#''oh hey i feel better! gonna eat some more'' & she'd be like DO NOT?? but i would anyway

[minarinnn]

so in love with your best friend yuji hcs, may i request a continuation of that? and also maybe a writing of their first time ahhh and what you think he’d be like when he’s jealous. i know this is a lot but just choose what you feel like writing!! looking forward to your future stuff <3

hiii, tysm!! i tried to write everything, sorry if i missed smth. i lowk wanted to write more ab this too but you gave me a great excuse to do it + some ideas so, thank youuu<3

content/trigger warning: college au, characters are aged up!!, f!reader, p in v, creampie, jealousy, virgin sex, fingering (f! receiving), slighttt size kink

word count: 2.7k

“FIRST DATE”

nobara is sick and tired of hearing yuuji talk about you and not act on his feelings. especially when she knows that you actually have feelings for the pink haired male. but she promised she wouldn't tell yuuji about your feelings and she also promised yuuji that she wouldn't tell you about his

it didn't bother her much until yuuji started talking about how this guy in your physics class has been awfully chummy with you

"he even asked if she wanted to grab a bite to eat with him, can you believe that?" yuuji grumbled. he had been talking about this for at least 15 minutes now. nobara rolled her eyes for 7th time that day. "itadori, she's a beautiful girl, she's gonna have people asking her out, especially if she doesn't have a boyfriend" she pointed out, making yuuji pout and grumble under his breath

nobara sighed, leaning her cheek against her palm "you could just confess and the whole problem would be over". yuuji's eyes widened, a slight hue of pink adorning his face. "i can't do that... she's.. she'll just reject me" he sighed

nobara's patience was starting to run thin. she'd been there for yuuji through countless conversations about his feelings for you, always playing devil's advocate and trying to nudge him in the right direction. but after months of hearing him complain and fret over the situation, she couldn't take it anymore

"itadori, i know you're scared, but believe me, it's better to just rip off the band-aid and confess your feelings" she said firmly, tired of being in the middle of the both of you "and if she doesn't reciprocate your feelings, then at least you'll have closure and you can move on"

yuuji looked at her warily. deep down he knew she was right, but the thought of confessing his feelings and being rejected was still nerve-wracking for him. he took a deep breath and nodded. "you're right, kugisaki. i need to do this" he said, determination written all across his face as he stood up, walking away from the table

yuuji stopped in his tracks, turning around with a nervous chuckle "i mean, i don't have to tell her right no-" "go itadori!" nobara yelled, making the boy flinch and continue walking

yuuji walked down the hallway, his mind racing with thoughts of how he was going to confess his feelings to you. he felt a mix of excitement and nervousness, but he pushed those feelings aside and focused on his task at hand

he saw you walking around the hallway, shooting you a quick nervous smile and walking towards you. you smiled, continuing to walk to him and meeting him halfway.

"hey yuu" you smiled. oh how he loved that smile and that nickname you called him that always made his heart flutter. "heyy... can we..." he paused, searching for the right words "can we go out sometime... as more than just friends?"

you furrow your brows and tilt your head, your adorable smile still plastered on your face "more than just friends?" you question. yuuji took a deep breath and took a step forward, his heart hammering in his chest. he couldn't believe he was about to do this, but he knew he had to.

his eyes were locked on yours as he summoned all his courage. his nerves were still getting the better of him, but he forced himself to keep going.

"there's something i've been meaning to tell you for a long time now," yuuji began, his voice hoarse. "i... i.." the words got caught in his throat, and he found himself struggling to continue. he took a deep breath and tried to steady his nerves

"i'm in love with you" he said finally, his eyes never leaving yours "i think about you all the time, and every time i see you, it feels like my heart is about to explode. i know this might come as a shock to you, but i had to tell you how i feel. i just couldn't keep it to myself anymore"

as yuuji spoke, he felt as though a weight was lifting off his shoulders. he had said what he needed to say, and now it was up to you to decide how to respond. yuuji held his breath, waiting for your reaction

you smiled at yuuji, feeling a warm tingle in your chest. "then it's a date" you said, your voice filled with excitement. yuuji was dumbfounded for a second. blinking a few times to process it. that was not the words he was expecting

you put a hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze "you can text me the details later, yeah?". yuuji nodded, not being able to formulate words just yet. "i'll see you around" you say, giving him a light kiss on his cheek. yuuji could feel his brain short circuit and as you walked away all he could think about is how he was gonna tell kugisaki all bout what just happened

your date with yuuji was going great. you and yuuji had spent the afternoon exploring a beautiful art museum together. yuuji spent a lovely time admiring you. he claims you were the real art

after a few hours of admiring the artwork, yuuji suggested grabbing a bite to eat to prolong the date a little longer. you were more than happy to oblige, especially since the thought of spending more time with him made your heart flutter

as you and yuuji walked, he couldn't help but smile. he was having such a great time with you, it felt like nothing in the world could bring him down

as the two of you walked to the nearby restaurant, yuuji reached out to open the door for you, earning a warm smile in return. the restaurant was bustling with activity, but the noise faded into the background as you and yuuji sat down at your table

as you sat across from yuuji, he couldn't help but stare at you. the soft, warm light of the candles illuminated your face, making your eyes sparkle and your lips shine. yuuji felt like he was in a dream, and he couldn't believe that he finally had the chance to spend some time alone with you romantically

absolutely nothing could ruin this moment

but he spoke to soon. standing at your table was the guy that had been chummy with her in her physics class. why the hell was he the waiter??. yuuji's smile instantly dropped and he couldn't help but let out a sigh

"oh- what a wonderful surprise!" he spoke to you, completely ignoring yuuji "you look absolutely stunning". you chuckle nervously at his comment, immediately picking up on the tension that surrounded the table

the tension in the air was palpable as yuuji watched that guy continue to flirt with you. yuuji felt a pang of jealousy and couldn't help but scowl at the thought of that guy trying to steal you away from him (even though you weren't his). he tried to keep his cool, but it was clear that the waiter's presence was bothering him greatly

"would you like todays special?" the guy asked you. you hum, turning to look at yuuji before speaking "what're you gonna order, yuu?". his head perked up at the use of his nickname, making his heart flutter a bit. "uhh.. yeah i do" he spoke, glancing at the waiter who had finally acknowledged his presence "i just didn't want to interrupt his futile attempt at flirting"

you couldn't help but choke out a chuckle as the waiter visibly glared at yuuji. "u-um.. that's our orders then" you tried not to laugh. the guy left with an eye roll and yuuji followed his movements with a glare

after he's farther away you let out a low laugh and yuuji looks at you a bit confused. "were you jealous just now, yuu?" you say, your laughter dying out but a smile still lingering on your face. yuuji's face flushed in embarrassment. "w-what?? no" he lied, averting his gaze from you

"it's okay, yuu. i'm not surprised that you were jealous" you said with a chuckle "i mean, who wouldn't be? that guy was definitely flirting with me"

yuuji felt a sense of relief wash over him. he didn't want to come across as possessive or insecure, but it was hard not to feel a tinge of jealousy in that moment. "how humble" yuuji scoffed, rolling his eyes playfully at you

the rest of the day went amazing and the guy had actually switched tables after yuuji humiliated him in front you. you were both scared of ruining the friendship but this date proved that you could both have something more and that it could actually last

yuuji walked you to your dorm. the walk filled with laughs and conversations about your times in high school were yuuji did stupid stuff all the time and you were there to scold him

standing at your front door, you looked for your keys in your purse. the keys jingled in your hand as you pulled them out. "i had a great time tonight" yuuji spoke from behind you, a warm and tender smile adorning his face. you turn to him a shy smile gracing your lips. "yuu... do you wanna... y'know.. spend the night?" you muttered, batting your eyelashes at him

his eyes widened and his brain ran wild with lewd thought. "s-sure" he spoke out, almost immediately. you chuckle lightly before opening the door and heading inside

you're straddled on top of yuuji, sloppily making out. his hands on your hips, rolling them forward, making you grind on his aching cock

you could feel yourself getting wetter by the second. you knew yuuji was big but you didn't know how big. he was massive, and he was definitely going to break you

yuuji broke the kiss, a string of saliva connecting you both as you pant heavily. "you sure you wanna do this?" he asked, his breath heavy and his eyes clouded with lust. you nod eagerly, beginning to take your shirt off and revealing your lacy bra

yuuji can't help but ogle your breast. "shit" he muttered, feeling his dick throb at the sight of you. your hands go to your back as you un-clip your bra, revealing your magnificent tits. his hands hesitantly travel up your body, cupping a boob in his hand and squeezing it

he let out a shaky breath as you tugged on his shirt, immediately taking it off and your hands landing on his ripped chest. he couldn't help but whine at your touch. boy, was he sensitive. you stood up, pulling your bottoms down as he did the same

you couldn’t help but stare at his hard, veiny dick, it was so pretty but you just knew that you were gonna be wrecked after this. your hands subconsciously wrap around your stomach, trying to cover your exposed body in embarrassment. "do you umm... do you have any idea how to do this?" you asked, embarrassment noticiable in your tone

yuuji tried his hardest not to drool at the sight of your naked body, keeping his eyes respectfully on yours. "i've seen a few videos" he shrugged nervously. you sat on the bed next to him, feeling his gaze on your chest. "can i.. take the lead?" he asked hesitantly, his eyes desperately roaming yours for approval

you gave a small nod and he wasted no time getting on top of you, using one hand to hold himself up and the other to spread your legs apart. his calloused hands roamed your soft skin and every touch sent a shiver through your spine. “if you want me to stop just say the word and i will. no questions asked, kay?”

you nod again, not being able to formulate words in your current moment. he pushed a single finger in, your wetness smearing down to his knuckles. you squirm a bit. yuuji’s fingers were definitely way more longer and thicker than your own

yuuji pushed his finger in and out of you slowly, your walls gripping on his thick finger as he stared in awe. all he wanted to do was slam his dick into you and have you tighten around him

“think you can take another one?” he whispered, a second finger grazing your entrance. “mhm” you hummed, your hands on his broad shoulders, your nails digging small crescent moons on them

yuuji pushed a second finger in and you can feel your pussy being stretched, a stingy feeling soon turning into pleasure. his pace fastened and moans began to escape your plump lips. “f-fuck ahh” your moans were just heavenly for yuuji and he couldn’t get enough of them. his fingers began to do scissor motions inside your walls, stretching them even more

part of him enjoyed watching you squirm like that because of his fingers. it just made him imagine how you’d be when he sunk his cock into you. he pulled his finger out, aligning himself at your entrance. he hissed at the contact. his virgin cock ached to be sunked into your pretty virgin hole that he so desperately wanted to destroy (with love)

he took your hand in his, slowly sinking himself into your gummy walls. your arousal fresh around his dick, he couldn’t help but moan at the feeling. he was so gonna brag to megumi about this later

you can feel yourself getting full, taking a quick glance where you and him were connected to see that his dick was only half way in. “shitt” you groan, your back arching slightly. “w-what’s wrong?” yuuji asks frantically, worry and concern very visible on his tone and face. “you’re just- aghh.. really big yuu” you explained

yuuji felt his ego soar into the sky at your words. he let out a breathy laugh, suddenly feeling bold, his nervousness seeming to slip away. “you can take it tho, right pretty?” he cooed. you clenched down on him, earning a whine as he continued to sink himself in deeper

“you’re- fuck, s’tight” he groaned, his thumb rubbing circles on your hips. he waited a few minutes for you to adjust, the pain turning into pleasure as you gave him the green light to move

he rocked his hips slowly. he was soft and gentle with his movements at first, being careful not to accidentally break you. that lasted about 40 seconds. your pussy began to tighten around him, making him want to hit deeper and harder into you

part of him wanted to fuck you silly while the other part of him wanted to go slow and kiss all over your body. so he combined them. he thrusted fast and deep into you, his heavy balls slapping against your ass. his lips worked their way through your body, kissing you all over

one hand intertwined with yours and the other holding your hips in place. you could feel yourself seeing stars. yuuji was filling you up so good. stretching and molding your pretty little hole to the shape of his big, veiny cock

his tip hitting your sweet spot every time without fail. your tits bouncing up and down to the rhythm of his thrust. you could feel a knot forming in your stomach as yuuji’s thrust became sloppier

“‘m s’close” you moan out. you can feel him groan against your neck that was probably littered with hickeys. “me too” he panted, his thrust faltering “can i cum inside?��. you clenched harder around him, nodding eagerly “yes- fuckk, yesss”

you felt the knot in your stomach break, your back arching as you scratched yuujis shoulder. with a few more thrust, yuuji dumped his seed into your velvety walls, successfully painting them white. he pulled out, watching your mixed cum trail out of your abused hole

it was such a lewd sight but oh boy did he enjoy it. this was surely a first date the two of you would remember for the rest of your lives

© MINARINNN 2023 - please do not plagiarize or upload my content on any social media platform.

[genshingorlsrevengeance]

I would like to request Bronya, Seele, Firefly, Candace, Dehya jealous hc for no reason other than because

(Honkai: Star Rail) Bronya, Seele, and Firefly, getting jealous

Do you really need a reason to see a pouting Firefly? Also will do Dehya and Candace another time, for some reason my brain ain't working.

Bronya knows that she shouldn't feel jealous, but something tugs at her heartstrings whenever she sees S/O's focus away from her.

They had been talking to Serval for quite a long time, making her finger tapping against the desk in a slowly increasing manner.

It distracts her from the paperwork long enough to make the guards notice.

(Guard) "Lady Bronya, is everything alright?"

Her gaze shifts away from S/O as she quickly clears her throat.

(Bronya) "All is well. As you were."

S/O's eyes follow Bronya's voice, noticing that her lips were quivering ever so slightly.

Whenever its just the two of them in the room, S/O brushes their hands against her, Bronya jumping at the sudden sensation.

(S/O) "Bronya? Are you okay?"

Bronya opens her mouth to quickly assure them that it was nothing, instead a sigh leaves her lips, shaking her head.

(Bronya) "This may sound foolish but...Have I been giving you enough attention lately?"

It takes a second for S/O to connect the dots before they smile, squeezing her hand tighter.

(S/O) "Ah, I'm sorry, Serval was just telling me something about her concert and the help she needed."

(Bronya) "I-...I see."

S/O's hand gently shifted upwards to her arm before taking Bronya into a hug, one she melted into almost immediately.

(S/O) "Don't worry, my eyes are always only on you, Bronya."

The compliment warmed her cheeks while she leaned into their embrace.

(Bronya) "And mine are always on you..."

Seele just huffs while S/O speaks to Bronya, crossing her arms and impatiently tapping her foot.

(Seele) "Tch, are we gonna speak to the princess all day, S/O? It's freezing out here."

(Bronya) "Oh, my apologies! I did not intend to keep you two for so long. Have fun on your date-"

(Seele) "Yeah yeah, we will-"

Seele drags S/O off while holding onto their arm, her brows furrowed in clear annoyance.

(S/O) "Seele?-"

Before they could finish their sentence, the realization dawned on S/O.

But knowing better than to phrase it outright lest they get probably punched, S/O instead pecked Seele's cheek to fluster her.

Which worked.

(Seele) "H-Hey, what the-?!"

(S/O) "Where do you wanna go now?"

Sighing, Seele just averts her gaze as the blood starts rushing to her cheeks.

(Seele) "...I-I guess I want to grab something to eat."

Firefly doesn't get jealous all that easily, but when she does it's quite a sight to behold.

Not in the sense that she'd get angry or threatens to crush the person S/O is speaking to with her armor-

No, Firefly's cheek puffs out to one side as she begins to pout, crossing her arms.

Not within eyesight of her S/O, but more to herself with the action being subconsciously made.

Firefly tugs on S/O's arm gently, trying to get their attention while still being polite.

S/O quickly excuses themselves and turns to the pouting Stellaron Hunter before them.

(Firefly) "S/O, are you done talking to her?"

S/O chuckled, giving a soft kiss to her nose and flustering her for just a moment.

(S/O) "You look really cute right now."

Firefly's face slowly starts to heat up as she averts her gaze from meeting theirs.

(Firefly) "T-That isn't going to distract me, y'know!"

[lee-laurent]

Playing Pretend - Jamie Drysdale

Summary: In which Jamie and his girlfriend end things after pretending everything was okay. Or in which Jamie's girlfriend moves in with Trevor while attempting to keep her pregnancy hidden from everyone.

content: pregnancy, mentions of abortion, long distance, keeping secrets from partner (if that's a warning idk), angst, fluff, mentions of sex, implications of cheating/being unfaithful, jamie's trade :(

notes: this one is a bit more angsty than my other fics. i wanted to experiment with trying something new. possible happy ending tho. guess you'll have to read to find out ;) sorry if it seems rushed, i didn't know how to format it :/

"Of course, you have options. You can read more about those here. This is a judgement free zone," the nurse continued to drone on about scheduling another appointment, but Violet had tuned her out. In fact, the only thing that Violet could hear was her heart pounding in her chest.

"Thank you," she mumbled, grabbing the paperwork and shoving it into her purse. All she wanted was Jamie and he was on the other side of the country.

Once she was safely in her car in the parking lot, she let the tears fall. A baby? How was she supposed to take care of a baby when her boyfriend lived five hours away by plane. They barely spoke more than twice a week at this point. Their relationship was falling apart and a baby wasn't going to save it.

"How was the doctor?" Trevor asked as she walked through the door, kicking off her shoes.

"Fine. Just food poisoning, like you thought."

"I told you! Never eat grocery store sushi, Vi. Should've listened to me."

"Ha. I guess you know best, Trev. I'm gonna go lie down. I'm still nauseous."

"Make sure you text Jamie! He was worried about you."

"I'm sure he was," she mumbled, making her way to her bedroom. She looked at the picture on her bedside table. It was of her and Jamie at his first game with the Ducks. She'd been so proud to see him move from the Gulls to the NHL. He had his arm wrapped around her waist and was looking down at her like she'd hung the moon and stars in the sky, while she smiled happily into the camera. Violet sighed, putting the photo face down. She couldn't bare to look at Jamie's face right now, photo or not.

Her phone buzzed.

Jamie <3: Trev texted. Said it's food poisoning like he thought. Feel better. I love you

Vi: Thanks, Jam. Love you too

Lying to Jamie made her stomach churn. In fact, everything was making her stomach churn at the moment. Trevor had made sausages with his breakfast that morning, leading to her projectile vomiting in the kitchen. Which is when Trevor finally convinced her to go to a walk-in clinic. A walk-in clinic that sent her to Planned Parenthood. And now at the thought of Jamie not knowing about his child mixed with the baby in her womb hating the smell of everything, she was leaned over the toilet once more.

"Vi? Do you want some ginger ale?" Trevor asked from the doorway.

