#Help me forget. | IC | The Unanswered

[brailsthesmolgurl]

WHY HER?

Another angst/fluffy oneshot required by one of you. I swear, the ones who are following me, most of you have a thing for angst :0 But it is okay my babies, as I am nothing different from you guys :) this will be a bit shorter than my usual oneshot lengths but hope it is just as enjoyable for you guys :)))

Warnings: Angst but don't worry my lovelies, there shall be comfort for this round. Reader is not main character in game.

Please note all artworks are credited to the artist @chimmyming on Twitter, please do go and support the artist! Click onto the pictures and there shall be a link on it that brings you straight to their artwork!

Rafayel

You sat at the beach, looking far out into the ocean as you waited for Rafayel. He had agreed to meet you today for a nice evening walk but it was VERY UNLIKE HIM to be late for any meetings with you. Furthermore, you had only came back from your business trip recently, and the last thing you had expected was for your lover to be late to this long-awaited meet up.

Taking out your phone, you decided to give your boyfriend a call. "Hello, Rafayel?" You spoke once the call was picked up. "Where are you mister?"

"Hello?" The voice on the other end of the call caught you off guard. It was the voice you had heard Rafayel mentioned through his video calls with you for a couple of times. "Rafayel will be there in a bit." You heard a slither of your boyfriend's voice echoing in the background, shouting out something and the girl repeated his message. "He told you to---"

You hung up the call. Not even bothering for an apology nor an answer. Just hearing her voice made your blood boil. It does not help either when Rafayel would mention about her during your business trip. He would say, "Oh she helped me with the drawings today, as she said purple would fit better than orange." or "We went and got some paint today by the shop that was at the corner of the Bloom Street. She asked me to buy the conch shells too."

The recollection of him telling you all about their activities brought tears to your eyes, pulling your knees up to your chest and you stopped fighting the tears coming out of your eyes. When did she took your place? Helping him with his artworks? Accompanying him to buy painting materials and buying seashells together? That is, and has always been the activity reserved for you. But maybe, your absence made him feel empty inside.

Standing up, you dusted the sand off of your pants and decided to head home. Your phone had rung for a couple of times but it had fallen on deaf ears. Unlocking your phone and rejecting the call, you decided to block him. What happen to Lemurians only having one mate for the rest of their life? A question raised in your head, but it goes unanswered.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥

Loud music filled the entirety of the darkness of the bar. Your hand held onto a cocktail glass, swivelling the Long Island Iced Tea in it. But here is the catch, none of the contents in the glass contained anything that has to do with its name. But it is surely going to get you wasted in no time.

You took another hit, feeling the burn go down your throat when you downed the whole glass in one go. The laser lights, light bars below the bar table and holograms of women dancing being the only source of lighting found within the bar, a good way for you to hide away from anyone you know.

You just wanted to drown out your thoughts, but forgetting the point that you had never been the type to handle alcohol well. Hence earning the title of you being the teetotal in every party and event you attend with Rafayel. Speaking of the man, your eyes wandered down to your cocktail glass, the empty contents a direct reflection of your mind right now, empty.

When your mind started to get hazy further, you knew it was the right time to leave. You slowly maneuvered your way through the club till you were nearing the exit. A guy came in front of you to block your exit. "Where are you going, pretty lady? Do you need a ride home?"" His hand reached for your arm and you winced, his hold tight.

"Leave me alone. I am not interested." You pushed him with your hands and the guy barely budged. His tight grip on you still unfaltering. Instead, he started leading you out of the club, and into the alleyway.

"Bad girls don't deserve a good treatment. And seeing how wasted you are, I doubt you could stop me. So just be a good girl and take it." His words made you teared up, hand still coming up to push him with all of your might, sobs started surfacing from your breath.

"Help me!" You shouted out, head aching and eyes widening when you caught sight of the guy undoing his belt. He is planning to rape you isn't he?

"Nobody can hear you don't worry, so save your breath for me when I take you baby girl." He chuckled darkly but a spark caught your eye and the guy immediately got lit up in flames. Bright red colour lighting up the dark alleyway.

"Y/N!" The familiar voice called out to you, your sobs not stopping till someone grabbed you and you pushed with all of your drunken might, traumatised by how you were nearly raped by a stranger. The strong arms circled around your small body to pull you in close and your face hit against a taut chest. "Are you okay?!" And you passed out.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥

You woke up, eyes slowly fluttering opened and you winced at the throbbing of your head. Looking down at yourself, you realised your clothes had a change, you were wearing an oversized button up and you gasped, your memory piecing the fact that you almost got raped yesterday night. Thinking you were still entrapped in a stranger's home, you turned your head and you caught sight of your boyfriend fast asleep next to you.

His purple hair sat on his head like a bird’s nest, a vibrant colour against his white pillow and bed sheets. Feeling movement on the bed, you watched when he slowly opened his eyes, lapis-lilac shades caught yours. "Good morning..." He spoke groggily and slowly sat up, the blanket sliding down to reveal his chiselled abs. It was rare for him to not wear clothes to sleep.

"I should go..." You said quickly, eyes avoiding his when you pulled the blanket aside and you realised, you were half naked, the oversized shirt covering your naked upper half and you were only dressed in your underwear underneath the clothing. You probably had sex with him, you thought to yourself as tears came to your eyes again. That was the last thing you wanted to do as you did not want anything to do with him anymore. "This...this mistake... It won't happen again. I'm sorry for being an inconvenience."

"Wait..." Rafayel was shocked at your response, his face contorted in disbelief. "Y/N, wait..." He quickly got out of bed, butt naked and nimbly searched for his pants and putting them on, as he quickly chased after you. You were already putting on your shirt, his button up strewn across the floor. You being in a hurry to leave him made his heart ached. "No, y/n wait." His hand clasped your arms when you were heading towards the door with your phone in hand.

He turned you around and was met with your bare face, red painted across your nose and eyes. "Just leave me alone. I wish you all the best with her." A silent tear fell and you pushed his hand away. But he grabbed your arm again, reluctant to let you leave.

"Nothing happened." Rafayel's tone was calm. "Trust me. Nothing happened between me and her." His hand came up to your face to wipe the tear but you looked away, not wanting him to touch you any further. "She only helped me with this. Come..." Holding onto your arm still, he guided you towards the backyard. A canvas placed in the middle of the yard. "She was helping me to create this for you." He turned the easel to reveal an artwork, featuring you by the beach, on the shore with a mermaid tail. Your tail. The artwork had hints of purple in it and the seashells they had gotten previously.

Amazed at the artwork, you turned towards your lover, eyes still bloodshot. "This explains why you had been cutting our calls short and with her picking up the call yesterday and you being late for our date?" Your hesitant tone was evident.

He pointed to the pile of pot paints on the floor next to the painting. "I was in a hurry to create this piece since you were only out for your business trip for 4 days. I wanted it to be perfect so I took a longer time than usual. I was trying to clean up the mess before I go and find you." He held your other hand in his when you turned to fully face him. "I wanted to show you this yesterday." He sighed and looked down. "I am sorry that I hurt you, you nearly got hurt because of me. But, I will never choose anyone else other than my lifetime mate. I will not choose anyone over you." His eyes looked deeply into yours.

"Rafayel..." Your eyes softened when you looked up at your lover. "Thank you." You took a small pause and smiled warmly. "Thank you for always choosing me." And you hugged him.

✧○���○ꊞ○ꊞ○✧

Xavier

"Y/N," Your name was called when your boyfriend approaches your desk, handing you some documents for you to upload into the computer. "I will be going out for my mission soon, so I will see you back at home later?" His gentle voice made you smiled and nodded. He leaned down to give you a peck on your cheek when he realised nobody was watching and you watched as he walked off, the blond hair of his forming a halo under the radiant sunlight.

"So you are paired with Xavier again?" You heard a few girls squealed beside you and you just sat at your desk, continue inputting information into your computer, but you cannot help eavesdropping. "How lucky are you to be paired with him. How many times have you been paired with him for combat?"

"Oh, uhm....Almost everytime I think." The brunette replied, her hair tied in a low ponytail. None of the people in the headquarters know of the fact that both of you are actually in a relationship as there was no need for anyone to know about your private lives. And staying undercover just makes things less complicated when it comes to work.

"But, do you think he would make a move on you?" The short haired brunette asked and Xavier's combat partner shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly, a sign of not sure but there is a possibility of it happening as well.

"He did kind of brushed my hair out of my face and patted my head yesterday." Her response stopped you from typing any further as you felt your blood drained from your system. The girl-friend however, cheers and squeals for her friend's answer. You stood up, adjusting your outfit before you headed off to the washroom to take a break.

Washing your hands, you stare blankly at the mirror, studying your own reflection. Why would Xavier do this to you? You knew that your combat skills are non-existent, so that's why you kept yourself occupied with the information department, filing in documents for the deepspace hunters. They are more like the hands and feet while your department acts like the brain, collecting and providing information.

Maybe he likes girls with combat skills. Your mind jumped to that conclusion and you were snapped back to reality when the door opened up and you turned off the faucet, stepping past the same girl that was bragging about being close with your boyfriend. Your boyfriend no doubt is one of the popular males among the whole headquarters but all this while he had never made you worried. But why does her words affect you so greatly?

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

After work had ended, you took your time to walk instead of taking the subway, wanting to give yourself some time to walk after you had spent the whole day sitting in the office. You walked past a grocery store and remembered that you are running low on food at home so you decided to head into the grocery store to pick up some items.

Staring at the snacks isle, you were debating on whether to get popcorn or potato chips, since Xavier would like to munch on them whenever he is bored at home. So without much thought you just get both of it. You paid at the counter and held onto the plastic bags, resuming your walk back home.

Walking the streets during the evening is a sight to catch. The skies displaying orange and yellow, dashes of pink over the linings of the cloud that hung high above. It looks like a light show in the skies, but only that it is a natural phenomenon. Taking out your phone, you took a snapshot of the skies and checked the result. A frown coming upon your face when you know that cameras would never be able to fully capture nature’s beauty.

You turned a corner and you came across the sight of your boyfriend standing outside of the claw machine store that you would visit with him sometimes. Your eyes lit up, wanting to go up to him but you stopped in your tracks when you saw his combat partner appeared from the stores, her grin tugged from ear to ear, and her face clearly blushing.

Your hands tightened on your grocery bags when you noticed your boyfriend, who has his back facing you looking down at the girl. Oh, how you wished you could eavesdrop on their conversation right now. You would have wanted to know desperately what their conversation is about. A part of you is telling you to straight walk up there to claim your man while the other part of you is held back, heart heavy as you watched the girl's face lit up when she was conversing with your boyfriend.

And that was when you noticed she tip toed to lean up towards your boyfriend. That's it. You had seen enough. You turned away, and stomped the other way. Tears caught you off guard when you decided it is the best for you to step away. You do not want to cause a scene in the middle of the streets.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

"Finally found you." A voice broke the whispers of the wind. You stayed silent when you heard shuffling, someone taking a seat next to you. "Why are you out here, in the cold?"

You refused to face your boyfriend, eyes narrowed, lashes combatting against the cold harsh wind. Another shuffle could be heard again and you felt his hands on your shoulders, a heavy material wrapped over your shoulder. It was cold, but it could be a good excuse; to hide the actual fact of what caused your nose and eyes to take on a reddish colour. "Can you give me some time alone?"

"Why?" He asked, the puppy eyes he is known for stapled on his face when he tilted his head, trying to get a better look at your face. "Have you been crying?" His question made you turned your head to face him, cheeks still pressed against your knee.

"No." You blatantly lied and avoided his gaze again. "I don't have anything to talk to you about. You can go home first and wait for me at home."

"Are you sure?" His concern made you hid your face further into your knees and you nodded. Your reluctance to meet his eyes already confirmed his suspicion of something happening. So he asked further. "Were you happening to be watching me just now? When I was at the claw machine store?" Your silence gave him a sense of comfort. "So my senses are not wrong. That was you peeking out of the corner just now. And let me guess, you saw me with the hunter didn't you?"

How did he knew? You swear he probably has eyes on the back of his head. That thought sent a shiver down your spine. You adjusted your seating and he sat closer to you. "And...you probably saw how she wanted to kiss me, with her on her tip toes." It was crazy on how accurate he was on this.

He unwrapped your arms around your knees and slowly pulled you into his side, placing his arms around you and letting your head lay on his shoulder. Xavier's scent enveloped you, talcum powder and vanilla. There is no need for him to use any sorts of perfume when he himself is a walking perfume that nobody could remake. That is how he always smelled like and a part of you wondered if she managed to smell it from him as well.

"I would have teased you further, and enjoy the way you would have reacted when you are jealous. But," His hands smoothed over your hair, tucking some strands behind your ear gently. "I pushed her away before she could even come close enough. I even told her about us." You looked up at him, his cerulean orbs now light grey under the stars. "I don't think it would be a good idea to hide our relationship anymore." His free hand came up to rub his chin. "Because I want people to know that you are the only one that I want."

"What about your missions with her? She was bragging about you patting her head and tucking her hair." You asked frantically, thinking he might still end up spending time with her.

"I had contacted the captain about this and requested for a change of partners. This time, it will be a HE and no, he is not GAY." He smiled, finger tucked under your chin to pull your face up to meet his lingering gaze. His soft laughter rolling out of his mouth. “Moreover, I never touched her, not even once, she needs to get her head checked out. Whenever she falls during combat, I just stood aside and watch.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to your cold cheeks, in an attempt to warm them with his lips. “After we reveal our relationship in the office, you don't have to worry anymore, because no matter what happens, I will protect you to the ends of this world."

✧○ꊞ○ꊞ○ꊞ○✧

Zayne

<I will be home late tonight. I have to cover two emergency shifts. I will call you at 10P.M. before you head off to bed. I have a gap in between.>

Your phone beeped when you were nearly done at work. You read the message, knowing that he has to work late again for tonight, same as yesterday, the day before, and practically 4 days before. But, you cannot blame him for being one of best cardiac surgeons in Linkon City. It should be something you are proud of.

But it does not help when you went to pay him a short visit two days ago, his door does not open even after you had knocked twice on the wooden door. His usual patient, the deepspace hunter, came out of his room, face as red as a tomato. Your eyes followed her as she walked down the hallway and you made your step into your lover's room.

Zayne was near the bed, readjusting his shirt and coat. He did not realise you had walked in until you cleared your throat. "You are here." He said calmly, turning over to face you, his tie a little bit crooked. "I thought you were going to wait for me downstairs."

The deepspace hunter's red face, and him readjusting his shirt, anyone with two sense of mind could easily tell what had just went on in the room. "I just wanted to stop by your office as well." You replied, taking a seat on the couch in his office. "So, what did you do with the girl?"

"You mean the deepspace hunter?" He questioned, taking long strides to close the door. He did not seemed like he was anxious nor scared of your question. Probably a mask to his own guilt, you thought to yourself.

"Yeah, your childhood best friend." You clicked your tongue, arms crossed over your chest. "She seemed flustered when she left your office just now."

"I just conducted a normal check up on her, as usual." He said, dismissing your question easily. He reached his hand out to you, beckoning you to take his hand. "Let's go and get dinner together."

⁎̩͙ ⁑̩͙̩͙ ⁂̩̩͙͙

Your hesitation of his loyalty to you was one of the things that kept on bugging your mind, other than your work of course. You looked at the amount of work you have on your desk and started arranging it. Doing whatever you can now to keep your mind busy. What does that deepspace hunter have that you do not have?

A fleeting childhood with Zayne maybe? There have been theories that men would fall for their childhood friends due to the familiarity they have and how comfortable they could get with their childhood buddies. But this theory sucks. You tell yourself and stacked the files neatly and placed them at the shelves behind you.

You are just as capable as Zayne, but just in a different field. You are known to be one of the best lawyers in Linkon City. A highly respected one in fact. When news of you and Zayne went out, people claimed it was meant to be because both of you are aces within your own field and that you are both compatible to one another.

But what if he wanted someone more normal? Someone who would not constantly be under the watchful eye of the common public? The voice came about again. Almost every month, both of you would have your own array of social meets, and both of you making time to acquaint one another to those social events. Every single move, every single action you and Zayne do, it would be booming news. Maybe he is tired of us constantly being under the spotlight.

Mighty or not, you could be the best within your field, but you could also have equally damaging insecurities. This is the exact moment that you start crushing your own walls, walls of confidence that you had taken years to build up, to earn for respect from others. And perhaps, to earn Zayne's love.

<Okay.> You texted back and tossed your phone into your bag. Grabbing your car keys on your way out of your office. You locked your room on the way out and you were shocked to see some of your interns are still working in their cubicles. "Guys, I think you should all take a rest. How about we head to the coffee shop downstairs to have a drink hmm?"

Your interns' eyes lit up at your offer and they quickly gathered their stuffs before following you out of the office like a bunch of ducklings. On the elevator ride, you asked them of their work progresses and whether they needed any additional help with their current tasks. Your interns however, were more than surprised that you are willing to communicate with them.

Their first take on your image is that you are professional and strict. A woman of high standards and it was a common theme for people to link your working attitude to you being arrogant and ignorant. You had never once fell back on any datelines and your clients always leave your room satisfied, regardless of the outcome of the court case. You are on a whole other league as compared to anyone else within your department.

All of you decided to choose the seat outside because of the cooling night wind. It serves to refresh everyone, to step out of the tight cubicles for a bit and having to stretch comfortably. You sat next to two of the female interns, with them asking you about brands that you could recommend them to buy formal outfits. It was nice to see how fast the interns had opened up to you once they found out that you are not as scary as what was portrayed by others.

Your eyes caught sight of a black car pulling up just a few shops down the street. Not many people within the city owns that car, especially the black version. And one of those 'lucky few' happens to be your boyfriend as well. Your eyes slightly widened when you noticed the familiar figure coming out of the car.

His hair the colour of his full outfit, with a lanky but muscular build. The man standing next to the limited edition car is no doubt your boyfriend, Zayne. The sounds of your interns talking around you had turned into a constant white noise. Your eyes watched carefully, thank goodness the spot he had parked at was right below a street lamp.

The passenger side of the door opened, and out came the same girl. The one that you had suspicions about. At that exact moment, you felt your walls started breaking. Your eyes continued watching, your heart strapped in the back seat, limbs unable to move when you sat there in shock. The girl went up and gave Zayne a hug, you can tell that it was a tight hug, based on the way she literally planted her face into Zayne's torso. The sight of it made your heart crumbled and you stood up, your chair creaking against the cement pathway. Your interns stopped abruptly and turned to look at you in sync.

Clearing your throat, you held back tears as you spoke. "I remembered I have something to tend to, I have to get going." You bid them goodnight and you turned immediately, car keys dug out of your bag and you rushed to get into your car before you drove off quickly.

