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loousir · 3 years ago

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[Gorgon] Some Secrets Should be Said

Gorgon Male x Unaware/Oblivious Male Reader

Eros

Warnings: Tiniest ammout of homophobia/racisim, smoochin in a supply closet, YOU MAY BE IN HIGHSCHOOL BUT YOU ARE 18

Masterlist

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It was an early Monday morning. The usual early birds were arriving at school, you being one of them. Rumor was going around of a new student getting enrolled. There were only three high schools in this small town; One for monsters, one for humans, and one for both. You were enrolled in the one that shared with monsters. The overall relations in the school were good, other than the typical high school antics.

You had just been dropped off by your sibling and we're walking into the building. A few people smiled your way and you smiled back, heading to your first hour. The teacher was a Satyr and she was a bubbly as ever, happy to see you in the morning. "Good morning (Y/n), we have a new student coming today." Your ears perked up and you looked over to her.

"Ah, we do? So the rumor was true after all?" She laughed and said, "Yes! He's gonna make a bit of history here." You became confused at her statement as you walked over to your seat. "What do you mean by that?" You asked setting your bag on the table. "I might get in a bit of trouble for telling but..." She walked over, her hooves clacking on the floor as she did. She leaned in on the table, "He will be the first Gorgon to be enrolled into the school!"

She seemed overly excited about the new student but you smiled at her enthusiasm. "You seem awfully happy about that. Is he in our class?" You asked, sitting down in your chair. Her smiled seemed to get wider as she nodded. You paused for a moment and leaned back. "Does that mean he's gonna sit by me?" She nods again. "Yep! You are the only one without a table partner. I'm sure you'll be fine. He's a nice kid." She ruffeled your hair and you swatted her hands away. "Auntie, you know I'm taken right?" She isn't your biological aunt but she's very close with your mom so you call her it for fun.

She laughed and walked away saying, "He's a cute one." You sighed and rolled your eyes as you pulled out your phone. You opened Snapchat and sent a message to your boyfriend.

You took a cute selfie, looking down at the phone while your forehead rested on the table.

Aunties super excited about our new student.

Ngl, I kinda am too. She said he was a Gorgon and I think she's onto my facination with cute snakes xx

You sent the snap and put your phone face down on the table before resting your face on your bag. A minute or so passed before you got a message back.

It was a black screen but he usually sent one. Admittedly, you have never seen him but you respected that since you fell in love with his personality, which was charming as ever.

Don't go cheating on me now ;)

I might just have to show you I'm cuter xx

You smiled and took another selfie.

So that means I get to see you then??? Game on babe xx

You smiled as you sent it. Yeah, it was cheesy flirting but it made you happy none the less. A few seconds later he messaged back with another black screen.

Hmm, I just might lol

You sent that you love him too and put your phone in your pocket. Smiling slightly as you looked up to see that some other students were starting to show up. Soon enough, the first bell for class to start rings and students filter in, taking their seats. Five minutes later, you still haven't seen a certain Gorgon as the final bell rings, saying anyone who wasn't there was late.

Gotta get to class, message you when I can

Love you xx

Mrs. Hucksburry stood at the front of the class, writing some last minute things on the board. "Alright class," Most of the students quiet down at her words. "As you may have heard, we have a new student today! I want you to treat him with respect as he is one of us," She said referring to her fellow monsters. "He is the first of his kind to be enrolled into our schools system." Right as she finished speaking, the door opened to show a rather handsome face and a the obvious 'hair' that came in the shape of several small, darkly colored snakes that seemed to form some sort of style.

He wore rather nice and stylish clothes, very 90's -esk. Mrs. Hucksburry smiled more and looked over to him. "Good morning Mr. Lamollot, glad to see you made your way here." He smiles a cute and almost shy smile, making a pair of girls in class giggle. You watched and tuned out what they were saying before seeing he was looking at you.

You waved to him as he walked over to your table. "I'm guessing you're (Y/n)?" You smiled and nodded, "That'd be me." You put your bag on the floor next to the table and he quietly sat down next to you. "I'm Eros by the way." He was quiet when he spoke as class had officially started. You pulled out a notebook with a pen/pencil and made a message page.

You have the same name as my boyfriend!

You tore the paper out and slid it over to him while he was getting his own notebook and pen. Notes were handwritten on the board since the projector broke and hadn't been replaced yet but no one seemed to mind. The paper was slid back over to you.

Really? What are the chances of that?

His hand writing was nice for a boy and you looked out of the corner of your eye to see him smiling. You smiled too and wrote back.

Who knows but I think it's cool

You slid the paper back and he took a minute to slide it back but you patiently waited since you would have done the same. He didn't write anything on it.

You seem pretty chill Eros, wanna hang out at lunch? Also can I see your schedule? • 3 •

The paper was passed back for the fifth time during class and all it said was his schedule along with a "Sure!" underneath. You told him that the two of you share the same schedule. WhAt A cOiNcIdEnCe.

You looked over to him to see him looking at the paper. He looked up to you and you smiled. Eros smiled back and took the paper to ask.

Do you have early release too?

You read it as he wrote and he looked up to you. You nodded and he wrote again.

Wanna go chill at the park?

You shrugged and nodded again when he looked up to you. He smiled and nodded as the two of you went back to working on class work. You hadn't noticed it before but, his snakes seemed to be interested in you, which you thought was cute.

--- Skip to Break ---

An hour and a half had passed and the two of you had talked a bit throughout the time. The bell for break just rang and you got up with Eros. The two of you walked out to the hallway. "Let me make a stop by my locker real quick then we can go to next hour and chill there for break." He nodded and leaned against the locker next to you when two girls walked up to him. They were the same pair from first hour.

"Hey Eros, wanna hang with us at lunch?" The "leader" asked, standing in front of him. "Yeah that'd be like, totally cool if you did." Her buddy said, standing next to him. "Oh, sorry, me and (Y/n) al-" She cut him off with a scoff. "Oh you mean halfie? That kids got an imaginary boyfriend. How about you just ditch him and come eat with us." Eros looked over to you to see you had tensed and slowed your movements.

The girls focus turned on you, making you bite your lip. "Do you think you could not ruin this guy? He's like, super hot and doesn't need to be tainted by you." You looked away and felt a vibration come from your phone. You took the chance and opened it to see a message from your boyfriend. She smirked, "Did your 'boyfriend' text you? What'd he say?" She asked in a taunting tone.

You ignored her and opened the message. It was a new picture of the "super hot" guy standing next to you looking down to his phone.

Wanna dip babe?

These bitches are annoying the fuck outta me lol

The three of you looked up to him surprised as you closed your locker. He awkwardly smiled and said, "Guess I had to ruin that surprise cause some bimbos wanna fuck a gay guy." He laughed and walked over to you, grabbing your hand. You were speechless.

How did I not connect the dots earlier? Am I really that dense?

"It's a shame too. I was considering being friends, until you insulted my boyfriend, that is." He locked your fingers and looked back at the two. "Go suck a dildo, whore." Eros flipped them off and walked off with you around the corner, looking for a private spot. "Anywhere there won't be eavesdroppers?" He asked quietly. You nodded and lead him to a back room.

You opened the door with the key you had and let you go in first. The room was pretty nice considering it was useless. You turned on the light at set your bag down, Eros doing the same. "Are you really my boyfriend?" You asked stepping closer to him. He blushed and nodded, "I... I think so... I kind of ruined the supr-mm!" His eyes widened as you connected your lips to his. You pulled away and were about to speak when he connected them again, pressing his body into yours slightly.

He pulled away and you smiled, a blush was covering your face. "I've wanted to do that for so long." You said looking up to him slightly. "Me too." He said, hugging you close. "Why did you lie to me about being human?" You asked, resting your face on his chest. "I was... Scared of how you'd react if I told you the truth." You pulled away and looked up to him. "Are you kidding? Look what I was missing out on!" You said, making gestures to him.

Eros smiled and laughed. "I have a question for you though," You tilted your head slightly. "Why did they call you halfie?" You looked away and brushed back the hair around your ears. The tips of them were pointed much like an elf's but not as long. "My dads an elf. They like to use it as an insult since they're full and I'm not..."

Eros smiled again and nuzzled his nose to the crook of your neck. His snakes were gently booping their noses against your cheek as if giving you small kisses. You giggled at the sensation and he hummed to ask what was so funny. "Your snakes are cute." You said gently intertwining your fingers with them. He gently kissed your neck and rubbed your sides. "Well, they love you just as much as I love you." He said closing his eyes and hugging you.

You smiled and removed your hand to cup his cheek and make him look at you. His golden eyes were half lidded as he did. "Well," You said almost mocking him in away. "I love you and your snakes too." His eyes closed as he leaned in and yours did the same, both of your lips connecting again.

Eros pressed himself into you as both of you kissed. You pulled away first for air and he kissed your cheek and jaw lightly. You checked your phone when he pulled away he asked. "I'm curious how you got a key to a janitors closet." You leaned up to him and kissed his cheek. "My biological uncles the principal and he gave me the room to chill if I need to. It's usually where I would hang out for lunch but I dont really need to anymore since early release and all."

He "ooh'd" and nodded. "Makes sense. Wish I had a place like this at my old school." He looked back at you and his eyes went to your hair while you were checking something on your phone. Eros almost hesitantly brushed his fingers through your (h/c) hair. You jumped slightly at the sudden touch but enjoyed it none the less. "We have 4 minutes by the way." You said closing your eyes and leaning into his hand.

"Your hair is really nice. It's so soft." He smiled when you did and he gently kissed your nose while removing his hand from your hair. You tried your best to make it look like how it did before. "Sorry." He said gently with a small laugh. "Don't be, let's head to next hour so we can get this day done with and hang out." He nodded at your words and you grabbed his hand as the two of you grabbed your bags and quietly made it to the class you're meant to be in.

--- Skip to End of Day ---

The last two hours of school they had went by pretty quickly. The bell for lunch and early release seniors rang, making most people rush to leave or go to lunch. You and Eros lagged behind, waiting for the halls to clear a bit. He gently grabbed your hand as you finished putting your bag on. "Do you wanna go to the park or my house? I have a car so it doesn't matter too much on which you pick." He said with a small laugh.

You blushed and shrugged, "I would probably like your house since it's kinda cold out right now..." The two of you walked out of the class, hand in hand. The pair of girls from earlier watched with hatred/jealousy as the two of them walked out together. They were all going the same way so they got to see Eros walk you to his 1969 Blue Camaro.

Eros unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for you to get in to which you gladly accepted. You set your bag down by your feet and buckled as he set his bag in the back and got in. "I hope my dad isn't home." He said closing his door and starting the car. "Why do you say that?" You asked as he buckled his seat belt.

He sighed and leaned back on his seat. "He doesn't actually know we're... Y'know, dating. Or if he does he has no clue you're a guy..." You nodded and looked to him while he backed out from the parking lot. "We can still go to the park. I'll survive I'm sure." You said softly. "Plus I kinda wanna wear your jacket..." You mumbled the last part while looking away but he heard and smiled, acting as if he didn't hear.

"There's one close to my house we can go to. It's pretty cool if you wanna go there." Eros said while stopping at a light. "That sounds good." He smiled again and looked over to you before looking back at the light. Seeing it change to green, he stepped on the gas again and headed to the destination.

---

The ride was comfortably quiet other than the occasional comment about something in the passing scenery. "Ok, we're here." Eros said, parking his car in the relatively empty parking lot. "I've never seen this place before. It's really pretty." You said as the two of you stepped out.

"Yeah. It's pretty quiet here. I usually hang out here after school. I have never been home "on time" since I got a car 3-ish years ago." You smiled and held his hand as he locked the car and put the keys away. "I'll take you to my favorite spot. There's all kinds of secret areas thanks to the trees." He said with a slight child like glee. You giggled like the school boy that you are as he dragged you along through a beautiful walkway that was shaded by the trees. "Gods it's so pretty here." You said under your breath.

You walked for what felt like forever before he shifted to stand behind you, wrapping an arm around your waist. He removed his hand to show one of the few non blank pictures he sent. "Oh wow." The winter sun was shining over the neighboring town, giving a good idea of just how small it was. "We have a cliff?" You asked suddenly, making Eros laugh and hug you close to his body.

Eros smiled as he took a turn off the path and up a small hill. He stopped and gently let go of your hand, covering your eyes. You reached up to remove his hand but he stopped you. "W-what are you doing Eros?" He giggled and started walking, making you grab onto him afraid of running into something. "Eros?!"

"Don't worry babe. I promise it's nothing bad. I know you'll like it."

"Kinda crazy right?" He said before resting his chin on your shoulder. You nodded as his snakes gently booped you're temple and cheek again, making you smile. You reached up and gently placed a hand on Eros' cheek, rubbing your thumb against his jawline. "Wanna sit down? I have two and a half hours before I have to be home." You nodded again and he pulled away, leading you over to a fairly large tree.

He took off his jacket and tossed it up onto a branch before jumping into the tree himself. You were surprised before he reached down to help you up. "C'mon, it'll give us some privacy just incase anyone comes over here." You somewhat hesitantly took his hand and he helped pull you up onto the thick tree branch. He leaned back against the trees core, letting his legs hang down and inviting you to do the same against him.

The two of you sat in comfortable silence again while he hugged you close, resting his head against your shoulder. "I love you. A lot." He mumbled softly into your ear. You smiled and held onto the top of his hand that was holding onto your stomach. "I love you a lot too." You mumbled back. "Oh and, do you wanna wear my jacket now? I noticed you were shivering ever since we started walking."

You blushed and looked down to the tree branch and ground below it. "I didn't think you heard me say that..." He giggled and leaned forward a bit, grabbing the jacket off the branch it was hooked on to. You moved forward and he helped you put the slightly bigger jacket on. You snuggled into the lingering warmth, taking in his soft cologne.

"Your jacket smells good babe." Eros chuckles and pulls you against his chest again. "Well, it's got my favorite cologne on it so if course it smells good." You smile and let your head fall back against his shoulder and he kissed your temple.

"So. Do you wanna explain yourself a bit?"

-----

3261

Minimal spell/grammar checking, also set up for a part 2?

#mxm #monster x male reader #male monster x reader #x male reader #monster male x male reader #monster male #oneshot

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be-ready-when-i-say-go · 4 years ago

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Away for a Moment

Here’s a smattering of feelings. It’s self indulgent af and sad. So yeah. No specific race or gender of reader.

Calum didn’t think missing you would hurt this much.

Find Part 2 Here

Enjoy my masterlist

You can support me on kofi

You weren't gone gone. Calum could pick up the phone, tap on your last message to him and pull up your number. He could call. He could lay in bed with the phone pressed up to his ear and wait for your voice to float in through the other line. It would be easy, so damn easy.

But he knows if he did you wouldn't be able to answer right away. It's barely evening. The sun has just started to caress the horizon through his windows. But you hadn't sent another message to let him know that you had gotten back to your apartment from training. Calum figures that maybe you spent a few extra hours out to get some work done and doesn't want to disturb you.

It's just not the same anymore without you. His bed isn't full like it used to be without you. His kitchen isn't full of music and dancing, and cooing at Duke like it used to be without you. And it's entirely selfish Calum knows the way his fingers ache to craddle your face and the way he wants to tell you to stay with him.

Staying with him would make him miss you less. Staying with him would ensure that the house never feels empty. But having you stay doesn't ensure your dreams. Staying with him means a very real possibility that all the opportunities that you had worked so hard to find would pass you by. Calum can't ask you to stay, but he wishes he had spent more time memorizing the way your shampoo smells fresh from a wash. He wishes he had recorded more of your breakfast concerts.

Still working hard or hardly working? Calum hits send on the text, sitting up on the bed. Everything in him wants you to come bursting back through that door. Everything in him wants to kiss your lips one more time and savor the taste of your fruity gum--a habit you picked up to replace the nervous nail biting.

Everything in him wants his goddamn phone to buzz. But it doesn't.

Calum pads into the music room and office. Duke's still on the couch and Calum's not sure when the old man wondered into the room or why Duke hadn't traveled away from the couch just yet. As he gets closer to the couch, Calum sees what Duke's curled up on--your sweatshirt from your alma mater. The one you couldn't find as you were unpacking boxes and sorting out your closet.

Calum reassured you that you had packed up most of your clothes and that it would turn up eventually. Attempting to move anywhere in a weekend always seemed better in theory, but when training got moved up--you had to get into high gear. Packed to the hilt in his SUV, Calum and you set out for a cross state trip. It was only a few states over. Only put you an hour ahead of him. He could pick you up or you could take the train or a plane for cheap back to LA.

He had already planned to visit you. He said it jokingly to you, but he had cleared his schedule for early October to come visit just for a weekend. He planned that for most of it, you'd be holed up studying or grading papers, but at least for a few hours in the small blimp in time the two of you could sight see and just get fucking lost for once without worry.

Calum snaps a picture of his old man curled up on your old sweatshirt and sends it. I found where that sweatshirt went. I think I'm going to have a hard time convincing him to let me ship it you.

Calum settles onto the rolling chair, staring at Duke and out the window beyond. How could he miss you so fast? It was only a week. Just a week ago he was rearranging sofas and building bookshelves and unfolding your clothes while you put them all on hangers. Just a week ago you were navigating him to the Wal-Mart, Target, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, Burger King, Chipotle, and Chilis laughing as you confused your right and left for the millionth time.

Just a week ago when you tapped on the wrong Wal-Mart because it was the first one that Maps showed you. Just a week ago the two of you were laughing, curled up under your new bedsheets. "You're gonna leave me for two years, and I can't believe it," he whispered. You had fallen asleep, the fan in the corner of your bedroom blowing a constant stream of cooler air onto the both of you.

And how could Calum say that he couldn’t believe you were leaving him when he left you all the fucking time? How much of a fucking hypocrite could he be to say that?

He tried to reason with himself. Even though Calum left, he always knew he’d be coming back to you. He knew you’d always be there. And now, his home is across state lines. His house doesn’t feel like his house anymore because he had built a home in you and now you’re not here anymore. This physical building doesn’t really mean jack shit to him anymore with you. And sure it was only two years; it was only two years in total that you’d be away from him. And sure the degree was practically paid for, and sure, Calum couldn’t keep you from chasing your dreams.

But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t miss you while you were out there soaring.

Was this how his mum felt when he left at sixteen? Did she have a strange bubbling mixture of sadness and pride? Because that’s surely what’s brewing in the pit of Calum’s stomach. That mixture is what makes his fingertips ache.

There’s still no new message from you. Calum drops his phone to the desk with a clatter, burying his face into the palms of his hands. “God, I should’ve moved with them,” he mutters into the open air.

The two of you had this conversation a thousand times over. You didn’t want him to move because what would the other guys to music wise while Calum was with you? And what about Duke? And would Calum sell his house or keep it while renting something else for those two years? Your life was a little easier to uproot, since you knew you’d be coming back. This is just a step into the world that you wanted and you didn’t know where it was going to take you from there, but Calum couldn’t be his life on pause.

It’s like bile in his throat. The way the tears are stinging his eyes and his throat starts to burn. The tears are silent. Just the upturn of his lips and the sting of hot and salty water down his cheeks. The amount of things that can change a week are unbelievable and Calum’s not sure how he’s going to make it another eleven months and three weeks.

His shoulders shake. The heels of his palms don’t do a damn thing to hold back the tears. You’re not gone. He can pick up his phone, tap onto the last message he sent you and pull up your number. He can call. He can sit in this office chair with the phone pressed to his ear and wait for your voice to float in through the other line.

Calum’s phone finally shakes, it buzzes for a long interval, stops, and then starts again. He’s quick to wipe his hands onto his sweatpants and flip over the device. He taps to answer the call and his phone chimes, the video of you bouncing down a sidewalk fills the screen. “Hey, Cal. Sorry, I hung back to chat with some other student teachers. I think I could shit a brick right now. But I hear a certain old man’s hogging my favorite sweatshirt.”

Calum sniffles, wiping underneath his nose with the back of his hand. “Yeah, that would be Baby Grandpa snuggling up with it.” He’s relieved to see you, to hear the chirp in your voice when previously you cried into your dinner just a week before moving because of the nerves and anxiety.

Calum’s praying his voice isn’t too croaky, that it doesn’t give him away. But he knows it well. And when your pinched brows and concerned flooded eyes land onto the screen, Calum knows you know.

“Babe, you alright? Looks like you’ve been crying?”

“I’m-yeah, no, I’m okay. I’m happy to see you.” If he can change the subject he doesn’t have to explain why he keeps sniffling. He doesn’t have to explain why his eyes are no doubt red.

“Angel, please don’t do that. Tell me what’s wrong.” The white cord of your headphones bounce and he can hears your harsh exhales. And it only reminds him that you’re not here.

“I miss you.” It’s just one sentence; it’s only three words. But it makes his chest feel like it’s been punched in. It feels like someone’s pulling his spine out through his diaphragm.

You pause, taking in his red eyes and the wobble of his chin. And you know. You know he didn’t want to admit it, but there was no way to hold it in anymore. “I’m sorry, Calum. I miss you too. I miss Duke. I miss you grumbling that I’m too happy at seven in the morning.”

Calum exhales a little, a small bit of laughter following after it. “Breakfast sucks with you. And I know this is what you have to do for yourself. I can’t stress how proud I am of you for doing this. But fuck, I didn’t realize it’d be this hard.”

People pass you by. Calum can hear them, the muffled parts of their conversation coming through your mic. You are so far away and it’s killing him. Two years. Two years of the two of you building up a relationship in tiny corners and through handwritten letters and stolen kisses and in text messages. Two years and you had cracked the defenses Calum had and he didn’t want to let you go.

“I’m coming back, my love. There’s weekend trips and school breaks.”

You get it though. There was a year where Calum was just gone. He was bouncing between time zones and when he did come back home he was prepping for the next leg of a tour, the next leg of promotion, the next part of something. And it’s so hard to create a new routine initially. It’s hard to regulate who you are on your own.

“I feel like a hypocrite. Because I left. I don’t know. I feel untethered.”

You nod. “I understand that. It’s an adjustment, a huge one. It’s okay to feel a little unraveled.”

“And I don’t want to add onto your stress. I know it’s not easy.”

“I’m here for you. You know that. Who’s answered your calls at 2 am before?” Calum doesn’t respond. Can’t as another wave of emotion rocks his core and he rolls his lips over his teeth to swallow back down the emotion. “And who do you think is going to be there to answer your call again at 2 in the morning? Or 3? Or 6 in the morning? At noon? At 6:37 in the evening? It’s gonna be me no matter what.”

Calum reclines his head into the cushion of the seat. It’s always been you. You’ve always been there when he needed it. And even if you are miles away, you still responded. You still called back.

“Thanks,” Calum says. His chin still wobbles. He blinks back the rest of the tears. “So tell me about it. What did you do today? We can talk after you have some food.”

The world continues on about you. More people pass you by and you watch Calum. His eyes are still painted red. But his voice doesn’t break like before. It’s a bit of a breeze so you settle onto the bench for the bus even though you can hear it coming down the street. A strong breeze creates static in your mic for a moment before your voice comes in clearer.

“We went over one of the assignments in depth that we have to teach. Met some other student teachers. I talked to my faculty mentor about my course schedule and work schedule and they said that I probably should let myself go easy this first semester.”

“So you did drop a class?”

You nod at Calum’s question. The bus rolls to a stop in front of you, but you don’t look up from your phone. “I did. I was scared to because I really wanted to take that class. But I heard it’s also offered in the spring, so I enrolled for it then.”

“Is it with a different professor? Or the same one?”

“Different one.”

