#*pats his head* This bad boy can fit so many worries in him

[villain-in-love]

Behold, my favourite ever picture of Thistle:

This is just him throughout the entire story, represented in one frame. Epic indeed.

[stxneflxwers]

off-colored.

⋯⁂ summary. Aventurine woke up sick, now you're full of determination to keep him home – the place where he's allowed to be himself (and so you can take care of him.)

⋯⁂ a/n. barely edited lol. i wrote this in the tumblr post editor... :') anyway. SICK FIC TIME!!!!! I WANNA BABY HIM GRRRR

⋯⁂ characters. aventurine. gn reader.

⋯⁂ w.c. 971.

⋯⁂ cw. fluff/hurt comfort. established relationship. sickness and its side dishes. all lowercase. mentions of nudity. mentions of past trauma. (both are non-descriptive).

aventurine.

🌌 needless to say, he's not exactly thrilled to be sick – if anything, it makes his heart jump into his throat (and subsequently make him cough and choke on his own saliva even more).

🌌 for a split second, he thinks he's dying – but no, all that happened was him rolling off the bed and crashing to the floor with the blanket tangled around him. and then promptly getting thrown into a violent coughing fit.

🌌 you were, for a split moment, considering getting on his case for hogging the blanket again – and then you heard him hacking away for a solid few moments before he releases a very loud, stuffy sigh. uh oh, you think, that last long mission he had must've gotten him sick.

🌌 but then... you realize how you can take advantage of this and force him to stay home for once (definitely not because you want more time with him or anything. totally not.) you grin to yourself, believing it's your turn to win for once – he's hardly a sore loser when it comes to you.

you roll to his side of the bed and peek over the edge, "you sound sick." you blurt out – soft, unimposing.

"huh? uh... nuh uh!" he then sneezes behind his clothed arm after barely managing to detangle himself from the blanket.

"yeah, sure, totally and completely not sick at all. i definitely believe you." you scowl, although it's more playful than genuine.

"but... i've got work today–"

"you say that every day."

"but it's true!" he sniffles and wipes at his nose with the back of his black fabric sleeve.

"yeah, well, too bad!" you say and hop to your feet, already feeling excited over the notion of babying him all day. "you're staying home – coworkers and boss be damned."

he whines your name pathetically, "pleaaaaase..."

"no."

"pretty please?"

"no!"

"...with a cherry on top–"

"oh, shush. and don't you try to sneak out of the house." you cross your arms with an atmosphere of determination – all to make sure he gets better soon, instead of exacerbating any pain and malaise.

"haha..." he chuckles weakly (and dryly from his parched throat), "alright, you win."

"yay!" you cheer and help him sit on the edge of the mattress (that will certainly need to have its sheets changed soon), "good boy." you pat his head with such soft and slow strokes that he can feel the love melt into his bones and heart.

"aw... you just wanted to hear me say that you win, huh?" he teases – despite his ailed state – and smiles up at you, somehow even more charmingly than usual. "sure, sure, take advantage of the sick guy–"

"shush, you! it's not such a bad thing to have you home with me for once, anyway..." you sigh, a soft pout protruding from your bottom lip – your hand stills for a fleeting moment, making his heart lurch right back into his throat again.

"i'm sorry, i'm sorry – don't be mad–" he pleads, something he rarely does, but you've dealt with a sick kakavasha once before, you can do it as many times as you need to.

you smile sadly, your eyes pinching with apology, "don't worry – i'm not upset at all. i've just...missed you more than words can describe." you resume petting his soft hair – he's always taken such good care of his pretty blonde locks.

"i...i missed you too, babe." he sighs in relief, his heart settling back into its rightful place.

🌌 he's surprisingly compliant for the rest of the day – of course, he has his playful and teasing comebacks, but he never truly puts up a fight. even if he felt capable enough, he still wouldn't – not against you.

🌌 you do just about anything for him as he recovers – to drive home the point that you love him dearly and deeply. he barely asks for anything, though, so you end up going above and beyond for him – as a part of some weird, personal gamble with yourself. has he been rubbing off on you? you're not sure.

🌌 one of the worst (read: most difficult) parts of taking care of him is making him eat. he'll complain with a whine or groan and try to hide under a pillow or blanket. you're not sure if it's trauma-related or him just being a big baby over some minor nausea, but no worries, you've got it handled.

🌌 after a bit of half-hearted arguing, he succumbs to your demands and eats at least half of what you made him. he has an arguably small appetite and stomach due to his past, so you let him eat as much as he's comfortable with – as long as he actually eats.

🌌 one of the other worst parts of taking care of him is getting him to bathe with you helping him. he insists he won't fall asleep in the bath, but you don't trust his awkward laugh and blatant lie (or his half-asleep expression). once you've pulled your final straw, you give him a hard, long stare until he finally puts up his white flag and – yet again – succumbs to letting you help him out.

🌌 he's very shy when you're naked around each other – it immediately makes his whole face red, his blush even reaching his neck and upper chest. you giggle a little at him and he pouts, all you do is pinch his burning, red cheek. yet your gentle, loving teasing eases his aversion to any and all vulnerability. he, from thereon, complies with the rest of the bathing process.

🌌 when night falls upon your shared home, he's practically dead asleep. you feel fulfilled. and he's already looking better than he did this morning – the color in his skin slowly returning.

yeah, you definitely won.

[dindjarindiaries]

Without a Word

character: Hunter (The Bad Batch)

prompts: "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe." / A kiss of gratitude

main masterlist • hunter masterlist

Cid had warned you that this place would be seedy, and she wasn't wrong. It was even worse than Ord Mantell—or maybe that was your own paranoid thinking making it seem even worse.

You looked over at Hunter, who was closer to your side than usual. It was just the two of you on this job, since all you were doing was making a quick delivery, and the squad desperately needed rest. It took some convincing, especially for Omega, but eventually you and Hunter had been able to go off on your own.

It was nice, but as you continued to shoulder your way inside the crowded cantina, the absence of the rest of the squad was becoming more and more apparent.

Hunter returned your gaze through his visor, his helmet tilting before he gave you a reassuring nod. You returned it and faced forward again, painting on an expression of confidence the best you could. It was hard, though, with so many eyes piercing right through you, because you and a clone deserter most definitely didn't belong in a place like this.

"Hey." Hunter's voice was even lower than usual as he kept his words between the two of you. You spared him another glance, and he set his hand over your back to lean in closer. "Are you okay?"

The corners of your lips rose a little too quickly as you nodded. "Yeah! Yeah. It's just..." you looked around and inhaled a breath, trying to fight off your sudden claustrophobia, "crowded."

"I know." Hunter gave your back a few gentle pats. Blood rushed into your ears and made them burn. "But we won't be here long, and I can hear everything." His visor scanned the vicinity. "I've got eyes on everyone."

Your brow wrinkled as you gave him a worried once-over. "Don't give yourself a migraine, H."

Hunter shook his helmet. "I won't. There's no way we'll be here long enough for that to happen."

You narrowed your eyes at him, drawing a chuckle from deep within his chest as he gave your back one last tap. He then drew his hand away and used it as extra protection for the case he was holding in his other hand. You instinctively kept a hand hovered over your blaster as you approached the bartop.

Hunter was able to make room for both of you there, but you were squeezed in tight between him and a burly Zabrak who was at least double your size. He towered over you as he turned slightly to give you a look. When his gaze started to lower, you turned more towards Hunter, tucking your chin towards your chest to make yourself smaller.

You weren't able to pay attention to whatever conversation Hunter was having with the bartender, who was receiving the delivery. You were too attuned to every single sense, remaining on high alert the way you often had to do back before you met the boys. Your gaze watched your fingers as they began to pick at themselves, an anxious habit that helped you to really lock in to your surroundings.

The only thing that broke your focus was Hunter's hand suddenly covering yours. You blinked a few times in shock, raising your head to meet Hunter's visor. His helmet was tilted at you again, and his hand tightened around yours before he spoke.

"Don't worry."

Hunter paused, his visor looking beyond you. He lifted his hand to your back again, urging you even closer to him—but there was nowhere to go. That's when he made a space for you, fitting your left side between himself and the edge of the bartop. Your legs suddenly felt weak, and you pressed both palms upon the bartop to hold your ground.

When Hunter finished his thought, his modulated voice was just beside your ear. "I'll keep you safe."

You finally took your first full, deep breath of relief at that. You could protect yourself, and Hunter knew that too, but he also knew how weary it made you being on guard all the time. He had heard you rant about it enough when talking about your life before you found them.

That made his actions, and his words, all the better.

This time, you paid little attention to Hunter's conversation with the bartender because of how aware you were of his proximity to your body. The heat radiating off of him was like nothing you'd felt before, a physically warming presence that made you feel safe and comfortable, even in a place as unnerving as this.

You hadn't even needed to say anything. He just knew.

Hunter was just accepting the case the bartender had slide across the bartop when you suddenly heard a thud in the wood on your right side. You snapped your head in that direction, your eyes widening when you saw the Zabrak man's hand uncomfortably close to yours—though it was stopped by a knife that had positioned itself perfectly between two of his fingers.

Hunter's knife.

Hunter pressed himself more into you, blocking you off from the Zabrak as he spoke to him. "Don't even think about it."

You were too shocked to process anything, much less say or do anything useful. The Zabrak slowly drew his hand back towards himself, and without another moment's hesitation, Hunter held the case in one hand and used the other on your back to help you turn around. He then guided the two of you out of the cantina with ease.

Of course he had kept his word about keeping you safe. Of course he had been able to tell that you were too overwhelmed to properly protect yourself. Of course he had done just enough to protect you without going over the top.

Of course. And you were going to thank him for it, properly.

As soon as you stepped out into the fresh air, Hunter used the hand not holding the case to remove his helmet and tuck it underneath his arm. He steadied himself with a breath and looked over at you, a breathless amount of genuine concern swirling within his brown gaze.

"Are you okay?" He gave you a careful once-over as you continued to match his stride. When you nodded, he rewarded you with a small yet charming smile. "I told you we wouldn't be there for long." He lifted the hand holding the case to check something on his wrist. "In fact... I think we're making better time than I—."

Hunter cut himself off when you suddenly stepped in front of him, blocking his path. A knit formed in his brow, and he looked ready to question you before you held the sides of his face and pulled him towards you.

You couldn't care less that you were both in the middle of a very public, wide-open, and busy street. This wasn't the kind of place that was going to care about it, anyway. A few passersby hooted and hollered, but those sounds were mostly drowned out by the rapid beating of your heart.

This was the best way you could thank him, to proudly shower him with a display of affection as bold as this. Hunter was clearly eager to receive it, as his arm—the one with the case—wrapped around you to keep you as close to himself as possible. It was difficult to keep things from elevating to a level that simply wasn't appropriate for this setting, even if you did tease the warmth of his mouth with your tongue.

One of your hands was still on his jaw as you pulled away, and the other had drifted into his hair. Hunter looked dazed yet pleased, his gaze searching yours for an explanation. You gestured with your stare to the cantina that still stood a ways behind him before you provided him with what he was looking for.

"Thank you."

Hunter softened, the corners of his mouth rising as he gave his head a gentle shake. "You don't have to thank me for that." He leaned closer again, his nose brushing yours as he lowered his voice. "But I'm glad you did."

You giggled against his mouth, though you regretfully kept this kiss even shorter than the first. Hunter looked ready to protest, so you spoke quickly to relieve him of his worries. "Save the rest for the ship." You reached behind yourself to find his wrist on your waist. You gave it a gentle squeeze. "I heard we have extra time, anyway."

Hunter's smile became more sly as he nodded, his body staying close to yours as you made your way back to the ship—and even as you walked through a place where you should have felt the most on guard, you couldn't have been more relaxed and comfortable right by his side.

[takenbypeter]

Different In Every Way

Adam Warlock x reader

Words: 1801

Authors note: I did not expect people to actually want to read that little fic idea I posted but so many of y’all wanted this so I did it. Y’all made this happen. Also reader is tan or brown however you wanna perceive this. I made it for myself tho really🤣 and I’m tan/brown.

Taglist: @spderm4nnnn

It was difficult to pinpoint when it all began. It was like one day Adam Warlock just appeared by your side and ever since then he’s been there. It was strange to you because he honestly didn’t seem the type to be interested in others, but he would go out of his way to talk to you. But you couldn’t help but think, what interest could you bring to him. You weren’t a guardian, you were just a Terran who lived on Knowhere. So at first you were confused by the way he seemed to constantly look for you.

In the beginning he came to you with simple curiosities, “what is this? What is that?” And you’d tell him, even show him if needed. Then he’d begin coming to you with other problems.

“But I don’t get it,” he’d say after dishing out how mad Drax had become once he brought up how useless he believed Mantis was and how she slowed Drax down.

“Mantis was an asset, she helped us see things that sometimes we couldn’t. It’s like you and your pet,” you pointed to the brown furry creature that he constantly had by his side on Knowhere. “He doesn’t offer you anything but companionship but would you say he’s an asset?”

Adam looked down at the animal that was cuddled on his lap before smiling a little. “I’d say so. He makes me happy.”

“Exactly, Mantis isn’t a pet but she is an asset. Plus bad mouthing people isn’t nice, so try to avoid that.”

“But you guys bad mouth each other all the time.”

“To the person's face, there’s a difference. Unless it’s a bad guy then you can say whatever you want about them,” you explain and he looks far off, clearly trying to make sense of it all.

“Some of your rules here are very confusing.”

You gave him a little pat on the shoulder, “don’t worry, you’ll grasp it soon enough.”

