#LOOK AT HOW PRETTY THAT FIRST SHOT IS COME ON

[a-pute11as]

i don't share - alexia putellas

word count - 2.9k | summary - your arrangement with alexia had been working out pretty well, until a night out with the team had her jealous for something that's her.

MDNI 18+ - smut

you and alexia had been ‘friends with benefits’ for a while, something that had no real labels or exclusivity but it never really felt like that. not with the late night calls when you couldn’t sleep so instead you spent hours talking to her or the fact that she was the first person you went to with any kind of news you had to share, good or bad, or even the way you’d end up on her lap at every team bonding because there was, coincidentally, no seat left for you. 

your relationship was unpredictable and daring, but at the same time, it was familiar, easy and it felt safe. 

the two of you were still professional, the respect you had for alexia had never waivered, no matter how often your mind flashbacked to the way she had you arching your back the night before. you were good friends, two teammates that had a good connection, able to execute beautiful passes, precision assists, duels against oppositions. but off the pitch, it was a slightly different connection. 

a connection that held more intimacy. 

of course the team teased you endlessly, told you to ‘hurry up and make it official’, but you and alexia had made a deal to stay this way. it worked so why change it. 

But there was a different side of alexia on team nights out. she was possessive, jealous and incredibly selfish when it came to you. 

“i don’t like the way she’s looking at her,” alexia muttered to irene. 

alexia was sitting at the table reserved for the team, sipping on the last few sips of her drink as she complained to irene as you went to get another drink from the bar. irene was her current unlucky victim as she complained that someone was showing you an ounce of attention. 

irene laughed slightly before reassuring her, “ale, she’s just ordering a drink.” 

alexia continued to glare, her mind fizzing at the way the bartender’s eyes glazed over you, her tongue flicking her bottom lip as she laughed at something you said. 

“are you sure you’re still wanting to be just friends?” irene suggested, alexia immediately snapping her gaze towards her now, “it’s just you’re very focused on someone you’re adamant it’s just sex.”

her eyes went back to focus on you, watching you closing, “things change.” she mumbled, jaw clenched.

you leaned over the bar, giggling as you repeated your order to the dark haired, tanned, muscled girl behind the bar, for what felt like the fifth time over the sound of the booming music. you’d be lying if you said you weren’t flirting, she was your type, and there was never a harm in getting a few free drinks.

“that girl is staring at her boobs,” her hand clenching and unclenching into a fist under the table, “i told her that the top would make people look at her.”

with a quick smile, you thanked the bartender for your drinks, calling patri over as you lined up the shots you had ordered for the two of you.

patri had become your partner in crime on nights out, she was your best friend but on nights out you two took it to the next level. you couldn’t say no to any kind of chaos, if the two of you were dancing on the table by the end of the night, then it would have been successful. 

“patri aqui, take the shot.” you shouted with a mischievous spark in your eye, the two shots on the bar in front of you.

“ah nena, trouble already?” she grinned, the same look in her eye, instantly coming over as the two of you clinked the small glasses and practically inhaled the liquid. 

sending a final smile to the bartender, whose eyes were yet to leave your sight, you picked up the other two drinks, and made your way back over to the table. 

“amor, i have your drink.” you smiled, sliding into the seat next to alexia as you placed the glass on the table in front of her.

alexia didn’t say thank you, she just looked at you. “you were flirting with that girl,” she stated, irene taking it as a signal to leave, unsure of what was coming, “did she say anything to you?”

“she asked for my number.” you replied casually, sipping on the mixed alcohol you had just bought, watching as alexia’s eyes narrowed. 

“and you gave it to her?” she probed, her eyebrow raising as she questioned you. 

you shook your head contently for a moment, “nope, unless i don’t have someone to go home with, then i might.”

alexia’s face was painted with amusement, a cocky grin on her face, “posiblemente.” she shrugged, taking a sip of her drink. 

and just like that, your mission was set. in your mind alexia ‘possibly’ was a challenge, she was practically asking you to make her jealous enough that the two of you would be leaving early by her request. 

you shuffled closer to alexia, your legs placed over hers as your bare skin brushed against her jeans. alexia’s hand instinctively drew patterns on your thighs, goosebumps rising on your skin as you relaxed into her touch. 

your conversation flowed, fellow teammates popping in and out of the conversation as the night developed.

the touch was innocent at first, her hand starting just above your knee, slowly making its way up your inner thigh until it danced just under the hem of your skirt. 

and that’s when your attention snapped to patri, as she sat down on the chair next to you, her hands draping around your shoulders. 

“chica, come and dance!” her head was placed next to your head as she smiled. 

you could see alexia’s jaw tighten at the closeness between you and patri, but she didn’t say anything, she was used to it. alexia didn’t mind how close you were with patri, you’d been like this since you first moved to barcelona, she was one of the first to welcome you with open arms and it had stayed like that. but alexia knew what you were like when you were drunk, you’d push every button for the reaction you wanted, and after the ‘challenge’ she set you, tonight was perfect. 

your legs automatically swung off of alexia’s, your body missed her touch, but what you were about to make her do was a whole lot more fun. you gave her one last, teasing look before heading to the dance floor with patri.

you and patri started off with plenty of space between you. your body moving to the beat of the music as the liquor in your body was coursing through your veins. 

you could feel alexia’s eyes on you. 

precise, daring, watching your every move as if you were her prey and she was ready to pounce. 

but she waited. as if she knew the trick you were about to play. yet her face was harsh, a single raised eyebrow etched onto her face as the corner of her lips tugged, a smirk daring to enter her face. pure danger. 

your bodies gradually grew closer. the space between you closing as the music got louder. it was as if it was a cover for your actions, something you could hide behind that made you want to go the extra step. 

you moved closer, closer than usual, feeling the deliberate heat of it, the almost staged intimacy. it was a show, after all.

for alexia.

you tossed your head back, laughing at something patri whispered in your ear, making sure the moment stretched just long enough for alexia to notice.

patri’s arm's reach out, your body turning flush against hers. your back pressed against her front, barely any space between you. her hands laid safe on your hips. it was friendly, it didn’t cross any boundaries, but the look on alexia’s face suggested differently.

patri knew what she was doing, it was a conversation the two of you had already had on the way over. she knew her ex was at the same event and wanted to make her jealous, and you had your plans to make alexia feel the same way. 

patri’s fingers tightened slightly at your hips, guiding your movements to match hers. you swayed together, your bodies moving in perfect sync, and the longer you stayed pressed against her, the easier it became to forget where you ended and she began.

you tipped your head back onto her shoulder, letting your eyes flutter shut, not because you needed to, but because you knew Alexia was still watching.

you could feel the sharp burn of her gaze, it felt as if it pinned you in place, even as you danced. it was pure, unfiltered possessiveness, a dangerous glint in her eye that promised punishment, not patience.

patri leaned in, her lips just brushing the shell of your ear in a whisper only meant for you, “she’s going to lose her fucking mind” she murmured, her voice low, asmused, daring. 

you smiled, letting your hand trail up patri’s arm in a way that was just shy of too much, just shy enough to make it look real.

your eyes fluttered open, daring to glance in alexia’s direction.

her smirk was gone. her arm was crossed, jaw tight, eyes dark and unreadable. the look she was giving you was so heated, so loaded, that it stole the breath from your lungs.

her message was clear, yet you weren’t done. you didn’t stop moving. if anything, you pushed back even harder against patri, a wicked little tilt of your hips daring alexia to come and do something about it.

you spun in patri’s touch, the two of you now facing. you reached up to her, “i think this was the best plan you could’ve come up with”, you muttered into her ear. 

that was the snap that had alexia rise to her feet, you barely had time to register the look on her face as she moved.

one second you were face to face with patri, the next alexia had gripped by the wrist and away from your friend entirely.

alexia pulled you away, her touch scorching, fingers possessively curled around you as she pulled you from patri without a word. the music was blaring around you, yet all you could hear was the beating of your heart, a smug smirk on your face, you got exactly what you wanted. 

alexia didn’t stop until she had pulled you into an empty stall in the bathroom. her body crowding yours, the heat of her anger and something far more dangerous.

her hand was still around your wrist, pinning it against the wall, her body firm against yours.

there was nowhere to run. nowhere you wanted to run.

her eyes burned into yours, wild and dark, her jaw tight with restraint she was quickly losing. her face painted with jealousy, pure possession, exactly what you wanted.

"you think that's funny, cariño?" she hissed, "you think you can dance like that, look like that, and have someone who is not me all over you?"

she leaned in, her lips brushing the shell of your ear, a ghost of a touch that made your knees buckle.

"you've been playing your stupid little game all night," she murmured, her free hand skating down your side, slow and torturous, "but you forgot one thing."

you barely managed to choke out, "w-what?"

her mouth pressed against the corner of your jaw, her breath hot, dangerous, “i don't share."

and with that, she kissed you, fierce, claiming, punishing, all the anger and want and jealousy crashing into you at once. you melted against her, all thoughts of games and jealousy burning away under the raw, possessive way she touched you, kissed you, owned you.

the music faded into nothing. all that existed was her, the taste of her, the feel of her body against yours, the way she made it very, very clear:

you were hers.

and she was going to make sure you never forgot it.

she pressed harder, her body pinning yours firmly against the wall, her thigh forcing its way between your legs, leaving no room for guessing what she wanted. you whimpered into the kiss, hips grinding against the hard muscle of her thigh instinctively.

alexia pulled back, just enough to watch you, her eyes so dark, so full of desire, lust, want it made your head spin

“i fucking knew you wanted this” she muttered, her eyes scanning your body infront of her, watching as she broke you down piece by piece under her touch. 

her hand traveled under the hem of your dress, fingers rough against the skin of your bare thigh, “whatever you want to call this, no one gets to touch you like that”.

her thigh pressed harder between your legs, grinding up as her hand gripped your ass, pulling you even closer, forcing you to rut against her like you were already hers.

and god, you were.

your head rolled back against the wall, a broken moan tearing from your throat as you shamelessly rocked against her.

she smirked, a dark, dangerous thing. her hands dropped from your body, her thigh suddenly absent from in between your legs. 

your face dropped as she looked at you, a face full of amusement, yet yours was the opposite. 

"so fucking needy, making me watch you act like a slut on the dance floor just to get my attention." she shook her head slowly, rolling her eyes, sharp venom in her voice.

“please ale” you reached out to grab her hand, to lead it exactly where you wanted it, but she quickly moved her arm out of your reach entirely. 

“did you think i was going to be nice about this, carino? give you what you want after you grinded against your best friend in front of me?” she practically laughed in your face, “it's never that easy, my love.”

her hand gripped yours again, dragging you through the crowded space, past curious eyes and whispered mentions, not giving a single fuck about anything but getting you away from prying eyes.

you stumbled after her, heart hammering in your chest, your body still buzzing from the heat of her touch. she didn't slow, her grip on your wrist tight as she yanked you through the back door of the venue, straight to her car. 

the drive was silent, full of anticipation, but not from her. alexia knew exactly what she was going to do to you, yet you had no clue what you were about to expect. 

your leg bounced against the floor of the car as your fingers tapped against each other, all whilst shuffling your thighs together, as the heat continued pooling between your legs. yet alexia kept her eyes on the road the entire time, barely acknowledging the sight of you falling apart next to her. 

alexia didn’t wait once you got home.

the second the front door clicked shut, she had you pinned against it, her body pressed tightly against yours, her palm flat against your chest, keeping you in place.

her eyes burned into you, the anger and desire written across every tense muscle in her body. her free hand tangled into your hair, forcing your head up until you were forced to look her in the eyes.

"you really thought you could get away with that?" she laughed, it was low, sharp even. the barest hint of a smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth.

"you wanted to put on a show for me, hm? dance all over her like you didn’t know who you belong to?"

you opened your mouth to respond, but she shook her head with a quiet, dangerous laugh, cutting you off. 

“bedroom. now.”

you rushed past her, practically tripping over yourself as you made your way down the hall. you could feel her behind you, calm, collected, deliberate, a predator stalking her prey.

by the time you reached the bedroom, your hands were trembling with anticipation.

you turned to face her, but before you could say anything, alexia pushed you backwards until the backs of your knees hit the bed. you collapsed onto it with a soft gasp, bouncing slightly as you sat on the mattress. 

"take it off," alexia ordered, nodding to your skirt, her voice leaving no room for negotiation.

your fingers scrambled to obey, clumsy in your desperation, peeling the fabric down your legs and tossing it aside. your top followed, leaving you stripped down, bare for her.

alexia stood at the edge of the bed, arms crossed, her head tilted as she looked you over like she was considering exactly how she wanted to break you apart.

you shifted on the bed, thighs pressing together instinctively, the ache between them unbearable, growing more and more.

she clicked her tongue disapprovingly, “ah, ah cari.” 

moving to kneel on the mattress between your legs. she grabbed your thighs and yanked them apart roughly, settling herself between them with radiating control. her fingers trailed up the inside of your thigh, barely touching, making you whimper in frustration.

"patri got to dance with you tonight," she murmured, leaning in close enough that her lips brushed your ear.

"but i get to ruin you."

a/n - thank you for reading! and thank you for the request anon. not 100% proof read so lmk any errors. as usual, i appreciate any feedback, my asks are open <3

[theemporium]

[4k] things have been a bit rough since luke accidentally confessed more than he ever intended to. as bye week comes to an end, he is all set to bottle his feelings until he could forget about them. as it turns out, talking about your feelings is far more productive. who would have thought?

series masterlist

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Luke Hughes didn’t like being alone, but it was something he got used to pretty early on in his life. 

Despite the age difference not being massive between him and his brothers, Luke learnt early on that he was the one left behind. His mother would always try to squeeze him in, try to get Quinn and Jack and their friends let Luke join in on the fun. He didn’t even mind going last most of the time, he was just glad he got a shot. 

And the older they got, the more that resonated with everything in their lives—not just street hockey games played before dinner with the neighbourhood kids. Quinn was the first one to go to college, to get drafted, to eventually join the NHL. Jack joined months later, after his own draft, completely foregoing college and jumping straight into the deep end. Both of them went forward, achieving the goals they would always whisper to each other when they were young and hopeful and excited for the future. The goals the three of them shared.

Luke was always the last one to have a shot, to reach the milestone. He was always playing catch up and, whilst it wasn’t his favourite thing, he was used to it. He was good at acting like it didn’t bother him.

Luke might take a little longer to get there, but he always got there eventually. He was always sure of himself. 

That sureness was nowhere to be seen when he woke up the next morning and found the apartment completely empty.

At first, he had just assumed you had woken up before him, that maybe you were in the bathroom or in the kitchen or lounging out on the couch. But the eerie silence in the apartment made him second guess himself, made him sit up in his bed and let the sheets pool by his waist as he tried to blink the sleep away from his eyes.

The first time he went around the apartment, he thought he was still dreaming. The second time made him notice that all the little knick-knacks you had left around were gone—your lip balm on the coffee table, your phone charger in the kitchen, your headphones on the counter. The third time was when he truly accepted that you had left, with no note or message or proper goodbye. 

The worst part was that he remembered why as he stumbled through the different rooms, trying to see, on the off chance, if you had just moved your bags from his room. He remembered what he had said, the words he had whispered to you. He remembered and he felt the shame pool in the pit of his stomach, but he still didn’t understand. 

He felt like a child again, aimlessly running and trying to play catch up, except this time he didn’t really know where he was going or what he was trying to catch up to.

It was downright stupid of him to blurt those words out, to throw that confession at you after everything the two of you had done whilst he was half asleep and still reeling in the post-orgasm haze. It wasn’t fair for him to say that to you with no real build up or follow up. 

But it still fucking stung that you ran off. 

It stung that you didn’t try to wake him up and make him explain himself. It stung that you didn’t stay the night and try to at least let him down easily in the morning. It stung that you ran and didn’t look back, not even bothering with a note or any sort of message. 

It stung that Luke had been up for less than an hour and had already messaged and called so many times, just to get absolutely nothing in response. If it weren’t for the fact he could see the messages going through, he would have honestly assumed you had blocked his number. 

Luke Hughes didn’t like being alone and, for the first time in his life, he wasn’t even fucking sure how to hide it.

Maybe it was pathetic to admit—even to himself—but he really was waiting for the whole thing to be a joke. He pinched himself as he managed to scavenge the fridge for breakfast. He pinched himself after he spent far too long in the shower, until his skin was red and hot at the touch. He pinched himself as he sat on the couch, staring aimlessly at whatever sitcom rerun was currently playing. 

He waited for himself to wake up from this twisted dream. He waited for you to message with some sort of explanation, some sort of emergency that forced you to leave. He waited for you to come back, to walk back through the front door and slump into the spot next to him like this was your place too—like you had been acting for the last few days. 

He waited and waited and waited, but nothing ever really changed.

Luke had faced heartbreak before. He was an athlete, there wasn’t a time in his life where he hadn’t faced disappointment, whether it was on the ice with a loss or off the ice with an injury. He knew the feeling well, it was almost like an old friend. 

But this kind of heartbreak was different. 

This kind of heartbreak made him want to curl into himself until everything was magically better. He didn’t like the constant twist in his stomach. He didn’t like the way his head snapped around at every buzz or ping from his phone. He didn’t like the way he felt like a hermit, felt as though he needed to stay until you came back home—to him.

As an athlete, he was used to the negative feelings that would quickly fade and be replaced with determination and pure driven grit to move on, to do better, to win. 

This time, Luke didn’t think he could do that. He didn’t know what he could do. He didn’t know who he could go to. He didn’t even know if he wanted to go to anyone. 

Both brothers were in Toronto, running around with countless media duties and appearances for All-Stars. His friends back in Michigan are all busy with classes and assignments and their hockey season. His teammates are all sprawled on sunny beaches with their phones turned off and their glasses always full. He didn’t even want to imagine having a conversation with his parents right now, to try even explaining everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. 

Luke Hughes was alone and he didn’t know what the fuck to do with himself. 

And it was only the hardwired brain of an athlete that had him getting up, eating and working out every day. It made him feel like a robot, listening to the demands of his body that had been programmed into him since he was a child. He didn’t need to think, just did. His whole body just moved on autopilot. 

The days passed, his phone’s notifications remained empty and Luke Hughes tried to accept the fact that he had truly fucked up one of the best things that had happened to him this season. 

And he had to do it alone.

…

It had been arranged and agreed with the Devils management that Luke and Jack were allowed to fly out to Vancouver earlier than the rest of the team. It was their first game back after the All-Stars break and it made sense for them to monopolise the few days they had before their season continued. 

At the start of the season, Luke was buzzed at the prospect of spending more time with his oldest brother during the season, which they would never usually get to have. Now, it was almost the complete opposite. 

It wasn’t like he wasn’t excited to spend extra time with Quinn, but more so that he wasn’t ready for both brothers to see right through him. 

Because Luke would be a fool to assume his brothers—his bestest fucking friends in the world—wouldn’t pick up on his mood instantly. And that is only if the less-than-enthusiastic responses in the groupchat over the last week or so didn’t give him away first.

Much to his surprise, Quinn and Jack had managed to hold off until the second night before they finally questioned him—which was almost two whole days longer than he really expected. 

Small victories, he guessed. 

“So, are we going to talk about it?” 

But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to avoid the topic for as long as he could.

“Talk about what?” He questioned, feigning ignorance as he kept his eyes glued on the random movie that was playing on the tv. He didn’t even remember what Jack picked or what it was about, but suddenly the random A-list actors were far more interesting than the pointed looks he could feel his brothers giving him.

“Luke,” Quinn said in that tone of voice, the same tone their parents used to use on the both of them when they didn’t give Luke a shot at whatever they were doing. 

He let out a small sigh, resisting the urge to visibly recoil. “It’s nothing.” 

“It’s something,” Jack corrected. “You’ve been acting wack for the last week.”

Luke stayed silent.

The silence continued to linger before Quinn spoke up, his voice much softer this time. “You know you can tell us anything, right? We’re your brothers. We’re here for you. We are worried, we just want to help.” 

And the funny thing was that no matter how much Luke wanted to keep his mouth shut, no matter how much he wanted to pretend the last week wasn’t the absolute worst with no one to talk to and no one to confide in, he couldn’t. 

He couldn’t because, no matter what, his brothers would always be his soft spot, the only people on this damn planet that could break through his own stubborn wall he has tried to put up with everyone else since that night.

“I’ve fucked up,” Luke blurted out before he could stop himself, finally turning his head away from the tv screen so he could look at both of his older brothers. 