⁎̩͙ ⁑̩͙̩͙ ⁂̩̩͙͙

The clock at your bedside table flashed 9.55pm. It was a good idea to head off to bed earlier than usual. Although Zayne said that he would call you at 10pm, you had made your decision not to pick up. Telling him that you were too exhausted and fell asleep sounded like a viable excuse.

You closed your eyes and lulled yourself to sleep, used to the other side of your bed being empty for the past few nights. After a while, you heard your room door opened, the slither of light from the living room seeping in.

Zayne was home early. You assumed he would have went back to the hospital after dropping her off. Your back was facing him so he would not be able to tell that you were upset. But your plan was short lived when his shadow loomed over you.

"Y/N." His voice soft, and you heard a thud, the warmth of a hand on your face. "My love." He called for you again, running his big palms across your cheeks, him noticing that there were some tear streaks. "Are you awake?"

Your eyes then opened, and you are face-to-face with your handsome boyfriend, his hazel green orbs fixated on your face. "I thought you were at work." You slowly sat up, rubbing your eyes and feigning a yawn, as if you had just woken up. Your heart felt heavy, and before you could stop yourself, your mouth blurted out. "Am I not good enough?"

Zayne was clearly taken aback, turning on the switch to the lamp on your nightstand, the soft glow of the light bouncing off of your silhouette, your white satin night dress a sheen of orange. "Why would you think so?" His hand comes up, touching your arm but you flinched away. "Y/N, what's going on?"

"You know what, it's nothing." Your hands came up to hide your face from him, desperately trying to hold back your tears. Zayne has never seen you cry many times, only when you were drunk and watching some sad rom-coms or when work gets too stressful and you were pushed too hard. Yes, a strong woman like you have her own small, vulnerable moments too. And Zayne, acknowledges all of it. To him, he never treats your crying moments as to be small matters. When you cry, it is a natural human emotion yes, but it is not normal within your books, for you to cry over something miniscule.

"Y/n, you are sad. And being sad is---" He stopped himself before he continued spitting out medical facts. Knowing at this moment if he were to do that, he would not be doing her a favour in consoling her. "You had always been strong in my eyes. So, what is going on through your head? Do you want to tell me about it?"

"Is the deepspace hunter better than me?" You sniffled, face still covered, your voice slightly muffled. "I saw you...today...with her...near my office...you hugged her." You choked out your words, accompanied with tears and snot. This will mark one of the first times Zayne would witness you cry like an adult baby. But you could care less as you anticipate for the heart break.

"No." He replied. "I did not hug her back. She hugged me and I pulled away after 2 seconds. She was thanking me for saving her life. And she will no longer need to come for checkups again in the future." He clarified and sat on the bed beside her and he slowly peeled her hands away from her face. "I fetched her back, because she had had her surgery a day ago, and she could not get a cab on time during her discharge timing. So I offered a ride for her, and thought maybe I could surprise you at your office. But your interns told me you left in a hurry so I came home."

"What about your surgery that was scheduled for tonight?" You asked.

"I cancelled them and rescheduled them to tomorrow. I just wanted to come home and spend time with you." He placed a kiss onto your forehead, calming your sobs. "You don't look happy for the past few days. Perhaps you want to enlighten me on anything else I had done that could have made you so upset?"

"What about that day, when she left your office, did you guys do something? She looked embarassed, and when I came in, you were adjusting your clothings. And the way you just dismissed me, it hurts me." Your eyes looked exhausted to him, with you patiently waiting for him to explain the situation to you.

Zayne took a few seconds to recall. "I was doing last minute checkups for her, before her surgery. But when she tried to stand, she nearly fell and she grabbed onto my tie for support but still ended up on the floor, which explains why I had to readjust my clothing. She was probably embarrassed at the situation, which explains the red face." He added on. "Her condition got worse after our dinner, that was why I had to rush back to do the surgery immediately."

His explanation gave you nothing but a rush of relief through your heart. "I see." You said, wiping your tears and Zayne took the opportunity to pull you into his arms, seated on his lap and your chest against his. "I am sorry for being so ridiculous."

"I don't see any issues with that. You care for me, that is why you feel this way. And with you crying over this, it means it matters a lot to you." He hugged you and you relaxed in his arms. "I don't blame you for getting upset over this as it is equally my fault for making you doubt my loyalty. But I treat that deepspace hunter just like how I would treat every other patient of mine." He pressed a kiss to your shoulder, his lips soft and tender. "Just know that even when I am very busy, I will always make time for you."

✧○ꊞ○ꊞ○ꊞ○✧

I KNOW I LIED AGAIN, MY MIND JUST STARTED BEING IN OVERDRIVE BECAUSE CREATIVITY WAS FLOWING SO I WROTE IT LONGER AND LONGER AND ENDED UP WITH THIS. I AM SORRY!

But hope this read is just as good as the others!

Lots of Love! <3

[sugrhigh]

BOY NEXT DOOR 9 - ( c.s )

part eight

summary- you and your roommates live beside a bunch of senior hockey players, one of them being the infamous team captain chris sturniolo. he’s effortlessly flirty and undeniably attractive, but he’s also a pain in your ass. you find that you have to fight between lust and hatred as you finally get to know the boy next door, whether you want to or not.

warnings- angst, swearing, i think that’s it

a/n: i’m back my little goblins let’s get it!!!! part ten of this series will be the final part, and then i plan on writing an ‘epilogue’ type chapter to wrap it all up. i’m hoping to have them up as quickly as possible, but ive been absolutely slammed so im sorry if it takes me a minute. i love u always and i’ve missed being on here so i hope you enjoy <3

(if you asked to be tagged in the last part and weren’t tagged it’s bcs it wouldn’t let me!! i’m so sorry i tried my hardest)

to be let down, you have to expect something from someone. it’s a mistake you’ve made far too frequently in your years on earth, especially in college, but this time around the grief is debilitating.

you spend the rest of your weekend locked inside your room, attempting to sleep away the heartbreak. somehow dreaming almost makes it worse; for a second you’re able to forget about being completely humiliated, until you wake up in reality once more.

it doesn’t help that chris has been absolutely blowing up your phone since the moment you left. every call and text goes unanswered. it’s impossible to read them, so most of the time you don’t.

hell, you can’t even open your curtains because you’re too scared that he’ll be looking back at you when you do. so you block out the sunlight, ensuring that your room matches your dreary feelings.

you figure he’ll give up on trying to talk to you eventually. you’re not different. he’s not different. and once chris regains that pride of his, he’ll go right back to fucking some other girl he won’t care about half as much.

thoughts like those make you cry even harder, as much as you hate it. but you know the disinterest will wash over him sooner or later, and you resent that inevitable day.

cassidy and ramona check on you pretty much every other hour. it makes you feel even worse that they’re so concerned, but neither of them have ever seen you like this. at least not since freshman year, when you dated an upperclassman for a couple months just for him to dump you over text.

even that heartache was relatively short-lived. but this pain follows you into the week, trailing behind you like a shadow you can’t get rid of. it sits beside you in class, curls up next to you in bed, weighs your shoulders down whenever you walk.

it feels like you’re struggling to stay afloat, to even act like a real human anymore. chris consumes your brain, and so do the ‘what if’s’ of your situation. it makes the week drag on, even though you try to spend most of it asleep.

to make matters worse, his multiple notifications continue with a routine consistency, almost like clockwork. you figured he’d already be over it, but he clearly doesn’t want to make himself easy to forget.

you have to admit that you’re glad his persistence lasted at least this long, even if it’s for selfish reasons. you’re disgusted that the attention satisfies you, but it’s not an unwelcome change considering all you’ve been feeling lately is queasy.

still, you don’t read them, or pick up when he calls. you can’t hear his voice, because you know it’ll absolutely break you.

and then finally, on friday, you see him in the flesh. you’re walking home from your bus stop after the only lecture you managed to get to that day, and there he is, getting out of his car.

your throat seizes up; there’s no way to avoid this. it’s easy to ice someone out over text, but it’s a hell of a lot harder when he’s your neighbor.

before you can snap your head away he’s turning to look in your direction, eyes equally as wide as yours once the recognition washes over him. he looks like shit, and yet he’s still so goddamn beautiful it makes you physically sick.

for a brief moment, everything stops. you just stare at each other.

chris takes in you in, the way you look noticeably drained. he feels that familiar nauseous pang in his stomach flare up, knowing that he stole the spark from your eyes.

the worst part is that you’ll never look at him with that fire again. there’s nothing he can do to bring it back now, no way to reverse the past.

then—before he can decide what to do in the present—you break the spell, cutting through your other neighbor’s lawn to get to your front porch. everything in him wants to run after you, so much so that he has to physically restrain himself.

you hear him calling after you, and something about him shouting your name stirs the tears awake once more. but you make it through the door before they fall, because you can’t show any more vulnerability than you already have.

getting inside doesn’t mean that you make it up the stairs, though. the physical and emotional exhaustion catches up to you, and you collapse around halfway through your blurry climb to your room.

your elbows dig into your kneecaps, hands holding your head while you sob. it seems impossible to catch your breath, or calm down in the slightest, and your cries only grow louder.

normally you’d be careful about the noise, but there’s no one to hide from right now. nobody is home. it’s just you and your thoughts, which, as always, are full of him.

you may be able to push him out of your life, but you have a feeling he’ll be lingering in the corners of your mind forever.

the post-game locker room mood is completely miserable tonight. after that last minute loss and the thirty minute bitch-session they just endured from their coach, it honestly should be.

chris barely even has his skates off before his teammates are all over him, which he expected but still dreaded.

his head’s not in it, and everybody knows.

“what the fuck is wrong with you, man? it’s like you’re not even awake out there.” one of the team’s leading defensemen, luke, yanks him up by his jersey roughly.

for a second he pauses, setting his jaw and puffing his chest out slightly. the accusation, though it’s not completely untrue, pisses him off.

so much so that chris retaliates by shoving him back to his rightful place a foot away. “get the hell off of me, man.”

luke looks like he’s ready to jump into action again, but connor steps in between before anything else can happen. he’s also very visibly angry, a side that doesn’t come out often.

and just because he stopped a physical fight from breaking out doesn’t mean he’s going to stay silent. “he’s right. you’re playing like shit, and we‘re way too far into the season to be blowing it now, especially with selection show right around the corner.”

chris can feel his blood is boiling at this point, knowing that even his roommate is going to support this kind of disrespect towards his own captain. the rest of the team is watching silently, but he can’t find it anywhere in himself to care.

the words have already bubbled up, and he won’t hold them back anymore.

“oh come on, it’s not like anyone else was stepping up! dylan turned the puck over every other play, ben was offside during that odd man rush, and don’t even get me started on you and the high sticking penalty that just lost us that fucking game.” he shoves his pointer finger against connor’s chest for emphasis, trying to make sure his criticism stings as much as possible.

but his friend is quick to swat his hand away, shaking his head once sharply.

“no, you don’t get to turn it on everyone else. you lost it for us during that sorry excuse of a penalty kill. you let that little UMass shit go right by you, which is why he had a wide open shot to score the game winner. you’ve been making dumb mistakes like that for two weeks now, and we all know why.”

that implication is enough to send chris over the edge, because nobody has the right to mention what happened between you and him. knowing about the situation doesn’t mean they should get to speak on it.

he can feel his fingernails digging into his palms, both hands balled into tight fists at his side. the anger coursing through his body makes him shake ever so slightly, almost like he’s humming.

“keep going and i’ll bust your fucking face in.” chris says, voice eerily calm despite the fact that his body is screaming.

but connor doesn’t back down; he stands tall with an unwavering gaze that’s more serious than ever before. “you gotta grow a pair and start being our captain again. you fucked up, and losing someone you’re actually into because of that sucks. most of us have been there. but trying to throw everyone under the bus is bullshit when you’re the one that needs to get it together.”

nothing about his words are intentionally meant to hurt, and chris knows that, but for some reason they do. probably because he doesn’t want to hear the truth, or start coming to terms with the fact that he actually did lose you.

he really doesn’t ever want to accept it.

but his ego won’t let him say that. instead, chris shifts his gaze to observe the rest of the room, at all of his teammates, before focusing on connor once again.

“if you don’t think that i’m your captain anymore then find a new one.” he spits.

the room somehow gets even more quiet; everyone is stunned by the out-of-character reaction. for the most part, chris really is a good leader. they all voted for him to represent the team when it came time, and the group dynamic has been great since then.

but he doesn’t feel like that guy now. he’s not sure who he is anymore. so he throws the rest of his equipment into his bag and yanks it over his shoulder.

“really, chris?” it’s ben this time, who’s clearly dumbfounded by the theatrics.

he doesn’t respond, and he tries not to hesitate too much as he makes his way out of the locker room. everyone lets him pass, which makes it even harder to leave.

it feels so wrong, but his feet keep pushing him forward regardless.

when chris finally makes it home twenty minutes later, the frustration has only festered. he doesn’t like anything he’s doing, and yet it’s spiraling out of his control. by the time he gets to his room, tears of aggravation have made their way down his face.

he wipes them away harshly as he stares out his window at your room, which is still closed off by your curtains. it’s like his heart seizes up just from being this close to you, knowing that you’re in there yet he can’t reach you.

and maybe that’s the problem. chris loves hockey, but at the end of the day he clearly loves you more. and with things the way that they are, his heart is fully wrapped up in you, not the game.

it’s terrifying, and it’s painful. he never thought that there’d be anyone to test his bachelor lifestyle until you came around, and he can’t just go back to normal because he doesn’t know how.

he’s been permanently changed, and it feels like a huge part of his new life is suddenly missing.

you saw the deepest parts of him, parts that he didn’t even know existed, and he saw the same side of you. you challenged him in ways he’d never experienced, and he loved that he always felt like he was evolving when you were together.

now he just feels stagnant, unsure of himself.

the only thing he’s sure of is that he needs you, whether that makes him inconsiderate or not. he can’t keep sleepwalking through life, but he’s not sure what else there is to do.

simply put, he misses you like hell. so he lays back in bed and closes his eyes, trying to remember what it felt like to have you right beside him.

@fawnchives @l9vesick @55sturn @luverboychris @teapartyprincess4two @pinksturniolo @mattinside @stonermattsgf @impureals @chrisactualwife @fikefries @riasturns @mattybsbitch @mattsmunch @sturnifyed @julessspoetry @beijhe @gnxosblog @braindead4l @orangeypepsi @ponyosturniolo @cupidsword @rainydayenthusiast @sturnvvz @wurlibydominicfike @poopydroopt @bernardsleftbootycheek @trilliwarner @rubyjanexxx @reallykaz @neatcarrot767 @kirby0strombolli @bunnysturns @junnniiieee07 @hrt-attack @sturnssmuts @stunza @beccaluvschris @asturniolos @slutz4sturniolos @mattslolita @alorsxsturn @sturnrc @chrissystur @kellsbells-18 @realqueenofpepsi @snowysosturn @secretfangirly @scarlettbitches @satvisfavetoodles

[vicsnook]

Good Luck, Babe! | Jake Seresin x Reader

word count: 6,560

warnings: SMUT, MINORS DNI, 18+, Unprotected PinV

notes: Hey friends! I know I've kind of dropped off the face of the Earth since the new year. I've had massive writer's block due to some personal stuff but I think I am finally out of the funk. Please forgive me for any errors, I wrote this on and off the past few months so I hope it doesn't come off terrible. I plan to make this a 2 possible 3 parter so leave some feedback and let me know if you want more. Hope you like it & please don't forget to like and reblog! 🫶🏼

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I agreed to come on a date to the famous Hard Deck but thankfully I’m not disappointed yet. The jukebox is playing old country songs and some couples are dancing on the makeshift dance floor, "this is definitely my kind of place," I think. 

I approach the bar and look for my date Mickey, who waves me over from a corner booth. He kisses my cheek and slides his arm around me as we slide into the cozy booth. “So m’lady what can I get you to drink?” he asks, his eyes scanning my face but before I can answer a blonde man slides into the seat across from us. 

Mickey’s face turns red immediately as the blonde grabs his beer and takes a swig. “My apologies, am I interrupting anything, Fanboy?” asks the blonde with a southern drawl, flashing me what I could only describe as a million-dollar smile. “Yes, Hangman, so I'd appreciate it if you could make yourself scarce,” growls Mickey, beginning to stand up and holding his hand out for me to follow. 

“And leave this lovely lady alone with you? Not a chance,” responds the blonde, now standing in front of Mickey and in our way. “This lovely lady would also like you to make yourself scarce and stop bothering her date,” I said to the blonde, who just like Mickey turned to me with a look of shock. 

Before “Hangman” could respond, I grabbed hold of Mickey’s hand and led us out the side door and down the ramp onto the beach. When we came to a halt, Mickey was still looking at me slack-jawed. “That was awesome! No one’s ever put Hangman in his place,” he raves, as I giggle in amusement. “Yeah, well he sure seemed like he needed it. Anywho, I don’t take it, he's a friend?” I ask. He shook his head and then explained all about how Hangman was just his insufferable coworker who thought that because he had the only confirmed air kill of this generation he was above anyone. 

“And that’s the story of Hangman, anyway, fancy getting some ice cream mademoiselle?” asked Mickey while extending his arm for me to hold. “Of course,” I reply and chuckle as we make our way to the ice cream parlor by the boardwalk.

The rest of the afternoon went by without a hitch as I learned more about my date whose call sign was “Fanboy” due to his adorable obsession with Star Trek. That night I didn’t waste any time texting him that I had a great time and looked forward to seeing him again.

Maybe my mom was right when she suggested I needed to get back to the dating scene. As I lay there waiting on sleep to come, an image of Hangman flashes through my head and I can't help the feeling in my stomach. Shaking my head, I bury it deep down with memories from my date with Mickey.

I won't let anything ruin my happiness at this moment. That was until I woke up this morning and saw that my blue text had turned green and was unanswered.

Just my absolute luck to get blocked after what I thought was a good first date.

-

I went on with the rest of the week trying to feel unbothered about being blocked but it still crept into my mind every once in while. And that’s how I ended up parked in front of the Hard Deck on what seems like a very busy night.

I sigh and put the car in reverse, this is pathetic. But before I go any further, a blonde Ken doll look-alike catches my eye and I realize it’s Hangman walking in, which I hope means Mickey is probably inside. 

Putting the car back in park, I take one last look in the rearview mirror and reapply my red lipstick. Time to show that WSO what he missed out on.

I’m immediately surrounded by a sea of aviators in their dress whites when I step inside, and a couple of them shoot me hungry looks. I take a deep breath and plunge through the crowd to make my way toward the back where I think catch sight of Mickey and his friends but I soon collide with a very very hard chest before I can reach him.

“So we meet again, lovely lady?” I hear as I tilt my head up and make eye contact with the owner of the hard chest whose hands are holding my waist steadying me. And wouldn't you know it, it’s none other than Hangman who is once again sporting that blinding smile. Up close I can see how green his eyes are and good lord all I can think is how this man is way too damn perfect.