After time conversations shifted from curiosities about the planet to curiosities about you. Sometimes it was simple like your favorite food and then after giving your answer he would want to try it with you. But other times it was just random things.

“Which member is your favorite of the new Guardians?” He’d ask as you two would be sitting on the balcony, his pet, Blurp sat in between as you people watched.

“Hmm, probably Cosmo.”

“What?!” He’d turn to you, offense clearly written on his face. “What about me!?”

You’d laugh looking down at cosmo who was messing around with Kraglin. “I’m sorry but just look at Cosmo,” his gaze follows yours to look down at the dog. “She’s so cute, I just wanna squish her face.”

“Okay okay, fine I can accept that…then who after Cosmo?”

“Hmm,” you’d scrunch your face and tilt your head, “I really really wanna say Rocket,” his jaw dropped and you finally looked at him, a little chuckle coming out from you, “but I think it’s you.”

Adam grew silent trying to hide the proud smile that was threatening to take over his expressions.

So yeah, chats with Adam were nice.

Then one day Drax, Nebula, and Groot were out at the center area, engaged in discussion as you were just coming out for a little greeting.

As you were passing by you waved and Groot said something that made you stop, “I am Groot.”

Your eyebrows furrowed as you came close to the group, “you know something I don’t know? What do you know?” You eyeballed the other two curiously. Nebula looked regular as always but Drax, Drax had a strange expression on his face like he was ready to explode…and then he did.

In laughter that was.

You stood there confused as his laughter bellowed out into the air.

“What is going on?” You asked, still haven’t gotten an answer.

Nebula rolled her eyes while Drax tried to talk to you through his fit, “golden boy…” he’d laugh again, “golden boy thinks you’re made of bronze!” He’d burst out again and you’d turn to Nebula with your expression practically begging for an explanation.

“When we were talking with Adam he constantly was bringing you up. We pointed it out and asked why and he said he has strange feelings towards you—“

“He said he has feelings for you because you’re just like him!!!” Drax would interrupt bursting into another fit. “He thinks you’re made of metal!”

That was news to you.

He likes me? Was your first thought but what you asked instead was, “he thinks I’m metal?”

Nebula continued, “yeah he thinks you’re copper or bronze because of your skin. We didn’t tell him he was wrong because we felt like that was your place.”

Drax continued laughing and Nebula had enough, “would you shut up already! It’s not that funny!”

“But…but he only likes you because you’re like him, but what’s he gonna do when he finds out you’re from Earth!”

“Drax!”

“I am Groot.”

“What? How’s that mean? I think it’s gonna be a hilarious story,” Drax said, turning to Groot.

You’ve heard enough, thanking them and glaring at Drax you went out to search for Adam.

All you could think while you searched was that now it all made sense why he came up to you specifically back then. It’s not like your skin tone was rare but I guess it stood out a little against the colorful skin that others had.

But did he actually only like you because of that?

Wait, did you like him?

You searched until you saw him coming out of one of the buildings across the way. You stood there unable to bring yourself to him.

Oh god you did like him.

I guess all that time you spent with him, you somehow gained feelings along the way.

His eyes looked around as if deciding where to go next.

“Don’t look this way. Don’t look this way,” you whispered frozen in place. His eyes stopped on you before the gold around them crinkled as his face spread into a grin.

Wait, what is he going to think when he realizes I’m from Earth?

Suddenly you didn’t even want to think about that conversation.

He took a step towards you and that was it, you immediately spun on your heel opting to have the conversation whenever you sorted your own thoughts out.

“Wait!” Is what you heard as you continued on trying to escape the golden boy. You made it all the way back to where you began, the main area where the others were. You couldn’t get too far though and Adam easily caught your arm, making you turn around in the action.

“I was calling you, didn’t you hear me?” He asked. He looked genuinely concerned for you which is definitely not a sight that you needed to see right now.

You glanced around at the others, awkwardly not wanting to talk about this with them there. Nebula and Groot looked away while Drax just put another Zargnut in his mouth, clearly entertained.

Like hell you were going to do this here. “Come here,” you took his golden hand and pulled him behind you leading him to the balcony where you two have spent many days together.

Once there you spun around and turned to him and without giving yourself any time to back out, you said, “I have strange, romantic feelings for you, and I think you have feelings for me.”

Adam was stunned by the comment. A few weeks ago he didn’t even understand what those feelings were, he had to talk to others to even understand what those feelings were. But now suddenly he finds out you have them too, he was ecstatic, he was happy, he was going to kill the person who told you that he had feelings for you.

The corners of his mouth pulled as he began to smile.

“But before anything happens between us, there’s something you should know.”

His eyebrows furrow. “What’s going to happen between us?”

Now was not the time to be explaining…all that, you shook your head and tried to continue, “nothing. Just…nothing. That’s not the point, the point is,” your hands curve as you motion to yourself, “I’m not made of metal.”

He says nothing, just looks at you eyebrows still together and you don’t even know what to make of that expression.

“I’m Terran. You know from Earth.” He still looked a little off, “like Quill,” you added and it finally seemed to click as he held out an, “ooohh.”

But again he looked confused, “but you and Peter…you look so different.”

“Yeah well while your planet comes in only one color, on my planet people come in all sorts of different shades and colors. Not bright colors, just very…neutral.”

Adam was silent again as he took in this new information.

You were from Terra.

Earth.

His mind seemed to be in its own thoughts while you stood there beginning to feel uncomfortable with what had to come eventually.

“Look, I know you like me because you think I’m exactly like you. But I’m just not.”

You don’t blame him if his feelings for you dwindle because of this, you weren’t ashamed of who you were but you were just disheartened that it turned out this way.

He was taking a while to respond and for a moment you wondered if you should just save you both the trouble and leave by your own two feet.

But then he spoke, “it’s true I believed we were the same, and that may have been the reason I searched for you. But in no way was that the sole reason for me gaining some certain feelings of emotion towards you. I believe I have these feelings because of our differences. You have taught me so much because of our different experiences, and that fact has not changed.”

He finishes his small speech and you don’t know exactly what to make of all that information, “so what are you saying?”

“I’m saying I still have fond feelings for you and if you’ll let me, I’d love for us to spend more time together. Solely the two of us.”

You weren’t exactly sure what he meant by that but you think he was asking you out on a date.

“I’d love that too.”

Adam smiles at you, his expression displaying a sort of idiotic happy type smile and all you could do was mirror it.

“See they’re smiling I knew it would work out,” Drax said from down below as the three peered up at you both.

“I am Groot.”

“Yeah yeah, it’s beautiful now, come on. We got things to do,” Nebula said while taking off ushering the others to follow behind her.

[kenniilovesthethicc]

My brain couldn't get a certain hyena fact out, and so I wrote a very silly Ruggie fic

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

An opportunity for free food could never be denied by the hyena boy, thus why he was somehow hanging out with Rook Hunt of all people. It's quite the peculiar situation; Ruggie was running a quick errand at Pomefiore. Why? Epel accidentally got a stain on a fancy shirt Vil bought him for a photo shoot regarding NRC's most glamorous students, and he was gonna be in a whole heap of trouble if Vil found out! So after a decent payment, Ruggie was in the clothewashing room waiting for Epel's stuff to be dried, eyes flitting to the clock for time. He was getting hungry at this hour (he's hungry at any hour but still) and his stomach roared for attention under his baggy tshirt.

"Yeah, yeah, you'll get fed soon..." he annoyedly responded to his grumbling guts. Thankfully, it didn't take too long to retrieve the fresh, clean shirt and make his way back to Pomefiore. "Here ya go, Epel! Just like new!"

The lilac haired boy smiled sweetly, "Thanks a bunch, Ruggie! Ah was so worried Vil'd give me hell if he saw that." Ruggie snickered playfully, teasing, "Maybe next time you have juice don't wear the pricey duds, shihihi~" The two laughed together until suddenly-

GRRRROOOUUU..

"!! Was that your stomach, Ruggie?" Epel's eyes were wide, Ruggie's wider and face flushed pink. "Sorry bout that, shyeheh,,, I haven't gotten around to dinner yet," he explained, arms snuggly around his midriff as to contain the sound. "Well, I better head back to my home turf and feed this bad boy," the beastman began, giving his stomach a pat. "See ya later!" He waved goodbye as did Epel, the two parting ways as Ruggie neared the exit. However, before he could get one foot in the mirror back to campus, a spinechillingly friendly French accent sounded in his large fluffy ears.

"Bonjour, Monsieur Dandelion!" Rook Hunt, number 1 nemesis to all things with fur or scales. "YELP! Grrr, what do you want, Rook?" Ruggie turned towards his upperclassman, scowl on his face. The blond just smiled while chuckling, "No reason to bare your fangs. I simply couldn't help but overhear the most ferocious sound, and came to investigate. Behold, it was from your affamé stomach!" His emerald eyes glanced at the second year's tummy, which flustered the poor lad greatly. "Alright then, uh, your curiosity has been quelled, can I head home and actually EAT now?" As Ruggie scooted closer to the mirror, Rook put on a saddened expression; "Hmm, I suppose I can't force you to stay, but I have important research needed studied for the science club and you are the only person I know who could lend me such a niche lesson..." Ruggie tilted his head and raised a brow, "What do you need to know? I assumed anything about hyenas you weirdly know already?"

Hook, line and sinker. "Ah, but this information is about hyena beastmen such as yourself, which I've never truly gotten to experience this phenomenon with," he explained, taking out a notepad and pen. "You see, many carnivorous animals can fit quite a lot of food inside at once, and hyenas are an excellent example! I'm sure you're aware, but they can eat nearly 40 pounds of food in their stomach in one sitting! So, I have a simple hypothesis..." he leaned closer to the beastman with a mischievous glare. "How much can a hyena beastman eat before immobility?"

Ruggie had no clue how to respond, but his belly did.

Guuuu...

"Excellent, your stomach is willing to answer!" So, at the prospect of a full course meal all to himself, Ruggie now found himself in the huntsman's room, and pallets of food bestowed before him. There was steak, burgers, fish, and many other kinds of hearty meat. Not to mention the dessert tray with a milkshake, cookie platter and mochi. Obviously, there was a large pitcher of water to help ease everything down. Ruggie drooled eagerly at this feast fit for Beelzebub himself, while still suspicious of Rook's true intentions, he couldn't wait to dig in. Just as he was about to take a big honkin bite out of a burg, Rook tapped his snoot.

"Non, not yet. I must document your current weight and shape, please do stand on this scale." Ruggie huffed, "Who are you, the veterinarian?" before getting on the scale. Rook observed the measurement, frowning sincerely. Ruggie was underweight, better than he was before NRC, but still noticeably thin. Rook wrote down the numbers before lifting Ruggie's shirt to see his bare stomach, much to the boy's annoyance. After whatever notes he was making got done, he released the hyena boy and the feasting began.

Everything Ruggie ate was delicious, and it didn't take long for his belly to start visibly rounding out. Currently, he managed to eat 4/6 burgers, 3/6 steaks, all 5 mackerel and was starting on the first of 5 arctic char. "Mmmm... where did you get all this from? Arctic Char is exsponsive! Plus, it's amazing!" Rook laughed softly, simply stating, "From a well learned chef friend of mine~ Eat to your heart's content, little hyéne."

...

The hours passed, until eventually...

"BOURRP! Oughh.."

Ruggie had eaten every last bite, and drank every drop. His poor tummy was hilariously swollen, now resting on his lap fully exposed and churning the fatty meals he just vacuumed up. He whimpered in pain, knowing well he didn't have to eat it all but he couldn't stop himself.  Rook was flabbergasted, yet concerned, peaking over the defeated yeen and making excited notes. "How stupendous! Not a bit gone to waste, although you look very pained. We just need to check your weight again, and then I shall soothe your aches." Ruggie was to full to be mad anymore, so with some aid he was stood back on the scale and miraculously, he had fit almost 10 pounds of food in that previously concave belly! That's a lot for a lil guy! "This is very valuable information, trés bien! Thank you for providing me such knowledge, Ruggie!" "Rook. I am. Gonna die." "We can't let that happen, can we? Lay back down, my hands shall heal you~"

If you told Ruggie Bucchi this morning he was gonna end up getting belly rubs from Rook Hunt while almost exploded, he'd call you insane. It was no lie though, Rook was very skilled at rubbing a belly, much to the beastman's relief and dismay. The soothing motions helped the digestive process along, massive burps erupting from the small beast. He had no more shame, he just needed pampered until he could move again. "Nobody better know- OURP! Bout this, Rook, especially not after the tickle incident..." "Of course they won't, my gluttonous friend. At least not this intimate moment," little did Ruggie know, Rook had no intentions of keeping his lips sealed. The next week of school was going to be mortifying.

[dee-in-the-box]

alright. so i got this idea, right?

basically, it's a sort of analysis on Jack's mental state sometime during the period after 1983 to before Dsaf 1 happens. it's also in Second Person POV (so it refers to Jack as 'You')

it's kinda based off of a few lines in the games: Peter saying that he would've traded his salvation for Dee's, Fredbear saying that Jack would no longer be viewed as a human after he is revived, and Jack's VERY clear guilt over what happened to Dee (see: Blackjack's Whole Existence and "Peter. I failed. I couldn't save her.").

the whole thing is pretty much just a bunch of Religious Imagery (specifically relating to salvation, damnation, and selling one's soul) and Jack Having A Bad Time (Mentally).

it's mostly Jack's very complicated thoughts on stuff like:

Can you really worry about not being viewed as a human if you're pretty sure that no one has ever really viewed you as one to begin with? (< context: Jack is trans in this, and i honestly wanna explore it)

Why worry about selling your soul when you don't even really have one anymore?

and finally,

Would you willingly damn yourself, knowing that in the process you'd be saving many others?

in conclusion:

(pats Jack on the head) "This bad boy can fit so much religious trauma in him!"

