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alstroemeriadissonance · 3 years ago

Text

Rebound (NSFW)

WARNING: NSFW at the end, in case it gets a bit too long and you mistake this for having a fluff ending. This isn't an NSFW-focused work by itself, but...well. Stuff lead there because Vyn.

Vyn x Rosa

Vyn showing a few degrees of unhinge.

Summary: Rosa finally takes up Dr. Richter's offer in tending to her emotional health after her break up with Artem. Luke helps out because some bones may need breaking.

Rosa: Dr. Richter, are you free?

Vyn: For you, always. Tell me what you need.

Rosa: Thanks. I think I'll take you up on your offer for a consultation. I need someone to talk to.

Vyn: Where are you? I will go pick you up.

Rosa: Oh, no. I'm actually nearby if you're still in the research center. Are you still there?

Vyn: Yes. Just go straight to my office. I will keep the door unlocked for you. Do not mind the sign on the door, I will be here waiting for you.

Rosa: Thanks Dr. Richter. This means a lot to me.

Vyn set down his phone back onto the desk.

It would have to be a dire situation for Rosa to finally break and cave into accepting his offer. At very short notice, no less.

He stood up from his desk, and with hands clasped on his back Vyn faced the windows overlooking the verdant open grounds of his mental health research center, typically used for the patients' supervised outdoor walks.

But I will not get ahead of myself. I will hear what she has to say, first.

He pulled on the cord for the venetian blinds, raising them just enough to allow more light to spill into his office.

Vyn didn't want the somber lighting to further agitate Rosa--her state of mind was not apparent anywhere in her text messages, which were innocuous, but given context especially based on his knowledge of how Rosa would rather exhaust her own resources and capabilities before asking for help...

Vyn shook his head. He already said that he should not get ahead of himself, but here he was, already worrying for his rose. His rose. The subconscious usage of the possessive pronoun has him chuckling derisively at himself.

Artem had already claimed the prize that Vyn had so immensely coveted.

It took Vyn more or less a year to get over that fact--but for the sake of his work on Giann's Project NXX he kept quiet and had withdrawn from the race, so to speak--paying his feelings no more mind than he would other flights of fancy.

He heard the door to his office being opened.

Finally.

Vyn's eyes went wide by a tiny fraction.

The Rosa that stepped into his office was--for want of better word--wilted.

While her physical appearance itself was pristine with not a hair out of place and work attire still impeccable, it was her overall posture that took Vyn aback: shoulders slumped, a hand gripping her other arm; lips trembling, having difficulty making eye contact with him...

All out of character for his lovely, vibrant rose. His rose.

"Rosa, I am here," Vyn said, softly yet firmly. "Before anything else...come to me."

He stood there, arms opened wide to receive her.

Vyn must have looked like an angel to her with his white coat and arms outstretched. For when Rosa finally looked at him, her face twisted in agony and she let out a huge sob that she obviously held in for such a long time.

Rosa barreled into Vyn's waiting arms, crying loudly against his chest.

"Ssh. Everything is okay," Vyn murmured as he caressed the back of her head, letting his fingers comb through her auburn hair, the tender gesture repeated over and over in an attempt to soothe the distressed Rosa. "Let it out. There is no one else here but you and me."

His other arm encircled her back, pressing her securely against him--a quiet reminder of his presence in the midst of her overwhelming anguish.

It took everything he had not to kiss her forehead, to kiss away her tears, as he badly wanted to do at that moment.

Vyn bit the inside of his cheek hard, until he could taste iron in his mouth. Now is not the time, damn it.

They stood there in the middle of his office for a while, with Vyn holding Rosa close to him; Rosa crying all over his chest and moistening his tie, shirt, and the upper part of his waistcoat with her tears.

After several minutes of full-blown weeping Rosa managed to regain hold of herself and, with eyes red and puffy with crying she still managed to slip out an embarrassed laugh. "Oh, I--are you like this with your patients, Dr. Richter?" she said, then her eyes widened a bit as soon as she realized what she just said. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean--"

Vyn smiled gently. "Of course not. I am like this because you are my closest friend, Rosa, and you did call me that back when masqueraded as travelling psychic and assistant, did you not?"

"Yes, I remember, Dr. Richter." Rosa bit her lip.

She is clearly beside herself. The softness in Vyn's eyes hardened at the idea that something, or most probably someone, had caused his Rosa such distress.

"Come, let us have you sorted out." Vyn gently steered Rosa towards the couch set in the corner he reserved for psychotherapy work. "Take a seat there, get comfortable. I shall prepare some tea for you."

Vyn deliberately took his time with preparing the tea in order to give Rosa enough time to let herself get comfortable. The less mental barriers to deal with, the better.

After ten minutes he came back with a tray bearing a pot of his personal mint-lavender tea blend, expertly balanced on his hand. "For you, my lady," he murmured as he set down a cup on the table in front of her, filling it with purple-tinged steaming liquid.

Rosa took a deep breath, inhaling the floral-infused steam. "Just being here makes me feel better already," she said, smile wistful.

Vyn took his seat off to the side, just by her peripheral vision. "I am glad it is working," he said. "I take pride in my tea blends."

They sat in companionable silence for what seemed like forever.

Vyn understood that Rosa may have difficulty broaching or talking about the troubling subject. Since he was not on the clock nor was he being paid for the service--this was his Rosa after all, his friend in need-- he did not see the need to prod the conversation along.

Rosa, after finishing her cup, finally found the words:

"I...well. Artem and I broke up."

Vyn, being in the middle of refilling Rosa's cup, spilled a fair bit of liquid onto the table. He hurriedly blotted out the small puddle with tissues grabbed from the nearby tissue caddy.

"I see," he murmured. "I am sorry to hear that."

"Mhm." Rosa wrung her hands, visibly frustrated. "I...ah. It's so hard to talk about why it happened..."

"Let us not be concerned about the circumstances, my dear Rosa," said Vyn, back in his seat on the sofa a respectable distance away from her. "Instead, let us talk about you feel. That is why you found your way here, is it not?

"Just to be clear," Vyn continued, "I am not a specialist on couples therapy, if you are seeking counsel on how to repair your relationship. However," he steepled his fingers over his lap. "I can help you with processing your feelings, and to be perfectly frank that is my main concern now, first and foremost."

Rosa nodded. "I won't ask the moon from you, Dr. Richter." She smiled bitterly. "After the things I told him, I...I don't know..."

"Is it alright if I ask some prying questions?"

"Of course, Dr. Richter. I did seek out your help..."

"When did the break up happen?"

Rosa paused, as if mentally counting the days. "It was...more than two weeks ago. I remember because..." she bit her lip. "We just went off at each other after a major client engagement that lasted well into the evening..."

Vyn's expression darkened, thankful that he took a seat where Rosa could not see his face unless she turned towards him.

Two weeks. Two weeks of holding in such grief; and still seeing the source of her anguish day to day for work...

Vyn would have to chide her for it sometime, but not now. Right now Rosa's feelings should be front and center. "Two weeks is a long time to deal with this pain unassisted, Rosa." he murmured. "Did you have anyone to talk with about this, apart from me?"

"No. It's just you, Dr. Richter." Rosa fiddled with the handle of her teacup. "Everyone else...either they're connected with Artem and our work in some way or another," she sighed. "It...it wasn't easy. It actually took a leap of faith for me to decide to call you."

She took a deep breath. "It's--its all getting too much for me."

"And I am glad you had faith in me at least, my dear Rosa." Vyn whispered. "How do you feel now?"

"Just terrible." Rosa fought tears from running down her cheeks. "Terrible. Can I tell you about it?"

"That is what I am here for, Rosa," Vyn said. "I am here to listen. Go ahead."

"Whenever it's quiet, especially at night when I'm about to sleep, I--I replay the time when we had the argument that led to the breakup." Rosa's lip trembled. "It feels so horrible, being alone at night with those thoughts. I couldn't go through the night without taking sleep medication."

She was about to wipe her tears with her sleeve, when Vyn held her arm in place to stop her from doing so.

He reached over to her face with tissue in hand. Carefully, he blotted the tears rolling down her cheeks.

Vyn then pushed the tissue caddy closer to her edge of the table. "Sorry for the interruption," he whispered softly. "Go on."

"I feel miserable and lonely every night, Dr. Richter." She laughed derisively at herself. "I told him all these terrible things--and all I've been thinking about is how miserable I am, being lonely as a result. I am a terrible, selfish--"

"I will have to stop you right there, Rosa," Vyn cut in. "First of all, whatever the circumstances that led to your breakup, your feelings are valid. You are hurt. You are lonely. These two are not false." He pursed his lips. "Acknowledging these feelings does not make you terrible, nor selfish."

Rosa kept silent.

"You will need to accept your feelings, Rosa," Vyn said, in calm and measured tones. "You cannot just deny them because of what you think you could have done, on hindsight. Nor should you castigate yourself over matters that are over and done with."

"But..." Rosa winced. "Artem have had good reasons. I..." her voice trailed off. "I was an utter fool for demanding more time from him..."

This caught Vyn's attention. "The cause of your fight was him not having enough time for you?"

"Somewhat." Rosa rubbed her temples. "Now that I'm talking about it, I really feel like an ass--"

"Stop that, Rosa," Vyn said, a tad too tersely than he had intended.

"Dr. Richter?"

He sighed. "Mind, I am not like this with any of my patients. I am merely speaking my mind more openly because you are my friend."

Vyn stood up and moved to the seat next to her, close enough for him to hold her by the shoulders and look into her face directly, his amber-gold eyes holding warmth for her. Yet, at the same time the same eyes pierced through her with firm determination.

"I do not want to see you castigate yourself over matters that are over and done with, Rosa," he repeated his words from earlier. "You were never the type to just wake up and tell yourself, 'oh, today is a nice day to piss off my boyfriend, mayhap I shall do just that.'"

This prompted a small chuckle from Rosa.

"No, Rosa, you had a good reason to raise grievance with him. This I fully believe and even stake my life on," Vyn gently squeezed her shoulders. "Do not invalidate your feelings and decisions from that moment that led to your break up. The last thing that you want is...you losing the support from your own self."

"But this is just like you, Dr. Richter," Rosa's smile was tinged with sadness. "You never let me take any blame. There's always an excuse for me..."

"Do you think of me that lowly, Rosa?" Vyn's smile was twisted. "That is a good way of saying I am a manipulative bastard with ulterior motives."

She swallowed. "N-no! I meant, you are too kind...is all..."

"Heh." Vyn's smile was too taut. "Be that as it may, I can see you being quick to make excuses for Artem, who, I have to emphasize, is the source of your anguish right now."

He finally let go of Rosa's shoulders, pouring himself a cup of tea.

"I do not doubt that there were good times in your relationship, but there have been well-documented tendencies for those grieving after a lost relationship to obsess and fixate over those better times, to the point of forgetting why a break up has even taken place."

Vyn took a sip. "I am seeing it in action right now, with you.

"You need to remind yourself why you felt the need to raise grievance with Artem. Why the argument happened in the first place. Journals, lists, anything, as long as you sit down and think about it. Maintain a certain equilibrium in your thoughts."

Rosa nodded. "O-okay..."

"Do you want me to teach you a small trick that may help?"

"A trick...?"

"Yes. One that may help when your thoughts try to lead you to misery again." Vyn set down his cup back onto its saucer. "Give me your hand, please." He reached out a hand to her.

Rosa placed her trembling hand on his.

"Good." Vyn pushed her long sleeves back just enough to reveal her delicate wrist. "Now, I need you to do something for me."

"What is it?"

"Think about Artem." Vyn's eyes carefully watched Rosa's face for tells or any microexpressions. "Think about the 'good reasons' he may have had that you mentioned earlier. Think about the good moments that you miss having with him."

It did not take long for tears to threaten to spill out from Rosa's eyes.

Seeing this, Vyn pinched the delicate skin on the underside of Rosa's wrist with his thumb and forefinger, prompting a surprised cry of pain. He did not let up, and even twisted the soft skin in his hard pinching, leaving a pink mark on her skin when Rosa finally wrenched her wrist away from his firm grip.

"Ah! Dr. Richter, what the f...?!"

Vyn chuckled. "I shall gladly accept all profanities you would hurl at me, my dear Rosa, as I rightfully deserve it. No need to restrain yourself with saying fuck."

"Yes, but what the fuck Dr. Richter?! That really hurt!"

"That it does, but have you noticed something else as well?"

"What? Aside from you giving me a welt on my wrist?"

"For the last few seconds after I pinched you, did you still think of Artem?"

Realization dawned on Rosa's face. "Oh. Oh, no. Actually...yeah, no." Rosa rubbed her wrist. It still stung from the doctor's assault.

Vyn only smiled. "Yes. So, what I need you to do, is when your thoughts start going that way, you should pinch yourself. Hard. Hard that it causes enough pain for you to stop whatever you are thinking about that moment. Painful enough that you are prompted to stop your thoughts from spiraling downwards."

"Haha..." Rosa rubbed the faint pink welt that Vyn inflicted on her. "Are you like this with your patients too?"

"For this type of case, I just give them a rubber band to wear that they can snap onto their wrist." Vyn smirked. "But for you, you needed an extra painful pinch from me."

"Okay," Rosa grinned, a sincere smile that Vyn was glad to finally see. "Not only that, every time I pinch myself, I'll probably consider it as a tut-tut from you, Dr. Richter."

Vyn had to laugh at that. "If you think of it that way, I suppose you are not wrong."

===

Sunset already coalesced into deep purple-orange skies when Rosa finally bid goodbye and left the office, leaving Vyn to do minor clean up before he himself left for home.

All things considered he did not actually follow the prescribed therapy procedure; instead he pushed onto her his methods on how she should get over the break up--get over Artem, in particular, if he were to be entirely honest with himself.

He could have slipped in a few words to give his NXX colleague the benefit of the doubt. But instead he...

Supposing they mend their relationship, that their break up was only temporary? Suppose Rosa accidentally let Artem know about how her consultation with me went?

She would not do it deliberately of course--he trusted her as much--but Rosa was well known for wearing her heart on her sleeve.

Vyn, after hanging the tea towel by the small sink in his office, buried his face in his hands.

Fuck.

===

It proved to be quite an eventful moment in the NXX Headquarters, after a month-long hiatus since their last meeting.

Vyn could already hear Marius's obnoxious noises pestering Luke as he descended the stairs leading to the NXX basement proper.

Upon opening the conference room door, he was not surprised to see Artem and Rosa seated apart, a few chairs between them, silently keeping to their tablets.

Unfortunately, Marius had also noticed this. "Eh, Missy, why aren't you with your Arty-poo?" he said, smirking. "Are you guys fight--"

"Instead of butting into other people's affairs, Marius, do you have the laboratory results we needed from your Pharmaceuticals?" Vyn cut in, voice a bit louder than usual.

"What do you take me for? Of course I have, it's already currently displayed on the screen." Marius jerked his thumb towards the holographic screen laid across the wall in front of them.

"Well, that is good then," Vyn said brusquely as he took one of the seats between Artem and Rosa. "And? Your report?"

"What the--are you trying to get on my case this early, Vyn?" Marius muttered.

"That's because you're being an insufferable idiot already at 11 am in the morning, Marius," Luke said, his chin propped on hand, expression clearly irritated. "Just shut up, will you? I just want this over and done with so I don't have to do overtime with my other duties."

Vyn mouthed Luke a silent "thank you"; Luke only shrugged.

"Oh, so the NSB mole is playing nice with the NXX psychiatrist, Marius said, voice laced with arsenic. "What, has there been some development that PAX needs to know about, with NSB in particular?"

Luke only groaned.

Vyn silently crossed his arms.

Artem, for his part, spoke up. "Marius, if we can just start with your report on what PAX Pharmaceuticals have gathered for the past month, the sooner all of us can get to our respective day duties."

"Well yeah, but that doesn't answer the question why you're not seated with Ro--"

"MARIUS!" Vyn slammed his fist onto the table. Every pair of eyes were on him now--this was the first time they heard him lose composure, much less shout--witnessing a historic moment where Marius von Hagen finally pushed his usually cool and composed tutor, the esteemed Dr. Vyn Richter, into losing his utter shit.

"I am not in a good mood right now, Marius--I have a headache coming on, and I have no intention of hearing you blather on while every one of us are eager to get to our other duties. Now. Your report. Please."

Marius could only blink. "Fucking hell. Fine."

The next two hours were spent deliberating on each member's reports. Vyn carefully observed the behavior of the erstwhile couple seated at his either side; thankfully they were mostly fully functional at work mode, and neither Rosa nor Artem were avoiding from interacting with each other as long as the interaction was limited to work-related activities only.

Good. It seems that I was worried for nothing--maybe I should have let Marius run his course and observe how Rosa would take his inquisition. Vyn deliberated with himself as he rifled through the new files gathered from everyone on his tablet. On the other hand, she was in too vulnerable a state the other day, to take jabs. Maybe it would be good to err on the prudent side.

And as the meeting came to a close, Vyn called for Rosa. "I will need your assistance with a certain case I am looking at. Can I bother you with this before you return to your office?"

"Oh, um." Rosa looked at Artem, who in turn threw a look at both of them. "Mr. Wing, I'll just stay here for a bit--"

"Who will drive you back to the office then?" Artem asked, voice clipped.

"I will, naturally," Vyn said, his piercing gold gaze meeting Artem's cerulean. "I will take her to your office on my way to the research institute. It is of no consequence to me." His voice was still gentle, yet laced with an edge that brooked no argument.

Artem and Vyn stared at each other silently for several seconds, until Artem finally said, "Fine. I will need her in time for our client meeting in a couple of hours, Vyn. Make sure she is back in the office by then."

"This will only take her less than an hour." Vyn said. "I will drop her off as soon as we are done."

"You'd better." Artem pulled away from his stare-off with Vyn and shows himself out the door.

Vyn and Rosa waited until they could hear the main door of the NXX section close behind Artem.

"Rosa, tell me--if he broke up with you, surely he would not have displayed such a possessive streak?" Vyn said as he gestured for Rosa to take a seat by the conference table, taking his own seat next to hers.

"It's...complicated, Dr. Richter." Rosa smoothed her skirt with a hand. "I...I don't know. It is like he's waffling between us needing to be apart, or be together." Rosa bit her thumb.

"And he still offers you to give you a lift to these NXX meetings?"

"He insisted. To be honest I'd rather take a taxi on my way here, but he's been adamant that we keep to our old...habits. For show, I believe." Rosa's eyes went downcast, her fingers fiddling with the hem of her skirt.

"That is hardly healthy nor helpful to either of you." Vyn noted. "Especially you, Rosa. How do you feel about it?"

"Terrible. Confused. Sometimes scared," Rosa sighed. "I mean, I trust Artem, despite what's happened, but..."

"But...?"

"Speaking with him...always makes me end up doubting myself. Like, for example. During the drive to our meeting earlier. He was picking an argument about whether or not we should stay apart," Rosa huffed. "Funnily enough he himself can't give a definite answer to it."

"Ah, but," Vyn tapped his fingers onto the table. "Suppose he is like that because he wants to get back with you, but knowing Artem, is just too awkward to bring up the possibility properly?

I am mostly asking this for my benefit. But to hell with it.

"I thought of that, of course," she said, shaking her head. "But I...after our talk the other day, I realized that yes, our fight happened because he was too focused on his work." She laughed bitterly. "I also realized that was probably the reason why I became his girlfriend; I was part of his work, so who better than me, right? It was like him setting up his work environment as a microcosm of life itself."

Vyn listened intently, his gaze never leaving Rosa's face.

"If it's not about work, then it is not worth looking at, if he could help it. This also extended to our relationship...we used to watch movies together, but ever since Themis took off as a reputable firm, high profile clients just came pouring in and suddenly there's no more breathing room for even dates anymore...dinners are always used to discuss about work.

"It felt...too constrained. And the way he tended to dictate how I conduct myself in public, like him not letting me accept alcohol in social events...it was..." Rosa struggled to find words.

"Suffocating?" Vyn hazarded.

"Yes, that." Rosa ran a hand through her hair. "And to think I was only able to gather my thoughts properly regarding this, because I heeded your advise in spending some time writing down the negatives of my relationship with Artem. I truly needed to sit down and take the time to think about things."

Vyn hummed in reply. "I am glad you did so."

"You've never let me down, Dr. Richter. Now, what about the case that you needed my help with?"

"We are currently working on it, right now," Vyn smiled.

"Huh?" Rosa blinked. "Oh."

"I had you stay for a bit so I can check in on my friend. I hope..." Vyn paused. "I hope you could find it in yourself to lean on us--on me--more, now that you are actually in need, Rosa. Imagine my chagrin when you told me this has been going on for two weeks without turning to anyone for help."

"I didn't want to trouble anyone. Especially since I thought it was my fault. You know," Rosa rocked a bit in her chair.

"And you know now that it does not matter whose fault it was. What does is that you found yourself in a situation that you want to extricate yourself from."

How quick am I to suggest that she remove herself from the relationship, instead of encouraging her to smooth things out with Artem.

Vyn found himself smiling darkly. I truly am fated to burn in the fires of hell, should there be one reserved for me when I die.

Rosa reluctantly nodded. "Y-yes..."

"That aside, have you been eating well?"

"Um. Ever since Artem hasn't been coming by to cook, I'm now back to calling for deliveries."

Vyn cocked an eyebrow. "That is not good. In this precarious situation you are going through right now, you need to make sure you are well-nourished. Hmm." He tapped his fingers on the glass table, once again. "Would you mind if I send you a care package sometime soon?"

"Care package...?" Rosa asked. "That sounds vague. Should I be scared?"

Vyn laughed. "Ah, there is the cheeky Rosa I know and love..."

He blinked when he realized what he had just said.

Rosa did not seem to notice, her head still tipped to one side inquiringly.

Good, she was always slow to pick up on these things. This was not the first overture he threw her way, and she was always none the wiser. Vyn inwardly sighed in relief.

"If you are scared of receiving sandwiches and pastries, then maybe, yes, feel free to be afraid?" He gently ruffled Rosa's hair affectionately, before standing up and offering her a hand.

"Come, I still need to make good on my promise to Artem to deliver his ex-girlfriend to hi--"

Rosa may have pulled on Vyn's hand a bit too strongly, as the both of them yelped in surprise and sent sprawling onto the cold floor of the NXX conference room, with Rosa falling on top of Vyn.

"Ouch...Dr. Richter, are you okay?"

Vyn groaned slightly. "I am good, but...your elbow just poked at my ribs a tad harder than what I can ignore..."

"Oh god, I'm sorry!" Rosa rolled off Vyn and fussed over him, particularly at the left side of his ribcage that she accidentally elbowed. "I am so terribly sorry, and after all the good that you've done for me!"

"There's no need to worry, Rosa," Vyn muttered as the haze of pain gradually dissipated. "All I will get is a bruise, and an amusing memory to go along with it." He was still lying on the floor, waiting for the pain on his ribs to subside.

"Just give me, hmm. Five minutes. Then I will get up."

"And if you're still not feeling okay after five minutes?"

"Then it means that you have broken some of my ribs and you, Rosa, will be responsible for it." Vyn smirked, or rather tried to smirk, from where he lay on the floor, his coat spread out underneath him.

The scene made for an amusing sight.

Rosa wrung her hands. "Oh, but--argh. Rosa, you utter dolt."

"I will pinch you again if you insist on castigating yourself for everything, even accidents such as these." Vyn drawled.

"Dr. Richter!"

"I jest," Vyn smiled as he closed his eyes. "I hope you do not mind me closing my eyes. The glare of the overhead lamp is just getting to me."

Eyes closed, Vyn fell quiet, pretending to nap. It was clear that Rosa tended to berate herself if she was allowed to, and he was not going to be her sounding board of her self-hatred if he could help it.

A long period of silence followed, and Vyn could almost feel himself slipping to unconsciousness, when--

He felt sweet warmth pressing upon his lips.

Surprised, his eyes fluttered open, only to see Rosa's face over his as she kissed him.

Rosa...? Vyn could not believe what he felt, what he saw.

He had perfect control of his faculties, yet he was still caught unaware by the woman who filled his most of his waking thoughts--or did he deliberately lay there, prone, unconsciously setting up a situation where she could do anything she wished, if she wanted to? After all of the little, coincidental, absolutely not deliberate suggestions he threw at her?

Sometimes I do not know myself anymore, was his thought as he gathered Rosa in his arms and pulled her closer to him.

This is dangerous.

Breath shuddering, he opened his lips to receive her kisses, reveling in the sensations of her tongue exploring his lips, his mouth, and eventually entwining with his own.

Rosa is appreciating him. Tasting him. Vyn felt a strong jolt of something in his chest that he would have difficulty describing to his dictaphone the next time he would do his self-assessment. Limerence? Surge of oxytocin? Dopamine?

His mind went on overdrive, reflexively trying to make sense of the situation as Rosa moved over him, having her way with him.

Vyn caught himself moaning softly as Rosa's tongue ran across his lips.