"No. I'm okay, Trev. Just, I- I'd like to be alone right now."

"Oh, right. Call me if you need anything," he sighed, gently shutting the door behind him.

Violet sniffled, reaching for her phone on the counter next to her.

Jamie was worried sick about Violet, but he was also focused on the game of NHL 24 he was playing with Cam.

"Wait. Time out. Violet's texting."

"Oh, shit. What'd she say?"

"That... that we need to talk?" Jamie furrowed his eyebrows.

"Shit. We can finish this later. Call her."

"Thanks, Cam. I- I'll be back," Jamie stood up from the couch, albeit a bit wobbly from nerves, speeding off to his room.

"Hey," Violet's voice cracked as it broke through the speaker of his phone.

"Hey, um, what did you wanna talk about?"

"Long distance isn't working, Jamie. I- I think we should end things."

"What? Vi? Where is this coming from? Did- did you meet someone in Anaheim?"

"What? God, no. Jamie- I wouldn't cheat. You know that. I just- this is too much stress for me right now."

"Our relationship is too much stress for you? I- I told you that you could move here. We could get our own place. I-"

"Jamie, I have a life here. I have a job. My friends."

"I had all of that too. But, I- I'm making it work here. You could make it work here, Violet! Please don't do this. You- you're the love of my life."

"Jamie, don't make this harder than it needs to be. I can't do this anymore."

"Please, Violet. Please."

"We- if you need anything call Trevor. Goodbye, Jamie."

Jamie didn't return to his game with Cam; he spent the rest of the night crying himself to sleep on his bed.

"You broke up with Jamie?!" Trevor shouted the next morning, waking up an exhausted Violet.

"Trevor? It's 6 in the morning."

"Yeah? Well Jamie just called me in tears, saying that you dumped him OVER THE PHONE?!"

"We're long distance. How else was I supposed to do it?"

"You weren't supposed to do it at all, Violet! You guys are made for each other! What's with this sudden change of heart?"

"We were barely talking anymore. I need a present boyfriend."

"Vi-"

"Drop it, Trevor! It's frankly none of your business!"

"None of my bus-"

Violet gagged, leaning over and puking on the hardwood floor. She looked up at Trevor, wiping her mouth.

"Get me a paper towel, please."

"Right. Um, right... This conversation isn't over."

He returned with a roll of paper towels. Watching as she pulled herself out of bed, to clean up the mess next to her bed.

"Why'd you break up with him?"

"I just told you. It wasn't working."

"But, you didn't even try to make it work. He said you didn't communicate it wasn't going well until yesterday."

"Wow. Does Jamie tell you every intimate part of our relationship?" she snapped.

"No."

"It was rhetorical, Trevor."

"Oh. He loves you."

"I know."

"Do you not love him?"

"What? Of course I love him. He's the fa- the first man I loved. I'll always love him."

"Then why break up with him?! He- he said you could go live with him in Philly."

"I don't want to leave Anaheim. I want to r- never mind. But, my job is here."

"Get a new one."

"God! You're so immature! It's not that fucking easy, Trevor! I'm not going to start my entire life over for Jamie! So fucking drop it!"

"I-"

"Drop it!"

Trevor dropped it. At least with Violet he did. He spent every day trying to convince Jamie to call her. To fix things. To figure what he could do. Jamie wasn't easily convinced though. After the mental anguish that the phone call with his now ex-girlfriend had caused him, he wasn't sure he wanted to go through it again.

Violet's morning sickness hadn't ended. In fact, it was getting worse. Morning sickness? More like all day and all night sickness. She was in agony. And Trevor as oblivious as he was, was getting suspicious.

"Maybe you should go to the doctor again? I don't think food poisoning is supposed to last this long."

"It's probably just stress."

"Why're you stressed?"

"Work."

"But- okay? I still think you should go back."

"Trevor."

"Yes?"

"I'm fine."

"You're pretending."

"What?"

"You're pretending everything is okay. You're just afraid to admit that things are worse without Jamie. Not better. You're more stressed. Hence the vomiting."

"Trevor, I- I have work to do."

Two hours later Violet was in the kitchen doing dishes when her phone started ringing.

"Trev! Can you get that?"

"Sure."

"Hi! This is Alice from Anaheim OB/GYN, I was just calling to confirm your appointment on Friday with Dr. Rhodes," the voice came through the phone.

"Trev! Who is it?"

"Sure, just let me get the phone to Violet. Oh, perfect! Thank you!"

"Hi?" Violet asked, pressing the phone to her ear.

"Hi! Is this Violet?"

"Yes, this is she."

"Perfect! Just a few questions to go over before confirming your appointment."

"Oh, of course."

"Any abnormal bleeding?"

"No."

"Dizziness?"

"Nope."

"How's the nausea you mentioned last time you were in?"

"About the same."

"Okay, I'll let the nurse know. We can get you some tablets for that. See you Friday at 11:30."

"Perfect, thank you."

Violet sighed, hanging up the phone.

"You're pregnant?" Trevor whispered.

"What? No."

"She said she was calling from the OB/GYN's office. Isn't that a doctor for pregnant people?"

"Not always. They also give birth control and stuff."

"But why would you need birth control if you're not seeing Jamie anymore?"

"For my periods."

"You're lying."

"I'm not lying, Trevor. Why would I lie?"

"You're lying. You always itch your wrist when you lie. You're pregnant. Does Jamie know?"

"Maybe it isn't Jamie's?"

"Yeah? Who else have you slept with? Nobody. You and Jamie had sex the night before we left for Nashville."

"Who told you that?"

"Jamie."

"Ew. I-"

"So it is Jamie's?"

"I'm not pregnant."

"Violet... is this why you dumped him? Are you getting... you know?"

"Not pregnant, Trevor."

"Fine, I'll drop it for now. But, if you were pregnant, I, um, I'd be here to help. I promise."

"Good to know if I am to hypothetically get pregnant," she mumbled, itching her wrist. Trevor let out a heavy sigh.

"You- you can tell me anything, Violet. I'm not going to tell Jamie if you don't want me to."

"You said you were gonna drop it. Plus there's nothing to tell him. Everything is normal."

"Right, um, I'm going out. Call if you need anything for your... food poisoning."

"Will do."

When she finally heard the front door shut, she let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. The tension in the kitchen had been palpable. She knew deep down that Trevor didn't believe her, but until she was showing she'd be able to hide it... maybe.

A month had passed and Violet was shocked to find that it looked like she was bloated. Violet had always been on the thinner side, but not to the point that she thought she'd be showing this early into her pregnancy. The doctors had confirmed that she was just over a month when she found out, meaning she was nearing three months. Baggy clothes became her new best friends. Unfortunately, most of the baggy clothing she owned were items she'd stolen from Jamie. This led to lots of looks from Trevor as she moved around their apartment.

Trevor now knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Violet was pregnant. He'd gone into her bathroom to find some extra toilet paper and come across an array of prenatal vitamins. He didn't bring it up though. The apartment constantly had an air of awkwardness shrouding it. Violet and Trevor were tip-toeing around each other. And he knew that eventually he would have to be the bigger person and bring it up, which was uncommon for the Ducks player.

"I was talking to Jamie today," Trevor mentioned as he twirled some spaghetti onto his fork.

"Hm. How's Jamie?"

"Better. He, uh, he still asks about you."

"Good for him."

"I'm sure if you told him... about your situation, he'd be willing to help."

"What situation?" Violet smiled, taking a sip of her water.

"Can we stop pretending, Violet?"

She shook her head, pushing away from the small kitchen table.

"God! Grow up, Violet! You're going to be a mom! Start acting like a fucking adult!" Trevor shouted as she retreated to her room, that Trevor had not-so-lovingly nicknamed "the cave." Her door slammed in response, shaking the pictures hanging in the corridor.

"Hey, girl!" her best friend, Aly, smiled through the FaceTime call. "How're those vitamins? One of the moms I work with says they're the best ones!"

"Good, I think. I've got a little bump now."

"Damn! Baby Drysdale is growingggg!" she dragged out.

"Don't call them that. He- I still haven't told him."

"Girl! You told me you were going to like a week ago! What changed?"

"He- I saw him on Instagram and he looked so happy. I don't want to ruin that."

"So... you're just gonna wallow in self-pity until your baby is born? What about when he sees you with a baby? Isn't he gonna be suspicious?"

"He already accused me of cheating. So..."

"Violet! No! We are not claiming you cheated and got pregnant from another man."

"Jamie's not ready to be a dad."

"Who told you that? Jamie?"

"No."

"Exactly. You don't know that!"

"I'll think about it, Aly. Right now, the doctor said I need to avoid too much stress. It makes my nausea worse."

"Uh huh. Lemme tell you about this date I went on!"

"Do you think Violet would be okay if I came to visit?" Jamie asked Trevor.

"Um... I mean you're coming to see me. It has nothing to do with her."

"I guess, you're right. I'll get a hotel though. I don't want to intrude on her space."

"Her space is also my space, Jamie."

"Yeah, but she's my... ex. It'd feel weird. Is she, um, seeing anyone new?"

"Violet?" Trevor choked on his water, "No. No. She's been busy with... work."

"Makes sense."

"What about you? Any new women in your life?"

"No. I just compare them all to Vi."

"When you come, maybe you can get some closure. Talk to her."

"If she lets me."

"If she lets you," Trevor smiled, continuing to help his best friend plan his trip.

Six months pregnant. Violet couldn't believe it. Her baby was the size of corn, according to Aly. It was hard to hide her ever growing bump, but Trevor's hoodies and some of Jamie's old clothes did the trick. She had no idea that Jamie was coming to visit. It was all part of Trevor's plan to get her to talk to him... and admit her pregnancy.

Trevor was buzzing as he walked Jamie up the stairs to their apartment.

"Violet did some redecorating, but it looks similar to when you left! She's still asleep, I think. She sleeps in on weekends."

"Not surprising," Jamie bit back his smile.

"Welcome back, bud!" Trevor swung open the door, leading his ex-teammate into his home. Jamie looked around, it was similar to when he left. A few pictures had been taken down and replaced with new ones, but it looked pretty much the same.

"Trev? Why are you shouting?" Violet questioned sleepily, rubbing a hand on her stomach. The baby had recently discovered how to kick and it was their new favourite hobby.

"Look who I brought home with me!" Trevor beamed.

"Jamie?" the girl suddenly looked much more awake, dropping her hands to her side.

"You... you're pregnant," was all Jamie could manage, staring directly at her stomach.

"Surprise?"

The group sat in the living room. Well, Trevor and Violet were sitting. Jamie was pacing around the room, running his hands through his hair.

"You're gonna go bald, Jimmy. Stop."

"She- you're pregnant?!"

"Yes. We established that, Jamie," Violet rolled her eyes.

"Yeah. Is it... is it mine?"

"Um..."

"Yes, the baby is yours, Jamie! Are you dumb?" Trevor furrowed his brow.

"You didn't tell me?! Neither of you?!"

"She... It wasn't my place."

"Yeah? What about you, Violet? What's your excuse?!"

"I- I didn't want to ruin your career."

"Ruin my career? No! You were just being selfish. Don't pretend this had anything to do with protecting me!" Jamie exclaimed.

"Jamie, can you sit down? You're stressing me out," she sighed, rubbing over where the baby was kicking repeatedly, sensing its mother's turmoil.

"Violet! We... we're having a baby."

"I'm having a baby."

God, she was just as stubborn as before.

"Z, can we have a minute?"

"Oh, sure," Trevor left and Jamie didn't speak until he heard the door close.

"Violet, this is serious. Why would you keep this from me? Is this why you ended things?" he asked, kneeling in front of her.

"Sort of. I panicked. I just, I don't want you to feel forced to stay because of us," she motioned to her belly.

"I... I still love you. A lot. God, I never stopped loving you."

"Jamie..."

"You... you can come live in Philly! We can fix us. And raise our baby. Be a happy family."

"I want to stay here."

"You... you can't keep my baby from me, Violet. Please," his eyes started to water, "Not any longer than you already have."

"He-"

"He? It's a boy?"

"Shit. Yeah."

"I'm going to have a son?" he smiled, the tears finally falling. Violet could feel her hormones acting up, her eyes also welling with tears.

"Henry."

"Hm?"

"I- I've been planning on naming him Henry."

"Henry. It's perfect, Vi. Can I?" he gestured to the swell of her stomach. She nodded, letting out a sob as his hands met the cotton of her shirt.

"Hi, Henry. It's your dad. I'm sorry I haven't been here. I- I don't blame Mommy. She did what she thought was best."

Violet continued to sob. Why was he being so sweet to her? She'd kept his son from him!

"Violet, can you just think about it? Please. Us and Henry in Philly."

"I can think about it, Jams," she cried, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Are you sure you built that right?" Violet asked for the fourth time, "I don't want him falling on the ground in the middle of the night."

"I followed the instructions, Vi. It's secure. He'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I just-"

Jamie cut her off with a kiss to her lips.

"I'm positive, love. Now stop worrying. Poor Henry is going to pop out early if you keep that up."

"I'd appreciate it if he did. He's been sitting on my bladder all day."

Jamie kneeled down in front of her, placing a hand where he saw the imprint of a foot kick.

"Can you move off Mommy's bladder? It makes her pissy. And Daddy doesn't want to deal with it right now."

"He's not listening. I need to pee," she waddled out of the nursery and into the ensuite. Jamie laughed, following her into their bedroom.

"You look good pregnant," Jamie commented as she emerged from the bathroom.

"Shut up. We're not having sex until this monster is out of me."

"He's not a monster!"

"He's giant! I can't breathe."

"Here," Jamie walked behind her, lifting up her stomach. She let out a long sigh of relief, the pressure being alleviated from her back.

"Thanks, Jams. I love you."

"I love you too," he smiled. Although they weren't the most stable couple on the planet, Jamie was just glad to have his girl back. And now he had his little boy too. He felt complete. And so did Violet. Complete and happy with their soon-to-be family of three.

[abaddown]

Breakup

OK, OK, I'm going to go home and break up with her. But what do I tell her? "I deserve better." Jesus, no, definitely not that. Even if that's true, only women say that. "You deserve more." Now, that's pretty good. But she's gonna start to get all unintelligent and tell me I'm good just the way I am. That's the way it is. Haha. "I want to live." That'll take the edge off. I might as well say I want to fuck half of Europe. Let's see. "I think we should be apart now so we can be together later." That's not bad, but I don't want to be together later. I'd spare you the hysterics, but I'd be constantly harassed about when that later was. "I'm in love with someone." That seems pretty definitive, but she'd want to know who the bitch was, and it would start a never-ending interrogation about where I met her, when we met, was the sex good, do I regret it, did I think about her, why I didn't tell her, blah blah blah blah... "I cheated on you." Same thing. Oh God, the easiest thing would be to just disappear without a word, never pick up the phone, never answer her texts again. Okay, it's a little bit of a chick thing. "I don't want kids yet." And then she says, "Neither did she. "I want a baby now." She'll end up saying she does too. "I need to focus on my career now." I'm sure her mothering side would come out and assure me that she'll be supportive, patient, that I can build my career, that she's there for me and won't abandon me in the hardest times. Too bad. Wait a minute! I should make her want to break up. Then how much unnecessary crying and screaming would be saved. I'd pretend a little bit, "Oh, no." and then that's it, hat, coat, goodbye. But it would be too long a process to wait. "Something's wrong, this isn't working." I can hear her saying, "But what, tell me what's wrong, I'll change, just tell me what I can do differently! I know you love me, it's just a moment of desperation, believe me, we can work it out!" No, we can't, I don't want to. Okay, I've got a big mouth now, but I actually loved her and I still love her. Just not the way it should be. Like she did me. But I don't want to hurt her. She's a sweet girl. If I said, "I'm sorry, but I don't love you the way I should and the way you deserve. I'm sorry.", you know what? She'd start to tear herself up, eat her insides out, cry for weeks and look for reasons why she'd gone wrong. I don't want to hurt you. That feeling either comes or it doesn't. Or it comes and then it goes. I'm gone, what do I do?

If you break up with a woman, why does she always, at all costs, try to convince you that you're stupid and don't feel what you feel? I can just decide if I want to be with someone or not. Women, I swear, think that we men are so mentally retarded that we don't recognize when we really love someone. God, how many times have I listened to break ups and say "I know you love me. Deep down, you love me so much, you just don't realize it. You're really going to regret this." It's simply impossible to break up cleanly, without scandal. What do you have to say to that? Fuck, is it that late? Look, she's calling again, asking where I am, what I'm doing, when I'll be home. I'm gonna have to talk to her and break up with her. I'm gonna go. I'll call you later.

- Hey, girl, I'm home. What's all this stuff, you going on a trip?

- No. I'm moving.

- You're moving? Where are you going? Why are you going away?

- Out. You know why. I can't do this. Listen, I think we should cut this short. I don't know about you, but I haven't been happy in this relationship for a long time, and I don't think you have either. I think the best thing we can do is just quietly accept that this is the way it is and break up. We have no reason to be angry with each other, so we can separate from each other peacefully. I've got some stuff left here, and I'll pick it up sometime.

- But hey, wait a minute. Just like that? Are you seeing anyone? What's the matter? You want to talk about it or work it out? You're just gonna throw everything away? I don't get it. Is it me? But I love you. Let's talk about it. Let’s fix it!

- Forgive me, but I don't love you the way I should and the way you deserve. I'm sorry..

***

Then she walked out of the apartment. And I've never felt more in love with any woman in my life than I did with her, staring at the closed door.

[v3nusxsky]

hey! could I request a nsfw work for Emily prentiss / nb! reader (afab)

im really bad at requesting stuff so I’m just gonna make a list I hope that’s okay!!

After a really tough case you just need Emily to take all control and fuck you senselessly and she agrees but also she is concerned about you and makes sure you’re okay

dom Emily and sub reader (bdsm vibes) Emily is hard dom but also really soft and caring, she instantly switches from “using” the reader’s body and degrading them to showering them with kisses and compliments

safe word use (love me some good communication!)

overstimulation kink / multiple orgasms!

mommy kink

praise kink

no strap on stuff please!

aftercare (fluff :)

thank uuu <3

Mommy has you baby 18+

*Authors note~ felt like our em deserved a bit of love too Yano? Yea I'm writing fics instead of uni just to cope and then finishing it off on the train 😭*

Trigger warnings~ mommy kink praise kink degrading sub r dom Emily safe word use aftercare thigh riding eating out fingering tribbing overstim

Prompt~see aak^^^

This case was a rough one for you, it's not uncommon that a case would get an agent a little more than normal, especially when it held a personal tie to their lives or past. For you, it was poor girls who'd lost their lives just for being who they were. And by a "friend" none the less was heartbreaking. Reminding you of the time where you were almost one of those girls but thankfully you had been taught to defend yourself at your FBI academy.

