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somekindoftuber · 6 years ago

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vld youtuber AU (klance, part 6)

Note: The city where Shiro and Keith live is called Springdale. I’d pictured both of these towns being in the Carolinas. Again, there are tense changes everywhere (sorry) but I plan to fix them later.

Thank you for all the great feedback!!

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five

Lance woke up surprisingly early on Saturday. Today they were headed to the fair. He brewed coffee and made a tentative battle plan for the day: walk around, see stalls, a few rides, some games, lunch, maybe renting a scooter to drive up to lookout hill to watch the sunset. It was the perfect opportunity for Lance to stop dancing around the issue and just tell Keith he’s in to him already.

Pidge pokes fun at him through breakfast as Lance makes a group text thread with everyone. They agree to meet up at the south entrance of the fairgrounds at 10:30.

Lance ends up making them late by spending too much time picking out his clothes. Keith and Shiro are both sporting a little pink on their noses and cheekbones from the sun on the beach the day before, but they’re all smiles as they pay for their wrist bands and head into the fair. It’s a typical American county fair ordeal, with rickety rented rides, badly rigged carnival games, and endless booths of cheap nick-nacks and fried foods. But there was always something about the Harborville fair that set it apart. There was an energy here, like the last bang of summer before cool autumn weather swept down the coast.

They buy tokens and move as a group at first, taking a lap around the fair before splitting up. Pidge and Hunk stick together as always, Allura drags Shiro off at a rather brisk pace, and that left Lance and Keith.

“Anything you wanna do?” Lance asks him.

Keith shrugs and smiles. “Anything’s good.”

They walk around for a while, stopping at booths here and there. They run into other members of their group from time to time, and Lance uses his phone to film bits of a vlog for later editing, catching Shiro and Keith in a few bits (“I’m here with my good friends Shiro and Keith! Say hi guys!”). Lance buys an inaugural funnel cake to split with Keith before hitting the prize games. Keith rolls his eyes as Lance goes for the ring toss, a game he swears up and down he’s mastered despite it being horribly rigged.

“Just you watch,” Lance tells Keith as he lines up a ring. “I’m gonna win you the biggest stuffed animal they have, and then you’ll understand my prowess.”

He swears Keith’s cheeks go red as he smiles. “Well, have fun. I’m gonna grab a soda.”

Lance is half disappointed and half relieved that Keith is no longer watching. So of course, when the guy he’s trying to impress leaves, Lance lands all three rings on a pole. He’s carefully eyeing the selection of stuffed prizes when Shiro appears at his left, seemingly out of thin air.

“You know,” he leans in a speaks close to Lance’s ear. “Hippos are Keith’s favorite animal.”

Lance turns to look up at him, confused, before Shiro gives him a knowing smile and walks away. Hippos? Okay, weird, but also kind of cute. When Lance re-examines the prizes, he spots a large pastel blue hippo near the back, with big button eyes, exaggerated stitching, and a white bow around its neck.

“That one,” he tells the game attendant, pointing.

Keith comes trotting back with a soda in each hand a few minutes later. He stops short when Lance comes up to him with the prize hippo in his arms, easily the size of a dog. Keith’s eyes go wide.

“Told you I’d win,” Lance beams, then holds out the stuffed animal. “Here you go.”

There’s an awkward shuffle as Lance takes the sodas so Keith can take the hippo, and Lance absolutely notices how Keith hugs it to his chest.

“Thanks,” Keith tells him, and his cheeks are pink in a way that has nothing to do with his sunburn.

Keith keeps holding the stuffed animal as they walk around, earning him a few stares. Lance has to admit he looks adorable - all sharp and intense, holding a giant fluffy toy like it’s precious treasure. They find the Racho Alegre food truck and Lance buys enough food for five people, setting the trays of empanadas, pork tamales, fried yucca fruit, papas rellenas and fried green plantains. He films a little, too, Keith protesting with a “don’t film me eating!” Lance passes Keith a mate soda and instructs him on how to properly enjoy Cuban food, and is pleased when Keith seems to enjoy all of it.

He might like the guy, a lot, but if Keith had ended up hating the food he grew up with? It might have been a deal breaker.

They chat at the picnic table for a good half hour as they digested, then walk around some more, Lance filming on his phone here and there. He spots the scooter rental place nearby, and eagerly points at it. But when they get closer, he frowns.

“Aw man,” Lance bemoans. “I was thinking it’d be cool to drive up to the hill to watch the air show, but all the scooters are rented out.”

Keith raises an eyebrow. “They’re not? There’s a whole bunch lined up.”

Lance shrugs. “Yeah, but those are the 50cc engine ones. You need a motorcycle license for those.”

“Yeah?” Keith looks unruffled. “I have one.”

Lance hears a record scratch in his brain. “You do?”

With a chuckle, Keith motions him towards the rental desk. “Who do you think test drives the bikes when Shiro’s done with them?”

Lance held the hippo, which he’d dubbed Blue, while Keith filled out paperwork, showing his motorcycle ID and insurance card. Lance caught a glimpse of it, and cooed.

“Aww, short hair!” He smiled at the photo of a younger Keith, scowling at the camera, and noticed two things: first, Keith didn’t have a middle name, and second, there were little tufts of what might be considered a mullet sticking out from behind his neck.

Keith shoved his ID back into his wallet. “Is your photo any better?”

“Actually,” Lance pulled his wallet from his back pocket and produced his driver’s license. “It is.”

Lance was proud of that picture - he was one of the only people he knew that actually took good ID photos. It was like a superpower. Keith was staring at his ID, his eyebrows raised.

“Leandro Sebastian McClain?” He asked.

“Uh.” Lance’s face flushed hot. “Old family name. Lance is kind of a nickname.”

Keith’s smile as he handed the ID back was magical. “Cool.”

Helmets secured, Lance climbed on the back of the dinged-up rental bike behind Keith as he started up the engine, giving him quick directions to the hill that overlooked the bay. Then, with Blue shoved between them, Lance wrapped his arms around Keith’s middle. They took off, and Lance felt a surge of adrenaline as they rode. He could count on one hand the number of times he’d been on a real motorcycle, and it was as scary as it was exhilarating. It was also cold, even the warmth of the sun unable compete with the wind that whipped past them. Lance hugged Keith tighter, wishing there wasn’t a stuffed animal between them.

It took a good ten minutes to drive up to the hill, and by the time they arrived, the wind had all but chilled Lance to the bone. The weather was beautiful that day, but it was a different story when you were going 45 miles an hour. His t-shirt and loose button up had done nothing to protect him, and as they reached the hill and stepped off the bike and took off their helmets, Lance set Blue on the bike seat and rubbed at his frozen, goosebump covered arms.

“You okay?” Keith asked.

“Yeah,” Lance laughed a little. “Just kinda cold. Wind’s kinda brutal at that speed.”

Keith blinked at him. “Oh.” Then, like they were in a movie, he removed his leather jacket and deftly swung it around Lance’s shoulders, patting it against his arms. “There, that better?”

Lance willed himself not to melt, because holy shit. That was the most suave thing he’d ever seen. Keith was one seriously smooth bastard. He caught of whiff of the scent coming off the warm leather and blushed hard. It smelled so good.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered, letting his fingers grip the edge of the jacket and pull it close.

They sat on a patch of grass nearby just as the air show was beginning. Keith watched with rapt attention as the jets performed aerial acrobatics, leaving bright trails of colored smoke that twisted through the sky. When it was over, Keith sighed beside him.

“I wanted to be a pilot,” he said, his gaze fixed on the sky where the sun was beginning to dip towards the horizon.

Lance bumped his shoulder. “You still can be,” he said. “A pilot’s license can’t be that hard to get.”

Keith looked at the ground, shaking his head with a wry smile. “No, I mean… I wanted to be a fighter pilot. In the navy, or the air force.” He picked at a blade of grass. “But I wasn’t exactly cut out for it.”

“What do you mean?” Lance asked carefully.

Keith shrugged and leaned back on his hands. “I’m a high school dropout with a juvenile record,” he explained. “I’ve gotten my shit straightened out since then, but… that stuff sticks.”

Lance frowned. He was starting to realize just how little he knew about Keith - they talked a lot, but it was all superficial information. He didn’t know anything about Keith’s past, or his ambitions.

“It’s fine,” Keith said, interrupting Lance’s train of thought. “I can’t really complain about my life. I’ve got Shiro, I like working on bikes, and I enjoy my job. I’ve got it pretty good.”

Lance was glad to hear that, but it made him frown for a different reason. “Sounds like you’ve got it figured out. I have no idea what I’m gonna do.”

Keith hummed in questioning, and Lance let go of where he was clutching the jacket to wave his hand. “I’ve just been sort of… coasting for the last two years. I have no idea what I’m doing.” he chewed his lip. “YouTube is fun and all, but my dad keeps asking me what my career plans are, and I have no clue. I can’t just work cafe jobs forever, and Pidge is probably leaving after she graduates in a few months. I don’t even know where I’m gonna end up living.” He rubbed at his eyes.

Keith was quiet for a long time. “What about music?” he offered. Lance shrugged.

“Dunno if I want to go down that road,” he answered. “Being a musician is really unpredictable, unreliable. I doubt I could swing it.”

If Lance wasn’t spiraling into a pity-party, he would have appreciated how adorable Keith’s little pout was. “Well,” Keith offered. “What about teaching music?”

Lance blinked owlishly at him. “Say what?”

“I mean,” Keith started fidgeting. “You’ve said before that you like working with kids, and you play like four instruments, and you can read music…” He looked at Lance. “Why not combine them?”

Lance heard a record scratch for the second time that day. Holy crap. Holy crap. He’d never even considered it, but a career as a music teacher? That sounded… okay. That sounded good.

“I’d--” he swallowed, feeling his pulse quicken with excitement. “I’d probably need to get a degree in music education. But it’s doable.”

Keith beamed at him. “Yeah! Plus…” His face went pink as he looked to the side. “I was thinking, um. Since Pidge will be leaving and all, and there’s a good school in Springdale, you could..” Keith bit at his lower lip. “You could move there. With m-- with us.”

Lance inhaled softly as he looked at Keith. The sun had turned golden, lighting his face and making him glow, and it took Lance’s breath away.

“Also,” Keith put his hand over Lance’s where it rested on the grass. His fingers were shaking. “I, uh.” His voice dropped, so quiet Lance could barely hear. “I really like you.”

Lance gasped. Keith’s confession was so sincere and scared and it made his heart thump against his ribs, a wide smile cracking his face. Oh god, it was happening. He’d fantasized about this moment more times than he could count and it was happening, up on the hill overlooking the bay, with the beautiful sunset and Keith’s jacket around his shoulders. He had to be dreaming.

“I really like you,” Lance told him, turning his hand to thread their fingers together. “A lot.”

Keith huffed a little laugh and oh, he was so gorgeous, his hold on Lance’s hand tightening. Lance wants so badly to kiss him.

“Go out with me?” Lance asked.

Keith’s face fell, shock replacing the gentle smile he’d been wearing. “Oh. Um.”

It was like a bucket of cold water was dumped on Lance’s head as Keith pulled his hand away. Had he misread everything anyway? Was that too forward?

“I was thinking,” Keith began, his voice shaking a little. “That we could just… get to know each other more first?” He began clasping and unclasping his hands. “I’ve never really been in a relationship, plus we live five hours apart, and…” He pouted. “I mean, I didn’t even know your name wasn’t Lance until twenty minutes ago.”

“Oh.” Oh. Keith… had a point. Lance didn’t even know he had a motorcycle license until today. It was probably a good idea to get to know Keith better before attempting to dive headfirst into romance. Lance felt the relief like a physical weight. “You... wanna take it slow?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

Lance could barely believe this was real. He leaned forward until his forehead rested against Keith’s and laughed softly.

“Sounds good to me.”

He thought this would be a good time to kiss, but they didn’t, eventually pulling apart to drive the bike back to the rental shop by the fairgrounds. Lance kept Keith’s jacket, slipping his arms through the sleeves and pressing his chest as close to Keith’s back as he could for the ride.

They made a trip to Lance’s car to stash Blue in the trunk for safe keeping, and as the sun was setting, grabbed a couple of beers and headed to the meeting point they’d arranged with everyone to watch the fireworks. Allura and Shiro had already spread a blanket out on the grass and were chatting. Keith and Lance took a seat near them, sitting close together.

Allura laughed, then Lance remembered his promise to Romelle. He whipped out his phone.

(+328) hey ‘melle you wanna come watch the fireworks at the fair??

(+396) Lance I just finished a 10 hour shift, that’s a hell no

He frowned, then discreetly aimed his camera at Allura and snapped a photo just as she was laughing, then sent it.

(+328) but cute girl looks lonely

There’s a long pause.

(+396) BE THERE IN 15

Pidge and Hunk eventually joined them, just as the grassy field was becoming crammed with people wanting the best seat for the fireworks. Beside Lance, Shiro looked a little odd, swaying slightly, his eyes dilated.

“Shiro?” Lance asked, keeping his voice down. “Are… are you high?”

Then Shiro laughed loud, threw his head back and really laughed. “Nah, no. Well, okay, yeah. Kinda.” He shrugs. “Fireworks kinda freak me out, after - y’know. So I took a xanax. They make me loopy as fuck, but I didn’t want to miss this.”

Lance blinked. He didn’t think he’d ever heard Shiro cuss before.

Romelle arrived twenty minutes later, just before the fireworks were scheduled to start. Lance did introductions and was pleased to see Romelle take a seat next to Allura, the two of them immediately striking up a conversation about coffee. Mission accomplished.

When the fireworks started, Lance leaned into Keith, feeling Keith return the motion. It was nice to not have to hide his affection anymore, or stay on guard. And if Lance watched the fireworks from the reflection in Keith’s eyes? Well, that was no one’s business but his.

After the fair, they retreat to Lance’s apartment to hang out and chat. Shiro is coming off his xanax and is having trouble staying awake, perking up only when Keith hands him a glass of water. Romelle and Allura trade social media handles and Lance feels a little smug about getting to play matchmaker for them. But mostly, he’s happy about Keith, who sits so close to him, who let Lance keep wearing his jacket.

It’s late and Allura decides they need to go, so everyone piles out of Lance’s apartment at once. Keith is the last one out, and Lance shyly lets the jacket slip off his shoulders and hands it back.

“Thanks,” He says. Keith grins.

“Anytime. See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

Once the door closes, Lance leans his head against it, grinning wide. He gets about sixty seconds of peace before Pidge and Hunk lay into him.

“Please,” Pidge groans, “Please tell me you two are dating now.”

“Nope,” Lance grins wolfishly at her as Pidge flings her body backwards onto the sofa with a howl of frustration. Hunk just smiles knowingly at him.

“But you’re going to. Right?”

Lance toes off his shoes and goes for his room. “Eventually.” From the couch, Pidge yells that she hates him.

The next morning they have an early brunch at Lance’s favorite diner on the marina, trading stories of their adventures at the fair. Pidge and Hunk show videos on their phones of the rides and games they played. Lance films again, and takes a group photo of all of them with their mimosas and fancy biscuits.

When Lance sees them off for their drive back to Springdale, Keith pulls him into hug. It’s soft and nice and Keith is so warm, Lance taking a deep breath and inhaling his smell. When they pull apart, Keith’s eyes are glittering.

Lance waves at the car as his three friends drive off, feeling happy and light.

Continued in part seven!

#youtuber AU #klance #text

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artisticestheticreads · 6 years ago

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XI // CheckMate

[Element by Kendrick Lamar plays]

It was the day after Sierra Mona’s service and Maxine wanted off with Carlos and his goons. She stood in a room full of about fifty people under Rodney’s house. Everyone wore black hoodies, cargo pants and combat boots with their undivided attention on her and Donnie. Maxine done enough crying and now it was time for blood. Rodney stood to her right and Donnie to her left; Maxine finally spoke. “Good morning, everyone. I know it’s a tad bit early but we got a lot of shit to cover. With the lost of a woman who was family to me, I’m a little hungry for vengeance. I hope y’all don’t mind.”; silence fellthe room. She raised a brow and nodded with a smirk. “Good. Because we move out in about, I’ll say, about two days. I know I’m new to this but I’m ready for any fuckin’ thing. It was one thing to get his boys to take me out with their bare hands BUT it’s another thing to gun down my impregnated friend.”

She began pacing the floor with her arms folded. “So, Rod mentioned to me that no one in here is the rat which is good, for y’all. He also mentioned to Big Dawg and myself that Carlos ships out shit from New York and Texas but he is in the A Town, Big Peach.. Atlanta, Georgia. His hometown, rumor has it. So we will be splitting into teams with cargo and ammunition provided by Jean.” She nodded towards him and he returned it. “Two teams will all be in a variety of transportation dressed normal workers to avoid any unwanted attention. Jean will stay back home to care for his family and so will Tariq since he is injured. Babe, you split the teams.” She stood behind him as he stood in front of her. He lifted his arms and split them inches away from one another. He looked to his right and said “Beta, you will be heading to Houston, Texas. Rodney will be giving you your ��care packages” and anything else you’ll may need.” He looked to his left then said “You’ll be the omega team and heading to New York. We already took care of everyone’s ticket for your group and your flight leaves tonight at eight. Jean’s brother has all the shit you need.” He put his arms down and looked down at the middle. “You will be Alpha team and you’ll have me, Baby Girl and Rod right along with you. I wanna take out that muthafucka myself.”

He looked around the room then at Rod. “Follow me to the dining room to get all you need as in more information. Transportation will be ready tomorrow morning at five. Meeting dismissed.” Rodney lead the groups upstairs to get everything leaving Maxine and Donnie alone sitting at the conference table. “We will be staying at the Marriott in downtown ATL. The Presidential Suite with concierge lounge access, 1 bedroom suite, a king sized bed, and 1.5 bath. Nothing but the best for my queen” he kissed her hand as she smiled. “We need to get someone to watch Abel. I don’t want him alone”, she said. “We’ll find someone. Don’t worry. Let’s get on out of here and pack our shit for our flight. We roll out tomorrow afternoon.” He grabbed her hand as they walked out.

[ELEMENT by Kendrick Lamar fades; LOVE by Kendrick Lamar starts]

They went back home and started packing. The ammunition was on their way to their pinpoints and the troops were all saying goodbye to their families and heading out. Maxine packed everything into their shared suitcase as Don got their carry on bags ready; both had a black leather mock croc quilted nylon backpack. As he packed the bags on the bed where we sat, he watched Maxine in the closet packing. She paid him no mind as he slipped a secretive velvet box into his bag. Maxine came out with their shared suit case with two crowns painted on them. She placed the bags by the front door and made a phone call. “Hey, Justin”, she said as she sat on the bed beside Donnie. “So, Don and I are going out of town for a while and we was wondering if you can watch our place and Abel?” She nodded and said “yeah our flight is tomorrow at noon but we gonna get their way earlier because we packed a lot of stuff.” She laughed and replied “yeah, a whole lot. Can you get here at eight so we can run through somethings?” She smiled and said “thanks, babes. We’ll see you tomorrow.” She hung up and saw Donnie looking at her.

“You got something to say”, she said as he smiled. He shook his head and held her close to him. “Baby, you know there is no turning back now, right?” She looked at him and kissed his lips. “I know. We gotta end this all or we’ll both be next.” He nodded as he rubbed her back and kissed her neck. She straddled his lap and held his face in her hands while kissing him. “This might be our last time making love, Donnie.” He looked up into her worried eyes and said “baby, kings and queens don’t die. We got each other, okay? I’m not gonna let anything happen to you. I got you.” He held her face to his and began kissing her on the lips softly while pulling her hoodie off. She did the same for him, never breaking the kiss. He unhooked her bra with one hand and threw it to the side; placing her right nipple in his mouth. She ran her fingers through his kinky curls and moaned softly while smelling his hair; the scent of black castor oil filled her nostrils. He held the small of her back as he placed the other in his mouth. He lied her on her back and stood while looking at her. He thought about the first time they met at the club on his 30th birthday. The fire in her eyes, her tempting skin and the way her aura was the reason they got here, together. He always kind of knew she could be the one, he just knew that it had to be her.

Maxine rested on her elbows and looked up to him. She thought about their first kiss. The one they shared when Don asked her to be his lady. The way his lips felt all over her. The way he held her so close in those arms. He always made her feel protected, like she was secured even when he wasn’t around. He stripped out of his clothes and gently took her cargos off. He started to kiss her from her head and down to her stomach with soft kisses. He took her lace panties off and kissed her inner thighs with his eyes closed. She let out soft moans and felt tears streaming down her cheeks. He placed her legs on each of his shoulders and began pleasing her slowly, mouth and fingers being used; he wanted to make ever second count. He wanted to make love to her like never before because this might be the last time they had the chance to do so. Her body began shaking indicating she was close and as she did, he kissed her body again starting at her vagina and to her lips. He scoot her body to the middle of the bed and hovered over her. He saw the little tears she had and he used his finger to wipe them away. “Pas de larmes ce soir, mon amour.” She nodded and held him close to her chest as he inserted inside of her. She would miss the way he filled her. The way he pleased her, mentally and physically. The way he looked at her in the eyes.