Quinn’s face remained blank and untelling, just looking at Luke as though he could read every damn thought in his head with that intense, haunted glare of his. Jack, on the other hand, had a more visible reaction as his eyes widened, the concern and alarm written all over his face.

“Okay,” Quinn said slowly. “Have you broken any laws?” 

“I—” Luke paused, frowning a little. “No.” 

“Have you knocked someone up?” 

“No?” Luke answered, the confusion in his voice making it sound more like a question. 

“Then it’s something we can fix together,” Quinn stated, like it was obvious. 

“Wait, fucking roll back,” Luke straightened in his seat, giving his eldest brother a look. “I tell you I fuck up and that’s the first two questions you ask me?” 

“I wanted to know what we were working with,” Quinn said with a shrug. “If you commited a crime, there’s only so much we can do. If you got a girl pregnant, that’s between you two. Everything else though? We can fix it.”

Luke resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “I wouldn’t be so sure about that.”

“Hit us with it,” Jack challenged, looking oddly serious for once. “We can handle it.”

Luke sighed, his chest tightening uncomfortably as he tried to figure out how to word the last week he had. 

Then, in a timid voice, Jack asked, “is it to do with Cherry?” 

Something in Luke’s expression must have answered the question for him because Jack continued. 

“Did you two break up?” 

“I don’t know,” Luke answered honestly. “I don’t even know if we were even together to break up.” 

“Oh,” was all Jack managed to say in response. 

“Tell us what happened, it can’t be that bad,” Quinn spoke up, trying to reassure his youngest brother but it just felt a little patronising instead. 

“You don’t get it,” Luke said helplessly.

“So help us get it,” Quinn retorted.

“I fucked up!” Luke’s voice was louder this time, louder than he intended and loud enough to make both brothers freeze a little. “I fucked it all up and I can’t fix it, okay? No one can fix it.” 

“Bud,” Jack murmured softly. 

“I fucked it,” Luke’s voice cracked a little. After a few moments of silence, he let his eyes close as he muttered out his confession. “I told her I loved her. Or, like, I was falling in love with her.” 

There was a small pause before Jack spoke. “That’s not…that bad.”

“It was just after we slept together,” Luke added. 

“Oh.” 

Quinn cleared his throat, catching Luke’s attention enough for him to slowly blink his eyes open again. “So the timing wasn’t ideal, but it could have been worse. I assume from your moping that she didn’t feel the same way?” 

“I—” Luke frowned a little. “I don’t know. Probably not. I fell asleep after I said it and she was gone the next morning.” 

“Yikes,” Jack muttered under his breath. He winced when Quinn sharply elbowed him.

“It could still be worse—” Quinn started, sounding more like a reassuring captain after a bad period than a brother. 

“It really couldn’t.” 

Quinn sighed, almost sounding patronising again even if he didn’t intend to. Even if he didn’t realise it. “Luke, it’s shit but it’s not the end of the world that you kinda confessed your feelings to a girl after you slept with her.”

It irked something in Luke. It made him act before thinking, blurting out the words before he could take them back.

“It was the first time we slept together.” 

Jack frowned. “Really? But you’ve been seeing her for months.” 

Quinn nodded. “Okay, that makes it a bit more awkward—”

“No, like, that was the first time we ever had sex. That was the first time I ever had sex,” Luke said, his stomach twisting and churning as he finally confessed the secret he swore he was going to take to the grave with him.

“With her?” 

“With anyone.”

Quinn blinked. 

The silence felt suffocating for the few seconds he stared back at his brothers before one of them finally broke it. 

“So you’re telling me,” Jack began. “That I could have been making virgin jokes this whole time and now I’ve missed my chance?” 

Luke opened his mouth to reply but couldn’t find the words to reply.

“Dude,” Quinn sighed.

“What?!” Jack glared, shifting away before Quinn and his pointy elbows could jab him again. “You were thinking the same!” 

“I really wasn’t,” Quinn retorted.

Jack shot him a look.

Quinn sighed. “Okay, I was thinking it a little—” 

“Ha!” 

Luke stared helplessly at his older brothers, watching them bicker back and forth until his brain finally caught up. 

“I can’t believe we missed out on so many good jokes,” Jack said, almost sounding wistful before he turned to finally look at Luke. He froze for a moment before flashing him a sheepish smile. “In a good way, obviously. Like good jokes in a good way.” 

“Uh huh,” Luke deadpanned. 

“Quinn said he wanted to make jokes too!” Jack retorted.

“This is why I didn’t want to tell you guys,” Luke grumbled, feeling the heat burn his cheeks and creep down his neck. He didn’t even want to think about how red his face was right now.

“Hey, it doesn’t mean shit to us. We’d make fun of it the same way we make fun of Jack’s lack of fashion and inability to wear anything but Air Forces,” Quinn assured him. 

“Pot meet kettle,” Jack scoffed. 

“The point is that we don’t care about the fact that you were apparently a virgin until a week ago,” Quinn continued, ignoring the way Jack was currently pouting beside him. “What we care about is the fact you’ve been moping over this girl.” 

“She’s just—” Luke paused, cutting himself off before he let out a sigh. “She gets me, you know?” 

“I’ve seen them talking on the phone, it’s nauseating,” Jack confirmed, nodding his head. “Luke is teaching her to cook.”

Quinn’s nose scrunched. “Luke can cook?” 

“That’s what I said!” 

“Just because I don’t cook for you dipshits doesn’t mean I can’t cook,” Luke pointed out, rolling his eyes at how affronted both boys seemed by the revelation. “The point is that I fucked up things with her and I have no one else to blame but myself.” 

Jack frowned. “Luke—”

“Can we just drop it?” Luke interrupted, snapping a little. “I have spent the last week thinking about it, I’d rather not spend anymore time.” He paused for a short moment before continuing. “Please.” 

Quinn gave him a long look before eventually nodding. “Alright. We’ll drop it.”

Jack’s eyes widened. “But—”

“We’ll drop it because that is what Luke wants,” Quinn stated, staring pointedly at Jack until he sighed and nodded. 

“Okay. We’ll drop it.” 

“Thank you,” Luke murmured, the words laying thick in his throat as he shifted in his spot on the couch before turning back towards the tv screen. “Since when did this chick get powers?” 

Jack let out a noise of complaint. “Don’t even get me started, she has done nothing but whine—” 

…

The game against Vancouver was…certainly a game.

It wasn’t the worst game he had ever played but it was far from his best. But the worst part was that Luke knew no one would have really cared if it was any other game during the season. However, the fact it was against Quinn’s team meant all eyes were on all the Hughes brothers, and he knew his performance was going to be questioned and picked at in the post-game interviews. He also knew there was no chance he nor his brothers would be able to skip media either. 

Luke felt drained by the time the journalists left the locker room, still dressed in most of his gear as he leaned back in the cubicle and let out a heavy sigh. Their plane to Edmonton didn’t leave until tomorrow morning and he already knew his parents would be waiting outside for whatever dinner reservations had been booked. 

But in all honesty, Luke could think of a million other things he wanted to do right now rather than get undressed, shower and change back into his game day suit to sit through a dinner with his parents where he would constantly be on edge about them bringing you up into conversation. They had done it every other time he was on the phone with them since the last Hughesbowl. 

Luke just wanted a few moments where he wasn’t thinking about you or hockey or anything. He just wanted his brain to shut off. 

He hadn’t even noticed someone sitting beside him until their knee nudged his, and even then he kept his eyes closed as he let out a sigh. “I told you Quinn was gonna bitch about reservation times if you let him be in charge of dinner.” 

“I think reservation times are a fair thing to bitch about.” 

Luke’s eyes snapped open, his head turning to find Nico sitting in the spot he suspected Jack to be in. “Oh.”

Nico gave him a soft smile. “Got a few minutes?” 

He swallowed before nodding. “Yeah, of course. Jack can handle Quinn’s bitchiness.” 

Nico’s smile widened a little before he took a deep breath. “Just wanted to check up on you. You’ve seemed down since Bye Week.” 

Luke raised his brows. “It’s been a day since you came back from your holiday.”

“And a day is more than enough time for me to realise something is up with you,” Nico retorted with a knowing look. But when Luke didn’t respond instantly, Nico’s face softened as he lowered his voice so that any lingering guys in the locker room wouldn’t hear. “Look, I was serious about what I said at the start of the season. This is your team too. And I am just as much your captain as I am your brother’s. I care about my team, Luke, and you’re a part of that team.” 

Luke flashed him a small but grateful smile.

“I know you stayed in New Jersey for the break so I don’t know if something happened or if you even want to talk about it,” Nico continued. “But I want you to know I’m here if you wanna talk. I know you have Jack but sometimes you need someone else to confide in. A friend, not a family member.” 

“It’s stupid,” Luke said, wincing a little before he quickly continued talking. “But it won’t affect my hockey, promise. Today was just a fluke, just a little rusty after the break. I’ll be all good for Edmonton.”

Nico frowned, a crease forming between his brows. “It’s not your hockey I’m worried about, Luke. We all have our bad days. It’s your well-being and happiness. You seem…kinda sad since we got back.” 

Luke’s gaze instantly shifted to the random ball of tape on the floor between his feet instead of his captain.

“Is it something related to the team?”

Luke shook his head.

“Jack?” 

Luke shook his head again.

“Something in your family?” 

He shook his head a third time.

“Relationship stuff?” 

The small pause before Luke could even react told Nico everything he needed to know. Nico gave his knee another nudge until he finally looked back up at his captain.

“You don’t have to tell me anything,” Nico reassured him, a kind and comforting smile on his face. “But relationships are tough as they are, whether they are platonic or romantic. It gets harder when you’re in the league. A lot of lines get blurred and intentions can be clouded, but the good ones matter that much more when you find them.” 

Luke pressed his lips together.

“You’re in your rookie year. You are the youngest brother in a hockey family dynasty. You have a fuck load of pressure on your shoulders,” Nico listed off like they were facts—and they were. “I know what my rookie year was like. And I was here for Jack’s rookie year. It’s fucking hard. But you’ve been handling it well, you haven’t let hockey become your everything and that’s better than most people can say, even with years under their belt in the league.”

“What are you trying to say?” Luke eventually asked, his lips turned downwards. 

“I’m saying that it’s clear there’s something outside of hockey that you care about. And I’m saying don’t let hockey or anything else get in the way of it if you genuinely think it’s worth it. Each one of us could lose hockey tomorrow and there’s nothing we can do to change that. But having people by your side makes it easier, having people who want you for you and not hockey is even better.”

Luke swallowed harshly. “And if I fucked my chances of having that?”

Nico smiled. “You’re not that much younger than me and I know it sounds patronising for me to say this, but I promise you things aren’t as fucked as you think they are.”

Luke opened his mouth to disagree but Nico beat him to it.

“Trust me,” Nico said, grinning a little as he gave Luke a more playful shove. “Plus, you’re an athlete. You should know better than anyone else that it’s not worth the win unless you really worked for it.”

Luke snorted. “Funny.”

“I try,” Nico grinned. “And even if you really did fuck up, there are other people out there who like you for you, Luke. It may not seem like it and you might not even want someone else right now, but they are there and they exist.”

Luke's expression softened. “You’re a good captain.”

Nico flushed a little but nodded. “Having a good team makes it easy.” 

Luke scoffed. “Dude, take the compliment.”

“I am just saying—”

“Oh my god, how do you even deal with Jack praising you all the time? Wait, please don’t answer that! I don’t want details!” 

Nico just cackled in response. 

…

hockey boy: i know you have been ignoring my other texts but we really need to talk 

hockey boy: please cherry 

.

[darknight3904]

tommyxfemreader thigh riding🫦 maybe in her home in Jackson lowkey forbidden since he’s with Maria (love u queen but…)

Pretty Boy

Jackson!Tommy x Fem!Reader

Summary: Cursed to watch him from afar, you finally make a move on Tommy one day when he's stuck in your house due to a thunderstorm.

Warnings: Language, Smut 18+, Dom/swtich!reader, sub/switch Tommy, thigh riding, dirty talk, handjobs, cheating (don't do that irl.)

TLOU Masterlist

Word Count: 2.2k

I got carried away with this one, whoopsie. Went a bit off the rails, but I hope you enjoy it, anon. @xodilfluvr No pressure tag, but I think you're going to like this one.

You had a major problem. 

You couldn’t get him out of your fucking head. Tommy Miller was eating up every spare nook and cranny your brain had to offer. 

You arrived in Jackson nearly a year ago. With its quaint town and even nicer people, you were finally comfortable here at the end of the world. The issue though had started about six months ago, your first patrol run was led by none other than the ex-Firefly himself. You at first hadn’t thought much of him, probably just another guy with a big mouth and no skill to back it up. Instead, you were astounded when he brought down three infected, all head shots, from atop a large hill. Then, he’d wrapped his arms around you, repositioning your elbows in the best way to hold a gun so you didn’t get knocked on your ass by the kick back. His deep voice had your head spinning as you tried to focus on what he was saying about aiming right. 

Since then, you’d become a woman obsessed. But truly it wasn't your fault, Tommy Miller was just really fucking pretty, a pretty boy if you will. Dark curls and big brown eyes to go with, god, he was gorgeous, who could blame you for being so interested?

Now, most people would bite the bullet, ask their crush out instead of pining like some teenage girl, and you would, you really would, except there was one issue. Tommy Miller was a taken man. 

Maria had scooped him up a few months back, right when you realized your feelings, too. How convenient. You had no interest in being a homewrecker, but admiring never hurt anyone, right? You could look all you wanted, just not touch. Kind of like a fancy museum, Tommy was the artwork and you were the observer, content with staring and imaging what that piece might look like above you each night, sweaty and with loud moans coming out of his pretty- 

“You alright?” 

“Oh, yeah, m’ fine.” You say 

The loud sound of rain beating down on the twenty-something-year-old roof had you nervous, hopefully, it wouldn’t cave in tonight while you slept. The storm had come out of nowhere. One minute, you and Tommy were standing in your kitchen; he had swung by to tell you that the patrol shift was changing since Eugene had pulled a muscle in his back, the next, it was raining like a fucking monsoon was coming through Jackson. 

“Damn it.” Tommy curses as he stares out the window over your kitchen sink, “M’ gonna get drenched going out there.” 

“You could just stay here,” You blurt out, “Just till the storm blows over.” 

Tommy looks at you, obviously weighing his options: go outside, get drenched, and probably end up sick since it was a twenty-minute walk between your place and his, or sit down and just wait it out.

“Alright, fine, better than getting soaked to hell.” He grumbles 

Tommy had been in a sour mood all week, you had picked up on it after he hadn’t had his usual pizzaz during your Thursday shift with him down in the greenhouse. You motioned for him to sit down on the couch, handing him a glass of brandy. 

“Where the hell did you get this?” He sniffs the glass

“It’s a secret.” You smile, sitting across from him in the big armchair you loved, “You look like you need to relax, figured it’d help a bit.” 

Tommy sighs, sipping the amber liquid, his adams apple bobbing as he does, you squirm in your seat, fuck you hadn’t been alone with him like this since well…ever. 

“Yeah, it’s been a long couple of weeks. Maria’s been busy, council shit new buidlings and then that roof that caved in on Leona’s house.” Tommy sighs, “Haven’t seen much of each other.” 

You hum in acknowledgement, feeling sorry for how lonely he must’ve been. 

“Sorry, you don’t wanna hear my shit.” Tommy gives you a small smile 

“No!” You counter, “I like hearing you talk.” 

“Is that so?” 

True to your request, Tommy talks to you. As he sips at his drink you refill it twice, loosening him up a bit as you pour yourself some listening to him talk about how he found some fancy new scope for his gun. 

“You wanna watch a movie?” You ask 

“Tired of listening to me, sweetheart?” He smiles, a faint blush on his skin from the drink 

“Nah, just got something I think you might like,” You grin, waving a DVD case that reads Alien on it, “It’s the directors cut.” 

“Well, shit, pop it in.” Tommy grins 

The movie hazily plays in the background as you sit beside Tommy on the sofa a single throw pillow separating the two of you as he rests his arm on it. You’re too focusied on the man beside you to take any note of whatever the hell Ripley was doing on screen. You’re too focused on the way Tommy’s thighs shift every few minutes the muscles straining against the tight denim of his dark blue jeans. 

Without thinking about it, you reach out running a delicate hand up his thigh, brushing the fabric of the pocket before he jumps back. 

“What the hell’er you doin’?” His loud voice bounces off the wall

“Shit, sorry!” You fumble, jumping back as if he’s burned you, tears whelling in your eyes. You hadn’t expected him to be so well repulsed by you “I didn’t mean to, fuck.��� 

Tommy eyes you, the flickering screen illuminating him for a second. His eyes scan over your figure, probably thinking you were some pathetic loser, crying cuz’ he raised his voice for second. 

“Sorry, you just uh scared me.” Tommy doubles back, “Didn’t mean to make ya cry, sweetheart.” 

Tommy’s next move has you shocked, he inches closer to you, a big hand cradles your face as he wipes a few stray tears that have escaped your burning waterline. He lets out a low hum, one that spreads warmth across your stomach and down to your lower belly.

“Pretty.” He softly whispers like it’s a secret no one can know, if only he knew you thought the same about him.

You nuzzle into his touch, elated to finally feel his hands on your bare skin again. You never want to leave this moment. 

Tommy pulls back abruptly, hands falling down, “Sorry, I shouldn’t have…I should leave, got shit to do at home, theres this leaky faucet and the basement door is broken.” 

He’s rambling still as you place a small hand on his chest, keeping him on the sofa beside you. You grab the remote, muting the TV and switching it off, you’ll pop the disc out later on. The alcohol has you bolder than ever as you push him back down when he goes to stand. Your legs straddle his hips, using your weight to keep him right where you want him. 

“But it’s still raining.” You whisper, leaning in so your nose brushes his 

Under you, you can feel something hard beginning to form, his cock twitching against you as you slowly begin to shift a bit, pretending like you don’t know what you’re doing. Tommy’s hands rest on your hips, his eyes fluttering shut, a soft fuck leaving his lips as you move. 

“Darlin’ this isn’t…I’m…Maria and I…” 

You push a finger to his lips, “Shhh…It’s alright.” 

You push yourself off his lap, knees hitting the soft carpet as you pull the zipper of his jeans down, the pretty sight of his green and blue boxers greeting you, “You’ve been so stressed, Tommy, let me take care of it.”  

You push the band of his underwear down, his hard cock springing up from the fabric, it’s drooling head leaking as your eyes widen. You expected him to be big, just not this big. 

You’ve only pressed a kiss to the pink tip of it before Tommy is hauling you back up into his lap, settling you on one of his thighs. 

“What’re you doing?” You ask 

“I wanna watch you.” He mumbles, skin flushed as he stares at you, fingertips tugging at your shirt 

A coy smile lines your face, you hold all the cards now, he was yours. You free yourself from your shirt, unclipping your bra as you go and then you stand only for a second to wiggle your pants off. Your hands have just hooked under your panties when he stops you. 

“Keep 'em on.” A  deeper blush paints his pretty face, “Wanna watch you with them on.” 

You smile, pressing your lips to his as you settle back on his thigh, cunt weeping when you feel it flex under you. 

“What do you want me to do, cowboy?” You softly whisper into his ear, teeth nipping the sensitive skin there., "Hmm? Gonna ask me? Y'look so damn pretty like this, mmm pretty boy."

“Fuck…” Tommy whispers voice just barely there after all your compliments, “Ride my thigh, baby, get yourself off on me.” 

You softly hum, “What do we say? Gotta ask nicely, pretty boy.” 

Tommy’s eyes scan your face, he clearly isn’t used to be treated like this for just a split second you think you’ve over stepped but then he’s opening his mouth again, falling into your hands. 

“Please.” He softly asks 

You press a kiss to his cheek and then to the tip of his nose, “Good job.” You mumble. 

You’re not sure what’s come over you tonight, you could blame it on the brandy, the alcohol is the reason you’re dominating your crush of a whole year, the same man who was in a relationship with the literal laader of your town. Perhaps it’s just the result of buried feelings, all you know is that this feels good, and it seems like you’re not the only one. 

Each roll of your hips along his thigh has Tommy’s lips falling with a groan as his cock weeps for you. A loud moan leaves your lips when the muscle beneath you flexes, Tommy’s deep voice fills your ears. 

“Fuck you’re pretty like this. Christ, always knew you’d look good ontop of me.” 

Your head spins. Tommy Fucking Miller had just admitted to having sexual fantasies of you. You hips roll more argressively against him, the cotton of your panties is soaked, proably seeping into his jeans as you get yourself off on his thigh. 