Rosa's auburn hair spilled over the sides of his face, like the moon blotting out the sun in a spectacular eclipse. The scent of her floral shampoo and perfume saturated his senses. The wet sounds of their kissing blocked the loud humming of the air conditioner--everything is now Rosa.

Only Rosa.

Vyn could feel his arousal growing, and he shifted a little to keep Rosa from accidentally feeling how much he wanted her right now.

No...not yet.

However, Vyn still wanted more, regardless of what situation led to that sweet moment. He tightened his hold around her, one of his hands threading through her soft tresses as he pushed down at the back of her head, pressing her face closer to his.

Rosa. Rosa. All of his nerve endings sung at the culmination of his adoration for her, from the very moment she waltzed into his study, toppling down his house of cards...

He allowed himself a soft sucking of her probing tongue. More.

More.

A trail of saliva connected their lips as Rosa pulled briefly from their kiss, only to break off once she spoke. "Dr. Richter...I...." She swallowed. "I really should not say I did not know what came over me, but..."

"That is fine," Vyn breathed against her lips. "Not everything has to be planned. But," he tilted his face up to meet Rosa's lips with his to sneak in another quick kiss. "This is rather ill-timed. You do understand this."

Vyn licked his lips, relishing the traces of Rosa's flavor left on them. "I really should stop this, Rosa. I really should. But since you started it," he sighed longingly. "Can I be permitted to be selfish, just a for little bit?"

Please. I have waited for so long. I have been made to give up on my wait, but I have never stopped waiting, have I?

He wanted to say those words, and more, but he already had Rosa in his arms, pain in his side be damned, and is that not the only thing that mattered this very moment?

"Can you kiss me a little bit more? Before I send you back to your office?" Vyn's amber-gold eyes betrayed the long-simmering yearning that he held for her.

He reached out a hand to cup Rosa's flushed cheek. The warmth filled his chest with a strange kind of hunger that he never knew he was capable of feeling, until that very moment.

Rosa nodded. "Yes." She bit her lip. "I...I am a dolt in more ways than one, Dr. Richter...but I suppose now is not the time to talk about it."

"You are right," Vyn said, his gentle voice touched with a little impatience that he could not hold back. "Now. Kiss me. Please."

That which had stoppered this dam has been so sweetly removed.

And Rosa, once again, blotted out everything in the world that wasn't her.

===

One week had passed rather uneventfully.

Vyn did deliver on his promise to send Rosa a care package, not once but three times; he had them sent on the days that he knew to be especially stressful for her, based on her usual temperament whenever he struck conversations with her during those days: Sunday, Monday, and Wednesday.

Sunday bore a basket filled with sweet dessert and pastries, bearing with it a promise of sweetness that she should look forward to throughout the rest of the week: happy, pastel-colored assorted macarons, a whole round of Tarte Tatin--which Vyn painstakingly had to spend several hours experimenting with several types of apples available in nearby groceries--and with a touch of whimsy he added a bowl of alcoholic Christmas pudding.

("Dr. Richter, why did you give me Christmas pudding in the middle of July?" Rosa had asked him over the phone, stifled laughter poorly hidden. He had answered, quite blithely, "It is Christmas in Australia. Merry Christmas.")

Monday, the most stressful day, had Rosa receive mostly comfort food, all of which she was surprised to receive from a doctor such as Vyn: a tub of premium black forest ice cream; a simple homemade spaghetti, its recipe adjusted to allow for more meat; and decadent fudge brownies that would earn even Vyn a frown from a dentist.

("I thought the entire point of you sending me these is to nourish me properly?" Rosa had laughed over the speaker phone. "Why are you sabotaging not only my diet, but my blood chemistry results too?" To which Vyn had replied, "I did say I would send you nourishing food--and it is your emotional health that I seek to nourish, Rosa dearest. I said no lie.")

Wednesday was a more elegant affair: it was a wooden box filled with an assortment of cold cuts, assorted cheeses, chocolates, and two small bottles of red wine--each enough for a single glass serving--to go along with the finger food.

("This is just perfect for unwinding right in the middle of a busy week, Dr. Richter. Thank you." "Never you mind, Rosa. Enjoy the end of your hump day.")

Friday evening finally arrived, and Vyn, still in his office, contemplated whether or not to ask Rosa out for dinner.

If that moment back in the NXX conference room did not happen, he would have long dialed her number and invited her out already to a restaurant of both their choosing--or she may have him recommend a place, as she was always wont to do when she was still unattached--yet after that tender moment, on the cold hard floor of the conference room, no less...

Vyn spun his smartphone between his fingers, deep in thought.

I can no longer hide behind the laughable pretense of 'close friend'. Nor could I explain this off with simply keeping tabs on her emotional well-being.

I am already stepping in and courting her, am I not?

Vyn absent-mindedly performed his sleight-of-hand routine with his phone as he further delved into his thoughts. Should I have stopped her, then, before it progressed and made my feelings known? No, she needed affirmation that she was still desirable. Another rejection would have been--

The phone slipped out of his hands, launching it into the air and snapping Vyn out of his reverie. He managed to catch the device before it hit the floor, much to his relief.

Who am I kidding? Why am I using Rosa as an excuse? I wanted it. I want her so much. I want her so much it hurts.

His mind made up, Vyn was about to put Rosa on speed dial when his phone finally rang.

It was her.

"Rosa--" He was about to smile, but the moment he heard her panicking voice his free hand clenched so hard his knuckles turned white.

"Stay put, Rosa. I will be there. Yes, I am making my way there now."

===

"Dr. Richter!" Rosa immediately pulled Vyn inside her apartment the moment he knocked on her door.

"I am here," he said, enveloping the shaken woman in his protective embrace as soon as he closed the door behind her.

This time he did not restrain himself from kissing the top of her head. "Shh. I am here. There is nothing to be afraid of."

"It's my fault!" Rosa sobbed against his chest, her fists gripping fistfuls of his shirt. "I didn't--I--"

"One at a time, Rosa, there is no need to hurry," Vyn whispered as soothingly as he could. "Come, let us sit on your sofa--"

As he led her to her living room, he immediately saw why she was crying uncontrollably.

Her living room was an utter mess. Someone had very clearly intruded her home in a fit of rage: several of her things were strewn across the floor, a table lying on its side, shards of ceramic scattered along one corner of the floor where a large vase was thrown off its place by the windowsill.

Rosa recoiled at the sight of her ravaged living room.

Vyn took a deep breath to compose himself.

"Rosa, look at me," he whispered, summoning as much tenderness as he could for her sake. "Ssh, look at me."

Sniffling, Rosa raised her tear-stricken gaze to meet his.

Vyn then pressed one of her hands to his chest. "Follow my breathing," he whispered softly. "Can you do this for me, Rosa?"

Rosa nodded silently.

"Good. Let us do this together."

Vyn bent down to press his forehead against hers, inhaling and exhaling deep breaths. He slightly exaggerated his own breathing, so Rosa could feel each rise and fall of his chest under her palm.

He kept at it, until he could feel Rosa's breathing finally synchronize with his.

Having calmed down, Rosa hugged Vyn tightly, letting her head rest against his shoulder. "Dr. Richter, I..."

"Let us sit you down first." Vyn sat down on one end of the sofa, patting the space beside him. "Come, sit beside me."

"He...he came here earlier. It started out fine," Rosa sighed as soon as she sat down beside Vyn, nestling her face in the crook of his neck.

Vyn said nothing; he listened intently as he put his arm around her shoulders.

"He came here because he wanted to make up with me. He...asked for another chance." Rosa pressed her body closer to his, as if seeking more of his warmth. "He came in unannounced--he knew the passcode of my door."

"I was...I was in the middle of writing in my journal, when he came to talk. Stupid me left it open on the table...I was shocked by his sudden visit, I guess?" Rosa laughed at herself in disdain. "I was totally not ready for visitors. Especially him...so I went to the kitchen to get him something to eat."

Rosa sighed. "When I came back from the kitchen, I saw him reading through my journal. That...that journal I specifically bought to organize my thoughts and feelings, like you told me to."

Rosa wrung her hands; Vyn, having noticed it, took her hands with his own, cradling them gently in the warmth of his palm.

"So there's only a few pages written in. It's...fairly easy to find the pages where I listed down all the negatives about my relationship with him, to remind me, as you said. I did list down the happy things and memories we did share but...the bad clearly outnumbered the good.

"I suppose it hurt his ego."

Vyn finally found it in himself to speak. "And he did this?" His voice came out shaky. "Artem did this?"

"N-not yet." Rosa started to fiddle with Vyn's long, tapered fingers. "He was hurt, yes, but not enough to go amok. He did start a huge row about it, but it wasn't until he found the bottle of wine that you sent me that things went downhill."

"He drank the wine I gave you?"

"Remember when I said he didn't like the idea of me drinking alcohol?" Rosa half-smirked. "He figured out that it was a gift--I didn't say from whom, of course--but he decided that he'd drink it so that I couldn't."

"Artem the stupid, fucking lightweight," Vyn muttered darkly. "So, inebriated, he did all," he gestured towards the chaos in the living room. "This?"

Rosa nodded.

I will get him.

He did not voice his fury for Rosa's sake. "First things first, Rosa. Dearest," he nuzzled her hair. "Let us change the passcode of your main door. You do know how to do that, right?"

"Yeah."

"Do you need assistance?"

Rosa shook her head. "No. No, but...I'd like you to come with me so you'd know the code as well. For emergency purposes."

Vyn blinked at her. "Rosa, I... I am honored that you should choose me for such an important and intimate role. Are you sure?"

Rosa nodded. "You're the one who's been showing up for me so far. Well, you and Luke."

She then stood up to fetch something in her loft bedroom.

"Luke has been helping you as well?" Vyn asked as he padded over to the side table that had been toppled over, standing it upright and setting it back in its proper place.

"Yes, I've started sharing my troubles with him. I guess you can say that I was encouraged after I saw how much you supported me." Rosa descended the stairs that led from the loft, card key to her door panel in hand.

Luke. Of course. The only one other person in the current NXX roster with a good head on his shoulders.

"I'm going to reset the passcode now. Come with?" Rosa asked, rather shyly.

"Of course."

After Rosa changed the locks and handed Vyn a copy of the keycard for safekeeping, he had spent the entire Friday evening until early morning helping her clean up the aftermath of Artem's drunken rage.

They managed to get the living room back to its usual spotless state, sans many of personal effects, which had to be thrown out and replaced.

Vyn took over the task of creating an inventory of the damaged property after he tucked the weary Rosa into bed.

He would go over the inventory with Rosa later, so she could provide the estimated monetary value of each should things escalate and require ammo for litigation purposes.

For now, there is a more pressing matter that needs taking care of. Vyn put a number on speed dial.

"Luke. This is Vyn." A pause. "Yes, I know this is an unusually early time for me to call. Can we meet?"

===

"Holy hell, Vyn, you look terrible," Luke muttered as he opened the door of his antiques shop.

"Yes. I know. I have not gotten a chance to sleep yet." Vyn resisted the urge to snap, as he was wont to be when sleep deprived. He was here for Luke; he needed the detective's assistance.

Luke raised his eyebrows. "Oookay. I suppose this is something serious, for something to get between you and your precious sleeping time." He ushered Vyn to his quarters on the second floor of the building. "Coffee or juice?"

"Coffee, if you please," Vyn muttered as he took a spot by the floor table, sitting on the carpeted floor cross legged.

Vyn felt his senses stir a little bit towards wakefulness once Luke placed a mugful of instant coffee in front of him; tendrils of coffee aroma teased his sense of smell. He inhaled deeply, trying to grasp at whatever capacity to stay awake he still had left.

"It's nothing that you're used to, Vyn, but that's all I have," Luke said as he took his place opposite Vyn. "So. What's up."

"Rosa." Was all Vyn could say between gulps of instant coffee. He hoped the mere mention of her name could already clue him in.

"Shit. What did Artem do?"

"Went amok in her living room. Scared our Rosa so much she called for me." Vyn finally set the mug, now empty, back on the table. "She almost cried herself to sleep."

"Fuck." Luke took a deep breath. "I assume she's okay now? Since you were with her and all."

"Sleeping when I left, yes."

Vyn ran a fingertip across the rim of his mug, eyes growing even more bleary. He could feel himself nodding off. "I spent the entire night helping her clean up."

"Damn it. Damn it." Luke muttered. "She should've called for me."

"That is precisely why she called me, and not you," Vyn pursed his lips. "She knew you'd go off and break his bones the moment she confided to you about this."

Luke snorted. "I'd do much more than that."

He then crossed his arms. "And yet, you're here, roping me in anyway despite what Rosa feels about me getting involved. Why?"

Vyn looked at Luke, his face unreadable except for the slight tinge of fury that spilled out of his eyes.

"Because some bones may need breaking."

===

It only took an hour into working with Luke to tell Vyn that he had made the right choice calling for the detective.

While Vyn and Marius were both well-versed when it came to higher-level analytical work and resource-pulling that the NXX project required, Luke's prowess clearly showed when the task at hand demanded covert fieldwork and tracking.

For example, determining a specific person's daily routine, their preferred travel routes, where they parked their car...

And since the person they were tracking was a close colleague, the results were expedited from Luke's usual two days to a mere hour, by virtue of Luke knowing exactly where to look.

"Yeah, so. If you want us to corner him somewhere before Monday," Luke began, poring over printouts of various logs.

"There is a good chance of doing so when he gets back from his weekend drive out to the mountains. Tomorrow evening," Luke determined.

Parking logs, tollway timestamps, even a listing of places where Artem tended to use his credit cards every weekend. Vyn pored over the sheets of paper onto which myriad numbers were printed, signifying the times when each transaction had occurred, and where.

"I would not even ask how you can legally get your hands on this kind of information," Vyn murmured as his eyes lazily scanned a listing of where Artem used his card on Saturday last two weeks ago.

"That's the thing, legal isn't a word that applies to us exactly." Luke murmured as he installed a backdoor that would temporarily enable him to gain access to the parking lot's CCTV network. "And that definition was granted and approved via legal means."

"Meaning, no one should end up on your... Shit list."

Luke shook his head. "Mm, I'm not so petty as to use my NSB privileges if I want to deal with personal matters. I'd much rather break arms. I find it a more eloquent method to put my point across."

"Meaning, no one should end up on your shit list," Vyn repeated, brows now raised.

"Except when it comes to Rosa," Luke said as he hit the Return button. "When it comes to her I will use every means I have at my disposal. Childhood friend, you understand." He cracked his knuckles.

Vyn felt that the message was also meant for him, somehow.

"Anyway, Vyn. I've asked you many times, but--are you sure you want to do this?" Luke looked away from his retro CRT terminal to face Vyn.

"I am an incognito government agent, so this work is best left to me. You, however...you have a lot to lose, should this get out. Prestige, standing--"

"Prestige and standing can go fuck themselves," Vyn muttered as he massaged his temples. He still hasn't had any sleep, and it was already almost noon. "As long as that idiot insists on hovering around Rosa while she's still hurt--" Vyn bit his lip, becoming increasingly irritable.

"You don't even sound right anymore, Vyn," Luke's brows furrowed. "If you can't drive yourself home, feel free to crash here if you want."

Vyn let out a ragged sigh. "Yes. Yes, I suppose you are right." He pushed himself away from the table where Luke worked, padding towards the small corridor that led to...somewhere.

"Uh, Vyn, my bedroom's that way," Luke jerked his thumb to the direction opposite where Vyn was headed. "My bed's yours. Knock yourself out."

"Thank you."

"Just sleep. I've taken care of everything; all that's left is what needs to be done tomorrow."

===

Sunday evening.

Artem parked his sports car into his usual spot, after his usual drive through the mountain paths. Having turned the ignition off, he let himself settle a little bit longer in the car seat.

He groaned and almost hit his head against the wheel. The entire point of taking his usual weekend drives was to cool his head off.

Yet this time not even the drive through the entire length of the mountain pass through Cloudbreak and beyond could do anything to quell the guilt and shame of what he did to Rosa the other night.

I should have stayed away. I should have stuck to whatever we decided and stayed away.

Cursing himself inwardly again and again, he unlocked and kicked open his car door, then closing it behind him with a loud slam.

"Whatever did the car do, for you to lash out at it so?"

Artem quickly looked behind him, towards the direction of the very familiar dulcet voice.

Vyn stepped out of the shadows behind a nearby SUV, his hands in his pockets. "Good evening. Fancy meeting you here, Artem." He smiled genially, as if they met by chance across the street, or in a grocery.

Certainly not a greeting from a man who most certainly lay in wait to ambush him.

"Vyn. What do you want?"

The doctor slowly inched towards him, hands still in his pockets, smile still plastered on his face. "Nothing. Just a short chat, is all."

Vyn did not show any signs of slowing down his approach towards him and Artem had to take a few steps back, until his leg hit the still-warm hood of his car.

"Why do you look like you have seen a ghost? It is only me." Vyn took out his right hand to adjust his glasses.

"Vyn, what--"

A manic, blazing white-hot anger flashed across Vyn's eyes as he lunged at Artem--who raised his arms to try and defend himself-- throwing his full weight at him, pinning the taller man onto the hood of his car.

Vyn's arm pressed hard against Artem's throat, causing debilitating pain as he shifted his weight to press even harder, threatening to asphyxiate him if Vyn bore down just a little bit more.

The doctor's other hand caught Artem's thumb, bending it far backwards, just almost far than what is anatomically possible, prompting Artem to try and scream in pain--but could not, as no sound could escape his throat with how hard Vyn was pressing down on it.

"Just a man to man talk, Wing," Vyn hissed. "You have two choices. First option, is you or Rosa be given no less than a month's leave from work, and the both of you go no contact with each other for that period. It is the simplest option with the least consequence.

"Second option, is you insisting on hurting Rosa by keeping contact with her, and if you take that option I will exhaust all means to sabotage your search for your mentor. Remember this. I never, ever deliver empty threats."

"I will let go of your throat now, Wing--if you do anything out of place you will leave this parking lot with a missing limb," Vyn said, his low voice almost a growl.

"Now, answer me--which option will you take?" Vyn lifted his arm off Artem's throat only slightly.

Thinking that it was his chance to retaliate, Artem started to grab at Vyn with his arm, only for it to be pinned back down onto the hood, only this time with a switchblade pierced through the cuff of its sleeve, barely missing Artem's wrist and his radial artery.

"I said, if you do anything funny you will leave here with a missing limb," Vyn said, his voice and face now completely devoid of emotion. "Or do you want further demonstration of what I can do?"

Artem remained defiant. "Richter, you do know what the consequences are of whatever you are doing, yes?"

"Of course."

"Then you do know that I can sue you for--"

Vyn let out a sharp laugh. "Oh yes, do waggle that pathetic sword at me, won't you? What a good way to shutter down the NXX project and lose all chances of you ever seeing your mentor again.

"Just to be clear--I am not afraid of the consequences of everything that I do. In fact," Vyn's lips curled into a slight smile that did not quite reach his eyes.

"I intend on going to your office tomorrow to see Ms. Taylor, and explain exactly why one of you--you or Rosa--has to go on a month's leave. I have already prepared Rosa's full psychological assessment, and also photographic evidence of the damage that you inflicted in her very home."

Artem's eyes widened.

"So, Mr. Wing," Vyn pulled out the switchblade out of Artem's sleeve.

Only to bring it down once again, this time ominously stabbing the very narrow space between Artem's middle and ring fingers. "The option that you will take. Which will it be."

"Man, for someone as vicious as you, Vyn, you sure are taking too much time." Luke moaned as he approached them. "That's not too good, you know? Just gives the man time to compose himself and plan how to take action."

"Luke?" Artem spat out incredulously. "You're in on this too?"

"Huh?" Luke's head tipped to one side, as if he just heard a silly question. He cracked his knuckles. "Of course I am. You made Rosa cry, you fuckwad."

Then, to Vyn, "Step aside. I'm taking over so we can have this over and done with."

Vyn shrugged. "Have it your way," he said as he removed and folded the switchblade in one swift motion and rolled off Artem.

"Alright, showtime. So what'll it be, Artem? You gonna fuck off for one month or what?" Luke asked casually as he raised his fist.

===

"Well, easy does it," Vyn grunted as he carried one of Rosa's new plush chairs into her living room.

"I think that's the last bit, finally," Rosa breathed as she wiped the sweat off her brow.

They had spent considerable time receiving Rosa's new furniture. Vyn did not tell her yet that it was Celestine who quietly handed him the money for them to spend buying the replacement furniture, including other home items that were damaged last Friday night.

That was a problem that would be tackled later on.

For now, Rosa's comfort came first.

Vyn was about to unpack one of the boxes containing some newly ordered stationery items when Rosa caught his hand.

"Rosa, is something the matter?" Vyn inquired, his head tipped to one side.

"Mm," Rosa hummed as she shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. I...I just wanted to thank you, is all."

Vyn smiled, his amber-gold irises glittering in the sunset that streamed through her large ceiling-to-floor windows. "You are welcome. You are my dearest, closest friend, after all."

"Are we still friends at this point, Dr. Richter?"

"Yes." Vyn said as he observed Rosa's face for her reaction. And there it was, that tinge of disappointment barely hidden.

"As long as you keep on calling me Dr. Richter, then yes, I think we are only friends."

"Then..." Rosa moved closer to him, her arms gingerly encircling his torso. "If I call you Vyn...?"

"If you call me Vyn then it means that you have accepted me into your innermost circle." Then, with a softer, gentler voice he whispered, "Will you accept my affection this time, Rosa?"

His smile was laden with longing, the touch of his fingertips across her cheeks singing loudly of how much he had pined for her for the longest time, even when he had lost her to someone else.

Rosa's reply came in the form of a kiss. Standing on tiptoe, she reached out her arms and coiled them ever so gently around his neck, pulling Vyn's face close to hers.

She moaned softly as this time it was Vyn tenderly probing her lips with his tongue, tasting her with a hunger barely held back lest he devour her fully.

Their tongues met and danced hungrily, igniting a fire inside him.

"Rosa, please...I have waited far too long for this moment," he breathed against her lips as his hands slid to her waist. "Can I have you?" His heartbeat was beating fast and hard against his ribcage; the only way to quell his excitement, it seemed, was finally having the woman who so filled his dreams day by day day...

"Yes," Rosa whispered. "Vyn...I want you."

With a sharp intake of breath Vyn slipped his hands underneath her blouse, letting his hands roam the warm bare skin of her torso--letting her warmth dispel the constantly cool temperature of his skin.

He unclasped her bra, and, his breath shuddering with the sweet and heady mixture of excitement and need, he deepened their kiss; his hands felt and tested the swell of her breasts. "Rosa, Rosa," he murmured in between kisses and touches of tongue on lip. "Rosa, how beautiful you are...

"I need you."

Rosa giggled. "Vyn, we are still in the middle of my living room, do you want to move to the bedroom?"

"The living room which we have put together with our own hands," Vyn whispered as he pulled Rosa close to him, leading her to straddle his thighs as he sat on the new plush chair. "What better place to celebrate our new love?" He asked as he pulled her blouse over her head.

"Vyn, it's much comfortable on the bed!"

A soft laughter escaped Vyn's lips, his smile slightly devious. "Consider this my small revenge for you having stolen a kiss when I was lying, hurt, on the cold hard floor of the conference room."

"I'm sorry for that, but-ah!"

He then bent over to capture a nipple with his lips, his tongue swirling around the nub and teasing it into an aroused, hardened peak. His breath came hot and heavy against her skin as he savored and took his time sucking lightly on her breast.

"Vyn, god, that feels...nice..." Rosa whimpered as she unconsciously moved her hips, grinding her wet arousal that how had seeped through her underwear and slightly soiling the crotch of his pants.

The arousal in Vyn's pants was unmistakable, but he was determined to take his sweet, sweet time--he had waited for so long, delayed gratification was but a little game to him now that he has the woman of his dreams writhing deliciously upon his lap.

"It feels nice?" Vyn hummed as he moved his lips onto her other, neglected nipple. "You taste nice, my dear." As his lips and tongue worked their magic on Rosa's breasts his hands gathered her skirt around her waist, revealing her blue panties underneath.

Rosa bit back a moan as Vyn's hands caressed the tender skin of her inner thighs, his electric cool touches sending tendrils of pleasure coursing through her core. "Vyn, please," Rosa moaned. "Stop teasing me!"

Vyn's mouth let go of Rosa's breast with a soft pop. "Teasing? I am doing no such thing," he drawled as he licked his lips. "I am merely...thoroughly enjoying you. Your taste," he licked her earlobe. "Your sound. Your smell, how you touch and how beautiful you are."

"I am glad that you are such a romantic, Vyn, but...oh god yes..." Rosa squirmed as Vyn finally slipped two fingers inside the garter of her underwear and massaged her clit. She started grinding against the sweet ministrations of his fingers over her sensitive bud.

"I rather like how you sing," Vyn murmured as he concentrated on doing experimental touches on Rosa's slit, the pad of his forefinger drawing circles around her clitoris. "Sing for me more, will you, pet?" Never letting up his sweet assault on her clit, Vyn let his middle and ring fingers dip inside her wet, dripping sex.

