#Best Car to Buy in New Jersey

[zegrasdrysdale]

[ photograph ] j. drysdale

paring : Jamie Drysdale x fem!reader

summary : (Y/N) decides to fly out to Philly for Valentine’s Day after watching Jamie say in an interview that he’ll probably be spending the day alone

warning(s) : just some tooth rotting fluff with no angst for once, a heavy makeout

author’s note : this is just a (not so) lil fluff filled thing bc i wanted to write something for belated valentine’s day. sorry or you’re welcome (idk)

༺═──────────────═༻

“Yeah, uh, I don’t actually have any plans tomorrow,” he explains to a reporter through the screen on her phone. “Everyone I know here does have plans and everyone else I know is across the country so I’ll most likely spend the day putting together furniture in my new apartment.”

That was the moment she decided that she was getting on the first flight she possibly could to Philly so Jamie didn’t spend Valentine’s Day alone. No one should have to spend the day alone. She doesn’t have any plans and she’s off from work for about two weeks because they’re doing renovations so a little trip to Philadelphia doesn’t sound like the worst thing in the world.

Last year he spent the day with Trevor on the couch and watched movies in their shared apartment. This year, he is in Philly and Trevor actually has a girlfriend. Not very ideal for Jamie.

She isn’t Jamie’s girlfriend, but she is one of his best friends and could never let him be alone on Valentine’s Day. Especially not after hearing what his actual plans are for tomorrow. She’s going to at least help him put furniture together in his apartment.

A flight out of LAX is scheduled for 10 that night. It’s six so she has about two hours to pack for a week long trip to Philly. She even buys a ticket for Saturday’s game at MetLife since she wants to see Jamie play a game while she’s in Philly.

By eight, she’s out the door with a suitcase that’s packed full of clothes and non-liquid toiletries. The jersey Jamie sent her about a week after the trade is neatly folded with the rest of her clothes. She orders an Uber to drive her to the airport.

While in the Uber, she debates texting Jamie and telling him that she’ll be at his new apartment early tomorrow morning since she’ll be landing a little before six in the morning. It’ll probably take about 45 minutes after she lands before she’s on Jamie’s doorstep.

Maybe a surprise wouldn’t be the worst thing so she puts her phone away until she has to pull out her plane ticket.

Getting on the plane takes an hour between getting past TSA and buying snacks for the nearly five hour flight. She boards the plane twenty minutes before it takes off so she has time to get comfortable.

She’s asleep before the plane even leaves the ground.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

All the snacks she bought before the flight are going to be the snacks she eats while she’s in Philly because she slept for the entire flight. It didn’t feel like she slept for 5 hours but she did.

By six, she’s at baggage claim and grabbing her suitcase. She orders an Uber to Voorhees while she waits for her things. The car is waiting for her when she get outside.

It’s a lot colder out than she thought it was going to be. All she has on is a Ducks hoodie that Jamie gave to her the year before and a pair of leggings with Uggs on her feet. Her feet are warm. The rest of her is not. She shakes as she puts her things in the trunk of the car.

She gives the driver Jamie’s new address and she’s off to surprise her best friend.

The closer she gets to Jamie’s, the more nervous she gets. What if he found someone after moving to the Philly area? What if the whole putting furniture together comment was a lie so he didn’t announce to the entire world he was in a relationship? What if he doesn’t want her there in general?

Maybe a spontaneous trip across the country without at least letting Jamie know she was coming wasn’t the best idea she’s ever had.

A call comes through from Trevor. Confused, she answers the phone. “Good morning?”

“Are you in Philly?” he asks.

“Maybe,” she slowly replies as she watches the Philly skyline pass. “Why? It’s like three in the morning.”

“Not for you apparently,” he retorts. “I looked to see where you were because Mason said you weren’t replying to his texts so I wanted to make sure you were okay and I see that you flew across the country.”

She smiles and shakes her head. The way Trevor would find out she’s in Philly is by checking her location. He and Jamie are the only ones that have her location because she’s closest with them.

“Just wanted to surprise Jamie,” she tells Trevor. “That’s all. Tell Mason I’ll call him later because I’m about ten minutes away from Jamie’s apartment.”

“You gonna tell him you love him?” Trevor questions. She opens her mouth to object but he keeps talking. “It’s so freaking obvious so don’t even lie to me.”

A nervous laugh passes her lips. “We’ll see,” she replies. “I’ll talk to you later, Z.”

“Tell me how he’s really doing,” he tells her. “I worry about him sometimes.”

“Will do,” she says as the driver pulls up to Jamie’s place. “Talk soon.”

The line goes dead and she looks out the window at the apartment building. Jamie’s somewhere in there asleep and she’s about two minutes away from calling him to come let her into the building.

She gets her things out of the trunk and thanks the driver before he drives off to pick someone else up. She sighs and pulls up Jamie’s contact.

When she presses the ‘call’ button, it rings about four times before Jamie answers. The entire time, her hands are shaking and she isn’t sure if it’s because of the cold or if she’s nervous to see Jamie for the first time since the trade.

“It’s like four in the morning,” he croaks when he picks up. “Are you okay?”

She smiles at the sound of his morning voice. “Actually it’s almost seven in the morning and I’m currently freezing my ass off outside your apartment building so if you could come let me in, that would be great,” she says.

It sounds like Jamie falls out of bed when she says that she’s outside of the building. If he broke anything then she’s going to have to explain to Torts why Jamie will be out for six weeks.

He isn’t holding any body parts when he swings the door open and blankly stares at her from the top of the steps of the building. He blinks a few times like he’s trying to decide if he’s still dreaming or if he’s awake. She waves and a barefoot Jamie runs down the stairs to hug her.

A laugh passes her lips and she wraps her arms around his torso. “You’re actually here,” he says against her ear. “I thought you were lying to me.”

“Nope,” she replies. “I’m here. I didn’t have anything else to do so I thought I’d come surprise you. Help you put together some furniture for Valentine’s Day.”

Jamie pulls back from the hug just enough to look at her. “You saw that interview?” he asks.

With a nod and a smile, she replies, “It sounded like a very boring way to spend Valentine’s Day so I thought I’d come keep you company. Maybe watch you play at the outdoor game this weekend. I have another week off from work and spending it in the Philly area with my best friend didn’t sound like the worst idea.”

“You are actually insane for buying a plane ticket without knowing if I’d be here or not,” he tells her. “I could’ve left for Toronto before you got here since we play them tomorrow.”

“Yeah I know how your travel schedule works,” she retorts. “That’s how I knew you’d be here.”

He shakes his head and grabs her suitcase. “You have some of the best timing because I took a maintenance day today so I have a day off from practice, but I leave tomorrow morning for Toronto,” he says to her as they walk into the building together.

“Listen, I’m spending a week in the area,” she replies. “I get to watch you play at the outdoor game on Saturday when I wasn’t planning on being on the east coast at all. If you’re gone for a day or two then it’s fine.”

The smile that forms on Jamie’s face makes her heart do somersaults in her stomach.

She can tell how excited he is that she decided to visit him. She knows how much he has been missing Anaheim so she brought Anaheim to him for a week.

When Jamie opens the door to the apartment, she is very surprised by how decorated it is and how much of the stuff he had in his Anaheim apartment has made its way to this one. It still needs some work done, but that is why she’s here. She’s here to help him finish putting it all together.

“I need to build some shelves,” Jamie tells her. “And put together the guest bedroom. The frame still needs to be built for the guest bed too. This is what my plans were for the day.”

She turns her head to look at him as he closes the door behind them. “So it wasn’t come ruse so you didn’t have to admit to the world that you had a secret girlfriend?” she questions.

If she should expect Jamie to have a girl over then she might as well get the girlfriend question out of the way early on in her visit.

“Uh, no,” he replies. “No secret girlfriend. I’ve been so busy that I haven’t had any time to find a girlfriend. Yorky has tried but he’s not the best wingman.”

She can’t help but laugh. Jamie smiles and rolls her suitcase to the unfinished bedroom.

She decides to make some coffee for the two of them so they can get started on the day’s plans. They have to put together the guest room and build some shelves. It can’t be very hard to do either of those things. Right?

Wrong.

It turns out that Jamie can’t follow simple instructions to save his life. She has had to refrain from throwing whatever is in her hand at him so many times because he can’t read a piece of paper.

“Jamie, what am I supposed to do with this screw?” she asks as she holds up an extra screw. “Do I have to put it in your head so you can use your brain or something? You missing one in there? Do I need to get Trevor on the first flight out of LAX to come help you figure out how to read the instructions?”

Jamie looks up from his spot on the floor and throws the instructions at her. “Here, you try to read this and tell me if it makes any sense,” he retorts. “It’s all confusing. My parents helped me build shelves when they came to visit a few weeks ago. I didn’t have to do this. Maybe it’s just an extra.”

She grabs the pamphlet and reads the directions. The screw was supposed to be put in when putting the shelves in place. A shelf is missing a screw.

“You dumbass,” she says. “It’s not an extra screw. It was supposed to be put in on the bottom shelf to make sure it is secure and even. You now have an unsecure shelf in your guest room.”

Jamie flattens out on his back on the carpeted floor with a groan. “This is why I’m a hockey player and don’t work in home improvement,” he says as he rubs his eyes. She laughs and tries to keep her eyes on his face instead of on the sliver of skin that peeks out between what is a new Flyers t-shirt and pajama pants. “This is so dumb. I am not about to take that whole thing apart to put one screw in.”

She walks over and slaps the pamphlet on his stomach. He gasps and sits up with the paper in his hands. “Then get it together, Drysdale,” she tells him. “We have a bed frame to build.”

“Fuck the bed frame,” he sighs as she grabs the box in the corner and drags it into the center of the room. “You don’t need a bed to sleep in tonight.”

With a light laugh, she teases, “If we don’t get it set up then I’m gonna be sleeping in your bed until we get it put together.”

Jamie mutters something that sounds like “would be okay with me” but she pretends she doesn’t hear it. She can’t hear it or else she will just say “fuck it” and sleep in Jamie’s bed the entire time she’s here instead of putting the bed together.

The mattress is sitting up against the wall next to where the box with the bed frame was. He has everything he needs to put this bed together and he hasn’t done it yet. Not even over the All Star break when he had a few days off before going to Mexico with the Flyers.

Putting the bed together takes less time and a lot less arguing back and forth. Within an hour, the mattress is on top of the bed frame. Five-foot-eleven 185 pound Jamie flops on the mattress to make sure it’s secure and won’t fall apart if someone were to jump on it.

They do not need to have another shelf problem with the bed that she will most likely be sleeping on while she’s in the area. If it is like the shelf and it’s not safe to sleep on then the couch is in the living room for a reason.

The two of them stand in the doorway and look at their work when they decide the bed is secure. “We make an amazing team,” she comments. “Aside from the shelf.”

Jamie groans and walks down the hallway to his own room. “Shelves are stupid anyway,” he replies. “Who is actually going to use them in this room aside from me just putting a handful of books and pictures on them?” She laughs and goes to unpack her stuff now that it’s safe to do so without stepping on wood, metal or a screw on the floor.

The Flyers jersey that he sent her gets hung up in the closet along with her shirts, hoodies, and nicer pants. She’ll pull bras, panties, and socks out of the suitcase as needed. The beanie she brought to wear on Saturday is put on the bedside table.

Then she pulls out the gift that she brought for Jamie. It isn’t much but she’s hoping that it means as much to him as it does to her. The pictures she brought were taken at such important moments in Jamie’s career and she hopes that he doesn’t mind having a few pictures of his best friend around the apartment.

She walks down to Jamie’s bedroom and knocks gently on the door. There are footsteps behind it before the door swings open. “I, um, had these printed and framed in case I ever came to visit you,” she tells him as she holds out the three picture frames. “Thought you might need some décor.”

Jamie looks down at the pictures and shifts through them.

One of them was taken on Jamie’s Draft Day. He has on a Ducks jersey and she has on his Ducks hat. He looks so happy. He has an arm around her shoulders while he holds up six fingers and is smiling at the camera. She has a smile on his face and is looking up at him with a proud look on her face. Messy ponytail and all.

The second one was taken the day Jamie made his NHL debut and scored his first goal. It’s a selfie she took of her, Jamie, and Trevor at dinner that same night. They’re both holding their pucks because they went right from the arena to a restaurant to eat.

The third one was taken during the 2021 World Juniors tournament where Canada placed second. She’s putting the silver medal back around his neck after he had given it to her. “Silver just means you lost” is what he had said to her a moment before this was captured. She had told him that she was a winner to him and put the medal back around his neck. There is heavy eye contact between the two of them in their matching jerseys.

It was as the third picture was being taken she realized that she loved Jamie. The first two pictures, she knew she had feelings for him, but the third was when she realized that she wanted to be there for him as more than just a friend.

“I had no idea you had any of these,” he says after he’s done looking through them. Jamie looks up at her. “All at different points of my career.”

“Been with you since day one,” she replies with a smile on her face. “You didn’t think that I wouldn’t be here with you while you succeed in a whole new city, did you?”

Jamie laughs and shakes his head. “Absolutely not,” he tells her. “You always make sure you’re a presence in my life.” He pauses and looks right at her. “It’s one of the things I love most about having you in my life.”

She could almost cry when he says that.

There have been so many times over the years where she thought she was annoying or that he wanted her out of his life. She followed him to California when he started playing with the Gulls then the Ducks. He asked her to come with him, but she thought for months it was out of pity.

He has erased years of insecurity with one comment.

“Thanks for keeping me in your life,” she replies after a brief moment of silence.

“You’re like Trevor,” he teases. “You’re always around. It would be hard for me to get rid of you.”

She smiles up at him. “Except he would never fly across the country to see you,” she retorts. “Especially without at least telling you he was coming to see you.”

Jamie laughs. “No, he wouldn’t.”

They look at each other for a second before he walks past her. He has the picture frames in his hand as he walks into the living room. She follows him even though she is confused with what he’s doing.

He puts the picture of himself, Trevor, and (Y/N) on the coffee table under the lamp next to the couch. It’s the most public place in the entire place so it makes sense that that’s the picture that is put in the living room.

The picture of the two of them on Draft Day goes on a little table that leads to the hallway with both bedrooms and bathrooms. The table is under a little mirror that’s been hung up. A little less public but it also joins the other pictures that were taken that day. It looks like it belongs.

Jamie glances at her and walks back into his bedroom. She follows right behind him and stands in the doorway of his room. Her eyes are on the picture of the two of them at the 2021 World Juniors as it’s placed on Jamie’s bedside table.

“This one means the most to me so it deserves a little more privacy than the others,” Jamie tells her without a look in her direction. “You were there for me and picked me up when I was down. I didn’t want anyone else there but you. You were the one that convinced me silver was okay. The team worked hard to get to that moment. The medal was very well deserved because we did everything we could to make it to that game. I did everything I could to get the team to that game. We just came up a little bit short.”

She pouts and walks further into the room. He finally looks over at her. “I didn’t know you felt that way,” she softly says to him. “I didn’t know that I was the person that convinced you it was okay to wear silver around your neck.”

“I needed silver because my gold medal was you,” Jamie shakily admits. His voice is soft. “You’re my gold medal.”

His words have her speechless. Her jaw drops in surprise. She has no idea why he’s saying this to her now.

He reaches out to her and brushes a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She takes a step forward and feels her heart race in her chest as she looks up at him. Her body shakes as she realizes that their relationship is changing.

A line that she never expected to cross is about to be crossed. She can see it in Jamie’s eyes as they examine her face, landing on her lips.

“Can I kiss you?”

She nods because she doesn’t trust herself to speak. She is afraid that she’s going to admit how long she’s been in love with him if she says a single words.

So she nods, and Jamie leans down to capture her lips in a soft, hesitant kiss. He’s testing the waters to see if she’ll push him away.

She’ll never push him away.

Not when she finally has him like this. Not when she finally knows what it feels like to kiss Jamie Drysdale.

When she feels him begin to pull away, she wraps her arms around his neck and leans more into him to deepen the kiss instead of Jamie breaking it. Her fingers find a home in his hair.

She is scared he will regret it if the kiss breaks, and she doesn’t want that. She doesn’t want to see that look. It might break her if he looks at her like that if the kiss breaks.

Jamie cups her cheek and brushes his thumbs over her cheekbone. She melts against him with a sigh.

“(Y/N),” he mumbles after a second. “I need to breathe.”

That’s when she lets him pull away. The sight of his red, swollen lips and unruly hair is almost too much for her. There’s a hint of a smile on his face and something overcomes her.

“I love you,” she tells him. “I’ve loved you since that was taken.” She points in the direction of the picture on his bedside table. “It’s always been you, Jamie. That’s why I flew across the country on Valentine’s Day. I wanted to be with you today because I miss you and I love you.”

Jamie smiles and brushes his thumb over her own lips that are as red and swollen as his are. “I love you too,” he says. “I think I’ve been in love with you since I saw you at my first NHL game in my jersey. I’m very happy you came to the east coast to watch me play in the Stadium Series game this weekend. I was going to probably fly you out anyway.”

She laughs and shakes her head before burying her face in his chest. They’ve been in love with each other for years and are only now saying something about it after Jamie was traded to Philly and she’s stuck in Anaheim for right now.

“Only took me bringing you pictures to finally kiss me,” she teases.

He rolls his eyes. “Shut up and come here.”

Their lips meet in a heated kiss. Everything they’ve been feeling is coming out in the kiss. Jamie tugs her until she is sitting on his lap while he’s sitting on the mattress. She drapes her arms over his shoulders.

It’s that moment when she realizes they put together a whole bed for no reason because there is now no way she is getting in that bed now.

She pushes him down until Jamie is lying flat on his back and their chests are flush against each other. Her hair creates a curtain around their faces despite his fingers curling in her locks.

“Wait, hold on,” Jamie says. She pulls back from the kiss. “Have something to ask you before we get distracted.”

“Hm?”

“Will you come to family skate on Friday before the game at MetLife?” he asks. “As my girlfriend?”

The biggest smile forms on her lips. “You’re going to have to give me skating lessons because despite watching you play hockey for years, I have no idea how to skate,” she tells him.

“I will give you skating lessons,” Jamie laughs. “You’ll come though?”

She nods and kisses him. “I’ll come.”

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

yourusername

liked by jamie.drysdale, philadelphiaflyers, and 193,872 others

yourusername life recently w my 🤍

view all 15,982 comments

fan1 JAMIE HAS A GIRLFRIEND ????

masonmctavish23 ig i forgive you for not answering my texts last week

yourusername we can hang out when i get back into cali on wednesday

masonmctavish23 good. i’m mad that jamie stole you from us

fan2 oh my god. this is so cute

fan3 you were at metlife ??? i think i walked past you at one point

yourusername i had on the drysdale jersey

trevorzegras oh this is all i’m gonna hear about when she gets back

leocarlssoon it’s about time. i was praying this would happen bc the way jamie talked about you was insane

jamie.drysdale let me live !!

philadelphiaflyers Thanks for coming out

jamie.drysdale skating w my girlfriend for the first time was the best feeling 🩵

yourusername being your girlfriend is the best feeling

༺═──────────────═༻

MASTERLIST

have a request ? check out the guidelines !

wanna be added to the taglist ? fill out this form !

taglist : @fanboysfangirl @dasiysthings @equallyshaw @dancerbailey3 @goldihocksrocks @love4lando @sweetinsatiable @mangoluver

[babybratzmaraj]

Agora Hills

Marshawn Lynch starring as Himself

You starring as Yourself

Summary: You and Marshawn are in New York! You two returned to the hotel room to indulge in some beautiful activities

This fic contains: stronggg sexual content, heavy amounts of negro tongue,lil bit of drug use, you get called a bitch once, pet names, some nasty shit thanks to my clit!

A/N: I have no words. imma whore and the world shall know I'm such, under this name LKJHGFVBNJK like comment reblog for more, and as always folks, have a black ass day.

song that inspired this here:

Taglist: @megamindsecretlair

You walked into the hotel room with Marshawn trailing behind you smiling at your giddiness. Marshawn had a business opportunity to expand his ‘Beast Mode’ franchise and wanted you to come, fuck that, he forced you to come along with him. He loved you dearly and be damned if he left yo pretty ass at home, so he dragged you to the big apple, New York City! Didn’t think you’d love it but you were having fun and enjoying yourself, your man made sure of that.

“That fuckin’ manly ass boy kept taking up space in that fuck ass elevator,” You finally said what was on your mind. You, Your man, a family of 4, and a 6-foot man crowded the elevator and you were tired of it already, your man shielded you once he realized that you were uncomfortable around him. He was just standing too fuckin close.

“Glad you waited till you was in here, I damn near had to cover your mouth in that damn thing.” He rolled his eyes plopping down on the bed and you giggled at how many times he had to squeeze your hand on that long elevator ride to keep your mouth shut.

You kicked off your jeans and joined him on the bed, straddling him, smiling at each other before you laid your head on his chest. “Lemme get a taste baby,” you heard him beg, taking his big long arms and grabbing two handfuls of your ass, massaging them both softly.

“No!” You laughed

“Why not?”

“Because I’m dirty! we been out all day, been sweating and shit, bout ready to throw this wig off and call it a night.”

“Ain't nun wrong with a little seasoning,” he shrugged his shoulders as you erupted into laughter.

He didn’t care if you were sweating all day, freezing your tits off, or sat down too long, if he wanted to eat you, he would, and you would love every single millisecond of it, life too short to not enjoy some head every now and then from someone. You rose up and sat perfectly in his lap, flipping your hair over into a side part, you fiddled with your nails to avoid eye contact.

Your trip prep consisted of cheap but good shit, your nails came from Walmart, your wig came from Amazon, and the clothes you wore you were either forced to buy when you touched down in new york or his clothes he didn’t care if you wore, He didn’t like the shit one bit, ‘the best shit for my favorite woman’ is what he would alllllways say when he caught you buy shit from the low, but you felt bad, you didn’t grow up with shit and hated asking others for help, you didn’t like being dependent on other people because you were afraid of them throwing it back into your face.

But he was different, he wanted to spoil you, he wanted you to have his card and enjoy yourself, get you a fat burrito bowl from Chipotle with a side of Fries and a Hi-C from McDonald’s, it felt nice but you hated him spending his money on you.

“Come here,” he said, raising to help you off the bed and readjust his shirt that you wore, and man you wore it good. You wore his jersey from his football days and you were shocked that you could fit it and it fit you well, hugging your curves and hiding your tummy, which he hated but he wanted you to be his happy princess.

He held your hand all the way to the balcony, looking down at the tiny world, the giddy people walking around, the cars and taxi cabs zooming around and cutting corners, everyone looked like legos and you chuckled at every other person doing emotes and shit.

“Look at this,” he trailed behind you, wrapping his arms around your body, holding you tightly like a warm teddy bear. “This shit is beautiful, even the sky,” You look up and damn it was beautiful. The clouds danced with the stars, twinkling to a rhythm that Black Jesus had his choir sing to the heavens rooftops, the sunset shining through the colorful sky and painting an ethereal picture right in front of your eyes. You were glad he picked the 16th floor just for this view, you’d do anything to see it on a daily basis.

He spun you around and your eyes met his, you saw the sunshine on his face, giving his skin golden kisses all over his face. You gave him quick pecks on the cheek but he wanted more, he grabbed the right side of your face and guided it to his lips, kissing you so sloppily and beautifully, his tongue dancing with yours as he held you closer to him, his hunger for you growing more and more.

You whined as he pulled away from the kiss, leaning forward to get more of him. “Pleaseee, I want some moreee.”

“Why you being impatient? and Do you not know your words?” He questioned you, throwing your head in a frenzy.

He cupped your face in his hand and placed more kisses on you, trailing them from your neck down to your stomach.

“I love when you wear my jersey, I love it even more when I get to fuck you in it.” He smiled up at you and you met him with a flustered grin. Another thing he loved was you wearing his clothes, at first he hated it because you kept taking his good clothes, but the more you took, the more he fell in love with the idea, even to the point that he would take you shopping with him and purposely pick the clothes you chose because you both knew you were going to steal it.

He tugged your panties off, you shook your legs to make it easier for him. A cool breeze distracted you by sending shivers throughout your body. He hooked your left leg onto his shoulder as he dove into you, flicking his tongue on your clit over and over again.

You threw as your hair blew with the wind, dancing in the breeze as he ate you earnestly, moving his tongue wherever your body moved too. You moaned into the air as a smile grew wider on your face, you gyrated your hips in a circle, chasing his tongue around to get him to where you wanted him to be. “Fuck,” You hissed when he finally inserted his two middle fingers inside of you, pumping them deep into you.

He unhooked your leg from his shoulder as he rose to tower you, not fuckin up his motion, he gripped your throat and smushed his lips on yours, his tongue desperately searching for yours but you just couldn’t keep your mouth shut long enough.

He jerked your head forward to look him in his eyes, “You finna cum babygirl? You finna cum all over daddy’s fingers?”

“Yes, Yes, Fuck yes!” You chanted while fucking his fingers, the corner of his lips pulling into a devilish smirk.

He loved watching you cum, the way your body danced with your orgasms, your moans turning into whimpers of pleasure right down to your eyes fluttering like a butterfly in a field of beautiful flowers, You were the flower and he was the boy frolicking through the field enjoying every second of it.

You gripped his shoulder for support with your back pressed against the railing, You opened your eyes to the sight of the beautiful sunset, which was the last thing you saw before he pulled an orgasm out of you, pressing his thumb on your clit and making tiny circles on it. Twitching with every move he made, you grabbed his wrist to steady his hand.

“Fuck, Baby pleaseee,” You begged but he did not listen. Marshawn was a pleaser, always has been always will be, he will not stop until he felt like you were pleased, and you weren’t just yet.

He turned you around so now your tummy was pressed against the railing. He pressed himself against you, sticking his fingers in your mouth, moaning at you suckling on his fingers, “Fuck, Bet you imagined it was me huh?”

“Mhm,” You moaned around his fingers, letting out small yelps every time his hand connected with your asscheeks. He took his fingers out of your mouth to prop your hands on the railing, parting your legs a decent distance, he dropped his pants to free his eager member.

“You think you can stay like this for Daddy?” he asked you, grabbing your hips to perk your butt in the air. He squatted down to take one long look at your pussy, glistening with your essence in the sunset light.

He gave your pussy a couple of licks and kisses before raising up, looking at you, hanging your head low, in desperate need to feel him, to fill you up, to paint a pretty picture inside you. He lined himself up against your wet entrance, preparing his canvas with his precum.

You moaned softly at him slowly filling you up as your eyes fluttered shut, throwing one hand behind you to push him back only resulting in your arm getting pinned behind your back. “You can take me, baby, Just let me take care of you,”

“Nooo,” You protested but it was no good. He was always big, always girthy, and always ready to give it all to you. You’d always fight with him about how much you couldn’t take him, but he’d fucked the worry right out of you.

You felt his free hand wrap around your throat, pushing more into you, finally settling all of his inches in, you clutched around him, snickering at the little moans that escaped his mouth. He planted his feet on the ground and started to fuck you relentlessly, starting at your ass as he watched his lower half collide with your ass, watching it ripple repeatedly was the most satisfying sight he could’ve ever laid eyes on.