“T-Touch me, touch me please.” He mumbles, hips jumping up towards your hand when one lands on his belly 

“You sure?” You mumble a smirk on your lips, “Thought you were a taken man, what we’re doin’ right now is certainly forbidden.”

Tommy’s head falls back onto the couch when your run a finger over the slit of his cock, a fucking whimper leaving his lips. 

“Fuck, I don’t care.” He groans, eyes squeezed shut 

“Look at me.” You say, you’re not going to miss one second of this 

The thick muscle of his leg presses up to your clothed clit and you bite your lip, Tommy’s deep brown eyes meet yours and you feel a bit sorry for him. 

Your hand wraps around his cock, pumping him at the same pace your hips roll into him. He groans your name loudly as you twist your wrist. 

“Baby, fuck…” Tommy’s forehead glistens with sweat as you press a warm kiss to his neck, nipping at his skin, “M’ not gonna last.” 

“Go on.” You smile, “Cum for me, I don’t mind.” 

“Not til you get yours.” He affirms, his stomach tightening as you steady yourself by placing a hand on his shoulder 

Big hands find your soft chest, thumbs flicking at your nipples as you try to keep your cool, wanting to maintain your dominance over him. 

“You gonna cum? Gonna cum all over my fucking thigh?” Tommy grins, your hand still pumping him, “Yeah, you are, it’s like you’re in heat, girl. Knew you wanted me, always starin’ like I’m some piece of meat you wanna strap down on your bed.” 

“T-Tommy!” If he keeps this up, you’re going to lose it 

"It's alright, I'd let ya." He laughs, "Yeahhh that's it, she's crying all over my fucking jeans, gonna havta' wash em' real good tonight."

A loud moan leaves your lips, your brain is blank as he talks to you, your climax is so close.

“Go ahead, pretty girl, cum on me,” His southern drawl fills your ears, “M’ all yours now, go ahead, stake your claim.” 

Another roll of your hips and he roughly gropes your sensitive chest and you’re gone, wetness spilling into your ruined panties and his pants as Tommy groans into your ear. Warm cum spurts over your hand as he reaches his end, chest heaving as your his stutter into his thigh. 

You bury your face in his neck, not wanting him to leave you again. The storm outside has stopped; you can tell by the way the sunlight has started to stream back through the windows. 

“You alright?” Tommy whispers into the still air 

“Fine.” You say, looking at him as he stares back 

Tommy glances around, eyes scanning your nearly nude form, his ruined jeans, the discarded pile of your clothes, his softening cock and your hand covered in his spunk. 

“Fuck.” He groans 

You knew it, He regretted it, that line about him being yours wasn’t real. You’d fucked up majorly and lost a friend, god you were so fucking stupid sometimes. You go to stand, legs a weakened mess as you stumble. Before you can get far though, Tommy pulls you back down into his warm body. 

“Where the hell are you goin’?” Tommy asks, “You’re stayin’ here with me. I’ll get you water in a minute, then we can go shower.” 

Water? Shower? With him? What the hell was he thinking? Didn't he need to get home to his girlfriend and the broken basement door?

As if he’s a mind reader, Tommy presses a kiss to your lips, “ Don’t gotta worry about Maria anymore, I’m all yours now, baby.”

Liked this fic? Check out More Tommy Here

This is the product of listening to Sabrina Carpenter while writing. I think it turned out nicely :)

Requests are open, I love getting them, so if you have anything you really want me to write, don't be shy, come chat.

[gettingyourselfwetforme]

gateway drug - bff!harry

hello to everyone! this is my first one-shot on here! i posted a lil something somethin’ on my page that’s about me if you’re interested! please leave any feedback you have <3

warnings: marijuana use, fingering, slight exhibitionism.

word count: 4k+

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.

“you’ve got to pinch and twist m’love”

“okay if you wanna micromanage me, why don’t you do it yourself.”

“baby you were the one who wanted to learn.”

y/n throws the half rolled joint onto the tray, undoing her work entirely. she wants to learn how to roll, but her fingers just can’t seem to move in the right ways to get the green leaves to stay inside of the pretty pink paper.

harry senses the frustration in y/n’s face and tone. it is a hard thing to learn, and he hates to see her struggle. “do you wanna take a break, petal? i’ve got one rolled already in the bag if y’want to just light that one.” he holds up the sandwich bag half full with weed.

y/n groans and gets up from sitting on the couch. “but that one isn’t pink! i wanted to make it pretty.” she sighs and paces to the kitchen. “i think im just gonna stick to cones. they’re at least a little bit easier than those fucking papers.”

harry turns around and looks at y/n. his mouth cracks into a smile, chuckling softly at her frustration. rolling is something that everyone is bad at at first- it comes with practice and patience. he could remember his first roll, which was a nightmare considering he was doing it in a moving car with all of his mates, and how messy and bad it was.

“you just have to keep practicing, it’s okay. you’ll get it eventually.” he prys his eyes away from y/n, who is chugging a glass of water as if she were a kid coming back from playing outside, and starts to roll the forgotten joint on his own.

harry and y/n were best friends: they met in high school in detention, where harry frequented (more often than he liked to admit), and y/n had been just caught passing notes in class. the poor girl was terrified to be in detention, coming in with puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks- harry had provided her with a small pep talk and offered to help her out with her assigned detention duties. soon enough, after vacuuming the entire school and scrubbing some baseboards, the pair had become inseparable.

after harry had fixed the joint up to an acceptable roll, he puts the joint between his lips and stands up, turning to y/n and providing a small head tilt to her as if to say “follow me”. she grabs her now refilled glass of water and follows behind him. He closes the balcony door after she steps out with him, and lights the pink paper with (what y/n would say) a brat green lighter.

y/n’s eyes linger at the look of his lips wrapped around the cardboard filter, enjoying the view she has of him in this light. they’re both sat on the balcony of their shared apartment, with only the light from the sunset highlighting his face.

y/n is one of those types of people where nothing comes above her friendships. not situationships, not work, not school. she has such a strong love and respect for her friends and couldn’t imagine anything being better than that bond. that’s why when she looks at harry, she feels as if her heart could burst, knowing that he chooses to spend time with her and loves her right back.

she was clingy- but so was he. harry had a tendency to develop “friend crushes”. it’s similar to the obsession you get when you have a romantic crush, where you have the desire to know someone inside and out, and become close to them.

the thing about harry’s “friend crush” he has on y/n is that it slowly started becoming a full-blown romantic crush. it was embarrassing for him to think about, but he knew that he never wanted to spend a minute away from y/n when he didn’t have to. it was something he had learned to shove down, knowing that he didn’t even have a chance with her.

harry passes the lit joint to her, catching a glimpse of her staring at him. a small “thanks” leaves her lips at the motion, and inhales the smoke. she lets out a small cough at the tickle in her lungs, looking at harry, who has a smile on his face, holding back a small laugh.

“hey… i’m still new to this. you can’t bully me.” she says, smirking and hitting his shoulder with her own.

“you love it though.” he replies. his lip is turned up in amusement, looking between the joint and y/n.

“aish, just tell me you want it instead of looking at it like a puppy does a treat.” y/n giggles, takes another inhale, before handing it off to him. with a laugh, he takes it from her and takes a few hits.

“i just think you’re a joint hogger.”

.

“okay but katya totally deserved to win all stars 2.”

“was she good? yes! do i think she did better than alaska? no?”

y/n looks at harry with an open mouth and wide eyes (as wide as her eyes could go while being absolutely stoned.) since they finished the joint, they’ve been arguing over who deserved to win each drag race reason, whether or not flip flops are an acceptable shoe choice for anything other than the water, and the new episode of celebrity big brother.

“you’re insane, opinion revoked. you’re literally a man, i don’t know why you thought it mattered anyways.” y/n holds a hand up to his face and turns her head.

“do you forget that 75% of the queens on drag race are men? i think i should get more of an opinion on it than you if that’s the case.” harry defends, pushing her hand down and forcing her to look at him.

“okay well most of them are also GAY and im like, halfway there.” she shrugs, sipping her water and side eyeing harry.

harry lets out a groan at her words. “whatever you say, pretty princess” he says, a dopey smile written on his face that has pretty much been permanent since smoking the joint.

they sit in a comfortable silence, harry’s head now resting on her lap, while she tangles her fingers through his hair. y/n feels good- she thinks. she used to always get paranoid when she smoked, but being with harry makes the paranoia disappear. her mind is cloudy, yet so clear all at once.

“do you ever think about us?”

harry’s voice startles her out of her thoughts for the second time tonight, yet this time makes her heart skip a beat. she lets out a gulp.

“what about us?” she asks.

“just… us as people. as friends. as roommates. just, like, i don’t know… us.” he rambles. “i think we’re good together. i couldn’t imagine being without you, like, ever. i couldn’t imagine having to live my life living in a house that you’re not in, you know?”

y/n’s brain feels like it’s sobering up just a little bit, enough for her to feel like what he just said was a… confession of sorts. they’ve always been strictly platonic- never dabbling or messing with one another. the thoughts have definitely floated around but she never entertained them.

y/n’s silence would be worrisome to harry if he wasn’t on an out-of-this-world high, but instead just continues on. “i just want to be your boy, keep you all to myself. wanna be able to love you in every way. i dunno. just something ive been thinking about”

that’s what makes y/n stop all movement and makes her breath hitch.

what does she even say to that? she has pushed her small crush on him down for years, always just saying it was just because they spent so much time together, or saying that she was just ovulating and was ready to be with anybody.

“yeah… i know what you mean. i do… i couldn’t imagine a life without you either. but eventually you’ll find someone you love more than me in a different way.” she says, mind still putty under the influence of weed. her hands continue dancing through his hair, causing him to let out a small noise of contentment.

he lets out a huff of air. “i don’t think i will.”

.

when y/n wakes up, she feels a heavy weight on her lap. slowly peeling her eyes open, she sees a curly haired boy asleep on her lap. it’s bright, she thinks, realizing that they both totally fell asleep on the balcony last night. it was early morning, they had only been asleep out here for a few hours probably.

she opens her eyes fully, letting out a deep yawn. it’s louder than she expected, causing the man on her lap to stir softly. he lets out a small groan, making y/n aware that he’s awake too.

“mornin’.” harry says, voice hoarse from smoking last night and sleeping. he lifts his head up and places a hand on his back, attempting to sit fully up. “jesus fuck, did i sleep like that all night? my back is gonna be fucked up all week ‘cause of tha’.”

y/n looks at his face, littered with sleep lines and paired with bloodshot eyes. she finds this state of him absolutely adorable. “guess so. the weed hit us too hard. don’t even remember falling asleep.” she mentions, stretching out her limbs and letting another yawn out.

the memories of last night are coming back slowly, them arguing about mindless shit, being all too cuddly with each other, and worst of all…

how he told her he wants to spend the rest of his life with her, and wants to ‘love her in every way’.

maybe she was getting carried away. they were both high last night, and they have had many pointless high conversations. it was probably just one of those things. it’s a weird thing to think about for her though- if he was being for real, what would that mean for them? they date, breakup, then lose eachother? the thought of losing him makes her sick.

y/n’s mind starts wandering into if she actually does have romantic feelings for harry, more than just the small crush she keeps pushing down. they spend almost every non-working minute with the other, and honestly she also couldn’t see herself living with anyone but him.

harry’s large, unringed hand stretches to her and boops her on the temple. “it’s too early for your brain t’be workin’ that hard. can’t have you worrying your pretty little head at…” he checks the time on his phone, “6:32 in the mornin’.”

y/n blinks away her thoughts to focus her eyes on harry. “whatever, i’m still tired and neither of us work today… so i’m going to take my happy ass to my bed. are you coming?” she stands up, turning around to look at a sleepy harry agreeing with a simple nod.

.

y/n has been acting weird. harry picked up on it after their nap, but it’s been lingering for the last couple days. she avoids eye contact with him, cuts conversations short, and even fell asleep without saying goodnight to him. he was pondering what he could have said to her to make her feel bad, but he couldn’t pinpoint it! he tried to relive the last few days, going over every (very few) interactions they had, but still coming up short.

that was until he remembered that they got high the night before the nap.

fuck. when he was high, all of his thoughts just came out. he has no filter, and everything he thinks, he says. what could he have said? what could have caused her to be so dismissive with him? he never thought anything ill of y/n (except for maybe when she forgets to put his keys back after moving his car) and he certainly wouldn’t have said anything to her that wasn’t the truth.

he gets up from his bed to go sit with y/n in the living room, who is currently sitting with her feet tucked under, reading a book.

“do you wanna go outside and smoke with me?” he offers, picking up the lighter and a pre-rolled joint. her eyes look up from the book, catching his own, as she marks her spot in the book and places it down.

she honestly wasn’t even really reading the book anyways. she’s been too busy thinking about her feelings towards harry to focus on anything else.

they walk out to the balcony, shutting the door and sitting down. the sun is setting, but it’s still pretty early for them to be smoking. it’s honestly odd that they’re smoking at all- he doesn’t like smoking more than once a week.

he hands the unlit joint to y/n, alongside the lighter, offering her the first hit. he knew she liked seeing the little paper burn at the top, and it always amused him how much it intrigued her.

“so… what’s going on? it’s the second night this week we’re getting high. it’s very… unlike you.” she says, covering the flame from the breeze in order to get a good light on the joint. she takes the first hit, a small cough building up again.

harry scratches the back of his neck. “that’s what i wanted to ask you about. i feel like you’ve been… distant from me lately. ever since our last smoke sesh. did i say something wrong?” he almost sounds nervous, she thinks, which makes her frown a little.

yeah, she’s been cutting their conversations short and been dry texting for the better half of the week, but it’s all because of him. the weird feeling that arose in her stomach when she thought about him saying that he “wanted to be her boy”, made her question a lot about their relationship. she couldn’t get over it.

“you seriously don’t remember what you said?” she passes the joint over to him.

“no, i really don’t. if it was anything mean or inapp-“ he’s quickly cut off by her own words.

“you told me that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with me, and ‘love me in every way’. “

well, fuck.

he didn’t think he said something like that.

“uh…” was all he could muster out. he’s shocked at his words, and slightly embarrassed about it. he wants to crawl into a hole to curl up and die thinking about him saying that to her.

they both sit in silence for a few minutes, taking hits off of the joint whilst taking turns. y/n’s mind is running around all of the words he spoke to her that night, while his head is trying decide if he wants to tell the truth.

after finishing the last of the joint, y/n smushes it out in the ash tray and breaks the silence.

“if what you said was true, i wouldn’t mind being your girl.” she turns to look at him with a nervous smile.

“i… i- um…” his brain just won’t work! he’s trying to say something but for some god forsaken reason nothing will come out. he looks away from y/n, trying to gather his words. “i… i do… i do feel that way about you, yes. but don’t feel like you have to say anything about it. you can just pretend that you didn’t hear me. i mean clearly it was meant to be an inside thought, but i don’t think-“

his nervous rambling was cutoff by y/n turning towards him and pressing her lips against his. at first, his eyes go wide, not realizing what was happening, but as soon as he collects himself, he leans into the kiss.

y/n had been thinking about it- she knows that if their romantic relationship didn’t work out, they could never NOT be friends. she honestly doesn’t care if it would be awkward after, there was absolutely no way she could live without harry.

harry is the first to break away from the kiss. he can’t tell if his head is spinning because of the kissing or the weed, but either way, he loves it. the rush of adrenaline he got from getting a kiss from someone he always thought was off limits was addicting. kissing her was addicting, and he’s only done it once.

“you know how they say marijuana is a gateway drug?” he says, causing y/n’s eyebrow to raise.

slightly out of breath, she shrugs. “yeah?”

“well i think my gateway drug is you.”

he pulls her into his lap and puts his lips back on hers, but this time much firmer. she can’t believe what is happening right now. she’s kissing her best friend- the one who helped her get over her last girlfriend, the one who would always come and get her from the bar after a bad night out, and- the one who she never could have ever imagined showing any sort of interest in her.

her mind is all fucked by the dizzying kiss and the weed that was slowly entering her system. she’s straddled on harry’s lap, kissing him with a sense of desperation, and her body feels hot. she knows that they should talk about whatever this is between them before doing anything, but her body just can’t help itself from becoming aroused.

“can i touch you?” harry murmurs between kisses. his hands are on her hips, but he needs to feel her more. feel more of her body under his touch.

y/n lets out a small groan, and leans her head back. the way he sounds almost desperate is just so hot. “fuuuuck, yes please.”

her lips return to his, and his hands are moving around her body. around her thighs, around her back, her shoulders, neck, ass- everywhere on her body. his long fingers grasp and pull at her, and she can’t help but let out a little moan at the feeling when his grasp got a little tighter.

he smirks, lips still on hers, and lets out a small ‘hmm’. he pulls away just enough for him to speak. “fucking freak.”

y/n rolls her eyes. “you’re an asshole, you know that?” she says, smiling and leaning back to look at him. he has a shit-eating grin on his face, almost teasing.

his hands move around her ass, kneading the muscle in his palms. “oh no, i know. but i think you like it.” he states. “and i think there’s something you want from me.”

she looks around at the balconies around them- there’s nobody out here, and it’s dark out, apart from the light coming from their apartment. she’s not exactly an exhibitionist- but she’s so desperate for him to touch her, she’s willing to do anything.

“and what do you think that is?” she replies, a teasing tone in her voice.

his pupils have enlarged, the green iris almost invisible. his hands move from her ass to her hips, and he thumbs gently at her waistband. “i think… you want me to touch you under…” his thumb breaks the waistband of her shorts and fiddles with the top of her panties. “here.”

her breathing hitches at the feeling of his touch so close to where she wants it. “then do it.”

he shakes his head. “nope, i wanna hear you say it.” his voice is deep, and wanting.

listen, she’s not above begging. she may come off as someone whose ego is too big to beg, but if she wants something, she’s gonna try her damndest to get it.

she gulps. “please touch me harry, i want you to touch me and make me feel good.” she says in a small, pleading voice.

his cock twitches at the sound of her begging to touch her, and immediately gives in. his hands push down her shorts all the way, and he brushes his knuckle against her wet panties.

“all this for me? already so wet…” he says, ghosting his fingers across the fabric. his fingers pull her panties to the side, finally exposing herself to him.

her breathing is heavy, and her mind is fuzzy. her hips involuntarily jerk at his touch to her bare clit, and he can’t help but smile. collecting some of her arousal on his fingers, he traces gentle patterns on her clit. a loud moan leaves her lips, and her pussy is so wet, she can hear him playing with her.

“fuck, you hear that? hear how wet you are? hear how desperate you are for me to touch your pussy?” it’s official-he thinks. his favorite sound are the little moans of desperation she’s letting out. she can’t even be bothered to give a sarcastic reply, because he just feels so good touching her.

her hips start rocking back and forth slightly, encouraging his fingers to move faster. the little moans get louder the more friction there is on her clit, and her eyes are screwed shut from pleasure.

“f-fuck, harry, faster, please.” she begs. he lets out a little groan at her words, and it just fuels him to move faster. his fingers tease her entrance, dipping in slightly before pulling them out, focusing on her clit again. he looks up at y/n, seeing her eyes shut and face full of pleasure.

“nuh-uh, look at me. look at me while i rub your clit.” he demands. her eyes shoot open. holy fuck. he’s nasty. and she fucking loves it.

her eyes meet his, her jaw slack. the look in his eyes is nothing but lust. nothing but a need to touch her and make her feel good.

she feels her climax getting closer, and her hips start rocking harder on his hands. “fuck harry, that feels so fucking good, fuck.” her voice moans loudly.

hearing his name come from her mouth in a moan makes his cock throb. “you gonna cum for me? gonna cum all over my fingers? wanna hear you say my name when you cum. wanna hear who makes you feel this good.” he growls in her ear.

the words send her over the edge. she’s trying to keep eye contact with harry but her eyes roll back at the feeling of of her orgasm taking over her body. “i’m coming- i’m coming. harry- oh my god. fuck.” her voice is loud, feeding into his ego.

