenders

The pretenders being all of those that doubted Princesse in her choice to be a keeper rather than following in Magda or Pernille's footsteps One day, we will be remembered

And she is remembered. She is remembered fondly at every club she joined. From Linköping to Wolfsburg.

I said, "Remember this feeling" I pass the pictures around

This specifically is Pernille passing around photo albums of Princesse in the jerseys of all the players she idolised over the years Of all the years that we stood there on the sidelines Wishin' for right now

Princesse literally grew up on the sidelines of matches, waiting for her turn. Her whole childhood was on the bench as she wished to be big enough to play too.

We are the kings and the queens You traded your baseball cap for a crown When they gave us our trophies

Thinking about Princesse and her trophy cabinet. It's full of all of her accomplishments. She traded her mothers' jerseys for one of her own and she's won so many trophies from her own merit And we held them up for our town

Thinking about Princesse returning from major international tournaments with her trophy and lifting it up to all the fans that have arrived for the celebrations And the cynics were outraged Screaming, "This is absurd"

The cynics being all of those that cried nepotism during Princesse's time at Linköping and accusing the club of special treatment because Princesse signed her professional contract so young 'Cause for a moment, a band of thieves In ripped up jeans got to rule the world

This, specifically, being about her first World Cup. She literally 'stole' the win from England. Goal keepers aren't meant to score but she did. Although Princesse's tenure as a World Cup winner, was never 'for a moment'. Long live the walls we crashed through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

These lines being about Princesse and her time with the Swedish national team, specifically the captain before her who took Princesse under her wing and taught her what it was to be a captain. She did it so well that Princesse didn't even realise she'd been groomed to take her place until she'd been offered the role. I was screaming, "Long live all the magic we made" And bring on all the pretenders, I'm not afraid

Princesse is notoriously an anxious person but she really grows into herself, as a player and as a leader. She's not the same scared little girl that cried when separated from her mums. Long live all the mountains we moved I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you I was screaming, "Long live that look on your face"

Thinking about all the games she, Magda and Pernille played together when she was little. All the make-believe and running around the house together And bring on all the pretenders One day, we will be remembered

She's remembered on the international level too. Some of her best performances come out when she plays for Sweden. She's Sweden's most capped player. Hold on to spinning around Confetti falls to the ground May these memories break our fall

Thinking about the celebrations as Princesse wins another tournament. The feeling never gets old. Thinking very specifically about her winning the Champion's League during her first year to Barca and what later becomes known as the iconic Champion's League Kiss

Will you take a moment? Promise me this That you'll stand by me forever But if, God forbid, fate should step in And force us into a goodbye

Thinking about the people Princesse had to leave behind. In her career (teammates) and in her childhood (the Wolfsburg girls, the Not-Wolfsburg girls) If you have children some day When they point to the pictures Please, tell 'em my name Tell 'em how the crowds went wild

Princesse becomes such a popular player despite her awkwardness. People didn't really know how to react when she retired (in the very, very far future) but the stadium was sold out for her last game and there was a very special tribute to Sweden's most capped player, their captain and their greatest goalkeeper

Tell 'em how I hope they shine

Princesse ends up inspiring so many little girls to become goalkeepers, specifically in Spain, Germany and Sweden.

Long live the walls we crashed through I had the time of my life with you

This time these lines are about Natalia. She's literally the love of Princesse's life. They have such a strong bond and they're so in love with each other

Long, long live the walls we crashed through How the kingdom lights shined just for me and you

Thinking about Natalia and Princesse's eventual wedding and how beautiful and perfect it all was. And I was screaming, "Long live all the magic we made" And bring on all the pretenders, I'm not afraid

Bringing it back to Magda and Pernille and all the good memories they made with Princesse and how much they looked after her when she was little Singing, "Long live all the mountains we moved" I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you

Training sessions with Zećira in the local park and she always made training into such fun games and really fostered and nurtured Princesse's love for keeping. And long, long live that look on your face And bring on all the pretenders

This and the look on Natalia's when she and Princesse won their last tournament together before Princesse moved to Wolfsburg. She was so happy and so proud and they lifted the trophy together. One day, we will be remembered

And Princesse is remembered. She's remembered so fondly by everyone and she touched so many lives and she continued to do so when she moved from playing football to coaching. When she retires, FIFA honours her by naming the award for the best save of the year after her

[batboyblog]

Super Gay Reading List

The Long Run by James Acker Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli Another Dimension of Us by Mike Albo Wonders of the Invisible World by Christopher Barzak Alan Cole Is Not a Coward by Eric Bell Alan Cole Doesn’t Dance by Eric Bell The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan Felix Yz by Lisa Bunker Last Bus to Everland by Sophie Cameron The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara Peter Darling by Austin Chant Carry the Ocean by Heidi Cullinan The Love Interest by Cale Dietrich Half Bad by Sally Green Half Wild by Sally Green Half Lost by Sally Green Heartbreak Boys by Simon James Green Gay Club by Simon James Green We Contain Multitudes by Sarah Henstra Totally Joe by James Howe After School Activities by Dirk Hunter At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson The Past and Other Things That Should Stay Buried by Shaun David Hutchinson We Are the Ants by Shaun David Hutchinson The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson A Complicated Love Story Set in Space by Shaun David Hutchinson The Boy Who Couldn’t Fly Straight by Jeff Jacobson Haffling by Caleb James The Lightning-Struck Heart by T.J. Klune A Destiny of Dragons by T.J. Klune The Consumption of Magic by T.J. Klune A Wish Upon the Stars by T.J. Klune The Extraordinaries by T.J. Klune Flash Fire by T.J. Klune Heat Wave by T.J. Klune The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg The Bridge by Bill Konigsberg Destination Unknown by Bill Konigsberg The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan Every Day by David Levithan Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by J.C. Lillis Take a Bow, Noah Mitchell by Tobias Madden When Ryan Came Back by Devon McCormack Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston Fraternity by Andy Mientus The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Art of Starving by Sam J. Miller Hero by Perry Moore I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson More Than This by Patrick Ness Junior Hero Blues by J.K. Pendragon The City Beautiful by Aden Polydoros When Everything Feels Like the Movies by Raziel Reid Kens by Raziel Reid Jack of Hearts by Lev A.C. Rosen Camp by Lev A.C. Rosen Carry On by Rainbow Rowell Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell Rainbow Boys by Alex Sanchez Rainbow High by Alex Sanchez Rainbow Road by Alex Sanchez So Hard to Say by Alex Sanchez The 99 Boyfriends of Micah Summers by Adam Sass The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer All Kinds of Other by James Sie They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith Freak Show by James St. James Ray of Sunlight by Brynn Stein The Dangerous Art of Blending In by Angelo Surmelis 366 Days by Kiyoshi Tanaka The Language of Seabirds by Will Taylor Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas Wild and Crooked by Leah Thomas Because You’ll Never Meet Me by Leah Thomas Spin Me Right Round by David Valdes Always the Almost by Edward Underhill Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Blue= realistic fiction Purple=fantasy/magic Green=for younger readers Pink=sci fi/magical realism

if you want help picking out a book send me an ask, also I love it when people let me know they read a book off the list