"Vyn!" Rosa cried. "Please, I'm near," she started grinding harder into his hand, her voice strained with utter need. "Don't stop, whatever you are doing--oh god...!"

Vyn felt her come undone around his fingers, his hand never letting up his sweet stroking until Rosa had come down from her orgasm high.

When it was time for him to pull out his hand, his fingers were totally drenched with her slick, and Vyn made a show out of licking and sucking his fingers clean of her wetness. "You taste utterly delicious, Rosa," he murmured, his eyes hooded. "Next time, I will eat you all up."

Despite just having come down from an orgasm, Rosa still felt a coil of excitement unravel down her loins at hearing his lewd declaration.

"I will take you now," Vyn said, voice now sultry and low. "I have waited for so long," he whispered as he quickly undid his belt buckle and the buttons of his pants. He kicked off his pants and underwear from his ankles with such urgency rarely seen from the usually calm and composed doctor.

Rosa rubbed his now-freed cock against her wet slit, her own fluids mingling with the precum that dripped from his tip.

"Now, Rosa," Vyn said rather hungrily, "Sit on me. Please."

She did not need any further prodding, with a moan she impaled herself, inch by inch, onto his aching cock. He filled her so wonderfully that she could only moan and sigh at every inch that went inside her, until he was fully hilted.

"Oh god, Vyn," Rosa cried as her hips started to move. "Fuck me harder, won't you?"

"I...I wanted to make this last as much as I could," Vyn groaned. "But I suppose that would be hard to do on our first time."

"Stop being such a romantic and just do me!" Rosa cried.

There was something immensely erotic about being bossed around by his woman who needed him so much that she couldn't wait to be fucked out.

Vyn grinned. "And the lady shall be thoroughly fucked," he said as he stood up from the chair, planting Rosa into the plush leather.

He gently pulled her ass toward near the edge of the seat, and hooked both of her thighs over the armrests of the chair. The position made for a rather lewd display, her slit stretching out just enough for her small hole to pucker open.

"Ah, you just look delectable," Vyn whispered hungrily as he knelt in front of her, his cock at just the right angle to penetrate her. He braced his arms over the armrests--pausing for a brief moment to let his tongue slide against hers--and plunged right in.

"Hahh--yes," Vyn hissed as he started to move. His thrusts started out slow yet deep, slowly picking up the pace as soon as he finds himself chasing his pleasure.

All composure, all romance had been blotted out of him as his need to come slowly took precedence--Vyn's moans intermingled with Rosa's into a most exquisite duet that filled his senses. This is it, this is what I have been waiting for.

The overwhelming sensations washing over him quieted that part of his brain that tried to rationalize what made him drown in euphoria. Dopamine, norepinephrine, limerence; none of them seemed to matter anymore. The only real thing is Rosa writhing, moaning, wanting him, and his need for release--

"Rosa," Vyn breathed, his voice strangled. "I'm about to...where do you want me to come?"

"Inside," Rosa moaned, her hand slipping between them to accelerate her second orgasm to time it along with his. "Come inside me, please!"

With a guttural moan Vyn threw his head back, pushing his cock inside as much as he could, as he flooded Rosa's insides with his come.

===

"Vyn," Rosa whispered as she idly drew circles on his chest with a fingertip. "What did you...what did you do with Artem? He never dropped by the office for a week now, and Celestine is not telling me anything."

They were still seated on the plush chair that they made love in; Rosa sitting on Vyn's lap. The position was such that it was entirely possible that a second round would be necessitated.

Vyn made a non-committal sound. "He took a month's leave, upon our...recommendation, is all."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," Vyn planted a chaste kiss on her cheek. "One of the reasons Artem went off like he did was the close proximity between you two even after you have broken up...it was hardly the healthiest arrangement for either of you."

"I...see." Rosa sighed. "I still feel like a dolt--I...I took the safe bet and chose Artem over you. I did see glimpses of how you looked at me before, but..." she smiled sheepishly. "I really thought that I was not deserving of you, that whatever hope I had of you looking at me that way was just my wishful thinking."

"I am sorry, Rosa...that was completely my fault." Vyn caressed her cheek. "I was too caught up in making myself dependable for you that it seemed to backfire on me, making me appear too unattainable."

Rosa laughed. "That is such a roundabout way of humble bragging, Dr. Vyn Richter." She kissed him on the lips. "But that is so you."

"Mhm. I suppose. You would have to forgive me, then, if I overcompensate from time to time? I have to indulge my petty, insecure, overcompetitive sides after all," he murmured, rattling off his less desirable traits that he was all too aware of.

"Yes. I accept it. I accept all of you."

"As I do you and yours, Rosa."

#tears of themis #vyn richter #mo yi #artem wing #luke pearce #tears of themis fanfic #tears of themis smut #tot smut #tot vyn #tot luke #tot artem #xia yan #zuo ran

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minshookie · 4 years ago

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CEO!BTS Reaction to:

You flinching during an argument.

| !warning! | violence, unhealthy relationships, abusive relationship, yandere Bts, choking and sexual topics 18+, dubcon, oral [fem receiving & giving], strong language [Jimin has a potty mouth!!!] rough play.

| this is not in anyway shape or form a true depiction or representation of BTS, this is a work of fiction and is not to be taken seriously. For entertainment purposes only.|(this is my work, please don’t repost or steal)

| Requested [requests open]

A/N | the amount of time I’m taking to get these request done correctly is embarrassing i apologize. I hope you don’t mind that I turned this into a whole reaction and that it’s not fluffy...lmk if you’d like me to change it I certainly will.

Forgive me for mistakes, though this is edited.

Kim Seokjin...

“Ok well what was that out there?” He spoke ominously back turned to you. “I- we-.” Laughing at your lack of response, he cut you off. “You fucked up that’s what it was hun.”

“Come sit on the desk, I want to see you apologize for making me look like an idiot.” He spat the last part like it was disgusting on his tongue. Already in deep trouble you decided to follow directions for once.

Turing smoothly in his office chair, you could see the resentment in his eyes. “Go on.” You swallowed thickly, his angered glare drying your throat. “I’m sorry for....correcting you during today’s meeting.” He scoffed, “there was nothing to correct!”

“Jin you can’t always be right, if you took that agreement, you’d never hit anything close to pro-” “who’s the boss? Hm? Who’s name is on this desk you have your tight ass planted on?” Mistakingly you let your eyes roll out of pure annoyance.

“Well excuse me?!” He leans forward quickly out of his chair, causing you to fall opposite of him. Pens poke at your back, his name plaque digging into your arm. Evilly he grins in enjoyment. “Found your place yet?, you seem afraid...afraid I’d hit you?” Wide eyed you nod, trapped like a mouse under its predator. Every inch of confidence stripped as he glared deeply into you. “Good.” Before you could even process his statement, you were harshly distracted by his rough hand landing across your cheek. Your head turns the other way as your right cheek tingles and burns. Chuckling he grips your chin forcing you to look at him.

“Find your place, and if you’ve forgotten it, I can help you find it...just like that,anytime.”

Min Yoongi...

Watching in envy, you pushed miscellaneous papers into the shredder. What a bitch! You saw her watching Yoongi all day just waiting for him to go to his office. So she could prance in there, thong up her ass, low cut shirt...the works.

“Yah! Y/N, what the hell are you doing?” Jumping in fear , peeking down you found out what you’ve been shredding. He shoved you to the side turning off the shredder. “All those papers we needed for next week’s evaluation and review meeting...” you looked from the shredder back to him shrugging nonchalantly. Already having Somebody in your boyfriends office flirting him into hard on, the last thing you need is more work. “We’ll go fucking print some more of them.” He demanded his face stiff. Jin never liked you, maybe you’ll have Yoongi fire him.

You walked holding the last remaining sheet fully intact for reference, did Jin really think you were going to the copy room? What a dunce. Ignoring the meeting in progress light you pushed the heavy door open. “Hey y/n I’m sorry we’re in the middle of something.” You could tell he was just laughing at something a tint of red on his cheeks. Him kicking you out...this should be the other way. This hurt. “Me?” You gasped. She turned her silky hair fanning. “Y/n when we’re done I’ll come find you Alright?” She spoke a little above a whisper.“Don’t speak to me.” You glared at her walking further into the office. Obviously she’s confused about her rightful place, and Yoongi is too.

“You, get out.” She stretched her eyes looking back and forth from you to Yoongi. “Now.” “Min you can’t let her kick me out.” She scoffed, “I’ll speak to you later alright.” He smiled warmly,She got up storming from his room. “Yoongi what exactly was that?” He sat back in his chair. “A meeting.” “A meeting with what her left tit?” He closed his eyes harshly at your vulgarity. “No a meeting with your colleague about her position.” He offers the seat in front of him, gladly you take said offer.

“But what you did was uncalled for.” Laughing he leaned forward onto the table. He beacons you to follow, leaning forward you fall right into his trap upset he gripped your face making your cheeks squish. “Don’t ever come back in my office acting this way again, understood?” Nodding the best you could. “Huh? Understood?” “Yeah!” He let go leaving a ache in his wake. Before going back he reached for you again instinctively you pull back as if he was going to strike you. “Hm, I don’t treat you that harsh but I will...keep testing me.” He finished, only coming close to fix your hair.

Kim Namjoon...

Another day held the same daily routine, wake up Joon, cook breakfast, clean get dressed and head to work, work, eat lunch in Joon’s office, work,go home, and restart.

Today Joon had lunch delivered, practically throwing his money like confetti paper, much to the delight of his employees. Both of you sat on the floor of his office, enjoying the home style take out in silence. Without noticing all your attention was being absorbed by your phone. “What’s so intriguing kitten?” Your fingers stopped in their place “just texting a friend.” You looked at him through your lashes before going back to typing. He closed his take out container, he finished his meal and sneakily proceeded onto yours. Surprised by your lack of protests he spoke again.

“Oh yeah? And whose this friend?” He mumbled still chewing. “Someone I might know?” You nodded in response, unsatisfied he got up going to wash his hands in his office restroom. “Their name would be helpful y/n.” Just from his tone alone you could tell he was nearing impatience. “He works here, I’m just helping him...explaining how the log in system works he’s locked out at the moment.”

Joon no longer cared for their name and you knew it. “Oh ‘he’?” You nodded, he came drying his hands with his initialed towels. “New guy...Choi?” You looked up fully for the first time in a while. “Yeah, Soobin.” He nodded,Sitting in his desk turning to some papers. Nothing left to say you looked back down at your massages. “I’d like you to eat though, I don’t want you going hungry.” He ordered you around like a father and you obeyed.

Chewing, you almost choked as Soobin sent a joke that you weren’t ready for. Joon raised a brow, “a funny one huh? Let me see.” He looked down at you hand out flat. Your eyes went doe, there is no way your letting Joon read this vulgar joke. Soobin would be out of a job just as quick as he got one. “C’mon let me see, don’t make me take it.” Maybe he’ll laugh about it too, you gave up the device.

At first he squinted before his eyes grew wide. “ ‘This copy machine looks like the one from those cheesy office pornos....let’s make one?’ Y/N this is who you’re waisting your time on?” Rolling your eyes you went back to your meal, annoyed he didn’t find the harmless joke amusing. “Joon he was joking, it’s not like he knows I’m dating someone.”

You felt wind brush past you and a crashing sound occurred from behind, startled you made eye contact. “I had half the mind to throw that piece of shit at your head.” His angered expression taking you aback, you must’ve forgotten Joon is the extremely jealous type. “Go get it, bring it back to me.” Slowly turning trying not to take your eye off of him, you retrieved the shattered phone. Harshly he took it from your hands. Tapping before turning it to you, “block him.” You flinched at his sudden hand movement. “Don’t flinch away from me, block the bastard, before I’m the one bending you over the copy machine.”

Jung Hoseok...

Slouching in the pool chair you observed as the other women splashed and paddled around like children. You don’t usually go to these types of things, and neither does Hoseok. But this time it was important, he was here solely to kiss butt with his new business partners.

He practically forced you to put on your swimsuit, fully planning on walking you around like a show dog for the evening. Crossing your legs you brought your straw to your lips. You’d planned on getting in the pool, but apparently you weren’t good enough for the other wives...or affairs in the pool at the moment.So to spare the embarrassment you decided to watch.

“Enjoying yourself?” Hoseok came behind you patting your head softly. “Hm I guess.” You placed your drink away. “Hobi I’m ready to go. home.” You pouted, his hand still on the chair he came to your side. “Home? We’ve just got here an hour ago.” Nodding at his true statement you turned to look at him. “Yeah...and now I’m ready to go home.” Rolling his eyes he squatted to your level. “C’mon baby, go make a friend in the pool, splash around yeah?”

“No, I’m tired.” He groaned putting his head on your shoulder. “Y/n, boo don’t be a brat, you wanna go inside, wanna find a bed for you?” “Hm will you stay with me?” He looked over his shoulder, “ah Bruce wants to talk cuts and coverage a bit more, I can show you to a ro-” “nooo hobi!”

Panicking he pinched you to lower your volume. The party in the pool ceased and all eyes were on you. You’d learned how to cheat the system,It usually didn’t take much pouting from you to get your way. “c’mon get up.” He pulled me roughly by my forearm almost making you trip over your feet. He pulled you into the spacious home, up the stairs and into a hall. “Here let’s go in this room hobi.” You could tell by the look on his face hobi didn’t come to rest.

“Do you get off on making me look like an idiot?” He spoke close to your face. “Hey, I told you i wanted-” he covered your mouth with his large hand. “I don’t give a fuck what you want, now shut up and get in that fucking room.” Meekly you followed his order. “I’m sorry hobi.” “Ah I said shut up!” You stood in the middle of the decretive room, “down.” Down on your knees before him he looked down disgusted.

“Now make my cock hard so I can teach you how to use your loud ass mouth correctly.” Hesitantly you leaned forward, he groaned loudly reaching for you making you backwards in response. “Quickly, and don’t you dare run away.” He grabbed your hair, now under his full control.

Kim Taehyung...

“Mm how does it feel being my right hand lady?”

“Well seems like I’m on top of you right now.”

“I love how smart you are baby.”

Taehyung had recently promoted you to his secretary, now you can’t help but be in his office all day. Dreamily he looked up into your eyes as you straddled him. “Round 2 huh?” He huffed making you giggle, “let’s not indulge Taetae.” You nipped at the shell of his ear, he gripped your ass tightly. “What else do you have to do, I distributed your work along all the employees you’re here to have fun!”

“Well the phone has been ringing like crazy let me answer at least one call!” You climbed off, your skirt still scrunched around your waist your panties to the side. “Ahhh the baby wants to feel like a big woman go on answer.” Smiling with accomplishment, you picked up the phone. “Hello this is y/n y/l/n, answering for Kim Taehyung.” It was actually another secretary on the line you took notes as he spoke. You felt so responsible you knew Taehyung would be proud, you looked over to see his approval only to find him not there.

Confused you held conversation, until you felt something warm glide along your thigh making you Yelp. “Ah I’m sorry, Mr Lee, repeat that?” In fear you looked under your desk, mischievously Taehyung winked at you. You went back to the conversation, as he lapped your heat. You were already so sensitive you wouldn’t last a minute more of this. “Stop it please Tae.” You hissed pressing the phone to your chest. He did the opposite, penetrating you with his longest digit. Curling his finger and assaulting your clit, if the lewd sound of slurping could be heard by you you knew it could be heard over the phone. Quickly you hung up, very upset you squeezed his head between your thighs.

“Cumming baby?” “No, quitting.” He pulled back confused “what?” You fixed you panties, pulling your skirt back over yourself. “I asked you to let me do one thing, and still you couldn’t keep off of me.” He crawled from under your desk. “Who was on the phone?” He asked dryly, you looked over your notes. “Mr Lee.” “Oh, he calls everyday for his boss they have nothing to offer so we have nothing to give.” You nodded making a note to avoid his calls. “Anything else?” He shook his head going back to his desk with a deep sigh.

Oh good grief, you huffed falling back into your chair, you’ve gotten upset with him and now he’s going to mope around. “TaeTae, please understand I do actually want to work, we’ve talked about this.” You spun your chair to look at him, he looked at you inquisitively. “Maybe you should go back downstairs, I don’t want to distract you.” You could feel your eyes stretching. “Tae! No it’s not that serious.” “No no, your cubicle is still empty, the largest one.” You crossed your arms. “You’ll get the raise you just won’t be here honey...maybe I’ll offer the position to Sana.” He turned from you to go in his computer. “No, I’m not going.” “Bye Y/n see you tonight.” He mumbled nonchalantly.

“No Taehyung.” He gave a grim chuckle. “Stop being hard headed, go fetch Sana for me will you....love you.” “No kim Taehyung, this is MY job!” The phone rung and you picked it up, “hello this is-” He came pulling the phone from you slamming it to hang it up you flinched harshly. “Y/L/N, I won’t ask you agin, get out or do what I promoted you here to do.” He looked into your eyes devilishly. You complied removing your skirt, playtime was over, you sadly knew your place. “Perfect girl.”

Park Jimin...

“I’ll beat your ass come here. Now.” You stood in his office doorway, fear quaking over you. “Y/n...now.” he leaned on his desk looking you up and down. You walked in to what seemed to be your demise. “The door, close it, lock it.” “Mr Park please.” He got up walking behind you and slamming the door before walking in front of you again. “Where the fuck! Were you.” You looked at him, head fogged unsure of an answer. “I-I Mr Park...I’ve been here at work since 3 AM actually...before you got here.” He laughed lightly.

“I didn’t want your schedule, I know your damn schedule, the meeting today’s meeting.” You toyed with your fingers, “OH...oh Mr Park I forgot you needed me I’m sorry h-how did it go?” “We fucking lost the deal, the information you dug up is what we needed and you were somewhere in LaLa land.” He dug his hands into his hair. “C‘mere.” He sat on the leather couch that decorated his office. “Please Mr Park, I’ll stay late and I’ll beg for another meeting date.” He shook his head “no, c’mere.” You stood still pleading with your eyes. “I’ll drag you by your cheap blow out, bring your ass here.” You shuffled to him, he pulled your dress bending you over his knee.

He pulled your dress up, “Mr Park what will your wife say?” You began to tear up, why would he choose you to give his violent love to. “Ha, she’ll say “fuck me harder” later tonight why?” You shook your head refusing to respond. “Look into the mirror.” You obliged. He pulled his hand up just stoping before it hit you causing you to shudder a jerk violently. “ Do you fear me y/n?” You nodded almost sobbing. “I’ve trained you well...head up...be a big girl.”

Jeon Jungkook...

The whole building was draped in a gloomy mood as Jungkook stalked about looking for something to nitpick. Earlier today you and Jungkook had a falling out on the way to work about how close you were getting with one of your male coworkers. And said coworker that just happened to be your cubicle neighbor. He rounded your area multiple times, chastising said coworker, sending him on errands and putting him down again and again.

Seeing how it was affecting the newbie, you finally turned to Jungkook. “Mr Jeon, can I speak to you.” “No.” He turned quickly before going back to chastise the frightened employee. “Slip up again, and I’ll make sure you’re looking at a deep fryer for the rest of your life Kang.” He whispered just loud enough for you to catch it.

“Mr Jeon please, for a minute.” He clears his throat leaving your area. Your face grew hotter by the minute, you got up going to talk to your distraught friend. “Hey, listen he’s all bark and no bite what do you need help with?” You smiled warmly remembering how it felt to be new in a place like this.

“Well every time I answer the phone and start the question pro-” a heavy hand lands on his and your shoulder “who said this was a social hour y/l/n” a sigh came from deep inside of you. “ Damn it Kookie-” “who? Excuse me?” His eyes widening. “Jungkook- Jeon- I’m sorry...I’m sorry Mr Jeon.” He eyed the two of you “hm...kang get to work, y/l/n you too.” He began to walk away. “Y/n I’ll send you an email, I really need help on this.”

“Email her I dare you.” You spun in your chair “Mr jeon please! He’ll never get better if I don’t.” He rolled his eyes taking off his glasses, “what was he trained for if he can’t use the damn computer?” Everyone in the office was watching the dispute. “Pft I was trained on any of this! I had you holding my hand the whole way why can’t he?” He started waking the other way, his face glowing crimson. “Get in my office, now y/n.” You sat turning to your work. “No Jeon. I won’t.” “Y/n you can come to my office, or clock out and go home for the rest of the damn month.” All eyes on you like this was some cheesy tv drama, you got up following him.

Once in the safety of his four walls you stood hands on your hips “why kookie, why you being a Jackass?” He turned to face you, anger evident. Swiftly he pulled you by your shirt “talk to me like that outside of this office space the way you did today one more time, and you’ll be begging me to fire you. Yeah?” You nodded earning a open palm slap to your cheek, “yeah? Open your slutty mouth like you did for Kang, am I understood?” “Yeah kookie.” Another slap, your cheek began to burn. “Yes Mr Jeon.” He lifted his hand making you flinch in his grip. “Lovely girl, now get out there, and leave Kang alone or else.”

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timextoxhajima · 4 years ago

Text

Love Me A Little Less: Chapter 1 - Frankenstein

LOVE ME A LITTLE LESS CHAPTER MASTERLIST

Member: (3rd person pov) arranged marriage au with Lee Juyeon

Genre: angsty wangsty

Taglist: @hyunvelies

“We buried you.”

The feast before Kim Jang Won is absolutely stunning. Lemon meringue tarts, strawberry smoothies (with actual strawberry bits in them), pancakes and freshly buttered croissants, a gorgeous transparent glass pot with the golden shade of chamomile tea and a beautiful tray of puffs and eclairs.

It would be even more stunning if it wasn’t her view every morning though.

“Hey, um, don’t we have like alternating menus or something for breakfast? I feel like I’m eating the same thing every morning now, it’s kinda getting tacky.”

“Miss Kim, I hope you know you’re the one who decides what the menu is. You chose this set like a week ago and you told us not to change it for the next two weeks.”

Jang Won sneers at her butler, arguably the only person on the property to has the guts to talk to her in a way that could get her fired.

“You’re lucky I can trust you.”

Ro Il Jung purses his lips into a thin white line, scratching his cheek with one of those knuckly, wrinkly-skin-covered fingers of his. “You seem to forget that I wanted to retire last year, Miss Kim.”

Jang Won huffs childishly, sticking her tongue out, now a gentle, thick shade of smoothie on her tongue. “I’ll let you retire when I find someone else I can trust, Mr Ro. It’s just too bad I don’t have anybody in mind right now.”

Mr Ro shakes his head like a parent disapproving of his child, but a house guard pulling the heavy doors of the entrance over accompanied by some urgent yelling tears his attention away from the owner of the mansion.

Jang Won looks up from her butter and croissant, at Mr Ro, who excuses himself before heading for the entrance hall.

“Sir,” He begins before he can even note the visitor. “If you could--”

“Mr Ro!”

Jang Won hears her butler’s words fade to a complete silent, only listening to their visitor talk. But it’s strange, because it’s a familiar voice...

Mr Ro cannot believe the sight before his eyes.

“I can’t believe you’re still working here. It’s so great to see you again!” Then the visitor pulls Mr Ro into a hug, harshly patting the space between his shoulder blades.

The lady of the house cannot take it anymore, not when she can’t eavesdrop on the conversation occurring in her own halls. So she gets up from the table, heels clacking against the marble floor as she heads into the entrance hall.

“Alright now, who’s got the guts to stop me in the middle of my French breakfast this morning?”

Mr Ro turns in silent shock, eyes wide and glaring while Jang Won processes the face of the visitor.

The man hadn’t looked like he aged a day since he was--

“I’m sorry,” Jang Won scoffs, waving her beautifully done manicured fingernails in the air. “If this is some impractical joke, please do tell because my brain is just about to explode from the sight right now. Y’know,” She gestures to her head and mimics the sound of a bomb.

“Jang Won...” The visitor strides towards her, arms wide. But she raises a palm and shifts backwards, a cautious half-smile mixed with a frown plastered to her flawless skin.

“Not another step, nuh-uh,” Waving a finger before his nose, she shakes her head. “There is no way in Hell you can be standing here.”

“Oh, but I am, love,” Once a warm voice that sang her to sleep, Jang Won cannot decide if the tears in her eyes are welling from relief or fear. “I’m home.”

“No... no!” She slaps away his outstretched hands. “We... we buried you...”

“And I can only imagine what you’re feeling right now, my child, but... we have more important things to worry about.”

Mr Ro’s face is contorted with a mess of confusion and anxiety and he watches the first tears fall down Jang Won’s cheeks.

“What...? ‘More important’-- No, how is anything more important than you... standing here?” The last word comes out like a final breath, at a volume just enough for him to hear.

“I came bearing news, Jang Won. I-- Well...” He rubs the back of his head, eyes tilted down to his feet. “Because I’ve return to the board of administration now... part of the company now comes back to... me--”

What?

“And... you cannot inherit any part of the company unless you are married to someone from a family from the same administration board.”

