#Anyway I really have to sleep but I'm too agitated now so tomorrow will be a wonderful day at work

[will80sbyers]

My main issue with the Edward Creel theories is...sure let's assume Vecna is two different ppl, then what? It kinda just seems like they're using Edward as a dumping ground for all of the bad qualities that Henry displays on screen. We should empathize with Henry because no one's born evil. However, this other dude, Edward? Yeah fuck him! He's the REAL big bad threat who's doing all the REAL bad things. It just seems convulated tbh, and the timeline addition to those theories just makes it a bigger mess. If no one is truly born evil per the narrative, what point would it make to have an evil, time jumping entity who's actually the "bad guy"? Just my take.

Great point!

I have not read the whole thing because I don't follow those blogs since last year but a friend told me something about it and what I read didn't convince me so that's why I say I don't believe that

The Edward name being in the papers is weird though, I will admit that, although it could be a production mistake because maybe they meant to call Henry as Edward before but then changed their minds or something like that... Seeing that they are giving him 2947282729 names, I also have thought it could be some DID scenario because the Duffers started working in the industry thanks to the same guy that made the movie Split so they could sort of want to praise him by doing something similar... I don't know!

But to be honest I don't care that people make theories about him or even if they like him- they are free to do that as long as they don't come into my blog to harass me because I don't like him and hope he dies suffering after all he did to the kids

I'm just saying my thoughts on him, and properly tagging my posts as ANTI so they can block them if they are triggered by my opinion that much, but people like to believe themselves superior while sending literal harassment to others over a fictional character so here we are 🌈

[toomanyfandoms-notenoughfics]

Celestial Beings

Chapter Nine: Sides

Characters: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Female Reader, Molly Weasley, Moldy Voldy (Voldemort)

Summary: (Y/n) wakes up much later than she planned only to head downstairs and overhear Remus and Sirius. She can't understand emotions well.

Word Count: 2,835

Warnings: Swearing, Threats, Mentions of Blood, Cutting (Accidental not Self-Harm), Arguing, Implications of drinking

Reminders: @nicolegrace2004 (not sure if this is the right blog but I'm hoping so)

(Y/n) awoke with a start as a knock sounded from the door. She looked around the room wildly, as if expecting someone or something else to be there. Another knock at the door finally shook her from her thoughts, causing her to throw the blankets off herself as she hurried to the door. She swung it open quickly, with a little too much force, making it hit the wall loudly.

“Shit! Sorry.” She muttered quickly, her thoughts still racing. “Didn’t mean to sleep, I-”

“Are you alright dear?” Molly asks worriedly, her eyebrows stitched together. “Sirius and Remus told me what happened, I won’t pry. It’s been a few hours since dinner, and no one’s heard a peep from you. Just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Oh.” (Y/n) takes a moment to breathe, unsure of how to respond. “I’m… I don’t know really, I think I’m alright though.” She assures Molly, giving her a small smile. “Sorry about missing dinner, I really didn’t think I was going to fall asleep.”

“It’s alright, I saved you a plate downstairs. I didn’t do too much tonight anyways, just a small casserole.” Molly waves it off. “They’re still waiting in the parlor for you, if you feel up for it. Don’t feel pressured to do anything that will… agitate yourself.” she says carefully.

“Right, yeah…” (Y/n) runs a hand through her hair, trying to quickly brush it back into place. “Which way to the parlor again?”

“All the way down the stairs, take a left, third door to your right nearest the exit.” Molly reminds her with a smile. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.” (Y/n) says as she fixes her clothes. “Once again, so sorry about dinner. I’ll be sure to get there tomorrow.”

“Alright, well I’ve got to-” Molly gets cut off as a crash is heard down the hall. “Those silly kids, I swear if Tonks has them doing some stupid spell again… I’ll check in with you tomorrow, (y/n).” She quickly hurries off toward the sound of the crash as another occurs.

(Y/n) rushes down the stairs, adrenaline starting to fade as the nightmares fade fully into nothingness. As she gets to the bottom of the stairs she hears voices from the hall, talking rather loudly. Stopping just shy of the corner she listens in.

“We could always wait a little longer.” Sirius groans. “She didn’t look too good earlier, probably just lost track of time.”

“Or she just doesn’t want to see us…” Remus sighs. “We’ve been waiting hours Pads. I’d rather just head to bed.”

“You.” Sirius says bluntly. “You mean she doesn’t want to see, you.” (Y/n) hears him take a drink of something. “Which, even if that were the case, she’d still would like to know we waited I’m sure. Besides, what if she does want to come down here and we’re gone? It’d be like lying to her.”

“She’s the one who lied.” Remus retorts quickly, also pausing to take a drink. “She lied about the mirror, didn’t tell us about being able to read minds, and who knows what else she’s been lying about. You can’t just blindly trust people, Pads.” (Y/n) feels her heart drop.

“I’m not.” Sirius sighs. “But she deserves at least part of our trust by now, doesn’t she? She’s earned it.”

“By doing what? Sulking around?” Remus lets out a dry laugh. “We let her roam around, let her have her own room, she hasn’t helped us once.”

“She doesn’t need to.” Sirius takes another drink. “That’s not the goal remember?”

(Y/n) feels her cheeks getting warm with anger and embarrassment. Her fists balled up as she takes a step back, not wanting to know anything else. She turns to head to the kitchen as whispers swirl around her.

“You forgot didn’t you?” a familiar voice says from nowhere. “To them you’re nothing more than a means to an end. A pawn in their game.”

“Because you’ve always thought of me as anything other than a weapon, shut up.” (Y/n) mutters in response, shutting the kitchen door behind herself. “No need to pretend to care.”

“Pretend? You’re my blood, (y/n). Of course I care.” Voldemort tuts. “I can both care about you and discipline you. The two are not mutually exclusive. Besides, without me you’d have been murdered by the ministry when you were born. You’re special, and that scares them.”

“Special is just a nice word for abomination.” She retorts, finding the plate Molly had made for her, taking the foil off the top. “Your version of discipline is torture. Go away.”

“I see they’ve confused you.” his tone becomes more strained. “Don’t worry, we can fix that when you return.”

“No.” (Y/n) says, quicker than she could think. She freezes mid bite. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”

“No? No?!” Voldemort’s voice feels like daggers in her head now. “How dare you tell me no. After everything I’ve done for you? Fed you, kept you clothed, kept you alive! You’ll do as you’re told, as you’ve been taught, or I will make the ‘torture’ you’ve endured seem like child’s play. Next time you want to say no, just remember where I currently reside and whom I live with.”

(Y/n) feels the connection loosen, his voice fading into nothingness, leaving her to think on his threat. She looks down at the food and tosses it into the trash, no longer having an appetite. She shakily begins to wash the plate, the water burning her hands as she turns it to maximum heat.

“(Y/n)?” Sirius’s voice startles her, the plate slipping from her hand as she turns around. It shatters as it hit the floor near her feet.

“For fuck’s sake!” She shouts, her anxiety being quickly replaced by frustration. She quickly kneels down and starts gathering the broken pieces. “Sorry, I’ll clean it up.”

“Here let me help.” Sirius says softly, taking a step forward. She flinches as he crouches down.

“I said I’ll clean it up.” She snips. “It’s my mess.”

“It happens, it’s not an issue.” Sirius speaks quietly. He begins picking up some of the glass, conjuring a trashcan. “Here.”

“I don’t need your pity, I can do it myself.” (Y/n) grabs a piece of glass too tightly, slicing into her palm be accident. She drops it quickly, pulling her hand to her chest. “Damn it!”

“Let me see.” Sirius holds out his hand, waiting. “I’ll just worry more if you don’t let me see it, so if you want me out of your hair sooner, let me look.”

“Fine.” She reluctantly gives him her hand. After a few seconds she hears the sound of ripping fabric, before she feels cloth being wrapped around her hand. She looks at him confused. “Why not use magic?”

“Well, you can’t use yours so I’ve been trying to cut back using it myself.” He shrugs. “What’re you doing in here?”

“Molly left me a plate, I was hungry.” She lied easily. “Figured you two had gone to bed or something. Fell asleep by accident for a few hours, don’t expect either of you to wait for me.”

“If you were so hungry, why’d you toss the food?” He asks, pointing at the open trash.

“I.. I um…” she fumbles on her words, unable to find a good excuse. A quick sharp pain shoots behind her eyes, making her wince. “Stop asking questions.”

“(Y/n),” Sirius sighs, gathering the last of the glass. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but we’re trying to understand. We can’t do that if you keep lying to us.”

(Y/n) stands up slowly, looking away from him. She doesn’t say a word as she turns around, looking down at her hand. Sirius eyes her cautiously as he puts the trashcan back. (Y/n) shuts her eyes, muttering something to herself before she takes a deep breath and turns around.

“Am I really so hard to understand to you?” She asked him quietly, not looking at him. “Has it never occurred to you that I have no reason to tell you anything? Since I’ve been here my memories have been stolen and destroyed, I’ve been moved from one dungeon to a bright golden cage, I’ve been tortured with Unforgivables, and my own father has attacked me. Why would I show any vulnerability in a place that’s only ever been unsafe?

“I see the wardings and spells that you’ve put into place, including the ones that will nearly kill me to restrain me. I hear all the things everyone thinks about me, about each other.” (Y/n)‘s voice is shaky as she continues. “Why would I tell the truth when none of you ever do? You all pretend to be fine having me around, but I can hear you all wondering when the next shoe will drop. No one has even trusted me with knowing that Harry is going to be coming here before school starts. Too worried I’ll break, that I’ll lose it. But you want me to be truthful? No, you want me to be helpful? Wait, that’s not the goal though, right, Sirius?”

Sirius is too stunned to speak. (Y/n) huffs as she pushes past him and out the door. She pauses for a moment when she sees Remus staring at her in shock on the other side of the hall. They lock eyes for a moment, neither saying a word. She’s the first to look away, quickly going up the stairs, undoing the makeshift bandage.

(Y/n) tosses the cloth to the side, ignoring the stinging sensation on her hand. She makes it to her room quickly, slamming the door shut behind her. She drags a chair over and puts it in front of the door, angled just below the door knob. It doesn’t take long for there to be a knock at her door.

“(Y/n)? Can we talk?” Remus’s muffled voice asks. She watches as he turned the handle, trying to open the door but fails. “(Y/n) please, I know you overheard part of our conversation downstairs. We didn’t mean anything by it, we were just clearing the air.”

(Y/n) stays quiet, sitting down on her bed. There’s a soft thud sound outside the door, followed by the sound of something sliding. She looks at the door confused.

“You’re right.” Remus tells her through the door. “When we first let you up here, we wanted you to be helpful. We give you something, you give us something. And we are worried about you losing it. You said it yourself you’ve lost it before.”

(Y/n) flinches hearing his words.

“And we do have a goal. It’s not for you though, not entirely.” Remus sighs. “It sounds stupid, but we… we want you to be able to be yourself. Even if it’s just in this stupid place. And I know, what you’ve had to go through here, what you’re still going through… it’s not fair.”

(Y/n) sighs, standing up slowly.

“And I’ve been an ass.” Remus admits. “It was my idea to talk to you in the first place, to get you out of the cell. I want to trust you, but… I guess if anyone would understand it’d be you. I’m a werewolf, (y/n). I hear heartbeats the way you hear thoughts. It gets in the way sometimes, no matter how much I try to ignore it.”

(Y/n) moves the chair from the door, opening it up. She doesn’t say anything as Remus falls backward into the room, having been sat against it. The two of them stare at eachother in silence for a moment before she holds her hand out to help him up.

“I don’t mean to listen you know.” (Y/n) mutters after helping him. “You all have a habit of thinking loudly, I can’t always ignore it.”

“I’m sorry about yelling at you before.” Remus apologizes again. “About the mirror.”

“S’fine.” She shrugs. “Like I said before, I deserve worse than your anger.”

“Sirius was going to come up too.” Remus says awkwardly.

“I’m sorry about lying so much.” She blurts quickly. “It’s just… it’s the only way I survived growing up. Hard habits or whatever the saying is. I’m not used to this.”

“They really did do a number on you, huh?” Remus remarks. She freezes for a moment, looking down at her hurt hand.

“Yeah. I… I guess they did.” She takes a deep breath in. “I’m going to regret this…”

“Huh?” Remus looks at her confused.

“He’s in my head.” (Y/n) says quickly as the fire-like pain flares up behind her eyes. A wave of pain hits her hard causing her knees to buckle, sending her to the ground.

“Hey you don’t have to-” Remus tries to catch her but fails. He quickly crouches down. “You’ll just hurt yourself, stop.”

“I… I don’t want…” (Y/n) feels tears fall down her cheeks. “I can’t just do whatever he wants. I won’t!” She shouts, holding her head in her hands as the pain worsens. The whispers start swirling around her head.

“(Y/n) you need to stop.” Remus urges worriedly. “Talk about something else, anything else.”

“No!” She growls, swatting away one of his hands as he reaches for her. She manages to open her eyes, meeting his. “Let me help!”

“(Y/n)…” Remus looks at her eyes, panic running down his spine. Her eyes are bloodshot, her nose beginning to bleed. “Please stop.”

“You should really listen to him.” Her father’s voice rang out.“Stop trying to brute force your way through. It won’t work. Not without killing you.”

“Shut up!” She cried loudly, covering her ears. Remus backed up a bit.

“You think I’d have made a curse so easily broken?” Voldemort laughed loudly. “You were raised better than that, trained better than that. Just give it up, no matter what you do I’ll win.”

“(Y/n),” Remus said softly, gently placing his hand on her shoulder. “Please, stop. You’re hurting yourself, and you’re worrying me.”

“Look at how he pretends to care!” Voldemort barks. “Poor (y/n), to weak to help herself. You’re as disappointing as your mother was. I suggest you stop before you meet them same fate.”

“What?” (Y/n) asks stunned. “What does that mean?”

“I said you were worrying me.” Remus says confused. “I’m worried. You’re bleeding from your nose. Whatever you’re doing, it’s not going to help.”

“No, not you.” (Y/n) waves him off. She’s silent for a moment, trying to listen for her father, but is instead met with silence. The whispers melting into the background and the pain starting to subside.“Damn it!”

“Woah, hey what’s going on in here?” Sirius asks from the doorway, glass of scotch in one hand, bottle in the other.

“Curse.” Remus and (Y/n) both say in unison, the young woman flinching as she says it.

“Wanted to help.” She grumbles frustrated. “Turns out, not much help.”

“Okay, good.” Sirius smiles, turning toward his room. “Worried you two were fighting again. Heard yelling.”

“Are you okay?” Remus asks her, ignoring his drunk friend.

“Do we fight that often?” She asks confused. “And yeah, it goes as quick as it comes.” She flinches. “When I keep my mouth shut.”

“Right, sorry.” Remus lets out a sigh of relief. “Next time, more warning.”

“Sorry.” (Y/n) groans as she stands up, using the dresser as stability. “I um… I do think I just chose though.”

“Chose?” Sirius asks from the door, stopping in his tracks. “Chose what?”

“A side.” She looks at Remus worriedly. “Is that what I did?”

“Well… I guess yeah.” Remus looks at Sirius and then down at the bottle of scotch. “Did you bring more glasses?”

“No, but I could always just conjure some, why?” Sirius asks, a small smirk on his features.

“I think we all deserve a drink.” Remus says, helping (y/n) to her bed. “Any objections?”

“Merlin’s beard no.” (Y/n) says, gesturing to Sirius to come in. “Hurry before I change my mind.”

“Haven’t heard that one in a while…” Sirius jokingly mutters as he enters the room, shutting the door behind him. “Then again, was in Azkaban for a while. Not a lot of choice in there.”

“I’m sure you’ve had many happy partners.” (Y/n) says, taking the bottle from him as he gets close enough. She takes a big gulp of the alcohol straight from the bottle. She coughs lightly as it stings her throat. “Why’d I do that?”