You moaned silently to be mindful of the other residents of this hotel but he wasn’t having none of that,

“Nuh-uh,” He moaned in a low tone, propping his leg on the chair, rocking his hips into you slowly to make you talk. “Lemme hear you, let the world know good I’m making my bitch feel.” you granted his wish, letting all of the moans you suppressed leave your mouth.

He paused his motion, slowly sliding out of you and back in. He releases his grip from your throat and you drop your head, flipping your hair back to get the few strands stuck on your face by the sweat off.

You hear him walking away from you, watering your curiosity about what he was going to do. You look back at him to see him remove his pants and take off his shirt. Adjusting his chain he walked back out to the balcony.

“C’mere,” He commanded, squatting down on one of the chairs that was set out on the balcony, stroking himself while looking directly into your eyes.

You smile as you drop to your knees not breaking eye contact, he smacks his thick dick on your lips, the corners of his mouth raising more by the minute.

You opened your mouth and stuck out your tongue, giving him sultry looks before you took him in your mouth, moaning around him savoring the taste of both of your juices combined.

He let out a deep rugged groan at the feeling of your mouth, moving your hair out of your face, he looked at you with hunger in his eyes.

You wrapped your hands around his dick, jerking him and sucking him at a medium pace. “Good fuckin’ girl,” he praised you in a low growl making you leak onto your thighs. Grabbing your head, he began to thrust himself into your mouth, making you take him deeper and deeper into your throat, making gag noises as he stroked languidly.

You feel him twitch in your throat, signaling that he was close. You put your hands behind your back and looked up at a cheesing Marshawn. “You look so fuckin’ pretty taking me mamas.” He moaned before throwing his head back in pleasure. He only had a few strokes left before he came in your throat, letting out those soft masculine moans that you love so fucking much.

He let out a few more before bobbing your head up and down on him, fuckin his cum further down your throat.

You slowly take him out as you swallow whatever was left, giving him innocent smiles and gave his dick a few kisses. “Damn baby,” he panted, lowering his head to give you quick pecks on the lips, leading down to your collarbone as he reached around to grab a handful of your ass.

You got off your knees and hooked your leg on the chair's railings, aligning him with your entrance, you hooked your other leg as you slid down on him slowly. “Shitttttt,” he curses under his breath at the feeling of you, the two of you moaning as your hunger has been restored.

You braced yourself by wrapping your arms around his neck, bouncing in his lap at a quick pace. He moaned directly into your ear to fuel you more and it did, you loved it when he moaned, every time he moaned anything or sound made you get more riled up, it was your dick and you could do whatever you wanted to it, and you proudly did your shit.

“Fuck, this pussy so good. taking all of daddy’s dick,” he said, snaking his arm up to grip your throat, making you hold eye contact while you continue to ride him. The air felt more humid, the sun still peeking through as a ray of sunshine displayed his chocolate skin glistening with sweat, brightening up his dark brown eyes to a beautiful bright brown.

You felt his twitch inside you and his body tense up, “You better not nut baby, not till I get mines.” You commanded and he obliged, rolling his eyes at your dirty words. “God why you fuckin me like this?” he threw the question in the air making you slow down, gyrating your hips as you slowly bounced up and down, giggling at his face and whimpering that left his plumped lips.

“Aw come on baby,” you cooed at his whimpers, “Can’t take it?”

“I’ll show you who can’t take it,” he said, hooking his arms around your legs and picking you up and flipping you two around so now that you were on the bottom, dangling his chain in your face, he started to fuck you with content in his eyes.

Your eyes rolled back to the back of your skull as you felt him hitting your spot over and over again. “Oh fuck!” you cursed into the air resulting in a smile from Marshawn. “Aw Come on baby, What’s wrong? Can’t take all of me?” he growled, making the pit in your stomach grow wilder.

“Fuck, Fuck, Fuck! I’m finna cum!” you chanted over and over again.

“Hold it- J-just a little bit l-longer.” he threw his head back pleading, matching his strokes with your whimpers.

You hated when he didn’t let you cum, even when you wanted to soooo bad you knew you couldn’t disobey him, the punishment would’ve been something to tell the captain.

He dropped his head to see you cry tears of pleasure, in love with the beautiful sight of you taking him and all of him, he could look at this all day long. “Cum.” was all that was needed as you both had your climax together, the sounds leaving his mouth sounded like heaven to your ears and harmonized with yours as he painted your walls with his cum.

He softly collapsed on top of you still inside you, holding you close as he rocked his hips into you. “Oh my god,”

“Oh my god indeed.” He laughed, giggling at you whimpering as he slowly pulled out, his nut oozing out of your pussy.

He left the balcony for a few minutes and returned with a warm towel to wipe you clean, planting kisses on your forehead as he sat beside you on the other chair, grabbing the blunt from earlier that was resting in the ashtray.

You flipped over to your side and stared at him, admiring what kind of man you scored, you felt like the most luckiest girl in the world to have him, to be cared about, to feel loved, to be adored by someone who didn’t care how big you were, you were his, wasn’t nothing changing that.

You two started at the sunset with each other taking turns to hit the blunt, it wasn't a damn thing that could dim your happiness, not even a negative Nancy that was yelling at you two from below, you both snickering before running back inside the room, shutting the door and jumping into bed.

fin♥️

[writingonleaves]

i never could've seen you coming (i think you're everything i've wanted) - nico hischier

pairing: nico hischier x original female character

warnings: swearing, mentions of death and cancer, a substantial amount of grief, so much fluff, medical school inaccuracies probably, angst if you squint, way too many mentions of all three hughes brothers..like an absurd amount (but it's part of the plot, i promise)

title: "the blue" by gracie abrams

word count: 19.7k (whoops!)

author's note: got WAY too carried away with this one lol so you may see more of this little au bc i really fell in love with it. this turned almost into a study on found family / siblinghood?? i hope you all enjoy it just as much as i enjoyed writing it and creating this little world. takes place in the 2023-2024 season.

*****

In hindsight, it probably would’ve been smarter to live closer to work and actually be in the city.  But when word got around — well, her mother telling her best friend — that Clementine was going to be even close to New Jersey, she had, in order, Luke, Quinn and Jack texting her within an hour of each other.

Lukey Hughes

Clemmy!! Congrats on the residency. Heard you’re gonna be across the river from jersey?? 👀

Quinny Hughes

Congrats on NYU! I’m happy you get to go back east even though I won’t get to see you as often. Don’t let Luke or Jack annoy you too much. Love and miss you! ❤️

Jacky Hughes

CLEMENTINE

you’re coming to new york????

you have to live with me please please please it’s not that far

and luke will probably be here next season and ik he’s your favorite 

When Clementine Sandoval found out she was placed at NYU Langone for her combined emergency room and pediatrics residency, she thought two things. Holy shit, she actually has made it this far. And holy shit, she’s excited to go back closer to home, after spending undergrad and med school in the west coast. She’s found a love for California, but nothing beats the east.

She called Jack for his birthday days after the Devils got knocked out of playoffs. She doesn’t get to talk to Jack and Luke — any of the Hughes brothers, really — as often as she’d like. She sees them even less, ever since she left for California and they moved away to Michigan from Toronto. She always tries to see Quinn and Jack whenever they come out to play at San Jose, but otherwise, that’s it. She hasn’t seen Luke since the Hughes family graciously invited her and her mom to Luke’s draft almost two years ago. So whenever she does get a chance to catch up with her childhood friends, it’s always a treat.

It took Jack — and Luke — exactly 34 minutes over the phone to convince her to move in with them. The largest part of the discussion was how much money she’d contribute for rent. She was adamant to split it three ways evenly. Jack shot that down immediately, and that resulted in a slight — read: intense — disagreement (“I don’t give a fuck that you’re making $8 million a year, Jack Rowden. I’m paying my part of the rent.”). He refused to back down, and they came to an amount that she was semi-happy with, though she insisted that she’d be in charge of buying groceries. Deep down, she knows he and Luke will fight her on that too. 

She finished out med school, went on a 10-day vacation to Europe with her friends and went back to her mom’s place in Massachusetts for a weekend, where she grabbed the key that Jack had shipped to her. Her mom helped her pack the car, and off she went to Hoboken, where she’d be living by herself in the extremely spacious apartment until Jack (and Luke) came back for pre-season in September. 

Residency started off without a hitch, Clementine loving the fact that she got to actually work with patients more. The commute to the hospital isn’t ideal — a 10 minute drive to the station before hopping on the train for almost 45 minutes — but after years of having to drive around everywhere for years, it doesn’t faze her much. It’s a time to decompress after a long shift and reflect or wake herself up for the long day ahead, and it gives her time to read or listen to music or podcasts on the train. Some of her fellow residents live nearby and are always gracious enough to let her crash on their couch after particularly grueling shifts. The first two months are peaceful if tiring, the apartment always being a welcomed silence when she walks in. 

Early September arrives, and she’s coming home after an overnight shift when she walks out of the elevator to the apartment. She thinks she might hear voices coming from inside her apartment, but they’re more likely in her exhausted brain, so she turns her key and pushes open the door. 

It takes her a moment while taking off her shoes to freeze. There are voices in the apartment. She carefully walks towards the voices, heart starting to race, before it immediately calms down and relief washes over her. 

“Jesus Christ! A warning would’ve been nice. I thought someone broke in.”

All three Hughes brothers turn their heads towards her, all looking a bit worse for wear probably due to the fact that it’s just past 7 am. Though it’s nothing Clementine hasn’t seen before. When your mothers are still really close after playing soccer together at UNH and both families happen to settle down in nearby towns in the suburbs of Toronto, you’ve all seen each other the morning after sleepovers. When you’re an only child and call these three your brothers, you’ve practically seen everything. They all blink at each other before someone — Jack — comes to their senses. 

“Clee!” Jack exclaims, sliding in his socks across the floor to pull her into a very tight hug. She feels gross and probably doesn’t smell much better, but she can’t bring herself to care as she hugs Jack, smile widening when she feels both Quinn and Luke putting their arms around her as she’s put in the middle of a group hug. They eventually let go, and then she hugs them all individually. 

She pouts, looking up at Luke. “This is so unfair. You’re so much taller than me now.”

Luke smirks, ruffling her hair. “Good to see you too, Clemmy.”

She beams up at him. “Happy birthday, by the way. Big 20!”

“Thank you.”

She yawns. “So what’s going on? I thought you two weren’t supposed to be back until next week.” She points at Quinn. “And what are you doing here?”

“Not happy to see us?” Quinn teases. 

“Always happy to see you guys. But I did just have an overnight shift and I need to be in bed within the next 20 minutes.”

“We know.” Jack says excitedly. “Did you not suspect anything when I was asking specific questions about your schedule for this week?”

She thinks back to the last time she FaceTimed Jack. He did seem awfully inquisitive. She shrugs. “I’m too old and tired to question your antics anymore, Jacky.”

“You’re only 26?”

“And you just turned 20. I’m old.” she says to Luke as he passes her a glass of water. “Quinny, aren’t you supposed to be in Vancouver soon?”

“Yeah, actually. I’m only here for the day to go to the US Open and celebrate Moose’s birthday. I’m on a flight out tomorrow at noon.”

She pouts, but her heart warms at the reminder that these three are still so close. “So soon.”

“Captain duties, am I right?” Jack says. 

It takes her a moment to realize what he just said before her jaw drops and she whips her head towards the eldest Hughes. “Are you serious?” Quinn just nods sheepishly. “Quinn!” She wraps him in another hug again. “That’s incredible. Oh my goodness. Congratulations!”

“Thanks, Clem.”

She places her hands on his cheeks. “I’m so proud of you. Not surprising at all though. Do Ellen and Jim know? I bet they’re pumped.”

“Yeah, they do. It won’t get announced until Monday though.”

“That’s awesome. Holy shit, Quinn.” She looks at the younger two. “So are you guys back for good?”

“I am. Jack isn’t. He has to go to Vegas for media day the day after tomorrow.”

She blinks. “I’m confused. Then why the fuck are you all here? You could’ve just gone to Vegas early or something. Or not make the trip here and come back when you have to be back.”

“To see you, duh. I wanted to see you on my birthday, and it’ll be awhile until we’re all in the same place again.” Luke shrugs. Like it’s not a big deal. Like they didn’t just fly from wherever the fuck to Jersey for barely a day before two of them have to fly back across the country because they wanted to see her and be together. 

“God, I-just,” she yawns. “That’s so disgustingly sweet. And I love you three. I really do. But-”

“You need sleep, yeah. We figured. Well, good news for you, you’re not needed until later anyways!” Jack beams.

She blinks. “What’s later?”

“We’re heading to Aunt Lara’s to celebrate Luke’s birthday. Mostly an excuse for some of the family to gather one last time for the summer.” Jack says.

“Also to celebrate Quinn getting captain,” Luke adds with a small eye roll. 

“And I’m assuming I’m coming to that?”

Jack blinks like she’s being ridiculous. “Uh, duh. And I know you have a day off tomorrow, so you can’t use that as an excuse. Geegs wants to see you. Everyone wants to see you, to be honest. Mom’s making your favorite just for you.”

She lights up. “Her pumpkin pie?”

“Yup.”

“I’ll be there,” she salutes to them as she stops at her bedroom archway. “Have fun watching tennis. I’ll see you when you get back?”

“Mmhmm. We’ll drive there together.”

“Brilliant,” she blows them all a kiss. “Goodnight. Or good morning. Whatever.” They all snicker as she goes into her bedroom, beelining for the shower. 

She emerges from her bedroom again at around 1:30 p.m., her stomach begging for food. She wipes the sleep away from her eyes as she heads towards the kitchen. She reaches for the coffee machine and pauses when she sees a sticky note on the handle of the pot. 

Left some pasta for you in the fridge. xoxo Quinn

She smiles, making herself a cup of coffee before opening the fridge and reheating the chicken alfredo pasta. She waits for the microwave to beep by checking her phone for the news and any unread messages (the only one being from Ellen, who’s thrilled that she’s coming by tonight.)

After eating, she realizes she should probably get something to bring tonight, and ventures a few blocks to a nearby florist. Fresh flowers can’t hurt, right? After she pays for the bouquet, she has a double take walking by the bakery she only treats herself to after an especially exhausting day. Luke has always been weak for chocolate chip cookies, and this bakery does them like no other. She grabs a box of a dozen.

Around an hour later, the front door opens again and Luke practically vibrates at the smell of the still-fresh cookies on the counter. All three of them dig in as she quickly changes, putting on a basic blue sundress and pulling out a sweater in case she gets cold. It feels like it’s been forever since she’s worn anything that isn’t scrubs. She spritzes some perfume on and ties on three very important friendship bracelets that have somehow not fallen apart even after almost a decade. 

As expected, when she walks out, Quinn’s the one who notices what’s on her wrist first. He grins, surprised. “I didn’t know you still had those.”

She shrugs, fiddling with the loose threads. “They were very important to me. They still are.”

Jack stops chewing and his eyes widen, finally realizing. “Holy shit, Clee. We made those for you, like..”

“Right before I left for college? Yeah.” She takes the last bit of a cookie out of Luke’s hand. He doesn’t even bat an eye. “I don’t wear them as often anymore because I don’t want the possibility of them getting ruined or losing them at the hospital or anything. You know I wore them when I opened my acceptance letter into Stanford, right? And I wore them under my shirt when I had my interview with NYU.” She thinks she sees Quinn’s eyes water. She definitely knows she sees Luke swallowing roughly as Jack stares at her with some sort of reverence in his eyes. But she also knows her boys and just shrugs, changing the subject to make them more comfortable again. “We leaving soon?”

“Yeah. Let me just take a piss,” Luke says as he walks towards the bathroom. 

“I call dibs after!” Quinn calls out. 

“What the fuck?” Jack exclaims. “I need to go really bad too.”

“Just go to the one in my room, Jack.” She says, rolling her eyes. He huffs, giving Quinn a glare before disappearing into her bedroom. She sits down in the chair that Jack had just been occupying. “God, I can’t believe I’m gonna be living with those two. Am I regressing?”

Quinn snorts, “Probably. How is residency, by the way?”

She sighs. “Good. Busy and tiring and really fucking hard, but that’s to be expected. I’m currently in the NICU, so it’s been interesting seeing all the babies and the reasons they’re in there for. They’re also just so fragile, which, obviously, but it’s been good. I really love it.”

Quinn hums thoughtfully. “That’s badass, honestly. But everything you do is badass in my eyes.”

“Well, it’s quite badass in my eyes that one of my dearest friends is the captain of the Vancouver Canucks at 23.”

She feels a bit of a thrill at the blush that so easily paints his cheeks. “Nothing compared to you saving lives.”

“Hey,” she warns. “None of that here. We don’t do that.”

He just nods, leaning in to kiss her temple gently. “I’m sad that I’m gonna be seeing you less now, but I’m so happy for you. Least I’ll worry less about Jack and Luke now that you’re here.”

“Oh please. You’ll always worry about them.”

He hums, not even giving an answer because they both know the truth. She wraps an arm around his waist, tucking herself into his side and even though he’s standing and she’s sitting, she feels the most comfort she’s felt in awhile. 

Nothing brings her peace like these three boys, who have always believed in her and loved her before she was anything. They could be shouting at each other and never let her get a word in and she would still feel right at home

Later that night, as she’s catching up with everyone and eating Ellen’s pumpkin pie, she’s reminded that this whole family has always brought her peace. Ellen has always said she’s like the daughter she always wanted and Jim has always been like a father to her, especially the last decade. Geegs treats her just like she treats all her grandchildren, fussing over her and insisting that she needs to eat more because “you must be so stressed all the time at the hospital, running around and saving lives.” Everyone important and close to them have always known that the Hughes brothers and Clementine are the kind of package deal that will always be strong, even if it spans countries. It’s the three boys and Clementine always.

As she watches everyone sing happy birthday to Luke, watching him tower over everybody, his face poorly lit with the candles, she places both her hands over her heart while he blows the candles and everyone cheers. 

This chapter of her life is already shaping up to be pretty damn good.

…..

She’s had October 12 circled in her calendar ever since Jack convinced her to move in. The day of the regular season home opener of the Devils. 

After her shift, she ducks into the staff bathroom and changes into leggings and a Devils jersey, Hughes and 86 on the back. Jack and Luke lost some sort of bet that had the latter pouting and the former in absolute glee. She had just rolled her eyes. She’d just wear her 43 jersey to the next game. 

As she’s clocking out, one of her fellow residents and probably the one she’s closest to, Emilia, just raises an eyebrow. “Didn’t know you were a hockey fan.”

Clementine shrugs, swiping her ID card through the reader. She never distinctly mentions her relations to America’s Hockey Family or whatever the hell the media calls them unless directly asked, but she’s sure she’s dropped some hints at happy hour, especially when asked why she’s living in Jersey. “Practically grew up with three of them. Osmosis, perhaps.”

Emilia must connect the dots because she offers a small smile. “My husband’s a big Rangers fan, so don’t tell him I said this, but Jack’s fun to watch. He’s shifty.” She laughs and bids her friend farewell, walking towards the elevator. 

Jack and Luke got her a seat in one of the boxes that’s reserved for family and significant others, the home opener bringing in a larger crowd than usual. She doesn’t know anyone, but that’s okay, because right when she walks into the box, a beautiful blonde strolls over and introduces herself with a big smile. You must be Clementine. I’m Ryleigh, she says, Dawson’s girlfriend. Jack told her to be on the lookout for her. 

She makes quick friends with Ryleigh as they grab a drink and situate themselves. The younger girl introduces Clementine to Kristen, her adorable boy Henrik and Barbora and her sweet girl Adelka. She kneels down to play with both kids, mindlessly answering questions about her life from the women. It’s refreshing getting to speak to people about things that aren’t solely residency or medical school related. 

God, she needs to get out more. 

The opening night celebrations are fun, and she cheers extra loudly when Jack and Luke’s names get called. Everyone’s on a high after a 4-3 win, and Clementine dutifully follows Ryleigh and everyone else out of the box and some tunnels that somehow lead towards the locker room. Her stomach is filled, thanks to the food and the drinks, and she’s happily buzzing. She’s excited to be able to hopefully watch more games now that she’s living here. 

Around 30 minutes later, both Jack and Dawson come out at the same time. She briefly watches as the couple embraces before Ryleigh turns to introduce Clementine, who smiles as Dawson wraps her in a friendly hug. She bids them both goodbye as they walk out.

“Clee! Did you see my goals?” Jack says after she hugs him, ruffling her hair. 

She rolls her eyes with a smile, adjusting his collar. “Of course I did. Saw the two penalties too. Good game, Jackson.” 

He beams like a child who just got a gold sticker. “Thank you.”

“Where’s Luke?”

“Taking his sweet ass time.”

She instinctively shoves him. “Be nice.”

Jack opens his mouth, no doubt about to say something snarky, before something beyond her shoulder catches his attention. “Neeks! Come here for a second.” She turns around to see maybe one of the prettiest guys she’s ever seen in her life. Obviously, she knows who Nico Hischier is, but goddamn, is he beautiful up close. 

She sticks out her hand with a small smile. “Captain. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Just Nico’s fine,” he smiles, shaking her hand before running his hand through his hair. Gosh, he’s cute. “You must be Clementine. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

She automatically grimaces. “Oh no.” She turns to Jack. “Are you just as mean to me behind my back as you are to my face?”

Jack’s jaw drops. “Absolutely not! I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m so nice to you.”

Nico laughs. “It’s all good things, I promise. And anyone who has dealt with Jack since he was a kid is a good person in my book.”

“Hey!” Jack says indignantly. “Clee loves me.”

Both Clementine and Nico decide promptly to ignore him. “You’re living with Jack and Luke now, right?” Nico asks.

“Yeah. It’s cheaper than living in the city, and it’s nice to have them around again.” She says. Jack beams. 

“You were out west before?”

Shit. Does Jack talk about her that much? “I was. I did my undergrad at UCLA, and then went to Stanford for med school. So the last eight years, I’ve been a west coaster.”

“But back east now?”

“Back east now.”

“For..residency? Right? Is that the next step?”

“Yup. I just started my residency at NYU in July,” she grins cheekily at Jack. “And now I get to bother this one all the time.”

Luke comes out and brightens up, adjusting his beanie. “Hi Clemmy!”

“Hey Lukey,” she goes on her tiptoes to give him a hug. “Good game.”

“Thanks,” he mutters into her shoulder before pulling away. “I’m hungry. Do we still have the chicken you made yesterday?”

She snorts. “Yeah. Unless someone ate it during the day.”

“Yay,” Luke says sleepily. “How was work?”

“Not as tiring as playing a game, I’m sure.”

Luke pulls a face. “Liar. You’re a doctor. And you deal with kids all day.”

“I’m barely a doctor. And I love kids.”

“Still.”

Jack snorts. “I think we should get the big baby to bed.” He expertly avoids Luke’s slap. “See you tomorrow, Hisch?”

Nico nods. “Get some rest, you two. Good game. And it was nice to meet you, Clementine. I hope I see you around more often.”

Clementine grins. “You too, Nico. See you around.” She puts her arms around both Jack and Luke’s shoulder. Or tries to. “Drive me home, friends.”

In the car, as she’s in the backseat and looking outside the window, after Jack discreetly nudges him, Luke turns around to look at her. “So, Cap, huh? He’s a pretty good looking guy.”

She immediately knows what they’re trying to do. “Absolutely not, Luke. You are way too young to be trying to set me up.”

“What?” Luke whines. “I’m just saying. I saw you two eyeing each other up.”

“You’re seeing things.”

“Wait,” Jack says, making a left turn. “Moose, you might be onto something here.”

“I know I am.” Luke says, in a matter-of-fact voice that it seems like only youngest children can get away with. “Clemmy, you have to admit that Nico’s cute.”

‘Okay, sure. He’s objectively attractive. I could say the same thing about you. Or Jack. Or Quinn.”

“Ew,” Jack says, like the middle child he is. “Also, you’re totally his type. Pretty. Smart as hell. Lowkey. Doesn’t care that he plays hockey.”

“I’m also a resident right now, so I got no time to date, Jacky.”

“You’ve never had time to date,” Jack points out. “When was the last time you went on a date anyway?”

“A few months ago!” She says hotly. She will not let them know that her romantic life has been dry for years. 

“With who?” Luke shoots back.

“Another resident, actually. Thank you very much.”

Jack snorts. “And how did that go?” She pouts. “Exactly,” Jack says. “Maybe the key is to expand your horizons. Get away from the snobby doctors you always complain about.”

“Let it go, Jackson.” She warns. “Before I start harping on you two about your love lives. If you bring girls home, keep it confined to your rooms. And don’t even think about giving them my shit.”

They both cackle as the light turns green, exchanging knowing looks that Clementine misses. 

…..

She’s coming back from a brutal overnight shift when a familiar voice asks her to hold the elevator door open. She blinks as Nico blinks back, dressed in a sweatshirt and sweatpants. He looks awfully cozy. She can imagine that she looks like she got chewed and spit back out. 

She musters a smile. “Hey there.”

“Good morning,” he smiles back. “You coming back from work?”

“Yup.” She presses the button for 17 as the doors shut. “What are you and Jack and Luke up to today?”

“Not sure. I think some of us are going out to breakfast. Would you like to come?”

She chuckles, leaning her back against the wall. “I appreciate the invite, truly. I just feel like if I have to be awake for 10 more minutes, I might collapse.”

He bites his lip and stares down at his feet. She thinks it’s endearing. “Right. Sorry. Of course you’re tired.”

“Don’t be sorry,” she says. “Residency life is weird. Almost as weird as a hockey player’s.”

The doors open and Nico nods for her to go through first. “I don’t know about that. I live a pretty simple life.”

“Interesting way to define simple, Captain.” She teases. And he shrugs modestly. Clementine starts to wonder if there’s any arrogant bone in his body. He waits as she unlocks the door, closing it behind her. She walks in to see Jack pouring out a glass of juice and Luke sitting on the couch. “Found someone who may be of interest on my way up.”

She listens to Nico greet the two as she puts her bag down and lets her hair out of her ratty ponytail. “Wanna come to breakfast with us?” Luke asks with a hopeful smile. 

“Sorry, Lukey,” she says apologetically. “I’m literally a walking zombie right now. Another time?”

He pouts. “Fine. I miss you though. I feel like you’ve been MIA.”

“I wasn’t the one who was just on a long ass roadie,” she points out, giving Jack a side hug.

Nico looks around. “You guys do something different with the place? It looks different from what I remember.”

“We gave Clee free reign to spice it up a bit when she came here in the summer.”

Nico hums. “It looks nice. More…”

“Lived in? Homey? Clean?” She jokes, downing a glass of water.

The captain laughs. She watches his dimples deepen and blinks to herself several times. “All of the above,” he says. “I especially like the pillows.”

She beams. “Thank you. My mom embroidered the pillowcases.”

“Are you sure you don’t wanna come with us, Clee?” Jack begs. “We promise it’ll be quick.”

“Next time,” she promises. “I’m so, so tired.”

Nico clears his throat. “The team’s having a Friendsgiving thing in a couple of weeks since we’ll be on the road during actual Thanksgiving. I don’t know if these two have mentioned it yet, but you’re totally invited. It’s just gonna be the team and their families or whoever else they want to bring.”

“Is it at your place?” Clementine asks. 

“No.”

“So is it really your invite to extend? I don’t want to intrude.”