I clear my throat and back away as his hands fall off my waist but I don’t get very far because his hand firmly grasps mine and I’m spun back into his chest once again. “What the hell are you-” I try to ask but my words die when I see the hungry look in his eye. “Not so chatty now, are you?” He smirks at me and I feel my cheeks burn. “What do you want?” I manage to croak, feeling now even more embarrassed to have come here tonight.

“Well for starters, I want to lead you out the door to my truck, then I want take you somewhere nice to dinner, and what I want most is to have those pretty red lips of yours around my cock by the end of the night, darlin’" He whispers in my ear, his breath on my neck making my head spin.

Usually, I would slap any man who spoke to me that way but my brain was currently short-circuiting tonight so I just nodded and followed him out the door into the parking lot to take part in what will probably be a very big mistake tomorrow.

His hand sits on my lower back as he leads me to his truck that is conveniently parked at the very end of the parking lot and before I can convince myself to back out of this we have reached the passenger door. He opens the door for me and helps me into the seat before rounding the truck and getting in too. His scent fills my nostrils, sage and sandalwood. 

“I’m not sure I ever properly introduced myself, my name’s Jake Seresin.” He tells me as he pulls into the highway and I pull myself together long enough to mutter mine back. I take him in as he drives and notice the scar above his eyebrow and how rosy his lips look, and I can’t help but think of how good they would feel on mine.

I doubt any of my friends would be supportive of me throwing caution to the wind but something about Jake makes saying no, impossible. A spark goes through me when his hand comes to rest on my thigh just below the hem of my dress, and I sure hope I haven’t soaked the seat.

-

We pull up to a restaurant downtown that I only ever heard of because of because of it being expensive but before I can protest he is getting out of the truck and coming to open my door. “Jake, this is too much. I -” his fingers come to rest on my lips effectively shushing my protests. “Baby, I’m going to lavish you tonight and I mean that in more ways than one.” 

His eyes are locked into mine as I nod. No man has ever managed to render me speechless, much less make me so agreeable but I guess that changes tonight.

The food and wine are exquisite and the conversation flows smoothly between us and I can’t help but want more of this man. My once disdain for him now vanished.

He tells me of growing up in Texas on his family’s ranch and of his rodeo days that ended too quickly when his father passed. He talks of how he joined the Navy to be able to support his family. I notice his eyes darken as he talks of missing home and how lonely his job can be because he acts like an asshole to keep people away, and I feel myself reaching for his hand to comfort him. He smiles gratefully, then casually turns the conversation back to me.

So I tell him of my sister, Meredith, who died a few years back because of a drunk driver which led me to pursue a career in law seeing as the man who killed her is free and she didn’t get justice. He squeezes my hand in comfort and I tell him that I moved to Miramar to get away from my hometown because everything reminds me of Mer and I wanted a fresh start and how I’ve been here a year now and hardly know anyone because I’ve thrown myself into my work instead of dealing with my grief.

I shudder when I’m done when I realize I’ve bared my soul to someone who I hardly know but I don’t overthink for long because Jake’s hand reaches out and caresses my face. He settles the bill and ignores my pleas to let me pay for at least half and once we’re back in the truck I realize that it’s nearly midnight and he asks for directions back to my place which I give without a second thought.

-

He follows me in and I curse at myself when I see the mess of paperwork on the living room table. “Sorry, I don’t usually have guests over,” I tell him, and he shrugs it off and helps me straighten the papers up. We settle in the small couch and I can feel the heat radiating off his body and the nerves finally kick in. “Um, can I get you something to drink?” I ask, looking over at the TV that is not even on. “No, thank you, Angel. Look, I know what I said at the bar but we don't have to do anything you don't want to do.” He assures me, my eyes finally making contact with his. But I don’t want him to go and I feel an urgent need to feel his skin against mine so I do the only thing I can think of and kiss him.

He kisses me slowly and carefully like I might pull away and dismiss him any second so I move closer to him and then climb onto his lap. He groans as I straddle him and I take the chance to slip my tongue into his mouth, savoring the taste of him. His fingers dip into my waist as I bite his lip and pull back. His eyes are blown with lust and I know then there is no going back.

His mouth kisses along my jaw and down to my neck and I moan loudly as he finds that spot just below my ear that drives me crazy. “Are you sure about this?” He asks, leaving kisses just above the neckline of my dress. “Yes, I need you, Jake, please,” I beg as he slides the straps of my dress down and his mouth trails down kisses, latching onto my perky nippe.

I arch my back and the dress pools at my hips, the cold air on my skin making me shiver for a moment until his warm chest presses against mine and I realize he’s ditched his shirt. I run my hands through his chiseled chest and think to myself that this is the kind of body that Greek statues are made of.

“Where’s your room?” he asks, between kisses and I feel another current surge through me. “At the end of the hall,” I manage to croak and he moves forward so I can wrap my legs around him and then he leads us to my room. The very short hallway feels infinite as he holds me against the wall and his hands run all over my body and I’m now shaking with desire.

“Jake, please,” I beg and I feel him grin against my neck and I blush in the dark as he nibbles on my neck leaving what I know tomorrow will be a very noticeable hickey. He finally takes us into my room and places me on the bed and as he towers over me it sinks in what I’m about to do and a shiver of excitement runs through me.

He pulls down the rest of my dress and I am left in my very small thong, he places his hand over my core and I quiver against it. “Eager aren’t we?” He whispers as he cups the thin fabric of my thong and slowly slides it down, pressing kisses onto my leg as he finally gets it off and stuffs it into his back pocket.

I raise an eyebrow at him in response, but he ignores it as he slides off the bed and pulls me to the edge of the bed where he kneels on the floor. I blush as I feel his warm breath on my thigh as he kisses his way to my core pausing just before reaching it, our eyes lock and I see that he is looking for reassurance. I nod, not trusting my words and within seconds he is eating me out like he is starving and my pussy is a full-course meal.

I moan his name loudly and tug at his hair but he doesn’t slow down and I feel myself getting close when he eases a finger in and he must sense that I’m close to reaching an orgasm because he pulls my thighs even further apart and adds another finger. My moans turn to whimpers as he keeps edging me. I shake against him while he uses his fingers to coax me through my orgasm.  “Good girl,” he mumbles as he slowly raises himself and placing a kiss on my lips and I want more.

“Fuck me, Jake,” I whimper as he settles beside me in the bed but I get a response that I was not expecting. “Not yet angel,” he whispers as he caresses my arm that fills with goosebumps as he gets further up and he turns my head to look at him. His green eyes are staring into mine so deeply I think he can read my needy thoughts. I run my hand down his chest and stop at his belt buckle, his eyes following my every move, and I decide to give him what he asked for at the beginning of the night.

Pulling him off the bed with me I take notice of my shaky legs but still, I kneel in front of him and undo his belt. I can feel his eyes on me as I ease his pants down and palm him through his boxers. A groan escapes him as I slide his cock free of the boxers and suck on his swollen tip. “Fuck,” he moans as I take him in my mouth and I feel myself getting wetter as he starts to fuck my face.

But he’s careful yet again so I grab onto his hips and increase the pace, eliciting various groans from him and when I meet his eyes he slowly stills me. “I want to come inside you,” he says, his voice husky with lust. His arms reach to pull me up and I’m back on the bed before I can protest.

“I’m not going to be as slow and careful, honey. I’m going to fuck you so hard that you can’t walk tomorrow, so stop me now if that’s not what you want,” he whispers in my ear and I shiver with excitement. I reply by pulling him down to me and kissing him as hard as I possibly can. Without warning he’s stretching me open, and before I can even catch a breath, he’s thrusting hard into me again.

His fingers are digging into my waist as I scream in pleasure, “Taking me so good, baby,” he groans while leaving more hickeys on my neck. He continues to thrust hard and fast and I’m shaking with pleasure.

My moans get louder as his finger finds my clit and I worry the neighbors will call the cops. But he seems unfazed as he continues to fuck me through it. I whimper loudly, my legs sliding off his sides as I reach my orgasm. “I’m almost there, honey,” he whispers in my ear but I barely acknowledge him, still lost in my high.

He fills me with his sweet release as I come down from my own. His green eyes boring into mine as he slowly pulls out and I feel his cum slipping out of me. “Look at you, baby. I made a mess out of you,” he grins, laying at my side and pulling me to him.

I lay my head on his chest as exhaustion takes over and any thought of getting myself sorted out flies out the window. He kisses my hairline and the last thing I hear is him saying “good girl” as sleep envelops me in his arms.

-

I wake up to my body aching as memories from last night flood back in and I smile, turning over, only to find the bed empty. Only my dress is in the corner of my bedroom floor, no sign of Jake or my thong. I curse to myself as I get up and feel even more sore if that’s even possible. He sure meant that he would fuck me til I couldn't walk.

The apartment is deadly quiet and I head to the bathroom which I find empty as well. Pulling on my robe, I check the living room which to no one’s surprise is also empty, and as I look out the window, I notice Jake’s truck is gone and then it hits me that my car is still parked at the Hard Deck.

Fuck me.

I check around the rest of the apartment and find no note anywhere. Disappointment creeps in as I decide to finally go shower and get him off my skin. When I catch sight of myself in the bathroom mirror, I see the damage he left on my neck and chest is extensive. Angry reddish marks stare back at me and I doubt all the concealer in the world can help cover what he did.

The next few weeks are a blur as I throw myself into my work and vow to never return to the Hard Deck. Long nights working keep me occupied so much so that I don’t realize my period is late for a week, and that’s when it dawns on me that we didnt use protection and of course, I hadn’t been on the pill.

The pharmacy is crowded as I buy a pregnancy test, and I glare at the cashier who very loudly yells “Good luck!” as I walk out. Traffic is awful too on the way home and I feel myself getting more anxious by the second.

I practically run to the bathroom as soon as I’m home and finally pee on the stupid stick. 5 minutes feel like an eternity when your future rests on the other side. The timer goes off and as I flip the test over, I grab hold of the vanity to steady myself as I stare back at the two pink lines that signify my worst fear.

I’m pregnant.

click here for part 2!

taglist: @harperdoodle , @weirdothatwritess , @rosiahills22 (y’all let me know if you dont want me to tag anymore)

[1d1195]

Zipper Extra I

I wanted to save this particular little blurb for a later date, but I wanted to post something now. I hope you enjoy!

It takes place after this of course: Zipper, within their first year of dating.

There are no warnings that I can see.

Harry settled the vase on her counter and was ready to start another bout of the argument. His mind weighed his options again of just ripping the band aid off now. More of a reason she could fully hate him—what kind of person breaks up with the woman of their dreams on her birthday?

True to his word, he forgot her birthday. She kind of thought it was okay that he did—at least he warned her. But he was also right that it was mind-bogglingly irritating. She knew it was marked on his calendar. He drew a heart around the number on his desk calendar and she found that utterly sweet. It wasn’t entirely his fault either—he had a huge case he was working on, and it monopolized most of the week leading up to her day and then some. Any spare moment they had together within the last month was spent checking Harry’s arguments and working through pages of files.

It hurt a bit still—but she was prepared at least.

Instead of going out on her birthday, she sat in her apartment watching a trashy Hallmark movie eating ice cream and responding to plenty of birthday messages.

*

Gemma was the one that texted Harry.

At first it was a host of punctuated speech bubbles.

Harry.

Harry Goddamit.

HARRY

HONESTLY

I CANNOT BeLiEvE YOU

HARRY ANSWER YOUR PHONE GODDAMIT

Jesus, Harry! Do you know what today is? There were several angry emojis that followed.

Harry was still at the office debriefing his latest meeting to himself and analyzing more of this case. He honestly couldn't tell anyone why he looked at his phone in that moment. He rarely did when he had a big case like this. Gemma went unanswered most oftentimes, unless she called him—but after the fifth vibration on his desk, he couldn’t help but look.

His eyebrows pinched together reading her words. They didn't click at first. It was like he wasn't understanding the language. Surely she wasn't mad at him. Glancing at his calendar he gasped at the heart-shaped number. “FUCK,” he said out loud.

Shit, shit, shit! He responded.

You’re an idiot, Harry. She’s literally watching a movie all by herself. More angry emojis.

Harry felt sick.

Don’t mess this up! I LOVE her.

Harry dropped all of his work, it was as good as it was going to get for tonight and he would be back in the morning on a Saturday before he knew it. Harry raced to the grocery store as it was closing getting a bouquet and card while the workers grumbled at him. In the checkout line, he added a single KitKat to his order.

Outside he signed the card and then hurried to her apartment building. He caught the door as someone left and he took the stairs two at a time to her floor. Knocking quickly on her door, he barely caught his breath.

“Baby,” he whispered anxiously when the door opened.

“Hi,” she giggled at her breathless boyfriend.

“Kitten, m’so sorry,” he said hurrying through the door. He made himself at home in her kitchen finding a vase under the sink and began trimming the bottom of the flowers before adding the flower food to the water.

“For what?” She tilted her head at him curiously. He warned her!—she couldn’t be mad. She wasn’t mad. If he was going to further prove his word, he would make it up to her another day and honestly, she couldn’t wait to see what he would do. Even if he didn't do something grand, she would still forgive him. He was busy and he warned her. Despite it being her birthday, he felt the burning need to shake her. He huffed at her. “You warned me that you would forget!”

“You shouldn’t settle for that,” he grumbled angrily looking at the window across her apartment. He was mad he wasted the evening cooped up at the office, unknowingly forgetting her.

“I’m confused. Do you want me to be mad at you?”

“You literally are the most infuriating person I know.”

She giggled. “Fine, I’m mad at you.”

“Don’t patronize me.”

“Harry,” she sighed. “It’s okay.” Harry didn’t want her to be mad, but he didn’t want her to settle for his stupidity. It wasn’t fair to her. She deserved the world and he hated that he constantly had to remind her—she should expect everything good and wonderful, like it belonged to her. It was exactly the reason he pushed all his feelings away. He wanted to be the best for her because that was what she deserved.

Harry felt like a horrible person. He strongly considered breaking up with her solely so she could find someone better. It was almost too much. His hands fiddling with the stems of the flowers while the wheels in his head spun about when an appropriate time to break up would be—certainly not on her birthday. But then she had a really important client visit on Monday...Valentine’s Day would be here before he knew it and so then—

Harry settled the vase on her counter and was ready to start another bout of the argument. His mind weighed his options again of just ripping the band aid off now. More of a reason she could fully hate him—what asshole breaks up with the woman of their dreams on her birthday? He couldn’t break up with her. He loved her so much—always, there wasn’t any denying it anymore. He couldn’t leave her if he wanted to. She bit her lip looking at the roses. “You got me flowers,” she said softly as if she only just really noticed.

“Honestly, kitten. I could shake you,” he shook his head quickly and sounded utterly exasperated. They weren’t even good roses—they were from a grocery store, and they were probably going to last all on the inside of twenty-four hours. “Of all the things I could do the moment I remembered—”

“No guy has ever gotten me flowers before,” she interrupted quickly gazing at them as if they were the most beautiful flowers on earth. As if they appeared from thin air.

Harry stopped his embittered rant he was about to begin and finally looked at the sweet girl: she wasn't wearing a lavish birthday outfit for a night on the town nor was she in her beautifully professional attire. Instead she looked cozy beyond belief in leggings and an oversized shirt that had sleeves that nearly reached her fingertips. She looked so fragile and small and beautiful in the middle of her darkened kitchen—just the soft light from her TV and end table lamp illuminating her. “What?” He asked quietly, nearly whispered the surprised breath out. Surely, he misheard her. That guy she dated for a year had to have gotten her flowers—there was an anniversary involved, Valentine’s Day, fuck she got her undergraduate degree in that time! There were prom dates in school. The weddings of friends she attended with a date. The men that were brave enough to ask her out when they met her, they had to have gotten her a floral arrangement just in thanks for talking to them...that’s what she deserved!

“My mom and dad are the only ones who’ve ever gotten me flowers,” she said and reached out and delicately pinched a petal between her fingers and enjoyed how soft and velvety it felt. Her face softened more as she looked at the bouquet.

Harry exhaled deeply. He forgot about breaking up with her. That was by far the stupidest idea he had ever had anyway. “Oh,” he murmured. Harry spent a lot of his life talking. He talked to clients, he talked to juries, he talked to his family and friends. Harry wasn’t someone who was at a loss for words—almost ever. But hearing how no one who’s ever even remotely cared about this poor, sweet girl outside of her family has never sent her flowers in her 27 years of life... Harry was speechless.

“That was really sweet,” she said still touching the petals of the flowers—as if she was checking to see if they were still there. “They’re beautiful,” the admiration was thick in her voice. “Thank you,” she whispered. Harry realized she was serious in her gratitude.

Harry could have cried that she was grateful for his last-minute gift. He told himself for a month he wasn’t going to forget. This was her birthday. He couldn’t forget. His brain was spinning with ideas for what he could do to make this better. He wasn’t even going to accept her thank you for the sub-par flowers. “Do you want to do anything, m’love?” He asked finally. “I’ll make any call I have to,” he promised.

“No, m’just glad you’re here,” she said sheepishly. “Could we snuggle while I finish my movie? And order some pizza?”

“Is that all you want?” Harry felt like this was the lamest, most terrible birthday she could have had.

“Well, a kiss would be pretty nice as well.”

He smiled, albeit a bit tiredly at her silly request. Shaking his head as he cupped her face. “You’re so stupid,” he said softly. Of all the things she could have asked for in that moment.

She grinned. “S’not very nice of you to say that after you forgot my birthday.”

“Shut up,” he rolled his eyes and kissed her so sweetly and deeply she could feel it in her toes.

*

When she arrived at her office on Monday—after a flurry of birthday celebrations all weekend long, no less—she found easily fifty vases of flowers lining the window shelf behind her desk. She wrinkled her nose and felt tears prick her eyes. She walked along the near forest of flowers that was her office and bit her lip as she admired all the different bouquets.

Harry wasn’t in the office yet—he had an early court hearing and wouldn’t be back for a while. She wondered when he did this. There was a note on her desk when she turned to settle her belongings down. It was handwritten by Harry, and she wanted to frame it so she could treasure it forever and gaze at it for the rest of her life.

You deserve flowers every single day, my angel

I love you, always

[rikiflowers]

lost times

chapter 2, words: 2884

chapter 1

The next day was uneventful. In the evening you do some paperwork that you have been pushing aside for quite some time and now have to do reluctantly. You also never learn to simply starting earlier to save yourself the stress. Now you're sitting here with rising stress levels and the next coffee, which only intensifies the whole thing. Unfortunately, there is no other way to get through the paperwork. As Beldaruit's dear daughter, you have the 'honorable' task of processing all the applications your father so often 'forgets'.

Actually, you could do with a glass of wine right now. It's a good thing you still have some in your pantry after Beldaruit helped himself to them one evening. Since then, you've been using intricate locking spells to keep the thief away from your cabinet.