“Drink from the bottle?” Sirius asks confused.

“No, why’d I do all of that?” She gestures toward the dresser area. “Choose a side, try to brute force, ow, the curse, fuck!” She grabs her head in pain.

“Worry about that tomorrow.” Remus says, taking the bottle from her and having a sip himself. “Tonight, we drink.”

End of Chapter Nine

[colderdrafts]

15: New Plan

The Great Assembly, gender neutral reader x monster (male naga). Sfw. Previous Next

You type in the number and dial.

It's stupid. It's so stupid you're doing this but you can't think of what else to do. It's the middle of the night, your heart is racing and you swore you saw an all too familiar long-limbed silhouette moving through the streets outside. It's been months, you KNOW it's nothing.

But your trembling body doesn't.

"..Bwu-huh?" comes Irwin's voice through the phone, groggy with sleep.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry to wake you, just-"

"Hold on. Are you alright?" he asks, immediately perking up and on high alert. You hear the sound of fabric rustling through the phone, presumably as he sits up.

"Yes - no," you sigh through your nose, trying to calm your breathing. "I know it's dumb but-"

"It's not dumb, buddy," Irwin says gently. "Nightmares again? Wanna tell me about it? Should I come get you?"

There he goes again, a never-ending foundation of support and patience. Unfortunately, he's very good at it.

That's why you called him, after all.

"No," you mutter, taking a deep breath. "No, it's alright. Could you just.. talk for a bit?"

"My specialty," he announces with flair, attempting to lighten the mood. "You got it."

Irwin spends the next few minutes going over his day, including a nice conversation with his father, delicious tuna sandwiches and a very cute dog he got to pet. It's so terribly mundane to just have him gently chatting that it soothes any worry you had.

How could you be in trouble when everything is, at this point, so very perfectly normal?

You can feel your heart settling a little and your breathing evening out bit by bit as you listen to his tale.

"- and that's why I'm not allowed inside the company kitchen," Irwin finishes with a snort. He pauses. "Are you okay?"

"Better now. Thanks," you sigh, glancing out your window at the emptiness of the city streets at night. Nothing is there, and nothing had been there. "It's just my paranoia acting up again, nothing's happening, don't worry. I don't even know why I called you. I'm sorry."

"Hey it's chill. I'm glad you did! If I can't bore you to sleep with my amazingly interesting every-day bull, how else are you gonna have energy to finish my excel sheet for me tomorrow?" he chuckles.

You scoff in feign indignation. "I have never agreed to such a thing."

"Not yet you haven't! Pinky promise, it's a fun one this time. Lots of numbers and unsorted names on lists and stuff. Right up your alley."

"I can't believe you're using my late night paranoia as an excuse to get out of work," you laugh.

"Hey, if I can distract your brain with my terrible coworker manners I might as well. It's working, isn't it?"

Damn him, it is. "Thank you Irwin."

"Anytime!"

It's a rough night where sleep comes and goes, and you keep hearing the bone chilling cheeriness of Mira's voice on repeat in your mind. The new feeling of responsibility for this situation cast upon you has not done well to soothe any agitated strains coursing through your body.

You hear Elise get up around 7am and start mulling about downstairs. You're not getting any sleep anyway, so you decide to join her in the kitchen.

"You look like someone smashed you with a hammer," she comments as a greeting when you poke your head through the doorway to see what she's doing.

She's downed a flowery apron, rolled up her sleeves and her tough hair pulled back in a ponytail. The kitchen counter is covered in baking ingredients and flour. Looks like she's preparing some batter.

"Good morning to you too," you grumble at her, entering the room fully. "Smells good in here."

She smiles and you hear her sniff the air briefly. "Well it did. Mr. Grumpy kept you up last night?"

You groan in exasperation. "It's that bad? I just gave him a hug!"

"Then you've done him a solid," Elise chuckles, and returns her attention to the batter in front of her.

You settle against the kitchen counter. "Did you sleep alright?"

Elise nods. "Like a brick. Been a while since I've had time to just unwind for a bit like this. It's nice," she looks at you. "Well. Horrible circumstances saying that I can, but. You know what I mean."

"Yeah. I guess with everything going on work isn't really a top priority anymore. I don't dislike my job, but now I feel sorta bad for wishing for some excitement."

"Well, careful what you wish for as fae say."

You look around the kitchen and take in the rustic charm. Something as simple as watching Elise preparing a batter - for bread, seems like - it's a nice break from the horrors that'd plagued you all night to be a part of something so ordinary.

"I wouldn't have taken you for the type to be into baking," you note, watching her expertly fold the dough.

"Gotta put these guns to use somehow," Elise flexes her impressively muscular right arm momentarily and grins. "Ya’know, since I'm currently not wrangling shady folks intruding on company property and all. Wanna join? I still need to roll them out."

You roll up your sleeves. "So you have a brother who likes to sleep on concrete?" you ask to fill the silence as you get to work.

"Yep. When he's not crashing here, he works in ocean research-mumbo-jumbo so he's out sailing a lot,” she replies. “He's a smart lad, always chatting my ear off about the newest deep-sea discovery. I don't get half of it, but he seems happy."

"Sounds like an interesting job," you nod. You glance at her. "There's something else, actually."

"Hmm?"

"I uh, I heard you talking the other night. You really don't have to feel guilty, you know?"

She pauses, not looking at you. Seems she’s not too keen on turning the conversation in this direction, but she responds regardless. "Heard that, huh? Look, I know. It's just - I grew fond of the little rascal pretty quick, and he was with me when he got snatched. It's hard not to is all."

You focus on rolling out a bun. "I get it. Just - I thought you should know."

She nods.

"And another thing - Thanks for letting me stay here. Or well, both of us stay here. You didn't have to do that."

"'Course, can't have anything happening to the other hum that barreled into my life," she snickers, gently bumping your shoulder. "'sides, I kind of see myself as a nanny of sorts. Somebody’s gotta keep an eye on you and Amren.”

"Nanny?” you chuckle. “We’re all adults here, is that really necessary?"

Elise dumps a bun on the counter with a dull splat, and flicks some flour at your face playfully. "Gotta make sure you don't do anything brash, and that the grumpy idiot doesn't destroy whatever little connection you two have when trying to stop you."

You wipe the flour of your face. "Connection? What do you mean?"

"Look. That useless slab of rocks is never going to tell you this himself, so I will," she says. "He obviously cares about you. I've known that stubborn snake for years and trust me. He does not go out of his way, ever. But he does for you. So whatever the hell you did to him, keep doing it,” she grins. “If anything, as a favor to me. Unfortunately I care about that dumbass, and you bet your lil' hum behind I'm going to make that your problem."

Your problem? Is it one?

You don’t exactly know what you've 'done' to said dumbass, it certainly didn't seem like much has changed in his point of view, other than an odd need to keep an eye on you and his awkward attempts at being supportive. Perhaps those small gestures means more than you think. Elise has known Amren longer than you have, so supposedly you’ll have to take her word for it.

“I don’t really know what to say to that,” you admit.

She shakes her head. “You don’t have to say anything. Just keep on truckin’ and you’ll be fine.”

A little later the buns have been set to prove, and you've settled at the kitchen table, chatting back and forth. Elise is very easy to talk to, her rough-and-gruff perspective on things makes you laugh more than once.

She shares some stories of her and her brother's upbringing in the city, and how their parents used to take them sailing. She asks you gently on how you’re doing with all of this, and you try your best to share a little of your troubles and the gnawing worry in your heart.

You reassure her though that staying here has been good for you so far.

"I don't know what I would've done sitting alone in my apartment. I think paranoia would get the best of me,” you finish.

"That's pretty reasonable all things considered. Don't worry, it gets lonely here too when my brother's away. I'm happy to have company,” she smiles. Then she frowns. “Even if it means dealing with you."

Her sudden shift in tone makes you look up in confusion but Elise is looking behind you. You turn and watch Amren slithering into the kitchen, looking as happy as a rotten prune.

"Still not a morning person, huh?" you comment.

"Morning sunshine~" Elise sings.

Amren grumbles something under his breath and goes to set a kettle on. "Tiny decided to pick up a call from a certain coyote last night," he says to Elise. "After spending an hour trying to break into Irwin's phone. Keeping me up."

"Snitch," you scold him.

He flicks his tongue at you.

Elise turns to you, clacking her tusks and instantly on guard, as you knew she would be. "You talked to her?!"

You explain briefly the interaction you had, to which she listens intently.

"What did Irwin say?" she asks when you’re done.

Amren hands both of you a warm mug of coffee and settles next to you.

"I have no idea," you mutter, defeated, and pause to take a sip. "Something about me 'starting the company'? Why on Earth 2.0 would he-"

"At," Amren adds, interrupting you. "Starting at the company."

Realization hits you and you spot the same look in Amren's eyes.

"Tiny, when was your starting date at the company?" he asks.

"I don't - sometime March? I guess?"

"Hold on," Amren hands you his mug and leaves your side to deftly slither up the stairs, leaving you and Elise hanging in the kitchen. Moments later he returns with his laptop, sets it on the table and turns it on.

You watch him fiddle with it in silence, eyes scanning the page with brows furrowed in concentration.

"March 3rd," he announces, looking up at you. "You started working there a March 3rd."

You pick up Irwin's phone and type in the date.

It unlocks.

"He set the code for the day I - oh," you feel a sting in the corner of your eyes.

That must be one of the sweetest things Irwin’s ever done, and probably why he'd been adamant about you not knowing about it, unless his life literally depended on it. And he managed to pass it on to you without raising suspicion. That clever little trickster.

"He's very fond of you, isn't he?" Amren mutters, closing his laptop.

"Seems so," you laugh sadly. "And, thank you. How did you even -?"

"Security detail. Contains logs on all employees," he replies. "Part of the job is keeping tabs on everyone."

"Creepy.." Elise notes from the kitchen counter with a sly grin.

"You've got them too!" Amren hisses defensively.

"I don't use them!"

"You should!"

You tune out their bickering on correct methods of security-performance and focus on the now unlocked phone. You haven’t actually planned for what to do once you got in. Now that it’s happened, you find yourself at an impasse.

Is snooping allowed at this point? It feels so invasive. Irwin is notoriously online, his phone basically contains his entire personality. What if you find something private he doesn't want you to see?

And what exactly do you hope to gain from looking? As far as you know, Irwin was as random a target as you. Why should his phone hold any answers to why he was taken?

And more importantly, why should it hold answers of where he was taken to?

But if Mira deliberately dropped it for you to find, and that odd phone call.. the uncanny feeling you got that you had to keep it – Irwin’s subtle clue so you could unlock it - it's just tugging at your mind. It might be a false sense of hope, but you firmly hold on to it. These things can't be coincidental. There must be something.

Irwin will forgive you for this transgression, surely.

You runs your eyes over the screen.

He has a bunch of social media apps, a few cutesy phone games and a messaging app full of unread messages. He also has a dating app installed, with an equal amount of unread messages. Browsing through the missed calls, you see a lot from you, obviously, but also from his father, some people whose names you recognize as his other friends, and a person named Marcus. The most recent however are four missed calls and one accepted from an unknown caller, which you assume must all be from Mira.

"Anything of interest?" Elise asks, efficiently halting her argument with Amren.

"A bunch of missed calls from me, his dad, Mira and a Marcus. I don't know of any Marcus in Irwin's life. And then a whole heap of unread texts."

Amren leans over you shoulder to take a look at the phone. "Are there any texts from this Marcus? Maybe they can give us a clue," he suggests.

You scroll through the messaging app, and, sure enough, there are a couple of texts from him.

It's a back and forth on meeting times, and not much else. The last message from Irwin was just before the conference, informing Marcus Irwin will be gone for the conference from that day on, and Marcus replying with a thumbs up. The latest message from Marcus was from yesterday.

"You're back, right? When are you available?"

"This doesn't help us much.." Amren muses. "What are they meeting about?"

"I have a guess," Elise shrugs nonchalantly. "They're probably just hooking up."

You and Amren simultaneously look up to give her a weird look, which she waves off.

"Oh come on, no conversation points, no relationship development whatsoever, and we've all seen first hand that our hum friend cannot hold an inkling of alcohol to save his life, most likely not drugs either? What else would it be?"

What else indeed. It wouldn't be unheard off that Irwin would be blowing off some steam in his spare time and not tell you about it - it is, frankly, absolutely none of your business. Amren would be proud of you for thinking so.

"Well, that's his business. I don't really want to pry more if that's the case," you say, and consider for a moment. "But what if that's not the case? If there's any chance this Marcus fellow might know something, wouldn't it be better to cover all bases to figure this out? I mean, Irwin wouldn't shout his code at me if he didn't want me to find something here. And I don't really see anything else sticking out."

Amren hums in consideration. "While I'm hesitant to head into uncharted territory, that might actually be true," he says. "And he clearly isn't aware Irwin is missing. This might be an opportunity to get some answers."

You mull it over. "Let's say I meet with him. What do I even say? Hello, I'm the coworker of that guy you're frequently.. seeing?"

Elise snorts. "Good ice breaker! But maybe follow it up with a very good reason for why you're the one there instead of Irwin."

"They're not meeting with him alone," Amren comments firmly.

"'Course not, you big grump. We'll be waiting close by."

You look at both of them. "Thank you. Really, we didn't even know each other barely two weeks ago."

"And now we do. Get over it," Elise ruffles your hair.

You sit and discuss a plan for how to approach Marcus, and you do your best impersonation of Irwin when you write a reply to meet up this evening. Marcus replies with a thumbs up.

[constant-mason24]

The Fall of Raccoon City- Prologue (Leon Kennedy x Reader AU)

Chapt 1

Months before Leon S. Kennedy was meant to start his job as an officer in the RPD, another officer uncovered a dark secret, outing Chief Irons as a wicked man involved in a deep conspiracy with a pharmaceutical company. As both the RPD and the Umbrella Corporation begin to recover from the stains on their reputations, Leon struggles to settle down in a job that's as much of a mess as he is. As he slowly begins to befriend his fellow officers and learns more about what transpired before his arrival, Leon begins to realize all too late that this battle has only just begun, and the officer who caught his eye may very well be in danger…

♠♥♣♦

It's been a long night, but (Y/n) was content with the results. The puzzle was left on the rookie's desk, the sign hanging over the office welcoming him in, and the snacks she had ready to go in the break room. Some of her fellow officers said it might have been too much, but (Y/n) thought it would be best to welcome the new recruit in a big, friendly way.

"He's not even part of your unit, West." Elliot laughed, watching as she nearly fell off the ladder trying to hang up the decor.

"Hey, I've only been out of the unit for, like, two months!" She huffed in defense, agitated he didn't even move to catch her as she wobbled from the height. "Besides, I feel guilty that this guy is walking into a complete shitshow."

"Eh," the officer on the floor grunted, looking down into his near-empty coffee mug. "It's not that bad. Marvin is more than ready to step up to the plate, and everyone else is settling down now. Things will be back to normal soon."

"I don't think it's gonna be that easy." The woman huffed as she lowered herself off the ladder. "Wesker's been up my ass about this case so bad, I can't take a breath without being reminded."

"That sounds like a 'you' problem, little miss hero." He shakes his head. "You should've expected that before agreeing to join S.T.A.R.S."

"One does not just turn down the chance to join S.T.A.R.S." She smirked at Elliot. "And I felt like I couldn't really say no anyway. Not with everything that happened."

"Yeah, how's that hip, by the way?" The man asked, moving to sit down at his desk.

"Oh." (Y/n) gently put her hand on the front left side of her hip, where her thigh met her abdomen. "It doesn't bother me when I'm not actively thinking about it."

"Probably just PTSD more than anything else."

"I don't have PTSD." She rolled her eyes, taking the ladder down to return it to the closet. "I got shot. Big fucking deal. Don't see me cryin about it." 