Jang Won’s tears solidify into fumes of anger as the thought runs through her neurons. The middle aged man begins to panic when he can read the rage in her eyes, her fists now clenched and the markings of her rings probably embedded into the flesh of her palm. Her knuckles begin to turn white as does his face, ever so slightly.

“Now, now, love. I know what you’re thinking and we can sit down and have a chat about this--”

“‘Sit down and have a chat’?” Jang Won scoffs miserably, lower jaw hanging agape. “Why don’t we sit down and let me ask you whiCH SCIENTIST MADE YOU FRANKENSTEIN?!”

The hallways of the mansion echo the shouts, the sound waves bouncing back and forth between the marble walls mostly adorn with gorgeous, one-in-a-million paintings.

“That’s not important now, hun. I just need you to understand that without this marriage, you will lose the house and everything you own from HERA & ARTEMIS.”

“I built HERA & ARTEMIS after you were fucking bURIED! Who are you to tell me that you will inherit it ownership and I can’t just because I’m not married?!”

“These were instructions from The Board, Jang Won. I had absolutely no say over this--”

“BULLSHIT! If you have the power to take ownership of HERA & ARTEMIS just because you climbed out of your own grave, why don’t you have the power to help m-- Oh, oh...” Jang Won frowns in disdain, disgust welling her lungs and her gut.

“What?” His eyes widen and shoulders shrug.

“You came back just to tell me this... because you want HERA & ARTEMIS for yourself.”

“What-- No--”

"You... low-life... scumbag!" The sharp shatter of the glass cabinet behind him echoes through the entrance hall of the mansion. One of the palm-sized statues sitting on the table in the middle of the circular hall lands amongst the billion pieces of glass on the marble floor.

"You give me my freedom and now you tell me I have to get married?!" The final word is literally pushed through her teeth when she cannot clench her jaws even harder. The tremors vibrating up her fist and into her arm and then her entire body makes her look like a volcano ready to erupt, so if these people haven't gotten enough, they have yet to see what's in store.

"Just who the HELL do you think you are?!" Grabbing another one of those tiny statues, Jang Won throws it into the other glass door of the cabinet.

"Jang Won, will you calm down?!"

"Don't you DARE tell me to calm down! You waltz back into this house after GOD knows how long- Hell, we BURIED you!"

"There was a mistake of the body identification and frankly, I expected a warmer welcome from you!"

"HA! A ‘warmer welcome’?! What do you want me to do? Set the entire house on fire? Do you want me to? Because I will!" The man has his brows furrowed back, palms out stretched to her. The mansion staff have all gathered a safe distance around the two of them, Mr Ro and some of those closer to Jang Won trying their best to get to her and calm her nerves but there is just absolutely no way she isn’t going to hurl a brick at her father.

"I can't BELIEVE you're standing there as if you own this place," The muscles around Jang Won’s nose twitches as the frown sinks deeper into her forehead. "I want you to hear this mighty well and crystal clear. You may have been the one who gave me life, but you will never EVER be my dad.”

The huffs that are billowing out Jang Won’s nostrils are starting to hurt.

"There is not a single cent you're stepping on - or touching, for that matter - that belongs to you. The only reason why I haven't fucking put a bullet through your right eye is because I'd go to jail and every thing I've worked for would be thrown out the window.”

“Now, now, love, we can sit down and be civilized about this—”

“Fuck you,” The anger surges through her, and she picks up one more palm-sized statue from the blue resin table. The heavy bronze weight leaves her fingers, and before it can hit the slightly aged man, someone reaches out and catches it instead.

“What the HELL are you doing?!” The scream echoes through the hall of the mansion. Younghoon sighs heavily, hand retreating back to his side as he hands the statue to one of the house staff.

“You have no right to get involved in this—”

“Jang Won, let’s go,” Younghoon strides across the space and grabs her arm, back-facing his father and trying to pull her in the opposite direction. “We can talk about this in your office.”

“How are you thinking straight?! We BURIED him! We watched his coffin get lowered into—”

“I know! I was there!” His eyes flutter shut in frustration, shoulders raising as he sucks in a deep breath, flaring his nostrils. “There’s no point destroying your own property over this. We can carry out some investigations, figure out what really happened, then we’ll work from there.”

The grip on her arm tightens when her instincts try to writhe away from him, but obviously, he doesn’t relent.

“Don’t do it. It’s not worth your time, or mine.”

He stares down at Jang Won, but it doesn’t scare her, not when she has a ghost standing right in the middle of some shattered mess. Not one cut on him.

Younghoon grimly shuts the door as Jang Won stomps over to her office desk and rests her palms flat against the Agar Wood surface. With a sharp, swift feat, she swipes nearly all the documents off the furniture. But when she misses the empty glass (that would usually be filled with some kind of alcohol or soda), she doesn't hesitate to pick it off the desk and propel it into the marble by the television mounted to the wall.

The shatter startles Younghoon as he whips around, eyes darting frantically between her and the mess she’s made.

"Jang Won!"

"Should I be concerned you don't seem one bit bothered that a dead man is standing in our living room - MY living room?"

"That dead man is our father."

"No, that dead man WAS our father before he ditched us! How are you not- UGH!"

Frustrated, furious and absolutely exasperate, she plops down into one of the two sofas sitting in the middle of the office, feet almost tempted to kick the frosted glass table in the middle but she holds herself back. Younghoon manages to get a few house staff into the room, who hurriedly help clear the glass and return the documents to the table. Fingers pressed into her temples, Jang Won could only imagine the gratification she could receive have if she had the chance to ram her first into someone's face.

Younghoon waits for the staff to leave, then stands by the sofa opposite her, one hand on his hip and the other running through his hair. The late morning sun reflects off his soft, dark brown locks when he absent-mindedly rubs the back of his head and he proceeds to unbutton his blazer to allow him a seat. The leather squeaks under his weight before he leans his elbows on his knees, knuckles resting under his lips and chin.

"Please tell me you're actually thinking and not just trying to look pretty. You're in my house now, not some studio photoshoot."

"I'm thinking about where to put a whole person for you."

"Don't bother, he's moved half his things into the first guestroom. He's probably holding a conductor's wand right now and asking the staff to help him with the second half."

"Have you called the funeral services?"

"And say what? 'Hey sir, have you... perhaps mis-screwed a coffin about 2 years back and now we might have a problem of a zombie'?"

"I'm just saying someone might've paid someone to replace the bodies!" Younghoon frowns, eyes stuck to the rug under his feet. "We don't know how it happened but someone MUST know, right?"

"I think your best bet is the asshole living down the hall now."

"He's not gonna budge, we both know that."

"Well, Sherlock Holmes, thanks for pointing out the obvious."

"I'm just trying to help. You need to stop your nonsensical whining and use your brain like how you used it to get all this money."

Jang Won picks up a pillow and hurls it into Younghoon. “You’re lucky you still stick around, else I’d have the both of you screwed over.”

Younghoon catches the pillow, holding it to his side. “The day I stop looking out for you is the day I die, alright? So you can be rest assured I’ll--”

“Miss Kim!” Mr Ro’s voice calls out from outside the office.

“What is it, Mr Ro?” Younghoon turns and returns the call, head tilted towards the door. It croaks open, and Mr Ro’s eyes are tired, wary as he sticks his head in.

“Your father just left and... and I think you should see the news.” Mr Ro pushes past the heavy door and reaches for the remote sitting on the frosted glass. The television screen mounted above the fire place flickers on, and there it was, her father’s face.

“The Board has just confirmed the ownership of HERA & ARTEMIS will thus forth be returned to Kim Jo-Pil, father of Kim Jang Won, the current owner. Investigations as to Kim Jo-Pil’s supposed death two years ago are still ongoing.”

“I’m gonna kill him.”

“You can’t.”

“Watch me.”

“We’ll be-- Wha-- The Board’s just come in with some new information! Kim JO-Pil has announced a marriage between Kim Jang Won, current owner of HERA & ARTEMIS and Lee Juyeon, the next-in-line to becoming the next Director of Apple, South Korea.”

Younghoon’s eyeballs are about to bludgeon out of his eye sockets. “Jang Won... I know what you’re thinking... But don’t--”

“I’M GONNA FUCKING KILL HIM!”

#lee juyeon #the boyz lee juyeon #lee juyeon fanfic #lee juyeon scenarios #the boyz fanfic #the boyz scenarios #tbz juyeon #tbz lee juyeon #juyeon #the boyz juyeon #juyeon fanfic #juyeon scenarios #love me a little less

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forgottennamesgame · 3 years ago

Note

Not the anon who asked but... Why not both 👀

The anon who sent the initial ask confirmed it was about the FN ROs but I deleted by mistake the ask (yeah, i know, i'm like that some days).

I'll answer here for both FN and SD and hope the other anon sees it😁

So...awful bedhair!

Theo/Thea - They'd tease the MC about it, telling them sth like "do be careful when you go outside love, we don't want the birds to mistake your hair for their nest". But they think the MC is so very cute and they enjoy seeing them like that in the morning.

Selim/Aylin - They have a fit of cute agression, feeling the need to punch a wall so they don't hug the MC to death.

Ilzrus - They patiently try to comb the MC's hair, although they're not the best at it. Well, even if they don't manage to completely tame the hair, they insist that the MC is beautiful and if someone dares to say otherwise, they'll stomp on them.

And for Swallow the Dark:

August - They wake up, look at the MC, snort a laugh and pull them back to bed because they "can't step outside the house like that anyways", so why not sleep a little longer? Also, if the MC promises to make them coffee, they'll fix it for them before leaving for the office.

Darius/Daria - They'll pretend the MC's hair looks perfectly normal, averting their eyes every time someone makes a remark about it (once they arrive at the office) so no one sees how funny they find it. They might have to make more trips to the restroom or to the rooftop of the office building to let out the laughter.

Abel - His own hair is always messy so what's the MC talking about? "Wear it like you wanted it to be exactly like that and it becomes a statement. Now come on, we have things to do, dress up!"

Constance - They have a ton of hair products because her own hair is high maintenance so no worries. Worst case scenario, put a scarf on it. She also has some of those. Although she will remember how the MC looked like and she'll sketch them afterwards because she thought they looked incredibly sweet, like a little hedgehog.

#thank youuu #ask answered #hope you see it anon!#oh man #i understand so well the pain of bad hair in the morning

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anxiouslyfred · 3 years ago

Text

The Protector

for @dukexietyweek‘s day 1 prompt of Myths/Supernatural

Summary: Remus’s town has a mythical protector, genuinely just spoken about as the Protector, regardless of what the police have tried to say about it. He’s set on meeting them and getting to know them, even if that means latching on to people vulnerable to assault in some vain attempt to help.

Warnings: vague fight descriptions, financial abuse, sexual innuendos and references, assault mentions, all combated though

/\/\

Remus had always been fascinated by their towns protector. Everyone knew about them, and most of the town believed they were nothing more than a myth, a superstition told to keep their town a pleasant place to live. Why else would their authorities claim there was a vigilante attacking people in their homes or in large groups only for witnesses and victims to claim the people attacked were abusers or involved in gang violence?

No, most of the town thought it was probably just various young men stepping in to help and being protected when the police wanted a target for anything aimed towards one of their own. Remus kept on questioning that though.

He knew all the popular stories, and reports dating back centuries. One night he'd even broken into the station to look through the cases relating to the protector and all of them were the same. There would be an officer involved in assault or abuse, and the description given barely varied, going back hundreds of years: the height, the hair colour, the build. Whomever this Protector was, they were impossibly old and very much against any form of abuse, including abuse of power.

It took a while for Remus to ask about them at his job in the elderly care home, uncertain who there might accept his questions, but eventually he did.

“The Protector has been around as long as my family has lived here. Far longer than that station has existed, since we were one of the founding families here. I've got diaries from my many times great grandmother describing when they became a protector actually.” Thomas explained, leaning back in his chair with a smile. “Of course then they didn't focus so much on abuse or even what happened around the entire settlement. Grandma always wrote about another intervention happening, chasing away the latest possible apprentice to their Warlock.”

“Warlocks?” Remus loved the idea, but magic was only a thing of fairytales. If it ever existed he was sure that science had killed it off entirely by now.

Thomas chuckled. “Oh yes, magic was still known about at that time. There was a village warlock who took apprentices fairly regularly since they seemed to disappear or die off during experiments a lot. Our Protector was the last apprentice to stay with him for more than a day. After the announcement that he'd vanished and the Warlock was seeking a new apprentice, so the diaries say, they returned, not to work for the warlock, but to stop anybody else from doing so.”

His thoughts boggled at the idea, coming up with reason after reason that their Protector might chase people away from working with the Warlock, from a jealous rejected love, to dangerous experiments being forced on the people around the warlock. Nothing that an old diary was likely to include so he swapped focus. “But why fight abuse now? Or for all this time even? If they live so long surely they could travel, explore, find the most amazing creatures and live with them abandoning all humanity.”

“That's a question better asked to them, Care Duke. Come on, I'm late for my pills.” Thomas shook himself out of the story, clapping his hands and glancing towards the clock.

Remus moved automatically through the help Thomas needed before carrying on with his rounds, his mind still focused on the Protector and how he could possibly meet this elusive person.

/RV\

The first time Remus met the Protector it wasn't deliberate.

He and his brother had always stood out at school. They were too extravagant, too emotional to quietly pass under the radar. Roman had used it to excel in theatre, and become a well known name, while Remus used it to rebel.

Roman had recently come out publically and while most of the media had been supportive, Remus could imagine the hatred that would spew forth from the bigots in their perfect little houses. That was why he'd decided to walk his brother home from the theatre, adding a little extra protection for the only person in his family that listened to his ideas.

A bat coming out of nowhere was only just dodged as they passed an alley, but before either of them could fight back it was like the shadows were attacking for them. A dark fist from behind the bin hitting the hand holding the bat enough it was dropped.

“Holy darkness, Ro-ro it's the Protector! Where are you shadow face? Can I see you? Know you? Touch all your sensitive places and worship you?” Remus was rambling as he watched more limbs for and then dissolve, knocking out their attackers as low growling noises came from further back.

Roman had instead backed up against the wall, scrambling for his bag where one of the prop weapons had been given to him. “I – I don't need protecting. I can defend myself. They just – just caught me off guard, see. I'm all armed and ready!”

“Armed and ready to fight nothing.” A cloaked figure finally stepped forwards as the shadow limbs finished dissipating. “Aside from being an actor with no experience in a real fight where you need to make contact with the other person. What exactly did you think a prop in your bag would do?”

“Give me a chance to meet our towns Protector!” Remus insisted, bouncing over to the stranger and leering over their outfit. “Gotta say the outfit is kinda 2 centuries ago. Want me to get you some new clothes? Come find you here once I've got them?”

The Protector frowned at him, “You are far to excited to have just gotten attacked, and I don't need pity. These clothes serve me well and I can sew anything else I need.”

Remus couldn't say anything more as the Protector faded back into the shadows until there was no person with them anymore.

“So that happened. Want to teach me hand to hand or something tomorrow? Get out of the family home?” Roman blinked, tugging Remus onwards when he made no move to carry on.

/rv\

Remus planned his second meeting with the Protector, deciding to at least ask their name and hoping the hoodie he'd found in a similar colour to their cloak would be accepted. He didn't care if nothing could happen with this centuries old person, he wanted to know them better, possibly even stop them being so lonely that rejecting everyone was their instant response.

Remembering how to find or meet the Protector was another thing. It meant Remus had to be a victim in a loud enough way they'd show up, or at the very least be outnumbered while trying to help a victim of some form of abuse.

“Hey shooting stars. You're all looking completely edible tonight and I'm on patrol to locate and take out any cannibals. Can I stick with you for when they get lured in?” Remus knew the line was ridiculous and definitely sounded like a pick up line, but he'd seen them in the club and had already heard a few of the idiots in town making predatory comments.

“Are you literally asking us to be your wing man, or are you just wanting an excuse to get into a fight?” Valerie countered, glancing at him, and probably mistaking him for Roman, given she was friends with his brother.

Remus went with it whichever. “Excuse to fight, plus Roman'll throw a bitch fit if you get harassed at all. I suggested he starts a patrol with that prop sword of his but apparently no matter how sharpened I make it it just isn't up to protecting standards yet, the poncy coward.”

The group of girls just nodded then, letting him stay close but otherwise ignoring his inclusion in their group. Remus didn't mind though. He was more focused on watching out for anyone that seemed likely to try attacking them, and being on guard against it happening. He was going to at least help the Protector this time.

And he did manage to.

It was only Remus and 2 of the girls from the club when some overly entitled block made a grab for one of them and Remus met the reaching hands with his fist. There were four other men with them and while Remus swept his leg in a low kick to knock them to the ground he glimpsed the shadows coming out too.

Just like when he'd been with Roman the fight after that was quickly finished. Shadows were impossible for the men to fight but the girls had already started running to their separate homes. Remus would bet that there'd be thank you cards or something dropped off at the family home for him soon and didn't look forward to the questions that would bring.

“Don't usually have repeat damsel's. Then again, if you want me to actually save you rather than the people you hang out with let me know.” The Protector comments, walking out from the darkest shadows to stand beside Remus.

“Do I get to control you if I know your name? Also should I wear a dress next time if I'm your Damsel? And I thought this hoodie would be softer than that cloak. Well if you still care about that after however long you've been alive.” Remus had stumbled across the name thing when trying to read up on myths outside of the ones just for his town and had been curious about it ever since.

The Protector snorted, shaking their head. “It's Virgil and I could ask you the same thing since you keep asking questions instead of making introductions. If you wanna wear a dress then go ahead. Would suggest something short if you're going to defend yourself in a fight though.” They didn't make a move to take the hoodie until Remus basically forced it into their hands.

“Remus, He/him pronouns thank you very much. Are you just wanting a better view of my merchandise by getting me into short skirts?” He laughed, dodging back from Virgil when they tried to give the hoodie back immediately. “Nope, got that one for you. The one for me got a little stained when remembering just how how your mysterious disappear into the shadows thing was last time we met. So do you just fight with those shadow hands or do you use them more pleasurably too?”

Virgil glanced down at the hoodie, frowning from the second sentence Remus had said. “Pronouns are a thing people talk about now? Beyond just his or hers type things?”

“Yep, kinda wondering where you fall on the gender spectrum too, but I don't care as long as you completely wreck me, whether with your actual hands or those shadow limbs of yours.” Remus quipped, giving voice to the thoughts he'd swallow down usually. It wasn't worth paying extra rent if his family heard he'd made some comment or other and he just wanted out of that thrice damned family home.

No reply came and Remus couldn't even remember Virgil vanishing into his shadows although he'd been looking at the Protector the entire time they spoke.

/vr\

Of course after that meeting Remus was still looking for other people he could help protect, walk home with or just be around in the hopes of seeing Virgil again. Perhaps it had been something of an obsession with a town myth when he first started wanting to meet The Protector, but now he just wanted to know this gorgeous, quick thinking person again, and since they never seemed to be among the people that meant becoming a target for abuse or helping others that might be.

He had gotten a few short skirts to wear too, and would make sure to change into them in back alley's so nothing would get said at home. Spirits knew his parents would just claim that if he had money to spend of frivolous things like skirts then he should be putting more into the family income.

“Jay-Jay! I keep telling you, if ya want to learn how to fight, I'm more than willing to teach you!” Remus had jumped over to one of the college kids that had moved to their town for the semester. He'd practically adopted this kid by now, or would have if not for their refusal.

“And I keep telling you that this is all part of my plan. They don't realise just how much I can get added to their records and by the time they do, it'll be too late and their lives will be ruined forever.” Janus hissed back, shrugging his backpack further up, and glancing back towards the school.

There had always been a bullying issue between the kids that grew up in the town and stayed there for college and the ones that decided to come here from a few towns nearby. Remus didn't think it was something Virgil would try to combat but he was going to try this one on his own.

Or he would have if he'd seen the sports team coming out of school that evening and grabbing his arms just as he was trying to convince Janus to learn how to fight one more time.

“Looks like we've got-” The words were cut off as shadows yanked the one who'd caught Remus sharply back into the wall.

That move had been enough to get Remus throwing punches too, focusing on the guy that had tried to grab Janus although the student had dodged away somehow without turning to see who was close.

“Protector?” Startled whispers fled through the sports team before they were backing away from Remus and warily eyeing the shadows nearby. At least they knew the stories of the town enough to recognise when the towns myth came to meet them.

Janus however was still frowning after them. “What or who the hell is this Protector?” He hissed after a second, only to jump when he saw Virgil upon turning around.

“The Towns Protector. It's kind of a myth come true that everyone knows but most people don't believe in. Looks like you just got some more people to believe in you now, Shadow-Man!” Remus crowed, throwing himself onto Virgil now they'd properly appeared.

“Sure...” Janus took a few steps backwards. “Well then I guess I have even more reason to refuse your fighting lessons so I'm just going to head home and you two can do whatever the fuck this is.”

Remus is cackling as the kid speed walks away, looking for all the world like he was completely relaxed if not for the speed of his steps.

“I'm just going to stick with he/him pronouns for now. It's been too many centuries for me to adjust them, besides it's not like anyone other than you is going to use them.” Virgil murmurs, arms tentatively around Remus where he'd been caught.

“Your choice, Wall Creeper. What do you think of the skirt anyway?” He steps away to show off the outfit just for Virgil, enjoying how his gaze drags over him.

Virgil's smirk grows slowly. “Definitely scandalous if you were in the year I became this, but I'm guessing a bit more acceptable now.”

“Or a flashing light to any transphobes to scream 'fight me! I dare you!'” Remus loved that idea. He would stick it to any asshole trying to judge people on who they were.

There was another snort in response. “So you really do just like making yourself a target for abuse. I did wonder.”

“Maybe I'm just trying to get your attention. Gorgeous man, just waiting to play hero and knock out the abusers in my town. How's a guy to resist?” Remus couldn't stop the flirtatious comments. He wanted and lusted for this living myth.

This time Virgil seemed willing to return the flirting though, raising his eyebrow.

Remus didn't realise until he was back in the family home that his Protector had actually stayed talking to him for a lot longer than he'd usually remained.

/rv\

The Protector intervened with abuse and assaults around the town Remus lived in and had done ever since the last warlock in the town died. Everyone who grew up there new the stories and claimed to love or respect all their neighbours because of it.

Remus had never considered anything about his families views of money and earnings would be enough to have Virgil visit his home and after the incident with Janus he was finding the other people around town acted as if he himself was the Protector.

A couple of the shop keepers had actually asked how the title got passed down since they couldn't believe any of Remus's relatives might have filled the role. They'd insisted on giving him a discount and a few people had directed thank you letters or gifts to him over something Virgil had done elsewhere in the town.

That might have been why his genetic donors were now demanding more money and explanations over just what he was doing in town so often.

They had been at least. Now shadow arms had reached from the walls to cover their mouths and wrap around their throats while Remus just looked around, frantically.

“VIRGIL!” The cry was automatic. It looked like his family were going to be suffocated and he knew the only person in town with shadow limbs was his Protector.

No matter what Remus thought of his genetic donors he didn't want their deaths.

“Yes Woodland Ivy? Is there something more you need?” Virgil stepped into the room, sneering at the people he was holding restrained.

“Loving the bondage possibilities of your shadow limbs, but kind of freaked out that you want to use them on these guys.” He stated, recognising the fear in their eyes as well as that Virgil was more annoyed, probably even angry than he'd ever been when they'd encountered each other before.

The words did nothing to get them released though, in fact they were dragged back into the wall by the hands at their throats, now making almost pleading noises.

Virgil looked over them, scowling. “Financial abuse is one that I stopped encountering at least 2 generations ago around here. Women stopped letting men control the bank accounts, even insisted on having their own and suddenly it was so much less likely to happen. Do you recognise what you've been living through, Remus?”

Remus had known his and Roman's family life wasn't good. He'd done everything he could to keep their genetic donors unaware that Roman actually earned money acting until he was already out of the house, but he had never heard that it could be a form of abuse. Looking to Virgil now he knew there was only one person in the room he actually trusted to look after his best interests and it wasn't the people who had raised him.

“Some out dated form of abuse that's far more boring than the stories of castle dungeons I've read about? I always thought it would be that stretchy thing someone went for, claiming I'm too small to have so much to say, well at least if we're looking at ancient torture techniques.” He rambled, wondering if there was a distraction that would get Virgil to let them go.

Letters being brought through from the rest of the house made that doubtful though, especially when Remus realised they were all bank statements, both his and the back currently restrained.

“When I thought there might be a reason Remus kept putting himself in harms way I never expected to find this. In fact I thought perhaps he's just got a family of adrenaline seekers or something. It's plausible after meeting Roman at least.” Virgil was muttering, but any move Remus's parents made had his shadows tightening, or more coming out to hold them even more securely. His attention was definitely not on the statements.