“oh, good girl… yeah, i want everyone to know who makes you feel like this. fuck, soaking my fucking hand, pet.” he almost moans at the sound of her voice. he gets off on making others feel good.

he rubs her clit, carrying her through her orgasm. before long, her hand meets his and pulls it from her clit. “t-too sensitive, fuck” she mumbles, justifying her actions.

she’s fucked out. the last few months she’s been getting nothing but mediocre lays and subpar orgasms, but honestly she thinks that it’s all led up to this moment. she leans her head on his shoulder, taking a few deep breaths. “you’re too good at that.” she says, finally breathing normally.

he chuckles. “so i’ve heard. how are you feeling baby?” he asks, checking in with her.

she raises her head to look at him. “great. that- was really good.” she responds. her memory is coming back, still hazy from the weed, but much clearer than a few minutes ago, and she breaks the question that they’re both thinking. “so um… what, what does this mean for us?”

harry smiles, his little dimple coming out. he suddenly gets a little shy. he pushes a tendril of hair behind her ear and looks at her flushed face. “if you wanted to, i’d like to take you out on a proper date.” he tries to keep his cool, but he always gets so shy when it comes down to it.

y/n likes what she hears. she’s so glad that they got over this barrier they’ve had the last few days. “i think i would like that very much, mr. styles.” she giggles a little bit with giddiness, nose scrunching up at the look of harry being shy over asking her out.

when she finally gets off of his lap, she looks down at his shorts and smiles.

“you want some help with that?”

[v6quewrlds]

what was meeting the parents for the first time like for both joe and wifey?

love this series btw 🤎

thank you so much babe! that's so sweet of you <3

she met joe's parents pretty early on in their relationship. if my mental timeline is correct, she would've met them completely by accident. like joe was in the middle of the preseason, so he was suffering from major football brain.

they hadn't seen each other in a few weeks. between the preseason and her residency, they were starved for some face-to-face time together. she was so starved, she decides the four-hour drive down to cincinnati wasn't really that bad.

even if she has to settle for a handful of hours together ,mainly spent sleeping, at least she'd be sleeping in his bed, in his arms, and waking up to his touch, kisses, and love before she'd make the four-hour drive back to cleveland. so she texts joe in the morning before she goes into the hospital, packs an overnight bag just in case.

joe, suffering from horrible football brain, sees her proposition on his way into the facility and immediately responds, "please do. i need to see you." and that's that.

what joe didn't take the time to consider, however, was the fact that his parents would be stopping by to see him as well. they had some business to attend to in cincinnati on joe's behalf. their permanent guest room was waiting for them, so of course, they'd be staying the night at his.

she's mildly confused by the car she doesn't recognize in joe's driveway, but shrugs it off, assuming it's a teammate stopping by late at night. joe has responsibilities as a leader, she rationalizes, so one of his guys losing track of time talking plays, concerns, and strategy doesn't bother her.

except it's not one of his guys, it's robin and jimmy burrow in their son's kitchen listening to his review of where the team is at going into the last game of the preseason. wifey has a key, so she lets herself in and almost cries when they turn around and see her.

it goes well, really well. robin fixes her a plate to eat, doting on her immediately, "oh, you poor thing getting here so late after a long day." jimmy is all smiles, taking shots at joe's football brain, and asking wifey about herself, assuring her that they've heard so many good things about her and have been looking forward to meeting her.

joe is smug because of course he is. even when they curl up together in his bed, wifey still upset with him not remembering the very important detail of his parents staying with him, joe's all, "i told you so" and "at least that part's over?"

as for joe meeting wifey's parents. he got a proper heads up. her sister and her family were coming back to the states for a week and she decided it was a good time to bring joe along to meet everyone all at once. he was not amused with this idea but after being reminded of how he ambushed her with his parents, he sucked it up with a begrudging smile.

wifey's family in general is very impressive. her entire family drips with success and pride, and the realization that he'll have to officially meet them kind of drives joe to the brink of insanity. especially with his knowledge that her father is generally not a fan of the nfl or football as a sport.

he secretly studies up on her family, maybe even stalks their facebook pages late at night when he can't sleep because he's crawling in his skin. on the way over to her parents' house, he all but forces her to quiz him.

"what's my mom's favorite show?"

"dynasty. too easy, next."

and he's so cocky in the car. he's feeling good, and she can see that, thinks it's so attractive that he's taken this much time to study up on her family and learn all their preferences and what they do. he's got an oversized bouquet of flowers for her mom, a bottle of her dad's favorite rum, chocolates for her sister, a signed jersey from ja'marr for her brother-in-law, and stuffed animals for her niece and nephew.

then they cross the threshold of her childhood home, and he switches. it's not obvious to her family, in fact, they don't even pick up on it. but she does. she recognizes joe cool in action. he's studied well, cracks little jokes, indulges the kids, but she sees right through him.

she sees the way his adam's apple bobs, the restlessness of his knee, the way he nervously swipes his tongue over his lips. she doesn't comment on it, doesn't make a big deal out of it but she tries her best to ease him. places a hand over his heart, tells him he's doing such a great job, stills his knee when it starts bouncing, and looks at him with those eyes that make him breathe just a little lighter.

when he asks her how he did, she holds his worried face in her hands and kisses him so softly, so gently, and that's all the confirmation he needs.

[its-mayas-world]

Loved ur Spencer fic!!! Can we have more scenarios of Morgan and Garcia coming on announced?? Honestly my favourite!

Heyyy. First off- I LOVE YOU SO MUCH THANK YOU FOR BEING MY FIRST REQUEST 😭❤️ second, i didn't really know what to do so there's this. Hope u enjoy 😀

"Braids and Blackmail"

Spencer Reid x Reader, established relationship, chaos ig?

Y/N sat on the couch, a rare smirk playing at her lips as Spencer shifted nervously beside her. His hair had grown a little longer recently, and she couldn’t ignore the urge anymore. "Come on, Spencer, just once," she teased, holding up a hairbrush and a few elastic bands.

"I-I’m not sure about this," Spencer stammered, running a hand through his disheveled hair. "It’s, um, really not necessary."

But Y/N, being the irresistible force that she was, had already begun to gently part his hair, her fingers deftly working through the strands. "I promise, you’re going to look adorable. And honestly, I’ve wanted to do this for so long," she added with a wink.

Spencer let out a sigh, a soft chuckle escaping him as he tried to keep his posture stiff, though there was a hint of amusement in his eyes. "I guess you’ve already started, so there’s no turning back now, huh?"

"You know me so well," she grinned, settling into the task. Slowly but surely, she worked her way through his hair, braiding it with surprising skill. He had to admit, it felt... kind of relaxing.

Just as Y/N finished one braid and was starting on the second, the door to their apartment flew open with an enthusiastic bang.

"Spencer Walter Reid," came the unmistakable voice of Penelope Garcia, full of energy. "I brought pizza–!" She strutted in, Derek Morgan following behind her with a grin on his face.

"Wait," Derek blinked, eyes going wide as he took in the sight. "Is that—are you letting her braid your hair?"

Spencer froze, his cheeks flushing as he looked up at Y/N, who was now quite smug. "Ugh, not you guys too," Spencer muttered, face in his hands.

"Oh no, we’re definitely taking pictures of this," Penelope laughed, pulling out her phone. "This is too precious."

"Spencer Reid, the genius profiler, taken down by a simple braid," Derek teased, his laughter filling the room. "How does it feel to be this adorable?"

"Guys, please," Spencer groaned, his embarrassment palpable. "This is never leaving this apartment, okay?"

But both Penelope and Derek were already exchanging knowing looks, their phones in hand. "I think we have some potential blackmail material," Penelope whispered loudly to Derek, barely able to contain her excitement.

Y/N shot Spencer an apologetic look, but it was clear she was enjoying every second of it. "I told you," she said with a playful glint in her eyes, "you can't say no to me when it comes to this stuff."

Spencer just sighed, resigned to his fate. "I swear, you all are the worst," he mumbled, though there was a soft smile tugging at his lips.

"Aw, come on, Pretty Boy," Derek teased, "It’s not that bad."

"Yeah, yeah," Spencer grumbled, rolling his eyes, but it was clear that despite the teasing, he was secretly grateful for the way Y/N took care of him.

And so, with Penelope and Derek in full photographer mode, Y/N finished braiding Spencer’s hair, her heart swelling with affection as she watched him squirm just a little more. This was her favorite version of Spencer—soft, shy, and so adorably hers.

hope u loved this 🧍

[astroellies]

imgonnagetyouback (chapter 1)

prologue here!

ellie williams x reader

moving somewhere new was never easy. especially in the apocalypse. and especially when you think your crush despises you.

warnings! cat’s the cause of all the problems whoops. ellie and reader are 18ish/young adults. loser reader. a bit of loser ellie. miscommunication trope. useless lesbians. slight rivals to lovers. enemies to lovers(?). mention of reader wearing a skirt but it’s just a nod to the song. canon typical violence. probably ooc ellie.

a/n this took me soooo long post i’m so sorry ahaha. hopefully it was worth the wait!

PRESENT DAY

you had spent the past year and a half proving to ellie that you were not into her…by besting her in everything.

it wasn’t intentional really. with no one to daydream over you focused on the community in jackson. you applied yourself during farming rotations, made efforts to attend community events, you even helped maria and the council to govern the town.

what you didn’t know was that it drove ellie fucking insane. she thought you were cute when they found you, shy and sweet. maybe she couldn’t admit it to herself but she felt the need to protect you. she wanted to have a relationship with you, she didn’t care if it was romantic or platonic (maybe some guilty piece of her hoped for the former) but out of the blue you shut her out. and on top of it, you had to be better than her at everything.

you always took down the first infected on group patrols. you helped maria and tommy plan town dances. you volunteered more than scheduled to work with the animals and in the greenhouses. you showed newcomers around town. you even got along with joel. it made her crazy.

but she couldn’t find it in herself to hate you. not when you smiled when you placed the school children on your hip and pointed to the birds flying over jackson. or when you spun around on the dance floor with dina in that pretty lilac skirt. or when you talked to your horse as you led it back into the stables after patrol.

she didn’t understand why you had shut her out. you were still perfectly normal with everyone else.

it all made her feel crazy.

you on the other hand were thriving. with the exception of when you saw ellie. which was often. jackson’s population wasn’t very large.

so in your best effort to diminish your crush you ignored her your very best. you refused to make eye contact when you passed her on the street. you changed the subject when she came up in conversation. you avoided her like the plague. cat had made it a clear ellie was uncomfortable by you and you would not further embarrass yourself.

so when dina told you you were partnered with ellie for patrol all you could say was,

“no.”

“what do you mean no?”

“i’m not going on patrol with ellie.” you cross your arms over your chest and stand up from the tomatoes you were watering.

“well you don’t really have a choice. joel got called for some construction thing and she can’t go alone.”

“why can’t you or jesse go? you guys are like her best friends.”

“because we’re on kitchen duty, no offense but you and ellie are both shit cooks. why are you being so weird about this?”

“i’m not being weird, dee.” you let your arms drop to your sides, feeling a bit too confrontational. dina knew to avoid the topic of ellie around you after you shut down her teasing countless times.

“i’m sorry, tommy asked for you specifically. you guys are going to be on a challenging route and you’re the best shot jackson has. you know how joel is when it comes to ellie’s safety.”

you sigh, you were not winning this—no matter what you said, “when do we leave?”

dina checks her watch, “in ten.”

you scoff halfheartedly and make your way home to collect your things.

when you get to the stables ellie has already mounted shimmer. her hair is tied back in a ponytail and she’s fighting with a piece that keeps drifting into her eyes. she looks nice, her forest green henley offsets her hair in a way that makes it looks even more auburn. you shake your head. no you wouldn’t do this, not while you were on patrol with her.

you grab your usual horse and saddle up.

“looks like we’re partners today.” ellie says, turning shimmer towards you, trying to start up a conversation. was she mocking you?

“yep.” you say and look towards jesse who’s ready to go on his usual patrol spiel. trying very hard to ignore her presence.

from the corner of your eye you see ellie’s face twitch.

the two of you set off on your route, long awkward silences are only broken up by even more awkward conversations.

“should we stop in this house?” “yeah.”

“you still have ammo?” “yeah, you?” “yep.”

“we should stop in the office building up ahead. joel told me the last couple patrols haven’t checked it.” ellie’s turning her head to you, here eyes catch in the sun. they turn light and olive.

“kay.” you nod.

you hop off your horse and before you can tie it to an old bike rack ellie is grabbing the reigns from you. “i got it. there’s a stream a couple hundred yards east, we may as well let them drink while we work.”

when she’s done tying the horses you point to the wide open main doors, bloody footprints lead inside. “keep an eye out, looks like some infected wandered in since the last patrols.”

she nods and pulls her handgun from the holster on her thigh.

she steps in front of you, so she’d entire the building first.

“ellie y’know i was put on this patrol to keep you safe. what are you doing?”

“eh, i rather i get bit than you.”

you sigh, “don’t say things like that. neither of us can get bit.”

the first floor of the building is clear so the two of you make your way to the second floor. it’s much more disheveled than the first, spinning chairs and paper strewn across the floor. was this from outbreak day? or from something else?

screeching comes from a hallway closet. the two of you turn.

“are they in the closet?” you whisper to ellie.

“the fuck? sounds like it.”

you approach the closet, “i’ll open the door you get them?”

“yeah, okay.”

you position yourself so that the door acts like a shield and slowly open it. two runners make their way out and ellie comes up behind one, stabbing it in the neck. she’s busy on the next one when something comes up behind you.

you don’t have time to register what’s happening before you’re shoved to the ground, accidentally slamming the closet door on your way down. what the fuck. all you can see above you is rotted skin and snapping teeth.

you push the infected back enough to see what it is. stalker. in the struggle to the ground you dropped your gun. it sat just out of reach above your head.

your arms are burning from trying to push the infected off of you. you can’t see ellie but imagine that in the commotion the remaining runner jumped her. maybe she’ll let the stalker get you and get rid of you for good. she could make it seem like an accident.

you were so royally fucked. just when you feel your arms giving out, a shot rings and the stalker drops on top of you.

you’re stunned for a moment. you had your fair share of run ins with infected but never this close, never close enough you could feel their nails in your skin.

you manage to find the strength the shove the infected off of you and are half sitting before ellie is at your side. you feel liquid trickling down your face and you realize you’re covered in the stalker’s blood.

her eyes are wide, “are you hurt?” she’s pulling you to your feet and scanning you for cuts and bite marks. your ears are still ringing from the bang of her gun.

you feel dazed and scared, “i…i don’t think so.”

she pulls a cloth from her bag and wipes your face. you snap back to reality and push her away.

“i’m fine.” how could she act like this? hate you and be so kind and gentle with you.

she looks a little confused, “are you sure? that was close…i…if you need a minute we can take a break.”

“i’m fine, ellie. we should go before more find us.” you get up and stomp your way out of the building.

“right.”

you two get back to your horses. you pull a rag from your own bag and slash it with water, doing your best to clean the blood and bits of zombie brains off of your face. you’re still shaken from the close encounter.

patrol goes on like usual, you make your way through the woods, following the path made by other patrollers. you’re looking through a pair of binoculars at the countryside when you heard ellie sigh.

“shit.”

the bridge over the river in front of you has completely collapsed. well at least it didn’t give out while you two were on it.

“what d’you want to do?” you ask.

“uhm,” she looks around, “i think there’s a town a mile or two south. maybe there’s another bridge there? it’s probably overdue for a sweep anyways.”

“yeah, okay.” you nod. you seriously fucking hope that it’s quiet, you don’t think you can deal with more infected today.

the hike is nasty, what were once roads were now rubble and weeds. it took nearly an hour to travel the two miles.

the town is as equally run down. the few houses that are still standing are covered in vines and look to be on the brink of collapse. there is a bridge, however.

ellie gives you a cocky smile, “told you.” cute, you think before you can stop yourself.

“you’re just going to walk across it? what if it gives out like the other one?” you ask, keeping you and your horse a safe distance away from the bridge.

“eh, it’s probably fine.” she’s already moving her horse across it.

“ellie!” you say, over annunciating the uh noise at the end. what the hell. if joel and tommy wanted you on patrol with ellie to protect her and she dies from falling into a fucking river you were so dead.

but she makes it across and yells from the other side “c’mon!” her tone is playful, like she’s daring you to walk across it.

you sigh and reluctantly step onto the bridge. surprisingly and thankful it holds. when you reach the other side she’s smirking again.

“told you it would work.”

“good thing. what if it broke while one of us was on it?”

“c’mon i wouldn’t let you get hurt.” she playful taps your thigh with the back of her hand. your legs tingle all the way down to your toes and you feel heat rush to your face.

you feel stunned for a moment. that felt flirty. was it flirty? no i couldn’t have been.

“we should keep going.” you steer your horse away so she can’t see your reaction.

“okay.”

forest surrounds you, thick and unkept. it’s unlike the patrol routes your used to, it reminds you of your time with your parents on your journey to jackson.

“do you know what’s on this side of this bridge?” you’re in front of her but not really leading, just trying to put some space between the two of you. if she touched you again you think you might explode.

“not really, not this far south.” you hear her voice get closer and her horse speed up pace.

“okay, then let’s head back north.”

heading back north turned out to be easier said than done. the two of you make an attempt to follow the river but thick, overgrown bushes and vines stop you. so you walk into another into another town and discover why the first bridge was broken.

“does this feel off to you?” ellie asks.

“what do you mean?”

“i dunno like i just have a bad feeling.”

you shake your head. and you thought you were paranoid.

you’re heading toward’s the town’s main road, when you turn the corner onto the street you see it. infected bodies litter the street. it’s like a fucking bloodbath. they must have gotten into an altercation with an animal of some sort. from the tracks leading away from the town your bet is wolves.

“ellie…”

“hm?” she’s hasn’t yet made it to the turn yet.

when she rounds it all she can say is, “holy fuck.” she pulls out her hand gun from her holster and you mirror her.

she looks at you, “we need to get out here.”

before you can nod in agreement you hear the click, click, click followed by a screech behind you.

you shoot before you can think. you take the clicker down but as it falls screeches sound from the houses and stores.

“fuck.” is all you can say before ellie is yelling at you to run. once she sees you bolt past her she’s hot on your heels.

your horse must recognize the danger because she’s hauling ass like you’ve never seen before.

“where do we go?” you yell, you dare to glance behind you infected at all stages are right on your and ellie’s ass.

“i don’t know! i’m following you!” great, you think. joel was definitely going to kill you.

higher ground is all your can think. it’d wear the infected out to climb a mountain. it would wear your horse out too.

you make your way towards the ski resorts. as your horse gallops you here shots behind you, ellie must be firing blindly at the infected. a waste of bullets, you think.

by the time you make it to one of the cabins the horde has mostly subsided, killed from the run up the hill or distracted by other prey.

you find a lodge with a garage to store the horses in, while you work on getting the door open ellie picks off some of the more persistent infected that followed you.

“here! i got it.” you say and tuck your horse inside. ellie is just behind you and when she gets inside she slams the garage door down.

“we have terrible luck.” she laughs in disbelief. “two bad run ins in a day, that’s got to be like a record or something.”

you know she’s trying to lighten the mood but you can’t take it, “we should make sure this place is secure. the horde dissipated but infected will be all over the mountain and i’m almost out of ammo.”

she just looks at you for a moment before she checks her guns, “yeah, me too.”

you’re stuck here, you realize. alone, for god knows how long with ellie williams. ellie was right, you have terrible fucking luck.

the next half an hour is spent finding and securing all the possible exits of the home. the lodge was in almost perfect condition, it looked to be nearly untouched since the outbreak. you’re working on barricading the back door when ellie wanders in from the kitchen.

“check this out, they still have a shit ton of food from pre-outbreak.” she’s holding up cans in her hands.

“why haven’t we raided the cabins before?” you take one of the cans from her, ravioli.

she shrugs, “joel told me rich people would vacation here in the winter, i guess since the outbreak happened in september we figured they’d be empty?”

“that’s dumb. when we can get out of here we should bring a crew back, gather supplies.”

“mmm, always thinking.” she was definitely teasing you. but it didn’t feel mean, just point fun at you.

you scoff, “whatever,” you feel heat rush to her face and you don’t want her to see so you turn, “i’m going to see if there’s any firewood laying around.”

that evening for dinner you eat 25 year old canned ravioli. it’s actually not that bad and ellie told you that joel used to cook it for her all the time.

“it’s getting late, we should head to bed.” you gather blankets ellie found in one of the bedrooms and making a makeshift bed on the floor.

“you take the couch.” ellie juts her chin in the direction of the sofa.

you hesitate for a moment. today as been so fucking weird, you were attacked by infected and ellie was being kind to you.

“you sure? i-”

“i wouldn’t have offered if i didn’t mean it.”

“okay. thanks…thank you.”

you doze off, ellie on the floor, the fire keeping the two of you warm.

the next morning when you wake up ellie is using your binoculars to scope out the mountain.

“hey,” you say, sitting up, “how’s it lookin’?”

ellie jumps a bit, like she almost forgot you were there, she’s so cute, “uhm, better, i think that if you’re up for it we could make it back to jackson. the infected are pretty sparse so we’d just have to be careful to avoid them.”