As he was thrusting into her slowly, he looked into her eyes as she moaned. He could see so much love and care in them. She was the ONLY woman who made all the stress disappear with one touch. He thought of being with her for a life time. Now, he might be right or wrong but for now he tried to not think about it. “Je t'aime, Maxine Piers”, he groaned. She smiled at how he loved showing how good she made him feel. She moaned “Je t'aime aussi, Donnie Wilkerson.” He began to speed up just a little and held her close. He loved the way her hands feel. He placed his head in the crook of her neck and smelled a mixture of their scents intertwining with one another. He could feel Maxine getting close as she clenched around him like a glove. She had moans spilling from her mouth and finally came. He kept going until he can feel himself doing the same. “Shiiiiit.” He finally did so, looked down at her and placed a kiss on her forehead.

The Next Morning; 7:45 am

Maxine and Donnie had just gotten out the shower together and started getting dressed; of course in all black with plain v-necks, jeans with rips and comfortable shoes for the long ride. Maxine put her jewelry and grill in a safe baggy and placing it her bag. Donnie put his chain on and did the same for Maxine; they looked inside of the mirror and saw their reflections. They saw determination, ambition and anger. Donnie kissed the top of her head and took her hand as the door bell rung. It was Justin in a sweatsuit and a overnight bag. “Good morning, guys”, he said not sounding like himself. “How you holdin’ up, babe” Maxine asked. Justin shook his head and said “I can’t be there. It’s just not the same anymore without her”; he couple nodded in agreement and Maxine rubbed his hand into her hers. Donnie spoke “so, uh, you’ll be in the guest room. There are some fresh towels and everything you need in there. Abel is in the back sleep.” Justin nodded and looked around. “You can trust me, guys.” Maxine held Justin and kissed his cheek while rubbing his back. “It’s okay, Justin. It’ll be okay.” They let go of each other when they got a text from Rodney. ”I’m here in the UberXL.” They looked at each other, grabbed their bags and left out the door as Justin watched.

They drove off in the truck and everyone sat in complete silence until the UBER driver started to talk. “So, you guys going to LAX, uh? Where you heading?” Maxine rolled her eyes and said “Occupe-toi de tes affaires,imbécile.” They all smiled at her reaction. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t know y’all spoke French”, the driver replied before driving silent. Donnie looked at her and smiled before saying “Tellement impoli, mon amour.” Rodney added “Eh bien, merde. Cela a fonctionné cependant” with a chuckle. Donnie held her hand and kissed it as she smiled at him. They soon arrived to LAX and checked in. They all walked through with the terminal looking for their destination. They went by Starbucks first to get coffee first and went to sit and wait for their flight for 11:45 am.

[GOD by Kendrick Lamar plays]

Rodney, Donnie and Maxine sat next to one another. Maxine leaned over to Rodney. “Rod, is the shipment there?” He nodded. “Jean has his boys guarding it at their location Downtown.” She nodded and looked at Donnie as she sat back. She sipped her Mocha Frappuccino® made with almond milk and no whip cream with her headphones on looking at the files on each of Carlos’ men. Donnie leaned in to whisper something in Rodney’s ear; Rodney nodded and shook his hand. Donnie looked at Maxine then at his phone to check on every team. The Texas team was already an hour away from their location and New York were already at their hotel getting ready for orders. The Alpha team wanted to ride in the van with shipment so they were on their way to Atlanta for the hit tomorrow evening; they started their trip yesterday afternoon and were about eight hours away taking turns driving.

1:00 pm pst

They were finally on their American Airline flight and the plane took off. Donnie moved his arm rest from between Maxine and himself to hold her close. She looked up at him and smiled. “You okay, babe”, she asked. He nodded and said “I’m just proud of you, Maxine”. “Why?” He shrugged. “Because you planned this shit all by yourself. You make a great Queen.” He pulled her in closer and she rested her head in his chest. The flight was long as heck but he enjoyed every minute; Maxine was fell asleep and he played with the tip of her locks. They were together at the end of all of this. In each other’s arms after the war. Happy in there bed again but then she looked up and he was gone. She tried calling his name but no sound came out. She looked everywhere but he was no where in sight. She went to the backyard and saw Abel howling and crying. She looked to the pool and saw nothing but red liquid. She got closer and saw Donnie’s body floating to the top, lifeless. She tried pulling him out the pool but her grip kept slipping. She let out silent screams and felt a pair of strong hands on her. Maxine’s eyes flew open to Donnie and he smiled at her. She looked around and saw people leaving the plan. “Welcome to the Big Peach.”

[GOD by Kendrick Lamar ends and YAH plays]

6:40 pm est

They stood at baggage claim to retrieve their bags and made it outside waiting for their ride. The sky was already dark with a purple sunset. Maxine looked up at the sky and smiled. “It’s amazing.” He looked at her and said “yeah, it is.” Their ride pulled up and they drove off to the I-85 North in Fulton County from the South Terminal Pkwy, followed the I-85 N to Atlanta, took the exit for 248C from I-75 N/I-85 North and continued on Andrew Young International Blvd NE and finally arrived to the hotel. Rodney grabbed his duffel bag and backpack before holding the door open for Don and Maxine. Maxine wore her bag in while Donnie rolled their huge huge suitcase in. The bell boys came to them with their keys, helped them to their room and said “your shipment is inside your rooms. enjoy your stay”; they winked and left. Rodney went to his room next door and the couple went into theirs. Maxine looked around and was amazed. The room itself was like a lavish apartment. Maxine took her bag off and placed it on the couch before taking her shoes off. She sat down and took everything in. “Is it nice, baby?” She nodded and bit her lip. He sat the luggage by the door and sat beside her, holding her.

His phone started to vibrate and it was a call from one of the Los Angeles troops’ he put it on speaker phone and placed on the table. “Hey, boss. We see that you made it safe. We all ready for the attack tomorrow. Jean is here with us now.” Maxine poured some white wine that sat in the ice bucket into a glass and sipped. “Put us on speaker”, said Don in as serious tone. Jean began speaking. “Hello, Big Dawg. Hello, Lady Dawg.” Maxine smiled and said “hi, Jean. So, have the New York team been told their plan?” “Yes. Apparently, Carlos is located near Trump Towers right around the corner. We have cameras on them that my brother put in himself this morning.” Donnie nodded “good thing them muthafuckas needed camera work done.” Jean replied “exactly, boss. They didn’t expect a thing. Dumb fuckers.” Maxine sipped from her glass with a smile before speaking. “So, you can see everything, correct?” “Yes, ma’am.” We also found away to tap into the cameras systems for Houston and the ATL as well. Wasn’t easy but we did. Also, I’ll have you rides ready tomorrow. Y’all be riding in style.” Donnie said “good job, man. Just stay home and keep us updated. You’ll be safe there and you can take care of your family.” Jean replied “yes, Sir. I’ll send the footage to all the vans computers and do everything to make this easy. And by the way, I got a little gift for you two in your glove compartments. Get some sleep, man.” He hung up and looked to Maxine who smiled at him. “You ready, baby girl?” She smiled “I’m ready, Big Don.”

The Next Morning; 10:50 am

[YAH ends and BOSS by The Carters play]

The Alpha team all met in their room which held all of them on the couch; thirty members. Rodney stood on one end them while Maxine and Don stood at the other beside her. “Good morning, men”, said Donnie. “So, I take it that everyone has what they need, yes?” Everyone nodded and Donnie looked at Maxine as began to speak to the men. “Okay, here is the deal, men. Jean sent us all footage to all of our vans of the warehouses.” She looked at the conference phone on the coffee table and began. “Apparently, neither of our locations know where we are. Which is good. So this can be an easy attack. According to Jean, we all have bulletproof suits that will protect us all from shots being fired. Omega team, you’ll be posing as ambulance and firefighters. We have an actor out there to pretend to be hurt in front of the building and that’s when you come in, ambulance will take the supplies while firefighters take them bitches out.” The Omegas, who were on the conference call, replied. “Yes, ma’am.”

She spoke again. “Betas, you will be posing as waiters and staff since they do their work at a motel. We paid the owner good money to keep his mouth shut. Staff get supplies and waiters gun them down, got it?” Betas responded and her attention went to the men the room. “Alphas, you’ll all be just in all black. If we roll up there, we rollin’ in style, men. Cargos, hoodies, leather jackets and combat boots. In your bags, you all received ski masks and full bulletproof suits. There is about thirty of you so fifteen will go with Rodney to get all supplies and money while the rest will be guarding us and taking everyone except for Carlos.” She looked at Donnie and said “that’s the king’s job.” Donnie finally spoke. “We move out in transportation in five hours.” Everyone set their timers and looked at one another while rising. Donnie said “what do you guys have to say to Max? On the count of three. One. Two. Three.” “Welcome to the Team, Queen Maxine.” She smiled as she thought about her old team at her past job and thanked them all. “Meeting dismissed.” Everyone hung up and the men in the room left.

Three Hours Later

Donnie and Maxine held each other in a warm embrace. “No going back now”, she said looking up at him and he shook his head. “Nope.” They began to get ready. Donnie placed their suitcase that Jean gave them and opened. Inside, there were two of each for both of them, glocks, HK USP Tacticals, and UZI Pistols. In suit bags, they both had tailored suits and dress shirts. Maxine looked at him confused and he smiled; he loved when she made that face. “These are bulletproof suits. Everyone else have the basic ones but I want my queen to be in style.” She smiled and started to unpack everything so they can both be prepare. She wore a black lace set, her dreads in a ponytail, the outfit Jean provided and a pair of black heels. Donnie got dressed and wore black dress shoes. They both grabbed their holsters and packed their guns in. They threw their coats on, buttoned them and looked in the mirror before adding on the finishing touches. He put on his chains, diamonds studs, grill and rings while she did the same.

She noticed a note from Jean. "Hola, Maxine. En caso de que las cosas vayan hacia el sur, he proporcionado cierta protección adicional en tu bota derecha. Solo da un puntapié en la dirección y estarás bien". She smiled and nodded. Donnie asked “what does the note say?” She looked at him with smirk and said “we will see”. They locked up the room and left as Donnie spoke to Rodney through the mic on his earpiece. “Aight, Rod. We are on way down. Is our ride here?” “Um, Big Dawg. You gotta see this.” They hurried down stairs to the lot and saw Rodney with the cars. They were all matte black with gold accents to them; a Chrysler 300, Jeep Wrangler and BMW i8. “These are nice”, Maxine said with a big smile. Jean spoke to them through their ear pieces. “Okay, team. Carlos and his boys just arrived to the warehouse. It’s an unmarked brown building on Luckie Street. You should find it because it’s the only brown building. Don’t let the look fool you, it’s nice as hell on the inside. Now, Maxine you got the i8, Don has the Jeep and Rod got the 300. Don’t worry, they are all bullet proof. ” They all got in and got comfortable with hands on their steering wheels and starting their cars.

[APE SHIT by THE CARTERS play with intense bass]

Don said “betas ready?” The Beta team replied dressed in the transportation. “Ready.” Rodney said “omega, we good?” Omega replied “we in this muthafucka.” Maxine then said ‘What about you, Alphas? Are we ready?” Alpha announced “yes, Queen.” She smiled as they all pulled off. Maxine drove ahead of the pack with Donnie behind to her right and Rodney to her left. The matte black vans drove in front making the group of cars in the shape of an ‘X’. Jean talked into the leader’s earpiece. “Ok, guys in twenty five minutes I will be knocking out all cameras and that will give y’all time to get in with out being detected. Now, Rod in your backseat, you have bulletproof head gear.” He saw the swat team looking mask that had gold trimming and the name ROD written on it and put it on. He replied. “Thanks, man.” Jean told Donnie and Maxine “you two have bullet proof masks but not just ordinary masks. Open your glove compartments.” They both did; Maxine saw a matte black mask with gold studs on it and grabbed it to put it on. “Got it, Jean. Thank you”, she said. Don saw a white and gold skull mask and was impressed. He moved his twists to the back to put his masks on.

Back in Los Angeles, Justin was in the guest room looking at Netflix when he heard a big knock at the door. It startled him and he instantly called Maxine; she answered with it on speaker phone. “What’s wrong, Justin?” “There is someone knocking on the door”, he said still shook. Donnie could hear them and said “shit, they know where we stay. Babe, tell him to grab the pistol I placed under the bed!” Maxine had a scrunched up face and said “Don said grab the gun under the bed.” Justin looked under and, sure enough, there was a silver handgun under the bed. He grabbed it and his hand couldn’t stop shaking. “I got it. N-now what?” Maxine said “go to the door and look through the peep hole. Control your breathing.” He did what he was told and then a voice belted through. “Max, open the door. It’s Candy and Ricky JR.” Maxine heard the voice and told Don “it’s Candace.” Don said “he can open it”. Max told Justin to open the door. He did so and she had a worried look on her face. “Who are you”, she asked. “I’m Justin. I’m house sitting.” “Can I come in?” He stood to the side as they walked in. He locked the door and stood by her. “I need to talk to her. Give her phone”, Maxine said. He handed the phone to her and Maxine started talking. “Candy, what’s wrong?” “TARIQ IS MISSING!” Maxine was worried. “Ricky is missing?!” Don and Rod heard her and were also grew worried but still focus.

That was until Rodney saw six motorcycles rolling behind them. “Don, we got visitors, blood.” Don looked back and saw the bikes. Maxine looked in her rear view mirror and saw them, too. “Candy, don’t worry. I’ll take care of it. Just stay with Justin and you’ll be safe.” She hung up and looked towards Don. “ALPHA! We got visitors. Assume the positions” he said. The vans pulled back and Rod, Max and Don were now in front speeding, the vans swerved to block the first four bikes but two sped up and eight more came out of nowhere. “Jean, we got bikes on us”, Rod said. Jean said in a calm voice “you have AK47 under the passenger seats! ” Maxine let off shots at the two that rode in front of them and watching them fall. Rod aimed for the two on his right and they fell hard to the concrete ground; he had to congratulate himself with a howl. Don set off rounds in the men on his left and they flew off their bikes and crashed into street poles. They all continued driving and then all of sudden a bike stopped in front of Maxine’s car and held out a machine gun. She steered with her left hand and set off a clip into his skull with her right. Don swerved into the biker and got back in place.

“Thanks, my king.” “Don’t mention it, Queen.” More bikes came out and had names written on their jackets. Christian, Mario, Navo, Enrique and Tico Jr. “We got more”, Maxine said. Rodney said “fuck, Tico had a baby boy.” Donnie chuckled and said “they’ll be together soon.” Jean said “Rod you gotta leave them and get to the warehouse with the vans. We need them now!” Rod yelled out “FUCK! good luck”; he drove off with the Alphas leaving Maxine and Donnie to take care of the bikers. “Babe, take out Navo and Tico. I got Christian, Mario and Enrique”, Don said. Maxine reloaded her gun and aimed for Nav and Jr.; she got both easily. “Sorry, fellas. No hard feelings?” Donnie chuckled at her. Donnie aimed for the other biker gas line and saw each one blow except for Enrique who drove off in between the smoke and fire. They lost him but that was until the masked driver appeared on the left of Maxine’s car and said “Bienvenido a Atlanta, hijos de puta” while pointing his gun. All of sudden, she felt like she was yanked from the car and placed into the passenger side of Don’s. She looked to Donnie who crashed Maxine’s car into the rider; Maxine shut her door and buckled up. “Sorry, Jean.”, Donnie said. Jean laughed “I’m used to it by now, man. The cameras are out so make your way, now.” They turned onto Luckie Street and Maxine saw the building.

They pulled up to the corner and sat there as they watched each camera of all of Carlos buildings. She saw the teams ready to take orders; Maxine began to speak to the teams. “Everyone in place?” Everyone said yes. “On my count, Beta and Omega move on in. Trois. Deux. Un!!” They did what the were told. She heard gun shots go off and it pleased her as she watched them go off. She looked to Donnie and said “ready?” Donnie nodded as he said “Rod, move in.” They got out with guns ready. “We are right behind you.” The Alpha team stood in front of them and started to take out guards and watched them fall like dominos. Don and Max ran behind them and went to the elevator. “Rod, take your team downstairs. The supply is down there and take all of that my money”, Donnie yelled and Rod ran with his team. “Alpha, take the stairs and let us now when you up there on the fourth floor. Be generous with they the clips and light they ass up.” Maxine said and then she spoke again. “You five, get on. We will need you.” They all went their ways and Max pressed the fifth floor. Don lifted his mask over his hair and looked at Max; she did the same. “Maxine, before we get off. I just wanna say that I am very proud of you and that I am in love with you. You’re my everything. You're my lady. I love you so much. I am very lucky to have someone like you by my side.” She felt tears come down and he wiped them off. “Thugs don’t cry, baby.” He kissed her and put her mask back on then he did the same for herself. They loaded their guns as the elevator stopped and the doors opened.

[Left, Right by YG plays]

The five Alpha members began shooting at incoming guards and henchmen. Donnie and Maxine were also setting off rounds into bodies and reloading at the same time. One guy came from the corner to Maxine and she had to show what was up. She was giving him blow after blow with her new gold brass knuckles. She watched him fall then set a bullet off between his eyes. Two more came up and she ducked every punch coming her way; she started to them with a right, left. She caught up with the team and started shooting again. Both Omega and Beta were about done and heading back to the vans. “Queen we got everything. Wer are out.” Max spoke. “Good job guys. Roll out.” More men came out and soon fell to the ground. All of a sudden, the lights flickered on and off. “What’s going on? Rod, what the fuck?!”, yelled Donnie.”We got everything but...the Rat is...” Rodney said before the earpieces went out followed by a woman’s scream hit Donnie’s ear along with some gunshots. The lights went on and his men were lied on the ground and Maxine was missing. He screwed up his face and yelled “MAX?!?!?!? Baby?!?!?!” ; he got hit in the side of his head.

He woke up lying on hard cold floor with his mask & jacket off, along with no weapons and tried to get up but felt the barrel of a gun to the back of his head. He looked up in front of him and saw a man crouched down in front of him. “Hey, man. Long time no see”, the Latin man gave him a smile. Don looked him in the eye and said “Carlos?” Carlos patted his cheek and said “my, my. You getting big on me man. I remembered when you were a young fool.” He walked around is desk and said “and now you a old fool.” He lit his cigar and Donnie looked around the room that was full of about fifteen Hispanic men surrounding him. The room was dark and the air was dry and humid. He felt defeated and can only think about Maxine and her smile. He began to speak “where is my lady, Carlos?” Carlos smirked at him and snapped his fingers.

Donnie looked up and saw Maxine come out of a dark corner with a mystery figure who had a mask on and an all green biker suit like the man Enrique did. He threw Maxine on the ground next to Carlos desk and looked at Donnie. Her head had dry blood, along with her nose and she didn’t have her suit jacket or shirt on. Donnie’s eyes grew wide as he saw the woman he loved like this. He promised to protect her and he failed. Carlos looked over nonchalant. “Tsk. Tsk. You didn’t learn from the last bitch, huh?” Donnie looked up and met Carlos, eye to eye. “How the fuck did you know we were out here, man?” Carlos looked at Enrique and nodded to him. Enrique slowly walked up to Donnie and crouched down to him. He took off his mask and Donnie’s face was scrunched up with disgust. “TARIQ?!?!?!?!?!” Maxine looked up from the ground and felt her blood boil.

Tariq looked at him and said “that ain’t my name, Donald. The name’s Enrique Munoz, the right hand man and business partner of this corporation.” Maxine looked at Carlos who paid her no mind and noticed he had a handgun in his belt buckle. Tariq circled around Donnie and began speaking again. “You see, I was supposed to end your life a long time ago after you birthday actually but then Maxine came in the picture. When I saw how you looked at her, I thought to be nice and let you get some pussy before but then I was told not to. Carlos and I had a lot shit to get done. Then, Maxine moved in and ruined the whole fucking thing. Then, her ratchet ass gang came around and made things more complicated.” Maxine looked at him and asked “what about you getting shot?” Enrique laughed and said while still looking at Donnie. “Maxine, that was my plan. Do you really think I would look that bad from a shoulder wound? I was only grazed.” “Does Candy know?” He said with a eye roll. “Candace is a fuckin’ idiot. She thinks my real name is Tariq and that I’m actually black.” He looked at Maxine with a smirk across his face and said “how is Sierra Mona doing btw”, turned back around, Maxine felt her adrenaline pump again and her fists balled up.

“And then, Max took out Tico, my cousin and that’s when I knew I had to take her out, too but you two were always together.” He pulled a gun out and aimed it at the top of Don’s right shoulder and shot into it. Maxine’s cried and then remembered what Jean said in the note. She looked at her heels and got on her left knee to Carlos causing Tariq to point his gun at her. Carlos said “what the hell is she doing!?” Maxine hung her head and said “we surrender, Carlos. You won.” He looked at the men and clapped. “Wooow. A beautiful black submissive kneeling before me. Is today my birthday?” Everyone laughed except Donnie, who shook his head in confusion. Once everyone stopped, Carlos stood in front and she looked up at him with a smile on her face, remembering what Sierra Mona said to her on her death bed. “I almost forgot. Queens don’t kneel down for anyone, ever.”

