#I travel all the time and I’ve never missed a flight

[waugh-bao]

*

[ham1lton]

TEN THINGS F1 DRIVER Y/N L/N CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT — GQ.

— part of my maneater series ꕤ

Y/N (throwing her hat in the air with one hand and catching it in the other without looking): see? told you i could do it! not my only party trick.

Y/N: hi gq! i’m y/n l/n, formula one driver and i’m here to show you my ten essentials.

NUMBER ONE: IPAD

Y/N: first, has to be my ipad. this was my first big purchase and seeing my bank account being drained of that money almost caused a heart attack. but this bad boy helps me to organise my life, stops me from being bored on flights, keeps me in contact with my family and lets me write my notes. so yeah, thanks apple. also you guys should sponsor me.

NUMBER TWO: NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES

Y/N: i never used to travel a lot. when i was younger, my family couldn’t afford it so flying around a lot was a big shock to my system. obviously as in f1, drivers are required to fly to different races and it means i had to get over my fear of flying. these help a lot with that. these plus a spotify playlist made by my angsty teenage self will make me forget about the fact i’m flying. these are my favourite ones, i have multiple pairs just in case.

NUMBER TWO AND A HALF: MUSIC.

Y/N: i guess this sort of goes off the second one? but music. i keep trying to bribe the engineers to build a blue tooth radio in the car but to no avail. spotify has been my biggest supporter all of these years. i know i’m sponsored by them now but i have been using my account for almost seven years now? so my algorithm is perfection. it truly has helped me so much. i listen to music on the way to races, on the way back from races, in my house, outside my house, cleaning, cooking and even when i’m in the shower. yes, i’m a shower singer. once i get in there, i’m beyoncé!

OFF SCREEN VOICE: what was the last song you listened to?

Y/N: one second, let me see. it was the twilight soundtrack, in particular, decode by paramore. told you i was an angsty teen!

NUMBER THREE: EMERGENCY BAG

Y/N: okay this sounds bad, it’s not as much an emergency bag as in like medical supplies but more so like extra toothbrush, toothpaste, menstrual products, lotion and other stuff like that. i always carry this with me anywhere in case my suitcase goes missing. it has helped me and my friends out so many times so it’s definitely an essential for me.

NUMBER FOUR: HER CAMERAS.

Y/N: i picked up photography relatively recently and this was the starter camera that the guy in the shop recommended. so this is that camera. for this one, i vlog, which you guys might have seen and this is the camera i use for those videos. i actually don’t record my videos, one of my friends or family or colleagues or whoever will film and i will be in front of the camera. it’s my favourite part when i ask the camera person to reveal themselves and they do their own little introduction. i obviously provide the camera for it. which is this beauty right here.

OFF SCREEN VOICE: who has been your favourite person to film you?

Y/N: i have had a lot of people film me. my most recent being rihanna for my recent holiday vlog! so many people to the point that i genuinely don’t think i could choose a favourite. i mean, i’ve had my sister do it a lot so i guess i can choose her. she knows my angles best!

NUMBER FIVE: LIPGLOSS

Y/N: when i won my first championship and i kissed the camera, the amount of calls from makeup companies my manager received was actually obscene. i think i got so many comments on social media asking what makeup i use and how it stays on throughout the race! to be honest, i don’t always wear makeup but in the original video, i was wearing this fenty gloss. it’s in the shade fu$$y. so, yeah, at least no one can call me a gatekeeper! i always keep it on me. i feel a little more ready to face the world with lipgloss. now, i have my own fenty collection! so check that out.

NUMBER SIX: HER LUCKY SHOES.

Y/N: okay i know i say i’m not necessarily a superstitious person but these shoes have been with me from f3 until now. every race i’ve worn these, i’ve won. so i like having them around. i think they bring luck. i can’t wear them any longer as they’ve worn through the soles now. really annoying but we power through.

NUMBER SEVEN: WINGSTOP BLACK CARD

Y/N: i was really craving wingstop one night. so me and my sister were in london? i think and i vlogged our hunt for wingstop and they reached out to me to give me a black card. i know, isn’t it gorgeous? i was so happy. too bad i have to cut down on what i eat thanks to my nutritionist, but my siblings and friends love this thing.

NUMBER EIGHT: SKINCARE ROUTINE

Y/N: okay, so i’m trying to get more consistent with my skincare but it’s not necessarily working the way i want it to. however, i still stick to the basics. sunscreen, cleanser and moisturiser. i really like keeping my skincare on check as there is this unsaid rule that women have to wear makeup in their jobs and if i keep my skin looking good then i can skirt that rule. i love this cream in particular, it’s moisturising but very light on the skin. best of both worlds.

NUMBER NINE: NECKLACE

Y/N: this was given to me as a gift from my family when i turned eighteen. it was a necklace that i’d had my eye on for a very, very long time. they saved up for so long to buy it for me and it’s become my signature piece. i wear it around my neck constantly. it’s weird having it off my neck to show you.

(she fastens it around her neck quickly)

Y/N: now i feel normal again.

NUMBER TEN: MY PADDOCK PASS

Y/N: i am so bad with keeping my paddock pass on me. for people who don’t know what this is, this allows me access to the garage and things like that. i usually keep it around my neck because if its in my pocket or my bag i’ll forget. my assistant sometimes carries mine. i’m not going to show you my picture because it’s awful. i had woke up really early after no sleep and one of the staff had made me take the picture. now i am forced to wear this monstrosity at work. i keep it hidden as much as i can. last time, lando saw it and laughed so hard he cried so yeah.

author’s note: this was hard as i wanted to keep it as vague as possible so that you can relate it to your own maneater! i’m still taking questions/asks/requests so please send some in!

[anadiasmount]

u and jude being in the same friend group and ur all together on a trip, though jude has been in love with you since day one and on the first night there u two sleep together, leaving u confused and wishing for more knowing things couldn’t be the same after the special night <3

no one knows - jude bellingham x reader.

quick sum: request above!

wc: 2.5k | masterlist | jude’s masterlist

psa 🗣️: hii!! ik i said this would be posted sooner but i got sidetracked (what’s new… also don't hate me i didn't proof read...) ANYWAYS... this does contain small bit of smut so minors dni! like always hope you enjoy 🤍

the soft waves of the hammock you laid on rocked slowly as you stared out into the almost night sky. the different shades of orange now purple and blue, tiny star appearing in the distance, waves hitting the shore making the whole atmosphere just at peace. it was a king day of travel, having missed your first flight due to a delay on the train.

you had arrived last, but it didn’t matter because you were finally with your friends, wanting to make most of the trip you had planned. you changed into a knitted crème color swimsuit, loving how it fit and hugged your figure, accentuating your curves and pushing up your cleavage just right.

everyone inside was asleep, but you couldn’t go to sleep without wanting to watch the night fall. you loved the beach, the smell, the feel of sand, how your hair went to its natural state, and the feeling of freedom. you quickly got distracted by the click of the door opening, footsteps approaching where you were.

“hi,” you squeak as you see jude lean against the palm tree pole, shirtless and wearing similar shorts as your bathing suit. “you okay? you were the last to arrive and your here alone,” jude asked softly not being able to hold back the gulp at how dreamingly your body looked under this ray and light.

“i’m okay… just can’t sleep for some reason,” you stifle a small laugh, “plus i haven’t seen a view like this in so long, i just wanted too see it, i mean take a look.” jude obliged, looking around in a daze at how the night sky looked now. “yeah you’re right… i feel at ease,” jude nodded.

“how come you’re still up? is everything okay with you?” you sat up, propping your elbow and the back of your hand resting on your temple, your full attention on jude. you couldn’t deny but feel a tad bit confused he was here. jude never really spoke to you an when he did it was short and simple. so you wouldn’t be surprised if he made small talk and left.

“jet leg i guess? you’d think after all the constant travel i’d be used to it but it’s always difficult to fall asleep after a long flight for me,” jude explained taking a seat on the wood chair that was by the balcony. you hummed in response, your hand dragging up from your thigh to your hip letting it rest.

you sensed he wanted to tell you more, his fingers tapping against his massive and toned thighs, his eyes adverting from you to the sea. jude wasn’t shy, quite the opposite, and he knew in this moment it was now or never. “do i make you nervous?” you ask slyly, standing and walking over to him. you hated feeling awkward and left out around him, and you needed to know the reason behind it.

jude was a complete different person in his games, in public, around your friends, yet, he treats you so differently which threw you off the edge. jude roamed your eyes from your tanned shiny legs, your curved torso and bust, his heart stammering against his chest as you looked so willingly and utterly beautiful. “or do you just hate me?”

“hate you? why would i hate you?”

“don’t know… you tell me. it’s like this every time we’re around each other. the tension? you can’t even look into my face? you barely speak a word to me? if i’ve done something to offend you, let me know so i can apologize,” you spoke dearly, following his exact movements by roaming your eyes on his figure. legs spread out begging to be touch, abs defined, with veins adorning his arms. jude was fucked, all he could think about was you in this damn bathing suit and the silly theory you made in your head.

hate you? that’s impossible.

“what if i told you it was the opposite? what if i told you i’m infatuated by you?” jude looked up, standing and over towering you, your gaze shifted from confident to shy. your eyes lowering as jude looked down at you. “that when i’m around you all i can think about is you. how you look, smile, talk and walk, smell… it’s so infuriating to be this madly in love with you and not being able to do a thing about it…” jude confessed, drawing the air out of your lungs, like the wind that breezed the night sea.

“i feel like you’re lying to me…” you couldn’t help but say. a hesitance of insecurity, and that’s there’s absolutely no way this man was in love or was confessing any sort of feelings when actions proved otherwise. “why would i lie to you hm? i’m being completely truthful here y/n,” god the way he said your name had you trembling your knees. “you can’t be jude. we’re so different-”

“that’s what you think, and it’s all in your head. tell me this second you don’t feel it? the magnitude sensation for me to approach you? i can see it in your pretty face darling. now it’s you who can’t even look at me? or yet talk,” jude inches closer to you, seeing your chest rapidly raise up and down.

“you’re everything to me… i’ve had to resist myself because i have no idea if you feel the same way. i’d rather love you from a distance than be embarrassed and you not liking me back…” jude traced with his fingertips along your forearm. “don’t you see it? everything i’ve done it’s because of you… i wouldn’t be here if you weren’t y/n. i just want you…” his pleading and vulnerability in his voice had you gulping a response.

“let me show it to you hm? how you make me feel… how you deserved to be treated,” you nodded feeling the heat rise in you. the familiar desire to be wanted, appreciated, touched by a man like jude. “please jude…” you said in a small whimper, looking up where jude had a hungry gazed, lips slightly open. “show me-”

you remembered how cool the wall was when he hit your back against it, kissing you deeply, so messy and hot. how his hands traveled from your side and around your spine, gripping your ass as he ran his tongue down from your jaw and pulse point. you could feel everything, how big jude was, how hot his skin was to your touch, how desperate the need was.

he had dragged you to his room, his lips never leaving yours any second. it was so vivid in your head, how your back pressed against his chest, how his fingers slowly traced your abdomen down to inside your bottoms, his fingers covered by you slick coat, adding the bit-test of pressure on you clit rubbing it in small circles. all you could focus on was the determination and how hot he looked like this.

jude untied the bows from your bottoms, freeing you completely. he felt like he would die any second, this was real and no turning back. he could’ve watched you all night like this. so sensitive with the smallest touch.the familiar burn in your tummy when he sunk into you with a forceful thrust, hips curling and rocking to pleasure waves of emotions, the heat between your legs as he talked you through it all. the flicker in his eyes when you moaned and begged his name, how your nails scratched against his back asking for more and more.

“you belong to me… don’t you forget that y/n…” he kissed you sloppy, pushing one last thrust and spilling into you. it wasn’t just one round, he made sure to take you against the wall, balcony, shower, and the small couch in his room, in many positions too. he wanted to savor the moment like he imagined. this was way better than his dreams and thoughts in his head. you were so tight, so wet, very much made exactly for him.

the heavy weight on top you made you wake up early. you were used to waking up this early, but not with a hot body on top of you. with one eye barely open you looked at the digital clock, showing just before 7am, the whole house quiet. you looked around before your eyes landed on a sleepy jude, tucked between your arm and head nuzzled into your neck.

your heart raced, not being able to control your confused and guilty emotions. last night was real then? not a sick dream in your head or a movie, it had happened here in his room. “oh shit…” you whispered, chest sinking down as your controlled your breathing. you had to get out, feeling a tad stuck and rushed in space. this wasn’t supposed to happen… even though it felt so right. so meant to be.

you had managed to sneak jude to his back without waking him up. his lips pursed and brown drawn in, breathing heavy. you changed quickly back to your bikini, leaving the room how you had remembered. you ran a hand against your hair, the need to throw water in your face to cool the warmth in your cheeks. you weren’t used to this. you never did one night stands or had friends with benefits relationships. if that’s even what it was.

you couldn’t help but think maybe jude was lying to just get into your pants. you had seen how jude was like when around other woman. but you weren’t other woman. you we’re y/n. the shy but outgoing, smart but naive, and overly patient y/n. you didn’t want it be like them, or seen like them either. all you could think of was him. his brown eyes and stupid gentlemen demeanor.

you avoided him anywhere he was or walked in. the only way you could escape and let go of things was this. you weren’t used to this and didn’t have much experience so you did what you were best at which was ignore jude. but even your friends had noticed you were off and that there was a glow to you. drawing attention from everyone and the person who caused it all.

a small part of you did have a twinge of faith… what if he wasn’t lying? what if everything he proved to you last night was exactly how he felt? what if he was madly in love with you? that you were the woman of his dreams? that it wasn’t just sex and there was raw emotions included?

the ghost feeling against your back made you shiver, realizing it was jude who stood behind you, locking you with both arms extending out to cage you in as you cut up fruit. “you left me this morning,” jude spoke into your ear, feeling your weight shift from one foot to another. “i didn’t want anyone to catch us,” you say shaky, making up a lie knowing part of it was true.

“you’re lying to me…”

“am not. let me go… i-i-i need to bring this outside.”

“you are darling, you think i didn’t notice? you can’t even look at me without talking to me, and you’ve ignored me the whole day thinking i haven’t realized that,” jude let you go but followed behind you speaking a little louder. “lower your voice! i haven’t said anything to anyone!” you hiss, grabbing his wrist and dragging him to the pool room. “what is it you want from me?” you say pleading.

“i want you! i thought i made that clear last night. not just with sex, but with my confession? before we fell asleep? don’t tell me you forgot that,” you shook your head. “i’m just having trouble to process all this, jude… i feel like we’re making a huge mistake…”

“to whom? to our friends? or to you?” jude asked sincerely. you always seemed to put them first over yourself and jude noticed that. “why would it be a mistake? if at the end of the day what we have is real…”

“jude it’s been one night together between us! look at us now! i can’t risk our group falling if we don’t work out jude! it’s not fair to them, to me and you!” you tried to reason but jude shook his head. he stood up from where he leaned, his broad frame over towering yours again.

“why are you so adamant we won’t work? we’ve barely been given a shot here! you’re overthinking it y/n. they don’t have to know a single thing pretty girl, not unless you don’t want them too.but for once think of what you want and your heart desires. not what your friends say. forget them and for once think about yourself,” jude spoke, grabbing your hands.

“i want us to work more than anything y/n. i’m not lying to you and have never gave you the reason either. i’m a good man y/n. just let me in here,” he poked your heart, seeing a sad smile appear on your face. “we can’t be so quick to judge without even trying! why is it so hard to do that? i just want to be with you, i’ve suffered enough as it is already,” jude was pleading, wanting to do anything to keep you here with him.

“and if we do and i lose you jude? people have walked in and straight out of my life. what if we try and it’s going so well just for us to part? i can’t handle losing someone else i love,” you whimper, tears of exhaustion and pain let out. “imagine me now and then? i’ve always thought what’s best for myself and i’m just confused jude… why me?” your voice sounded strained and from another dimension.

“why not you? you’re perfect y/n. anyone who thinks other wise must have been dropped into their head. you have everything that makes me so drawn to you… your eyes… your smile… your way of being… your hair… your everything. you’re everything i want and i’m willing to prove that to you however you ask. just let me be the man you need pretty girl…” jude rested his forehead against yours, his thumb stroking your jaw as you began to fall deeper into this new wave and world with him.

“no one knows. just me and you jude,” you kissed him feverently. the aching burn in your chest as he kissed you with such devotion and power. you shivered beneath him, arms wrapping around his neck and pulled him closer. jude let out a small groan gripping your hips and pushing you to his lower body. there was no self-control here, no professionalism. he quickly became your favorite taste, and feeling. just two humans brought together in the most correct and soulmate way.

two humans who had no idea what was ahead of them.

[milswrites]

Hobbies Part 9.

~ Azriel X Reader

Summary: In an attempt to keep Azriel away from Elain, Rhys sends him on a sabbatical to the Day Court. With a lot more free time on his hands Azriel needs to find something to keep him occupied. Unfortunately he meets Y/N who has the annoying habit of not staying away. Can she teach him that there’s more to life than he thought?

Grumpy!Azriel X Sunshine!Reader

Series masterlist

Warnings: none?

Azriel moved through the halls like a starved beast. Hunting for the one thing that could satisfy him. His mate.

After the bond had snapped into place Azriel had wasted no time in travelling through his shadows to the Day Court. Whilst he couldn’t directly travel into the palace, Azriel made sure to get as close to the wards as he possibly could. Not stopping to wait for a single minute as he forced his way into the grand building, uncaring of the shocked guards who had taken to chasing after him through the winding corridors, shouts of their objection flooding his ears.

He was searching for Helion. For the one person who could tell him where Y/N was staying, where Azriel so desperately needed to go.

The shouts of alarm from the Day Court guards was a blessing for Azriel, their call having drawn the attention of the High Lord. Helion appearing before Azriel in all his glory, there was no surprise on his face at the presence of the shadowsinger in his halls. In fact it was almost as if he was waiting for him.

��I must say you’re later than I expected, did you walk here?” The High Lord teased, flashing a blinding smile to an unimpressed Azriel.

“Where is she?” He growled out, not wanting to waste any precious time he could be having with Y/N by staying and talking to Helion longer than he needed to.

“What?” The male gasped mockingly, “no hello Helion? I’ve missed you Helion? You’re the greatest High Lord ever Helion? I was hoping for more after what I did for you, forging relationships isn’t my usual job role.”

“Where is she?” Azriel snarled once more, refusing to play this game. Azriel was surprised at the control he was showing, the ugly monster inside of him that was born from the revelation of the bond wanted nothing more than to hold a knife to the High Lord’s throat until he told him where Y/N had been sent.

Helion sighed, but the glint of something other than annoyance shone in his eyes and Azriel could tell that the male was pleased at Azriel’s impromptu arrival at his court, “She’s in a village North-East of here, it’s about a two hour flight… but with the state you’re in I’d reckon you could make it in one.”

Without as much as a thank you, Azriel sped from the scene, the guards that had been chasing after him divided, allowing the tense Illyrian to pass through them, fearing what would occur if they were to stop him.

Not even waiting until he had cleared the palace gate, Azriel stretched his wings and took flight, as if spending another hour without Y/N’s grounding presence would lead to most certain death.

And so Azriel flew faster than he had ever done in his life. The bitter evening wind biting his cheeks and knotting his unruly hair. But Azriel didn’t care, not about his appearance, not when every minute that passed meant he was getting closer and closer to his mate. His Y/N.

Azriel would have flown for centuries if he had to, if only it meant Y/N would be there waiting for him when he landed. The mating bond must have gifted some cauldron-blessed power to Azriel who found he had never flown so swiftly, wings acting on their own accord as they beat powerfully, allowing Azriel to cut through the sky like a blade.

Until he felt it, the gentle tugging growing stronger, drawing him towards where he most needed to be. Stirred on by the feeling and wanting to be consumed by it completely, Azriel followed. Slowing his flight until he came across a quaint village which was glowing amber as the sun set around it. Y/N was somewhere in this small collection of thatched houses and farms, unaware of the arrival of the male who had become overwhelmed with his want to be near her.

Landing with such a force that his knees buckled, Azriel readily cast his eyes to his surroundings, scanning for the woman he so longed to hold. He walked through the gathering crowd of alarmed villagers, whispering to each other in question as they clearly had never seen an Illyrian soldier before. Let alone one who looked as feral as Azriel no doubt did after his rushed flight, wings flared and cobalt siphons vibrating with the need to release the power building within him due to his increased adrenaline the bond was pulsating through him.

He scanned all their terrified faces, seeking the familiar features of the woman he had grown to love. Eyes jumping from villager to villager until they finally landed on her. On the woman who Azriel was prepared to drop onto his knees for and beg for her forgiveness. He would do anything to ensure her happiness.

~~~~~

“Azriel” she breathed his name from her lips in disbelief, needing to repeat it to be sure that he had truly existed and that he was here now, “Azriel?”

Here she was, stood before Azriel in the sweetest shade of violet and he found himself unable to speak, stunned by her innocent beauty. Even the small crease of her brows caused his heart to palpitate. All the words he had wished to tell her over the past two weeks lodged themselves in his throat. Nothing he could say would ever do justice to the incredible woman before him.

As the shock of his sudden appearance in the village wore away, confusion flooded her expression, “Is that…my tunic? How did you get that? It was in my house.”

Once more Azriel failed to find the words he so urgently required. His mouth open yet unspeaking like a fool. Instead, he reached into the pocket of his tunic to retrieve the item he had hurriedly crammed inside before his disappearance from the Night Court. Azriel pulled out the sketchbook she had given him on their very first day of meeting and held it out to a stunned Y/N.

“What- what’s this?” She asked, taking the book with a frown on her face.

“You were right” the words finally poured from his mouth, “about me being miserable, about how I don’t do anything. That my friends wouldn’t want me to do nothing and waste away.”

Her eyebrow twitched as she pulled open the sketchbook, the pages of which were filled with inky drawings of her. Azriel knows he had failed to capture the true beauty that is Y/N. He had never drawn before and numerous pages from the book had been torn out in his frustration at his lack of skills. But he had filled the book, page after page being covered in the hours he had spent by himself in the Night Court. The need to print her pretty face in permanent ink and capture her glowing smile before he forgot it led to Azriel picking up this new hobby. The one way to ensure that even if he never saw Y/N again, he would always carry a piece of her with him.

As she took the time to turn through each work or art Azriel had created in her honor, the trails of tears that freely flowed down her rosy cheeks and her rapidly beating heart which Azriel felt entwined with his own, gave the male the confidence to continue.

“I love you” he stated, Y/N’s affectionate gaze moving from the drawings to his deadly serious face. “I have done for a while I think” he continues, “and Y/N if you forgive me I will love you with every ounce of my being until we’re nothing but dust in the stars.”

Now sure that he had her attention and Y/N wouldn’t run away or ignore him for his disappearing act, Azriel felt free to tell her what he should have done when they were in the solitude of the garden all those weeks ago, “You are the reason my heart beats and if I had to live the rest of my life not knowing if you feel the same way I do, if you share the same burning need for you that I have, then I will surely perish because that is not a life that I want to live.”

He slowly stepped towards her, raising his hand to brush the diamond-like tears from her soft cheeks, “You are my salvation and my undoing and I will love you for as long as the mother allows. And if you’ll have me, even after all that happened, I promise that I will do everything in my power to make sure that I take you to explore every inch of Prythian. That we’ll see the world together and leave no place untouched.”

Allowing the notebook to slip through her fingers and drop onto the floor, Y/N grips Azriel by the front of his tunic, the tunic she had so lovingly made him, and pulled him in to a firey kiss, uncaring of the nosy villagers who were still gathered around them.

Unwilling to waste a single moment with Y/N that he was given, Azriel’s arms flew around the woman, pulling her roughly towards his chest and encasing her in his arms as their lips melted together. His lips which moved desperately against hers, wanting to express just how much she means to him and how harrowing the past few weeks without her had been. Y/N seemed to be on the same wavelength as the kiss she delivered him was filled with the same burning passion and uncontrollable need as his.

Finally, not wanting to get too carried away in front of the crowd of people who were now awkwardly staring at the pair, their lips broke apart, though Azriel refused to let go of Y/N’s waist, not wanting her to take another step further from him.

She smiled, lifting her hand so it brushed over the shoulder of his tunic, “it fits” she beams, pleased to see the shadowsinger wearing her clothes. “It’s perfect” he whispered whilst leaning his forehead against hers, “I think I’m going to need a whole wardrobe full of them. All with dresses to match for you of course. Pink, purple, blue, I want them all.”

“That’s a lot of work” she giggled, hands still running over her creation which fit snug against his broad form.

“If you give me another chance we’ll have all the time in the world” he said earnestly, pulling his head away from hers far enough that they could lock their eyes with each other, “I know I don’t deserve it after what I did to you but please allow me to have a do over. A proper date this time now that I’m not afraid to call it what it is.”

“No running away?” She asked, a brief glimpse of sadness in her eyes as the memory of his absence was still fresh in her mind.

“Not even the mother herself could drag me away from you now” he promised, lips brushing against his mates once more.

Part 10

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Notes: I screamed the entire time I was writing this. She knows he loves her but she’s yet to find out about the bond…hmmm wonder how that will go.

Only one more chapter and then the epilogue and it’s over but I really don’t want it to be 😭😭😭

Taglist:

@thelov3lybookworm @minnieoo @going-through-shit @iluvyewman-blog @laughterafter @amysangel @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @aaronwarnerobsessedmylove @justvibbinghere @honeybeeboobaa @willowpains @tele86 @mysticalfuncollectorus @mybestfriendmademe @starryhiraeth @gorlillaglue25 @moonlwghts @darling006 @anuttellaa @serendipityx150 @xxxalicerogersxx @that-one-little-soybean @scatteredstardustt @naturakaashi @nyx-the-alien @lostinpages13 @namelesssav @dreamlandreader @fightmedraco @maxmouse001

[star-girl69]

Take Me To Paris

Georgia Amoore x Fem!Reader

—-

synopsis: your girlfriend finally takes you on a vacation! …to australia.

a/n: maybe i’ll do a part 2 in which y/n almost dies of spiders and snakes and georgia almost dies of americanness… we’ll see but anyways i hope you all enjoy!!!

Take Me To Paris - Lana Del Rey (Unreleased)

warnings: me desecrating australia, sorry y’all, um swearing, some kissing, mostly fluff, idk if this is normal but i sleep outside sometimes on the trampoline in my backyard so like… this is normal to me lol but idk, lmk if i missed anything!!

—-

You weren’t exactly scared of flying, more so just constantly aware of every little thing that can go wrong.

You can’t stop bouncing your leg, checking your phone every five seconds to make sure that it is in fact charging, you’ve rechecked your bag for your passport about 20 times, and you’re clutching your boarding pass so hard you’ve kinda crumpled it.

“Let me see your boarding pass.”

You hold out your hand to Georgia, who has been looking at you slightly concerned for the past hour, and she hands over the piece of paper wordlessly.

You scan the piece of paper, ensuring that, again, her name is on it, this is the right flight, and her seat is right next to yours.

You let out a deep breath before passing it back to her.

Everything will be fine. I’m calm. I’m so calm. It’s just a 16 hour flight.

Nevermind. You’re not calm.

“How do you do this?” You finally mutter, your bouncing leg coming to a standstill.

Your girlfriend, who is very annoyingly calm, looks up from her phone.

“Do what?”

“Like, planes. Travel. I just- are you sure it’s 16 hours?”

She smiles. “Yes, babe, I’m sure the flight I’ve taken a million times is 16 hours long.”

You let out a huff, putting your head into your hands. You’re sitting at one of those charging tables near your gate, waiting anxiously for them to finally start boarding, while Georgia stands next to you, completely unbothered.

She tuts and rubs your back. “I promise you’re going to be completely fine, yeah? You’re just psyching yourself out.”

“Okay,” you mumble, taking your head out of your hands to instead stare intently at the gate. You start cracking your knuckles absentmindedly, not even noticing you’re doing so until your girlfriend sets down her phone and grabs your hands.

“Okay, I love you very much so please don’t take this the wrong way.”

You shoot her a warning look.

“You need to calm the fuck down.”

You let go of her hands and scoff, trying to be mad at her, but she’s smiling at you- and her smile really is contagious. You never really believed it before, people having contagious smiles, and maybe you’re just in love with her, but whenever she smiles you follow soon after.

She tucks a stray piece of hair behind your ear, letting her fingers linger as you pointedly look away from her.

She rolls her eyes at your antics, but simply grabs your jaw and forces you to look at her other hand, now sticking her pinky out.

“I pinky promise that everything will be fine.”

“You’re a child.”

“Oh, babe,” she whispers, looking side to side. “Maybe don’t say that so loud.”

“Shut up.”

You try to hide your smile, mouth thinning into a line, but ends of your mouth curl up into a smile as she squeezes your cheeks together.

“Okay, pinky promise. I’ll even take your carry-on for you so you don’t have to worry.”

“Well, you were gonna do that anyways,” you tease.

“Probably,” she shrugs. “Stop. Pinky promise. Now.”

You sigh dramatically but interlock her finger with yours.

“Okay, now, pinky promise you’ll calm the fuck down, yeah?”

“I pinky promise, or whatever.”

She tugs you towards her with the hand still on your jaw, pressing a quick kiss to your cheek- she lingers, for just a second.

“Love you.”

—-

You recheck your ticket for the same time, confirming this is the right seat.

“You want middle or aisle, babe?”

You had decided to check your bags for this flight, so Georgia is carrying both her backpack and yours, while also holding your hand through the aisles- it’s honestly pretty impressive.

“Would it be weird if I said middle?”

“Nah,” she shrugs, gesturing for you to climb into the middle seat.

You sit down, smiling politely at the man in the window seat, immediately putting up the hand rest in between you and Georgia- ignoring her smile as she sits down next to you. She starts to put your bags under the seats, but you grab yours.

You rifle through it one more time, laying eyes on your passport, your wallet, your phone charger, your book, and every other little thing before feeling calm enough to zip it up and stuff it under the seat in front of you.

“Okay,” you mumble. “I’m ready.”

Georgia gives you that same concerned look she’s been giving you ever since you got to the airport.

“Are you, like, scared of flying or something?”

“No,” you roll your eyes. “Traveling just makes me nervous. And it’s sixteen hours.”

“You’re gonna sleep for most of it,” she dismisses, grabbing your hand and squeezing it.

You let out a sarcastic laugh. “There’s no way I can fall asleep.”

She smiles at you, and you stare right back, completely serious.

“Nah, you’ll fall asleep.”

“Nah,” you echo, “I won’t.”

“C’mere,” she says, wrapping her arm around you so you can rest your head on her shoulder, kind of awkwardly- but her touch and her smell is comforting. You force your eyes shut, taking a deep breath. “There we go, darling,” she mumbles, pressing a kiss to your head, leaving her lips there to breathe you in fire a second. “Much better.”

She settles back into her own seat, putting her Airpods in and taking out her phone.

You open your eyes and stare straight ahead at the blue seat in front of you.

—-

“I seriously cannot believe you didn’t sleep that entire flight.”

You’re oddly wide awake right now. Maybe it’s just the excitement of finally being off of the airplane, or being in a brand new place- it feels different here. The air feels thicker- more humid?

“Wait, what time is it here?” You ask, seeing nothing but gaping blackness outside the huge windows of the gate.

Georgia looks at her phone, her arm looped tightly with yours as if you’re going to collapse from exhaustion at any moment.

“12:31.”

You frown, feeling slightly disoriented- maybe you should have slept. It’s not like you didn’t try, though. You squeezed your eyes shut for what felt like entire hours, you forced Georgia to run her hands through your hair, you listened to the most calming songs you could think of, and you simply stayed awake.

Georgia fell asleep an hour into the flight, though, and you tried to be angry at her… but eventually gave up and just let her lay practically on top of you. Which was quite a feat in economy class on an airplane, really.

“Where are we going, then?”

Georgia looked at you oddly, again very concerned- you felt kinda guilty for how worried she seems to be over you.

“We got a hotel in Melbourne for tonight, remember? ‘Cause our plane landed at midnight, and it’s an hour and a half drive to Balarat, yeah?”

The memories finally click in your brain.

“Ohhhh, yeah,” you nod. “I remember now.”

Georgia tugs you along, walking faster through the terminal. “Let’s get our bags and let’s get you into a bed. You’re kinda scaring me.”

She looks at you out of the corner of her eye.

“You didn’t sleep at all? Like, not even for a few minutes?”

“No,” you shrug.

She shakes her head. “There’s something wrong with you.”

“Oh, okay,” you hum, tugging your arm away from hers. “You can sleep on the floor tonight.”

She grabs your hand and tugs you right back over to her.

“Yeah, that’ll happen.”

—-

“Oh, my God, look up, babe.”

“Huh?” You ask, tearing your eyes away from the sidewalk. You had successfully gotten your bags and a taxi to the hotel, and you were now walking along the sidewalk to the huge doors.

“Why are you staring at the ground?”

Your suitcase gets stuck on a crack, and you tug it forward. Maybe it’s because a bed is so close now, but exhaustion is really staring to set in. All you can think about is literally throwing yourself into the bed, dragging Georgia down with you, and collapsing.

“Watching for snakes and spiders.”

“You’re not serious.”

“Um, yes, I am. Australia is dangerous as fuck. Snakes, spiders, dingos, kangaroos, sharks, crocodiles, giant fucking bats? I’m not taking risks.”

“This is fucking Melbourne, not the bush.”

“What’s the bush?”

She stops and looks up at you.

“I need you to tone down the American-ness by, like, 10 please.”

“Okay, sorry,” you huff, smile crawling onto your face, the automatic doors of the hotel sliding open. “Not my fault the only thing I know about Australia is ‘G’day, mate. I’m from down under, yeah? Kangaroos and dingo babies-’”

“I will give you money to shut up.”

“Ooh, how much?”

“Whatever you want, just please, please, for the love of God stop doing that horrible accent,”

“It’s a wonderful accent,” you fake pout.

“It’s like nails on a chalkboard. I’m being so for real.”

“Whatever,” you shrug. “Can we go see kangaroos, by the way? Like I just want to go stare at kangaroos. I want to know that they’re really real, y’know?”

“Jesus Christ- you know what? Sure. We’ll go see kangaroos.”

—-

“Oh, this place is nice,” you smile, dragging your suitcase into the room and shoving it in the empty space next to the bed.

“Oh no,” Georgia frowns, staring at the bed. “I must have booked it wrong, there’s only one bed.”

“Aw, that sucks.” You sit down, kicking off your shoes and throwing yourself back onto the bed. “Have fun on the floor.”

“Can we just put a pillow between us?” She asks, trying to play along with the joke but already smiling as she lays next to you on her stomach, her own shoes falling to the floor.

“No, sorry. I just feel really uncomfortable sleeping with you, seeing as you… like girls and all, and I just… I don’t support that, sorry. I don’t want to catch it from you.”

“Really?” She smiles, crawling towards you. “You’re sure you don’t like girls? Not even a little bit?”

She hovers over you, hands planted next to your head, and you wrap your arms around her neck.

“I’m so straight I actually don’t even look at girls.”

She presses a quick kiss to your lips.

You gasp but make no move to push her away. “You just assaulted me.”

“You can assault me right back, baby.”

“Disgusting,” you groan, before sliding one of your hands down to her face to push her towards you, kissing her long and slow.

She adjusts herself so her legs are now in between yours, her hand drifting down to grab at your thigh and wrap it around her waist, pulling you even closer to her, until suddenly you’re barely even kissing her, just kind of languidly going through the motions as you eyes drift shut, her comforting weight above you.

“You’re so pretty,” she murmurs, finally pulling away for air but immediately trailing kiss down your cheek and jawline to your neck.

You turn your head to the side, yawning as you do so, letting her hand squeeze your thigh and her kisses turn into the faintest marks-

“Look! There’s a balcony!”

You try to push her away from you and sit up, but she gives you a bored look.

“I’m on top of you right now and you want to go see the balcony?”

“Yeah..? You’ll be fine,” you shrug, managing to maneuver yourself out from under her, running over to the sliding glass door and pressing your face against it.

Melbourne is spread out before you. Well, more so in the distance, you’re kinda just outside of Melbourne. There’s a few bright lights even at this hour, and you can see the faintest glimpse of the balcony-

“Aww, there’s a little couch out there!”

Calling it a couch was probably making someone roll over in their grave. It was just a two person chair made out of wicker, with a thin red cushion on it. It looked uncomfortable.

Your eyes drifted up to the stars.

“C’mon,” you urge Georgia, turning around to find her waiting for you on the bed, laying on her side with her head propped up. You start tugging the blanket off of the bed, ignoring the way she exclaims in mock outrage.

“The fuck are you doin’?”

“I want to sit outside,” you explain, switching tactics and instead grabbing her hand, trying to tug her up- but she packs a lot of muscle in that body, and you can only get her to move a few inches before she braces herself and you’re stuck.

“It’s 1 in the morning?” She says, eyebrows furrowed as she looks out at the balcony.

“Yeah,” you deadpan. “The stars are out.”

She sighs.

“You really want to go out there?”

You tug on her again.

“Yes, Georgia, please come with me. I need someone to protect me from giant bats. Also, what if I see a giant spider, have a heart attack, and die right in front of you?”

She looks into your eyes.

“Please, Georgia.”

“I do like it when you say please like that,” she sighs, corners of her mouth ticking up into a smile. You grin and place a kiss onto the back of her hand.

“Please, please, please, please Georgia, my talented sexy girlfriend, will you please sit outside with me?”

“Fine,” she groans with a smile, letting you tug her up and gather the blanket in your arms. She opens the sliding glass door and gestures you through it, of course not letting you pass by her without smacking your ass.

She goes to the edge of the balcony, leaning against it and looking out down below to the street.

“It’s cold,” she groans.

You’ve already situated yourself in the somewhat uncomfortable chair, blanket spread out over you, a perfect view of the stars in front of you- the only thing missing is your girlfriend.

“That’s why I brought the blanket, duh.”

“Smart-ass,” she teases, and you smile and open up the blanket for her. “Sure you’re comfortable being so close to me? Sharing a blanket?”

“Shut up, Georgia.”

“Yes, ma’am,” she mumbles, mocking you under her breath, but when she finally puts her arms around you any bratty comeback in your head disappears.

Her arm is around your shoulders, your head is leaning against hers, your legs intertwined under the blanket.

“I love you,” you mumble, also letting out a yawn.

She turns her head towards you, that signature big smile taking up her entire face. She presses a kiss so softly to your hairline you think there’s no possible way she could show you she loves you more.

She lets her lips linger. That’s how you know she loves you. She’s always lingering around you- chasing after your hand when you let go, kissing you too hard and immediately going back in for more, hugging you for what could arguably be called too long- she never wants to let go of you.

“Love you too,” she finally replies. One of your arms finds it’s way around her neck, hand playing with the back of her hair, her humming softly in approval. “I wanna spend everyday like this.”

You laugh a little. “Me asleep on my feet, stressed the fuck out, annoying you about Australia in a random hotel in Melbourne?”

“I mean I wanna spend everyday with you. Doing something new everyday. Even if you annoy me about Australia.”

“Aw, mate, you’re so sweet,” you reply with a small smile. She seems to choose to ignore you, and you decide to be nice and drop the accent. “I want to do everything with you. Except, maybe somewhere with less giant flying bats. How about Paris?”

“Giant fucking bats,” she mumbles to herself, blowing out air. “Where the fuck are you getting that- y’know, nevermind. Yeah, let’s go to Paris.”

“Yay,” you mumble, yawning again as you close your eyes, the pretty stars shining behind your eyes.

“Baby,” Georgia starts after a second, very softly, caressing your face to keep you awake. “I’m not sleeping out here.”

You roll your eyes. “Fine,” you mumble, kicking your leg out. “We’d be fine though. But, if the big bad Aussie girl is scared of sleeping outside, that’s fine.”

“Okay,” she says, seemingly offended even as she helps you up, grabs the blanket and keeps you close to her. “I’m not scared, babe. I just want to sleep in an actual bed.”

“Sure,” you hum, throwing yourself onto the bed and feeling Georgia lovingly place the blanket over you before climbing in beside you.

She rests her head on your chest, and everything feels so good and so right you yawn one final time, eyes shutting in a way that you know they’re not opening again.

“Goodnight,” you whisper.

She kisses the bare skin of your chest, letting her lips linger.

“Goodnight, pretty girl.”

—-

[jaegeraether]

Sunsets and footballers (Part 78)

Alexia Putellas x Character (34)

Masterlist (other parts here)

((**Lil one - 1.4k**))

ALEXIA POV

Alexia went still, her whole body frozen. Ridley was there. On her knees. Staring up at Alexia. Those dark eyes troubled, her hair its usual messy and perfect look, and her smell. Fuck. Her lips. Fuck. That scar. Fuck. Ridley.

How did she-? It was an airline. Of course she knew. And she was probably also responsible for their upgrade to first class.

Ridley reached up slowly and pulled Alexia’s noise cancelling headphones down and around her neck with a gentleness that seemed to be only for her.

“La Reina..”

“Ridley..” She breathed. Who was she kidding? She was never going to get over her.

They were silent for a few moments, just taking each other in. Alexia unclipped her belt to lean forward, closer to her. The need to touch her and be touched by her was almost too much to bear.

“You left,” she whispered, hurt.

“I did.”

“You fucking left, Ridley.”

Ridley nodded, leaning closer to her also. “I’m sorry, Lex.” Her finger tips brushed Alexia’s hair from her cheek and just that small touch send shivers down her spine.

“I need to say something, if you’d let me.”

Did she deserve that? “Go ahead.”

“I ran… I ran, and I’m sorry. You deserve better.” Ridley was being vulnerable with her which made Alexia just want to touch her, anywhere, in support. To feel her skin on her own and make sure it was real. That she was real. “Lex… you can’t understand how torn I am… how conflicted. Half of me wants you to leave and find happiness elsewhere, away from me, so I don’t taint your beautiful soul with my darkened one. The other half begs for you, yearns for you, dreams about you and selfishly wants you close to me, always.”

“You always said that you weren’t good for me, but I never believed you. I still don’t.”

Ridley sighed, looking down. “I feel like I’m not good for anybody, and I didn’t want to put that burden on you for simply loving me. I went away and couldn’t stop my thoughts. I was conflicted. But amongst my confliction, I missed one very important thing. I didn’t give you a choice.”

She looked up at her, her heart on her sleeve.

“My soul is tainted, Lex. I’ve done horrible things that I’ll regret for the rest of my life. But I also know that I’ve never felt about anyone, the way I feel about you. You’ll always be safe with me, whether it’s physically, mentally, financially… I’m still working on the emotionally part. You bring far too much out of me in that regard.”

Alexia’s lips trembled at the pure, unfiltered emotion in her voice. She was being so brave and speaking so beautifully. So vulnerably.

A flight attendant tapped Ridley’s shoulder to say boarding was almost finished and she nodded, telling her she’d only be a few minutes.

“Lex, meeting you broke a spell I’ve been under for a long time. Meeting you made me realise that maybe I was worthy of love after all. You took up space in my heart before I even knew it, and now, it seems you’re there to stay. I feel sorry for the Ridley before you because she didn’t realise how much love and happiness she was missing without you. You’ve changed me forever, and I’ll happily spend the rest of my life trying to thank you.” She cupped her cheek and stroked it with her thumb. “Regardless of if you want to stay or go…”

Ridley was giving her a choice. And even though she’d never meant to, it was the one and only choice she’d ever denied her.

Alexia’s heart broke. She leant down, her hands needing to touch her, and her cheek pressed against her own. She just needed to be close to her.

“I’m damaged..” she whispered, her breath soft against Alexia’s cheek.

“You’re human…” Alexia replied softly against hers, nudging it a little as if to wake her from her stupor.

“I’m broken.”

Alexia’s hand travelled down until it rested over her heart, feeling that strong beat. “You feel whole to me.”

Ridley’s hands found Alexia’s wrists and gripped on, as if to keep her there. Wanting her close.

Alexia’s lips brushed their way up to her forehead where she gave a singular kiss with more love and passion than she had ever expressed before. So much so, that it even surprised her. “I’m right here.”

Her hands were either side of her jaw now, Alexia’s cheek resting against her eyebrow. They stayed like that for a time, until the reality of where they were set in. Ridley pulled back and the expression she had on her face affected Alexia so much, that she could feel all of Ridley’s emotions.

That’s the moment Alexia knew she’d completely and desperately fallen in love with her.

“I’m sorry I ran,” she whispered again, her face betraying her pain. Ridley was letting herself be emotional with her, and it caught Alexia completely by surprise in the best kind of way. She knew what it meant. She was letting her in.

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not. Not at all. Now the choice is yours, Lex.”

Alexia thought on it for a minute or so until she spoke. “I want you, Lee. In every single way. But relationships are a two-way street, and they start with us as individuals. I want you. I lov-“ She stopped herself and sucked in a breath. Fuck, she really loved her. “I… but right now you need to find that part of you that doesn’t believe you deserve to be loved, and you need to learn to love yourself. To know in your heart that you deserve to love and be loved.. because you do. You fucking do. You deserve the world.”

Ridley’s face broke, and then hardened slightly. It was an honest truth that she needed, but of course it hurt.

“You’re… right.”

Alexia leant forward again, her lips on her forehead and kissed her there. “I know,” she whispered. “And I truly hope you can find that, because you deserve to have the love of your life.”

She pulled back and Ridley was holding herself strong, surprisingly. “Is there any hope for us?”

Alexia’s pride and independence crept up. She knew what she needed. “If you can learn to love yourself, and promise me that you’ll stay. That you won’t run away again. That you’re ready to move forwards, together.” Ridley was paying attention closely like she always did. She was always a good listener. “I need you to be here for me, like I am for you. I need security.”

“How will you know that I’m ready?”

Alexia smiled. “You’ll fight for me. For us.”

Ridley almost smiled. She liked that idea, it seemed. “Until then… can we be friends?”

“Friends who love each other, yes. Yes, please. I’d like that.” She needed Ridley to prove that she was there to stay.

“Hm.” She liked that answer. Ridley looked over her shoulder and gestured to the flight attendant who came by. “No change to the manifest. Please stand the ground crew down. Leave the baggage and pet on board.”

She nodded with a smile at Ridley that had Alexia’s jealousy spike and left.

“You’re leaving Chiquito with me?”

“I can’t take him away from you..”

“He’s yours.”

“I think you’ll find that he’s ours now.”

Typical Ridley sass. She loved it.

“We can share him…”

Ridley smiled her agreement and the Spaniard didn’t realise how much she’d missed seeing that. Seeing her lips curve upwards and her scar move on her cheek. She reached out and touched it.

“Deal.” She said as she rocked back on her heels and stood. “Good bye, Alexia.”

Alexia caught her arm as she went to turn, and pulled her back down, their faces so close she could kiss her without a thought. Though it most definitely was a thought. Their first kiss. “Ridley?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t leave again. Fight for me. Fight for us.”

Ridley clipped her belt up, pulling it tight across her hips. Fuck.

And then her thumb traced her lips ever so gently. Ever the cheeky Ridley. “I will. Do you know why?”

Her thumb was still on her lower lip, and Alexia couldn’t form words at that point. She shook her head.

“Because you’re fucking mine, Alexia.”

[damiansgoodgirll]

I just read your soft for you and I love it. If it’s okay can I request something? :)

So it’s a Damian Priest and it’s for like a plane ride and the night at the hotel and the reader is super tired from jet lag? (If you can’t that’s fine if you can thank you!)

damian priest x reader

a little angst, sorry not sorry.

i changed it a little cause i’ve never experienced jet lag, i hope you like it anyway!

stay the night

“why don’t you stay the night?” you heard damian asking you softly.

“uh?”

“i asked, why don’t you stay with me tonight? in my room?” he asked again “you’re hotel is way too far from the arena and from the airport and it’s too late, we are in new orleans and i don’t like you going around late at night in a city you barely know” he suggested.

you got booked last time for the show in new orleans. in all honesty, you didn’t even want to be there. yes you were the champion but hunter promised you full two weeks of complete relax, away from the ring and from the cameras.

not even three days later, you received a call from hunter himself saying that they needed you in a match against bailey in new orleans.

you could tell that he was sorry and he kept apologising from disturbing you from your vacation so you said yes.

your manager booked you a last minute flight and lucky for you, you got the same one as the other wrestlers were in, but the hotel was way too far away and you were there all by yourself. it wasn’t the ideal, especially not knowing the city very well.

plus you hate being on planes late at night. even if it was a short flight, you felt uncomfortable with everyone around you sleeping and you not being able to close your eyes, no matter how tired you were.

damian had been a great travel buddy. he was the one next to you and you thanked whoever bought your ticket because you never got this lucky. you shared some music together and some jokes, trying to not make any noise.

“are you sure? i don’t wanna bother…” you said.

“it’s not a bother at all…i can take you to your hotel in the morning when it’s all sunny and warm…but i’ll feel better if you stayed here…at least you’re not alone…”

“are you sure?” you asked him again.

truth was you had the biggest crush on him and even if you had plenty of sleepovers together, you never shared the same hotel room and that was making you a little nervous.

“yes…you’re my best friend, it’s like your sleeping at my house, but instead we are in a fancy hotel room where we can order all the room service we want” he said and you agreed.

best friend.

it made your heart clench.

you knew someone like him wouldn’t like someone like you but in the deep of your heart you still hoped something could change.

but instead of being all moody about it, you were too tired to even keep your eyes open from the landing to the arrival at the hotel. you remembered barely of it. you knew your legs were walking for you but your mind was somewhere else.

“you awake princesa?” damian smirked when he saw you falling into the comfort of the hotel bed.

“uh?” you replied.

“clearly not…” he smiled.

“i’m so tired dam…you know how much i hate flying at night…was it really necessary? like we could have taken a bus or i could have driven…” you complained and damian smiled at your cute childish behaviour.

“okay you should definitely got to bed…i’m gonna take a quick shower and then i’m gonna joining you…those blankets look very comfortable…” he smiled before entering the bathroom and locking himself in it.

suddenly you were awake.

damian was used to sleep almost naked. you knew it because you’ve been at his house so many times but you’ve never actually slept together. it was always you in the guest room or you falling asleep on his couch.

but you were just friends right?

what could possibly go wrong?

your heart missed a a few beats when you saw him coming out of the bathroom wearing just a grey pair of sweatpants. no t-shirts. nothing at all. just his chest full of tattoos and nothing more.

you saw him like that multiple times when he was training or when he was in the ring but having him so close and so naked was making your head spinning.

“you still awake?” he asked while he got comfortable under the covers.

“uhm…yes”

“i thought you were tired” he teased.

“i was…” you whispered.

“what are you thinking about princesa?” he asked, slowly turning his head towards you.

“nothing important…”

“it has to be important if it kept you awake all the time i was showering” he laughed. how you loved his laugh.

“really…nothing important…just the match i think…”

“you nervous?”

“no…i…” how you were supposed to say that you liked him. how you were supposed to stay calm when he was only a few inches from you, half naked. how were you supposed to stay quiet when his hot breath was all over your face “i think i’m just going to sleep now…”

“in your clothes?” he asked.

and then you remembered. your suitcase was sent to the hotel you were supposed to be that night so you were left with only your small harry potter backpack, that contained anything but clothes.

“shit…”

“you can wear something of mine…” he got up and borrowed you a clean t-shirt “here…i don’t have a second pair of pants but it should be long enough to cover your - well you know it” he almost smirked.

“oh thank you…” your cheeks were red and you were feeling all hot inside. you moved quickly, entering the bathroom and changing into his clothes. the t-shirt smelled like him and all you wanted to do was cry because you wanted something like that every day, not just today. you wanted to sleep next to him every night and waking up with him between your arms - or legs - you wanted a life with him.

but you couldn’t have it.

“here you are…” he smiled when he saw you wearing his shirt. in fact it wasn’t that long and damian was amused in seeing you trying not to move so fast, otherwise your ass would be on display.

“thank you, again, for everything…” you slowly got into bed and closed your eyes.

“y/n…?” he called you.

“mh?”

“good night…” he gently kissed your head and turned off the light.

a tear slowly fell from your eyes.

his arm moving to your hip and resting over there.

what looked normal for him, looked everything for you, everything you wished for but you couldn’t have.

[softtdaisy]

hellu lando with it's okay, just breathe.

I LOVE your writing, you deserve all the celebration love!

Pairing: Lando Norris x female!reader

Words: 1020

A/n: the fact i went over 1k words for a story i don’t feel confident about is crazy. I really hope you will like it, i’ve never write about Lando before so it’s a first try  

Dating Lando was like living in a new sitcom episode every single day. Even when he was away for the championship and you couldn’t travel with him, he found a way to make your day better. A call, a message, the stupidest joke ever or the cutest proof of love. 

There were some bad days, of course. But somehow, the sun always seemed to shine even in the darkest sky. 

You could write a whole book about your boyfriend. 

You really considered doing it these past days. Being away from him for too long was getting harder for you. It was really like missing a half of yourself when he was in another country or, worse, in another continent. No amount of calls was making for the lack of waking up with him by your side.

“You realize that one day you’re going to deal with me every day for the rest of your life? Shouldn’t you enjoy your free time while you can?” he told you on the phone after you admitted being sad about him leaving early for Canada. He hasn’t even been home since Spain and he was already leaving.

“Well right now, I miss you, idiot.”

“Well I miss you too, dummy.” 

It was probably one of the quickest decisions you’ve ever made. After waking up again feeling alone and sad without the man you loved, you booked a flight for Montréal during the afternoon to see him. You didn’t even tell anyone, except for Max, Lando’s best friend, to make sure at least one person would be aware of your trip. You wanted to surprise your boyfriend.

You had no idea that this would become one of the most stressful days for him.

When Lando woke up on the other side of the world, you were already up in the air. He didn’t question why you weren’t answering his texts. He knew that when you were working, you tended to be so focused that you forget about the world around you. He also knew that he could call you if he was worried because that was the only thing that would make you pick up your phone. 

Somehow, Lando felt like something was off. He could put his finger on what.

If he was a fan of media duties, he couldn’t focus on anything today. His laugh sounded fake, he wasn’t smiling as much. “If something is wrong, you can tell me.” Oscar reassured him after he had to handle every interview that morning.

But he didn’t say anything. Lando wasn’t the kind to cry on anyone’s shoulder for nothing. He didn’t want to bother his teammate for just a feeling. 

Then it became more than a feeling when he still couldn’t reach you. 

You were supposed to be home. Or heading home. Anyway, you would have answered Lando’s texts already. But you didn’t.

He tried to call you. But you didn’t answer.

He asked Carlos to call you too, knowing he was one of the few drivers to have your number. But you didn’t answer either.

“Something wrong?” Carlos asked him but he refused to say anything. If he kept it to himself, it wouldn’t be real, right?

So Lando did the worst thing he could have done, he knew that. He went to the practices with fear and stress. He couldn’t think about the race or the cars or his whole career. Fuck that. All he cared about was you. He did so many mistakes he couldn’t even imagine the number of comments on social media about him being done or whatever these stupid opinions were saying. The team was already giving him a hard time on the radio.

When Lando got out of the car, he felt like he saw a ghost. Expect it wasn’t one.

It was you. Standing in the middle of the garage.

It took him a few seconds to realize that he wasn’t dreaming, that it wasn’t his mind giving him what he wanted to see. You were here. For real. Not home. But here with him.

Lando then ran to you and took you in his arms. “Oh wow I didn’t expect that to be so welcoming.” you laughed in his ears. Knowing him, you were convinced he would make a joke about you being here at the same time as his mistress. Or that you should take a shower, when he was the one dirty after racing. 

Not that he would hug you that tight. You felt him bringing him to his room and you followed him, quite perplexed on why he was reacting like that. 

It wasn’t until you were alone that you noticed he was shivering against you. 

“Hey, what’s going on?” you asked him, moving your head to see his sad face. You barely ever saw him being that miserable around you.

“You’re here…” he replied, breathless. You took his face between your hands.

“it's okay, just breathe,” you put your forehead against his and felt him relaxed slowly. 

“You didn’t answer me and I thought something had happened. I couldn’t call you, I couldn’t reach you and I thought you were… I can’t imagine my life without you!” 

“I’m not planning on leaving you.” you replied with a sweet smile, giving him a soft kiss on his lips. Lando always said that your lips had some calming power. And he wasn’t wrong. You could feel relaxed after that, like it was the proof he needed to be sure you were really here.

You spent some long minutes together in the silence. Now that he was accepting that nothing had happened to you and that you were here, for real, he was enjoying your presence. You gave him small kisses in the hair, the one he loved when he had a terrible weekend. It felt quite the same for once.

“I’m taking notes that you don’t like surprises.” you whispered in his hair.

“Not the one where I think I’m losing the love of my life, dummy.”

“Love of my life and dummy in the same sentence? What a pretty love language, Norris.” 

[silhouetteonpaper]

What Came Before

Summary: You’ve always wondered who you were before becoming a Widow. Against Yelena’s wishes, you finally decide to get some answers. Traveling back to the country you were born in, the truth finally reveals itself—and nothing could have prepared you for the past that changed your entire life. Yelena Belova x Reader WC: 3,958 Warnings: Mentions of dead people, fighting, killing A/N: I’ve been working on this one for a loooong time, I hope you enjoy! I wrote it so the reader can be from any country and speak any language. :)

Yelena’s long list of don’ts continued to drone on, the list of what you can actually do seeming shorter and shorter. “Don’t talk to any strangers, don’t stray from the route we planned, don’t go-“

“Yelena! I get it, I promise I’ll be safe. I’m going to miss my flight if you keep talking.” You pout frustratedly. It’s not unlike Yelena to be protective—if anything you were expecting it. But you won’t let it be the reason you miss the flight back to the country you were born in.

“Alright, alright. Be safe, I love you. Call me any time, okay?” She resigns, giving you a tight hug that threatens to hold you from boarding the plane on time.

“I will, I love you too,” You reassure her, pulling away to grab your suitcase. Giving her one last look, you walk toward your gate with high hopes. It took a lot of convincing for her to let you go on a public airline instead of the jet, let alone on this trip as a whole.

You’ve been wanting to go back to the country you grew up in, at least until you were kidnapped and turned into a Widow. Finally free from the shackles of the Red Room, you know it’s time to figure out more about your past; to visit your home to find out who you really are. Can you still call it home after all this time?

There’s only a hazy memory of your parents now, you’re not even sure if they’re still alive. Surely they would be looking for you… right? Yelena understands the need for answers and the desire to find out where you’re really from, she’s just overprotective at times. Especially when the adventure involves returning to the place you were taken from.

Yelena helped you create an itinerary, one that originally involved herself. After explaining to her what this trip meant to you, and setting the boundary of needing to do it alone, she relented and helped you plan the most fulfilling solo trip possible.

Now, alone on the flight, you find yourself getting lost in the thoughts of what could’ve been. If you were never a Widow, if you never left your home country. What would life be like if you never went through any of that?

The time passes fairly quickly as you’re lost in thought; the plane eventually touches down in a dreary cloudy climate. You weave through the crowds at the airport, swimming upstream as it seems many people are eager to leave this country, rather than stay.