Jack rolls his eyes. “I was gonna ask you tonight. Hisch just beat me to it. It’s at Toff’s place. Of course you’re invited, so please come.”

She yawns. “Unless I have an overnight again, I’ll be sure to come. And even if I do, I’ll try to reschedule.”

“Atta girl,” Jack says. “You really need to get out more.” Clementine just flips him off, making Luke and Nico laugh.

“Enjoy your day, boys.” She calls out as she walks to her room. She hears them all yell out some sort of response before closing her door.

(As soon as she closes the door, Jack nudges Nico’s shoulder with his. “Make it less obvious, dude.”

Nico’s eyebrows scrunch together in confusion. “Make what less obvious?”

“That you’re interested in Clemmy.” Luke says dryly from the couch. “That’s basically our sister.”

“What?” Nico hisses, aware that she’s right down the hall. “I don’t-I mean, yeah she’s pretty. But I barely know her.”

“But you want to. You’ve wanted to ever since we showed you pictures of her,” Nico doesn’t even have the chance to defend himself as Jack smirks like the menace he is. “Don’t worry, Cap. One day you’ll catch her when she’s not sleep deprived and acting as an actual human being and you’ll be able to sweep her off her feet.”

Nico swallows. “She doesn’t seem like the kind of person who’d fall for that.”

“She wouldn’t. Which is why you’re perfect. So many of my friends throughout the years have tried to hit on her. Hasn’t worked once.”

“Aren’t you, like, four years younger than her?” Nico says. “That’s probably why.”

Luke scoffs. “Good point.” He’s been less pushy about it compared to Jack, partially because he’s not as comfortable with Nico yet and partially because he’s not Jack. “She’s a good one though, Cap. You’d be lucky.” He says. 

Nico just nods.)

Early the next week when Clementine goes in, she finds out that one of her babies in the NICU she had been taking care of had died. It’s not necessarily the first time she’s dealt with death in her young career, but it’s still not easy. She goes through the rest of the day robotically, simultaneously trying to pick apart what she could’ve done differently while trying to forget about it completely. 

The only upside — if there is one — was that she wasn’t there when the baby’s parents were told. Fuck, she’s not looking forward to when she has to do that one day. 

During her lunch break, she calls Jack.

“Hello?”

“Jacky?”

“Clee? Is everything okay?”

She swallows. “I’m sorry. I can’t keep track. Do you have a game tonight?”

“No. Day off today. Game tomorrow. What’s wrong? Aren’t you at work?”

“Yeah. I am. Uh, what were you planning on doing tonight?”

“Nico’s coming over and we were just gonna chill. Luke’s going on a date, I think. Or doing something. Shit, I swear I told you.”

She blinks. “You probably did. I just, sorry. I haven’t been-”

“Stop apologizing,” Jack chastises. “How about we get take out from your favorite Greek place and have a movie night? I can tell Nico to come by another time.”

“No, no! Of course Nico can come. It’s your place.”

“It’s yours now too.”

She swallows. “He can come by. Greek food sounds really good though.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. I’ll order some. Do you want me to go into the city to get you after work?”

“Fuck no. Are you crazy? That would be the worst drive.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind. Clee, I don’t wanna-you don’t sound like you’re okay.”

She tries to steady her voice. Worrying Jack is the last thing she wants to do. “I’m okay, Jacky. I promise. As long as you have the Greek food ready when I’m home.”

“You got it,” Jack softens. “I love you, Clementine.”

“Love you too. I’ll see you later.”

“Bye.”

When she finally makes her way back to Hoboken, she feels a bit better. She hears murmured voices right before she unlocks the front door. 

“Hey,” she greets Jack and Nico. 

Jack barrels over, hugging her tightly with a smile. She involuntarily lets out a relieved sigh. “Lucky timing. I just got the food.”

“Lovely. Let me just take a quick shower and change and I’ll be right out.” She gives Nico a quick but friendly smile. “Hi Nico.”

“Hey Clementine.”

“Be right back.” She takes a quick shower and throws on leggings and a UCLA sweatshirt, choosing to let her hair air dry. When she comes back out, food from her favorite Greek place in Jersey that she discovered over the summer is laid out, along with a glass of iced tea. She could cry. 

“Long day?” Jack asks. 

She snorts, digging into her grape leaves. “You could say that. What’s been going on with you two?”

Jack knows her well enough by now that this is permission for him to ramble about anything and everything, from the more-than-usual brutal game last night against the Stars to how shitty his fantasy team is doing this week. Clementine just munches on her food while the two hockey players talk amongst themselves, her chiming in every once in awhile. She learns more about the girl Luke is currently on a date with (which isn’t saying much, because Jack barely knows anything and Nico knows even less) and complains that none of the brothers tell her these things. She only just found out that Quinn’s in a serious relationship. When Jack tries to protest with that fact she’s literally been on the other side of the country for the last eight years, she doesn’t wanna hear it. 

She finishes her iced tea. “How about you, Nico? You got any siblings?”

“Uh, yeah. An older brother and an older sister.”

“You close with them?

“Extremely.”

“Do they tell you who they’re dating and do you tell them who you’re dating?”

He hesitates. “Usually, yes.”

She gives Jack a pointed look. “See? Be like Nico.”

Jack snorts. “Please. If I were more like Neeks, you would have no one to pick on. Nico’s too perfect.”

She raises an eyebrow, shifting her gaze to Nico and she thinks she sees him blush. Nico clears his throat. “I don’t know about that.”

“Also, never listen to Clee. I’m her least favorite. She always makes fun of me.”

“Not true,” she shoots back. “You’re all my favorites.”

“What are siblings for if not for humbling you?” Nico asks. “I’m sure if you didn’t have Clementine here around growing up, your head would be way bigger than it already is.” 

“Captain’s got a point,” she sings, gathering their trash. She waves both guys away when they reach out to help. “Season’s been pretty good so far, right?”

“Thought you would be too scatterbrained to be keeping track.” Jack retorts.

“Doesn’t mean I don’t check the scores when I can.” She says, poking his side. Jack yelps. 

“You know what? Maybe you deserve to be her least favorite,” Nico jokes. “You’re so mean to her.”

“Hey!” Jack protests. 

“Thank you, Nico.” Clementine beams. “Finally, someone with sense around here. You gotta come around more.”

“Season’s going well, thank you for asking.” Jack sasses. “Oh, that reminds me. Trevor asked me if you were gonna come to the game when the Ducks are in town. Demanded, actually. Said that it’s been too long since he’s seen you and that he misses you. Not like you used to get to see him when you were in California or anything.”

She rolls her eyes. “When is he in town?”

“Sometime in December, I think.”

“Then yeah. I’ll be there. Not like I have a life outside of work anyways, as you always remind me.”

“You know Zegras?” Nico asks, before shaking his head. “Actually, yeah. Of course you do, if you grew up with Jack.”

“Not as well as you might think, though, to be fair.” She says, wanting to assure Nico that he isn’t completely wrong. “By the time Jack got into the development program, I was already out at UCLA. I was out there even before Quinn got into the program. Right at the same time, I guess. But you know, during the summers, wherever Jack is, Trevor usually isn’t far behind. He’s a good kid.”

“Clee kinda really is everyone’s older sister,” Jack says, passing a beer to Nico and a glass of wine to Clementine. “You should see how much Luke’s Michigan boys love her. And they’ve literally only met her once. Or never.”

Clementine waves Jack’s comment away. “It’s only because Luke calls me the most out of you three. And he’s my baby! I literally remember holding him when he was born.”

And the rest of the night is like this, as they exchange stories and memories, some she’s a part of, some she’s not and just likes listening to. Little mention of her work, which she’s so thankful for and knows in the back of her head is a purposeful play on Jack’s part. 

Even though she already wasn’t around when Jack left for New Jersey, she worried about him, especially after his tough rookie year. She still remembers the occasional calls she’d get of him breathing heavily and stumbling over his words and how she could do nothing about it across the country except offer a listening ear and some big sister comfort verbally. 

But now, watching Nico’s addicting smile and listening to his soft, comforting voice, she’s starting to see that Nico stepped up in that role so seamlessly and so well. It’s no wonder Jack always speaks so highly of his captain. Nico was there, and still is there, when she can’t be, whether it’s because she’s physically so far or just doesn’t understand because she isn’t a first overall draft pick. Sure, one could argue that it’s the duty of a captain. But she can tell it’s mostly because Nico is a caring guy.

That puts Nico pretty fucking high up in her good graces already. 

(Clementine retires to bed soon after, not before making sure by text from Luke that he’s safe and good. Once her bedroom door clicks, Jack attacks. 

“So…thoughts?”

“On Clementine?” Jack nods and Nico shrugs casually. “She’s great.”

“Come on, Hisch. You gotta give me more than that.”

“What do you want me to say?” Jack makes some sort of vague gesture and Nico sighs. “She’s quick, smart, funny. Deals with all your shit and you can tell she still loves you a lot. I didn’t-I mean, I knew you guys were close. I didn’t know you were that close though.”

Jack shrugs. “Yeah. Honestly I consider myself as close to her as I am to Luke or Quinn. She’s just, you know, been around for so long. It was really hard when she left for college, but she’s good at keeping in touch, which you know, thank god. Because I’m not. She came to all our drafts and she always makes the time to call or text, even though I know she’s busier than all of us combined with school and residency and all that.” Jack leans back into the couch. “It’s interesting to think about. With Clee, no one else except people who are actually close to me know about her, but she’s just as big a part of my life as my actual brothers. I mean, her mom’s the one who bought me the suit for my draft and Clee saved up to gift me the watch I wore with it. I don’t know. It’s interesting that you can think you know so much about someone but you’ll probably never get the full picture unless you’re there.” 

Nico hums, taking in Jack’s impromptu but astute ramble. “She ever play?”

“Hockey?” Nico nods. Jack snorts. “Nah. Soccer was her thing. Was pretty damn good too, if I remember correctly.” The younger boy shifts suddenly to a standing position. “If you want to know more, ask her yourself, Hischier. I’m tired. Get out of my apartment.”

Nico rolls his eyes, but stands up anyways. “See you in the morning.”)

The Devils Friendsgiving rolls around, and with a large bowl of homemade Spinach Artichoke Dip and a couple bags of pita chips, she climbs into the backseat as Jack starts the engine and Luke fiddles with his phone to pull up the directions. She doesn’t have to go into the hospital until the afternoon tomorrow, so she’s looking forward to treating herself to a couple glasses of wine and getting to meet more people. Luke puts some country song on that Jack starts humming as he starts driving. Clementine folds her legs on the seat as her chin rests on her knees, looking out at the window as the trees blur. She kicks the back of Luke’s seat when one too many country songs play in a row, knowing that they know that she prefers other genres of music. Luke just grunts, before putting on some Noah Kahan and she hums in satisfaction. 

The Toffoli’s house is spacious, and she shuffles carefully up the steps to the house behind Jack and Luke, careful not to slip on black ice. She slips off her jacket, passing the food off to Luke, before taking it back and walking into the warm home behind the boys. She just smiles and stands to the side as everyone exclaims at their arrival. She grins as Cat embraces her, thanking her for the invite. Cat waves her off and looks absolutely delighted when Clementine sets down the dip. Tyler pours her out a glass of wine and hugs her in greeting. 

The journey to being a doctor has shaped Clementine to be good at remembering names quickly, which helps her tremendously as Jack bounces around to introduce her to everyone. Everyone is so welcoming and the sprinkle of kids around makes her smile as well. It’s lovely to see that this team loves hanging out with each other off the ice when they’re not obligated to. She finds herself chatting with…everyone and is almost surprised but absolutely delighted at how kind everyone is. Some of the wives and significant others don’t hesitate to rope her into future plans and their group as a whole and she feels touched. She’s not sure how much time and energy she’ll have to go to some of their gatherings, but it’ll be nice to have some more familiar faces in the city. 

It’s when everyone’s starting to grab food does she find herself standing next to Nico, who had waved and nodded at her earlier when she walked in. “Hey Captain.”

Nico’s smile is blinding. “Like I’ve said, Nico works just fine.”

She shrugs with a chuckle. “How have you been?”

He sees her eyeing the potatoes and scoops some on her plate before he grabs some for himself. and she smiles at him in thanks. “Nothing new,” he says. “Just you know, playing hockey.”

She snorts. “Yeah, I bet. You had a sick goal the other night against the…Caps, was it?”

“Thank you,” he says as they both head towards two empty seats next to each other at the kitchen island. “You watch the games?”

“When I can. Not as much this season as I used to. It honestly used to be really effective background noise when I studied at school.”

His eyes track to her bracelets. “I’ve been wanting to ask you about those.”

“My bracelets?”

“Yeah. You wear them all the time. Is there any significance to them? If you’re comfortable telling me, of course.” He rushes the last sentence, eyes wide. 

She waves him off with an easy smile, pointing at each one of them as she goes through. “Quinn, Jack and Luke each made me one before I left for college. Gave them to me right at the airport before I went through security. Had me sobbing on practically the whole damn plane ride. I don’t wear them to the hospital, really, but otherwise, it’s kinda just habit to put them on at this point.”

“You love them a lot,” Nico observes.

Clementine just smiles, watching Luke play with one of the kids. “I do. They’re good guys to grow up with. But enough of that. Don’t think I don’t remember the explanation you promised me last time, Nico.”

A playful smile on his lips, Nico finishes chewing his food. “Explanation of what?”

“How the hell you chose soccer over hockey, when soccer is the best sport, obviously.”

“Obviously,” Nico echoes, and her smile widens. “I mean, yeah. There’s not much to it. I kinda was good at most sports. I still love watching football, or soccer. My dad used to play professionally, so I still enjoy playing pick up in the summer once in awhile. My brother played hockey, and I wanted to do everything he did. And then…”

“You were really fucking good.” She finishes for him. 

“I guess, yeah. You work with kids, right? Being their doctor?” She nods and he smirks slightly. “Even I know you have to be super smart for that. The journey to being a doctor can’t be easy.”

She chuckles a bit, feeling a bit flattered. “It has its moments. Definitely not the most simple career, by any means.”

“Anything specific with…what is it called? Pediatrics? I don’t really know how specializations work.”

“I’m actually doing an EM/Peds residency right now, which combines training in both the emergency room and pediatric medicine. There’s something about kids and the environment of an ER that I really enjoy, so putting those two together is..kinda the dream.”

“You’re incredible,” Nico says softly. And if she wasn’t blushing before, she definitely is now. Or is it the wine? “Seriously. That’s some amazing stuff. Is that common?”

“Combining residencies?” He nods. “No. Actually, NYU is one of the only teaching hospitals in the country that’s approved for this specific program.”

“So not only are you smart. You’re just the best of the best.”

She chuckles a bit and puts food in her mouth so she doesn't have to respond, because what the fuck? She’s thankful that Jonas and Nate join and divert their conversation so she can gather herself. She’s heard those words from people many times. Nico saying them shouldn’t have her stomach fluttering. 

(Later that evening, Clementine, predictably, finds herself among the moms with young kids, sitting on the floor with her back against the couch, giving them attention and watching them so that their parents can relax a bit more. 

She’s mindlessly talking and playing with Owen, Curtis and Reanne’s 3-year-old son, who’s at the age where he just loves to babble. 

Reanne bounces her son on her knee. “This is Clementine. Can you say Clementine?”

Owen claps his hands. “C-cuh-”

Clementine can tell Owen is getting a little frustrated that he can’t pronounce her name. “Owen, you know him?” She points towards Jack, who’s sitting on the couch a few feet away talking to Nico, Curtis and Jesper. Jack catches them and waves with a big smile as their conversation trickles off. 

“Unca Jack!”

“That’s right,” Clementine coos. “When Uncle Jack was as small as you, he couldn’t say my full name either. So he just called me Clee. Can you say Clee?”

“Clee!” Clementine nods excitedly and laughs with Owen as he says it again. “Unca Jack call you Clee?”

“He sure does. He still calls me Clee. And he’s a big boy now.”

Reanne grins, “Is that true?”

Clementine chuckles. “Yeah. Him, Luke and Quinn all called me Clee at one point. The other two don’t anymore, but I guess it stuck for Jack.”

Owen grabs one of his stuffed dinosaurs. “I like Unca Jack. He always buys me chocolate.”

All of them laugh as Reanne and Curtis shoot Jack a dirty look. Clementine snorts. “Busted.” Jack at least has the audacity to look a little sheepish as Owen doesn’t mind any of them, his attention back to making his dinosaurs fight each other. Owen hops off his mother’s knee and toddles over to sit in between Clementine’s legs, wordlessly passing her a dinosaur. 

Nico’s fond smile stays glued to his face as his eyes track Clementine and Owen. Jack takes note.)

…..

It’s a brisk Tuesday morning in early December, and Clementine is still trying to find her way where she needs to go. She volunteered to spend a few weeks at Newark Beth Israel Medical Center from recommendation by her mentor, since Newark is short a few hands. She’ll probably get used to the hallways and which floors are what the day before she leaves, but she’s not complaining. She’s still in an ER. She’s still working with kids. And she won’t complain about the shorter commute, even if it’s only for a short while. 

There’s a bit of a commotion outside as she’s making her rounds. Her curiosity causes her to scribble some last quick notes before stepping out of her patient’s room and clicking the door shut quietly so the 7-year-old girl doesn’t wake up. 

“Hey Caro,” she stops another resident who’s walking by. “What’s all the commotion?”

Caroline grins. “You didn’t hear? Some of the guys from the New Jersey Devils are stopping by to see the kids. It’s always a whole day thing that’s a fun day. That’s why Doc told us all to clear our schedules as much as we could today.”

Clementine snorts to herself. No, she didn’t hear. “Ah. I must’ve not been listening or something.”

Caroline offers her arm. “You coming?”

“Yeah,” she latches on to the shorter girl’s arm. “You a Devils fan?”

“I grew up in Texas, so to be honest, no.” They both chuckle. “But the guys are great. And it’s always fun when they come around. The kids have a good time too.”

“I bet,” she says softly. 

“Are you a Devils fan?”

She’s about to open her mouth to try and stumble through an answer, but they’re suddenly in a conference room and Luke is bounding over to attack her in a hug. “Clemmy!”

“Hey Lukey.” She pulls away and ignores Caroline’s confused but amused stare. “You and Jack didn’t tell me you were gonna be here.”

“We didn’t?” Jack grins, pulling her into a tight hug. “Well, surprise!”

Clementine just rolls her eyes as she waves at Jesper, Tyler, Dougie and Nico. Nico shoots her a quick wink and she gives him a shy smile before looking away. 

“Sorry,” Jack addresses some of the staff who have been openly eyeing them. “Clementine is, uh, basically family. We actually live together, which she loves.” The whole room exclaims softly in understanding. Caroline gives Clementine a look that has her holding back a laugh.

Clementine just puts her head down with a smile and waits for everyone to come into the room for the official welcome. Her pager goes off in the middle so she has to sneak out of the room quietly. She catches Nico’s eye before leaving and he gives her an imperceptible nod. 

She tries to keep out of everyone’s way as the players pop into various rooms to say hi to the kids and their parents. She poses for a few pictures at request from both PR departments, smiling the biggest when the social team asks for a picture of her, Luke and Jack together. It’s nice to see the kids really happy, and she does stick around in a patient’s room when Luke is reading a story to one of them.

“The kids like him,” she jumps slightly at Nico’s voice. He grimaces. “Sorry.”

She waves off his apology, staring at the scene. “Probably because he’s practically still one himself. I remember doing this for him when he was that age.”

“You’re a bit far away from Manhattan.”

“Yeah. I volunteered to come out here for a few weeks since they needed extra hands. I should be back at NYU after the new year. Had no idea you guys were gonna be here today. Would’ve warned everyone how annoying you all were.”

“You think I’m annoying?” Nico jokes. 

“All hockey players are annoying.” She turns to Nico and flashes a smile. “I’m kidding. Thanks for coming. The kids always love it anytime professional athletes come in to say hey.”

“The least we can do,” Nico says with a shrug. “It’s probably my favorite event of the year.”

She nudges his shoulder, “I saw you earlier, with little Artie. You’re not bad with the kiddos either.”

“Oh, thanks. They’re sweet. That’s a big compliment coming from you.”

“Well, it’s a bit different for me when interacting with kids is part of my job,” her smile widens watching as Jude, the patient, is laughing at Luke’s exaggerated voices. “Let’s leave these two be. Come with me?”

Nico falls into step with her. “Where we going?”

“I gotta check in on one of our patients, who, if I know her, is probably painting some watercolor landscape while bickering with her sister. I’m sure your big brown eyes and smile can keep her entertained while I take some of her vitals.”

Clementine stops at a room, knocks twice on a door with a purple and pink sticker-covered name card taped on the front, Lacy spelled out in big block letters. She peeks her head in. “Hey. Mind if I come in?”

“Do I have a choice?” The 11-year-old girl sasses. Clementine rolls her eyes, shooting her 17-year-old sister Maisie a quick smile. Maisie just nods in greeting before turning back to her laptop.

“I’m bringing a visitor in here too. Be nice,” Clementine warns. Lacy just keeps painting. She opens the door wider and Nico follows her in. “You recognize this guy?”

Lacy looks up and snorts, though a small genuine smile appears on her face. “Any hockey fan living in the state of New Jersey would recognize him. Hi Nico.”

“Hi Lacy. It’s nice to meet you. Can I pull up a chair for a second?”

Lacy shrugs. “Sure.” Nico shakes Maisie’s hand quickly first before grabbing a chair and sitting by her bedside. Clementine gets started on her notes. “I saw your game the other night. Against the Wild,” Lacy says.

“Oh yeah? What did you think?”

“I mean, at least you guys won in overtime. It probably shouldn’t have even gone to that point.”

Clementine coughs to hide her laugh, Maisie admonishes Lacy, but Nico just chuckles. “That’s a fair assessment. You like hockey?”

“Yeah. I used to play. Before all this.”

“Oh yeah? What position?”

“Center.” 

“That makes sense. You seem like you like to score goals.” She hums. Out of the corner of Clementine’s eye, she sees the girl offer a brush and a blank piece of paper to Nico. Clementine smiles to herself. Nico takes the brush. “You got a favorite player on the Devils?”

“Do you just want me to say you?”

“Not if it’s not true.”

Clementine chuckles, “Don’t hurt his ego too much, Lace. He might not be able to handle it. One to ten?”

“Three,” Lacy answers in reference to the frequency of pain scale she and Clementine have come up with. “My favorite is Dawson, by the way. You’re third on my list.”

“I’ll take that,” Nico says with a satisfied smile. “Who’s second?”

“Probably Jack. Or Haula. It depends on the day.”

Nico’s eyes light up as Clementine rolls her eyes to herself. “Jack, huh? Has Clementine told you that she knows him?”

Lacy stops painting for a second. “What do you mean ‘knows him?’”

Clementine gives Lacy a cup of water and waits for her to take her pill. “I’ve known Jack since he was born. Luke too.”

Lacy’s eyes pop open, and Clementine thinks that she would’ve mentioned this earlier if she knew that this was the reaction she’d get. Lacy’s been a hard nut to crack in terms of opening up to her. “Really? Quinn’s one of the best defensemen in the league, in my opinion.”

“I’ll be sure to tell him. He’ll appreciate that.”

“Pretty cool, right?” Nico remarks, carefully dipping his brush in water.

“Sorry I didn’t tell you earlier,” Clementine says. “I knew you were a hockey fan. I didn’t know you were a Devils fan. Isn’t your dad a Rangers fan?”

Nico grimaces automatically as Lacy nods. “Yeah, but red’s prettier. And the Devils are better.”

“That’s right. And don’t forget it,” Nico says. 

“Hey, Lace. Dawson isn’t here, but do you want me to go find Jack and see if he’s around?”

“Sure. I don’t have my jersey though and I wanted him to sign it.”

“We’ll send you another one and he can sign that one,” Nico says. Maisie tries to protest but Nico just shakes his head. “It’s no problem at all. I’ll send you mine though. To convince you to move me higher on your list.”

“I mean, I won’t say no to that.” Clementine and Nico just chuckle. 

“Be right back,” Clementine promises. 

She closes the door and takes a moment to watch the two. Nico’s trying to paint some sort of sunset and lets Lacy guide his hand, listening intently as Lacy gives him some artistic advice. She’s never seen such softness in someone’s eyes before as Nico is looking at the young girl. And later, when Nico hands her two tickets for a game in January, it’s the most excited she’s seen Lacy.

…..

Clementine finds that she has Christmas Eve and Christmas Day off, so the three of them decide to do their own little Christmas Eve celebration — Ellen and Jim are heading to Vancouver to spend the holiday with Quinn and the various family they have out there — before going to Jack and Luke’s family again on Christmas Day. They ask her if Nico can join them Christmas Eve, before going with them to their family’s on Christmas Day, since his family can’t fly out this time around for the holidays. She immediately agrees, and digs her knitting supplies out from the few unpacked boxes in her closet and stops by the fabric store right by the hospital after work. 

Later that night, after a game, Luke waves his greeting before stumbling into his room while Jack beelines to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water. He casts his eyes on Clementine on the couch, Canucks game on quietly in the background and a whole bunch of yarn on her lap, her fingers twiddling around knitting needles. 

Jack raises his eyebrows. “Who’s that for?”

“Nico.” The lack of response has her raising her eyes away from her needles. “What?”

“You like him, don’t you?”

“As a person, absolutely. He’s very-”

“Fuck off. You know that’s not what I’m talking about. You like him. Like, stomach has butterflies and all that shit.”

She puts down her needles with a sigh, “Jack-”

“Listen, I know you’re just gonna deny it or whatever. Because that’s what you do. So, I’m not even gonna bother, but Clee. You could do a whole lot worse than Hisch. And he likes you too, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Jack. I’m not gonna date your captain.”

“Why not?”

“Because…I don’t wanna put you or Luke in a weird position.”

“That’s a dumb excuse. Who cares about that? Certainly not Luke and I.” He comes to sit next to her like an eager puppy. “I swear I’m not trying to set you up or whatever. Not intentionally at least. And I really won’t push and let it go if you want me to. But Clee, you seem so at ease around him. And it’s obvious that he just likes everything about you. It doesn’t have to be serious. But maybe just give it a chance before you just shut it down, okay?”

She nods, taking in his words. “Okay, okay. I will.”

“Promise?”

She rolls her eyes, but clasps her pinky with his. They’ve always taken their pinky promises very seriously. “I promise.”

Jack grins, his typical easygoing manner right back. “Good.” 

After a lazy Christmas Eve morning and afternoon watching holiday movies, drinking hot cocoa and feeling at peace, she, Jack, Luke and Nico put on some Christmas music and make gingerbread cookies to bring the next day. She scolds the brothers as they start flinging flour at each other but she does it with a smile that hurts her cheeks and a heart that feels overwhelmingly full. “Silent Night” comes on and to prevent herself from fully bursting into tears, she leaves Luke and Nico to shape the cookies and drags Jack to dance around the kitchen with her. She thinks he understands, as he places a comforting kiss on her forehead, Luke looking on in solemn happiness.

(Nico notices all of their demeanors slightly shift, but he doesn’t press.)