The Protector had never been known to kill in all the stories, reports and rumours about him. People only ever said the Protector would teach abusers fear and get the abused to safety if possible. Remus knew in that moment this wasn't the Protector but just Virgil, the man he'd found through his title and fallen for as they got to know each other. He couldn't predict or use the wild thoughts in his mind to help out now.

“Can I come with you then?” He blurted out. It was the only thing that might get the limbs to stop suffocating family he tried to distance himself from, almost as much as the family home they were all stood in.

Virgil froze at the suggestion, before throwing all but one of the statements away to wrap an arm over Remus's shoulders. “That as blunt as I've heard you be about wanting me around. You want to live with me and date me, Remus or was that all teasing.”

“I want everything you're willing to share with me, especially the dirty, the wild, and a vivid exploration of the pleasure these shadow limbs could bring.” Remus leant into it, revelling when the scared looks momentarily turned disgusted. He could finally show something of himself to these bastards without worrying about being left penniless for the month.

Virgil only gave him a quick kiss before turning back to the people before them. “Since Remus has made that decision then, my concern is what to do with you. Are you going to try and carry this on, bother Roman with claims of poverty if I let you go?” He growled out.

The pair were shaking their heads frantically and probably would have done more if they could move at all.

“Good, because we are staying in touch with him, and we will find out. Now, looking at how much you each earn, how much Remus has been putting into this account and the amount that remains in it, you owe him a hell of a lot of money. By the end of the week you'll see to it that the number written at the bottom of this statement is transferred into Remus's account, or you'll be seeing me again.” Virgil's grin was dark, his voice was low and Remus was shivering at it.

He knew he should be more focused on just how much he was about to get and the financial freedom suddenly coming to him, but was far more interested in the sexual restraints and commands his Protector might soon be giving him. It was a far more interesting thing to think about.

#dukexiety #dukexietyweek2021 #remus sanders #virgil sanders #character thomas #cw financial abuse #vague fight scenes #cw sex mentions #shadow powers virgil #Janus Sanders #roman sanders #cw assault mentions

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rogueonestan · 4 years ago

Text

"i’m sorry, am i talking too much?”

pairing: din djarin (the mandalorian) x reader

word count: 10k (whoopies)

synopsis: the four times you open up to the Mandalorian and the one time he does. (day 7 for mandoctober - razor crest)

a/n: i’ve been working on this piece slowly over the past 6 or so weeks and i’m so excited to finally share it! this piece was inspired by these two asks by @dindjarindiaries and thank you so much ro for listening me babble and stress about this. i’m very proud of this piece and i’m so excited to finally share it.

masterlist

The first time you opened up to the Mandalorian was when you were both en route to your next bounty.

“Where’s our next bounty?”

“The Recopia System.”

Groaning slightly, the Mandalorian turns around in his seat, tilting his helmet at you, “have you been there before?”

Hesitating, you reply, “I’ve had some back luck there.” You could feel his stare intensifying underneath the helmet, so you continue, “the last time I was there, it was for my first undercover covert mission for the Rebellion- Rebel Intelligence.”

Looking up, you see the Mandalorian has given you his undivided attention, “the last time I was there was for a mission; it was during my Rebellion days. One of our most important assets got captured during a mission, and Intelligence told us the Imps were brutally torturing them at the ISO-L8 station. So, they tasked me with going to Recopia, retrieving them out of their prison cell, and returning back to base undetected. Luck would not be on my side that day. Almost anything bad that could happen, happened.

I was able to gain clearance for my ship and land onto their space station. Once I landed, a few Imp officers approached my ship, demanding to inspect my ship. Two out of the three officers were called for duty elsewhere and luckily, I was able to knock out the remaining officer so I could borrow his uniform as my disguise.

Once I changed into my disguise, I commed an update to my superiors and waited for an update. They, unfortunately, didn’t have much intel to give me since the prisoner I was rescuing was being heavily supervised.

During my scouting of the prison, I was able to gain access to where they were. When I was figuring out where I needed to go next, a few lower ranked Imperial officers would approach me, asking me questions, but I had no idea how to respond. I was panicking during the moment; my mind went blank. I just made up some kriffing excuse and continued on with my search.

I found the cell where my target was, luckily I had no other interruptions from any other Imperial officers, and I was able to enter the cell. I saw how brutally tortured they were; they had blood and bruises all over their body. They had black eyes, swollen cheeks, were restrained tightly against a torture chair. Just my luck, they were unconscious, so my plan of pretending to transfer them to a ‘different cell’ was thrown out the window.” You say using air quotes with your fingers, “quickly, I used my comlink to update my superiors once again. I knew the risk of the transmission being tampered with, and of course, the Imps were beginning to suspect there was something suspicious happening. I knew the longer I was at the prison, the higher chance I was risking of getting caught.”

“Did you?” You hear Mando suddenly ask.

You nod your head, “when I was assigned this mission, I was considered to be a pretty good spy; not the best, but I was very good at my job. I made so many rookie mistakes that day: I kept comming to my superiors, almost blowing my cover, almost getting caught multiple times throughout the entire mission.”

“If you knew contacting them was a bad idea, why did you do it?”

“It was my first rescue mission,” you say shrugging your shoulders, “I was trained for missions like these but my nerves got the best of me. If I focused on the task at hand rather than focusing on almost getting caught, things could’ve gone much smoother. I panicked multiple times, like comming in multiple times, and almost jeopardized the entire mission. I was young and trying to prove myself.”

Mando just nods, so you continue, “when I was able to get them out of the chair, I had to come up with a plan of getting him back to my ship undetected. He was so brutally tortured to the point where he was unconscious and I began panicking because I couldn’t think of a way to get him out of there undetected. I needed a plan fast.

Once I was on the verge of coming up with a plan, my luck had run out: I had this gnawing feeling in my gut that the Imps were on their way back, so I had no choice but to put the spy back in the chair and pretend I was ‘torturing’ the guy.

A few moments after I had done that, one Imperial officer and two stormtroopers entered the cell and the next thing that happened still confuses me to this day. I don’t know how to explain it. I just remember having an argument with the officer: I kept saying of how I’ll take over this ‘torment,’ so they can leave, but he kept saying he was specifically tasked with breaking the prisoner. I don’t know how I managed to convince him, but I did this trick that sometimes works?” You say with furrowed brows, confusion laced in your voice, “I waved my hand in front of the officer and told him to leave, and he did. I was able to knock out the two troopers fairly quickly with no problem. I don’t understand what happened but somehow the Force was on my side.”

“The Force?” You hear Mando ask. You nod your head at him in response, “what is that? What do you mean?”

“It’s something my mother told me about when I was a kid. She always told me the Force surrounds every living thing and that it’s an ally. I don’t know what it exactly is, but my mother always told me to ‘trust in the Force.’” You explain.

“You really think it’s the reason you were able to escape?”

You shrug your shoulders, “it’s the only explanation I can think of.” Mando doesn’t respond, but you can somehow feel the confusion radiating from him. You wish you could somehow explain it more but your understanding of the Force is limited.

You continue, “After they left and I knocked out the two troopers, I disguised the spy in one of the troopers’ armor. I don’t know if it was the Force, or luck, or what, but I somehow managed to sneak the disguised spy throughout the prison without being undetected. The closer I got to the hanger, this overwhelming feeling of dread just kept consuming me. I’m not sure how to explain it, but I just knew that another upcoming fight was going to happen.

By the time I got to the hanger’s doors, there were a few troopers guarding the doors along with two Imperial officers. They questioned me and I feared my cover was going to be blown. I knew they were beginning to suspect my presence because of conversations I overheard in the halls, but I didn’t know to what extent. They asked me if I saw any suspicious behavior, just general questions, but then they asked me specifically about my ‘superiors.’ I slipped, I made a tiny mistake, and they figured out I was the one responsible for the rescue mission. I tried doing the same tactic I used in the torment room, but it didn’t work for some reason.

Thinking quickly, I knew this would be a messy mistake, but I came up with the brilliant plan of shooting my way out of this situation. So I did. I shot the troopers that were blocking the hanger door, but as I was doing so, one of the officers took the opportunity to shoot me in the leg; which took me to the ground. I shot him in the leg then in the chest. The last remaining officer in the room towered over my body and pointed his blaster at my head. I swore I was going to die at that moment, along with the spy. I feared a simple rescue mission was the one that got me killed. I closed my eyes in anticipation, but the shot never came. I opened my eyes and saw the officer was dead on the ground. I looked behind me and my partner had a blaster in their hand before they fell to the ground.

The fight was over. I was able to take them back to my ship. Word got around about the attack in the hanger and multiple blaster shots kept hitting the side of my ship as I was preparing it for takeoff. My ship was surrounded by troopers. I knew the longer I was there, the chances of getting caught would increase.

When we were in hyperspace, I began to relax but then remembered about my partner. I took off the trooper’s armor and was able to get a better glance at their bruises. Their entire face, their body, was just covered in bruises, cuts, scrapes, and just bloody. I’ve never seen anything like that. I knew I had to patch them up, to an extent. My ship wasn’t exactly equipped to heal a man who’s at death’s door. Because of the training I got from my mother, I was able to do so. I did what I could and finally relaxed until we got back.

He was treated properly at the medbay when we got back to base. And I completed my first out of several rescue missions I would be assigned during the war.”

Taking a deep breath, you slump against your seat and close your eyes momentarily. Opening your eyes, you see Mando still looking at you but with his helmet tilted, “do you always talk this much?” “What do you mean?”

He sighs, “well, you have been talking for the past ten minutes.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Am I talking too much?”

“It’s a little annoying.”

You grunt in pure frustration. “I hate it when people call me that!” You clench your fists very tightly, your teeth grinding, trying to refrain from lashing out at your partner out of pure frustration, “I was called that all the time as a child. Do not call me that.”

After being partners for a few weeks now, the Mandalorian has never seen this kind of reaction from you before, and it’s certainly one he doesn’t want to see again.

The second time you opened up to your Mandalorian partner was when you were heading back to Nevarro to return a quarry.

You and your Mandalorian partner are currently hunting on the forest planet of Murninkam for your next target. It is currently day two of your expedition and the pair of you have been walking around in a forest for hours now. The deeper you got in the forest, the deeper the pit in your stomach grew. Deep down, you had this feeling of something feeling off. You weren’t sure why, but you just knew this bounty would be more of the difficult ones you’ve been assigned since joining the Mandalorian’s crew.

Your suspicions only grew as you traveled deeper into the forest. Silence surrounds you besides from the occasional chirps and snarls from the local creatures. Stopping dead in your tracks, you could feel like something, someone is watching you. With your left hand hovering over your blaster, you look around you before picking up your pace to catch up with your partner, “where exactly are we heading?”

“To the Kajiin Swamp,” Mando replies as he takes the tracking fob off of his belt. The tracking fob has maintained its same rhythm all day and you’re beginning to lose hope of finding your quarry before nightfall. The sun on Murninkam will be setting in a matter of hours and you were hoping this bounty wouldn’t be a long one; most of your bounties with the Mandalorian typically only last a few days at most.

“Are you sure we’re at least going the right way? There hasn’t been any sign of our target and we’ve been walking around for hours.”

“We’ve been partners for months and you still don’t trust me?”

“I didn’t say that- it’s just, wouldn’t something have changed by now?” And with that, the tracking fob begins to beep rapidly. You immediately take the staff off from your shoulders and secure the satchel you’re currently donning while the Mandalorian’s hand hovers over his blaster.

You hear a rustling noise from the trees above you and the next thing you know, a male Pantoran jumps down, landing directly behind you. Before you have a moment to react, the Pantoran kicks you down to the ground hard. Supporting yourself with one knee, you see your partner has already taken off his pulse rifle from his shoulder and hits the target in the gut with the butt of his weapon. Doubling over in pain, you grab the staff that lays on the ground next to you, knocking the Pantoran off of his feet. Landing down on the ground next to you, the Pantoran attempts to get up but is unable to because of the weight the Mandalorian is putting on his chest.

“We can bring you in warm or we can bring you in cold.” The quarry immediately raises his hands in surrender. The Mandalorian reaches behind him and tosses a pair of stuncuffs, “cuff yourself.”

The walk back to the Crest takes two days, luckily it back didn’t take as long as it did while trying to find your target. Using his vambrace to open the Crest’s hatch, Mando carbo-freezes your quarry while you ascend to the cockpit. Placing your staff and satchel on the ground next to you, you sit in your usual spot behind the pilot seat. Lifting your feet on the console, you close your eyes and try to relax as best as you can.

Your feet suddenly are knocked off the console and land harshly on the ground with a big THUD. You reopen your eyes and find your partner hovering over you, “no feet on the console.”

“Fine.” Putting your hands up in surrender, “won’t happen again, partner.” You can hear him audibly sigh loudly before taking his seat and starting up the ship, launching into hyperspace.

Picking up your bag from the ground, you rummage through its contents very loudly, picking up random trinkets from local markets and dropping them on the floor. You can feel the annoyance rubbing off from your partner. Looking up, you can see Mando’s fists tightly clench around the Crest’s steering handles even though the Crest is already in hyperspace. You go back to your previous task and try to find what you’re looking for: a piece of fruit you bought at the marketplace on Nevarro shortly before you were tasked with a new quarry. Biting into the sweet fruit, you begin to enjoy your snack momentarily until the Mandalorian turns around in his seat and stares at you. You can feel the tension radiating from his stare, “yes?” You ask with your mouth full.

“Do you have to be so loud?”

“I’m eating.” He continues to stare at you. Deciding to push his buttons further, you put your feet back on the console with a sly smirk on your face. He immediately shoves your feet off, even with more force than the first time.

“Stop it.” He aggressively snarls at you.

You mumble an insult underneath your breath. The pair of you continue to sit in silence until you start tapping on your thighs very loudly, the sound being the only one present in the entire Crest.

“Would you be quiet?”

“You seem a bit tense, would you like to hear a story?”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“You’re being so annoying today.”

Immediately grabbing one of the small trinkets off from the floor, you chuck it at his helmet without thinking, “you know I hate it when people call me that!”

The Mandalorian just stares at you with a shocked expression on his face underneath his visor, still trying to process what you just did.

Putting your hands over your mouth once you realized what you just did, you mutter, “oh my stars” repeatedly underneath your breath and begin rocking in your seat. You can feel your heart race as you try to think of something to say, to apologize, but nothing comes out. You look down at your hands in your lap in shame.

“Copaani mirshmure’cye, vod?” He retorts with a teasing tone.

“What?” Not knowing what he asked you in the language of his people, a strong expression of confusion is plastered on your face. Then you realize, he’s ridiculing you.

While focusing on your laced hands in your crisscrossed lap, you look up at your partner, scoffing out of disbelief, “wait. Are- are you making fun of me?” The Mandalorian tilts his helmet slightly and you can feel the anxiety of the situation slowly dissipating off from your shoulders. You hear a low rumble coming from underneath his helmet, he’s laughing, you’ve never been able to make him laugh before. It’s a sound you’re determined to hear more often. You feel yourself beginning to let loose and laugh along with him. You can’t believe he’s actually teasing you. As long as you’ve known him, Mando’s been nothing but serious; you’ve never seen this side of him. It’s a side you hope you can see more often, getting to know the man underneath the helmet, not just Mando.

You let your hands fall onto your knees as you lay back in relaxation. Mando leans forward in his seat, grabbing one of your hands, giving it a light squeeze, “you’re a very good partner but you can be a di’kut at times.”

“Di’kut? What does that mean?”

“I’ll tell you another time.” He squeezes your hand one more time before he releases his grip and begins to turn around in his chair.

His sentence repeats multiple times in your head; it finally donned on you what he said, “wait, did you just call me an idiot?” You ask while laughing. Mando turns back around and nods, “you’re telling me! At least you didn’t almost accidentally join a cult once.”

“You what? What the kriff are you talking about?”

“I was on Jedha once and I found out about the multiple religions they had that surrounded the Force. One of their religions, the Order of the Esoteric Pulsar, took their beliefs to the extreme and they tried to lure me because they ‘sensed something powerful’ within me, or something.” You try to gain a sense of Mando’s reaction but the never-changing expression of his helmet does you no good, but somehow you can just feel his astoundment, “they told me about the Force and how I had it, then they were speaking about this deity, the Esoteric Pulsar, and they believed a physical embodiment of their deity would appear to them one day, believing I was this thing.” You scoff out of disbelief, still not being able to wrap your head around a group of people believing you were some sort of god. Chuckling, you continue, “I was around this group for a short amount of time just to see what they believed, but I never could figure it out. They kept worshipping me and telling me that I was the person who would bring galaxy-wide recognition to their purpose, so I left because I got weirded out.”

The Mandalorian opens his mouth various times to respond to your anecdote, but he can’t think of anything. He’s truly at a loss for words.

You pick up your piece of fruit that you neglected earlier and continue to snack on it while staring out at the hyperspace. After a moment of silence, you ponder another question, “am I talking too much?”

Your partner mutters di’kut underneath his breath as he gets up from the pilot seat and heads to the lower level of the Crest, leaving you to finish your fruit in peace.

The third time you opened up to the Mandalorian was when you were assessing a wound of his.

With the Mandalorian’s left arm draped over your shoulder, you’re currently trying to get the pair of you back to the Crest as soon as possible. While trying to locate your next quarry, the two of you were ambushed by fellow hunters. Luckily, you weren’t that hurt from the fight, but your partner took most of the damage. The quarry was able to escape when Mando got a blaster shot on his right side in between his beskar. Today was not your day.

You have to get back to the ship. You have to help him. You have to make sure that he lives. You can’t imagine your life without him.

Seeing the Crest in the distance, you continue of struggling with his heavy weight against your side. You finally get back to the Crest and you’re able to finally tend to his wound. Helping him onto the cot, you retrieve the medkit that’s nearby, getting to work while kneeling next to his bedside.

You inspect the injured area and discover the wound wasn’t as deep as you initially thought, mainly just superficial. While inspecting the wound, you discover that you’ll need more access to the area, possibly even taking off his cuirass. Grabbing the hem of his shirt, you ask for permission to roll it up. Nodding once, he grants you permission. You roll up his shirt a few times, stopping just underneath his ribcage, and you discover that you will have to take off his cuirass to fully patch his wound. Lightly grazing your fingertips on his right pauldron, you ask him if he wants his armor to be taken off. He nods. Slowly, one by one, you take off his armor. First, his pauldrons, second, his cuisses, then finally, his vambraces, placing them all in a neat pile on the floor.

Grabbing the edges of his cuirass, you ask permission again just above a whisper, “may I?” Mando responds by grabbing the edges on the top while you grab the bottom, and together, you both take off the biggest piece of his armor. You grab the cuirass gently and add it to the pile with the rest of his armor.

Before you begin mending his wound, you roll up the hem of his undershirt even more, stopping at the top of his ribcage. The mere sight of his bare skin makes your heart race. Your fingertips lightly graze around the injured area. Taking a deep breath, you take out the supplies you need to fix his wound. While doing so, Mando notices how this is all second nature to you, like you could do this in your sleep. Grabbing the bacta spray, you offer a free hand for him to hold onto, “this may sting a little bit.” Mando takes you up on your offer and intertwines his gloved fingers with yours. Trying to be as gentle as you possibly can, you give his hand a soft squeeze as you spray the infected area. Squeezing your hand with a strong force, he grunts out of pain. “Stop complaining, it’s only a blaster shot.” You saying with a sly smirk on your face. You can hear him scoff lightly from underneath his helmet.

Giving him a sympathetic look, you increase your grip on his hand, “I’m sorry.” Without releasing your grip, you grab the bacta patch out of the medkit, and with the softest touch, you apply the patch over the injured area. After finishing tending to his wound, you unroll his shirt so that his injury is no longer exposed.

While still holding onto the Mandalorian’s hand, you bring your free hand and begin to trace random patterns on the backside of his hand. Silence fills the tender moment; nothing needs to be said.

“Where did you learn how to heal wounds?”

“My mother taught me when I was a child- she was the local healer in our village on my homeworld of Rellia.”

“What was it like?”

You smile at Mando’s curiosity. Ever since the playful banter you both shared after leaving the Murninkam system, your partner has been more curious about your past, “it was very captivating. The villagers always gathered around in town for the market where it was a bit desert-y, I guess? The small town didn’t have much to offer except for the local vendors, but the outside of town is where the true beauty was at. On the outskirts of town, there were grasslands and plains where a lot of the villagers lived. There were a few villagers who lived in the town but mostly everyone lived outside of the town.

My childhood home was on one of the many grasslands that Rellia had to offer. My parents lived in a small cottage where just the three of us lived. We had a few trees surrounding our home, so we spent a lot of time outside rather than huddled indoors. We didn’t have many neighbors, but the village kids would either hang out in town or at each other’s homes. It’s also where I fell in love for the first time.” You smile fondly at the memory of your first love, Shay. You feel a sudden tight squeeze of your hand when you mention the word love, “have you been ever been in love?” You ask, looking up at Mando.

“I’ve never had a riduur, no.” You hum in response, “what was their name?”

“Shay.” You say with the softest smile, “they were my best friend growing up- we were inseparable. They were one of the first friends I ever made and they were the one who encouraged me to enlist to the Academy with them when we were together.” You look at your enclasped hands and continue, “I was sixteen when I fell in love for the first time. Shay and I would constantly spend time together. While my parents were working in town, we would keep each other company until nightfall.

My family was very close to Shay’s, who became a second family to me. Our families would have dinner over at each other’s houses while we were growing up, which is how Shay and I became so close. As children, we would play in our backyards, and as we got older, we would just hang out in our rooms. I remember our first kiss together being anything but perfect: our noses kept clashing together, our teeth kept knocking into each other, we kept giggling like schoolchildren. It seemed childish, but at the moment, I didn’t care. I had everything I ever wanted; that’s when I felt at peace.

The longer we were together, the more we attached we got. Normally, we would have dinner together then we would be separated for the night, but Shay and I had this strong impulsive feeling of needing to see each other, so we would sneak out just to see each other. We would lay on a nearby hill and stargaze at the night sky. We would hold hands, talk, laugh, just enjoying the moment. With how loud we were, I’m surprised none of our parents ever caught us.” You reminisce with the soft smile on your face growing bigger as you continue on with your story. Mando has always been able to read you very well after knowing you for the past year, but he can’t decide what expression was on your face. Admiration? Longing? Yearning?

“Do you ever miss it?”

“What?” You were so lost in your thoughts, reminiscing on your past love, that Mando’s question caught you completely off guard. You didn’t expect him to be so curious about your old life.

“Do you ever miss your old life? Your family? Shay?”

“Sometimes.” The small smile on your face grows because of his curiosity, “I used to think I was going to have the same simple life my mother had: working at the local marketplace, having a family with the love of my life. I miss experiencing the simple moments I savored with my family, with the peaceful life they had on Rellia, the stargazing I shared with Shay. But I can’t imagine my life anywhere else but here.” You motion to your surroundings.

“What changed your mind?”

“The night before my seventeenth birthday. That night, both of our families had our usual dinner before Shay’s family went back to their home for the night. While I was getting ready for the night, Shay was at my bedroom window, telling me to meet at our spot in an hour.

When I met up with them later that night, they had a picnic set up for the two of us: they had blankets, a picnic basket, some candles; it was very ethereal.

I remember us just stargazing in silence like we usually would when Shay mentioned a surprise they got for me. They reached into the basket and pulled out two applications to the Academy.

‘I can’t imagine what my life would be without you and I need you there beside me.’ Shay had recently learned that their parents didn’t want them to spend the rest of their life in our village, but to go out and see the galaxy, and they thought the best way to do so was to gain some experience in the military. My parents had a different approach: they didn’t want to force anything upon me. My mother told me that the choice was up to me, whether it was applying to the Academy that year or staying at home and having a simple life. I wanted, hoped, Shay’s love for me would overpower their decision to fight in the war. I just wanted to live out a simple life with the love of my life without having to experience any violence. But I guess we can’t always get what we want.” With your heart beginning to feel heavy, a thousand thoughts roam your brain of everything you’ve experienced with your first love, all the pain you’ve had to endure. Lost in your thoughts, you feel a soft squeeze of your hand. Glancing at your partner, you see him nod, urging you to go on.

Taking in a deep breath, you continue, “when Shay showed me the applications, something deep in me just knew this was going to change our relationship for the worst. I was being pessimistic internally, but I couldn’t help but also feel pure joy at the thought of continuing of having Shay in my life. So I said yes. I would’ve done anything for them, even if it meant enlisting into a war.

I didn’t tell my parents about my decision immediately; I wanted to tell them unless it was absolutely necessary. When I received the news about my acceptance, I told my mom and she was devastated that it took me this long to tell her about the decision of my future. She told me to pack my things and to never return, kicking me out of her life forever.

When we got accepted into the Academy, I knew this would change things forever. Something bad was on the horizon, I just knew it. There, I learned my basic combat skills, got my piloting training, my espionage training. The missions I was assigned made me who I am today, all thanks to Shay.