That could be a longer night.

A knock on the door makes you pause. You fervently hope that the person is not your father. There is another knock. "Come in," you call to the impatient visitor.

You open the door and immediately Qifrey's face jumps into your vision. You didn't expect that now. "Huh?" you just exclaim, realizing that he's not at all pleased to be at your door. "Qifrey... What are you doing here?" You've managed to ask a coherent question even though your heart is racing uncomfortably right now.

"If you let me in, I'm welcome to discuss it," he says pressed, and you feel incredibly small at that moment. He's angry and you don't know why. "Okay?"

You step aside so that he can enter. You close the door behind you and lean against the solid wood. Here he is now, in the middle of your premises. Right in front of your chaotic desk, where you were working until just now.

"Would you like to have a drink?"

He shakes his head. "But I," you murmur as you walk to your cupboard to finally decide on a wine. You need something stronger.

The unpleasant silence literally presses itself into you. "Why are you here?" you try again while pouring yourself a glass and drinking from it a little too hastily.  You’re very nervous. You feel it in your sweaty palms already.

"What did you do to Coco?" The threatening tone of his voice makes you freeze to ice. That's why he's here? To ask you such a threatening, ill question? After all these years, you've been hoping for something. Anything. But not this.

"What should I have done?" you ask as a counter-question. This insinuation alone makes your veins pulsate. Qifrey looks at you with hatred in his eye. You are frightened by the coldness in his features. He leaves the question unanswered. Just the fact that he is alone with you in your chambers makes you feel uncomfortable. You lean against the closet in a nightgown while Qifrey takes his anger out on you. Of course, he doesn’t answer you. Just bore you with his anger.

"Qifrey... I thanked Coco for helping you. I gave her a Danish pastry. A very sweet girl," you try to clarify, while your gaze turns away and you feel your eyes start to burn. You won't cry here in front of him now. After all these years, he shows up here just to blame you for something. You just drink from the bottle. It doesn't make sense anymore anyway. Why is he back on his feet at all? Shouldn't he continue to stay in bed?

He remains silent. "What's the point of this damn insinuation now? I thought you knew me?" You can’t keep quiet. You want clarification on what the hell he’s thinking.

"I never really knew you."

Almost everything falls out of your face when he makes this statement. "That's the lowest level right now... even for you," you literally spit at him. Another big gulp travels down your throat.

"Oh, we're talking about level now? I didn't even know you knew that word" His tone is hissing, which only makes you more effervescent. What's his damn problem? You laugh. Despite its seriousness, the situation is just amusing right now, because you don't even know why he's poisoning you so much.

"Would you move to explain to me, ignorant being, why you show up at my door late in the evening and argue with me for no apparent reason? Especially while I'm standing in front of you in my nightgown."

With the latter, you see him briefly take a look at your body and have to suppress a nasty grin. Horny bastard.

"You really have no idea or are you just pretending?" His gaze suddenly seems tortured.

"Qifrey... I have absolutely no idea what you want from me." You have to convince him that you know absolutely nothing about what he wants to accuse you of.

"Why didn't you answer my letter?"

You look at him questioningly. "What kind of letter?"

You see how his eye widened. He seems incredibly dismayed. "Qifrey... what kind of letter?" you repeat more urgently and bridge the distance to him so that he finally answers you. The witch avoids you and leans against the door. You look at him almost imploringly.

"The letter in which I wanted to ask you to follow me on the day of my departure."

-

Several years earlier

Loving Qifrey is like a small river. Steadily and gently, your feelings for him grow bigger and more powerful. After the first kiss, many more kisses follow. Stealthy, behind dark corners; Gentle when you are alone; More intense if he sneaks up on you in the middle of the night. No one suspects anything. You are getting older. The feelings more urgent, more demanding, more consuming. Love is a scary thing. Sometimes it fleets like a leaf, sometimes it grows over so many years.

You're afraid. Letting a person get so close to you for the first time is exciting and scary at the same time. Qifrey and you are inexperienced. It hurts at first, but when Qifrey wants to stop to spare you this pain, you want to continue. You want to feel it. On a hot summer night, you make love for the first time.  Sheets mingling, hearts beating in the same rhythm.

This goes on for quite a while, until it becomes more and more difficult to keep it a secret. You don't really want to hide it anymore. But one afternoon it happened. You thought you were undisturbed in the garden for a moment. Qifrey teasingly presses his lips to yours as you smile into the kiss. Your heart flutters away like a butterfly, brushing his tousled white curls out of his face. You are in your own world until someone rips Qifrey away from you. You can't look so fast, the stranger has already pushed the white-haired man to the ground and hits him full of anger.

Easthies.

You scream his name, and try to pull on the black-haired man to get him off Qifrey. Without success. You watch helplessly as he beats him. You scream for help before you see the white-haired man fight back and knock Easthies to the ground. His nose bleeds as he hits the black-haired man. "You damn bastard don't touch her again."

"And what if? Is she your property?" Qifrey replied imperiously. "You don't deserve it!" Another blow. "Neither do you." The next kick. You could tear your hair out. The two seem to be just fighting for dominance right now. Barely moments later, the two are pulled apart and taken away by members of the assembly, while you are asked somewhat perplexed what triggered it. You stay still. You don't know if Easthies or Qifrey will speak, but you can't imagine. Easthies seems to feel something for you too. Your best friend was right and you didn't want to believe her. You feel nauseous. Since the incident happened during the group task, you have avoided Easthies as much as possible. It was also quite convenient for you that he resigned from the service of being your protector. Well, now this. You will be guided to your chambers by the staff. You'd love to be with Qifrey and make sure he's okay. But it is your father's order that you be guided.

You learn that the two have been given punitive labor and house arrest. You can find Qifrey in the large garden for the next few days, while he has to do the work in the blazing sun. Your heart jumps when you see him. It's been a few days, but your longing for him is immense.

"Hey."

He immediately turns to you, and looks down at you lovingly. "Did somebody miss me?" His Cheekiness is written on his face.

"like crazy," you reply, resisting the urge to kiss him here and now. The white-haired man is being watched. That's why you keep some distance from him. "How is your nose?"

"Will be again... The bastard can really hit hard, though," Qifrey grumbles as you scrutinize the bandage. "I didn't know anything about his feelings."

"But he is very obvious. Everyone knows that they have some affection for you."

You look at him in dismay. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I thought you knew that," he says with a shrug of his shoulders. "He literally kills me with his looks if I even dare to look in your direction."

You just sigh. "I should have stopped that right away," you say apologetically, but Qifrey just waves it off. He reaches for his T-shirt to wipe his sweaty forehead. You have a direct view of his defined upper body. Sensual thoughts immediately spring into your head. The last time was a little longer ago.

Qifrey noticed your looks right away. "I'd like to look inside your head now," he says suggestively and you push him slightly. He laughs.

"I miss you," whispers the white-haired man.

“... and I you." God, how much you miss him. "When is your house arrest over?"

"In two weeks..." Qifrey sighs and leans against his shovel. "You can do it," you answer tenderly. "I'll see you in my room at the end of your house arrest," you whisper to him with a knowing smile that makes him blush in his ears.

"I can't wait"

…

Two weeks have passed and you are sitting in your chambers with fluttering hearts. His house arrest is finally lifted for today and you are expecting Qifrey. The last few weeks have been difficult for you. You have hardly seen the white-haired man, as his punishment has completely taken over him. You count the seconds you wait for him.

Your heart leaps as the door opens carefully and the witch’s white hair comes into your field of vision. "Qifrey..." you greet him, literally jumping up to fall into the arms of the older ones. The white-haired man closes the door behind him and literally pulls you close to him.  His hands wrap around your body, pushing you further against him. His face hides in your hair and you feel him sucking in your scent.

"Finally..." he breathes against your hair and you literally collapse in his arms. Long weeks... in which I could hardly see you."

You only hum affirmatively. Far too long.

"I've missed you so much" His hand reaches for your chin, forcing you to look at him. He looks tired. Incredibly exhausted, but the sparkle in his eye shows you that he's been longing for you.

"Kiss me Qifrey"

He doesn't wait a second before his lips press against yours and you reach out to him. Tongues crowd together and you suck on his tongue. He moans into the dirty kiss as his fingers reach into the flesh of your hip. "Is anyone impatient?" he asks breathlessly against your lips. "Can you blame me?"

He grins before his tongue brushes your lower lip. Teeth press against his lips so that he gasps. Your fingers wander to his white shirt, pulling on the linen fabric much rougher. You want it, you need it. He smiles to himself, pushes you towards the bed and you feel the edge of the bed at the back of your knees before you let yourself fall. You look up at him. Full of expectation, it meets your gaze. "Finally I have you back" He slips his shirt off his body and bends over you, his hair tickling your cheeks as he steals another kiss from you.

"Would you ever want to live far away from the Assembly?"

The question suddenly comes out of nowhere. You look into his eye, stroke his neck with your fingertips. "I honestly never thought about that, why? Would you?"

Something is wrong with him. You can feel it. He seems to be struggling with something inside that he is withholding from you. "I just wonder what life would be like outside the strict rules..."

"Strict rules?"

"You are Beldaruit's daughter. You certainly don't know anything like that."

"Oh...", you murmur embarrassed.

Qifrey kisses you again. "Just forget it again." The white-haired guy starts kissing down your neck to successfully distract you from another discussion. But discussions like that wouldn’t wait for long.

-

Everything that you desperately tried to build up as a wall collapsed in you. "I never received this letter...", you breathe overwhelmed. If I had read this letter... I..."

The words get stuck in your throat. All these years. All the years you've closed yourself off. There was a letter. He wanted you to accompany him. Did he really love you? What would you have done then? Would you have followed him, letting go of your life?

You come up to him. He suddenly seems completely lost in your chambers. All anger seems to have disappeared from his features. The dismay is written all over your faces. "You've hated me all these years because I didn't respond to your letter in your eyes?"

"That was an answer"

You tear your hair out. "An answer that was not wanted!"

"That was easy for you, huh?" you accuse him. You're furious. Your heart almost jumps out of your chest in anger. "Just thinking a letter would be enough? Cowardly to ask me directly? I'm extremely angry right now."

The white-haired man withstands your scolding. "I put the letter on your desk."

You look at him. "I didn't find a letter on my desk." He looks at you knowingly. "You think someone made this one disappear?"

Qifrey nods. "You seem to have someone on your mind..." Powerless, you let yourself fall into your chair. "Easthies?"

"I bet he has what he wanted now."

"And that would be what?" you murmur exhaustedly, drinking another big sip from the almost empty wine bottle.

"You"

You just laugh.

He swallowed. "I thought I wasn't good enough for you. Everyone said that to me."

Your hissing sound is answer enough. The tension hangs heavy in the room, which not even the best wine can hide.

"and to ask me, didn't you consider it for a second?"

He is embarrassedly silent. Your heart beats unnaturally. He is now a grown man. So many years have passed in which they have both grown. But you still feel the little spark inside you that would soon rekindle if you didn't defend yourself against it. "I...", he broke off and cleared his throat. I thought they were right. Always have."

"I'm not playing through the same discussion that we had years ago. You know my view. You know how I think."

It's a funny feeling how much your heart contracts as you look at him. These adult facial features. The same expression in them as the 16-year-old boy you loved.

"Qifrey... I'm tired." This is supposed to be the sign for him to leave. He stops as if rooted to the ground. What might be going on in his head right now, you ask yourself.

"I'm glad you're doing well. Please say hello to Coco from me," you speak like on an assembly line and stroll past him so that you open the doors for him to make it easier for him.

The white-haired man suddenly reaches for your wine bottle with a flowing movement. "Excuse me?" You look up at him irritably. "This is MY bottle."

"Since when have you been drinking so excessively?"

"Somehow I have to forget that I have too many privileges."

Qifrey clicks his tongue, visibly dissatisfied with the answer. "As always, very resentful"

"As always, an asshole," you reply hissing. You didn't notice how the two of you have unconsciously come closer and you can now feel his breath on you.

Your body knows what closeness to Qifrey feels like. It's like a home. Your body knows the warmth, the love. But this home is no longer what it used to be. Painful memories overlay the warmth and you’ll lose your way.

Unable to deny you these feelings, his lips press against yours and you immediately become weak. The familiar pressure of his soft lips invites you to meet him. Did you even live before that kiss? Right now it feels like it's being tossed back and forth, everything inside you explodes. The bottle finds itself on the floor. There was only a blob in it anyway. It doesn't seem to matter to you. Fingers claw at his neck, pushing him even closer to you. He felt his hands along your back, grabbing your hips harder than expected. The growl from his mouth as you reach into his hair spurs you on even more. Almost desperately, he grabs your face with both hands and literally grabs you. You look at him breathlessly. He meets your gaze, looking for a doubt in your eyes. Doubts are for later.

"Kiss me. Kiss me again and hope I forget what an asshole you are," you breathe against his lips. That's consent enough for him.

"That should take a while" You grin against his lips until you forget all these years between you and him.

[dino-fart]

Hurt | Namor

I fucking love this gif, his face is like ‘gurl please’ or ‘you better tell me who did this’

Pairing: Namor x Female!Reader,  Joel Miller x Female!Reader,  Stephen Strange x Female!Reader

Genre: Romance, Comfort

Summary: You come home from a horrible day of work and came to the realization of certain things. After having your suspicions confirmed, you break down in tears and close yourself off from everyone. It’s a good thing, the man you love dearly knows what to do to comfort you.

Summary | Namor | Stephen Strange | Joel Miller

You always had rough days at work but today...Today was the straw that broke the camel’s back. It started with your boss throwing you under the bus to corporate for not finishing a report you were not informed of. Then another manager reported you to your boss for leaving work without permission when in actuality you went on your lunch break. Then your work friend showed you a group text she was part of where the managers were making fun of your weight and how you dressed. 

Part of you wanted to yell at her for showing it to you and the other part of you wanted to take her phone and show the texts to your boss. But you being the pacifist you are, did nothing. The icing on the cake though, was when your boss brought you into his office to talk about your performance yet he allowed another manager to practically get away with murder. You began to job search, fed up with being mistreated for simply doing your job. When the work day finished you rushed home. 

You ran into your home and slammed the door shut. You felt your legs weaken and slumped against the door and onto the cold floor. 

You knew you shouldn’t cry, everyone deals with this stuff at work, right? 

So why should you be weak and cry? 

You should be ashamed of yourself! 

But these negative thoughts didn’t stop you, the tears began to spill and you hugged your knees, sobbing softly. After an hour of crying, you finally got up to go change. You entered your bedroom and stopped when you saw the conch shell on your dresser. You didn’t want to bother your beloved Ku'ku'lkán but you needed to be distracted. You took a deep breath and grabbed the conch shell and your purse. Forget changing, you need to be with Namor. 

You drove to the beach, which thankfully, was a 15-minute drive. Your phone was buzzing and vibrating with missed calls and unanswered text messages. You checked it real quick to see if it was your family, and when you found out it wasn’t, you shoved your phone back in your purse. You parked your car at the pier parking lot and stepped out of your car. You hoped your attire would be alright for walking on the sand. 

You were wearing a blue off-shoulder long-sleeve shirt, black pants, and brown wedged shoes. You tied your hair in a ponytail and tucked your purse under the passenger seat and took the conch shell. You finally made it to the shore and held the shell in your hands. You took a deep breath and closed your eyes, trying to compose yourself before your king would arrive. You blew into the shell and held it in your hands as you waited. 

You moved to sit down on the sand, your heart skipped a beat when the waters parted. But to your surprise, it wasn’t Namor that approached you. It was Namora. You stood up and gave her a weak smile. Namora noticed your red eyes and your shaky hands. 

“Namor táan ocupado... Táak wáaj a t'u'uchpachtik in ka pa'atik ti' le áak che'o'? (Namor is busy...Do you wish to follow me and wait for him in the cavern)” She said. 

You had become familiar with the Talokan language thanks to Namor, so you were able to understand her but it was difficult for you to speak it. “Y-Yes...Please.” You said softly. Namora gestured for you to follow her into the water. 

You were now sitting by the small pool of water in the cavern. Your hair and clothes had dried off by the small fire Namora helped you start. You moved to the edge of the pool and stared down at your reflection. Despite being dried off, the tears formed again. Your mind is filled with today’s events and the horrible words in the text messages. 

You closed your eyes, trying to think about something else, trying to stop the tears before you would see Namor. You were so lost in your thoughts that you didn’t hear Namor approaching you. 

The King of Talokan had heard of your arrival from Namora and it concerned him when she told him about your physical state. Anger boiled inside of him. Who dares hurt you? He needed to know who or what it was so that he could deal with it and make you happy again. When he saw you by the pool and saw the shine of your tears, his heart ached. 

He walked over slowly and sat next to you. He looked down at your reflection and how focused you were. It seemed like you were trying to stop your tears. He would be patient and wait for you to speak to him. He turned his head to look at you and study your beautiful and sad face. 

You finally opened your eyes and gasped when you saw Namor’s reflection. You turned to meet his gaze. Namor gave you a gentle smile and moved his hand to gently cup your cheek. “In yakunaj... Ba'axten ka wok'ol? (My love...Why do you cry)” He whispered softly. At this, you broke down again and you shook your head. 

“What happened? Who did this?” Namor was angry but he had to remain calm for your sake. His thumb caught your tears and he leaned over to kiss your forehead. You tried to speak but it was too much, so you continued to cry. Namor gasped softly at how loud your cries were. He moved to pull you in for a tight hug. 

You buried your face in his muscular chest and sobbed. Namor rubbed your back gently and kissed your head. Namor gently stood up and helped you up by your hands. 

He laced his fingers with yours and guided you to his small hut where his murals were. He sat you and grabbed his paints. “Whenever you are ready to speak, let me know. Take all the time you need.” Namor kissed your head and you nodded. You turned to look at the wall as he began to paint. You focused your thoughts on the lines he painted. 

You then looked down at your lap and took a deep breath. “I feel ashamed...To talk about it...Because I feel stupid that I...I cried so much.” You began. 

Namor moved to set the paints down and sat next to you. He moved his hand to hold yours, “Never be ashamed.” 

You gave him a small smile and nodded. You began to tell him about your day and how it’s been building up. You talked about the hurtful words about your physical appearance. You finished your story and looked down at his hand on yours. Namor moved his other hand to tilt your chin up and gazed at you lovingly. He leaned in and pressed his lips against yours. 

You kissed him back softly and Namor pulled you onto his lap. He ran his hands over your back and kissed you deeper. You let out a soft moan and ran your fingers through his black hair. Namor pulled back from the kiss and gazed at you. “Don’t let anyone tell you that you are not beautiful, that you are not worthy, and that you are not intelligent. People that say these things...Their lives are miserable. There are always consequences to actions like this and they will face it. Whether it’s from karma or...From me.” Namor said darkly. 

You kissed his forehead, “No Namor...They’re not worth it.” 

Namor hesitantly nodded and kissed your cheek. “My beloved queen, what would you have me do? What can I do to make you smile again?” Namor rested his head on your shoulder. 

You gently traced his beard and leaned down to kiss his lips gently. “A distraction would be nice.” You smiled a little. 

Namor smiled widely, “I know just the thing. Let’s get the suit, it’s close to sunset and there’s a specific spot that shows the most beautiful reflection of the sunset.” Namor guided you off of your lap and scooped you up in his arms bridal style. 

You wrapped your arms around his neck and kissed him as he made his way to take you on an adventure...

Author’s Note: This is a comfort fic. Remember to know your worth and know when to leave when a job because too toxic.

Tagging: @deepbatched​, @vikingqueen28, @leonkennedyslefthand, @stewardofningishzida, @icytrickster17, @onlinecemetery, @marki-moo0, @absolute-not-original, @creamecafe, @scrubb, @nightingal3-tales, @alliethedaydreamer, @strangesthirdeye, @alexa-33, @zombiedixon89, @sunnsettee, @deliciousfestsalad, @kiaradaniell, @freyafriggafrey, @criticalroleobssedperson, @avengersfan25, @lunamoonbby, @androgynouspersonapricotfan, @foxcantswim, @namorkawaiiwife, @starkiller-queen, @kyuupidwrites, @luciamajer, @renatas10, @ayamenimthiriel, @gaiagurl05, @dipsylou, @pinkthick, @hansai, @andywinter16, @iambored24601, @3-cheese-tortellini, @cumbrbatchbenedict, @ironstrange1991, @aribas-stuff, @rianumochi, @vibaracal, @lostpirateinwonderland​, @thealleydog​, @greensabereyesforcevictim​, @persephonehemingway​, @mimikkyu778​, @the-bad-batch​, @jasearney​, @screamsin-gay​, @introvertedmegalomaniac​, @eliaparadiso​, @katzuhkat, @belliedellie​, @jaguarthecat​, @plainwhitegirlll​, @cherrylovescherries​, @riaraccoon​, @98bluecalisky​, @spiritedawayagain​, @struggling-author​, @fuckoffpls00, @snow30285, @ameliadraws​, @v4mpyr3-1791​, @mandosmuse, @littlefatmjolnir12​, @simpsforbuffwomen​, @screaminverito​, @xoxotorii​, @sisgotdemons​, @rhiannon-russo​, @x-bakudeku-x​  

[deckerroosevelt]

Chapter 15, part 2

   The man gave Decker a smug grin. “That took too long. Have you lost the touch of this? It’s been long hasn’t it? Where were you for all these years, huh?”

   “None of your business, Millie. You didn’t die then? You took the body of an innocent man?” He seemed extremely frustrated. “Look, it all was an acc–”

   “Don’t you dare.” allegedly Millie hissed. “Don’t you dare to say that again. I know you and behind all that soft tissue there’s ice. Even I wouldn’t take you as my victim.” 

   Suddenly the footage went out and we didn’t hear nor see anything. The officers started rushing all around trying to get a connection inside the room. But I bet there was no way to do so. I mean if a two way mirror suddenly becomes a one way mirror, there’s nothing you can do really. We who knew that looked at each other. 

   “We should head back. We should prepare for tomorrow, right? We’re still going over to that grandma you talked about, Loki?” Yumekui suggested. “You coming?”

   “Y’all go ahead. I want to stay for a bit longer.” They left.

   I was left there puzzled. A thought in the back of my mind had surfaced back after all of my attempts to silence it. I had so many unanswered questions of Decker and now I was certain he had something to hide. Obviously. Could I sneak inside? The door was locked but I could try. 

   I looked at the lock but then I got an idea. What if I could just forget the lock? It was silly but it could work and if it worked it would be more than just getting inside. I could come up with a way to use my ‘ability’. I closed my eyes and tried to open the door quietly. Luckily the door wasn’t loud but it did not open. 

  I took a deep breath and tried again. No luck. I started to worship the thought there was no door at all inside my mind and I didn’t even realise it before I was inside. The door didn’t open but I went inside through it. And neither Decker nor Millie seemed to notice me. I kept thinking that I was one with the wall and eavesdropped on them.

   “How many do you have now?” Millie asked bitterly with a totally changed voice. Her form had changed from the man to a creature with long black hair and a huge zebra swallowtail on her face. Her structure was modified to have a tall torso but half of the spine was formed from broken rib bones. Her collarbones were out like all the victims had. Her words were cold and rough.

   “Does it matter? I’m basically helping them.”

   “Helping you say?! Did you help me too? Am I saved? I don’t think so. I don’t like to kill you know? But I have to because I have a bigger mission”, she laughs.

   “No, you don’t. You should have died back then. That’s your faith. Now you’re just escaping your faith and trying to justify your life with no meaning. You are a burden to society. Literally”, he answers with an unnaturally calm voice.

   “You are the useless one! You should die! Maybe I have to take you after all”, she reached for Decker with a sudden action and the table shattered. 

   “I have stuff left to do. You don’t. So, what if I should take your life and then I can do more research on you. I did hope I could do it while you were alive. Millie, you are a peculiar one and extremely interesting, you know?” he reached for the butterfly on her face.

   “No! Don’t call me Millie! I’m Jane and you can’t change that! Jane, Jane, Jane! I remember it!” her now visible eyes were wide and had a hint of madness in them when she smiled. “How’s Judy? Did you take her at last? What name did you give her?”

   Decker crushed the butterfly and some purple liquid oozed out of it on Millie’s slash Jane’s face.

   “Keep Judy safe. I’ll come back from the dead to crush you if something happens to her”, she threatened but she had already accepted her faith. Somehow she seemed a bit relieved but at the time this Judy was very important to her. Who was she? 

   I slipped out of the room through the wall and started running away from the station. I had to get to the house before Decker could. The others could know about Judy.

[fxiled-fxithful]

For a brief moment, Ash stood behind Angela, his wings folded inward as he kept his gaze forward.

"So, you declined Mother's deal? I'm surprised.."

"I have my reasons. I'm not selfish enough to place a life on the line for power."

A soft chuckle left his lips, "Yet you still show a sense of being selfish by going into battle as you are. Is that wise..? Does..he know..?"

"No..Philza doesn't know. However, I feel as if I owe it to Father to lend a hand. He has healed me before and I must return the favor. As His Left Hand, His Divine Messenger, I must ensure Father sees the light of hope..the light of life."

"I shall pray for your success then. Father has seemed..unwell for a while now. I did not wish to voice it until now, as to prevent any sort of worry for you." He was silent for a moment before speaking up again.

"Why were you inquiring about Azrael from the First Cycle to begin with? I cannot imagine why.."

Angela looked to the side, a hand over her heart as she thought for a moment. She was surprised her brother didn't know. Their connection was severed. He was restored by Mother, but she never was. She felt incomplete and the only way she was one was when she was beside her lover. It could just be a false sense of comfort when she was beside death; but it was enough to help her forget that she was missing half of herself.

She had hoped that she would have someone protect her while on the field. Declining the offer took a hit on her pride but she was not disappointed in herself for doing so. They deserved a happy ending after all of this. Still...that left Ash's question unanswered.

"Protection. I wished for protection. So many power couples are going into this fight that I..did not wished to be mocked for my lack of power without a protector at my side. I will have to put my faith in the harbingers to be safe."

Ash was silent for a moment before he places a hand over his own heart,"I see. I pray that you will emerge victorious with the other harbingers. Choices have been made. There is no turning back. It is a shame that you declined Mother's offer to have me fight at your side. Alas, caring for an unborn at the risk of losing your own blood in a battle seems..disappointing. You have so little faith in your other half."

"Considering the fact that you practically lost to Azrael, I have my reasons for my doubt. You belong beside Mother. I am thankful for the offer but I do not feel right having a life on the line, a life that could be a new welcoming chapter in my life with someone I have grown to love and care for....someone who has aided me in overcoming my fears, I am fine with my choice. Thank you brother, but return to Mother. She requires your protection more than I do.."

"Then I believe this is where the road splits in twine and we go our separate ways. Farewell, dear sister. I pray you made the right choice. Don't die out there.."

He places a hand on her shoulder before fading from her side so he could return to Mother.

Angela could feel the ice from his words as he placed a hand on her shoulder. As he left, her legs shook before bending down to her knees. "Farewell, Ash..I love you too. Keep Mother safe.."

She was now alone. Her brother bound to Mother, her lover sealed off in battle and her beloved God trapped in a nightmare in Eden. Those important to her were all out of reach. Angela places her hands together in prayer one last time.

"Father, I pray that you are in there..somewhere. Come back to us..We need you..I need you."

She only allowed herself a moment for tears. Now was not the time to have a depressive episode. She needed to pull herself together and help the others. As support, she needed to be observant of all involved. There was no time for her to be sad. Brushing tears away, she straightened herself out and made her way to the others who were now preparing for battle.

[violettesiren]

I don't say: that was before. Our pockets stuffed with worthless summer money, we lie once more on the chaff of scorn, in the autumn maneuver of time. And flight to the south, where the birds go, doesn't help us. In the evening fishing trawlers and gondolas glide past, and sometimes a splinter of dream-filled marble hits me where I'm vulnerable, with beauty, in the eye.

In the newspapers I read much about the cold and its consequences, about fools and the dead, about the banished, the murderers and myriads of ice-floes, but little that comforts me. Should it be otherwise? At noon a beggar comes And I slam the door in his face; for there is peace and you can spare yourself an unpleasant sight, though not the joyless dying of leaves when it rains.

Let us take a journey! Let us see sunsets under cypresses or else under palm trees, or in orange groves, at reduced prices, sunsets that have no equal! Let us forget our unanswered letters to the past! Time does wonders. But should it come unjustly, with the throb of guilt: we aren't at home. In the cellar of my heart, sleepless, I find myself once more on the chaff of scorn, in the autumn maneuver of time.

Autumn Maneuver by Ingeborg Bachmann (Translated by Mark Anderson)

[apricuscity]

Morely & Friends Save Suniva!

Narrator: “It’s that festive time of year again, all of Taco Land is preparing for the Solstice!”

Scenes are shown of snow falling, people decorating buildings, putting up a large tree in the center of town.

We see scenes of Suniva’s workshop. All of Suniva’s helpers are making their preparations.

More and more letters arrive as children write to Suniva.

Time passes and we see the mailbox begin to fill up, the letters go unanswered.

We see a letter arrive addressed to Morely & Friends.

Burrito Bill opens the letter and reads it.

Bill: “HOLY GUACAMOLE! St. Suniva has gone missing! Morely! Morely, we gotta..Morely?”

Taco Felon: “Did you forget Morely went on vacation? He’s out catching up with his old friend! Give me that..”

Taco Felon reads the letter before putting it down.

Taco Felon: “Luckily for them, I’m still here..and the Taco Felon is always prepared for..”

Burrito Bill: “Everything! Yeah! Let’s go find St. Suniva!”

Taco Felon: “Great, the sidekick I never wanted...just don’t get in my way..”

Taco Felon collects his gear but hears a knock at the door.

Taco Felon opens the door and blinks

Java Joe: “Well hey there! Let me introduce myself, I’m Java Joe! And this is Cosmo the Coffee Cat!”

Cosmo: “Meow!”

Taco Felon: “And I should care..why?”

Java Joe: “Because we need your help! If we can’t mind Missy then there won’t be any delicious hot chocolate this year for Solstice!”

Taco Felon: “Whomst exactly is Missy?”

Java Joe: “My girlfriend of course!”

Burrito Bill: “Hey! Maybe if we help them, they could help us! We need to find St. Suniva and save Solstice!”

Cosmo: “Mew!”

Java Joe: “I agree Cosmo! Sounds like we got ourselves a deal!”

Taco Felon: “Fantastic...”

The opening credits roll

“MORELY & FRIENDS SAVE SUNIVA!”

Taco Felon, Burrito Bill, Java Joe, and Cosmo travel to Suniva’s secret workshop by way of Taco Felon’s portable wormhole.

Our heroes are spat out of the wormhole a small walk away from the workshop.

Taco Felon: “So tell me again what your girlfriend has to do with everyone having hot chocolate..”

Java Joe: “Well ya know me and Cosmo here, we’re with CiarBucks! I’m in charge of making sure everything is running smoothly, and that everyone gets their delicious coffee!”

Taco Felon: “Didn’t that place have a little dispute with..”

Cosmo: “Mrow”

Java Joe: “Like Cosmo said, everything is okie dokie with that now! Anyway my girlfriend Missy is the only one who knows the special hot chocolate recipe, and she’s the only one who knows how to work the magical machine!”

Taco Felon: “That seems awfully inefficient..”

Burrito Bill: “Look! It’s Suniva’s workshop!”

Everyone enters the workout, the helpers are still trying to make sure everything is ready for the holiday but without Suniva there’s very little organization. One of the workers starts talking in a language no one seems to understand...except..

Cosmo: “Mew.”

Java Joe: “Cosmo says this fella thinks Suniva might have been kidnapped by the snow dragon.”

Taco Felon: “The what? Wait how do you understand the cat..and how does the cat understand the workers?”

Java Joe: “Aw well you can understand anyone if you’re just willing to listen long enough.”

Taco Felon: “That’s not..”

Burrito Bill: “So is it a dragon that breathes ice or like a dragon made out of snow?”

Cosmo: “Mrow”

Java Joe: “Both.”

Taco Felon: “Oh good, we’re dealing with the offspring of Frosty and Smaug..”

Burrito Bill: “I read that book!”

Taco Felon: “I doubt it..”

Burrito Bill: “Ok well I saw the movies!”

Music plays as we see our heroes trek through blizzard conditions until they finally find the dragon’s lair.

Taco Felon: “Alright..has everyone equipped the anti-frost, dragon fighting armor I gave you?”

Cosmo wearing cat sized armor: “Mew!”

Burrito Bill: “Boy you really are prepared for everything aren’t you?”

Taco Felon: “This isn’t my first dragon fight..besides if I didn’t have this equipment my catchphrase would be meaningless..and the merchandise wouldn’t sell...now on the count of three..”

Taco Felon: “One..”

A large dragon made completely out of snow bursts out of the lair, roaring and breathing ice breath

Taco Felon: “RUN!”

Burrito Bill: “I thought two came after one..”

Taco Felon shoots a grappling hook back and pulls Burrito Bill along as he flees into the forest with Cosmo and Java Joe. Another musical number begins as the dragon swoops down trying to snatch up our heroes.

Taco Felon reaches into his satchel and begins to unfold something.

Taco Felon: “Distract it!”

Java Joe: “Do you think it would fancy a nice cup of coffee from CiarBucks?”

The dragon almost takes Java Joe but Cosmo leaps on the dragon’s back causing the beast to become confused trying to shake off it’s feline passenger.

Taco Felon: “Behold! The dragon buster three thousand!”

Taco Felon puts a box on the ground.

Taco Felon: “Let it never be said that the Taco Felon isn’t prepared for..”

The dragon flies over the box which activates and sends up a giant boxing glove, punching the snowman style head off of the dragon. It’s body lands on the ground.

Taco Felon: “EVERYTHING!”

Cosmo safely lands on top of Burrito Bill

Dragon: “Uhm...could I bother you for a little help? My body is..no not that..no over here..”

The dragon’s body stumbled around walking into trees.

Burrito Bill: “It can talk?”

Dragon: “Of course I can talk, what do you think I’d been doing this whole time!”

Java Joe: “Roaring and trying to eat us?”

The dragon’s body finally puts it’s head back on..backwards

Dragon: “Oh for Suniva’s sake..”

The dragon adjusts it’s head

Dragon: “Roaring no..I was hurrying outside to eat some snow. I ran into you folks and I was trying to explain what was happening but that hot chocolate kinda burnt my tongue..you know..cause I’m made of snow.”

Java Joe: “Hot chocolate..?”

Missy: “Oh my, are you alright dear...I think maybe that batch was a little too hot..”

Java Joe and Cosmo run over to hug Missy. Everyone heads inside the dragon’s lair.

Missy: “You see one of the helpers got ahold of me. Miss Suniva and I have been friends for ages. I wanted to come help but I knew you were super busy. I thought I’d be back in a jiffy. I didn’t mean for anyone to think I was kidnapped, oh my no. I’m dandy like candy!”

Taco Felon: “Ok..two questions. One, why are you with the abominable snow dragon here..and two..where is Suniva?”

Dragon: “I found her lost in the forest when I was going for my usual morning flight. I picked her up and brought her back here. She was nice enough to make some hot chocolate for me...but uh...I didn’t have the heart to tell her it wasn’t really a good idea for me to drink..”

Burrito Bill: “So nobody knows where Suniva is? We’re back to square one..or circle one..octagon one? What would Morely do?”

Taco Felon: “Who cares what Morely would do, I’m here and I’m superior to him in every way except I don’t have a crunchy taco shell.”

Burrito Bill: “Crunchy shell...that reminds me...is this the only place on the planet without a Tacos ‘N More? I haven’t seen one for..”

Taco Felon: “I have a horrible feeling...hey can you give us a ride?”

Dragon: “Sure, hop on.”

One dragon flight later everyone is back at the workshop going through the mail that had piled up for Suniva.

A set of Tacos ‘N More coupons is seen on the table with several of them cut out.

The door to the workshop suddenly flies open as an unseen figure strolls in putting down bags upon bags of Tacos ‘N More.

Taco Felon: “I can not believe it...I can not believe I wasted my time coming up here with you idiots.”

Burrito: “Well can you blame Suniva? Finally got some Tacos ‘N More coupons after all this time but since there wasn’t one..they had to fly to it and then wait for the order..and with all those helpers it was one big order!”

Taco Felon: “Never again..”

The group arrives back in Taco Land just as the grand tree lighting ceremony takes place.

Missy: “That certainly was an adventure.”

Cosmo: “Mew”

Burrito Bill: “You’re right Cosmo! The real adventure was the new friends we made along the way!”

Taco Felon: “That’s it! I’m gonna personally introduce you to some more new friends...at the hospital!”

Taco Felon grabs a giant candy cane decoration and chases after Bill.

Morely suddenly arrives, stepping out of a vehicle. He’s wearing a tropical shirt, and drinking from a straw poking out of a coconut

Morely: “What did I miss?”

The entire group looks up at the camera and waves

“Happy Holidays!”

End credits roll.

