#I don't want to get myself caught up in anything. If people start arguing with me I'll block you without a response.

[moon-down47]

guhh I'm being paranoid about everything and I just wanna say I don't support pansear because of the whole thing that happened back in May and that was when I originally stopped supporting her. In general her fanbase also unnerved me slightly and everything felt parasocial to me. Hearing her say "gr*oming can be done on accident" in her server (screenshots given by my friend who was in the server) just made me even more scared because it makes my own experiences feel invalidated despite everything I have been through, and I wouldn't doubt it could have made others feel similar.

I don't think she is a good person but the way people paint her isn't right, I don't know what to believe or trust anymore, but I am going to stay unbiased as I am not and never was truly involved, and I don't want to get involved. My own opinions stay with everything that happened in May and the things I have been shown she has stated to her whole server. Unless there is actual proof about those screenshots or the alligations I don't think I can trust anyone.

My involvment in ERC has likely gotten me blocked by a few people, but understand I am not there to try and erase her image or srit anything up, that was never the intentions of me or Gerber, we wanted to do a good thing by giving out free emotes with the help of multiple other artists, especially in such a time like this for the Rain World fandom, which I feel, has been going through a active downfall since late 2023 with how the people in the fandom have been active towards each other and others. As someone who joined pre-downpour, I can say I am fairly disappointed with everything, but I hold hope that things will improve in the future. With The Watcher coming out early next year, I hope that it will bring the community together and bring in more positive members.

It is difficult for me to use her emotes or look at her art a lot of the time, as I greatly disliked her statements on gr*oming being something that can accidentally happen when the whole definition of it is manipulation. Manipulation isn't something that can be done on accident. Her emotes are incredibly accessible, she has one of the largest collections out there and plenty of servers (such as my own) have used them at one point or another. I understand that it can be a struggle to seprate art from artist at times, so we simply want to give people an alternative, we're not trying to erase her. While yes, those emotes do share her identity, we want to try and give each emote it's own. For some people this doesn't work, and I understand that, but please understand we are not trying to erase her from the fandom, but this doesn't mean I support the account actively working to archive her art, she deleted everything for a reason, and I think we should respect that instead of trying to bring everything back.

I won't support anyone that was actively praying for her downfall, or anyone that was "excited" that she deleted everything. She did bad, she isn't a good person, but we don't even know if the screenshots or accusations are true, the fact you were praying for someone to leave and that they'd fall speaks more volume and shows who you are as a person, and you acutally disgust me.

I believe all we know is what was actually true and given proof, and that's all we should believe.

All I want is to draw emotes and give to the community what was ultimately taken in a sense, the server stands as an alternative, and only that. I do not care if you continue to use her emotes, I can seprate art from artist, but for some people and myself included, it is hard to step into those servers, especially with everything going on.

[my-castles-crumbling]

Disappointment

My wife has requested hurt/comfort jegulus, regulus comforting jamie, so here I am writing, because I would do anything for her (and also like let's be honest, it's not exactly a chore)

@slightly-unhinged-femme <3

-

"Fuck!" James exclaimed, throwing his Quidditch gloves against the wall of the Astronomy tower, almost making himself jump at the loud slapping sound they made.

Ten points. They had been ten points away from a win. Just one more time of getting the Quaffle through the goalpost, and they would've been champions.

"We're counting on you, James!"

"I've got ten galleons on you, Potter!"

"We need this win, James! Don't let us down!

The voices of people wishing him luck flowed quickly through his mind as he crumpled to the floor, head in his hands.

Don't let us down!

But he had. He'd let them down.

He could see the disappointment on his parents' faces, even as he saw them in the stands. He could sense Sirius's sadness as they hugged, both of their scarlet uniforms covered in sweat. He knew he'd fucked up. He'd disappointed them.

All he'd needed was one more goal.

The tears started falling as he replayed every aspect of the game, trying to think of when he could've scored. And there were so many mistakes he made. So many times he could've turned left instead of right, gone up instead of down. Merlin, it really was all his fault.

He didn't hear the footsteps approach until a hand rested on his shoulder.

"Jamie."

He would have known that voice anywhere. The voice of the only person he would ever let see him like this. The only person he wanted to see.

"I fucked up, Reggie," he mumbled, not even looking up.

"You're an idiot," Regulus replied, sliding down to sit with him.

Anyone who didn't know Regulus might have thought he was agreeing with James. But James knew him better. "Yeah?" he asked, chuckling through his tears. "Why am I an idiot this time?"

"Well first, those are dragonhide gloves," Regulus said disgustedly, gesturing to the gloves James had thrown.

James laughed again, wiping at his face.

"But second," Regulus said, softer now, "this isn't your fault."

"I'm the captain," James mumbled, resting his head against Regulus's shoulder, breathing in his comforting scent. "It was my job to-"

"It was your job to lead your team," Regulus interrupted, throwing James a stern look. "Did you lead your team?"

Silently, James nodded, knowing better than to argue.

"Exactly. McKinnon hit that Bludger so far it almost didn't come back! Smith scored from halfway down the Pitch! Sirius finally learned how to hold the damn bat! You led the best team in the damn league, James, and that's on you! And I'll kill you if you tell anyone I said you're the best, by the way," he added quickly as an afterthought.

"But we lost," James murmured, turning pink at the compliment.

"I caught the Snitch," Regulus shrugged, wrapping his green robes tighter over his body. "You lot may be the best team, but I'm the best Seeker."

James stared forward, allowing the words to sink in. "I should be happy for you," he whispered, guilt flooding through him all over again.

"As if I wouldn't have thrown a right fit if we'd lost," Regulus grinned, pressing a kiss to his head. I would've shut myself in my room and read poetry until you knocked down the door, like a right tit.

James snorted. "I...I feel like I let everyone down," he said, voicing the thought that ate at him. The thing that constantly made him worry.

"Well, did you let you down?" Regulus asked, grey eyes piercing through his misery. "Or did you try your hardest, and your talented, attractive, modest boyfriend just happened to beat your arse?"

Again he laughed. "Alright, point taken. I...I'm happy for you. I think."

"As you should be," Regulus laughed, but his tone was teasing.

James smiled, looking at Regulus with admiration.

"By the way," Regulus added softly, pressing another kiss to James's lips, "you didn't let anyone down. We love you for you, James. Not how many points you get in a stupid Quidditch Match."

[multifariousqueer]

Can you write Miles 42 being like really super duper protective and like controls her, he doesn’t let her go out by herself and stuff like that and is like always watching her. They argue about his over protectiveness but he could care less

Ofc babes!!!

warnings: toxic behaivor, miles being annoying, angst, references to robbery and murder, strong language, INCREDIBLY TOXIC BEHAVIOR!!!!!!, brief mention of drinking, lmk if I missed one or two

A/n: Send more miles 42 reqs pls

730 days. Thats how long you were with this man. Thats how long it's been since you got leave the house alone. Miles was very overprotective since his dad died and he saw the world for what it was. Evil and it was filled with nothing but scum. Miles determined that this world wasn't good enough for you and you needed to be "protected" and kept away from this disgraceful universe. So, he took it upon himself to protect the only two things that mattered to him, you and his mom and he did a good job at it.

Miles would walk you to school, work, home and if you needed something, he would be the one to get it for you:

"Miles baby, I can get it myself; its right outside." you pleaded.

"Nah, Mami. I don't want you outside by yourself. People are fucked up and they will hurt you." He said stoically.

"But-" you started

"Cállate, Y/n. Before I make you” he said, stepping closer

You knew Miles well and you knew to stop pressing because he would just shut down and you hated when he shut down. Miles would just put his hand on his braids and kick something before giving you the same speech:

“Y/n you saw what they did to my father, do you want that to happen to you too? Because if I let you go out by yourself, you’re at risk for that to happen and if it does or if anything or anyone touches you, I will kill them; and that’s a promise, Mami. I will kill anyone that lays a finger on you and not bat an eye. Don’t fuck with me, y/n. Stay close. Let me protect you and we will be good. Aight?"

“okay.” you would say. Miles had a way of making you seem two inches tall in these situations.

You never left his side. For two years, he would watch your every move(he put small cameras in your home. You didn’t notice until three months ago); he would take you shopping but never posted about you just in case a villain would use try to use you as his weakness(because lets face it, you’re his weakness), he would kiss you and be sweet in private but he would act hard when anyone else was around.

It was a cold winter’s day when you decided you had had enough. Your friend y/f/n(your friends name) had invited you out to a party. You had never been to one because of Miles but you decided enough was enough and you were gonna go. So you slipped on a small dress, cute heels and a jacket that made your tits look nice and left:

“I’ll be home soon!” You told your parent

“Okay, y/n. Tell Miles I said hi” they exclaimed

“Okay!” You shouted back. They knew how overprotective Miles was but they knew he was a good person overall so they left it alone.

As you walked to hail a taxi, you felt your phone vibrate:

Miles: Wanna go out?

You: No it’s okay, imma just stay in for tonight

Miles: Nah fr. Let me take you out

You looked down and debated answering the text, but ultimately decided not to. You got in the taxi and went to the party when you saw a shadow dash across the roof.

You walked into the party and greeted your friend:

“GIRL OMG YOU LOOK SO GOOD. WHERE’S MILES?” They shouted over the loud music

“He’s not here, it’s just me. Let’s go grab a drink!” You replied

“Oh Okay!!” Your friend said

As you were walking over, you could’ve sworn you saw a man that looked exactly like your boyfriend but he vanished when a man walked past. You brushed it off and grabbed a cup of jungle juice and went to dance. You grinded against your friend who caught it during the beat drop. You were having the time of your life until you checked your phone:

Miles: I know where you are, y/n. Come home or I’m coming there.

Miles: I should’ve known you’d lie to me. You’ve been acting real shady lately, wanting to go out and shit. Just wait till you get home, we’re gonna address this shit immediately.

Miles: I see you

Miles: Stop ignoring me, y/n. You know you fucked up

Miles: Imagine wearing the chrome heart necklace I got you while dancing like a slut on your friend

Your stomach dropped as you surveyed your surroundings, looking for a sign of him. When you couldn’t see him, you hailed a taxi and went home.

You fidgeted and fiddled the whole way home. The driver looked in his rear view mirror at you:

“You good, Mami?"

The name sent shivers up your spine as it was your boyfriends name for you.

“Oh! I’m fine, just cold haha” you laughed it off

The driver turned on the heat and sooner or later you were home.

You approached your doorstep and went to your room. Your parent was asleep and you walked in your room, thinking his threat was empty, until you went to shower and saw him behind the door:

“MILES” you screamed both in shock and horror

“Y/n.” he said, closing the door, encapsulating you both in the small room together

“I’m so sorry-“ you started

“you should be. What did I tell you, y/n? I do all of this shit for your safety but you continue to fight me and pull these stunts” Miles lectured as he closed in on you. Your height difference becoming more and more apparent

“Stunts? Fight? Miles I have been nothing but obedient to you which I shouldn’t even have to do if you treated me like a person instead of an object. That’s all I am to you isn’t it? An object. A doll. Just something you don’t want other people to have or see?” you argued

But your pleas and your confessions meant nothing to the man. He simply looked at you and said:

“yeah, actually.”

“what?” you said

“You are an object to me, you’re something I have to protect otherwise the world will take you from me like they did him.” Miles said, as stoic as ever

“STOP USING YOUR DAD AS LEVERAGE IN THIS, MILES. THIS ISN’T ABOUT HIM, ITS ABOUT YOU AND ME AND IF YOURE JUST GONNA KEEP TREATING ME THIS WAY, I’LL FIND SOMEONE ELSE.” You shouted, exasperated and on the verge of tears.

“do it, y/n. I dare you to find someone who will care for you and spoil you as much as I do.” Miles said, briefly breaking his nonchalant nature

“Fine I will!” you said reaching for the doorknob.

You left and put on clothes as you made him leave.

“You’ll be back.” Miles said, nonchalantly

“Fuck you, Miles Morales.” you said

It had been a week and you were sulking and debating getting back with the man when your family and friends told you were doing the right thing:

“I’m glad you left him, y/n. I heard he’s the prowler.” Your parent said

“Yeah I’m glad I left too.” you mumbled

As you were enjoying your fifth night of freedom, you saw a woman get mugged on the street:

“GIVE ME YOUR PURSE NOW LADY” The masked man shouted

The woman did as told and the man escaped but not before looking at you and running in your direction. With Miles, that man would’ve never even had the though to look at you.

You ran as fast as you could until you lost him in an alley behind your apartment. You decided you missed him too much and he was right so you pulled out your phone:

You: Miles you were right. I’m so sorry

Miles: typing...

Miles: its okay, I knew you’d find out soon enough; so what happened, Mami?

You: Some mugger saw me and charged at me and he had a knife

Miles: What did he look like

You: Beanie, knife, blue shirt and black pants

seen

You went home and went to sleep. The next morning you heard the news blaring in the house, along with the smell of bacon wafting through the house

“What happened?” you asked

“some mugger got killed.” your parent said

You had a stinging sensation in your gut and prayed that it wasn’t what it looked like when you heard the woman on the TV:

“It seemed like there were claw marks In his chest and he had been blasted with a ray gun."

Oh God...

You went to text Miles when you saw his text:

“You don’t gotta worry about that guy anymore, Mami. I’ll be at your house at 10.”

[hollowed-theory-hall]

hello 🤗

As your point about hinny, is Ginny actually so -called 'safe girl' for Harry? Like he knows her and don't need to know smbd else, they have some shared experiences (Chamber of Secrets and fighting Voldemort in general), she's cute and knows how to defend herself, so Harry can't worry, etc

I've always wondered how Ginny even agrees to this kind of relationship where Harry doesn't tell her anything, bc of their interaction in canon I don't see any reason to see them in a more or less healthy relationship after the war, especially if Harry becomes an Auror. maybe Ginny is like Molly in this way, clearly more than she can think for herself, and so is Hermione - they both listen to her as an authoritative woman and accepted her advices

Hello 👋

I think Ginny doesn't see their relationship the way it is. She idolized Harry as someone he very clearly isn't:

“But you’ve been too busy saving the Wizarding world,” said Ginny, half laughing. “Well . . . I can’t say I’m surprised. I knew this would happen in the end. I knew you wouldn’t be happy unless you were hunting Voldemort. Maybe that’s why I like you so much.”

(HBP)

I mean, the things she loves about him are just not true about him at all. She is in love with a person who doesn't exist. And honestly, I don't know if love is the right word. I'd even call it an obsession:

“I never really gave up on you,” she [Ginny] said. “Not really. I always hoped. . . . Hermione told me to get on with life, maybe go out with some other people, relax a bit around you, because I never used to be able to talk if you were in the room, remember? And she thought you might take a bit more notice if I was a bit more — myself.”

(HBP)

She is so fixated on being with Harry that she changes her own behavior around him so he would like her better. I also mentioned here how I think her interest in Quidditch is relatively new. That she started playing for Harry to like her better. (I mean, she only started showing interest in the sport during book 5, there were no hints of it before that).

Ron describes how upset she after Harry broke up with her, none of which she was willing to show Harry:

“You ditched her. What are you doing now, messing her around,” “I’m not messing her around,” said Harry, as Hermione caught up with them. “Ron—” But Ron held up a hand to silence her. “She was really cut up when you ended it—” “So was I. You know why I stopped it, and it wasn’t because I wanted to.”

(DH)

But that 'so was I', was he? Was he really 'cut up' over it? He didn't think about her until he saw her again, and Aunt Muriel was the one who had to mention Ginny's dress had a very low cut, Harry didn't notice:

“Yes, my tiara sets off the whole thing nicely,” said Auntie Muriel in a rather carrying whisper. “But I must say, Ginevra’s dress is far too low cut.” Ginny glanced around, grinning, winked at Harry, then quickly faced the front again.

(DH)

That aforementioned faked "toughness" is also one of the only things Harry actively mentions liking about Ginny:

He chanced a glance at her. She was not tearful; that was one of the many wonderful things about Ginny, she was rarely weepy. He had sometimes thought that having six brothers must have toughened her up

(DH)

Now, I actually think this behavior is very different from what we see from Molly. While I'm not the biggest Molly fan, I do have to defend her here. Because she may be a housewife, but she's wearing the pants in her and Arthur's relationship. Molly and Arthur have a very different relationship than Ginny and Harry. With them, I believe they know each other well and love each other for who they are. And yes, they argue, but the undercurrent is a love that's always there. Molly wouldn't just accept anything Arthur decided to dish (not that he would) at her and we clearly see she gets mad at him over various things, from getting muggle stitches to enchanting a car to having a fistfight at a bookstore. She doesn't just agree with everything he says/does the way Ginny does.

Hermione, too, is not someone I see willing to deal with Ron keeping secrets from her. I mean, she sent birds to attack him when he made out with Lavender when they weren't together yet, I don't see her as the kind of wife that'll be chill with not being told the important things. I mean, it's not that you have to tell your partner everything, but the expectation is that of trust and understanding, something that Harry and Ginny don't seem to have.

With Harry and Ginny, Harry sees Ginny as a 'safe girl' on whom Harry can have a crush. For Ginny, Harry is her childhood hero crush she's been obsessed with for years. She changed her personality to date him, she dated other guys to get his attention, and once she got him she did everything, accepted everything from him with no argument because she didn't want to lose him and was insecure in their relationship.

To me, this doesn't seem healthy at all, but that's what it seems like.

How jealous Ginny is, not even letting Harry go with Cho to see Ravenclaw's statue in book 7. How annoyed she got when Harry for a second mentioned Fleur is pretty in passing. Again indicates how insecure Ginny is in this relationship, she doesn't trust Harry to stay with her and she is willing to turn her entire life around if it means being with Harry Potter whom she thinks she loves.

This is how Ginny's character reads to me, which is one of the reasons I really don't like her. I don't see her as incredibly brave or badass, I feel she is wearing a facade of the badass girl she thinks Harry wants while beneath she's an insecure, emotional mess who is desperately trying to keep from crying cause she thinks Harry would hate her if she cried.

And I don't think Harry knows this is what the relationship is. I don't think he realized Ginny was trying so hard to fit the 'safe girl' image he projected on her so he wouldn't leave her. I think he misses all her effort and thinks it's just who she is — which is exactly what Ginny is trying to accomplish.

But Ginny doesn't fully realize this is what she's doing. I think, in her mind, she is trying to be a girl "worthy" of the Harry Potter image she has in her head. She doesn't see him as who he is, but as some Chosen One savior of the wizarding world Harry never wanted to be. So she puts all his actions in this context: "It's fine cause he's saving us," or "he's the hero so it's fine," it's not about Harry as a person to her. And she's trying so hard to be who she thinks the girlfriend of the Boy-Who-Lived should be.

So to your question of why Ginny deals with it? Well, she convinced herself she has to be with Harry (or, at least, the image she has of him). She wrapped up herself so much in that fixation that she was willing to deal with anything from him if it meant being with him. Except for him looking at another girl for even a second.

I mean, if she's willing to change her entire personality and date guys she doesn't like to get Harry and be someone she thinks is "worthy" of him, what's dealing with a few secrets to help save the world compared to that?

(It could've been really funny if Harry did end up with Luna who Ginny didn't consider a threat. But this is just me with my "if I had to ship Harry with a girl it'll always be Luna" agenda)

[stars4noah]

HALLEY'S COMET- one.