With she pushed him against the table and before he reached for his gun, she gave him a nice Mawashi geri kick to his through with back of her heel and a long knife came out. She froze as he watched the blood gush all over the table. She ripped the knife from is neck while everyone in the room stood still and then Tariq aimed the gun. She picked up Carlos’ body using it as a shield, grabbed his gun and aimed it at Tariq then said “ Ven a mí, puto!!!” She let off multiple rounds in his chest, his head hit the table, Rodney and the men busted through the doors and let off rounds at Carlos’ men who had their guns on Maxine. She dodged under the table, peeked over to Donnie and pulled his body underneath. Maxine used the knife from her boot to cut fabric from Carlos’ shirt to tie up around Donnie’s wound to stop bleeding. She wrapped it up and continued the fight; grabbing Tariq and Carlo’s hand gun. She got back unfer to tend to Donnie. “Baby Girl, you saved me.” She looked at him in his eyes and kissed him. “That’s because I’m in love with you too, baby. And you damn sure not leaving me with these crazy muthafuckas.” They laughed and she helped him up as the shots stop.

[LOYALTY by Kendrick Lamar plays]

Two Days Later

Donnie was out the hospital and Maxine was right there the whole time. She helped him get dressed in the same outfit she had on; white tee, jeans and Air Max 90. The men were all on their way back to California but unfortunately ten didn’t survive. Rodney was in front of the hospital in their rented car, well, van with all their belongings while the alpha team drove the goods to the LA. He held the door open for Donnie who had an arm sling with a cast and Maxine who was just glad Donnie survived the surgery. She lied her head on his left shoulder and held him close. “You did great, baby. Especially with the Bruce Lee kick.” They all laughed until Donnie asked “does Candy know?” She nodded “yeah but I told her he tried to join in the battle but got shot in the process by Carlos and that ‘Tariq’s’ body will be transferred to Cali today for the funeral next week.” He nodded and said “damn, he was my boy. But rats gonna be rats.” Rod added “sorry, man. I’ve should’ve looked harder at his file.” Donnie shook his head. “Don’t be. His real name wasn’t on file.”

Soon, Maxine fell asleep because she was watching Don in the hospital and he found that this was the perfect opportunity to dig in his bag. They finally reached the airport and were on their way to their terminal. Maxine was in line for a strawberry acai from Starbucks when Don and Rod waited for her across the way. “So, when you gonna do it? You know if you don’t do it soon, Sierra said she was gonna haunt that ass”, Rodney said with a smile. Donnie looked at Rodney with a grin and said “very soon.” They all began walking to their location until Don “felt” a pain shoot up is arm and he got on both knees. Maxine gave Rod her drink who had his phone out towards them, worried as she tended to Donnie while crouching to him and looking in his face. “Baby, are you okay?!”, she asked. Donnie said, “Max, you know I love you right?” She nodded. “And that you’re my everything?” She nodded again, confused with smile. “And that you’re my lady.” He got off his left knee and looked at her as she tried to help him up but he declined. He dug in his arm brace and pulled out a blue velvet box and revealed a 14k white gold pave halo and shank diamond engagement ring; she stood there speechless. Donnie smiled up at her and said “well, I want you as my wife and the beautiful mother of my children. Maxine Piers, will you marry me?” She just stood there...

TRANSLATIONS

Pas de larmes ce soir, mon amour. -No tears tonight, my love.

Attention à vos affaires, imbécile - Mind your business, dumbass.

Tellement impoli, mon amour. - So rude, my love.

Eh bien, merde. Cela a fonctionné cependant - Well, shit. It worked

Hola, Maxine. En caso de que las cosas vayan hacia el sur, he proporcionado cierta protección adicional en tu bota derecha. Solo da un puntapié en la dirección y estarás bien" - Hello, Maxine. In case things go south, I have provided some additional protection in your right boot. Just kick in the direction and you'll be fine

Bienvenido a Atlanta, hijos de puta - Welcome to Atlanta, motherfuckers

9 notes · View notes

sorshania · 7 years ago

Text

Rocking the Trickster

Prompt:

Summary: Gabriel had learned, lifetimes ago, that the quickest, easiest way to weed out over-pompous asses making people’s lives miserable was to work at the most menial, low-ranked jobs possible. He just had to be there, minding his own business, and let the assholes come to him like bees to honey. And this job is no different than the others.

He just need to remember to keep a low profile.

Pairing: Gen

Word Count: 2763

Warnings: None

A/N: This is my first time taking part of the @gabriel-monthly-challenge and my first SPN fic in about forever!! (Yes, it took this archangel being brought back from the dead...) I had a lot of fun writing it and I hope you guys will enjoy it.

Huge thanks and kudos to @chattydm for stabbing having a go at it with the Red Pen of Doom and helping me make it all much better :p

Mention of American Gods plot, I kept it vague on purpose because 1) Gabriel is not aware of it 2) I didn’t to go full AU mode (yet)

Tags: @archangelsanonymous @lacqueluster @archangel-with-a-shotgun and @revwinchester

AO3 Link or read below :)

Gabriel had learned, lifetimes ago, that the quickest, easiest way to weed out over-pompous asses making people’s lives miserable was to work at the most menial, low-ranked jobs possible. He just had to be there, minding his own business, and let the assholes come to him like bees to honey.

Over the countless years since he left Heaven, he had worked a vast array of such jobs. Camel driver, serf, body-snatcher, lector in a manufactory... He actually liked that one! He got to entertain the factories’ workers, and telling stories was his thing. Plus, he got a high seat. A perfect way to keep an eye on everyone, especially those he decided to target for his “little life lessons”.

Heck! He even drove a truck for PEPSI for a while, delivering one of his favorite drinks all over the US. If his brothers saw what he had become… The mighty Gabriel, a truck delivery driver… Well, to be honest, Lucifer would probably bust a feather laughing.

That was ages ago. He shook his head, smiling a little as he returned his mind to the present. He took the pad the production coordinator handed him, quickly pushing all thoughts of his brothers away. It was a simple job, as they all were. He just had to to be a little more careful than usual to keep a low profile. He was in Iowa, not too far from Ohio, where he did his last job as a janitor for Ohio State. The last thing he needed was over-zealous hunters figuring out he had tricked them and follow through with their plan to kill him. Besides, if he remembered correctly, there was also a hunter congregation point, right in the next state. Another reason not to rock the boat.

“Gabe…?” He smirked, rather proud of his idea to hide in plain sight. He rarely gave in to the temptation though, preferring made-up names or generic ones. Thankfully, naming their child “Gabriel” was still popular among parents, considering how often he heard it. But the voice calling for his attention was not the voice of his long-lost brother or sister, it was the voice of the one of the musicians he was supposed to be attached to.

Right. Focus on the job: Production Assistant, or PA as they called it, to this budding indie music group. And keep a low profile. Simple. “Sorry for that! I just… spaced out for a moment.” He made sure to sound extra cheerful as he handed the pad back to the producer. The lead guitar just smiled at him but the lead singer scoffed. Great! A Diva! Oh… He was SO on Gabriel’s naughty list.

The music group he was working with wasn’t so bad. He learned that they had become friends in high school, and the lead singer and guitarist were brothers. They kept an easy feeling of camaraderie around them, curbing most of Keith’s, the lead singer, asshole tendencies.

He did a pretty good job at keeping it under the radar. It wasn’t *his* fault if the strings from Keith’s guitar suddenly snapped off, breaking the instrument’s neck in the process, just as he was about to start his solo. Clearly it was a sign of abuse, despite the singer’s claim and bewilderment. Of course, Gabriel had dashed off, only to come back just as quickly with a suitable replacement. That happened to be bright pink. With My Little Pony stickers all over its body and bright neon pink strings. Gabriel thought it did wonders bringing out the red in the singer’s bloodshot eyes.

Neither was he responsible if, somehow, Keith’s shampoo bottle ended up filled with hair removal product, forcing the man to completely shave the long hair he was so proud of. He kept complaining about it throughout the day and to whoever was willing to listen (or look like they cared), until the drummer told to shove it and keep his breath for singing. Besides, it was well-known that “chicks dig bald head after all”. Gabriel didn’t know if it was because of the “chick” comment or just the fact the usually silent drummer spoke, but Keith finally shut up and the rehearsal finished without any more hitch.

Granted, sending homophobic Keith to a bar hosting one of RuPaul’s Drag Race Main Challenge that specific night, may have been his doing. But heh! They played Classic Rock all the time! And you never mess with the classics. Not to mention that Keith appeared to be quite the connoisseur, judging by how often he commented and complained about his fellow musicians.

(It still didn’t beat the slow-dancing aliens Gabriel willed out of thin air, but this one was in his personal top 5.)

All in all, the Trickster was quite proud of himself. Knocking the ever-pompous ass down a peg, but subtly, every time he acted out, was kind of fun. Reminded him of the time he took the mantle of “Loki”. Gabriel chuckled, singing softly as he finished cleaning up the record studio.

“I didn’t know you sang.”

Gabriel yelped, nearly dropping his broom. Few people could sneak up on him. He turned around to see Keith’s brother, Joey, standing in the doorway.

“Ah…” Gabriel looked away, a little embarrassed. He didn’t thought the kid had heard him. “I used to… About a few centuries ago…” It wasn’t technically a lie; the last time he truly sang, he was with his brothers in the Silver City. He glanced again at Joey when he heard him make some non-committal sound.

The kid was an enigma. Gabriel had learned, from the first day he started working with them, that he was Keith’s older brother and that the music group was their dream. Joey mainly worked on the songs and musical arrangements, while Keith, making good use of his outgoing personality and ambition, took care of the fans, dealt with the production people, and made sure to get their names out there. Still, Joey never gave into pride the way Keith did.

He was polite, gracious even, thanking the people hovering around them both and making sure his requests were never obnoxious. That didn’t mean he was a push-over either. One time, when the producer, tired and annoyed that Keith had stormed off of rehearsal for the nth time, suggested Joey took over as lead vocals, the musician had flat out refused. And stood his ground until the producer backed down when he realised it would be foolish to continue pushing the issue.

It wasn’t as if Keith couldn’t sing. The man had talent, there was no denying it. But he was so difficult to work with. Gabriel suspected the only reason people stayed and helped was because they liked Joey more than they hated Keith. Yet, there had been times when Gabriel had caught Keith glancing at this brother, as if looking for his approval.

Still, Gabriel wondered why Joey would reject the producer’s proposal so violently. Joey merely shrugged when he asked him about it and insisted to stay behind that evening to help Gabriel finish his chores. Despite Gabriel’s protests. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t get the work done with a snap of his fingers, after all.

“He’s not the first to suggest it.” Joey finally answered after a time. “Nor will he be the last… But… see, Keith… He’s made for this. He’s… He can shine under the spotlights like… like I never could. And I’m not jealous! I’m happy to write the songs when he works on getting our names out there. I’m happy to be there for him, so he can shine.” And he just smiled and got back to work.

It sounded like total bullshit, in Gabriel’s opinion. He had never met anyone who wouldn’t enjoy being in the spotlight. Maybe Joey just needed a little incentive…

The next time Keith was being an ass, Gabriel got the opportunity to hit two birds with one stone. It was last day after all, despite the production team not being aware of it yet, and he had always prided himself leaving on a high note. Pun not intended.

Gabriel made a discreet rippling gesture with the fingers of his right hand. One minute, Keith was yelling and growling and ranting and being a general pain in the butt, and the next, nothing. Just… Silence. Pure. Sweet. Silence. And there was nothing to be done to change the situation.

That threw the production out for a loop. They were in the middle of recording a very important session. It was one of the rare duets sang by the brothers. And this one that had the potential to change everything and getting the group recognized. Gabriel only hoped Joey was ready to go at it, solo. He did feel a little bit guilty when he saw the fear and panic written all over the kid’s face. Best make a quick exit.

“Gabe? Gabe?! GABRIEL?!!! WAIT!!!”

Dammit. Joey had managed to catch up just as he was about to step outside. A few more steps and… Gabriel sighed and turned around, unable to resist the fear and worry and hope in the guy’s voice. He knew he should have flown out of there but didn’t want to risk it.

“Gabriel… You have to help…” Joey panted. “You have to sing Keith’s part…”

“Come again?”

“You have to sing. It’s the only way we can get the sing out in time.”

“You’re joking right? Why don’t you do it solo?” Maybe the kid really needed to be pointed the obvious.

But Joey just shook his head. “Can’t… not the right voice… doesn’t carry well… would ruin the song… But, yours… Yours could work… Just…”

“Joey, that’s ridi- “

“Listen, if you don’t want to do it, it’s fine… But -”

“Gabe is right… You have to sing.” A raspy voice, barely above a whisper interrupted them.

They turned around to see Keith standing beside them. Gabriel could have hit himself. He truly was getting old. And he couldn’t just zap out there, he was really committed to see this through as low-profile as he could.

“You know it won’t work! It’s a duet! It needs to be sung by two people!” Joey protested, getting angry. “My voice is way too clear and high for your parts! I’ll end up sounding like a bad mash up of Alvin and Chipmunks, with a head-cold!!!”

“Then, we forget this, we wait for another opportunity and use this to work on new material.”

The brothers stared at each other. Meanwhile, Gabriel couldn’t believe what was happening. Aside for the Alvin thingie part, that he could. Joey’s voice had reached a surprising high note in his distress. No, what surprised him was that Keith, Pompous-Asshole-Keith, was calmly trying to calm his brother down. Keith who was not even furious at the step back his nearly muteness was causing but who was in fact trying to find a solution. Gabriel was truly confused. Either this session must mean a lot more to them than he first thought, or he accidentally causes Opposite Day.

A heavy hand landing on his shoulder brought him back to the situation at hand. “Can you sing my part?”

Gabriel looked up to see Keith staring at him. The brothers appeared to have reach some kind of agreement while he was busy puzzling over what was happening. “Look… I know I’ve been an ass… and I have no right to ask you this.” Keith was saying. “But, it’ll help us greatly if you helped us out.”

“You… You can’t be serious.”

“Joey says you’re good. And that’s good enough for me.” By now, Keith was nearly growling, his voice giving out.

Gabriel scoffed, looking at each brother in turn.

The naked hope in their eyes tugged at something he buried a long time ago. “But I can’t play!” It was a cop-out, one last desperate attempt to get out.

And a poor one. Keith gave a lopsided small smile, as if he knew it. “I think I can help with that…”

Gabriel sighed, his shoulders slumping slightly.

Bloody Hell.

The recording session was surprisingly easy. It took only one rehearsal to see how everyone worked together before they started recording. Gabriel’s presence raised a few eyebrows, but the Joey/Keith tandem quickly shut everyone up. It was impressive to see how efficiently they worked together. The other musicians just shrugged, happy a solution had been found. And Gabriel really got lost in the experience. It was surprising how easy and familiar it was to just be a part of something once again.

When the producer called out “And… it’s a wrap!” and everyone just… jumped around, nearly bursting with joy. Gabriel just stood there, unable to move, feeling the pats on his back and shoulders, the one-arm hugs. He was staring at the brothers, hugging and thumping each other’s back. They let go and just… stared at each other, before the rhythmic guitar player sauntered over, saying something that made Keith roar with laughter. Or he would have, if he still had a voice.

Gabriel was suddenly hit by a wave of homesickness. It was too much to take in. Too hard to breathe. He didn’t think.

He flew away, landing a few cities away, to try and get his bearings and calm the sudden hammering of his Grace. He usually managed to keep it at peace by entertaining himself with mortal ladies (and some goddesses), but… Nothing could have prepared him for the impact the sheer force of the tangled emotions he just witnessed, and caused.

“Well… You are not the one I had expected to find here.”

The voice came from behind him and Gabriel turned around to see a man emerged from the shadows. He was adjusting the cuffs of his tailored purple silk suit, his face hidden by the shadow cast by his hat.

“Hello Anansi.” Gabriel shoved his hands his pockets, mimicking the other’s relaxed pose. "Fancy meeting you here."

The cordial tone was a trick and they both knew it as they kept a respectful (and prudent) distance from one another.

Gabriel’s eyes narrowed as he watched the African Trickster, half-wondering if he may or may not have been responsible for the sudden change of situation at the recording studio. Distances meant nothing for supernatural beings, and Anansi was known to work from afar. “I thought we both agreed to stay within our territories.” He said after a time. “Are you making a move?”

“Not at all.” Anansi said a little too smoothly, raising a hand, as if to indicate his peaceful intentions, his voice was singing, soothing, a mix of both Caribbean and African accents. “I am merely on my way to the House of Rock, to meet with the All-Father. Surely, you must be aware of this.”

Gabriel frowned slightly. No, he didn't know the Old Gods were meeting. Truth be told, he wasn’t really close to his alleged fellows, not wanting to risk the off-chance of revealing his true nature. This had caused Odin to make numerous complains, and thin-veiled insults, about his lack of “investment in their plight.” Not that Gabriel really cared. “I have been travelling a lot lately.” He shrugged. “Perhaps my invitation got lost in the mail.”

“Perhaps…” Anansi said though he did not push the issue.

Gabriel was the first to break the ensuing silence. “In any case, I shall let you be on your way.” He stepped aside to let the man pass. “While we both know Odin loves his theatrics, I won’t begrudge you your grand entrance.”

“Indeed.” Anansi tipped his hat as thanks, to which Gabriel responded with a nod.

They kept an eye on each other as the African Trickster walked past him. Just in case.

“By the way, Loki,” Anansi said, his back now to Gabriel, judging he was at a safe enough distance, “I have heard stories.”

“What kind of stories?”

“Stories of wars. Stories of hurt. Stories of betrayal. Stories of brother fighting brother. Of friend turning against friend.” He turned around to look over his shoulder. His eyes were dark and unreadable, and Gabriel wondered one more time how much he knew. And if it was a threat he needed to take care of. “You might want to be careful not to get caught in the crossfire.” He said evenly.

“I will. Thank you for the warning.”

Anansi nodded and disappeared, leaving the former archangel in the dark street, wondering about what was about to come next.

THE END

#sorsha writes things #gabriel #gabriel monthly challenge #supernatural #supernatural fanfiction

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rosegoldachievement · 7 years ago

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Where Good Girls Go To Die (chapter 1)

pairing: fahc x reader

word count: 1,987

series: Where Good Girls Go To Die

summary: You're not quite sure what compelled you to move to the infamous city of Los Santos, a ruthless playground for drug dealers, washed-up celebrities, and criminals alike. It was very different from your small hometown in the middle of nowhere, where nothing ever happened and you couldn't even leave your house without running into someone you knew, but perhaps that was part of the attraction. But, after running into your ex-best friend, Jeremy Dooley, you began to think Los Santos wasn't so bad as it seemed. Well, until the bank you worked at got robbed and you managed to get kidnapped all in the same week, leading you to become stuck in a penthouse with six very deadly males.

chapter one / chapter two

Chapter One: Lil’ Cups of Coffee

The sun rose above the skyline, painting it various shades of pink and orange. Beams of light shone directly through the blinds and onto your face, causing you to throw the blankets over yourself.

“Fuck off.” You mumbled, trying to block out the luminescence from the other end of the room.

When you had first entered your new apartment the night previous, you immediately could tell the city’s nightlife four floors below would be hard to adapt to. Whizzing cars and alarms lasted past nightfall, making you toss and turn in your bed. It didn’t help that you were ninety percent sure gunshots had gone off only a few streets down from yours at around three in the morning.

It had taken you five minutes to retreat from the darkness of your sheets and get up from the bed, going through the obstacle course of unpacked boxes that cluttered your room.

You had finally managed to make it to your kitchen without dying and began to rummage through the boxes on the island for the one labeled ‘kitchen appliances’. After a few minutes of searching, you found it and pulled out the coffee machine. This was only one of many graduation presents from your family, and just like most of the others, it was unused and still in its original packaging.

After finally setting up the machine and making a pot of coffee, you began to unpack the boxes that were scattered across the dining area. It was quite a chore, but you knew it had to get done sometime..

The clock showed ten o’clock in the morning when you finished unpacking. You had managed to create a home for every object, developing a comfy atmosphere. Yet, when you were cleaning, you couldn't help but notice the lack of food in your fridge. Your parents didn't enjoy the concept of you taking the food they had on your move, so you settled for knowing you would have to go shopping once you arrived at your new town.

“I guess it's time for a shopping trip.” If you remembered correctly, there was a small plaza with convenience store a few blocks away from your apartment building. After changing into a pair of comfy sweatpants and a thin tee-shirt and exiting your apartment. you walked down the four flights of stairs to the ground floor. From there, you walked out of the double glass doors and watched as the city bloomed to life upon walking onto the sidewalk.

Your attempt to dodge the clusters of people while walking was fruitless, clipping some shoulders as you went down the street. The differences between Los Santos and your hometown were like black and white. At home, you could go blocks without seeing anyone but here, you couldn't even step without stepping on someone's foot.

By the time you pulled yourself out of your thoughts, you had arrived at the plaza the store was in. From the looks of it, the other places that inhabited the lot were a laundromat, tattoo parlor, and pizza place. You were about to enter your set destination when someone suddenly bumped into you, causing you to lose your balance and fall.

“Fuck,” a somewhat familiar voice grumbled. You looked up to see brown eyes that you had glimpsed at many times throughout the years but rather foreign green hair.

“Jeremy?” You managed to ask, mouth agape. The male seemed to be taken back from hearing his name, studying your features before realizing who you were.

“Y/n?” He offered a hand to help you up, which you gladly accepted. After he pulled you to your feet, you couldn't believe that your ex best friend, Jeremy Dooley, was stood in front of you. The same Jeremy Dooley who packed up his old beat up truck the morning of his eighteenth birthday and left the town without saying goodbye to anyone, including you. In that moment, you wanted to question his choices. Yet, you felt like you had already known the answer.