At midnight, they all exchange presents under the twinkling lights of their tree. Nico looks surprised when they tell him they all have presents for him, which is funny considering he has presents for all of them. As the youngest, Luke goes first, and his smile is pure ecstasy, as he receives a really nice watch from Nico, new shoes from Jack and a bottle of cologne that she knows he’s been eyeing from Clementine. Jack’s next, as he gleefully reaches for his presents. Nico gifts him a customized Snapback that has Jack tackling his captain in a hug and almost tipping the tree over, and Luke gets him the newest AirPods to hopefully discourage him from “accidentally” putting his through the wash. Clementine gets Jack a nice leather wallet she saw at a vintage shop a few weeks back and he acts surprised that she knows what he likes style wise, as if she didn’t practically grow up with him and watch his heinous style turn into something passable. 

Clementine insists Nico goes next. Jack and Luke get him a joint present of a massive box of assorted Swiss chocolates and Clementine thinks his eyes literally light up, excitedly talking about how you can’t get most of them outside of Switzerland. As Clementine hands him her present, Nico only raises his eyebrows at the large bag. 

“Should I be scared?”

She scoffs, “Just open the bag, Captain.”

They all laugh, Jack and Luke eagerly watching as Nico carefully takes out the tissue paper. Jack laughs in recognition as Luke just shakes his head fondly when Nico pulls out a giant knitted maroon blanket. 

“I know it seems a bit weird,” Clementine rushes to explain as he unfolds the blanket carefully. “But basically, when I started going to the boys’ games, I would get really cold sitting in the bleachers. So my mom taught me how to knit and I knitted myself a huge blanket, kinda like this one. The parents all saw me with it and eventually started asking if I would knit some for them. And I did, so it’s kinda a thing I like to do when I have time now. Makes for good presents too.”

Nico looks behind him to a similar looking white blanket draped across the couch. “Did you make that?”

She grins. “Yeah. I think that one was the one I gave to Jack right before he left for New Jersey. I know Luke has the one I gave him before he left for Michigan in his room.” 

“It’s super warm,” Luke says.

“Clee doesn’t make these blankets for just anyone,” Jack adds. “She only just made one for Turcs last year after he had been practically begging her for years.” 

Nico folds the blanket back up and reaches over to envelop her in a tight hug. She lets herself rest her head on his shoulder. “Thank you,” he says sincerely. “I love it.”

She just smiles, trying to tell her brain to calm the fuck down before she reaches out to grab Jack and Luke’s (and Quinn, he said to her over the phone this morning) gift for her. She pulls out a photo album and immediately starts sniffling. The first photo on the first page is of her holding Quinn at the hospital right when he was born. Written below, in what she recognizes as Quinn’s handwriting: 

Clem holding Quinn for the first time. October 15, 1999. Orlando, Florida. 

She flips through quickly, finding that it’s photos of her and all of the brothers throughout the years, before closing it and taking a deep breath. “I’ll have to look at this more carefully later when I can cry by myself in my room. Fuck. How long did this take you guys?”

“We got the idea when you told us you were moving in, but we really got to put it together over the summer,” Luke says. “It was also fun getting Mom and Maeve to dig up some of the pictures.” 

She wipes her eyes before giving them both individual, loving hugs and sweet kisses on their cheeks. “Thank you.” It’s not enough. Nothing will ever be enough. But she hopes they understand. 

“Well, I don’t know how I can follow that up,” Nico jokes softly. 

“Stop,” she scolds him lightly, taking the wrapped box from his hands. She rips the paper ungracefully and opens the box. In the box are light pink scrubs. When she unfolds the shirt, she sees tiny bluebells adorning the right side, with her initials in delicate white cursive on the right. 

Nico scratches the back of neck. “Jacky mentioned that pink’s your favorite color and I had Luke sneak into your closet one time when you were at work to grab me your measurements. My sister does embroidery for fun so, uh, yeah.”

She has to bite the inside of her bottom lip from smiling too widely. She already knows it’s going to be her favorite set. Before she can think too hard about it, she practically launches herself into his arms, half in his lap as Nico lets out a surprised grunt but easily catches her. She holds on a bit longer, even placing a quick kiss on his cheek before pulling away. 

“Thank you. I love them.”

(Jack and Luke exchange the most obvious look, yet somehow both Clementine and Nico miss it) 

The next day, they make the hour-long drive. Clementine calls shotgun, and has her feet curled up under her, white sweater stretched over her hands as Jack hums along to the Christmas music playing softly in the background. Nico insisted on getting flowers, which is all too much, but she, Jack and Luke are also bringing two bottles of some really fucking good wine so maybe they’re all on the same page. They’re the last ones to arrive, the house already filled with familial chatter, football on the TV, snacks on the kitchen island and alcohol free flowing. She watches as Nico is embraced like he’s been around for his whole life, even though realistically, he’s maybe only met a few of them in passing when they’ve come to a game. Geegs calls him handsome after .4 seconds of seeing him and she, Jack and Luke all snicker watching his cheeks turn red. It seems like it takes not even three minutes for him to charm every single damn person, especially when he gives Lara the flowers. 

Clementine immerses herself in the cheer of holiday and family, happily answering anyone when she’s asked about her residency. She answers questions about it’s like living with the “terrible two” with ease and laughter, because as much as she likes to give them shit, it’s honestly been one of the best times of her life.

Inevitably, because she might not have their last name but has been part of the family for years, she gets a few questions about her love life, or lack thereof. Lara always jokes that if the stars were slightly different, her and Quinn — or maybe even Jack — could’ve ended up together. And Clementine agrees, because those two boys are so lovely and she knows them so well and loves them so much, but the stars are the way they are, and nothing will ever happen romantically between her and any Hughes brother. 

Romance hasn’t really ever been seriously in the cards for Clementine, which is partially self inflicted. She had something in college that lasted for over two years, but since then, nothing has stuck. She’s always used the excuse of school and now residency, and it’s somewhat true. But even she knows she’s running out of excuses for herself. 

As her eyes flit over to Nico, who’s across the room talking to Luke and Ben, one of their cousins, looking so fucking soft in his gray crewneck and dark washed blue jeans, hair too fluffy and the most heartwarming smile on his face, she tells herself to get it together. 

After over two decades of being around hockey boys, she can’t be developing a crush on the captain of the New Jersey Devils. 

…..

On the morning of New Year’s Day, Clementine tries her best to go about the kitchen quietly to make her breakfast, only to find Jack and Luke already there, sipping on their coffees. 

“Morning boys.”

“Morning Clemmy.”

“Happy new year!”

“Happy new year,” she yawns. “Morning skate?”

“We’re skipping.” Her eyebrows shoot up and Luke just gives her a look. “C’mon, Clemmy. We’re not letting you do this alone.”

She swallows and her voice cracks. “You guys remembered?”

“Clee,” Jack says with a sympathetic smile. “Of course we did.” 

Before she can control it, her eyes water and she sniffles. Luke comes up and pulls her to his side, allowing her to momentarily bury herself into his sweatshirt as she tries to gather herself. Above her head, Luke and Jack share a look as Jack wordlessly grabs a thermos from the cabinet and fills 3/4 of it with coffee, topping it off with oat milk. Clementine pulls away and rubs at her eyes. 

Jack smiles at her. “Picked up some croissants from downstairs we can eat on the way. The florist should be open by now.”

“Yeah, yeah. Okay,” she turns to Luke again and pulls him into a real hug. She only forces herself to pull away so she can give Jack one too, before going to her room to change. 

They stop by the florist downstairs and she picks out a bouquet of fresh daisies. She watches Luke mull over his options before choosing the white lilies as Jack automatically reaches for the pink peonies. He also cradles a bouquet of sunflowers, and when she gives him a confused look, he just smiles.

(“From Quinn. He specifically requested sunflowers.”

Clementine bites her lip, nodding, the image of toddler Quinn almost yanking the sunflowers in the yard in front of her childhood home before her dad stopped him and explained how flowers grow passing through her mind.)

The drive to the cemetery doesn’t take too long. They may be driving in from a different direction than she’s used to, but somehow, it’s like her body knows exactly where she’s going. Once they arrive, she quietly directs them to the right hill and she takes a sip of her coffee before opening the car door. She tries to take the flowers from Luke’s hands but he just softly tells her he’s got it. She’s a step ahead of the two as she leads them to the correct place. 

She smiles as she comes close, seeing the semi-fresh bouquet of roses she knows her mother must’ve placed there three days prior, 28 years to the day they got married. She watches as Luke carefully sets down all their flowers, and she bends down to help him arrange them in a pretty way as Jack unfolds the large blanket. They all sit down and stare at the stone. 

in loving memory of

Miguel Alejandro Sandoval

April 3, 1968 - January 1, 2015

beloved son, uncle, friend, husband and father

As she starts talking softly, some of her words floating away with the slight breeze, Jack hastily grabs her hand with his and intertwines their fingers tightly as Luke adjusts his long limbs so that his head is in her lap. She uses her other hand to play with his curls and takes a shaky breath as Jack places his head on her shoulder. She talks about how she’s back east now and how much she loves residency and how fun it’s been to live with Jack and Luke and how Quinn is captain of the Canucks now and how her mom, Ellen and Jim are doing well. She talks like she’s chatting with her dad over homemade paella on a Sunday morning, rather than in the eerie peacefulness of Flower Hill Cemetery, which is five miles away from the house he grew up in. Jack and Luke don’t say anything, but she doesn’t expect them to. She’s just grateful they’re here with her. 

When they’re about to leave, the two boys request a few minutes without her and she just smiles, kissing her hand and touching the stone before walking away. She sits in the car and waits, watching as Luke leans his head on Jack’s shoulder. After six minutes, they’re all on their way back to Hoboken. 

After lunch, Jack and Luke head over to…one of their teammate’s places to watch whatever football game is on. They ask, more than once, if Clementine wants to join, but she denies. They both then insist on staying, but she overrules them and practically shoves them out the door, promising that she’ll be okay and that she’ll see them later. 

Around an hour later, she’s finishing up prepping some pasta salad for the week ahead when there’s a knock at the door. She hums to herself, confused. She’s not expecting anyone who doesn’t have a key to the place. She swings open the door. 

“Nico?” She smiles, albeit confused. “Uh, Hi. Jack and Luke aren’t here.”

“I know. I just saw them.” She’s still confused, but she goes to the side to allow him to come in, closing the door behind him. He slips off his shoes and clears his throat. “Happy new year.”

“Happy new year. Not that I’m not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?”

“I just..I was at Nate’s,” Ah, so that’s where they went. “And Jack and Luke came in and we were all bummed you weren’t coming and asked why. They didn’t say much, if that’s what you’re worried about. But I, you know, as captain or whatever, asked them if everything was okay and they said it was and I asked if you not being there had anything to do with why they skipped practice this morning and you know them, especially Jack. He’s such a shitty liar. He just said that it may be a hard day for you today, and I wanted to see if you were okay.”

Clementine isn’t offended, by any means. Too much time — nine years worth of it — has passed for her to feel any animosity of any sort about a touchy thing like this, especially when it’s just Jack and Luke looking out for her. She just smiles, reaching out a hand to take Nico’s coat. “I’m okay. But if you really want to know, it’ll take a bit of time. I’m giving you an out, Cap. It is New Year’s Day.”

“I want to know everything about you,” he says, walking further into her place. She’ll have to unpack that one later. 

“Tea or coffee? Or whatever disgusting protein shake Lukey has in the fridge?”

Nico snorts, settling himself down on the coach with the comfortability of someone who lives here. Then again, Clementine is reminded, as he unfolds the white knitted blanket, that Nico’s known the layout of this apartment longer than she has. “Coffee, please. Black is fine.”

“Abysmal,” she remarks, pouring out a cup for him and herself. She sets them down on the coffee table before smiling at him. “Be right back.” She goes into her room to dig through her bookshelf for a specific photo album that she only cracks open during January 1 of every year. It doesn’t take long before she paddles back to the living room, placing the album next to her coffee. She sits a respectable distance from Nico, but tucks herself under the blanket anyway. She watches him sip his coffee for a few moments.

“We were at the cemetery this morning. That’s why Jack and Luke asked to skip morning skate. We were visiting my dad. He died nine years ago today. Cancer,” she says, like she’s recalling a medical fact she read in her textbook. “He was, god, my best friend, really. And the best person, in my completely biased opinion. But maybe not. Miguel Sandoval, everyone used to say — still says — had a heart of gold and a smile as bright as the sun. He loved being outside. Worked as an environmental engineer. He loved chocolate ice cream. He hated mosquitos, always cursed them out in Spanish during the summer just to make me and my mom laugh. He always kicked the ball around in the backyard with me, even after an exhausting day at work. He made the best paella, made it pretty much every Sunday. God, he really did light up every room he walked into. He loved my mom. Loved me. And we loved him. Love him.” She reaches for the album and offers it to Nico, who slowly starts flicking through the pages. She looks on with him at the photos. “My mom, Maeve, and Ellen, Luke and Jack’s mom, played soccer at UNH together and just kept in touch throughout the years. My mom and dad met at UNH too. And then Ellen met Jim, and the four of them were so, so tight, I’ve been told. Double dates, all of that.” She smiles, looking at her mom and dad’s wedding photos. “Ellen was my mom’s maid of honor, and my mom was hers. They always like to remind me that I was in my mom’s stomach when Ellen and Jim got married. Anyways, I was 18 when he died, so looking back, I’m grateful that I even had that many years with him, but at the same time, it felt so short. 100 years wouldn’t have been enough time with him.”

“He sounds like an amazing man,” Nico says softly. 

Clementine smiles with him. “He was. It’s easier now. Nine years is a long time. But during the few years after, it was really hard. I felt really guilty going to UCLA just months after he died.  Was about to throw it away and go somewhere close to home instead, but my mom insisted, knowing it was my dream school. I felt guilty leaving her across the country, in a fucking different country, but it did help that she had people around to support her. It’s still not easy. This time of the year is always pretty hard on me. And it’ll never really go away. But time does heal.”

She takes a sip of coffee to gather her thoughts, as Nico continues perusing the album, laughing at some and cooing at others when the Hughes brothers start making an appearance. They stop at a picture of her father holding Luke right when he was born in the hospital, Jim proudly smiling in the background and young Jack and Quinn looking on. “My dad loved the boys and I don’t even think saying he loved them captures 1% of it. Those boys were his boys. If I didn’t have soccer games or practices, he was tagging along to all their hockey stuff after work and on the weekends. He didn’t know jackshit about the sport at first, but he eventually learned the ins and outs of the game because he wanted to support them. Did Jack ever tell you why he chose 86? Or why Luke chose 43?”

“I think Jack just said it was a family number or something,” Nico says. “Didn’t go much into it.”

“My dad’s birthday is April 3. 43. I think all of them wore it during their first year at the program. And then Quinn and Luke decided to go back to it in college and beyond, obviously. 43 doubled is 86, of course, but my dad, who was also a middle child, used to say Jack’s personality was so big and bold that it doubled his siblings’. The boys loved him just as much as he loved them.” By now, the tears are gushing down her cheeks. “Sometimes, I think that the three of them took the loss harder than I did. He never got to see them play for their country. He never got to see them get drafted. He never got to witness their first points in the show. And fuck, my dad would’ve cheered so loud. Would’ve been so proud. Probably is so proud, wherever he is. But, you know, during the big moments, and the little ones, we all know he’s there. I just know he is.”

“He is.”

She calms herself down a bit and chuckles. “Sorry, I know it’s a lot.”

“No, no.” They shift closer to each other and she leans into him as he puts an arm around her shoulder. “It’s not a lot. I-thank you. For telling me all of this. Thank you for trusting me.”

Clementine just shrugs, but the weight of her shoulders feels heavy. “I’ve never felt the need to justify to others what the Hughes family means to me, but telling people about…this usually gives them some context. I frankly don’t know if I would’ve survived and gotten through it without them. It’s more than just family friends at this point. It’s family, but it’s also something so much more. I get reminded everyday how lucky I am to have them.” 

(She swallows, thinking back to her ex-somethings that could’ve been something more had they not let their insecurities show after finding out how three of her closest friends are not just guys, but nationally scouted hockey players, thinking back to a splattering of girls who she thought were her friends but subtly changed their attitudes when they tried to get Clementine to put a good word in, thinking back to some who brushed aside her own accomplishments to fixate on her pseudo-brothers’ careers. She’s never directly mentioned it to any of the boys. It’s not their burden to worry about. But even if they aren’t as smart as her, she thinks they have an idea)

Nico nods. She thinks he may understand, weirdly enough, despite the different circumstances. It seems like Nico just understands a lot. Nico smiles, setting the album back down gently on the table in front of them. “Your ability to love greatly. Your natural protectiveness. Did that come from your dad?”

“Yeah, actually. I love my mom, of course. But she’s always been more of the tough love parent. I think the protectiveness was more of just the situation I was put in, being the oldest out of all of us and also an only child. But the love…a lot of people who knew my dad say we’re very similar in that aspect. So thank you. I’ll take it as a compliment. That means a lot to me.”

She busies herself and sips on her coffee. Nico clears his throat. "You can feel free to tell me to fuck off, but I just…did your dad’s situation influence you to want to become a doctor?”

“Sorta. I kinda always knew that I wanted to do something in science, but it definitely solidified when he died. I did think about going the oncologist route, a doctor that deals with cancer, but I ultimately decided that it hit too close to home. I-I’d like to think that in a profession that’s dedicated to trying our best to save lives, that I have a perspective on death that helps me more than harms me. Helps the patient and their family more too, hopefully.”

“That’s an extremely mature way to look at it.”

“Jesus, Cap. Way to make me feel old. I’m only 26, you know.”

“With all the stuff you’ve gone through, you’re probably more emotionally, like, 37.” Well, he kinda has a point. “But seriously though. What a beautiful perspective.”

“I appreciate that a lot, thank you.” She snuggles more into the blanket, and therefore, closer to Nico. “Bet you didn’t think you’d get this to start off your year.”

She feels the ghost of his lips press to her hair and hopes he doesn’t feel her racing heart. “Perhaps not. But I’m pretty content with how it’s going so far.”

…..

For Nico’s birthday, Clementine asks Emilia, who’s Swiss, what some traditional Swiss desserts are. After getting a recipe for a semi-complicated cake from Emilia from her mother, she gets to work.

She makes two cakes, or Zuger Kirschtorte, the larger one for Nico and the smaller one for her, Luke and Jack. It takes a good chunk of her evening, but she makes it a whole thing, putting on the Devils vs Caps game, measuring ingredients and going back towards her laptop to make sure she’s following the recipe correctly. She’s momentarily grateful that both boys aren’t here, partially so they don’t distract her in case she fucks up but mostly so they don’t start teasing her. She knows they will eventually, but she would rather hold it off as long as possible. 

The cake turns out really good, which is a bit surprising. Clementine’s always liked baking, but she’s not amazing at it. She carefully puts the larger cake in a disposable container, setting it on the counter to give it to Jack and Luke to give to Nico tomorrow morning, putting the smaller one in the fridge. Before she sleeps, she places a sticky note on the lid, “do not touch or i’ll kill you” written out in all capital letters.

(The next morning, Nico smiles when he sees that Clementine had sent him a short text reading “Happy Birthday Cap!! Enjoy your day :)” When Jack walks into the locker room, cake in his hand and beelining towards him, he’s confused. 

“Special delivery for the birthday boy,” Jack says with a knowing smile. 

Nico furrows his eyebrows. “From who?”

Jack nods to the card taped to the top of the lid. “Read the card and find out.”

Nico sets the cake beside him carefully as Jack practically skips to his stall. He ignores what he feels like are multiple eyes on him as he opens the card. He feels his throat dry up. 

Captain, 

Happy birthday!! It’s always a joy seeing and talking to you, so thank you for bringing that into my time in Jersey so far. I tried my best with the cake, so forgive me if it isn’t perfect, but I hope it brings you a sense of home. 

With love, 

Clementine

Nico takes a closer look at the cake and does a double take, before shooting her a quick text of gratitude and carefully putting it into his locker. Hours later, when he finally gets to try it, he closes his eyes in happiness, savoring the taste of a dessert his grandma used to make all the time when he was younger and thinks about the girl who made it. 

Two days later, when Clementine’s at The Rock to see all Hughes brothers together on the ice as the Devils take on the Canucks, he’s hoping to catch a glimpse of her afterwards. After getting a hattrick, he’s on a high and he’s hoping even more to get a chance to see her afterwards.

He comes out of the locker room, tired but happy, and first sees Ellen Hughes’s unmistakably bright smile. He greets her politely, grin widening as she pulls him into a motherly hug. He shakes Jim’s hand before Clementine practically jumps onto him, congratulating him on his hat trick with a happy squeal. He can’t help but laugh and squeeze her just a bit tighter before letting go and ruffling Luke’s hair. 

“Hey,” he lowers his voice so only Clementine can hear. “Thank you. For the cake. You really didn’t have to. It was delicious.”

“Really?” She says, tucking her hair behind her ears and bouncing on her toes. “Oh, I’m so glad you liked it!”

“How did you-where did you get the recipe?”

“One of my friends from the hospital is Swiss. I asked her, and she got it from her mom.”

All Nico can do is blink, because he’s so fucking touched that someone would go out of the way like that. He takes a second to look at Clementine’s beautiful smile and takes a deep breath. “I really appreciate it. Thank you.”

She just beams. Nico wants to bottle it up. 

Right as he’s slipping into bed that night, he checks his texts one last time, furrowing his eyebrows when he sees a text from Luke from four minutes ago. It’s a Twitter link. Confused, Nico clicks on it. It’s a short clip of the broadcast from the game earlier, after he had scored his hattrick. It shows him celebrating on the ice, then pans the bench, fans, before panning to the Hughes family box. He smiles, watching as everyone cheers, but he immediately notices Clementine, in Quinn’s Canucks jersey nonetheless, jumping out of her seat first and raising her arms in excitement, clapping and shouting and smiling.

As he’s watching the video again, Luke sends another text. 

Luke Hughes

Ask her out already 

I’m getting impatient

Nico just dislikes the second text. He watches the video one more time before shutting off his phone.)

…..

Residency keeps Clementine crazy busy the next few weeks, that even though she wants to go to more games, she’s either working or too tired to drag herself to The Rock. She barely can keep her eyes open even when she puts a game on the TV, and is always fully asleep before Quinn and the Canucks on the west coast even take the ice. 

But finally, on a cold Saturday, on their day off, she drags Emilia along to see the Devils face the Canadiens. It’s a plus that she gets to see Cole again, because Cole has the ability to always put a smile on her face. 

Additionally, it’s a noon game, which is super rare. And Clementine takes that as a chance to host a small little thing at their place afterwards with an open invite to any of the players — on both teams — and their families. She can’t keep track of who knows who in the small world of professional hockey. She’s getting some of her residency friends to come too. 

If she has the energy and time to host something, she’ll do it. She used to love hosting in college and med school, even if it was just something as simple as a potluck. She’s aware it’s the middle of the season and they can’t go crazy, but she loves filling her home with love and conversation. 

Right after the game, she and Emilia both bolt out of there, Clementine momentarily thankful that they coincidentally parked close to the entrance so she could fight her way out of the lot within a decent time. Luckily, a lot of significant others offered to bring something or pick something up, so she and Emilia don’t have to prepare that much. Once they reach the apartment, Emilia helps Clementine out with her giant charcuterie board before taking out the tray of lemon squares she had made the night before and starting to cut them. 

Soon enough, everyone trickles in seemingly one after the other and Clementine is bustling around, making her rounds. She practically pounces on Cole, smiling at the sight of his smile and demanding him to catch her up on everything. 

She’s so busy mingling that she forgets to pour herself a glass of wine even though the bottles have already been opened. She doesn’t really realize it until she feels a tap on her shoulder and turns around to see Nico with a smile paired with a glass of wine in his hand. 

“For you,” Nico says softly. Somehow, it stands out above the loudish volume chatter in the apartment. “Got the last of it in that glass. Figured you might want some.”

She accepts the glass with a grateful smile. “Thanks, Cap. This one is one of my favorites.”

“I figured,” he says. She raises an eyebrow. He smiles a bit shyly. “On Christmas, you brought two bottles of that when we went to see Jack and Luke, and well, your, family. And I’ve seen at least one bottle of it at the apartment every time I’ve gone in recently and I know for a fact that Luke doesn’t like wine and Jack doesn’t know a shitty one from a good one.”

She snorts. “You’d think that allowing them to sneak some from my glass at family dinners for so long would’ve given them some taste. Instead, Luke has decided that a shitty beer is always his go-to and Jack’s go-to drink is a margarita like a psychopath.”

Nico chuckles, amused. “Bashing on Luke’s drink of choice is fair, even if I don’t agree, but what do you have against margaritas?”

“Many of my not-so-great moments in college have started with tequila,” she says with a shudder. “Even the smell of it makes me want to throw up these days.”

He laughs as she sips on her lovely wine. “Party animal back at college?”

“I wouldn’t say so. But work hard, play hard was the motto for a lot of my friends, and I wasn’t always strong enough to ward away their pleas.” She nods at him. “How about you? Is your drink of choice actually beer or are you normal?”

“I’m not picky. Beer’s pretty huge back home, though. So it’s what will usually be shoved in your hand whether you like it or not.”

“I went to Zurich two years ago for a friend’s wedding. It might be the most beautiful place I’ve ever been to.”

“Zurich’s great,” Nico smiles, his eyes flashing in a way she hasn’t seen before. “The whole country. It’s beautiful. It’s home. There’s nothing like home.”

“You miss it during the season? Or are you used to it by now?”

“Mostly used to it. It makes it all the more special when I do go back in the summer, you know? Also, it’s nice to have Siegs, Schmido and Timo here. A little taste of home even though we’re so far from it. Remind me again where home is for you? Toronto, right? Or Michigan?”

She chuckles. “It’s tricky. I grew up in Toronto, but my mom lives in Boston now. And you know, I was out in California for so long. So Toronto, but also Massachusetts, but also California? I don’t really know. But I’m also going to be in Jersey for the next four-ish years at least, so right now, it’s New Jersey.”

“And you’re happy with that?”

Clementine looks around the apartment with a giddy smile. “If it’s gonna look something like this, I think so.” 

“Clem!” She turns her head to see Cole bouncing towards her. He halts quickly though. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“You’re good, man.” Nico says, shooting one last smile at Clementine. “Enjoy the wine.”

“Thanks for getting it for me.” He nods once and gives a friendly pat to Cole’s shoulder before walking towards the living room. 

Cole looks between Nico’s retreating back and Clementine, a mischievous smile growing on his lips. She narrows her eyes. “I don’t like that smile, Coley. What do you want?”

“Nothing! It’s a lovely little thing you have here. Thanks for inviting me.”

“Anytime. You looked great out there earlier.”

Cole puffs out his chest a bit and she refrains from rolling her eyes. “You think?”

“Well, I’m not an analyst. Or a coach. Or an expert of the game of hockey in any way. So take all my opinions with a grain of salt.”

“Sure,” he says, leaning his hip on the counter behind him. “But with the amount of hockey games you’ve watched in your lifetime combined with how much you’ve been surrounded by it all your life, I’d say you could give even the best analysts at The Athletic a run for their money.”

“Not by choice,” she grunts. 

Cole just smiles. His default expression, which Clementine can’t help but just adore. “Sure, Clem. Sure.”

“You’re being weird. What do you want?”

