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obsessedwithceleste · 9 months ago

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Daisy Chains and Kept Promises

George Weasley x reader

Based on this request🫶🏽

Summary: George Weasley was never one to break a promise. Especially not one sealed by a daisy chain ring.

word count: 3.2k

©️ obsessedwithceleste. all works posted here belong to me and should not be reposted or copied in any way or form.

It was the first sunny afternoon in what seemed like forever, but in reality had only been a few days, and the residents of the burrow were eager to escape onto the vibrant, green lawn.

“Fred, George you stay out of trouble now!” Molly shouted from the kitchen as you run out the door with the twins.

“Come on now, it’s our last summer before they ship us off to Hogwarts! We gotta make the most of it!” Fred replies, sprinting out to the shed where the Weasleys stored all their brooms.

“Hurry up Georgie, or I’m taking the good broom!” You tease as you race past the other boy, snatching the best broom from the rack before he has the chance to protest.

“Aw c’mon! Why’s she always get the good one?” Ron complains as he catches up with you all.

“Oh shut it Ronald,” George retorts, not bothering to give his youngest brother a second glance.

The four of you spend the afternoon zooming across the field, a beat up quaffle tossed between you in carefree bliss as the sun shines down on you and Ginny watches from the ground below.

Eventually you all tire and you find yourself lying in the shade of the old oak tree that loomed over the garden. Thankfully the rain had scared off the gnomes that had a habit of sneaking into the garden for a tasty treat.

“Show me how to make those daisy crowns? Like the muggles?” Ginny asks, bringing over fists full of the little white flowers.

“Not now Ginny,” Fred sighs, rolling his eyes at the young girl.

“No, no, we can do it now,” you argue, patting the ground next to you, gesturing for the younger girl to sit beside you.

“Yeah, let her stay,” George agrees, smiling fondly at you.

Fred snorts at his brother, eyes rolling once more.

“You always side with her, you’re supposed to be my twin! How are you two going to survive without each other?” Fred retorts, leaning back against the tree.

“It’ll only be a year, then y/n can join us in the fun,” George replies happily.

“Oh at this point you might as well just marry her,” Fred responds with a huff.

You feel your cheeks begin to grow red and you turn to focus all your attention on the young girl beside you, showing her how to intricately wrap the stems together to form a chain of daisies.

You’d known the twins for as long as you could remember. You’d practically grown up with them. Your father Remus did the best he could raising you on his own, he really did, but it was hard. Especially on full moons. The Weasleys always took you in on those nights, often resulting in you staying for days while Remus recovered.

George had had a soft spot for you since the beginning, always being the slightly softer twin while Fred was more severe and brash. You could remember a particularly bad night when it had been storming, the loud thunder making you shake with fear. George had stayed up with you all night, making sure the storm didn’t get you. You had been seven at the time.

It had started back then you supposed, your little crush. It had confused you at first as you had thought of all the boys as your brothers, but now, at the ripe old age of ten, you could tell that Georgie was different from the other Weasley boys.

“There!” George announces excitedly, shaking you from your thoughts as he brandishes a single daisy up into the air, its stem tied rather roughly in a small circle.

Without warning, he grasps onto your hand, sliding the makeshift ring onto your finger, looking rather pleased with himself.

“There. You’re my wife now,” he says proudly as you stare at the little flower adorning your finger.

“You didn’t do it right! You have to ask her to be your wife. Everyone knows that!” Ginny exclaims, watching the two of you with a dopey little grin on her face.

“Oh. Right. Y/n, will you be my wife?” Georgie asks, batting his eyes dramatically at you and sticking out his bottom lip.

“Yes I will,” you reply with a laugh, admiring the pretty daisy that now sat on your finger.

“You two are so gross,” Fred says, making a face.

“Oh, oh! Do the promises! The ones where you say I do!” Ginny urges excitedly, clapping her hands.

“Alright. Do you promise to always laugh at my jokes, always be there for me when I need you, and always take my side when we argue with Fred?” George asks.

Fred begins to make dramatic gagging sounds.

“I do.” You reply with a giggle as Fred just glares at you. “And do you promise to always make me smile, always protect me, and always make me hot chocolate when I can’t sleep?”

“I do.”

It was dark. The whole house was dark really. All the time. Dimly lit and constantly smelling like mold and rotting wood. And the furniture seemed to be permanently damp, the coldness settling into your bones.

You hated it here at Grimmauld Place. The constant shrieking of decrepit, old portraits, the eerie feeling of constantly being watched. The only positive attribute about living in this wretched place was the fact that Remus had never been happier.

It had taken months to do it, but after Harry had been able to help Sirius escape the dementors, Dumbledore had inconspicuously been able to move Sirius into Grimmauld place where you had been staying ever since.

It had been strange at first, no doubt. You had only just met the man, but he grew on you quickly. Like a fungus. You loved seeing how comfortable he made Remus who visibly softened whenever the other man was near. And you hadn’t seen Remus smile as wide or as often, well ever. You could tell that the two of them were just meant to be side by side, and honestly, that was enough for you. Especially in dark times like these.

“Lighten up love, we have a surprise for you before dinner,” Remus announces, entering the drawing room where you sat wrapped in a pile of blankets, a book in hand as you tried to ignore the screeching bag lady in entry way portrait.

“Is it another one of those horrendous sweaters that Sirius keeps digging up from somewhere?” You ask, nose scrunching at the thought of another one of the putrid smelling things being presented to you. You didn’t have the heart to tell him that you detested the nasty things, so you had been giving them to Kreacher to dispose of rapidly. “I know I keep telling him that they’re lovely, but how many of the things does he think I need?”

Remus just laughs, shaking his head. “I’ve told him to move onto something else, but he’s determined to fill your wardrobe I think. But no. It’s not another sweater. For now at least. No, I do believe you’ll quite enjoy this little surprise.” He tells you before leaving you to your book and your thoughts.

Dinner time couldn't come fast enough as you eagerly eyed the clock every fifteen minutes, only to be disappointed by how little time had gone by.

About thirty minutes before the three of you usually ate dinner, you began hearing a chorus of voices coming from the entry way. And not the familiar voices of the Black family portraits.

"Well where is she then?" a loud voice asks.

Hearing the voice, you immediately perk up, not quite believing you'd heard correctly. This place might be driving you mad.

"Oh bloody hell mate, don't seem too eager now," comes the sarcastic response.

You'd know those voices anywhere. Practically throwing yourself from the couch, you eagerly scramble to the door and down the staircase to be greeted by the whole Weasley family grinning up at you.

"Look Georgie, there's your wife, don't get your knickers in a twist now," Fred scoffs.

You fly into George's arms, sighing contentedly as his arms wrap securely around you.

"Well hello to you too," you hear him laugh as he gives you another squeeze before releasing you.

You hadn't seen him, or the other Weasley's for that matter, in what felt like ages. He and Fred had grown their hair out, and you didn't quite remember them being so tall last you saw them. His smile never changed though.

Bashfully, you greet the rest of the Weasley bunch, even Fred giving you a quick hug, before rubbing the top of your head affectionately and effectively tossling up your hair. You stick your tongue out at the boy in response, batting his hand away.

"I missed you all, so much! I've been going absolutely bonkers being here alone for so long," you tell them.

"Well not to worry love, we'll be here all summer. Hermione too, though she's not coming for another few weeks." George tells you.

Feeling eyes on you as you laugh with the boys, turning to see both Sirius and Remus gazing at you intently, eyes flickering between you and George.

Sirius silently points at you, then George before drawing a line across his neck with his finger before giving you a wink. You feel heat creeping into your cheeks as you turn back to the boys.

"What are you all doing here?" you ask eventually as the adults begin to file into the kitchen.

"Came to be used as house elves of course," Fred replies, earning him a nudge from George.

"Mum said that Sirius volunteered the house to be headquarters for the Order," Ron butts in.

"Yeah, then mum volunteered us to help clean the place up," Ginny adds.

You make a face at that.

"We have a lot of work to do then, this place is disgusting," you tell them, leading them up the stairs to the room you'd been staying in. On your way up the stairs, George's hand never leaves yours, fingers intertwined as you guide him up the dusty staircase.

"Long as there aren't any spiders," Ron replies, eyeing the spiraling stairs with suspicion.

You just look back at the boy with concern, pity overtaking your face as his own face turns pale.

For once Grimmauld place was silent. A rare luxury you'd found, especially since the Weasley's had moved in. Not that you minded, the red headed family made the grim, old place feel alive and vibrant. Something you thought the it needed desperately. But you liked the quiet too.

It had been a strange couple of weeks as everyone, the adults especially, seemed to be on high alert. And who could blame them? Hermione had just moved in, sharing a room with you and Ginny. You could hear their breathing now as you stared up at the dark ceiling above.

After the Weasley's arrival, you had all spent countless hours decluttering Grimmauld place. Sweeping, dusting, banishing the more mouthy portraits to the attic. It was hard work, but you had loved every second of it with George making you laugh until you keeled over, tears streaming down your face. His presence just made everything better. You thought so at least.

In the darkened room, your mind drifts to the conversation you had heard between the adults just hours ago. It definitely wasn't a conversation you had been meant to overhear, but Georgie had given you a pair of extendable ears that he and Fred had developed, and you just couldn't help yourself.

"Oh really Sirius, they've all practically grown up together, George would never do anything to hurt her," Molly had said.

At the mention of George's name, you just had to find out what they were talking about.

"We never said he was going to do anything malicious, we just don't want to see her get hurt," Remus replied with a heavy sigh.

Her?

"They're practically adults, you can't protect her forever. So what if they fancy each other? They're not children!" Molly retorts.

"Oh that's rich coming from you. Just the other day you were going on about young witches and wizards rushing into marriage during the first war. And how many times have you told the twins that they're forbidden from joining the Order hmm? They're adults, Molly, you can't protect them forever," Sirius responds.

"Oh but at least I've done all I can to protect them up to this point. What have you done for y/n? Nothing. Because you've been locked up!" Molly spits. You can hear the fury in her voice.

Your fists ball up in rage at her comments. None of it was Sirius's fault. He didn't do anything wrong. How dare she?

"That's enough!" you hear Remus cut in, a sharpness in his voice that you hadn't heard before. "We weren't coming to attack George, or the way you raised any of the children. We were simply raising our concerns, as any good parents would. Now that we've made our point, if you don't wish to interfere, fine. We won't either."

After that the only thing you had heard was the shuffling of feet as they abandoned the dining room. They had most definitely been talking about you. No doubt about it. You hadn't realized they were concerned about you. They never said anything. And it was only Georgie. The two of you had been married for six years now. In all the ways that mattered to you at least. He would never hurt you. In fact, he'd made it a promise.

Mind racing and unable to sleep, you slip out of bed, careful not to make a sound as you slowly creep to the drawing room that you so often took refuge in. To your surprise however, a dim light was already flickering inside when you approached, and a familiar head of red hair sat facing away from you on the sofa.

"Georgie?" You whisper cautiously, not wanting to spook him.

His head turns in surprise, but his face lights up when he sees you.

"What are you doing this up this late, love?" he asks.

"I could ask you the same."

"Fair enough. Just a lot on my mind I suppose."

"Me too," you reply.

A silence falls between the two of you as you stand, watching mesmerized as the light flickers on and off of the boy's handsome face.

"Want me to make you a hot chocolate?" George asks finally.

A smile grows on your face and you instantly perk up at the mention of your favorite treat. George always knew how to put you to sleep, and he always made the best hot chocolate. Nodding enthusiastically, the two of you make your way down to the kitchen where George begins gathering supplies.

One thing you'd always admired about him was that he never minded doing things the muggle way. While Fred was always quick to magic his way through things, George was content taking his time.

"Help stir the milk so it doesn't burn?" he asks, gesturing to the pot now on the stove.

You silently take the wooden spoon from his hand, fingers brushing ever so slightly, before focusing on the task at hand. George sets out two mugs on the counter before helping you melt in the chocolate.

It all felt terribly domestic. As if there wasn't a sociopathic murderer on the loose. Like it was just the two of you.

It isn't long before George is pouring the dark liquid into the mugs, sprinkling in a few little marshmallows and a cinnamon stick or two and the both of you are retreating back up to the drawing room.

The first sip sends shivers of satisfaction down your spine as you lean into George who wraps his free arm around you. You pull a blanket over you and revel for a moment in the comfort.

"Care to share what's been on your mind?" George asks, breaking the silence.

"Only if you go first," you reply, not quite sure how to explain that he was really the only thing on your mind these days.

George just sighs. "It's nothing you we haven't told you before," He tells you. "Mum is just fighting for her life to keep Freddie and I out of the Order, but Moody agrees with us. We're of age. There's nothing she can do to stop us."

"Will you be safe?"

"Safe as can be. Mum has made sure they don't give us any real missions. Just patrolling Diagon Alley since that's where we set up shop."

You simply nod your head, letting it fall against the boy's chest as you feel his even breathing and let it overtake you. You'd never admit it out loud, but you were grateful for Molly to an extent. The twins had an abysmal lack of self preservation skills, and you didn't know what you would do if you lost Georgie.

"And what's going on in that pretty little head of yours?"

You feel your shoulders shrug as you think carefully of what to say.

"I overheard our parents talking today," you mumble, not exactly sure where you were taking this.

"Oh?"

"Dads are worried about us," you tell him, hiding your face in his chest.

"Worried?"

"I dunno. They said something about your mum talking about how a lot of wizards and witches rushed into marriage during the first war, and there was a lot of talk about you being of age and what not. It got intense. There was a lot of yelling."

You feel George's chest rumble with soft laughter at your words.

"Well that's a silly thing to be worried about considering we've been married for years now at this point," he says.

You're not sure if he's joking or not. Maybe the exhaustion was finally getting to you.

"I'm being serious Georgie. I didn't know they were so worried about me. And Sirius sounded so upset," you reply, sitting up to take another long sip of your hot chocolate.

"So am I." he responds, looking you dead in the eye. The usual mischievous gleam is gone this time and you know he's never been more serious about something. "You know I'm not one to break a promise."

The air grows heavy as you feel yourself freeze for a moment at his words before you sink back into his warm embrace.

"I still have it you know. Your ring. Your mum charmed it for me so it wouldn't wilt. She knew all along," you tell him.

"She tends to have a sixth sense when it comes to these kinds of things."

Another silence falls between the two, but this time, the silence brings comfort as you feel your eyes growing heavy. George tries to stifle a yawn, but it escapes anyway. It was later then you had realized.

"I'm glad it's real for you too," you murmur, leaning further into the boy as your eyes flutter close. Something about being in George's arms provided a sense of security you couldn't find anywhere else.

"It was always real. I'd never break a promise to you, love."

bby's first non-slytherin boy fic🫣

don't ask me if I edited this- the answer is no and I don't want to talk abt it💀

tag list: @sol-lupin-black @breeistired

#harrypotter fanfiction #george weasley #george weasley x reader #george weasley x y/n #george weasley x you #fred weasley #harry potter universe #gryffindor #golden era #george weasley fanfic #george weasley fanfiction #george weasley imagines #gryffindor boys #sirius black #remus lupin #remus x sirius

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lila-lou · 25 days ago

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✨His second exception - Pt. 29/?✨

Summary: The moment Ben found out you were pregnant was probably the happiest moment of his life. However, happiness proved fleeting. Now, he is faced with the aftermath of his shattered dreams. Of what is left of you, and what is left of him.

Pairing: Soldier Boy x Reader

Warnings: Language, fluff, ANGST, Maybe some triggers (death chances etc.)

Word Count: 8591

A/N: This is the sequel to “His only exeption” - and Part 29 of "His second exception".

English isn’t my first language, so please be lenient. 💙

The moment the warmth rushed down your thighs and pooled at your feet, the world seemed to stop. You stared down, frozen in place, your breath catching in your throat. This wasn’t supposed to happen yet. Four weeks too early. Too soon. Panic surged through you as a million fears collided in your chest.

“Ben”, you croaked, your voice barely above a whisper, but the crack in it was enough to make him turn instantly. His gaze followed yours to the puddle on the floor, and his face went pale.

“Shit”, he muttered, rushing to your side. His hands were on you in an instant, steadying you as your knees buckled. “Hey, hey—breathe, baby. Look at me”.

You couldn’t. Your eyes stayed glued to the puddle as the enormity of what was happening crashed over you. “She’s not ready”, you whispered, trembling violently. “Ben, she’s not ready. It’s too soon!”.

His hands gripped your face, forcing you to meet his gaze. His green eyes were fierce, burning with the determination you’d always relied on. “Stop”, he commanded, his voice steady even as his own panic simmered beneath the surface. “You hear me? You don’t get to spiral. Not now”.

“But—”, you started, tears streaming down your face as you clung to his arms. “She won’t survive. I won’t—”.

“You will”, he said sharply, cutting you off as he leaned closer, his forehead pressing against yours. “You both will. I don’t care what the odds are. I don’t care what anyone says. You’re going to fight, just like you promised me. Just like we promised her”.

Your chest heaved as you struggled to catch your breath, his words grounding you even as terror clawed at your throat. “Ben, what if—”.

“No!”, he interrupted again, his voice cracking with raw emotion. “No what-ifs. We’re doing this. Together”.

You nodded shakily, letting him guide you to the couch. Every movement sent sharp pangs through your abdomen, and you knew the contractions weren’t far behind.

Ben didn’t waste a second. “Stay here!”, he said, his voice steady despite the storm of emotion in his eyes. He guided you to sit back on the couch, his hands lingering on your shoulders for a moment before he rushed toward the bedroom. You heard the sounds of drawers being pulled open, zippers being tugged, and the hurried shuffle of his feet as he returned with a fresh pair of pants and your hospital bag.

“Alright, sweetheart, let’s get you changed”, he said, dropping to his knees in front of you. His hands were surprisingly steady as he helped you out of your damp clothes, his every movement careful and deliberate. “I know this feels like chaos right now, but we’ve got this. We’ve planned for this”.

Tears welled in your eyes, and your breath hitched as he gently pulled the fresh pants up your legs, avoiding any sudden movements that might worsen your pain. “It wasn’t supposed to happen like this”, you murmured, your voice trembling. “She’s not ready, Ben”.

He looked up at you, his hands pausing for a moment as he met your gaze. “She’s a fighter”, he said softly, his green eyes full of conviction. “Just like her mom. And just like her dad. We’re going to get through this. You both are”.

His words steadied you, if only for a moment. You nodded, wiping at the tears on your cheeks as he finished dressing you and carefully helped you to your feet. You leaned into him, clutching his arm as he led you toward the front door.

“Almost there”, he murmured, his voice calm and reassuring. “We’ll be in the car in just a minute”.

By the time you reached the car, your legs were trembling so badly that Ben had to lift you into the passenger seat. His hands were firm yet gentle as he buckled you in, adjusting the belt to sit as comfortably as possible around your swollen belly. “Hold on, baby”, he said softly, brushing a kiss against your forehead before shutting the door and running to the driver’s side.

The tires screeched as he pulled out of the driveway, the hospital bag tossed in the backseat. You clung to the armrest, your other hand pressed against your belly as a contraction tore through you. The streets blurred past the windows, the city lights flashing like distant stars.

“We’re going to the tower”, Ben said, his voice tight with urgency but still steady enough to comfort you. “They’re ready for this. They’ll know what to do”.

You nodded weakly, closing your eyes as the pain threatened to overwhelm you. “Ben”, you whispered, your voice barely audible over the hum of the engine. “If something happens to me—”.

“Stop”, he interrupted, his knuckles white as he gripped the steering wheel. “Nothing is going to happen to you. Nothing is going to happen to her. You’re both going to be fine. You hear me?”.

Tears slipped down your cheeks as you nodded, unable to argue with the determination in his voice. “I hear you”.

Minutes later, the tower came into view, its lights glowing against the dark sky like a beacon of hope.

Ben pulled into the underground parking lot of the tower, the car skidding to a stop in a space closest to the elevator. Before he even turned off the engine, he was out of the car, moving around to your side. The moment he opened the door, he saw the pain etched across your face and his heart clenched.

“Hold on. We’re almost there”, he said, his voice steady, though his hands trembled slightly as he unbuckled your seatbelt.

When you turned your head, through the haze of pain, you saw Dr. Collins standing near the elevator with two nurses, a gurney ready and waiting. Ben had thought ahead—he’d called on the way, his voice sharp with urgency but clear, ensuring everything was prepared for your arrival.

“Ben”, you whimpered, your breath hitching as another contraction wracked your body.

“I’ve got you”, he murmured, slipping an arm under your knees and another behind your back to lift you effortlessly out of the car. His movements were swift but gentle, his jaw set as he carried you toward the waiting team.

“Alright, let’s get her upstairs. We’ll do an immediate assessment. We’ve prepared a NICU already.. just in case", Dr. Collins mumbled.

Her words were professional, but they hit you like a sledgehammer. Just in case. It was a contingency plan, one you’d prayed you’d never need. You clung to Ben’s shirt, your fingers digging into the fabric as you looked up at him with wide, fearful eyes.

“She’s going to be fine”, he said firmly, his voice leaving no room for doubt as he lowered you onto the gurney. “Both of you will”.

The nurses secured you quickly, their hands gentle but efficient, and within moments, you were being wheeled toward the elevator. Ben didn’t let go of your hand, walking alongside the gurney as they moved. His presence was a lifeline, his grip anchoring you as you fought to keep your composure.

Dr. Collins stepped into the elevator with you, giving Ben a reassuring look as she spoke. “We’ll monitor her vitals closely and keep you updated every step of the way. You’re in good hands”.

Ben´s gaze flicking between you and the doctor. “I’m not leaving her”.

“No one’s asking you to”, Dr. Collins replied with a small nod.

The elevator ride felt like an eternity, the sterile hum of the machinery broken only by the sound of your labored breaths and the faint murmur of the nurses discussing preparations. Ben leaned close, his forehead brushing yours as he whispered, “Breathe with me, sweetheart. In and out. That’s it”.

You did your best to follow his lead, focusing on his steady presence rather than the sharp waves of pain radiating through your body. The doors slid open to reveal a team waiting in the hospital suite, everything prepped and ready to go.

As they wheeled you in, Ben kissed your forehead again, his voice low and resolute. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere”.

Dr. Collins took charge, issuing instructions as the nurses moved swiftly to transfer you onto the delivery bed. Monitors were attached, your vitals checked, and the room became a whirlwind of activity. Through it all, Ben never let go of your hand, his presence a constant in the chaos.

As another contraction hit, sharp and unrelenting, you cried out, your grip tightening on Ben’s hand.

Dr. Collins stepped to your side, her expression calm but focused. “We’re going to do everything we can to keep you both safe. But we need to move quickly. Are you ready?”.

You nodded through the haze of pain, your free hand instinctively going to your belly. “Do whatever it takes”, you whispered, your voice trembling. “Just save her”.

Ben’s hand tightened around yours, his voice low and fierce. “They’re saving both of you. You hear me? Both of you”.

His words carried a conviction so strong that for a moment, you let yourself believe it, holding onto his strength as the team prepared for what came next.

The last hour had been a blur of pain, fear, and sharp commands from Dr. Collins and the nurses. Every contraction felt like it might split you in two, but still, you weren’t allowed to push. Dr. Collins kept coming to your side, her calm but stern voice telling you to hold on just a little longer as she checked your progress.

You barely registered her actions as she adjusted the monitors, checked your vitals, and injected a smaller dose of the V Medication into your IV line. “This should stabilize her heart rate and ease the strain on her system”, she explained to the nurse, but you could feel the tension in her voice. The words barely registered as you clung to Ben’s hand, trying to breathe through another wave of contractions.

Ben, however, wasn’t as calm. His green eyes burned with frustration and worry as he hovered over you, his other hand pressed against your forehead to brush away the sweat that had gathered there.

Dr. Collins leaned over you, her eyes scanning the monitors before she looked at Ben and then back to you. Her expression was serious but composed, as if she were trying to mask the gravity of the situation. “This isn’t going to be a normal birth”, she said finally, her voice steady. “Not with your body in the condition it’s in”.

You tensed, gripping Ben’s hand tighter as fear clawed at your chest. “What does that mean?”, you rasped, your voice barely audible over the beeping monitors.

Dr. Collins sighed, glancing briefly at the nurse beside her before returning her gaze to you. “The process itself is normal, technically speaking. Your baby is in position, and your contractions are progressing. For many women, this phase of labor can last for hours. But in your case…”, She hesitated, choosing her words carefully. “Your body is already under immense stress. The V Medication is helping, but it’s only a temporary solution. We need to get her out sooner rather than later to minimize the risks to both of you”.

Dr. Collins placed a reassuring hand on your shoulder, her tone softening slightly as she continued. “Here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to administer a medication to help speed up the dilation process and fully open you up. It’ll prepare your body for delivery as quickly as possible so we can get the baby out safely”.

You nodded weakly, though fear gripped your chest like a vice. “Will it hurt?”, you whispered, your voice trembling as another contraction rippled through your body, making you cry out softly.

“It may intensify the contractions”, Dr. Collins admitted, her expression apologetic. “But we’ll manage the pain as much as we can. The priority is delivering your baby as safely and quickly as possible”.