"Now, look at this, (L/n)! This is beautiful!"

Before Elliot could retort, Marvin Branagh came into the west office. He looked up at the sign (Y/n) had just hung from the ceiling, a bright smile on his face.

"Thank you! I thought it'd be nice to welcome our newbie with something special. I also gave him a puzzle." She explained.

"A puzzle?"

"Yeah, to unlock his desk, he has to get the initials of his unit members and input them into the locks. It's like an icebreaker game."

"That's cute." Marvin nodded his approval, causing (Y/n) to beam. "Well, I'm sure the new guy will feel right at home, but it's getting late. You're expected back here earlier tomorrow, so I'm officially sending you home for some sleep."

"Alright." She didn't put up a fight, sighing softly and she put the ladder into a closet and moved to grab her bag. 

"Oh, and (Y/n)?"

"Yes, sir?"

"The word 'welcome' only has one 'L.'"

Branagh laughed as the woman groaned.

���♣♥♠

The steady humming of the car wasn't enough to ease the headache still pounding through Leon's skull. The music was set at a volume much lower than usual, in hopes it would help keep the pain at bay. His head still felt like an ax had cracked into it anyway. Still, he'd choose this headache now over being sober last night.

Taking a deep breath that sounded more like a sigh, he looked to his right at a road sign rapidly approaching on the horizon. Ahh, Raccoon city was just ahead. Perfect. Looking over at his gas meter, Leon hummed as he realized he should probably fill up soon. Tapping gently against the steering wheel, he slowly veered to the right, exiting the highway to make his way to the gas station just outside of town. 

It was dark out, a gentle rain starting to gear up into a downpour. He parked the car next to a gas pump, jumped out, and all but jogged into the store to avoid the rain. The first thing he noticed was eerie darkness throughout the small station as if the power was out completely. With a frown, stepped further into the room, letting the headlights of his own car flood the store with some kind of visibility. 

"Hello?" He called out, looking around for any living soul. This was the second thing he noticed: the store was completely empty beside him. Maybe they had gone into the back room? 

Leon found himself hesitating as he took a step toward the storeroom door. He raised a hand to the knob just as someone pushed it open from the other side and nearly hit him. He jumped back with a small yell, just as the man on the other side of the door yelled out as well.

"Jesus Christ, son! Scared the living daylights outta me." The man huffed, leaning over and resting his hands on his knees. "You trying to give an old man a heart attack, boy?" 

"N-no sir," Leon stuttered, recovering from his own scare. "Just didn't know if anyone was here."

"Yeah, I'm here." The old man groaned as he stood straight, stretching out his back."power just went out. Think a fuse blew. Gimme a second to get it up and runnin' again."

Leon nodded, moving to look over the shelves as the man went into the back room again. Within just a minute, the lights flickered back on, and Leon could now see the bags of chips and cookies before him clearly. He picked up a bag of salt and vinegar chips, flipping it over before deciding on that and a soda to take with him. 

When he made his way to the counter, the old man was standing at the register, checking to make sure everything was ready to go. 

"Can I get fifteen on pump three?" Leon asked softly, setting his prizes on the counter. The man nodded with a grunt, ringing up the snacks as well as Leon awkwardly looked out the window of the store. 

"Twenty-two, fifty." The man grumbled, and Leon fished his wallet out to pay. He glances out at his car parked by the pump, hoping this job would turn out to be just what he needed…

[klarolineashur1919]

Only We Matter Series

Note: Ok this one shot series probably going to be a long one this is the end of the 1919 parts, I'm going to do 1921, 1924 then 1926. Thank you

Part 5

June 16, 1919

Her smile

Luca Pov

Well she's acknowledging me now, even talking to me a little bit. The talking part I think is a miracle. I been starting to sit in the back while she works. She isn't really nervous around me anymore maybe a blush here and there. But I think that's cute, she's cute. I get her to talk to me about what she will of her family, and I tell her about the places I've been. I get her to smile, I love when she smiles. I have to go back to New York though and I don't think I want to. It's always hard leaving my family but now I'm leaving her.

"You're moping" I get out of my thoughts in Angel's direction.

"Huh?" I look at him confused.

"You're moping around, I told you she wasn't going to sleep with you" shaking his head at me.

"What are you going on about?" my accent came out as I slightly jumped up from my chair.

"You're going back to New York soon and Penelope gave to nothing to remember her by, so you're moping around" he chuckled and shrugged at me for the last part.

"Brother I'm not you" I gave a long disappointed sigh. Believe me it's not going to be hard to remember her let alone not think about her all time. I think about her all the time now. It's going to be hard not having the small moments with her that I do now.

"Yes, but you're still a man last I checked" he tilted his head at me.

"I'm not a pig and I do actually like her" my American accent kept coming out now I'm shaking my head at him.

"Well brighten up here she comes, she's late today" he was looking at her in a way I didn't like through the window.

"She called to let us know she was going to be, she said she had stuff with school and she's only an hour late anyway" she saw me through the window and smiled. She had the cutest smile with her cheeks, her lips and just her face in general. God that face was going to be the death of me. Then looked down and blushed like she usually does.

"Oh, so that's what you were doing on the phone so long" he sounded even more Italian than he usually does with the last bit of that, he was still looking at her and it wasn't her face he was looking at. He's lucky he's my brother.

"I wasn't on the phone that long" sounding agitated by him only cemented with the frown I was having towards him.

"Goodmorning Luca" God the way she says my name. We just smiled at each other as she walked by.

"Goodmorning Penelope" Angel said in also a mocking way as he said looking at me trying to not start laughing about how my face instantly had soften. I just reassuringly nodded to her as she looked in between us.

"Why were you rude to her?" My eyes followed her as she walked to the back not bothering to see his grin was gone, him almost looking scared.

"I wasn't being-" the minute I turned he shut up.

"When did my brother become a mush for girl huh?" he said trying to lighten the mood.

"The minute I saw her" I got up and headed to the back room.

There she was sitting at the table by the wall hand stitching something. The sun hits her perfectly with all the windows on the other side of the room. She always looks more beautiful in the sun. Eventually she looked up and smiled at me. I guess I was standing there for more than a minute.

"Go out with me" it wasn't a question. I was leaving in a day or two.

"What" she laughed lightly as her smile didn't fall but she raised a confused eyebrow.

"There's a restaurant actually not too far from here, we could go tomorrow when you're off at maybe nine or lunchtime" her smile fell a little and her eyes went down to her feet. Merda. I took a long inhaled and leaned against the wall.

"Luca.." she was saying my name regretfully. Merda merda merda.

"I want to but-" she was looking at me in the eye at least.

"That's all that matters isn't it, only we matter nobody else" I knelt down beside her and grabbed on to her hands. I knew it was probably her family.

"My brothers-" I knew it.

"I'll meet them" she looked down shaking her head. I just wanted one night, one day just me and her.

"You've told me about your-" she stopped as her hands grabbed my face.

"Luca please let me talk'' she looked like she was at the point of tears.

"I wasn't supposed to get close to anyone, that was the deal for me to work here. My brothers they're ambitious and there was already trouble a little bit ago with one of my brother's men and one of your father's. They settled it but I wouldn't be surprised more things happened with the territories so close together." she took a long breath out, her thumb started circled my cheek now.

"Pen what does this have to do with us like let me just talk to them, I'll court you properly everything will be fine" I put my hands on her waist pulling her closer to me and she just looked at me with the most loving eyes but as quick as I saw it she looked down again and ended up leaning her head on my shoulder.

"Luca it's not just that, I told you about my sister after her getting pregnant I feel like Arthur is looking out for me more and everyone in my family is already very protective especially about me coming here, I can't lie to them, and my loyalty is to them" with the last point she moved away from me slightly from how I brushed passed the first part of what she said.

"I can't go out with you Luca Changretta even if I want to, maybe in a couple years my brothers will be more reasonable but not now I'm sorry" she straightens up in her chair from me.

"I'm leaving in a day or two" I stand up and she follows. She says nothing and she's looking at her hands folded in front of her.

"I have to go to London first I'll probably leave tomorrow" she biting her lip looking away from me. God say something. Maybe this was one sided. I'm turning to leave now, maybe this is what Angel was trying to tell me. My ego is hurt, I suppose is what I'm feeling. I'm walking towards the door.

"Luca" I turn to her wrapping her arms around my neck. She was hugging me and I was not hugging her back. It was so innocent, she was so innocent. Angel was right I am a man.

I scoffed and her breathing stilled. I didn't mean to scoff, I didn't mean for it to sound cruel. it just came out of my disbelief of my situation. Angel was right, my brother was right. I want her. She started to break away, she was looking down again. God I don't want her to let go. I don't want it to end like this. I started to walk into her, pressing her back into the table she was working on. She was looking up at me now, blushing and eyes wide.

"Luca-" God when she says my name, I don't know what happened but next thing I knew I was kissing her. It was a chaste kiss but my lips were not leaving hers and my hands were keeping her firmly in place on her waist. Her hands were on our sides but they started slowly go up my arms. I needed to break away or I was going to do something.

So I did and we just stood there out of breath. We just were staring at each other. Pen had a indescribable look on her face. She turned around and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Penelope I'm sorry" I walked over to her. She shrugged.

"How long are you going to be gone for?" She turned around keeping a distance between us.

"Maybe a year, maybe more" she looked down and nodded. I was looking down as well. I messed up.

"You think we'll be able to call and write while you're away?" It's like we both lifted are heads up at the same time with a smile.

Her smile was going to be the death of me.

Translation

Sh*t

[mochiable]

— enough. (a)

REQUESTED — hello!! i really like your work and how you write. could i request a scenario about han jisung cheating on reader and her forgiving him every time but then she can’t stay with him anymore and they have a big fight? sorry if it’s so specific, but i think you’d do a great work with this! i’ll understand if you don’t want to do it though, have a nice day!

wc: 1.7k

warnings: toxic relationship, mentions of cheating, swearing, emotional pain

requests are open!

you were fed up. jisung kept shouting your name in the distance, but you didn't want to know any more, you didn't want to hear any more. you were tired of everyone taking you for a naïve fool who didn't realise what was going on around you. ‘poor thing, she has no idea he slept with five other girls’, ‘i feel so sorry for her, how come she's still with him?’ you didn't know, you really didn't know how you could still be with him. maybe they were all right, you were a sucker, but that was going to change, you weren't going to put up with any more humiliation, and much less coming from him.

as soon as you arrived at the flat you shared with your now ex-boyfriend, you locked yourself in your room and took your suitcase out of the wardrobe to start storing your most necessary belongings. you didn't know where you were going to go, you didn't want to bother anyone, but it was either that or sleep in the street or stay in a forty square metre flat with the person you least wanted to see right now. either of the first two options was better than the third one, anyways.

when you finished putting all your clothes away and headed to the bathroom to pick up your make-up and all your creams you heard the front door open loudly and as hurried footsteps followed by several curses headed towards the bedroom.

“what are you doing?” the dark-haired boy asked watching you from the bathroom door, looking through the mirror as you put all the products in your vanity case, hands trembling and clutching things tightly.

“dancing a tango, wanna be my partner?” you replied sarcastically, taking all the courage you had left and turning around to face him, “what the fuck do you think I'm doing, jisung? i’m leaving,” you spat angrily, moving towards the door and bumping your shoulder against his to walk back into the room.

“no, no, no,” he repeated, shaking his head repeatedly as he moved closer to you and tried to get your attention, “listen to me, please listen to me," he pleaded, reaching up to you and turning your face to his with his hands on your cheeks, “it’s not what it looks like, i swear.”

“isn't it? let me guess," you began, bringing your hands up to his and roughly pulling them away from your face, “was it her who kissed you? or maybe, oh, i know, you drank too much and couldn't control yourself?” you roared angrily, pushing him hard in the chest, pushing him two metres away from you, “fuck you, jisung! i’ve had it. you've done nothing but humiliate and despise me. fuck, why can't you take me seriously for once? am i a joke to you, huh? is that it? do you think i’m so deluded as to cheat on me not just once but five times? do you enjoy watching me being mocked and laughed at behind my back? ‘oh poor girl, her boyfriend cheats on her and she keeps chasing after him like an idiot because she can't stand on her own two feet’!”

at first, your age difference was the reason for thousands of messages and threats directed at you. you were only three years older than him, and he was already an adult, you didn't see the problem, you both loved each other, or so you thought. the comments soon went from ‘old predator whore’ to ‘dumb slutty little girl’. you had to put up with how they came on to your boyfriend, and how he did nothing, smiled and even flirted back. however, when a boy came up to you, he seemed to wake up and didn't hesitate to shoo him away.

“no, that's not true. please, y/n,” he came back to you with a desperate expression on his face, managing to cradle your cheeks again and wipe away the tears you hadn't realised were falling from your eyes, “of course i take you seriously, darling. you're my everything. they're lying, i swear, y/n. i’d never do that to you, you have to believe me.”

you pushed him away from you again, and ran your hands through your hair, tousling it and burying your face in your hands. the moment you looked up again, you found your face reflected in the small mirror of the canterano in the room. a haggard, weak, sultry face. you dropped onto the bed, you were exhausted and you knew that this argument had only just begun.

“enough, enough,” you murmured, holding back the sob that was about to escape your throat, “stop lying, just stop! you don't love me, jisung. you never have and you never will. why do you want to keep me here if all you do is make me suffer?”

“no, that’s not true. i do love you, y/n,” he replied softly, crouching down in front of you until his eyes were level with yours. he brought his hands to yours, but you pulled away and stood up again, laughing bitterly.

“you have a terrible way of loving then,” you said, turning around and reaching for your suitcase, but jisung was quicker and wouldn't let you.

“i’m not letting you leave, not without sorting this out,” he said resolutely, snatching the suitcase from you and setting it in a corner, “it’s after midnight, you're not going out at this hour.”

“so now you care? where were you all those times i had to come home alone in the middle of the night because my boyfriend preferred to cheat on me with someone else?” you asked, moving forward again to grab the suitcase, but he got in the way and grabbed your arm, pulling you away from your things. you tried to pull away, but you knew he wasn't going to let go until you two fixed this, so you decided to continue, “you don't have to worry, there's no one out there who's going to hurt me more than you. you can stay calm.”

“tomorrow you can leave if you want, but tonight you're staying, okay? i can't let you leave at this hour, i’m not gonna let you," the grip on your arm was beginning to intensify, but he released you immediately when he saw the expression of discomfort on your face. he unhesitatingly wrapped you in an embrace and pressed you against his body, stroking your hair and resting his head on top of yours, “please stay, love. stay with me tonight.”

“how many others have you told this to? huh? how many others have you told to stay the night with you?” you asked between whimpers against his chest, clutching the sides of his t-shirt tightly in helplessness, “you treat me like shit, you cheat on me, you humiliate me and then you have the balls to tell me you love me.”

jisung, seeing that his words were having the opposite effect to the one they were intended to have, lifted your face and brought it close to his. he brushed your noses in a gentle but subtle gesture and, caressing the lower part of your eyes, he leaned towards you until your lips made contact.

however, the butterflies in your belly that you once wished would never disappear had, indeed, died. none of them was left. because jisung, with his lies and deceit, had killed them off one by one. until the last one that had remained until tonight couldn’t stand it anymore and vanished just like her sisters, leaving an empty hole in your stomach that resembled the one you had in your heart.

still wide-eyed, you brought your hands to his, which rested on your cheeks, and lowered them. jisung gradually broke the contact of your lips, until finally he rested his forehead on yours and let out an agitated sigh.

“you’re staying, right?” he asked once he’d pulled away from your face, looking at you with sympathetic eyes. but you no longer believed anything, you no longer trusted him.

