#GIVE ME A DAMN BREAK NIA

[hollyoongs]

GIVE ME FUCKING FIVE OF THEM

SUNOO GETS A LITTLE JEALOUS !

PAIRING: brother's bff sunoo x reader

⚠︎ nsfw, mdni degradation, use of whore and slut, breath play, cum play, noo is possessive

sunoo’s hands were wrapped around your thighs as he drilled his entire length inside you at a force you weren’t used to, his fingers gripping your flesh almost painfully, sure to leave marks if he didn’t stop holding onto you so tight soon. the skirt of your sundress was bunched up at your waist, and he wasn’t surprised in the slightest when he saw your bare cunt once he moved the fabric of your dress. of course you were waltzing around your apartment without your panties on, just like the little slut he knew you were.

“is this what you wanted, mhh?” his voice was deep as he spoke from above you, his knees digging into the soft mattress of your bed. “wanted my attention so bad? ‘ohh hoonie! your arms are so big! you look so strong!” he said, voice shrill as he mocked what you had said earlier in front of the other guys.

“n-no sun—”

“don’t wanna hear it.” his eyebrows furrowed even further in concentration as his thrusts slowed down but deepened, his cock grazing your insides so deliciously but also not providing all of the stimulation you needed.

you whined in protest, head rolling to the side to try to silence your complaints against the silky sheets, the other guys and your brother were in the room right across the hallway after all, and surely they were going to start to question where the hell sunoo and you went any time soon.

“princess doesn’t want the others to know she’s getting stuffed so full?” he cooed, nails marking crescent-like indents on your soft skin. “well that’s too fucking bad, you’ll think twice about provoking me next time.”

“i-i wasn’t trying to prov-”

“cut your fucking bullshit,” he spat, slowing down his movements completely. “you walk around in this dress with your pretty pussy bare and give it easy access to everyone, go and feel up sunghoon like a little whore in heat and then you wanna act all innocent?”

his hands moved to circle your clit teasingly, his mouth hanging open in a low fuck when you clenched so hard around his cock, your hips moving from the bed and against him to try to get more. “wanted my attention so bad huh?”

you moaned his name as he kept his hips still, refusing to resume his thrusts that would surely get you to cum in seconds, especially now that his fingers were working on your tiny bundle of nerves just like he knew you liked. a sharp hiss left your parted lips when he pinched your clit, unamused with how you didn’t answer his question, a jolt of sweet pain coursing through your body.

“yes! yes i wanted your attention noo!” you gasped finally, voice breaking with need as he kept teasing you. “please noo, fuck! please move”

he cooed at the cute nickname you used only when you really wanted something from him, and the side of his lips tugged upwards as he thought about just how needy and desperate his pretty baby was. he ignored the surprised yelp you let out when he suddenly moved his hands from your thighs to your hips and completely lifted your bottom from the bed, suspending it in the air with nothing but his strong hold to rely on.

“hoonie is so strong, isn’t he princess?” he moaned as he pulled his cock out of you almost completely before slamming it right back in, the angle he was holding you in allowing him to reach so much deeper than earlier. “i’ll show you even stronger.”

sunoo started pistoning inside you without any care for the almost animalistic sounds he was pulling out of you, even though he knew he should be more careful when your brother was so close, he simply couldn’t bring himself to care. not when you were making a mess on his cock so nicely, the sight of your slick dripping down your thighs onto the bed downright obscene. one of his pretty hands left your hips to reach for your neck, loving the way he could feel your breath get caught against his warm skin. he pressed even deeper inside you, his tip continuously fucking against your cervix as he squeezed the sides of your neck, the sight of your eyes rolling back making his hips stutter and cock twitch inside your snug walls.

“look at you, what would your brother think right now if he saw you? what would he think if he saw his sister lose her mind on my cock, mhh?” he purred as he let go of your neck, allowing you to breathe. “should we call hoonie in too? show him whose cock you are creaming right now?”

he brought his free hand to hold on your leg, his face nuzzling against it as he took in the sight of the white creamy ring forming around the base of his dick, some of your wetness dripping down to his sensitive balls. “fuck princess, you’re so dirty.”

he kept pushing into you mercilessly, the sounds of the headboard of your bed slamming against the wall almost deafening. there was no way at least one of the guys hadn’t already caught on to what was happening.

“noo please, i’m so close,” you whined as you threw your head back against your pillow, tiny sobs leaving your mouth because of how good the drag of sunoo’s length felt inside you.

“let go princess, make a mess all over me,” sunoo whispered as he placed featherlight kisses on the skin of your calf, the contrast between the sweet pecks, his bruising hold and the force of his thrusts making your head spin in the best way possible. you released all over him, your vision turning white for a few seconds and your hand covering your mouth as you tried your best to not make too much noise. your walls fluttered against his twitching cock, the feeling of your pretty cunt gushing around his length just enough stimulation to send him tumbling over the edge as well. he bit into your leg to silence his raspy moans as he pulled out of your weeping hole and let go of your hip to paint the skin of your thighs in drops of milky white, his own hand milking all he could onto your body.

“fuck baby, you look so gorgeous like this,” sunoo marveled once he caught his breath enough to speak again, his other hand finally lowering you leg back on the bed and smearing his cum all over your exposed skin with his fingertips, sliding them in your poor sensitive cunt once he reached it. sunoo bent down to place a sweet kiss on your collarbone when you complained because of how overstimulating the sensation of him fucking his cum into you was, his demeanor completely different now that he fucked the jealousy out of his system. he slid his fingers down and lowered your dress back without cleaning you up, your lips letting out an irritated noise as you felt the sticky feeling of the fabric clinging onto where he had smeared his seed.

“now if any of the other guys get a peek under this dress, they’ll see you already belong to me,” he giggled against your neck, his teeth slightly grazing it as he spoke. he got back on his knees again and brought his soaked fingers to his mouth, closing his eyes and humming at the sweet taste. hot lust shoot straight to your abdomen again as you took in the sight of sunoo’s disheveled form licking the mix of both your orgasms from his digits, your mouth hanging open as you thought that maybe you could spare a few more minutes away from the others.

a/n: repost :)

[lovezbrownies]

Office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia offOffice lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia Office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia Office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia Office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia office lady Nia..

Making this made me blush don't ask why

The office's Monarch. (Yandere Queen?Boss? x GN!Reader.)

Nia's Masterlist - General Masterlist

Synopsis: You're overworked, and your bachelorette of a boss has the remedy.

Nia Bloodwen x GN!Reader

Warnings: Big bad boss Nia, the office not liking darling, overworked darling, kinda suggestive? But that's a given with Nia tbh

Today, you couldn’t afford to do anything but work. The prospect of a lunch break was nothing more than a distant dream, as you stared at the seemingly endless rows of emails and stacks of paperwork that had been cruelly dropped onto your desk. All courtesy of a coworker who was probably basking in the sun on a beach somewhere, enjoying their paid vacation. The memory of their smug grin as they left only fueled your growing frustration. Damned rat.

The gnawing hunger in your stomach was easier to ignore than the heavy weight of responsibility pressing down on you. There was simply no time to stop and eat. Deadlines loomed large, and your priority was getting through the mountain of tasks in front of you before they became an avalanche.

You sighed, leaning back in your chair for a moment of respite. Most of the office didn’t like you anyway—no one would even notice if you disappeared for a few minutes, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. You’d earned their disdain without ever meaning to, and truth be told, you couldn’t entirely blame them.

From the moment you had been hired, Nia Bloodwen, your boss, had taken a particular interest in you. She had carved out a special place for you in the company that no one else seemed to occupy. Whether it was extending your lunch hours, giving you extra time off, or offering extensions on projects without a second thought, Nia was always there to make sure you were treated differently. Far better than the rest of the staff, to be precise.

And everyone had noticed. There was no hiding it—Nia didn’t even try to be subtle. Her favoritism was as blatant as the sky was blue, and you’d been given the unfortunate title of “Boss’ Pet,” a nickname that followed you through the halls like a shadow. The bitterness of your coworkers was palpable. WenBlood & Co. didn’t have an “Employee of the Month” program until you arrived, but since your first week, your photo had been plastered up on the wall every single month. It was as if Nia had created the title just for you, a constant reminder to the others that you were different. Special. Untouchable.

It didn’t help that whenever someone tried to strike up a casual conversation with you, Nia would appear out of nowhere, ready to defend her favorite.

“Mister Bajaj! What are you doing loitering by L/N’s desk? Get back to work!”

Or, with an icy glare at Mrs. Alotaibi, “I expect better from you. Don’t distract L/N with idle chatter. I won’t tolerate it.”

Even minor offenses like a friendly email exchange would end in a scolding that echoed across the office. People learned quickly to avoid you, preferring to keep their distance rather than risk being humiliated by the boss. The few who still dared to interact with you did so cautiously, sending projects to your personal email just to avoid Nia’s wrath. She monitored everyone’s work emails like a hawk, and no one wanted to be the next victim of one of her public takedowns.

“Mister Bajaj, another non-work-related email and you’re done. L/N has real work to do, not time for your cat gifs.”

And it wasn’t just a casual comment. Her voice would cut through the air like a blade, sharp and cold, as she openly threatened anyone who dared waste your time. Nia’s “minions,” as she liked to call the rest of the office, were left walking on eggshells whenever you were involved.

For them, Nia was terrifying. She ruled with an iron fist, barking orders, threatening layoffs, and keeping everyone in a constant state of anxiety. But with you? She was different. For reasons you couldn’t quite grasp, Nia was always soft and gentle, as if she were a completely different person when she was around you. Her cold demeanor would melt, replaced with warmth and compassion that bordered on obsessive. She listened to your complaints, accommodated your requests—even when you didn’t ask for anything. One day, you had casually mentioned that you liked coffee, and by the next morning, a brand-new coffee machine had been installed on your desk.

That’s when you learned to stop admitting to liking things. Nia took every word you said as gospel, going to great lengths to cater to your needs—even when you didn’t need it.

Normally, you could tolerate it. You even found it amusing at times, though you were always careful to never push Nia too far. She was your boss, after all, and your job was on the line if she ever decided you weren’t worth the trouble. But today was different. Today, the sheer volume of work in front of you left no room for her theatrics.

Emails kept pouring into your inbox faster than you could respond, and the paperwork—God, the paperwork—had only grown worse by the hour. Your own tasks were still manageable, but your coworker’s load, due tomorrow, was like a ticking time bomb. You cursed yourself for agreeing to take it on. You’d wanted to be helpful, to show your coworkers that you weren’t just Nia’s little pet. But now? Now you were paying for that decision, drowning in work that wasn’t even yours to begin with.

You exhaled slowly, your hands shaking slightly from the stress. Why did you care if your coworkers liked you anyway? Half of them probably didn’t deserve your time. You barely knew them, and what little you did know wasn’t exactly flattering. Yet here you were, breaking your back for them, hoping in vain that maybe, just maybe, they’d see you as more than Nia’s golden child.

While you sat stewing in frustration, Nia had been hovering at the edge of your desk, trying to coax you into joining her for lunch. For the last five minutes, she had been relentless, her voice soft yet insistent, like a melody you couldn’t get out of your head.

“I’ll give you an extension if you’re so worried about your work. Just leave it for now and come with me. I can hear your stomach growling from here.”

Her low-cut top and open blouse were impossible to ignore as she leaned forward, making her presence all the more unavoidable. Nia had never been shy about her appearance, and no one dared to say anything about it. Her last name ensured that. Even HR wouldn’t touch her, not with her father, the CEO, pulling the strings. And while Nia had always dressed fashionably, you couldn’t help but notice that she had amped it up since you started working at WenBlood. Whether you were shallow enough to care didn’t matter—she knew how to get your attention, and today was no different.

But today, you were too tired. Too worn down. You kept your eyes glued to the screen, fingers flying across the keyboard as you tried to finish one last email. “No, Nia,” you muttered. “I’ve got too much to do. This can’t wait. I’ve got snacks in my drawer if I need them.” You pulled open the drawer to reveal an overstuffed collection of snacks, though you didn’t even glance at it. “Go ahead without me.”

Nia wasn’t pleased with that answer. Her lips pursed slightly as she walked around the desk, her eyes flicking to your monitor. It didn’t take her long to figure out what was going on. “Wait a minute,” she said, narrowing her eyes at the project label on your screen. “I assigned these to Miss Smith. Why are you doing them?”

You hesitated for a split second, unsure of how to respond. “She’s on vacation,” you finally said. “I told her I’d handle it while she’s gone.”

Nia’s expression darkened, her irritation evident in the way her eyes flashed. Without warning, Nia walked around the desk, now right behind you as she reached down and powered off your monitor, effectively halting your work. You let out a surprised gasp, but before you could even begin to protest, Nia spun your chair around to face her.

Her manicured nails tapped against the backrest of your chair, just inches from your head. She was so close you could smell the faint traces of her expensive perfume—something floral, with a hint of spice. The scent wrapped around you, making it impossible to think straight.

“You,” she said, her voice dangerously low, “are going to take a well-deserved break with me. We are going to enjoy lunch together, and that’s final.”

Her presence was overwhelming, her beauty almost hypnotic as she stood over you, her eyes locking onto yours. You could feel your heart pounding in your chest as her words sunk in. She wasn’t asking. She was telling.

Before you could muster a response, Nia’s hand slipped into yours, pulling you to your feet with surprising ease. She wasted no time looping her arm through yours, guiding you toward the door like it was the most natural thing in the world. Your legs felt shaky beneath you, your mind racing as you tried to process the sudden shift in the atmosphere.

The sudden proximity made you stiffen. Her perfume—something floral and impossibly expensive—lingered in the air between you. Your heart thudded in your chest as she pulled you along, completely ignoring the confused stares of your coworkers.

You could feel their eyes on you as Nia led you through the office, her heels clicking confidently on the tiled floor. Most of your coworkers either shrank back or quickly pretended to be busy, not wanting to draw her ire.

Outside, the heat of the midday sun hit you like a wall, and you stumbled slightly as Nia led you toward her car. It wasn’t the sleek black sports car she usually drove—it was something far more extravagant today. A silver Rolls-Royce, polished to perfection.

“Really?” you muttered under your breath, but Nia just laughed as she opened the door for you, gesturing for you to get in. “Come on, darling. You deserve to be spoiled today.”

You hesitated, glancing between her and the car. But there was no way out of this, not without making a scene. You slid into the plush leather seat with a resigned sigh, and Nia slipped in beside you, a satisfied smile tugging at her lips.

The restaurant she took you to was even more ridiculous than you’d imagined. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and the walls were lined with gold-framed mirrors. The entire place screamed luxury, and as soon as you entered, the staff treated Nia like royalty, ushering you both to a private table.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” you muttered, glancing around in disbelief. Nia just smiled, unfazed. “Nothing but the best for you, my dear. Can you even think of anyone else who can do it like me? Hah, of course not!”

The restaurant buzzed with life, the soft hum of conversation and clinking silverware creating an atmosphere that should’ve been relaxing. But with Nia sitting across from you, calm and poised, you couldn’t quite shake the sense that this wasn’t just lunch—it was something else entirely. Something orchestrated. Nia always had a way of making situations bend to her will, and today, it felt like you were the focus of her attention in a way that left you on edge.

"Relax," Nia said, her voice warm, noticing the stiffness in your posture. She slid into the seat across from you, her eyes shining with that same playful glint. "I promise, I’m not going to bite. Unless you want me to." Nia giggles, blush overcoming her cheeks.

Her tone was light, but there was a careful precision to her words, as if each one was chosen with intent. The waiter appeared and took your orders without even bothering to ask if you wanted a menu. Nia, it seemed, had already decided what would be best for you—an assumption that only deepened the quiet unease growing inside you.

You didn’t argue. It never seemed worth it.

The conversation began as usual, with Nia recounting bits of office gossip and teasing remarks about your coworkers, her voice lilting with amusement. But there was something else woven into her words, a subtle shift in the way she spoke about them—diminishing their roles, highlighting how little they mattered compared to you. It was easy to laugh along, but you couldn’t ignore the lingering sense that you were being nudged into a certain way of thinking.

And then, as the food arrived, Nia’s tone changed again, softening, becoming almost... intimate.

"I don’t like seeing you stressed," she murmured, her voice quiet and soothing. "You’re always doing so much for other people, taking on more than you should. And for what? People who don’t appreciate you?" Her gaze locked onto yours, her expression all concern, but her words dripped with something more. A subtle pressure.

You shifted in your seat, caught off guard by her intensity. "I’m fine," you replied, forcing a smile, though the weight of everything you had been dealing with was beginning to press down on you.

"Are you?" Nia asked, her voice soft but pointed, like she already knew the answer. "You’re too kind, too generous. It’s admirable, but it’s not fair. I don’t want to see you burning out just because you can’t say no." She paused, letting her words sink in, then leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice even further. "You don’t have to be that person for everyone. You don’t have to be that person for them. Not when I’m here."

The way she said it made it sound like a favor, a gift—like she was the only one who truly understood you. Before you could respond, she reached across the table, her fingers grazing the back of your hand in a gesture that seemed gentle, but there was a possessiveness to it. A subtle claim.

