#Jake hangman Seresin

[marvelwitchergilmore]

Unlikely Hero

Summary: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x Fe!Reader -> You're in labour and nobody is picking up, so you're forced to call someone you never thought you would have to.

Disclaimer: Descriptions of labour and birth, Jake takes care of the reader and shows up for her when she needs him the most, really cute moment at the end, illusion to romantic feelings between Jake and the Reader, found family in the Dagger Squad. Not Proof Read.

Another contraction ripped through you. If you weren’t already white knuckling your kitchen counter, you would have been with this contraction. 

With a groan, you tried to remember your midwife’s advice. Lean into them, breathe and count. Lean into them, breathe and count. Lean into them. Breathe. Count. 

“Pick up, pick up, pick up.” You took a sharp breath in as you threw your phone onto the counter. 

“This is Bradley. Leave your message-”

You groaned and hung up, again. 

“Hey, this is Nat-” 

“You have reached the number of-”

Placing your elbows in front of you, you pressed the heels of your hands into your head as you leaned on the counter. Somebody - anybody had to be available. They weren’t on duty today. 

Lean into them, breathe, count. 

Lean into them, breath, count. 

Lean into them, breathe, breathe, breath, count, count, count, count.

You scrolled through your phone contacts. You couldn’t exactly call your family since they were states away. The only family you had close by were your friends. But none of them were picking up. 

Then you got to one of your contacts. 

You weren’t friends exactly but…when the time called for it…

Three rings. 

Four rings. 

Five rings. 

Six-

“Y/l/n?”

You practically cried out a sigh of relief. “Jake? Jake, please tell me that’s you and not your machine.”

“Yeah, it’s me. What’s up? Why are you calling me and not the others?”

“Because they’re not picking up.”

“They’re down at the beach. I was just heading there if you want me to-”

“No. No, no. I-I need you.”

Jake went silent. “What?”

Breathe. Count. Breath. Count.

“Listen, Y/n, I know me and you have been starting to get along and whatnot but-”

You let out a groan. “I’m in labour, Jackass.”

“Oh, shit.”

“Yeah, oh shit. Just-” Lean into it, breathe, count. “Can you please come here? I’ve called my midwife but she’s with someone else right now and…” You went quiet for a while. All Jake could hear were your deep breaths. “And I don’t want to do this alone. My contractions keep getting closer and I…”

“I’m on my way.” 

You could hear Jake rushing around his house, grabbing his jacket and his keys. “I’ll call the others and leave them a message. Hang on tight, I’ll be there soon.”

“Thank you.”

As Jake pulled away from his house, he called those who needed to know – leaving messages with all of them. He even called Amelia. 

“Where are you right now?”

“At the mall. Mom’s picking me up later.”

“I’ve left her a message but if you see her before let her know Y/n’s in labour.”

“She is?!”

“Yeah. I’ve left a message with the others but in case they don’t-”

Amelia nodded. “I’ll let them all know. Hey, tell her good luck for me.”

Jake smiled. “Will do, kiddo. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Ten minutes later, he pulled up outside of your house and ran in through the front door. 

“Y/n?”

“Kitchen!”

As he got inside, he found you hunched over the kitchen counter, your eyes closed, one hand on your stomach as your legs started to shake. 

“Okay, I’m here. I’m here.”

You reached out for him without thinking and with his forearms under yours, he helped support you as you stood up steady. 

“I’m sorry-”

Jake just shook his head. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for. Now, what can I do?”

“Just stay with me.”

“I can do that.”

Over the next twenty minutes, Jake helped you walk down the hall in between each of your contractions. 

Then the shakes started. 

With you leaning over one side of your bed, Jake rounded the bed until he was on the other side and facing you. 

“I-I don’t think I can do this.”

“Yes, you can.”

You shook your head, the shakes becoming more intense. Jake pulled his phone from his back pocket and opened it up as he kept his eye on you. He squeezed your hand. 

“No-o.”

Jake smiled at you. “You have seen every injury me and the Dagger Squad have gained in the last three years. You have dealt with a Hangry Rooster and a Pissed Off Phoenix. You can do this.”

It took you a minute but you finally agreed. “Wh-Who are you…” You tried to stop shaking. “Who are you calling?”

“Your midwife.”

“How do you have her number?”

“Penny gave it to us all, in case of an emergency.”

“She did?”

“Yeah.” Pressing the dial, Jake put his phone on speaker and laid it on the bed. Three rings and then she picked up. 

“Hello?”

“Hey, this is Jake Seresin. Penny gave me your number for Y/n-”

“Ah, yes. Is everything okay?”

“Kinda. It’s just, Y/n’s in labour and she’s started shaking. It’s getting more intense.”

“Yes,” you midwife sounded calm. “That’s normal. It means she’s progressing nicely. I’m just finishing up with a new mom but I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Then she hung up. 

“Soon as she can? The baby’ll be here before that.” Jake mumbled, annoyed, under his breath. But you heard every word and you laughed a little. 

Jake smiled, hearing your laugh. 

“Ooh, ow. Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow.” 

“Okay, it’s okay.” Jake held onto your hands firmly as you got hit with another contraction. 

Another thirty minutes passed. 

Jake had rubbed your back, walked you up and down your hallway corridor from the living room and kitchen and back to your room. He’d called the midwife three more times before she finally explained she was going to be later than usual since she had suddenly been called away to deal with an emergency home birth closer by. 

Once he’d helped you back onto your bed, your shakes started to get worse than ever until finally you had the feeling that you needed to push. 

“Push? Are you sure?”

You nodded. “I-I think so. I-I’ve never…had the feeling before but I feel like I need to push.”

All the colour drained from Jake’s face in an instant. “O-okay. Right, uh, what-what do I-”

“Jake! Jake! Y/n!”

Penny’s voice. 

You both relaxed at hearing her voice. 

Despite the colour draining from him, Jake would have helped you deliver your baby. You knew he would have done it. But the idea of it even worried you a little. For one, you’d both only recently gone from respectful mortal enemies to friends. You weren’t quite sure your friendship with him equated to him seeing everything. 

“Oh, thank god.” Jake turned towards the door. “Penny! We’re in here!”

There were more than just Penny’s footsteps as she came barreling down the hall. “I am so sorry. My phone has been on silent- Amelia told me when I picked her up-”

“It’s okay. You’re here now. But, I-I think I need to push.”

Mav came behind her, white as a sheet. “Don’t- Don’t you need a midwife for that?”

“We can do it.” 

He looked at his partner. “You can?”

“I did with Amelia.”

“You did?” 

“Uh, where is the midwife?” Bradley asked as he appeared behind both of them. 

Jake had his hands on his hips. “I’ve called her but she’s been pulled away somewhere else.”

Penny looked around and kicked everything into action. She gave instructions to Jake and Bradley but then you stopped them. 

“N-No. Jake, stay, Please.”

One look at you and he nodded. “I’m right here.” He took your hand in his. “I’m not leaving you.”

“Okay, Bradley, go and get Natasha. She’ll help you.”

After the momentary shock, Bradley called for Phoenix down the hallway and Penny clicked her fingers in front of Mav’s face to get his attention away from you and Jake and back onto what she was asking. 

“Are those two-”

“We can ask questions later, just go and get what I need.”

Then Penny turned back to you and Jake. “This is gonna feel really weird and incredibly painful, but I promise you, once we’ve got this baby in your arms, you’re gonna forget all about it.”

“Promise?”

Penny chuckled. “Promise.”

Within seconds, she had everything she needed. Penny slipped on a pair of gloves from your supply stock and had you bend your knees so she could check. 

“What? What is it?”

“It’s nothing to worry about, but you’re right about feeling like you want to push. Your baby is starting to crown.”

“They are?”

Penny nodded. 

“Okay, Mav, I need you to get the towels ready and-” He was turning whiter as the seconds rolled by. 

“I don’t think I can do this.”

Penny chuckled and took the towel from him and rested her ungloved hand on his shoulder as she led him out of the room. “It’s okay, go and get Natasha and tell her to come in here.”

Natasha walked inside your bedroom a few seconds later, the towel ready in her hands. 

“Hey, are you ready for this?”

“Nope.”

“You’ll do great.” 

As Penny and Phoenix focused on helping your baby, you turned to Jake. “Please don’t leave.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Sweetheart. I’m right here.” The grip he shared in your hand tightened as his eyes fixed themselves to yours. “Promise.”

“Good.”

Then labour finally started to pick up. Jake remained by your side as he supported you and your back all the while Penny instructed you on when and when not to push. Phoenix gave you an excited running commentary about what was happening and what she could see as you gave birth. 

The excitement in her voice made you relax a little. 

“That’s it. Keep going. You’re doing amazing.” 

After almost an hour, and one final push, Penny and Phoenix were tying off and cutting the umbilical cord before cleaning off your baby and noting the time. 

“Welcome to the world, baby girl.”

Everyone was crying, including your daughter as she was passed over to you for the initial skin to skin contact. Meanwhile, you looked from your baby then to Jake. 

“You did it. I told you, you could.”

You smiled and leaned into the kiss he pressed onto your forehead. “Congrats, Momma.”

As Phoenix climbed across the bed from the otherside in order to cover you and your baby up with a fresh and soft towel, Penny helped with your placenta. 

Forty minutes and a check over from a nurse who lived a few streets away from you, who also knew Penny, you were sitting up in bed, holding onto your baby as she slept. 

“How are you feeling?”

Penny had given you and Jake a minute alone whilst she explained everything that Phoenix had excitedly ran through to the others. 

“Tired. And…incredible.” You couldn’t take your eyes from your daughter. “After all this time…she’s finally here and more beautiful than ever.”

Jake smiled as he looked at you, his eyes following yours before he finally looked back at you. “Just like her momma.”

The meaning behind his comment didn’t hit your ears until a few seconds later. You looked up at him and smiled. 

Then a small, soft knock came to your bedroom door. Reuben popped his head through the door. “Hey, feeling up for some visitors?”

You smiled. “Come on in, guys.”

Before you knew it, the whole Dagger Squad were entering your bedroom. 

“Jake?”

Without needing to say, Jake took your daughter from your arms before he stood up, Reuben standing in front of him, excited to hold your baby. 

“My god, Y/n. She’s gorgeous.” Carefully, Jake handed your daughter over to Reuben who held her securely in his arms before posing for the camera Penny was holding as she took more than a dozen pictures. 

“Hello, little one. Oh, my god. She’s holding my finger.” Payback smiled. “Okay, Rooster? Come on. You gotta hold her.”

Stepping around Phoenix, you smiled as you watched Reuben slowly hand your daughter over to Bradley. 

“She’s so small.”

Penny and Mav smiled. “It’s crazy to think you were that size once.”

The others laughed, as did Rooster. 

As your baby was passed to each person, Reuben came by your side and laid a hand on your shoulder before leaning down and pressing a kiss to your cheek. 

“Want me to get you anything? Sushi? Big Mac?” Rooster asked. 

Before you could answer, Penny spoke up just as she took a photo of Mav holding onto your baby. 

“Wait, wait, wait. We need a big family photo. Come on.”

Thankfully, the sheets had been changed. So, handing your baby back to you, you pressed a few kisses to her head as the others all got situated and directed on where to sit before Penny finally rested the camera on top of the dresser and set a timer. 

As you leaned forward, Jake placed his arm around you to allow you to get more comfortable. Phoenix sat beside you, Payback behind her, Fanboy was beside him along with Bob. Rooster and Coyote as well as Mav were beside Jake. Amelia was slotted in between Jake and Rooster before Penny finally rushed around to kneel behind Fanboy. 

The camera finally flashed, everyone’s smiles being captured in the picture. 

Not long after that, Rooster and Jake headed out of the door to go and pick up your food of choice. The others helped clean your home in the places you weren’t physically able to reach when you were pregnant whilst Penny closed the bedroom door and helped you with latching and breastfeeding. 

A half hour later, Jake and Rooster walked back inside with three shopping bags each as well as the food. 

“We went in to get you some extra things to help and I found this. I couldn’t not.” Bradley pulled it out of the bag and showed you. It was a onesie with the saying “Co-pilot in Training.”

You smiled. “Oh, my god.”

As people started getting up and getting food, Jake brought yours over to you. “Here you go.”

“Oh, my. You’re a saint. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Jake smiled. “I got her something, too.”

“Jake, you didn’t have to-”

He just smiled and spoke softly as the others started to divvy up the food. 

“I know. But I wanted to.” Then he pulled it from behind him. And you were in shock. 

“Oh, my god. How the hell did you find this?”

Jake smiled as he passed it over to you. “Whilst Rooster was getting lost in the clothing section, I asked one of the workers if they had any old stock.”

You felt yourself cry a little, out of sheer happiness. Jake smiled and wiped away the tears with the back of his finger. 

“This is incredible. Thank you.”

Jake smiled. “Anything for you and the kid.”

You held onto his hand. “I mean it, Jake. Thank you.”

Holding onto your hand, he smiled before leaning down and pressing a kiss into the back of your hand. 

What he had bought was the very same baby blanket he’d walked in on you researching one afternoon in the medical wing at the base. It was one you’d owned when you were a baby but the company had stopped making the pattern years ago. But, when they brought out a ‘Throwback’ stock, you searched every store to try and find the same one. 

But each store had been sold out. 

“Eat up, I’ll be back in a minute.”

From the sofa, your eyes looked from Jake to the blanket, to your daughter before looking over at Jake. And he looked back over his shoulder to you and smiled at you from the kitchen. 

Little did you know, two years on, you’d be lying on the sofa watching Jake and your daughter make you a Mother’s Day breakfast together, trying their best not to wake you up before eight in the morning. 