“what would i gain by staying, jisung? i can’t stand any more humiliation,” you answered with a broken voice, trying with all your might he wouldn’t see you cry again. you hated showing weakness in front of him at times like this. you felt that if you did, he’d won again and you were tired of losing.

“please, y/n, please. you can't do this to me,” he growled desperately when you pulled away from him and went to pick up your suitcase. he tried to catch you when he saw you walking towards the door, but you turned and raised your hand, putting it in front of his face and telling him to shut up.

“i can't do this to you? i’m not the one who sent our relationship to hell, jisung. you decided to flirt with other girls, you decided to make out with them and you alone decided to fuck them. you’re the only son of a bitch here, and i’m not going to put up with you treating me like rubbish anymore,” you finished, taking the keys off your key ring and leaving on the front porch the one that opened the flat that was no longer yours. then, you turned to him and started to memorize all the details of his face, before saying your last goodbye, “have a nice life, han jisung.”

you left that apartment putting an end not only to a relationship, but to a lifestyle that had been destroying you for months. you didn’t know how you were going to overcome everything that had happened, but what you were sure about was that you weren’t going to go back and, evidently, you weren’t going to let anyone else treat you as if you weren’t a human being.

jisung’s punishment would be to wake up and remember everything he had and everything he could have continued to have if he hadn’t screwed everything up. now, when he got home he’d only find a cold and empty apartment. but that didn’t compare to how you’d felt during the last months of your relationship, and now it was his turn to feel the worst that can come from a toxic relationship, helplessness and resentment.

[jademakean]

𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐲 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

Timothée Chalamet x Reader

𝑷𝒂𝒖𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔.

｡･:*:･ﾟ

  Drizzles of water began coating your body as you rushed to your best friend's porch, hurriedly knocking on the wooden door.

The extra holiday break from school allowed you to spend more time with Pauline, meaning: chaotic sleepovers

“Hello?”

You looked up meeting a pair of green eyes you hadn't seen in a long while. “Timothée?”

Once the slender figure came to the realization of who was waiting at his front step, his mouth went agape mirroring yours.

You both had been close since you were little. You became friends with Pauline in middle school and met Timothée through her. From then on you were a trio and would do everything together, but that all changed.

Him, being three years older than you meant that he'd go to college first and in the end, there would simply not be any time for you both to be together. You did try to hang out once every two weeks but his college was way too far and he needed to spend his time focussing on his studies. It ended in a bad note, with many hurtful words shared.

Before you knew it, Timothée had you in bone-crushing embrace  “I haven't seen you in months, more than a year maybe! God, I missed you.”

“Why didn't you tell me you came back?” you couldn't hide the slight disappointment of him not thinking about letting you know. “I wanted to but I switched phone numbers and my sister wanted me to surprise you instead. I just didn't know I was going to see you this soon.”

Though you both shared your relief in seeing each, there was some strange tension in the air.

“I gotta visit my aunt right now but we should celebrate tomorrow or something.” He suggested, breaking the silence.

“Yeah totally. I'm sleeping over anyways so we'll probably see each other after dinner. Just be careful, the weather seems to be getting worse.”

“Oh yeah of course. If you need some clothes you can get some from my room, they're in a box on my bed. I know that Pauline's clothes are too small for any human being to wear.”

You giggled at his over-exaggeration nodding “Thanks. Stay safe.”

Once the door shut you felt your mood change. It's not like you weren't happy to see him, you were, but not being able to have the same connection you once had made your heartache.

“DJ Paulina in the house mother fuckers!”

You jumped at your best friend's sudden outburst but laughed nevertheless.

“Holy shit, you're wetter than the pacific ocean!”

You roller your eyes “Really? Damn, I wonder why. It's alright though, Timothée allowed me to borrow one of his shirts.”

“Wait you already saw Timothée?”

“Yeah, he just left.”

Paulina grimaced slightly knowing how hard it might've been for two introverts to reunite after a long period of time, let alone after they had a fight last time they were together. She quickly changed the subject not wanting to upset you.

That didn't mean she wouldn't plan on rebuilding your bond.

۵

The snaps of thunder kept you awake and the heavy drops of rain overtook your mind.

As the time pasted you began wondering what would happen if there was a monster under your bed, if a ghost yanked you by your leg, or if the shadow of the hanging coat was actually a person.

Full-on scaring yourself.

And Pauline's sleep talking was not helping the situation.

Both of you spent the day baking, eating and watching movies. Though it's not how most teenagers take up the opportunity of an empty house, it was more than enough for you two.

What was irritating you at this precise moment was the fact that you were exhausted during the day and still are, except you, can't bring yourself to actually fall asleep.

Creaking sounds were heard throughout the room as your feet made contact with the wooden floor.

You grumbled making your way to the kitchen for a cup of fresh cold water.

The bright electronic clock on the stove displayed the time. 2:23 A.M.

You were so dazed and distracted by the clock that before you could fill your glass with water, the cup fell on the counter.

You felt your heart stop the second the loud sound emitted throughout the quiet space, fearing you'd break your best friend's parent's glass. But once you realized that everything was still stable, you proceeded to finish your plan.

“What are you doing still awake?”

Your body jumped at those words. You turned to see Timothée with hooded eyes and slumped figure, clearly more than half asleep.

“Sorry, I'm a light sleeper and the thunder was keeping me awake.”

“Do you want to sleep with me?”

He smiled softly with a droopy gaze

Not gonna lie, initially some inappropriate thoughts crossed your mind, but vanished once you remembered how every time you had trouble falling asleep, you'd get in his bed and he'd make conversation until you fell asleep.

“Sure.”

Timothée was probably too out of it to understand why it had taken you so look to answer, which you were grateful for.

He lazily intertwined your fingers and led you to his room.

It looked the same as before, maybe some items we're missing so he'd be able to decorate his new apartment, but other than that, still the same.

You hesitantly laid down turning your body away from the curly-headed boy. You felt yourself heating up as last time you shared a bed you were a quite innocent 15-year-old, and to be fair you've always seen him as a bother figure.

But two years have passed and he was now 20, it felt like being with a stranger even though he wasn't.

“You alright?”

He mumbled quietly

“Can I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.” You chewed your lip anxiously. You've never been good at confronting people.

“Is there a reason why you got mad at me when you left. All I remember was you telling me how we couldn't be friends because of all the work you had and how you couldn't handle too many things at the same time. But in the end, you suddenly got mad at me and it ended in a huge fight.”

You could tell that Timothée was now fully awake, definitely not expecting you to mention the topic at this time of night.

“Well, in all honestly I knew you wouldn't want to give up on our friendship. I've always seen you as a loyal strong friend and I didn't want to disappoint you by continuously bailing out on our plans.”

Thought his solution was a stupid one, you understood what he meant. You would most definitely get let down many times and eventually get mad at him, even if it wasn't fully his fault.

“I understand. Just-- Just don't do that again. I'd rather have a relationship with you even if we rarely saw each other, instead of not seeing you at all. I miss being with you.”

Timothée's heavy arm hugged you closer to him. So close you could feel his gentle heartbeat against your back.

“I'm not as much of a mess I was back in the first year of college. I have more spare time, even if college is too far we can face time and meet once a month.”

It was nice to witness his change in attitude regarding the situation, he's now more open-minded and optimistic.

“Is that why you seemed so tense when you saw me today?”

You suddenly felt yourself redden from slight embarrassment “I mean yeah. I kinda overreact a lot, but you know that. I didn't even recognize you, you've changed and I didn't know how to feel.”

You felt chest shake from a deep chuckle as you played with his fingers “Is that a good thing?”

He was making you flustered and he knew it.

“I mean, yeah. You look mature for a 20-year-old. When you were 18 you still had your baby face- it's not a bad thing at all, but now you, um, okay I'm just going to stop talking.”

Once again, Timothée's body shook slightly from his laughter which eventually died down.

There was silence once again, the downpour was hitting the window aggressively but managed to make you feel calm. The heat that radiated from the man's body was wrapping you in a warm blanket, his cold breath tickling your neck.

“How do you see me?

The silence was halted by your simple question “What do you mean?” his raspy voice asked, not understanding the question very well.

“Before you said that you saw me as a loyal friend. How do you see me now?”

Timothée turned your body to face him “Well, you've changed as well. You don't look like a little kid anymore.”

You hummed in response staring into his eyes. The moonlight was shining through the window behind Timothée, illuminating his hair, making it look as though he was wearing a halo around his head.

“Has anything interesting happened while I was gone? House renovations, dead grandma, boyfriends..?”

You had to cover your mouth from bursting out laughing “How the hell do you go from dead grandma to boyfriends?”

The boy shrugged his shoulders waiting for an answer “I had a boyfriend for a little while but it didn't work out.”

Timothée nodded for you to keep going

“He treated me differently when we were around his friends, kinda like he didn't want me. We would get into a lot of arguments and I just wasn't happy. So I ended it.”

He took your hand caressing it carefully with his thumb. You knew he was trying to make you feel better though you weren't actually sad about the breakup. You decided not to say anything against it since his action-filled your heart with butterflies.

“He's an asshole for doing that.”

“Yeah well, most of them are.”

There was a small pause in the air before Timothée spoke up again

“I wouldn't do that to you.”

You were taken aback from his sudden confession. You expected him to joke around about some dumb stereotypes.

“If you were my boyfriend, or just in general?” you asked genuinely curious to which he answered:

“Both.”

You being the anxious human being you are, decided to play it off as a joke. Like always.

“Yeah right, you would never date me, you might as well be one of those extra frat boys that-”

“Why would you assume I wouldn't date you.”

You were becoming more and more agitated, not fully grasping the meaning of his words, and why he was now saying it.

“I've always adored you. The reason why I never said anything is because I'm three years older than you and didn't want to make you uncomfortable.”

“Why are you saying this now?” You shuttered out as he moved closer to your body.

“I didn't realize how much I loved you until we separated. Now I'm realizing how much time I wasted.”

Timothée began breathing heavily, his eyes focusing on the different features your face held.

“Would you date me now?”

He nodded, not trusting his voice to speak. “Even if we wouldn't see each other often?”

He nodded once again, this time speaking “I haven't seen you in two years and I still have feelings for you, they won't go away even if I tried.”

Timothée let his fingers gently brush against your lips studying them thoroughly making your mind hazy.

You were so focussed on each other that the background noise was now muffled.

Your mouths were agape wanting one thing and one thing only.

“Can I kiss you?”

He whispered breathlessly. If he wasn't studying you so closely he would have missed your little nod.

But he didn't miss it.

The second the small gesture was caught, was the second his lips made contact with yours.

The kiss was heated and desperate, your eyebrows furrowed hopelessly from the connection. Tongues soon intertwining as Timothée held himself on top of you for better control of the situation. Not giving you room to escape.

You sighed through your nose not being able to break from the kiss, not wanting to break from the kiss.

His front pressed flush against yours, allowing his hands to travel all over your body with no hesitation.

You mumbled Timothée's name against his lips before you broke apart. “Did I go too far?”

You smiled at his worried state “No, I loved every second of it.”

He copied your smile resting his forehead on yours “Sorry, I could help myself.”

He laid on his back before you cuddled to his side, leg wrapped with his and head resting on his shoulder.

Timothée observed your crimson cheeks and swollen lips. He wanted to tease you about it but he knew damn well that he looked the exact same.

Sleep eventually took over you. The soothing sound of the storm was the last thing you heard, and the motion of Timothée's chest calmly rising and falling was the last thing you felt.

[sillyrabbit81]

Her Heavy Cross

Summary: Three years after tragedy hits, Lana she decides to start dating again. She meets Will through a dating app and they begin an online romance. After months of constant requests, Lana relents and agrees to meet and go on an irl date with Will. But is Will who he says he is? Lana is quickly pulled into an intense relationship forcing her to confront her tragic past. Will Lana face it or will she close her heart forever?

Pairing: OMC x OFC

Word Count: approx 3k

Warnings: swearing, mild smuttiness

Authors Note: The story started as a Henry Cavill fanfiction but I changed it to be an original character, but shades of Henry are still there. Hope you enjoy the story and thanks for reading.

Part 9 Part 11

Part 10

We eventually got up. We showered and dressed. I fed Perrin, and we ate breakfast. I asked Liam what his plans were for the day.

"Not much. I thought I would stay with you until you kick me out." He winked. "What are your plans?"

"Well, I have to kick this guy out..." I said with mock agitation. Liam feigned a look of hurt. "Not much until tonight. I'm going to Dave's house for dinner. I'll see my nephews and niece, which will be good. My Mum too, I suppose."

"Dave's your brother, right?" I nodded. "You haven't told me much about your mother. I think this is the first time you've mentioned her."

"We don't always get along. Mum's mellowed as she's gotten older, but she was a bit of a tyrant when I was growing up. She didn't like Andy. Well, she didn't like any of my boyfriends. She always judged them based on their jobs like she wanted me to end up with a doctor or lawyer or something like that. It's like she thought she'd wasted her money sending me to a private school because I found myself attracted to tradies."

"What's a tradie?

"A tradesman."

"Gotcha."

I laughed at a memory. "I used to tell my friends that if a guys hands weren't calloused enough to cause a run in my stockings, then he has no business touching my legs."

Liam burst out laughing. "Are you serious?"

"What can I say? I like a man who is good with his hands." I shrugged before continuing, "anyway, that's one reason why my mum and I didn't get along."

"What about your Dad?"

"He passed away three years ago."

"I'm sorry."

I didn't say anything for a while. I played with the crusts of my toast, breaking it into little crumbs. I think Liam sensed my mood and changed the subject. "You went to a private school?"

"Yeah," I said. "An all-girls, Catholic one at that."

"Well, that explains a lot." Liam quipped, his tone very serious, but his twitchy lip gave him away.

I narrowed my eyes and frowned. "I hate you."

Liam ignored me and cupped my face with his hands. "Kiss me." He ordered. And I did.

We spent most of the morning sitting together and talking. We spoke about the books we were reading. We found that we had similar taste in books when we talked before we met. Liam had recommended a book to me, and I had finished it a few days ago. I showed him my bookshelves, and we compared which ones we had read. He asked to borrow a couple.

Later we just sat on the lounge. We talked, held hands, cuddled, kissed, had coffee, and then some tea. We took turns patting Perrin, who had taken to Liam really well.

It got close to lunchtime, and it seemed like we were both trying to work out a way to avoid the inevitable parting. Neither of us had brought it up since breakfast. Eventually, Liam asked, "when can I see you again?"

Liam was sitting up, and I was laying on my back with my head in his lap. Liam was stroking my hair, sometimes taking a curl and twisting it around his finger. I smiled when I saw him do that since I had done the same to him earlier.

"As soon as possible," I replied. "I'm going to miss your pretty face." I reached up and patted his cheek patronisingly.

He gave me a small smile but didn't say anything. Then his god damned lip twitched.

"What are you thinking?" I asked. "I can tell when your lip twitches that you're thinking something naughty or you know something I don't know."

"My mother tells me the same thing." His lips stretched into a full grin, revealing his Hollywood white teeth.

"Well, I'm not your bloody mother, so tell me."

"I was just thinking about all the parts of you that I'm going to miss."

"You're very cheeky."

"Unfortunately for you, my mother tells me that too."

"You're a fuck knuckle," I said, smirking. "I'll bet your mother doesn't tell you that."

Liam's eyes went wide. "Bloody hell, Sweetheart. Anyone would think you didn't like me." He was smiling though.

"It's because I like you that I insult you. I'm very polite to people I don't like." I said, putting a sickly sweet smile on my face and batted my eyelashes at him.

"You're lucky you're cute." Liam leaned down and kissed me. "You haven't answered my question. When can I see you again?"

"Well, we both work all week. I guess that means we will have to wait until Friday night."

"Do you want to come to my place on Friday after work? Spend the weekend with me?"

"Ok. I'll ask Dave when I see him tonight if he will have Perrin for me. But it shouldn't be an issue."