Ben’s hand tightened around yours, his voice sharp but not unkind. “Is this safe for her? For both of them?”.

Dr. Collins turned to him, meeting his gaze head-on. “It’s the best option we have right now. Time isn’t on our side, and we need to move quickly. I promise you, I’m doing everything I can to minimize the risks”.

Ben’s jaw tightened, his hand gripping yours like a lifeline as he turned to Dr. Collins, his voice sharp and on edge. “Why not a C-section?”, he demanded, his green eyes blazing with frustration and fear. “Why are we putting her through this? Just get the baby out!”.

Dr. Collins didn’t flinch, her professional demeanor unshaken as she looked him in the eye. “Because a C-section isn’t possible in her case”, she said calmly but firmly. “Not with the unique situation we’re dealing with”.

“What the fuck does that mean?”, Ben snapped, his voice rising. “What’s stopping you?”.

Dr. Collins sighed, casting a quick glance at you before speaking, her voice measured but empathetic. “You know your baby isn’t… standard”, she said carefully. “With a supe baby, the risks of a surgical delivery are exponentially higher. Her bone density, even at this stage, is far stronger than that of a typical newborn. A surgical incision could damage your her internal organs if the baby reacts defensively".

Ben blinked, his mouth falling open slightly as her words sank in. “So what—you’re saying this is the only way? That she has to go through this, no matter what?”.

Dr. Collins nodded. “Yes. A natural delivery is the safest option—for both mother and baby. I know it’s not what you want to hear, but this isn’t a decision we’ve made lightly. We’re working to keep them both alive, and this is the best chance we have”.

You squeezed Ben’s hand weakly, pulling his attention back to you. “Ben”, you whispered, your voice trembling but resolute. “It’s okay. I can do this”.

“No!”, he said immediately. “It’s not okay. This isn’t fair. You shouldn’t have to—”.

“But I do”, you interrupted, your voice stronger now, even as your body trembled with the effort. “I have to. For her. For us”.

Ben closed his eyes as he nodded, his grip on your hand tightening. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, his voice breaking.

“You’re here”, you said, your voice soft but firm. “That’s all I need”.

Dr. Collins stepped forward, her voice calm but urgent. “We need to move now. The medication is already working. You’re progressing faster than expected. It’s time to start pushing”.

Ben wiped at his face quickly, forcing himself to pull it together as he looked down at you. “You’ve got this”, he murmured, his voice steadier now.

You nodded, clutching his hand as another contraction hit, sharper and more intense than before. “I’ll try”, you whispered through gritted teeth.

“No”, Ben said fiercely, leaning closer so his forehead pressed against yours. “You don’t try—you do. You fight, just like you always have. You promised me. You promised her”.

Dr. Collins moved into position, her hands steady as she prepared for the delivery. “Alright, let’s do this”, she said, her voice sharp and commanding. “With the next contraction, I need you to push as hard as you can. We’re bringing this baby into the world”.

As the next contraction hit, you bore down with every ounce of strength you had left. But then it happened—a sharp, sickening crack echoed through the room, followed immediately by a searing, unimaginable pain that tore through your body. A scream ripped from your throat, raw and primal, the sound of agony escaping before you even realized it.

Dr. Collins froze for a fraction of a second, her sharp instincts kicking in as she muttered, “That was the hipbone”. Her face tightened as she instantly barked out orders. “Get me another dose of the V. Now!”, she snapped at a nurse, her voice cutting through the chaos like a blade. The nurse moved quickly, her hands steady despite the tension in the room.

Tears streamed down your face, and your vision blurred as the pain radiated outward from your hip, mingling with the already overwhelming agony of labor. Your body was a battlefield, each part screaming in protest as you struggled to keep going. The V medication burned like fire in your veins as the nurse injected it into your IV, the sensation almost as unbearable as the pain itself.

“I’m here, (Y/N), I’m here”, Ben’s voice broke through the haze, low and trembling with helpless desperation. He clung to your hand as though he could transfer his strength into you.

But you couldn’t tell what hurt more—the relentless waves of labor, the fiery burn of the V surging through your veins, or the white-hot pain from your shattered hipbone. Everything blurred together into a cacophony of torment, your body fighting against itself as you struggled to bring your baby into the world.

“I can’t”, you gasped, the words slipping out before you could stop them. “Ben, I can’t—”.

“Yes, you can”, he said firmly, his voice breaking but resolute. “Look at me. Look at me, sweetheart”. His hand cupped your face, forcing you to meet his eyes. “You’re not giving up. Not now. Not when you’re this close. You’ve got this. You do”.

“I—”, you sobbed, your body convulsing as another contraction gripped you. The pain was unbearable, tearing through you like a storm.

"Come on, another push”, Dr. Collins urged, her voice cutting through the haze of pain and exhaustion. “You’re so close. The head is crowning”.

You sobbed, trembling with the effort as you clung to Ben’s hand, his steady grip the only thing grounding you. The fire in your veins from the V medication clashed with the excruciating pain radiating from your shattered hipbone, but you knew you had to push. You had to keep going.

Gritting your teeth, you gathered what little strength you had left and bore down. But as you did, an ear-piercing crack filled the room, followed by another and another, sharp and sickening. The pain ripped through your chest, and you screamed, your voice breaking as it echoed off the sterile walls.

Dr. Collins froze for a moment, her face going pale as she muttered under her breath, “More V. Now!”.

The nurse hesitated for a split second, her hands shaking as she prepared another dose of the volatile medication. The fire in your veins intensified as the V was injected, and for a moment, the room spun. Your body felt like it was on the verge of tearing itself apart.

Ben was barely holding it together. His face was a mask of desperation and fury as he looked from you to Dr. Collins, his voice breaking as he yelled, “She can’t fucking take more of this! Do something, for fuck’s sake!”.

“We’re doing everything we can!”, Dr. Collins snapped, her voice tight with focus as she monitored your vitals. “She’s too far along. We’re almost there. One more push, and the baby will be out”.

But then the heart monitor next to you spiked, the alarm blaring as your heart rate climbed to levels that should have been impossible. The nurse froze, her face pale as she turned to Dr. Collins. “Her heart—”.

“I know!”, Dr. Collins cut her off, her tone sharp. “We don’t have time. One more push, and we can stabilize her after”.

Your vision blurred, black spots dancing at the edges as the pain reached an unbearable crescendo. Your body screamed for relief, for rest, but you knew there was no stopping now. You had to push. For her. For Ben. For the life you’d fought so hard to bring into the world.

Ben leaned closer, his hands cupping your face as tears streamed down his cheeks. “Sweetheart, listen to me”, he said, his voice breaking but fierce. “This is it. Just one more. One more push, and she’ll be here. You can do this. Please, baby. Just one more”.

You nodded weakly, tears mixing with sweat as you locked eyes with him. His belief in you was the only thing keeping you tethered to the moment. Gathering every ounce of strength left in your shattered body, you bore down, screaming through the agony as you pushed with everything you had.

“The head’s out!”, Dr. Collins shouted, her voice sharp with urgency. “Just a little more. One final push”.

“I can’t”, you sobbed, your body trembling violently, but Ben shook his head, his voice fierce and desperate.

“Yes, you can”, he said, his voice trembling with raw emotion. “You will. You’re almost there. Just one more, sweetheart. One more”.

With a guttural scream, you pushed one last time, the pain so blinding it felt like you might pass out. And then, suddenly, the pressure released, and the sound of a baby’s cry filled the room.

“She’s out!”, Dr. Collins announced, holding up the tiny, wriggling baby. Her voice was laced with both relief and urgency as she quickly handed the baby to a nurse for evaluation. “She’s breathing”.

The moment Dr. Collins handed the baby to the nurse, everything shifted. Your body collapsed back against the bed, limp, lifeless. The room blurred into chaos as the flatline from the heart monitor pierced the air, the steady rhythm replaced by a single, shrill tone.

Ben’s hand was still wrapped tightly around yours when he noticed your grip falter. His sharp eyes flicked to your face—pale, unmoving. His stomach twisted into a knot. “Hey!”, he said, his voice low but edged with alarm. “Don’t pull this shit. Wake up!”.

No response. His jaw tightened, his grip on your hand unrelenting as he turned his attention to Dr. Collins.

“Her heart’s stopped”, the nurse shouted, already moving to start compressions.

“Fix it!”, Ben barked, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Right now!”.

Dr. Collins didn’t flinch under his glare. “We’re on it”, she said sharply, taking control of the room. “Start CPR! Push epinephrine! Let’s move!”.

The nurse jumped onto the bed, her hands pressing down on your chest in a steady rhythm. Your fragile body jerked with every compression, but Ben didn’t waver. His eyes were locked on your face, his jaw clenched so tightly it looked like it might snap. His free hand ran through his hair, the tension rolling off him in waves.

“You don’t get to quit”, he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. “Not after everything you’ve been through. Not now”.

Another nurse injected a fresh dose of epinephrine into your IV line, the room buzzing with urgency as Dr. Collins monitored your vitals. The flatline persisted, the sound digging into Ben’s ears like nails on a chalkboard.

The sound of the baby’s cries echoed from the corner of the room, high-pitched and desperate, but Ben didn’t even glance in that direction. His focus was locked on you, his jaw clenched tight enough to grind steel as the flatline persisted, stabbing into his ears. The chaos around him was deafening—nurses barking commands, the rhythmic thud of compressions on your chest, the baby wailing—but none of it mattered. The only thing he saw was you, lying pale and still, as though life itself had abandoned you.

“You don’t get to check out on me. You hear me?”, he growled, his voice low but sharp, aimed entirely at you.

Dr. Collins worked frantically, barking orders while keeping an eye on the monitor. “Push harder”, she commanded the nurse performing CPR. “We still have a chance. Don’t stop”.

“You promised me”, he said, his tone carrying the weight of a command. “You don’t break promises, do you? You don’t give up. You’ve fought through worse than this”.

The baby’s cries grew louder, but still Ben didn’t waver, his eyes scanning your face for even the smallest sign of movement. Nothing. His chest tightened, the weight of helplessness gnawing at his core. He hated this feeling, hated it more than anything. He was the one who told you you’d make it, who swore that you were strong enough to survive. Now it felt like those words were slipping through his fingers along with your life.

“It’s your fight now. And you’re not a quitter. You don’t get to quit on me, on her”, Ben gestured sharply toward the crying baby without looking, his voice rough but steady. “She needs you. I need you. So get your fucking ass back here”.

For a moment, there was nothing but the relentless beep of the flatline. Ben’s grip on your hand tightened again, his jaw set like stone as he refused to look away, refused to give in to the gnawing fear creeping up his spine. The tension in the room was suffocating.

Then—finally—a faint, broken beep sounded from the monitor.

“Got it!”, one of the nurses called out. “We’ve got a rhythm!”.

Dr. Collins’ head snapped up, her sharp eyes locking onto the monitor. “It’s weak, but it��s there”, she said quickly, already issuing new orders to stabilize you. “Keep her going. Let’s stabilize her and prep for ICU”.

Ben didn’t move, his hand still gripping yours like a lifeline. His jaw relaxed just a fraction, and the slightest flicker of relief passed over his face.

Your breathing was shallow, your chest barely moving, but the faint rhythm on the monitor was enough for the medical team to spring into action. Ben stayed rooted beside you, his hand never leaving yours as they worked to stabilize you.

The baby’s cries quieted in the background as one of the nurses approached with her, swaddled and calm. “She’s alright”, the nurse said cautiously, holding the baby close.

Ben glanced over, just briefly, his expression hard to read. He nodded, his eyes flickering back to you as the nurse hesitated. He couldn’t tear his eyes away, not even when the nurse stood a few feet away, holding the baby. His baby. The tiny, swaddled figure that had caused all of this.

The thought clawed at his chest, a mix of anger and guilt boiling under the surface. You were in this position because of him. Because you carried his child. You’d fought for months, your body breaking piece by piece, all because he had been too stubborn to see the risks. And now, as you lay there with your life hanging by a thread, the full weight of it crashed down on him.

“Sir…”, the nurse said hesitantly, holding the baby closer. “Do you want to—”.

“No!”, Ben snapped, his voice sharp enough to make the nurse flinch. His eyes didn’t leave your face, his grip on your hand tightening. “I’m not leaving her”.

The nurse hesitated, then quietly stepped back toward the other corner of the room, her eyes darting between him and Dr. Collins, who was still focused on stabilizing your vitals. The tension in the room was thick, oppressive, but Ben didn’t care. The baby could wait. Everything could wait. All that mattered was you.

Your chest rose and fell shallowly, the faint rhythm on the monitor the only sign you were still fighting. Ben’s hand moved to your face, his thumb brushing lightly over your cheek, his touch almost gentle despite the frustration simmering beneath his exterior.

Dr. Collins glanced up briefly, her expression grim but focused. “She’s stable for now”, she said, her voice tight. “But her condition is critical. We need to move her to the ICU immediately”.

Ben straightened slightly, his broad shoulders taut as he stared down at you. “Then move her”, he said coldly, his tone leaving no room for argument. “Do whatever the fuck you have to do. Just make sure she fucking stays alive”.

Dr. Collins nodded, motioning for the team to prepare the transport. As they worked to secure you for transport, Ben finally turned his head, just slightly, toward the nurse holding the baby. His gaze flickered to the tiny figure, her small face scrunched in confusion as she let out a soft whimper. The sight made something twist in his chest—something raw and unfamiliar—but he quickly shoved it down.

“I’ll look at her when she’s ready to see her mom”, he said gruffly, turning his attention back to you. “Not before”.

The nurse nodded silently, stepping back again as the team began to wheel you out of the room. Ben followed without hesitation, his hand still gripping yours, his presence as unyielding as ever.

As they moved through the hallway, his voice dropped to a low murmur, meant only for you. “You’re going to wake up, sweetheart. And when you do, we’ll figure the rest of this out. Together. But don’t you dare leave me. Don’t you fucking dare”.

His words were a promise, a command, and maybe even a prayer, though he’d never admit it. Ben didn’t know what came next, but he knew one thing: he wasn’t letting you go. Not now. Not ever.

Hours dragged by in agonizing silence, broken only by the steady rhythm of the monitors tracking your vitals. Ben sat slouched in the chair beside your bed, his elbows resting on his knees, one hand still wrapped tightly around yours. He hadn’t moved in hours, his green eyes fixed on you, unblinking. He looked like a soldier on a stakeout—tired, tense, but laser-focused. Not once had he checked his phone to text your parents or anyone else. None of them mattered right now. Only you.

Every so often, his grip on your hand would tighten as if daring you to let go, as if willing you to stay tethered to him. His mind raced with a thousand thoughts, most of them sharp and bitter. He hated the helplessness, the fact that he couldn’t fight this battle for you. But more than anything, he hated the small, nagging voice at the back of his mind whispering that he might lose you.

When Dr. Collins came into the room for the sixth time, Ben straightened in his seat, his sharp gaze snapping to her like a hawk locking onto its prey. “What’s the update?”, he asked immediately, his voice gruff but steady.

Dr. Collins glanced at the monitors, her expression softening just a fraction. “She’s passed the most critical hours”, she said, her tone calm but encouraging. “Her vitals are stabilizing. The V has done its job—her broken bones are healing, and her internal injuries are no longer life-threatening”.

Ben’s jaw tightened, his grip on your hand relaxing just slightly. “But?”,

Dr. Collins sighed, folding her arms as she leaned against the counter. “She’s still weak. Her body’s been through hell, and the pain meds are dosed pretty high. When she wakes up—and she will wake up—she’s going to be disoriented. Probably dizzy, confused, and definitely not herself for a while. But she’s made it this far, and that’s a good sign”.

Ben nodded slowly, his lips pressing into a thin line. He leaned back slightly, his posture relaxing by the smallest fraction, though the tension in his shoulders remained. “How long?”, he asked, his voice low. “Until she wakes up?”.

“That depends on her”, Dr. Collins replied. “It could be a few hours or a full day. Right now, her body just needs rest. And when she does wake up, she’ll need time to recover. Physically and emotionally”.

Ben huffed a quiet breath, shaking his head. “She doesn’t do ‘rest’ well”, he muttered, half to himself. “Stubborn as hell”.

Dr. Collins smiled faintly. “Then you’ll need to remind her it’s not a choice”.

He didn’t respond, his focus already back on you. Dr. Collins stayed for another moment, watching him silently before finally excusing herself. “Let me know the moment there’s any change”, she said, but she didn’t expect a response. She didn’t get one.

Ben didn’t move, didn’t look away from you as the hours continued to tick by. The soft, even beeping of the monitor was the only sound in the room. He reached up to run a hand through his hair, his fingers brushing against the stubble on his jaw. He looked rough—exhausted, even—but his gaze never wavered.

The soft creak of the door opening drew Ben’s attention, though his expression didn’t change. His sharp gaze flicked toward the nurse from earlier as she stepped in, her hesitance evident in every movement. She held your daughter carefully, the tiny bundle swaddled tightly and impossibly small. In her other hand, she carried a bottle of formula. The baby was sleeping soundly, her soft breathing barely audible over the hum of the machines monitoring you.

Ben straightened slightly in his chair, his eyes narrowing as he watched the nurse approach. “What is it?”, he asked gruffly, his voice low and edged with impatience.

The nurse stopped a few feet away, her grip tightening protectively around the baby. “I—I thought…”, she began, her voice uncertain as she glanced between Ben and you. “It’s been a while. She needs to eat. I thought maybe… you’d want to—”.

“No”, Ben cut her off, his tone sharp and final. His gaze shifted back to you, his grip on your hand tightening.

The nurse hesitated, clearly uneasy as she shifted the baby in her arms. “She´s your daugther and she needs you right now. And… well, her mom would want her to be cared for”, she tried again, her tone softer, almost pleading.

Ben’s jaw tightened, his free hand flexing at his side as he stared down at you. The weight of the nurse’s words hung in the air, heavy and undeniable. He didn’t look at her, didn’t look at the baby. He couldn’t. Every time he so much as thought about it, the gnawing guilt clawed at his chest like a live wire.

"She´s hungry", the nurse tried again, stepping closer.

Ben’s shoulders stiffened, his jaw working as he swallowed hard. His eyes flicked briefly to the tiny bundle in the nurse’s arms before snapping back to you. For a long moment, he didn’t move, the tension in his body palpable.

Finally, he exhaled sharply through his nose and stood, towering over the nurse as he extended his arms. “Fine”, he said curtly, his voice gruff.

The nurse quickly stepped forward, carefully placing the tiny, swaddled baby into Ben’s massive arms. For a moment, he sat there stiffly, glaring down at the little bundle like it was a ticking bomb. His arms didn’t move, his hands hovering awkwardly around her as if one wrong twitch might shatter her into pieces.

The baby scrunched up her face, letting out a tiny whimper as she squirmed in his hold, clearly uncomfortable. Ben’s brow furrowed, his frustration bubbling to the surface. “The fuck do I do now?”, he muttered, glaring at the nurse as though this was all her fault. “She doesn’t look like she wants some stupid milk”.

The nurse stifled a smile, stepping closer to adjust his hold. “You need to support her head more”, she said gently, guiding one of his hands to cradle the baby’s neck. “Like this. And hold her close. She needs to feel secure”.

Ben scowled but didn’t resist, shifting his grip reluctantly as the nurse adjusted him. The baby stopped squirming after a moment, her tiny body settling against his chest as she let out a soft sigh.

“Yeah, great”, Ben grumbled, glancing down at her. “She’s quiet now. But what about when she starts crying again? Or puking or whatever babies do?”.

The nurse handed him the bottle, her expression a mix of patience and amusement. “Right now, she just needs to eat. Hold the bottle like this”, she demonstrated, angling it toward the baby’s mouth. “She’ll know what to do”.

Ben hesitated, his lips pressing into a tight line as he stared at the bottle like it might explode. Finally, with a heavy sigh, he followed the nurse’s instructions, bringing the bottle to the baby’s mouth. To his surprise, she latched onto it immediately, her tiny lips working to drink the formula.

“Well, I’ll be fucking damned”, he muttered under his breath, his green eyes narrowing as he watched her. “Guess she does know what she’s doing”.

The nurse smiled. “She’s hungry. You’re doing fine”.

“Yeah, sure”, Ben muttered, his gaze flicking briefly to you before settling back on the baby. His expression was hard to read—equal parts frustration, guilt, and a strange, reluctant softness. “Not exactly what I signed up for, you know. This whole… baby-holding thing”.

The nurse nodded but didn’t comment, stepping back to give him space. Ben’s focus stayed on the baby, his brows furrowed as she continued to feed. She was so small, barely more than a handful in his massive arms, but the weight of her was immense. Every twitch, every tiny movement reminded him of why you were lying in that bed, pale and broken.

“You’re a lot of trouble, you know that?”, he said quietly, his tone gruff but oddly gentle. “But I guess that makes sense. You’ve got her blood in you. Stubborn little thing”.

The baby’s tiny hand twitched, her fingers brushing against his chest. Ben froze for a moment, staring at her in disbelief before shaking his head. “Yeah, alright”, he muttered. “You’ve got a good grip. That’s a start”.

Your baby stirred in Ben’s arms, her tiny face scrunching slightly as her eyes fluttered open. They were wide, unfocused, and impossibly bright. Ben froze, staring down at her, his grip instinctively tightening to keep her steady. For a second, he thought his mind was playing tricks on him, but then it hit him—she already looked like you.

Sure, she was scrunched up, her face still raw and wrinkled from the early birth, but there was no denying it. The shape of her little nose, the delicate curve of her lips—it was you, in miniature. And those eyes, though too new to hold any recognition, had the same depth, the same spark that always seemed to cut right through him.

Something in Ben twisted, sharp and undeniable, as if someone had punched him square in the chest. His heart skipped, then pounded harder, faster, like his body was reacting before his brain could catch up. He didn’t know what the hell this feeling was, and he sure as hell didn’t like it. But it was there, clawing its way into him and taking hold.

“Well, shit”, he muttered under his breath, his voice barely above a growl. His green eyes locked onto hers, and for the first time in hours, he wasn’t thinking about guilt or fear or what-ifs. He was just… staring. “You’ve got her eyes”, he said quietly, almost to himself. “That’s not fair. You’re already pulling fucking stunts”.

The baby blinked slowly, her tiny hand twitching against his chest, and Ben swallowed hard. He didn’t know what to do with this—this tiny, fragile thing that had flipped his world upside down in a matter of seconds. He wasn’t built for this. He wasn’t soft, wasn’t the guy who sat around cooing at babies or holding hands. And yet, here he was, cradling this tiny, stubborn miracle who looked so much like the woman he couldn’t live without.

His jaw tightened as he glanced at you, still lying pale and motionless in the hospital bed. “You’d better wake up soon”, he muttered, his voice rough. “Because I’m not doing this on my own. You hear me? She’s already got me wrapped around her little finger, and I don’t even know what the fuck I’m doing”.

The baby’s tiny lips parted in a soft sigh, her little chest rising and falling against his. Ben shook his head, letting out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “You’re a pain in the ass, just like your mom”, he murmured, though his voice had lost its usual edge. “But I guess that means you’ll turn out alright”.

The nurse, who had been standing silently near the door, cleared her throat gently, drawing Ben’s attention. “She’s responding really well to the feeding”, she said softly, smiling faintly. “You’re doing a great job”.

Ben snorted, his gaze flicking back to the baby. “Yeah, well, don’t start handing out fucking gold stars just yet”, he muttered, though there was no heat in his tone. “I’m just keeping her alive until her mom gets her shit together”.

The nurse stepped forward cautiously, her movements calm and measured, like she was approaching a wild animal that might lash out at any moment. “She’s finished the bottle”, she said gently, gesturing toward the baby. “You’re going to need to burp her now”.

Ben’s eyes flicked down to the tiny bundle in his arms, then back to the nurse. “Burp her?”, he repeated, his voice sharp with skepticism. “She’s not a fucking beer-drinking buddy. What am I supposed to do?”.

The nurse stifled a smile, clearly used to dealing with this kind of resistance. “It’s important”, she said patiently. “Babies need to burp after feeding, or they’ll get uncomfortable. Here, I’ll show you”.

Ben scowled but didn’t argue as the nurse stepped closer. “Alright”, she said, her tone still calm. “You’ll need to adjust your hold. Bring her up higher, like this”. She carefully guided his hands, moving the baby so that her tiny head rested against his broad shoulder. Ben stiffened at the adjustment, clearly unsure about the whole process.

The nurse continued, unfazed by his obvious discomfort. “Now, use your other hand to pat her back gently. Just a steady rhythm—not too hard, not too soft”.

Ben raised an eyebrow but followed her instructions, his massive hand moving to rest on the baby’s tiny back. He gave her a few awkward pats, the sound of his hand connecting with the soft blanket almost comically out of place in the tense silence of the room.

“Like that?”, he asked, his tone skeptical. “Doesn’t feel like it’s doing anything”.

“Keep going”, the nurse said with a small smile. “It takes a minute sometimes”.

Ben muttered something under his breath but continued, his large hand gently patting the baby’s back. She squirmed slightly against his shoulder, her tiny body shifting as she let out a soft hiccup. Ben froze, his green eyes narrowing as he glanced at the nurse.