[maverickazansky]

i see the vision as jake is ice’s son. but i raise thee:

jake as slider’s son

raised with the icemav influence, only mav constantly questions a) how is slider’s son so attractive when his dad isn’t (age old drama that ice refuses to engage with) and b) how is he so talented when his dad isn’t (age old drama that ice still refuses to engage with)

[elixirfromthestars]

A western au + Jake Seresin as a cowboy outlaw = color me absolutely hooked!! 👀💖

More reactions under the cut ᯓᡣ𐭩

From Maryland to the wild west, oh I hope Scout is able to adjust alright! As a girlie who does not do well in the heat, I am sending her all the good vibes to have a nice fresh start ✨

Your father had withdrawn after her death, and your brother had been left to pick up the slack as a result…."We'll make happier memories, y/n," Benjamin had said with a soft smile. "We'll have a fresh start there. What do you say, Scout?"

^ As the eldest sibling, I can imagine the responsibility Benjamin must feel having to take on everything now 🥺 Not having that full space to properly grieve because he has a lot on his plate. I love how caring he is for his sister, and the fact that he looks out for her and is trying to help her start anew, I appreciate him 🥺❤️

Your father was an avid hunter, and despite the constant protesting from your mother, he insisted on bringing you along."It's not proper for a young lady," she had scowled at him, earning a mischievous smile from your father. "And so is scowling, my darling. Yet, here we are."

You chuckled at the memory. Your mother had grown red in the face and practically stomped her way out of the parlor. She had refused to speak to your father until he came home the next afternoon with a small bouquet of wildflowers.They had sat proudly on the table by the front door until they withered weeks later. And you had, indeed, gone on the hunting trip, picking up the art of tracking fairly quickly much to your father's approval.

^ It sounds like Scout had a lovely family and was loved dearly by her parents 🥺 My heart breaks for her having lost both of them like that 💔 I hope she gets a love as gentle and patient as the way her father presented her mother with wildflowers when she was upset 🥺💐 (I have high expectations for you Jake Seresin, don't let me down!! 😌)

"Just making sure we aren't ambushed while we ain't paying attention, is all."

"Ambushed?" Your eyebrows shot up in alarm. The driver nodded. "Yes"m. These parts are the Dagger Gang's territory."

"The Dagger Gang?" You murmured, inching closer to the carriage. The driver scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh. "Some o' the meanest sons of bitches in the west. Gang is led by Hangman and Rooster, and no one wants to get on their bad side."

^ The Dagger Gang you say? 👀 What if I do want to get on their bad side, what happens then? 🤭

The carriage lurched again as it began to move once again down the empty road. Oh, what had you gotten yourself into?

^ Oh, I have no idea, but I can’t wait to find out 🤭💓

Love the way this is starting out!! I can’t wait to see when and how our lovely Scout will meet Jake 👀💖

Don't Hang'em Til Noon: Prologue

Don’t Hang'em Til Noon: Prologue

Pairing: Jake “Hangman” Seresin x reader

Summary: Jake “Hangman” Seresin is a notorious leader within the Dagger Gang of the old western territories of the United States. You, a recently orphaned socialite from the eastern seaboard, find yourself swept off to live with your older brother who has set down roots in said western territory. Determined to to make the best of your situation, what will you do when said outlaw sets his sights on you?

Warnings: Mentions of parent deaths, swearing, no Dagger members yet, but they’re mentioned, use of y/n. I think that might be it?

Word Count: 1k

A/N: Feedback is always appreciated! Let me know what you all think! Should I continue? 18+ ONLY!! This work is also being published on AO3 under the username arcane_vagabond.

Series Masterlist || DGU Masterlist

The carriage did very little to quell the seemingly never ending heat of the western territories. In fact, you were fairly sure it was making it worse. You had long given up on attempting to read the many books you had packed - the heat coupled with the constant jostling from the dirt path causing you to nearly lose the contents of your stomach on multiple occasions. Why your brother thought he would try his hand at settling the expansive west, you’d never understand.

Your brother, Benjamin, wasn’t an impulsive or reckless man. No, quite the opposite actually. He had done well for himself back home in Maryland at your father’s law firm. One of the best law firms in the state, perhaps even the entire eastern seaboard. Your great-grandfather had founded the firm, and it was your brother who inherited the family’s legacy when your father had passed only a year prior.

You had let out a long sigh, still trying in vain to cool yourself down with your prized folded fan. It had been a gift from your mother on your sixteenth birthday, and it was one of the few things you had left of her now. Your father had been thrown into the depths of despair when she died - the doctor’s had said it was consumption. It was a miracle, really, that none of you had contracted it. Your father had withdrawn after her death, and your brother had been left to pick up the slack as a result. Thankfully, he had already been regarded as a respectable lawyer at the time. So it had thrown you for a loop when he announced one night at dinner that he was moving his practice out west.

You had had been completely against the idea, of course. Why wouldn’t you be? Your whole life was spent amongst polite society in Baltimore. Your friends were there. You had interests there. Your parents were buried there.

“We’ll make happier memories, y/n,” Benjamin had said with a soft smile. “We’ll have a fresh start there. What do you say, Scout?”

Of course, when he called you by your childhood nickname, it was hard to ignore the pull on your heart. You had earned that nickname before you had even hit double digits. Your father was an avid hunter, and despite the constant protesting from your mother, he insisted on bringing you along.

“It’s not proper for a young lady,” she had scowled at him, earning a mischievous smile from your father.

“And so is scowling, my darling. Yet, here we are.”

You chuckled at the memory. Your mother had grown red in the face and practically stomped her way out of the parlor. She had refused to speak to your father until he came home the next afternoon with a small bouquet of wildflowers. They had sat proudly on the table by the front door until they withered weeks later. And you had, indeed, gone on the hunting trip, picking up the art of tracking fairly quickly much to your father’s approval.

“She’s a natural! A regular scout, she is!” he had exclaimed excitedly to your mother when you had returned from the trip. Despite herself, your mother had smiled warmly at his enthusiasm.

Your heart clenched again at the happy memories from long ago. Your mother had died nearly five years ago now, and with your father’s death still so fresh, it was hard to allow yourself to dwell too long on those memories. Perhaps Benjamin was right. What you both needed was a fresh start.

The carriage lurched to a halt on the side of the road, and you heard the driver climb down from his perch. Gathering your skirts, you opened the door and stepped out into the blazing sun. No, the sun was much worse than the stifling heat of the carriage. Shielding your eyes from the dazzling light, you looked over to where the driver tended to the horses.

“Why have we stopped, sir?” You asked, moving to the front of the carriage. The older man looked up at you with a friendly smile, but you could see the tension that laced his shoulders.

“Just giving the horses a quick break, miss. We’ll be movin’ on shortly. I reckoned you’d want to stretch your legs for a bit, anyway.”

“Yes, thank you,” you smiled, looking around at the seemingly endless wasteland before you. Oh, how you longed for the gardens of Baltimore.

“How much farther until we reach Maverick?” You inquired. The newly founded town of Maverick was named after it’s founder - Peter “Maverick” Mitchell. A prominent businessman who had decided to try his luck at helping settle the west, much like your brother.

“Only a couple more miles now, miss,” the driver answered politely, eyes darting around the terrain.

“Are you quite alright?” You asked, nerves starting to eat their way up your spine.

“Just making sure we aren’t ambushed while we ain’t paying attention, is all.”

“Ambushed?” Your eyebrows shot up in alarm. The driver nodded.

“Yes’m. These parts are the Dagger Gang’s territory.”

“The Dagger Gang?” You murmured, inching closer to the carriage.

The driver scratched the back of his head and let out a sigh. “Some o’ the meanest sons of bitches in the west. Gang is led by Hangman and Rooster, and no one wants to get on their bad side.”

You didn’t respond. Of course you had heard rumors of outlaws here in the west, but you didn’t even think to entertain the possibility of them being anywhere near you. A mistake you now regretted. The driver must have seen your thoughts on your face because he offered you a reassuring smile.

“I reckon we’ll be fine, miss. Don’t you worry now.”

“Yes, thank you,” you answered politely, turning to make your way back towards the carriage. It was only a few moments later when you heard the driver climb back up onto his perch. The carriage lurched again as it began to move once again down the empty road.

Oh, what had you gotten yourself into?

[robertsfloyd]

Begin Again

Chapter Two

A riding accident leaves you broken, mentally and physically. Your mother thinks the best move for you is to return to your grandfathers ranch, the place where you fell in love with riding.

But your grandfather has a new ranch hand. A hot new ranch hand. A ranch hand who just so happens to be your childhood enemy. Jake fucking Seresin.

Enemies to lovers, cowboy au

For most of the drive to Montana, you had been asleep. Head against the headrest, eyes shut, you dreamt. Dreamt of Morgan Ranch, of the last time you had been there.

You took Chewie out of he stable, put him on the crossties and tacked him up in the English saddle you had spent so long saving for. It looked so strange on him, but it got the job done.

Your grandpa was waiting outside of the barn. It was just him back then, and you didn't understand how he was doing it all. You helped where you could, but you spent most of your days riding Chewie.

"What's this?" You asked as you looked at the hose behind him.

Tall and gorgeous, lovely white fur and gray legs. His ears were forward, dark eyes inquisitive as he looked towards Chewie. A red ribbon was in his plaited mane, something you knew your grandfather hadn't done himself. A bow, matching red to the ribbon, was wrapped around his neck.

"He's yours, Smidge." He held the lead rope out towards you.

Yours. Yours?

You swallowed thickly as you threw Chewie's reins over his neck. "Mine?" You asked as you stepped forwards.

"Yours, Midge. A proper show jumper."

You took the lead rope from your grandpa's hands. "What's his name?" You asked, wrapping the rope around your hand before quickly unwrapping it.

"You can name him whatever you want."

"Percy." It came to you almost immediately. He looked like a Perseus, big and muscular, powerful and strong. Percy just suited him. "Hi, Percy," you said as you stroked his nose.

Your grandfather strode past you. He grabbed Chewie's reins, pulling his head up from the grass he was munching on. Your breath shook as you continued to pat Percy's neck. "He'll take your far. He'll get you out of Silver Ridge."

It was like he had looked into your brain and plucked out the only dream you'd ever had. Out of Silver Ridge. Making a name for yourself. How far could he take you? All the way to the top, until you were touching the stars.

"Go and put him away, Chew still needs exercising."

You jolted awake as your mother opened the car door. "We're here," she said, handing you your crutches.

Here. If it was up to you, you would have been anywhere else. Percy would have been back in Colorado, being taken care of by someone that wasn't Ben Ritter and you wouldn't be feeling so awful about being here.

Gritting your teeth, you climbed out of the car. "That's it, Midge," your mom said like you were a scared animal or a toddler. "Up to the house, now."

You bit back the I know, that threatened to spill from your lips. It would have been angry and rude, would have had your mother abandoning you to walk over there by yourself. As much as you wanted to do it by yourself, to prove that you could, you knew you couldn't.

You would fall flat on your face and never get back up.

I weren't going to get back up.

Your mom stayed close to you. "Steady," she said and you swallowed the angry remark. You needed her help, not to chase her away.

One crutch in front of the other. Bad foot, good foot, rest. One crutch in front of the other. Bad foot, good foot, rest. One crutch in front of the other. Bad foot, good foot, rest.

It was a good rhythm you had going. Slow but steady. You weren't going to fall. You weren't going to fall and never get back up.

But then your mother abandoned you. A small hey from the guy beside the bar and she was gone. Gone! You were going to fall and you weren't going to get back up.

One crutch in front of the other. Good foot, bad foot, rest.

"Little Jakey Seresin?"

Your stomach dropped. Not him. Not the guy that used to chase you through the barn holding spiders. Not the guy that used to rub chilli peppers on your drinking glass.

Not him.

You kept going. Didn't turn around, didn't make pleasantries with the guy who had made your summers at Morgan Ranch hell. Little Jakey Seresin. The nickname had to hurt. He had spent so many years trying to shake it, just for your mom to bring it back.

The woman was your hero.

It wasn't long until she returned to your side. "You doing okay, Midge?" She had asked, hands out as if you were going to fall at any moment and she was going to catch you.

"Great." Your voice was strained as you pushed through how exhausting this was. You hadn't even gotten to the gravel path yet.

But then you stopped. You listened as Jake fucking Seresin got your horse out of the trailer. Was this worse than Ben Ritter? Maybe. No, Ben couldn't help being cruel when he was in the saddle. Jake couldn't help being cruel to you. But he'd never do anything to hurt Percy or any other creature at the ranch.

The second Percy stepped off of the trailer, you wanted to bolt. You wanted to run and get as far away from him as you could. Your own fucking horse, and you couldn't stand to be near him.

"Come on, Midge," your mom said gently as you took another step forward. Nearly there, just the gravel path between you and the house.

This was the hard bit.

The second your crutch hit the gravel, it wobbled. The little stones beneath your crutch shifted as you tried to go forward, nearly sending you to the floor. It was damn terrifying, but you didn't let it show.

One crutch in front of the other. Bad foot, good foot, rest.

The moment your grandpa stepped out of the house, gray hair hidden beneath a black Stetson, you wanted to drop to your knees and sob. He was the last person you wanted to see you like this, see you so... damaged. A far cry from the child that used to show jump his prized cow pony.

"Hi, Smidge." He looked at you with such pity in your eyes, you hated it.

"Hi, grandpa," you managed.

He waited on the porch as you slowly made your way towards him. With each step on the gravel, it got easier to navigate. The stones stopped disappearing from under your crutches and you got steadier.

Once you made it to the porch, there was the questions of the steps. Steps. You hadn't done steps since your fall. All of your necessities back home had been moved downstairs, leaving you no reason to try and go up.

Helplessly, you looked to your mom.

Grasping your arm, she took your crutches and placed them against the porch railing. "Ready?" She asked.

No. No, you couldn't do it. Two little steps and you couldn't fucking do it. There was nobody on your other side, nobody to catch you if you fell. And, if you fell, you'd never get back up again.

You'd never get back up again.

"I gotcha."

Large hands slipped around your arm, steadying you on your feet. Your breath shook as you looked to the side, looked at Jake Seresin. Last time he had touched you...

"Hey, Midge," he said as he met your eye.

Your mouth was dry, stopping you at attempting a response. All you had to do was say hello, and you couldn't. You couldn't even do that.

"C'mon," he said, finally breaking eye contact. "One foot in front of the other."

Your bad foot touched the first step. Your grip grew tight on your mom and Jake as you pushed yourself up. Everything hurt, but you wouldn't let it show. Not in front of your mom. Not in front of Jake.

One foot in front of the other.

This should have been easy. You should have been able to run up and down these stairs without issue. You shouldn't have been relying about Jake fucking Seresin for hep.

"There you go," he said as you made it to the second step. You really wanted to punch him.

Your mother stepped up beside you and your body jolted. Things were already uneven with how much taller Jake was, but he was suddenly too short, too low. "I'm here, I'm here," he mumbled and stepped up beside you.

Just one more to go. Just one more step and you could collapse into the seat beneath the kitchen window and not have to worry about getting up again. You could do it!

You couldn't fucking do it.

"What're we doing, Smidge?" Your grandpa asked as he came to stand in front of you.

Halfway there. You could either give up, go back down, admit defeat and disappear off the face of the earth. Or you could use the last bit of energy you had to get up this last step.

If you fell, you'd never get back up again.

Releasing a shuddering breath, you let go of Jake. At the same time, you took a step. Your hand flew forward, grabbing your grandpa's arm as your mom followed you up the final step.

"Well done, Midge," your mother said in that sweetly condescending voice as Jake handed you your crutches. If everybody started clapping, you were going to scream.

Regaining the little bit of independence you were allowed, you hobbled towards the seat beneath the kitchen window. The cushions called out to you as you sat down and allowed yourself to breath.

You were never going to do stairs again.

"Good to see you, Midge," Jake called, wearing that cocky smile you knew so well and hated so much.

"Bite me."

Your grandpa sat beside you. He raised his hand, as if to affectionately pat your knee, but thought better of it. For that, you were grateful.

"We're gonna get you back in the saddle, Smidge," he said gently.

No matter how gentle it was, you were ready to panic.

There were too many people around you, standing too close. Your mom, staring at you from the top step of the porch with so much pity in her eyes. Jake Seresin, leaning against the porch railing and just watching you.

Even when you didn't reply, they were still watching you. Your mouth became dry and your tongue suddenly felt too big for your mouth. "Can I have some water?" You asked as you desperately looked around.

"I'll get it," your mom said and strode past you, into the house.

But Jake still stood there. He looked between yourself and your grandpa, and pushed away from the porch. "I better get back to work," he said.

Gripping the brim of his hat, he tipped it towards you and strode off.

Suddenly, all of your attention was on your grandfather. "Grandpa, how could you hire him?" You cried. "You know he used to torment me, right? Like, you remember when I got stuck up the tree by the river? Whose fault do you think that was?"

Your grandpa rolled your eyes. "He's changed, Smidge. I wouldn't be able to keep the ranch running if it wasn't for Jake."

Releasing a sigh, you sat back.

The ranch stretched out before you. Fields and acres of horses and cattle before your eyes, fields and acres behind. There was a time where you could gallop from the gate into Morgan Ranch to the river at the other end of the property. There was a time where you wanted to do that, where the thought of it didn't send fear shooting through you.

"Hungry?" Your grandpa asked as he stood up.

You nodded, your eyes landing on Jake. He didn't look like that the last time you saw him. He had been scrawny then, Stetson looking out of place on his head.

He'd bulked out since then, shirt seeming to strain against his chest. The top few buttons were open, revealing hair beneath. It was a little ridiculous, actually. Why not get a shirt that fitted?

He's changed, Smidge.

No, he hadn't changed. His too small shirt was only proof of that.

Alone on the seat, you watched as Jake strode back towards you. Shit, what did he want now? He clasped his hands together and leaned against the porch railing once again. "So," he started, his hands bouncing. "How have you been?"

Your eyebrows rose. When you glanced at your leg, he did the same thing. "Great. Just peachy," you mumbled and shoved your hands into your pockets.

He gave you something of a nod and pushed away from the porch. "I'll... leave you to it."

Good. Piss off.

You didn't mean to watch him walk back towards the barn, didn't mean to stare at his ass in his jeans. It was a nice ass, but that wasn't surprising.

You thought Jake Seresin was out of your life the day you left Montana. You never thought you'd have to see his stupid fucking face again.

But now, he was closer than ever.

***

It shouldn't have been surprising that you didn't want to see him. He shouldn't have been surprised that you wore a scowl when you looked at his face. Did you even realise you were scowling at him? You didn't think so.

Jake didn't glance back as he made his way over to the barn. His broom was still against the door, but sweeping the walkway seemed less important now. Grabbing the broom, he put it back into the tool store and made his way up to the stair, into the room above the barn.

Jake's room. When Chester first offered him the job, he made it his mission to fix up the old room above the barn. It was better than the trailer by the river. closer to the horses (just in case anything happened).

It had been months of him and Javy fixing up the room. They fixed the holes in the floor, put new shutters on the one window, shutters that actually opened and closed, and painted the walls. The furniture was from garage sales or things they found on the side of the room. They took them back to the barn, fixed them up, painted them, and put them in Jakes room.

Grabbing his phone from on top of the drawers beside his bed, Jake dialled Javy's number. It never took Javy very long to pick up, and it was only a matter of seconds before Jake heard his voice.

"Cactus, five minutes," Jake said.

"You know it's the middle of the room, right?"

"Five minutes," he reiterated.

Javy released a sigh. "Fine. Five minutes."

Jake grabbed the jacket hanging over the back of his bedframe and made his way out of his room. Brisket called for him as he walked past, and he took a moment to stroke his nose. "Makin' friends, huh?" He asked, glancing at Percy. Still in that navy blue rug.

Hanging his jacket over the back of Brisket's stable door, Jake stepped towards Percy. He approached, pulled open the stable door and stepped inside. Percy didn't protest as Jake unclipped the front of his rug. Unhooking the straps beneath his belly, Jake pulled the rug back, folded it in half and rested it on Percy's rear end.

When he went to unclip the strap around his back legs, Percy kicked out. Jake stepped back, turned his attention to Percy's head. Percy's ear's were pinned back. "Okay," Jake said gently and stepped closer to his head. "Let's try that again."

He scratched at Percy's shoulders, watched as his ears went forward again. "That's it," Jake muttered, moving down his back. Percy kept his ears forward, didn't pin them back against his head. He kept scratching down his back as he unclipped the first leg strap. "That's it," he said against and pulled the strap from around his leg. "You're doing great, Perce."

There was just one more strap to undo. Jake didn't risk walking behind Percy, walked around his front and began scratching down his back once again. It was quicker this time, easier to unclip the strap around his leg. Percy let his ears go back when Jake stopped scratching, but he didn't kick out.

Jake pulled the rug from his back. Folding it up, he rested it over Percy's stable door and stepped out.

His five mintues were almost up.

Grabbed his jacket, he rushed out of the barn. Chester could cope without him for the afternoon. Fishing his keys from his pocket, he made his way over to his truck, climbed in and sped away.

Morgan Ranch. It wasn't supposed to become his home, but it had. It was his home, better than anything he'd had before. Chester was good to him, he helped Jake as much as Jake helped him.

At that time in the afternoon, The Drunken Cactus was empty. Just one truck outside of it, Javy's truck. The bag of animal feed in the back suggested Jake had caught him on his way back from town.

Striding into The Drunken Cactus, Jake scanned the room for Javy. He sat in their usual booth, drink in front of them and hat pulled over his face.

"You're late."

By only two minutes.

Sitting back, Jake sipped his drink as Javy pulled his hat from his head. He waited for Javy to look at him before he spoke.

He said your name. "Midge Morgan."

Javy's eyebrows went up. "What about her?"

"She's back."

Javy's eyes went wide. "Midge fuckin' Morgan? She's back?" He asked, surprise in his voice. "What was it she said to you before she left?"

"THat she never wanted to see me again and she hoped I got hit by a bus?"

"That she never wanted to see you again and she hoped you got hit by a bus, that's it," Javy echoed, grin on his face. "And now you work for her grandpa. Fuck, man. She's gonna eat you alive."

The old you would have eaten him alive. You were still in there, just a feisty but unable to do anything about it. You would have hated him more if you knew he pitied you.

"She's got her fancy show jumping horse with her," He said as he sipped the amber liquid in his glass.

"Think she's gonna compete out here?"

Jake didn't mean to chuckle as he shook his head. "She's not gonna be competing any time soon," he mumbled and looked down at his glass. "She's broken, Javy. The Midge bark is still there, but she hasn't got the bite."

Javy released a sigh. "Don't you worry, buddy. The old Midge will come back. Denver couldn't have changed her that much."

But it wasn't Denver that changed her, Jake knew.

Jake and Javy finished their drinks and went their separate ways. Javy climbed into his truck and headed off to his daddy's ranch, and Jake headed into town.

He didn't need anything, but he didn't want to go back to the ranch. He didn't want to see you like that. Maybe he was selfish, but he didn't want to see the person he had been in love with since he was sixteen in such a broken state.

You, the girl he hadn't been able to forget about.

No matter how much he tried to forget about you, how many other women he took to his bed, you were always on his mind. Every time he went into the ranch office, when he saw the drawings of your dream for the ranch, you were all he could think about.

And now you were back. You were back and he was still in love with you.

Jake wandered around in a daze, picked up things he didn't really need. A cap, a new belt, a book of military aircrafts. He didn't need any of it, but it was a good distraction for you.

Eventually, he had to head home. He waited out the clock, waited until he had to go home and feed the horses before climbing into his truck and speeding away.

He pulled in beside your overly expensive trailer and climbed out. Leaving his new stuff on the front seat, he made his way into the barn, into the feed room.

Shit, what did Percy eat? He was some big, fancy show jumper; there was no way he ate the same stuff Jake fed Brisket. He probably had all these additional vitamins and supplements that Brisket didn't need.

Setting out all of the feed buckets, Jake left the barn. He made his way across the ranch and into the house. In through the kitchen, where Stephanie was helping Chester with dinner.

"Hey, Jake," Stephanie called, not turning her head to look at him. "Dinner shouldn't be too long now."

"Thanks," he said, leaning against the door. "Where's Midge?"

Chester finally turned towards him. "Bedroom, but you best leave her alone."

"I'll be quick."

Jake walked through the house, past the stairs, through the little door and into the annex. Once upon a time it was an unused spare bedroom, the dusty room where you used to play spin the bottle as kids.

You were probably hating it in there.

His fist knocked against the door. "Go away!" You shouted from the other side, but Jake pushed open the door anyway.

You were furious when Jake showed his face. He couldn't help but be surprised that you didn't grab the glass on your bedside table and throw it at him.

"Hey, Midge," he began, leaning against the doorframe.

"You have two seconds to get out before I make you."

Jake swallowed. "Percy's feet," he began. "What am I giving him?"

When you stared at him, he could swear your eye twitched. "MOM!" You shouted and Stephanie became running. Reaching into your pocket, you pulled out your car keys and held them out in front of you.

As soon as she had made it into the room, Stephanie took the keys from your hand. She reached out, felt your forehead, but you pushed her away. "Can you help Jake with Percy's food, please?" You asked and Stephanie nodded.

Jake followed your mother back out of the house. "Does he have anything really fancy?" He asked as he followed her out to the car.

Stephanie shook her head. "Not now. Not while he's not competing," she answered as she pressed a button on the keys. The boot of the car opened on its own. "He'll have the same as the rest of the horses, but he needs his painkillers."

Pain killers. So whatever happened to you hadn't just happened to you. Jake sucked in a breath as Stephanie reached into the car and pulled out a little black bag. "There's treats in there, pop a few in his food," she said and placed the bag in his hands.

The smile she gave him was charming, beautiful. Stephanie was hot, there was no doubt about it. But she was nothing compared to you.

Jake spent the last six years trying to forget about you. Now you were back, and he didn't have a chance. Not even your hot mom could distract him.

prev | next

taglist (i'm tagging people that commented btw!! if you don't wanna be tagged, let me know!)

@ride-em-cowboy

@literal-tv-menace

@averyhotchner

@illisea-library

[bullet-prooflove]

Allen's Bar - Jake Seresin x Reader

Tagging: @kmc1989 @shanimallina87 @calirindo @alisbackalleybbq @djs8891

Companion piece to:

The Other Family - Jake didn't realise his father was still alive...

Surreal - You locate Jake after he disappears.

Break Your Heart - Jake's heart is broken in the aftermath of his father.

What Did You Do - You discover an injured Jake on your porch.

You’re sitting in the waiting room at the hospital with Beau’s wife Ally, when the notifications start chiming on Jake’s phone. You ignore them at first but they keep coming one after the other until you pick up the device and that’s when you see the charges on his banking app.

All from Allen’s Bar...

The amounts, they’re small, incremental, the price of a single drink, something top shelf and they’re all from the past couple of hours. A time frame that's impossible because Jake’s been in surgery since he got here, they’re trying to release the swelling in his brain from his head injury. You sift through the pockets of Jake’s flight jacket, the one you have resting in your lap but his wallet, it’s definitely missing.

“I need to be somewhere.” You say distractedly to Ally as you tuck both phones into your own coat. “Can you call me if he gets out before I’m back?”