“For years you’ve been around hockey players. For years you’ve been around them flirting with you. And you finally crack because of the Swiss captain?”

She plops a few nuts in her mouth. “Whatever Jack and Luke have been feeding you, ignore it. You should know better.”

“They’re not feeding me anything, thank you very much!” She gives him a skeptical look. Cole, like the weakling he is, cracks. “Okay, maybe they have. But I’m also not blind, Clem. Hischier’s well-liked in the league. I think you two would be good together.”

She points at him playfully. “It is not your job to be thinking about these things.”

“Then whose is it?” He shoots back, playful smile still on his face but with a more serious tinge on the edges. “Clem, we’re not 16 anymore. Give us some credit. Let us matchmake a little.”

She snorts. “With love, absolutely fucking not. I know Jack has this fantasy in his head that I’ll date his captain and it’ll be all great, but he needs to chill.”

“He told you that?”

“More or less. He’s not subtle.”

Cole shrugs. “I’m not pushing, Clem. I’m not Jack or, even worse, Trevor. But just, I don’t know. Maybe it’s not just a fantasy in Jack’s mind. He adores Nico. And you know he thinks the world of you. Maybe he actually sees something there. I don’t think he’d encourage it so much or fuck around with that just to fuck around. You’re some of the most important people in his life.” 

Clementine sneaks a look at Nico, who’s literally just existing, and she can’t help but smile. At the sight of his smile. At the sight of him talking to Emilia. At the possibilities. But she turns back to Cole with a dimmer smile. “I don’t know, Coley. It’s not that-Nico’s amazing. He’s honestly just so…good. I don’t think he has a manipulative bone in his body. I just feel like I come with so much baggage, you know? No one’s gonna want that.” 

Cole makes a noise in his throat. “Okay, first of all. It’s not baggage. It’s life. Everyone comes with some sort of baggage, so that’s stupid. Second of all, you have so many people who already love you despite the ‘baggage.’ What’s adding one more person to that list?” 

She just hums. Cole offers her a smile, before switching topics to the Taylor Swift concert he went to last summer, which she knows he’s bringing up just to rile her up.

…..

On April 3, Clementine wakes up for work, to see that Jack and Luke are already awake, much to her surprise. She looks to the kitchen island and sees a plate of blueberry pancakes. She smiles sadly — her dad used to always make blueberry pancakes for breakfast if the boys were over. She doesn’t say anything and just hugs them both tightly as they all dig in. She has to run to work, and kisses them both on the cheek before heading out, promising to see them tonight.

After her shift ends, Clementine ducks into the staff bathroom to change. No jersey this time, but a cropped black Devils crewneck she cut herself with skinny jeans. She bids farewell to her coworkers before swiping her keycard and hopping on the train to Madison Square Garden. She’s meeting up with Emilia, who had the day off, and her husband Tony to watch the Devils take on the Rangers.

She’s grown to love The Rock, but going to a game at Madison Square Garden is pretty cool, even if she gets playfully chirped by Rangers fans multiple times as she walks in. She happily sips on her rum and coke, chatting with Emilia and Tony as she sees the seats slowly fill with blue. Hockey is always fun to watch, but she hasn't been to a game yet that has a rivalry quite like this one. 

As the game starts and she naturally gets into it, she finds herself having a moment where she wishes her father was in the empty seat next to hers. Luke scores a goal, and for a split second, her fingers itch to reach out to hug him as if he was there. She shakes it off and just keeps cheering and playfully getting up in Emilia and Tony’s faces while trying not to spill her second rum and coke for the night. Seeing the 43 on Luke’s jersey makes her emotional and she bites her lip to keep herself together.

Afterwards, after a tough 2-1 loss, she bids Emilia and Tony goodnight as she tries to find the path to the locker rooms, even though she always insists that she doesn’t need an all-access pass or whatever, especially at an away game. But Jack and Luke always insist (“We’re literally all going to the same place after anyways. And this one is at MSG. We gotta make sure you haven’t been injured by their fans.”) and she’s learned to pick her battles with them. 

It’s a nice enough night out, so she decides to wait outside instead of inside the hallway, texting Jack and Luke that she’s outside the exit. She ends up chatting with Jared, one of the guys on their equipment team, about how his daughter is just about to finish her first year of med school at UMass before the doors swing open. As usual, she gives Luke and then Jack comforting hugs, kissing their cheeks and ruffling their hair. Various members of the team start trickling out and she greets them all with smiles, chuckling softly as Dawson wraps her in a tight hug. 

Since MSG is decently close to Newark (without traffic, that is, which is practically impossible for New York City), a lot of the guys drove together to come to the arena this morning. So she watches as they debate who’s getting in whose car, since apparently it has to be different from this morning because of who lives where and a bunch of factors Clementine doesn’t understand. As long as she’s getting home somehow, she doesn’t care. 

She’s tuned them out so it takes Jack calling her name twice for her to pay attention. “Sorry. What’s up?”

“Do you mind riding with Neeks?” Jack says, waving his hand around. “We have a bigger car and it’s easier if we drop off Nate, Holtzy and-”

“Yeah, yeah. It’s fine,” she turns to Nico. “You sure you have room? I can always just take the train back.”

Nico snorts, “Jack and Luke would kill me if I had you going back on the train this late. I have plenty of room in my car. I’m just taking Bratter back.” 

“Only if you’re sure,” she says, before nodding at Jack and Luke. “See you both at home.”

(She misses the look that the boys all give Nico)

She insists that Jesper take the front seat, practically shoving him and quickly climbing into the back, making Nico laugh. Somehow, the traffic in Lincoln Tunnel is bearable and they’re in Jersey City in just over half an hour. Clementine hops out to give Jesper a hug once they reach his place before sliding into the passenger seat. 

Nico hands her the aux cord, as Jesper had been auxing earlier. She gives him a look. “Are you sure?”

He looks behind him before pulling back on the road. “Why wouldn’t I be?” She hums in response, satisfied, before shuffling one of her playlists. “When do you have to go into work tomorrow?”

“Uh, not until after lunch.”

“Perfect. Are you hungry?” 

“A bit actually, yeah.”

“Wanna grab a quick bite to eat and maybe a drink? I know a place that’s pretty close to here.”

She looks at the side of his face with a smile. “Yeah,” she says softly. “That sounds great.”

Nico catches her eye quickly, and smiles back. “Okay, great. Yeah.”

Within 10 minutes, Nico parks his car in the parking lot of a beer garden. It’s lively, but not crowded enough to overwhelm her. The outside patio is beautiful, and Nico just looks behind her with an encouraging smile. Without thinking, she grabs his hand and they walk in. 

He confidently strolls up to the bar, greeting the bartender, who seems to recognize him and greets him with a friendly handshake, causing her to let go of his hand. The bartender, Adam, he introduces himself as, is already filling up a pint of beer for Nico as he asks her what she wants to drink. She orders herself a rum and coke. He asks if Nico wants “his usual” for the food order and Nico nods, also adding something else that he says too fast for Clementine to decipher. But Adam just nods, before saying he’ll put the order in and goes to prepare their drinks. 

“You come around here often?”

Nico shrugs. “I guess. A bunch of the boys do. It’s a good place to hang out and grab some food.” They both grab their drinks and Nico leads her to the outdoor patio with his hand hovering over her back.

She slides into her seat, putting her hair up and taking a sip of her drink. “I’m sorry about the loss.”

“It’s not the end of the world, since we’ve already clinched playoffs…”

“But it still sucks?” She finishes for him. He nods, and she offers a sympathetic smile. “I get it, especially against the Rangers, I’m sure. But you guys still skated really well.”

“Thanks.” He smiles over his glass. “How was your day?”

Clementine blinks repeatedly, her throat suddenly feeling rough. It’s more likely that he’s just asking to be polite, but the fact that after a tough loss, he’s interested and cares enough to even ask. He must notice something shift in her eyes because he softens, hands itching to grab hers. She does the job for him, grabbing his hand probably too quickly. But before she can think too much on it, he loosely intertwines their fingers on the table. 

She clears her throat. “Honestly, not the best. Ending on a good note though.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

She chuckles weakly. “Would you even wanna hear it?”

“Of course I would.”

She finds nothing but sincerity in his eyes. She takes another sip of her drink. “One of the our cancer patient’s chemo results came back ineffective, which is just…so fucking shitty. Docs aren't deterred though and they talked with the kid’s parents today about targeted therapies which is good…” she trails off with a shrug. “Just being in the room as they broke the news, it…I don’t know. It’s always tough. Had me thinking.”

“Back to your own dad?” Nico asks carefully. 

Clementine nods, surprised that he remembered. Before she can respond, their food comes and her stomach is happy seeing the large tray of loaded fries in front of them. They dig in for a moment and she nods. “Yeah.”

“Do you do anything special to celebrate? For his birthday?” He asks. 

“Nothing really set in stone. I always try to do something, whether it’s watch his favorite movie or listen to his favorite songs. Something small and personal. I’m usually not in town to visit his grave, but my mom tries to go. He used to always make blueberry pancakes, so Jack and Luke made some this morning, which was sweet.”

“Jack and Luke know how to make pancakes?”

She snorts. “I’m just as surprised as you are. Yeah, so nothing crazy. Called my mom during my lunch break just to make sure she was all good.”

“What does she do?”

“She’s a teacher. 5th grade. So 10 and 11 year olds. She loves it. All the teachers have their own little group. She has her summers off to travel and spend time with family and friends.” Clementine pulls out her phone, quickly finding a picture in her camera roll of her and mom earlier this year at her graduation. “Good old Maeve. Irish to the core and proud of it, yet still can curse you out in Spanish pretty well. Says that that was one of the first things my dad taught her when they were in college.”

Nico laughs. “I still automatically switch to Swiss-German when I wanna curse and chirp. It takes a couple of seconds to translate to English in my head. But sometimes it just sounds so much better in Swiss-German that I wish people could understand.”

“Do you think in Swiss-German still, or do you think more in English?”

“It depends. I would say day to day, definitely Swiss-German. But if I’m at the rink and I’m, you know, talking to the team and stuff, usually English. I’ve trained myself in games to think pretty much in English now, since it’s so fast. But if I’m tired, my brain just switches back to Swiss-German.”

“That makes sense.”

“Do you speak any other languages?” 

She wipes her fingers on her napkin. “I speak enough Spanish to be able to get by, though it’s not as great as it used to be. Apparently I was fluent as a child.”

“Is all your family in the states?”

“Nah. Every year during the summer when I was a kid, we used to go to Spain and Ireland to see family over there. I haven’t gotten to go back there in a few years, but I’d like to at some point.”

Nico hums, just as a waiter comes with a plate of two large chocolate chip cookies. Clementine grins at Nico, who just nods at her to dig in. “Where in Spain is your family from?”

“Seville area, so more south.” She smiles, picturing Seville in her head, some of the rum and coke finally hitting her. “I loved getting to see where my dad grew up. Playing soccer in the fields where he played. Eating at the small restaurants he used to eat at. Remember when you asked me where home was?” Nico blinks for a moment before nodding. “I think I lied. It’s physical places sure, but it’s always been more of the people for me. And their joy and where they feel the most joy. So if we’re basing it off that, home could be Seville. Home could be Cork in Ireland. Home could be Toronto. Home could be Boston. Hell, home could be fucking Michigan with Q, Jack and Lukey even if I’ve only been there, like, three times.” 

“Well, where’s home for you at this second? Right here. Right now.”

“I don’t know. Everywhere? Nowhere?” She looks down at the table, eyebrows furrowing at herself at how emotional she’s getting. She blames the rum, from just now and earlier at the game. “That’s a depressing answer. I’m sorry. I guess, I just, when Luke scored tonight, the 43 on the back of his jersey, for a split second, I thought my dad was sitting next to me. I reached out to the empty seat next to me like he was. But he wasn’t. And I’m so, so sad he wasn’t.” She sniffles, “I’m sorry. Fuck. This isn’t-”

“Hey, hey.” Nico assures, holding her hand across the table again. “There’s nothing to be sorry for, okay? Nothing. I promise.”

She doesn’t let any tears fall and just stares into Nico’s comforting eyes with a small laugh. “I feel like you’ve seen me emotional a decent amount considering how short of a time we’ve known each other.”

“That’s okay. Emotions are good.” She chuckles again and his dimples grow deeper. “I-I figured today might be hard. I wanted- I wanted to check in and make sure you were okay.”

“So you only asked me to grab food for ulterior motives? Not just cause you wanted to hang out?”

His eyes widen almost comically. “No! No. I-I love spending time with you. I just-”

“Relax, Nico. I’m just messing with you,” she giggles as he rolls his eyes. “I appreciate it, though. Really. I think you’re too kind to me.”

“I’m just the right amount of kind to you.” 

She watches as he finishes off his beer and has a sudden urge to lean across the table and kiss him. 

…..

(That night, when she comes home, she expects Jack and Luke to be asleep. They aren’t. Instead, they’re both sitting on the couch, some random hockey game on quietly in the background. Their heads snap in her direction as the door clicks shut. 

She immediately holds up her hand. “Don’t even. I don’t wanna hear it.”

“Hear what?” Luke says. “That you’re fucking our captain?”

“Crude, first of all. Untrue, second of all. And third of all, and most importantly, you guys are annoying.”

“You’re deflecting,” Jack sings. 

“You haven’t asked me a question,” she shoots back. “Goodnight, you two.”

They both groan. “Can you both just get over whatever the fuck you two have going on and make it official?” Jack whines. 

“Goodnight,” she repeats, walking to her room. “Don’t forget breakfast tomorrow!”

She collapses on her bed and screams into her pillow)

…..

If Clementine’s completely honest to herself, making it to the home games for the playoffs is a priority because she just wants to be there just as much, if not more, than she wants to be there to support. Hockey with stakes is nerve wracking, but it’s also a completely different game than the regular season. Even after what could be the most bone-tiring day of work, she’s excited to have the next month or so be filled with as much hockey as possible. She doesn’t even try to fight when Jack and Luke automatically put her name down for a ticket for every home game. Even if she won’t be able to make it come the day, she’ll just leave it for one of their friends. She heard that some of Luke’s Michigan friends are trying to make it out, to which she’s simultaneously elated by but also dreading. Their apartment will not be quiet for the foreseeable future.

The day of their first game against the Penguins, she doesn’t have to go into the hospital, since she had just done two overnights in three days. She sleeps soundly until 2 p.m., and crawls out quietly, knowing both Jack and Luke’s door are shut as they’re taking their pregame naps. She pours out a cup of coffee, makes herself a sandwich, before settling on the couch with a textbook beside her and her notebook on her lap. 

She hears Jack and Luke start getting ready, shower heads running and closet doors opening and shutting. When they both come out in their game day suits, she insists on taking a picture of the both of them, to which they both groan at. They relent, and she sends the picture to Ellen, Jim and Quinn, before squeezing them and telling them good luck, promising them that she’ll see them afterwards. 

After they leave, she starts getting ready, humming to herself as she heats up the flat iron to put some waves and volume into her hair. She figures she has the time, and she hasn’t done anything to her hair in awhile. 

As she’s about to put the flat iron to her hair, someone knocks on the door. She rolls her eyes and yells out, “You two have keys, you know? Use them for once.” No response, just three more knocks. She huffs in annoyance, sets her flat iron down and walks to the door. 

“I’m going to fucking kill-oh.” It’s Nico, in his perfect game day suit with his hair styled perfectly. “Nico. Hey. Aren’t you supposed to be-”

He kisses her. 

Oh. 

He’s still kissing her, both his hands on her cheeks and she finds herself fisting his shirt. He’s still kissing her, and she doesn’t want him to stop. He tries to pull away, but she pulls him back in, and she smiles against his lips at the little noise that comes out of his mouth. He tastes like mint and home.

He does eventually pull away, flushed and delighted and flustered. “I have to go.”

“You have impeccably shit timing, Cap.”

They both chuckle. He takes a hold of her hands. “I know, I know. I’m sorry. I just had to.”

“Why?” She’s not letting him go that easy.

He squeezes her hands. His stare is making her feel the most seen she’s felt in awhile. “Well, I-I have a long answer that I don’t think I can think of right now. But the short answer is that I like you. A lot. And I’ve wanted to kiss you since the day at the hospital and every day since.”

She swallows, straightening his shirt that she messed up. “Go. I’ll see you after the game, yeah?” She kisses him on the cheek before forcing herself to back away. With one last grin, he shoves his hands in his pockets and turns around. She leans her hip against the door frame, “Nico?”

He turns back around in the middle of the hallway, “Yeah?”

She grins, fondness in her skin and bones. “Good luck. You’ll be great.” With one last salute from him, she closes the door. She leans her back against her door and lets out a little squeal. 

…..

(The second Nico walks out of the locker room, all she can see is him. His hair is messy as all hell and he looks exhausted, but his face lights up, and for the first time, she knows it’s because of her.

Without another word, she walks over to him and kisses him. It’s hard to ignore the cheers and whistles from the other people around them, but she ignores them, catching her breath with a giggle. She finally hones in on the other people in the room. Dawson’s grinning, Ryleigh shoots her a thumbs up, Curtis is audibly ‘aww’ing, Jonas is yelling something that she can’t understand but Nico can, judging from his blush. 

“Ew,” Nico and Clementine whip around to see Luke with his nose scrunched up. “Like, I’m happy that you two finally, you know, got your heads out of your asses, but ew. I don’t wanna see it.”

Jack, who’s right next to him, is just grinning. For once, he’s saying nothing. Clementine’s suspicious. She narrows her eyes at him. “Nothing to say, Jacky?”

“Nothing Hisch doesn’t already know,” the two centers exchange a look that has her whipping her head between the both of them. “He’s just lucky we already played Vancouver so he doesn’t have to encounter Quinn.”

“You guys are ridiculous,” Clementine scolds. “Leave him alone.”

“Never, especially not now. Now he’s really stuck with us.” Jack beams. “You gonna ride with Cap or are we taking you home?”

She pokes Nico in the side. He looks down at her with a sweet smile. “Drive me home?” She asks.

“Always.”

For herself, but more to annoy Jack and Luke, she kisses him one more time. They both groan as Clementine feels Nico’s smile against her lips.)

[wosoamazing]

Leah's Return

Part 6 - Fire on Fire Series

A/N: Sorry this one is short, updates may not be as regular in the next few weeks bc Uni is getting a little hectic... (I know I posted one yesterday but I don't know if I 100% like this so I'm just getting it out)

The game today was the one Leah expected to be making her return, it also was the game your parents had decided to come to. There was some irony in that, as your parents were most likely going to ruin a night that was meant to be fun and celebrate the return of Leah. However you ignored the fact they were there, not even looking for them in the stands before the game started.

At 61 minutes Leah was subbed on and the reception was great. The game finished amazingly with Arsenal beating Reading 6-0.

-

As soon as the whistle blew you ran up to Leah and hugged her.

“You did amazing! I’m so proud of you,” you told her as you patted her on her back, “I have to go speak to them now, but I will see you later,” she nodded as said something along the lines of thank you and good luck before you walked off.

You quickly found your parents in the stands and walked up to them.

“Look at you two playing the supportive parent role”, you said as you greeted them, seeing how they had brand new Arsenal Jerseys on which had your number on them, and to top it all off they had Mum and Dad written across the back.

“Y/N, respect please,” You Dad beckoned,

“I’ll decide how I treat you when you tell me the real reason your here,” you pointedly said

“Can we go somewhere else?” He asked.

 “No we are doing this here,” “Well, your father and I are giving you one last chance before we cut you off, you can decide, but there won’t be anymore chances, we will buy you whatever house, wherever you want, and we will pay for all your expenses whilst you study, all you need to do is quit.” 

“No,” you reply, looking at her dead in the face.

“No?” They both questioned, expecting you to put up a fight. 

“No, I’m not giving up the thing I love. Just to fulfil your wishes and your distorted reality. You didn’t raise me anyway so you cutting me off won't do much harm,” you walked off, and made your way into the locker room, quickly having a shower before you jumped in your car and headed home, to start getting ready for tonight, at least tonight you could drink and forget about it all.

_____

It was later that night and your plan to drink and forget it all had definitely not worked, you hadn’t actually drunk at all, knowing all too well it wasn’t the best idea at all to drown your sorrows but you also felt like shit. You couldn’t believe they came all the way just to cut you off, clearly having no respect for the date that was steadily approaching in two days. You just wanted to go home, however as you were meant to be going home with Leah you didn’t know if that was an option, as this was her night and she should have fun, however as you looked around the bar you noticed Beth and Viv together, so you decided to ask them if they could take you home.

“Can you take me home? I know it’s really early, but I’m just not feeling the best and I don’t want to make Leah leave early.” “Of course, we were thinking of heading off now anyway,” Viv told you and Beth rolled her eyes.

You were sitting in the back seat head resting against the window, when Beth asked if you were okay, and you mumbled a small ‘yeah’ before small soft tears started to roll down your cheeks.

Both women followed you into your home but you didn't question it, you were honestly expecting it, however you just ignored them and walked into your room.

You were scrolling on tik tok when the fifth edit of your parents and you from the game showed up on your screen, with the caption saying how supportive your parents were. Before you could even think you flung your phone out of your hand and it hit the wall

You threw your phone across the room as hot angry tears started to flow down your face.

“Hey, what's going on?” Beth asked as she opened the door, “are you okay?”

“No, but that doesn’t matter, sorry if I scared you, I threw my phone, I didn’t want to see another edit or post of me and them from tonight. People are saying they are supportive, but they aren’t, and I mean I did have my aunts but it’s still different. Knowing your parents are literally throwing millions of dollars at you so that you do what they want. Knowing they disapprove of what you do so much that they would do that. It’s fucked, and it’s fucking unfair,” you took a deep breath before more tears started to stream down your face, “I’m sorry.”

“It is unfair. It is a fucked up situation and you have nothing to be sorry about,” Beth said as she walked up to you, and wrapped her arms around you. You practically collapsed into her, needing any form of comfort. “Should we call Stina?” She questioned

“No,” you had called Stina enough over the past few years, tonight was date night and you weren’t going to interrupt her night, “oh you can go if you want,” you said as you tried to pull out of her arms, getting the sense that she didn’t want to stay.

“No, that's not what I meant. I just didn't know if you would want your best friend or not?”

“No, it's okay, and you're one of my best friends now too,” you admitted, shortly after hearing a sniffle, looking up to see some tears had fallen from Beth’s eyes.

“You’re a fat softy you know that, right?” you told her before pulling her in for a massive hug.

You spent the rest of the evening on the couch with Beth and Viv watching a movie.

[sunarots]

so high school ━━━ atsumu miya

29. surprise! ♡

cw. more innuendoes from atsumu

True to Atsumu's word, his car is parked at the end of the alleyway with him leaning against the side of it. He's got his usual pair of sunglasses on to try and blend in as well as possible, which is difficult if you own a car which doors open by going up. He waits patiently beside the car and pulls it open for you when you reach him.

"Hi, darlin'." He gives you a fleeting kiss as a greeting, helping you into the car before rushing to the other side. Once he's settled in his seat, he gives you a wide smile. "How was work? Anything fun happen?"

You shake your head, looking to your side as he pulls the car out onto the spot. "Well, Osamu hung a couple of my paintings and has little labels with their name and price. That's exciting."

Atsumu's hand moves from the wheel to your knee, taking a quick glance at you. "That's great news! People will be buying yer work in no time."

You nod, biting back a smile as you turn to face him. "What's the surprise, Atsu?"

He shakes his head, quickly turning up the music playing through the speakers before saying, "Don't ya just love this song?" He begins mumbling along the words to the Taylor swift song.

You roll your eyes at him, raising an eyebrow. "Seriou-"

He shakes his head once more, and starts yelling the words as loud as he can. "Now I'm running with my dress unbuttoned, screaming- Hey, turn that back on!"

You can't help but laugh at him, grabbing onto his hand to stop him from adjusting the volume. "What fucking dress are you running in?" you tease, pulling his hand back down to rest on your thigh.

"What, like I can't do it?" He keeps a serious tone despite the grin marking his features. "I think that little black dress ya got would look gorgeous on me."

You giggle, placing your hand on top of his. "If you want it, you can have it. But I get to wear your jersey."

"Best deal ever, but ya gotta wear it to every game while sitting front row. Otherwise there's no point in it." As he speaks, he taps his finger against your inner thigh.

You look back out at the road ahead of you, sinking back into your seat. Front row at every game. Did he really mean that? You can't help the smile trying to come through at the thought. "You really want me at every single one of your games?"

He laughs a bit. "Why wouldn't I want ya there? I need to show ya off to everyone who thinks I'm a fuckboy and yer a gold digger."

"You make it sound so romantic," you scoff, pinching his arm lightly. "But I'd love to be there. Just to prove a point, obviously. Not because I really like one of the guys on the team."

Atsumu grins, pulling the car into its spot by the building. He pulls you closer towards him, locking his lips with yours. The hand on your cheek is warm, so warm you want it to stay there. Just as you're about to lean further into the kiss, he pulls away with too much excitement. His thumb lightly strokes your cheek before he moves it away, grabbing your bag from its spot by your feet and starting to get out of the car. When you don't move, he keeps on hand on the outside of the car and raises an eyebrow at you. "Well? Do ya want to see yer surprise? Or would ya rather wait for another day."

You perk up immediately at the reminder of your surprise, practically leaping out of the car and hurrying around to Atsumu. He holds out his arm for you to hold onto, the other shrugging your bag into place.

"Can you tell me anything?" you ask him, pressing the button for the elevator and stepping inside.

"Nope." He presses the button for the top floor, pulling you closer towards him. When you beg to him a little, he sighs. "Okay, I can tell ya that we're sleeping in yer room for two nights."

You furrow your eyebrows, looking up at him in wonder. "Why? We didn't break the bed."

Atsumu shakes his head, smirking. "We'll be breakin' yer bed, I can tell ya that much. Yer gonna be very grateful."

Having to physically stop your jaw from dropping at his choice of response, you eagerly walk alongside Atsumu to the apartment. He steps in front of you to lead you into the apartment, quickly kicking off his shoes and nudging them to the side.

You're much more lax when taking off your shoes, neatly lining them beside Sakusa's. You smile when Atsumu helps you take off your jacket. "Why are you being so nice to me? Is this a bad surprise?"

Atsumu shakes his head, stepping into your vision. "Nah, this is definitely a good one."

You look over your shoulder to see who's behind you, eyes widening. "Oh my god, 'Toshi!" Your arms fly around his waist, pulling him in for a tight hug.

Wakatoshi wraps his arms around you in response, grinning widely. "I think I did well surprising you."

You pull back from him, turning to face Atsumu with your grin growing even wider. "Thank you!"

He innocently shrugs his shoulders as if to assure you it was nothing, opening his arms wide. "It's okay to say I'm the best boyfriend ever, it's true."

With a soft laugh, you return his hug before a quick peck on the lips. You cup his face in your hands. "You're the best, Atsu." You turn back around to face Wakatoshi, who just hung your coat on the rack. "I thought there was still a couple days until you were coming. What happened to practice?"

He tucks his hands into the pockets of his sweats. "I came a few days early. Miya said there was a court near here I could use that's separate to the Jackals'. When I found out someone ruined the surprise, I got in touch with Miya to fix it."

"That's right, I saved the day after Kageyama's fuck-up." Wrapping an arm around your shoulders, Atsumu smiles proudly to himself. “I think I outdid myself here. Yer never gonna get a surprise as good as this one.”

“I’m sure you’ll find a way, Atsu.” You give his hand a small pat, gesturing for Wakatoshi to follow you both. “Let’s go sit, we can watch something. Oh! We can have a movie night! We could order in, too. Well, Atsu can.” You take a seat on the sofa between the pair of them, taking the remote from Atsumu. “Wait, where are you sleeping?”

“Miya said I could take his bed.”

You look at Atsumu, whose smile hasn’t moved. “It’s okay to say I’m great.”

“I hope you washed your sheets, I don’t think I’ve seen you clean them since I moved in.” You glance at him with a raised eyebrow, catching his jaw drop in shock.

“Obviously I washed them. I’m not totally disgusting.”

You hum a little in response, pulling out your phone and handing it to Wakatoshi. “You can choose where we order from.”

“What was that hum about? D’ya think I’m disgusting?”

“Disgusting is a bit far, but I don’t think you’re clean,” you clarify, selecting Atsumu’s Netflix and starting to scroll through the recommendations.

“Oi, what do ya mean? Not clean. I shower every day after practice.”

You laugh. “No, I mean your room is not clean. If ‘Toshi would fit on my single bed, I’d let him have it.”

Atsumu shakes his head in disappointment. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing. I feel betrayed. I cleaned my room for Ushiwaka and this is what I get back? Next time I befriend one of yer friends, I’ll think twice about it.”

masterlist. previous | next

summary. after your best friend reveals he’s moving out of your shared flat, you’re presented with a tough choice: let one of the creeps who are begging you to let them move in with you, or find a cheaper flat in another area of town. a do-over couldn’t have come at a better time for you, but your only option for a place to stay is with someone your best friend knew from high school, and his two teammates.

taglist (open!). @reignsaway @yuminako @thiisisntlovely @diorzs @aboutkiyoomi @spicana @bakingcuriosity @kr1nqu @savemebrazilhinata @dazqa @sereniteav @beckxisxinxlovexwithxjin @sleezzsister @hermaeusmorax @giocriedpower @sophosphorescent @gigiiiiislife @zazathezaer @rrosiitas @iaminyourfloors @writing-for-the-hell-of-it @sillygooseymood @ellouisa17 @wakashudou @punkhazardlaw @arminswife12 @libbymeows @thomatri @nanamis-right-tiddie @xerophyides @softpia @from-mae @nymphsdomain @eccedentesiast-sapphic @luvly-writer

[paigehughes28]

Trevor Zegras~Lover

Warnings: mentions of cheating

This is a Trevor imagine based off the song Lover by Taylor Swift!🫶🏼

Trevor Zegras x Hughes!reader

———————————————————————————

I layed in bed wrapped in my big blanket not wanting to be bothered. I had been cheated on by my boyfriend with my best friend. Cliche, right? My brothers have been trying to get me out of my room all day and it’s failed every time. As I’m wallowing in self-pity the door bell rings. As soon as the person walked in I heard the words. “Where’s baby Hughes?” The voice of Trevor Zegras asked very loudly. I didn’t hear anything said after that then my bedroom door opened. “Y/n? Baby?” Trevor asked in a for once quiet voice. I groaned at the nickname not wanting to hear it today. “Trev?” I asked turning over to face him even though I knew it was him. “It’s me.” He said coming over sitting on my bed and basically scooping me up into his arms. “What happened?” He asked in a whisper. “He cheated. With my best friend.” I told him with tears starting to form again. I looked up to Trevor seeing a flash of anger in his eyes then they went soft again. “Have you eaten?” He asked and I shook my head no. “Well, let’s get you some food then you can get ready.” He told me with a small smile. What I was wondering is get ready for what? “Ready for what?” I asked curiously. “I’m taking you out.” He said and I nodded slowly getting up. “I’ll be right outside your room when you’re done.” Trevor added on getting up and walking out of my bedroom shutting the door. I went over to my closet and picked out a pair of jeans and a New Jersey Devils shirt. After picking out the clothes I got changed into them then brushed my hair and teeth in my bathroom. I walked out my bedroom shutting the door behind me and Trevor was there as said. “Where are we going?” I asked Trevor as we walked down the steps. “Hmm. Out to eat then a movie, all of your choosing of course.” Trevor replied as got to the bottom of the steps where my brothers Jack, Luke, and Quinn were standing. All of a sudden I was engulfed in a hug by all three. “We’re glad Z finally got you out of your room.” Jack mumbled into my shoulder. “We’ve been worried about you ever since well you know.” Quinn said as him and Jack backed out of the hug, Luke still hanging onto me. I gave Jack and Quinn a smile then looked at Luke. “Luke, are you good?” I asked. “I should be asking you that. My big sister got hurt. Are you sure you don’t want me to go beat him up?” He asked now pulling away. “It’s fine. I’ll be back soon.” I said with a small smile. They all said bye then Trevor and I left in his car to go eat and then to the movies. We stopped and ate at McDonald’s and we’re now walking into the movie theater. “What movie do you want to see?” Trevor asked wrapping his arms around my waist resting his head on the top of mine as he stood behind me. “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.” I said pointing to the poster they had on the wall of the movie. “Okay, princess.” He said then stepped away to buy the tickets while I stood there waiting for him. He came back with the tickets, popcorn, and drinks. I grabbed my drink and ticket from him as we walked to where we’d hand over the ticket. After that they pointed us in the direction to where the movie was playing. When we got in there we sat down in the middle and Trevor had his arm around my shoulders. I had mostly forgotten about what had happened with my now ex boyfriend and ex best friend. Trevor is a big part of helping me forget it too. The movie started and I watched it intently. I always loved the hunger games series and have been wanting to see this movie. After the movie was over we went out going back to my house. “So, how did you like the movie?” Trevor asked as we got to my doorstep. “I loved it! I loved Lucy and Coryo’s actors a lot.” I said as we walked in. “That’s good but I have a surprise for you.” He said and I got really confused as he covered my eyes. “What’s happening?” I asked concern lacing my voice. “Just trust me. You’ll love it.” He said as he led me through the house and I’m guessing to the back porch because I could suddenly feel a breeze.

He took his hands away to reveal the back porch decorated with fairy lights and star ones trickling down the sides. My brothers were standing in the middle smiling. “What is this for?” I asked looking around with amazement. “We did it. Trevor got us to do it while you were out.” Luke said with a small smile. “Thank you boys.” I said with a smile to which they all replied with a you’re welcome. They suddenly left and Trevor held out his hand. “Dance with me?” He said with a joyful glint in his eyes. “Always.” I said smiling still taking his hand. He led me to the middle and put on a song. Lover by Taylor Swift. As the song started Trevor put his arms around my waist and I put mine around his neck and we started slow dancing. It got to a certain spot in the song that Trevor started singing it making me chuckle. “I’ve loved you three summers now, honey, but I want ‘em all.” He sung as he picked me up by the waist and spun me around gently. “Can I go where you go?” He said putting me down as we continued to dance. Suddenly we got close our noses touching and our lips just inches apart. “Can we always be this close forever and ever?” I said the lyrics and then we both leaned in more kissing. The kiss was gentle and soft. We both pulled apart leaning our foreheads against each other. The song ended and we smiled to each other. “I’ve been waiting to do that for forever.” Trevor told me. “You should’ve done it sooner.” I whispered as we now hugged. Today was great after I had actually gotten out of bed. All thanks to Trevor and the help of my brothers.

A/n: I’ve been having writers block so if this ain’t the best I’m sorry😭

[feelmyskinonyourskin]

Drive [Car Sex Trope]

Pairing: Matt Murdock x AFAB Reader

Trope de Sept Masterlist | Main Masterlist

Car Sex situation 1. Characters bone in a vehicle. That's it. "You take Matt in a beat up rental car to a parking lot in Jersey so he can experience learning to drive. Things get steamy."

Warnings: SMUT/18+ (don’t interact if your age is not in your bio). No use of Y/N. AFAB Reader. Unprotected P in V, Oral (F receiving), Creampie.

WC: 1,701

AN: Thank you all so much for all the love during my September Trope event! It was fun, but I'm exhausted, so you probably won't be getting a lot of new stuff from me for a while after this. Writing 17 fics in one month was a lot. Thank you all again, it was a blast! I'm already churning up ideas for next year...

*I never give permission for my fics, manips, or any other original creation I post on this site to be copied, posted elsewhere, translated, or fed into any AI program. The only platform I currently post anything on is Tumblr. Thanks!*

“Brake is the left Matt, the left!!” you shouted, gripping at the dashboard as the car whizzed around the parking lot

“I know! I know!” he argued back, effortlessly spinning the steering wheel

“Do you?!”

“I’m blind, but I still know my left from my right!”

Being in a car in an empty parking lot with a blind man behind the wheel was maybe not your best idea, even if that blind man had enhanced abilities.

It all began a few days before, after several rounds of beers at Josie’s, of course.

“What do you mean you didn’t go to prom?” you asked Foggy, flabbergasted at his confession

“I asked the most popular girl in school and of course, she just couldn’t handle all my charm and swagger, so she turned me down and I just didn’t end up going.”

Thus sparked the discussion on normal teenage things you’d all missed.

“Well, I never knew the joys of having one of my parents teach me how to drive.” Matt commented

“Ugh that’s so sad.” you replied “That was one of the greatest joys of my teenage years. The day I got my license; stepping out of the DMV and getting in the car. All the freedom of taking your parent’s car for the first time, getting to go anywhere you wanted.

“I was doing that when I was barely 8. It’s called the subway.” 

“No, no. A car is so different! It’s just… I can’t even describe it!” you exclaimed, a little tipsy from too many pitchers of Heineken

So here you were, in an empty parking lot of a closed down Best Buy in a suburb in New Jersey, in the most junky rental car you could get. Determined to give Matt the experience he missed out on. 

The windows were rolled down so Matt could get a better 360 “view” with his senses. Only a few light posts were scattered through the parking lot. So fortunately, there wasn’t much to avoid. With no other cars or people around, Matt had total freedom to experience the thrill of learning to drive.

Your heart was thumping out of your chest with every turn and bump in the cracked pavement.

Honestly, it wasn’t because he couldn’t “see” out the windshield, it was because he was being his usual reckless self and driving how you imagined a teenager behind the wheel for the first time would. God, you suddenly felt sympathy for all the times your father took you out when you were 16 to teach you.

He hit the brakes hard with a screech, sending you flying towards the dashboard.

“What, what!?” you exclaimed

“Sorry, I’m still getting used to how touchy the brakes are. There’s a bunny.” he nodded toward the windshield

Sure enough, a rabbit came prancing along at least 20 feet in front of the car, totally oblivious to his not so narrowly avoided doom.

“I think that might be enough for today.” you groaned

“No! I’m having fun! Aren’t you?”

You narrowed your stare at him and crossed your arms, knowing he could sense all the tells of your body that fun was not the word to describe your feelings towards this experience.

“C’mon sweetheart, relax yeah? I really appreciate you doing this for me.” 

He leaned across the center console to give you a kiss. The car lurched forward as he pressed his lips to yours.

“Keep your foot on the brake, Matt!” you chided

“Alright!”

He sat back upright, maneuvering the gear shift into park and ratcheting up the parking brake.

“Better?” he asked with a raise of his brows “Can I kiss you now that the vehicle is safely not in motion?”

“Yes.”

A grin spread across his face as he leaned toward you once more, this time adding a firey passion to his kisses.

“Come here.” he said, lips hovering over yours, pulling you to straddle him

Pliable to his touch with only a few kisses, you slotted yourself across his lap easily, finding the hem of your sweatshirt and tossing it into the backseat.

His lips moved down your already heated skin, sucking and biting at your neck and collar bone. 

Just as you were about to release a lusty moan, your rear accidently bumped the steering wheel causing it to let out a loud wail.

You and Matt jolted apart, crumbling into a fit of giggles at the sudden interruption.

“You know, that’s another teenage experience I never got as a city boy” he murmured low, hand reaching up to stroke your face

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“Sneaking out with my girlfriend and having sex in the backseat of my crappy car.”

“Matthew…”

“Parking lot is empty, no one around. We could roll the windows up and make it steamy in here…” 

You had to giggle at the thought, though he was right, as New Yorkers there weren’t many places to have a little fun outside the apartment where you wouldn’t get caught.

“Alright,” you agreed “roll the windows up and meet me in the back seat.”

That was always the joy of being in a relationship with Matthew, he never let things get stale or boring and always found a way to make any situation flirty and fun and sometimes, like right now, downright sultry.

He tossed his glasses onto the dashboard while you climbed through the gap between the front seats. He joined you, sitting side by side on the bench seat and resumed your makeout session.

“Matt…” you mewled as he traced his tongue along your neck and jaw

“I know sweetheart, I’ll take care of you.”

He slipped a hand behind your back to remove your bra, taking time to lick and suck each of your nipples as the fabric fell away.

Your skin tingled with every movement of his lips across your body. Anticipation of what was to come alighting a fire in your belly as you arched your back into his touch. 

He pawed at the fastenings of your jeans, desperate to get you bare for him. Obliging, you helped him remove your pants and kick off your shoes, leaning back to lay on the seat beneath you.

The upholstery of the worn backseat was not the most comfortable of sensations against your body, but as soon as his rough hands were kneading at your thighs and spreading them open, the nuisance of it left your mind.

Satisfied with the state of arousal you were in, he finally reached his hands to where you wanted him most, moving your panties to the side and dipping his head down towards your pussy.

“Oh– god.” your moan was strangled as he teased your clit with just a brush of his tongue

But he didn’t tease for long, grasping your hips and pulling you in one motion towards his mouth. Heat spread across your already warm skin when he finally licked a long stripe through your folds. Pulling you firm to his heated mouth to lap and suck, he let out a lowly moan against your core. It reverberated through you and sent a shiver up your spine. As he sucked and kissed at your clit, you could feel your orgasm blossoming beneath the surface. Growing steadily until he added two fingers into your heat, causing your climax to explode out of you.

With a cry of his name, you came apart. Matt continued to work you through it until you were a panting and sweaty heap beneath him.

He sat back on his heels as you watched, still too blissed out to do much, and removed his shirt as well. Your slick covered the satisfied smirk that spread across his plush lips. 

“You want some more, baby?” he cockily asked

A docile whimper was all you were able to squeak out, nodding your head as he freed himself from his pants.

He sat back on the seat and you clambered to climb on top of him, sinking his length into your ready cunt in one motion.

Your simultaneous moans reverberated around the cramped space. His length felt so perfectly filling, you were tempted to just rest there a while and enjoy the sensation. But the desperate whine that escaped his lips had you rolling your hips, drawing more moans from the both of you. He leaned back, head falling against the seat and eyes pressed shut as he got more and more  lost in the bliss of your body while you rode the both of you to ecstasy.

Both of your skin was damp and sticky and the labored breaths you let out between lust-filled kisses had the windows sufficiently fogged up, just as Matt requested. If anyone were to have driven by, they would’ve known exactly what was going on in that car.

Your fingers tangled in his dark hair and he shuddered at the feeling, causing his lips to part as he let out a shaky plea.

“Keep– please, that feels so good. God, please keep going.”

As he thrusted up harder to meet the already consistent rock of your hips, the steady rubbing against your clit was driving you towards the edge quickly. You trailed trembling fingers up his muscled chest, finding grounding by grasping his shoulders leaving white indents with your fingers as you clung to him. His pace became more erratic, a sure sign that he was just as close to the cliff’s edge as you.

One more breathy beg of your name from him was all it took to get you there. This orgasm hit you as intensely as the last. Your walls contracted around him until he couldn’t take it anymore either, spilling inside you with a low groan.

You both stayed there a while, panting and catching your breath as you came down. Disheveled dark locks stuck to his damp forehead as he pressed it against yours. His beautiful hazel eyes darted around as he breathed you and this moment in and held you close.

“Well I’d say it is sufficiently steamy in here.” you said in barely a whisper, causing a chuckle from him

“We should get back to the city.” he replied

“Okay” you agreed “but I’m driving.”

[poetslore]

An exploration of themes in Netflix’s “Leave the world behind”

1. Societies reliability on technology and the side effects of this reliability. One example of this is Ethan Hawke’s character Clay. Clay attempts to drive back to town so he can buy a newspaper and hopefully come across someone who knows something about the blackout. Unfortunately Clay gets lost on the way to town due to the fact that his cars GPS isn’t working. If he hadn’t relied so heavily on technology he would’ve known how to read a map and likely would’ve made it to town.

2. Societies distrust in humanity. One theme that I immediately noticed is the characters distrust of other characters. Julia Roberts’ character Amanda immediately distrusts George and Ruth, while their spontaneous arrival is strange she immediately didn’t trust them (the second she heard them knock on the door she didn’t trust them). We as an audience also experience distrust. When we first see Kevin Bacon’s character Danny we think he is odd and is likely going to be a possible villain due to this odd behavior. When Rose and Archie come across the tool shed in the middle of the woods I presume most of the films audience thought someone creepy likely resided there. This growing distrust that society holds for humanity is caused by are easy access to negative media (petty and major crimes are reported more often) and due to our growing obsession with true crime which has made us paranoid and distrustful of even the kindest of people.

3. Sometimes old is better. The teslas. If your remember just after the halfway mark of the film, Amanda and Clay decide that it’s best to leave to Scott’s house and go to Amanda’s sisters house in Jersey. On the way there they come across a pile up of Teslas and nearly get killed by oncoming teslas. This is because Teslas contain a self driving feature. This feature is purely technological which is how the hackers were able to manipulate the Teslas self driving feature in order to isolate communities.

4. Violence in the media. This is a rather small theme but remember when the flyers are thrown from the drone and Clay is absolutely terrified. Well the flyers said you know what (I don’t want to get reported or banned) Archie immediately knew what these flyers said due to the fact that he saw that exact same phrase in a video game.

5. Our hatred, yet reliability on humanity. This movie has one major theme and it first appears in the beginning of the movie. Amanda reveals that one of the prime reasons why she wanted to go on vacation was because she wanted to get away from people. Ruth is consistently harsh and downright disrespectful to Clay and Amanda and everyone in the family shows an annoyance to Rose, the youngest child. It’s obvious that 90% of the characters don’t actually like people and dislike socializing yet the characters consistently attempt to rely on the news and fellow people in an attempt to figure out what’s going on.

6. Age leads to discredit. Rose is probably one of the smartest characters in the film. She consistently takes note of small details such as the sirens and the deer, unfortunately everyone around her including her own parents consistently ignore what she has to say and discredit her intelligence as simply being the musings of a 13 year old. It is obvious that everyone (meaning Clay, Amanda, Archie, and Rose) don’t have any respect for each other and because of this lack of respect they aren’t a cohesive family whatsoever and they consistently get in little tiffs about the dumbest of things.

These were just some things I noticed while watching the film.

[rfxiii]

kind of random, but Franklin or Trevor with a hyper masc female reader would be so so cute!! ❤

(im so sorry about the long wait! I wasn’t sure if you wanted just a hypermasc fem reader or ‘hyperactive’ masc fem reader so I I kinda guessed and went with my gut. but if this isn’t what you wanted then feel free to send another request and I’d be happy to write it!)

TW: short sentence about T’s horniness

Franklin And Trevor With A Hyper Masc Female S/O:

Franklin Clinton:

He doesn’t care one way or another if you're more masc or fem. He loves you for you, and nobody can tell him anything or change his mind.

If you’re more “sporty” masc, he’s down bad. Likes to talk to you about football, basketball, even about going golfing with Michael and Trevor. He wants to take you to sports bars with him, he’s shelling out big bucks to get y’all floor seats to your favorite basketball team, he’s buying you signed jerseys. He’s living for you being into the same things he is.

He’s a big car guy, and if you’re also into cars then it’s a huge bonus for him. He likes taking you to go see races, he wants to take you to Los Santos Customs to help him pick out different mods for his car, he’ll even offer to pay for you to get your car custom rims or a new racing spoiler.

He loves that, since you’re a little tougher and more masc, you can hang with his friends. Lamar is a cool, good guy, but he’s got a foul mouth, no verbal filter, and he makes stupid decisions that often get him and Frank into trouble. And if you’re down to hang out and keep up with his best friend then that’s all the better. He loves you for it.

He’s in the kitchen struggling to open a jar and you come in, like, “I got you, babe.” and easily open it for him. He’s honestly a little embarrassed but also…turned on?? It takes him a second to sort through those feelings.

Seeing you outside in the summer, in your swimwear, cleaning his pool for him or taking care of things in the backyard is honestly so hot to him. Like, he felt a little bad when you asked to do it the first time. But after he realized you enjoyed it, he honestly enjoys just sitting back and watching you do your thing. It’s sexy watching how you handle yourself and know what you’re doing.

He knows you can do a bunch of things on your own- moving furniture, fixing things around the house, taking out heavy trash, or maintaining the yard. But he’ll never take advantage of you. Everything the two of you do is just as equal as if you were super fem.

Loves playing video games with you. He may even buy a whole other tv and console for his living room so you two can play at the same time and play online with Lamar. He gets really competitive and he loves it when you do too. Especially if you help him gang up on poor Lamar when he’s on another team.

Trevor Philips:

His ideal woman is a classy, cultured, older woman anywhere from 50 or older (Patricia). But a cool, masc, tomboy-ish girl would be a fairly close contender for second!

He’s gross, his place is nasty, he’s foul mouthed, and he probably hasn’t showered all week. Someone who’s softer, or more hyper-fem may be more easily put off by him and his lifestyle. But if you’re more masc and tougher you’ve got a better fighting chance of not being utterly grossed out by him.

He likes that you can keep up with him without worrying about getting dirty, or messing up your clothes, or getting blood (or other fluids) on you.

He does sometimes forget that you are still a woman and may appreciate softer treatment occasionally. You’re tough, he respects you as an equal, and sometimes it slips his mind that you’re not actually one of the guys.

Michael, while he is Trevor’s best friend, tends to be far more old fashioned than he is. And if Michael ever commented about how you “shouldn’t come along because you’re a woman” or how having you do something is a “man’s job”, Trevor will vehemently defend you. He trusts you and your skills without question and it doesn’t matter that you’re a woman. You’re tough, you're competent, and he knows you know what’s up.

Gets off to seeing you handle guns and other weapons. Whether you’re cleaning one of his guns, sharpening a knife, practicing shooting at the range, or blowing away cops and methed out bikers, he’s fully hard and ready to go just watching you. Seeing you handle any dangerous weapons makes him imagine you handling his….weapon 👀

He likes wrestling/rough housing with you. He may get a little too rough so you may have to remind him to chill a bit, occasionally. But he loves tackling you, snatching you up from behind, he likes when you try to overpower him or fight back when he playfully grasps your wrists and pushes at you. He just likes any excuse to be physical with you, honestly.

[adorethedistance]

RollerMagic - Quinn Hughes x Reader

Hockey Masterlist

Warnings: mention of vomit, swearing, suggestive comment

Words: 1904

Requested: could you write about quinn pleeeease. had a dream last night: Quinn was in New Jersey for a Canucks and Devils game and went out with his brothers to a roller rink (?), met a girl by the candy machine (her candy had gotten stuck and he politely punched the machine to catch it) they spent the night talking (the two youngest Hughes looking for him like fools) and he invited her to watch the game and, soon after, a date; she said she would go to the game but would only accept the date if he scored a goal for her (he scored a hat trick)

A/n: Listen I don't know Quinn very well so I was not going for realism on this one. This is literally just my best guess at flirting with him but I truly don't know him enough to know if this is true to his character so I'm sorry for that! I've also just never done a Quinn fic before so first time for everything I guess?

“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” I say to myself as the small pack of Skittles I’d just bought becomes wedged between the coils of the vending machine. I gently bang on the glass but the Skittles packet doesn’t budge. Utterly defeated, I huff out a soft sigh before dropping my head and staring at the fluorescent patterning of the Arcade carpet. Today is not my day.

I was late to work because of my car stalling, some kid puked in the middle of the roller rink and I had to clean it up, I left my lunchbox on the kitchen counter by accident, and now the only food that I had enough cash on me to buy was stuck in the vending machine. Could this day get any worse?

I lift my head, preparing to cut my losses, when I lock eyes with a guy who is probably around my age but definitely attractive. His wavy brown hair and soft eyes shimmer in the dim arcade lighting. He smiles at me politely and I smile back, too absorbed by my own infatuation to think twice about it. He glances to either side before making his way over. I panic internally at the idea of such a cute stranger heading my way, but I can’t bring myself to walk away.

“You doing alright?” The hazel-eyed boy asks upon seeing me in distress. 

“I’m great!” I fake being chipper as we both know the real answer. He laughs softly at the joke and I relax a tiny bit at the idea of making a good impression. “How much of that did you see?” I ask, praying his answer will keep my dignity intact. He hesitates for a moment before answering,

“Honestly? Everything.”

“Good. Good! This is good. First, I have a terrible day, and now a really cute boy has officially witnessed my latest and greatest downfall? This is just great.” I ramble out of intense nervousness.

“You think I’m cute?” He teases inquisitively. I search and scan my brain for a witty response to no avail.

“It was hypothetical?” I say though it comes out as more of a question than a statement.

“What’s hypothetical?”

“I don’t know, I was hoping if I said it with enough conviction that you wouldn’t question it.” The cute stranger apparently thinks this is very funny and heartily laughs at my confession.

“I’m sorry, I don’t think I got your name?”

“Y/n.” 

“Y/n,” he softly repeats my name, smiling at the way it sounds in his own voice. “I’m Quinn by the way.” Quinn extends his right hand politely, and the feeling of his strong hand in mine gives me butterflies. The shape of his palms and the length of his fingers. I wonder what it would feel like to have one around the base of my neck and the other in between-

“Nice to meet you, Y/n.” I blink rapidly to shake away the brief fantasy. God, it’s been a while.

“Uh, you too…?

“Quinn.”

“Quinn!” Quinn. “Quinn what?”

“Quinn Hughes.”

“Pretty good name.”

“Thanks, I guess?”

“Has a pretty good ring…” I pause, unsure of why I needed to tell him that.

“Have you worked here a while?” He asks, and my brows furrow in confusion.

“How do you know I work here?” Quinn laughs heartily before realizing I’m not making a joke. 

“You… you’re wearing a name tag and a t-shirt that says RollerMagic.” I close my eyes and wince at my own unfathomable obliviousness. I’m surprised he’s still talking to me with the way this conversation is going.

“Right. It’s been a long day.”

“Tell me about it.”

“What happened with you?” I ask, genuinely curious about the day of the slightly less unfamiliar boy. Not that I could even help the sudden interest. Especially when he looks at me this kindly and smells like icy sandalwood. 

“Also a bad day at work.”

“Where do you work?”

“Vancouver.” My jaw drops and Quinn bursts out laughing at the more than apparent shock on my face. I don’t laugh though, I just look at him bewildered, waiting for an explanation.

“Care to elaborate?”

“I play hockey.” “Like, for a living?”

“You could say that. Although it took a bit before making a living since I was drafted in 2018.”

“Oh shit, you’ve been pro since 2018?” He nods, surprisingly patient with my disbelief. “So you’re like, rich rich?” Quinn laughs at the question and concedes a little bit.