“That it?”, he asked, his voice still gruff but with a hint of curiosity.

The nurse shook her head. “Almost. She’s getting there. Just a little more”.

Ben sighed and kept going, his movements becoming slightly less awkward as he found a rhythm. After a few more pats, the baby let out a tiny burp, followed by a soft cooing sound. Ben stopped immediately, his hand hovering over her back as he stared at her in disbelief.

“There”, the nurse said, her smile widening. “You did it”.

Ben huffed, his lips pressing into a tight line as he glanced down at the baby. “Yeah, great. Now what? She gonna spit up all over me or something?”.

“She might”, the nurse said with a chuckle. “But it looks like she’s pretty content now. You’re doing fine, Soldier Boy".

The nurse gently guided Ben as he settled the baby back into a more comfortable position in his arms, her tiny body cradled against his broad chest. “If you need anything, just ring”, the nurse said softly, her smile warm but cautious as she stepped back. “You’re doing better than most dads their first time. Trust me”.

Ben rolled his eyes, but his grip on the baby remained steady.

The nurse left quietly, the door clicking shut behind her. The room fell silent again, save for the steady hum of the monitors and the baby’s soft, rhythmic breathing. Ben stared down at her, his expression skeptical but not unkind. She was so damn small. He could practically hold her in one hand, and yet somehow, she’d managed to upend his entire life in just a matter of hours.

“Alright, kid”, he murmured, his voice low and gravelly. “You’ve had your bottle, you’ve burped. What now? You gonna start crying, or are you gonna let me sit here in peace?”.

As if in response, the baby’s face scrunched up again, her tiny features twisting as she squirmed slightly in his arms. Ben raised an eyebrow, watching her warily. “What’s that look for?”, he asked, narrowing his eyes. “You’re not gonna puke, are you? ‘Cause I’m not cleaning that shit up”.

But instead of crying or spitting up, the baby let out a soft, squeaky fart. Ben froze for a second, staring at her in disbelief, before a snort escaped him. He tried to stifle it, but it was no use. A quiet laugh rumbled in his chest, low and unexpected, as he shook his head.

“Well, that’s one way to make an impression”, he muttered, his lips twitching in a faint smirk. “Guess you’re not as fucking delicate as you look, huh?”.

The baby shifted again, her tiny fist brushing against his chest as she settled back into sleep. Ben stared at her for a long moment, his smirk fading into something quieter, almost contemplative. She looked so peaceful now, her little face soft and relaxed, completely unaware of the chaos she’d caused.

It was the faintest stir that pulled Ben’s attention away from the baby dozing in his arms. At first, he thought he was imagining it, his tired mind playing tricks on him after hours of waiting. But then it happened again—a subtle twitch of your fingers, a small shift of your head against the pillow.

Ben straightened instantly, his sharp green eyes locking onto you as his entire body tensed. “(Y/N)?”, he said, his voice low but urgent, cutting through the quiet hum of the room. “Come on, wake up”.

You stirred again, your eyelids fluttering weakly before they cracked open. The bright hospital lights above made you wince, and you let out a soft, groggy noise as you tried to make sense of where you were. Everything felt heavy, your body sluggish and numb from the medication coursing through your veins.

As Ben looked down at you, his sharp green eyes softened in a way that rarely happened. The weight of the past hours—no, the past months—seemed to crash over him all at once. You were awake. Alive. Against all odds, you’d made it. For a split second, a tear welled up in his eye and slid down his cheek before he quickly swiped it away with the back of his hand, muttering under his breath, “Damn room’s too dry”.

He shifted slightly, as his free one moved to the call button. “You hang tight”, he said gruffly, his voice carrying a faint tremor that betrayed the sheer relief coursing through him. “I’m getting Collins to check you over. Can’t have you going down again after all this”.

He pressed the button again and within moments, Dr. Collins appeared in the doorway, her expression shifting to one of relief the moment she saw you awake.

“Well, there you are”, she said warmly, stepping into the room with her clipboard in hand. “You’ve had quite the ordeal. How are you feeling?”.

You blinked up at her, your voice hoarse as you replied, “T… Ti.. Tired”.

Dr. Collins nodded, her gaze flicking to the monitors before she moved closer to the bed. “That’s normal. Your body’s been through a lot, and the pain meds are still in your system. Let’s take a closer look”.

As Dr. Collins began her examination, Ben still hovered near the bed.

“You’re stabilizing well”, Dr. Collins said after a few minutes, her tone encouraging. “Your vitals are strong, and the V medication did a remarkable job repairing the fractures. You’ll be weak for a while, but as long as you rest and take it slow, there’s no reason you won’t make a full recovery”.

Ben exhaled sharply, his jaw relaxing as the tension in his shoulders eased just slightly. “So, she’s out of the woods?”, he asked, his tone clipped but tinged with something softer.

Dr. Collins nodded, glancing at him briefly before turning her attention back to you. “Yes, but she’s still healing. That means no overexerting yourself. And plenty of help from him”, she added, looking pointedly at Ben.

Ben snorted, his lips twitching into a faint smirk. “Yeah, don’t worry about that. She’s not lifting a damn finger till I say so”.

You let out a weak laugh, the sound hoarse but genuine as you looked up at him.

“You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack. Don’t think I’m letting you off easy”.

Dr. Collins chuckled softly, straightening as she finished her examination. “You’re in good hands”, she said warmly. “I’ll be back later to check in, but for now, just rest. You’ve earned it”.

As she left the room, Ben moved closer again. “You scared the shit out of me”, he muttered, his voice lower now, almost like he didn’t want to admit it.

You looked up at him, your eyes soft despite the exhaustion etched into your face. “I’m sorry”, you whispered. “I didn’t want to leave you. Either of you”.

Ben shook his head, his jaw tightening as he glanced away for a moment. “Yeah, well… you didn’t. That’s what matters”. He hesitated, then looked back at you, his expression more vulnerable than you’d ever seen. “You’re tougher than anyone I’ve ever known, you know that?”.

A faint smile curved your lips as you gazed down at the baby in Ben´s arms.

"I wan´t to hold her".

———————————

A/N: Please let me know what you think. 🥰

Part 30

Taglist: @deangirl96, @thatgirljayy, @suckitands33, @deans-spinster-witch@mimaria420@kaz11283@uncle-eggy@jackles010378@vxnilla-hxrddrugs @meowmeowyoongles@sarahgracej @zemosdarling228 @leila22rogers @mostlymarvelgirl@emily-winchester @blacknoirr @onlyangel-444@seasonofthenerd@staple-your-mouth@artemys-ackles@selfdestructionandrhum@mystic-mara @kat-nee @samanddeaninatrenchcoat @star-yawnznn @me1501 @CheyNovaK @faephoria @hobby27 @baby19sthings @fitxgrld @winchesterwild78 @uddiifiigj @libby99hb @urgogodancer @urinternetmom @mochminnie @laaadygisbooornex3 @fallout-girl219

#jensen ackles #soldier boy #the boys #soldier boy x y/n #soldier boy x reader #soldier boy x female reader #soldier boy x you #soldier boy fanfiction #the boys soldier boy #the boys fanart #his second exception

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zepskies · 10 months ago

Text

A Crime of Passion

Pairing: Beau Arlen x F. Reader

Summary: When Beau Arlen decides to “make it up to you,” he’s damn thorough.

AN: I couldn't help myself lol. I wrote this last night. Here's a quick little drabble for the Take Me Home series, set directly after A Good Man Is Hard to Find!

Based on this request from @jessicalynnann.

Word Count: 550

Tags/Warnings: 18+ only! Implied smut, fluff, and a murder (of sorts).

Catch up on the TMH-verse: ⤵️

❤️ Take Me Home Masterlist

You just…you couldn’t stop laughing.

“All right, you done?” Beau asked.

You never thought you’d see this man blush so thoroughly. It made you laugh harder, though you tried to stifle it with your hands covering your face.

He had you laid out beside him, still skin against naked skin as the cool air began to dry your dewy bodies.

You were lying against him in an odd position, considering your bed now had a deep crack in the bedframe that ran all the way down the middle. It meant your legs were bent at an angle, almost like you were laying in a recliner seat.

You just couldn’t believe it.

This man had really broken your bed.

In fact, he murdered it. Killed it dead. Though you supposed it was a crime of passion, in this case. (You held in a snort at the thought.)

There were even a couple of screws that had rolled across the tile floor.

“Again, I’m sorry, sweetheart. I promise I’ll pay for a new frame,” Beau said contritely.

The truth was, he was embarrassed beyond belief.

Another giggle escaped you, though you tried to soothe him by caressing his cheek.

“Baby, it’s okay. This thing was old. I’m surprised it survived the move all the way from Chicago, honestly,” you said. The twinkle of mischief in your eyes made his face warm further.

“But how damn lucky am I,” you added, your lips curving. “My man quite literally shatters expectations when he makes love to me.”

And despite the unexpected cracking sound that had left you wide-eyed, it had been a spectacular finish. Even now, you were still tingling between your legs from how hard you’d come on his cock. (Twice.)

You slipped your bare leg between both of his and pressed a sweet kiss to his chest.

Beau fought it, but he had to smile at your words, and your affection. He sunk a hand into your tangled hair, first brushing his thumb against your cheek.

“You sure you’re okay then?” he asked.

“I’m more than okay,” you said. He felt the shape of your smile against his skin. You pulled back to meet his eyes. “Better the bed than my back, anyway. Jesus.”

Beau let out a sigh. Another giggle bubbled over and escaped you. You rubbed his arm.

“Think of it this way,” you said. “Now we can go pick out a new bed together.”

Beau tilted his head at that, and he nodded. A smile grew across his face.

“Now there’s an idea,” he said. It was probably too soon for him to broach the topic of moving in with you, but this could be a good first step.

“Right?” you replied in excitement. But there was something else dancing in your eyes. “We’ll just have to make sure the frame’s reinforced with titanium or something, because goddamn.”

Beau couldn’t help but laugh. He dropped his forehead against your shoulder while his own shook. You held him to you and didn’t bother to try and hide your own amusement anymore.

One thing you knew for sure?

There was no way in hell you’d ever let him live this down.

And one thing he would never tell you…

Beau Arlen was damn proud of himself.

AN: 😂 Well then. That was fun, and I hope you enjoy! ❤️

Keep Reading:

Here’s a one-shot set a couple of months after this one. It’s called S.I.N.G.:

Summary: Beau wishes you’d take this self-defense lesson a little more seriously.

▶️ Next Story: S.I.N.G.

Ko-Fi Me ☕

Take Me Home Masterlist

Big Sky Masterlist

Main Masterlist

Series Tag List (Part 1):

@kazsrm67 @letheatheodore @agothwithheavysetmakeup @jacklesbrainworms @foxyjwls007

@wincastifer @iamsapphine @roseblue373 @brianochka

@branj19 @globetrotter28 @hazel-eye-coffee-shop-girl-blog @ades106 @charmed-asylum

@waywardxwords @deanwinchestersgirl87 @this-is-me19 @rachiem4-blog @sweettimelady

@leigh70 @clinicallydepresso @emily-winchester @xiphoidbones @skoveu

@nyotamalfoy @kmc1989 @deans-baby-momma @tabsluvsu @samanddeaninatrenchcoat

@deanwanddamons @anticxrrupt @lacilou @deans-daydream @deans-spinster-witch

@agalliasi @venicesem @chriszgirl92 @lyarr24 @iprobablyshipit91

@ladysparkles78 @solariklees @lostin-jensenseyes @deansbbyx @candy-coated-misery0731

@curlycarley @sarahgracej @bagpussjocken @deanfreakingwinchester @chernayawidow

#A Crime of Passion #beau arlen #beau arlen x reader #beau arlen x you #beau arlen x female reader #beau arlen smut #Beau Arlen series #TMH-verse #Take Me Home #beau arlen fanfiction #beau arlen fanfic #big sky #jensen ackles #big sky season 3 #jensen ackles characters #A Good Man Is Hard to Find sequel #zepskies writes

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hivemuthur · 9 days ago

Text

The Game of Teaching Body - Ch. 10.

viktorxfemale!reader mature! (we get a breather)

AU university, AU modern era, slow burn, frenemies to lovers, teasing, pinning, banter, eventual romance and therefore smut, Viktor is simultaneously a menace and needs a hug, TA Viktor

Ch.1. | Ch.2. | Ch.3. | Ch.4. | Ch.5. | Ch.6. | Ch.7. | Ch.8. | Ch.9. | Ch.11. | Ch.12.

word count: 6,2K

tag: #the game of teaching body

summary: Grab another, while I work on requests. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, which is why it's a tad dramatic. A lot of mysteries get uncovered :') I suppose I should add diva!Viktor to tags, lol.

Cross-posted on AO3 + POV3rd Person Version

—

“Why do you look so pale?” Hale had been in the middle of explaining his plan to survive Christmas in Sheffield when he finally took a proper look at you. Pale was an understatement.

“I’m not pale. Am I pale?” you asked, stealing a quick glance at yourself in the train station mirror. God, you were so pale. And you felt sick—guilt had been gnawing at you ever since you’d closed the door to Viktor’s room behind you.

“I was going to tell you all about my foolproof plan for getting through Sheffield unscathed this morbid season,” Hale said, trying to steady you as you leaned against the platform bench, “but I can see I’ll have to come up with something to get you through the train ride first.”

You sank onto the bench, hiding your head in your hands. “Hale, I’m scum. I’m such a fucking wanker. You won’t even want me to survive this train ride once I tell you what I’ve done.”

“Alright, that’s a tad dramatic, even for me,” Hale said, his voice rising slightly as the train approached the platform. He slung your bag over his shoulder and propped you up by the waist to guide you toward your carriage. “Our ride is here. Come on, I promise I won’t judge.”

You sat opposite him by the window, the muted rumble of the train filling the silence between you. Leaning forward, your voice barely above a whisper, you recounted everything, every detail that gnawed at you. You told him about the kiss in the lab, your fallout over the misuse of the word ‘casual,’ Viktor’s text message, the vulnerable conversation when he’d helped you with your project, your night together—and the moment of sheer panic that led you to leave. By the time you finished, your hands were trembling in your lap, and your throat felt raw from speaking so softly.

Hale exhaled a long, heavy sigh, his eyes fixed on you. His expression was a mixture of worry and a certain resigned understanding, like someone who had seen this kind of mess unfold too many times.

You stared out of the window, your reflection a ghostly pale figure against the frosted glass. “I… don’t know what to do,” you murmured. “Should I text him? I should text him.” You fumbled with your phone, your fingers shaking as you unlocked the screen. But what would you even say? I’m sorry? The words felt hollow, almost laughable. A bitter scoff escaped your lips.

“Let’s not do anything hasty,” Hale said, reaching across the table. He plucked the phone from your hands with surprising ease, ignoring your weak protest. Sliding it into his vest pocket, he placed both of his hands firmly over yours. “Look, I admit this doesn’t look… ideal,” he said carefully, his tone steady. “But it seems to me like you had your reasons to do it, hm? Even if they were shitty ones.”

You groaned, leaning back in your seat, and rubbing your temples. “I think I’m having another stroke.” Your voice cracked slightly, a mix of frustration and despair. “The worst part is, he was amazing, Hale. I mean, he was his usual smug dick at first, but then he just... he gave it up. Mid-act if you catch my meaning.”

Hale arched an eyebrow, leaning closer with a look of exaggerated curiosity. “Do you mean to tell me that your magical pussy turned the sad fart into a nice person?”

“Hale, please, I am dying here,” you groaned, burying your face in your hands.

“Oh, hush. You are not dying,” he said, waving off your dramatics with a flick of his hand. “You’ve just managed to create a deliciously awkward situation for yourself. And there is absolutely nothing you can do about it now, so stop trying to fix it in your head.”

You peeked at him through your fingers. “And what am I supposed to do? Just... sit here and wait for my shame to devour me?”

Hale shrugged, leaning back with an infuriatingly calm expression. “Here’s what I propose: we go home, endure the obligatory family nonsense, and then, after the festive madness is over, I will lay my noble sacrifice before the altar of Joanne’s suffering. I’ll take you to a pub, get you silly drunk, and we’ll figure out what the hell you’re going to do about Viktor then. Sound good?”

You let out a half-laugh, half-sigh, shaking your head. “You make it sound so simple.”

“That’s because it is. Now stop looking like a tragic Victorian ghost and try to relax for five minutes.” Hale grinned, nudging your foot with his under the table.

For the first time that day, you smiled. It was faint and fleeting, but it was there.

***

The obligatory festivities melted your brain. Joanne made a grand spectacle of your arrival, insisting on speaking Polish because she was ‘losing touch with her culture’ without you around. She also didn’t hesitate to comment on your ghastly appearance and, with her uncanny motherly intuition, immediately sensed there was heartbreak involved. However, seeing the deadly glare you shot her way, Joanne—against all her instincts—decided not to press the issue.

Your dad, Kier, cheerfully announced that you would be celebrating Yule the next day with 108 moon salutations. When you rolled your eyes so hard they nearly disappeared into the back of your skull, Kier simply added that it wasn’t a request. Still, he pulled you into a tight hug afterward and told you how glad he was to have you home.

Hale came to pick you up at 10 p.m., but Joanne insisted he stay for a drink. What started innocently enough quickly spiralled into a full-blown interrogation about why on earth he’d brought her daughter back in such a sorry state. Even Hale’s peace offerings of chakra-coded candles and a carefully curated bag of crystals, perfectly aligned with Joanne’s star chart, didn’t soften the onslaught.

You had to swoop in and evacuate him an hour later to avoid bloodshed. Hale, as usual, didn’t seem particularly rattled, but you knew better than to leave him to your mother’s merciless curiosity for a second longer.

When you strolled toward the pub where you’d spent most of your lunch breaks, it was buzzing with locals. “Ah, home sweet home,” Hale cooed, holding the door open for you to step inside first. It looked… exactly the same. Same posters, same battered stools, same scraped tables, same Britpop playing softly through the speakers. You didn’t even bother to scan the room; you simply hung your coat and marched toward your usual spots by the bar.

“You know, I meant it when I said we should all pack up together to go back for Christmas.”

Jayce’s smiling face suddenly appeared from behind you, freezing you mid-motion. Shit. Of course. You had completely forgotten.

“I’m so sorry! It completely slipped my mind,” you blurted, the words tumbling out too quickly as you leaned in for a quick hug—still rooted to your stool.

“Well, I’ll only believe you haven’t been trying to avoid me if you guys come sit with us,” he said, gesturing toward a table in the corner. Your stomach dropped. Two girls sat there, chatting. And… Viktor.

“We would love to,” Hale interjected smoothly, clearly catching on to your synaptic meltdown. “Let us just grab something to drink first,” he added with a wink at Jayce, draping an arm over your shoulders as the man returned to his table.

As soon as Jayce was out of earshot, Hale leaned in, his voice low. “Darling, I think we’ve got an emergency here. Do you want to run?”

“What? No! But…” you whisper-shouted, your voice tight with panic. “You said I had time!” You felt the clash of fight and flight warring in your chest, and judging by the lightness in your head, all the blood had drained from your face. “Hale, this is so bad. What do we do?”

“Relax. Breathe.” Hale’s eyes darted toward the table in the corner, then back to you. He straightened slightly, clearly piecing together an impromptu plan on the spot. His fingers drummed against the bar as if ticking off a list. “We have one drink, and then we say we need to get back to our families. Can you do that?” Seeing your mind clearly spiralling into overdrive again, he added, “Or we can run. I’m serious.”

“No. I can do it. I can do it.” The second time, your voice wavered, weakened. You could feel nausea climbing dangerously up your throat. You swallowed hard, forcing it back down. Gross.

You approached the table, your knees wobbling slightly beneath you as though they might betray you at any moment. Jayce stood up with his trademark beaming grin and gestured toward the two girls seated beside Viktor.

“This is my sister, Jane, and her friend, Ellie,” Jayce said proudly, motioning to each of them in turn. Jane was the perfect mirror image of Jayce. Tall, with sharp, angular features, she had the same broad smile and mischievous eyes that sparkled with a hint of trouble. Her hair, a shade darker than Jayce’s, fell in soft waves past her shoulders, the kind of effortlessly styled hair that looked like it was born from just a flick of a brush. Her presence exuded confidence, and the way she held herself, effortlessly poised, made it clear she was used to being the centre of attention.

Ellie, on the other hand, couldn’t have been more different. She was shorter than Jane, with a curvy figure that seemed to demand attention without trying. Her long, platinum blonde hair cascaded in waves around her shoulders, and she wore it like a halo, flirtatious and free. You had to hold in a sigh that was pushing itself onto your mouth.

Hale, ever the charmer, swept in with a flourish. “Hale Robertson,” he announced, taking each girl’s hand and pressing a quick kiss to their knuckles. “A pleasure to meet two such radiant young ladies. What have I done to deserve this?”

The girls giggled, charmed by his theatrics. You, meanwhile, barely managed to lift your hand in a weak wave. “Hi,” you mumbled, your voice almost drowned out by the background hum of the pub. You didn’t miss the way Viktor’s eyes flicked to you, catching every small movement.

Jayce pulled out a chair for you beside him, and you slid into it stiffly, grateful for the buffer. Hale claimed the spot to your left with an exaggerated flourish. The two seats flanking Viktor were already occupied by Jane and Ellie, who were deep in conversation with each other, oblivious to the tension crackling across the table.

Viktor sat back in his chair, his posture unusually casual—forced, almost. The faintest hint of a bitter smile ghosted across his face as he leaned forward slightly and said, “Hello, stranger.”

The words hit you like a sharp gust of icy wind. They burned through your ears, straight into your chest, leaving you momentarily breathless. You swallowed, forcing down the lump rising in your throat. He looked… tired. His face was pale, his golden eyes shadowed by exhaustion. But it was the way he carried himself that hurt the most—his every movement felt stiff, posed, like he was putting on a performance.

“What brings you here?” you managed to ask, your voice quieter than you intended.

Viktor shrugged one shoulder, his lips twitching faintly as though trying to form a smile. “Jayce invited me to partake in his family’s ‘loving Christmas privileges.’ How could I refuse such an offer?” His tone was light, but the edge of sarcasm in his voice was unmistakable.

You opened your mouth to respond but found no words waiting for you. You stared at him for a moment, hoping he might read the apology you couldn’t quite bring yourself to say.

An uncomfortable silence fell over the table, the kind that seemed to grow heavier with every passing second. When Ellie’s voice cut through it, it hit you like a slap.

“Vik was just telling us about their PhD thesis, and I’d love to hear,” she placed her hand on Viktor’s forearm and batted her eyelashes at him, “more.” The sound of her voice almost brought your nausea back to the surface, and you had to gulp it down with a large sip of your beer.

The atmosphere at the table became tense as Viktor shifted, settling into his role of charming intellectual. His voice was smooth and measured as he began to explain the intricacies of their thesis, speaking in a tone that was both detached and effortlessly composed. His eyes, though, rarely left you. They hovered just long enough to make his smirk feel like a deliberate, calculated gesture. It was almost cruel, the way he played the part of the aloof academic, and yet you couldn’t shake the feeling that you deserved it. Every word, every glance, felt like a reminder of how far apart you were.

“...and, of course,” Viktor continued, his voice dripping with that subtle confidence, “the applications of our findings are endless, but it’s all theoretical for now, isn’t it?” His eyes flicked to you, his smirk widening just slightly as he watched your reaction.

Ellie, apparently smitten by Viktor’s charm, leaned in closer, her lips almost brushing his ear as she whispered something too quiet for you to hear. Your stomach twisted, and a sudden, sharp anger surged up within you. You couldn’t stand the sight of it—Viktor, playing the part so effortlessly, and Ellie’s obvious attempt at getting his attention.

Without thinking, you stood up abruptly, knocking your chair slightly as you muttered, “Sorry, I need...” You didn’t finish the sentence. Instead, you turned quickly, your feet carrying you toward the coat rack.

Hale, who had been watching the exchange with a growing sense of tension, shot you a look, so you mouthed a soundless ‘I’ll be right back’ in his direction. You had to get some fresh air, feel the cold on your skin to quiet the anger simmering beneath it.

You started walking fast, your breathing even faster, when suddenly you paused. Get your shit together. You stood outside the bar, looking around for a place you could hide in. Your arms crossed against the biting cold, your breath misting in the frosty air. The snow crunched beneath your boots as you stomped from one foot to the other, trying to shake off the anger at your own stupidity. Jesus, fuck this guy. You’re so dumb.

You didn’t get far before you heard Viktor’s voice calling after you.

“What the hell is wrong with you, do I have to chase you again?” he shouted. He was trotting behind you, his coat open and scarf dangling haphazardly from his neck, as if he’d left in a rush.

You froze but didn’t turn around. Your jaw clenched as you fought to hold back the rush of hot tears threatening to spill out. You had been feeling awful for leaving him the way you did, but now, seeing him here, so calm and composed, it felt like all your guilt had been for nothing.

“You know, I was feeling like shit for leaving you, but I see that you’re back on track, keeping it casual, Vik,” you shot back, your voice colder than the air around you.