The longer we were a part of the Rebellion, the more we drifted apart. Shay didn’t receive the same training as I did, they became a pilot while I became a spy. We still saw each other, we would still stargaze off base like how we used to back home, but not as often. While I was away on missions, all I would do was worry for Shay. We would both be away on missions for months at a time, but I suppose seeing them after a few months would be better than never seeing them again if I stayed back home.

We served together for the Rebels for a few years and Shay became notorious for taking unnecessary risks during missions, and that really took a toll on our relationship. I took the necessary risks to ensure I would make it back home, but they didn’t do the same thing. They would take risks, get scolded by their superiors, and continue their recklessness behavior. Ultimately, it was the cause to drive me further away from them.

One night, they volunteered for another dangerous mission- a suicide mission. I was in the same debriefing room, giving my report of my latest mission when the suggestion of the mission came up, and Shay offered their assistance without hesitation. I knew if they left for that mission, they would never come back.

At one point, I would’ve supported them through anything, but, um,” You falter by taking in a sharp, shuddering breath. Mando sees the sudden change in your demeanor, and wraps both of his hands with yours, squeezing it in support. Smiling softly in gratitude, you continue, “but Shay needed to do this, not for the Rebellion or the cause, but for themselves. I didn’t want to live a life without them in it, but they left me no choice. They were willing to die for the Rebellion and we both knew the possibility of this happening when we both discussed joining the cause back home. It was stupid of me to think that that we would both survive this war without any repercussions. The more Shay experienced, the more it changed them.

I know it’s selfish to admit, but I didn’t want anything to change. I was naive, desperately clinging onto the last shrink of hope I had. There was this weird feeling deep down in my gut where I just knew this would change everything for the worse, the same feeling I had where Shay offered to apply to the Academy together. I remember the last conversation we had so clearly: we were arguing about the small possibility of us having a future together like we always planned.

“This isn’t just about you. It’s about what’s best for everyone, for the galaxy.”

“How can it when you’re leaving me? You’re throwing your entire life away!” You turn your back on your lover.

“I’m not leaving you-”

“You’re leaving for a suicide mission at first light!” You throw your hands in the air as you turn back around.

“Because I have no other choice! I’m doing this for us! I’m doing this for you, to protect you!” “How could you possibly protect me when you won’t even be here?!”

“It has to be done. I’m the best person for this mission, you know that.” Crossing their arms across their chest, leaving no room for discussion. As long as you’ve known Shay, as long as you loved them, they were always stubborn; something you always loved about them, but now are becoming to loathe it.

With warm tears threatening to spill down your face, you lower your head in defeat. When they are given an opportunity to fight, to protect those they love, you know there isn’t anything you can say to change their mind.

Walking towards you, Shay places both of their hands on the sides of your face, forcing you to look up at them, using their thumb to wipe away at the remaining tears, “you know I wouldn’t do anything to harm you, but this is something I need to do, for us.” They plead, “I love you with all of my heart. Nothing’s ever going to change that. We’ll see each other again, I believe that.”

“I know.”

With a few tears flowing down your cheeks and a bittersweet smile at your first love, you look up at your Mandalorian partner who releases his grip of your hand and uses a gloved thumb to wipe away at the spilling tears, just like Shay had that night.

Grounding yourself, you squeeze the Mandalorian’s hand once again, something that has become routine between the two of you, “the following day, they left for that mission and never returned. They were twenty-two. No one on base knows what happened to them. They don’t know if their ship had crashed, if they died, or what. That argument I had with them that night was the last time I ever saw them.”

Taking a free hand, you wipe away the tears that continue to fall down your face at the memory of your first love, “when Shay never returned back to me, I thought I would never find that feeling of home again, or fall in love. I loved them with all my heart. I would’ve done anything for them if they asked.

But it was for the best. If they never sacrificed themselves, I wouldn’t have the life I have now. I wouldn’t be able to travel all across the galaxy with the one person I care about most. I wouldn’t have you.” Smiling, you look back at the visor in the helmet, and you can feel him replicating your smile, “I thought the happiest, the luckiest, I would ever be was when I was on my home planet of Rellia, but it’s nothing compared to the life I have here with you.”

After a few moments of silence, you feel Mando squeezing your hand, “I’m sorry, am I talking too much?” You ask in a teasing tone.

“Never, cyare.” Your Mandalorian replies with only seriousness laced in his tone.

“Well,” you say as you begin standing up from your kneeled position beside the cot, “there you go, Mando,” patting his right thigh, you begin to loosen your grip on his hand only to have his grip tighten around your wrist.

“Stay.” His voice doesn’t reach an octave higher than a hushed whisper, “stay here with me, please.” You felt your heart soften at his plea.

“Of course.” You lay down next to him. With him by your side, you feel the tension in your shoulders finally drift away. You can finally relax as you rest your head against his uninjured shoulder. A moment of comfortable silence lingers in the air and at some point, your head rests against his chest. Listening to the steady beat of his heart, you finally find the semblance of peace you’ve been looking for since you lost the first love of your life.

When you wake up quietly the following morning, you can feel the deep rumble of Mando’s chest from underneath you. Feigning your true state, you keep your eyes closed and try to memorize everything you’re feeling in the moment, not wanting to ever forget this. Needing to feel this way again.

Gripping his hold around your shoulder, you feel him pull you even closer to his side, if that were even possible. You feel his fingers run through the strands of hair that have fallen on your shoulder during your slumber, “vor entye, cyare.”

After hearing the same term of endearment as last night, you lift your head rapidly from his chest, “cyare? You called me that last night, what does it mean?”

You can feel your partner’s entire body tense up when you question him. Gently, he places the hand that was on your shoulder to the back of your head, slowly bringing it back down, putting you back in your comfortable position once again. You can feel his heart racing as he thinks of a response.

“‘Beloved.’”

“Beloved? I’m your beloved?”

“Yes.” He begins to stroke your hair softly to ease his nerves.

Sighing contently, you squeeze his torso gently with the arm you have draped around him while you were sleeping, “cyare.” You repeat it again softly, liking the way it sounds on your tongue.

“Din.” He breaks the silence as you lift your head off of his chest for the second time and glance at his visor, furrowing your brows at the foreign word.

“What does that mean?”

“Din- My name is Din Djarin.”

With the biggest smile plastered on your face, you test out his name on your tongue and nod at him, settling back down in the comfort of the arms of your second love.

The fourth time you opened up to Din was while you were laying by his side one night.

Finishing up a tiring day of doing repairs on the Crest, you’re happy to finally get the chance to unwind in your shared bed with Din. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, you begin to take out your braids. You’re currently on a forest planet for your next bounty. You arrived late in the afternoon so you weren’t able to explore the marketplace, but you were able to take in your surroundings briefly when you worked on the exterior of the Crest; the area took your breath away. From the towering trees to the meadows to the chirping of birds; this planet reminded you of your home planet, your first home. You hope you can convince Din to explore the marketplace with you before you depart.

You’re so deep in thought that you don’t notice Din’s presence. Thinking of the similarities between this planet and your homeworld has made you reminiscent of your old life when you used to be so oblivious and naive, when you used to think family was only by blood.

A sudden hand on your shoulder tears you away from your thoughts. Dragging his hand from your shoulder down the length of your arm, Din intertwines your fingers together and gently tugs on it, “there’s something I want to show you.”

You let him guide you outside; you’re not sure where he’s taking you or why, but you’ve learned to never question him. You just admire how beautiful the meadows look at night, how beautiful

Din’s beskar looks with the moonlight reflecting off of it. A soft smile grazes your face when it takes you back to when Shay would drag you to your usual spot on your homeplanet to stargaze many cycles ago. Din brings you back to reality for the second time tonight when he abruptly stops; you’re about to ask him what’s going on when you take in the sight before you. A nearly inaudible gasp leaves your lips as you see multiple blankets laid out on the grassy floor with the perfect view to look at the sky. A few tears begin to form in your eyes when you realize why he dragged you outside.

You can see Din’s hesitance by the way his thumb is nervously rubbing over your knuckles, when he looks down at the ground, and shuffles on his feet, “I just thought it looked so nice out tonight and you said that you miss the simpleness of your old life, so I just thought-”

You giggle at his sudden nervousness, “I love it, Din.”

“Really?” “What’s not to love?” You gesture to the beautiful view and the blankets beneath you. With a big smile on your face, you continue, “the trees, the moonlight, the view. It’s perfect, Din.”

“Are you sure? I can-”

Tugging on his hand just like he had done before, you sit down on top of the blankets, “it’s perfect.”

For a while, you two lay in silence beside the occasional distant noises of the native animals.

The heat radiating from Din’s clothed chest brings a sense of calm over your body. His steady heartbeat putting you at ease, a feeling you’ve only become familiar with since you two laid together for the first time. A gentle breeze lures your body into an even more relaxed state. The feeling of his bare hands running through your hair calms you, “I can’t believe you remembered something I said months ago.”

“Of course I did, cyare.”

“I just assumed you would’ve forgotten about it by now- since I’ve been known to be quite vexing.”

“What makes you say that?”

“It’s what my mother used to tell me whenever I would get really excited about something. We used to have dinner together, just the three of us, every night. And whenever I would tell my parents about my day or something that I got passionate about, my mother would tell me how annoying I could be at times.” Distracting yourself by playing the hem of his shirt, you continue, “I was very close with my family when I was young, but the relationship I had with my mom made it difficult sometimes.”

“What was she like?”

“She worked at our local village as a healer; she was very kind, warm, nurturing towards others. She’s one of the kindest people I’ve met in the entire galaxy.” You smile fondly at the memory of your mother, “she’s the one that taught me a lot of basic skills before I left for the Academy at seventeen. She taught me how to cook, how to do my hair, tend to basic wounds. We didn’t always see eye-to-eye on everything, but I know she will always love me.”

“You’re referring to when she kicked you out.”

“Yeah.” Slightly lifting your head off of his chest to look at his visor, an expression of surprise is written on your face, “do you remember everything I’ve told you?”

“Well, not everything. You do talk a lot.” You deadpan at him, “of course I do.” He states like it’s the most obvious thing in the entire galaxy, “I always look forward to hearing your stories, cyar’ika.”

“Really?” Heavy doubt was laced in your voice as you sat up completely and saw Din simply nod at you in response, “here I thought you only tolerated them like my mother.”

“Never, cyar’ika.” With the two of you now sitting up, you see the same hand that was running through your hair is now clenched in on a fist in his lap; the same response he had when you mentioned about falling in love for the first time, almost like he’s holding back his thoughts, “I am grateful that you trust me enough to talk about this.” He unclenches his fist and reaches over to squeeze your free hand.

His confession brings a smile to your face, “you know, I haven’t opened up to anyone this much ever since Shay.” You admit, your heart suddenly feeling heavy, “I don’t know how to explain it, but ever since we met, there’s been this instinct, this feeling, like it’s-”

“The Force?” Seeing the confused look he continued, “you said the same exact thing when you were talking about being on an Imperial prison station.” The look of confusion changes into bafflement. You told him that story many moons ago, maybe even a cycle ago. You don’t even remember half of the stories that you’ve told him; there’s been so many. You certainly don’t remember ever mentioning the Force, “you said that you believed the Force was on your side when you were able to successfully free the spy- something that your mother taught you when you were a child.” “Yeah, she did.” You replied, still baffled he remembers even the smallest of details you’ve mentioned in passing.

“What else did she teach you about the Force?”

“She told me that it surrounds every living thing, that it’s also an ally. As a child, I didn’t understand what that meant. She would tell me that no matter what happens in life, whether it’s good or bad, everything happens because the Force wills it. I don’t know how to explain it, but ever since she mentioned it to me as a kid, there’s been this feeling deep down. Like it’s pulling me towards something, or someone, that’s meant for me. I-I-I don’t know what that feeling is, but I do know that without it, I wouldn’t have met you.” You squeeze his hand that is already enclasped with yours.

“Do you think the Force brought us together?” “I do.” You nod at him, “there was gravitating feeling I felt when I first met Shay when we were young, and I had that same feeling when I met you.”

“You flatter me, ner kar’ta.” You don’t know what he called you in the tongue of his people, but you can tell it’s admiration by the soft tone of his voice.

“Kar’ta? What does that mean?”

“I’ll tell you someday.”

“Better than being called di’kut, I suppose.” The memory of him calling you that term for the first brings a few chuckles to your face, “I can’t believe you called me an idiot.” “You literally almost joined a Force-based cult without realizing it.”

“You may have a point there.” He tilts his helmet slightly to the side, “okay, you do.” Sighing deeply, you return to your previous position of laying down on the blankets, where Din joins you shortly where he pulls you against his side. One of his hands immediately goes back to combing through your hair while the other laces his fingers with yours. The odd combination of his calloused hands and soft palms shock you at first, but also it’s oddly him. It’s taken you several moons to see this softer side of your partner and it always brings you in awe whenever you learn a small detail of him. Like his hands, Din may seem rough on the outside, but on the inside, he has a softer side that surprised you at first, but is not unwelcomed.

Your line of sight begins to gravitate towards the stars above you. You don’t know what it is about them, but you’ve always found comfort in them; they would always remind you of home. Looking at them, many memories of your homeworld come to mind: of eating with your family, stargazing with the first love of your life, having bonfires with your friends. You’ve always found solace in the quietness of the outdoors.

The thoughts become so engrossed in your mind that you don’t notice Din’s lingering gaze on you. You can’t see it, but a look of high admiration emerges on his face. He was about to question what’s on your mind when you interrupt him, “nights like these always remind me of home.” You begin with a faint smile on your face, “my family used to have bonfires in our backyard when I was a kid and those were some of my happiest memories.” A specific memory makes you laugh, “like one time, my hair almost caught in the fire because we were roasting mallows and-”

“You almost burnt your hair?”

“Yeah.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It’s just very,” he motions towards you, “you.”

“Thank you. It scared my mother so she taught me how to braid my hair so it wouldn’t happen again. Ever since then, I’ve always feel closest to her whenever my hair is in a style she taught me.”

With your head on his chest, you can feel the low rumbling of his chest from him humming in response, “that’s nice.”

“It was.”

“Would you ever want to go back there? To Rellia?”

“No,” You shake your head against his chest, “I miss my family greatly, but I don’t think I could ever go back there. After my last conversation with her, my mother made it perfectly clear that she never wanted to see me again. When she kicked me out, she told me that I had lost the only family I would ever have-”

“Aliit ori’shya tal’din.”

“What?”

“‘Family is more than blood.’ Mandalorians believe that family can not only be related by blood, but by those who take you in as well.” That’s when you realize that you may have lost your first family the night you left for the Academy with the first love of your life, but you also have gained another when you began traveling around the galaxy with Din.

The one time Din opened up to you was moments after you shared details of your first home.

Silence lingers in the air. With the distant chirping of insects and the steady rhythm of Din’s heartbeat, it’s easy for you to begin drifting off. You’ve always found solace in the feeling of the steady rise and fall of his chest. Ever since you accidentally fell asleep by his side that night many moons ago, you’ve been able to finally feel resemblance of peace; the decisions from your past no longer haunt your dreams. Your dreams are now filled with how you see your future with Din to be like, and Din feels the same exact way. He’s always been used to doing things on his own, just trying to survive, but he knows now that he doesn’t have to. His dreams used to be plagued with all of the darkness he’s experienced from over the years. Waking up from night terrors became normal for him, but with you by his side, he’s finally found the feeling of home for the first time since being sworn into his Creed. He finally feels at peace.

You’re half asleep when you feel a rumbling from underneath you as a distant voice begins to call to you, almost like a siren call luring you to them, “cyare, you awake?” You begin to stir when you recognize the familiar calming sensation of his hands running through your hair.

“No.” Another rumble is felt from beneath you. He’s laughing.

“Funny.” Even in your sluggish state, his response brings a few chuckles out of you and a smile on your face, “are you happy here?” “Yes,” you reply with no hesitation, “as long as I’m with you, I’m happy.” You slightly take your head off of his chest to look into his visor, “what about you?”

“For the first time in a long time, yes.” You feel a sudden tight squeeze on your hand that’s enclasped with his; a tactic of his where he hesitates you’ve noticed. You squeeze his hand gently urging him to go on, “I was grateful the day the Mandalorians took me in, but I’ve always felt like something has always been missing, something like-”

“Home?”

“Yes, home.” Squeezing your hand, he continues, “I haven’t felt like I’ve had one since my first one was destroyed, by the Empire.” As your lover begins to describe the horrific day that has plagued his dreams since he was a boy, it takes everything in you not to cry into his tunic. From the descriptions of the battle droids shooting at innocent civilians to his parents attempting to shield their son from the terrorizing happening around them, you can finally see where the root of his hatred for the Empire, for droids has come from. The Empire took everything from him. Rather than living a simple life in his village, he was forced to survive the first out of many fights he would have to endure during his life, “and that’s when they came in.” His voice only held darkness, a spew of hatred for those that took his first family, but a lightness appeared; an admiration, “when I thought I was going to die, the Mandalorians came in and saved me, helped to protect of what remained. One of them saved me and took me in as a foundling.” Din’s voice continues to lighten with appreciation as he continues to reflect on those who rescued him on one of his darkest days. Without them, he wouldn’t be here next to your side.

As Din continues to talk about his upbringing as a foundling and later on swearing into the Creed, you realize that without the Empire, you two wouldn’t have found each other. As awful as it may sound, you’re grateful the galaxy has blessed you by giving you a second chance at finding your family, your home. All of the bad that has happened to both of you happened for a good reason. Even with all the darkness you’ve both endured from over the years, a lightness will begin to balance it out by your love for each other.

Something your mother told you when you were a child comes to mind, “there must be darkness to balance out the light.” And you truly believe that. Without all of the darkness from both of your pasts, Din losing his first family to the Empire and you losing your first love, you wouldn’t be where you are today. You never thought all of the pain and suffering would be worth it in the end.

“‘There must be darkness to balance out the light.’” You say out loud, mainly to yourself. You don’t even realize you spoke it until you hear your lover’s voice, his fingers suddenly stopping weaving their way through your hair.

“What was that, ner kar’ta?”

Your entire body freezes up in fear, with a tight grip around his torso as you realize what you’ve said, “It’s something my mother used to tell me back on Rellia. ‘There must be darkness to balance out the light.’” You hear Din hum in response as you continue, “She always told me that no matter how dark things got, a lightness will always shine through. Do you believe that?”

“I do. I wouldn’t have met you if the Mandalorians didn’t take me in.”

“And if I didn’t leave my homeworld.” You concluded, “do you ever wish it never happened? The attack on your village?”

You feel Din suddenly taking in a deep breath with his grip on your shoulder tightening, “Sometimes. But without it, my path towards you wouldn’t have begun.”

“You really believe our paths were meant to merge?”

“I do.” Your heart immediately softens at his confession. Ever since you left your homeworld to join the cause, you never thought you would find another home, your other half. But now, laying with Din and talking about all you’ve lost and gained from the war has made you feel something you haven’t felt in a long time: a true sense of belonging.

“Did the Mandalorians ever make you feel out of place because you were foundling?”

“Never. Family is everything to the Mandalorians; your bloodline doesn’t matter. Family are those you would do anything for, those who accept you for who you are, are your true family.”

“Like us?”

“Yes, like us.”

“’Family is more than blood.’” You repeat the same phrase Din spoke before. Hearing Din hum in agreement, you squeeze his hand for the final time as you let out a deep breath you didn’t know you were holding in. With the calming sensation of his fingers continually running through your hair and the weird mixture of rough skin and the softness from the pads of his exposed fingers, you finally let yourself lure into peace.

The repeating Mandalorian phrase in your mind lifts the weight that has been on your shoulders since you left your first home; you no longer have to worry about finding your place in the galaxy. You always feared you might have lost it permanently when you lost the first love of your life to the war, but now all of your worries quickly dissipate. You know that no matter the circumstances, you’ll be safe next to Din’s side. Whether it’s good or bad that’s brought into your lives, you know Din will do everything in his power to ensure your safety. Family means everything to the Mandalorians and he’ll be damned if someone will even try to take his second one away.

With another moment of silence luring over the two of you, your vision gravitates towards the stars that hover above you. The stars have always made you feel so small, so insignificant in the galaxy, but you know you’ll find your place in the galaxy someday with the second love of your life by your side. You don’t know what your future holds, how long it’ll be before you take in your last breath, but you do know you can conquer any darkness the Maker will give you.

Sleep is beginning to lure over your body. With the sensation of his hand combing through your hair and the thoughts of your future home with Din on your mind, you finally fall asleep in peace with a sense of belonging for the first time in a long time.

mando’a used:

copaani mirshmure’cye rod? - are you looking for a smack in the face, mate? (phrase)

di’kut - idiot

riduur - spouse

vor entye, cyare - thank you, beloved

cyar’ika - sweetheart

ner kar’ta - my heart

aliit ori-shya tal’din - family is more than blood (saying)

#the mandalorian #she's finally here!#ive been working on this for over 6 weeks and im finally happy she's released into the world #mandoctober #my writing #the mandalorian x reader #the mandalorian imagine #star wars #star wars imagine #din djarin x reader #din djarin imagine

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autumnslance · 4 years ago

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((Shadowbringers post-5.3. NSFW for naughty language and a scoundrel scandalizing his girlfriend.))

The ceremony was lengthy, the lists and speeches interminable, and Aeryn struggled to not doze off. She shifted in her seat as the sermon continued.

Thancred dropped his arm from the back of her chair to her shoulder. “Sleepy?” He pitched his voice so only she could hear.

“Mm-hm,” she replied, then whispered, “How’re you staying awake?”

She realized it had been a mistake to ask when a wicked grin curled up his lips. “Well,” he murmured. “I’ve been thinking about all the carnal things we’re going to do when we’re alone later.”

Her eyes widened and the heat bloomed on her cheeks. “Thancred,” she hissed, sitting up straighter.

“What?” he asked, amused. “Woke you up, didn’t it?”

“The worst,” Aeryn muttered fondly while he snickered.

She counted up to two minutes before he leaned close. “Now that I’m thinking about it, though…”

“Thought you already were?”

“Your jacket will have to come off.”

“It tends to when retiring for the night—”

“So I can put my hand on the back of your neck to hold you in place when I bend you over the nearest table.” The hand on her shoulder slid over until his fingertips were brushing the nape of her neck under her hair and collar.

Aeryn sucked in a breath, heat flaring once more...and not just in her face, godsdamn him. “This isn’t appropriate,” she whispered, eyes darting to check if anyone else had heard as she adjusted her seat again to cross her legs.

But the Warrior of Light and her companion were in the Fortemps box, high in the rear of the small auditorium, the other Scions having found reasons for their absence, including Alphinaud; not even their resident diplomat wanted to sit through another Ishgardian ceremony as a favor to their highborn friends. The heads of the elezens in the seats in front of them were barely visible, and heavy drapes separated the other noble boxes, forcing one to lean forward to glimpse other High House attendees—she had waved to the disgruntled-looking Stephanivien de Hailenarte earlier, presence no doubt forced as he always preferred to be in the Manufactory.

They were as alone as they could be in such a public venue.

“No, I suppose not,” Thancred agreed, sounding far too amused and looking completely at ease as he leaned back in his seat. His fingertips continued to tease her neck.

She counted another minute while the priest droned on before Thancred’s fingernails ever so gently pressed into her nape while he whispered, “Nor would it be appropriate to mention how much I wish to push up that skirt to sate my curiosity; full tights, or stockings? If the latter, are you wearing garters?”

“I’m not telling you,” she hissed, highly aware of his hold on her neck. She tried to pay attention to the priest once more, but her pulse was growing louder in her own ears and prevented any comprehension.

“I’m hoping for stockings,” Thancred mused. “Then they can stay on as I run my hand up your thighs until I find the hems of your smalls.”

Aeryn bit the inside of her cheek and tried not to squirm. She wasn’t giving him the satisfaction yet.

“I shall run my fingers where fabric meets skin,” he said, speaking in the rumbling purr she enjoyed him using in the bedroom which was not helping. His fingertips still massaged her neck. “Until I hear that delightful little whimper you make when about to beg of me.”

She was certain her face was on fire now.

He leaned close. “Only then, darling, will I test to see just how wet you’ve gotten,” Thancred’s whisper was a thunderous growl in her ear.

Aeryn’s boot hit the floor more heavily than she intended. She tried to look casual as she recrossed her legs and swallowed. She was not telling him how heated she was getting now.

“I haven’t decided yet,” he continued, lips brushing her earlobe. “If I’m going to remove your pantalettes entirely, or pull them just far enough aside to ravish you with my hand.”

She could practically feel his smirk as she gripped the armrests and tried to focus on the priest expounding at the podium. The man’s name escaped her at the moment.

Thancred made a long, thoughtful “hmm” noise; that was utterly unfair. “I suppose it won’t matter when I’m stroking you until you come for the first time for me.”

“We are in a church,” she hissed, trying to ignore the sudden throbbing between her thighs. While Aeryn didn’t believe in the gods anymore, she knew he did—if he had the shame to behave.