“Of course but where-”

“I’ll be back as soon as I can.” You say handing her the flight jacket.

You Uber to Allen’s Bar. There’s this feeling in your chest, this rage building inside you because you think you know what happened last night, who it was that Jake went to see.

You find him sitting on a stool at the end of the bar, the man whose house you found Jake sitting outside last night, the one who sold him for meth all those years ago.

That fury it burns like the fires of hell as soon as you lay eyes on him, Jake’s wallet resting haphazardly on the bar.

You don’t even know what you’re doing until he hits the deck, pain radiates through your fist as you stare down at him, blood jetting from his nose. He’s scrambling to his feet, screaming at you but you don’t hear it because all you can thinking about is the bruising on Jake’s face, the other injuries they found underneath his clothes.

You thought it had been a fight at first but it was a beating, one that had resulted in fractured ribs and internal bleeding they’d just about managed to get under control before the craniotomy. There’d been defensive wounds but none offensive because even after all this time Jake still couldn’t raise his hand to the man who betrayed him.

“What the fuck?!”

“You beat the shit out of your son and then took his wallet.” You hear yourself shouting. “What kind of heartless asshole are you?”

“What are you his fucking wife? You have no fucking right-”

You hit him again, a rapid jab to the nose that has him howling like a banshee.

“You put your son in the fucking hospital-”

“You think I want my old life accosting me when I take out the trash, whining about how I gave him up?” Jake’s father rallies, snatching up the napkins on the bar and clasping them to his bloody nose. “I have a wife now! A family now! I don’t want him, I never wanted him!”  He shakes his head, his voice muffled. “But that kid, that fucking kid, he just didn’t get the message.”

“So you made sure he did?” Your voice breaking because you can not imagine how Jake must have felt in that moment. “And then you decided to take yourself off for a drink on his dime?”

“I figured he owed me a little something for all the trouble.” He says, pulling the tissue away, the bleedings slowed now, a trickle as opposed to a flood “For trying to fuck up my life.”

“You didn’t deserve him then and you certainly don’t deserve him now.” You respond, the sound of a siren echoing outside the shabby little bar.

“That’ll be your ride.” He tells you, tossing the tissue onto the bar. “And trust me I’ll most certainly be pressing charges.”

“They’re not just here for me asshole.” You tell him, pulling your phone out of your pocket, pausing the recording you’ve just made of your conversation. “They’re here for you too.”

Love Jake? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

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Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

[salmonsalad69]

Specifically TG / TGM incorrect quotes from music school

Viper: "Yeah, good job. The elephant really tip toed across the pond there."

Mav: "... fucking- WHAT?"

Slider: "What is bro on about?"

Wolf: "Are we the elephant or the pond in this metaphor?"

Ice: "Cool. Bye."

Slider: "... You know Ice thinks you're cool, right?"

Mav: "He does?! Oh my god, I'm so happy! I mean, I don't care. Whatever."

Wolf: "..... are you listening to the fucking traveler potions video?"

Wood: "Yes! Wanna watch?"

Wolf: "Always! It's my favorite video!"

Hangman: "Ok. Our team is called... Gambling addiction."

Coyote: "Yeah it is! Wooooo!"

Phoenix: "You're losing by 76 points."

Rooster: "a guy can't nap anymore?"

Bob: "You've been asleep for 7 hours."

Mav: "I wasn't that drunk."

Ice: "You tried to cuddle with everyone and then spent 30 minutes looking for your phone that was on the table."

Mav: "Well I remember you cuddling back, so. Watch it."

[formerchampgreen]

I wanna eat them 🥰😋

hangster slop posts i haven’t posted in forever go my bullshit doodles

close up on the chiikawa hangster things cus there my favs i love mixing my interests

[jayjay-thejet-plane]

🗡️🌹 Hangster sketch (Jake doesn’t mind one bit when Bradley uses his strength to put Jake exactly where he wants him)

[theglenaissance]

I haven't given y'all a gif in awhile so I picked the cutest and sweetest gif

[shakespeareanwannabe]

Nat has definitely gone through it but she’s got the support of Bob and the family. Can’t wait to hear what you think about the rest!

As You Wish, Chapter 3

Summary: When arriving at Camp Silver Star, Abby Floyd was anticipating a summer of adventure with an ocean separating her from the three people she loved most: her mom, her Uncle Bob and her Aunt Natasha. But after a run in with Charlie Seresin, an extremely familiar looking and irritating camper in a different cabin, her summer plans take a turn that neither girl ever could have expected.

Trigger Warnings: reader's children are described as being blond with green eyes because genetics are wild and Jake's genes are strong, reader is canonically Bob's sister, reader goes by Buttercup and is tattooed, swearing, verbal arguing, references to divorce, death of a character, injuries, misinformation about the US Navy and how it works (I tried my best)

Briefing Room, Classified Location, 11 years ago

Briefing rooms after missions go horrifically sideways were typically quiet. Those who were involved in the mission were usually too busy inside their own heads, trying to shove feelings and memories into tiny little lockboxes that would then get shoved into other boxes and hidden in the dark recesses of the mind, only springing free when things got…dark. The top brass was usually reading reports and gathering steam, preparing to bring the hand of God down upon the person (or people) who were responsible for the mission going…poorly. Therefore, the rooms were usually can-hear-a-pin-drop quiet, but they were never this…still. This silent.

The fifteen lieutenants stood in four rows and, while most of them were four people deep, the one missing a person stood out in cold contrast, as did the empty spot at the front of the room, where the team leader usually stood. Cyclone, Warlock and Hondo stood just past that spot; heads ducked together in a whispered conversation. Besides that, nobody moved. Nobody stirred. Not Bob, balancing on a pair of crutches with a cast bracing his leg up to his knee. Not Fritz, his arm strapped against his chest to immobilize it. Not Rooster, with a black and purple bruise on his temple, or Coyote, a neat row of stitches gracing his cheek, or Hangman, who felt a painful twinge every time he breathed, the binding protecting his bruised and fractured ribs pulling taut with every inhale. None dared to move or fidget.

Finally, Admiral Simpson moved into the empty space at the front of the room and sighed.

“Well, ladies and gentlemen…I don’t think I need to tell you what an absolute clusterfuck that was.” Fanboy flinched, his head ducking fractionally as the words carried clear across the gathering. “In fact, it was such an absolute clusterfuck that Rear Admiral Cain has decided to disband the Dagger Squad. Immediately.”

Jake heard Yale gasp behind him, and he would have too, if it weren’t for the sinking weight in his chest. The mission had been a clusterfuck, there was no doubt about it, but they had achieved their mission. He had risked his ass after watching Maverick’s plane get shot out of the sky, putting all thought of his little Charlie girl waiting for him at home and the whisper of ‘god damnit, Buttercup was right’ out of his head, and he had taken charge. He had been the one to pull Rooster out of his single-minded mission to avenge Mav’s death, he had been the one to take down the jet that had been targeting an ejected Bob and Natasha, and he, Payback and Fanboy had been the ones to deliver the payload in the end, effectively taking out the target.

He had brought all but one of them home safely, but he didn’t feel any sense of relief, or even grief over Mav’s death. All he felt was the warmth of his baby girls, curled up against his chest as he rocked them in their nursery. All he tasted was the sweetness of Buttercup’s kiss, all he smelled was that newborn baby smell that he swore to God was the best thing he’d ever smelled in his life. All he saw was Buttercup’s tear-stained face as she gathered Abby in her arms and left, the sound of the door clicking shut echoing in his ears. If his reaction time had been even a millisecond slower, he could’ve been in Mav’s position, and then what? What would happen to his Charlie then?

“…because of the nature of this mission, disbanding the Dagger Squad, and because you all are the best of the best, the Rear Admiral has decided to make you an offer. As you know, the Navy doesn’t often let you make very many decisions, so I want you to think carefully before you respond, because we do need your answer today. Your first option is to be absorbed into another Squad; in which case you would be shipping out today for your new assignments. Yes, Lieutenant Fitch, if both members of your team decide to go with option one, you will be keeping your WSO. Your second option is—”

The clatter of metal against wood stole the words from Cyclone’s lips, and everyone turned towards the mild-mannered, quiet, shy WSO standing behind the glaringly empty space in the third row.

“—retirement, with a full pension and an honourable discharge,” Cyclone finished, staring down at Bob’s nameplate, lying on the desk beside him.

“I think it’s pretty clear what I choose,” the WSO spoke softly, but no one in the squad could miss the barely tempered rage in his voice.

“Lieutenant Floyd—”

“Permission to speak freely, sir?”

“Granted,” Warlock stepped up next to Cyclone.

“I almost died on this mission,” Bob stated frankly, his gaze never wavering from Cyclone’s face. “I had to eject Lieutenant Trace and I from our aircraft after she was struck in the face by shrapnel that broke through our windshield and destroyed her helmet. Debris that came from Maverick’s plane.” The silence was heavy, tension mounting with every word, but Bob pressed on. “Nat’s never going to fly again. They already told me. And frankly, sir? I don’t know if I have it in me to bond with another pilot after holding my best friend’s body as we waited for rescue, already knowing that our team lead was KIA.”

Cyclone opened his mouth to speak, but a gentle hand on his shoulder stopped him.

“I understand, son. If you, or anyone else, decide to retire, know that you’ll be going with the full gratitude of the US Navy,” Warlock responded.

“Thank you, sir,” Bob saluted, then propelled himself out of line, crutching past the waiting rows of his friends and coworkers as he headed for the door. “I’ll fill out any paperwork you need, and then I’ll be out of your hair.”

“There’s no need to pack and go so quickly.”

“All due respect, sir, but yes, there is,” he came to a stop in front of Jake and fixed him with a steely look. “My family needs me. And if I don’t help them, who will?”

Jake swallowed painfully, his heart pressing against his aching ribs with every heartbroken beat, the roar of fear and shame and anxiety swirling around in his head, blocking out every sound other than the whispers of his regrets.

This wasn’t how his life was supposed to go. Football captain, homecoming king, star pupil of the Naval Academy, he flew through OCS and aced his ASTB. He was the only pilot of his generation with a confirmed air to air kill, handpicked for Top Gun and their top-secret uranium mission. And, on top of all of that, up until six months ago, he’d had the most perfect, beautiful wife waiting for him at home with their precious newborn twins.

Now, he was a divorced single dad of one beautiful little girl. A beautiful little girl that he’d had to leave in the capable hands of Penny Benjamin when the Squad had been deployed. A beautiful little girl whose sister he missed so incredibly much that it threatened to bring him to his knees. Whose mother had been right about damn near everything.

“Lieutenant Seresin?”

Jake blinked, his vision and hearing coming back into focus as Cyclone stepped down to face him.

“I’m going to be frank with you, Lieutenant. You’re the best of the best,” Cyclone stated, stepping closer. “Your skills in the cockpit are unmatched and you showed the type of leadership qualities we need in this line of work. There are whispers of promoting you due to your actions on this last mission. With the loss of Captain Mitchell and your actions on this mission, you are now the only ace pilot that the Navy has to offer. You’d have your choice of assignments, should you choose to stay. It would be a damn shame to lose you, son.”

Jake felt something squeeze in his chest, and this time it wasn’t his busted ribs. Being a Naval aviator was the only thing he had ever wanted to be, and Jake Seresin always got what he wanted. He should be elated, planning for his move to the best naval base in the country, where they would probably let him lead his own squad after the way he led the Dagger Squad home safely, tearing victory from the jaws of defeat. He could be Lieutenant Commander Seresin.

Buttercup’s tears and the clicking of his apartment door as it swung shut.

Those bright baby blues that were just now starting to darken into the very same light green he saw in the mirror every morning.

The powdery scent of diaper powder and formula, and the solid warmth and weight of his baby girl in his arms.

“With all due respect, Admiral?” Jake pushed through the catch in his throat. “It would be even more of a damn shame for my daughter to lose her dad. I’m all she’s got. I…I can’t let her down. I can’t let her ever think there’s a chance in hell that her daddy ain’t comin’ back to her. I’m afraid I have to thank you for the opportunity and request that you tender my resignation. Sir.”

Cyclone sighed, a wave of disappointment cresting over his face as he opened his mouth to argue, to convince him to stay, but a firm hand gripped his shoulder.

“We understand,” Warlock reached out and shook his hand. “Thank you for your service, Lieutenant Seresin.”

Jake nodded, shaking his hand before turning and saluting Cyclone. “Thank you, sir.”

“I…I’m with him.” Jake turned and saw Javy saluting the two members of the brass.

“Coyote…”

“Whatever you’re about to say, don’t. I followed your ass on the football field, I followed your ass to the Naval Academy, and now I’m following your ass out the door. You’re not the only one Charlie’s got, man. You both got me.”

“And me.”

The two men turned to see Rooster fiddling with his name plate.

“Bradshaw…” Cyclone’s voice rose in shock.

“My mama never wanted this for me,” Bradley continued, as if he hadn’t heard him. “I know she didn’t. Hell, my mama never stepped another foot on a plane after my daddy died. She was too terrified of bein’ in the air, thinkin’ I might lose her too. I used to think that flying brought me closer to my dad, that I could feel him when I was alone in the cockpit.” He unpinned his name plate carefully, studying the engraving. Lt. Bradshaw. “I can’t feel him anymore,” he murmured. “I’m older than he ever got to be. And now Mav’s gone…” Rooster sighed. “I don’t think I’ll be able to shake this last mission, sir. I’d be a detriment to any team I join, and I don’t want to put anyone in that position. So…I’m walking away.”

“I…understand. Thank you, gentlemen, for your years of service.”

Rooster saluted, then the three men walked out of the briefing room, the weight of their actions blanketing them.