“yeah, okay.” you’re nodding and getting off the couch. “i’ll go grab my pack.”

when you and ellie finish grabbing your things you head to the garage.

as she’s raising the door her shirt lifts to reveal some of her middle, before you can drool all over yourself you see the distinct indentions of a bite mark.

“oh my god.” you whisper.

“what? what’s wrong?” she turns around to face you.

“you…you’re- you got bit.” you point at her abdomen. she was bit. she was going to die and it was your fault. there was no saving her. it wasn’t a bullet wound or gash that could heal with time. ellie would turn and it was your fault.

“fuck.” she says more to herself than you, then, “hey, it’s okay.”

you feel like the breath was sucked from your lungs and you’re trying to blink away your tears before they fall. she was going to die. ellie was going to die.

she walks to you, until she’s in your space. her hands are firm on your biceps, she says your name. “listen. it’s going to be okay.”

“no, no you’re bit. you’re infected.” maybe it should scare you that she was touching you. if it was any other situation your belly would be doing flips but right now you just feel sick.

ellie squeezes her eyes close like she’s contemplating something then blurts out, “i’m immune, i’m not going to die.”

what?

she takes her hands off your shoulders and pulls the sleeve of her right arm up. was she seriously showing you her tatttoo right now?

“i got bit here, when i was fourteen. i never turned. i’ve breathed spores and never turned. i’m going to be okay.” she’s talking slowly, like she’s explaining something to a child.

your breathing is still raged, “what? what do you mean immune that’s impossible?” you shake your head.

“i don’t know i just am.” she’s quiet for a moment before she says, “you can’t tell anyone, though. joel, tommy, and maria are the only people that know. no one else knows.”

her eyes bore into your own, wide and mossy green. “i’m serious.”

you nod, “okay.”

what was happening? she’s immune, what does that even really, truly mean? how many bite marks does she have hidden beneath her clothes?

she steps back and laughs, “maybe i should have gotten bit in front of you sooner, you actually gave a shit about me just now.”

“what?”

“what d’you mean what? you’ve been pretending like i don’t exist basically since we found you.”

“that’s not true.” does she seriously not remember?

“yeah it is, you hang out with jesse and dina all the time and you don’t even acknowledge me when you see me in town.” her tone isn’t mean but it hurts. it hurts that she doesn’t remember.

“because you hate me.” you say, it’s quieter than you wanted. “i had a silly crush and it made you uncomfortable.”

“what?” she shakes her head.

you’re embarrassed to be admitting this out loud. “you obviously don’t like me, you sent your fucking girlfriend to essentially tell me to stop having a crush on you.”

“what?” she repeats, but it’s softer this time.

“you don’t remember? it was the spring after i came to jackson, at the bonfire? cat told me to leave you alone.” how could she have forgotten this? did it really mean that little to her?

“fucking cat.” she whispers under her breath, then, “i would never have told her to do that.”

“well you did, ellie. do you know how embarrassing that was? i’m brand new here and the cute girl’s girlfriend is telling me to fuck off because i’m acting creepy.” you cross your arms over your chest.

“no i didn’t. i had no idea she said anything. why would i ever do that?”

“i don’t know, ellie.” you say exasperated, “i’ve been trying to figure that out. but it made sense, i mean you have the perfect life out here. you’re well respected in town, you’re good at what you do, you have a friend group that adores you; you even managed to find a girlfriend that’s obsessed with you in the fucking apocalypse. and i come in and i ruin it. i’m quiet and i linger in the backgrounds of your hangouts. i’m the weird kid that liked you and you didn’t want me bothering you anymore.”

she’s quiet, her chest rising fast like it was the day you two met. this time though her eyes are flickering between your eyes and mouth.

before you can comprehend what she’s doing she’s grabbed your face and is kissing you. despite the intensity from the rest of her body, her lips are gentle against your own. your hands find her forearms and gently push her away.

you pull far enough away to see her face. you’re both panting like dogs. ellie’s eyes were wide like she herself was surprised she did that. you’re still deciding whether to ask her why the fuck she did that or kiss her back when you hear a voice.

some calls your name, and then “ellie?” and the two of you are breaking apart but not moving. still too stunned from what just happened.

dina.

you hear hooves pounding into the ground then dina getting off her horse. “are you two in there?”

she’s finishing lifting the half open garage door before she gets a response.

“oh my god. are you two okay?” she’s rushing over to you and taking your head in her hands like ellie did moments ago. she moves your head side to side, looking for damage. when she doesn’t find any she moves to ellie, repeating the motion.

“yeah, we’re fine, dee.” ellie gently pulls dina’s hand away from her face and looks at you. she swallows hard. how was she feeling right now? embarrassed? regretful? excited? you really needed to talk to her, alone.

another set of hooves and jesse is appearing. he joins the three of you in the garage.

“how’d you guys find us?” ellie looks to him.

“we saw the horde from the gates. they dissipated pretty fast and we saw the smoke from your fire this morning. we went out after you.” jesse says.

“we should get back to town and send out for joel, he went out last night looking for you and was up again this morning before any other patrollers could go out.” dina chimes in.

ellie nods, “yeah.”

“what the hell happened?” jesse is heading back towards his horse.

“we got stuck cutting across the river in a different spot than usual. we were thinking the infected took down the usual one and with our luck we ran into them on our way to the next checkpoint.” you needed to go home and take a bath. and think about anything but ellie. or maybe just about ellie.

the trek back to jackson is awkward, not the same cold awkwardness that you and ellie had shared on patrol. this was full of longing, you hoped jesse and dina couldn’t sense the change.

once the initial greetings subsided you led your horse back into the stables.

you were working on taking her saddle off when ellie walked to her stall, “that was crazy, huh?” you didn’t know if she was talking about the horde or confessing her immunity or your kiss.

“uhm, yeah.” you turn to face her, thankful for the stall door separate you.

“can we talk?” she rubs her tattooed hand on the back of her neck.

“i…i have to help maria set up for the dance tonight.” you look down at your boots and rub the toe of one into the ground.

“right. yeah.” she shakes her head, “i forgot that was tonight.”

“i’ll see you there?” you ask.

“yeah i’ll be there.”

TAGLIST @vahnilla @liztreez @yasmilks @cinnamqnbuns @hyperbabes @daughterofthemoons-stuff @leeidk87 @robinphobia @monki-nat @elliesfavwife @culuvr

[crispy-art-on-fire]

YOU KNOW I HAVE THE BRAINROT WHEN I AM BRINGING MULTIPLE AUS TO LIFE- ANYWAY PYGMALION AND GALATEA AU. Blitzwing sculpts his ideal man and falls in love with the statue and Optimus comes to life with an allspark fragment as his heart.

Detailed rambling under cut.

So basically to cope with the boredom and chaos of Megatron being dead and Lugnut being a pain Blitzwing decides to indulge in making a statue, his masterpiece. Working on it instead of blowing a fuse and trying to kill Lugnut. Eventually he begins to talk to it, complaining about his day and arguing with himself. They know it's purely just sounding their ideas out and an outlet for the things they cannot say to anyone else.

But then it stops being just that and Blitzwing begins to seeing Optimus as a person, someone listening to him. He anthropomorphizes Optimus and begins to seek comfort from him, he falls in love with something that cannot love him back. Beginning to fantasize about what if Optimus was real.

Then plot happens and the allspark is fractured. One of the shards burrowing deep into Optimus and so bringing life to him. Optimus remembers everything Blitzwing told him and so decides to try to help him: To attack the Autobots.

(In this au the leader of the repair team is Sentinel Prime after he got demoted for breaking the rules and causing Elita-1 to be lost.)

This misadventure ends pretty well after they get over the scare of being attacked by an Optimus who doesn't know how to emote and basically has to consciously remember "oh I can talk now." In that Optimus also doesn't really have any ideas of his own and can be easily convinced to not fight them once given 1 reason not to. The deepest core of his being is that he wants to do good in its purest form.

So meanwhile Optimus is off learning that being alive is beautiful and fun Blitzwing is freaking out. Their coping statue is gone and while they first suspect Lugnut of finally destroying it the idea of Optimus having walked off himself pops into their mind and oh they simply must investigate. Turns out yes! Their imaginary boyfriend is alive now and that might be the most exciting scariest thing ever.

Blitzwing brings Optimus back to the Decepticon base and he is officially on the team but not really. This is where the two actually get to know each other because Blitzwing knows nothing about Optimus except that they love him more than anything and Optimus knows everything about Blitzwing but doesn't know his own feelings. It's awkward, it's cute, Blitzwing is the most overprotective guy ever which might be the only reason why it takes so long for the Decepticons to realize that Optimus is very bad at being bad.

The breaking point being Optimus not being able to handle it anymore tries to break Professor Sumdac out and getting caught. Blitzwing as his creator gets the responsibility to execute him but once bringing Optimus to an isolated area cannot bring himself to do it. Faking taking the shot and telling Optimus to leave and never come back. Optimus does, thanking Blitzwing before he goes.

Optimus officially joins the Autobots. And he might trying to do right but having been around only Decepticons for most his existence makes it so easy to do things that make everyone look at him like he's a monster. It takes a while for either to get used to each other.

Blitzwing is doing Great he is doing So Fine in that he doesn't have a breakdown immediately. He created something to pour his feelings into and then it came alive and rejected him. Issues! But they still love Optimus and it feels like a curse they way they need to know him and what has become of him.

In moments of weakness they meet, for Optimus to talk and Blitzwing to listen. With no one else to rely on or share his newfound thoughts Optimus shares it with Blitzwing knowing that they want all of him and he cannot want them back.

ITS ABOUT THE YEARNING. THEY NEED TO SUFFER.

[etherealising]

interlude one | my everything...

masterlist | ↢ previous chapter | next chapter ↣

pairing(s): carmen 'carmy' berzatto x fem!reader | fem!reader x original male character | the bear x fem!reader

summary: all it takes is one question from the girl carmy's been crushing on to send him spiraling. or, alternatively; the beginning of the end of your friendship with one carmen berzatto.

warning(s): vague mentions of terminal illness | talks of death |minimal editing |

wc: 8.7k

May 2013

Carmy stood behind your sitting figure, his arms caging you against the counter while his chin rested on your shoulder. He was doing his best to keep up with your corrections and explanations of the mind map he'd made for his English final analysis, but for the life of him, he just couldn't seem to follow along.

He let his eyes drift to the clock on the wall for a moment noting that you still had 30 minutes left in your shift, the restaurant was pretty empty allowing the two of you to squeeze in some time for your studies, which he appreciated considering he needed all the help he could get and it didn't hurt that it allowed the two of you to hang out. Something he was doing his best to take advantage of while the two of you were still in the same city, with graduation just a month away, he'd be leaving soon, a fact he seemingly forgot to bring up whenever he was in your company.

"Carmy, c'mon, I thought you were serious about this." Carmy was pulled from his thoughts as you spoke, eyes moving from the clock on the wall, only to find your head turned in his direction, your face just centimeters from his. "You're not even listening to me."

He found himself smiling at the slight whine in your voice and the adorable pout lining your lips, he could recite bits and pieces of the monologue you gave him if you asked him to and it wasn't because he gave a shit about The Illiad but he cared about you and he appreciated the time you were taking away from your own finals preparations to help him out.

"You know I always pay attention to you," his smile widened at the sight of you rolling your eyes and grumbling under your breath before moving to wrap one of his arms around your shoulders and pulling you into his chest for a hug, you tilted your head back to look up at him as he looked down on you. "Awe, c'mon, I promise, Baby."

Carmy watched as a small smile lined your lips, waiting for you to respond, only for the sound of a throat clearing to pull him from the trance he found himself trapped in while staring at you. His eyes shot forward, widening as he took in the figure standing opposite the two of you, before he rushed to distance himself from you, trying to ignore the subtle frown beginning to overtake your features.

"Um, I'm sorry for interrupting, but I was hoping I could put in an order." Carmy stood there, unsure of what to do with himself as he listened to you transition back into customer service mode.

"Claire, hey! Of course, what can I get for you?" He wasn't aware that you were on a first-name basis with the girl, but he drowned out the conversation happening in front of him and dropped his gaze to the ground in hopes it would make him less noticeable, wishing he could sneak off to the dining area without making a complete and utter fool of himself. By the time he raised his eyes, he found himself alone in the front of the restaurant with Claire gently smiling at him as the two of them stood in an awkward silence.

"So, um, how long have the two of you been together?" At the sound of Claire's question, Carmy furrowed his eyebrow, unsure if she was asking what he thought she was. The confusion on his face must have alerted her to his lack of understanding as she spoke up again. "She's your girlfriend, right? Sorry, it's none of my business."

He watched the way she shrank in on herself, adjusting her glasses as he tried to come to terms with the fact that he was talking with a girl who wasn't you, a girl who he'd been crushing on for longer than he could remember. And that thought alone prompted his response.

"No!" He silently cursed himself at the way his loud voice caused Claire to flinch before finishing his explanation. "Sorry, uh, yeah she's my girlfriend...not, n-no I mean she's like my girl w-who is also a friend." Carmy watched as she nodded, a feeling of warmth blooming in his chest even though the conversation wasn't off to the greatest start.

"Oh...okay," neither of them seemed to know how to keep the conversation going as they avoided each other's eyes, silence settling around them. "What's with the whole 'Baby' thing if you don't mind me asking?"

He nodded, taking a step closer to the counter so he wouldn't have to speak so loudly, "It's a uh nickname."

"Like 'Dirty Dancing'?"

Carmy offered Claire a small smile and nodded before another idle silence pierced through the front of the restaurant. He could hear everyone shuffling around in the back, sure you were helping to get the big dinner order Claire put in finished, so she didn't have to wait much longer.

"I've had a few classes with her, she's really nice and pretty cool to talk to." Claire seemed to be growing more comfortable with the conversation, which only helped to make Carmy feel a bit more confident in the whole situation. "I'm sorry for assuming the two of you were together, I just...I see you hanging out all the time, and well, everyone kind of thinks you're dating, so...yeah."

The smile on Carmy's face dropped, giving way to a frown. This was news to him, but it made sense considering he was a bit of a loner outside of having you and Fak. "We uh grew up together, you know...so guess that kind of explains it. But, I-I don't really think I could ever see her that way, s-she's my best friend I mean but I would never want to be with her i-in that capacity or any other," he trailed off hoping his words sounded as convincing as he was trying to make them seem even though he could feel doubt creeping up on him.

Before he could hear Claire's response, you walked back to the front with to-go bags in hand and began ringing Claire up.

"Sorry for the wait." Carmy found himself disappearing into the background once more as you and Claire engaged in conversation. He couldn't explain why, but Claire's theory surrounding the two of you kept pushing to the forefront of his mind, and he found his gaze drifting to the back of your head as her words rang in his ears. Carmy would be lying if he said he'd never thought of you in that way or didn't have the occasional inappropriate dream, but he chalked that all up to just being a teenager with hormones.

"Bye Carmen...I'll see you at school." He looked at Claire in surprise before sending a shy wave in her direction and watching as she left the establishment, hoping she didn't notice the flinch at the use of his full name, something he only tolerated from you.

He stood there for a moment longer before moving to collect his school supplies and help you wipe down the counters as he usually did whenever he was your ride home. You disappeared into the kitchen before returning with a bucket and rags, the two of you working in tandem to get everything clean, and all the while, all he could think of was what life would be like if the two of you were more than just friends.

Carmy's vision was blocked by the feel of two soft hands cupping his eyes and blocking out any sunlight. He felt his body relaxing back into yours, only knowing it was you because he could smell the perfume you always wore.

"Guess who?" Carmy felt himself involuntarily shudder as your whispered words caressed his ear, his heart beating just a bit faster. A sense of confusion raced through him, surprised by his reaction considering the number of times you'd done this before.

He reached up, gripping your hands and pulling them off his eyes, forcing you to slouch over his back as he pulled your arms down his torso. "I dunno, you kinda sound like this girl that pelted me with potatoes when we were six because I wouldn't play with her."

Your soft laughter rang through Carmy's ears while your arms moved to wrap around his shoulders as you hugged him from behind. He found a smile growing on his face when your face dropped next to his, your own smile on full display, "See how much more fun it is when you actually play along, Bear?"

Whatever reply Carmy prepared was stolen by the feel of your lips ghosting across his cheek, he felt like his heart was going into overdrive as he watched you walk around the table before sitting down across from him. He could tell you were speaking because he could see your lips moving, but the ringing in his ears made whatever you were saying to him incomprehensible. He began subtly shifting in his seat while looking at your lips, remembering just how it felt when they touched his skin moments ago. Carmy was confused, a constant feeling for him ever since his conversation with Claire at The Beef; you'd kissed him on the cheek plenty of times before and he never reacted in this way and he couldn't quite put his finger on what was so different this time, but he needed to figure it out and fast.

"So, have you given prom any thought? Tickets go on sale tomorrow." Your voice pulled Carmy back to reality as he reached for the flyer you slid across the lunch table and began to read the information on it. He knew how much you wanted to go and though he didn't understand your excitement for the event he found himself wanting to go just because you did, Carmy shrugged his shoulders letting the paper drop to the table before gearing up to ask if the two of you should go together only to be stopped by Fak's frantic arrival.

"Baby! Bear!" His lunch tray slamming against the table had you jumping in surprise, leg knocking into Carmy's under the table, before his foot gently tapped the top of yours for reassurance. "I have been sitting on the hottest piece of gossip all day, and now that we're all together, I can finally share."

Carmy listened as you laughed at Fak's eccentric behavior, his eyes being drawn to your smile, feeling one tug at his own lips. "Well, what is it?" The curiosity of your question was mirrored on your face as you looked at Fak, who had taken the empty spot next to Carmy, anticipation seeming to drip off of you.

"Alright, so get this, Claire's cousin Big Denny is dating Frannie's best friend Carla, but Frannie and Big Denny are sneaking around behind Carla's back. And so, because of that Big Denny's at the house sometimes," he paused his explanation to take a bite of his food, hardly giving himself time to finish chewing before he was talking once more. "And so last night Frannie and Big Denny were arguing because Carla found out that they were seeing each other because Josie, Carla's sister who also happens to be Big Denny's ex-wife, and he are sleeping together again, and Big Denny tells Josie everything. And Josie and my mom get their nails done at the same salon, and you know who else gets their nails done there?"

Your hand slamming down against the table in excitement drew a chuckle out of Carmy as he watched you become engrossed in Fak's storytelling. "Carla!"

"What? No Baby, Claire's mom. Why would you guess Carla?" Fak rolled his eyes as though the answer he'd just given even made any sense in the storyline he set up. "Anyway so they're all there getting their nails done, gossiping like us and Claire's mom told my mom that Josie told her that Claire told Carla that Carla told Big Denny that Big Denny told Josie that Claire has been crushing on somebody named Carmen for like months but she never made a move because of his girlfriend but turns out he's single and now she has a shot!"

As the confusion from the explanation cleared from Carmy's system, it gave way to shock as he finally internalized what Fak just admitted, his eyes widening at the new information he learned. He let his eyes stray to you for a moment, instantly clocking the way you seemed to physically deflate, your hand that was on the table now picking at the prom flyer you'd brought with you earlier. When you looked up and locked eyes with Carmy, he watched the forced smile grace your face, knowing that something soured your mood but unsure as to what it was.

"That's really great news for you, Carm, you'll finally get your chance with her." Carmy nodded along to your words, absentmindedly brows furrowing as his eyes danced across your face, hoping to detect some sort of evidence that would help him to understand your change in attitude.

Silence blanketed the table after your congratulations, and Carmy just couldn't wrap his head around the revelation Fak's words brought forth.

"You know, Carm, I thought you'd be more excited than this. I just hand-delivered the most top secret information of my life, and lemme tell you, Bear, it was not easy to come by." Fak resumed eating his lunch, all the while shaking his head in Carmy's direction.

Carmy was excited...at least that's what he was telling himself, but every so often, he would steal a glance at you, and then you were all he could think about. He'd been crushing on Claire for longer than he could remember and to know that he was even on her radar should have put him on cloud nine while he was surprised by the notion that she liked him he just couldn't get over the disappointment he felt every time he looked in your direction and you weren't smiling.

"No offense, Fak, but your storytelling skills could use some work." You shrugged your shoulders at Fak's offended look before reaching to steal one of his cheese fries. "You definitely buried the lede on that one."