“Uh, yeah. It’s been awhile, huh?” You allowed your thoughts to quickly dissolve into the back of your brain. An eternity of silence seemed to slip over the two of you before a bright smile overtook his features. He seemed to gaze down at the watch on his wrist before putting his attention back on you.

“You in a rush? If not, I’d love to take you out to get some coffee and talk for a little. My treat.” You opened your mouth to admit you were actually on your way to shop and politely excuse yourself, but the words that escaped your mouth were anything but.

“Coffee sounds great,Jer.”

“Alright, cool. I know a place we can walk to from here. C’mon.” Jeremy began to walk the way in which he came, only leaving you to follow. As you caught up him and your footsteps fell in line with his, you couldn’t help but question your own feelings in the moment. Half of you was eager to learn how Jeremy has been all of these years, but the other half hated how casual this seemed. You even used his old nickname, for fuck’s sake.

Jeremy ended up leading you to an ally. You were about to question him when you noticed a blinking neon sign saying ‘Rimmy Tim’s’ hung up above a descending staircase. The sign casted tinted the ally with its custom colors, which happened to be an very distasteful purple and orange.

“Y/n?” Your vision drifted from the sign to see Jeremy lingering below it, his right hand lightly grasping the handrail. “You coming?” A sudden sound of embarrassment came from your lips as you quickly nodded your head, going back to his side once more.

At the bottom of the staircase stood frosted glass double doors, serving as an entrance way to the shop. With one hand, Jeremy opened the large door, revealing the coffee shop behind it. As Jeremy expertly guided you to a specific table, you began to observe your surroundings. The strong scent of coffee beans hung in the air as you passed by the front counter. The color scheme of Rimmy Tim’s matched the outside, the interior design seemingly as mix of industrial and nautical. This created a peaceful aura, which was something you needed after moving. You wouldn’t expect a gem like this to be tucked underground the city of Los Santos.

“Do you come here often?” You asked, slipping into the booth that Jeremy had picked out. You expected him to do the same, but he just stood next to the table.

“You could say that. I’m going to get us something to drink.” You began to stand up, but Jeremy immediately shook his head.

“Nope, you stay here.” Your eyebrows knitted together as you shot him a confused look.

“Jeremy, you don’t even know my order.” Jeremy was quick to dismiss your concerns, waving his hand as if swatting them away.

“Trust me, I’ll figure it out. Now sit.” Reluctantly, you sat down and Jeremy took his victory in stride as he turned on his heel and headed towards the front counter. While you awaited Jeremy’s return, you found yourself playing with different apps on your phone. You had just completed a very difficult level in a puzzle game when he returned, placing a white ceramic coffee cup down in front of you. As he sat down across from you, you looked down in the hopes to identify what he had gotten you. The top was covered with whipped cream, so you couldn’t exactly figure out the exact contents of your drink. Jeremy took a sip of what seemed to be some kind of iced drink before speaking.

“Go ahead, try it.” He gestured to the cup in front of you. You casted him a look of uncertainty, causing him to chuckle. “Y/n, just taste it.” With a sigh, you raised the cup up to your lips and took a small sip. As the liquid touched your tongue, a sense of familiarity rushed over you. Your (eye color) eyes flashed upwards, making contact with Jeremy’s.

“Is this a cafe mocha?” You smiled, taking another sip, this one bigger than the last. Jeremy’s smile grew as he nodded. Memories of junior year of high school flooded your brain, Jeremy and you sitting at one of the only coffee shops in town and talking for hours on end. A sad smile crossed over your lips, thinking about all of the days you had spent there, nursing a drink identical to the one you had now.

“Just like the one at home, right? I wasn’t sure if you still liked them, but I wanted to give it a shot.” He watched as you enjoyed your drink, taking a sip of his own before continuing to speak. “Speaking of home, why aren't you there?” You rested your coffee on the table, your hands still wrapped around the cup, enjoying the warmth it was giving off.

“I moved here yesterday.” Jeremy’s face contorted into a shocked expression, a silence lingering in the air between you. It took him awhile to formulate the words, but after a minute, Jeremy spoke up.

“Why did you move here? A city, nonetheless? Weren’t you always the one saying you wanted to settle down and make a family back home?” Well, he wasn’t wrong. Jeremy moved to your small, quaint town the summer before fourth grade from Boston. His rebunkous self refused to conform to the country background of your town. Ever since you had known Jeremy, he had been claiming he was going to move back to the city one day. You idolized his ambition and need for change, but your small town was all you had ever known. But, once Jeremy left, you realized that his spontaneous behavior was what made your town bearable.

“Yeah. I know what you mean. It’s just things started to get….” You trailed off, trying to figure out where you were going with that sentence before shrugging. “I don’t know, boring, I guess?” Jeremy’s mouth swung open to answer, but the sound of his phone going off averted his attention.

“Shit, I gotta take this. I’m sorry.” A frown formed on his face once he read the caller ID.

“It’s fine, take your time.” You told him, raising your coffee to your lips. With that, Jeremy answered the call and walked away.

After a few minutes, Jeremy returned, still bearing a frown.

“Hey, I’m really sorry to do this but, that was work. I gotta go.” You sighed, but understood.

“It’s alright, I understand. It was really nice catching up with you, Jeremy. Thanks for the coffee.” Jeremy’s frown quickly turned into a smile at your words.

“No problem. I’ll cya around, I guess.” Jeremy jammed his hand into his pocket and turned around. A second seem to pass before he sighed, quickly turning back around to face you. “Sorry, I was just wondering, uh, can I put my number in your phone?” He suddenly asked. You smiled and nodded, picking your phone up from the table and handing it over to him.

“Yeah, of course!” Jeremy quickly put his information in and handed you back his phone. The moment he did this, his phone buzzed, indicating he received a message. After checking it, you heard him mumble something under his breath.

“Alright, I’m coming. Calm the fuck down, Geoff.” You brought yourself not to question this, since it seemed like Jeremy was only talking to himself. “Alright, y/n. Text me whenever you get the time.” And with that, you watched your former best friend walk away and disappear out of the frosted double doors at the front of Rimmy Tim’s. Staring at the half-empty cup he left across from you, you found yourself chuckling.

“Maybe moving here won’t be so bad after all.”

#achievement hunter au #achievement hunter x reader #rooster teeth x reader #fahc x reader #fahc #achievement hunter fanfic #gavin free x reader #jeremy dooley x reader #jack pattillo x reader #michael jones x reader #ryan haywood x reader #geoff ramsey x reader #achievement hunter reader insert

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three-drink-amy · 7 years ago

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First Day Jitters

So I wrote this tiny fic a couple months back about Jake and Amy as single parents. And I couldn’t get it out of my head. So with encouragement from @startofamoment, it became a full fledged fic!

Just FYI: it’s long...

Jake was fretting over the first day of school. He prided himself on being a good dad. He was a much better dad to John than Jake’s dad was to him. Still though, the panic of the first day of kindergarten was getting to him. John had asked him the night before why he had to go to school. It had taken everything in Jake not to put it off for another year. Instead, he talked up school and how fun it was and how many friends he’d make.

As Jake walked his son into school, he was pretty sure that he was more nervous than the child. He looked for the kindergarten classroom and directed his son there. They were nearing the door when Jake bumped into another parent. A mother taking her son into the same classroom. “Sorry,” he apologized profusely, still holding John’s hand. She waved him off silently. Jake was pretty sure he noted tears in her eyes. He gestured for her and her son to enter the room before him and John. She nodded gratefully.

Jake walked in and squatted down in front of his son. “Okay, John, this is your classroom. You met your teacher, Miss Miller last week. She is really nice. And there are plenty of kids here to be friends with. Just have a good time and try to learn all you can, okay?” John nodded stiffly. He stumbled forward, throwing his arms around Jake’s neck. Jake could feel tears in his eyes. He wrapped his arms tightly around his son. “You’re gonna have so much fun, Bud.”

“I’m gonna miss you today, Daddy,” John said through his sniffles.

Jake squeezed him before ending the hug and looking at his son. “I’ll miss you too. But in just a matter of hours, I’ll pick you up and we can go to the park and you can tell me all about your day. How does that sound?”

“That sounds fun!” John yelled.

“You just have to make it through the day,” Jake explained. Standing up, he motioned his son toward the rest of the kids. “Now go have fun!” John hugged his leg before running toward the other kids. Jake willed the tears in his eyes not to fall.

“I didn’t really think it would be this hard,” Jake heard someone say. He looked over and it was the mom he’d bumped into.

“Yeah,” he agreed. “I’m a single dad. This is hitting me like a truck.”

She chuckled dryly. “I know what you mean. I’m a single mom. I cried all night last night. My eyes would barely open this morning when Sam was jumping on my bed because he was so excited for school.”

“Ahh the single parenthood,” Jake mused. “Glad I’m not alone.”

She smiled at him. “I’m Amy Santiago.”

“Jake Peralta,” he replied.

“I didn’t notice earlier, which one is yours?” she asked.

“Black Nets t-shirt with the Die Hard back pack,” he pointed out. She looked at him skeptically. “It was my back pack as a kid. He hasn’t seen it,” he assured her. “Well, not yet. He’ll see it someday because it’s the best movie ever.” Amy laughed. “Which one is yours?”

Amy pointed to the boy right next to John. “Sam’s the one in the red checked shirt and slacks giving yours a friendship sticker.” Jake looked over at her with an amused expression. “I may have given him some pointers on making friends. It mainly involved stickers.”

The teacher asked the parents to leave so they could start class. Jake bid goodbye to John as Amy did the same with Sam. Jake couldn’t help but smile as he noticed the two boys sitting down next to each other. Jake couldn’t wait to hear all about his son’s day.

As they walked out of the school, Jake dug out his keys, unsure of where he was going to go. “I took today off because I figured I’d be too much of a mess at work. Now I have no clue what I should do. I tend to think the secretary won’t want me hanging out in the office.”

Amy laughed and nodded. “I did the same thing. I took a sick day.”

“Listen, single parent to single parent,” Jake began nervously, “how would you feel about getting coffee and talking about how much we miss our kids?”

Amy smiled brightly. “I think that sounds great. Maybe some Irish coffee?”

“Ooh, I like that idea,” Jake agreed with a grin. “How early do you think bars open?”

“I’m game,” Amy replied with a laugh. “This could be fun.”

Jake nodded excitedly before he gestured toward the parking lot. “After you, m’lady!”

They found themselves at a small coffeehouse not far from the school. As they sat down, Jake realized that it almost had the feeling of a date. He shook his head, ignoring the crazy notion. They both took a sip of their drinks before either of them started talking. “Is it bad that I’m wondering what they’re doing now?” Jake asked. “Am I too obsessed with my kid?”

Amy laughed. “I don’t think that’s a thing. I mean at least between parents. Some of my friends probably think I’m too obsessed with Sam.”

Jake smirked. “Yeah, I remember when John was a baby and I was fawning all over him and my friend Gina made some comment about how he only smiled because he farted. I was horrified and offended.”

“Exactly,” Amy agreed. “I have some friends like that too.” She shook her head with a laugh as she took another drink. “So what do you do for a living?”

“I’m a detective.” Amy’s mouth dropped open. Jake leaned back slightly. “What’s wrong with that?”

Amy shook her head quickly. “Nothing at all. I’m just surprised. I’m also a detective.”

“What? No way! Which precinct?” Jake asked, very intrigued.

“The 99th. You?”

“The 78th.” They both stared at each other for a beat. “How bizarre,” Jake mused with a small shake of his head.

Amy smirked into her coffee mug. “Good to know I’m in good company.”

They chatted for a while about the job. Soon talk turned back to their children. Before they knew it, they’d been there for at least a couple hours, just chatting amiably.

Amy seemed to tense a little as she posed her next question. “Probably not my place to ask, but where’s John’s mom?”

A serious expression replaced the smile that had graced Jake’s face for most of the time they’d been together. “That’s a good question. I think somewhere here in New York. I’m not really sure though.” Amy started to nod. Jake could tell she wasn’t going to ask any more questions, so he volunteered the information. “We were dating, not super seriously, when she got pregnant. She was a defense attorney.” Amy’s mouth opened in horror. “Yeah I know,” Jake said with a laugh. “Big mistake. Anyway, she was more dedicated to her job than literally anything else. I told her that I would be willing to go along with whatever she wanted to do. I mean I was excited at the prospect of having a kid, but she wasn’t really one to try and force your opinion on. So anyway, I think she knew I was excited about it so she decided we’d keep it.”

Jake paused, reliving it all. “I can still remember the day that I thought something was off. She came home from her baby shower with all this amazing stuff. I was so excited about it all. I was looking through everything and freaking out over it like a total nerd. And she sat on the couch staring at it with an almost horrified look on her face. I thought she was just overwhelmed. I mean having a baby is a big deal. But no, she was dreading it. Apparently her lawyer friends had said all these things about how being a mom was going to be her new career. And she’d freaked out because her job was her real baby. Which I knew. And I’d always accepted that I came second to her job. I just didn’t figure she’d have gone through with the pregnancy if she was so scared of it affecting her career.”

“I remember that,” Amy interjected. “People telling me my career ambitions were now over because I was having a baby. It can be scary. But I actually wanted Sam. I’m guessing from your story, that’s not actually the case?”

Jake wrinkled his nose. “Yeah, not exactly. So she never said anything to me about not wanting the baby. I could tell that something was off, but I figured she was tired or overwhelmed being so far into her pregnancy plus work. She was really busy. I tried to be home every night in case she needed me. She never did. Then, ten days before her due date, she was in court and I got a call at work to go to the hospital. I was freaking out. So I drove to the hospital and I walk to find the nurse who called me and she takes me to the window of the nursery and points at a particular baby and tells me that’s my son.”

“Wait,” Amy stopped him, a disgusted look on her face. “You didn’t –”

“Yeah,” Jake confirmed. “I missed the birth of my child because she wouldn’t leave court and gave birth in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.” He nods at the sad look on Amy’s face. “So one of Sophia’s friends finds me in the hospital and tells me the baby’s mine. Sophia doesn’t want to see me or him. Her other friends were already getting her stuff from my apartment and I didn’t need to worry about that. So two days later I took my kid home and they’d done a good job of removing any aspect of Sophia from my home. I mean she didn’t even name him, I did. I haven’t seen her since the night before she gave birth. And John’s never seen his mother.”

“Wow.”

Jake shrugged. “I mean we’ve been okay. My Captain was amazing and gave me paternity leave and I got used to being a single dad. But you know, I can’t imagine my life without John. For all the drama of his arrival and how crazy my life became, I wouldn’t trade it for the world,” Jake concluded with a smile.

Amy matched his smile. “Yeah I definitely get that.”

“So how did you end up a single mom?” He asked.

Amy shook her head and rolled her eyes as she geared up to tell her story. “It had been a month since I’d gotten engaged to my boyfriend of a year when I found out we were going to have a baby. I was really excited. In hindsight, I think he faked his excitement. Anyway, so we pushed back the wedding to focus on the baby and somehow along the way things started to fizzle. Teddy wasn’t as good at feigning his excitement as he thought he was. I, of course, didn’t think the way he was acting was about the baby, I thought it was about me. So I got a lot clingier and that didn’t help matters. We had very similar interests which was what drew us together, but it was then that I realized that at our cores we were very different people.”

“That’s a great time to find that out,” Jake joked.

Amy chuckled. “Yeah. So Sam came and it was about two months later that Teddy couldn’t take it anymore and moved out. I mean I was devastated, but I chose to focus on Sam and on being the best mom I could be. I mean we just fell apart. It certainly doesn’t hold a candle to your story,” Amy said with a laugh.

“I don’t think you’d really want it to,” Jake offered.

Amy shrugged. “That’s fair. But you’ll like this part. Teddy’s mom made him reach out for a custody agreement. She thought he needed to be a part of Sam’s life. I informed her that unless Teddy wanted to be a part of Sam’s life, he didn’t need to be. So Teddy gets Sam for a weekend every two weeks.”

“And you get no help in the meantime?”

“I’ve learned how to get by without it,” Amy said with a shrug. “I have friends who help me when I really need it. What about you?”

“Yeah, I have some good friends who help me out when I can’t get off work. And a really good babysitter,” Jake laughed. “Plus when Sophia left me with a baby to raise all alone, my mom moved into the city. She said it was to be there whenever I needed her, but I think she just wanted to be as close to her only grandson as she could.”

They both laughed before they sat in silence for a moment. “And now they’re in school…” Amy said in a small voice, trailing off.

“I can’t believe it.”

“I mean we got them this far right?” Amy wondered aloud.

Jake chuckled. “So you’re saying the hard part is over?”

Amy snorted. “If only. At least you have a son. I am already dreading having to raise a teenage boy on my own,” Amy joked, covering her face with her hands.

Jake laughed heartily. “I wish I could say it’s not that bad…”

Amy dropped her face from her hands. “Oh I grew up with seven brothers. I know precisely how terrible it is.”

Jake gaped at her. “You have seven brothers?” Amy nodded. “Damn.”

“Yeah, growing up was crazy. But it was helpful to have all that family when Teddy bailed.”

Jake nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, I bet.”

“I gotta say it’s interesting meeting someone who was basically going through one of the hardest parts of their life at the same time you were going through yours,” Amy mused.

Jake’s eyebrows raised in thought. “Wow that’s a good point. If only there had been a support group five years ago before we got into the swing of things.”

“Nah,” Amy disagreed. “It’s probably better we figured it out on our own.” Jake nodded.

They sat there in a comfortable silence for a beat. They both checked their phones to see if there was anything important they’d missed in the time they’d been chatting.

Amy put her phone down. “You know, I think this is the closest thing to a date that I’ve been on in five years.” Jake nodded. “I mean I don’t have to tell you that dating as a single parent is hard.”

“That’s true,” Jake agreed. He looked at Amy. He’d really enjoyed the time they’d spent together. It was incredible to meet someone in the same position as him. Plus she was a cop too. He decided to risk it. “That being said though, how would you feel about doing this again sometime…?” he asked hesitantly.

Amy looked at him with a questioning expression. Suddenly a smile broke through the façade, her eyes shining. “I’d like that.”

Jake was swinging with his son as John told him all about his first day of school. “It was so fun, Daddy!” John cried. “We played outside and we had center time and we got to play with play dough!”

“That does sound like fun!” Jake agreed, smiling from ear to ear at the sight of his child so happy. “So do you like your classmates?”

“Yeah,” John informed him.

“Did you make any friends?”

“Yeah! Aaron was nice. He shared his crayons with me,” John explained.

“That was nice of him.”

“And Max picked me for his team when we played tag.”

“Wait, you’re already doing all that picking teams stuff?” Jake asked, feeling horrified that his young son was already subjected to that.

“And Sam gave me a sticker this morning and asked me to be his friend. So we’re best friends.”

Jake couldn’t help but smirk. Kids were so easy to win over. “Well I’m glad. I met Sam’s mom today.”

“Is she pretty?” John asked.

Jake looked curiously over at his son on the swing next to him. “Why?” John just shrugged. They kept talking about his day at school, though now Jake wondered what his son could be thinking.

Amy was tucking Sam into bed when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out quickly to see Jake was calling her. She put her phone back in her pocket, noting that she would call him back.

“Mommy?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, Sweetie?” Amy replied, pushing his hair back from his forehead gently.

“Do I really have to go see him tomorrow?”

Amy sighed. She set aside the book she’d pulled out for them to read and sat down on the edge of the bed. “Sam, you know it’s your weekend with your dad. I’m sure he wants to hear all about how much you love school.”

“No he doesn’t,” Sam insisted. “He doesn’t like me.”

Amy wanted to cry. They’d had this conversation before and each time it still hurt. She didn’t know why Teddy couldn’t fake it more when he spent time with his child. She didn’t know why everything else in Teddy’s life had to come before Sam. “Yes, he does like you. I promise. He just has a different way of showing it.”

“Aaron’s dad coaches his soccer team,” Sam rattled off. “And John’s dad takes him to the park all the time. Why can’t my dad be like that?”

Amy sped past the accidental mention of Jake in order to try and comfort her son. “Sweetie, I know that you would rather spend time with me this weekend, but I’m just going to clean all weekend. Wouldn’t you rather see your dad than have me make you clean?”

“No, I like helping you clean,” Sam insisted. Amy laughed to herself. Of course that had rubbed off on her child.

“Look, how about this,” Amy negotiated, “If you go to your dad’s and you try to have fun with him, and I mean really try, we can go out for ice cream when I pick you up from school on Monday. How does that sound?”

Sam looked like he was thinking it over. “Okay.” He looked down at the book next to Amy’s hand. “Can we still read some?”

Amy smirked, kissing her son on the forehead. “I think we have time for one chapter.” She opened up to where they’d ended the night before and began to read to him. “Malfoy couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw that Harry and Ron were still at Hogwarts the next day, looking tired but perfectly cheerful,” Amy read aloud to her eager son. Amy hadn’t been able to resist passing on her love of Harry Potter to her child. Still, it had been a long week and Sam was asleep before the troll even left the dungeons. She pulled his blankets up tighter around him, kissed him one more time, and turned the lamp off next to his bed.