“So…what now?”

Jake rubbed at his ribs. “We go to Mav’s funeral…then I guess we go home.”

“And where exactly is home?” Rooster drawled. “I can’t imagine you want to stay in your apartment after…everything.”

Jake shook his head, his tactician’s brain kicking into high gear. “Javy?”

“Yeah, man?”

“I think it’s time we introduce Bradshaw here to some Texas barbecue.”

The Brig, Camp Silver Star, Present Day

“Amelia? You…you knew?” Charlie yanked at the t-shirt that felt like it was closing in around her neck.

Amelia kicked off her rainboots, shed her yellow raincoat, and shuffled towards them, gingerly taking a seat on Abby’s bed.

“Yeah…I knew.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Charlie’s hands clenched rhythmically as she tried to breathe.

“I didn’t know the two of you were here at the same time,” Amelia soothed. “I found out that day that cantaloupe ended up in the fruit salad. You both came to me to ask about it, and I went to find my mom right away. That’s when she told me that she had sent emails about the camp to your aunt and uncles, offering a friends and family discount if you came for these specific weeks.”

“A-Aunt Penny knew too?” Charlie croaked.

“She did. Charlie, I—”

Charlie shook her head, sending her blond braid flying, the end whipping at her face with the force of it. “No. No. This is all a coincidence. It has to be one big coincidence. My dad and your m-mom…them knowing each other doesn’t mean anything.”

“Charlie…” Amelia started, but Abby felt something snap inside of her.

“You’re not actually stupid enough to believe that, are you?” she spat. “Why can’t you just admit that it all makes sense? Our parents knew each other, they got married, and they had us. We have the same birthday, we look identical, and we have these pictures to prove it! Why is that so difficult for you to see?”

“Because it means he lied to me!” Charlie shrieked, burying her head in her hands. “He lied to me. My whole life. He hid my mom and my sister from me for twelve years! He’s my best friend, we tell each other everything, we do everything together, and he lied to me!”

Charlie’s shoulders shook with the force of heavy sobs as the wind whipped at the windows, making the cabin shake. She’d asked her dad about her mother for years, and he had never told her. And neither had Javy or Rooster, who so clearly knew her mother too. Her chest ached with the sting of betrayal, and she had no idea how she was supposed to go home and look her three favourite people in the eyes after finding out they had been hiding such a massive secret from her.

Charlie flinched as she felt an arm wrap around her shoulders, and she sniffled as her head was tugged onto Abby’s shoulder.

“W-why aren’t you angry?” she whispered.

“I honestly don’t know,” Abby murmured back, staring sightlessly out the window. “I know that I should be. I know that my mum and Uncle Bob and Auntie Nat lied by omission by not telling me about you and dad, but I just…can’t.”

“Why would they do this to us?” Charlie scrubbed at her face with the sleeve of her sweater. “How is it legal to say that each parent gets a kid, and they never have to see the other one?”

“They had a custody arrangement…” Amelia had moved to kneel at the edge of Charlie’s bed.

“What sick judge would agree to something like this?” Charlie hiccupped as Abby removed her arm and leaned forward, desperation shining in her eyes.

“No one,” Amelia sighed and turned her face downwards. “Now, I don’t have all the information. I was just a kid when your parents split up, and my mom and Mav tried to shield me from the worst of it. All I know is that they got engaged after dating for like a really short amount of time, then your mom found out she was pregnant with you two, and they eloped in Las Vegas. Mav was pissed.”

“Why?”

“Didn’t he like my mum?”

“He loved your parents, both of them. Hangman was a pain in the butt, but Mav wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. After that first mission they flew together, when Hangman saved Mav and Rooster’s life, nobody really cared that Hangman was cocky. The way he could needle at the other members of his squad, it only ever pushed them to be the best that they could be. I know Mav saw a lot of good in your dad, and he really cared about him. And your mom? I think Mav loved your mom because she really helped bring Hangman down to earth. He once told me, ‘Buttercup keeps Hangman’s feet on the ground while his brain is racing through the sky’,” Amelia chuckled. “God, I loved hanging around with your parents. They were so cool.”

“Wait…Buttercup?” Abby bit her lip. “That’s what my aunt and uncle call my mum. Well, that and kiddo.”

“Yeah, nicknames around Miramar kinda just…stuck. Your dad started calling your mom Buttercup, and that was that. She was Buttercup from then on.”

“She even has a buttercup tattoo on her collarbone,” Abby said excitedly, her mind racing with the implication.

“That’s great and all, but can we get back to the story? Why was Mav angry?”

“Because he wanted to be there when they got married,” Amelia laughed quietly. “The Dagger Squad got chosen to do an air show in Las Vegas, and Hangman was able to work it so that your mom could come. Mav didn’t question it at all, even though he knew they were engaged and expecting. Your dad had to do 200 pushups when he got back for not telling Mav the plan so that he could be there,” Amelia giggled. “But I never heard him complain about it. He thought your mom was worth it.”

“So then…what happened?”

“Like I said, I don’t know. My mom and dad split when I was younger, and I guess my mom thought that watching one of my favourite couples in the world split up might bring up some bad memories, so she and Mav sheltered me from a lot of it. I know they had a really bad fight, they both said some things, and then they split, and they each took one of you.”

“H-how did they decide who to take?” Charlie trembled.

“I honestly don’t know. But I know it was never supposed to be permanent. The custody arrangement, I mean.”

“Then what happened? Why did they keep us from each other?”

Amelia shrugged. “I know that it was partly your dad’s deployment schedule. It was hard to set up a visitation schedule when Dagger Squad was being called into action so often. Then, the pandemic hit, and nobody wanted to be sending really young kids on international flights where they could get sick and potentially have lasting complications. After that, I really don’t know.”

Charlie took a deep, shuddering breath as Abby chewed on her lower lip. The cabin was silent, save for the wind and rain lashing at the windows.

Finally, Amelia sighed. “I know this a big revelation for the two of you, and I hate to leave when you probably have a billion more questions. But I do have to get back. I’ll be back later tonight to collect your tray, and I’ll hopefully have more time to answer your questions. Okay?”

Abby nodded but Charlie sat stock still, staring into space.

“Charlie?” Amelia called softly, ducking her head to catch her gaze. “Are we okay, hon?”

Charlie nodded mutely and Amelia returning it with a tight-lipped smile. “I’ll see you both later.”

“Bye Amelia,” Abby called softly as the door swung shut behind her.

Silence fell for a brief moment before Abby looked over at Charlie.

“What are you thinking?”

“Shhh…” Charlie hissed, but Abby didn’t take offense. It was clear from the deep set of Charlie’s eyebrows and the pensive look in her eyes that she was planning something. No…plotting something.

Abby shrugged and walked over to the small card table that held their trays of food. Two small Thermos’ of chili, an array of Ziploc bags filled with cheese, chili flakes, bacon bits, and sour cream, and two snack sized bags of tortilla chips were seated neatly on the silver trays, and Abby felt her stomach grumble.

She had just sat down to her freshly topped chili when Charlie moved, sitting across from her with a steely look in her eyes.

“Charlie?”

“I want to get to know my mom,” she stated simply, as though she was saying that the sky was blue or that grass was green.

Abby nodded eagerly. “I know! I can’t wait to get to know dad! Maybe we could call him together on Friday and talk to him together? And then we could do the same for mum!”

Charlie shook her head. “No. I mean really get to know her. I want to meet her in person. I want to be able to hug her. I want to spend time with her, and I want to be able to do that without having to spend time answering questions about how we found each other or her trying to tell me about what happened between her and dad.”

“I…I want that too,” Abby confessed, though Charlie’s words were confusing her. “And we can do that. Once they know that we know, we’ll be able to use that custody agreement and see mum and dad, and each other, more often.”

Charlie shook her head again. “You don’t understand. I don’t want to talk to dad. Or Rooster. Or Javy. They lied to me for my whole entire life! I’m so mad at them that I’ll probably just scream the whole time we’re talking to them. Besides, whose to say that they won’t make excuses and not let us see each other again? What happens if they just decide that I can’t see mom and you don’t get to see dad?”

“They wouldn’t do that!”

“Abby, they already did do that!” Charlie reached out and grabbed Abby’s wrist, her gaze pleading. “Don’t you want to get to know dad without having to deal with all of this? Don’t you want to be able to meet him and get to know him without all the awkward stuff, like him asking you what your favourite colour is or what you got for your tenth birthday?”

“Well…yeah. Of course, I do. But…how would we do that? It’s not like I could just go to Texas when camp is over.”

“Why not?” Charlie’s eyes shone bright with excitement. “Who says you couldn’t just take my boarding pass and fly to Texas to meet dad? Who says I couldn’t just take your boarding pass and fly to London to meet mom?”

“Charlie, you sound insane,” Abby gently removed her hand from her wrist and picked up her spoon. “First of all, I don’t have a boarding pass. I fly stand-by because my uncle is a pilot and gets me on the plane for free, so long as he’s the one flying. Second, we might look a like, but there are still some cosmetic differences! My hair is shorter than yours, I have pierced ears, and we have different accents. They would certainly notice all that. And third, our parents have known us since birth. Surely they would be able to tell that we’re not us!”

“We can fix those things!” Charlie leaned forward. “I can teach you all about my life in Texas. I can show you the layout of the ranch, which cows to avoid, how to tack up my horse at home. I can teach you all about dad and Javy and Rooster. I can cut my hair! And listen, it’s not even that hard to fake a British accent. Pip, pip, cheerio!”

Abby snorted. “And what? You expect me to teach you all about London? Where to catch the tube, the layout of the flat, where the best fish and chips are? You want me to tell you all about mum, and where Uncle Bob hides his glasses cleaning cloth, and how not to stare at Auntie Nat’s scar? You want me to start talking like a cowboy? And what about my ears being pierced?”

“Why not?” Charlie begged, her green eyes shining. “We’ve got like a month to teach each other everything we would ever need to know. And we both have cell phones, so it’s not like we would be completely cut off from each other. If I had a question, I could just text you and ask!”

“Charlie, you sound ridiculous!” Abby threw her spoon down and rubbed her eyes. “There’s no way I can teach you about my life in a month. You want us to try to pull one over on the people that know us best. It would never work.”

Charlie bit her lip then leaned in for the kill. “I saw the way you lit up when Amelia mentioned mom’s nickname being Buttercup. I know how excited you got when you realized that mom has a tattoo of a buttercup. I know you were thinking the exact same thing I was.”

“Which is?”

“That if the people around her still call her Buttercup, maybe she still has feelings for dad. The nickname obviously meant enough to her that she got it tattooed on her body, and she hasn’t tried to get it removed or anything.”

“Mum, she…she’s never dated,” Abby admitted quietly. “She always says she just doesn’t have the time, but…I’ve always hoped that maybe it’s because she still has feelings for my dad.”

“Dad is the same way,” Charlie whispered. “He says I’m his best girl, but I know from Rooster and Javy that dad could be going on lots of dates if he wanted to. They love to tease him about it, and he tells them that he’s too busy with me and the ranch. But I know it’s because he still loves mom.” Charlie reached for her wrist again and this time Abby didn’t pull away. “Abby, if we do this, they will eventually have to switch us back. I’m not suggesting we do this forever. We can get to know them for a bit, then tell them the truth, and they’ll have to meet to switch us back. And when they meet…”

“…they could fall in love again,” Abby murmured.

“They could. Or, at the very least, they can talk and figure out a schedule so we don’t have to be separated again. C’mon…isn’t it at least worth a shot?” Charlie blinked over at her; the puppy dog eyes she had learned from her dad shining in full force.

Abby sighed. “Do you really think we can do it?”

“We’ve got a month, we’ve got social media, and we’ve got access to the computers once a week. I don’t see how we couldn’t pull this off.”

Abby chewed on her bottom lip. “O-okay…but if I don’t feel comfortable with this later, I want to be able to change my mind.”

“Done.” Charlie stuck her hand out and Abby grasped it, pumping it twice in the air with a grin on her face. “Now…let’s get to work.”

Tags List: @mamachasesmayhem @jessicab1991 @waltermis @buckysteveloki-me @allepaula @yuckosworld @seresinsbrat @ahopelessromanticwritersworld @kim-stark @cierra715 @high-speed-r @helpmepleasethanks @starsrfun @tomanyfandomstrash @averyhotchner @the-blueatlas @princessliz86 @dashes-dizzydisaster @a-girl-who-loves-disney @boiolay @djs8891 @torimcc @tgmreader @kmc1989 @landpiranha-blog @sydthekid1518 @lynnevanss @hello7442 @mackenzieblair @minejungwoo @starset21 @ssa-sadboi @tgmavericklover @dempy @rockbottomphilosophies-blog @lovemarvelousfics @starkleila @magical-spit @whatislovevavy @simplyreading96 @vivalas-vega @itsdesiree86 @inky-sun @books-are-escapes @abaker74 @clockworkballerina

[carmenell]

what are they getting lectured for? wrong anwers only

[ilovekittycats2]

Weightless

Jake Seresin x reader

this is a part 4 of the High Maintenance series

(use of y/n)

In which,

Y/N goes up and never wants to come back down.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The offer lingered in your mind long after Jake had walked away.

You told yourself it was ridiculous, that you were perfectly fine keeping your feet on the ground, that flying was his thing, not yours. But the way he had looked at you when he said it—like he was offering you a piece of his world, like he wanted you to see things the way he did—made it hard to ignore.

By the time the sun dipped below the horizon the next day, you were pacing the hangar, staring at the jet Jake had been working on earlier. The thought of flying, of trusting him in the cockpit, made your stomach twist in a way that was equal parts excitement and nerves.

“You’re gonna wear a hole in the floor if you keep that up,” a familiar voice drawled.