The conversation flows until your bus comes back around again and you know you have to take it this time. But you keep Calum on the line. And he’s just watching, with his elbows on the desk and his head supported by his palms, he watches you. And it’s nothing glamorous as the bus rattles and shakes. Your phone lays in your lap, cradled in your hands. Occasionally, you glance down to cross your eyes and stick out your tongue at him and he hums his laughter.

It’s the little things. Like watching the way your head reclines into the window or how you just know when to pull for your stop. And as you walk down blocks and stop to wave at a dog as the owner jogs past. And Calum knows he’s not there with you. He knows that you’re not walking up to his door, but maybe all he needs are the little things with you.

“What’s for dinner?” he asks as you step into your apartment.

“Literally it might be hotdogs because I’m mentally exhausted.”

“You need a veggie too.”

You laugh, keys hitting the counter. “I won’t forget a veggie. I’ll call you back in a bit, yeah? After I eat and get some homework done.”

“Okay. Can that be a daily thing? Just so I know you get back home safely.” It’s soft as he asks, unsure if it makes hims sound overbearing or not.

“Sure. Once I get my schedule set, I’ll let you know and we can do that. Make sure to send me more pics of Duke though, since know he owns my sweatshirt now.”

Calum stares down at the black screen. You’ve long hung up, no doubts scarfing down the hotdogs you mentioned. And while the ache has subsided, Calum still feels you in every inch of him. He feels the yearning. The sun’s slipped behind the horizon, the last feathers of light won’t last long. And before Calum’s thinking his fingers are slipping over the frets. He bent over the bass, thinking maybe, just maybe the notes will make sense of the feelings in his gut.

Your phone chimes, pushing rubrics and sticky notes to the side, you pick it up. A notification from instagram, from Calum. The video’s completely dark and it’s just him bent over the instrument as its throaty cries swell. Post you blues, it reads. The caption is tiny, almost missable if you’re not careful. But you see it. If you had any other choice, you wouldn’t have left. If it wasn’t your dream, you wouldn’t have left.

I love you. Even across miles and interstates and timezones, I love you.

Calum wants to tattoo the text message to his eyelids, so when he goes to sleep at night or when he closes his eyes to keep form crying, he can see that you’re not gone, just away from a moment.

______

@5-secondsofcolor bc my Sunshine asked me to tag her so she could read it after shleeps.

#calum hood #calum hood fanfic #calum hood imagine #calum hood fic #calum hood x reader #calum hood x reader insert #5sos #5sos fanfic #5sos imagine #5sos fic #5 seconds of summer #5 seconds of summer fanfic #5 seconds of summer fic #5 seconds of summer imagine #h writes #calum 5sos #calum hood blurb #calum hood angst

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the-everlasting-dream · 4 years ago

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Cookies - The Perfect Cliche Part 3

A/N: Wow okay its been a YEAR since I’ve touched this but better late than never right? Idk who’s interested still so I’ll tag a few people.

Tags: @ooo-barff-ooo @saivilo @burnsoslow @client-327 @i-miss-trr @gkittylove99 @tinkie1973

‘Bitch you did what??’

‘I know I know,’ Elizabeth mumbled around the spoonful of ice cream in her mouth, dragging a hand down her face. ‘It just happened I just reacted and… I didn’t mean to hit him in the face.’

‘Yeah no one means to hit their insanely hot neighbour in the face,’ her best friend replied sarcastically. ‘What did he say? He must have been pissed!’

Elizabeth hesitated as she scooped another mouthful of raspberry ripple into her mouth, straight from the tub. ‘He actually let me use his shower after that.’

‘WHAT?!?’ Athena’s screech was loud enough to break the sound barrier and her eardrums. ‘You mean to tell me that you were naked in that man’s apartment while he was also in that same apartment? How did you not get laid?’

‘Are we forgetting how just moments ago I’d hit him in the face with a wooden spoon? And I feel so bad about that,’ Elizabeth rushed on before her friend could get a word in. ‘I made him cookies.’

‘Cookies?’ There was a snort over the line. ‘What are we twelve?’

‘What was I supposed to do? Offer him sex instead?’ She winced immediately, knowing she shouldn’t have given Athena the opening.

‘You know I would have. At least if I was still single of course.’

‘What would you be doing if you were still single?’ A male voice could be heard in the background of the call followed by a string of giggles which Elizabeth could only assume was from his ticking his girlfriend. ‘Hey Liz.’

‘Hey Damien.’

‘Ready for the interview today?’

‘As I’ll ever be I guess.. I mean its just for the bar down the street.’

‘You’re gonna crush it babe,’ Athena chirped enthusiastically. ‘Go in there and give em Cece from New Girl vibes.’

‘Yeah we’ll come celebrate with you after,’ Damien promised.

‘Thanks guys, I gotta go or I’ll be late,’ she replied, shrugging on her jacket as they chorused their goodbyes. Giving herself a once-over in the mirror, Elizabeth put on her most winning smile before grabbing the plate of cookies off the counter. Loudly knocking twice on the identical door from hers across the hall, she set them gently on the floor before rushing off to her interview.

We have to talk. Tonight 8pm.

The single text message no doubt forecasting impending doom lit up Drake’s phone screen from where he’d left it that morning on the kitchen bench top. Cursing himself for forgetting it, he’d rushed back home to pick it up on his lunch hour, only to find a plate of cookies at his doorstep. Now it and the handwritten Sorry again! note from his neighbour Elizabeth — he could tell by the spider drawing — lay forgotten to the side as he ran a hand through his hair, sighing in frustration.

Kiara was mad. Again. He’d fucked up again. Somehow. No amount of wracking his brain would do him any good now. Just when things were starting to improve, or so he thought. All he seemed to be doing was making her mad lately.

Absentmindedly, Drake shoved a cookie in his mouth before thinking better and grabbing the rest to eat on the long trek back to the office. - ‘You got the job!’ Athena wrapped her friend in a bear hug.

Elizabeth chuckled wryly, ‘Its just a bartending gig, Thee.'

‘Still! Its your first big girl job you got by yourself. No longer a debutante of the north, we’ve got a working city gal over here!’

‘Complete with a shitty boss and everything. Did you know he asked me if this is the highest neckline I own?’

Athena wrinkled her nose as they continued down the street. ‘Ew are you sure you want to work there babe? You know I could get you a job at my magazine place right? Just say the word and I’ll make it happen.’

Elizabeth was already shaking her head. ‘Thanks again but no thanks. Like you said this is my first real job that I’ve gotten myself. If I’m going to be independent, I’m gonna have to take my chances.’

‘Well you’re a trooper,’ her friend announced, linking her arm through hers. ‘Anyway, this calls for a treat. Lets go out tonight! But first can we stop by your place? I gotta pee so bad.'

Getting dolled up together was something Elizabeth didn’t realise she’d missed. Athena had moved to the city years ago and she was starting to think she should have done the same.

‘C’mon Liz! D and Nadia are already waiting,’ her best friend yelled from where she was scrolling through her phone on the couch.

‘I’m coming!’ she yelled back, applying that final coat of lipstick before pressing her lips together to make that perfect pout. Just as she stepped out of the bedroom, there was a knock at her door. Athena gave her a quizzical look before leaping up to answer it as she reached back into the room to grab her other earring.

‘Is Elizabeth here?’

She poked her head out to see Drake leaning against the doorframe, tie hanging loosely around his neck, offering her a half smile.

‘Oh.. Hey Drake.’ Her voice was breathy as she crossed the living room, trying to ignore Athena who was furiously mouthing something probably inappropriate from behind the door where her neighbour couldn’t see.

He handed her the plate. ‘Thanks for the cookies. Came in handy today.’

Elizabeth swallowed as their fingers touched for a moment. ‘You’re welcome. I’m glad they did. So… um you done with work?’

‘Yeah. Might head out for a bit later. You look like you’re on the way out yourself.’

‘Yeah,’ she chuckled. ‘I got a new job so my best friend is taking me out to dinner.’ Why was she telling him this? Why would he care?

Drake nodded. ‘Well I’ll leave you to it.’

‘Thanks. And again I’m so sorry about the…’ Elizabeth gestured awkwardly at the fading bruise on his face.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ he called over his shoulder, retreating back into his apartment.

She’d barely closed the door, before Athena pounced on her.

'That’s him?? Thats the guy?!?'

'Thats him.'

'You hit him in the face.'

'I did.'

'I can’t believe you hit him in the face.'

'I know.’

Athena suddenly shoved her roughly. ‘You should have invited him out with us! He said he was going out a little later anyway. C’mon girl!’

‘I can’t! He has a girlfriend for starters!’

‘Who from the sounds of it is halfway out the door!’ Athena licked her lips. ‘Did you hear his accent? Soooo sexy. Must be some kind of European..’

‘Beats me,’ Elizabeth deflected.

‘Imma beat your ass if you don’t snatch him up soon,’ her best friend threatened playfully as they grabbed their bags. ‘Now come on Nadia’s already sent me seven text messages.'

‘Whatever it is Kiki, I’m sorry,’ Drake began even before he entered Kiara’s lavish penthouse. ‘Its not you, its me. I’ll do better I promise.’

The elegant diplomat gave him a pointed look before turning on her custom Jimmy Choo’s as she lead him further into the apartment. ‘That’s just it Drake, I don’t think you can do better.’

His brow furrowed, shoulders sagging. ‘What do you mean?’

‘You heard me,’ she replied almost nonchalantly, flipping her hair over her shoulder. ‘I just got a call from Sara Burton, Alexander McQueen’s creative director. She’s uninvited me from her fashion show next week. The same fashion show I was supposed to take Princess Marguerite of Monaco to as part of our efforts to broker a trade with her country. Do you want to know what reason Ms Burton gave me?’

She barely paused, steading herself against the mantlepiece before continuing on. ‘She told me that you were drunk at her show last week and told one of her aides that her entire collection looked better as fishing tackle than as clothes.’

Drake snorted without a hint of remorse. ‘I stand by what I said. No one on God’s good earth needs a fishnet jumpsuit. No one.’

He instantly regretted the words as Kiara’s face flushed with anger.

‘Mon Dieu! You don’t understand! You never did! This is not about the outfits, its about grace and finesse and being strategic in what you say and do. My parents warned me about you. They said you couldn’t handle the pressures of the nobility and sooner or later you’d only bring me down with you.’

He tossed aside the roses and chocolate, a belated peace offering. ‘Bring you down? Is that all I am to you Kiara? An accessory to your status? A means to an end?’

Her eyes narrowed in fury. ‘Don’t you do that! Don’t you dare twist my words like that when I’ve done nothing but make you comfortable with who I am for our entire relationship.’ She sucked in a ragged breath. ‘You think yourself above all the flattery and finery, living by your own rules but what your arrogant ass forgets that some of us make our livelihood to protect king and country this way.’ ‘

Don’t hit me what that holier-than-thou bullshit now,’ Drake interjected. ‘You know just as well as I do that shit is just a farce. Just ass-kissing and brown nosing your way to the top to get where you want to be.'

‘If that’s what you think I do, then you never knew me at all,’ Kiara declared with finality, tears shining in her eyes before she turned away from him. ‘Let’s stop fucking pretending, shall we? We’re way too different for this to work. Everyone else can tell. We’ve only been fooling ourselves for the last three years.'

‘Kiara…’ He came up behind her, so close but not touching. Was she really doing this? 'How did we get like this Kiki?’ He asked, barely daring to whisper. ‘Surely we can figure this out...'

‘We can’t.’ When she spoke, her tone confirmed what he knew all along. ‘What we had died out a long time ago.'

‘Kiara please..’ Drake could hear the desperation in his voice now. ‘Please don’t do this.’

‘It’s done, Drake. We’re done.’

‘Ki-‘

‘Please leave.’

She didn’t even turn around. Drake hesitated for a moment before obeying. In the elevator, frustration broke and he punched the walls hard enough to make the lights flicker. As soon as the bell dinged for the ground floor, he headed towards the nearest bar.

- Elizabeth was still smiling when she unlocked the door to her apartment. She had needed the dinner with her friends more than she’d realised. Now for a goodnights sleep before her first shift at the bar tomorrow...

A loud banging on her apartment door woke her up hours later, shaking her out of a deep sleep. Her bleary eyes found the clock reading 1.51am. More banging followed by someone yelling.

This is how I die. Alone in avocado pjs, strangled to death in my own bed by a lunatic who’s probably the Zodiac killer reincarnated.

Whoever it was didn’t seem to plan on stopping. She debated with herself for a moment longer before hastily reaching for her robe, turning on each light in the apartment as she passed it, grabbing a wooden spoon for good measure as she passed the kitchen. The sounds were clearer now, it almost sounded like someone was moaning in pain. As she inched closer Elizabeth was able to hear a word, a name.

'Kiara..'

Why did that name sound so familiar?

Just then her door handle started jiggling and she brandished her weapon more fiercely ready to strike. Before she had time to react, it burst open to reveal... her neighbour Drake.

Clearly drunk off his face, he stumbling into her living room, swearing as his shoulder caught against the doorframe. The impact sent him teetering precariously but somehow he still managed to keep his balance, moaning out Kiara’s name as he peeled off the henley he was wearing. Wrestling to take it for a second, is knees buckled and he sprawled face first onto her couch.

Elizabeth remained frozen and to anyone passing by must have looked quite comical, standing shock still in her pyjamas, hair in a messy bun and eyes bleary from sleep with wooden spoon raised in the air above her head. It wasn’t until Drake let out a snorting breath that she was shocked out of her stupor.

Ohmigodohmigodohmigod. What the hell just happened?

Her very attractive neighbour was on her couch, shirtless and blackout drunk at 2am.

What the hell New York??

Elizabeth did the first thing she could think of. She dialled Athena then immediately hung up.

Its freaking 2am woman. Get a grip.

Taking a deep breath, she shook her head coming to her senses that there was nothing she could do about it now. Placing a glass of water and an aspirin on the table beside Drake, she turned off all the lights and crept back to her bedroom, shutting the door for good measure. - He must have forgotten to close the damn blinds again because it felt like the sun itself was shining on the other side of his eyelids. His head was already throbbing and when he swallowed, his throat felt like sandpaper. Blinking grains of dust out of his eyes, Drake gradually came to his senses and his vision cleared to reveal the words of a graphic tee with an avocado on it, reading Hardcore.

Wait… This wasn’t his apartment!

He shot up to a sitting position, the action making him nauseous as the pounding in his head only intensified.

‘Rough night?’

A woman’s voice took him by surprise and with effort he turned to see the owner of the avocado shirt, his neighbour Elizabeth sitting on the armchair across from him...

#the royal romance #choices #drake walker #trr #trr au #choices fanfiction #elizabeth richmond

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heyyyharry · 5 years ago

Text

Chapter 10: Truth or Truth

(from the My Girl Trilogy: Stay Mine)

…in which the truth comes out.

Word count: 6.6k

AU: actor!Harry, older!Harry, younger!Y/N, (4-year age gap).

Wattpad link (Thea as Y/N)

Well, this is one crazy chapter 👀 Let me know what you think because I’m thirsty for feedback. But also don’t be to harsh on me I’m fragile.

The last Sunday of the month. Laura Hilfgard’s flat. Y/N’s book was almost finished and ready for submission, and she was at the top of her game. She’d been putting off everything else to write, and for the first time in her life, everything was happening according to plan. Last year’s Y/N would’ve spent every passing moment waiting for something to go wrong. The writer-to-be Y/N, however, was living her best life.

“Are you sure you want to omit the confrontation scene in chapter ten?” Laura asked once they’d stopped for a tea break.

Y/N stirred her tea slowly, still contemplating her handwritten notes. “You don’t need drama in every chapter. It’s not realistic.”

“It’s fiction,” said Laura. Y/N glanced up with an eyebrow lifted, and the agent exhaled as she raised her hands, palms out. “Sorry, ma’am. Your book.”

Blowing into her tea, Y/N closed her pink notebook and took a sip. “Sorry, it’s just the story is based on what happened to me.”

“Oh?” Laura blinked, sounding both surprised and intrigued.

“I changed a few things,” Y/N said. “But yeah, my boyfriend used to be my neighbour. We met in his treehouse twelve years ago.”

“Your boyfriend is Harry Styles, right?”

“You know him?”

“Everyone does.” Laura stopped stirring her tea to add more sugar with the same spoon. She’d been stirring and adding sugar for the last five minutes, which made Y/N wonder if she was going to drink at all. “I’ve heard so many stories about you two. You make a fine couple.”

“You’ve heard stories about us?” Y/N carefully set down her cup and smiled questioningly at the woman. “From whom?”

“Everyone,” Laura said and finally brought the cup to her red lips. Y/N watched Laura take the first sip of her overly sweet tea, and the only thing that came to Y/N’s mind was the likelihood of a connection between Laura and Harry.

Impossible. Harry would never have interfered. Not after their fight about John Conall. Besides, Blake had been the one who’d suggested her to Laura, not Harry. So how could Harry have possibly done anything?

Or could he?

What if he’d contacted Laura right after Blake had given the manuscript to her? No, Harry would never lie to Y/N. Harry, of all people, would understand how much this meant to her, that she’d accomplished everything on her own without his help. Harry, of all people, would believe in her.

Once she got back to her flat, she found herself pacing back and forth in her living room, clutching her phone to her chest as she tried to decide if she should just call and ask him. Him saying he had no connection to her literary agent would put Y/N out of her misery. But that would prove that she didn’t trust him, and he’d be so angry, and they would fight again. Things had been going so well recently she didn’t want to mess it up. Although there was a tiny part of her doubting everything, mostly herself…

Her phone rang, and she jumped. It was Harry. Biting her nail, she slid her thumb across the screen to answer and tried her best not to sound like she’d been overthinking. “Hey, baby.”

“Hey, are you working?”

“I just got back from Laura’s.”

“Is the book done?”

“Yup. We’ve submitted it to some publishers, and all we have to do now is wait.”

“That’s my girl.”

The question about Laura was on the tip of her tongue. She bit her nail instead and took a seat on the couch as he went on, “Don’t hate me for what I’m about to say, okay?”

“Okay.” She kept her tone light and neutral while unconsciously picking at a thread on her skirt.

“I forgot that I’d have dinner with my dad. I know I said I’d take you out tonight–”

“No, it’s fine. Don’t worry about it,” she said quickly and sat on her hand to stop her fidgeting. “You’ve been spending quite a lot of time with your dad.”

“Yeah,” he sighed contentedly. “Now that I don’t have to hide it from my mum or Gemma anymore, I can support Dad and Emi without feeling bad about it.”

“Support? As in...financially?” She hoped she didn’t sound too judgy.

He was quiet for a full second. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Harry…”

“No, hear me out. They owed the bank a lot of money because of the accident. I only helped them pay their debt. It’s not like I’m buying them a car or a house.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled. “You’ve been giving them so many expensive things, and Isaac told me you’ve also been helping Emi get back to acting.”

“ ‘Help’ as in I got her to castings. She still needs to audition like everyone else. I don’t ask directors to give her roles that she’s incompetent at, if that’s what you’re implying.”

“I’m not implying anything.” Maybe she was. “It’s just...you can’t live their lives for them, Harry.”

“I don’t. I’m only trying to help.”

“You can help, and you should. Just don’t overspend on them.”

“They’re family.”

She almost told him ‘not really’ and ‘I still don’t trust them’, but then let it go once he fell silent. “That wasn’t a fight, was it?” she asked.

“Of course not, kid.” His low laugh brought her a sense of relief. She straightened before leaning into the couch, staring at one of the cracks on her ceiling.

“I gotta go now. Talk to you later?” he said cautiously.

So she kept her tone light. “Sure. Have fun acting.”

“Have fun writing. Love you.”

She giggled as he kissed the phone.

“I love you, too.”

Since Gemma ran an online business and therefore wasn’t tied to a desk and a chair, she had decided to stay in London for a couple of days. Those couple of days had turned into two weeks and felt like two freaking months. Time slowed down when she was with Isaac; not that she complained.

She’d been with him constantly since they’d left Holmes Chapel. She wasn’t sure what they were. Friends? Way past that. Lovers? Not quite there. Friends who kissed? Well, sure, that might be a suitable label for their ‘relationship’. Gemma hated labels anyway, so it didn’t matter.

“Have you spoken to him?” Isaac asked, his arm wrapped around her shoulders. They were at his house, curled up in his bed, watching Netflix. Almost like a happy couple.

“Harry?” Her eyebrows furrowed as one of the characters was being brutally murdered on the screen. Isaac leaned forward and pressed pause right before the dead body collapsed.

Gemma gasped, “Hey!”

“You’ve already watched this,” he chuckled and removed the laptop from her lap before she could resume the movie.

“Still, that’s the best scene!”

He shook his head, placed the laptop on the other side of him and turned around, facing her. “Have you spoken to Asher?”

“No. He’s probably forgotten about me.”

“Gem…”

“Can we not mention my ex at this moment?”

“He’s not your ex yet, and you don’t want to mention him at any moment.” Isaac took her hand and brought it to his lap. “You need to break up with him.”

“He already broke up with me.”

“He said it was a break.”

She groaned and hugged a pillow to her chest. “He said it so he could hook up with whoever he wanted. He’s done this before, disappeared for a week or two. I was pretty sure he was hooking up with his secretary at the time, then he came back and acted like nothing was wrong. I just...I was stupid and I was in love with him. But not anymore. I’ve had enough.”

“So you’re just gonna wait until he reaches out to you, and then break up with him?”

“Yes. I want it to hurt.”

Isaac screwed up his face. “Why?”

“What do you mean why? After all that he’s done to me?”

“Do you still have feelings for him?” He tried to sound unbothered but she could see right through him. “Is that the reason why you’re so determined to make him feel equally bad?”

“No!” She shook her head, squeezing his hand. “I just don’t want him to think he’s so important. I’m not gonna reach out first. Now can we please get back to the movie?”

“Fine,” he huffed and brought the laptop back to his lap.

As she snuggled up to him and he draped his arm around her shoulders again, the buzzing of his phone on the nightstand interrupted them. She groaned when he withdrew himself from her.

“It could be Lee,” he said. Lee was his manager.

But it wasn’t Lee. She could see it on his face as he put down his phone as soon as he’d read the messages.

“Who’s that?”

“Your half-sister,” he said, drawing her back into his arms.

She lay her head on his chest, her eyebrows pulled together. “She’s still your model?”

“We had our last shoot yesterday. If you’d come, you could have met her.”

“It’s so weird that I haven’t.” She tilted her head up to look at his face. “Do you think she’s scared of me? Because I’m not as easy-going as Harry.”

“Probably.” A grin stretched his pink lips as she weakly hit his chest.

“Did you ever fancy her?” She arched an eyebrow so he mimicked her expression.

“Are you jealous of your own sister?”

“Half-sister.”

Her irritated tone got him laughing. “I mean, she is pretty.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, gazing at the ceiling. “Maybe a little.”

Gemma poked his side and he jerked away, doubling over and protecting his sensitive spots from her tickling. They nearly fell off the bed from laughing too hard. Somehow he ended up on his stomach and she on his back, their cheeks together.

He whispered, “Do you think Harry would like the idea of us?”

“Should we call and ask him?”

“Gemma.”

She giggled as his face turned serious. “Of course. You’re his best friend, right?”

“I don’t know about that. He didn’t talk to me until Y/N and I broke up.”

“That’s because she’s Y/N. He didn’t let me come to the treehouse because it was ‘their place’.” She rolled her eyes. “But it was mine first. Dad built it for me.” When she caught him gazing at her, she returned a look just as bemused. “What?”

“You said ‘Dad’. Not Winton.”

“Oh.” She rolled onto her back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Isaac flipped over to lie on his side, his head propped up on his hand. She waited for another question, but he didn’t ask, so she went on, “I still won’t visit him or even talk to him. But I guess there was a time when he was good, and I should give the old him some credits. It’s easier to do that, now that I no longer have to deal with the consequences of him leaving.” She turned to smile at him. “Now that I’ve found someone who really cares about me.”

“Who’s that? Is it me?” He acted shocked and she shoved him away, cackling.

“Come on.” She sat up, grabbed the laptop and beckoned him over. “We still have to finish this terrible movie.”

A week later, Y/N came to Laura’s office after she’d finished two classes in the morning. Laura’s assistant told her Laura had taken a day off because she was sick. “She’s rescheduled the meeting with the publisher this afternoon,” said the assistant. “I was gonna call you but Ms Hilfgard said she’d tell you herself. She’s probably forgotten.”

Weird. Laura never forgot. She was like a machine when it came to business stuff, and Y/N had always wondered where that woman got all that energy. Laura must be very sick. Y/N normally would stay away from other people’s business, but she’d been inseparable from Laura recently, which gave her a sense of responsibility for her agent. She should probably check in on Laura.

“Is she at her flat today?” she asked the assistant, who seemed unsure.

“I think so. Would you like me to call her for you?”

“No, thank you. I’ll do it myself.”

Y/N adjusted her bag on her shoulder, wished the woman a good day and ambled out of the room. She tried calling Laura when she got into the lift, but Laura didn’t answer the phone. A throb in her stomach led her to believe something was wrong.

Everyone got sick once in a while so Laura couldn’t be an exception; she was human after all. But Y/N’s gut feelings were always correct. And if she chose to ignore them, it’d be her fault when something actually happened to Laura, who lived all by herself and had no close friend or family, none that Y/N knew of.

“Laura! It’s me, Y/N!” Y/N banged on the door after she’d rung the doorbell many times and there was no answer. “Laura! Your assistant told me you were sick. I came to check on you.”

Just as she imagined herself kicking down the door like those badass heroines in movies, she heard the sound of it being unlocked, the handle turned, and the door was opened. Her chest caved when Laura appeared, holding the door just wide enough to reveal half of her face. She was in her bathrobe without any makeup on, her skin marked with freckles, her lips dry, her eyes dark and weary, and her hair wasn’t pulled up into a neat bun like it always was. She looked like she’d gone through hell and back.

“Are you all right?” Y/N asked and immediately realised how stupid she’d sounded; of course, Laura wasn’t all right. Look at her.

“I’m very sorry, Y/N. You shouldn’t have come here.” Laura sounded spacey. The smell of alcohol on her breath was too strong. She held Y/N’s gaze, expecting Y/N to leave, but once she was sure Y/N wasn’t going anywhere, Laura stepped aside and opened the door a bit wider, just enough for Y/N to slip in.

The door was closed. They were standing in the semidarkness; there was still a bit of light coming through the dark blue curtain of the floor-to-ceiling windows. The evident of Laura’s despair was lying on the white carpet in the middle of the room – empty bottles after a wild alcohol-binge. She wasn’t sick. She was drunk.

Laura brushed past a bewildered Y/N and careened toward the sofa. The sofa legs creaked ominously under her weight.

“As you can see, I’m pretty much alive,” she said to the ceiling, an arm placed over her eyes. “You may leave now.”

Y/N wanted to leave. Whatever Laura was dealing with had nothing to do with her. She’d only come to make sure her agent was still alive, and Laura was just drunk for some unknown reason, but that was all Y/N should know. She should leave. Her brain told her to leave, but her guts told her Laura needed help.

She huffed and came to stand at one end of the sofa. “What’s going on? Did something happen?”

“It has nothing to do with you, Y/N.”

“You rescheduled a meeting with the publisher without asking me – your author, and then lied about being sick when you’ve been drinking your arse off. So yeah, it has a lot to do with me.”

As Laura didn’t answer, Y/N picked up the woman’s arm and tried to haul her out of the sofa. She resisted the effort, weakly pushing Y/N away.

“Fine. I’m leaving.” Y/N folded her arms over her chest. “Call me when you’ve sobered up.”

“I now see why he’s crazy about you.”

The words froze Y/N to the spot. She slowly turned around and backed away from the front door to return to her previous spot beside Laura. He? Who was he?

Laura’s eyelids fluttered like she was going to fall asleep, but then she continued, “He chose you over me because you’re young and beautiful and ambitious and kind…He chose you over me because...I’m the opposite…”

Y/N’s heart, head, and stomach pulsated at once. “Who...who are you talking about?”

“Blake.”

The name left her in shock. She blinked at Laura, feeling disoriented for a second. She hoped Laura was only messing with her. Laura and Blake? No fucking way.

“He ended it because of you,” Laura went on despite Y/N’s startlement. “We weren’t really together, but he made it clear that we’d never be anything.” She laughed loudly and mirthlessly, her thick dark hair bouncing on her slim shoulders. “You have a boyfriend, and he still chose you over me. I would call him stupid but what would it make me?” Then she glanced up, her glossy eyes filled with wondering and desperation.

Meanwhile, Y/N was stuck in rearranging her thoughts. Everything made sense – Blake had been their connection since the beginning, and Laura had heard so much about Y/N and Harry – but Y/N couldn’t bring herself to believe any of it. She clutched the strap of her handbag and took in the sight of Laura, trying to look for the badass woman hiding underneath.

“I think you should go,” Laura said to her feet and gestured toward the door. “I’ll call you once I’ve sobered up.”

“Do you have anyone else I can call–”

“I don’t need anyone, Y/N. Leave!”

“Okay,” Y/N murmured as she squared her shoulders, gripped the strap of her bag, and marched to the front door.

Thud Thud Thud

“Blake! We need to talk, Blake!”

Blake opened the door and sprang back before Y/N accidentally hit his face with her fist. “Did you sleep with Laura?” she bellowed before he could question, and he blinked as if she was speaking alien language.

“Laura Hilfgard,” her voice dropped, “My fucking agent. For fuck’s sake! Did you sleep with her?”

He still didn’t answer but the look on his face said it all. He couldn’t admit something so horrible.

“Goddamn it, Blake! Fuck!” she roared into her hands, her chest growing hot. When he tried to touch her, she pushed him away and stabbed a finger at his face. “You lied to me!”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. I’m so sorry–”

She held up a hand to stop him. “Oh, don’t fucking apologise to me. I’m not gonna accept it. Apologise to Laura.”

“We’re over.”

“Doesn’t fucking matter, Blake! It’s fucking sick that you slept with her so she would sign me! Fuck you!”

“Y/N!” He caught her wrist and she whipped around to fight him, but his fingers were quick to clasp her other wrist.

“Let me go!”

“Listen to me!” He shook her to get her to stop, and she did, panting and glowering at him. “I didn’t sleep with her so she’d sign you. Yes, I’d...I'd been sleeping with her before. That was how I knew her. I asked her to read your book and she loved it.”

“She only ‘loved’ it because she loved you, Blake!” Y/N yanked her hands back, tears welling up in her eyes. “You broke her and she cancelled the meeting with the publisher. She’s gonna drop me!”

“She won’t. I’ll talk to her–”

“I don’t fucking need your help, Blake. Just…” Y/N stepped back, holding up her hand to stop him from getting any closer. “Just don’t fucking talk to me again.”

“Y/N, please, hey.” He strode forward and got between her and her door, his desperate grey eyes begging her to hear him out. “I swear to you I didn’t do this on purpose. I just wanted to help. You were so desperate and I wanted you to be happy.”

“I was desperate but I wasn’t miserable,” she said through her gritted teeth. “You want me to be happy but what you did was awful, Blake. You made me feel like a talentless piece of shit, that if my boyfriend doesn’t get me a job, then my ex-boyfriend has to sleep with someone for it. God, what is wrong with you?”

“At least I gave your story to Laura and made her read it. Your boyfriend just fucking told John Conall to sign you. He doesn’t even care.”

“Don’t talk about Harry that way. He’s a thousand times better than you.” Then she froze. “How do you even know about Conall?”

“Laura knows him,” Blake said to his feet. “They talked.”

“Fuck this.”

She pulled out her keys and gestured him to get out of the way, but he refused to comply, shaking his head. She had never seen Blake Roman so despondent, and she didn’t like this side of him at all.

“I still love you, Y/N,” he said despite the fact that those were the last words she wanted to hear right now. “I’m sorry I left, but in the last three years, I couldn’t stop thinking about us, and how we could’ve figured out a way to be together instead of giving up. Then I met you here, and...and I–Listen, I’ve been trying to make it up to you–”

“Blake, please…” she breathed, her eyes tight.

“I know you still have feelings for me, Y/N. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have spent so much time with me. You rarely mentioned him when we were together. We have so much in common and we fit.”

“You’re wrong.” She stared dagger at him and unclenched her fists, taking a deep breath. “I rarely mentioned him because I didn’t want to hurt you. I knew you still had feelings for me. I guess I was wrong to want to keep you in my life as a friend when you don’t belong there anymore.”

“I do, Y/N. I do,” he fretted while she kept shaking her head.

“You don’t. You just...you just felt like childhood, which I can’t keep dwelling on anymore. Both of us need to grow up.” She inclined her head, arms wrapped around herself. “I’m sorry, Blake. I don’t think we can be friends anymore. Not after this.”

“Y/N.”

She didn’t look at him and rushed down the stairs, hoping he wouldn’t go after her. And he didn’t. She came dashing out of the building, her eyes prickling with tears. She couldn’t believe she’d doubted Harry and trusted Blake. She felt like such a fool. She hated herself.

Stopping on the side of the road, she fished her phone out of her handbag to call Harry. But then her screen flashed on with the notification of ‘11 missed calls from Laura H’. Her chest throbbed. She called Laura back.

Laura didn’t answer.

When Gemma stepped out of the lift, fumbling around in her bag for her room key, she almost didn’t notice the man waiting for her in the hallway.

“Gem.”

His voice froze her to the spot. She shot her head up, her heart rate increasing as Asher walked up to her holding a rose bouquet. He was dressed in a fine ocean-blue suit, his dark hair pushed back, the strong scent of his cologne so unbearable. He looked like he was here for a photoshoot or a red carpet event. When he cracked a smile, she responded with a grimace.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, unable to take her eyes off the flowers. The last time he’d got her flowers had been their first Valentine’s Day together; things had gone downhill after that.

“I came to see you,” he said. “To apologise.”

He held the flowers toward her with both hands, and she pushed them right back to him, shaking her head.

“I don’t need your apology,” she said. “You made it clear that day on the phone that this was over and I’m thankful for it.”

“I said ‘a break’.”

“You don’t get to call a break and come back whenever you feel like it,” Gemma said in annoyance. “That’s not how a relationship works.”

She gently pushed right past him to unlock the door. Right as she opened it, he slipped straight into her room. She stared at him, speechless. “Asher, leave.”

“I want to talk, please.”

Frustrated and annoyed, she slammed the door behind her, stormed toward the bed and flung her bag on it. He stood by the door with that stupid bouquet, waiting for his chance to speak.

“I can offer you a deal,” he blurted as she turned around. “You don’t have to get back with me. We can go separate ways after this.”

“Or we can go separate ways now.” She gestured to the door.

He pretended like he hadn’t heard that. “My father really likes you,” he said. “He thinks you keep me grounded. So I think...if you ask him for the investment, he’ll most likely say yes. I'll pay you. Please help me, Gem.”

“No!” Gemma put her hands on her hips, her mouth quirked in annoyance. “You’ve got some nerves to ask me that. We are not getting back together. Go find someone else dumb enough to help you.”

Asher’s mouth fell open. He must have come here thinking she would burst into tears and run into his arms the moment she saw him and forgive him like she always had. If so, he was destined for disappointment.

“What’s wrong with you?” he asked. “Why are you like this all of a sudden?”

“Why do I have common sense all of a sudden?” She cocked her head. “Maybe I’ve finally found someone who appreciates me, and is not only with me because he can use me for his own benefit.”

Asher was shallow but he wasn’t stupid. Realization soon dawned on his face. “Have you been cheating on me?”

Before he’d come here, she’d imagined this moment to be extremely awkward, but now she was full of rage. “You and I are not together anymore, Asher,” she snapped. “But well, I did kiss him once when we were ‘together’.”

“You fucking bitch,” Asher bellowed as he threw himself at her. Everything happened so quickly her brain failed to catch on. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, gripping the edge of the table, her head in pain. She spotted the horror on her ex’s face before he broke into a run out of the room, so she reached for her head and looked at her own fingers.

Blood.

He’d pushed her.

Shocked and dizzy, she held the table for support to stand up and hobbled into the bathroom where she grabbed a hand towel, wetted it and tried to clean the wound on her forehead. That was when she heard the door open and close. She spun around, horrified. It was just Isaac.

“What happened?!” He rushed toward her, held her face between his cold palms.

“Asher came here…” was all she could say while shaking her head, feeling herself going unsteady.

“Did he fucking hit you?” Isaac ground his jaw, his eyes turning dark.

She shuddered at the thought and felt hot tears in the wells of her eyes. “I think he pushed me,” she mumbled.

“Fuck!”

She fisted his shirt, afraid that he might run after Asher, who must have been long gone by now. But Isaac didn’t bother to ask about the arsehole. He inspected the wound on her forehead and encircled his arms around her. “Come on,” he said. “I’ll take you to the hospital.”

“Can I see her?” Y/N asked.

“Not yet,” the nurse answered.

“Is she okay?”

“She will be,” the nurse told Y/N while scribbling something on the clipboard. She’d asked Y/N a bunch of questions about Laura, most of which Y/N had answered with “I don’t know”. She didn’t know if Laura was a regular drinker or if she often drank to drunkenness. Y/N only knew what she’d witnessed – Laura blacked out on her bedroom floor with empty bottles scattering all around.

Laura had been taken to the emergency room where they gave her fluids. The doctor had briefed Y/N, saying Laura had got alcohol poisoning from her alcohol binge, and if Y/N hadn’t found her – if she’d locked the door after Y/N had left – then something terrible could have happened tonight. Y/N wasn’t sure if Laura would be okay, but things could have gone worse and she was grateful it hadn’t.

“Is there any family member that we could call?” asked the nurse, who was finally making eye contact with Y/N.

“I-I don’t know. I’m just her client,” Y/N said, rubbing her palms together nervously. “Maybe uhm...maybe I can call her assistant.”

“It’s fine. She’s in a better condition now. We’ll just get information from her when she wakes up.”

Y/N thanked the nurse and sat in one of the chairs in the hallway. She thought of calling Harry but didn’t have any motivation to do it, so she sat with her head against the wall, watching the nurses’ station while she waited for better news.

She didn’t know what time it was. She was already fatigued. She felt herself drifting away when a voice pulled her right back.

“Y/N?”

She looked up. Isaac and Gemma were just as shocked to see her. Gemma didn’t look like herself; she was wearing an oversized black hoodie with the hood on, covering her forehead. Y/N didn’t want to assume the hoodie was Isaac’s, but something told her it wasn’t Gemma’s.

“What...are you guys doing here?” Y/N slowly rose from her seat, her eyes switching back and forth between Isaac and Gemma. “Together.”

Isaac worked his jaw, unable to get any word out as he looked over at Gemma imploringly, and she heaved a sigh. Y/N was losing patience with the suspense when Gemma pulled back the hood to reveal her bandaged forehead.

“Oh my God, what happened?” Y/N gasped, pushing past Isaac to grab Gemma’s shoulders. “Did you get into an accident?”

“Y-Yeah.” Gemma looked unconfident, her eyes searching for Isaac’s again. Something was wrong, and neither of them wanted to tell Y/N what it was. She would have been mad if she didn’t have her own problems to worry about. What a crazy day it had been.

She was going to ask Isaac why he’d been the one to take Gemma to the hospital, but he went first. “Why are you here?”

“A friend of mine got into trouble,” she said. It was only fair that she got to be ambiguous too.

“Alice?” Gemma looked concerned.

“No.”

Isaac grimaced. “Eddie?”

“No!” Y/N rolled her eyes at their surprised reactions. “You guys really assume I have only two friends in London?”

“You do have only two friends in London,” Isaac said, beaming, “Besides us.”

Y/N assumed he meant him, Niall, and Harry. He wasn’t entirely wrong, but she wasn’t going to give him that.

For the second time, she meant to ask why he’d taken Gemma here, but right as she opened her mouth, a nurse showed up with a clipboard.

“Miss Styles," she called.

“Yes?” Gemma whipped around as the nurse sauntered right past her like she wasn’t there.

Confused and surprised, they all watched the nurse head toward the end of the hallway, where sat a brunette with her headphones on. Her hair was covering her face as she was looking down at her phone. The nurse had to tap her on the shoulder to get her attention. She glanced up, eyes popping out the moment she saw them. Y/N, Isaac, and Gemma looked like they’d seen a ghost.

“Emilia Styles,” repeated the nurse since Emilia wasn’t looking at her. “You can see your mother now.”

Y/N glanced over at Isaac and Gemma, who looked as if they’d seen a ghost. The nurse said something else to Emilia and went into one of the rooms. Emilia told the nurse she’d be right back as she shoved her headphones into her tote bag, got up and made way toward Y/N, Isaac and Gemma.

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” she said with a pretentious smile; it was the same smile she always wore, but it was only until this moment that Y/N realized how pompous it was.

“Drop the act,” Y/N snapped. “Are you gonna fucking tell us why you’re here? Or should we go ask your mum who is still ALIVE?”

Isaac held her back by the arm before she could even consider doing something to Emilia. She didn’t want to get violent; she wasn’t that type of person. Not yet.

“Fine.” The fake smile disappeared as Emilia stood taller despite having been exposed. “My mum’s alive,” she calmly confessed. “She has cancer, and my dad doesn’t work anymore so I have to take care of them.”

“With Harry’s money?” Gemma snarled. Y/N believed if Gemma’s head wasn’t hurt, she would have already torn Emilia to pieces.

“I didn’t take anything Harry didn’t want to give.” Emilia crossed her arms and lifted her chin, which made Y/N more shocked than angry; she didn’t know it was possible to be this shameless.

“So everything was fake?” Y/N asked. “You made up a nice little story calling your mum crazy for burning down the house and–”

“It was my dad,” Emilia said with her eyes closed as she sucked in an unsteady breath and opened her eyes at the long exhalation. “He was drunk and he set the house on fire. That was after my mum had been diagnosed with cancer. He was very upset because we didn’t have enough money for the treatment. I had to drop out and use my college money for it.” Then she swallowed and looked over at Isaac, who’d been speechless the whole time. “I’m sorry, Isaac. But when we met I recognised you right away. I knew you were Harry’s friend, and I saw you as an opportunity. We had to lie because Harry didn’t trust us at first; he thought Dad was a terrible man–”

“No decent man would lie to his own son to steal his money!”

“We weren’t stealing!” Emilia half-shouted at Gemma then frantically looked around. A few nurses stared at them with concern but no one attempted to interfere. Emilia turned back to Gemma and lowered her voice, “We were gonna tell him everything.”

“When?” Y/N scoffed. “When your mum gets better? Or when you finally become a successful actress living off Harry’s fame?”

“I started with a lie and I had to go through it.” Emilia huffed, her forehead creased. “Things have got so much better since Harry came into our lives. He paid off our bank debt, for Dad’s medicines, for our food. We never asked him for more money. We simply sold the expensive stuff he bought for us as gifts to pay the hospital bills for Mum. I still have to go to work, but now I can also go to auditions. And Harry doesn’t lose anything. He loves Dad, and he’s rich anyway.”

“Harry worked for everything he owns now,” Gemma hissed. “Your dad doesn’t get to live on the money of the son he left and tried to steal from.”

Emilia’s lips quirked in a scornful manner. “You’re just bitter because Dad doesn’t love you.”

Y/N’s gaze jumped to Gemma, whose face was white with shock. She didn’t expect that. None of them expected that. It was so hurtful. Because it was the truth...

“It was my plan. Dad just went along with it,” Emilia went on despite Gemma’s fists shaking as she refrained herself from tackling Emilia to the floor. Emilia knew Y/N and Gemma couldn’t do anything to her in a hospital hallway, and Isaac would never lay hands on a woman. She considered Gemma’s face. “He just wanted my mum to get better. We knew Harry wouldn’t help us if he had to go behind yours and your mum’s back, so I had to reach out to you first. I had to gain your approval.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” Gemma sneered and waved her hand when Emilia gazed at her alarmedly. “Do go on. When will we get to the part where you’re forgivable?”

“Say anything you want, but I did it for a reason,” Emilia murmured, her eyes piercing at Gemma. “What are your reasons for cheating on your boyfriend and sleeping with your brother’s best friend?”

Gemma growled and launched herself at Emilia, who jumped right back as Isaac dragged Gemma away. A few nurses had gathered to watch them, unsure if it was necessary to call security. The four of them weren’t really fighting or being loud, but Y/N wasn’t sure how long they could maintain peace.

“Did I say something wrong?” Emilia looked at Isaac, whose eyes fastened on Y/N’s face at once.

“You two?” Y/N stared at him and Gemma in disbelief.

“Asher and I are over, Y/N,” Gemma said, reaching for Y/N’s hand. Y/N let her hold it, only because Y/N was too shocked to move.

“Does Harry know?” she asked quietly. Gemma and Isaac both shook their heads.

“Guess I’m not the only one who lied to Harry after all.”

Isaac shot Emilia a glare even though his features were incredibly calm. “Why haven’t you told him?”

“This isn’t a game of Truth or Dare,” she told him. “I’m not gonna blackmail you into doing something for me in return for my silence. I’m not a good person but I’m not that awful. I just wanted to help my mum. I don’t care what it takes.” Her voice suddenly dropped as she took a step further from them. “And I really liked you, Isaac. I’m sorry.”

Y/N could tell Isaac had a lot he wanted to say to Emilia, but he kept his lips tight because she wasn’t worth it. From the way Emilia was looking at him, she must regret lying to him the most. What about Harry? Harry didn’t deserve this. He’d been nothing but kind to her and Winton.

“Miss Y/L/N?” a nurse interjected. She was the one who’d spoken to Y/N about Laura. “Your friend is awake. Would you like to see her?” she told Y/N, who sighed in relief. At least this night didn’t go all the way down a pit of despair.

“I have to go,” she told Isaac and Gemma.

Isaac caught Y/N’s elbow before she could follow the nurse. “You’re not gonna tell Harry, are you?”

“I’m not gonna do the hard work for you three,” she said, giving all of them – even Emilia – a disappointed look. “You’re all going to tell him tomorrow. Not tonight. I don’t want his night to be ruined as well.” Then she fixed her eyes on Emilia, whose face was blank; either she hid her emotions really well, or she didn’t feel like any normal person would. Y/N stabbed a finger at Emilia, her voice rough, “You and your family better stay the fuck away from my boyfriend, or you’re gonna have to deal with his lawyer, and it won’t be pretty.”

The other nurses looked scared when Y/N caught them watching. She couldn’t even work up a smile as she mouthed the word “sorry” and marched right past them.

#my girl series

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ladywaynebr · 4 years ago

Text

Love at Chance - CH 02

Chapter 02: Jump and Pumps!

Word Count: 1.6 k

Warnings: None yet, just someone coming out from under the stone.

Summary: Dog, a gift and a super attentive mother.

Author’s Note: This is my first story in English, you will certainly notice. I hope you like it and forgive any mistakes.