Amy strolled into her room and threw herself down on her bed. She always felt so guilty sending Sam to Teddy’s. She knew that Teddy only took Sam two weekends a month because he felt obligated. And she knew that Sam was always miserable when he was there. But that was the custody agreement they’d reached and she knew if she tried to change it now that Teddy’s parents would riot.

She was flipped over and laid on her back. That was when she felt her phone in her back pocket. Suddenly she remembered that Jake had called her. Quickly she pulled her phone out to call him back. She caught herself smiling as she tapped his number on the screen. Admittedly, she liked Jake. They hadn’t seen each other since their coffee outing other than picking up the boys at school. They always chatted a little bit until the boys dragged them off, ready to head home. Sometimes, especially recently, they’d text each other back and forth, discussing the life of a single parent/detective. Even just over text messaging, Jake made her laugh. And it had been a long time since a man had consistently made Amy laugh like that.

She fought the smile forming on her face as she heard the ringing on the other end. It rang twice before Jake picked up. “Hey!” He greeted cheerily.

“Hi! Sorry I missed your call earlier. It was bedtime and we were reading Harry Potter,” she explained.

“What?” Jake asked with a laugh. “You’re reading Harry Potter to your five year old?”

Amy felt defensive. “We’re only on the first one. We just read a little bit each night. What’s so bad about that?”

“I don’t know. I guess I would just think it was scary for a five year old,” Jake wondered. “I don’t know though because I’ve never read them.”

“What?” Amy cried. “You should! They’re so good!”

Jake laughed. “All right, I’ll take your word for it.”

“I mean it, you should read them,” Amy insisted. She could hear Jake still laughing on the other end. “Anyway, what’s up?” “Oh right, I called you first,” Jake remembered. “So my mom called me tonight insisting that she wants a weekend with just John. She said I look tired or something. Anyway, so she’s going to have him this weekend which made me wonder if you would want to get dinner or something.”

“Are you asking me out?” Amy joked.

“Yeah, I thought that was pretty obvious,” Jake retorted.

“Fair enough,” Amy chuckled.

“So…”

“Uh, yeah! Your timing is actually pretty good because Sam is spending the weekend with Teddy. So I’m free too,” Amy informed him.

“Wow, that is good timing. Imagine two single parents actually having free time on the same weekend. What are the odds of that?” Jake wondered aloud.

“Must be fate,” Amy mused with a laugh.

“I guess so,” Jake agreed. “So how does Saturday sound?”

“That sounds great!”

“Great!”

Amy expected Jake to hang up but he asked her about work and an hour later they were still talking. Amy couldn’t wipe the smile off her face as they spoke. She couldn’t really remember the last time she’d felt so light just talking to someone. Amy eyed her closet from where she laid on her bed, already trying to decide what she should wear on Saturday.

“I’m not saying you should be a crappy dad,” Amy argued, “I’m just saying my kid is jealous of your kid.”

Jake placed his hand over his heart. “I am truly so touched by that.”

Amy glared at him, smacking him on the arm. “Seriously?”

“Okay but think about it from my perspective,” Jake reasoned, “I have gotten ‘Billy has a dad and a mom, why don’t I?’ So hearing that one of my kid’s friends is jealous because I take him to the park after school sometimes makes me feel pretty great. Though I am obviously sorry that Sam feels jealous of John and that Sam has a crappy dad.”

Amy sighed and shook her head. “Okay, I guess I see your point.”

The hostess approached them. “You’re table is right this way.” They followed her, Jake placing his hand on Amy’s back for her to go ahead of him.

“So tell me about Sam,” Jake asked once they were seated and perusing the menus.

“He is five years old,” Amy joked.

Jake rolled his eyes at her. “I obviously knew that. I mean I hear about him from a kid’s perspective. But what’s he like?”

Amy smiled broadly. She was so touched Jake asked. There had been very few people who’d ever asked her about her son in that way. “Uh, he’s great! I mean, I’m pretty biased, but he really is. He likes to play “Kitchen.” I’m hoping that will form into an actual hobby of liking to cook from a young age because I’m a dreadful cook,” she said with a laugh. “But he’s smart. I swear he’s like this close to reading.”

“No!” Jake yelled, maybe a bit too loudly, but it made Amy laugh. “You can’t be that parent. Your kid’s already reading? Come on! Give the rest of us a break!”

Amy laughed heartily. “I can’t help it. I passed my nerdiness on to him. He has liked having me read him books since he was a baby. He used to just lay there and stare up at me as I read him stories. It was awesome.”

Jake smiled brightly. “It sounds awesome. Also, unrelated, but once John gets home from my mom’s tomorrow, I’m starting an intensive reading camp for him every single night. It will end when he can read proficiently.”

“Oh great,” Amy said with a laugh, “You’re doing both of us a favor. You’re gonna get John to read and Sam will stop being jealous of you because all John is going to do is complain about his daddy making him learn to read nonstop.”

Jake lifted his hands up dramatically. “See? I’m benefitting everyone.”

“So what’s John like?”

Jake smiled thoughtfully. “I would also have to say that he’s great. I don’t really know how with just having me, but he is. He’s funny. He constantly makes me laugh. He likes to make up jokes to make me laugh. For a five year old, I’d say he’s pretty witty.” Jake broke off at the sight of Amy staring at him with a smile on her face. “I don’t know, he just loves to have fun. He loves being outside and running around. And he loves to wear me out. I swear, chasing him around is harder than chasing perps.”

Amy leaned her head back in laughter. “Yes! Why is chasing a five year old more exhausting than being a cop?”

“I don’t know, but it’s so true!”

They both laughed, smiling at each other in the silence that followed. “So why did you become a cop?” Jake asked.

As much as Amy loved talking about her son, she really appreciated Jake asking about her. She liked Jake and she wanted them to get to know each other more than just as the parents of their child’s friend. So Amy talked all about her dad being a cop and his dad being a cop. And Jake talked about watching Die Hard and wanting to become a cop. And before she knew it the conversation steered away from their mutual work as well. They were just talking about their lives and their interests. And Amy couldn’t help it, but she felt smitten.

Since Amy lived a few blocks from the restaurant, Jake volunteered to walk her home. It was a beautiful September evening and it just added to the way Amy was feeling. She doubted herself and wondered if she only liked Jake because he was one of the first people in over five years to show her actual interest. When he genuinely laughed at a joke she made, she couldn’t deny the butterflies in her stomach. When he grabbed her hand to shuffle around some people on the sidewalk, she couldn’t deny the warmth she felt just from holding his hand.

Soon enough, they were at her stoop. She wished the night didn’t have to end, but it was far too soon to invite him up. Given the way she felt around him, she didn’t trust herself. “Thanks for tonight,” she said kindly. “This was really nice.”

Jake smiled brightly. “I agree.”

“Maybe sometime soon we can find the time in our crazy lives to do so again?” Amy ventured.

Jake nodded. “I certainly hope so.” He stepped a bit closer to her. “I had a really good time tonight.”

Amy smiled. “Yeah, I did too.”

Slowly Jake raised his hand, cupping the side of Amy’s face. He only had to lean in part way before Amy met him for the kiss. He kissed her gently, bringing his other hand to her back. She wrapped both arms around him, eagerly returning the kiss. Too soon for her liking, Jake released her with a smile. “Goodnight, Amy.”

She leaned in for another quick kiss. “Goodnight, Jake.”

He stayed there as she walked up to the door of her building. With a wave, she disappeared inside the door. She stood, leaning against the door, a smile plastered across her face. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt this intensely happy.

As time went on, the nightly calls to each other became more common. Texting each other throughout the day was pretty much a given. And dates somehow became slightly more regular. It was still hard to find a time when both of them didn’t feel like they were abandoning their kids. After a month and a half, they’d been on a handful of dates.

Jake felt like he knew Amy really well though. They may not see each other as much as they’d both like to, but they talked a lot and it helped form the closeness they shared. Jake couldn’t help but marvel at how perfectly it had come together. What were the odds that he’d meet such an amazing woman and she would be the mom of his son’s best friend? He wasn’t a gambler, but he’d bet that those odds were slim. And yet, he was so happy with Amy. She was the only other person he knew who he felt got it.

He was sitting at his desk in the middle of November when his desk phone rang. “Detective Peralta,” he answered.

“Jake! Hey, it’s Amy!”

“Hey!” he greeted. “What’s up? Why are you calling me on my work phone?”

“Because I’m supposed to be working and no one would be suspicious of me calling another precinct.”

Jake chuckled. “Good thinking.”

“Anyway, I have a huge favor to ask of you,” Amy informed him.

“Ask away.”

“Is your babysitter picking up John today?”

“No, I am.”

“Oh,” she said softly.

“Amy, what’s up?” Jake prodded.

Amy sighed over the phone. “I was supposed to pick up Sam today too but now I don’t know if I’ll be able to get away. Would it be way too much of me to ask if you could pick him up?”

“Not at all. Why would that be too much to ask?” Jake asked.

“I don’t know. We haven’t told the boys anything is going on. And it’s not like you’ve spent any time with Sam. I don’t want you to feel like I’m asking this ridiculous thing of you,” Amy rambled.

“Ames,” Jake said in a soothing voice. “For all they’ll think, I’m taking them to have a play date or whatever. They’ll just be excited to spend the afternoon together. It’ll be fine. I can absolutely pick up Sam.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes!” Jake replied confidently. “I mean I’m gonna have to spend time with your son eventually, right?”

Amy chuckled through the phone. “I suppose so. I just imagined I’d be there.”

“Well, sure.”

“Thank you, Jake. I owe you.”

“You don’t owe me anything,” Jake assured her.

“You’re the best,” she replied.

“I know,” Jake said with a laugh. “Now you should get back to work so you aren’t there all night.”

“Good idea. I’ll see you later!”

“I can’t wait!” Jake answered before hanging up the phone.

Charles walked over to Jake’s desk a bit later in the day. “So are you still good for me coming over tonight to consult you on what meal I should cook for Genevieve for the first time?”

Jake looked up at him curiously until he remembered what Charles was talking about. “Oh shoot. That was tonight?” Charles nodded. “I can’t, Buddy, I’m sorry. I promised Amy I’d pick up Sam and bring him home with me to hang out with John tonight.”

“Wait, so you’re spending time alone with Amy’s kid?”

Jake replied hesitantly. “Yes.”

“Oh my God, this is huge!”

Jake groaned. “No it’s not, Charles. Please don’t make this a big deal.”

“But it is!” Jake opened his mouth to negate him, but Charles continued. “Listen, Jake, you like this kid’s mother. A lot. You don’t think it’s a big deal that this kid likes you? You don’t think it’ll help if he goes home talking about how much fun he had with John’s dad? Because this is the last piece of the puzzle. You and Amy like each other. And your kids like each other. But what if Sam doesn’t like you? Or what if John doesn’t like Amy?”

“Please, John will love Amy,” Jake argued, too unsure to argue whether Sam would love him.

“Okay. I’m just saying, don’t play this off as nothing, Jake. You like Amy so you are bound to be nervous about whether her son likes you,” Charles maintained.

“Fine, I might be a little nervous. But I wasn’t nearly as nervous as I am now that you’ve gone on about it for ten minutes,” Jake retorted.

“Don’t worry, what’s not to love about you, Jakey?”

Jake rolled his eyes, trying to get back to his work. Not sensing this, Charles sat down in the chair next to Jake’s desk. “So things are getting pretty serious with Amy, huh?”

Jake looked over at him. “Why do you say that?”

“You’re nervous about meeting her kid. She’s letting you pick up her kid. She wouldn’t do that if things weren’t getting serious between you,” Charles insisted.

“I mean I guess maybe they are. It feels weird saying that though. We’ve only been on like six dates.”

“But don’t you talk like all the time?” Charles interrogated.

Jake nodded, secretly wishing Charles would leave him to evaluate his relationship on his own. “Yeah. We talk almost every night on the phone after the boys are in bed.”

Charles beamed at him. “That’s beautiful.”

Jake rolled his eyes and pointed back to Charles’s desk. “Okay, you can go now.”

“Okay, but I’ll be here if you need advice,” Charles nearly crooned. Jake shook his head and tried to get back to work. He tried not to spend the rest of the day thinking about what he’d do with the boys. Or better yet, the way things were progressing with Amy. He really did have strong feelings for her. And as much as he wanted Charles to be wrong, it did matter how it went with Sam.

“Daddy!” John called as he ran across the room to Jake. Jake squatted down and hugged his son.

“How was your day?”

“Good!” John exclaimed.

“How would you feel if your friend Sam got to come home and play with us?” Jake asked, already knowing the answer.

John gasped and Jake smiled. “Can he?” As if he knew they were talking about him, Sam ran over to John and Jake. “Sam, my dad said you can come home and play with me!”

“Really?” Sam asked excitedly. Jake marveled at how excited the boys were.

“Yeah, I talked to your mom earlier. You’re gonna come hang out with us for a while tonight. How does that sound?” Jake asked.

“Good!” Sam yelled. The boys started talking excitedly to each other.

Jake looked over at Miss Miller. “Did Amy call earlier about me taking Sam home?”

“Yep!” she replied, “And they’re free to go!”

“Thanks!” Jake said before turning back to the boys. “You boys ready to go?”

“Yeah!” they both yelled. Jake laughed and grabbed both of their hands, leading them out of the school and to his car.

They’d played at the park for a while, gotten ice cream on the way back to Jake’s apartment, and the boys were happily playing in John’s room as Jake prepared dinner for them. Even though he was down the hall, he could hear them laughing and yelling as they played. He smiled to himself, thinking on how the day actually went pretty well.

Jake set out bowls of his best macaroni and cheese on the table and called the boys down to eat. They thundered down the hall toward the kitchen. Both of them were about to sit down when Sam stopped. “Wait,” he said, holding out his hand to John, “we should wash our hands before we eat.”

Jake choked back a laugh. “Yes, you should,” he agreed. “Good idea, Sam!”

After they’d both washed their hands, and possibly made a huge mess in the bathroom, they came and sat down at the table with Jake. All it took was one bite of the mac and cheese for Sam to compliment Jake. “Wow, Mr. Peralta, this is really good!”

“Thank you, Sam.”

“My mom’s isn’t this good,” Sam said as he shoveled more in his mouth. Jake once again choked back a laugh, while noting that he should definitely rub it in Amy’s face later. He listened as the boys talked about school. Conversations with five year olds weren’t exactly the most scintillating, but Jake was thoroughly enjoying it. A knock at the door signaled Amy’s likely arrival.

“That’s probably your mom, Sam,” Jake informed them. “You two keep eating. I’ll get the door.” Jake walked down to the front door and opened it to see a haggard Amy standing there. “Hey,” he greeted.

“Hi,” she said miserably. “Thank you so much for getting Sam.”

Jake just shrugged and gestured for her to come in. “It was really no problem Amy.”

“Work just got so bungled. I had no way of leaving earlier than I did. I really appreciate it, Jake, whether it was no problem or not,” she said, leaning in and hugging him quickly.

“It was fun. We all had a pretty fun time today. We played at the park, given what you mentioned to me, and we had some ice cream. Don’t give me that look. And then we came back here. They played and now they’re eating. I’d say overall it was a large success,” Jake mused.

Amy shook her head with a grin. “Well I’m glad.”

“Mommy!” Sam yelled. Jake turned around to see him running from the kitchen towards Amy. She leaned down and hugged him tightly. “Mommy, we’re having mac and cheese!”

“You are?”

“Yeah. Mr. Peralta’s mac and cheese is better than yours!” Sam yelled, as he ran back to the kitchen.

Amy gave Jake a questioning glare. “I swear I didn’t put him up to that. He just volunteered that,” Jake promised. Amy shook her head. “Have you eaten? I have plenty.”

“I suppose I can eat some of your betrayal mac and cheese,” Amy sighed, walking toward the kitchen. Jake laughed as he walked behind her. Jake filled a bowl as she sat down in the empty seat next to John. “You must be John. I’ve heard a lot about you from Sam.”

John was experiencing his rare shyness and very quietly replied, “Yeah.” Amy just smiled and patted him on the back as Jake gave her the bowl of food. John’s shyness disappeared quickly. “Are you Sam’s mom?”

“I am,” Amy replied happily.

John looked over at Jake, “Dad, she is pretty.”

Amy burst out laughing and looked over at Jake whose face suddenly felt very warm. He just shook his head at his son amusedly. “I guess child betrayal is just the theme for tonight,” Jake mused.

Amy took a bite of her mac and cheese and groaned slightly. She looked at Jake with an expression of betrayal. “Crap, he’s right. This is better than mine. How terrible is this for me?”

Jake laughed heartily. “I don’t think it’s any worse than any other kind of mac and cheese.”

“Daddy, we’re done,” John informed Jake. “Can we go play?”

Jake looked over at Amy quickly and she shrugged. “Sure!” They both jumped up. “Ah, John, what should you do first?”

John turned back to the table and grabbed his plate, walking it over to the sink. Sam quickly followed his lead. “Thank you for dinner, Mr. Peralta,” Sam said as he walked out of the kitchen past Jake.

Jake looked over at Amy with a dopey grin on his face. “Amy, he is so precious.”

Amy smiled widely. “Thanks. I agree.”

They had cleaned up after dinner, despite Jake insisting Amy didn’t need to help and Amy helping anyway. “I hate to say it, but I’m kinda glad your work went crazy,” Jake said with a shy grin.

“Why’s that?” Amy asked, stepping closer to him.

“Because then I got to see you sooner than I thought I would,” Jake reasoned.

Amy smiled and leaned up to kiss him quickly. “Well I guess I’m glad for that reason too then.” She sighed. “I should probably take Sam home so he can get to bed.”

Jake nodded and they walked down the hall toward John’s room. Amy held out her hand to stop Jake using police signals. Jake almost laughed out loud. But she was trying to listen to something Sam was saying. Jake leaned closer to hear too.

“Do you like your mom?” Sam asked.

“I don’t know my mom,” John replied. Jake felt his heart sink. He was waiting for the very statement he’d feared of hearing for five years. Amy turned around and looked at Jake sympathetically. “But it’s okay,” John said. “I like my dad. And he says that we’re just enough.” Amy smiled and grabbed Jake’s hand with a squeeze.

“Can I tell you a secret?” Sam asked. Amy looked at Jake with a concerned expression. “I don’t like my dad,” Sam said sadly. Jake squeezed Amy’s hand in his as he saw her face fall. “He doesn’t do anything fun with me like your dad does with you. We never go play at the park.”

“That’s okay,” John answered. “You can play with me and my dad.”

“Okay, I want to,” Sam replied cheerily.

Jake shook his head with a low chuckle. Amy smiled at him. “I guess today went pretty well.”

He shrugged. “I guess so.”

“Maybe sometime soon I can repay the favor and pick up the boys. Get to spend some time with John,” Amy offered.

Jake smiled. “I think he’d like that.”

They shook off the big moment between them and walked into John’s bedroom. “You ready to go, Sam?” Amy asked.

“No! Can’t I just stay?” Sam whined.

“Sorry, Sweetie, but your bed is at home,” Amy reminded him. “Besides, I think we’ve intruded enough for the night. And you’ll see John tomorrow at school.” Begrudgingly, Sam got up and said goodbye to John. John was walking to the front door with him. Jake and Amy were walking toward the door when Amy ducked in the kitchen. Confused, Jake followed her. “Hey, what do you think your chances would be of getting a babysitter this weekend?” Amy asked.

Jake shrugged. “I don’t know. Probably good. What are you thinking?”

“I don’t know, just that I’d like to see you,” Amy replied. “How would Friday work?”

“So soon,” Jake teased. “I think that sounds perfect.”

“Great!” Amy exclaimed. She leaned in, kissing him deeply. Jake wrapped his arms around her tightly, reciprocating the kiss. Amy started to run her fingers through his hair. Jake was getting lost in their kiss. It wasn’t until they heard a loud laugh from the hall that they broke apart, remembering the children waiting for them. They flashed each other guilty looks and walked back to the door.

“Well we had lots of fun today, Sam,” Jake said to the five year old. “You are welcome to come play with John anytime.”

Amy mouthed “thank you” to him as she saw the thrilled look on Sam’s face. “Really?” Sam asked excitedly.

“Of course, Buddy!”

“Thank you, Mr. Peralta!” Sam yelled, running over and giving Jake a hug around the legs. Jake bent down and returned the hug. He didn’t miss the look on Amy’s face as he stood back up. They all bid each other goodbye and after enough time, Amy and Sam left, leaving Jake to feel like the apartment was emptier somehow. He shook his head. It was much too early for thoughts like that.

Jake had tucked John into bed and was laying on his own bed watching some late night show when his phone started buzzing. He laughed when he looked at the screen and saw Amy was calling. “Hello?”

“Today was a mistake,” Amy replied without even saying hello.

Jake’s stomach sank. “Why?”

“Because if I have to hear one more time about how much Sam wants to go play at John’s or go to the park with John and his dad, I’m going to lose it!” She said a bit shrilly.

Jake felt relief as he laid his head back on the pillow, laughing. “Oh thank God. I thought you were gonna say something else.”

“No. He loved you. He had so much fun today,” Amy reassured. “Which I’m glad he did, but at the same time, I’d like to talk about something else.”

Jake was still laughing. “I’m sorry that your kid is so obsessed with me.”

“Mhmm…I’m sure you are.” Jake couldn’t see Amy, but he could picture the face she was making. After a brief pause, Amy said in a small voice, “I’m excited for Friday.”