“And?” he asked. “Only men have such hangups, not the gods themselves. Especially if one’s studied them and what they get up to, and just why certain places are considered sacred.” The casual brushing of his fingertips over her neck still was not helping. “If I could I’d have you right here, as Thaliak did Azeyma in what became one of their holiest temples.”

“You are making that up,” she said, voice hoarse.

“I’ll show you the texts,” Thancred replied. “Perhaps after having you over the table. I think slowly to start with,” he added idly. “Just to feel you, tight and warm around me, savoring you over and over, building the pace and intensity until you come for me again.”

The auditorium burst into polite applause, startling her and drawing attention to the stage. The small squad of knights being honored for their deeds on the Gyr Abanian battlefields stepped up to receive their awards and promotions.

Aeryn took the opportunity to breathe, clapping as well. “Remind me not to ask how you handle boredom again,” she muttered, attempting to sound grumpy and knowing she was failing.

Thancred chuckled as he joined the polite applause, her neck regretfully free of his touch now. “Kept us awake through that sermon, didn’t it?”

“You’re just hoping I jump you as soon as we return to my room,” she accused in a whisper that didn’t sound as disgruntled as she wished.

“I would definitely count that as a bonus,” he replied. “I have to admit that I wonder what it would take to get you to ‘jump me’ before we reach privacy.”

“Not happening,” Aeryn retorted, attempting to refocus on the stage as the priests and officers went over each knight’s deeds.

“Are you sure?” Thancred asked, that dangerously amused tone returning. “You’re so quiet, it wouldn’t be difficult to find an alcove in a side hallway, perhaps an unused confessional, and press you against the wall, lifting your skirt and legs.” His hand now rested over hers upon the armrest, his thumb rubbing gentle circles on her wrist.

She tried to affect a scowl while continuing to watch the stage. Soon enough, Thancred rumbled a thoughtful “Hmm.” She watched him from the corner of her eyes.

“But if the goal is to get you to initiate, then perhaps you’d prefer to pull me into a dark side room or corner and make me lean on a wall while you get on your knees. I would muss that lovely hairstyle you’re wearing, though.”

Aeryn took a deep breath before she could respond. “I can hardly manage that properly in private, you’ll be sorely disappointed if I try in public. Which I won’t,” she hastily added, seeing his grin.

“Practice makes perfect, darling, and you have been improving,” he assured her, giving her hand a squeeze. “Besides, it would give me cause to reciprocate. That’s what you really enjoy, isn’t it? Me on my knees instead, scribing you poems directly until you’re shaking?”

The imagery was in her mind now, damn him, remembering keenly the last time he had spoken a poem between her legs; his tongue and fingers had left her on the edge of bliss for the better part of an hour before finally tipping her over.

“Of course, then I might actually have to cover your mouth, as you almost make noise when I extol your virtues upon your virtue.”

She eye-rolled at that. In part to cover the little thrill up her spine when he spoke of keeping her quiet. She might have to examine that in more detail later.

“I believe in that case I would bring you close, then wrap your legs ‘round my waist and fuck you against the wall until we’ve both had our pleasure.”

Aeryn bit her lip. His precise deployment of profanity had caused another heated surge low in her belly.

“Then we’ll retire to your room, and then I’ll bend you over the table for more.”

“Think so?” Thank goodness, she managed not to squeak.

“Assuming you’re amenable, of course,” he whispered, giving her hand another squeeze. The ceremony was nearly over.

“I suppose you’ll have to see. When we’re in private.”

He chuckled again, and she did her best to pretend to ignore him in favor of what was happening on stage.

The end of the service and the following hour mingling in the hall removed most of the scandalous conversation from her mind. Aeryn and Thancred wove through the crowd, greeting old friends, smiling and nodding as they were introduced to various people, and otherwise engaged with the upper crust of Ishgardian society until Aeryn’s head spun.

Some baronet was standing far too close and acting far too familiar; she was ready to snap when Thancred stepped in, offering an arm. “Beg pardon, but they expect us at Fortemps Manor,” he said smoothly, smiling at the baronet though his eyes glinted with warning.

Aeryn tucked her arm in Thancred’s. “Of course. You must excuse us, ser.” She barely gave a nod before Thancred pulled her away. “Thank you,” she murmured as they wound through the press of people, hardly thinned despite the hour.

“We should have left a quarter bell ago,” he replied. “You were close to overwhelmed.”

She gave his arm a squeeze. “Not so long as you’re around to keep me steady. Or rescue me from obnoxious nobles.”

“More rescuing the nobles from you,” he replied dryly, smiling as she laughed. He guided her down a narrow stairwell, away from the main hall and exit of the cathedral. “We should be able to leave through a side door to avoid the crowds. But first…” He veered, pulling Aeryn through a door into a small storage chamber, rows of robes hanging along the walls, shelves and boxes of other vestments filling most of the room. Only a narrow space next to the door was free of clutter, and that was where Aeryn’s back pressed as Thancred initiated a passionate kiss.

The earlier conversation flared to the forefront of her mind. Her face—and other parts of her, dammit—heated again while he held her close, the kiss long and deep and oh so promising.

Eventually they pulled but ilms apart, Thancred letting out a satisfied sigh as he leaned his forehead against hers. “I needed that.”

“You’re rather intent on this little fantasy of yours, aren’t you?” she murmured affectionately.

“I perhaps did work myself up, teasing you,” he responded, voice low. Beneath the amusement was a desire that made her breath catch.

Aeryn cleared her throat. “Well, that’s your own fault. We’d best be getting home…”

His hands ran up and down her arms. “You are so…Coerthan tonight.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” She arched her brows.

“Outwardly acting the prim and proper maid, while truly you want very much to be completely undone,” Thancred murmured in that delightful low bedroom voice as they kissed again, his hand on her hip pulling them together and now her heart was racing.

Aeryn pushed him away, holding a finger up as he affected a pout. “First, I am not, you’re being ridiculous—”

“Always, where you’re involved, but you really are—”

“And second,” she continued, a touch exasperated. “We are still in a church and need to return to the manor.” He gave her an expectant look. She sighed. “Once there, I may be persuaded to let you have your way with me.”

“May?” Thancred grinned.

Aeryn smiled oh-so-sweetly back. “Depends how cold the walk between here and there is.”

“I feel compelled to point out we have a perfectly warm room right here.”

“Absolutely not.”

“For an adventurer, you’re certainly lacking a sense of it.”

Aeryn rolled her eyes and gently shoved him aside, leaving the storeroom. Thancred laughed, catching up and reclaiming her arm. “Very well, my dear. Allow me to escort you, and I shall hope you are very cold and require warming once we are within the privacy of the manor.”

Her blush returned and she sighed again, though it turned into a bout of giggles as they left the cathedral.

#Final Fantasy XIV #Lyn Writing #Thancred Waters #Thancred x WoL #Shippy Nonsense #Aeryn Striker

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and-it-freezes-me · 4 years ago

Text

Accidents Happen - On Demons And Angels

Summary: Roman believes that the accident wasn’t entirely Remus’ fault, and begins his investigation into Janus’ part in it. Part 1 of ?

Content: disaster humans, brief discussions of injuries, brief fire mention, brief bugs mention; Remus is implied to be cruel but isn’t, really

Words: 3,845

{Part 2}

‘In every set of twins, there is an angel and a demon.’

At least, that was what it had said in a book Roman had read once. He couldn’t even remember what it was called, let alone what the context for such a condemning statement had been, but those words had stuck with him from the moment his eyes had found them on the page. Maybe it was because he had been reading it around the time that Remus had started acting out properly, and because the only thing he could come up with to explain it was that Remus was just naturally bad. They had the same parents, after all, the same upbringing, the same neighbours and peers - they should have turned out the same. It had made plenty of sense to his twelve-year-old self: he was the angel, and Remus was the demon.

Now, however? He was pretty sure that it was the other way around.

Or maybe it wasn’t true at all. Because whilst an angel didn’t get their twin kicked out of the house or blamed for the dog going missing, he was fairly certain that an angel wouldn’t end up in prison, either.

Maybe they were both demons, only he was better at hiding it. Everybody else certainly took him to be an angel, after all: when they compared Roman: a straight A student, head of the theatre club, volunteering twice a week, heading to a prestigious university to study classics in the fall; to Remus, who hadn’t scored well in an exam since he was eight, who was always in dirty, ripped clothes and smelled of bonfires and booze, who had once pushed a kid down two flights of stairs (Patton had been fine in the end, but still…), what were they supposed to think?

“At least one of your boys will amount to something,” somebody had said once. “At least Roman’s going somewhere,” they had said. And then, “isn’t your son talented!” and “you must be so proud of your boy,” as though Remus didn’t exist at all anymore. And Roman had let it happen, because he had loved the praise, because he had loved being the golden boy, the one that could do nothing wrong. He loved being the example, being allowed to stay home alone a whole two years before Remus even though they were the same age, being allowed to go to see his friends at any hour of the day or night as long as he texted to say when he would be home. Next to Remus, who had once procured a dead snake and wrapped it up as a Mother’s Day gift, he could do no wrong.

And so when things went slightly wrong, it didn’t matter if he blamed Remus. They were still friends - they were twins, of course they were friends - and Remus never seemed to care. When Roman had spilled candle wax all over the floor when they were thirteen and their parents had asked what had happened, the words had just slipped out: “Remus was playing with the candles earlier.” Six hours later, they had all been woken by the smell of smoke to find that Remus had set the living room curtains on fire, and two hours after that, Roman had slipped into his brother’s bedroom and thanked him for covering for him.

“That’s what I’m here for, Ro-Ro,” he had said, grinning at the glo-stars tacked to the ceiling in the shape of a monstrous grin. “We’ve gotta stick together, you ‘n me. I’ve got your back.”

Remus never asked anything from him.

He didn’t ask for a return favour when they were fourteen and Roman had failed an exam, stole Remus’ clothes while his twin was in gym, re-sat the paper as Remus but wrote his own name on the top, and then blamed the original failed paper on his brother trying to fuck with him.

He didn’t make Roman own up when he had taken their father’s car out to a party when they were sixteen, gotten slightly tipsy, and managed to throw up all over the seats and leave a massive scratch all down one side, ruining the paintwork. His parents were already inclined to blame their problem child, and all Roman had to say was, “I thought I heard the car while I was studying last night.” Remus not only took the punishment for him, but went as far as to key their mother’s car the next night.

When they were seventeen, they had gotten a puppy. It was supposedly for everyone, a family pet, but everybody knew that it was really a reward for Roman landing the lead role in the theatre club’s production of ‘Bugsy Malone’. Two months later, the twins had been home alone (their parents had gone out together, and Remus wasn’t allowed to be alone in the house anymore and hadn’t been since The Microwave Incident, so Roman had to stay in with him) and Roman had left the back door open when he went outside. The dog - Filo, after the pastry - had charged out after him, been spooked by something, and dashed through the fence. Roman had followed her into the woods, fallen into a creek, and had to hobble home on a twisted ankle. He was a good actor; it didn’t take much to call up some tears, and explain how he had been trying to catch Filo after Remus had let her out by mistake. Remus never asked for Roman’s help with the hours and hours he had searched through that forest, every day after school for months, until he finally came home to get a spade and returned with Filo’s collar some time later.

There were other things, too, things that had actually been Remus, things that Roman had had nothing to do with. Most of the things were like that, really. And when Roman made mistakes, he usually owned up to them - he wasn’t a bad person. It was only the few times that he had ducked out of the way and allowed Remus to take the punishment for him.

He wouldn’t have done it if he’d have known how it was going to end. Sure, Remus was a disaster, Remus was strange and already on first-name basis with a few of the police officers around their town, Remus was awkward in conversation and quite frankly an embarrassment to be related to, but he was still his brother, and he did still love him. So if he had known that his parents would kick Remus out for it, Roman never would have claimed that he had never seen the ziploc bag of weed, or that Remus must have hidden it in his room. And by the time he heard the yelling, by the time he tried to take it back, it was too late. His parents saw his desperate pleas that it was his as generosity, as self-sacrifice, as trying to stick up for his brother, and had calmly explained that it wasn’t just this, that this was just the latest in the longest line of things, and that it was sweet of him to try to look out for his twin.

So yeah, maybe Roman wasn’t the valiant prince he had always thought he was.

He had given Remus the keys to his car, a gorgeous red thing his parents had bought him for his eighteenth. Remus couldn’t drive, of course (after the Scratch’n’Vom Incident, they had stopped his lessons, and he didn’t the funds to pay for them himself) (Remus hadn’t had pocket money since they were ten), but he could sleep in the thing for as long as he wanted, and Roman said would let him into the house to use the shower and stuff when their parents were out. He had parked the car around the corner, out of view of their house, because their parents had explicitly banned him from helping him, and brought Remus some extra blankets. It was the least he could do.

But Remus, of course, couldn’t let it go. Ask anybody: he had to top Roman’s latest disaster with an even more spectacular one of his own, and Roman was awoken at around four in the morning by a uniformed officer informing his parents that there had been an accident, and that they would have the opportunity to appoint a lawyer for Remus before questioning started the following morning, and would they like to come down to the station to see him now? (They hadn’t wanted to do either of those things).

How foul-mouthed, crude, angry Remus had persuaded the golden-eyed, silver-tongued captain of the debate team to get into the car with him after midnight was anyone’s guess. Roman hadn’t even thought that Remus knew Janus, let alone was on midnight-joyride terms with him. Janus’ parents insisted that Remus must have kidnapped their son. Janus stayed quiet, although that wasn’t surprising given the fresh burn scars down his once-flawless face and neck and the smoke damage to his throat; instead of speaking, he submitted a written statement to the effect that he had gotten a lift from Remus, who had been drunk - although he hadn't known it - and that Remus had gotten distracted and driven them off the road. He didn't want to press charges; his parents forced him to. Remus made no move to confirm or deny this. His lawyer, one provided by the state, had pleaded guilty.

Remus got eight months.

Roman should have been pleased. Not that his brother was in prison, but that it hadn't been worse. Janus could have died, landing Remus in even more trouble. Remus could have died.

Instead, he was furious. None of it made sense. (Well, it did, a little, but not as much as everybody seemed to think it did!) Why would Janus have been out that late? It had been a school night, there was no reason for him to be… Well, anywhere other than at home. Had it been anybody else, this would be a stupid argument to make, but this was Janus Sinclaire, practically the most perfect student to exist. Why would he accept a lift from Remus, of all people? Most people Roman knew seemed to agree that it was safer to be on the streets alone than in a car with Remus.

Even if he took Janus' story as true (which he didn't), there were other things that didn't make sense. There hadn't been any alcohol in the car - Roman wasn't stupid, he didn't keep booze in his car - and Remus didn't have his wallet on him when he left, so how could Remus have been drunk? And the most important problem of all: if Remus had been planning on doing something big to make a spectacle of himself again, he wouldn't have been driving around town picking up other students like a freebie taxi service. He would have driven directly to the lake and sunk the car, or gone to the edge of town and torched the thing. Roman was pretty sure that nobody else would make this distinction, but he knew his twin (kinda).

In short? Not only had Roman gotten his brother kicked out of the house, but now Remus was serving time on a statement with more holes than a sieve.

It would be unsporting to disbelieve the victim in a case like this. It would be about as far from angelic as he could get, Roman reflected, tapping a pen against the bulleted list in the notebook in front of him. But that was okay. He had already proven that he wasn't an angel.

Remus:

Not a good driver - nobody would trust him to take them home

Promised he wouldn't go anywhere - are Remus promises worth much? Unsure.

Tends to immediate chaos & destruction - why driving?

No alcohol in car + no wallet for Remus

What was Janus doing at 2am?

Does Janus trust Remus enough to take a lift at 2am? Fuck no

Janus lies - known fact

Remus doesn’t hurt other people - Patton, me, random scraps

Remus doesn’t plan on hurting other people - luring Janus into my car would take planning

Janus lies. That was the point he kept coming back to, no matter how many times he told himself that he could only put it down once, that Janus had no reason to lie here, that only a monster would start trying to push a horribly scarred guy about what must have been a traumatic experience.

But Remus deserved better than this, didn’t he?

No matter how much of an asshole he could be, no matter what kind of freaky things he did for fun, just for once Remus deserved somebody to stick up for him. Besides, Roman owed him - big time - and maybe he should finally start paying in his debts. It was the princely thing to do, after all. And the ends justified the means, so if he had to do some slightly dodgy things to discover the truth, that wasn’t a problem.

Maybe it was just time to accept that he had more than just a little of the demon twin in himself.

It was another week before Janus returned to school - just in time for the end of year finals, although it was common knowledge that he had been given a pass not to sit them. He sat them anyway. Roman was certain that he only sat them to maintain his reputation, because there was no way the faculty was going to give him anything less than a perfect grade even if he didn’t.

Despite his scars and the new hoarse quality to his voice, Janus didn’t seem to act as though anything was different. Roman was actively watching him now, waiting for an opportunity to get close to him, for a crack in his golden façade that would allow him to break him open and pry at his secrets until he discovered exactly what had happened the night Remus had been kicked out; surely this lack of reaction was suspicious? Janus still arrived at exactly the same time every morning, dropped off by his parents in a ridiculously shiny silver car; he still went to every class and hosted debate team rehearsals in his lunch breaks; he still went straight home after school, again in that gorgeous silver machine, and sat in his room for hours, reading or studying. (Roman had found a tree across the street, one leafy enough that he could sit in it with a pair of binoculars for hours without being seen). (Yes, this was not princely behaviour).

Roman had gotten his information about what was ‘normal’ for Janus to do from Virgil Spince, who always seemed to know people’s routines. He had explained his curiosity away by saying that he wanted to apologise for his brother’s behaviour - something Virgil thoroughly approved of, given how badly his best friend had been hurt in the past - but was too anxious about it to just approach him. If there was something he understood, Virgil had said, it was anxiety. He had handed over Janus’ timetable without much more of a fuss, and Roman hadn’t asked how he knew what Janus did at home.

Roman had pushed down the guilt that rose in his chest with each lie he told, taken the scrawled list of times and places (Virgil had surprisingly cute handwriting, who knew?) and left.

It was another week before he found the courage to actually approach Janus. It wasn't as though there was an obvious change in his routine - other than the Thursday therapy trip, which Roman couldn't really see as suspicious - so it wasn't as though Roman could just accost him in the middle of something illegal. That made talking to him much harder, because it meant that he was going to have to be nice. Nice, to somebody that had gotten his brother locked up. The jumpsuit really didn't suit Remus.

Fortunately, Roman was a very good actor.

He did it at lunchtime, reasoning that that was the least suspicious time to talk to another 'victim' of his brother the natural disaster. Sliding into the seat across from where Janus was poking at a flask of what had to be maggots (or maybe it really was only noodles and Roman was still thinking about that film he had watched last night), he pulled his own lunchbox from his bag and set it down decisively, then just stared at it.

His nervousness was, for the most part, an act. Although his head was tilted toward the box of rice balls in front of him, Roman’s eyes were on Janus - and he was sure that something had flickered across his face when he had sat down. What it was, he couldn’t say, but it had definitely been… Something. Guilt? Did Janus feel guilty? Roman hoped so. If he didn’t yet, then he would make sure that he did eventually.

After a brief count of thirty-nine (thrice thirteen. Thrice, because three times was traditionally lucky; thirteen because it was Remus’ lucky number), Roman Wang raised his head and stared directly into the pale, now-quizzical eyes before him. The left eye (Roman’s left, he wasn’t sure why the distinction was important but it was) was just the same as ever; the right was rimmed with angry, swollen skin, and looked painful to open. He buried the stab of guilt for what he was about to do, reminded himself that Remus was his priority, and allowed his tongue to dart briefly over his upper lip before speaking. “I’m… Sorry about what happened. For Remus. I’m sorry for what Remus did to you, Janus. I never thought he’d do anything like that…”

There was silence as Janus regarded him, then the sound of a fork scraping against the metal of his flask as he raised another twist of maggots to his lips. Maybe they’d eat him from the inside out. Wow - these thoughts were a lot more befitting of Remus than of him. Maybe admitting one might be part demon unlocked a whole new category of twisted imaginings right from day one. Or day sixteen, as the case may be. Finally, Roman watched the bob of Janus’ throat as he swallowed, winced, and then spoke in that same husky, hoarse voice that would be more at home in a horror film than in a canteen. (No, that wasn’t fair. Not a princely thought at all. Since when had Roman made fun of people for injuries they couldn’t help?) (Since now, apparently). “You didn’t?”

“What?”

“Didn’t think Remus would do something like this.”

“What? Of course not!” Janus just stared at him, and Roman made a valiant effort to lower his voice so that his next words would be more civil. “He’s not - I didn’t think he would be this… Cruel. You shouldn’t have gotten hurt.”

“Interesting.” Somehow, Janus managed to draw the word out, to turn it into a condescending drawl even with his new chainsaw-murderer voice. “Even after what he did to Patton Grace? What happened to Logan Ahmed?”

Roman gaped at the other man. What had happened to Logan? He couldn’t remember. Either way, Janus had a point: Remus did have a track record for hurting people. He had even written that down in his notebook earlier that week. Shaking his head briefly, Roman pulled the chopsticks from the lid of his lunchbox and started picking at his rice. “Sorry. I guess I’m just… Shocked. I was just trying to… You know. Apologise. Ask if you were okay. If you needed to borrow any notes from the weeks you missed. That stuff.”

He was fairly certain that somebody else would already have given Janus notes, but it sounded good to offer; after another moment of silence, Janus shrugged. “Fine.”

“Fine?”

“Apology accepted. I’ll take the notes, too. You take AP Spanish, right?”

“There are eight of us in that class, Janus. You know I take AP Spanish. We’ve mostly just been doing conversational skills - Señor Puentes said a large part of our final would be verbal.” Roman allowed himself a little drama there, rolling his eyes in an exaggerated fashion, and Janus actually gave him a very faint smile. “You need my notes for that? I can help you revise, if you like.”

This time, Janus’ smile was wider, but thinner, too. “Coming from anybody else, that would sound as though you were just trying to get free tutoring.” He screwed the lid back onto his flask and bent to return it to his satchel (most people would get the crap kicked out of them by some netheranderal for carrying a satchel to school. Janus not only got away with it, but managed to make it look good, too). He straightened up with a water bottle and a blister pack of what Roman assumed were painkillers and swallowed two of them before washing them down with something that was probably the blood of some innocent goats. Or raspberry juice. One of the two.

Then Janus looked up to see what Roman hoped was a confused expression and not a hateful one, and rolled his eyes. “Yes, we can study together. Friday, half four. My place - I’ll give you my address.”

Roman had to restrain himself from saying something stupid, like “Don’t worry, I know where you live.” That wouldn’t sound dodgy at all. Instead, he thanked Janus as he scribbled an address on a scrap of notepaper and pushed it across the table with a scarred hand.

Janus got up to leave a few seconds later, making some comment about checking books out of the library, and Roman ate the rest of his lunch in silence, Janus’ address burning a hole in his pocket. That had been… Easy. Reassuringly so. It shouldn’t take long to squeeze the truth out of that snake if he just accepted what Roman had said so easily.

Of course, maybe Janus really didn’t have anything to hide. If he had taken Roman’s words for granted so easily, what was to say that he hadn’t done the exact same thing for Remus? If that was the case, then Roman would be manipulating just another victim, collateral of the swathes of destruction that Remus left in his wake. The guilt that rose in his stomach at this thought felt a lot like nausea, and he pushed the lid back onto his barely-touched lunch.

There was no point thinking like this. He had started on this path, and he would get to the bottom of this mystery no matter how ill it made him feel.

Besides, if he found out the truth and was able to bring it to light, to see that Janus got what he deserved for landing his brother in prison, maybe things would go back to normal. Remus could be the grubby, disturbing, mostly harmless demon, and he could go back to his happy, perfect life as the angel twin.

Even avenging angels had to get their hands dirty sometimes, right?

#roman sanders #remus sanders #janus sanders #creativitwins #AccidentsHappenAU #fanfiction #remus is a semi-voluntary scape-goat #but roman does want to fix things

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tomtenadia · 4 years ago

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Island Dreams - Chapter 21

Chapter 21 is here. Chaol is back for a quick last scene. I swear this is the last time we see him. The reason he is still here is because i had a few things to carry over from chapter 20.

Aelin has a few interesting phone calls and in the end, well... something really great happens to her.

I hope you will love it.

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Rowan was on his way to the shop when he noticed a figure leaning against the door. His arms at his chest, clearly waiting for him. He thought he was a customer to start with but once he got closer he realised who it was: Chaol. Aelin’s ex. He already hated the man, but after the encounter the previous day he was ready to punch the guy. Rowan went to the door and ignored Chaol. “I am looking for a book, can you help me?” Rowan kept pretending he was not there. Got in the shop and shut the door in his face. Switched on everything and took his time to actually open. There were no actual customers so he could open five minutes later, just to piss him off. In the end he caved and went to the door and opened and Chaol entered the shop. “You are five minutes late, is that how you do business around here?”