Chapter 01 Link

NOTE: THIS IS A WORK OF FICTION.

Thank you for reading! Whoever wants to be marked in the chapters leave a request in the comments. If you enjoyed this please LIKE, COMMENT, REBLOG. THANK YOU!

My day at the office was terrible, my share of arrogant clients is reaching its limit. I just don't throw it all away because the bills don't pay themselves and I like the little luxuries that my salary provides. One of them is the wine I'm drinking. Delicious, full-bodied, with a slight oak aroma. If this wine were a man, I would literally be on my knees for him. After all, the ideal would be a good wine and a hot night with some hot guy. But the resolution I made on my last birthday, prevents me from going to a bar and meeting someone. My new self doesn't spend time with imbeciles. I was tired of booty calls and all those fuck boys. I want someone to stay, someone I can trust.

I was dozing on the couch when I heard the barking from the apartment next door. I ended up discovering that the condominium allows animals, I went to make a complaint with the administration, I left there, embarrassed. The new neighbor and the dog, have been here for almost a month. They spent a few weeks away, and returned a few days ago. He still hasn't fixed my door.

I slept too much, it was certainly the wine. Late for work I left without having breakfast and finishing my makeup in the elevator mirror. They are renovating the parking lot of the building, we residents have to leave our cars near the leisure yard. Last night it rained, which makes the floor slippery and the enemy of high heels. I was walking slowly despite the rush. My cell phone started ringing like crazy in my purse, my boss must be furious with my delay. I answered without looking at who it was.

- Sorry, I'm on my way!

- What?

- Mom, I thought I was someone else. I'm late for work, I can't talk now.

- I just want to confirm our dinner today, I will cook for you. - She increased her tone of voice, my mother thinks that speaking out loud is more agile.

- Yes, but I don't have much in the fridge. - I'm basically living on frozen food.

- Don't worry, I'll stop by the grocery store. - Said the loud voice.

- Okay, see you later!

Hanging up, I stopped for a few moments to put my phone in my purse.

- Dodger, no! - The male voice roared.

The pile of hair leapt over me again, with its paws against my belly.

- Jesus! - I screamed.

The dog's paws are wet and dirty with sand from the yard. That combination created an abstract art on my silk blouse. I felt my face tremble with rage, the animal stopped in front of me with his tongue hanging out and the tail swaying.

- Please, forgive me! - His owner approached, wearing a blue sweater and Patriots cap. - I don't know what happened to him, Dodger is not to go around jumping on people.

- I find it hard to believe. This is the second time he attacks me, use a collar or something. - The damage to my shirt was great.

-He's wearing it, but when he saw you, he let go of my hands and ran towards you. - The man is also confused. - I don't understand, he's not like that.

- Your dog must hate me. - I turned around, I need to change.

I heard his footsteps behind me. In an attempt to hurry and stay away from them, I stepped up.

- Be careful, the floor is slippery and your heels are not the most suitable shoes. - He warned me gently.

It just made me more nervous.

- If you were able to control your dog, I wouldn't need to be running. I'm late for work. - I said annoyed.

- It was an accident, I already apologized. - He's still after me. - What is your size, I'll buy you another shirt.

We arrived at the entrance to the building, stopping and I looked at him.

- The same way you fix my door? - His cheeks were flushed. I confess I didn't expect that reaction, I found it a little charming.

- I forgot, I've been traveling for work and with so many things happening. I'm sorry again, I'll take care of everything. - His tone embarrassed.

He disarmed me, I don't like to embarrass people.

- Don't worry, just make sure Dodger stops jumping on me. - Hearing his name, the dog wagged its tail.

- I think he likes you. - He said with a smile.

I just nodded, shooting for the elevator. Impossible for that dog to like me, I barely know him.

When I got home I came across a new door installed and my mom in the kitchen.

- Good night mom.

- Hi darling. - She smiled while chopping carrots.

- Who installed the door?

- Some men, I was entering when they arrived. - She said. - What caused that hole?

- I'm not sure. - I lied, putting my bag on the counter. - The smell is great.

- It is your favorite, go take your bath soon it will be served.

- Right!

- I was forgetting, the mysterious gift is in your bed. - She smiled excitedly.

- What a gift?

- A delivery boy brought a beautiful Prada box. With a card!

Jesus, he kept his promise. I shot into the room.

After the shower, I picked up the box and the card, which I opened first. The message was handwritten.

“I hope I got the size right. This is an apology from Dodger and me.

C.E "

A kind and polite gesture on his part. I opened the box and got a surprise. He didn't buy me another blouse, which wasn't even a designer, but a beautiful flowered dress with a blue background. He got the size right, I'm not tall and I have my curves and volumes. What drove that man to do that, to buy me such an expensive apology gift.

- What did you win? - My mother curious as soon as I sat at the table.

- Something I will return. - I answered. - I can't accept it's inappropriate.

- Don't tell me it's your boss, that asshole is trying to get into your pants again. - She was annoyed.

- No mother. Daniel never approached me again after I threatened to tell his wife. - I regret telling her. My mother can't forget - The gift is from someone else, but because we don't know each other very well, I can't accept it.

- It does well, you are a Christian girl and should not be accepting gifts around. - She took my hand to pray.

She will spend the night here I don't like that she travels by car at night. While Mom chose a movie, I washed the dishes and made popcorn. I hope she doesn't choose anything biblical.

- Did you put butter?

I settled on the couch next to her.

- No, your cholesterol needs to be under control. - She made a face. - What is the movie?

- One with Captain American, he will rescue some people in danger. - She said picking up some popcorn.

A few minutes of the film passed and I was shocked.

- Jesus! It's him! - I screamed.

- He who?

- My neighbor. - I went back to the scene, pausing on his face. - He has long hair, but it's him.

- Chris Evans is your neighbor, how did you let that pass “y / n”?

So that's why he signed the card with the initials.

- I do not follow the world of Hollywood and celebrities. - He certainly realized that I didn't recognize him. - I thought I recognized him from somewhere, but I didn't associate with any of that. After all, what does a star living in this condo?

- I don't know about that, but it's proof that you need to stop working so hard. You are becoming isolated from the world, even the church ladies are able to recognize this man.

- What a small world. - I mumbled looking at the screen.

- Is he handsome like on TV? - She asked curiously. - For a white boy, of course.

If I say I didn't realize it is a lie.

- Yes, actually even more beautiful. - She laughed.

We went back to watching the movie, which took on another meaning for me.

#chrisevans #chris evans x black reader #black fanfiction #black author #black woman #chris evans #slow burn #fluffy

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srhlsx · 5 years ago

Text

Rewritten & Reposted March 24, 2021

MASTER | Ch. 19 | CHAPTER 20 - END

You hadn’t been up to Sendai for quite some time, since you were in college visiting a few friends, so it was exciting to see the changes that had been made to the buildings and landscape. Your younger siblings had never been to these parts, so as you drove through the streets their faces were pressed against the glass of the windows. Yua more so than Eiji, being a teenager now he was less likely to show how much things that ‘weren’t cool’ excited him.

When you pulled into the parking lot, his eyes did start to get a little bit more life in them. The massive banner hanging from the roof of the Kamei Arena had blown up pictures of professional athletes in an array of action poses, one in particular catching the attention of everyone in your car. You bit your lip anxiously as you parked, pressing your head to the steering wheel and taking in a deep breath.

“You okay neechan?” You heard Yua ask from the back seat. She leaned forward between the two front seats and poked at your shoulder repeatedly. You glanced at her sideways and mumbled out a yes, which was enough of an answer for the nine year-old to return back to her seat.

“She’s nervous.” Eiji stated in a blunt tone. Your eyes widened considerably as you looked at your now sixteen year old brother.

“I am not nervous,” You snapped, although you could barely convince yourself of the fact with how your voice managed to crack at the end.

“Sure you are,” Your brother shrugged. “You spilled your tea like six times this morning and your hands haven't stopped fidgeting the entire ride up here.”

You turned to look away from your brother and faced the front of the car, watching as people piled out of their cars and started to file into the stadium. You pouted slightly, annoyed that your brother continued to be wiser than his years and wasn’t afraid to call you on it.

You hesitated before speaking again, bringing your hand up to your mouth and absently biting on your thumbnail. “What if it’s weird?” You mumbled into the silence of the car.

You felt like such a loser. Here you were, sitting in your car in a busy parking lot, nervous about seeing the guy you fell in love with in high school and complaining about it to your nine year-old and sixteen year-old siblings. Pathetic.

“You still talk to him though!” Your sister said.

“But they haven’t really been around each other in like, two years Yua,” Your brother said, turning around in his seat to face the back. “What she’s worried about is how she’s supposed to greet him.”

While things steadily got more serious between you and Bokuto over the years, when he made the decision to enter into the professional volleyball league, it took a damper on your relationship. You agreed, mutually, that things were going to be put on pause. You were still finishing up undergrad and applying for graduate school proper at the time, all that hard work you had put in over the years was not something you were going to throw away just to travel around the country with Bokuto and chase after uncertain victory.

It had been hard to end things. But as Bokuto made very clear, it was not goodbye but more like pausing a movie right before the big climax and just waiting until the next bag of popcorn was ready. You had cried, heavily, when he said that, but couldn’t help to also laugh at how he could spin things into something positive.

At this point, it’d been two years since you parted ways. Two years since you’d seen him in person. Two years since you’d felt his touch.

“Just say hi?” Yua said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. As if you were going to go up to him, this professional athlete who was making a huge name for himself, and just say ‘hi’.

“Yes, chibi.” You nodded, jolting yourself to get going and finally unbuckling your seatbelt. “That’s a great idea, you smart girl.”

Glancing in the rearview mirror you could see Yua preen at the praise, ignoring or not noticing your slightly sarcastic tone as she gathered her stuff and also started to exit the car. As you all met in the front of the car to walk in together, your brother tugged on your jacket to pull you back a step. You looked at him, well up at him now, expectantly.

“It’s going to be fine,” He reassured you. “And if it’s not, then we can leave.”

You wanted to cry at the sentiment. Coming here was something your brother had been looking forward to since you’d gotten the tickets in the mail. He’d nearly swooned over the handwritten message that had come with them, the sender expressing their hope and excitement to see the three of you again. You knew that if he was offering to leave because you were uncomfortable, he meant it.

You grabbed your brother by the track jacket he was wearing, the gold and black detailing flashing in the bright sun, and pulled him close in an embarrassing (for him) show of affection. “You’re the best.” You mumbled as you ruffled his hair.

He immediately pushed you off and his hands went up to fix the wayward locks when he noticed a group of teenage girls giggling a few yards away. “Yeah, whatever.” He mumbled, doing his best to hold back a smile.

When the three of you entered the stadium and your tickets were scanned, the ticket worker motioned for someone looking like an usher to come forward. The older woman glanced at your tickets and told you to follow her. Confused, you asked if there was something wrong.

“No, dear!” She smiled at you as she continued to walk through the crowd. “These are just VIP tickets, I’ll escort you to the visitor’s VIP section. You must be very special!”

You blushed, having not even realized what kind of tickets you had been sent, which made you feel like an idiot. Yua began jumping up and down excitedly, while Eiji’s eyes became wider than saucers as you descended a set of stairs and ended up on the floor right next to the court.

It was perfect timing as the lights began to flicker and loud music began to pump through the speakers. The announcer directed all attention to the multiple jumbotron screens throughout the arena as the introductions for the home team, the Adlers, began. You happened to recognize a few of the names from your days in high school volleyball, and you suddenly got a little less anxious and a little more excited.

In the next moment you swore your heart stopped completely and the world was suddenly spinning a million miles a minute. The home team had completed their introductions, and like the shooting star you always remembered him being, another figure made a grand entrance.

He flipped and twirled, landing on his feet and yelling out his own name and number and smiling brightly towards the crowd. Everyone laughed, including you and your siblings, glad to see that time and fame hadn’t changed Bokuto in the slightest.

“(Y/n), I can’t see!” Yua complained, jumping up on the tips of her toes to try to see over the crowd standing near the barrier. “Eiji, take me closer!”

You pushed at your siblings, encouraging them to move through the sea of people to get a closer look before warmups were finished. You saw Eiji roll his eyes, but you knew he was secretly more excited than even Yua as he led her towards the front. You got a little jostled in the crowd and were separated from your siblings for a moment, but you weren’t worried since you were all going in the same direction.

“Hey, Bokuto-san, that kid over there has a Fukurodani jacket! So cool!” Bokuto’s ears perked up at the mention of his high school and looked around wildly until his eyes landed on where his red-headed teammate was pointing.

Bokuto didn’t bother to hear anything else, he was already moving across the court.

Two years may have made your siblings grow and change, but he would forever recognize them. Your little sister Yua, barely peeking her eyes over the top of the barrier still had crazy hair that he remembers you once saying she got from your mother. Your brother, Eiji, was not a young boy anymore but a growing teenager who was closing in on Bokuto in terms of height and size - impressive, kid can’t be older than sixteen now, Bokuto thought.

His smile grew even more when he had fully approached the two and saw that not only was your brother wearing a Fukurodani jacket, but it was a part of the familiar volleyball warmups Bokuto himself still had. Stitched into the front was your family’s name and a golden number four. Bokuto felt a sense of pride at the sight, “Good choice, Eiji.”

“Thank you, I had to earn it.” Your brother greeted Bokuto with a solid handshake and a modest smile.

“I’m sure you worked hard,” Bokuto said, then reaching down to say hello to Yua and ruffling her hair affectionately which made her smile grow wider than it seemed like her face could accommodate.

“Oh my - fuuuck, these people.” You huffed out as you finally broke through the bodies pushed together that had separated you from your siblings. You let out a heavy sigh and pushed your hair out of your face a bit dramatically. When you looked up at who your siblings had been talking to your spinning word suddenly halted altogether. “Oh my god.”

Bokuto looked as stunned as you felt, those same golden eyes widening to take up most of his face, eyebrows reaching up in surprise as he opened and closed his mouth a few times. Bokuto Koutaro, speechless, for the first time in his life. “H-Hey,” He finally said.

“Hi,” You said back immediately, clutching your bag to your chest in hopes that it would help your nerves to do something with your hands.

There was a pause, a flash of uncertainty that came across Bokuto’s face. If you hadn’t been staring at him so intently you might’ve missed it as it was so quickly replaced by so many other emotions. Relief. Excitement. Love.

“I’ve missed you, (y/n).” He said breathlessly, right before he reached his hands out and grabbed you by the face and pulled you forward. You didn’t resist at all as his lips came crashing down on yours, letting your bag fall to the floor as your grip shifted to clutching at the black jersey that stretched across his chest.

It all came back in that moment, like a montage or highlight reel. Daiki introducing you at that party six years ago. Late nights spent texting, facetiming, or studying together. Cheering each other on as you both continued through the ranks at the national tournament. His body pressed up against yours in those secret, intimate moments. Smiles and laughter as you walked the streets of Tokyo while skipping out on your free periods.

You heard a few of his teammates yelling from the other side of the court, probably confused as to why Bokuto was kissing a random girl from the crowd. As he pulled away, smiling, you pressed your forehead against his and let the weight of the past few years of missing him slowly fall from your shoulders.

“See, (y/n)?” Yua said, picking up your bag and handing it to you. “I told you ‘hi’ was fine!”

#bokuto koutaro #koutaro bokuto #bokuto x reader #haikyuu!!#haikyuu #haikyuu fanfiction #haikyuu!! x reader #hq!! x reader #hq!!#hq

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melwritesbadly · 4 years ago

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With Wings in All Black

After a tragic turn of events, Kazama Kaori , AKA Hex, has her investigation swept out from under her by the #2 Pro Hero. Reluctantly she joins Hawks in the pursuit of justice. On top of trying to solve the biggest case of her career, Kaori is still a young woman struggling to find her place in the world. Life is turned upside down as her professional and personal lives start to blend.

Rating: T (subject to change)

Content Warnings: slight language, implied violence/death

________________________________________________________

‘Are you aware of the hour?’

‘As if you were sleeping. ANYWAY, I’ve got another one for you!’

‘We’ve discussed your cryptic messages, another one what?’

‘Why another little bird for the nest. I think you’ll like her.’

‘Somehow I doubt that.’

__________

Two for Some Luck

Hex decided to take the 20 minute walk back to her apartment rather than the much shorter flight. It was thankfully peaceful. No assaults, no muggings, just bustling city life despite the late hour.

She thought about her next steps and her current situation. Despite her perceived annoyance she was grateful for the help. She just hated that it cost Kenji’s life to get it, and that was not ok with her…

So why now, after weeks of posting to the Hero Network? And why him. When now, in all honesty, it seemed like a case for the police.

Pro Heroes usually didn’t investigate murders, at least not top charters like Hawks.

Heroes like Hawks were better suited for grandiose villains, not the everyday kind of monsters. That’s what the underground was for.

Because people like Kenji’s mother didn’t get happy endings, no heroic flourish at the end of it all. No triumph. Only grief.

Hex couldn’t protect her from that, just like she couldn’t protect Kenji, and she is no closer to helping all the other missing people either.

Some Hero she was…

The walk was not as calming as she hoped as her mind swirled with guilt and more questions she was not going to find the answers to, at least not that night. Instead she decided on a shower and hopefully a few hours of sleep before she went with the police to the Takei house…then to wherever Hawks decided to meet with her.

From the front of her building Hex could see the light on in her apartment.

Mayu must have got home early from the bar.

Soon her key was slipping into the lock and opening the door to her small shared apartment.

Kaori didn’t have much in the way of money when she left her father’s agency. Without an agency supporting you, hero work did not pay well, if at all. The odd jobs she took around the station were barely enough to cover her portion of the rent and her groceries but bless Mayu. Her roommate didn’t complain when her payments were late or if she had to pick up some extra costs. Her new job at the swankiest Hero club in the city paid big bucks and Mayu was a generous young woman.

“Kaori?” her roommate called from behind the closed bathroom door.

“Yeah, it’s me Yu.” her voice tired as she called back to the other woman.

“You’re early!” a muffled gasp “Bad night?”

“You have no idea…What are you doing in there?” Kaori kicked off her shoes and placed her black coat on the simple rack Mayu kept her various jackets and purses on.

“Oh you know, having another identity crisis”

“Are you dying your hair again?” Kaori asked sitting on the small but comfy couch Mayu had ‘acquired’ during her brief stay at University.

Stretching out along it Kaori pulled one of the colorful throw pillows over her face and briefly contemplated screaming into it.

She heard the door to the bathroom open followed by the barest hints of hair dye and floral shampoo that snuck under the decorative square.

Mayu lifted Kaori’s legs high enough to wiggle under them, setting them back down over her lap.

“What’s wrong pretty bird?” Mayu asked in her sweet voice then gasped “Wait don’t tell me-” she reached for one of Kaori’s hands and held it in her own.

[Glimmers of hope, new links on a chain, soft, red, light as a feather]

“You met someone!” Mayu gasped.

“You know I don’t like it when you use your quirk on me.” Kaori’s voice muffled through the pillow and wiggled her hand free from her friends.

“Sorry PB, you know I can’t help myself. Anyway back to the matter. You met someone!”

“It’s not like that. It’s work stuff” Kaori finally pulled the pillow from her face holding it to her chest instead.

Mayu’s head was wrapped in a ratty dye stained towel. Her round face and large blue eyes made her seem like one of those painted cherubs.

“What color this time?” trying to redirect the conversation away from herself.

“Baby blue to match my other baby blues” she clasped her hand and fluttered her lashes for effect. “And what do you mean work stuff?! Didn’t feel like work stuff.” she prodded, tickling her fingers along her friend’s shins.

“Yu” a sigh “I don’t want to talk about it right now. It’s probably going to be on every tabloid by the end of the week anyway…”

Kaori pulled herself up and stood up from the couch and made her way to her bedroom forgoing the shower tonight and resigned herself to wake earlier while Mayu was sleeping to avoid further questioning or quirk prodding.

“Tabloids, what? What?! PB!”

“Too tired, going to bed.” Kaori ignored her roommate who had jumped from her spot and charged at her rapidly closing door.

Mayu drummed her hand along her door and whined.

“You never go out with anyone and now you tell me the media is involved. What did you dooooo?” she whined dramatically, scratching along the door.

Kaori stripped her dark clothes and slid out of her flight suit and brushed out her hair.

“It’s nothing Yu, just… let me sleep, I’ll talk to you in the morning.” she paused “Don’t touch my stuff!” knowing her roommate could use her quirk on inanimate objects too.

“No fun” came one final whine from Mayu who then admitted defeat, for now.

______

The next morning Mayu waited until Kaori had finished her breakfast and headed to the bathroom to shower. On the kitchen table was a box filled with various pictures, notes, maps and other handwritten details. Mayu held one in her hand not so much reading it but feeling what that paper represented activating her quirk.

She felt the hopelessness, the frustrated exhaustion. The perseverance. Strings and connections winding and wrapping leading nowhere and everywhere.

‘I will save them’

Mayu pursed her lips and placed the paper back in the box.

If Kaori had taken down her pinboard was she giving up? No, there was no way. In the 2 years she had known her if someone needed help Kaori would help them. Hex would help them.

[New links in the chain, hope, feathers] she recalled from last night. Hmm, the first part was easy to decipher. It had to represent whoever Kaori had met, someone new. The chain could maybe mean she was trapped, which would explain why she was so gloomy last night. Hmm, hope and feathers…

As Mayu thought through the abstraction of her quirk she noticed the unfinished cup of coffee and Kaori’s phone which just emitted several pings indicating she had just received messages.

Mayu knew she shouldn’t look but…

It’s not like she was snooping through her phone (it has a passcode and she could not for the life of her crack it)

She would just- check her lock screen for the time and…

Mayu hit the button on the side lighting up the screen. Kaori didn’t have a custom background, just whatever came default with the phone but it did show a preview of the texts she had just received. The sender’s name caused her to make a confused but amused face.

The nosy young woman was not paying attention and did not hear the shower switch off as she scanned over the small blurb of text. Mayu gave a startled jolt as Kaori swung open the bathroom door and came out in a towel. Kaori was equally shocked to see Mayu up.

“What are you doing?” Kaori asked, eyeing her roommate suspiciously.

Mayu hastily grabbed the used mug and brought it to the kitchen under the guise of washing it.

“Oh nothing, couldn’t really sleep so I figured i’d clean up a bit.” She was a terrible liar and knew it.

“Yu…” the tone of her voice was enough to make Mayu fidget.

“Err, well” Mayu scratched her nose then twisted the ends of her hair. The now blue hair is a little frazzled but fluffy from letting it air dry. Kaori stood arms crossed waiting for her to continue.

“You see…” she reeled “I was…cleaning up,” she gestured to her the mug in her hand “and well your phone went off and I just happened to see the screen when I was leaning over and…” She spun the mug between her hands, a small smile sneaking onto her lips “Who’s ‘Unsolicited dick pics’”?”

Kaori blinked confused.

“What?”

“That’s who texted you- well that’s their name in your phone!” Mayu giggled.

“My phone?”

Who could possibly be named that Kaori thought. Then stopped when the obvious answer hit her, face falling with an un-amused expression. She shook her head and picked up her phone and flicked it on going to her message app to see the full message.

She replied,

Hawks’s response was immediate and Kaori shook her head setting her phone down.

Mayu was watching her expectantly.

“Well?”

“Well what?” Kaori crossed to her bedroom and closed the door enough for some privacy but enough to continue the conversation.

“Who’s dick pic guy?!” Mayu asked, leaning against the wall next to Kaori’s door. She heard Kaori click her tongue.

“He’s not ‘dick pic guy’. Just some smartass who thinks he’s cute.”

“Ah, so he’s cute now.”Mayu teased “Who is he! You said you’d tell me in the morning!”

From inside her room Kaori sighed adjusting her bodysuit making sure the fabric wasn’t bunched before slipping on the rest of her clothes.

“If I tell you, you can’t make a big deal because it is NOT a big deal and this is strictly for work. Pro Hero business” A dressed Kaori- rather Hex stepped out and pointed a finger at Mayu.

“Super secret and super dangerous!”

Mayu blinked but nodded.

“I’m serious. It’s no big deal” now it was Mayu’s turn to roll her eyes.

“You keep saying that but It’s making me think it is a big deal. Now spill!”

Kaori breathed in and touched her fingers to each other in front of her face at the brim of her nose.

“Hawks” Mayu’s mouth dropped.

“What.”

“I’m not saying it again.”

“No I heard you, just- what, as in, WHAT? Isn’t he mega hot and like the number 2 hero.”

“Yup, that’s the one” Kaori grimaced, speaking through her teeth.

“So you finally agree that he’s hot?” cheeked Mayu recalling a tipsy conversation they had when the popularity ratings were last posted.

“Just because I’m a bird and he’s a bird doesn’t mean I automatically find him attractive.”

“Attractive you say” Yu tried to fish further casting her a lewd look raising her eyebrows suggestively.

“Stop.” Kaori moaned, annoyed reaching up to smooth over the feathers at the back of her neck. They tended to tense and puff up when flustered, or in this case, annoyed.

“He’s not my type- too flashy” This caused Mayu to scoff.

“So says miss ‘I’m black as night spooky-spooky bird lady!”

“I’m not flashy and I certainly don’t like the attention!” Kaori waved her hands to maybe try and physically dismiss the subject. “This is why I didn’t want to tell you. I’m late already, I need to go.” brushing past Mayu and started to pull on her gear.

“We will continue this conversation later young lady” Mayu mock scolded,wagging a finger at her, Kaori shook her head

“Yes mom… I’ll see you later Yu”

______

Hex met with two officers just outside of Takei’s apartment complex. They did not speak to her but offered her a curt nod before gesturing to her to go on ahead of them.

She had never done something like this. To tell someone that their loved one… had died. It wasn’t something Hero’s did. Hero’s swooped in, stopped the bad guys and swooped back out. In and out of people’s lives, never lingering, never personal…

She hesitated, knuckling inches above the door, letting out a tense breath but finally rapt her fist against the worn door.

A soft ‘just a moment’ was heard beyond.

It seemed like an eternity but finally the door swung open and Kenji’s tired mother was revealed.

“Oh Hex.” she said softly, almost surprised to see her at her doorstep. Mrs. Takei’s eyes drifted to the officers who stood formally behind the Pro Hero. She gave a sad, knowing nod.

“Please… come in.”

They had waited for Mrs. Takei to make herself a cup of tea and settle into a seated position before speaking.

“Mrs. Takei…” Hex paused trying to find the right words “Your son- Kenji” She looked down unable to meet the woman’s gaze.

“Kenji’s body was found last night.” Hex said softly. A sad sigh came from the older woman.

“I see…” was all the woman could muster, Hex saw a slight sad shine at the corner of her eyes.

Hex stood and bowed her head low.

“I promised you I would find your son and bring him back to you. I not only failed you. I failed him. I beg for your forgiveness.” the officers bowed as well.

“Oh, no, please.” Mrs. Takei sniffed “Kenji, my son, he died the moment he went missing, I could feel it in my heart. At least now…” she paused again to compose herself. “Now I can lay him to rest properly.”

“I’m so sorry you are going through this Mrs. Takei. If there is anything I can do?” Hex offered a soft and sympathetic look in her eyes.

“You’ve done more than anyone Hex, I’ll be ok.” She sipped her tea.

“I can do more, for Kenji, for the others. Us Hero’s are not giving up-I’m not giving up.” Hex leaned forward and took Mrs. Takei’s hands and spoke sincerely, meeting her eyes “I will get justice for Kenji and for you.” It was a sad but welcome comfort to the woman.

“I know you will Hex, thank you.” Mrs. Takei squeezed the younger woman’s hands and finally let a few tears slip out.

“These officers will help you as best they can with any questions you might have and you can call me anytime you like ok?”

Mrs. Takei nodded sniffing once more then released Hex’s hands and brushed away her tears.

“Before I leave, I wanted to ask you…” Pulling out her phone Hex opened the picture she snapped the previous night of the business card “Does this mean anything to you?” The older woman examined the picture but shook her head no.

Worth a shot.

______

After excusing herself and leaving the apartment Hex made a quick stop back at her apartment to gather her evidence, she loaded it into a knapsack snapping it to one of her buckles and took flight to the hotel just in time for lunch.

Here we go…

Taking a deep breath is Hex strode into the hotel lobby. A quick stop at the concierge pointed the way to one of the conference rooms on the upper floors. The elevator ride was spent admiring how ritzy the place was and how she would put forth her evidence without sounding like a conspiracy theorist.

The conference room had frosted glass preventing her from seeing anything but shadows.

Should she knock? No- Jeesh why was she so nervous? She felt the feathers on her neck creep up. She shook her shoulders working out the jitter and opened the door.

An impressive spread of food was laid out on the long table. She felt all attention on her as 3 sets of eyes took immediate notice of her intrusion.

Duke Amazing had a mouth full of some sort of sandwich and lifted his bread in salut and continued to chew, a few crumbs in his mustache.

“Hey! It’s the star of the show!” Hawks called out.

He was kicked back in one of the executive chairs, legs propped up on the table and a can of some sort of energy drink in his hand. His other hand gestured to the projector screen at the front of the room showing videos of… well her.

The other person in the room sat next to Hawks upright and smartly dressed in fitting business attire. Her eyes meeting hers seemingly stared at something Hex could not see. Just at a glance she was certain this woman never smiled.

Hawks noted his manager’s dead eye stare and casually elbowed her causing the woman’s focus to drop and lose whatever it was she was looking at.

“This is June, the agency manager.” Hawks gestured to her then to the table “Take a seat, grab some grub, I think we’re getting to the good part.” he swiveled in his chair a bit, rocking himself side to side as he turned his attention back to the screen.

Hex placed her pack on the table and took a seat opposite to Duke.

“This data is old.” She commented idly picking through the food to find something she liked.

“Well,” the manager clicked a remote rewinding a certain part of the video and letting it play again “You’re about as underground as someone can go. The name Hex doesn’t even register on any hero chart. A nobody” she played the next bit in slow motion.

Every beat of her black wings taking up a frame. The familiar motions slowly rolling through her shoulders and hips as the Hex on screen slowly spun and let loose several pointed feathers as projectiles into the villain on screen sending them back and into a wall subdued. June rewound it and played it in real time, the motion as fast as a blink.

“However…” fast forwarding again and video Hex zoomed along the screen, and two other figures joined her. June paused it. Hex frowned as she started at the on screen version of herself.

“Aello,” the picture zoomed in on the blond in the middle. She fluttered in the air, quirk similar to Hex’s but her wings were white and blue.

“ Ocypete” June zoomed in on the other fair haired winged woman on screen. Her wings were green with sparse flecks of black.

“Finally, Celaeno.” June zoomed one final time, this time on Hex. Her jet black wings a stark contrast to the white and green of her partners. Her dark hair is also in conflict with their uniform blond-ness.

Hex did not speak and only stared at her past self posed perfectly behind her flashier partners. Their costumes matched in every way but color. Blue, green, and black. The black of her suit and her headgear were the only thing she had retained from this past persona.

The only thing worth keeping

Hex though as she eyed her past smile and eyes, perfect for the camera. Remembering how she had felt presenting herself that way.

“The Harpy Sisters- affiliated with King Crow Agency. Currently holding the number 112th slot on the boards despite missing a member.” She let the footage roll again switching to ground combat.

“Celaeno’s such a pretty name.” June mused more to herself then resumed speaking to the room “Still you’re very on brand for this agency.”

Take your brand and stuff it. Is what Hax wanted to say but felt that was a bit unprofessional. But still wanted to make sure the manager understood her stance on the matter.

“I told Hawks last night I don’t do agencies” Hex shoved a bunch of chips into her mouth making a point to crunch loudly.

“Well, as much as it is his agency. I handle all the logistics. And I’m telling you,” she paused folding her hand neatly on the table “We don’t ‘do’ Freelancers and since you don’t ‘do’ agencies we can’t ‘do’ a team up.” using the same tone to match Hex’s.

“And why not?” Hex questioned trying her best to not let her tone get too uneven “You said yourself I’m nobody. You have nothing to gain by trying to brand me- no one cares. No one cared that I left King Crow, and no one cares now.”

June tutted and had a constrained grimace on her face.

“True no one gives a damn about you Hex. But people care about Hawks. And it’s my job to protect his image so people continue to care about him. I know things are different working underground but topside? This is his world.” She gestures to hawks who simply shrugs “He’s the number 2 hero. Society chose him to be their hero- whoever is represented by his agency is a reflection on him. If we have ‘nobodies’ skulking around his agency it could make a bad impression”

Hex stood abruptly and walked towards the other end of the table.

“June, look now what you’ve done. Scared the poor girl off.” Commented Duke finally brushing his face free of crumbs.

Instead of leaving, Hex grabbed her bag and stomped to where June and Hawks were sitting. Locking eyes with the woman, Hex undid the fastening and dumped the contents out on the desk before her creating a mess.

“This is what I think of your stupid charts and pretty pictures of Hero’s.” quickly rifling through the paper and pulling out the pictures.

“ Taichi Mizo, missing 6 weeks. Ochiro Honda, missing 4 weeks, Ben Darma missing 7 months.”

Hex listed about a dozen people holding a picture to correspond to the names.

“I have been begging for help for weeks on the HN. For one of your ‘top charters’ to notice. To do something about this. But no.” she tossed the pictures on the pile “You were too busy posing for pictures, and worrying about what others think about Hero’s rather than being an actual Hero. Then you get caught with your pants around your ankles. Go “Woops, my bad.”

“I think you’ve made your point”

“Have I?” Hex huffed “Someone died because the only person who cared was me and I was too much of a nobody to help. Then you come at me and tell me how to do things when I’m the only person who’s done anything to try and fix this problem!” The room was awkwardly silent. Hex felt puffed up but resisted the urge to press down her neck and stood firm eyes never leaving June’s.

Duke stood silently and tip-toed out the room, an extra sandwich and bag of chips in his hand closing the door with a soft click.

“Well, that was intense!” Hawks tried to break the tension taking a loud sip from his can. Hex sighed in frustration and began collecting her papers.

So much for being cool.

“Listen, Hex. It’s bullshit, it’s all bullshit.” Hawks started fiddling with the tab of the can “The glitter, the glory. You’re right, we’re caught pants down, dick out-”

“Language” chided June causing Hawks to gesture towards her.

“See what I mean I can’t even tell it how it is without getting my wrists slapped.” June swatts his hand away “Anyway. I asked you to help. I want you to help. Because you care. I admit I have to drink the kool-aid every now and then but that’s the price we pay as Hero’s. The trick is not to chug.” He sips at his own drink “A sip here, a sip there and even bullshit is bearable if it means I can be the Hero I want to be. Now you said last night you needed resources. If it’s one thing this kool-aid man has is resources.” Hex tutted and finally smoothed down her neck.

“So It comes down to ends and means huh?”

“Seems so Chickadee”

She placed her hand on her hips and looked up and let out a deep breath.

“Fine then. Limited term contract- my previous conditions still stand. Full access and availability to this case.”

“Very good, a 12 month term with the agency.”

“6 months and I retain and manage my own promotional material” It was June’s turn to tutt.

“Unacceptable, the agency manages any and all images associated with the Hero’s under its employ. 9 months with lodgings.”

“I like my apartment, commuting isn’t so bad. 6 months and I can Veto any publicity I deem unnecessary.”

“8 months and you get 1 veto.”

“8 months and I get 2 vetoes” Hex stood firm and crossed her arms.

“8 months, you get 1 veto, and you get to retain your costume and persona. Even though Celaeno would be better branding for the agency.”

June pulled out a pen and pulled out a folder that was buried under the mess of papers Hex had dumped out.

“8 months, 1 Veto, Hex stays and you,” she pointed at Hawks, “no longer call me Chickadee.” It was his turn to tut resuming his twisting in his chair.

“Ah, there is no way I could sign off on a ‘no Chickadee’ clause in your contract Chickadee. Then I’d have to think of a new nickname for you and frankly that’d be too much work.”

“Worth a shot.” She nodded “Ok, deal”

“Fantastic, welcome aboard Hex.”

June quickly filled out the form then handed it along with a sort of stamp to Hawks. He didn’t bother looking over the contract and simply put his stamp to where it needed to be signed then used a feather to move the contract over to Hex letting it hover until she grabbed it. Once she did he made the feather do a lap around her prompting her swat it away like a fly. Pleased with her annoyance he recalled it and it zoomed back into place among his other vibrant plumage.

She read through its entirety making sure the agreed upon terms were fairly stated. Those stale management courses she took finally came in handy it seemed.

She was as satisfied as she was going to be given the situation and put a pen to the paper.

“Bottoms up Kool-aid man” she said and signed her hero credentials

“Cheers” chimed Hawks cracking open another can.

______

End Notes: I hope you guys are liking this so far. Sorry if it seems a little slow right now. Chapter 3 is almost done, and four has some agency fun. Also the text parts might seem a little weird since I’m on android and there is no good social dummy app to make fake texts. Anyway, I’m planning to do little fun half parts in between the larger chapters to give myself some time to work on the next parts so looks for that next week.

Thank you!

#wwiab #hawks #bnha hawks #hawks bnha #mha hawks #hawks mha #hawks x oc #hawks x reader #keigo takami #takami keigo #original character #boku no hero academia #my hero acadamia

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indecentpause · 4 years ago

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I wrote something just in time to say I wrote something this year!!

@ohsugarfoot and I were talking about a Josselin/Meara v. Holmes/Watson dynamic, and they became college students in a roommate situation, and now Meara has a stalker ex and is in med school and Josselin like shotguns energy drinks and solves mysteries

Anyway here have a piece!

---

This is getting absolutely ridiculous.

Meara, you’ve been to this stupid community board multiple times this week, and it’s not surprising that you’re tired.

But then, it’s not your fault all the housing ads are written by weirdos and creeps, either.

Last one. Last one, and if this doesn’t work out, you’re going to move into Danny’s family’s basement and become a hermit and only do online courses and never go outside again.

The paper is a little crumpled, and it’s handwritten, which is new. All the old ones had been typed. There’s a tiny black and white photo of three cats on the bottom.

Josselin Clearwater, looking for single roommate for two bedroom apartment. Must be okay with cats. Any gender is fine. Must be over 21. $500/mo, utilities/internet included.

Underneath is a phone number.

You sigh and pull the paper off the board, ripping it where the pin was stuck in. You like cats, and from what you can make out of the grainy picture, they seem to all be snuggled together in a pile, which means they’re at least socialized with each other.

Your palm is sweaty when you grab your phone from your pocket. For a while, you stare at the blank screen, unsure of whether you should even keep trying. But then a text notification pops up, and it’s Danny, your best friend since you were five, and it says,

Keep an eye out. Creepy ex-bf came to my job to ask about you. I didn’t say anything. Be safe and call if you need me.

You swipe the message up and make the call. At this point, you’re desperate, and any roommate away from your hometown is better than going back.

Josselin could be any gender. It’s the masculine spelling of the name, at least, you think? But who knows. Doesn’t matter. As long as they let you study and don’t care about your ADHD or that you’re gay, it’s fine.

The phone rings, and rings, and rings. With every additional ring, you wilt a little. You could leave a message, you guess, but you don’t know them! It’s weird!

Okay, okay, just be polite and you’ll be fine.

Then, the phone clicks, and for a moment you think you’ve been disconnected, but you haven’t. A soft, slightly nasal voice answers, kind of androgynous but most likely male.

“Hello?”

You freeze.

“Hello?” they ask again.

“Uh, hi!” You snap back and close your eyes. “I’m looking for Josselin Clearwater?”

“Speaking.” A clanging in the background, a muttered curse, a “Familiar, get out of the trash!”

“Sorry,” they say. “Cats, you know.”

“Uh, sure, I guess. My name’s Meara Ryanne, and I was calling about your ad you left on the pinboard at Cafe Diem. I wanted to meet with you so we can see if we like each other and I can take the room?”

“Oh, yeah, of course!” They seem a little distracted, but maybe their cat is just in the trash again. “I’m actually free the rest of today, if you are. I only have morning classes.”

Your back straightens and you grin. Thank god.

“Yeah!” You fiddle with the crumpled paper with your left hand, phone already getting hot in your right. You’re going to need a new phone soon, before this one explodes or something. “Uh, just one question, first, if that’s okay?”

A pause. “What?”

It’s direct, but doesn’t sound annoyed.

“Sorry, um, I don’t mean any offense, but I like to ask everyone, what are your pronouns?”

“He and him,” Josselin says, then again, a sharp, “Familiar!”

“Okay,” you say, because he answers it totally calmly, no annoyance or offense taken, so that’s a good sign. “Me too,” you offer.

“Okay!” he says. “Are you at Cafe Diem now, or…?”

You turn around. “Looking at the menu as we speak.”

“Neat!” Josselin grins. ‘Neat’? Who says ‘neat’? “I live pretty close, so I can be there in… maybe fifteen minutes?”

A wave of relief washes over you and you pull out a wooden chair to sit at one of the empty tables. “Sounds good,” you say.

“Okay! Bye!” And he hangs up, just like that. No small talk. Okay, well, that’s fine. You’ve always tended to talk a lot, but you can be quiet when you need to.

#my writing #amwriting #excerpt #the most beautiful puzzle #sheraton academy au #i don't know what this is but i'm excited about writing again and that's what matters #josselin clearwater #meara ryanne

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thecleverdame · 5 years ago

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Control and Release - 24

Series Masterlist

TEDTalk!Sam x Reader

Summary: After the rest of the staff is caught in a snowstorm, you find yourself acting as a personal assistant to the notorious Sam Winchester. As the arrangement becomes more defined, you and Sam begin a sexual adventure with dangerous consequences.

Warnings: Dom/Sub, humiliation, embarrassment, sexual objectification, mutual masturbation, spanking, cum play, fingering, anal play, orgasm control, nipple clamps, dub-con, breath play.

Beta: @ilikaicalie

Words: 3.7k

Parts 25, 26, 27 & 28 are currently available on Patreon for a monthly pledge of $2.50. This includes early access to all my stories, including the ABO series Gods of Twilight and Patreon exclusive content. >> CLICK HERE <<

Sam’s zipping around his house like he’s on fire. On any given weekday he doesn’t come home until after eight or nine and works well into the evening. This afternoon however he arrived home just after you and has been wrapping up his day in a frenzy.

“Damn it,” he snips, shaking his head at a handwritten note. “I can’t read Linda’s handwriting. It’s chicken scratch. I have to get rid of her. I need Pepper back.”

“I thought her name was Lauren,” you say.

“Laurel, Lana, I really don’t fucking care.”

“Let me see it.” You pluck the paper from his hand.

While her handwriting is not the prettiest, it’s still discernible. “Paul Handcock, Steven Turney...no Tunney, and Lady Toni Bevell? Fancy.”

“She’s English,” he snorts. “One of my least favorite people.”

“Who is this a list of?”

“Three execs from the UK I’m bringing over to work on a project. I’ve had an interest in opening an office in London for years now. Legal consultation for international cases.”

“Wow,” you lean back, watching him tap a message into his phone. “There’s a lot going on behind the scenes.”

“Always,” he sends off a message and takes a breath before going to his laptop. “If everything goes to plan, we’ll be spending some time in London next quarter.”

“We?” you raise an eyebrow.

“Of course,” he types furiously, eyes fixed on the screen. “Unless you don’t want to come with me.”

“No, I mean, I want to. I wasn’t sure you meant you and me.”

“You, me and some of the executive team. It’ll be a lot of work but I can find time to enjoy the city with you.”

Your heart does this school girl flutter at the idea of him automatically including you in his plans.

“I’d love that.” You glance up to check but he’s not paying attention. “Cole said something interesting today...”

“Oh?”

“He, ah, he said that he’s noticed the way you look at me.”

Sam pauses, a quiet lull and then he looks at you. “Did he?”

“He said he thinks you’re interested in me and that I shouldn’t be alone with you because you might try something. Might get a little handsy.” Wiggling your fingers you watch for his reaction.

His nostrils flare, eyes narrowing at this new information.

“He’s projecting,” Sam quips, stepping closer. “He watches you, studies you the same way I did. It’s not a bad plan, to set himself up as the ‘good guy’.”

“I don’t think he’s like that.”

“You’re not a man and you don’t have an accurate perception of how attractive you are. Trust me, he’s like that. We all are. It took me all of five minutes to see he was interested in you.”

“You never said anything.”

“Because I’m not threatened. Unlike Cole’s fictional version of me, I don’t think he’ll lock you in a room and try to feel you up. But he’ll make his play. Give it time.”

“I think you’re both overreacting.”

“Cole will prove me right eventually,” he grins, tilting his head to the side, looking over your face. “Should I be concerned?”

“No, Mr. Winchester,” you smirk. “But I like that you asked.”

He smiles a controlled little smile and goes back to typing.

“Do you want to order something for dinner? I’m starving.” You’ve been craving a pizza but you doubt you’ll be able to talk Sam into a choice so blatantly unhealthy.

“We’re going out tonight,” he explains.

“Where?” you ask.

“It’s an Italian place, you’ll love it. Carbs as far as the eye can see.”

“Yessss,” you hiss with a laugh and he pulls you into his arms. “Nothing makes me happier than breadsticks.”

“Easy to please,” he kisses you softly, his eyes fluttering shut, then open.

“We’re going out on a weeknight? This must be a special occasion.”

“Do you know what day it is?” he asks.

“What?” you look at him, hesitant smile wilting. What have you forgotten?

“One year ago today you came into my hotel room,” he murmurs. “You were wide-eyed and unsure, but so excited at the same time. I remember exactly what you looked like, sounded like. The way you touched yourself for me.”

How could you possibly forget? It’s been a year and look how far you’ve come.

“I’d never done anything like that before,” you admit, a shy smile creeping across your face.

“I hope not,” he nips at your mouth, his lips ghost at the corner of your lips before trailing down to find the curve of your jaw before landing at the shell of your ear and whispering. “We’re going to try a few new things tonight.”

“I’m ready,” you whimper as he sucks at the skin under your ear, sending tiny whizzes of pleasure shooting up and down your spine. Your toes curl in your shoes and you lean into him grasping at his shirt.

“Glad to hear it,” he murmurs, looking you over in approval. He steps back, leaving you breathless with heavy eyes. “Get dressed.”

---

“I’ve been looking forward to this part all night,” you confess, standing in his bedroom.

“I hope it doesn’t disappoint.”

“I’m not sure that’s even possible,” you say, watching his face awash with amusement and lust. Perhaps a layer of restrained affection underneath it all.

“Take off your clothes and get on the bed,” Sam instructs.

You comply without even thinking, stripping your dress off, then your bra and finally the heels that you’re all too happy to get rid of. You crawl on hands and knees to the middle of the bed, wiggling your ass and looking back. Sam walks towards you in nothing but a pair of boxer briefs, a white t-shirt and his tie from earlier in the day. His erection is already straining at the material, and you get a little thrill out of the fact that he wants you this badly.

“How would you like me, Mr. Winchester?”