A back-and-forth ensued between you and Fak as Carmy sat lost in his thoughts. All the truths he thought he knew about himself seemed to fall apart anytime he let his mind play with the idea of something more between you two. It was all so confusing from the wistful ideas Claire's words about the two of you at The Beef brought up, to his reluctance to feel excited at the opportunity to maybe have a chance with Claire Dunlap if Fak's information was correct. And like clockwork, all his thoughts and confusion kept leading him back to you.

Carmy was pulled out of his subconscious as a body plopped down in the seat next to you, his confusion easily giving way to frustration as Hayden's arm moved to wrap around your shoulders, pulling you flush against him. Carmy didn't think he was a hateful person, and he didn't hate Hayden Ivanovski, but the guy sure did know how to get under his skin without even trying.

Hayden was a recent addition to your trio, and Carmy hadn't minded his company at first. But after a whole school year of watching the two of you share inside jokes he and Fak weren't privy to, the way he constantly touched and flirted with you only helped to fester Carmy's aversion to the guy.

"What gossip did you bring for us today, Fak?" The teen in question straightened up as he began his spiel once more from the top. Carmy didn't hate Hayden, but he hated how charming and charismatic he was, he hated how easily he fit in with your group, and he hated that, overall, Hayden was actually a pretty good guy. But most importantly, he hated the way Hayden would sometimes whisper something in your ear and the way you would lean into him as you laughed, how sometimes you would burry your face in his chest while other times you would look at him with that beautiful bright smile of yours like you were doing right now.

Watching you smile at Hayden with the beaming smile that was once only reserved for Carmy was crushing, and just like everything else, he couldn't understand why.

"Yo, Carm, you listenin' man?" Hayden's fist knocked against the tabletop, letting Carmy know that Fak had finished his retelling. "Said if you're gonna make a move," he watched as Hayden's eyes dipped to the prom flyer, eyes widening as a lightbulb moment went off in his head as he reached for the paper. "Oh shit man, you plannin' to ask her to prom?"

Carmy wasn't sure what to say as everyone at the table awaited his reply, he looked in your direction as if doing so would provide him with whatever answer he was looking for but all he could seem to focus on was the soft features of your face as he began silently dissecting what was so different between this version of you and the version he drew in charcoal.

"You totally should, Carm that's like the best start to any love story." Fak's declaration of excitement pulled Carmy from his study of you, but not before he watched the slight downturn of your lips and the lack of any readable emotion take over your face.

He caught Hayden nodding along before leaning over to high-five with Fak for god knows what, all the while he seemed to be the only one who noticed your lack of interest in the conversation. Carmy tuned the two of them out as they continued a conversation about the event, and all he really cared about in that moment was figuring out what was going on with you. Carmy nudged your foot, catching your attention, brows furrowing as he implored you to give him any sort of hint, wishing for nothing more than for Fak and Hayden to disappear.

"Claire! Hey Claire!" Carmy's head shot in Fak's direction, watching as he stood waving his hand back and forth in the air to flag down Claire from across the quad.

Carmy felt like an asshole as he watched her approach but the last thing he wanted to deal with in that moment was anything Claire related and considering she'd already seen him at the table it wasn't like he could just up and leave.

The clearing of your throat pulled his attention as he watched you gather your belongings, eyes glued to your backpack as you packed your items. You finished just as Claire arrived at the table, standing and turning to smile at her.

"Here, take my seat. I was just leaving to speak with my guidance counselor."

Carmy frowned at your words, knowing full well they were an excuse, because you were dodging your counselor at every opportunity. Watching as you walked away, he couldn't help the feeling of disappointment beginning to take root in him. He wanted nothing more than to catch up with you and make sure you were okay, but he knew doing so would likely end up feeding Claire's previous theory about you and him. 

Your figure disappeared into the distance, forcing him to focus his attention on the conversation that Fak and Hayden started up with Claire. He sent her a small welcoming smile as he caught her eye, hoping he didn't appear as awkward as he felt. As the lunch period dragged on with him adding little to nothing of substance to the conversation, he found himself grateful as Fak waved off his lack of talking as being shy when in reality, he just no longer had any interest in even being there.

As Carmy sat there, forcing himself to try and be an active participant in the conversation, he realized that he didn't have things all figured out like he once thought. Because instead of being in the moment and getting to know Claire better, he wanted nothing more than to be by your side, providing you the comfort that you seemed to need.

The sound of your bedroom door opening pulled your attention from the history DBQ you were dead set on completing before heading out for dinner at the Berzattos. Upon glancing up you spotted Carmy stepping into your room, sending a small smile his way before returning to your school work.

"My mom send you to come get me?" You had a habit of losing track of time when you wanted to get something over and done with, having been late to dinner a multitude of times after telling your mom you'd meet her across the street.

Carmy's face appearing in your line of sight made you smile as you stopped writing so he could make himself comfortable next to you, watching as he copied the position you were lying in before snatching up one of the stuffed animals situated at the head of your bed. Not surprised to see he picked the one he'd bought you for your birthday.

"No, uh, I came over on my own, feel like I've barely seen you this week." You watched as he glanced at your assignment, pulling it over to see it better before scrunching his nose up and leaving it alone.

As much as you didn't want to admit it, you knew you were avoiding him. Ever since Fak spilled the beans last week at lunch, you knew Carmy and Claire were hanging out more, and you weren't sure how to navigate being around him now that he had a chance for something to happen with the girl. You told yourself you were doing him a favor, taking yourself out of the picture so he could finally get what he longed for, but in reality, you did so in hopes of protecting yourself from the heartbreak you knew seeing him happy with someone else would bring.

"Yeah, sorry, just kind of been putting all of my focus into passing my finals," you sent him an apologetic look as you lied through your teeth and pushed your homework out of the way before turning to lie on your side so you were facing him. "But talk to me, Bear, what's going on with you?"

Carmy mimicked your position and hugged the stuffed animal to his chest as he looked at you. "I kinda have uh this dilemma...a girl dilemma." You nodded along to Carmy's words, encouraging him to let you know his issues.

"Well, uh, I think... no, I know I like Claire, b-but recently I've been...having doubts, I guess. I mean I still think Claire's really cool a-and pretty and it's nice talking to her, but I just...I'm confused." You forced your feelings for the boy in front of you to the back burner, not wanting to be selfish in whatever advice you could offer to him.

A moment of silence passed between the two of you while you tried to gather your thoughts in the best way possible. You wanted to give Camry as unbiased an opinion as you could. But if you were being honest with yourself, you were probably the last person who should have been giving him any advice on this topic.

Taking a deep breath, you offered him your best comforting smile, "For starters, Carm, you should have more than two reasons for liking someone, especially if one of them is only because of physical attributes. But what type of doubts have you been having? Are you just scared that Fak got his info wrong and that's why you haven't asked Claire to prom yet?"

You watched as he shrugged, his fingers gently playing with the bow on your bear, hinting at just how nervous he was to be having this conversation with you.

"You know you can tell me anything, Bear, I won't judge you."

Carmy's eyes met yours, and you couldn't help but feel a bit unnerved by the intensity of his gaze. You followed the movement of his eyes as they darted across your face, his slow perusal of your features made your skin crawl, and his prolonged silence wasn't doing any favors to assuage how warm his gaze made you feel. Before you could question him, his eyes found yours once more as he cleared his throat, hand moving to scratch the back of his neck.

"I just...how do you know if you really like someone? Like with you, Baby, how did you uh realize you liked your you know...mystery guy?" You didn't miss the way Carmy frowned as he asked the question, but you were too caught up in your surprise to delve into that at the moment.

If you didn't know Carmy was being serious, you might have laughed his question off, but you just told him you wouldn't judge him. The question blindsided you; this wasn't a normal topic of conversation for the two of you, while you admitted to having a crush on someone, Carmy obviously still didn't know the object of your affection. And for the most part, you were happy to keep it that way, making sure to not bring up the topic while in conversation with Carmy, the longer you thought on it though you began to realize every time your love life came up in conversation with him, it was always Carmy bringing it up. But as you sat there dumbstruck by the question, you couldn't think of a logical, let alone a believable, reason to avoid it.

"I don't think I can pinpoint a specific moment," you couldn't believe you were talking about this with Carmy, but maybe doing so would make it easier for you when you finally came to terms with the truth of your situation. "It sounds dumb, but it just kind of happened...it was like this build-up of all the little moments, you know? And then one day I remember just looking at him and I dunno, I guess everything just clicked, and I...I kind of just realized that he was my person...or well...at least I thought he was."

"What happened?" Your eyes shot to Carmy's, surprised to see how enraptured he was by your words, "I just I mean...how do you know he's not your person i-if you've never told him how you feel?"

A chuckle was your only answer as you turned to lie on your back, eyes focused on the ceiling. You felt the bed shift as Carmy moved closer, seemingly intrigued by the turn of conversation. "I'm second best in his eyes, Carm," you let your head loll to the side, looking at Carmy as you watched his brows knot in confusion. "That's probably not fair to say, considering he doesn't know how I feel...but he has someone else, and telling him that I like him would just be selfish. I wouldn't want to ruin things for him."

You gave Carmy a sad smile, realizing the explanation didn't take any weight off your shoulders; instead, you just felt heavier. The space where your heart resided seemed to ache as you lay next to him.

Carmy moved closer, his chest brushing against the outside of your arm as he settled once more. You blinked in surprise, watching as his face hovered over yours, appearing in your line of sight, just barely blocking the daylight illuminating your room from your vision.

"What about you?" Your brows furrowed at his question, a silent plea for him to explain more. "I mean w-what if there's someone else...for you?"

Only a moment passed before the words were out of your mouth.

"Is there someone else for you, Bear?" Your eyes locked on his, gaze full of curiosity as you waited for him to answer. Answering his question with the same one he asked you wasn't the best decision, but you were no longer interested in talking about your romantic interests, and maybe hearing him talk about his would help bring you back down to reality and push you past the crush you harbored on him.

A prolonged silence settled between the two of you as you held each other's gaze. Carmy seemed deep in thought, eyes not leaving your face as the minutes ticked by. This look on his face wasn't one you'd seen before, any other time you could easily tell what his train of thought was just by the littlest emotions crossing his face, but as the silence stretched between you, you couldn't help but to wish you knew what was going on inside his head.

"Y-yeah...I think there might be."

You blinked in surprise, doing your best to hide the emotions his honesty seemed to stir up inside of you. Before you could get a word out, Carmy's hand raised between the two of you, hovering for just a moment before slowly moving toward your face, the palm of his calloused hand cupping your cheek as his thumb gently caressed your under eye.

"Your eyes...I can never get them right when I draw you." Although his words were whispered, you heard him.

Warmth bloomed in your chest at this new piece of information, you were shocked to hear that Carmy tried committing your features to paper. And you weren't sure what this revelation meant, but the atmosphere in your room felt charged as you lay there nearly tucked into his chest. Carmy's face was only inches above yours as he continued the soft smoothing motion of his thumb against your skin.

"You draw me?"

Your voice was equally as breathy as his, as you relaxed into his touch, feeling as his appendage traced the planes of your face before brushing across your eyebrow.

A small, barely there smile curved his lips, juxtaposing the deep blush that began to settle on his cheeks.

The movement was subtle, and you weren't sure if it was you who leaned up or him who leaned down, but the tips of your noses grazed against each other's as he uttered one word that had your head spinning as you tried to figure out what this moment meant; if anything at all.

"Always."

You inhaled deeply, breathing his one-word answer in as you did, your eyes roved back and forth between his, trying to figure out if the tension you felt was mirrored in his eyes or if you were just reading into things. Hesitantly, you moved to grip his hand, holding it in place where it cupped your cheek.

Hope was the wish of fools, but in the short seconds when his eyes dropped to your lips, you felt pathetic as a sliver of your being couldn't help but to hope that you might have been that someone else Carmy was talking about.

Three loud knocks on your bedroom door quickly pulled you out of whatever trance you were caught in. You and Carmy jumped apart as the door swung open, revealing Mikey's figure in the hall.

"What the hell are you two doin'? Dinners almost done, and you know Ma won't let us eat without the two of you." He stood there with his arms crossed frown on his face as he looked at you both. You avoided his gaze, embarrassed by what you almost let transpire between you and Carmy, knowing how much it would likely hurt Claire.

You felt the moment Mikey's eyes left your figure, breathing a sigh of relief as he turned his full attention on Carmy, whatever he saw there pulling a light-hearted chuckle from him.

"Ya know what just get outta here, before I bust your asses for being in here with the door closed."

Mortification flooded you at the implication of his words, knowing he wasn't too far off in his accusations. You slid off the edge of the bed, turning to face Carmy, hoping to nip whatever awkwardness may linger between the two of you in the bud, only to find him slightly hunched over himself, gripping your stuffed bear for dear life in his lap.

The clearing of Mikey's throat pulled your attention. "Baby, why don't you go help 'em finish? Carmy and I'll lock up."

If he thought you might question him, he was mistaken, as you took the opportunity to remove yourself from the situation, not wanting to be in your room any longer with the two brothers.

Making your way through the house, you couldn't help but replay the moment between you and Carmy over and over again on a loop. A part of you was sure there was something there, and the desire to attempt and confess your feelings for him raced through you once more.

But as quickly as those thoughts emerged, they were disregarded just as quickly, as you recalled the words he'd spoken to Claire that day at The Beef. You were his best friend, and in Carmy's eye, that's all you would ever be, and you would always have to live with that fact, no matter how much it hurt you.

Because if keeping Carmy in your life meant pretending you hadn't felt more of him, then you would do so if that's what he wanted.

"Alright, Baby, ready to get going?" Mikey's voice pulled your attention from the book you were reading as you waited for him to take you home.

You nodded in response to his question before stuffing the book in your bag and getting up to follow him to the parking lot. A small appreciative smile lined your lips as he unlocked the car and opened the passenger door for you, allowing you to get comfortable before closing in and making his way around the car and joining you.

As soon as Mikey started the car, you began flipping through the radio station, searching for something enjoyable to listen to on the ride home, lest the older man make you listen to whatever he was in the mood for.

He chuckled at your eagerness as he exited the parking lot "Hey you got time for some ice cream or are you in a rush to get home and finish that borin' ass book?"

You scoffed at his question, "First of all, it's not boring, and I always have time when you're paying Mikey."

Mikey's chuckle reached your ears as he shook his head at your words. The two of you settled in, allowing the music on the radio to be the only noise in the car. Moments alone with Mikey were few and far between recently, and it wasn't because you had outgrown the man, but with work, taking care of your mom, and trying to graduate high school, there was little free time for you to take advantage of.

You smiled as the car rolled to a stop, not at all surprised to see the sign for Margie's Candies, a favorite of yours since you could remember. You and Mikey exited the car at the same time before heading inside, the sun barely beginning to set as you chose a booth.

Neither of you reached for a menu, already knowing exactly what you wanted, and a waiter wasn't far behind, quickly taking your order before leaving the two of you alone once more.

"So, Michael, what are we doing here?" You smiled as he rolled his eyes before imploring him with a questioning look.

There was usually only one of two reasons for a visit to Margie's, and it was either celebrating an accomplishment or to sweeten the blow of bad news with decadent ice cream. Mikey opened his mouth, only to stop as the waiter returned with your orders the both of you giving your thanks.

A contented sigh escaped you as you dug into your ice cream before taking a bite out of the delicious treat, savoring the sweetness of it all.

"How're you doing, Baby?" The seriousness of Mikey's voice confused you as you moved your eyes from your ice cream to stare at him, eyebrows furrowed in confusion at his question. He ate a spoonful of his own ice cream before speaking up. "I uh...I know things are tough for you right now. Just trynna see where your head's at is all."

You nodded slowly, not fully believing his reasoning but deciding to just go with it. "I-I'm good, I think? Really just focusing on making sure mom is okay and finishing senior year strong."

Mikey hummed at your answer, and you could see as you stayed focused on his eyes that there was more to this conversation. He nodded once before returning to his dessert. You followed suit, but you couldn't help the apprehension beginning to settle in your gut. The two of you sat in a prolonged silence for a few moments more, and just when you thought it was fine to lower your guard, Mikey spoke up.

"Oh yeah, how's those college applications coming along?" His question gave you a momentary pause, a spoonful of ice cream halfway to your mouth before you forced yourself to move once more, the ice cream feeling heavy in your stomach as you swallowed.

The line of your shoulders raised in a shrug as you took a minute to gather your thoughts, "Good, just waiting to hear back from the ones I applied to."

You looked up from your bowl at the sound of Mikey sucking his teeth watching as his eyebrows furrowed. You felt your stomach drop as he leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table, hand raised to wipe a hand across his mouth before leveling his gaze on you.

"You sure?" The tone of his voice let you know the next answer out of your mouth needed to be truthful.

Holding Mikey's gaze proved to be a struggle, and as soon as you looked away, you knew you'd lost the battle. "Yeah, I told you I just haven't-"

"Heard back?" He cut you off from finishing your sentence, and that's when you realized he wasn't looking for an explanation; he just wanted to see if you'd lie to him. "Baby, why the hell is Carmy hiding your acceptance letters?"

A defeated sigh parted your lips as you pushed your bowl of ice cream away from you before deflating back into your seat. You looked around the parlor, noting the few other patrons, wondering if their conversations were going any better than yours.

"He's not hiding them." You shrugged, unsure of what else to say, wishing you were anywhere but here right now.

"Really? Is that why they're all hidden between the pages of his sketchbooks?"

A slight feeling of relief filled you at knowing Carmy had kept his promise, and that Mikey was just too nosy for his own good, likely having come across the letters by accident. You hadn't spoken with Carmy since that day in your bedroom, and you knew he was avoiding you as much as you were avoiding him. 

"Your mom know about this?"

"No, and you aren't going to tell her."

Mikey's eyebrows raised at your tone of voice. He'd watched you grow up and dealt with your attitude plenty of times before, "Watch it." His words weren't a request but rather a warning All he wanted to understand was why you were being sneaky about college, it wasn't his place to tell your mom. "Just talk to me, Baby, what's goin' on?"

The table was quiet as you bit your lip in contemplation, eyes locked on the bowl in front of you. You felt the need to apologize for your smart mouth, knowing Mikey likely wouldn't go to your mom unless you were in danger. But you also wanted to avoid this conversation at all costs, avoid the truth that both you and your mom were pretending didn't exist.

A resigned sigh finally left your lips as you met Mikey's gaze, doing your best to keep your composure. "My mom has worked so hard to give me the life I deserve, she's my biggest cheerleader, and I know she'd be proud if she found the letters, but...there's no getting better for her-"

You trailed off as your eyes welled with tears, your bottom lip beginning to tremble as you worked to keep the tears at bay. "And I-I don't wanna be halfway across the world when mama goes."

Mikey's sharp intake of breath was all you heard before he got up and squished himself into the booth next to you. No words were exchanged between the two of you as he pulled you into his side and allowed you to bury your face in his chest as he wrapped his arms around your chin, pressing into your head. You were thankful to have chosen one of the booths in the back, embarrassed to be crying in public.

Time continued to pass as Mikey held you there, hand gently smoothing up and down your back to help calm you down before placing a gentle kiss atop your head. "You sure you're not just staying for my idiot brother?"

You knew Mikey meant for the question to be funny, but it just brought on a whole new wave of emotions for you, helping to open a Pandora's box of all your repressed feelings - good and bad - toward the youngest Berzatto.

Your whine of annoyance at the mention of his brother pulled a chuckle out of Mikey, his arm moving to rest across the back of the booth as his fingers began messing with the collar of your jacket.

"Gonna tell me what I walked in on the other day?"

It was obvious he already had his ideas about what almost happened between you and Carm, either that or he'd already spoken with his brother about the near incident.

You let out a frustrated groan before rubbing your hands down your face. "Literally nothing that even matters." Meeting Mikey's gaze let you know he didn't believe your words for a second, causing even more frustration to bubble up inside you. "Look, I don't know, okay! One moment he's telling me he needs girl advice and the next he's waxing poetic about my eyes, and I think we're about to kiss but we can't because well, for one, you walk in, and oh, did I forget to mention he's stupidly in love with someone else. And there I was, seconds from being a home wrecker to a home that doesn't even exist, and don't even get me started on the fact that everyone has a prom date but me, and...and why are you laughing at me? This is serious, Mikey?"

The older man responded by pulling you into a hug and resting his chin against your head, "Just good to see you worried about teenager shit, you're growin' up too fast." You relaxed into his arms, letting his words sink in and realizing how right he was. You had so much responsibility thrust upon your shoulders that you hadn't gotten the chance to live and enjoy your senior year.

"Thought you were supposed to tell the kid how you felt months ago? What happened to that?"