Friday came and Jake had managed to find a babysitter. Charles agreed that he and Genevieve would watch John as “practice.” Jake didn’t care as long as they agreed to watch him. He trusted them with his son, so he felt comfortable leaving for the night.

They met at a bar of Amy’s choosing. They hadn’t been there too long before Amy spotted him. She stood up quickly and stormed over to the bar. She noticed Jake following quickly in her stride.

“Teddy?” She asked as she looked upon the face of her ex-fiancé.

“Amy, what are you doing here?” he asked.

Amy gaped at him. “I should ask you the same thing. Where is our son?”

Teddy shook his head. “Don’t worry, he’s with his babysitter.”

“Excuse me?”

“What? You think I’d just leave him at home alone?” Teddy asked with a scoff.

“My question is more, why are you here when it is your weekend with him?” Amy asked pointedly.

“A buddy was going through something so I said I’d be here. I forgot I was supposed to have the kid but I found a sitter. My old lady neighbor is great with kids.”

Amy was so close to blowing up on him. “You know, this is why he hates coming to stay with you. This is why he begs me to let him stay with me instead. You get two weekends a month with your son. Why don’t you actually spend time with him?”

Teddy glared at her. “Listen, I don’t tell you what to do with your time, hanging all over some guy in a bar like a –” Amy’s glare cut him off. “So don’t feel like you can tell me what to do with my time.”

Amy had a million retorts spinning around in her head. She’d seen this Teddy before though. A pilsner in hand, a glassy look in his eye, a scowl upon his face. This was not a Teddy that you could win against. Everything you did was wrong. And Amy wasn’t having it tonight. She’d been really excited to see Jake and spend time with him. She wasn’t about to let Teddy ruin that. She shook her head and turned around, walking away from Teddy. Jake followed her back to their table.

“What do you want to do?” Jake asked hesitantly. “Do you want to go somewhere else? Do you want to go home? Do you want to beat him up? I’ll help. Do you want to go get Sam?”

Amy looked up at Jake and smiled. He was so understanding. “Do I want to beat him up? Yes, definitely. But we’re both cops so I don’t see that ending well.”

“What about Sam?”

Amy shrugged. “As much as it pisses me off, I have to leave Sam with his babysitter and his crappy dad.”

“Why? I mean why even give him visitation? He clearly doesn’t value it,” Jake asked.

A sad looked crossed Amy’s face. “It’s his parents. They’d fight me if I didn’t give him time with Sam. And they’re the type of people who would get sway and win. And I’d lose my son to someone who doesn’t even want him.”

Jake gaped at her. He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “So what do you want to do?”

Amy leaned her head into Jake’s hand. “We could go somewhere else.” Jake nodded and gestured for her to lead the way. Once they were out of the bar, Amy turned to Jake on the sidewalk. “Okay, this may sound super lame. Tell me if it is. But we could always just grab takeout and go back to my place. I have beer.”

Jake smirked. “I think that sounds great. Way better than some noisy bar with annoying people.”

By the time they’d gotten back to Amy’s, they were getting close to being starving. Amy put on a movie as Jake got out takeout boxes and set them across her coffee table. “Wait,” Jake said, pointing at the TV and stopping her in her tracks, “is any of this animated?”

Amy grinned. “No.”

“Is it rated above G?”

Still grinning, Amy said, “Yes.”

Jake fist pumped the air. “Yes! What a change of pace!”

Amy laughed as she sat down next to him, reaching for her food. She cuddled up against him, eating her Chinese out of the container. Every now and then, they’d pick bits from each other’s containers. The movie played on in the background as they talked. It kept playing as Amy kissed Jake’s jaw and as that little kiss turned into them making out heavily on her couch. It played on as Jake worked at the buttons on Amy’s shirt and she undid the button of his jeans. They didn’t take the time to stop the movie as they tripped and stumbled while kissing on their way to Amy’s bedroom, their clothes leaving a trail behind them.

A bit later, Amy laid curled up against Jake’s body, leaving little kisses along his neck. “Holy crap,” she panted.

“Yeah,” Jake agreed breathily.

“I wish you didn’t have to go home,” Amy said regretfully.

Jake looked down at her. “I don’t have to be home for a while,” he reminded her with a sinful look on his face. He leaned back in, kissing her deeply. Amy responded equally, though both were too spent to do much more than kiss.

Eventually though, Jake did have to go home. He kissed her passionately against the door, blocking his exit. Pulling back, he laid his forehead against hers. “I had a really great time tonight.”

Amy smiled broadly. “You and me both.”

“Let’s do this again soon,” Jake said. His eyes went wide. “I mean this like a date, not this like –”

Amy laid her hand on his chest. “I knew what you meant. Although I’d be fine with both,” she added with a suggestive grin.

“Me too,” Jake smirked, leaning in to kiss her again. He broke the kiss quickly. “Okay, now I really have to go.” Amy stepped out of the way of the door. He gave her a sweet kiss on the cheek. “Goodnight, Amy.”

“Goodnight,” she replied with a smile. He couldn’t resist kissing her one more time before he left.

It took a while for their next date to line up. Between the holidays approaching, and just the general craziness of work and single parenting, it wasn’t happening as fast as either of them would like. Talking on the phone started happening every night after the boys’ bedtimes. Sometimes it got a bit steamier than usual. Amy still felt as close to Jake as she had before, despite the weeks it had been since they’d spent time alone. They conveniently ran into each other when picking up their sons. They got little times here and there when they actually got to see each other and both of them admitted that they were grateful for it.

So safe to say, by the time the end of December rolled around and they’d actually found the time to schedule a date, Amy was pretty amped up for it. Her parents had blessedly requested all grandchildren stay at their house after Christmas for a few extra days. It was a nice little gift (to them and to her). That meant she could have some time to herself, but also some time with Jake.

The plan was a nice dinner and something else afterward that Jake wouldn’t tell her. She was to the point where she was giddy to be spending time alone with him. Amy was ready to go half an hour before he was set to pick her up. Seven o’clock came and Jake wasn’t there. She figured there could be traffic, so she didn’t freak yet. When seven thirty hit and she didn’t even have a text from him, she started to get skeptical. At eight o’clock, Amy just got mad. She threw her coat back on and stormed out the door. There had to be some reason why Jake just flaked on their date. Maybe he wasn’t as excited for it as she was, but still, she deserved an explanation.

Stomping up to his door, Amy didn’t even consider anything else that could be wrong. If anything was seriously wrong, he’d have let her know. She had no idea what this could be. Amy beat on his door, ready to figure out why he’d stood her up. Jake opened the door looking harried, a sleeping John curled around him like a reversed backpack. She saw his surprised expression fall as he took in her appearance. He held one finger over his lips, to let her know they should be quiet, but he stood back and gestured her to come in.

Amy walked in, seeing things strewn across the apartment. She had no idea what could have happened. She’d been to Jake’s place before, and though he said he could be messy, she’d never seen it like this. Jake was sitting down on the couch, trying not to wake his son. Amy sat down gently next to him.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I completely forgot. It’s been kind of insane around here today.”

Amy shrugged. For all the anger that had built up in her over the last hour or more, she deflated at the sight of Jake looking like a mess. “What happened?” Amy asked softly.

Jake rubbed his hand up and down John’s back. “Sophia came by today.”

Amy gaped at him. “What?” Had it not been for the sleeping child, she’d have had a much louder reaction.

“Yeah,” Jake confirmed. “She apparently wants some amount of custody now. And John didn’t even know who she was, but he heard some woman saying she was going to take him from me and he broke down. He finally cried himself to sleep on my shoulder about an hour and a half ago.” Amy stared at him in shock. “I’m really sorry. I should have at least texted you.”

Amy shook her head. “Jake, don’t be sorry. That sounds like a disaster. I’m the last thing you should be worrying about.”

Jake smiled at her. “I’m still sorry to have ruined our date. It’s been a month.”

Amy rubbed her hand up and down Jake’s arm. “I think we’ll be okay.” She leaned over and kissed his shoulder. He looked at her with a sad smile. “So what does Sophia want?”

“Custody,” Jake confirmed. “I don’t know how much or what. She just came by and said she’d thought a lot about it and she wanted to be a part of her son’s life and she was willing to fight me in court for custody.”

Amy shook her head. “Jake, I’m so sorry. That’s ridiculous.”

She could see tears building in Jake’s eyes. “I know it is. I’m just…what if she wins? What if she decides she wants full custody of him and she wins? I can’t lose him. He’s my son. I have been there for everything. He’s the most important thing in my life. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost him.” His tears spilled over his cheeks. Amy reached up to wipe them before they fell down onto John.

“Everything you just said is why you aren’t going to lose him, Jake,” Amy reassured. “You’re an amazing dad. Anyone who’s ever seen you with him can attest to that. We’ll get you a great lawyer who can battle anyone Sophia’s gonna hire. And we’ll make damn sure John doesn’t go anywhere.”

“We?” Jake asked hesitantly.

“You’d think I’d ditch you?” Amy asked, a pointed look on her face.

“No,” Jake stated. “But this is big.”

“Yeah, but so is the way I feel about you,” Amy admitted. “And your son.”

Jake’s face broke out in a small smile. “Thank you, Amy.” She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair comfortingly. She saw his eyes flutter a little. “I don’t really even know where to start,” Jake admitted. “I never thought this would happen.”

“Well why would you?” Amy asked. “She left.” Amy pinned Jake with a meaningful look. “We’ll find the best way to beat her, I promise Jake. John isn’t going anywhere.”

Jake looked at Amy with a grateful expression. “Amy, I…” he trailed off, his face contorting. Finally, he smiled at her. “I appreciate you. I don’t know what I’d do without you either.”

Amy smiled, running her fingers back through his hair. “Well you don’t have to worry about that either.”

“Oh my God,” Amy muttered a week later. “Jake! Jake, I found it!” Amy yelled across his apartment. She could hear the boys playing obliviously in the other room as Jake ran into the living room.

“What did you find?” Jake panted.

“You said you wanted to know why she suddenly wanted him back,” Amy reminded. “And I just found that reason. She’s running for mayor of New York City. It hasn’t even been announced yet. My guess is she wants all her ducks in a row before she announces and that’s why she wants John.” Jake threw himself down on the couch. “I’m guessing it will lose some people’s votes if it got out that she had a child and abandoned it. So now she’s trying to look like a present mother.”

Jake shook his head with a faraway glare on his face. “I can’t believe her,” he muttered to himself. He looked up at Amy. “We are not voting for her.”

Amy laughed, getting up and sitting next to him on the couch. “At least we have a good idea of why she’d do this.” Amy patted Jake’s leg comfortingly. “I mean, what messed up judge would take a kid from his amazing father and give him to the mother who only wants him so she can win an election. What is she going to do if she wins? Toss him back to you? Give him off to her arm candy husband?”

“Husband?” Jake asked, looking at Amy. She walked over and got her computer, showing the picture of them to Jake. “Oh my God,” Jake gasped. “She married him?”

“Who is it?”

“This slimeball she used to work with,” Jake explained. “We had a number of fights about him. I told her several times that he wanted to sleep with her. She always denied it. Well guess who was right?” Jake shook his head. “No, no way am I letting that dick anywhere near my son.”

“Have you heard back from your lawyer?” Amy asked.

“Yeah, we meet tomorrow afternoon,” Jake replied. “Speaking of which, can yo-”

“Yes, I can get the boys,” Amy assured him with a smile.

Jake let out a sigh. He leaned in and kissed the side of her head. “Thank you, Amy.”

“I’m just picking up my kid and getting one more, it’s not that big a deal,” Amy laughed.

“I didn’t mean just that,” Jake insisted. “I mean for everything. You’ve been my rock for the last week and I…I really don’t know what I’d do without you. You’ve been calming me down right and left. And I mean we aren’t even to court yet.”

Amy put her computer down and grabbed Jake’s hand in both of hers. “I know for a fact that if Teddy made some crazy play for Sam, you would do the exact same thing. You have nothing to thank me for. That little boy deserves to be here in his home. With his dad who he loves. And I can testify to that if need be.”

Jake just smiled and shook his head at her in awe.

Amy was making dinner for the boys at her home the next day when John wandered into the kitchen. She was sad that Jake was in the situation he was in, but she was secretly happy to get to spend more time with John. She’d seen the immediate effect Jake had had on Sam. She only hoped she could rub off on John that well.

“Miss Amy?” John asked, calling attention to his arrival in the room.

Amy spun around at her name. She’d told John he could call her that when he was confused that her last name wasn’t Wells like Sam. “Yes, John?” Amy asked, walking over towards him.

“Can I ask you something?”

Amy knelt down in front of him. “Honey, you can ask me anything.”

“Is my dad coming back?”

Amy felt her stomach sink. She reached out and placed her hands on John’s shoulders. “Of course he is, John. He’s just in a meeting. He asked if I could pick you up so you could play with Sam.”

He nodded slightly. “But what about the lady who wants to take me away?”

Amy sat down in one of her kitchen chairs and pulled John onto her lap. “Listen, no one is going to take you away from your dad. He’s fighting really hard to make sure that doesn’t happen, okay? Because your dad, he loves you more than anything. And he isn’t going to let anyone take you away from him.” John sniffled and nodded. “And you know what? Sam and I won’t let anyone take you away either. We love you too.”

John smiled and threw both his arms around Amy in a hug. She felt tears springing in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around John. John ended the hug and looked at Amy. “And you’ll make sure no one takes me away?”

Amy nodded sincerely. “I promise.”

“Thank you, Miss Amy,” he said, climbing down off her lap. Amy nodded at him in reply. He turned to go back to Sam’s room. Suddenly, he turned back. “I like you, Miss Amy.”

Amy smiled widely. “Thank you, John. I like you too.”

John smiled and ran off to play with Sam.

For almost two months, Jake and Amy had been doing everything they could to be prepared for a custody hearing. The date was still pending. Jake’s lawyer informed him that sometimes it can take a while to get a court date. So in the meantime, they found anything that would help prove that Sophia shouldn’t get custody and all the good reasons that Jake should keep John. Amy had been coming over to Jake’s apartment with Sam pretty much every day after work or school. The boys seemed content to play together and spend plenty of time hanging out. Jake sometimes couldn’t help but stare at Amy in awe. She’d thrown herself into this mess without a second thought. He’d said it before and he’d meant it; he didn’t know what he’d do without her. He loved her, but he had no idea how to tell her while his life was such a mess.

Amy was out with the boys picking up dinner for them all when Jake got a call from his lawyer. Apparently a court date had been set suddenly. They were meeting in a week. Jake threw his phone on the couch and paced up and down his living room. A knock at the door jolted Jake out of his fury. It couldn’t be Amy. She had a key.

He walked over and opened the door to see Sophia standing there. He glared at her. “Jake, hi,” she said casually. “So we have a court date set for a week from today.”

“Yes, I heard,” Jake replied in a low voice.

“Great,” Sophia responded sweetly, smiling at Jake. “However, you know we could just use a mediator and not have to go to court. I know a good mediator that would be willing to meet with us at our earliest convenience.”

Jake stared at her skeptically. “You really think I’m going to use one of your friends as a mediator? Where’s the objectivity in that?” Sophia rolled her eyes and strolled past Jake into the apartment. “Yeah, sure, come right on in,” he commented sarcastically.

“I don’t know why you won’t work with me?” Sophia yelled.

Jake laughed dryly. “Gee, I don’t know, because you abandoned him five years ago and showed zero remorse until you had a big election coming up that you wanted to look good in.”

Sophia looked shocked. “How do you know about that?”

“I’m a detective. Remember?”

Sophia shook her head. “Jake, I don’t get why you’re acting this way. I’m his mother.”

“Yeah, but it’s not like you’ve been his mother since you gave birth to him,” Jake retorted. Sophia rolled her eyes. “Sophia, you know nothing about him. You didn’t even know his name until you looked me up to find me again. I didn’t judge you for putting your career first. I always expected you to. That was why I was surprised when you wanted to go through with the pregnancy. I never judged you for trying to save your career since I knew how important it was to you. But I did judge you for how you did so. You just left him. And you didn’t even call me to tell me you were in labor. You just ghosted. We had solid plans for how we were going to raise our baby and then you left and I had to figure everything out by myself.”

Sophia’s face was blank. Jake had no indication of how his words were affecting her. “I don’t get why you’re so resistant to me being a part of my son’s life.”

“I’m resistant to you taking him.”

“God, it’s not like I’m kidnapping him, Jake,” Sophia argued. “I’m his mother. It is my right to be a part of his life.”

“It’s not a right. It is a privilege. And one you tossed away with him right after he was born,” Jake defended. “Sophia, you don’t even know him. You want to be a part of his life, start small. Don’t come running in again after five years waving custody papers. You really think he’s going to want to spend half his time with the woman who took him from his dad? Because that’s how he sees it. He doesn’t know who you are. And you’re going about this for you not for him. If you really cared about being his mother, you’d think about what was best for him and his well-being. And having you strut in and demand we all work with you so you can look like a mother and win your damn election is not what is in his best interest.”

Sophia stared at him with a furious look on her face. “I’m his mother,” she repeated.

“Biologically. But there are a lot of people who’ve been a better mother to him in the last five years. The years that he remembers,” Jake argued. “My mom, his teachers, Charles, his babysitters, my girlfriend,” Jake listed. He grimaced slightly. He hadn’t intended to ever mention Amy to Sophia. He knew she’d go after anyone she could.

Sophia’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Well, all I’m saying is you could have done this the easy way.”

Jake shook his head at her. “Said like a true politician. And nothing like a mother.” Jake heard the key in the lock seconds before it opened.

“Hey, we’re home!” Amy called before she spotted Jake in a heated standoff with Sophia. Jake could tell when she processed what was happening. “Boys, go wash your hands. Now.”

The boys ran off to the bathroom chattering about something. Amy sat the food down delicately on the table by the door. She turned to the door before looking back at Jake. “Should I leave the door open? Should I close it…?”

“Oh you can leave it open,” Jake answered. “She’s leaving.”

“No I’m not,” Sophia argued. “My son is here. I’d like to spend some time with him. Isn’t that what you wanted me to do before the hearing?”

“I believe I said instead of a hearing,” Jake reminded her.

“Whatever, I want to see him.”

“Well I hope you’re prepared for head lice then,” Amy interrupted. Jake looked over at her but she was staring at Sophia.

“Head lice?” Sophia asked, horror dripping from her tone.

“Yep, you get enough kids together and it’ll spread like wildfire. Both boys came home with it today,” Amy informed her.

“Well then I suppose I’ll see him soon enough,” Sophia replied, straightening her blazer. “And I’ll see you in court.”

“Can’t wait,” Jake said sarcastically. He shut the door heavily behind her. Turning to Amy, he looked at her skeptically. “Head lice? I picked up the boys today and Miss Miller didn’t say anything about it.”

Amy grinned deviously. “I know. But I figured with her nice looking suit and her expensive looking blowout, the last thing she’d want is some bugs jumping through her hair. I figured it would be enough to keep her away from John.”

Jake stared at her in awe. He brought her in for a hug. “You’re amazing. Did you know that?”

Amy pulled her head back and looked at him. “I’ve had an inkling.” Jake shook his head with a grin before he leaned in and kissed her quickly.

They were headed to the kitchen with dinner when Jake stopped Amy. “Oh by the way, the hearing is in one week.”

“How is it that fast?”

“I guess she knows people. And wants this to have died down by the time she announces her campaign,” Jake figured. Amy rolled her eyes and wrapped her arm around Jake’s waist, heading for the kitchen.

The custody hearing was a draining affair. It wasn’t until Jake and Amy met with Jake’s lawyer that morning that they found out that Sophia had changed her terms to full custody. Jake was near tears in anger. “I guess that’s what she meant by saying I could have done it the easy way.” Jake looked up at Amy and saw that she was seething.

“Jake, this is bullshit. There’s no way they’ll give him to her,” Amy insisted. “I mean yeah she has the mother title, but she gave him up. And you’re an amazing dad.”

Jake nodded solemnly, hoping against hope that Amy was right.

He appreciated all the people that had turned up to testify on Jake’s behalf. Charles gave a tearful testimony about how Jake struggled to adjust to being a single dad and then triumphed and became the best dad there was. Even his captain testified, saying that his upstanding work performance didn’t hold a candle to his parenting abilities. And while Jake was touched by all the other testimonies, Amy’s was the one that really hit him.

Jake’s lawyer started the questioning. “You’re Mr. Peralta’s girlfriend?” Amy nodded. “How long have you known Mr. Peralta?”

“I met Jake the day that our boys started kindergarten.”

“And how would you say that he is as a parent?”

Amy paused and looked at Jake. “I could tell from the moment that I met him that his child was his whole life. And after spending time with them together, it is obvious how easily the role of father fits him. He is patient with him and he does silly things just to make his son happy. He does more than just the feeding and clothing him and keeping a roof over his head that’s required of a parent. But Jake goes beyond that. He loves his son more than anything else. And it’s obvious. He is the only person who knows his son so well. Who knows his little eccentricities, who knows exactly how to hide vegetables in his food so he won’t know they’re there, who knows what’s wrong when he’s crying. You can say that Sophia is John’s mother. But for John’s whole life, Jake has been not only his dad, but also his mom. He’s done everything. And he loves it. He is such a good father to his son that my own son has expressed his jealousy over it. That’s what Jake is like as a parent.”

Jake could feel tears in his eyes as Amy made eye contact with him from the stand. Amy finished her testimony and walked down from the stand to sit back behind Jake. He felt her hand gently squeeze his shoulder. For a moment, he felt better.

And then he had to listen to Sophia’s side talk about how he was preventing her from being a mother and correcting a five year old mistake. He watched as they dragged out every dumb thing he’d ever done and cited it as him being capable of being a bad father. He had to hear them talk about how he told Sophia that she didn’t have to keep it, completely ignoring how he’d told her it was her legal right to choose. But apparently that didn’t matter when he was being smeared in court. As Sophia’s lawyers praised her, Jake became actually concerned that he might lose his child. Turning to his lawyer, he expressed an interest to be put on the stand.

They’d already heard Sophia’s tearful testimony about her mistakes and how she just wanted to be a mom. Jake had initially decided he didn’t want to testify on his own behalf. He was worried that he would get angry and say something he shouldn’t. But he couldn’t let them smear his name without sharing his side. Jake was the final person to testify before a decision would be reached.

“Mr. Peralta, why do you believe that you are the better parent for your son?”

“I’ll keep this short,” Jake began, “I’m the better parent for my son because I’m actually his parent. Parenting is more than DNA. It’s hard. It’s having your kid say that they hate you because you wouldn’t let them have ice cream after dinner. It’s holding them while they cry about something completely insignificant. It’s getting up in the middle of the night after you worked all day because your son had a nightmare and he’s inconsolable. It’s more than biology. I’m the better parent for my son because I want my son. I love my son and the reason that I want to keep custody of him is because I care for him and I have his best interest at heart. I’m not trying to gain custody because I have mayoral ambitions and having a full family will win me voters.”

He could see Sophia’s scandalized face out of the corner of his eye. But he kept going. “I am the only person my son knows as a parent. To take him from me would damage him emotionally. It is not in his best interest to go to his mother. And I certainly hope that’s what the court cares about here. About the child’s best interest.” So maybe he hadn’t kept it short, but based on his lawyer’s reaction to his testimony, Jake seemed to think he’d made a convincing argument.

The judge dismissed the court as a decision was being made. Jake waited on a bench just outside the door with Amy sitting next to him. Charles stood across from them, talking to their captain. Amy gripped Jake’s hand tightly in hers. He squeezed her hand, needing her support more than ever.

He was all but shaking as they were called back in to the courtroom. He saw Sophia with her husband behind her. She had a confident look on her face. Jake nervously stood for the judge.

“I’ve heard a lot of compelling arguments here today as to why both of you should have custody of your child,” the judge began. “And since the paperwork now reflects full custody, that is what I have to grant. Keeping the child’s best interest in mind, I am granting custody rights to the father, Jacob Peralta.”

Jake felt tears of joy streaming down his face. He closed his eyes and smiled, his knees almost giving out beneath him. Before he opened his eyes, he felt another body slam into his and their arms wrap around him. He wrapped his arms around Amy tightly. She pulled back and looked at him, tears streaming down her face too. “I knew they couldn’t take him from you.” He kissed her quickly before he turned to shake hands with his lawyer.

Jake and Amy picked up the boys from his mom’s house. Amy took Sam outside so Jake could have a moment of privacy with John. He explained to his son that they were going home and that no one was ever going to take him away. John threw his arms around Jake’s neck and hugged him tightly. Jake stood up, clutching his son to him as fresh tears filled his eyes.

They’d spent the day with their kids, letting them play and have dinner at John’s favorite place to eat. Amy kept insisting that she and Sam could go home and let them celebrate just the two of them. Every time, Jake waved her off and told her she was crazy. That they were important too.

Jake and Amy were sitting on his couch later that night, John asleep on him, Sam asleep on Amy. They were still watching the end of Aladdin since they’d put it on for the boys. Jake smiled as John snuggled further into his arms. He’d spent the rest of the day more thankful than ever for his son.

And as he looked over at Amy, he also felt incredibly thankful for her. He figured he’d have been much more of a wreck during the whole process if it hadn’t been for Amy’s support. Finally it seemed like after a couple months, his life was back on track. He reached over and grabbed her hand where it lay on the couch. She looked up and smiled at him. Finally the words that he hadn’t been able to say felt right.

“Amy,” he said softly. She looked over at him. “I love you.”

She smiled broadly, squeezing his hand in hers. “I love you too.”

Jake and Amy both started to lean in a little until the boys started to shift. They laughed quietly and sat back in their original spots, not wanting to wake their sons. Jake raised their joined hands and kissed the back of hers as she giggled.

Looking down at the sleeping boys, Amy wondered aloud, “Do you think maybe it’s time we tell them?”

Jake chuckled at the thought of explaining dating to two five year olds. “Yeah, we probably should.”

It was three years since they’d met. It was two years and six months since the custody hearing. It was a year and eight months since Jake had proposed to Amy with John and Sam holding up a sign they’d helped him paint. It was four months since the wedding when John had walked Jake down the aisle and Sam had walked Amy. It was three months since they’d started adoption proceedings for Amy to officially adopt John and Jake to officially adopt Sam (Teddy had apparently signed over his parental rights pretty easily).

Jake was reading something on his phone when Amy walked out of the bathroom. “The nightmares all taken care of?”

Jake smirked, looking up at her as she climbed in bed next to him. “Yes, I got in there and John was already out of bed, telling Sam it was just a bad dream.”

Amy laughed. “See, it’s like I said. This whole brothers thing is going to really cut down on our responsibilities. They’ll just take care of each other.”

Jake laughed with her. “We still have to feed and clothe them. I don’t think they’re to that level yet. Although, Sam was helping John with his math homework tonight. So you may have a point.”

Jake put his phone down on his bedside table and slid further down into the bed. “Hey, I have a question for you,” Amy asked. He looked up at her, nodding for her to continue as his eyes grew heavy. “How do you think the boys would feel about a sibling?”

Jake’s eyes were closed as his head rested on his pillow. “I’m sure they’ll just take it and trash the house with it as usual.” Suddenly his eyes sprang open and he stared at Amy. Her eyes were wide and she was wearing a grin. “Wait, are you saying…?” he trailed off.

Amy nodded excitedly. “I think so. I just took a test and it was positive. I mean it could be false, but…”

Jake shot up, crawling closer to Amy. “We’re having a baby?” Amy nodded. Jake grabbed her and kissed her all over her face before finally kissing her lips. He held his hands on either side of her head, staring into her eyes. “I can’t believe we’re having a baby.”

Amy smiled at Jake, tears in her eyes. He laid his hand on her stomach and she laid a hand over his. “I guess our little family is growing.”

Jake looked back up at Amy, kissing her again. “I think the boys are going to be thrilled.”

Posted on AO3 as well!

#sorry this is so damn long #but brevity is not my skill #i really liked writing this and now i want to see jake and amy with kids #my writing #b99 fanfiction #b99 #brooklyn 99 #jake x amy #peraltiago

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deanssweetheart23 · 8 years ago

Text

The Promise

Title: The Promise (Mechanic!Dean x Reader, Best Friends AU). Part 1.

Summary: When Dean Winchester was a little kid, he met a girl that would change his life. So, he stood by her through thick and thin and every time people asked him what home was to him all he could think of was her beautiful smile and her big, bright eyes and the sound of her laughter. Because, like Melville used to say, his home was not down in any map. True places never are.

Author: deanssweetheart23

Characters: Dean Winchester x reader, Mary and John Winchester (mentioned), Sam Winchester, Benny Laffite, Leslie (OFC, only mentioned), Lisa Braeden

Word count: 7217 (I know, I know, it’s a monster fic but I hope it’s worth it)

Warnings: Language. Lots of fluff. Angst. Divorche, mentions of an almost-fatal car accident and drunk driving, death of a parent. Kid Dean (trust me that should be a warning). Lots of feels.

Author’s Notes: This is my submission for @luci-in-trenchcoats ‘s 2K Follower Challenge. Michelle, congratulations on your milestone, you deserve it so much! Thank you for organizing this and for letting me participate. I had tons of fun writing this.

Now into the fic, my prompt was “ We’ll figure it out. We always do.” and it is included in the text below in bold. (This is an AU, written entirely from Dean’s POV and hopefully they’ll be more parts.)

Enjoy everyone!

Dean was five years old when he met the girl that would change his life. Of course, he was too young to know it then, but that didn’t stop Lady Luck from working her magic.

Everything started at the playground just a few blocks away from his house. The little Y/H/C girl was there again that morning, just like the last two times, jumping off the swing like she could fly, but Dean didn’t want to leave his mum and his brother alone to go talk to her. So, he stayed away, stealing glances every now and then, until another boy, older than him and plainly mean, shoved her off the swing and made her fall flat on her butt.

The girl gasped in surprise, her bottom lip wobbling and Dean knew he had to do something about it because he hated seeing girls cry; it reminded him of that time his parents spent the entire night fighting, and of the next morning, when his mother’s eyes were red and puffy and he had to hug her and tell her that joke about the stick being brown and sticky to make her laugh.

So, the green-eyed boy walked to that annoying kid, told him to leave her alone and when he didn’t listen and made fun of her again, Dean punched him so hard that his stupid Pokemon hat flew off and his whole face turned red.

A few seconds later, Stupid Hat was leaving with his tail between his legs and Dean was turning towards the girl that looked like a scared little bird, her big Y/E/C eyes wide open.

“Are you okay?” he implored, taking a step forward.

She nodded solemnly and looked down on the ground.

“Are you going to be mean to me like he was?” she asked.

Dean shook his head.

“No. He was an idiot. Here, give me your hand.” He said and she obeyed, smiled shyly at him.

She was kind of cute.

“I’m Dean.”

“Y/N.” She said, smoothing down her shirt like a lady. “Thank you for helping me. But I could have handled myself.” She grinned, more confident now, and he smiled.

He knew then that she would never go easy on him.

“Yeah, well-”

“Wanna play Monster Truck with me?”

“You play Monster Truck?”

“Just because I’m a girl doesn’t mean I can’t have fun, silly.”

Dean looked at her, dumbfounded, and ran his hand over the back of his neck.

“Okay. Yeah, I guess.”

“Great! C’mon, I’ll let you pick your team first. And when we’re done we can share my cherry pie.”

“You have pie?”

She grinned mischievously.

“My mum baked one this morning. We weren’t supposed to eat it until lunch but I hid one slice in my bag. We can share.” she paused, then turned to him, titling her head. “You do like pie. Right?”

Dean smiled widely.

He liked her.

Dean was six years old when he realized he’d do anything to protect her. They were in his bedroom, way past their bedtime, quietly talking about monsters and fairy-tales and his ambition to become the new Indiana Jones. It was one of their arranged sleepovers and she was laying in a sleeping bag on the floor, the sound of thunders booming outside filling the room.

She was afraid of thunders. She’d never told him, surely -Y/N never admitted anything that would make her look like a child because she was, as her father liked to point out regularly, a big girl. But he knew. He could see it in the way she balled her hands into fists and winced every time the lighting stroke.

“Hey, Y/N?”

“Hmm?” she hummed, turning restlessly in her sleeping bag.

“Wanna come sleep in my bed?” he asked, rustling his Batman sheets. The little girl shoot up and looked at him, head titled to the left, eyebrows furrowed.

“What?”

“I’m, um… It’s a big bed. And better than the sleeping bag.”

“But miss Mary said I can only sleep here.”

“I know. We can wake up early tomorrow morning and get you back in the sleeping bag. Mum won’t even notice and I won’t say a word if you don’t.” He explained, shrugging. “You don’t have to come. I just thought you’d sleep better. I can protect you from all the thunders.”

She silently gazed at him, eyes narrowed, and for a moment he was afraid she was going to slap the back of his head and tell him he was an idiot because she was not afraid of anything.

But then-

“Okay.”

Dean chuckled breathlessly, almost unable to believe that for once that girl hadn’t given him a hard time, and watched as she grabbed her pillow, climbed into bed and laid on her side, facing him.

“Better?” he asked, scooting as close to her as he could.

She nodded and looked at him through her lashes, a smile gracing her cute little face.

“Thanks, D.” she whispered, squeezing his hand. The tips of his ears turned pink and his throat suddenly went dry like it did every time he was sick for days and his mum made him drink tea, all because he was the one that had made her smile.

She never used that sleeping bag again.

Dean was ten years old when he promised her they would be friends forever. The sun was burning hot above them and they were walking home from school, side by side, exhausted from a day of double algebra and Miss Monkey Face’s scolding because, instead of paying attention to her, they had been talking to each other.

“What if your dad takes you and Sammy away?” she asked out of the blue, handing him a Hershey bar.

“My dad won��t take me away, Y/N. That’s stupid.” He told her, his tone a little harsher than he intended to.

Offended, she scrunched up her nose and stomped, crossing her arms over her chest.

“And why is that stupid?”

“Because he is not leaving Lawrence.”

He’s just leaving Mum, he thought.

The little girl in front of him shook her head and huffed.

“But Frizzy Lizzy told me that when her uncle left her aunt he moved into Lebanon and took her cousins with him.”

Dean clenched his jaw, his hands balling into fists.

“Yeah, well, Frizzy Lizzy is an idiot and so are you.” he hissed, rolling his eyes as he fastened his step to get away from her.

“Hey, that’s mean.” She whined, chasing after him.

“You’re mean.”

“Am not!”

“Are too! You’re mean and stupid and I don’t like you anymore.” He told her, throwing the Hershey bar she’d given him to the ground.

“You’re lying!” she yelled from somewhere behind him.

“Am not.”

“You’re lying, you’re lying, you’re lying!” she screeched, voice louder than before.

Dean huffed in exasperation and turned around to face her.

“I’m not- hey, what -are you crying?”

Y/N shook her head in negative, cheeks red.

“Y/N, what’s wrong?” he asked, all the anger he had felt earlier now evaporating.

“Leave me alone!” she yelled, pushing past him. “I don’t want to talk to you anymore! I hate you!”

Dean’s jaw dropped as he stared at her in shock, so open-mouthed that he could have caught flies. He tried to say something but she just ignored him, turning around and beginning to walk away.

“Y/N! Y/N, wait!” he chanted, trying to reach her. “Hey, wait! I’m sorry!”

Groaning, the little girl stopped, shuffling a little on her feet. By the time he was next to her, her eyes were watery and her nose runny and his stomach was heavy with guilt because he knew that it was his fault; he shouldn’t have gotten so mad at her.

But then again, Dean was mad all the time lately because his parents’ breakup was so unfair and no one could understand that. Not even Y/N. Because even though she was his best friend, her parents were still living together and they were happy and they were going to celebrate stupid Valentine’s day while his father had spent the last two weeks packing.

“I’m not mean.” She sniffed, wiping her face with her sleeve. “I just don’t want you to leave.”

“I’m not going to leave. And you’re right. You’re not mean. Or an idiot.” He mumbled, reaching for her hand. “I’m sorry I called you those things.”

She nodded, biting her bottom lip.

“I’m sorry I said mister John is going to take you away. I like your dad. I like him a lot. I was just worried because you’re my best friend.” She whispered. “And I want us to stay friends forever.”

Dean stared at her, eyes flickering over every feature of her face, and realized that he couldn’t imagine not being friends with her.

“We will. I promise.” He said, reaching for her pinky and linking it with his. “We’ll be best friends forever.”

She smiled, eyes sparkling, and Dean thought that he’d never seen anything prettier.

“And ever?” she asked.

Dean grinned.

“And ever.”

She giggled, her cheeks turning a light pink, and, somehow, although he was only ten at that time, he could feel it, he could feel it in his bones that making that promise was the best decision he’d ever make.

Dean was thirteen years old when he thought about kissing her for the first time. He was chasing after her in the back yard of the Y/L/N’s house, the sound of her giggles, merry and hearty, filling the air.

“Take it back.” he yelled, watching as her hair flew out behind her.

“Never.”

“I said take it back.”

“Nope. From now on you’ll always be my Deanie Beanie.” She snickered as she turned around to face him, mischief coating her features.

Oh. It was so on.

“You little brat.” He spat as he started towards her again, an evil laugh escaping his lips. Because, sure, she was fast, but his legs were longer and before she even knew it his hands were around her waist and both of them were falling into the grass.

“Dean. Let go.” She managed to huff out, squirming to crawl out from under him but having no such luck.

“Nope. Not until you take it back.”

“Get your meaty butt off me, Winchester.” She cried, punching his chest, but he only laughed.

“Oh, so we’re being mean now. I can be mean.” He grinned, his hands sliding at her ribcage.

“No. Dean, don’t-”

The rest of her words were lost as she began to wail with laughter, wriggling.

“D-dean. S-stop!” she begged, shoving him in a desperate attempt to get him off of her. Still, he only chuckled and continued his assault, happy to be taking revenge.

“You-re g-going to k-kill me.”

“Take it back.”

“D-dean.”

Dean shook his head.

“Just take it back, cherry pie.” he grumbled out, smirking.

“F-fine. Fine. You win! I can’t b-breathe.” She pleaded, throwing her hands up in surrender.

He smiled cheekily and stopped, tucking a sweaty stray of hair behind her ear, taking in flushed cheeks and happy, kind eyes as they locked onto his. She whispered something that sounded awfully like a curse and he chortled, gaze traveling to her lips. He hadn’t noticed until that moment but they looked so soft and alive and even though he was thirteen and believed that kissing was gross he wondered what it would feel like to kiss her. Wondered whether she would taste like the pie they had shared earlier or something spicier, like black coffee.

So, he ducked in, leaning a little closer and sighed in relief when instead of pushing him away or punching him in the face, she beamed and bit her bottom lip and then-

“Kids, the food’s ready.”

Dean cleared his throat quietly and pulled away.

“Um. We should... I mean, there’s food.”

She let out a breathy laugh and nodded.

“Yeah.” She agreed, getting up. “But we can… D’you want to go to the strawberry field later?” she asked, bumping her shoulder with his. “We can play baseball.”

He grinned.

“Yeah, Y/N. Anything you want.”

Dean was seventeen years old when he realized he couldn’t live without her. He was sitting on one of those stiff hospital chairs, watching her sleep, her hand cradled into his and what had almost happened sprung to his mind. She’d gotten into a car accident and almost didn’t make it. He’d almost lost her.

The mere thought made him want to crawl out of his skin; he’d lost too much already but she’d always been there to pick up the pieces. Her leaving him though, he’d never be able to live through that.

The sound of rustling sheets pulled him out of his thoughts and her hand squeezed his.

“Hey there, sweetheart.”

“Deanie Beanie.” She muttered, her voice raspy. “Hey.”

He rolled his eyes.

“How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me that?”

“Doesn’t matter. I never will. You’re my Deanie Beanie.” She smiled at his bitch-face, sitting up. “Where are mum and dad?”

“Home. I told them I’d stay with you for the night.”

“Thanks.” She whispered and he nodded and helped her sip some water. When she sat back, she winced.

“You in pain? Should I call the nurse?”

“No. Honestly, I have so much morphine pumping through my veins right now, I’m surprised I’m not high.” She muttered, running her fingers through her hair. “How is the other driver doing?”

Dean’s jaw clenched painfully.

“Son of a bitch’s dandy.”

“Dean-”

“He was drunk off his ass, Y/N.” he cut her off, his voiced laced with fury. “He was lucky they didn’t let me near him or so help me God-”

“Hey. It’s okay. I’m right here.” She reassured him soothingly, bringing their joined hands to her dry lips and tenderly kissing his knuckles. The gesture was intimate and innocent and it made Dean’s heart spiral out of control; it always amazed him how a girl like her could see something in him.

“I’m good, I promise.” She added. “You, on the other hand, look like complete and total crap.”

Dean laughed gruffly, shaking his hand.

“Wow, sweetheart. Tell us what you really think.”

She chuckled, the sound making Dean’s heart swell. Day by day, she sounded more like herself. Looked more like herself. Her face was no longer the color of crispy clean sheets and the gauze that covered her head was long gone. Yesterday, she’d even teased Sam about his height, said they’d never find a hospital bed big enough to fit his huge legs. The bickering that followed her comment had made him smile. He’d missed it. He’d missed her.

“You know what I mean, D. When was the last time you slept?”

“Couple of days ago, I guess.” He shrugged, as if it was nothing, his fingers running soothing circles on her palm.

“My God, Winchester. You should go home. Get some sleep. Come back tomorrow. It’s not like I’m gonna go anywhere.”

Dean pursed his lips.

“Snowball’s chance, princess.”

“You need to. D, you look exhausted.” She protested, eyes filled with worry. The thought warmed his heart. It was a selfish thought, but he liked to know that she worried about him. Very few people in his world did.

“Not happening. I promised your parents I’d keep an eye on you.”

“So? Call my sister. She’ll be here in zero time.”

“I don’t want to call Leslie. Do you want me to leave?” he asked, licking his lips.

Instead of replying, Y/N arched her eyebrow in the same adorable way she always did when something surprised her and shook her head.

“Of course not. You’re…. You’re the only one I would want here. But-”

“No buts. I’ll stay for as long as you need.”

She looked at him for a few seconds, eyes locked on his, appraising him. He didn’t dare avert his gaze.

“Fine.” She huffed at last, trying to feign annoyance. “But, at least come sleep here with me. I hate seeing you sitting on that horrible chair.”