[bieberzn]

justin leaned back against the bar, his frustration mounting with every unanswered question swirling in his mind. the neon lights of the club flickered overhead, casting an otherworldly glow over the scene before him. he took a deep breath, trying to push aside the tension that coiled in his chest. he just wanted to take a deep breath and chill, to forget about the outside world for a while and lose himself in the music. but it seemed that fate had other plans for him tonight, plans that involved selena, which he wasn't expecting. justin stood there, his eyes scanning selena's face, taking in every nuance of her expression as she spoke. it had been a while since they'd crossed paths like this, and he couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions swirling inside him. when he heard the word blanco. he downed the rest of his drink, the cool liquid burning a path down his throat. laughing out loud, he knew he couldn't ignore this any longer. "returned to my rightful owner?" he repeated, his voice low and seething with bitterness. "funny how you still think you have any say over who i am or what i do." he swirled the amber liquid in his glass, the ice clinking against the sides as he took a long sip, relishing the burn as it slid down his throat. "i don't need anyone to leash me, selena," he continued, his tone laced with venom. "unlike some people, i've learned to stand on my own two feet." his gaze bore into hers, challenging her to see the truth behind his words, to understand the depth of his resentment. "where's that clown, by the way? surprised he's not glued on you."

𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐋𝐀 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 / selena + justin.

📅 : saturday, may 25th. 📍 : the bar, OMNIA nightclub. ⛔ : possible alcohol tw

with her bestfriend disappearing into the neon lights of the club, selena figured it was a good time to get a new drink and see if she could find a friendly face. she'd just ordered her drink of choice, a strawberry margarita, when she turned around and noticed a not so friendly face. her chocolate, doe eyes widened at the sight of him. a man ( though some would insist he was more of a man child ), who she had buried long ago. "can i please get a shot of tequila too? blanco.. the tequila." the femme hesitantly cleaned up her words. was it weird she said blanco in front of him? should she have just said silver? the brunette let a deep, painful sigh emerge as she flipped her head around, bouncing waves following. it was truly rich how even after all that had gone on between them, she still cared about what he might've thought. "wow. shocker. the biebers aren't glued together? how did you manage to get off your leash?" selena grabbed the shot placed before her, kicking it back desperately. completely immune to the pain of her throat burning. this was convo was proving to be far worse. she lingered for a moment, wondering if she should say the spite that was primed on the edge of her tongue. ultimately, she gave into pettiness . "do you need to be returned to your rightful owner?" @bieberzn

[convocare]

Tag Dump | Fandaniel

[undyinglament]

Fandaniel shook his head with a strained smile. “Forgive the dramatics... I’ve not been sleeping well.”

He was always grateful that his mask his hid tired eyes; but it didn’t prevent the tiredness from loosening his grips on himself. He tried so hard not to let himself speak of the swirling mess of dark, clinging thoughts that clogged his mind. But sometimes it slipped free...

“The city does not suit me, I think.” He gave an attempt at a casual shrug. “Don’t let me worry you.”

@seatedsacrifice | x

[harleysarchive]

Among You and Me - Corpse Husband x reader oneshot

Fandom: Corpse Husband, youtubers Warning: Swearing, me being in a good mood when I wrote it so a happy, positive reader, alcohol, hangovers, comfidence boost Pairing: Corspe x reader Summary: You got some extra confidence after having a couple of drinks and write a message to Corpse during his live stream, he answeres you messages and everything continues from there.

Next >

A/N: I was in a super good mood when I started to write this and it shows, I’m sorry if it’s annoying and I don’t know if it’s shit but yeaah. Enjoy! :D

You were watching Corpse Husbands stream among us and was just having a good time. You had had a couple of drinks before the stream so you were in such a great mood. You melted every time he laughed because he couldn’t do the card swipe and just thought of how adorable he was. In your intoxicated mindset you got a confidence boost and opened the stream chat and also instagram. In the stream chat you donated 10$ and wrote “you are the most adorable person on this planet and you deserve the world! Thank you for exciting, love y/n” and hit enter, and also doing the same on Instagram on private messages.

He won’t see that, you thought to yourself and turned on some music to match your good mood and after a while forgetting about your stream that was on. Some days life is just great!

You had fallen asleep and woke up with a hangover, all the positive feelings you had yesterday were gone and now you just wanted to stay in bed all there with some aspirins. Looking at your phone seeing that nothing interesting had happened. You were scrolling through your feed on instagram and saw that you had an unanswered message. You opened it and saw that it was from Corpse.

You flew up in your bed and were staring at your phone.

I can’t believe he answered me, you said. Your hands were shaking and you were too nervous to open the message. Maybe he was annoyed with you for messaging him. Nooo he seems like a nice guy so I don’t think he is.

You opened the message and it read:

“Thank you for your kind words! I saw your donation and the message, means a lot 🖤”

You buried your face into the pillow and screamed for all that you were worth. He answered. You also felt ridiculous for reacting like this but there is no hindering the fangirl when she is out.

Your fingers were shaking but you wanted to reply so badly.

“Thank you! I can’t believe that you actually answered or noticed my message, it made my day honestly. Can’t wait for more content from you!” You hit send and left the bed. You had things to do today and if you were home you were only going to look at your phone all day to see if he would answer you. So to not get tempted you left your phone at home.

You came back to your apartment in the afternoon and we’re dying to check your messages. So you unlocked your phone and went straight to messages. Nothing. You felt a pang of disappointment but you tried to not dwell on it. He had probably many girls messaging him how much they love him and so on. You went to the kitchen and started to cook some dinner. But when you were preparing some vegetables you got a ding from your phone. You went over and saw that you had a message on Instagram. From Corpse. Your heart first stopped and then sped up like crazy. He answered you again! Wtf?!

“That's so kind of you to say, thank you! There will be a new stream tomorrow :)”

“Omg I’m gonna die” you said. Well if you died now you would be okay with it because you had been noticed by Corpse not once but twice.

“Yay can’t wait! I will be glued to the screen!” You answered and immediately felt embarrassed by your response.

Two days later you were waiting for the stream to begin. You had bought some of your favorite ice-cream in honor for tonight. The stream started and you heard Corpse say multiple times that he was super nervous and a shitty impostor. You felt your heart melt for him, he is so sweet and precious. You donated money to him and wrote “you don’t have to be nervous, you are doing great! It’s super entertaining! Love y/n” and hit send. You saw your donation in the chat.

“”you don’t have to be nervous, you are doing great! It’s super entertaining! Love (y/n)” thank you (y/n), that means a lot to hear right now. And I remember your picture from Instagram. Nice to see that you are watching the stream.”

The ice-cream you were about to eat dropped to the floor and you just sat there with an open mouth. He remembered your picture. HE FUCKING REMEMBERED YOUR PICTURE!

The rest of the stream was a fog in your memory because you were still stuck on the moment that he remembered you from your profile picture. Nothing could top that. Nothing. When the stream ended you turned of your computer and were of to bed. But there was no way in hell that you were going to fall alseep after something like that. Your phone lit up again and you saw that you had a new message from instagram. You opened up the app and it was from Corpse!

“I hope you liked the stream today :)” he wrote and again your heart raced like crazy. 

“I did it was super entertaining to watch! I think you are an incredible impostor.” you hit send. Not long after you got a reply.

“Thanks, I am very nervous during the streams and I hope that is not annoying or it bothering those who are watching it.”

“Not at all, well at least for me. I think it makes you more genuine when you confess that you can get nervous even though you are a big youtuber 😊”

 “Well I’m not a big youtuber... but it’s nice to read all your kind words in the chat. It makes me happy.”

“I’m glad that we can help you feel better, and I mean every word I’m sending you.”

You saw that he started to reply, but you had to go to sleep so you turn off the phone and closed your eyes. Surprisingly enough you fell asleep quite quickly, and woke up by the sun hitting your face. Fall has jsut begun and the leaves were turning every beautiful colour of red, yellow and orange. When you brain had woken up more you remembered that Corpse had started to reply to your message. You quickly grabbed your phone and went on instagram. A new message, 8 hours ago. 

Shit, you thought and opened it. It was just a smiley face and nothing else. A little disappointed but then you saw the conversation that the two of you had had. You actually talked to him and he had replied instantly. Your brain must’ve given you some weird confidence and stable fingers at that moment. You didn’t really know what to reply so you just let it be and you didn’t want to annoy him with spamming his dm’s either - but you really, really wanted to.

Corpse POV.

Another day and another sleepless night. That is just my life right now. But the streams helped them make it a little less agonizing. Especially the nice comments I get from everyone and the conversation I had with one of the fans. What was her name again? (Y/N). Right. I wonder if she has answered my message.

I opened up instagram and opened our conversation. Read but no answer. To be fair I only sent a smiley to her. But... Why am I feeling so anxious that she left me on read?

“Yooo, care to hang out today?” Dave sent a message. I answered with a sure and locked my phone and waited for Dave to arrive to my house. But my mind kept on going back to why she didn’t answer me back. Well I know why, but I didn’t like that the conversation were over so quick. 

Dave entered my house and we hung out for a while but he could sense that something was bothering me.

“Hey man, you okay?”

I snapped out of my thought and looked at him. 

“Yeah, I’m fine. Except from the usual shit.”

“You sure? You seem a little... lost in thoughts perhaps? Is something bothering you?”

I took a deep breath and shook my head.

“Not even the kind girl from your streams?” he asked with a knowing smirk on his face. I lost all the colour on my face. HOW DID HE KNOW?

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?”

“Not even that you recognized her picture from instagram? Like that you haven’t talked to her there?”

Fuck...

“Who is she?”

“A fan that contacted me and were very kind with her words. And I replied to her and after that we have been messaging each other here and there... but she left me on read last night so I guess that’s over...”

“What did you say to her?”

“I sent a smiley because I was too nervous to say anything else.”

Dave made the biggest and loudest face palm. It must’ve hurt his head. 

“You idiot... You can’t expect a reply if you only send her a smiley...”

“I know, but I got nervous.”

“Are you following her?”

“No... Not yet at least.” I said and took up my phone again and went on her profile. It was private. Of course. I hoovered over the follow button but I didn’t dare to press it. Dave gave me a thumbs up and I pressed the follow button. 

Your POV.

You were watching a Among Us highlight video on youtube when your instagram told you that you had a notification. You opened it and saw that Corpse had requested an invite to follow your profile. CORPSE WANTED TO FOLLOW YOU. Holyshitholyshitholyshit. What is even happening?! Of course you accepted it and you started to type a message to him. 

“Welcome to my little boring world. Hope you like what you see 😅”

You could see him typing something.

“I very much do ;)”

A/N: I really enjoyed writing this and I couldn’t stop. It was difficult to get started but after that it was fun :D 

TAGS:

@fanworrior @wibblytimey

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

Best Friends Brother - Chris Evans x Reader (Part 13)

Summary: You and Scott have been best friends ever since you were 10, meeting at summer camp. Being best friends with Scott means you know his family very well. Especially his older brother. After a failed attempt at dating Chris when you were 18, when you move to LA for a job will you and Chris grow close again? What would the world think? and most importantly what would Scott think?

Word Count: 2.2k

Warnings: Angst, bit of fluff

You hadn’t spoken or see Chris for days now. You tried to text and call him, but they went unanswered. You started to lose hope that you would ever be able to fix this. You slowly stopped calling and texting until you completely stopped. Completely devastated that you had once again lost him.

You dodged Scott’s calls too, you couldn’t face him just yet. You felt incredibly guilty about ignoring him or coming up with lame excuses, but what was your other options. Tell him everything? Tell him about you and Chris? How for weeks now you had been lying and sneaking behind his back, sleeping with his brother?

If things were truly over between you and Chris, you wanted to grieve that loss privately. Burying it down until it was pretty much forgotten. Allowing you to move on with your life and still have Scott be a part of it.

You buried yourself in your work once again, it helped you somewhat forget. It also gave you a good excuse to hide away for everyone and allow you to wallow in your own self-pity.

You’d left campus late once again, although you had spent the entire day in the field, so it wasn’t completely planned. You knew you didn’t have a lot of food at home and despite the attraction of getting takeout, you did want a home cooked meal.

As you walked through the grocery store you could help but pick up some of your favourite snacks. You also grabbed a couple bottles of wine, you’d gone through you stash already. You were walking through the frozen section trying to decide on which ice cream to buy when you heard you name being called.

You turned to see Scott and Steve walking over to you. You plaster on an award-winning smile as they approached.

“Oh hey guys, didn’t expect to see you here” you say with a small smile.

“Didn’t expect to see you either, thought you’d still have a nose in a book or something” Steve jokes making you chuckle slightly.

“Yeah been busy recently, Uni making me work hard” you sigh making them both chuckle.

You notice Scott checking out the contents of your cart, raising his brow at you.

“You alright? How you been?” Scott asks, to anyone else it would have been an innocent question, but you knew Scott was asking a lot more.

You stumble for a moment “uh yeah I’m good just thought I’d treat myself since I’ve been working hard” you tell him. It wasn’t a complete lie, but definitely wasn’t the truth.

“You definitely have, don’t work yourself to death though” Steve smiles completely oblivious to looks Scott was giving you.

“I’ll try not to” you laugh hoping that Scott would leave it.

“Good well we’ll leave you to it, hopefully we’ll see you this weekend?” Steve asks hopefully.

“Yeah sounds great” you smile, you couldn’t avoid them forever.

They leave you to finish shopping, you ended up buying two pints of ice-cream because of the stress that interaction just caused.

As you walked back to your car you could see Scott leaning against your car, his arms crossed.

“Scott, what’s up?” You ask him as you approach.

“You really thought I wouldn’t notice you buying your favourite comfort foods and just leave it at that” Scott says knowingly.

You sigh in defeat, while he didn’t know the exact reason you were down in the dumps. Now that he was aware you were down, he wasn’t gonna just let you wallow alone.

“Scott I-“ you sigh dropping your shoulders.

“Look you don’t have to tell me anything just yet, but let’s get you home watch some crap cheesy movies and binge on ice cream together” Scott says interrupting you taking your bags and starting to load up the car.

“Thank you Scott” you sighs pulling him in for a hug.

“It’s nothing, that’s what best friends are for right?” He smiles rubbing your shoulders soothingly.

When you got back to your house Scott helped you unpack your groceries. Due to his influence you had decided to forgo dinner and you both tucked into a pint of ice cream each.

You had a cheesy comedy movie on in the background, you couldn’t quite stomach a cheesy romance film. You chuckled along to the film, grateful for the small distraction.

When the film ended Scott grabbed the remote turning the TV off before turning to you.

“You wanna talk about it now?” He asks putting his tub of ice cream down on the coffee table.

You take a deep breath, there was no more putting it off. You needed to work out exactly what to say. You put your tub of ice cream down next to his before turning to face him. When you looked at him and saw how much he was concerned about you and how much he was there for you, you decided you definitely couldn’t tell him about Chris.

“Well um” you sigh trying desperately to find a way to explain it, without actually explaining it.

“I made a mistake. I made a mistake and it hurt someone that I didn’t want to hurt, and I don’t know how to fix it” you tell him with a sigh.

Scott nods his head slowly “does the person know it was a mistake?” He asks you.

You shake your head “no, I haven’t been able to get hold of them since” you explain.

Scott ponders for a moment before speaking “okay so how did this mistake occur? Is it something that if you explained it to the person they would understand it was a mistake?” He asks you.

You bite your lips slightly “I made the mistake when I was drunk and emotional, I wasn’t thinking straight and did something that the person then found out about later and yeah” you tell him.

“Wait hold up, did you cheat on Jake? Is that why you broke up?” Scott asks you stunned.

You look back at him completely shocked, your jaw was practically on the floor.

“What no! No! I didn’t, I’d never cheat on anyone!” You exclaim.

Scott holds his hands up in surrender laughing slightly “okay, okay I’m sorry” he apologises.

“Look whatever you did, you know it was a mistake and you clearly regret it, you weren’t thinking straight, you just have to make them understand that” Scott tells you.

“They won’t return my calls or texts, they’re avoiding me” you sigh sadly.

“Well ambush them at work or in the grocery store like I did with you today!” Scott laughs making you look back at him shocked.

“Wait what!?” You gasp not believing that he’d planned to bump into you.

“Well kinda ambushed you, I knew something was up when you started burying yourself in your work again, I didn’t know you’d be grocery shopping though, that was just a happy coincidence” Scott explains making you chuckle shaking your head at him.

“Well I guess I should thank you, you’ve pulled me out of my misery” you tell him making him smile proudly.

“Good, my work here is done, now let’s finish these ice creams and watch another cheesy movie” Scott smiles passing you your ice cream and turning the TV back on.

You were sat in your car debating whether you should go or not. You grip the steering wheel tightly taking a deep breath starting your car knowing it was now or never. On the way over you went through your speech over and over again in your head.

When you got to Chris’ house you were glad to see his car on the drive. It did make your palms sweat and your heart hammer in your chest. Steeling your nerves you got out of the car walking over to his front door hoping the shake in your hand wasn’t obvious.

When you knock on the door you could hear dodger barking, letting you know Chris was definitely home. When Chris opened the door he looks surprised initially before cooling his expression, his jaw clenching. He looks like he was about to shut the door, so you threw your hands out to stop him.

“Wait, wait, wait please, let me explain please” you say quickly looking up at him pleadingly.

He doesn’t say anything but steps to the side to allow you to step in. You ring your hands together nervously as you walk in, when you turn to face Chris he stood with his arms crossed over his chest defensively and kept his distance from you.

“Look all those things I wrote down aren’t true, I don’t really believe them” you tell him deciding just to rip the band aid off.

He sighs shaking his head looking down at the floor.

“Then why did you write it?” He asks you.

“Because I was drunk, and emotional. I wrote that list after the night we first kissed and had that whole misunderstanding” you explain the lump forming in your throat and you had to try really hard not to start crying.

When you look over at Chris he doesn’t say anything, but you can tell from his expression that he needed a bit more of an explanation.

“I was so upset about that whole misunderstanding, I thought you didn’t want me, and it really upset me. I was trying to work out whether I should tell you that I did want you” you stutter the words sticking in your throat.

“But all those thoughts went out of my head when I found out about the misunderstanding and when I chose you over Jake. I should have thrown that out right there and then, but I didn’t and I’m sorry for that. That day when you found it, right before you found it I was thinking about how much I was loving the simple domestic life with you” you continue tear prickling in your eyes and you have to take a deep breath before you continue.

“Because I love you Chris, I love you so goddamn much it hurts. It hurts when I’m not with you, I miss you whenever you go into a separate room. I want a life with you, I can picture a future with you full of love, children and a white picket fence. I never lied when I told you that I loved you, because I never stopped loving you. From the moment I met I knew you were it for me, nobody else. I just want you, only you, I want every piece of you, ever imperfection, your past, because none of that shit bothers me, because I love you and to me you are perfect” you tell him tears well and truly falling, you were hiccupping you were crying so much.

You look over at him, but his face was unreadable, his posture unchanged.

“I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry, I never meant to hurt you, I never wanted to hurt you” you cry completely breaking down you hand flying to your mouth desperately trying to keep the sobs at bay.

You hear him sigh deeply and you fear that it wasn’t enough. You’d failed and had lost him forever. You were shocked when you feel his arms wrap around you. His hand rubs your back soothingly. You feel him kiss the top of your head.