"L/N," she continued, her thumb tracing a slow circle on your skin, her eyes never leaving yours, "let me help you. You don’t need to carry everything on your own. I can make things easier for you." Her smile was soft, sweet even, but there was an unmistakable hint of satisfaction in her eyes, as if she knew she was pulling you closer, bit by bit.

There it was again—the sense that her kindness wasn’t without strings. But the way she said it, the way she looked at you, made it hard to resist. It was as though she was offering you exactly what you needed, exactly when you needed it. A lifeline, wrapped in velvet.

"You trust me, don’t you?" Nia asked, her voice now barely above a whisper. It wasn’t really a question, more of a statement—an expectation.

As you looked at her, you could feel the weight of her words settling around you, a promise mixed with something much heavier. And yet, there was a part of you that couldn’t help but lean into it, just a little.

"Let me take care of you, like I always do," she added, her smile widening ever so slightly, her tone light and playful again, though the undercurrent was unmistakable. You were hers, whether you realized it or not.

[thefirstforgottenpages]

Tag Me in!

Authors note: ikikik this isn’t my main blog and blah blah but RHEA RIPLEY???? HELLO???? never have I ever been more down tf bad for a woman in my life she’s so FINE! that being said, here’s a fic to fuel my delusions <3

Warnings: smut, praise, mommy/mami kink, strap(reader receiving), oral,frenemies to lovers, manhandling, wrestler!Reader, charlotte flair and nia jax (sorry if y’all like them), smut with a slight plot?!?!? No wayyyy!!! anddd I think that’s it 

Hope you enjoyyyy

You guys were the underdogs. The whole WWE universe knew it. Even though you and Rhea were crowd favorites, the combined strength of a tag team consisting of the Charlotte flair and Nia freakin Jax? Even you were a bit unsettled about the odds. You let out a shaky breath admittedly nervous, struggling to lace your sports bra’s corset-like ties, you groan, angered, but it quick turns into a gasp when a pair of large hands trail down your back.

Whipping around, you’re relieved albeit a bit pissed, to see Rhea smirking down at you. “Don’t you have anywhere better to be?” You roll your eyes but nonetheless a small smile tugs at the corner of your lips. Rhea chuckles, a sound that annoyingly makes your smile grow wider. “Not when you look like that.” She purrs. You grimace waving her off even though a blush dusts your cheeks at her flirtatious words.

“Ripley, I will pin you myself in that ring.” You growl back— you’re only half serious. You look her up and down before shaking your head you return to your vanity. “Nahh you hate Flair and Jax too much to do that.” Rhea rasps, her muscular arms wrapping around your waist to shake you playfully. She places her head in the crook of your neck before pulling away. You can’t help but notice the longing twinge in your stomach as she lets go. 

“Damn straight I do,” you chide cheekily, “And if you’d be a doll and let me get ready— maybe we’d win!” You give her arm a teasing shove. “Not with that puny strength we won’t.” Rhea tilts her head up grinning at your indignation. You tsk, preceding to lean closer to the vanity glass to apply your signature makeup. You’re concentrated until you look up making eye contact with Rhea through the mirror. You both look away. Rhea’s gaze focuses on the top of her studded combat boots while yours falls upon your makeup bag.

This is how your relationship was with her. You’d flirt, fight, then shyly not talk to each other. It would drive you wild. The glances. The stares. The insults. The glares. You loved to hate-love her. Irrelevant to how much  you protested to even harboring a smidgen of a crush on her, your friends would give you absolute hell for it. 

In fact, the last conversation you had with one of them— Liv Morgan, came to mind in your fazed out state. “Rhea’s only ever like that if she likes someone, she’s just really bad at… well… being nice.”  You give a small glance to the woman once more. She was infuriating… yet you couldn’t deny she was quite literally the most gorgeous, determined, and strong person you’d ever met. You shake your hand another small secretive smirk gracing your lips as you continue to busy yourself with your makeup. So here you sat, the woman of your thoughts standing tall and brooding behind you.

You didn’t know how you felt about Rhea Ripley anymore.

“You… need help with the ties?” Rhea’s low voice breaks the silence— and your swirling musings. You nod words failing you and soon feel her hands once more trail gently over the expanse of your skin. You suck in a breath as the corset sinches you in. Your breath stays held as Rhea’s hand stays at the arch of your back. Looking over your shoulder, you make eye contact with the raven haired woman. As Rhea parts her obsidian lips a deafening knock is heard on the other side of the dressing room door. “Ripley!! you’re on in 5!” Rhea and your stage name is shouted through the door at you, the noise stuns you back to the present moment once more.

Rhea’s demeanor stiffens and her hands finally drop from your waist. You swear you see a flicker of unease settle on her strong features before it’s wiped away by her signature cocky glare. Your expression nearly mirrors hers as you nudge her shoulder a Cheshire Cat grin taking over your features. “Save it for when we win love.” The term of endearment is cooed at you while a remix of your and Rhea’s theme plays signaling your entrance. And as she wrapped her arm around your waist to lead you into the ring you find yourself leaning into her muscular form unafraid of the task to come. 

Later, back in your shared hotel, you were sulking. Although you had won— much to Rhea’s teasing delight, (So much delight in fact that she had picked you up kissing you on the cheek as you clung to her beaming towards the cameras). You were deathly sore from the fight. You had taken quite a few blows from the formidable force that was Nia Jax. You murmur softly arching your back at the sharp pain. A gruff deep chuckle sounds behind you. “That bad huh?” you sigh nodding, eyes widening when you take in Rhea’s post-game appearance; Her hair fluffed out and still damp from her shower, low waisted sweatpants precariously hanging on her hips. “You look rough.” You say lying right through your teeth. With a warm realization, you found yourself wanting…her.

“Not as rough as you.” Rhea retorts, except there’s not any malice behind it. Her blue eyes soften as the soft smile she has come to love graces your features. “You don’t mean that.” You say it as a statement because you know she doesn’t. “I don’t.” Comes her uncharacteristically warm reply. Your cheeks heat at the sincerity.  

“You did good,” You muse, you don’t miss the way Rhea’s breath hitches as your hand comes to soothe a blooming bruise on her cheekbone. “In the ring I mean.” You giggle clarifying, as Rhea closes her eyes at the sensation of your smaller hand on her. “We actually make a rather good team when we’re not fighting.” Rhea mumbles, practically leaning on you with a tiredness that matched your own.

It was intolerable being this close to her, you thought. But as your gaze fluttered over her features once more, you realize that it isn’t. It isn’t intolerable being this close to Rhea, quite the opposite actually.

It was entirely too tolerable being this close to her.

The calm silence that hangs in the room speaks volumes. But your steady voice breaks it. “I think I’ve liked you for a while now.” You confess lowly, shrinking in, self conscious when Rhea stiffens. 

You relax, however, as her lips meet yours. You whine into the kiss when Rhea’s body presses against yours. There was a possessiveness to her actions that already had you shivering in anticipation. You pull away out of breath. Rhea kissed like she fought. In charge, and demanding.

You loved it.

“I think I like you too.” Rhea’s voice has a gravelly timbre to it and it sends you reeling. You don’t register her jest until her thumb swipes across your bottom lip. Her hands find their way to your lower back and you don’t hesitate to jump into Rhea’s arms as she pulls you toward the messy hotel bed. 

She practically throws you onto it. You shriek laughing, as Rhea hauls herself atop you, pressing her nose to yours. 

Another giggle sprawls out of you when her shaggy hair falls to your neck. “Rhea…” The way you say her name has Rhea shuddering. Your voice was already deliciously pitched and breathy. She couldn’t wait to ruin you she thought as her smirk deepened at your keens.

“I’m not stopping if you’re going to say my name like that again.” Her mouth is near your ear, you shudder when you hear the unspoken meaning behind them. You wanted her. And you wanted her to know that. Arching your back, you lock your legs around her, hands coming up to softly grip both sides of her face. “Then don’t stop.” 

The next kiss that Rhea places on your skin, is much lower than before. She looks up at you questioningly as she slowly lifts the hem of your oversized shirt. You nod quickly needing nothing more than to feel your skin on hers.

Your eyes roll when her second set of kisses run over your chest focusing on the soft underside of your perky boobs. “Mmm—baby-“ the pet name falls off your tongue before you can stop yourself. Rhea seems to like it however as she huffs out a husky groan of your name. 

“What do you need darling?” the sharpness of her accent shocks you, and needily, your hands weave themselves into Rhea’s raven hair. She laughs softly as you give it an experimental tug. “Go ahead sweetheart, mommy likes it rough.” Her gruff words come as a surprise to you. And at the use of her nickname, you find yourself clenching around nothing. 

You choke out her name one more time as her nimble fingers ghost beneath the waistband of your shorts. “So wet for me…” Rhea’s voice trails off in badly suppressed arousal as she pulls her hand back from your now dripping pussy. Your face heats when she holds your gaze licking your arousal off her slender fingers. She moans at the taste of you, arms coming to hold your now shaking legs open.

Rhea’s eyes darken as her tongue slips into your fluttering hole. You can’t help the whining slurred moans that fall past your lips as she continues to ravage you in ways you didn’t think possible. 

“M-mommy-fuck- please!” Your warbled mewls have Rhea shaking her head into your pussy and with a lustful discovery, you come to see her hips start to grind into the bed as she continues to pleasure you.

“You’re--mm-such a good girl for me.” There’s a choppiness to her voice that wasn’t there before and you whimper when you learn that her other hand had snaked down to play with herself. 

Rhea growls as your legs attempt to close at the overwhelming sensation. “I can’t make you cum if you do that sweetheart.” Your lip trembles as she forces open your legs with ease. The casual display of strength has your clit throbbing with a renewed need. “Rhea—mommy- I wanna cum.” Your voice is quiet, nearly inaudible, but Rhea’s keen ears hear you. Her middle finger comes to trace around your clit and that’s all it takes for your eyes to cross and your back to arch as you come harder than you ever have. You’re vaguely aware of the praises that Rhea is cooing to you as you come down from your high, a stupefied smile wobbling on your face. You smile coyly when she comes up to lay next to you. Giving her lips an appreciative kiss before trailing your hands over her torso. 

“I want this off.” You say slowly, referring to her black tank top. Rhea grins at you before lifting it over her head and throwing it aimlessly to the room. You whine softly when you find she’s braless, eyes intrigued by her pierced nipples. On a whim, you straddle her, head dipping low to greedily suck on her tits. Rhea’s head tips back at this and the strangled cry that you rip from her throat has you wet all over again. 

“W-wait.” Rhea’s stuttered croak has you tilting your head in confusion, but as she reaches for the bedside drawer she pulls out a black and purple strap. You raise your eyebrows at this rolling off her as she once again climbs on top of you, removing her pants in the process. 

“I was kinda hoping to get lucky tonight.” She mumbles before thrusting into you. It feels like the air is punched out of your lungs and all you can do is cling to Rhea’s biceps as she quickens the pace of her hips. 

“And seeing as I have,” she purrs her hand coming up to grip your neck. “I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon my love.”

[bellespawn]

**XENOBLADE 2 SPOILERS**

this scene is So Fucking Good when you don’t have someone in your ear making it out to be a big joke.

(yes this is sort of a long one. i’m having a normal one over xenoblade again watch out)

i hate how much annoying people try to ruin this scene. they turn it all into the most simple dumb “oh poor nia she got rejected” “rex is such a chad for keeping his word later on if you know what i mean” SHUT UPPPP THIS SCENE’S SO SWEET DON’T MAKE IT WEIRD THAT’S GROSS

nia is not sad about being “““rejected””” in this scene, like look at her. that’s the rex she knows and loves. he definitely had her going for a moment, but that’s not what they should dwell on right now. now isn’t the time for proposals, now is the time to defend each other from harm and have a damn good time doing it.

even if rex is coming from a place of ignorance, he’s basically a 15 year old outcast. give him a break for not instantly understanding love.

nia also ADORES how much of a dummy rex can be. that’s part of what makes him who he is. hearing him possibly misconstrue her confession didn’t break her, it made her laugh and cry tears of joy. she knows they just can talk it over later if he truly didn’t get it.

also just screw the poor nia/melia thing. i understand it in the moment, but by the time the game’s over, they’ve long since moved on. especially nia who… didn’t even get rejected?? you’re basing this off of this one singular scene that is almost entirely positive????? why????

(another aspect of this cutscene i adore are the very trans/queer undertones present earlier in the scene. i’ll probably make a post all about that. probably soon too.)

whatever anyway point is, i love this scene very dearly (almost cried getting to it again last night) and seeing its name dragged through the mud constantly makes me so tired…

[thatonebirdwrites]

Finally! It took me quite a bit of research to pull off this chapter. It's a pretty crucial one, where many of the threads I'm weaving all start to come together.

Excerpt:

Life refuses to give Lena breaks. 

That’s her first thought when her magic encounters the ominous grey fog. 

Her second thought is: Dammit, not again. Memories of her mother’s death deluge her.

Her third drops her into her CEO role, and she’s on her feet after gathering up remnants of the ritual. She relays orders to Kara and Nia. Doesn’t give them much chance to respond before she’s hurrying toward the car. 

The murmur of nearby voices ride the wind around the tower, this hulking stone structure that clings to the highest part of the Cliffs of Moher. That and the crash of waves feel far too peaceful for the unsettling energy she’d felt. Each time she looks over her shoulder, the fog seems to creep closer but maybe that’s an optical illusion. Fog on the sea near sunset is unusual, though not impossible, at least the science of it.

People may get hurt if that grey fog is anything like her dreams, which is her fourth and a thousand other thoughts. Dreams shouldn’t be real, but they weren’t, were they? They were manifestations of places she’s been before, things she saw as a child, all thrown together in a disturbing dream that has frightening parallels with reality again. 

She refuses to allow anyone to die like her mother did. To do that however, she needs the damn sword, and then she’ll rip apart that fog-person and end this whole aggravating situation.

Her thoughts trickle back to the disturbing vision of her first task: 

The Morrigan steps forward and a wrinkled, sun-burnt hand extends from her sleeve. “The truth has been unveiled, young one. Three days before full moon. Then and only then, seek the forge within Sliabh an Iarainn if you and your friends wish to live.”

Yes, she very much wants them all to live. Her heart cannot take more death right now.

Kara catches up to her. “Lena?” She reaches out and grasps her hand. “What is it? What did you sense?”

The worry in Kara’s voice breaks through Lena’s increasingly stormy thoughts. She flicks her gaze behind them, but the grey fog is still far out at sea, so they have time to make it to the dolmen. “The grey fog. Something walks in it. I have to obtain my mother’s grimorie before it hits us.”

“If it helps,” Nia says behind her, her voice suddenly shy, “it’s not today that it attacks.”

“What?” Lena stops and turns to Nia with a frown. “What do you mean not today?”

“Did you have a true dream?” Kara asks. 

Nia nods. “Earlier, in the car. Saw fog in the shape of an hourglass, us holding hands as we cross a bridge, and a falling tower. The hourglass signifies that we have time but it’s slipping away. The other elements all hint that confrontation is soon, and Lena, if you find the sword…”

“I know,” Lena says, impatiently. “Don’t unsheathe—”

Nia shakes her head. “You must fight with it, but choose your opponent carefully. Because I think, no, I’m sure it’s a fight to the death.” 

To read the full story, click here.

[darkfictionjude]

What if in a AU were Dr. Madorna and MC were a couple, the first comes to the town to visit her lover. How would the ROs in deep crushing stage and family with Orla react.

Damn nonnie this au came completely out of left field (I keep getting doctor Madorna AUs which is odd since she only showed up once 💀)

although if they were lovers you bet the doctor is losing her licence because that is professionally immoral 😭 (there’s also that she knew mc since they were around 16 and she’s like in her late 40s…)

Let’s say mc is in their 20s

Imre:

Immediately when they see this he begins looking into her professional history. He comes over and debates her over proper medical care and diagnoses. Then someone calls the medical board about an inappropriate relationship between a certain doctor and her patient. Oops, if mc needs comfort he’ll be there.

Nia:

She’s gets a deep puncture in her chest and to get rid of it she decides to find other patients of the doctor’s and pay them off to tell the police some “creative embellishments” about how inappropriate the doctor was to them and look at that the doctor gets arrested but Nia feels so sorry for you, she wonders how this could’ve happened *wink*

Lorcan:

He at first tries to tell the doctor that she needs to stay away from mc or something bad will happen but somehow the doctor ends up having a therapy session with Lorcan and he leaves the house so disturbed about being so throughly analyzed he keeps coming back for therapy. He decides not only will it help him but the more he keeps the doctor away from mc the better.

THE CROWNS

Victor: who is this? Your doctor? Is this gonna cost me? No? Well as long you take care of them I don’t care (and no he doesn’t mean he’s happy mc is being loved more so he’s happy he doesn’t have to take care of them)

Prudence: she hates doctors, especially ones who deal with mental health issues. She thinks anyone who goes into that profession must have something wrong with them. Also it’s embarrassing to date your own doctor. She bans her from the premises.

Sally: he smiles but it doesn’t reach his eyes. He thinks this is unhealthy. He thinks the doctor is taking advantage of you. But… you’re happy so he gives his blessing.