You turned to find Jake leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, a knowing smirk on his lips. He wasn’t in his flight suit—just a worn t-shirt and jeans, looking as effortlessly confident as ever.

“I wasn’t pacing,” you argued, crossing your arms in defiance.

Jake chuckled, pushing off the doorway and strolling toward you. “Right. And I don’t have the best damn landing record in the squadron.”

You rolled your eyes but couldn’t help the smile that tugged at your lips. “I was just thinking.”

“Dangerous,” he teased. “Care to share?”

You hesitated, glancing back at the jet. Then, before you could second-guess yourself, you exhaled sharply. “I want to go up.”

Jake’s smirk softened into something more genuine, something warmer. “Yeah?”

You nodded, forcing yourself to meet his gaze. “Yeah.”

His grin widened. “Well, sweetheart, you just made my night.”

Before you could change your mind, he took your hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze before leading you toward the flight gear. “Let’s get you suited up.”

It wasn’t long before you found yourself strapped into the backseat of the jet, your heart hammering as Jake ran through the pre-flight checks. The cockpit was smaller than you imagined, suffocating in a way that had nothing to do with the tight harness across your chest.

Jake’s voice crackled through the headset, grounding you. “You nervous?”

You swallowed hard, gripping the straps of your harness. “A little.”

He grinned. “Good. Means you’re paying attention.”

The canopy sealed shut, enclosing you both in a space so small it made you acutely aware of every breath, every shift in Jake’s posture. Then the engines roared to life, the vibrations rattling through your bones as the aircraft surged forward.

The runway blurred beneath you, speed pressing you back into the seat. Your fingers dug into the sides of the cockpit, anticipation knotting tight in your stomach. And then—

You were airborne.

The ground fell away in an instant, leaving only the endless stretch of sky before you. Your stomach lurched, fear twisting through you for a fleeting second—until you looked out at the horizon, where the sun was sinking in molten gold and streaks of violet and crimson.

It was beautiful.

“How you doin’ back there?”

Jake’s voice broke through the static, laced with something that wasn’t quite teasing—more like anticipation, like he wanted to know if you felt it too.

You inhaled deeply, a slow smile forming as you finally let go of the last of your fear. “I think I get it now.”

Jake laughed, full and unrestrained. “Told you.”

And for the first time in a long time, you felt weightless.

Jake guided the jet through gentle maneuvers at first, letting you get a feel for the sensation of being in the air. “Wanna try something fun?” he asked after a moment, mischief lacing his voice.

You narrowed your eyes. “Define fun.”

He chuckled. “Trust me.”

Before you could respond, he pulled the jet into a slow, controlled roll. Your breath caught in your throat as the horizon flipped, your stomach lurching with the motion. The ground became the sky, and for a moment, it felt like you were falling—until you realized that Jake had never lost control, not for a second. He handled the aircraft with a precision that made you feel safe, even when the world turned upside down.

“That was—” you started, still gripping the harness, “—actually kind of amazing.”

Jake’s laughter crackled through the headset. “Knew you had it in you.”

He guided the jet through a few more maneuvers, showing you the grace and precision that came with years of experience. And with each passing moment, you felt yourself letting go—of your hesitation, your fear, your doubts. Up here, in the sky, there was no room for uncertainty. There was only the hum of the jet, the steady sound of Jake’s voice, and the boundless horizon ahead.

Eventually, he leveled out, letting you take in the view. The setting sun painted the sky in hues of gold and crimson, the clouds glowing with soft light. It was breathtaking.

Jake’s voice was quieter when he spoke again. “Kinda makes you never wanna come back down, doesn’t it?”

You nodded, even though he couldn’t see you. “Yeah. I get it now.”

For a moment, there was silence between you, save for the steady hum of the engines. Then, Jake said, “Maybe next time, I’ll let you take the stick.”

You laughed. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Hangman.”

“Hey, I’ve got faith in you,” he said, and something in his tone made your chest tighten. “I think you’d surprise yourself.”

You exhaled, feeling lighter than you had in a long time. Maybe he was right. Maybe this was just the beginning.

When you landed and climbed out of the jet, Jake was already waiting for you. His helmet dangled from one hand as he ran the other through his tousled hair, shaking out the tension of the flight. His gaze was locked onto you, unwavering, searching. You could feel the intensity of it even as you pulled off your own helmet, your pulse still pounding from the rush of being up there. He was waiting for something—for you to say something first, to confirm what he already knew.

“So?” His voice was steady, but there was a hint of anticipation beneath it, a thread of something deeper woven into his usual confidence.

You met his eyes, and despite the adrenaline still coursing through your veins, you felt something even stronger settle in your chest. A certainty. A pull. “I think I might be addicted.”

Jake’s smirk came instantly, sharp and knowing, but there was something else there too. A flicker of satisfaction, of relief, of something softer he wasn’t quite ready to put words to. “Told you I’d make you love it.”

You rolled your eyes, but the warmth in your chest was impossible to ignore. It spread, curling at the edges of your ribs, unfurling into something vast and unshakable. And then Jake took a step forward, closing the distance between you just enough for you to feel the heat radiating off him. His presence was overwhelming in the best possible way, and when his fingers brushed against yours, a shiver ran through you, setting every nerve in your body alight. The brush of his calloused fingertips against your palm was barely more than a whisper, but it sent something unraveling inside you, something you hadn’t been ready to acknowledge until now.

“I wasn’t just talking about flying,” he murmured, his voice low, intimate.

The air between you shifted, charged with something electric, something unspoken but impossible to ignore. It was in the way his fingers curled around yours, his touch just firm enough to ground you while your heart continued its relentless hammering against your ribs. You felt frozen in place, and yet, at the same time, you felt like you were falling—plummeting into something unknown, something terrifyingly exhilarating.

His gaze flickered to your lips, just for a fraction of a second, before his eyes locked back onto yours. There was no rush, no reckless impulse—just steady, measured patience, as if he was waiting for you to move first, to pull away if that’s what you wanted. But you didn’t. You couldn’t. Every ounce of resistance you’d once had, every effort you had made to keep him at arm’s length, to pretend that whatever this was didn’t exist, crumbled beneath the weight of the moment.

And then, before you could overthink it, before the weight of everything could crash down on you, Jake closed the space between you and kissed you.

It wasn’t hurried or desperate. It was sure, steady—like the way he flew, like the way he had always been there, lingering just close enough for you to finally see him. His lips were warm, firm, moving against yours with a gentleness that contradicted every cocky smirk, every teasing remark. One of his hands slid up to cradle your face, his thumb brushing along your cheek, anchoring you to the moment, to him.

The world around you faded. The sounds of the base, the distant chatter of other pilots, the hum of the engines cooling down—it all disappeared. There was only Jake, only the way he fit against you, the way he kissed you like he had been waiting for this just as long as you had. It wasn’t just a kiss; it was an answer to a question neither of you had dared to ask.

Your hands found his chest, fingers curling into the fabric of his flight suit as if holding onto him would keep you from floating away. And maybe it would, because right then, you felt weightless all over again, like the sky had never let you go. Like Jake Seresin had never let you fall.

When he finally pulled away, his forehead rested against yours, his breath warm against your lips. His eyes searched yours, still holding that quiet intensity, as if he needed to be sure this was real. As if he needed you to tell him this wasn’t just the high of adrenaline, wasn’t just the thrill of the moment.

You exhaled softly, your fingers still fisted in his flight suit. “I think I might be addicted to this too,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

Jake’s smile was slow, lazy, and entirely too smug, but the way his fingers tightened against your waist betrayed the depth beneath his bravado. “Good,” he murmured. “Because I’m not letting you quit.”

And with that, he kissed you again, deeper this time, with the kind of promise that neither of you needed to say out loud. Because you both knew—this was only the beginning.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

hey guysssssss here is the 4th installement to this series!!!! this one was fun to write... im not sure if i should end this series here or keep going lemme know if you guys have any ideas. love you

[military-newsboys]

Mav: This problem isn’t just going to go away. Slider: No. But maybe you will.

[shakespeareanwannabe]

😭😭😭

She just couldn’t get him out of her head.

As You Wish, Chapter 4

Summary: When arriving at Camp Silver Star, Abby Floyd was anticipating a summer of adventure with an ocean separating her from the three people she loved most: her mom, her Uncle Bob and her Aunt Natasha. But after a run in with Charlie Seresin, an extremely familiar looking and irritating camper in a different cabin, her summer plans take a turn that neither girl ever could have expected.

Trigger Warnings: reader's children are described as being blond with green eyes because genetics are wild and Jake's genes are strong, reader is canonically Bob's sister (though biological relation is never discussed), reader goes by Buttercup and is tattooed, arguing, cursing, reference to divorce, kids doing sneaky things, references to early child rearing, crying, Uncle Bob (because he deserves his own warning), Uncle Rooster and Uncle Javy (because they also deserve their own warnings)

Clifton, Texas, 10 ½ years ago

“Dude, what are you doing? Don’t stop!”

“I’m telling you: my vocal cords are going to start to bleed any second! I need to stop!”

“I swear to God, if you stop, I’m going to find an actual rooster and sneak it into your bedroom at the ass crack of dawn!”

Jake rubbed at his forehead with one hand as he took another lap around his living room, bouncing a screaming Charlie in his arms as he went. The last nine months had been…rough, to say the least. Though his grandfather had graciously opened his home up to his grandson, great-granddaughter, and their two friends, it turned out that securing a home was the least of his worries.

Grandpa Wyatt had quickly hired Jake, Javy and Rooster on as farmhands, their physiques and familiarity with rising early making them ideal candidates for the jobs, but Jake wasn’t entirely comfortable with leaving his baby girl with a sitter all day just yet, so he did what chores he could with her strapped to his chest, and spent the rest of the day in the office, doing administrative work with his daughter asleep in her Moses basket behind the desk. Between the physical and mental labour, Jake was ready to hit the sack early almost every night.

However, clocking out for the day didn’t mean that his day was done. Charlie wasn’t a fussy baby, not by a long shot, but she still required an amount of work that Jake hadn’t been expecting. Her first pediatrician visit had revealed that Charlie was slightly behind on her goal weight, which meant Jake had to get up for an additional feeding during the night. But Charlie didn’t like the bottle, and Jake honestly couldn’t blame her. She’d gotten used to breastfeeding from her mother for her first four months of life, and Jake knew firsthand that Buttercup was infinitely better than some plastic bottle.

On top of trying to get her weight up, the Seresin family had also been battling sleep regression, teething, colic, Charlie’s first cold, and delayed milestones. If the doctor was saying that Charlie should be crawling by 8 months, she was doing it at 11 months. The whole thing had Jake lying awake at night, staring at the ceiling, worrying about his baby girl, wondering how Buttercup had managed it all on her own, kicking himself for expecting her to manage it alone when he was deployed.

A loud, shrill shriek had him yanking his head away from his daughter as she sobbed unhappily, her tiny fist curling into his flannel shirt.

“C’mon, Charlie girl,” he murmured into her curling blond hair, pressing a small kiss to her head as he paced. “You just had your first birthday a few weeks ago. Can you be a big girl for your daddy and stop crying? Please?” Her green eyes glimmered with tears as she continued to sob in response.

“Rooster, please, man…” Javy groaned, half buried in a pile of Charlie’s toys that he had been shaking and tossing around in an attempt to get her to stop crying.

“My—”

“Rooster, I will buy you a new set of vocal cords,” Jake bargained as Charlie hiccupped before resuming her shrill shrieks. “Please, if not for me, then for Charlie. I need her to stop crying before she makes herself sick.”

Rooster whined before turning back to the piano against the wall. “You guys owe me so bad,” he grumbled before placing his hands on the keys and pressing out a familiar tune. “You shake my nerves, and you rattle my brain…”

Jake held his breath as the song came to an end, the air ringing with blessed quiet, punctuated by an angelic baby giggle. With a groan, he sank to his knees, his legs too tired to carry him the five feet needed to get to the couch.

“Thank god.” He hefted Charlie up to sit beside him on the floor, keeping his hand on her back as he sagged against the wall. “So, she clearly doesn’t like sweet potato,” he sighed, watching her crawl over to a sprawled-out Javy and snatch one of her toys from underneath his leg.

“You feed her sweet potato again, you’ll be the one getting the rooster in your bedroom,” Rooster grumbled, closing the piano with a light thud.

“You do that, and you’ll wake her up,” Javy pointed at the little blond baby currently chewing on her toy giraffe’s foot. “And then we’ll all be miserable.”

Jake fixed his oldest friend with a glare. “No shit talking my daughter, dude.”

Charlie’s head popped up at the shift in tone in her father’s voice, her green eyes searching the room until she found him, her face breaking out into a wide gummy smile. She pressed her tiny palm into Javy’s stomach and propelled herself to her feet, wavering unsteadily even as Javy’s hand automatically rose to cushion her back. Jake leaned forward, scrambling away from the wall to sit a few feet directly in front of her.

“Come here, Charlie,” he called, waggling his fingers at her, smiling back as she grinned. “Come on, baby girl, you can do it.”

Time seemed to slow down as Charlie looked towards him before taking a small, shaky step in his direction. Javy propped himself up on his elbows and Rooster turned on the piano bench to watch on bated breath as she took another step, then another.

“C’mon, sweetheart. You’ve got this!”

“Let’s go, Charlie!”

“Atta girl!”

Jake’s heart was in his throat, a feeling better than going Mach 10 racing through his body as his daughter took one last, final step before collapsing into his arms with a giggle. With a loud cheer, he scooped her up and paraded her around the room to the sound of Javy and Rooster’s applause before whisking her into the office and collapsing into his chair.

“I’m so proud of you, baby girl,” he whispered, pressing a kiss to her forehead as she cooed softly at him. He’d missed so much, and his heart panged when he thought about Abby and what he was missing from her life. His hand was halfway to his phone when he stopped himself, pulling it back to hold Charlie tighter against him. He’d tried before and he wouldn’t be putting himself through that again. He missed Abby, of course, but Mav had always told them that they couldn’t afford to be constantly looking backwards, that thinking would be the death of them, so he had to focus on the here and now, on the ranch, on the daughter he did have instead of on the one he missed.

“Da-da…” he looked down at the sound and smiled through the tears pooling in his eyes.

“Yeah, baby girl. Dada is here. And he’s not going anywhere. I promise.”

The Airport, Now

Charlie’s hands trembled around her passport as the camp bus pulled into the drop off lane of the Buffalo Niagara International Airport. She looked up as Abby gripped her wrist with a determined grin.

“Last chance to change our minds,” she whispered as the campers around them started to disembark with loud promises of keeping in touch.

“No,” Charlie whispered, handing the passport out to Abby. “I want to do this. I want to meet mum.”

Abby nodded, taking the outstretched passport and handing Charlie her own. “And I’m desperate to meet dad.”

“Remember, he’s going to meet you at the gate in Waco, so you’re going to have to bring your A Game right away.”

“I’ve got a five-hour flight in order to prepare,” Abby assured. “I’m more worried about you. Uncle Bob is meeting you at the security desk. Are you ready?”

Charlie nodded, a look of steely determination overtaking her face. “I didn’t cut my hair and let you pierce my ears for nothing.”

Charlie thought that Amelia was going to have a heart attack when she walked into the Brig on their last day of their punishment to find them looking identical, their hair the same length and an extra pair of Abby’s earrings studding Charlie’s ears. She’d nearly collapsed onto one of the beds when she heard that they didn’t want to return to their cabin, that they wanted to stay in the Brig. To her credit, she didn’t ask any questions, just shook her head and walked away.

Abby nodded, fiddling with her duffle bag nervously. “Remember, Uncle Bob will be taking you from the airport to meet mum at home. She—”

“Abby, breathe,” Charlie placed her hands on her sister’s shoulders and shook her lightly. “Dad is going to love you. And mum is going to love me. And they’re not going to figure out that we swapped until we tell them a week from tomorrow.”

Abby bit her lip and nodded. “I know. I just…I can’t wait to meet him.”

“I know…” she smiled back. “I’m so excited to meet mum.”

Abby smiled suddenly and tugged her into a hug. “I’m so glad I met you,” she whispered, and Charlie wrapped her arms around her, squeezing her tight.

“Me too.”

Abby pulled back, wiping at her eyes. “Okay. You need to get to the security desk. Remember, Uncle Bob will be waiting for you. Brown hair, tall, glasses.”

“And Dad will be waiting for you at the gate in Waco. He might have Uncle Rooster or Uncle Javy with him. You remember who is who?”

Abby nodded. “Rooster’s got the moustache. Javy has tattoos.”

“Exactly.”

The girls looked up as an announcement came over the loudspeaker, calling an Abigail Floyd to the security desk.

Charlie bit her lip anxiously. “I guess this is it.”

Abby grabbed her up in a hug again. “You’re going to be great. Call me whenever you need, and I’ll see you soon.”

“See you soon!”

Charlie took a deep breath and headed off in the direction of the security desk. Coming around the corner, she saw him. A tall man in a pilot’s uniform, with brown hair and glasses, his blue eyes scanning over the crowd until he spotted her, his eyes studying her for a moment before breaking into a smile.

Charlie took a moment to compose herself, whispering under her breath in the British accent she had been practicing for weeks, “You can do this. You have to do this.”

“U-Uncle Bob!” she finally called out, her accent ringing true as she rushed towards him, tossing her duffle bag to the floor before launching herself into his arms.

“Whoa! Easy, kiddo!” Bob chuckled, gathering her into his arms. “I missed you too!”

“S-sorry,” she murmured into his neck, her arms tightening around his neck. “I just missed you so much.”

“Six weeks was a long time, huh?”

Charlie pulled back, sniffling slightly. “Yeah. It…it felt like a lifetime.”

Bob crouched in front of her, his brown eyes tracing over her features like an X-ray machine, and Charlie gulped. There was no way he could know she wasn’t Abby, right? They were identical, save for a few freckles here and there, and a scar that Charlie had on her knee. But nobody could remember the exact pattern of someone’s freckles, and her knees were covered, so there’s no way he knew.

Finally, he smiled. “It felt like a lifetime for me too, sweetheart.” He reeled her back in, hugging her tightly before releasing her and drawing himself up to his full height. “Now, come on. We’ve got to get you checked in and ready to go for our flight back home.”

Charlie woke with a start as she felt the plane touch down onto the runway, a smooth landing executed by a skilled pilot. She shouldn’t have been surprised. Even though Bob had been with Dagger Squad, like her dad and uncles, he was a WSO, not a pilot, so she was surprised to hear that he was flying passenger aircrafts after retiring, but Abby had told her all about how Bob had gone for his pilot’s license after retiring from the Navy and how Nat had helped him study and prepare.

Charlie gulped nervously. She had had the whole transatlantic flight to soothe her nerves over meeting her mother for the first time, to convince herself that her father wouldn’t be too disappointed in her for running away, to assure herself that her and Abby’s plan would work. She had a sister. And a mother. And an uncle and an aunt that she had never met before. The risk of her father’s disappointment was worth it in order to meet them.

As Abby had instructed her, she waited patiently in her seat until all the other passengers had cleared out before taking the duffle that was being pulled out of the overhead compartment by one of the flight attendants and heading towards the front of the plane, where her uncle was waiting.

“You ready to go see your mom?”

Charlie felt her cheeks flush. “Yes!”

Bob chuckled, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses. “Alright, sweetheart. Let’s go see your mom.” Bob shouldered the duffle and led her off the plane, through customs, and down to a town car that was waiting for them. “From the last text she sent, your mom is working in her office at home, and Nat is at work,” Bob informed her quietly.

Right. Auntie Nat worked as a kickboxing instructor now since she was given a medical discharge from the Navy. And mom’s office was at the top of the stairs, two doors down on the right. Both Abby and Charlie had drawn maps of their houses, ensuring to include even the slightest detail so that there would be no surprises. Charlie had studied the map multiple times a day, until she felt like she could walk it in her sleep, even though she’d never been there before. Abby had also printed her a map of the neighbourhood when they were given their computer privileges back, as well as a map of the London tube system, though she had assured her that she would never have to take the tube alone if she didn’t want to.

“Abby?”

She hummed as her eyes darted here and there, taking in the old buildings and the people. They looked the same as the people in Texas, just less plaid and cowboy hats, but they seemed so different to her. She’d only been to a big city a few times, preferring to stick to her small ranching town, so everyone seemed so busy, rushing down the street, their cellphones stuck to their ears.

“Abigail?”

Everything was so new, so shiny. She gaped as an actual, real life red double decker bus drove by their town car, and her stomach was knotted over the fact that they were driving on the wrong side of the road.

“Abigail Floyd, for someone who hugged me so hard you almost cracked my rib, you sure seem intent on ignoring me right now.”

Charlie blinked. Abigail Floyd. That was her. Well, not her, but who she was supposed to be, at least for right now.

“Oh. Sorry, Uncle Bob,” she yanked her British accent into place. “I was just…reminiscing. You know, about camp…and about how homesick I was.”

Bob smiled softly at her, his blue eyes twinkling behind his glasses. “I’m glad you had such a good time. I know it’s a struggle to be away from home for so long, but I knew you’d have fun and make friends.”

“I did,” she replied quickly. “I met some great friends, and I downloaded WhatsApp onto my phone so I could keep in contact with them. Is that alright?”

“I’m sure your mom will be fine with that. That’s why she got you the phone, after all. To keep in touch with family and friends who are in the States,” Bob’s voice twinged with…something. Perhaps a hint of regret or maybe even anger.

“Good. Because I really like this one girl,” she grinned. “We became best friends.”

“That’s great, sweetheart,” he smiled back. “You never know where you’ll find your best friend.”

“Like you and Auntie Nat, right? You met at Top Gun.”

“That’s right, sweetheart.”

Charlie grinned. “Now the two of you are basically brother and sister.”

Bob chuckled. “Yeah, we basically are. Maybe you and this girl will be like sisters too,” he replied, shooting her a playful look out of the corner of his eye.

She gave him a tight-lipped grin in return. Uncle Bob had always been strangely intuitive, she knew that much from Abby’s stories, but he was hitting a lot of nails on their heads right now and it was spooking her like crazy. So much so, that she hadn’t even registered that the car had stopped moving.

“We’re here!” she cried, scrambling to unbuckle her seatbelt and get out of the car, her uncle’s echoing behind her as she launched herself out of the open door and up the stairs towards the bright red front door.

“The door’s open, sweetheart, so you can go on in,” Bob called, grabbing her duffle and his suitcase from the trunk of the car.

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she opened the door into the flat that Abby shared with their mother, uncle, and aunt.

The interior was exactly as Abby had described. Homey and cozy, but still posh. The living room to the left of the door held brown leather couches, lots of bookcases, and a few plants hanging from the curtain rod. The window seat was where Abby and their mother read, together and separately. Charlie knew that the kitchen was just on the other side of the living room, where her family ate dinner together whenever Uncle Bob wasn’t flying.

But Charlie wasn’t interested in any of that, no matter how comfy it looked after a long international flight. No, her sights were set on the staircase in front of her, which she climbed slowly, her legs trembling with each step. She could picture Abby’s map so clearly in her mind: the first door on the right was the bathroom, the second was mom’s office, and the third was Bob’s bedroom. On the left came mom’s bedroom, then Abby’s, then Auntie Nat’s.

Charlie stepped onto the landing of the staircase, her eyes locked on the door of the second room on the right, which was cracked open just a touch. Her heart pounding in her chest, she slowly approached and, with a ringing in her ears, she quietly pressed the door open and walked inside.

There she was.

Charlie dashed at the tears that were welling in her eyes at the sight of her mother. Her mother. She wasn’t some imaginary figure anymore. She was solid flesh and bone. For years to come, Charlie would be able to picture the way her eyes scanned over the screen in front of her, the way her hair was piled up on top of her head, the way her slim fingers danced across the laptop keys, the way her buttercup tattoo peeked out from the neckline of her shirt. They weren’t images conjured up by her lonely mind anymore. They were real. She was real.

“M-Mum?” she whispered.

Her mother almost jumped out of her chair. “Oh my…Abby?”

Charlie swallowed hard as she nodded. “I’m home.”

“Oh, honey, I missed you so much!” Buttercup scooted her wheely chair across the floor and pulled her into a hug, and Charlie felt herself melt as she hugged her mother back just as tightly.

“I missed you too, mum,” she whispered.

“Six weeks is just way too long, love. I don’t care how much Auntie Nat raved about this camp, six weeks of you being across the ocean is just way too much for me.”

“I agree,” Charlie nodded into her shoulder. “I don’t want to be away from you for that long ever again.” She sniffled as she felt her mother press a kiss into her hair before pulling away.

“You won’t be, love. I promise.” Buttercup’s thumbs gently stroked away the tears from her daughter’s cheeks before tugging her into a hug again. “I meant to be finished with this chapter before you got home so we could spend the rest of the day together.”

“That’s alright. Is it coming along?”

Abby had filled her in on how their mother was a relatively successful author, Charlie even recognizing a few of her book titles from her bookshelf at home. Their mother’s writing was part of why Abby felt that their parents would fall in love again when they had to meet to switch them back. Buttercup’s current, more adult story was about a military man meeting and falling in love with an artistic woman, falling apart, and coming back together to live a happily ever after, and it had Abby convinced that their mother still had feelings for their father.

“I’m struggling, baby,” Buttercup sighed. “These two clearly love each other, but I can’t seem to figure out how to get them back together.” Buttercup looked up and smiled at her. “But they don’t matter right now,” she shut her laptop with a click. “What do you say you and I go out for lunch? You can fill me in on everything that happened at camp. I want to know everything. Six weeks is just way too long and I just know that you have stories to share.”

Charlie’s smile was so wide, it hurt her cheeks. “I’d love that, mum.”

Buttercup pulled her into another hug and kissed her hair. “Go get changed and I’ll meet you downstairs in ten minutes.” Buttercup smiled as she pulled away from her. “I missed you so much, baby. I love you.”

Charlie’s heart sang in her chest. She knew, of course, that her mom thought she was talking to Abby, but it didn’t matter to her. Her mom loved her, it didn’t matter who she was directing those words to. No one would be able to take them away from her. They would echo in her mind for an eternity. She’d heard those words from her father a million times, and they meant the world to her, but from her mother? They were sacred, special. They felt like a gift she hadn’t know she was going to receive.

“I love you too, mum,” she whispered, hugging her tight before racing towards the bedroom Abby had marked out for her on the map.

She finally had a mother, and she wasn’t going to miss a second.

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[echoingbirdsofprey]

Delicate (Jake's Version)

Ch 29 - Hold, That Position

Pairing: Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x OFC Samanthan Kazansky

Rating: EXPLICIT (MDNI! SERIOUSLY LOL)

Warnings: LITERALLY ITS JUST SMUT. Blowjob, unprotected!piv, praise kink, Jake absolutely losing his mind like the feral king Sam wants him to be

A/N: It's...it's literally just smut. LOL. Likes, comments, reblogs, I appreciate every single frigging one and it makes me want to bring you absolutely filthy chapters like this one hahaha. Pic form Pinterest, gif by @kaizsche

If Code Red was the foreplay, this version is the full deal.