“I don’t know about that-”

“I know what sports contracts pay, my mom is a lawyer. Also, look at your watch. You can’t pretend and play coy when you’re wearing something that expensive.” 

“Touché. What about you? You never answered my question.”

“I’ve been working here since Freshman year so coming up on four years now.”

“You’re a student?”

“Yeah.”

“Where at?”

“Princeton.”

“Holy shit. So you’re like smart smart?” Quinn makes fun of me and I roll my eyes at him.

“Okay, I see how that sounds now. Wait if you’re from Vancouver what are you doing here?”

“We’re playing the New Jersey Devils? Ever heard of them?”

“No, I got that, you little priss. I mean why are you here as in why are you at a roller rink?”

“I don’t know. My idiot brothers were hellbent on going to an arcade.”

“Do they play for Vancouver also?” I ask playfully.

“They play for Jersey actually.”

“I was kidding…” After I trail off, Quinn and I begin laughing, the absurdity of the conversation continuously growing in magnitude. “But like, both of them?”

“Yep.”

“How did that happen?”

“You ask a lot of questions.” He states in a non-judgemental, yet amused tone.

“Only when someone is interesting enough to be worth interrogating.” Quinn smiles flirtatiously and I drop my eyes to the floor, shocked by my own boldness.

“You’re really cute,” He says simply, as if the very statement didn’t ignite every nerve in my body.

“So did Vancouver lose and that’s why you had a bad day at work?”

“No, just a rough practice. The game is tonight actually.”

“Good luck,” I say without any snark or playfulness. Just a legitimate regard for his success. Quinn is taken aback by the genuine care and he smiles brightly as a result.

“Thanks.”

“I’ve never been to a hockey game before.”

“Never?!”

“Never.”

“Well, then you’ve gotta come to the game tonight.”

“I don’t think I can.”

“Are you working late?”

“No, I’m off at six.”

“That’s perfect.”

“I don’t- I’m not-” I sigh, unsure of how much or little I should share with Quinn in this moment. “I can’t really afford a hockey game right now.” I put as simply as possible. Quinn pauses for a moment and then laughs softly.

“Don’t even worry about it.”

“...What?”

“Don’t worry about it.” I stare at him dumbfounded as if I’m stunned he could be so nonchalant like this. 

“There’s gonna be three of us from the same family out on the ice tonight and our parents don’t even live here. I’m pretty sure we can swing getting you a seat or two.”

“I can’t accept that. We just met and I’m not really cool with taking things from strangers.”

“Even if it’s a really cute boy with a sports contract?” He says jokingly and I drop my guard a tiny bit. I huff out a sigh, still feeling conflicted and slightly uneasy. Quinn picks up on the uneasiness and looks me in the eyes before softly saying, “Look, you don’t have to take me up on the offer, but it would be really cool to see you there tonight. Either way, it’s totally fine with me.” The lengths to which he is going just to ease my anxieties and ensure my comfort fills my chest with warm, radiant light and I smile gently at the level of consideration.

“...Okay.”

“Okay. Could I get your number to send you all the information you’ll need?”

“Is that the only reason you want my number?” Quinn looks off and shrugs a little as he admits,

“Well, I’d also like to get to know the pretty girl from the roller rink. And I was hoping I could possibly take her out on a date while I’m still in town?” My stomach erupts into a million butterflies and I hold out my hand to take his phone. He gives me the unlocked device after setting up a new contact. I brazenly decide I should keep Quinn on his toes, out of concern that he thinks I’ll make things easy for him.

“If you win tonight you can take me out.”

“Bro, what?”

“I’m serious!”

“Why? This is so childish!”

“No, this is serious, Quinn. I can’t date a loser!”

“Oh my god- okay, fine. If we win-”

“Win what?” A strange voice says from behind me. I turn around to see two other boys have appeared behind me and Quinn from seemingly thin air. Out of fear of more of them appearing, I lean back against the vending machine I was once sworn enemies with. Seeking shelter in the cool glass that’s been illuminated by LEDs.

“Nothing.”

“Is this guy bothering you, sweetheart?” The tallest one says and the one he’s standing with laughs. 

“Seriously, Q. We leave you alone for ten minutes.”

“I’ll meet you guys in the car,” Quinn speaks up, clearly flustered by their presence in this moment.

“Okayyy, don’t be long, lover boy.” 

“You’re on the clock.”

“And that was…”

“The idiot brothers I was talking about.”

“Right. Got it.” I’m amused if anything, but I can tell Quinn is struggling to shake off the encounter. Rolling my eyes, I extend my hand to him which he takes confusedly. Pulling him closer to where I’m leaning against the vending machine, he gets the idea and steps forward to close the gap between us. I didn’t anticipate being flustered by the close proximity, but as he steps closer he places his hand against the glass of the vending machine, above my head. His crisp scent is stronger and I’m grateful he took the invitation to close in.

“Anyway. If we win-”

“Mhm.”

“I get to take you out?”

“And if you lose?” I ask, challenging him. He takes a moment to think it over.

“I don’t know. What happens if we lose?” I mimic his expression from when he was deep in thought, before saying with a completely straight face,

“I kill you.” We both burst out laughing. I hate to think that I already like Quinn as much as I do.

“I guess I’ll make sure to win.” 

“You better.” Quinn backs up and the excitement I was having trouble controlling vanishes when I can no longer feel him near me. My subconscious urges me to be nearer to him and I push off of the vending machine as well. Quinn looks past me and I follow his gaze. He’s examining the Skittles packet that I abandoned, and in one swift movement, he hits the side of the machine and the packet neatly falls to the bottom. My lips part in shock and I’m amazed at how seemingly easy that was for him. He grabs the bag and holds it out to me like it’s no big deal, but I can tell he’s very proud of himself.

“See you later tonight then?”

“See ya later.”

***

A/n: hope y'all liked it and I've got a Jamie fic in the works so stay tuned!! Special thanks to the person who requested this !

[prettytoxicrevolver]

The Way I Loved You | Quinn Hughes

quinn hughes x reader and jack hughes x reader

You and Quinn break up after a roller coaster ride of a relationship but when you end up dating his calmer, sweeter, kinder, younger brother you still end up thinking about Quinn anyway

wc 2.1k

flashbacks are in italics as always :)

It was no surprise when Quinn got drafted to Vancouver, Jack to the Devils, and Luke headed out to Michigan for school. 

It wasn’t a shocker when you followed Quinn to Vancouver either. 

Out of the three of them, you and Quinn were the closest. Your parents joked that when he did go to Vancouver, you’d have to get a surgical removal from each other. You were always together. 

To you, it was a no brainer that you’d move to Vancouver with Quinn. You had already finished your undergrad degree and could virtually work anywhere you wanted and what better place to go than where your best friend was. You couldn’t see an issue with it. 

Well, no issue until you ended up moving back to New Jersey. 

Your phone pings with the special text message sound you have set for Jack. Like clockwork, your roommates “ooh” like high schoolers teasing their friends and you roll your eyes. 

“Say hi to Jack for us!” Lauren yells and your other roommate giggles next to her. 

“Have fun being jealous tonight!” you respond back. 

Your roommates laugh loudly in response, yelling out that your boyfriend is “just too hot” and “he’s so sweet” and that they “can’t help but be jealous”. You walk out, shaking your head but smiling nonetheless. 

You step out of your house to see Jack leaned against the passenger side of his bmw. Your heart jumps at the sight, his eyes trailing upwards to meet yours and his shy smile is so endearing you nearly awe out loud. 

“Damn,” he lets out when you get closer and a giggle escapes your lips. He slips an arm around your waist, pulling you flush against him and presses a quick kiss to your lips. 

“You look beautiful tonight,” he says and your blush is prominent at the words. 

“Thank you,” you say, ducking your head away from his intense gaze. Your whole body felt like it was on fire at his touch and his words only made the flame burn brighter. 

He lets go for a moment to open your car door and helps you in before getting in on his side afterwards. Jack takes off towards your destination and the car ride is mostly quiet except for the music and casual conversation. 

During a lull of sound your eyes trail out towards the scenery flying by you. The sights blur around you and you find your mind wandering back to him. How fast he drove, one hand always lingering somewhere on your body, the exhilaration in every breath, every touch, every word. How you never felt that passion with Jack. 

But it’s a passion that takes over and rules above all and puts your emotions on a rollercoaster that you never know when is going to drop next. It’s exciting and exhilarating and damn fun. It’s also scary and frustrating and yet you sit here letting yourself be absorbed by the memories of Quinn. 

It was Quinn that wanted you at this banquet. Quinn who had begged you for weeks to go. Quinn who offered to buy you a new dress and pay for your nails. 

Quinn who ignored you literally all night long. And then had the audacity to be frustrated with you on the drive home. 

“What the fuck is your issue?” Quinn snaps as he shifts his car to park. 

“My issue?” you nearly scream back and Quinn huffs like you’re the one acting utterly ridiculous and not him. 

“Fuck off Quinn,” you mutter after a moment of staring at him only to realize his question is genuine.

You shake your head, pulling the car door open and slamming it shut behind you. You don’t make it far, a hand grabbing your arm and yanking you back and you nearly lose your balance from the force and the rain sliding violently down the driveway. 

You’re tempted to shove him away, scream at the top of your lungs and really tell him how it is. You had foolishly spent hours getting ready for tonight’s banquet and Quinn had spent it ignoring you. You were completely and utterly done with his bullshit. 

“What’s wrong?” Quinn asks. It’s quieter this time, almost like a plea but not quite. He’s trying his hardest not to yell but you can tell he’s still pissed at you. 

“What’s wrong is that I’m a complete and utter idiot for thinking that this was more than what it actually is.” 

“And what did you think it was?” he asks, pulling you closer but his grip on your arm softens. 

“I-” you start but falter upon his intense stare. 

“Say it,” he says, now barely above a whisper. “Please say it.” 

“I thought you were finally asking me out.” 

“That's my girl.” 

His lips are on yours faster than you can comprehend and Quinn has to tug you closer for you to respond. His lips mold perfectly to yours, a roller coaster of emotions flowing through every inch of you in what feels like seconds. You never knew you could feel that much so quickly and so intensely. 

Passion like that doesn’t always last. 

“Baby?” you’re brought back by Jack’s voice and you look over at him. “You okay?” 

“All good,” you promise, a smile slips onto your lips but Jack notices that it doesn’t quite reach your eyes. 

He nods, reaching over and squeezing your thigh before focusing on driving once more. 

You didn’t move back to New Jersey just because of Quinn. Your family all lived in the New England area and your parents bought a house for retirement in the rich part of Connecticut. 

You could visit them whenever you wanted, see childhood friends in New Jersey, and hangout with Jack and his teammates more. You reminded yourself of this as Jack was running late to your parents house. 

“Jack!” you hear your mom greet him at the front door. 

You make your way over from the kitchen and spot Jack standing with a bouquet of flowers in one hand and a gift bag in another. He smiles that thousand dollar grin of his and leans down to hug your mom. 

“Hi Mrs. (y/l/n),” he says and your mom beams back at him. “These are for you.” 

“Oh sugar you shouldn’t have!” 

She takes the flowers from Jack, insisting on another bear hug before walking back towards the kitchen. Jack follows her and you don't realize you’re grinning until he’s standing in front of you. 

“Hi,” you say. 

“Hi,” he responds, leaning down to press a quick kiss to your lips. 

“Suck up,” you whisper when he pulls away and the two of you giggle quietly. 

“Jack!” 

Your dad’s voice pulls your boyfriend back and he offers a hand that your dad clasps in a strong grip. You watch as Jack hands him the gift bag, mentioning something about a new book your dad would like and that proud father look adorns his features. 

You don’t see Jack until later, your father and him wrapped in discussions of hockey, news, business, etc. When dinner rolls around, you’re content watching Jack charm your family for the millionth time. He’s polite, always saying please and thank you, complimenting your moms cooking, holding your hand beneath the table and squeezing it reassuringly, joking with your father, it was picture perfect from head to toe. 

Nothing in this world could make you more comfortable than in that moment. 

And yet, some unshakeable force brings your brain back to memories of Quinn. 

“Wait,” you say and Quinn offers a confused look. “I’m nervous.” 

“You’re just meeting the guys,” he says, like it's the easiest thing in the world to do.  

“What if they don't like me?” 

“Then I’ll knock some sense into them on the ice later,” he reassures, leaning over to press a quick kiss to your cheek before getting out of the car and opening your door for you. 

You step into the restaurant and it feels like a whirlwind as you’re swept into conversation with Quinn’s teammates, friends, and one of his brothers. They ask you a million questions and at some point Quinn has to tell them to back off for a bit. 

Finally, you find a seat in between Anthony Beauvillier and Quinn, listening to the boys tell stories about your boyfriend and smiling as he flushes from embarrassment. 

“So, what do you do for a living?” Anthony asks from next to you. 

You answer him, turning your body so you can hear his voice better and vaguely notice the glance from Quinn. You both dive into conversation, the words flowing so easily between you two that you don’t notice when Quinn sits back and stares angrily at the two of you. You fail to see the worried glances of his teammates or the jealousy building in your boyfriend. 

So, when you get home and Quinn still hasn't said a word to you since the restaurant, not only are you confused and worried, you’re a little bit angry as well. 

“That went well, right?” you ask, still testing Quinn’s mood. 

“Yeah,” he snaps out and your head rears back in confusion. “I love watching my girlfriend flirt with my entire team.” 

“What?” you sputter out, confusion evident in your voice. 

“You barely said a word to me all night, you were batting your eyes at any guy that looked at you, and you basically let Beauviller eye fuck you all night!” 

His words are harsh against your skin, heating you up all over and lighting a fire that only exists in intense moments with Quinn. You feel your mood change in a snap and you find yourself crossing your arms defensively and glaring at Quinn. 

“Even if Anthony was eye fucking me I can’t control that!” 

“You could if you actually acted like my girlfriend.” 

“You are un-fucking-believable,” you sigh out. 

Quinn can’t help the angry expression that rests on his face, his fear of losing you so overwhelming he can't help but explode in anger. He was still wrestling with the fact that he loved you so much it physically pained him some days. He didn’t know what to do with all of these intense emotions. Even worse, society had made it practically impossible for him to know or learn how to express those feelings in other healthy ways, not just anger. 

“But I’m right,” he responds and you shake your head. 

“Fuck you Hughes.” 

“What's going on with you?” 

Jack's calm and concerned voice sparks your thoughts, bringing you back to the present. You glance over at him, a false smile appearing on your lips with an ease that scares you for a moment. He places a comforting hand on your thigh and your smile falters for a moment. 

You should be in love with Jack. You should be happy, over the fucking moon by all normal standards. He’s sweet, always calls exactly when he says he will, is close to your family, charming to your friends, makes sure you're comfortable and protects you always. 

So why couldn’t you stop thinking about his older brother? 

Quinn had driven you up a wall the entire time you were in Vancouver with him. He’s late to everything, never has a clue what’s going on, got hung up on little things, could never truly express what he wanted or was feeling. He was frustrating, intoxicating, complicated, wild, crazy, and a million other words that could explain your annoyance with him. 

“What’s got you all worked up beautiful?” Jack asks, turning in his seat to look at you. 

You hated the way he was staring into your eyes, the way he just knew something was going on with you and that no matter what he did he knew he couldn’t solve it. Like he was about to tell you what was bothering you instead of you telling him. 

“Is it Quinn?” 

“Jack,” you start and he shakes his head, offering a smile that makes you nervous. 

“I should have known,” he admits, shrugging his shoulders and if he didn’t look so damn understanding yet hurt, you would lean over and pull him into your arms. 

“You always did get along with Quinn better,” he jokes and you let out a watery laugh. Much to fans and media’s dismay, you never wanted to fuck up the Hughes lives the way you already sort of did. You never wanted to hurt either brother or even put Luke in the middle. 

“We hated each other,” you say laughing and Jack starts to chuckle as well. 

“Yeah well,” he says and now you’re both laughing. 

“I did love you,” you remind him, pushing his chin up with your finger so he looks at you. 

“I love you too,” he says and the present tense makes you flinch a little. 

“Go get him.” 

You press a kiss to his cheek before getting up and leaving Jack’s apartment. 

[apprenticestanheight]

heyy, i’m here requesting being loyal to my word lol, i have this little idea where adam is stalking/taking pics reader for a job and actually gets like obsessed ?? with them and tries to awkwardly make a move lmao, and obviously this happens before the bathroom events, idk if this idea sucks i just miss my pookie💔

Aldis- A.S x gn! reader

I love this idea so much and writing it was so fun!! Thank you so much for sending it in, writing for Adam is definitely a blast lol

Fic type- this is fluffy!!

Warnings- shitty bosses are implied, and the prices that are mentioned are inaccurate (I looked up aldi grocery prices and then adjusted for inflation by like, a dollar or two lol), stalk-ish behavior is mentioned (adam talks about trailing you going to and from work), cigarettes and smoking are mentioned a few times and Adam might be a little ooc

It started off as a job. Adam found himself hired by your employer to see what it was, exactly, that you did on the way to work and from it. Adam didn't want to know why your boss had wanted to know that of you and the money was good enough to not question it, so he went along with the words of your boss because the money, in the end, helped him pay rent on the shitty apartment he called home.

It started, apparently, because you'd come late to work a couple of mornings in a row with a variety of different excuses--the rain on a day of downpour, your car had broken down, your car was in the shop, your alarms weren't working--but Adam didn't bother to question that, either. He got his camera, he trailed you, he developed the photos and took them to your boss in exchange for cash that could be either devoted to making the rent or buying cigarettes.

Eventually, what was originally just a job became something a bit more for him. He caught himself genuinely caring about you, trailing you not because your boss asked but to make sure you got home without issue.

Care became infatuation, and infatuation got Adam Stanheight where he was--standing inside an Aldi Supermarket at six in the evening on a crisp day in late summer-early fall, having pretended to bump into you in the candle section, of all places, while he shopped Aldi for the deals that he could get on groceries as he needed them anyway.

"Shit!" Adam cursed, catching the candle you held before it could hit the ground on the basis of nothing but luck. "I am so sorry--I barely know my way around this area. I don't typically come down here, but the shop near my apartment is closed for renovations and I needed to grab groceries." Not entirely a lie--you lived in a different spot in New Jersey than he had, but only twenty minutes in a car, and the shop near his apartment where he could've grabbed groceries was closed, so it was Aldis and their bargain deals on any and everything both out of necessity and his minds desire to make a move.

"Oh, no worries!" You laughed. "Seriously--I don't know my way around here either, I typically shop somewhere else, but stuff has happened at work so I gotta do what I gotta do."

Adam had stopped taking photos of you only two days before, having been let go from the job after 'complications' according to your boss.

Adam was trying to flirt, but the flirting part of getting someone to give you their number was not quite his strong suit.

"So," you said. "There must've been another shop in your area. What brings you here?"

"You know that it's impossible to pass on ground beef at 99 cents a pound," Adam said, laughing. "Or a dozen eggs for $1.35, or milk for the low low price of $1.86--it's a rough economy and I am doing my best."

You laughed, and Adams heart gave a funny little flip. "$200 gets you a fuck ton more here than it does anywhere else. I've got candle money, which is nice to have again."

"Are things at work all right?" Adam asked, a feeble attempt at flirting that probably came off a bit too invasive. "Shit--there I go. Asking the way too personal questions. You don't have to answer that, we barely know each other and I don't mean to be invasive."

"My boss has cut my hours in half, is all," you said, shrugging. "I'll be looking for a new job next week, do you know anybody?"

"Nobody reputable," Adam said. "Not that I work with people who aren't, but--"

"What do you do, and what's your name? I'd like to put a name to a handsome face."

"My name is Adam Stanheight," he said. "I take photos."

"Subject matter?"

"PI stuff," Adam said. "I am a glorified snitch, basically, but the money is good."

"Well, glorified snitch," you said. "My name is Y/N and I work in marketing. You ever wanna make a career switch, give me a call."

You passed him your number, and Adam found himself in awe just a bit. He'd fumbled his way through flirting with you like it was the act of trying to share a cigarette and he was a first-time smoker, and you'd flirted like it was nothing.

"What if I don't want to make a career switch?"

"Call me anyway," you said. "We can shop at Aldis together and I can tell you all about the woes of my life in the frozen fruit aisle."

You walked away thereafter, and Adam was left to stand, his cart to his left, in awe.

[imperatorrrrr]

I was going to ask you to share some more of the emma au but buying luke a car has me intrigued 👀❤️

so this idea came from a podcast interview that Jack did early last season where the interviewers asked Jack about cars/his car and Jack was like I don't fucking know my dudes. I have a car that drives and I like how it looks I don't know anything else.

and then I juxtaposed that next to Nico who is always doing a spon post from a car dealership and who has driven the same car since he's been in New Jersey

and then I added in the element of one Luke Hughes who is so sick and tired of having to depend on his older brother to take him places especially when said older brother is too busy mooning after their captain. and Luke who also said his big purchase was getting himself a car.

so we have Luke coming to Jack to buy a car and Jack going to Nico to help.

the crux of the story is that Jack has a competence kink a mile long and we get to see Nico absolutely obliterate a car salesman to get the absolute best deal for Lukey Boy.

and Jack gets real horny about it.

its a Jack POV.

[hellgirlsapphic]

Highway

Relationship: Natasha Romanoff x Wanda Maximoff

Warnings: Sex, obscenity, Swearing, vaginal sex, lesbian sex

Rating: +18

Word count: 5.8k

Summary: Natasha has just one goal, to get to the next adventure, but what if along the way she finds something more interesting?

N/A: Fanfic written by me in Portuguese Posted on Wattpad and translated into English.

Pov. Natasha

 I consider myself a free woman, without ties, without fear or baggage. Just living in the moment.

 I've never been one to anchor myself in one place, throwing myself into adventures, with my faithful companion, a black Harley-Davidson Iron with a lot of personality.

 Thinking about it, it is understood that I love the wind hitting my face and ruffling my hair. The sensation of practically flying along the highways.

 It was the end of summer and I was on another one of my trips, in the afternoon there was a nice breeze playing with the hair on the back of my neck below the helmet. I took a highway in the northeast of the country. I had already passed through New York and was in New Jersey and intended to arrive in Philadelphia today. I was going to meet some old friends from college.

 I had just entered a small town to get gas when I felt the bike lose speed.

 — No, no... please, no! – I murmured as soon as my friend choked until she stopped. - Crap! – I got out of the vehicle huffing loudly.

 Why did this have to happen at that end of the world?  I kicked the exhaust in great anger, this had happened a few weeks ago and I was sure the belt had broken again.

I took a deep breath to avoid making a mistake and looked around, it was a normal suburban street – where the shopping was limited to stores on one side and sidewalks on the other –, the kind you saw in old movies.  I took off my helmet, shaking my head so my hair came loose and fell to my waist.

 I walked to the sidewalk and entered a store called Stark Tecnologia, which was clearly the place that was most different from the other establishments.

- Good afternoon! – I greeted the man with a clean beard and playboy glasses.

 — Oh, hello! – He smiled at me, and I just left my mouth forming a thin line. Men are so predictable!

 I had already gotten used to people's longing looks, which weren't always welcome.

 - You are not from here! – He continued with a mischievous smile playing on his lips. – By the way, I'm Tony, I'm at your command. – He extended his hand, I took off my glove and took it firmly.

 —Natasha! And yes, I'm not from here, my bike broke down, I need to know where I can find somewhere to buy a new belt and continue my journey.

 — Ah, you've come to the right place, we have the best workshop on the market. – He explained as he left the store. – You won’t leave a kidney there and they won’t even charge you more because you’re a woman!

 When I realized it, I was already following the man to his truck.

 — Hey, Rodhes, Banner, let's help this cutie get to the Maximoff brothers. – He called the two boys who were talking outside a snack bar on the other sidewalk.  They immediately stood up smiling.

 I was instructed to stay on the street as it was work for “men”, while one of them removed a kind of ramp and put my motorcycle on the back, I rolled my eyes at that bunch of imbecile hillbillies.

 The guy Tony closed the back and came around the car opening the door for me. He dreamed that I would go into the cabin with him.

 — I'll be fine here. – I replied, jumping close to the motorcycle, the three idiots just laughed.

 — I just wanted you to be comfortable, princess. – He laughed, I just gave a strange smile, which could very well be mistaken for a grimace.

 Only the owner of the truck left the other two behind, I took out my cell phone to orient myself and discovered that the name of the town was Westview, New Jersey, with just 3,892 inhabitants.

 The drive was a bit long and only then did I start to worry about whether it was actually a good idea to get into a stranger's car. Suddenly he left the road and the truck skidded as we crossed the unpaved parking lot, forming a cloud of dust around us. I coughed and ran my hand over my face so I could see.

When we finally stopped and the land began to recede, I felt like I had just entered an abandoned outpost that was used as a captivity or something.  The place didn't look like much... a square building with a small store next door, old rock music playing in the open garage.

 Wait, this was the best repair shop around?

 Tony started honking his horn over and over, laughing.

 — Do you want to sell the horn, Stark? – A young man with platinum hair came out screaming from inside the store, while Tony got out of the car.

 Why are the people of this city so lively? I thought to myself, shaking my head and jumping to the ground, the sand and gravel crunching beneath my boots.

 — To what do I owe the honor? – The boy asked and finally his eyes landed on me. - Well well! Who is this princess who got lost in the Disney parks? – I rolled my eyes at your cheap line. He approached me, taking my hand and bringing it to his mouth.

 — This is Natália, she is having problems with her bike, so she brought it to the best.

 —Natasha! – I corrected emphatically. – I just want a belt for a Harley-Davidson Iron 883. I need to get back on the road today. – I explained, while the boys took the motorcycle out of the truck.

 - Oh! We have what you need, let's go in and I'll show you the brands. – He indicated the store.

 — Well... This is where we say goodbye dear, I need to get back to my business, you're in good hands now. –Tony said goodbye. – Anything you need, come to my store, I’ll be happy to see your pretty face again. – He winked and I smiled without showing my teeth.

 — I'll remember that, thank you! – I thanked him by waving and he left.

 I entered the store door when a bell rang above my head. And surprising me, the interior of the establishment was quite spacious, organized and clean. I inhaled the smell of leather mixed with car wax.

 — Here are the straps. – Pietro spread out some options on the counter. – Are you sure that’s all it is?  I opened my mouth to respond, but the doorbell indicating someone entering, along with a soft, soothing voice, seemed to caress the words.

 — Pietro, who left that beauty in our parking lot? – I turned my body and found the woman walking towards us.

Wait, was that Mechanics?

 She was nothing like I expected. Her brown hair was tied up in a very messy bun, with several loose strands, her green eyes were alive, and her face was perfect, without marks or blemishes. She was wearing baggy, worn jeans, a white tank top with a few grease stains all over it, and there was a small brooch with the name Wanda on it.

 She was a stunning woman.

 She approached us, drying her hands on some kind of tow.

 — This bike belongs to Miss Natasha, she has problems with her belt, Tony brought it from the city. – She frowned.

 — Did you diagnose this yourself? – She asked with surprise in her voice, arching her perfect eyebrow.

 — No, I already know what I'm looking for, that happened a few weeks ago. – The speech was directed at the boy, but I intervened.