{WARNINGS}: swearing, arguing, jealousy, weed, brief mention of sex, reader gets caught with a vape at the airport 💔

w.c- 2,144

a.n- this is my first fic ever! and ofc with noah, who else? let me know how you like it! feedback is always welcome <3

if you would like to be added to the taglist, please comment.

"come on dude, hurry up before we miss the flight." nicholas' voice rang throughout my apartment. i groaned, zipping up my suitcase and running downstairs.

i started as the photographer for bad omens back in 2015 when they formed. i'd been friends with nicholas since we were kids, and he put in a little word to their singer about how he had a friend who studied photography and could help them out. so then i was hired.

little did i know, i would grow to loathe their lead singer, noah sebastian. he was a thorn in my side, always nagging and arguing over things where half the time, he wasn't even right.

nicholas and i got in the uber, heading to the airport. we were leaving for yet another tour. which meant yet another unbearable year with noah. we were meeting them there, and i was a little less than thrilled.

"penny for your thoughts?" nicholas said, noticing how i was zoning out.

"just thinking about how unbearable noah is. i am not happy about this." i sighed.

nicholas laughed softly, shaking his head. "you ever think that maybe that 'hate' is something else?" i looked at him, confused. "like what?" i asked.

"oh, i dunno, love? lust? whatever you wanna call it."

i looked at him like he just told me he killed my family. what a crazy thought. me? in love with noah? absolutely not. hell no.

"i would rather swallow shards of glass than date that motherfucker." i said, nicholas laughing at my words.

we soon arrived at the airport, meeting up with the others at the entrance. i made it my mission to avoid noah, which soon proved to be unsuccessful.

"nice shoes." he said sarcastically, walking next to me in front of the other three.

i rolled my eyes. "what's wrong with my shoes?" i asked, looking down at my dirty and worn converses.

noah rolled his eyes back. "you look like you haven't bought a new pair of shoes in years. i know damn well we pay you enough, you can afford them."

"yeah, i can afford them. but i don't want them." i said. "i'm perfectly fine with these. they're in good shape, just a little dirty."

"a little is putting it lightly." he said. "you look like you've gone through multiple wars in those things. buy some new damn shoes, please."

i ignored his words, putting all my things in a little tub as we began to go through security. when i went through the detector, they flagged me down and pulled me to the side, making me furrow my brows. i didn't think i had anything. i put everything in the bin. except... fuck.

i groaned as they pulled the vape out of my pocket, the others in front of me trying not to laugh at the situation as they gathered theirs and my items.

"we're gonna have to confiscate this, miss." the guard said, and i nodded. they gave me one last pat down before letting me go.

"nice job, idiot." noah said as i slung my backpack over my shoulder.

"do you have to make a jab at every mistake i make?" i snapped back. "no, but it's funny."

i huffed, starting to walk to our terminal, not in the mood for any more teasing or jokes.

"oh, come the fuck on." i groaned as noah sat beside me on the plane. "you had to have done this on purpose."

"sorry, princess. happened by chance." he said, starting to get comfortable.

i placed my head in my hands, mentally cursing everyone and everything for this happening to me before facing him again.

"i'm saying this now, and i better not have to repeat myself. i'd like to have a nice, calm, and quiet flight. if you bother me, i swear to god i will punch you. got it?"

noah snickered and gave a mock salute. "yes ma'am."

i sighed, putting on my headphones to block out the noises of the other people around me and closed my eyes.

a couple hours later, there was a tap on my shoulder. i sighed deeply before taking off my headphones and facing the culprit. noah, of course. "what?"

"do you have snacks? i'm hungry."

"no, idiot. why would i have snacks on an airplane? ask the flight attendant."

"i don't want to do that." he said.

"then starve or something, i don't care." i replied, moving to put my headphones back on.

"but y/nnnn!" he whined, shaking my shoulder like a toddler. he was doing this on purpose to piss me off.

"don't touch me with your gross hands" i said, pushing him away.

"then get me snacks."

"get them your damn self." i shot back.

noah rolled his eyes. "can't you do something for somebody else for once? you're so damn selfish."

"you're calling me selfish because i won't get you a snack? do you hear yourself right now? you sound like a child." i said.

"whatever, will you please call the flight attendant for me? the button is on your side."

"no, do it yourself." i said stubbornly.

"come on, you can't press a button? i don't want to lean on you to press it." he said.

i rolled my eyes, pressing the button. "there, happy?"

he rolled his eyes back, the flight attendant approaching him. of course, he had to flirt with her when she came up. when did he never flirt with people? she wasn't even that pretty, why was he doing that? surely he could do better. i mean, i'm better.

woah, what? i can't be thinking that. i hate him. hate him more than anything. i'm not jealous.

i kept repeating that to myself over and over again, trying to convince myself that the words were true.

i'm not jealous. i'm not jealous. i'm not. it's fine, it's whatever.

but as the attendant left, i found myself speaking again.

"seriously?" i asked.

"what?" he replied, feigning innocence.

"do you have to flirt with every girl you see? she's not even that pretty."

"aww, is someone jealous?" he teased.

i rolled my eyes, grimacing. "you wish. i would rather swallow glass than be with you." i said, repeating the words i had spoken to nicholas just hours prior.

"the feeling's mutual, princess." he said, giving me a wink.

by the time we made it to our hotel, i was exhausted, frustrated, and hungry. throughout the entire flight, noah would not stop bothering me. asking stupid questions, flirting with girls, jabbing and poking me and other things of the sort.

i went to my hotel room, which i would be sharing with nicholas, doordashing some food and laying on my bed.

"how was the flight?" he asked.

"how do you think?" i replied. "i swear, when i find out who booked the tickets, they're getting an earful."

nicholas bit his lip, trying to hide his laugh, but not doing very well. i looked at him with furrowed brows before it dawned on me.

"you bitch! why would you do that to me?!" i yelled, throwing a pillow at him.

"because the tension is unbearable! you guys need to resolve your issues and fuck already." he said, catching the pillow in his tattooed hands.

i grimaced at the simple thought of doing anything with him. "gross. never. it's not happening." i said.

"you say that now." he said. "how about we make a bet?"

i raised my eyebrow, motioning for him to go on.

"if anything, and i mean anything happens with you and noah, i get $100. kissing, cuddling, sex, whatever."

i shrugged. should be simple enough, right?

"alright. what's in it for me?" i asked.

"if nothing happens throughout the whole tour, then i'll do whatever you want."

"oh, you're gonna regret saying that." i laughed. "be prepared to lose."

he smirked, holding out his hand for me to shake. i shook his hand, and then there was a knock on the door. that must be our food.

i got up, going to open the door and accepting the food from the worker before closing the door and setting it on the bed, giving nicholas his items and sitting down cris-crossed on my bed.

"so, where's the first show?" i asked.

"about an hour or so from here." he said, and i nodded. we were in Ohio right now, so it was probably in Columbus or some place close.

"sold out?" i asked as i took a bite of my food.

"almost." he replied. "if it's not sold out by tomorrow, i'll be surprised. tickets are selling fast as fuck."

"that's good." i said. "you guys have progressed a lot in ten years. that's really fucking good."

nicholas smiled softly. "yeah, i'm just glad we made it this far. when we first got together, we all just thought it would be a fun little pass time and play a couple shows and make a little extra money. never thought it would be this big."

i nodded. "i'm proud of you guys, though. it takes a lot of talent to make it this far."

the two of us talked about random things as we ate our food and watched whatever we could find on the shitty hotel TV.

when we finally went to sleep, i closed my eyes and forced away the thoughts that maybe, just maybe, nicholas could be right.

the next morning, nicholas' 6 am alarm woke the both of us up. we had to be up early the travel the hour to the next city, and it took multiple hours to set up the stage and instruments for the show. i woke up, doing my usual morning routine and pushing away the thoughts of noah that suddenly wanted to flood through my mind. i grabbed my suitcase and nicholas and i walked out to the elevator, heading to the tour bus when we got to the lobby.

the tour bus wasn't the fanciest thing in the world, but it was still pretty damn nice. and of course, being in a bus full of boys who also happened to be stoners, the familiar scent of weed flooded my senses when i walked onto the bus. i put my suitcase on my bunk (which of course just so happened to be below noah's for some god forsaken reason), before sitting down on one of the couches in the back area in front of nick and jolly, and beside noah.

even though i hated him, i always ended up gravitating towards him in any situation. when i was scared or upset, i'd be next to him. we had an odd relationship for two people who claimed they hated each other's guts. on multiple occasions, we had been caught cuddling in our bunks or on the couch. we had these brief moments where every other feeling faded away, leaving just the two of us to do whatever we wanted. we were never sexually active with each other, but there would be an occasional make out session or peck on the lips while we were cuddling. if i was in trouble, i would immediately go to noah or nicholas. they were like my safe places. somewhere i could go to hide away from the world. and just as soon as it began, it ended. we would immediately go back to fighting and hating each other within the next hour. it was a rollercoaster, but it's what we had gotten used to over the years.

nick passed the joint to me and i took a couple hits before passing it to noah, who unusually declined. "woah, you good man?" jolly asked.

noah hummed. "yeah, just thinking. not really in the mood." he said, leaned back against the couch with his hands laced together in his lap. he looked focused, like he was thinking really hard about something. i'd make sure to ask him about it later.

soon, we arrived at the arena. it was empty, save for a few stage workers and other people wandering around. i unpacked my camera backstage, turning it on and checking all the settings as i walked backstage and towards my area in the front of the barriers, humming to myself. i wasn't paying much attention until i collided with something, falling backwards with some sort of liquid all over me and my camera on the ground.

i cursed, not paying any mind to the person who bumped into me and grabbing my camera. it was covered in coffee and the lens was broken. completely unusable. it was completely fried and wouldn't even turn on. "fuck!" i yelled, running my hands through my hair. no camera meant no pictures. no pictures meant a very, very pissed off noah.

"what the hell happened?" a voice spoke, snatching away my attention.

[magical-reid]

A World Apart

Paring: Lip Gallagher x Reader (No use of Y/n)

Warnings: Reader gets herself into trouble that is inferred that it could lead to sexual harassment.

Word Count: 9.5 K

Summary: You're not a part of Lip's world, you just don't understand how things work around the South Side. Lip constantly shows up to rescue you and keep you safe.

Reader’s POV

It wasn’t like I hadn’t been warned.

“You don’t belong down there,” my dad had said, his voice tight with the kind of control he thought made him sound authoritative. “You think those people care about your bleeding heart? You’ll get eaten alive.”

His words stuck with me, like tar on a new shoe, dragging behind me even as I pressed forward. It wasn’t as if I’d meant to end up on the South Side so often—it just… happened. The people there felt real, raw in a way the manicured lawns and gated homes of the North Side didn’t.

But now, sitting in the back of a dingy laundromat with my heart hammering, I was starting to think maybe my dad had been right.

“You’re too pretty to be sitting here alone.” The guy’s voice was low, and scratchy, like he’d been smoking since birth. He leaned over me, too close. His stained shirt reeked of sweat and stale beer.

I pressed myself against the plastic chair, clutching my phone as if it might somehow shield me. “I’m just waiting for my friend,” I lied, my voice barely above a whisper.

“Friend, huh?” His grin made my stomach churn. “Don’t see nobody around here but you. What’s a North Side girl doing slumming it like this?”

My throat dried up. I didn’t have an answer—at least not one that would make sense to someone like him. My instinct was to run, but his frame blocked the narrow space between me and the exit.

“Hey!” A familiar voice cut through the tension like a blade, sharp and commanding. “Get the hell away from her.”

Lip Gallagher.

He appeared in the doorway, his shoulders squared, his scowl so dark it could’ve melted ice.

The guy glanced at Lip, and for a second, I thought he might push back. But something in Lip’s expression—something cold and unyielding—made him back off. He raised his hands mockingly. “All right, man, relax. Didn’t know she was yours.”

Lip didn’t dignify that with a response. He waited until the guy slinked out of the laundromat before turning to me.

“Are you okay?” His voice softened as he crouched down, coming to my level.

My nod felt stiff like my body hadn’t caught up with the relief flooding through me. “I’m fine,” I managed, though my shaking hands betrayed me.

“You shouldn’t be here by yourself,” he said, his tone still rough but threaded with concern. “Not around here.”

I wanted to defend myself, to say I didn’t need a babysitter, but the truth was I did. My naivety had landed me in trouble more than once since I started spending time on the South Side.

Lip sighed, running a hand through his messy blonde hair. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here.”

I didn’t argue.

Lip’s POV

She had no business being down here.

That was my first thought as I watched her clutch her phone like it was a life raft, her big, terrified eyes darting around the laundromat. She didn’t fit—didn’t belong in the cracked tile and flickering lights of this place. Not in those clean jeans and the sweater that looked like it cost more than my entire wardrobe.

The second thought? How stupid she was for putting herself in danger.

But the third thought, the one that stuck, was that I couldn’t let anything happen to her.

“You’ve got a death wish, you know that?” I muttered as we walked back to my place.

She didn’t respond, just kept her eyes on the sidewalk like it might trip her up if she looked away. Her silence wasn’t new—she wasn’t exactly chatty even on a good day. But something about the way she carried herself made me ease up. She looked small and vulnerable, fragile in a way that made my chest ache.

“Why the hell were you there alone?” I asked, trying to keep the edge out of my voice.

“I… I didn’t think it would be a big deal,” she said quietly, her words tumbling out like an apology.

“Not a big deal?” I stopped walking, turning to face her. “You get that guy wasn’t gonna just walk away, right? If I hadn’t shown up—”

She flinched, and I shut my mouth.

Damn it. I didn’t mean to scare her.

“Look,” I said, softer this time. “I’m just saying… be careful, okay?”

She nodded, her cheeks flushing. “Thanks, Lip. For… y’know.”

I shrugged, but the truth was, hearing her say my name like that made something warm settle in my chest.

Reader’s POV

Lip’s house—or whatever you’d call the chaos he lived in—wasn’t what I’d expected. I wasn’t naive enough to think it’d be neat and tidy, but the sheer disarray was overwhelming. Clothes were tossed across the couches and floors, beer bottles crowded the coffee table, and the faint scent of stale smoke hung in the air.

Still, it was better than being outside.

“Sorry for the mess,” Lip said, running a hand through his hair as he stepped over a pile of magazines. “Not exactly Buckingham Palace, but it’s safe.”

I offered him a faint smile. “I don’t mind.”

And I didn’t. For all its clutter, the Gallagher house felt more alive than any room I’d ever stepped into back home. The kids running up and down the stairs, the hum of conversation even when no one was talking—it was chaotic, yes, but it felt… real.

Lip dropped onto the couch, stretching out like he hadn’t had a decent rest in days. He patted the spot next to him.

“Come on, sit down. You’re making me nervous, just standing there.”

I hesitated for a moment before lowering myself onto the cushion, careful to avoid a stray can of beer.

“You’re shaking.” His voice was softer now, and when I looked up, I saw his eyes fixed on my hands, which were clenched tightly in my lap.

“Am I?” I tried to laugh, but it came out shaky.

Lip leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he studied me. “You’re not used to this kind of stuff, are you?”

“No,” I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper.

He didn’t say anything for a moment, just sat there, watching me like he was trying to piece me together. Finally, he shook his head.

“You shouldn’t be coming down here, you know,” he said, though the words lacked their usual bite.

“I like it here,” I said, surprising even myself.

Lip raised an eyebrow. “You like it?”

I nodded. “It’s different. People are… I don’t know, real. Up north, everyone’s so polished. Fake. It’s exhausting.”

He snorted. “Yeah, well, ‘real’ doesn’t mean safe. You’ve gotta be smart, or this place’ll eat you alive.”

I bit my lip, unsure how to respond. He wasn’t wrong. But despite everything that had happened, I didn’t want to leave. The South Side felt raw in a way that made me feel alive, even if it was dangerous.

“Anyway,” Lip said, breaking the silence. “You’re here now, so you might as well stay for a while. You hungry?”

I blinked at him. “Hungry?”

“Yeah, you know, food? Pretty basic concept.” He stood up, heading toward the kitchen. “We’ve got… uh…” He opened the fridge and frowned. “Beer and pickles. Great.”

I laughed, the sound slipping out before I could stop it.

Lip glanced back at me, his lips quirking into a grin. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” I said quickly, though my cheeks burned.

“Uh-huh,” he said, but he didn’t press further. Instead, he grabbed a couple of beers and tossed one to me.

I caught it awkwardly, staring at the label.

“You ever had one?” he asked, already popping the cap off his own.

“No,” I admitted, feeling my face heat up again.

Lip smirked. “First time for everything.”

I hesitated, then twisted off the cap and took a cautious sip. The taste was bitter, and I tried not to grimace.

“Not your thing, huh?” he teased, leaning back against the counter.

“It’s… different,” I said diplomatically, earning a laugh from him.

“Yeah, you’ll get used to it,” he said, his voice warm.

For the first time all night, I felt myself relax.

Lip’s POV

She didn’t belong here, but damn if she didn’t look good sitting on my couch.

The way she held that beer bottle like it might bite her was almost too much. She was trying so hard to keep up, to fit into a world that wasn’t made for her, and it was equal parts frustrating and endearing.

I couldn’t figure her out. Most North Side types treated us like we were beneath them, but not her. She didn’t flinch at the mess or the noise, didn’t look at me like I was some kind of charity case.

If anything, she looked like she was trying to prove she belonged.

“You’re quiet,” I said, watching as she picked at the label on her beer.

“Sorry,” she said quickly. “I’m just… not used to this.”

“Yeah, I figured.”

She looked up at me, her eyes wide and uncertain. “Do I stick out that much?”

I chuckled. “Like a sore thumb.”

Her face fell, and I cursed under my breath.

“Hey,” I said, crossing the room and sitting next to her again. “That’s not a bad thing. Just means you’re… different.”

“Different how?” she asked softly, her eyes searching mine.

I shrugged, suddenly feeling too exposed under her gaze. “I don’t know. You’re not like the girls around here.”

“Because I’m not from here,” she said, looking down again.

“Because you’re not jaded,” I corrected.

Her lips parted slightly like she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

“Most people around here, they’ve seen too much,” I said, my voice low. “Makes you hard. But you… you’re still soft.”

The room felt too quiet after that, the space between us charged with something I couldn’t quite name.

“Thanks,” she said finally, her voice so quiet I almost didn’t hear it.

I didn’t respond. Instead, I leaned back, letting the moment stretch out. For the first time in a long time, I didn’t feel the need to fill the silence.

Reader’s POV

I wasn’t supposed to be here.

Again.

Lip had made that clear the last time I ventured into the South Side alone. But it wasn’t like I’d planned for anything to happen. I’d just wanted to help. A community center not far from Lip’s house had been running low on supplies, and volunteering felt like the least I could do.

What I hadn’t considered, though, was how fast things could spiral out of control.

I was walking back to the bus stop after my shift, the evening light casting long shadows over the cracked pavement. The streets were quiet in a way that made the hair on my neck stand up. My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out, squinting at the screen.

Lip: Where are you?

I frowned, my fingers hovering over the keyboard.

Me: Heading home. Just finished volunteering.

The response came almost immediately.

Lip: You alone?

I hesitated. Before I could reply, a voice cut through the air behind me.

“Hey, sweetheart.”

I froze.

Turning slowly, I found myself face-to-face with two men, both older and rough-looking, their eyes scanning me like a predator sizing up its prey.

“What’s a girl like you doing out here all alone?” one of them asked, his grin wide and unsettling.

My heart thudded painfully in my chest. “I’m just… heading home,” I stammered, taking a step back.