You look up at him shocked and you could see the tears he was also trying to hold back.

“It’s okay, it’s okay” he whispers over and over again holding you close until the sobs subsided and your breathing returned to normal.

“Do you forgive me?” You ask him sniffling.

He nods his head kissing the top of your head “of course, I have one question though” he tells you.

You nod you head for him to continue.

“On your list it said I’d break your heart again, what did you mean?” He asks you.

You wipe away your tears and take a deep breath, getting yourself ready to tell him a secret that you hadn’t told anyone since you were 18.

“When we broke up before I went to university and you moved to LA, we said it was amicable, but I really didn’t want to break up. I was ready to make long distance work, I didn’t want to lose you but when you said we should end it I agreed even though it broke my heart” you tell him wiping away the new tears the began to fall.

You hear Chris chuckle to himself “I didn’t want to break up either” he tell you making you look up at him shocked.

“I thought it was the best, I only wanted the best for you, and I didn’t want to hold you back” Chris admits making you chuckle.

Once again the two of you had suffered from a miscommunication. Where would you be now if you never had all these miscommunications. Would you still be together? Married even?

“We really need to work on our communication” you sigh smiling up at him.

He chuckles wrapping his arms around your waist.

“Yeah from now on we just say exactly what we want or mean, we won’t interrupt each other too since that seems to be an issue” Chris agrees with a smile.

“Sounds like a deal” you smile wrapping your arms around his shoulders.

“So what exactly are you thinking right now?” Chris asks with a small smirk.

“That I absolutely love this adorable dork in front of me” you smiles looking up into his eyes.

“And I absolutely love this gorgeous woman in front of me” he smiles leaning down to press his lips against yours.

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PART 2

The first days of Harry staying at your house were overshadowed by Maeve’s 5th grade spelling bee victory. The fake gold medal was a mainstay around her neck for a new nights at the dinner table until she eventually forgot about it.

Luckily enough, neither of your daughters seemed to be thrown too off kilter by his presence. Maeve was just young enough to not know much about who Harry was or the band he’d been in--though she was ready and willing to brag about having a celebrity around.

CeCe--in true sibling rivalry fashion--decided to draw her own medal with crayons and ask you to cut it out so she could wear it around the house. If Maeve gets one, so do I.

With potholders on and the oven door open, you apologized. “I can’t right now, honey--give mommy a few minutes and I’ll help you.”

Harry materialized at the bottom of the stairs, eyebrows raised when he said: “What do you need, CeCe?”

“I have to cut this out!” She said excitedly, running over to the drawer where the scissors were kept. She whipped them out and turned around quickly, Harry’s eyes bulging out of his head when he hurried over to grab them from her.

“I’ll cut, you watch,” he laughed, exchanging a look with you when CeCe climbed up to sit at the island. She hummed in agreement, handed over the paper and watched as he lined it up to start snipping.

“CeCe,” he said her name inquisitively. “Is CeCe short for anything?”

“Cecilia Rose L/N,” she smiled. “Pretty, right?”

“Very pretty,” he smiled. “Same last name as your mum.”

The last part of his sentence was a statement, a quick glance in your direction when you turned off the oven and shouted towards the stairs. “Maeve! Dinner’s ready!”

Your call went unanswered into the big house--you had no clue where she was or if she’d heard you. When Harry finished cutting out the paper medal, he handed it to CeCe who beamed with pride and put it around her neck.

Hands on your hips, “CeCe, will you please find your sister and tell her dinner is ready?”

She took one big breath and then screamed, “MAEVE!”

Both you and Harry flinched at the noise but laughed. She held onto Harry’s arm when she hopped down from the stool, shaking her head in disappointment. “Good god that girl,” she huffed, heading to climb the stairs when she yelled again: Maeve!!!! Dinner!!!!

“She’s a handful tonight,” you said, almost feeling guilty as her footsteps stomped on the floor overhead. “Thank you for that, though,” you said, motioning to the scissors in his hand. “Want a glass of wine?”

“S’not against the rules?” He teased.

When you shot him a look, he smirked and let out a laugh. “I’ll gladly take one. It’s fine, though. She was ready to stab someone flinging the scissors around like that.”

“They just had scissor safety in art class not too long ago.” You told him, pulling the cork from an already open bottle of red. “Sometimes I think she barely listens to anyone--she just does her own thing.”

“Not the worst way to be,” he smiled, picked up the glass when you slid it over on the granite. An awkward beat when he took a sip, smiled in your direction when you did the same. You could hear Maeve and CeCe fighting upstairs, offered him another guilty smile, but then he asked: “do you plan on changing your name?”

“My last name?”

“Yeah--L/N is your married name, right?”

It felt a bit nosy, a bit intrusive for the fourth night he was sleeping under your roof. You shrugged your shoulders casually, unsure how to answer. “Just haven’t gotten to it.”

He’d been quiet so far, out most of the day once the girls were gone for school and he’d return before dinner. Kept to himself--or at least out of the way--and was always helpful when he could be. Bringing groceries in? He carried a few. Needed a hand with clearing plates after dinner? He would gladly help.

Maeve and CeCe came rushing downstairs and were more willing to do the gratitude thing than they usually were, forks in hand when Maeve turned to you. “Oh, by the way, Auntie Shelli is taking us out for dinner tomorrow night.”

“She is?” You smiled at Maeve. “I haven’t heard about that.”

“She promised last week, she said Friday.”

“Okay, well I can check with her.”

“Are you doing anything tomorrow night?” Maeve asked.

“Not a thing,” you said, shaking your head. You’d been looking forward to it all week--maybe a bath and a glass of wine, maybe even a movie if you were feeling adventurous. Zoey was typically after you to do something: dinner, come hold Benny for an hour while she took a shower. You were totally up for helping a friend, but it’d been a minute since you had some me-time and if Jeff’s mom had already offered to babysit, you weren’t going to say no.

CeCe turned to Harry excitedly. “What are you doing tomorrow night? Are you coming to dinner?”

He smiled in her direction but shook his head. “I’m actually going over to a friend’s house.”

“What friend?”

“CeCe,” you laughed, embarrassed by her prying. “He doesn’t have to run everything by you, you know.”

“I know,” she said simply as she shrugged her shoulders innocently. “Just thought maybe it was one of my friends. I don’t know if we have the same friends.”

Harry laughed at this and smiled when you rolled your eyes. “I don’t think you know her.”

You watched Harry for a second, wondered if it was a girlfriend or something of the sort--Jeff hadn’t mentioned anything like that. Why couldn’t he stay there, with that friend?

“Well you should come with us and Auntie Shelli one day,” Maeve said. “We usually get ice cream and she lets us get a bunch of toppings and she doesn’t even care if we’ve had dinner yet.”

You let out a short laugh, the details of their time with family members always slipped out when you least expected it. “He’s busy, girls, remember?”

Harry shrugged, “we could get ice cream soon.”

You looked up at him, forked into a bite of dinner and said quietly: you don’t have to.

He didn’t--Harry didn’t owe you or your daughters anything except common decency and kindness. Helping you clean up after dinner or bring in the groceries was enough of a repayment for a guest room and his own bathroom.

“Maybe next week?” He ignored your comment and smiled at the girls.

“Next week!” CeCe chirped back, brushing her hair out of her face with a grin.

You figured they’d forget--swept up by the excitement of something else by the time next week rolled around and Harry would be off the hook. You smiled in his direction, apologetically and pleading, but it wasn’t until the next night that you realized he was serious.

Jeff’s mom had picked Maeve and CeCe up, you had just poured a glass of wine and went to sit in your office to go over any unread emails when he knocked on the door.

“Hey,” he offered a smile, leaned against the wall and put his hands in his pockets.

“Hi,” you turned to see him, unsure what he wanted or why he was popping in. “What’s up?”

“Uh, just wanted to let you know that my plans fell through--so, I’m just gonna be home--here I mean.”

His correction was quick, a subtle misstep through words.

You pressed your lips into a thin line, nodded slowly as you took in the information. He’d be here--in your house and just hanging out. While you had planned for a quiet night, having one other person somewhere in the house wouldn’t kill you, right? Maybe he’d lock himself away in his room and leave you to your emails, then you’d slip upstairs and end the night with a bath before your children returned with a sugar high and stories for days.

“Okay,” you said. A pause when he nodded, looked at you and then down to the floor.

“Do you want to have a drink?”

“I’ve got one,” you lifted your glass and then faltered. “Oh, together--sure, yeah.”

He held back a laugh, motioned for you to lead the way once you stood up from your desk. He trailed you back through the living room and into the kitchen, got himself a wine glass when you found the bottle you’d already started on the counter.

Was this weird? You couldn’t tell. The house was quiet and for a moment it felt like neither of you knew what to say when the only sound was the cork coming out of the bottle.

“I can venmo you for groceries, too, since m’drinking your wine.” He lifted it and poured, you watched the liquid rise in the glass until he looked up at you, waiting for a reply.

“No, it’s fine.”

“M’eating your food, drinking your wine, sleeping in your house,” he let out a laugh but put the stopper back in. “I feel like I could at least pay you back for some--” he looked down at the bottle and studied the label, “cabernet.”

You pulled out a barstool and sat, a sigh when you waved him off. “S’fine--I’m still making my way through the sorry your dad died and sorry your husband left you bottles.”

His lips pulled up at the side when yours did too. “Where do they make those grapes?”

“Somewhere far away from here,” you nodded, a long sip from your own glass when he moved to sit beside you.

“So how much did Jeff have to beg you to let me stay here?”

You looked over at him, hesitant to admit your own reluctance. You knew he and Jeff were close--you’d long been hearing stories about their nights out or big wins as a team. You’d even been invited to the release party for Harry’s first solo album, but you couldn’t find a babysitter and back then your ex couldn’t be bothered.

“I got a few pleading text messages after he first brought it up,” you smiled.

He laughed and nodded. “Well, it’s a big help. My house is over in Malibu but s’not ready yet--the only guestroom in Jeff’s house shares a wall with the master and something about that felt...weird.”

You narrowed your eyes at him playfully. “You didn’t want to hear Jeff and random women hooking up?”

“Not in the slightest,” he shook his head and bit back a smile. “Figured I’d stay with his parents for a bit but then Irv and Shelli told me they loved me but their rules are strict: their children, grandchildren, and your children. Those are their only guests.”

You nodded, it wasn’t news to you. “One time my dad stayed over after a party and Irv almost hit him with a golf club in the morning because he’d forgotten who was on the couch.”

“Yeah, so, sounds like a good idea that I’m here.” Quiet again when he moved the glass around, then he said: “you know, I would be happy to take them to ice cream or something one night--give you a minute to yourself.”

You smiled, the offer was sweet and apparently he had no idea that he’d just ruined your one chance this week to have that. “You really don’t have to--I’m sorry that they’re so...fascinated by you.”

“No, they’re great, very sweet. Maybe I can tag along when Jeff watches them next and learn the ropes.”

You nodded, reassured by his understanding that watching them would take skill. “There’s a lot to learn, they can be quite the handful sometimes.”

“Yeah?” he tilted his head. “Tell me more about them.”

The way he looked at you stirred a feeling in your chest that you couldn’t quite place. Maybe it was just the fact that he seemed interested enough to ask about them, he already seemed more invested than their father had been over the last year. You also would never turn down an opportunity to humble-brag about the tiny humans you'd created.

“Well, Maeve is pretty straight-edge. She’s always cared a lot about school and she likes it--which is weird, cause she didn’t get that from me and she definitely didn’t get it from my ex-husband. Like, she actually gets excited to come home and do her homework.”

He laughed, sipped from his glass and said: “Right, I’m sure she didn’t get her drive and determination from her mother who started her own successful business.”

You brushed off the compliment with a roll of your eyes and a laugh. “The weird preteen-angst thing is new, though. I have no idea if that’s because of losing my dad or losing hers,” you picked at a thread on your sleeve.

He was quiet for a moment, like he didn’t know what to say to that.

“And CeCe,” you saved him the trouble, “she’s a fireball. She is so strong-willed it actually makes me nervous about when she’s a teenager. She might actually drive to Vegas and get married or something. It’s just her world and we’re living in it.”

His dimples appeared on his cheeks when you shrugged. “Well, you’ve clearly done something right with them. Jeff's always loved being an uncle."

“I appreciate that,” you said honestly, a pause before you admitted: “My ex was never that hands on.”

“Right,” he nodded. “Is that why things ended?”

You let out a short laugh, again unsure if you were sharing too much. Would you wake up and regret the fact that you'd poured a glass of wine, and apparently your deepest secrets, all out on display?

“That, along with the fact that he was cheating on me for a good 18 months, I think.”

“Wow,” he nodded slowly, his lips pushed out in thought when he dropped your gaze. “What a dick.”

“Yeah, better I found out now than later on, I guess.”

“So that and losing your dad this year--”

“Yeah it’s been shitty,” you cut him off, another sip of your wine to avoid having to say more. He looked at your glass, now nearing empty, and reached for the bottle.

“Then you definitely deserve another one of these,” he laughed, fingers pulling the cork out again. “No wonder you got so many sympathy wine bottles.”

He poured himself another too, eventually he followed you into your dad’s old office when he asked what hid behind the mystery door on the first floor.

It was the only room you hadn’t redone yet, something about keeping his records on the book shelves and his papers on the desk felt like it kept him here. He’d chosen the green for the walls and you apologized when Harry’s eyebrows shot up at the sight.

“Great man,” you nodded, turning on a light switch, “terrible decorating taste.”

Harry nodded slowly, wine glass still in hand and a smirk fighting it’s way onto his face. “S’a bright color, yeah.”

He let out a laugh when he made eye contact with you, a disapproving look on your face when you walked over to the desk. “All these strewn about--probably some important information about you over here somewhere.”

He came over and lifted a paper. “Harry Styles is one of the most thoughtful, caring, and funny people I know.”

“Really?” You tugged at his arm to get a better view of the paper. Your dad’s handwriting was almost illegible, a date scribbled on top and another few words halfway down the small notebook page, nothing about Harry and nothing that seemed all that important.

“I hope that’s what he thought of me,” Harry smiled, his eyes flickered to where you still had a grip around his wrist. “Your nails are digging into me.”

“Sorry,” you pulled back immediately. “Sometimes I have to grab CeCe like that in the store or she runs off.”

He kept your gaze for a second, but it felt uncomfortable and made you nervous, so you cleared your throat. “Feel free to come in here and use this stuff,” you motioned over to the piano and the guitars he had in stands. “No one uses it, so--it’d be good for it to get played.”

“You don’t play anything?”

You shook your head. “No--he’d started to teach me guitar when I was young but then my mom died, just never picked it up again.”

You were thirteen when it happened, a car accident on the 405 and you didn’t go to school for weeks. Your dad had always been your main support--they divorced when you were ten--but after that you grew even closer, which is why losing him was so hard. He’d been a friend and a parent and the best grandfather who helped pick up the pieces when things with Luke started to crumble.

Harry was quiet, a simple nod when he went over to the piano and sat. You felt the need to shift the topic of conversation to something less depressing than the unfortunate events of your life.

“Are you writing a lot for the album still?”

“Yeah--we’ve got a few things written that might end up on it, but, mostly just experimenting with some new sounds.”

He pressed a chord down on the piano and looked up at you. “How do Maeve and CeCe seem to be handling it all?”

“Which part?”

“Both.”

You shrugged. “They’ve asked a lot about where their father is and why he hasn’t visited. And they understand that their grandpa is gone, but they’re sad, I think. CeCe’s had more nightmares than usual.”

He smiled a little. “And how are you doing with all of it?”

You let out a tiny laugh, mostly out of discomfort with the sudden seriousness in his voice and the way he already pulled more out of you than you’d planned. “I’m fine.”

He lifted his brows but played another progression of chords. “Wouldn’t blame you if you’re not.”

You took a sip of the cabernet and watched as he hummed along to whatever he played. When he looked up at you and waited for a reply, you smiled. “Some days I want to pull my hair out and others I need a good glass of wine. I kind of oscillate between those two lately.”

“Well, I’m always happy to split a bottle with you.”

You nodded, tried to fight the smile on your face when he laughed but then gave in. “Good.”

**

You woke up the next morning with a bit of a headache from the third and unexpected glass of wine. The girls were home by 9pm and unfortunately for you, the weekend was busy with play dates and birthday parties and grocery shopping.

Monday had you back in the office and recounting the first week to Tristan over an iced latte and a breakfast sandwich you’d grabbed after school drop off. Now it was cold and you were approaching the mid-day slump you were all too familiar with.

“I just can’t believe you’re alive still, to be honest. You know--seeing as you thought he’d be a serial killer or something.”

You looked over at him with narrowed eyes. “I didn’t think he was a serial killer.”

“Just a pedophile?”

“Alright,” you waved him off. “I can admit that it’s been fine--good, even. It’s only been a week, though.”

“Right,” he shrugged. “Halfway there. Maybe week two is when he goes crazy.”

You ignored the teasing from your friend and looked back to your computer. “Do you know if Kailee ordered the new bottles for the matcha face mask?”

“Yesterday afternoon,” he nodded. “And we also got the labels in for them as well. They ship off to the packaging plant on Tuesday.”

“Good, and numbers are up from last quarter which is really good. The meeting with the investors should go well.”

“Yeah, I mean, our entire profit has doubled since this time last year,” he smiled in your direction, a subtle reminder that the late night emails on top of the worst year ever had already proven to be worth it. “You should be very proud.”

“I am,” you admitted. “Of us. All of us.”

“Yes, what kind of boss would you be if you took all of the credit?” He teased.

“A bad one, but I’m also the type of boss that leaves at lunch time to go home and change since I have a meeting this afternoon that I forgot all about.”

He looked you up and down when you stood.

“It’s with people from Anthropologie about carrying some of our products in store--so I don’t think I can wear athleisure.”

He laughed and kept typing. “Fair enough. See you at 2pm, though, for the website meeting?”

“Yes,” you promised as you grabbed your keys. “Please don’t let the place burn down while I’m gone.”

“Might throw the match myself,” he waved you off, a laugh at his own joke when you headed for the elevator.

You were proud of the company you’d built and the office you’d been able to purchase two years back, but you were more proud of the energy that buzzed through the halls and the people who made work feel less like work and more like the adventure of a lifetime. You tried to be the cool boss who brought enough coffee for everyone, gave good time off but still expected hard work and drive to be the core of the business.

It took a while to settle into the role, though. At first you were sure you’d be seen as a spoiled rich kid who got a loan from her father to start a company--but it only took one year to repay him when you started getting placements in health food markets across LA. When Kourtney Kardashian posted something about your raspberry toner, the rest was history.

You’d always been passionate about making people feel good about themselves and focused your entire brand on building people up, not tearing them down. The world had enough of that as a mother of two daughters, you hoped it’d be something that would change that narrative, at least for them.

The drive home was quick and the sun was shining, which put a pep in your step as you hopped out of the car in the driveway and headed for the side door.

Harry’s car was still here--you’d left earlier than usual but didn’t expect him to be home. If anything, you figured he’d left shortly after you and planned on staying late in the studio. Jeff had mentioned something about laying down new tracks.

“Hello?” You called into the kitchen and looked around, he wasn’t in the living room or out by the pool. You found a laundry basket at the top of the second floor and figured that maybe someone had picked him up, but the sound of muffled singing pulled you down the hall and closer to his guest room.

The door was cracked only a bit, the sun streamed in from the windows and you could hear the running water of the shower. It was wrong, maybe, but you pushed the door open and stepped inside, smiled to yourself at the fact that he was singing a Carole King song that your dad used to play on repeat when you were a kid.

The room was clean--you hadn’t been in it since you’d pointed out the linen closet in the bathroom and showed him how to use the TV remote. His bed was made--maybe not the way you would have made it but the throw pillows were arranged in a way that showed he tried.

A buzzing on the dresser pulled your attention away from the bed. His phone, a message from someone named Bria Whitmore. Another message, then a third. You took a step closer--who on earth was texting him this much without a reply? A girlfriend? Someone he probably slept with or something of the sort.

“Hi,” his voice pulled your head around quickly and sent your heartbeat through the roof.

“Jesus, hi--sorry--I was just--”

He was in a towel, the fabric wrapped loosely around his waist and hair was slicked back from the water. You looked away from the tattoos that littered his skin and looked down at the laundry basket.

“I was just seeing if you had any laundry you needed me to do?”

It was clean, but he didn’t need to know that.

“M’good,” he smiled like he didn’t believe you. “Why are you home?”

“Had to change--forgot about a meeting,” you let out a laugh and tried to slow your pulse. “Figured the pilates mom look wasn’t the right vibe.”

He nodded, moved around you in the center of the room to pull out a t-shirt from a drawer. You saw him look down at the cell phone you’d been eyeing.

“Your phone went off,” you admitted, the laundry basket still pressed up against your hip.

“Yeah?” He smirked over his shoulder.

“I was just making sure it wasn’t an emergency--I wasn’t, like, snooping.”

A dimple appeared on his left cheek again, he tugged the fabric over his head and then shook out his hair.

“S’not an emergency,” he said. “Just a friend.”

You didn’t know if that was code. Were twenty-somethings calling their booty-calls friends now? You figured you’d ask Tristan later.

“Why are you home?” You tossed the question back at him.

“Schedule changed--went for a run after breakfast and now just, showering, y’know,” he looked down at the towel that separated you from an even more awkward moment.

“Right, sorry, I...am leaving,” you pointed to the door. “Changing, back to the office, home tonight.”

“Sounds good,” he smiled. “Figured I could make dinner, if you wanted. I make a mean chicken taco.”

You took a few steps backwards to the door. “You cook?”

“I do,” he smiled. “Hard to believe?”

“No,” you shook your head. “That would be great--if you want, but you don’t have to.”

“I’d love to,” he nodded. “I’ll see you tonight, Y/N.”

“With more clothes,” you smiled, immediately regretting the bad joke and the attention it drew to the stuffy air and the butterflies in your stomach.

“Definitely more clothes.”

You made a face at yourself once the door was shut, idiot. At least you hadn’t accidentally seen a picture of someone’s boobs. You were sure he got plenty of those.

You pushed the thought out of your head and thankfully Harry didn’t smirk at you too much when Jeff came to pick up the girls for ice cream the next afternoon. They hadn’t forgotten, but luckily Jeff had offered to take them out one night and it seemed like the perfect opportunity for Harry to tag along. That way he could stay true to his word and the girls would stop pestering him every time he popped down to the kitchen.

Zoey had been begging to bring the baby over to get out of the house, and now she was sitting in the other room with Benny on a play mat on the floor. Maeve, CeCe, Jeff and Harry stood in a line, eagerly awaiting the green light to pile into Jeff’s car.

“Okay, so Uncle Jeff can text me if you need anything, see you around 7pm?”

“Yes ma’am,” Jeff said, a salute in your direction that pulled a giggle from both of your daughters.

They’d been fighting more lately, CeCe tried to take the medal from Maeve’s room one night over the weekend and suddenly it was like world war three. You were shocked that they’d gotten it together enough to spend some time in each other's presence, even with Uncle Jeff chaperoning, but you were eager for the quiet and hopeful the screaming matches wouldn’t return once the ice cream and dinner date was finished.

“Love you, be nice to each other, okay?” You leaned down and used both hands to hold CeCe’s head in place when you planted a kiss on her forehead, then Maeve. A hug for Jeff, “only one ice cream cone this time.”

He laughed but obliged, you moved down the line to Harry, an awkward nod in his direction when you realized that whatever type of acquaintanceship had slowly started to bloom between the two of you was hardly grounds for a kiss on the forehead or even a hug.

He apparently sensed this too, a playful smile on his face when he lifted his brows. “No farewell for me?”

Jeff let out a quick laugh but Maeve and CeCe took off for the car, racing to see who could get out the front door fastest. “Alright, don’t kill each other,” you reminded again, waved them all off with an embarrassed smirk and then watched as Harry helped CeCe buckle into her booster seat.

“So,” Zoey appeared beside you, Benny in her arms as she looked out the window. “Seems like things are going well.”

“Yeah,” you shrugged casually. “He’s been nice.”

“He seems friendly,” she wiggled her brows when she met your gaze. “Flirty friendly.”

“Just friendly,” you laughed and headed for the kitchen to pour yourself a drink. It might have only been Tuesday, but the week promised to be a busy one. You wiped up a runaway drip of wine on the rim, fully aware the words about to leave your mouth would push Zoey into gear. “But I did see him shirtless yesterday.”

“That sounds amazing,” she shifted Benny in her arms, eagerness in her voice. “How was it?”

“I mean--he also caught me snooping in his room, sort of.”

“Sort of?”

You tried to downplay it. “I came home from work in the middle of the day to change and I heard him in the shower--which is weird cause I didn’t think he’d be home.”

“So you went in there?”

“Not the bathroom--I just peeked into his room and noticed it was really clean. Which is weird, right? He’s a kid!”

“He’s not a kid,” she rolled her eyes at you. “Your kids are kids. He’s twenty-four. I looked it up.”

Your eyes were wide when you turned to head for the couch. “You looked it up?”

“I was curious! He’s a celebrity living in your house and he’s very attractive and you have been harping on his age.”

“Because it felt weird at first.”

“And it doesn’t now?” Her tone was hopeful when she laid Benny back on his play mat and kneeled beside him.

You took a gulp from your wine glass. “Less weird, but only because he’s mature. He’s helpful around the house--he cooked dinner the other night--and he’s good with the girls.”

The corner of her mouth pulled towards the ceiling, arched eyebrows when she clarified. “He’s good with the girls?”

“He’s just nice to them--I was worried that they’d annoy him. I mean, I doubt that he was excited to hear that two of his roommates were six and ten.”

“Okay--but why did you see him shirtless?”

Right--she’d gotten you off track. “Because...I went in his room and then saw his phone buzzing and then he came out and caught me looking at his phone.”

“You were looking through his phone?!”

“No! Not the actual texts, just to see who was blowing it up. I only looked at the lock screen.”

“Was he annoyed?”

“No,” you shrugged, shame laced through your voice. “He was casual. But then he put his shirt on and I left him alone and went back to work.”

“So there’s sexual tension,” she shimmied her shoulders and pulled a laugh from you, she nuzzled down into Benny’s face but then gave him a pacifier.

“No.”

This brought her gaze back to you, more serious now. “Y/N, you are not a creep if you admit that you find him attractive.”

“I can admit that he’s handsome,” you chose a new word that felt more detached. “But who cares? He’s literally just a house guest. A friend of a friend.”

“Right, but he was just flirting with you like there’s no tomorrow.”

“No he wasn’t,” you denied her accusation. When she stared at you expectantly, you took a loud sip and let the obnoxious noise ring through the now empty house as if it would preclude you from saying any more.

“You truly, seriously, one-hundred percent haven’t noticed any type of flirting?”

You averted your eyes for a second, ready to dismiss her question and tell her she was crazy. There was nothing going on between the two of you.

But then you thought on it, thought about the way he asked about Maeve and CeCe and remembered the way your stomach seemed to twist itself in knots when he smirked at you and when the dimples appeared on his cheeks.

“The look on your face is enough of an answer,” Zoey teased, bouncing side to side when Benny made a noise. “Isn’t that right, Benny Boo? Someone has a crush.”

“There’s no crush here--he’s just,” a shrug of your shoulders when you didn’t know what words to use. You didn’t want to add fuel to her fire and you certainly didn’t want to give her any more of a reason to keep bringing this topic up.

“Dreamy? Beautiful? The perfect rebound post-divorce?”

A flutter of your eyelids in annoyance when you stood to head for the kitchen. “No,” you said, making a face in her direction. “He’s just cute.”

“So cute!” She followed behind and egged you on. “A crush is perfectly harmless, a little bedtime rendezvous is totally not a big deal.”

“I think we’re getting ahead of ourselves, here, okay?”

“Oh come on,” she laughed. “You mean to tell me you haven’t already thought about if he’s good in bed?”

She came to sit next to you at the island, folding her legs beneath her. When you sipped at your wine and tried to hide a smirk, her face lit up. “I knew it, I knew it! I don’t blame you, at all, by the way. He’s gorgeous.”

“I’m just horny, number one,” you admitted, leaning forward to rest your elbow on the granite counter. “And seeing a man actually be good with kids is a breath of fresh air.”

“Yeah, Luke didn’t set the bar high with that one.”

“Absolutely not.”

A pause of silence when evening air blew through the open doors to the patio. There was music audible through the trees, wafting in from the backyard of your neighbors.

“I think you should fuck him.”

“What?!” You turned towards her quickly, your voice quieter when she smirked and looked over at you. “Are you out of your mind?”

“You have a ridiculously attractive man living in your house and he hangs out with your kids and now he’s starting to cook? It’s like a lifetime movie waiting to happen.”

“That doesn’t mean I should have sex with him!”

“Do you want to have sex with him?”

You were quiet for a second, kept her gaze but then rolled your eyes and shook your head. “I’ve had a bad year,” you made an excuse for the pulsing in your veins whenever you were alone with him. Nothing more, nothing less.

“When does he leave again?”

“I don’t know--at the end of the week, I guess. It’s not happening, so don’t get any ideas.”

“Alright,” she seemed to relent, “You do you. I just think you deserve a little feel good time.”

“That sounds gross,” you wrinkled your nose, pulling a laugh out of her.

She was able to change the topic, told you all about the way Benny was getting better at lifting his own head and he was screaming a lot less when she put him down for some tummy time. Your phone dinged, though, signalling a new text just when you were about to pull out leftovers and heat them up.

She watched when you opened it, got excited when you smirked at the screen.

“Who is it?”

You almost didn’t want to show her, but you knew she’d pry it out of your hands with force if you didn’t share. You flipped it around, watched as a smile spread across her face.

A picture of Harry and CeCe, both with sunglasses on as they ate their ice cream. Maeve and Jeff were in the background, the line at the ice cream shop down the street wasn’t too long. You were kind of surprised he was willing to go with them, wouldn't it create a buzz in the headlines?

Zoey gave you a knowing look.

“It’s just sweet.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t know,” you smiled a little at first, but the happiness faded from your face when you pulled yourself back to reality. “I feel stupid thinking that he’s flirting with me. He could be with a supermodel if he wanted to. One with perky boobs and who’s, like, twenty. Not someone who’s old enough to be his mom.”

“You are seven years older than him,” she made a disgusted face. “You could have been, like, his babysitter, not his mom.”

“Oh, that makes me feel so much better.”

“You’re being stupid about this!”

You paused with tupperware in your hands, turned around slowly. “I am not being dumb about not having casual sex with the popstar boyband kid living under my roof. I think not having sex with him is objectively the responsible thing to do here.”

“Why do you always have to be so responsible, though? You have been doing that forever, okay? You’re the business owner mom who’s always been incredibly family-oriented.”

“Is that a bad thing?”

“No, not in the slightest! But you’re more than just a mom.”

You bit at your cheek and dropped her gaze, put the tupperware down from exhaustion. “I just want my children to have a normal life. I only had one parent and I thought they were going to have two and now that ship has sailed.”

She nodded sympathetically. “But that doesn’t mean you did anything wrong! You never relaxing and having a good time will only teach them bad work-life balance.”

You rolled your eyes at her comment, tried to fight the smile when she waited for you to fold. “I love you,” she said. “I want you to get laid or have a drink or let your hair down once in a while.”

You held up the wine in her face. “Already halfway there.”

She reached for the bottle of wine and shoved it towards you with skeptical eyes. “Try harder.”

You let out a laugh and took another sip once it was refilled, pushed plates into the microwave and sat there with her until Jeff’s car pulled back into the driveway and the girls came tumbling back into the house.

“Mom, Harry said he could teach me how to play guitar,” Maeve grinned up at you, an affectionate hug caught you by surprise, but so did her words.

“He did, did he?” You eyed Harry as he walked in with Jeff by his side, sunglasses still on his face despite the sun lingering just above the horizon.

“We’ll start a band,” Harry nodded in her direction, kept his eyes shielded as CeCe ran into the backyard with a noise of excitement.

“And Uncle Jeff said he’ll sing.”

“You’ll definitely get far, then,” you teased, pulling an offended look from your childhood friend. “He’s obviously the best singer in the house.”

Harry nodded in playful agreement. “Could put me out of a job any day.”

“Maeve!” CeCe called suddenly, pulling everyone’s attention to the backyard. “Come play squishball!”

Harry looked down at Maeve and she looked up at him, you were unaware of whatever unspoken communication was transpiring between them. “Should we?” He asked.

“Definitely,” she giggled, hands on her hips.

Zoey was also confused, but she watched as Maeve and Harry headed for the patio. Harry finally took his sunglasses off, handed them to your older daughter before he spoke. “CeCe, we need to have a meeting.”

“A meeting?” She asked, she groaned in disappointment but walked back towards the house, bat dragging on the grass behind her. Jeff laughed and folded his arms over his chest, unaware of whatever deal had already been struck between them.

“You two are both really great at squishball,” Harry admitted, his voice suddenly more serious than before. “But I think we need to up the stakes.”

“Up the stakes?” You could tell by the look on CeCe’s face that she had no clue what that meant.

“Winner of this game gets the medal I won from the spelling bee,” Maeve explained.

You were about to protest, head outside and discourage any type of betting or gambling or whatever the backyard made up game was leading towards, but Harry went on to explain the rules. “CeCe gets a head start running bases, just because of her tiny legs.”

Maeve nodded, “and she gets a free home run to start off.”

CeCe smiled wide and put her hands on her hips, pulling a laugh from Harry as she copied her older sister. “I like the sound of that,” she said. A sure-fire way to make her win, you realized. But what was in that for Maeve? How had your previously grumpy pre-teen become a team player in a matter of hours?

It wasn’t long before Zoey gathered up her things and put Benny in the backseat, giggling and excited yells floated in from the backyard when you hugged her goodbye. Jeff stayed past sunset and offered an excited high five when CeCe won, completely unaware at how easy they’d made it for her.

But he soon left, too, you climbed the stairs behind your two little athletes, got them washed up and in bed before it was 9pm--not bad for a weeknight. You were sure Harry would have retreated to his room, too, but he was sat by the fire pit on the patio, a near empty glass of wine in his hand when you came back out.

“Care to explain?” you leaned against the doorframe and smiled. He adjusted in his seat but shrugged his shoulders when you admitted: “I never thought I would hear the end of it with that stupid medal.”

There was a confident look on his face when he met your eyes in the glow of the fire pit. “Figured I can teach her a few chords on guitar and that would take her mind off of taunting CeCe.”

It was smart, you nodded slowly and watched him. Give Maeve something that would get her really excited, but only if she’d give up something else. Bargaining--a classic parenting trick. You eyed Harry with a level of skepticism.

“How are you so good with them?”

He smiled at that, apparently flattered by the compliment. “They’re good kids,” he said simply.

“I’m aware,” you laughed, “but you don’t have to spend so much time with them.”

“I like it,” he shrugged. “It’s kind of nice to be around a family, you know?”

The words pulled emotion to your chest. Did you really look like a family to him? No husband, no grandfather, two irreplaceable roles and now you were trying to fill all of them just to keep your kids afloat.

“And besides,” he stood from his chair and grabbed the now empty glass before he came closer to you. “Something about being here just feels right.”

You looked up at him, felt the same rush of heat to your cheeks but hoped you were safe in the cover of night. He smirked, like he knew what he was doing to you but was too much of a gentleman to call you out. Hesitation when you felt some type of magnetic force between you, the distance simultaneously felt like inches and miles.

You smiled softly, embarrassed by the way your pulse picked up and the thoughts that flew through your head. What would happen if I, does he ever think about, am I crazy if I want to?

He brushed past you and walked to the sink, placing the wine glass down quietly before he turned to face you once more. “Is it as bad as you thought?”

Confusion, you wiped your sweaty palms on your pants. “Sorry?”

“Having me here,” he motioned around, the dimple on his left cheek was visible even in the dim light. You rolled your eyes, dropped his gaze for a second when he let out a quiet laugh. “I hope that it’s only as miserable as you thought--m’just aiming for not worse than expected at this point.”

You turned to face him and put your hands on the granite, thankful for the fact that the island was now between you, the ticking of a clock on the wall kept time when you tried to piece your words together carefully.

Was he flirting with you? A similar to question to that he'd asked only a few nights earlier, this time with more of a smirk on his face and a lilt in his voice that made sent a shiver down your spine.

“It’s better,” you admitted with a nod and a teasing smile. “But don’t tell Jeff that.”

He crossed his arms over his chest, held your gaze and then nodded. “Your secret’s safe with me.”

There was silence for a second, you almost offered to pour him another glass of wine but then he said: “Only a few more days, though.”

“Yeah,” you nodded, the fantasy shattered on the floor between you. “How’s the house coming?”

He winced, a quiet laugh when he shook his head. “Everything’s been pushed out a few weeks, actually. But--it’s fine, I’m probably just going to stay with a friend or something, you know, don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

You brought your lips into a thin line, unsure if what you were about to offer was appropriate or weird or just plain awkward.

“Oh...well, I mean, if you want to stay here longer, you can.”

His mouth pulled up on the side, he brought his gaze back to you and shifted his weight on his feet. “Yeah? You don’t mind?”

You shrugged, again hoping to play it cool or not come off too eager. “If that would be helpful,” you trailed off.

“Yeah, very helpful.”

“Cool.”

“Cool,” he nodded, pulling another smirk from you.

A few more weeks, tops.

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