#(doubt she even works still but I’ll keep her anyways)

[ca-d]

when you miss spring and flowers and all things green and your girlfriend buys you just because flowers(they’re a crazy pretty orange color too 😭)

[forever-rogue]

Salty

AN | Hello, as you all know Joel is alive and well and there are shenanigans afoot in Jackson. Enjoy💕

Pairing | Joel Miller x Fem!Reader 

Warnings | Language 

Word Count | 2.6k

Masterlist | Joel, Main 

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

You loved Joel.

Joel loved you (you hoped anyway) and Ellie.

Ellie hated you.

After just over half a year in Jackson, you had finally put two and two together. All those little things you’d thought were accidents or odd coincidences weren't that at all.

Everything came down to one Ellie Williams. And that led to you making a decision you immediately hated.

“I don’t think we… should spend time together anymore.” The lump in your throat was thick, and you focused your attention on the vegetables you were tending, refusing to look at the man. You’d rehearsed this very moment in your head about two hundred times, and still, it wasn’t going to plan. Sigh.

The man next to you was silent for a few beats, trying to decide if you were being serious. When you didn’t say anything further but he heard your sniffle, he realized this wasn’t a joke at all.

“Oh? And just how did you reach that conclusion, darlin’?”

“I just… I dunno, Joel. It just seems like the right thing to do.” You shrugged, adding the carrots you'd unearthed into the basket between the two of you. “I don’t… I don’t want you to get the wrong idea and think I’m… interested.”

A heavy silence fell over you; you tried to continue working, but Joel remained dumbfounded, watching your every move.

“Okay,” he eventually said, causing you to relax slightly. “I’ll do as you ask and respect your wishes and all that. You gonna tell me what changed suddenly?”

“Nothing,” you lied. You’d thought about telling him the truth but highly doubted he’d believe you. He’d never think his baby girl would do something so downright vicious. “It’s just… what I want.”

“Alright.” He stood up and wiped his hands on his jeans, capturing your attention. “I’ll leave you to it. I think you can handle it from here, right? I wouldn’t want to get the wrong idea.”

“Joel—” His name came out as a huff, but before you could get any further, he had already walked away.

You watched after him until he was out of your sight before hastily wiping at the tears rolling down your cheeks. This hurt even worse than you had anticipated. Ellie would probably leave you alone now that you weren’t pursuing her dad or trying to take him away from her.

“I guess it’s just you and me again.” You pulled a few more carrots out of the dirt and tossed them to the side. You were going to need a new hobby to occupy your mind.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The first time something strange had happened, you had been baking a cake for Joel's birthday. You were in the restaurant kitchen, having talked Seth into letting you use the space to keep your plans secret.

You were almost done mixing the dry ingredients when you couldn’t find the sugar.

“Where is it…” You looked through cabinets, sure you’d seen the container at some point. Without sugar, you definitely weren’t going to finish this cake.

“Looking for this?” There was a smile on Ellie’s face as she set an unlabeled bag down next to your bowl. You relaxed and nodded. “Sorry, I was using it earlier. Totally forgot to put it back.”

“No worries at all,” you said, grabbing the measuring cup and adding the sugar to your bowl. “I was starting to worry I’d imagined it.”

“Hmm.” Ellie watched you work in silence for a few minutes. “What’s this for?”

“I’m making a cake… for Joel.” Your face warmed as a flash of annoyance shot across hers. She was well aware of what you were doing, having overheard you talking to Tommy. “I figured it’d be something nice for him.”

“That’s really sweet of you,” she smiled. “I’m sure he’ll love it.”

“I hope so,” you agreed.

Unfortunately, fortune seemed determined to make a fool of you.

You’d stopped at Joel’s house to deliver the cake, wanting to make it casual.

“Happy birthday,” you sang, holding up the cake with an eager look. Your heart beat nervously as a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. “It’s not much, but I hope you like it.”

“It’s amazing,” he whispered, heart constricting at the sweet gesture. It had been a long time since someone had baked him a birthday cake. “C’mon in. We can cut right into it.”

“Oh,” you smiled shyly, finding it hard to meet his eyes. “I don’t want to intrude.”

“You’re always welcome here,” he said, firm but still soft. “And I insist.”

“Okay.” You followed him inside, setting the cake on the table. Joel grabbed a couple of forks, plates, and a knife. “Is Ellie here? Should we cut some for her?”

“She’s off at Dina’s,” he shook his head. “It’s just us.”

“Well here, let me.” You cut into the cake, placing large slices on each plate. You sat down across from him, pushing a plate toward him. “Happy birthday, Joel.”

“It certainly is now.” You tried not to freak out as you took a bite. Joel did the same.

As soon as you started chewing, you realized it tasted… terrible. Gritty and salty. Anything but sweet and decadent. You reluctantly swallowed and cast a forlorn look at Joel, who was clearly trying to school his expression.

“This is disgusting,” you said, horrified. “I—I must’ve added salt instead of sugar. Fuck. I should’ve paid more attention, but I thought… Ellie handed me the sugar.”

“It’s…” Joel, bless his heart, tried to make it seem better than it was.

“Terrible,” you insisted, trying not to cry. “I’m so sorry. I ruined it all.”

“It’s not… the worst thing ever.”

“Joel.”

“It’s pretty bad,” he admitted with a grimace, “but it’s the thought. Even if that’s cliché.”

“Well,” you sighed with a grimace, “maybe next time will be better.”

Joel reached across the table and placed his hand on top of yours. His touch made your stomach flip. “It’s okay, really. Thank you for this.”

“Happy birthday,” you whispered. Your face was warm, and you swore you saw a light blush on his cheeks.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The second time you were sure that you had bad luck. Everyone has bad luck sometimes, right?

It was spring, finally warm enough not to require multiple layers. There was a barbecue going on, and Joel had asked if you wanted to go with him. He hadn’t said it was a date—but he hadn’t not.

You’d put on a sundress, feeling prettier than you had in a long time.

But as you walked to Joel’s house, something slippery on the porch made you slide off and into a lingering patch of mud.

A scream escaped your lips. You weren’t hurt—just covered in mud from head to toe. Your shoes had fallen off. Tears of frustration fell down your face, which only smeared the muck.

“Are you okay?” Joel ran outside, worried. When he saw what had happened, he had to fight a smile. He was glad you weren’t hurt—but it was a little funny. You let out a frustrated huff. He stepped off the porch and held out his hand. “Oh, darlin’.”

Just as you reached for him, he slipped and landed next to you. His surprised face made you giggle. Reaching over to wipe a spot off his cheek, you shook your head.

“Hi.”

“Hi.” He smiled. “I’d say we make a fine pair.”

“Unfortunately, I think we’ll have to clean up and change before we do anything,” you teased. Joel looked at you with nothing short of fondness. “Why’re you looking at me like that?”

“No reason,” he said, leaning in. You leaned in too. “I’m just thinking I’d really like to kiss you right now.”

“Oh?” You were ready to finally close the gap when the front door burst open.

“Hey!” Ellie’s voice made you both jump apart. “What happened?”

“Slipped and fell,” you both said in unison.

“You should be more careful,” she said directly to you, brown eyes hard. “Wouldn’t want anything to happen.”

Then she turned and went back inside. A shiver ran down your spine.

“C’mon.” Joel got to his feet and helped you up. “Let’s get you cleaned up, yeah?”

“Thanks,” you said softly.

Something inside your stomach twisted. Something was going on.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The third time you were sure that none of the things that had been happening were accidental.

Joel had asked you on a date—made it very clear it was a date. Even though it was just Joel, you were full of butterflies.

You settled on an outfit and went into the bathroom to finish getting ready. Everything needed to be perfect.

Until… you tried to leave the bathroom and couldn’t. You jiggled the knob, convinced it was stuck, but after a few seconds of no success, you realized you were locked in.

You exhaled sharply, trying not to panic. This wasn’t an accident—but you weren’t in real danger either.

You banged on the door. “Ellie! Let me out! Please let me out!”

No response. But you thought you heard creaking down the hall. She wasn’t coming back.

You sat on the toilet, head in your hands. This was the worst. All you had wanted was a date with Joel. You couldn’t even have that.

Eventually, you pried open the bathroom window, grateful you lived in a one-story house. You squeezed out and fell a few feet onto the hard ground with a small oof.

Brushing yourself off, you made your way to Joel’s house, ready to set things straight.

Only one light was on. He wasn’t home. Your heart sank.

You knocked loudly. “Ellie!”

After a moment, the door flew open. She stood there, surprised. You laughed bitterly. “Surprised to see me?”

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about…”

“Cut the shit,” you snapped, tears pricking at the back of your eyes. “Why have you been doing this to me? And don’t even try to lie—I know it’s been you.”

“I…” She didn’t even bother to lie. “Stay away from Joel. He doesn’t need you. We’re fine without you.”

“Is that what this is about? Me and Joel? Why does it—”

“He doesn’t need you,” she hissed. “Stay away from my dad.”

The door slammed in your face.

You stood there, stunned.

After a few moments, you trudged home, your heart heavy, when you heard your name being called. You turned to see Joel catching up.

“Hey,” he said, falling into step beside you. “What happened? I waited for over an hour, then went to check if you’d gone to—”

“I was locked in my bathroom.” You pinched the bridge of your nose. Joel stared at you, waiting for a punchline. But then he saw your expression—serious.

“I’m sorry, Joel. I didn’t mean to stand you up. I was really looking forward to tonight.”

“How did you…”

“Weird accident.”

“Is everything okay?” he asked, stopping and gently grabbing your wrist. You turned to face him, fighting back tears. He touched your cheek.

“Things have been a little… off lately.”

“Guess I’m just having a spot of bad luck,” you shrugged, refusing to say the real reason. As angry as you were with Ellie, you understood. Joel was her stability—and in her mind, you were a threat.

“It’s nothing, really.”

“Okay,” he said quietly. “Did you still want to grab dinner?”

“Actually, I kind of just want to go home.” You hated the way hope faded from his face.

“I’ll see you around, Joel. Have a good night.”

“Good night.” He gave your hand a squeeze but watched you walk away, his heart heavy.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Two weeks passed.

You caught glimpses of Joel, but that was it. It wasn’t enough. It would never be enough.

You missed him.

One night, as you were getting ready for bed, a knock came at your door. You almost ignored it—but you knew better. No one in Jackson would let you live it down.

With a sigh, you trudged to the door, already annoyed.

“What?” you asked before even looking—only to find Joel standing there, a bemused smile on his face.

You couldn’t stop yourself from smiling. “What are you doing here?”

“I think we should talk.” You swallowed thickly. “Can I come in?”

“Y-yeah.” You stepped aside and led him into the living room. You sat across the couch from him. “What’s up?”

“Ellie told me what happened,” he said. Your shock was evident. “She explained what she did.”

“Oh.”

“She said she hated seeing me so miserable all the time,” he continued, and you realized you weren’t the only one hurting. “She said she felt some remorse.”

“I don’t… I do blame her—because she did those things. But I can understand where she’s coming from.” You shrugged. “She’s trying to protect you. You’re her family. She doesn’t want to lose you. It’s her way of showing love. I can’t fault her for that.”

“I know,” he said. “She told me everything. But it doesn’t make what she did right. You could’ve been seriously hurt. I told her that no matter what happened between us, my love for her wouldn’t change.”

“Of course not.”

“But tell me… were you really ready to never speak to me again?”

“I mean… I wouldn’t be happy about it.” Your face flushed and you couldn’t meet his eyes. “But if that was best for everyone…”

“Do you really think that would’ve been best?”

“Well… no. Now it seems trivial.” You met his honeyed gaze—reverent, gentle. “I’m glad you’re here. I missed you.”

“I missed you too.” He scooted closer. You could feel the heat radiating from his body. “You still want me to stay away?”

“I’m kind of thinking I want you to finally kiss me.”

You didn’t know where the boldness came from, but it had been long enough.

“Is that so?”

“It is—”

Joel kissed you gently, cutting you off. It caught you off guard—but it was perfect.

“Yeah?” His hand was on your cheek, thumb stroking your skin.

“Again?” Your soft request made him chuckle. “Please?”

And he didn’t waste any time.

He kissed you again.

[cosmos-coma]

Sleep Deprived

A/N: still alive!

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader

Words: 1005

Warnings: Unedited, Toot-Rotting fluff :)

Summary: You are far too nice and cannot seem to say no when the team keeps asking you for favors. Now you're ridiculously sleep-deprived and Bucky is determined for you to finally get some rest. (Grumpy Bucky X Sunshine Reader)

Bucky Masterlist

Buy me a Coffee?

_____

Kindness had always been something you prided yourself on; your willingness to help and be patient with others had almost always done you well, but sometimes you were just too nice

First, it was helping Nat go through her old paperwork late one night; she had been in an absolute rush trying to find this old file before the deadline and you didn’t even think of refusing. Then it was Tony, who all but forced you to fill in for one of his lab techs in an overnight experiment. Then Steve wanted help with some confounded modern technology that Sam swore he didn’t have the time to teach him. 

On top of it all you had hardly been sleeping the last few nights anyway.

Where you once felt vibrant and bright was now filled with far-distant gazes and tired smiles. Not that you really noticed, right now you were only focused on opening your eyes again after each agonizingly heavy blink. 

“Y/N are you sure you want to come?” Steve asked, “You look like you could use a 90-year sleep…” he commented with a quiet huff of laughter. 

You barely even registered the joke, instead just smiling sleepy on instinct to his small laugh, “I’m sure, I really do want to go. I promise I’ll be okay once we get going” you assured. The team had been planning this outing for weeks now and you swore you wouldn’t miss it. Not only that but you really didn’t want to miss out on a chance to spend a little more time with Bucky outside of work. 

He had snared you at the very first moment and he didn’t even know it. His bright blue eyes had turned away from their conversation, a small frown on his lips from whatever had just been said, and turned to you instead- jolting you with a force you couldn’t have foreseen. Ever since then your heart had been hooked, its strings unwillingly tangled by the smallest interactions.

Not you’d ever admit that to anybody.

“Doll, I really think you should consider staying home and getting some rest…” your heart thrummed as Bucky spoke, his arms crossed over his chest as he gave you a look. 

But you only held up your hands, smiling your assurances as you spoke, “I can last a few more hours..! I’ll take a nap as soon as we get back, but I’m sure I’ll last.” 

The other members of the team only looked at each other, sharing doubtful glances but nodding nonetheless- if you really wanted to go they weren’t going to try and stop you. 

“Alright then,” Nat said with a shrug and stood up, “let’s all head out then.”

Everyone stood up at once and you followed suit, your vision swimming as you stood up far too fast. “Whoa.. um, I mean… Whoo! Yeah, let’s do this…!” You took a staggering step forward. You refused to look like you couldn’t keep up and so you pushed through, giving yourself no time for recovery. 

Thankfully there was still one person watching you. Bucky stood up to follow, lingering by your side as the others moved on ahead. He’d tell himself it was purely to watch over you, but he couldn’t deny the lingering urge to be near you. Ever since your first day at the tower when you flashed your annoyingly bright smile at him… he knew he’d never be able to think of anything else. 

You stumbled but quickly caught yourself, your breathing ragged and worn as your body begged for rest. “Doll, please-“ but he didn’t have a chance to finish as you stumbled towards the ground yet again. 

Strong hands shot out to catch you, your body almost completely limp in his firm grasp. “Oh I…” you started, struggling to keep your consciousness and your breath, “Sorry… I’m okay….”

But Bucky only frowned and shook his head,  his hands scooping you up bridal style and he turned to the rest of the team who had stopped to turn back, “You guys go ahead. We’re gonna stay here and get some rest.” He said as he walked back toward the couch, acting as if holding you against his chest was the most natural thing in the world. 

“You don’t have to do that, Bucky…” you mumbled against his chest, your body more than happy to sink into him. 

“Shh, yes I do…” he spoke quietly, the whole room settling into a calm quiet as the rest of the team headed out the door, “You can’t keep doing this to yourself, Doll… I know you want to be nice, but you’re only gonna wind up hurt.” He chided as he took a seat on the couch and laid back against the armrest. 

Thanks to your lack of sleep you had no shame in rolling on top of him, your cheek squishing against his chest as you let out a tired huff. “I’m not.. good at saying no…” you murmured with eyes closed, sleep coming on fast in your comfortable state. 

The grumpy ex-soldier grinned despite himself, your sweet smooshed face stirring something in his old heart. He pulled a blanket off the top of the couch, draping it over the two of you as you seemed to be in the last thralls of consciousness.

“Bucky…?”

“Yes, Doll?”

“Will you be here when I wake up…? Please..?” Your soft voice asked, your fingers curling around his shirt in an effort to make him stay- but he didn’t need any swaying. 

A grin, as bright as your own, broke through his expression, and he nodded quietly, “I’ll be right here, Doll. I promise you….”

---

And he kept his promise. 

Hours later the rest of the team had finally returned, initially boisterous and full of laughter, they were quickly quieted down by the sight before them. 

There on the couch you and Bucky continued to lay, his strong arms wrapped firmly around your frame with his sleeping face tucked into the top of your head. 

_____________________________

General Bucky Taglist:

@writingmysanity @simpxinnie @goldylions

If I missed or accidentally tagged you lmk! Wanna be added General Bucky taglist? Please ask/DM me!

[adelliet]

Joel Miller X f!reader

NEW TATTOO

Summary: You decided to get a new spicy tattoo in a very specific place on your body. The moment Joel noticed your new addition, he couldn’t keep his hands to himself.

Warnings: 18+ MDNI, strong language, nicknames (baby, darlin',…), fingering, unprotected sex ( p i v ), pull-out method, doggy style, short aftercare

A/n: Hey! I apologize if some phrases or parts aren’t grammatically correct or don’t make sense, English isn’t my native language! <3 Anyway, enjoy!

Masterlist

“So, how do you like it?” the tattoo artist asked as she set down her tools.

Slowly, you sat up, your body feeling a little sore after lying still for hours—plus, voluntarily being tortured by needles didn’t help. As you limped toward the mirror and turned to get a proper look at your ass, your pupils widened with admiration.

“It’s fantastic,” you said with a proud smile, checking out the masterpiece from different angles. The tattoo artist giggled, clearly pleased to have another satisfied customer.

You stood in front of the mirror for several minutes, still mesmerized by your new addition. Before stepping into the salon, you'd been shaking with nerves, questioning whether this was a good idea at all. But right now, there wasn’t a single doubt in your mind. This was the best decision you could've made. No regrets whatsoever.

As you continued admiring the fresh ink on your skin, a new thought crept into your mind. How was Joel going to react? Would he be mad? Excited?

Well…you were about to find out soon.

Your excitement for Joel’s reaction grew bigger with every step you took toward home. You already knew he would be there, which made the wait easier.

“Hey, honey!” you greeted softly, glancing toward the couch where Joel was sitting. You could barely see the tip of his head, a sign of how deeply he had sunk into the cushions.

“Hey,” he murmured, turning his gaze toward you, watching as you took off your jacket, stepped out of your boots, and placed your keys on the key peg. His day always felt so much better the moment you walked through the door.

“How was your day?” His voice was calm, with just a hint of concern. You smiled, your dimples appearing as you did. There wasn’t a single day without him asking that question, without him being interested in your day, your work, basically, in everything about you.

“It was good, relaxing,” you replied, your steps leading toward Joel, before you planted a soft kiss on his pink rose-colored lips. He melted into your touch, sighing, clearly wanting more, but you straightened up, ruining his chance to get another.

“What about you?”

“Good, relaxing,” he mocked, though not in an offensive way. You pouted playfully and shook your head, as you watched him smirk at you with those devilishly mischievous eyes.

“I’ll go take a shower…” you said, delicately swaying your hair as you turned to walk upstairs. You could feel Joel’s hungry gaze burning through your body. You loved how obsessed he was with you, and he loved how much you were obsessed with him. Perfect balance.

Fresh, clean, and shining, you walked from the bathroom wearing only your panties. The moment you opened the door, your eyes spotted Joel, already lying in bed, wearing just shorts and holding a book.

You would lie if you said you weren't a bit surprised, especially at how fast he had moved from downstairs to here, but more than the surprise was a warmth building inside you.

With your bare breasts touching the cold air, you elegantly walked toward your closet. You knew Joel was looking at you through his eyelashes. Even though he had seen you naked a hundred times, his dick hardens every time you show even a tiny bit of your bare skin.

You waited patiently for Joel to notice the new decoration on your back, subtly bending over to look for a t-shirt to sleep in. It didn’t take long before you heard the bed creak, signaling that Joel had swiftly moved.

“What’s that?” His voice wasn’t as soft and calm as before. You could hear the eagerness in it, the rough, almost predatory tone.

“Hm?” you hummed, pretending to have no clue what he was referring to.

There was a small pause, Joel’s eyes locking onto your lower back, making it clear what he was talking about.

“Oh, you mean this?” You looked down at the tattoo, smiling proudly as you turned so that he could see the tattoo better. Your heart raced with excitement, even though you couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

Joel’s eyes narrowed as he took in the sight of it. The room seemed to hold its breath, his gaze intense as he examined the design. You could feel the tension in the air, the way his muscles tightened.

“Do you like it?” You lifted your head, your eyes locking with Joel’s, who was watching you intently. His face was expressionless, and you couldn’t read what was going through his mind.

He seemed completely focused, his book lost somewhere in the sheets, but at that moment, he couldn’t care less about where it had ended up.

The tattoo on your back seemed to have him in a trance, not allowing him to look away. “Come here,” he commanded, his voice serious. Without a word, you slowly walked toward him as he quickly adjusted, sitting on the edge of the bed. You turned around, glancing behind you to see what Joel was doing. His expression remained neutral, which made you feel a little anxious.

Joel’s fingers lightly brushed against the ink etched into your smooth skin. His touch sent a shiver down your spine, and he noticed it, but didn’t let it show. His fingertips traced the lines of the tattoo, exploring the texture, feeling how different it was from the smoothness of your unmarked skin. Every now and then, you couldn’t help but flinch slightly, the softness of his hands making you twitch with a mix of sensations.

His breaths grew heavier, deeper. Each one fanning against your skin as his fingertips sent jolts of electricity through your body. Heat pooled low in your stomach, an ache building as your thighs instinctively pressed together.

Joel inhaled sharply, almost as if he was steadying himself, before finally pulling his hands away. He didn’t move, didn’t speak, just stared at the ink now permanently etched onto your skin, his gaze unreadable.

“Is there a deep meaning behind this?” His voice was low, thick, as he licked his lips and finally looked up at you, his eyes locking onto yours with an intensity that sent another shiver down your spine. Like he was trying to see straight through you.

“Not really,” you admitted with a small, almost guilty smile, even though there was nothing to feel guilty about.

“I just liked it,” he nodded, pouting his lips like he was deep in thought. “And you wanted it to be in that exact spot?” His tone hadn’t changed, and with his face giving nothing away, you couldn’t tell if he was asking in a good or bad way.

“I mean, yeah…” Joel inhaled sharply, rubbing his palms against his thighs and glancing away from you. He looked… you’d even say pissed. You didn’t realize it would make him angry. It made you a little sad, but only for a second.

You didn’t even have time to take a breath before Joel yanked you by the hips, pulling you into the small space between his legs. His lips latched onto your neck immediately, sucking and biting like a goddamn vampire.

You let out a sharp gasp, completely caught off guard by the sudden move, but you melted into his touch within seconds. His hands were everywhere, exploring you like he hadn’t memorized every inch already. Despite knowing your body better than his own, he still traced your curves, squeezing every muscle he could get his hands on.

“J-Joel…” you barely managed to choke out, your voice trembling. Your panties were soaked now, definitely leaving a wet spot on the sheets.

“Gettin’ a tattoo, huh?” he murmured, his hot breath ghosting over your already sore neck.

You arched your back as his hands slid up your inner thighs, teasingly close to where you needed him most.

“We both know damn well why you got that,” he whispered between brief pauses in his kisses.

Your hands moved on their own, sliding behind you to tangle in Joel’s dark curls. You tugged whenever the need for pressure between youe legs became too much to bear.

You couldn’t even fully focus on his words, as the only thing your brain let you think about, was your throbbing pussy. Your arches were getting your ass closer with every more to Joel's dick, being tightly captivated in his shorts.

Your hips were moving forward and back, desperately trying to create some friction, but Joel wasn't a teaser. Well, not today.

One of his hand elegantly and painfully slowly slides under your panties, finding your clit and without hesitation, he started making small, recurring circles. His finger was just slightly pressed, not giving you the full strenght yet.

“Fuck you're wet…” he groans, resting his forehead against your shoulder, during which you tried really hard not to scream his name through the whole neighborhood.

He was so good with his hands, especially his fingers. The more circles he made the closer you were getting to the edge, but you didn't want to end it so soon. But Joel didn't give you much of a choice when he pushed in not one, but two fingers at once. "Fuck Joel-" you gasp, throwing your head back as you shutted your eyes tightly.

He was stretching you, his fingers skillfully curling inside you, making the juicy sound sourrounded the whole room, that was already filled with thick tension. Your hips were moving along his fingers, desperately riding him. You were pathetic, but that was the last thing you cared about right now.

"Come on baby, I know you like it" Joel pushed you even closer to your orgasm by his hot crispy voice. His pace grew, he was pumping his fingers in and out, loving the way it sounds. You were losing it. The heat between your legs grew bigger, dangerously fast and you couldn't stop it. You started trembling all over, your legs shaking and the urge to pee was already there.

"J-Joel I-" you couldn't even form a full sentence, but it was already too late. Your walls clenched around his fingers and you moaned loudly as you came. Joel was still working you up, stopping when you came down your high. "That's it, good girl" he gave you soft kisses all over your neck, giving you a minute to breathe.

Your chest moving up and down rapidly, you would appreciate a longer break, but Joel didn't give you that. Instead, he grabbed you and clamsily laid you on your back onto the bed, that sagged under his weight. You were looking into his dark hungry eyes full of lust, as you were trying to catch your breath.

"Now tell me, did you get that tattoo because of me?" his voice was shaking, not because he was scared or anything, but he was running out of patience while his dick in his shorts slowly began to tear a hole to free himself.

Your pulse quickened, you didn’t know how to respond, and you couldn’t. It felt like someone had cut out your tongue. It was so hard to answer.

“N-no,” Joel scoffed, his tone clearly showing he didn’t believe you. “Well, still, what did you expect to happen when I would notice?” He was still teasing you, clearly wanting to hear you admit that you wanted him to fuck you. But you were too weak for that.

“I don't know” you somehow manage to answer fully, but it wasn't a satysfying answer for Joel. He pulled down his shorts while still maintaining eye contact with you. His tip rubbed gently against your inner thight, making your core start pulsating again.

"Tell me darlin', do you want to be fucked?" his face just inches from yours, his arms keeping him steady over you. God he smelled so good, you adore his cologne and right now, it's tickling your olfactory buds like never before.

You nodded harshly, your lips parting and your eyebrows flicking up, as you desperately wanted to be filled by him. You didn't need to coax him twice.

He suddenly grabbed you and flipped you onto your stomach, while he held your waist tightly and raised it, so that he could easily penetrate you. "God, I won’t last long with you like this," he growled before slowly sanking into you. You buried your face in the mattress, moaning at the top of your lungs and gripping the sheets tightly around you.

You always forget how big he really is.

"Just like that, you're doing so good sweatheart" he supported you, before pushing himself into you all the way to the base.

Joel heard you screaming his name into the mattress and that only turned him on even more. When he looked down and focused on his view, on your beautiful round ass and that gorgeous tattoo, he knew he's the one that's fucked.

His hips started moving, slowly not to hurt you, but it was just a short peaceful warm-up. After a few more gentle thrusts, he pulled out of you almost fully, before aggressively slamming into you with full strength. You moved your face to the side to breathe, your whimpers now more clear.

"Oh darlin'" his words came out like exhales, every time he shoves deeply into you. "You're. So. Tight. Fuck-" he increased the pace and force, it wasn't just hard pushes anymore, but frequent thrusts that made your ass jiggle. The smacking sound, mixed with yours and Joel's moans were surrounding the entire room, which smelled like sex and passion.

The soft lamp that shone with warm light, standing on the bedside table, gave the whole moment an irreplaceable atmosphere. A nice, calming vibe, which Joel put the cherry on top by mercilessly fucking you from behind.

"J-joel" you saw it coming. Another orgasm of this night. "I know baby, I know" he hissed, clenching his jaw as he threw his head back, disappointed he couldn’t look at your tattoo anymore, but he couldn’t handle it no more. His thrusts were out of control. He was currently just trying to catch up with his orgasm, miserably.

“Oh Jesus Christ-“ Joel saw white stars, his eyes squeezed shut so tightly. You were in exact same situation. All your senses stopped, your ears started ringing, and your whole body went numb. You gasped so loudly, arching your back as much as your body allows, before you released yourself. Just when your body relaxed, Joel quickly pulled out of you and squirted his white thick liquid on your back.

He groaned loudly, as you fell down onto the bed and closed your eyes, exhausted, but more satisfied than you expected. You could hear Joel, breathing like he just ran a marathon. "Fuck baby, that would make a great photo" he pointed with his last bit of strength to your tattoo, now covered in his cum and you both chuckled.

After a while, he took the tissues and gently wiped your back, before collapsing next to you. All you could do was turning your head towards Joel. Beads of sweat filled his old tired face. He looked terrible but perfect at the same time. His messy hair, gray beard, nose that you could ride from morning to night, he was perfect.

He sensed that you were watching him, so he opened his eyes and turned his head, your eyes locking with his. "You're okay?" his voice sounded a little worried, but when you nodded your head and gave him a reassuring smirk, he smiled back in relief.

“You know, that tattoo really awakened the beast in me,” he added, and you laughed in agreement. The truth was, you really hadn’t expected this. Deep down, you had hoped it would happen, but you didn’t set your hopes too high. With Joel, though, you never know.

He’s full of surprises.

[lewisvinga]

not so soft launch | alexia putellas x fem! reader

summary; alexia really doesn’t know what a soft launch is

fc; christina nadin

warnings; cursing

all works taglist; @goldenmclaren @namgification @c-losur3 @minkyungseokie @lavisenri @ollieshifts

note; first woso fic / smau 😋 i rlly love smaus

masterlist !

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

yourusername uploaded to their story !

[caption 1; mornings from mexico 🌞] [caption 2; beach beach beach]

username rue… when was this??

username Y/N?????1&/@929

friendone oh i know ur having the time of ur life

yourusername oh yes i am😋

yourbestfriend soft launch eraaa

yourusername if she can even do one,i am having my doubts 😞

yourbestfriend i mean it’s alexia,,, im sure she’d get what a soft launch is…..

yourusername we shall see 🤓

alexiaputellas amor???? my face isn’t even in the pictures?🤔

yourusername bc that’s what a soft launch is, babe😕

alexiaputellas todavía no entiendo 🙄 [i still don’t understand]

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

liked by alexiaputellas, yourbestfriend, and others !

yourusername: 🌴

username: are u soft launching 😞😞😞

username: body is tea tho😍

username: did we just lose y/n 💔💔

username: y/n w a gf? A WIN FOR THE GAYS!!🏳️‍🌈

username: those tattoos look familiar…👀👀

username: I KNOWW, maybe she’s dating a certain fcb player???🤔🤔

friendone:🫢🫢

friendtwo: tell her i say hola😋

yourusername: she said hi🤗

username: who is she plz y/n😠😠

username: when i shout my girl my girl my girl too much n i fr lost her ( i never had a chance )

alexiaputellas: why’d you crop my face out 🙁

yourbestfriend: i told u her ass doesn’t know what a soft launch is🥱

alexiaputellas: i do know🙄🙄

alexiaputellas: oh wait

yourusername: you’re so lucky i love you 😒

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆⋆ ˚｡⋆୨♡୧⋆ ˚｡⋆

liked by yourusername, marialeonn16, and others !

alexiaputellas: what is a soft launch anyways ?

tagged; yourusername

yourusername: i’m done u ruined my absolutely perfect soft launch😔😔

alexiaputellas: i’ll make it up to you😁

marialeonn16: there are?? children present???

alexiaputellas: you mean yourself 🤨????

marialeonn16: ???????

yourusername: love u but just accept it mapi

marialeonn16: NO???

yourusername: are u single ????🤭🤭

alexiaputellas: i’m dating this one girl who keeps whining in my ear about ruining her soft launch😕

yourusername: was gonna say ur hot or whatever but nvm🙄🙄

alexiaputellas: i can feel your eyes on me

yourbestfriend: y/n just has 0 shame unfortunately 😔

username: GOOD MORNING TO YOU TOO????

username: oh she’s gorgeous 😍

username: IS THAT Y/N????

username: my two world colliding 😭😭

username: oh this is an it couple for sure

jennihermoso: you really couldn’t hold back, could you?

alexiaputellas: nope !

ingrid_engen: cuties 😍

marialeonn16: INGRID NO. they’re mean and they’re bullies

ingrid_engen: to be fair you do like to bother them a lot…

yourusername: 😁😁😁

marialeonn16: is this attack mapi day or what??

alexiaputellas: yes

username: i know damn well she knows what a soft launch is 😭

username: she rlly said fuck a soft launch and hard launches the most gorgeous girl ever😫

[10byten]

Meeting Jaehyun’s friend

So here's part 2 of this publication ! The dinner with the rest of 127 and how you manage to charm them all over the course of one evening. I hope you’ll enjoy it. 💘

As soon as Jaehyun steps into the apartment, he’s hit by the most delicious smell teasing his senses. In the living room, a table filled with Italian dishes catches his eye. You’re standing in the kitchen, carefully spreading lemon glaze over a cake. He can’t resist. He slips an arm around your waist and pulls you close, hugging you from behind. You tilt your head slightly, giving him access to your neck, and he starts placing soft kisses along your skin.

“You’re incredible. What is all this?” “I wanted to do something nice for you… and make sure your friends eat well tonight.” He chuckles, looking at the food. “I’m worried they’ll start coming over too often after this.” You laugh, “Would that be such a bad thing?” In one swift move, he spins you around to face him, a playful glint in his eye. “Hmm, yeah, actually. That would be a problem. I wouldn’t get enough alone time with you.” He leans in, kissing you deeply, savoring your lips as if it’s been years instead of just a day apart. His hands wander lower.

“Mm-mm,” you murmur against his lips, breaking the moment, “your friends are literally going to be here in one minute.” “I’m starting to regret inviting them. Who even needs friends, anyway?” “That’s a great question. We could just pretend no one’s home. Let them get bored of ringing the bell.” Jaehyun groans dramatically, pressing his forehead against yours. “This is exactly why you’re dangerous. You’re always so perfect.”

Before he can pull you in for another kiss, the doorbell rings. You laugh softly, escaping his arms, leaving him pouting like a kid. He trails behind you as you open the door, his gaze still glued to you, stars in his eyes.

The night kicks off better than anyone could’ve imagined.

The boys are all immediately charmed. They compliment your cooking nonstop, their plates barely staying full for longer than a minute.

“I have to admit, I had my doubts when we got to the door earlier,” Haechan jokes. “For a second, I thought we’d open it to find Jaehyun standing there alone, and it’d finally be time to stage an intervention.” You raise an eyebrow, amused. “An intervention? For what?” “Well, we’ve heard a lot about you… like, a lot, and Jaehyun was so secretive about everything, we kinda started wondering if you were even real.”

“Oh, I see,” you tease. “Or maybe you’re all just crazy and have been talking to an empty chair this whole time.” The room erupts into laughter. Johnny raises his glass. “Damn, dude. Now I get it. She’s a keeper.”

Jaehyun grins, looking completely smitten. “You can bet I’m not letting her go.”

Yuta’s eyes light up when he realizes you know a bit of Japanese. You both slip into a quick conversation, leaving the rest of the group completely mesmerized.

“Uh, are we allowed to know what you two are saying?” Mark finally asks, looking between you and Yuta like he’s missing out on the most exclusive secret.

“Nothing all that exciting,” Taeyong replies for you, his tone a mix of intimidation and admiration as he glances at Jaehyun. “But, honestly? It’s impressive. Respect.”

Johnny leans back with a smirk, looking directly at you. “So let me get this straight—you cook, you’re funny, interesting, multilingual, and, no offense Jaehyun, you’re absolutely stunning. Are we sure he’s the one? I mean, if you ever start doubting or if things don’t work out, call me, yeah?”

You laugh, playing along. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks for the offer.”

Jaehyun shakes his head with a small laugh, his eyes softening as he leans down to press a kiss to your shoulder. “Not even a chance I’d let that happen,” he murmurs, his voice firm but full of affection.

When you stand to grab dessert, the guys erupt into dramatic gestures of approval toward Jaehyun—thumbs up, silent cheers, all of it. You giggle, shaking your head as Taeyong gets up to help you clear the plates, following you to the kitchen.

“That’s really sweet, but you didn’t have to,” you say as he starts collecting dishes. “It’s the least I can do. I know what it’s like handling a big table like that.”

You laugh, teasing him. “Yeah, I guess you’re kind of the dad of a huge family.” He nods, chuckling. “But I can’t cook half as well as you. Honestly, I think you’ve stolen everyone’s hearts—and their stomachs—tonight.”

“Hmm, not sure I’ve won Jungwoo over yet, though.” Taeyong laughs softly. “Well, before you, it was him sharing a room with Jaehyun. Just a little case of jealousy—it’ll pass, don’t worry.”

In the living room, the guys can’t stop talking about you.“Where’d you even find her?” Mark asks, clearly amazed. “And do they have more in stock?” Johnny leans back, grinning. “Honestly, I get why you hid her from us for so long. If it were me, I’d move her to some remote cabin in the woods and never let anyone else see her.” Doyoung, never missing an opportunity to tease, smirks. “Dude, I hope you know she’s way too good for you.” Jaehyun just rolls his eyes, grinning smugly. “I knew she’d blow you guys away.”

Haechan squints dramatically. “Unless she’s secretly, like, an assassin or something. You know, using you as a cover story.” Jaehyun smirks. “She can use me for whatever she wants.” “Yup, there it is. You’re done for. Completely whipped and hopelessly in love,” Yuta laughs, shaking his head.

Jaehyun blushes slightly, his confidence slipping for just a moment. It’s obvious to everyone in the room just how head over heels he is for you.

You and Taeyong return to the table, carrying the cake and a stack of plates. The moment Jungwoo takes his first bite, his eyes widen, and he practically lights up.

“This is amazing! You have to tell me the recipe,” he gushes, showering you with compliments.

You smile, feeling a wave of pride. “I’d be happy to make another one just for you, Jungwoo.”

And with that, you’ve officially won over the last holdout at the table. Taeyong gives you a knowing wink, as if to say, Told you so. You grin back, proud of yourself.

Jaehyun, watching the whole thing, can’t help but marvel at you. Seeing you charm his friends so effortlessly makes his heart swell. Somehow, he feels like he’s falling even deeper in love with you—if that’s even possible.

As everyone moves to the living room to settle down with some tea, Jaehyun puts on a vinyl, letting soft music fill the air while the conversation flows. The guys start shuffling around, competing to make space for you to sit next to them, but Jaehyun steps in, cutting through their suggestions.

“You’ll be just fine right here.” His tone leaves no room for debate as he grabs your hand, guiding you gently. His other arm wraps around your waist, pulling you onto his lap.

You settle in willingly, your arms sliding around his shoulders as his arm tightens protectively around your waist. His hand rests firmly on your hip, just above your thighs, his touch possessive but comforting.

You’re too wrapped up in the conversation with the guys to notice, but Jaehyun doesn’t take his eyes off you for a second. Watching you laugh, hearing your voice, and feeling you this close—it’s driving him crazy.

The self-control he’s been clinging to all night in front of his friends is wearing thin. His thoughts drift to everything he’s been wanting to do since he got home. He leans into your neck, burying his face in your hair as he breathes in your familiar scent, the one that he’s absolutely addicted to. A wave of desire hits him, and you feel his hand tighten on your hip as the muscles in his thighs tense beneath you.

You know what that means—your man wants you, and he’s done hiding it.

Yuta, who knows Jaehyun better than anyone, doesn’t miss a thing. He notices the shift in Jaehyun’s mood, how his mind has clearly left the room and wandered to other plans for the evening. With a knowing smirk, Yuta takes charge.

“I think it’s time we head out,” he says, signaling the end of the night.

Johnny takes your hand and kisses it lightly. “Dear Y/n, I speak for all of us when I say—please, don’t break our Jae. We’ve never seen him like this with anyone.”

You smile at the heartfelt declaration, warmth spreading through you. Looking over at your boyfriend, you catch him walking toward you with that familiar look in his eyes. He wraps his arms around you from behind, pressing against you like a puppy craving attention.

All he’s waiting for is for the door to close so he can sweep you off to his room and make sure every bit of your focus is on him—and him only.

“I promise, I’ll do my best,” you tease, giving him a playful smile.

The guys thank you once more before heading out, leaving the two of you alone.

-

On the way back, the guys chat excitedly about you, sharing their individual impressions. They all gush about what they loved—how effortlessly you fit in with Jaehyun and how glad they feel that their friend found someone like you. There’s one, however, who stays quiet.

“Taeyong, what did you think of her?” Yuta asks, a playful curiosity in his voice.

“I agree with you guys,” Taeyong replies, his tone soft. “She’s... unique.” Guys keep talking on.

But Doyoung, ever observant, notices Taeyong’s distant expression—his eyes unfocused, as though lost in thought. He starts to wonder if maybe one of them has been a little more taken by you than the others.

For the rest of the night, and even the days that follow, Taeyong can’t get you out of his mind. He finds himself replaying your interactions. And in his head, the same words keep echoing: It’s just a crush. It’ll pass…

-

As soon as the door shuts, Jaehyun’s lips are on yours like he’s been starving for days. Between each kiss, he whispers, “Thank you, my love, for tonight.” When his lips trail down to your neck, you take the chance to reply.

“It was my pleasure. I really loved meeting the guys. I’m so happy you introduced me to them.” “Hmm, yeah, but now I’m worried they’ll want to see you way too often.” You laugh softly. “What, afraid you’ll have to share?”

That’s when he pulls back slightly, just enough to look you in the eye, his expression darkening in the most delicious way. He presses you gently against the wall, his voice dropping. “I don’t share. Not when it comes to you. You’re mine. Completely.”

Your knees practically give out at the serious tone in his voice. Everything about him in this moment—his gaze, his touch, his entire presence—screams love and desire.

“I’m afraid you’ve made me selfish,” he murmurs, brushing his lips along your jawline. “And maybe a little too possessive.” You shiver at his words, at the heat they stir in you. “I’m sorry for that.” “Don’t be.” His voice is low and rough now. “But you’re gonna have to deal with it.”

“I think I can manage,” you whisper back, breathless. “Good,” he growls softly, lifting you effortlessly into his arms.

In no time, he’s carrying you to the bedroom, intent on showing you exactly how grateful he is for tonight—and how much he adores every little thing about you.

-

[lordprettyflackotara]

Follow You || Chapter Two || Eyeless Jack

sum: after returning to your college dorm room, jack just can’t stay away. this ends up resulting in an unfortunate run in with your unhinged roommate

tw: mentions of drug usage/drugs

a/n: i want to make it very clear i do not support drug usage as depicted in this story. this is a work of fiction and i would never encourage you to snort adderall lmaoo

chapter one is here

“You’re gonna be shaped like the letter C for the rest of your life if you sit like that.”

Jennifer’s voice was sour, an obvious sign she was sober. You looked over at your roommate, rolling your eyes. “You sit just like this, only you do it to get high, I do it for academics,” You countered. You wouldn’t consider your roommate, Jennifer, a friend. If anything she was far from it. She had long ginger hair, big green eyes, and freckles that decorated her cheeks. You had been assigned as roommates your freshman year of college. You both had heard horror stories of other people's roommates and decided although you weren’t fond of one another, you could tolerate each other's habits.

Giving Jennifer the benefit of the doubt she wasn’t wrong, even if it was hypocritical. You had been hunched over your desk for what felt like eternity, studying and writing notes for an upcoming exam. Out of instinct you leaned back, stretching over the back of your chair. “Touché. This exam has you bent out of shape huh?” Jennifer asked. She was laying on her bed, lazily hanging her head off of the side. Her eyes were glued to her phone, her fingers typing away. “That's a severe understatement. You try taking biochemistry. Everything is blending together the longer I look at it,” You sighed. You rubbed your temple, letting out an exhausted breath. “Yeah, I think I'm good. I’ll still with my art major,” The ginger replied. Glancing at her you could see the noticeable eye bags hanging under her eyes. You see Jennifer had an astounding drug problem, one you had grown tolerant of. Despite not partaking in substances yourself, you were well educated in the world of pharmaceuticals. Jennifer took advantage of your knowledge, in exchange for keeping that aspect of her life out of your dorm.

Your shared bathroom was up for grabs naturally, but your main bedroom was not. You thought of Jennifer to just be a woke party girl, who spent her spare time either partying or attending whatever cause she was obsessed with for the week. This week it happened to be veganism. You suspected this charade wouldn’t last long, considering any protein Jennifer consumed seemed to evaporate due to her constant drug usage. She’d feel like shit and get bacon next week at breakfast, you were sure. “Are you going to Mark’s Halloween party? It’s all anyone can talk about right now,” Jennifer asked. You propped your head up on your hand, giving her a sarcastic smile. “Cmon Jen, you know I don’t party. Besides my big exams are the day after,” You reminded her. Not that she should’ve needed reminding, considering it’s all you could think about. It may have only been the beginning of October, but your focus was consumed by your studies.

Jennifer rolled her eyes, rolling over on her stomach. “You know a part of the college experience is socializing right? Your books aren’t going to do you any favors when it comes to meeting hot guys,” She said teasingly, sticking out her tongue. You noticed she had changed her tongue piercing, a neon green ball sitting on her unbrushed tongue. “Hot guys can come after I become a doctor. Half of the guys here are gonna drop out anyways,” You replied. Jennifer snickered, her gaze returning to her phone. “Thats not what you think about Ethan Kibber though,” She teased. You felt heat rush to your cheeks at the sound of his name.

Ethan Kibber. Tall, mean, incredibly handsome. He had beautiful dreadlocks that went down to his shoulders, his chocolate orbs always captivating you every time you saw him. And his voice? It was deep and raspy enough to make you swoon. He was a psychology major, determined to thrive as a psychologist. His admission to Harvard had been publicized, his sister having been a victim to suicide. Ever since then he had been determined to help others mental health. A trait you absolutely adored. He also played football, typical jock popularity following along with it. But you admired his ability to never let that change him. Sure, your only interactions had been nods or brief greetings in the hallway. You were sure it was only because Jennifer walked beside you, but you thought the effort to acknowledge you was sweet.

Playfully you threw a pencil at her, causing her to giggle. “Don't tell me you’re going to try to bribe me by guaranteeing his attendance,” You groaned. Jennifer sat up fully, sliding off of her bed. “Not necessarily but it would be soooo good for you to get out more. You’re always cooped up in here all the time,” She replied. You watched her go over to the bathroom, doing what she did best. You tried not to stare as you heard a drawer open and shut. Her special little ‘stash’. “Hey, what'll get me through my quiz today? I have a bunch of uppers,” She asked. You cringed at the thought of her voice echoing into another dorm. “What time is your quiz?” You asked. You refrained from looking over your shoulder, no matter how much your curiosity lured you to. “In an hour,” Jennifer responded. Your eyes widened, your gaze glued to your desk. “Jesus, Jen. Take an adderall and crush it up and snort it,” You sighed. You didn’t enjoy assisting Jennifer’s drug problem, but you also despised the idea of having to help her detox. Not that she ever truly would.

“Thanks! You’re the best. Now back to what I was saying,” She replied. You could hear the rattling of pills in a bottle, before the sound of them crushing occurred. “I know you’re not a party go-er but why not give it a try? You’re basically a scientist right? Why not trial and error another party?” She asked. Another party. You felt slightly embarrassed at the memory, glancing down at your bandages. You hadn��t told anyone about Jack or what had happened. You pretended you went home with a guy you didn’t remember, earning a big congratulations from your precious roommate. Little did she or anyone else know you were a virgin, dreaming of the day Ethan Kibber would sweep you off your feet. So you played along with the story, claiming you had fallen a bunch at the party. You regretted every second that you attended, cringing at how sloppy of a drunk you turned out to be. Turns out having an unrestricted supply of alcohol is troublesome for even the best students.

“I want to be a doctor in medicine, not science. Although I appreciate the notion, I think i’m good,” You say. You cringed at the sound of her loudly snorting, a sigh of relief escaping her lips. “Give it some thought. Why not come out with me this weekend? Spend the week being a bookworm but loosen up on the weekend with me,” Jennifer suggested. She walked out of the bathroom, grabbing a hoodie. Her high waisted early 2000’s pink shorts were not suitable for the weather at all. Jennifer never feared the weather, no matter how freezing cold it was. Instead she would double layer her tank tops, making sure they were cropped enough to show off her playboy belly ring. She shoved on a hoodie that you presumed she ‘borrowed’ from her last fling. That was the only way she ever obtained winter wear. “Yeah yeah i’ll think about it. Hurry up and go before you’re late,” You say, finally rising from your chair. You handed her whatever pair of uggs she was obsessed with for the time being, wishing her good luck before practically shoving her out of the door.

You ran your fingers through your hair, stressed out beyond belief. How were you going to manage parenting your roommate while balancing studying for possibly your most important exam yet? You trudged over to the bathroom, satisfied to see that the counters were clean. You looked at yourself in the mirror, noticing how exhausted you appeared. Your hair had grown out longer than you preferred, your face more worn out looking than usual. You leaned over to the sink, flipping on the cold water. You needed to focus. You splashed your face with cold water, rubbing your eyes as you did so. Colorful dots danced in your vision as it settled, your hand struggling to find the towel. You managed to find it, wiping your face before tossing it aside.

It was then your heart jumped out of your chest, a tall ominous figure standing beside your desk. You jumped in surprise, nearly tripping over a pair of Jennifer’s discarded sneakers. Swallowing, you took deep breaths, realizing Jack was standing before you. In his visible hand was your heels, coated with mud from your journey into the woods. “Holy shit, what the hell are you doing here?” You hissed. While you were slightly fearful of Jack’s presence, the demon didn’t interpret your words to mean that at all. He held up your heels, setting them down on the floor. “I climbed through your window. You should really lock that,” Jack told you. He thought he was being helpfully informative, all the while your emotions were going haywire. “I brought you back your shoes, you accidentally left them at my cabin,” He explained. Your brain fully seemed to register the situation, your head instinctively nodding. Jack wasn’t intending to be creepy or unsettling, he was just trying to be nice.

“Thank you. You scared the shit out of me. At least give me some warning next time,” You say awkwardly, rocking back and forth on your heels. There was a certain tension, where neither of you seemed to know what to do with the other. Jack, an oversized demon with the communication skills of a walnut, just wanted to get to know you. Maybe it was the savior complex he was beginning to form, but something about you was intriguing. A connection. An odd connection that kept him wanting to come back. You, an overworked stressed out med student, were extremely unsure how to handle Jack’s attention. You had never acquired such attention from a male. Nor had you ever received such genuine kindness. It made you suspicious of his intentions, as if his rough exterior appearance didn’t do that enough. Jack inhaled, his eyebrows raising. His action confused you, your eyes widening in surprise as he pushed past you into the bathroom.

You stared dumb founded as he yanked open one of the bathroom drawers, revealing Jennifer’s infamous drawer of treasure. Jack couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “I thought you were a med student. Why the hell do you have percocet and xanax in your bathroom? Do you know how bad this is for you?” Jack asked, his tone laced with how offended he was. He was thankful for his acute sense of smell, the scent of crushed adderall catching his attention. You didn’t seem like you did substances, your face twisting in disgust. “They're not mine you flimsy snoop! They’re my roommates. How the hell did you know they were there?” You fired back. Jack went to quip a response, when his ears twitched. The scent of your roommate was coming closer, her heart racing as fast as Jack would expect from a college student snorting adderall. “Your roommate is coming,” Jack whispered. You barely managed to choke out a sound of confusion, his large hand grabbing your arm and dragging you into the bathroom. His touch was absurdly hot, his skin so warm it felt like it could burn you. You gasped in surprise as Jack pressed you back against the bathroom door, flicking the tiny lock on the door handle.

There was no time for confusion, the sound of your dorms door flying open. “Roomie? Where are you?” Jennifer asked. Jack flinched at the sound of her voice, the hoarseness making him freeze. He hadn’t accounted for being seen by anyone else. “In the bathroom, w-what’s up?” You sputtered. Jack didn’t need to relay the fear he felt, his tenseness telling you everything you needed to know. “Theyre sending the drug dogs around to our floor, I need to flush all of my shit,” Jennifer squealed, desperately shaking the doorknob. Under his mask Jack was terrified, seemingly frozen in fear. The Operator would have his head on a silver platter for exposing their kind. “I-I got it. Trust me i’ll take care of it,” You replied. Your eyes flickered back and forth at Jacks mask, searching for any emotion. The endless void of darkness stared back at you, the unsettling tar like substance dripping down the royal blue mask. Jack could then hear the sound of conversation a few doors down, a drunk pair of roommates arguing about a broken bottle. It wasn’t long before the smell of metallic blood flooded his nostrils, one of the roommates evidently cutting themselves on the glass. An odd sound escaped Jack’s throat, similar to a hum. You flinched at the sound, before pushing past Jack.

“You’ll take care of it? Let me help you it’s my stuff,” Jennifer pleaded, desperation lacing her words. Through Jack’s hungry haze, he realized just how worried your roommate was about you seeing her stash. Jack wasn’t an expert of human interaction by any means, but he gained the sense that you had no idea just how many kinds of drugs she had stored away in that drawer. Jack tried to push past you, not wanting to ruin your friendship. He grabbed random bottles, unscrewing the lids and tossing them in the toilet. “Is there someone else in there?” Jennifer asked. Jack watched your cheeks flush pink, your mouth running dry. “W-What? N-no!” You sputtered, becoming rapidly embarrassed. Your embarrassment was distraction enough, Jack managing to grab a majority of the unlabeled bottles. Your eyes flickered over to the drawer, your clammy hand grabbing a small baggie of marijuana. Jacks eye sockets widened as you shoved it down your shirt. “I can hear two sets of footsteps in there. Is this the guy?!” She squeaked, her mood jumping to excitement. Now Jack was the one flustered, freezing in place.

You grabbed the pill bottle from his hand, finishing dumping them out. Jack had misread you. You did tell her. How much did she know? “What? Fuck, uh, yeah it is,” You replied, stumbling over each word. You stood on your tippy toes, brushing past Jack’s hood. Your breath was hot against his skin, the demons own heart beginning to feel as though it was racing. “She thinks I lost my virginity in the woods, just follow my lead,” You whispered. Jack raised an eyebrow, relieved at the notion you had in fact kept his secret. “OH MY GOD! Can I meet him?” Jennifer squealed, her voice high and pitchy. Jack cringed at the sound, wondering if a human girl's whines could make his ears bleed. ”Uh no you cannot, we’re gonna leave now,” You rambled. In an unsure manner you grabbed his hand, the demon grabbing onto the wall. Your doe eyes met his, something calming about the color staring back at him. “Trust me,” You whispered. You unlocked the door, shoving it open. Jack avoided looking at Jennifer, keeping his head down. He could hear the cops beginning to search your neighboring dorm mates. “They’re coming,” Jack mumbled, just low enough so you could hear him. You squeezed his hand, pushing past a gushing Jennifer.

“This is him? Why’s he wearing a mask?” She questioned. You guided Jack over to the window, pushing the blinds aside and shoving it open. “I’m uh, into mask play,” You said slowly, as if you were unsure of the own words coming out of your mouth. Jack was halfway out of the window, freezing once he heard your flustered words. “Like ghostface? Seriously? You’ve only had sex once and you’re jumping into mask play?” Jennifer gasped, flabbergasted at the mere thought you were presenting her. Your cheeks were bright red, nervously shoving on a random pair of sneakers. “Yup I am. Don’t judge me. I don’t judge you. Gonna go now, bye!” You rambled, practically shoving Jack out of the window. He jumped down first effortlessly, realizing your dorm was on the third floor. You nervously peered out of the window, looking down at Jack. The demon knew time was thin, outstretching his arms and waiting for you to jump. The overwhelming knock at the door gave you enough courage, your eyes screwing shut as you threw yourself out of the window.

[the-traveling-poet]

okay how abt levi coming home to see his twin babes and his wife passed out on the bed, still in their normal clothes. the kids are on top of reader and they're all just sleeping and levi walks in on them and he just stares at them with sm love that he's like 'what did i do to deserve them?' 😭♥

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ofc lovely! i’m so sorry for the amount of time it took me to get to this! i also hope you don’t mind i did this in drabble form, i felt it suiting. but if anything written doesn’t match your preferences, just let me know and i’ll re-write!

taglist: @21aurora @deepzombieyouth @braunsbabe @pelicanpizza @humanitys-strongest-brat @raginginferno267 dm me to be added to the taglist for levi content :)

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For a moment, he wondered if he might have forgotten something. Perhaps plans had been made during his work day without his knowledge. Maybe he was just home early...no, it was half past nine in the evening. He was home late, if any time hadn't been accounted for.

Why then, couldn't he see nor hear a single sound? How could such a busy home be so quiet, as the sun had only just set? Usually his home was bustling with noise not unpleasant to his ears, especially come the warmer months of summer.

Setting his uniform jacket aside to hang on a peg, and removing the over-the-knee boots to be placed into a cubby designed to hold them off the ground, Levi huffed to himself as his eyes scanned his immediate surroundings.

Before him set the living room, cleaned and seemingly untouched; he'd have to thank his wife later for keeping the place up to his standards, especially with how hard she worked to provide for their children on top of it all.

Every time he saw the evidence of her diligence to keep their home clean on top of her other tasks, he swore he fell in love all the more.

She does so much...I need more time off duty to fully repay her.

Once his gear straps had been loosened, and his dress shirt half unbuttoned under his now untied cravat, he peered into the dining room and then the kitchen; still not spotting a single sign of life. Only a discarded cup sat at the dining room table, and a cleaned pan rested on the stovetop.

At least now he knew his family had been here for dinner.

Surely they couldn't have retired to bed yet? Those brats strive to become nocturnal.

He thought to himself as he meandered down a short hall leading to his boy's room they shared.

Inside, the room was dark and vacant under the faint glow of the moon shining down through their open window, blinds swaying gently in the soft breeze that filtered through and cooled the room.

Not a toy nor article of clothing was out of place. Hell, even their shoes had been stored in their respective sides of the closet they shared.

This isn't right...Though, perhaps Y/N had the time to remind them to tidy up.

By now, a slight furrow had settled onto Levi's brow. Grey eyes squinted through the darkness as he made a last ditch effort to search his own bedroom he shared with his wife for the whereabouts of his family.

It was too quiet. Too clean. Too dark...Just how long had he been in that meeting anyways? Long enough for the sun to begin it's decent across the horizon and miss his family's company? Surely they weren't out on such a night, despite its warmth and full moon. The neighbors were a popular spot to find his family when they weren't in the home, as the couple next door had children close in age to his own. Though, he doubted such an occurrence was the case tonight.

He hadn't seen a lantern lit outside their home on his way to his own door, after all.

But soon all worry and speculation was wiped from Levi's mind when the door to the master bedroom was creaked open.

Sprawled out across his bed lay his family, snuggled up and tangled into impressive positions under the duvet.

In the center of his bed lay his wife, an arm above her head and her lips parted in soft breath.

On either of her sides laid their twins, cuddled close to their mother amidst the mess of pillows and covers.

Normally Levi might have thought the boys were outgrowing their need or want to share a bed with their parents, but considering his growing concern earlier in trying to locate his wife and children, he couldn't help but smile down at the sight of them all so close and cosy.

He could never say no to his wife, much less his own children.

He stared down at them a moment in silent awe, a minute smile adorning his lips. Noting how soundly they seemed to sleep, he opted to slip into the shower for a quick wash up before ultimately joining them for the night. He was a bit of a night owl himself, but how could he resist joining such a warm scene?

Once he was dressed in loose pants and an old shirt, he crept over to the bed in the center of the room and attempted to slip onto the mattress without landing on any sprawled limbs.

And for the most part, he was successful.

Now laid back on one of his son's sides, he gentle scooped his arm around the boy’s back, easily reaching his wife's shoulder on the other side. With a deep sigh, and a small smile on his face, Levi closed his eyes, ready to finally relax for the first time today since the sun had risen.

"Daddy?"

The sudden whisper had Levi's eyes snapping open in an instant, to then peer down at the small voice that spoke it.

He came eye to sleepy eye with his son opposite his wife, who now peered over his mother's form to meet his father's curious gaze.

"Yeah, brat, s'just me." He murmured back, using his free arm to lean over and lightly ruffle his boy's hair.

"You got home late," the boy yawned, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm sorry, I got held back. I wanted to be back for dinner," Levi whispered, lightly stroking his thumb over the boy's plump cheek. His son nuzzled into the touch with yet another yawn.

"We missed you...Mom made pasta."

"Mmh...Any left that I could grab for breakfast?" Levi murmured back, smiling despite himself.

"Nope...We ate it all up. It's aaall gone now," his boy confessed with a guilty, sleepy smile.

Humming, Levi merely shook his head.

"I'd rather have you three full and satisfied than having any leftovers for another meal. Get some sleep kid, I'll stay home tomorrow."

A happy hum followed Levi's admission, though the man doubted his son even understood what he had said from how sleep he appeared. And indeed only a handful of silent seconds passed before the boy was asleep against his rough palm.

Though Levi didn't mind; touch from his family was like a balm. And so he was able to sleep soundly this night, silently soothed but the presence and soft breathing of his loved ones tangled in the sheets all around him, warming his heart, mind and soul.

[nicka-nell]

wow ok read the recent request and I gotta say that was pretty heavy. Can we have a similar request but with a light angst with the remaining characters ??? I like the previous request

Hi, of course! :)) I've had really little time lately but I hope you like it anyway. I would say that all three contain rather mild angst compared to the previous ones. So I hope you enjoy it more. 💚

Regretting their actions

Pairing: Kuroo x, Ushijima x, Sakusa x reader

Warning: angst to fluff

Part 1 | Part 2 (End)

Kuroo finally made it. He has a job he enjoys. A job that also pays well financially and provides stability.

However, this job also involves some overtime and company trips.

In the beginning, he tried to keep to the working hours as much as possible. After all, he didn’t want to neglect you. However, the overtime increased year by year.

You often tried to gently point out to him that he shouldn’t overwork himself, but most of the time, your remarks were met with anger and ended in an argument.

At some point, you stopped and tried to suppress his increasingly frequent absences. Even if it hurt you.

Sometimes you lie in bed, looking at the empty space next to you, before the screen of your phone lights up and the usual message from Kuroo appears. “Sorry, kitten, but I can’t make it home today. But I’ll be there tomorrow at the end of the day.”

A message that raises so many doubts in you. What if he’s not at work at all and is seeing another woman? You’ve hardly had any time together in the last few months. Just a good morning kiss before work... that was all.

Does he no longer loves you? Does he possibly have a girlfriend and is leading a double life? No, Kuroo wouldn’t do that.

You’ve already reminded Kuroo three times this week that it’s your niece’s birthday today and that she’s looking forward to finally seeing him again. Because your niece loves Kuroo. Your boyfriend kept telling you before work that he had the date in his calendar and that he would definitely be home in time for the two of you to go to your niece’s together. You believed him. After all, the date was important to you. But you soon realize that this was just another lie. An empty promise.

Because when you look at your watch, it’s ten minutes before departure... and Kuroo still hasn’t arrived. He didn’t even reply to your “I’m looking forward to this afternoon.” You wait another four minutes, but nothing happens. In the end, you take the train to your niece’s house. Alone, without Kuroo. Because he doesn’t answer your messages or your calls.

Your little niece is so sad when she opens the door and looks up at you, realizing that you have come alone. It’s not that she doesn’t like you, but her dear uncle Kuroo always does so much nonsense with her. What did she once said? The aunts and grannies are there to go shopping and with the uncles and grandpas you have fun. Not exactly nice, but whatever. 

She looks at you with sad eyes. “Isn’t uncle Kuroo coming? Doesn’t uncle Kuroo like me anymore?” she asks tearfully as you try to calm her down somehow. It takes a long time for her to stop crying, and that on her birthday. And as if that wasn’t enough, you also get asked by your brother and your parents if everything is all right with you and your boyfriend. Whether you are still together at all. Because even at the last events, you were always there alone. When they passed by your home, only you were ever present. 

“No, no, everything’s fine. Tetsu’s just really busy today,” you reply with a forced smile, even though you don’t know where you stand as a couple right now. Can you even call what the two of you have a relationship?

As you head home in the evening, the apartment is still empty, just as expected. You sigh as you put your bag down and go into the bathroom to get ready for bed. The apartment seems so bitter as you lie down under the cold sheets, but you don’t care. You don’t even look at your phone anymore, because you know that Kuroo hasn’t texted you anyway. Nor do you mind that the bed is empty. Because that has also become a habit by now. Just then, you realize that tears are suddenly running down your cheeks. Yet you don’t even bother to wipe them away because no one will see them anyway.

Kuroo curses as he looks at his watch. His day had been stressful. So stressful that he didn’t even have time to look at his phone or check the time. Only when it got darker outside did he realize that he had once again worked too long. 

“Shit,” he curses again as he stands in front of the entrance door. Should he go back to get flowers for you? After all, he promised you he wouldn’t work so late. No, never mind. Staying away any longer will only upset you more.

“Hey kitten, I’m sorry I was gone so long again. I know I said that-” but when Kuroo enters the living room, the light is off. You’re not in the kitchen either. Have you gone to bed already? He walks quietly towards the bedroom, but his hand stops on the door handle when he hears you sniffle.

“Hey, baby, what’s wrong?” he asks, immediately moving past the bed to your side to kneel in front of it. Only now do you realize that Kuroo has returned home. You look at him almost empty-eyed. “Nothing...” you reply and want to turn away from him, but his hand holds onto your shoulder.

“Don’t say nothing when you’re obviously crying. Is it because I’m here so late again? I’m really sorry... I’ve completely lost track of time. I’m trying-”

“I suppose you’ve forgotten my niece’s birthday? She cried bitterly today... and not only that. I was asked today if we’re still together because you’ve never been to celebrations lately. And honestly? I don’t even know myself...” You say in frustration and watch Kuroo’s eyes suddenly widen.

Today was your niece’s birthday... You had told him several times during the week and yet he had forgotten. Kuroo doesn’t even know how to answer you. There is no answer that can please you. Because Kuroo has completely fucked up. He opens his mouth to say something, then closes it again. 

“Maybe we should really break-”

“No, no don’t say that. I know I fucked up. I know I promised you I’d work less overtime and be there for you more often. I know I didn’t stick to any of that. But please. I can change.” His answer interrupts yours, his voice soft and yet so panicked as he looks at you pleadingly. But you can’t help but laugh in frustration. “I’ve already asked my brother... I can stay with him for a while.”

You see the fear in his face as he tries to struggle for words. His shoulders begin to shake before he opens his mouth. Kuroo has no arguments to defend himself. In the end, he just failed. Made you sad. Neglected you. It had to get that far before he finally understood that. But when he looks at your sad face, he knows that he has no right to stop you.

“Yeah... if that’s what you want... I don’t want to stop you... make you any more miserable.” He replies dejectedly before squeezing your shoulder a little tighter to stand up to leave you alone in the bedroom. To give you the tranquility that you would prefer over his presence. But his legs won’t let him go any further as he stops in front of the door, just a step away from the hallway. 

Instead of leaving the room, he turns in your direction, switches on the big light and goes back to your bedside. “No, I can’t do that. I know I don’t have the right, but I just can’t let you go. I have neglected you. I have neglected us. And although you reminded me several times, I forgot your niece’s birthday. I don’t even want to imagine how sad she was that I wasn’t there, or how sad you must have been that I couldn’t keep my promise again. I am sorry that I have once again failed as a boyfriend. I know I probably look like the biggest asshole and my words sound like lies to you. But please... I love you and I mean it when I say I’m sorry. I enjoy my job, even if it is stressful. But I’ve probably lost sight of the most important thing, and that’s you. Please... please, if there’s still a little bit of hope, tell me how to make it right.” Kuroo says, looking you in the eye with determination, even though he is struggling to keep his composure.

You sit up in bed and look down at him, still kneeling in front of you. You love him, but what’s the point if he can’t keep his promises anyway? Still, when he looks at you like that… with these sad eyes… as if he’s about to break apart… “I’m staying with my brother for a week from tomorrow... I need a clear head. So use this week to think about how you can set things right. And maybe... maybe there will still be a future for us.” You answer him more coldly than you actually wanted to and look over at the empty side of the bed. “And now go to bed... there’s no point sleeping on the sofa in the living room. It’ll only make your back ache.” you add, before crawling back under the covers and closing your eyes. Not waiting to see if Kuroo actually lies down next to you or not.

The week you spend with your brother is like a wake-up call for Kuroo. A reminder that he needs to change something.

He writes to you every day before he leaves for work. A simple “Good morning, I hope you have a good start to the day” and in the evening he always writes to you when he’s on his way home.

Nevertheless, overall he leaves you in peace. Just like you wanted.

After the week you spent with your brother, you now stand in front of the entrance to your own home and take a deep breath. Wondering if Kuroo is home yet.

He should actually be at home. After all, his working hours are over. Did he keep his promise? You open the door and step inside. The apartment looks exactly the same as it did when you left it a week ago. Tidy, clean. Almost as if no one lived here. And as you might expect, Kuroo’s shoes are also missing. So nothing has changed after all. Standing in the hallway, you laugh in frustration and shake your head as you suddenly hear a key in the door lock and Kuroo enters.

A little surprised to see you, his eyes widen. “H-Hey...” he says almost shyly as he stands in front of you. Kuroo has a bouquet of flowers in his hand and a bag of groceries in the other. “I thought... maybe we could cook together and then... talk afterwards. That’s why I went grocery shopping after work, but I guess most people do it after work. It was really crowded...” he clicks his tongue and tilts his head to the side with a somewhat strained smile.

So he did finish work on time? “And the flowers? Are they there for cooking too?” you ask, unconsciously breaking the tense atmosphere between you. Kuroo just rolls his eyes and you see the tips of his ears turn red as he hands you the bouquet. “Of course not. They’re for you... for the best woman in the world.” His last words are quiet, but you hear them well.

Kuroo and you cook together, even if it’s a bit strange at first.

You both don’t quite know what to say or how to behave.

But while you wait for your food to be ready, Kuroo speaks up, pushes a chair back and asks you to take a seat at the dining table before sitting opposite you and taking your hands in his.

He tells you that he has only worked one hour of overtime this week. That he has applied for an assistant so that he can hand over some of his work and therefore work less overtime.

He tells you about all this in such an excited tone, as if you’ve just had your first date and he’s asking you out. Kuroo seems to be making a real effort...

“You know, there are even therapists who deal with people who work too much and-” says Kuroo, but you interrupt him directly. “Tetsurou... I’m not asking you to go to a therapist. If what you’ve said is true, then... that’s a good start.” His posture relaxes abruptly at your statement before he grips your hands tighter again and rests his head on them, sighing with relief. He had fully expected you to draw a line today after all the lonely nights he had given you. After all the empty promises. And here you both are, sitting together, and he can’t believe how good-natured you are. “That means... you’ll give me another chance?” he asks, but doesn’t lift his head from your hands.

“One last one... so don’t mess it up Tetsurou.” you reply much more gently this time.

You’ve been together with Ushijima for a long time. You know his personality, that he tends to be quiet, sometimes blunt, and doesn’t talk much. Nevertheless, his lack of words sometimes makes you uneasy. 

Something that Ushijima often can’t understand, because after all, that’s how you met. It usually ends with you just nodding off at some point and saying that you must have been imagining things and you just pretend that nothing happened.

But lately he’s been so quiet again. Even more distant than before.

Whenever he comes home from training, he goes straight to the kitchen to make himself a protein shake. Then straight to the bathroom to put his sports clothes in the washing machine and then gets ready for bed. Somewhere in between, he greets you with an almost indifferent “hello”.

You know that Ushijima is a little different, that his communication sometimes falls short. But his current behavior is unsettling even for you.

Has he perhaps met someone new? Does he no longer love you?

No... you don’t want to have thoughts like that. And yet you have them, and yet they don’t stop you from asking Ushijima this one question when he’s about to go to bed. 

“Be honest Toshi... do you have another person you see next to me? Well... I don’t mean friends, but... a potential love interest?” The question slips out a little more reproachfully than you would have liked.

Ushijima looks at you with wide eyes as he puts on a T-shirt to go to bed. He can’t believe you actually asked him that. He has enough stress at the moment with the upcoming championship games. Now you’re just throwing in your insecurity. He doesn’t need that right now. “Do you really think I have the time or energy to deal with another relationship? This one is stressful enough at times,” he says almost coldly. 

Wow... you think. It feels like he’s hitting a volleyball right against your chest. It hurts. “So you see me as a burden?” you try to say in a calm voice, but it’s already shaking. Ushijima just shakes his head in annoyance before climbing into bed next to you. 

“When you ask questions like that, yes. Where do you come up with such nonsense? Do you have so little self-esteem?” says Ushijima before switching off the light on the bedside cabinet and turning towards you. “Let’s go to sleep now. I have to get up in the morning. And stop thinking such nonsense.” He says, as if he hadn’t hurt your feelings with his words earlier, before leaning in to kiss you goodnight, but you just turn around and avoid him. “Good night...” you mumble coolly, but Ushijima doesn’t think much of it.

Only after several days does he realize that something is different. You hardly talk to him, not at all, in fact. You no longer cook for him either. Maybe not in general? You’re often out until late in the evening and only come to bed when Ushijima is already asleep. But when he asks you what’s wrong, you just answer with a strange smile and say “nothing”. Ushijima doesn’t understand a thing.

It’s only when he’s on the phone with Tendou and the two of them are talking about all sorts of things, about how Ushijima is very stressed right now from training and the upcoming championships, that he mentions in passing that you’re behaving strangely. Tendou has known Ushijima for a long time. So he can guess that Ushijima has once again misunderstood something or said things that came across wrongly. When Ushijima tells him about the conversation with you a few days ago, Tendou sighs loudly into the phone. “Wakatoshi, that’s the stupidest thing you could have said to her. Does your better half know that you’re under a lot of stress at the moment?”

“Of course not. After all, it’s not something she can change. So she doesn’t have to worry about it.” As soon as Ushijima has spoken his sentence, he hears the sigh on the other side of the line again. “Wakatoshi, that’s not how a relationship works. How long have you been together now? Almost six years... She’s just worried about you. And if she then asks you whether there might be another woman in your life, ‘Don’t ask such stupid questions, why do you have so little self-esteem’ is not exactly the best answer.” Tendou imitates Ushijima.

He is surprised that he still has a girlfriend at all with this manner. Maybe he needs to fly to Japan more often after all… To give Ushijima a good slap on the back of the blunt man’s head.

“I just wanted to tell her that she’s a great woman and I can’t understand how she can have such thoughts when she’s perfect,” Ushijima replies as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Yet Tendou has to spend half an hour talking to Ushijima about how wrong his behavior was before he finally realizes it himself. So he decides to go home after training and wait for you, no matter how long it takes. 

Sighing, you stand in front of the front door. On the one hand, you hope that Ushijima is already asleep, but on the other, you don’t want to continue with the silent treatment. You shake your head and open the door, only to see Ushijima sitting in the living room, his hands clasped together as he rests his arms on his thighs.

“Wakatoshi?” You ask, a little irritated, as you notice him staring into space. You can’t interpret his gaze. “Can you please sit down? We need to talk.” He says in a firm voice that makes your heart beat uncomfortably faster. You know you haven’t done anything wrong, and yet it feels like you have. Nevertheless, you nod, sit down next to him and look in his direction. He mirrors your movement. Only he doesn’t look at you with concern, but neutrally as always.

“I...” he begins, but then his voice drops. He doesn’t quite know how to start. After all, that’s never been his strength. “What is it, Wakatoshi?” you ask almost impatiently. After all, if he wants to end the relationship, he should keep it short. That will hurt, but maybe it’s better that way.

“I have hurt you. Seemingly very deeply. I’m sorry about that. It’s not that I don’t love you. I do and I thought you knew that too. Maybe I didn’t express myself properly, no actually, I didn’t express myself properly. But I can’t understand why you think that I might have another woman for whom I have feelings. You are a wonderful woman. Strong, independent, intelligent and attractive. For me, you are just right the way you are. I wouldn’t want anyone else by my side. I thought you would see yourself the way I see you.” Ushijima looks deep into your eyes with every word, his complete focus on you, before glancing briefly to the side. As if he’s thinking about what else he wants to say. Then he turns back to you and puts his hand on your thigh.

“We’re really under a lot of stress at the moment with our training. But that’s not something I want to burden you with in any way. After all, there’s nothing you can do to change the situation. And you shouldn’t have to worry about your husband. So… If I hurt you with my words, I’m sorry.” His words are sincere and the uneasy feeling you felt in your chest is suddenly gone. You should have known that Ushijima doesn’t love another woman. After all, it’s Ushijima. 

“Let’s go out for dinner together at the weekend. Just the two of us. Let’s talk, spend time together. There hasn’t been enough of that lately.” Ushijima says, turning you more towards him by your thigh before wrapping his hands around your waist and placing you on his lap with ease.

“Wakatoshi!” you shriek briefly. His head is on your shoulder, his breath warm on your skin. “I’m really sorry that my words hurt you,” he whispers softly, starting to rub your back with his thumb as he holds you close to his chest. You are no longer angry with him. Has been no longer. Actually, you are glad that he told you how he felt.

“Going out for dinner sounds good,” you say softly and put your arms around him. As you answer, you feel him squeeze you a little tighter. As if he wants to tell you how grateful he is that you show understanding for him.

Actually, everything is going well between you and Sakusa. You both harmonize well, have similar interests and friends. The only thing that is a little difficult is the fact that you have to keep your relationship a secret.

At least Sakusa wants to keep the relationship private because he doesn’t want paparazzi following you around or some crazy fans sending you threatening letters or maybe even hurting you.

Sakusa is very cautious when it comes to you.

So apart from your closest friends, your family and his agency, nobody knows about your relationship.

However, it is becoming more difficult from year to year. Because there are already pictures that have been made public. Pictures in which you are seen with Sakusa. Sitting together in a coffee shop or going for a walk in the park. You’ve even been photographed while buying groceries.

There are also more and more rumors about you. “Who is the unknown woman who is always in the front row at every game?”, ”Is this young lady the girlfriend of athlete Kiyoomi Sakusa?”

Today Sakusa forgot his sports shoes. Since you work in the same building as the agency that has him under contract, you decide to simply take the shoes with you. After all, Sakusa told you today that he has an appointment at his agency before he goes to training.

With a slight nod, you greet the security people at the entrance to the third floor where the agency for athletes is located. You’ve already been here a few times, so it’s easy for you to find the right way. You stop in front of Sakusa’s manager’s office. In front of the office, you see that the door is slightly open and that people are talking. Sakusa was one of them. You briefly consider knocking and going in, but when you hear the next words, you stand still, petrified.

“Sakusa-san, are you sure you want to bring your relationship with Ms. Abe into the public eye? Ms. Abe is a popular tennis player. It would draw a lot of attention to both of you,” says Sakusa’s manager. Soon after, the sound of a woman giggling rings out, followed immediately by Sakusa’s voice.

“That’s fine... I think it’s for the best. But before we go through with this -” you don’t hear the last words, because you’ve already set the bag with the shoes down outside the office and rushed back to your own workplace. 

You can’t concentrate all day long. You keep thinking about that conversation you had heard earlier. About Sakusa... wanting to make a relationship public? Only now do you realize what that actually means. Does this mean that Sakusa has been cheating on you the whole time and you were nothing but a pleasant distraction for him?

Frustrated, you stomp home after work, thinking about all the things you want to say. Everything you want to throw at Sakusa. When you arrive home, the apartment is still empty. Nothing unusual, because Sakusa wanted to go to his training after the meeting. So he’ll probably be gone for several more hours. Or did he just use that as an excuse to meet up with his new girlfriend?

You laugh bitterly, rolling your eyes at the thought of Sakusa’s name appearing in the magazines next to the name of that tennis player .... “Ridiculous...” you snort, and walk into the living room, where, ironically, the picture of Sakusa and you immediately comes into view. A photo of the two of you on vacation. You were in Norway. A country where Sakusa isn’t really well known. That’s why you could enjoy your vacation without paparazzi. In the photo you are in a small restaurant, outside on the terrace, both smiling intimately into the camera. Was it all just an act?

Furious, you grab the photo and throw it on the floor. The glass breaks and all the shards lie on the ground. “Damn...” you curse, annoyed at yourself for your outburst as you kneel down to pick up the pieces. But a familiar voice makes you flinch. 

“My love, is everything all right?” you hear Sakusa, who must have come home a few seconds ago, dropping his bag in the hallway and looking in your direction with wide eyes. He left training on time today because he thought it was strange that his sports bag was in front of his manager’s door, but you weren’t there.

But now the time has come. The pain in your chest suddenly gets impossible to bear, your mouth quivers and your eyes are all warm as big tears run down your cheeks. A sight that really knocks Sakusa off his feet. Immediately he rushes in your direction, kneels down next to you and takes your hands in his to see if you have cut yourself. But your body seems to be unharmed.

“W-what’s wrong?” he asks again, concerned, before you pull your hands out of his grip and stare at him angrily. “When... when were you going to tell me you had another girl? And what are you doing here anyway? Shouldn’t you be at training or with your new lover?” you say angrily, but don’t raise your voice.

Sakusa tries to follow your words, even if he can’t understand them at first. But then he realizes… The bag in the hallway, your tears... you must have heard part of the conversation he had this afternoon. But you probably haven’t heard everything. The man with the raven-black curls closes his eyes before taking a deep breath and looking at you again, trying to reach for your hands.

“You’ve completely misunderstood something-” he is about to start, but you interrupt him directly. “Don’t say ‘it’s not what it looks like’. You can spare that phrase, Kiyoomi!” you say a little louder now, but Sakusa doesn’t back down and continues to try to talk to you calmly.

“Please Y/n... I want you to listen to me for a minute... just a minute... After that you can still be mad at me. Is that possible?” Sakusa grabs your hands this time, pulls you up with him and leads you to the sofa. “Sit down, please.” You’re actually reluctant, but you’ve been together for so long now... you can give him that one minute, can’t you? You grudgingly sit down, but don’t look at him.

“Lately, paparazzi are getting bolder and bolder... even the other day there were some in the supermarket who wanted to take pictures of us... I’m just worried that your face will eventually be in all the newspapers and platforms and you’ll no longer be able to live your life carefree, but will always have these people at your back, following you,” says Sakusa somewhat awkwardly. Almost as if he himself is unsure whether what he wants to tell you is plausible for you. But before he can continue, you interrupt him directly and give him an angry look.

“Oh, and that’s why you thought you’d find a new girlfriend who’s already a celebrity and just date her? Then you can go out without hiding? Is that it?” you’re struggling to keep your voice under control. Sakusa’s eyes widen and he shrinks back for a moment, his hands almost in a protective position in front of his chest as he shakes his head.

“Wait, no, it’s not like that. I don’t have another relationship. Well, okay wait. I thought it might be good if I publicly revealed a fake relationship with another celebrity. Of course, it’s not real and we’re not really a couple. But I thought it would take the pressure off you and you could-”

You can’t believe what Sakusa is saying right now. Is he really serious? If it’s true, why is he talking to his manager first and not to you? Doesn’t he care about your feelings? “Do you actually... don’t think at all? How do you think I would feel when I read the messages and your name is everywhere with the name of your fake girlfriend? Have you ever thought about the fact that this is extremely hurtful to me? I would rather be seen in public with you than see you with someone else ‘for my supposed freedom and privacy’. How would you feel if I introduced another man to the whole world as my boyfriend just to ‘protect’ you?” The words you say so loudly hit Sakusa, and he gets quiet. He doesn’t even know what to say anymore. Your question slaps him hard. How would he feel… The thought of seeing you with another man makes him angry, sad... and somehow helpless?

“I...” Sakusa begins, but immediately doesn’t know how to continue. “I’m sorry, that was probably stupid of me.” He then says, tilting his head downwards. Sighing, you stand up and shake your head once more before walking past Sakusa. 

“You know, you never asked me, but I wouldn’t mind if people knew my face. It’s more important to me to do things with you without having to hide. You’re always the one who overdramatizes and worries unnecessarily... Whatever… I’m going to bed now. Good night.” You no longer wait for his answer. Instead, you go straight to the bathroom and get ready for bed.

Sakusa remains seated in the living room. He knows exactly that it wouldn’t be right to talk to you now, that you want to be left alone. Especially since he doesn’t know what he’s supposed to tell you. He just knows that his action was really stupid.

Sakusa hadn’t signed a contract with the tennis player and the two agencies yet, because he wanted to talk to you about it first, but at the moment his own idea to protect your privacy disgusts him. He really should have talked to you first about how you feel, whether you want to be in the public eye, instead of drawing any conclusions. Sakusa sighs, leans back against the sofa and closes her eyes. “Idiot...” he whispers quietly.

Two days pass and you are still disappointed by Sakusa’s behavior. Even though he probably only meant well. You haven’t really spoken much either. Just the usual “Good morning, have a nice day at work...”, “How was your day?” and all that sort of things.

Still at work, you just can’t concentrate and start massaging your temples when suddenly one of your colleagues shrieks and starts giggling. “Hey, isn’t that Sakusa Kiyoomi? What’s he doing here? His agency is upstairs, isn’t it?” she asks one of her colleagues, who quickly reaches for her make-up mirror and fixes her hair. 

Now you too turn your head forward and see Sakusa walking in your direction with a bunch of white lilies. Everyone looks after him, puzzled, and you also stare at him with irritation as he stops in front of you. “Uhm... I wanted to bring these over to you because I have to go upstairs to talk to my manager about a photo shoot.”

The whispering of your colleagues gets louder and louder and you still look a little confused, but you take the bouquet and stand up. “Kiyoomi, what is this about?” you whisper to him, not quite knowing how to react. Sakusa grazes your arm, wanders up to your cheek and looks deep into your eyes. “You were right. I should never have had this stupid idea. I should have asked you. And even if I’m worried about you, I only want to see you by my side in any pictures on the internet. After all, you are the woman I love. I’m really sorry. Will you... accept my clumsy apology?” Sakusa gazes at you with such a puppy-dog look that you can’t help but put the bouquet on your table and jump into his arms.

Of course, Sakusa did not sign the contract with the tennis player.

At his next match, you’re in the front row as usual, and when Sakusa scores the final point to victory and his team cheers along with him, he immediately runs to you, pulling you over the barrier to hold you in his arms before setting you down and cupping your cheeks with his hands. Just a few seconds later, you feel his lips on yours, cameras pointing at you and taking photos. But you couldn’t care less. “You know, I’ve wanted to do this so many times before,” he says calmly, leaning his forehead against your own.

Although everyone knows your face now, Sakusa is always reserved in interviews when it comes to private questions.

He will not answer questions about you if they become too personal.

In the beginning, the paparazzi and reporters were really a nuisance, but everything calmed down over time and the two of you can go out and enjoy dates together without being followed, just like back then, before his career.

[em-harlsnow]

mickey walks into his house in the early morning, at around 2 in the morning. he had to do a job for his lazy cousin who can’t do anything right, so he’s tired. he expects the house to be empty and sleeping when he enters because terry’s locked up and that significantly reduces the number of milkovich ragers that happen.

but it isn’t empty.

mandy and ian are sprawled across the couch, with mandy half-sitting on ian’s lap. frowning, mickey glares at the point of contact between them. then he reminds himself that ian can do what he wants because they are not together. not by any means.

“hold still. i need to get under your eyelids.” mandy tells ian, putting some pink gel-thing on Ian’s face.

“what the fuck are you queers doing?” mickey grumbles.

“face masks.” mandy answers, dipping further into the packet and lathering more into ian’s skin. she already has some on her own face.

mickey snorts. “jesus christ.” he scoffs, starting towards his room to collapse into his bed.

“you can join us if you want, mick.” ian suggests, teasing glint to his eye.

“stop talking, you’re gonna wrinkle it.” mandy snaps. “mickey’s too much of a pussy to do this. too insecure in his own masculinity.” she scoffs.

“what the fuck? fuck you, skank, i’m not insecure. im just not gonna do that chick shit.” mickey mutters, wrinkling his nose up at them.

“oh well, if you’re not insecure, you may as well just let me put this face mask on you.” mandy laughs. “unless you’re scared.”

“fuck off, i’m not-“ mickey starts.

“sit down or i’ll take all of your secret weed and give it to lip.” mandy says, focussing on covering ian’s face.

“you don’t know where i hide that.”

“under the loose floorboard, under your mattress, there’s some taped under your window sill. d’you need me to go on?” mandy says, and ian’s laughing.

mickey groans loudly. “i just wanna go to bed.”

“fine, go to bed, chicken.” mandy mocks, then begins clucking at him.

“are you five years old?”

she keeps squawking at him, and mickey frustratedly sits down at the coffee table without further argument. he doesn’t doubt that she would take all of his weed.

“you look ridiculous.” mickey tells ian.

“i look cool.”

“he looks beautiful, shut the fuck up. it’s your turn now.”

“is this fun for you? torturing me?”

“yes, now stop moving.” mandy tells him and holds his head still. she’s basically got him in a headlock.

“you’re gonna look pretty soon too.” ian says, mocking him.

“fuck you.”

“stop moving!” mandy shouts, pinching the side of his neck.

“ow! fuck. fine.”

“keep your mouth closed.” she mutters, then dips back into the tub of face mask and starts swiping it onto his cheeks.

“that feels fucking weird.” mickey says.

“i’ve done this to you before, remember?” she says. “i’ll make sure not to get your eyebrows, i mean they’re barely there anyway. wouldn’t want to rip off anymore.”

it makes ian laugh, a full belly-laugh which racks his whole body.

“shut the fuck up, ginger.”

ian rolls his eyes at him, and starts critiquing mandy’s work.

“oh, you missed a spot. make sure you get that bit.” he chuckles.

mickey glares at him. “how does this come off?”

“it dries and then we can peel it off. it’s really satisfying.” mandy answers. “okay, all done!” she says, leaning back. “my turn now. ian?”

“uh-huh. sure, but i don’t think ill do a great job.” ian says.

“pour the whole tub into her hair.” mickey says, trying to touch the weird sticky slime on his face.

“don’t touch it, idiot. let it dry.” mandy mutters to him. “do not get it in my hair ian or i swear to god i will stab you in your sleep.” she warns.

“i wasn’t planning on it.”

it doesn’t take long for ian to finish, but it’s not as neat or even as how mandy did it. she doesn’t seem to mind, getting up and grabbing a tub of ice cream from the freezer.

“now, we get to watch whatever i want.”

“i’m not watching a fucking chick flick.” mickey says, sitting back into the sofa and helping himself to some of the icecream. mandy brought spoons for all of them.

“yeah, well, i wanted to watch Saw, so. stop being so stereotypical.”

“yeah, mickey.” ian joins in, and mickey flips him off.

about half way through the movie, mickey can feel the mask peeling off his face. they all retreat into his bathroom, watching each other peeling the mask off. it sort of hurts in some parts, but it feels like nothing in other parts.

ian wads up the dried up bits of mask and throws it at mickey’s face, which starts an all-out war between them.

it’s sort of nice, actually. they’re all laughing together and then mandy and ian go to bed in her room, but mickey knows ian will come in at some point in the night.

[juyeoz]

GOOD GRACES — YANG JUNGWON

003 ┆ mistakes my evil twin (0.8k words)

The Decelis Academy’s Atheltic Committee (in other words, DAAC) club room wasn’t the biggest. It was the size of your average classroom, yet it was decorated to satisfy the needs of the said club members.

The sunlit room felt warm and fuzzy as any autumn day would have felt. It was the perfect place to relax.

“That’s pretty much it. Just need a few more helpers for the upcoming tournament and bulletin boards in the hallway.” Wonyoung said, wrapping up her part of the meeting with her eyes still on the projector.

“Any questions?” She asked, looking over at the familiar group of faces.

“Should we also create advertisements to join the club? I know we’ll need more hands when the other sports come, but I doubt the morning announcements are enough since many people tune them out.”

Wonyoung took in Ningning’s words, letting them ease into her mind. She wasn’t wrong, not at all. Truly, she had an amazing point which only left Wonyoung feeling satisfied.

“Yes, I definitely agree with that.” She said with a smile.

“Do you want to work on that, Ningning?”

“I don’t mind, I have a lot of time on my hands anyway.” She replied, replicating the smile Wonyoung held on her lips.

“Alright, if that’s everything, (Name), you can take over now.” Wonyoung insisted.

You rose up from your seat, gaining an irritated expression and groaning from the male who sat a few rows in front of you—the captain of the boys volleyball team.

Or, in other words, Yang Jungwon.

“Shut up,” you muttered while walking past his seat. He rolled his eyes at your response and slouched down into his chair.

“It’ll take an extra 5 minutes…” You said while preparing the projector to portray your photos. A few awkward moments of silence went by with you adjusting your photos to enlarge on the projector.

However, eventually, you succeeded.

“Okay, so, I was just wondering about some basic things!” You began while clasping your hands together and moving out of the way.

“I took some pictures for the basketball posters and wanted to hear your thoughts on them—”

The sudden sound of a phone ringing was enough to silence your voice as everyone’s heads turned to face the culprit.

“Sorry, one moment.” Wonyoung said with an apologetic smile and walked out of the classroom.

A snicker escaped Jungwon’s lips, causing him to receive a glare from you upfront.

“As I was saying, I already prepared a poster with an image which will be posted tomorrow, but just for future purposes.” You explained while switching to the poster in question.

“Here it is—”

“Who approved of this?” A voice questioned, cutting you off once again.

You inhaled deeply and looked over to the crowd of students, picking up the irritated expression on the one and only Yang Jungwon’s face.

“Why? What’s wrong with it?” You asked.

“The quality could’ve been much higher. I can’t even read the text in the middle.”

“I’ll remake it then.” You simply said. You didn’t want to argue with him under such a time limit.

“Why not just use a photo that was taken during a match?” He continued.

“There’s not many taken. I could just fix it up later.”

“There’s nothing that ties Decelis Academy to the poster other than our school name. It could say almost anything and you’d just be swapping words around.”

You hated his voice. It was so irritating, almost causing you to fume up into flames. Despite that, you had to keep your cool.

“At least use a photo of the team.”

“I don’t have an—”

“You should have a higher standard for things. People wouldn’t even bat an eye at something so boring. In other words, that.”

The clubroom’s atmosphere was suffocating. The tension was evident and only made everyone else antsy and uncomfortable. They didn’t want to make anything worse, part of them hoping Wonyoung would return soon.

In their favour, the door clicked open and showcased another apologetic Wonyoung. She slipped her phone down into her pockets and closed the door behind her.

“Unfortunately, time is up. I’m sorry, (Name). If anything you can text the group chat, okay?” She said as you nodded in response.

Your eyes shifted over to Yang Jungwon, the most irritating volleyball player you’ll ever meet.

He was leaning back into his chair with his head tilted to the right and arms crossed over his chest. A smug smirk tugging at the corner of his lip.

You hated how innocent he looked as if he wasn’t the cause of this all. You hated how the bell went, leaving you with no time left. You hated how he collected his belongings, swinging his backpack over one shoulder and walked past you in silence with his hands in his pockets.

It was almost as if you weren’t even there.

Nevertheless, most importantly, you hated Yang Jungwon all together and to you, that will never change.

PREVIOUS MASTERLIST NEXT

ENHYPEN PERM TAGLIST — @miumura @macapunoz @kxppachu

GOOD GRACES TAGLIST ��� @anuisamazing @garrdenwon @dreamiestay @starfallia @mrchweeee @mymelodyfanatic @getoxo @jiamini @imnotyizhuo @heartheejake @wonlluvie @theothernads @yvjw @riribelle @winuvs @shotaddicted @hollxe1 @pinknjm @en-dream @elegancefr @wensurr @enhaz1 @r1kification @sunghxxnie @unhakki @hoonieluv @veilico @ddolleri @ahnneyong @samyria

© JUYEOZ

[da-extroverted-introvert]

Are we even friends? (tasm!Peter Parker x reader)

Fandom: The Amazing Spider-Man, Marvel

Pairing: Peter Parker x reader

Word count: 2.66k

Warnings: angst, death mention, grief

So I had a burst of inspiration and wrote this. I haven't seen the Andrew Garfield Spiderman movies in a hot minute so things may not be entirely accurate but please just roll with it. Working on a part 2 already, hope you enjoy. Please leave feedback!

Dividers by @lavendergalactic

You sit in the car and take a few deep breaths. You clutch the bouquet of flowers in your hand, trying to will yourself to step foot out of the car. Even after three months, this is hard to do. It’s like the first time all over again. The grief hits you just as hard as the day of the funeral.

Despite the gnawing feeling deep in your gut, you bring yourself to unbuckle your seat belt and walk out of the car.

You walk through the long, long aisle of headstones and grave markers. A bunch of people long gone who you’ll never know. It breaks your heart to know that to other people visiting loved ones, Gwen Stacy is just another headstone. Another person nobody will know again.

You finally make it up to Gwen’s grave. You kneel down and gently set down the bouquet. You stay kneeling there, just staring at your best friend’s name.

You take a deep breath before you start speaking.

“Hey. It’s me again.”

You pause for a moment, almost as if you’re expecting a response, even though there hasn’t been a single response throughout the many times you’ve been here.

“My grades are doing really good now. Applied for a few scholarships, and I actually think I might get into an Ivy League.”

You smile gently, knowing Gwen would be so proud of you. Whenever you doubted yourself, she would always encourage you. You remember the countless nights of her helping you with homework, telling you how much you’ve improved. She even said she was positive you’d get into the same school, becoming roommates and actually living together. Like sisters.

“Everyone in school misses you. They still talk about how amazing you were. How smart and how nice.”

Just yesterday you were walking down the hall past Gwen’s locker. There’s still plenty of pictures and decorations commemorating her. It gives you hope that Gwen will not be forgotten for a long time.

But you also think about the looks you get when you walk by. The sad, pitiful looks. You hate those looks. You also think some of those odd expressions are looks of confusion, as it was so weird to see you without Gwen Stacy right in front of you. You’ve always been Gwen Stacy’s best friend. People don’t know how to react seeing you without her.

“Uhmm…Peter misses you.”

You always choke up a bit at this part.

“We all do, of course, but especially Peter. I try to visit him every day. He doesn’t really talk to me though.”

Not that he talked to you too much before Gwen died, but you still felt like mentioning it.

“He just kind of sits in his room all the time. He hasn’t been in school much.”

The few times he has shown up in school, he just kind of ignores everyone. He must be getting tired of those pitiful looks in the hallways too.

“I’ve tried looking out for him. Like…like you would’ve wanted.”

God, you hate this. You really hate this.

“He just won’t let me in. I know he’s not going out as Spider-Man anymore, but he’s just not doing anything. He just sits in his room all the time. Not talking to anyone. Not even May.”

If he isn’t even talking to May, why would he talk to you?

You take a deep breath and finally stand up fully, your legs aching from kneeling on the hard ground for too long.

“I’m actually headed to his place now. I know he probably won’t talk to me, but I’ll still try. For you.”

You try to keep the tears back.

“Even if he doesn’t talk to me, May still lets me hang out. You know she makes the best food.”

You stare at her name again, not wanting to say goodbye again. But you know you have to.

“Anyway, that’s all. Thought I’d keep you updated. I’ll visit same time next week.”

You can almost hear her say goodbye to you. But you know it’s in your head. So you finally turn around and go back to your car, preparing for yet another uneventful visit to the Parker residence.

You knock on the door, preparing to put on a happy face in front of May. She’s such a sweet lady, you don’t want her to worry too much about you. She already has to worry about Peter, and you don’t want to put any extra stress on her shoulders.

Sure enough, May answers the front door with her signature sweet smile.

“Hey there, sweetie! Come on in, I just put on a pot of coffee, you must be freezing out here.”

She ushers you in and you revel in the warm atmosphere of the home.

“Thanks, May. I appreciate it.”

She dismisses your statement with a wave.

“Think nothing of it, hun.”

You sit down at the coffee table while May gets the coffee ready. While she does, you look around the home, which you’ve done countless times at this point.

Your favorite thing to look at is the picture on the wall of Peter. He must’ve been young, maybe sixth grade. In the picture, he’s at a science fair, holding up a nice red ribbon with “1st Place” written on it. May and Ben are standing proudly behind him as he smiles brightly at the camera. It makes you smile, seeing him so happy. But you also get sad, wishing he had some of that childlike joy back in his life.

May brings comes back in the room with two cups of coffee in her hand.

“Here you go, should warm you right up.”

You accept the cup with a smile, embracing the warm feeling on your hands. The warmth spreads when you take a sip. The coffee is nothing special, just as generic as any cup of coffee, but knowing that May made it for you and how happy she was to see you makes it taste better.

“Peter’s in his room if you want to say hi.”

She didn’t need to tell you where he was. You knew.

“Okay, I’ll go see him.”

You take a final sip of coffee and walk to Peter’s room.

You contemplate knocking on his door. You know if you knock that he probably won’t answer you, but if you just walk in, he still won’t talk to you. So, knowing the answer will be the same either way, you just walk in.

It looks like Peter hasn’t moved an inch since your last visit. He’s just laying on his bed, covered in blankets, head turned away from you. You know he’s awake though, you can tell by the way his body slightly tensed at the door opening.

“Hey, Pete.”

You speak gently, almost like you were afraid to scare him off. You close the door as softly as you can behind you.

“Missed you at school. I had the teachers give me your assignments so I can give them to you.”

No response. As usual.

You don’t know how to speak to him. You never really did. Neither of you really spoke to each other before he started dating Gwen, and when they did start dating, there was only small interactions between you. But still, you liked those small interactions. They were nice. Made you feel like you were sort of friends. But now that Gwen is gone, you don’t know where you stand.

Even so, you still try. You know that’s what Gwen would want. She wouldn’t want the love of her life wasting away like this.

“Have you eaten at all today?”

No answer.

“I know you’re, like, superhuman and all, but even so, you need to have some food in your body.”

You lick your lips and sigh, getting a little bit frustrated. It’s the same thing every day. You talk, he lays there, then you go home. You don’t feel like your presence is helping him that much, but if you don’t make an effort, you know you’ll feel guilty.

“How about some pizza? I can order one and it’ll be delivered in no time.”

As expected, no response. God, this boy is so infuriating sometimes.

“I know you hear me. Your spidey-senses kind of force you to.”

It’s still weird that Peter’s Spider-Man. You only found out about his secret by accident. You just walked into Gwen’s room, without knocking of course, as best friends do, and there you saw a surprised Gwen and Peter in his suit, mask in hand. That was a few weeks before the accident.

“Come on, Peter. You need to eat something. We can’t have you wasting away in here.”

“Why do you care?”

Even though his voice is raspy and not at all loud, you still flinch. That’s the most you’ve gotten out of him in three months.

“I, uh, what do you mean? Of course I care.”

“Why?”

His voice is a little louder this time.

“Because, we’re friends, Peter. I care about you.”

He sits up in his bed and faces you. You can finally get a good look at him. His once bright eyes, full of joy and mischief are dull and bloodshot.

“Since when? I mean, we barely talk.”

You don’t really know what to say, because it is true, you never talked with Peter as much as you would’ve liked to, but you still kind of thought those small interactions amounted to a friendship.

Just as you try to speak again, he talks some more.

“We both know the only reason we ever hung out was because of Gwen. And she’s not here now. So, please, just…”

He moves his arms around, trying to get his frustration across.

“Leave me alone.”

When he says this, he looks dead into your eyes, which are slowly but surely filling up with tears. You try not to let them fall.

You’ve been wishing for Peter to say something to you for months now, and now that it’s happened, you just want to curl into a ball on the ground.

Not wanting to be in the room with him any longer, you turn around and face the door. You put your hand on the doorknob but before you twist it, you turn your head towards Peter.

“I know you never really thought of me as a friend, Peter. A part of me always knew you just putting up with me for Gwen’s sake. But I always respected you, Pete. You were kind, funny, cool. Never mean.”

A couple of tears drops fall despite yourself.

“I remember when there was that Homecoming dance. You and Gwen were going together but I didn’t have a date. I was fine staying home, but you felt bad and invited me to come with you guys. You didn’t have to, nobody was forcing you, you just offered. Gwen didn’t even have to ask you to, you just did it.”

You wipe your cheek for a moment, still trying to keep eye contact with the boy in front of you.

“It was small things like that that made me like you. You’re such a good person Peter. I mean, you’re fucking Spider-Man, of course you’re a good person.”

You take one final big breath.

“So, you may not consider me a friend, Peter Parker, but you are mine. You are my friend. And I don’t have many of those, so, I’ve got to look after you.”

You finally twist the doorknob and open the door.

“It’s what Gwen would’ve wanted.”

With that final sentiment, you walk out of his room and speed past May, who is clearly worried about the tears on your face, eager to leave this house and go home to cry.

You spend the rest of your night watching movies in your room. You’re laying on your bed in your pajamas, bowl of popcorn in your lap. You glance at the opposite side of the bed. The side Gwen would sit as she laughed at the movies with you.

You try to focus on the movie, trying not to think about Gwen so much, and also trying not to think about your fight with Peter.

Was it even a fight? Neither of you yelled, but he did make you cry. He said some hurtful things. Things that were partially true. But you still didn’t want to see him. Seeing him hurt you a lot. All you can think about was the way he looked at you, with annoyance, frustration, anger. You felt bad for him, you know he’s grieving too, but he just made your blood boil and your eyes well up with tears.

Despite this, you know you’ll still visit him tomorrow. Because Gwen would want you to. Because that’s what friends do.

You hear a knock on your bedroom door.

“Come in!”

Instead of your mom or dad like you expected, none other than Peter Parker walks through your door.

He’s actually dressed in New clothes, as opposed to the weeks old clothes you saw him wear earlier. His eyes look like they’re filled with guilt.

“Hey.”

You’re not used to seeing Peter Parker in your room. He only showed up a few times when he crashed yours and Gwen’s movie nights.

“Hey.”

Peter looks at the ground nervously, hand reaching to scratch the back of his head.