Percy: *cue dr. Frankstein and his monster jokes* and then he asks if they can give him a prescription for adderall

Orla (alive era): she makes sure everyone knows so they can make fun of you. And tries to break into the doctor’s briefcase for personal files

[fazedlight]

something something organelles something chloroplasts…. sulfates…

*nodding along* yes talk science to me damn

It was so hard to write that chapter of Even Though You're Kryptonian, and try to figure out what the audience would need to know (assuming that most of the audience didn't have biology fresh on their minds). I ended up summing it to "okay, the audience needs to know that blood is important, and that the trait is maternally passed" and also "the audience needs to know this comes down to quantum information, which can't be cloned". When Nia says "skip the science", that is because I took out full paragraph explanations that were originally written there when I went back to editing 🤣 Buuuut this is tumblr, so I'll summarize here!

Quantum cloning is actually impossible (and would break the universe if it were possible), which Lena notes. On the TV show, they say they need Kara's DNA, and then get really sad when it's destroyed... but Lena is a scientist, replicating DNA is super easy, she definitely would've done that before loading the device!! So in my fic, we're going with quantum signatures, because the sadness around needing to reset the device to fight the phantoms makes sense.

The stable marriage problem (also called the "stable matching problem") is an actual thing in algorithms, with applications in economics. It's not specific to marriage - you can use similar algorithms to optimize which schools students attend, for instance. And it's always solvable, given certain conditions, with one of those conditions being that the two groups are distinct (like colleges are group 1, students are group 2 - a college can't attend a college & a student can't attend a student). If you don't have distinct groups, it turns into the stable roommate problem, which is not guaranteed to be solvable.

So basically my headcanon is that Krypton would look at algorithms and say "We can't have gay marriage, that's not algorithmically efficient!" because Krypton is the type of screwed up society that thinks everything should be done by algorithm.

Chloroplasts are organelles in plants. (Organelles are just organs for cells - instead of hearts and livers and kidneys, cells have things like mitochondria and nuclei and endoplasmic reticula.) Mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell? Well, so are chloroplasts (in plants!).

Lena at some point on the TV show tells the group that Reign's cells are more like plant cells, which Kara confirms as how kryptonians convert sunlight to energy (which is what a chloroplast does). But I say they're not quite chloroplasts because they have to use a different dye - kryptonians aren't green. Lutein is a yellow dye in plants (think fall leaves) that could probably be masked by the natural melanin in human skin. So that's what I made as the thing that causes kryptonians to give off a quantum signature - the conversion of sunlight to power.

Organelles really are passed from the mother (egg) to the child. Sperm doesn't have room for much besides DNA. (Though for reasons not yet explained, kryptonian biology is going to work a little differently than Lena expects.)

As for sulfates, that's just a category of salt, and they're plentiful in the ocean. I needed something that killed libido... unfortunately, most of the real stuff that would kill libido are things like alcohol or opioids, and I didn't want kryptonian kids running around stoned all the time. But salt can contribute to high blood pressure, which can lower libido - sooooo let's just pretend that kryptonians are particularly likely to experience this side effect, while not being killed by blood pressure. Their biology is different anyway!

[chaotic-super]

Back To Krypton - Chapter 23

Read Back To Krypton on Ao3 here!

Following the events that transpired with the pollen pods and the group getting separated, albeit only briefly, they made the decision as a group that from then on, they would be as cautious as possible, giving into boredom in order to be as safe as possible.

Everything turned out ok before but next time, it might not so they needed to change their attitudes and behaviours to better keep them safe.

This led to them simply following along the ravine. Thanks to all of the boulders littered around, they have to climb over several miles of rock, being overly careful to not injure themselves but within a week, they get back to normal ground, something they were all grateful for.

That being said that week of climbing over those boulders was, as you would expect, absolutely awful. Their hands and feet were sore by the end of every day from the rough surfaces and their fingertips ended up cracked and bleeding, the only one free of that pain was Esme, who enjoyed the experience immensely, clinging onto whoever’s turn it was to give her a piggyback across the rough terrain.

Kara slowly healed, the climbing not helping a whole lot with that, but within a couple of weeks, she was pretty much right as rain, her bruises fading into a soft yellow colour, fading with each passing day.

There’s not a lot to say about the rest of their time between then and now, it’s like they have been living the same day over and over again, walking along a path that is as familiar and unstimulating as it was the last day.

They have been walking it for almost five weeks, nothing of any significance happening, living in a constant cycle of waking up, eating, walking, taking a break, walking, eating and sleeping.

It’s been a long, tiring process but now, now they are finally at a point of change, a point where they won’t have to stare at the same dirt walls all day anymore.

“Please tell me we are where I think we are,” Kelly says, her feet aching and her jacket tied around her waist.

“We are where you think we are,” Kara says, voice filled with excitement and notebook in hand, mapping out their new location, an easy feat because they have officially reached the end of the ravine and by the heat in the air, they are well on their way to The Fire Falls.

Nia cheers tiredly, leading the rest of them to do the same, their eyes simultaneously drooping and trying to drink in the fresh sights of something different.

Up ahead of them, they are able to see the ravine sloping upwards, giving them a perfect ramp to walk up to get out of the pit of boredom and beyond that, a line of trees, something they haven’t seen a whole lot of in the past few weeks.

Lena shakes her hand, grabbing the attention of Kara, whose hand is clasped in her own, both palms slightly sweaty but neither caring. “Now that’s a sight for sore eyes.”

“Isn’t it just?” Kara answers, swinging their arms and pulling her to get her to keep walking, prompting the others to do the same since they had slowed to take in the sights. “I’m excited to be done with this part, this has been the most boring period of my life that I’ve ever lived through, definitely the least action-packed part of my life so far.”

“We have been surrounded by deadly plants the entire time, how is that not action-packed?” Alex asks, frowning.

Kara shrugs. “We weren’t that close to them, we just walked in a long dent of dirt for forever and a day, it’s not the same, as much as I hate danger, you need it around or else you’ll have a dull life.”

Alex shoulder barges her as she overtakes her, eyes pinned on the slope, ready to be out of this damned ravine, “correction, dear sister, you’ll have a safe life.”

“And a boring one.” Kara reaffirms, throwing her arm out quickly enough to get a light smack to land on Alex’s arm as she passes, her attempt to rush past fast enough to avoid any retaliation foiled.

They all find themselves speed walking, ready to get back out into the rest of the world, barely even sparing a second thought for what might be waiting for them up there, not appreciating the safety that the ravine has been giving them, their need to be free too strong for them to think on it too much.

The tension from Kara and Lena’s joined hands slackens when Kara stops dragging Lena along with her, Lena getting excited enough herself that her pace naturally picks up, looking forward to having the open space of the forest surrounding them once more, even if it does mean that they will have to watch where they are going now, shutting off their ability to zone out and stare at nothing in particular while they walk.

The group races up the slope, closing their eyes and looking up at the open sky when they reach the top, thriving in the space they now possess and rejoicing in the milestone of the mission that they have reached, something they have desperately been needing since all of the setbacks they have had to deal with.

Now that they aren’t surrounded by the walls of dirt, they are more attuned to the sounds around them. Having been surrounded, they were sheltered from a lot of the noise that they hadn’t even noticed before, but now that they are here, the sound of the leaves rustling and their boots squelching on the slick coat of leaves on the ground is welcoming in a way that they didn’t know they needed.

“We should head for higher ground, we want to make sure that we are heading around The Fire Falls, not towards them, we aren’t going for a family swimming session any time soon.” Kara declares, taking a look around to determine where they might find higher ground the quickest.

Nia and Esme are smiling over to the side, Esme on Nia’s shoulders and looking around at everything going on, thrilled to be somewhere new. “Aunt Kara, Aunt Kara, over there!” Esme calls out, pointing a finger into the trees and wiggling happily on Nia’s shoulders, Nia gripping her legs to stop her from tumbling right off because of her happy little jig.

Everyone starts moving closer to try and look where Esme is pointing and all of them are immediately turning to Esme to praise her for her keen eye, setting their internal compasses towards a tall hill that will let them see above the treeline so they can map out their journey from here on out.

Alex leans up to take Esme down from Nia’s shoulders, spinning her around until she giggles and telling her, “you’re the best lookout ever, much better than the rest of us combined. You’re a little walking genius!”

“We all know that! We have the smartest most beautiful daughter on the planet.” Kelly gushes, joining her wife and daughter in their giggling, joining in to tickle her daughter’s sides while she’s perched on Alex’s hip.

“Technically, the child version of me is on this planet along with my parents and I should be offended.” Kara murmurs, shutting up when Lena nudges her with her elbow and shoots her a steely-eyed glare, daring her to say anything else that might ruin the moment the Olsen- Danvers clan are currently having.

“Sorry,” Kara mumbles under her breath, fearing the wrath of her pissed-off girlfriend. If she stops now, she won’t have to pout until her lips are sore later trying to rid Lena of the frown that would inevitably be in place if she continued.

“Wait until we get into our tent tonight, you will be.” Lena leans in close to whisper it to her, her words sultry and full of promise.

“Absolutely not, please don’t not make me ask you a second time.” Nia steps between them, taking a hold of each of their wrists and breaking apart their joined hands. “I don’t know what you just said but I have been overhearing noises from your tent at night that no innocent person, such as myself, should be hearing. Additionally, if I can hear you, so can the others and they have a child. Think of the children.”

Kara and Lena share a panicked look before Lena’s turns into mild confusion. “Children?”

“Yeah, me and Esme, we don’t need to be traumatized the way you have been doing.”

Sucking her lips into her mouth and biting back her laugh, Kara jumps into the conversation. “I have a good pair of earplugs in my pack if you want to borrow them?”

Nia’s face twists in disgust, her body shuddering in a way that makes Lena snicker too. “We’ll put up our tent a little further away from yours tonight, how does that sound?

“I hate you both, and you can keep your earplugs, I don’t want anything that has touched your filthy, filthy bodies, you horny teenagers.”

“What’s horny?” Esme’s sweet voice cuts into their conversation, horrifying all five of the adults there.

To Kara’s great surprise and relief, all of Kelly and Alex’s anger is being directed to Nia rather than her since she’s the one that said the word.

It is funny to see the way that Nia is faltering beneath the two harsh gazes burning holes into her skull and the way she is almost sweating from the hard work her brain is putting in trying to figure out how to ease the death glares.

“Um, Kara, you know what horny is, why don’t you take this one.” Nia speeds out before speeding off in the direction of the hill, having no qualms about taking the coward’s way out on this one.

“Nia!” Kara hisses after her, eyes wide and apologetic when she turns towards her sister, shrinking in on herself and praying that she doesn’t get murdered tonight.

Lena, as always, comes to her rescue. “Esme, honey, it’s a word that is used when adults that love each other want to cuddle for a super duper long time.”

Kara nods along right away, Lena just saved her so she isn’t going to put her foot in her mouth now. “That’s right, now let’s go and catch up to Nia!” Her words are loud and way too overzealous but they do the trick and get everyone walking, Esme gives no indication of whether or not she believes Lena’s explanation but drops it, suddenly more concerned with reaching up to touch the leaves of the trees they are walking under.

Kara clears her throat, running her fingers down Lena’s wrist to take her hand again, meeting no resistance but not having Lena tighten her fingers around her own like she usually does shows her that she’s mad. “Sorry.”

“You will be,” Lena answers.

“In a good way or-“ The sideward glance she gets answers her question well enough. “Right, nope,  got it.”

They fall into silence, the wind whistling through the branches of the trees filling the air enough that it doesn’t feel uncomfortable, quite the opposite if anything. Lena takes a look at her girlfriend out of the corner of her eye, spotting the pout immediately and feeling her heart being filled with fondness even if she is annoyed that she was acting like a child.

She tightens her fingers around Kara’s, giving her hand a little squeeze to show she isn’t actually mad and does her best not to react when she slyly watches the pout melt off of Kara’s face, a content smile taking its place.

“Love you.” Kara murmurs, quiet enough for it to only reach Lena’s ears.

Lena rolls her eyes, dropping Kara’s hand to instead wrap her arm around her waist, tucking it beneath the weight of her pack. “Love you too, weirdo.”

“That’s not very nice.”

“It’s very fitting though.”

“Debatable.”

“Not really.”

Lena can’t keep the smile off her face by this point. Kara is going to be the death of her but she can’t lie, Kara has made the past few weeks tolerable, she’s really been her rock and has kept her positive throughout their endless trek through the ravine and has been doing whatever she can to keep her in good spirits, telling her jokes and funny stories, reading the books out loud to the group to keep them entertained and doing the voices for the characters, and being emotionally present, something she doesn’t have much practice with, but something that now she’s had it in a romantic sense, she could never compromise on again if this doesn’t work out.

Something tells her that it will though, she’ll make it work. They’ll make it work. Every night when they get to their tent, they’ve been spending at least an hour or two just talking, having every kind of deep and meaningful conversation you can think of and the lightest fluffiest ones too, as well as everything in between.

Of course, there are some kinds of conversations that led to a little less talking happening, something that they are now aware that the others could hear too, all thanks to Nia. They are definitely moving their tent further away from the other two tents tonight.

Kara’s giggles at their little discussion cause her to join in, she makes a show of trying not to laugh but doesn’t really try that hard to hold it in. “You’re a goofball.”

“So are you,” Kara argues. “That’s why we’re doing so well together.”

“You’re the goof and I’m the ball because I have a huge-“

“Please minimize the likelihood of you traumatizing everyone here, Lena, by shutting up now before you say something that gets a certain someone to ask more questions that are not age appropriate.” Kelly cuts in, overhearing the whole thing. She does find them very cute together but, at times, they lack some serious common sense on volume control around other people

Both women shoot her an apologetic look and instead fall back into the comfortable silence, content to make the rest of the journey to the hill, that is just up ahead, maybe a ten-minute walk more, completely peaceful so that they can enjoy nature and each other’s company.

The closer they get to the hill, the more they can see it and realize that it’s more of a random lump of rock sticking up out of the ground with a completely smooth surface on the side that is facing them and unless the sides are any different, it’s going to be a major pain in the ass to try and climb.

They get nearer still until they are right up to the base of it, rounding the side of it to see if it will be any better for them to climb. It seems as though it’s their lucky day though because there’s a split in the rock that is the perfect width for someone to use as leverage to shimmy their way up to the top.

“I’ll go up, I have the notebook and know what to look for so we can get going properly.” Kara determines, sliding her notebook into her pocket and taking off her pack, leaving it on the ground next to where the split is.

“Kara?” Lena stops her as she’s getting herself into position.

She freezes in position, getting ready to start her ascent. “Yeah?”

“Don’t fall because I won’t catch you, you’d break both of our bodies if I tried.”

“That’s the least romantic thing you could have possibly said,” Kara complains, dragging herself upwards, using her arms and legs to scissor outwards and press against the rock on either side of her to keep herself up.

Alex moves to stand beside Lena, who is fully concentrating on Kara and her climb up the twenty-metre hill, well, more of a giant rock than anything. She’s more nervous about watching Kara do it than she let on, masking her fear with bad humour.

“She’s a good climber, don’t worry too much.”

Lena jumps at the sudden appearance of Alex over her shoulder but quickly schools her features. “I know she is, I don’t have to like it though.”

“I don’t like it either,” Alex says, surprised at how quickly Kara is getting up to the top. She knows Kara is good but she’s really showing off her skills here.

They leave it at that, watching like hawks until Kara is safely over the top, looking away once she’s out of view because it hurts their necks to be looking up for too long.

Since it’s getting later on in the evening now and they won’t have much daylight left they make the decision to pack up for the night. It makes sense to do it now, they can take the time to really get their bearings after coming out of the ravine and there is a great clearing just a couple of minutes’ walk back the way they came.

Lena waits where she is for Kara to come back while Alex takes their packs for them, getting started on the tents and setting up a fire.

About ten minutes after she’d crawled over the top, Lena’s eyes are pinned to the top ledge whole she wonders where her girlfriend has gotten to, causing her to worry because it shouldn’t take long to figure out where they are.

She’s still looking up when a hand touches her shoulder, scaring her to death. “Ooh!” She lets out a breathy sound that causes her cheeks to flush while spinning around, arms raised to fight.

Kara stumbles back from her, not expecting that reaction. “Woah, it’s me. I came down the back, it was just a slow gradient that I could walk, I should have gone up that way, it would have only taken an extra five-minute walk.”

“Of course, there was an easier way.” Lena runs a hand down her face, annoyed for Kara because she’s the one that climbed for no reason. “The others are setting up camp for the night, are you ready to head over to them.”

“We’d better hurry so we can make sure our tent is put up far away from theirs.”

Read 5 more chapters early on Patreon here!

[ruinreigns]

@0blivion asked : “Are you telling me to shut up, again?”

hands move to press pointer fingers against her temples as she hastens a breath through gritted teeth . truly she needs more patience . she's supposed to be neutral . she's supposed to try to smile through the annoyance and be a good authority figure . she's on thin ice and if she breaks the rules too much she'll have her position stripped from her ... and that's the last thing she needs before she finds a way to climb to the top . but liv ... oh liv . cute , bubbly , annoying liv . her patience is thin and she's trying her best to keep it in check . " that's not what i said . i asked you to chill a little . i can't just hand you a match . do you really want me to seem like i have favorites ? you know the rules . earn it or defend it . it being your reasoning . give me a damn good reason i have to throw you out there against nia tonight just so you can turn into a pancake ... again . "

[ofstarsandskies]

Fantasy AU Drabble -- Troubles with Voices

Hello frens, I have come from the depths of hell to post a drabble!... that will not make sense without @unborderedreflection's Fantasy AU and instead features my OG muse, Zig!

Sorry for the hold-up with replies, they will come swiftly! But when I was allowed to find a way to worm the very-Xillia-2-character Zig into an AU, my brain had to take it. Know he is inevitable no matter my X2 canon.

Today's mission sure was special... in how much it was proceeding to suck.

The premise sounded promising at the time: President Bakur wanted a small team to infiltrate Rieze Maxia and capture a larger fae which supposedly showed it face a few days ago. At the same time, they were to test Spirius' newest creation, the mini-Lances of Kresnik. It showed effect on lesser entities and humans, so if could drain and contain the mana from a larger fae? Mass-producing these would be Spirius' first priority.

Their search point happened to be something they called the Nia Khera Spiritway, due to its 'high spiritual concentration', whatever that meant. A couple monsters jumped out along the path, but for the most part? The trip wasn't anything special. At this rate, they'd be chasing their own tails for hours until this thing got sick of them stomping around.

When everyone warned me this was a 'dangerous mission', I didn't think the danger would be mind-numbing tedium. Zig moaned in his head, somehow missing the awkward exchange at Trigleph Seahaven. And back there he was basically a circus monkey, summoning tiny flames every time someone suspected their group weren't real Rieze Maxians. If this kept up, he might just whine and ask if they could take a lunch break just so there was something to break this up!

'Cease your crusade.' A voice whispered mere inches away from his ear--

--But when Zig checked over his shoulder, he saw nothing but trees and their rear guard, Agent Kriska. When they locked eyes, Kriska checked around and then looked back at him.

"Did you see something, Agent Kraft?"

"I thought I heard someone right behind me, but guess I imagined it," Zig dismissed the concern. "Honestly, I thought this mission would be more exciting. Everyone hypes the fae as deadly threats, yet our mark hasn't even tried to scare us off."

"Maybe they've wised up to the danger humans can finally pose," Kriska laughed to herself. "Just give it time; we'll get to your favorite part of the job soon enough."

"Stabbing the target's the only part I'm good at; why look forward to the rest where I'm as useful as a plank of wood?"

Kriska rolled her eyes at him, though her smile persisted. The others didn't comment on the banter, so no harm done as the two returned to the task at hand.

'You don't know the consequences of your actions.' The voice spoke to him aga--no, wait, this one sounded deeper. Though with Kriska still quiet, it had to be another false alarm. Zig wouldn't let this voice bother him like the first and let it pass.

'Denying our words will not silence us, human.' Another one? Damn, the boredom was really setting in. As long as he ignored it, it'd all blow over.

'We know you can hear us.'

'You'll met your end if you continue blindly walking forward.'

The lone voices now conjoined into a growing crowd talking over each other. Tuning them out became impossible, their noise slowly overloading his senses. Soon their voices left his head in a vice, everything around him fading into a blank void full of images and lights Zig couldn't begin to comprehend.

'Turn back, human.'

'Disrupting the balance of the fae will do your kind no good.'

'The gates are to be left alone. Humans who enter will be forever changed.'

'What do you hope to accomplish once you've detained us?'

'Our kind wish no harm on you. Can you not return the courtesy?'

'If you can hear us, it is not too late. Return home.'

"Stop it! I don't want to hear it!" Zig could feel himself shouting, but he couldn't hear his voice over the noise. "I do what I think is right, no matter what anyone thinks!"

The more he protested, the louder everything grounded into his head.

"I SAID I DON'T CARE! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE--!"

"--ZIG, SNAP OUT OF IT!" The fake world melted around Zig in an instant, leaving the blurry face of what looked like Kriska standing in front of him and snapping her fingers.

"...Sorry, was I acting strange?"

"You had us worried to death!" Ugh, the last thing Zig needed: more yelling. At least it wasn't directly in his ear unlike the... whatever the hell happened a second ago. "No matter how much we kept talking to you, you wouldn't move or even acknowledge us! We thought you got possessed or something."

He'd been standing in one spot the whole time? So he hadn't been transported to some other world at any point? Kriska and the others wouldn't lie if they were concerned, but surely some of that had to be real... right?

Though once Zig thought about it, neither option sounded good for his sanity: either everything was a horrible trick of the mind, or the fae would continue to hound him until he bent to their will and ditched his allies. Well, the reason didn't matter right now. The sooner they captured the target, the sooner Zig could sit down and figure out what's going on in his head.

"I'm fine, nor is anything possessing me," Zig said, though his heart wasn't in his response for once. "I just can't stop thinking what'll happen when the fae does show up. Their powers are always a mystery."

"Is that all? Don't even worry about it-- the Lance can dispel whatever voodoo these fae can throw at us," The Agent handing their mini-Lance, Valen, boasted, "Just keep it busy, then we'll suck the mana out of it and capture it. It'll be like fighting any old monster."

"If it's that simple, why don't you take point, Valen?" Kriska called Kozel's bluff.

"As if either you or Zig'd know how to point this thing the right way--"

Their team leader ordered them to cut the chatter, giving Zig a decent out from the situation and fall back in line. Sadly that didn't stop the voices from returning to annoy and pester him about reconsidering whether he's doing the right thing. But this time, he'd let them whine and keep his attention forward.

...After one more word.

Please just leave me alone, Zig knew the voices wouldn't hear his thoughts (and if they did, that'd be a problem), but he'd complain anyway. I've got enough rumors back at work to add 'Zig hears voices in his head!' to the list.

Either that decree did the trick or Zig found some way to tune the annoyances out, as the whispers stopped their chatter and let him return to the new bliss of tedium.

[searidings]

this is what happens when @ekingston and i get our hands on the prompt “that's my wife!” and agree that she'll draw my idea for it and i'll write hers (aka hearing kara call it out as she watches lena being wheeled down a hospital corridor)

“Excuse me, you can't go through there!”

Kara growls. The woman blocking her path is short and gently rounded, the kind lines of her face drooping in disapproval above her nurse's scrubs. “No visitor access beyond this point, dear. Immediate family only.”

“Immediate— you're joking, right?” Kara cranes her head, peering through the closing doors to catch a last glimpse of Lena's gurney as it rounds the corner at the end of the hall. “That's my wife!”

The nurse gapes at her. “Your—?”

Kara growls again, louder. It's a good thing she'd blown out her powers twenty minutes ago, or she would not be held responsible for the Kryptonian-shaped hole in NC Memorial Hospital's expensive surgery doors. “Yes, my wi—”

Her snarl is cut off by a hand clamping down firmly over her mouth from behind. Kara's first instinct is to bite it. She resists, narrowly, as the familiar scent of shea butter moisturiser registers in her adrenaline-fogged brain.

“You sure about that?” Alex squeaks around a nervous laugh, voice pitched a half-octave too high. She removes her hand from Kara's mouth, wiping her damp palm on her pants with a wrinkled nose. “Get hit on the head during that fight, did you?”

Kara whirls on her sister, eyes blazing. “Am I sure?” she parrots incredulously. Alex cowers a little beneath the force of her stare. “Unless you're trying to tell me I hallucinated my entire wedding—”

“Supergirl isn't married,” Alex stage-whispers loud enough to be heard in Florida, glancing pointedly down at Kara's ash-caked body and oh yeah, she's still wearing her supersuit.

Right, right.

The nurse – Rosemary, her badge reads – finally picks her jaw up off the floor long enough to speak. Her eyes are wide, sparkling with sudden glee. “So Lena Luthor and Su—”

Kara's hackles rise at the suggestion in her tone. “Lena Luthor and Kara Danvers are happily married,” she interrupts sternly. “You might have seen the wedding photos in last month's Vogue.”

The nurse smirks. At her elbow, Alex drops her head into her hands.

“Kara Danvers, hm? Amazing what a pair of glasses do for you, dear.” Rosemary's brow quirks with impish satisfaction and, oh. Whoops. It would appear that in her haste to quash any potential rumours of Lena's infidelity behind the back of her very recent, very publicly human wife, she'd forgotten about the other delicate matter at hand.

Alex sighs so long and so heavy Kara legitimately marvels that she doesn't pass out from the strain. “I knew keeping a spare NDA in my back pocket would pay off,” her sister groans, thrusting an official-looking, if crumpled, contract beneath the nurse's nose.

“Sorry,” Kara murmurs sheepishly as Rosemary signs away page after page of her right to ever disclose Supergirl's identity in any capacity. “I wasn't thinking, I can't— Alex, it's Lena.”  

“I know, I know,” her sister soothes, frustration dissipating as she reaches out to pull Kara into her side, ignoring the soot and grit that smear across her jacket at the contact. “She's gonna be okay.”

“But what if she's not?” Kara asks and the sobs arrive then, the last remnants of the fight or flight response that had propelled her this far dissipating beneath the weight of her terror. “She stepped right in front of that bullet, Alex! Of all the stupid, reckless—”

“If I recall, she was pushing you back after you shoved her out of the way in the first place,” Alex hums thoughtfully. Kara's tear-filled eyes snap to her face, incredulous, and her sister grimaces. “Right, right. Not the time.”

“She has to be okay,” she gasps, clutching hard at her sister's jacket as her knees threaten to give out beneath her. “She has to, I can't— I feel like I can't breathe. Like my heart's been ripped out.”

Alex clicks her tongue in sympathy, wrapping a firm arm round Kara's waist and guiding her to a nearby row of chairs. Rosemary deposits the signed NDA wordlessly on the hard plastic beside them, reaching into her scrubs to produce a pack of tissues.

Alex accepts, extracting one to dab at Kara's snotty, tear-stained face with her free hand. “Welcome to married life, kid,” she chuckles, pressing a kiss to Kara's matted hair. “It can be a real bitch.”

-

It's a long night.  

It's a long night, a night of anxious waiting and barely-restrained nausea and vending machine coffee so bad even Nia won't drink it. Her family, their family, crowd the waiting room, dozing across the rows of seats as the hours drag on and on.

Alex tries her best, at varying intervals, to force her back to the Tower for a stint under the sun lamps. Every time without fail, Kara sets her jaw, then sets her feet in the middle of the surgical wing waiting room and refuses to budge.

This leads to several arguments, and a lot of impassioned shoving.  

“What if she needs me?” Kara laments tearily, pout activated and puppy dog eyes firmly in place. Alex, mid-football tackle with her arms and right shoulder braced against Kara's torso as she attempts to use her entire bodyweight to force her sister toward the exit, only grunts with exertion. Behind them, J’onn dozes in the corner. Brainy and Kelly and Nia continue their conversation without batting an eyelid.

“No, scratch that, she does need me,” Kara corrects, unaffected by her sister's NFL-worthy body slam. “She's been shot. I'm not going anywhere.”

Alex, perhaps finally sensing defeat after her fourth unsuccessful attempt, gives one final shove with all her strength. Kara doesn't so much as wobble, and her sister releases her with a huff. “Fine. But for the love of God, change your clothes before you start shouting about your wife again,” she pants, red-faced and sweating as she collapses into a nearby chair. “That was my last NDA.”

That's a compromise she can make. Kara accepts the bundle of clothes Nia presents her with, stripping out of her dirt-caked suit and re-donning her glasses. Thankfully, the only person around to witness Kara entering the bathroom as a superhero and re-emerging as a Catco reporter is Rosemary.  

The updates on Lena's condition are sporadic at best. By the time the first surgeon emerges to say the bullet has been removed from Lena's chest cavity Kara's accidentally cracked three plastic chairs, advanced all the way to Lollipop Land on Alex's Candy Crush, and worn a groove into the waiting room linoleum with her nervous pacing.

When another doctor emerges three hours later to tell them Lena had developed a tension pneumothorax and needs additional treatment, Kara's made it to Rainbow Reef and chewed her bottom lip bloody.

When, at five in the morning, yet another doctor appears to inform them that Lena is being placed on anti-radiation medication to counter the Kryptonite that had coated the bullet, Kara's finished all nine thousand nine hundred and thirty-five levels of the damn game. The doctor leaves, promising to be back with more news soon, and Kara squeezes her sister's hand so hard poor Nurse Rosemary has to be called to administer an ice pack for the bruising, solar flare be damned.

Dawn breaks to find Kara scratchy-eyed and grumpy, worn ragged with worry. The waiting room begins to fill up around them, new patients and their relatives coming and going, and still there's nothing new on Lena. Every time another scrub-clad surgeon pushes through the doors Kara's heart skips a beat, all of them sitting up straighter in their seats, but every time the doctor passes them by.

Kara's just wolfed down six cold breakfast sandwiches procured by Brainy on his sojourn to the hospital cafeteria and is debating the relative merits of starting Candy Crush over from scratch when another young doctor appears. Her scrub cap has avocados on it. Kara likes her already.

“Family of Ms Luthor?” she calls, looking around, and Kara pushes up hard from her chair to the resounding snap of cracking plastic. Whoops.

“It's Luthor-Danvers,” she gabbles as she bounds over to the surgeon, palms sweating. No matter how many times she hears it, it never loses its thrill. “I'm, I'm her wife.”

The young doctor's features soften. “Of course. I've come to let you know that it looks like Ms Luthor-Danvers is out of the woods. She's sedated and still on an anti-radiation drip, but she's through the worst of it.” She appraises Kara, gaze lingering on her chewed-raw lips and clenching fingers, then leans closer conspiratorially. “It's not general visiting hours yet, but you can see her, if you'd like.”

“Yes!” Kara's shouting almost before the surgeon has finished speaking. “Yes, please, yes.”

She hugs them all, Alex and Brainy and Nia and Kelly and J’onn, and leaves them in the waiting room as she follows the doctor's sunshine-yellow crocs down the hall.

They round corner after corner, an interminable maze. Powerless as she is, she can't hear Lena’s heartbeat, and the absence of the steady beat that has become the soundtrack to her existence sets her even more on edge.  

But at last they turn a corner, and there she is. She's pale and bandaged and her eyes are closed, creamy skin streaked with dirt and bruises, but she's there, she's alive, she's Lena.  

The surgeon holds the door open for her with a smile and Kara's across the room in a heartbeat, smoothing a hand over Lena's warm cheek and pressing kiss after kiss to her forehead and hair.  

“I love you, I love you,” she whisper-cries against Lena's temple, tucking her matted curls behind her ears. The smell of blood and dirt and antiseptic is almost overwhelming, but beneath the dust and debris caught up in her hair Lena's scalp smells the same as always. Kara presses her face to the crown of her head and inhales deeply, soaking it in.  

“Why'd you have to be so damn brave?” she whispers, nuzzling her cheek against silky softness. “I love you so much. Please don't step in front of any more bullets. Please learn to be a coward, occasionally.”

The singular relief of having Lena living and breathing and in her arms again is so complete, so compounded by the fear and the adrenaline and the sleepless night and the solar flare, that she feels suddenly that she may crumple to the ground from the force of it all.

Unwilling to relinquish her hold for even a second she appraises the bandages covering Lena's right side, then crawls onto the hospital bed on her left, careful to avoid her many wires and monitors. She tucks herself in beside her on the wide mattress, chin hooked over Lena's shoulder and face pressed to the side of her neck, and lets the tears that haven't really stopped falling since that bullet had left its chamber fall for just a little longer.

Nothing matters outside of the two of them, outside of the warmth of Lena's body and the softness of her skin beneath Kara's lips and the steady thud of her heart beneath Kara's palm. Nothing else in the world exists, so when an unfamiliar male voice sounds from the doorway it takes her a moment to register the intrusion.

“Excuse me, ma’am, you really can't be on the bed with her,” the strange, disembodied voice calls from behind her and Kara frowns tiredly, unable and unwilling to acknowledge anything outside of the woman in her arms.

But before she's even managed to raise her head another voice sounds, the soft tones of a young surgeon in an avocado scrub cap.  

“Oh, honestly, Peter,” the kindly doctor says with gentle reproach, a quiet calm washing over the room as the door is pulled closed and she and Lena are left alone. “Leave them be. That's her wife.”

[xemobladechromicles]

Gonna rank them real quick.

1. Riki

I love Riki. He sounds like a chain smoking toddler but then has canonically had more sex than every other character in the series combined. Goes on a quest to save the world to escape debt. Shouts "Riki Sneaky!!" while attacking. Turned himself into a pineapple. Turned himself into a pile of spikes (Riki want hugs!!). Father of Bestest. There to be the emotional support the party (Melia) needs in the most Riki way possible. Wants food. Feed him. Killed God by bludgeoning him to death with a fish. Took Monolith several games to create a Nopon with even a fraction of Riki's success. And that's only because Riku probably could have half as much sex as Riki if he knew what sex is.

2. Reyn

The myth, the legend. Now it's Reyn Time. Alleyoop. Hwah. Can't have a Rainbow without Reyn baby. Only character to manage to annoy Alvis; the supercomputer that is also the very fabric of reality itself. Not, like in a piss him off way, in a "I'm annoyed and will let you know" way. I want to lock Reyn, Riki, and Alvis in a room together for 3.7 hours and then hide in a fallout shelter while observing the consequences. Man rocks that crop top. All of his armor is an eldritch abomination. Never actually learned how to use his kit, but the fact that his weapon is called a Driver is very funny to me after Xenoblade 2's existence happened. And it's even funnier when you consider Xenoblade 3. Man's got a Blade called a Driver. Certainly he is gaming the cosmology of the multiverse. Also I think Alvis made the ocean have salt in it just to spite Reyn.

3. Shulk

I thought his last name was Soss? Xenoblade 3 is out here challenging my most basic assumptions about its story. His run animation looks very funny. I love the part where he wears armor and the artist straight up forgot that Shulk presumably had kneecaps. My man's tastebuds have been slandered nonstop for 13 years. Poor guy was possessed by God and was too damn oblivious to notice the voice in his head telling him to kill everyone and everything. The dichotomy of being too smart and too stupid for this world. Gotta love when God steals his magic laser sword and Shulk goes "fuck you" *makes my own magic laser sword*. Easily the most beginner friendly gameplay out of any Xenoblade protagonist. Simple win conditions. Simple solutions to any wrench the game throws at you. Low customization and thus minimal chance for confusion on what he's supposed to be doing. I give my compliments to the chef. Also gotta give cheers to Adam Howden for shredding his vocal chords for our entertainment.

4. Melia

Toss up between her and Shulk because her character's tragedies are sort of undermined by the story putting so much emphasis on the love triangle. That said, very funny class. I literally didn't know she could use her talent art below full gauge to summon discharge first playthrough (I'm allergic to reading tutorials). Lady can knock over a dinosaur by kicking its shins in and has only recently learned how to not fall on her ass in the process. Definitely the most satisfying character in 1 to learn (I say as tho I have any confidence in my mastery over her kit). I like how she has an ability that reflects enemy damage. Also very funny how her AI sometimes gets caught in a loop of doing literally jack shit *stares at Bunnit intimidatingly.* Which makes her being only AI controlled in 3 a very spicy move from Monolith Soft. Also funny that in both 1 and 3 she has the magical power of breaking the chain attack damage multiplier. I have literally nothing to say about her character writing tho. I neither vibe nor dislike her. I will say that I was very disappointed in "that's not Melia that's a robot" twist in Xenoblade 3 because I was really looking forward to the explanation for why Melia and Nia seemingly betrayed their principals.

5. Fiora

Poor lady's been fucking outclassed by Mio on basically every possible level. As a love interest? Mio's got a better balance between being a love interest and being an actual character. Also Mio's theoretical death being a driving force behind Noah's potential fall to darkness just works a lot better than with Shulk and Fiora. Mio's whole "I'm about to die" thing has way more palpable tension than Fiora's. Mio did the whole "I got possessed by a being with ancient memories and then fused with that being after they died to save me" thing way better than Fiora ever did (I don't think Monolith is emotionally ready to remember Meyneth exists yet). Dual wielding badass, guess what Mio's weapon is. Tho I will say that Fiora was a favorite character initially because I like knives, but that is outclassed by Elma and Mio. Get rekt Fiora lol.

6. Dunban

Man gets tased by the Monado and decides to become left handed because fuck you. The only acceptable naked character (Zeke can have a pass too, but only as a treat, Taion is free to keep trying tho it's mildly amusing). Sadly his gameplay sucks. Not as in he's weak, he's just not fun to play. Which ruins his badassery for me. Also never cared for his wisdom as a mentor figure. Quit agressively shipping Shulk and Fiora, man needs a new hobby.

7. Sharla

Literally useless in both story in gameplay its so sad. Step 0 in Monolith's journey of discovery in "how to make healers fun." We all say "rip Melia" but at least she has a fucking fanbase.

[mypoisonedvine]

Love, Theoretically | Sebastian Stan x reader (chapter 10 - FINALE)

series masterlist

series summary: having lost your husband, sister, and best friend all to the same extramarital affair, you ran away to a secluded villa in the Hungarian countryside to write and get a little time away from the life you’d left behind.  you were only looking for peace and perhaps some inspiration for your novel, but instead you found an unlikely connection with the immigrant repairman– even though the two of you don’t speak the same language.

word count: 6k

warnings: implied smut, angst, fluff, romcom tropes, lots of swearing, pregnancy mention/minor breeding kink

note: click the asterisk for a hyperlink to a translation when the time comes

Six months later...

“It’s good!” she beamed, setting down the last chunk of pages and taking off her reading glasses. “Oh man, that ending hurt, but it’s really, really good!”

You leaned back into the plush chair and sighed with relief. “You think so?”

“It’s best-seller material,” she assured. “With some editing, of course. God, I can’t believe you were sitting on this for so long.”

“What are the biggest changes you want to make?” you asked.

“Well, I’m thinking we’ll cut the romantic subplot,” she mentioned in passing, like it was no big deal. “It’s distracting.

“Distracing?” you repeated. “Nia, it’s the story. It’s a romance.”

“I thought it was a thriller,” she frowned.

“A romance disguised as a thriller,” you corrected.

“Listen, I get what you mean, but I didn’t get this—” she tapped the nameplate on her desk: ‘NIA BROWN, HEAD PUBLISHER’ in shiny letters— “for nothing. I know what I’m talking about, and I know what your readers want. Violence, gore, drama!”

“It has all that!” you defended. “But it’s all there to talk about the real love he finds in her!”

“What do you mean ‘real love’?” she pressed flatly.

“I mean…” you pondered. “I mean love where you feel like a version of yourself that you actually like. Love where you feel unjudged, no precedents or caveats or back-up plans. Love that fucking hurts because you never wanted to rely on anything or anybody. Love that lives in silence because you don’t even need words.”

She furrowed her brow. “That… sounds nice, I guess, but I don’t think anybody really has that. Everybody needs a back-up plan. Everybody needs words— a writer should know that.”

“Oh my god. Oh my god,” you groaned, your face falling into your hands. “I’m so fucking stupid. Jesus Christ, I’m a moron.”

“What? What’s going on?”

“I had that! I had that, and I let it go! I’m the dumbest bitch on the fucking face of the Earth.”

“Don’t say that,” she soothed, but you were already standing up.

“No, I need to find him,” you decided as you grabbed your coat and briefcase. “I need to go back and try to fix this. I love him, I’ve never— I didn’t know I could love like that, I didn’t know I could be loved like that… oh my god, I need to find him. It isn’t over.”

“It isn’t over?” she repeated incredulously. “You said Michael signed the papers!”

“It’s not Michael,” you rolled your eyes as you stormed out of the office. “It was never Michael.”

You ran into the first telephone box you could find, slamming the door shut as you searched your purse for the business card that probably wasn't even in there.

After a moment, you gasped with delight when you pulled it from a very bottom pocket and began punching in the number as fast as possible with shivering hands, long-distance charges be damned.

“Hello?” the confused voice on the other end answered.

“Mrs. Alberti, hi— does Sebastian still work for you?” you asked hastily.

“No, dear," she sighed, apparently recognizing you by just your voice (and likely your request), "he quit recently, and moved away.”

“Moved?" you repeated with a wrinkled brow. "Where?!”

“I assume back home, sweetheart; to Bucharest.”

“Shit,” you sighed. “Shit!”

“Are you having your ‘run through the airport’ moment, sweetheart?” she realized.

“Yes, I think so— do you have his address?”

“Well, no, but I’ll see what I can find.”

You waited rather impatiently as she shuffled through papers in the background, mumbling to herself as she apparently searched for information that could help you.

“All I’ve got is the address of a previous employer… a carpenter,” she finally explained, breaking the silence. “It was his only reference when he came to work here," she explained.

"Wow, you really did just hire him for his looks," you blurted out.

"He was desperate for work, that boy had nowhere else to go,” she defended.

“Right, well, I guess if that’s my only lead then I’ve gotta go for it,” you decided. “Thank you, Mrs. Alberti.”

“I told you to call me when that book was a hit. Did it happen yet?” she piped up.

“It’s not published yet,” you explained. “It needs some more work… but I think it’s almost ready.”

“I think so, too, dear.”

Learn Romanian in 10 Weeks! A practical language guide.

Week 1, Day 1: Greetings

Hello                      Salut

Goodbye                La revedere

Thank you              Mulțumesc

You’re welcome      Cu plăcere

Good morning         Bună dimineata

Good afternoon       Bună ziua

Good evening          Bună seara

Good night               Noapte bună

You brushed your hair back out of your face with a sigh, turning the page as you mumbled the phrases to yourself. Broken Hungarian and your high school education in Latin were not getting you as far with this as you had been hoping.

How are you?          Ce mai faci

I love you                 Te iubesc

“Te iubesc, te iubesc, te iubesc,” you repeated over and over in a whisper.

Each day you had a new routine: practice Romanian for an hour, check flight prices online (or call the airline), research what you knew about Sebastian and the address Mrs. Alberti had given you, and then get back to practicing Romanian again.

Oh, and occasionally you worked on the edits Nia wanted for your manuscript. You were focusing on the minor changes— grammar errors, rearranging sentences— and putting off her big request for the removal and replacement of the romantic aspects. More than ever, they seemed like the most important thing the book had to offer.

You had a small apartment, just a place to sleep and shower really; much too small to fit everything you’d already taken from Michael’s house (you know, the one that used to be your house) along with what he’d shipped to you that you forgot before. He included a letter in the package as well. You threw it out, unopened.

Truthfully, you never really fully unpacked. As much as you realized you probably should, in order to really feel like you had a real home, you couldn’t bring yourself to empty your suitcases when you knew you’d be packing them again any day now.

You also realized how outrageous this all was. Ignoring the unlikelihood of even finding him in the first place, Sebastian probably wouldn’t want anything to do with you after you broke his heart, left, and then randomly tracked him down after over half a year. But to be totally transparent, you weren’t really doing this to get him back, necessarily. You knew that was probably never going to happen. You were doing this because you needed to try. You needed to go there, and get hurt, and come back knowing you did everything you could: you’d never be able to live with yourself if you did anything less than that.

You couldn’t start your new life until you had put everything else to bed. And if that meant being 100%, painfully certain that you and Sebastian could never be together, then that was just how it needed to be.

After two weeks of looking, there still weren’t any reasonable flights to Bucharest, so you booked another trip by train, figuring you could use the three day trip to brush up on the key Romanian phrases you were going to need as well as prepare your speech.

Yes, your plan was a speech. You didn’t have a back-up plan. You didn’t even have a return ticket back to London yet.

A passage by Yeats came to mind; But I, being poor, have only my dreams. I have spread my dreams under your feet. Tread softly, because you tread on my dreams.

In all your life, you’d never understood before why someone would want to only have their dreams. But now, here you were… and yes, it felt terrifying and vulnerable and uncomfortably naked, but it felt pretty damn good, too.

With a sigh, you scribbled out the last sentence you’d written, tossing the trash paper aside. You looked up out the window at the scenery flying by in a blur, worried that if you didn’t look out from the train every once in a while you’d get motion sickness.

The sun was beginning to set already, the green of hills and trees tinted orange. You only indulged in it for a moment, though, before getting back to this god-forsaken speech you were deadset on finishing before you arrived in Bucharest tomorrow. At first, you’d figured the translating would be the most difficult part… but writing in English wasn’t exactly a piece of cake, either. You had so much to say, and suddenly so few words for any of it.

You’d probably done more editing on this than any of your novels combined; the crumpled up pages spilling out of your wastebasket were proof enough of that.

“And I’m a fucking writer!” you groaned aloud, to no one in particular. “How is anybody else supposed to be able to do this, if I can’t?”

Other people aren’t as emotionally constipated as you, the voice of your inner critic reminded you plainly, making you roll your eyes at yourself.

A rap at your door made you sit up straighter and turn around. A stewardess slid open the frosted glass slightly to give you a friendly smile. “Is everything alright, ma’am?”

Your brows furrowed at the sound of her accent. “Is that a Romanian accent?” you asked.

“Yes, ma’am,” she nodded.

“So you’re fluent in Romanian and English,” you concluded.

“And Portuguese, yes ma’am,” she agreed.

“Could you come in here for a moment and help me translate something?”

She seemed slightly confused at the request but stepped forward, sliding the door most of the way shut behind her. Leaning beside you on the desk, she picked up your handwritten letter and blinked her wide, brown eyes a few times. You felt slightly embarrassed knowing she was reading such intimate thoughts, but that was how it felt the first time someone read anything you wrote so you were pretty much used to it by now.

“I usually ask the passengers what brings them to Bucharest,” she mumbled after a moment. “This is the most interesting thing so far. Am I reading this correctly, that you intend to confess your love to someone you met—” she scanned the page quickly— “during a vacation in Hungary?”

“Yup,” you smiled awkwardly, popping the ‘p’ at the end of the word.

“And he doesn’t speak English?” she assumed; you nodded. “And… you don’t speak Romanian?”

You nodded again, and she breathed in and out quickly, sitting beside you as she stared at the letter.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” she explained.

“Sorry for sucking you into the entropic vortex that is my life,” you chuckled.

“I don’t mean to pry,” she sighed, setting the letter down, and you laughed a little internally at the idea that she was worried about prying when she just read the most personal piece of writing you’d ever put to the page, “but do you think this is… enough? I mean, to build a relationship on?”

You just gave her a shrug. “I have no idea. But, you know, I spent my whole life worrying about stuff like that. I dated my husband for seven years before we got married, because I wanted to be sure. I was initially interested in him because he was successful and ambitious, and it made me feel like this was a really secure relationship that I could rely on. I double majored in English and Computer Science because I wanted a more stable career to fall back on in case being a writer didn’t work out, and even though it did, I’ve spent most of my career publishing what I thought people wanted to read instead of what I wanted to write, so I’d have a better shot at a good paycheck. I grew up thinking the best thing I could ever have was security. And now I’m divorced, watching my royalties shrink every month, more insecure in every way than I’ve ever been, and I’m realizing that the choices I made didn’t give me what I wanted. I gave up so much in the name of safety, and I let the one good thing I’d ever found go, so I could go back to being the same person I always was. I’m ready to settle again, if this doesn’t work… I’m ready to accept that this is just the way life goes, and be thankful that I got a taste of the kind of stuff I thought only existed in the sort of books I’d read but never write.”

She swallowed as she looked at you, and you felt your eyes water as you stared out the window towards the dimming scenery one more time, smiling at the sight of a distant village, a church with a steeple, vineyards and farms. Someone’s whole life is in that little town, you imagined, and they’re just watching your train go by like they see every other day.

“Sebastian gave me more security than I’d ever had before, even though the whole thing was such a ridiculous little whirlwind, and nothing like I ever imagined my life could be. But he made me want to be honest and raw and write sappy letters like the one you just read. He doesn’t have any money, at least as far as I know, and I haven’t known him for seven years, and on paper it makes no sense… but you would understand if you knew him. If you felt that joy that he radiates, if you saw him live his simple little life like it’s the best thing in the world. You would understand if you knew how much I needed this. You would understand if you had been just as miserable being who I’ve been for so long, and finally had a chance to be somebody you think you were maybe meant to be the whole time. So, if I never see him again, I hope I just get to thank him.”

You waited for her to say something, but furrowed your brow at the long moment of silence, looking back from the window finally and finding her staring at you with a tear running down her cheek. When you met her gaze, she quickly wiped it away with a sniffle and looked down at your desk again. “Let’s get to translating, shall we?” she announced with a half-smile.

You noticed the way the other passengers looked at you as everyone was in line to deboard from the train car; you stuck out like a sore thumb, since everybody else was carrying heavy luggage and all you had was a backpack.

In your defense, you really had no idea how to pack for a trip where you knew neither the duration nor the true final destination. So, it was mainly filled with your essentials, a few clothes for any kind of weather, and enough leu to buy anything else you needed along the way.

The stewardess was waving goodbye to everyone as they shuffled out into the train station, occasionally stopping to shake a hand or give directions to nearby destinations. When you were just about to pass by, though, she pulled you into a tight hug.

“Good luck,” she whispered, holding you just a moment too long before pulling back and giving you an encouraging look. “If he doesn’t take you back, feel free to blame my translation… because if he knows what’s in your heart, I know he’ll say yes.”

“Yeah, that’s the hard part isn’t it?” you laughed weakly. “Thank you for your help. I guess if I come back alone for the return trip tonight, you’ll know how bad it went.”

“Then I hope I don’t see you again,” she winked.

It being a major train station and all, cabs were waiting around every corner so it was pretty easy to grab one and give them the address you already had written down for this exact purpose.

“This is pretty far,” the driver explained, “on the edge of town. Not a tourist spot.”

“Good, because I’m not a tourist,” you nodded, already only giving him half your attention as you pulled out the translated speech to practice.

“And you can afford this?” he pressed. You sighed and dug through your bag, pulling out a haphazard stack of bills and handing them through the plastic partition.

“Is this enough?” you asked, and he didn’t answer, just taking the money and starting the car as you smiled and leaned back in your seat.

As much as you had tried to convince yourself to not get your hopes up, the butterflies in your stomach felt more like whole birds at this point, demanding to break free as you practiced the words hand-written on the page over and over again, committing it all to memory.

“What are you reading?” the cab driver asked after several minutes.

“Oh, nothing,” you mumbled, “sorry if I’m bothering you, you can turn on the radio.”

“No, it’s not bothering me, but what you are saying… it’s very odd. It sounds like something from a play, or movie,” he explained.

“Um, it’s not,” you replied, a little embarrassed. “But does it sound like it’s from a good movie? Like, if you heard a character say this to another character, would you think they should get together?”

“I… don’t know,” he answered, sounding confused. “I mean, it depends on what happened, right? How they met, how well they get along…”

So, you told him the whole story, as succinctly as possible (which is not very succinct at all). By the end, he was actually giving commentary as you spoke.

“Why the hell did you leave?” he interjected, clearly irritated with you. “You loved him!”

“Yeah, well, sometimes love isn’t enough! I loved my husband too, and look how that turned out,” you defended.

“But that’s different. That was love for all the wrong reasons.”

“I promise, it felt very real at the time,” you shrugged.

“And now?” he countered. “You realize that this man— Sebastian, right?— is real.”

“I hope I’m right this time,” you offered. “But even if I am, he may not agree.”

The driver scoffed, taking a hand off the wheel to wave dismissively. “If he’s anything like you said, then he will still be completely in love with you. After all, you still feel the same way after all this time apart, don’t you?”

“If anything, I love him more every day,” you admitted, your heart beating quickly just to say it aloud.

“You know, when I met my wife, she was engaged to another man. He was rich, good-looking, and he wasn’t even a bad guy unlike this husband you describe. He was a good man, but he wasn’t right for her. They were… content together, but she wasn’t truly happy. Every night I would come to her window and beg her to marry me, because I knew that she knew we were meant for each other, but she was scared because her family wouldn’t approve and she would be a poor man’s wife.”

“How did you convince her to marry you instead?” you asked eagerly, sucked into the story already.

“I didn’t. On the day of the wedding, some people told me to go and break it up but I didn’t. I thought it would be wrong, to try to ruin her happiness and take it for myself by making a scene at the wedding. I realized she was her own woman and if she wanted to choose him, I had to let her. I had locked myself in my house, not wanting to see anyone that day, and she appeared at my door. I didn’t need to convince her because she knew the truth in her heart, and called off the wedding herself.”

“Wow,” you smiled.

“She was still in her dress!” he recalled with a hearty laugh. “She looked like an angel. We were married just a few days later. And next month will be thirty years,” he added as he lifted his left hand to show the golden band on his finger.

“Thirty years, that’s… a long time,” you sighed.

“It wasn’t always easy,” he admitted. “But it was always worth it.”

Just as you wondered what you could possibly say to that, you felt the car slow down to a stop.

“This is the address you gave me, this is it,” he explained, pointing out his passenger-side window. You leaned up against the glass and gasped in dawning fear as you saw the storefront dark and empty inside.

“No, nonono,” you whispered rapidly to yourself as you swung open the door and hopped out, pressing your face against the glass to try to get a look inside and finding what was undeniably a closed carpentry business. There was a note on the door, taped on the inside of the glass, and you knew enough Romanian to know it said something about a vacation and three months.

“Shit!” you yelped, holding your face in your hands, wondering if your journey had come to an end before it really began.

“Are you alright?” the driver asked, rolling down his window to speak to you.

“This was my only lead, I don’t have his real address,” you explained. “He used to work here, I thought maybe someone would know him…”

He sighed, giving you a sympathetic look. “Get back in, we can search nearby. You came too far to give in yet.”

But getting back in the car felt like giving in, too, which you realized as you looked back at the note taped to the carpenter's door. This was the closest you'd gotten, and it felt wasteful to leave with nothing.

Just as you were ready to hop in the passenger seat and start searching aimlessly through suburban Bucharest, or maybe look around for a Romanian yellow pages, you heard a noise from behind you, across the street; a laugh. His laugh. But it couldn’t be because it was too good to be true… and yet you found yourself whipping your head around and hoping beyond all reason that it was Sebastian.

Across the street was a restaurant, with a large patio where patrons were dining and chatting as they sat at wrought iron tables, and your eyes searched the crowd for any signs of him.

And then your gaze landed on a head of thick brunette hair, red and gold highlights so obvious now when the sunlight hit it this way. Broad shoulders wrapped in a white button-up shirt. He was facing away from you but he was looking to the side so you could see his face; he was smiling, laughing at something someone had said. And it was his smile that you recognized; it was like everything else faded away, and in that moment you thought maybe you could almost be happy with just this, just seeing him be happy even if it had nothing to do with you.

“Sebastian,” you called out to him, but he didn’t react. “Sebastian!”

His whole body turned, his eyes met yours, and you couldn't help but let the tears well in your eyes as you ran across the road to him.

He looked, understandably, stunned, and you realized he was actually waiting on a table at the moment; he said something to them, apparently excusing himself, and stepped closer to you.

But he stopped walking, not coming any closer, not exactly dragging you into his arms like you might've preferred, but with a breath to try to soothe your racing mind, you summoned your memories of the practiced letter and began. *

“Când am venit în Ungaria…” you started slowly, doing your best to remember the words and hoping your pronunciation wasn’t too awful, “nu căutam dragoste. Căutam spațiu, claritate și poate o idee de carte de un milion de dolari. În schimb, am găsit tot ce am căutat toată viața mea…”

You did your best to bite back tears, especially when his expression was nearly unreadable and you had no idea how well this was going.

“Ești tu, Sebastian, bineînțeles că ești tu,” you sighed, laughing slightly. “Ai fost acolo pentru mine când nici nu știam ce vreau de la nimeni. Ai fost prietenul meu fără să spui vreodată un cuvânt - cel puțin nu un cuvânt pe care l-am înțeles. M-ai iubit și nu știam ce să fac cu asta, pentru că uitasem cu mult timp în urmă cum se simțea să fii iubit. Și ce simțeai să iubești cu adevărat pe cineva. Dar te iubesc. Și am fost prost să te las să pleci, atât de neconceput de prost. Vreau să fim noi, Sebastian. Lasă-mă să te iubesc, mai dă-mi o șansă și îți promit că nu te voi mai lăsa să pleci niciodată.

The first thing he said was your name, and just the way he said it made you fall in love with him all over again.

“I… I dream that you would come back,” he shakily replied. “But now I cannot believe. You are my dream.”

Tears were openly flowing at this point and you wanted to run into his arms, but you tried to stay calm and hear him out. He stepped closer, almost hesitant, like you would run away if he got too close too fast.

“I love you, very much that I am sure I am insane person,” he explained with a grin, and you giggled. “We will live anywhere, do anything you would like— be my wife.”

You gasped as he pulled you into him, gripping your arms tightly as his desperation became apparent.

“Marry me?” he asked softly.

“Da,” you nodded, “yes, of course, anything—”

He kissed you suddenly, but gently, and it said more than any words in any language could.

It was a small wedding, in the Hungarian countryside by the lake. You could remember diving into that lake for lost pages of your manuscript; you could remember looking out over the water and dreaming of this moment you were living right now, thinking it was impossible.

He didn’t have much family, but they welcomed you with open arms.

Your family, well, they were too busy with planning another wedding, for your ex-husband and your ex-sister. A few of them sent cards but the rest were suspiciously quiet. You honestly didn’t even notice… you had a new family to attend to, anyhow. And it wasn’t like you didn’t have any guests, since you were able to track down and invite a stewardess named Maria, and a cab driver named Andrei and his wife, Paola.

Sebastian’s cousins weaved flowers into your hair and his grandmother tailored her dress to fit you like a glove. A picture of his parents was hung nearby in tribute; he told you they would’ve wanted to see him get married but that he felt, in some way, they were able to even if they had passed away quite some time ago.

You realized you’d never seen him in anything even mildly formal before; in fact, the suit he wore was rather casual, all things considered, but he looked so painfully cute in it. Sometimes you thought he actually looked a bit out of place wearing a shirt, though, especially one that was buttoned up all the way.

Luckily, the shirt was halfway unbuttoned about ten minutes into the reception.

Mrs. Alberti cooked a massive dinner for everyone, and even grew the flowers that you carried down the cobblestone aisle.

And wow, can Romanians drink. You had to be careful not to try to keep up with them, because if you had you would’ve been blacked out halfway into the night and the last thing you wanted was to forget even a moment of this.

As the night started to wind down to a close, you and your new husband retired to the lakehouse, running up the stairs and finding them as creaky as always.

He wrapped his arms around you in the hall and kissed you eagerly as you stumbled back into the bedroom, tripping over the doorway and falling onto the bed together.

It felt so right to have his weight on top of you, to feel his smile against your lips, to wrap your arms around his neck.

“This room,” he mumbled into the kiss. “Do you remember first time?”

“Yes,” you nodded, “da, I remember, how could I forget?”

He grinned and moved his lips down to your neck. "I thought of you every day… I love you,” he whispered.

“Te iubesc,” you whispered back.

It was almost like the first time in so many ways: passionate, yet oddly hesitant as you rediscovered each other. It was comfortable, though… you couldn’t think of any other person you felt so comfortable with, somebody who finally got you out of your own head and who made you want to experience everything life had to offer.

You were sure you’d never gone so long without worrying about something in all your life.

“My wife,” he whispered against your skin. “This is all I had wanted… from seeing you in very beginning.”

“You’re all I ever wanted,” you sighed in return, “ești tot ce mi-am dorit vreodată, Sebastian.”

Life with Sebastian was beautifully simple. You spent most of the day writing, usually, while he built furniture to sell and occasionally gardened with his spare time. You could always tell how busy you’d been with a new novel lately by how perfectly groomed the hydrangea bushes were.

You’d told him once that you’d come to Hungary looking for a million-dollar book idea. A Killer in Disguise performed alright, but not anywhere near that. The Language of Love, on the other hand, was definitely a million-dollar idea… about eleven times over. Sebastian didn’t seem to worry too much about how much money you made, though; he was just proud to say that he was the inspiration for your hit novel. You secretly suspected that he was more proud of your work reaching enough international notoriety to be translated into Romanian.

His English still needed some work, but you found it endearing. He was determined to get better and spent at least a half-hour each day practicing, but you hoped he wouldn’t get too perfect because you would miss the silly little mistakes he made. At least you could be sure he’d keep the accent forever… damn, that accent; and he knew exactly what it did to you, too.

In fact, you were crossing through the hall in your robe one evening when your husband’s voice stopped you.

“Darling wife,” you heard Sebastian call from the bedroom in a playful sing-song.

“What is it, Seba?” you asked with a smirk.

“Come in here, please…”

You opened the bedroom door to find most of the room covered in rose petals: most of all the bed, which was surrounded by candles, and topped with a shirtless (as per usual) Sebastian, laid on his side seductively with a long-stemmed rose (one you recognized from his very own garden) between his teeth.

“What are you doing?” you laughed. “Is this some sort of special occasion I’ve forgotten?”

You were already searching your mind for what it could be, but your two-year anniversary had passed a few months ago already and since it was spring it couldn’t be the anniversary of when you first met since that was late in the summer.

“Iss not quite a thpecial occathion yeth,” he answered before taking the rose from his mouth so he actually made sense. “I was considering it could be a special occasion, when we’re done…”

You smirked and climbed over the candles and into bed with him, taking the opportunity to run your hands over his chest. “And what occasion would that be?”

“A year from now, it could be the anniversary of when our child was conceived,” he answered.

Your breath caught in your throat, your voice reduced to a whisper of surprise. “Seba—”

“If you’re not ready, I will be understand,” he instantly added, stern yet soft. “Only if you want this, I just thought that maybe—”

You silenced him with a kiss, lacing your fingers into his hair and letting him roll you onto your back. He pulled back just enough to let you answer, but your noses were still bumping into each other and you smiled.

“I’m ready, Sebastian. More than ready,” you whispered.

He grinned and kissed you again, deeper and slower as he held your face with one hand and gripped your waist with the other. As his lips trailed down to your neck, you were interrupted with one pressing thought.

“Can I ask you something?”

He popped up and looked down at you with a smile. “Sure!”

“Why are you wearing ratty old jeans?” you laughed.

“Hey, these worked on you the first time,” he defended.

You gasped. “You don’t mean those are the jeans—”

“Yes,” he nodded, “the jeans that I had been wearing when I was working on Mrs. Alberti’s cottage. And, truly, when I was finding an excuse to work outside your window.”

“Wait,” you sat up, “did you actually work outside my window on purpose?”

He laughed, hanging his head quickly before looking back at you again with a sparkle in his eye. “You are very smart, my love, except for those times when you are— how do you say? Oblivious.”

You chuckled, unfortunately very aware that he was right.

“Didn’t you ever wonder why I was building a window frame, nearly a dozen metres away from the window it was for?”

You thought for a moment before dropping your face into your hands and laughing. “No, I didn’t notice that. I was too busy giving you a thorough eye-fuck,” you recalled.

“Yes, because I was not wearing a shirt and this distracted you,” he pondered, sounding suddenly like a scientist explaining a theorem or something. “See, that’s the beauty of wearing the jeans and no shirt. The body distracts you while the jeans seduce you.”

“How about you take the jeans off and put that body on me, capisce?” you pleaded; not that you didn’t love his humor or anything, but maybe his funny bone wasn’t exactly the bone you were interested in at the moment.

He grinned devilishly and suddenly pulled your legs apart, settling his body between them as he kissed your neck again, nipping at your jawline and ear. “You’re being impatient, dragă,” he purred. “You want to have my baby that badly?”

You whined involuntarily, arching your back as his hands roamed your body and finally began to untie your robe and push the silk out of the way. “Yes, Sebastian, please—”

“Let’s just say, theoretically, I wanted to have more than one? Would you have another of my children?” he asked softly as he reached up and palmed at your breasts, teasing your nipples which were already much too hard and sensitive for how little he’d touched you. The rough denim rubbing against the inside of your thighs was oddly arousing— maybe it was the sensation itself, or maybe it was just that this was almost like the first thing you imagined when you saw Sebastian all those years ago.

“Yes,” you moaned out your answer, “yes, you know I’d do anything for you.”

“What if I wanted a big family?” he pressed. “Really big? Like, Catholic big?”

“We can have our own fuckin’ Brady Bunch, Seb, I just need you right now,” you begged, grabbing the back of his neck and pulling him into a hot and desperate kiss.

He decided to wait until afterwards to ask what a ‘Brady Bunch’ was. You decided to wait until afterwards to ask when he’d learned how to use the word ‘theoretically’.

sfarsit; the end

[from-a-reckless-writer]

part i 

She comes to with a pounding in her head and the feeling of something being lifted off her chest. 

Literally. 

In seconds, her whole body feels lighter. The next thing she registers is a hand in hers. When she stirs, the hand around her tightens and she hears Brainy’s voice, “Director—”

The moment she opens her eyes, she is met with Alex Danvers; a stethoscope slung around her neck and a small flashlight on hand. In her periphery she confirms that it was indeed Brainy, holding her hand. 

“Lena, Lena, look at me. You’re at the DEO, you’re safe, you-”

“Alex, I know the drill, this is—  what? My 91st time now?” She says dryly as her hand slowly slips out of Brainy’s and her fingers massage her temples; eyes clenched shut. Alex visibly relaxes in relief, “Good. Thank fuck your sarcasm’s still intact,” she says, “But I still have to check you, alright?”

Lena nods and she guesses Kara most likely had harassed her sister just to get her hooked in. If Alex mumbling “-so damn stubborn all the damn time…” under her breath was any indication. 

She’s well aware of the other person in the bed next to hers. The one, that is now also starting to stir into consciousness. Lena had just noticed that J’onn and Nia are in the room as well, near Kara’s bedside. 

She wants to ask how she got here, how Kara found her, how the fuck did a Black Mercy get her? But everything is spinning and her coherence is slowly devolving to exhaustion. Her brain was pushed to its limits with that illusion. 

Which makes panic flare in the back of her head thinking about how Kara had seen her ideal world. 

A world, that her mind had fucking decided should center around her ex. Her ex who just happens to be a superhero. A superhero that pulled her out of her own delusions. 

Oh God, Lena thinks she’s going to throw-up. Alex takes one look at her face and immediately shoves an empty sterile container to her. She dry-heaves unto the bucket as Brainy rubs her back and holds her hair. 

“Fuck,” she whispers as Alex hands her a tissue to wipe her face. “Your vitals are fine. Your brain activity spiked for a few seconds there. But you got out at just the last minute-”

“What the fuck happened, Alex?”

She asks as she tries to sort out all her feelings long enough for Alex to give her a full explanation. 

But it isn’t Alex who answers her. 

“I found you.”

The three words are bullets flying across the room directly shot at Lena.

“Unconscious. On the floor. Black Mercy attached to your chest. That’s what fucking happened.”

Kara sounds like shit.

Was her first thought when she heard Kara speak. She guesses she looks like shit as well, but Lena can’t be certain. Her back was to her as Nia removes the wiring still wrapped around her. Her voice was firm, but Lena knew better. She knows Kara; knows she never really swears; knows when and where Kara uses the Supergirl voice. When she’s scared and she doesn’t want anybody to know. 

“Your pulse was so weak. I- I could barely hear it.”

This second statement is in contrast to Supergirl’s venom. This time words catch in her throat and Lena is fucking thankful that Kara’s back was to her. Because she knows she can’t handle those eyes. But before she could answer, Alex starts to speak, eyes briefly darting to Kara.

Lena doesn’t know whether she should be thankful for the interruption or not. 

“Which is why,” Alex cuts in and making sure to stress her next words, checking that Lena is listening, “I need you to stay here till we find out who did this. And as your doctor I’m saying you need at least 12 hours of rest.”

“What? No, somebody give me my phone. I need to call Jess,” she protests and Alex looks like she’s about to give Lena a piece of her mi—

“Are you kidding me right now? I found you on the floor, thinking you were dead, pulled you out of a parasitic trap and you want to go back to L-Corp? To what? Get killed again?”

This time, Kara’s two steps away from her bed and fuming. It makes Lena...feel...things.

“I have to call Jess—”

“Do you not get it? I spend my days trying so hard not to listen,” She grits out, “ To not to check in on you every single second of every day and then the one time—” Kara’s conviction crumbles, voice breaking, eyes shining.

 “And then,” she falters, voice heavy with emotion and tries to control herself.

“The one time, the one fucking time I decide to break my own rule, what do I hear? I hear nothing, Lena.”

The last part is a whisper. She’s shaking and all eyes are on them now.

“Do you know why? Because your heart-rate was so slow that I couldn’t pick up on it.”

Kara looks like she’s two inches away from imploding. Lena’s heart is pounding and the room falls silent and it feels like it’s just the two of them in the room having a staredown. 

“I— I’m sorry. I—”

I didn’t know. I didn’t want to know. I didn’t want to care. I’m sorry. 

“Thank you for saving me,” she voices out instead in that calm methodical way she uses when talking in the lab. Amazed at how she sounded because she herself is also less than two inches away from a complete meltdown. 

Kara’s shoulders visibly sag as she holds back tears. Lena knows she should probably say more but... she doesn’t really know what to say. 

She was still processing everything. 

It was so vivid that Lena was half-expecting to see a ring on her finger once she looks down, a stubborn part of her brain insisting that there’s a matching one in a chain around Kara’s neck.

Before Kara can say another emotional heavy statement, Lena turns to Alex instead, “Fine,” she says, agreeing to Alex’s previous order. 

“But I can’t stay here for 12 hours. And also, I need my phone, my tablet and my assistant. I’m helping in the investigation,” she says leaving no room for argument.

Alex looks like she might agree but Kara speaks up again.

“No, no. No, you’re not going near that investigation and you’re staying the 12 hours here,” Kara grunts out, jaw-clenched as Lena looks at her with sharp eyes. 

“You have no right to decide that for me—”

“Not to mention we have to tal— “

They both spit at each other at the same time.

“We have nothing to talk about,” Lena objects and she knows how much of a lie that is, but Kara just won’t fucking back down. 

“Nothing?! You’re calling this nothing?! You’re calling the fact that your ideal world was us married, nothing? You’re telling me—” she trails off and scoffs, pinches the bridge of her nose in disbelief, “You’re unbelievable-”

That was what she meant when she said Kara was two inches away from imploding.

“Supergirl.”

J’onn’s voice seem to bring the both of them back to reality and Lena notices how heavy the air in the room has become, how Nia is standing stiffly at the side, how Alex’s eyes keep flicking between the both of them

“That’s quite enough from the both of you,” J’onn says and Kara whips around to face him, Lena was scared that she was going to deck J’onn for interrupting but Alex also intervenes. 

“J’onn’s right.” She puts a hand on her sister’s shoulder turning her away from J’onn. Looks like she had the same train of thought as Lena. 

“My patient needs her rest. So, all of you get out,” At which Nia nods at her with a sympathetic smile and then Brainy is hugging her whispering, “I’m glad you’re okay.” before leaving the room as well. 

“And that means you too,” Alex emphasizes at Kara, who looks like she’s going to shoot lasers out of her eyes at her sister for suggesting such an incredulous notion. 

But Kara takes a breath, gives Alex a hard look to which Alex merely raises a brow in challenge before taking a step back and speeding out of the room, not sparing Lena another glance. 

Once everyone is gone, Lena collapses back on the bed, letting out a heavy sigh. 

“She changed the timeline, you know. And reality too, I guess. Or at least she tried to.”

“What?”

“Before you two became a thing, before beating Leviathan,” Alex recounts,  “She tried to change the timeline to save your friendship.”

“I’m sorry- What?”

She’s sure she looks pretty absurd with the look on her face right now. Kara did what? Kara did that? How did she not know that? How did she not know Kara literally teared apart at space and time just for her? 

“She struck a bargain with a Fifth-Dimensional imp so she can fix everything. Said she’d rather change reality than face the possibility of having to fight you.”

For a moment she feels she’s going to throw-up again. But then again, after what the both of them just went through, Lena’s not surprised. God knows the lengths she would go through for Kara.  

It feels even more visceral now, not to mention it was Alex who told her. 

“I don’t know what the hell happened between the two of you, but God, Lena she hasn’t been the same since. And I don’t really want to know what kind of bullshit the Black Mercy put you through, but I think both of you could really use their best friend right now.”

Alex sits at the side of her bed, putting a hand atop hers for a moment.

“Just think about it, while you rest,” Alex tells her, squeezes her hand and gets up again. 

“You can’t just tell me those kinds of things and expect me to rest,” Lena retorts, making Alex turn her head back to her. 

She’s glad that Alex doesn’t seem to pick sides. When the break-up happened she was expecting the DEO Director to turn up at her front step with a taser and point canons for breaking her sister’s heart. But Lena was surprised when Kelly turned up instead, telling her that Alex is with Kara, so she’s getting Kelly for the night.

The couple didn’t get anything from Kara or Lena that night, despite their various attempts at coaxing the truth out. The night was sobbed away or in Lena’s case, drank the night away; chugged enough wine that Kelly had forcefully pried the bottle from her hands. 

“Look, Lena, The two of you are really overdue for a talk.”

Alex's words bring her back to reality. She pulls a tablet out and Lena’s work phone is retrieved from her pocket. 

“So, talk,” Alex enunciates as she hands over the devices. 

“Because I am locking you here. No going to L-Corp, no trying to escape with Jess and no overworking till midnight. You get to call your assistant, tell her what happened and then you rest. That’s an order, got it?”

“Got it,” Lena grits out rolling her eyes, hiding the fact that she’s beyond warmed by the gesture. Alex merely shakes her head at her before stepping out. The door slides close behind her and Lena is finally left alone with her thoughts.

Alex has a point. Alex has a great point, her mind screams.

But...not ready, is an understatement. She is not ready to talk to Kara about the break-up, much less about why her Black Mercy induced dream is an overtly domestic version of their love story. 

She decides to file it under ‘Things For Later’ which is probably a bad idea. Her therapist would most likely tell her that. Then again, she doesn’t really think she’d be seeing her therapist any time soon. 

How does one unpack a whole alien parasite attack on your psyche in one session, anyway?

***

Alex finds her stood before ruined slabs of concrete. 

“Any updates?”

“We’re skip-tracing all employees from L-Corp between the graveyard shift and the morning shift.”

“Good, I have a feeling it was an inside job.”

Alex lets out an audible sigh. 

“Something you wanna say?” She says as cement crumbles under her fists and dust particles rain over her red boots. 

“Talk to her. “

Kara snorts. 

“You say that as if I haven’t tried talking.”

Alex puts a hand on her shoulder stopping her from launching another punch. 

“Really talk to her this time,” her sister stresses the words in that classic Alex Danvers’ ‘I’m-serious-so-you-better-fucking-listen’ way. 

She lets the words sit in the forefront of her mind, shoulders dropping, fists and arms following suit. 

“We were married,” She whispers and it takes two seconds for it to register to Alex before she steps closer, an ‘Oh, Kara.’ slipping past her lips. 

“We were married and happy. So happy. It felt so real, Alex, it felt so re—” 

Sobs choke her and Alex closes the gap and she lets herself be tugged in a tight, tight hug. Alex rubs comforting circles on her back as Kara’s chest heaves and tears pour. 

The thing about it was, she didn’t even spend more than one minute in that fantasy world, yet her brain acts as if she’s lived that life. As if she didn’t drop smack right in the middle of a stranger’s bedroom and the first thing she saw was a doppelganger of herself and her ex. In bed. Together. 

It was as if everything came to her in one terrifying moment of clarity. Boots in the corner. Cape haphazardly slung. Lena’s work laptop. Chew toys for dogs. Scattered Science books, then— 

Golden rings, on a finger, in a chain.

Mating bands around wrists.

Wedding portrait. Weddin— 

It all hits her at once faster than a whiplash and harder than a superpowered punch; knocking the  wind out of her lungs, until she realizes she was gasping. 

“Lena, we have to go, please. Please believe me, this isnt-” 

“Real. I know-”

“What’s your surname?”

“Luthor.”

Just like you promised. Promised. Promised. 

Always. 

Alex squeezes tighter and Kara is pulled back from the depths. 

Her sister lets her go and steps back a bit to cup her face in her hands; snotty nose, sniffles and all. 

“Hey, look at me. That wasn’t real. And I know how bad you want it to be real. But Kara, nothing will happen if the both of you keep pulling away from each other. Someone needs to take the plunge.”

“She doesn’t want me, Alex. She ended things.”

Alex takes a deep breath, closes her eyes, shakes her head and then lets it all out in one go. 

“Kara. I don’t really wanna say this to your face while you’re sobbing over me. But,” Alex lets out an exasperated sigh with a shake of her head and then lets out,  “Good fuck, that is the most stupid thing to come out of your mouth. I don’t know how to stress this enough but...her IDEAL world is the two of you playing house. What more do you need? She wants you.”

“But she-” 

Alex holds a finger up to stop her from talking. 

“Nope. No. Listen to me, you are being an idiot. Well, Lena is too. But we’re talking about you right now, so… again, you are being an idiot. Just— Talk to her, Kara. How many times do I have to say that?”

Kara goes from sobbing to shocked to skeptical in the few seconds that Alex was speaking. 

“I- I don’t know, Alex.”

“Kara, she wants you. She’s just scared.”

“Scared of what?”

“You won’t find out if you don’t talk to her.”

Well, that was a great response. 

Alex is hoping that it’s great enough of a response to convince her sister.

***

There’s a blue lump on the side of her bed. 

A blue lump with blonde hair?

Lena rubs the sleepiness off and slowly sits.

Kara, it was Kara. 

Kara was asleep, back hunched, head pillowed on folded arms on the side of her bed.

Lena immediately realizes the uncomfortable position she is in, not to mention the cape that is now roughly bundled at the back of the plastic chair. 

She carefully lays a hand on Kara’s shoulder and shakes her softly. 

“Hey, Kara, wake up, hey,” Lena mutters quietly. 

“Wha- Lena?” Kara startles awake and shoots up from her position.

“I- you looked like you were gonna have a back ache so I-uh,” Lena was grasping for words in that usual way she does when Kara’s around. 

“Here.” She pats the space next to her, “Come on, sit here, climb in. We uh- you’re right, we should talk, might as well do it while we’re both comfy, right?”

She attempts at lighthearted conversation, she already knows the next few minutes are going to be the most emotionally draining moments of her— their life. 

Kara hesitates a bit, before nodding and wordlessly hoisting herself on the bed. 

“So, do uh- do you wanna start or should I?”

Again, she was grasping for words. 

“Go ahead,” Kara says barely above a whisper, Lena was kind of hoping Kara would go first but well, here goes nothing. 

“Thank you for coming to get me, I wasn’t expecting you to come,” Lena confesses, she really was surprised when Kara—the real Kara— showed up to rescue her. 

“I’ll always save you, you know that,” Kara butts in, as if what Lena had said was the most ridiculous thing ever. She guesses it is, to Kara’s ears. She did promise always after all. 

“Yeah, I know I just— for a moment there I just thought...well, never mind what I thought honestly-”

“You thought what? That I don’t care about you anymore? That I won’t fly off the moment I sensed you were in danger?”

Well, she’s on fire today. 

“It’s not like that, you know that,” Lena protests but Kara interrupts again.

“It is like that. You thought just because we’re over I don’t give a shit about you anymore. You of all people, know I can’t—” Kara cuts herself off as if in pain, “I’ll always save you, Lena. Together or not. I care about you,” Kara utters, turning her head to meet Lena’s eyes before facing in front again. 

Lena feels like care is a placeholder for something both of them aren’t capable of saying at present. 

She doesn’t dwell on it too much because Kara is saying something again. 

“I think…” She begins with a voice full of an emotion Lena can’t name [read: don’t want to name.]

“I care about you a little too much and that...”

Lena holds in a breath. 

“And that scares you doesn’t it?” Kara finishes and she looks at her again but this time  around Lena’s cheeks are wet. 

Kara puts a hand atop hers and squeezes and the gesture pulls words from Lena’s throat. 

“You wanted everything so fast, Kara,” she whispers, not really trusting to increase the volume of her voice lest it shakes. 

“You were telling me all these grand plans of settling down and staying together and I was still having a hard time telling you ‘I love you’ and-” her voice breaks, “And even though, you kept saying it was okay, that you were just thinking out loud, I saw how hurt you were whenever I hesitated.”

Lena’s mind briefly flashes to all those nights spent with Kara, beside her and just feeling this massive fucking pressure of living up to what Kara wants. Shy I love you’s and fear, just so much fucking fear...and insecurities screaming at her that she isn’t what’s good for Kara. 

“I- I couldn’t give you what you wanted and I just kept thinking was it me you really wanted? Or was it this domestic bliss that you’ve conjured in your head? Something you can have with somebody else. And it just kept spiraling from there. Thinking somebody better can give you what you want, somebody who’s not tainted, somebody who you can be proud of, somebody who won’t feel so fucking scared of saying ‘I love you’.”

She was aware she was one breath away from sobbing and when Kara moved closer and softly said, “Oh Lena,”

The dam burst. 

“Oh, baby, come here, I’m sorry. Rao, I’m so sorry, I- I didn’t know I made you feel that way, I’m sorry,” Kara murmurs to her as she cups Lena’s cheek and uses her thumb to wipe tears. 

Lena’s eyes were so green at the moment and Kara has to remind herself that they still have a long way to go for tonight. 

“Look at me, I’m sorry I didn’t know, I’m sorry you felt pressured but Lena, there is nobody else I want. You are the one I want, hell I’m pretty sure every me out there in the multiverse is looking for their own Lena right now. You are the best I could ever have.”

The words hit Lena and it just makes her sob harder. Kara fully turns her body to the side to gather Lena in her arms and lets her sob into her neck. 

“I- I left because I thought I couldn’t be enough, I didn’t want to. But everything was happening so fast and you wanted so many things and I couldn’t give it to you and I felt like such a fucking failure,” Lena sobs out, words slightly muffled with how hard Kara is pressing into her. 

“Lena you are not a failure oh, come here. Listen to me, you’re not a failure, you’re not supposed to build your world around me okay? You do it for yourself. You are brilliant. You are not a failure and I am so so sorry that I made you feel that way.”

Kara rubs circles on her back and squeezes around her every so often. It feels like forever that they stayed that way. Kara whispering, “Shh, breathe, breathe with me,” and Lena sniffling into Kara and Kara just wrapping all around her and calming her. When Lena’s sobs start to subside and she feels confident enough in her ability to speak she slowly breaks away from Kara. 

“I’ve been going to therapy,” she begins, “It helped...a lot. Helped clear out a lot of things f-for me. And I think,” She pauses, “Kara, I- I also think you need it more than I do.”

At that Kara’s face scrunches up in confusion. 

“How so?”

“Remember when I told you you wanted so much so fast?”

Kara gives her a nod. 

“I think you were trying to run, darling.”

She knew she should be focusing on what Lena was trying to tell her but she can’t help the little flutter of her heart at the pet name. 

“Run? Run from what?”

“Kara,” Lena starts, unsure about how she should really go about all this.

“You went through hell and back trying to fix the universe, you watched another home of yours get erased from existence. And not to mention that before and during all of that, the two of us were fighting. And then to make things worse at the end of it all, you get ejected into a universe you barely know with my brother as its savior.”

Lena lays out all the facts methodically, slowly, carefully but just blunt enough to make Kara realize that all that trauma should not just be brushed aside.

“You went through a lot.”

A lot, doesn’t even begin to describe the enormity of everything the both of them went through. But Lena supposes they can unpack that another time. There’s a pause and Lena watches Kara take a breath.

“Kara, I think you jumped into a relationship with me because it made you feel good. It made you forget about all the recent hardships you just went through. And I guess maybe I did too, you know? We both just wanted to feel some crumb of peace, but God, did we go about it the wrong way.”

Lena watches her words sink in, how Kara stops, blinks slowly only to take a sudden breath as tears slowly track down her face. 

“I- No. I didn’t. No, you’re wro- Lena, I-” Kara fails to tie together a sentence as tears start to fall down. It’s easy when everything else is in your head, when you can replay memories and cover them in filters made by your own brain, but when someone else puts it on the screen for you? That’s a different matter altogether. Nobody had shown Kara the severity of her trauma before and now it’s taking its toll.

“Oh, Kara. Come here, come here,” Lena coos, this time it was her pulling Kara in. Kara melts into her and Lena feels the telltale signs of heavy sobs come through. 

“I don’t know- I-”

“Shh, it’s okay, Kara, it’s okay.” 

She lets Kara fall apart in front of her. She knows those tears are oceans of their own, those drops carry the memory of a fallen planet, an entire culture, stories, people, loved ones. Every drop is a person Supergirl had failed to save, another universe, another home. Every drop is every lie she ever told Lena and all of the pain there was when she was gone. 

“I’m sorry, Lena, I’m sorry.”

She can’t beg forgiveness from an extinct race or a wiped out universe but Lena? She could still have Lena. 

***

Alex finds them curled tightly together in the Med Bay come morning. She kind of wants to cry in relief at the sight. 

Finally, fucking finally. 

She doesn’t have the heart to bother them so she grabs them an extra blanket and tucks both in, exiting with a small smile to her lips. 

***

They both wake up to the sound of laughter, the perpetrators— a couple of low-rank agents— stop in the tracks at the sight of a disheveled Supergirl, scowling madly at them with one Lena Luthor tucked in her arms. 

“Uh- sorry, we’ll just uh-” 

The agents bolt out of the room immediately, letting Kara slump back into the pillow. 

“Hi,” Lena croaks out with a rough voice, eyes puffy from last night. 

Snippets from last night immediately flashing in Kara’s brain. 

Kara holding Lena. 

Lena holding Kara

Teary apologies

Catching-up on each other.

Talking till yawns interrupted their words. 

Kissing. 

More kissing. 

More kiss-

You get the picture. 

“Good morning,” Kara replies with a shy smile. 

“Is scaring agents one of Supergirl’s many talents?” Lena teases, as Kara scoffs fully turning unto her side to face Lena, hand casually brushing a stray strand of her on Lena’s face

“Serves them right for just walking in-” Kara stops mid-sentence, fingers freezing and her eyes turn hesitant, “Sorry, is this okay?”

Because even though last night had happened even though they’ve talked until words could no longer name the depth of their feelings and they turned to silence instead, Kara is still unsure. Hesitant. Wary of giving too much too soon or asking for too much too soon.

But the most difficult part is over and they both realize this as the sun from outside filter through the many wide windows of the DEO, as Lena’s next words ring about in the warmth of the morning.

“Kara, it’s okay,” Lena answers her, catching Kara’s frozen hand and leaning into the touch, pressing closer to Kara’s face, noses touching, lips a breath apart. 

“In fact, it’s very much okay.”

.

.

.

.

.

.

The first tell was the lack of a body next to her. The second was the freezing cold. Her bed was almost never cold these days. She’s grown used to sharing her bed with a Kryptonian heater, and so, to wake up from a nightmare alone in bed was now an unusual occurrence. Unusual nough to make her panic. 

She sits up, disoriented from her nightmare. Lena groggily registers a low melodic humming crackling from the baby monitor on her nightstand. 

“Kara,” she whispers into the quiet of the room, “Please come back to me.” 

The humming from the monitor begins to sound distant as it gets louder to Lena’s ears; drifting nearer and nearer to the bedroom. 

The door opens and Kara strolls in, messy bun, sleepy voice and all. In her arms a squirming, kicking, sniffling, very much awake bundle fits.

“She doesn’t want to sleep, I tried everythi-” Kara whines and then stops as she takes in Lena’s racing heartbeat, shaking lips and shining eyes. 

“Oh no, did you have a nightmare? I’m sorry, I-”

“It’s okay, Kara. Just— Come here? Please?”

Kara shuffles quickly towards the bed; Lena lifts the comforter, making room, the bed dipping as her wife climbs in.

“You okay?” she asks, once she’s settled down next to Lena. She continues rocking her arms as an attempt to get their daughter to sleep for the nth time tonight. Her wife doesn’t still doesn’t answer her, although she doesn’t miss how Lena slightly calms at her presence.

“Lena, hey, you with me?”

“Kara?”

“I’m here, I’m here.”

“Thi- this is real, right?”

Because sometimes, there are nights where dreams feel all too real and pain comes rearing at you as if it all happened yesterday. Because after all these years, Lena still carries fear inside of her; fear that none of this is real, fhat Kara doesn’t really love her, that she’ll never be good enough, that she’ll be abandoned again. Fear that all of this is just a figment of her imagination. 

“Oh, Lena. Come here, I’m going to pass her unto you alright?” 

Lena’s eyes snap up to hers for a minute in hesitation but she finds herself slowly nodding. Kara wouldn’t give their daughter over if she isn’t sure Lena could handle it. She slowly transfers their child to Lena’s arms. 

“Do you feel her warmth?” 

“Mm-hmm.”

“Do you feel her weight?”

“She’s real, Lena. I’m real,” Kara says as she wraps her arms around them, cradling her wife and child close. 

“She’s getting heavy.”

“Yeah, yeah that she is. This is real, Lena.”

“Here,” she gently puts a pillow beneath Lena’s arms for support as she slowly grabs one hand and puts it right over her heart. 

“Feel this? Can you feel it?” 

Lena does, Lena can and she nods and it’s real and Kara’s heartbeats are steady under her palm; each beat an echo of Lena’s name. She’s certain of that, because she’s pretty sure her heartbeats are all echoes of Kara’s name again and again and again.

“This is real.”

“Promise?”

“Always.”

[wannabe-fic-writer]

Lena Luthor x Reader : Mistakes Were Made

Summary: You really should’ve paid much more attention to the wrapping.

Genre: 18+ Suggestive language, Masturbation, Toys, Implied Smut

Imagine comes from this request: “Reader accidentally gives a lewd gift meant for their long distance GF (or ex-GF) to their friend, Lena.”

Word Count: 2,134

* * * * * *

You really should’ve seen this coming.

In fact you saw it coming, you just didn’t prepare yourself for it.

Now that you’re faced with your mistakes, you’re the most embarrassed and, quite honestly, the dumbest you’ve ever been.

The first mistake started not but six months ago. You were ignorantly blissful in your relationship with your then girlfriend Carly. You were preparing yourself to go on a two month long DEO mission and had bought a gift for her, one that would keep her “occupied” while you couldn’t.

A dildo. You bought her a dildo.

Having experimented with different ways to fulfill your desires while you were gone on missions, the added use of toys during your sexual phone calls was quickly agreed upon.

Your second mistake came the day you planned to give it to her. You’d officially been gone five days and figured the sooner you told her the sooner you both could make good use of it. So you called. And called. And called. Only to be ignored all three times. Then for the fourth call to be answered, on accident. Based on the noises you’d heard it was obvious what was happening, obvious that Carly didn’t need your little gift after all.

You ignored her for the entirety of your mission and promptly confronted her when you got back. She didn’t deny it either, just claimed it was something she never should’ve done and begged for another chance. But you were far from willing to give it to her. So you broke up, went through the motions of moving out and cutting ties.

Third mistake was still checking up on her on her social media. It was clear that her little side piece was more than that, when you saw the very new pictures of them together on your feed.

Your friends were one hundred percent ready to go to war for you. Kara and Alex couldn’t believe that someone would cheat on you, they didn’t understand cheating in general, but to cheat on someone as sweet as you made the least amount of sense.

Nia wanted to find Carly and teach her a lesson. A fact she made abundantly clear.

While Lena, she was pissed and confused and a million other things. The CEO has had a crush on you since before you started dating Carly and her feelings grew over the entirety of your relationship. She saw the way you were with Carly, how attentive, caring, understanding, and overall romantic you were.

All in all they could tell how hurt you were about the whole thing. You weren’t in love with her or anything but you were getting there.

It’s why your friends insisted you spend more time with them after the break up. Alongside your usual hang outs at Al’s and game nights at Kara’s house, the blonde planned a Friend’s Appreciation night.

That’s when your final mistake happened.

You all agreed on celebrating the impromptu holiday and planned on getting each other gifts. You wrapped and tagged every gift but one. When it’d gotten time for you to wrap Lena’s you got distracted as said woman popped by so you shoved her gift at the top of your closet and thought nothing of it till the day of.

In which you excitedly grabbed the wrong damn box.

Everything was going perfect, drinks were flowing, Kara was knee deep in a second helping of potstickers, and gifts were being exchanged.

You’d handed Lena hers with a sweet smile and a,“ I thought of you when I saw it so I had to.”

So imagine the hopeful surprise she felt when she opened the ten inch, fairly realistic looking dildo with a cute little red bow around it.

All the girls had asked what she got, especially since they knew of her feelings for you and figured you had at least a crush on her. But this, she couldn’t and wouldn’t share this with them. No this was to stay between the two of you.

Except you didn’t know that. Well you did but not to the full extent.

Which meant you were oblivious to how sexual her words were when she would text or tell you that she “adored her gift” or “couldn’t get enough of it” or better yet “wanted you to use it with her.”

It was that last one that started to tie things together for you. You weren’t sure how you both would use a diamond jewelry set. So you’d jokingly told her you didn’t think that was possible, to which she said “if you play your cards right it is.”

You figured she was just messing around so you brushed it off. Until you saw her again, stopping into L-Corp just to say hi at lunch.

A frown masked your brows as you sat down across from her, e/c eyes roaming her neck and ears,“ you don’t have my gift.” You pouted.

Lena’s eyes widened and she gave a disbelieving chuckle,“ of course I don’t, I’m at work Y/n.” She looked off,“ though it would definitely come in handy when I’m stressed.”

The last part brought a smile to your face. The thought that your gift brought her comfort. But you didn’t understand the first bit.“ Wh-why wouldn’t you bring it to work. Do you not want people to see it?”

If she wasn’t surprised before she is now. It’s one thing to give her a dildo as an appreciation gift but to now subtly but openly admit to wanting to be semi-public with it was another.

Did you have an exhibitionist kink or something? Did you enjoy the risk of possibly being caught? Or were you just into the idea of her carrying your dildo around with her?

“Y-Y/n I,” her shoulders dropped as she processed your words,“ I’ll do it.”

Leaning forward, you rested a hand on hers,“ good, I’m glad you like it by the way. I wasn’t sure if you even needed something like that but I guess it’s the thought that counts right?”

“Of course.”

The next day, you were more than happy to receive a text from the CEO saying she had your gift with her. You’d replied that “you wanted to see how it looked on her” which made the brunette flush with arousal and embarrassment, unbeknownst to you. But she was curious about how you’d respond.

The second you got the picture you had to do a double take which then led to you dropping your phone.

There your best friend Lena Luthor was, her legs spread beneath her desk, with an all too familiar dildo disappearing into her clearly sopping pussy.

In an instant, you were sprinting back to your bedroom. Throwing your closet door open and snatching the box off the top shelf. Nestled inside on top of tissue paper was the diamond necklace and matching earrings you thought you gave to Lena.

No instead you gave your best friend a goddamn dildo!

“Oh. My. Fuck.” You whispered into the quiet space.

The one thing you’d done in the midst of this entire situation that wasn’t a mistake, was going to Lena about it.

You raced to L-Corp, a million and one thoughts on your mind about it all. Every conversation you had about the gift.

Heat rushed to your face when you remembered one of the first things she told you about it, she couldn’t get enough of it.

How many times had she used it?

If it came from you, did she think of you when using it?

No wonder she told you she didn’t bring it to work. It was a goddamn dildo and not a necklace.

How you managed to be so clueless was lost on you but you had to at least try to clear it up, lest your best friend think you were some type of creep.

Pulling up to the building, you moved just as fast to get inside and up to her office. In the midst of all your panic you didn’t even consider the fact that you just received a picture of her actions.

The sight before you when you entered, stopped you in your tracks.

Lena’s head thrown back, eyes shut, as her arm flexed with her obviously quick and forceful pumps.

She was fucking herself with it, right there.

“L-Lena.” You fumbled, shutting the door before anyone could dare look inside to find their boss in such a compromising and vulnerable position.“ Lena.” You said clearer the second time.

Keeping up with her ministrations, she looked up at you, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. You heard the low moan she gave and at that point you were pretty sure it was because of you more so than the toy between her legs.

Admittedly you didn’t know what to do. Well you did. You should’ve given her the last of her privacy but you couldn’t take your eyes off her.

She was beautiful there’s no denying that, however nothing could be sexier than having seen her like that. Falling apart with each flick of her wrist, knowing you were there.

When she reached her peak she shook, her body overwhelmed and you had no control over yours. Walking across the office, you grabbed her face, and crashed your lips on hers. The long moan she’d let out now swallowed by you.

After she calmed down, you released her, and sat back against the desk. Your gaze followed the action of her pulling the dildo from her, catching how wet it was and nearly dying at the thought of causing that and possibly fixing it.

“I wouldn’t’ve been opposed to you helping me you know?”

“That,” you pointed to the toy,“ was not meant for you.” You blurted out.“ I got you a necklace and mixed up the boxes and I realize how fucked up that sounds but apparently you made good use of it regardless.”

Lena’s eyebrows raised as she dazedly looked at you,“ seriously?”

An embarrassed, nervous, smile took over your face,“ yeah. I can’t even tell you how I mixed up the packages.” You said, setting her intended gift down.

Green eyes flicked down to the box. With an embarrassed blush on her cheeks, she swallowed and threw the toy in an empty drawer. Then scrambling to fix herself.

The realization of the situation settling in her mind and causing that blush to deepen.

“Y-you- I-I’m so sorry,” she stutters out. Her eyes widen and she’s quick to bury her face in her hands.“ All those messages I sent and your replies I thought you-”

She stops and your eyebrow raises. You had a feeling what she intended to say but had to hear it.

“You thought I what?” Slowly her hands lower and her gaze finds yours.“ What Le?”

Taking a deep breath she nearly whispers,“ I thought you may have felt the same about me.”

Do I? You find yourself thinking. Did all those seemingly platonic cuddles mean something? When you kiss her forehead and she kisses your cheek is there something behind that?

Is the love you feel for her more than friendly? Had you just pushed the way you use to feel about her away? Was it that easy?

You’re smart enough to know feelings are never easy. And aware of your emotional state to know that there was always something romantic behind everything you did with and for Lena.

“I do.” Her eyes, that had fallen to the desk, snap up to yours in surprise.“ I’ve always felt something for you Lena.”

“But Carly-”

“Is my ex. And while I’m still dealing with the hurt of that, I’m completely over her.” You raise a hand to gently rest against her cheek.“ I’d like to take you out sometime, maybe explore what we’ve both been feeling?”

She seems to be frozen for a moment. Her eyes clearly search yours for sincerity and she nods upon finding it.“ I’d like that.”

Smiling, you lean down and capture her lips in a sweet kiss. A smile of her own forms into it causing you both to pull away.

Your breath ghosts over her lips as you teasingly whisper,“ and maybe you can call me the next time you use that thing.”

Even though she chuckles disbelievingly and swats your arm, a blush finds its place on her cheeks again, this time purely from arousal instead of embarrassment.

When you go for another kiss, you can’t help but think that maybe your mistakes weren't that bad.

[the-queen-of-the-light]

I am losing my mind with your marriage pact ficlet. Losing my sh!t as well. Good lord that's so them it makes me want to smack them in their heads for being so damn ridiculous and dramatic and so very in love with each other. I also bet that Kara bought those the day after they made that pact or maybe it was the day they moved in, but it was definitely one of those two day. I'd bet money on it. Ugh they're so ridiculous they'll be the death of me and I love them (and your ficlet) dearly.

ahdkjfhsak thank you!! I'm glad you enjoyed it so much! I've had that idea percolating in the back of my mind for a while but couldn't figure out how best to put it into words until recently.

It is so desperately them to keep dancing around each other—so deeply in love, but so deeply afraid of losing the other that neither is quite brave enough to take the risk. It's like they need the tension to finally reach a boiling point for either of them to make a move, even though that move barely even needs to be a centimeter in length because they're already basically married in season 2 lol. (Someone (probably Nia) just needs to bonk their heads together already, because something needs to get through their thick skulls.)

Kara totally would do that, though! I think it was probably spread across both of those days. She purchases the ring immediately the day after, because she's just so damn gay and hopeful. And she needs to have it on hand, just in case. But the bracelet, that was a process that started the day they moved in together.

See, I imagine it as a traditional kryptonian marriage bracelet, which Kara would work to handcraft for her. It'd be a labor of time and love. Especially the etchings. I think the pair moving in together was an 'oh shit, this is very serious and potentially very real' moment for Kara, and she realized she very, very much wants this with Lena. But not just a marriage of convenience because 'oop we're both still single so might as well.' What she wants is real and meaningful and so full of yearning. She wants to share her life with Lena, every little bit and piece of herself, including the kryptonian ones. Because she trusts Lena to hold those fragile pieces of herself and not break her again.

So she makes this piece of home to give to her new home, Lena, and waits and waits and waits for a sign that Lena wants this, too. And when Lena does, Kara gifts it to her along with her heart and a ring.

And of course, Lena recognizes the marriage bracelet for what it is instantly, having heard so many of Kara's stories of Krypton over the years. She recognizes its significance, and that's why she asks, almost brokenly "are you joking?" Because she sees the gravity of this gesture, and she... she can't believe it. Not without Kara saying the words.

Even with the ring, for a split second, she still believes that it's a platonic gesture from a joke and a promise made between friends. But the bracelet says everything words can't.

Anyways, that got way longer than intended, but they are so hopeless and so deeply in love. And I'm dead because of it XD