[eventinelysplayground]

This is my entry for Day 23 of the Ikemen Advent event hosted by @candied-boys and @queengiuliettafirstlady. The prompt was wind burnt and I paired it with sledding form @writingwhimsey naughty or nice event. I know it's a day late but I ended up wrapping presents until 1am so ya, enjoy it even though it's a day late! Vincent and Theo have some fun in the snow with Vincent's children. Pure fluff WC approx 1120.

Winter Fun

“Come on Papa, come on Oom!”

“Ya hurry up!”

“You want to pull all the sleds yourselves!?”

“Theo.”

Vincent, carrying a toddler on his shoulders, gave his brother a look then turned his attention to the three smiling children much higher up the hill.

“Don't worry we'll be up there soon!”

“I still say we should have made them pull their own sleds.”

“Are they really that heavy Theo? I could always take one or two for-”

“No it's fine broer, you just hold on to that one.”

Theo nudged his head at the toddler who was now squirming on Vincent's shoulders.

“He looks ready to take off.”

Vincent laughed as he swept the toddler down from his shoulders and into his arms. The little boy squirmed and stuck his hands out making a grabbing motion.

“Broers! Zus!”

The three children turned around waving and motioning for their brother to join them. Vincent put the boy down and he took off on chubby little legs doing his best to catch up. His brothers went on ahead but his sister waited for him, taking his hand and helping him the rest of the way.

Vincent took two of the sleds from Theo and they kept a steady pace after the children. They had barely reached the top of the hill before they were grabbing their sleds and taking off.

“Hey! What do you say you-”

Theo's shouting was cut off by a chorus of voices.

“Thank you Papa, thank you Oom!”

The children barely looked back at Theo who was grumbling under his breath. Vincent smiled to himself as he put his hands in his pockets and walked closer to the edge of the hill. There weren't many other people out as normal as it was unusually cold but the children wouldn't be deterred from having their fun by the weather.

The morning was quickly passing by filled with the children's laughter, Vincent watched intently burning the scene into his memory for later. At one point Theo helped his youngest son on to his sled and it brought back fond memories of his own childhood.

“Do you remember when we used to go sledding broer?”

Theo turned his head to Vincent while standing and shoving his hands in his pockets.

“Of course I do.”

“It was pretty fun wasn't it.”

“Hmmm.”

Just then Vincent spotted his daughter who had just made it back up the hill.

“Thea.”

“Yes Papa?”

“Can I have your sled for a minute?”

“Sure.”

Vincent took the sled and set it at the top of the hill then looked back at Theo with a wide grin.

“Come on Theo!”

Theo immediately caught on to his brother's train of thought and his eyes went wide.

“Are you crazy broer, we're grown men.”

“Oh come on.”

“No I'm not getting on.”

“Please Theo, it'll be just like when we were kids!”

Vincent shot Theo the biggest puppy eyes ever and he let out a sigh.

“You're picking up bad habits from hondje.”

Theo walked over to his brother and grumpily sat down on the sled much to the excited giggles and shouts from his niece.

“Hurry up broer before the rest of your pups get up here to see this.”

Theo held on tight to the rope and Vincent gave a push to his back before jumping on behind him. They both barely fit on he sled since it was meant for children but it worked well enough and they barreled down the hill, until they hit a bump and the two of them went tumbling off into the snow.

Vincent shook the snow from his hair and he could hear the laughter of his children, and others, around them.

“Papa, Oom are you okay!?”

It was his daughter's voice calling to them from up on top of the hill.

“We're fine Thea!”

“You fall down Oom.”

It was Vincent's toddler and he was standing beside Theo patting his shoulder.

“Yeah…”

“Awww maybe next time you won't fall.”

“No, no next time!”

“Aww”

“Please Theo, it was so much fun.”

“Broer!”

Vincent could see the war going on inside Theo between his conflicting emotions of wanting to stay warm and wanting to make him happy and he let out a laugh.

The group spent the rest of the morning into the afternoon sledding and by the time they returned home to the mansion their cheeks were wind burnt and there wasn't a dry spot to be found on their clothes. Mitsuki came rushing into the hallway when she heard their voices cradling a small infant in her arms who she immediately passed off to Comte who had followed her into the hallway.

“You all look like you had fun, look at these rosey cheeks!”

“Mama!”

The children all ran up to their mother giving her hugs and talking over each other about all their excitement. When they got to the part about their Papa and Oom going down the hill both Mitsuki and Comte couldn't hold back their surprise.

“I wish I would have seen that, don't you cherie?”

Mitsuki nodded her head in agreement.

“Definitely, I'm sure the two of you looked so cu-”

“Don't say it hondje.”

Mitsuki didn't say anything more but she smiled to herself. Vincent wrapped his arm around her waist and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Okay everyone, let's get you all out of these wet clothes and into a nice warm bath before you catch a cold. Then when you're done you can all have some pancakes.”

Cheers erupted from the children and even Theo perked up at the mention of pancakes. The children started racing upstairs but the youngest boy stopped and looked back at the adults.

“I'm not sure I can undo my buppons.”

“Buttons. I'll help you, come on.”

Theo picked up the small boy slinging him over his shoulder and he let out a squeal. The remaining adults watched them all leave before Vincent turned to Mitsuki with a mischievous grin on his face.

“You know my hands do feel pretty cold, I'm not sure I can undo my buttons either.”

Mitsukis eyes widened slightly as she slowly turned her head towards Vincent.

“I think I can help you with that.”

Vincent pulled Mitsuki closer to him, kissing her on the lips and completely forgetting Comte and his infant were still there. Comte just shook his head and began walking away while he turned to look at the baby in his arms.

“It looks like we're going to have to make the pancakes for everyone. I'll mix them, you flip them.”

The baby cooed and waved their hands excitedly at Comte as they disappeared down the hallway.

tag list: @fang-and-feather, @floydsteeth, @nani-nani-nani, @nightghoul381.

[jesse-cosay]

Kiss as comfort

Jesslake

This got a bit off track, and I'll do the rest tomorrow. Ya'll feel free to send as many as ya like! Also feel free to be as specific as you want, my writing requests are always open, the prompt list was just,,,, to prompt ppl. Anyways, hope you can enjoy this, it was so incredibly self indulgent.

It was night. Lake wasn't usually the type to be a light sleeper. It would take an earthquake to wake them up. Maybe even more than that.

So to find theirself awake in the middle of the night? Yeah. It was a little disconcerting.

The surprise faded pretty quickly when they realized Jesse was no longer beside them.

It'd been awhile since the train. A month now, maybe. The Cosays were still trying to figure out sleeping arrangements. Clearing out the attic so Lake could have their own room. Lake was perfectly content sharing with Jesse, for the time being. But they couldn't help but feel excited to have something to call their own.

That wasn't the problem, though. Lake had a tendency to wake up a little after Jesse. The lack of his presence enough to stir them from their sleep and have them patting his side of the bed. Searching for a hand or reassurance.

If Lake was up at an odd hour, it was because Jesse was up, too.

They slowly stepped out of bed, his room empty. Maybe he had to go to the bathroom. Or grabbed a glass of water. Or something. Maybe it wasn't a big deal. Or anything at all.

... That wouldn't stop them from checking. Just in case.

The lights were off downstairs, but Lake could just barely make out Jesse's frame in front of the couch. It was just like him to be most comfortable on the floor.

He didn't seem surprised as they sat down next to him. Careful not to disturb him. His arms were wrapped around his knees. His head buried. Lake really hoped he wasn't crying.

"You okay?" Lake leaned into him, nudging his shoulder with theirs.

"Maybe." He muttered, setting his chin on top of his arms so he could see them better. Giving a soft smile. His reassurance would have been more comforting if Lake wasn't a little worried he was doing it for them.

"Wanna talk? About it?" Lake was bad with words. Always had been. Jesse never seemed too bothered by their ineptitude, but it did bug them.

"There was this- it's not a big deal. We broke up ages ago." Jesse admitted. "I don't even like him any more."

They hadn't talked about this type of thing before. Lake had sort of assumed Jesse wasn't interested in it. Dating. Was it dating? Or just romance in general- was this an ex?

"So why are you hiding alone in a dark room about it?"

Jesse huffed, a half laugh. "I don't really know. I guess I just miss it, a little. Having someone who listens to me and holds my hand. Who wants to do stuff with me and kiss sometimes. It was just kind of... nice."

Except Jesse had that. Sort of.

Lake listened to him. Did things with him. Held his hand. What was so different about this guy?

"Don't we do that stuff?"

Jesse buried his head back in his arms. "Yeah, we do. I just kind of miss the extra comfort. And kissing."

"So, your ex-"

"He isn't- we weren't, like, dating." He explained, flustered. "It was more like a- a qpr?"

Lake squinted at him. "Is that a word?"

"It's an acronym!"

They frowned. "What does it mean?"

"It was like- we weren't dating, really. We just wanted to have a relationship that we defined." He seemed distressed. Unable to properly explain the idea.

Lake thought they understood. When they were told they were a girl. Or had to be a girl or a boy- they'd chosen neither. Who they were wasn't one of the regular options. And it wasn't easy to explain. They just were.

So Jesse didn't want a relationship in the standard way. Just like Lake didn't identify in the standard way. It made sense. Neither of them was any good at fitting in boxes.

"So he's not exactly an ex, in the normal way... But you guys aren't together?"

"Yeah."

"And you don't miss him, but you miss- the idea of that." Lake had never had something like that too miss. Had never so much as kissed anyone.

"Yeah."

He sighed, leaning his head back against the couch. "I think I'm just moping. I had a bad dream and- and there's someone I would like to- to do that with."

"The qpr?" It was too dark to really search his face for an answer, not that Lake wouldn't try either way. Jesse had lots of friends. But a relationship that was outside of the norm- how could they even begin to pin down who this person was? They wouldn't know what to look for.

He nodded. Or at least Lake was pretty sure he was nodding.

"If it's any consolation, I think they'd be lucky to try it out with you." Lake offered. "I know I'd feel lucky."

His head whipped up from where he'd rested it back against the couch. "You- you would?"

"Yeah, I think that sounds nice." Lake fiddled with their hands. It was a bit too honest of them, but they were always honest with Jesse. "I don't know if I'd like a- a standard relationship. I guess. But making it up as we go? It gets to be whatever we want it to be. I like that."

They laughed, hoping that the shadows hid their nervousness, "I mean it's a lot like what we have, right? And I like what we've got, a lot, too."

"Can I kiss you?"

"What?"

"Oh- oh my god, I'm sorry, I just- I didn't mean to say that- just forget it-" Jesse back-peddled frantically, putting some physical distance between him and Lake.

"No, no, no- c'mere, you idiot." Lake tugged at his sleeve, blindly pressing a kiss to his face.

It landed on his cheek and was enough to get him to stop stuttering over excuses.

"When I said I liked the idea or whatever, I meant with you." Lake clarified. Suddenly feeling just as lost as he probably had now that he'd clammed up on them.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"So-"

Lake kissed him again. This time a bit more aware of where exactly they were kissing.

Jesse didn't argue, smiling at them brightly as they pulled away.

It was a much better look than when Lake had first found him. Curled up into a little ball.

"Do you wanna talk about- this?" He offered.

And yeah. They kind of did. But not at four am. "We'll talk later. Come back to bed with me?"

Lake offered their hand, helping Jesse to his feet.

"Yeah, okay. Okay."

They held hands as they tip-toed upstairs. Walking as quietly as possible as they slipped back into Jesse's room.

"You think you'll sleep okay? You mentioned a bad dream."

Jesse hummed, sounding far too content. "I think I'll be fine."

"If you say so." They kissed him once more, this time on the forehead. Jesse was all too eager to return the gesture. Nearly smacking himself on their chrome cranium.

They both snickered into their blanket, Lake clumsily pressing another kiss against his cheek. "Sweet dreams, casanova."

"Good night, Lake. I love you."

"I love you, too."

[ao3feed-ateez]

bones into bones

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/BHGT14P by allwyf He’ll never know San’s visceral hunger, but Yeosang can't deny that he also—craves may not be the correct word, but it's close. Craves the closeness, the heat of San’s skin, San’s eyes on him. San is holding him and he wants more. He knows he is loved and he wants more. Does it really matter if he’s anyone’s favorite? San grips the back of his knee tighter, pulling him closer, like he just might eat Yeosang whole. Yes. Yeosang’s stomach swoops and he thinks, yes, yes, yes. Words: 2503, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: ATEEZ (Band) Rating: Mature Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: M/M Characters: Kang Yeosang, Choi San (ATEEZ) Relationships: Choi San/Kang Yeosang Additional Tags: Character Study, of sorts, Vampire Choi San (ATEEZ), it's fine don't worry about it, Minimal cannibalism that I hope is horny, Pre-Relationship, Pats Yeosang's head ....this bad boy can fit so many personal projections, Insecure Kang Yeosang read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/BHGT14P

[lee-aveyourmark]

besties with chenji!