“I just wanted to say I’m sorry. I have been an absolute jerk to you and you don’t deserve that.”

You nod slowly, processing his words.

“You’re grieving. I get it. It’s okay.”

He quickly shakes his head.

“No, no, it’s not okay. I know I’m grieving, but you are too. I’ve just been shutting you out when all you want to do is help. It’s not right.”

You have no words. You certainly weren’t expecting this, but maybe you should have. It is Peter, after all. He’s a superhero. Always trying to make things right.

“You have always been nice to me, and you never gave up on me, even when I completely shutting you out. I haven’t been a good friend to you, and I want that to change.”

Hearing him actual say that he wants to be your friend warms your heart more than it should.

You give him a slight smile.

“You can start being a good friend and have a movie night with me?”

At first, Peter looks shocked that you’re willing to just forgive him so quickly. But then the expression on his face soon turns jovial as you shoot over on the bed, allowing him to sit next to you.

You smile as you press play on the movie you were watching. You can feel Peter’s eyes on the side of your face, but you ignore it until you know he’s watching the movie. Both of you just sit and watch, hands leisurely grabbing popcorn from the bowl between you. It almost feels normal, natural.

It actually feels like you have a friend again. Not that he can ever replace Gwen. And you know you could never replace Gwen in Peter’s eyes either. But both of you are filling the space that Gwen’s death left. It makes things easier for the both of you. It’s nice knowing that you have each other during this difficult time.

After a while, when all is calm between you and Peter and the movie is almost over, you turn to look over at Peter.

“You know, I visited Gwen’s grave today. I visit every week. You could come with me if you want.”

Peter is still for a moment, eyes locked on the screen in front of you. You wish you didn’t bring it up, knowing that Peter is just now starting to talk about Gwen’s death, and now you may have pushed too far too fast.

But then he looks over at you, a sad but gentle smile on his face.

“Yeah. I think that’d be nice.”

[marlynnofmany]

Fuzzy Eggs

After several deliveries that we had to cross alien terrain for, it was nice to have a client actually meet us at the ship for pickup. We didn’t even have to leave the spaceport, small though it was.

“I can’t wait to try this out,” said the green lizardy guy as he tapped away at the payment tablet. “The advertising promises it will repel any small pest with a sense of hearing, and the last three repellents we tried did nothing.”

I asked, “What kind of pest?” (Was I about to find a hard downside to meeting someone right outside the airlock? I really didn’t want any kind of infestation on our ship.)

The guy handed the tablet back and gestured vaguely. “Round furry things. I don’t know what planet they’re from, but they could easily overrun this one if we don’t get a handle on the situation fast. The colony’s already having to keep every window and door shut, but they slip through the tiniest cracks. At least they’re wildly colored and easy to spot before they eat all your food.”

Mur tentacle-walked over with the package, holding it up like he was a squid-shaped butler with a tray of champagne. He gave me a look as the client snatched it up eagerly. “Well, animal expert?” he asked me. “Any insights?”

I shrugged. “Sounds like rodents from Earth, though ours aren’t usually wildly colored. And I have my doubts that a product exists that makes noises to repel every kind of pest. Especially without also repelling the people who set it up.”

The client was already ripping open the box. “Gonna find out. I see a few of the fuzzy little food thieves over there.” He jerked his snout toward a cluster of bushes at the edge of the landing pad.

I’d thought the puffs of color on the ground were other plants, but now that I really looked, they were moving. All in wild pinks and blues, too. Exceptionally fluffy.

Paint came trotting up. “The captain says we should close the door as soon as possible. Apparently there’s a known pest in the spaceport. Oh, hi.” She greeted the client as an afterthought.

He mumbled something polite back, more interested in getting the gadget to work than in greeting another of his own species. He hadn’t stepped back far enough for us to shut the door yet.

Mur peered past him suspiciously. “Did those things come here by stowing away on another ship?”

“Probably,” the client said. Then something clicked. “Aha!”

There might have been a noise. I couldn’t really tell. General spaceport sounds and local breeze made a background ambiance, but I kind of felt like there was something I should have been able to hear. Almost. A glance at Paint and Mur showed similar non-reactions. The fuzzballs by the bush did nothing.

“WHAT is that SOUND?” demanded Zhee, sticking his bug eyes around the corner. He had his pinchers clenched and his posture lower than usual, like he was crouching to make the sound quieter. I still didn’t know where his ears were. “Kindly stop it!”

“Sorry.” The client produced another click, apparently turning it off. “At least I know that it came fully charged. I’ll go test it on the fuzzball invasion.”

Zhee had already picked up a foreleg to continue down the hallway, but he paused at that. “What kind of fuzzballs?”

The client launched into an explanation, but I just pointed at the bush. “Those things over there. Lots of them, apparently.”

Zhee hurried over for a look, nearly knocking Paint off her feet. He sounded absolutely delighted when he exclaimed, “This planet has Egg Day?”

Blank looks all around. I asked, “Egg Day?”

He clicked a pincher arm and spoke quickly, like he was explaining something blindingly obvious that we all should know. “Mesmer holiday. The fuzz eggs emerge all at once — the first wave, anyway — and culling the population is great sport.” He addressed the client with an intense look. “These are an invasion you’d like to be rid of, yes?”

“Yes,” the client said in surprise. “They’re—”

Zhee was already turning away from him and talking to Mur. “Tell the captain to wait a little. We’re not in a hurry.” He looked at Paint. “Don’t tell Trrili.” Then he dashed out onto the landing pad, purple exoskeleton gleaming in the sun, a spectacle of predatory joy.

I’d made a step towards the hallway at one point, with thoughts of putting the payment tablet away, and an ominous voice hissed over my shoulder. “Don’t tell Trrrrrili what?”

I flinched a little, and pretended I hadn’t. “Hi there. Something about Egg Day?”

The tilt of her antennae and the flare of glossy black mandibles looked offended. “And he wanted a head start? The cheater!” She launched herself past all of us in a whirlwind of black and red. Paint thumped against the wall and the client nearly dropped the gadget.

Outside, Zhee already had a pile of crumpled furballs at his feet, and he was excavating the bushes for more. Trrili charged past him to upend a wheeled cart and expose the cluster of rainbow fur underneath. She put her praying mantis pinchers to their intended purpose, all the while bickering with Zhee about unsporting head starts.

The rest of us stared from the doorway.

“Oh my,” said the client.

Mur picked up some stray packing foam and handed it to him to put back in the box. “Those two ought to make a dent in your infestation,” he said. “And I daresay we can pass the word on to any other Mesmers nearby to come join the fun. Depending on the scale of the problem.”

“That … might be a good idea. Thank you.”

Eggskin appeared with a medkit, looking concerned. “What’s happening? I heard something about wanton violence.”

I hurried to reassure them. “Nothing to worry about. Just pest control. And a competition, apparently.”

Eggskin peered outside, shading their pale-scaled face from the sun. “Oh, Egg Day!”

Paint demanded, “You know about that?”

“Sure, it’s a Mesmer holiday,” Eggskin said, setting down the medkit. “Looks like somebody accidentally introduced the fuzz eggs here, huh? They leave egg cases in every hiding place they can find, and you usually don’t suspect a thing until they emerge all at once like that. Good thing we brought a couple of Egg Day veterans with us.”

The client was still clutching the box of electronics, wide-eyed. “They mentioned calling in more?”

“Probably wise,” Eggskin said. “We’ll have to be on our way before too long.” They picked up the medkit again. “Speaking of which, I should make sure we have enough storage space in the refrigeration unit, since they’ll want to eat every one of those.”

I shook my head. “This is a far cry from Easter when I was a kid. Though we did get to eat the hard-boiled eggs. And the ones that had candy inside. None of those took much of a battle to open, though. Well, except for the really little kids who weren’t strong enough yet.”

Paint looked up at me in consternation. “Your species has the same violent holiday as theirs?”