A resigned scoff escaped your lips as you sat up once more, "Claire Dunlap happened and it's not like it's her fault I mean from the few interactions I've had with her she's pretty cool," you trailed off unsure of what to say, it wasn't like there was much you could do to change the way Carmy felt. "And before the whole bedroom situation, he made it crystal clear he'll never see me as more than a friend."

The man next to you let out a contemplative hum as he digested your words. "Carm tell you that?"

"Not directly," you shrugged as you answered. "I overheard him speaking with Claire at The Beef, and when she assumed we were dating, he denied the whole thing with so much disgust it almost made me question if he even liked me as a friend in general."

As you gazed up at Mikey, you saw his eyes narrow at your words. What was going through his mind, you had no clue, but he seemed to be thinking hard about something. "You ask him about what he said then?"

"Eww, what, no!" You deflated into yourself following the exclamation. "Then he would know I was eavesdropping and I...I'm not sure if I would be able to handle that type of rejection from him. In a way, it's easier to just watch him get what he's always wanted, I mean it doesn't hurt any less, but a verbal rejection would just make it all too real."

Mikey nodded at your words trying to understand why you teens made shit so complicated these days. "Baby, why don't you just tell 'em how you feel? What's the worst that could happen?"

You scowled at the older man sure he'd lost his goddamned mind. "I just told you. He's my best friend, and I know if I admitted my feelings to him, it would just ruin everything."

Mikey tried his hardest to understand where you were coming from, he had to remember that you were still just a teenager and most everything felt like the end of the world to you. "You ever stop to think he might feel the same?" He raised his eyebrows in question.

Any other time, you might have brushed his words off and chalked it up to him joking, but he was really pressing the issue, and that alone made you suspicious.

"Did he say something to you?"

A shrug was all you got in response before Mikey removed himself from the booth, "C'mon, gotta get you home before the streetlights come on."

The conversation ended there, with Mikey ignoring your question and you following behind him in contemplative silence as he led you out to the car.

The car halted to a stop in your driveway, you lifted your head from where it was settled against the window, unbuckling your seat belt before turning to look at Mikey. "All of the street lights were on by the way."

Mikey let out a hearty laugh shoving at your shoulder, "Yeah, alright smart ass."

You sent him one last smile, turning to exit the car before the sound of Mikey calling your name stopped you in your tracks, curiosity filling you at the way he blatantly chose not to use the nickname he'd bestowed upon you all those years ago.

Settling back into the seat, you turned your whole body in his direction, facing him head-on as a frown pulled at your eyebrows. He was speaking up before a question of concern could leave your lips.

"You know I'm proud of you, right?" Warmth filled your chest at the praise, shyness overcoming you at his words, never sure how to accept a compliment. "But you gotta promise me you'll get outta here. I understand why you're not going off to college right away, and I'll be right here supportin' you through it all, but Baby...I need you to make better for yourself, alright?"

You were at a loss for words, a foreboding emotion, feeling your chest as you nodded along in understanding.

"You're gonna do big fucking things, Baby, and I'll be proud of whatever you do but don't forget about us little guys okay." A watery laugh bubbled up out of your mouth, the confusion still ever present as you tried to understand what brought on this topic of conversation.

"I could never forget about you, Brother Bear." You teased, the childhood nickname you gave Mikey, pulling his lips into a smile. "I'm gonna write about you one day, Mikey, gotta remember you to do that." You watched as he just stared at your eyes, roaming over your face, you reached across the console pressing a quick kiss on his cheek, assuming the conversation was over.

Mikey's hand reached out to grab your arm, "You gonna look out for Carmy no matter where life takes both of you, right?" You nodded at the question, feeling no need to elicit a verbal response. "Just keep an eye out for me, will you, you're good for Carmy. Even if he ain't seen it yet," You weren't sure exactly what Mikey meant by that, but you didn't dwell on it as you agreed to his terms.

"Come on now, Mikey, you Berzatto's are stuck with me for life, you can't get rid of me that easily." You smiled, watching as Mikey's gaze stayed serious, worry growing once more in my chest.

"I need to hear you say it, Baby, promise me you'll leave when you get a chance and look out for Carm?"

There was a slight tone of desperation in his words, and the longer you stared at them, the more clearly you could see that emotion swimming in his eyes. You nodded once in acquiescence before speaking up. "Yeah...I promise you, Mikey."

And just as quickly as the serious atmosphere entered the conversation, a joking one bled into the car as Mikey spoke once more. "Alright, now get your ass in the house, Baby, I told your mom I'd stop bringing you home so late," you nodded hesitating before picking your backpack up from by your feet on the floor.

Exiting the car, you quickly walked to your front door, turning back to send Mikey a wave as he watched you get in safely.

Mikey sighed as he reversed the car back into his driveway across the street. He didn't want to mention it, but he could already see the relationship between you and his younger brother beginning to fracture. You had always given Carmy too much of yourself, and as your crush on the teenager developed, you only grew more selfless when it came to cutting off parts of yourself to give to him.

After catching you and Carmy in that compromising position and then sitting his little brother down for a well-needed heart-to-heart, he realized just by listening to him speak about you that Carmy harbored feelings for you as well. But while trying to be helpful and lead his brother to unpack and understand his feelings toward you, he may have ended up doing more harm than good as Carmy vehemently denied the claims instead focusing the conversation on Claire.

Mikey sat in the car for a moment longer watching as the lights in your house began flickering off it was foolish for him to think yours and Carmy's friendship could withstand the test it was about to go through, but knowing how confused Carmy was about his feelings he knew it wouldn't be long until the teen was crossing a line he wouldn't be able to come back from.

a/n: interludes are finally back yay!! love, love, love, writing about young barby they're both just idiots.

also never seen shameless a day in my life but lip gifs are just perfect for young carmy he's such a cutie!

please enjoy 🫶🏼

[16wolke11]

GRAVITY GIRL - Kimi Antonelli

A/N I really love this one-shot, so I hope you will like it too!

WORDS: 1748

_____ 

If you had asked me three weeks ago if I believed in love at first sight, I would have laughed loudly, maybe even falling into a giggle again when thinking about it. I was always the practical type, with schedules, checklists, and colour-coded notes. Finishing school with the highest grades is my only priority right now. Being spontaneous is definitely not on my list until that last exam is written.

So when my brother George begged me to take a break from my revision sheets and just spend a bit of time with him at the tracks, "You don't have to be in school anyway and you can learn wherever you are," were his words and still I hesitated. He might be right, but all of this sounded messy, unstructured. Just unlike me.

But sitting at my desk day by day, only revising what was taught in classes of the last years slowly burns me out. It walks up to me and will drag me down when I don't bring some variety into my day.

So, I went with George. Still reluctant and grumpy, but armed with my laptop, noise-cancelling headphones, my sheets with notes and the plan on when I have to revise what.

Well and then he came.

It was on the third day I was with George, and I stepped out for a walk, convincing myself that some sun would wake me up better than the fourth coffee. The paddock is still sleepy, bathed in the morning sunlight and it looks oddly peaceful. I pass the other motorhomes, seeing someone here and there, but I just keep walking until I trip.

Shoe getting caught on the edge of the asphalt and down I went. Arms trying to get in front of me to protect the fall, sunglasses hitting the ground and then there he was. A guy on a scooter, scrolling through the paddock. One moment, I was bracing myself for the impact, and the next, strong arms were wrapped around me. Just like a scene taken straight out of a cheesy romance novel.

"Gotcha." He grins, like this is the best moment of his week and I just blink at him. His hair is messy, his skin sun-kissed and his eyes glimmer with mischief. He wears one of the Mercedes team shirts and I groan on the inside, knowing that this might make me the giggle of the day.

"Uh...thanks." I mutter, trying to smooth out my shirt, cheeks being on fire from how red I turn.

"No problem, you okay?" He asks, tilting his head to the side and I need a moment to answer.

"Fine...just gravity."

He laughs, a soft laugh that makes others grin too. "It's a real bastard, huh?"

I roll my eyes, but then see that he already got my sunglasses off the ground without me noticing. He offers them to me, and I take them without hesitating.

"Nice save by the way." He says, confusing me. What does he mean?

"You saved me?" I ask, eyebrows furrowed. This wasn't my achievement, but his.

"Exactly." He winks, swinging himself back on his scooter. "If you keep falling for strangers, try to pick the ugly ones, so you can keep me in mind." And just like that, he rolls away. I stare after him, kind of flustered, kind of annoyed and more interested than I want to admit.

His name is Kimi. Of course, I had to run into my brother's teammate before properly meeting him and of course, I didn't manage to remember him when he kept me from falling. But of course, he is sticking around in the garage when I walk around with George and comes over to me like we have been friends for years now.

"Hey, gravity girl." Kimi grins, making me groan.

"Please don't let that nickname stick."

"You are watching where you are going, or do I need to start carrying around some bubble wrap?"

George raises one of his eyebrows curiously but stays silent. I just sigh, before asking. "You are Kimi, right?"

"Guilty as charged. And you are?"

I tell him my name, before adding "George's sister."

"I figured that one out." Kimi says, nodding his head at George, but has no shame in flirting in front of my older brother.

"How?"

"Not many carry those pretty eyes around."

I should have walked away after that. I had stuff to learn. Spreadsheets to learn on my laptop, but instead I found myself staying on his side of the garage, listening to him telling stories about racing cars and making bad jokes.

Over the next weeks, I keep running into him. It is just a coincidence, I try to tell myself. Small paddock, same team, limited places to be at. But my excuses grew thinner every time Kimi makes me laugh until my side hurts, or we just share some lunch on top of the hospitality when he should be at an interview instead.

He was charming, funny and flirted with me shamelessly.

I learned that he grew up in the Mercedes family and had a second family when he was with Prema. That he usually spends all his free time doing anything related to racing and that he learned to cook from his Nonna.

The song Accidentally in Love plays on speaker when we share another lunch in the hospitality and Kimi smirks when he asks me, "Do you know that song?" I listen to it just for a moment, before a blush appears on my cheeks. "It's like number five on one of my playlists." Kimi smiles at me, before there is something else on his face, something vulnerable.

"Feel like that a little bit, doesn't it?" He asks, "You and me..."

His voice trails off and I want to scoff, say something sarcastic, but my heart stumbles and all I can mutter is.

"A little."

We weren't a couple, we hadn't even kissed, but somehow, I found myself rearranging my days around Kimis. Working when he is in the car, has meetings or is occupied otherwise. In between, we would meet up, just taking a walk, driving around on his scooter. I even let him drag me to the kitchen of the hospitality, convincing one of the chefs that we could cook in there.

It was spontaneous.

It was chaotic.

It wasn't me.

But for the first time, messy felt right.

Then, during one of our lunches on top of the hospitality came the rain. Not a storm, not just some droplets, one of those wild downpours that makes everything smell petrichor. We were just laughing about something when the sky cracked open. I squealed, trying to get up as quickly as possible, searching for shelter from the rain, Kimi following me.

"Great, that's what I get for not bringing a jacket." I huff, pushing my soaked hair out of my face while Kimi just grins.

"Dance with me."

"What?"

"Dance with me in the rain."

I stare at him for a moment, debating if he is really serious. "You know, people don't do that? It's just a thing they do in movies and books."

"It can be real if we do it."

And somehow that convinced me to let him pull me back into the pouring rain. Kimi twirls me around, a bit clumsily but still lovingly, singing off-key, making me laugh with every twirl. Then, somewhere between the laughing, our eyes lock. It's like being pulled by an invisible string before our lips meet.

The kiss wasn't slow, cinematic or soft. It was messy, wet from the rain, but still full of warmth and the best of it, it was real.

Kissing in the rain might be straight up a cliche, but it was perfect for us.

The next morning, I was drinking my coffee in the hospitality area alone. The temperature dropped after the rain last night, like it is a mirror of my mind. I shouldn't feel anxious about that kiss with Kimi. I should be revising, learning for my exam and thinking about what comes next. Instead, that kiss plays in my head over and over again. Then George joins me.

"You and Kimi, huh?"

"Maybe?" I ask, trying to figure out if he is okay with that, but George just smiles at me.

"You like him?"

"I didn't mean to." I sigh, making my brother laugh softly.

"That's how it usually happens."

The last evening of my time with George has come and I, of course, spent it with Kimi. We are on the balcony of his hotel room, staring at the stars.

"I don't want to go." I whisper, something I wouldn't have said a few weeks ago. Where I wanted nothing more than to go back home to my study environment, but I like what I have here.

"Then don't." Kimi just mutters and I turn my head around with a sigh.

"That is not how it works."

"Why not?"

"Because life, exams, reality."

Kimi is quiet and I know he does understand what I say, having to face his own exams soon as well, but we don't want to face reality again. We want to keep sharing time around a schedule, not have to part ways that just started to intervene.

"Can I come visit you?"

"You want to come to me when it would be easier for me to just join George again?"

Kimi nods. "Want to see where you live. Crash your time schedule." He hesitates before adding a whispered. "Steal your heart all over again."

"You are assuming you already have it." I tease him, but Kimi just reaches for my hand and laces his fingers with mine.

"You are the one who fell, gravity girl."

The next morning, I had to leave, but my head was filled with memories now and not only with the stuff for the exam. The feeling of Kimi's lips still lingering on mine and back home, I didn't lose his presence either.

The tight learning schedule came back, but something had shifted. I started to do little tasks in between again, something to loosen everything up, even danced on the balcony in pouring rain just to have the memory of Kimi close.

And every few nights, he would call with FaceTime.

Maybe I didn't mean to fall, maybe I didn't accidentally fall in love, but now that I have experienced something that wasn't planned, I don't want to go back anymore. 

[lisziztaken]

In universe, my two main issues with this newest take on their dynamic:

There is a really in-depth (however rationally sound is whole other issue but I think effort and focus is the point here) discussion about Bruce’s motives and thoughts regarding each of the steps he takes in how/why he saves Joker’s life. You see the negotiation. And you sort of see more of how he looks at Joker and the impact of the injuries and the actions etc. Which is in an insanely stark clear contrast to when it comes to Jason. I’m not saying that we should be reliving the death of the second Robin every other Wednesday and by god I do not want to, but since this is the problem we are tackling and the storyline we are choosing to (re)visit, then it would feel pretty hollow for Bruce just go “you know it’s my fault and just take it out on me and call it a day”. It doesn’t make sense that there is so much less struggle in the decision to beat up/brutalize/shoot Jason, that all of it could be compressed into two pages.

DEAR LORD WHAT THE HELL “YOU KNOW IT’S MY FAULT I FAILED YOU I SHOULD HAVE PROTECTED YOU YOU WERE JUST A KID” sandwiched right in between shooting him in the face?? And throwing him into a car???? Why??? I’m not taking the route of “what kind of message are you trying to send with the gaslighting etc”, and the morality of the whole situation aside, just, the actions and the dialogues make no sense literally. Just looking at these panels now, it’s pissing me off. You have Bruce taking the first shot (in defense of the Joker. Again very interesting that we always prefer non-lethal/deescalating tactics but not when Jason is involved because manufactured conflicts but whatever), then the physical conformation, then AMIDST that he tried to change tactic, and Jason rejects the sudden change of course and physical comfort, thus the panels pin him as the aggregator, paving the way for another “Bruce tries his best Jason impulsively lashes out and refuses to look past something”. Once again at this point it’s not even about the direction of the story anymore, it’s how you choose to tell it. Like gaslight the character but own it??? If you want Bruce saying it’s all his fault to feel like a moment of truth and vulnerability and redemption, or even a tactic to solve the problem, then the storyboard should serve that purpose. At the moment it feels immensely like he’s trying to absolve his past and present and future actions by saying words and then not doing anything about it, and it’s hard to root for that. It’s hard to side with it. I knew what I was in for when I saw the cover yet I bought the comic 😭😭😭😭😭

Jason is the poster child for the child soldier problem of Robin but that doesn’t mean Jason himself believes that in-universe.

Really this feels like a cope on Bruce’s part. To be at fault for something is painful but it comes with the benefit of being able to fix or at least avoid the problem next time.

DC will never bother write Jason with enough depth to explore the idea but I really think he would never ever begrudge Bruce for making him Robin. Robin was everything to him. Hope, family, opportunity, agency. Yes it was dangerous but there’s a difference between facing danger for a purpose and dealing with it just to survive. Look at difference between Jason before Robin and afterwards. It’s truly a demonstration of how the effectiveness of nobility is a luxury the desperate are denied.

[obvithe-bestsoph]

poderia fazer um onde Pau Cubarsí é melhor amigo do irmão da leitora mas gosta dela?

brother's best friend.

masterlist requests word count: 1k+

a/n: request translation: "Could you make one where Pau Cubarsí is the reader's brother's best friend but likes her?" "yours, if you want me.", part 2, is now up! genre: fluff. brother's best friend. lamine's sister. summary: being the twin sister of the lamine yamal means that he's tried to teach you football all your life, and it's never worked, but maybe things are different when it's one of his teammates teaching you. warnings: none. kinda angsty? not really tho.

You’re used to Pau being around. 

Ever since Lamine joined La Masia, Pau had practically become part of the family. He was always at your house, kicking a ball around in the backyard, playing FIFA with your brother, sleeping over after games.

You didn’t think much of it at first. He was just another one of your brother’s many friends, tall and awkward and sweet in that boyish way.

But lately, it felt… different. 

You noticed how Pau’s eyes lingered a little too long when you walked into the room. How, sometimes, he stumbled over his words when you talked to him directly. How he always found a reason to sit next to you at the dining table, even if it meant switching chairs four times and making a million excuses.

You tried to ignore it. Tried. 

But it was hard when he looked at you like he wanted to say something that he couldn’t. 

The day the confession almost happened was the day Lamine dragged both of you out to a local park for a kick around.

“C’mon, just come with us,” he groaned. “It’s not the World Cup final, it’s just Pau and me. You can just stand there and look pretty or whatever.” Lamine, annoying as always, smears a hand across your face, making you bat his arm away and scoff.

“Gee, thanks,” you said dryly. 

Pau, following behind him, caught your eye and smiled slightly. “You’ll have fun. Ho prometo (i promise).” 

You rolled your eyes, but you went anyway, telling yourself that it was just to get some fresh air. Definitely not because Pau asked.

At the park, the boys immediately started juggling the ball back and forth between themselves, laughing and trash talking to each other. You sat on a nearby bench, reading a book and enjoying the sunlight, until you heard Pau shout out to you.

“Ei (hey)! Vine aquí (come here)!” 

You looked up. He was standing in the middle of the grass, ball tucked between his arm and waist, grinning. 

“I don’t play!” you called back.

“You don’t have to,” he said. “Just pass it.”

Reluctantly, you stood up, jogging towards the two of them, oddly nervous. You aren’t quite sure of why there are butterflies in your stomach as you get closer, Lamine’s attempted to teach you how to play a million times in your life, what’s different now?

When you reached them, Pau tossed you the ball lightly. You caught it (barely).

“Vale,” he said, stepping closer. “Rule number one: don’t be afraid of the ball.”

You frowned at him. “I’m not afraid.”

He laughed, that easy, low laugh you loved. “You flinched.”

“Did not.” “Did too.” “Did not.”

Your twin groaned once again, stealing the ball from your hands. “God, you two are worse than an old married couple.”

You and Pau froze, exchanging a glance so quick that it almost didn’t even happen.

Of course, Lamine didn’t notice; too busy juggling the ball between his feet. “I’m serious, though. Keep your eyes open. Ball control’s all about confidence.”

You tried to focus, but it was impossible with Pau hovering behind you so closely, quietly encouraging you, his hand brushing your arm ever so often like he couldn’t help himself. 

At one point, you missed a simple shot and groaned. “I suck.”

“You don’t,” Pau said instantly, voice firm. “You just need practice.”

You looked up at him, ready to roll your eyes, but he wasn’t teasing. He was looking at you like you were something special and precious.

Your breath caught for what felt like the millionth time that day. 

You were saved from saying something stupid by Lamine yelling about some competition with Pau, the two of them becoming busy again, leaving you standing there, your heart pounding. 

Later, after your brother had dropped to the grass in exhaustion, Pau wandered back over to you. 

“Hola,” he said, sitting down beside you.

“Hey,” you replied softly. 

The late afternoon sun gave his soft brown hair a golden tint, making him look so effortlessly beautiful, although, what’s new there?

“You were good today,” he spoke softly. 

“You’re a liar,” you said, but you smiled. 

He smiled too, showing all his teeth, happy. “Not lying.”

For a second, you just sat there. The sounds of the park faded around you - kids yelling at the playground nearby, dogs barking, the distant thud of a football being kicked.

It was just him. It was always just him.