Liam's face was unreadable for a moment. Then he smiled and kissed my forehead. "I'm already looking forward to it." He sat back and said, "well, I suppose I had better call an Uber."

I sat up and waited for Liam to book his ride. When he had finished, I said, "Call me tomorrow night. After work?"

Liam nodded. He scooped me up and sat me on his lap. "Don't worry, Sweetheart. You won't get rid of me easily." He smiled and caressed my cheek with the back of his fingers. "Now, kiss me."

I threw my hands around his neck and kissed him hard.

Liam kissed me back, his arms wrapped around my waist, and he crushed my body into his. Our kisses became ardent, and I squirmed on his lap. I didn't want to let him go. Not ever.

I wanted him again now, and I cursed myself for letting him call for an Uber. I felt like he was part of my life like I had already given let him into my heart when I let him in this house. This sacred place. Mine and Andy's place. It seemed as though he had just blended into my life and any thoughts of the future now included him.

But I also knew enough to hold back, to remember I didn't really know him. The weekend wasn't real life. It was an illusion. It wasn't the daily grind of work, come home, sleep, do it all again. To make it worse, Liam's life wasn't normal. Would I adjust? Could I adjust? Did I even want to try?

I knew I did want to try, at least. Liam seemed worth it. Worth the risk of another broken heart, another love snatched from my grasp. If I didn't try with Liam, then who would I try with? And if I never tried, then love would be gone from my life forever.

Liam pulled away. "I had better go now, or I think I'll never leave." We got up just as his phone alerted him the driver was less than a minute away. He grabbed his bag, and I walked him to the door, and he followed behind me up the hallway.

We got to the door, and before I could open it, he turned me around and pinned me to it with his whole body. His forehead pushed against mine. He kissed me, forcing his tongue into my mouth. He ground his body against me. "Lana," he breathed. "Lana, I..." He stopped talking, kissed me again softly then pulled away.

I didn't know what to say. I didn't want Liam to stop. "I'll call you tonight," I said despite our plans to call tomorrow night. I knew I wouldn't be able to wait until then. I opened the door for him.

As he walked out the door, Liam put his hand on the back of my head. He brought me to his face, and he kissed the top of my head. "As you wish." He winked and pulled the door closed behind him.

The rest of my day felt lonely. I moped around for a bit. I threw Perrin the ball for a while. He was too old these days for more than a few runs, but he still loved it. I did some washing, cleaned my bathroom and put my Ben and Jerry's tub in the bin. I painted my nails.

When the afternoon wound down, I called Riza.

"Hey, Slut!" She said when she picked up.

"Piss off," I said back.

"Well, don't keep me in suspense. What the fuck happened?"

"I don't even know where to begin."

"Well, did you fuck him?" I shook my head. If Liam thought I was direct, he should talk to Riza. I didn't say anything. She knew me well enough to know what the answer was by my silence. "'Bout fucking time." She said, and I laughed. "So tell me about him. What's his name? What does he do for work? Where does he live? Boxers or briefs?"

"Uh, his name is Liam. Liam Cross."

"Like the actor? Man, that's weird. I knew a girl once whose name was Indiana Jones. I couldn't do it cause I kept thinking about Harrison Ford."

"No, Riz. Not like the actor, he is the actor."

Stunned silence. Then, "you're shitting me."

"Serious as a heart attack."

"Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I didn't know who he was," I told Riza about the Will/Liam thing.

"You're really not joking. Send me a pic."

"I didn't take any."

I swear I could hear Riza roll her eyes. "Of course, you didn't. You never do!" Then she shouted, "Hey Jen! Lana..."

"Riza! No, no, no!" I shouted.

"Fucked Liam Cross," she finished.

I hung my head. Fuck. I could trust Riza, but Jen, I wasn't sure of. She spent all day on Instagram and Snapchat. I didn't know if she could keep quiet.

"You there, Lansey?" I heard Jen talking in the background. "Hang on a sec, what's that, babe?" More Jen talking. "Oh shit, you looked good on Friday night Lans, no wonder you got fucked."

"How do you know what I wore Friday night?"

"Jen found pics."

"That quickly?"

"Yeah, they're everywhere. Some of you guys at a shop too. Hey, that's the shop near Mike the Butcher, right?"

This was news to me. I knew they took pictures, but I didn't think they were posted. I should have though. Why wouldn't they be? "Fuck."

"Did you just meet him? On Friday?"

"Yeah, why?"

"There's this one picture of you two, and he's touching your cheek. You two look like you're in love," she teased, making love sound like llllooooouuuuv. "Ha! There's Perrin!"

"Is my name mentioned? Do they know who I am?"

"Doesn't look like it. You two look perfect together."

"Tell Jen not to say anything. Please?"

"Yeah, yeah, no worries."

She kept talking, but I'd had enough. "I've gotta get going," I said.

"Lans, you ok?" She knows me too bloody well.

"Yeah," I bit my lip and took some deep breaths. "It's a lot to take in, you know. He's bloody famous, it's like, I don't want that shit in my life."

"Is he worth it?"

"I think so. I mean, he's a sweet, kinda daggy guy who happens to be built like Hercules and sexy as fuck. What's not to like?"

"I always thought he was gay."

Before I could stop myself, I said, "He's definitely not gay. I'd never believe a gay guy could growl a girl out like he does." I've got to learn to keep my mouth shut.

Riza yelled, "yas girl! You got a keeper!"

I laughed. "Fucking hell. Alright, Riz, I've really got to go. Say hi to Jen. Don't say anything!" Riz agreed, and we hung up.

Dinner at Dave and Lucy's was mostly uneventful. I jumped with the kids on the trampoline and played some wrestling on the PlayStation. My mum wasn't too much of a bitch. I forgot about the pictures and didn't think about Liam for a while. I needed that. I felt like the weekend was such a whirlwind and so much happened I needed some time to get back to normality, something familiar.

After dinner, Mum went home, and the kids wanted to watch a movie. I got on the lounge with the two older ones, Charlie and Harry and went through Netflix. Lucy had taken Lilly to bed. I saw Liam's face in one of the movies thumbnails, and I groaned. It was the one where he was a superhero. It was nearly ten years old. Though it didn't seem possible, he was even more handsome now. I quickly flicked past it.

"No, Aunty Lanny, I want to watch that one," Harry said.

"Isn't it too scary?"

Dave called out from the kitchen, "it's their new favourite. They've been watching it all week."

"Then we can watch something else," I said.

Both boys protested. I half relented. "Have you seen the sequel?" It had much less screen time for Liam since he had teamed up with a couple of other superheroes in that one.

"There's a sequel?" Charlie was excited.

So we watched the sequel. I'd seen it before, but it was weird watching it now. I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Although it was obvious that Liam was the actor, it was surprisingly easy to forget him and believe he was really the character.

He looked different to the Liam I knew. His hair was lighter, he was clean-shaven, and even the way he held his face was different. The way he moved and mannerisms weren't Liam's either. His voice was different too. The most apparent change there was the accent. Those harsh American tones seemed so strange after hearing his soft Queens English ones. Although, scenes with his shirt off still made me think of Liam.

After the movie I said goodbye to the kids, and they went to bed. I asked Dave if he would watch Perrin next weekend. I tried to sound casual about it, but Dave knew me better than that.

"Girls weekend?" He asked. I tried to say yeah, but I blushed, and he knew it wasn't a girls weekend.

Dave was eight years older than me, the same as Liam. I adored Dave. I remember following him around as a kid, wanting to do everything he did. As we got older, I watched the same movies he did, read the same books he did and listened to the same music, which is probably why I prefer 90s music to 2000s music.

He was sweet about it for the most part. He even got me alcohol a few times when I was 17 and took me to the pub with his mates when I was 18. He was protective though. Not one of his mates was allowed to touch me. It had made me mad at the time, especially when I had the hots for his best mate Chris since I was 12. So when he worked out that I was probably going to be spending the weekend with a guy, I expected him to freak out. He didn't.

"Is he a good bloke?" Dave asked. "Treating you well?"

"Yeah, he is." I couldn't help but smile.

Dave grunted, "I can tell by the look on your face, you are smitten. Alright then, Perrin can stay."

"Thanks, Dave. Don't tell mum."

"Yeah, Nah. I'm not stupid."

I went home and got ready for bed straight away. I was mentally exhausted, but I still called Liam. Not only because I said I would. I did miss him in my bed already. I felt lonely again. Of all the things about being married I missed, sleeping with somebody else in the bed was high on the list.

When I went to call, I was confused for a minute because I couldn't find his number. Then I remembered he was in my contacts as Will. I changed the name and called him. I hoped I wasn't calling too late.

"Hello, Sweetheart." Liam's voice sent a ripple of excitement through me.

"Hey," I said. "How was the rest of your day?"

"Good. Do you want to FaceTime?"

"I'm in bed."

"Me too." He said, and I heard the ring of FaceTime come through the phone.

I answered. Liam's face appeared. So did his naked shoulders. Sweet Jesus, he couldn't fit in the frame.

"Much better," he said, smiling. "How was your day?"

"Ok, I just hung around at home then saw the fam. Dave said he would have Perrin next weekend," I got flustered thinking about it. I cleared my throat. "So yeah, that's sorted."

"Excellent. I'm really looking forward to it. How was the family? Was your mum ok?"

"Yeah, she was good. The kids are fans of yours, by the way."

He gave a short laugh at this. "Really? Did you tell your family about me?"

I said I didn't and told him about the kids and the movie. "They loved it. I liked it too." I told him about how it was strange to watch him act after actually knowing him, and for a lot of the time, I had forgotten it was him. I just believed the character and enjoyed the story.

"Thank you." Liam seemed genuinely pleased. "That is the aim of what I do."

"I did tell Riza about you. Her wife, Jen, found pictures of us almost immediately."

"Did you see the ones from yesterday?"

"She told me about them, but I've not seen them."

"You ok?"

I shrugged, "it is what it is. I asked them not to say anything about us."

Liam changed the subject and showed me he had started one of the books he had borrowed. Once again, I was grateful that he seemed to know my mood and not push me.

We talked for about ten minutes before I started yawning.

"I better let you go. You're tired, Sweetheart."

"Yeah," I said as a yawn overtook me. "I think you're right." I blinked several times, my eyes watering from the yawns. "Call me tomorrow night?"

"I definitely will. Goodnight, Sweetheart."

"Night, Liam." I fell straight asleep.

Part 11

[supraveng]

Cocktail Hour

Summary: you work for Stark in his lab and get to know the Avengers, you also moonlight as a bartender

Characters: Sam Wilson, Bucky Barnes, Tony Stark, Natasha Romanof, Reader

Warnings: SMUT and story and a bit of fluff, alcohol consumption, 

Word Count: 4312

“What do you want, Wilson?” you asked without looking up from the project you were working on.   “Is that anyway to treat your favorite Avenger?” he responds with a smirk.  “Oh, I didn’t realize you brought Bucky with you” you smirk as you look up a bit shocked to see Bucky standing behind Sam and with a shit eating grin. 

“Wow, really Y/N?  I thought we were friends'' he responds in a huff.  “Wilson, you only come visit when you want something from me, it’s never friendly chatting.  I’m busy, what do you want?” you deadpan knowing the more you agitate him the longer this is going to take, but you don’t care.  Getting Sam all riled up is one of your favorite past times, and one that you and Bucky have been bonding over.  

“Fine, I’ll make it short and sweet.  I need you to put in a good word for me with your girl, Savannah'' he states as he wiggles his eyebrows.  You freeze and slowly look at Sam, with a slight squint.  

“WHAT?” you respond exasperated that he’s interrupting your project that seems to be never ending.  "Please?  She's cute and we really hit it off, but I'll be coming back to the bar this week to get her number and you can make sure she knows I'm more than worth her time" he tells you with a smug look on his face.  

"First of all, since when does the, and I quote, great Sam Wilson need help getting numbers? Second, her name is Sienna not Savannah. And last but not least, you aren't her type" you respond with a smirk, knowing just how much your points are getting under my skin.  

"Alright now, I don't need your help getting numbers, women love me. I just wanted you to be a supportive friend" he grumbles at you.  You just raise an eyebrow waiting for him to continue. 

"Second, she said Savanna like the city in Georgia." "Its Siena, like the city IN ITALY!" you interrupted.  

"And third, how could this not be her type?" he said as he gestured from his head to his toes, flashing that ridiculous smile and beginning to flex his biceps.  You let out a heavy sigh and you can tell he thinks he's got you stumped.  

"While all that" you waive your hand towards him "might interest some women, you just don't have what she wants" you state while slightly shaking your head sadly. He's about to start up with another dispute and any other time you would love to spend hours tormenting him like this, but you were still working and had a few hours left to finish the reconfiguration of your latest project, so you step closer. 

Putting your hands on his shoulders and looking up at him with an apologetic smile "Sam, you don't have a vagina. I'm sorry, but she's not interested unless you do."  

Bucky couldn't hold it in any longer and was doubled over in laughter. "Now, if you boys didn't bring me coffee, get out of my lab" you say as sweetly as possible.  "But she was so flirty, are you sure?  Maybe she's bi?" he asks trying to understand what he missed. 

 "She's a waitress Sam, flirting gets you bigger tips.  I mean did you give your usual amount or did she earn a bit extra?" you ask only trying to get him to see the reality of their interactions.  

"Damn it!" he huffs as he turns around to leave.  Bucky straightens up trying to calm himself down when he looks up at you "I'll be right back with your coffee" 

A few minutes later, Tony walks in with a quizzical look on his face "what did you do to birdman and gramps?"  He moves past you toward the back of the lab.  

"Why would you think I did anything to those two?" you ask as innocently as possible.  He arches an eyebrow and you concede "ugh, why does that always work? Ok, it's no big deal, Sam was asking about my coworker Siena, and I told him he had no chance since she's into women. But apparently when a waitress flirts its interest and not just trying to get a bigger tip, he learned a lot today" you sigh as you continue working.  

"What do you mean "coworker Siena''? He asks using air quotes.  "I've never seen her in my lab, who is she?"  " She's a waitress at the bar" you mumble realizing Tony didn't know about your other job. You have been an intern for him, working on your doctorate in Biomedical engineering, for the last year and he didn't know you had another job. This isn't going to end well you thought to yourself.  

"How is it possible you have another job? You are here all the time, how do you have time to work at a bar, write your dissertation, find time to sleep and have a social life?" he asks, seeming like he's been swindled or something.  

"And why do you have another job?  This internship pays above average for engineers, I'm not even sure what's going on around here anymore."  

"Ok, Tony, first of all, I thought you knew, I cleared it with legal before I accepted the internship.  I've been working at The Rum House since my freshman year and they are flexible with my hours. Two, the work I'm doing here is my dissertation,  three who are you to question my sleep habits?  And four, I like staying busy, I don't have a social life per say and I'm ok with that" you state with a shrug just as Bucky comes walking in with a huge cup of coffee.

"One venti flat white with hazelnut, sorry am I interrupting?" he questions as he hands you the coffee.  You immediately bring it to your face and take a deep breath closing your eyes to enjoy your favorite beverage and miss the small smirk on Bucky's face, feeling a bit of joy that he could make you happy with something as simple as a cup of coffee.  

Taking a sip you moan and open your eyes to see Tony and Bucky starring at you. With a smile you look at Bucky "thank you, this is exactly what I needed and no you didn't interrupt a thing, we're done,"  

"We are so far from done, did you know she had another job? Hmm? Am i the last to find out everything around here?” Tony mumbles to himself as he goes back to his work station.  Bucky smiles and waves as he leaves and you watch him longer than you should but damn the way he wears jeans just does something  to you.  

"And what was that?  You have a crush on the centurion now too?" he asks.  "What? You are ridiculous!  I'm just appreciating the coffee and wondering why you never bring me coffee.  I mean, I thought you took your title of "World's greatest boss" seriously but I guess that's not the case" you respond as seriously as possible as you sit back down and get back to your project.   