The blank stare you held the entire plane ride told Emily one thing. You needed her. You needed to feel, to be pulled from the memories of the past to the present. And luckily, Emily knew just what she needed to do for you. Unfortunately , this wasn't either of your first rodeos for needing this sort of help and support. And you'd develop a code to show consent. So it was to no surprise that when Emily asked you if you wanted to "reset" that you nodded silently and made your way to the car.

After your silent drive with your girlfriend you immediately got out of the car and made your way inside to your bedroom. Emily knowing you needed space pottered around shutting the house up and preparing for what was to come. When she made her way to the room you were stripped bare, much like your emotions, on your knees for her. She loves to make you sit pretty for your mommy, head down with your hands on your knees while she stalked around the room in heels. A clear display of dominance.

"What do you need sweetheart?" She held her authoritative tone to show you she expected an answer. "Mommy to make it better" you whimpered still not moving from where you were stationed. "Well then why don't you be a good little slut and fucking earn my help" Emily growled moving to out a head in your heat and tugging it, causing you to yelp out but follow her lead. "Oh don't whine! You know you love it, a little pain slut is all you are."

Next thing you knew you were being pushed onto the bed and your lover straddling your thigh. "Flex" she demanded before starting to grind her hips downwards to seek friction. I'm a constant to her degrading words her smooth hands were constantly touching your skin. It didn't matter if it was your pretty tits or your arms the touch remains light and gentle. "Oh you are a good slut for mommy, letting mommy use your pretty body for my pleasure. Isn't that right my sweet girl?" She mewled as her hips began to lose their rhythm. Knowing she was close you sat up to latch on to her rose bud and sucked harshly. Exactly how she liked, causing her to cum hard. Like a mindless doll you allowed Emily to work her way through the first orgasm of the night, happy to serve. Emily made quick work of shredding any remaining barriers preventing you from being skin to skin.

The raven haired woman shifted to her knees before licking where she'd drenched your thigh, bitting the silky smooth skin just the right amount to draw some blood. "Mommy wants to play with her doll now baby, can you be a good girl for me?" She murmured in between soothing the bit and pressing open mouthed kisses to each thigh. "Yes mommy" you whined  before Emily took a bold swipe of your soaking slit. "Oh! Mmm" you mewled giving Emily all the encouragement she needed to lap at your pussy like a starving woman.

"Let me hear those pretty moans sweet girl. Moan for mommy. I want to hear those pretty noises when you cum for me" Emily mumbled into your cunt, the vibrations sending you over the edge and rewarding her efforts as you mewled in pleasure. Only when she was sure she'd got all her reward did she pull away from your core, chin glistening in your arousal and cum mixed together. "Check in baby" she whispered coming to press sweet kisses all across your chest, up your neck, to your cheek, eyes and nose before your plump lips.

"Emerald" you panted out. Laying beneath her with your pupils blown wide and a beautiful flush over your neck and there swells of your breasts. "Greedy whore tonight" she mused before trailing her fingers south of your body to your sensitive clit. "Mommy!" You whimpered as she made contact. "Oh hush, you'll take what mommy gives you, gosh you're practically a bitch in heat with all this filth down here. A whore for your co-worker, doesn't that make you feel ashamed dirty girl" Emily teased you while her fingers trailed your folds before slamming into your awaiting hole.

The shame only aided the bubble of arousal to grow in your stomach as your love hit the right spot inside your spongy walls with each stroke. Effortlessly she had you close to the edge within minutes and begging for her to let you cum. "Such a fucking whore" she mumbled with a roll of her eyes but never slowing her pace, "be a good cumslut and cum now bitch!" Emily growled her left hand digging into your hips hard enough to leave bruises for days.

"Shh darling, you did so good my love, so good. One more okay one more" she murmured over and over as you rode the pleasurable waves. "No mommy! Can't do more please" you cried well and truly on your way to where you needed to be mentally. You knew your safe word and when to use it which is why Emily manhandled your body to be on top of her own. "Such a slut. Move your fucking ass!" She grumbled smacking your thigh which caused you to adjust into the position she wanted. You couldn't help but sigh as you felt the warmth radiating from her core. "Mommy" you mewled softly as you slowly began to rock your hips against hers.

To be gracious, Emily let you have a few minutes of pathetically rutting against her before she changed the position muttering that you were no more than a useless slut who couldn't even do something so simple. From there on Emily took control of the pace and made sure you could feel everything. "Lavender!" You sobbed through gasps causing everything to halt. "Okay sweet girl, all done, no more. My good girl."

Nothing else mattered to Emily Prentiss apart from you in this moment. She had to make sure you were okay. Instinctively, she moved to cuddle you up into her bare chest and rub your back as you sobbed. Your body shook for minutes until you managed to gain a bit of control. "Mommy?" You muttered into her skin, "I'm sorry." Those two words single handedly broke her heart, "oh sweet girl, you have nothing to apologise for, mommy is so proud of her girl. You did so well for me darling, my pretty girl I couldn't be more proud or in love with you. Mommy is here okay?"

Some time passed before Emily attempted to gently shift away from you, "mommy needs to clean her precious girl up and then we can get into bed and snuggle okay baby?" You nodded in understanding and tried to hide the whimpers when the cool wash cloth hit your over sensitive folds. "All done my girl" Emily murmured quickly ridding herself of the cloth and joining you in the warm bed. "Thank you Emi" you murmured when she gathered you in her arms again. "Always baby, no matter what you need." And that was how it would always be, no matter what you needed Emily would move heaven and earth to give it to you.

Word count ~ 1488

[quickdeaths]

@more-than-a-princess

Still confined to her cabin from sundown to sunup, and still bound by handcuffs when in transit, Shinobu wouldn't describe herself as having any abundance of freedom. Yet, the opportunity to sit with someone and eat together was one she'd missed, and among the current conscious inhabitants of Jabberwock Island, there was no one she'd rather take a meal with than Ayaka. The restaurant on the hotel's second floor was mostly empty, with the others not likely coming for breakfast for an hour or so. Enough time for Shinobu to eat and be off to the beach, rather than have to encounter everyone all at the same time, before she was ready. No, it was better to keep it to herself, and Ayaka, as well as Shinobu's Future Foundation handler.

The man from before had gone back home, so this man was someone new to her. They imagined that was much the point - that there be enough churn through their various handlers that there wouldn't be any chance of attachment in either direction. He was supposed to have removed her handcuffs for her to eat, but instead he sat on the other side of the restaurant, jacket pulled back and folded in an unnatural way to make clear the gun at his hip. It was petty, Shinobu thought, but there wasn't much she could do about it. He was to bring her to the restaurant to eat with Ayaka, then take her to the beach and remove the handcuffs so she could fish. How she managed to eat, with her hands behind her back, was her business.

"Hey. Eat." For her part, Ayaka Sato had a bite of a fruit tart on the end of Shinobu's fork, piled high with pastry cream and berries, and her tone of voice made obvious how non-negotiable her request was. "Mm," Shinobu murmured, complying without any resistance. Being fed like a child was embarrassing, but what use was shame, anymore. Ayaka speared another tart with the fork, sparing a moment to glare towards the Future Foundation agent. How she mustered any fire at all in those weary green eyes flecked with pink, Shinobu couldn't begin to guess. "I appreciate it, Ayaka. Your help, and your company."

The chef gave a small grunt that Shinobu took as acknowledgement. "I'm not gonna let you smash your face into the breakfast I made, so it's not like there's anything else I can do." Outwardly, Ayaka Sato hadn't changed. Her tongue was still sharp, and her body wasn't so obviously damaged as her own, or some of the others'. No, Ayaka's scars were inside. "Shinobu," she started, looking back to the archer with a softening expression, "you don't look as tired as usual. Are you sleeping better?" "No." "Right." It was a question with an answer so obvious that there wasn't any reason to ask it, aside from a discomfort with silence. "I had coffee this morning. I'm feeling a bit more energetic than usual because of it, that's all." Ayaka made a face, like she wasn't sure how to take that explanation. "Where did you get coffee here?" There was a cheap instant coffee machine sitting on a dirty countertop only a few feet away, but they'd run out of pods within a week, and to call the coffee so much as 'drinkable' in the first place was, in Shinobu's estimation, undue praise.

"Nevermind-san. The princess." There was a quiet moment as Ayaka looked at Shinobu, seeming to be searching her face for something. When she found it - or didn't, perhaps - she nodded. "Oh. I spoke to her at the farm recently. She said she'd drop some things off for me to cook with." There were a few moments of silence, sporadically filled only with the sounds of eating, when Ayaka brought another forkful of fruit to Shinobu's lips as she asked a question. "What do you think about her being here?" Shinobu frowned, swallowing before answering. "I'm... not sure yet." "Mm." Surely Ayaka had some sort of thought of her own about the situation, but perhaps out of some respect for how Shinobu was handling things, it appeared she'd rather keep it to herself. "Just don't overdo it, if you're not up to something." "Right. Thank you, Ayaka."

It was that conversation that came to the forefront of Shinobu's mind as she saw Sonia walking up the beach in what seemed to have become a semi-regular occurrence. What did they think about her being here? It was strange, to be so near the person she had longed to kill, whose existence had consumed her own for so long, yet not remember why it had been so important to orchestrate her demise. Perhaps they'd had some sort of connection? At the boundaries of her shattered memories, Shinobu could remember so many faceless girls, but it seemed implausible that someone as distinguished as Sonia Nevermind could have been among them.

Or, maybe it was a simple extension of her competitive spirit. The members of Hope's Peak Academy who she'd killed had died so easily, without even putting up a fight, and even top military snipers had proved terribly boring. It might have simple been the case that Novoselic was a puzzle to solve, with a dead princess as the prize. A nation locked tight, with guns and tanks behind every alleyway, where the entire population was on some level combat-capable. The despair that came when their borders were breached and their beloved princess' corpse revealed to them would have been a fitting tribute to Junko.

No... that didn't sound quite right, either, but thinking further on it just brought another headache, prompting the archer to shake their head weakly. At least they didn't have to worry about a collar tightly chafing their neck. Her burns were starting to heal, slathered with ointment that stimulated healing while protecting from the sun. Something else to thank Sonia for, in addition to the coffee. "Hello, Nevermind-san." The fish weren't biting much today, and Shinobu stuck the end of her rod in the sand as she stood to face the princess, even though she still couldn't meet her gaze. Why did she keep coming here? "If you're here to fish, I'm afraid it isn't going well today." Thankfully, there was enough of a stockpile that a day or two with little to show for her efforts wouldn't be much issue.

"Although, if it's just a matter of having some time away from other responsibilities, I'm not in any position to judge." What anyone, princess or not, did with their time in this barely-living world wasn't their concern. Whatever right she had to cast judgment on others had been surrendered long ago. "I've heard you've been busy since you arrived." Having greeted her appropriately, in her mind, Shinobu returned to the sand, fitting hands around the rod even with the knowledge that there'd likely be no tug against the line. "Though, that shouldn't surprise me. This isn't a social visit, or a vacation. No one would come here without good reason."

And good reason, Sonia Nevermind must have had - whatever it was. Not Shinobu's place to pry. "Ayaka - that is, Sato-san - mentioned she spoke to you a few days ago, about bringing some ingredients for her to cook with. I hope she expressed her appreciation properly." Likely, she did, and Shinobu didn't need to make excuses for her, if not. Still... pretending to have any decorum left, trying to adhere in some small ways to things like respect and proper etiquette had its benefits. "I imagine everyone else is getting a little tired of the same few meals." Those who ate much, anyway.

"Oh, that reminds me." Decorum. Respect. Reciprocity. "Here." They'd finished it the night earlier, taking a few passes to get used to the cheap ballpoint pens. There were worse ways to fill the hours inside the cabin. Carefully laid inside of her tackle box, to be protected from the elements and kept from creasing or wrinkling, Shinobu pulled out the paper with the ink drawing and held it out for Sonia to take. "It's from memory, and my memory is uniquely poor, so I don't know how accurate it might be. Still, it's some token of appreciation. For the coffee, and the burn cream."

Despite Shinobu's prefaces, the ink portrait of a makango was clearly drawn with a lot of care, the delicate hatching and gentle shading touch making up for poor tools. Given how many failed efforts were in the cabin's wastebasket, she'd hoped it was at least a passable effort. "I hear that the art of serial killers often carries some strange value," she muttered. Why did she know that? "If that's still true, then, perhaps that might be useful to you in some way. A positive takeaway from your trip, or something you could speak of in an interview. You could say that someone else drew it, if that would be easier."

[pipwasreal]

Day 18: friendship + vampirism

Alternate prompt today. I was finding it difficult to figure out a way to make glory hole or breath play plausibly platonic... I know, I'm a coward.

Characters: Crystal Palace, Niko Sasaki, Litty and Kingham (mentioned), Edwin Payne, Charles Rowland, David the Demon (mentioned)

Content warnings: biting, blood drinking

Crystal had kind of gotten used to staring at Niko, at being mesmerised not only by the lights and colours that surrounded her like some bizarre kawaii aura but also by her frankly adorable face.

The nasty little parasitic sprites are out (though Crystal wishes they were fucking dead to boot) leaving Niko with white hair and the ability to see ghosts. But that's not all that's changed.

Niko's staring back now.

Her dark eyes are wide, her lips slightly parted. It's a bit intense. If Crystal didn't know better, she'd think Niko wants to kiss her. Or possibly eat her.

Crystal waves at her and Niko startles, caught out. But she doesn't blush or laugh, like she would if she'd just zoned out. If anything she looks a bit... scared?

She stands abruptly and tries to hurry off toward the malt shop bathroom, but Crystal's worried now. They were supposed to be having a soda float to celebrate Niko feeling better... but what if she's not?

"Hey, wait!" Crystal says.

She grabs Niko's hand as she passes. Not tight, but Niko looks down at it and gasps. Crystal drops it immediately.

"You okay?" She asks.

Niko frowns, mouth twisting uncertainly, then seems to make a decision.

"Come to the bathroom with me?" She asks, maybe a little too loudly.

Crystal resists the urge to glance around and see if those girls are here again, and judging her, again.

"Sure," she says. She throws an apologetic glance back toward Charles and Edwin as they leave.

"Why are they going to the bathroom together?" Edwin asks, sounding baffled and disturbed.

"It's a girl thing," Charles replies confidently.

Crystal rolls her eyes.

As soon as the door closes behind them, Niko turns to the sink and bends over to look at her face in the mirror. She sighs, relieved. Then she leans in closer and grimaces at her reflection.

"Okay, Niko, what is going on?" Crystal asks.

Niko straightens up and turns to face her.

"Um... I'm experiencing a symptom? I think?"

Crystal raises her eyebrows and waits.

"I feel really cold, and you look... warm," Niko says. "Like you give really good hugs."

Crystal laughs.

"I don't think that's a symptom," she says. "But I can hug you, if you want? Or we could go get food?"

"I don't think I'm hungry for food," says Niko.

Which is a weird thing to say, but okay, so Niko's a little weird. So is Crystal's whole goddamn life.

But then Niko turns to the mirror again.

"Look." She points to her mouth, and grins.

Crystal steps closer, frowning in confusion.

Then she spots it. Niko's eye teeth look longer and sharper than normal, more... feline.

"Oh shit," says Crystal. "Yeah okay, that's different."

"At least I have a reflection. That's good, right?"

They both stare at Niko's reflection a bit longer.

"So are you, like, gonna freak out and bite my head off now?" Crystal asks.

Niko considers this.

"I don't think so? I only feel a bit thirsty." She turns to Crystal with a very serious expression. "But you have my permission to stake me if I get murdery."

Crystal laughs at that, she can't help it. Niko joins in, a moment later.

"You're a good friend," she says, smiling.

Crystal smiles back. She wants to be a good friend. What would a good friend do?

"Um, well, do you want..." she says, then trails off, gesturing vaguely toward her own neck.

Niko's eyes widen in shock.

"Really? You want me to bite you?"

Crystal shrugs. "For science."

She holds her hair out of the way and turns her head, baring her throat.

"Are you sure?" Niko asks. "What if I can't stop?"

Crystal wiggles the fingers of her free hand.

"Then I'll get inside your head and make you stop."

Even though that's an objectively terrifying sentence, Niko looks relieved.

"Okay. Um. Here goes."

She leans in, tilts her head and hesitantly presses her lips to Crystal's throat. She gives a little lick, her tongue hot and wet. Crystal's pulse spikes.

"Mmm warm," Niko mumbles against Crystal's skin. Crystal shivers. The hard points of Niko's teeth scrape against the soft skin, then dig in.

It feels like... being bitten. She winces. It hurts, but not too much. She can feel her pulse throbbing in the bitemark, and a slight wetness on her throat.

Then Niko starts sucking on her neck.

Which is actually kinda hot. Crystal's had her fair share of make-out sessions, she's sure. She just can't remember them. David doesn't fucking count.

But Niko's gentle, and her hair smells nice, and she stops after a minute and grabs a bit of paper towel to press to Crystal's throat.

Crystal can be a good friend, as often as Niko needs.

[spiderh0rse]

Chell's Mind (Cyhanide's version) notes. All episodes.

e00

Chell doesn't recognize where she is, can't breathe well. Thinks she's on the tail end of a terrible round of drinking

scared that Glados's sped up voice means there will be an explosion

sees herself through the portal and promptly sets to admiring herself

curious about her long fall boots. Finds she can jump higher than before

wants coffee :(

finds the portals creepy.

took some test? That led here somehow.

finds the cubes Huge.

pretty sure hell is supposed to be down.

learns the emancipation grills can destroy the cubes. Immediately wants to burn one.

the grill feels like static!

not pleased by the rickety elevators

wants to go home :(- wait no just wants coffee again

thinks 19 is a random number. Thinks 12 is better. Or so people tell her.

dry wit!

talks to the cameras. Baby talks them a bit

portal cuts off right in front of her and immediately checks to see if she has her arms

bets there is Nothing wrong with the button. Still worries.

exasperated at the needless length of the word "emancipation"

hears about the tooth emancipation and immediately catastrophizes. Thinks she tastes metal.

asks the portal gun if she needs it, if it's important to her. Decides they need to be friends.

hears to not look down the operational end of the device and wonder what she'd see

oh her autism vibes start immediately. Any ambiguity and she starts picking at technicalities

uses the portals as a mirror.

thinks every day is a bad hair day for her

"gonna use your long words on my gun?"

praises the grill for not taking her gun

hopes it won't take long to do all these tests. She's very hungry.

e01

now that her HUNGER instinct kicked in, her OXYGEN instinct is lessened

thinks the portal gun has a long name. Contemplates naming it Sebastian.

likes the letter Q!

names the gun ASHPOD!

forgot Glados's name. Asks her for food and drink.

asks Ashpod if Glados feels passive aggressive

oh hey her boots are knee replacements too!

clones of herself thought about...

remembers meatloaf = bad. Doesn't remember eating meatloaf.

remembers she could've applied to Black Mesa, but didn't because Aperture paid more.

feels like she's never eaten in her life.

so irritated she can't even gloat

mocks Aperture over being shown up by Black Mesa.

needs a hug :(. Pretty sure Ashpod is not the ideal hug partner. Or staring contest/beach partner

tells the energy pellet that it must be the emancipation grill's little brother

pronounces her name "Shell". Doesn't remember her hometown. (Clutching at my head. Severance haunts me)

wishes she knew why all this was happening

"crimson and sangria are both forms of red, you idiots."

anthropomorphizes things often.

slur count: one

"happy. happy. joy. joy."

this does NOT make her happy.

calls the unstationary scaffold "the scaffold of death."

still really wants food.

oh she has lost a tooth. Which was apparently Cyhanide's wisdom tooth!

e02

panicked over her tooth. Spits it out

i,, can't quite make out what she's saying (rambling. Fast.) But slur count: two, I think?

that was a molar she's lost!

furious about the tooth thing.

the chambers are out of order?

may be familiar with the Hitchhiker's Guide.