∘.∙°. masterlist Pairing: Zhong Chenle x reader x Park Jisung; chenji x bestie!reader Genre: sickening fluff, so much crack Warnings: insecurity of having a large head, mentions of food Wordcount: 646

you know those dance challenges where three people dance at 1%, 100% and 1000%?

yeah, you're 100% - the middle ground between jisung (1%) and chenle (1000%)

if provoked, you can definitely get chenle to use his inside voice

more often than not, those provocations arise from jisung's persistent complaints of his ears ringing at chenle's astronomically loud shouting

at other times, you're inspired by chenle's energy to hype jisung up to dance to snsd's 'gee' in the middle of the living room

you and chenle are harsh critics when it comes to jisung's dancing

"i don't remember there being any popping in the choreo!" "your line needs to be more curved, stick your hip further out"

there is just s o much joy when you guys are together, y'all naturally get abs and free therapy when meeting up, with the laughter so obscene that everyone is crying, breathless and clutching their stomachs

and you guys laugh over the weirdest things that would never be funny if the joke was explained to someone else

90% of playdates are just gaming, sorry i don't make the rules

but gaming with them would be so cute, especially if you're not that familiar with the game

it means that you can reduce chenle's competitiveness by often being the reason why your team doesn't win

and can you imagine jisung teaching you different plays and just,, praising you for being able to do all of them while surviving? his praises may be backhanded sometimes but still jisung best boy

the other 10% of time spent together is cooking in the kitchen (read: chenle cooking while jisung sits and watches after cutting up 2 mushrooms)

if you can cook, there will be challenges to see whose dish jisung likes more where chenle's competitiveness rises again

the prizes are literally bragging rights and jisung's approval, something that means a lot to the two of you

if you can't cook, it's okay! chef chenle is more than happy to become a single dad and cook for all three by himself

on another note, if you've been self-conscious about having a large head like me, be worried no more because these two will turn your insecurities into your charms

you three will also make your large heads your personalities, and change the group chat name to "the 3 large-headed musketeers" from time to time (not mark finding out about the chat one day and feeling left out)

yes, chenji are very good hype men indeed

whatever you choose to do, they will support you wholeheartedly

thinking of buying a new sweater? jisung will find 10 different compliments about how it fits you, while chenle will offer to buy it for you and even add on an accessory

at the same time, chenle will be very critical towards whoever becomes your potential someone, incessantly warning you of "bad men" out there

he also says that he's the model male, but rejects you before you even fall for him

"you want me right?? weLL, you can't have me :D"

back to the group chat, it's 300% memes and scandalous photos of each other used as blackmail material

there's also many voice messages consisting of nothing but chenle's laugh followed by a selfie from jisung with a concerned look on his face

but also, you three like to use voice messages to talk about tea and avoid getting caught by others

that tea is how each of you lost or broke something of another member's, but have yet to be caught for the crime

if you're a well-behaved child, you'll receive preferential treatment and will be patted on the head in understanding

if you're anything like chenle, prepare to get an earful from renjun

but, as the youngest, you three are babied so much by the other dreamies and y'all take full advantage of your youth <3

[vendettaparker]

Reckless [T.H]

Summary: In a fit of jealousy, Tom embarrasses you in front of your new friend and the entire pub, leaving you heartbroken at his reckless actions.

Word Count: 4.1k

Warnings: Swearing, angst, slut-shaming 

a/n: hi! sorry this took so so so long for me to get out! i got super busy with other works, but i’m super happy with how this turned out :) i hope you enjoy this, and don’t worry, i know how scary those warnings look ^ but this ends happy, i promise! as always, comments and reblogs are appreciated <3

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Tom was an idiot. He was an actual fucking idiot. He now realizes that as he watches you run out of the pub with hot tears streaming down your face. He watches as Harry runs after you, your bag in his hand, probably to make sure you make it back home safe since there was no way you’d return to the crowded bar, where Harrison and Sam were giving Tom death glares, the same little pub where Tom had made a complete fool out of you. 

The few months Tom came home to London were always the setting of your most cherished memories. Sometimes it seemed like when he left so did the whole group of friends you surround yourself with.

There was no doubt in your mind that Tom was the life of the party. He had a certain aura about him that caused some of the most fucked up, but amazing situations to occur. That was probably one of the reasons you loved him so much. 

When he was in town, his brothers, Harrison, and Tuwaine all joined together to make the next few months memorable before he had to leave again, and you were always included, but when he was gone, Harry usually went with him, Harrison focused on work for himself, and Sam focused on his restaurant. The world slowed down after Tom left, and so many times, you were left to wait for his return; alone. 

Tom hated leaving you behind every time he went back to the states, but you had such deep roots in London, he didn’t want to pry you from your family for months on end. He loved you too much to constantly subject you to his hectic lifestyle. He spent as much time with you as he could when he saw you, but the second he had to go, it was all tearful goodbyes in a crowded airport. 

You and Tom had been best friends for decades at this point. You supported him no matter what it was that he wanted to accomplish. He’s even said in interviews that he credits a huge bulk of his success to his friend back home, then he’d give a wink to the camera, and you always knew it was for you. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

When Tom came home after filming Spider-Man: No Way Home, you practically tackled him to the ground in a hug. 

“You div,” You mumbled into his neck, “you forgot to let me FaceTime with Zendaya.” 

“Oh, shit!” Tom gasped, finally remembering your request to talk to your favorite actress, “my bad.”

You looked at Tom incredulously, “I don’t think I can be friends with you anymore.” You feigned hurt, clutching your hand to your chest, “it just hurts too much.” 

“That’s a damn shame,” Tom frowned, “I mean, I could just FaceTime Zendaya now, but if that’s how you—”

“I changed my mind,” You smiled sweetly, cutting him off, “love you, bestie.” 

Tom rolled his eyes and pulled you into another hug, “Missed you, bestie.” 

“Um,” Sam, Paddy, and Harrison stood behind you, clearing their throats. 

“Missed you guys too,” Tom sighed, and he rushed over and gave his brothers and friend a hug.

You gave Harry a hug while Tom chatted with his brothers, quickly catching up with him. 

“What’s the plan for tonight, guys?” You spoke up. 

Every night after Tom got back, he’d go back to his flat and take a nap before a night out on the town. Usually, you’d bar hop a bit before going to a club, so tonight wasn’t likely to be any different. 

“I was thinking we could get dinner at Lorenzo’s,” Harry said, “then maybe hit the pub on Ashford?”

You and the others nodded in agreement as you made your way out of the airport.

“Can I invite my friend Avery?” You asked. 

Tom nodded, “Sure, I didn’t even know you had any other friends, (Y/N),” he joked.

“Haha,” You laughed sarcastically, “gee that was a good one, Tom. You really got me.” 

“What can I say?” He smirked, “I’m a comedian.” 

“Is that the guy you met in your philosophy lecture?” Harrison butt in.

“Yeah,” You nodded, “he’s really sweet, so be on your best behavior guys, and maybe don’t be yourselves, just this once?” you suggested with a slightly teasing tone. 

“Are you trying to impress him or something?” Tom inquired.

“No,” You scoffed, “I’m just trying to not throw him to the wolves.” 

Tom laughed along, but it was strained. He wasn’t too keen on the idea of adding a new member to your friend group, and the little glint in your eye when you talked about Avery made his heart tighten. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

“Okay,” You smiled as you set the last of Tom’s luggage in his living room, “I’ll let you get some sleep then.”

You gave him one last hug and a kiss on the cheek, “see you later.” 

Tom reciprocated and inhaled the sweet smell of lavender in your locks of hair, “mhm,” he sighed, “see ya.” 

Harrison was about to walk out after you when Tom grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him back, “Mate, what the fuck.” he grumbled as he stumbled over his feet, “I thought you wanted to take a nap?”

“I slept on the plane,” Tom explained quickly, “you’ve been here the whole time, right?” Harrison nodded, “so you know this Avery guy, yeah?”

Harrison shook his head, “I haven’t talked to (Y/N) much this past month, but he’s probably on her Instagram.” 

Harrison pulled out his phone and looked at posts you’d been tagged in, “Ah, here.” He handed the phone to Tom and pointed to the tall blonde guy in a group photo with you and some other friends, “He’s the tall blonde.” 

Tom studied the picture with a small frown, “They’re not dating though, right?”

“She said he was her friend,” Harrison shrugged.

“You know what I mean,” Tom rolled his eyes, “do they look really chummy to you?”

“His hand’s kind of close to her butt, but other than that I don’t know.” Harrison pointed it out, causing Tom’s heart to momentarily stop. 

“Ok, new plan,” Tom announced, “I’m going to ask (Y/N) out tonight.” 

Harrison scoffed and rolled his eyes. “What?” Tom wondered.

“You’ve said that almost every single time you’ve been home and you always chicken out.”

“No, I don’t!” Tom gasped in offense, “It’s just hard to find the right time.”

“You’ve literally had hundreds of opportunities to tell her how you feel, Mate.”

“It has to be perfect.” Tom insisted, “I can’t just ask her out of the blue, I have to butter her up first.”

“That’s dumb.” 

“Oh, fuck off,” Tom groaned, “get out, I changed my mind, I’m going to sleep.” 

Harrison rolled his eyes and chuckled before giving Tom a pat on the back and leaving. Tom waved goodbye as Harrison drove away, and then rushed to his phone. 

“FaceTime Zendaya,” he instructed Siri. The call went through and soon Tom was met with Zendaya's tired eyes in a dark room. 

“Hey, Z!” Tom said cheerfully, “best friend, bestest pal in the world. The person that never wants to see me fail ever, my greatest companion—“

“Tom,” Zendaya groggily cut him off, “what the fuck do you want, I’m sleeping.” 

“How do you ask a girl out?”

Zendaya sat up a little more and turned on her bedside lamp, “What? You don’t know how to ask a girl out?”

“Well I do,” Tom backtracked, “but I want it to be special. I’ve been in love with this girl for nearly two years now and every time I go to ask her out, I chicken out.”

“I don’t know, what does she like?”

“Well one time she told me her favorite animal was a sea otter, should I get her one?” Tom pondered, hand resting in his chin in thought. 

“Um, no, what the fuck?” Zendaya squinted her eyes at Tom, “have you gotten any sleep yet?” 

Tom shook his head, “This is important, Z, now help me!” 

Zendaya rolled her eyes, “I’ll text you some ideas, but for now just go get some sleep. With how tired you are now you’d probably call her the wrong name or something.” 

Tom rolled his eyes, but the action caused his eyelids to droop even more, “Fine, fine,” he conceded, “I’ll let you know how it goes.” 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

“Okay,” Tom announced at the restaurant before you arrived, “I’m going to ask (Y/N) out tonight so I need you all to shut up and not distract me or make me nervous.”

Harrison, Harry, and Sam just stared at Tom. Tuwaine, for some unknown reason, started clapping. 

“Tom,” Harrison began, “no offense, but—“

“Ah ah ah,” Tom stopped him, “is what you’re about to say going to bruise my ego?” Harrison thought about it for a moment before slowly nodding, “okay, then shut the fuck up, respectfully. I don’t need any bad juju tonight.” 

“Well, I’m happy for you, Mate,” Tuwaine nodded. He was the closest to you after Tom and he knew all about your crush on the brown-haired Brit. You might’ve let it slip once when you were drunk, and since you didn’t willingly tell Tuwaine, he was sworn to secrecy. “I’m positive she’ll say yes.” 

“Thank you,” Tom smiled at him, sending a slight glare to the others for their lack of faith in him. “As for the rest of you, I can’t wait to prove you wrong.” 

You walked into the restaurant with Avery hunched over from laughing so hard. Tom smiled in your direction and waved you over, “Hey, (Y/N/N)! Over here!”

“Wow,” You chuckled, “must’ve been a good nap. Little energetic there, huh?” 

Tom went in to give you a tight hug, holding you close, “Just missed you,” he mumbled into your hair. 

“I just saw you a few hours ago?”

Avery stood by you awkwardly, waiting for Tom to release you. Tom reluctantly let you go and pulled a chair out for you, next to him. 

“Thanks,” you smiled at him, motioning for Avery to sit next to you, “hey, everyone,” you smiled at the group of boys that were properly about to piss themselves at Tom’s over-the-top behavior, “this is Avery.” 

“Hi,” He waved at the group as a small chorus of ‘hellos’ rang across the table. He turned to Tom to shake his hand, “I’m a big fan, Mate. Love your work.” 

Tom smiled and patted him on the shoulder, “Thanks, it means a lot.” smiled politely, shaking Avery's hand. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Dinner went off without a hitch, at least in your opinion. Avery was melding well with your friends and he was cracking jokes like he’d know the group for years. 

The boys seemed to enjoy his sense of humor and what he added to the conversation. Sam and him even found that they shared an interest in cooking, which led to them having a slightly heated discussion about how real Gordon Ramsey’s cooking skills are; which ended in laughs. 

However, Tom was probably having one of the worst nights of his life. Every time Avery playfully shoved you while you two laughed he wanted to wring his neck. It also didn’t help that he couldn’t find the perfect time to ask you out. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea to ask you out with all of his mates around. 

Tom smiled and laughed along with the jokes, but once you looked away he was back to frowning. 

“Tom,” Harry nudged his brother, “wipe that scowl off your face.” 

“I’m not scowling,” Tom grumbled, “this is my normal face.” 

Harry rolled his eyes and kicked his older brother under the table, “You need to ask her soon. I think Avery is trying to make some moves on her.” Harry noticed, seeing how Avery casually had his arm around your chair. 

Tom rolled his eyes, “As if I can't see that for myself,” he scoffed. “I don’t want to ask her with all of you watching. What if she says no?” 

“We can leave you alone for a bit when we go to the pub, but I’m not sure if Avery will go with us.” Harry shrugged, “you could always ask her out tomorrow.” Harry suggested. 

“No!” Tom exclaimed, causing everyone to look at him and Harry, “Sorry, I—um, I just don’t really like that shirt on you Harry; it makes my eyes hurt.” 