“Home?” The other guy tilted his head. “Don’t think you’re from around here.”

“I’m not looking for trouble,” I said quickly, clutching my phone like it could somehow save me.

“Trouble?” The first guy laughed, stepping closer. “Trouble’s the last thing you need to worry about, honey.”

Panic surged through me, cold and paralyzing. I turned to run, but before I could take a step, one of them grabbed my arm.

“Not so fast,” he said, his grip like a vise.

“Let go of me!” I shouted, but my voice felt small, swallowed by the empty street.

And then, just when I thought I was out of options, I heard it.

“Hey!”

Lip’s voice, sharp and furious, echoed down the block.

I whipped my head around to see him sprinting toward us, his face twisted in a mix of rage and something else I couldn’t quite place.

The guy holding me let go just as Lip reached us, shoving me behind him in one swift motion.

“You two got a death wish?” Lip growled, his fists clenched at his sides.

“Relax, man,” one of the guys said, raising his hands mockingly. “We were just talking.”

“Yeah?” Lip’s jaw tightened. “Then talk to me. Leave her out of it.”

The tension crackled in the air, heavy and suffocating. For a moment, I thought they might fight. But then, after what felt like an eternity, the men exchanged a look and backed off, muttering under their breath as they disappeared into the shadows.

As soon as they were gone, Lip turned to me, his eyes blazing.

“What the hell were you thinking?” he demanded, his voice shaking.

“I—I didn’t think—”

“Exactly! You didn’t think!” He ran a hand through his hair, pacing in front of me like he couldn’t stand still. “Jesus, you could’ve gotten killed!”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my chest tightening.

Lip stopped pacing, his eyes locking onto mine. For a moment, neither of us said anything, the weight of what just happened settling over us like a heavy fog.

“You can’t do this,” he said finally, his voice rough but quieter now. “You can’t just… show up here and act like nothing bad’s gonna happen. This place doesn’t work like that.”

I swallowed hard, guilt twisting in my stomach. “I didn’t mean to cause trouble.”

Lip’s shoulders sagged, his anger giving way to something softer. He stepped closer, his hand brushing against my arm.

“I know,” he said, his voice low. “But you’ve gotta stop putting yourself in danger like this. I can’t—”

He cut himself off, his jaw tightening.

“You can’t what?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Lip hesitated, his eyes searching mine. “I can’t keep seeing you get hurt.”

The raw honesty in his voice made my breath catch.

“Lip…”

“No, listen to me,” he said, his hands coming to rest on my shoulders. “I care about you, okay? More than I probably should. And it’s driving me crazy, watching you throw yourself into situations you can’t handle.”

My heart pounded in my chest, his words wrapping around me like a lifeline.

“You… care about me?” I asked, the words trembling on my lips.

Lip exhaled sharply, his fingers tightening slightly on my shoulders. “Yeah, I do. And if you don’t get that by now, I don’t know what else to do to prove it.”

The air between us felt heavy, charged with something I couldn’t ignore.

“I didn’t know,” I admitted, my voice shaking.

Lip’s lips twisted into a rueful smile. “Yeah, well, I’m not exactly subtle.”

I felt my cheeks heat up, the warmth spreading through me like a slow burn. “I thought you were just… looking out for me.”

“I am,” he said softly. “But it’s not just that. I want to keep you safe because… because I don’t want to lose you.”

The vulnerability in his voice broke something in me, and before I could overthink it, I stepped closer, my fingers brushing against his.

“You’re not going to lose me,” I said, my voice barely audible.

Lip’s eyes softened, and for a moment, it felt like the rest of the world had fallen away.

“You’re too important to me,” he murmured, his thumb grazing my cheek in a gesture so tender it made my heart ache.

I didn’t know what to say, so I didn’t say anything. Instead, I leaned into him, letting his arms wrap around me in a way that felt like safety itself.

Lip’s POV

She was trembling against me, and I couldn’t tell if it was from fear, relief, or the cold air settling into the South Side.

My arms tightened around her, like I could shield her from all the crap this place throws at people. I was still wired from what had just happened—half a second away from throwing punches, adrenaline buzzing under my skin. But holding her like this? It was grounding, like hitting the brakes on a runaway car.

I pulled back, just enough to look at her. Her face was pale, her eyes wide, and I could still see the shadow of what just happened written all over her.

“Come on,” I said gruffly, slipping an arm around her shoulders to steady her. “We’re not staying out here.”

She didn’t argue, letting me guide her back toward the house. Every few steps, I caught her glancing up at me, like she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words.

Good. Because I didn’t know what to say, either.

When we got back, the house was quiet for once. Fiona was out working her double shift, the kids were god knows where, and the usual chaos had given way to an eerie stillness.

I led her into the kitchen, pulling out a chair for her at the small, scarred table. She sat down slowly, her hands still shaking.

“You want water? Tea? Something stronger?” I asked, leaning against the counter.

She gave a weak smile. “I think I’ve had enough beer for one lifetime.”

I huffed out a laugh, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. She took it with both hands, sipping carefully.

“Why were you out there by yourself?” I asked after a long silence.

Her shoulders tensed, but she didn’t look up. “I was just… volunteering. I didn’t think it’d be a big deal.”

“It’s always a big deal,” I said, my voice sharper than I meant it to be. “Especially when you’re walking around alone.”

She flinched, and I instantly felt like a jerk.

“Look, I get it,” I said, lowering my voice. “You want to help. But this place doesn’t care about that. The South Side doesn’t give points for good intentions—it just chews people up.”

She stared into her glass for a moment before speaking, her voice soft. “I just wanted to do something that mattered.”

“Yeah, well, staying alive matters,” I shot back, though the edge in my voice was gone.

She finally looked up at me, her eyes shimmering with something I couldn’t quite name. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“You didn’t scare me,” I lied, turning away to grab a cigarette from the counter.

“Lip.” Her voice stopped me mid-motion.

I sighed, tossing the unlit cigarette back down. “Okay, maybe you scared me a little. Happy?”

She smiled faintly, but it didn’t last. “I guess I don’t understand why you care so much.”

Her words hit me like a sucker punch. I could’ve laughed—except nothing about this felt funny.

“Are you serious?” I asked, stepping closer. “You really don’t get it?”

She shrugged, biting her lip like she was bracing for me to yell at her.

I crouched down next to her chair, forcing her to meet my eyes. “I care because you matter to me. Because every time you walk out there by yourself, I’m scared someone’s gonna hurt you or worse.”

Her breath hitched, and for a second, I thought I’d pushed too far. But then she surprised me.

“I don’t want to be a burden,” she whispered.

“A burden?” I barked out a laugh, shaking my head. “You’re not a burden, you’re just—”

I stopped myself, dragging a hand through my hair. I wanted to tell her she was everything—different from anyone I’d ever met, someone who made me want to do better just by being around. But I didn’t have the words for that.

“You’re just you,” I finished lamely. “And that’s enough.”

Reader’s POV

Lip’s words lingered in the air, heavy and unpolished, but somehow perfect.

I wanted to say something back, to tell him how much it meant, how much he meant. But the words were tangled up in my chest, and all I could do was nod.

“You should get some rest,” he said, standing up and moving toward the couch like the conversation hadn’t just shifted something monumental between us.

“Where are you going?” I asked before I could stop myself.

He turned back, eyebrows raised. “Uh, to bed? Pretty sure I’ve got half a mattress upstairs with my name on it.”

“You don’t have to—” I hesitated. “I mean, you don’t have to leave me down here alone.”

His expression softened, and for a second, I thought he might argue. But then he grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch and dropped into the chair across from me.

“Fine,” he said, kicking his feet up on the table. “But if you snore, I’m out.”

I laughed, the sound startling after everything that had happened. Lip smirked, his eyes lingering on me a beat longer than they should have.

“Get some sleep,” he said, his voice softer now.

And for the first time in weeks, I felt like I could.

Reader’s POV

The next few weeks blurred together. Lip and I fell into a strange rhythm—one that felt precarious, like walking a tightrope over everything unsaid.

He’d check in on me constantly, texting when I was at work or volunteering, sometimes showing up unannounced just to make sure I wasn’t “pulling any more dumb stunts,” as he put it.

I should’ve been annoyed. Instead, I felt safer than I had in years.

But safety was a fragile thing on the South Side.

Lip’s POV

It was a Tuesday when everything came crashing down.

I was fixing up a busted air conditioner for some old guy a few blocks over when my phone buzzed in my pocket.

Unknown Number: Your girl’s in trouble. Corner of 19th and Pulaski.

My blood ran cold.

I didn’t think, just ran.

When I got there, she was cornered again, three guys this time, their voices low and mean as they backed her against the wall.

They didn’t see me coming.

I don’t remember much after that. Just flashes—my fist connecting with one guy’s jaw, the sharp crack of bone, the other two scattering when I turned on them.

When it was over, she was standing there, her eyes wide and tear-streaked, staring at me like I was some kind of stranger.

“You okay?” I asked, wiping blood from my knuckles.

She nodded, but the way she clutched her arms told me otherwise.

I stepped closer, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “You’re safe now.”

“Why do you keep doing this?” she asked, her voice breaking.

I frowned. “Doing what?”

“Saving me,” she said, her tears spilling over. “You act like it’s your job to protect me, but why? Why do you care so much?”

The words tore out of me before I could stop them.

“Because I love you, all right?”

She froze, her eyes wide and unblinking.

“I love you,” I said again, softer this time. “And it’s killing me watching you get hurt.”

Her lip trembled, and for a second, I thought she might run. But then she threw herself into my arms, holding on like I was the only solid thing in a crumbling world.

“I love you too,” she whispered, her voice muffled against my chest.

For the first time in a long time, I felt like things might actually be okay.

Reader’s POV

The air felt heavy as I leaned into Lip’s chest, my fingers clutching at the worn fabric of his shirt. His arms wrapped around me tightly, holding me like he was afraid I might disappear.

I’d never had someone care for me like this before. Lip wasn’t the kind of person who said things he didn’t mean, and hearing him tell me he loved me? It made the ground feel unsteady under my feet, like the whole world had tilted and I wasn’t sure how to stand upright anymore.

“You okay?” he murmured against the top of my head.

I nodded into his chest, the motion small but certain. “I’m okay.”

He let out a breath, his hand moving to cradle the back of my head. “Good. Because you scared the hell outta me.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice cracking.

His arms tightened around me. “Stop saying that. Just… stop putting yourself in situations like this.”

I wanted to argue, to explain that I wasn’t trying to get into trouble, but I didn’t. Because he wasn’t wrong—I’d been reckless. And now that I was in his arms, feeling the tension still radiating off him, I didn’t want to make excuses.

“I won’t,” I promised quietly.

Lip pulled back just enough to look at me, his eyes searching mine for any sign that I didn’t mean it.

“Good,” he said finally. “Because I can’t—” He stopped himself, shaking his head. “I don’t want to keep pulling you out of situations like this. You don’t get how dangerous it is down here.”

“I do now,” I said, my voice firm.

He huffed out a dry laugh, his thumb brushing against my cheek. “Yeah, well, I hope so. You’re not getting another free pass. Next time, I’m locking you in the house.”

I cracked a small smile. “You wouldn’t.”

His eyebrow quirked. “Try me.”

The moment stretched between us, his words serious but his tone light enough to soften the edges. For the first time since everything had happened, the tension in my chest eased.

We walked back to the Gallagher house in silence, his hand hovering at my back like he was ready to catch me if I stumbled. When we reached the door, he glanced at me.

“You want to come in, or…?”

I hesitated. Part of me wanted to go home, to let the quiet of my room wash over me and give me space to think. But the thought of leaving Lip, even for a few hours, made my stomach twist.

“I’ll stay,” I said softly.

Lip nodded, pushing the door open. The house was alive with its usual chaos—Debbie chasing Franny up the stairs, Carl arguing with Liam over the TV, and Fiona sitting at the kitchen table, her head resting in her hands like she’d had the longest day imaginable.

“Lip!” Fiona called out, her eyes narrowing as she took in the two of us. “What the hell happened? You look like you’ve been in a fight.”

Lip shrugged, his hand still resting on the small of my back. “Handled it.”

Fiona’s gaze flicked to me, concern flashing in her eyes. “You okay, hon?”

I nodded, managing a small smile. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Fine,” Lip muttered under his breath, steering me toward the stairs. “C’mon.”

Fiona opened her mouth to say something, but Lip shot her a look that silenced whatever lecture she’d been about to launch into.

Lip’s POV

I led her upstairs to my room, shutting the door behind us. It wasn’t much—just a bed, a dresser, and a pile of books I’d meant to read but never got around to.

“You can sit,” I said, gesturing toward the bed.

She perched on the edge, her fingers twisting in her lap.

“You don’t have to look so nervous,” I said, dropping into the chair across from her. “I’m not gonna bite.”

She laughed softly, the sound like a balm to the tension still coiled in my chest.

“I’m not nervous,” she said, though the flush on her cheeks said otherwise.

“Right,” I said, smirking.

Her eyes darted to mine, and the air in the room shifted.

“So…” she started, her voice small. “When you said you loved me… did you mean it?”

I blinked, caught off guard by the question. “What, you think I go around saying that to just anyone?”

“No, I just—” She hesitated, chewing on her lip. “I guess I didn’t think you’d feel that way about me.”

“Why not?” I asked, leaning forward.

“Because I’m… me,” she said, gesturing vaguely to herself.

I frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

She shrugged, her gaze dropping to her lap. “I’m not like you, Lip. I’m not tough or confident or…”

“Stop,” I said, my voice firmer than I intended.

Her eyes snapped to mine, startled.

“You think I give a crap about that?” I asked, shaking my head. “I don’t care if you’re tough or not. You’re smart, you care about people, and you make me want to be better. That’s all I need.”

Her lips parted, but no words came out.

“Look,” I said, running a hand through my hair. “I know I’m not exactly boyfriend material. I’ve got baggage for days, and I’m not always great at… this.” I gestured vaguely between us. “But I care about you. And if you give me a chance, I’ll prove it.”

She stared at me for a long moment, her expression unreadable. And then, slowly, a small smile spread across her lips.

“You don’t have to prove anything,” she said softly.

Relief flooded through me, and I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding.

“Good,” I said, grinning. “Because I’m pretty sure I’m out of grand gestures.”

She laughed, the sound warm and genuine.

“Come here,” I said, holding out a hand.

She hesitated for only a second before standing and crossing the room to me. I pulled her onto my lap, my arms wrapping around her waist as she settled against me.

For the first time in a long time, everything felt right.

Reader’s POV

Falling into a relationship with Lip Gallagher wasn’t exactly a smooth transition. It wasn’t all late-night confessions and tender moments. It was messy, awkward, and entirely too public, thanks to the constant chaos of the Gallagher house.

But it was real.

It started with the little things. Lip would walk me home when I stayed too late on the South Side. His hand would hover at my back, like he needed to remind himself I was still there. I’d catch him watching me when he thought I wasn’t looking, his expression soft in a way that made my chest ache.

I wasn’t used to being looked at like that—like I was something worth protecting.

The first time Ian caught us, I was sitting on Lip’s lap in the Gallagher kitchen, my arms looped loosely around his neck as we shared a quiet moment before the chaos of the day began. Lip had his head tilted back, his fingers tracing absent patterns on my thigh, his eyes half-lidded with a rare calm.

“What the hell is this?” Ian’s voice broke through the quiet, startling me enough that I almost fell off Lip’s lap.

Lip caught me easily, his grip tightening on my waist as he smirked up at Ian.

“This,” he said, gesturing lazily between us, “is none of your business.”

Ian snorted, leaning against the doorframe. “You two are disgusting. Does Fiona know about this?”

“Why would Fiona care?” Lip shot back, rolling his eyes.

Ian shrugged, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “Because you’re acting like a couple of teenagers sneaking around. It’s embarrassing, man.”

“Yeah? You wanna talk embarrassing?” Lip said, a sharp edge creeping into his tone. “Should I bring up your first six months with Mickey?”

“Hey!” Ian protested, his cheeks reddening. “This isn’t about me.”

“Exactly,” Lip said, leaning back in his chair like the conversation was over. “So mind your own damn business.”

Ian huffed but didn’t push further. His eyes flicked to me, a teasing glint still lingering. “You sure you know what you’re getting into with this one?”

Before I could respond, Lip’s hand tightened on my hip, and he gave Ian a glare that could’ve melted steel.

Ian held up his hands in surrender, smirking as he walked away.

Lip’s POV

“Do you ever feel like you’re under a goddamn microscope?” I muttered, dropping my head onto her shoulder as Ian’s footsteps faded.

She laughed softly, her fingers running through my hair in a way that made me feel like a goddamn housecat. I should’ve hated it. Instead, I found myself leaning into her touch.

“Is it always like this around here?” she asked, her voice warm with amusement.

I lifted my head, giving her a look. “What do you think?”

Her lips quirked into a small smile. “I think it’s chaotic. But… kind of nice.”

“Nice?” I repeated, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah,” she said softly. “It feels… alive. Like there’s always someone around.”

I snorted, leaning back. “Trust me, it’s not as great as it seems. Gets old pretty fast when you’re trying to get some peace and quiet.”

Her smile widened. “You don’t strike me as the ‘peace and quiet’ type.”

I shrugged, a grin tugging at my lips. “Maybe I’ve got layers.”

She laughed, and the sound settled something deep in my chest.

A couple of days later, Mickey decided to get in on the action.

We were at The Alibi, sitting in one of the corner booths while Mickey and Ian played darts nearby. She’d been talking about her latest volunteer gig, her face lighting up in a way that made it impossible to look anywhere else.

“Jesus Christ,” Mickey’s voice cut through her story, loud and abrasive as usual. “Are you two seriously doing this shit in public?”

I turned in my seat, glaring at him. “Doing what, Mickey?”

He gestured between us with his beer bottle. “This. The whole doe-eyed, puppy-love bullshit.”

“Shut up, Mickey,” Ian said, throwing a dart without looking.

“What? I’m just saying, it’s gross.” Mickey took a swig of his beer, smirking. “Can’t even go to a bar without you two making it weird.”

“Maybe you should focus on your own damn relationship,” I shot back, my arm draping casually over her shoulders.

Mickey snorted. “Our relationship’s fine. At least we don’t act like we’re in some shitty teen romance movie.”

“Funny,” I said dryly. “I could’ve sworn you and Ian just started holding hands in public last week.”

Mickey’s smirk faltered, and Ian’s laugh rang out across the bar.

“Don’t listen to him,” Ian said, his eyes flicking to her with a knowing smile. “Mickey doesn’t know what to do with himself when people are happy.”

Mickey grumbled something under his breath, but I ignored him, turning back to her.

“You okay?” I asked quietly, my hand brushing against hers under the table.

She nodded, her cheeks flushed but her eyes bright. “I’m fine.”

I squeezed her hand, and for the first time all night, I felt like the world wasn’t pressing down on us.

Reader’s POV

The teasing from Ian and Mickey didn’t stop, but it didn’t bother me as much as I thought it would. Lip made it easy to block out the noise, his presence grounding in a way I couldn’t explain.

We weren’t perfect—far from it. Lip had a temper, and I was still learning how to stand my ground when things got hard. But for every rough moment, there were ten others that made it worth it.

Like the way he’d pull me against his chest when we watched movies, his fingers absentmindedly tracing patterns on my arm.

Or the way he’d walk me home after a long day, his hand never straying far from mine.

Or the way he looked at me—like I was the one thing in his life that made sense.

It wasn’t easy, but it was ours. And for the first time in a long time, I felt like I belonged.

Reader’s POV

Dating Lip Gallagher wasn’t a dream—it was a test.

Not in the sense that he made me jump through hoops or prove myself, but because being with him meant constantly adapting to a world where nothing came easy. Lip didn’t live a life where problems were solved neatly. His world was messy, loud, and often brutal. But I was starting to realize that it wasn’t about perfection—it was about weathering the storms together.

And sometimes, those storms came sooner than I’d expected.

It was a quiet Tuesday night, and Lip and I were sitting on the couch at the Gallagher house, the TV playing some rerun neither of us was paying attention to. His arm was draped around my shoulders, his fingers idly twisting a strand of my hair.

“You’re quiet tonight,” he said, his voice low and soft, a stark contrast to the noise of the show.

“I’m just thinking,” I admitted, leaning my head against his shoulder.

“That dangerous for you?” he teased, grinning when I swatted at his chest.

“Very funny,” I said, rolling my eyes.

He chuckled, but his tone shifted, his fingers stilling in my hair. “What’s on your mind?”

I hesitated, unsure how to put my thoughts into words. “I was just… wondering what you see in me.”

Lip frowned, his head tilting slightly so he could look down at me. “What kind of question is that?”

“I don’t know,” I said quickly, suddenly wishing I hadn’t brought it up. “It’s just… you’re so used to this life, and I feel like I’m still trying to find my place in it.”

“You’re overthinking,” he said, his voice firm but not unkind.

“I know,” I said softly, biting my lip.

Lip shifted, turning so he was facing me more fully. His hand came up to cradle my face, his thumb brushing against my cheek.

“Look, I’m not gonna sit here and give you some cheesy speech about how we’re meant to be or whatever,” he said. “But I’m with you because I want to be. Because you’re smart, and funny, and you give a damn about people—even when you shouldn’t.”

I blinked up at him, my chest tightening at the raw honesty in his voice.

“You think I don’t know I’m a screw-up?” he continued, his tone softer now. “Half the time, I don’t know what I’m doing with my life. But when I’m with you… it feels like I’m doing something right.”

Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, and I leaned into his touch, letting his words sink in.

“You’re not a screw-up,” I whispered.

Lip snorted, but there was no bite to it. “Yeah, tell that to everyone else.”

“I don’t care about everyone else,” I said, my voice firm.

His eyes softened, and for a moment, the world seemed to shrink down to just the two of us.

“I don’t deserve you,” he murmured, his thumb brushing against my lips.

“That’s not for you to decide,” I said, smiling faintly.

Lip’s laugh was quiet, almost disbelieving. But he didn’t argue. Instead, he leaned down, his lips brushing against mine in a kiss that was soft and slow, like he was afraid I might disappear if he held on too tightly.

Lip’s POV

She had no idea what she did to me.

The way she looked at me, like I wasn’t just some guy barely holding it together, made my chest ache in a way that scared the hell out of me. I wasn’t used to this—having someone care about me for who I was, not what I could do for them.

But with her, it felt real.

And that scared me, too.

The next day, things started to shift.

I was working on a car in the Milkoviches’ driveway, grease coating my hands as I tried to fix a busted alternator. Mickey was sitting on the porch, chain-smoking and pretending not to watch me.

“She still hanging around?” he asked suddenly, his tone casual but with an edge I didn’t miss.

I didn’t look up. “Who?”

“You know who,” Mickey said, flicking ash off his cigarette. “Little miss North Side.”

“Yeah, she’s still around,” I said, my tone clipped.

Mickey snorted. “Must be serious, huh?”

“Why do you care?” I asked, standing up and wiping my hands on a rag.

“I don’t,” he said, shrugging. “Just never figured you for the relationship type.”

I rolled my eyes, tossing the rag onto the hood of the car. “Yeah, well, maybe people can change.”

Mickey raised an eyebrow, his smirk widening. “Jesus, you’re whipped.”

“Go to hell, Mickey,” I muttered, but there wasn’t much heat behind it.

When I got back to the house that night, she was sitting at the kitchen table with Fiona, her hands wrapped around a mug of tea. They were laughing about something, the sound warm and easy in a way that made the chaos of the house fade into the background.

Fiona glanced up as I walked in, her smile turning teasing. “Hey, Romeo.”

“Don’t start,” I said, though I couldn’t help the small smile tugging at my lips.

She grinned, patting my shoulder as she stood. “She’s a keeper,” she said quietly, just loud enough for me to hear.

“Yeah,” I said, my eyes flicking to her. “I know.”

Reader’s POV

Over the next few weeks, things started to settle into a new kind of normal. Lip was still rough around the edges, and I was still adjusting to the rhythm of his world, but we were finding our way.

He was protective, sometimes to the point of being overbearing, but I learned to push back when I needed to. And he was learning to let me in, to let me see the parts of him he usually kept hidden.

It wasn’t perfect, but it was ours.

One night, as we lay tangled together on the couch, Lip’s fingers tracing idle patterns on my arm, I found myself thinking about the future. It was something I hadn’t let myself consider before—what a life with Lip might look like beyond the chaos of the South Side.

“Hey,” I said softly, tilting my head to look at him.

“Yeah?”

“You ever think about… what’s next?”

He frowned, his hand stilling on my arm. “What do you mean?”

“I mean… where do you see yourself in a few years? Do you think about that?”

Lip was quiet for a long moment, his gaze distant.

“Sometimes,” he said finally. “But it’s hard to picture.”

“Why?”

He shrugged, his expression guarded. “Because every time I try, it feels like I’m just setting myself up to fail.”

I reached for his hand, lacing my fingers through his. “You’re not going to fail, Lip.”

“You don’t know that,” he said, his voice low.

“No,” I said, squeezing his hand. “But I know you. And I know you’re capable of more than you think.”

His lips twitched into a small, wry smile. “You really believe that?”

“Yeah,” I said firmly. “I do.”

He looked at me for a long moment, something soft and unspoken passing between us.

“Guess I’ll have to prove you right,” he said finally, his voice warm.

I smiled, leaning up to kiss him.

For the first time in a long time, the future didn’t feel so uncertain.

If someone had told me a month ago that I’d be spending most of my nights at the Gallagher house, surrounded by chaos and cigarette smoke, I probably wouldn’t have believed them. But here I was, sitting cross-legged on Lip’s bed, a beat-up textbook open in front of me while he scribbled furiously in a notebook.

He’d been restless all evening, muttering under his breath about deadlines and broken printers, the frustration radiating off him in waves. I tried to stay out of his way, quietly working on my own project, but when he slammed his pen down on the desk for the third time, I couldn’t help but speak up.

“You okay?” I asked, keeping my voice soft.

“No,” he snapped, then sighed heavily, rubbing a hand over his face. “Sorry. I’m just… stressed.”

I closed my textbook and slid off the bed, walking over to him. He didn’t look up as I leaned against the desk, his shoulders tense as he stared at the pages in front of him.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

Lip shook his head, his jaw tight. “Not unless you can magically make tuition disappear or write this paper for me.”

I hesitated, unsure if I should push or give him space. But the way his hands fisted in his hair made my chest ache, and I found myself reaching out, resting a hand on his arm.

“You’re not alone in this, you know,” I said quietly.

His head snapped up, his eyes meeting mine. For a moment, his expression was unreadable—like he wasn’t sure if he believed me or not.

“Yeah, well, it sure as hell feels like it,” he muttered, looking away.

I crouched down so I was eye level with him, my hand still on his arm. “You’ve got me,” I said firmly. “And I’m not going anywhere.”

Lip stared at me, his brows furrowing. “Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why are you still here?” His voice cracked, the words raw and unguarded. “You could go back to your nice, safe world and leave all this behind. But you’re still here. Why?”

I hesitated, my throat tightening. “Because I care about you. And because I know you’re worth it, even if you don’t.”

The tension in his shoulders eased slightly, and his hand moved to cover mine, his fingers warm and steady.

“You’re too good for me,” he said quietly.

“Maybe,” I teased, smiling when he huffed out a laugh. “But you’re stuck with me anyway.”

Lip’s lips quirked into a faint smile, and he tugged me toward him, pressing his forehead against mine. “Lucky me.”

Lip’s POV

She didn’t get it.

Every time she looked at me like I was worth a damn, it made me want to be better—do better. But it also scared the hell out of me. Because what if I couldn’t live up to that? What if I let her down?

“You’re gonna burn yourself out,” she said, pulling back to look at me.

I shrugged, trying to shake off the weight pressing down on my chest. “Yeah, well, that’s what college does.”

“You don’t have to do it alone,” she said, her voice soft but steady.

The words hit harder than they should’ve. I wasn’t used to having someone in my corner—not like this.

“Thanks,” I said, my voice rough.

Her smile was small but warm, and for the first time all day, the knot in my chest loosened.

The next week, things got complicated.

I’d been spending more time on campus, trying to catch up on assignments and keep my professors off my back. But juggling school, work, and family had me stretched thin, and it was only a matter of time before something gave.

It happened on a Friday night. I’d just finished a shift at Patsy’s and was heading back to the house when I spotted her walking down the street with a group of volunteers from the community center.

“Hey,” I called out, jogging to catch up with her.

Her face lit up when she saw me, and the sight of her smile made my exhaustion fade, if only for a moment.

“Hey,” she said, stepping away from the group. “What are you doing out here?”

“Heading home,” I said, glancing at the people behind her. “What about you?”

“Just finished an event,” she said, gesturing toward the community center a few blocks away.

I frowned, my protective instincts kicking in. “You walking home alone?”

“I’m not alone,” she said, smiling faintly.

“You know what I mean,” I said, my tone sharper than I intended.

Her expression faltered, and I immediately regretted it.

“I can take care of myself, Lip,” she said quietly.

“I know,” I said, sighing. “I just… I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“I’m fine,” she insisted, her voice firmer now.

We stood there for a moment, the tension between us thick and heavy. I wanted to tell her I was just looking out for her, that it wasn’t about control or mistrust. But the words got stuck in my throat.

“I’ll see you at the house,” she said finally, her tone softening.

“Yeah,” I said, watching as she walked away.

Reader’s POV

I knew Lip cared about me. He’d said it, shown it, time and time again. But sometimes, his protectiveness felt suffocating, like he didn’t trust me to handle myself.

It wasn’t until I got back to the Gallagher house that I realized just how much he’d been holding in.

He was sitting on the porch, a cigarette dangling from his fingers, his expression tense.

“You okay?” I asked, stepping closer.

Lip looked up, his eyes tired but sharp. “Are you?”

“I’m fine,” I said, sitting next to him.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I know I can be an ass sometimes,” he said, his voice low.

“You’re not an ass,” I said softly.

He snorted. “Yeah, I am. I just… I’m not used to this. Having someone like you. And I don’t want to screw it up.”

“You’re not screwing it up,” I said, reaching for his hand.

Lip looked at me, his expression raw and vulnerable. “I don’t know how to do this, okay? I’m just trying to figure it out as I go.”

“Me too,” I admitted, squeezing his hand.

The honesty between us felt heavy but comforting, like we were finally laying everything bare.

“We’ll figure it out,” I said, my voice steady.

Lip’s lips twitched into a small smile. “Yeah, we will.”

For the first time in weeks, I felt like we really could.

Milestones aren’t always the picture-perfect moments you imagine them to be. Sometimes, they come in the form of messy, unpolished choices that shape your future in ways you didn’t see coming.

For Lip and me, our milestone started with a fight.

It had been building for weeks. Lip was overworked, barely sleeping between school, shifts at Patsy’s, and the constant demands of his family. I was busy at the community center, trying to juggle volunteering with a part-time job I’d picked up at a local café. We saw each other in passing—late nights when I’d show up at the Gallagher house or mornings when Lip walked me to the bus stop.

The space between us felt like a chasm, growing wider with every exhausted glance and unfinished conversation.

One night, after a long shift at the café, I stopped by the house, hoping to catch Lip before he disappeared into another round of studying. Instead, I found him sitting in the kitchen with Fiona, a beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other.

“You’re late,” he said as soon as I walked in, his tone sharp.

“I had to cover for someone,” I said, setting my bag down on the counter.

“You didn’t text,” he said, his eyes narrowing.

“I didn’t think I needed to,” I replied, frowning.

“Yeah, well, I was worried,” he snapped, slamming his beer bottle down on the table.

“Okay, I’m sorry,” I said, my voice rising in frustration. “But I’m not a kid, Lip. I can handle myself.”

“Clearly,” he muttered, taking another drag from his cigarette.

Fiona stood, raising her hands. “I’m not getting in the middle of this,” she said, brushing past me as she left the room.

The silence she left behind was heavy, the tension between us crackling like a live wire.

“What’s your problem?” I demanded, crossing my arms.

“My problem?” Lip stood, his chair scraping against the floor. “My problem is you walking around like everything’s fine when it’s not. This isn’t the North Side. You can’t just ignore how dangerous it is out there.”

“I’m not ignoring it,” I shot back. “But you can’t control everything, Lip. I’m trying my best.”

“Yeah, well, your best doesn’t mean much if you’re not safe,” he said, his voice cold.

The words hit harder than I expected, and I felt my throat tighten. “That’s not fair,” I whispered.

Lip sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. “No, it’s not. I know it’s not.”

“Then why are you pushing me away?”

“I’m not pushing you away,” he said, his voice quieter now.

“You are,” I said, stepping closer. “And I don’t understand why.”

Lip’s shoulders sagged, the fight draining out of him. “Because I don’t know how to do this,” he admitted, his voice raw. “I don’t know how to let someone in without screwing it up.”

I stared at him, my chest aching. “You’re not screwing it up,” I said softly.

He looked at me, his expression filled with something I couldn’t quite name. “I feel like I am.”

I took a step closer, reaching for his hand. “Then let me help you.”

Lip’s POV

She didn’t give up on me. Even when I was at my worst—snapping at her, shutting her out—she stayed. And that terrified me, because it meant I didn’t have an excuse to walk away.

The next morning, I woke up to the sound of pots clanging in the kitchen.

“Jesus Christ,” I muttered, rubbing my eyes as I stumbled downstairs.

She was standing at the stove, flipping pancakes with an ease that made it look like she belonged here. Fiona was leaning against the counter, sipping coffee, while Debbie and Liam sat at the table, eagerly awaiting their plates.

“What’s all this?” I asked, still groggy.

“Breakfast,” she said, glancing over her shoulder with a small smile.

I frowned, stepping closer. “Since when do you cook?”

“Since now,” she said, her tone teasing.

Fiona smirked over the rim of her mug. “She’s putting us all to shame, Lip. Better hang onto this one.”

“Shut up,” I muttered, but my lips twitched into a reluctant smile.

That breakfast marked a turning point. She wasn’t just visiting anymore—she was part of the Gallagher house, part of my life.

But with that came new challenges.

Reader’s POV

The big challenge came out of nowhere.

Lip had been staying up late, poring over job listings and financial aid applications, his stress mounting with every passing day. I tried to help where I could, but he had a way of carrying everything himself, like he didn’t trust anyone else to lighten the load.

One night, after hours of research and phone calls, he finally snapped.

“I can’t do this,” he said, slamming his laptop shut.

I looked up from my spot on the couch, startled. “What do you mean?”

“I mean this,” he said, gesturing wildly. “College, work, taking care of the family—it’s too much. I’m drowning, and no one gives a damn.”

“That’s not true,” I said, standing.

“Isn’t it?” he shot back, his eyes flashing. “You’re the only one who cares, and even then, you don’t get it.”

The words stung, but I forced myself to stay calm. “Then help me understand,” I said.

Lip froze, his chest heaving as he stared at me. For a moment, I thought he might explode, but then his shoulders slumped, and he sank into a chair.

“I don’t want to drag you down with me,” he said quietly.

“You’re not dragging me down,” I said, kneeling in front of him. “We’re in this together, Lip. You’re not alone.”

His eyes softened, and he reached for my hand, holding it tightly. “You sure about that?”

“Positive,” I said firmly.

Lip’s POV

She didn’t just say the words—she meant them.

The next day, she helped me organize my schedule, breaking things down into manageable pieces. She sat with me through financial aid applications, proofread my essays, and even found a tutoring gig that paid enough to help cover my tuition.

For the first time in a long time, I felt like I could breathe.

And it was because of her.

One night, as we lay tangled together on the couch, I pressed a kiss to her temple and whispered, “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

She smiled, her eyes soft. “Good thing you don’t have to find out.”

Reader’s POV

Being with Lip wasn’t easy, but it was worth it. We weren’t perfect—far from it—but we were learning, growing, and building something that felt real.

For the first time, I didn’t feel out of place. I didn’t feel like I had to prove myself.

I felt like I belonged.

And that was all I needed.

[hwashotcheeto]

𝑩𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑭𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅'𝒔 𝑴𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 (5)

Best Friend's Mother Masterlist

Chapter: Five

Milf!Park Seonghwa X gn!reader

Summary: After nearly getting caught by Wooyoung after your "date", you and Seonghwa know you have to talk with him about how he set you two up. And you learn more than expected.

WC: 3.7k

CW: Angst, arguing, Wooyoung gets mad and yells at reader and Seonghwa, little bit of crying, fluff, hugs, suggestive at the end (Reader gets extra touchy with Seonghwa)

AN: Sooooo this chapter is a lot. A lot more of myself came out in this one than I expected, but as always, I think you all will enjoy it. 💜

If I missed anything, please tell me. I can't shake this weird feeling of something being off. Don't be afraid to tell me about grammar errors or anything, feedback is always appreciated. 💜

(This chapter also has a deleted scene for the future 👀 It is NOT the smut, that's what chapter 6 will be)

Tag List: @hyunjinsjeans @malldreamprincess @unlikelysublimekryptonite @becauseilovedyou @kittkat44 @babyxhoiz @asleepylilcat @mxnsxngie @rxnexxi @mommahwa1117 @acciocriativity @anxiousskylar @h3arteyes4mingi

Wooyoung walked into you and Seonghwa waiting for him at the table. Seonghwa was standing, with his arms crossed, and you were sitting beside him. He looked between the two of you before deciding to stay in the kitchen arch way. 

He knew this conversation was coming. Since last night, when he’d gotten home, he’d expected this. He was surprised when Seonghwa didn’t confront him when he walked in the door. 

But he guessed it had something to do with his lip gloss being smudged all over your lips and chin, and both your faces bright red. 

“Good morning, Wooyoung,” Seonghwa greeted, smiling brightly. Wooyoung was no stranger to this game. He smiled back, just as bright.  “Did you sleep well?” 

“Oh, I slept just fine, Eomma,” Wooyoung replied, leaning against the wall. He looked at you and smirked, then back up to Seonghwa. Your cheeks burned red. “What about you two? How was dinner?” 

“Dinner was good. But it was odd that the reservation was only for two people.” 

Wooyoung pretended to look surprised, raising his eyebrows, but keeping the smirk on his face. “Oh, did it? I guess I made a mistake.” 

“I’d believe that if the reservation was under your name instead of mine.” 

Wooyoung laughed then, and you couldn’t help but giggle a little too. The little shit had set you two up, and you all knew it now. 

But what you and Seonghwa didn’t know was the ever famous question that’s constantly asked: Why? 

Clearly, if Seonghwa could see that your avoidance of him was because you secretly wanted him, then Wooyoung must’ve seen it too. To be fair, recalling all the days of the past week, you had been painfully obvious. Of course ignoring your host looked suspicious, even if it wasn’t because you’d had sex with him. 

But even still, Wooyoung going through the effort to set you up on a date with his mother? He’d said he didn’t want to hear about it, so why would he set up a date for the two of you? 

“Now why did you do it?” Seonghwa asked, leaning against the kitchen counter. Your eyes flicked over to him for only a second before you looked away, but Wooyoung saw it. Your blood turned to ice as he smirked again. 

“That’s why.” Wooyoung motioned to you, and you looked at Seonghwa with horrified eyes as he looked at you with amusement. “Because you both are into each other, and you weren’t going to do it, so I did it.” 

You’d suspected that, but you couldn’t fathom why. Why would your best friend want you to date his mom? You couldn’t imagine ever telling any of your friends it was okay to date your parents, that just felt bizarre and weird. 

That was also probably because you didn’t really want anything to do with either of your parents. 

“Wooyoung,” Seonghwa started, in that parent tone again, but Wooyoung rolled his eyes. 

“What? Are you gonna tell me you didn’t enjoy yourselves, because then you’d be liars.” 

“That’s not,” you tried to add, but Wooyoung kept going.

“You would’ve fucked right on that wall if I hadn’t walked in.” 

You choked on nothing, leading to a short coughing fit. 

“Wooyoung!” Seonghwa yelped, uncrossing his arms and standing up straighter. Wooyoung threw up his hands and shook his head. 

“Am I wrong?!” He said, louder than before, growing more exasperated. You nor Seonghwa said anything. “Exactly.” 

“Why do you want this?” You blurted. “Why did you do any of this?”

You’d been thinking about it since the restaurant. Since you realized he’d put this together. He “didn’t wanna hear about it” but he was willing to do all this? And he was mad that you and Seonghwa wouldn’t openly admit that you were attracted to each other? 

Wooyoung looked at you for a few moments before he found an answer. And all he said was: “Why not?” 

Both you and Seonghwa gave him confused looks. Why not? What was he talking about? Wooyoung looked between you two with an equally confused look. 

“You both are hung up on what’s right and wrong,” he said flatly. “That’s it, isn’t it?” 

Seonghwa looked down and bit his lip. He had been, since he first saw you. How wrong it was for someone as old and rich as he was to seduce a much younger person. His son’s best friend no less. 

And you, to lust and yearn after an older man. You were still in college, you could hardly survive on your own. You two could never work out, you didn’t have anything in common. 

Wooyoung could see it on your faces, and he sighed heavily, bringing his hands up and rubbing his face in frustration. 

“You both are adults, it’s legal, you’re both consenting.” Wooyoung leaned his head on the wall and turned his head to look at you both. “Did you consent? Did you say yes to all this?” 

“Of course,” both you and Seonghwa said in unison. Wooyoung flailed his arms around dramatically. 

“Then what? What’s the problem?” 

“Because he’s your mother, Woo and I’m your friend,” you said, much softer. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Seonghwa gulp, his throat bobbing. 

Wooyoung looked at you with his eyebrows down again and tilted his head. 

“Have you not figured it out?” He turned more towards you now. “I don’t care. I clearly don’t find it weird since I made you guys go on a fucking date.” Wooyoung huffed and shook his head. “If I didn’t want it-”

“It’s not right!” You interrupted, starting to feel tears prick your eyes. That was the basis of this whole dilemma you had. It was “wrong.” Everything about what you and Seonghwa had done was “wrong.”  Everything you wanted was “wrong.” “Your friend’s parents are always off limits, it’s not-”

“No, stop,” Wooyoung spat, his voice thick with an anger that made it feel like you'd been slapped. You flinched as if you had. “Stop fucking saying how wrong it is.” 

“But,” you started to protest, but Wooyoung shook his head. 

“Stop! The only person who cares about how wrong it is is you! You are the only person here who keeps saying how wrong this all is.” 

You closed your mouth and shrunk back. You looked up at Seonghwa. He looked at you, and you knew he was thinking what you were. 

Wooyoung walked over to the table and slammed his hands down, leaning over it, getting as close to you as he could. Seonghwa jumped forward and stayed next to the table. 

“You look me in my eyes and tell me you don't want any of this. Tell me you regret it. Because I won’t fucking believe you.” 

“Wooyoung, it's just not right,” you tried to argue again, and he smacked the table again, with his fist this time. 

“Who fucking cares about right and wrong?! I don’t, and neither should you!” He looked up at Seonghwa, who was staring at the floor. “You shouldn’t either!” 

Your heart was pounding out of your chest. Your hands were shaking. You couldn't get air in your lungs fast enough. 

But you didn't know why you were scared. Your body was reacting, but you weren't actually scared. Because you realized that Wooyoung wasn't angry with you because you'd done something wrong. 

Wooyoung was angry with you because you weren't letting yourself enjoy this. 

When you just stared at Wooyoung and said nothing, he sighed and hung his head. Seonghwa looked up and walked over, gently putting his hand on Wooyoung's shoulder to gently rub. His shoulders sagged, and his eyes were heavy. 

“I’m sorry I yelled at you,” Wooyoung said, his voice much softer. He rubbed his forehead and ran his fingers through his hair, pushing it out of his face. “I just don’t know why you’re trying to push this away. We’re all consenting adults that are okay with this. Why are you stuck on the ‘morals’ of all of this?” 

And you were silent. Because you weren’t sure why. 

It wasn’t illegal. It wasn’t going to get you kicked out of college. The only thing you’d have to worry about is judgemental people, and other people’s opinions weren’t going to do anything. 

You were making a whole scenario out of nothing. Your best friend was practically begging you to have this, to enjoy this. 

You felt foolish at that point. You shrunk back in your seat as you rubbed your eyes. Wooyoung looked up at you and walked around the table, standing over you. You looked up at him, yelped as he yanked you to your feet and into his arms, hugging you tightly. 

“I love you,” he whispered, “and this doesn’t change that. We’re still friends. It’s okay.” 

You hugged him back, burying your face in his chest, fighting the tears that threatened to spill over. 

Nothing was more valuable than your friendship with Wooyoung. There was no doubt in your mind that you loved him. You loved him so much more than you ever thought possible. 

He truly was your best friend. You knew you weren’t ever going to lose him. 

Wooyoung pulled back from the hug and looked at you, making sure you met his eyes. “Remember that. Please.” 

“I will, Woo.” 

He smiled and squeezed your shoulders. Wooyoung looked over your shoulder and saw Seonghwa rubbing his eyes, partially turned away from you two. 

Wooyoung pulled away from you and went over to Seonghwa, hugging him as well. Seonghwa returned the hug, resting his head on Wooyoung’s. 

Something changed between the three of you at that point. There was an openness. More of an understanding about everyone. You and Seonghwa didn’t have to hide your feelings (whatever they were) from Wooyoung. Wooyoung’s teasing and borderline encouragement made sense. 

Wooyoung didn’t care. He just wanted you both to be happy. Mostly, his Eomma. 

Seonghwa pulled back and rubbed his eyes, wiping the tears away. Wooyoung still kept his hand on his arm, looking at him with big, heavy eyes. 

“I think we all need some food,” Seonghwa said softly, but Wooyoung shook his head. 

“No, I’ll take care of it today,” he offered. Seonghwa’s eyebrows went down. 

“Nae sarang, you don’t need to do that.” 

“I want to.” Wooyoung rubbed his arm. “You’ve made breakfast every morning we’ve been here. I won’t burn it, or anything.” 

Seonghwa laughed softly and sniffled, wiping the rest of the tears away. He sighed and nodded. “Alright, go ahead.” 

Wooyoung smiled and kissed his cheek before he went to the pantry to start pulling out ingredients. Seonghwa looked up at you at that point, and smiled warmly. Your stomach filled with butterflies (again) as you smiled back. 

Seonghwa held his hand out to you wordlessly. You took his hand with no hesitation. You didn’t need to think about it. 

He led you out of the kitchen to the living room, bringing you to the couch and sitting down, pulling you down next to him, pressing up against his side. He still held your hand, running his thumb over your knuckles the way all romantic people do. 

“I don’t want you to think I just want you as a fun time,” he said softly, looking at your hand as he rubbed it. “At first, maybe. But the more time I spend with you, the more I realize that I want you as a partner.” He laced his fingers with yours and looked up at you. You gulped, and he noticed the bob in your throat. 

He couldn’t help but be attracted to you in more ways than one. Everything about you he’d seen, even in the short time with him, he was in love with. Your laugh, your voice, the way you interacted with Wooyoung, the way you looked away as your cheeks turned red. The sex was just a bonus on top of everything else about you as a person. 

But you were scared. Yes, the idea of throwing yourself into his arms and forgetting everything else, just being with him, who made you feel safe, and heard, and cared about sounded wonderful. But that invisible string held you back. 

The “morality” of it all, the judgment, the millions of hypotheticals. 

But as you looked at Seonghwa, for once in your life, you pushed it all away. 

For once, you decided to not overthink and plan everything. For once, you decided to let everything happen organically. 

For once in your life, you let yourself have something you wanted. 

“Me too, Seonghwa. I wanna try this with you.” 

His face lit up like a Christmas tree, and he squeezed your hand tightly. 

“Thank you.” His eyes flicked down to your lips, and his eyes seemed to sparkle when your cheeks turned red. “May I kiss you?” 

“You don’t have to ask anymore.” 

Seonghwa nodded, and held your cheek and brought your lips to his in the sweetest, most loving kiss you’d ever had. Soft, slow, and gentle. With a promise. I will care for you. 

You felt it against his lips. His soft, gorgeous, rose petal lips that felt like they engulfed yours. Lips that you could kiss forever if you’d given the chance, lips you wanted to kiss forever. 

You reached out and held onto his shoulder, pulling yourself even closer than you already were. Seonghwa hummed into the kiss and did the same, letting go of your hand and wrapping his arms around you, holding you tight against him. You melted into him and reached up to hold his face, the other arm going around his neck. 

And it felt good. It felt right. God, it felt so right. You felt warm and safe, at peace. 

Like you’d found your way home. 

“Can you guys stop making out and come eat?” Wooyoung called, from where he was standing by the kitchen with his hands on his hips. Seonghwa broke off the kiss and laughed, whereas you just hid in his chest. 

“You didn’t say anything, nae sarang.” Seonghwa rubbed your back, and shivers raced up and down your spine. 

“Well I’m saying it now! Come on!” He sulked back into the kitchen, and Seonghwa couldn’t help but laugh. He held nothing in his heart but love for his son. 

And slowly, that love was spilling over for you. 

“So, it’s official?” Wooyoung said as he dropped next to you on the couch. Seonghwa had just left to go run some errands for some unspecified event. You nor Wooyoung knew what it was for or what it was, but you didn’t bother prying just yet. 

“What is?” 

“You and my mom? Are you properly dating?” 

“I think so, yeah.” Wooyoung sighed and smiled happily. And yes, it was happy. Today was a good, happy day. But there was still something in the back of your mind you couldn’t shake. “But why do you want this so badly?” 

Wooyoung scoffed and shrugged. “I told you, I just want you two to stop ignoring it and be together.” 

“Okay,” you said, turning more towards him. “But why?” 

And Wooyoung’s smile faded. There was more to this, of course there was. There was from the beginning. 

If you were anyone else, Wooyoung would’ve instantly shut it down. Any other friend, any other person, he would’ve told them to not even try. He’d told you day one that he was incredibly protective over Seonghwa, hence the confusion for his encouragement and not saying “no, don’t fuck my mom.” 

And like every good story, the plot thickens. Wooyoung sighed and leaned his head back against the couch. 

“I told you before, people used my mom as a fetish doll. Not everyone did, some did work out sometimes, but there were a lot of people who kept him hanging on just for the sex.” 

And just like it had the first time he’d told you, it broke your heart all over again. You couldn’t imagine doing that to anyone, let alone the sweetheart that Seonghwa was. 

“But it’s been a few years since he’s tried dating, and well, it’s no surprise why.” Wooyoung turned his head to look at you. “And then I saw how he looked at you. And from how you both were acting the next morning, it was no mystery that you two fucked.” 

You barked out a short laugh to cover up any other embarrassing noise that came out of you, feeling the heat rush towards your face. Wooyoung smiled, but dropped it as he continued talking. 

“And the way you avoided him all week, I knew it wasn’t just sex.” He gulped hard, his throat bobbing. He sat up and turned towards you. “I know that you’re not an awful person. I know that you could actually be good for my mom. And if there was a possibility that he could work something out with you…” He looked down, his hand fidgeting with his shirt. “Then I had to make it happen.” 

This whole time, Wooyoung was just looking out for Seonghwa. He wanted his mom to be happy. And he knew you would do it. 

The gesture makes your heart swell, and tears almost come to your eyes. But then you giggled when you realized something else. Wooyoung looked up at you with confusion, and slight anger, but you couldn’t help but start laughing. 

“You’re a self appointed wingman for your mom?” 

And Wooyoung thought about it for a moment before his eyes lit up. “Holy shit, I guess I am.” 

And you both burst into laughter, laughing and wheezing so hard, you fell back on the couch and on the floor, holding your stomachs. 

Of course, the importance of Wooyoung’s words wasn’t lost on you. You’d finally had an answer, and it made you love Wooyoung more than you already did. He loved his mom so much, he was willing to be a wingman for him. And he decided to do it all on his own. 

Seonghwa didn’t ask him to. He wanted his mom to be happy, so he helped him out. 

You’d gotten so lucky finding such a wonderful person. 

You caught your breath and sat back up, wiping the tears that had formed in your eyes. Wooyoung did the same, still giggling a little bit. 

“That’s a new one,” you said, sighing. Wooyoung nodded, tilting his head back against the couch again, a big dopey smile on his face. 

As he did, you noticed the little bruise under his jaw. The one from last night. The one his “emergency” definitely gave him. You smirked as you finally had your chance to fuck with him. 

“So part of being a wingman is going and getting fucked by your friend?” You said bluntly. Wooyoung’s eyes flew open and let out a weird, choked noise. You threw your head back and laughed again. 

“How would you know that?!” Wooyoung demanded. 

“Maybe you should tell San to be more careful where he marks you.” 

Wooyoung’s whole face turned red in an instant. His hands flew up to his neck as he tried to cover where he thought the hickey was. You couldn’t help but keep laughing. 

It was small and unimportant, sure. But after Wooyoung left you stranded on a date with Seonghwa, the least you could do is call him out for his painfully obvious lie. 

And you were definitely going to tease San about it when you got back to college. 

Wooyoung had gone to bed early. The idea surprised you, but after your earlier conversation, you had an inkling of an idea why he would. 

Which left you and Seonghwa alone in the living room together, watching a movie that had recently come out, with you cuddling up to him and his arm around your shoulders. 

But as comfortable as you were, you couldn’t relax. Your heart was pounding against your chest, and that was all to do with what Seonghwa had chosen to wear that night. 

A silk lilac nightgown, that only went down to his mid thighs, with a slit all the way up to his hips. The edges were hemmed with lace, pretty flowery lace, and goddammit, you were losing your mind. 

Not to mention his hair being up in the ponytail again, fuck, he looked irresistible. 

None of this was helped by the way he was slowly dragging his fingertips up your spine over and over again, making shivers run all over your body and end between your thighs. 

And he knew it. Seonghwa knew you kept looking at him, and the way you were clinging onto him, and that your hand was so close to his exposed thigh. He smirked as he moved it closer, expecting you to be flustered and move away from him. 

But he was pleasantly surprised when you laid your hand on his thigh instead. A few seconds later, as you were still looking at the TV, he watched as you slowly dragged your hand up his thigh until the nightgown stopped you. You felt Seonghwa tense underneath you, and heard him gulp as you did. 

It was your turn to be bold. Confidence began to bloom inside you, and you slowly rubbed his inner thigh in response. He tensed underneath your hand, but let his legs fall open just a little bit more. You couldn’t help the smirk then. 

Your heart was thundering as you slipped your hand under the nightgown, inching closer and closer to his cock, which was already semi hard. Your touch did more than you thought. 

Seonghwa bit his lip, his brain going foggy, not even making sense of what was on the TV. He was only focused on your hand, your touch that was setting him on fire, and how he was internally screaming for you to keep going. 

“Jagiya,” he breathed, tightening his hold on you. You looked up at him and he was panting softly. You really affected him this much?

You didn’t bother responding, you simply brushed your fingertips against his growing hard on. A soft whimper left his lips as he finally closed his eyes, letting his head fall back against the couch. 

“Please, jagiya, don’t tease any longer.” 

You smirked and pulled your hand away, only to get up and sit on his lap, making him whimper again as you sat right on his cock. 

“Don’t you worry, Mommy. I’ll take care of you.”

Thank you for reading! Please reblog if you enjoyed! 💜

This is a work of fiction written by me. This does not represent the idol(s) in any way. Any re-upload is not allowed and will be reported.

[heavyhitterheaux]

The Marriage Pact Part 6

To Love and to Cherish

AN: It's been a while, but here we go!

Synopsis: Jack’s priority is making sure that you're okay despite your protests and wanting him to keep his distance. Life gets harder for him without you, and he soon comes to a realization that this might have to be his new normal

Pairing: Ex-Fiance!Jack Harlow x Ex-Fiancée!Reader

The Marriage Pact Masterlist

Please Do Not Repost My Content Anywhere

Jack was in a daze as he took the steps two at a time after grabbing his keys in order to get to his car. All he could do at this point was hope and pray that you and the baby were okay and he couldn't also help but think that this was entirely his fault. If he had simply done what you asked him to do and been honest from the very beginning, more than likely this wouldn't have happened and the two of you would have been in a good place.

Now it seemed like everything was getting worse by the second.

He got to the hospital in less than ten minutes and stopped at the front desk to find out where you were. Once he got to your room, he walked in to see that your eyes were closed and there were two small cuts, one next to your eye and one below it. Other than that you looked to have been perfectly fine which he was more than thankful for.

Hearing his footsteps, you peeked your right eye open and quickly sighed seeing who it was. He was the absolute last person on earth that you wanted to see, but knew that his coming was inevitable.

“Babe…” He started to say as he reached for you before you immediately cut him off.

“I don't want to hear it.”

“Y/N, I don’t care what you want or don't want to hear. I told you that I didn't want you leaving and now look at what happened. I damn near got into an accident myself trying to get to you to make sure that you were okay!” Jack said clearly frustrated about how you were acting towards him.

“Oh, so it's my fault?”

“That didn't come out of my mouth so where did you even get that from?”

“I really do not want to be around you right now. Wasn't me leaving in the middle of your tour not clear enough? Because if not, I can start from the beginning and call off a list of things that you've done to piss me off.”

“I get it. I get that you’re mad at me and for good reason, but I still need to make sure you're okay and did you forget that you're pregnant now? So that means that I now have two people to worry about.”

“How can I forget when I'm literally throwing up all day, every day? Kind of hard not to.”

“I just… wanted to see if you and the baby were okay. What even happened? And you clearly are, since you’re arguing with me.”

“They're fine. Someone ran a red light and hit me and my car is done for. Now you can leave.” You shot back as you turned to your side to face away from him.

“I'm not going anywhere. I don't give a damn how mad you are at me right now, I'm staying with you to make sure you're okay. Despite what you may think right now, I…” He trailed off and you suddenly looked at him because it caught your attention.

“What were you going to say?”

“I'm still trying to wrap my mind around you telling me that I only asked you to marry me out of desperation when I love you and would do anything for you and you know that. Anything you ask of me I do it for you.”

“Except being completely honest with me.”