JUST wants coffee.

threatens to strangle someone with their own hair.

kind of wants to stand in the grill until all her teeth fall out.

likes corn on the cob :)

"Don't use science as an excuse to kill me."

would slaughter a man with her bare hands for mountain dew.

delighted at the sight of the goop floor. Reconsiders her response as being unusual.

has a carnal desire to eradicate mildew

wonders how the floorgoop does on soap scum

declares her hate for Glados

sings what sounds like a nursery rhyme in Japanese. Says she likes the language.

burns a cube. Laughs about it. Burns ANOTHER

hypothetical high five!

doesn't think she's a robot

CAKE.

immediately bows to the whims of whoever for cake

black forest cake is her favourite!

calling Glados "Hal" now

ohhhhh that was "Mary Had A Little Lamb" earlier. And now!

e03

beginning to see the benefits of stairs/escalators

now calling Hal "Halley"

asks Ashpod if a pit is bottomless. Voices it as slightly British butler

how is she supposed to get up these ledges if she's short? She demands equal rights and a stepladder

finds momentum puzzles more interesting than button puzzles

"can you obtain the power to make [a second portal]?"

asks the portal if it's doing anything later

upset that Halley is teaching her physics this early in the morning

seems to have picked up an evil voice in her head. Her voice with reverb

OH GOD ITS CNN

sees no point in arguing with Halley

CNN leaves to keep up with some game. Refuses to record anything for Chell

Slur count: three.

has located a new kind of button that may or may not cause cancer

okay the half life reference I get. Unsure about the. Uh. Zombie one. But there's some options there.

thinks Ashpod is cute, like some kind of beetle

thinks she can sell her organs for money. Not anything on the left half of her body though. She's emotionally attached to that.

wonders what would happen if she put a portal on a portal. Possibly black hole/nuclear reaction

liquid and food, liquids and food. Wants those so badly. Thinks she might kill herself if she thinks about that too long.

does a little jig :)

calls herself a turtle. Evil voice likes. Korok???

e04

bets Hally has a goatee, because she's evil.

seems to think she's in Cleveland?

tells Ashpod the computer may be crazier than she is

has opinions on people with STIs

thinks cool side effects to otherwise awful diseases make them worth in

really does hate physics. But she's good at the terminology

wants POWER

EVIL TWIN/CNN IS BACK. Chell refuses to acknowledge her.

wishes she could tell the future

plays with infinitely looped portals. Falls several miles.

seems to have a problem with acting on stupid impulse

breaks out of her heavy breathing very quickly.

declares that evil is a matter of opinion. Halley is evil, and therefore has a goatee and eyeliner. May think Halley may be possessed.

sick of being stared at. May be hallucinating.

needs mountain dew before she kills again

finds illusion preferable to despair

wants to plot a world destruction scheme! I'm onboard.

oh yeah she thinks Halley may be peddling drugs to her.

she's skipping all the buildup to being power mad and just immediately begging for power

uses some philosophy standpoint to justify her going a bit crazy down there

e05-1

glad she's allowed to be crazy. Didnt like putting on sanity.

demands expensive things.

tells Ashpod that it will make people very lazy some day.

now HATES stairs. Beginning to think all non-portal means of elevating herself are looked upon poorly

SICK of cubes. Would rather haul anything else.

condemns the cube to radiation poisoning.

HATES mosquitoes

wonders why aperture is so screwed up

hasn't spoken to anyone since she arrived. Halley doesn't count, since she has a goatee.

just wants to know she's not the last person on earth.

wants BISCUITS.

thinks 15 is a better number than 14. Hates Valentine's day.

takes a nap in the lift!

e05-2

the elevator rides are shorter than she'd like.

for the love of waffles….

wants Ashpod to have her mountain dew when she dies

throws like a girl! …wait.

fairly sure she can reach anything with Ashpod's help

captures a radio! It's playing some rock song. Then starts shrieking.

loves rock! This is also quite a nice song.

now that she's attained music, she doesn't want to leave it behind. Many are saying this.

thinks maybe she can hide the radio in the jumpsuit… But no. Boobs too big for that to work.

hears the radio sing a lyric she doesn't like, tosses it into the grill. Loud screech.

Shazam!

starting to freak her out that there's no scientists watching

ELECTRIFIED TOXIC WASTE MENTION !!!

requests food again

portal-able… Wonders how to pronounce it. Or if there's a better word for it.

flying through the air kills her air. Shame, that

doesn't understand trigonometry

finds fortune favors the psychologically deviant

thinks the scaffold of death wants to kill her.

a wall eating the scaffold of death is less distressing than walls shooting at her

doesn't want to be a tortilla

"more quickly" does not please her. "Quickler" is the word of choice

tells Halley she needs both her kidneys. For drinking once she's out!

goes back to sleep in the elevator!

oh hey Ian? Hiiiiii

[keebwee]

Whumptober Day 2 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

No. 2: “I’ll call out your name, but you won’t call back.”

Thermometer | Delirium | “They don't care about you.”

Summary: Donatello gets sick in the bad future timeline. He just wants his brother to be there with him. Unfortunately, he isn't.

AO3

CONTENT WARNINGS: PAST SIBLING DEATH, GRIEVING, ILLNESS

fic under the cut

"Donnie, I need you to check up on the A-wing; there's been some kind of—woah, what the hell happened to you? You look like shit." Donnie lazily turned to look at his twin, who stood in his doorway, his massive shadow looming over Donnie. His prosthetic arm—Raph's old prosthetic arm—stood out like a sore thumb.

"Nothing's wrong, Leo," Donnie mumbled. "I'm fine. Just... tired." Yup. Definitely.

"Just tired, my ass," Leo swore. "You look horrible. Are you feeling okay?" He stepped into the room, placing a hand on his hip.

"I said I'm fine. What was it you needed me to do?" Donnie dismissed his concern. Obviously, their base was far more important than how he was feeling. His body could wait.

"I can get someone else to do it." Leo was standing next to Donnie, now. "It's just a simple door malfunction." He lifted his real hand to feel Donnie's forehead and hissed. "You're burning up. We need to get you to medbay."

"No, I'm fine, Nardo," Donnie snapped. "I'll go fix the—the..." He trailed off, suddenly overcome with a powerful wave of dizziness. He swayed, before tilting over the side of his chair and falling.

"Donnie! Shit, shit!" Leo grabbed him just before he could hit the floor. The cool metal of his Raph's prosthetic arm pressed against Donnie's cheek and he sighed. "Oh my god, you're so heavy now. Okay, up we go!" He hoisted the softshell up into his arms, adjusting him so he was carrying him bridal style.

"Put me down..." Donnie groaned. 

"Nah." Leo didn't put him down. "We're going to the medbay, where you're gonna sit in bed till you're better. Can't have my favorite twin melting while he tries to fix a door, can I?" Donnie didn't respond. He didn't say anything even when they made it to the medbay, nor when he was tucked into bed after a quick examination by Leo himself.

Eventually, Mikey and April popped into the room. Donnie didn't notice them till Mikey had made his way into his bed and curled up next to him. April took his temperature and got him to begrudgingly accept a damp washcloth for his forehead, despite his distaste for it. He spaced out, setting his chin on Mikey's head as the box turtle nestled into the crest between his chest and neck. At some point, he found himself relaxing and slipping into an uncomfortable sleep.

Donnie wasn't doing well; anyone could see that. His fever had worsened within the past 10 hours he'd been in the medbay, and whenever he was woken up to eat or drink he barely seemed to process it. He'd mumble in his sleep, and Mikey thought he'd even had a few nightmares, based on the whines and jerky movements he'd make every once in a while. 

So when he woke up and looked at them, Mikey's eyes lit up with joy.

Until he uttered the most heartbreaking thing he could've said.

"R'ph?" 

Mikey's heart sank. 

Raph had been dead for two years, now, and Donnie thought he was here. Either that, or he wanted him. Both situations were horrible.

April took the initiative, kneeling down next to Donnie's head and shushing him. "Raph's not here right now, Dee," She said quietly. "It's just us. Me, Mikey, and Leo." Donnie blinked at her tiredly, taking a few moments to process what she'd said.

"Where... is he?" He mumbled. "When—" He was cut off by a harsh coughing fit, prompting Leo to sit him up and rub his shell soothingly. Donnie was so weak he had to lean up against Leo to remain upright. His head sagged forward as he wheezed. 

"He's not here." Leo kept rubbing his shell. When the coughing calmed down, Donnie curled into himself and whined. "Hey, hey. It's okay. We've got you." 

Mikey scooted closer to Donnie, taking his hand and tracing his fingers with his own in an attempt to calm Donnie down. Maybe himself, too. Not that he'd admit that to anyone here.

"Raph..." Donnie was crying now. "Where is he—I need him! I—" He wheezed again. "Raph—!" He was sobbing.

His family didn't know what to do. It wasn't often anyone saw the softshell cry like this, let alone when he was sick. Sick Donnie and crying Donnie weren't often expressed together. 

Suddenly, Donnie turned and latched onto Mikey. His skin was boiling and coated in sweat. 

"Woah, woah!" Mikey laughed dryly. "Let's lay back down, Dee." Donnie nodded, sniffling and mumbling quietly. Mikey lowered himself and his older brother back down onto the bed and motioned for either of his siblings to cover the two in the blanket. They did.

Donnie fell asleep soon after, tears still dripping down his face as he slept.

This dance repeated for almost four days. Donnie would wake up, he'd panic and look for his oldest—and, friendly reminder, deceased brother, and then latch onto whoever was closest to him. Usually, that person would be his family, but once or twice it was a nurse who happened to be caring for him while the others slept.

 "Donnie, you need to eat something, please." April showed him a tray of food she'd grabbed from their makeshift cafeteria. All it was were crackers, miscellaneous meat jerky, and grits. These were common foods for Donnie. But he refused to eat it. "It doesn't have to be a lot! Even just a single bite."

Donnie shook his head. "My stomach hurts. I'm not hungry."

"Please?" April pleaded.

"...Fine," Donnie replied tiredly. He reached out and grabbed a cracker, taking a small bite and placing the cracker back on the tray. "Did it." He turned over onto his side, nestling his face into his pillow. April sighed and took the tray back, leaving Donnie alone again.

He was still feeling incredibly out of it. The room was always spinning and he constantly felt nauseous. He just wanted to sleep and wake up feeling normal again. He wanted Raph.

Ah. There it was again. 

He sniffled, bringing a shaky hand up to his face and wiping away his growing tears. He missed Raph so, so much. When the turtles were kids, they'd get sick every now and then. Raph would always stay with them till they felt better. Donnie wanted that. 

Sure, Leo and Mikey were with him a lot, but he knew if Raph were here, the softshell would never be left alone. He wanted his big brother. A sob erupted from him and he shoved his face into his pillow to muffle his cries. His attempt was in vain, because his brothers had just so happened to be walking in.

"Aw... Dee." Donnie heard Mikey say. A hand was placed on the side of his head and he leaned into it. "Your fever's getting better, I think," He mumbled. "You need a hug?" Donnie nodded. Mikey sat on his bed and wrapped an arm around him. His other arm went and grabbed his blanket, pulling it over himself and Donnie like he had so many times already. 

"How's he lookin'?" Leo asked Mikey as he scooped up the thermometer and a clean rag. 

"His fever's down." Mikey rubbed Donnie's arm as he spoke. "April said he took a bite of a cracker. Is the tray still in here?" 

"Yeah, it's right here. The guy took the smallest bite," Leo sighed. "Is he awake?" 

"I think." Mikey nudged Donnie and he hissed. "Yup, he's awake."

Leo made his way over with the tray. "Don-Tron, Dee, Donnie." 

"What," Donnie mumbled.

"Can you eat a full cracker for me?" Donnie looked at the slider, who's eyes looked broken and tired, with visible bags. He looked exhausted. Maybe he should eat a cracker? No, he's too nauseous.

"You're nauseous probably because you haven't eaten. Just eat one or two," Mikey murmured. Donnie groaned at him before reaching out a hand to grab a cracker. He shoved the whole thing in his mouth, chewed it for a few seconds, and swallowed it whole. His brothers' eyes lit up. Donnie grabbed another and ate it. Leo smiled softly.

Donnie ate just a little bit more before he pushed the tray away and nestled back into his pillow, falling asleep.

[profound-bouquetbird]

Hello! I saw this about another fandom and thought I would love to see it with toh, can I ask for some hcs about the modern social media pressence of them? (Any you want, but my favorites are king and the veterans but in their young version, like eda, raine and lilith) about, how they spend their time online, their favorite app, how they are on instagram?, or their texting style. Ty!

I seperated everyone so that no one gets confused :)

Edit: omg, why did this take me so long??? 😭 😭 😭

I'm so sorry you had to wait this long for your request to be posted, and I'm sorry to the seven other people in my inbox that left a request 😭

I'll try to write it as quickly as possible, but writers block is hitting me like a brick rn 😔

Eda Clawthorne!

I'd say she'd be pretty well known, has a good amount of followers

She's not famous by any means, but there are a few teasing comments from her classmates and or friends. For example: "Oh my god, is that (insert her username)! Can I get an autograph???" Y'know, stuff like that

I'd say she's chronically online, constantly quoting the latest memes and is sort of up to the trends. Would do the typical dumb dares people have made up, but is always doing them on the brink of the trends end

I'd say her favorite app is... Tiktok? Yeah, looks like she'd be obsessed with that app

Knows more about the news and global warming and all of the stuff that the adults are supposed to hear and worry about. I'd feel like she'd have multiple weird facts pop up on her FYP and would either spill the horrors of her 'fun facts' to her mother, or would run to Lilith to tell her yet another fun fact she managed to find

And as for the Instagram bit, as previously stated, she'd have quite the amount of followers. I'd feel like she would post her 'epic stunts' that she did in the backyard, you could hear a faint voice of her mom yelling her full name before she cuts the video short. Also is the type of person to post horrendous memes on her page (I am guilty of that crime 😔)

She always leaves encouraging comments on her friends Instagram posts and stuff, I feel like I should put that in

As for her texting style, it's caos. No commas, no new rows, no punctuation, no nothing. Literally texts like this

hey lilly mom said we r gonna get mcdonlds be out of UR ruum in 5 mins

She knows grammar and has the ability to type correctly, she just doesn't feel like being grammatically correct when texting. It's your problem you can't read it 😒

Lilith Clawthorne!

Is actually pretty famous... Well, at least on her other profile

She's that 'aesthetic smart girl' you see on your page that never shows her face. Also does bomb powerpoint presentations and posts them on her account (ppl eat that stuff upppp)

Eda would be the only one to know about her secret account and she swears to keep her mouth shut. Although the secret account does slip out of Edas mind often, so Lilith doesn't have to worry all that much about the word spreading

But, on her main account which she shares with her friends... It's literally just her friends. Of course, you have her sister and people she hangs out with/is cool with, as well as her club members, but thats pretty much it

On her main, she mostly posts stuff about her school and her successes, such as the awards she gets in contests of the medals/trophies she recives

Again, Eda will the the one hyping her up in her comments, but she doesn't dare to hype her up on her secret account, as to not rish accidentally spilling the beans in the comments somehow

For her favorite app... I'd have to say: 'Instagram'. I would've said Pinterest but it doesn't quite sit right with me fully... Instagram feels like a better fit

Always scrolling through reels, but also opens Tiktok from time to time (specifically to search for the memes Eda is quoting so that she isn't as confused)

Texts normally, like how you'd see people text on the daily. But, if she's mad, I can also see her writing painfully grammatically correct sentences with words that everybody forgets the meaning of

No, I'm not gonna set an example because that's too much thinking.

Raine Whispers!

Raine would be avarege in the followers count. They wouldn't be all that famous, but they also wouldn't be completely invisible

Definitely is the type of person to have their account private for a few years before toughening up and macking their account public. That was oddly specific but we'll move on

They'd mostly post selfies with their friends, of course an occasional recording of their progress with their violin as well as some bard magic tricks (like that whistling in the cup)

Doesn't get that many comments on their posts, but when they do they make sure to either like it or fully reply

Isn't as chronically online as Eda but is up to date with the memes. Is always able to quote with or continue a quote Eda began. Trends always somehow end up on their for you page when they're scrolling on Tiktok

Favorite app? Oddly enough: 'Twitter' 'X'. Loves to read the drama people have, and when there is nothing to do they just scroll onto people's accounts

And for the texting style: the perfect middle. Just enough punctuation to make it make sense, but not too formal to make it look like a business e-mail

[nowoyas]

Koi no Yokan 22: come together (nishinoya yuu/reader)

First - Prev - Next - M.list - Ao3

A/N: take two on the right blog this time lmao. next update may be delayed, but I'll keep y'all updated. between new health issues and world events writing is really difficult for me right now. thanks for understanding <3

Summary: As the training camp nears its end, your boys continue to work hard and pull it all together.

Warnings and Tags: blanket series warnings

Words: ~3200

The next day is the first that you manage to make it to lunch without cringing, and the first where you get to be in the gym all day. You push your luck as you always do, spend the night up until dinner helping Noya with his jump set—still not quite there yet—and, after dinner, shoot a text to Noya asking if he'd like to walk around the school with you, since you're supposed to be going on walks and stuff and don't feel like going it alone. Naturally, he'd been so down for it that you'd been able to watch him basically leap out of his chair from across the cafeteria once he read the text.