You've been working non stop most of the day and don't realize how late it is until your phone chimes and you notice it’s after midnight. .

You are probably already in bed but I wanted to say goodnight 

I'm actually still working. I guess I lost track of time.  I should head home and get some sleep

It's late, you could stay with me  ;) 

That's so tempting but your roommates are very nosey, not sure how to sneak out in the morning without getting caught 

You're right, as always.  Can I walk you home?

I would love that, meet me at the corner  in 15?

I'll be there in 10 

"Even tired you still look beautiful, how is that possible? " he states as you wrap your arms around his torso for a long overdue hug.  "And you are always the charmer, how did I get so lucky?" you mumble into his chest as you inhale deeply.  

His scent always felt calming and safe. "I'm the lucky one" he says as he kisses the top of your head.  Beginning to walk arm in arm down the street,  "now let's get you to bed, you work too much"  

"In my defense it will all be over once I complete my dissertation, then when I find a real job, I'll be a normal person working 60-80 hours a week" you smile at him and peck his cheek.  

"That's more than normal people, and the part time job at the bar? Are you going to give that up?" he questioned with a smirk.  

"I like the bar and I thought you liked the tiny uniform" you wink as you turn the corner towards your apartment.  

"You can wear that for me any time and I would love it, not just at work, or better yet, nothing at all" he responds in a low growl. You chuckle and swat his chest, "then we would never leave the apartment" "and I don't see that as a problem at all!" he spins you towards him and kisses you passionately, then releases your arm. 

"Aren't  you coming up?" you ask a bit disappointed. "I definitely want to, but you need sleep and if I go up to your place, I will not let you get any." he states slowly backing away.  

"I have tomorrow off, do you think you can break away from your roommates and we can have lunch?" you ask. "If you have the whole day off, you call me when you wake up and I'll take you to breakfast, lunch and dinner, and I will make sure we work up an appetite in between'' he responds with the wiggle of his eyebrows.  

"That sounds perfect! I'll call you in the morning" you smile as you make your way into the building.  Flopping on your bed exhausted, you have a smile on your face for the plans you have for tomorrow. 

Waking up you look at your clock and gasping, 10:33, you hadn't slept that late in ages. 

Hey handsome, you probably don't believe me, but i just woke up!  I'm gonna hope in the shower or should I wait for you to join me ;)

Oooo, I am on my way, do not start without me! 

😘

The knock at your door was barely 10 minutes later, and you opened it laughing at the look on his face. "Did you run the whole way here? Your place is a 20 minute walk away."  

"I needed to work up a sweat for the shower, been thinking about you naked since last night, which makes it very HARD to sleep" he responds while following you into the apartment.  

"Well, you are overdressed so maybe I can help you out of those clothes" you respond in almost a whisper. You bat your lashes as you start to unbuckle his belt, looking up at him biting your lip "it's been such a long week, I feel like I hardly get to see you."  

"I know, but today will make up for it, I promise" he mumbles into your neck.  You are walking backwards into the bathroom when he is finally in just his boxers, you turn on the shower before dropping your robe to the floor.  

He drinks you in from head to toe with a low moan "Damn beautiful, I've missed you" he practically purrs as he grabs your hips to pull you closer.   The long shower was a much needed tension relief for both of you and lasted until the water ran cold.  

“So what would you like for breakfast, beautiful?” he asks as he’s kissing your neck and wrapping his arms around you.  “Actually, I was thinking maybe we order in, that way we don’t need to bother getting dressed at all.” you respond biting your lip and enjoying his lips traveling down your neck to your collarbone.  He practically growls in response before picking you up and carrying you out of the bathroom, “you are brilliant, you know that?” before throwing you on the couch and poncing on top of you.  

Several slices of pizza and orgasms later, the two of you are cuddling on the couch when his phone dings, “they can’t leave you alone for a day can they?” you quip knowing it’s his roommates checking to make sure he’s still alive.  

He kisses your forehead before grabbing his phone “they are a bunch of smothering assholes, that’s what they are!” he responds before reading the message with a large sigh.  Looking at him you know exactly what that means “what time do you have to leave?” you ask as casually as possible.  

“I’m sorry, it’s a last minute “important” meeting, I can shower here and leave at 8ish to be on time” he responds apologetically.  

“Which means you are supposed to be there before 8, but I will take every minute I can get!” you state as you straddle his lap and kiss his jaw. 

 “Trust me, I would much rather be here with you, kissing every inch of your body.  Maybe I can fake that I’m sick” he mumbles against your neck.  

You are about to respond when your phone starts ringing, you snarl as you look up ‘who the hell is calling me on a Saturday afternoon?” you whine as you reach for your phone.  You toss it on the coffee table almost as quickly as you picked it up.  

“You can answer that, I don’t mind, I can be a very good boy when I want to” he says as he winks at you.  “That is the bar, and it’s my day off…...and you are never a good boy, one of the many traits I love about you” you hum as he begins to assault your chest with his sinful mouth and tongue.  

Before he can continue, your phone starts ringing again and you whine as he stops “noooo, don’t stop!”   He hands you your phone as he gets up and heads into the kitchen.  

“This better be important” you practically yell as you answer the call.  “Uh, hey Y/N! It’s Gary, and I know it’s your day off but we got a last minute backroom booking and I need the best bartender in NYC.  Can you be here by 9?”  You don’t respond, only sighing into the phone  “I’ll pay you double!  And you can have tomorrow night off”  he throws in trying to change your mind.  

“It’s not about the money Gary, I haven’t had an entire day off in 4 months.   My body and brain need to do nothing but eat take out and catch up on bad reality tv” you argue, knowing it will do nothing to deter him from getting you into the bar tonight.   

You look up to see a beer being handed to you and smirk on his face “I can go down there and scare him if you want” he whispers, only making you giggle in response.  

“Ok, I’ll pay you for not working tomorrow night, please I really need you!”  “Fine, quit begging, but I’m only agreeing because I lost my evenings entertainment. See you at 9!” you say before hanging up without letting him respond.   

“Looks like my evening just got filled and I’ll be slinging booze rather than recuperating from today’s activities” you pout as you sip your beer.  “Well it’s almost 6, so let's order some Chinese food and go for round 5 before we have to return to the real world” he responds sitting next to you with his arm around your shoulders.  

“Yes, but food first, I just hope I’ll be able to walk tonight.  You have one hell of a libido!” you yell as he attacks your neck again.  “Only for you, beautiful”

The time passes by faster than you like and you both shower before dressing.  You are dressed and starting on your makeup when he walks into your room for a final kiss goodbye.  “Damn, it is hard to leave when you look that good with clothes on” he eyes you up and down causing you to blush.   

“Hey, why don’t you come by the bar after your meeting and we can continue what you started, handsome!” leaning back into his strong chest.  “That sounds perfect, I’ll text you on my way!” and before you can respond he is running out the door, you just shake your head and laugh knowing he’s gonna be late and doesn’t even care.  

Heading out of your apartment  you decide to stop for coffee before hopping on the subway.  It’s been a long and tiring day, in the best way possible, but you are expecting it to be a long night too since it’s a private event and there are always stragglers that have no intention of leaving when someone else is footing the bill.  

Walking into the bar, you begin to wonder who books a last minute party on the weekend but decide it doesn’t really matter.   You had an amazing day with your amazing man and were getting paid double, so it was definitely a win/win, even if your thighs were more sore than you realized before you left your apartment. 

Note to self, uber the next time you have an all day sexcapade.  You start to giggle at the thought when you make your way to the back room and start rearranging the bar to your preference.  .

”Finally!  I was beginning to worry you were going to stand me up!” Gary yells as he makes his way over to you.   “Are you kidding? You offered me a lot of money to be here, and I have student loans out the wazoo!  This is the second best thing that's happened to me today.” you state, not bothering to look up as you are wiping down the bottles.   

“And by the look of that stupid grin on your face, I’m going to assume a certain someone is the first?” he questions, but you just shake your head and smirk.  

“When is the party supposed to arrive?  Any special requests I need to know about?” you ask in an attempt to change the topic as quickly as possible. 

“They will be here any minute now and you are the only one back here tonight, but it’s only 10-12 guests so you should be fine.  But let me know if you need a cocktail server or bar back, I can’t spare both but I’ll pop in and help when I can” he smiles and turns back to the bar area of the bar.   

You are digging for the better rocks glasses when you hear people enter the room and turn to smile at the arriving guests, only for your  face to immediately fall.  

“Are you kidding me Stark?!” you grit out.  “I can’t get away from you for a damn day?” you ask.  

“Oh, is this the bar you work at, behind my back? I had no idea” he states dripping in sarcasm.  “HA!” you fake a laugh “so this is my payback for not telling you?”  “No, actually, Birdman told me about the uniform and I had to see  for myself” he says, eyeing you up and down. 

“I have to say, you look different than I anticipated and a little hurt that we don’t get to see this side of you in the lab.”  You shake your head and laugh at yourself, this wasn’t how you expected your night to go, but at least you knew your clients weren’t just a bunch of assholes.   

These people were your friends, practically family since you started working for Stark.  “So Tones, what can I get you?  I don’t think we’ve ever drank together, so I honestly don’t know if you are a Scotch neat or martini kind of man”  

“Well, a little birdie told me that this bar has cocktails named after me and my friends, so that’s why I’m here, I wanted to check them out!” he smiles and you realize he’s either testing your bar-tending skills to prove to you that you don’t need this other job or his curiosity is going to be boosting his ego, either way, tonight will be fun.   

“We do have a few, here is the Avenger cocktail list.” you say handing him the list with a smirk, knowing you will be making all of these drinks by the end of the night.  

“Well, since you’ve worked here so long, what do you recommend?” he replies while looking over the various drinks “and why am I not listed at the top?  If it’s not in alphabetical order, it should at least be listed by best Avenger at the top”  

“Well, it’s listed by most popular drink, so if you want something sweet, I would go for The Cap America, if you need something more of a punch try the Black Widow, if you want to get revved up but not remember much of your night you should go for the Hulk.  The Iron Man is an acquired taste, but it’s definitely worth a try, but most people don’t order a second one” just describing the drinks to him, you wonder if he thinks you are commenting on the drinks or the people behind them.  

“Thor is pretty good if you want something simple, Hawkeye is both strong and sweet, Scarlet Witch is one of my personal favorites, along with the Bucky.” you stare at him with your hands resting on the bar top.  

“Wait a damn minute!  I am in this bar all the time and there’s no Falcon cocktail?  What the hell Y/N?” Sam yells from behind Tony.  

“I’m sorry, I don’t get to  decide what goes on the menu, but I am working on creating your drink” you respond as sweetly as possible.  “I’m just stuck on how to make a drink that people will enjoy, but is also a pain in the ass" you smirk as Sam realizes what you just said. 

"I didn't know it was pick on Sam day, but I've had enough! Can I have a beer and tequila shots? I came here to have a good time and I feel attacked right now."  

"Of course, whatever you want Sam" you say as you grab a mug and start to pour his favorite beer.  Handing it to him with a smile, he leans in and pecks you on the cheek, “you’re lucky I love you enough to put up with your shit” he grumbles as he walks towards the tables.  

After fixing all of the specialty drinks for everyone to try the signature cocktail you are certain that the night has just begun.  You are wiping down the bar top when you look up to see Bucky grinning at you, turning you realize Natasha is at the bar for another round.  

“Same drink or would you like something else, Nat?”  “Do you have any decent vodka or am I just wasting your time?” she asks with a laugh.  “We actually carry Jewel of Russia, but that’s about as good as it gets, I’m sorry Tony dragged you out tonight just to torment me.” you mention while grabbing the bottle from the fridge and a handful of shot glasses.  

“I was wondering what this last minute outing was all about, I figured it was Barnes trying to let you see him in a more relaxed state” she quips while trying to gauge your reaction.  

“Bucky?  Him and Sam are in here all the time, and I’m not sure why you think he would want me to see him relaxed…..” you reply while setting up a tray for the shots.  Natasha grabs two before you can even fill more.  “Well, I’ve never seen him gawk at a bartender, like he is tonight”

“I think you are reading into something that isn’t there, but why don’t I take this tray over and test your theory?” you say while grabbing the tray of shots and placing the bottle of vodka in an ice bucket.  

Noticing that Bucky was watching most of your conversation you make sure to sway your hips a bit extra and set the tray down in front of the team. 

“Alright gang, let me get some of these empties out of here and grab a couple more rounds for you.  Any special requests?” you smile around the group seated in the overstuffed chairs and couches.  

“Hey Buck, anything you want to ask Y/N for?” Natasha says with a sweet tone.  “Like a date maybe?” she adds just as Bucky was about to ask for a drink.  You chuckle slightly look over at Bucky who seems to be a bit in shock.  

“Uh, nah, I don’t think I’m Y/N’s type” Bucky says attempting to brush off Nat’s comment and not draw more attention to the conversation.  With the glasses gathered in your hands, you start to head back to the bar before responding ‘yea, tall, dark and handsome isn’t my type” you smirk as you walk away.  

Immediately the entire crew is carrying on like a bunch of teenagers and egging Bucky on to follow you to the bar.  You are starting to pour a few pints when Bucky clears his throat to gain your attention.  

“So you think I’m tall, dark and handsome, huh?” he almost whispers.  “Well, that’s the PG version of what I think about you, didn’t want to get you into any trouble with your roommates.  Are you coming back over when this little party is over?” you ask with a smirk.  

“Oh, you know I am, I owe you a couple more orgasms today.   As long as I get to help you out of that sexy uniform.”

[hinataislikeasun]

That one time hinata went missing 

I was sleeping when my phone started ringing, I thought I was dreaming so i went back to sleep but the ringing persisted for a few minutes.

I looked at the clock it was way past my bed time.

"Hello?" It was an unregistered number.

" Is this Sawamura Daichi?" A lady was on the other line.

I nodded out of habit "Yes Ma'am."

" I was wondering if shoyou is with you?I'm her mom."

Shoyou?

" we went home past eight pm- he didn't come home?" I know I should be calm and call Suga but Hinata would never do something like this.

" his father was home and they got into an argument- his father doesn't want him to continue playing Shoyou got mad ,really mad."

She started crying.

" I'll contact the other members and check if Hinata went with them I'll call you again Ma'am"

I immediately called Suga, he's close with Hinata so he might know.

I forgot that it was already late and Suga will be grumpy being interrupted.

" Mhmm.." he was half awake.

" suga? You awake? Hinata didn't come home last night. His mom is looking for him"

" he-whaaat?" I can tell that he bolted and is now awake.

" wait- he went home, did they practice?"

I went on and explained to him what happened at home.

" why would they say that to him?" He was disapproving.

" hinata loves volleyball. Why would they stop him..?"

" let me call Kageyama and you call the others okay?" I ended the call and called Kageyama first.

" Captain?" He was alert.

" sorry to wake you up- but is hinata with you?"

" No-" He was silent for a moment.

" did something happened? He was acting all weird awhile ago. He was asking if being independent is difficult."

" he's not home. His mom called me,and his father doesn't want him to play anymore."

Kageyama was silent again.

" i can't blame him for wanting to run away."

When he said that I was loss for words

" he still needs to come home Kageyama so if he ever contacts you let me know-"

" I'll try and call other people too-"

Suga texted, be called Tanaka and Asahi but still the same response. Both of them planned on checking the gym with Nishinoya.

I know that it would be too far for a kid like hinata to go to but I still texted Kuroo.

" Kuroo- did Hinata drop by at your practice by any chance?"

I don't want to call him since I don't want to be disturbing other people.

But Kenma called.

" shoyou didn't come home?" For the first time he sounded agitated, I can hear him scuffling around.

" yeah- his mom called i don't know where else he could go."

" lemme try and check the other members too and let you know."