“I wish that we could start completely over, but what's done is done and I'm sorry that I betrayed your trust. But, baby you have to believe me when I say that you are the only person that I want. Whatever you need me to do to repair our relationship, I'm willing to do it.”

“I… just don't even know what I need you to do at this point. I think as hard as a decision that this may be, I need to take a step back from you and this relationship.”

“You… you can't be serious. You're pregnant!” Jack exclaimed while gesturing to your belly and you looked at him dumbfounded.

“And? Is that supposed to change anything?”

“It changes literally EVERYTHING. Just please let me fix this. I promise-”

You immediately cut him off not wanting to hear another word.

“You have broken literally every single promise that you have made me since we got engaged and I don't think I even know the person standing in front of me right now and you have no idea how much that hurts me.” You quietly told him as you felt tears prick the corners of your eyes.

“Y/N… you aren't about to say what I think you’re about to say because….”

“I'm breaking up with you and whatever this is or was is over. I'm not going to manage you anymore either. Let Neelam do it because I'm done. I'm not competing for a spot in your life anymore.”

“Y/N you don't mean that! You don't have to compete for anything. It's you, it's always been you. Baby, please don't do this. I will literally-”

“Do anything? Jackman, you've done enough. Too much actually. I love you and you know I always will. But I just… for my peace of mind, my heart can't take being with you right now until you get your shit together.”

“So, you don't want to marry me anymore?” Jack asked and you could see the tears in the corners of his eyes. As much as you wanted for things to go back the way that they were, you couldn't.

“I never said that. I think right now that's not the best idea for either of us. We need to be on the same page and right now we aren't.”

“What can I do to get you to change your mind? I… there has to be something.”

“I'm still going to be in your life, I'm not walking away completely. You did get me pregnant after all.”

“But we won't be together?”

You simply shook your head no at Jack and you were determined to stand your ground and not back down. As much as you wanted to forgive him and be wrapped in his arms, you knew that you deserved better and until he was able to give you that, there was absolutely no reason for the two of you to be together.

You had to let him know that this wasn't acceptable anymore and that if he wanted the two of you to be together that something had to give.

“Baby, please.” Jack pleaded with you as a few tears began to fall, but all you did in response was slip off your engagement ring and hold out your hand towards him as hard as it was and waited for him to take it.

Not believing what he was seeing, he simply shook his head.

“It's rightfully yours, so I want you to keep it. You're the one that I bought it for.”

“Please understand that this doesn't mean that I don't love you because that is as far from the truth as ever.” You quietly said as you grabbed his hand to squeeze it and all he did was nod.

“But we cannot be married and our relationship consists of hiding things from one another.” You added and Jack nodded in agreement.

“And I also have to be able to trust you wholeheartedly. That's my biggest thing.” You continued as Jack started making small circles on the back of your hand.

“I promise to give you all the space and time you need.”

It had been weird.

Weird without you being around Jack and you honestly didn't know how to feel.

He had moved around a few tour dates so that he was able to stay with you for a few days despite your protests. However, he wasn't taking no for an answer.

The very next morning after your car accident, you sent Chris a letter detailing your decision of not managing Jack anymore and ultimately leaving Generation Now. It was rushed and could have been written better, but in your mind the quicker that you got it done, the less likely you would change your mind about your decision. Chris was soon blowing up your phone, but you didn't bother answering it because you knew that he was going to try and convince you to change your mind.

Everything would now be on Neelam's shoulders since you were out of the picture. You didn't wish ill of her or that she would fail at her job because at the end of the day, Jack would be affected. As much as you were upset at him because of his actions, you never wanted anything like that to happen.

The last day that he spent with you before flying back to Europe was somewhat awkward. That was a first because this was the person that you spent the majority of your time with since birth and there had never been a dull moment between the two of you.

This was the first time in his career that you wouldn't be with him and he didn't quite know how to feel about it. As he was getting ready to leave, he simply leaned down to kiss your forehead and lightly caressed your cheek since you were sleeping.

He figured that it would be harder for him to leave in the morning so he decided to leave in the middle of the night. It would be harder because he would physically have to say goodbye to you face to face and he wasn't ready for that. But, he did leave a note for you that you would hopefully see once you woke up.

Y/N,

I had to leave when you were sleeping because it would have been ten times harder for me if not. I take full responsibility for what has happened between us and I hope one day that you can forgive me. It's going to be hard not seeing and being around you every day, but I told you that I would give you all of the space and time that you need. I want you to have a healthy pregnancy for our baby and in order for that to happen, I will do anything you ask because stressing you out is the last thing that I want to do. I love you so much and please understand that I never meant for any of this to happen. I want you to be able to trust me and know that you are my priority. I’m going to prove to you that you made the right choice in saying yes to marrying me and I will wait for however long it takes. We’re going to get through this and I’ll text you when I land.

Love, Jack

Two months or so had passed and you were out at lunch with Maggie and she quickly asked how you were feeling seeing as you were now in month four. Jack would be present at every doctor's appointment either in person or on facetime if he wasn't near Louisville. As much as he wanted to cancel the rest of his tour and stay with you, you wouldn't let him. He worked entirely too hard all year to not see the entire thing through. Your belly was small, but there was definitely something there. Jack had sent a text early this morning to check on you and see how you were feeling and you kept it short and sweet.

You weren't mad at him, not anymore.

But he was far from being in your good graces.

Extremely far.

The two of you were discussing plans about the baby and you told her that when the two of you left that you were actually going to go and do a little light shopping as you were probably going to get a few outfits along with some toys knowing that you will get more than enough when the baby shower rolled around.

“Y/N, where's your ring?” Maggie asked you, catching you off guard as you were showing her the theme that you wanted to do for the baby's room.

You glanced down to look at your bare finger and silently cursed to yourself, forgetting to put it on this morning knowing that she was bound to ask questions.

As far as both of your families knew, the wedding was still on even though that couldn't have been further from the truth. Jack pleaded and begged for you to proceed with it, but you wanted nothing to do with him until he got his shit together.

“And don't lie to me.” Maggie added while eyeing you seeing as you still hadn't responded to her.

“Getting married isn't the best idea for us right now.” You quietly said while playing with your bracelet to distract you.

“Since when?” Maggie asked while trying to get down to the bottom of how her future daughter in law was feeling.

“Sometimes the fairytale turns into a nightmare, but luckily I was able to wake up.” You quietly said before taking a swig of your sprite.

“What did my big headed son do?” Was all you heard as a sigh escaped from her.

“It doesn't even matter at this point. But, just know that I had to take a step back from him. Not because I wanted to, because I needed to.”

“Just know that I'm always going to be here for you. No matter what.” She said while grabbing your hand and squeezing it.

“I appreciate that and I'm going to need it more than ever.”

“And why is that?”

“Jack isn't the only one with talent and I'm done managing him and being in the background. It's my turn to do something for myself.”

–

Jack was high key annoyed and he couldn't wait until the tour was over so that he would be able to go home to Louisville and be with you full time. Well not be with you, obviously since you hadn't forgiven him yet, but he would be closer to you than he was at this very moment. He had gotten a week off during his tour and immediately flew back to Louisville to see you, he sent a text first to let you know he was there and if it was okay to come and see you. By then, you had moved back into your condo, not wanting to be around anything that reminded you of Jack, even though that proved to be impossible.

Neelam was doing a terrible job taking over what you used to do and it had Jack stressed to the tenth level. He was just informed that she had double booked him for something…. again. This had to be the third or fourth time and he was tired of it.

She looked just as stressed as he was and he knew it was an adjustment for her now doing this full time, but something had to give.

“I never had this problem when Y/N was here. Neelam, we cannot keep doing this. How am I supposed to be in two places at once?” He quietly said and all she did was sigh.

“Well I was just thrown into this and now I'm completely by myself so give me some grace and have a little patience.” She shot back as she was scribbling down notes for something.

“You weren't thrown into anything, you had a general idea of what to do and what not to do.”

“Well if you don't want me here, call Y/N since she can obviously do my job a lot better than I can.” Neelam replied frustrated at the attitude that Jack was giving her.

“She doesn't want to talk to me or manage me anymore so you're it.” He muttered as he opened his phone to the text thread between the two of you. Talking every day had basically become non-existent, but he still made sure to check on you a few times a week. At this point, he would take anything that he could get because at least you were talking to him.

But he did make sure to tell you that he loved you in one way, shape, or form every day.

Neelam instantly felt bad once Jack came back and didn't have you with him. Suddenly everything was on her and she highly doubted that you would be willing to help her if she asked you.

Jack had been in a depressed state, which was fair given the circumstances, but he definitely made her job harder most days. She knew that he missed you and knew that you in not so many words broke up with him, were pregnant and did not have a plan on getting back with him any time soon.

Thinking that Jack needed a little pick me up and hoping that you would agree to het idea, she had to work up the nerve to call you later once he was on stage.

“I'll do my best to be better, okay? Chris wouldn't have hired me if I couldn't do my job.”

“It's whatever. I'm going to lay down until I have to head to the venue.”

Neelam quickly nodded and used this as an opportunity to call you once Jack was out of earshot.

She was surprised that you picked up on the second ring.

“Hello?”

“Uh, hey Y/N. It's Neelam.”

“I know, I have caller id. What do you want?” You asked her as you were moving around in your bedroom trying to tidy it up.

“Look, I'm sorry for the way that things went down between us and I overstepped when I shouldn't have.”

“Okay.”

“Um, Jack is just….”

“Just what?” You asked as you stopped in your tracks thinking that something was wrong.

“He needs you, like really needs you. It went from bad to worse, and I just don't know what to do anymore. He barely leaves his bed most days.”

“And what am I supposed to do all the way in Louisville?”

“Well maybe just talk to him? Or even come and see him?”

“And say what Neelam? He made his bed and now he has to lie in it and deal with the consequences. I love him and he knows that I love him, but every time that he has a problem, I cannot always run to him and save the day. He doesn't have much longer and he's just going to have to deal with it as harsh as that may sound.”

“Well can you just think about it? That might be what he needs to finish this out strong.”

“I'll see him once he gets back to Louisville. Talk to you later.”

As Jack was in his hotel room laying down and staring at the ceiling, there was a knock on his door. Removing the comforter from his body, he made his way over to the door and opened it to see Urban staring back at him.

“Uh hey.” Urban quietly said as Jack moved to the side to let him in.

Ever since Jack returned from being with you in Louisville, Urban was trying to be as supportive as he possibly could. He necessarily didn't see this coming the way that everything went down, but he wasn't going to throw it in his best friend's face when he was already not at his best. This what he had been afraid of from the very beginning.

Urban sat down on the couch that was in the far left corner of the room as Jack came and sat next to him.

“What if she changed her mind and doesn't want to marry me anymore?” Jack asked as he broke the silence.

“Did she tell you that?”

“No, but I can't be so sure. I didn't cherish her and I took the love that she has for me for granted. I told her that I would give her as much space and time that she needs, but we're about to have an entire kid and she can barely stand to be in the same room as me.”

“Just give her time. This is Y/N that we're talking about. You know the one who has known you since you were eight days old?”

“As much as I want to, I don't think that giving her time will be enough.”

[thatfreshi]

Little Stars and Such (Astarion x Reader)

It's here, the piercing fic, in which body-modded Tav gives Astarion hella piercings. I made a previous post with his piercing map in case you guys don't know the terms (I basically didn't until yesterday)

Tw - needles, implied sex

Recommended Song: Gregg's Woods - Alec Holowka

For the past couple of days, Astarion has been asking quite a few questions about your piercings. You had adorned your nose and face in tiny pieces of metal, all done by hand. Your little collection has grown over time, most recently with an eyebrow piercing once you settled down in Baldur's Gate once again.

"Do they hurt?"

"Like, when you pierce them? Yeah. You get used to it though. Surprised you don't have any honestly, elves are known for having the most elaborate piercings."

He stays silent for a moment, and you realize he wouldn't know that.

"Wasn't exactly a thing Cazador just let us do. Body modifications were mostly limited to demonic scars and being cut up for fun."

"Right... sorry."

"Don't be."

The conversation ended pretty abruptly, but picked up the next day while you were swapping out your nose ring.

"Do you ever get scared that your little ring will get caught on something and rip out of your nose?"

A sudden question, but a welcome one.

"I mean, sometimes, but not many people are that close to my nose. Unless you're planning on ripping out my piercing?"

You eye him suspiciously and he smirks.

"Oh, I would never."

This goes on for days, little prodding questions about all your accessories. One morning, while the two of you are lying in bed, you catch him staring at the helix on your ear.

"Astarion do you... do you want a piercing? Because I can do them. I mean I did these to myself."

"I've been thinking about it. I'm just a little nervous is all."

"Why my love?"

"I mean, I've never really had the freedom to do what I want with my body, in a lot of ways. That's one of those things I never got to explore, all the body modifications people are oh so familiar with. I suppose I could've done one with an embroidery needle if I was desperate, but that's just not something I had the liberty to think about."

You move a strand of hair out of his eyes.

"Well, you have the freedom to do whatever you want now."

"Then perhaps I'd like a couple."

"A couple? You don't wanna start with one?"

"Nonsense! One would be sad and pathetic, and we know I am a man of extravagance."

"Alright, if you insist."

You then grab a notebook sitting on the bedside table, and begin to draw out a plan for his piercings. Astarion insists that he only wants them on his ears, because he doesn't want anything to ruin his perfect face. As you're sketching, you continue to talk.

"You know this is gonna suck, right? Since your ears are so sensitive?"

"Sensitive? What makes you say that."

You blankly stare at him until he gives up.

"Okay fine, but I'm sure it can't be that bad!"

"I don't know. I mean I'm going to stab multiple holes through your ears. You barely like them being touched."

"I've been through enough pain. Nothing compares to jagged cuts in your back, I promise."

There are many moments like that, where he says something tragic that you just can't bring yourself to argue with. Without another word, he curls up against you, and the two of you discuss the options he has. Eventually, you settle on five on each side, because he INSISTED they be symmetrical.

"Tav, what kind of idiot would I look like if I had one ear with a bunch of shit on it, and one just, empty?"

"I guess you're not wrong."

He decides on two helixes, two lobe piercings, and a daith. You're a little surprised that he's going all out on this, but you don't mind. Everyone has that thing that lets them feel free, the thing they finally do to show the world 'I'm my own person.' Besides, if he didn't like them he could simply let them heal back up, forget this ever happened.

You go to grab your little makeshift piercing kit, full of fine needles you've collected over time, just in case you ever lose some.

"Now, you'll have to wear some of mine since you don't have your own earrings yet, but I'm sure you won't mind because my collection is amazing."

He sits up in bed, his shirt sleeve softly draping off his shoulder. If he could still be in the sun, you'd imagine a beam of light coming through the window right now, illuminating his face. You sit beside him, gently placing the box of needles by your feet.

"Alright, I'm gonna walk you through this as I do it, and if you want to stop at any time we can."

"Thank you my love."

The thought crosses your mind, that he'd probably not let any other soul on the planet do this kind of thing. Any time he's let someone else have control over his body, it's been riddled with sin and scars. But you? You've always been kind, soft, present. That's one thing he loves most about you, that he feels like he can be present. Not drifting off somewhere else, not closing off his mind to defend himself, not playing a chess match in his head. It's, easy. Life is easy now, and isn't that something wonderful?

"Alright, we're gonna start on the lobe. You feel the needle?"

You hold it lightly against his ear, and he shivers a little.

"Mhm."

"Alright, don't tense, but it's gonna hurt."

You hear the air escape through his teeth as the needle goes through. A pretty clean job if you do say so yourself.

"Well?"

You put in a dangling gold moon, waiting to see how he feels.

"Painful, but not horrible."

"Want to go again?'

"Of course."

He says it a little suggestively, and you give him a playful push.

"Save it for later imp."

You continue with his piercings, taking small breaks in between for conversation. You've continued adorning his ears with astral-themed jewelry, little stars and such. By the time you've finished the last one, you're quite pleased with your work. Astarion almost doesn't let you put the last earring in since he's so excited to see what you've done. He had Gale teach him mirror image a while ago, so he could finally see his reflection whenever he wanted. After casting it and giving his ears a look, he smiles.

Astarion laughs at your comment, giving one of those genuine smiles you used to rarely see. You silently curse the people that took that smile from him, wondering how anyone could see this specimen and torment him. He's like a pixie, a little trickster, someone you could pick up and hold forever. You know you're probably the only one who sees him that way, the only one who would call him cute, but he is. He enjoys it, being viewed as something that isn't devious or sexual, but a bright presence. You told him once how it's ironic that he can't be in the sun, because he was probably sunnier than the sun itself. He'd never let you tell anyone else that though.

"I... I think I quite like them."

"I do too. It's fitting."

You plant a kiss on his cheek.

"Worth the pain?"

"Most things are my love. Like you."

His hand meets your face, taking you into a deep kiss. When you break away, you whisper in his ear.

"I think they make you sexier too."

A chuckle under his breath, lips meeting again, and the morning is soon wasted away in bed. What a joy, to wake up every day with him, with someone living their life anew. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Neither of you know, but it's exciting none-the-less.

[thatlovinfeelin]

He Don't Like The Lights | Bradley Bradshaw Actor AU|

Waiting tables wasn’t horrible, but it wasn’t your favorite job either. Not that you hated it, because you didn’t. For the most part you liked your coworkers, your roommate Celeste being one of them. Your bosses weren’t horrible, and the pay was alright. You were able to pay your bills and stash some extra cash away for savings. Soon, or at least you hoped it would be soon, you would be able to move out of the somewhat shitty place with Celeste and get a better apartment. Maybe even leave Virginia altogether. 

“Hey, I need you to take table five.” 

“But it’s not in my section tonight,” You argue with your manager. 

“Just take it, okay? It's a single and you’re better with singles than Celeste,” He replied, shooing you away with his hands. 

You let out a dramatic sigh, rolling your eyes as you grabbed your waitress book and headed towards the single guy sitting at the table. You never sized up tables before you started serving them, never tried to write people off before they had a chance to show their colors. 

But you could tell that this guy was hot just by the way he was sitting with a baseball cap tugged low. He at least knew how to wear a damned hat unlike some of the guys who came in with it halfway on their heads. 

“Hi, welcome in, can I get you started with anything to drink?” You asked cheerfully as you stopped in front of him. 

The bar was relatively empty, which came as a surprise since it was a weekend and the weather was fairly nice. Maybe everyone was still out at the beach and would be in before dinner ended. Maybe you would get lucky and end up having a good tip night to make up for the shitfest that was last night. 

“Uh, just a Bud on draft if you have it.”

“Bud lite?” You question. 

“No, Buswieser, the real shit,” There’s a hint of a laugh in his voice. 

“I’ve got it in a bottle, is that okay?”

“Yeah that works,” He replies, tipping his head back to look up at you. 

It takes you a second to register who’s actually looking at you. You’ve seen those dark hazel eyes on screen plenty of times, because Cele is obsessed with his movies. However, what really takes you back is how normal he looks in an old beat up t-shirt and shorts. He doesn’t look like the glamourous actor that you’ve seen.

“I’m sorry- are you,” You stop and lick your lips. 

You aren’t nervous, because you aren’t obsessed with him. His movies are okay, and you have to admit he is more attractive in person than he is on screen. But you’ve never been one to fall face first over someone who’s in the industry, not that you’ve ever had the chance to before. 

“Are you Bradley Bradshaw?” The question comes out as a whisper as you lean down, trying to be as quiet as you can. 