You kinda missed having time alone with him. You haven't really had much of any since the training camp started, and you realize with a pang that the reduced frequency is an indicator that things are back to normal—no more sleeping in his arms, no more everyone in the house you're in home before dark, no more I'm home! and casual welcome back. No I'm heading out, no see you later. No one to eat dinner with.

A finger pokes your cheek. "You're getting stuck in your head. What's up?"

Right. This is stupid. You're being stupid. "It's nothing."

An unimpressed look. "Sure it is."

You sigh. "Just thinking about what I'm gonna have to put up with when we get back."

"Your dad?"

A nod.

"That's a problem for future [name]-san, isn't it?" He tilts his head. "You're not there and it's not your problem."

"But…"

"But I know that girl. She hates it when you take work from her. If she knew you were trying to take the worry about this from her, she'd be pissed."

You pause. Laugh. "Right. You're right."

You walk a little longer with him. It's nighttime, but it's still hot. The darkness isn't doing anything to cool anything off, but you happen to like it. It feels nice. Comfortable, even though you're stuck to long pants while doing manager stuff. Maybe a bit sticky, but it's not like you're doing any running. (Maybe it feels better because you know you aren't the one stuck exercising in this heat.)

"Thanks for walking with me. I know you've probably had enough exercise this week to last you the year."

"Are you kidding? I can keep going."

You roll your eyes. "Probably shouldn't, though. Something something, rest and recovery, something, take care of your body. I think I've basically gotten my fill, anyway, so we can head back."

"I mean," he hums, "if you took better care of yourself, I might consider taking better care of myself…"

You roll your eyes. "Like you'd do anything to hurt your performance at volleyball. You'll take care of yourself."

The pair of you wander past one of the gyms, and you pause at the distinct sound of volleyball taking place. Check the time on your phone. Noya isn't far behind you when you poke your head in to look—Hinata and Tsukishima, of all people, are mid three-on-three with some guys from other schools. They're locked in, which is sort of cool to watch, but…

You wait for the ball to fall, and then you cross your arms. "Hey, you guys ate, right?"

They freeze, turn to you in comical sync.

Oh god. They haven't eaten. "The cafeteria is getting locked in three minutes. Tell me you guys ate."

Hinata shakes his head gravely. You sigh. If you remember correctly… "Alright. Hold on. You guys clean up."

You've been excluded from the rotation on account of the concussion, but the other managers have a rotating schedule on which two girls clean and lock up the cafeteria at night. Tonight's Shirofuku and Suzumeda, if you recall, the latter of which does not pick up the phone. You get Shirofuku when you try her, though.

"What's up?" she answers.

"Shirofuku-san, hi! How much do you love me?"

There's a pause before she responds. "…why?"

You take on your sweetest affect, smiling even though she can't see you. "Could you maybe hold on locking up the cafeteria for me?"

She sighs. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything! But we've got a couple stragglers who got too focused on individual practice and haven't eaten yet. You wouldn't want anyone to fall out tomorrow because they didn't eat properly, would you? Not you, Shirofuku-san. You'd never."

There's a hesitation. You hear her cover the speaker, probably to talk to Suzumeda. You pounce.

"I'll handle locking up afterwards and cleaning properly, so you guys can go ahead to bed and not miss anything."

"How about you make them handle it, Little Miss Concussion?"

You pout. "It won't be that much. You guys were basically already done, right? And it's not like it's a problem if I miss any sleep, I mean, I've got doctor's orders to take naps as needed, anyway, so if I miss out on sleep—"

"Don't you dare—" Noya interrupts beside you. You lean over, slap a hand over his mouth, and keep talking.

"I've got this. Come on, please?"

"Fine. We'll wait. But you are going to take it easy, you hear? if you don't come upstairs in time we're physically carrying you up the stairs and forcing you to sleep."

"Great!" you chirp. "Thanks so much! I've got them cleaning up, so I'll meet you and get everything ready. You're the best!"

Just as you hang up, something warm and wet lathes over your palm. You squeal, jerking away from Noya. "Did you just lick me!?"

"Sorry," Noya says with a shit-eating grin. "There was this hand over my mouth, see—"

"I'm going to have Nee-san dye that little bleached strip pink next time you bother her for a refresh," you threaten.

He laughs. "I think I could rock it."

...infuriatingly, he totally could. You turn to the six stragglers, face flaming with embarrassment. "Anyway! I got clearance to keep the cafeteria open a little longer for you guys, but obviously it'll create problems if you stay too late and we make it to curfew without being done, so I gotta ask that you guys clean up and eat quick so I can clean up in time, okay?"

You receive six synchronous bows, six shouted thanks. Pride surges in you when the volume doesn't bring about any twinges of pain.

"You're so kind to us!" a voice booms.

Your gravity lurches out of wack—at first, you think that'd be because of Fukurodani's ace (Bokuto, maybe?) rushing towards you, but then a familiar arm settles over you and you realize that Noya has pulled you squarely out of his reach. He steadies you, chin resting on your shoulder to glare at him.

Bokuto stops and pouts, arms crossed. "I just wanted to thank her for making sure we can eat tonight. Is that not okay?"

"Bokuto-san, maybe don't randomly hug someone else's girlfriend," Fukurodani's setter says.

You freeze. "Hold up. Girlfriend?"

"Are you two not dating?" Nekoma's captain asks.

Noya's arm over your shoulder tightens protectively. "Not yet, but she's still off-limits."

"Excuse me, yet?" You turn to glare at him. He raises an eyebrow back.

"Yet."

You snort, roll your eyes. "Right. Okay. Anyways, we all need to hurry, so..." You wriggle out of his hold.

He's so convinced you'll fall in love with him. Like it's that easy. Stupid.

So you meet up with Shirofuku and Suzumeda. The guys trail not far behind—they get leftovers, and they're cold, but it's dinner and they're grateful to you. They go out of their way to avoid making a mess, and Noya lingers by to help you finish cleaning and lock up even though you repeatedly tell him he doesn't have to. He's so pushy. What pisses you off the most is the fact that you can't even be honestly annoyed with it. You lock up, you get to sleep on time, all six of the Stragglers Squad thanks you with their lives, and the next morning—last day of the camp—you settle in for morning practice like always.

When Hinata pulls off some new move—a wipe, Shimizu calls it—Yachi smiles at you and says, "I hope that new quick comes together soon, too."

"Same," you reply back.

~

Her wishes do not go unanswered. The final set of the training camp—imbued with energy from the promise of impending grilled meat and emboldened by Yachi's gentle mention to Hinata that she'd like to see that new quick they're working on—sees the first truly satisfying spike you've seen from Hinata in a while, your head notwithstanding. It takes you too long to recognize that they'd done it, that that was the new quick. It doesn't look much different to you, or to Takeda, apparently, but it's all about options, apparently, and now Hinata has those.

As Yachi cheers beside you, and the guys yell, you can't help but feel a little proud that they managed to make it work. You kinda wanna tell Kageyama I told you so, but you'll let them have this. The set moves on—a successful synchronized attack, a time out, water bottles and towels and excitement and Noya taking a moment to flash that wide grin at you.

"Wait, [name]-san," he says before you can walk away to set down the water bottle caddy, "for good luck—marry me?"

You roll your eyes, turn to pat his shoulder. "I don't think you really need the luck, but why don't you get that set to come together and ask another eight hundred and eighty-six times or so and I'll think about it in the meantime?"

His face lights up as always, and you watch him practically bounce back into position on the court.

It takes two points for the opportunity to come—a receive by Kageyama, and then Noya flowing easily into the set, which Azumane spikes and just barely manages to get in. But he gets it in.

It comes together.

Holy shit, it came together.

You grab at Yachi's arm in your excitement as she cheers—nice kill!—and try to contain yourself. Your first thought had been to cheer with her, but the second thought was swift and much louder—he'll never let you live it down if you do.

He catches your eye as you try to tamp down the smile. Gestures wildly. You roll your eyes in reply. You're sure later you'll receive a tackle for it, but you can try to avoid it, at least.

~

Fukurodani takes the last set with a truly impressive spike from Bokuto. You can't even really be mad that the gambit to crush him didn't really pull through, least of all when Noya sweeps you off your feet in celebration of his first successful in-game jump set.

"So, since I got it to come together—"

"Eight hundred and eighty-five or no deal," you interrupt, voice a little strained from the ongoing bear hug.

That earned you another nine proposals, rapid-fire, like you weren't in the middle of the gym and wriggling to get free, but it's fine, you guess. More important than proposals 106 through 115 is the barbecue, which you manage to escape for in hopes of helping out with.

And everyone is happy with the barbecue. When it kicks off, you find a corner to linger in with Tsukishima. The amount of people is just a bit... overwhelming, that's all. Tsukishima's corner is quiet. It's a good pick.

You can't help but needle him, though. You can only take so much quiet, only so much room to think. "I think that those moments today where things started working are why everyone else works so hard. That's where their passion is coming from."

He sighs. "I gathered. I don't get it, but I think I at least see it. It still feels stupid to just chase a high like that, but..."

You shrug. "Better than walking aimlessly, I guess."

He nods. "Right."

You sigh. The smell of meat is getting to you. "I'll leave you to your skulking," you say. "I'm gonna see if these guys will let me get close to any of the grills."

He nods you away, and you make it all of four steps before you spot a disaster-in-progress in the form of a trembling Yachi, surrounded by basically the four beefiest dudes at the entire camp, including Azumane.

You swoop in quick, gesture to them to step back. "Woah, hey. You're looking a little overwhelmed, Yachi-san. Do you wanna go sit?"

She nods weakly, face deathly pale. You shoot an apologetic look to the guys. "Sorry. I think the crowd's overwhelming her. C'mon, let's go sit with the girls and I'll get your food for you. How's that sound?"

"O-okay..."

"Can I touch you?"

Another weak nod. You place a hand on her shoulder, steer her over towards the other managers at a careful pace. Your firm "excuse me!"s cut through the guys well enough. You suppose there's an advantage to basically everyone knowing you have a concussion. When she's sat down, you kneel in front of her with a look of concern. "Are you gonna be okay?"

She nods. "Y-yeah. Sorry, I just... they're all so big and scary and... I-I know we've been around them all week, and even Azumane-san was there, b-but..."

"It's okay. Seriously. You're allowed to have anxiety, no matter what anyone says. Do you still want to eat?"

"Y-yeah. Maybe. I don't know."

"I'll get a plate with enough for both of us, then, and bring it back."

"Y-you don't have to—" she starts to protest, but you raise a hand to silence her.

"I'm choosing to. You're not making me do anything. It takes no extra effort to just take a little bit extra of what I get while I'm already getting it."

"B-but your head..."

"Will be fine. I'm supposed to be gently pushing myself, right? This is a good gentle push. If it gets too hard, we can send someone else. Alright?"

"Okay..."

You nod to Suzumeda and Shirofuku. "Can you two keep an eye on her and talk to her? Just a distraction to help her calm down. When I'm back, I can walk her through calming down the rest of the way if she needs it."

They nod, and you disappear into the crowd—get a small pile of meat for you and one for Yachi, pile up some vegetables on top to balance it. You're not all that hungry, but you suppose after nearly passing out like that, she probably isn't, either.

For good measure, one rice ball for each of you makes its way onto the pile as you wind your way back, and then you slump into the chair beside her and offer her food. You pick at your own, focus more on letting her get her fill than eating, yourself. The meat smells delicious, but...

You can't shake it. Can't shake the loom and gloom, the knowledge that, after this, you're going home. To your house. To your house.

Your eyes drift to watching everyone mingle as Yachi goes from shaking to calm, from having to be fed to being able to eat on her own.

You promised your dad you'd come home and talk then. You don't know what he could possibly say to you, if anything could make his absence better. You probably deserved it, anyway. You should be the one apologizing. It's not like he killed your mom. His wife. The woman he loved more than anything.

Your eyes trace Shimizu, sauntering obliviously through the crowd of guys to get her food. Maybe you should just find Noya and hang out with him. He's good at distracting you. You're sure he'd be thrilled to be hanging out with a girl at one of these, anyhow. He's just so easy to be around.

But right now, he's not far behind Shimizu, flanked by Tanaka and Mohawk guy. Glaring, probably audibly growling. Letting some guys from Fukurodani know, in no uncertain terms, to lay off.

A hand tugs you out of your thoughts, forces you to turn to the other girls.

Suzumeda leans in, devilish grin on her lips. At some point, Miyanoshita and Otaki also joined you, so, save for Shimizu, all the managers are present. "So, [name]-chan."

"Yeah?"

"We've been good. We've been patient. But you're about to go home—" Gee, thanks for the reminder. "—and we can't let you leave without answers."

Ugh. This is about Noya, isn't it? You suppress the urge to roll your eyes.

"What is the deal with him?" Otaki asks. "I mean, you guys are really obviously super close. Like, really obviously. And you know, we're nosy... why aren't you dating him?"

"Him?" You snort.

"Yeah! He clearly likes you, you like to act tough but I'm pretty sure you like him, I mean... why not?"

You jerk your chin towards where he's patrolling around Shimizu, chewing your lip hard enough to punish. "Does it look like he likes me, or does it look like he likes girls and I just happen to be one who pays attention to him?"

"[name]-chan…"

They have more to say in response, but you refuse to entertain it. Instead, you zone out Shimizu-ways, watch her remain blissfully unapproached as the trio does their sworn duty. Noya does his job well.

"Yachi-san," you interrupt suddenly.

She jolts. "What's up?"

"Can I borrow your bus pillow when we leave today? My head's kinda starting to hurt but I can't sleep on the bus without resting my head on the window. You can probably imagine how much that will not help me at all."

"Oh, uh, sure! I don't mind! Do you want me to go ask Sensei about your painkillers?"

You shake your head. "I should be fine. It's not that bad, I just need to sleep it off."

Doubtful that you actually sleep.

~

On the bus a short hour or so later, clad in your bus hoodie—well-worn, faded, and cozy without making you overheat—you rest your head on the borrowed pillow and try to keep your eyes closed. You don't want to see the look on Noya's face when he realizes you've taken a seat on the side of the bus with single-seat rows.

You hear it, though. Footsteps stuttering to a stop, then Yachi's voice.

"Oh, she said her head was bothering her, so she was just going to nap."

You can actually hear the pout in his voice. "Am I not a good enough pillow…?"

"Oi, Nishinoya. Keep moving," Ennoshita says. "We all have to get on the bus, you know."

"Right. Yeah, sorry. Ryuu! I'm coming to sit with you!"

The footsteps continue. You pull your hood over your head and try to shove down the guilt. When your phone buzzes, you flinch.

Noya to [name] at 14:13

Noya: [image attached. Image description: Soba with her mouth open and both front paws in the air, batting at something out of focus in the foreground.]

Noya: Soba fighting off your headache. get some good rest for me, ok?

Somehow, this doesn't help your guilt. It doesn't help it one bit.

Tags: @deeplightgarden @idonthaveanameideayet @dusstory @kazunish

[ofpineapplesanddawns]

Anyway, I said I was gonna write something based on this post, and damnit, I'm making it so.

Warning: human au, being lost in the woods during a storm, beardziraphale my beloved, Aziraphale is not what he seems

He/him pronouns for Aziraphale, they/them for Crowley

On with the fic!

--

Crowley was going to find out who planned this stupid company retreat thing and wring them around the neck by their own, stupid necktie! They were very, very sure they knew exactly who planned a four day weekend up in the mountains for 'company bonding time', and they were going to face the wrath of one AJ Crowley, they swore!

If only they survived the night, that is.

The day had actually been rather beautiful, really. Crowley didn't mind being out in nature, considering that plants were one of their favorite things. They had hoped to use this trip as a good excuse to explore flora and such they weren't used to, and to maybe do a bit of berry picking.

Maggie had even gotten in on the idea and they had planned to wander off the trail to an area known for berries.

Except their stupid bosses decided everyone needed to be in groups instead of one big one, and to go down different trails instead of the main (easiest) one!

Maggie was at least with Nina, so she'd be fine. But Crowley was stuck with the worst people they knew at work and they had a feeling this was done on purpose for the reasons of 'improving work relationships'.

Gabriel could go and suck a lemon.

Still, the hike had been enjoyable once Crowley put in their headphones and followed behind the annoying members of the office. They would often stop to take pictures and even do a little recording on their phone of some of the animals they spotted.

Not much team building or whatever was happening, but hey, it wasn't too bad. And at least Crowley had been smart and prepared for the hike, unlike Hastur and Ligur, and poor Shax was not going to last in those shoes. Furfur was only slightly better than those three, but for fuck's sake, he was obnoxious about it.

When they had sat down for a break and lunch, that's when things took a turn for the worse.

Crowley should have been paying attention, and really, this was on them, with their headphones in and all, and their need to not eat with the others. But during the break, they had not noticed they were abandoned.

With an annoyed groan, Crowley had tried to follow up the trail to catch up to them, but it took over and hour for Crowley to notice that, well...

There was no sign of them.

Or anyone else.

And they had tried to turn around, but somehow in their panic had gotten themself lost and that was embarrassing as fuck.

And now they found themself without a clue where to go or what to do.

It was darker now, the sun was nearly gone, and Crowley still couldn't find their way back. And there was, of course no signal so they couldn't call anyone for help.

They were about ready to just sit down and wait for help, maybe even build a fire, someone would be bound to see that, when they noticed something in the distance.

Further into the growing darkness, they could see a few specks of light, set in such a way that they had to be windows. A cabin? Maybe a ranger's station? Crowley didn't know and didn't care, they broke out into a run.

Which resulted in them tripping over something in the dark as they got closer to the lights, crashing hard into the ground with a cry.

Their foot hurt, as did their knees and hands from the fall. Shit, shit, shit, could it get any worse?!

A crack of thunder echoed through the forest and a drop of something cold and wet touched Crowley's cheek. Followed by more, and more, and then it was down pouring.

"Fuck." Crowley grunted as they tried to get up, hissing as they tried to walk, but their foot hurt like a bitch. Still, they pressed on. The lights were on and getting brighter with each painful step they took.

Until a third joined the two lights, longer, with a figure blocking some of the light. "Oh! You poor dear, hurry, hurry!" Called a voice into the rain and darkness.

Somehow, this voice seemed to give Crowley a bit more pep in their step to make the distance between themself and the cabin before them. They got up to the steps before stumbling, only to be caught in big, strong arms, covered in flannel.

"Goodness," said the voice, "you're soaked to the bone! Come inside, I've got just the things for you that'll have you right as, well, haha, right as rain."

Crowley blinked a few times, blinding by the warm light as they were helped into the cabin. It was dry inside, and so very toasty against their soaked, freezing skin. They let out a sigh as they were sat down in a soft chair and finally looked up at the voice's owner.