“On your back,” he barks, leaning forward to swat you on the ass before you can roll away. With a yelp you lay down on your back, stretching out long as he joins you. Slinging one leg over your belly he straddles your stomach, careful of his weight. “Hands above your head.”

You reached upward, watching his face as he binds your wrists together with his tie and then loops it through an open slat in the headboard. He’s most comfortable like this, in charge in a sexual situation. He’s also the most handsome just like this, controlled but relaxed, in his element. You wonder what he has in store for you.

“You’re beautiful tonight,” he comments, dropping down your body, stopping along the journey to suck a nipple into his mouth.

“Just tonight?” You’re not really serious, poking fun and getting lost in the feeling of his mouth sucking hard.

“Always,” he looks up, dragging his teeth down the skin between your breasts. “But especially tonight.” He snakes lower, kisses his way over your ribs, then belly. “I like taking you out, having other people look at us and knowing you’re mine.”

“I like that too.” You watch as he carefully parts your thighs, his palms pushing your legs wide and you finally realize what’s about to happen.

He pauses to look up at you, grinning like a cougar about to eat a fat little rabbit and then swoops down, burying his face between your legs.

“Sam,” you gasp, hips jerking forward. The tip of his nose bumps your clit as his tongue sinks into your folds, searching deeper until he’s shoved as far into your pussy as he can get. Your mind slows down, thick and cloudy as he fucks you with his mouth.

Strong fingers curl into the clammy flesh under each knee as he pulls you up for him, holding your trembling thighs so wide that your muscles burn.

“Fuck, you’re wet,” he mumbles against your cunt, taking a breath before diving back in. Two fingers slide in deep, thrusting slowly in and out. His mouth finds your clit, the tip of his tongue pressing over the aching bud, once, twice and then sucking it into his mouth like he’s been starving for you.

He’s never gone down on you before. To be honest, you thought this was something he didn’t do. While he’s spent countless hours with his fingers between your thighs he’s never had his mouth on your pussy until now.

“Tastes so fucking good,” he grunts right up against your sex. ��

“Fuck,” you groan, arms tugging at the restraints.

You can feel him chuckle as his tongue flicks out against your clit. He goes gently at first, teasing strokes and lazy circles until you’re vibrating out of your skin, until you’re ready to kill him if he doesn’t give you more, so he does. Gentle flicks of his tongue over your clit, sliding lower to push inside you with the slow thrust of his tongue that makes you wiggle and squeal until your hips buck up off the bed. You cum so hard you gush all over his chin. He doesn’t stop, he keeps working your pussy until your quivering and begging him to stop.

When you finally can’t take anymore, he rises and tugs at the tie around your wrists, freeing your arms. Then he rests back on his heels before pulling his shirt up over his head, tossing it to the floor. RHe starts to push down his underwear, and then just stops, looking down at you in appreciation.

“You’re mine,” he breathes, then nods in summation.

“Yes, I am yours.” You reach out for him. He grins, dodging your arms and dropping down to place a kiss on the inside of each thigh. Then placing a kiss on your clit, enjoying the way you roll up to meet his mouth.

Finally, he slides his body up, over yours, skin sticky with sweat.

He kisses you, tongue sliding past your lips and you can taste herself on him, and you dig your nails into his shoulders.

“Take your clothes off,” you whisper, catching his ear lobe between your teeth.

He grunts and rolls his hips against your core. You can feel how hard his cock is as he grinds against your clit.

You watch the beauty of him stripping down. He’s beautiful and powerful and under different circumstances, you’d take the proper time to appreciate every inch of him.

He lays back down on top of you,, belly to belly. So close you can feel his heartbeat, the rise and fall of his chest as he breathes. You’re shaking, trembling underneath the weight of him. You feel his cock pressing against where you’re wet and needing, that perfect tease.

He slides inside so slow. You’re so full, so tight, nothing’s ever felt like this. You hold onto him, crying out in pleasure, straddling the line of too much. He dips down to swallow your cry, pushing further inside, sinking deeper until you can feel him rest against your body.

“Hey,” he whispers, and your eyes flutter open. Jesus, he’s so beautiful. He’s not sure what this reaction is. Neither are you. This feels like connection, like more than anything that came before. You’re shaking like a virgin getting fucked for the first time. “You alright?”

“God, yes,” you moan and cant your hips against him. “Please, Sam. Fuck me.” You push up with your body, wanting more, needing him to move.

He doesn’t. He just lays there, pressed inside, staring at you like you’re a work of art.

He pulls back, and you feel the stretch of his cock as it draws out of you, almost to the tip. You whimpers, biting your lips as you writhe up into him, trying to find his hips with yours. Then he thrusts into you, filling the empty space inside your pussy and you’re moving to meet him, head thrown back and soft cries pouring from an open mouth.

You rock together, one hand holding yours above your head, fingers laced together. The other cupping a breast as he pants against your throat. You grip his ass cheek in your hand, rolling up to meet until the two of you are nothing more than body bodies sliding against each other. He kissed you sweet and slow, and you open your mouth to let him in.

“Can I cum?” you wheeze, the words fractured.

“Yes,” he whispers, grabbing you by the shoulders to hold you still, thrusting harder, his eyes locked on yours.

“Fuck,” you mutter hoarsely, and then cum so hard your teeth snap together and it’s all you can do to stay earthbound.

“So fucking hot, tight, Jesus Christ I can feel you,” Sam grates out, pressing his face into your shoulder. His whole body goes tense and then he cums, filling you with everything he has.

He goes soft, resting his forehead on the pillow next to your head. You turn into him, cheek brushing against his hair, humming with pleasure. You flex your hands, still holding tight to his, and he lifts his head to look at you, grinning down at you with an exhausted but pleased look.

“Not our usual sex but…” he trails off. He looks proud and he should be after that.

“It was amazing,” you smile up at him. “You always know what I need, even when I don’t.”

He studies you for a moment, eyes twinkling before leaning in to kiss you.

“What were you like?” you ask, settling into his side. “When you were a kid I mean. What did little Sam want to grow up to be?”

First comes Sam’s trademark pause and then a simple confession that tells you so much more.

“I just wanted to be normal. As a kid, I was starving for it. I wanted to have a house and a mom, I wanted my dad to sit down with Dean and I every night and eat dinner. Chasing monsters was the last thing on my mind, what I craved was to fade into the background. To fit in. And now look at me. If ten year old Sam could see me now he’d be appalled.”

“Why?” you murmur, the pads of your fingers rubbing a gentle path through his chest hair. “You’re successful, you don’t think he’d be proud?”

“Yeah, but that wasn’t the plan. My dad lost himself in work and I swore up and down I’d never be like that. I wanted a family, a dog, a nine-to-five job. I’ve gone so far in the other direction I couldn’t be further from normal.”

“Is there any part of your family that you miss?”

“I don’t know,” he replies immediately, shifting his hips.

“There’s nothing good from all those years?”

“Dean, I suppose.” His hand trails over the back of your elbow and up your arm. “We butted heads from the time I could talk but he took care of me. He did the best he could. Dad would leave and Dean was in charge. When my dad first started leaving us on our own it was only for a night or two. But as I got older he’d leave for a week, sometimes two. Dean fed me, got me to school, stole the best comic books so I’d have something to keep me busy.”

“That’s a lot...for both of you.”

Your heart sinks into your gut as you picture these two little kids alone in some skeezy motel. It’s a wonder Sam got from there to here.

“I felt guilty for a long time after I left. For years I wondered if I’d done the right thing. I kept Dean grounded, or tried to anyway. But when Jess died I…”

He trails off.

“I’d like to know about her,” you add. Tilting your head up you burrow into his neck and use the arm over his chest to pull yourself closer to his body heat. “Only if you want to tell me.”

“I don’t talk about her.” He clears his throat.

“Okay.”

The two of you lay there listening to the distant ticking of the wall clock in the hallway. His house is unnaturally quiet, a modern capsule, sealed off from the rest of the world.

The minutes tick by as you lay there, both of you wide awake but neither willing to break the bubble. You’re about to suggest a shower when he speaks again.

“She baked all the time,” he says. “She was good at it. Cookies, pastries, cakes. I gained ten pounds during our first year together.”

You don’t respond, just wait as his fingers curl into your hair.

“She was the first person in my life to ever encourage me to do the things I wanted. Every time I suggested something she’d tell me to go for it. My whole life my dad told me I needed to be like him, there was no other choice. But she encouraged me to be anything I wanted.”

Again, you’re silent. Afraid of intruding on this fragile moment of reflection.

“She loved me and I lied to her. I made up stories about my family. I told her my dad was dead. My brother was a drunk. Anything to avoid talking about them. I rewarded her affection with made-up stories because I didn’t want to own up to where I came from. Looking back it was stupid, she wouldn’t have cared. We could have truly known each other and I took that opportunity away from us.” He sighs. “I won’t make the same mistake with you. I can’t talk about it all, not with you, not with anyone. But I won’t ever lie to you.”

“Me either,” you confirm. “We all need things that are ours alone. Secrets, moments, even people sometimes. I don’t begrudge you that.”

“You always surprise me,” he says, deadpan and devoid of emotion. “You deserve a better man than me. Someone who’s not broken, gutted from the inside. You deserve to be loved.”

You think about those words, you deserve to be loved. As if he’ll never be able to deliver.

“You don’t think you’ll ever be able to love me?” you ask.

He grunts, clearly uncomfortable but his arms only tighten around you.

“I hope I can. You make me feel a lot of emotions, strong emotions...my first instinct is to purge them. Ignore them before they grow stronger. I have a lot to work on.”

“I could love you,” you respond, but the untruth of the statement doesn’t settle right. You’ve felt it for weeks now. Refusing to give in to fear you say what you feel. “I do love you.”

You hold your breath. Will he run? Kick you out? The truth is that you love him but you still don’t trust him, not completely.

“I’m not sure how you could love a person like me. I’m a shell, half-empty inside,” he responds calmly.

“I don’t think that’s true. You shut off access to certain parts of yourself, but they still exist. Empathy, compassion, love... I've seen little glimpses of all of them.”

He snorts.

“What?” you ask.

“A little voice in the back of my head keeps whispering there’s a good chance that you like the way I make your body feel and that’s all this will ever be.”

It’s easy to forget that Sam doubts himself. But he’s just human after all and he needs assurances just like everyone else.

“I do like the way you make me feel. The way you touch me. But I also like the way you look at me, listen to me, really listen. You care what I think. I like how you think I’m capable of more professionally, you don’t let me fade into the background, you challenge me. I like laying here with you in the dark. I like listening to you. The sex is amazing, but it’s sex. There’s so much more to being together.”

There’s a flickering burst of light from outside and the low boom of a storm approaching. Sam doesn’t respond, he just holds you close, fingers trailing over skin as words and confessions sink in. It’s impossible to know what the future holds. But right now you have each other and neither of you are taking that for granted.

#control and release #sam winchester x reader #sam winchester fanfiction #sam winchester smut

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mss4msu · 5 years ago

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“Do I Wanna Know?” (Chapter 7)

Summary: On a visit to a local nightclub, the lounge singer catches your eye. Soon becoming a regular at the club, the way you look on the dancefloor gets his attention. You begin to hear stories about the notorious crime lord who owns and operates the small nightclub. When your friends worry that you’ve gotten mixed up with a mobster, you wonder if it’s better to be left in the dark and find yourself asking, “Do I wanna know?” if you’re getting involved with one of the most revered mobsters in the city.

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky x Reader

Words: 1807

Warnings: Language, Reference to Violence

A/N: Because I know what’s going to happen, writing this chapter was a struggle bc I just wanna get to the good stufffffff. Thanks for keeping with me babeyeeeees.

Read the Full Story Here

You spent the entire night over the toilet, your body alternating between bouts of vomiting and intense shaking that caused your whole body to convulse. The scenes of what you had seen replayed in your head and you gagged each time you thought of how hard James had beaten that man. After several bouts of dry heaving, everything went dark.

You awoke to the feeling of the cold tile floor on your cheek. You tried to push yourself up, but your head began to pound violently. You saw a bottle of water in front of you and reached for it, you didn’t know where it had come from, but figured you must have grabbed it from the car on the way home last night.

You contorted your face trying to remember what had happened the night before, which only made the blood in your head beat harder. You forced yourself to lean against the wall and put your head between your legs, praying for the pounding to stop just for a few minutes so you could gather your bearings. You took deep breaths in and out until the pain behind your eyes finally started to subside.

Once the pain was gone enough for you to think somewhat clearly, you began to go through the events of the night before. You had had a terrible day at work, and so you decided to go to see James at the club, you remembered that bit. You left work and had Peter take you home to change and then he took you for food and then to the club, you could picture that clearly enough. That’s when things got a bit fuzzy. You remembered getting to the club, someone leading you in, you couldn’t quite place the face in your mind, and getting a table in the front. You knew you had drinks brought to you, but you couldn’t recall the number or the contents. You had watched James sing, and the song had been catchy, but you couldn’t think of even one line from it. The song had ended, and you remembered sitting at the table and continuing to drink, but then nothing. You weren’t sure if you had seen James at all, you didn’t exactly know how or when you’d had gotten home, and you couldn’t figure out why you had woken up in the bathroom.

You heard a faint buzzing, and after realizing it wasn’t your headache, you began to reach around for your phone. It stopped vibrating just as you finally had it in your hand. You brought the phone close to your face, trying to get your eyes to focus on the screen. You had two missed call notifications from James and a few texts from him as well. You unlocked your phone and opened your messages.

“(Y/N)! Are you alright? You had quite a bit to drink at the club, so I called Peter to pick you up. I asked him to let me know when you were home safe, and he did, but I want to hear it from you too.” -- Saturday 12:02AM

“Don’t forget to drink some, or a lot, of water and maybe take some Advil. I’ll get to the bottom of who was in charge of giving you so many free drinks.” -- Saturday 12:03 AM

“Hey, (Y/N). Still haven’t heard from you and wanted to be sure you’re feeling alright after last night.” -- Saturday 8:17AM

Your lips twisted up into a smile at how considerate James was to be checking in on you. You sat for a moment with your eyes closed, thinking about how to respond. Finally you typed back:

“Hi James, I’m not feeling my best, but I’m feeling a lot better than I was just a bit ago. Thanks for checking in on me and making sure I got home safe. I hope I didn’t do anything too embarrassing last night, because I can’t seem to remember even if I did” -- Saturday 8:22AM

“Of course. I’ll have some food delivered to your apartment if you think you can stomach it. After all you drank, I’ve got to think you’ve got quite the hangover.” -- Saturday 8:22AM

Your stomach rumbled as you read his text.

“James, you really don’t have to do that, but I appreciate the thought.” -- Saturday 8:23AM

“You bet, doll. I’ll see you later this week. Take care of yourself.” -- Saturday 8:23AM

“Ok” --Saturday 8:24AM

You forced yourself up from the floor and clung to the walls as you slowly walked yourself to the kitchen, your head taking up its pounding beat from earlier. You fixed yourself a bowl of dry cereal and moved to the couch, gingerly laying down and placing the cereal on your stomach. You took a handful of it in your hand and stuffed it in your mouth, chomping away quickly, trying to appease your stomach. You finished your cereal and got more comfortable on the couch, quickly falling asleep.

You woke up to the buzz of your phone next to you. It was the number for the front door, and you answered hesitantly.

“Hi, I have an order for (Y/N) (Y/L/N),” the voice in the phone said.

“Ok,” you said groggily, slowly sitting up, “Be right there.”

You got up and went to the door, the only shoes you could find were your Louboutins from James. You shoved your feet into them and hurried downstairs to the door.

“Here you go,” the delivery person said as they handed you a large bag.

“Thanks?” you took the bag and went back up to your apartment.

You sat back down on the couch and opened up the bag on your coffee table. On top was a single white rose. You brought it to your nose and inhaled deeply before gently setting it down and seeing what else was in the bag. You pulled out a large bottle of gatorade and immediately unscrewed the cap and took a long drink of it. Next, you grabbed a large container and one smell upon opening it let you know that it was bacon mac and cheese. You found a smaller container filled with chicken noodle soup. One last container had a giant chocolate brownie in it.

You picked up your phone and took a picture of your haul, and sent it to James along with a message that said:

“Thanks! This should revive me from my deathbed in no time.” -- Saturday 7:24PM

While James normally responded between minutes, you stared at your phone for three minutes waiting for a reply that didn’t come. You locked the screen and grabbed your tv remote. You put on the first comedy you saw and dug into the mac and cheese. Every minute or so you would pause to check your phone, but you still didn’t hear anything from James. You began to worry that maybe you had fucked something up while drunk. You put a movie on and tried to focus on the plot. When you decided to give up and just go to bed, your phone finally lit up.

“Glad to hear it.” -- Saturday 11:47PM

Your fingers hovered over your keyboard as you tried to think of what to respond. You ultimately decided not to send anything, as you were too tired to carry on a conversation anyway. You got off the couch, put the leftover food in your fridge, got ready for bed, and then flopped down on your bed. You fell asleep quickly.

You awoke in a cold sweat in the morning from the most vivid dream:

You were at the club and had wandered down a long hallway full of locked doors until you found a room at the end of the hall that was unlocked. You pushed open the door and a wave of blood flooded over you. You looked up from the blood washing over you to see James repeatedly beating a man. When James looked up at you, his eyes were pitch black and he had a terrible, evil grimace on his face. He came quickly at you, and you stumbled back down the hallway. You tripped and fell and James caught up to you. You woke up before you saw his face again.

You grabbed your phone, getting onto Instagram and going to the White Wolf and the Howlers page, needing to get the terrifying look of the James from your nightmare out of your head. You were able to calm down as you scrolled through the photos of the band and as you got out of bed and went about your day, the nightmare was all but forgotten.

On Monday, Peter Parker picked you up at your usual time. After exchanging the usual formalities, you sat in silence, wondering if you should ask him about Friday. For the sake of professionalism, you decided against it and continued the ride without speaking. When you got off the elevator at your floor, the new front desk person waved you over.

“Ms. (Y/L/N), I have a delivery for you.”

“Oh, thanks?” you responded with confusion, taking the box from them.

You walked quickly to your office, keyed in, and set your bag down so you could attend to the box. You opened it and found the signature James white rose inside. Under the rose was a file folder. You opened it and found a handwritten note on top which read:

“(Y/N), my apologies, but I will be traveling this week to check in on the investments you have already established for me and thus will not be able to meet with you in person. I’ve enclosed my itinerary for the week and will be in touch if I deem any of the companies undesirable upon meeting with them in person (of course, I’m sure I won’t as I know how hard you’ve worked on this, but one needs to be sure). Best, James”

Your stomach dropped at the idea that you wouldn’t be seeing James for at least a week and at how formal his note had been. You instantly began to worry again that it was because of something you had done Friday night.

You took the note out and found an iPad inside the folder. You opened it and found James’s itinerary and synced documents with your notes about each company. He was meeting with Oscorps Monday, SHIELD Tuesday and Wednesday, Pym Technologies on Thursday, and the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics on Friday morning. He had all of his arrival times scheduled, and it said he would be back Friday night at 6:00pm. At 9:00pm he had put that he was performing at the club. Your breath fluttered and you took this as a sign that everything was alright.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Do I Wanna Know? Tag List:

@mrooks0205 @shann-the-artist-moon @ashtheteenagewitch @abschaffer2 @nootrishus @brilliantbellesoares @celestialstarshadow @yallneedtrek

Bucky Barnes Tag List:

@basementcafe @ria132love @courtmr @jobean12-blog

Permanent Tag List:

@sophiealiice @mrsdeanwinchester19 @thisismysecrethappyplace @ailynalonso15 @221bshrlocked @hazellnut94 @libbymouse @nerdypinupcrystal @hufflepuffchloe @nerdy-bookworm-1998 @dibsonamericasass

#fan fic #au #mobster au #bucky barnes x reader #white wolf #james barnes x reader #bucky barnes #gangster #mobster bucky #do i wanna know

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imagines-of-the-unknown · 6 years ago

Text

Love is War [1]

Thor x Fem!Reader

WARNING: Probably not as good as I would like it to be. But it has been quite a long time since I‘ve written. Most likely cringey at best

Word Count: 1.2k

A/N: Might make a playlist

Tags: @appreciating-chase-brody

Thor smiled to himself as he swung his hammer into countless enemies. But miraculously as he got a chitauri head clean of its shoulder a beautifully armored figure walked by in the distance. With a squint he was able to see the figure clearer. He's seen the plated armor before, although it's only a distant memory now. It's clearly royal as it was well polished with golden details of fauna on the shoulder pads and chest plate. With the way the woman held her head up high with a walk that commented the stoic expression, confidence. She emitted pure confidence as she held no weapon only a simple shield no bigger than her torso. A shield maiden.

An ear piercing deep shriek rumbled from the right of him as one of the Leviathan’s seemingly swam through the air targeting the woman. He wanted to run up to her side and help but his legs weren't cooperating. All he felt he could do was watch as the woman stood strong in the center of the street holding he small shield in front of her. The moment the leviathan made contact with the shield Thor was holding his breath. The woman shouted something before fire and lighting ignited from the shield and quickly engulfed the entire beast. Despite it being cooked alive the alien pushed harder and harder against the shield yet the woman continued to stand her ground as her heels literally dug through the road until almost a minute later did the beast finally fall.

With a simple shrug and sigh the woman turned around and looked around her for any other chitauri or leviathans- there were none. Only then, did their eyes connect. Thor felt the electricity in his body come alive and tingle every single muscle.

As if it was planned, the beautiful, cinematic moment came the an abrupt stop as a chitauri with a red and white shield came flying past his face.

"There's no time to be standing around!" Steve shouted as he jogged to retrieve his shield. Thor was broken out of his trance when the Captain walked passed breaking contact with the stranger. "Sorry, it's just that there was..." Thor looked back up to the charred leviathan to find the intriguing woman gone.

For weeks that brief moment in time kept replaying in his mind. He had asked his father about the armor and its details, only to be returned with 'It could be anyone.' and nothing more. With each passing day Thor's need to go back down to Midgard grew and grew in desperate need to know who that person was and how were they able to perform such magic.

It took Thor only over two months to finally grow annoyed enough of the unknown and travel back down to Midgard. Thor was lucky that there were civilians around to film the same event he saw but despite the fact that Stark had the technology to find every single detail on someone and pinpoint there location, he could find the woman no problem. In fact they even worked for SHIELD and all their information was on there- except specifics.

Name: (Y/N) (L/N) Age: Early 30's Family: Unkown Allies: Prince Alvar of Skorri Birthplace: Earth Places of residence: Earth, Skorri

He knows that name somewhere.

The Avengers watched the clips that were attached where the woman was interviewed 10 years ago. Thor absorbed every word that she spoke in casual a manner.

"Basically the King thought I was betrayed him or some shit like that by attempting to murder Alvar. Blah blah blah. I was called a war criminal." The woman laughed recalling the memory. "And then they just went 'Well then go find a planet out of our system otherwise we'll kill you.'" She said in a funny voice and continued to laugh. A S.H.I.E.L.D worker asked another question off screen. "Oh, Alvar! Ehh, well he wanted to tag along I guess. So you know, that's good for me. I get the lucky title of 'Kidnapper of the Prince' even though I'm the one that was made his guard because of my loyalty."

"This sounds like a bad movie." Stark said confused. "Like it sounds fake-" "She's real. The Shield Maiden is real." Thor said sternly as he stared intently at the calm face on the screen. "I know she's real. I'm just saying that-" "How do we bring her here?" Thor interrupted. He was desperate to talk to the woman. "At least I have an actual excuse to throw a part now!" Tony got up from his chair ready to pour himself a drink.