Viktor stepped closer, the snow beneath his boots squeaking. “Well, maybe I was so fucking heartbroken after you left I had to look for consolation somewhere else.”

Your eyes narrowed. “Fuck you, Viktor. Have a nice life.” Fuck him, fuck him, fuck him.

He grinned, that familiar, frustrating look on his face. Without warning, he scooped up a snowball and tossed it at you, hitting you square in the chest.

“Did you just…” you sputtered, wiping the snow off your coat.

Viktor’s smirk deepened, but his voice indicated he was hurt. “I could slap you if you weren’t a girl.” Oh, he could do so much more. The anger raging in his veins was burning away all reason, and you could see the fire in his eyes, as if he could picture himself shoving you into the snow and pulling your hair. And the fact that he was so pissed seemed to make him even angrier.

You raised an eyebrow, a sharp laugh escaping your lips. You stepped toward him, your voice low but challenging. “Please, be my guest,” you said, fuming. “Maybe it would be a fitting end to whatever game you’re playing.”

“Oh, fuck you,” he muttered, frustration flickering in his eyes. Then, without warning, Viktor scooped up a handful of snow and shoved it right into your face. The cold hit you like an actual slap, and for a second, you just stood there, frozen in shock.

You wiped your face and, with a quick flick of your wrist, returned the favour, launching snow straight into Viktor’s face.

You were in it now. The snowball fight escalated quickly as you pushed and shoved, slipping and tumbling in the snow. It wasn’t even a proper snowball fight—you were just scooping fistfuls of snow and throwing it directly into Viktor’s face, while he tried to keep you at arm’s length and shove snow down your collar.

The two of you both fell over, rolling in the cold, until you managed to straddle him, holding a final blow in your hand. You paused, laughter bubbling uncontrollably out of your mouth, your arm dropping to your side as your body flopped on top of Viktor’s. He started shaking with laughter too, the ridiculousness of the situation settling in.

“Are you aware that you just beat up a cripple?” Viktor asked, wheezing, his breath coming in short, sharp bursts.

Your laughter faltered for a second, but you quickly regained your composure. “Not my finest moment, I admit,” you breathed out, lying on top of Viktor. “Are you okay?” you asked, your voice softening, though you were still smiling.

“No! Why the fuck did you leave me?” Viktor’s face twisted with frustration as he rolled over and shoved you down into the snow, his body heavy with emotion.

You stared up at him, heart pounding, your thoughts a jumble. “I… I don’t know, I just…” You trailed off, struggling to find the right words.

“You just what?” Viktor interrupted, his voice hard, his weight pushing you further down. “Got distracted again? I really was fucking heartbroken.” It sounded so stupid, but he really was. The sinking feeling that had taken over him in the morning hadn’t left, even now.

You closed your eyes for a moment, trying to process what he was saying. You thought you actually believed him, because you were also heartbroken, and it made your chest tighten. “I wasn’t trying to hurt you,” you said quietly, meeting his gaze as you both lay there in the snow. “I just—I don’t know what to do with you, Viktor.”

For a moment, you just stared at each other, the cold forgotten, the snow around you disturbed by the fight that had taken place just a moment ago. Then Viktor sighed, his breath ragged, and he lay down beside you, staring up at the dark sky.

You turned your head to look at him. “You really were heartbroken?”

“Yeah,” he murmured, his voice softer now. “And I still don’t know what the hell to do with it.” After a moment of silence, he tried to get up on his own, only to slump back down into the snow. “Can you help a disabled man up?” He held his hand out to you.

“Yes, Jesus, sorry about that,” you smiled sheepishly as you pulled him back to his feet.

“I started it,” he smiled under his nose, not letting go of your hands. The feeling of your hands in his already felt alien. He had already pushed you out of his mind; he had gotten rid of you. It made him angry how quickly you were crawling back into his memory.

You noticed how cold and frostbitten his skin was and frowned, your breath catching as you took in his dishevelled appearance. “Why aren’t you wearing gloves, Viktor?” The question hung in the air between you—the very same question he once used to ask about something completely different.

“I got distracted running after a fucking stupid, dramatic girl,” he said firmly, brushing the snow off your coat with surprising care. His movements were sharp, but there was a tenderness in how his fingers lingered, as if his body couldn’t quite reconcile the anger bubbling inside him with the desperate need for contact. As his hands lingered, he tugged you closer, his golden eyes burning into yours. The words came out rough, raw. “And fuck you. You don’t get to do that now, not after you left me.”

“Do what?” Your voice was quieter now, unsure. Your heart hammered in your chest, and your breath came in shallow, uneven bursts. Your head swirled with confusion, guilt, and a tight knot of fear, your hands shaking as you fumbled for control.

“You don’t get to play with my heart like that,” he said, his voice growing tight with frustration, a painful edge to it. “I know exactly what you’re doing.”

“Play with your heart?” Your laugh was hollow, barely a sound, sharp and dismissive. You took a step back, your arms crossed against the cold as if it could shield you from the heat of his words. “What are you, a princess?”

“Yes, I’m a fucking princess!” Viktor snapped, his anger flaring up in an instant, but his eyes… his eyes softened just slightly, a vulnerability peeking through the cracks in them. “And you played me, and left me, after I literally begged you not to, which you also pointed out, and now I’m scared!”

Your throat tightened, your stomach a pit of dread, but you swallowed hard. “Viktor, I—”

“Don’t ‘Viktor, I’ me,” he interrupted, his tone harsh, but cracking. “I told you I know what it’s like. I know exactly what it’s like,” he moved closer again, leaning his face in to level with yours. “To have one special thing you keep safe and not let anyone touch it, because they might break it. You think you’re so cryptic, but I know you keep that one thing of yours close to your chest. I showed you mine, and you took yours away.”

The words hit you like another slap. The third one this evening. It was like getting scolded by a child. You broke my heart. I showed you mine, you took yours away. You opened your mouth to speak, but nothing came out. Your chest tightened painfully, and you wanted nothing more than to reach for him, but fear held you back. You could feel the icy gap between you and wanted to seal it desperately.

“Fuck. Fine.” Your voice was barely above a whisper now, trembling and weak. “I… I had a fucking stroke. I convinced myself it would be the same as… always. And then I had a stroke, and I left, standing in the corridor for half an hour, trying to go back to my room.” And it was, in its entirety, the truth.

“Well, fuck that!” Viktor’s voice cracked, another surge of white-hot anger breaking through his composure. He clenched his jaw, fighting back the urge to slap you and kiss you. “I would’ve made you coffee and probably fucked you again before Christmas, but now you will never know!”

“What do you mean now?” you asked, your voice wavering. Your hands reached out, but you hesitated, unsure whether you were holding onto him or pushing him away.

“I’m not doing that again,” he spat, the words venomous but soaked in regret. “We’re clearly catastrophic together.”

A jolt of panic rushed through you, and before you could stop yourself, you caught him by his waist, holding onto him with an urgency that surprised even you. You buried your face in his coat, your forehead pressing against the fabric, your heart beating like a war drum in your chest. “Viktor—”

“What would you do so I’d forgive you?” His voice was low, almost a growl, but there was an unmistakable hint of longing behind it. His body stiffened under your touch, and yet, he didn’t pull away. Instead, he hooked his arms over yours, caging you in.

“Are you fucking with me?” you asked, breathless, a bitter laugh slipping from your lips, though it was filled with more confusion than anything else.

“Maybe,” he murmured, his lips curving into a smirk, but it was tainted with truth. Truth being, that he was incredibly hurt, not that he was fucking with you. Maybe a little.

You raised an eyebrow, your tone sharp to hide the warmth rising in your chest. “Why are you acting like an emotional paraplegic all the time?”

He snorted softly, though his expression darkened. “I don’t think you are allowed to say that. And you will forgive me, but the last time is on you—I will remind you; you are the one who fled the crime scene.”

“Yes, I don’t think you are ever going to let me forget that,” you admitted with a small huff, kicking at the snow. “I deserve that. What about all the other times, then? The teasing, the torment? You literally eating my face like I’m a fucking water fountain in the desert, and then trying to keep it casual?”

Viktor winced, running a hand through his hair, his frustration evident in the way he avoided your gaze. “Jesus, I was giving you a way out. You really want to be with a guy with a cane?” He let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. “You were supposed to be a fling.”

“Fuck you,” you spat, your voice cracking slightly.

“No, wait,” Viktor said quickly, holding up a hand as if to stop you from storming off again. His face softened, though his words stumbled out in a rush. “I… I am very uncomfortable around you.”

You blinked, your fists clenched at your sides. “Viktor, I hope this is going somewhere, because I swear to God, I feel like beating you up again.”

“Be my guest,” he said with a crooked grin, his tone low and teasing. “It was kind of hot.”

“Don’t push it.”

Viktor’s grin faded as his expression turned serious. His voice dropped, softer now, almost hesitant. “Well… you make me… stupid. I think about you all the fucking time. I don’t even look for you but somehow I always find you.” He laughed despite himself as you only blinked at him. “You got me into going to the parties; in itself, it deserves a prison sentence.” His voice cracked slightly as he continued. “And in the morning when you left, I felt so… hollow. So… I am giving you a way out.”

You stood in front of him, your cheeks flushed from the cold—or maybe from the way he was looking at you. You let out a long sigh, your breath fogging in the icy air, and hugged your arms as if trying to hold yourself together.

“I’ll pass,” you said softly, the edge in your voice gone, replaced by something gentler. A quiet understanding painted your face as your lips curved into a faint smile. “I kind of want a… way in, rather than a way out.”

Viktor froze and just stared at you. He tilted his head slightly, his expression unreadable as his eyes searched yours. Finally, he gave a wry smile.

“It’s all fucking ugly there,” he said, his voice laced with quiet self-deprecation.

You took a step closer, the snow crunching beneath your boots. You shrugged lightly, your eyes never leaving his. “I’ll take my chances.” Your smile turned sly, playful. “And I like the cane. It’s kinky.”

Viktor’s jaw dropped slightly, caught between incredulity and exasperation. He let out a soft, breathless laugh, shaking his head. “I fucking hate you,” he muttered, but his voice betrayed it was, in fact, the opposite.

Before you could respond, he closed the distance between you in one smooth motion, his hands cupping your face as he pulled you into a kiss. It was fierce and unguarded, like all the emotions he had been holding back had finally broken free. The world around you—the cold, the snow, the biting wind—faded into nothing.

You melted into him, your hands gripping the front of his coat to steady yourself. You kissed him back with equal fervour, your mind racing, your heart pounding in your chest like it might burst.

Viktor’s arms hooked around you again, pulling you flush against him as you held onto his waist, your grip tight and needy. The cold air bit at your skin, but in that moment, the warmth between you burned hotter than any chill outside. His lips brushed against yours as he whispered the words, his breath mingling with yours in a heated exchange that sent shivers down your spine.

“You have to promise me you will never do that to me again,” he murmured softly, his voice a low, earnest whisper against your mouth.

Your heart raced as his lips barely touched yours, and you managed a small, teasing grin. “What, leave you all hot and bothered?” you asked, your voice thick with amusement. His lips twitched into a grin and he hugged you tighter, as if trying to choke the vow out of you. You sighed. “I promise I will never do that again.”

A small laugh escaped you, and then you met his gaze, eyes full of intent. “Promise you won’t do that again on your firstborn?” he asked softly, brushing his lips on yours.

You closed your eyes and whispered back, “I promise on my firstborn.” Not that you were planning to have any in the near future, but yes, he could have it.

His forehead still resting gently on yours, he whispered next, the intimacy of it wrapping you both in a cocoon of warmth. “Promise on your PhD thesis,” he said, voice quiet and serious.

Your laugh was light, a beautiful contrast to the intensity building between you. You rolled your eyes slightly but couldn’t help the sincerity in your voice. “I promise on my PhD thesis and thank you for having faith in me that such a thing will ever see the light of day.”

He chuckled softly at your response, but then his voice grew serious again, the affection heightening as he added, “Promise me on… my princess heart.”

You froze for a moment, your eyes searching his face, as though seeking the weight of his request. Your breath caught, the world outside of you fading into insignificance. His gaze was steady, unwavering. The silence stretched between you as you realised the depth of what he was asking.

Seeing your searching eyes, he murmured against your lips again, “You can have it if you promise on it.” He held his breath, waiting for your reply.

“I promise. On your heart and on mine,” you whispered back, your voice quiet and honest.

Viktor let out a long, relieved exhale and pulled your face to rest in the crook of his neck. “Good,” he breathed, a satisfied edge to his tone. “I almost had you kicked out, I’ll have you know.”

You tried to pull back slightly, a laugh bubbling out of you, but Viktor could feel your brows furrowing in confusion. “What?!”

“I was here first,” he said, a hint of smugness creeping into his voice. “You don’t get to make me miserable until the end of my PhD.”

You tightened your grip on his waist and inhaled him deeply. “You’re a fucking menace.”

Viktor’s smirk deepened, and he leaned in to kiss you again, this time deeper, firmer. “You bet your ass I am. So be nice to me,” he murmured against your lips, his voice full of satisfaction, as though he’d won some small victory. “I happen to have some very denigrating video material on you in my arsenal.”

“Viktor, what the hell?” you quirked your eyebrows, the worst kinds of ideas flashing through your head.

“Oh, none of that lot!” Viktor feigned mock offence, as if scandalised by the obscenity of your train of thought. Then, with a smirk, he added, “Though, it might be an interesting area to explore—ow!” He flinched as you smacked him on the head. “Technically, I am innocent. It was Jayce who committed the crime. I was merely… whispering into his ear while he did it.”

“Viktor, I am having the worst ideas in my head. Please spare me, or…” you whined, already preparing another fistful of snow in your hand.

Viktor raised his hands in mock surrender, huffing. “Alright! Do you remember Mel’s party?”

“Mel’s party? The one when you kissed me and then acted like an ass?” You paused mid-motion, your snow-filled fist dropping to your side as your mind began dissecting the events of that evening.

“Yes, yes, that one,” Viktor rolled his eyes. Mel had only thrown one party this semester; the clarification was entirely unnecessary. “Do you remember what you were doing before the party?” He smirked, his expression daring you to catch on.

“We were… cleaning the lab?” you replayed the evening in your head, slower than you wished. Then, the realisation hit you. “Oh my God.”

Viktor’s smirk bloomed into a fully-formed smug grin. You immediately wanted to wipe it off his face with every snowball you could muster.

“And you… recorded it? Viktor, you evil bastard! Where is it?!”

“You’ll have to ask nobleman Tallis, won’t you? Which means…” Viktor held out his hand for you to take. “You’ll have to come back to the bar with me.”

You ignored his outstretched hand completely. The force with which you stormed through the front door was enough to rival a dozen men. Viktor trotted after you, managing only a breathless, “Sorry, Jayce, she’s way faster than me,” as he entered the bar.

You were already looming over Jayce, leaning in close and whispering in a low, threatening voice, “Where is it, Jayce?”

“Where is what?” Jayce’s cheeks turned faintly pink at your proximity, though he had an idea of what you were talking about.

“The video. Show it to me, or I’ll have Mel take your head.” There was a dangerous glint in your eye, unrelenting.

Hale, seated nearby, leaned in with obvious interest. “Jayce Tallis,” he sang over the table, “have you done something… naughty?”

“The video? Oh… the video.” Jayce froze, throwing a questioning glance at Viktor, who had just pulled out a chair to sit next to you, abandoning his previous spot to Ellie’s disappointment.

“Look, I promise we didn’t show it to anyone,” Jayce pleaded weakly as he pulled out his phone and scrolled through his gallery. He didn’t have to scroll far; it was in his favourites folder, nestled alongside funny pictures of Viktor sleeping during work hours and romantic shots of Mel.

You snatched the phone out of his hands, holding it inches from your face as you pressed play at full volume. Both Hale and Viktor leaned over your shoulders, eager to watch the masterpiece.

“Jayce, this is… atrocious,” you whispered, failing to suppress a grin at the shaky footage, muffled giggles, and snorts from Viktor and Jayce as they filmed.

“You weren’t joking when you said you were all of them at some point,” Hale mused, his eyes glued to the screen as a warm chuckle escaped him.

“It still eludes me how you’d use this to get me kicked out, Viktor,” you said, turning to him. Viktor’s face hovered close to your shoulder, his soft chuckle sending warm breaths against your cheek.

“Ah, you know… misuse of lab equipment, illegal gatherings. I could probably argue you were drunk while doing it. I’m very creative, you see.”

You could have kissed him right there for admitting he’d go to such lengths just to rid himself of you. Instead, you only huffed, a small act of defiance as his breath tickled your neck. “You are such a bastard.”

“Hmm, only if I care enough to be,” Viktor mused absentmindedly, clearly unaware of the two pairs of eyes fixed on him—Hale’s and Jayce’s, to be specific.

As the silence stretched uncomfortably, Viktor cleared his throat and took a seat next to you. “I believe that concludes our little misunderstanding, then.”

“Oh, hell no. I need this erased from my file, Mr. Tallis,” you said, handing the phone back to Jayce.

“Please don’t make it disappear. This is precious! I can send it to you and delete it from my phone but promise me we’ll watch it again in ten years,” Jayce pleaded. The thought of all of you still hanging out in a decade warmed your heart so much that you couldn’t suppress a smile.

“I accept your terms,” you stated firmly, a grin etched across your face.

“Jayce! You are leaving us defenceless! Exposed, even!” Viktor exclaimed, waving his hands dramatically as though the offence were truly grave.

“Oh, shut up, you warmonger,” Jayce retorted, pressing a hand into Viktor’s face with a laugh. “You can’t afford for me to lose my head, can you?”

#viktor arcane #viktor x reader #viktor fanfic #viktor x reader smut #viktor x f!reader #arcane #viktor smut #arcane fanfic #my writing #ao3 #ao3 fanfic #viktor x oc #viktor nation #the game of teaching body

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castdust · 1 month ago

Text

despite the chaos, i’ll be here.

✩ pairing : daniela avanzini x reader

✩ about : damaged has been done, and nothing can stop it but to face it together.

✩ genre : angst | fluff

✩ warning : internalized homophobia

✩ a/n : getting addicted to niki and laufey recently | 1075 words :p

♫ playing : tsunami by niki

The beach was quiet except for the soft crash of waves breaking against the shore, a storm brewing in the distance. Daniela stood with her arms wrapped tightly around herself, the wind pulling at her hair. Y/N was a few steps away, sitting on the sand, her knees tucked to her chest. Neither had spoken for what felt like hours, but the silence wasn’t empty—it throbbed with everything unsaid.

“You shouldn’t have come,” Daniela whispered, her voice brittle.

Y/N turned her head, her dark eyes glittering like shards of glass in the fading light. “And yet, here I am.”

Daniela’s breath hitched, the words hitting her harder than they should have. “Why?” she asked, her voice shaking. “Why did you have to—” She broke off, clenching her fists. “You wrecked everything.”

Y/N stood, brushing sand from her jeans, and crossed the small distance between them. Her hand hovered in the air before dropping to her side. “I didn’t mean to,” she said softly. “But you can’t honestly tell me this—us—wasn’t inevitable.”

Daniela turned away, her chest tightening as tears pricked her eyes. “We had a choice,” she said. “We could’ve stopped this before it got this far.”

“Could we?” Y/N’s voice was calm, but there was an undercurrent of desperation in it. “You think I wanted this? That I wanted to fall for you so hard I can’t breathe without thinking about you?”

“Don’t—” Daniela spun around, her voice rising. “Don’t say that like it’s romantic. It’s not. It’s chaos. You’ve destroyed me, Y/N. Do you understand that?”

Y/N flinched, but she didn’t back down. “And what about me, huh? You think I’m fine? You think I don’t feel like I’m drowning every second I’m near you? God, Daniela, you came into my life like—” She gestured wildly, searching for the words. “Like a tsunami. You tore through everything I thought I knew, and now nothing makes sense except you.”

Daniela’s shoulders trembled, her hands gripping her sides as if holding herself together. “I was fine before you,” she whispered. “I had plans. A future.”

“And you think I didn’t?” Y/N stepped closer, her voice breaking. “I didn’t ask for this either. But you looked at me, and it was over. You were everything I didn’t know I needed and everything I was terrified to have.”

Daniela closed her eyes, her tears finally spilling over. “You should’ve left me alone.”

“I tried.” Y/N’s voice cracked, and Daniela felt her resolve shatter. “I tried so hard, Daniela. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t stay away from you. I’m not strong enough.”

Daniela’s eyes snapped open, her anger flaring. “And what am I supposed to do with that, Y/N? What am I supposed to do with this… this impossible thing between us? You’ve ruined me. You’ve—”

“Ruined you?” Y/N’s face twisted, her voice rising.

“You think I ruined you? You walked into my life and flipped it upside down. I had walls, Daniela. Thick, impenetrable walls. And you tore them down like they were nothing. Do you have any idea how terrifying that is?”

“I didn’t ask for this!” Daniela screamed, her voice cutting through the sound of the waves. “I didn’t ask for you to make me feel like this. Like I can’t breathe without you. Like I’m drowning and burning at the same time.”

“And yet, here we are.” Y/N’s voice softened, her eyes searching Daniela’s face. “Here we are, standing in the wreckage of everything we thought we wanted.”

Daniela turned away, hugging herself tightly. The storm in the distance was closer now, the sky darkening. The air felt electric, heavy with the promise of rain. “I don’t know if I can survive this,” she said, her voice barely audible.

Y/N stepped closer, hesitating before reaching out to touch Daniela’s arm. “You can,” she said firmly. “Because I’m not going anywhere.”

Daniela looked at her, her eyes red and swollen. “Why? Why would you stay after everything we’ve destroyed?”

“Because I love you,” Y/N said simply. “Because even though this feels like it’s killing me, it’s also the only thing that’s ever felt real. You’re the only thing that’s ever felt real.”

Daniela let out a shaky breath, her heart pounding so loudly she was sure Y/N could hear it. “You make it sound so easy.”

“It’s not,” Y/N admitted.

“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done. But it’s also the only thing I can do. Loving you—it’s not a choice anymore. It’s who I am.”

The words hit Daniela like a wave, knocking the air out of her lungs. She wanted to scream, to cry, to run as far away as she could. But she couldn’t move. All she could do was stand there, staring at the woman who had turned her world upside down.

“I hate you,” she whispered, her voice trembling.

“I know.” Y/N smiled sadly, tears shining in her eyes. “I hate you too.”

For a moment, they just stood there, the storm growing louder around them. And then, without thinking, Daniela surged forward, crashing into Y/N like the waves against the shore. Their lips met, and it wasn’t gentle or sweet. It was desperate and raw, a collision of everything they couldn’t say.

Y/N’s hands went to Daniela’s waist, pulling her closer as if she could fuse their souls together. Daniela’s fingers dug into Y/N’s nape, clutching her like a lifeline. The kiss tasted of salt and tears and everything they’d been too afraid to admit.

When they finally pulled apart, both were gasping for air, their foreheads pressed together.

“This is madness,” Daniela whispered.

“Maybe,” Y/N said, her voice soft but unwavering. “But it’s ours.”

The first drops of rain began to fall, mingling with their tears as they stood on the edge of the storm. The chaos around them mirrored the chaos inside, but for the first time, it didn’t feel like drowning. It felt like surrender.

“I don’t know how to do this,” Daniela admitted, her voice barely audible over the wind.

“Neither do I,” Y/N said. “But we’ll figure it out. Together.”

Daniela closed her eyes, letting the words sink in. She didn’t know what the future held or if they could survive the storm they’d created. But as she stood there, wrapped in Y/N’s arms, she realized something she hadn’t before.

For all the pain, all the destruction, loving Y/N was the only thing that had ever made her feel alive.

And maybe that was enough.

#daniela avanzini #daniela avanzini x reader #katseye daniela #katseye #katseye x reader #lara raj #manon bannerman #megan skiendiel #sophia laforteza #yoonchae #x reader

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thisapplepielife · 7 months ago

Text

Written for @steddie-week.

Long Long Time

It's not one realization. It's several, over and over again. A steady falling, until he's in so deep, there's just nothing to be done about it.

"Stop pining, dingus," Robin says, and Steve looks up at her and smiles.

"Impossible," he answers.

"Just tell him," she urges, and he shakes his head. Eddie isn't interested. He's made that pretty clear with the distance he's put between them.

"Nah, that's not cool. He's getting ready to go," Steve says, "no reason to make it uncomfortable now."

"Dingus. No. Stop it. I can promise you Eddie is pining for you just as hard."

Steve shakes his head. He knows that's not true. Steve's tried all his best moves over the last two years, everything he knows, and has nothing to show for it, except a heart that's maybe not gonna be his anymore.

Steve sits on the floor of Wayne's house, and helps box tapes. Eddie's going. He's really leaving, and soon.

And Steve's sure that's gonna hurt him for a long, long time.

"So, what're your big plans for this summer, Harrington?" Eddie asks.

Missing you, Steve thinks, but doesn't say.

"Oh, I don't know. Hang out with Rob, I suppose. Find new jobs. You know we like to change it up every so often. Wreak havoc elsewhere."