He pales for a moment, waiting to see if you’re going to fully freak out on him before smiling sheepishly, “Caught that easily, huh?”

“You’re lucky it’s just me and not the other girl over there,” You inform him, “She’d be on the floor, and I know that because I live with her and share a TV with her. But since it’s just me,” you smile at him before backing away a step, “A bottle of Bud coming right up.”

He smiles and relaxes into his seat before looking back down at his phone on the table. You can’t help but smile as you make your way towards the bar and the POS system to start his ticket. 

Bradley Bradshaw is eating in the bar and no one but you knows. He just happened to be lucky enough that Celeste had the one big table and was therefore too busy to take him, even though it was her section. 

“Thanks for taking that table,” She sounds out of breath as she sets a drink tray down next to you, “I’m swamped with those fuckers over there. Tourists on vacation who want everything at that very moment. Including three Virgin Strawberry Daiquiris for the kids. I want to shoot myself.”

You smile to yourself as you make your way around to the beer cooler to grab a nice cold bottle of Bud, “Oh don’t worry about it. He shouldn’t cause any trouble anyway.”

If only she knew. 

“Here you go,” You say, sitting the open bottle down on his table, “Do you need a minute to look over the menu? Or do you have any questions?”

“What do you recommend?” He asked you, looking back up. 

“Pulled Pork Mac’n’cheese, easy,” You replied almost instantly, “Hands down my favorite dish here, after our Crab Dip appetizer, but I also eat that for a full meal.”

He smiles up at you and closes the menu before handing it back to you, “I’ll try that Pork Mac then.”

“Sounds good, I’ll get that right in!” You smile triumphantly before backing away once again, “Holler if you need anything, okay? I’ll be back to check on you before the food comes out.”

Back at the bar, Celeste is finally able to stop for a minute and catch her breath. She looks miserable and it makes you want to laugh a little. Her night would be very different if she just took Table Five instead. 

She’s hunched over her phone reading an article, which normally you would call her out on being on her phone but tonight you can’t be bothered. It��s slow enough and her phone is hidden anyway. 

“Hey, Bradshaw is up for a bunch of awards,” She grins, “He so deserves them. You remember how great he was in that war movie, right! That’s what’s being nominated.”

“Hmm?” You question before your brain seems to catch up with you, “Oh, yeah. No, he was great in that movie. Whole cast was, honestly.”

“Exactly! I hope they sweep at the Oscars, they all deserve it so much.”

You have to hide your smile as you type away on the POS to put in the order. In the back, you can hear your kitchen jamming out to some sort of heavy metal meets classic rock mix which isn’t all that unusual for them. There are some days you’ve come to work and they’ve been listening to Disney music. At this point you can’t even try to say that you understand what their playlists consist of. 

It takes ten minutes before you’re walking back over to the table with another beer in hand. You noticed he was starting to run low and you know better than to let a drink ever go empty. That was one of the first things you learned when you became a waitress. 

“Brought you another one,” You announce, setting it down. 

“Thanks, appreciate it,” He replies, “And uh, thanks for not freaking out on me. Would’ve been a bitch if I got swarmed in here.”

“No worries, I’m not a rabid fan or anything,” You laugh, “But I am curious as to why you’re here of all places. I thought you lived in LA?”

“I do,” He nods, “But this was home long before LA was. I was born here in Virginia, I like to come back and visit family from time to time.”

“Oh,” You’re taken back by his honesty. He could’ve easily told you that it was none of your business, which is what you expected, “That’s really nice actually.”

Celeste calls you, saying the kitchen wants you. Reluctantly you force yourself away from the table and towards the set of double swinging doors in the middle of the bar. Something about Bradley Bradshaw is drawing you in and you aren’t sure if you want to resist it or not. Surely he wouldn’t remember your name in a few hours. He’d forget about the server from Virginia the second he got on a flight back to LA and the way of the world would take back over. 

“Here’s that pork mac,” Chef told you, nudging the dish in the window, “Get it out of my sight.”

“Sir yes sir,” You reply, grabbing the hot dish, “Thank you!”

“Yeah yeah, fuck off,” He grumbled, which only made you smile. 

You made your way back towards Bradley’s table with a smile. You could see why Celeste was so enamored with him. There was just something about him that made you want to sit down and hang on his every word. Plus, he was hot as hell. He still had the mustache from his previous role, and was trying to hide behind his ball cap. He looked normal, almost.

You wondered how other people here saw him? Were they even paying attention to the bonafide star that was hiding out in the corner? Celeste would piss herself if she knew he was here, hell, you might even piss yourself if he smiled at you again. The thought made you a little weak in the knees. 

“Your pork mac,” You said, sitting it down on the table in front of him, “Be careful, it’s actually pretty hot.”

“Mmm, looks fantastic,” He nearly groaned, “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet, you don’t even know if you’ll like it!” You laughed, “But I hope you enjoy, and let me know if I can get you anything else.”

You hop away from him again, taking a deep breath as you go. Maybe the night wouldn’t be as bad as you thought.

[spell-cleaver]

One thing I've always wondered is how Vader didn't sense either Luke (or Leia's for that matter) force presence on the first death star. I guess he was super caught up in with the whole "I sense the old coot who cut off my limbs amd left me to burn" thing, but I like to think obi-wan was masking the pair by just being obnoxiously loud with the force (the force equivalent of him walking into a room with multiple air horns and a boom box blasting away)

Wow, I had THOUGHTS about this one.

Honestly? I'm not a fan of the assumption in a lot of fic and by fans that it's super easy to passively sense someone in the Force. I have used it myself, of course, but I say from experience it restricts writing a lot while... not actually having a ton of backing in the films? (I'm referring to the films here, not to any other media, just because when I want to analyse lore, I only take them as canon; when I'm just looking for cool worldbuilding for a fic, though, anything goes.)

It's not just Leia that Vader doesn't sense on the Death Star. He doesn't sense Luke either, even though Luke is right there screaming when Vader kills Obi-Wan. It's more of an issue with Leia ofc because he literally used the mind probe on her but only finds that "her resistance... is considerable". An easy answer is that I headcanon Leia is a naturally good shielder, which is why she was never found on the Death Star and also why all of the Jedi in ROTS were surprised there were two babies - Leia had been naturally shielding herself, so they just sensed Luke.

But if we go more in-depth into the films' representations of the Force, Vader only senses Luke when he's actively chasing him as a pilot; he comments that "The Force is strong with this one" only when Luke is using the Force to aim and fire his shot. For me, this implies that you can only sense other Force users powerfully or distinctly when they're actively using the Force. I know why fic prefers not to go that way - I for one have used the "Vader senses Luke immediately" plot to get Luke captured many a time - but it's a fun thing to consider. Also, the Force is a soft magic system. It does functionally whatever the story needs it to.* Which is why Vader can sense Luke approaching Endor in ROTJ when Palpatine couldn't, but he had to be told by an officer when Luke's ship was approaching Cloud City in ESB.** There are many examples where a Force user just didn't sense someone else. Luke not sensing Yoda in ESB, Obi-Wan not sensing Dooku's presence on Geonosis, the Jedi non sensing Maul in TPM, the Jedi not sensing Palpatine for the whole prequel trilogy.

You could argue that those examples are of trained Force wielders shielding themselves, but I would argue that Qui-Gon can't sense Anakin in TPM. He doesn't show interest in Anakin until after they've left Watto's shop and Anakin starts talking to him. Anakin is the literal son of the Force and the most powerful Force wielder ever, but Qui-Gon was talking to Watto for a while without batting an eyelash at the small supernova in his shop. He didn't start to suspect until he heard about his racing, his instincts, spoke to him to notice his insights. Then still he spoke to Shmi about him to confirm his suspicions that "he can see things before they happen", watched him while he flew, and took a midichlorian count. I think the Force might well have been nudging Qui-Gon to look at Anakin, to suspect something, but I don't think he sensed Anakin himself as Force sensitive - at least, not immediately. Which is how I think you can explain all the instances of people going "I felt his presence." They were either using the Force, or familiar as Force sensitives to the person sensing them, or the Force wielder in general had an instinct that there was something special about this person, I should pay attention...

This has been a long ramble, but the short answer is: I headcanon Leia as naturally good at shielding. I think it fills multiple Star Wars plot holes.***

But I think it's also worth interrogating the fact that fandom seems to approach and conceptualise of the Force as a hard magic system, with clearly defined rules, rather than the soft magic system it is.**** Anything goes in Star Wars! It can be annoying if the writing doesn't sell it well enough, but I really love that aspect of the worldbuilding. And considering that the Force is a big fat plot device as well as giving people magical instincts for things that are Plot Relevant and things that aren't, I think it's a lot more interesting to consider that the Force isn't a superpower that lets you sense everything. Vader didn't detect Leia simply because he didn't. Sometimes they fail to do that. And it allows you to show growth in character and situation when that fact changes. Vader doesn't sense Luke in ANH until he's Plot Relevant to Vader's personal story. He doesn't sense Luke until he's fighting him in ESB. But in ROTJ, once they're both invested in their relationship and fated to meet, they're drawn together like stars caught in a mutual orbit.

That's the explanation I prefer. Because although it's less consistent, it's not unbelievable. It leaves uncertainty, mysticism, the chance for exploration in the galaxy. And most importantly, it tells a damn good story. Which, while this may not be true of people who love collecting lore and figuring the galaxy out, is ultimately what I'm here for.

*This is why so many random new powers can get added and explored in later movies and such, and also why I don't really get het up about it when they do add them. It just depends how you incorporate that new power. Usually, if a villain suddenly has a new power no one knew about (like Palpatine's lightning in ROTJ) it just ups the stakes, while if a hero suddenly has a new power it can feel like it cheapens their victory, like they haven't earned it; a deus ex machina. So messing about with Force powers is fine, it just depends how you incorporate them in the story.

**Admittedly this can be explained by the bond being formed when Luke learned the truth, but you know what I mean.

***I was only talking about the movies here, but there's also that moment in the Kenobi series where she's captured by Inquisitors and still no one notices she's Force sensitive??? There's just a lot of moments like this littered all over Star Wars, so this headcanon covers a lot of them.

****I kept using the terms hard/soft magic system without really explaining it here, but here's some good videos to dig into it: Soft Magic Systems | Hard Magic Systems

[gremlin-writes-angst]

"Lets get food"

The (short, less than 1k) beginning of my brother's best friend fanfic featuring Ash x Darlin

Currently unsure of what the whole fic rating will be but for this chapter id say it pretty safe.

content and trigger warnings: mention of vampire feeding, low energy, mentions of sleeping around.

I'd like to thank everyone who liked my original post about this idea. I had started writing a ( completely different) first chapter but wasn't feeling inspired till people started liking that post

a special thanks to @professionallyyappin and @dawnofiight . Thank you for rebloging my idea and just helping me feel motivated

Sorry for any grammar and spelling mistakes and enjoy :)

'Let's get food'

A seemingly normal text message 

That was the point,  so if anyone, more specifically David, saw it, he wouldn't think twice about it 

But what it meant was 

“ I need a ride after sleeping with a stranger”

Darlin didn't drive anymore, not after Gabe

And there was no way they were going to let David know how many people they slept with

Originally they would just walk home, in the dark sketchy parts of town

Until Asher saw them one day

“Darlin?”

He called out at the hooded figure

They ignored him

“ Darlin, I know that's you.”

They didn't know why he called them that, he was the only one

“What Asher?”

They turned to face Asher, his car stopping in the middle of the road.

Darlin looked around and as usual, no other cars were on the street

“ What are you doing out here? I don't know if you've checked the time recently but, it's not walking around time.”

He smiled at them

“I'm just- yeah”

They didn't want to admit the truth.

They couldn't let him tell David

“That's not a very good answer”

He laughed before leaning over and opening the passenger door from inside

“ get in, I'll take you where you need to be”

He offered but didn't demand,  like most of the men Darlin knew.

“ I'm- “

They take a moment to breathe,  feeling woozy From the blood loss

“ I'm all good Ashy”

He barked out a laugh

“ If you're calling me Ashy, you're not good.”

They couldn't argue.

So they climbed in, defending their self

“ This is just easier, I could handle myself”

Their sparky sentence was shorter than it typically would be. 

Another sign something was wrong

“ I know, but you don't seem at your full strength. And like you said, this is easier”

After a while he realized they weren't going to buckle their seat, so he leaned over to do so.

They simply rolled their eyes

Asher started to drive

Darlin Didn't say anything for a long time

he even though they might have dozed off.

Until they gasped and pointed

“Wendy's. Ashy we have to get Wendy's!”

They called him Ashy again,  he's starting to like it

Silently he pulls into the parking lot and parks

“ They have a drive through”

Darlin states 

“Darlin, If you're trying to hide what I think you're hiding from David, we're going to need more time.”

A vague sentence but Darlin caught on

“ lobby it is”

Darlin had a new pep in their step as they entered and started the order.

Once Darlin was done, Asher added his burger along with the same thing they ordered.

Before Darlin could get their wallet Asher had already Paid

It was a little disorienting, Darlin always paid, not because they preferred but simply because they knew the other wouldn't

They were too confused to even say thank you.

They found a table, amongst the sea of empty tables

Before Asher sat down their order was called, so he went to get it.

Setting the food down before going to fill up their drinks

When he returned, Darlin had already started to wolf down their burger

No pun intended

They didn't say a word as they reached for their drink, taking a swig before going back for a big bite

Asher just smiled to himself

When Darlin finished their burger they spoke

“ How'd you know what drink I wanted”

He jokingly rolled his eyes at the Question

“ I've known you for like, 8 years now. If I didn't know what drink you preferred I wouldn't be a good friend”

They started stealing fries from Ashers' plates, even though they still had their own heaping pile

With fries in their mouth, they said

“ I didn't know you considered us friends”

The sentence made Asher feel cold 

He prides himself on being a good friend to almost everyone. 

Darlin quickly caught on to Asher's negative reaction and tried to reverse it.

“ Not that you were bad or anything but I just thought you were David's friend,  and I was just an extension of David”

Darlin's words didn't seem to cheer Asher up, but he still smiled And pretended it was fine

“ Well I see you as your person, even if you are related to David, you are not just His little sibling to me”

Darlin felt chills at that

Good chills

Probably their first time getting good chills

They didn't realize that was important to them

But they couldn't let Asher know that

“I'm only 4 months younger Than him”

Asher takes a bite of his food before, with His mouth full, continuing the conversation

“I wasn't talking age, he's At least a foot taller Than you”

Darlin laughed and rolled their eyes.

They then pointed to the extra burger

“ Can I?”

Others would probably not find that short sentence charming,  but Asher did. 

At least in perspective 

Darlin was actively stealing Asher's fries but when It came to the burger they asked.

And when they asked, their voice was shy and sweet. 

Asher liked every part of Darlin', but it was a side the soft sweet side one they hid away, so it was like a treat for Asher

“ I got it for you. So yeah”

Darlins' energy seemed to dip again, not severely but Asher noticed it. 

He decides to hold back his thoughts for the day.

Darlin finished Their food and they left

The rest of the night was uneventful As he drove them home

He messaged them that night

'I know you can take care of yourself, but you don't have to'

After he sent it he felt vulnerable, so he tried to soften it

'We can get food to'

Low and behold a couple of days later he got a text

'Let's get food'

Followed By an address 

Darlin was letting Asher into a part of Their life.

A part only he was allowed

[thatlonelymonster]

Little fights

Pairing: Lo'ak x male Metkayina reader x Aonung

Pronouns used: he/him

Words: 2k

Warnings: none

Request: “If your requests are open can I req some Aonung x male reader x Lo’ak? Any plot really, just some fluff would be nice”

"(M/n)! (M/n), over here!" What was that? My thoughts were still cloudy when I was awakened from my nap on the beach. "Oh man, just leave him, can’t you see he's sleeping?" "(M/n), look!" I sat up and rubbed my eyes. My gaze wandered over the water until I could see two figures not far away from me, to whom I could assign the voices from just now. It took me a second to get on my feet. Then I stretched briefly and patted some sand off of my tweng.

Finally, I started moving to make my way to the water. The spot where the low waves reached the beach was barely a few meters away. As the waves swept over my feet, I sighed contentedly. Feeling the coolness of the ocean on my body was one of my favorite feelings. But the quiet satisfaction did not last long when the same voice from earlier called my name again: "(M/n), look what I caught!" One of my boyfriends, Lo'ak, waved his hands excitedly in the air. His fingers were clasped around a short spear, on which a fish, a little larger than his head, was wriggling impaled. "Nice catch, love!" I closed the few steps between us and patted his shoulder with a grin. "Right?" He beamed from ear to ear. He had such a way about him, his joy was just contagious. "And Aonung made fun of me because of it!" I tried to contain myself from chuckling when I noticed the little pout that had now spread across his lips. It was clear to me that he was only looking for my confirmation with his actions. And since I knew what made him tick, I didn't want to deny him the little praise. So I just leaned over and gave him a small kiss that served its purpose and put the smile back on his pretty face. "Oh, don't hold it against him, he's just jealous because he hasn't caught anything yet." I quipped. Although I had said this quietly, a second later I heard some angry mumbling. Something about how this is not true and Lo'ak being like a baby who wouldn't even catch a tadpole.

I hadn't intended to have to start this all over again and I regretted saying anything at all. The relationship between Lo'ak and Aonung was, well, let's say more often still difficult. Before Lo'ak had joined our relationship, they had become friends to some extent, but not without constantly teasing each other. I had expected it to get better since the three of us were together, but now they were constantly arguing for my attention, which of them was better at what and more unnecessary quarrels on a toddler level. This rivalry, whether playful or not, sometimes really got on my nerves, as they were both very important to me. And I wasn't their mother to arbitrate such things all the time. Sometimes I wish that everything could just be a little more tension-free. I turned to Aonung, thinking about saying something, and couldn't decide whether to apologize to him for my comment or blame him for his. However, this decision was taken away from me when Lo'ak caught me off guard by placing his spear in the water and jumping into my arms, almost causing me to fall backwards in the process. By doing so, he was successful in drawing my attention back to him.

I put my hands around his back to hold him up. "Are you proud of me?" His gaze rested intensely on my face and he gave me an expression full of joyful anticipation. For now, I buried my face in the crook of his neck so he couldn't see my amused smile. It was mean, I knew that, but somehow Aonung wasn't entirely wrong with his words. Of course, since Lo'ak was one of the forest people, he had no practice in our hunt and had to start very small. And, of course, I didn't want to dissuade him from this progress by discouraging him. "Yes, soo proud!" I muttered, fueling his ego. Aonung snorted in exasperation. "Come on, can you even call this little thing a fish? Even a baby could catch something like that!", he said spitefully with his typical challenging grin. I had learned to just ignore his cheeky comments to Lo'ak, because when I scolded them for their little fights, both of them just ended up whining. "Oh, is that so, Aonung? You don't have to say anything, because unlike you, I actually caught something! And I'm not even from here!" He stuck his tongue out at the older boy. "Guys, please!" "He started it!", came from both of them at the same time.

As always, no one took the blame. In the end, I decided to let them discuss it when else because I couldn't bear their squabbling again. So, without further ado, I just went back towards the beach, literally running away from my problems for the moment. At least in part, because Lo'ak was still clinging to my neck and now wrapped his legs around my waist so as not to fall off due to my movement. "Hey, where are we going?" he asked, confused. "I don't know. I'll just separate you from each other until you behave appropriately for your age again." I also didn't care if Lo'ak was offended by my comment now. If he were, he would simply end up somewhere in the water. I was just fed up at the moment. However, to my surprise, he just relaxed in my arms and caressed the tattoos on my shoulders with his fingers. I waited for him to say something, but he didn't.