That night the Avengers party went into full swing early on in the night and by 8 there was still no sign of the Shield Maiden. Thor was growing bored quite quickly and he was running out of his Asgardian ale that he kept in a flask.

Many men and women had come up to him to flirt with him. He played along with them but turn them down if they took it too far for him at that point. Thor sat down on the large couch allowing his tiring body to sink into it. He closed his eyes as he let out a groan as he felt bones crack and muscles stretch. Maybe he should just call it a night.

"Long time no see." A nurturing voice said with a chuckle. He felt the couch shift as someone sat next to him. Thor cracked open his eyes to see the Shield Maiden sitting next to him in a simple black dress that seemed casual enough- compared to what most of the women are wearing. As quick as his lighting Thor sat up puffing out his chest. He coughed and smiled.

"It's good to finally see you again Shield Maiden." He said confidently, which was not how he was feeling as she let out another chuckle. "'Shield Maiden'? Haven't heard that one before, I'll added it to my list of titles." She quipped. "I assume you're Thor?" The smile she gave him shared the same warmth that the sun provides on a beautiful winter morning. It made his heart stutter. Speechless Thor could only study her face, from barely noticeable lack of make up- the small scars that decorated gave it away, the way the eyes sparkled and crinkled in the corners to the way her smile pushed her cheeks up with a blush that merely dusted her cheeks. Unfortunately the more he stared the less she smiled. “My apologies for disturbing you. I’ll leave you now.” The Shield Maiden stood up and bowed ready to looking for someone.

He didn’t want her to go. He wanted her company. She seemed fun. She was a mystery he wanted to solve.

So he stood up.

“Wait. Shield Maiden!” Thor’s voice boomed over the crowd’s chatter. The party goers around them paused their conversations to watch the god look around confused as the woman had disappeared yet again. The god had cursed to himself and fell into the couch with a frown and heavy heart. When he let his hand rest on the couch he felt a piece of paper under his palm. He picked up the card and looked at it curiously. There was an symbol on it... no magic circle. It had an odd purple shimmer to it. Then he turned the card over to see a handwritten message.

‘Call and I shall come. Emergency only. - Shield Maiden’

His heart beat became erratic at the message. He hopes their paths will cross soon.

#thor x reader #thor odinson x reader #marvel x reader #avengers x reader

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keepingcalmisoverratedgoddamnit · 6 years ago

Text

Well fuck,

A thing happened to me today as a couple of you know and, well, my hand slipped. @weirdo-in-a-cat-sweater pushed me.

Gabriel had been minding his own business. No really! He’d been sitting at his usual table at Charlie’s café, working on his next book, minding his own business. Things were slow at the café that day so whenever people walked in the movement made him look up on autopilot. Which is why, when He walked in, Gabriel looked up at the counter.

Gabriel’s mind ground to a halt as the hottest guy he’d ever seen in his life walked up to the counter and placed an order. He was tall and broad in ways that made Gabriel want to be curled up against his chest, with long brown hair that almost reached his shoulders. He was dressed in an expensive looking suit and carrying a mess of important looking papers in one hand. He started to turn, and Gabriel got a glimpse of bright hazel eyes and broad shoulders before he caught himself and ducked back behind the screen of his laptop blushing furiously. He hunched in on himself and rubbed a hand over the back of his neck, shoving his glasses back up on the bridge of his nose he forced himself to keep typing and not look over at the table next to him.

Time ground on and Gabriel found it almost impossible to focus on his work, so he opened his Tumblr account instead and messaged Charlie. He heard her phone ping with his furious messages but didn't look up to where she stood behind the counter. She was trying to convince him to go over and talk to the hot guy, and he was desperately trying to sack up and go over.

In the end, blushing furiously and purposefully not looking at the Adonis at the next table he went over to the counter to get a fresh coffee and stole some receipt paper and a pen from Charlie and, quickly scribbling a note, demanded that she deliver it with one of the oatmeal cookies he supplied the café with each week. Then he ducked back to his seat and kept his head down to try and get some work done, carefully not looking as Charlie headed over to the table with the cookie and the note.

Sam had been desperately trying to organise his notes in the recess of the trial to make sure his client had the best chance of getting off without jail time. The kid didn't deserve it, he'd been kicked out of home for being gay and wound up on the streets, the charges were a simple B&E and all he'd done was break in and sleep on the couch of a house he'd thought was empty because it had been below zero. Sam was pretty confident that he'd get off with a warning but he wanted to be sure, and he needed to go see Cas at the refuge after the trial so he needed to get the final arguments done and a verdict handed down as soon as possible. He'd ducked into a coffee shop for a veggie burger and a coffee while he scribbled counter-arguments to the other guy’s points. Faintly he noticed the guy at the table next to him tapping furiously away on his laptop, glasses perched adorably on a cute nose and golden brown hair swept back from his face, curling a little at the collar of his hoodie. He was packing up his notes to head back to the courthouse when the waitress came over with a cookie and a handwritten note on a scrap of receipt paper,

Hi, this is probably awkward and weird, but I think you're gorgeous and I'd like to buy you a coffee. If you're interested feel free to join me or not as the case may be.

He smiled a little and grabbed the waitresses attention,

"look I'm running late for court but, who was this from?"

She grinned at him and pointed to the writer in the glasses at the next table,

“from that idiot,”

“could you tell him I'm really flattered, and I feel terrible not coming over, but I really am running late."

With that, he dashed out of the café and up the street. At the door to the courthouse, he unceremoniously shoved the whole cookie in his mouth and instantly regretted not savouring it. It was the best damn thing he'd ever tasted, and it was gone. He patted his jeans pocket where de tucked the note. He'd have to go back tomorrow at lunch and see if the guy who’d given them to him wanted to buy him another. Grinning he pushed through the door

In his periphery Gabriel saw the guy get up, he refused to look up from his laptop. This was it. Yeh or Nay. He kept the guy in his peripheral vision and held his breath; he was blushing and trembling with nerves. Then, suddenly, he was gone. Gabriel wanted to cry, Charlie met his eyes and ran over.

A growl of frustration resonated in his chest,

“God I am so stupid! What was I thinking Charlie?!”

The next few minutes Charlie couldn’t get a word in around Gabriel’s self-flagellations. She let it go on for a little while and then when he paused for breath she closed his laptop and placed his coffee beside him,

“He didn’t reject you, dummy,”

Gabriel looked at her askance,

"He was running late, he asked who it was from, and I told him you, and he said to tell you he feels bad, but he's running really late, and he had to go."

Gabriel stared at her in disbelief, and then another thought struck him, and he wailed,

“CHARLIE! I AM A MORON!”

She blinked at him in shock, Gabriel almost never raised his voice, something to do with his brothers arguing growing up,

“I FORGOT TO PUT MY NUMBER ON THE NOTE!”

The rest is here on Ao3. Hope you all enjoy. @arvit @annie-thyme @spookydefendordreamer and also @belehakalife idk if it's your thing but have some fluff.

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samwrights · 6 years ago

Text

Homesick // Pt 7

Summary: Tony and Pepper’s daughter Madelyn just graduated from Midtown School of Science and Technology. Without her parents knowledge, she managed to land an internship with her dad’s business to keep her busy over the summer and to prepare her for what she wants to do with her future. But she isn’t the only one with a Stark Enterprises internship—and now she’s stuck working with some overly excited ongoing sophomore named Peter Parker.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Pairing: Stark!Daughter x Peter (OC) Words: 3,518 Loop: Drugs // EDEN You’re So Last Summer // Taking Back Sunday

I got way too many routes to take to make this all just go away. VII.

It was the third week of June. Elly had finally completed the Spider-Suit and, after some fine tuning tweaks from her father, it was finally packed away for Peter to use. Her dad and him had flown off to Germany for some big Avengers mission involving the Sokovia Accords. In his absence, he had been video calling Elly and keeping a small video diary as much as he could. Currently, Happy Hogan was rushing him into his hotel room while telling him to suit up. The very disgruntled Happy brought Peter to the common space of his hotel room upon seeing him in his ragtag hoodie and tights, revealing a large metal suitcase. He gave the young Spider-Man two minutes to get changed into his long awaited suit. Atop the silver suitcase was a small, handwritten note that read, “A minor upgrade for you, babe” with MJS signed in beautiful calligraphy. In his mind, he could hear her sarcastic tone and all he wanted in this moment was to call her and show her what the suit looked like on. However, he was once again being ushered by Happy and he never got the chance.

Elly was currently sitting at home trying her best to be productive, but she was just so bored. With her dad being gone, she was technically free from work. She answered office phone calls, despite not having to, and nearly all of those calls ended up in her taking a message since she was unsure of her when her father would return. She cleaned the fourth and fifth floors that belonged to the Stark family time and time again. Elly had drawn up more upgrades for Iron Man and Spider-Man and even humored herself in making her own rendition of an Iron Man suit for herself that she had wanted to show to her dad and boyfriend. But aside from that, she felt she was lacking inspiration and creativity. She was bored and she was missing Peter.

Their days were full of such laughter that lifted up Elly’s spirits that felt she had felt as if something were missing while he was gone. Every morning, she would pick him up to start their work day. They would spend their lunch together, talking about the progress and processes of their internship. Their nights were spent playing video games or watching movies together in the Stark family home theater. Every day seemed to start and end with Peter, and not knowing when he was going to be back was killing her. Since his departure, Elly often found herself curled up on the couch alone watching TV or a variety of YouTube videos serving as background noise as she sipped on tea with her leather bound sketchbook in her lap while she continued designs for her own suit. Tonight was one of those nights. Her eyes were dancing with fatigue as they fought to focus on the current episode of Stranger Things that she was attempting to watch. Sleep seemed to be winning until her phone started blaring the last verse of Taking Back Sunday’s “You’re So Last Summer”, signifying Peter was finally able to call. As soon as she answered, he was babbling away in excitement.

“Elly! Elly, oh my god the most amazing thing happened to me. So your dad was all like ‘Hey, underoos!’ and I just kind of flipped in and was like ‘sup everybody’ and I stole Captain America’s shield and—hey just a second! Coming!” Peter literally had not taken a breath since Elly picked up the video chat, and she wondered how on earth he could talk so fast, let alone do a back flip off of his bed while he was laying on his stomach. Elly was able to see Happy enter his room in a robe, gripe about the thin walls before disappearing from her view again. Peter rushed back to his phone, his vibrant smile still glued to his face. “Anyway, thank you so much for the suit Elly, it’s awesome. I would have called you sooner but I didn’t get a chance to.” She chuckled softly at his uncontainable elation.

“It’s fine, Peter. So you stole uncle Steve’s shield. What else happened today?” He began giving Elly a run down of everything she had missed. She tried her best to picture everyone that was there, though a couple of descriptions sounded unfamiliar. She gather her uncle Clint was also a part of the battle, which made her just a little melancholy. She hadn’t seen him or his family in a while, and now she was questioning when the next time would even be. When Peter got to the part in the story where he tangled some giant guy’s legs like in Empire Strikes Back, Elly was shaking with laughter.

“That’s pretty funny. I can’t wait to see all of the videos you took in Germany.”

“I can’t wait until we go home. I miss you.” The vivacious conversation had died down with those words—reality setting in and bringing them the realization that this is the longest they had been apart.

“I miss you too. Any idea when you and dad are going to be back?”

“I-I’m not sure yet. I’d talk to him but he’s been pretty tense since Captain America got away.” A soft, disappointed sigh left Elly’s lips.

“I don’t doubt that. I wish I was with you guys instead. I’m so freakin’ bored.” Elly had picked up the art of diversion from her father, learning to immediately change the subject to something inclusive instead of sad.

“Germany would have been awesome to see with you.”

“We’ll go, one day.” Another thing she had learned from her dad—explore the world as often as possible. Though this exact scenario wasn’t quite what he meant, she had only learned through observation. Any time Tony was out somewhere without Pepper, he always promised to take her back there. They talked some more, mostly one what Elly had been doing while the men in her life were away, which felt like a whole lot of nothing. “I’m gonna go to bed, babe. I can hardly keep my eyes open.”

“Aw, okay. I miss you, and I’ll see you soon, okay love? Good night.”

“Night, Peter.” Elly ended the call, hoping the video screen cut off before he could see her rising blush. Him calling her love as he had been the past week made her heart swell and burst. Deciding to crash on the couch, like she had been doing since the Towers been empty, she closed her eyes once again.

Elly awoke the next morning with a crick in her neck, most likely from sleeping on the couch. First thing she did was check her phone; Peter had sent her nearly a dozen photos of him running around Germany with her dad, each photo bringing a smile to her lips. She started her day as normal—eating breakfast, getting a good work out in the training room, and headed up to the lab to work on her private project. The miniature suit Elly had created for herself was over halfway completed. All that was left was the chest plate and helmet, with the latter being the most time consuming piece she was going to need. “I’m home, honey!” Elly hadn’t realized the elevator doors opened until she saw Tony walking towards her. The first thing she noticed was the scrapes and bruises all over her dad. “What’s wrong?” He asked very carefully, taking note of the perplexed look on his daughter’s face.

“D-dad? W-what happened to you?” Tony became very quiet, his lips pursed as if he were in pain.

“Rogers happened. I told him I was trying to keep us all together, he chose his friend. He didn’t choose us, he didn’t choose you like we chose him. I’m sorry, honey.” Elly nodded in understanding before wrapping her arms around her dad’s torso, a singular tear streaming down her face at the harsh truth. She understood how much this hurt him, as well as her.

“You’ve got me and mom, dad.” She mumbled into his chest.

“Nah, I got you kiddo.” Tony hugged his daughter back as tight as he possibly could. They stood in their embrace in the absence of sound until he pulled away, looking at Elly’s workspace. “So I see you started a project. What on earth have you been doing?” There was her dad’s master deflection skills shining through. He picked up her leather bound sketchbook that Peter had given her what felt like ages ago. His eyes landed on the junior Iron Man designs. “What, you want to be just like dad?” Tony joked.

“Pshh, I would be way cooler than Iron Man.” Elly had walked up beside him, proudly showing the sketches she had worked on. Tony tapped his fingers on his chin.

“I don’t know, Iron Girl or Iron Lady would never sound right.” He teased.

“I mean, mom was named Rescue and I loved that.” The slightest frown touched her dad’s lips. It became obvious then that Elly was missing her mom, causing Tony’s guilt to resurface.

“Peacekeeper.” Was all Tony said. Elly raised her eyebrows at him expectantly, waiting for him to explain further. “You always kept the peace between me and your mother, a-and it’s my fault she’s not here.” Silence blanketed over them. Elly had never seen her dad in such a vulnerable state, and she almost felt the need to coddle him.

“Dad…where is she?” Elly inquired quietly.

“We’re on a break.” Tony replied earnestly after a brief pause. “She asked me to stop being Iron Man; that I need to be here more for you and her. But I don’t want to stop—I can’t stop trying to protect you two.” His head hung ever so slightly in shame at the admission.

“I get it, pops. Mom will come around, I promise.”

“Yeah? Can you guarantee that?”

“Yeah, knowing mom? I definitely can.”

Later that night, Tony and Elly had a peaceful, intimate dinner. As much as Elly wanted to go see Peter, she knew her dad needed her company now more than ever. She needed it too. The father and daughter shared many laughs, ending their night playing on their virtual reality gaming consoles in their living room and forgetting the pain they were sharing. After the system was turned off, they sat without speaking to each other and allowed tension to fill the room. “Can I ask you something?” Asked Elly. Her voice was calm and confident despite the nerves that filled her stomach.

“Of course, honey. What’s up?” Tony felt anxious too. He loved spending time with his daughter, but the way she spoke was a very avid reminder of her mother. Pepper always sounded threatening when she opened conversation with such a vague question.

“Let’s have honesty hour.” She declared. “You said you and mom were on a break. I-is it in any way my fault?” The question left Tony stunned.

“Of course not, Elly. It’s mine and I know it is. Your mother and I are working on our own problems, or rather my problems. She just wants us to be a normal family.” He was rambling, unsure of how to speak his truth.

“What do you want?” She asked.

“I want it too. That’s why we were a family up until now.”

“We are a family, dad. We’re just in a rough patch.”

“That’s…that’s not how your mom feels right now. She thinks I can’t be dad and Iron Man too.”

“You’ve been doing it for the last eight years, and we’ve been fine.”

“Tell your mom that.” He muttered, feeling defeated. How his seventeen year-old daughter was giving him such a mature, stern talking to was beyond him. “But enough about that, it’s my turn to parent you. How are you and Parker?”

“We’re really good, actually. He thanked me for the suit; he called every night that he could while you guys were in Germany.”

“I had a talk with him on the way back home.” Elly looked at him, slightly mortified. “Nothing bad, honey. You seem…happier since you two started dating. I told him not to blow it—I don’t know what I would do if your heart got broken again.” Too late for that, Elly thought to herself. She stayed quiet, thinking of how Peter and her dad were the only salvation she had in her current state. She was still hurting from the absence of her mom and late best friend, learning that her pseudo-family was falling apart, and the newly revealed information of her godfather and dad’s best friend Rhodey being paralyzed from the waist down. Over the course of dinner, Tony had told her of Colonel Rhodes’ injuries, and that was her breaking point. It felt as if her world was crumbling very slowly.

“I-I’m trying really hard, dad. To not be upset over everything that’s going on but, I-I miss mom and I feel like she’s not here because of me. And Uncle Steve…he’s like family, or was. We all considered him to be family, and he chose Bucky over us. And Uncle Rhodey’s crippled because of it. It’s so much.” Elly was doing her best to hold back sobs, the words falling from her tongue allowed her to acknowledge the situation as reality. As much as it hurt, she needed to prove she was strong to her father.

“I know, kid, life kind of sucks right now. But you will always have me and your mom to turn to, even if she isn’t here. She also didn’t leave because of you,” Tony reiterated, choosing his next words carefully. “If anything, she left for you, if that makes sense.”

“Not at all.” Elly gave an awkward chuckle to emphasize her confusion.

“Your mom doesn’t want you to see her in a vulnerable state right now. Even though she’s one of the strongest women I know, I mean she deals with me, after all.” The Starks shared boisterous laughter, knowing that Tony spoke only the truth.

“Dad…do you love mom?” Elly knew she was treading into murky waters, but by declaration of honest hour, she hoped her dad would answer.

“Hell yeah I do.” He responded without a moments hesitation.

“So how come you two never got married?”

“It just never seemed like the right time. I was planning on proposing when Rhodey and I got back from Washington that one year, and it almost felt…wrong. I wanted to make sure that you two were safe before officially announcing that the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist Tony Stark was married.”

“And you just kept waiting for the right moment…” Elly figured. Tony nodded in agreement, pursing his lips in discomfort. It felt strange, talking to his seventeen year-old daughter about his feelings. It also made him feel lighter. “The right moment never comes, dad. You have to make it the right moment.”

“Gross, when did you get wise? How many romantic novels have you been reading?” He joked.

“You and your stupid deflections, pops!” Tony just laughed before patting his child on her shoulder. As the laughter died down, he took a turn to look at Elly fully. There was no more lighthearted laughter on his face.

“So now let me ask you, do you love Parker?” Unintentionally, her eyes widened and her jaw slackened, trying to put up some form of protest. Words never came out and it was then Tony had his answer. He wanted her to say it—to fully admit to someone else than just herself to prove a point.

“I-I do.” She whispered.

“I know you do. But it doesn’t become real until you say it out loud. Just like how I love your mom.” He repeated, furthering driving his point home. A barely noticeable smirk twitched on his lips, satisfied with his parenting done for the day. “Let’s get some sleep, kiddo. I gotta go check on Rhodey tomorrow, but sometime this week, let’s work on your suit?”

“Sounds good. Good night, I love you. And tell Uncle Rhodey I say hi.”

“Night, honey. Love you too.”

Tony was gone the next morning, probably off to see Rhodey. That meant she had the day off again, but the time she spent with her dad inspired her to be productive. She didn’t have much left to do on her suit and she wanted to finish as much as she could so they could test it out together. After making herself her morning iced coffee, she headed up to the empty lab. Elly got to work with renewed vigor, finishing her chest plate in under an hour. “Ms. Stark, incoming call from Spider-Boy.” A.A.R.O.N announced.

“Put it throught.” Peter’s face popped up on her lab screen, bright sunlight illuminating his features while her hands were still keeping busy.

“Hey, Elly! I had May drop me off today. Are you up in the lab?” From what she could tell, he was walking into the tower, his backpack slung over his shoulders as always.

“Yeah, I’m up here. But you know there’s no internship today, right? It’s just me here.”

“Oh, y-yeah. I know, I figured that was okay but I guess I should have asked you if I could come over first.” Peter stopped in his tracks as he entered the lobby of the compound, the excitement he once had diminishing. Elly could see his crestfallen features, immediately filling her with guilt.

“N-no, that’s not what I meant! I-I just didn’t want you to expect to have training with Nat or something. But come on up, I have a surprise for you.” The line went dead, leaving Peter to his solidarity as he made his way up to the lab. He’d come to know that surprises from Elly were typically a good thing, and anxiety no longer came to him when she said she had one for him. When he exited the elevator, he was presented with an Iron Man suit that was dark blue and gold.

“W-what is this?” Peter asked with half a laugh in amazement.

“A little project I’ve been working on while you’ve been away. What do you think?” Elly walked towards him, the clinking of her jet boots resonating in the empty lab. The incomplete helmet covering her head retracted, and Peter was finally presented with the face of the girl he had been missing.

“That is amazing!” He exclaimed as Elly grabbed her wrist to retract her suit. His arms wrapped around his girlfriend who was left in only a long tank top that covered the shorts she was wearing underneath. “I missed you so much.” Said Peter before pressing a warm kiss to her forehead.

“I missed you too. Now you have got to show me the video diary from your trip!” The two laughed, each taking a seat at her workspace and began watching his little home movie on her mini projector screen. They spent the rest of the day together; Peter helped her engineer the rest of her helmet, grabbed a bunch of snacks throughout their time together and filled their night with love and laughter. Day eventually gave way to night and the two ended their evening sitting on the roof of the Tower, looking at the twinkling lights of the city. “Peter? Can I ask you a question?”

“Yeah, of course, Elly.” He said with confidence. Similar to her saying she had a surprise, her saying she had a question to start a conversation no longer filled his gut with anxiety.

“What are we going to do when I start college?”

“W-what do you mean?” He had spoken too soon. While he knew this talk was bound to happen, he hadn’t expected it to be so soon. They’d been together for less than a month and he’d just gotten back from Germany—he thought he had at least until the end of the summer.

“I mean, you’re sixteen and going to be a sophomore in high school and I’m going to be eighteen in less than two months and a freshman in college. A-and I wouldn’t ever want to keep our relationship a secret because that’s not fair to you but if someone were to find out that Tony Stark’s daughter was dating someone that wasn’t the legal age of consent, who knows what could happen and—“ Somewhere in the last couple of months they had spent together, Elly had adopted Peter’s habit for rambling when nervous, as she was doing now. But he cut her off, instantly recognizing what she was doing.

“Let’s just…cross that bridge when we get there? I don’t want to think about that right now.” Elly closed her mouth tightly, but ultimately agreed in the form of a nod. He was right; they still had time and they should enjoy it. Little did she know, the inevitable end never left Peter’s mind.

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angstymarshmallow · 7 years ago

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Stuffy - Drake x MC (Part 8 of Frozen)

[A little note: As promised here’s part 8 of my little series! This one was a little longer than I intended but I think necessary to move forward from where it its going. I don’t know if this will measure up as much but - thanks for keeping up with this series and for sending me all your warm messages and asks about it :) I really appreciate it!]