The train station is marked clearly with a matching itinerary for departing vessels. The town towards the top of the list makes your heart skip a beat. The letters that are likely sprawled across your birth certificate, if you’d ever even had the chance to see it. Your past, present, and future could lie in the town only an hour away by train.

A simple train lies on your assigned track, sure enough empty like you expected. You settle in, placing your suitcase on the rack above before sitting on the nice leather seat next to the window. By the time the train departs, there’s only two or so other people in your car, making your nerves grow at the idea of a small secluded town.

You’re aware it’s not a largely populated town, and don’t expect many people to want to visit for vacation or anything, but the sight of the nearly empty cart makes you wonder just how small the town really is. It’s hard to remember what it was like all those years ago, leaving it all up to your imagination now.

As the metal moves swiftly along the tracks, your gaze falls outside the window while your anxiety prevents you from doing anything else to pass the time. It’s a serene ride, grasslands passing by full of trees or farms. They turn into hills, cliffs, even an oceanside, until the land goes slightly barren.

Empty fields of grass for miles, destroyed cobble buildings. You’re not far from the destination now, and the outskirts appear to be in complete shambles. You know it’s not a capital city or anything, but did something happen to make it so barren? When Dreykov swept in to take you, did he destroy everything else in his path? Was it all your fault? Okay, calm down. You tell yourself, knowing there’s probably a better explanation to it all.

The screeching sound of the train’s brakes make you flinch, pulling you back into reality. The station seems just as old and run down as everything else you saw, but you still try to swallow your nerves. Grabbing your suitcase, the car doors soon open with a cool breeze, the air hitting your face and aiding a deep breath.

As soon as you exit the empty station, your eyes widen with surprise as you see the town’s true state before you. Old stone buildings line the street, peeling paint, faded shop banners, and an eerie silence all make your heart drop. But amidst your shock at the unexpected, you find a certain charm to this place.

Sure, it’s nothing like New York or the Avenger’s compound, but it’s where you’re from. Clearly a lot of love went into building something like this, even if it hasn’t been updated in the past century. Still, the emptiness makes you question the state of what was once your home.

Following the map Yelena marked up for you, it takes little time to find your hotel. The worn red banner out front makes you smile, the warm light pouring from inside the windows extremely inviting.

You enter to see a woman at the front desk of the small lobby, her gaze immediately turning toward you. “Hello, welcome.” She speaks warmly in an accent you recognize. The same accent you used to have, before being deployed as a Widow in America at a young age.

“Hi there, I’d like to check in.” You hand her your I.D., and she quickly nods and checks her records.

“What brings you here?” She asks while grabbing a room key. It’s obvious the hotel doesn’t get much business, so her curiosity as to why you’re visiting such an empty place is expected.

“I’m from here, I came to learn about my family.” You reply happily, but your smile fades quickly when the woman’s face turns pale with fear. Something’s wrong, but she hands over the key without any comment.

“Second floor, first room on the left.” She states with wide eyes, eyeing your entirety. You nod and thank her, watching the woman quickly resume her task after stealing one last fearful glance at you. Weird. You think to yourself. Clearly, there’s something going on here, and you’re determined to get to the bottom of it.

Once you get to the cozy hotel room, you decide to call Yelena, knowing she’ll have some wisdom or support to offer. The phone doesn’t even ring twice before the blonde picks up. “Hey! How was the flight?” Her familiar voice makes you smile as you sit on the bed.

“It was good. I’m actually calling you about something that happened.” You hesitate to tell her.

“What? What’s wrong?” She questions, and you can almost see her worried expression through the phone.

“This town, it’s empty. Like… there’s only a few stores open, and practically no one on the street. And when I checked into the hotel, the woman at the front desk looked like she’d seen a ghost.” You explain.

Yelena thinks for a moment before speaking, her weariness easily showing. “I don’t like the sound of that, do you need me to get you an earlier flight home?” She offers, making you chuckle.

“No, I’m alright. I’m not worried for my safety… I don’t think. I just don’t understand why this town seems to be frozen in time.” You continue.

“Can I at least fly over there to be with you? I don’t want you getting into any trouble, I’m worried.” Yelena pleads. You shake your head to yourself, knowing she’d offer this yet preparing to decline.

“It’s okay. I promise. I’ll just do some more digging.” You communicate, finally getting Yelena to resign her protesting.

“Alright, be safe, and call me if you need anything.” She replies, the two of you saying your goodbyes. As soon as you hang up, you feel the effects of the day hitting you all at once.

You’re exhausted from traveling, and your stomach demands sustenance. After eyeing a few of the local restaurants on the way here, you decide to check one of them out. The woman isn’t at the desk when you exit the hotel.

Brushing off everything from earlier, you walk into a small restaurant with an open sign hanging in the door. An older man stands at the counter, a large selection of delicious looking food on display under the glass.

“Welcome in! What can I get for you?” He greets with a grin. You smile, taking a moment to order anything and everything that makes your mouth water. You can’t remember the last time you’ve had a meal from home, and if anything this seems like the closest thing to home-cooked.

“You will love this, it’s my favorite,” The man comments after you order, grabbing your food from the shelves with haste. “Something the town is known for too, you can’t go wrong with it.”

“It looks delicious, I can’t wait to try it!” You smile and take the plate he hands over, stacked with different kinds of food—including the man’s favorite. Noticing his grin and pride, you decide to ask something. “Why don’t you join me?”

He seems to be a bit surprised, but his grin only grows. “I would love to.”

Soon, the two of you are both enjoying a homemade dinner that makes your taste buds sing. He’s introduced himself as Alexander, and enlightened you on his passion for cooking, and how he decided on owning a restaurant. You listen with curiosity, the idea of having a true passion sounding so appealing. The only passion you’ve had has been for wiping the blood off your past, but you refrain from mentioning that.

There’s a natural pause in conversation as the two of you finish off your plates. After all the talk about his home, the urge to ask him about the town rises; you decide to entertain it. “I noticed this town is… quiet, and there’s not many people around. Why is that?”

He inhales sharply, looking out the window into the barren streets. “You haven’t heard? No one travels here, so I assumed you were a tourist looking for information on what happened,” He began, eventually looking back at you. “More than fifteen years ago, a group of soldiers came in and wreaked havoc. We were vulnerable, and they had strong reinforcements. They left with nearly every little girl, no one knew why.”

Suddenly, you can’t breathe—like something is preventing you from expelling anymore air. You know in that moment exactly why they wanted every little girl—but you let him continue, unable to form words anyways. 

“We’ve always been a forgotten little town, so no one cared to find the missing children. Eventually, we moved on the best we could and tried to rebuild what was lost. But after losing all those girls, we haven’t been able to become what we used to be. Those missing pieces of our community will forever leave us broken.” He finishes explaining with watering eyes. It’s easy to tell he truly cares about this town, or whatever’s left of it.

The anger inside you rises, yet you try your best to keep it at bay. The rush of emotion caused by the unknown suddenly fills your entire body as everything makes sense. It wasn’t just you who was taken, it was every little girl. It wasn’t your parent’s choice, it was by force. You were loved, your parents loved you. Your parents might still be alive.

Every thought overwhelms you, most importantly the idea that your parents could still be here mere miles away. You can’t sit and wait any longer. “Thank you so much. For the food, and for talking with me,” You express while standing, your feet carrying you before your brain has time to react. “I have to go.”

And just like that, you’re back out onto the street, your boots hitting the cobble as you run faster and faster. Knowing exactly where you need to go, you follow the street signs to the exact address you’ve committed to memory. As your mind swirls with the feeling of possibility, you find yourself pulling out your phone and calling the first person in your contacts.

“Hey, how’s it going? Any updates?” Yelena asks over the line.

You’re out of breath, panting as the words spill out of you. “I found out the truth! I was taken, Yelena, the people here know! Dreykov destroyed this place!” It’s hard to make sense of anything as you’re running across the cobble. There’s barely enough air to keep your lungs full, let alone to aid the spew of words.

“Slow down, what do you mean?” Yelena’s voice is laced with worry. There’s no time to tell her as you spot exactly what you’re looking for. The small white house with peeling paint. 293 Willows Lane. 

“I have to go, I’ll call you back!” You say urgently.

“No, wait-“ The panicked sound of Yelena on the other end barely reaches your ears as you hang up. The building adrenaline inside you doesn’t have time to wait for an answer. The little house in front of you is of utmost importance.

You take it in, the house that looks cold and empty; yet there’s remains of something warm that once filled it. Hesitating at the steps leading up to the door, you feel a familiar comfort. You know you’ve been here before, but it’s extremely difficult to draw memories from that long ago.

After all you went through, everything from before a certain age is just… nothingness. You forgot it all. The frustration inside you builds as you struggle to remember the house right in front of your eyes, your hand raising to knock on the front door.

“Aren’t they beautiful?” The woman with silky hair exactly like yours asks. She holds you up against the rose bushes so you can smell them, each pink flower catching your attention.

“So beautiful Mamma!” You exclaim, giggling in her arms as you take in each flower’s uniqueness. She puts you on the ground again, yet you find yourself staying by her side as she picks up a watering can.

The flowers accent the side of the house beautifully, the bright pinks adding a spark of color against the white exterior you helped paint the other week.

“Dear?” You hear your mother ask, but when you look up, she isn’t there.

“Dear? Is everything alright?” The rose bushes are gone, and suddenly a different woman is standing before you in the doorway. You shake the memory away, trying to search for the words you thought you had a moment ago.

“Uh, yeah, sorry. Does anyone by the name of Y/L/N live here?” You ask tentatively. The woman’s eyes go wide, an expression you’re becoming accustomed to. She stares at you for a moment before speaking.

“Are… Are you their daughter?” She asks in disbelief. You only nod. Suddenly, the woman grabs your shoulders, taking in every inch of you. “It’s not possible! After all this time? Where are the others?” She rapidly questions, staring at you until you give her any shred of information.

Gunshots echo throughout the room, a usual training session taking place as each Widow battles it out for victory. Only the best can prevail, only the best will survive. Blood pools along the floor, but no one dares to flinch. There can only be one.

“…Dead, or missing. I’m one of the few that made it out.” You admit, watching as the woman’s face fills with horror. “I’m sorry.” You attempt to console her, but there’s no use. She’s already in tears and pulling you in for a hug. You’re still unsure who this woman is, and if she knows anything about your parents, but you don’t rush her; it seems like she needs this interaction just as much as you do.

“You’re safe now, aren’t you? Please tell me you’re safe.” She cries out. You can’t help but relax into her embrace, something about it feeling so foreign yet familiar to you. Like you’ve been missing it since you were a kid.

“I’m safe, I promise.” You breathe, the woman quieting down now with relief. She pulls away and gives you another heartfelt once-over.

“Your parents… they passed a while ago. I’m so sorry.” She finally voices, a wave of disappointment washing over you. “I’m sorry I can’t be of more help either, the best I can offer is a good friend of your parents. He works at the restaurant in the square.” Her words make your heart skip a beat, the closest connection you have to your parents has already passed you by.

“No, that’s great, thank you.” You voice, hugging her quickly one last time before heading  down the front steps. “It was nice meeting you.”

“They loved you, you know.” She calls out, making you stop dead in your tracks. Those three words are all you’ve ever wanted to hear. The three words that prove you were someone to somebody before being turned into a weapon. That you were a loved before you were a Widow.

You smile at her, nodding slowly as she gives you one last look. For the first time in forever, you feel like there’s a place you can call home. No matter where you go, you’ll always be from this small town. And no one can change that.

After running back into the town square, you enter the same restaurant out of breath. The man raises his eyebrows in curiosity. “Was the food that good?” Alexander jokes, but soon sees the serious expression forming on your face as you catch up with your lungs.

“My parents, Y/L/N, you knew them?” You question. It takes no time at all for his face to drop, a sadness and simultaneous relief filling his expression.

“You’re… you’re Y/N Y/L/N?” His gaze upon you softens, like he can finally find some closure out of your presence. You nod, watching him take a deep breath. “We thought you… I thought you were-“

“Dead. I know, I nearly was. But I’m safe now.” You console him with a sad smile, the harsh reality of what these townspeople have had to deal with making your heart ache.

“I’m sorry, your parents have passed…” Alexander tells you with a heartbroken look. You don’t seem to recognize this man, but clearly he remembers you. Something about his compassion for you seems so familiar, yet it’s too far in the past to create a clear picture.

You work up the courage to ask the question at the front of your mind. “I heard, it’s alright. Can I ask you… how did they pass?” He motions for you to sit, taking another deep breath before explaining.

“After the soldiers took everyone, they clawed their way to the front of the chaos to try and find you. When they got in the way, the soldiers didn’t hesitate to continue their fire.” The words hit your chest like a cement block. They died trying to save you.

Does that still make it your fault? The feeling of possibility is suddenly replaced with guilt. You are the reason your parents died. “I… thank you.”  You manage to say.

“Of course, my dear. I happen to know where they are buried, I can give you the address if you’d like.” He offers, moving to grab a piece of paper and pen. You nod, accepting the last remaining proof that your parents existed. 

It was too late to go immediately, so after a restless night you finally decide to adventure to the graveyard. It’s a short walk, the small garden near the center of town housing a large community of gravestones. Your eyes skim each etched name as you walk past, all the lives that were lost from the same attack bringing a feeling of guilt.

You survived, they didn’t. It isn’t fair, but deep down you know dwelling on that won’t bring your parents back. That’s when your eyes find it, the two gravestones—each labeled with your parent’s names.

The stones are both grey in color, over a decades worth of moss and weathering covering every surface. The sight of your own last name is enough to make you feel overwhelmed with emotion. So many years without a trace of any family, and here they are right in front of you.

Standing before them, you finally let the tears fall. They’ve been here resting peacefully, and now you can finally be at peace too. You only hope they know you’re safe, yet there’s no way to truly be sure. It’s a relief to see them, and you imagine they’re relieved to see you too.

You imagine that maybe once long ago, they would hug you tightly just in case the day came that you’d never come back. Or the day that they would never come back. Because no one could’ve prepared for the tragedy that split this town apart.

As you’re deep in thought, the sudden crunching of leaves makes you jump. Turning around, you spot someone you’ve never been so happy to see. The blonde stands there with a sad expression, refusing to come any closer until you’ve given her unspoken permission.

“Yelena.” You begin to cry harder, nodding and allowing her to wrap her arms around you completely. You attempt to tell her something, anything, but the words don’t seem to form.

“Shh, It’s alright. I know everything. Your friend at the restaurant told me everything, and said I might find you here.” She consoles you, holding you tighter.

After a minute of letting yourself sit in Yelena’s comforting embrace, you pull back to look at her face to face. She’s smiling sadly now, moving a stray strand of hair out of your face as her green eyes find yours. “How did you get here so quickly?” You ask, now fully processing her presence here.

She chuckles. “That phone call had me worried, so I took the jet out here.” Now it’s your turn to laugh, shaking your head at the idea of Yelena flying out here at the first sign of panic. It makes you wonder to yourself, how did you get so lucky?

An average person wouldn’t consider this situation lucky, but for some reason you can’t help but feel that way in Yelena’s presence. If you can’t change the past, you feel there’s really nothing to change in the present. Nothing could beat Yelena’s support.

She notices you deep in thought, so she places a hand on the side of your cheek. “What’s on your mind?” Yelena asks softly, looking at you with the most warm and loving expression. It makes you nearly melt.

“I’m really glad you’re here, Yelena.” You state with a sad smile. She only smiles back, quickly pulling you into another hug as the two of you stand amidst your broken past, now put back together with the support of the blonde herself. You weren’t just loved before you were a Widow, you’re loved now and forever by the person who has always been at your side.

[whrthewindgoes]

This is my first fic, this will be a lengthy, slow burn kind of series if all goes well. I’ve had this story idea for quite some time and I’m very nervous to finally post it! I also don’t know what I’m doing with Tumblr, so bear with me! Please be kind ☺️ I’m looking forward to writing this series. 18+ only, minors do NOT interact.

Third Wheel

Series Summary: After a terrible break up with your boyfriend of 5 years, you plan a long visit to Cincinnati to visit your cousin Ja’Marr. This was meant to be a time to catch up and make up for lost time, but no one could predict you’d fall in love with his long time friend and teammate.

Chapter Summary: You arrive in Ohio for the first time, excited and anxious for everything to come.

Series Warnings: Angst, mentions of anxiety, mentions of cheating, fluff, smut, alcohol, weed (that’s all I can think of right now!)

Chapter Warnings: Angst and anxiety

Prologue

You could barely contain your excitement when your oversized luggage hit the ground after picking it up from the airport turnstile. You rolled your bag away in a hurry, weary of the time as your cousin had been waiting at the arrivals area for quite some time after your delayed flight. You took a deep breath, walking swiftly through the very busy airport on this cloudy Saturday morning. It was March in the midwest, and while it wasn’t the coldest— the warm, sunny weather hadn’t come to stay just yet. You were dressed in yoga pants with your cozy tan Uggs, and an olive green oversized hoodie. Your curly hair was in a messy bun, allowing your best facial features to be highlighted on display.

You stopped in your tracks to pull your phone out of your pocket, quickly opening your messaging app to text, “Just got my bag! Where are you?!” You headed to the nearest exit, stepping out of the door. You looked from left to right at all of the cars that were lined up in the arrivals area, none of the vehicles striking familiarity to you. “Hey, over here Kenz!” You jogged your way over to your cousin Ja’Marr, slightly surprised at how much he had changed since you last saw him. “Oh my god, Marr!!!” You embraced each other in a tight hug, both of you taken by surprise at how much the other has changed physically. Ja’Marr was your first cousin on your mom’s side, and you grew up extremely close, as you both were the only child. Although you both had many blatant differences, especially with you being from a mixed family, you and Ja’Marr always saw eye to eye and were two teas in a pod. Ja’Marr was a couple of years younger than you, but he always acted like a big brother to you. However, life got in the way and as you went off to college, you barely had the time to see each other anymore. Weekly visits turned into monthly visits, monthly visits turned into yearly visits around the holidays. With each of you on your own paths, it was hard not get swept away by all life had to offer. Ja’Marr grabbed your luggage and loaded it into the open trunk of his luxury car. “Wow, things sure have changed huh? You’ve come a long way from that old beat up Nissan!” You giggled and closed the trunk of the car, making your way to the passenger’s side and hopping in the front seat of the car. “Aye, that Nissan got us where we needed to go! I didn’t hear you complaining back then.” Ja’Marr said as he got into the car, closing his door and lowering the volume on the radio so he could hear you better. “I miss those days so much, we had so many good memories in that car”. You put your sunglasses on and buckled your seat belt, the anxiety creeping in on the future that was to come.

This was your first time in Ohio, so everything was fresh and new to you. You were born and raised in Louisiana, and while you had traveled somewhat, Ohio was never exactly on your radar to visit until now. You were in desperate need of a change, still processing a break up that happened 8 months prior with someone you thought was the love of your life. It felt like the 5 years you spent with your ex was thrown out of the window in a matter of a few seconds. You sighed and tucked a few stray curls behind your ear, Ja’Marr instantly noticing the tension within you. “You good, Kenz?” He briefly looked to his right at you before turning back to look at the busy road ahead. “I’m good…” you intently paused while thinking whether or not you wanted to open up the emotional baggage that you had been storing away for months. “We may not hang out as much as we used to, but I can tell when you’re lying a mile away. What’s up?” Ja’Marr hit the off button on the radio, completely encasing the car in utter silence while he waited for you to open up. “I don’t know…I had this whole idea of how life would be for me at this point. I’m almost 27, I thought I’d be married and on my way to having kids. Now I’m practically moving in with my cousin, in a completely new state. It almost feels like I’m starting over, and it’s terrifying.” Ja’Marr heard from your parents how tough the break up had been for you, and how isolated it had caused you to become from the rest of your family and friends. You had always been close to your parents, but when you shut them out, they couldn’t help but continuously recommend a change of scenery for you. They had been in constant contact with Ja’Marr for months discussing you, Ja’Marr not thinking twice when your mother recommended you come for a visit. Ja’Marr insisted that you stay for a while since it had been quite some time since you two had one on one time together. Ja’Marr was finally at a place in his career where he felt secure with little to no distractions, and you working remotely allowed you to be anywhere at any time, so it was kind of perfect.

You were lost in your thoughts, instantly triggered by the conversation and recalling your conversation with your parents. “Mackenzie, you know we love you but we are seriously worried about you. I haven’t seen you hang out with any of your friends in months. Not even Jade, you guys are usually attached to the hip.” Jade was your high school best friend, the two of you would go off to college together at Tulane University and remain inseparable, at least until recently. “I told you dad, I DON’T want to talk about Jade. Her and I are no longer friends, now please—drop it.” You shot a look at both your mom and dad, grabbing the keys to your car and slamming the door on your way out of your childhood home.

Your cousin chimed in, pulling you out of your thoughts, “Kenzie, you need to stop being so hard on yourself. You can’t predict the future and you sure as hell can’t predict some bitch ass dude betraying you. I hate that I get the feeling you blame yourself for what happened.” Ja’Marr was right, you definitely took partial blame for the betrayal. But even with you taking partial blame, it was still almost impossible to talk about. You had been working with a therapist since college, and that was the only person who knew the full scenario with you and your ex. Even then, it took you months to be able to even discuss the smallest details of what went down. “I honestly just want to put it all behind me. This is a chance for a fresh new start for me, and I want everyone to stop pressing me about what happened. I’m not going backwards here.” You shot an irritated look at him, but he took that as a clue to drop the subject, willing to do anything to make you feel comfortable on your first day in town. “I get it, anyway I’m just happy you’re here. We have a few months before I have to get back to work, so that leaves us time to do anything you want. Just let me know what you have in mind.” He grabbed his sunglasses from the center console and put them on as you gave him a slight smile. “Thanks again for inviting me to stay with you, I know I’m impeding on your bachelor pad.” You chuckled, thinking of how awkward things could get if he decided to bring a date to his house while you were there. “You know, that hadn’t even crossed my mind. I think I’m just excited to have my cousin around, you know you’ve always been like a sister to me. What’s mine is yours!” You couldn’t help but feel the excitement creep back in, as you imagined all of the opportunities this time in a new state could bring. You were also excited to reconnect with Ja’Marr and hear all of the things you’ve missed out on in his life.

He turned up the radio, both of you singing along to songs on his playlist as you made your way to his house in the quaint and gated neighborhood. After what seemed like the longest drive after all your back and forth thoughts and emotions, you pulled into the driveway, your eyes going wide at the beautiful home in front of you. “Wow…I knew things were different for you, but I didn't know you had it like that!” You said sarcastically, freeing yourself from the seatbelt and quickly hoping out of the car while Ja’Marr followed suit. “I’ve done alright for myself, if I do say so.” The trunk opened and he grabbed your luggage, grimacing and giving you a puzzling look. “What the hell did you pack in here anyway?!” You tilted your head toward him responding, “Oh that’s nothing. This is just to get me started, my parents are sending the rest of my things in the next few weeks!” You shut the trunk behind him, following behind as he led you up to the front door. “You can’t be serious, remind me what I’ve gotten myself into again” He laughed, punching in the security code to his keyless entry. You both entered the large home, you being instantly stunned by how clean it was, considering he didn’t used to be the neatest person you knew. There were pictures of him in college with his friends and teammates, scattered along the hallway wall. As you stepped further in, he rolled your bag along the hallway, stopping once reaching the back of the home. “I’ll put your bag in here. This was going to be the guest room, but I’ve never had use for it, so it’s yours now.” You quietly stepped into the spacious room, making note of the king sized bed with plenty of pillows. There was a large window which allowed for a ton of natural sunlight, and plenty of fresh plants. You noticed the suite also had it’s own bathroom, equipped with both a walk in shower and large bath tub. When you walked further in, you spotted the closet in the back corner, “Holy shit, is this JUST the closet?!” Your eyes went wide and you immediately flicked the light switch on, spotting several shelves to put your things, and plenty of space to hang your clothes. You were in utter shock, and you felt way out of your element. While you didn’t grow up poor, you weren’t exactly well off either. All you could think about was how you wouldn’t have nearly enough things to fill up all of the space on the shelves. The situation began to feel overwhelming again, and you couldn’t help but have second thoughts of whether or not you made the right choice in coming here. There was also no discussion of exactly how long you’d stay, so this lingered in your mind as you stepped out of the closet. Ja’Marr stood to the side, allowing you time to take everything in and get acquainted. He noticed you suddenly went quiet, the excitement in your face replaced by weariness. “Hey, Ja’Marr…how lon—“ He quickly cut you off before you could even finish your sentence. “You can stay as long as you want, you know that.” He gave a slight smile at the look of relief on your face when he gave you an answer. Even though you guys weren’t as close as you were when you were growing up, he could still read your mind and know when something was off. “I can’t thank you enough. If you feel like I’m overstaying my welcome or getting in your way, please just tell me and I’m on the first flight back home!” You said, sitting on the plush and comfy bed. “Please, Kenzie. I’m glad to have you, it’ll be nice to have someone here to keep me company. Seriously. I’m used to being here by myself all the time that it can get lonely.” He gave a smile of reassurance and walked toward the doorway, “I’ll give you some time to get comfortable, know you had a long night of traveling. Just yell if you need anything.” You smiled back and replied, “Thanks, I’m definitely taking a nap once I unpack.” You said as he stepped out of the room, giving you some space. You sighed deeply and laid back amongst the bed and pillows. You could not wait to see where this new adventure would take you.

Hope you all enjoyed! I’ll get the next part up within the next week hopefully 💕

[lovedrruunk]

'Mango Letters ♡⸝⸝💌⊹˖➴

Venture (Overwatch) x GN Reader

[Established Relationship!]

Authors note!!!; DID U MISS MEEE??? also...IM SO SORRYYY!!!! BUT I THINK IM JUST GONNA START WRITING WHAT I WANT :((( i realized im sososo bad with requests like genuinely ughhhh!! Ill def do some every now and then tho! Anyways im just clearing out my drafts cuz I’ve come to the realization that this is literally tumblr and my posts don’t have to be perfect lmao, enjoy!!

75 days 18 hours 46 minutes and 3 seconds. That's how long it had been since you've seen your partner Sloan. Being with them you knew how devoted they were to their work and how much it required them to travel but on pretty days like this one when the weathers just right and the flowers are in full bloom and the sunset is the perfect hue of orange, you couldn't help but wish they were by your side.

And although they were thousands of miles away they always made sure to send you physical manifestations of their love.

Through love letters of course!!!

It had been a tradition ever since they had started going on longer expeditions for them to send you things in the mail. So there in your shared closet in a cute little shoebox on the top shelf, laid all their feelings on coffee stained papers. Little crystals the same color as your eyes, maps with all the places they wanted to take you, polaroids of them doing silly faces, and your favorite part, the sweet scent of mango that came with it all.

And so although they weren't by your side, their feelings were. Their longing, their excitement, their thoughts, all in the palm of your hands covered in all types stickers and doodles.

Sitting outside on the porch of your shared home enjoying the calm breeze you smile holding the most recent letter delivered. Inhaling deeply catching the hints of mango as you carefully open it.

Dear Beloved,

It's been so looong!!! I can feel myself aging without you! Hope this letter finds you well! Notice how I used "beloved"? Fancy huh? Arn't I just the most romantic partner ever? (don't answer that.) This is my fifth time trying to write this and it's annoying the crew so this is my last chance before they jump me... It's just so hard y'know!? It has to be perfect. Perfect for you. Is that cringe? That was cringe sorry! I miss you lots and I think about you all the time... You'd love Petra! A camel ate my shemagh... but It's whatever. I'll buy a new one tomorrow, I'll get one for you too so don't worry! Now that I'm thinking about it the days seem to be going by pretty slow and I'm not sure if I like it much. Like I said I miss you a lot and it stinks being away from you for this long. Can't you just book a flight over here? Can't you do that for me pretty pleaseee? That's ridiculous? Okay just say you hate me and never want me to come back, just say you don't love me at all and want me to get stuck in a cave foreva. Just kidding! or am I?... (I am! >ᴗ<)

I like to imagine you’re missing me really bad counting down the seconds till I get back, which by the way I am too so don’t feel the need to deny it! I can see it now… You all shriveled up like a raisin crawling on the floor going “sloannn… sloannnn…” because of how bad you miss me hehe. Just kidding again! It’s probably the opposite let’s be real… I’m going insane without you seriously, I started talking to the hieroglyphics yesterday and the crew even caught me tasting some rocks earlier (sos!!!!)

But speaking of, they’re rushing me to “turn the lights off already” what a bunch of buzzkills ammarite? Promise to show up in my dreams okay? Who am I kidding, you’re always there regardless. Sweet dreams ᥫ᭡ᥫ᭡

p.s they really wanna meet you!

p.p.s take care okay? I’ll be home before you know it!!!

Yours truly,

(so romantic!!!)

“(๑´>᎑<)~*”

[adrift-in-thyme]

Happy belated birthday @luna-lovegreat !!! Here’s the Sky fluff I promised!

So sorry this took me awhile to finish!

—————————

“Just how strong is the bond between a loftwing and a Skyloftian?”

Sky has been asked that question quite often since plummeting to the surface. Even more so after he ventured from his timeline. He never truly knows how to reply. How can he explain their relationship? How can he put into words the utter exhilaration of soaring atop your loftwing?

From what he has observed, people usually place platonic love — and especially the platonic love between human and beast — somewhere beneath both romantic and familial, as though it is an inferior thing. As though it can never reach the same heights and depths as the others. The same precious worth. But Sky knows differently.

The love a loftwing and their rider share is like nothing else. As priceless and unbreakable as a diamond.

So, when, finally, a portal spits the heroes out in his era, Sky is overjoyed.

He can see Sun for the first time in forever, wrap her in his loving arms, hold her close and breathe her in, and whisper everything he’s wanted to tell her all these long months. He can see his friends, his family, the place that will always be his home, no matter how far he travels or what monsters he battles.

And —

He separates from Sun, runs to Lofty as the bird lands in a rush of wind and feathers. A grin splits his face and it feels good to smile after everything, so, so good…

— and he can reunite with his loftwing.

“Wow!” Wind gasps, mouth agape. “So, that’s a loftwing?”

“Close that mouth of yours before you swallow a bug,” Twilight teases, setting a hand on the sailor’s shoulder. His lips quirk up in a smile. “He’s beautiful, Sky.”

Lofty preens beneath the praise, ruffling his feathers and throwing back his head. Sun chuckles, and Sky sends her a grin.

“He is, isn’t he?” He sighs, leaning his forehead against Lofty’s beak. The next words leave his lips in a whisper meant only for the glorious animal before him…though if the beautiful woman standing close beside him hears he won’t mind. “I missed you so much, Lofty.”

A low trill emanates from the bird.

“He has missed you too,” Sun murmurs. “I’ve taken him out for a few flights to keep his wings limber. But you know he truly flies for no one except you.” She cocks her head, a grin on her lips. “You should take him out for a flight.”

He turns to her, a question in his eyes. It’s been so long, after all. He feels as though he hardly has enough time to catch up with them both. Much less Gaepora and Groose and everyone else….

“Are you sure, Zel?”

Sun nods and the breeze lifts her golden locks. “Go on, sleepyhead. We’ll have all the time in the world to spend together once you get back.”

Sky breathes in deep.

That’s right. They have time now. For the first time in a while, they have time.

He raises his eyes to Lofty’s, excitement alighting in his chest.

“You wanna go for a flight, Lofty?”

Feathers fly as the bird straightens, shaking himself out. His proud cry reverberates around the space.

Sky leans over, presses a kiss to Sun’s lips. And then, surrounded by the echoes of oohs and awws and ews that sound from his brothers, he climbs atop the loftwing’s back and is off.

The sky is a brilliant blue today. And while it’s always a brilliant blue in Skyloft – has been since he was born – Sky can still appreciate its splendor.

Even the brightest, most joyful heavenly display in another Hyrule cannot measure up to the plush clouds and soaring ceruleans of his home. And as Lofty climbs higher and higher, he feels a wide grin stretch his lips.

It is wonderful to be home.

He had known that he missed it – this little island full of vibrancy and life. The longing had eaten at him during the long nights and dogged at his steps through their arduous journey. But he supposes he had suppressed it to an extent — denied it even — if only to keep going. If only to keep from crumbling beneath the fear that always captures him when he sets foot on firm, grounded earth.

The fear that he will never again take to the skies.

But now as Lofty turns his grand body in a barrel roll and his sailcloth lifts and the wind sings in his ears and fills his nostrils with exhilarating freshness, those dark feelings are miles away.

Lofty pauses abruptly at the tail end of the trick. Then, he dives, plunging downward so suddenly that Sky’s stomach plummets along with him. His grin grows wider even as the brisk air steals any moisture from his mouth. He’ll be choking later, more than likely. But he is used to it by now.

A dry throat is a small price to pay.

Lofty shoots up, goes down again. Another pointed spin takes out a drifting octo. Sky’s echoing whoop turns to almost giddy laughter.

“Having fun, sleepyhead?” Someone calls from his right. Sky looks up just in time to catch sight of Sun streaking towards him. Her loftwing flips upside down as they soar over his head. Her delicate fingers reach for his and for a split second, the world seems to slow.

“Sorry,” she says as their fingers brush in the ghost of a caress, “I couldn’t resist joining you.”

Lofty lets out an eager call of welcome and Sky smiles.

“I’m glad you did, Zelda.”

She smiles and the world seems to grow a little brighter.

It always does when she’s around…

“How about a race, then?” She inclines her head toward the minuscule forms standing on the edge of Skyloft. “They’ve already cast bets.”

Sky chuckles. “All in favor of you, I’m sure.”

She doesn’t reply. But her smile grows just a touch larger, a hint of mischief in it.

Sky shakes his head.

He’ll admit it hurts a little to be betrayed by his brothers in such a way. They’re right though.

The only person who could ever beat him in a fair race was Sun.

“Alright.” His grin is more fierce now, teeth bared in playful determination. “You’re on!”

Yes, he thinks as they streak toward the designated finish line, the tips of their loftwings’ wings just touching, the bond between a loftwing and their partner is strong. As strong as the love he feels for Zelda. As strong as the love he feels for his brothers.

His family.

And maybe in it’s own way…even stronger.

[i520u]

long distance ༘⋆

first time doing hc’s so it MIGHT be a little awks… 😢 also i’ve been losing the idgaf war with jiwoong lately he’s been so damn fine

ricky x gn!reader, fluff, point form

masterlist

request is open!

personally i think he’d get reaaaaaaallllll clingy

especially if you have different timezones like oh he’d definitely stay up all night just to talk to you

the grabby hands thing that he does whenever he doesn’t want someone to leave?? he’ll do that every single time you tell him you’re gonna hang up

jokingly calls you his discord kitten 😐😐😐

STUDY CALLS ARE A MUST.

ricky would be struggling with his upcoming exam while you’re out there enjoying your semester break and he’d get soooo jealous

asks you to facetime him while he finishes up on his assignment but then he gets distracted by your voice and there’s 0 progress on his work

ricky’s an art student 100%

a lot of his artworks that he needs to do for his assignments are inspired by you tbh 😞 like he misses you so much that he decided to revolve his schoolwork around you

i think at first he would’ve been really reluctant on doing long distance with you

but he also loves you too much so he was willing to try it out

he never gets used to it though. like he just wants to be with you physically every day. but he understands that he can’t just do that

he loves to send you surprise gifts too. maybe in a month you’d get 2-3 gifts delivered to your house by an ‘anonymous sender’

you obviously know who the sender was

ricky LOOOVES it when you immediately facetime him to show him that you’ve received the gifts he sent you, even if it was 4 in the morning for him

ricky likes sending you tiktoks that reminds him of you while you’re asleep so when you’re finally awake you’d have like 53 notifications from him

you’d get a call from him sometimes and it’s usually over something really trivial like him wanting you to experience the first snowfall of the year with him

or him showing you a random street cat that he found and saying that the cat is “soooo you”

girls tried hitting on him once. as a result he made sure his lockscreen was you, his wallpaper on his laptop was you, and like i said HIS ASSIGNMENTS were inspired by you

with that being said, one time his friends saw his lockscreen and called you hot and he got super jealous

(he wouldn’t admit it though)

one time ricky was eating a local candy that was not available at the place you lived in, so he decided to buy a dozen of them, put them in a box and shipped them to you

you cannot go on with your day without texting him good morning. one time you forgot to do so and he started overthinking about your wellbeing

even called your mom and your cousin to make sure you were ALRIGHT

those monthly ig story photodump thing? he always makes sure to include a photo of you and him (even if it was an old picture) in every one of his dumps!! he loves u so much!!!!!!

he’s rich so the first thing he would do is book a flight straight to your place as soon as his sem break starts <3

“ricky you should use your sem break to travel to other places”

“they don’t have you in other places, so why should i?”

when it’s time for him to go back to his place, though, ohhh he’d cry so hard in the plane

he promised you he wouldn’t cry but he never keeps his promise

gives you the longest and sweetest kiss ever before the airport staffs starts scolding him to check into his flight

if the long distance relationship lasted long enough he might actually just pay for your flight and expenses so that you could live with him tbh

[shyvioletcat]

Rowaelin Month Day 2: Idiots in Love

When I think of idiots in loveI really do think of this au. And the idiocy really comes out in this. If you remember that fic idea I floated about not writing but then decided to write anyway *wink* it’s this one. CW: smut