Harry looked down at his shirt for a moment and then frowned, sending a light smack to Tom, “You bought me this shirt you div.”

Everyone went back to their own conversations so Tom leaned in to talk to Harry some more, “I can’t wait for tomorrow. What if I chicken out again?”

“Then you’re an idiot.” Harry deadpanned with a shrug. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

The pub was way more packed than anyone expected. The new addition of live music to the outside patio definitely livened up the place and more customers went to see what local band would be playing next. 

The pub had a classic English pub feel, with the wood flooring and the yellow-tinted walls, but it also had a modern twist with a back patio and outdoor seating with fairy lights, and the lights that illuminate under the bar itself. 

“I’m gonna go check out the band,” Harry announced after he came back with your drinks, “you guys should all come with me.” He said with a slight side-eye to Sam, Tuwaine, and Harrison. 

“Eh, I’m not really into—” Sam began, but Harry sent him a quick kick under the table. “Ow! I mean, I love music.” Sam smiled enthusiastically. 

“I’m gonna stay back and finish this beer,” Tom said, holding up the large pint of beer he was already a quarter of the way through, “(Y/N), wanna race to see who can finish first?” He suggested trying to get you to stay behind.

“Oh you’re totally on,” You smirked, “but I am going to take a quick peek at the band. We can race after I get back.” You got up from your seat and began walking away with Harry and the boys. Tom pouted at how horribly that plan worked. Harry looked back at Tom apologetically as he held the door open for you.

“Wow,” Avery smiled beside Tom, scaring him, “she really is something.” 

“Holy shit, Mate,” Tom held a hand to his heart, “you almost gave me a heart attack. I thought you went with them?” 

“Nah,” Avery shook his head, “I’m not really into music,” he shrugged. 

“Oh, okay,” Tom nodded. “What were you just saying?”

“(Y/N),” Avery looked towards the back patio exit dreamily, “she’s amazing. I mean I would definitely ask her out, but probably not at a pub surrounded by her mates, y’know?” 

“Mhm, yeah,” Tom said quietly, his heart already beginning to shatter into millions of inconsolable pieces. “I mean, she’s alright.” He said with a forced laugh, trying to fend Avery away from you, “she definitely isn’t really your type, though.” 

“What do you mean?” Avery asked, taking a sip from his beer, “she’s perfect, mate.”

“I mean,” Tom racked his brain for an excuse big enough to make Avery not want you, “you don’t think it’s a little weird she’s in a friend group with all boys?” 

“No,” Avery said slowly, skeptically looking back at the exit, “she just clicks with boys, I guess. Girls and guys can just be friends.”

“Not her,” Tom scoffed, “I mean, it’s just a little obvious, y’know?”

You and the rest of the boys were heading back in, seeing as the back patio was completely overcrowded with patrons. 

“What’s obvious?” Avery asked, raising his voice slightly due to the volume in the bar. 

“(Y/N)’s only friends are guys!” Tom nearly yelled over the volume of chatter, not realizing that the surrounding customers could hear him, “makes me wonder how many she’s slept with! I mean, that’s not a coincidence to me!” 

The surrounding customers halted their conversations, leaving only Tom’s voice filtering through the air and into your ears. 

“That’s crazy,” Avery chuckled awkwardly, “I don’t think she’s like that.” He shook his head, annoying Tom. In a final last-ditch effort to get Avery off your back, he said the worst thing he could, loudly, into a quieting pub. 

“Well, she hits on me all the time,” Tom shrugged, “she’s just a bit whorish, I guess.” 

“Tom,” Tuwaine cleared his throat, interrupting their conversation, “what the fuck, mate?” 

Tom looked at all the boys next to Tuwaine, and behind them was you, teary-eyed with harsh sobs racking through your body. 

You whispered something to Harry, and then all but ran out the front door. Harry walked over to where Tom was sitting and picked up your purse.

“Harry I—” Tom tried.

“Shut the fuck up, Tom.” Harry snapped, “You're an idiot and an asshole, just leave things be.” 

Harry ran out the pub entrance, following you to give you a ride home. 

Tuwaine, Sam, and Harrison shook their heads once the shock ebbed away. One by one they all left Tom sitting in shock and agony at the bar. Avery, not knowing any of the group, barely knew what was going on or if Tom’s accusations were correct, left the pub and went home without another word. 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

“Harry,” Tom whined into the phone, “please tell me how to fix this, please I’m begging you.” 

Harry sighed, now properly regretting lifting his silent treatment from Tom, “Tom, there is absolutely nothing I can do to help you, and even if there was, I wouldn’t. You called her a whore in front of a crowded pub—”

“I know!” Tom yelled, “And I’ve been living with that guilt for three weeks now! Please, Harry. I-I messed up so bad.” Tom’s voice cracked, “I tried calling and texting, a-and my texts started turning green. She blocked me,” Tom sobbed, “I’m in love with her, and I never got to tell her. I ruined our relationship before it even began.” 

“Yeah,” Harry agreed, “you did.” 

“Harry, I just want to apologize properly, please.” Tom begged, “I tried going to her house, but her roommate threw a drink at me and told me she went out of town. Where is she?”

“I can’t tell you.” 

“Harry,” Tom sighed, “I’m trying so hard here, I don’t care where she is, I’ll go anywhere for her. Please, I just can’t keep waiting in the dark for her to talk to me.”

Harry sighed, rubbing his forehead, “Okay, fine, but don’t tell her I told you where she was. And if you get your face clawed off, just know that you deserve it.” 

“Okay, okay, now tell me.”

“She’s been staying with Tuwaine and his girlfriend.” 

“Okay, thanks, love you, bye!” Tom said through the phone, already grabbing his keys. 

Harry sighed and began texting Tuwaine, 

Harry: Tom’s coming over, don’t snap him in half, he just wants to talk to her. 

Tuwaine: I’m not home right now, but I'd be more worried about her snapping him in half… 

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Tom pulled up the Tuwaine’s flat and pounded at the door. He didn’t see Tuwaine’s car in the driveway but he saw yours parked on the street so he knew you were in there. 

“(Y/N)!” He desperately called, “Come on, I know you’re in there!”, his pleas were met with silence and he rang the doorbell on repeat, “(Y/N), please! I just want to talk!”

The door opened to show you standing there with your messy hair and stained sweats, still looking overwhelmingly perfect in Tom’s eyes. He noticed the dark circles and the dried tears and his heart broke, even more, knowing he caused this. He loved you so much and he caused you some of the worst pain imaginable. All he wanted to do was hold you and kiss your puffy cheeks, desperately whispering praises into your ear. You were perfect in every sense of the word, and he let you believe you were anything less. He was an idiot—the biggest idiot in the world—for making you cry. 

“What do you want?” You snapped with a sniffle, pulling him back to reality as you rubbed your red eyes. 

“I just want to talk,” Tom gave you a small smile, “please.” 

“I don’t have anything to say to you.” You scowled, “You need to leave.” 

“No, (Y/N), please.” Tom begged, “I’m sorry. I’m so so so fucking sorry. I was being an idiot and—please, (Y/N), you’re my best friend. I don’t wanna lose you.” Tom’s voice cracked, but you remained stoic in the doorway. 

“I’m your best friend? Really?” You scoffed, “I thought I was just some whore you let hang around you?” 

Tom winced at his words being thrown back into his face, “I didn’t mean it, I swear,” he promised, tears glistening in his eyes, “I don’t even know why I said that. I was being so fucking stupid—” 

“No,” You interrupted his rambling, “you don’t get to say that. You don’t get to say that it was just you “being stupid”. Who the hell says that about their supposed best friend? Why would you even think that? You don’t just get to call me those things in public, and then say that you don’t know why you did it. You can’t even give me a reason—”

“I’m in love with you,” Tom blurted out, blowing out a puff of air in stress, “I’ve been in love with you for the longest time, (Y/N). And Avery was saying how he wanted to ask you out, and I couldn’t lose you. I didn’t want to lose you. I had so many plans for us, and I wanted to be with you—to be yours—more than anything, and I let my jealousy get in the way. I’m sorry because if I deserved you I wouldn’t have done that.”

You stood in the doorway of the flat, arms crossed over your chest. “I can’t believe you’d be so reckless.” You said after a moment of silence, “I would’ve been yours if you had just asked me.” 

“I’m sorry,” Tom cried, reaching out to hold your hand, but you backed away ever so slightly, “please, I would do anything to fix it if I could.” 

“You don’t understand anything, Tom.” You frowned.

“Help me understand.” He begged.

You pondered it for a moment and then released a sigh, coupled with a few tears, “I loved you,” you admitted. Tom’s heart did a leap, but then he realized that you were talking past tense as if his chance with you was gone.

“And I would spend months and months just waiting for you to come home so I could spend time with you. I was so lonely when you and Harry left; I always am. Avery offered to spend some time with me after class one day and I agreed because I don’t have anybody else when you leave. And it was fun, but he wasn’t you. He’ll never compare to the place you had in my heart, but at least I wasn’t alone anymore.” You sighed and began closing the door again, “Now, because of you, I have no one again.” 

The door was about to slam back in Tom’s face, but he shoved his foot in the threshold, “(Y/N), wait,” he pleaded, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize how important Avery was to you. I can never undo what I did, but please let me make it up to you. I just need you to understand how sorry I am.” 

You opened the door again and looked at Tom’s sad eyes, boring into you, “I do understand how sorry you are, but I don’t know how I can trust you again. You said awful things about me without even batting an eye or taking a breath—”

“I know,” Tom sighed, “I know and I’d give anything to take it back. I just want you back (Y/N). Even if you don’t want to be my girlfriend, I can’t leave knowing I’ve lost my best friend.” 

“As much as it hurts,” You caved, moving from the doorway to let Tom in, “I still love you, and I don’t want to lose you either.” 

Tom smiled and walked into the flat, immediately pulling you into a hug, “I’m so sorry, (Y/N),” You hugged back and sniffled into his hoodie, before pulling away with a sigh.

“I know,” You nodded, “I forgive you. But next time, just be honest with me and tell me how you’re feeling. I’d give you the world if you asked for it.”

Tom smiled and stroked your tear-stained cheek, “I’ll just settle on your heart for now, if that’s okay?”

“That’s so fucking cheesy.” You giggled, wiping the tears from your eyes, “I love it.”

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

✧tags & moots✧ @ptersmj @princessofguineapigs @peterbenjiparker @cherrytholland @itsapeterthing @justapurrcat @thirstiestpotato @kelieah @iovebug  @waitimcomingtoo  @rosyparkers  @parkers-gal @allegra-writes @starktonyx  @celestialholland  @hollandcrush  @londonspidey @blissfulparker @spidernerdsblog @spidey-sophie @spideyspeaches @peterparkers-bad-youtube-apology @andilovetowrite @sinisterspidey @asonofpeter @westcoastcigar @arlo-sanders @love-peterparker @boiolay @letssee2468  @white-wolf1940 @fandom-life-12 @hollandsdream @annathesillyfriend @lovelybarnes @miseryholland @wierdteenagenerd @duskholland @hollandprkr @lauras-collection @arvinsescape @hollandsrecs

[myhaikyuuthings]

“daddy?” HCs

request:  May you please do Kuroo, Bokuto, Akaashi, and Iwa’s reaction to single mother y/n child calling them “papa” or “daddy” for the first time? Thank you 🥺

warnings: just so much fluff omg

pairings: kuroo x fem!reader, bokuto x fem!reader, akaashi x fem!reader, iwaizumi x fem!reader

Kuroo:  Daughter, age 5

the two of you had been together for awhile, he spent many weekends with you and your daughter

this particular weekend, he took the two of you to the amusement park, wanting to ‘treat you both for being so cute’

you three spent a lot of time on the kiddie rides, your daughter laughing loudly and pulling you both around to see Everything

if she was tall enough to ride it, you three would

when you all reached the section filled with ‘carnival’ games, her eyes lit up and you just knew what was coming

well kind of

“Daddy!! Can we play? I want a kitty” she had yelled out excitedly, tugging him by his hand towards the stands

you froze, worried about how Kuroo would react

he was frozen too, staring down at her in shock

“Daddy come on,” your daughter whined, pouting when he didn’t move

in a split second, he had her in his arms hugging her tightly 

“We can play all the games you want, you want a kitty? we will win you fifty kitties! You can have a real kitty if you want!” 

you were about to remind him, that no she cannot have a real kitty, when he turned to you with tears streaming down his face

“she called me daddy.. I love  you both so much god I hope that’s okay with you” “We love you too daddy!” “Yeah we love you too baby”

she ended up getting her kitten not a week later, and Kuroo moved in not too long after tbh

Bokuto: Son, age 7

your son loved Bokuto and you were so glad he did

a part of you guessed it was because Bokuto did anything and everything your son wanted

he wants a tree house? Bokuto’s figuring out how to make it happen

he wants to play hide n seek for hours? Bokuto Will entertain him

Bokuto really just loved the both of you, he had since day one

but he is a professional volleyball player, and sometimes he has to go out of town for games

and both of your boys hate it, they’re practically connected at the hip when together

you felt terrible, seeing your boyfriends pouty teary eyed face on your phone screen, your son sitting in your lap in the same state

so you bought plane tickets and went to surprise him

your son wore a tshirt with Bokuto’s number on it, practically vibrating in the stands as you waited for Bokuto’s team to come out

you had called the coach and managed to score seats pretty close to the court

he didn’t notice you two when he first came out, a pout on his face probably from you missing his call

“Daddy! Kick their butts!!!” your son yelled out, sticking his tongue out at the other team and shocking everyone around you

Bokuto spun around, seeing the two of you and bursting into tears

“You got it little man! Daddies gonna kick their asses!!!” “Kotaro!!”

the minute the game ended, he had both of you in his arms pressing kisses all over your faces and just sobbing

“You called me daddy” “well duh that’s what you are right?” “Yeah I’m your daddy!” he was totally crying the entire time

Akaashi: Son, age 12

you two had been together for three years

you introduced him to your son a year ago, and while they got along, things were tense at first

your son remembered his father, and a part of him hoped the two of you would get back together and he saw Akaashi as someone standing in the way of that

when he saw how much happier you looked, he reluctantly warmed up to your boyfriend

after a particularly bad weekend at his fathers, he came home to Akaashi cooking while you let him talk about how it went

“He took my phone so I couldn’t even text you! All I said was if he wanted you back so bad he should’ve treated you how Keiji does.” “y/s/n, he shouldn’t have taken your phone but you can’t talk to your father that way”

well he was mad at you too now, so the three of you sat at the dinner table in relative silence

“So y/s/n, your mom told me you’re planning on joining the volleyball club?” “Yeah I want to be the ace” “I used to play in middle and high school, I set for Bokuto, if you want I can help you practice”

even though he was ignoring you, you felt your heart swell as they made plans together

they practiced together for weeks, gradually improving when it happened

“Did you see that dad?! I rocked that!!!” “You were great, think you can give me another like that?”

Akaashi handled it so calmly but internally he was so happy

Iwaizumi: Daughter, age 10

he had been in your daughters life for two years

at this point, you all had fallen into a comfortable  way of living

he didn’t live with you two yet, but you all were moving into a new house that weekend

your friends had offered to help, so most of his old classmates and some of your friends were there

your daughter was unpacking the boxes in her bedroom while you were unpacking the kitchen, the guys moving the rest of the furniture in

“Iwa-chan you’re feeding us right?” “You already know y/n ordered food, it’ll be here soon, what’re you getting at?” “Oh right i forgot”

you had to hold back your laughter when you noticed your daughter listening in from her doorway as the two grown men started bickering like old times

“you can’t call me that! there is a child in the house!” Oikawa had shrieked, your daughter laughing loudly at the insult

“Dad that fits him so well omg” she cackled, high fiving Iwaizumi, ignoring the offended look on Oikawa’s face

Your boyfriend’s smile was so big and proud, you honestly started tearing up

“oh so he’s dad when  he’s insulting me?” “he’s always my dad, stupid-kawa”  

Iwaizumi beamed, patting her head “yeah stupid-kawa, i think i like this nickname a little more”

[glitching-time-bomb]

hiii how about a bunch of nightmare fluff and murder time trio? if it is also an ace reader plus 50 to coolness c;

heck yeah!!! I decided to do a oneshot of Reader inviting them all over for a movie-night, so hopefully that's okay!

Movie nights with Nightmare and his crew were... interesting, to say the least. They were always fun, but every time you invited them over, things would become chaotic. Sometimes the good kind, sometimes the bad kind. It really depended on how they were all feeling, so you did what you could to keep them calm while they were with you.

Which is where you are now, currently trying to set up a fort big enough to fit everyone. It was taking up pretty much the entire living room, made up of thin sheets, with fairy lights hung near the top for light. You had more than enough blankets to spare for the ground, ensuring that it would be comfortable to sit or lay down on.

You arrange them comfortably before running and snagging all of the pillows from your room, trying to get everything set up before they all got here. Taking a step back, you look at the fort you've made so far. Over the months of your boys coming over, you've learned how to make forts much more sturdy, enough so that a few attacks could be thrown at it without collapsing.

You nod at your work before moving to turn on the tv, whipping your head around as you hear the familiar warping sound of Nightmare and the others showing up. Your expression brightens and you stick your head out of the entrance of the fort.

Killer and Dust are the first to greet you, while Axe gives you a nod before setting the snacks he brought into the kitchen. He comes back only seconds later and looks towards the fort you made, his large red eyelight growing in his socket. You smile and wave back to them all, stepping completely out of the giant fort.

"*Hey! I got the fort ready and put all of the blankets and stuff in it, did you guys end up picking out a movie for tonight?" The four skeletons in the room all freeze, before Dust shakes his head.

"*no, we did not." He turns to look at Killer, who grins even wider. "*someone decided to move all of the CDs into different cases, and now we don't know which one is which." The dusty skeleton glares at Killer, turning to face you as you let out an amused laugh. He gives you a look of mock offense, crossing his arms. Dust can't keep the grin off of his face, and he shakes his head.

You lightly laugh at their antics before looking between them all. "*Okay, so we'll pick out a movie from my collection." You pause and send a glance at Nightmare, who's been oddly quiet this whole time. "*Hm... I still need to grab some more blankets and stuff, Nightmare, could you help me grab them?" Said skeleton snaps out of his thoughts and looks at you, before nodding. You hum and glance back to the trio of skeletons making their way into the fort you made, before walking over to the closet with all of your blankets. You've collected more than enough since you've started inviting these four over, though many of them have holes, burn marks, and tears from when things would start getting chaotic.

You grab a pile of them and look to the goopy skeleton next to you, "*Hey, are you okay?" Your voice comes out soft, and Nightmare sighs.

"*as well as i can be with how insistent my brother has been about bugging me." He sighs and grabs a large pile of blankets and closes the closet door, looking up at you. You hum and offer him a comforting smile, ignoring the shouting from the living room. You... really hoped they didn't break anything again.

"*I'm sorry he's been bothering you so much, Nightmare. But you don't have to worry about it here, okay? I invite you all over here so that you can have fun and forget about stuff that's upsetting you." Nightmare looks at you in surprise, before sighing and nodding. You smile and pat him lightly on the shoulder before leading the two of you back to the living room, opening up the entrance to the fort and looking around.

Axe has already brought in the snacks and put them in separate bowls, and is now sitting on the beanbag chair. Killer is sitting on the couch with an annoyed expression, while Dust is sorting through your TV stand for movies.

With a grin you walk over and plop the blankets on top of Killer, giving a grin. Killer offers a mischievous smirk before grabbing your arm and pulling you, making you land on the spot next to him. You both let out a few chuckles before your attention turns to the TV, and you watch as it begins to play. Nightmare sits on the other side of you and Dust plops onto the blankets on the ground, leaning up against your legs. You smile and look down at him, reaching to pat the top of his skull.

"*What movie did you choose?" You watch as he shrugs, leaning further back.

"*dunno. 'picked the one with the scariest cover i could find, but i didn't feel like looking at the title." Dust shrugs and keeps his eyes trained on the TV, and your smile widens as you feel the goopy skeleton scoot closer to you.

It... really amazed you how far they've come. The first time you met they were trying to kill you, and yet here you all are, sitting in your living room watching movies.

Throughout the movie, the five of you had somehow ended up all cuddled together on the floor, laughing as the protagonist of the movie was being chased. The four skeletons in the room were providing enough commentary to make the movie not scary anymore.

By now most of the snacks that Axe had brought were devoured, the dishes pilling up on the coffee table next to you. You laugh a bit and close your eyes, content with sitting on the floor with your skeletons. The last thing you notice before you finally fall asleep is the feeling of someone wrapping a blanket around you, saying something your tired brain doesn't bother to listen to.

[shewrites02]

Gone Too Long |Shikamaru x Reader|

Summary: Not having his partner around begins to toll on Shikamaru

Word count: 3k

Lady Tsunade was assigning weekly chores to all the Shinobi who had yet to be assigned a mission. Usually these tasks were reserved for Genin, but this week had been slow for the village. Many Chunin and Jonin were left task less aimlessly patrolling the village.

"Shikamaru, you'll assist Iruka at the Academy for the remainder of the week."

Shikamaru let out a long dreadful sigh before muttering "What a drag, that's so much work." Just above his breath.

Shikamaru complaining was not out of the ordinary, but him complaining in front of the Fifth Hokage was and everyone took notice. Lady Tsunade slowly looked up from her journal with her eyebrow slightly raised. She was offering Shikamaru a chance to apologize before she completely ripped into him like she often did with Naruto. But all he did was smack his lips and cross his arms against his chest.

"Forgive him Lady Tsunade, he gets like this whenever y/n is gone on a mission." Ino announced proudly as a devilish smile graced her lips.

The other ninjas futilely tried to suppress their laughter but soon the whole room erupted into a uncontrollable fit. Even Lady Tsunade's scowl had turned into a humorous smile. Shikamaru's face began to turn beat red as his fellow shinobi teased him.

"So that explains his nasty attitude this whole week. Me and Akamaru knew there was something up with you!" Kiba laughed after Akamaru barked, agreeing.

"I bet his attitude will change once he gets some... special attention" Tenten snickered.

This even warranted a light chuckle from the stoned face Shino Aburame.

"Special... Attention?" Naruto mumbled completely lost. as usual he wasn't paying any attention and the joke had gone completely over his head. Kiba leaned over and explained the joke as clearly as he could. It took Naruto probably a full minute before he caught on and laughed with the rest of them.

Shikamaru grumbled under his breath, but didn't argue. As much as he hated to admit it to his friends, not having you around severely impacted his day to day interactions. He was constantly irritated because he didn't get as much sleep with you gone. The side of the bed where you usually reside seemed like a gaping hole with you not there, and no matter how much tossing and turning he did he was never comfortable.

He was frustrated that he couldn't come home to you after a long day of working with idiots. Even if you did nothing but tell him to give his teammates a break he missed the sound of your voice soothing him. He missed laying in your arms while you lectured that not everybody was a genius like him. At this point he would settle for your hands just gracing his.

And most of all he was distracted by the crippling fear that one of these days you might not come home to him. Shikamaru undoubtedly knew that you could handle yourself. Yall had spared a couple times and you'd come close to beating him more than once. But the idea of not being there to protect you often left him feeling helpless.

With these thoughts constantly running through his mind, it was difficult to focus on the seemingly mundane tasks he was often given. To be honest the only times he wasn't thinking of you was when he was on his own missions, and even then his thoughts were reserved for keeping his squad alive and staying alive himself specifically to see you again.

"Well you'll be glad to know she's coming back today, I'll be expecting you to be in a better mood tomorrow!" Lady Tsunade teased before shushing the crowd and returning to give out assignments.

-

Just as Shikamaru had thought working at the academy was the exact mindless work he dreaded so much. They could've put him with the younger children, given him a challenge, well at least that's what he thought. Instead he supervised a group of kids around the ages of 9 to 11. These children were no stranger to Shikamaru or his legacy, actually any shinobi rumored to have amazing talent or great potential was a topic of discussion amongst the children in the academy. The stories they've heard of Shikamaru and the Nara clan as a whole were impressive enough to earn their respect. In fear of potentially earning themselves a bad name with someone they could possibly call their squad leader once graduating, They gave Shikamaru absolutely no problems.

"Shikamaru Sensei... is it true you forfeited your last match in the Chunin exams?!" A little boy shouted across the blacktop as he and a large number of his classmates came rushing towards the lazy uninterested ninja.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"I told you, Idiot!" A young girl exclaimed, hitting the previous boy in the back of the head with a scroll she had. "He was running out of Chakra and knew he couldn't finish the fight!"

The young girl's confident proclamation surprised Shikamaru. Every ninja in the village knew the story, but very few knew the reasoning behind his actions. Usually the only ones who accurately recounted the story were those who saw the match with their own eyes.

"Who told you that?" Shikamaru inquired.

"Y/n Sensei told our whole class the story the last time she came to the academy, had all of us try to figure out why you'd throw a match that you practically had won. She said it's her favorite story to tell students who are about to graduate."

"Yeah she said it's still the most amazing match she's watched during the Chunin exams, even now!"

"She told us that if we wanna be half the ninja you are, we always have to be thinking two steps ahead."

Shikamaru couldn't stop that infamous smirk from creeping onto his face. He loved hearing that you spoke to your class about him, that you even bragged about how talented he was, even if it was to a bunch of children. You admired him not only for the person he is, but the ninja he's become and that was a great honor to Shikamaru.

"Look, it's y/n Sensei, she's back from her mission!" The little girl from before yelled pointing over at the village's entrance. All the children fervently yelled your name in a vain attempt to get your attention. The academy laid on hill that allowed them to peer down at the entire village, though they could see you, you could not see them.

Shikamaru acting as if he too were one of your students rushed to the fence to see if they were correct, if finally the love of his life had returned home. Sure enough right alongside Kakashi and Tsume there you were. Your smile is as bright as ever despite having a few minor scrapes and bruises. Butterflies filled the pit of Shikamaru's stomach and what was just a sly smirk had turned into a full blown smile, teeth and all. He's heart fluttered, but skipped a beat at the same time it was like he had seen you for the first time.

"Go ahead, class is wrapping up anyway!" Iruka whispered over to him.

Shikamaru was stunned, he was so entranced by the sight of you he was completely ignorant to his surroundings. For the first time since he graduated from the Academy he had let Iruka sneak up on him. Your being gone had even a greater hold on him than he initially thought. He needed to see you right now.

He thankfully patted Iruka on his back before darting off toward the exit. He knew you'd first go to Ichirkau Ramen to pick up dinner for the two of you, a tradition set in place to celebrate a successful mission. So if he could move quick enough he could make it to the flower shop and back to the apartment the two of you shared before you. He did not want a cold empty uninviting apartment to be what greeted you once you returned home, especially after seeing you had endured wounds while on your mission. Honestly he didn't want you to have to worry about a thing.

Once he fumbled into the door, he immediately began to prepare for your arrival. He lit every candle he could find and arranged them around the perimeter of the bathroom while the water for a hot bath drew. He even went as far as to place rose petals in the water. Something he never understood but knew you would appreciate. When that was handled he placed one of his t-shirts on the counter and dimmed the lights. He could hear your footsteps approaching down the hall.

His nonchalant nature made it absolutely impossible for him to display any type of excitement or anticipation willingly. Due to this he sprinted back to living snatching up a book that was left on the coffee table and pretended to read it as you walked into the room.

He lowered the book just below his nose being careful to conceal the wide tooth smile he had behind those pages.

"You're home." He announced very casually.

You laughed. He never exceeded those two words when it came to welcoming you back, never a "I missed you" or "I'm so excited to see you" always those two words. When you first started dating such a dull response hurt your feelings, you wanted him to be jumping for joy to see you. Now the promise of hearing those two words was the primary motivation in completing your missions.

"And look, ramen!" You squealed slightly shaking the bag.

Shikamaru glanced over at the bag then returned his gaze to his book. You scoffed slightly offended, this was your favorite part of coming home, pigging out on loads of ramen after eating forest food for a week. Shikamaru knew this! He'd let you recite the details of your mission to him while he attentively listened, it was when you explained all the scrapes and bruises you inevitably always returned with.

"Go get cleaned up so we can eat." He demanded eyes still glued to that stupid book.

Your face fell, that childish giddy smile now wiped clean away. Shikamaru had never had a problem sharing at least a quick meal with you before you hopped in the shower. You were well aware of the toll half a day's walk had on one's body, but was this your boyfriend's crude way of telling you, you smelled. You sat the ramen on the dining room table not bothering to suppress the pout on your face.

Shikamaru got a glimpse of your expression out the side of his eye and immediately felt guilty. Perhaps there was a better way of getting you in the bathroom to see his surprise for you. One that hadn't made you feel so self conscious or small. For such a genius he made some stupid mistakes.

He placed his book on the coffee table to meet you in the kitchen. Bypassing the food he snuck behind you, creeping his arms around your waist before planting a small soft kiss on your cheek. Shikamaru snuggled his head into your neck before speaking.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be so crass." He mumbled against your skin. "But I do have a surprise for you in the bathroom."

You perked up at the mention of a surprise. A wide grin sneaking on your lips as the scowl you held earlier dissipated. Shikamaru had always been a thoughtful boyfriend even if he was so coy in his interactions with you. He'd fill the apartment with roses for your anniversary , then downplay the extravagant act when you walked in the door. He once planned an entire surprise birthday party for you just to spend the entire night proclaiming he barely did anything. You were excited to see what considerate display your partner had put together this time.

You let out a small gasp as you walked into the romantically decorated bathroom. The dim candles created such a relaxed yet intimate ambiance to the entire space. You chuckled some at the rose petals. Despite the countless lectures both you and Ino had received on how pointless it was to pick the petals off of roses when a person could simply just give their partner a bouquet of roses, he still included them in your warm bath.

"Shika... you didn't have to do all this."

"It was nothing." He reassured disregarding the full speed sprint from the academy to the Yamanaka flower shop, then to the apartment. "Here let me help you."

Shikamaru assisted you in removing your garments. He knew how even the smallest tasks could bring out the failure's in your body after such a long mission. Something as simple as slipping out of a pair of cargoes seemed like a feat to a body so sore from what felt like an endless battle. He let you grasp onto his forearm before dipping into the tub and sinking shoulder deep. The warm water against your ailing body felt almost euphoric. As usual Shikamaru knew exactly what you needed.

Of course your generous boyfriend could not stop there, running you a bath was not enough. He was going to bathe you himself too. Tenderly rubbing the dirt and grime from every cut and scrape on your body.

"How'd you get this one?" a question he asked ever so often. His tone is always dull and irritated.

Shikamaru hated to see you covered in bruises. You called them a causality of the job, but to him they were just a sign that he wasn't there to protect you. He would try to ignore the small ones, but any that seemed too deep or painful he felt obligated to inquire about. Although he never liked the answer. That's probably why wiping away your wounds was so therapeutic for him. If he couldn't prevent the pain, at least he could alleviate it now.

"A shuriken hit me, cheap shot." You huffed.

Your boyfriend's face didn't soften, in fact you were sure you saw him actually grimace at the mention of you getting hit. You wondered why he even tortured himself asking questions he didn't want the answer to. Nonetheless you weren't going to let some small injuries ruin your first night home.

"Rumor around the village is you missed me a whole lot while I was away. "

Shikamaru's cheeks instantly flushed as he averted his eyes away from you. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as a few unsure chuckles fell from his mouth. He was searching for the words to say.

"I ran into Naruto at Ichiraku's, he said you had such an attitude with all of them. Heard you even snapped at Lady Tsunade you missed me so much."

"Damn, Naruto!" He mumbled underneath his breath. "You mess up my whole routine when you leave!"

You let out an exaggerated sigh at the tired excuse.

"Give it up Nara, you missed me!"

Reluctantly the shadow ninja accepted defeat. He laced his now wet hands with yours and brought them to his lips. He planted a trail of endearing kisses up your arm to your elbow before gently returning your hand to the soothing water.

"I'm a mess when you're not here. I swear you occupy so much space in my brain, I can't even think straight. I miss you so much."

The revelation caught you off guard. Maybe it was his lustful entrance of finally having you home after a month, but Shikamaru very rarely was this vulnerable with you. Such words blossomed butterflies in your stomach. It was as if Shikamaru was confessing his feelings for you for the very first time.

"I love you so much y/n."

"I Love you too."

The two of you feel into a comfortable silence. Shikamaru stood to grab you a dry towel. Reluctant you feel deeper into the water, Although drawing colder you couldn't imagine getting out the tub just yet. After all it had been weeks since you allowed yourself to be pampered in such a way. You wanted to savor every moment.

"God, this feels so good." You moaned in pleasure.

Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at your blissful proclamation, that infamous smirk plastered on his face. He approached the tub, abandoning the towel on the counter, and kneeled behind you. He snaked his hand up your torso, fondling you some before they landed at your neck. You'd have let out a small gasp if the familiar feeling of his fingers lightly squeezing your throat hadn't completely knocked the air out of you. He kissed his way from behind your ear down to the base of your neck.

"I can make you feel better."

-

The next morning the two of you found yourselves in Lady Tsunade's office, along with your comrades. As usual the Fifth Hokage was assigning daily tasks, when her eyes fell upon Shikamaru. His demeanor was clearly different from yesterday, His hands had returned to his pockets and his scowl had been replaced with a content grin.

"You seem to be in better spirits Shikamaru." Tsunade announced inquisitively. "I assume you've resolved that issue of yours?"

The other shinobi snickered at her insinuation. The attention made both you and Shikamaru look down at the floor hoping it would open up and consume you two whole. Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck, eyes closed before answering.

"Yes Ma'am."

[snoopdoodle]

OMG!! Snoop, it was amazing! I’m a little sad that, I didn’t find about you until now. Your writing is so great! And are your request open or are you not taking request right now because of the collaborative. (It’s ok if there not)You can make a part 2 of Ranboo dad Reader. 🏳️‍🌈 Anarchy [I say this with all of my favorite authors, but if I’m bothering you tell me please tell me]

Ahh!! Anarchy the beloved!! Of course you can have a part 2!! The link for part 1 is right below !! Also, if I had spaced this out like I was taught in english, this would be hella long-

FIRST PART \\ THRID PART

--------

Dad, but not // pt. 2

platonic!ranboo x male!reader, platonic!benchtrio x male!reader

pronouns: he/him

summary: kinda angsty second part to my story

------------

You cackled in the background as your son was blown up by a creeper. Your laugh was contagious as Tubbo started laughing with you. You slapped your knee from laughing so much. Tubbo tried to stand up, but he fell, which made you all laugh harder. “Don’t get an aneurysm, dad,” Ranboo told, and this just made you suffocate more. “Holy sh-i-i-i-t, hehe..” you spoke between laughter. “‘Don’t get an aneurysm’- heh-HEH” You tried to quote, but it just turned into a coughing/laughing fit. You groaned as your throat felt sore. “Dad, please don’t die,” Your son worried, and you pat his shoulder. “Not dying any time soon,” You started, your smile kind of turning forced.

You’d yet to tell the boys, Ranboo and his friends, that you would be leaving soon. You were happy and upset. You were only in England to do work. You could rent out a place here and leave it to one of your English friends who works in England as well. Maybe you could just buy a house here… no that would cost too much- “DAD! Are you ok? You’re zoning out.” Ranboo asked. You hadn’t realized it yet, but you had been ignoring Ranboo speaking to you. When Tubbo tried, you didn’t even reply. The both of them and chat had started to get worried. Ranboo ended up grabbing your shoulders and shaking them a few times.

“Y-yeah, I-I-I’m ok boys, I think I need to sit down for a second,” you informed. Now they were even more worried. You sat down on the couch and put your face in your hands. You had a killer headache. ‘I’m overworking myself.’ you thought, annoyed. You had asked your boss for a break multiple times, but he hadn’t responded. You thought about it for another second before deciding. You would skip a few days of work, hang out with the boys, then you would tell them. Or you’d tell them, then have your fun day…. days. Telling them after seems better. “Alrighty, I think we’re gonna end stream now, folks! Have a good day, bye!” Ranboo spoke. That was what snapped you out of your ideas.

Ranboo turned to you and sadly smiled. “You doing ok, pops?” He asked, He rarely used that name for you. Of course, you felt bad. You stood up, ignoring the sharp pain that came to your head. “Don’t worry about be kiddo… and I’m sorry for making you worry. I was thinking of stuff,” You answered, smiling as you felt Ranboo un-tense and lean into the hug. Tubbo huffed and walked into the hug as well. You moved your arm so it was wrapped around both of the boys. “By the way, Tubbo, do you have any Tylenol… or Aspirin?” You asked, ruining the mood, but making the 2 laugh.

“Yeah, we do. I’ll go get you some,” He spoke as he left the hug. Ranboo let go so Tubbo could get you some meds for your headache. Ranboo smiled, asking you s question. “So, what were you thinking of that had you so…” He stopped, as he couldn’t think of the word. “Disassociated?” You replied, “Yeah, I was thinking we could do something together. Me, you, Tommy, Tubbo, and maybe someone else if you want to invite someone.” You informed. Ranboo’s smile widened and he nodded his head. “Y-yeah! That sounds awesome!” He grinned. He hadn’t taken off his mask or glasses, but you could feel the happiness radiating off him.

“Ok, ok, kid. Let me get it planned, alright?” You spoke, chuckling. You had ford a smile onto your face as Tubbo came back into the room. He handed you the meds and a glass of water. You nodded a silent ‘ thank you ‘ to him. Ranboo grabbed Tubbo’s hand and dragged him to watch a movie. “You coming, dad?” he asked, you shook your head no and pointed to your phone and he gave a look of understanding. You walked outside and took note of the stormy clouds. You dialed the number and gave a smile when she answered. “Hey, Kristin,” you greeted into the phone. You smiled as she gave a polite hello back. “I need to ask you something,” you started. “Hm?” She hummed. You could hear her cooking in the background.

“I have to tell the boys that I’m goin’ back home soo, and I don’t know how..” You ranted, frowning into the phone. You heard a creak and turned around. The door was open. “Hm?” You questioned. You closed that door, didn’t you? Oh well. You walked back to the door and shut it firmly. “Well, I’d say you just flat out tell them. You should see how they take it, and then do something with them,” You laughed into the phone and shook your head. “That was my plan already!” You exclaimed with a grin. She laughed into the phone and you could hear her tap the counter. “Well I say you just go with your plan,” She told you. You grinned and nodded.

“Alrighty then, have a good day, Kristin,” you chuckled. “You too, [Name],” She told before hanging up. You held the phone, taking a deep breath. You walked back to the door, opening it softly and stepping inside. You could hear the thunder roar from outside so you were lucky to make it in soon enough. You walked through the halls. You heard a sniff and you stopped. “Hello?” You asked before stepping into the living room. Ranboo tuned to you and you could see his puffy eyes. “Are you really going back home soon?” He asked. Your eyes went wide and you sighed, putting your head down. You nodded to him and he sniffed again.

You walked back to the boy and pat his back. Tubbo sighed and put his head down, starting to tear up as well. He enjoyed having you here as much as Ranboo did. “I-Is that why you wanted to have a fun day?” He questioned and you nodded. “I was actually thinking of how I could stay longer.” Ranboo and Tubbo’s eyes widened as they listened to your explanation. “I want to stay longer, I really do kid. My company had only paid the hotel for the 2-week stay I have, so I couldn’t stay longer than that,” You told them with a frown. You sighed again and put your head into your arms.

“I’m sorry. Let’s just have a fun day together. You can invite that Tommy kid, if your parents’ll allow it Tubbo,” You sadly chuckled. Ranboo and Tubbo smiled at how you were trying to make things better. Ranboo called Tommy as Tubbo called his parents. Tubbo and Tommy’s parents agreed, so he walked on over. You all decided to have a sleepover-type thing. Tommy would stay over for the next 4 days that you are over. You all would stream, cook, vlog, and watch a couple movies. This should be fun. The first day you all hung out, you decided to do a cooking stream. You made a great bowl of pasta… besides the fact that Tommy spilled the sauce multiple times and Ranboo dropped the pasta noodles, breaking them into bits.