Tags: @mrsevans90 @djs8891 @gpsmississippihippie @barnesboo1967 @dizzybee03 @coloraturadiva @kmc1989 @khouse712 @kaleysbookshelf @crossfandomskylines

“Take it. Take all of me, Sam, please.”

She couldn’t stop thinking about his words. They were seared into her neurons, the huskiness in his voice playing over and over in the back of her mind on a fucking loop. He didn’t just mean his body. He meant his mind and his soul too. She asked for this side of Jake, and she knew there was still some parts, that he’d repressed, deep down, that were still fucked up, but she could take it. 

Vulnerability. Not a quality that a naval aviator with two confirmed air to air kills wanted on display. But a quality that he wanted to show his fiance. And not only with her. The battered iron armor over his heart was beginning to melt. He was trying.

They had arrived at the Route 66 Auto Museum in New Mexico on a day that they were unfortunately not open. “Do you want to stick around until tomorrow and go then?” Jake asked, parking. They decided they would get out to stretch their legs and let the dogs do the same.

“No, it's okay. We can see it another time. Maybe bring...kids.” Sam suggested, adjusting in the passenger side seat. She glanced back at the dogs then, then back to Jake.

“Sam...” Jake's voice carried a warning, a knowing one, a pleading one, asking her to stop torturing herself.

“I know...I know. I'm just saying. It'd be a good thing to do. Maybe we can steal Jaycen when he's a little older.” She admits.

They stopped for dinner at a small Mexican place on the main street as they passed through. Their driving hours became extended and they decided to go for a while longer, to the hotel near their next stop. They swap places, and Sam drove the rest of the way so that Jake could sleep. He was thankful for her wanting to and they stopped twice along the way to get food for themselves, feed the dogs, again, stretch and take a bathroom break or two.

Jake had underestimated how tiring it would really be to drive but the truck was comfortable and when they finally made it to the hotel, everyone was happy for a bed. Again, Jake had gotten a single bed and there was no couch so they pulled the dogs beds in from the backseat for them to lay on. They set them up in the corner of the room and all three dogs got comfortable immediately. 

“I'm gonna take a shower.” Jake murmured, pulling his shirt off. His tags jingled as he pushed his jeans down his hips and bent down to pull them from around his ankles. He threw his clothes in a pile on the floor and then removed his boxer briefs. As they were pushed past his hips, Sam salivated at the sight of his cock, free from its confines, hanging neatly between his legs. Hungman is more like it haha, she thought, then met his eyes.

“Babygirl, I know you want me, you don't have to stare. You can just come and take what you need .” His voice was husky and low as he straightened up. Heat pooled at her core and her eyes were drawn to his, the sage green burning with desire. 

“You’re tired.” Sam said softly, as she took a single step toward him. She glanced over at the dogs, who were all out cold. 

“Yeah, less thinking happens when I’m tired.” Jake’s fingers twitched at his sides. He shivered slightly, the air in the room hitting his bare skin and sending a wave of goosebumps over his midsection and extremities. 

“What are you thinking about?” Sam closed the distance between them and Jake glanced down to her still clothed form. He brought his hands up, placing them at her hips, his thumbs rubbing over the soft padding over the bones. 

“Nothing that I want to be thinking about.” He murmured, his hands traveling up her sides, across her breasts. He pressed his thumbs over where her nipples would be and blinked slowly. Sam watched a sly smile crept across his lips, his gaze then settling upon hers. Half lidded green met mahogany brown, fire crossing the line of sight between them.

“Tell me?” She pleaded tenderly, hesitantly placing her hands on his taut abs. He gasped sharply, the warmth of her fingers surprising on his cooled skin. Jake’s eyes lowered as his fingers tugged the straps of her dress down her shoulders. 

“I don’t wanna think about it.” He whispered, casually pulling the dress down over her breasts, unhooking the clasp of her bra, guiding it all off her body and onto the floor. Everything fell to the floor with a soft thud. 

“I’m not asking you to think about it. I’m asking you to...”

“Let you in. I know. I’m...just...give me a minute.” There was a rasp to his voice, an edge like a razor, cutting through the quiet and slow intake of breath between them. His eyes flicked down to her exposed breasts, one hand ghosting over her middle to cup one and run his thumb over the nipple. The rush of heat throughout Sam’s body, the flush and rosy color in her cheeks when he touched her was something Jake absolutely adored. 

Sam leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, then let her mouth travel down to the bump across his collarbone. The callus that had formed over the broken part was still there and it would eventually shrink, but there was a stark contrast between the left and right sides for now. She kissed it and he winced. It didn’t hurt anymore but the memory of pain was still prevalent. She gave his tags a short tug, her gaze flicked to them. 

“Jacob Alexander Seresin.” He sighed heavily, the whisper of his full name sending a spark through his loins, as Samantha’s hands trailed outward to the carefully sculpted and lean muscles of his obliques and then down, across his Adonis belt. She raised a brow and then sank to her knees.

Jake’s hands followed her, landing on her shoulders. He gathered her wavy brown locks and pulled it all into a fist. His growing erection ached, and he longed for her to give him relief. 

“Tell me.” She commanded in the most gentle way possible, but as her beautiful fingers, her nails an emerald green, wrapped around his length for the first time that evening, he could only think of how much he wanted to obey. Of how badly he wanted to please her. She pressed her lips to the tip of his cock as she had the other night, but this was different. In front of him, on her knees, she was sure of herself. “What’s bothering you, handsome?”

“Fuck, Samantha. You look so good like this. God grant me some fuckin’ strength .” Jake’s tone was husky, his breathing already ragged, and she’d barely even touched him. 

“Tell me what’s bothering you.” She said, licking a line on the underside of his cock, base to pretty, perfect, tip. He groaned in frustration.

“I...fuck...I....got upset when you...earlier...when you mentioned...”

“Kids...I know. I’m sorry.” Her apology split him in two. It was gentle and she took him in her mouth for a moment as her eyes flicked up to his.

“I forgive you.” He moaned. She hummed around him and then placed her wrapped hand closer to the base. She let his cock fall from her mouth then, asking him again. “What else?”

“Just...keep thinking about...capture.” He rasped, his other hand around the back of her neck. 

“What about it?”

“How I wasn’t...wasn’t in...control...can’t...I can’t not...” He stuttered, stumbling over every word and thought as her lips met his hot and throbbing skin again. 

“Yes you can. Let go and let me have you. I won’t hurt you, Jake.” She said, giving him a reassuring squeeze at the point of his hip. 

“Can’t...lose...control.” Jake’s firm tone said one thing, but the unsteadiness with which his words left his lips said otherwise. He could lose it all to her. 

“I’ve got you. All of you, remember? Even the fucked up parts.” She took him fully in her mouth then, evening out her breathing, as his cock nearly touched the back of her throat. Jake couldn’t help how his grip on her tightened. He couldn’t help his hips as they moved, thrusting into her mouth, causing her to draw back, nearly choking on him. Suddenly, his composure snapped back into place, his eyes darting to her. She dug her nails into his hip, eyes closed. He was about to ask her if she was okay when she inhaled sharply through her nose and took him deeper into her mouth again. He threw his head back and cursed, the feeling of her hot mouth wrapped around him almost too much. He reached down, placing his fingers just under her throat, helping her relax it, his thumb caressing her jaw as her cheeks hollowed and she sucked hard. 

“ Good. Fucking. Girl .” He groaned, pressing his thumb into her skin as he felt his resolve fizzle out. He couldn’t help the sounds he made as he pumped his load down her throat. He couldn’t help the emotions that bubbled to the surface as he glanced down, seeing tears streaming down her cheeks as she took everything he gave her. He couldn’t help the pull he had on her hair, when her nails scraped his skin, and they both stilled. As his cock softened, and she let him drop from her mouth, she kissed the tip once more and then rose to her feet. Jake reached up and wiped the tears. “Too good, Sam...you’re too good to do that to yourself for me.”

“I wanted it. I want something else too.” She said, taking his hand. She guided him to the bed, and he crawled over the top of her, his tags jingling as he went. She spread her legs of her own accord,a d hooked them around his waist. His gaze was tired on her, and he took a deep breath and let it out through pursed lips. Her fingers traced lines over the vasculature on his arms as they headed toward his neck. At the base, she tangled her fingers in his short hair, pricking his skin with her nails. His cock twitched, blood flow returning rapidly as his arousal picked up again. It wasn’t hard to get him going. Sam did it well, and she knew exactly what got him there. He pressed his hips toward her, rubbing his half-hard cock against her wetness. Wet...was an understatement. She was dripping. 

“So ready for me.” He mused, a smirk crossing his lips as he began to assault her neck with his lips. She was dangling on the edge of her pleasure already and she could tip over it at any moment with Jake above her. He continued grinding against her, cock returning to its full glory in mere minutes. 

“I’m always ready for you, Jake. I’ve always been. I’ve just been waiting for you.” She said, and her double entendre had Jake brimming with emotions that he couldn't quite place. She said it as if she’d been waiting her entire life for him, and maybe she had. Maybe he had been waiting for her too. 

He was at full mast again, length hard and heavy against her stomach as he kissed across her collarbone. Her lips brushed against his cheek as his met her shoulder. His hands cupped her breasts, thumbs flicking across her nipples and sending a shiver through her. He took himself in hand, thrusting into her hard. Jake could never quite get over the feeling of her wrapped around him, squeezing him. As he stretched her, Sam moaned his name, the sound heavenly to his ears. 

She pulled him close then and whispered in his ear, “Fuck me, Jake, please. Don’t you dare hold back.”

His knees locked her in on both sides, his hands on either side of her head, and he went to work. He didn’t bother starting slow. She didn’t want that. She wanted the unhinged fucking animal that she knew was in Jake. She wanted him in the state of mind that he’d been in when he was captured. When all he could think of was her. Wanting to get back home to her. She wanted him to let go. 

“Hold. On. To. Me. Seriously.” He growled, causing Sam to intertwine her fingers at the back of his neck. The only sound in the room then was the loud slap of skin on skin, and Jake knew they would both be sore tomorrow. He rutted into her, absolutely fucking railed her, his groans loud as he hit the deepest parts of her with every single thrust. At the first thrust she felt pain shoot through her core, at the second she disconnected her fingers, and by the third, her nails were piercing the skin of his back, leaving deep scratches, valleys that marked him as hers and hers alone. She raked them across the strong musculature as he rammed his hips into hers. Jake felt her walls clench over and over and the sensation ripped a strangled howl of pleasure from him so loud that it alone sent Sam careening over the edge of her orgasm as well. She whimpered his name over and over, whining as her walls pulsed around him, eventually dissolving into wordless echoes of his name. 

Jake’s body drained of every feeling, every emotion, every bit of tension as he emptied his load into Sam, settling his body over hers. His breathing was uneven, his chest heaving, sweat dripping from his neck and shaking pectorals. Sam at some point had lost her grip with the beads of sweat that had formed on his skin and her hands had fallen to the sheets, gripping them for dear life, when Jake’s thrusts became sloppy. 

They stayed there for a few moments, before Jake was backing away, and pulling her toward the shower. He turned the water on and guided her under the hot stream, the temperature soothing and smoothing out the last bits of tension in both hers and Jake’s bodies. He wasn’t done though.

“You wanted this.” He purred, his breath hot near her ear. He nipped at the shell then kneed her legs apart as he pressed her against the cool tile. He bit down on her shoulder as he thrust up into her. She hadn;t even realized he was hard again until then, until he was in her space, invading her air, caging her in with his strong musk. 

“I know. I want you. I want it, Jake. Please, keep going. Keep fucking me. Fucking stay inside me forever. Fuck me forever, oh my god.” Her words fueled him, as he left teeth marks on her shoulder, hickeys on her neck, and reddened skin on her ass as he pulled out and flipped her around, smacking her bottom as he pushed himself inside her from behind. He gathered her hands above her head, against the wall, keeping them joined at the wrists. His other hand was firmly around her middle, steadying her, making sure she couldn’t move. Making sure that he could just fill her over and over and she couldn’t escape, and she’d never want to anyway. 

“Jake, Jake, Jake!” She saw stars, as another orgasm washed over her. It had been there, creeping up behind her and pushing her over the edge without her even realizing it. Jake was not far behind, his balls drawing up tight, cock pumping, painting her inner walls again. Jake was absolutely spent, exhausted, as his length fell from her. His thighs were shaking, his body trembling behind her. Sam’s was damn near the same, tension gone. Everything in their bodies was dull, ache-less, and relaxed as she turned to him. 

Jake’s lips met Sam’s in the most gentle touch, more than a brush of the lips, but less than a full kiss. Jake recoiled slightly to examine his fiance, and what he saw was stunning. His girl, his woman, fucked out, and filled to the brim, with happiness. Her smile was wide, lids lowered, breath easy. He cupped her cheeks and kissed her, feeling the devotion pass between them. 

“Now you know.” Sam whispered, barely audible over the water running. Jake’s brow furrowed.

“Know what?” He asked, his thumbs caressing her cheekbones. Her fingers had met his chest, toying with the sparse golden hair there. 

“That you can let go. You can lose control and I will still be okay.” She said softly, closing the distance between them once more. 

“Are you okay? Was I too...?” His voice was unsteady as his hands connected with her waist. She leaned into him, against his chest and sighed deeply. Her words came out reassuringly, putting him at ease.

“I'm fine, Jake. You didn't hurt me. I like knowing that you can go there with me. I trust you.” 

“And I trust you...to take over...when I can give up control. It’s not often...but knowing that I can let go...really let go...it means more than you will ever know...and so much more than I will ever be able to express...” Jake closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of Sam’s warm body curled into him, under the stream of hot water. They stayed there for a long while, soaking in each other’s quiet presence.