~~~~~

Rowan reclined in Aelin’s bed, reading over the latest email Fenrys had sent him. His newest book was days away from being on the shelves and that meant the promotional bullshit was about to pick up in a big way. First and foremost was the book tour Rowan was leaving for in three days. There was a list full of times, flights and locations Rowan needed to be aware of. He’d handed over all the social media stuff for pre-release, knowing it was essential for good sales and all that, but besides a few prerecorded reels Rowan wasn’t a keen participant. Book tours were another beast entirely, in person he’d have no choice but to interact. It would be all kinds of exhausting.

For a good few months he would be touring cities across continents, talking about and signing his books. It was starting locally but then he’d be flying to Rifthold, then over to Wendlyn. He had never liked the public side of things, but for the sake of his success he suffered through it. Conventions had been fine because it usually came with a few rounds of verbal sparring with Aelin—which was always a highlight. The travel and time away had always been a non-issue, Rowan had never been overly attached to one place. Because previously he’d been single and unhappy, and the change in scenery had offered him mild excitement. This time was different. This time he was leaving Aelin behind.

Aelin had her own schedule to keep. She was in the thick of writing her next novel and her turn-in deadline was approaching. The best she could do was visit him for a weekend here and there. Other than that they were spending most of the next three months apart. Rowan hated that, he was so in love with her, and borderline obsessed in the most healthy way. Even a few days away from her was hard as it is. The prospect of it being months was torture.

The source of his travelling anguish appeared in the doorway, hands behind her back and a scheming look on her face. Aelin was dressed in one of his shirts, her new favourite attire, but he noted that she’d done her hair and makeup. Odd, because they had no plans on going out today. She already had a collection of shirts in her drawers but always seemed to take another when she visited his townhouse. Rowan might have to buy more before he left on his trip because he didn’t like his chances of getting them back.

“What are you up to?” He asked, discarding his phone on the bed.

Aelin’s smile turned a little more wicked and she took a step into her bedroom, rocking playfully on her feet. “I’ve had an idea.”

”Yeah?” Rowan asked cautiously. There was something afoot here, and he had no idea what it was.

“I’ll miss you while you’re gone.” Another step. “I think I’ve found something to ease the pain of it.”

Rowan hesitated as he tried to figure out what it might be—he came up blank. “How so?”

Biting her lip Aelin presented her prize from behind her back. It was a cylinder and Rowan tilted his head to read the writing along the label. His stomach dropped when the words registered in his brain.

Clone-a-Willy.

“No.” The protest came out immediately.

Aelin’s face fell in disappointment. “Why not?”

“I am not putting my—” the thought was abhorrent. “I’m not putting myself in that.”

“You don’t even know how it works,” Aelin whined, sitting on the foot of the bed.

“I don’t need to know, I can guess and it can’t be good,” Rowan said.

Aelin sighed, rolling the abomination over her palms. “Come on, Rowan. I read a bunch of reviews and it doesn’t seem that bad. Please, for me. It’ll be fun.”

“I’m still very sceptical and not willing,” Rowan hedged.

His ever persistent girlfriend only sighed, yanked the lid off the tube with a pop, and tipped contents out onto the bed. There were two tubs of something—one bright green—a thing that looked like a tube of lipstick, a thermometer, a small wooden stick and some kind of cloth. Aelin picked up the folded booklet which was no doubt the instructions, glancing through them before handing them over.

“See, nothing to it,” she assured him.

Shooting her a disbelieving glare he took the instructions and started reading. Aelin might be confident, but Rowan was not. With each line he read that little scrap of confidence hidden somewhere inside him dissipated a little more.

Measure and cut the tube, mix the mould solution, stick penis into the tube, wait at least two minutes before removing.

“Aelin—”

“I’m begging you, Rowan,” Aelin interrupted, giving him her best doe-eyed expression. “I promise to make your cooperation worthwhile.”

He looked at his girlfriend’s face and the myriad of sinful things she promised there. Two minutes. He would suffer for two minutes and then who knew what his rewards might be. Rowan was considering it, and Aelin was quick to swoop in when she saw him wavering.

“It’ll be fun,” she said cheerfully, then rectified when he shot her a look full of doubt. “I mean, it’ll be something fun for me. Keep you in my thoughts while you’re away.”

Rowan scoffed. “When you put it that way.”

Aelin patted his arm. “Just remember, lots of rewards for you.”

She played dirty, climbing over him, encouraging him to lie back and kissing him. It was a heady and dirty kind of kiss, full of salacious promises. She pressed her body against him, grinding on his lap while her tongue flicked at the inside of his mouth. Rowan was already half hard when she pulled back.

“Please,” she whispered, kissing him again.

Rowan’s hands were tight on her hips, his head dropping back as he groaned. He always found it so hard to deny her. “Fine.”

Aelin sat up, squealing as she clapped her hands in utter delight. A moment later she was off him and dashing out the bedroom door. He heard the thudding of footsteps and a cupboard opening, and then Aelin was back, a towel and a bowl in her hands.

“First reward you get right now.”

Rowan was about to ask what it was when Aelin simply grabbed the hem of his t-shirt and pulled it over her head. Underneath she wore a golden lacy lingerie set.

“This wasn’t a spur of the moment thing, then?” Rowan said, eyes roving, taking in every detail. “And you knew I’d say yes.”

“When do you ever say no?” Aelin stated matter of factly, adding her new supplies to the pile and kneeling on the bed. “All right loverboy, clothes off.”

Arguing would get him nowhere, so he did as he was commanded. Shirt first, and then his sweatpants. When he was done, Aelin threw the towel over to him.

“Put this under you, don’t want to ruin my bedding,” she explained. “That one is covered in bleach stains, I don’t mind the sacrifice.”

Aelin picked up the instructions again, and while she read Rowan took the opportunity to enjoy the view. The rich gold of the set was a lovely contrast against the sun kissed tan of her skin. The briefs sat high on her hips, all lace except for a satin panel at the front. The bra had two thin decorative straps that ran over the top of her cleavage, meeting in the middle. It was longer and covered more of her torso than some of her other pieces, but it was just as sexy. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on her—or his lips. The best he could do right now was resting a hand on her thigh, drawing idle patterns while she concentrated. When she shivered it took a lot of restraint not to take it further up her thigh.

“Step one, we need to trim the tube,” Aelin declared.

“Please tell me that’s not a euphemism,” Rowan muttered, rubbing a hand over his face and those nerves started to return.

Aelin snorted, but then picked up the clear tube that everything in the kit had come in. “No, we need to make sure this is the right size and you need to be hard. Do you want to do the honours, or shall I?”

Never one to miss the opportunity to have his girlfriend’s hands on him, Rowan chose the latter. “You.”

The makeout and seeing Aelin in her new get up still had him half hard. It wouldn’t take much for him to get all the way there. Aelin smiled, crawling back over him. Her hands tickled up his thighs, not deterring from their goal though. Rowan held his breath as her hand closed around him, pumping slowly. Aelin’s tits looked amazing from this angle, hanging heavy against the lace. Unable to keep from touching her, Rowan’s hand made its own journey, starting at her ass, heavy with enough pressure to have her body bowing closer to him. His fingers threaded in her loose hair, urging her down for a kiss. All the while she kept pumping him, his cock thickening with every pass.

“Feels so fucking good,” Rowan groaned.

“You there?” Aelin whispered onto his lips.

When Rowan nodded she was gone a second later, that godsdamned instructions back in her hand. Then she picked up the tube and a marker and held it next to his hard cock. Marking a line she then cut it with a pair of scissors that game from gods knew where. She really had come prepared. Aelin nodded at her handiwork and smiled to herself. Then she was up, ready to take on the next step.

“Time for the mould that I’ll mix in the bathroom. And put this on.” This time it was a little tub that Aelin threw at him, beige with a blue lid. “It will stop any hair getting, ah… caught.”

“What?” Rowan spluttered, but Aelin was already gone.

She was headed into the bathroom, bowl and a few pieces from the kit in hand, and that gave Rowan a chance to admire the outfit from behind. Turns out it wasn’t a full thong, triangles of lace hugged the curve of her ass. And he had thought it couldn’t get any better. Rowan heard the water start running and guessed he should do his part. He pulled the lid off the tub of Vaseline and smoothed a decent amount over and around his erection. Only a few minutes later Aelin was out of the bathroom, the tube full of the moulding liquid.

“Sit up and let’s do this,” she said with determined excitement.

Rowan sat up, making sure to keep the towel under him. Aelin was eager as anything as she stood in front of him. “First, this.” She rolled a rubber cock ring down the length of him. “I read that it lessens the mess.”

“Did your research, did you?” His voice was tight as Aelin played with him once she was done.

“Absolutely. These are high stakes. You ready for the fun part?” She ended her question with a squeeze.

Rowan groaned. “I think you and I have a different definition of fun.”

“Don’t be a baby, you’ve come this far,” Aelin said, hiding her amusement very poorly.

“So, what? I just stick it in?”

She nodded. “That’s what the instructions say. Ready?”

It was now or never. Aelin pumped him again, just to help him recover while they had their discussion. Rowan was feeling nervous, and to give him some resolve he looked over Aelin again, reminding himself that he just needed to last two minutes and then the real fun could begin.

Closing his eyes, Rowan bit the bullet. “Just do it.”

Any hesitancy Rowan felt, Aelin outweighed it by ten fold with her resolve. She went for it, taking his dick in her hand and angling it right before sliding him in. It was cold and slimy, and felt disgusting. But he just kept sliding in until the end of the tube met the cock ring.

“Set timer, two minutes,” Aelin said.

Opening his eyes Rowan saw her drop the phone on the bed. Aelin was smiling like she was having the best time, curious eyes watching the tube that was encasing his dick. Contemplating that had him visibly cringing.

“No! You have to stay hard or this won’t work,” Aelin said in a panic, no doubt seeing the look on his face. “What can I do?”

Rowan’s brain scrambled for a second, trying to find something. “Talk to me, touch me. The best you can anyway.”

“It’s so fucking hot you doing this for me,” Aelin said, her voice sultry, not wasting any time and cutting right to the chase. “I love your cock so much, I know it won’t be anything like the real thing though.”

It was working, but he needed more. An idea struck him and he took hold of the tube. “I got this, you get up here.”

He lay back and it took a second for Aelin to catch on to what he meant. She crawled up the bed, her knees resting above Rowan’s shoulders. As Aelin used the headboard to hover over his face, Rowan used his free hand to pull her underwear to the side, baring her sex.

“Keep talking, Aelin. Tell me what you’re going to do while I’m away and you’re here without me,” Rowan said, then he was on her.

Aelin moaned loudly as his tongue played with her clit, her hips dropping lower. That sound was enough to have his mind ignoring the discomfort around his dick, so he did it again, and again, just to hear how much Aelin loved what he was doing. Rowan hummed, and that had Aelin gasping, hips rolling over his mouth.

Pressing a chaste kiss to where she was most sensitive Rowan said, “I can’t hear you Aelin.”

“Fuck, Rowan,” she sighed. “I’ll use it every night, thinking of you.”

Rowan hummed again, encouragingly, urging her to keep going.

“I’ll think of you, how big you are,” each word was laboured, like it was a struggle to get the words out and keep her mind straight. “How perfect you feel inside me.”

“More, Aelin,” Rowan growled on her clit,

The moan of pleasure Aelin let out told Rowan she was close to breaking. Having her ride his face was utterly distracting and his sole goal now was to make her come. A beeping went off—Aelin’s phone—but there was no way he was stopping now.

“I’ll fuck myself with it,” Aelin manged through her heavy panting, her voice shaking and much as her body was. “Just like you do, so deep. It won’t feel as perfect as you, but I’ll be thinking of you every second.”

Rowan sucked, then rolled his tongue over that bundle over nerves and that was all it took. Aelin’s moan was closer to a scream, her hips undulating with each pulsing wave of her orgasm. Rowan kept up his ministrations until Aelin all but fell away from him, a panting mess on the bed beside him. Through heavy lidded eyes, she glanced at him, and a second later she was rolling over and kissing him. Aelin hummed as Rowan ran his hands over her body until her brain cleared enough that she stopped her phone beeping.

“That was certainly one way to pass the time,” she said playfully. “Should we see how our little experiment went?”

Rowan snorted, his attention redirected to the particularly uncomfortable situation he was experiencing. “I wouldn’t call it little.”

“Of course you wouldn’t,” Aelin replied as she straddled his thighs.

That made Rowan laugh, laying back on the bed so Aelin could get this done with and he’d be free. He’d done his part, gone along with his girlfriend’s whim and suffered through the discomfort. Now he was ready for it to be over. He felt a tug on his dick, not one that felt particularly great. Then another one. On the third the mould still wasn’t budging. Rowan raised his head a fraction and looked down to see Aelin peering at the white filled tube sticking straight up in the air.

“What?”

Aelin cleared her throat, looking no less beautiful in her get up as she bit her lip. “It’s stuck.”

Immediately Rowan reached down and gave it a tug himself. Oh fucking gods it did not move. Rowan’s heart was pounding and he was sweating. This was not happening.