And then their mouth went dry before becoming very, very wet.

The man before them was both so very rugged and so very beautiful. His hair was a brilliant pale, curly and soft, his beard a similar shade with small streaks of silvery gray in it. He looked soft in the middle but clearly was a man of strength, with thighs hidden behind form-fitting jeans that had Crowley swallowing.

His hazel eyes were sparkling and kind, and his smile was so sweet as he put a hand to Crowley's face, brushing away some of the wet hair that hung limply in front of their eyes. Crowley absently noticed that the touch felt cold, maybe from the rain?

"My, my, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." The man chuckled. "Let me get you a towel and some clothes, dear. Just sit by the fire and warm up, alright? You're shaking like a leaf!"

Crowley hadn't noticed, but they were practically vibrating from the chill still deep in their bones. "Y-yeah, uh, can do that, sure." They mumbled, swallowing again.

"Good." The man smiled and stepped away, out of Crowley's line of sight as they sat in front of the bright, hot fire in the cozy looking fireplace. They struggled a bit, but toes their boots off and stretched out their legs to let their soaked feet warm up, their poor right foot still hurting. It didn't feel broken, but it still stung.

They sat there quietly, glancing around in their seat. The cabin was rather large inside, decorated with many bookshelves full of odds, ends, and lots of books. The walls didn't have much in the way of art, minus a few framed things of what looked to be an old street corner and a beautiful garden. There were even smaller frames holding photos, but they couldn't make them out from here.

No dead animals mounted anywhere, so their savior, the handsome mountain man, might not be into that. Something smelled good though, they hadn't noticed it before, but it smelled like cooked meat and veggies. Maybe a soup? Good weather for soup, Crowley would love some right now, they hadn't eaten much, didn't think to pack a lot since the hike wasn't going to be an all-day thing, they had stuff to do back at the resort they were staying at.

They were also thirsty, having finished off their water a while ago. They were still in wet clothes and their scratches and scraps hurt.

"Here we go!" Came the voice of the mountain man. "I've got you a fluffy towel and even a change of clothes! I'll take care of your old ones, don't worry."

"Uhhh... thank you?" Crowley turned, seeing the man approach with a small pile of things. He handed them over before turning around, putting his hands to his eyes. Crowley looked at him funny before realizing that he was trying not to look if Crowley was going to change.

Crowley felt heat come to their cheeks as they quickly tried to change out of their clothes, best to get it over with. They were down to their underwear, and threw on the shirt they were given, another flannel, that they practically swam in. It felt cool to the touch. They decided they were fine without the pants though.

They took the towel and started to ruffle up their hair to dry it. "Thanks, sir."

"Oh, no need for sirs. Just call me Aziraphale!" The man said, back still turned to him.

"I'm Crowley. You can turn around now."

Aziraphale did so and smiled, but frowned as he noticed something. "Dear, you're bleeding."

Crowley looked at the towel, where they had accidentally bled from their palms, their knees still had blood on them too. "Oh, yeah, I took a nasty fall trying to get here. My foot hurts too, I think I tweaked it."

"Oh, that won't do. I'll be right back." Aziraphale moved to a small area of the kitchen that Crowley only just noticed, a kitchen. He opened a cabinet and pulled out a box. It looked old, from a few decades ago, but was clearly marked as a med pack.

Aziraphale returned and sat down before Crowley, gently taking their hand in his own cold ones. He looked at the scrapes, frowning, before opening the kit and started to clean them. It was silent as he did this, but a comforting silence.

Crowley took this chance to study the mountain man. He was really nice to look at, which was odd, Crowley didn't usually go for guys with beards, not normally their thing, but damn if they wouldn't mind giving this one a chance.

Fuck, they must be exhausted or catching a cold or something, what the hell are they thinking?

They decided to just look at the fire as Aziraphale cleaned up their wounds and then looked at their foot. "It's alright, just a bit swollen, an easy fix! Let's get you to bed and have you lay down, that'll help with the swelling. And once you're down, I'll get you some food, the stew is just about done."

Crowley just nodded and let Aziraphale help them over to a large bed near the fireplace, huh, was this cabin just a one-room thing? Like their studio apartment? They did see an area where there was a door with a small sign on it, labeled W.C. A bathroom, alright, yeah, similar kinda thing.

Aziraphale sat them down on the bed, and it was so strange to move away from him. He felt so cold when close, but then Crowley would instantly feel warmth when Aziraphale was away. Curious.

They got themself laid down and sighed, letting Aziraphale fuss over them, putting their foot up on pillows before covering them with an old, handmade quilt.

"There we are, nice and comfy, Crowley." Aziraphale smiled. "You rest a bit, alright? I'll wake you when it's time to eat."

"Are you sure?" Crowley asked.

"Very, it's quite alright. When you're eating, you can tell me what happened that led out to my neck of the woods." He said, brushing hair from their face again. Those fingers were like ice, but it was comforting, oddly enough.

Crowley sighed softly again, starting to close their eyes. But just before they finally succumb to their exhaustion, they swore that for a split second, just a fraction of a second...

Aziraphale's eyes were completely hollow, but the smile was still so sweet and warm.

TBC

--

:)

I love a good ghost story.

[mateidontevenknow]

ONESHOT ALERT

Fandom: WWE

Ship: Roman Reigns x OC (Fem)

Ice cream makes everything better

Raina sat on a bench in Central Park. Like she usually did in her free time. It was enjoyable, sitting still and watching the people in New York going about their daily lives. Sometimes she'd see something interesting, other times she was merely there to think. To reflect on her life so far. She was only 32 after all.

It was 16:34 on a Tuesday. Her favorite day of the week. On Tuesdays, she had the entire day to herself. It became routine for her to sit in the park and do absolutely nothing.

She sat quietly, watching as people passed her. Until her eyes landed on someone specific. A large man sat on another bench, about 40 feet across from her. He sat with his head in his hands, his shoulders shaking slightly. Immediately upon seeing him, her heart broke for him.

She saw herself on that bench, feeling alone despite being surrounded by people. She saw herself all those years ago when her life was crumbling. She saw herself wishing for someone, anyone to talk to. She knew exactly how this man felt. And she knew exactly how to help him.

This was definitely the first time that she's walked into an ice cream shop, with urgency. After buying two vanilla ice cream cones, each with flake, she made her way over to the man on the bench. She sat down next to him silently, waiting for him to notice her. Careful not to overwhelm him.

After a few seconds, he slowly looked up at her. She held out an ice cream offering it to him wordlessly. He took it, taking a bite of the flake, before shooting her a questioning look.

"Why?"

"You looked like you needed it."

He just nodded before continuing to eat his ice cream. They sat there for the next few minutes, silently eating their ice cream. When he finished he looked at her.

"Thank you for this. You were right, I needed it."

"No problem."

"I got to run, but I owe you an ice cream, same time next week?"

"Sure."

And just like that, he was gone.

Raina smiled, knowing he left in a better mood than he arrived. She checked her watch, at 16:39. It only took five minutes out of her life to make a difference in his. And she knew, she'd do the same next week and, if it came to it, the week after that and the week after that.

~

Her week passed quickly. And here she found herself again on the same bench as last week, at 16:34. She sat waiting for him.

And sure enough, he arrived with two ice cream cones in hand. He smiled when he saw her. He sat down next to her, offering her an ice cream just as she had done last week. She took it, just like he did.

"Hey, you look like you're doing better."

"I am, primarily because of you."

"I'm glad I could help. You know, you helped me as well."

"Are you just saying that to make me feel better?"

"No, you gave something. You gave me something to look forward to and I appreciate that. Also, you never gave me your name. I've been calling you Benchman in my head."

He snorted.

"That sounds like some kind of lame superhero. I wonder what superpower Benchman would have."

"I don't know, but I do know that his costume would look goofy as hell."

He laughed at the image.

"Well, my name is Roman. Yours?"

"Raina. Nice to meet you."

"You too. So what do you do?"

"You're gonna laugh, but it's fine. I work in a circus as a trapeze artist. I have a law degree but I'm ignoring it to do what I love. It's real cheesy."

"Wow, not what I was expecting. Do you travel a lot, for work?"

"I did but, the circus is staying in New York for now, so I settled down a bit."

"That's good to hear."

"What do you do?"

"Wrestling, I work in the WWE. I was pretty surprised when you didn't recognize me."

"Alright, Hotshot." Raina turned to look at him with a playful smirk on her face, "Sorry, I don't watch wrestling."

"Oh, don't start now. I've been on a bit of a losing streak recently."

"Shame, is that why you were so down last week?"

"Yeah, although I felt a little more than just 'down'. I hate to admit it, but I'm struggling at the moment to deal with the competition. Especially when I know I can do better."

"I get that, it's more of a mental game, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I got the physical part down, but the rest has taken quite a toll on me."

"I get that, it's all about confidence. I'm a performer and in my experience, the ups are amazing and the downs can kill you. My advice is to fix your ego before you try to fix anything else. You'll only win if you believe you can."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I mean if I don't believe, who else will?"

"Exactly. I don't watch wrestling and I know literally nothing about you or your skill level but, I believe in you, alright? Even if you don't."

Roman didn't respond as he slung his arm over Raina's shoulders, pulling her in for a side hug. A silent thanks.

"Raina, I don't why, but you are very easy to talk to."

"I know why."

"Uh-huh, care to share?"

"I'm a stranger. In other words, you can choose whether you care about my opinion and you can talk to me knowing that I'm not going to expose you to someone. It's not like I can."

"You're a stranger? Well, I'd like to change that. Same time next week?"

"Of course. I'll buy ice cream."

"Nice, see you then."

Roman gave her another side hug, before standing up and walking away.

Raina smiled just as she did last time, knowing that she, again, made a difference, just as she will next week and the week after. This week it took her six minutes. A little more than last week.

~

After the next couple of weeks, they became friends, speaking as if they'd known each other for decades. Their chats became longer and longer, the last one lasting for over two hours. Roman loved it and Raina refused to miss their appointments.

Raina still refused to watch WWE or anything wrestling-related. She claimed it would ruin the open air between them. Roman tried to pushed her to do it, but she shut him up with a quick remark.

"Are you trying to impress me, Mr. Popular?"

He hated that the answer was yes. But he stopped pushing, accepting that it would happen eventually and not wanting to expose himself.

The 18th week rolled around and the duo met up as usual, on the same bench in Central Park. After a few casual conversations, Roman opened up about a problem he had.

"I need a new apartment."

"What? Why?"

"The landlord decided to sell the building to a business, they are looking to turn it into office space, so I have to be out in three days."

"You know what's funny? My roommate just moved out, a few days ago, and I need a new one. You can come live with me if you want."

"You know, that would be fantastic. I'll stop by tomorrow if you give me an address."

"Of course, you can stop by any time, tomorrow's show was canceled."

And just like that the duo had slipped into the casual conversation again.

~

After Roman moved in, things changed. He learned very quickly how to fall into Raina's routine. They had figured out each other's love language and both of them used it to their advantage. She adored physical touch and he loved humor. Most mornings started with a hug and a laugh.

For the time being, their relationship status stayed at roommates, although they acted like an old married couple. Roman held back a lot, not wanting to ruin their friendship. He adored Raina and he wanted her as his own. He loved her and he was determined to make her feel the same. He started attending some of the shows she performed at and he loved every second of it.

After a particular show, Raina realized that the arena she performed at was hosting a WWE match after the show. Monday Night Raw. Her friend, Lee, ended up convincing her to go, especially after their director had gotten them front-row seats, as a reward after the show. Raina was more excited than she should have been.

~

After a brief explanation of the rules, Raina was ready. She enjoyed the first few matches, it was the women's division. She did a quick Google search on the women as they entered and she came to the conclusion that her favorite was Rhea Ripley. After they were finished, the men's division rocked up.

The first few matches were pretty exciting, but the fans only seemed to care about the last match of the night. It was the Grand Finale and she was ready. She was ready until she saw Roman enter the ring.

She gasped as she turned to Lee, "Lee, you know my new roommate, the one I was telling you about?"

"Yeah, Benchman."

"That's him. The guy with the long hair."

"Oh shit."

He was up against a giant, Brock Lesnar, and Raina was worried. The bell rang, signaling the start of the match. The two wrestlers ran at each other, starting the fight. After a few punches and shoves, Roman landed a German suplex on Brock, but Lesnar returned the favor almost immediately. The two traded a few hits before Brock had Roman in a corner.

Raina watched as Brock landed a big right hook. Roman kicked him in the stomach before climbing up onto the second turnbuckle and landing a beautiful missile dropkick. The match seemed to be going in Roman's favor, but Brock Lesnar had other things planned. After a few minutes, Brock was in control.

Roman was in trouble as he lay in the middle of the ring, on his back. His chest was raising and falling rapidly, as he tried to catch his breath. Lesnar did not allow that as he stepped on Roman's stomach. Roman swept his feet out from under him, making him fall to the ground. Roman quickly trapped him in a roll-up. The referee slammed his hand on the canvas.

One. Two. Three.

The crowd roared as Roman stole the win. But Brock wasn't taking it well as he attacked Roman. Roman refrained from fighting back as it would land him in trouble. Brock didn't seem to care about that.

Brock kicked Roman in the ribs, and a sickening crack echoed through the arena. Brock took Roman's arm, bending it in impossible positions. Damn near breaking it. Officials rushed out from backstage, but Raina knew they wouldn't be there in time.

Roman was trapped against the corner closest to Raina. Brock delivered a punch to his stomach.

Raina snapped.

She jumped over the barricade and hopped onto the apron. She launched herself from the top rope, aiming for Brock. She nailed him right in the head with a dropkick, both of her boots, hitting him in the side of the head. Brock landed hard, his head hitting the canvas with a thud.

The silence in the arena was deafening.

Brock was out cold. Raina wasted no time in getting Roman out of the ring. He was limping, clutching his ribs while blood dripped from his nose.

"A mystery woman from the crowd just saved Reigns!"

"With a fantastic dropkick as well, Brock Lesnar looks to be unconscious."

Raina could barely hear the commentators as she supported Roman, leading him through the crowd. The crowd understood, making an opening for them to pass.

By the time they made it to Raina's car, she was supporting most of Roman's weight. She lowered him into the front seat, before racing off toward the hospital.

~

Roman's injuries justified Raina's actions completely. He had two broken ribs, a broken nose, and a mild concussion. Raina was livid and ready to kill Brock Lesnar, who received a concussion from her dropkick. But she knew, now wasn't the time. At the moment, Roman needed her.

And at the moment the doctors needed someone to give instructions to. A female doctor pulled Raina aside.

"Hello, I am Dr. Manning and I have been assigned to the treatment of Mr. Reigns. Are you family?"

"No, I'm his roommate, but his family is not in the States. So if you need someone to discuss his health with, I'm your best bet."

"Alright, can I get your name?"

"Raina, Raina Lessing."

She scribbled it down on her clipboard.

"Well, Mr. Reigns has two broken ribs, a broken nose, a sprained wrist, and a mild concussion. You made the right call bringing him here. His broken ribs were very close to puncturing his lungs, so we fixed that in emergency surgery. His ribs and nose will have to heal on their own, there's not much we can do about that. I'll give you the necessary treatment plan shortly. His concussion should be resolved in 10 to 14 days, come back if he still has problems with that. I just need to know, what does his exercise routine look like?"

"He is very active, he goes to the gym every morning for both cardio and strength training. He works as a professional wrestler so he spends most of his time training."

"Ok. Well, that will need to stop for a few weeks. He needs rest and a lot of it. Don't allow him to put stress on his injuries. Especially not while his concussion is healing. If you would follow me to my office, I can give you that treatment plan."

Raina followed her, nodding at the information.

"Thank you, Dr. Manning. Will his Health Insurance cover everything?"

"Yes, that has been handled already."

"Thank you, when can I see him?"

She stopped to hand Raina some papers, the treatment plans, before answering her.

"You can go now if you'd like, he is in room 167, second floor. He was awake earlier, but his body needs rest. If he is asleep, please don't wake him."

"Thanks again, Dr. Manning."

She was off toward the elevator, with an urgency in her step. Once she made it to Room 167, she stood in the doorway. There she saw Roman, in a hospital bed with a bruised face. Something tugged at her heartstrings as she watched him.

Her phone vibrated against her leg, purring softly. Raina looked at the caller ID, it was Lee. She decided to answer.

"Hey, Lee, what's up?"

"What's up with you? The last time I saw you, you gave Brock Lesnar a concussion and disappeared with your roommate. What's going on?"

"Well, I took him to the hospital, that's where I am now. He was injured pretty bad, I'm talking like broken ribs and a broken nose. I'm sorry I didn't call again but the doctors kept me busy."

"You love him, don't you?"

"What?"

"Oh come on, even I can see it. You wouldn't jump into a wrestling ring and kick a guy twice your size in the head for anyone, would you? You love Benchman. You wouldn't be meeting him every week if you didn't. And you sure as shit wouldn't have asked him to be your roommate. You hate roommates."

"You know I hate it when you're right."

"I know, so I'm gonna hang up now so you can take care of your man."

The call ended, leaving Raina alone in the room with Roman. She sat down in the chair next to him, still watching him closely. She sat there for hours, staring at him. A nurse came in once or twice to check up on him, but she stayed, sitting there stoically.

She felt her heart breaking as the hours passed. She hated seeing him like this, so vulnerable. Seemingly helpless. He was one of the strongest people she knew and to see him like this, made her want to cry.

After a while Dr. Manning returned.

"Ms. Lessing, you've been in the hospital for 21 hours now. I am going to have to ask you to leave, for your own health."

"I can't just leave him here alone."

"He is not alone, two nurses have been assigned to his care and at the moment, we are more worried about you. You need to eat, you've been sitting there for way too long. Your body needs rest."

"I'm not leaving him here."

"Ms. Lessing, I understand your worry, but you are my priority at the moment. At least go buy yourself some food at the kiosk downstairs."

Raina sighed before standing up.

"Alright, but I'm coming right back."

Raina looked at Roman one last time before walking out the door.

Raina practically sprinted down the hall and stairs, not bothering to wait for the elevator. She bought a sandwich and a bottle of water. She ate as quickly as she could, not wanting to waste a second. She decided to drive back to the apartment to fetch Roman some clothes. And in 20 minutes she was back in Room 167, sitting in the same plastic chair.

After another few hours, Roman stirred. Raina perked up. He opened his eyes slowly, still getting used to the bright lights in the room. He smiled when he sat her next to the bed.

"Hey, Ray."

"Hi."

"What time is it?"

"It's one in the morning, oh and it's Wednesday."

"Oh shit, how long have you been sitting here?"

"Too long."

"Raina. How long?"

"Don't worry about it. I'll go get the doctor."

Raina went to find Dr. Manning, fleeing for Roman's questions. Dr. Manning was already on her way to Roman as Raina found her in the hallway.

"Dr. Manning, he is awake."

"Good, I need to have a private conversation with him and then he will be discharged. You can sit in the kiosk while you wait."

Raina nodded before heading towards the elevator.

Roman waited patiently for Dr. Manning. And she arrived soon after Raina's departure.

"Hello, Mr. Reigns. I'm glad you are awake. How are you feeling?"

"Alright. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"How long was Raina sitting here? She wouldn't tell me."

"About 25 hours. We tried to get her to go home, but she refused. She didn't want to leave you alone. I convinced her to go downstairs to buy herself food and get you some clothes but after 20 minutes, she was back. You are very lucky to have a friend like her."

"I know. Did she tell you what happened? Why I'm here?"

"No, she did mention your profession though. Wrestling is quite an interesting one."

"Well, Monday night I won a championship title, but my opponent was not happy. He attacked me after the match and I was just too tired to fight back. Raina, I didn't even know she was there, but she jumped into the ring and kicked the guy in the head to protect me. He was twice her size, but she didn't care, she knocked him out. Then she drove me here. I'm very lucky to have her."

"I am glad you are aware. I gave her your treatment plans for when you get home. And I can tell you, that you have been discharged. You are free to go. Ms. Lessing is waiting for you in the kiosk downstairs."

"Thank you, Dr. Manning."

A nurse pulled the IV out of his arm, applying a band-aid to the spot. Roman was a little shaky as he stood up. He grabbed the backpack that Raina left on the chair and looked inside. There was a pair of sweatpants, a T-shirt, and his favorite black hoodie.

"There is a bathroom down the hall to your right. The elevator is just a little further."

"Thank you."

~

Roman stepped out of the elevator to find Raina sitting at a table near the kiosk. He walked towards her, paying attention to her state.

She looked tired, with dark circles around her eyes. Her eyes threatened to fall shut any second. Her head was being supported by her arms, too heavy to sit upright. Her mouth was slightly open as she stared ahead of her. She looked like she was about to fall asleep in her chair.

Roman walked up behind her before snatching the car keys of the table.

"I'm driving, you look like you are about to fall asleep."

She stood up out of her chair and wrapped him up in a hug, careful not to press on his ribs.

"Thanks."

Raina picked up her phone and bag before making her way out of the building, Roman following close behind. She led him toward the car, helping him into the driver's seat, before ducking in next to him. Roman started the car.

"Sorry, your car is still at the arena."

"Don't apologize. At this moment you have literally nothing to apologize for."

"There is one thing."

"And what is that?"

"I'm sorry for not kicking him harder."

Roman laughed, his hand landed on Raina's thigh.

"Well, you knocked him out so I'd say it was hard enough. Thank you for that. It was pretty impressive."

Her hand sat on top of his as he drove them to their apartment. Raina nearly fell asleep. Roman parked in their garage, handing the keys to Raina afterwards.

Raina opened to door to their apartment and just as she was about to walk away from him, Roman wrapped her up in a hug. The tightest hug he could manage.

"Thank you."

He pressed a kiss to the side of her head. Raina hummed in acknowledgement before breaking away from the hug.

"C'mon, let's get you to bed."

"You're acting like I'm the one who stayed awake for more than 41 hours."

"You're the one with the broken ribs though."

Roman sighed before allowing Raina to lead him to his bedroom. She helped him take off his hoodie before letting him lie down. She moved to switch off the light, headed for her own room.

"Ray, will you do me a favor?"

"Yeah."

"Will you sleep here tonight, with me?"

Raina hesitated.

"Alright."

"You don't have to if you don't want to."

"I know, but I want to. I'm just going to go change."

Roman was left in the dark as she went to her room. He curled himself up in the covers as he waited for her. He didn't know why he asked her that, but he was glad he did. He was even more glad that she agreed. After the hospital trip, he knew she loved him. And he loved her.

She climbed into his bed, next to him. She was in a sports bra and some shorts. He pulled her cold body closer to him, her back against his chest. He gently took her hand, draping his arm over her in the process. He whispered to her as she drifted off, not expecting the faint response he got.

"I love you."

"Love you too..."

[jhonatheshiny]

DF Fanfic: Bite of the Living Bread

WARNING: STUFFING HUMOR AND FEEDERISM CONTENT AHEAD. VIEWER DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

As she waited for Artix to arrive from above the Necropolis, Suut bounced impatiently, ready to fight whatever new undead awaited the both of them. Suut was never known for her patience, but she knew that Artix would get cranky, depressed, or both if she started fighting undead without him. That said, she had been waiting long enough that she was starting to get hungry. "I wonder if I can get something from the cafeteria...." She muttered to herself, as she eyed the Necro University student handbook. "No, then I'd risk running into a student."

Just as she was thinking this though, Artix trotted up, clearly excited to slay some undead.

"Finally! What took you so long?" Suut asked.

"Sorry Suut, needed to take care of some undead at Amityvale gate." Artix sighed apologetically.

Even though she waited quite a while, Suut couldn't help but feel bad for him. She knew better than anyone else that he didn't like to keep people waiting. She gave him a playful punch on the arm.

"Oh, don't worry about it!" She replied. "Let's just get to slaying some undead!"

At that point, she could plainly see Artix getting pumped up.

"So where do you think we should go next" Artix added with a beaming smile. "We've already broke the Build-A-Beast machine, so-"

But just as Artix was speaking, a loud growl emanated from Suut's hungry belly. She could tell it was wanting something to eat.

"Maybe we could try checking out the cafeteria?" Suut asked with a chuckle.

~

As they arrived at the cafeteria entrance, they saw that one of the students was standing guard. At that point, they knew he had to be guarding something, likely a necromancy experiment of some kind.

"Okay, so do we just storm in?" Suut whispered to Artix.

"Normally I'd say yes," Artix responded, with a clear hint of dissapointment in his voice. "But we need to figure out what they're planning first."

Suut took a second to ponder. "Here's a thought."

Artix looked at her, confused.

"Hey, you!" Suut shouted at the Necropolis student. "What's going on in the cafeteria?"

The student glanced over at the two of them. "Oh, they're trying ot make a soup that'll reanimate food! If it goes according to plan, there won't be a safe taco stand left on the surface of Lore!" he yelled back.

"Thanks, man!"

"No proble-" But before he could finish, Artix struck him down with his axe.

"Wow, you really are itching to slay some undead, aint'cha?" Suut joked.

"Do I even need to answer that?" Artix asked. "Okay, so now all we need to do is ruin the soup."

As they readied themselves to enter the cafeteria, another loud rumble came from Suut's stomach. "You think we'll have to fight some food?" She asked, half jokingly.

"Probably. Why?" Artix inquired.

"No reason." Suut said nervously. "But do you mind if I handle this one solo? Need to get some good exercise in!"

Artix sighed dejectedly. "I suppose you can. But just be sure to put this into the soup" As he said that he handed her a bottle, and she looked at it to read the label

"HOLY WASABI, PROPERTY OF ARIX VON KRIEGER"

"Y'know what? I'm just not gonna ask any questions!" And with that she stormed in.

~

Artix was beginning to worry. Suut said that she'd only be in there for 30 minutes, maximum. He looked at his watch.

"34 minutes" Artix muttered. "Should probably go in to inves-"

But at that moment, a huge noise broke his train of thought. A monstrous belch, the sound of which reminded Artix of a beast.

"I'm coming, Suut!" Artix yelled, clearly thinking the worst. But just then, a figure walked out of the entrance.

It was Suut. More specifically, it was Suut wth an engorged, rumbling gut. Artix had no idea what to say.

"Mhh.." Suut whimpered. "Sorry that took so long. Took me a while to get up after eating that last monst-UUUUUUURRRP"

She could feel the pressure ease slightly in her belly. It honestly was amazing she wasn't in a food coma after such a huge meal. "I got the soup ruined, though".

"You... you didn't eat it too, right?" Artix stuttered, only partially joking.

[am0ng-us-sus]

A Mother's Love

Part three: Recovery

TW: This chapter has implied/referencd self-harm and implied/referenced attempted suicide,these implications are not graphic in anyway,but are implied a few times. On the lighter side of things,eating/sleep disorders are mentioned breifly,sex is very lightly implied at one or two points

When Luka woke up,she felt fingers running through her hair.

She looked up at Meiko.

'Good morning.'

Meiko didn't say anything back. She was obviously exausted.

'Go get some sleep,okay?'

Meiko nodded and got up,walking to the bedroom to lay down.

Kawane stirred on the couch.

'Hmm...?'

'Good morning,baby. How are you feeling?'

'A lot better,actually...'

Luka pressed a hand to Kawane's forehead. She was back to a normal temperature.

'Do you still feel sick at all?'

'My head hurts a little...'

'Well,you should probably take more medicine just in case.'

Luka got up to get more medicine,returning with a small medicine cup.

'Here.'

Kawane took the medicine,it was supposed to taste like... Grape? Wild berry? She didn't know,either way,it tasted awful.

'I'll get you something to wash it down with. Stay here.'

Luka went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle with a sweet blue drink inside.

She walked back to Kawane and handed it to her.

'Here,take small sips just in case your stomach is still upset.'

Kawane took the drink and opened the cap,taking a small sip.

'If you can keep that down for a few minutes,feel free to drink some more,just be careful and come get me if you feel like you need to be sick again,I'll be cooking breakfast.

Kawane laid back on the couch,the spot where she was laying still felt very warm.

She sighed. What was she going to do? She couldn't stay with her aunt forever... She knew that Luka would take care of her,but she wasn't her mom... She couldn't sign her up for school,special programs,or pretty much anything that required the permission of a legal guardian. She guessed that she'd go to an orphanage or foster home,either way,she would be leaving here eventually... What Meiko said yesterday... Was a lie. She would have to leave Kawane eventually. She couldn't stay here... But she wished she could...

Why can't they be my moms? I-I really want them to be,but... They never will be... They're already busy with my cousin... I guess... I guess I'll just have to see what happens next,it's not like I can really do anything to change what's gonna happen to me...

-----

'Sakine! Breakfast!'

Sakine came scampering over to the table.

'Here you go,dear.'

Luka set a plate in front of her.

'Pace yourself,okay? Please just go slowly... Your mother has made herself sick way too many times by eating too fast...'

Sakine nodded and slowed her pace a bit.

Luka picked up another plate and walked over to Kawane,who was lying on the couch again.

'Oh,do you feel sick again?'

'No,I-I'm just bored...'

'You sure? I have some food for you,and I don't want you to eat it if you feel sick.'

'I'm okay,I promise! And... I'm really hungry,actually...'

'Okay,then... I tried my best to give you some foods that would go easy on your stomach...'

She handed Kawane a plate,there was a small bowl of oatmeal,a cut up banana,and some strawberries.

'T-this is for me?'

'Yes,do... Do you not like it?'

'No,it's wonderful... It's just... This is so nice of you...'

'It's nothing,really? I just... I don't see how serving you some breakfast is... That special?'

'No... I meant... Taking care of m-me... I-it's n-nice of you- I guess,I- uhm- I just- T- That's what I meant,you know,I'm sorry I phrased it incorrectly,I-'

'No,no,it's okay,I understand now~'

Kawane went silent and started eating her food.

-----

Meiko walked into the kitchen.

'Hey,there,Mei! I... I want to talk to Kawane about something... I called her mother,but... I want to hear what she has to say... I- I guess I have to explain what my sister-in-law said,first... It's- It's gonna be hard,but I have to... You need to know what she said...'

Meiko hugged her.

'Well,then,take all the time you need.'

She said,keeping Luka in her arms.

'Okay,well... My sister-in-law disowned Kawane... Because... Because of something she can't really control... I'm sure you've noticed that she's... A bit different from other kids her age. And... And my sister-in-law didn't want to deal with it... So she kicked her out... I- I asked if Kawane was getting fed,a-a-and I- s-she-'

Meiko nuzzled Luka's cheek.

'It's okay,take a small break if you need.'

Luka took a moment to breathe and relax in Meiko's embrace.

'She said that... That she didn't g-get fed when s-she was a-annoying... L-like me... And-and she told me- that statement p- probably sounded f-f- familiar to me- and- and I- I- I- r- remembered when my f- father beat me r- really badly because I said I w- was hungry even though I couldn't e- eat that day... I- I was so scared and-'

Luka started sobbing.

'Shhh,shhh... You're safe,you're safe... I know... That... That wasn't okay for her to say.'

Meiko squeezed her tighter.

'That's all... I guess...'

'Okay... How about we talk to her now?'

Luka nodded.

Meiko wiped the tears off of Luka's cheeks with her thumb,kissing her on the forehead.

'Come on,let's go.'

-----

'Kawane,we need to talk to you for a minute.'

Kawane looked up from her book at Meiko,who was standing next to Luka.

'I- I- uhm- y- yes?'

'Don't worry,you're not in trouble or anything.'

Luka said calmly.

'Come,let's sit at the table.'

Meiko held out a hand to Kawane,helping her up. The three walked to the table in the kitchen,sitting down,Luka and Meiko sitting across from Kawane.

'Now,dear... I called your mother yesterday,but she didn't give me as much detail as I'd like.... Can you tell me more about the situation?'

Kawane looked away,nodding.

'Y- yeah... So... So I got mad about something and I- I messed up my bedroom because I was angry... I really didn't want to... I just... I didn't know how else to get the anger out... And I- I couldn't control it... It just... Happened... And m- my mother told me that s- she didn't want me anymore... And that I was too much... She'd been threatening t- to disown me for a while... But she actually did it t- this time... A- and s- she- she- t- told m- me that we w- were going to a p- park... And she d- drove me really far away to a park I- I'd never been to,before and s- said that she was going to buy some i- ice-cream b- but she never came back... I- I waited the entire day b- but she never came b- back and I- I was scared of the other people there,s- so I tried t- to find somewhere else to g- go and I s- slept in an allyway and- and then the next morning i- it started raining and then that's w- when you found m- me...'

'Okay... Thank you for telling us,baby... That really helped me understand what was going on.'

Luka said,reaching her hand across the table to hold Kawane's.

'It's okay to cry,you can let it all out,it's okay. We won't judge.'

Kawane froze for a second,her face visibly gaining an angry expression,then she started clawing at her own arms.

Luka quickly got up and rushed over to restrain Kawane.

'Don't do that,you're hurting yourself,I know you're mad,but we can express our negative emotions in a way that doesn't hurt you... Meiko,can you please grab a few pencils?'

Meiko was confused,but grabbed a pack of pencils from a drawer in the kitchen,giving them to Luka.

'Here.'

Luka gave one to Kawane,who snapped the pencil,still crying.

She snapped pencil after pencil until she felt a little better.

'Can you tell me how you felt right there? Why did you get so angry?'

Meiko watched the interaction silently.

'I- I felt angry at myself b- because I feel like nobody wants me because I'm so wierd and I- I can't be normal... And I'm crazy... I- I want to be... Not crazy... I want p- people to like me... I- I want... A home...'

'Hey,hey... You're not wierd... You're definitely not 'normal' but being normal... It's so bland,isn't it? Nobody I'm friends with is 'normal' persay. Well... Exept coworkers,but they're boring. It's okay to be different. It's a good thing. You're not crazy,okay? You're a sane person. This isn't something you can control,you were born this way,alright? And that's good. It's good to be you. It's not crazy,you just think a little differently,don't you? It means you have such a creative and cool view of the world,and you're so so special for that. I know it's hard to feel like people don't want you,it's easy for someone like you to get made fun of. But those people are just meanies. They only want to put people down because they feel insecure. I promise,dear,you're very very special to me and Meiko,okay? We love you so so much no matter what,and you can stay here as long as you need,okay? Remember,there are others out there that are like you. They're a bit different,but that's okay. You're not alone,don't forget that. There are so many people out there who can relate and can help you feel loved. You're the sweetest little girl and I wish I could just show you how much you mean to me,but it would be impossible,wouldn't it? You're special,you're not crazy,and you're so so kind and smart. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise.'

Kawane hugged Luka tightly.

'M-Mama... I love you... T-thank y-you...'

'...Mama?'

Luka whispered,almost tearing up.

Kawane pulled away after a few moments,rubbing her eyes.

'Hey... You know what?'

Luka put a hand on Kawane's cheek.

'Sakine has ADHD,did you know that?'

'S- she does? She's like m- me?'

'Sort of... ADHD is entirely different then what you have,but it's simalar in some ways. You should go talk to her,you two would get along nicely. She's really into horses,you know...'

'Horses? Really? She loves horses,too? Has she ever seen one? Does she have a lot of books about horses?'

'How about you go ask her? She'd love to play with someone. She can get pretty lonely being an only-child.'

Kawane ran off to Sakine's room,shaking her hands exitedly.

'Lukita?'

'Hm?'

'I know you said Kawane was a bit different,but... I'm confused?'

Luka sat back down next to Meiko.

'I think it's time you knew something very important about Kawane...'

-----

Kawane knocked on Sakine's bedroom door nervously.

'Yes? Come in~'

Kawane hesitated before slowly opening the door.

'Kawane? Are you alright? Do you need something?'

'Uhhh... I... I wanted t-to p-play with you?'

'Wait,really?'

Sakine's eyes lit up

'Y-yeah... I heard you l-like horses? I-I do,too...'

'Yeah! I love horses!! Come sit down!'

Sha patted the area on the bed next to her.

Kawane slowly walked over and sat down.

'D-do you have any books? About horses?'

'Yeah! I have lots!! Like this one! It's got a lot of cool pictures! Oh-wait! There's also this one! It has mostly words,but it's still cool! Oh-oh-and here's one on how to draw horses and-'

Kawane seemed a bit overwhelmed. Sakine took a breath and calmed down a bit.

'Anyways,what's your favorite horse breed?'

'Uhm... Clydesdale...'

'Wow! I really like those,too!'

'Did you know that they're endangered?'

'No,really? They are?'

-----

'Oh,I see... What can I do to understand her more?'

Asked Meiko

'Well,you can do research,and try to spend more time with her. Try to make her feel loved,okay? She... She has a hard time with that... And I don't want her to turn out like me...'

'You turned out wonderful,Lukes~'

'You know what I meant...'

She said as Meiko took her hands.

Meiko leaned forwards and whispered into Luka's ear

'I can make you feel loved right now~'

Luka shuddered

'N-not r-right now,dear... Maybe later tonight...'

Meiko pulled back to look into Luka's eyes,seeing that her cheeks were red.

'You get so flustered,it's adorable...'

'Stoppp...'

'Never!'

Meiko laughed

-----

'Oh... I'm sorry about that,Kawane... I get made fun of,too... But you know what? If anyone tries to bully you when I'm around,they'll be sorry! I promise to protect you!'

