#Dodge House Picture Mine

[be-missed]

Find You Again

Jenna Ortega X Fem!Reader

(pictures not mine)

Summary: Reuniting as stars, former high school sweethearts stage a fake relationship to boost their public image. Navigating the scripted romance, sparks fly. The big question: can this staged connection reignite their real love?

Warning: curse words, notify me if there are any. Credits to the owner for the picture that I used below the cut.

A/N: I'm so excited to write this, enjoy. New series for y'all.

Song: I Can See You // Taylor Swift

Masterlist

Chap 1

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Flashing lights are all that Y/N can see, facing all the cameras in different angles, her name being shout by different people, and different set of eyes are focused on her. Walking the red carpet was one of the things that Y/N enjoys when she is invited for an event like the MET Gala; the other things that she enjoys, well, the women who walks with their wonderful dresses. Men? Not really, but the press and the people doesn't need to know that.

"You are staring" a voice from behind her said—her publicist, Emilia notified her when she was staring far too long to the woman that was in front of her. Y/N just shrugs and shakes her head, waiting for her turn to be interviewed.

A few minutes have passed, she is now the next in line to be interviewed, "So Y/N, what a lovely fit you have. Can you tell us who you are wearing?" the interviewer asked, and Y/N answered, "I am so honored to be chosen as one of Givenchy's Ambassador for this event, honoring one of the most prominent person that anyone knows in fashion..."

Y/N's voice got buried with a loud screaming from the bottom of the stairs. Fortunately Y/N got to finish her answer before she looked down. Then there she was, looking like a doll, dress to kill, looks that can melt; Jenna Ortega was standing in the bottom of the stairs, posing for every camera that she caught.

A smile creeping in Y/N's mouth has been caught by the reporter and the camera, this gave the reporter a chance to segue a hot topic that you and Jenna dance around, answering yet not giving the exact information that the people want, "Looks like Jenna Ortega arrived in the house, there have been rumors going around for quite some time now, that the two of you have a history?" the reporter asked with a malice on his voice.

Y/N smiled and answered "Well, we were uhm, friends way before our careers, so yes, we did know each other and yes I can say that we have a great history, but there's no bad blood between us" and chuckles, that leads to the reporters new question "So, if that's what it is, is she the muse for the new single titled 'I Can See You' that you dropped a few weeks ago and will perform later?"

Y/N chuckles and rubs her chin, trying to think of a way to dodge the question, "I mean, Jenna is a wonderful woman, I can't deny that, WE can't deny that. But you know, where is the fun of writing songs if I'm just gonna admit who I'm writing for, right?" Y/N leaves with a wink to the camera and entering the venue.

"That was fucking close. What's with the media trying to come up with something between me and Jenna? It's been going on for months" Y/N whispered to Emilia, trying to find a champagne that she can drink. "There are photos that are circulating in the internet from when you were in High School with Jenna" her publicist answered.

This statement made Y/N look at her publicist with a questing look "Okay, now what? I mean what can they make out of the pictures? I'm pretty sure Jenna is denying it for sure" and got the chance to seat at their designated table. "Yeah, she's totally not denying it, the both of you kept on giving vague answers. But they are the media and your fans, connecting every song that you write and the events that happens to your life and Jenna's life," Emilia said with a knowing look and sipping a champagne.

"How? I mean, I kept on using a he/him pronouns on my song to lower the connection. Don't tell me they are that smart to know and connect things, don't you?" Y/N said to her publicist, looking so worried about the on-going rumor that can't seem to die.

On the other side of the venue, Jenna was taking a seat with Enrique trying to hide an annoyed look. "What's with the rumors and Y/N, they kept on reoccurring, why can't it die?" Jenna said trying to fidget with pearls that on her dress. "You know that the both of you aren't denying anything, right?" Enrique said to the girl.

Jenna then send Enrique a look that can kill and said "I am denying it, that's for sure. While HER, she keeps on dancing around it" Enrique then shakes his head "Oh no darling, you weren't denying it, the BOTH of you are dancing around it. Please don't deny it" then Jenna answered him so quick "I am denying it, I kept on saying no..."

Enrique just chuckles and said "See, the both of you aren't denying anything. You and Y/N always say that the both of you are 'good friends' and for the record, the both of you are always in the same event" and ended his sentence with a shrug trying to prove his point.

Jenna just rolled her eyes and tries to listen to whoever is speaking. While Y/N got called backstage to get ready to perform.

The host announced that Y/N was about to perform. Lights were dimmed and a shadow in the middle can be seen, the intro starts, and the crowd began to applaud and scream for Y/N's name.

Jenna noticed the intro and looked at Enrique and said "Really, she's gonna sing this? Out of all the songs?" and Enrique chuckled at the comment and replied "Well that's her new song, what can we do but to listen and enjoy, right?"

The performance ended with pyrotechnics in the stage and a wild crowd.

As the host again took over the stage, Jenna decided that she needed another drink, because what the fuck was that lyric, it just added gas to the burning fire, nice move, she thought in a sarcastic tone.

"One sour whiskey please" Jenna said to the bar tender, wanting to seat in the bar stool but sadly, her gown is restricting her. While she was waiting for her drink, whispers can be heard from behind her, not wanting to know the drama she still decided to maintain her focus on the bar.

"Nice dress you have there"

Once the voice registered, her eyes widen and her hand clenches into fist. Thinking if she ignores the voice, it will just go away, because if she faces the other girl tonight, she don't know if she will make a scene. But to no avail, the voice speak again, now beside her.

"I said you look good in your dress, Miss Ortega" Jenna heard, now feeling a smirk plastered on Y/N's face. With all her might Jenna faced the other girl with a tight smile, her hand clenched by her side and said "I heard you the first time, you know?" with an eyebrow raised, "Oh so you were just ignoring me then?" Y/N said now trying to make a sad face.

Jenna's jaw clenched, how can Y/N take this like a joke, "Yes you are right, I am ignoring you" focusing back on the bartender, "But I thought we were 'good friends', right" Y/N answered while trying to tease Jenna, "In case if you didn't notice, I say that for us to have neutral grounds, now can you please piss off?" Jenna answered and thought that it might be a little harsh but she really just want to be away from Y/N.

Before Y/N got to say something, the bartender gave Jenna her drink, and when she's ready to walk away, a photographer got in her way and said "Hey Y/N and Jenna, can you please pose so that I can take a shot"

Y/N greeted the photographer with a smile and accepted the request, she pulls Jenna near her, while Jenna tries to stay her ground, "Come girls closer" the photographer again said and Y/N thought, "This man surely knows how to stir the pot"

The both of them smiled for the camera, closer than they have been for 5 years. This was the first picture of them that they were this close to each other after their career boomed and well, after what they had.

"Thanks ladies, enjoy the night" the photographer said and left the duo. "Okay you can let go now" Jenna said, "For your information, I also don't like being linked to you, so I came here to clear things out, yeah?" Y/N said with a nod in her head.

That surprises Jenna "Okay, I get that, then go on and deny that we had a history" Jenna said challenging Y/N, "You first, you are always out doing interview, unlike me, I don't have any premiere shows or any other events like this" Y/N smirked.

It made Jenna's blood boil again, inhale and exhale, she reminded herself. She doesn't want to make a scene and be banned to this gala, this is her second time, she doesn't want it to be her last she thought.

Y/N walked away and left Jenna stunned with her drink on hand.

---

After the MET Gala, of course there would be an after party, Jenna was invited to many but decided to go to the nearest one to her hotel.

Trying to fix her make-up inside the car that she is on, she hears Enrique say, "Okay, slow down with the drinks, we don't need you going around the place" with a knowing look, Jenna then replied "That was ONE time oh my god, please let that go" with an annoyed tone.

Her car stopped at the entrance, looking outside through her window she saw a dozen of paparazzi trying to get a picture of none other than Y/F/N Y/L/N.

"Fuck, no fucking way" Jenna said to Enrique, still looking at the window, "What? What's the problem?" Enrique asked her worriedly, "Y/N is here, I can't stand another minute of faking smiles with her, every time I see her I fell like my stomach churns and I want to vomit so bad. Enrique please, let's go to another party" Jenna pleaded that earned a shakes to Enrique's head.

"Nope, can't be, your manager chose this party so you can mingle with different artist. I can't say no to that, and you know it" Enrique stated with a stern look, not giving Jenna a chance to say another word.

With a grunt Jenna whispers to herself "Here goes nothing" and exits the car. Another set of cameras are now trying to capture Jenna and her outfit for the afterparty, looking at the entrance, she saw Y/N rolled her eyes, Jenna thought "The fucking nerve of this girl t roll her eyes"

Now that they are in the same vicinity again, the paparazzi wasted no time and asked for a picture of them together, which they don't say no, since they don't want to cause another issue.

Y/N greeted Jenna with an open arm and huge smile, when Jenna got situated next to Y/N, she heard the other girl say "Are you stalking me?" which made Jenna look at the girl, with the heels that she is wearing, she stepped on Y/N's toe that made Y/N jerked in pain, with a worried voice Jenna said "Are you okay?"

With that, the security ushered the cameras away and assisted the both of them inside.

"DO you really need to step on me?" Y/N said, "Oh, I didn't mean to, really" Jenna answered, voice filled with sarcasm. Y/N have a deadpan look not believing what Jenna said "Yeah? You sure there?" Y/N said challenging Jenna, and that made Jenna smile "Of course not, I would do it again and again."

With that, Jenna left Y/N speechless. Y/N thought to herself "Is she that fucking angry at me? What did I even do to her?" and proceeded to enter the party and mingle with other artists.

The party actually went well for the both of them, avoiding each other like a plague, Y/N performing in the party and joining the DJ in the booth while Jenna tries to expand her connections and tries to know new faces.

Another hour have passed and Y/N was now taking a break from all the mingling and faking smiles and went to the bathroom, as if like faith is trying to take the both of them as a joke, she saw Jenna bending over the sink.

"Are you fine?" voiced laced with worry as Y/N walked slowly towards Jenna, "Don't come near me" Jenna said head still hanging low. Y/N stopped in her track and said "You are tipsy... or like drunk? You need to go home."

The statement made Jenna look at Y/N and said "What now, you're my mom now?" Y/N just rolled her eyes knowing that it is impossible to argue with a drunk Jenna. Y/N fished out her phone and texted someone, "Come on, I'll bring you to your hotel, can you tell me where it is?" Y/N asked while staying on her track.

"No, I won't go with you, I don't want to go with you can't you see that? Leave me alone" Jenna said trying to fix her make-up in front of the mirror, "Why not? You clearly can't walk straight I bet" Y/N said and chuckled. Jenna hates it, she hates that Y/N is right, that is why she is in the corner holding herself through the sink and not moving an inch because she knows she'll stumble with her drunk state and her heels so high.

Y/N take Jenna's silence as a cue to go to the other girl and support her. Jenna then said "We can't be seen going home together, I don't wanna be seen with you" It made Y/N's heart ache, is she that fucking bad in Jenna's perspective to the point that she doesn't want to be seen with her? Y/N just swallowed down the pain that she feels.

"Yeah, I messaged Enrique, he will meet us at the entrance and I'll make sure to not be seen with you." with a heavy sigh, Y/N supported Jenna to walk out of the bathroom through the crowd of people inside the party and into the entrance.

"Jenna, Enrique said he'll meet us at the front" Y/N notified and it made Jenna shakes her head "No... Y/N Nooooo" Jenna whined, it made Y/N chuckle, if she can have Jenna like this every time, not wanting to cut her throat, or sending sarcastic comments, she would make Jenna drink alcohol for as long as she wants, but she knows she can't.

But like their situation right now, Enrique can't really enter so they need to meet him in front.

"Jenna, I'm very sorry but we really need to meet him in front" Y/N said and telling to the security that they will go out of the establishment, which the security ushered them to.

Flashes of light welcomed them to the outside world, not far enough Y/N saw Enrique waiting for Jenna. "Thanks, I'm really sorry I can't meet you inside" Enrique said which Y/N answered "It's okay, take care, I'll be back inside"

___

"WE CAN SEE YOU: Jenna Ortega and Y/F/N Y/L/N seen going home together after the after party for the MET GALA"

Actress Jenna Ortega and Singer Y/F/N Y/L/N seen together leaving the after party hand in hand. But before this, they are also seen in the red carpet, fans capturing how the singer look at the actress. They have also been asked with questions pertaining to them being together but the both of them swam around the topic. Another photo of them was released mingling by the the bar inside the MET, having all smiles and flirting with each other.

Their fans have been speculating that they were together ever since High School and just kept it lowkey due to their reputation and their careers. The fans also tried to make sense of Y/N's released songs and connected it to the actress, which can somehow make sense, but we can't be for sure knowing that the singer also have a list of exes.

The fans and the media seemed to not disagree and hate their dynamic, instead they hope that what they speculate is real, knowing and seeing how beautiful they look together.

Stay tuned for the latest update towards our favorite couple, or may I say duo? Who knows, right?

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A/N: Hope you enjoy this new series, thoughts?

Chapter 2

[captainlunaxmen]

Panic 2.0

Chapter 1

Dodge Mason x fem!reader x Ray Hall

This is a rewriting of my old series on @lunamadhatter99, I decided to rewrite it because the series wasn't completed, and I didn't like it that much anymore.

Let me know what you think and if you want to be tagged in the next chapters.❤️❤️❤️

Chapter summary: graduation day!

Chapter warnings: none.

Tag list.

@stuckinthesmalldoor @once-upon-an-imagine

@idontevenknow1359

Relief is all I feel right now in the auditorium, waiting for Graduation to begin. I patiently sit with the other students waiting for my name yo be called, next to me my closest friends: Natalie, Heather and Bishop. I look behind me, a few rows behind I spot the new guy, Dodge Mason. I gently smile at him and he smiles back, we bonded a lot since he arrived last year, which is something that makes me proud, since he's not known for being the most open person here.

Graduation is the first step out of here, out of Carp, Texas, which all of us call the capital of Nothing.

The second step would be the local summer game: Panic. It's easy to explain Panic: you play and if you win, you're out of here. What's the catch? It's in the name, Panic, the challenges aren't exactly children friendly.

And, funny enough, the game has one simple rule: do not panic.

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

"Is your aunt coming?" Heather asks me as we walk out of the building. Natalie and Bishop being congratulated by their families.

"Nah... I didn't even get a text, I don't think she will show up." I shrug, "what about your mother?"

Right before she could answer a sweet little voice calls Heather's name.

"They're here." She smiles, almost apologetically to which I respond with a reassuring smile.

"Guess I'll see you tonight." I chuckle.

"You don't have much of a choice." She laughs walking off.

I dare to take a look around for my aunt, but as expected, no one in sight.

"Congratulations, Y/n." I turn around seeing Natalie with his father walking to get their picture taken.

"Thank you, officer!" I wave at him and Natalie and start to walk off too.

I take just a few steps before another voice calls for me.

"Y/n!"

I turn around once again, watching Jessica, Dodge's mother, walking towards me with Dodge next to her.

"Hi, Jessica." I smile, warmly at her.

"Congratulations, sweetheart." She hugs me tightly once sheclose enough, Dodge sends me and apologetic yet amused smile.

"Thank you." I say pulling away, "so nice to be finally done." I laugh.

"I bet." She smiles brightly, I notice her looking around.

"She won't be here." I casually say, Jessica looks at me, sorry.

"Do you need a ride home?" Dodge cuts in, sensing the beginning of embarrassment.

"Oh... no, no, I'm good." I quickly say.

He looks at me unconvinced, then hums.

"We'll give you a ride. C'mon." He motion on and starts to walk without waiting for my answer. Jessica smiles proudly and walk away as well, so I have no other choice but to accept and follow them.

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

"I think I already know the answer but... Will I see you at tonight's party?" I ask, as I step out of Dodge's car.

"You definitely know the answer." He smile at me and I sigh, nodding defeated.

"You're lucky I'm not like Natalie, or you wouldn't hear the end of it." I say.

"I tried to make him change his mind, but he's stubborn." Jessica chimes in from the driver seat.

"Yeah, it's one of the first things I learned about him." I laugh, "but I can't say he's wrong. I'm not a party person myself."

"You're young, enjoy these years, trust me." She tells us, using a sweet and motherly tone.

"We do enjoy them differently." Dodge replies smugly.

"I agree" I support him and Jessica just rolls her eyes with a smile, "I'll see you tomorrow at work then."

"Of course." He smiles.

"Be careful tonight, sweetheart."

"Drive safe!" I say walking to my house.

Well, my aunt's house, but since she's never here, it might as well be mine.

My phone rings once I change into something more comfortable.

Natalie, of course.

"Yes" I greet with a laugh, "I promised, I know."

"Oh good, you're making my job easier." She cheerfully replies. "I'll get there around 8? Does it work for you?"

"I don't have much of a choice so... yeah." I laugh.

"Wear something cute. We have to celebrate! Wear that cute dress you wore at my birthday party." She suggests at the end.

"Do you want to control what I wear now?" I scoff out a laugh.

"You're just so cute in that! C'mon!" She insists, "I'm making my puppy eyes."

"That doesn't work if I can't see you, you know that, right?"

"But you know what I look like." She sings trying to get me to agree.

"Fine.." I sigh, deeply, letting out a laugh too, "fine, I'll wear that stupid dress."

"Hey! It's not stupid! It's cute!" She scolds me jokingly. "I'll see you tonight, bye!"

"Bye!" I say having up the phone and heading ot my wardrobe to take out the short dress Natalie referred to.

To pass the time I'll clean around for a while, just to keep my mind busy. If I start to think, I'll end up thinking about Panic and I really don't want to think about it right now. I don't want to risk thinking too much and then back down. I'm taking the risk this time and I'm determined to win.

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

We arrive at the already started party, Natalie parts from us to go greet some friends of hers, while I go find Heather and Bishop.

I spot them near the fire, drinks in hand already so I make my way to them.

"Hey." I say taking a set next to Heather.

"Hey Y/n. You came!" Bishop cheers, surprised.

"Natalie forced her to promise she would be here." Heather explained, simply.

"Exactly. Can't break a promise." I sigh, but glad I spend time with them.

"We're happy you're here." Bishop nod towards me, "you're just in time, we were-"

Ray's loud voice interrupts him mid-sentence.

"Oh god.." I sigh, Heather pats my arm comfortingly.

Ray gets close enough to shove the cup against Bishop.

"Final collection." He, basically, demands.

"School's out, okay? I'm not even playing." Bishop replies, raising both hands up.

"Think of it as an insurance." Ray says bending over to get on Bishop's eye level, "it's gonna be one he'll of a summer."

"C'mon, man, I'm not gonna play." Bishop tries once again, with a nervous laugh.

Suddenly Ray grabs his arm, it looks painful from Bishop's expression.

"We're all playing, one way or another," Ray says, not letting Bishop go.

Heather looks at me, pleading, and I sigh.

"Ray, leave him alone." I warn.

He turn his attention to me, looking me up and down until a smirk appears on his face.

"Well, well, well... did you dolled up for me?" He asks.

"No." I answer.

"Are you sure, baby? You know I love you in that dress..." he says, staring at my legs.

"You say that about everything..." I say annoyed.

"That's because you are my favourite." He winks and gets closer.

"Could you leave us?" I ask.

"Mmh?" He hums, then bends over, the cup rests quietly on the ground, he then puts his hands on both armchair, caging me.

"Listen, I know you have some trouble understanding human language, but this is pretty basic." I say and his smirk only grows.

"You can lie to yourself, but not to me. We both know the truth." He says and I catch him looking down at my lips.

"If it helps you sleep at night." I turn my head to find some support in my friends, but they only loom unsure of what to do.

"I do think of you at night, actually, if that's what you're wondering, but I don't... sleep exactly." He leans closer.

"You're disgusting." I push him away.

"Took you long enough to push me away." He winks again, "see you soon, baby."

And with that Ray finally walks away with his cup.

"Prick." I mutter out, takingn a sip of my drink.

"Hey," Heather calls for us, "a toast. To global amnesia."

I nod, grateful, at her and raise my cup.

"Nah..." Bishop says, "selective. There's a few things I want to remember."

I notice Heather and Bishop looking at each other, something passing through their mind and I would swear There's something going on between these two.

As we toast, Natalie finally joins us.

"Hey, what did I miss?" She asks.

"We were toasting to a future free of Ray." I answer her.

"And who will you angry flirt with?" She teases.

"Uh?"

"That guy sucks." Bishop intervenes, to which I nod.

That's how the evening goes, we talk, remembering the good old days, while Bishop and Heather also try to talk me and Natalie out of playing Panic... no success on their part.

"Let's go dance!" Natalie exclaims, to change subject. She grabs Heather's arm and goes to grab mine too, but I manage to avoid it.

"I'll sit this one out." I say, I notice Natalie's stare, "I never promised I would dance."

She scoff and grabs Bishop, who gives me a helpless look and I just shrug waving at him.

I decide to just stay seated and enjoy my beer and my peace.

"Waiting for me?" Ray's infamous voice makes me groan annoyed.

"Obviously not. Now if you don't mind leaving me alone." I say, not looking up at him.

"I do mind. Especially when you play hard to get, you know how much I love it." He replies, sitting down and dragging the seat right next to me.

"I'm not playing anything. I simply don't like you." I tell him and he leans closer to me.

"Yeah... sure." He softly says, looking down at my lips.

"It's not gonna happen again." I warn.

"Let's bet, then."

"Uh?" I can't deny I'm intrigued.

"I know, you like challenges, so let's bet." He says, confidently looking into my eyes.

"Bet what?" I ask, pretending not to be interested, but his smirk only shows me he see right through it.

"If I win Panic, you'll be mine." He says, looking at my lips again, biting his own.

"Yeah, sure." I laugh at that, taking a sip from my beer.

"Too scared?" He teases.

"No." I, too quickly, answer.

"C'mon," he whispers, "you're sure I'm not gonna win, right?"

"What I get if I win, uh?" I ask, raising my eyebrow.

"I'll leave you alone. Even though we both now you don't actually want that." He winks and stands up.

I consider him for a moment before nodding my head, standing too.

"Fine." I say.

He takes my beer and take a sip from it.

"Deal." he holds out his hands waiting for me to shake it.

"Deal." I sigh, taking his hand to shake it.

He hold my hand for a moment before he pulls me to him so he can whisper into my ear.

"Can't wait, baby." He leaves a peck on my ear and I quickly move away from him.

He smirks and starts to walk back, my beer in hand, before nodding his head and fully turning to walk away.

"Shit." I sigh.

I go look for Natalie and tell her I'm about to get going, since I have work tomorrow.

She tries his best to keep me here and celebrate, with Heather and Bishop's help, but I did my part and it's time for me to go and get some rest.

They reluctantly let me go, Natalie offers to take me home, and since it's already too dark I accept.

I can't wait to lay down on my bed, hopefully forgetting about the bet for a while.

[sillymicox3]

The Savannah Kids Headcanons (Mostly stupid or smth)

-It would be a funny thing if Aiden were to drive a car the others would be scared to death because of Aiden's recklessness.

-At some point Logan and Ash are comfortable with each other that Logan can freely go in Ash's house. Mike and Emma don't mind it and they welcome him like he's also their child.

-Whenever there's thunderstorms Ashlyn would be under her blankets with her noise cancelling headphones on and would say to herself "I'm a teenager, I'm not a child so I'm not going to my parents" only to find herself cuddled up to her parents 1 minute later.

-Speaking of thunderstorms the twins also can't handle them and would go to their mother.

-Whenever Logan wants to visit Ash at midnight he would text her and the first thing he says is 'knock knock I know you're in there come out now'. At some times Ashlyn would mistaken him as a hacker that knows her address so now she has a bat on her side of the bed and would carry it when Logan messages her. (Sometimes would hit Logan, but Logan would dodge it because it's becoming a routine)

-When Tyler and Ashlyn get mad at each other the others form a circle around them and bet who's going to win the battle.

-Ashlyn and Logan once found a dog. Whenever Aiden tries to recklessly play with it Ashlyn beats the shit out of him mentally. Logan tries to set it free because it kept on shitting.

-Speaking of dogs since Logan keeps on forcing Ash to watch horror movies, as a payback she let's loose a random stray dog in Logan's room and the dog ended up shitting next to Logan.

-Ashlyn has a soft spot for dogs. Whenever she's infuriated at Aiden he would pull out a random picture of a puppy and she would go "aww". It's Aiden's only chance of living.

-When Aiden plays monopoly he would laugh like a mad man every time he does something. He also used the money as a fan to give "rich kid vibes".

-They share the same playlist. Aiden would add questionable songs and Taylor or Tyler would be the ones to remove them to save the other's innocence (if they have one).

-When Tyler's angry as fuck he would use a nearby object no matter how heavy it is as a weapon and would throw it at someone. If he can't, he'll destroy it. If he can't then he'll use his shoe (inspired by a fellow classmate of mine)

-As a child when Aiden was home alone he would jump down the stairs to feel adrenaline and when he broke one of his ankles he would walk it off (based on a true story of mine ig)

-When the gang was hanging out in Ash's house Ashlyn once let out a loud, blood curling, ear piercing scream. Only because there was a snake in the kitchen.

-Ben and Taylor are scared of My Little Pony because Aiden showed them those MLP infected slideshows on tiktok.

-When Tyler first played baseball he accidentally threw the bat when he tried to hit the ball and the ball ended up hitting his nose.

Yeah that's all ig. They're pretty stupid and inaccurate.

[raineandsky]

#127

The lock on the door is an easy pick, and with one final touch the door clicks open and allows the villain inside.

Now, the villain is usually well above petty crime. He’s done his fair share of thieving. He’s pick-pocketed, he’s robbed, and yeah, sure, he’s broken into places here and there. But his life is actually fun now, thanks to a villainous promotion and some less of the dirty work, and so stealing ended up rather low on his list of fun weekend activities.

It’s not a weekend, though, and it sure as hell isn’t fun either. This is business, and goddamn if the villain isn’t a professional.

He glances at the screen of the phone in his hand, checking and rechecking the picture he took of the supervillain’s instructions. If only the supervillain wasn’t trained to be a doctor, his handwriting might be somewhat legible. He is though, unfortunately, and the villain is wishing he’d just typed up the words when he had the time before.

I’ve had a ‘tip’ on [Hero]’s address. The villain can just about make the words out. It’s like a word puzzle, which he is notoriously bad at already. I have reason to believe she’s got some important documents in there. Infiltrate, find her stash of secrets, and bring it in.

Easy enough. The fun part of stealing was usually finding the most expensive object, though, and the villain has an inkling that some paperwork won’t exactly make him a millionaire. He tucks the phone into his pocket, taking a moment to adjust his eyes to the darkness before shutting the door behind him and exploring.

He finds a living room, a bathroom, a kitchen, the fridge, ooh she has good taste. The villain plucks a punnet of grapes from the fridge and tosses one into his mouth. The supervillain has him on late nights—he doesn’t have time for dinner at the moment. The hero will have to survive without her grapes.

The office feels like stumbling across a mine of incredibly boring, inexpensive gold. The villain takes to rooting through the piles of papers mounting on the desk. All plain, civilian problems—bills, taxes, a newsletter from the mayor. Nothing exactly incriminating.

“What are you doing in my house?”

Who the hell is awake at three in the morning? The villain wasn’t that loud coming in. He turns dramatically, expecting to make his first introduction to the hero, but he isn’t faced with the hero. He isn’t faced with a hero at all.

An old lady is standing in the doorway, her glasses perched wonkily on her nose and a baseball bat in her hands. The bat is kind of menacing, at first, but then she has to awkwardly adjust her glasses and the illusion is gone.

The villain’s mind is short-circuiting. That’s not a goddamn hero. What the hell has the superhero gotten him into? What the hell is he meant to do with a bat-wielding civilian?

“You’re deaf as well as unlawful,” she adds drily.

“No, no.” The villain's cool demeanour is slipping too fast. “No, I can hear just fine, thank you.”

“You haven’t answered my question.”

“What question?”

The bat taps pointedly against the woman’s palm. She’d probably injure herself trying to swing it at him. That thought alone is vaguely comforting. Only vaguely, though—she’s still wielding a baseball bat.

“What are you doing in my house?”

“I am here,” the villain starts slowly, “to rob you blind.”

He doesn’t know what else to say. He didn’t expect to run into anyone, much less a civilian, much much less a little old lady. He’s running on a bank of prewritten sentences he used in his thieving days, and for some reason the least helpful one is the one that wants to be said.

The woman’s face scrunches up in an emotion the villain can’t read. At first he thinks it might be distress, or perhaps fear, but then she raises the bat and he realises that, oh, no, that’s actually unbridled rage.

She brings it down in an arc and the villain just about dodges to the side. She doesn’t seem to mind the fact the bat absolutely annihilates her desk in his stead. Jesus Christ, is that thing made of steel?

He may be a villain, and villainy may require a certain amount of balls, but this is where he draws the line. The old lady swings again, crashing into the glass cabinet a hair’s width away from the villain’s face, and he decides that no, he’s not dealing with this shit tonight.

He scrambles for the window, throwing himself out onto the fire escape stairs with his new nemesis in tow. She makes one last swipe at him as he takes the stairs down two at a time.

“I’ll bash your head in next time!” she shrieks after him.

It’s only when the villain is safely on the other side of the building that he slows down. He pulls his phone out, sucking in a deep breath, and unlocks it to look at the superhero’s note again. Really scrutinises it. Then it clicks. He sees the problem.

That’s not a 6. It’s an 8. He was on the wrong goddamn floor.

He stares blankly at the screen for a moment. He’s too old to be putting up with this shit.

He shoves his phone back in his pocket, heaves a age-old sigh, and lets himself back into the building for round two.

[cutecurly-hair]

Hearts Unleashed (Part 5)

Pairing: Nick Nelson x Black!fem!reader

Warning: Fluff, Smut, Body Shaming

Words: 5,738

The weekend flew by, and before I knew it, Monday had arrived with its usual speed. I found myself back in the same classroom, at the same place and time, but something felt a little different. Nick and I had been texting non-stop over the weekend. It was just casual conversation, nothing special, but for some reason, it made me inexplicably happy.

I noticed a bunch of curly black hair in front of me. Charlie and I hadn't talked since that day. I sent him a bunch of texts, but he didn't reply. I checked with Ellie and Tao, and they hadn't heard from him either. It wasn't just me he was avoiding; it seemed like he was avoiding everyone.

Interrupting my thoughts, Nick said, "This is Nellie," showing me a picture of his dog, and she was the cutest thing in the world.

"Oh, my god, she's so cute! I've always wanted to have a pet, but ever since our cat died when I was little, we just never got a new one," I said, a tinge of sadness in my voice.

Nick's brows furrowed in concern, a cute little habit that I couldn't help but notice when he was puzzled or concerned about something. "You know, maybe you should come round to my house and meet her. Plus, my mom has been bugging me to invite you over" he suggested. I couldn't contain the smile that spread across my face, I don't know if it was because of Nick's mom has been asking about me or Nick inviting me to his house.

"Are you free on Saturday?" he asked hopefully, his brown eyes searching mine.

"Yeah, I think so," I replied, feeling a flutter in my stomach.

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ +

"Charlie! Charlie! Wait up!" I yelled across the bustling school hallway, dodging through students those rugby drills are finally proving some use.

Finally catching up to him, I took a moment to catch my breath. "What happened with you? I've been calling and texting you. I was even this close to coming to your house to make sure you were alive," I said, demonstrating the minuscule gap between my thumb and forefinger to prove my point.

Charlie turned to me, his face a mix of surprise and sheepishness. "Sorry, I've been dealing with some stuff, and I needed a bit of space. Didn't mean to worry you."

I crossed my arms, trying to hide my concern behind a facade of annoyance. "A simple 'I need space' text would have sufficed, you know."

He scratched his head, a nervous grin appearing on his face. "Yeah, I know. I'll keep you in the loop next time. Promise."

As we walked, the tension melted away, and our usual banter resumed. Charlie might not be telling me everything, but our friendship stayed solid, thankfully.

"Ugh, I've got a ton to catch you up on," I exclaimed, pulling him into a tight hug. His laughter filled the air. "Do I detect some juicy gossip?" he teased, a cheeky grin spreading across his face. Even though I haven't talked with him for a couple of days, I still couldn't help but miss him. I had every right to be mad, but I knew deep down Charlie was keeping something from me, but it was within his right to tell me when he is ready.

"Oh, you have no idea," I replied, joining in the laughter.

"You look fine, sweetheart," my mother remarked as she emerged from the archway. She must have noticed my tenth attempt at fixing my hair and the frustrated sigh that accompanied it. Admittedly, I may or may not have put on a little makeup. Sensing my mom's curious gaze, I decided to address it before she could.

"I'm going to a friend's house. I'll be back around 5," I informed her, trying to keep it casual.

"Are you heading over to Charlie's?"

I hesitated for a moment, then replied, "Um, no, his name is Nick," hoping my response would slip past without her catching the name. My mother, sensing something, walked over to me and handed me my coat and gloves, well aware of my tendency to get cold easily. I was honestly not made for cold weather.

"Is this a boy from school? You know how I feel about you going to somebody's house," she probed, hinting at her concerns. I knew I had to choose my words carefully to navigate this conversation if I wanted to be allowed to leave the house.

"He's my classmate in English. I want him to look over my paper that's due next week," I lied, maintaining a calm tone and hoping she wouldn't see through the deception.

"You've never needed help with your papers before. You're really good at writing," she remarked, clearly skeptical of my story.

"This paper is 50% of my grade. I have to do well on it," I asserted, emphasizing the importance of the assignment and knowing that grades were a language my mother understood well. Having dealt with her expectations back home, I knew I had to convince her to let me go.

She looked pleasantly surprised. "Yes, you're right. Grades are important. I'm surprised I didn't have to remind you," she smiled, genuinely pleased to see me showing concern for my academic performance. Seizing the moment, I quickly put on my coat and gloves, ready to head out the door.

"Come back in time for dinner!" she yelled as I walked away. I gave a quick nod to show I heard and hurried off before she could ask more questions.

My hands were practically freezing, despite the gloves doing a lousy job of keeping the cold out. I stubbornly kept them on, pulled my coat tighter, and power-walked down the street. The bone-chilling London winter seemed to pierce right through me, making me pick up the pace even more.

I stood there for a moment, torn between knocking and ringing the doorbell. My indecisiveness was playing its usual tricks on me. But before I could finally decide, the door swung open. There was Nick, giving me a gentle smile.

"Hey," he greeted. It was kinda unexpected to see him so chill and casual, a side of him I hadn't really seen beyond the school environment.

"Hey," I smiled back, deciding to ditch my gloves that weren't doing much to fight off the cold anyway.

Nick made a gesture towards a delightful chocolate and white mix Border Collie. "Uh... this is Nellie."

"Hey, Nellie. You're so adorable," Reaching down to pet the dog behind its ears. The warmth of Nellie's fur against my hand brought an unexpected comfort, making the chilly weather outside seem momentarily forgotten.

"Did you do something with your hair?" he asked, his eyes locked onto my puff ponytail that had consumed a good chunk of my morning. Lately, I'd been experimenting with new hairstyles, breaking away from my usual braids.

I immediately reached up to touch my hair, a hint of worry crossing my face. "Wait, is it bad?"

He shook his head without hesitation, offering a reassuring grin. "No, you look… it looks great." His compliment made me feel like the effort I put into styling my hair that morning was totally worth it.

"Okay, you better come in before Nellie thinks we're going for a walk," he said, his eyes lingering on mine for a moment longer than necessary.

"Okay"

Walking into his house, I couldn't help but notice how incredibly homey it was. The place just radiated coziness, making it clear that it wasn't just a house; it was a warm and welcoming home. Definitely nothing compared to mine, my house was just cold and empty still filled with boxes. I noticed a few portraits on the wall, nowhere really of his dad. Which I have nothing to brag since my parents have been divorce.

He led me upstairs to his bedroom, which I couldn't help but feel uneasy, like it was way to personal...like I shouldn't be here. But as soon as I saw his room it was very clean...? Definitely not what I was expecting.

Nick saw the look on my face "What? What's wrong?" he asked looking around confused. I couldn't help but chuckle, breaking a smile "It's so clean in here...it's weird," But overall, it suits him with the rugby poster littered all over the walls with a cute little light hanging over his bed. There it was again, that small hint of vanilla, smoke and a mix of musk but the musk was a lot stronger.

Dramatically, he placed his hand over his chest, gasping, "Are you seriously thinking that I am weird because I know how to clean,"

"I just never expected something like this," I said, gesturing to the room. Walking around, I noticed a few books on the shelf. "Especially for a rugby player. I mean, aren't you guys supposed to be dirty, by default?" I picked a book off the shelf, the title reading "Le Petit Prince (French Edition)."

A French Novel?

Sensing my curiosity, Nick blushed, swiftly taking the book from my hand and putting it back on the shelf. "My dad gifted it to me, but I barely read it," he admitted, a touch of embarrassment in his expression.

Sensenig that his dad was a sour subject I decided to drop it. Still observing his room, noticing the little trinkets of action figure and posters, until my eyes landing on the little snacks on the TV stand plus Mario Kart next to the Nintendo, excitement bubbled up within me as I took in the familiar sight.

"You have Mario Kart!" I exclaimed, my eyes lighting up at the sight of the game. Memories of playing it flooded back.

Nick's eyes beamed. "You like Mario Kart? Do you know how to play?" he asked, a playful smile on his face.

I nodded. "Me and my Dad used to play all the time when I was little. I still do, just never really picked it back up," I said, shrugging.

"Do you want to play?" he asked, holding the Nintendo playfully.

I smiled. "You don't even have to ask."

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ +

"Come on, Come on I'm in the lead! Can you just let me win" Nick yelled, he was particularly begging at the point.

"It doesn't matter cause you're not going to win," I smirked. He's literally the King of Rugby and practically wins at everything. This is one thing I'm really good at, so I am definitely not going to let him win.

"Can you let me win one time? You've won five or six games."

"I am literary going easy one you,"

"No!" he groaned at the screen when he saw my Princess Peach cross the finish line. I couldn't help but laugh at his reaction.

"You need more practice, Nick. Maybe I can give you some tips," I teased, reveling in the playful banter. It was one area where I knew I could outshine the rugby star.

He pouted, "I don't need tips. I just need a fair chance." The adorable pout he sported was enough to make anyone's heart melt.

"I think this is just Karma kicking you in the ass; you can't be good at everything," I said sarcastically, while grabbing a little popcorn.

He nodded in agreement, "No, you're exactly right. You're just good at everything," he admitted.

"No, I'm not," I chuckled. But there was something in the way he looked at me, and it's been happening a lot lately. I can't quite figure out why he has this knack for making me feel this way. It's as if a single glance from him is all it takes to turn me into a bundle of nerves.

"You are. You're a proper little nerd. And you don't even know it."

"I am not!" I protested, playfully nudging him.

"Let's see. You're good at video games. Literally all school subjects, but especially math's. Amazing at photography. Befriending dogs, and you are good a sports manager. Like I have never seen our gear so clean before-"

"Shut up!" I interrupted in a playful groan, feeling warm flush spread across my cheeks. Covering his mouth, while pushing him onto the bed. It seems this was the only way of shutting him up.

"You know it's true," he mumbled from beneath my hand, a blush coloring his cheeks. "Get off me. Seriously, get off," he added with a laugh, the room filled with our shared laughter.

The laughter quickly faded, leaving a lingering warmth between us. I don’t understand this feeling, I have never felt this way before. Our eyes were saying one thing, but our bodies were saying another. In that stillness, I became aware of the soft sound of snow falling outside.

"Oh, my god" I was star-stuck looking out the window.

His eyes followed mine, and as he turned to the window, a quiet gasp escaped his lips.

"It's snowing."

We just look at each other we didn't have to say anything, we jumped up from the bed, rushing down the stairs putting our coats on. The air was charged with anticipation, I was on the brink of witnessing snow for the very first time in my fifteen years. Nick handing me a hoodie in the process.

I shook my head refusing the offer, but he only shoved it back in my face,

"You were freezing when I first saw you this morning," he chuckled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. But he wasn't taking no for an answer.

I couldn't help but laugh, realizing he had a point. Gratefully accepting the hoodie, I slipped it on, feeling the warmth envelop me trying to ignore his overwhelming scent.

"It's a bit big," you said, glancing at the blue fabric draping down to my knees.

"It looks good on you," he said breathlessly, he was looking directly at me. Two compliments in one day, that was definitely something.

It was absolutely beautiful outside, the cold didn't bother me as much as before, it may or may not have something to do with the hoodie I was wearing.

Nick wasted no time sticking his tongue out to catch the tiny snowflakes. His cheeks had a rosy flush, and there was something about the way the light hit his hair, making it look a bit browner. He looked marvelous.

Caught staring, I locked eyes with him, and there was a fleeting smile on his face. Before I could fully process it, he playfully threw a whole snowball at me, leaving me in disbelief. I hurriedly made a makeshift snowball. It instantly became a snowball fight.

For a moment, just a moment everything seemed perfect, the way he laughed when Nellie was eating the snow. To when he brushed the snow off my hair. The way he took pictures of me when I made snow angles. When he laid beside me all I did was listen to him talk any and everything.

It was just perfect.

I couldn't shake the knot in my stomach, and suddenly, those stolen glances and shared moments held a new weight. When he looks at me, it's like he's seeing something beyond the surface. There's this intensity in his gaze, and I can't help but admire the way he looks at me. The way his eyes light up when he smiles, the little expressions that make him uniquely him. The realization hit me -

I have a crush on Nick Nelson

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ +

"Are you even listening to what I'm saying?" Ellie snapped her fingers in front of my face, trying to grab my attention. My eyes, however, were glued to the three little bubbles dancing across my screen, eagerly awaiting Nick's response.

Ellie couldn't resist taking a peek at my screen, and a knowing smirk crept onto her face as she shook her head. "Oh, I see what's got you all distracted now."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm listening," I mumbled, tearing my eyes away from the screen to meet Ellie's amused gaze.

She chuckled, leaning back in her chair. "Nick, huh? The mystery guy who's got you glued to your phone?"

Blushing, I tried to downplay it. "We're just chatting, you know, about random stuff."

"Random stuff, right," Ellie teased, wiggling her eyebrows. "I've seen that look before. You've got the 'crush glow' all over your face."

Rolling my eyes, I shrugged. "Oh, come on. It's not like that. We're just friends."

Eyebrow raised; Ellie smirked. "Friends who text 24/7, interesting definition of friendship."

I sighed, realizing she saw through my attempt at nonchalance. "Okay, fine. Maybe there's a tiny crush. But seriously, don't make it a big deal."

Glancing out the window, I spotted Nick chatting with a pretty girl that I always seen around school. They were standing so close, and her laughter reached my ears even through the closed window. My heart sank as I watched them share a moment. She was effortlessly charming and ever so pretty, and the way Nick's eyes lit up in response made my stomach churn. It felt like they were in their own bubble, leaving me on the outside looking in.

Ellie looked at me and she frowned and nudged me gently. "Y/N, what's going on? You look like you've just seen a ghost."

I forced a weak smile, attempting to mask the turmoil inside. "Oh, nothing. Just caught up in my thoughts, you know?"

But Ellie wasn't buying it. She followed my gaze, her eyes narrowing as she took in the scene outside. "Oh...that's Imogen. That's one of Nick's close friends,"

"Oh, really?" I tried to sound casual, but I could feel a knot forming in my stomach. "Just a friend, huh?"

Ellie shot me a knowing look, her eyebrows raised. "Y/N, are you getting jealous?"

"What? No!" I protested a bit too quickly, my cheeks heating up. "I mean, why would I be jealous? We're just friends, like I said."

Ellie chuckled, clearly amused by my reaction. "Sure, just friends. a friend who you have a crush on."

I rolled my eyes, attempting to change the subject. "Let's focus on something else. What were you saying before about our plans for the weekend?"

Ellie raised an eyebrow, clearly not letting me off the hook that easily. "Smooth transition, but we'll get back to this later. Anyway, I was thinking we could do a little movie night at Tao's. We can bring some snacks, binge-watch our favorite films, and just unwind."

"Yeah, that sounds great," I replied, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling. "Movies and snacks sound like the perfect distraction."

As we continued discussing our weekend plans, my mind kept drifting back to Nick and Imogen. I couldn't help but wonder if there was something more between them. Were they just friends, or was there a deeper connection? The uncertainty gnawed at me, and I found myself absentmindedly scrolling through our previous texts.

The guys were practicing for an upcoming match, and I was just here cleaning the Rugby they have already gotten so dirty after a couple of throws. Occasionally, Nick would glance over in my direction, offering a reassuring smile or a quick wave.

"I can't believe they have cleaning rugby balls. Doing the dirty work while we get all the glory?" Charlie teased, nudging me with his elbow.

I chuckled, playfully swatting at him. "Someone's got to keep these in top-notch condition. Can't have you all playing with muddy balls, can we?"

Charlie raised an eyebrow. "Speaking of action, I noticed I haven't been seeing you lately. Any particular reason?"

I hesitated for a moment, debating how much to reveal. Finally, I decided to open up to Charlie, knowing he'd always knows what to do. "Well, I've been meaning to talk to you about that. You know, get some 'guy advice.'"

"I think I am the worse person to give 'guy advice'. especially now" Charlie looked down the ground.

Noticing the sadness in his eyes, I joked around with him "Oh come on, Charlie, don't be so hard on yourself. You're my go-to guy for advice, whether you like it or not."

He managed a small grin, "Alright, shoot. What do you need from my services this time?"

I sighed, glancing back at Nick on the field, his focused demeanor contrasting with the playful banter of the other players. "It's just... things have been different lately. We've been hanging out more, texting, you know, normal friend stuff. But I can't help but feel there's something more."

Charlie looked worried as soon as I brought up Nick's name, "Of course this is about Nick Nelson,"

I nodded, "Yeah, it is. I mean, we're friends, but there are these moments, these looks, and it makes me wonder if there's something more. And then today- I don't know... it just hit me differently."

Charlie glanced around to ensure no one was eavesdropping before he spoke. "Look, I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but there's something I think you should know."

My heart sank a little, and I furrowed my brows in concern. "What is it, Charlie? You're making me nervous."

He took a deep breath before continuing "Okay so Tao told me to tell you that-

"Wait why couldn't Tao just tell me himself?"

Charlie looked a little uneasy "Because Tao is Tao"

Great he still doesn't like me.

I shook my head, urging Charlie to continue. "Tell me what Tao said."

He took a deep breath before continuing, "Tao found out from a friend who is also friends with Nick, and he said that Nick is single. But he is super interested in this girl that was originally from the all-girls school."

I swallowed the lead in my throat "What girl,"

Charlie sighed looking out onto the field "Her name's Tara Jones,"

My heart sank as Charlie dropped the bomb about Nick's interest in Tara Jones. Her name replayed in my mind like an annoying song on repeat. I couldn't shake off the blame creeping in why did I let myself get attached? Was I just too naive, thinking there could be more between us?

Nick's wave from the field added salt to the wound. I managed a feeble smile and a wave back, but inside, it felt like a whirlwind of emotions. Watching him, I questioned every shared laugh and conversation we had. Were they all just leading up to this moment where he'd be drawn to someone else?

The game raged on in the background, but my world stood still in that painful moment of realization. The cheers from the crowd turned into distant echoes, drowned out by the pounding of my heart, echoing the rhythm of disappointment.

How can I be so stupid.

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ +

She was so beautiful, and I could see why Nick might be into her. Browsing through her social media, her confidence and elegance just stood out. It's something I feel like I lack. Her dark skin had this warm, rich tone that glowed in every photo. The more I looked, the more I found myself comparing. It made me question if I could ever match up to someone like her in Nick's eyes. The more I scrolled, the more I felt like an outsider peeking into a world that seemed so different from mine.

"See, I told you," Tao said, peering over my shoulder. Charlie shot him an annoyed look.

"Tao, come on, give it a rest. This doesn't necessarily mean anything," Charlie snapped.

"Like hell it doesn't," Tao retorted. I deeply sighed; their bickering wasn't making the situation any better. Isaac looked at me with a hint of concern.

"We don't even know if she actually likes Nick back," Isaac chimed in, attempting to offer some comfort.

Charlie scoffed, "I'm the one stuck seeing them in class every day, and trust me, it's nauseating. Believe me, he's into you," he added, shooting me a look.

Tao, fixing his gaze on Isaac, cautioned, "I've warned you about fueling romantic fantasies that just won't happen. Life isn't a romance novel, you know." ignoring Charlie reassurance.

"But I want to believe in romance." Isaac wined still looking hopeful. Our heads turned to the door when Ellie came in, Isaac immediately jumped at the chance "Ellie! So, there's this girl at school who Nick's got a crush on?"

"We've heard from multiple sources" Tao cut in, but Isaac completed ignored him "We don't know if they're a thing. Can you talk to her? Since she is in your year"

Isaac's hopeful gaze shifted to Ellie, who raised an eyebrow at his enthusiasm. "Whoa, slow down. First, spill the tea. Who's this mystery girl Nick's into?" Ellie said, playing dumb while glancing at me to check if it was Imogen we were talking about. I just quietly shook my head no

Tao chimed in, "Her name's Tara Jones. She was originally from the all-girls school."

Ellie crossed her arms, processing the information definitely wasn't expecting that. "Tara Jones? She's a sweetheart, I don't know Tara that well. I can just go up to her and ask who she fancies. And I'm, too busy being the cool, mysterious new girl, who everyone wants to hang out with."

Isaac quickly jumped back into the conversation, seizing the opportunity. "We just want to know if there's something going on between her and Nick. You know, for Y/N's peace of mind."

"I'm fine. It's honestly fine. I'm just being an idiot and overthinking things," This whole thing has been stressing me out, more than I realize. It's probably best if I cut my losses now before I get more attached.

Ellie gave me a sympathetic glance rolling her eyes while she sighed "Well, I can try to find out, but no promises, only if I get a chance I'll ask her,"

I flashed her a thankful smile, and Isaac promptly leaped into Ellie's arms. Sometimes, I forget how much of a hopeless romantic he is. Charlie joined in, gesturing for me to join them. Gratefully, I embraced the warmth of the hug. I realized I wouldn't know where I'd be without them.

Tao sat there, glaring, watching the scene.

The next school day rolled around, and I made a quick stop at the boys' locker room to check on inventory, making sure to steer clear of any awkward encounters, especially with Nick Nelson. Luckily, I managed to avoid any unexpected run-ins. However, as I strolled to my next class, it hit me that I'd be sharing a class with him soon. The knot in my stomach tightened, and a sense of unease settled in, a reminder of the events from the day before.

Waving at Charlie as I eased into my seat, a jumble of nerves hit me hard. Concentrating seemed like an impossible task, with my thoughts entirely hijacked by the looming encounter with Nick. What in the world was I even going to say to him, if I mustered the courage to say anything at all? The classroom blurred as my mind grappled with racing thoughts.

"Y/N?" he said, staring right at me with worried eyes.

Finally returning back to earth, I mumbled, "What?"

"You just spaced out," he observed.

Not knowing what to say, I managed a simple "Oh," fiddling with my blue pen, which oddly seemed to help with my nerves. Nick, sensing the habit, scooted closer to me. I swear I could feel his body warmth.

"What's up?" he said, looking directly at me. "I can tell when something's on your mind," he added in a hush, leaning even more closely.

Gosh, I hate the way he makes me feel. The way I act around him is ridiculous. I hate that every time he gets close, my heart races, every touch, every feeling. I hate all of it!

Why does he make me feel this way?

"Do you...Do you want to come to my house later?" I blurted out, causing for Charlie to peek over at me with panic eyes screaming What the hell are you doing!

He looked surprised, but all he can do is smile.

Mom is not going to be here until super late, so I can have the house all to myself. I cleaned from top to bottom of house, throwing all the boxes away and tightening up everything was squared away.

Hearing a knock at the door, it was him standing at my door smiling from ear to ear.

"Hey"

Opening the door for him, "Hey,"

"So, how does this work?" he asked hesitantly, glancing around the room as if unsure of what to capture with my old Canon. The way he held the camera was so awkward, it brought a smile to my face.

Figuring it was a fair trade after all the rugby lessons, I decided to teach Nick a thing or two about photography.

"You can take a picture of anything you like, really. It could be something beautiful, something that grabs your attention, or simply anything that intrigues you," I explained, observing him furrow his brows while peering through the viewfinder.

"Anything?" he asked, seeking confirmation.

I nodded, a spark of enthusiasm lighting up my eyes. "Exactly! That's the beauty of it. Photography allows you to freeze a moment in time, to capture something you love, like, or find amusing. It's incredible how a single image can encapsulate so much emotion, tell a story, or even memories."

Nick listened attentively, his curiosity evident. I continued, "You see, every photo has a story behind it. It's a way of preserving feelings, experiences, and moments that might otherwise fade away. You get to share your perspective with others through the lens, allowing them to see the world through your eyes."

As I spoke, I could see Nick growing more intrigued, absorbing the idea of photography beyond just pressing a button. "Give it a try," I encouraged, "Capture something that stands out to you, something you'd want to remember."

Right as I looked back at Nick, I noticed that fuck, he was looking directly at me. His eyes looked into mine and there it was again, that knot in my stomach. I didn't know what to do, I had completely froze. His eyes seemed different though-

Feeling a buzz in my pocket, I checked my phone. It was a message from my mom, letting me know she wouldn't be home until midnight and that there was lasagna in the fridge. A sigh of relief escaped my lips, knowing I wouldn't have to explain having a boy in my room when she returned.

Hearing a click, I turned to Nick, curious about what had caught his attention through the lens of my camera. "What did you take a picture of?" I asked.

"Just something that I thought was beautiful," Nick replied with a soft smile, his eyes lingering on mine. Raising my eyebrows confused but also curious. He didn't say anything at all, other than putting the camera down.

"Want to watch a movie?" he suggested,

"Already one step ahead of you," I grinned, pulling out one of my favorite Marvel movies.

We settled into the living room couch, time passes by, and my eyelids begin to grow heavy. Waking up to see the credits rolling I quickly sat up. I completely sleep through the whole entire movie.

Looking out the window, it was dark outside, looking at Nick he seemed to be tensed.

"I feel asleep, didn't I?" I chuckled.

Nick's lips curved into a gentle smile, "Yeah, you did. Must have been a comfortable couch."

I stretched my arms, attempting to shake off the drowsiness. "Sorry about that. I guess I needed the nap."

Nick shrugged, "No problem. You looked peaceful."

We sat quietly, the feel of the movie night still in the air. Even with the unexpected nap, the evening felt calm.

"I should probably head home," Nick said, glancing at the time. "It's getting late."

As he stood up, I walked him to the door. Opening it without caring about the cold air seeping in, the night possessed a certain calmness, and the air held a subtle tension, like the moment before something shifts.

"Thanks for inviting me over," Nick said, and for a moment, our eyes met in a way that spoke volumes, yet said nothing at all.

"I wish that you didn't have to go," I admitted, feeling the weight of the night settling in.

"I wish I didn't either," Nick confessed, a hint of reluctance in his voice.

"You look so cuddly like that," he added, his gaze lingering on my knitted sweater.

My eyes softened, and a playful grin tugged at the corners of my lips. "You think so?"

He nodded, smiling back at me. "Yeah, like a giant teddy bear."

I chuckled, feeling a warmth spreading through me that had nothing to do with the sweater. "Well, I guess I'll take that as a compliment."

Nick's cheeks turned a shade of pink, and he scratched the back of his head, a sheepish grin on his face "It's meant to be one," he replied, and we stood there for a moment, the unspoken words hanging in the air.

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, if I didn't have early morning practice, I might consider staying longer."

I felt a subtle warmth spreading through me. The casual banter, the shared laughter it all felt so easy and right. Yet, there was an unspoken tension, a magnetic pull that lingered between us.

"I guess I'll see you around," Nick said, but he didn't make a move to the open door; it looked like he wanted to say something else he just couldn't find the words.

As he stepped closer, the air between us seemed to shift, and before I knew it, he pulled me into a gentle hug.

Vanilla. Smoke. and Musk

I slowly wrapped my arms around, wanting to not let go, but he quickly pulled away, backing towards the door.

"Um… catch you on Monday," he mumbled, clearing his throat, his gaze fixed anywhere but on me. He melted into the night, leaving me standing there, gaping at the door, with a whirlwind of thoughts spinning through my mind.

Charlie casually peeked around the side of the door, and from the look on his face, it was clear he caught the whole thing.

"Still questioning if he's into you?" Charlie asked, shooting me a knowing look.

Part 6 Link Here: https://www.tumblr.com/cutecurly-hair/759302465187414016/hearts-unleashed-part-6

[obae-me]

Hi, are you taking requests? I really like your one-shots, they really help me in learning how to write emotions. So, what about the Demon Brothers getting injured for some reason (either because Lucifer punished them, or they were attacked by some creature, got into a fight, etc.), and MC notices it, even with the Demons best attempt to hide it, and decide to take care of the injuries. At first the boys are embarrassed and reluctant to accept their help, but quickly gave up and let MC take care of them. 👉👈

Anon...this is a beautiful request. I love love love hurt/comfort, especially whump tropes like these. I will absolutely do this. 100% I will do this, no questions asked. 

Although I owe you an apology because...this is another instance of mine where I take things...way too far...I should’ve known when I was almost 6000 words deep and had only briefly gone over three brothers, that I was in over my head once again...so...this is a big one...really big...well maybe not that big by fic standards, I don’t really know what the average fic holds...Anyways, enjoy! 

Rest Easy. I’m Here.

Word Count: 16,038

Warnings: Blood, Broken Bones, Bruises, Vomiting, Cuts, Concussions, Injury, Medication Use. A lot of general hurt for this hurt/comfort. 

(Please pay no mind to the fact that all these little picture banners are cropped slightly different sizes, consistency was never my strong suit.)

As Always, Read Safely! Please Enjoy! 

“Someone get Asmo!” 

“Satan, look out!” 

“My lord, Mammon can't dodge forever. He’s running out of stamina.” 

“Beel, don’t be stupid! Don’t be a hero, ya idiot! Beel!” 

“Belphie, take him away!” 

“Levi!” 

“Diavolo…we’re becoming overwhelmed, you need to leave.” 

“Absolutely not.” 

“You are royalty, and as such, I have to – Diavolo, move!” 

“Lucifer!” 

“They’ve been gone for a while…” You put down your D.D.D., placing it in your lap, a sigh coming from your chest as you stared at the front door to the House of Lamentation. How long had you waited here now, a few hours? Nearly felt like days. Every taunting tick of the clock twisted a new knot in your stomach. You knew they could take care of themselves, obviously they could. Their Deadly Sin titles weren’t just for show. There was probably very little they couldn’t handle, especially when they were all together…but…then why were they still not home? The moon might be ever-constant, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t extremely late. It was beginning to stretch into the early hours of the day now. 

They all had been suddenly called to meet Diavolo, Lucifer’s phone ringing at dinner, the prince summoning them immediately. Plates half-empty, they left. Now their dinner had gone cold…and so had the House. You couldn’t help but worry. It wasn’t too often all of them were needed at once, leaving you alone in this large and quiet mansion. None of them had answered your messages either, something else that was rather uncommon. Levi surely had his phone on him at all times, and Lucifer was pretty swift in responding to you as well, and despite Mammon’s fervent denial, he always leapt at his phone whenever you messaged him. But no, nothing. Just silence…Even the nocturnal critters outside appeared to abandon you, unable to hear their nightly cries. 

As your head tilted back, resting against the wall of the entrance-hall, you nearly drifted off. You had been sitting there for quite a while after all. If you did fall asleep, it made time warp, only feeling like a second, or perhaps it had just been rather perfect timing. The doors swung open, cold night air rushing gusting inside, the wind outside whistling as seven demons stumbled into the house. You scrambled to your feet, almost dropping your D.D.D. you’d left in your lap. Luckily you managed to catch it, shoving it in your pocket. “Welcome back!” Suddenly, the tenseness in your shoulders seemed to lift, the lungs in your chest not as tight. You could breathe easy now. 

They all looked tired, but quickly grinned as they noticed you...well a few of them did at least…actually only two of them. The others stuck to the shadows. “We’re back!” Asmo raised his arms in celebration, sounding much like normal to you, and yet…something felt…off. Maybe he was just exhausted, they had been out for hours at this point. 

“Sorry...we…took so long,” Satan spoke up, speaking at a strangely slow pace. Levi, not even looking at you, scrambled up the stairs to his room before he could speak. The demon of Wrath held his arms behind his back, a stance he hardly ever took, using his body to block off your view of Envy. “We got…caught up…in Student Council work.” 

“You did not need to wait for us,” Lucifer tilted his head…but even he seemed to not look at you quite as directly as he usually did. There was an odd air about him, a look in his eyes like he just remembered something he had forgotten. “It is late for us all. Let’s…get…” His voice got quieter and softer with each word. It seemed as if he was losing the energy to even form words, his head drooping ever so slightly. “...Some rest. You as well,” he addressed you, using an arm to usher his other brothers in the direction towards their rooms, some of them lowering their head from you strangely, some of them supporting the others up the stairs. 

None of them said anything else, and before you could even appreciate them all being home…they were gone. 

You had hoped the next morning, at breakfast, that things would return to normal. After sleeping it off, certainly the weirdness you had felt in the air would dissipate. Unfortunately…that did not seem to be the case. Most of the brothers didn’t even show up to breakfast. The only ones to arrive were Beel, Asmo, and Satan. Everyone else was gone. Asmo, with a smile over his face, tried to assure you all was well. “They’re probably still sleeping! Last night was a long night after all!” 

You raised an eyebrow, a little offended that they were clearly keeping something from you, but more worried than anything. “None of you are wearing your uniforms today,” you noticed, jutting the end of your utensil towards Satan and his common clothes, finding it difficult to eat your morning meal. 

Beel, after shoving a plateful in his mouth, somehow more voracious than usual, licked his lips and nodded his head at you comfortingly. “Diavolo gave us the day off.” 

“You can still head to classes though,” Satan chimed in. You noticed he was only using one arm to eat breakfast today. It was an odd detail to notice, but one you spotted nonetheless as he struggled to cut this morning’s pancakes. He always used a knife and a fork like a proper person, always getting irritated when someone else like Mammon would wedge the fork back-and-forth, tearing off the pieces and shoving it into his mouth. Now Satan was doing the very thing he ridiculed others for. 

Suddenly settling your utensils down, you straightened your back. “I think I’ll stay home too.” 

Each of the brothers looked at each other, flickering secret messages between them with only their eyes. Satan shifted uncomfortably in his seat, subtly wincing as he shrugged his shoulders. The next thing he said was the final nail in the coffin. Hell had frozen over today apparently. Either that or something was terribly, dreadfully wrong. “I don’t think Lucifer would like that very much.” 

“You never care what Lucifer thinks!” You suddenly shouted, a sick feeling in your stomach, your insides doing flips with anxiety. “What’s wrong with you all?” 

Apparently you surprised them all with your outburst more than you intended to. Beel suddenly started coughing, bending over in his seat. You stood up quickly, afraid he had started to choke, but Asmo beat you, making it to his little brother’s side in a rush. “Breathe, Beel, breathe…Eat slower, you can’t handle going too fast right now.” You could hear the faint wheeze in Beel’s voice, the pain in his lungs obvious, his arms hugging his own body. And yet, they still wouldn’t tell you. Not even when it was so abhorrently obvious that something had happened last night. The brother’s voices sounded muffled to your ears now, the stress fogging your senses. You faintly recalled Satan going up to take Beel to his room, Asmo the only one left. The demon of Lust cleared up the plates, doing so hoping you wouldn’t notice the way he gripped the tops of the chairs, guiding himself back to the kitchen with a hand pressed against the wall, limping. 

You had intended to remain steadfast in your stubbornness. If they weren’t going to go to classes, why should you? After all, you had stayed up almost all night, restless with worry. However, any dreams you had of staying home were dashed as the haunting doorbell to the House rang. None of the brothers were likely to answer it, and if it was a package or something of that nature, someone should probably grab it for them. Although, you knew well in the back of your mind that hardly any mail was delivered this early in the day. The idea of a package was better than more bad-news, you figured. You shuffled your way out of the dining room, rather downtrodden, opening the front door without preparing yourself to look a little less depressed. 

“MC?” You weren’t expecting to hear your name spoken by a voice so familiar. Taking a few blinks, you brought yourself out of the little slump you were in. “Is everything alright?” Simeon frowned, taking another step closer to the entrance. 

You had to quickly grin, although you knew it came off rather weak. “Just didn’t sleep a lot last night. What are you doing here?” 

A little figure jumped out from behind Simeon, almost like it was meant to surprise you. “We’re here to go to RAD together!” Luke beamed. He seemed so pleased, absolutely beside himself with joy at even just this simple thing. How did he never realize why everyone called him cute? 

The third figure outside nodded, waving at you in greeting. “Imagine our surprise when, out of the blue, all of us receive a text from Lucifer of all people, telling us to bring you to RAD.” Solomon looked quite pleased with himself. Although, that only made you feel warier. So none of them knew what was going on either? 

Simeon was the only one who seemed to share your confusion. “It’s not everyday that he asks for favors.” 

“It didn’t seem like a favor to me,” Luke scowled, unfortunately coming off more like a pout than anything. He folded his arms. “It was practically an order.” 

“Regardless of the reason,” Solomon waved his hand through the air, moving away from the brothers as the topic at hand. “Are you all ready to go?” He looked at you with a glint in his eye. That feeling in your gut still remained, but was slightly lessened. At the very least, the members of Purgatory Hall were as they usually were. Any form of normality you could get was gladly accepted. You nodded, taking a step forward and shutting the door of the House behind you. 

Simeon outstretched a hand towards you, perhaps sensing that you were feeling a bit down. You took it, feeling the warmth in his palms spread over you like a comforting blanket. Was it angelic magic or just simply his presence that calmed you so? “Don’t worry,” the angel attempted to assuage your anxiety. “If it were something threatening, Diavolo would certainly tell you about it, wouldn’t he?” 

Based on his track record…not really. Not as quickly as you would like him to anyway. Mysteries and riddles and royal duty be damned. You’d have to talk to the prince. 

You were one second away from knocking on the door to the student council office before it opened for you. Barbatos welcomed you with a calming grin, lowering his head in a little respectful bow as you stepped into the room. “We’ve been expecting you.” As the door shut behind you, you felt your shoulder gently touched by the butler’s gloved hand. He wasn’t often one to express emotion, or perhaps you’d gotten to know him well enough to tell that the slight lift to his brows was one of sympathy. “I’ve already prepared some tea as well as Devarian Cream Eclairs.” In a blink, he was over by a little table, pulling a seat out for you as Diavolo remained seated on the other side, waving you over with a grin, although even from here you could notice that his usual dazzling and thrilled smile was subdued. 

“You knew I was coming?” You took a few tentative steps before settling yourself in the chair, your hands rubbing themselves anxiously in your lap. 

Diavolo was the one who spoke up this time, nodding a bit as the corners of his mouth tugged downwards. “If I know my student council, you probably have many questions regarding last night, don’t you?” 

Your mouth felt a bit dry, and so you picked up the little teacup, smelling the sweet aroma before taking a little sip. “They didn’t tell me anything…” The teacup made a gentle noise as it settled back down on the table. You turned your head up at the prince, a pleading look in your eyes. You may not have had a pact with him and he might’ve been royalty while you were just a human, but you were hoping that the person sitting in front of you was not just the Demon Lord but Diavolo, your, dare you say, friend. Surely, he would answer your honest question. “Will you tell me what happened?” 

There was a flicker of guilt in his eyes as he spoke, and while Barbatos was naturally quiet, there was an eerie sort of silence about him, one that was abnormally noticeable. Diavolo paused but then explained everything to you. Apparently, every few millennia, an ancient Devildom Beast rises from its deep hibernation to feast. Left unchecked, it can go on a rampage, causing needless destruction and chaos. It typically follows a very regular schedule, the brothers and Diavolo able to create a plan and barrier to keep the monster away from civilization. However, without any warning, it suddenly arose, centuries early. No one could figure out why, and deep in your soul you wondered if this was somehow your fault. Strange things always happened when you were around, after all. Although, you knew it was rather silly to blame yourself for something like this. “Without any preparation, we were all forced to subdue it ourselves…and refusing it to feed naturally made it quite aggressive. There were…casualties…Forgive me.” 

Barbatos finally took a breath, shuffling a little closer to the prince. “Young Master–” 

“I will take the blame for this,” Diavolo, despite the guilt, raised his head proudly. “It was under my orders that this happened. And it was because I was there that–” He cut himself off as the words caught in his throat, something the prince was not known for. He couldn’t seem to finish his statement, but you could connect the dots. Here he was, hardly a hair out of place like usual. He had been protected. You knew the others, especially Lucifer, would do whatever it took to keep Diavolo safe. Before you really knew you were doing it, your body urged itself out of your seat, wrapping your arms against Diavolo’s body. You heard Barbatos take a sharp intake of air before letting it out in a gentle sigh. Normally, such actions like these towards the prince would’ve been unheard of, perhaps punishable even. You didn’t often like to think you were being given special treatment, but in this case, you were glad you were able to do something like give Diavolo this little embrace. You felt him chuckle, the power of his lungs rattling your ribs. He took your arms and lowered them, the smile back on his face, although perhaps a bit embarrassed that someone such as he needed an action as common as a hug to make him feel better. “I was hoping you would come see me, seeing as I have a favor to ask of you.” 

“A favor?” 

With a little nod, he glanced at Barbatos who helped you back to your seat, the butler’s hand settled on the back of your neck for just a moment, his subtle version of a thank-you. The prince cleared his throat, looking at you seriously. “I’d like you to help care for the brothers till they are back in good health. Knowing them, they’ll hide away from any of us till they are back to normal. Lucifer might be Pride, but it seems as if the stubbornness runs through all their veins. But you…they have a soft spot for you, even Lucifer.” There was a flicker of jealousy behind Diavolo’s eyes. Yes, they were close, but Lucifer’s respect would always hinge that tiny social barrier between them. “Besides, they might heal quicker with you by their side, and that’s beneficial for everyone involved. I know…it might be a lot to ask, but would you be willing to do this for me?” 

You couldn’t help but chuckle a little. “After everything we’ve all already gone through, do you even need to ask?” How many times had you been the one to clean up a mess caused by some magical or mischievous misfortune? And almost always, you were the only one unaffected by it all, always waiting for the others to return to normal. “I had planned on doing that anyway.” 

He closed his eyes as he sighed. “I had a feeling, but I never like to assume. I’m glad, though... If there’s anything Barbatos and I can do to assist you, don’t hesitate to ask.” 

“There is one thing,” you brought up, making the prince raise an eyebrow. “Can Barbatos make me a portal home?” Learning all this information suddenly made you feel antsy, practically itching to be back in the House’s familiar halls. “I feel like I’ve already been away from them long enough. I want to be there for them now.” 

Out of everyone, you figured Asmo would be the least likely to turn you away. He loved being pampered, and he seemed perhaps the most normal of the bunch. Besides, he might be willing to shed some more light on what happened to the others…and the severity of their injuries. You tried not to let the silence of the house overwhelm you as you prepared a little tray to take to Asmo. You filled it with lots of helpful but adorable things. A little yogurt cup with glistening and juicy fruits, an herbal tea that Barbatos recommended that was a rosy pink, a little vial of Devildom Medicine that you put a few stickers on in an attempt to make it ‘aesthetic’, and a few other things you just grabbed since you had no idea what Asmo was going through. Tray settled against your hip, you knocked on Asmo’s door. 

There was silence for a moment, but then a whine on the other end. “Whaaat? I’m trying to recover as much as you all are too, you know! Don’t make me get up.” 

It was clear to you that he assumed you were one of his brothers. You suddenly showing up might not be as thrilling of a surprise as you had thought it would be. “I can come in if you’d like.” 

Clattering could be suddenly heard from inside, a whimper of pain was made before the door swung open vivaciously, Asmo, wearing a silky nightgown, was leaning against the doorframe with one leg tucked behind the other. “MC, hun! What’re you doing home?” His eyes flashed down to the tray you were carrying. His smile faded, his bottom lip jutting out in a small pout. “Ah…Who told you?” 

“Diavolo.” You snuck past him in his room, settling the tray on the end of his bed. “He didn’t tell me absolutely everything though.” You suddenly turned around a hand on your hip. “What’s wrong with you? Out with it?” I sound too much like Lucifer, you thought to yourself. 

Much like you were expecting, Asmo gave in almost instantly, his eyes turning glossy with tears. He shut the door and moved away from the doorframe, one of his feet curled away from the ground. As you looked at his left leg, you noticed that from the knee all the way down, Asmo’s skin was covered in bruises, the tone to his complexion a different blend of purple, yellow, black, and even red. It was swollen. “It hurts…” The little crack in his voice broke your heart. You came over to him, offering your support as he settled an arm around your shoulders. You helped him limp back into bed, fluffing up the pillows behind his neck. 

“Why didn’t any of you tell me?” You shook your head a bit, looking down with a mixture of concern and disappointment. 

“And have you look at me this way?” A tear slid from the corner of his eye. You unconsciously brushed it away, his face leaning into your touch. “Just look at it…it’s hideous! I never wanted you to ever see me this way…” 

“Asmo…injuries happen.” You traced little hearts into his shoulder before you stood, getting to work. Grabbing some throw pillows from various pieces of furniture, you brought them next to his injured leg. “Can you lift it?” With a wince, he grabbed at his left thigh, lifting up his leg enough for you to place the pillows under. With a little flourish, you covered him with a blanket. “I brought you medicine. Barbatos said this kind should help with the pain. I also made you a little snack. You need to be well fed and rested. Do you want me to grab you some ice-packs?” 

The ever-usual confident Asmo appeared a bit meek at the treatment. “Yes…please. I tried going back downstairs for them but…” 

“No more getting out of bed,” you demanded. “You’ll just make it worse.” With a few steps, you moved over to the nightstand, grabbing the tray and settling it right next to Asmo. One of your hands brushed Asmo’s hair from his face. “I’ll be right back.” Some pink flared in his cheeks at your stern orders, but he didn’t stop you from rushing downstairs to try to find something to ice his leg with. Unfortunately, if the House did have ice-packs, they weren’t in the freezer. So, desperate measures called for frozen vegetables. You found a little hand towel in the kitchen, wrapping the pack up in that before heading back upstairs. You were pleased to find that he was in the middle of eating his snack with a little grin on his face. 

“MC…you’re so precious,” he praised you, almost purring at the mere sight of you. “You’ll be my nurse till I’m all better, right?” It was his best attempt at sounding like usual, but even the flirtatiousness of it was muted. He simply sounded exhausted. He settled down the little bowl as his arms outstretched towards you, waiting for you to come over and hug him. You placed yourself against his hip on the bed, letting him wrap his arms around you. His nose settled against the base of your neck, practically absorbing your affection as additional sustenance. Who knows? Maybe it did work that way for demons. Maybe they quite literally sucked the life out of you. Maybe that’s why Diavolo seemed to think they’d heal faster with you around. Little parasites…You parted from him after a while, holding the cold pack in your hands. 

“I’m going to place this on you. Are you ready?” You waited till he nodded before you settled the weight on his injured leg, covering his ankle and the better part of his calf. He winced, but after a minute, seemed a bit more relieved. You took this moment to curl up at his side, stroking his hair, watching the more strained and exhausted lines in his face fade. “Will you tell me more about what happened? I want to take care of all of you the best that I can, but I can’t do that if I don’t know anything.” 

“It all happened so fast…” He tried to snuggle into you without moving too much. “We were all just fighting to calm it down, but I got knocked out of the air and…it trampled my leg. I don’t remember the last time I felt so much pain. But, even so, I think I got away the luckiest…” Your poor boys…You knew that…as a human, you would’ve been little to no help in such a situation like that anyway, but still, you felt a little guilty that you weren’t there in the moment to try to help them. “I don’t know what happened to everyone, it’s still all a blur. I blacked out for a bit…but I think Satan has a broken arm. Maybe he knows more than I do.” 

“Really?” Your gasp almost sounded breathless. “What do demons usually do for broken bones?” 

Asmo slowly shook his head. “We don’t need much. I’m sure he’s already got it wrapped up. It should only take a few days to go back to normal. He’s probably upset that he can’t read his books very well, though.” After talking for so long, he whined a bit, trying to pull you closer. “It’s so cold…” 

You moved your arm to shift the ice-pack to a different part of his injured leg, letting him hold you so he could absorb your body warmth. “You should take that medicine soon and then get some rest,” you encouraged. “Sleep is often the most important step to recovery.” Asmo simply made a little whine, vocalizing his disappointment but unable to disagree. At the risk of never being able to leave his room again, you planted a gentle kiss on his forehead. “I’ll have my D.D.D. on me, so if you need anything else, just call or message me.” You tucked the blanket tighter around him, guiding his arms away from you and down to the bed. Despite him usually distressing over his hair, he smiled when a few of your fingers brushed through the strands atop his head, his eyelids flickering, like even such a simple gesture was coaxing him to rest. “Meds then beds, Asmo,” you repeated once more, watching him blush at the childish-sounding mantra. You got to your feet, making sure the lights in the room were dim. “I’ll be back to check on you later…Feel better.” 

You watched him blow you a kiss before you left, heading in the direction of Satan’s room. 

Satan would be a risky one. You had no way of knowing if his injuries would keep him from being angry or if they would make him even angrier. Not to mention he’s not the most vulnerable of the brothers. He had already tried to hide his broken arm from you –although rather poorly. However, at breakfast, he did seem rather calm about everything. Even breaking character and telling you to go to classes just to keep Lucifer in a good mood. Definitely not like Satan. Which either meant Wrath’s injuries were bothering him so much, he couldn’t even be angry towards Lucifer…or…what if Lucifer had been hurt enough to…No. He didn’t seem that bad when he addressed you in the entrance hall. Lucifer had almost seemed normal. There was no way Satan would worry about his older brother over mild wounds. 

Ah, but thinking about this was keeping you from what you should actually be doing, which was action! You might’ve been stalling a little bit, worried that as soon as you knocked on Satan’s door, his demon form would rush through. Fortune favors the bold, you recited in your head, hoping it would work as a spell of sorts. You knocked on Satan’s door, only just now realizing that you didn’t prepare or bring anything with you like you had done for Asmo. Although, maybe it was for the best. If you had come in with armfuls of stuff you thought he would need, trying to fuss over him, it would probably irritate him. He’d just have to tell you what he needed himself. 

There was no answer. Should you head in yourself?...No, that might be a death sentence. Should you announce yourself? But then would he even open the door if he knew it was you? He’d probably just shout back ‘there’s nothing to worry about’ or even ‘do you think I’m incapable of taking care of myself’. So you knocked once more, remaining quiet, trying to strain your ears to see if you could hear even just the faintest of pages moving. Of course, just as you were pressing your ear up against the door, the entire thing rattled. Even the doorframe shuddered. “Go away!” 

Well…so much for your hopes of him not being angry. What did you really expect? His title was Wrath. You shuffled on your feet for a moment, lingering by the door. Knocking a third time might set him off…maybe you should say it was you right as you opened the door. Or maybe–

“I can still hear you!” The voice in his chest rumbled, a strong aura approaching rapidly from the other side. “I swear to Diavolo, whoever it is better be gone in five seconds before I teach you what it means to –” The door opened so violently, the air almost sucked you forward. 

You jumped back, already giving your apologies. “Don’t be mad! I came back home because I heard what happened, and I already checked on Asmo and he told me that you got hurt and that I should check on you, and –” 

“MC?” The aura of fury mostly faded, the door partially shutting again as you assumed Satan was trying to hide the injured arm behind the wood. “What’re you doing at home? We told you to go to classes!” 

“I said don’t be mad!” 

Satan took a deep breath, a little glare staring at you from through the crack in the open door. “You said that Asmo told you what happened?” Well, technically Diavolo was the first one to tell you, Asmo giving more details but…now was not the time to argue over semantics. “And he told you to come check on me?” You nodded, thinking naively that maybe Satan would be touched that his brother was concerned about him. Instead, a darkness clouded his eyes, the door opening once more, only this time, Satan stormed out, fully intent on marching down the hall, probably to give Asmo his personal feelings on the matter. 

Without thinking about it, you grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling on it with as much strength as a human could muster. “Stop! He’s hurt enough already! I just put him to bed! If you want someone to be mad at, be mad at me!” 

Satan’s feet stopped, of his own free will obviously, seeing as you were probably not impeding his progress as much as you were hoping. You stood your ground, although a little bit shakily, and your eyes finally noticed his arm. He, as you and Asmo both expected, had already treated it to the best of his abilities. It was wrapped in bandages that even you could tell were soaked in something magical, and it was resting in a makeshift sling he had seemingly made out of one of his pillowcases. It had several different adorable cats on it, which was a strange contrast to the furious look he was giving you. “First you scream at me to not be mad, and now you’re telling me to direct my wrath towards you instead of Asmo? Which is it?! Pick!” 

“I’d prefer neither, if I’m being honest!” You exclaimed, releasing his clothes so he could turn around fully, facing you. Your shoulders slumped a bit as you stared at his arm, your eyelids drooping in sorrow. “But it’s fine. Yell at me.” If this is what he needed… “Take your anger out on me!” If you could prevent the others from being hurt again…you’d do anything. “Whatever you need to feel better.” You lifted your head to stare him down only to lower it as soon as you felt a little bonk on your head. 

As soon as the side of his hand gently struck the top of your skull, he deflated. “Are you an entire idiot?” An exhausted sigh left his lungs, rubbing at his eyes before lowering his good arm. “Taking my anger out on you would leave you hurt or even worse. Don’t you know better than to provoke a demon? I thought we all taught you better than that.” 

You rubbed the part he had hit, although it had startled you more than hurt you. Squaring your shoulders, you changed your stance to one to make it look as though you had planned this to work all along. Wait…who was supposed to be scolding who? You came here to look after him, not the other way around! “And I thought maybe you all would trust me a bit more to actually tell me the truth rather than sneak around and skulk in your rooms!” As you both locked eyes, his gaze almost flickered away from you at that. Time to double down. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re just as much of an idiot.” Normally, statements like that would rile him up again, but you were, perhaps, riding on the fact that you knew he had a weakness for you. That, and the fact that you came up and wrapped your arms around his waist probably saved you from retaliation. “I might be an idiot, sure, but I’m not completely stupid.” Your head rested against his good shoulder. “I know when something feels off with you all. Did you really expect me to stand idly by as you all suffered?” 

His little huff disturbed a few strands of your hair. “I guess I was hoping it would take you a bit longer before you found out…We all underestimated you again, didn’t we?” 

“Never forget that humans thrive on stubbornness and spite,” you reminded him with a little grin. You pulled apart from him and took his good hand. “Let’s get out of this cold hallway. You should be in bed.” A noise of mild surprise stuck in his throat as you tugged him back into his bedroom, shutting the door, carefully stepping over and around little piles of books to bring him back to his bed. He sat back down on his mattress, glaring daggers at a hardcover lying face up and open over his covers. With a swipe of his hand much like a cat, he batted it clean off his bed. Something in the back of your mind clicked. The knock at the door wasn’t what made him upset, was it? Asmo mentioned something like this, didn’t he? “Are you mad that you can’t turn the pages?” 

Heat suddenly flared up in his cheeks, almost growling. “It shouldn’t be that hard!” His broken arm was his dominant one…

“What happened to your e-book tablet? That should be fine for now, right?” 

“I lent it to Levi…” He settled back against his pillows, staring out the window. “But it’s fine, I don’t need it. Don’t bother him.” 

You looked out the window with him, wondering if there was something fascinating out there or if it was another excuse to not look you in the eyes. You sat down beside him on the bed, your forefinger resting on his good hand, tracing circles into his knuckles. You caught him trying to glance at you out of the corner of his eyes, gaze a bit softer than it had been. “Do you know what happened to the rest of your brothers? I remember Levi ran off before I could even get a good look at him.” 

Satan’s jaw tightened, a little bump forming in one of his cheeks as his tongue pressed against the side of his mouth, struggling to talk but luckily finally sharing some information. “Asmo’s knee got dislocated and has multiple fractures throughout his leg. We managed to fix it up mostly, but he still can’t walk on it very well. I remember trying to get to him, turning my back for just a second. Just one second. Then I think I was kicked. Next thing I remember, I was waking up far away from battle, my arm completely broken from the shoulder down. I returned to the fight when it was nearly over.” Against his own better judgment, he tried to shift his injured shoulder as if maybe it had healed in the little bit of time you had been with him. He winced, cursing a bit, squeezing his eyes shut till the sharp pain went away. As you rubbed his other good arm, you had to wonder to yourself if the brothers had had very many instances with pain like this. For humans, it wasn’t really rare to break a bone or dislocate something at all. What usually hurt you was nothing more than perhaps mild discomfort to these demons. So for them to feel this much pain… “We’re supposed to be your protectors…” Satan found your hand with his and gave it a squeeze. “For all of us to be put out of commission like this…” 

Your heart tugged at that. “Satan…” You stroked the side of his face with the back of your other hand, shaking your head a little. “Don’t be so dramatic. I don’t think any less of you. Not for any of you. Let me take care of all of you this time. I may not be super strong, or super fast, or insanely powerful…but I can do this at least. So please, don’t push me away. Let me help. Do you want me to go get your tablet from Levi’s room?” 

For a moment, he was speechless, slowly tilting his head towards your touch before closing his eyes completely. “If you would…yes, please.” 

“Then I’ll go do that,” you beamed. “Anything else you want me to get for you?” 

He shook his head, rubbing his cheek against your hand like his favorite felines till it was settled in your palm. “Not right now…but listen, Levi’s not…doing well. Please, be careful.” 

“What happened to him?” 

He straightened, obviously wanting more of your attention but turning serious. Sure, they all taunted and joked around with each other, fought with each other, said they couldn’t stand each other, as siblings are wont to do, but even Satan seemed upset when he spoke about his older brother, a special sort of worry swirling deep behind his eyes. Once he told you, you stood straight up, stomach churning. You gave Satan’s hand a kiss before dropping it, sprinting out of his room as fast as you could. 

Nothing prepared, no plan in your mind, you approached Levi’s room quickly. If what Satan had said was true…Satan wouldn’t lie about something like this. Which meant…Levi…You threw the door open, not even bothering to knock, which yeah, was kinda rude, but you couldn’t help it, you were riddled with concern. It was a good thing you did too, because he was doing worse than you had imagined. “Oh god…Levi…” You whispered, almost losing the strength in your voice at the shock. 

Unlike his other two brothers you’d visited so far, he seemed to have taken no steps to take care of himself from earlier. You could hardly blame him though, seeing him like this, clothes still filthy from the flight, covered in dirt and…blood. His blood. It was all over his face, matting his hair, coating his eyelids. His hands were also covered in it, clawing at his scalp, rolling around on the floor in pain, silently crying. Had he been this way for hours? And no one bothered to tell you? No one bothered to take care of him this way?! It hit you suddenly, that perhaps no one was here to help Levi because no one could. Were all the others this way?...Or were the ones you had yet to see even worse? 

Glancing at him was enough to figure out a list of what he needed. Sneaking back into Asmo’s room, you were at the very least pleased to see that the medicine bottle had a smidge less of its contents, meaning Asmo had taken some for the pain. This was what Levi needed now. You held onto it carefully, allowing yourself to look at Asmo’s sleeping face for only a split-second before leaving Lust to his beauty sleep. You dashed around the house in nearly a panic, gathering a few other things until your human arms couldn’t carry anything else. You returned to Levi’s bedroom, shutting the door behind you with your foot, nearly dropping all the items on the floor beside him, careful not to break any of the valuables. “Levi?” You spoke gently, voice filled with compassion and yet sorrow. You hated seeing him like this. You frowned as the demon continued to squirm, gasping, unable to focus on anything other than the unimaginable pain he was going through. You almost reached out to touch his head, but that would’ve been the worst idea right now seeing as how…his horns were gone. 

Heart breaking in pieces, you grabbed his wrists, trying to prevent him from causing any more damage to his head. Although his eyes were still closed, he reached out for you, gripping your clothes so tightly, he ripped holes in them with his fingers. “Help me…” He cried, not embarrassed at being caught this way, just desperate for some relief, for someone to care for him when he could not. 

“I am…I’m here,” you assured him, placing your arms under his, suddenly doing your best to slightly pick him up, dragging him over to his wall so you could prop him up against it. Somehow, you did this successfully, the adrenaline in you giving you strength you didn’t know you had. Fumbling with the medicine bottle, you poured the proper dosage into the cap. When Barbatos had given this to you, you almost laughed, ready to question why it was a liquid kind rather than in some capsule form. Now you answered your own question. Levi was hardly in a state well enough to consume this much, you didn’t want to imagine the kind of pain you would have put the both of you through if you had tried to get him to swallow a pill. Keeping him still with a hand against his face, you told him to open his mouth, dumping the medicine past his lips. 

Magically, it seemed to almost work as soon as he swallowed it. His twitching lessened, his breathing not as shallow. “MC?” He muttered your name weakly, trying to open his eyes, but finding that his dried blood had essentially sealed his eyes shut. It’s a good thing you brought a rag and a little bowl of clean warm water. 

“It’s me,” you confirmed, getting the rag wet and brushing it over his face, working on clearing up the eyelids, getting it off his eyelashes. Soon, his tears were no longer limited to slipping from the corners of his eyes. They dripped down his face, streaking down more grime as they did so. You were quick to wipe that all away, getting his face clean, trying to ignore the way he was rubbing his head against the wall. Although doing so seemed to bring him some relief, as long as he didn’t accidently touch the two bloody nubs just barely peeking above his blue-hair. After you’d cleaned his face, the medicine, your presence, and the steady motion against the cold wall had his crying stop completely. Now he simply seemed two steps away from passing out, and while you knew he desperately needed sleep after all that, you did hope you could get him fully clean before then. “Let’s try to get you to the shower, come on.” You took both his hands, leaning your full body weight back, persuading him up on his feet. 

A small wave of despair flooded over you from him as a little bit of his negative personality came through. “Gross…” He muttered, hardly having the energy in him to speak. “And dir…dirty…” He did get up eventually, almost falling forward, leaning a ton of his dead-weight on you instead. 

“I know, Levi, I know…We’re going to work on you getting clean. I’m going to need you to try to stand up though…or we’ll both fall…” Your legs were already shaking at the added pressure. Demons sure were heavy…He managed to find the strength to carry himself, holding your hand tightly as you led him through the doorway to his room. He kept wobbling, unbalanced on his own feet. Was he that exhausted or…was the sudden loss of horns on his head throwing off his entire natural stability? You tugged him away from the doorframe he was about to walk straight into, carefully and slowly leading him towards the House’s main bathroom. 

Despite being really out of it, he suddenly seemed to realize where you both were as soon as the bathroom door closed you both in. “I…I…I…” Was all he could stutter. You grabbed one of the bathroom’s chairs – an interior design choice you always questioned, but one you were grateful for now – and settled him in one, working to pull his dirty hoodie off, some of your fingers brushing over the blue scale-like details in his skin. Finally, this last act was enough to bring him almost fully to his senses. “Don’t!” He held onto his clothes while you had brought them nearly fully off, the fabric bunched up over his head, covering his face. “I…I can do it…I’ll be out– be out soon…” 

You allowed yourself to take a breath, thinking about the fact that you were essentially tearing off his clothes. Shaking your head, trying to gather yourself and your own senses, you agreed. “Okay…just remember no shampoo or anything, alright? I’ll bring you clean clothing and be right outside the door.” He didn’t exactly have the power to deny you, so he just agreed with a groan, pulling his hoodie off the rest of the way, letting it fall to the floor. Giving him his privacy, you left the room, turning back down the hall to gather Levi some clean clothes. You didn’t really know how to treat broken horns…Satan had briefly explained enough to assure you that they would grow back, it would just be extremely uncomfortable to say the least. You had to just hope that you were doing enough…and if you could help Asmo and Satan recover, they could probably help the others in ways you could not. One step at a time though. Folding up a set of clean and soft clothes, you hurried back to the bathroom, giving it a small knock. “Levi, I’m going to open up the door enough to put these inside, okay?” 

“F–Fine…” It was faint, but you heard it, opening the door just wide enough to settle the clothes on the floor before shutting it again, resting your forehead against the wood. There was silence other than the sound of rushing water. Then there was a little squeak as the showerhead turned off, a few stray drops striking the floor. You then heard him shuffling, moaning a little bit in pain as he worked to get himself dressed. As you finally took a step back from the door, it opened, Levi grasping on the door handle, his fresh clothes you’d brought him clinging to his still-soaking body. 

You sighed a bit and pointed to the chair that had remained in the place you’d left it. “Sit,” you demanded, careful not to let the magic of the pact work its way in your words. With how weak he was, you didn’t want to force his body to do anything. Levi looked at you with wide eyes before lowering his head, almost whimpering, sitting in the seat. You stepped inside, finding a soft towel, beginning to run it over his body. This was probably a useless gesture. The brothers had already explained to you that temperature, little things like staying wet, they weren’t that hazardous to demons. Yet, you couldn’t help but do it anyway, getting his arms and his legs, his neck. His hair still had a decent amount of dried blood in it, but you’d have to worry about that later. Even just touching his hairline almost had him flinch. “Okay,” you told him once you felt satisfied, going over one last spot with the towel as you cleared the water from dripping into his eyes. “Let’s get you to bed.” 

He had no complaints at that, letting you drag him back to his bedroom. It probably wasn’t needed, but you held onto his shoulders as you helped him hoist himself into his strange nest of a bed. He immediately curled up into it, a sigh leaving his chest as he finally seemed to have a reprieve from constant pain. You unfurled one of the blankets you’d brought from your room, the one he always seemed to tug away from you if he spent the night in your room. Pulling it over him, he finally looked up at you, eyes almost wavering with emotion as he gripped at the comforter. 

“Get lots of sleep. I’ll bring you food when you wake up as well as anything else you need.” You wished you could stroke his head, petting him softly. You’d have to resolve yourself to rubbing his arm instead. “Do you know if any of your other brothers really need my help right now?” You could only start to imagine what the others might be going through in silence. Levi suddenly looked frightened as he began to recall the others. He raised his head enough to speak clearly, a pleading sort of squeak in his voice. “B-Beel.” 

You steeled yourself as you approached the twin’s room. On one hand, this would be an opportunity to take care of two brothers at once. On the other hand, you knew you would suffer seeing the state the two youngest brothers were in. Levi had finally passed out as soon as he uttered his brother’s name, unable to stay awake any longer, so you had no idea what afflicted Gluttony and Sloth. Beel had shown up to breakfast at least. Yet, you had to wonder if any injury was enough to keep him away from food. He’d probably be hungry now…maybe you should’ve made him something. Best to check on them first though while you were here. 

At least you knew the twins were not as likely to turn you away as the others. Beel didn’t have that sort of stubbornness in him, and he was hardly embarrassed by anything. Belphie might initially be irritated, but he was the spoiled one. He would probably quickly change his feelings as soon as he knew you would do anything for him. A little sigh came out of you as you gathered yourself. A few of your knocks seemed to echo down the quiet halls. With these two, you announced yourself without hesitating, hoping to hear a voice on the other side. “Beel? Belphie? It’s me. Can I come in?” Nothing. Not too surprising actually. Perhaps they were both asleep? That would be a preferable scenario. “I’m coming in,” you warned, pausing for a few seconds before pushing the door open. 

The room was dark, a slight glow coming from the sun and moon decals behind the twin’s bed. It allowed you just enough light to keep from tripping on your own feet. The first thing you noticed was surprisingly Belphie’s bed. Empty. But not even just devoid of a demon, empty entirely. Pillows, blankets, stuffed cushions, even the sheets, all tugged off Sloth’s bed in what appeared to be a fit of frustration. Nothing was damaged but the mattress was bare, the nest Belphie usually slept in was in heaps on the ground. Luckily, Beel’s bed was not in the same state, a large lump under the covers, a few ginger tufts sticking out from the blanket’s hem. He usually snored, but it didn’t seem to be the case this time, which had you wondering if he was awake or not. He was, however, wheezing a little, each breath taken in shakily and painfully. You came over quietly, nervous about trying to tap him or shake him when you weren’t sure about the state he was in. So, you simply pulled down the comforter enough to see his face, rubbing the top of his head, assuming with imaginary crossed-fingers that he didn’t share Levi’s injuries. His eyebrows were scrunched in pain, but as soon as he felt your hand on his head, his eyes fluttered open. “MC?” 

“Hi, Beel,” you tried to grin, sitting next to him on the bed. “How’re you feeling?” 

“Huh?” His eyes closed again as he seemed to be thinking, humming once he came to a conclusion. “How did you know? I was told we weren’t supposed to tell you.” 

So this wasn’t some unanimous brotherly bond of secrecy? Which one of these stupid, pig-headed, prideful– ah, Lucifer told them all to hush, didn’t he? You’d have to give the eldest a scolding of your own later, even at the risk of your own health. It was what he deserved. However, that wasn’t your main concern at the moment. You nodded towards Beel. “Diavolo told me. So, I’ve been checking in on all of you. I’m here to take care of you. Anything you want– within reason –and I’ll get it for you.” 

Unlike his other siblings, Beel actually smiled. “I’m glad.” He tried to let out a relieved exhale, but only twitched in pain as soon as he tried. “Stuff like this doesn’t happen a lot. I’m sure some of them don’t know what to do…so I’m glad you’re here for them.” 

“I’m here for you too, you know,” you had to remind him. “Can you tell me what happened to you so I can help you?” 

Suddenly he frowned deeply, a sulking and guilty look crossing over his face. “I tried to help…but I ended up causing more problems for everyone…” He seemed one step away from crying, but managed not to, looking away from you instead. “Mammon was the distraction, but everyone could tell he was getting tired. I didn’t want him to get hurt so I…” He moaned a little as he took a breath to keep talking. “It ended up charging. I took the hit. I play Fangol, so I thought I could take it…but I…” He pushed the rest of the covers off him with one hand, the blankets folding up around his feet. You noticed that there were several little packets resting on his body. At least you discovered where the ice-packs were now. They appeared to all have melted though, deflated and warm. You’d have to put them back in the freezer. Beel pulled up part of his shirt, revealing the huge discolored bruises that covered his torso. He rested his hand beside him on the bed, trying to look at his own injuries with a little bit of confusion, like he wasn’t used to feeling this way. “Hurt my ribs,” he finally stated. “And it was all for nothing…my brothers all got hurt anyway…” 

“That’s not your fault, Beel.” With a kind hand, you turned his head towards you. “It’s not. You all did what you thought was best in the moment. You won’t start to feel better if you keep beating yourself up over it. Let yourself rest physically and mentally, okay?” You rubbed his head again, the gesture making him grin again. It was an act he mostly saw happen to his twin, so he was probably internally thrilled it was his turn this time. “Promise me you’ll rest.” 

“I’ll try…it’s hard though…I’m worried.” 

“About your brothers?” 

He slowly nodded. “Yeah…I know a lot of them got hurt pretty badly. Belphie seemed pretty restless earlier. I think that’s keeping me up too.” 

“So I take it you won’t be able to sleep till I take care of the rest of them?” 

Either he was taking this whole thing extra hard, or perhaps he heard the exhaustion that was beginning to creep into your voice. “Sorry…”

You tugged his shirt back down over his bruised body, picking up the multiple used-up ice packs that needed to be refrozen. “Don’t be, Beel. It’s nice that you care for your brothers that deeply. I’ve checked on Asmo, Satan, and Levi already. They’re on their first steps to recovery.” At that fact, a few lines of worry left Beel’s forehead. “I’ll put these in the kitchen for a little bit, make you a snack, and bring you some medicine, and then I’ll go take care of the rest of your siblings, okay?” 

At the mention of a snack, his stomach rumbled. “Please?” 

For a giant, muscular demon, he really could be adorable. “Of course. I’ll be right back, okay?” You tucked the covers around him for now, getting up to leave the room to finish up your new tasks. First off, the medicine you’d left in Levi’s room. You opened the door quietly, glad Levi was sleeping soundly. While you were here, you’d better find Satan’s tablet before Wrath got too impatient. Luckily, it was simply resting on Levi’s desk. Tucking that and the medicine under one arm, you left Levi to his dreams, rushing back down to Satan’s room. You were glad when knocking didn’t result in making him angry again. In fact, he didn’t respond at all. You were surprised to find Satan fast asleep when you took a peek inside his room. You couldn’t help but smile a bit at his peaceful face, setting down his tablet on his nightstand, leaving him to head to the kitchen. 

As you opened the kitchen door, you nearly walked into someone else. The demon blinked. “Beel? Oh…you’re not Beel.” 

“Belphie!” You were a bit comforted at the fact that he seemed to be walking around just fine. “What’re you doing in here? Shouldn’t you be resting?” 

“Looking for Beel…” He muttered, his eyes glazed over with pain and exhaustion, and yet despite that and being Sloth, he didn’t seem up for sleeping just yet. 

“He’s up in your room. He’s been there since breakfast…did you not notice him?” You walked around the demon for a moment, trying to multitask, putting the warm ice-packs in the freezer. You placed down the medicine on the counter, pulling out a few things to make and bring for Beel. Something easy to eat. 

“I don’t…remember…my head hurts…” Belphie lowered his head, looking away from the light in the room. 

He was acting a bit odd… “Come sit down for a minute,” you coaxed, coming over to take him by the shoulders, making him sit down at the kitchen island. “If your head hurts, take some medicine. Here.” Like you had done for Levi, you poured the medicine in the cap, holding it out for Belphie to take. Rather than taking it in his own hands, he parted his lips slightly, waiting for you to do it for him. Like you said earlier…spoiled. You couldn’t help but chuckle just a little bit as you gave him the medicine, turning your back to him to wash the cap again. Your humor was short-lived as you heard him rush out of his seat so fast, he knocked the chair over. “Belphie?” You turned just in time to watch him bend over a trash can, purging the medicine you’d just given him. Almost dropping what you’d had in your hand, you rushed over to his side, keeping him steady as he continued to be sick, a few coughs and cries between heaves. 

Once he was done, he fell to the ground, using the fabric of his sleeve to wipe off his lips, pressing his forehead against the cold floor. “What’s…wrong…with…me?” 

A headache, light sensitivity, restlessness…nausea…As you hurried to grab him a cup of water, you tried to connect the symptoms to something. Although, it’s not like you were a demon doctor or anything, how were you supposed to know for certain? You did have a guess though…You knelt beside him, grabbing his arm to pull him up upright just enough so he was sitting up against a cabinet. You tried getting him to hold the glass of water, but he kept batting you away. “Belphie…drink some. Here, take sips.” You supported the back of his head, making him drink in little doses before you felt satisfied. “I’m sorry for making you take the medicine when your stomach was upset…I had no idea.” You frowned, trying not to lecture yourself too harshly, gently placing the back of your hand on his forehead. 

At the touch, he collapsed forward, his arms wrapping around you, keeping you in a death-like grip. “So…tired…where’s Beel?” 

It would be bad if he fell asleep on you like this…You wouldn’t be able to leave…”I just told you…in your room. Did you hurt your head, Belphie?” Could demons get concussions? This seemed close to that, whatever it was. You rubbed his back at the risk of lulling him to sleep. 

“I…think so…” 

“Poor Belphie…” You couldn’t help but say aloud, letting him squeeze you a bit. “Let’s take you to bed. Can you stand up? I can’t carry you…” 

“Bed?...” 

“Yeah, in your room. A nice soft bed. I just need you to stand up for me…” After a bit of processing, he managed to stand…although he was still holding onto you, only shuffling his feet whenever you moved. His head rested in the crook of your neck, arms around your waist. He was making everything a lot harder…but if this is what he wanted…Placing a few snacks and the bottle of medicine on a tray, you somehow managed to hold onto it while having Belphie cling to you like his life depended on it. “Let’s go…” This would be an adventure. Each step you took towards the twins room, you felt more of Belphie’s strength leave him, leaning on you a little harder the further you got. By some miracle, you both made it, trying to not collapse to the floor while almost fully dragging Belphie around. 

As you opened the door, you noticed Beel brighten at the sight of you two, holding his sides as he sat up. You almost warned him against it, but if he was going to eat, better to do it upright. You weren’t sure if you’d be able to give a demon a Heimlich Maneuver if he started to choke. “Belphie! You found him.” 

Gritting your teeth a bit, you managed to pull the mentioned twin further into the room, settling the tray on Beel’s lap. “Yeah…he’s not doing so well…Can you take him off of me so I can make his bed?” 

Beel’s face fell a little bit, ignoring the snacks for now, grabbing both of Belphie’s arms, having to pry his twin off of you. You stretched a bit as soon as the weight left your shoulders. “Thanks…” Time to tackle this mess of a bed now…At least you knew Belphie wasn’t exactly picky when it came to his sleeping spots. Still, you wanted to do your best. You worked on finding the sheets first, tugging them over each of the corners. You heard the twins muttering to each other behind you, both of them trying to support each other in their own ways despite being injured. It warmed your heart, giving you a bit more energy to keep going. After the sheets were on, you threw all the cushions, letting them settle wherever they fell, spreading out the blankets and tucking back one of the corners. “Alright, Belphie, let’s tuck you in.” 

The youngest’s knees were on the floor, the top half of him resting on Beel’s bed, his body slowly slipping towards the ground. You came over behind him, hands on his sides, trying to pull him up and over to his bed. “I want…to stay…with Beel…” 

“I think it’s best if you stay in your own beds for now…” Although you were pretty tempted to do whatever he asked. Especially since he sounded so broken-hearted over leaving his twin despite only being a few feet away from him. “What if you hurt his ribs while trying to hug him? Or what if you accidentally hit your head against something since you’d be cramped trying to stay in the same bed? Once you both feel better, you can sleep wherever you want.” He didn’t really fight you, huddling up into a little ball on his bed once you’d guided him into it. You made sure only the softest of his pillows were placed under his head as you tucked several blankets around him, hoping he could sleep despite the pain he was in. 

“He looks worse than I remember…” Beel whispered from his own bed. 

“I think he must’ve hit his head pretty hard sometime during the fight,” you shared, trying to get Belphie to fall asleep by rubbing circles into his back over the blankets. “He was wandering around looking for you, and then threw up the medicine when I gave it to him. I’ll try to have him take some again after he sleeps. Maybe his stomach will settle by then.” 

Suddenly, Beel found it hard to eat his snacks, like he could feel his brother’s nausea as his own…or maybe he found it hard to enjoy himself while all his other siblings were suffering. He still managed to eat, just slowly, the two of you sitting in relative silence for a bit, observing Belphie as his eyelids struggled to stay open, finally shutting and remaining still. “MC?” Beel called your name softly, waving you over. You got up and approached him, an eyebrow raised. He surprised you as he took your face in his hands, pressing his forehead against yours. “You’re the best. I’m glad we have you looking after us…Thank you.” 

“You all can thank me by getting better as quickly as you can.” You kissed his cheek, pulling away from him with a hand settled on one of your hips. “Try to rest too if possible. Leave your brothers to me…and let me know if you or Belphie need anything.” 

“Okay,” he agreed, some worry leaving him now that his twin was back in the room, knowing that the others had you caring for them. He stifled a yawn, still unable to take deep breaths. “And MC?” He made sure to address you before you left the room. You looked over your shoulder at him. “Look after yourself too, okay? You already look tired.” 

You were…but you were far from being done…but, yes. You wouldn’t be much help if you got hurt from pushing yourself too hard. “I will, Beel. Don’t worry.” 

Only Mammon and Lucifer remained unchecked. Out of the two of them, you figured you’d save the most problematic for last…which meant you’d head to Mammon first. While Lucifer did have a special soft-spot for you, if he was hurt, it meant his Pride was doubly wounded. There was little chance he’d let you into his room. Maybe Mammon would have some idea on how to convince the eldest to let you in, and you could care for the second-born in the meantime. You were a bit worried though…Despite his grumblings, Lucifer always looked after his siblings. So why…when they needed it the most, was Lucifer nowhere to be found? He had sent that message to the members of Purgatory Hall to ensure you’d make it to RAD safely, and that was it. There had been no sign of him since then. Focus, you encouraged yourself, pacing in a little circle in front of Mammon’s door before channeling your inner Lucifer and knocking sternly. Silence. 

Somehow, despite having been met with similar disappointing responses several times today, Mammon’s missing voice sent a chill down your spine. There was no grumble, no yelp, no noise inside his room whatsoever. “Mammon?” You opened his door to spy inside. You were a quick jumble of conflicting emotions. The quietness was simply due to Mammon being completely absent from his room and not because he was so hurt he…For that you were grateful…and yet…where in the world was he?! If he was hurt, now was not the time to be out! You could only hope he was still inside the house…You’d have to go find him. 

Trying to remain quiet enough not to disturb the others attempting to rest, you sprinted through the house, checking every room you came across, playing this weird and stressful game of hide-and-seek you didn’t remember signing up for. Maybe the couches in the common room? No. The music room? Sadly not. The library? Not unless he had hidden himself amongst the books…Think, think! This was Mammon. If he wasn’t in his room, where would he be?...You closed your eyes, hands pressing against your temples as if you could squeeze the information into your brain. And then…an idea. Running back through the hall, you made your way down past the brother’s bedrooms and towards your own. He always did say your room was practically his own as well, seeing as how he was there so often. You had found your room empty when you grabbed the blanket for Levi, so it had almost slipped from your mind. But there was always the possibility Mammon had snuck in there while you were off helping the others. 

There it was…your door just ahead of you…opened by a crack when you had sworn you shut it completely when you’d left. He had to be there. Taking a moment to catch your breath, you padded slowly up to your bedroom, pushing the door open softly. Hair covering his face, breathing in little gasps, Mammon was resting at the end of your bed on his back, legs dangling off the mattress. You nearly jumped on your bed beside him, trying not to jostle him too much, touching the side of his face as you observed his split bottom lip. “H–hey,” he rasped, either having been awake the whole time or suddenly up at your touch. “You’re not–” His head tilted back as he groaned, biting his lip tightly, making the split in his lip worse, some of his blood dripping down his chin. 

“You’re hurting yourself,” you lightly scolded. “Don’t bite on your lip like that.” 

You could tell he attempted to look at you with annoyance, but it fell very short, looking like a beg instead. “Don’t…tell me what to do…” 

You had several things you wanted to say to that, most of them sarcastic, but you could tell he didn’t need that right now. “We should get you back to your room…” Running your fingers through his hair, you felt how cold his skin was…You wedged a hand under one of his shoulders, ready to help push him up, only to hear him shout in pain, his cry so sharp it rang in your ears. 

“Don’t move me!” He panted, cold sweat running down his forehead now in little beads, gulping down the pain. “Don’t…move me…” He repeated it, quieter this time. 

Hearing him like that forced tears to prick your eyes, but you didn’t dare let them fall. “Why’d you come in here then if you were hurt that bad?!” You couldn’t help but raise your voice a bit, the tone almost breaking in a little bit of panic. He looked worse for wear…beyond that, even.  

“Heh…” It was a mix between a whine and a chuckle. “I’m the stupid one…remember?” That appeared to be his only answer. He turned his head away from you and closed his eyes. “Just leave me here…yeah?” You wanted to do something, wanted to say something, but you suddenly found yourself at a loss. What should you do? What had happened to the troublesome Greed to make him like this? 

“Where?...” You finally spoke, voice a little strained. “Where are you hurt?...How badly?” He didn’t respond, and for a moment, you were worried he had blacked out. But then slowly, he reached for your hand, weakly holding it in his own. 

“Badly…” 

“Where?” You asked again. 

There was a wheeze as he tilted his head towards you again, the life draining from his face, blinking slowly. “Got me…right in the chest…’batos patched me up, but…hurts like hell…” He tried looking you in the eyes, but cast his gaze away quickly, probably embarrassed at the way he looked right now. ‘Not cool at all’, he would probably say under normal conditions. Gradually, despite his stubbornness, he lifted up his shirt. His chest was tightly bound in bandages, three large lines of blood bleeding out through the cloth. He’d been cut…or clawed at was probably the better term. Greed was selfish, ‘scummy’ most called him, and yet, he took a deep and painful breath, using up energy he didn’t really have to ask you a specific question. “How’re the others?” 

“I’ve been helping them as much as I can…” 

“Lucifer?” 

“I haven’t seen him yet...Is he bad?” 

He licked at his dry lips, swallowing some nervousness. “Don’t…tell him I told you…” His eyes looked around like he was worried his older brother might pop out of the walls. Once he figured he was safe enough, he sighed. “Idiot’s worse than I am.” 

The words struck you harshly, leaving you feeling almost numb. “Worse? He seemed almost fine when you all came home.” 

“That’s pride for ya…” 

Your head lowered, trying to ignore the worry pounding in your chest. One step at a time… One brother at a time…Now was not the time to sulk. “If we can’t get you to your room, let’s at least try to straighten you out…” 

“You’re askin’ a lot of me here…” It came off as a little bit of a joke, Mammon mentally preparing himself. “The Great…Mammon will move for ya…You might have to help a little though.” He gestured towards his feet, having you grab his ankles to swing him around vertically. Meanwhile, he dug his elbows into the mattress, pulling himself up to where your pillows were. Unlike before, he kept himself from shouting this time, probably to save some face. However, now his body was slightly trembling, pain wracking his body. 

“You did it,” you praised, tugging the remaining blankets out from under him so you could place them over his body. You pet his head, trying to dab away some of his sweat with the corner of the covers. “Good job…” You noticed your own hands were shaking. “...Hey…you’ll be okay, won’t you?” Finally, without your permission, you felt some tears slip from your eyes. “You’re not going to die on me, are you?”

The corner of his mouth twitched in a smile. “Nah…It’ll take a lot more…than some measly scratches…to do me in.” 

“Promise?...” 

He reached a hand up to brush away one of your tears, only to quickly lose the strength, his arm dropping limply to his sides. “I promise. I wouldn’t lie to ya. Give me a few days…and I’ll be right back on my feet.” You didn’t mean to doubt him, but you’d have to contact Diavolo to double check. Although, if Barbatos truly was the one to mend these wounds, you doubted he would’ve let Mammon go if he was in critical condition. 

“Barbatos gave me medicine for the pain. I’ll go get it for you, okay?” You ran your hand up and down his arm. “Do you want anything else?” 

 “Eh…if you’re askin’, some water would be nice.” 

“I can do that!” You didn’t mean to sound so enthusiastic, but if that’s all he wanted to feel better, you could do that easily. It made you feel a little less useless in this situation. “I’ll be right back!” Thank goodness the kitchen was right next door, although you left the medicine in the twin’s room…Maybe at this point, you should just have it strapped to you, since it seemed everyone needed some, making you run back for it all the time. At least it gave you an excuse to peek in on the twins again. Heading to the room first, you tip-toed in. Both twins were asleep. Now, you weren’t necessarily the prayerful type, but even you were tempted to slip in a little thank-you to the universe or whoever else might be listening. You grabbed the bottle of medicine once more and bolted back downstairs. In this situation, you would’ve been tempted to fill up the fanciest glass for Mammon, but if he could hardly move…a glass probably wouldn’t cut it…What did they have in here? You rummaged through the shelves and cupboards, looking for something that might be more useful than just a glass. Ah! One of Beel’s sports water bottles! It was one of those kinds where you hit a button and a little straw pops out. If only it wasn’t so large…oh well. Beggars can’t be choosers. You filled it up with filtered water, leaving enough empty space so if you were to tilt it, water wouldn’t come spilling out. Then you made your way back to Mammon, almost out of breath with as fast as you had been moving. You crawled up in bed on your knees, already in the process of pouring him some medicine. “Here…” You could only hope he wouldn’t be sick like Belphie. You helped him tilt his head up, pouring it into his mouth, watching him grimace. 

“Awful stuff…” Although, like for Levi, it started to take effect immediately. He took a moment to himself, breathing clearly, his body no longer shuddering. Then as the pain subsided, he started to realize just how dry his throat felt. “Water,” he demanded, a little bit of warmth coming to his cheeks…thank goodness. “Please,” he added. 

You handed him the water bottle and watched as he greedily chugged it down, almost emptying it entirely. “Easy!” You warned. “Don’t make yourself sick.” 

He gasped for air once he had gulped down enough, already looking worlds better than when you had found him, although he still was looking rough. “--’is the best water…ever had…” 

You sighed, releasing a ton of tension you’d been holding in your lungs. “It’s a good year…Vintage.” Not the best joke you’d ever made, a pretty terrible one actually, but one you shared nonetheless. Anything to break the tension. 

A breathy huff left his nostrils, the best he could manage for a laugh while his chest was in tatters. You suddenly felt his fingers weave through yours, holding your hand as he closed his eyes. “Thank you…” 

You brushed some of his hair away from his eyes, feeling the temperature in his skin begin to return to normal. “You’re welcome…Get some rest. Please don’t move rooms while I’m gone.” 

“I won’t…” He cracked one eye back open. “Gonna see Lucifer?” 

“I’ll…try. If he’s worse off than you are, I have no idea how he’ll let me even near him.” You rubbed your thumb comfortingly against Mammon’s, thinking as you frowned. These demons…You felt like your already shorter-in-comparison life-span was shrinking even further at the stress. 

Mammon hummed a little bit, releasing his hand so you could go, although you felt his hesitation. He didn’t want to let you go, but he knew he had to. “If he’s doin’ what I think he’s doin’, he’s in recovery mode right now. He’s shut himself down to heal as fast as he can to not disappoint Diavolo.” One of his fingers raised to point towards your door. “His door is probably locked, but I know Lucifer keeps an emergency Master Key somewhere in his office.” 

That sounded like a lot of work for something Lucifer would probably hate you for rather than be grateful. Intruding his office just to further intrude his bedroom after he locked it…If anyone knew what he was doing, it would be the eldest…Maybe you should leave him be. “Sounds pretty scheme-y.” Mammon almost looked wounded at that…joke not intended. “He’s the strongest out of everyone…He probably doesn’t need my help.” 

“MC…” Mammon pulled at the sleeve of your shirt, his eyes suddenly glaring at you with an unusual firmness. “Did ya not hear what I said? He’s shut down. If I can hardly move, there’s a good chance he can’t either. There’s no way he can take proper care of himself right now. ” He let go of you as he realized that he wasn’t exactly being clear. “Listen, he took a heavy hit for Diavolo. Got his wings messed up pretty badly. He was so stunned, he probably didn’t even know how badly he was hurt till he got home. If he’s not checking up on us, that means he’s unable to.” He went quiet for a moment, pressing his lips together, looking at the ceiling to your room like he was trying to sense something. Maybe he could. Maybe he had some sort of connection to Lucifer you hardly heard about, or maybe Mammon just could easily guess after having been around him for so long. “I hate to imagine it, but I have a bad feeling he’s completely unconscious.” 

“Damn Lucifer and his tenacity to keep things hidden!” Hissing to yourself under your breath, you went about Lucifer’s office like a little whirlwind. No cushion, no folder, no shelf was safe while you were on the hunt. You knew once he was better, you’d get a proper punishment from Lucifer for rummaging through his office, but you could cross that bridge when you came to it. Right now, there was a stubborn demon in desperate need of your help. Maybe you should’ve checked on him first. You knew something felt off about this whole situation. The little voices in the back of your head were trying to clue you in as soon as Satan expressed mild worry about the first-born. Yet, you had pushed those aside, because Lucifer was always so put-together. It was what choked Diavolo up during your little meeting. 

 “And it was because I was there that–” The prince had said. ‘Lucifer was wounded’, you could finally finish that statement with your own conclusion. You pounded your palms down on Lucifer’s desk, your head low, wishing that things were different. If you were smarter, you could’ve found the key by now. If you were stronger, you could simply break Lucifer’s door down by force. If you weren’t just a human…maybe you could’ve gone and fought with them. But then you would’ve gotten hurt too…you had to tell yourself. 

You sat in Lucifer’s office chair, imagining him lecturing you. ‘Pitying yourself over circumstances you have no control over is a waste of time and effort,’ he’d probably say. He would be right. Although since this was you thinking it, technically you were right. Getting frustrated wouldn’t get you anywhere. Since you were already in the process of thinking like Lucifer…where would he hide a key? Somewhere away from anything valuable for fear of Mammon finding it. So nothing near his records or anything he held dear. Being in or behind any books was probably a negative as well, just in case Satan came down to borrow some. Checking the cushions had perhaps been a waste of time, for if Belphie ever came in here to take a nap, he might knock it loose. Ugh, why did he always have to overcomplicate things? Wait…maybe that was it. Anyone who tried looking for the Master Key would probably try to think like he did, complexly. So maybe the trick was to think of this as simply as you could. Where would be a dumb place to hide something important like that? With a swift motion, you opened up one of his desk drawers, careful not to mess up the order of any important papers. Nothing. And while you did feel around for a fake bottom, you figured Lucifer’s brothers would be clever enough to check for that. Just…double-checking, following through with the ‘so-simple-it-hurts’ theory, you felt around with your hand pressed against the underside of the desk. This was probably another waste of time. The demon of Pride wouldn’t try hiding a key by just taping it under his…Your fingers brushed against cold metal. You nearly felt like screaming. With a firm tug, you pulled it free, twisting it between your fingers as you looked at it. Definitely looked like a master’s key. 

Giving yourself a few seconds to mentally settle, you took a deep breath. Then, not wasting any more time, you dashed from Lucifer’s office, scrambling through the House to make it to his bedroom. You knocked on his door simply to save your own skin. Lucifer was practically a lie-detector test. Later, if he was going to ask if you even attempted to knock first before breaking in, you could rest easy knowing you did...kinda. You nearly dropped the key trying to shove it in the proper slot, heart almost sinking when it didn’t turn as easily as you felt it should’ve. With a second, more firm try, the door clicked. You opened the door so hurriedly, you nearly stumbled inside. “Lucifer, I’m–” You had heard what Mammon told you, and yet somehow, despite being told directly that Lucifer was in a bad state, you had still half-expected to see him sitting up in bed by now, glaring at you with the fury of a thousand suns. Such was not the case. When would you learn that locked doors are locked for a reason? “--here…” You found yourself still finishing your announcement, 

The eldest was face-down on his bed, not even under the covers. One of his arms dangled from off the edge of his bed, hand still grasping a roll of bandages which had completely unrolled, trailing all the way off to the side. Black feathers rested in various places. Some on the floor, some over Lucifer’s unmoving body, some still fluttering down from his four unfurled wings. When Mammon had mentioned them being in bad shape, he wasn’t kidding. Each of his wings were held out, bent in ways they probably shouldn’t be, the feathers disturbed, the ones that were covered in blood were the ones that were doing him the favor of falling, like they were purging themselves of imperfections. Every so often, the silence would break with the sound of a snap. It sounded like someone was popping their fingers. It took you longer than it should to notice that Lucifer’s wings moved with that sound, albeit slightly. Was this…Were his bones fixing themselves that rapidly? In front of your eyes? You were a sickly sort of fascinated, although mostly sick. After a good few minutes had passed, you finally turned around, taking the master’s key and tucking it into your pocket, shutting the door so, at the very least, Lucifer had some semblance of the privacy he had hoped to keep. 

You walked closer to him, coming around the other side of the bed to see that his other hand was gripping his sheets tightly, his knuckles white the smallest hint of a tremble in his usually firm hand. It was probably unimaginably painful… Again, you had to stop and wonder what you as a human could do in this situation… You couldn’t heal him…but you could finish what he had started, since it appeared he blacked-out before he could finish. Starting with the more obvious details, you took the rolled out bandage and took it from his hand, picking it up off the floor. It would have to be disposed of now. You chucked it in a trash can, taking Lucifer’s hand that had held it and lifted it, resting his arm near his head. There was a little pause as you waited for that to wake him up. At this, he usually would’ve grabbed you, or at least turned his head at you. No. Nothing. Not even a change in his breathing. You were almost disappointed, but it was probably the best for you both if he stayed unconscious for now. Next, you took the shoes off his feet, tucking them neatly against the foot of his bed. You really tested how out of it he was after that by tugging his blanket out from under him, draping it over his legs 

Now what?...As you stood there, you noticed the bruising over his back, a few thin lines of dried blood suggesting that he had been clawed at too, only the flesh-wounds had already healed. He truly was powerful. Perhaps those ice-packs you’d put in the freezer were ready to be used again. Lucifer could use one. “I’ll be back,” you whispered, leaving him to his own devices for a little while as you headed down to the kitchen once more. 

As you opened the freezer, you prodded one of the ice-packs with your finger. Good enough. Gathering them into your arms, you noticed that you counted seven of them. Perfect. You stopped by Asmo’s first, going in the order you had taken care of them. He was still fast asleep. You removed the bag of frozen veggies you’d used as a last-ditch-effort, replacing it with a fresh ice-pack. Asmo moaned a little in his sleep, but did little more than that. Next was Satan, also resting, although it seemed he had woken up for at least a little while since you came in his room last, the tablet you’d left on his nightstand was now over his chest. Careful not to wake him up, you wrapped the ice-pack in a cloth before trying to tuck it in his sling, placing it over his arm. His eyebrows scrunched but that was all. Levi next. You guessed it, asleep. You settled his ice-pack on the top of his head. He tossed and turned a little at the disturbance, but didn’t open his eyes. You readjusted the pack as it began to slip from its place. Levi sighed aloud probably in relief. Now for the twins. 

The entire House was noiseless as its residents continued to slumber. They all looked comfortable, at least as comfortable as they could be. You yawned a bit. What time was it? Was it that late? Or was seeing all of the sins sleep making you tired? You carefully removed Beel’s blanket after you’d entered their room. He woke up at that. “I fell asleep?” 

You nodded, giving him a little grin. “Seems like it. Sorry to wake you up. I brought you one of these.” You handed him one of the remaining packs in your possession. 

“Thank you.” He settled it where the swelling seemed to be the worst, wincing. “Did you check on the others? Mammon? Lucifer?” When you nodded in silence, he seemed to take the message, although he already knew they weren’t doing great in the first place. He watched you head over to Belphie’s bed, observing you as you lifted Sloth’s head gently, letting him rest on the ice-pack like a little pillow. Belphie muttered something in his sleep, almost reaching out to grab your hand, but missing, his grasp holding tightly to his body-pillow instead. “Have you had time to rest yet?” Beel asked, voicing his concern with a little rumbling groan. 

“I will soon,” you assured him, coming back to ruffle the hair on his head. “I gotta finish looking after Lucifer.” 

He looked at you with such compassion. “When we feel better, I want to take us all out to eat.” 

“I can’t wait.” You pulled the blanket back over him, telling him to return to his rest before you left, circling back around to your room. Probably not the most efficient of paths, but the only one you could seem to follow. Mammon was out like a light, not even a twitch as you rested one of the packs in the middle of his chest. You noticed that the water bottle you brought for him was already completely empty. You’d refill it for him…and perhaps grab Lucifer one as well. “I’m back again,” you announced to the counters and cabinets. Did Beel even visit the kitchen this many times in one day?...Probably. You refilled Mammon’s container and pulled another identical one down for Lucifer. Thank goodness Beel got gifted so many of these for sports sponsorships. Water. Mammon. Dropped off. Back up to Lucifer. 

Once you got back to the eldest’s room, you rested for a second against his wall, taking a breather. “Every time something like this happens,” you spoke aloud, knowing Lucifer probably wasn’t listening, “I gain a new respect for you. Taking care of this many people is exhausting.” Placing the water on Lucifer’s nightstand, you sighed, wrapping this last final ice-pack in fabric to keep it from freezing his skin. Now you could stop thinking the word ‘ice-pack’ as it was starting to lose its meaning. Carefully, you approached Lucifer’s side, careful not to touch his outspread wings to place the bundle down along his spine. “Not even the cold will wake you, hm?” You tried looking down at his sleeping features, only to remember that he was completely face-down. “Can you even breathe like that? Honestly, when it comes down to it, you’re just as bad as the rest of your brothers.” Not even mild lectures worked, huh? You reached down, finding his chin, turning his head just enough so his face was partially exposed. His slightly parted lips seemed to breathe in the air a little easier. You brushed his hair away from his closed eyes. “There you go.” Your hand seemed to linger on the side of his face. He was so warm. Almost too warm. “Rest easier now.” Your thumb rubbed at his sharp cheekbone. “Your brothers, your worries, leave them with me.” You got away with pressing a kiss to his forehead. “Return when you are ready, and not a moment sooner, you hear me?...I’ll be back in the morning to check on you.” With that, you figured you had done what you could for the time being. You dropped your touch from him, quietly striding from his room, using the key to lock his door behind you. 

Hot…Why were you suddenly so unbelievably hot? You opened your eyes, trying to remember where you had last closed them. Ah, that was right, you had fallen asleep in the living room on one of the couches, not wanting to disturb Mammon’s sleep in your bed. Sure, you could’ve probably used greed’s own bed in return but…that didn’t feel right. However, when you fully opened your eyes, you were confused to find you were in your own room. Had you come here half-asleep or something? Or did… You raised your head, sitting up, or at least trying to sit up. Something, or someone was holding onto you. Actually, as your senses began to clear, multiple someone’s seemed to be keeping you in their grasp. Mammon was where you had left him on your bed, now to your left, holding your wrist in his hand. Belphie was to your direct right, clinging to your side. Beel was somehow right next to his twin, managing to fit himself on the small sliver of mattress that remained. Then there was Levi…curled up over all four of you, sleeping over the covers directly on your legs, wrapped up in the blanket you’d left for him. Satan was propped up against the wall at your feet, Wrath’s legs curled up to leave room for Asmo. The fifth and fourth-born were leaning against each other, keeping each other from falling over, a blanket loosely draped over the both of them. And then there was the eldest…seated in a chair beside the overstuffed bed, leaning forward to keep his back from touching the support of the seat, one of his arms outstretched, resting over both of the twins, his hand somehow managing to find yours in this mess of limbs. When they had gotten here, how they had gotten here, how you had ended up here, you had no clue. They were all asleep again though, still in the process of recovering. You had half a mind to wake all of them up, giving them a stern reminder on what it means to stay in bed! 

But no…you couldn’t do that. Not now. You’d let them have this moment, even if you were impossibly warm from all the body heat. Not that you could exactly break free from these demonic binds nor could you carry them back to their rooms. They had all probably come in one-by-one. You chuckled to yourself at the sheer ridiculousness of it, at all of them. “Sleep well, all of you,” you whispered. “Feel better soon.” 

[ragingduststorm]

R U Mine?

Since I'm in my Ed Skrein phase right now and just watched the first Deadpool again, I just had to write some smut about baby boy Ajax.

Little background: OC is a mutant water bender (ATLA style) and gets paid to heal people. On their first meeting, she accidentally heals his lack of emotion and he develops an obsession for her. They become something like friends and she constantly teases him for not being able to do nothing and just chill. He finally takes his chance after orchestrating some time off for them.

OC's name is Ray, uses she/her pronouns, self-conscious about her body

Word count: ~5k

Warning (this is a long one): 18+, so, so much sex, obsession, oral (both f and m receiving), degradation (the b word is used several times), praise, a lot of biting and scratching and pain, edging, dom/sub, lots of swearing I might forget something, it's honestly so much

“Just give me a second. Stay there!”, she laughed as she sprinted into her bedroom. She could have purged the alcohol from her system, but she enjoyed not worrying all the time. Her brain was constantly filled with questioning whether she acted normal, if she was too much or too loud. He’d never given her the impression or made a mean comment about it, but still the thoughts were there. Not when she was mildly drunk, though. She laughed as loud as she wanted and spoke whatever came to her mind. And that’s why they were in her flat now. Because she’d blurted out that the morally grey love interest in the book she’d just finished, looked alarmingly like him. She would probably regret all of this by tomorrow and ghost him as a result. But that was a problem for the Ray of tomorrow.

Now, she rummaged around the room, looking for that damned book. She’d finished it last night and had decided to take it back instead of keeping it here in the safe house. It was a beautifully bound hardcover filled with illustrations. Something like that had to be displayed, even if she was the only one who’d ever see it. By the third pile of clothes she started to panic. Ajax was in the other room, in her home, alone. And that nosy shit would absolutely be snooping around. She had to hurry. There! Underneath a stack of papers and some spare sheets. How on earth did it get there? It didn’t matter. She flipped through the pages, looking for a suitable picture as she returned to the living room.

 Ajax was nose deep in her video game collection, of course. “You know, we haven’t done that part of the list yet.”, he said as he turned around. “Patience, young Padawan. I’ll beat you in Mario Kart later.”, Ray grinned as she stepped closer to him. “See, this is your good twin. Culann, Lord of the Risen Court and Master of the Wind and all its creatures.” Ajax looked at her sceptically and then at the illustration. “Hmm, I don’t know.” Her reflexes were sluggish from the alcohol, so he snatched the book from her hand with ease. “Hey!”, she said, but he was already on the other side of the room. God, that bastard was fast. He flipped through the pages as she chased him through the room. “So that’s what you read, ey? I mean, I knew you had a dirty mind, but this is utter filth.” Ray’s whole face burned red hot as she knew exactly what page he was on. “Give it back, that’s private!” The adrenaline paired with the alcohol made her completely forget about her powers. She tried to jump at him, but he dodged easily. “Doesn’t look very private to me. That’s quite an audience in this picture.” This time, when she tried to grab the book, he didn’t dodge. Instead, he grabbed her wrist and before she knew it her back was pressed against his front. His free arm was draped around her chest, making it impossible for her to flee as he held the book so that they both could look in.

“A medieval fantasy setting and still they have showers. Wouldn’t it make more sense to fuck in a bathtub?”, his mouth was dangerously close to her ear, his voice low and threatening. An involuntary shudder gripped her body, making her lurch, but still, he held tight. The illustration showed the winged love interest kneeling in front of the female protagonist, eating her out like his life depended on it. Ray remembered the moment she’d read the scene. How it had turned her own and how she’d taken care of herself afterwards. In her imagination it hadn’t been Culann, though.

“You fucking piece of shit.”, Ray stammered, out of breath not only from the struggle. He’d pressed her so close to him, she could feel his body through the thin clothes she was wearing. It wasn’t only his abs that were surprisingly hard. “Such a filthy, filthy mouth.”, he breathed into her ear and her legs almost gave out from under her. Ray was utterly confused and horny at the same time. They were…friends, right? Sure, they had flirted before, but it had always just been a joke. He was teasing her, making fun of her. “Ajax.”, her voice was quiet and he could feel a shift in him. “Stop me, if you want to.” It wasn’t sarcasm, it wasn’t malicious, it was genuine. If she wanted to, she could stop this, could have stopped this at any point. She could sober herself up, force him to get away from her, but she didn’t. Not because she had forgotten, but because she didn’t want to. She liked this. She craved this. 

“I yearn for the day when we can cast aside the façade and embrace the chaos we’ve sown together.” Ray’s mind cleared. She turned around in his arms as he threw the book onto the couch. They were so close. Closer than they’d ever been before. She could smell his cologne and beneath, his natural scent, could see every little imperfection. She looked up into his icy eyes that were fixed on her. “You read it.”, she said, surprised. He smiled at her and brushed a few stray hairs out of her face. The gesture made her breath hitch. “Bought it yesterday. I’m not as fast a reader as you, so I’m only on page two hundred something.” So, he’d spent almost the whole day before dinner reading. “Congratulations, you know how to chill.” “It’s a lot more fun with you around, though.”, he said almost inaudibly as he caressed her face. His mouth was so dangerously close to hers. They were so close, she could feel his heartbeat, could feel his blood pumping through his body. She could stop this. She could make him back off. She could make his heart stop with just her thought. Instead, she reached up and kissed him.

It was like the floodgates had opened. All the pent-up tension that had built up for more than a year exploded as they kissed frantically. She pushed him back against the wall that he hit with a thump. Their hands wandered, exploring each other’s bodies. But he didn’t overstep. Only when his hands moved underneath his shirt, so did his under hers. When she took off his shirt, he in return took off her top. “Fuck.”, she whispered as she looked at him, shirtless and hers. “Likewise.”, he laughed as he took off her bra and caressed her breasts. He took one of them in his mouth and flicked her already erect nipple with his tongue before biting it lightly. Ray cried out and almost lost her footing, so she moved them to the bedroom. It was utter chaos in there, proving that she hadn’t in a million years believed this was a possible outcome for the day. But he didn’t see it. He only had eyes for her.

She opened his belt and he stepped out of his jeans, leaving him only in tight underwear that showed a perfect outline of his hard cock. Her mouth watered just glancing at it. She pushed him down to sit at the edge of the bed. He kissed along her stomach, reaching her waistband. With one clean sweep he pulled both her pants and underwear off. Good, because she’d been wearing some embarrassingly old panties today.

She stood in front of him now, completely naked. Embarrassment rose in her as she compared his perfectly sculpted body to hers. She couldn’t understand why he wanted her or maybe he was just horny and she was simply there. She tried to move, but he’d grabbed her ass as he kissed along her hips. As if he’d read her thoughts, he looked up, right into her soul. “You’re so god damn beautiful, you know?” She didn’t know. But before she could reply, he pulled her down onto the bed, right beneath him. He parted her legs with his body as he kissed her with such passion, she couldn’t form a coherent thought anymore. His still restrained erection brushed against her delicate spot, making her moan. “Oh, I love that sound.”, he growled into her ear. Her body burned with desire for him. She wanted him to touch every part of her and she wanted to touch all of him in return. He went lower and lower, kissing and biting while she scratched his back with one hand. The other caressed his head.

Still, he went lower and as he reached her thighs, she couldn’t help but move towards him. “Patience.”, he laughed as he kissed the sensitive skin on the inside of her thighs. He took his time until she couldn’t take it anymore. “Ajax, please.” He looked up at her from in between her legs and it was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. “Please, what?”, he asked with a smirk. “Touch me, lick me, fuck me. Anything!” Her voice was thick with need for him. “Your wish is my command.” And finally, he ran his tongue along her. His strong hands held her legs apart as he dipped inside her, flicked her bud, drove her wild. She couldn’t take it anymore. She grabbed the backside of his head and held him in place.

“Fingers.”, she ordered and he obeyed immediately. He covered one of his fingers in her slick and his spit and moved inside her. “More.” As the second finger joined the first one, she screamed out. “A little faster and harder.” Exactly like that. As she got closer and closer, she screamed profanities, screamed his name. “Come for me.” His voice reverberated through her body, sending her over the edge. He didn’t stop. He kept going at the exact rhythm she needed until she’d ridden out her high. When she signalled that she was done for the moment, he came back up to kiss her passionately. 

“I didn’t think you’d be such a good girl for me.” His smile paired with the look in his eyes made her immediately ache for more. “You want me to be a brat?”, she asked. “Later.” “Good, because I really need you to fuck me right now.” His eyes darkened. “Say please.” She swallowed hard. “Ajax, please, I need you to fuck me senseless right now.” He slid off the underwear he was still wearing and sat back on his knees. His throbbing erection was now free and well, large. “Please, please, please.”, she moaned as he guided it closer to her entry. He covered himself in her slick but he didn’t enter. “Look at me.”, he ordered and she obeyed. Slowly, so slowly, he entered and her eyes widened. He studied her face closely and stopped for a second when it felt like too much for her. She breathed in hard. “No, keep going.” “Pain can be good sometimes, right?”, he repeated the words she’d said to him ages ago. She nodded and bit as he continued. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head. Finally, he was inside her. All of him. “Fuck, Ajax. You’re so…” But she couldn’t finish the sentence as he started moving. Slowly, out and back in, as she got used to his size.

She had to focus to look at him. One hand was low on her abdomen, where he could feel himself through her skin. The thumb on his other hand he took to his mouth and licked it before lowering it to her clit and stroking in lazy circles. She would never be able to get this god like sight out of her head. He picked up the pace as she adjusted. Now, she was entirely unable to speak. She couldn’t even swear. All she could do was moan and scream and feel. “Shit, you feel so good. You take me so well, baby.” He lowered himself onto his arms, making her angle her legs and resulting in him hitting even deeper into her core. Her hands scratched along his back hard and as she came again, she drew blood. Instead of slowing down, he picked up the pace, making her scream in a mix of pleasure and pain. “Keep going, make me bleed.” He struggled to get the words out and she could feel how close he was. Her hands wandered, one hand now clawing into his ass, the other into his side. “Say my name.” He sounded utterly feral now. She obeyed. Again and again she screamed his name until he buried himself so painfully deep. He came with a roar that tore right through her body and brain. It was the hottest thing she’d ever heard. She could feel his hot cum inside of her and she was so glad that she didn’t need to worry about it. 

He collapsed onto her when he was entirely spent, burying her underneath his bulk. His weight felt calming as she hugged him tight. He breathed rapidly against her ear, she could feel his blood running through him, could feel it leaving his cock, spilling out of the wounds on his back.

They stayed like this for a while. Silent, except for their breathing. Ray’s mind began racing again. What if things got awkward now? What if he’d gotten what he wanted and he would leave? That was absolutely his right, of course. He owed her nothing after all. And she didn’t want or need anything from him, either. These past few days had been like a beautiful fever dream and now it was over and…  he kissed her. Carefully. He lifted himself onto his forearms to gaze down upon her. She’d expected to see indifference on his face, but the way he looked at her took her breath away. She’d never seen him like this. Vulnerable and soft. “Do you need anything?” The question made all of her worries fly away. “Uhm, no…well, maybe. I need to take a shower.” Not because she was covered in his sweat and scent, she quite enjoyed that, but because she absolutely needed to heal her downstairs area. It had been a while since she’d last had sex and even longer that she’d been fucked like that, if ever. “Of course.” He pulled out and sat back down on his knees in front of her. “Do you need any help?”, he asked concerned. “No, I’ll be fine.”, she answered. And groaned as she stretched her legs and sat up. Fuck, she was in an even worse state than she’d thought. She was too proud to let it show, though. Slowly, she moved to get up. And immediately sank back down onto the bed as her legs didn’t support her. Ajax was by her side immediately. He swiped her hair out of the way and kissed the tattoo on her shoulder. “I’m sorry, I got a little caried away.” “No, no, it was good…really fucking good, I’m just not used to…that.” ‘That’ was vague on purpose. ‘That’ was his dick, his strength, his enthusiasm, her feelings. One of his fingers traced down her spine, causing her to close her eyes and hum. “Do you want to?”, he asked as he reached right the base of her spine. “Hmm?” “Get used to it, I mean.” Her eyes opened with a start. He hadn’t noticed though, as he was studying her tattoos. What did he mean by that? Surely not… he must mean his size. Nothing else. “Uhm, I mean, uuuhhh…”, was her witty reply. He laughed and before she could stop him, he’d scooped her into his unbelievably strong arms and gotten up.

“Take a shower. Heal up. You can answer me later.” He carried her into the small bathroom and lowered her carefully back onto her legs, making sure she could support herself before he let go. “Don’t have too much fun without me.”, he quipped and he smacked her ass so hard, she lurched forward and had to steady herself on the edge of the bathtub. “You fucking piece of shit!”, she yelled but he was already out of the room. “You can return the favour later!”, was his answer. The throbbing of her cheek joined the rest of her body. She stepped into the tub and turned on the water. Steaming hot, just as she liked it. Didn’t matter that it was still hot as fuck outside, she needed her skin to burn right now.

She bend the water to clean up every part of her body before she concentrated on healing herself. Her insides had been in a worse state than she’d thought. She let out a sigh as the pain began to subside. Now she could see that Ajax had also bitten harder than she’d assumed. Bruises were forming along her body and Ray was sure that her ass sported an imprint of his hand. For a moment she debated whether or not she should heal all that. She quite liked how his marks looked on her body and she was one of those weird people that enjoyed pressing on a bruise. But no, it would be too weird if she healed everything except for this.

She stayed under the hot water for a while, just enjoying the heat before turning it off. She had no clothes to put on so, even though she was dry, she put on one of the gigantic fluffy towels she so loved. She’d expected Ajax to be gone or at least to be clothed and on his way out, but the sight in front of her made her jaw drop. He was lying in her bed, spread out naked like a Greek god, next to him a tray of fruit and snacks and a carafe of water. “Oh, no, no, no, that won’t do. This flat is officially a clothes free zone.”, his voice was playfully severe and he motioned for her to come closer. “First, this is my flat and I refute such a stupid rule.” She stepped a little closer, holding her towel tight. Her anxiety was now completely gone. This was her element. This was what she knew and what she was good at. “Second, a towel doesn’t count as clothes.” That bastard just sat there, lazily eating a grape, watching her. There was a glint in his eyes that sent a shiver down her spine. “You know, when I said later to that whole brat thing, I didn’t mean now.” Ray took a slow step towards the door to the living room. Ajax perked up, ready to pounce. “Too fucking bad. You should have specified.” They looked at each other like wild animals. He was the predator, she was the prey. The only question was, who would move first.

Ray did. She sprinted towards the door, opening it and slamming it in his face, but he was right behind her. Still clutching the towel, she jumped over the sofa to the other side of the room. She regretted not springing for a bigger apartment. “You little bitch. The more you struggle the more you will be punished.” He was in hunter mode now and Ray felt sympathy for anyone he’d ever been after. The man standing on the opposite side of the room was freaking scary and imposing. Adrenaline was pumping inside of her and her core was in knots. His cock was hard again and standing at the ready. She bit her lip. “Maybe I like the punishment.”, she hissed. He jumped and she ran into the kitchen. There was nowhere else for her to go, except the terrace, but she did not want to let the whole neighbourhood know what they were doing. The kitchen was kind of small and…tidy. He’d fucking tidied up when he got the food. Bastard.

He was blocking the doorway now and she was pressed against the sink. She had an idea. A terrible idea that was sure to make him mad. “You have nowhere to go. Come quietly and I might play nice.” She turned to look at him, catching his eye and holding his gaze. Slowly, she moved her arm towards the faucet. “Right. You bastard don’t know what nice means.” She threw an arm full of water towards him to slam him away from the door, but he’d expected that. He dodged and before she could move past him, he’d grabbed her. She screamed as he pressed her close to him for the second time today and he yanked the towel away from her.

“Oh, you bad, bad girl. You got rid of all the marks I left on your pretty little body.” Her naked back was pressed against his front. One hand held her close and aggressively fondled her breasts while the other was between her legs. “Don’t worry, I will make new ones.” His cock was throbbing against her naked ass as his hand slid along her folds. “God, you’re wet already.” It was true. Her face turned red at how embarrassingly quickly her body wanted him. But instead of admitting it, she struggled against him. He could take her right then and there. He could just thrust into her, make her scream again. “Fuck you.”, she spat out. “Your filthy mouth is just begging to be filled at this point.” And it was the truth. She longed to take his hard cock into her mouth. To choke on his length. So, instead of keeping her mouth shut, she proved him right. “Go to hell.” She hadn’t expected him to bite into the nape of her neck so hard that she gasped. He turned her around and the darkness in his eyes made her heart stop. If she didn’t know better, she would be scared. But they both knew that she was in control. She could stop this anytime.

“On your knees.”, he ordered and he pushed her down so hard she had no choice but to obey. Her face was now right in front of his cock and her mouth watered. All brattiness had left her body. Before he could say anything else, one of her hands was stroking him as the other cradled his balls. “Fuck, good girl.” She looked up at him and the feral look he gave her drove her wild. She opened her mouth but instead of taking him in, she licked the tip that was already leaking precum. His moans undid him. This man had no idea what was in store for him. She licked along his shaft while stroking him off lazily. His cock throbbed in her hand and she smiled right before she began taking him in. Slowly, she took him deeper and deeper, her tongue swirling around and licking his precum. He tried moving his hips, but she signalled him to stop. Not yet. She worked herself closer and closer to his base, taking deep breaths whenever she could and choking herself on him. Now it was his turn to swear profanities and to say her name like a prayer. His considerable size was a challenge and she doubted many had been able to take him like this. The thought made her a little proud and even more eager to please him. He held her hair out of her face like a gentleman and she gave him a sign to start moving.

He held her head steady by the hair as he fucked into her face. Careful at first, but more and more frantic as he realized that she could take it. One of her hands was still on his balls, kneading them as her other hand wandered between her legs. It was just a small release of the pressure she felt, but she knew she would get her turn later. The good thing about her power was that she could bend down the excess spit that would have made her cough and choke otherwise. Her knees began hurting on the cold tiles, but in the moment she wanted nothing more than to have Ajax cum right into her mouth. She could feel he was close. Until he hit her just as she was breathing in and she began coughing. He pulled out immediately to check if she was okay. “I’m fine.”, she said in between coughs, but he wasn’t having it. He pulled her back up on her wobbly legs to kiss her. “Fuck, baby, you did so good.”, he was genuinely impressed, but Ray was indignant. “I wanted you to cum in my mouth.” “Oh, no, I wouldn’t have. I have other plans.” 

He made her wrap her legs around his waist and carried her back into the bedroom, where he threw her onto the bed. That bastard had planned that, the tray was already on the floor. “That wasn’t much of a punishment if you enjoyed it, don’t you think?”, he asked as he stood at the foot of the bed, lazily stroking himself as he looked her up and down. Like he was going to devour her. Ray got goosebumps. “I mean, I almost choked on your cock, so I’d say that’s punishment enough.” Her voice was cocky to goad him on. She had no idea what else he wanted to do to her, but she desperately wanted to find out. “Turn around, on your stomach.” She gave him a smile. “No.” “Ray.” She’d always loved how her name sounded from his lips, but this was something else entirely. “Ajax.”

He didn’t take any more of her shit. He straddled her and even though she did her best to struggle, he turned her onto her stomach without a problem. Then, he sat down so she was trapped. “You little fucking brat.”, he spat and she couldn’t see him, but she could feel what he was doing. He jerked himself off. “No, no, no.”, she protested, her pussy aching for the relief she’d counted on. He pushed down onto her back with one arm. She couldn’t move. She was helpless. “You don’t deserve to cum.” “Ajax, please!”, her voice was so needy, it was embarrassing. “Oh, no. Begging won’t help you. You’re a dirty little bitch and you don’t deserve this.” And when he said ‘this’, he touched the wet spot between her legs, making her squirm. “I know how much you want it.” He moved lower down so he sat on her legs, his dick so close to both holes she wanted filled. She moved her ass closer. And jerked back as his hand hit her cheek hard. She cried out. He hit her again and again, alternating hands and cheeks and she just knew he had the nastiest grin on his face. But she didn’t dare look. She just screamed into the pillow. Healing the bruises had been a terrible idea. She wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

Right before she told him to stop in earnest, he already did. He lay his body down on top of hers, his dick between her ass cheeks. And he moved. Her tears turned from tears of pain to tears of frustration. He was so close. Just a little adjusting and he would be inside of her. But he didn’t let her shift. Instead, he bit into her neck, into her shoulder, never breaking skin, but leaving nasty, painful bruises. “Please, Ajax. I can’t-“ another bite made her yelp. “I can’t take it anymore. Please!” Her voice was full of the frustration she felt. He let up a little and turned her painfully so she could see him. “Are you sorry?”, he asked, his gaze was hard. “Yes!” “What are you sorry for?” “I’m sorry I got rid of the bruises you left on my body.” “Do you swear to never do it again?” “Yes, of course!” “I don’t think you understand. Do you swear to let my marks on your body heal naturally, even when I’m not around?” Ray’s voice caught before she could speak. What? Was he serious? He, of course, noticed her silence. “Do you swear?” She could feel him stroking himself again. “Okay, yes, I swear!” She would have said anything in that moment to get him to fuck her. He couldn’t be serious anyway. It was just a game. “And do you swear to always see me before the bruises fade so I can give you new ones?” Oh. “What?”, Ray asked, now completely confused. He lay down back on top of her, pressing her into the bed. His mouth was right by her ear when he said: “Do you swear to let me fuck you, to let me hurt you, regularly? Do you swear you will make time for me, to let me come to you whenever either of us wants to? Do you swear you will keep yourself safe so that I won’t have to worry about you when we are apart?” Her head swam. She was horny and confused and so fucking turned on and insecure. His cock throbbed against her back. She had no idea what she agreed to when she said: “Yes, I swear. Now please, please, fuck me.”

“With pleasure.”, he said with an obvious grin in his voice. Before she could say anything else, he’d buried himself inside of her. The tears came back, now because of the pleasure and the release she felt. He fucked her hard and deep and she came almost immediately. “Say my name.”, it was more of a plea than an order, but she was happy to obey. Her body was in so much pain and her head was confused, but she relished in the first thing and refused to acknowledge the second. When she came back down from her admittedly very long high, he pulled out and she could feel hot ropes of cum shooting across her back. Another way to mark her as his, even though she didn’t quite realize it yet.God, she was so tired. The alcohol was completely out of her system now, making her sluggish. The fact that it was five in the morning didn’t help either. Ajax carried her back into the bathroom, but this time he carefully put her in the bath and turned on the water. She knew it was both because he wanted to take care of her and because he wanted to make sure she only healed what was necessary and not one bruise more. He carried her back to the bed when she was finished and tucked her underneath the blanket. As he returned from his own shower, she was already half asleep. They didn’t say a word when he cuddled up against her as the big spoon. He pulled her close and she used his arm as a pillow. It was surprisingly comfortable. Usually, she had trouble falling asleep even when she was tired, but his steady breathing and the beating of his heart were like a lullaby to her. She must have already been dreaming because she could have sworn she heard him say “You are mine.”

[tiedyeflannels]

Converse High

Min Yoongi x reader

Word count: 3k

Masterlist

A/N: Hi! Not sure what to put here, but I did want to thank @maple-leaves-in-the-wind for kind of helping me with the plot. Love ya <3 Anyway, I hope you enjoy this fic!

"This song was actually inspired by someone that Suga met one day at a convenience store,” Namjoon said.

The boys were doing some promotion of their new album The Most Beautiful Moment in Life Pt. 1 at a radio station, when one of the hosts asked what made them come up with lyrics in ‘Converse High’.

“Yeah, I went to a convenience store near our dorm late at night because I was hungry and wanted something to eat, so I bought some ramen. There was this girl wearing red high tops, heating up her food, but the other microwaves were out of order so I had to wait until she was done so I could heat up mine. She must’ve known that I was behind her waiting because she asked if I wanted her to heat mine up too since she was already there,” he laughed at the memory.

He continued, “She was really cool and even gave me her secret ramen recipe that tasted really good.”

“So, thank you Suga’s mystery girl, for inspiring him and the hyungs to write this song,” Jimin said, looking into the camera.

“Did you ever get her name, hyung,” Namjoon asked, turning over to Yoongi. 

Yoongi thought for a moment, then chuckled. “You know, I don’t think I ever thought to ask.”

~

Why did this have to happen today?

I internally kicked myself for not realizing what we were supposed to be doing today. I continued to run through the park, dodging random passersby and the occasional low hanging tree branch before I made it to where the rest of the crew was set up.

The boys were filming a RUN BTS episode today that we were supposed to come early to help set up, but thanks to my faulty alarm and the fact that I didn’t have it on my schedule because we were constantly reminded of it, I totally forgot.

I eventually set my stuff down and quietly walked over to Yumi and started to take out my camera.

“What happened? Why are you so late,” she whispered, not wanting to have the camera pick it up even though we weren’t the ones who were wearing mic packs.

“Everyone thought you were dealing with a hangover for how late you are!”

“I know,” I whispered back, making sure my camera was in working condition. “But one, everyone should know that I rarely drink and two, I didn’t think that I needed to put it on my schedule because we were constantly getting reminded of it, but I guess I was wrong.” 

I snapped a couple of test pictures of the boys to make sure that everything was working fine before looking over a Yumi.

“Why didn’t you set an alarm, I literally texted you about this last night so you didn’t forget,” she deadpanned.

“I did set an alarm, but it didn’t go off so I guess I got to sleep in,” I quietly chuckled, scratching the back of my neck. 

Yumi smiled and shook her head, “You, my dear, are going to get in so much trouble.”

I groaned, “Please don’t remind me. I’m still trying to get over the lecture the director gave me last time I was late to a RUN shoot.”

~

I really need to start putting things in my schedule. Not only did I receive a massive lecture from the director telling me how irresponsible I was, I didn’t get to eat any of the snacks that were laid out for staff as punishment for not helping. 

It didn’t help that I didn’t get anything to eat on the way out of my house because I was too focused on making it here at a reasonable time, so I was basically running on nothing and the snacks were looking REALLY good right now, but as my stomach growled I sighed and walked away, not wanting to torture myself anymore.

“Alright everyone, let’s get back to filming,” the director said, looking around to make sure everyone was ready.

Since we were filming this RUN BTS episode at a carnival, everyone got their own camera person and because of that, the rest of the crew- including Yumi and I- got to roam around and take pictures.

“So, we get to do whatever,” Hobi excitedly asked.

The director nodded and the boys started cheering. Their little celebration was cut a little short when the director spoke up.

“But, this is still a competition and there is a spy. You guys are going to have to figure out who the spy is by the end of the day in order to win, if you don’t, then the spy will win.” 

The guys simultaneously groaned and then started eyeing each other. The director continued to explain some of the rules, stating that everyone will be playing the games as normal.

“With that being said, you are free to do whatever you please.”

The guys made a run for any games they can get to the fastest. A couple of them went to the same game and started yelling at each other to go to a different game. The staff chuckled at their competitiveness, then started to part ways to record each of the boys.

~

Recording lasted about 3 hours and it was safe to say… I’m about ready to pass out.

Half way through the shoot, I had bought some mini donuts, but it was not filling and it made me feel a bit sluggish. Shooting had concluded and revealed Jungkook as the spy, much to everyone’s surprise and then the crew wrapped up. 

We were told that the carnival would be open for staff and the members if they wanted to go around and spend time together. Naturally, when we were told that, I immediately thought about leaving to find the nearest convenience store for some kind of food, but Yumi had to pull me from my thoughts. 

“Y/n! We should go play something! How about darts,” she asked as she started tugging me over to the stall.

I groaned.

“No, I’m really hungry and nothing here is filling. I’ve got to get something in me before I, either, die of starvation or simply pass out from low blood sugar,” I said as I tried to get out of her grasp.

She sighed, letting go of my hand and placing them out her hips. “Come on Y/n, just play one game with me and then I’ll let you go. You never know when you’re gonna get to go to the carnival again.”

I mirrored her actions and put my hand on my hips. “First of all, this carnival is going to be open tomorrow too, so we can go then,” I said, and she nodded in acknowledgement, “and second, you can get someone else to play with you. I promise I’ll play all the games you want tomorrow, okay?”

She paused for a moment before letting her hands fall to her sides and sighed.

“Okay… BUT! You’re gonna pay for my food AND we get on some of the rides too. Deal?”

She held out her pinky toward me. I playfully rolled my eyes and linked my pinky with her’s securing the promise.

“Deal! Now, I’m gonna go before I land face first into this dirt,” I said, walking away while waving to her.

She waved back and went over to some of the other staff standing by a booth. I walked over to where the camera crew was now disassembling their equipment and once I got to my bag, I started carefully taking apart my camera.

~

“You have got to be kidding me,” I muttered under my breath as I looked over to the microwaves and saw that all but one were ‘out of order’ and the guy using it looked like he was going to be there for a while.

Just my luck, huh? 

I shook my head and sighed, but went to pick out my food while I waited for the microwave to be available. Walking through the aisles, looking for my ramen, and happily grabbing it when I found it, then walking over to the rows of coolers to get a drink.

I walked over to the counter and paid for my food, then headed back to the microwaves. Luckily the guy from before was done heating up all his food and now it was my turn. 

I peeled the top of the ramen container back and walked over to put some water in it from the drinking fountain next to the microwaves. Once I was done putting in the water, I moved back to the microwaves and started to heat up my ramen.

While I was waiting there, I heard the quiet shuffling of feet behind me followed by a sigh. I looked into one of the microwaves and saw Yoongi standing behind me.

I quietly chuckled and said, “Would you like me to heat yours up too?”

I heard a confused “huh?” and turned around to greet Yoongi, bowing slightly.

He returned the bow with the confused look still written all over his face. “How did you know that I was behind you?”

A smirk grew onto my face, “A great magician never reveals their secrets.”

The confusion grew deeper as his eyebrows furrowed ever more. 

At this point I couldn’t hold back my laughter. “I’m kidding, I heard feet shuffling behind me and I could see your reflection in the microwaves,” I said slightly turning toward the microwaves to point at them.

He slowly nodded at my explanation. The microwave beeped, letting me know that my food was ready. I pulled out my food, setting it off to the side before I turned back to Yoongi.

“Going back to what I said earlier, would you like me to heat that up for you too?”

“Oh! Yes please.”

I took the cup of ramen from him and put it into the microwave, putting in the recommended amount of time and then pressing start.

“So… what brings you here? I would’ve thought that you would be with the others right now at the carnival,” I said, leaning against the counter and stirring my ramen with some chopsticks that were nearby. 

He shrugged, “Well, Taehyung was trying to drag me to one of the rides, but I played the “I don’t feel good” card and no more questions were asked.”

Humming in response, I took a bite of my ramen. As I stirred my ramen ready to take another bite, the microwave beeped signaling that the food was ready. 

Yoongi moved to open the microwave as I grabbed some chopsticks to hand to him, earning a quiet “thank you” before he started mixing his food. Still leaning against the counter, I watched as he walked over to the condiments bar and started to dig around in the cooler.

He proceeded to take out a slice of cheese and put it on his ramen, closing the lid.

Huh. That’s interesting…

“Would you like to sit with me? It’d be nice to have some company,” I asked as I walked to a table near a window overlooking the street.

“Sure,” he said as he walked over to the table, taking the seat across from me.

I continued to eat my ramen as he stirred his and I couldn’t stop the question rolling off my tongue, “Did you come up with that?”

He looked up from his food and I pointed to noodles that had strings of cheese hanging on them. “Hmm? Oh, you mean adding cheese to ramen?”

I nodded.

He looked down at his food, “Nope, someone taught it to me a few years back. I thought it tasted really good so I’ve been eating it like this ever since.” I nodded and went back to eating. 

We quietly ate for a while which allowed me to finish my meal, setting it aside and reaching to pull out my phone from my back pocket until Yoongi spoke up.

“What about you? Do you put anything special in your ramen,” he asked before slurping down the rest of the noodles.

I hummed, “Coincidentally, I put cheese in my ramen too, but it’s something I’ve been doing since I was a kid. I used to call it my ‘secret recipe’.”

“Wait…”

I was a little confused at his reaction and even more so when his face lit up like a light bulb just went off in his head.

“Do you remember if you taught someone this secret recipe of yours a few years back,” he asked slowly.

Tilting my head and humming I tried to think back. “Um, I’d like to say I did, but I tend to forget things pretty easily so it’s a little hard to say. Why?”

“Because I don’t think this ‘coincident’ is a coincidence at all. I’ve been having a weird sense of deja vu since you asked me that question at the microwaves,” he looked at me while I was still confused.

I shook my head lightly, trying to wrap my head around this. “Wait, so we’ve met before?”

He nodded as a small smile started to form on his lips.

“Then how come I don’t remember you? I feel like I would’ve,” I said, brows furrowing. 

“Well, we had that run in back in 2015, so it makes sense that we wouldn’t recognize each other after 3 years. Plus, we weren’t that big in 2015 which also makes sense why you didn’t recognize me back then.”

Nodding, I hummed, taking all of this in. No wonder I thought it was interesting when I saw him add cheese to his ramen. 

Now that I thought about it a little more it should’ve tipped me off that we might've met before when I noticed him adding cheese to his ramen since I really only teach that to a select few.

“I have to say… it’s pretty cool that you still remember that day,” I said with a smile starting to form on my face.

“How could I not! Because of that little interaction, we were inspired to make a song,” he said nonchalantly, leaning back and crossing his arms. 

If I had something in my mouth at this exact time, I surely would've spit it out right now after the sudden epiphany I had hearing that statement.

“WAIT A SECOND! I’m ‘the girl from the convenience store’ that inspired you to write Converse High?!” I was quite literally at the edge of my seat as I leaned further over the table.

He was a little surprised at my reaction, but then looked to the side with a hint of a smile. “Well yeah, you kind of left a lasting impression with your ‘secret recipe’ and those red converse you wore.”

I chuckled at the thought of my converse leaving a lasting impression on someone so much so that they would write a song.

It was his time to lean forward, putting his elbows on the table and squinting his eyes just a bit, “How did you know that you were the girl that inspired Converse High?”

He dramatically gasped, putting a hand on his chest, “Were you secretly a fan back then and were just faking it to get close to me?” 

I snorted and waved him off, “Please, I barely knew who BTS was back then so don’t flatter yourself too much, Min Yoongi.”

A slight frown appeared on his face, leaning back with his cross once again, "And the reason I know about the inspiration behind Converse High is because when I was doing research on what group Big Hit managed when I applied as a photographer, so I happened to come across a certain video of BTS at a radio station talking about the song.”

“I just didn’t think that your ‘mystery girl’ would have been me,” I said with a shrug, leaning back and crossing my arms, almost mirroring Yoongi, but he seemed a bit taken aback from the mention of “his mystery girl”.

He lightly scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah, I might’ve talked about you a little too much in the dorms and that caused Jimin to think that I had a crush on you,” he rolled his eyes at how ridiculous Jimin’s thought was.

“In reality, I thought you were really cool and I was a little sad that I didn’t get your name because I wanted to get to know more about you. I remember the rest of the members scolding me for not asking your name” 

I giggled, the smile staying on my lips, “I thought you were pretty cool too, you know. Back then, I mean. I would’ve loved to get to know you more too.”

“Maybe it’s not too late. If you want, we could get to know each other over some coffee tomorrow?”

It was my turn to be dramatic, gasping and placing a hand on my chest. “Is THE Min Yoongi asking me out to coffee?!”

He chuckled at my overdramatic question, but nodded.

“I would love to! Oh, we would have to get coffee sometime during the day, though, because I promised Yumi that I would go to the carnival with her tomorrow night. But it’s nothing official, so you can join if you want. We could just hang out,” I said.

He put his hand to his chin, as if in thought, “Sure I don’t see why not.”

I scoffed, shaking my head as a smile grew on my face.

“Great, then it’s a date!”

He started to mirror my smile, “Great, I can’t wait, uh…”

My smile instantly fell. “Don’t tell me that you don’t know my name? I’ve been working with you for years!”

He laughed, “Of course I do, but just humor me this once. I’m trying to right a past wrong, ok?”

I lightly shook my head. 

“Fine.” I sighed, sticking out my hand toward him with a warm smile, “Y/n. Nice to meet you!”

He reached over and took my hand in his, “Nice to meet you too, I’m Yoongi.”

[darkravens-blogs]

Lucifer Morningstar x reader part two. This art is not mine credits to the artist again this is gonna be a series part one is already out im working on part three now.

You walk into your house and start to get ready you can tell that someone followed you but you couldn’t quite figure out who but despite that you still decided to get ready you put in a beautiful red wine dress (picture at the bottom of da page) and start to do your hair and makeup.”I can feel you lurching” you say in an “teasing” tone “I thought so”Lilith said as she came out with a knife you noticed this and say”what’s that for” you say as you tilt your head” to kill you you fucking bitch”she says in a angry jealous and venomous toned voice as she lunges at you with the knife.you dodge and look at her with a “wtf” face “ but wh-“ before you can finish your sentence she intent you again putting the knife to your throat.” Because now I’m gonna give you three options I kill you right hear and now or I let you live and you can leave heaven and not come back or you can skip the date stay hear but never see Lucifer again and you have to watch from afar as we have the life you wish you had”she offers you a few options”if I pick the threed option can I still at least see him and know he’s ok” she nods “yes you may but you can’t interact with him at all no matter what or I swear I will kill you” who pushes the knife further into you neck drawing blood”understand bitch” “yes I understand” “good” she backs away from you as she removes the knife from you neck “now pack you things and leave you’ll be staying down in hell so he can’t find you oh and wright a letter saying your leaving” “ok”

(Time skip cuz imma lazy hoe and tired)

“So y/n is leaving” Lucifer said l through teary eyes”yea she wrought you this letter tho and said smothered a parting gives attached to it or something like that”. Lilith said as she handed him the letter”I’ll leave you alone for a bit to process what’s happening”he got up and left as he read the letter and tears started to fall from his face the letter read.

Dear luci

I have to go away for a bit and I don’t know if I’m gonna be coming back any time soon and in case I don’t come back I want you to know that I love you lucifer I always have and always will no matter how long we’re apart I will love you now and always even if you sit love your self I’ll love you through thick and then bad and worse sickness and heath no matter what happens or where I am I will always love you and find you and so you don’t forget me I taped a pic of myself to this letter and a promise ring so I have to for fill the promise I made to you I have a matching one so we will always find each other so all you have to do is remember me and wear it around your neck or finger so we know it’s is us I love you luci always have always will till next time luci :).

Lucifer starred to cry he couldn’t believe it he had to find you he just had to to let you know how he felt too he was going to find you no matter who or what he to go through.

The dress you were gonna wear 👇

[shelbgrey]

Alex karev x reader

Alex breaking up with you when he finds out your pregnant but the get back together after baby’s born

( don’t see a lot of Alex on her I really try to find fics)

Heaven(Alex Karev)

Paring: Alex Karev x Reader

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Got a picture of your house

And you're standing by the door

It's black and white and faded

And it's looking pretty worn

We were just stupid kids, that's all we were... At least in his eyes. When we first met he was rude and conceeted. That's what everyone else saw, but to me he was the kindest person I ever met.

See the factory that I worked

Silhouetted in the back

The memories are gray, but man, they're really coming back

Like every Seattle Grace love story we met at the hospital during our intern year. We worked hard and fought for surgeries, but behind closed doors he was a man after my heart.

I didn't care for him much at first, he was just as much as a man whore as Mark Sloan. I would dodge his Flurting and honestly kind remarks. But he had his STD nurse and at the time I could careless about love.

But he never gave up. He fell fist but I fell harder.

I don't need to be the king of the world

As long as I'm the hero of this little girl

I don't think he'll ever know this, but he saved me. He saved me from it all and he was my hero. He took me away from the reality that was our jobs. We were each other's heros and it didn't matter we came from broken homes. Being with him was like my own personal heaven. I loved the way he'd always make me laugh no matter how upset I was.

I remember he'd always stay with me during the late hours in the hospital. It didn't matter how many hours he'd worked that day he was there. He'd fight his tired eyes and stick with me if I had to watch and take care of the babies in the nursery.

Heaven isn't too far away

Closer to it everyday

No matter what your friends might say

But every heaven has its demons.

I knew how my friends felt about him. We had the same friends but we all knew how he was. George couldn't understand our relationship at all, he'd except it but could never grasp why I chose him.

Meredith supported us from the start. She knew Alex was rough around the edges but she knew we loved each other.

I never cared what they thought because for the first time in a long time I was happy.

How I love the way you move

And the sparkle in your eyes

There's a color deep inside them

Like blue suburban sky

He would always say how much he loved my eyes. So many late nights of us staring into each others eyes. I often wonder if our kids would have his eyes or mine.

When I come home late at night

And you're in bed asleep

I wrap my arms around you

So I can feel you breathe

The bed didn't feel like my own anymore and I couldn't get myself to sleep on his side of the bed. I remember late nights when he'd craw into bed and wrap his arms around me thinking I was asleep. I lied in the bed that we feel into eternal bliss in. The bed should held a special intament moment, but now it's cold and hard. I'd often toss and turn unable to sleep while the only thing left of him was small piece of him.

I don't need to be a superman

As long as you will always be my biggest fan

Heaven isn't too far away

Closer to it everyday

He didn't have to be anything more than he already was. He was perfect in my eyes. No matter what we did we always support each other. It felt like heaven anytime we were talking about anything that wasn't medical.

No matter what your friends might say

We'll find our way, yeah

I know no one could wrap their head around the fact we were together. George couldn't and neither could Derek. George had it in his head he'd hurt me and in the beginning Derek thought he wasn't good enough. But Merdith loved the fact we we're together and supported since day one. But I didn't care what are friends had to say he treated me like a queen and I loved him.

Memories come rushing back and makes it pretty hard

I've got nowhere left to go

And no one really cares

I don't know what to do

But I'm never giving up on you

I thought I was dreaming when I woke up and saw him holding our child. It felt too go to be true as he rocked our son in the corner of my hospital room.

This would go on for days as I recovered and I could understand was this, "why now?" and he made it quite clear he wasn't gonna give up.

I was Comforting knowing he wasn't gonna give up on his son. He was not his father and that's a promise. But I couldn't trust him now after all he did was run when things got serious.

Heaven isn't too far away

Closer to it every day

No matter what your friends say

I know it's gonna find a way

During those nine months heaven was gonna and it was nothing but darkness, purgatory if you would. But Alex never gave up. He was an amazing father and held his son if he got scared and made him laugh if he was sad. Our son would grow up in a home I always dreamed of. A home full of light and happiness. Our son grew up in a home he could look forward to come home to everyday after school. And he could see his parents not only loved him but loved each other.

[commodorez]

i just woke up from a nap with a really intense dream

i drove my mom like a maniac to a house party after getting in some sort of vehicular combat. it was in this chaotic rich person house that a friend of mine from the vintage computing community was staying at. and i think my old boss's ex girlfriend was living there too. the rich people who owned it had a bunch of dogs who were very loud and bitey and mean. i was trying to find shoes for something, and taking pictures with film cameras that were difficult to use

then in walks this guy who used to run an event, and he's got... steve wozniak with him. the legendary woz himself. and suddenly me and 3 other people (including both woz and my friend) are all wearing jean jackets. then woz is asking about the weird old film cameras ive got as i take everyone's pictures with them.

and then i bent his ear, and i asked to show him the cactus, and he followed me to see it! so we traversed this labyrinthian house to get the flight case where the cactus was stored, dodging past all these people and poor rich people house design choices, and woke up the dogs and rich people who were lounging like bemused teenagers. we got the cactus case and went back upstairs to the party area to some desk space to start setting up, and i fumbled my demonstration trying to reassemble some stupid macbook pro with a messed up pram battery or whatever, and the dream ended before i could get beyond that to set up the cactus itself

it was so disorienting and so real feeling and i feel very out confused about the border between reality and dream fugue state

[rancidpancakebatter]

Your Initials and Mine | Prt 2 - [P.P.]

Pairings: TASM!Bisexual!Peter Parker x GN!Reader

Prompt: "peter parker writes your initials next to his on the back of his skateboard, when he daydreams about you" Original Post | Personal Headcannon

Summary: Eyes are the window to the soul, but so is art. Peter's is bare before you if only you could translate it.

Word Count: 6.3k words

Content: Ben's Death, Swearing, Mentions of bruises (Peter needs to get better at dodging),

( Previous | Next )

A/N: Some fluffy, fluffy fluff for ya’ll. 

Peter’s house felt very much like a home. It was a space that was well cared for but also lived in. If you looked closely, you could see scuff marks under the dining room table where the chairs slid in and out. You could see loose threads on the quilted throw over the couch. There were knicks and dents on the pots hanging in the kitchen. And notches in the wood door frame down the hall. Love oozes from each and every “imperfection.” The subtle smell of cinnamon was in the air, and heat radiated from the oven. 

You followed Peter up the stairs to his room and saw many photos adorning the walls. You had spent hours staring at them before. Laughing at memories and tales May would share. She had once pulled out a few photo albums. There was a smile in each picture. A history filled with such joy, but also great tragedy. 

That was a Sunday evening about two weeks ago. May was looking a little brighter during your visits. There was a rosiness to her cheeks now, and her hair was shinier. She was looking better. She brought out cookies while you talked and apologised for Peter’s absence, like she did every week. While catching up, she caught you staring at a picture on the coffee table. She reached for the frame, tracing over her husband’s silhouette with a small smile on her face. 

“This was our first trip to Coney Island.” She spoke softly as if lost in the memory now- transported back to those many years ago. 

“Ben used to take me on dates there all the time. He liked trying to win me prizes, and I liked the excuse to be so close on the rides.” She chuckles, a small tear escaping her eye. “We hadn’t been in years. Our bodies got older and our days got busier. But then Peter entered our lives.” 

She pushes the photo towards you and points to the little boy on Ben’s shoulders. He looked small but full of joy. His hands wrapped around his uncle’s chin as if trying to hug him from high above. His hair is falling on his cotton candy-covered face- tufts of pink sticking to his cheek and dried sugar around his lips. His head tilted to rest on the older man’s head, but his mouth hung open, exclaiming in delight. The Ben in the photo looked the same, only with fewer wrinkles and salt-and-pepper hair.  

“We decided to take him that summer; he had been living with us for a few months by then…This was his first smile with us.” Her eyes turn down as she pauses for a moment. 

“Ben and I…we were so afraid that…we wouldn’t be enough— that we didn’t know what we were doing. We didn’t have as much money as his parents, we weren’t as smart, and we just…weren’t them. And we were so scared that we wouldn’t be able to give him all he needed.”

You reach for May’s hand, soft with age and always slightly cold. “You and Ben did a phenomenal job. Peter is a good boy; he’s brilliant. And he loves you so much.”

She gives you a polite squeeze before wiping at her face. You hand her a Kleenex and she offers you a teary-eyed smile. “He’s so young. He’s already lost his parents, and now Ben…I’m all he has.”

You felt rude, but you couldn’t help from asking, “Peter’s mentioned before that his- his parents kinda left him here. What happened? Why would they do that?”

May sighed. It was a tired sigh, one of true exhaustion. 

"Technically,” She began, “they didn’t leave him here. They had an emergency business trip and dropped him off to stay here for a few days...but then their plane crashed."

You suddenly understood just what she meant before. Peter knew true tragedy. Your heart broke for him, but then you looked at his smile. Peter had lost much, but he has gained so many things that are just as beautiful. You felt your soul fill with an iron determination. 

You squeezed May’s hand, “He has me too.”

She squeezes back, smiling- a look of gratitude etched into her eyes. After a moment, she admits that it’s been a long time since she’s gone through the photo albums, and she was scared to do it alone. You went through two with her that night, listening to stories and asking questions about faces you didn’t recognise. It was nice. 

But upstairs was mostly uncharted territory. The pictures hung here were foreign. You were nervous, finally entering Peter’s space.

The aged-cream paint added a warmth to the space, though you couldn’t see much of it. There were pockets of the wall poking out between all the posters and pictures on the wall. You had seen some of Peter’s doodles, but if you had to guess, he preferred to display his art instead of trapping it between the pages of a bound journal. Peter is very humble, and you’re sure if you called what he had hung up “art,” he would scoff and tell you it wasn’t that good, but to you, it was art. 

He could tell he liked to play around with mediums. You could see charcoal fingerprints staining pages of portraits and city landscapes. As well as coloured pencils and graphite. There was inkwork scattered about, adding pops of colour in the mix of blacks and greys. And you realised he wasn’t exaggerating before in his embarrassed defence, he truly did have a lot of drawings on his wall. 

There was a mix of chaos and order to their hanging. For the most part, they were evenly spaced and displayed around the walls over his bed and dresser. But then there was his desk. 

Peter was definitely a messy artist, turning chaos into beauty. There were notebooks sprawled across the wooden surface. Only a layer of polish protected the lumber below from splotches of paint- evidence of opting out from the pallet and just using the surface.

Impressions from the pencils haphazardly strew about were woven into the grain, forever a part of its story. There were scrapes and notches that you wanted to befriend. And it was all basking in a soft yellow glow from a single bulbed lamp, bent at the elbow in an awkward way that could only be to benefit a very specific angle he needed. 

Your eyes drifted to the wall above the desk. There were layers and layers of drawings overlapping and tacked to the wall, almost as if he had never taken one down. Your eyes darted around wildly, unable to pinpoint just one to look at. You traced the lines as they blurred together like a less mind-melding optical illusion– still mindblowing to behold. It reminded you of an overgrown garden, the leaves and petals intermingling together to create one living, breathing thing. You wanted to carefully examine each one, to take them into your hands and care for each one. 

Your eyes scanned from top to bottom trying to digest each one. You recognised some– the courtyard at school, the empire state building, May and Ben, his camera on his desk– but then you saw something you hadn’t really expected. Sure, you had both made jokes, and so had others, but you didn’t truly expect to be on his wall. And yet, here you were, locked in a game of blink with eyes that looked like yours.

They looked alight, as did the smile on your face. You looked excited. You vaguely remember Peter snapping a picture like that after he pointed out a bug he saw on the ground. You wondered if he used that as a reference. 

You saw another, this time from your side profile. Your hand was in your hair and you were mid-laugh. This one seemed to move and breathe. You doubted he had a picture of that. You could count on one hand the number of times Peter had taken a picture of you, mostly because you always covered your face in embarrassment anytime his lens was directed towards you. And if you didn’t catch it beforehand, you would hear the shutter and scold him, slapping him in the arm. Peter often sketches when he talks to you, you just never imagined he would be drawing you. 

These pictures were like looking into a mirror. 

No, not quite. 

This was different. In the mirror, you see your flaws and every hair out of place, but here, they were made beautiful. You were seeing through Peter’s eyes, peering at yourself through soft lines of graphite and charcoal. You felt delicate. You felt seen. But even when staring at yourself; you feel like you see Peter more. 

This was his heart fully bared before you. Before you was all the pain and triumph, and all the things he felt were important enough to capture. You were almost overwhelmed by the thought.

Peter watched with bated breath as you spun around his room with a fist over his mouth. You were wearing an expression he had seen in the classroom when you were thinking hard. He’d always found it adorable, the way your face would scrunch as you would study your books, but now he found it terrifying. Most of the time, when people look at his work, they give him vague compliments, not really having the knowledge to truly comment on it. But you were different. 

He didn’t know if you knew much about art, but he wouldn’t be surprised if you did. But more so, he just valued your opinion the most. Something about you was completely captivating. You were so sweet and kind- but also fierce and powerful. He didn’t think he was as cool as you, but he wanted you to think so.

He watched as you examined each piece, a small smile that rivalled the Mona Lisa etched into your face– like you held all the answers to the universe but refused to share them with him. 

He felt his heart leap when your head lifted from the desk, and you now gaze upon “the wall.” 

It started out very small. He would put his pictures up as a kid. Then he would sit at his desk and redraw the image, hanging that one up to do it all again until finally- he had a passable one. As his skills improved, he didn’t need to redraw as much, but it’s not like he had anywhere else to put them. They continued to grow and multiply, and he let it happen. Now it has become a scrapbook of sorts. Each piece is a snapshot of the stages of his life. 

He knew exactly when you saw it. You were bent forward slightly over his desk, as close to the drawings as you could be without touching them. You were treating his room like a museum, your arms tucked behind your back as if you let them free- you wouldn’t be able to stop yourself from reaching forward and tracing the pencil strokes. But then you froze. Your shoulders tensed ever so slightly under the razor-back tank top you were wearing. Then you slowly leaned away, standing straight, before tilting your head to the side. 

You said nothing as you gazed at your portraits, and Peter wasn’t sure if he would be comforted by anything you had to say. He was terrified that- instead of feeling flattered- you would feel weirded out. Especially if you had seen the ones now buried under portraits of his Uncle Ben. He had been drawing him a lot, terrified that he was already forgetting his face. 

He heard you sniffle and was shocked out of his spiralling thoughts. He took a tentative step forward to stand beside you, looking over your form as you hugged yourself. 

“Are you okay?”

You wiped at your face, feeling your cheeks warm in embarrassment. 

“Yeah, I’m okay.” You gave Peter a smile, a genuine and full one, despite your wet eyes. “They’re beautiful.”

Peter scratched at the nape of his neck, ducking his head as if trying to dodge the compliment. 

“Thanks,” he said barely above the wind. 

“Really,” you insisted, “You should submit some of this. I’m sure you could win some ribbons or whatever they give you.”

He chuckled and you joined in.

A few more quiet moments passed as you took in everything you could, but then, Peter reminded you that you were here to study. 

You both settle onto the bed, cross-legged, backs against the wall, and knees touching. Peter goes over some of the questions you have and tries to explain them in a way that makes sense to you. You can’t dedicate your full attention to his words though, because every way in which he moves feels like a dance, and you’re enamoured by the choreography. His pen twirled around his fingers with a speed and precision you’d never seen before. You can’t help but think he would make a great drummer. As he talks, you catch general concepts of what he’s saying, but the details are lost in the blur of his ballpoint pen.

His leg is also bouncing around. It is just as quick. Short little bounces creating little shock waves from his knee. The bed around you shook so quickly that it was almost like nothing was moving at all. The only evidence was your books slowly moving away, drifting further into the dip between your legs. 

You feel almost like you’re being hypnotized. His gentle voice lulls you into a calm as he explains the difference between each of Henry’s wives, as his fingers drew you in. You honestly didn’t know how long you were entranced, but the spell was broken when he stood suddenly. 

You looked at him confused and he let out an embarrassed chuckle before dropping his head. 

“Sorry, I- uh. I’m sorry, I’m not very good at explaining this stuff. And I’m like, shaking you, or whatever.”

As he stood, his hand was scratching the back of his neck, and his pen continued to twirl at his side. Your heart gave a painful thump. It yearned for him. His smile. His joy. Before you knew what you were doing you were on your feet. Your hands reached for his, his pen awkwardly pressing against your palms. Words spilt from your mouth with a lack of any sophistication or grace. 

“No, no, It’s not your fault. I just…spaced out a bit. I’m sorry. From what I did catch, you were doing an amazing job. I- would it help if you drew it out? Or we can do something else. Or I can-”

A small chuckle falls from his lips, and yours stop moving, too focused on his. His other hand has untangled from his hair and now sways at his side. He finally meets your eyes, and you think you may have stopped breathing entirely. His gaze was curious- as if he was trying to read your mind. You wondered what thoughts he was pulling forward. 

“Okay.” You look at him confused, and his heart seizes because you're looking at him like that with your cute little frown and scrunched brows, and you’re still holding his hand from when you rushed to accommodate his buzzing nerves. After a failed attempt to calm his racing pulse, he expands on his one-word reply. “I think if we draw out a timeline that would be helpful- a good reference point for you.”

You nod your head in agreeance and feel your cheeks flush when he slowly withdraws his hand from yours. His hands were warm, but not soft like May’s. His hands were rough— cracked around the ridges— and they were firm, strong. You felt like they could hold up the world, but hoped he would never have to suffer the same penance of Atlas. 

Peter sat back down and pulled a notebook that had been laying around into his lap. He tried explaining again, drawing little characters for each historical figure next to the line marking their significance. He would periodically quiz you on the person, seeing how much you knew, and you were both surprised by how much you had retained. 

Once the timeline was complete you thanked Peter for his help. He of course brushed it off as nothing, but you knew it wasn’t. You insisted that you would help him with something, but he continued to insist that he didn’t need any. After your relentless persistence, you settled on working through some calculus practice problems in the textbook. The agreement was you would both solve the same five, then check them against the other, and then consult the answer key. Truthfully you weren’t very excited to do math on a Saturday afternoon, but you wanted to help Peter. You wanted to be there for him like you told May you would. 

You were both scribbling away, occasionally nudging the other and making jokes about “keeping your eyes on your own paper.” It was nice. You weren’t sure how much time had passed before you threw your arms up and declared that you were finished. 

“Great! What did you get for the first one?” 

The confused pout returns to your features. 

“You’re done?” You ask, almost sounding a little disappointed. 

Peter nods and turns his paper to show you. The college rule is not well utilized. Peter had the notebook balancing on his knee at an angle but still elected to write top down, making the equations crooked when you looked at it. In the spaces between, he had doodled vines of pothos wrapping around the jumble of letters and numbers. 

You were embarrassed that he could do all that before you even finished, but at least you got the same answers. You didn't remain bitter for long, melting when he flashed you that timid, tight-lipped smile. 

“That’s really pretty,” you said, tracing your finger across the vines. “It would make a great tattoo.”

Peter’s brain short-circuited for a moment at the thought of his drawings of you becoming a part of your body. 

“Really?” he asked with high brows. 

“Yeah, it would make a really cool band.” Your fingers mapped a path along your forearm where you thought the ivy should bloom. “See?”

Peter couldn’t help but agree. He turned to his bag, riffling through it before finding the treasure he sought. He dramatically pulled out a Sharpie looking to you for permission. You placed your arm in his lap, and he gave you an award-winning grin as he uncapped it. 

His hands were once again holding you, his touch gentle as he gingerly tilts your arm so he can begin drawing. 

“If you hate it, we can wash it off.” he jokes before you feel the felt touch down on your arm. 

It tickled a bit, and the ink was cold, but quite frankly you didn’t care. Not when Peter was bathed in the golden light of his lamp, the curve of his nose and the cut of his jaw glowing and eyes sparkling in the low light. This felt intimate, and your heart was racing the longer you looked at him. So you elected to look away, unsure your body could handle the feelings coursing through you. 

You continued studying the wall in front of you, going over every sketch and memorising every line. After about five minutes, you noticed something sort of out of place. It looked more like blueprints than a drawing. You couldn’t really tell what it was from this far, unable to read the scrawl around the page, but it looked complex. Beside it, you saw what looked like rough drafts for an odd costume, and a bright yellow post-it note that read “SPANDEX!!!” 

Before you could examine it much further you were distracted by a tickling feeling by your elbow. 

“Try, not to move,” Peter said in a hushed whisper as he cradled your arm closer to his chest, almost as if he were hugging it. “I’m almost done.”

You apologised, laying your head against the wall, looking for shapes in the popcorn ceiling. Peter grew a smirk, feeling your pulse quickening under his touch. If he was honest, he was just as nervous, holding you this close. His mind raced at the thought that you wanted him to draw on you, that you were willing to let his fingers roam over your smooth skin. 

He decided to change the design slightly, wanting to give you something unique and different– something he thought captured you better, how he felt about you better. He first traced where the vine would be, then added the leaves. When he was done, he tapped your arm to get your attention. 

You turned your head and gasped when you finally saw it. The vine wrapped around your wrist like a wreath before branching off and spreading up your forearm. They bent and wove around each other, creating a bouquet of leaves. There were the Pothos leaves that he had drawn many times, and also some that looked reminiscent of Creeping Jenny’s. 

But the leaves that caught your eye were the heart-shaped ones. You doubted Peter knew much about Dioscorea Bulbiferas or that Philodendron Hederaceums were one of your favourite plants. He drew hearts because he wanted to, and you melted at the thought.

Around the leaves, he drew clusters of stars– little hollow circles, crosses with spires connected like webbed flippers in the middle, and faux freckles– sprinkled across the expanse of your arm, filling the empty space.

“Do you like it?” Peter asked timidly. 

“Like it?" You scoffed, "Peter, it’s amazing! Have you ever considered designing tattoos? Because you should. Seriously, this is fucking gorgeous.”

You continued to gush and Peter’s face continued to redden as your compliments continued to pour. 

“I messed up here a little,” he says, humble as ever, as he twists your arm to show you where the line work got shaky by your elbow. 

You didn’t realise how close you were sitting before, but now as your thighs are pressed against one another’s and his thumb is rubbing circles on the soft flesh on the inside of your arm, you can’t help but feel a little overwhelmed. 

“Please,” you teased. “Even your small blemishes puts my art to shame.” 

You thought the way he dodged eye contact was cute, especially with the soft blush spreading across his cheeks. But the way he looked at you, like you already had a home in his heart, made you feel bold. 

You leaned your head against his shoulder, tucking your head into the crook of his neck, as you slid your fingers between his. 

“Thank you,” you mumbled as your other hand traced the lines he had drawn. 

You were delighted when you felt his head rest on yours, reciprocating the affection with a squeeze of your hand.

“Careful,” he warned. “You’re already my muse, you don’t want to be my favourite canvas too.”

You couldn’t imagine why that would be a problem and told him as such.

“Well, when I find a fun, new canvas," he explained, "I draw until I run out of room.”

You thought of his skateboards and his class notes and reallized he was right. But you also realised something else. You lifted your head, fixing your gaze on him, and felt yourself drowning in pools of hot cocoa.

“That works for me.”

You watched as his eyes darted around your face, this time with a look of disbelief but also reverence. Your faces were so close you could feel the shallow breaths leaving his nostrils. You could feel the heat radiating from his body. And you wanted more.

It seems you weren’t alone in that thought as Peter began to lean in. His nose nuzzled yours and your lips parted as your eyes fluttered shut. Peter had never seen anything as beautiful. You practically melted under his touch, and it was addicting. He wished then that he had the skill of Rembrandt or Caravaggio, so he could one day capture the vision before him.

He raised his hand (the one that wasn’t already preoccupied with holding yours) placing it on the side of your neck, and you shivered at the touch. That was enough “go ahead” for him. 

He gently tugged you forward and pressed his lips to yours. You felt like you were flying. It was feather soft, almost non-existent. You worried if you opened your eyes, you would wake, only to find you were dreaming. It was a soft peck that didn’t last nearly long enough, and you felt your heart breaking as his face tilted, bringing his forehead closer but your lips unattached. 

You were soon relieved when his lips crashed back into yours, now firm and determined. You let out a small moan, not expecting the fierceness of his kiss. It robbed you of coherent thought and stunted your ability to breathe properly. His lips worked against yours, and you realised something else: you only ever wanted to feel his touch. 

You got lost in the moment, only coming back down to earth after he broke away again. He didn’t go far, resting his forehead on yours as you both worked to even your breathing. Your eyes remained closed, still afraid it was a dream. 

You sit in the quiet for a moment, both of your brains running a million miles a minute. When you finally opened your eyes, Peter was gazing at you, irises swimming with something akin to love. Maybe adoration, or infatuation even. His thumb was rubbing circles on your jaw as he continued to hold your face. 

“You’re beautiful,” He said through a smile. 

You felt your blood rising at the compliment, and ducked your head back into his shoulder to hide. He laughed, his hand now resting on the back of your head, playing with your hair.

“You are!” he insisted, causing you to grumble something he couldn’t quite make out.

“What was that?” he teased.

You lifted your head just enough so your words weren’t muffled by the side of his neck. 

“I said, ‘Shut up’.”

Peter laughed again because your words held no venom. He let you hide for a little longer, but his heart was beating so hard, and he couldn’t take it anymore. His hand moved from the base of your skull to the side of your face until you felt his fingers under your chin. He softly guided it upwards, and you let him, until you were drowning in his eyes again. 

“Would it be too much,” he all but whispered, “If I asked you to be my beautiful girlfriend?”

A wide grin cracked across your face, and you nodded your head, unable to find the words to express how much you wanted that. 

“Yeah?” he asked with a smile of his own.

You nodded your head again, but this time it was much more enthusiastic. 

“Yes, Peter. I would love to be your girlfriend.”

His smile grew tenfold, and you felt like you could die. His face is so bright it could be the solution to solar energy. 

He kisses you again, and this time it’s a bit awkward. Your lips don’t mould as well through your smiles, but you couldn’t find it in you to care. He breaks away for a moment and just looks at you. You feel vulnerable under his gaze. He was looking at you in the same way you were looking at his art. Then he smirked. 

He was too quick to stop. He wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you up, throwing you on your back. You landed on the soft sheets, bouncing a bit. Peter then leaned over you to pepper your face with kisses. You giggled as he continued showering you in affection, occasionally trying to catch his lips, all while he made comments about your new title: “I’m kissing my girlfriend,” “Oh my god, you’re my girlfriend,” “Wow, you’re so pretty, and you’re my girlfriend.”

A few minutes passed like that before he collapsed, tucking his face into your neck like you had done to him before. When you rested a free hand across his back, he snuggled into you, throwing his leg across yours and hugging your waist tighter. You chuckled lightly, but it was an expression of joy rather than anything malicious. 

You lay like that for a while, until Peter gets a notification on his phone. It’s kind of jarring, the way the tone rang out, and how he jumped up to snatch the device from above your head. The harsh blue light of his screen illuminated his face, shadows settling into the new frown lines appearing. It was an alarm, you realised. He sighed, hovering above you with a sad look on his face. 

“I have to go.”

Your face fell, and you tried to not let too much disappointment seep through. “You’re not staying for dinner?” 

Peter looked at you confused. “Are you?”

“Yeah, I have dinner with May every Saturday.”

Peter was silent for a moment, his face showing an emotion you weren’t familiar with. “You’re still doing that?”

“Yeah,” you reply weakly, afraid you had upset him but wanting to lighten the mood. “Why? Are you worried we’re talkin’ shit?

Your plan seemed to work because Peter chuckled at that, “Maybe so.”

“Well…You wouldn’t have to if you just joined us.”

Peter had only joined you for maybe three dinners. May always appologized for his absence, but what upset you more was the worry on her face she tried to hide. She never knew where her nephew was. He would leave and then sneak back in at night. Sometimes he remembered the errands she sent him on, but usually not. May had noticed the scrapes and bruises, just as you had. You both worried about Peter and however he was choosing to process his grief. 

Peter wasn’t stupid. He knew he was hurting his Aunt with his behaviour. He was trying, he really was, but having a double life isn’t easy. He felt great adoration and gratitude for you, to know you cared for one of the most important people in his life, but guilt singed at the edges of his spirit. It was almost six- he really should be patrolling right now- but he looked into your eyes and couldn’t say no. 

“Okay, I can stay ‘til eight,”

Peter watches as a small smile overtakes your face, but it’s sad at the corners, not quite reaching your eyes. He’s confused by this, as to why you’re not more excited. You bring a hand up to push his hair out of his eyes. 

“Thank you,” you whisper. 

It would have to do for now.

When May comes home, you rush downstairs to help her in the kitchen. She greets you with her momma bear hug and begins asking about your day as you wash the produce she set out on the counter. You're telling her all about it when Peter awkwardly trails in behind you. 

“Oh, Peter!” She says, trying to stifle her excitement. Like if she let it show too much, then she might frighten him off. Or maybe she was scared to get her hopes up. “You’re still here. Are you staying for dinner?”

Peter decides to hug her first before he says anything. It warms your heart to see. There’s a soft smile that he gives her, one that says, “You’re my mom, and I love you.” And his hug carries the same message. May looks so small in his arms, a little woman with so much love for her boy. 

“Yeah May, I’m staying for dinner,” he says, cheek resting on the crown of her head. They break away and May looks so very happy. “(Y/n) here convinced me.”

You try to hide your warm cheeks from May but she sees right through you. 

“Thank you, Dear,” She says to you with a pointed smile before turning back to Peter, “Now go help her. She’s done more than enough helping in the kitchen over the last few weeks.”

Peter gives her a shocked but impressed “Yes, ma’am” at her display of sass. He joins you at the sink, and you try to keep the small water fight that erupted contained to the basin. 

Dinner is finished, and You and Peter set the table. May Serves herself last, then sits to say grace. When she opens her eyes again, she gives a nod of her head, “Let’s eat.”

The beef stroganoff is so delicious. It’s buttery and creamy; it’s fresh and light. You tell her as such, and the kind, older woman shushes you, warning that if you keep complimenting her cooking like that, her head’s gonna get too big to get her shirt over. 

You reach forward for your glass and May’s eyes light up. 

“That’s beautiful,” She says pointing to your wrist. You look down and fall in love with the drawing all over again. You look to your side to see Peter smiling too. You decide to kill two birds with one stone. 

“Thanks, May, my boyfriend drew that for me.”

You were still looking at Peter and watched his adam’s apple bob as his cheeks turned crimson. Before he could make any jokes, May stood from the table, clapping and cheering. She ran around the table and enveloped you and Peter in an awkward group hug from behind. 

“Oh my goodness, finally!”

At that, Peter stuttered out a staggered “May!”

His guardian paid him no mind, “Seriously, he’s been gushing about you for ages.”

Peter buried his face in his hands, shaking his head back and forth like he was trying to block out anything happening right now. You, however, were relishing in his harmless embarrassment. 

“Really? For ages?” You teased. 

May caught on and smiled widely, “Yes, since your first day of school. He came home to Ben and me and told us all about this new girl he had met and how lovely she was.”

Peter was now banging his head against his crossed arms on the table. You felt like you might cry. Peter had noticed you even then? He was kind to you, sure- and definitely your first friend- but to talk to his parents about you? To already pick up on enough things to talk about? You felt lucky to be here, in this moment. 

You reach your hand out to rest on his shoulder. Peter peeked at you over his elbow, scared to see your face. But instead of the disgust or fear he thought he might find, he saw a warm smile and glassy eyes. 

“Well, that might be the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard.” 

Peter sat back up, trying to play off his embarrassment, “What can I say? I’m just a sweet guy.”

You shove him playfully, and he dramatically leans away, as if you had truly clocked him, but then rocks back like one of those blow-up punching bags that always came right back up and bumps your shoulder with his. Once back at equilibrium, he lays his palm out under the table for you to hold. You intertwine your fingers and can’t help the little skip in your heart when Peter rests his hand on your thigh. 

You’ve made an assembly line in the kitchen. May is boxing things up while Peter washes and you dry and put away. May is ranting about this new girl who just started at her job and how entitled she was. It was nice to hear her talk about life again, not just the past. Peter washes the last dish, then tells you he’ll be right back. 

It’s quiet in the kitchen, the water now silenced, and the conversation paused for Peter’s return. You can’t fight the smile that comes to your face every time your mind wanders to Peter, which is often. Every time you glance at your arm, there he is, pulled straight to the front of your mind. It takes all your willpower not to giggle every time. You’re sure you’ll be swinging your feet all night as you lay in bed trying to drift off to sleep. 

“Thank you (Y/n),” May almost whispers from her spot against the stove, “for everything. We’re really lucky to know you.”

The sincerity of her statement floors you for a minute. “I feel the same about you guys. Thank you for having me.”

You share a look with May that makes you wanna hug her until her head pops off. You don’t think anything you do will be enough to tell this woman how much she means to you. 

But the moment is ruined by Peter stomping down the stairs. Well some of them, you can tell he’s skipping a couple on his way down by the weird long pauses between his footfall. He’s got his layered jackets and shoes on, and his backpack is packed up. He picks up his skateboard against the wall and says, “I have to go.”

May turns away to wipe at the stove, you think it’s so Peter doesn’t have to see how sad she is when he leaves. Instead, she asks, “Can you get some eggs when you get back?”

“Yeah, sure thing.” He goes to rush out the door but stops. He slowly turns to you with a lopsided grin. His arms wrap around your waist and your cheeks warm knowing May is watching the whole display. She can see the puppy dog eyes and the way his fingers so expertly wrap around you. “See you later?”

“Not tonight, Mister.” May answers for you, “It’s late enough already.”

“Okay, Sheriff Parker,” he declares over your laughter. “So…I’ll text you?”

You pinch his cheek and give him a warning glare, “You better.”

He kisses you, and you lose your breath. His lips touched down on yours, and the rest of the world melted away, leaving only you and Peter. It wasn’t nearly long enough, but he broke away, sending a quiet “bye” through the doorway before closing it behind him. And just like that, he’s gone again. Wandering off into the night to collect more unexplainable wounds and stories you hoped, one day, he'd share with you.

Tag List: @andrews-lovr, @angeliquebones, @blooming-violets, @cherriescherriesred25, @heejinw0rld, @ilovemoonknight, @invisibletrolleyson-jeremy, @negasonic-teenage-asshole, @preciousbabypeter, @princesskittycatofmeowland, @purple-amaranthe, @raajali3, @rudy-the-winged-wolf, @scorpiolystoned, @wannapizzamymindposts, @whoreforklitz,

[hswriting]

The Moment I Knew - Part 9

[Image Alt ID: a four picture collage with a dark blue background. The first picture is of a birthday party. The wall has a silver backdrop with blue balloons that spell out happy birthday. There is also a blue table with food sitting on top of it. The second picture is of a light blue cake with dark blue butterflies around it. The third picture is of a light blue dress with dark blue butterflies on it. The last picture is of a gold engagement ring with a circular blue stone in it. End Alt ID]

- - -

Masterlist Series Part 8 (Series Completed)

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1.4k words

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It’s been a whole year since Harry and Millie started texting. Millie’s birthday is here and she takes this time to reflect on her life since then. Harry has something up his sleeve for her birthday party.

“Happy birthday to Millie, happy birthday to you!” They all sing. My party is a bit smaller this year since Rachel and I have stopped talking, but My group of friends showed up. They made sure to give me the best party I could ever ask for.

Harry worked really hard to plan everything for me today, and Jason and the others showed me how important I was to them by helping him out the past month. They helped Harry get space cleared in his house and they helped me get ready for my move. I gave up my house that I was renting a month or so back and moved in with Harry, and it has been the best thing in my life. I love getting to wake up next to him every single day. We get to do normal boring stuff together and I love it. He makes me coffee every morning and I make his lunch for work. He does these small things for me every day that show his love for me.

The gift giving never stops. He made sure that when I moved in, he had all kinds of decorations and stuff to put around the house year round. Every holiday is taken care of. He wants me to make the house mine too. He let me get throw pillows to match the decorations even though he believes they are useless to have. He gets me fresh purple flowers, identical to my tattoo, every week to put as a centerpiece on our dining room table.

Harry is in the process of getting signed to a record label to professionally sing and record his music. I’m so proud of him and all he has accomplished. He made sure they knew to put my name of his songs, even though I said it’s no big deal. He can have the credit for them.

It has been a wild year for us. So much has happened but I couldn’t have asked for a better year. He has been so thoughtful all of the time, and even more so with this party.

He started the party at our house. There were blue balloons and streamers covering the whole house. There was a beautiful blue cake on the table with the number 24 on it. He bought me a gorgeous blue dress to match the theme. Everyone is wearing some sort of blue.

I close my eyes and blow out the candles. I can’t think of anything I would wish for, because I have it all. I have an amazing group of friends who everyday show up for me and support me. I have a wonderful boyfriend who would do anything for me, and I would do the same for him. We have been through so much this past year, but I can’t help but be thankful.

I remember last year on my birthday, I wished for 23 to be a good year for me. It started rough with Kellen not showing up for the party, and us breaking up that night. It got better. Harry and I got together, and even with our rough patches we have had this year, we made it out alive. Our love is as strong as ever. He means the world to me. I don’t know what I did to deserve him, but I’m so glad for it.

23 was one of the best years of my whole life, and I’ve got many more ahead of me to try and top it.

Everyone around me claps as the flames extinguish on the candles. Harry starts cutting the cake and he gives me the first piece. We all sit around the table and joke around and have a blast talking to each other. Icing is smeared on many faces, but luckily Harry and I were able to dodge it.

Harry says it’s time for gifts and I sit down as he and his friends bring them over. I take the biggest gift and start to peel the paper and see a laptop box.

“Oh my word!” I say in excitement.

“A little birdie told me you’re was starting to glitch and wear down, so I thought you could use a new one.” Jason says to me.

“You didn’t have to do that. I was saving up for it.” I tell him. “I really appreciate this.” I thank him.

“Take that savings and get something nice.” He tells me. I grab the next box and peel the paper I expose a book I have been wanting to read for a while. The next gift is opened to reveal a beautiful charm bracelet.

“Thank you guys so much for the gifts. They really do mean a lot to me.” I say to them appreciatively.

“You have one more.” Harry says. “You have to stand for this one though.”

“Okay?” I say. I do as he says and stand up. Harry moves to in front of me and grabs my hands.

“Millie.” He says nervously.

“Har?” I say back curiously.

“I never used to believe in soulmates. I’ve been through some heartbreak that made me believe I would never find love, but you strolled into my life and flipped my world upside down. I knew from the moment I first met you that I liked you. You made me believe in love again. You made me believe there was a reason I had been hurt so many times before. It was to become who I am for you. They all lead me to where I am. You are my soul mate Millie. You mean the absolute world to me Mil. I truly have been blessed with you in my life. I couldn’t ask for anything more. My friends love you. My family loves you. I love you so much Millie and I never want to let you go. You are my inspiration. My muse. You are the sun in my universe. You make my day, every single day without fail. You show me what it’s like to be loved unconditionally. You make me feel amazing and I never want what we have to stop. I want to spend the rest of my life with you if you will do me the honor.” He says. I am completely shocked but pleasantly surprised. His hand reaches in his pocket and pulls out a small black box. He kneels down on one knee. “Will you marry me, Millie?” He asks me and I feel tears stream down my cheeks. My smile is so large it hurts my face, but it’s such an amazing feeling. My chest swells with the love I have for him.

“Yes!” I say without any hesitation. I love Harry so much and I’m so glad he asked me. He takes my left hand and places an engagement ring on it. I throw myself at him and wrap my arms around him. “I love you so much Harry.” I tell him as he hugs me back. Everyone around us claps and photos are being taken. I pull back to plant a long kiss on his lips.

“Champagne anyone?” Jason asks.

“Yes please!” One says.

“Let’s celebrate!” Another says. Glasses are retrieved and champagne is poured. Harry puts up his glass.

“A toast for the birthday girl, and my lovely bride to be. We love you Mil.” He says with a smile from ear to ear.

“To Millie!” Everyone says. We spend the night celebrating with stories and talking.

“I can’t believe you guys knew this whole time!” I say to the group. They laugh.

“Well of course we knew.” Jason responds. “Harry here has been talking about it forever. It’s about time he finally worked up the courage to ask.”

“Oh really?” I laugh.

“To be fair, it’s a very big thing to do, lots of planning. But I was also a nervous mess. I was so afraid I would stutter or mess up what I wanted to say. So forgive me but I think it went pretty well.” Harry defends.

“That’s okay. I would have said yes anyways.” I tell him and he smiles at me.

“Plus, there’s a reason you two didn’t get caked!” Jason adds.

“Oh! That makes sense!” We laugh.

The party continues into the night until everyone goes home. Harry and I change into our pajamas and lay down into bed. We face each other. He stares at me with a smile on his face.

“I love you so much, future Mrs. Styles.”

“I love you too, Harry Styles” I tell him. He holds me in his arms and we fall asleep, ending the most perfect day.

- - -

Masterlist Series Part 8 (Series Completed)

[slytherinspired]

Tell Me About the One Who Loved Him - A Sirius Black Imagine - Part V

I stood in front of him, my hand trembling as I pointed the wand at his chest, doing everything I could not to let the fear in my gut show on my face. The house-elf had known immediately—I was a Black, just like him. A bitter confirmation of what I had feared for years. 

I’d suspected the truth for a long time, ever since we moved to England when I was ten. My stepfather had accepted a new position at the Ministry of Magic in London, a move my mother fought bitterly against. I remember the screaming matches, her green eyes blazing with fury, accusing him of putting us all in danger. Eventually, she gave in, claiming it would be fine, that she’d find work in London. But something about it felt wrong, even then. 

We arrived in the summer, and soon after, I received my Hogwarts letter. I’d never heard of the school before—it wasn’t something we spoke much about back in Italy. My mother was evasive when I asked her about it. Days before I was due to leave, the news broke. Sirius Black, one of the most dangerous murderers in England, had escaped from Azkaban. 

I remember how my mother’s face drained of colour when she heard. She was hysterical, insisting we return to Italy immediately. I didn’t understand why she was so scared. My stepfather, Charlie, assured her that the Ministry would catch Black and that I’d be safe at Hogwarts. But my mother—she couldn’t be calmed. She left the house in tears, leaving Charlie to shrug helplessly at me. "You know how your mother gets," he said, trying to downplay it. 

That night, curiosity gnawed at me. I fished the discarded Daily Prophet from the trash and studied the moving picture of Sirius Black, wild-eyed, his face twisted in anger as he gripped his prison number. His hair was long, unkempt, but he didn’t look as old as I expected. I was drawn to that picture. I stared at it for hours, feeling a strange pull, a connection I couldn’t explain. 

My first year at Hogwarts was normal enough—friends, lessons, the usual. But I couldn’t shake the feeling of being watched. Some of the professors seemed to look at me differently, like I was a puzzle they couldn’t quite solve. Professor Lupin always averted his gaze when we passed in the halls. Professor Snape glared at me with a disdain I didn’t understand. And Professor McGonagall, she had this...sadness in her eyes whenever she looked at me, like she knew something I didn’t. Something important. 

That summer, I came home with a nagging suspicion. My mother never spoke of my real father. All I had was the vague story that he died in some accident. But she always dodged questions, and I never pushed—until then. I started snooping, going through old things at my grandparents' house when we visited Italy. I found nothing at first. Until, one evening, a little old woman who ran the local bookstore told me my mother had lived in England before I was born. She had returned to Italy, pregnant and alone. 

I felt the world tilt around me. My mother had hidden an entire life from me. And England—it all made sense now. Why she was so terrified of going back. Why she had that haunted look every time she saw me. 

Then I found it. An old Daily Prophet clipping. Sirius Black’s face, screaming silently in his prison uniform, right there in my grandfather’s desk. It was the only issue he kept. Why? Why had he saved that, and nothing else? 

When I went back to Hogwarts for my third year, I told my best friend, Felice. "What if he’s my father? Sirius Black... What if that’s why my mother’s so scared?" 

She didn’t laugh. She didn’t call me crazy. She told me that maybe it was time I found out who I really was. 

And now, here I was, standing in this dark kitchen, holding a wand I barely knew how to use, facing the man from the photo. Sirius Black, the murderer. My father. 

His eyes—silver and cold—locked onto mine, and I saw it. The resemblance. He wasn’t some monster from the papers. He was...me. 

“What are you doing in my house?” His voice was harsh, hiding something—panic? Rage? I didn’t answer, too frozen, my mind swirling with everything I’d learned. My heart pounded so loudly; I wondered if he could hear it. 

“Kreacher!” he bellowed, and the house-elf appeared instantly, glancing disinterestedly at me. “Did you let someone in?” he demanded. 

“No, master,” Kreacher replied with a bow. “Master told Kreacher not to let anyone in.” 

“Then why is there a stranger in my kitchen, holding my wand?” 

My grip tightened, my hand shaking even more now. I couldn’t speak.  

Kreacher turned his large eyes toward me, calm and indifferent. “The House of Black will always open for a member of the family, master. No spell can stop that.” 

Sirius’s breath hitched. His eyes scanned me, from my trembling hand to my face, realization dawning slowly. 

“Step out,” he ordered, his voice softer now, as though he already knew the answer but needed confirmation. 

I stepped forward, out of the shadows, and for the first time, he saw me fully. His mouth fell open slightly, and for a moment, I thought he might faint. 

Those were his eyes staring back at him, sharp and piercing. His expression, the slight smirk that tugged at my lips even though I didn’t feel like smiling—it was his. 

“Hello, father,” I whispered, the words bitter on my tongue. 

The man who had haunted my nightmares, the murderer. My father. 

With Felice by my side, we spent every free moment scouring the Hogwarts Library for anything we could find about Sirius Black. At first, it felt like an impossible task—someone had done a remarkable job erasing almost every trace of him. Every record, every mention of his name, wiped clean like he never existed. It was maddening. But there was something stubborn in me, a part of me that couldn’t let go. Maybe I wasn’t ready to accept that he could be my father, but the idea had rooted itself in my mind. It became this absurd, obsessive quest. Felice and I even joked about it when we were exhausted from our studies, like it was some ridiculous game we played in secret. 

But it wasn’t a game. It was me desperately trying to fill in the blank spaces of who I was. 

We got into trouble often, sneaking into places we didn’t belong, creeping through the restricted sections of the library or archives. Professor McGonagall caught us so many times, dragging us into her office for detention. Her lips always pressed into a thin line of frustration, but it was her eyes that got to me. She wasn’t surprised by our behaviour. She wasn’t even really angry. There was something else—like she knew what I was searching for, and it pained her. 

One day, after weeks of dead ends, Felice pulled out an old, dusty Quidditch record from the library archives. We weren’t even hopeful anymore—it was our last effort, scraping the bottom of the barrel. We were flipping through the pages, skimming over the Gryffindor team lists from decades ago, when Felice suddenly stopped. 

“Look at this,” she whispered, her finger hovering over a name. 

Sirius Black – 5th year. Chaser. 

My heart skipped. We exchanged a glance before feverishly turning the pages until we found the section with photographs. And there he was. 

The picture showed him, handsome, with black, slightly curly hair, his smile wide and radiant, looking carefree. My heart pounded as I stared at the moving photograph—his hair, the curve of his mouth, the glint in his eye—it was like looking into a mirror. 

Felice nudged me. “I know everyone says you look like your mom, but… damn, girl, this... this is eerie. You’re practically the same person.” 

I could hardly breathe. My hands shook as I traced the edges of the photo, my mind spinning. Was this it? Was I right all along? 

I wasn’t even looking into his eyes anymore—I was looking into my own. 

I cried that night. Curled up in my dormitory bed, biting the pillow to muffle the sobs that wracked my body. Everything I had feared was true. My father wasn’t dead. He wasn’t a mystery. He was alive, out there somewhere, running from the Ministry. And worse—he was a murderer. 

In the days that followed, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. My father was a killer. He had destroyed people’s lives, shattered families, and he had hurt my mother. The woman who never spoke of him, who had fled from England to Italy, to hide from him. She had loved him once—how could that be? How could she have loved someone who turned to the Dark Lord’s side? Or maybe she didn’t know? Maybe he’d deceived her, the same way he deceived everyone else. 

The thought tormented me. Had my mother been protecting me all these years, shielding me from the truth of my own bloodline? From the darkness that might be inside me, too? Was that why she had run? To keep me from the shadows lurking in my heritage? 

I swore to myself that I wouldn’t let it define me. If the Ministry couldn’t catch him, then I would. I would track him down. I would be the one to end it—to end him. Not for myself, but for her. For all the hurt he had caused her. 

He wasn’t my father. He was a monster. A killer. And I was going to stop him. 

That determination was what carried me through the next few months. And now, here I was, standing face to face with him, my wand pointed straight at his chest. Sirius Black. He looked ragged and worn, nothing like the man from the Quidditch photo, nothing like the father I had imagined. He was just... a fugitive. A broken man. 

But it didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to let him fool me. He was dangerous, and I was ready. My hand shook, but I didn’t lower my wand. 

“Do you even know who I am?” I asked, my voice low, barely more than a whisper. 

He stared at me, something unreadable passing over his face. His eyes narrowed, and I could see the gears turning in his mind, piecing things together. And then, for the briefest moment, I saw it—a flicker of recognition. 

“Yes,” he said, his voice hoarse. “I know.” 

Something twisted in my chest, a mixture of anger, grief, and confusion. But I couldn’t let myself feel any of it. Not now. 

“I’m not your daughter,” I spat, my voice shaking with emotion I couldn’t control. “You’re not my father. You’re nothing but a murderer.” 

His eyes darkened, and he took a step closer. I didn’t move. My wand stayed trained on him, but I could feel the tremor in my hand growing stronger. 

“I don’t know what you’ve been told,” he said softly, his voice almost pleading, “but it’s not true. You don’t know the whole story.” 

“Don’t you dare,” I snapped, my voice breaking. “Don’t you dare try to justify it.” 

I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. But more than anything, I wanted to end it. To end him. 

But as I stood there, staring into the face of the man I had spent so long hating, I realized something. 

I didn’t know the whole story. But maybe... just maybe, I wanted to. 

[juniperss]

Who does Sunny have a crush on?

Why did my mind go to Dally 😆

okay, you've activated mine and Libra's trap card, Anon!! We've been in heavy discussions about this for days. And one of the answers might surprise you! All of these headcanons were pulled from the chat Libra and I have, lmao so they’re a mixture of both of our ideas all blended together!

First off; with both of these crushes, she actually wasn’t the first person involved to get the crush. It wasn’t until the guys started acting on their own crushes and it took her a bit of time to come around to the idea. She’s not ever been one to especially moon over any guy and for a long while was content to ignore any romantic notions outside of novels and movies. There may have been one or two guys she thought were cute but never ones that she felt were worth ever acting on. She’s got enough going on in her life, she says.

Second; both of these crushes would occur later in her life and be slow burns. We’re talking Sunshine at 17-18. Both of these crushes kinda unfold on a similar backdrop of the draft, when Soda is sent overseas. Darry is exempt and Ponyboy hasn’t had to go yet. Dally is either planning on dodging the draft or has yet to been swept up into it

Dallas Winston:

 It’s been nearly a decade of constant sniping, bickering, and gradual friendship. They have their own inside jokes and comments they make to and against each other. And it all comes to a head when Soda goes off to Vietnam. Dally is at their house with just her and is going on about a fight he was in against Tim Shepard and does his usual teasing, but it actually sets her off and she yells and cries about him and Tim being no good and should of been the ones to go to war, instead of poor sweet, Soda. She immediately regrets what she said, hell, she didn’t even really mean it and for the first time ever she’s hugging him while she cries. Because she doesn’t want to lose him either.

Ponyboy is usually out with Two Bit and Johnny (who is exempt cause of his injuries related to the fire) and Darry is always working, and the house is so much calmer. She starts following Dally around more often and he can’t figure it out until her outburst; that she’s scared of/can’t stand being in the house alone. 

She starts purposefully making plans to go out by herself so that Dally will tag along because she shouldn’t be walking anywhere on her own. They go to the movies a lot, sneaking in together. And ever since that big fight when Sunshine hugged him, physical touch has become more common. Almost as if the floodgates had been open and the restrictions were off.

Picture: Them sitting in the theater and he just feels her arm brushing up against his, looks over and sees that she’s sitting really close. Before she used to make it a point to cross her arms or leave a room for soda or pony to sit between them. But now here she is and she’s leaning against his arm and leaning over to whisper something about the movie that definitely has him trying not to smile because HE WILL NOT SMILE AT THAT.

And: Sunshine hasn’t been sleeping well because she’s worried about her brothers and friends, school is stressing her out, she keeps waking up from weird dreams. One afternoon her and Dally sneak into the theater and he feels this gentle “thump” on his arm. Looking over he sees that Sunny has actually fallen asleep about 20 minutes into the movie. She definitely drooled on him and he roasts her for  months.

Dally bumming around and I'm sure only has so many clothes, of course Sunny washes them while Darry does ironing - but Darry knows what clothes are Dally's so he ignores them lol. Sunny assumes Darry is just too tired to finish laundry so she does it. And sometimes she takes Soda or Darry's clothes to sleep in so she wakes up in the morning to make breakfast in Dally's old shirt. and he's like STARING at her and she's just "Dallas Winston if you're gonna creep around like a coyote make yourself useful" etc etc

If he ever brings it up she's like “??? this is Soda/Darry's shirt…” then it dawns on her it isn't. She immediately changes while Dally shouts, “If you wanted to wear my clothes, you could’ve just asked! Want me to take this one off too?”

Sunshine rejects this crush as long as possible LMAO

Tim Sheppard:

Cowritten by @a-libra-writes

So Tim's also known her since she was a kid and never really paid her much attention; he didn't give much thought to Pony until the boy started fighting, and acting out with Curly. Whenever Tim would stop by the Curtis house - a few times a year, if that - that girl would awkwardly offer a cup of coffee, since he was a guest. She got up as early as Darry.

Though she didn't do that the first time. Tim banged on the door, expecting Darry or Soda, but some girl was peering at him instead. She’d huffed.

"Who’re you?" "Tim Shepherd." "Am I supposed to know that name?" "Dally and Darry know me." "Well, I don't know if I wanna know you."

Little shit was actually pretty funny, even if he wanted to cuss. He barely let Curly or his boys talk to him like that, but if it didn’t remind him of Angela … 

And hey, the coffee she made wasn’t bad. If he was still hanging around by the time she left for school, she’d say, “Hey, you put that mug in the sink, Tim Shepherd.” 

It's not until years later when he notices Sunny. He has eyes, and damn near every guy in the east side was dogging after her. Not in front of her brothers, obviously, that's a quick way to get your head bounced off the pavement. The others in the gang looked after her too. So anytime she was at the movies, the store, the drive-in… Anywhere, it was a Curtis or one of their buddies with her.

Tim was a weird exception for them. He was cool with Dally, well enough with Darry, but more important, Sunshine was friends with his sister, Angela. When the two weren’t out, Sunny was at their house just as much as Angela was at the Curtis’. Sunny would see Tim often, giving him a hello and a smile like he was any other friend of her family. He was alright in her book.

It all started when Pony didn’t come home one night. Compared to when he was a kid, he was better about getting back home, or at least calling. Sunny barely slept, so she was up early… and lo, who was sitting there on the couch but Tim Shepherd. She noticed his swollen knuckles immediately. Still in her old shorts and an oversized shirt, she demanded if there was a fight last night. And Tim won’t tell. 

Sunny snatched the newspaper out of his hand and tossed it. “Tim Shepherd, you tell me right now where my brother is.”

“Give me a kiss, doll, and I’ll consider it.”

He meant it as a joke, a mean one - he was in the middle of that newspaper. But Sunshine just huffed and planted a kiss on him. Right on the lips, held it, then pulled away. “So, tell me.”

Well, he didn’t have a comeback or wisecrack for that. He did tell her what she wanted, though.

After that they had a … arrangement? Deal? Sunny would find him, ask where this person went or how this rumble started, and paid the price for that. These weren’t shy kisses, either, she’d grab his jacket and pull him closer and he’d get giddy. Giddy. Who the hell was he turning into it? 

Sunny could be playful about it, too. “What’ve you gotten up to this time, Shepherd?” And before he could remind her about ‘the price’, she’d kiss him on the cheek. The scarred side, always. He knew she liked it. “I know you’re never up to anythin’ good, so it’s only worth half,” She’d say.

He has 100% made up some bullshit just to get more kisses. She always catches it, but lets a few slide … not too many, though. Can’t let him get a big head.

Really only a matter of time before this turned into sneaking around to make out. For information gathering purposes. Tim’s so down bad for her, though, and just over kissing. He’d tell her state secrets if he knew them. 

Darry’s not sure why Tim keeps hanging around the house. Angela figured it out months ago and seriously questions her friend’s taste.

[darthvashtique93]

Return of the Hawk

Chapter 35

J'ohnn eagerly watched as Chey-Ara studied the inside of his house. For some reason, he really wanted her to like it. He looked around. The decoration was minimal. The house was painted white. His walls were bare for the most part. A few picture frames of himself in his human disguise were scattered throughout. He frowned. There wasn't much to like about his bare place. She was bound to be unenthused.

Chey-Ara inspected the bare house. She looked back at J'ohnn. Instead of a green alien with red eyes, she was staring at a dark-skinned male with no hair on the top of his head. Bald is what the humans call it. In this human form, he was called John Jones; he was also a homicide detective. He had her remove her wings before entering the house just in case a neighbor was watching. She walked the downstairs. It was roomy and empty. Spacious.

She turned back to him. J'ohnn motioned for her to follow him upstairs. Reaching the second floor, she looked around with interest. There were four bedrooms, each sporting one full-sized bed and one dresser. "Why do you have such a big house?" Chey-Ara asked. "You live alone."

J'ohnn shrugged his shoulders. "It was the only house available at the time," he stated calmly.

"I would like to live here," Chey-Ara stated firmly. "With you. Not alone. Not because I'm scared, but because I am new to this planet." She crossed her arms.

J'ohnn gave her a subtle smile. "Of course," he said. "We can move your things here – "

"I don't have things," Chey-Ara said. "The clothes the League provided me, along with the ones I came to Earth wearing, are all I have. The knives you personally confiscated are also mine," Chey-Ara fixed J'ohnn with a hard stare. "But that is all I possess…and Coco cookies."

"Well," J'ohnn placed his arms behind his back, "I believe the next logical step is for me to take you shopping.

"Shaw-ping? What?" Chey-Ara was very confused.

"And if you intend to stay on Earth, you will need an identity – a new name. What would you like to be called?"

"I don't know," she frowned.

"Well, I'm sure you'll think of something. For now, let's make a list of things you'll need."

Shayera rotated the two, thin long swords in her hand before facing her opponent. "Are you sure you don't want me to use the practice ones?"

"You need to get used to using these weapons. They're lighter than your mace."

"They will snap in half once they come into contact with Thanagarian weapons."

"No, they won't," Bruce said, gripping his bo-staff with two hands. "Clark forged them from metals found on his planet. They won't break."

"You asked him to do that…for me?"

"You always look surprised whenever someone, mainly me, does something nice for you."

"I am just used to earning everything," Shayera explained. "I have never had anything given to me out of kindness."

"You need to get used to it," Bruce said as the two began to circle each other. "You're dating a billionaire. Depending on the day, I may drown you in gifts."

"Are we dating?" Shayera asked. "I was not aware," she smirked.

"Now you are," Bruce replied.

All humor left Shayera's face. "I do not want to hurt you," Shayera said, holding up her two weapons.

"You won't hurt me. I trust you."

"Are you sure?" Shayera wanted clarification.

"Yes, now let's begin."

Shayera charged at Bruce, who easily dodged her attack. He rolled underneath her before swiping her legs with a bo-staff. "Ugh!" Shayera landed on her back.

"I have never seen you move so slow," Bruce stated smugly.

Shayera rolled to her feet. "It is the wings," she said. "They are hindering me." Concern marred her features. "What if I cannot get used to them?" she asked Bruce.

"Maybe it's a mental thing," Bruce said, attacking first. Shayera successfully blocked his first punch and at least 80% of the other combination attacks he threw at her. Unfortunately, not even one of her swipes, strikes, or kicks landed. He dodged, blocked, evaded, parried. She felt faulty, and the wings felt heavy and awkward. Flying through large hoops was easy, but fighting was a different story. She felt slow, defective, and tired.

The fight came to an end when Bruce's bo made contact with her leg, then upper arm, which he followed with a spinning kick to her face. Shayera's head hit the mat hard, bouncing a few times. She glared at Bruce from the floor, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. "Your guard was down," Bruce smirked.

"You are lucky I no longer have a helmet. Your foot would be broken," she motioned to Bruce's bare feet as she stood to her feet. A giant, red mark covered the side of her face. She brought her swords up once more.

"Maybe we should stop," Bruce suggested. "You only just completed the obstacle course."

"Don't get soft on me," Shayera pointed a sword at him.

"Fine," Bruce didn't argue. This is what she wanted. They lunged for each other at the same time, with Bruce easily gaining the upper hand. Seconds later, he had Shayera in an easy arm bar. She fought to get out of it, but with her wings flapping out of sync with each other, tapping out was her only choice. Bruce released her, and she screamed into her hands in frustration. "Let's try something else," Bruce suggested. He sat cross-legged on the mat and motioned for Shayera to do the same. She sat across from him, mimicking his position. "Close your eyes," Bruce ordered gently.

"Is this some type of yoga thing?" Shayera asked skeptically as she obeyed.

"No," Bruce scoffed. "Something I learned while training at a hidden monastery in the Himalayas."

"The Himalayas?" Shayera asked. "You traveled a lot."

"Yes. I- "

"Did you make it to the top of Everest?"

"I wasn't there to climb- "

"Wait. There's a hidden monastery in the Himalayas? Do you know how many times I flew- "

"Are you going to keep interrupting me or can I continue?"

"Sorry," Shayera apologized bashfully.

"As I was saying. I think the problem is you. You're fighting your wings."

"What?"

"Through my many conversations with Carter, in which he did all of the talking, I learned some things about Thanagarians."

"Like what?"

"Well…you guys don't lay eggs, contrary to popular belief," Bruce said with a smirk.

"Seriously?" Shayera said, "People really think we lay eggs?"

"Since you are bird-people, people assume you lay eggs."

"Humans call us 'bird-people' and hawks. Everybody else calls us Thanagarians because that is what we are."

"Back to what I was saying - for the wings to work, you have to form an emotional connection."

Shayera immediately burst out laughing. Bruce raised an eyebrow, not that she could see. "Oh, you were serious," Shayera said when Bruce didn't respond.

"Yes. Sit up straight. Breathe deeply. Answer my questions. First thing that comes to mind. What do you like most about flying?"

Shayera sighed. We're really doing this. "The freedom it brings. The feeling of weightlessness. The wind in my face as I soar through the air," Shayera answered honestly with a smile. "I also enjoy looking down on everyone else. I feel…powerful."

"What do you like most about your wings?"

"They are white and soft and fluffy. My favorite thing to do is curl up in a ball and wrap my wings around myself," she finished enthusiastically.

"Hmm…Imagine yourself soaring. Imagine yourself wrapped in the safety of your wings. Imagine all of the things you just told me." Shayera again listened. "Breathe into your memories. Dive into them. Allow them to surround you." Shayera did. She relived every flying moment that brought her joy; Bruce's soothing voice helped. After a few minutes, he asked, "Are you okay? You relaxed?"

"Yes."

"Good. I want you to remember that I am right here with you. You are safe with me," Bruce emphasized.

"Okay, yeah."

"Good. So…are you soaring, or are you wrapped in a ball?"

"Soaring," Shayera answered immediately.

"I want you to imagine yourself soaring through the clouds when suddenly…your wings are torn off your back," Bruce finished quickly.

"Bruce!" Shayera shouted in horror. She was not going to do that.

"Trust me, Shayera!" she felt Bruce grab her hands. "Just do it."

"We've already had this conversation!" Shayera retorted. Her breathing became shallow as her mind brought her back to that wretched day.

"Shayera- "

"Why do you want me to relive this?" Shayera almost cried as she began to panic.

"Shayera," Bruce said her name firmly. "Trust me." Shayera felt Bruce caress the palms of her hand with his thumbs, trying to calm her. "You're strong, and you're safe here."

Shayera's panicky breathing returned to normal. "Okay," she whispered.

Bruce interlocked their fingers (something he never thought he would ever do with anyone). "You were soaring," he continued. "Your wings were just torn off your back. What's the first thing you do?"

"I start screaming…and – and – and flailing."

"What are you feeling?"

"Fear…p-pain." She saw herself on the ground, screaming in pain. Inconsolable. "Alone," she paused. "D-death," she breathed out as she felt Bruce gently kiss her knuckles. "And then darkness."

"What's the one thing you would wish for in that moment?"

"My wings," Shayera said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Okay," Bruce intertwined their fingers again. "Your wings are back. You are now standing on the edge of a cliff, ready to test your new wings. Can you see it?" Shayera felt Bruce's fingers slowly slip from hers.

"Yes," she answered.

"You want to leap. You prepare to leap. But something is stopping you? What is it? The first thing that comes to mind," Bruce ordered.

"I – I – I am scared," Shayera admitted.

"Why?"

"I don't want to lose my wings again," she admitted. "It hurt so much the first time around. I…I cannot go through that again." She felt Bruce gently wipe tears from her eyes, which were still closed. She felt weird…different. "How do you feel?" Bruce asked.

"Weightless," she answered immediately.

"Shayera, open your eyes." She slowly blinked her eyes open, adjusting to the bright lights of the gym. Her legs were still crossed, and she was face-to-face, eye-to-eye with Bruce. Only, Bruce was standing on his two feet. If he was standing and her legs were still crossed, but she was at eye level with Bruce, that must mean – Shayera gasped as she looked down. She was floating, and she wasn't even trying. It was as if her real wings were…there. "How – how – " she looked at Bruce.

"This is all you," he said with a smile.

"How did you – "

"Something I learned at the monastery."

Shayera immediately wrapped Bruce in a tight hug. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Shayera," Bruce said in a strained voice, "you're still slightly stronger than me. You're crushing me."

"Sorry," Shayera said, quickly pushing him away. She landed gracefully on the floor.

"Want to have another go at sparring?" Bruce asked.

"You're going down," Shayera said, flying to the center of the mat.

"We'll see," Bruce followed.