I didn't know that Hinata has this much effect on other people,after kenma's call bokuto was on the phone.

" where did my discipline gooooo? I'll wake akashi and tell him hinata's missing-"

I didn't even finishing speaking the call ended being Bokuto panicking.

Kenma was stopping his game to look for hinata and Akashi called after a few minutes with bokuto at the background.

" bokuto-san at home. apparently he seems to have lost hinata which i don't think is possible given that hinata wasn't at practice today, so I'm guessing what bokuto-san is trying to say is that hinata didn't come home?"

i wanted to laugh at Akashi resigned tone.

Bokuto seems to be at his room still panicking.

" I'll calm this kid first lemme know if we can help anyway-bokuto san we're not going to miyagi at this hour."

The call ended and Asahi was calling me,he was with Nishinoya and Tanaka.

" Daichi we're on our way to the gym- they went to the convenience store to get something to eat just in case Hinata is hungry." 

" be careful though? It's late." But should I be worried when it's Asahi,tanaka and most specifically Nishinoya outside when its this late?

Kenma texted saying that Lev didn't receive any message from Hinata and is asking if we need help looking for him.

Aone texted Suga and was asking if there was any news. I wonder how news got out when I don't have any contact with Date Tech.

" Kuroo?" I was on my way out when he called.

" I just read your message,kenma is asking me to go to Miyagi is the shrimp still missing?" I heard the door being open on his end and it seems like Kenma just arrived at his place.

" I'm not sure where to look for him- he doesn't have any place to sleep. Asahi and the others looking for him at school."

" Kenma seems to be wearing his jacket inside out wait-" he was helping Nekoma's setter with his jacket,laughing while Kenma keeps on telling him it's fine.

" you have school tomorrow kuroo, I'll let you know once we find hinata. Bokuto seems to be panicking too. "

I went out and tried calling hinata's phone.

It just went on ringing.

He always answer my calls,this is really worrying.

[hoenursey]

worst behavior || nursey + jack

“Nursey.”

He doesn’t answer him, typing away at his keyboard in a way that’s visibly agitated, or at least irritable. What are normally soft, smooth clicks against the mac’s surface are now harsh, broken-sounding; each near-slam of his slim fingers makes a sharp clack in the quiet of the haus’ living room.

“Nursey,” Jack says again.

The continued silence makes it clear that he’s being ignored. Inwardly, he sighs.

“Twenty-eight, your captain is talking to you. Answer, now.”

“Yo, Captain. Didn’t see you there,” Nursey drawls. Jack makes the executive decision not to call him out on his blatant lie and gets to his knees so that he doesn’t loom over Nursey where he’s scrunched up in the corner.

“You’ve been tense lately. There’s something wrong with you. What is it?” Shit, that was probably the wrong way to go about it, but it’s already been said. Something flickers across Nurse’s face too fast for him to identify, and even if it had been obvious, he’s not sure if he’d be able to properly identify what it was then either.

“There’s plenty of shit wrong with me. There’s plenty of shit wrong with you, too. We’re both older than the people in our respective grades for a reason, Capitane.”

“You know that’s not what I mean. You’ve been snapping at people, aggressive on the ice like you usually aren’t, fighting with Dex more often. You nearly dropped your gloves last game.”

“It’s an aggressive sport. I’m still playing good hockey, aren’t I?” Nursey asks, his tone deceptively lazy.

Jack makes a quietly frustrated noise. “You’re playing damn good hockey. You know that. You’re a great player and a hard worker. You’re serious in practice. But you aren’t okay. You–”

“Why do you care?”

Jack stops. “What?”

Nursey raises a brow. It’s a little condescending. “I said, why. do. you. care.”

“I’m your captain, of course I care, Nursey,” Jack says. “It’s my job to care about your wellbeing.”

“On the ice,” Nursey shoots back. “Dunno about you, but i’m not seeing any ice. I think it’s hardwood, actually.”

“Nursey, you’re being purposefully obtuse and I know you’re smart as hell. I’m worried about you. You don’t have to…” Still frustrated, he switches to French to calm himself down.

<< “You can tell me what’s wrong. I won’t tell anybody, but I have a right to know what’s affecting my players because it can affect the team in the long run. You’re maintaining because you’re a good player but that won’t last forever. I pay attention. I know you’re upset about something. Just spit it out.” >>

<< “All you pay attention to is hockey and your major. Your whole schedule is ‘eat sleep hockey class hockey, Bitty, Shitty, Lardo repeat’. You’re all in on that shit. That’s fine, but I don’t fall under that list. My problems aren’t yours until they affect you on the ice, and from what you’ve said, they haven’t.” >>

<< “It’s being preemptive,” >> Jack protests. << “I care about the whole team. I want to know.” >>

<< “Every reporter in America wanted to know about you, didn’t they? And they still don’t know the truth. It wasn’t their business, and it was a matter of privacy. I don’t ask you. Don’t ask me,” >> Nursey says, and the note of bitterness along with the icy coolness in his tone is enough to make Jack back off a little, because… well, Nursey’s sort of right. It’s his privacy.

“Euh… I, uh. Yeah. Yeah,” Jack manages to get out. “I'm… damn. Désolé, Nursey.”

Some of the tension fades from Nursey’s shoulders and what he thinks is surprise lights in his sleepy green eyes, but it disappears quickly.

“C'est bien. I’ve got to finish this paper before midnight, though, so, like…”

“Yeah, sure. Uh. Good… luck. I hope you do well.”

“Thanks.”

For the next week, Jack tries to be a little nicer to Nursey– to all of the frogs, actually, because Nursey had a point: he didn’t really get close to many people and when he did, he stuck with them and didn’t oftentimes branch out. Chowder is of course delighted, but he’s fairly excited by most things; Dex is a little more hesitant, but Jack remembers details about people, and he asks for a basic tutorial on how to fix small things around the house for his new apartment wherever he goes and the freshman warms right up to him, even if he talks a little fast and seems a little redder than usual. He takes time out for Ransom and Holster, too, who seem surprised but pleased, and willing to be around him; he finds he likes it even outside of their haus movie nights.

Jack doesn’t exactly seek out Nursey, but he does know now because of Dex that he tends to seek out Lardo when he’s thinking about anything. He’d asked the younger defenseman, which he had gone a little odd about.

“Why?” he asked suspiciously, gripping his stick. “Is he in trouble?”

“No,” Jack tried to say, but Dex barreled on.

“Who did he yell at? Was it Chowder? Was it you? He’s weird but he probably didn’t mean it, Jack, I swear, and he’s been weirder than normal it’s probably some dumb art thing-”

“Dex,” Jack said firmly. “Nursey’s not in trouble and he didn’t yell at anyone. I’m just trying to figure out where he hangs out so that if I ever need him, I know where to find him. He’s the only person I don’t know where he goes.”

Dex blinked. “Oh.”

“And you shouldn’t say that,” Jack added. “Art’s important. Most of the stuff we know about history is because of art.”

“I. Uh. Yeah? Sorry. Sorry, Jack,” he stammered out, flushing badly. “He hangs out with Lardo and Shitty.”

“Thanks. And thanks for showing up to optional skate. Go warm up.”

“Yes sir.”

The next time Shitty’s room smells prominently of weed– enough that the rest of the haus gets a bit of a contact high– Jack slips inside and sure enough, Nursey is there, laid out on his back with a joint between his lips, his eyes closed.

“Yo, Zimmermann,” Lardo says lazily. Shitty vaguely waves an arm: he’s face down on his bed, his laptop open on what looks like a college application, probably Harvard again. A choking noise comes from over Nursey’s direction, but Jack ignores it and settles next to Lardo, who promptly eases into his lap like a cat. He tucks his chin over her head and she makes a happy noise that rumbles against his chest.

“You smoke?” Nursey asks, wary.

Jack shrugs. “Sometimes. Not always. Not often. It helps, y’know? With the anxiety. Stress.”

“Jack usually just sits in here,” Lardo supplies. “It’s better than his meds sometimes. Right Jack?”

“Yeah,” he murmurs, and squeezes her lightly around the waist.

“I know,” Nursey says under his breath–he already talks at a low pitched little thing, almost a mutter– and it’s just quiet enough that he almost misses it.

Huh.

Jack does end up taking a couple hits, just enough to give him a buzz, then spends the rest of the time playing with Lardo’s hair and eventually, Shitty’s. He’s good at braids. The wariness doesn’t fade from Nursey’s eyes, not quite or at least not all the way, but the tension does.

“Hey, Bit- uh, Bitty?” Jack asks from the doorway. It’s warm in the kitchen, and something pop-y and light is playing, which makes sense, because Bittle’s arms are covered from fingertip to elbow in flour. He gets distracted for a second, staring at the contrast between his now ghost-white forearms and sun-kissed upper arms and shoulders, until Bitty says, “Oh, Jack! I’m sorry, you haven’t been standing there long, have you? C’mon in here, Lord, you ain’t gotta stand there, it’s your house too.”

“Right, yeah.” Jack steps in, and Bittle looks up at him expectantly for a minute until he remembers that he’s here for something, and not just to hover around while he makes food.

“Uh, do you know Nursey’s favourite pie?” He asks.

One little blond brow quirks up at him. “Yes, Jack, I know all of your favourites. It’s sweet potato. How come?”

“No reason,” he says evasively. It doesn’t work. Bitty’s mouth turns up at the corner a little, and he leans his hip against the counter, dusting his hands off.

“So you just… happen to be asking what Nursey’s favourite pie is, randomly? No reason behind it at all, hm? Why not Ransom’s? Or mine?”

“Yours is peach-lemon,” Jack says immediately. He isn’t sure why he knows that, but then Bitty’s cheeks go a little pink, and something sort of twinges in him and goes That’s why. Because Bitty likes when we remember stuff about him. He ignores it– aggressively– and instead pounces on the fact that Bitty is now in a good mood if he wasn’t already.

“Do you think you could maybe make a sweet potato pie? Just, uh don’t let the boys get at it, eh? It’s a surprise, kind of? A pick me up?” He’s rambling, a little, but it’s not like he talks a hell of a lot anyways.

Bitty’s brow creases a little, which means he probably said something wrong, but he can’t take it back now.

“Jack, is Nursey alright?” He moves to grab something, a pie tin, and starts shaping the dough within it. “Now that I think about it, he’s seemed a little off, but I thought he was just tired because of class, I should’ve said somethin’, i’ve been so distracted by this dang blog that I haven’t even tried! I wish someone had said–”

“Bitty,” he says firmly, a little loud. The smaller man looks up, startled.

“Was I rambling again? My bad. I’m just–”

“It’s okay. You don’t have to apologize, I do it too. Can you make the pie?”

“Of course, Jack. When do you need it by?”

“Tonight would be. That would would be good, if you can. Or tomorrow night, either way, it doesn’t really matter–”

“I’ll make it tonight,” Bitty says cheerily. “Don’t you worry your head, i’ll just make a murder run and i’ll use this crust here, buy some more stuff for another since we’re dang near outta flour anyways.”

“I can, uh, come with you, and help you carry your stuff back from the store? Or just so you don’t have to walk alone…?”

He looks surprised at the offer, and maybe a little touched. “Oh, Jack– I mean, if you’re busy, you don’t hafta, but i’d sure appreciate it if you’re sure you want to.”

“I’m sure. I’ll grab my phone. You should grab a jacket.”

“Chirp, chirp, chirp, Mr. Zimmermann. I’ll get you back one a’ these days, mark my words.”

It’s a little late by Jack’s standards when they finally finish up the pie; somewhere in the middle, Bitty had gotten the idea for a marshmallow top crust and had absolutely needed to work it out on paper for later, on a pie that didn’t have so much weighing on it. Still, it comes out well, and Bitty bags him up, sends him off with the pie, a container of cool whip, and a thermos of milk, “In case you decide not to drink those beers with my pie,” he says, gesturing to the two bottles with their slim necks tangled between his fingers.

Jack thanks him and Bitty sends him off with a smile. He stands in the doorway, waving, and it makes him warm and a little less anxious about what he’s about to do to know that he has the support of the younger man. Got your back, he thinks, and knows they all mean it.

Jack knocks softly at Nursey’s door, as gently as he can with the two bottles clutched in his hand. There’s a loud scuffling noise, some brief swearing, and what sounds like chips being crushed, and then Nursey opens the door.

He looks… kind of a mess. Not that Jack judges anyone who looks a mess, because he’s very, very familiar with that look, but he looks bad, like he’s genuinely not feeling well.

“Jack?” Nursey croaks, then looks startled at the sound of his own voice. He clears his throat quietly, then speaks up again. “Uh- what are you doing here?”

“I brought a pie,” he says, awkwardly holding it aloft. Nursey looks at him, the pie, the beers, and then back at him, then silently backs away from the door to allow him inside the dorm.

Jack ducks his head, pleased, and eases inside, beelining for the kitchen. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Nursey trailing slowly behind him; he can’t see the expression on his face, but somehow he doubts it would tell him much.

“I’ve got milk, too,” Jack offers when he sits down. “Bitty packed it in… euh, a thermos.”

“Beer’s fine,” Nursey murmurs. He hesitates, hovering by the table for a second before going over to the cabinet and grabbing something. Until he turns around, Jack doesn’t see it, but when the freshman settles in a chair he sets the item (items?) on the table: two little forks and a bottle opener. “Oh, thanks.”

“Yeah.”

Jack unwraps the foil from the crust and peels the cling wrap off, then slides it Nursey’s way while he cracks open the beers.  He remains mostly socially polite and doesn’t eat before him, though he pulls off a bit of crust and nibbles at it until Jack offers him his beer. The freshman raises it in mock salute before pressing his lips to the rim and drinking deeply from it.

Jack digs his fork in quietly, which gives Nursey the go ahead to hesitantly slide in his fork with his own.

They’re like that for a while, just the sound of quiet eating and their bottles settling on the table every so often. Jack watches Nursey as he works his way through the pie; only the glow of the light above the stove illuminates the little kitchen.

Maybe half of the pie is gone when Nursey speaks up.

“So we gonna do this after pie or during? Because it’s kinda late and I’ve got an eight am tomorrow.”

“Sorry,” Jack says. “Or– well, yeah, sorry for that, but, euh… I wanted to say sorry.”

Nursey blinks at him.

“For prying,” Jack says. Awkwardness creeps into his tone at the blank silence he receives. “Uh, earlier, in the week? You…”

“No, I know what you’re talking about,” Nursey interrupts. “Just. That was kind of… unexpected.”

He is instantly so, so fucking relieved.

“I mean it. You were right, I don’t– i’m not entitled to knowing. That’s not my business. And I don’t pay attention to everyone. I’ve been trying to get better at that, which is kind of why I was doing the prying. You didn’t see me last year, but I wasn’t who I am now, and even who I am now isn’t really great. I’m a lot better,” he says earnestly, waving his fork a bit as he spoke. “So i’m sorry. That was hypocritical of me, eh? To ask for all that when I don’t tell anybody? And it was rude.”

Nursey blinks again. “Uh.”

“Sorry. That was a lot.”

“No…? I… that’s. That’s not what I, uh, was expecting,” he manages to say a few tries in. He leans back, and Jack can see from the dip that forms in his cheek that he’s biting the inside of it as he taps against the table with his fork.

Jack wanted to ask– was he forgiven? Was all alright? Were they good? It was making him anxious, honestly, that he didn’t know how Nursey was feeling– but he wouldn’t go back on his word and therefore stayed silent until Nurse cleared his throat quietly.

“Thanks,” he murmured. “I’m not super into sharing feelings and whatevs, y’know? Like that’s not what i’m about really. But thanks. For taking what I said into consideration.”

Jack nodded, relieved. “No problem, Nurse.”

Nursey shot him a weak smile. He fiddled with his fork, slim fingers rolling the utensil in his grip. “You mind if I put this away? M’not really that hungry anymore and, uh, early class.”

“Oh, of course, sorry,” he says. “Uh, here, take the foil. It’ll do you more good than me, probably, eh?”

Nursey chuckles softly and takes the foil. His hands fold lightly around the edges, molding it around until it’s covered neatly. “I’ll walk you out,” he says softly. “You’ve got everything?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll grab my ID.”

“Thanks for the pie,” Nursey says at the door to his building. “Means a lot.”

Jack knows intrinsically that Nursey isn’t talking about the pie. It warms him a little. “Thank Bitty, he did all the work. I just bought supplies.” It’s nothing, i’m happy to do it.

“Still. You didn’t have to. Personal pie and all that.” I still appreciate it.

“No problem.” You deserve it.

They stand by the door a little awkwardly until Jack claps his hand on the other man’s shoulder gently. He makes his voice low. “Jusqu'ici tout va bien, eh?”

Nursey nods. “Ouais, ça va. Juste fatigué est tout. Promettre. Problèmes personnels.”

Jack meets his eyes and keeps them for a second. It wasn’t quite a lie, or enough of one that he needed to be called on it, so he nods and squeezes his shoulder. “À plus tard, ouais? Stop by the haus sometime this week. Bitty misses you, there’s too many calories and not enough mouths in the haus to feed.”

That gets another weak laugh out of him. “Sure. I’ll see what I can do. À bientôt, Capitane.”

Jack gives him a mock salute, which Nursey returns with a tiny, tiny smile, and then slips out into the night to make his way back to the haus.

Everything isn’t fixed, he thinks to himself, but maybe Nursey is a little less miserable.

They don’t talk about it, but Jack finds Nursey nearer to him in the next few weeks, and he welcomes it. He had been neglecting even his close friends, he realizes. Nursey eases up when Jack finds his way into Shitty’s room, doesn’t go so tense when he lightly places a hand at his arm. He allows himself to be corralled out of arguments with Dex. When Jack says something to him, he no longer quietly and subtly shuts down– which was what had been going on, Jack realizes now; he didn’t seem to take well to being called out in a group individually unless others were– it still seems to sting a little, but it doesn’t look as if he’s visibly taking offense or harm from it.

Jack opens up in return: he gives him space, respect, recognizes his work ethic on and off the ice. Jack finds himself saving food for him (he doesn’t eat much. Why doesn’t he eat much? He’s two inches taller than Jack,) and a month later finds himself at a poetry reading. He sees Dex out of the corner of his eye and nods to him; he flushes and nods back. Jack only stays for Nursey’s reading, third, and catches his eye and smiles lightly before he heads out.

“Thanks,” Nursey says softly the next day, pleased and flushed.

“It’s no problem–” is all Jack manages to get out before a voice calls, “Nursey, c’mon, we’re gonna be late to meet Chowder and Farmer!”

Jack raises a brow at him and Nursey flushes a little more. “Dex, uh, came. To the poetry reading,” he says, as if that explains anything at all, but it does.

“Just as long as you’re being safe–”

“Oh my god, it’s not– we’re talking. That’s it.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

Nursey rolls his eyes. “Salut, Jack.”

“Later, Nursey.”

“Yo, what the fuck is–”

“Shhh.”

Shitty rounds the corner; when he’s in full view, Jack is there, pressing a finger to his lips and frowning.

“Why am I being shushed, brahooh is that motherfucking Nurse? Why in the hell is he–”

“Shh,” Jack says again. His frown grows deeper, but he turns back to his book and gently eases his fingers back into Nursey’s silky curls.

“He’s letting you do that, right? You didn’t, like, hit him over the head with a hockey stick, right?”

“I wouldn’t do that to a stick,” Jack says, still frowning. “Or Nursey, for that matter.”

Shitty snorts and flops onto one of the other couches. “Loving where your priorities lie, brother. Still, can’t believe Nursey’s laid out on you like that. Took him a pretty long time to open up to me, if we’re being honest.”

Jack looks down at their position on the couch, or rather, Nursey’s: Jack himself is sitting upright, a book in his hand, mug of tea on the table next to the couch, while Nursey is just as Shitty said, laid out, his head resting face-down on his thighs.

(“Move your book,” Nursey had said.

“What?” Jack asked, alarmed, as Nursey tossed his backpack into the floor.

“Move it. Tea too. Arms up.”

Jack had obeyed, bewildered; Nursey kicked off a shoe lazily and had begun to shuck off his jacket.

“Oh my god, please don’t get fucking naked–”

“I’m not getting naked, crisse. Shits and I went to the same school,” he plopped on the couch and then squirmed onto his lap. “That’s where the similarities fucking end.”

It took him a few minutes to get truly comfortable, but he mumbled into his leg, “You can put your arms down,” so Jack wasn’t really concerned with him moving after that.

Maybe a minute or two later, Nursey had grabbed his hand and put it in his hair. Jack froze for a second, but then he heard, or rather felt, a little grunt against his leg and he began to tentatively run his fingers through his curls.)

“He’s tired,” Jack explains. “He said, uh. Two tests and an essay and then some presentation? And then he’s doing something for Lardo later so… napping. I respect it.”

“You would,” Shitty said, rolling his eyes fondly. “You want something from the kitchen?”

“Protein shake? And maybe a brownie.”

“Got it, brahski–”

“Bring another one for Nursey, too.”

“Gotcha.”

Shitty retreats to the kitchen, humming; Jack returns to his book until a clumsy hand comes up and pats at his face.

“Mmm… ‘anks, Jack,” Nursey mumbles sleepily. Jack smiles and squeezes the hand, gently pulling it from his face.

“Got your back, Nurse,” he murmurs, rubbing a hand along his spine. “Always.”

[42wallaby-way-sydney]

19? Because i'm evil and love your writing

19) “Show off.”

I read ‘evil’ and instantly thought of evil Matt so boom!

I’m so sorry this is garbage. (and that it took me forever yikes) I think i wrote it in like… an hour really? So probably loads of errors. Also forgive if the French is wrong. I did just get slightly hit by a car yesterday. ALSO! I’m gonna finish the other two messages tomorrow after work (so Sunday morning) or sometime Sunday afternoon.

Vladimir.

Buzz.

Vladimir.

Buzz.

Vladi-

“Whatdo you want at this time of the night?” Matt asks, frowning andfeeling his watch. It’s late but Matt still finds himself unable tosleep. So Vladimir calling is a welcome distraction.

Though,receiving calls from the Russian wasn’t an odd thing by any means forMatt. But getting a call from Vladimir at nearly half past three inthe morning is far more rare. Matt wonders for a moment if this hasanything to do with Anatoly or Fisk but then rolls his eyes whenVladimir says, “Found stupid tracksuit mafia in my garage.”

Mattrolled his eyes. “Well that sounds like a you problem.”

Ascoff from Vladimir. A very clear indication that the Russian was notin the mood for Matt’s sass and was growing quite agitated. Anothersign of his annoyance was the grunt of pain Matt heard from who hepresumed to be a member of the Tracksuit Draculas. He snickered as heheard Vladimir swear in Russian.

“Notin a good mood, cher?”

“Goto hell,” is Vladimir’s snappy response. A pause then the sound ofhim taking a breath, possibly to calm himself down then, “I need…help.”

“Doing?”

Athud noise and another yell, this one a stream of sentences inRussian that most definitely is not Vladimir’s voice. It takes all ofMatt’s self restraint to not snap at Vladimir to just answer him andinstead remain silent. And soon enough, after a few more curses fromboth the Russian Vladimir has captive and Vladimir, Vladimirresponds.

“Ihave small problem.” Vladimir gave a low hum and Matt can almostpicture Vladimir rubbing his chin in thought. “Three actually. Fourif you count the blood stains I need to get rid of.”

Asnort-laugh escaped Matt before he could stop it. “What did you do,you idiot?”

Vladimirscoffed and Matt could just barely hear a tinge of hurt in theRussian’s voice as he snapped back, “You are so rude, mudak.” Ayell of pain from the other Russian. “Tu m'emmerdes,” Vladimirscoffed out, kicking his captive once more, this time in the leg. Hesmirked as the other man groaned in pain.

Mattraised an eyebrow. “Who pissed in your cheerios?” He asks,walking around his living room. It’s more for something to do thananything else.

“Ohshut up. Will you come help me get rid of these bodies now? I amthinking I will just throw them into dumpster.”

“Nowwhy would you do that?” Matt asked, suddenly sounding tired even tohis own ears. He blames Vladimir for being very draining at thishour.

Apause then a smug sounding, “Because they are garbage.”

Mattcan tell that Vladimir is smirking in pure glee, as though he’d justtold a hilarious joke. But all it does is make the lawyer sigh androll his eyes.

“S'ilvous plaît, mon trésor?” Vladimir practically coos out.

Heraises an eyebrow when he hears Matt humming a tune, clearly thinkingthis over.

“Whatare you humming?” He asks curious and switching topics easily. Hejust vaguely remembers the song and knows it’s going to bother himuntil he figures it out.

“Noneof your business.” Matt says, picking his cane up from where he’dplaced it on the coffee table a few hours earlier. He’d made his mindup the moment Vladimir had asked for his help but he still wanted tohear the Russian beg a little bit longer. “I’m in my pajamas.”

Ahum of approval from Vladimir. “Good. You are coming here then?”

Mattscoffed. “In my pajamas?”

Vladimirshrugged. “I like your pajamas.” A pause. “Wait your underwearor sweatpants pajamas?”

“Sweatpants.”

Acurse in Russian that Matt recognized as damn.“I can work with that. So you are on your way now?”

Mattthinks it’s almost cute how equal halves hopeful and excited the Russian sounds. It reminds Matt of a puppy. “No. Why doyou want me to help you anyway? You are perfectly capable of hidingyour own bodies.”

Thisis a fact and Vladimir huffs in annoyance.

“Imiss you.”

Vladimir’scaptive scoffs and snaps something that Matt doesn’t understand butthen screams as Vladimir stabs him in the leg. Vladimir snapssomething at him, also in Russian, and Matt exaggerates a loud yawn.

Thisdoes the trick of getting Vladimir back on track. “Matyusha, miliimoi, mon trésor. I am almost begging here.”

Matttossed his cane up in the air, effortlessly caught it, and began toslowly twirl it as he walked around the living room. “You are goingto have to do more than just ‘almost’ begging. Since you want me tocome out in my bare feet-”

“Doyou even own shoes?” Vladimir interrupts, speaking more to himselfthan to Matt. “I do not think I have ever seen you in shoes.”

Mattdrops his cane in mild surprise. “I wear shoes.”

Ascoff from the Russian and he shrugs even though he knows Matt can’tsee it. “Sure. What do I have to do to make you come over here, montrésor?” He drawls out slowly, accent thicker on purpose as heknows Matt would never admit it but he does so love the accent.

Ratherthan give an answer Matt picks his cane back up and begins twirlingit around once more before asking almost absentmindedly, “Why doyou even want my help?”

“Isnot just the bodies. I am also threatening this idiot. I do notlike how they just wandered in here and were stealing my shit. Andyou are much more scary than me,” Vladimir says, fully honest. Hegrins when Matt lets out a happy hum and he can almost perfectlypicture in his mind Matt grinning smugly.

Mattshrugs. “Well, you know what they say. Flattery will get youeverywhere. Now, as for what you can do as payback for me coming tohelp you at half past three in the morning-”

“Ohplease. We both know you were not sleeping.”

“-Iwant pancakes,” Matt finishes, ignoring the interruption. He smirkswhen Vladimir lets out a disappointed groan.

“Fine.”

Ittakes all of five minutes of being in the garage for Matt to growbored. He can’t understand and doesn’t care to understand what thetwo Russians are yelling back and forth. The smell of blood is sostrong from the other three bodies that it takes all of Matt’sconcentration to not gag. He hates the smell of blood. It makes himthink of his dad’s death.

Hejerks slightly as he catches a few insults being thrown from thecaptive Russian to Vladimir. Then raises an eyebrow in amusement as agunshot rings out. A pained scream isn’t too far behind.

“Ithought you weren’t going to kill him?” Matt asks, almost laughingnow.

Vladimirscoffs and looks his gun over in an attempt to calm himself. “Hedoes not need his kneecaps to breathe.”

“Didhe insult me?” The sudden racing of Vladimir’s heart is answerenough. Matt finds that almost sweet that Vladimir cares so much in his own little way. “I understand what ‘suka’ means. I’m not a complete idiot,mon cher. Do you want me to ask him questions now? You can take aquick breather.”

Vladimirwaves his hand, a 'ifyou wish’gesture. And Matt doesn’t think twice. Just swings his cane out andsmacks the other Russian in the face. Vladimir lets out a low whistleas his captive spits out a mouthful of blood.

“Alright!Alright fine! I answer your questions! Just keep him away from me!”He’s not stupid. He knows exactly who Matt is. Everyone knows whoMatt Murdock is. But Matt rolls his eyes and ignores him. AndVladimir tilts his head as he watches the lawyer beat the TracksuitDracula to hell. Matt is enjoying it far too much but Vladimir findsit amusing, and possibly a tad arousing not that he’ll admit that, towatch.

Hewaits just a few minutes more before muttering, “Matvey, I got itfrom here I think.”

Matttsks but steps to the side as he hears Vladimir’s footsteps. He wavesa hand out. “All yours.”

“Showoff,” Vladimir scoffs out. Then turns his attention to the coughingRussian on the floor. His captive seems to be having a hard timebreathing now, arm holding his possibly broken ribs.

Whenthey begin speaking Russian once again Matt just yawns and tones themout. No use in trying to pay attention when he can only understandbasics and insults. He raises an eyebrow when Vladimir turns hisattention back to him.

“Wegive him ride back to his place now.”

“We’rewhat?” Matt asks, eyebrow raised and wondering if for a moment he’djust misheard Vladimir. But Vladimir just repeats what he’d just saidand Matt tilts his head. “Why are we giving him a ride home?”

“Igot what I wanted and I have message he needs to deliver to his otheridiot friends. In case they ever try to steal from me again,”Vladimir explains slowly, as if he wants to make sure Matt willunderstand him.

Mattjust stares straight ahead, not even caring that it unnerves Vladimirwhen he purposefully looks past him when they’re speaking. “Whatwere they stealing from you exactly?”

“Ah.Well…” The sound of Vladimir’s shoes hitting the pavement andthen a light thud noise as he kicks a body over. “This one owed memoney from a game of cards few weeks ago.” Another thud as Vladimirkicks another of the bodies. “And his cousin here did not like that I shot him. So he tried to shoot me and did not work well for him inthe end.” More footsteps as Vladimir walks to the final body thatlies in a pool of blood just a few feet away from Vladimir’s office.“And this bastard tried steal Tolik’s vodka.”

“Pleasetell me you’re kidding,” Matt says dully.

Vladimirjust shrugs. “Alright fine. It was my vodka he was trying to steal.Happy?”

“Ecstatic,”Matt almost spits out. He sighs. This shouldn’t shock him. He knowshow Vladimir is. And yet he still finds himself shocked by the littlethings Vladimir does.

Vladimirgrins. Claps his hands together then pulls his keys from his pocket.“Now, let’s take this asshole home. Go get our pancakes. Then wecan finish our date of ridding this garage of dead people.”

“Thiswas a date?” Matt asks, eyebrow raised.

Vladimirpauses, now standing right next to the slightly shorter man. “Oui,mon trésor,” he says, pinching Matt’s cheek. He huffs when Mattwrinkles his nose and swats his hand away from his face. He looksaround, shrugs, and says, “I think all the red around here now isgood… aesthetic? Very romantic.”

Mattsnorts. “Stick to the roses.”

“Butyou hate their smell?”

“Ihate the smell of blood even more, connard.”

Atsk from Vladimir. “You are so rude today.” He can’t help but to be amused.