Eddie laughs, and it makes Steve smile.

"You could come with me, you know," Eddie offers, but keeps looking down at the box he's packing. "Both of you. All of us."

It's not a real offer, Steve knows that. He knows he's supposed to say no, supposed to let Eddie go, without throwing an anchor around his neck.

"Oh, you don't want that," Steve rebuffs, and Eddie looks up. "I'll cramp your style."

Eddie laughs, "Yeah, you know me. Party animal."

Steve grins, "You might become one. You won't want me tagging along for that."

"But, what if I do?" Eddie asks, and Steve looks up at him.

"Eddie," Steve says, trying to cut this off before he embarrasses himself.

"You're one of my best friends, and we could have fun together."

They could. Steve knows that's true. But he can't go live in an apartment with Eddie. Can't watch him spread his wings and date, right in front of Steve's face. That'd be too hard.

Even if part of Steve wants to say yes, desperately, just to cling onto anything that's being offered.

But he's trying to be better about that. Trying to grow, and shit.

He can only let his heart get trampled so many times, and he's nearing his limit. He definitely won't be able to survive it happening under Eddie's boot.

"C'mon, Steve. For me."

And that almost does it. He hates to deny anything that Eddie might want, but sometimes, you've got to save yourself first. Put on your own life preserver, then worry about everybody else. Robin's taught him that. Or, has at least tried to.

"I can't."

"Why? Robin? I said she can come, too!"

"Because we don't feel the same way about each other, Eddie!" Steve snaps, and Eddie turns into himself, immediately.

"Oh. Oh shit," Eddie says, "I didn't know you knew. Wow, that's embarrassing," he mutters, and it kind of makes Steve mad.

"I'm not embarrassed. I can't help who I lov-. Like. Whatever. But I just can't torture myself, man. I want you to be happy, I do. And I'm the wrong guy for making that happen, obviously, so let's just leave it. While we're still friends."

Eddie's nodding, still packing, then he's suddenly frozen in place, "Wait. What? You make me the happiest."

"As a friend," Steve clarifies.

"Well, yeah. But, if you were into it, as more, too."

"Wait. What?" Steve asks, repeating the same thing Eddie had just said. This is gonna turn into Who's on First? if they aren't careful.

"I mean," Eddie says, shying away, "I know you aren't interested like that. But I still want you around."

Steve laughs, fucking cackles, like he's crazy. He feels crazy.

Was Robin right all along? Was Eddie doing the same kind of pining, and Steve just never noticed? Fuck.

They are both goddamn idiots, if that's the case.

"Well, don't laugh," Eddie says, and he sounds dejected.

"Wait, Eddie, hold up," Steve says, crawling across the carpet towards him, putting his hand on Eddie's forearm. "Do we have crossed wires here? Do you like me, like me? Like I like you?'

"You like me?" Eddie asks.

"Uh, yeah," Steve admits, "I have for a while, to be honest."

"Jesus H. Christ, we're idiots," Eddie says, pushing his hand into Steve's hair.

"Dinguses, if you ask Robin," Steve says, smiling, and Eddie's so close he could kiss him.

Steve thinks he will, and leans in, where Eddie meets him halfway. Kissing him, and it's everything, more than Steve hoped it could ever be.

When Eddie pulls back he's smiling, eyes crinkled at the edges, fucking happy.

He looks thrilled, and Steve decides to go all in. In for a penny, in for a goddamn pound.

"I think I'm gonna love you for a long, long time," Steve whispers in a sing-songy way, because even as happy as Eddie looks right now, Steve's still scared his love won't be wanted.

But Eddie just grins even harder.

"What made you think of that song?" Eddie asks, eyes big and bright, almost shiny.

"You hum it all the time," Steve answers, "under your breath. Like it's soothing."

Eddie wraps his arms around Steve's neck, pulling him tighter. Harder. Closer. They're on their knees, so that kind of hurts, but Steve refuses to let him go as Eddie whispers, "It was my mom's favorite song. She'd sing it to me at night."

"Kind of a sad lullaby," Steve says, and Eddie smiles.

"I was kind of a sad little boy," Eddie admits, and Steve runs his hands up and down Eddie's back.

"Well," Steve says, pressing his lips to Eddie's briefly, "if you'll let me, I'm gonna make sure you're not a sad adult."

Eddie kisses him hard at that, and Steve really will. Even if it takes his whole damn life.

"I'll definitely let you. For a long, long time," Eddie echoes, the beginnings of a promise.

And Steve will take that deal.

If you want to write your own, or see more entries for this challenge, pop on over to @steddie-week and follow along with the fun!t

The title is from the Linda Ronstadt song of the same name.

#steddieweek2024 #day three #mutual pining #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie fic #steddieweek #thisapplepielife: steddieweek #thisapplepielife: short fic

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with-my-calamitous-love · 8 months ago

Text

WHO’S GONNA KNOW YOU LIKE ME?

bsd, various x reader

what heartbreak feels like with each of them

angst, uses bridges from the tortured poets department

THOUGHT OF CALLIN’ YA, BUT YOU WONT PICK UP…

chuuya knows he’s fucked up. he knows he can’t get back what he let go, that he’s already made his bed. but fuck, it hurts. but he refuses to let you know that because thats who he is. and your left seeing him everywhere- the dresses in the store windows, the puddles of rain on concrete, remnants of him in your shower and on your bed- memories of him embedded in your head and under your skin. marks from his passion left on your collarbone, his fingerprints still all over your heart. he claimed what was his forever and then left. and he knows that.

some nights you think of calling him, but sculpted a brick wall between you and the phone, cementing each brick together with your hurt. little do you know, chuuya thinks of calling you too, but he knows you won’t pick up.

THAT’S THE CLOSEST I’VE COME TO MY HEART EXPLODING…

atsushi simply couldn’t bare the thought of not being good enough for you. so he let things go before his heart could sink with the wreckage. he couldn’t handle anymore hurt after all thats happened- but he doesn’t know that he left that hurt with you instead. the anger, the confusion, the turmoil etches itself in your chest and tears through your ribs when you cry out alone. it wasn’t fair for him to leave the job of detective to you, to pick up the clues of your lost love and attempt to etch together a messy explanation. he said he didn’t want to hurt you. funny.

the biggest thing you’re left wondering is why? why did sweetest, most loving guy leave without a word? why did he do it so fast, so quickly, at the stroke of grace? why did the same hands that once handled your heart so delicately set it on fire and leave it to implode?

I WISH I COULD UN-RECALL HOW WE ALMOST HAD IT ALL…

there was no doubt in your mind that odasaku loved you. he loved you with every fibre of his being. he held you to his chest as close as possible. he laughed with you because only you could pull out the genuine joy and smiles from his soul. he danced with you in the living room to your favourite songs, swaying back in fourth with you barefoot on the ground. he kissed you like his lips were especially crafted to be pressed against you, your lips, your skin and your hands.

it’s all past-tense.

DID YOU SLEEP WITH A GUN UNDERNEATH OUR BED…

tachihara burned down every foundation of trust and security in your being. he was the most loyal and loving person you had ever met, one that promised his whole life and soul to be with you. you knew each other like no other, or so you thought. you learned about his betrayal, not just to you but to everyone. and all of a sudden, everything you knew came crashing down. the memories, the love, the loyalty- you had no idea what it was now. you scrubbed your body in the shower and washed the sheets over and over again- trying to get him off of you. you laid in the bed he once shared with you and wondered if you were just another step in his scheme.

was this planned? did he plan to break your heart? was crushing every single thing you’ve ever loved just another ruse? the only thing you knew was that you loved him.

HOW DARE YOU THINK ITS ROMANTIC LEAVING ME SAFE AND STRANDED…

kunikida wanted everything to stick to his ideals. he wanted to break your heart as softly and as kindly as he possibly could. he wanted to cushion your fall, to let you down assured. and he did just that. he left you safe, he left with you with a full explanation. he told you that he wanted you to move on without him, to live a bright beautiful life and be as happy as you possibly could. because kunikida knows that thats what you deserve.

but he was supposed to be there. thats all you can think as your stranded on your safe sanctuary that he left you on. he stranded you on an island with all you needed to survive- yet all you could think was the fact that he had actually left. it wasn’t supposed to end this way. you knew why. he explained everything to you. but the tears that rolled down your cheeks explained otherwise.

AND HIRE A PRIEST TO COME AND EXORCISE MY DEMONS…

the worst heartbreak of your entire life belonged to osamu dazai. you can still hear the screams, the cries that went down with the ship from that night. you can still feel his hands on your body, holding you to him while for the first time you saw him cry. you can still hear the shattering of the things you threw at him, telling him to get out but also not wanting him to leave. you remember the smell of him all over you, on your bed, your clothes, but also in your hair and even on your own skin. he haunted this place. his heart was still beating, lungs still breathing but osamu dazai died in your house. he died and his soul now haunts the place day and night, leaving no trace of your space untouched. it was a cruel goodbye.

osamu dazai died screaming. and now you wanted to as well.

I WONT CONFESS THAT I WAITED, BUT I LET THE LAMP BURN…

you held on to the idea that akutagawa would one day be ready for you. that he would set aside his grievances, his turmoil, the hurt in his lungs and the pain in his coat. you waited, and waited, and waited. waited for him to show up at your doorstep and embrace you, love you like you knew he could. you watched as the lamp flickered, as your skin wrinkled, as your hair turned grey and as the night sky watched over you for years. you should gave closed the window, turned out the light and slept. but you waited. you waited and hope that akutagawa would return. that he would one day love you like you loved him.

as you looked out to the stars, you prayed that he’d forgive you as you blew out the candle.

chuuya n. - fortnight

atsushi n. - the tortured poets department (tt)

sakunosuke o. - loml

michizou t. - the smallest man who ever lived

doppo k. - down bad

osamu d. - the black dog

ryunosuke a. - peter

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eastbubble · 9 months ago

Note

Was wondering if maybe we could get something with ghost x reader who’s outrageously terrified of thunderstorms and calls him sniffling and holding back tears asking if he can come over and then screaming as a very loud bang of thunder booms ? If not that’s okay! I love your work anyway🩷🫵

hello anon, i’m not sure if you wanted me to write this in a smutty way or just a fluffy one but i tried my best >_< i changed the story up a tad if that’s okay. thanks for the request ! <3 and sorry for disappearing ! school and sports r taking up my time. ><

you never really thought that a relationship had any benefits besides having someone to come home to, but when your relationship with simon began you had to realize that this whole idea in your head was completely wrong. he wasn’t just a person to come home to.

maybe because you two still didn’t live together. so you technically couldn’t come home to him.. but you almost lived at his place by now. he was for sure so tired of you calling him in the middle of the night, asking him to come over because of something so silly, something so stupid. spiders in the corner, ants infesting the house, no wifi, bad tv signal, or the worst (in your case); a thunderstorm.

you were listening to the sounds your phone made as you called simon with shaky hands, your finger on the red circle as you were sure he won’t pick up this time. you’ve annoyed him like this so many times before, there was no way he would be willing to help you after all of these — or so you thought. you kept a tissue to soak your tears up with close to your eyes, your vision already blurry from the crying you had done earlier.

“baby? what’s up?” his voice was tired and grumpy, it sounded like he just woke up, but you knew that couldn’t be because he never really slept before 4 am. he never did. “everything okay over there?” slight concern. the only thing you could make out of his words was some worry and that’s it. thank God that he didn’t sound like he was mad.

“si. ‘m scared.”

“huh? what is it? ‘s someone there?” he spoke through the phone. “talk to me, baby.” his voice was a little gentler once he heard your silence on the other end of the line.

you sighed almost silently, making sure he didn’t hear the sniffle that you just let out. you felt like a dumb little kid for crying over something like this, but when you heard the faint sound of a thunder bang you immediately knew that you had to speak up. you actually had someone that was worried for you, waiting for you to say something. “just this.. fucking rain and the whole, um.. the whole thing that comes with it.”

“the thunderstorm, you mean?” his feeling of relief was louder than the wind outside. it was like some kind of weight had been pushed off his shoulders. “don’t tell me it’s that again or-“

“it is. i’m sorry to disturb you.. especially at this hour, but..” you sighed softly again, feeling slightly threatened by his last sentence. you knew you had no reason to be worried or scared but the way he worded what he wanted to say sometimes sounded like he was mad at you (you were so wrong!). “could you please come over. please.” it didn’t sound like a question, just a request.

he audibly sighed. oh, he was annoyed!

“i’ll be there in 10. i suppose you’re in bed so.. stay under the blankets, okay?” what a rhetorical question. you wouldn’t survive climbing out of bed when it sounds like the world in ending outside. you couldn’t even roll the blinds down to make the thunders less visible, there was absolutely no way you would step foot outside your bed at a time like this.

and just like he promised, ten minutes later he was already entering your home with his own keys, making his way towards your bedroom as he immediately lay on top of you like a weighted blanket that was alive. he wrapped his arms tightly around you, holding you close to his chest while you still lay under him, completely motionless as he was practically squeezing every last breath out of you. “si..!”

“i’m here, ‘s okay luv..” he mumbled, his voice raspy as he finally let you go. he rolled onto his back and gently scooped you up into his arms, making you fight back a bit and you two ended up in such a position where you were just laying flat on top of him. he chuckled lightly as he felt like he already succeeded — it seemed like you immediately forgot about the thunderstorm outside as soon as he arrived and grabbed you.

the rest of the night was basically the same thing on repeat. soft little movements, your bodies moving in unison everytime either you or him made the silent suggestion to shift positions. he always kept his large palms close to your ears in case a loud thunder were to interrupt the long cuddle-session. the whole thing was just about holding each other close through the whole night and not letting go.

soft little murmurs of how sleepy you are were the only things to be heard now, alongside the loud sounds of the icy rain hitting your window. well, summerime weather is weird.

#call of duty #cod #simon riley x you #simon riley #ghost cod #ghost #ghost x reader #simon ghost riley #ghost mw2 #ghost fluff #ghost comfort #simon riley fluff #simon ghost riley fluff #simon riley x reader #simon ghost riley x you #simon ghost riley x reader

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sidekick-hero · 1 year ago

Text

Edited for a big shout out to @steves-strapcollection whose lovely OC has a little cameo here. If you want to know who Tig is, you can find out here. Spoiler: he's amazing and we love him.

Day 0

Dear Steve,

Hi Stevie,

Apparently, it's not good to "bottle up" your feelings. They say it makes drinking or drugs or any other addiction so tempting. It makes it easier to keep all that stuff inside you and let it fester until you need more and more of whatever it is that helps you cope. So the first rule of rehab: Talk, don't take.

That's a long way of saying I need to keep a journal like a 13-year-old girl with her first crush. It's either that or a daily crying session with the other "inmates" here, and I'd rather not have to tell Terry the old gossip my own tragic sob story. She already told me the life stories of two other patients here at dinner.

Instead, I decided to write to you. You're the one person I regret the most pushing away, and even though you'll probably never see this, it feels good to tell you these things now. Like a dry run. Because, baby, when I get out of here, I swear I will let you in. I won't make the same mistakes.

You will never go another day without knowing how much you mean to me.

How much I love you.

You only left an hour ago and I already miss you. I can't believe I've survived six months without you. Well, I barely did. I wish I could call you, but phone privileges are only for those who make it through their first week here.

I know we chose this center together knowing that they don't allow visitors for at least three weeks. Maybe longer if my therapist says I'm not ready. Fuck, three weeks didn't sound so bad when we talked about it, but now? In this ugly, impersonal room that smells clean but is totally clinical. You know, that mix of disinfectant and sterile air with a hint of medication lingering in the background. It sounds like an eternity and then some.

Nothing here feels comfortable or warm, and I miss your face so much it physically hurts.

But I promised myself I'd do whatever it took. For you and Wayne, for the boys and the kids.

So, day 0, the journey begins.

Fuck, I almost forgot: I'm supposed to answer three questions every day.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

See above. I miss you, that's how I am. I want this to be over. I hate that I'm here and even more that I'm the one who got me here. I feel like a fuckup. It's hard not to when I see how I've ruined everything good in my life. But then I remember the way you kissed me goodbye. The smile on your face when you told me how proud you were of me. The way you kissed my hand because you couldn't let go and whispered, "I'll see you soon," and I want to have hope.

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

Get through the day without doing anything I'll regret.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

You. That you didn't give up on me. (And the Gummi Bears you hid at the bottom of the bag, you minx. Thank you.)

Day 4

Sweetheart,

I'm not doing so well. It's hard. Who am I kidding? It sucks. My body hurts from how much I want to use. My brain is so very loud, Stevie. So, so loud. I try to remember how you managed to calm me down when my brain got like this. What helped the most was to wear me out by fucking me senseless, but that's not an option. But maybe I will try to go for a walk or even do some of those exercises you always tried to get me to do. The ones that usually led to fucking because I could never behave.

My therapist is nice. Her name is Laura, and so far she's taking everything I throw at her in stride. Talking to her feels like pulling my own teeth and I feel like shit afterwards, but I sleep better. Who would have thought, huh?

I miss you.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

Not good. I wonder if I can really do this. It doesn't feel like it right now. I'm afraid I won't make it. That I will screw up again. That if I do, it'll kill me and I'll be grateful because I couldn't live with myself if I did.

I don't want to die, Stevie.

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

Talk to the weird kid who always sits by himself during meals. He looks lost. Maybe he knows DnD.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

Still you. Every day. Wayne, for taking me in when I felt like a failure too. Unlovable. Worthless. He never stopped believing in me. Even when I gave him every reason not to. I don't know how I deserve him or you, but I am so fucking grateful.

Day 7

Fuck, I missed your voice. God. I'm sorry I lost it like that. I didn't want the first thing you heard from me after a week apart to be me ugly sobbing into the phone.

I wanted to tell you so many things. I had a plan, you know? But hearing your voice when you said, "Hi, baby," it just broke me. You sounded like you missed me too, like you were relieved to hear my voice too, and you didn't even realize how scared I was that you wouldn't.

We just hung up, but I want to call you again. Just to hear you breathing on the other side so I know you're still there. Waiting for me. Your hand still gripping mine so I wouldn't get lost.

You said, "I'll hear you tomorrow," like it was set in stone, no doubt about it. It made me feel, fuck, I don't even know. Like this is real. I didn't die on that bathroom floor, and you giving me another chance isn't some kind of hallucination or afterlife dream.

I'm rambling, sorry. Even in writing I can't help it.

One day I'll write it all down in a way that makes sense, I promise.

I love how patient you are with me. No one has ever been. I was always too loud, too distracted, too weird, too complicated, too much. But not to you.

I wish you were here to take me in your arms, it's hard not to fall apart without you holding me together.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

Better. Fucking determined to get through this and get back to you. Still scared.

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

Have a real conversation with you without breaking down on the phone. Here's to hoping. Detoxing and being sober has given me a hair trigger on my emotions, it seems.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

Your patience. Your grace. Your voice in my ear. That you still haven't given up on me. DnD, for giving me a purpose when I needed one, a tool to give others the help I so desperately wanted. The weird kid's name is Alex, and he does know DnD. We'll try to find more people for a campaign.

Day 16

Steve, baby,

I am so fucking sorry. Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck. I'm such an asshole. Please pick up the phone. I need to tell you how sorry I am. I didn't mean it, I was just scared. When you said that maybe Laura was right and you shouldn't come to see me next week if I wasn't ready, I thought you didn't want me anymore. That you finally got tired of holding my hand and watching me do those damn baby steps. It's been over two weeks, why am I not better? Why am I not done with this shit?

I want to be done, I swear.

Please don't leave me.

Please pick up the phone.

Please, please, please.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

Fuck this shit, what good is it if I keep hurting you?

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

Stop being a fucking asshole.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

I want it to be you, but I'm not sure I even have you in my life anymore.

Day 23

Stevie,

I'm scared. Isn't this the stupidest thing you've ever heard? A few days ago I begged to see you. Fuck, I was so desperate to see you that I almost ruined everything. I'm still sorry, I hope you know that. I know, I know, you said that it's okay and that it can't be all smooth sailing, that you forgive me. That you'll keep forgiving me as long as I keep coming back to talk to you, to explain, to show you that I mean it.

And now I've got the all clear for you to come and see me, and I'm too scared to tell you.

I'm still not the man I want to be. The man who deserves someone like you.

Laura told me that love isn't something you deserve, it's something freely given. We don't decide if someone can love us, only they do. And that I have to stop pushing people away because I'm convinced they can't love me. It's their choice and I shouldn't try to take it away from them.

I think about this a lot.

I want to let you love me, I do. It's just hard for me to understand why you would want to do that at all. It's something Laura wants to work on with me as well.

There is so much work to do. I hate to bother you with it. To make it your problem. I wanted to come in here and two weeks later walk out a new man. A better one. One you can love easily and who can love you back in a way you can understand. A man Wayne can be proud to call his son. A man Gareth and Jeff and Grant want to have as a friend, as a bandmate. A man the kids can look up to as much as they look up to you.

Laura said I should take the hand you are holding out to me. It's a decision I make every day. I took it in the hospital. I took it when you drove me here.

I should take it by letting you in, letting you see the work in progress that I am right now.

I think I will call you after dinner to tell you.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

Fuck if I know. It's a lot to feel when you've numbed your feelings for so long. I remember why I did it, but I won't do it again, I'll learn to deal with it.

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

Take you in my arms and hold you. Let myself be held by you.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

Your hand in mine. The thought of you that keeps me going. Your bravery. Dustin and Mike and Will and Lucas. They call me all the time, you know. Asking me about my first campaign here, telling me about their lives. Keeping in touch, even though I failed them almost as much as my old man did me.

Day 31

Steve, my love,

You're on your way to pick me up and I can't believe we made it here. It's not done, it probably never will be. I know that now. I have to keep working on myself and being well. But it's so fucking worth it, Stevie.

I'm glad that Laura agreed to stay my therapist even if I leave the center. I trust her. She gets me, she knows when to push me and tell me the ugly truth, and when I need time to process things.

I haven't told you yet, but I'm not going back to Corroded Coffin. At least not right now. I talked to the guys and they all agreed that it's best if I take some time for myself. And for you. For my family and friends. They actually have a guy named Tig who auditioned while I was here and they like him. He's good, they sent me a demo. They asked me if it would be okay and I said it would be. It's true, even though it hurts. I have to do this for myself.

Because I am going to give this to you later, I want to tell you something here before I lose my courage.

Steve. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I know I haven't always shown you the way you deserve. Hell, some days I certainly didn't act like it. My worst days. But I never stopped loving you. I don't think I ever will.

But I also learned to like myself a little better here. I no longer want to punish myself for things that were out of my control, like my mom dying or my dad not caring enough for me to stay. I want to be loved. I want you to love me. I want to let you.

I want to finally leave the past behind and allow myself to think about the future. And whenever I do, you're in it. You're the anchor, the epicenter of all my plans.

Stevie, sweetheart, I want to marry you.

Don't worry, I'm not proposing. This is just something I needed to tell you. Someday I want to be your husband, if you want me.

You are my past, my present and my future.

This is me taking your hand every day until I die or you stop reaching for me.

How are you doing right now? Don't hold back.

So fucking excited to have you all to myself again. Seriously, I'm going a little crazy. I'm also hopeful about the future. And in love. I'm so fucking in love with you.

What do you want to accomplish tomorrow?

To start our life together without forgetting what came before.

What are you grateful for in your own life today?

My second chance.

#steddie #steddie fanfiction #stranger things fanfiction #rockstar eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddielovemonth #day 17 #Love is about a hand reaching out to you so you don't get lost #my writing

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ursuburbanmother · 8 months ago

Text

I’m On Fire, But I’m Trying Not to Show It || Chapter Five

Pairing: Angus Tully x fem!reader

a/n: Omg… I survived finals and all those unit exams. So here is chapter five after a long wait lol. It’s also a longish chapter because you guys are nice and deserve it.

Word Count: ~6.2k

Find: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

Enjoy!

Day Eight - Christmas Day, 1970

Angus had retreated to the auditorium once again. He supposed he did so because it reminded him of simpler times. Like when he was nine and his biggest worry was if he would mess up on the sonata he was playing in front of his piano teacher. All because he could feel you in the other room, waiting for him to be done.

He was playing aimlessly and with no particular tune in mind. He just let his fingers glide wherever he felt like. It felt different to be there during the daylight, almost illegal. When he heard the creak of the auditorium doors, he had thought he had been caught. But it was just you, carrying that lavender plant you seemed to be so fond of. You held your potted plant close to your chest and walked up to the stage. He stopped playing to watch you and smiled a little at the sight.

“I kept my promise,” you show off the plant you had improvised decorations with. Little ribbons used for your hair are used as tinsel. There are small pieces of balled up color paper with a paperclip through them that work as ornaments. He could tell you tried not to be overzealous, trying to keep the plant from collapsing from the weight. You place the lavender on the piano and take a seat next to him.

“Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” he says back.

You sigh, “Weird party.”

“Yeah. Very weird.”

“I hope Marys alright.”

“Me too,” he sniffs.

He sees you pause to fix your hair. It sits unruly on you, and he can tell you just rolled out of bed. You still look beautiful.

“Um. You never answered my question. Last night…”

He stiffens, “Oh well. You didn’t either.”

You pressed your lips together, “So did you?”

“Did I what?”

You roll your eyes, “Did you feel, I don't know… Did you care? About Joseph?”

Now it's his turn to roll his eyes, “I don’t care about Joseph.”

“Okay. Fine. Then did you care about seeing me with him.”

Angus swallows thickly. He tries to find that sudden rush he felt during the party. The rush that had him so close to just reaching out to hold your cheeks in his hands and collide your lips into his.

He finds the rush in the way you squeeze his hand, encouraging him to continue.

“Yeah, I was jealous,” he prays you won't rip your hand away from his. “Because I care about everything you do.”

You smile and almost look pleased. “I was… a bit too,” you admit, avoiding the word and tugging at the sleeves of your sweater.

Because you think of me that way too, because you think of me that way too, Angus chants in his head like a mantra.

“Because we’re friends?” You cross your arms and hug yourself tightly, gazing up at him through your lashes.

He thinks now that the rush must have been beaten into silence because his mouth stays close, unable to argue back.

“Yeah. ‘Cause we’re friends,” he nods affirmatively, although he has to pinch the side of his thigh to stop himself from crying. He drowns out the ache in his chest and turns into a physical manifestation. There are glass marbles running wild in his head, and they crash against it like a steel floor. They shatter into little bits and prick his mind, berating him for being so stupid, for falling into Elises false optimism, and believing for a second that anything he ever felt would be reciprocated.

A small sigh slips past your lips and Angus suspects it must have been out of relief. He pinches himself harder.

“It all felt like deja vu don’t you think?”

“Hmm?” An odd sound emerges from his throat.

“You and me, begging one another to not be replaced. We’re still the same as when we were fourteen.”

Still the same as we were. The words echoed around, bouncing off the walls of Barton. He can settle with being friends for the rest of his life, as long as it meant he kept having you. If he had to watch you be with someone else, he would suck it up. Like sinking his teeth into a slice of lime without wincing.

He would be fine with you treating him like a wildflower in your garden. He would come around each year, and grow over your tulips, competing for your attention. Practically shouting at you to deal with him. He could wither but come back year-round when you needed him the most. You could harvest him, prune him, press his petals against pages.

The point is you would need him as much as he needs you. …

Paul Huham woke up sick, but not in the way he had expected. He had expected a grinding headache and incredible vertigo. And after five glasses of Jim Beams, he also expected to slip on the ice of the sidewalk as he led Mary to the Nova last night. But he supposed that by now he must have built some sort of tolerance towards it.

Instead, this morning he felt void. He was completely depleted and unable to take his mind off what Miss Crane had said to him at the Christmas party. Mary’s words had definitely brought him back to earth. And although the night had ended… oddly, he still realized that what the two women had said was right.

Angus and Y/n were just kids. Nearly adults in terms of age sure, but still immature and sharing the behavior of one, nonetheless. Miss L/n undoubtedly seemed to deserve a proper celebration. It would be as a thank you of sorts for her ability to rein Mr. Tully in. And Angus Tully needed a moment of distraction from the treacheries of the holiday season. Paul could certainly relate to that.

So, with a groan, he got out of bed. He walked quickly to the bathroom to get his feet off the cold floor and get changed. Afterwards, he went to check in on them in their room.

He saw Y/n buried underneath two blankets. He could barely see her face and it was almost like she was entangled in her own cocoon. Angus however, laid crookedly and clutching a pillow close to his chest, his blanket discarded to the side. There were open drawers, littered pieces of trash on the floor and clothes on the ground. He really ought to remind you both to clean your room.

But confirming you two were asleep, Paul was able to begin the laborious process of getting the ice off his windshield. He then drives into town with the stereo off. He had heard enough Christmas music yesterday and didn’t feel like having jingle-bells grilled into his ear. He slows down as he nears the tree farm. It is empty compared to how it had been mid-November. Vividly he had remembered seeing the town families gathering around and choosing their tree. Kids roamed around as parents debated which trunk smelled the freshest. With the same level of enthusiasm those mothers and fathers had, we trudged up to the nearest worker.

“Merry Christmas,” he smiles awkwardly.

“Merry Christmas. What can I do for you, chief?”

“I’m looking for a tree.”

“Well, you came to the right place. Big fire sale on all remaining inventory.”

Paul hums and tries to find the least scrawny looking pine tree in the lot. He ends up purchasing

one that isn’t nearly as grand as the one Barton had in the dining hall. He then straps it to the top of his car's roof and drives back to the school.

“Mr. Tully, Ms. L/n,” he greets slightly energized by the morning air. He stops abruptly at the sight of the empty beds. There is still a visible dent from where the two had slept. Puzzled, he whirls around the room like they may appear out of thin air. He checks the other vacant rooms shouting out their names.

He stumbles his way into the kitchen where Mary is still in her pajamas, a piece of toast in one hand and a spatula in the other.

“Good morning.”

“Merry Christmas,” she corrects.

“Yeah. Merry Christmas, of course,” he lowers his voice, “How are you?”

“Well, I've got a case of the cocktail flu.”

“Uh, have you seen the kids?” he says with a bit of worry.

“Mm-mm,” she shakes her head and returns her attention to grilling the bacon.

Paul drops his head, “Goddammit, where the hell can they be?”

Hunham takes the search outside, yelling out to the campus quad that has been covered in white. He trudges to the school's theater wing, where he scampers up the stairs.

“Mr. Tully? Ms. L/n?” he pants as he reaches another floor level. He stops momentarily to listen to the music coming from the auditorium and follows the sounds. He had no idea they could do that.

He makes his presence known by slamming the door behind him shut. The piano stops and you both whirl around.

“Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” the two say in unison.

“Where the hell have you two been?”

“I don’t know. Just here,” Angus says.

“Come on. I have something to show you both.” …

You hold Angus' hand as you make your way back to the dining hall. His hands feel clammy. A little shaky too. Although yours weren’t any different. You felt like a ghost floating outside your own body.

When you had asked him the question, you had huddled into yourself. It was the closest thing to holding a shield over your heart. In your head you had thought that if you could just reach out and place your hand against his chest, then you wouldn’t have to ask anything at all. You would just be able to tell by the rhythm of his own thumping heart. You had prayed that he would argue against you. That he would say, ‘No. Not just because we’re friends.” But he hadn’t and now you know never to trust the words of a random man at a party.

But if you were reduced to that status for eternity, you supposed you would be able endure it. Truth was that you felt you felt greedy in ever wishing more from him. He could have brushed you off, labeled you as a snob and never have jumped into the ice-cold pool when you were seven. Yet, he hadn’t and to that you owed him.

Because you think that if he had never spoken to you, you would have spent your entire life watching things from a distance.

When you arrived at the mess hall, Mr. Hunham asked you two to wait before bringing out an irked Mary. She took a seat nearby as Hunham presented you with the bare tree and a few wrapped gifts underneath.

“No ornaments?” Angus frowns, unimpressed.

“Ornaments would diminish the Charlie Brown-esque of it,” you say. “All we really need is one giant red sphere.”

“Oh, I’m sure we can round up some ornaments somewhere,” Mr. Hunham pipes in and picks up one of the gifts, “Uh now… this is for you two.”

He hands you and Angus a rectangular package with a neat bow tied to keep it closed. You’re too surprised to open it but do so after you see Angus shift beside you.

Underneath your fingertips you hold, what you always believed, to be the holy grail of gifts. A book!

“Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. For my money, it’s like the Bible, the Koran and the Bhagavad Gita all rolled up into one. And the best part is not one mention of God!”

“Hmm,” Mary grunts in disapproval.

“Okay. Thanks,” Angus nods.

“Thank you, Mr. Hunham. This is really, really, nice,” you rush to hug him, forgetting you’re supposed to be treating the man like a superior. He doesn’t push you away though, he awkwardly pats your back instead, his other arm hanging out weirdly.

He clears his throat, “Well… I know how much of a voracious reader you are. It’s a rarity that must be preserved.”

“Thank you. I love it,” you hold the book close. You sway a little like you would when you are holding a baby.

“And this is for you,” Hunham returns to passing out the presents.

Mary eyes him suspiciously and unwraps it with ease. It’s another copy of “Meditations.”

“So you just give this to everybody?” She chides.

“And,” Mr. Hunham holds out a bottle of whiskey, smiling.

Mary grins back, “Aw. How did you guess?”

“How indeed,” he laughs. He holds up his finger momentarily, signaling you two to wait. “Also, this came in the mail for you,” Hunham hands Angus an envelope. You watch as he sits down and opens it quickly. The green card is shiny and stuffed with cash. Inside is one of those pre-written messages concocted by marketing companies. The only sign of a personal touch is the scribbled note that reads, ‘Love, Mom and Stanley.’

“Oh, that's nice,” you shrug shyly when Angus turns to gauge your reaction.

“Mary, may I help you with breakfast?” Hunham interrupts the sulking.

She nods, “Yes. Please. Angus, Y/n, clear the table.”

“Okay,” you pick up your abandoned lavender and place it next to the much taller pine. “Look, it's us.”

You snicker quietly, pleased at your own joke. Angus continues to stare down at the table.

You sigh and approach him, “Angus. Are we okay?”

His eyes snap to yours, “Yeah. Of course. It just…”

“It's just what?”

“I-, I didn’t get you anything.”

You exhale shakily. For a second you’d thought you had screwed everything up and he was ready to ignore you and forget of your existence.

You lean over and squeeze his hand, “It's okay. Your presence is worth more than a thousand jewels.”

“Cheesy,” he snorts. The first genuine reaction you'd gotten out of him all day.

“Thank you!” You squeak and tug at a loose piece of his curls. …

It's a group effort to get dinner on the table before midnight. Angus begrudgingly agrees to help you with the vegetables while Hunham and Mary handle the more serious stuff. You are still not to be trusted with anything besides a peeler.

You're scraping the final bits off your plate as Angus wipes his mouth with his napkin.

“Thank you, Mary. That was just lovely,” Hunham gleams.

“Wow, is that an actual compliment?”

“Oh, come on,” Hunham waves off.

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever had a real family Christmas like this before,” Angus recalls, “Christmas dinner, I mean- family style. Out of the oven, all the trimmings. We always leached off of Y/n’s family.”

“Yeah. From Delmonico’s. Fresh from their stoves to ours,” you scoff at the memories of you tipping the delivery driver through the kitchen window so they could remain unseen by guests.

“Well, she’s got the right idea. Next year I’m ordering in from Delmonico’s,” Mary teases.

“Anyway. Thank you, Mary,” Angus says seriously.

“You’re welcome.” She winks at him and smiles.

Mr. Hunham raises his mug, encouraging you all to follow suit.

“I’d like to propose a toast. To my three unlikely companions on this snowy island. And to our absent friends and family,” the glass wavers in your hand, “And I realize that none of us are here because he wants to be, so if there’s any way that I can make the holidays a little cheerier for any of you, just say the word.”

You perk up immediately, hands slamming down on the table and almost shaking your fork off the table, “We want to go to Boston.”

“Boston. Why?” Hunham stares appalled.

Angus catches on and nods his head enthusiastically, “Why not? We want a real Christmas. We want to go ice skating. And I want to see a real Christmas tree with ornaments, not that stupid thing.”

“You said it was nice,” Mr. Hunham says, offended.

“It is nice,” Mary reassures.

“Come on. Let’s get out of here. We want a real holiday,” Angus slithers his hand into yours.

“Well, we’re not going to Boston. It’s out of the question.”

“There's plenty of intellectual-like things there too! We could go to museums or visit statues. Or even go inside Paul Revere's house! Did you know they had that there?”

“Come on Paul, you just told them ‘anything.’ So, take the kids to Boston,” Mary vouches.

“Mary, we’re not allowed to leave campus or the immediate environs,” he insists.

Angus' arm flops down and the grip he had on your hand is loosened. You’re about ready to beg the history teacher to reconsider, and that you’ll stay behind and keep clean every inch of Barton as long as he agrees to take Angus. He must have noticed the flame he blew out from your metaphorical birthday candles as he drops his shoulders.

“But I suppose we could call it a field trip. A field trip would fall under the ambit of additional academic pursuits. There’s even a fund set aside for additional academic pursuits,” he mutters like it's a secret.

“I’ll go pack,” Angus rises, a grin on his lips as he sprints off to the infirmary.

You get up and move behind Mr. Hunham to hug his shoulders and then run to Mary to give her an equal tight squeeze.

She pats your arms, and says, “Alright now. It’s not a big deal.”

“It is to me! I mean I’ve-, I have always gotten chocolates for Christmas. Pass the age of twelve anyway. But my mom orders them from Stockholm and they’re great, they’re delicious, but even though I ask for a two-dollar book… I always get these ridiculously expensive chocolates. Yet tonight, I didn’t even have to ask-, for the book, umm, I-,” you flail your arms around, stumbling over your words.

“You didn’t have to ask us to not order the overpriced chocolates from Europe?”

“Yeah,” you tug at your earlobe. “So thank you. For not force feeding me copious amounts of sugar and cacao.”

Mr. Hunham smooths out his shirt and swiftly wipes underneath his eyes, “Well… I hear shipping costs are rather high nowadays.”

Day Nine - December 26th, 1970

The entirety of Massachusetts looks as idyllic as a postcard. The colonial houses and snow-covered lawns were so Norman Rockwell that you felt sickly sweet. You had attempted at first, to get the stubborn radio to turn on to no avail. After a while you all managed to chat amongst yourselves about local news. Not that you had any recent access to that information to be able to understand it all. Mr. Hunham had his own fun informing you all about the origins of Christmas traditions. Like how popcorn garlands could be traced down to some colonists in Virginia.

The talking had dwelled down as you reached Roxbury. You had been disappointed that Mary wouldn't be tagging along to Boston, but you knew her going to her sister’s meant more than you could understand.

“Here we are,” Mary sighs as the car stops in front of a large apartment building.

“Boy, that's an awful lot of stairs,” Mr. Hunham comments.

“And probably icey too.”

“Mhm.”

Although you understand the hints, you're not so sure Angus is. You kick his heel to break through whatever trance he is in.

“Mr. Tully?” Hunham calls.

His eyes widened, “Right… Mary, can I help with your bags?”

“Yes please.”

Angus is handed the keys to open the trunk. He gets out and collects a suitcase and a round little box and goes across the street.

“Hey, be careful with the box,” Mary orders from the open car window.

“I’ll help too!” You smile.

“No, that's okay sweetheart. Let him be gentlemanly.”

“I really just want to stretch my legs.”

“You can go,” Hunham says, “don’t wander far.”

“Thank you,” you say.

Mr. Hunham watches you jog across the street and stop at the bottom of the stairs to look up at Angus. He turns towards Mary, “You know you’re more than welcome to a room at the hotel. We’ve got the money.”

“Are you out of your mind? I need a break from you and Angus and all your damn bickering. Besides, I'm looking forward to visiting my little sister. She’s pregnant.”

“Oh, that’s wonderful.” He cheers and takes Mary’s hand and squeezes it. She scrunches her nose.

“Mr. Hunham. Mr. Hunham!” She pulls away and cradles her hand like it's been broken.

“Oh, I’m sorry. My hands sweat. It’s hyperhidrosis. Sorry.”

You bounce back to the car, crouching down slightly to speak to Mary, “Angus is asking how far to go.”

The two adults peer through the car windshield to spot the boy, “One more flight up!” Mary instructs.

You go back to observing him like a guard dog, one hand on your waist and the other over your eyes to block out the sun. You hear Mary get out of the Nova and wave up at her sister and who you presume to be her husband.

“Mary!”

“Hi!” she shouts back.

You pout as she approaches you, “Bye Mary.”

“Aww,” she pinches your cheek briefly. You don’t have enough time to appreciate the touch. “Don’t be so moody. I’ll see you soon. And look at the bright side. You get a hotel room all to yourself.”

“I’m going to feel all vacant in there.”

“Just do me a favor.”

“Yes?”

“Eat all the fancy snacks in the hotel mini fridge for me.”

“I’ll stuff them in my suitcase for you,” you promise.

“Thank you,” she tucks your hair back to protect it from the harsh breeze tangling it out everywhere.

Angus’s footsteps are loud as he practically skips over to you two. He loops his arm around yours and tries to drag you away, “Bye Mary!”

“Uh-uh. Where are you going?”

“I was just-,” Angus babbles.

“You’re not done yet. You have to help me up there.”

“Yeah, sure thing,” he relents, letting go of you and switching over to Mary.

You whirl around and head back to the car. You wish you could continue glancing at him, and the way the sun peeks through his hair and makes it appear browner than usual. But it's only so long until it begins to get creepy. Only so long until it is noticeable that you’re not admiring him as just a friend.

…

You settle in at the Sheraton Commander. It's a nice hotel with chandeliers in the lobby. Everyone around you looks like businessmen in a hurry or professors with a lecture to attend. Your room is right across from Mr. Hunham and Angus, and already you feel lonely at hearing their squabble across the hall.

You had kicked your suitcase underneath your bed and then went to knock at their door.

Mr. Hunham answers, “Ah, Miss L/n. Good. We were just discussing what to do for dinner.”

The door widens to allow you to enter, and you find a seat next to Angus on the end of his bed. “I thought we would go out to eat?”

“That’s exactly what I said but Mr. Hunham insists we stay in,” Angus says annoyed.

“It’s late! If we went out now, we could be met with frostbite and discomfort. We will get a proper night's rest and then enjoy the wonders of Boston.”

Angus groans beside you and you hop off the mattress. You silently ask for the room service menu which Hunham holds.

You scan through the foods, “They have some good options Angus…”

“Ugh,” Angus tugs at his hair. “Fine. What do they have?”

“You like Fettuccine Alfredo, get that.”

“Not if it doesn’t have chicken,” you know that's not true, and he’s just trying to be unnecessarily complicated. Still, you play along.

“Alright. I’ll get the chicken parmesan and give you some of it. Deal?”

“Deal,” he rolls his eyes.

“What are you getting Mr. Hunham?” You address the man.

“I don’t know,” he puts on the glasses that had been resting on his head. “I haven’t had ravioli in a while…”

“Get the ravioli. It’s courtesy of Barton afterall.”

Mr. Hunham hums, “I suppose you're right… Do either of you have an aching for anything particularly sweet after your dinner?”

You and Angus smile at each other, “I wouldn't mind some cake.”

“I wouldn't either.”

Mr. Hunham chuckles and picks up the phone on the night table. He presses some buttons and listens to dial tone before a staff member picks up.

“Hello, yes can I…”

You drown out the order as you draw open the curtains to their window.

“Holy shit. You can see Harvard from here.”

“Oh yeah. The receptionist mentioned that while you were busy admiring the Greek pillars. I think she thinks we’re on a campus trip.”

“I can only see layered brick from my window.”

“Well, that's Cambridge for you.”

You squint your eyes, “Are you really that bothered about not going out. Everything closed anyway.”

“That's what your brainwashed, rural, New England mind wants you to think. This is Boston. A city. Things here probably don’t close until three a.m”

“I doubt that.”

“Want to bet?” He whispers, smirking.

“What?”

“Let’s go out tonight. After Hunham declares it lights out.”

You shake your head, “We can’t, he's been so nice to us. I mean, c’mon, he drove us here.”

“This isn’t me trying to, like, undermine or disrespect him or anything. I just want to hang out with you.”

You fold under his gaze, and look back at Mr. Hunham who is still on the phone. “I don’t know Angus…”

“We’ll sneak out for an hour tops. He’s a heavy sleeper.”

Nervously you nod like he might overhear you even though he’s pretty preoccupied on getting a glass of Jim Beam brought up with the rest of your dinner.

“I guess. But you have to use your Christmas money to buy him a book on ancient Rome or something. As a present.”

“I’ll start marking the map,” Angus picks up a discarded pamphlet provided by the hotel. You smile at his eagerness as he tries to slyly look for places to visit. Mr. Hunham hangs up the phone and sighs contently.

“Food in thirty minutes. Wash up!” …

Mr. Hunham was chewing his last ravioli, and holding onto his half-finished bottle of Jim Beam like it was precious cargo. A Farewell to Arms, had come on TV, leading his current tangent. Even though you were anxious to get your plans on track, you couldn't help the way your mouth widened in awe as you listened to his words. You had no idea why Angus claimed to be so bored in his class. Hunham was better than any history teacher you had ever had.

“Although there is no credible proof, of course, that Hemingway described his hometown as one of ‘wide lawns and narrow minds,’ it would track considering his works. Actually, were you aware that his town was once a single entity? It's called Cicero and as you know, Mr. Tully, he was a very big politician in Ancient Rome. He-,” Mr. Hunham reads the clock on the wall. It's eleven thirty-two.

“Is it that late already?”

“Yes sir,” Angus responds, slightly exhausted.

“I do apologize. Most people tend to stop me once I hit the forty second mark.”

“It was really quite interesting,” you voice, “they don’t go too in depth about the author's life in the inside sleeve of books.”

“Well, uh, I thank you. For listening.”

“No. Thank you. You saved me from buying a biography,” you quip, and he smiles at you. A warm smile.

“Y’know you two are a lot like Hemingway. Maybe you both just happen to be two very large fishes with great minds, born into an incredibly narrow, small pond.”

…

You were kicked out after assisting in the clean-up. You then went to your room and put on your pajamas, along with your shoes. Instead of opting to use your usual sneakers, you put on the black Mary Jane’s your school mandates.

You didn’t know why until you looked Angus eye to eye and said, “I think it balances the rule-breaking out. I sneak out, simultaneously obeying my school's dress code.”

Angus had snorted, before revealing his own tie under his coat, hanging loosely and undone over his neck. You laughed, closed the door behind you and fled down the hotel stairs. It was clear almost immediately your coat, scarf and hat weren’t enough to keep you warm.

“We should turn back,” you suggested desperately.

“We’ve made it down one street.”

“Yes, and I’ve seen three ‘open’ signs. You were right, the world goes on after midnight. Let's go home,” you plead.

“No,” Angus drapes his arm over your shoulder, “we have to do at least one thing. So, think, what do you want to do?”

You mull it over for a second. There was nothing you were desperately wanting to see. The places you did were locked securely by key until tomorrow morning. Boston held no particular memories for you like it did for Angus. However, your parents owned a house downtown that you had been in exactly five times, and you always did like even numbers much better.

“You remember that brownstone on Beacon Hill?”

Angus smirks and nudges you to follow him. The walk to the train is painful with the way snowflakes seem to fall and nip at your skin. The only other commuter in their train car is a lady in scrubs and a defeated salesman. There are plenty of empty seats for you and Angus to hog. Nevertheless, you stand, holding onto the pole, your hands on top of each other. You lift your pinky a couple stops later, having forgotten what limb belongs to you and which was his.

You vaguely recall the address. Really you are navigated towards it through pure instinct. Something deep in your gut telling you ‘Here is the place your father will crash to if he doesn’t want to drive home after work.’

Your quiet walk is interrupted by the whooping of who you assume to be college kids extending their Christmas festivities. They leave, stumbling out of bars and into their cars. You don’t feel inclined to question it until you see them driving towards the brownstone. Your brownstone.

You pick up your pace. You follow the loose strands of streamers and glitter that litter the street.

You stop dead in your tracks at the sight of the house. With its lights on and the windows curtains drawn wide open, just inviting anyone to look inside and envy them. Dead ivy covers its brick walls, and you think back on the gorgeous wisteria that you once saw grow one springtime.

People in decadent clothing filter in and out of the house. Some pass you by and stare you down like your presence is a major disturbance that’s worthy of calling the authorities.

You spot the unmistakable pinned up hair belonging to your mother. She is dressed in silk and pearls. She dances with your father with her eyes closed. She looks at peace. She looks happier than you have ever seen her.

“Y/n…” Angus whispers, trying to get your attention.

But something else catches it instead. The mail slot is full of letters and cards. There are some bills too but that never worried them. They waited until they were threatened to have their light shut off for them to actually pay them with a simple flick of their wallet.

You go through them frantically. You go through the November letters, reaching the early weeks of December until you find the last notice. Sent from your school to them. It looks brand new, untouched. The last fingers to hold them before you were the school administrator and a mailman.

You tear the wax seal off and read the letter.

To the family of Y/n L/n,

This is the confirmation notice that your child will be holding over at Janie Patricks School for Girls for the following next two weeks. She will be supervised under the care of our English Department Head, Ms. Patricia Orchard. Any last-minute changes or concerns must be alerted to her now. Contact information below includes…

You halt halfway through a sentence and let the paper fall onto the dirty snow on the pavement. You want to grab a rock off the sidewalk and hit their window. You want to ruin their fun and embarrass them by asking, “Why did you even bother having me?” Even though you know their answer.

“Because we were expected to.”

To them you’re the anchor tying their boat down. They’re two birds and you just happen to be their cage. You don’t pick up that pebble by your shoe, no matter how tempting. You almost trip as your vision become foggy and you march forward and past Angus. You sit at a bus bench and wish you had a big bag of bird seeds to feed pigeons. Grandparents in parks always seem so content doing that. Angus joins you shortly and uses the end of the wool scarf to wipe your unnoticed tears.