[Summary: When Drake leaves early, Robyn (MC) is left with Monday blues and tackling the rest of the day. An afternoon of confessions and letting go - makes the day go by faster].

[Word Count: 4875 another long -]

Part 1: Frozen Part 2: Thawed Part 3: Sub Zero Part 4: Frigid Part 5: Defrost Part 6: Lukewarm Part 7: Kindle

Light quickly spilled through an open window, rousing Robyn awake.

The first thing that struck her attention was how heavy her head felt. A splitting headache had formed sometime during the morning. It pounded so fiercely inside her skull that she was beginning to regret her decision to drink for the better half of last night. And as another minute passed, messaging her temples – she regretted it altogether.

Her eyes skimmed the room for any sign of Drake.

He wasn’t here.

Disappointment sunk in quickly but she knew better than to dwell upon it. She scourged her mind for a brighter side. They were making progress. And for the first time since arriving here; Drake was letting her in. She could feel it – the shift in their relationship; slowly he was sharing with her. Slowly, she was finding reasons to stay.

Still, Robyn couldn’t stop herself from wistfully dreaming about him.

What would have happened if he stayed? Would she have gotten to see his face in the morning? To watch those handsome features of his framed by sunlight, smile at her? To remind herself that last night had been real and all their little talks, and fits of laughter hadn’t been a figment of her imagination?

Although she knew it was selfish of her, she wished he stayed.

Her eyes shifted to stare out the window, watching clear skies through weary eyes as she begun thinking about her day. She had no reason to stay in bed, but she found no reason to leave either.

It wasn’t until they caught the flash of something - something white that she thought differently. She squinted at it.

It was a note, perched on the edge of her bedside table. Blinking, she quickly sat upright in bed and almost groaned at the vertigo slamming into her. Wincing, she leaned cautiously over her bed to grab it. Her eyes quickly scanned the handwritten note, its crisp penmanship surprising her.

To my frustrating Tinsley, I had to go in early and had someone drop Liv. I didn’t want to wake you, but this should help.

Frowning, she read the note again hoping she was missing something until her fingers lightly touched the back of it. Cautiously, she flipped it over and nearly smiled at the sight of two aspirins taped in the middle.

No really, this should help. You always go overboard with drinking no matter what I say. Here’s a cure for your monster headache. Love, Your equally frustrating Drake.

She was touched by his concern, even though she thought he wrestled with patience – he was beginning to prove her all wrong and it made not being able to remember everything that more frustrating.

Huffing a breath, she fell back into bed and stared miserably at the ceiling.

She couldn’t deny that she enjoyed last night and she imagined it ending very differently if she hadn’t been drunk. But the timing – was it right? Did he really want her? Could he really love her, even with all the broken pieces?

Drake reassured her that he did, that nothing had changed between them for him. But she couldn’t squash her doubts; they were slowly taking root.

Could she learn to love him again?

The question jolted her.

She wanted to yes and to his merit, he hadn’t placed any pressure on her. Despite how hot and heavy things had gotten yesterday morning, he was still leaving it up to her. And she wondered idly if Maxwell hadn’t interrupted them if they’d have gone all the way –

She shoved those thoughts aside as she grabbed the aspirins.

He was her husband for godsake. And yet, she didn’t how to deal with her circumstances. She didn’t know if there was a specific way how - all the steps she’d taken so far were things she went along with. Things she made up.

And currently they were leading her to the bathroom. After finally surrendering to reality, she braced herself for another head rush as she stood and slid her feet inside her slippers.

She headed for the shower.

The house was starting to feel strange without them. After spending the last few days together, it felt odd not hearing the sound of his voice or her daughter’s floating from room to room. Once she found herself in the kitchen downstairs, the apprehension doubled.

She could remember remnants of it – her memories that were akin to broken glass; pieces that only showed glimpses from the amount of times they’d spent together. She could remember dimly echoes of laughter and tirades from sharing breakfast together as she stood inside the kitchen, rummaging through their cupboards. She could discern scratch marks on the pegged legs of the wooden chairs they owned; belonging to the dog they once had. A corgi, if she was remembering correctly.

Robyn groaned in frustration.

She could never remember all the pieces, only fragments. No matter how much she tried; the cracks and pieces refused to make something whole. And they left a longing inside her chest that couldn’t be filled by an empty home.

She missed them.

She missed them a lot. She knew it was silly, but she couldn’t help it.

She turned to other things to distract herself during the late morning. She wandered into the studio she’d set up for herself years ago to paint, hoping it would provide some relief. Her brushes painted abstract things – meaningless and without focus. She read a couple chapters from the book Drake left on the kitchen counter but found herself nodding off to sleep not soon after.

Despite all these distractions, none of them seemed to fill the void they left behind.

Feeling agitated, it was nearly early afternoon by the time she surrendered all hope. She slumped inside one of the living room couches and snatched the pillow that had fallen off to the floor. She held it over her face to muffle a scream.

Screaming did her some good.

It made the anxiety she felt building lessen but it didn’t help for long.

She threw the pillow across the room and flipped herself onto her stomach. Wedging her eyes closed; she allowed her thoughts to drift and found them – to no surprise, dwelling on this morning. She imagined waking up to Drake’s smile instead of her dull headache still ringing inside her ears.

Robyn had barely dozed off before she heard a blaring sound. Jumping upright, it took her a few seconds to realize it was their house phone.

Blinking, she twisted to stare at the wireless device that stood on the coffee table in front of her.It rang several times before she snapped out of it.

Leaning over the couch, she grabbed it and stared quizzically at the flashing screen. The number on the screen tickled her brain but it came as no surprise to her that she was unable to place it. She answered cautiously.

“Oh hi Mrs. Walker,” the voice on the other line sounded surprised to hear her voice.

“Uh, hello Miss…?” Robyn trailed off, feeling at a loss for words.

“Oh, yes! Uh – it’s Miss. Tremblay. And it’s a pleasure to hear from you Mrs. Walker.” The woman said pleasantly enough. “We haven’t spoken in a long time and the parents committee misses you.”

“Right.” She cleared her throat, “well, I’m assuming this isn’t some sort of social call. What’s going on?” She hesitated, “Is Liv okay?”

“Well that’s what we were calling to discuss about.” A pause, “is Mr. Walker here?”

“He’s busy at work,” Robyn muttered; feeling her hackles rise at the dismissiveness of her concern. “You probably tried his cell,” she stated coolly, “otherwise you wouldn’t have called here. Now, what’s this about Liv?”

“Oh, um - ” Another pause.

“Look Miss. Temblay,” Robyn interrupted. “I assume the school was updated about my…my current precarious…..circumstances but that doesn’t mean I’ve suddenly stopped being a mother.” She tucked a stray hair behind her ear as she tried to rein her temper. “Now if you could be so kind as to tell me why you’re calling?”

Another pause and then finally a sigh. “I’m sorry, I’ve seemed to upset you. I didn’t mean to – I was just following protocol.” She heard her sigh.

“It’s alright.” Robyn cut in impatiently. Taking a deep breath, she forced the next words out of her mouth to sound calm, level-headed. “But what about Liv?”

“She’s fine. The other student is a little hurt.”

“The other student?” Robyn echoed dumbfoundedly.

“Yes, she was fighting with another student. Her homeroom teacher settled them apart.. She’s waiting in the office while we decide what to do with her.”

“What to do with her?” Robyn repeated dimly, frowning “she’s a child.”

“Yes, however so was the other student – and our academy has very strict policies against the use of violence. I can –”

“I’m on my way.” She interjected, grabbing her keys. She barely listened to the rest of the conversation, mumbling as affirmation before interrupting her for directions. Sliding on her jacket, they exchanged goodbyes before she pocketed her phone and hurried for her car.

The drive was short and during the entire ride Robyn was determined in finding the best solution in approaching the subject with Liv.

She knew her role as a parent – she was supposed to be gentle yet firm. She imagined discipline being a very important part of parenthood, but their relationship was complicated enough without Liv feeling as if she wouldn’t take her side once she saw her.

Parking the car, Robyn took a moment to breathe. Her eyes slammed close and she touched the bridge of her nose. Just be honest. She could be honest. It was the only way she would be able to get through to her; she had a feeling if Liv was anything like her – she could sense bullshit coming from a mile away.

Slipping her fingers inside her jacket pockets, she ventured inside the school to find the office.

When her eyes caught sight of Liv’s curly hair, through glass windows she felt some of the tension leave her shoulders. She couldn’t see her yet; but Robyn could tell from the way her shoulders had hunched over and the fact that her eyes were rooted glumly to the floor that she looked at least sorry.

Without thinking, she opened the glass doors and gave the receptionist at the desk a firm nod. “I’m here to pick my daugh-”

“Mrs Walker, Hi.” The exuberant tone caught Robyn off-guard. The woman’s glasses almost fell from her nose the moment she whipped her head in her direction. Her dark hand shoved it back into place before giving Robyn a warm smile. “It’s so nice to see you.”

Feeling a little uncomfortable by the sudden stares across the other staff members, Robyn shifted on her feet. She avoided glancing at anyone in particular. “Yes well – Miss Tremblay, I presume?” At her nod, she continued smoothly, “it’s nice to see you again too.” She gave her a smile she didn’t feel. “Is it okay if I talk to Liv for a moment before we go in?”

The woman hesitated.

“Please.” She whispered, leaning slightly over her desk. “It’s just probably better if we talked a little before seeing the principal.”

The woman nodded. “Of course, I’ll send you in a couple minutes.”

“Thank you.” She murmured. Whirling around, she approached Liv cautiously. “Hey sweetie.”

No response.

As Robyn sat down beside her, her shoulders stiffened slightly but otherwise the girl kept her eyes rooted the floor.

“Do you mind if I sit with you?”

She shrugged.

“I’m not mad.” She begun slowly, trying to catch her attention.

Her daughter begun fidgeting. “You’re not?” She exhaled slowly.

“No,” She replied earnestly; knowing inside her heart – it was true. She wanted to understand Liv, be the mother she hadn’t been in the months she was gone – in the years she couldn’t remember. “I just wanted to talk to you before we went inside.” She kept her tone light.

“There’s nothing really to talk about,” she looked away, biting her lip. “I did something and I got in trouble for it.”

“Maybe if you told me what it was before we go in there – I can help?” She smiled hopefully.

Liv shrugged; lip visibly quivering. “A bunch of kids were saying something really mean. That’s all.”

Robyn waited for her to continue, fixing her with a nod of encouragement.

“They were talking about you. They heard from their parents that – that you were gone all those months because you didn’t love me anymore.”

Her throat tightened.

“They said you came back ‘cause we’re –” Liv’s face twisted, “we’re an obligation.” She clasped her hands tightly inside her lap. “We’re something you have to live with.”

“Oh sweetie,” Robyn couldn’t stop herself from reaching out and enveloping her inside her arms. And this time Liv didn’t make an effort to move away, she leaned into her. “That’s not true.” Robyn rubbed her back in the light strokes while she heard her breath hitched.

“I got so mad at them for saying that mommy, especially Milly – Milly’s supposed to be my friend.” Her tiny hands clenched into fists around her jacket. “So, I threw my lunch at her and she started crying.” Her eyes were wide, glossy when she glanced up at Robyn. “I d-didn’t mean to, I just wanted them to stop talking. I just –” her voice cracked and Robyn soothed her with a soft hum.

Her fingers tangled into her curls. Stroking her hair back, she smiled timidly at her. “If there was ever a time to stand up for something, it’s when it comes down to your own family.” Her fingers slid to cup her daughter’s face. “I’m sorry they were saying mean things to you – especially about me. You’re supposed to be happy I’m back, not crying or getting in trouble over things other people say or do.” She gazed at her solemnly, “and I want you to know that no matter what, I’ll always be on your side.”

Slowly, Liv nodded. There was no denying the quiet relief she saw reflecting from her eyes. Her lower lip quivered and she blinked up at her. “Really?”

Robyn’s heart ached at the sound of her uncertainty. “I know things haven’t exactly been easy for us, but yes really.” She dropped a kiss to her forehead, “although I don’t approve of what you did, I understand why you did it. Now, why don’t we talk to the principal and see what we can do?”

Liv rubbed her eyes. “Okay.”

The ride back home hadn’t been as cooperative as Robyn thought it would be. Although She was making progress with Liv and had managed to convince the principal after talking with Milly’s parents not to suspend her; her daughter was quiet the whole ride home.

They sat in silence, with only the radio filling the tiny space between them every now and then. Once a song came on that they both recognized; they began humming in unison. They shared subtle smiles with each other until humming became singing. And when they weren’t singing to tunes they both recognized, they fell back into quiet stillness.

It was, Robyn decided a very long car ride despite the reasonably time they made it back into their city.

Once Robyn parked at the front of their estate, she was surprised to find another vehicle already there. She hadn’t remembered inviting anyone and she imagined Drake would mention if anyone was stopping by in passing.

Sitting inside her car, she blinked at the unfamiliar vehicle. She couldn’t recognize it, although glancing at its licence plates tugged something inside her brain. She still couldn’t place it.

She was about to caution Liv to stay inside her car until Liv jumped out of it.

Gripping her backpack tightly, the little girl ran across the masonry stone path leading up towards their porch. “Uncle Liam!” She yelped rushing towards it.

“Liv, hold on a sec-” The rest of Robyn’s words died inside her throat as she glanced up to meet cool and unblinking crystals that were staring back at her.

He was more handsome in person.

Robyn decided as she watched him from the safety her seat. The pictures didn’t quite do the crowned King of Cordonia justice. Wondering what he wanted, she slid from her seat and locked the door behind her before following her daughter up the path of their home; never letting her eyes wander from his face.

Strong jaw, good cheekbones – he had an air of aristocracy that clung to him. She imagined it was probably hard for him to fit into a crowd, when everything about him seemed to implore people to notice. The grey hairs at the side of his otherwise striking blonde hair, was the only thing that attested to the years he spent on the throne.

His face broke out into a charming smile as Liv threw herself at him. He scooped her up high inside his arms, laughing with delight at seeing her. “Well if it isn’t my favourite princess!” He snuggled her closely to his chest and she squealed.

“Favourite princess?” Liv snorted. “I’m not a princess Uncle Liam,” she chided, beaming at him. “I’m just a proper lady.”

“A proper lady that’s my goddaughter,” he tickled her sides until she squealed again. “And as such that makes you a princess.”

“That’s not really how that works.” Liv wrinkled her nose at him, “the headmaster says so anyway.”

“And does the headmaster run an entire country?”

She shook her head.

“Then believe me when I say, you’re a princess.” He winked for added measure before setting her on her feet again.

Then his gaze flitted to Robyn, and his smile faltered entirely.

“Robyn.” The way he said her name – it didn’t feel entirely formal.

Robyn couldn’t place her finger on it but something had sounded too intimate. Warning bells went off inside her head the moment he spoke.

Liam quickly hurried on as she drew closer. “I was hoping to catch Drake since he left in such a hurry earlier, but it’s a pleasure finding you home instead.”

She managed a smile, before stepping past to open the front door. “Liam, right?” She hesitated, “although I suppose it’s really King Liam –”

“Please,” his voice was a little brusque but polite. “It’s Liam for my friends, and you are undoubtedly one of my closest friends.”

When the door opened, Liv skipped happily inside before Robyn followed behind her.

She held the door between herself and Liam.

She wasn’t sure how to react; truthfully although she couldn’t remember the nature of their relationship – Drake’s words about their complicated past made her hesitate to invite him in. “Would you….would you like to come in? I could grab us some snacks.”

His smile was brief. “I don’t know if it’s such a good idea,” noticing her expression, he added. “I’ve got a lot of work back at the palace and I really only came to –”

“You came to see me, didn’t you?”

His eyes widened in surprise before he quickly masked it. She had a feeling he wasn’t used to people seeing under his guise so quickly. “That isn’t,” he frowned lightly. “That isn’t why I came.”

She released a slow breath, “you were probably wondering how I’ve been doing since the accident but something stopped you.” Turning on a whim behind her, she met Liv’s curious expression.

“Liv, would you mind getting an early start on your homework in your room?” She cleared her throat, “I’ll be up there soon if you need help but your uncle and I have to talk for a little while okay?”

Liv looked from her to Liam before stopping at her again. Finally, she pouted. “If you just want some privacy just say so.” She huffed, “I know that means code for privacy Mommy.” She said a-matter-of-factly.

“Liv.”

“Okay, I’m going.” She grumbled. Turning at the last second as her feet touched the staircase, she pointed at Liam. “But if I’m really a princess you should bring me something fitting for a princess.” She batted her long eyelashes, “since it’s been weeks since I saw you last Uncle Liam.”

“Liv!” Robyn tried to scowl at her but it quickly dissipated into a laugh as her daughter scampered upstairs. “I don’t know if I should be proud or appalled that she tried to swindle you.” She muttered turning to Liam.

His lips quirked into a small smile. “Maybe a little bit of both?” His smile stretched. “Those sorts of cunning capabilities will do her well at court.”

“Maybe, but I don’t know how to feel about that. From what I remember, courtly life isn’t something I’d wish on anyone – especially not my daughter.”

“It gets easier in time.” He offered. “You know that.”

Shaking her head ruefully, Robyn waited until she heard Liv’s door close before beckoning for Liam to follow her. “So, about that snack, I think we’ve got a little bit of everything.”

“I didn’t come here for snacks Lady Robyn.” He interrupted once they were safely inside the kitchen.

Robyn froze for a moment at the note of uneasiness inside his voice. Composing herself quickly, she leaned across the counter and stared at him pensively. “Oh? Then what did you come here for?”

“You were right.” He released a sigh. “What you said earlier about why I was here – I was using Drake as an excuse, but I came to see you.” He didn’t meet her gaze, “I came to see if you were really doing well after I heard.”

“I’m okay, I’m more than okay.” She insisted. “I still can’t remember the accident, but memories are coming back in time.” She didn’t know why she felt so inclined to convince him, however something inside her was telling her to be very careful with her words. “You didn’t visit but everyone else did,” she bit her lower lip. “I was trying to figure out why you wouldn’t.”

He shrugged, not quite meeting her shrewd scrutiny. “I run a country, my schedule doesn’t allow for much leisure.”

“But a whole month?” She shook her head, “no something kept you away.” When his eyes finally met hers, she was taken aback by the sudden look of longing inside his eyes before it quickly disappeared. Oh.

“I was a little bit of a mess when I heard about your accident.” He muttered; arms folding as he kept by the door. “You’ve always been one of my closest friends – because ever since we met I knew you were going to have a special place in my life.” His brows knitted, “I don’t think I’m explaining myself quite right, but I imagine you might not have known this.”

Robyn shrugged, “not really but I could tell from all the pictures and what I can kind of piece together that we had a friendship.” Friendship, didn’t seem like the right word, but nothing else she thought of felt right.

He seemed to be struggling with something. His mouth slid open then firmly shut. “I was worried about you – we were all worried about you.”

“Liam,” She interrupted. “What is this about?”

“I’m sorry,” he smiled apologetically. “I’m usually quite good with words. Drake must have mentioned some things…in passing.” He trailed off slowly as if gathering his thoughts. “To explain how we’ve met, as I’m sure he’s done with everyone else.” He waited a beat, “the social season. Us. The coronation. Before we could be an us.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “And then you and Drake.”

“Yes, he did mention all of that.” She said cautiously, “but I don’t understand what that has to do with this. If you’re one of my closest friends wouldn’t you want to have come see me?”

“I did.” He said quickly, “but I was having…feelings resurface, feelings I haven’t felt in a long time. When I heard you couldn’t remember most of your life; well if I wasn’t coming to see you with purest of intentions,” he sighed. “Let’s just say it was better I didn’t see you at all.”

She could see it in his eyes when he spoke. Something once forgotten; passion and longing that shouldn’t exist for him. “Liam,” she didn’t know what to say. Whatever she wanted to felt stuck, lodged inside her throat and while she did remember bits of him – the first night she’d come back to Cordonia; the first time he kissed her. It was nothing compared to her feelings for Drake. Even back then. Whatever she thought she felt for Liam - it hadn’t been more than a tiny crush for her, and as harsh as that sounded – Robyn knew herself. She knew she could never have returned his affections, not completely.

“I know Robyn, I know.” He forced a smile, “I’m not coming here with some big speech, some delusional grandeur of love if that’s what you’re thinking.”

Oh, thank god.

A long sigh of relief escaped her throat.

“I just wanted to explain why I haven’t been around to see you, or Liv for that matter.” He looked away, smiling a little to himself. “Things have never quite been the same since you and Drake left that night. And while I love you both,” his gaze shifted back to her. “I’m always going to resent you both a little.”

Her breath caught.

“Not a lot. Not enough to harbour anything feelings of ill intent. But there’s always going to be this part of me that won’t ever be able to forget – to forgive yes. But I won’t forget that my best friend and I fell in love with the same woman.”

Robyn winced at the stray hurt inside his voice; hurt that she thought he had probably bottled up for years.

She thought of the younger versions of themselves – and think how lucky and cruel they were to have left things as unsaid as they were between them. “You can’t imagine how sorry I am,” she said quietly. “Even though I can’t remember everything –” she hoped her face held the depth of her apology – how much she wished things could have turned out differently for him. “I’m sorry that we weren’t honest with you from the very beginning Liam. You deserved that, you deserved much more than that.” She took a deep breath, giving him a smile she didn’t feel. “I can tell that you’re the kind of guy most women wait an eternity for.”

His face twisted into a bitter smile. “Just not this woman coincidentally.”

“No,” she shook her head, smiling ruefully.

A sense of Deja-vu overwhelmed her and as she spoke, she couldn’t shake the feeling, she had spoken these words before. Right at him, with the same bittersweet look inside his eyes he had now. “I think we both know I’ve always been in love with your best friend.”

“I know and I know that he loves you too.”

“Even now?” She couldn’t help but ask. Even with some of everything broken?

“Even now. I’ve never seen two people love each the other the way you to have.” A smile tugged the corner of his lips. “If you’ve ever doubted you weren’t the same Robyn, you can put that to rest. As far as I can tell, you’re still the same – beautiful, stubborn, spontaneous Robyn.” His eyes darted to the snacks at the center of the table, “except now you’re offering me deserts inside your home.”

She laughed. She couldn’t understand why – but it felt so good to laugh and when he joined in; chuckling as their eyes met – she thought in another world, another her she could have been what he wanted. But she wasn’t.

Ten years and amnesia hadn’t changed that.

Robyn was still head over heels for his best friend. And she could tell by the tension that was slowly dissolving between them that he was finally letting her go of her, completely this time.

“Anyway,” Liam begun conversationally, “I should probably tell Liv goodbye.” He eyed the gold watch on his wrist, “I do actually have to get back to the palace.”

“Oh,” Robyn cleared her throat, “right well – this was great. And um,” she paused. “Kind of awkward, but it was a good kind of awkward I think.” She bit her bottom lip, “what I mean is I think it’s great talking and – clearing the air.” She gestured at the air around them for emphasis and he laughed.

“Quite good.”

Liam’s hands hovered by the knob, as she interrupted him. “Thanks for coming by!” His gaze darted back to her and caught her smile. “I mean it. Thank you – it really means a lot to me.”

He returned her smile, “It does for me too.” He admitted, “thank you for having me over.”

When the door quietly closed behind him, Robyn indulged in a moment of peace. She felt as if a chapter inside her life that had always been a little bit open – was finally slammed shut.

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