“Yeah, I’m good.”

She sighed.

“D., you’re not supposed to say no to the girl that almost died. You’re supposed to be, like, my bitch now.”

Dean narrowed his eyes at her the size of half-dollars, completely unamused. He admired her for the way she joked about the car accident like it was nothing, but it made his heart ache all the same.

“That’s not funny.”

She chuckled.

“It is. But it’s too soon so you get a free pass for not laughing.” She declared, biting her bottom lip. “Will you please come here now?”

“No.”

“Stubborn asshole.” She muttered under her breath.

“I heard that.”

“I wanted you to.”

Another pause and-

“C’mon, D.” she begged again, titling her head to the left, eyes wide and pleading, that half-pout she pouted every time she wanted to sweet-talk him into something, gracing her perfect lips.

Well, shit.

He groaned, rubbing his forehead.

“For me?” she asked, a toothy grin on her face.

Shit.

It was a matter of time before he caved and they both knew it.

“Ugh. You got me wrapped around your little finger, you know that?” he asked, trying to suppress his smile.

She grinned in mischief, her gorgeous eyes twinkling.

“I do. It’s kind of cute, really.”

“You’re such a brat.” He accused, kicking off his boots.

“I know. ‘S one of the things that make me adorable. Like your bowlegs.”

Dean arched an eyebrow and chuckled wryly.

“Oh, so we’re pointing out flaws now, aren’t we, Shorty?” he asked as he climbed into the bed.

“Shut up, you ass. ‘M not short. You and your brother are just abnormally huge.”

“I would so make an inappropriate comment about this if you weren’t laying on a hospital bed right now.” he laughed, throwing the hospital sheet over them.

“Perv.”

“Cherry pie.” He retorted.

His eyes locked on hers, bright and intense, taking in the different specks and hues of Y/E/C there, the twinkle that seemed to shine through every time she glanced his way, the way they were bright and wide in the dim light of the hospital room, storing every detail into memory.

“What?” she asked, chuckling nervously. “Is there something wrong with my face?”

Dean smiled softly at her and tucked a stray of hair behind her ear.

“No. Quite the opposite, actually.”

Her face turned a lovely bright pink color and his heart fluttered. He could feel the words dancing on his lips, almost pushing their way out, words they’d never told each other before, even though they both knew the sentiment was there. Sometimes they danced at the back of his mind when she did something silly just to make him smile or when she stole fries from his plate or when they stargazed on the hood of his dad’s car, but he’d been too afraid to acknowledge them.

Now though… Now there was no fear.

If anything, he was a lost cause already.

“What is it, D.?”

Her voice was soft like silk and those three words almost jumped off his lips without his consent. But he needed to tell her and he needed it with a need that was maddeningly beyond him.

“I love you.”

It came out as a whisper, breathy and low and fast, almost too fast, but she smiled her most beautiful smile and reached for his hand, manipulating their fingers together until they were intertwined.

“I love you too.” she grinned, stretching up to kiss his jaw.

He sighed in relief, heart swelling, and promised himself that he would hold on to that feeling, that warmth that had nestled into his chest after those four little words had caressed his ears.

Yeah.

He was never going to let it go.

He was never going to let her go.

Dean was twenty-six when he realized she was going to break him in two. They were laying on his bed, her head on his chest, right arm placed just above his heart, legs tangled together as she traced imaginary patterns on his clothed pec. One of his arms were draped over her hip, holding her as if she was his lifeline.

Maybe she was.

“Sammy called this afternoon. He’s flying out tomorrow morning.” She whispered out of the blue, clutching at his shirt.

He swallowed around the lump in his throat.

“I know. He texted me.”

“We could have breakfast with him before he goes. I can even call Les so we can get together like we did in the good ol’ days.”

He sighed deeply.

“I don’t think I can…” he trailed off and she pressed a kiss to his collar-bone and squeezed his middle reassuringly, prompting him to go on. “He wants us to talk about it.”

“Okay.” She said tentitavely, cocking an eyebrow in question, and he knew she had absolutely no intention of making this easy for him.

“Well, I don’t do that, okay? I don’t talk about it or whatever. I just bottle shit up.”

She let out a small, breathless chuckle and perched herself on her elbow to look at him.

“How healthy.”

She was being a smartass now and he licked his lips and narrowed his eyes in a warning that would have terrified anyone else, but not her.

“Y/N-”

“He’s your brother.”

He gave a half-smile to that.

“I’m aware.”

Y/N sighed and glanced at the ceiling above them as if she was looking for guidance. When she looked at him again she was wearing her I-want-to-tell-you-you’re-an-ass-but-that’s-not-what-you-need-to-hear look.

“You both lost her.”

“You think I don’t know that? But I…” he ate the rest of the words, averting his gaze from hers. It was terrifying, how easily her eyes could get him to tell her everything. “Fuck, Y/N.” he cursed, scratching the back of his neck.

He didn’t expect her to reach out, but she did, cupping his face with her hands.

“Hey. Talk to me.”

“I don’t know what to do. I’ve been trying to keep it together for Sammy but I can’t. Mum was…” he paused, trying to keep his emotions in check but when he spoke again it was strained and broken. “She was always so amazing. To everyone. And what happened… I don’t…”

“Ssssh.” She soothed, crawling closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder, her proximity reassuring and comforting, familiar and needed. “I know.”

He took a shaky breath and squeezed her hip, pulling her closer.

“I miss her.”

Y/N was quiet for a moment and he closed his eyes and waited for some pitiful comment to leave her lips, but instead, she pulled away to look at him and gave him a smile, fragile but genuine.

“I know that too. But, we’ll figure it out. We always do, D.” she promised, running her fingers through his short hair gently, almost like his mother would have done. He smiled, soft but sad, and reached for her hand, pulling her on top of him again, letting her be his anchor for the night.

She sighed, nuzzling his chest in content and he couldn’t help but laugh and kiss the top of her head, his lips lingering longer than necessary.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you.” he mumbled against her hair.

She laughed, a laugh that was airy but genuine, then pecked his chest.

“Crush and burn, I guess.”

Despite himself, he smirked and cupped her chin, forcing her to face him.

“I’m serious, princess.”

“Yeah, I’m not.” She confessed, smiling. “You’d be okay, D.” she added, kissing his forehead. She pulled away and, suddenly, a Cheshire smile was playing at the corners of her lips, eyes sparkling in mischief.

“What?”

“Nothing. Just… Wait right here.” She replied and untangled herself from him, getting out of bed. He wanted to complain at the sudden loss of warmth and contact but the sight of her wandering around in his room, in his old Zeppelin shirt, her legs and feet bare, and her hair in a messy ponytail, rendered him speechless.

God, she was the most beautiful woman he had ever laid eyes upon.

He cleared his throat quietly.

“Um. What exactly are you doing?”

She looked up from the record player and grinned.

“I am tired of your pouty face.”

“I do not have-”

“Yes, you do. You have a pouty face. And I am tired of it. So, I’m going to cheer you up a bit. Since I’m, you know, such an amazing friend and all…” she argued and a few seconds later a familiar tune filled the room and she was waltzing towards him, head bobbing to the rhythm.

“C’mon, Winchester.” She chanted, reaching for his hand. “Dance with me.”

Despite himself, Dean chuckled.

“To Bob Seger?”

“Please. You love that dude.”

“You’re crazy.” He declared, getting up, but she only smiled her most beautiful smile and let her arms clamp around his neck, her body flush against his.

“I’m your kind of crazy, D.” she deadpanned and he smirked and wrapped his arms around her waist, letting her warmth sip into his skin and her intoxicating scent, vanilla and coconuts, fill his senses.

He dropped a kiss on her hair.

“Yes.” He whispered, so low that she might have missed it. “Yes, you are.”

Dean was twenty-seven years old when he realized he would never have her. She was sitting at a bar stool a few feet away from him, deep into conversation with a blonde, blue-eyed douchebag and his heart clutched into his chest because she was smiling at him. Not with her I’m-just-trying-to-be-nice smile. No. She was smiling at him with her genuine smile -sly, loving, slightly cheeky, seductive- that smile she shot his way every time he did something to make her happy. She was smiling at Blue Eyes with his smile and it pissed him off.

Gritting his teeth, he tightened his grip on the glass of whiskey and sighed.

“Are you ever going to tell her?”

The gruff voice took him by surprise and he turned around to find his younger brother looking at him with a brow raised in question, a bottle of beer in hand.

“No idea what you’re talking about, Sammy.” He replied flatly, his voice carefully ridden of all emotion, then brought the glass to his lips and drank, letting the alcohol burn down his throat.

“Right. Cause you so don’t have the hots for Y/N.” the hazel-eyed man scoffed and Dean almost choked on the amber liquid

“Have the hots? Seriously, dude? That’s… That’s just wrong…”

“Okay, chief. I’ll level with ya. All your kid brother’s saying is that instead of looking at that poor guy like you want to put him six feet under, you could just tell Butter Cup you’re in love with her.”

The green-eyed man ran a hand over his mouth, blinking in uncertainty.

“I’m not…” he stopped, mid-sentence, because of Sam’s bitch-face and Benny’s sarcastic smirk, then shook his head and scrunched up his nose, swirling the whiskey in his glass. “There’s no point.” He grumbled out at last.

“No poi- What do you mean there is no point?”

“I mean that she doesn’t feel the same way, Sammy. So, let’s just stow the touchy-feely, self-yoga crap and talk about something else. Okay?”

“No, man. Let’s talk about this. Because Y/N’s so in love with you she can’t even see straight.”

That caused Dean to laugh because the mere thought was just… laughable.

“No.” he mumbled, swallowing thickly. “She’s not.”

“Jesus Christ, Dean. That girl has been holding a torch for you her entire life. I mean, think about it. You were the only person ever allowed anywhere near her favorite teddy bear when you were kids. And she told her parents that she was the one that stole Leslie’s diary so that you wouldn’t get into trouble. And she’s the reason you became a mechanic because she said she wouldn’t-”

“Follow her dreams if I didn’t follow mine.” Dean cut him off, running a hand over the back of his neck. “I know, Sam. I know that for some messed up reason I’ll never be able to understand, she loves me. But not in the way I love her.”

And even if she does, she deserves better.

“That’s bullshit and you know it.”

“Whatever. Can we drop it now?”

“But-”

“I said drop it, Sam.” Dean growled, louder than he intended to.

“Chief. Your brother’s just trying to help.”

“Well, I don’t want your help. I’m fine.” He snapped, draining his drink.

The blue-eyed man took a deep breath, shoving his hands inside his pockets.

“No, brother. You’re not. Letting a girl like Y/N walk away doesn’t qualify as fine. It qualifies as batshit crazy.”

Benny’s words caught Dean off guard and for a moment, he just stared at him, his expression blank, mouth half open.

“Do you…” A pause, then a deep, yet shaky breath. “Are you in love with her?”

His friend laughed, amusement coating his features.

“No, chief. But I know great love when I see it and what you and Y/N have… That’s a one-in-a-lifetime thing.”

“Wow, Benny. Didn’t know you were into Nicholas Sparks novels.”

His friend chuckled breathlessly, throwing his hands up in surrender.

“I’m just saying… Fight for her.” A shrug. “If anything, you got nothing to lose.”

Dean shook his head and turned to look at the girl that, through the years had become his entire world, only to find her laughing at something a co-worker had said, head thrown back and cheeks flushed, her smudged lipstick merely adding to his constant urge to kiss her.

“Except her.”

“That’s never gonna happen, Dean.” Sam interjected but his intervention was quickly interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. Soon enough, an attractive young woman with brown hair and beautiful brown eyes was standing in front of him, eyeing him expectantly.

“Hi.”

Dean smiled, acknowledging her with a nod of his head and a waggle of his fingers.

“Hi.” He repeated gruffly. “And you are?”

“Lisa. My name’s Lisa.” She said, voice a little unsteady, her cheeks pink.

“Well, Lisa. What can I do for you?”

“I… I know this sound ridiculous but I made a bet with my friends and I lost so would you… Would it be okay if I bought you a drink?” she asked, leaning closer while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

The gesture reminded him of Y/N because it had always been a tell-tale sign of her nervousness and his eyes instinctively searched for her. She was still there, sitting next to Blue Eyes, but now his hand was on her arm, tracing random patterns and she was grinning, eyes radiant with happiness.

His heart dropped.

He took a deep breath and smirked at the woman in front of him, all charm and swagger now.

“How about I buy you a drink instead?”

She nodded and blushed but her cheeks didn’t turn that lovely color Y/N’s cheeks did and her smile wasn’t as bright.

He sighed and reached for his glass again.

Dean was twenty-eight years old when he realized he would give up anything for her. He was speeding down the all too familiar country lanes, heading back home with her for a high-school reunion when she’d sighed and laid her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes.

“What?” he asked, taking his eyes off the road for a moment to glance at her. “What was that for?”

“Nothing… I just… I missed this.” She admitted, pulling away from him, eyes focused on the dash in front of her.

“Missed what?”

“Us. The way we used to be, you know?” she asked, shrugging. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, you’re still my best friend and heaven knows I’m incredibly thankful for that, but it’s different now… Back then, it used to be you and me against the world. No work, no drama, no boyfriends, no girlfriends. Just the two of us. And I just… I miss it sometimes.”

He sighed. He knew what she meant. He’d felt it too. They were not drifting apart per se, but it wasn’t like it used to be. Sure, he still saw her every day and they still laughed and did stupid things together but, at the same time, some things had changed completely. They no longer had sleepovers. She didn’t borrow his clothes anymore because Lisa didn’t like it. She stopped calling at the wee hours of the morning just to tell him she’d had a weird dream or that she’d remembered that one time they’d almost burnt down his house trying to make cookies.

And he hated that. God, he despised it. It was like she was letting go, slowly but surely, and he couldn’t do anything to stop it because he was the one who had chosen it. He’d chosen to be with Lisa. He’d chosen to put the distance between them because he needed to get over her.

And look how great this is working out for you, the voice in the back of his head said. Because no matter what had happened, he knew that he would give it all up, Lisa, his life in New York, his job, everything, just to be with her.

Taking a deep breath, he reached out for her hand and laced their fingers together.

“I know what you mean, sweetheart. I feel it too sometimes. And I… Look, I want to apologize for being so focused on Lisa lately.”

“What? Hey, no, that’s okay…” she muttered, smiling softly, a hint of sadness in her eyes. “I get it, D. I’m not saying I like it, because sometimes I don’t, but I get it. You two are together, she’s your priority now. Your girl.”

Dean felt his stomach churn. Her words hurt him more than any flesh-cutting knife ever would.

“That’s not true. She might be a priority but that doesn’t mean you’re not. You’re… Cherry pie, you’re everything to me. And my girl? You are my girl. Have been since that day we met at that terrible playground.” He explained, tightening his grip around her wrist.

She laughed at the memory, her laugh sweet and warm and exactly what he needed at that moment.

“Gee, I still remember your puzzled face when I told you we could meet again.” She chuckled. “Like on a date? I don’t know!” she mimicked him, throwing her head back. “As if I’d ever want to date your juvenile ass!”

“Hey, I was quite the heartbreaker back then. I thought you were hitting on me.”

“We were five, Dean.”

“I was hot for a five-year-old, alright?” he deadpanned, causing her to laugh even harder, the sound better than all those classic rock songs he loved so much.

“Whatever you say, dumbass.”

“I still came to our playdate though, didn’t I?”

“You came on Tuesday. We had agreed to meet on Wednesday.”

“Details. You were there anyway.” He declared, winking at her.

“Because I knew you’d mix the days up! I missed an episode of Scooby Doo for you.”

“Aw, you poor thing.”

She rolled her eyes, trying to hide her amusement but he could still see the smile trying to break through.

“Jerk.”

“Love you too, sweetheart.” he beamed, leaning in and pressing a kiss to her shoulder, laughing genuinely as she pushed him away. “Love you too…” he repeated, lower this time, eyes focused on the road in front of him.

If only you knew how much...

Dean was almost twenty-nine years old when she finally broke his heart. He was standing in an empty room, wearing a perfectly tailored suit, ready to take one of the biggest steps in his life and all he could think about was her.

He was worried because she was running late but didn’t dare admit it. He knew everyone would make fun of him for being so overprotective. If anything, she wasn’t such a big fan of his plan.

He wasn’t either.

A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts. Sammy popped his head inside, smiling charmingly at him.

“Ready, man?”

Dean sighed, fighting the urge to run his fingers through his hair.

“As I’ll ever be.”

His little brother nodded, something heavy settling over his features.

“She here yet?”

“Nope. But Benny called her. Said she’s stuck in traffic.” A pause. “She’ll be here, Dean. She wouldn’t miss this for the world.”

“Yeah, I know.” Dean agreed, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Go. I’ll be out in a minute.”

The hazel-eyed man looked at him for a minute, seemingly thinking about something, then agreed with a nod of his head.

“Almost forgot. This…” he said, pulling out a blue envelope from his suit jacket “…came for you.”

Dean eyed the colored paper curiously, raising his eyebrows. And then he saw her letters in the middle of the folded paper.

“Give me a minute, Sammy.”

“Sure thing. Just don’t be late.”

Dean hummed in agreement and when his younger brother was gone, he unfolded the paper gingerly. A necklace fell from the envelope.

He recognized it immediately. It was a locket he’d bought for her twenty-sixth birthday, with a picture of them in graduation night. She’s smiled and tore up when he’d given it to her, then jumped on him, hugging him like she was trying to put all his broken pieces back together. She had been wearing it ever since.

His fingers caressed the chain for several minutes, and then, with slightly shaking hands, he reached for the letter.

My dearest Dean,

Do you remember those afternoons we used to spend under a tree during primary school, wondering what our life would be like when we grow up? I do, and not a day goes by that I don’t laugh at how naïve we were back then, when our early thirties seemed like something that would probably never happen, something impossible to conceive.

We were always together growing up, Dean, and you have been the best best-friend I could ever ask for. When we started primary school and our classmates made fun of me because I was smart, you stood by me and threatened to punch the next person that would even dare look at me sideways. And nobody ever dared bothering me again because, God, Dean, you can be so intimidating when you want to. When I sixteen and my dad had a heart attack and almost didn’t make it you held me in your arms while I sobbed and promised me that everything was going to be alright. I didn’t know it then, but it was everything I needed to hear.

And when I got into that car accident almost a year later, you were there for me in a way that made my heart ache with love and affection. You can’t even begin to fathom what a relief it was to open my eyes and see you next to me that day, Dean. I was so scared, so worried that I would never be okay again but somehow you turned that around for me. I could never thank you enough for what you did for me back then. You took care of me, you made me feel safe again and you spent every single afternoon at my room for two whole months, even though I am sure you had far more interesting things to do and way more attractive girls to keep company to.

You have stood by me, Dean, through thick and thin, and that’s why what I’m about to do is the most difficult thing I have ever done. But I have to do it.

For I am not as great as you believe, my friend, and I have never been. In fact, I have never been entirely honest with you. I do love you, Dean, with every single beat of my heart, but I do not love you as a brother or a friend. I do not love you in the same way I love Leslie or Sam. I love you with a kind of love that makes me feel alive every time you even look at me. And I can’t remember a moment in my life when that wasn’t the case.

It’s impossible for someone to meet you and not fall in love with you, D. You are everything a man should be. Loving. Righteous. Caring. Smart. Loyal. Kind. Brave. Strong. Selfless. And yes, you I know you’re about to say you’re not perfect but nobody is, D.

I’m sorry I can’t be there for your marriage, I’m sorry I can’t be the best friend you deserve, I’m sorry I can’t be your best woman like I promised I would. I did try, Dean, God knows I tried but some things are beyond us.

I’m not sure whether this is a “goodbye” or a “see you later”. I guess this is entirely up to you now. If you don’t want to see me again, then I understand. I won’t try to contact you, albeit I will think about you every single day and hope that you’ll be doing just fine.

If you ever think you can forgive me though and are willing to put all of this behind us and give our friendship another chance, then I am willing to do that as well. I won’t be a stranger if you don’t want me to be.

I know I’ve messed up, Dean, and what happens to us from now on is on me. I hope, from the bottom of my heart, that one day you’ll be able to forgive me and we’ll be reunited again, if only just to talk about the good old days, when it used to be just the two of us against the world.

Either way I will always be a friend to you, D. Always. No matter where in the world we might be or who we will be with, you will be in my heart’s core forever and I will always wholly and stupidly love you.

Stay safe and take care of yourself. And be happy, Dean. That’s all I want for you. That’s what I’ve always wanted. Be happy with Lisa and have children and live the white picket fence life you have always wanted, but never dared to admit out loud. And when you go back to Lawrence and gaze upon the stars from the hood of the Impala like we used to do as kids, please know that your best friend, even if she is in the other side of the world, thinks about you and thanks you for everything you have done for her.

Forever and ever,

Y/N.

The paper fell from his hands as his heart broke into millions of pieces.

Y/N had always been his.

And he had let her slip right through his fingers.

A/N: Read part two here

The Promise Tags: @pickupthatamulet @tiny-friggin-human

Forever Tags: @jpadjackles @supernatural-jackles @ravengirl94 @impala-dreamer @wordstothewisereaders @becs-bunker @imagining-supernatural @sgarrett49

If you’re like this for some reason I couldn’t tag you, I’m really sorry.

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