 — I don't think that's the problem with your bike. – She murmured, adjusting the bun on top of her head. – Any mechanic knows this. The straps last a long time!

 — I'm not a mechanic, but I know my baby and I know what she needs. – I replied dryly, not liking her tone.

 — Ah, I thought it was since you're saying it with such certainty. – What was beautiful about that woman was irritating.

 — Look girl, I don't have time for this argument, so give me what I want and I'll leave. – Yes, I was upset.

 — Ok... – I didn’t like her cynical smile. – This is the best option, it costs a hundred dollars. – She held out one of the packages.

 I looked for my card in one of my jacket pockets and handed it to the man, who looked at our exchange with some amusement.

 Wanda leaned against the counter, her back to me. And I couldn't stop my eyes from falling on her.

 She must be in her late twenties, around 1m68cm... Slim and slender body, with subtle curves, well-defined waist in the t-shirt. Finally, my eyes rolled to her cloth sticking out of the back pocket of her jeans, covering her...

 - Lose? – Pietro's voice took me by surprise and I felt my heart start to pound with embarrassment because he had just caught me admiring the ass of the girl who turned to look at me. What the hell got into me? -His card. Was approved!  He handed me the object.

 - Oh, right. Sorry... I mean, thank you! – I fumbled with the words coming out in a rush.

The mechanic from the last service had taught me how to do it, but what was papaya and sugar for him was a confusing puzzle for me.

 — Are you sure you don't want help? – I heard and looked back, Wanda was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed and an eyebrow arched.

 I wouldn't give her that taste.

 - I am fine!

 I was almost giving up, when I finally managed to fit the piece into place, the smile I opened was capable of tearing my face apart. I pressed the pedal, turning the key in the ignition, but to my great surprise and disappointment, it wouldn't start.

 I kicked that piece of shit's tire many times in anger.

 - Hell, hell, hell. – I muttered, still hitting the tire.  I took a deep breath and turned around. I hated having to admit I was wrong, and even more so to an insolent bastard.

 — Well, I guess now you'll have to let the professional take a look, right? – Arg! I knew this was coming.

 — We're going to have to call Pietro to take her inside, she's heavy! – I grunted. I couldn't believe I was actually doing this.

 I opened my trunk, took out my backpack and threw it on my back.

 - Allow me. – He offered, passing me and pushing the treacherous vehicle with ease. Arrogant bastard. – She's not taking good care of you, isn't she, friend? – She whispered to my bike as if she were a small child.

 If I punched her in the face, would I be prosecuted?

 — You can wait with my brother inside, it won't take more than a few minutes. – She gave a small smile indicating with her head.

 I dragged my feet back to the establishment. The boy laughed openly, making me huff in anger.

 I sat in one of the chairs, looking outside. I stamped my foot impatiently.

 — My sister also likes women, you know? – Pietro broke the silence, approaching me.

 - What it is? – I practically shouted, still a little disoriented, but I shook my head quickly when he raised his eyebrow. – I don't know what you're talking about. Pfffr... – I made a funny noise.

 - Please? – She said ironically, rolling her eyes. – You looked at her as if she were an oasis in the desert.

 — I wasn't looking... – I laughed nervously, shaking my head as I ran my fingers through my hair.

— I didn't say looking, I was more familiar with her ass! – He laughed, while I just wanted to find a hole to get in. – I'll save her effort, she's 28 years old, single and a good catch. – I instantly turned purple.

 - It is not me...

 - Good. — I almost died of fright when Wanda's voice interrupted my sentence mid-sentence. – As I said, the problem was not the belt, obviously, but I think we will have to make some repairs, the spark plug is destroyed, as is the injection pump. I won't be able to deliver until tomorrow afternoon. – I gritted my teeth, closing my fists.

Today was definitely not my lucky day.

 OK, it wasn't the end of times, a little stop in my plans wasn't a big deal. But this was simply more damage.

 — Approximately how much will all this cost me? – I crossed my arms.

 — The candle isn't that much, but the pump is a big deal, and with labor everything will cost about four hundred dollars. – He spoke in a serious tone.

 I ran my hands over my face, I certainly had money, it was too much for just one day.

 — Can I return the belt? – She raised her eyebrow in disbelief.

 - Of course! – hope was the first to die.

 — So that's it... Is there somewhere at the end of the world where I can sleep and drink? – The defeat in my voice was evident.

 — I'll call an app car for you, in the meantime you can fill out the form with your details. – Pietro handed me a sheet.

 — And I'm going back to the workshop, tomorrow we'll call you to pick up your motorcycle. – I looked up in time to see her walking out the door, enjoying the subtle sway of her hips.

 — Still not looking? – Pietro brought me back to reality.

 — Oh, shut up! – He just laughed.

 — Your car will arrive in 5 minutes, it's a Lexus, it will take you to your accommodation, it's a cool place in the center, you can ask Sam the driver about the bars, he knows them all. – I wasn't surprised that he knew the driver from such a small town.

 - Thank you very much! – I left the store to wait for the car outside.  I felt a shiver run down my spine suddenly and I looked over my shoulder, finding Wanda standing in the garage door, her eyes fixed on...

 Was she looking at my ass?

When her gaze met mine she brought her hand to her head, rubbing it carelessly before returning inside the building, I smiled slightly upon receiving my answer.

 She's an arrogant being, Natasha, and you'll be out of town tomorrow afternoon. I remembered a car parked in front of me.

The inn was decent, at least there were no bed bugs or weird old place smells.

 I took advantage of the moment to tell my friends that there was no possibility of meeting them today.

 — Romanoff, are you sure you don’t want me to pick you up? – Rogers spoke on the other end of the line. – I can arrange a car to pick up your motorcycle, Sharon is looking forward to you arriving. She's already talked about it six hundred times. Daddy, when is Aunt Nat coming? – He imitated the thin, childish voice making me laugh.

 — There's no need to worry, I'll be there tomorrow night at the latest, you can tell her, I've already found someone to fix the bike, it wasn't what I wanted at the moment, but it's what we have. – I replied wearing my favorite red jacket over my black clothes. – Now I'm going to hang up, I have a date with tequilas and a pool table.

 — Are you going to beat the hillbillies, like in the old Romanoff days? – He accused, laughing.

 — I'm just going to combine the useful with the pleasant. - Sum up. – Tell Peggy I want her blackberry pie for dessert tomorrow.

 - I will say. – I ended the call by taking my bag, putting money, gum and cell phone outside the room.  The walk wasn't very long, the streets were deserted, even though it was early, Kennedy's Bar was the name of the place. A neon sign indicated the entrance with dark double doors.

The walk wasn't very long, the streets were deserted, even though it was early, Asgard's Bar was the name of the place. A neon sign indicated the entrance with dark double doors.

 The parking lot was large and not very crowded, there was a large counter where a small group of people were drinking and laughing. A half wall separated the area where six pool tables were located.

 I smiled going to the counter, sitting on one of the high stools.

 — See me two buttons – I asked, the bartender nodded, immediately balancing the two in front of me. - Health! – I extended the bottle to him and he smiled.

 I always drank my first beer in one gulp, so I always ordered two. I placed the empty bottle in front of me while the waiter stood with his mouth open. I just smiled and continued drinking.

 —Well, well, if it isn't Miss. Outsider. – Tony appeared there and sat next to me. I smiled and continued drinking. - Can I buy you a drink?

 - Feel free!

 — Thor, two more beers! – Our drinks arrived and we talked, he asked a lot of questions, I wondered if he worked in social services or if he was going to sign me up for something.

 — Do you like snooker? – He asked when he saw me looking at the men playing. He smiled victoriously.

 — Yes, how about a bet? – I gave him the idea and he seemed to like it a lot.

I laughed happily and had already beaten up several people, and gotten enough money to fix my bike and more. After a while Pietro also appeared there and had already lost two hundred dollars to me.

 — Come on, none of the rednecks are going to beat me? – I shouted, swinging the bat.

 — I'll play with you! – The somewhat husky and sexy voice said behind me, making my stupid heart flutter.

 I turned around and found Wanda with her eyes half closed, she was looking at me with a mix of mockery and perhaps anger? Her hair was loose and reached below her waist in a light brown color with some blonde highlights. She wore jeans with rips at the knees, a basic black t-shirt and sneakers. I think she was the only woman in the world who looked good like that, I would probably look like a beggar.

 — I don't want to play with you! – I said, leaning the stick against the wall.

 - Why? Are you afraid of losing? – She joked with her eyebrow arched and turning her head to the side. I snorted at his annoying manner.

 - I'm not afraid of anything! – I scored by taking the bat again. – But I'll warn you, I only gamble, and now that I've beaten all these idiots, the stakes are high.

 — Great, my best kind of game! – She continued with her unshakable expression, but now there was a small sadistic smile on her full lips. – If you win, I'll give you double what you won tonight.

 — Wanda, are you crazy? – I heard Pietro put his hand on his sister's shoulder.

 — Don't get involved Pi, you've already done a lot today! – She asked, freeing herself from his hand.

 — If you win what do you want? – She shrugged her shoulders.

 — If I win, we'll see!

 — My bike is not in the bargain! – I emphasized.

 — That didn't even cross my mind! – I smiled enormously when she extended her hand, which I gladly accepted. Her hand was soft and I felt something like a tingling running through the place where our skin touched. - Closed? – She was still holding my hand.

 Wanda's eyes were beautiful, there was something in them that mesmerized me and I couldn't look away from her.

— Rum, rum... – Pietro scratched his throat. Breaking hypnosis.

 - Closed! – I finally replied.

 — Do you plan to play today? – He intruded again. Only then did I realize that our hands were still together. I blushed violently and tried to separate us.

 After readjusting the balls on the table, I applied chalk to the tip of the cue, taking two or four deep breaths.

- You can start! – I murmured, Wanda seemed like a well of tranquility while my hands started to sweat.

 She leaned over the table taking the first shot, scattering the red balls. However, in the second, she was unable to pocket any. I smiled smugly.

 It was my turn, I looked around the green surface and began my movements. When I bottled the first one, I smiled big, feeling my body relax. And getting into the game head on. One after another I fit the balls, with the last shot I weakly hit the ball, which ended up not going in and I didn't reach my goal. but he scored 16 points. I walked away still smiling.

 Wanda at that moment walked around the table a few times, analyzing the possibilities.

 — Come on, woman, play quickly, I don't have all night. – I grumbled, and she just rolled her eyes and leaned over.  

Her pitch was perfect and she managed to pot three balls at once, my jaw dropped as she continued her streak. In the blink of an eye she managed to score 26 points.

 For the first time that night my confidence began to waver, we did a few practice rounds without hitting anything, until again my luck seemed to change and I sent a perfect straight, what I didn't count on was that the white ball would fall as a result.

 I huffed irritably, taking off my jacket to move better, I hung it on a nearby chair.

 The problem is that while I was doing this, Wanda potted Black, gaining seven more points, and hit a few more, finishing with 63 points.

My jaw dropped, I couldn't believe it. Obviously I had already lost in snooker, but not like this and with such a big difference.

 The people in the bar were ecstatic, applauding and whistling.

 — Girls, this was very wonderful to see, perhaps the sexiest thing. – Tony grabbed Wanda by the shoulders and kissed her hair, which she didn't like at all, as she pushed him away with an angry face.

 — Ain Stark, you're disgusting!

 —Wan, you were incredible! – Pietro commented, standing between us.

 - And congratulations! – I admitted, smiling weakly. - It was a good game!

- Thanks! – For a moment I could have sworn she was uncomfortable with the extra attention. Since she seemed shy.

 — Now you choose what you want to win, a deal is a deal! – She nodded.

 — I want you to return what you received from my brother.

 - Fair! – I put my hand in my pocket, handing the bills to the man.

 — As you said, the stakes are high, so I want too... – she rolled her eyes around the room and then gave a kind of crooked smile that left me a little breathless.

 Did I mention her smile was beautiful?

 - You want...? – I encouraged it.

 — I like your jacket! – He said, already taking it and putting it down.

 — NOT my jacket! - I screamed. – It has sentimental value. You can have more money if you want, I can even buy you one!

 Even if Wanda was great in the play, that was out of the question.

 — But that's exactly what I want, and as you said: a deal is a deal.

 I don't know if she was just doing it to annoy me or not, but she seemed to enjoy the situation.

 She paid no attention to my protests as she walked confidently to the bar.

 I sat in one of the chairs in a bad mood, ordered a beer, pouring it angrily, watching her pace back and forth with my jacket.  

She laughed and drank with her acquaintances.

 Suddenly, as she brought the drink bottle to her mouth, someone said something funny, making her spit out all the liquid on her clothes.

 My common sense had already disappeared with God and anger was already bubbling in my blood.

 She got up to go to the bathroom and I followed her angrily. She went into one of the cabins and since she couldn't do anything, I waited.

 When he left, he went straight to one of the sinks to wash his hands and dry the item with a paper towel.

 — You don't know how much I took care of that jacket, my father gave it to me! – I murmured, and she looked at me in the mirror with a cynical smile.

 — I don't mind, I liked her, she was very well dressed. – She was already irritating me.

 — Dude, what's your problem? You stand there, full of courage, thinking you are the queen of the world. – Her clear eyes narrowed and she turned to me.

 — My damn problem? – She approached pointing her finger and then poked my shoulder. I took a step back as it was hurting a lot, and that's when I noticed our small height difference. – My problem now is you , you arrive here in my city, cursing God and the world thinks you are... I only have one thing to tell you, you are not all that! – She was so close and touching me, my heart was already beating uncontrollably, it was almost shameful the way it was beating.

I moistened my lips and finally his attention turned to my mouth, which dried, I tried to swallow compulsively.

 My face was so close to hers and I wanted so much to end that small distance.

 Her mouth slowly approached mine, my eyes closed and my mouth hung open in anticipation, but to my great surprise, she didn't kiss me.

 She brushed my hair away from my neck and slowly placed her lips there. My body shuddered. Her lips moved slowly to my neck. I felt my breath stop, only then did I realize that I had stopped breathing.

 Breathe, Natasha, breathe, don't stop breathing.  I was trying to order myself.

  Her soft lips trailed down my neck, making me gasp, but I remained still, fighting myself not to respond to her. But with that she just walked away from me without saying anything else.

 She left me there practically a puddle of goo under my feet. Rapid breathing and racing heart. I heard the door slam and that brought reality home.

 What the fuck did she do to me?

 I huffed even more irritated, left the bathroom. That night she had already given it to me, so I paid the bill and headed towards the inn. What started very well ended in a way I never imagined.

 I lost one of the last gifts my father gave me and I was still seduced by that cunning fox. I was angry with myself and my lack of control.

 Arriving at the inn, the guy at reception tried to say something, but I didn't mind listening. I just wanted to sleep and be there tomorrow, so I could escape this end of the world.

 I went up the stairs and when I reached the hallway I noticed the figure leaning against my bedroom door. She had her head down and her foot resting on the wall.

 - What do you want? – I barked at her.

 - You owe me something! – She replied, moving away from the wall.

 — Damn, I must... — Before I could say anything else.

 She smiled and, to my complete surprise, wrapped her arms around my neck, which sent my heart racing into fourth gear. Not happy about it, she made her mouth reach my ear.

 — I need the kiss back... – she whispered hoarsely.

 — Er... I... we...

That's right, he stutters like a retard . I took a deep breath, seeking concentration. But she nibbled my earlobe and that was too much for me.

 My hands went to her hair and I pulled hard, making her look at me.

 — You shouldn't do that Maximoff. – I said in a low and hoarse voice, now it was her turn to get goosebumps.

 - No? – She murmured. Her eyes were dark and her breathing was uneven.

 — No. – I replied, going towards her mouth, but when I got very close I avoided it, just like she had done to me. I bit her chin.

 Making her gasp. I smiled, realizing he could move it too. I went up a little to the corner of her mouth, gave her a few kisses there, she turned her face towards my mouth, but I avoided it, and attacked her neck, the same way she had done to me.

 With that she pressed me against the wall, pressing her body against mine, which made me even more excited.

 — You're an idiot, Romanoff. – She murmured in a hoarse voice. The swear words along with my last name were interesting and I liked it. It was extremely sexy when she said that. My mouth went up to her ear.

 — I told you not to provoke me, Maximoff. – I murmured, nibbling his ear.

 She kind of moaned my name, making me very wet.

Heavens! This woman would be my undoing.

 She brushed her lips against mine, but this time I couldn't resist. Our mouths kind of collided, our tongues intertwined, the heat became greater and greater, her hands left trails of fire wherever they went. I felt her body tremble again, when my hands went under her t-shirt.

 - Would you like to come inside? – I gasped almost out of breath when his mouth went down to my neck again.

 — What happened to arrogant Natasha Romanoff who doesn't like hillbillies? – She threw it back, while moving away a little.

 — When the country bumpkin in question drives you crazy with just a simple touch or whisper... Nothing fairer than making an exception. Do not you think? – That's what I managed to mutter, before her mouth found mine again.  

God, I was lost.

 I spent a long time trying to find the key to the door and be able to open it, Wanda didn't let me go for a second, we went in and I knocked on it with my foot.

 The kiss became more urgent and she pressed me against the wall near the door making me stick to her even more.

 - You are so Beautiful. – She touched my face. – Your eyes are beautiful – and I closed them and she kissed each one of them. – You are completely perfect. – She palmed my face and ran her thumb over my mouth. Making me shiver. I smiled at her. She gave me a peck. – Those lips of yours...

She kissed me again and it was a tender and calm kiss and then it became more urgent, she sucked my lower lip making me moan slightly, she stood up and caught me making me scream, my heart was racing my mind was very aware of the striking presence and sexy of her.

 Her kisses were now thirsty, she began to take me to bed.

 She pushed me hard, I smiled smugly as she started playing with the sides of my shirt. Between one kiss and another, she took off my blouse and highlighted the front clasp of my bra and leaned closer to my fervent body.  

I moaned once more into his mouth, his left hand went to my thigh. While her right hand went to my chest making me gasp.

 — Uaaaan... – she caressed my chest with her fingertips while her left hand passed between my thigh and hip.  

With the sound of clothes being removed soon after, his hands were on top of me, brushing and knowing every inch of new skin that was revealed to him. My pants slid down to my hips.

 – My God, woman, I’m not Jewish! – I said breathlessly, and ended up earning a loud moan from her when I reversed our positions, trapping her beneath me.

 I put my hands on the jacket , removing it from her body, immediately placing the blouse over her head, which, to my surprise, was not wearing a bra.

 I struggled with my belt and pants zipper, practically growling in frustration. I snorted when the idiot laughed and had to help me with them. It wasn't my fault, I was too horny to deal with this shit.

 My fingers gently touched her nipples. I placed my hands on them, their skin was scalding hot. My gaze traveled over her body very slowly, noticing the beauty of every detail, her perfect breasts, her flat belly without being torn, she was wearing extremely sexy black panties.

 My hands followed my gaze, caressing every part of her, her skin covered in goosebumps and her low moans showed me how much she was enjoying my touch, completely surrendered.

 I lay down on top of her, caressing her face, kissing her chin. A smile of complicity was exchanged and I kissed her, my tongue tasted every bit of her breast, she lost air as my mouth sucked her breasts more intensely, each moan of hers made me more anxious.

 My hands reached her panties and she seemed totally surrendered to the moment, our breaths seemed labored because they were so choppy. Very slowly I took off her panties, caressing her legs as she slid the piece over them.

 - Beautiful! – She said when she saw her completely naked.

I slowly kissed her again, kissed her neck, bit, sucked and moved down until I reached her breasts, I sucked one of them while caressing the other and she moaned without control.

 I went down to her belly and slid until I reached where I wanted most.

 — You're going to say-aaaaah – She screamed when my tongue reached her most sensitive spot while my finger slowly played with her entrance.

 Her wetness oozed out. I've never felt so anxious about satisfying a woman, but with her I was different, I didn't just want to make her come, I wanted her to feel good, desired, all in a loving way and not just sexual.

 I squeezed her ass and pressed her clit against my tongue. Her taste was perfect, indescribable, I think it was the best taste in the world. Something sweet and that made my own pussy throb.

 When she let out moans of pleasure, I began licking it, caressing her folds insistently until she writhed and trembled against me.

 Wanda pulled my hair, moaning.

 — God, this is so good!!!!

 My only response was to caress her skin with my fingertips as my tongue continued to work quickly on her sensitive spot.

 He knew it wouldn't take long for her to orgasm, judging by the arch of her spine and the heat emanating from her.

 — Nat... I'll...

 With one last flick of my tongue, Wanda moaned loudly. Her fingers relaxed their grip on my hair, though I wished she had gripped it tighter.

 I needed more. I wanted so much more!

 — Can I get my jacket back now? – The question was serious, but she laughed as if it were a joke.

 — Of course not, I won fair and square! – She replied, closing her eyes as my fingers ran over the bare skin of her back.

 We were silent for a while, just enjoying the moment.

 God, she was so beautiful!

 — I must admit, you don't look so bad when your mouth is busy! – She murmured, and turned to me smiling.

 - Hey! – I pushed her shoulder while she laughed. – you are so unpleasant! – I replied, looking into her beautiful eyes. – Okay, I must admit, small towns are not so bad!

 Her answering smile was just brilliant, maybe it was time for me to finally anchor myself in one place. Or should I tell someone?

THE END

[why4anne]

Lover

Part: 1/?

Pairing: Nico Hischier x singer! Reader

Category: Social Media Au

Summary: Y/N is a world famous singer who finds herself smitten with the captain of her favorite hockey team.

Face claim: Taylor Swift

Warnings: none

Requested: Yes/No

Note: So I was thinking of making this a series. Let me know if you like it and think that I should continue!

au masterlist

yourusername

MetLife Stadium

liked by zendaya, bellahadid and 6 782 943 others

yourusername: Thank you for having me New Jersey night 2 it feels great to be back in my hometown and to feel the love from each and everyone single one of you. Now onto a week long break before triple nights at Madison Square Garden.

view all comments

bellahadid: Thank you for the invite,  show was amazing and you looked stunning😍

˄ yourusername: Anytime girl

y/nupdatezz: she could literally hit me with a car and I would say thank you

all.about.y/n: This was an experience I will cherish more than the birth of my first born.😌

metlifestadium: Thank you for coming to Jersey and putting up such a wonderful performance

liked by yourusername

living.for.yn: Mother?

˄ yourusername: Child?

˄ living.for.yn: OMG YOU REPLIED!!!! I CAN NOW DIE HAPPILY😭🤯😫

˄ user36: The fact that she still recognizes her fans even after all the success just shows how humble she is! I LOVE HER!!!😍😍

˄ all.about.y/n: RIGHT!!! She is the best!

user14: For anyone still on the fence about buying tickets; DO IT!! The show is a whole 3 hours long and you will not regret it!

yourusername

Prudential Center

liked by nicohischier, njdevils and 4 544 291 others

yourusername: Is there a better way to start my break then with a win? I don't think so. Tonight was amazing!! Thank you for having me @/njdevils and thank you to all of the players who played their hearts out on the ice tonight. LETS GO DEVILS!😈😈

View all comments

njdevils: You should know that we are curently listening to Wildest Dreams on repeat!!

    liked by yourusername

y/nupdatezz: OMG I SAW YOU ON THE JUMBOTRON!!!

nicohischier: Thank you for supporting us tonight!

˄ yourusername: Congratulations on your 2 goals captain!🫶🫡

˄ all.about.y/n: Is Y/N entering her WAG era??🤯

user19: She supports the same team as me? We're basically besties at this point

living.for.yn: Well... I guess I like hockey now🤷‍♀️

[astramachina]

OC posting? On main?

I was gonna say "more likely than you think" as if that hasn't been 50% of my deal lately. Anyway, came across a cute picrew and wanted to show off some of the original characters from Driving Through Tunnels (With No Light at the End) now that we've been introduced to most of the auto shop team!

Ricky (top left)

Jenny (top right)

Roger (bottom left)

Dean (bottom right)

(listen I tried my best to deliver "late 90s" but there's only so many choices when it comes picrew)

Some character rambles under the cut!

Ricky Kronbach - the man, the myth, the legend. Hardly needs an introduction since he's our main guy. Ran into some trouble, stole a conspicuous purple car because of it, and because he could neither afford a new car or a paint job, he tried to proposition Roger in exchange for said paint job. Instead, Ricky got a crash course on how to fix cars, a decent job, and a somewhat stable life in his home state of Minnesota. As of 1998, he's the newest mechanic to join the team. He's a bit of a prodigy when it comes to technology, having gone to university (and then expelled for unsavory reasons) for computer engineering. How that managed to translate to an uncanny ability to fix anything remotely mechanical that he touches is beyond anyone's guess. Ricky's a bit of a sour apple, but no one can really blame him. He plays things close to the vest, and someone must be at least a LVL 50 friend in order to unlock his tragic past.

Jenny - the token girl mechanic at the auto shop, but none of the guys look down at her for it. She can and she will bench press an SUV with her scrawny little arms, and she will also crash people's place whenever they're feeling down with pizza and a six pack. A single child, she's lived a pretty sheltered life. Her parents wanted her to be either a lawyer or a doctor, but ever since she was 5 she would collect Hot Wheels alongside her impressive number of "career" Barbies. She signed up for one class during high school and it was over: there was nothing she wanted more than to work on cars. Jenny's a little put off by Ricky at first since the guy kind of materialized out of nowhere one day, but she soon realized how committed he was to learning the ropes. During his first year at the shop she tended to keep her distance, fraternizing only during Bowling Thursdays, but when weird stuff starts to happen and Ricky begins to grow agitated, she self-appoints herself as Ricky's BFF. Surprisingly, they click extremely well.

Roger - being a man of morals, he saw a desperate kid on the run fighting to survive and he gave him a wrench, the couch in the shop office, and a bite to eat. Jersey accent? Thick. Eyebrows? Thicker. A bit of a hardass at work, but a caring family man when it's time to close up his shop for the day. He's 5'2" and will not hesitate to throw down with someone a foot taller than him if they act stupid. Hardly ever smokes, but will pull out a cigarette when shit gets a little dicey. He's a pretty lenient boss when his mechanics are going through it, and he tends to keep it professional while on the lot, unwilling to overstep. But being older means he's world-weary, and seeing a face he remembers from the news haunting Ricky, a young man no older than his oldest son, he will try to keep tabs on him and make sure he's okay.

Dean - senior mechanic nearly a decade older than Ricky and loves to rub it in his face. So far the most tech-savviest of them all, and also the nerdiest. He's scatterbrained and a gossip, his improv game is off the charts (which makes him a hit at D&D tables), and will try to get beetles to unionize given the chance. His fashion sense is only rivaled by Jenny's, which usually leads to Roger griping at him that, yes, he has to wear his overalls when hitting the bays. Yes, Roger is well aware that he's not the one buying Dean's clothes but for the love of God, kid, think of how much you can save by not getting motor oil all over those fancy threads. Though he might hold his age over Ricky (and Ricky thinks that might just be because Dean sucks at bowling), and is a firm believer in having co-workers be co-workers and nothing more, Dean has and will extend an olive branch in the case where he is needed. In fact, he's lost at least one mobile phone because he lent it to Ricky prior to a mysterious excursion, but he's never asked questions. Dean's been around the block enough times to know when not to ask questions, and he knows when people need to stick together.