Rowan went to his computer and started working and continued to ignore the man. “The customer service in this place is quite bad, I must admit.” Chaol started walking around the shop. “How can I help you, sir?” Said Rowan through gritted teeth. He had never punched anyone in his life but that morning it was about to become a first. Very quickly. “Yes you can.” Chaol turned to him “let her go.” Rowan grabbed a pencil and almost snapped it in two. “See? She is still mad at me at the moment, but she will come around eventually and realise she made a mistake.” He played with a book and put it back all squint on purpose “I have known her for ten years. You have known her for what? A few months? She will tire of this place, this life and of you. She will come back to me. So just save yourself some heartache and let her go.” “She made her choice.” Chaol kept walking the length of the shop “And she can’t be a doctor here. She has an amazing career in London. She will get bored after one day. If you really love her as you claim you will see the damage that this job will do to her. It will make her miserable.” “Yes, the amazing job in London that denied her the promotion she deserved.” Chaol looked at him stunned and Rowan’s lips curved up wickedly. “Oh so you didn’t know.” Now it was his turn to be petty “She was up for a very big promotion but she didn’t get it and it destroyed her. I guess she did not tell you because you were so busy with the night shift that she preferred not to burden you.” Chaol’s hands fisted. “And between a job delusion and an asshole of an husband she decided to pack her life and leave.” Rowan’s eyebrows lifted at the man expression. Chaol did not know any of this. Interesting. “She was quite a mess when she got here, but she is better, thanks to me. Because I look after her.” “Aelin is needy and used to a standard of life that you can’t give her. Definitely not with the money you make from a pathetic bookshop.” Rowan breathed in deeply “She seems satisfied with what I can giver her and I know needy and Aelin is definitely not that. ” He smirked, he was reaching extreme level of pettiness “And so far I have been able to satisfy her with everything I gave her. Even sex. For example last night when I took her against the wall she loves so much. More than once. The way she screamed my name…” Aelin was probably going to kill him but mean Rowan had taken over his body. “I had to show her what a fulfilled sex life looks like. Apparently something else you lacked as a husband.” “I always satisfied her.” “Sure, did you ever bother ask what she liked? Her fantasies? Go along with them? Or you just went on top like the proper alpha male you think you are, did your job and went back to sleep? Because it sounds like you were a self serving bastard in bed as well.” Chaol moved a step closer to Rowan trying to be intimidating. A useless feat when the person in front of you is twenty centimetres taller than you and almost twice your size. “What?” Asked Rowan in a flat, annoyed tone. “Did she tell about her life before me? That she was a bit of a slut—“ But Chaol did not manage to finish that sentence. A fist connected with his mouth, then Rowan’s hand was at his collar, lifted him and slammed Chaol against the wall “do not finish that sentence. Don’t you dare call her like that ever again.” His grip tightened “I swear I will file for a restraining order if you don’t leave this island as soon as possible. You have done enough damage.” He let go of Chaol and the man tried to protest but Rowan’s stare kept him in place. “Fuck her all you want. She will grow tired of you very quickly.” Rowan almost went for a second round but Chaol stopped him “She will put career before you and family. Mark my words.” And with that he left. Rowan counted till ten and walked back to the counter and grabbed the phone and dialled Aelin’s number. “Do you really can’t stay without me for a whole morning?” “I just punched your ex husband.” The line went silent for a moment and Rowan feared he was in trouble, that he had crossed a line. “Did you take a video? Why was I not there to witness such a magical moment?” Rowan was puzzled. He was expecting Aelin to shout at him . “I’ll be there in five. I want all the details.” And she hung up.

As promised five minutes later she walked to him and kissed him deeply. Definitely not the reaction he was expecting. “You are not mad.” “I was impressed that you did not thump him yesterday to be honest.” She sat in the chair beside him “What did he do? Why was he here? And why the asshole is still on the island?” “He told me to let you go. That I can’t give you the life you deserve and added that you will tire of living here, this life and of me. Oh yes, he also added that as a pathetic bookshop owner I can’t give you the life of luxury you crave.” “What a lot of pish.” Rowan laughed “You picking up Scots words is very sexy.” “Yeah, sure, now keep talking about the asshole” she jabbed his arm with a finger. “And then I turned petty.” Aelin’s mouth fell open. That was not Rowan. “I might have bragged a bit.” And she laughed at his admission. “What did you say?” “That you seemed very satisfied with what I have been giving you so far and I might have added that you were definitely happy when I took you against the wall last night while you were screaming my name. Multiple times.” Aelin noticed the top of his ears going red. “I can’t believe I missed this amazing fight.” And she kissed him. “He called you a slut” and she felt him tense. “Oh yeah. He never approved of my life before him.” “That’s when I punched him. And I threatened to file a restraining order if he didn’t leave the island as soon as possible.” Aelin pushed him against the wall and kissed him hard “Did I tell you today how much I love you?” “Not even once.” “Let me make this up to you.” She dragged him to his office. Once inside she pushed him to the table and started kissing him. His hands went on her butt and dragged her close. “I love you.” “I don’t think I heard that properly.” They made out for a good ten minutes before Rowan decided it was time to break apart and go back to work. They went back to work and Aelin kept smiling at him showing him that she definitely approved what he did.

She was busy with some work Rowan had assigned her when the door opened and Aelin squealed in delight when she noticed who had just walked in. She ran to the woman and hugged her. “Lorcan and I have checked out and we’ll be on our way soon. We just thought we had to pop in to say goodbye.” “Thank you. I am sorry for last night. It was my fault I was not feeling great.” Apologised Aelin. “No worries. The ceilidh was amazing, but we left halfway through it. We were exhausted.” “Rowan.” Called Aelin “He is somewhere in his office.” Two minutes later he emerged and he smiled when he saw the couple “Hi guys.” Lorcan nodded to him and Elide waved at Rowan quite happily. “Sorry about last night,” and his arm went around Aelin’s waist “Aelin wasn’t well.” “She told us. It’s fine.” The dark-haired woman replied “We just came here to say bye. We need to go back to Glasgow and we need to leave soon. We have to drive all the way down to Tarbert to catch the ferry to Uig on Skye.” “It was nice meeting you.” “It was,” and Elide turned to Aelin, “please keep in touch. If you guys ever come to Glasgow, let us know. We have a spare bedroom.” “I will let you know about the rugby. We can go to a Scotland home game together.” Added Lorcan. Rowan smiled widely “definitely I need some decent rugby and I would love to go back to Glasgow for a few days.” Eventually the four of them said their goodbyes and Elide and Lorcan left. “They are such a nice couple. Although Lorcan should learn to smile a bit.” Aelin commented going back to her task. Rowan hugged her tight and then he disappeared back to what he was doing beforehand. Aelin finished to prepare the orders that had come in and began sending email to the people who had ordered books. “Ro?” She called him and he came back. She showed him the computer “there are some new releases of fantasy books that are quite interesting. I think we should have them in.” Rowan quickly looked at the titles and smiled back to her “Go ahead. Let’s start with two copies each. If you think they are good let’s order them in. I trust you.” “Really?” She was beaming. So far he had been the one deciding what to order. She was very chuffed that he had let her do it for once and that he trusted her instincts. His hands grabbed her hips “You have good taste in books.” And he kissed her and moved away again. She was in the middle of the order when her phone buzzed with an unknown number. “Hello?” “I am looking for miss Aelin Galathynius.” “Speaking.” “My name is Dr McIver. You applied for a A&E job a while ago. Am I correct?” Aelin’s heart started hammering in her chest. She saw Rowan coming out of the office and she gestured to him to join to her. “Yes, I did.” He looked at her as if to say ‘what’ and she scribbled job on a piece of paper. He smiled and went behind her and held her from behind. “I am contacting you because I am very fascinated by your resume and I’d like to invite you for an interview.” She started jumping in Rowan’s arms. “I’d love to.” “I have a busy schedule tomorrow, but I can see you at 9am.” Aelin grabbed Rowan’s hand and his look was of one deep love. “That is perfect for me.” “Fantastic. Once you arrive at the hospital ask for me and I will come and get you.” “Thank you sir, I will see you tomorrow.” The man greeted her back and hung up. Aelin turned to Rowan and screamed “The job!” And she jumped. He grabbed her in his arms and lifted her up and twirled on the spot, kissing her. “I have an interview tomorrow morning for the job I applied for.” “They will love you.” He kissed her again, “I am so proud of you.” Then it hit Aelin and she froze “Oh shit.” “What?” He asked worried at the change in her expression. “I am panicking. What if I can’t do the job? What if I am aiming too high and I applied for a job that I am not qualified for? And now I am freaking out.” She started breathing hard and he brushed her back. “You can’t be afraid to be successful.” Aelin looked up at him, her eyes wide “Did you just quote Jake?” He kissed her head “I did. I love the scene where he convinces her to take the lieutenant exam.” She grinned back at him. “I can’t believe they called me.” She leaned back and sighed hard “Ro, this is big. But I need to calm down. I don’t have the job yet.” “You will.” Then her gaze turned sad “I will miss working here, though.” Rowan’s hands cupped her face “You are doing the right thing. You can come and help a bit when you have time off. This is your shop too.” His hands twined in her hair “I will miss you too, but at least I will be able to do paperwork in peace.” She jabbed her finger to his side and left him.

The next morning Aelin woke up early and was panicking. She got out of bed without waking Rowan and went to the living room and paced. A part of her was excited. The idea of being a doctor again was amazing, but a part of her was terrified and she did not know why. She had a very fitful sleep and not even Rowan’s arms had helped her in any way. She was feeling horrible and that was not the best way to face an interview. She breathed deeply and sank on the sofa. Now she felt sick. In the morning silence of the house she heard Rowan’s feet padding behind her. “Aelin…” She turned and stared at his sleepy face, and tousled hair. He only had his boxers briefs on and all of a sudden the sight of him chased away all of her fears. She stood and went to him and kissed him fiercely. His arms folded around her and lifted Aelin and together they sat down on the sofa. “What’s wrong?” He asked, pulling away from the kiss. “I was panicking,” she gave him a wanton smile “then you walked in, in such an amazing state of undress and my fear are gone.” He pulled her closer and her hand landed on his beautiful naked chest. Her mouth deposited gentle kisses on his shoulder and inhaled his scent. Pine and snow. All of a sudden her mind calmed down and the panic subsided. “I should ask Dr McIver if I can take you with me for the interview, sitting on your lap. That will help a lot.” He chuckled “I don’t think it’s doable.” His hand was on her back “But I can accompany you. I will wait outside of course, but I can be there with you.” She looked up at him and her heart melt “What about the shop?” “It will be fine for a couple of hours.” He kissed her head “you are more important.” Aelin almost cried. How on earth did she end up with such an amazing man? “I would love that very much.” “Good.” She stood “I need a shower.” And wiggled a finger to him “fancy coming?” She was ready for him to say no again, but surprise caught her when he stood up and took her hand. “But no shenanigans. It’s not our getaway and we don’t have time.” Aelin nodded and her heart raced. She walked to the bathroom and Rowan followed her. She turned to him and slowly she peeled off her t-shirt and adored the look on his face. Then she proceeded to remove her bottoms and finally stood naked in front of him and she noticed hunger and desire in his eyes. “Your turn.” She challenged him while entering the shower box and opening the water. For a moment he stood on the threshold and stared at her, water running down her naked body and he had to concentrate very hard not to take here and there. There was no time and he had other plans. Finally he moved and removed his briefs. Aelin turned and finally saw him for the first time and her breath hitched. Damn the man was perfect. Ideas started to gather in her mind but they didn’t have time for that. She looked up at him “You are still not inside the shower.” “I was just enjoying the look on your face.” He finally stepped in and joined under the water. Rowan noticed her stare and grabbed her wrists “hands on my chest, Fireheart. We don’t have time for dillydallying.” She kissed his chest and her hands roved on his muscles. Oh the things she would love to do to him. He grabbed the shampoo, then turned her and began washing her hair. Aelin ground her backside agains him. His mouth was against her ear “Very bad idea.” And he put a bit of space between them and Aelin groaned in frustration. While he was washing her hair, Aelin was now washing her body. She could not have Rowan do that. They would never leave the shower and she had an interview to go to. He turned her and she snuggled against him, his mouth pressing delicate kisses on her head “You will be wonderful.” In his arms, she relaxed. They stayed under the water for a bit longer until Rowan closed the jets and left the shower. He grabbed their towels and passed one to Aelin. She gave him one last look before he covered himself with his towel and Aelin had to press her legs tighter together. She took her towel and went for their room. At least her mind was now clear of the fear for the interview, but such thoughts had been replaced by some sexier ones. She got dressed, desperate to do something. Maybe the shower together had not been a great idea. All she could think about now was him. She breathed hard and began drying her hair. “Let me help you.” Rowan joined her and took the hairdryer from her hands and started drying it for her. “Head down.” She bent over and he continued his job. Luckily he had put some clothes on. Once her hair was dry he brushed it as well, untangling the knots that had formed. “I could have done this myself.” “I know.” Once he was done she went back to her old room looking for a decent enough outfit. She found what she was looking for and got dressed. Slowly she had moved the clothes she used the most in the side of the closet that Rowan had given her, but she had kept the stuff she used very little in her old bedroom. She had to look professional so she went for a black cigarette skirt, a light blue blouse and a black jacket. Added a pair of earrings to the ensemble and eventually she decided to put a very thin layer of makeup on. Once she reached the living room, Rowan was there waiting for her. He had jeans, a shirt and a leather jacket and he took her breath away. He finally noticed her and she realised she had the same effect on him. He moved a step closer “You are…” “It feels so weird.” “Stunning. You are stunning.” “I haven’t dressed like this in a lifetime.” She confessed while looking for her heels. Then she turned to him “Why are you all nicely dressed?” “I can’t accompany my girlfriend to her big day dressed in a t-shirt and looking like a slob when she is so gorgeous.” She looked up at him “you could get out of the house clad in a garbage bag and you would still manage to have every single woman turn their head and stare at you.” He grinned. She grabbed her purse and she was ready to go. A moment later they were in the car and Aelin’s anxiety began to come back. Rowan noticed that and his hand went on her knee squeezing it gently. His presence was a calming anchor at her side. Not long after they reached the hospital. Before getting off the car Rowan pulled her to him and kissed her deeply “I am at your side.” Aelin nodded and hand in hand they entered the A&E. As requested, Aelin asked for Dr McIver at the reception and a few minutes later she arrived. “Miss Galathynius.” He extended his hand and Aelin shook it back. “This is my partner. He drove me here.” Rowan shook his hand with the man. “Come on, both of you.” They took the lift and reached the floor where McIver’s office was. In front of the door Rowan took her hand “There’s a few chairs. I’ll wait here. I have a book.” He kissed her head “I love you.” He whispered. She nodded and followed the man in his office. “Please take a seat.” Said the man pointing at the chair in front of him “Please don’t be nervous. This is more a chat to get to know you.” He grabbed what she guessed was her resume “I must say I am impressed, miss Galathynius. You have a remarkable skillset and experience. Definitely something we need here and that we could put to really good use.” “Thank you sir.” Aelin felt her body relax a bit. “Can I ask you a question?” “Of course.” “Why did you leave London? The A&E in a place like Stornoway can get busy but cannot be compared to working in one of the best trauma hospital in London.” He stared at her “Your experience would be like a blessing for us, but we are not a trauma centre. I am not sure we can offer you the same level of challenge that a London hospital could.” Aelin took a deep breath and fisted her hands in her laps to stop them from shaking. She was expecting such a remark. It was perfectly understandable. “I know sir.” Another breath. It was time to tell the truth “I was up for a big promotion to become the head of the A&E and trauma department. Alas, that dream was stolen from me. My job was given to…” how could she put it without anger colouring her voice “let’s just say that the person who was chosen was not picked for his merits but more because of who is father was.” Tears threatened to well in her eyes but she fought them back. “The news hit me hard. I… lost interest in my job. So I took a sabbatical and then officially left about two weeks ago.” It still hurt like hell “I needed to get away for other reasons as well. And I ended up here. My life is here now, sir. I know this will not be a major trauma centre but I am not worried.” She took another breath “It will be a challenge in itself because it will be a new role for me with a new team. All I want to do is be a doctor. It does not matter if it is a big hospital or a small one, I just want to help people.” The man smiled and she relaxed hoping that her speech had gotten through him. “Our current senior emergency surgeon is retiring soon and to be honest with you, we need fresh blood. He was amazing at his job but quite set in his ways. Our A&E might not be London, but we have our set of challenges. We are the main major hospital for the entirety of the Hebrides. We get people airlifted here from the smaller islands. On a busy day our A&E needs to work efficiently. Our beds supply is not endless.” “I have spent many days and nights working in an overwhelmed A&E with probably ten times the influx of patients. I perfectly understand the challenges. I have helped train paramedics to form better triage stations at big accidents sites so that only grave patients would be sent to us. It was working before but it was not efficient enough. I spent years honing my team to run like a perfect oiled machine and deal with crisis in a way that would not endanger patients.” The man nodded and Aelin felt like things were going well. “Do you have experience in training interns?” “Yes. Being in charge of interns was another one of my roles. I did their rosters but also took one or two under my wing and taught them.” “It seems like you had your hands quite full.” Aelin’s hands fisted again. She had to hold her temper in check. “My boss, loved to… delegate.” She sighed “And that’s as nicely I can put it without being disrespectful.” The man laughed and Aelin relaxed again. It was good. It was going well. “And you have no intention of returning to London.” It was not a question. “No sir.” Of that she was positive. “My life is here. My partner is here as well. This is my home now.” And saying that out loud felt amazing. Lewis was now her home. And it had taken only a couple of months. “If you are successful when will you be ready to begin?” “Straight away. I am working at my partner’s bookshop at the moment but I can start whenever you want me to. And I have no issues with night shifts either.Also my partner and I don’t have kids at the moment so I am very flexible. We might in the future, but at the moment we are free.” “That’s good to hear.” He smiled again “You can relax now. You have done well.” Aelin breathed out and relaxed. “I have two more people to interview this afternoon. But I must say miss Galathynius that I am impressed by you. I will let you know tomorrow. I intend to make my decision tonight after the other two interviews.” The man stood and Aelin followed him. He extended his hand “it was a pleasure, Miss Galathynius.” “Thank you for the opportunity, sir.” And at that she left. As soon as she was out of the door Rowan stood and opened his arms for her and she slammed against his chest. “Are you okay?” “Yes.” She nodded “He will let me know tomorrow.” “I am pretty sure you charmed him completely and you will get the job.” Aelin pulled away and grabbed his hand “let’s get out of here.”

The next day Aelin was in the bookshop with Rowan but was having problems to concentrate. Her eyes kept flicking to her phone that was right beside the keyboard. She had no idea when Dr McIver would call and she was getting anxious. The wait was killing her. The previous night she had phoned Lysandra and she had told her about her job interview and the woman had threatened to come and inflict endless pain to the man if he didn’t give her the job. Her friend’s support has been incredible and she wished Lysandra was there. Rowan had been wonderful as well. After the interview they had gone home and changed into more comfortable clothes and gone back to the shop but at night he had taken her out on a date. They went to dinner then to An Lanntair for a movie and after had a log walk along the marina and the Lews castle grounds. That morning they had another special shower together, always with their boundaries and realised that although waiting was driving her insane, it was also deepening their bond somehow. They had spent their time talking and getting to know each other, but also got to know their bodies. Rowan had taken on him the challenge of learning what made her feel pleasure. He had started worshipping her body and leave Aelin a blubbering mess. All of that without ever doing the final deed. And she had loved it. He had allowed her to reciprocate but forbade her to use her mouth. She was dreaming about the previous night when her phone went off and her heart started racing in her heart. “Rowan.” She called for him as soon as she recognised the number. He was at her side in a second and by her stare he realised what it was. “Hello?” “Miss Galathynius? It’s Dr. McIver.” Aelin was positive she had stopped breathing. “Hello.” “So, I have news for you.” She grabbed Rowan’s hand and squeezed as tight as humanly possible. “Do you think your partner could do without you at the bookshop? Because my colleagues and I would be very pleased if you could lead our A&E.” Aelin froze for a moment. She had heard it correctly. They wanted her. “I think my partner would be very happy to get rid of me.” And she smiled at Rowan with love. “That is fantastic. I will see you at 8 tomorrow. I will send you in a moment an email with the details of your contract including as well your salary offer. If it’s all ok for you we will finalise the paperwork tomorrow morning.” “8 tomorrow sounds perfect. Thank you sir. Thank you so much for the opportunity.” “I am looking forward to have you in our team.” Then the conversation finished and Aelin turned stunned to Rowan who had the biggest smile on his face. “Told you.” “I can’t believe it.” He hands were shacking. A few minutes later her phone pinged and she noticed it was an email from Dr McIver as promised. She opened and read the detail of her contract and gasped when she noticed her salary. “Holy shit, look.” She said showing the phone to Rowan. “Guess I will be the kept man.” His hand brushed the back of his head. “Ro,” she said to him “This is friggin loads of money. I was not making this much in London.” Her head was spinning. “This is a higher position. You would have made this much or more you had gotten the job you deserved.” He told her with his usual logic. “I need to sit down.” He pushed the chair to her. She looked up at him and beamed at the pride in his eyes the she hugged him “This is amazing.” “You deserve it.” He kissed her head. Then customers came in and they broke apart and Rowan went to offer their help while Aelin was still on her chair and was busy texting Lysandra with the news.

She had spent the entire day floating on air. She was happy that she felt like in a musical and was about to burst into song. Her life was finally back on track. She and Rowan finally closed the shop and headed home together from the bookshop for the last time. All of sudden her mobile went off and she looked at it and stared at the London area code. “A London number?” Aelin accepted the call “Hello?” “Aelin?” Said the familiar voice. “Dr Thomson.” Why was her old boss calling her now? Why today of all days? “I hope I am not disturbing.” “No you are fine.” Anger started to flare up. “I have good news for you.” I highly doubt, was what Aelin thought. “We need you back.” Aelin’s heart raced. “Since when? I thought you had your perfect candidate and you did not need my skills.” She had to calm down. “Well, we had an issue with him. Kind of a sex scandal.” Aelin stopped dead. It was not a secret that Kieran, the guy they had chosen instead of her, had a penchant for bedding all the nurses and female doctors he could. Everyone knew. “Fucked the wrong person, did he?” “I can’t go into detail but rest assured he had been removed from the position and we have decided to offer it to you. You were the best candidate after all. It was just politics that stopped us.” “No, it was fucking money,” her rage burst free “His father promised you all a nice wee sum in exchange of his son to get the job. Kieran was an idiot. Now he fucked up, literally, and you think I will crawl back? Do you have an inkling of how much you insulted me? And now you phone me and tell me that you want me back? How the fuck you dare?” She was now shouting and Rowan’s hands were on her shoulder and she thanked him for his presence. “Aelin, let me explain. I voted for you. I had your back, but alas the board preferred the money. I had a fight with the board. It was not fair what they did to you. You were one of my best doctors and I need you back.” “Well, you can keep your apologies and stick them where the sun doesn’t shine. I am not coming back to London. I am in Scotland on an island and just got offered a job as senior emergency surgeon. So thank you for calling me but I respectfully decline.” “You can’t be serious. You can’t waste your skills in a small hospital. Don’t be an idiot, Aelin. Don’t waste your career in a backwater place.” Aelin was officially tired to hear people tell her that she was wasting her life. “What I do with my life is none of your business anymore. I have resigned, I am not your employee any longer.” “I’ll give you a raise on top of the salary for the post.” “Sir, you can beg all you want and try to entice me with more money. My answer will always be no. There are patients here as well. That’s all I need.” “Aelin, what can I do to convince you?” “Nothing. I actually should thank you. Here I found the life I want, with the perfect man. Not getting the job was the best thing that happened to me.” Her ex boss tried a few more tactics but Aelin was relentless. She was happy. She was home. She had all she needed right there. Once the conversation finished she looked at Rowan and her heart skipped a beat. He was her home. “Are you okay?” She sighed “I think I just reached closure.”she admitted as his arms went around her “You know the saying when a door closes another one opens?” He nodded. “Another one did open and I just realised that it was the one I needed. I hurt for a long time for not getting that job, but I just realised that without that, all of this would have never happened. I would still be in London, pining over the asshole and grieving over a job I did not get. I would still be a mess and utterly unhappy. A massive weight just lifted from my chest.” “I am a very lucky man.” He murmured against her head. “How so?” “Because you chose me.” “And I am lucky because you chose me.” She looked up at him “we chose each other.” “So, why did he phone you?” His arm went around her shoulder and they resumed their walk home. “Oh the guy they choose over me stuck his manhood where it was not meant to and apparently caused a big sex scandal. I need to phone Lysandra for more details. She will know all the gossip.” Rowan laughed. Once in front of the door Rowan kissed her deeply “I think I need a shower.” “Oh, do you?” He lifted her in his arms and they got into the house. “Do your worst, Whitethorn.”

#rowaelin #rowan x aelin #rowan whitethorn #aelin galythinius #fanfic #throneofglassseries #fluff #angst

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