The second day, You all streamed a ‘you laugh, you lose’ stream. You didn’t laugh once, although you were very close. People had found it funny when you clapped to the song “Two Trucks” on beat. Ranboo’s hand had flown to his mouth, Tubbo had busted out laughing, and it took Tommy a seconds since he didn’t know what the song was. Chat had busted out laughing, and you only knew to do that because of how many times you had heard it from Ranboo. The other funny part was when someone donated a clip from the song “WAP”, and you had sung it word for word. Yeah… you successfully made the boys lose 2 lives… each.

On the third day, you all didn’t stream, but instead watched a movie. You decided to watch the Toy Story saga. All of you cried since you are all children. On the fourth day, you all went to a Halloween store that had opened early and vlogged there. It was all fun and games… till you all got kicked out cause, out of surprise and fear, you punched (and broke) one of the animatronics. The vlog was about 20 minutes long, so you thought it was pretty successful. Although, in the end, since you had run out of footage, you decided to do some small clips of you telling stories from America before your met Ranboo’s family.

And then you had the last day, today. Tomorrow you’d be going home. It was about 2 in the morning as you layed down. Captain America was playing in the background as the boys slept. Ranboo was cuddled up to your side, as was Tubbo. Tommy, however, was resting on the other side of the couch. Earlier in the night, he claimed that he didn’t need affection, but you knew he just didn’t want to get ‘picked on’ by Ranboo and Tubbo. You smiled as the boys shifted in their hold. Yeah, you’d miss them like hell. But hey, you just had the best 5 days of your life and, honest;y, you think you might be coming back soon.

[parkers-gal]

Tom x reader where reader wants to move out & live with Tom only (not with boys). Tom doesn’t want to move out, maybe Nikki has a talk with him

the one T.H.

➢ a / n | went a lil overboard, heh, but enjoy this ! sorry it took a lil while :,(

➢ wc | 2.5k <3

｡☆✼★━━ requests are closed ━━★✼☆｡

There’s too many dishes in the sink, you note. There’s so many, that they won’t all fit for one load in the dishwasher. It’s a pain, and you know nobody in this house has the patience to wait for two full loads to carry through, so you have to hand wash half of them and allow the whirring machine to do the other half.

If this were a romantic comedy, you’d have Tom standing next to you and you’d hold hands under the suds while you wash the dishes together and chat about your future. This isn’t a rom-com, though. In fact, you don’t even know where the boys are right now. You were certain they went into the den to play Call Of Duty — or whatever it is that they play — but then you thought they went into the backyard with Tessa, but now you’ve just given up on figuring their whereabouts.

Not that you’re angry at Tom for not helping, though. He did the laundry with you earlier, so you’re content with his keeping end of the deal. It’s the other four that you’re a bit fed up with. Sam had just recently joined the Holland-Osterfield-Barrett household of mates, and while you’re all the more happy to welcome him in, it also means more work. There’s a chore schedule, but sometimes someone has work in a town or a country away, and the gaps in the schedule are only ever left for you to fill.

It’s tough, considering you have your own job, but you’re content with the situation — for now. You have Tom, the love of your life, and you have the best people of your life - Harry, one of your closest confidants, and Harrison, one of your partners in crime.

There’s a lot of baggage that comes with being the only woman in a household of boys that practically grew up with each other. You love Tessa with all your heart, but it’s not like you can really gossip to her about your day.

You’re not too worried about everything, anyway. The second anniversary of your relationship with Tom is coming up; it’s only a few months away, and though you’ve been pondering the idea for awhile, you’re thinking of getting a place with Tom, on your own, without the nagging and intruding fellow in-laws (to-be, hopefully).

Six weeks, today marks, for how long you’ve been thinking about the idea, debating whether it’s valid enough to bring up to Tom, deciding when the best time to talk to him would be. He’s a hard man to navigate — getting a spot in his busy schedule is like fighting to the front of a One Direction mosh-pit. That makes it practically impossible.

But, you’re Y/N. You’re his sweetheart, his darling, his weakness. You’re the most important person in his life, and when you want to have a serious conversation with him, Tom’s all ears and eyes, attentive and caring, understanding and, hopefully, supportive.

You’re hoping it won’t take much convincing — he’s lived with these people all his life, and if it’s truly hard for him to decide, you’ll know what he really wants then.

Ringing out a few glass cups, you let them dry on a dish rack that sits on the countertop. The buzzing and whirring of the dishwasher alerts you that it’s still happily running, and you walk towards the glass sliding doors that lead to the patio and backyard. Peering out, you see all four housemates and Paddy, playing with a frisbee and wrestling with Tessa and messing around with a rugby ball on the trampoline. They look like kindergarteners on the playground, and you decide then to bring them some lemonade like a mother in summertime.

“Hope you’re all a bit thirsty,” you set the tray down with a warm smile. Sam shuts his book of poetry to smile up at you from his seat. He’s been reading for a good fifteen minutes, but you reckon he’ll hop on the trampoline when Harrison gets off. For now, he watches as the Irregulars star jumps happily with Tuwaine.

“Oh, sick,” Harry runs over with the frisbee still in his hands, reaching for a glass and taking a big gulp. Tessa’s at his feet, awaiting for the frisbee game to resume, and you pet her head for a moment before Tom runs over to you, hair matted to his forehead in sweat.

“You’re the best, love,” his hand finds the small of your back as he kisses your temple. You smile again, eyes shutting in bliss at the feeling of his lips, but his hand maneuvers you so he can reach for a glass without bumping into you.

One by one, they come over for refreshments, before picking up where they left off beforehand. Tom’s last to leave, wanting to talk to you before playing with his brothers again.

“Oh, I have to talk to you later,” you whisper, fingers tracing down his damp (sweaty) shirt with a giggle. Tom raises a brow, and you nod softly, “Just, when you have time. Now have fun,” you push him off, and though he’s still just as curious, he leaves you alone on the patio. Taking one last glance at the rowdy group of boys, you bring the tray of empty cups inside, sliding the door shut and sighing to yourself. More dishes to do.

——

Tom’s drying his hair with a purple bath towel when he comes out of the steamy bathroom. He sighs contentedly, before remembering your words from earlier. He brings it up, “What was it that you needed to talk to me about?”

He walks over to the dresser while you look up from your phone. You hum as Tom puts something away, and you shut the electronic device off, setting it on your nightstand and twisting to face his direction.

“I wanted to talk to you about… us, I guess.”

You see Tom’s movement slow, and he removes the towel from his damp curls, turning around hesitantly. You smile, waving him off, “Nothing bad, I promise.”

He lets out an inaudible “phew,” and nods. “Good.” You agree with a nod of your head, and he furthers on with the questions. “What is it, though? Is it something important?”

“I mean…” Tom places his towel on the rack before walking to the opposite side of the mattress “Sorta?” You offer, and you see the gears turn in his head. He sits down across from you, on the bed, and he smiles encouragingly, still a bit suspicious.

“Well, I’m all ears, darling.”

You smile at the familiar pet name, and with a final breath in, you admit what’s been in your head for the past few months. “I was thinking maybe we could… move out… without the boys.”

It’s dead quiet for a few beats while the words sink into his mind. You’re not sure how he’s going to react, but you watch to gauge his reaction.

His mouth opens, almost as if he’s about to say something, but then he closes it, as if he’d suddenly second guessed himself. For once, you truly can’t read him.

“I thought… I thought you liked living here?” he says softly, almost a bit saddened.

You sigh with your words, “I do! Really, I do, but…”

“But…?” He bites his lip.

“Well, I mean…” you exhale again, “We’ve been together for almost two years,” he’s still listening, “Don’t you think we should be a little more independent?”

“I mean, sure, if we were a normal couple.” He laughs at the joke, and while you do too, it’s not really genuine, but more forced for the awkward tension in the air. “I just thought you… y’know, enjoyed spending time with everyone.”

You nod understandingly. “I do, Tom. Really, I do. But… y’know, we’re not getting any younger. I just thought maybe it was time for us to get a place of our own.” It comes out as more of a suggestion, a question for him to respond to. You quietly bite your lip while Tom nods at the information he’s taking in.

He looks down at his fingers, before locking eyes with you. “Can I think about it?”

You shut your eyes softly while nodding. Tom blinks, before standing from the bed, giving you a kiss on the forehead and bidding farewell, heading downstairs for more quality time with his brothers.

——

It’s been a week since that conversation took place in your room. You didn’t think it’d go so… bad? You’re not sure if you should say that, because he didn’t exactly say “no,” he just didn’t seem enthusiastic about deciding at all.

It’s a quiet Saturday. You’re out bowling with a few of your friends, news of one of them getting engaged spreading like wildfire. She’s having a dinner party later, but for now, you’re keeping the meeting small, inviting your closest circle for the fun day at the bowling lanes.

Tom asked you if you wanted to reschedule the dinner with his family, but you insisted that arriving late would be fine. It’s only four o’clock — the Holland family likes to come for late lunch and spend the night playing games and drinking beer, until the clock strikes midnight and Paddy’s passing out in the backseat on the way back home.

At least now, only one Holland brother stays with the parents.

Somehow, someway, the conversation had shifted to you. Everyone’s gathered in the living room, scattered on sofas, couches, beanbags, armchairs, loveseats. Tom misses you at his side, but the conversation of how your work is going just reminds him of what you’d proposed a few days ago.

“How’re things with her in general, though?” Nikki, Tom’s mom, asks with a smile. The eyes shift towards Tom, and he can feel his face heating up.

“Yeah, how’re things with the lovebirds?” Harry teases.

Tom chuckles, anxiety bubbling in his stomach, twisting his. “Uh- they’re- they’re good, yeah,” he assures them, though shaky.

“You sure, there?” Harrison teases. “Did someone propose or something?”

“No, no,” Tom airily chuckles. “Nothing like that.” “Oh?” His dad picks up, “What, then?”

“She- uh…” he licks his lips out of habit. “She wants to move out. Find a place for us, she said.”

The tone in which Tom tells them lets them know that he’s a little less than enthusiastic about the whole ordeal. It’s something that raises a red flag for Nikki; it’s something that makes her brows furrow in confusion.

“Oh,” Sam breaks the silent. “I’m happy for you, bro,” he pats Tom’s shoulder.

Tom smiles, though it’s forced and a bit spaced out.

“What’re you gonna tell her?” Harry asks. “You want it too, right?”

Tom shrugs weakly. Nobody talks about his responses, his reactions. It’s all a bit unexpected, for Tom to not be on board with the next step of the relationship.

“I mean, I don’t know, really.” He confesses with a nervous laugh, running a hand through his curls. “I’d miss you all so much. I just… I don’t know, I guess I just thought she liked living here too, y’know.”

A collective number of “yeah’s” and “mhm’s” go around the room, and Tom nods nonchalantly before the conversation switches to something more exciting. For now, Nikki lets it go, just until she can get her eldest in a room by himself, and before you get home.

It’s when Tom’s getting snacks for the group that Nikki decides to offer her help in the kitchen. They’re just putting dinner in the oven and preparing appetizers, but still, any opportunity to talk to Tom.

“So,” Nikki smiles, and Tom giggles while she puts another slice of tomato on the dish they’re preparing. “Moving out, huh?”

Though her tone is teasing, Tom can’t help but get shivers. He nods, quieting down a bit. Nikki’s movements remain, but Tom stops working altogether. “I don’t want to move out.”

His mum turns to look at him, and she nods, almost as if anticipating the confession. “Why not?”

Tom clicks his tongue, looking down as if he’s ashamed of feeling this way. “I just like things the way they are right now. I know at some point, someone’s gonna move out and the clan’s gonna go our separate ways, but I don’t want to be the one to go first.”

At this, Nikki fully turns to talk to Tom, no longer making dinner. “Tom…” She wipes her hands on a kitchen towel, and Tom does the same. “You were the first to go, you know.”

His eyebrows pull together in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” she sighs, “Your career was first to take off. You ran out that door so fast, we couldn’t keep up.” Tom laughs, reminiscing to himself. “You’re going to keep growing,” she says softly. “You can’t stop that. You can’t stop everyone from growing apart. Sure, you might not grow apart, but you won’t always be this cute little boy band from your school days.”

“Not a boy band, mum,” Tom grumbles. The two of them share a knowing smile.

“You can’t blame yourself for growing, darling,” she steps closer, grabbing one of his hands just like he had grabbed hers the day he was first born. “You can’t expect to be the glue that holds this- this temporary situation together forever. You’re not a superhero,” the two of them laugh again, but then Tom nods knowingly, and Nikki can see a faint batch of tears spring in his eye sockets.

“No, I know, mum.” He sniffles. “I guess… I don’t know, i’ve just always been afraid of never being there when everything changes. I always come back and everyone’s a different person, just…” he searches for the words, “with the same faces.”

She nods, turning back to her dinner dish. Tom keeps his eyes trained on his hands, which are planted on the countertop.

“She loves you a lot, you know.” Nikki says after a few beats. “She just wants a bit of privacy, a bit of your relationship without your annoying brothers.”

“Annoying is right,” Tom teases. They laugh again. “Yeah, I guess I just never thought of that.” Nikki hums, and the kitchen grows silent for a few moments. “Thank you, mum.”

“For what?”

“Being there.” Tom replies. “You never gave up on me, and now… I don’t know. It means a lot to me that you’re helping me with something so important to me.”

Nikki’s eyes soften, and both of them tear up. She nods, this time breaking the silence again. “I know how much you love her,” She says quietly. “One day, she’ll be yours for forever. She’s the one — I can see it in both of your eyes.”

Tom sucks in a breath and wipes his eyes. “I know she’s the one, too.” He adds in another tomato to the dish. “She’s always been it for me.”