“Ours isn’t violent,” I said. “Unless kids fight over who saw an egg first, I guess. And there is that one noteworthy bit of lore that features a violent death, but that’s just part of the story behind it all. The actual event is totally different from this.” I watched my coworkers seek out brightly-colored round things in every little crevice about the spaceport. “Totally different.”

~~~

These are the ongoing backstory adventures of the main character from this book.

Shared early on Patreon! There’s even a free tier to get them on the same day as the rest of the world.

The sequel novel is in progress (and will include characters from these stories. I hadn’t thought all of them up when I wrote the first book, but they’re too much fun to leave out of the second).

[unhingedangstaddict]

had this little idea while at work today, doubt I'll do anything else with it but wanted to share anyway! (please excuse any mistakes I did not edit this) post S8E9, bucktommy fix-it(ish), 911 words, minor spoilers for S8E9

“So how are you really doing? I mean with Eddie leaving and all.” Maddie asked as Buck made the two of them breakfast in Maddie’s kitchen. Chimney and Jee-Yun were having a father-daughter date and had already left the house for the day.

“I- I mean, yeah I miss Eddie, but I understand why he moved back to Texas. Can’t exactly be upset with him for it-”

“Even if you were.” Maddie cut-in. “Howie filled me in on what happened.”

“Okay, sure, I was a little upset at first but I’m fine now. I get it. And me and Eddie are good, even if he’s off in Texas and I’m still here in LA.” Buck promised.

“Are you sure? I just worry about you. I know you have a hard time with people leaving. First it was the break-up, then Eddie, and the whole thing with that rescue dog.” Maddie pointed out.

“I promise Maddie I’m okay. Eddie is where he needs to be, Blaze the dog is where he belongs. I’m good.” Buck insisted.

“Well if you’re sure,” Maddie started. “But if you wanted to have dinner with the three of us tomorrow night I’m making a pot roast.” Maddie offered enticingly.

“As much as I love your pot roast Mads I’ll need to take a raincheck. I uh, I’ve got plans with Tommy tomorrow night.” Buck told her.

“Tommy, like your ex, Tommy?” Maddie questioned.

“Yeah.” Buck confirmed as he brought a plate of breakfast for each of them to the table where Maddie was sitting. “The other day after I said goodbye to Eddie, Tommy showed up and we talked about things and for now we’re just gonna hang out as friends.”

Maddie looked like she had something she wanted to say, but was holding herself back.

(more below the cut)

“What?” Buck asked as he sat down, knowing Maddie had something on her mind.

“Just, be careful, okay? Tommy did a number on you when he left. You were a mess for weeks. I just don’t want to see you get hurt again.” Maddie cautioned.

“Okay, did it hurt when Tommy broke up with me? Yes. But there were things about Tommy that I didn’t understand at the time, the breakup-” Buck shook his head. “It was on both of us.”

“It sure didn’t seem that way when you caused flour shortages at your favourite grocery store.” Maddie argued.

“During our relationship Tommy was worried about letting me set the pace and I got so caught up in things that I forgot to stop and check if it was okay with him and I should’ve and that was entirely on me. I should’ve stopped and considered that just because I was ready for something more didn’t mean he was too.” Buck explained.

“You seem to be taking a lot of the blame considering he was the one that broke up with you.” Maddie crossed her arms.

“Tommy was scared. I was moving too fast and he was afraid he was going to let me down, so he ended it before that could happen.” Buck countered as he took a bite of food.

“Well he could’ve just told you that. He didn’t have to break your heart.”

“Maddie-” Buck started, getting upset.

“If you can forgive him then good for you but it’s gonna take me some time to warm up to the idea of him being around again.” Maddie told Buck.

“Maddie, he was scared, he has trauma. Everything got to be a little too much for him and he didn’t know how to keep up so he left. Tommy thought he was protecting himself and protecting me by doing it.”

“Okay but that doesn’t diminish how much he hurt you.” Maddie argued.

“I never said it did. But I’m saying it wasn’t all on Tommy either.” Buck set his fork down. He was getting upset with Maddie. Buck was a grown adult. If he wanted to be friends with his ex-boyfriend, who was anyone else to tell him how to live his life? Especially Maddie, who of anyone, Buck figured would’ve been the least likely to judge. “Of all people I thought you would understand that the best.”

“Buck what do you mean by that?” Maddie frowned.

“When you run it’s perfectly understandable but when Tommy does it he’s a terrible person? Where was all this concern you have for me now when you were doing the same thing to Chimney?”

Maddie scoffed and sat her own fork down. “Wow.”

“You were going through something, fighting battles no one could help you with, and you got scared so you ran. That’s exactly what Tommy did too. It’s not fair for you to judge him for that when you did the same thing.” Buck told her.

“I was sick, I had postpartum depression.” Maddie argued.

“Tommy’s-” Buck paused. He wasn’t going to tell Maddie all of Tommy’s trauma. “Tommy was- still is struggling with something too. But he’s working to get better which is huge for him because if he’s not careful he could lose his pilot’s license. He’s not only risking his job, but something he loves just to try and get better to- to be better. Be mad at Tommy all you want, but don’t tell me how I should feel about him.” Buck got up from the table and began to leave.

“Buck, wait-” Maddie started.

“I don’t want to hear it, Maddie.” Buck shook his head and left.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

End Game 2

No tag lists. Do not send asks or DMs about updates. Review my pinned post for guidelines, masterlist, etc.

Warnings: this fic will include dark content such as noncon/dubcon, age gap, stalking, and possible untagged elements. My warnings are not exhaustive, enter at your own risk.

This is a dark!fic and explicit. 18+ only. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: Your gaming buddy asks to meet up but it doesn’t go exactly as planned.

Characters: Andy Barber

Note: we're here to boo Andrew.

As per usual, I humbly request your thoughts! Reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed, not only do I see them easier but it lets other people see my work. I will do my best to answer all I can. I’m trying to get better at keeping up so thanks everyone for staying with me.

Your feedback will help in this and future works (and WiPs, I haven’t forgotten those!) Please do not just put ‘more’. I will block you.

I love you all immensely. Take care. 💖

“So, you’re coming?” Jacob’s voice quavers with excitement. You can’t imagine how he’d sound if you said no. You hate letting people down, it seems to be all you've ever done.

“Uh, yeah,” you say as you steer around the track; opting for some MarioKart over Minecraft that night, “boss says it’s no problem to get the days off. Just have to make it up after. Is... Is everything still good on your end?” 

“Oh yeah, sure thing,” he assures buoyantly, “I can’t wait. Did you still wanna split the airBnB?” 

“Actually, I got a place to stay for the night then I’ll take the early bus back,” you explain as Princess Peach knocks you off the track, “argh!” 

“Right, that’s good,” he says, “good to know you won’t be stranded out there.” 

“Mhm,” you use your boost to catch up to Peach and get your revenge. You don’t mention that Kara will be with you at the con. You just want to be sure this isn’t something wonky. “It’ll be nice to get out of town. My grandma will probably be happy to have the place to herself.” 

“Yeah,” he scoffs, “what’s her problem anyway?” 

“Just the way she is. She likes her space,” you shrug, “I don’t know, I don’t think she expected to be raising her granddaughter...” 

“Ah, yeah, I guess that would be stressful,” he says, “still, seems like you’re not too bad to be around. Got a job, go to school, all that. Think my dad would love it if I put in half as much effort.” 

“Yeah? You make him sound like a hard ass.” 

“Can be. Lawyer, so kinda his schtick,” he chuckles. 

“Oo, fancy,” you snort. Maybe if either of your parents had been lawyers, you wouldn’t be living off your grandma’s resent.  

“I guess. Never really see him that much...” he grumbles. 

“Hm, well, no winning, is there?” You mutter. 

“Not really,” he sighs and hisses, “ugh, Toad!” 

You chuckle and cross the finish line. A respectable second. You wait for him to finish and stifle a yawn. 

“Tired?” He asks. 

“Little.” 

“Me too, long day,” he groans, “neck’s killing me.” 

“Oh, what’d you do--” 

“You know, I’m-- an idiot. Was messing around on my bike.” 

“Of course,” you snicker, “well, if you don’t mind, I’m gonna sign off. I don’t wanna keep my grandma up and my head’s starting to go.” 

“Sure, I gotta get up early anyway,” he sounds less than enthused. “Good night.” 

“You too.” 

“Tomorrow?” 

“Can’t, work. Day after?” 

“Okay, I’ll make it work,” he confirms, “I’m excited about meeting up. Aren’t you?” 

“Yep,” you try not to show your doubt. You’re still not really sure about everything. 

“Can’t wait,” he rasps and the silt in his tone makes you shiver. 

“Yeah, er, bye then,” you hit end session and take off your headset, your ears tender and a bit sweaty. Even if it is awkward, at least you’ll get to hang with Kara for a bit. You haven’t seen her since grad. 

🎮

You’re already exhausted and you’re not even inside yet. The line for the convention is bustling and your excitement keeps you going as you and Kara gab away and move with the slow crawl. The sun beams down and has you sweating, though you could easily blame that on your nerves too. 

“So, this Jacob... is he cute?” She winks. 

“Kara,” you roll your eyes, “it’s not like that. Really. We just game.” 

“Oh yeah. But do you want it to be more?” She teases. 

“You know I’m not really into all that. I don’t have room for a boyfriend in my life.” 

“So boring. Never change, girlie,” she nudges you playfully. “But really, that’s smart. Calvin is too much. I’m thinking of cutting him loose.” 

“Again?” You squint. 

“Not my fault he keeps coming back,” she giggles. 

You peer around, searching out a familiar face amid the ocean of strangers. You haven’t seen Jacob yet. You’re almost hoping he doesn’t show up. Then again, why wouldn’t he? He paid for you to be here. The reminder of the fact strikes guilt in your chest. 

You pause as your eyes catch another pair, further back in the queue. An older man with a beard. He stands out among the crowd. He wears a tidy button-up where most wear graphic tees or cosplay attire. He stares for a moment before he turns away and looks down, probably at whatever kid dragged him there. 

“Well, what are you going to do if he sees you and falls in love?” Kara asks. 

“Whatever,” you roll your eyes. 

“If he’s a nerd like you, how could he not?” 

“Hey,” you frown. 

“What? You’re like the sexy gamer girl type. Isn’t that what dudes want?” She shrugs. “Let me see his pic again. He’s a skinny little thing. He’d definitely be into you.” 

“Urgh, stop,” you cross your arms. 

“Sorry, I’m only playing. You just seem so nervous, I’m trying to loosen you up.” 

“I know,” you puff, “it’s just... I should’ve just said no. This is stupid. I don’t know why I even agreed.” 

“To get out of that shithole,” she snips. “Why do you think I hauled ass the minute I popped by grad cap on?” 

“Mm, yeah, I just hope... do you think he really wants that? Maybe I gave him the wrong idea. Oh, Kar, I really didn’t mean to lead him on.” 

“No, no, I’m sure it’s nothing you did if he does. I mean, he’s probably a virgin so...” 

“That’s mean,” you pout. 

“What, so are you,” she laughs. 

“Exactly,” you shake your head and drop your arms, a buzz jittering your skirt pocket.  

You look down at yourself as you slide your phone free. That was probably a bold choice but it’s so damn hot out. Besides, your Pikachu tee is loose enough to counteract the denim sheath. You turn the screen up, shading it with your hand as you read. 

‘Sorry, not going to make it. Something came up. 🙁' 

You frown and reread the message. Really? You came all the way here, took time off of work, and he’s flaking? 

“What’s up?” Kara asks as she clicks her manicured nails impatiently and stands on her toes, trying to see past the bodies ahead. 

“He just cancelled,” you mutter and type in your reply. 

‘Oh no. Hope it’s nothing bad. Maybe another time.’ 

You hit send and drop your shoulders. You’re surprised how disappointed you are. More so about the wasted effort than anything. Even if you are a bit relieved, it’s shitty. 

“Ah, bullshit!” Kara sneers, “what the hell? What did he say?” She reaches for your phone and you hold it out of her grasp. “That fucker.” 

“It’s probably not his fault. Shit happens.” 

“Babe, you’re gonna settle for a lot of nonsense if you keep that attitude. I’d be friggin pissed if I was you. He brings you all the way here and now he’s too good for you. I bet he saw some cute girl in line and she smiled at him once so now he’s ditching,” she scowls, “I hate boys.” 

“I’m sure... it’s nothing,” you say glumly as your phone vibes again. 

‘I’m real sorry. I hope you still have a good time. Take lots of pictures.’ 

You don’t respond. You lock your phone and put it back in your pocket. It never feels good to be stood up. Even then. 

“You know what, screw him,” Kara snarls, “let’s go in there and buy you the cutest plushie you can find. Hell, maybe you can find an even cuter guy.” 

“Kar,” you warn her. 

“Fine, just the plushie. Maybe two,” she trills, “forget that loser.” 

🎮

The chaos of the convention wipes away the dark cloud over you. You’re almost thankful that Jacob gave you the opportunity to catch up with Kara. You didn’t realise how much you missed her. It’s perfect day where you can forget about your grandmother and your lame job and everything else. 

You rush around from booth to booth. You look at fanart, handmade figures, and stuffies. You’re mindful of your wallet and how empty it really is. You’ll get one thing and a snack. That’s all you can afford.  

As the hours roll by, your early morning bus ride and time spent standing out in the hot sun catch up to you. You feel your muscles starting to ache and your eyelids turning fuzzy. You yawn as you shuffle behind Kara as she waits in line to get a signature from the one D-list celeb she’s heard of. You’d get one too but it’s way too expensive. 

“Hey,” you rub your cheek, “mind if I sit and wait? I wanna grab a soft pretzel anyway.” 

“Sure,” she agrees easily, “looks like it’s gonna be a while.” 

“Want me to bring you a drink or something?” You offer. 

“Nah, just text me where you are so I can find you,” she says. 

You leave her reluctantly. You’d rather not be wandering alone through the hordes but your feet are killing you and your stomach’s been roaring for the last hour. You stand in line for the pretzel stall and get yours with cinnamon sugar and syrup. Messy but delicious. 

You find a table in the corner and settle in. You put your phone beside the napkin and tear apart the doughy goodness. Your phone lights up with a notification from the merge game you like to play and you see several other icons; missed messages. 

You focus on your snack, savouring each bite, as your eyes drift around the crowded centre. You can barely see some of the booths as hordes cluster around. Some cosplayers bat at each other with toy swords as children fight over the arcade machines. You’re overwhelmed by the sheer amount of activity all around. 

You put your head down trying to block out the lights and noise. You feel yourself getting overstimulated. It’s like when you’re in the lecture hall and suddenly you can hear every sniff, sneeze, and keystroke. You close your eyes as you wipe your fingertips on the edge of the napkin, only half-finished your pretzel. 

“Looks good,” a deep voice cuts through the blaring din. 

As you recognise the timbre, your heart squeezes and the world pinpoints at the centre of your skull. You open your eyes and slowly raise your head. You blink dumbly at the unfamiliar man stood in front of you. You think you’ve seen him before, or at least he sticks out from the typical convention attendee. 

It isn’t that he’s too old, there’s lots of older geeks hanging around but they have neckbeards and greasy combovers. His hair is tidy and his beard trimmed close. His clothing also lacks the typical Dorito dust or anime character. You remember, he was outside in the line. 

“Uh, hello?” You utter. 

“Sorry I’m late,” he says as he pulls out the chair across from you. He sits as your insides plunge. You know his voice. 

“Jacob?” You murmur in shock. How? Why? This isn’t the stringy teenager you met online. 

He nods, his jaw tensing, and he crosses an arm over the table, pointing to your half-eaten pretzel, “what’d you get on yours? I can’t decide between sweet or savoury.” 

“Who... are you?” You croak, head spinning as your eyes prick. You knew something was weird. You knew you weren’t talking to Jacob or whoever that boy was in the pictures. 

He takes a breath and lets it out slowly. As his chest deflates, you do too. He’s older than you, bigger than you, and by the looks of him, a lot better off. Why the hell would he be chatting with you? Why would he lie to you? 

“You’re right. I’m not Jacob,” he confesses, the colour draining from his face. He steeples his fingers and considers his next words carefully. You sit back and hug yourself defensively. This is fucked. “My name is Andy, Jacob is my son.” 

“Your son?” You eke out, “why-- why would you lie?” 

He cringes and takes another breath, “he was my son,” he corrects himself, “he... passed.” 

You feel like you’ve been struck. Your mouth falls open, stunned. Not only did he hide behind his son’s photos, but his dead son’s. Oh, god. You feel sick. No, you feel stupid. 

“Look, please, just hear me out. I just—it wasn’t meant to go on this long. When I first lied to you, it was supposed to be that one time. I was... I was lost. I just lost Jacob and I was going through his things. I started playing because I missed him. I wanted to feel like he was still there--” 

“No, no, you got on discord and you started talking to me. As him!” Your voice shakes and your eyes tinge. “That’s not just missing him.” 

“I know, you’re right. I lied but... I got lonely playing by myself so yes, I went onto that discord. You were nice. You didn’t call me a noob or whatever. And... and after work, looking forward to hearing your voice, it got me through a lot of pain. Being alone in that house after so long, I couldn’t cope--” 

“So you lied to me?” You stand and snatch your phone, nauseous to the core, “you manipulated me. How do you know—if you had just been you that I would’ve been any different? If you just wanted to play games, to be friends--” 

“I was scared--” 

“I don’t care if you were scared,” you hiss as you stomp forward. “You’re an adult.” 

He stands and blocks your path. You recoil, put off by his height. He’s a lot bigger on his feet. 

“Please, move or... I’ll scream,” you breathe. 

“You don’t have to do that. Just hear me out,” he pleads. 

“I don’t want to hear anything else from you, Jacob. Or Andy. Or whoever you really are,” you sneer, “move.” 

He shudders and hangs his head. He makes himself seem small as his shoulders round and he backs out of your way. You bite down and march past him.  

You need to get to a bathroom. Now. You’re going to spew up your guts. More important, you need to get yourself together before you go find Kara. She can’t know this happened. It’s too embarrassing. 

[goldsainz]

HIS LUCKY CHARM — one shot.

pairing: lando norris x reader

MASTERLIST.

summary: lando is disappointed you can’t make it to his home race, only to be surprised at the end.

request: “Hi! Could you write something about Lando and reader when she surprise him on race day. Lando is sad when she told can't do this on his home race bc something important with her work but after all she appears on Sunday on track. He is more than happy with that and archive good resolut be she is his lucky charm”

warnings: teeny tiny bit of angst, a probably not accurate depiction of the garage

NOTE: WHAT A RACE!! loved the lando+lewis podium, also oscar was great 🫶 anyway, to celebrate have this little thing, thank you sm for requesting bc this inspired me a lot (you kinda manifested the good result???) i added a shameless cameo in there, i just couldnt help myself! (the ending is rushed, ignore it😁)

[ word count: 2,2k ]

“I’m so sorry, Lando.” Is what you say to your boyfriend when you have to break the bad news to him.

“It’s okay.” His face breaks into a broken smile, with glossy eyes he holds your hands and brushes his thumbs up and down your palms.

“I’ll still tune in.” 

“I know.”

“I’ll be rooting for you.” 

“I know.”

You take your hands from his hold, and place them around his neck. You watch as his right posture lightly relaxes at your touch. 

“I don’t wanna miss it. You know I don’t.” 

You wish your job wasn’t as demanding as it was, that it didn’t make you fly to another country in the middle of your boyfriend’s home Grand Prix. But it does. And you’re not sure how to handle the emotional stress it inflicts on you both, and you sure hope it doesn’t affect him in a way that will mess up his race.

“And if I could make it, I would.” 

“It’s alright. It’s your job, I know it’s not your fault.” Even though Lando’s words seem reassuring, and he means them with his whole heart; you still feel guilty. 

With that, he stands up and makes his way to the kitchen of your shared apartment. You watch him leave, and with a heavy heart start to pack whatever stuff you need for your trip. It destroys you to see him sad so close to his home race, a time where he should be joyous, only worried about the car and nothing more. 

You’re not sure how you’re going to make it up to him, but you will.

Somehow.

You were being a little secretive, and you were sure Lando definitely noticed. 

Your boss and you had managed to come to an arrangement which allowed you to be present for the race. It would all be very tight in timing, but nothing that couldn’t be accomplished. It involved a lot of overworking the days before, but it was very much worth it.

You could already imagine the face Lando would make when he finally saw you. Whether he got a good result or not, there was no doubt you wanted to be there with him. 

It took a lot of care for you to arrive at the paddock almost incognito, with fans already speculating why you weren't at his home race. Thankfully no break-up rumours had surfaced, but there were a couple hurtful ones that made you want to be present even more. 

But you knew that no matter how much Lando acted like he was oblivious to what happened around him, his silly act was simply that; an act. You didn't like keeping secrets from him, it felt wrong to have to blatantly lie to him whilst everyone around him knew something he didn't. Still, it would all work out in the end.

Lando’s family had been so happy to see you in the paddock. His grandma (who adored you) hugged you as tightly as she could, quickly bidding you goodbye when you told her you had to go to the garage quickly to get prepared for the race. 

There was no doubt that the tingly feeling of nerves creeped up on you the moment you spotted all the engineers and people moving around, getting everything that needed to be set up wrapped up so the race could go smoothly. Zak was already at the pit wall, and Lando was sitting in his car ready for the formation lap to begin. 

At the garage you spotted Florence Pugh, who had a McLaren headset on. You had seen her on the paddock, but wasn't aware of the fact that she had come to the race invited by McLaren. You tried not to freak out, you saw celebrities almost everywhere when you came to races or went out with Lando. Still, the actress had a special place in your heart.

It took a little of hyping yourself up, and confidence to walk up to her, but you did. You would be sharing the garage for an hour and a half, the least you could do is socialise a little. 

“Hi! I’m Y/N.” You said to Florence watching her turn around with a smile on her face.

“Hello!” She says, greeting you like you were an old friend. “I’m Florence”

“You’re a McLaren fan?” 

“Honestly, I’m more of a Lewis fan.” She said with a laugh, keeping ehr voice just loud enough so you could hear her.

“I get that. I mean, who isn’t?” 

The conversation flowed for a little more until the race was about to start. You excused yourself and moved to an area closer to the screen, where you could watch Lando close-up. You loved being in the garage because of the different screens and the attention to their drivers, that allowed you to experience the race in different ways.

Your headset was adjusted and you were awaiting the moment where David Croft would say it’s lights out. Your knee was slightly bouncing, but you tried your best to contain the nerves. 

“It lights out and away we go!” Exclaims David Croft, his voice echoing through the garage.

You watch as Lando has a great start, and it takes about a second for him to take the lead. You hear the roar of the crowd before you can even react.

“Yes! Go Lando!” You scream, your voice doesn't make anyone flinch because everyone around you has the same reaction. It is a sight to behold, a moment you are more than grateful to see live. 

“I can’t believe it.” Someone next to you says, and you can't help but smile. 

It is no secret how badly the season started for McLaaren. You watched Lando’s smile waver more than once, his faith in the team never wavering, but still. He was rightfully let down by the performance of the adr,a dn you had to reassure him multiple times that it wasn't his fault. Because he was doing the best that he could with what he had. 

So now, seeing him get to this moment, is absolutely deserved.

A couple of laps go by and Max takes the lead for your boyfriend. There is disappointment in the atmosphere, but everyone knows that P2 is a miracle and that Lando is doing absolutely great work out there. They all know how great it would be to have him finish in that position, especially since Oscar is P3. 

Getting a podium in Silverstone would mean the world to Lando, Which is why you're worried about what will happen when they pit. Whatever strategy they choose will determine if Lando gets podium or not, and you will not pretend to really know what happens or how they come up with strategies, but you hope that they dont mess up his race because of wrong timing or choose the wrong tyres. 

As you watch his car race, you suddenly see on the screen that one of the Haas cars has come to a halt. A safety car is deployed, which means a couple of cars will choose to change tyres. The whole garage groans when Lewis’s car comes out in front of Oscar’s after he pits, now challenging Lando’s position.

It’s like you can’t breathe between those laps that Lando and Lewis battle for P2. Everyone is at the edge of their seats watching them race against the other, and you hope that this doesn't end up running both their races. The last thing anyone wants is for them to crash, because going from that position to a DNF would result in disappointment for everyone involved.

“Come on, Lando! Come on!” You scream, your palms intertwined in front of you as you watch him fight for his position. 

Thankfully, Lando manages to maintain his standing and leaves Lewis behind him for good. The hard compound tyres he was pitted for are giving him a tough time, you know that it is not ideal. Not when he could've lost his position, but with just 10 laps to go your faith in him is over the roof. 

You’re on twitter, refreshing your timeline to see if there is anything you missed. The fans are so enthusiastic, their comments make you smile. Even if there are people out there who don't like Lando, there are even more who love him and want nothing but the best for him. 

You watch as Florence is escorted out of the garage since she will be waving the flag. You watch her face light up in excitement, and in all her excitement she still waves at you. You don't waste a second in waving right back at her, turning your head right after to the screens.

The moment Lando crosses the finish line the McLaren garage erupts in cheers. You hug whoever is next to you, a teary smile pulling at your lips. You cannot help the tears that fall down your face, you usually don't get that emotional during a race, but this is his home race and he is on the podium. If there is any time to cry, this is it. 

You are almost running to the barriers, waiting for the moment that Lando steps out of his car and goes to celebrate with the team. You are wearing his merch, something that will surely stand out to him, enough that in his podium haze he will spot you. 

He goes up to the team, his helmet now long gone, and that is when he sees you.

You who told him you couldn't make it, are suddenly there. 

In a flash he moves in front of you. You cannot tell him anything because in an instant he is grabbing you, squeezing you so tight he lifts you up from the ground in excitement, you giggle right in his ear and he is sure that that is the most beautiful sound he will ever hear. He is careful not to take the barrier with him, not wanting a warning from the stewards.

After a couple seconds you pull back slightly enough to see his face. Your hands waste no time in grabbing his face and placing his lips right over  yours. Lando reacts almost immediately, melting right into the kiss, the adrenaline from the race still pumping through his veins. You can hear some cameras click, and the cheer from some people, but you ignore it.

You have to pull back eventually, not because you want to, but because there is so much to say and not enough time, not to forget the fact that he has yet to go to the podium.

“I cannot believe you’re here.” He whispers right over your lips, his sticky forehead pressed against yours.

“I couldn’t miss this.” You say, watching as his lips pull into a grin.

“I was pretty cool out there, wasn't I?” You snort at his words, separating from him but his hands never leave your waist.

“Oscar was really cool.” His grip on your waist tightens, “I haven’t properly congratulated him yet, actually.”

Someone from the team says something to him, you're sure they're telling him to wrap your conversation up because he has to go up to the podium. 

“You were great out there.” You tell him, your eyes holding all the sincerity in the world. You watch his gaze soften at your words, and he places a quick peck as he finally lets you out of his hold.

“Of course I was,” You shake your head at his smugness, “My lucky charm was here.”

You cannot help the tears that well up in your eyes at the softness of his words. You know that the celebrations and compliments are not over, but for now they are. You step back a little from the barrier, seeing as he is rushed to the podium and joins his fellow drivers on the steps. 

You smile up at him, watching as he grabs the champagne. He moves it around a little and then hits it against the ground, effectively bringing back the iconic champagne spike he does whenever he is on the podium. 

Lando sprays it everywhere, and you're almost sure a little hits you. Your theory is confirmed when he is smiling widely at you, like a kid caught doing something he should but isn't the least bit sorry. You laugh at his antics, which in turn makes him smile even wider (which you're not sure how it's even possible). 

When the champagne runs out, his gaze catches yours once more. You mouth an “I love you” to him, watching from afar as he blushes. A second after he returns the sentiment, mouthing it back and blowing you a kiss.

You thank your boss in your head for letting you be here with him, because if you hadn't been here with him you would've sure felt horrible for it. 

After all, Lando needs his lucky charm with him and you're more than happy to oblige to his wishes.