'You... Will?'

'Of course! Nobody is going to be mean to my s-cousin on my watch!'

Sakine had almost said 'sister' instead... She wished Kawane was her sister... Secretly,Kawane wished the same...

-----

It had gotten late and the girls were still in Sakine's room.

'Let's go check on the girls real quick.'

Luka suggested

The couple got up and walked to their daughter's room

Luka knocked

Nothing

She slowly opened the door to see...

The girls were both asleep on Sakine's bed,obviously having dozed off. Kawane was splayed out on her stomach with Sakine laying across her back. They were surrounded by books,and both sleeping soundly.

The couple both almost melted from how cute the scene was.

Meiko picked up Sakine and tucked her in,Kawane started to feel around for her cousin.

'Where... Sister?'

'Aww... How sweet...'

Said Meiko as she picked up Kawane and set her next to Sakine,who immediately wrapped her arms around her cousin. Kawane stilled instantly.

Luka cleared the books off the bed and then walked over to Meiko. The taller woman put an arm around her wife's waist,taking Luka's hand and interlocking their fingers.

'They're so cute... I knew they'd get along...'

Meiko nodded.

'Come on,Mei... Let's leave them alone for the night... Besides... I want to talk to you about something...'

The two exited,Meiko turned off the lights as she walked out the door,closing it behind her.

In the hallway,Meiko turned to face Luka.

'Now,what did you need to talk to me about?'

Luka took Meiko's hands in her own.

'Well... Do you remember the last night of our honeymoon?'

Meiko suddenly pulled her in by the waist.

'Oh,darling... How could I forget?'

She whispered,starting to kiss Luka's neck

As much as Luka wanted to collapse into Meiko and let her carry her to the bed,that wasn't what Luka had meant,and what she wanted to say was important

'N-no Meiko-n-not that...'

She pulled away slightly,just so that Meiko would stop kissing her for a minute. She felt her face go red,and tried to hide her blush by burying her face in Meiko's shoulder.

'Oh,I'm sorry... What did you mean,then?'

Meiko tried not to laugh

'I-it's not funny...'

'Oh,are you sure about that? I love how I can fluster you so easily...'

'A-anyways... Do you remember what you said to me?'

'Sorry,dear,I don't remember saying anything significant to you that night...'

Luka pulled back to look Meiko in the eyes.

'You asked me... What was next for us...'

'Oh,yeah,I remember that!'

'Do you remember anything else about that conversation?'

'Well,I think I asked you about getting a house... Or... Starting a buisness together or something...'

'Anything... Else?'

'No,sorry... My brain is kinda foggy on that...'

'Y-you asked me if... If... If I wanted to have more children...'

Meiko blushed slightly

'What are you saying?'

'Well... What if I did want more children now...? Would you still want another kid?'

'I-uhm-y-yes,of course!'

'You don't sound like you mean it...'

'N-no,I do,this is just so sudden,I didn't expect you to ask this out of the blue like this... Would we be adopting,or...'

'Yes,adopting...'

'How old of a child would you be looking to adopt? Like would you maybie want to raise a child from only a few months or-'

'Thirteen...'

'Oddly specific,but okay.'

'You really are oblivious,aren't you? I want to adop Kawane.'

'Really? W-we can do that?'

'So your answer is yes?'

'Yes! YES!!'

Luka hugged Meiko tightly

'We're having another baby...'

Luka whispered

Meiko smiled

'Well,LuLu,let's start by figuring out what paperwork we need to fill out~'

'Maybie tomorrow... Besides,we need to ask Kawane what she thinks. But for now... Let's start with... Going to bed.'

Luka kissed Meiko and wrapped her arms around her wife's waist.

'I'm getting mixed signals,here. What do you mean by 'go to bed',huh?'

'I mean... Do you remember the last night of our honeymoon,or...?'

Meiko chuckled and picked up Luka,carrying her to the bedroom.

-----

Luka awoke the next morning,Meiko was snoring and drooling a bit next to her. Luka could tell she was sleeping very heavily.

She stood up,her lower back ached a bit. She threw on some clothes,attempting to make herself look decent in the mirror,her hair was an absolute mess. She eventually gave up and decided to just brush it later.

She looked back at Meiko before walking over,pulling the blanket over her bare shoulders.

Just remember to put clothes on before you leave the room this time...

Luka walked out of the room,twisting the lock before closing the door so that the girls couldn't accidentally walk in.

Luka found her hairbrush in the bathroom,she attempted to brush her hair,but it was much easier and less of a hastle when Meiko did it for her.

She decided to wait for her partner to help her.

She made her way to the kitchen,her legs ached really badly.

Jesus Christ,I'm only twenty-one!

Luka pushed the pain aside and started on breakfast.

'Hey,Mama! Uhm... What happened to your hair?'

'Uh... B-bad hair-day.'

Sakine seemed to accept that answer,but Kawane stared at her knowingly.

Luka avoided her gaze,trying to focus on the food she was preparing,but she felt Kawane just staring at her.

Luka glanced over.

Kawane tilted her head a little,shifting her weight.

Eventually,she walked towards the basket of fruit on the counter,as she passed behind Luka,she whispered;

'You have a mark on your neck.'

Luka stiffened and walked to the bathroom.

She dug around for some band-aids in the drawer.

When she exited the bathroom... The food was burning...

'Oh,shit-'

She whispered as she ran over to the stove,turning it off.

She groaned,slumping forwards against the counter.

Today was not a great day for her so far...

-----

Meiko walked out of the bedroom to see Luka was not having a great time...

She was slumped forwards over the countertop,her head in her hands as the smell of burnt food filled the room. Good thing they hadn't fixed the fire alarm yet,otherwise it would be going crazy.

Meiko threw the burnt food in the garbage can,setting the pan in the sink.

She wrapped her arms around Luka from behind,Luka straightened her posture so that she was standing normally.

'Hey,what happened?'

'Everything hurts,my hair is a mess,and I burnt the food because Kawane spotted a mark on my neck and I had to run to the bathroom to cover it up before Sakine saw it!'

'Oh,heh... Sorry...'

'I told you to be careful about that! We have a kid now!'

Luka hissed out

'And another one on the way~'

'Stop acting like one of us is pregnant!'

'I'm not,I'm just saying-'

'Just- Just get away from me right now!'

'Oh... Okay... Sorry...'

Meiko let go of Luka and walked to the couch. Fortunately,the girls had gone into Sakine's room to escape the smoke smell,so they hadn't heard any of the quarrel between their mothers...

Meiko didn't really know what to say or do now... She felt a little hurt if she was honest.

'Luka...'

'I don't want to hear it!'

Meiko felt as if Luka had thrown a spear through her heart. The two almost never fought,and when they did,it was either about stupid stuff,or they apologized really quickly to the other,but... This was different. Meiko tried not to cry as she hung her head.

Luka heard the stifled sobs,but she didn't care. She was pissed.

... Until she wasn't.

Luka suddenly felt really bad,she hurt Meiko's feelings,made her cry. That wasn't the kind of person she wanted to be. She loved Meiko. She didn't want her to cry...

Luka walked off to the bathroom,grabbing her hairbrush and sat next to Meiko on the couch when she returned.

She placed the brush in Meiko's lap.

Meiko looked at the brush,then back at Luka

'Meiko... I'm sorry... I didn't mean to hurt you.'

Meiko pulled her into a tight hug,crying even more.

'Oh,you're so sensitive... Such a big softie...'

Luka said affectionately

'I'm sorry! I-I love y-y-you!'

'I love you,too. I hope you can forgive me...'

Meiko simply hugged her even tighter.

'Oh,you big teddy bear... Hey,hey,it's okay,I'm so sorry,baby...'

Meiko pulled herself together and let go of Luka,wiping her wet cheeks.

'S-so you want me to brush your h-hair?'

'If you'd be okay with it...'

Meiko didn't say anything else,she placed Luka in her lap and started to brush her long hair.

After she was done,Meiko hugged her tightly from behind.

Luka groaned softly

'Something wrong?'

'My back and legs hurt...'

'Oh? Was I just that good last night?'

Meiko joked

'Stoppp...'

'You didn't answer me~'

'And I'm not going to.'

'Anyways... We should talk to Kawane soon.'

Meiko said

'I... I don't know...'

'Oh? Why so hesitant all of a sudden?'

Luka held one of Meiko's wrists,tracing over the scars with her soft fingers.

'I just... I'm afraid she won't want to... Be our daughter...'

'Luka... She loves you so much... She called you 'Mama' remember? She did the same with me the other day. She called Sakine her 'sister' she obviously wants to be here,why would you doubt that?'

'I don't... I don't know... I'm just... Nervous I guess... This is a big thing...'

Luka said quietly before planting a soft kiss on a scar that was rather new,the scab from the blade still on Meiko's wrist.

'Darling,we need to keep these ones covered up,I'd hate for you to get an infection... And... Remember to come to me whenever you're feeling like you want to harm yourself...'

Meiko let out a sigh

'I know... It's just hard sometimes... Even with you around... That relapse a week ago was... Scary...'

'I know,but you're getting much much better,okay? Let be get some bandages.'

When Luka returned with the first-aid kit,she immediately started treating the fresh wounds.

'I'm so glad that you're feeling better now. I know you... Went through a rough spot a few years back... That was... I... I was so scared for you...'

She said as she dabbed alcohol onto the cuts with a cotton-ball

'I know,Pop-Tart... I'm so sorry I made you worry.'

'You don't need to apologize,okay? Never apologize for something like that. It was a problem that put your life in danger at some points,you shouldn't apologize for making me worry,okay? You almost died... Several times...'

Luka started to wrap a white bandage around one of Meiko's arms.

'...Luka?'

'Yes?'

'... You saved me. You... You saved my life,okay? I-I love you so much and I'm so glad that I found someone like you and... I... You... Helped me so so much...'

Luka finished the second arm and crawled into Meiko's lap,resting her head on her wife's shoulder.

Meiko hugged her tightly

'You're my little angel...'

'You've helped me a lot,too...'

'Really?'

'Of course. You've helped me so much with my anxiety,my insomnia,my anorexia... Thank you...'

Meiko started to cry,burying her face into Luka's hair.

The two stayed there,resting in each-other's arms.

Luka started to drift off in Meiko's embrace,but another pain shot through her back and she winced

'Your back is really bothering you,huh?'

'Yeah...'

Meiko laid Luka on her stomach on the couch. She turned and positioned herself so that she was straddling Luka's legs. She started to rub Luka's back firmly.

Luka sighed as the pain melted away.

'That feel good?'

'Yeah... Thanks...'

'I'm sorry... I'll go easier on you next time...'

'It's okay...'

'But I hurt you!'

'No,I'm just not in wonderful shape. I need to start exercising more now that my eating habbits are a bit better.'

After a while,Kawane entered the room.

'Ah,I see you've gotten changed?'

Said Luka upon seeing her niece dressed in fresh clean clothes.

'Uhh... Yeah...'

She glanced towards Meiko's wrists,though didn't make any comment.

Meiko noticed and glanced over at Kawane.

She didn't say anything,looking away from the bandages after a while.

'Kawane... Can we talk to you for a minute?'

Luka said,sitting up.

Kawane nodded hesitantly.

Here goes nothing...

'Kawane... We both love you so much,and I know you currently don't really have parents or a home to stay in long-term,but me and Meiko love you more than you could imagine... We want you safe and happy... And you know that we'd let you live here as long as you need,but... I know that really isn't enough... As this isn't really 'your home' or anything... And I know that you really need someone to look up to who can help you with all your problems and help you understand yourself and heal some of those wounds left by your mother and father... And... We were wondering if... Uhm... Kawane... We... We want to adopt you.'

Kawane was speechless for a few seconds.

'You... You want me?'

'Yes,baby,we love you so much.'

Said Meiko

'You... You really want me? T-to be your daughter? S-somebody actually wants me?'

'Oh,Kawane...'

Luka said softly

Kawane ran up to the couch and threw herself onto Luka,hugging her tightly.

Luka winced as her back started to hurt again,but she hugged the girl tightly as Kawane cried into Luka's chest.

'I-I have a Mama now? A-a real one?'

'Yes,baby. Yes you do...'

'And a Mamí,too!'

Said Meiko,leaning over to hug the two tightly

'A-and a Mommy,too...'

She whispered to herself

'Hey,what's going on in here?'

Asked Sakine as she walked into the room

'Sakine... You have a little sister now!'

Said Meiko excitedly

'What?'

'KiKi... We're going to figure out whatever we need to do to adopt Kawane.'

Said Luka

'I... I have a sister now?'

Sakine jumped into Luka's arms as well,both Luka and Kawane got the air knocked out of them for a second,as Sakine's entire 155 lbs of weight came flying at the two,barreling into them at full speed.

Kawane squeaked in surprise

'Oof- KiKi- I'm more fragile then Meiko,be careful,okay?'

The four hugged onto each-other,welcoming their new member to the family.

Kawane,sitting in the embrace of her new family,finally,for once in her life,felt truly loved and knew that everything was going to be okay.

[princesscolumbia]

Double Isekai, Ch. 2

Yes, I've posted a preview for ch. 1 after I got ch. 3 up and posted, but I figure it can't hurt to post more previews, so 1 preview post per day until I hit the currently posted number of chapters:

Summary:

Dreams give loved ones a chance to say hello...and goodbye. A chance meeting at a mall requires some fast thinking.

Preview of Ch. 2 below the fold:

Startled more than hurt, the redhead scrambled back and clapped her hands over her nose. "Oh, you sonova..." she growled.

"It's 'bitch,' thank you, I left the 'son of a' part behind years ago."

"Yeah, 'cause you were too pussy to handle bein' a man!"

She rolled her eyes, "Oh, for cryin'...I get you're still in high school, but you got access to my entire life! At least come up with better insults!"

Ranma dropped her hands back down to her sides and glared, "What right do you have tellin' my ma I aint a man?!"

She gave Ranma a flat stare, "Ranma, we're in our own fuckin' dreamscape and you're a girl right now!" Ranma looked down at herself as though the self-examination would change her gender presentation. "Maybe tell me you're a man when you're not sporting stonking huge tits and a vagina on the personification of your inner self."

"This is just the curse!" tried Ranma.

"Nope, we both know that aint true. Your girl-form is the spitting image of your mother, just...you know, smaller."

"Hey!"

"You know, like a compact car."

"Why you...!"

"Pocket sized."

"Fucking...cross dresser!"

She shut her mouth so hard her teeth clacked as Ranma's insult hit home. The muscles in her cheeks flexed repeatedly as she worked to control her anger.

Ranma took the opportunity to growl, "My pops raised me to be a man! That's my destiny, not that you'd get that! You just gave up!"

"Of course I gave up! I stopped tryin' to be a man 'cause I wasn't one and I was just...tired." The heat in her voice cooled significantly and she sagged against the tree she'd been slammed up against, "You're sixteen years old, Ranma. You've been dealing with the dysphoria for, what, five years? Maybe 10 if you gained enough awareness that young to understand gender like that? Then you get the girl body you really want, the one you were supposed to have and you're fighting it!" She sagged down further, finally sitting on the ground at the base of the tree. "I had been fighting it for so...long. Gods, it hurts to even think about," she felt her eyes pooling with tears, "I made charts and graphs and little how-to manuals for myself and every time something came along that was 'how men are supposed to be' I studied it like I was going pro at it and every...damn...time it always failed to make me feel like a man inside."

Ranma had a haunted look as she heard the description of a life lived in dysphoria. "I aint..."

"Ranma, shut the fuck up. You know what I know. You know what I felt like and I can feel it in your memories, too!" She sighed and scrubbed at her face. "Listen, if I could leave, I would. You can guess I'm rather eager to get back to my daughter and girlfriend. But I can't, Ranma! We're stuck, we're officially Tuvix'd. Pretty much only a Q or God could split us at this point, and we're in the wrong universe for Q to notice and God's a fucking sonovabitch who I will happily punch in the goddamn face and he knows it."

Ranma just glared at her for a moment, then ground out, "I will beat you, whatever it takes!"

She thumped her head against the tree, "Ranma, there's nothing to beat! It's already over. I'm you, you're me. The only thing left is for our memories to finish merging."

"So, what, you're gonna eat me from the inside like some reverse lyctor?"

"It's already done, Ranma! 'You' and 'I' are just concepts! The fact that you know what a lyctor is in this context should be proof enough for you!"

"Of course I know what a lyctor is! They're..." she paused, disturbed shock spreading over her face.

"Yeah, see? You're getting it now. I know about lyctors as a concept where a necromancer 'eats' a cavalier at the soul level to gain eternal life because I read about it in Gideon the Ninth. That book won't be published, if it's published in this universe, until the late 2010s. The property its inspired by isn't even going to be made for 20-30 years. You only know that because I know that."

Ranma dropped to the ground, landing on her butt with a muted thump. "...but..."

"I know."

"I didn't..." complained the redhead.

She sighed, sadness and sympathy in her expression, "I know."

"You can't just..."

"I didn't, Ranma. That's the nature of the isekai. It's not a grand scheme or a destiny or a plan, it just happens." She shrugged, "I mean, now that it's happened to me I've got more theories, but it all boils down to the most ridiculous dice roll ever. The odds are literally infinity upon infinity upon infinity to one...but because the dice get rolled an infinite number of times, that 'one' shows up an infinite number of times." She gestured expansively at the sky, which was a hazy suggestion of a starscape, "Out there in the multiverse, someone is being disintegrated spontaneously and reappearing in a dungeon in a fantasy reality. Somewhere a dwarf is being crushed by a collapsing mine to wake up in modern day New York City. Some dumbass punk kid is going to bed perfectly secure that nothing strange will happen to him and wake up in charge of a Starfleet ship in a universe where the Federation was founded by Risa instead of Earth and it turns out he's the protag of a sci-fi harem doujin."

Ranma was practically curled up on herself by this point, tears streaming down her cheeks.

The older, more experienced girl watched Ranma collapse in on herself and her voice softened, "And somewhere, some divorced rando decided to turn off a freeway early because of a traffic alert on her phone and got t-boned by an out-of-control garbage truck."

Ranma's eyes popped open, fear and emotional pain radiating from them as she wordlessly pleaded for something she couldn't quite define.

"I'm dead, Ranma. Even if I could leave your body and soul to you again, I'd have nowhere to go. I've got a beef with God large enough to butcher and feed a large third-world country so my chances of getting into heaven are pretty fuckin' slim. I wasn't even sure there was a 'soul' to have an afterlife with until this happened."

They stared at each other in silence across the clearing, the dream world slowly shifting around them.

She broke the silence after a bit, "You know, you're startin' to look a lot like my sister did at your age."

Read the rest on AO3.