“This was a stupid idea,” Rowan said. He twisted the mould but the only thing he succeeded in was hurting himself. “Did we leave it on for too long?”

“You’re fine, you big baby.” Aelin was trying to play it off but he could still hear the slight nervousness to her tone.

“You should have got a bigger size,” Rowan all but groaned.

There was an ill disguised snort from Aelin. “This was the biggest size.”

Despair was taking him. This was what hell was like.

Meanwhile, Aelin was trying again, and his dick—the stupid appendage that it was—couldn’t figure out that this was not the time to be getting turned on by her touch. It didn’t help that she looked like a literal goddess kneeling over him.

“Stop touching it, you’re making it worse!”

This time Aelin outright laughed. “I never thought I’d hear those words.”

Rowan rubbed his hands over his face. “Aelin, please. I was doing this for you and now neither of us will have my dick.”

“You’re being dramatic,” Aelin said, and for some unknown reason thought it was a good idea to rub a soothing hand over his stomach. His traitorous dick twitched in response, the weight of the godsdamned mould a strange sensation.

“You’ve ruined it, it’s useless,” Rowan bemoaned.

“I stand by my previous statement,” Aelin said. When Rowan raised his head up enough to shoot her a baleful glare she lifted her hands in surrender. “I’ll leave you, I can see my presence is not helping.”

Rowan closed his eyes and felt the bed dip as Aelin left. With the reason for his current predicament gone, Rowan turned his thoughts to the unsexiest things he could conjure up. Getting stuck in traffic, the smell of overripe bananas, that time Lorcan got an infection in his big toenail. Rowan pictured all those things and tried to keep his breathing calm. He needed the adrenaline rush to wear off, not just from his panic but from giving Aelin head. That was the wrong thought to stray to, now Rowan had to think of even more gross things.

It took a while but his heart beat started to slow and he wasn’t sweating anymore. Rowan had never felt such immense relief when he felt the weight of the plaster filled tube dip as his dick finally decided to syphon off some of the blood flow. As soon as it fully landed on his stomach Rowan went to pull it off. There was some residence, but with some slight twisting he was free.

“Thank you Mala,” Rowan sighed in relief.

Curiosity got the better of him and he looked inside. He couldn’t particularly see much except a dick shaped hole. The temptation to throw it across the room was strong, just for the spite of it. Rowan really had seen his life flash before his eyes.

“Still in one piece, I see.”

Aelin had appeared in the doorway, her gold clad body leaning on the frame, like nothing had gone amiss.

“You owe me,” Rowan said, dropping the cloning mould on the bed. He’d be happy to never see it again.

With a grin Aelin retrieved it. “We’re established that. Go have a shower and I’ll finish this off.”

Rowan wasn’t going to argue with that. He left Aelin to do whatever the next heinous step was and went into the ensuite. This shower was much nicer than his and the taps rotated so much smoother. It wasn’t long before he found the perfect temperature and stepped under, letting the pounding water pressure Aelin was so proud of wash away any remnants feelings of his discomfort.

The shower did him good—Rowan cooled down in more ways than one. After getting over the shock of getting his dick stuck in a plastic tube he could see the merit in Aelin’s plan, for her at least. He’d be gone for months and she would be alone while she wrote. It was unlikely that they would get much time to see each other in person. It would be phone calls and video chats. Rowan wouldn’t be touching her body, wouldn’t be able to feel her. Gods knew it would be torture. Could he blame her for taking a more creative initiative?

Rowan turned the water off, not wanting to waste any more of the limited time he had left with Aelin before he had to leave. Dressed in nothing but a towel, he found Aelin lounging in bed, still wearing that set that had kept him hard through his ordeal. All evidence of the cloning fiasco was gone, something he was very glad of. Aelin looked stunning, that self satisfied smirk only enhancing her already beautiful face. She was a menace, but she was his menace.

Already Rowan’s body was reacting, he could feel the fabric of the towel brushing against his cock as it hardened. It took a moment for Aelin to notice him, her eyes drinking in the expanse of his bare chest.

She sat up, leaning on one hand so her golden hair cascading over her shoulder. “Am I forgiven yet?”

Rowan untucked the towel and let it fall away, watching as Aelin’s eyes flared with desire. He crawled over to her, Aelin drifting towards the bed as crept up her body. She was waiting for him to take what he needed, so patient even though Rowan knew she wanted this just as much as he did.

“I have a feeling I will be,” Rowan said, voice low and he loved seeing the way his words made Aelin shiver.

In the end, Rowan decided that he had suffered enough today and he wasn’t going to prolong it any further. His hand started on Aelin’s neck, then traced a path lower, covering her breast before it tightened there. Aelin’s mouth opened on a silent moan, her body arching towards him. Rowan dropped his mouth to her other breast, teasing her through the fabric. Aelin sighed, her hands tight in his hair.

Any other time Rowan might have drawn this out—played Aelin’s body perfectly until she was sighing his name over and over again. But today, Rowan found he didn’t have the patience. He reached under Aelin’s body and unclasped her bra, then he was helping her out of his underwear.

“Roll over for me, Aelin,” he said onto the skin right over her heart.

With a coy smile, Aelin did as he requested. Rowan ran a hand down the length of her back, and then up, brushing golden tresses out of the way. Then he lent over Aelin's body, kissing her shoulder and neck, teeth grazing as he went.

“Are you ready for me?”

Aelin nodded but Rowan decided to investigate for himself. Dragging his hand between her body and the sheets, he touched his way down until his thumb brushed over Aelin’s clit. She moaned, her hands fisting in the sheets. Just going a little bit lower Rowan found the evidence he sought.

“You are. Aren’t you,” Rowan growled, a finger dipping inside. “So wet, so ready to take me.”

“Oh, fuck. Rowan.” Aelin all but moaned his name. “Yes, gods yes.”

Just for a few indulgent moments Rowan teased, easing in out, applying pressure to places that had Aelin gasping. His cock twitched with every sound, getting almost painfully hard. That didn't seem fair after everything Rowan had been through in the last half hour, and Aelin seemed to think so too. She reached under the pillow in front of her and held up the condom between two fingers.

No hesitation and it was only moments before Rowan was ready and lining himself up. Aelin was eager, bracing herself on her elbows and pressing back.

“Come on, Rowan. I know you want to,” Aelin taunted, her voice husky, betraying how far gone she was.

“Anything for you,” Rowan promised and slid in.

Their moans filled the room as Rowan sank as far as he could go. He had one on her hip and the other was at the base of Aelin’s neck, tangling in her hair. After that it was too easy to fall into the rhythm that he knew would have them desperate for release. With each flex of his hips he could feel Aelin coiling tighter and tighter, every moan sharp and wanton. Rowan wasn’t quiet either, groaning as he felt her inner wall flutter around him, begging him for more. And Rowan gave it, he kept going until Aelin was screaming his name, her body going taught before she came, her hips dragging her over his cock relentlessly enough that it had him following right after.

Aelin went limp once they stilled, falling to the mattress completely when Rowan pulled out. He dealt with the condom and was back moments later, pulling Aelin into his arms. She sighed as she settled on his chest and Rowan kissed her head.

“I’m going to miss you,” she said sadly. “My home will be lonely without you.”

Rowan was quiet for a moment, a thought weaving through his mind. He was hesitant to voice it, but the longer he thought about it, the more it made sense.

“What if it doesn’t have to be?”

Aelin propped herself up so she could look at him, expression confused. “What?”

“What I mean is,” Rowan reached out and tucked a lock of hair behind Aelin’s ear. “How about when I get back, I move in.”

“You mean it?” Aelin asked, eyes bright.

“I mean yeah, unless you want to move into my place,” Rowan shrugged.

Aelin lent her cheek on his chest, her smile beaming up at him. “Nah, my place is better. But you can definitely bring your library ladder though.”

Rowan laughed and lent down to kiss his wickedly funny girlfriend. She met him halfway, her hand cradling his cheek.

“If we learnt anything from today,” Rowan said, pulling back just enough so their lips still brushed. “Your wish is my command.”

~~~~~

I laughed so hard reading this one. Thanks for reading!

Tagging @rowaelinscourt

[pvnkfangirl]

SURPRISE

⌂ |

pairing: Min Yoongi x y/n

summary: y/n surprises Yoongi on tour

You couldn’t contain your excitement. You’d been planning to surprise Yoongi on tour for a while now and finally, you’d been able to get two weeks off from work. The day had finally come you packed your bags and took the first flight to Los Angeles. With the help of Namjoon, Jimin, and Yoongi’s team you were able to keep your fiancé busy and away from his phone. He called you every night after his performance right before he went live. So alone it would’ve gone completely wrong, you were greatly thankful especially since they had all told you just how much Yoongi missed you.

When you arrived at his hotel, his team gave you a key to his room where you would get ready for the concert. You were so excited, tonight was going to be perfect. You were pulling all the stops, wearing his favorite black dress, and matching leather jacket that said D-Day. You just couldn’t wait to see him and finally, the time had come.

You patiently waited in his dressing room, he was finishing up his sound check. “Can’t it wait. I need to get ready for the show, how important can this person be?” You overheard him tell his stage manager. “They're very important. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be forcing you to meet them. There in your dressing room.”

A light knock hit the door and quickly took a seat in his makeup chair, turning it so that he couldn’t see your face only the back of your head. The door opened, “I think I am pretty important, but maybe I am biased.” You said as you slowly spun around to see him. He’d recognize your voice anywhere. The rapper ran over lifting you out of your seat. You wrapped your arms around his neck as he snaked around your waist.

He hid his in the crock of your neck. You heard him sniffle, “aww baby.”

“I’ve missed you so much.” He said as he pulled away resting his forehead against yours. You placed a hand on his cheek, “I've missed you too.” Yoongi leaned in pressing his lips against yours. You could taste the Hennessy on his lips, the kiss was sweet, reminding you just how much you love him. Both of you pull away, “How long?”

You smile, “2 weeks! Be prepared to be sick of me!!”

“I could never get sick of you. Is this why you’ve been ignoring my calls?” He asked before pressing a kiss to your forehead. A giggle left your lips, “I couldn’t bring myself to lie to you. So I got Jimin and Joon’s help. They did most of the work, all I had to do was show up and look cute.” Yoongi’s hands slipped to your hand as he pulled away from your embrace, he spun you. His eyes took you in for the first since he stepped into the room. “You look beautiful.”

“Really, I am hoping to catch the eye of my favorite rapper.” You winked. He smiled, “God, how did I get so lucky.” You let go of his hand and stepped closer to him grabbing his arms and wrapping them around your waist before setting yours around his neck. His hand began to travel down towards your butt.

A knock interrupted moment, “Yoongi, stage in 10.” Yoongi groaned in response. You pressed a chaste kiss to his lips, “There’ll be plenty of time for that. Go on get ready. I’ll see you out there.” You pulled away and made your way to the door. “Hey, I love you!”

Yoongi’s smile grew, “I love you more.”

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞🪞

93 for ❄️:

---

Eddie exhales. “Okay. I, uh… I trust you.”

And he does. For whatever reason. He does. 

ix.

A few days later, Eddie books the weekend of the Cardinals game off from work no issue. Bobby is practically giddy to send him off.

“This will be good for you, Eddie,” he says. “I’m really happy to hear you’re meeting, well, literally half way.”

“Thank you, Bobby,” Eddie says, cheeks a little warm. There’s something about encouragement from Bobby that goes further for him than most people. He sees why Buck is sort of hooked on it. It’s easier to believe in yourself, when Bobby believes in you.

For a second, Eddie has the strange urge to tell Bobby everything. To come out to him. To tell him all about therapy and Charlie and that he really is doing better. He’s being better. He thinks Bobby would be proud of him. 

But he doesn’t say anything. 

His mouth simply doesn’t open when his brain tries to convey the thought. 

▪️▪️▪️

Buck is, of course, ecstatic for him. 

They chat about it while restocking the engine that afternoon. He’s tried texting Charlie about it, too. But he must already be traveling to see his brother, because he hasn’t replied yet. 

“Man, this is great,” Buck grins at him when Eddie explains the situation. “This is going to change things. I can feel it.”

“You can feel it, huh?” Eddie raises an eyebrow.

“Yep,” Buck insists. “He’s going to be surly at first, but then he’ll realizes how much he misses you, and he’ll go back to El Paso, and your mom will annoy him-”

“Wait, what?” Eddie asks. 

“You think you’re the only person on earth who finds her annoying?” Buck asks.

“Should you be insulting my mom?” Eddie asks, genuinely unsure.

“Yes,” Buck replies. “After what I witnessed in May? Yes.”

“Fair enough,” Eddie mutters.

“Anyway, your mom’ll get on his nerves, and he’ll be less angry, and he’ll remember, hey, Dad is never this uptight, and boom, you’ll be booking flights to go get him,” Buck says. 

Eddie smiles softly. “I think it’s a bit more complicated than that. But I appreciate your optimism.”

Buck shrugs. 

“Name one time in my life I’ve ever been wrong about…” Buck trails off, looking at a point beyond Eddie. His expression changes. “Uh, hello? Can we help you?”

Eddie looks over his shoulder to see a tall, familiar looking man walk into the station. He’s dressed in street clothing, bouncing car keys back and forth between his hands. It takes Eddie maybe three seconds to recognize him in person, rather than over Zoom. 

Charlie.

Charlie… 

Why is Charlie here?

“Charlie?” Eddie asks. 

Charlie stops short. “Eddie?” 

Buck looks between them. “You guys know each other?”

“Wh-why are you here?” Eddie asks. “I didn’t… I didn’t tell you where I worked.”

“You work… You work here.” Charlie’s face is pale. “This is… Oh, Jesus.”

“You’re not here for me,” Eddie realizes aloud. “You’re here for…”

His brother.

All at once, the dots connect in Eddie’s brain. Like tiny, individual puncture wounds. The brother who’s an addict. Dead sister-in-law. Dead niece and nephew. Both of them left their home state… Now, all Eddie can see is the identical hazel of their eyes. Oh fuck. 

“Eddie?” Buck asks.

“I’m sorry,” Charlie blurts. “I had no idea. Eddie, I had no idea.”

A fourth voice enters the conversation, a few paces away from Buck and Eddie. 

“Guys, what’s going… Charlie?” 

Bobby. 

---

I can't quite give you 99 for 🪞, because of reasons. Gonna wrap up the first chapter after this snippet. So here's something:

---

Another shrug.

Fair enough. How does a kid know how to screen a potential parent? Again. She’s just six.

“Well, how about this,” he suggests. “I’ll tell you a bit about me, and you can stop me and ask whatever you want? Or tell me anything about you?”

“Okay,” she says, then takes a sip of juice. 

“Alright, so,” Buck says, then trails off a little. This is harder than he thought. “Well, you know I’m a firefighter. And that’s kind of my favorite thing. But… Uh, I also like to cook. And be active.”

Why is he saying this like it’s a dating profile? 

“Uh, okay, and… I have an older sister. Maddie. I have a niece. My best friend, Eddie, he’s also one of the firefighters you met… He lives around the corner. He’s super fun.”

Dove looks a little overwhelmed with all the information. None of this means anything to her. At least not yet. 

Buck takes a deep breath and recalibrates. 

“Have you been to the zoo before, Dove?”

She shakes her head. 

“Well, I really like to go to the zoo. Maybe you and I can go together sometime?”

Dove considers this. 

“Okay,” she nods. “To see reptiles?”

Buck smiles. She really likes those reptiles, huh? 

“Absolutely,” he promises. “There’s a whole big building full of them.”

“Cool,” she says, a coy little smile on her face. Like she’s nervous about finally getting something she wants. 

“What’s your favorite reptile?” Buck asks. “Crocodiles?”

“And turtles,” she says. “And tortoises.”

“Oh, yeah. They’re super cool, too.”

“They take their houses with them,” she announces. 

“They do,” Buck nods. “That’s pretty neat.”