“You’re different when he’s not looking,” you said, without really knowing where you were taking this.

Pau tilted his head, confused. “Què vols dir (what do you mean)?”

“You’re… brave,” you said. “But also softer.”

Pau looked away, picking at the grass between his fingers. When he spoke, his voice was quiet, almost a whisper.

“It’s easier when it’s just you.”

You swallowed hard. “Pau-”

“I know I’m not supposed to,” he said quickly, words tumbling out. “I know it’s, like… off-limits or whatever. You’re his twin sister. He’s one of my best friends. It’s messy.”

You stared at him, heart racing. 

“But I like you,” he said, finally meeting your eyes with his striking green ones. “I have for a long time.”

The world felt like it was spinning for a moment. The sun felt hotter. The grass felt softer. Your chest felt full and tight all at once. 

You opened your mouth to respond, but then Lamine yelled from across the field, “Oi, lovebirds! You coming?” 

You and Pau both flushed, knowing he was only teasing and had no idea what was actually going on, but the two of you scrambled to your feet like you’d been caught doing something illegal.

As you walked back, Pau kept a careful distance, not touching you, not looking at you. Like he was scared he’d crossed a line he couldn’t uncross. 

But when your hand brushed his by accident, you felt his fingers twitch toward yours, and yours to his. 

You didn't grab it. Not yet. But you would. Soon. 

Because maybe things were messy. 

But some messes are worth making.

Especially for Pau Cubarsí. "YOURS, IF YOU WANT ME." HERE

[toasttt11]

gold

April 18, 2023

Allison walked down the hallways of the hotel towards the room that Quinn just told her.

Quinn decided to come out to Switzerland for Allison and her tournament as their parents are with Luke and Jack and he wanted to spend some time with his sister but also didn’t want her to be alone so he came out to Switzerland once his season was finished.

Allison knocked on the door and she smiled as the door opened and she saw her brother, it’s been to long since they last saw each other.

Quinn’s face softened smiling softly at his baby sister who looks older and more grown up every time he sees her now, he stepped forward pulling her into a hug and blinked realizing she was taller than him now, “Who let you get this tall.” Quinn teased bittersweetly as he gently kissed the side of her head.

“The genes you and Jack clearly didn’t get.” Allison quipped back smiling softly to herself squeezing him tightly. Quinn laughed fondly at her quip and just squeezed her tighter.

They eventually let go of each other and Allison immediately flopped onto Quinn’s bed and he just smiled and fell onto the bed next to her, “So tell me everything.” Quinn nudged her softly, he is pretty caught up in her life from their face times but he liked hearing more about the things in person.

Allison smiled and started rambling.

And that’s exactly how they spent the rest of the night until the Devils game, game one against the Rangers and they watched the game together.

April 20, 2023

Allison was sitting in her stall in between Zeev and Gabe as always getting ready for their first game against Latvia.

Allison laughed softly as Zeev leaned over randomly bonking his helmet to her head softly as they stood up.

Zeev shook her shoulders crazily making Gabe laugh and help Allison to stop getting shook around.

Zeev just grinned at the look she shot him.

Allison stepped onto the ice and looked towards where she knew Quinn would be and shook her head softly seeing him wearing a USA hat with her number and he waved at her as they made eye contact and she softly waved back.

Will bumped into Allison’s back on purpose nudging his helmet to the back of her helmet making her just shake her head fondly and reached back patting his helmet like a dog making Gabe who was standing next to them laugh.

The game started and Allison was mostly skating on a line with James and Cole and she didn’t mind, the two are fun to play with.

US won game one 7-1 and Allison ended the game with two goals and two assists.

April 23, 2023

Allison was skating in her third game in the tournament against Finland and it was the beginning of the second period with the scored tied 2-2.

Allison felt a harsh pull on her ponytail that sent her backwards and she twisted before she hit the floor landing on the knees.

Zeev was there first and shoved the player away so fast, “What the hell man!” Zeev barked harshly.

Ryan skated over and pushed away another Finland player that was skating over.

Allison grumbled as she stood up and she crossed checked the player in the back, she couldn’t care less if she got a penalty.

Allison, Ryan and Zeev all were caught in the scrum and were clearly fighting better than the three Finland players.

The referees broke up the fight and Allison, Ryan and Zeev were all letting out protests as they were brought to the box and only two Finland players were brought for the box.

Allison sat in between Ryan and Zeev on the bench in the penalty and tossed her helmet off rubbing her head.

“You okay?” Ryan asked looking concerned as he glanced at the back of her head, she was pulled harshly at her hair.

“Just sore.” Allison reassured and Zeev patted her thigh.

Allison perked up and looked proud seeing James going on the ice for the penalty kill, penalty kill is her job but she has been working a lot work James on it in case she is in the box.

Allison stood up cheering as James just got a short handed goal and he looked cowed grinning at Allison and she gave him a proud nod.

Allison patted James a bunch as she sat back on the bench next to him giving him a proud nudge.

US won that game 8-4.

April 24, 2024

It was Allison’s first day off and she wanted to do the list of things she made with Nico. She of course dragged Quinn with her for the say, not that he minded he enjoys the time he gets with his sister.

They started morning off at a small coffee shop Nico recommended and got a nice breakfast and coffee.

Soon after Allison and Quinn started walking around the streets looking around and going into a lot of stores and little places that were on Allison’s list.

Quinn smiled softly watching Allison look so excited as she found her favorite candies that Nico introduced to her and always brings her.

Quinn laughed watching how much of the candies Allison ended up buying and she bought a bunch of new things to try and to bring back home especially for Luke.

Allison hummed softly as she immediately popped a lemon drop in her mouth the second they walked out of the store and offered one to Quinn.

They continued walking.

The sun was setting and Allison ended up seeing everything on her list, this list was made with Nico specifically for where she was staying.

“Thanks for doing this with me.” Allison softly nudged Quinn as they walked down the cobble stone after their dinner and they were heading back to the hotel.

“Of course.” Quinn wrapped his arm around her shoulders pulling her closer.

Allison smiled to herself leaning into her brother’s side.

April 29, 2023

Allison rolled her shoulders as she sat back down on the bench after a shift.

USA was playing against Slovakia and the winner would be advancing to the gold medal game so the game was very physical.

Allison had gotten the first goal of the game only two minutes in the first period.

Allison hopped over the boards as US was now on the penalty kill and she is always out for the kill, more often than not ends up playing almost all of the kill every time.

There was fifteen seconds let of the penalty kill and Allison quickly got a breakaway and backhanded the goal into the net getting her second goal and a short handed.

US got a power play the last minute of the first period, Will won the face off and passed right to Allison and Alison hit a one timer getting a goal.

Allison just got another hat trick in the tournament, all three goals in the first period and all three different type of goals.

Allison laughed as Will jumped on her first almost knocking them both over and Ryan caught them both as he hugged them.

US was leading 3-0 heading into the second and by the end of the second was still leading 5-1.

James was skating on the ice for a shift towards the end of the third period when he noticed the dirty hit on Allison, again. He skated over and cross checked the player away from Allison.

James quickly was getting into a scuffle with the player and Allison and Zeev managed to pull James away before he actually started fighting and was kicked out.

“Don’t.” Allison said sternly as she ignored the other player yelling at James.

“But-“ James protested not liking the way his friend is being treated.

“Want to help me? Stay on the ice.” Allison just told him as she closed the penalty box door making sure James doesn’t continue his fight.

James quickly nodded greeting with what she asked, “Okay.”

Allison nodded back and skated back to the bench.

James scored a goal once he was out the box and Allison patted his head proudly.

USA won 7-1 and were heading to the gold medal game.

April 30, 2023

Allison sat in her stall looking around at her team, most of the team she’s been playing with for the last two years.

She was getting lucky with how many of her teammates were going to BC but Zeev would be in Denver. A bunch of her teammates would still be at NTDP for another year. And who knows who will be playing at the WJC next year so as of now this could be the last time she plays with some of her friends.

Allison fondly rolled her eyes as she was finishing braiding her hair, a ponytail and the ponytail in three separate braids and Ryan gently ruffled her hair as he walked by her.

She tucked her necklace under the compression long sleeve and her bracelet under the sleeve before grabbing her gloves and standing up.

First two periods was now how Allison wanted them to be, US was down 0-2 heading into the third.

Allison dropped her head in relief as her shot finally went in the net and US finely had a goal with ten minutes left to get a second

James and Cole crashed into her first hugging her.

US got the second goal tying the game up with four minutes left.

Will got a penalty with two minutes left and US was on the penalty kill for the last two minutes of the third period in gold medal game. Luckily US had the best penalty kill out of the entire tournament.

Sweden didn’t even get one shot on goal went the buzzer ran, they were going to OT.

Allison had been the on the ice for over a minute as James and Zeev both shifted off and Ryan and Hutson got on the ice, two minutes into OT.

Hutson got the rebound and passed to Allison, Allison passed the puck down the ice right in front of Ryan. Ryan hit the puck and got the gold.

US won the gold medal game.

Ryan crashed right into Allison screaming loudly and Hutson crashed into Allison from behind. 
The rink echoed with screams and the entire US team was on the ice jumping on each other happily.

Allison made eye contact with Gabe and they shared a beaming smile as Will bonked his helmet to Ryan’s.

Once the giant huddled slowly broke apart Zeev was tackling Ryan and Allison to the ice and Gabe and Will quickly joined the hug pile on the ice. All of them laughing and smiling and soaking in their moment.

Allison was beaming as she looked at her team, she got her gold medal. If this is her last game with her team, it was the most perfect game and a game she would forever remember.

[anadrym]

Extended Author's Notes for Left Behind Ch17.

Spoilers!

Chapter title is from "Cascade" by Satron Paint Samuel. Very pretty song. :)

At 5590 words, this is the longest chapter so far! It will be dethroned by the next one, which is pushing 7k.

I feel like I keep making Cait touch Vi's tattoo, but like. Of course she does. It's her name, the name they tried to turn into a number but couldn't. And names have kinda become a thing in this fic. Caitlyn and Ghost, Vi and Number 6 / "the girl", [REDACTED] and [REDACTED], etc.

And, of course, one of the first things Caitlyn tells Petra is Vi's name. :')

Okay, so the whole part with Caitlyn panicking about the serum and whether it's keeping Vi alive? That was all added later. I'll admit, I originally forgot to address it until y'all brought it up in the comments a few chapters back. I couldn't find a place to fit it sooner, which ended up working out. Cait was too preoccupied with getting them out to consider it, so she didn't think about it until she was safe enough.

So, I don't know if this is a big reveal or anything, but... The Baroness completely misled Caitlyn (and you guys). The serum they've been using in Maintenance is entirely to keep Vi under control. It has absolutely nothing to do with Vi's revival after being shot. That was achieved via a different serum, which has not been necessary since.

Also, I love Petra just cutting off that downward spiral by calling bullshit. It's a conclusion Caitlyn would have come to on her own if it wasn't her partner's life that she was fretting over.

During her realization, Caitlyn goes absolutely still - no blinking, barely breathing, staring blankly into the distance - which is why Petra looks so unnerved.

Vi's head injury (from the bullet) is completely healed. It is not affecting her ability to understand speech or anything. That's entirely the control serum (an unintended side effect that the Baroness happily took advantage of). So, as soon as they can get the serum out of her system, she'll be able to start verbally communicating again.

They will end up doing a series of blood transfusions. We're not going to see them (I'm tired of Vi being unconscious, so we'll be back with her next chapter), but they happen and they help.

I don't like writing hospitals. I don't know how they work and I'm honestly not quite interested enough to find out. So I will avoid them as much as possible in my writing. That's why Caitlyn refuses. Luckily, Petra knows someone who knows someone.

Petra sees how pale Caitlyn is, sees that her hands are shaking, and realizes that Caitlyn needs to eat and drink. She doesn't say anything until after all of Vi's wounds are bandaged because she knows Cait won't even listen until then.

The bruising from the restraints is on Vi's wrists and ankles; since the injuries are on the insides of her elbows and thighs, Petra isn't too worried about bandages there triggering something. She has to ask about Vi's neck because she doesn't want to risk it.

(I want to write a fic where Vi is collared. The guard dog imagery is just too good to pass up.)

Oh, I am never going to get enough of side characters calling Vi and Caitlyn each other's "girl." There's just something about "your girl." The recognition of their complete and utter devotion to each other, to the point of possession and codependence? Maybe?

I think it's really good that Petra calls Caitlyn out here. 'Do you trust me or not? If you came here for help, then let me help you.' She knows Caitlyn is still in survival mode, where she can't trust anyone, and she's telling her that she made it. She doesn't have to just keep surviving. She's safe now, and she can let herself feel all the things she's been surpressing. She can let someone else take over for a bit. She can focus on healing.

I was having so much trouble keeping track of who was on which side of the bed. I'll have to sketch it later.

Caitlyn keeps touching Vi lightly, afraid of waking her or triggering her or hurting her. And Vi keeps pressing into the touches. Cait is focused (for now) on the physical wounds. By Vi is used to hurting; she just wants the comfort of a touch without the intent to harm.

Cait is still in survival mode. Everything is a potential threat. Which is why she reaches for her gun when Petra comes back into the room. Petra can tell that Cait still needs time to let go of that defensiveness, so she doesn't hold it against her.

I originally had Petra give Caitlyn a glass of water, but when I was editing, I was like, "Oh, wait, she has low blood sugar! She needs some juice!"

Hooray! She's eaten one (1) whole sandwich! She's had water and juice! Yay!

Yes, Petra is actively trying to give Caitlyn even the smallest sense of normalcy that she can.

Petra giving them clothes makes me think of Captain Shakespeare in Stardust. :)

A new problem comes to light. If Vi hasn't eaten in years, then her digestive system absolutely has to be eased back into functioning. Which means that they'll have to keep administering nutrients and fluids intravenously. I'm sure that won't freak Vi out at all.

Petra absolutely has done this before. Caitlyn will find out more about it during the very brief timeskip between this chapter and the next. You guys will learn about it when Vi does.

Petra remembered Caitlyn's name! She's gonna keep calling her 'Ghost' though, until Cait says otherwise. She only uses 'Caitlyn' now because she's desperate for Cait to let someone to help her, even if it's just for ten minutes.

Mmm, and the recognition that the separation anxiety is two-sided. A well-warranted, though frankly unhealthy, amount of codependence. (They'll work on it.)

Caitlyn's reflection kinda makes the 'Ghost' moniker a little too fitting.

Cait leaves her dirty clothes in the bathroom. Petra will run them through the laundry and will find Tobias' ring. Just for everyone keeping track of where it is. ;)

Hell yeah! Emotional breakdown in the shower! Write what you fucking know!

Leave Caitlyn alone and unsupervised and she will go through your cabinets and steal your unused toothbrushes.

Survival mode again. Caitlyn trusts Petra, but still almost panics when the woman is between her and Vi (bear behavior), and when she can't see what she's doing. Logic vs. Fear.

Vi will get her earrings back, don't worry. One of you pointed out that they're all she has left from before the Purge and it almost made me cry.

Cait: I have to protect Vi, I can't let anyone touch her, she's hurt and I can't risk anyone else getting close. Also Caitlyn: Yeah, sure, I'll take these drugs without even knowing what they are.

So, apparently, you're not supposed to lie down if you have broken ribs??? I didn't know this. That's the main reason I made Caitlyn's injury less severe; she needs to be able to cuddle.

Petra, knowing how stubborn Caitlyn is and seeing the results of Vi's will to survive: "...I honestly can't imagine a world in which she doesn't recover."

I wanted them to cuddle! I'm so mad at myself! I damaged Caitlyn's ribs and inadvertantly sabotaged myself! Fuck! >:(

Gonna fucking make them hold hands instead. Damn it. I wanted them to cuddle. :(

Kissing your partner's hands, my beloved. (Especially when those hands have been forced to do terrible things.)

Teaser for next (next) week:

Her hair is messy, falling out of her loose, lopsided ponytail. Her clothes are rumpled. There are lines on the side of her face where the folds of the blanket have left their impressions in her skin. It's so beautiful and imperfect and Caitlyn.

Vi's heart cracks open inside her chest, something molten bleeding out of it. There is so much she wants to say, but all of it gets caught in the dry desert of her throat.

You came back. You found me. I missed you. I love you.

[that-kid-from-vault-101]

He watches as she checks over the pistol, a muscle-memory process born of plenty of repetition and necessity. He’s prepared, for a moment, to duck, dodge, or take a round to his armor plate, but it doesn’t come. He relaxes a bit when she tucks it, giving a small nod, mostly to himself.

Her hotel comment wrangles a snort from him, as he looks back at the place he’d prepared to be as comfortable as possible for her. He reckons it’s probably been a long time since she’d stayed in a place that could be described as safe, much less comfortable.

“Yeah, sorry I don’t have a little mint to leave on your pillow.” He jokes, favoring her with a small smile that twinkles in his eyes. Genuine, not guarded by distrust or caution. “I am pretty sure I have a flamethrower around here somewhere though. I’ll show you when you’re on your feet.”

She slumps, and instinctively his hands twitch to catch her, though he manages to fight down the reflex. Her thanks catches him off guard, and he’s silent for a moment before giving her a small nod.

“You’re welcome. I’m going to pick you up now.”

Slowly, carefully, he loops an arm around her back, another under her knees, just as he’d carried her to his table before. Less urgency, more care, as he lifts her like he weighs nothing at all, a few steps carrying them over to the couch, where he lays her down, careful of her leg. It’s old, but well broken in and comfortable, the kind of couch that’s seen many a birthday and wake alike.

“Alright. Let me know how you want to do this, okay?”

He leans over and grabs his vial of penicillin, holding it up between two fingers.

“This is penicillin, it’s the antibiotic you need to fight the infection you’ve got. I can give you a shot in the arm, which is how I have it to you the first time, or I think I have some pills mixed up around here. I can give some to myself to assure you it isn’t anything harmful if you really want -that might cause me problems down the line, but I’ll do it.

I also recommend some kind of painkiller. I make my own morphine, which is what you got, but I’m pretty sure I have some expired acetaminophen around here.”

She pressed herself into the corner like a wounded stray—back curled, knees drawn, one hand clenched tight around the blanket that failed to stop the cold drilling through her skin. Her pulse was sluggish, thready. Blood loss had hollowed her out, made her skin waxy and pale despite the fever that still clung to her cheeks.

When Aaron moved toward her, she didn’t flinch. Didn’t lash out. But every muscle in her body pulled taut, breath caught in her chest like a hiccup made of glass. She watched him the way prey watches a predator—uncertain, exhausted, but not yet ready to give up.

No blade. No fist. Just wide eyes and shallow breathing.

Her head lolled slightly as he approached, and even though she was grateful to see his hands, to know he wasn’t hiding a syringe or worse, her vision kept pulling sideways. The benzos were still there, still clouding her thoughts, tugging at the edges of her mind like vines trying to drag her back under. Her limbs felt like they belonged to someone else. Her heart tried to keep pace, but each beat echoed slow and dull behind her ears.

She tried to swallow but the saliva stuck like paste to her throat.

The cold made her teeth chatter, though not as violently as before. It was quieter now. Rhythmic. Like her body was settling into survival mode, conserving what little it had left.

He handed her the pistol.

For a moment, she stared at it, vision double. But instinct cut through the fog, her fingers curling around the grip. She checked it by feel—slide, chamber, safety. Mechanical muscle memory kicked in even as her hands trembled from weakness. That was enough to give her a thread of control. Of grounding. He hadn’t tampered with it. That mattered more than she could say.

Her voice cracked on the edge of dry laughter as he explained what came next—movement, meds, rest. The couch sounded like heaven. And the mention of rest made her knees give slightly beneath the blanket as if her body was already trying to surrender.

“I feel like this is five-star living,” she rasped, lips twitching into something that might’ve been a smirk if it wasn’t so faint. “Just needs turn-down service… and maybe a flamethrower.”

Her body was breaking down beneath her, but she still clung to sarcasm like a lifeline.

She slumped a little as the dizziness doubled down. Her eyelids fluttered, unable to hold themselves open for long stretches. It was like trying to walk through water—slow, syrupy, and wrong. Her grip on the gun weakened before she tucked it against her side, one arm draped protectively over it.

“Thanks…” she murmured, barely audible now. Not for the gun. Not for the stitches. Not even for the meds.

For not leaving.

Because even if her pride wouldn’t let her say it, she knew damn well: if he had left her alone down here, she wouldn’t have survived the night.

[coconut530]

I CANNNNNNOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTTT THEY’RE AMAZING 🩷🐦‍⬛🖤

Other WTs today: