#I definitely pushed myself and I can only look in the mirror and ask why

[deepsixsquid]

I'ma need someone with some semblance of sanity to remind me to keep track of how many times I tell myself "I can go further"

[classyrbf]

dad bod!toji who’s still the big, muscular man he is but you can tell he’s gotten older and his metabolism has slowed down a little bit. He’s gotten chubbier in his arms, thighs, tummy. Not to mention, he’s started to gray and grow stubble on his face, the perfect salt and pepper mix. Toji says he hates it, always moaning and groaning about needing to hit the gym but you…? You fucking love it. It takes everything in you not to ravish his right then and there, wanting to pounce on him every second of the day. You’re always kissing up on him, grabbing on him, dragging him to the laundry room while the kids watching tv so you could have a quickie. And he’s so confused on where all this extra energy and affection has sprouted from, but he loves it. You’re always so eager for him, fucking your self on his cock, him waking up to you kissing his neck and stroking his dick, dropping to your knees and giving him head without his asking. He wonders what he’s done to deserve all of it.

He’s standing in the mirror one late night with his shirt off, examining just how chubby he’s gotten. He’d be lying if he said he wasn’t a little insecure, thinking how gorgeous you are and how you shouldn’t settle for him. “I’m losing myself,” he grumbles. “What’s going on, baby?” You walk in the room, a smile immediately on your face when you see his shirt is off, definitely a sight to see. “I need to head to the gym is what’s going on.” He flexes his muscles in the mirror. You giggle and walk up behind him, snaking your arms around his waist. “I think you look so handsome with a little weight on you,” you whisper in his ear. “Does something to me.” You nibble on his ear before trailing kisses along his jaw, and that’s when Toji realizes why you’ve been so affectionate with him, like a lightbulb going off in his head.

Just mere minutes later, you’re riding him like your life depends on it, slamming your hips down on his, creating a sticky mess between you two. “S-shit,” he pants, “slow down, mama—fuck!” His bruising grips on your hips only tighten the faster you ride him. Your pussy sucks him in with each thrust, clenching around his throbbing cock. “I can’t…you get so me so hot and bothered, baby.” You grin, running your hands down his chest.

He swears he could cum right then and there, with the way you were riding him and that look in your eye, he was ready to give you another kid. And now you were kissing his neck, moaning and whimpering in his ear. “You’re so perfect, Toji,” you mewl. “Fuck me.” His eyes roll back before fluttering shut. “Keep going, yes, yes, just like that, mama. You’re gonna make me fucking cum,” he groans. You keep that same rhythm, squeezing your pussy around him, milking him. He suddenly wraps his arms around you, holding you in place as he thrusts up into you, the sound of skin on skin filling the room. “Ah, fuck!” You cry out, your cum dripping down his shaft. His thrusts grow sloppier and harder and next thing you know he’s filling you up, pushing his cum deeper inside of you with slow thrusts. Laughter erupts from your chest as you catch your breath, kissing him slowly and passionately.

“Mmm, goddamn,” he huffs, pulling you to his chest. “Now I finally know why you’re so goddamn horny all the time,” he chuckles. You blink up at him with a small smirk. “Can you blame me?” You trace patterns on his skin. He can see the look in your eye, that hungry stare you’re giving him, wanting more. “What are you thinking about, hm?” He caresses your cheek. “Oh nothing…just how badly I wanna give you some head right now, but I’ll wait.”

[notlongtolove]

the garden is growing

"you live together, work together. doesn’t it all get a little boring?" there’s a weight to her observation, something invasive, like she’s pulling out weeds that you never asked her to tend, tilling through soil that’s been left unbothered for too long. the cups of tea, the folding of blankets. you could never call that boring.

pairing: spencer reid x fem!reader (second person, no y/n)

genre: fluff! maybe angst if you really really squint

content: after catching up with an old friend, bau!reader and bf!spencer have a contemplative talk about their relationship as they walk home. domestic... mentions of marriage... lurve in the air...

word count: 2.2k

note: a post finals treat to myself! leaned heavy into the garden imagery for this one lol, this was heavily inspired by the poem linked, i highly recommend it! o i also added some song recs below for this one :P (ps i did not mean to compare spencer's eyes to PEBBLES but it was either that or a random brown flower... sorry.)

a line: The perennial pushes its way through the cracks in the concrete—small, steady, and undeniably alive. It’s there. It’s growing.

If you ask me 'What's new?', I have nothing to say Except that the garden is growing. - wendy cope

When you were younger, you had a garden. A field just a stone's throw from your front door. Not the kind in a backyard, fenced in and manageable. No, it was wild and uncontained, the grass alive beneath your feet. They used to say love was like a garden. You'd think about that sometimes—how you were supposed to tend to it, rake and comb and pull out the weeds before they strangled your beautiful flowers. And when it rained, you just had to let it. Let the downpour come and see what survived.

You’re standing under the awning, shaking droplets off your jacket. You mumble a thanks to the doorman as he holds the door open, offering a silent nod in return. The door opens to a polished, marble lobby, and suddenly you’re acutely aware of how out of place you look. You’d come straight from the office, having dwindled your stack of case files from a grand total of 26 to a modest 19. The grand mirror to your left does nothing to help. If anything, it’s magnifying the creased fabric of your trousers and the damp strands of hair stuck to your cheek. You shift uncomfortably, tugging at your sleeves and smoothing your hair out in a futile attempt at order. It was urgent she’d said. A matter of utmost importance. You’re not sure why you’re here, but you know with certainty that you’d rather not be.

She sees you before you see her. She calls out for you, the nickname wrapping around you like a sweater one size too small—warm but suffocating. It might as well be. You haven’t seen her in nearly a year—maybe a year and a half? You shrug, suddenly missing Spencer’s precision, his ability to pin things down to the day, the hour.

"Hi," you manage, sliding into the seat opposite her. “I’m really sorry. Work was crazy—" you start, but your words dissolve the moment she thrusts her hand forward. A diamond—no, a boulder—catches the light, dazzling and deliberate. You nearly choke on the glass of water you’ve just picked up. 

"Let me tell you about crazy," she says, her grin sharpening. 

Oh, the yacht! And don’t even get me started on the violins, can you believe it! The sea was just gorgeous—Did I mention it was on a yacht? Her words tumble out as you try to follow along, but you can’t quite keep up, only noting it definitely involved an abhorrent amount of Dom Perignon.

“I wish you could’ve been there to see it,” she says, her voice tinged with what you hope is nostalgia and not pity.

“I’m sorry I missed it,” you murmur, and you mean it—sort of. You used to be close, but since starting at the BAU, everything else kind of took a backseat. It had to. “I wish I could’ve too. Work’s been—”

"Crazy, right," she cuts in, waving it off. "Big fancy BAU," She winks. "That job’s gonna be the death of you one day y’know, all those hours." You force a laugh, but her words hit a little too literally, heavier than she knows. You don’t think she quite grasps the reality of your work.

“So,” she says, leaning in now, her chin propped delicately on her hand, her diamond ring catching the light. You can’t help but think it’s mocking you. “How’s things going with Spencer?”

"Oh, they’re going fine."

"Fine?" She raises her brows. "Trouble in paradise?"

“No, not at all,” you insist, your voice instinctively rising in defence. “We’re—fine. You know, same old, same old. We just wrapped a big case actually. This guy—” You cut yourself off, realizing mid-sentence that the story of a guy meticulously collecting hair from women post-mortem doesn’t feel like the kind of story to share during dinner under a sparkling chandelier—Not that you’re doing much eating anyway. The menu was a labyrinth of fancy salads, obscure cheeses, and entrées described in French that you’re only half sure translate to lamb. You’d settled for pushing a few greens around your plate, making a mental note to stop by the bodega later.  

Her laugh pulls you back to the table, "I don’t know how you do it."

"Do what?"

"You know… Live together, work together, day in, day out. Doesn’t it all get a little..." She trails off, letting her expression finish the sentence. 

"A little… what?" 

"Boring?"

You blink. "Boring?" 

The word tastes bitter. You don’t like it. The way the dog always chases the cat? Boring. The way the cat always seeks shelter in the same tree? Boring. But the way they both come running home every time you call? That’s never boring. Spencer in the quiet mornings—hair tousled, voice soft and sleepy as he murmurs a 'good morning.' The cups of tea, the folding of blankets. You could never call that boring. 

She laughs lightly, the sound cutting through the restaurant’s hum. "Not in a bad way! I just mean... do you guys even go out? Like, for fun? You guys have been together for, what like, years now?” Three years and 4 months, you think to yourself. You’d never need Spencer’s eidetic memory to remember that. 

"Well, yeah, sure we do…" you say finally. "Um, we went to a museum recently." You don’t tell her it was to interview a suspect. Her smile tightens, like she’s not sure whether to believe you or feel sorry for you. You take a careful sip of water, resisting the urge to shift under her gaze. There’s a weight to her observation, something invasive, like she’s pulling out weeds that you never asked her to tend, tilling through soil that’s been left unbothered for too long. Outside, the rain keeps falling.

By the time you part with polite hugs and hollow smiles, the downpour has softened to a drizzle. Spencer is waiting by the curb, hair slightly damp. His eyes light up at the sight of you. Under the glow of the streetlight, they remind you of the pebbles you used to collect by the garden path. You’d carry them home, pocketful by pocketful, washing and scrubbing at them until they shone. Only your favourites made it to your shelf. Tiny, perfect trophies.

“Hi, honey.”

"Hiya." You lean into his chest, a tired smile tugging at your lips as you manage a strained, “I’m starving.” 

“Hi starving. Care for a burrito?” he asks, tilting a takeout bag toward you with a small smile.

Your eyes meet his, and there’s something in his smile—soft, understanding, familiar—that makes your chest ache. “How’d you know?” you ask, practically tearing into the bag.

“Searched the menu after you left,” he says simply, falling into step beside you as you start walking. “Figured you wouldn't have liked much in there," he shrugs, casual. You feel your cheeks warm. Two hours away from Spencer Reid is two hours too long. 

The walk home is quiet at first, the two of you picking your way around puddles reflecting neon signs. The burrito’s long gone, leaving your hand free for Spencer to hold, fingers interlocked.

“She’s engaged,” you say eventually.

Spencer furrows his brows. “Already?”

“It’s only been like, what, eight? nine months?”

Spencer frowns, pauses then says, “256 days”, the precision drawing a faint smile from you.

“Crazy isn’t it?”

“I guess. Some people are like that,” he says, “Did you know statistically, couples who get engaged within the first year of dating are 20% more likely to divorce within the first five years?”

“With that prenup incoming she’d better hope they’re the exception then…” you murmur, not really listening. 

There’s something in your chest, persistent and heavy. You can feel its roots stirring, working its way beneath the surface, threatening to loosen the earth that keeps you grounded. 

A few more steps in silence. Then, quietly, “Do you think we’re boring?”

“Boring?” Spencer tilts his head slightly. “Do you think we’re boring?”

You hesitate, suddenly self-conscious. “I don’t think we’re boring, but you know, we don’t do much.” 

“We’re in the FBI, honey. I’d argue we do a lot.” He smirks, the corner of his mouth twitching playfully. You try to laugh, but it comes out forced, brittle—like a flower trying to push out a bloom that's not quite ready yet.

Spencer notices, as he always does. “Is there something you want to do?” It stirs in you again, something tender and uncertain. You don’t know if it will be a flower that blooms or a weed that chokes out everything else. 

“No,” You say a little too quickly, “Nothing really, just... Other than work and home—”

“What’d she say?”

“Hm?”

“You love work, you live for it—I practically have to drag you out of the office most days,” he reasons, tone calm and steady. “And, if this is something that was bothering you… I’d have known. So it must’ve been something she said.” You stop walking, the words catching in your throat. It bothers you—how her vines have crept into your garden, straight through to the soil beneath. Flowers rarely thrive in foreign soil, you think. 

“Not really,” you lie, biting your lip—a tell Spencer surely catches. “We just talked about the engagement. Well, she talked.”

He doesn’t press, though you can tell he doesn’t believe you. His gaze lingers, but he chooses to give you space. “How was it? The engagement.”

“Something about a yacht,” you reply with a shrug.

“I thought she was afraid of water.”

“Not when it’s on a million-dollar vessel, apparently.”

Spencer chuckles. You continue to walk. Your feet do their best to trace the familiar trail, trying to find the garden path that takes you home. Left. Right. Left. Right. But your thoughts snag, tripping on an unseen vine, and you stumble.

“Do you ever think about it?” you ask.

“About what?”

“Like... if we ever get married and stuff.”

Now it’s Spencer’s turn to stop mid-step, rooted to the spot, his body going still. You freeze too, breath trapped in your chest, a flush spreading across your cheeks. “I’m sorry,” you rush to say, the guilt sharp and immediate. “That was silly, I shouldn’t have brought it up.” 

You tug softly on his hand trying to pull him forward, but he doesn’t budge. His brows knit together as his gaze locks with yours. 

“When.” 

“When what?”

“You said if. I’m saying when. When we get married.”

“When we get married?” you repeat, your voice barely above a whisper, as if speaking any louder might shatter the moment.

“Yeah,” he says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “When. Not if. I don’t think really of it as a hypothetical possibility.”

Your chest tightens and you don’t know exactly what to say, but your fingers instinctively tighten around his. Spencer senses your silence and rushes to fill the space.

“Do you… not think that?” he asks, a hint of uncertainty creeping into his voice.

“I do! Of course, I do.” Your voice falters. “I just… I didn’t know you thought about it that way too.”

Spencer hums, soft smile on his face. “I know I tend to look at things in terms of statistics, probabilities—But us? There’s no ‘ifs’. Not with you, honey. Never with you.”

And just like that, the earth beneath you shifts, breaking apart to reveal a bud. Not a flower but a fruit-bearing tree. You try and fight the urge to throw yourself into his arms and kiss him, but he’s already leaning in, his lips warm and familiar against yours. As you pull back, eyes locked, you think back to the pebbles you used to collect. Your tiny, perfect trophies—Spencer’s eyes are far better, you think. 

“You smell like burrito,” he teases. You laugh, the sound light and easy. “You love burritos.”

He brushes a stray curl from your forehead. “I love you.”

Through the clearing, you see it. The vines have receded, the rain has come and gone. Your feet step off the garden path with certainty. It’s safe now. It’s here. 

“So,” you say with renewed excitement, your steps light as you glance at him, “Beach wedding?”

Spencer wrinkles his nose. “Do you have any idea how much fecal bacteria there is in beach sand?”

“Blegh.” 

“No, seriously. Beach sand has 10 to 100 times more fecal bacteria than seawater.”

“How about we don’t throw around the word ‘fecal’ when my burrito is still working its way through me,” you reply, grimacing. “What’s your genius idea then?”

He grins. “Barn wedding?”

“Spence, I love you, and I know you’ve always wanted to be a cowboy, but I’m not walking down the aisle with hay in my hair.”

He laughs, shaking his head as you walk side by side, hands swaying between you. Spencer spots a perennial growing out of concrete cracks by the lamppost 2 steps ahead of you. 

“What about a garden wedding? In spring?” 

“A garden wedding,” you say, a soft smile spreading across your face, “Yeah, I’d really like that, spring’s nice.”

"Okay,” he says, hand warm in yours, “in spring then."

There’s no towering oak tree, ancient and steadfast, to mark this moment, no circle of wildflowers dancing wildly around with their colours. But still the perennial pushes its way through the cracks in the concrete—small, steady, and undeniably alive. It’s there. It’s growing.

They used to say love was like a garden. When his drought comes, silent but devastating nonetheless, you quench it with your rain—soft, temperamental. And when your rain changes her tide, thrashing and wild, he shelters you beneath his leaves, vast and unyielding. Together you prune the dead parts, plant anew, and marvel at what thrives.

The next time someone asks you how things are going, there’s no pursed smile or hesitant pause, distant in thought. You just smile and say it's going. It's going alright. It's going great. It’s going fine. 

Because all that matters is that it's going. 

Your garden is growing. 

⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ hi if you're here! thank you for reading! feel free to like or reblog or comment or reply!

ᯓ★ song recs if you feel like it: nothing by bruno major love letter from the sea to the shore by delaney bailey

[sturn-wrld]

🪼dress up to get undressed

pairing: matt x reader

summary: where reader goes on a shopping spree and matt sees an opportunity to complete part of her list.

genre: SMUT. if you don't like it, don't read it

warnings: p in v, nicknames, short mention of body insecurity

a/n: this will be the only promised smut part of this series unless i suddenly feel like making another part smut.

masterlist

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it's been a month since matt read through my list of all the little things i want to do and i'm starting to think he has forgotten about it. i mean it's not that it matters that much because all of those things happen anyway but it's just kind of disappointing that he won't be cheesy about doing them.

as i reach his house after my 3 hour long shopping spree with one of my best friends, matt walks out of the door to come help me with my bags. "you went crazy didn't you?" he says leaning into my open car window peaking into my back seat where the bags lie.

"of course. i wanted to treat myself today so that's what i did." i say looking back up at matt as i take off my seatbelt and he opens my car door.

"okay let's inspect the damage why don't we" he says opening the back door, earning a giggle from me. as he opens the door his eyes go wide as he sees the absolutely massive stack of bags. "you definitely know how to spend money" he says grabbing the first lot of bags from my back seat.

"obviously. what else was i put on this earth to do" i say sarcastically as i grab the remaining bags and shut my car, locking it with my free hand while simultaneously looking back at matt, holding open the front with his foot.

"be an amazing girlfriend" he says catching a kiss to my head as i walk through the door passed him.

we make our way to his bedroom where we place all of the bags on the floor next to his bed as he spots one he in particularly likes the look of. he turns to me, now sitting in his desk chair, holding the pink stripped bag. "victoria's secret?" he asks almost rhetorically, while shooting me the most seductive glare.

"yeah. like i said treating myself" i say shrugging turning my attention back to my phone. "wanna show me?" he says still staring into me. i was pounding in the inside.

we hadn't done anything sexual yet but i knew i was happy to anytime and the look he was giving me just made me drip.

"sure" i say trying to stay as nonchalant as possible. i pull out the black set and hand it to matt watching his eyes light up and the grow seductively darker. "i mean on baby. go try it on for me" he says gripping my jaw with one had and placing the clothing back into the bag with the other. i comply and make my way into his bathroom.

as i finish putting in the complementary bottoms to my lacey top, i question whether i should of bought this. i was never really the type to bash my body but i always had my underlying insecurities. suddenly there is a k pack on the door. "you done yet, beautiful?" i look at myself one more time in the mirror before replying, "yeah, you can come in" i turn to face the door as it opens to see my boyfriends face look absolutely astonished. "you are so gorgeous baby" he says before placing his hands on my waist still looking me up and down.

he then starts to play with the strap of the almost see through top with his right hand while running his fingers under the strap on the matching material hanging to my hips. "how about we finish another thing on your list" he says while reaching his mouth to my neck.

"what were you thinking?" i say completely knowing what he is hinting to. "i'm going to undress you and your going to sit there like the pretty girl you are while i fuck you as hard as i can. okay?" i just stare straight back at him absolute shock on my face as i have never heard matt talk like that but loving nonetheless. i hum in response as he hungrily brings his mouth to mine pushing me against the counter behind me. he starts bringing his head down to my neck, sucking mindlessly leaving marks everywhere.

as he brings his head down to my breasts he reaches his arms around my body to reach for the clips on the back of the bra. right before he unclips it he looks to me, "can i take this off beautiful?" all i do is him in reply. "baby i need words" is all he says before i absolutely lose my brain. "please baby, i need you to" with that he pulls off my bra and brings his mouth back to mine, quickly kissing me before making his way back down to my breasts. "good girl" he says, driving me mad.

after sucking dark spots onto every inch of my upper body he brings his mouth back to mine kissing me more aggressively than ever. "jump" he says moving his hands to my ass to hold me and lift me to the counter. once i'm on the counter he continues to squeeze and caress my ass as i arch and my chest back to his face. "you are so hot baby" he says huffing and puffing, having just released from a long aggressive kiss.

he slowly starts travelling his hand down my body before stopping right above my pounding clit. i start to grab at his shoulders and arms needing contact. "please" i whimper out needing something more "please what?" he says staring down at me. "please touch me or fuck me baby, just do something" he strips down his own pants before moving my underwear to the side. "your wish is my command" he says before slamming himself into and toying with my clit between his fingers. i grip his shoulders, my knuckles going white from gripping so tight. he grabs my hips moving me back and forth against his fully hard cock even faster, hitting my g-spot every time. "oh fuck" i scream at the top of my lungs. he lowly groans as he brings his body closer to mine. "your so tight for me" he says sending my haywire, clenching around him, almost reaching my high faster than ever. "you need to cum yet gorgeous? i can feel you clenching" i through my head back as he moves faster in and out of me. "yes" i scream it being broken up from the jaw droppingly fast pace im being fucked at. "cum for me beautiful" with that the knot in my stomach comes undone and i finish all over his dick. he brings me down from my high before pulling out and finishing all over my stomach and tits.

"that is going to definitely be my favourite thing in the list to do"

taglist

@ermdontmindthisaccount @its-jennarose @ilovemattsturn @frozenvegitableoil @meme2003

[bless-my-demons]

Redamancy: Chapter Five

Series Summary: What happens when your soulmate is a vampire that struggles to maintain a diet of trying not to kill you? Common sense says run for the hills, nothing is worth your life - but my heart is whispering why not, what’s there to lose?

Warnings: Curse words (idk about you, but I swear like a sailer - so I apologize in advance bc it’ll be a recurring item)

Notes: The last half of this chapter was one of the first scenes I wrote when I played around with writing this series, these random snippets inspired this whole thing. I’m so glad everyone is enjoying my work!

Word Count: 1930

Series Masterlist

• March 4th, 2005 • Forks HS Cafeteria •

Reader

It’s raining outside again for the umpteenth time this week, forcing myself and my preferred Cullen sibling to sit apart at our respective tables inside as our usual table outside collects rain. I glance at the table the Cullen’s claimed and spot Jasper already watching me so I wave shyly. He returns it with a grin only to receive a shove from Emmett as he no doubt teases Jasper for the action.

“Hey - La Push baby, you and Y/n in?” Eric asks Bella as she drops her bag into the chair next to mine.

“Should I know what that means?” She questions back before I could voice the same inquiry.

“La Push Beach down at the Quileute Rez, we’re all going tomorrow.” Mike explains.

“Yeah, there’s a big swell coming in.” Jessica adds.

Eric pops up from his seat, splaying his hands out like he’s already riding a wave “And I don’t just surf the internet!”

“Eric, you stood up once and it was a foam board.” Jess teases him as Mike mirrors his goofy stance, earning a smack from Tyler at the goofy display.

“But there’s whale-watching too, come with us.” Angela prods us gently with her kind eyes.

“La Push baby, it’s La Push.” Eric tries to make the words sound cooler than they are and I can help but hide a chuckle behind my hands.

“Okay,” glancing at me before I give her a nod, “we’ll go if you stop saying that, okay?” Bella concedes before leaving our table to grab a school lunch, I catch Edward standing from his seat to follow her.

“Seriously dude, it’s creepy man.” Mike teases Eric. Their conversation fades into the background as I lean back and open my book while I munch on my carrots.

• March 5th, 2005 • La Push Beach, Quileute Reservation •

Reader

“I don’t know if it’s worth it anymore.” Eric says worriedly as he, Mike, and Jessica finish pulling on their wetsuits.

“We drove all the way out here, I’m at least paddling out.” Jess tells the boys. She’s stronger than I am, because there isn’t any chance I’d subject myself to the freezing water willingly.

“So,” Angela starts, “I keep thinking that Eric’s going to ask me to the prom. And he just… doesn’t.”

“You should ask him, take control. You’re a strong, independent woman.” Bella affirms our friend.

“I am?” Angela responds, unsure.

“Yes.” Blunt and to the point, Bella nods at her.

“Absolutely Ang, he’s just a boy and he would be stupid to turn you down.” I add, confident Eric would be over the moon to go to prom with someone as smart and amazing as her.

“Hey, will you do me up?” Jessica asks me, spinning around in front of me where I lean against the open passenger door next to Angela’s perch on the seat.

“Of course.” I oblige her as she moves her hair to the side.

“Bella!” Turning towards the voice, three tall guys from the reservation walk towards our van.

“Hi, Jacob.” Bella greets the one leading the small group, “Guys, this is Jacob.” She tells us and he gives the rest of us a nod and a wave before sitting next to Bella in the open side door. “What are you, like, stalking me?” I hear Bella tease Jacob.

“You're on my rez, remember?” Jacob chuckles, “Are you surfing?”

“Definitely not.” It’s my turn to chuckle as I catch the scoff and completely serious look on her face.

“You guys should keep them company.” Jess encourages the new group of guys, “Um, Bella’s date bailed.”

“What date?!” Eric panics and pauses like a deer in headlights.

“She invited Edward.” Jessica answers, but Bella jumps to defend her crush.

“To be polite, that's it.”

“I was going to invite Jasper, but since Edward didn’t want to come…” I trail off awkwardly.

“I think it's nice they invited them, nobody ever does.” Trying to come to our rescue, Angela adds.

“Yeah, 'cause the Cullen's are freaks.” Mike’s jealousy showing clear.

“You got that right!” The slightly taller Quileute guy to my right agrees and I’m immediately annoyed.

“You guys know them?” Bella ignores their comments and tries to latch on to any spec of information she can. I also turn to the guys, curious about anything I might learn of the Cullen family.

“The Cullens don't come here.” The other one says ominously, silencing the group.

What an odd thing to say… I mean, is the family not allowed? Did something happen? I have so many questions, but I also know it’ll be incredibly awkward to press them for answers after only just meeting.

After munching on a Twizzler, Jacob stands and turns to my friend. “Wanna go walk the beach while your friends jump in the water?”

“Sure.” Bella rises and pauses in front of Angela and I, “you guys good?”

“Absolutely - yeah!” We nod and smile, both of us content to watch the surf and huddle under our blankets as everyone sets off for the shore.

Jumping in Bella’s truck once everyone’s had their fill of the freezing waves, I lean over and crank the heat dial while she starts the ancient vehicle.

Rubbing my thighs to warm my hands and legs, I ask, “So was that weird, or just me? The comments about the Cullen’s not coming to the Rez?”

“Definitely not just you, I asked Jake on our walk what they meant.” Coaxing the truck onto the road towards Forks, she continues. “He started talking about Quileute legends and old tales.”

“What does that have to do with the Cullen’s?” I press.

“He said they’re supposedly descendants from an enemy clan and they were found hunting on their land.” She glances at me before continuing, “So they made some kind of treaty I guess, to stay off their land and they wouldn’t expose them.”

“Expose them for what?”

“I don’t know, he didn’t say.” She huffs, annoyed. “Do you-do you want to come over for a little bit? I was thinking about doing some research on this stuff.”

“Oh hell yes, count me in!” I turn to look out the window with a grin, I might be closer to actually getting answers now than if I were to solve this on my own.

The rest of the evening was spent huddled around Bella’s computer. We searched Quileute legends on google and ended up coming across tales of ‘Cold Ones’ intertwined in the tribe’s history. An odd sensation came over me when it described their qualities, almost like a foreboding feeling - but I shrugged it off. After a few more clicks, we found a book that could help dive more in-depth on the legends.

“There!” I point at the screen, seeing the availability of it at a store close to our location.

“One is in stock at Thunderbird & Whale Book Store in Port Angeles.” Bella reads as she pulls up a map, scribbling the address on a sticky note. “Wanna come with me after school Tuesday?” She turns to ask as I munch on some chips, taking a seat at the end of her bed.

“There’s no point in asking anymore, we’re in this together. I’m just as invested in finding out more about Jasper as you are about Edward.”

“Fair.” She cracks a sideways grin as she flops on her bed next to me.

• March 7th, 2005 • Forks HS •

Reader

Rushing through the clouded hallway before first period to avoid Tyler Crowley and his gaggle of friends, I spot Jasper loitering with his sister Rose near the end of the corridor. I practically ran in his direction-pushing him by the chest into a secluded alcove by the stairs, an apologetic wince of a smile thrown in Rosalie’s direction that was immediately met with understanding as her eyes located the entourage hot on my heels.

“Sorry,” I whisper to his shocked form, “if they find me, you give a very distinct ‘fuck off’ vibe they can’t ignore.”

His eyes were wide as he looked down at me - I think I rendered him speechless with my forward actions, commandeering his body for personal use against other boys. Come to think about it, what was I thinking? This is Jasper Hale, why would he-

“Glad to be of service. Even though this might be a little bit of a strange request.” He whispered right back, the space small enough that he didn’t need to talk too loud over the din of the hallway and with how close we were standing - there wasn’t much space between us.

God, what the fuck am I doing?

Without even thinking, I lean my head forward to settle on the center of his chest, closing my eyes in embarrassment, arms clutching my notebooks to my chest. Before I could think about what I just initiated, one of his large hands came to settle on my back, immediately soothing the worries that began to swim that I was being too forward.

“Are you alright?” He murmured into my hair.

“That’s a loaded question.” I mumbled into his shirt, squeezing my eyes shut even tighter. How could he read me so well?

The longer we stood here, the more I began to realize his chest wasn’t moving. Is he holding his breath? Oh shit, do I-

“Oh, uhh, my bad! I-I’ll see you around Y/n.” I heard Tyler stutter, I turned my head to see him glancing between Jasper and I. Perfection, my plan a success as the gaggle of boys turned tail and hurried away.

I glance upwards to Jasper’s stoic face, “Thank you for your flawless execution.” Complimenting his quick compliance in my hasty plan before running off to my next class of the day.

“Anytime, doll.” He replied with that southern accent and signature half-smirk.

Damn him for being so attractive and for using that nickname.

Jasper

I remained standing here a few more moments, not entirely sure what just transpired between Y/n and I. Her scent lingering in this alcove she accosted me into, lavender and fresh linen invaded my senses as those all-too-familiar flames of devastating hunger take up residence in my throat again.

I know I’ll hear it about this little stunt the moment I’m home this afternoon, Rosalie no doubt currently informing Emmett and Alice of what transpired.

I exhaled a sigh and let my head thump against the wall behind me, eyes slipping closed. I swear I can still feel her forehead pressed against my chest. I forced myself to stop breathing then in the moment, the desire for unsavory things it caused to swirl in my chest needed to be suffocated. I could feel the tension emanating from her then and I had to stamp that out if I ever hoped she’d continue to be comfortable with me, my own bloodthirsty desire be damned. I could still feel the warmth from where her body touched mine.

This gorgeous human girl has me wrapped around her tiny little finger and I’m not even sure she’d give me the time of day.

Once I manage to peel myself away from the wall, Alice rushes up to me with worry saturating her emotions.

“I’ve been looking for you! We need to leave, the sun will be out by lunch.” She tells me in a rush.

What I wouldn’t give to not have a life dictated by the weather. With a sigh, I follow my sister to the student parking lot.

Next

[daddyslilchickenfingers2]

Kinktober (reuploaded)

Jealousy (Chris)

Request: y/n’s been flirting with dudes at a party and chris likes her so gets really possessive and spanks her when she says she loves his big hands on her body and she makes a mess all over his thigh + just a full fic of chris fucking reader doggy style (like i just know that man LOVES doggy) —> or maybe even like times where chris fucked u doggy like the one time u guys did it in front of a mirror, the one time he bend u over the couch etc

Warnings: spanking, doggy style, jealous Chris, slight angst, fighting, daddy kink

Chris’ pov

I really had no right to be jealous, it’s not like Y/n is my girlfriend, she’s my best friend. My kind, beautiful, funny, sexy, and single best friend. Plus it’s a party, all the single people were dancing and grinding on each other, overall having a great time. Well, everyone but me. I stood there in the corner, tightly gripping onto my near-empty Pepsi can as I watched her from across the room. Swaying her hips to the song with some random guy behind her, he was staring at her curves that her dress perfectly showed. I couldn’t take it anymore, I hate seeing her with other guys, especially ones we don’t know. I abandoned my now empty Pepsi can and made my way onto the dance floor to get Y/n. I was going to take her home since were only a few blocks away from her house, we needed to talk. As I approached her and the guy, I noticed his hands were now on her hips, trying to pull her back against him and I got even more angry.

Y/n’s pov

I was at a random influencers house party that was only a couple blocks away from my house just hanging out and dancing when some guy asked if I’d dance with him. He was honestly pretty cute so I obviously said yes, even as the songs got more sexual. I felt his hands on my hips and I was going to start grinding on him because a girls gotta have some fun, but before I could, I felt him get pushed off of me. I turned around to be face-to-face with my best friend. “Chris! What the fuck are you doing!?” I yelled at him over the music. I watched as the guy, whose name I didn’t catch, stumbled back towards Chris, looking ready to fight. He was definitely drunk, but me and Chris were completely sober as we don’t drink or smoke. Instead of causing a scene, Chris just grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the door. He was walking incredibly fast and I could barely keep up with him due to my heels. “Chris, slow down! Where are we going!?” I yelled at him once again, completely unaware of what was happening.

“Shut up we’re going home! C’mon, it’s cold out here you’re going to get sick” he said pulling me faster until I yanked my arm away and stopped. “What the fuck is your problem Chris!? I was having a good time in there!” I yelled again, getting frustrated. “Would you stop fucking yelling! Jesus Christ, let’s go!” he slightly raised his voice, getting irritated. “Not until you tell me what’s going on!” I said sternly. We were only about a block and a half away from my house at this point but I still wanted to know why he pulled me away from the party and why he was so angry. “I’ll tell you when we get to your house! Now are you going to walk like a fucking adult or do I need to carry you?” he asked in a condescending tone, making me feel small. “Fuck you Christopher! Don’t fucking talk to me you asshole!” I yelled, harshly shoving him. After that, I just started walking as fast as I could towards my house, trying not to cry.

I don’t know what’s going on or why he’s acting like this but I don’t like it, this isn’t my Chris. I could hear his footsteps getting increasingly louder from behind me as he ran to catch up with me while I held onto myself, trying to keep warm in the crisp night air. I could hear Chris’ heavy breathing and footsteps right behind me now, as he stood there processing what happened after I shoved him. “Y/n! Y/n, wait! I’m sorry, I’m an asshole, I know! Just let me explain!” he tried pleading with me. We got to my door and I put the code in to unlock it, standing in the doorway and looking at him furiously. “Explain what!? That you’re fucking possessive and can never let me have fucking fun if it involves another guy!? Just fuck off Chris, go home, I’m done with you!” I screamed, letting my anger get the best of me as I slammed the door in his face. I took off my shoes and sat on the couch before I started crying. Thank god I was only really wearing waterproof mascara and some powder on my face, otherwise I’d look like a wreck.

Chris’ pov

I fucked up… I knew that the second she pushed me, I had gone too far. I can’t help it, when it comes to her, I lose the ability to communicate my emotions and just fuck everything up. I just wanted to explain where I was coming from but she slammed the door in my face. She slammed it so hard that her neighbor, an older, gay gentleman in his late 40s, came out to make sure everything was okay. “Christopher? What happened, is Y/n okay?” he asked, relieved to see me outside the door and not some random creep. “I fucked up Rick, I fucked up so bad and I think I might’ve just lost my best friend” I told him before explaining everything that happened. He put his hand on my shoulder and smiled a bit, “Sounds like you’re in love kid. I want you to go in there and make things right, go tell her why you did what you did, and express your feelings. If I know Y/n, she’s in there scared to death of losing you, she loves you more than you know. Go fix the shit you fucked up” he told me.

I was a bit confused as to what he meant by the second to last sentence, but I thanked him anyways. “Thanks Rick, hopefully I can fix this” I said while shaking his hand. “You got this, good luck kid” he replied as he walked back inside. I took a deep breath before putting the code in and opening the door. I immediately felt like shit as Y/n was crying on FaceTime with Madi, who didn’t go to the party. “Y/n/n…” I tried slowly, Madi heard me and said “I’m gonna hang up now, just hear him out and remember what I told you.“ before yelling “You better fucking fix this Chris!” through the phone. Y/n let out a shaky breath, looking at me with tear filled eyes. I move to sit on the couch with her, keeping my distance. “Before you say anything, let me explain. You’re right, I am possessive over you and I don’t like seeing you with other guys, but it’s because I’m fucking in love with you…” I looked up to see no emotion on her face so I let out a shaky breath and continued.

“I fucked up, I know that. I’m not very good at expressing my emotions when I’m jealous, I just know I don’t want you to be with another guy. I-I want you to be with me. It’s stupid, I get it, and I should’ve just talked to you instead of dragging you down the street. I’m really, really sorry. And I’m sorry I’m in love with you” I explained, knowing I probably sound fucking pathetic. I didn’t dare look up at her, scared of rejection and/or causing her more pain. I did, however, look up at her when I heard her quietly say, “I’m not” “What?” I asked confused. She scooted closer to me, “I’m not sorry that you’re in love with me, because it makes it a lot easier to do this” she said before she cupped both sides of my face and kissed me, hard. She kissed me until we were out of breath and forced to pull away. The next thing that came out of her mouth shocked me and sent a shiver down my spine. “I deserve a punishment for not hearing you out and purposely making you jealous, don’t ya think?” she asked seductively, her innocent big y/e/c eyes looking up at me. “W-What?” I asked, wanting to make sure I heard her right, “I think I’ve been bad and deserve to be punished” she teased.

Y/n’s pov

I don’t know why I said what I did, but I was horny and frustrated so it just came out. I looked Chris up and down as he bit his lip, watching his cock slowly grow hard in his pants. I could see the gears in his head turning, trying to figure out if I was fucking with him or not. I was feeling a bit bold and loved the idea of Chris’ big, rough hands on my body, so I leaned it his ear. “Come spank me daddy, I’ve been a bad girl” I whispered before going upstairs to my room. Chris quickly followed behind me, pushing me up against the wall before I got the chance to get on my bed. His hand came up to wrap around my throat, “You’re a little slut aren’t you? Making me jealous on purpose and practically begging me to punish you, how pathetic!” he smirked. I let out a whine after he said that, just wanting to be touched already. “Go get undressed for me baby” he said in a softer tone, pulling away to discard his own shirt and pants.

I quickly got fully naked before shuffling over to Chris, who was sitting on the edge of my bed in his boxers. “So pretty” he muttered as he moved to sit against my headboard. “C’mon, lay across my lap for me” I did as he said and he moved me so my ass was over his lap. “H-How many am I getting daddy?” I asked nervously as Chris rubbed his hands over my ass. “I was gonna do 50, but you’re being a good girl so I’m gonna lower it to 30, and I want you to count. You’re getting 15 each cheek baby” he replied making me whine. Chris started off with soft slaps “One… two… three… four… f-five…” but they quickly grew harder, the sound of each slap getting louder as I felt myself getting wetter. Every time his hand would come in contact with my ass, it would jerk me forward a bit, causing my clit to rub across his hard cock. “nineteen… twe—nty… twenty o-one… tw-twenty two-o…” I managed to count through my moans, however, once I got to twenty-eight, I felt myself unintentionally cum.

I let out an extremely loud moan as I finished counting “t-thirty” I whispered out, my ass now sore and most definitely welted and red. Chris spread my legs a little, rubbing his fingers across my cum covered cunt. “I don’t remember saying you could cum baby” he said seriously, flipping me over so I was now laying with my back against the bed. Chris immediately hovered over me, “You didn’t even ask” he continued, “I didn’t mean to daddy, it was an accident. Never done that before” I squirmed as he stared down at me. “I believe you babe, but if you cum again without permission, daddy’s gonna have to punish you some more” he stated gruffly. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down so we could makeout, Chris quickly won dominance and started to suck on my tongue before softly biting my lip. I honestly didn’t know Chris would be THIS good of a kisser, he ran his tongue across the roof of my mouth. I shuddered and let out a moan as one hand came up to toy with my nipples, whining when he pulled away.

“Remember how you called me possessive earlier? Well I’m gonna be really possessive now and mark you up so everyone knows you belong to me” he growled before harshly biting hickies into my neck, running his tongue across and sucking on them afterwards. I knew these were going to be dark and would take at least a week to go away but I also really liked the thought of everyone seeing how marked up I was from my daddy. Chris pulled away to admire his work and when he did, I asked in a shy voice, “Can I give you some hickies to daddy? Don’t want other girls to look at you” I pouted a bit. Chris nodded and let me suck a few hickies into his neck as he started slowly pumping two fingers into me, quickly adding a third to stretch me out. Once he deemed me loose enough he pulled me away from his neck by my hair, sitting on his knees to take off his boxer. “I want you on your hands and knees, facing the mirror so you can watch yourself getting fucked like a slut” he ordered, I immediately obeyed, loving the thought of watching it through the mirror that was close to my bed.

I watched as Chris spit onto his cock, stroking it a few times before lining it up with my hole. “Ready to get fucked like a cheap whore?” he asked, slightly kneading my ass with one hand. “Please daddy, please fuck me!” I begged before he slammed his full length into me, giving me no time to adjust before he started pounding into me. Chris pulled my hair back so I could see myself being fucked, and it was pretty fucking hot. I was trying my hardest to keep my eyes open but it felt so good and I just couldn’t. “Keep your eyes open slut!” Chris growled, pulling my hair harder, making me whimper and whine from the pain. “C-Can’t! It feels too good, please!” I don’t even know what I was asking for, “Please what baby? You need to use your words for me to know what you want” he said softer. “Need to close my eyes, want my face shoved into the mattress” I pathetically moaned out, causing Chris to let go of my hair and push my head down, making my back arch more.

“You’re doing so good for me, I think your punishment should be over and I should just fuck my pretty girl, don’t you agree?” he asked while moaning. “Wanna be good girl, I’ll do whatever you tell me daddy!” I moaned out as I felt myself getting close, that moan was quickly replaced with a cry when Chris pulled out. “No! No daddy! Was so close!” I said as literal tears welled up in my eyes, but Chris just rolled me onto my back, causing me to wince as my ass hit the bed. “Hey, it’s okay sweetheart. I’m not done fucking you, I just wanted to see that pretty face” he said calmly, stroking my cheek to reassure me. Chris slid back in and went back to his fast pace, moving my legs to wrap around his waist before caging in my head with his arms. “Feel so good daddy! Like this way better, I can see your face” I whined which made Chris smile. “Yeah? Me too, I like seeing the pretty faces you make” he said, making me blush as my nails started to lightly scratch down his back as I got close again. “Can I please cum? You can cum in me!” I whimpered out as I was holding back my orgasm, Chris’ lips came down on mine in a long and deeply passionate kiss.

He only pulled away to speed up his thrusts, “Go ahead princess, cum on my cock, I’m not far behind” he groaned. With his permission, I came, moaning out his name as I did so, “Oh Chris! Shit, feels so good” I moaned loudly. “Fuck! My name sounds so pretty coming out of your mouth like that” he grunted, thrusting in a few more times before cumming inside of me. Chris pulled out but used his fingers to scoop up the cum dripping out of me and bringing them to my mouth. “Suck” he instructed me before grabbing his shirt and wiping off both his dick and my cunt, ridding them of any excess cum. Chris turned off the light while I pulled the blankets back and we crawled under them, I put my hand on Chris’ cheek and turned his face to capture his lips in a feverish kiss. I swear my heart melted a bit when I felt him smile into it before pulling away, “I love you so much, and I’m sorry I acted like a bitch” I said quietly. Chris kissed my forehead, “And I’m sorry for being such an asshole. I love you so much more by the way” he said back, “Cuddles?” I questioned sleepily as I rolled onto my side. “Cuddles” he laughed, doing the same and spooning me, holding me against him tightly as we drifted off to sleep.

All work is subject to copyright

©️ Daddyslilchickenfingers2 2023

Do not steal my work

[dearramiel]

𝐓𝐚𝐠, 𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐈𝐭 | 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐨𝐧

✧ - fluff in the beginning of the story, will eventually get dark, undertones of off setting steve, he's kinda stalking her in the beginning, anxiety/paranoia, steve is 28, reader is at least 21, yes I want to be steve's housewife(a lot of those undertones are present throughout the story so steve has a housewife kink), we listen to stevie nicks and honestly it was by pure coincidence, domestic vibes,

You look beautiful..

In that cute little dress, you'd make the prettiest housewife in town, if you'd just let him in. But all he can do is look, as you walk down the driveway of your house, a little empty basket on your arm. He figures that you're running Saturday morning errands. He shuts the blinds of his window, quickly running out of his own house.

"Y/n!" His voice calls out to you, you whip your head around and spot Steve Harrington jogging towards you, car keys in hand. The rattling of his keys come to an end when he catches up to you.

"Steve, Good morning!" You greet, your voice melting his insides.

"Morning, Sweetheart." He says, trying to ease his nerves when he notices the visible reddening on your face, or the way your smile gets bigger.

"Heading out to the markets?" Steve asks, to which you nod.

"I need to pick some stuff up for dinner today." You reply.

"In that little thing?" He motions to the basket.

"Well I'm only making something for myself, my mom and dad are out on vacation.." You giggle, "Unless, you want to join me?"

The older male is a little shocked, is that even a question?

"I don't wanna bother, but I also wouldn't want a little lady like you to be all alone." He grins. "How about I drive you there?"

The next two hours were spent with you trying to politely decline Steve paying for your groceries. You couldn't deny what it made you feel. You felt like you and him were together, walking around the market places as you picked fresh vegetables and canned goods, shoulders bumping by accident, accidentally brushing your fingers against his, even eying a dress.

All which Steve noticed, encouraging you to try them on in a makeshift dressing room that looked to be an extra storage room, mirrors in place where you could twirl in the dress. After deciding on a couple, you step out, showing Steve who was sat on a chair.

"What do we think?" You say, "it's a little long but maybe I'll grow into it." You joke. Steve doesn't speak for a solid second or two, his heart is racing because you look gorgeous.

"I think you look amazing. You should definitely get it." He smiled, looking at how it hugged your upper body, hoping one day he would see underneath.

"There's another, but I'll save it for later." You say, twirling another time to really show him everything. And again, he's nearly speechless.

"I'll be back." You say, going into the room to change back into your own dress. Carefully untying the little bow, blushing when you remember Steve's face.

Once out, you see Steve with the old lady, the owner of the shop. He's smiling to her as he gently pushes her hands full of change back to her, where she then bows her head to him, smiling ever so gratefully. The act is enough to make your pulse pick up, she hands him a bag big enough to fit the articles of clothing on your arm.

Steve noticed you close the door of the dressing room. "Here." He opens the bag, to which you then put everything in.

"You didn't have to, you know ..pay for it.." you say, feeling bad that he's practically been spoiling you all day. You weren't fortunate to have the money he did, and you definitely didn't want to make it look like you were trying to take advantage of his generosity. Most of what you did have was hard earned money coming from your parents, the house you lived in from your grandparents. It's why you pushed them to take a vacation for themselves.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about it, besides, I think that little dinner will make up for it." He suggests, a sweet smile on his face. You return it.

"Well, thank you for doing this." You play with your fingers, forgetting that he's holding everything. And he doesn't mind because it plays more into his fantasy.

"It's really not a problem."

It's 12 p.m by the time you get back home, Steve has walked you to your front steps, promising to stop by at 6:30 for dinner with you. The thought has you excited, almost throwing yourself into the shower before remembering that you already had, prior to stepping out.

After the excitement settles down, you realize that an unsettling feeling begins to wash over you. Being alone in a big house comes with perks like those, paranoia.

It leaves you feeling unnerved, and it's hard to shake off. It's not the first time you've felt this way, but it's also never been so intense.

You figure that the only way to ease the tension that begins to weigh down on your shoulders is by putting a vinyl into its player. A sense of relief comes down as Stevie Nicks plays throughout the living room, spilling into the kitchen. It helps just enough that you're able to focus on what you want to make, especially now that you want to impress Steve.

You settle on spaghetti and meatballs, after that, a pie to go as dessert.

1:00 p.m. becomes 2 p.m., which becomes 3 p.m., 4 p.m, and then 5:30 p.m, cleaning, cooking, and baking had you distracted, you wash your hands before quickly rushing upstairs to your room, bag in hand, the dresses Steve had bought you now on your bed. You figured that wearing the one he hadn't seen you in would be perfect.

You weren't sure why you were trying to impress Steve, maybe it was the growing crush you had on him, whatever it was, it began to make you feel a little insecure. Trying to live up to his standards, he was known to have any woman wanted, and they were usually really pretty.

You shake away your nagging and negative thoughts, choosing to put on very light makeup, a little bit of eyeliner, lipstick, blush, and eyeshadow, going for a natural look.

You slip out of your dress, embarrassed as you think about also changing your undergarments. It's not like Steve would see you in your underwear anyway.

But.. just in case...

You pick out a matching white lace bra and panties set, then slipping the dress on. You button up the dress, until you reach the last two buttons, leaving a very visible sight for your cleavage. Your chest on display, collarbone showing. Your hair is simple, a low messy bun with some loose hair scattered everywhere aside from your face. By the time your done, it's barely 6:15 p.m, giving you 15 minutes to yourself. With those spared minutes, you slip into your black flats, hanging the other dress in your closet, walking to the kitchen, serving two plates of food, two cups of water, and taking the pie out of the oven, setting it on the counter for it to cool off.

Setting the plates and cups on the table, you're finally done.

Then the ring of the doorbell has your heart jumping out of your chest. You smile and pat down your dress, quickly rushing to the door, opening it swiftly, face heating up when you see him.

Steve Harrington in a suit, holding roses in one hand, the other in his pocket, and you can tell that he's nervous.

He's not moving, stuck in a trance as he looks at the dress you're wearing, down to your legs, before looking back up to your face. An innocent smile on your pink lips, Steve finally moves.

"Hey Sweetheart."

[addictedwritingg]

Hate Means Love Ch.1

Jenna Ortega x Male Character.

Summary: Jenna Ortega shares a house with her roommate's, one of them being a male she can't stand, in other words, hates. He loves to tease and feed her hatred just to watch her for his pleasure (wink wink).

Warnings! - inappropriate language, teasing, arguing, and I think that's about it!

I walk into the house coming back from the gym wearing some gray sweatpants with my shirt off and thrown over my shoulder. I look over to Jenna who was starting at me with her annoying brown doe eyes as I walk to the kitchen to get my smoothie.

"If you want me to send you a picture of me, I can do that" I tease her as I tilt my drink back taking a swig.

"Shut up" She scoffs "You look fucking ridicules."

I laugh at her comment knowing I definitely don't look ridicules, I mean not to be cocky, but I work very hard on my body every day, and I'm built and healthy.

"Can you two please not start today, you might as well be married at this point." our other roommate/friend Trina says to us as she comes out of her room.

"Mmm married, let's do it Jenna." I tease her, carrying on my antics.

Jenna rolls her eyes at me and sighs with an annoyed breath. I walk over to the couch and sit across from her on the other couch and get on my phone scrolling through Instagram. I finish my smoothie and set the cup next to me on the side table when Devin our other roommate and friend walks inside.

"Yooo my boy, Devin, looking sexy." I joke with a laugh.

"Thanks honey, you are too." he winks playing along.

"You ready for tonight?" I ask standing up to throw my empty smoothie bottle in the trash.

Devin gives me a "wait" look before i finish my sentence, causing me to look at him.

"What you guys got planned?" Jenna asks curiously.

"Ohhhhh, you didn't invite them?" I laugh tossing my drink in the garbage.

"No, no that's not it, I haven't told them yet, there both coming, at least I hope" he says as he puts his groceries away.

"Where too?" Jenna ask.

"Party tonight, at one of Devin and I's friend's house."

"No arguing tonight guys!" Devins yells as he walks to his room out of sight.

Jenna is leaning against the kitchen counter cornered into the corner of the wall with her arms crossed. I walk over and hover over her as I was much taller than her, and lean over her, just inches from her face.

"You hear that? try and be a good girl tonight." I grin as I reach behind her and grab my vitamin's she was in the way of.

She pushes me and walks away as I laugh out loud to myself. Why Jenna and I never got along, I couldn't say, we have never clicked. She says I'm a condescending dick and I say she's a total bitch, but here we are, living in the same 4 walls.

Jenna's POV.

"UGHHHHH Andre (male characters name) is so annoying!" I yell plopping down on Trina's bed as she does her make up in her mirror.

"You guys have been like that since you were kids, it's got to be like angry sexual tension now that you guys are adults." Trina says making me jump up in shock with my mouth hanging open.

"Ew, I would never, I just hate him so much." I say in disgust at the thought of it.

Trina rolls her eyes followed with a laugh at my actions. She sets her make-up brush in her brush cup making a clink sound and turns to face me.

"I want to have a good time tonight, and so should you Jen! you need too!" She says grabbing my hand and giving me a warm smile. "Here, I have the perfect outfit you can wear, but you will have to grab some hair clips because I can't find mine." she says getting up and heading to her closet.

I get up and walk to my room to get some of my hair clips, before I open my door, I walk into Andre who is coming out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist, and then my eyes follow down to his bulge beneath his towel and I couldn't help but stair in surprise.

"My eyes are up here" he says placing his finger under my chin gently lifting my face up, causing me to slap his hand away seeing that stupid grin on his face.

"Don't touch me dumbass" I scoff opening my door and walking into my room.

He laughs and follows me leaning against my doorway.

"So, you can look at my dick, but I can't advert your eyes?" He laughs crossing his arms.

"I was not looking at you're di- Andre get out I'm busy." I say cutting myself off not wanting to deal with his shit.

Andre's POV.

I walk away to my room with a grin on my face to get dressed and ready for the party. I take my towel off and slip on some Calvin Klien black underwear and some simply black Nike socks when I'm interrupted by Devin.

"Yo bro, think I could borrow you're Jordan 1s?" He asks with his head hooked around the door peering in my room.

"Yeah, go ahead man, just not the white and gray ones, I'm wearing them tonight." I say pointing to my closet full of my shoes.

He nods at me, thanking me as he heads towards my closet, and I continue getting ready.

*Time skip*

All of us are in the parking garage heading down to the building for the party when I hand Trina my phone and ask her to snap a picture of me to post on Instagram later.

"Thanks Trina, looks great." I say taking my phone back and shoving it into my pocket.

We get down the parking garage and walk across the street to enter into the building. I'm greeted by all my old friends, and I couldn't be happier. As I look around the room, I notice all the hot women walking around hanging off their friends and talking loudly from the alcohol they have already consumed. I head over to the drink table and grab a red solo cup and fill it to the brim with Captain Morgan, because I'm getting wasted tonight. Jenna approaches from behind me and I look at her taking a sip out of my cup.

"Jesus, are you a damn alcoholic?" She says grabbing a cup, noticing how much pure alcohol is in my cup.

"It's Captain Morgan, here try some." I lift her chin gently with my fingers and tilt her head back bringing my cup to her lips, sliding my thumb to her bottom lip to pull it down so I could gently pour some into her mouth. I wipe the access liquid from her bottom lip and suck it off my finger. "See, it's good" I say with a grin leaving Jenna at the drink table.

Jenna POV.

I stood there as my stomach burned with a feeling I've never felt from that damn boy I hated so much, But I knew he only did it to get a reaction out of me and holy fuc- I was cut off my Trina coming up behind me placing a hand on my shoulder.

"Uhm, that was hot as fuck, and I don't even think of Andre that way."

"Trina!" I say slapping her hand playfully. "He did that shit on purpose, why he did it, couldn't tell you."

Trina rolls her eyes and grabs my hand to drag me into the other room. "Come on there playing do or drink!" she says with a giggle dragging me like a bad kid in the store.

We sit down across from Devin and Andre on a couch and pick our cups up so everyone can take a shot to start the game. I look over to Devin who seems to already have a girl for the night as she's sitting on his lap with her arms wrapped around him, which should be fun to hear the antics tonight.

"Alright, I'll go first!" a man with blonde hair says grabbing a card and proceeds to read it. "Who are you taking home tonight? or drink 2 shots" He laughs after reading around the room and then scans the room to see. "I'm going to take her home tonight!" he says pointing at this blonde girl across the room making Devin and Andre laugh in unison. I continue to drink on my cup feeling light and fuzzy, but in a good way and that's when I hear Trina tell me it's my turn. I grab my card and read it out loud. "Sit in the persons lap directly across from you for the rest of the game or drink 5 shots." I say with a smile looking up to only notice its Andre directly across from me making my smile slowly fade and turn into an irritated expression as I see his stupid grin growing. "You got to be fucking kidding" I say to myself looking at my cup and then back to him. I sigh out loud and walk to him as he slouches in his seat making room for me to sit. I snatch a pillow from the drunk blonde and place it on Andre's lap too avoid any contact with him. I sit on the pillow and look at him visible annoyed.

"You smell good but look like shit." he says with a stupid chuckle.

"Please, I don't want to sit in your lap at all, but 5 shots are way too much." I roll my eyes.

He yanks the pillow out from under me making me yelp and tosses it to the other couch.

"That wasn't part of the rules, no cheating" He grins.

"Asshole" was all I could Munster to say as I turned away from him to ignore him.

About 10 minutes go by and I've just accepted my situation at this point and leaned back into him as it hurt my body sitting so stiff for so long. I finish the last little bit in my cup and Trina offers to get me more since she was getting up to get herself some. I then suddenly feel Andre's hand snake around me and sit on my upper thigh close to my region but not close enough to touch. His hand is huge and practically covers my whole upper thigh. He squeezes it and leans up to my ear, I can feel his warm breath on my ear making me sit closer back to him as the sensation was intoxicating. He squeezes my thigh harder, hard enough to leave a bruise, but in the best way possible as this boy was intoxicating me with arousal.

"You know." His lips brushed against my ear making my back slightly arch, just a little. "For someone who hates me you sure aren't acting like it right now."

I sit up and look at him and scoff, I don't know what the fuck I was doing but I wasn't going to let it keep happening.

"Your such an asshole, stop talking to me." I say annoyed.

and then I look back at him.

"I could say the same thing for you considering you legit have a boner, from me." he laughs and takes a drink out of his cup.

"Stop moving so much on my dick then, I'm sure if you took you're underwear off you would be we-" I cut him off and got off him.

"I'm going to get a drink, your stupid." I say standing up to go find Trina.

End of Chapter 1.

A/N: I'm sorry if this chapter is kind of all over the place or even kind of slow, I'm trying to give a good view of the relationship they have together. Also, this is my first fic I've written and I'm by no means good at it all, chapter 2 will be out very soon! I hope you guys liked it!! and PSA, there will be LOTS of smut in this story very very soon.

[dw19791967]

That Type of Girl Part 5

Pairing: Dean x reader, Sam x reader (Platonic)

Warnings: language, unrequited love, slight angst, mentions of self-hate, fluff, chick flick moments.

This is the fifth fic I have ever written, all mistakes are my own. Please be gentle on me!

____________________________

“No, I’m not sure if you do sweetheart you see, the thing is I’m pretty sure I am in love with you.”

I was in shock. What in the actual hell is happening. Of course I have dreamed of this moment ever since I could remember. I just don’t understand why he is telling me this now. 

I sat there with my mouth open, in shock.

“Well say something sweetheart, you got me freaking out here.” Dean looked at me with worried eyes.

“Dean, I mean I’m flattered truly, I just don’t understand where this is coming from. We’ve been friends forever and of course I love you. I’m just shocked I guess.” I looked at him with tears in my eyes. And of course this situation is made more awkward by the fact that I’m still holding my shirt over my boobs. 

“I almost lost you today, I went insane not knowing if you were ok. And I’m tired of hiding how I really feel about you. You are the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about before I close my eyes at night. I love you Y/N, and I have for a long time now. You make me laugh at stupid things, you make me smile more than I ever did before I met you, you're beautiful not only on the outside but the inside as well. God you are perfect in my eyes. And I know I’m not good enough for you, trust me I know. I have tried to push my feelings aside and do what's best for you but I can’t keep doing it anymore. I understand if you don’t feel the same way, I know you deserve better. I just couldn’t go any longer without telling you how I feel.” Dean looked at me once again, he had tears in his eyes now.

God. This man. How can he make my heart swell and break at the same time.

“Dean…. you can’t tell me I deserve better, there is no one better than you. I love you Dean and I have been in love with you for forever at this point. I just assumed we would never be more because I wasn’t that type of girl, ya know? The girl who guys want longer than a night. I mean I know we are best friends and I know you make me feel like I am beautiful. You understand me better than I understand myself.  I just don’t want things to change between us, I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have you in my life.” I sighed.

“You are that type of girl Y/N. You’re my girl. You are beautiful, you never judge me for my flaws. Why would I judge yours?” Dean held my chin in his hands.

I smiled at him.

“Can I kiss you?” He asked me with hope in his eyes.

Oh God, here we go. 

“Yes, you can definitely do that.” I bit my lip. Of course I was nervous, this is Dean Freaking Winchester. My kissing skills are for sure not up to par with his. 

Dean moved in closer. His lips met mine and it felt better than I ever imagined. He moved his lips against mine. We stayed like that until we were both out of breath. 

When we parted he kissed my forehead. 

“I love you Y/N whether you are dolled up to the hills or are lounging in your leggings. There is nothing you can do that would change that.” Dean looked at me with a smile on his face. 

“I love you, always have always will.” I gave him a peck on the cheek. “Now if you don’t mind, I am going to go put my shirt back on. You distracted me.” I moved towards the bathroom.

“Hey no compliments from me if you choose not to.” He winked at me. 

“Yeah but I don’t think your brother would like that.” I laughed.

“Oh shit, I forgot about him. You go get dressed, I’ll call and check in with the giant.” 

I could hear Dean on the phone once I moved into the bathroom. 

________________________

I stayed in the bathroom for a few minutes. I looked at myself in the mirror. I still can’t believe this is happening. What is going to happen now? How are things going to change? I’m officially freaking out. I put my shirt back on and threw some leggings on. My cuts were feeling better now. 

I headed back out to the room.

“Yeah man just hurry it up we're starving. You better have got pie.” Dean hung up when I walked back over to my bed.

“I can tell you are overthinking, what’s up?” Dean sat down by me.

“What’s gonna happen now? How are we going to tell Sam? Whose room are we gonna share? How are we gonna work together on hunts?” I started rambling off everything running through my mind, which is pretty typical of what I do when I’m nervous.

He reached out to hold my hands. “Hey hey, slow down. Nothings gonna change sweetheart, besides me calling you my girl and kissing you whenever I want. I promise. Sam already knows I am head over heels for you, so don’t worry about that. As for hunts, we both already cared about each other. We are just taking it a step further. I promise I’ll keep it professional while we are hunting. My room has the bigger bed but if you are more comfortable in yours that is fine with me. I will do whatever you need. We can take this slow too, I don’t want to rush you into anything you aren’t ready for. Ok?” 

“God I love you.” I reached up to kiss him. I felt him smile into the kiss. 

This man is willing to do what I need. I have never had a relationship where my needs were truly put first. He knew this would be a big step for me like I knew it would be a big step for him. 

I pulled away to look into his eyes. He truly seemed happy. That is how I knew this was going to work and everything would be ok.

“Your plan sounds perfect. Thank you for caring.” I smiled at him. 

“Of course, you know I am always going to care.” He hugged me and peppered kisses all along my face. We stayed like that for a bit.

________________________

The door opened. Sam was finally back.

“Ok. I got burgers, fries, pie, and more beer.” Sam walked in the door with his hands full.

He noticed Dean holding me. “Woah, what’s wrong.” Sam looked to Dean.

“Nothing Sammy, we're perfect.” Dean kissed my forehead again. His forehead kisses are gonna do me in.

“So you finally told him huh?” Sam winked at me.

“Actually I told her but we’ve already been through the chick flick moments. Sorry you missed it little bro.” Dean got up to grab our food. Dean patted Sam on the back. 

“Damn, well I am happy for you both. No more staring at each other and trying not to get caught.” Sam laughed. 

“Oh don’t worry Sammy, there will still be plenty of staring.” Dean looked at me and I started to blush. 

Damn this man. 

“Oh and Sammy, one more thing.” Dean was digging through the bags.

“You forgot the pie.”

Dean was right, things won’t change. I have a feeling they might actually get better.

Tag List:

@hazel-eye-coffee-shop-girl-blog

@deanspinsterwitchs-readinglist

@pandasrdbest2341

[cjsarchive]

I like the insecure mc with sam fic you wrote, can you do a matthew one? like incorperating the fact he cooks a lot of sweets maybe.

Yep, hope you enjoy!<3

The Most Beautiful Girl-Matthew x Female Reader

I stared at myself in the mirror. Stared at my stomach, hips and thighs. I sucked in my stomach and turned to look at myself from the side. I definitely like how this looks. But when I let my stomach rest, I felt like crap. I need to stop obsessing over how I look. I look at myself in the mirror too much. But I couldn’t help but keep coming back to examine myself, my body, what I need to work on and fix. I sighed.

“Hey, you okay?” I turned towards the voice and saw Matthew was standing in the doorway to my bedroom.

“Oh, yeah I'm okay.”

“You sure?”

“Yes. I’m okay,” I forced a smile on my face, hoping to convince him. He didn’t look fully convinced, but he didn’t push any further.

“Alright, if you say so. Anyways, dinner’s done!” He grinned.

“Okay, coming!” I looked at myself in the mirror one more time. I didn’t have an appetite right now, but I followed Matthew downstairs anyway. I sat down across from him.

“I made your favorite dessert tonight too!”

“Thanks,” I wanted to smile, but I only felt worse. He was so sweet, but he didn’t know the thought of eating anything sweet right now made me nauseous. I tilted my head down, hiding my face, and began to eat.

I managed to scarf my food down, but I still couldn’t touch the dessert. Matthew must have noticed me simply staring at it, “Is everything okay? Are you tired of that? Cause I can make something else for dessert if you want!” He offered.

“Um, no it’s okay. I’m just full right now. I’ll eat it tomorrow.” I couldn’t read the expression on his face, it made me anxious.

“Alright, I’ll handle dishes and stuff tonight, okay?” He walked over to me and left a kiss on my forehead before taking the dishes to the kitchen. Ugh, why am I being so difficult?

I went back up to my bedroom. I look towards the mirror. I tried to stop myself. I need to stop looking in the mirror. But as I thought that, my feet were already making their way towards the mirror. I stared for a long time. I can’t keep being like this. I can’t keep being myself. I grabbed my phone and looked up dieting routines online. I was so focused on it that I didn’t notice Matthew had come in until I felt his arms wrap around my waist.

“I know I keep asking but are you sure you’re alright? You seemed kinda off at dinner.” He said softly. Before I could turn my phone off, he saw my search results on my phone. “You wanna start dieting?” He asked, confused. I hesitated. There was no point in lying to him now.

I sighed, “Yes. I want to lose weight.”

“Why?”

The words slipped out before I could catch them, “Because I don’t like my body.” After I let that out, the words just kept coming, “I want to feel good about my body, I really do. I try to convince myself it’s not that big of a deal. But then I see so many girls with my body type going on diets, having intense workout routines, working to be slimmer, and trying to get the ‘ideal body.’” My eyes started to water, but I blinked the tears away, “It’s hard to feel good about my body when everywhere I look, I’m being shown that my body is not ideal and I should be working to change it. That’s why I don’t want to eat dessert. I’m just so tired of feeling shitty.”

Matthew was silent for a moment, taking in what I had said. He gently turned me around to look at him.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t know you felt like that. If I had known I wouldn’t have made-“

“No, you have nothing to be sorry for. You’ve done nothing but be kind and sweet to me. You always try to make me happy. I don’t even know why you’re with me, Matthew. All I’ve done lately is whine and be difficult. I don’t deserve someone like you.” I looked down, I couldn’t even look him in the eye. I felt small. Matthew stood in thought for a while before he softly smiled.

“I have an idea.”

He led me over and we both sat on the bed. He reached into his pockets and pulled out various plushies. Two of which looked like me and Matthew. He placed the plushies at the end of the bed.

“What is this, Matthew?”

“Just watch.” I looked at the toys and they started moving, like they had come to life, “I’m gonna tell you a story.” I looked at him in slight surprise before taking my attention back to the toys. “Once there was a guy named Matthew,” The Matthew plush stood front and centre and waved at me. I giggled at the sight, “After he left the demon world, he got to explore the wonders of the human world, and all it had to bring.” His plush was shown wandering and experiencing different things such as books, stores, and food. “But there was something he had yet to experience: Love. Love wasn’t a thing in the world he grew up in, he never experienced it. Until he met..” A puppet that looked like me propped up. Matthew conjured a little spotlight as well and shined it on my plush. “This girl turned Matthew’s life upside down! In the best way of course. From the day they first met, she showed Matthew kindness, letting him and his brothers live with her when they had nowhere else to go. Matthew didn’t know it yet, but from that day forward, he would never be able to get this girl out of his mind. Again, in the best way.” I laughed as I continued to watch the puppet show.

“He was attracted to her so quickly. Her kindness, her gentleness, her beauty, her independence. She was amazing! He loved being able to be close to her, he loved the person he was when he was with her. She made him feel so empowered, like he could do anything! He’d never met anyone who made him feel like that. He was 100 percent in love with her!” The plushies began reenacting all the dates Matthew and I went on. I felt a great wave of nostalgia remembering them all. Before I knew it, tears started flowing, “Even though she doesn’t feel great about her body right now, Matthew still felt her body was beautiful and didn’t need to change. She was the most gorgeous woman he ever knew. A woman he never wanted to live without. A woman he loved more than anything. And he’ll never leave her. Ever.” The two plushies hugged and I felt my heart melt. All the toys then stood in a line and bowed to me. “To the most beautiful and wonderful girl.” The toys then went limp again.

Matthew rubbed the back of his neck and blushed, “Heh, I know it’s a kinda corny but-“ I didn’t let him finish as I threw myself into his arms. I sobbed in his shoulder. I was so overwhelmed with happiness.

“T-that was beautiful, Matthew,” I sputtered out. I squeezed him tighter. Matthew hugged me back just as tight.

“I’m really glad you liked it.” He gently pulled away, but still held me as he looked at me, “If you really want to start dieting, I’ll support you. But there’s nothing wrong with your body or your size, I promise! You are gorgeous.” He reassured me again. I smiled bright before I leaned in and gave him a gentle but passionate kiss on the lips. He very happily kissed back.

“I love you, Matthew. I love you so much.”

Matthew smiled and left multiple kisses all over my face, making me giggle, “I love you too, beautiful.”

[moeitsu]

Can i ask you about your OC Kate?

Where did your inspo for her character come from? Does she represent anything about yourself?

I really love your fic. I think it’s an interesting approach to Arthur’s character to explore the parental guilt he has for what happened to Eliza and Isaac. And I love the way you do that by introducing a character that’s pretty much a mirror of himself, but under different circumstances. And she has broken the cycle already. Her backstory literally gave me chills when I read it. You have a great way of adding so much detail in such a short amount of words! I really look forward to each chapter :)))

AHH OF COURSE YOU CAN!!!! 💗♥️💜

Ty Ty Ty for asking it means so much to me when you guys ask question/give feedback/leave comments on my work. I’m so serious it literally brightens my day.

I wish this wasn’t anon so I can thank you properly, but please DM me and if you want I will add you to the tags for the next chapters!!

I’m so ready to dive into the Kate McCanon lore, I’m sorry if I get carried away:

I can’t really take any credit for her name. It’s from a Colter Wall song called “Kate McCanon”, but her character is nothing like the woman he’s singing about. I just really loved the name tbh. (And I’m a big fan of his music)

As far as my inspo for her character traits, they kinda just developed over time. I began forming ideas of her as I played rdr2 for the first time, at first I kinda pictured myself in the time period and how I would respond/react to certain events. Then as the story progressed I was like hm, I would definitely be dead by now if this was me. So i made someone stronger but also kept certain aspects like her humor, sarcasm, honesty, intelligence and kindness that I think are sorta reflection of myself.

In a nutshell, the Kate we see with Arthur and the gang is a free spirited tomboy who fully embraces the freedom and possibilities of life in the west and she also defies the gender stereotypes of that time period.

However, the lack of description of Kates appearance was entirely on purpose. I dropped little snippets of her looks at the beginning such as her height and size. (She’s a big woman) But tbh i didn’t want the focus of the story to be on what she looked like or what she was wearing. I purposely mentioned she is half Italian on her mothers side, (bc that will come up again later in the story for the plot) but I also wanted you guys to picture her however you felt was right. In my mind, she is a woman who appears intimidating but once you get to know her she’s a total sweetheart (much like Arthur hehe)

One of the reasons why I choose to keep Kate out of most missions is because she genuinely wants to be done with hurting people. She gave that life up and vowed to do better. Only when she’s pushed and survival is at stake do we see her break that promise. It’s almost ironic considering she is with a gang of outlaws, but like the girls, and Arthur too, she sees them as just people trying to get by. When she meets Jack and Abigail she sees a future dangling on a thread, and decides that if there’s something good she can do here. Then it’s going to be helping that family escape this life. Falling in love with Arthur just happens to be a bonus ;)

I had always intended to give Kate a traumatic backstory (sorry girlie). It started with her family, I wrote out an entire detailed timeline of her life. With names and dates and even random life events that will never make it in the story. But it helped me so much with building her background. It made her feel more real to me. I did so much research on the time period and what Boston was like in the 1800s. Even though I didn’t go into grave detail about her childhood or the death of her family members. But by doing so, it made it easier for me to write about that hopelessness and vulnerability she felt when she finally lost everything.

I chose to open the story with her burying her husband and child because (spoiler alert, but not really if you’ve been actively reading) that is the tie that links her soul with Arthur’s. Even though she does not blame herself for their deaths, it’s something that is engraved into the very being of her identity. And it pretty much dictates the person she becomes throughout the story.

When Kate is captured and taken to a military fort, that is where her “rock bottom” hits its “peak” so to speak. She has nothing left to lose at this point but herself. And in a way, she does lose herself. River is a character I hold very dear to me. And i might write a small spin off about him and Kate in the future. He was a reflection of what Kate would have become if she did not make a change. At first, he was her hope. But when his family met the same fate as hers, he became consumed by the darkness and rage. And unfortunately, she was in a state where Rivers anger nurtured her own. (I want to make it clear River is not a villain, he’s a victim)

I do kinda regret not exploring their relationship more in the chapter. But tbh it probably wouldn’t have added anything. However, I will say the two of them pretty much trauma bonded. They loved each other deeply, but not really in a romantic sense. River offered to marry her, but it was more out of “you are the only one i have left” kind of way. He was never going to give up that life and settle down again, getting married to Kate would just be a way to seal their relationship and vow to stand by each other till the very end. (Does this kinda mirror Arthur/Mary? That might be a reach idk)

All in all, I wanted to give Arthur someone who already understands him, but doesn’t know it yet. Someone that he doesn’t need to explain himself to because Kate has already been there. Arthur knows he’s a bad man, and he knows Kate has been a bad woman. He believes he is beyond saving, beyond redemption. But Kate sees someone who can be saved, he just need the support to do it.

I’ve been trying to plant the seeds over time that Kate truly misses being a mother, and feels robbed of the life she should be living. Raising her daughter. Jacks character has helped me manifest that in the story a lot. Especially that first kiss scene. Kate longs for a family. But she’s pretty much convinced herself that she will never have one again. So by helping the Marstons it alleviates some of that yearning. Arthur believes he has failed as a father, but what Kate sees is the potential for him to be a very loving parent. And it makes her head dizzy with adoration. (There will be many more tender moments with Jack/Arthur/Kate in the future btw)

I hope you guys don’t think my Arthur is too out-of-character. In the game, his son really isn’t mentioned a whole lot, and we know the reason he gives John such a hard time is because he doesn’t want to see him make the same mistakes. But I honestly believe Arthur would have made a wonderful father. The motivation behind this whole fanfic is really just exploring grief and parenthood. Which is ironic because i don’t have children lmao.

TLDR: Kate McCanon domesticates the wild outlaw known as Arthur Morgan 😂

I can’t believe I rambled so much on this. I hope I didn’t overwhelm you. But I guess it just goes to show how much I appreciate your question, and the fact that you’ve taken time out of your day to read my story.

I love you guys! ♥️

[daydreamsandafternoonteafics]

Let's Pretend It's Love- Chapter 16

banner by ren

“You look hot, Char!”

I watched in annoyance as Charlotte strutted in front of the four full-length mirrors while Penny and the rest of the bridesmaids cheered her on with catcalls and whistles. I bet the seamstress thought we the the rowdiest, uncouth group of women to ever set foot in such a posh shop. There were two months until the Payne Train wedding and Penny was having number two of three bridal fittings. She’d finally decided on bridesmaid dresses. It was snowing outside, the holidays were kicking off, my nose was running, the dresses were a nasty pale pink color and I’d rather be anywhere than here.

“This dress is hot! You won’t be the only sight at this function.” Charlotte replied arrogantly as she flipped her hair over her shoulder whilst admiring her reflection in the mirrors.

I rolled my eyes. Leave it Charlotte to try and make Penny’s big day all about her.

“Well Presley, you’re the only one left.” Penny chirped clapping her hands together happily.

She must think this is funny. I’m fully convinced that brides seek revenge on their bridesmaids for any shit they’ve done in the past.

I sighed shrugging out of my coat as the seamstress handed me the tea length dress on a satin hanger.

“Why is this dress pink? I thought we agreed on no pink, Pen?” I asked, my eyebrows pinching together furiously.

Penny smiled.

“Because Li and I are getting married on Valentine’s Day. It matches the theme. Plus all the groomsmen are going to have matching ties so you and Harry can match when you walk down the aisle together. Cute, yeah?"

I rolled my eyes. Valentine’s Day weddings were the most cliche move in the book and pale pink would only make me look washed out considering how pale I already was. I reckon it’d look good on Harry , though. If he could pull off those hideous prints he always wore he could definitely do pale pink.

Speaking of Harry, today was the day of the wedding he was supposed to be photographing and I couldn’t help but wonder what he was doing and secretly wish he was here to give me some company.

"I’m just going to get this over with, yeah?” I replied taking the dress into to the dressing room.

A slight chill hit me as I wiggled out of my jeans and stripped out of my sweater. I gave myself a quick glance in the mirror before stepping into the pale pink dress, the silky material quickly consumed my hips and thighs. After arranging and rearranging my bust to sit properly, I fiddled with the zipper and quickly realized that the dress was a bit snug.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror and frowned. If I held my breath and stood up straight enough, the dress would fit perfectly but as soon as I exhaled, I could feel my ribs and stomach straining against the silky fabric. Months worth of takeout, beer and a sedentary lifestyle of Netflix had not done me well. What the hell was I thinking? I should’ve done a couple of squats and sit ups or even went on a liquid diet before this fitting. Maybe I need to start drinking those kale shakes that Harry swears by.

“Come out and vogue for us, Presley!” Penny shouts from outside the dressing room. I sighed and my stomach dropped.

I knew I’d look nowhere near as good as Libby, and Ailsa, and as much as I hate to admit it, Charlotte looked in this dress. They all had amazing figures and luminous complexions.

I took a deep breath and pushed back the drapes covering the entrance of the dressing room, slowly inching my way to the center of the room.

Penny gasped and folded her hands together.“Aren’t you beautiful?? Why with a spray tan and a little bronzer, I bet Harry won’t be able to keep his eyes off of you.”

Gee Penny, great way to give a compliment. You might even be worse than Mum.

“I wish I had your rack!” Ailsa shouted.

My eyes swept over in the direction of Charlotte whose face held a devilish smirk. I prepared myself for the eye roll I knew what was coming next.

“If you keep holding your breath like that to make your tummy flat you’ll pass out before the nuptiuals even begin.”

It took everything in my power not reach over and rip out the blond tresses that I knew were extensions. I decided to remain a mature adult and take the high road. Or maybe I just didn’t have a snazzy comeback. Probably the second one.

“Turn around. I’m gonna send some pictures to Harry.” Penny commanded and my eyes grew wide.

There’s absolutely no way I’m letting Harry see me with frizzy hair and ghostly pale skin and crammed into a dress that would most likely rip in the seams if I just so much as bent down. I mean, it’s not that I cared what Harry thought but I was in no condition to have pictures taken of me and there’s no telling what Harry would do with those pictures.

“No!” I shouted.

Penny’s eyebrows raised. “

It’s your BF. Why not? I send pictures to Liam all the time.” She shrugged her shoulders as if it was nothing.

Penny really doesn’t get it. We’re two totally different people.

“Because, I don’t do pictures.” I replied feverishly hoping to shut down this conversation.

It was Libby’s turn to raise an eyebrow.

“Wait, isn’t your boyfriend like a photographer or something?"

How the hell does she know this information?

"Um, yes.” I replied.

She laughed.

“Well hasn’t he taken pictures of you before? Lighten up, I’m sure he doesn’t care how you look.”

Wow, Presley. You really could’ve been thinking ahead.

“I wish I had a photographer boyfriend. Then I could be his muse.” Ailsa sighed dreamily and I rolled my eyes.

“I went on a few of dates with one. Their all just egotistical jerks with small dicks.” Charlotte replied whilst inspecting her nail beds.

My eyes narrowed at her and I trapped my bottom lip between my teeth.

“Gee Char, that’s pretty unfortunate but you speak for yourself. Maybe it just shriveled up from your inability to arouse.”

With that I turned on my heel and sauntered back into the dressing room satisfied to hear a scoff from Charlotte and snickers from the other bridesmaids.

Savage.

I was more than happy to be home after that bloody awful fitting. It felt nice to be curled up in a warm duvet on a snowy night but even with Ollie curled up by my side things felt strangely lonely. Could it be that I’d been spoiled by Harry’s frequent company? I’d never been one to let anyone get too close for comfort but I felt this strange sense of warmth when I was with Harry that I didn’t feel with others. My relationship with him was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. It made me feel kind of funny inside and my head spin just thinking about it. It kind of scared me. I just didn’t know how to describe it all.

Oh God. Please don’t tell me this dork is growing on me. ***** The beginning of the week seemed to drag on in the manner that it usually did and I hadn’t heard much from Harry. It wasn’t anything to bother myself about though. I’m sure he was just busy. Nothing to get worked over. I’m not going to run behind him.

The second best day of the week apart from Friday was Wednesday. Just knowing that the end of the week was near made the slowest and coldest of days more bearable. It was snowing pretty heavily outside and I was lucky enough to get into my flat building without slipping on any ice. Just as I was making my way upstairs my phone began vibrating in my pocket. Not bothering to check the caller I.D, I picked up the receiver.

“Hello?” I pressed the phone to my ear.

“Hey, love. God. It feels like forever since I’ve heard your voice.” I could feel my stomach dropping after hearing the familiar rasp.

“Harry. Hey. How are you?” I asked continuing my trek up the flight of stairs. “I’d be better if I got a chance to see you.” He replied.

I sighed.

“It’s getting late, H and it’s cold as hell outside. I almost slipped on ice twice on my way inside.”

Harry chucked on the other end of the phone sending slight shivers down my spine.

“Hell’s not cold Presley. And I knew you’d be opposed to going out so I came to you."

"You what?"

I pressed the phone closer to my ear hoping I’d heard correctly.

"I came to you. That okay?"

I tucked my lip between my teeth. I couldn’t help but feel unprepared for this.

"Uh, yeah. I’m just getting in. I’ll be waiting for you, I guess.”

I feel so indifferent about this all. I want to burry myself in a hole right now I don’t know why.

I had few spare minutes to rearrange the pillows on my sofa, get Ollie off the counter and at least run my fingers though my hair before I entertained Harry. He came striding through the door is this sort of color blocking brown sweater that only he could make look good, his arms full with a brown paper bag and this leather satchel draped over his shoulder.

“Speak of the devil.” I spoke playfully whilst taking the brown bag out of his arms and shutting the door behind him.

Harry grinned. “Heeey. I brought you dinner and I almost slipped on ice to get up here. You better be nice to me.” He warned but I could spot his lips curling into a smile.

I rolled my eyes playfully as I took a spot on the sofa and sat the bag on the table, peeping inside.

“It smells like curry so I guess I have to be.”

I could smell his cologne as he squeezed in next to me, his knee brushing against mine. As he removed the contents from the brown paper bag The only thing I could see was the wisp of curls that fell around his face and his chiseled jaw. The stubble around his chin was much more noticeable and made his jawline look so much sharper. Why does it have to be so damn sharp?

I’d zoned out so much I didn’t notice his mouth moving.

Harry nudged me ever so slightly with his elbow.

“I’m sorry? What?” I blurted.

He smiled while passing a takeaway box to me.

“I asked what was new with you. What’d I miss while I was away?"

I shrugged before reaching for a fork.

"Nothing too interesting. Things have been pretty much the same around here. Though I did have a dress fitting Saturday.” I scrunched up my face at the memory.

Harry smiled whilst forking over the noodles in his takeaway box.

“Is is really as bad as they say.? It can’t be that bad.” He insist.

“Oh but it is , Harry. I swear it’s the closest thing to hell on earth. I need to loose at least five pounds to properly fit into that dress.”

He chuckled.

“That’s ridiculous."

I frowned.

"I’m not playing, H. I need your health advice. Give me your kale shake recipe.”

“You sure you want that? Besides, I think your figure’s perfect.”

I could feel a blush creeping across my cheeks. I sighed trying to fight it.

“I shouldn’t expect you to know anything about women’s clothing. So how was the wedding?” I asked changing the subject before for forking noodles into my mouth. I could feel Ollie curling around my feet and Harry smiled, dimples denting his cheeks.

“It was great. That reminds me, I wanted to show you the pictures I took.” He sat his food on the coffee table before rummaging through the leather satchel at his feet.

“That’s a pretty fancy camera, Mr. Styles.” I announced, curling my feet up under me once he’d retrieved what he was looking for. Harry smiled.

“This camera is my baby. I do all my work with it. Simply can’t function without her, I reckon. Look at that.” He pointed to the camera’s screen.

There was a picture of castle in a beautiful snowy landscape. Everything about the picture was breath taking and perfect. Perfect lighting and everything. He moved closer to me and I could feel his hair tickling my face slightly.

“It’s beautiful.”

Harry went through various pictures of flowers, wedding guests, and bridesmaids until he stopped at a particular picture. The bride was slowly making her way up to the altar, a vision of beauty in white lace while the groom watched, his face all aglow.

“This picture here means everything to me.” He drawled.

I kinked an eyebrow.

“Why?”

Harry grinned.

“Because, the way he looks at her. You can see the love almost."

I glanced over at him, meeting the penetrating gaze of his jade eyes.

"To look at someone that way, it says a lot.” He continued, his expression becoming more serious.

I didn’t quite know what to say. Normally I’d disagree and call Harry out on his bullshit for saying something like that but I found myself feeling vexed. I’d never really been attracted to someone at such a heightened level. I’d never truly been in love. What did I know?

I remained silent, picking over my food. I entered mini emotional and existential crises whenever I was around Harry lately and I just didn’t know why.

“You’re awfully quiet tonight, you okay?” Harry asked, his hand touching my shoulder.

“Yeah, I - I just..” I sighed. “Never mind.”

We continued to eat in comfortable silence for a while. I found I’d lost my appetite but I kept stuffing my face just to keep myself occupied. My mind was drifting off to so many places I nearly felt dizzy just sitting down.

“There was lots of dancing at the wedding I went to.” Harry spoke knocking me out of my trance with his deep voice.

I kinked a brow.

“Yeah? Dance with anyone?”

He shook his head as he stood to his feet.

“No. The only girl I wanted to dance with wasn’t in attendance.”

“Yeah?” I repeated.

Harry grinned.

“Get up.” He commanded softly, extending one of his large hands to me.

My brows furrowed.

"What? Why?“

I watched with bewilderment as he moved the coffee table aside, leaving light lines in the exposed carpet.

"Stop being so stubborn, Presley. Just get up.”

I didn’t have time to protest before he was gently pulling me up from my spot on the sofa. He drew my body closer to his, wrapping an arm around the small of my back and grabbing hold on my hand, intertwining our fingers. It was the first time we’d held hands without my family watching. His hands were soft but I didn’t know how to feel about it.

Harry smiled his crooked smile down at me, a dimple denting his cheek.

“Figured we’d practice our dancing before Penny’s wedding, yeah?”

I rolled my eyes hoping to temporarily escape his gaze.

“You’re so stiff, Styles. And there’s no music.” I deadpanned.

His grin grew wider.

“Don’t need it.”

“This is cheesy. You’re making this cliche on purpose.”

I stared up at Harry who still smirked.

“So, did cha miss me?” He drawled.

I scoffed.

"No. I’ll have you know that I’m perfectly capable of functioning without you, Harry Styles. I’m an independent woman.“

"I know. That’s what I like about you.”

His finger tips pressed into my flesh ever so lightly.

“Yeah?” I blurted. My throat felt dry and I couldn’t quite figure out why I kept saying that. I bet I sounded like a bloody parrot.

“Yees. Maybe I should’ve said that differently. It’s one of the many things I like about you.” Harry replied, his voice slow and deep.

Things are getting insanely awkward. Why does he keep saying things like this?

He gazed down at me, his green eyes looking so hypnotizing. My breath hitched in my throat and I’d gone completely silent. Things had already gotten awkward enough. I was afraid if I said anything else it would only make things worse. My feet had completely stopped moving when I felt his arm snaking from around my waist, his large hand fastening to my chin.

I knew what was coming next. I should have stopped him before it could happen.

His mouth pressed against mine ever so gently, his lips were slightly chapped from the cold, his stubble scratched against my face and his mouth tasted faintly of curry. This should’ve been a turn off but it wasn’t. It didn’t stop me from kissing him back.

Fuck.

This feels so nice but what am I doing? This is wrong. Completely forbidden territory.

My eyes shot open and I pulled away as fast as I could running a hand through my hair. I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep breath. I couldn’t face him.

“ Presley, I didn’t mean to- I just-”

“Damn it, Harry. This- this is too much.”

Harry sighed deeply. I felt his hand gently gripping my arm. "I’m sorry. I didn’t-”

I snatched away from him folding my arms across my chest. I could really punch him right now.

“Please, don’t touch me. I think you should go home now. It’s late.”

I didn’t even bother to see him out. This was way too much. It’s simply not meant to be this way.

[swannerina]

⋆˙⟡ — A Cup of Coffee

WORDCOUNT: 812

⋆ ౨ৎ ˚ Just a sip of Warm Tea ⟡ ˖ ࣪

“CECIL HELP ME I’M GONNA DIE.”

Hazel said, pacing around the room like an insane maniac. She was very nervous for her date with Rei that night. The other day, she had already gone shopping for a dress with Yvette, and now she needed Cecils.. emotional support I guess? Cecil would just stare at Hazel who was going around the room like a nervous-wreck.

“You look like you’re going insane.” Cecil exclaimed.

“BECAUSE I AM!” Hazel replied.

Rei had already reserved dinner at an expensive Japanese restaurant in town, so there was no going back now. Hazel looked at the time.

“Oh god, I have to get ready!” She said, her tone panicked.

Hazel then went to the bathroom and changed her outfit to the new dress she bought. After changing, she looked at herself in the mirror and said,

“You can do this, it’s just a.. Small date.. Small..”

Hazel would sob dramatically, before falling to the ground. Cecil went into the bathroom to check on Hazel, and would sigh as she stared at the girls maniacal state.

“Hazel, stop being dramatic.”

She said, scolding her. Hazel was definitely being a bit.. over-dramatic that day. This made Cecil go insane, as Hazel kept asking Cecil for help as she begged on her knees.

“How am I supposed to help—”

“I don’t know, give me emotional support or something?!”

She begged, in a somewhat crazed state. Hazel was clearly—very nervous. Cecil would mutter something under her breath, before helping Hazel to stand up.

“Alright, alright, Chill girl.” Cecil said.

“Listen to me, you are very capable of going on this date.. and.. uhm—”

“I’M GONNA DI—”

“AND YOU ARE NOT GONNA DIE.” Cecil interrupted.

Hazel would then take a deep breath in, before standing up straight. She mumbled some words of encouragement to herself, before declaring,

“Alright, I’m ready—I think..”

“Great, now go out there, be yourself, and have a good time.” Cecil exclaimed as she pushed Hazel outside of the dorm, before immediately closing the door.

Welp, this was it.. Hazel was damned to fail this date.. right? Well, only one way to find out—going on the date.

Hazel then walked towards the elevator of the campus to leave, and entered. While in the elevator, on the 3rd floor Rei came in.

“Hazel?”

“R-Rei! A-ah, coincidence that here we meet.. haha.. hah. .”

Hazel said, in an almost whisper-like voice. Her words had already twisted, and her grammar had gone poof. Welp..—this was it for her.. Better start digging her grave I guess..

[ I want to kill myself. Why am I so nervous around him now?. . . ]

Rei was somewhat nervous, but kept his cool and kept on a calm demeanor—despite being the opposite. The silence in the elevator was painful to say the least, and the two of them hated it. Rei then finally decided to break the silence, muttering a simple

“So.. Do you wanna walk to the place? It’s more convenient anyway.. right?..”

He asked, stuttering a bit, his voice slightly nervous. He was able to put on a calm demeanor, but he wasn’t the best at using his words.

Hazel's eyes would widen at this, I mean—It was a pretty logical thing since they were heading to the same place but.. It just made Hazel even more nervous. Being at a loss for words, Hazel simply nodded.

Rei nodded as well, being tongue tied and silent. The two then stepped out of the elevator after what felt like.. an eternity. Rei then lightly touched her hand as they walked side by side, Hazel not knowing what to do, simply let it happen.

Rei then took a bold move, and intertwined their hands. He would caress her hands, the movement of his hands gentle and soft.

Hazel would become flushed at the warmth of his hand touching her hand. She was taken aback by this bold move, yet simply stayed silent throughout their walk.

The two would never admit it, but they very much enjoyed the comfort and warmth of each other's hands.

Rei then remembered his conversation with River before the date:

“Hey riv, I’m goin’ out on that date I mentioned kay?”

“Yeah, yeah. Don’t be too bold, just crack jokes or something lmao.”

“Yeah, yeah. Not like I’d try anything too big..”

“With self-esteem like that, you’re practically lying to yourself.”

[ Flashback ends. ]

Rei would sigh, guess River was right about him being way too bold.. Whatever, not like it mattered anyway—It honestly made the experience a lot better and more comforting.

The cold air was perfect in contrast to their warm bodies. And the moonlight touching their skin made the scene ever so more romantic.

Maybe Hazel was overthinking.. maybe, just maybe—this would end up being the perfect night. The warmth of each other's bodies made it feel like just a sip of warm tea.

AUTHORS NOTE: Super rushed lmao but hope u enjoy :3

[katindeed]

A little vent I did with a bit of a happy ending (don't worry btw it's just nice to write about it)

 I look into the mirror, and a tight knot is tied into my stomach. A bubbling starts in the depths of my gut and crawls up my body into my chest. It was very similar to how I felt when I got car sick on summer road trips as the feeling of throwing up grew inside me. The big difference is that it’s much more concentrated and there's a lower likelihood of throwing up. Much lower but not none. There was the obvious fact I’m quite fat or “chubby” if you didn’t want to be too blunt about it. Maybe I could deal with that if it was distributed more femininely, but I guess it makes sense why it wasn’t. My stomach bulged out, and the fat pushed out the side, messing up my back as well. There’s a unique torture in understanding you’re trans but not being able to do something about it. You have a need you can not fill. A hunger while the apple’s branch pulls upward every time you reach for it. Having no mouth and an intense need to scream. My family might be accepting, but there’s definitely the chance they’re not, especially with some things I’ve heard dad listen to. Even if I came out today and they embraced me as Kathrine fully, the next problem is the problem of money. The idea of insurance covering HRT is almost laughable, and even with how it would improve my well-being, it would be selfish to ask for it while we have more pressing payments and medical problems. Just two more years, I suppose. Two more years of hating the name everyone but my friends call me. Two more years of cuddling in my bed pretending to be a pretty girl to soften the blow of reality. Two more years of feeling like a creep when I imagine myself as that girl. Two more years of making social media accounts under Kat to feel any amount of euphoria. Two more years of telling my friends to call me that horrible name around my parents. Two more years of hiding my google searches and YouTube recommendations from my family. Two more years of hating every atom of me when my grandma calls me a nice young man or a fun boy. Two more years of writing stupid words in a google doc to vent. Two more years sound like a long time when you put it like that, but I've been doing this for a while, and a lot changes when you take a different perspective. Two more years till I can tell everyone to call me Kat. Two more years till I can take the magic blue pill to feel more like me. Two more years with great friends that help me. Two more years to save up money to not only be able to buy HRT but hopefully much more. Two more years of getting better at writing. Only two more years till I can be me. 

[periwinckles]

THE TRAIN BACK TO TWELVE - CHAPTER 19

Week 10 - Peeta

When I get home from the construction site, Katniss and Delly are already there. It's not out of the ordinary for them to hang out at my house. But it's too early for our dinner arrangements and they definitely never cook. As I watch them wandering around the stove, I think that's exactly what they are doing.

"What are you two up to?"

Delly turns, her face instantly turning to a wide smile, and she flungs herself at me in a tight hug. "Happy birthday!" She whispers in my ear. As if I don't know she is incapable of keeping a secret, and she must have ratted me out to Katniss by now.

Katniss slowly turns to acknowledge my arrival with a nod but she keeps her eyes on the stew she is stirring. "We're cooking dinner tonight. We thought you might want a break. You did spend the afternoon at the construction site. " She says, trying to blow a loose strand of hair off her face. Damn. She knows.

"Why don't you go take a shower, Peeta? Don't worry about dinner, we've got it covered." Delly tells me as she starts to sprinkle a greens salad with herbs and salt.

"I guess… ok, I'll do that. Thom went to take a shower as well, he said he wouldn't take long."

As I make my way upstairs I can hear them whisper in the kitchen, but I can't make out what they are saying. I don't know whether or not I should hope for them to be talking about me, but I suppose given the unbalanced ratio of Delly's voice vs Katniss' voice they are probably talking about Thom and Delly.

I take my time with my shower. I ended up helping out to carry some of the bricks and it feels good to let the hot water run down my sore muscles. It's strange to admit it, but soreness feels so good. There was a time when I couldn't really feel anything, either emotionally or physically. All I remember is feeling enveloped by a sense of numbness.

I push that thought aside. Not today. Today I'll think about hot water, sore muscles, and teenage girls gossiping in the kitchen. As I get dressed I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Eighteen. I'm officially an adult, but I've been one for two years now, haven't I?

On a whim, I take a razor blade and I start shaving. Uselessly, of course. Only a few hairs are stubborn enough to grow, despite the procedure they subjected me to for the arenas. Haymitch tells me it wears off over time, but his only started to grow back after five years or so.

Shaving used to be a big thing at the Mellark household. We were bakers and "bakers can't have facial hair". As I stand in front of the mirror I'm thrown back in time, to a much cluttered bathroom, and a shaving mirror that served four different Mellarks. I used to hate having to shave everyday, but my dad was unbendable about that. Ironically, now that I'm back to being a baker, I miss the mundane task of shaving.

When I get downstairs, Haymitch is already there with a sour face.

"Happy Thursday, kid."

Delly's eyes widen, and Katniss pretends to ignore it. So we're going on with the claim that she doesn't know. Ok.

"I want to make it clear I was lured here under false pretenses. "

"What are you talking about Haymitch?" I ask him as I inspect Katniss stew. Wild rabbit with potatoes. The scent is enough to make me hungry.

"I was promised a fine home cooked meal. It was implied you would be cooking. "

"You never complained about my food before!" Katniss strikes back, looking offended.

"You'll still get a fine meal Mr Abernathy!" Delly assures him. "We just thought Peeta could use a break, after all it's his…" She looks around unsure of what to say "... Thursday."

Haymitch huffs at this, but takes a seat at the table anyway.

I take a loaf of bread and as I begin to slice it Thom finally arrives.

We talk about the construction and the new wave of residents coming, as we savor the food.

I've been thinking about opening the bakery again, and Thom agreed to take a look at my plans after dinner. Houses for the residents are the priority right now, but once that's taken care of they will start with other buildings.

I don't know if it's the heavy lifting I did today that made me so hungry, but the food is excellent, better than anything I might have made myself

Haymitch fills his plate a second time, but he's still a tough nut to crack.

"I suppose it's not that bad."

"The food is great!" Thom says as he extends his compliments to the girls. "I think it's the first time I ate something you cooked." He says turning to Delly, and her cheeks turn a slight shade of pink.

"You're not disappointed?" She asks with a cringe "I know you love Peeta's cooking. He goes on and on about it for days, every time we eat here." She tells me and I feel a little swell of pride.

"Not disappointed at all." Thom answers back as Delly locks eyes with him again. But whatever silent conversation they're engaging in is interrupted by Haymitch, who drags Thom to a chess match.

I make a point to be the one handling the dishes, but I'm leaving those in the sink for later. I cut the cake like a regular dessert and bring it to the living room so everyone can get a slice. When I get there everyone looks thoroughly amused except for Thom.

"Check." Haymitch says, leaning back into his chair with his arms crossed.

"How is that even possible? We only made three moves. Three moves. That's not… that's got to be illegal or something right?" Thom looks to me asking for help, but there's nothing I can do. I was never able to beat Haymitch at chess and I'm beginning to think I never will.

They end up playing three more games as we sit on the couch. Delly tells us all about the progress on her vegetable garden. "It's much easier now, with more hands to help, and I think I'll be able to get another five or so workers with the new wave of residents."

"How does that work? Will people be able to choose what to do?" Katniss asks and I'm curious myself. Thom told us a new group of former residents is coming back next week, another 63 to add to the current 68. With the three of us in Victor's village, we'll have 134 residents in the entire district.

"Jack is working with a list of available positions. Most will have to be directed to construction with Thom or cleaning with Jack. But there will be openings for suppliers, they need more cooks with so many mouths to feed. And the garden will have openings as well. The newcomers will be able to choose according to the available slots. "

As Delly keeps talking Katniss softly places her hand on top of mine. I try not to react. Delly appears to not have noticed it, as she keeps talking, but I'm way off track by now. Katniss and I never touch each other unless we are sleeping or the other is either crying or fighting with a nightmare. I notice a small smile on her, out of the corner of my eye as I entwine my fingers with hers.

"And we want to try our way with preserves in the fall, to make provisions for winter. Ideally we would be completely independent from the Capitol foodwise, but who knows how long that's gonna take us, right?"

Delly looks at us, waiting for an answer but we both fail to deliver. Her eyes dart to our joined hands and a grin appears in her face, as I try to hide mine behind pursed lips.

"I give up!" Thom flails his hands in the air and slumps to his chair. "He's undefeatable!"

"I told you." I remind him, with a shrug of my shoulders.

"I'll take that as my leave." Haymitch says, getting up. He takes his jacket and produces a small package from his pocket. "Catch."

He throws the package to me and I catch it easily. It's lightweight and wrapped with a repurposed newspaper sheet.

"I'll see you tomorrow."

As he goes, Katniss excuses herself to go to the bathroom. I start unwrapping the package, but as soon as I catch a glimpse of the inside I wrap it back again and hide it inside a drawer.

He's giving me more condoms? This feels like Victory tour all over again.

Read the rest on AO3

[comicinksans]

Angel Hair and Baby's Breath

Chapter 1

Ao3 Link

ଘ(੭◌ˊᵕˋ)੭* ੈ☾‧₊ ˚˖ ⁺‧₊˚♡ ˚₊‧⁺˖ ˗★ ˎˊ˗

Tango lifted her hand to her forehead, covering the sun as it beat down upon her. It was a nice day -if a little hot- and she and Zed were preparing for a fun night at Skizz’s. They frequented his house, and Impulse had actually already been there. Tango hopped down from her porch onto the driveway, a small tap sounding from her weight meeting the concrete. She kicked a rock into the grass of her lawn, thinking little of it, and walked towards the car with eyes squinted. Guess Zed’s driving then, huh? Tango sighed as she watched Zed get into Tango’s bright red camaro -the driver side specifically- and push the keys into their rightful place in the ignition. Their eyes lit up with excitement and fear when he turned the key and the engine roared to life, causing him to giggle somewhat nervously. Tango slid into the passenger side, thinking about how weird it felt to be riding instead of driving her own car. “Zed, are you really okay with driving? It was only one *small* hit and-”

“Up-bah-bah-bah!” Zed cut Tango off, a finger wagging in her direction. “You are not sober and therefore will not risk that! Plus, this gives you a chance to finally have aux control. Don’t you want that?” Tango shook his head, sighing.

“That I do.” Tango laughed, plugging his phone into the aux and scrolling through her playlists as Zed turned on the A/C and adjusted their seat position. Tango mumbled out a small “Gotcha!” as she tapped a playlist, the speakers blaring before she frantically turned the volume down. “Sorry sorry sorry!!” She nervously laughed, seeing Zed’s ears covered by his hands.

“It’s okay! I just uh… Forgot how loud you liked your music.” The nervous laughter was returned, which helped Tango feel a little better about the incident.

 “This song okay? Least I can do after THAT is to make sure it’s something that you’ll enjoy!” 

Zed nodded, focusing his attention to reversing out of the short driveway and onto the road Tango lived on. “This one sounds familiar in a way, don’t quite know why though!”

“Oh well it-”

“DON’T TELL ME THE TITLE I WANNA BE SURPRISED OR FIGURE IT OUT MYSELF!” Zed jokingly yelled,  pressing down the gas pedal with what he thought was light pressure, but ended up jolting the car forward before he figured out that it was a lot more sensitive than his own car. The engine roared again, and Zed giggled. “Is that why..?”

“I have my music so loud?” Tango turned it up in accordance to the engine’s volume, and laughed. “Yep!” Tango looked out the window, trusting Zed now that they had realized the differences in the cars. “You adjusted the mirrors right?”

“Mhm! Don’t worry Tek, I’m not that bad at driving!” Zed’s hair flipped back and forth as he checked both sides of the road as they pulled out onto the larger road that Tango’s subdivision was off of. They pulled onto the road gently -much gentler than Tango would’ve at least- and began to speed back up. The music and engine reached a comfortable mix and Tango began to relax. She usually drove, why not enjoy the ride? I wonder what Skizz has planned for tonight. Maybe games? Almost definitely games. Do we have any movies..? Eh, we’ll figure it out there. Hoopefullyy he’ll have his Mom make dinner. Oh, Mrs. Leman. Always the best. She watched the green trees pass by them, waving in the summer breeze. Tango loved this time of year. It felt so peaceful, yet there was always just something else that Tango liked about right now. Zed hummed along to the song that came on next, recognizing it. Tango’s eyes widened, looking down at her phone.

“You know this? Really?” Tango asked, laughing. Zed nodded, still focusing on the road. 

“Yeah I love this artist!” Zed hummed along again, bopping their head lightly with it. “You think I don’t have taste? ”

“Well, I just didn’t expect you to listen to this kinda stuff, y’know?” Tango laughed, looking back out the window. He trusted Zed enough to just watch the side of the road pass by, especially as they headed into the larger city between where Tango and Skizz live. Zed stopped as they approached a red light, and Tango turned back to the windshield. The truck in front of them had some… interesting bumper stickers. Lots of fishing stuff. Some included “If it was a good morning I’d be fishing,” “LOVE FISHIN,” and a Bass Pro Shops sticker. “Hm. Someone likes fishing, huh?”

Zed burst out laughing, keeling over slightly. “Apparently!!” Zed wiped a tear from their eyes after a good while laughing,

“Fishin’”

“Fishin’?”

“Biiiiig fishin…”

“Big fishin!!!”

 As the cars in front of them began to pull forward, Zed followed. They were the last ones in the line of cars, when as they were in the center of the intersection, many car horns blared as headlights filled the driver side window. There was a sudden jolt as their car was slammed into from the side, with Zed’s scream being the second loudest thing behind the scraping and crushing metal. Tango’s vision blacked out as the car seemed to flip over, shards of glass flying across his vision. 

Tango woke up after a few moments, adrenaline pumping through her veins. Zed hung limply next to her, flipped upside down with the whole car. Tango didn’t know if they were just passed out or… Dead. She didn’t have time to figure that out. She saw flames peeking out of the hood, glaring against the shattered windows and metal of the car. She weakly reached for his seatbelt, attempting to unclip it with shaky arms, barely able to get it loose as she fell against the roof of the car. The window was broken open, and she definitely could crawl out, but she would get some scrapes and cuts at the very least. Tango decided it was the best possible option, crawling out with tears in his eyes as he felt the heat of the fire, heard the sirens approaching from a distance, and thought about the image of Zed loosely hanging behind her. Her arms gave out as soon as her legs were about halfway out of the window, blood dripping onto the grass and tears streaming down her cheeks. The red and blue lights of the ambulance and police approaching flashing against the scene, ensuring Tango knew this wasn’t just a dream. Fucking hell. This is the worst. Fucking hell. Tango passed out.