It wasn't until I arrived at the small cave somewhere near the beach, where we often came, that he let go of my neck and dropped on his own feet. Even though I loved carrying him around, I was glad that I didn't have to hold his weight anymore as it made walking kind of difficult. "Do we want to cook the fish for dinner?" he asked softly. The fish. "Well, did you bring it with you?" We both looked at each other in expressionless realization. "We forgot the fish." I sighed. "Then we'll just eat with the others later." He nodded. But I could see a hint of disappointment on his face. "You'll catch another one tomorrow!" He nodded again. Then he reached out to me and gave me the grasping hands movement. "Cuddle?" I asked him with my head tilted to the side. Instead of giving me an answer, he simply pulled me into a tight embrace. I didn't know why he was so needy for attention today, but of course I didn't mind. "Come on, let's make ourselves comfortable." I looked around the cave. It wasn't big, but it didn't have to be. When we first found it, we put a little effort into decorating it with leaves and laying out moss to sit on, built a small fire pit from a circle of stones and that was it. It wasn't my home, but I felt almost as at home here as I did in the village. Yet this was probably because I shared this place with my boyfriends and thus connected it with them.

I chose a large moss pillow to sit on and pulled Lo'ak by the hand towards me. As he wriggled around, trying to find a position that was comfortable for both of us, I watched him. In the end, he just rested his head on my chest and pulled his legs to him like a baby. My gaze wandered over his beautiful body. His skin tone, which had a darker shade of blue than mine, his strong but delicate hands with five beautifully long fingers, the patterns on his arms, chest, torso and legs, and actually all over his body, his thin forest tail, which probably made swimming much more difficult. He wasn't just special because he looked different from my people. He was also unique in his own way. "What is it?" I looked down and saw him staring at me with his big yellow orbs. It just looked indescribably adorable. "Nothing. You're just unbelievably beautiful." I gave him a warm smile. A dark purple blush crept onto his cheeks and he quickly hid them in his hands. "Don't just say something like that, skxawng!" His embarrassment made me laugh. "And you don't hide your cute face!" Carefully, I grabbed his wrists and pulled his hands away from his face. His pupils were slightly dilated and his face still had a soft shade of purple. This sight made my face heat up as well. Without taking my eyes off him, I intertwined my fingers with his.

"Wow, now you're even cuddling without me. Lo'ak jumped when we suddenly heard a voice in the entrance of the cave. I laughed at his startled expression. Then I turned to the figure that was now approaching. The beautiful figure of my other boyfriend. He gave us a hurt look. So sad and genuine-looking that it would have convinced me if I hadn't known him so well. His arms were crossed in front of his chest and he was holding something in his hands. Could that... "You brought the fish!" Lo'ak exclaimed happily. "Yes, but I'm not giving it to you since you're shutting me out like that." Lo'ak's happy expression turned into a guilty one. "Aonung, don't tease him like that!" He huffed. "Don't tease him like that!" he imitated me in a silly voice. "Why are you babying him all day?" I stared at him and he held my gaze. "Are you actually jealous?" I asked incredulously as I slowly saw through him. "No." It sounded more like a question than an answer. That would probably never change. Why did he always want to play tough and cool to hide the fact that he needed something? No matter if it was help or attention. He never asked for it and for years I noticed how he suffered in silence when he was struggling with something. This thought made me a little sad. Not only did he think he had to behave this way, he also acted like that in front of me as if I hadn't known him all his life. I had been his friend all these years, and not so long ago I become his boyfriend. "(M/n)?"

Yeah, maybe I had stared at him for too long. "Come here, darling." I opened one arm for him while holding Lo'ak's hand with the other. He still pretended to weigh whether or not to do it, but the next second, he put the spear with the fish on it down and got on his knees to crawl up to me and curl up next to Lo'ak in my arm. "We would never leave you out, you know that, right?" I asked him, gently stroking his head with my hand. He closed his eyes and kept silent. I sighed. "I love you so much. Both of you. Can't you imagine how hard it is for me to see you arguing all the time? I know you don't hate each other and I don't want to choose between the two of you. Moments like this are just too precious. Don't you prefer that to arguing?" They were both quiet, probably too proud to say anything. "I'm sorry I made fun of your hunting skills, Lo'ak." Aonung spoke under his breath. Lo'ak turned his gaze to him. "I'm sorry I stuck my tongue out at you and mocked you for not catching anything. I know you're a great hunter!" The words of the two almost melted my heart. "(M/n), are you crying?" "No!" Suddenly, they both laughed together. "You two are impossible!" I said, giggling and shaking my head. "I know, I know." Aonung snickered. We stayed like this for a few more minutes, then the older one shifted in my arms. "As much as I enjoy this, can we get up and make a fire now? It's getting dark and I'm really hungry!"

I hope you liked it :)

[angelsanarchy]

Alkaline: Euronymous x Y/N Series CH 30

Tagging: @ophelialaufey @madamemaximoff06 @forever-not-gonna-sink@ajmiila02@liquidsmoothdomme@shady-the-simp @auggiethecreator @tempt-ress @blacksoul-27 @shroomje

Oystein got home and could tell something with Y/n was off. He had heard bits and pieces from Hellhammer but Y/n was adamant that she didn't want him to do anything about it. He knew Y/n wasn't afraid of him but he knew Varg was a violent person with a short temper. The last thing he wanted was for her to set him off by showing no fear. He thrived on shit like that.

He had called Varg and asked him to meet with him to discuss the album and when he caught sight of him, he tossed the copy of Kerrang on the table in front of him.

"You know this is bullshit right?" Varg sat down clearly pissed.

"What are you talking about? You're on the fucking cover? What else could you ask for?" Oystein asked confused.

"Your name is all over the thing. You didn't want any of this going to the press, I took it there and it's just another thing you get to take credit for like you're the brains of this whole thing." Varg's disdain for Oystein had grown so much in such a short time, he knew that whatever he said would only make things more hostile.

"Look, I didn't ask you here to argue about pointless things. I wanted to-"

"I'm going to release my own music on my own label." Varg cut him off.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Oystein asked.

"It means I don't need you anymore. You'll have to find some other idiot to steal from." Varg pressed. Oystein shook his head at him.

"I haven't stolen anything from you Varg." Varg started ranting about the money that was used to make Mayhem's album and Oystein pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. He knew the money panned out in the end with having Varg join the band but it was pointless to try and sort things out at this point.

"You know what? I think that's a great idea. I think you should release your music on your own label, you want to quit Mayhem, that's fine. We can finish the album on our own and even kick you out some of the profit from what you've already put into." Oystein folded his hands in front of him and Varg shook his head.

"You're such a sellout." Varg chuckled.

"What else do you want from me man? You're getting everything you want-"

"I want for people to know that you are a poser. I want people to know that the so called creator of pure Norwegian Black Metal betrayed it with his bullshit lies and deceit." Varg's words were harsh but Oystein knew he didn't care what Varg thought of him.

"I want your whole world to burn to the ground and people to see you for who you truly are. A weak, pathetic hack who profited off the death of his friend and is run around by the cock on a leash by some Itzig." Varg spoke with such disgust about him but it wasn't until he mentioned Pelle and Y/n that he felt himself grinding his teeth and clenching his fists.

"I know what you said to her and that's the end of it. You want to come after me, tell people I'm some piece of shit poser, go ahead. But you approach Y/n again, you so much as breathe on her and I'll kill you myself." Oystein spoke softly so the people around them couldn't hear but Varg laughed.

"Just because you boasted like you puppeteered your little buddy Pelle into blowing his brains out, doesn't mean you've got even an ounce of killer in you, Oystein." He mocked. It was becoming increasingly hard to maintain his emotions.

"You want to see the killer in me, keep it up. There's only one thing in this world that I would kill for and that's Y/n. I will do whatever it takes to protect her, even if that means sitting in a cell next to you for arson. You can believe that above everything that's ever come out of my mouth." He held Varg's gaze and he knew that Oystein was serious. He didn't fear him but he knew that he had the capability to end his career before it even started if he ended up in prison for the church fires.

"Well I hope you're also willing to die for her as much as you say you would kill for her." Varg pushed away from the table and left the magazine and the necklace he had given him when he first joined the band sitting on the table. Oystein watched him leave with his hood up, making sure no one saw his face and he sighed. He felt a little bit of the weight lift off of his shoulders. He felt like he had just broken up with someone but that someone hated his guts and wished nothing but the worst for him.

Oystein pulled his wallet out and looked at the picture he had put in there of himself, Pelle and Y/n the first night he wore the corpse paint. He felt a pang in his heart for those times. Everything seemed so much easier then. He wished he could go back and change things. He felt himself getting emotional and jumped up from the table, grabbing the magazine and necklace and trashing them on his way out of the restaurant.

[kissorkill16]

Scene from my Secret Neighbor AU

Diane walked down the halls of her house, carrying a basket full of dirty laundry. Normally, her husband took care of this, but today he insisted on cooking, so Diane was taking his place.

As she walked by Theodore's office, she couldn't help but notice that inside, the window was open.

"Oh, Teddy...", she whispered. "You're going to let the bugs in."

She knew this room was off limits, but when it came to household duties, she didn't want any of the doors or windows open as to not let any bugs in.

She closed the window, and was about to leave when she accidentally caught a glimpse of her husband's bulletin board.

She knew better than to go through other people's things. She was more respectful than that.

But then she saw one of their family photos, and Aaron's face was scribbled out for some reason. She turned on the light and started really looking at the board.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing when she saw all of the pictures sprawled out across the board. Newspaper articles, letters from previous lawyers, and all of their family photos. All of the newspaper articles had Aaron's form circled in red ink, all of the family photos also had Aaron's face circled in red until his face disappeared altogether.

And there was one particular picture that really caught her eye.

Their last family photo, and Aaron's face was completely scribbled out, and next to the scribble was the word OMEN.

Diane balled her hands into fists and angrily gritted her teeth. She yanked the picture from the board and shouted out for her husband.

"THEODORE MASTERS PETERSON, GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW!"

In no time, Ted was already charging into the room, kitchen knife in hand from cutting vegetables for dinner, and a puzzled look on his face. When he saw Diane in front of his bulletin board, his face went pale, then his features darkened.

Diane angrily held the picture to Ted, "Do you mind explaining to me what the hell this is all about?!"

"Diane...", Theodore started, "What are you doing in my office?"

"DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT!", shouted Diane. "Is this what you think of our son? After all we've been through as a family, after all of the hell that's happened to us, from Germany to this shit town, you think our own son is the problem?!"

Ted didn't say anything, he just focused his dark eyes on the floor.

"Answer me, damn it!"

When Ted finally looked up, he locked eyes with Diane. "You weren't supposed to see that.", he said. "No one was supposed to see that."

"Why?! Because you're scared of us finding out what you really think of us? Of our family?", said Diane. "Did you ever mean it when you said you loved us? Did you mean it when you said you loved me? Did you mean it when you said you loved our children? Did you mean any of it?!"

The two argued back and forth, sometimes talking over each other.

What neither of them seemed to notice was that Aaron and Mya had heard their arguing, and against their better judgement, they decided to listen in. Mya covered her ears when the yelling got louder, and Aaron wrapped his arms around her in a warm hug.

The couple stopped arguing.

"I want a fucking divorce."

Aaron and Mya's eyes widened. They peeked in the office, watching their father's expressionless face.

"Diane, don't be ridiculous.", said Ted.

"I've been ridiculous for our entire marriage. I let myself believe that I could fix you and help you through your grief, only to discover that you never really loved any of us in the first place."

"That's not true -"

"I'm not finished.", said Diane, holding her hand up, signaling Theodore to stop talking. "I'm done trying to make this marriage work when it's way beyond repair. I'm divorcing you, and I'm taking the kids with me."

Mya softly gasped, "Mom and Dad are getting divorced?", she whispered. "Oh my goodness."

"Diane, you are not divorcing me."

"Yes I am.", Diane said sternly. "I'm leaving and you can't fucking stop me."

That's when Theodore unleashed a scream that was loud enough to wake up the dead. Diane stepped back, and was about to make a run for it, but Ted grabbed her arm, pulled her back, and drilled the kitchen knife deep into her chest. Diane couldn't scream, she could only choke as the blood splattered all over the place.

Aaron and Mya watched in horror. They wanted to save their mother, but they were too afraid to move, too afraid to look away. They knew that Theodore was stronger than them, and he had a weapon as well, so stopping him would be impossible.

Ted kept repeating the action, stabbing Diane more and more times.

When he noticed that Diane was no longer breathing, he dropped the knife, and looked at his red hands.

"Oh dear God, what have I done?", he breathed out.

It was at that moment that he noticed that Aaron and Mya were standing right behind the door.

They saw everything.

Aaron grabbed Mya's hand, and they both ran down the hall and didn't stop running until they were in Aaron's room.

Aaron slammed the door, locked it, and pushed his desk in front of it, then he leaned back against it, sliding down to the floor, and burying his face in his knees.

Mya sat down next to him, wrapping her arms around him the same way he did to her.

They both jumped when loud banging came from the door.

"Aaron! Mya! Open the door!", it was their father. Aaron and Mya jumped up and backed away from the door, still holding each other in their arms. "Please! Open the door, please! I promise I won't hurt you!"

He kept banging on the door, and Mya began to cry in Aaron's chest. Aaron rubbed her back soothingly, and felt himself crying too.

Not just because of the loud banging of a man who he once thought was his father, but because he also found out that his own dad thought he was the reason why bad things happened.

When the banging stopped, that's when they knew Theodore had left. Aaron wasted no time in running to his desk and grabbing his lockpick set from his drawer.

"Aaron, what are you doing?", asked Mya.

"We have to leave.", replied Aaron.

"W-What?"

"We have to leave. Now.", said Aaron, leaving no room for arguments. "If Dad killed Mom, what makes you think he's not going to kill us next? She found out about something and Dad killed her because of it. We were there during his argument with Mom, so he could kill us next!", Aaron was running out of breath. He took another breath, "We have to leave now before he kills us next."

Mya reluctantly nodded. "Okay, let me just get my -"

She didn't even finish her sentence before Aaron held out her little ragdoll, "You dropped it while we were running."

Mya took her doll.

Once the two were sure they had everything they needed, they climbed out the window and ran across the street...

All the way to Nicky's house.

[lucy-dulap]

The downed human

< Previous _ Index _ Next >

"Good morning, child of Solomon." The blue haired doctor(?) greated Gamigin with a soft voice that hid excitment. He looked overjoyed to see Lucy waking up, but he still made sure that they wouldn't get hurt.

"Hey, hey, don't get up! You're in Paradise Lost, the country ruled by my big brother, his majesty Lucifer. Oh, I should probably introduce myself. I'm Gamigin." He spoke swiftly like he was trying to get Lucy caught up on the basics so he could get to the good part.

The excitment on display repeled Lucy. Who was this? Why were they still alive? They were supposed to be dead from 3 causes at this point. This Gamigin fella was too loud and the intensity of his voice was making them uncomfortable. Gamigin didn't seem to notice this and just stared at Lucy with a grin.

"What's a child of Solomon? No judging or anything. Nobody in Paradise Lost is trully a devil. I'm a dragon, his majesty Lucifer was an angel, Morax is... actually, I'm not sure what he is. The point still stands. I don't know what what that is and I'm so curious."

Lucy just stared back at him puzzled. "I'm... a human." Was all they could say before Gamigin gasped and squeeled so loudly that the sound of the bells of his staff were overided by them. Gamigin was jumping around the room before he tackled hug Lucy. "A HUMAN?! IN THE FLESH?! HERE?! I MUST TELL THE OTHERS!" But before he could rush out the door, Lucy grabbed him by the shirt to try and stop him. The last thing they needed was more Gamigins screaming in their ear.

"W-wait! I want to... um... tell the others myself." It was a dump argument, Lucy wanted to die not to have to introduce themselves to these peoples. Especially if their reactions ranged from sexual assault to yelling.

"I'll just bring them here and you can tell them you're a human." Gamigin might have been oblivious to Lucy's distress, but he wasn't as dump as they expected.

"No! Please just... don't. I don't want to." Lucy was too tired to try and argue or lie like they used to in the human world. Whenever people older than them would drag them to places they didn't want to be in or demanded they do or say something. Maybe if they just asked, they could make the devil understand.

"Ok. If you're not comfortable with it I won't make you. You look tired anyways, I must have exhausted you... sorry. You should try to go back to sleep. When I got you here you were dehydrated, malnurished, you had a fever of 39 and of course, you were unconcious." Gamigin puts a hand over their forhead. "Your temperature seems to have evened out, I'll go bring your evening meal. Be right back!"

What was this guy? Lucy had to pintch themselves to make sure that they weren't dreaming. Was he just... overexcited? A little quirky even during the day? He was just so... strange. Lucy couldn't help but be intrigued. Even their previous thoughts of death seemed to have died down, eclipsed by the sheer fascination for this strange dragon.

Gamigin breaks into the cafeteria and rushes to grab a platter. Even when he was running into people or stepping on their feet he would apologise and continue running around. The young dragon was known for being ditzy, but this rushing was strange for him. His brothers looked at him with worry, anxious that he might have substituted his tea with coffee again.

The three of them blocked his way and started questioning him. "What did you drink this morning?" "Why are you in such a hurry?" "How many patience do you have right now?" Gamigin who was practicly up and down unable to tell his brothers about his excitment. He just giggles and beats around the bush until he's able to move past them and hurry back upstairs.

"Brought you food! I don't know what humans eat so I got you a little bit of everything. I got you some smashed potatos, salad, tiny tomatoes, I think this is some sort of jelly. I'm not sure it's edible though... I don't get a lot of patients since I tend to get very attached to them and Lucifer doesn't want my reviving powers to get leaked to the other nations." As Gamigin was speaking he got a spoonfull of smashed potato and tasted it before extanding it to Lucy's mouth.

"My smashed potato racipe is much better, but I guess this one can work for now as well. I promise you that from tomorrow onward I'll feed you the way I feed all my patients! I'll probably ask Furfur to watch over you at night, though I won't tell him your secret! I'll go home and prepare some amazing food for tomorrow."

Lucy didn't even like smashed potatos that much, the food was cold and tasteless, but Gamigin had a way of making them lower their defences almost instantly. It was like watching a really good video while eating. He kept going on and on about this and that and they just listened with interest.

After they ate Gamigin left and told them they had to relax and he'd come over again for a night check-up. As he was about to leave the hospital to rush home, he got stopped by an intimidating figure.

"Gamigin, we have to talk." His voice was silky, beautiful but tired, like a man that's seen the world burn and now he was just going through the motions. Gamigin followed his friend happilly in his office.

"Brother Lucifer, you won't believe it, but the child of Solomon is a human! Can you believe that?! A human! In hell!" The dragon squeeled and the bells of his staff made his laughter more melodic than it already was.

"I know... that's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about." Lucifer walked closer to Gamigin and protectively put his hands on Gamigin's sholders. "Be careful. Humans are... a distinct bunch. We cannot know what they're like until we get to know them better. Protect them, take care of them, but do not trust them blindly."

"Yes, sir!" Gamigin laughed and hugged Lucifer. "I will be the best healer ever."

"You already are." Lucifer whispered and stroked Gamigin's hair. With an affectionate kiss on the forhead, Gamigin was left to go outside and retrieve everything needed for the best dinner ever.