You shakily exhale and white fog floats in the air. “I thought they wanted me during the winter.”

“What?” Angus draws his brows together.

“Spring and summer I get. People want to have a good time at the L/n’s. And I’m a pest like the bugs in the grass who brings the mood down at just my buzzing. But when it’s cold out, I’m more tolerable. I don’t complain as much about the weather so I’m quieter. My lack of attendance can be brushed off easier because they can just say I’m sick.”

“No Y/n-,”

“Secretly, I hoped they just hated me enough to want me to spend holiday break at school. I didn’t actually think they forgot me. I’m their baby. People don’t forget their babies.”

“Hey,” Angus snaps, holding your face between his hands. “They’re assholes and later, when the tears have dried, I know you’ll try to fight me on it. You’ll come up with all these excuses for them, but you have to remember that not once have they ever tried justifying themselves. You can love them. They’re your parents. But likability is different. And I’m sorry because I have never liked your parents.”

“I’m such a bother Angus,” you weep, “all calendar year long.”

“No, you’re not. I want you if no one else. I love you.”

You trace the outline of his face under the street lamppost like a tourist observes a painting in a museum. You find him doing the same. Although not much has changed. You have him ingrained in your mind. You could forget about him, not think of him for fifty years but still be able to scout him out in a crowded street.

You inch closer to him, filled by the sudden urge to be as close as humanly possible to him. It’s an urge that resurfaces every once in a while. Usually you brush it off, blaming the cold or an uncomfortable situation you want to hide from. But tonight all you feel is the warmth only he can radiate and the inimitable way he makes your heart race. You remove the hand cupping your face and kiss his knuckles.

“How is it that you want me?” You shakily breath.

“I want you in the spring, summer, autumn, winter,” he leans in closer, bumping noses with you.

“Really?” you murmur, using both hands to comb through the curls.

“I want you, all the time,” He spoke into the short amount of space between you. You were practically breathing into each others' mouths, your lips on the verge of touching.

“Angus, I don't think we should do anything. It’s late and we’re tired. We need to sleep.”

“Trust me, I’m wide awake,” he chuckles.

“You’re my only friend,’’ the rational side shines through. Briefly.

“I want you more than a friend.”

“We should go slow,’’ you bargain.

“Okay,” he presses his lips quickly against you. Eagerly you accept and pull him by his hair. You try to cram in all the lost opportunities with him in seconds. You savor the way his lips feel chapped from the bitter weather against yours. He encapsulates your body, practically pressing you down on the bus bench.

“You’re gonna get us arrested,” you murmur through brief pauses when you go to gasp for air.

His mouth parts, his lips red and puffy, “Yeah. I’m sorry, I shouldn't have done that. Are you-,”

You lunge at his lips, and smile into the kiss. You think this is how the rest of your life is supposed to go. Wherever happens with college and adult life, he has to be there. Because otherwise you don’t know how you will manage to breathe properly.

Then as the party rages on behind you. It floods you. The thing you had been waiting for. The reassurance, the sign you were doing the right thing.

Woosh.

#angus tully x reader #angus tully #the holdovers

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bamboozledbird · 4 months ago

Text

IGNITE: A Teen Wolf S1 AU (Reader's Version) // Prev. / Chapter 6

Characters: Stiles Stilinski, fem!reader, ofc, omc Pairing: Eventual Stiles x Reader, but man are we talking slow burn Word Count: 6k Warnings: Canon typical gore/violence, parental death (rip to your fake mom), depictions of depression (apathy, dissociation, 'numb little bug' vibes) Tags: Canon has been lovingly scrapped for parts, author is a chaotic bi and it shows, prolific overuse of the em dash, the slowest of burns i fear

Summary: You can always smell ash long after the fire is gone. Perhaps, that’s why you still can’t breathe without choking on the past. It’s been four years since your mom died. Four years since she burned alive. Four years since you didn’t. You survived, but they must have buried your heart with her because most days you feel like a shadow, some horrifically sad creature caught halfway between a ghost and a lamb for slaughter.

You can’t scrub the bitter smell of hospital from your memories, not even with denial. Maybe, that’s why death and disease follows Stiles wherever he goes now. It’s been eight years since his mom died. Eight years since he didn’t. Eight years since he decided that he wouldn’t let anyone he loved die ever again. He survived, but Beacon Hills’ bloody underbelly is making it pretty damn hard for him to keep his promise.

Time never stops turning. The grief never dissipates. Children soldier on—but in a town where all the monsters under the bed are real, and old family secrets rattle in every closet, how long can two fragile, breakable humans survive?

Maybe, the real question is: How long will they want to?

Chapter Summary: You go full Charlie Kelly and start to put all the pieces together. Stiles knows more than he lets on, but for some reason you trust him anyway.

A/N: check me out on ao3 (dork_knight) for the full lore version!

Taglist: @eaterof-concrete, @m30wk1ttycat

You played and replayed the video at least a hundred times, over and over again, examining every poorly shot, grainy frame until your eyes burned. You were frantic—a rabbit, picking her den apart, ripping her fur out, searching for all the minute flaws and misplaced straw; a girl, chewing her cheek bloody, tearing at her tights, desperately looking for some kind of explanation that wouldn’t completely shatter her fragile grasp on reality.

It would be one thing if it was just the video. You could easily rationalize the video away; you’d seen enough fan-made edits of Buffy and Twilight to know that amateur editors were hardly amateurs anymore—but it wasn’t just the video. It was the video, and the gutted video clerk, and the mangled bus driver, and the severed woman with wolf fibers found her butchered corpse—all interconnected by one very furry, clawed, fanged… thing.

Rolling onto your back, you scrubbed at your eyes, fingers cruel and violent in their attempt to scour away images of blood, and death, and monsters. There had to be an explanation. A rational explanation. Your gaze reflexively drifted towards the charm bundle on your windowsill, propped up against a few of your favorite novels.

The books were old, spines creased and splitting at the corners from little fingers and a lot of love. They were your mom’s before they were yours; you read them together under the covers whenever it rained. For a long time, you kept them hidden away under your bed with all the other things that might crumble your brittle will, but the yellowing pages steeped in memories didn’t seem so haunting anymore. You were already halfway through the stack, consuming the faded ink like a fiend in the night. It was odd; there wasn’t much that had changed since now and then. Really, only one thing. It made sense, you supposed after some thought. Your childhood favorites: Nancy Drew, Sherlock Holmes, the Hercule Poirot novels, they were exactly the kind of thing a sheriff’s son would appreciate.

The largest book in the pile was your complete collection of Sherlock Holmes. You chewed on your lip, eyes tracing the elegant swoops and swirls illuminated on the spine. Words curled along your brainstem in time with the loops, breaking through the buzzing in your mind with quiet British flourish: When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

Your nose scrunched, bottom lip trapped between your teeth. Surely, you hadn’t eliminated all logical explanations yet. Surely.

The metallic embellishments glinted at you, taunting you with their unmistakable presence and insistent reminder of your evening’s unavoidable ending. There was only one place to go for the improbable, after all; you just had to get past your pride and everything you believed to be true.

Before you could finish putting on your shoes, your dad found his way into your room. He lingered on the border of the black cherry floor. His stance was awkward, unsure of his footing, and you froze with your shoelace in hand. After a moment of stilted silence, he cleared his throat and loosened his tie from its chafing Windsor knot, “I just wanted to let you know I’ll be out later than usual.”

Nodding, you tied your laces into neat bows and pulled the wrinkles in your tights straight, “Parent Teacher Conferences, right?”

“Mhm,” he paused and attempted a smile. The edges were stiff, as if his mouth had forgotten the movement, at least when directed at you, “Should I be worried?”

It was his attempt at a joke; you knew that. You still felt a flutter of anxiety. Despite Stiles’s reassurances, you weren't so cavalier about breaking the rules. “All A’s,” you finally said, quietly to your feet.

Your dad gave you a real smile; smaller than his previous attempt at playfulness, but this one was your favorite. He was proud. It’d been a long time since he’d looked at you with anything other than grief and unease. “That’s my girl.” He rapped his knuckles against your door frame and said, “There’s takeout money on the table. Don’t stay out too long; there’s a—”

“Curfew, I know.” You slung your bag over your shoulder and fiddled with the strap, “I’ll be back soon.”

He didn’t ask you where you were going. He never did. You weren't sure what that said about your relationship, but you didn’t want to think about it any longer than you had to. There were far more pressing things to dwell on.

Maggie was in her kitchen when you opened the door to her house. It was cozy, small; she'd inherited it from her mother when she passed years ago. There were still signs of her 70s nostalgia all over every room. The shag carpet was horrendous, but you kind of liked the color. The muted green almost looked like a bed of moss, like something out of a fairytale. You had your own key; you’d had one since you were old enough to be a latchkey kid—even though you were never really on your own for long. There was always someone around to help you with your homework, bake you brownies without getting shell in the batter, read you stories about far away places and imaginary worlds. You’d had a wonderful childhood until it ended; some people weren’t that lucky. You knew that you were fortunate to have twelve years of Rockwellian bliss; it was more than a lot of people got. Knowing, however, still didn’t make the after any easier.

“Want a scone?” Maggie’s head was buried in the oven, steam curling around her shoulders. She emerged with a tray of browned lumps in pink oven-mitted hands, “They're slightly burnt, but it’s not my fault. My timer betrayed me.”

You didn’t reply. You chewed on your lip and studied the plants hanging from the ceiling. The Angelica was in full bloom, little clusters of white fuzzy fireworks. The roots were supposed to ward off evil. You would’ve scoffed at the thought a week ago. Now, there was a lingering ‘what if’ you couldn’t shake.

You sighed quietly, the exhaustion rattling through your chest, and trailed your gaze to the next plant. Skullcaps were your favorite, not because they were supposed to induce visions, obviously; you liked the blossoms. The fluted periwinkle petals certainly looked magical. You picked a flower from the lowest stem and rolled it between your fingers, “You really believe in this shit, right?” You looked up from your hands and studied Maggie’s face carefully, “It’s not all a scam?”

The anticipated gasp carried through the kitchen, followed by the clang of a plonked baking sheet, “I resent the very implication.”

“I’m serious.” You stared at Maggie’s back, watching for any tell-tale signs of tension or rigidity, “Do you really believe that witches are real and wolfsbane can kill werewolves?”

“I will not be abused in my own home,” there was a lilt in Maggie’s voice, a flippancy that usually made your lips twitch into a smile, but Maggie's hand trembled and sent the scone on the edge of her spatula to the floor. Maggie dropped to her knees and scooped the crumbling pieces into a pile with desperate hands, oddly frantic for something as silly as a dropped pastry.

You squatted next to her and rested your hands over Maggie’s until they stilled. “Mags,” you were quiet, gentle in your sweeping, but Maggie didn’t seem soothed by the clean floor.

Maggie’s chin lifted, but her eyes zeroed in on the tip of your nose instead of your eyes. “Babe.”

You gripped your knees, clinging to the caps with ragged nails and flexed knuckles, like your bones were the only solid thing left in the room. “Can you be serious for once in your life, please.” Your tongue went heavy, adhering to the floor of your mouth, effectively sealing everything else you couldn’t bring yourself to say: Please, I think I’m losing my mind, and I don’t know how much longer I can white-knuckle it.

Maggie turned towards the counter carelessly, and her pinky brushed against the cookie sheet. She let out a sharp hiss through her teeth and shook her hand in the air. “Why does it matter?” Her words were muffled through the blistering finger in her mouth, “People buy what they want to buy.”

Your empathy was thinning and so was your patience. Your teeth gnashed, and you winced when your tongue got in the way. “I don’t give a shit about your delusional customers. You know what I mean.”

“See, ‘delusional,’” Maggie stuffed a scone into her mouth even though it was still steaming. Her eyes watered as she struggled to swallow the wad of blueberry and oatmeal lodged against the roof of her mouth. “Why are we even talking about this?” she said thickly, throat clogged with congealed crumbs and something skittish in her eyes. She bent over the sink and turned the water to cold; you weren't entirely sure if she was soothing the burns on her tongue or simply avoiding eye contact.

“There’s something happening here,” your voice trembled, much to your disdain, and you were further horrified by the stinging in your tear ducts, “and I don’t know what to do.”

Maggie’s head whipped towards you, wetting her hair and splattering her lenses with water droplets that dripped onto her nose, “You don’t have to do anything. That’s not your job.” She clutched your shoulders with desperate fingers, digging into your scapulae until it hurt, “Your job is to go to school, get good grades, and live happily ever after.”

You shook off her hands and wiped your nose against your shoulder, “Why won’t you just give me a straight answer?”

“Well, I am bi–”

“Maggie,” you struggled for words until there was only one left on your tongue, “please.”

A blank expression fell over her face, and then Maggie seemed to sink through the floor even though she was still standing. “Did you read the book?”

You could barely hear her. Your nose shriveled towards your brows, “What book?”

Her eyes shined with something; you couldn’t quite define it. There was a glimmer of remorse, but you couldn’t make out the rest. “‘Beacon Hills’ Bloodlines’.”

For a moment, you were too confused to be frustrated, “Not really.”

Confusion became bewilderment when Maggie left the kitchen without a word. She returned with a thick book; though, book wasn’t quite accurate. It was really a stack of pulp parchment barely held together with a piece of threaded twine. It looked older than the Bloodline’s journal; you could see a few pages sticking out from the others, and the spine was in desperate need of re-stitching. You reluctantly took the pages from Maggie’s hands after she shook it in your face a couple times.

Maggie was quiet when she finally spoke, “Read the journal.” She nodded towards the new book, “That too.”

You frowned at the cover and held it out in front of you like it was contaminated. “Why are you being so weird about this? Just tell me.”

Maggie looked at you, and the most peculiar sensation rolled down your spine. Maggie's eyes were so present, like a shotgun blast, like a meteor shower. Her voice wasn’t even close to loud, but it was just as piercing as her stare, “I made a promise; I have to keep at least part of it.”

Your forehead creased, “Wha...that’s even weirder. Are you fuckin’ Gandalf? Just say it.”

“Trust me,” Maggie’s gaze shifted to the floor, and you almost melted with relief, “there are some things that you’re better off not knowing.”

“Great. Thanks, Obi-Wan,” you rolled your eyes and crammed the bound parchment into your bag, “I’ll figure it out myself.”

A cool hand cupped your cheek before you could leave. You grudgingly met Maggie’s gaze, adjusting your grip on the strap of your bag.

Maggie held onto your shoulders, a breath away from shaking you. “Promise me, you won’t do anything stupid.”

You grimaced, “I–” A flash in Maggie’s eyes dried all the words on your tongue.

“Promise.”

“Promise,” you mumbled.

Maggie finally let you leave, and your feet felt heavier than they did when you walked into Maggie’s apartment. Your bag was heavier, so perhaps it wasn’t all an illusion. The guilt, however, was certainly playing a part in your sagging shoulders. You chewed on a thumbnail and slipped into the comfort of denial. It didn’t count as a broken promise if you didn’t really know what you were promising.

Your dad was still gone when you got home, and you were relieved. Solitude was your only comfort with all this dread chilling your blood. You weren't good with the unpredictable, not anymore. You tried to study it, the way you did with dead languages and theoretical physics, but the methodology wasn't clear. You just wished, for once, you were as scary as people believed.

There was one thing you could do—or rather two. One was on your desk, and the other was at the bottom of your bag.

You started with the journal, and your hair quickly became a nuisance. Every time you bowed your head to get a better look at the messy scrawl, wispy strands obscured your vision. You tied your hair back and nibbled on your lip, struggling to determine if a smudged loop was an ‘a’ or an ‘o.’ They didn’t have computers in the 1800s, you knew that, but it wouldn’t have killed Maggie’s great-great-great-grandmother to quill with a little less ink. Neat cursive was hardly as taxing as cholera.

The pain at the base of your skull was unbearable by the time you made it through half of the entries. Your impatience was rapidly fraying, with yourself and with the lack of insight. Maybe, this was all an elaborate stall—or maybe Maggie really didn’t know anything.

You flopped back against your pillows and starfished your limbs across your bed until all your joints and muscles unkinked. “Fuck me.” Your eyes flicked down your legs, and you glowered at the journal. It was goading you, opened to the middle and sprawled across your thighs, staring at you and all your incompetence.

Your thumbs dug a trench in your skull as you tried to rub the throbbing out of your temples.

One more page. You could read one more page.

You flipped the page, careful with the crumbling corner. The parchment was cluttered with names and arrows; there were a few illustrations too, sketched portraits of the people memorialized on paper. It was inked chaos, but only one word stood out to you. In a large curling script, Hale was spread all over the complicated family tree. You gnawed on your lip and bent your head closer to the small description at the top of the page: The Hale pack founded Beacon Hills in 1856, saving the town from desolation with their wealth. The pack has several branches, extending across the state. They continue to be a prevalent force in their world.

The bloodlines were difficult to follow with all the different branches and untimely deaths. As far as you could tell, the line was documented all the way to 2002. There were a few different sets of handwriting; the style changed every few decades or so, and you flipped to the end of the family line just to check for Maggie’s chicken scratch. You didn’t find her handwriting, but you did notice something familiar on the last line. Derek Hale.

You knew, of course, that Derek would likely be included, but your breath hitched when your finger traced over the notation inscribed next to almost every single one of his family members’ names: Deceased: Arson. Laura Hale was still alive on the tree, and the thought of documenting her death—of giving her an end date —it stole all the air from your lungs.

Your eyes burned, and you quickly flipped back to the start of the Hale bloodline. A few dozen county death records later, the burning in your corneas was due to the strain of one too many computer searches. Still painful, but you much preferred blue light sting to the threat of tears. You focused on it, on the ache; it was so much quieter than all the thoughts fighting you for their turn. They were so loud, a million ravenous locusts buzzing, feasting on your ear canal. You couldn’t make out what they were saying, what they were trying to tell you—what they wanted you to believe.

Derek Hale couldn’t be a werewolf because that would mean werewolves were real, and if werewolves were real, how many other monsters were lurking in the dark? How many creatures from Maggie’s stories were waiting for someone to separate from the herd, biding their time until they could sink their teeth into human flesh?

There was only so much you could find online and in Maggie’s books. Certain secrets had yet to be written.

It was disturbingly easy to find out where Stiles lived. The receptionist at the Sheriff’s station was all too happy to give you his address when you gave her your name. You finally stumbled upon the one perk of being an infamous, pathetic half-orphan: blind faith.

His house was smaller than yours, and you were jealous. All the empty space just made the silence worse, you found. You could see a few spots where the paint was peeling when you got closer, and you smiled at the shoddy patch work. You wondered who tried to fix it. You hoped it was Stiles; you could see the paint in his hair, maybe smeared across his cheek from an ill-advised attempt to scratch his nose. It was adorable.

You knocked on the door and clutched Maggie’s books tighter to your chest. You’d expected Stiles to answer the door, but he didn’t. You didn’t know why it hadn’t occurred to you that someone else would be home until Sheriff Stilinski opened the door, but you felt stupid for not thinking of it sooner. The Sheriff looked just as surprised to see you; at least, he had an actual reason.

“Oh.” You blinked and devolved into a monosyllabic moron, “Hi.”

Obviously, you knew Stiles was Sheriff Stilinski’s son, but for some reason the idea of them occupying the same place at the same time was dumbfounding. YOur mind couldn’t make sense of it. There was the Sheriff in one box, with all your grief, all your pain, and then there was Stiles. You didn’t fully know what was in his box, but you knew it was good.

“Hey, kid,” Sheriff Stilinski smiled through his confusion, “you okay? Did something—”

“I’mheretoseeStiles,” all your words were smooshed together in one big exhale.

The Sheriff looked even more confused for a moment, and then he gave you a little conspiratorial grin. “He’s up in his room. Go ahead.”

You nodded absently and followed him inside. You stopped thinking about the hefty pile of books in your arms when you noticed the slight limp in Sheriff Stilinski’s step. “Are you okay?”

The Sheriff followed your gaze and waved his hand, “It’s nothing. Barely a scratch.”

You hesitated at the foot of the stairs, looking for blood or something equally horrific. He had no reason to lie to you, but you’d gotten used to the worst case scenario. “You sure?”

The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes deepened with his smile, “You sound like my son.”

You mouth ticked up slightly, “That’s not an answer.”

Sheriff Stilinski had a nice laugh, you thought. You grinned as his head shook with another rumbling chuckle. “Now you really sound like my son. I hope he hasn’t driven crazy too.”

“Eh,” you shrugged a little and smiled, “he’s alright.” Your voice dropped a little, like you were telling a secret, “More than, actually. He’s…good.”

The Sheriff looked surprised briefly, a spasm of disbelief, and then all the muscles in his face seemed to melt with fondness. “He is,” his voice was a bit gravelly when he spoke, like it got lodged halfway up his throat. He loved his son; it was obvious. You wondered if your dad ever looked like that when talked about you. You wondered if he even talked about you at all.

“Not a lot of people are,” you said quietly, looking down at your sneakers. The white wasn’t even white anymore. They were graying from years of stepping on your own feet, kicking car doors closed, tripping over asphalt. You weren't the kind of girl who could keep shoes clean; that was one thing about you that hadn’t changed. Sometimes, it felt like everything else had, and none of it was for the better.

Sheriff Stilinski waited until you looked up, and then he smiled at you, almost as fondly as before. “You are.”

You were overwhelmed with feeling, so close to an emotion you couldn’t name, but you knew you’d felt it before. Once upon a time, when parents were parents, and children were children.

The Sheriff rested his hand on your shoulder and squeezed. You were tipping into tearful, and you’d never been so grateful to hear Stiles’s voice.

“Dad, who’s—” Stiles stopped at the top of the stairs and stared at the two of you. His jaw dangled, and it didn’t snap shut until his dad snorted. Stiles’s eye twitched, and you could see the reboot loading behind his eyes. You wholly understood the sentiment.

His brain regained function, and apparently all he could come up with was, “Hey.”

You grinned to yourself, a small secret smile at his predicament, and your hand cocked in a little wave, “Hey.”

Sheriff Stilinski cleared his throat, “I’ll—I’m going to get something to eat.” Neither of you looked at him; you were too busy playing a strange staring contest with equally stupid looks on your faces.

Stiles recovered from his stupor once you were alone. His face settled into something bitter, stony at all the edges, irritation tucked into the creases. It was hardly the face you expected to see when you finally paid him a surprise visit.

Your brow curved, and you tried not to shrink in on yourself. “You look pissed.”

Stiles snorted and drummed his fingers against the railing, “Yeah, well, you’re in a perpetual state of pissiness, so we’ve all got problems.” You must have crumpled this time, at least a little bit, because his scowl thawed and his hands fell limply by his sides. “Sorry. That’s not—displaced aggression, it’s my sweet spot.”

You shrugged and smiled slightly, a little stiff, a lot amused, “You’re not exactly wrong.”

“Still.”

You played another game of eye-contact chicken, and Stiles scratched the back of his rapidly flushing neck. Your hair, still damp from the light drizzle, fell in front of your face as you tilted your head towards the stairs, “So, you gonna invite me up, or…”

He nodded a little too quickly and definitely too fervently, “Yeah, sorry. I’m just—”

“Pissed?” you smirked and adjusted your grip on your books, trekking up the stairs. Stiles narrowed his eyes at you, but he was smiling. He had a nice smile; it was big, loose—unrestrained in a way a lot of people were afraid to be. It was the kind of smile you couldn’t help but return.

Stiles let out a profound sigh and shook his head, “It’s all Scott’s fault.” You shot him a dubious look as he pushed his bedroom door open for you. He shrugged, “If I only tell it with carefully selected parts of the story, it’s all his fault.”

Your mouth twitched. Your smile was small, but it peeled back a good deal of the person you thought you should be. So much so, there was a little you peeking underneath. “We can pretend it is. Just for today.”

Stiles’s throat bobbed with his swallow, and when he smiled back at you, slowly, fleetingly, but ever-so sweetly, you finally realized you were awkwardly standing in the middle of his room. Like an idiot.

His room was exactly what you expected, and that was…you didn’t realize that you knew him well enough to expect plaid bedding and posters of cringey emo bands that were heavily featured on most of your playlists.

His desk was cluttered with various books and papers, stacked with no apparent rhyme or reason. You recognized the bestiary he bought from Curio Killed the Cat; the burgundy and gold binding was striking against all his monochrome textbooks. There were a few papers poking out from the aged pages, printouts of something furry and familiar. Before you could get a better look, Stiles bustled past you, doing a quick but rather poor job of hiding his dirty laundry under his bed and behind his closet door.

Stiles was slightly out of breath when he finished, dropping onto the foot of his bed, “So…you stalkin’ me now?”

You rested your hip against his desk and hummed, “Seemed only fair.”

“Well,” his face split into a bright, infuriating grin, “I am flattered.”

“Shut up.” His grin widened, and you rolled your eyes, glaring at your bowed reflection in a chrome lamp on the edge of his desk. It was in grave need of a good dusting, along with most of the room. “You’re literally my only option.”

“So, you’re sayin’ I’m the one.” Stiles’s smirk was audible, and you sputtered.

Your ears were unnaturally hot, and so was the back of your neck. You meant to groan, wanted him to know just how unamusing you found him, but your throat failed you. Your complaint came out airy, huffy, and it trembled against your soft palate. Truthfully, it sounded awfully similar to a whine; you scowled at the sound and squeezed your books tighter to your chest, “I’m leaving. Right now. I’ve reached my maximum capacity for bullshit.”

Long fingers circled around your wrist before you could go too far. They were blistering against your cool skin, but a shiver shuddered through your arm all the way to your skull.

“Don’t go,” Stiles hummed softly, close enough to warm the shell of your ear. “I owe you one, remember?”

You braved a look at him through your lashes, and he was smiling at you again; this one was nervous. He had forgotten, it seemed, to let go of your wrist until now. Stiles sat back down on his bed, and you absently brushed your fingers over the lingering sensation of his fingertips.

“Right,” you looked around the room and chewed on your bottom lip, “so…what was that whole thing with Derek Hale?”

Stiles paused. You could feel him watching you, studying you like one of his puzzles. “He needed a ride.”

You set your books on his desk, and Stiles nodded towards the chair in front of him. You hesitated before sitting down, feeling a bit like you were giving up the battlefield high ground, “You’re like…friends, then?”

“Absolutely not.” If the emphatic denial wasn’t enough to convince you, the violent shake of his head was telling enough. “Kind of wish he was dead, actually. It would solve so many problems.”

“So you don’t actually know him that well,” you murmured, sinking into the chair with all your hopes and plans.

Stiles’s neck craned as he studied your face, “Why?” You just looked at him, keeping your face impassive, and his eyes went a little buggy. “I know he looks dreamy, but that would be nothing but a nightmare for everyone involved. Trust me.”

Your face twisted, lips curling around the unsavory taste in your mouth. “I don’t—what was wrong with him yesterday?”

Stiles didn’t look entirely convinced, but skepticism did look a lot like concern. “Stomach bug.”

You rolled your eyes. It would’ve made you laugh under any other circumstance, but you didn’t feel much like laughing now. You’d been a tick away from the edge ever since you realized that Lydia had been this close to being butchered by that thing.

Your fingers curled into tight fists, knuckles straining, “I’m not an idiot, okay. I know there’s something weird going on.” You looked up from your lap with sharp eyes, but if he looked a little closer, he’d see the desperation underneath, “And I know you know something about it.”

Stiles swallowed hard and twisted his fingers together, “I’m actually known for knowing nothing about anything. Ever.”

He flinched when you stood up abruptly. The chair rolled back into his desk and sent a few pencils to the floor. You glared at them, like they did it on purpose just to spite you, and your glower drifted towards the glint of citrine and garnet on the corner of his desk. “This.” You picked up the bestiary and tried to shake it in front of his face, but it was too heavy to do your frustration justice, “Why did you buy this?”

His eyes, miraculously, grew rounder, “I told you. D—”

“N’ D, I know, but I looked into it. This is real; it’s transcribed from a real Ancient Greek text.”

“...I like authenticity.” Stiles shrugged towards his fidgeting hands, “I take my craft seriously.”

Scoffing, you dropped the book on top of his bed, “So you’re saying you believe the whole mountain lion theory?”

“Well, obviously no—”

“Then what do you believe?” Your chest seethed with quick shallow breaths as you paced from one side of his room to the other, “Because I was looking through this genealogy line, and the Hales have been here before Beacon Hills was even Beacon Hills, and there’s a pattern of—hold on.”

You snatched Maggie’s journal off of his desk and flipped it open to the Hale family tree, bookmarked with the thick stack of county death reports you’d printed out. “Look, there’s a series of premature, violent deaths in their line directly after a series of animal attacks on the town, and then all of it just stopped a few generations before Derek’s mom became the head of the pa—”

You didn’t know when Stiles stood up, but he was in front of you now, stopping you in your tracks. He brushed his fingers through his short crop of hair and shook his head, “Hold on, okay. Take a breath—”

You didn’t hear him, not really. Truthfully, you didn’t even notice that he’d started talking. You shoved the pages closer to his face, and all your words rushed past your lips in one carved out breath, “And then it all started again after Laura Hale was killed, and she was found with wolf fibers on her body—”

Stiles’s brows flew towards his hairline, “How do you kno—”

“She became the head of the family after Talia died, right?” Your hair was as wild as your eyes after a series of urgent tugging, and you prayed to all the mythical gods in every game you’d ever played that you sounded saner than you looked. They might actually exist, after all. Who's to say that Selûne didn't exist in a world where werewolves did? “‘Cause she’s the oldest living, fully conscious relative, and then immediately after she's killed, the animal attacks start up again, like she was keeping something in-check.”

“Slow down.” Stiles gripped your shoulders. You were closer than either of you realized until you looked up and your noses were almost touching. He swallowed thickly and let go of you after a moment, taking a step back, “A couple of days ago you thought this was all bullshit.”

You chewed on your lip and your indecision, looking for something in his face. You didn’t know what, but you were pretty sure you found it when his mouth furrowed into a concerned frown. It was for you, you realized, not because of you. That was…a rarity in your life as of late. You didn’t hate it.

Sighing, you pulled your phone out of your jacket pocket and opened the video from Lydia’s phone. “A couple of days ago I hadn't seen this,” you mumbled, shoving the phone into his hand.

Stiles looked at you for a moment longer and then pressed play. His face was unreadable, save for the small flinch when the beast shattered the store window, and you hated it. “Where did you get this?” Stiles finally said quietly. His voice was low and infected with something dire.

You rifled through your papers, something to keep your hands busy and your eyes off of the dark look on Stiles’s face, “Someone sent it to Lydia—it was a blocked number, so don’t ask who.”

“Did she—”

“I deleted it before she could.”

Neither of you needed to say it; you both knew Lydia was clinging to sanity by the skin of her perfect teeth. She couldn’t see the proof that the monster under her bed was real. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

“Good.” Stiles rubbed a hand over his face, looking so much older than sixteen, and he flickered his gaze to your face, “You can’t show this to anyone. You know that, right?”

“Besides Scott,” you retorted dryly.

Stiles almost smiled. There was a ghost of one hiding in the corners of his mouth, but it faded before it could materialize. “Believe me, he really doesn’t need any more proof. Delete it.”

He sighed at your scowl and tried again, “Please delete it.”

You shook your head and grabbed your phone from his hands, “Not until you tell me what you know.”

“I don’t know anything.” Stiles held up his hands and took a careful step towards you, “Really. I know as much as you do.”

You stared at him. You weren't sure if you were a good judge of character. You’d like to think you were, but it wasn’t like you spent a lot of time around other people. Even before you got trapped in your head, you really only had one friend, and you used to think you’d be friends with her for the rest of your lives. Maybe longer.

You’d been wrong before. You didn’t want to be wrong again.

Stiles reached for your hand, and you let him lace your fingers together. “I know how you feel. It sucks, and it’s kind of exciting, but mostly freakin’ terrifying—and all you need to know is that it’s going to be okay. Okay?”

Your chin jerked in a rigid little nod. You softened slightly when he squeezed your hand. He wasn’t telling you everything; you were almost 100% certain of that, but you were also pretty sure he wasn’t lying. That was enough for you. For now.

“The file room,” you said quietly.

Stiles’s lips drew together into a little pucker, “What?”

“The evidence room with all the files,” you looked up at him, and the ember of hope was stoked in your eyes, “there’s probably more there.”

He bit down on his cheek, “I don’t know—”

You folded her arms over her chest, chin lifting in defiance, “You promised.”

Stiles sighed and ran his hand over his head. His smile was a little affectionate thing. He sighed and shook his head, “I promised.”

“Well, alright then.” Your shoulders relaxed, and you sat back down in his desk chair, “Middle of the night break-in, it’s a date.”

#stiles stilinski x reader #stiles stilinski imagine #stiles stilinski #dylan o'brien x reader #dylan o'brien imagine #teen wolf #stiles stilinski x you #stiles stilinski fanfiction #stiles stilinksi x reader #teen wolf imagine #teen wolf fanfiction #stiles stilinski imagines

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arcane-vagabond · 3 months ago

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Hanging By a Moment: Chapter Three

Pairing: Jake "Hangman" Seresin x Reader

Summary: Taking place directly after the events of "Don't Hang'em Til Noon," this series follows more of Jake and Scout as they traverse life in the New Mexico territories. Isaac Cassidy's gang is still hanging about, stirring up trouble in the name of their fallen leader. Additionally, Pete "Maverick" Mitchell and your brother, Benjamin, have established rights to a gold mine that's now drawing in more and more unsavory characters. Will you have what it takes to survive the growing danger?

Content Warnings: Talks of business, Talks of unsavory characters, Flirting, Jake being a menace, Bradley being kind of cute, Feelings of being watched, Paranoia, Thunderstorms, Reader gets scared, Cuddling, Talks of the future, and a Proposal. I think that's everything, but please let me know if I missed something!

Word Count: 3.4k

Series Masterlist || DGU Masterlist || Moodboards || Playlist 1 || Playlist 2

“It’s rather sudden, wouldn’t you say?” You asked Benjamin as he shoved a wad of shirts into one of his suitcases. Rolling your eyes, you stepped into his room, removing the shirts to fold them neatly into a pile as he started in on his pants. “Would you stop shoving everything in? You’re going to have wrinkles in everything by the time you get there.”

Benjamin rolled his eyes, setting his pants down on the bed before crossing his arms over his chest.

“You nag just like Mother used to,” he grumbled. You shot him a dirty look before dropping the shirt in your hands and moving towards the door. Benjamin let out an exasperated growl before grabbing your wrist and pulling you back. “Okay, fine. I’m sorry. Please help me pack.”

You let out a humph and a roll of your eyes as you continued to fold his clothes neatly for him.

“Now why must you go off to San Francisco so suddenly?” You prodded.

“It’ll be good for the business,” he explained. “Mr. Kerner has invited Maverick and me to join him at his firm to go over the essentials and to tour other mines so that we might see how the operations work. Maverick won’t join us until later, but I’ll go ahead to get some of the legal proceedings outs of the way.”

“You’re a lawyer,” you hummed, a frown tugging at your lips, “so why the sudden interest in investing in a gold mine?”

“It’ll be good money, Scout,” he insisted. “It’ll set my children and even yours up for life. Hell, this could be an addition to our legacy, to the life we’ve started out here.”

Financial security was tempting, especially in uncertain times, and while the ranch itself was making money, there was no promise that it would tomorrow. You supposed that it was wise to venture into other pursuits—just in case one of them ended up a failure.

“I can see by the look on your face that you don’t agree,” Benjamin hummed, pursing his lips.

“No, it’s not that,” you grumbled, shaking your head. Benjamin arched a brow in your direction in a silent question, and you let out a long sigh before continuing. “I’m concerned about the safety of this town. News of gold is going to draw in all sorts from all over, and only a fraction of them will have good intentions. Did you consider that?”

Benjamin didn’t respond right away, the thoughts racing through his head almost visible in his eyes. After a moment, he shook his head, moving across the room to gather a couple of items from his dresser.

“You worry too much.”

You scoffed. “You worry too little.”

“That’s why we’re such a great team, baby sister,” he grinned, spinning back around on his heel to face you. “Together, we worry just the right amount.”

You glared at him, though there was no real heat to it.

“Bad things are bound to happen anywhere,” he reasoned with a sigh, plopping down on the bed beside you, arms outstretched across the width of the mattress. “The country is expanding west, Scout. There were already unsavory characters here, as you very well know.”

You did know, the memory of Isaac’s cold, black eyes flashing in your mind and sending a shiver up your spine.

“That doesn’t mean we need to give others more reason to follow suit,” you muttered, picking at some non-existent lint on your skirt. Benjamin let out a long sigh before turning his head to look at you.

“You know,” he drawled thoughtfully, “you could just seduce them all like you did Seresin. I mean, it worked out pretty well last ti-”

Benjamin let out a startled squawk as you brought the pillow down on his face, his arms flailing as he scrambled to sit up as you reared your hand back to hit him again.

“I did not seduce him,” you hissed, trying desperately to hold back your laughter as Benjamin nearly collapsed onto the floor in his frenzy.

“Well, you certainly didn’t stop him,” he snickered, dodging your next blow just in time, cowering as you advanced on him. “In fact, there’s been more than one occasion where I’ve walked in on the two of you engaging in-”

The next blow had him stumbling on his feet. Your cheeks felt like they were on fire, the heat running down your neck and to your ears. Benjamin rubbed his jaw, pulling his fingers back to inspect them.

“Kissing,” he said, glancing over at you. “I was going to say kissing. Your guilty conscious gets the better of you, Scout.”

You scowled at him, raising the pillow once more, only stopping once he raised his hands in surrender.

“I yield,” he chuckled, dropping his hands as you dropped yours. “I didn’t say it was a bad thing, you know.”

“I’d rather you didn’t say anything,” you retorted, setting the pillow back in its proper place.

“I think it’s good you’ve found happiness out here,” he continued, ignoring your comment. “I’m happy that you’ve managed to find someone who makes you happy rather than someone who you think would make our father happy. Jake is a fairly decent step up from Henry Cargill.”

Your lips puckered at the name. You would have lived comfortably had you chosen to stay behind in Maryland and marry Henry as your late father would have wanted before his death, but you knew you made the right decision in choosing Jake.

Even if he still hadn’t proposed after all these months.

“I have to go run a few things to Penny,” you announced, making a beeline for the door.

“Sure you do,” Benjamin scoffed. “Give my regards to Jake, then.”

The fan in your hand did little to quell the heat of the changing seasons. It was early spring, a time where it was too hot for your winter wardrobe, but still too hot for your summer clothes. Your arm was beginning to hurt from how hard you were fanning yourself, and you closed your eyes to give them a rest from the glare of the sun overhead.

You hated the heat.

“Well, hello, gorgeous.”

You pried an eye open to see two green ones already on you. You straightened up, turning to face Jake fully as he smirked down at you.

“Jake,” you nodded, managing to keep the eager smile at bay as you batted your eyes up at him.

“You look like you’re roastin’, honey girl,” he chuckled, reaching up to tuck a stray strand of hair behind your ear. “Why’d you wear this if it’s gonna have you miserable?”

“I’ll be too cold in my summer clothes,” you explained with a sigh. Jake’s eyes twinkled as his smirk grew lascivious.

“I can think of a few ways to keep you warm,” he purred, a different heat rising to your cheeks at his words. You swatted him with your fan as you glanced around to see if anyone had heard him.

“Behave,” you warned, snapping the fan shut and tapping the end into his chest. He pouted, placing a hand to his chest in faux hurt.

“Me?” He asked, batting his lashes. “You’re accusing me of misbehaving? Well, now I’m hurt.”

“I’m sure you are,” you snorted, withdrawing your hand to continue fanning yourself. Jake watched you for a moment, drinking you in as sweat ran down the column of your throat, his eyes following it down and continuing on as he took in the rest of you. His tongue darted out to wet his lips as he shifted, and you shot him a glare.

“Stop looking at me like that,” you snapped, drawing his attention back to your face, a sheepish look gracing his features at having been caught.

“Like what?”

“You know damn good and well what you were doing,” you hissed, narrowing your eyes at him. “We’re not a married couple, and people already talk.”

“Let them,” he said, leaning forward. You pushed at his chest, a thunderous look on your face as he chuckled. “We’re practically married, anyway.”

Your temper simmered beneath your skin as you replied, “Not without a proper proposal and ceremony, we’re not.”

“All good things to those who wait, honey girl,” he smirked once more. You pursed your lips, lifting your chin as you watched the people of Maverick pass by.

“The butcher’s son asked me for my hand again yesterday morning,” you mused. “If you don’t get your act together soon, I’m going to let him start believing it’s a possibility.”

“Honey girl, you best watch it now,” Jake warned, eyes growing dark as a glint shone in his eyes.

“Or what?” You challenged, lifting your chin in defiance. Jake’s frown turned into a dangerous smirk. He squared his shoulders, taking a step closer to you before leaning down close enough for you to inhale the scent was so distinctly him. He leaned in, the heat rolling off of him and causing a flurry of butterflies in your stomach. Your hand came up to brace yourself against his arm as his other wound around your waist, squeezing slightly.

“Or,” he purred, lips brushing against the shell of your ear, “I’ll put you over my knee and leave your ass so red and raw, you’ll be shifting in that pew at church Sunday morning.”

You let out a shuddering breath, chest heaving as he pulled away, a smug smirk sat firmly on his lips as he shot you a wink.

“You look flustered, Scout,” he grinned, golden hair shining in the sunlight and creating a halo effect that had you gaping. “Looks like you might need to sit down before you faint.”

“You’re a menace,” you grumbled, shooting him a half-hearted glare. He chuckled and leaned down to peck your cheek.

“Takes one to know one,” he murmured as you swatted at him again. He dodged you, hopping back.

“Jake!”

You turned to see Bradley standing on the porch to the Hard Deck, posture nervous as he shifted on his feet and his eyes darted around. Jake sighed and let out a long sigh as he shoved his hands in his pockets. He peered over at you as the other man gestured towards the blond to come over.

“I gotta go, honey girl,�� Jake said, pursing his lips as he shot Bradley a glare. “Bradshaw wants to make sure his costume is perfect for the play in a couple of days, and I somehow got roped into helping.”

“Will you be by for dinner?” You asked. “I’m making dumplings.”

Jake let out a moan as he fixed you with adoring eyes. “I swear to god, I’m going to marry you.”

“I’ll hold you to it,” you teased, a smile playing at your lips.

“Jake!”

“Jesus, Bradshaw! It’s a costume for a school play, not life and death,” Jake snapped over his shoulder. “Give me a damn minute!”

You snickered as Bradley rolled his eyes and stomped back into the saloon. Jake grinned down at you as he toyed with a strand of your hair.

“When’s Benji goin’ to be home?” He purred, eyes lidded as he looked you up and down once more.

“He won’t,” you told him, and his attention snapped up to you. “He’s going to San Francisco for business.”

“He what?” Jake asked, frowning. “He’s leaving you on your own?”

“Yes,” you replied, rolling your eyes. “It’s not the end of the world. It’s only for a few weeks, and I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

“Jake.”

You looked to see Javy now standing on the porch, hands on his hips as he nodded at you.

“Come on,” he hollered across the street, peering over his shoulder for a moment to see into the saloon. “Bradley’s freaking out. You can canoodle later.”

You looked back at Jake who looked like he was going to lose his temper at any moment, bridge of his nose between his fingers.

“He’s coming!” You hollered back, a smile on your face as you rested a hand on Jake’s chest. You lowered your head to try and meet his gaze. “Canoodle?”

“I don’t know where he hears these words,” he griped, shaking his head. “You’d think the damn world was ending with how Bradley’s going on about this whole thing. It’s a play, for Christ’s sake.”

“I think it’s sweet,” you shrugged. “He and Birdie are cute together.”

Jake hummed but didn’t answer, leaning forward to press a tender kiss to your forehead before reluctantly pulling away.

“I’ll see you later tonight?” He asked, backing away slowly. You nodded barely hiding your smile behind your fan as he grinned, turning and trotting over towards the saloon. You watched silently, and with one last wave, he was inside.

You let out a sigh, wondering just when exactly you had become so lovesick as to miss him already. A tingle shot up the base of your neck, and you whipped your head towards the end of the street, the feeling of being watched suddenly prominent. You frowned as your scanned the street, shaking your head as you saw no one or nothing out of place. That was happening to you a lot recently, the feeling of being watched. You always managed to chalk it up to residual feelings from your encounter with Isaac not too long ago.

The bell to the door of the general store rang out, startling you out of your thoughts as Hondo grinned down at you.

“Well, good afternoon, Miss Scout,” he grinned, stepping back and gesturing for you to walk in. “Have you been waiting long? I didn’t think I’d take so long getting that shipment ready.”

“No,” you breathed, shaking your head and the rest of the worrying thoughts out of your head. “Not at all. Do you have anything new in today?”

It was late, and you weren’t quite sure what to do with yourself. The ranch hands had retired to their own homes only an hour before, and you had finished cleaning up from dinner not long after. Jake hadn’t shown up, and you were sure that Bradley’s panic induced state had something to do with that.

The wind had been picking up steadily over the course of the past hour, and the sound of distant thunder rolled into the confines of your home. You usually found the sound of thunder soothing, but for some reason it had you on edge tonight. The rain had started off as a few scattered sprinkles and then quickly dissolved into a downpour, the wind howling and rattling the windows. You had taken up purchase on the sofa, needlework in hand as you attempted to occupy your mind with anything other than worrying thoughts that nagged at you.

The fireplace crackled, casting a soothing heat that helped to ease your mind some, but you quickly set your needlework aside to get up and make yourself some tea.

The kitchen was dark save for the candle you had lit to allow yourself some light, the light from the flame flickering and casting ominous shadows in your usually cozy home. The panes of the window rattled as another gust of wind rammed into the house, and you tapped your finger on the countertop as you chewed on your bottom lip. A crack of lightning lit up the sky, and your heart stopped as your eyes caught the shadow of a figure by the barn. You narrowed your eyes, trying to peek through the darkness and into the shadows. Surely no one would be standing out in this weather. And looking into your house of all places? Still, a sickening feeling boiled in the pit of your stomach, and adrenaline started to course through your veins.

Another crack of lightning crashed in the night, startling you enough to jump, but one look toward the barn had you letting out a shaky breath. There was no one there this time, and you were starting to wonder if there ever was to begin with. Were you going crazy?

The creek of the floorboards behind you coupled with another peel of thunder had you whirling around, a scream caught in your throat at the sight of a shadow in the doorway.

“Scout?”

It took you a moment for your eyes to adjust, but the sight of Jake standing in front of you had a wave of relief washing over you, a tear escaping the corner of your eye unbidden.

“Honey girl,” he cooed, walking forward, his arms reaching for you, “what’s wrong? What happened?”

You shook your head, a hand over your mouth as you pushed the sob working its way up back down. Jake was soaked from head to toe, droplets dripping onto the floor as he rubbed your arms in a soothing motion.

“Talk to me,” he murmured, leaning down to try and catch your gaze. “What’s going on? What has you so worked up?”

You felt stupid. The shadow you saw must have been Jake checking on the horses. Yes, that had to have been him. You were letting your paranoia get the better of you.

“You’re dripping water all over my floors,” you whispered. Jake’s eyes widened, looking from you down to the floor before letting out a breathy chuckle.

“Sorry about that,” he muttered, “I would have been here sooner, but-”

“You’re here now,” you said, moving past him and towards the laundry you hadn’t had a chance to put away yet. “You need to change or you’ll catch a cold.”

“Scout,” he started, voice wary as he watched you scurry about. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

You stood up, a clean shirt clutched in your hands as you looked back at him. “Of course I am. Why wouldn’t I be?”

He studied you for a moment, chewing on the inside of his cheek before nodding slowly.

“Alright,” he conceded. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m positive,” you corrected. “Now go and get changed. I’ll warm up some food for you.”

Jake didn’t take long, changing and eating quickly as you took care of the odds and ends around the house. Neither of you spoke a word, but Jake’s eyes watched you as you pointedly refused to meet his gaze.

The two of you retired to the parlor, Jake reading as you started to doze. He reached for you, pulling you across the sofa and into his arms as he let out a contented sigh. You chuckled, shaking your head as you practically burrowed into his side. His fingers stroked up and down the length of your arm, adding to the calm that enveloped you even as the storm raged outside.

“You ever think about what our life together is going to be like?”

You hummed, lifting your head to peer up at him through sleepy eyes. “I do.”

“You ever think about what kind of house you’d want?” Jake continued, staring into the fireplace.

“Sometimes,” you nodded slowly. “I’d like a house big enough for our kids and grandkids to play in. Somewhere we can grow old in.”

“I’d like that too,” he murmured, hands moving down to play with your fingers absentmindedly. “I want a large house with enough land to support ourselves. Nothing like the amount of land Benji’s got himself here, but enough that we wouldn’t have to struggle.”

Silence fell between the two of you, but it wasn’t unpleasant. You soaked up the feeling of the moment, mind drifting towards sleep as Jake continued to play with your fingers.

“I’m going to build us a big, ol’ house,” he continued quietly. “I’m going to build you the kitchen of your dreams and set up your own little garden while I’m at it. You’re not going to want for anything, Scout.”

You hummed, feeling the touch of cool metal slide onto your left ring finger, a furrow in your brow as your brain tried to claw its way back to the land of the conscious.

“I can’t give you all these fancy jewels or take you to Paris and London for holidays, but I can give you my heart and my devotion. You’ll never have to question me or my loyalty to you, honey girl.”

You pried your eyes open, gasping at the diamond that now glittered on your hand. Jake brushed his lips against your temple, breathing you in as you struggled to catch up with what was happening, tears filling your eyes as a smile curled on your lips.

“Scout,” Jake started. “Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

A/N: I missed these two so much oh my goooooooood. And how about that ending, huh?? That's crazy lol Anyway, I'm hoping to have some time to work on a few more updates for next week, but we'll see. I'll run a poll for the next update, but let me know thoughts! Both on the next update and what you thought of this chapter!

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