#Nothing more to say here I just got it and I need to think for a bit before doing anything else
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catboybiologist · 3 days ago
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Yay I'm going to get all Political and angry again.
So pretty much every trans American is probably aware of the Sarah McBride situation at this point, but here's the bullet point summary if needed for anyone else:
Sarah McBride gets elected to the House as the first transgender member of Congress in US history.
Republicans predictably flip their shit. They pass internal rules of conduct that prohibit trans people from using bathrooms of their gender and stating that bathroom use is defined by AGAB. It obviously singles out McBride, but I believe there are trans staffers that are also affected.
McBride issues a statement that she will abide by these rules, and pretty much only use the bathroom directly associated with her physical office. She issues a statement saying she "wasn't elected for bathrooms" and will instead fight in issues that matter, with a milquetoast criticism of Republicans for wasting time on this.
Many trans Americans are predictably scared and disappointed by this, especially because this internal house rule is being used as a blueprint for more extensive laws, including a likely ban on trans people in gendered bathrooms in all federal land and buildings (including, notably for me, national parks. Which breaks my heart, but that's a different rant.)
There's been a lot of disappointment and criticism of McBride over this. The general leftist reaction has been criticism. There's lots of people that have expressed disappointment or rage, including Erin Reed, and also more "personality" type people like Vaush and Jessie Gender.
Now.
I'm disappointed too.
But. And please keep reading before chewing me out for being an apologist.
I think we can all understand that McBride is in an impossible situation. If she fights this too hard, then it vindicates the Republican rhetoric that Dems are crazy trans obsessed leftists. But there's a fear that this will only lead to more infringements of rights for trans people. McBride is completely stuck, and is a junior, freshly elected member of Congress who is trying to figure out how to make her voice the most effective.
I am so, so fucking tired of rights being ceded one by one. So I'm disappointed. But yeah, I understand McBride's statement.
But there's just one tiny. Eeny weeny. Minor. Itty Bitty question having over all of this. Just one little concern.
Where.
The fuck.
Are the rest of the Democrats?!?!?!?
There is a PAINFULLY fucking easy solution to all of this. McBride needs backing, solidarity, and other people to speak for her. If she's worried about her voice being effective, and being branded as the crazy trans representative, then step the fucking up, you spineless liberal slimebags.
AOC is the only one that I know of that has expressed any real opposition or anger. Her statements are getting aaallll the airtime.
But the real story is McBride's sentiment being echoed amongst the entire party. This is absolutely some kind of official platform. The fucking grumbling, milquetoast finger waving and "well I don't like this, but there's nothing to be done! Anyways"
Of fucking course minorites are abandoning the left. The message they're sending is "we'll abandon you with the most pathetic of excuses. We don't give a shit." Trimming groups out of their support one by one.
McBride is doing the impossible calculus of trying to be the most effective on the house floor. It's an insane task for a trans woman. And yeah, she got it wrong this time. But where the fuck is the anger for her cis colleagues? Why the fuck aren't people angry and terrified for everyone that let this shit happen?
As much as people love the narrative of the line wolf resistor, resistance takes coordination, effort, and solidarity. Without that, what would McBride raising opposition even be? One representative against the hundreds of others.
And yeah, of course I didn't expect any better from the Democratic party. But you should be disappointed and mad at your representative, not just McBride.
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whoreforsexymen · 3 days ago
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Guess who just finished acrane and is writing this with actual tears on my face!!! I need some Vander fluff- i think i will emplode- it doesnt even have to be anything specific i just need comfort after that shit storm 😭
Yes my child. Mommy will make good on your request.
And don’t even get me started on S2. I can’t bring myself to watch it yet. I’m still not even over S1 and I KNOW for a fact it’s not even as sad as I’ve learned S2 is.
But shhhhh, Mommy’s got you. Here’s the fluff you asked for.
Piltover’s Got Nothin’ On You | Vander Fluff Flash 🍺🤎
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(GIF cred: me <3)
Pairings: Vander x GN!Reader
Pronouns: No pronouns used.
Rating: Slight NSFW because Reader and Vander are presumably half naked in bed, so 18+!! MDNI !! You WILL be blocked
Word Count: 524
Summary: Vander is enjoying a nice cozy morning with you, and reminds you exactly how he feels.
Tags: A little spicy, just because it’s a little maturely themed if you whip out a magnifying glass, Fluff, Tooth Rotting Fluff, Domesticity W/ Vander, OoeyGooeyRomance
Notes: None, just enjoy. Take a breather. 🤍
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“Would I lie to you?” The question hung in the air, light yet loaded with meaning. It was enough to send a familiar flutter through your stomach, a soft, nervous twinge that made your heart skip. The sensation was strangely uncomfortable, yet in the most endearing way—like a gentle reminder of how much he could still make you feel, even in the simplest of moments.
You lay atop the man you were speaking to, both of you bare-chested, the warmth of your skin pressing together in an effortlessly comforting way. The coolness of the morning air was a distant contrast to the heat between you, a calm presence that made the moment feel serene to say the least. His steady breathing beneath you gave the moment a gentle rhythm, and for a while, there was nothing but the simple unspoken connection between you both before you responded.
“Maybe. Depends.” You tease, your words playful but laced with a hint of mischief.
His response is immediate—his large hand slipping into yours with a quiet sense of contentment, the warmth of his grip grounding you. There’s a comfort in the way he holds you, as if, in this moment, the world outside doesn’t matter. His touch speaks volumes, the unspoken understanding between you both more powerful than anything words could convey.
“Someone clearly thinks highly of me,” he teases back, a playful smirk tugging at his lips. Before you can answer, he leans down and places a soft, lingering kiss on your forehead, his touch tender and full of quiet affection. The sweetness of the gesture catches you off guard, a simple act that somehow feels like the most genuine expression of his feelings—a quiet reminder of how deeply he cares.
You smile, a soft laugh slipping from your lips.
“All I was saying is that, as much as Piltover has its minor flaws—“ you begin, your voice light with amusement as you’re stopped short.
“Appalling flaws, really. Humongous, towering flaws,” he interrupts playfully, his tone teasing as he presses a gentle kiss to the back of your hand, still held firmly in his.
You can’t help but laugh at his wit.
“Yes, huge, appalling flaws. But despite all that, Topside is stunning at night. The lights here are beautiful, too, but nothing compares to the glow of Piltover.” You add, trying to make your point clear: a city’s beauty can stand on its own, no matter what darkness might lurk behind the scenes.
He regards you for a long while, his gaze lingering on your face with an amusement that never quite fades. The seconds stretch on, almost too long—what might seem like a few moments in the world’s rhythm becomes an eternity in his eyes. Each shift in your expression, each subtle change in your posture, draws him in, holding his attention as if time itself has slowed. And yet, even as eternity unfolds, it’s still not enough. To him, no amount of time could ever truly capture all he wants to see.
“That may be true,” he says, his voice steady, the smirk never quite leaving his face.
“But Piltover’s got nothin’ on you.”
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ha-rinrin · 2 days ago
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Holding On
WARNING: This definitely counts as spoiler for act 3.
Summary: Jinx thinks she too far gone, but you think exactly the opposite.
Pairing: Jinx x fem!reader
Wordcount: 829
Authors note: I decided to cope with writing so I'm back guys :)
masterlist
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The air was thick with tension, the faint hum of the explosives making everything feel heavier. Jinx stood in the center of the room, her body trembling with the weight of her thoughts. The bomb was in her hands—its cruel, ticking countdown echoing through her head, matching the frantic pace of her heartbeat.
She looked at the device, her eyes wild with something darker than madness. Her fingers were just inches away from pulling the trigger. The detonator. The end. She could feel it. The destruction. The chaos.
But there was something else too. Something so faint, you almost missed it—a desperation that even Jinx couldn't hide.
You didn’t know how you got here, only that you had to get to her before it was too late. Your heart pounded in your chest as you rushed into the room, your eyes locking onto her figure.
"Jinx!" you called, your voice strong, breaking through the sound of the countdown. She didn't look up. Not at first.
"Don't even think about it," you said, your voice sharper now, cutting through the tense silence that had surrounded her. You knew you were running out of time.
Her head snapped up, her eyes filled with something you couldn't read, a whirlwind of anger, pain, and confusion. The bomb was still in her hands, her fingers trembling, but she didn’t move.
"You think you can stop me?" she whispered, her voice hoarse, raw. "You think I care?"
You took a step closer, your hands raised in a gesture of caution, but your resolve was unwavering. "I care, Jinx. I care more than you know. But this… this isn't you."
Her lips curled into a bitter smile, but her eyes betrayed her. They were glassy, unfocused. "Who else am I supposed to be, huh?" The words were jagged, broken, just like her. "I’ve lost everyone. I don’t even know who I am anymore."
"You're Jinx," you said, your voice softening as you took another step forward. "You're the girl I… I can’t lose, not like this." You swallowed, your heart aching with every word you spoke. "Please, put the bomb down."
For a long moment, she just stood there, her face unreadable, as though trying to make sense of the chaos in her mind. Then she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper, but you heard it clearly.
"You’ve been the best girlfriend… the best person in my life. You know that, right?" Her hand trembled, but she didn't pull away. Her eyes didn’t meet yours as she spoke, but you could see the hint of something breaking in her gaze. "I’m sorry… but I don't think I can keep going like this. I don't know how much more of me you can take."
"Jinx, no…" you breathed, stepping closer, your heart pounding as the weight of her words hit you.
"You deserve someone who can be whole," she continued, her voice cracking, the words spilling out before she could stop them. "You deserve someone who can… stay. I don’t even know who I am anymore. But you—" She stopped, shaking her head, a faint laugh escaping her lips, bitter and broken. "You were everything. Thank you. Thank you for everything."
"Don’t you dare," you whispered, your voice trembling. "Don’t you dare say goodbye. Not like this."
Her hand tightened on the detonator again, her fingers almost convulsing, but she was silent, the look in her eyes telling you more than any words could.
You couldn’t let her go, not like this.
“Please, Jinx,” you whispered desperately, your voice barely audible. "I need you. I love you. I can’t lose you. You don’t have to do this. You’re worth so much more than all of this. We’ll figure it out together. Please."
She looked at you then, her lips trembling, her eyes glossy with unshed tears. The bomb in her hand felt like nothing compared to the weight of the emotion that filled the room. She slowly lowered the detonator, her hands shaking as she clutched it loosely, a faint tremble passing through her.
"I'm too far gone," she said, barely above a whisper, her voice breaking. "But maybe... maybe I still have something left. I can't leave you alone"
You reached for her then, slowly, gently. She didn't flinch as you took her hand in yours, her fingers cold but now gripping you back, even if just a little.
"I can't let you go," you said softly, your voice trembling but firm. "Please... don't leave me like this."
For the first time in what felt like forever, she let herself lean against you, her body trembling. The bomb was still in her hand, but she wasn’t holding onto it anymore.
"I don't deserve you," she whispered, her voice barely a breath.
And for once, there was no chaos. Just the fragile thread of connection between you, something both of you clung to as if it could mend the broken pieces. "You deserve everything," you murmured, your voice steady and sure. "And I’ll be here to remind you of that, every step of the way."
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chestersturniolo · 3 days ago
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good cop , bad cop
Matt Sturniolo x fem!reader x Chris Sturniolo
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Summary; You have been a moody guts all day. Matt goes straight to comforting mode.. Chris, not so much
disclaimer; Chratt poly relationship dynamic! if you are not comfortable with this, do not read // suggestive // pet names // most likely a one shot.. based on this request
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You flop onto the couch with an exaggerated huff, crossing your arms over your chest. Your irritation at an all time high for no real reason. It’s been one of those days, and it feels like nothing is going your way.
Matts attention is caught by your dramatics, he glances over from where he sat on the other side of the couch. “Hey-” he says softly “-what’s wrong sweetheart? You’ve been in a mood since this morning” his voiced concerned
You groan dramatically, rolling your eyes. “Nothing. I’m fine.” you snap,
Matt frowns, “C’mon, talk to me. Did something happen? Did I do something?” His voice is still patient, gentle, but for some reason it only makes you more annoyed.
“Ugh, Matt can you not?-” you sass back. “-I said I’m fine. Why can’t you just leave it alone?”
Before Matt can respond, Chris speaks up from the kitchen, his voice cutting through your tantrum “Alright, that’s enough” he says firmly, turning to face you. His blue eyes locking onto yours,. “What’s with the attitude, kid? You’ve been whinin’ n actin’ like a little brat all day”
Your eyebrows immediately raise, taken back by his tone.
“Chris!” Matt snaps, shooting him a disapproving look. “Don’t talk to her like that, she’s just—”
“She’s just what?” Chris interrupts, standing his ground. “Throwing a tantrum because she’s gotten herself all worked up for no reason? Don’t coddle her, Matt. It’s not helping.”
You glare at him, but Chris doesn’t waver. “look I get that you’re not in the best of moods today-” he says, his tone softening just a little “-but that doesn’t mean you get to take it out on us. We’re here to help you, not be your punching bags kid”
Matt sighs, running a hand through his hair “You didn’t have to put it like that” he mutters, clearly torn between defending you and acknowledging Chris has a point.
“Maybe not-“ Chris concedes, his gaze flicking back to you “-but she needed to hear it”
You shift in your seat with an subtle eye roll. Chris wasn’t wrong…you had been a little over the top today. But still, his bluntness stings.
Matt scoots over to you on the couch, his hand resting gently on your knee. “listen-” he says softly “-whenever something’s bothering you, just tell us, okay? We can talk anything out”
“Yeah-“ chris starts in agreement, making his way over to the couch “-we’ve got your back ma, next time lose the attitude, huh?” he says,crossing his arms as he stands infront of you
You sigh, the fight draining out of you as you mumble, “Okay, m’sorry” feeling slightly guilty
Matt smiles, giving your knee a reassuring squeeze. Chris smirks, tossing a wink your way “There’s our girl”
Your lips instinctively curl upward at his coo..you’d always found it quite hard to stay mad at them for long periods of time. They had this way of breaking your attitude down, sometimes without even trying. You let out another small sigh, “i think i’ve just been a little stressed lately that’s all..” you say honestly, your eyes flickering between them both.
Matt clicks his tongue “ah baby, why didn’t you say so? i know just the thing for that..” he says before throwing a glance to chris with a smirk. They share a quick knowing look before Chris’ smirk forms also, knowing exactly what his brother is getting at.
Before you could process what was happening, Chris leans down, scooping you up off the couch. You let out a surprise squeal as he hoists you up and slings you over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, before placing a firm smack to your ass as he starts walking off toward Matts room.
“Where are we going” you giggle,lifting your head slightly to see Matts figure following closely behind
“We’re going to relieve all that stress of yours baby-“ Matt mumbles, wetting his bottom lip, his hand coming down to unbuckle his belt as he walks “-jus’ relax, we’re gonna take good care of you hmm?”
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MASTERLIST LINKED HERE
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dwobbitfromtheshire · 2 days ago
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They talked about this before it started, that if it got to be much for anything, they would talk about it. Steve would understand. He always did, especially since he was afraid himself. Eddie's panic attacks were happening more frequently, and what happened over spring break was still fresh in everyone's minds. It was difficult for Eddie to breathe, and Steve knew it was coming, and Eddie did too. They could feel it when they touched, kissed, and fucked. They were already mourning a relationship that was never supposed to be serious in the first place. The next morning, Eddie told him that his band wanted to go on the road.
"I figured," Steve said, picking at his blanket.
"You're not mad?" Eddie asked.
"Of course not," Steve said. "This town is killing you, Eddie, I couldn't ask you to stay."
"You could ask," Eddie shrugged.
"You wouldn't say yes, and I wouldn't want you to resent me for staying," Steve said.
"You could come with me," Eddie said.
"You know that I can't leave the kids until they graduate," Steve said.
"And I can?" Eddie asked.
"Yes," Steve said. "You want to go. Do you want to go?"
"I do," Eddie said, swallowing thickly.
"I don't want to hold you back," Steve replied.
"You could never," Eddie said and paused. "I suppose you really can't have it all. You're right, I suppose I can't stay. I know I should have said. . .but I guess you could already tell. This town is killing me and not even you - which is crazy because you're Steve fucking Harrington. You're the most beautiful man alive. Inside and out."
Steve pulled him into a deep kiss, pouring everything he had into it. He could taste salty tears on his tongue. He couldn't tell who was crying more. Steve pulled back with a gasp.
"Eddie, I - " Steve closed his mouth and said nothing.
The next day, they said another goodbye, this time in front of everyone. It wasn't nearly as intimate. No one knew they were fucking. They had still been figuring things out about themselves, and Eddie hadn't been quite ready to label himself or tell anyone. Steve couldn't even tell Robin. The day after Eddie left, Steve took off to another bar outside of Hawkins. He couldn't go to the Hideout, too many memories, and he couldn't explain to people why he was drowning his sorrows. Steve was having a lot more difficult time than he had thought he would, and he respected Eddie's choice but it was killing him that he was gone, that there was an empty spot in his bed. He couldn't even tell Robin why he was so heartbroken. The best thing about this bar was that it was attached to a motel, so he was planning on getting drunk and finding his way to the room he rented. Of course, that's where he met Tiffany, who was just as heartbroken as he was. . .
"Steve, Steeeeve," Robin sang.
"Ugh, Robin, go away, my head is killing me," Steve said.
"Yeah, that's probably because you drank half the motel bar," Robin said.
"How are you here?" He asked, burying his head deeper into the pillow.
"You gave the girl you slept with my phone number, and you told her to let me know if you accidentally died," Robin said.
"I'm not dead," Steve groaned.
"No, but you look it," Robin scoffed. "You're going to need to check out soon."
"Where's - " Steve asked, looking up. "Tiffany?"
"Yeah. She left," Robin said.
"That's probably good for her," Steve said. "Ooh. I'm going to puke. Yeah, no, wait - yeah, I'm going puke."
He slipped out of the bed, butt naked, and ran to the bathroom to empty the contents of his stomach.
"Jesus, what the hell? I thought you were done with one night stands?" Robin asked.
"I just - yeah, I mean, I was but then - FUCK!" Steve yelled and then he burst into tears.
Robin frowned and grabbed a sheet of the bed, tossing it over him. She cleaned his mouth, sat on the floor, and pulled his head into her lap.
"Steve?" Robin asked. "I know you and Eddie have gotten close, but I didn't think you'd be this upset that he left. Jesus, how are you going to handle me going off to college? Shit, I put my foot in my mouth again, didn't I? Was that a little insensitive? Steve?"
"I'm in love with him," Steve sobbed, and then everything came pouring out. "I'm sorry and shit, I think I need to apologize to Eddie because I shouldn't have told you."
"Hey, hey, slow down. I think he'd understand," Robin said softly. "There's a lot to process here. I'm sorry, babe, I should have known."
"It's not your fault," Steve said. "I'm just so stupid."
"It's not your fault either," Robin said. "It was just a sticky situation for the both of you. And if you ever call my best friend stupid again, I'm going to beat you up. Only I'm allowed to call you a dingus, okay?"
"Okay," Steve said and laughed.
"Come on, let's get you home. . .dingus," Robin said.
Steve smiled. She always said dingus like she was saying I love you. God, she was his best friend.
"Dingus," Steve said, and Robin laughed.
"You're so drunk," she giggled. "Come on, Popeye."
It was a difficult time for Steve over the next few months, even more difficult than when he got over Nancy Wheeler. Maybe because he had allowed himself to be more vulnerable than he ever had with Nancy, and maybe in doing so, he had fallen harder for Eddie. With Robin's help, he was able to move forward. It helped that he had sold and moved out of his parents' place. They didn't think he could sell the place, but he proved them wrong. And with the money, he was able to tuck a lot of it away and move into a comfortable two bedroom apartment, an apartment that he was allowed to decorate however he wanted. After nearly a year, he was in a good place when things decided to turn upside down again for Steve. We'll, roughly 9 months later, to be a little more precise. . .
"Oh my god! I can't believe you forgot to buy me my favorite chips! After I came all this way to visit you!" Robin yelled.
"If you would move stuff around, you'll find them!" Steve exclaimed as he set up the movie.
"Oh, there they are! I knew you still loved me," Robin said.
Steve rolled his eyes as Robin came into the living room, her arms laden with snacks. She unceremoniously dumped them on the table.
"I'm glad you were able to pull yourself away from Vickie long enough to visit me before heading back to Chicago," Steve said.
"I can prioritize between the romantic love of my life and the platonic love of my life," Robin said.
Steve and Robin snuggled into each other, their matching pajamas firmly in place, as they settled in for the evening. Just as they were about to start the movie, Steve got the phone call. Robin watched as Steve could only give one words answers before finally putting the phone back down, his face pale.
"Steve?" Robin asked.
"We're going to have to cut the evening short," Steve said.
"What? But we've been planning this evening for weeks - "
"Robin, I'm a dad."
They drove to Indianapolis, where Tiffany had given birth, and now they were standing in the nursery, staring at the swaddled baby right in front of them. Tiffany had already left the hospital by the time they arrived.
"She's so tiny," Steve said breathlessly.
"And pink," Robin said. "She doesn't have a name yet. Do you have any ideas?"
"I - I don't know," Steve said.
"Do you want to keep her?" Robin asked.
"Yeah, I know it's crazy, but I want her," Steve said as he took her hand in his, letting her tiny hand wrap around his finger. "More than anything."
"You think of a name while I take your credit card and go get some supplies for your little chicken nugget," Robin said, squeezing his shoulder. "You're going to be a great dad."
Robin pressed a kiss to his hair, cooed at the baby, and then quickly left them alone. Steve watched his daughter wiggle in her blanket and listened to the noises she made, her little tongue darting out every so often. He watched as her brow furrowed in confusion. It must be so confusing to come into this world, not knowing who you are, where you are, and taken from the only place you've ever known. Steve placed a hand on her chest.
"It's okay, I'm here," Steve whispered, and he smiled when she calmed down a bit.
"You can pick her up, you know," the nurse said.
Steve almost jumped. He forgot he wasn't alone in the room. A friendly faced hispanic nurse was there, chuckling at him.
"I know, I just don't want to - she's so small," Steve said.
"Every good parent is afraid of dropping them," the nurse said. "Come sit over here."
Steve sat down in the rocking chair and watched as she picked up his daughter. He glanced at her name tag. Sofia. She placed the baby carefully into his waiting arms. He gasped in delight, the feeling of holding her overwhelming him in a very good way. Was he crying?
"Thanks, Nurse Sofia," Steve said.
"She looks good in your arms," Sofia said.
"She feels good. Feels right," he muttered. "She's so wonderful. Hey, there. I'm your dad. I know, it's crazy. Don't feel intimated by my hair. You're bald now, kiddo, but it'll grow. . .and even if it doesn't, I'll still love you. . .oh, I'm suddenly terrified. I am going to mess her up."
"Hush, you're going to be fine," Sofia said.
Steve watched as the baby's head started to move around, as though she was looking for something and she started to whimper.
"I think she's hungry," Steve said.
"See? Your instincts are already kicking in," Sofia said.
Steve smiled. Sofia reminded him of both Claudia and Sue. Oh, speaking of them. . .they're going to freak when they find out Steve made them grandmothers. Sophia left to go the formula and came back with it pretty quickly. She showed him how to hold it so the baby wouldn't choke.
"Thank you," Steve said. "I really appreciate it. . .oh, she's really going to town. Yeah, she was hungry."
"She goes after it like my four boys did," Sofia said.
"You have four boys?" Steve asked.
"Oh, yeah, they're a handful, but I love them. Supposedly, girls are easier, but I think that's bullshit," Sofia scoffed.
"Oh, girls are just as much of a handful. I babysit a group of teenagers," Steve said.
"Then you have some practice under your belt," Sofia said. "I always thought that if I had a girl, I'd name her Elizabeth. Never happened, but I'm happy with my boys, more than enough for me."
"Elizabeth," Steve whispered.
"Does that name mean something to you?" She asked. "It sounds like it."
It was Eddie's mother's name. He remembered him talking about her all the time, how she died when he was six, and how he got his love of his music from her. Eddie always wished he could have had more time with her.
"Elizabeth," Steve whispered to his daughter, and he smiled.
"Elizabeth Robin?"
"Of course, I named her after you," Steve scoffed.
"Oh my sweet little baby bird," Robin cooed. "I can't believe I have to go back to school soon. . .as her godmother, shouldn't I get like godmaternity leave?"
"Yeah, I don't think they do that," Steve said.
"Well, they should," Robin said.
"Yeah, I'll get right on that," Steve said.
"If you love your child, you would," Robin said. "By the way, Tiffany left you a letter at the front desk. They gave it to me."
Together, they got Elizabeth into the car seat and then into the car with Robin in the driver's seat, bringing her home. . .
Dear Steve,
I hope that night meant a lot to you as it did to me. I wanted to face you and tell you so many times, but I'm kind of a coward. I think we were both very heartbroken that night, and I hope you found the same comfort in me that I did in you. It gave the courage that I needed to face who I truly am.
I feel like something greater than ourselves brought us together that night. I was just a mere vessel. . .I know you wanted to be with someone else. You called out their name, and you said it like a declaration of love. I wasn't meant to be a mother, not yet. This isn't my baby. I hope that everything works out and that you feel it as much as I do. I was glad to help you and be a part of this journey. Don't wait too long to be honest with yourself.
Sincerely, Tiffany
"A mere vessel? What the hell does that mean?" Steve asked.
"Fuck if I know."
A YEAR AND THREE MONTHS LATER. . .
Eddie scowled, his ear pressed to the phone, as Dustin went on about Steve’s new special girl in his life. How many times did Eddie have to say that he didn't want to hear about it? He swore that Dustin's ears were only there for decoration.
"Yeah, yeah, that's great that this Liddie person likes Robin more than you, but I need to tell you something, and you can't say anything to Steve," Eddie said. "You can't say anything to anyone."
"Ooh, a secret, lay it on me, and by the way, her name is - " Dustin started to say.
"Okay, whatever. I don't care. I'm surprising Steve and coming home for his birthday," Eddie said.
"Oh, shit! He'll love that. He's missed you like crazy. We all have," Dustin said. "If you get in late, make sure it's before 7 because that's when he puts her to bed."
"He gives her a bedtime?" Eddie asked.
"Of course, he does! It would be completely irresponsible to let her go to bed whenever she wanted to. She needs a schedule, Eddie," Dustin said.
"That sounds a little controlling, but okay," Eddie said.
"Well, what time would you give her?" He asked.
"I wouldn't give her a bedtime at all!" Eddie shrieked.
"Eddie! You can't do that!" Dustin exclaimed.
"Look, just don't ruin the surprise, okay?" Eddie asked before saying goodbye and hanging up the phone.
Yeah, he was definitely going to win Steve back because, honestly, this new relationship of his sounded a bit messy, and Steve deserved better than that. How much trouble could this girl be that she needed a bedtime? She has to be the one that's trouble. . .right? Steve Harrington couldn't have lost his way. There's no way he would have turned to the dark side after he left. Either way, Eddie needed to intervene.
"Okay, okay, you can do this," Eddie breathed.
He looked at the address written on the piece of paper and checked it again. He was in the right place. He didn't waste any time after visiting with Wayne. Steve’s apartment was his second place to visit. Eddie took another deep breath and knocked on the door.
"Coming!" Steve yelled, and then he heard muffled laughter from Steve. "Lizzie! Stop barking! You're not a dog! I'm going to have to talk to Robin about teaching you that."
Steve opened the door, and he nearly stumbled back at the sight of Eddie. Steve was wearing sweats and an old t-shirt of Eddie's. . .to Eddie's delight. His hair was longer, and he had quite a bit more scruff to him. Eddie was also pleased to see that he was wearing his glasses.
"Hey, Stevie," Eddie said, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Eddie," Steve breathed.
They've talked on the phone and written each other letters but it was definitely better seeing each other in person.
"I wanted to surprise you for your birthday," Eddie said. "Surprise!"
"My birthday isn't until next week," Steve said in amusement.
"So, I came early," Eddie said, and then he smirked. "It's not like I haven't done that before. . .but then, you know that."
"Eddie," Steve scolded, but he was smiling and blushing. "Come on in."
"Don't mind if I do," Eddie said, stepping over the threshold. "So, where's this girl of yours? . . . Liddie? I want to meet her."
"She's in the living room, and her name is Lizzie," Steve corrected, laughing. "Come on."
Eddie followed behind Steve, enjoying the view as he did so. When he walked into the living room, all he saw was a playpen with a little girl inside. Was Steve in the middle of babysitting?
"I don't see her," Eddie frowned.
"Lizzie's right there, Eddie," Steve laughed, pointing at the crib.
"Oh my god! Steve!" Eddie yelled, appalled.
"Uh?" Lizzie asked, looking up from chewing on her teddy bear.
"Yeah, I know, I have a daughter," Steve said. "Surprise! Although, I thought you knew."
"A daughter! Oh, oh, thank god!" Eddie said, clutching his chest.
"What were you thinking?" Steve asked in confusion.
"Uh, never mind what I was thinking," Eddie said, blushing. "So, a daughter, huh? How old?"
"A year and three months," Steve said proudly.
"Oh, wow," Eddie said with a grin.
"Yeah. Time flies, and it seems like only it was only yesterday that I was in the hospital with her. . .holding her for the first time," Steve said.
A year and three months. Eddie looked at the kid. She was cute with curly brown hair and big brown eyes. Apart from that, she looked almost exactly like Steve. Eddie chuckled. It almost looked like they had a baby together. A year and three months. A year and three months?! Eddie did the math in his head. They had sex right before Eddie left, which meant that Lizzie would have had to have been concieved sometime around there. Lizzie. . .Elizabeth. . .oh, after his mom?
"Oh my god," Eddie whispered softly and grabbed his arms. "Steve. . .Steve, is she mine?"
"Eddie," Steve said slowly. "I want you to really think about what you just said."
"I am thinking about it! I'm thinking about you going through all that alone!" Eddie exclaimed. "You had to deliver her without me there to hold your hand!"
"Eddie, I didn't - "
"I'm such an idiot! I never should have left, I mean, I could have toughed it out a few more years!" Eddie shrieked.
"Eddie, I swear - "
"Oh, my god, and even though I wasn't there for you, you still named our daughter after my mother," Eddie rambled.
"If you would just stop for a minute and listen - "
"Steve!" Eddie said, grabbing his arms. "Was it the bat bites? Because I slept with a guy like a month ago, and it was only because he was wearing a polo like you! I also slept with a girl. . .she had hair like yours! Can girls also get me pregnant?! Do I have to take a pregnancy test?. . .Lizzie, sweetheart, I think you're going to be a big sister!"
"Arf! Arf!" Lizzie barked.
Eddie bent over, putting his head between his legs as his mind spun around in circles. He felt Steve grab him and drag him into the kitchen. Steve yanked off his vest and jacket, tossing them onto the counter. He turned on the faucet, grabbed Eddie's head, and shoved it under the water. Eddie shrieked.
"Okay! Okay!"
Steve turned off the water and let him up. Eddie scowled as he rung out his hair.
"Are you done?" Steve asked.
"Yeah, thanks, I needed that," Eddie said.
"Lizzie is not your daughter," Steve said.
"She's not?" Eddie asked, with wide eyes.
"Okay, with you looking at me like that, I kinda regret saying that," Steve said with a sigh. "I'm sorry, Eddie."
"No, fuck, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have left," Eddie said. "I think I just regret doing that."
"Eddie, this town was suffocating you," Steve said. "You needed to leave."
"Did I, though?" Eddie asked. "Wayne managed to tough it out here."
"You need to stop beating yourself up for reacting to a bad situation that was out of your control," Steve said.
"I regretted the minute I left, but I was already out there on the road with the boys," Eddie said. "I loved it, but I think I might have left my heart behind here."
"You want to stay?" Steve asked.
"If you'll take me back," Eddie said.
"It's hard to say no when you're looking all sad and wet like that," Steve said.
"I want to stay anyway, even if you don't want to take me back," Eddie said.
"I have missed you every single minute of every single day," Steve said. "I haven't stopped loving you or hoping we'll find our way back to each other."
"I love you," Eddie whispered.
"I love you, too," Steve said.
Eddie grabbed him by the waist and kissed him. He felt Steve smiling into the kiss, wrapping his arms around his neck. He pressed Steve up against the counter, melting into him like butter. He broke the kiss, crossing to press thousands of tiny kisses all over Steve’s face. Steve giggled and pushed him back.
"Will Lizzie's mother have a problem with this?" Eddie asked.
"Oh, she's not in the picture. Hold on," Steve said.
He left and came back to Eddie, putting his hair into a towel. He handed Eddie a letter.
"What's this?" Eddie asked, sitting on a stool.
"The day after you left, I went to a hotel bar, drank it, and met a woman who was just as heartbroken as I was," Steve said. "We slept together and nine months later, Lizzie was born."
"A mere vessel," Eddie cackled after reading it. "I like her. She sounds like me."
"She also looks like you," Steve blushed.
"Okay, so we went the long way around, but we got here," Eddie laughed. "She is my daughter."
"What?" Steve asked.
"In every other way except biologically, Elizabeth is mine. I mean, you even named her after my mother," Eddie said.
"Yeah, I did do that," he blushed.
Eddie pulled Steve in between his legs, wrapping his arms around his waist. He studied his face, drinking in every inch of skin, every mole. . .God, he loved this man.
"Steve Harrington, if you want me to, I want to be your baby daddy," Eddie sighed.
"I do," Steve smiled.
Eddie flashed his dimples and smacked Steve’s ass.
"Well, introduce me to our daughter, big boy," Eddie said.
Steve laughed and pulled him up off the stool. Holding his hand, he pulled him down the hall. Eddie stopped him before pulling the towel off his head and fixing his hair. He straightened his shirt.
"What are you doing?" Steve asked, his hands on his hips.
"I want to look good," Eddie said, and then he gasped. "Steve, what if she doesn't like me?"
"Eddie, she barks like a dog. She's going to love you," Steve said.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Eddie asked, and Steve just shook his head.
Eddie followed Steve into the living room, where Lizzie had moved onto a cloth book. Her little tongue was out as her little finger traced the words as though she was trying to teach herself how to read. Eddie smiled. She glanced up and smiled at Eddie then at Steve.
"Dada?" Lizzie asked and held her hands up towards Steve.
Steve pulled her out of the playpen and put her on his hip. Holy fuck, Eddie thought, he looks totally hot.
"Lizzie, this is Eddie. He's going to be your other Dada," Steve said.
"Dada?" Lizzie asked, confused.
"You get two!" Steve exclaimed, pointing to himself and then to Eddie.
"Two Dadas!" Lizzie clapped.
"Wow, she caught on quick," Eddie said.
"Yeah, she's smart. I'm still not sure how much she understands," Steve said.
Lizzie leaned over Steve’s arms and reached towards Eddie. He grinned and took Lizzie into his arms.
"Hi," Eddie whispered.
"Hi," Lizzie said.
"Hi."
"Hi," Lizzie said, and then she giggled.
She reached over and started licking Eddie's cheek. Eddie cackled.
"Yeah, we definitely should talk to Robin about this. She can't go around licking people," Eddie giggled.
"Dada! Dada! Dada!" Lizzie shrieked as she bounced on his hip.
"Ooh! I wonder - ," Eddie gasped.
"What are you thinking about?" Steve asked.
Eddie set Lizzie on the floor and sprawled out in front of her.
"Okay, can you raise your little fingers like this?" Eddie said as he raised his pointer fingers to his head to make horns.
Lizzie blinked at him. She reached over and grabbed Eddie's hair.
"Ah!" Lizzie screamed.
"No, baby, no!" Eddie said while Steve laughed.
Eddie eventually guided her gently and got her to make little horns while sticking out her tongue. It wasn't perfect, but she managed it with Eddie's help. Luckily, it took Eddie long enough for Steve to get a camera.
"Good job, daddy," Steve said.
He leaned down and kissed Eddie. Lizzie shrieked and pushed Steve off Eddie. She scrunched up her face at them before hugging Eddie.
"No, Daddy, don't do that," Eddie laughed. "That's gross. . .Thanks for saving me, baby."
"I ordered dinner. . .Are you gonna stay the night?" Steve asked.
"I'm going to stay forever," Eddie said as he hugged Lizzie to him.
After dinner, Eddie happily helped Steve give Lizzie a bath before throwing a colander over a flashlight in Lizzie's room to make stars. He laid down on the floor with Lizzie curled up between him and Steve, her eyes getting heavy.
". . .so I opened my eyes and wondered if I was floating. I realized a moment later that a beautiful man was carrying me out of hell. He was begging me to stay with him, and I did want to stay with him, but I didn't know why. He spent the next few weeks taking care of me, and I spent the same amount of time trying to fight the fact that I was falling for him, a man. It wasn't until the town had run me out that I realized I was in love with him. When I came back, I realized I never wanted to leave him again. . . That man, of course, was your daddy. So, the next time I go on the road, it's going to be with you and your daddy in an RV. Your daddy is going to be playing obnoxious music, so I apologize in advance."
"Hey, your music is not obnoxious," Steve said.
"I was talking about yours," Eddie grinned.
"Hey!" Steve exclaimed, slapping his chest.
"Shh! Steve, our daughter is asleep. . .what is that sound?!"
"Yeah, she snores," Steve said.
"My god, that's the loudest sound I have heard from someone so tiny."
"Hey, Eddie," Steve whispered.
"Yeah?"
"We're a family," Steve said and Eddie leaned over Lizzie's head to kiss him.
" . . . And they all lived happily ever after. . ."
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murdockcastleslut · 2 days ago
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𝔒𝔣𝔣 𝔗𝔬𝔭𝔦𝔠
synopsis: y/n is an up and coming influencer, who has established her own with thriving youtube channel and podcast. when she releases a new episode with her new co-host and special guests, things get messy.
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a rafe cameron smau! |part eight| part nine |part ten|
a/n: This is a long one for you guys :) thank you to @ivysprophecy @kimoralov3 for letting me annoy the shit out of you as i bounce ideas off of y'all.
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Off Topic Official Transcript
12:30 
Cleo: so Rafe, you did a recent shoot with loewe. 
Y/n: [you bite your lip subtly] oh my god yeah, i remember hearing Sarah talk about it. you looked really good. 
Rafe: oh yeah? [he raises his eyebrow] thank you. it was really fun, the crew and photographer were great. i’ve always wanted to do a shoot with them and i was so grateful when i got the chance. 
Rafe: i know it’s yalls’ podcast but if you could work with any brand, which would it be? 
Cleo: easy, easy man. either gucci or miu miu. 
Y/n: i think for me it would probably be ysl or prada. 
Rafe: yeah, you’d be a prada girl? [he asks cockily]
Y/n: yeah, haven’t you seen me rock a pair of prada sunnies. i always serve face. [you smile and then give a model face to him and cleo] 
Cleo: that is correct. my girl always looks good, especially in prada. 
Rafe: oh, i have no doubt. [he smiles at you brightly]
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26:45
Y/n: [laughing at something Rafe said before hand]
Cleo:[smirks] so rafe, we have this recurring segment of this show called “be mine” and it’s where we ask the guest, what’s their ideal type or what they are looking for in a relationship.
Y/n: [stops laughing and is subtly looking at Cleo with bewilderment] 
Cleo: and since we don’t have more than one guest today, y/n will share with you! 
Y/n: [looks at Cleo with a look of confusion] i will? 
Cleo:[gives her look] 
Y/n: i guess i will be today. 
Rafe: [chuckles at your reaction] i have only been in two really serious relationships and they were both totally different experiences. the first person i'm really good friends with still but that relationship taught me all the things i did want like someone adventurous, kind, and someone who can communicate. in this life we live in the media. i never wanna be the last person to know something about my partner. i think from my last relationship we were very private and i didn’t really mind it but sometimes i wanted to share cute photos of them… [he shifts in the chair and manspreads a bit]
Cleo: [she looks at you and gives you a smirk at the mention at photography]
Rafe (continued): especially since i really like film photography and really i couldn’t share my photos, so i wanna find someone who's comfortable with that for sure. and by no means do i think i am perfect, i think i got somethings to work on but those are just somethings that are really important to me. [he finishes speaking and looks at you for your reaction.]
Cleo: [is smirking in her seat] damn model boy knows what he wants. 
Rafe: [laughs] sometimes if you want something you just gotta put it out there. [he shrugs and smirks]
Cleo: ya know y/n here loves film photography? has a whole account dedicated to it too.
Y/n: [your eyes blunge out hoping she’d be quiet] yeah, i do but it’s nothing. 
Rafe: [smirks and leans forward and places his elbow on the chair arm and places his chin on his knuckles] it’s not, nothing. it’s cute, sweetheart. [he gives you a kind smile] so, what are you looking for? [he points with his chin to you]
Y/n: um… i agree with a lot of what race has to say. i especially feel the same about communication, in my last relationship there was a really big lack of it and that along with cheating was the end of our relationship. 
Rafe: [frowns at the mention that you have been cheated on]
Y/n: So now i think i need someone who is willing to take things slowly and understand that it takes me a second to trust their intentions. but i also really want someone who likes to travel because i love traveling and seeing new places. also my friends have to give the stamp of approval because they are everything to me. [you smile at cleo]
Y/n: but my ideal type, i don’t know, tall, kind, intelligent, passionate, empathetic, and i don’t think it would hurt anyone if he was pretty on the eyes either.[you smile widely] 
Rafe: i think it's really raw and real of you to talk about trust in that way because i feel the same way. 
Cleo: you two have a lot in common huh? 
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y/n's phone
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taglist: @ivysprophecy @kimoralov3 @sabrina-carpenter-stan-account @charli123456789 @wearemadeofstardust0 @frankoceanluvr11 1 @harrys-housewife @urbrunettebombshell @mayhapsnini i @psychicnatural @aariahnaa @rafeycameronsgf @laniirackssss @cl4uus @honk4emoboyz
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sanguineterrain · 2 days ago
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Idk if you know that scene from friends where Rachel kisses Ross while they're in the laundromat and Ross hits his head on the washer door afterward 😭🩷 it makes me giggle sm. Anyway thinking about that kind of kiss with Spencer. Genius left speechless!
very cute prompt thank u! gn!reader. your kiss surprises spencer—his kiss back knocks the wind out of you.
****
This is an impossible case.
You throw down your files in frustration and rub your temples. "I'm gonna quit and join the circus. I suck at this."
"Hm?" Spencer looks up from his computer. It's just the two of you staying late. The cleaning people have already come and gone. You're both working on a case that's stumped the team for three days.
You're here because you're new and, yes, you need to prove yourself. Spencer's here because... well, you're not actually quite sure why he's here late. He doesn't usually stay. But he'd offered when you said you were going to. His company is certainly welcome.
"This is fucking impossible. I've gone over these lists three times. There's no pattern, no commonalities, nothing! I'm such an idiot."
"You're not an idiot," Spencer says, getting up and joining you at your desk. He pushes some papers aside and sits on the corner. "Can I see?"
His long fingers brush yours as you pass him the lists. Gloomily, you scratch at your notepad with your pencil.
"Why are you trying so hard on this case?" he asks, fingers tracing the paper as he reads.
"Because I know you guys don't really need me here and I wanna prove that I'm valuable."
Spencer stops reading. "You are valuable."
"You're sweet, Spence."
"No, you are. You're smart. More brains are always better when it comes to this job."
"I think you've got enough brains for all of us," you say, half-smiling.
"Everyone provides skills that I don't. That's why we're a team."
You hum, pushing your pencil around. "Yeah, sure."
"We can figure this out," he says. "Let's think. Okay, no connections with the names or the ages. Gender and race is random. Did you check the locations of their deaths?"
You nod. "Did. No shapes, no nothing. Garcia ran every algorithm she has."
"There's sixty-three names on here. When did these murders start?"
"About nine weeks ago. But not everyone on this list was murdered. Some of them have been long dead. That's what's so confusing," you say. "The police think the killer will round back and kill the rest, but I don't think so."
"I don't either. Which people were killed?"
You circle them in red. Spencer stares at them.
"That's every sixth name. Maybe groups of seven are the key." He points at the second name on the list. "He's a reverend, right?"
You nod. "Yeah, more than one name on here is."
Spencer drums his fingers. "Circle those."
You do. Suddenly, you're struck by something.
"What is it?" Spencer asks as your fingers fly across the keyboard.
"Solomon Grundy."
Spencer leaps off the desk, immediately understanding and just as excited as you. He kneels beside your desk chair and starts highlighting and circling names in different colored pens. Heat emanates from his body, he's so close. You swallow and try not to think about it.
"Reverends Christened on a Tuesday," he says.
"Every third person was married on a Wednesday," you say. "The unsub is following the rhyme!"
You turn to him, mirroring his joy. "We did it!"
"I told you you'd figure it out," Spencer says triumphantly.
"Are you kidding? You brought up the numerical patterns."
Spencer grins at you. "I wasn't even thinking Solomon Grundy! You're the genius, not me."
You roll your eyes. "Aren't you past modesty, Doc?"
"Aren't you?" he shoots back, raising his eyebrows meaningfully. "You're brilliant."
And something about the rush of solving the puzzle, and the way Spencer's smiling at you, open and happy and proud, it makes you impulsive. You see his round, dark eyes, his fluffy curls, and the way his cheek crinkles from his smile, and you do it. You lean in.
Your hands go to his face for a moment, just enough to steady him as you kiss him. You kiss for two seconds, your touch like a breath on his skin. Spencer tastes like the cherry Chapstick you bought him last week.
He shoots up and away, lips parted, eyes wide. You panic.
"I'm so sorry, I don't know why I did that—" you begin.
"You, um, you just—okay—"
He turns the wrong way and bumps bodily into the side of your desk. You wince as his thigh crashes into the wood.
"Spencer! Jesus, are you okay?" you ask, beginning to stand.
"Uh-hm," he squeaks out, voice strained. "Yeah, fine." He rubs his thigh in a way that suggests he's very much not fine.
You hover, unsure if you should touch him. You know Spencer doesn't love to be touched without warning.
He leans against your desk. He's not running away screaming, which is a good sign, although he's somewhat incapacitated so maybe he wants to but can't.
You go to your desk drawer and get an instant ice pack, shaking and crushing it.
"No, I'm fine, really—" Spencer insists, but you make him take it anyway. He obediently presses it to his leg.
"I know you bruise easily," you say, chewing your lip. "God, I'm so sorry, Spencer."
"This wasn't your fault. I'm clumsy," he says.
You shake your head, lump in your throat. "You don't have to spare my feelings. I know I shouldn't have kissed you. It was stupid of me."
Spencer presses his lips together and looks down, shuffling the ice pack around. "Oh. I-I mean, we can forget about it, of course. I won't bring it up to anyone. No one will know we kissed."
"No, if you want to tell Hotch and, y'know, have my desk moved or something, I'd understand," you say, more glum than when you couldn't crack the case.
"Wait, what? If I told Hotch?"
You shrug self-consciously. "It was unprofessional, to say the least. I made you uncomfortable."
"No, you didn't."
You look at Spencer. He's looking right back at you, pinning you with those bottomless eyes.
"Did you kiss me because we solved the case?" he asks.
You shake your head. "No. I... I've wanted to kiss you for a long time. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry," he says softly, and then you're getting kissed back by Spencer Reid.
He kisses like he wants to devour you, and it startles you how voraciously Spencer kisses, like you're a well-loved book whose pages he pores over every time he reads.
You're caught off-guard too by his confidence, those big, chilly hands completely cradling your face. The ice pack tumbles to the floor. Spencer takes the air right out of you, sends lightning up your spine.
"Thought you thought you'd made a mistake," he says against your mouth, in between kisses.
You shake your head. "Didn't." And that's all you both need.
You think you'll stay late more often. You suspect that Spencer will, too. It's incredibly productive.
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seungfl0wer · 16 hours ago
Text
*𝑭𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝑵𝒆𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒃𝒐𝒓*
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Pairing: Bear!Hybrid Changbin x Reader (Fem)
Genre: Smut
Warnings: Strangers -> Lovers , Biting/Hickeys, Unprotected Sex, Creampie, Use of Princess, Slight back scratching, Mutual Masturbation basically, Slight finger sucking, Slight belly bulge. Sorry for any mistakes or missing warnings.
A/N: after writing this I realize it’s not super beary lol. But it has hints I guess. I hope yall enjoy it though.
Series Master List
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-🐾
A new guy had just moved into the apartment across from yours. When you caught a glimpse of him you were honestly shocked. This big muscular hybrid was carrying boxes up the stairs. You could see his muscles through his tight shirt making your face heat up. He was super attractive, cute little ears, fluffy brown hair. You couldn’t look away. When he passed by you again he couldn’t help but smile. You felt embarrassed being caught quickly getting your key out to open your door.
You’ve seen each other in passing a few times, a few polite hellos were spoken but not much more.
Checking your mail you realized your new table had come in but the assholes left it downstairs. Yes there was an elevator however how the hell were you getting it there? You struggled trying to bring it over only getting half way there before a friendly voice yelled towards you. “Need some help?” It said. As you looked over you noticed the handsome man walking towards you. Your heart doing flips as he made his way over. “Can’t believe they’d leave it down here” he said shaking his head. Without any more talking he picked the heavy box up like it weighed nothing.
You didn’t say anything more in shock that he could lift it. Making your way behind him to the elevator. He sat it down beside him smiling at you “I don’t think I ever properly introduced myself. I’m changbin” he said.
“Oh- yeah- I’m y/n” you stuttered out making his smile grow even wider.
“Whatcha order? Some bricks?” He teased.
“A new coffee table” you said with a laugh.
He nodded when the doors opened. He let you out first before grabbing the box. Making the way to your place you hesitantly opened the door, before letting him in. He sat the box down in your living room turning around to you with a small huff. “Need help putting it together? I’m great at building” he said.
“Oh uhm you don’t have to do that you literally just carried this up here” you said with an awkward smile. He made you all nervous and shy like a school girl around their crush.
“Nonsense, anything to help my pretty neighbor out” he said blushing at his own words. Your heart felt like it would jump out of your chest from his comment. You felt a familiar warmth on your face, blush decorating your cheeks. His gaze came back to your face eyes almost like a puppy when he caught you blushing back. There was a moment of silence, it was almost calming honestly. It didn’t feel awkward it felt almost comforting. He cleared his throat laying the box on its side “so uhm shall we get started?” He said with a friendly smile.
As you worked you got to know one another. He had told you about him moving here, buying his own gym down the street. He told you about his passion for working out and helping others reach goals. He told you how he wanted to make a safe place for hybrids to work out and get better training for their kind. He gushed about how he worked with big panther hybrids that could climb super well, or dog hybrids who were super easy to train. He in the midst of everything told you he was a bear hybrid, a grizzly bear hybrid to be particular.
You couldn’t stop the words that were coming out “oh so you’re just a big ol teddy bear?” You said.
He couldn’t help but laugh, oh that laugh. It felt like a warm hug. “Yeah definitely am, I give the best hugs.. and cuddles” he said peering over to see your reaction. He wasn’t disappointed he watched as your face turned even redder than before. Your mind daydreaming about how it would feel to be curled up with him.
“You thinking about cuddling me hm?” He said teasingly.
“I uhm-“ you stuttered out only to make him laugh even more.
“Don’t be shy, if you want to cuddle I’m just across the hall” he said with a little smirk.
You could only nod not knowing what to say. What could you say? This man who looked like he was chiseled by the gods offering you to cuddle? Hello? You’d smack yourself to see if you were dreaming if he wasn’t here.
After getting everything finished you had offered him to stay for dinner which to your both dismays he said he couldn’t. “As much as I would really love that, I have to head back to the gym to clean and lock up.” He said with an almost frown “but how about a rain check? We can have dinner another night? Maybe watch a movie and talk some more?” He said.
“Yeah, that- that sounds great” you said with a soft smile.
After he had left you plopped yourself down on the couch. Everything of today just circling in your head. He was so kind, sweet and funny. ‘There’s no way he’s real’ you said to yourself making you chuckle.
After that you two talked more, exchanging numbers at some point too. “Just incase you need me for anything” he said while putting his number in your phone. After almost a month of talking almost everyday he finally said about having that dinner. However it felt like the world was against you today because it was one thing after another. Having to stay later after work only to come home to your apartment being freezing. “Great, just great my fucking heater isn’t working” you said with a loud groan. When you went to try to get a warm shower you realized the water wasn’t getting hot either. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
You wrapped a towel around you not knowing what to do. So you texted changbin “hey are you home yet?” You asked.
“Can’t wait for our dinner 😂” he texted back.
“Yes but no. Something must be up with my place. My heat won’t turn on nor will my hot water work.” You said back.
“I’ll be home soon, if you need there’s a space key in my plant outside. Go to my place.” He said back.
“I was in the middle of a shower :( “
“Shower at my place?”
“You sure?”
“Duh, now go get warm. I’ll be home in like 10.” He said back.
You threw some close on, finding the key quickly before going into his house. “His house is cold too” you whined but felt hopeful about the shower. You all had separate water heaters so hopefully his was still working. When you felt the water you let out a sigh of relief, yes hot water. You took note how clean his place was though. For a man living by himself it was pretty impressive. His room only being slightly messy but still somehow neat.
Half way through your shower you heard a knock at the door “hey, my heats not working either, is the water at least warm?” He asked.
“Yep! Your water at least works”
He felt a sense of relief, he knew he’d be fine. He was like a walking heater. So while you finished up he found every blanket he could throwing them on the couch. He didn’t even notice you walking out as he got everything situated. When he turned to see you standing there he let out a gasp. “You scared the shit out of me” he said clenching his chest making you laugh.
“I stopped by a place on my way home and got some food just incase the power wasn’t working or something” he said making his way to get the bags. He sat everything down on the coffee table, he moved some blankets and patted the seat. “Come here, I can see you shivering”
Sitting beside him you could feel the warmth coming off of him. He wrapped the blankets around you pulling you a bit closer to him. “God you’re freezing, you were supposed to take a warm shower not an ice bath” he teased. “Here, I got you some soup to warm you up” he said with that sweet smile.
After eating he put on a movie before pulling you to him. He wrapped an arm around your side trying to keep you warm. You were still shivering a little and it was making him a bit worried. “Wanna go to my room? We can watch the movie in there and cuddle? Be easier to keep you warm” he said with an almost worried look. When you nodded he wrapped the covers around you and with no warning he hoisted you up. He carried you bridal style to the bed laying you down gently. “I’d say I didn’t think you could carry me but you brought that heavy ass table up” you laughed.
“Oh please with these arms? I can carry anything” he said flexing his muscle.
“Whatever you say muscle man” you teased.
“Hey keep it up and you won’t get any cuddles” he teased back.
“You wouldn’t do that! You wanna cuddle me more than I wanna cuddle you!” You said with a pout.
“Oh so you really wanna cuddle huh” he said with a smirk.
He quickly got under the covers with you pulling you to his chest. His arm wrapping around you as he rubbed your back. “Whatever my princess wants” he said with a hum. When you didn’t argue or say anything to his words he couldn’t help but smile. You curled your body up around him draping your leg over his. He was so warm and boy was he so nice to cuddle with. It felt so comfortable and cozy.
After about an hour or so he noticed you were still slightly shivering. He figured it was your hair that was still a bit damp. He pulled you tightly to him, eyes going a bit wide when he realized you didn’t have a bra on. He could feel your soft breast against him, your hard nipples poking at him. His mind started to wander ‘I bet they’re so soft’ ‘I could put such pretty marks on them’. As his mind was flooded with thoughts he could feel himself getting hard. He felt embarrassed being turned on by you so easily but he couldn’t help it. You were so beautiful to him, like a beautiful warm sunset.
He didn’t even realize how close your leg was to his cock not until your leg brushed against it when you moved. Oh you definitely felt that. Your sleepy eyes widened at the feeling. You bit your lip trying not to moan at the pure feeling of his length against your leg. You moved a bit more feeling yourself getting wet at the thought of it. When the smell of you hit his nose he couldn’t help but let out a soft groan.
Without thinking his arm that was wrapped around you still slid down to cup your ass. Kneading it like he was making dough. A soft moan left your lips, he couldn’t stop himself. Turning his body towards you his lips crashed into yours. His lips were warm like the rest of him, tongue finding its way into your mouth. His hands roamed your body pulling you deeper into the heated make out session. They came under your shirt feeling at the soft skin. His big hand cupping your breast as he groaned into the kiss. His thumb rubbed over your sensitive nipples.
In the heat of the moment your wondering hands came down to his clothed cock. He was agonizingly hard. The gentle touch of your hand making him buck up to your touch. The kiss felt more desperate after that like he needed you in the worst way. As your hand ran up and down his cock he let out low groans only to be devoured back into the kiss. He slid the hand from your tits to your clothed core. Rubbing through the material only for a few seconds before dipping it past the hem of your shorts.
When he felt how slick your folds were his eyes fluttered. As he rubbed up and down you detached from the kiss letting out moan. Both of you had this hazy look on your face. He leaned his head into the crook of your neck kissing it sloppily his sharp teeth grazing it. When you let out another moan he couldn’t help drag them across again.
Your brain reacted without warning diving your hand into his pants to stroke his leaking cock. He let out a whinny groan bucking his hips once more into your touch. His fingers dove into your core matching the speed of your hand. The room quickly filled with whimpers and moans as you both touched each other. He nipped at your ear before he said in the hottest sultry voice “you really this wet f’me?” He said. When you nodded squeezing his cock slightly at his words he let out another honey groan against your ear.
“Tell me- tell me how bad you want me.” His voice deep.
“Want you- please Binnie” you whimpered.
“How many times have you thought about me fucking you princess hmm?” He said in an almost teasing tone.
“S’many time”
“Yeah? Have you touched yourself to me?” He asked.
“Y-yes”
“Show me princess” he said before removing himself from you.
He got up looking down you as he stripped himself of his clothes. He moved the blankets from you before quickly taking off your short as you rid yourself of your shirt. “Show Binnie how you touch yourself to the thought of me” he ordered. Your fingers slinked down to your cunt before circling over your clit. He watched intently as he stroked himself slowly. He watched as you dipped your fingers into your core taking mental notes of your noises. He again matched the pace of you, eyes glued to your wet hole.
“You- you close princess?” He said eyes half open. When you nodded he couldn’t help but groan.
“B-Binnie please- want you” you said desperately.
“Yeah? What do you want me to do?” He said eyes fluttering to your blushed faced.
“Fuck me- please- please fuck me binnie”
Without anymore words he kneeled in front of you, pushing your legs open more. When you pulled your hands away from your core he quickly grabbed your hand. He brought it up to his mouth sucking all your juices off of them before letting it go. “R-remind me to have you suffocate me between those sweet thighs later.” He said with a smirk. He gripped his girthy cock moving it up and down your folds before pushing in slowly.
He let you get situated with his sheer thickness before moving. Gripping your legs he fucked into you desperately, as much as he wanted to take it slow he needed you so badly. The feeling of your warm cunt sucking him in so good he couldn’t help it. His thick cock hitting the back of your walls, hitting right against your cervix. As he fucked into you, your arms came around him. Nails digging into him slightly. He watched your face contort in pleasure before quickly crashing his lips into once more.
The kiss was sloppy full of need, tongues wrestling for dominance. In one swift motion he pulled up to him lifting your lower body up. Your body arched in a new position had him feeling deeper. “Can you feel me princess? I’m right here” he said pushing his hand down a bit on your lower half. With that small push he felt even bigger. You could almost see him in your guts fucking into you so rough. You let out the most gluteal moan walls tightening around him. Your high washed over you unexpectedly making your body shake from the orgasm.
“F-Fuck!” He stuttered out. He moved his head down sucking harshly at your nipples. Teeth grazing them slightly. He brought a hand down circling around your clit. “Princess- fuck- you feel so fucking good” he groaned out against your skin.
“You feel even better” you choked out feeling another orgasms already creeping up on you.
Almost like he could read your mind his movements become more desperate “fuck princess you gonna cum again? Make a mess on my cock”
He nipped at your nipples leaving a trail of small bite marks and hickeys covering your breasts. “Wanna- cum with you” you stuttered out. He moved his head back up looking down at the mess you were in. The way those beautiful eyes looked so fucked out he was gonna lose it. “Close princess” he said before attaching his lips back to yours once more. He let your body back down on the bed his free hand coming up to cup your face.
“Gonna- gonna cum!” You said legs wrapping around him.
“M-me fucking too” he said in response. You could feel his cock twitching inside you. His hand playing with your clit more before he felt your walls sucking him in. “Cumming!” You almost screamed.
With a just one more harsh thrust he was cumming hard inside you. Coating your walls with his thick cum. He let out a loud almost growl before his body slowed.
He wrapped his arms around you kissing any part of you he could. After a few moments of catching breaths he felt your body shake once more. He couldn’t help but chuckle pulling the covers over the both of you. “How are you still cold?” He said. He leaned his forehead against yours before kissing you softly. “How about we get cleaned up and I make us some hot chocolate?” He said with smile.
You nodded but when he went to get up you quickly pulled him back “in a minute I just- wanna cuddle a bit more” you said softly.
“Whatever my princess wants.” He said nuzzling back into you.
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
💙 If you’d like to read more of my stuff you can find it Here: Master List . Thank you for reading and if requests are open or you just wanna talk feel free to send me something🩵
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Taglist: @satosugu4l @do-you-remember-summer-127 @xines16 @minh0scat @troublemaker02 @tr-mha-fan @lunearta @velvetmoonlght @minghaosimp @ldysmfrst @felixleftchickennugget @jehhskz @babigriin @kkamismom12 @jeonginsleftcheek
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maeedrg · 1 day ago
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NEW PIERCINGS ?
Gojo x nipples pierced reader
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ᯓ★
Synopsis : in which reader just got her nipples pierced, and wants to make it a surprise to her boyfriend. Well, he really liked it.
Words count : 3k
Warnings : fluff, swearing, smut, reader is fem, nipple play, half public sex, squirting, p in v, pet names, kinda jealous Gojo ?
જ⁀➴ ⠀ׂ Autor’s note : I got my nipples pierced this weekend, so I needed to do a fanfic about it.
。⋆˚⋆✩₊⋆˚。⋆♡⋆。⋆ ˚。⋆⊹⋆ ˚⋆。⋆✧⋆˚。⋆⋆ 。⋆˚⋆✩₊⋆˚。⋆♡⋆。⋆ ˚。⋆⊹⋆
Ouch. It’s so damn sensitive. Why is it so cold outside, anyways ? And the damn wind that goes through your clothes and hardens your nipples really wasn’t what you needed right now. Barely some minutes ago, you went to your favorite piercing shop, and got your breast pierced. On both sides. The fresh jewel on your flesh that gets colder because of the wind, reminds you how sensitive the area was for now. You sigh, sucking up a breath and deciding to look at your phone. You didn’t answer the texts of your boyfriend, after all. But you had a good reason. These new piercings were a surprise ! 
From ‘ Kakashi 2.0 : 
“I just ate 11 mochis, my belly hurts”
“nevermind I have room for more lol”
seen
“uh why aren’t you answering your beautiful boyfriend…. the fuck”
“alright girl in what position you guys are”
“HEY ARE YOU DEAD ?!!!!”
“The way I’m going to hollow purple this bitch you are with if you don’t answer right now”
seen
Oh oh. You can’t stop yourself from having a laugh escaping your lips. Both from silliness at Satoru’s text, and from nervousness. Yeah, maybe you did ignore him for half of the day… But hey, your excuses are valid ! And you didn’t think he would notice, since today he had a busy schedule, normally. As you walk back home, a bit like a truck, to avoid your clothes from brushing too often your nipples and the pain that comes with it, you decide to text back your boyfriend. The moment you start to type, suddenly two long arms wrap around your stomach and smash you against the chest of someone. You open wider your eyes, startled, but quickly relax when you recognize this familiar cologne that you love oh so much.
“Police, got the cheater ! What can you say to defend yourself, baby, uh ? I bet he didn’t even fuck you that well,” exclaims Satoru’s voice in your ear, pouting slightly and when you turn your head you can imagine how his eyebrows frown behind his blindfold.
“You scared me here !” you answer, breathing back normally and keeping your body rigid. Without knowing, the way he was hugging you from behind made the tissue of your clothes tighter. Which means hurting your sensitive breast. You bite the inside of your cheek to avoid hissing of pain.
“You are the one that scared me ! Why didn’t you answer for so long ? Didn’t you say you had nothing to do today, and would stay at home ?” continues your boyfriend, frowning and looking at you up and down. He directly notices how your body is tense. Weird…
“I wasn’t cheating on you, you idiot. But sorry for not answering, I had something to do,” you answer vaguely, taking off his arms from your waist. At first he keeps his iron grip around you, but sighs and loosen his hands when seeing your discomfort.
“Awww, you’re so mean. I still manage to text you when I’m killing curses, so what got you so busy to not be able to do it for a whole afternoon ?” he asks, pouting even more as he slides his hand in the small of your back while walking next to you towards your shared apartment.
You couldn’t tell him that you were occupied with going to the piercing shop (which was a bit far away from home), waiting your turn, then getting pierced, and everything that comes with it until… now. Yeah, it took longer than you thought. 
“Well, I'll tell you later,” you simply answer. Satoru opens his mouth and closes it back, frowning more and tightening his fingers on your hip. You open the door of the building at the same time, and he whines.
“What do you mean ? Is it a new way to torture me by testing my patience ?”
“Poor baby. The Great Gojo Satoru gets bullied by his girlfriend,” you roll your eyes saying that, grabbing his arm to pull him towards you and kiss his cheek. He immediately grins back at the contact of your lips against his cold skin.
“You gotta tell me quickly, then. If you don’t want to face the wrath of The Strongest…” he jokes, before taking your face and chastly kissing your lips mischievously. 
“I’m shaking from fear…” you tease back against his mouth.
A bit later, and after some silly back and forth, you force your boyfriend to wait in the bedroom while you go to the bathroom. Indeed, before showing him your surprise, you needed first to clean it from the small amount of dried blood. Even if Satoru was used to seeing gruesome things everyday, you insisted in your mind that you didn’t want it to be his first impression of your new decorated nipples. So you carefully wash them, with delicacy and care. You hiss slightly, trying to not move too much the jewel, the sensitivity of your skin making it a hard task. Once you are done, you put back your shirt on top and exit the washroom. 
At the sound of the door opening and closing, Satoru perks up and straightens back his seat on the bed. He looks at you, legs sprayed on manspread as he puts down his phone to the side.
“Took you long enough,” he complains.
“Don’t pout. Now are you ready to know the reason why your amazing girlfriend ignored you all afternoon ?” you ask teasingly, tilting your head to the side.
The white haired man quickly nods, eager to know. He even was bouncing his leg up and down, clearly impatient to finally have his answer. You smile, wider, and lift your shirt, exposing to your boyfriend your pierced nipples. Satoru pauses, and then slowly lifts his blindfold to reveal his blue eyes. The look on his face was something you needed to remember. You could feel his Six Eyes staring right back at your chest. 
“No way….” he whispers, cheeks slightly turning red and a cheeky grin forming on his lips as his pupils swing left and right to look at both.
“Yes way. You like it ?” 
He suddenly brings you closer, making you stand in between his legs as he analyzes your breast. He knew it like the palm of his hand, but he needed to discover it all over again now. He was fascinated, intrigued, biting his lower lip in excitement.
“I fucking love it. That’s so hot ! Why didn’t you tell me ? I would have come with you !” he cheers as he looks up at your face, then back down, then your face, then down. His long fingers help you remove your shirt completely, having free rein to touch your skin and admire your torso.
“I wanted to surprise you, that’s why,” you explain.
“Did it hurt ?” Satoru asks as his left thumb softly caresses the bottom of your breast, while the right one brushes your ribs.
“Yeah. But it was quick, to be honest. So it wasn’t that bad. But it’s very sensitive right now, even the brush of clothes can be uncomfortable or hurtful,” you describe as you recall the feeling of the needle, and how a hassle it was to walk down the street with your shirt and jacket touching them every second. 
“Sensitive, uh ?” he muses, his fingers about to touch your bundle of nerves, but you quickly snap it away. He pouts at your glare.
“Nuh-uh. No touching. Your hands aren’t washed, and it will hurt. Plus, I have to avoid touching the jewel or moving it as much as I can for one month,” you quickly explain, facing the sulking face of your man-child boyfriend. He opens wider his eyes at your words.
“One month ?!”
“One month, yes. My piercer said too that I can’t have any contact with… a mouth on it. For at least one month.”
The moment you say that, you see all colors leaving the already pale skin of Satoru. He couldn’t believe it. One of his favorite activities, which was sucking on your tits when having sex, was taken away from him. No way, no way ! He was doomed, cursed ! At what cost ? He couldn’t deny, it looked incredibly hot. But by seeing them, it made him crave touching them, toying with them, and exploring this new aspect of possible sensitivity on your body. That was like a new game to him ! And damn, he couldn’t even play with it for at least one month. That was hell on earth. Alright, maybe he was being a bit melodramatic right now. But Satoru liked to exaggerate when he couldn’t have what he wanted right on the spot.
“Y/n, you’re killing me here. That’s too looooong !”
“You gotta wait, love. Safety first,” you retort, shaking your head as he sighs theatrically, letting his face be buried in your stomach.
“I promise, when it’s healed enough, I’ll play with your tits so much you’ll cry for me to stop,” he pouts, muttering that, gazing back up at your face. You chuckle, caressing his hair. He really was a menace.
“Hey, don’t make me suffer here. I’m just doing what my piercer told me to do. He was clear about no contact-”, you start to say, before Satoru cuts you in the middle of your sentence, “he ?!”. 
You roll your eyes, trying to not laugh at his over exaggerated facial reaction. “Yes Satoru, he.”
“I can’t believe that you betrayed me like that… First you cheat on me with your piercer, and now I can't suck your tits for one month. What a tragedy ! The downfall of The Strongest…” he exclaims, dramatically falling backwards on the mattress behind him, bringing you to straddle him while he puts his free hand over his forehead as if he just fainted. 
“It’s literally his job ! You really are a drama queen…” you slightly chuckle, flocking his forehead and he whines at the pain. When he was with you, he really reminded you of a husky. Always being loud over every tiny inconvenience, or just any situation, to be honest.
“Well, maybe I can’t suck on the gorgeous boobs of my girlfriend, but I can still eat her out. Right ?” he suddenly states, lifting himself on his elbow and eying you down with his stupid wolfish grin of his. 
“Well, technically yes, but I didn’t shower so-”
“Perfect then !” he interrupts you as he flips you over, gently actually, to be sure to not hurt you, and then in a swift movement takes off your pants and pry open your thighs.
“Satoru, I still didn’t have time to shower !”
“You think I care ?” he answers as if you just said the dumbest thing ever, bringing your leg over his shoulder and kissing the inside of your flesh.
“Satoru…”
“That would be my distraction for one month, deal ?” he asks, eyes meeting yours as he kisses the top of your panties.
Oh, you were in for a ride. Of his face. 
જ⁀➴ ⠀ׂ  
Heavens could be applause, time has come. You finally, finally could go back to your… activities with Satoru, as your piercings were healed enough. Through the weeks of healing, you realized that the myth of having this area pierced could possibly bring a higher sensitivity wasn’t fake. And your boyfriend was adamant on testing that right now. He was eager, way too eager, maybe. Satoru couldn’t wait, to the point that when you gave him the green light this morning by text, he decided that the moment he would finish his daily missions of exorcizing curses, he would do it.
Hell, he was being for real ! You were walking in the corridor of the campus, when a tall figure teleported right in front of you. You lift your head, a bit startled, and sigh when you realize it simply was your boyfriend.
“Satoru ? You already finished your miss- ah !” you get cut off the moment he grabs your legs and swings you over his shoulder, lifting you up and carrying you like that without a care in the world. His hand slaps your butt, staying on it to keep you steady as you now are hanging over him.
“I made it quick,” he simply answered in a tone of voice that meant business. Oh, the tension was high, very high.
He opens the door of an empty classroom, and closes it swiftly behind him, locking it in a soft thud. He puts you down on a table, looming over you.
“Love, it’s a classroom, what if some students enters-”
“Nobody will, I made sure of that,” he answers quickly, taking off his blindfold and looking at you with such hungry eyes that you shiver. Oh, the man was starved. 
He unbuttons your jacket and throws it on a chair, before doing so with your shirt while he smashes his lips against yours, not letting you answer him. There was no time to even talk, his mouth was eager. Why talking, anyways ? When he could instead please you like you both dreamed since the night you came back home with your little… surprise.
 His lips were moving against yours with need, and in no time you felt his cold fingers cup your breast. He presses himself in between your thigh, and at the same time his thumb caresses your hardened nipple, toying finally with the jewel. You open your eyes at the feeling, and let out a strangled moan of surprise. Fuck, it indeed was more sensitive than you remember it being before. After so long, this area was damn touch starved. And God, how good it felt, and that just from a small tiny touch.
He smiles against your lips, and presses his hard crotch against yours. Painfully hard, actually. Satoru bites your lower lip as he pinches your bundle of nerves, his other hand doing the same on the right side. His tongue invades your mouth and you quickly start to feel overwhelmed. He swallows your sweet moans of pleasure and whines of relief at the sensation. It started to feel warm, and you wanted more stimulation. Why was it so exciting ?
He chuckles and trails his lips down your neck, to your collarbone, tongue sliding towards your left tit. Without more useless teasing, his lips are on your nipple, and his tongue swirls around the jewel. You yank your head backwards, biting the inside of your cheek. His eyes are on you the whole time, drinking your cute facial reactions each time his tongue flickers on the top of your nipple, or on the way the jewel slightly moves left and right. He goes to suck on the right one, using his left hand to continue to stimulate both at the same time. 
“Feels good, uh ?”
You nod, not understanding how pleasurable it was. Because fuck, your body was on fire right now. The sensitivity of the area went skyrocket, and you squeeze your thighs around the hips of your lover as he continues to grind against your clothed cunt. He lifts a bit more up your skirt, allowing him more space to stimulate you down there as he eats your tits hungrily like the starved man he is.
“How cute,” he muses, sliding your panties on the side and pulling a bit down his pants to press his boxer against your slit. His voice rumbles against your piercing and makes you giddy. He was sucking on them so much it started to be sore, but you didn’t want it to stop, because you craved it to the bones.
You have no time to ride your pleasure that you feel his cock tapping a few times against your clit before smudging his precum and your wetness together, and then entering in one go inside your pussy. It went as easy as damn butter, you were so fucking soaked. And Satoru couldn’t help but roll down his eyes at the sensation, biting slightly your nipple to tease you and make you squeeze your walls around his dick. Just like the way he loved. Good, very good.
“So fucking tight-” he mutters, kissing back your lips to slide his tongue inside your mouth, using both of his hands to play with your breast now while he pounds quickly, chasing some relief and wanting to drive you faster to the edge. After all, it was risky, and you guys couldn’t fool around too long. He just wanted to make you cum first, to drive you slightly crazy. Tonight he would have all the time of the world to completely take care of you and your tits. Right now it was just… a trial.
“Wait, I’ll-” you babble, moaning louder as he tugs both piercings at the same time, thrusting hard inside your dripping walls. 
“Wait ? Nah,” he chuckles lightly, slamming his hips faster as he yanks your hair to allow him access to your neck, sucking on it and leaving a red mark. Well, that was inappropriate, other people could see it, but who cares. Satoru didn’t give a damn about that, anyways.
He slaps your tits before sucking back on them, gripping your ass to bring you even closer. You clench your pussy around his cock, the feeling overwhelming, his hot and wet mouth stimulating exactly where you wanted him too, his tongue working magic. Both the sensation of the coldness of the jewel, and the warmth of his tongue, was an amazing duality that made your head spin.
The pleasure was so good that you suddenly cum all over him, legs shaking and accidently wetting a bit of his boxer and the bottom of his shirt. You breath heavily, his lips kissing your tit before looking slowly back up at you while you come down your high. He smiles, still inside your cunt, not done yet with you, and straightens back as he bites his lower lip. He then asks : 
“Maybe I should get my nipples pierced too. What do you think, sweetheart ?” 
THE END 
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izziessogay · 1 day ago
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y'all I'm so mad with you Jayvik shippers. I get it, it was gay, I thought they were super fruity in season 1 already as well, but please have a critical thought. their arc in act 3 coopted the ENTIRE story including their storyline (referencing the last post I reblogged here): arcane is about classist oppression, Viktor got to suffer it firsthand as a Zaunite on Topside. this never was about an evil god, or the arcane, Zaun has been in shit since forever as far as I'm concerned. Viktor only started ascending to evil godhood in act 2 of this season. to make him or his delusion out as the real evil that needs to be combatted in order to fix everything is batshit. the villain isn't Viktor or Ambessa or Silco or Mel or Singed or whoever IT'S PILTOVER AS A SYSTEM. and I thought we were all agreeing on this already, but so many of you saw the poor gay Zaunite who just wanted to help turn evil and gobbled it up. Piltover got away without any blame, since Viktor wasn't even one of their people. Besides, I cannot be the only one who thinks that this all is incredibly out of character for Viktor and needed more explanation.
and don't get me wrong, the jayvik scene looked amazing and if my two faves astrally conected through divine bleach and tones while being existential about their relationship I'd also jump, trust me, I've watched she ra. and I can't even say I'd like it to be different, but it is taking up too much importance. it could've been a catalyst to unite Zaun and Piltover through a common cause and get them to work some systematic issues out, it could have been anything but this. none of Piltovers crimes were addressed, Zaun is still in poverty and the only systematic change that happened was one (1) Zaunite being allowed in the council, which really means nothing, because the council decides by vote and there is like seven Topside council members.
I'm very much disappointed by a show who I thought was really in synch with today's systematic issues up until now (and I'm mad at all you jayvik people for clogging up the tag, when there is so much to discuss) and that doesn't even take into account that they made the mentally ill character that most unstable and suicidal people relate to A LOT kill herself??
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silverfairywings · 10 hours ago
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— IN THE WAKE OF FLAMES. PT III
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eris vanserra x archeron!reader
summary: even before you became fae, your favourite season was autumn. it’s a little hard to hide this when your least favourite newly appointed high lord has made it his life’s mission to be the most annoying male in your life.
a/n: sorry for such a long break!! pls let me know what u think and again if you’d like to be added to the tag list send me a message or ask as I rarely check my notifs and go back to them. also sorry abt the cliffhanger uhmmmm also unedited ok bye
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“You look like crap.”
Your eyes flutter open to see Mor scrunching up her face as she peers at you from her seat across your own at the dining table. It takes a second for her words to register and you throw a belated scowl her way.
“Good morning to you too,” you mumble, sitting up to continue swirling your spoon around your bowl of barely eaten oatmeal. Your appetite seems to have vanished over the past week, but you try and force a spoonful down your throat, nearly gagging.
Mor narrows her eyes at you and her lips press into a thin line of concern. “No, you seriously look like crap. You’re not eating lately and you were literally asleep at the table when I got here.”
“I wasn’t asleep,” you say, defensively. “I was resting my eyes.”
“You sound like Cassian after a three hour afternoon nap.”
“I’m just having a little trouble sleeping.” You set your spoon down and push the offending bowl away from you before slumping in your seat. You brush off her skeptical look with a wave of your hand. “I’m always like this after absorbing Fae magic.”
And over the last few days you’ve been absorbing a lot. All in an attempt to find out as much as you could about the Fae rebel group that had been attacking the borders of multiple Courts, in order to weaken them and make a point against you.
Well, you and your sisters. Not all of Prythian was accepting of Feyre for how she was Made, and even less so of you and Nesta and Elain. Instead, they viewed you as unnatural mutations and the whispers had only become worse after the War. It seemed that the lack of conflict looming over Prythian was unacceptable in their eyes.
With the help of your powers and Azriel’s shadows, you were closer than ever to finding them. Truthfully, the idea that there were Fae out there who hated you didn’t bother you so much in the sense of feeling like outcasts, but you couldn’t lie. They were starting to be a giant pain in your ass.
“You’re never like this,” Mor scoffs, gesturing to the bags under your eyes and the hollowness of your cheeks. As her voice raises, the pounding of your head gets more intense and you attempt to hold back a grimace. “Why is it affecting you so much this time?”
“It’s the type of magic I’m absorbing,” you practically whine, abandoning all pretences of being okay and allowing your shoulders to drop. “It’s so angry and harsh and impure, Mor! It’s literally making me sick because I have nowhere else to redirect it.”
At that moment Rhysand and Feyre walk in to join you at the table.
Rhysand, having overheard you, chimes in as he reaches for a plate of fruit. “Good news, our little Siphon,” he nudges you lightly, the nickname making you scrunch your nose up in mock annoyance. “We have enough information now to move forward using Az and Cass and resources from other Courts. The only thing we need you to do now is rest.”
Rhysand’s upbeat tone brings a weak smile to your face. You know that he’s being flippant to make you feel better, like he always does when you’re stressed or unwell and you’re nothing but appreciative as he whistles under his breath, nonchalantly piling some fruit onto a plate for you.
“You should have been resting days ago,” Feyre eyes you from beside Rhys with furrowed brows, taking in your tired form. “We told you yesterday would be too much.”
You groan, burying your face in your hands. “Give me a couple hours and I’ll be fine for the meeting in Summer.”
Mor snorts and looks up at you, amused. When you raise an eyebrow, her smile drops into an incredulous expression. “You’re not serious.”
“I need to be there to discuss what I siphoned from that knife we found at the border of Dawn,” you say, holding up a hand and rushing out the rest of your words when Feyre opens her mouth to speak. “And Rhys promised me I would be there since it’ll be all the High Lords, Court informants and even soldiers. I couldn’t possibly not go.”
Feyre sighs, sensing that you’re not going to back down. She nods slowly, pointing at your plate. “Finish all of your breakfast and your lunch later on and then you can go.”
You let out a breath, feeling nauseous when Rhys slides your plate closer to you and simply shrugs when you glare at him. Traitor, you speak to him in your mind. He suddenly becomes very interested in a strawberry.
“Watch me,” you say confidently, waving your fork at Feyre who rolls her eyes at you and goes back to her own breakfast.
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Summer court is your least favourite court at the best of times, though you’d never admit that to sweet and kind Tarquin, who’s arguably one of your favourite High Lords.
The beautiful, shimmering lagoons aren’t of interest to you as large bodies of water have always unsettled you. The warm breeze that everyone welcomes always reminds you of the times you had to suffer through sweltering heat when foraging for food with Feyre in your adolescence. You’ve always preferred a colder climate and appreciated a more muted daylight.
Considering your current health, the ripples in the water make you dizzy and the light salty breeze nearly brings your breakfast and lunch up.
You’re thankful for the sheer, thin material of the sage coloured dress that Nuala and Cerridwen chose for you because you suddenly feel a sheen of sweat covering your body.
“Are we done sightseeing?” you ask weakly, desperate to be inside already.
Elain turns to you and winces. “You don’t look too good….”
“Aw, thank you, Elain.”
“That’s not what I mean,” she tuts, coming over to fan your face with her hands. You swat them away, sputtering and try to catch Rhysand’s attention to move things along. He reluctantly agrees and gestures everyone to move along, too used to your aversion to Summer.
As you all enter the palace made of gleaming marble, you hang further back to avoid the watchful eyes of Feyre who seems to be waiting to send you right back home to rest.
The palace is beautiful and you push down your nausea to look around and take in the tall arched windows. The jewelled embellishments adorning the frames trail higher and higher and you crane your neck to see them.
This turns out to be a mistake when your vision starts to blur and another wave of nausea causes your steps to falter, the world tilting sharply.
A firm hand grips your elbow in an all too familiar fashion, steadying you before you’re sent flying to the ground. Another hand settles around your waist where the cutout of your dress exposes your now damp skin, glittering with sweat.
You look up and find Eris’ amber eyes locked onto your own.
“Foolish,” he mutters, his voice sharp with irritation, yet his hands remain steady in their position, holding you up. It’s the first word he’s uttered to you since your encounter a couple of weeks ago in the Spring Court where he’d left on frosty terms. You had seen him twice since then, but it was in the middle of meetings and siphoning sessions and he had barely spared you a single glance.
Your lips part but your senses are too overwhelmed to think of a response before he carries on, lightly shaking his head at you. “You overexert yourself all week and then travel here? What are you trying to prove?”
“I’m fine,” you manage to say, pulling away from him, but his grip only tightens. You can’t help glancing around and noticing that the growing crowd of all the Court officials has separated you from the Inner Circle. You huff out a breath as you register his words. You knew Rhysand had to communicate with the other High Lords with updates, but you didn’t know that included your physical state. “Gods, High Lords are such gossips…”
“You’re not fine,” he says, scowling like you’ve dreadfully inconvenienced him by nearly collapsing. His gaze flickers over the pallor of your skin and the way you’ve started to shiver slightly. “You drained yourself dry this week. And for what? To impress Rhysand? To prove something to him?”
“Let go of me, Eris,” you attempt to snap at him, but even you can hear the lack of strength in your voice. His eyes soften slightly when you say his name without your usual bite. “I can’t have this same conversation with you when I’m like this.”
“You think I want to be the one always catching you from falling on your face? Trust me when I say I have things I would rather be doing,” he mutters, narrowing his eyes.
You grit your teeth at the reminder and heat flares in your cheeks, whether it’s from embarrassment, anger or the climate of Summer, you don’t know.
Before you can retort, Eris sighs and straightens you up, still not fully letting you go. Releasing the hand around your waist, he loops your arm in his own and makes you lean on him for support. To your utter surprise, he doesn’t say anything as he starts walking towards the meeting room where everyone else files in. Despite your frustration, you’re grateful for his strength.
The moment of blissful silence doesn’t last too long, however. As he begins to lead you to where your family is stood and clearly looking around frantically for you, Eris leans in to whisper in your ear. “You need to sit down at the table,” he orders quietly, High Lord behaviour on full display.
You’re about to argue that no one else is going to be sat and he immediately catches this, cutting you off. “Don’t be stubborn for once in your life,” he murmurs, breath warm against your ear, making you shiver more than you already were. “Please?”
You quickly turn your head to meet his, shocked at the pleading in his voice. You didn’t realise how close this would bring your own face to his and words leave you. Thankfully, you’ve reached your family as you hear Cassian’s loud voice and it snaps you out of your little bubble.
“Finally!” he exclaims, throwing his arms up in exasperation. “We were about to send a search and rescue team, thinking you’d finally collapsed.”
“Why didn’t you?” Eris asks, coldly.
Cassian merely rolls his eyes at Eris’ attitude and gestures at Azriel.
Feyre comes forward to take your other arm in hers and explains. “Azriel’s shadows informed us that you were with her, Eris.” She smiles warmly and sincerely at him and Rhysand nods at him in recognition of his actions. “Thank you for looking after my sister.”
Eris shakes his head. “Don’t thank me yet. I foresee many falls in her near future that I’m sure I won’t be present for.”
Feyre’s mouth twitches, but she quickly smoothes her face into an expressionless one when you frown at her and she busies herself with disentangling you from Eris.
He takes a step back, dark and fiery hair catching the sunlight through the tall windows and glances at you once more, not breaking eye contact, yet his words are directed towards Feyre. “Just make sure she sits down. The Night Court doesn’t need a martyr,” he says drily, before walking away.
Your mouth goes dry at the double meaning in his words, but you can’t shake off the shock at seeing genuine concern in his eyes. You must have looked practically near death, but you appreciated it all the same and you don’t even realise your eyes are lingering on him as he walks away until Feyre sits you down next to Nesta.
Your older sister raises an eyebrow at you, always so intuitive and you swat weakly at her to look away from you. Cassian’s eyes flit back and forth between you two, confused.
Before he can say anything, the meeting commences and you feel a shift in the energy of the room, full to the brim of Court officials, emissaries, a few warriors and of course, the High Lords around the table.
Your turn to speak comes fairly quickly since the most information regarding the Rebels is from you and Azriel. As per Rhysand’s instructions, you don’t go into any details regarding your siphoning powers, instead just sharing the information you gained due to them. You try to ignore the way people are staring at your weak form, but you continue to speak with all the strength you can muster. Evidently, you’re doing a convincing job as people start to nod, satisfied and scribble things down.
When Azriel’s turn arrives, you zone out a little, already having heard everything a few times over. Your ears only perk up when everyone is discussing plans of action against the Rebels and a question is asked in your general direction.
“Who are we thinking is to be at the front lines of this hypothetical mission?” The question comes from one of the Spring Court advisors, Vaelith, an older Fae with silver hair gathered in one long braid down his back.
His gaze lingers on you for only a split second before moving onto Rhysand and you feel compelled to answer. “Myself and Azriel,” you blurt out, before you can think twice. “And others of course, but the two of us are the most familiar with-”
“We’re all aware of the Shadowsinger’s abilities,” Vaelith interrupts you, holding up a hand to stop you from talking. You hold back a scowl. “What makes you suitable to lead such a mission aside from your… familiarity with a selection of items left behind by these Rebels?”
“I’m more than able to-” you cut yourself off and swallow, gaining yourself a second to think of a way to defend yourself without giving away your powers, as per your High Lord’s request.
Careful, Y/N
Rhysand’s voice sounds clear as day in your head and you try not to wince at the volume considering the silence of the rest of the room. The other High Lords knew of your powers, but Rhysand had requested they keep it to themselves, even from their own Court officials. Whether or not Rhysand had used his Daemati abilities to ensure this, you didn’t want to know.
“I’m more than able to assist in a plan of action,” you continue firmly, voice hardening. “I’m not sure if you remember a certain War we just had, but you may wish to remind yourself who was at the front lines of that.”
A few laughs break the tense silence and some people start muttering, slowly raising the volume of the room. You almost don’t hear Vaelith’s next words. “You haven’t really answered my question.”
“Let’s use our senses, Vaelith,” a voice rings out from further down the table and you’re startled to realise that Eris is speaking up. The room finally quietens down and you sit up impossibly straight, surprised that Eris is about to defend you.
You couldn’t be more wrong.
He only spares you a fleeting glance, but even from your seat you could see it’s full of amusement and mocking. The thing that surprises you is that the mocking is directed at you. “Look at her. Are you really questioning the abilities of a female who barely has the strength to sit up in her seat, let alone fight?”
Your stomach drops, a ball of humiliation unfurling in your chest as he continues to speak.
“I’d like to believe Rhysand has more sense than to send someone on the frontlines who would just be doing the rebels a favour,” Eris drawls, raising an eyebrow at Rhys, still avoiding your gaze.
Rhysand nods. “I can assure you I’ll only be sending my strongest soldiers, Vaelith,” he smirks, faintly, as though the implication he’d do anything to suggest otherwise is laughable. “Now may we discuss matters of actual importance? Tarquin, what have your soldiers been preparing?”
The tension dissolves almost immediately, but you’re still shellshocked, shaking with anger rather than weakness now. It’s as though you’ve been pumped with a burst of adrenaline and it doesn’t seem to be dampening.
After the conversation has shifted to a completely different subject, you shift from your seat as discretly as possible and mutter to Nesta that you need some air before standing up.
You look at the High Lord of Autumn before you walk away, but it only infuriates you more. Eris doesn’t look anywhere near you, but his jaw is clenched all the same, as though he can feel you glaring at him.
Mor catches your arm as you’re walking out and hisses in your ear. “You’re still not well,” she turns her body fully towards you. “Wait for me to come with you.”
“Don’t worry,” you say, shaking your head and clenching your fists to keep them from trembling as you speak through gritted teeth. “I feel suddenly energised. I’ll only be outside.”
Mor gives you a once over and is clearly satisfied with the fact that you’re unlikely to collapse again as she nods and releases your arm, allowing you to rush through the crowd of people and push through the guards.
You walk briskly away from the doors of the meeting room and further down the empty hallway until you’re satisfied that no one will hear your heavy breathing.
You lean against a pillar, exhaling in and out to control your anger and keep the tears at bay. Gods, you feel so stupid. Of course, Eris is incapable of being a decent male to anyone, let alone to you. Damn him and his cruel smirk and damn Rhysand too for allowing it to happen.
Brushing away the tears that have managed to fall, you curse yourself for not just pushing him away and allowing yourself to collapse on the hard marble flooring. It was giving you whiplash the way he could be so full of concern one second and practically call you useless in front of a room full of officials the next.
The longer you stand against the marble pillar, the weaker you begin to feel and that burst of adrenaline you previously felt is no longer present. The anger that fuelled you mere seconds ago is now winding you and a rising sense of panic begins to consume you.
You decide to turn around to walk back so you’re closer to the doors of the meeting room in case you embarrassingly do collapse.
However, the second you take a step, a flash of movement in the corner of your eye is all the warning you get before strong arms clamp around you from behind and a cloth is pressed against your mouth and nose, preventing you from breathing. You can’t even scream as the scent of something strong and chemical floods your senses, making your vision blur.
You thrash around in an attempt to use the little strength you have left to escape, but the arms only grip you harder and the world begins to spin. The last thing you feel is the cool marble floor as your knees give out and no one bothers to catch you as you hit the ground, darkness swallowing you whole.
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emotionoitme · 2 days ago
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i didn't know (2)
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i didn't know - skinshape
this is the second post for this chapter because of tumblr's block limit. read the first one here
“this one?” she holds up a silky black fabric, “or…this one?” it looks the same, but red. 
he stares at the options blankly for a second.
“i, uh…the red one?” he answers cluelessly. either way he’s gonna wanna rip it off of her the second she puts it on. 
she gives him a look to elaborate. 
“i don’t know,” he sighs, “you could wear a garbage bag to dinner and look good.”
“oh, that would be cute,” she rolls her eyes, setting the options back down on the bed. 
it was one of those rare days where carmen had taken off work to relax, sprawled out on her bed—shirtless with unruly curls. 
“try ‘em on for me,” he suggests, folding his arms behind his head. 
her eyes dart to the bulge of his biceps, his armpit hair, having absolutely no idea why the sight is so enticing.
“mkay,” she smiles, pulling the hem of her borrowed shirt up over her head, revealing nothing besides panties underneath. 
“fuck,” he groans, enunciating the word sharply, graciously taking in the sight in front of him. “come over here.”
this puts a grin on her face. no matter how many times she does it, he always has the same reaction. she begins to saunter over to his side of the bed, watching how he tilts his chin up like he’s expecting a kiss. 
“i could just wear this tonight,” she suggests, trailing her finger over his jaw. 
he gives a hum of approval. “except we wouldn’t leave the house,” caressing her hip gently. 
“we could have a night in,” she suggests. he shakes his head. 
“we always do. i wanna take you out.”
“yeah?” she leans in, placing a gentle kiss to his lips, “you gonna wine and dine me?” 
“mhm. give me a real kiss.” 
she giggles and leans back in again, giving him another soft, barely-there peck before pulling away again. he tightens his jaw and snaps the band of her panties, making her release a small yelp. 
“more,” he demands. 
“so needy,” she teases, tracing her finger over his lip, catching the bottom one and pushing it down to show his teeth. she loves using his own words against him. 
“fuck off,” he laughs, turning his head away. 
“i’ll give you a real one on our date.”
“i have to wait that long?” 
“mhm,” she picks up the black dress and walks in front of the mirror, holding it in front of her body, “you can work on your self restraint.”
“i have plenty of self restraint,” he argues, sitting up onto his forearms.
“yeah right,” she slips into the fabric and threads her arms through the straps. 
“oh, and you do? you came onto me within the first month of living here.”
“i would’ve done it earlier if you were home more often,” she admits unashamedly. “what do you think? cute?” turning so he could see the front of the dress. 
“you-,” he stops in his tracks, eyes flickering over the way the fabric hugs her figure, “i wouldn’t say cute.” hot is more fitting, “but yeah, i like it.” 
she rolls her eyes, and slips the straps back down her shoulders. 
“but y’know that means you have less self restraint than me, right?” he asks, revisiting the disagreement, “because i was gonna keep it…professional.” 
“professional, my ass. i saw the way you would look at me when i first moved in.” 
“wh-how would i look at you?” 
“how you’re looking at me right now.”
oh. his eyes snap back up to her face, having been caught red handed. it’s not his fault she looks good. and after all, he is just a man. 
she turns away from him and shimmies the dress down her hips. 
“okay. fine,” he concedes, craning his neck to watch her breasts in the mirror, “but i did restrain myself.” 
“please,” she scoffs, “i had you wrapped around my finger the second i got here.” she turns back to him, and watches his eyes flicker down her body, then back up. 
he takes a moment to respond, a look of contemplation on his face. she wasn’t wrong, at all. but he still felt the need to contest. 
“tell you what,” he sits up, “we can put it to the test.”
she gives him a questioning look, tilting her head to the side. 
“no touching. no kissing…first one to break loses.” he has a smug smirk on his face.
“you’re not funny,” she says, unamused.
“i’m being serious. you say i don’t have restraint, but i know you don’t.” 
“you’re gonna eat those words. i’m gonna kick your ass at this game,” she retorts. 
“yeah?”
“mhm. winner gets head.” 
“fine by me,” he nods. either way, he’ll win. 
“i’m still gonna hold your hand tonight, though.” she pouts.
“yeah. we’ll just keep it uh…PG.” 
she snorts out a laugh at this. “PG?” 
“mhm.” he nods. “family friendly.” 
“okay. well get out of my room then. cause i kind of wanna pounce on you.”
carmen lets out a soft laugh. this was going to be an easy game.
-
…or so he thought. 
up until the moment she came down the stairs in that fucking red dress. 
it hugs her curves like a glove, dawning dainty straps and a plunging neckline. his brain actually stutters for a moment watching her descend the stairs, just silently staring at her with eyes wide as saucers. 
a grin forms on the girl’s face at his stunned expression. she put the dress on expecting a reaction, but wasn’t expecting speechless. 
“jesus christ,” is the first thing that exits his mouth, and it comes out strained. 
“you like it?” she asks, giving a slow turn so he could admire it at every angle. 
“it’s-yeah…you look…amazing.” 
“bet you wanna touch, huh?” she teases with a grin on her face. 
“i’m-yeah. fuck yeah, i do.” he exhales, standing from the couch, walking closer to her. 
“well, you can,” she reaches forward to straighten out his suit jacket, “if you keep it PG.”
he lets out a small chuckle at this, placing a hand on her hip, stroking his thumb against her. he studies her face. the way she’s done her makeup is classy and light. she’s wearing a red lipstick that makes him wonder what it would look like smeared across her face. 
“what’s up with your tie?” she asks, breaking him out of his trance. she’s furrowing her brows at the knot. 
“oh, i, uh…i can’t really tie one,” he admits bashfully. “i’ll do it for you,” she gives him a soft smile and reaches to undo the knot. 
the way her fingers brush against his neck leaves his skin feeling hot. 
like most things between them recently, it feels very domestic, having her tie his tie. he can’t stop staring at her as she does it, either, transfixed with the way she’s all dolled up for him. 
“there,” she loops the knot, and pushes it up to tighten, “very handsome.” her hand comes to the side of his face, and she strokes her thumb over his jaw. the way their eyes lock feel more intimate than carmen expects, feeling as if he’s baring his soul under her gaze. he wants to kiss her so bad, inwardly cursing his juvenile challenge he posed hours ago. cursing the fantasies that flood his mind of keeping her at home—providing for her, having her tie his ties and pack his lunches and have his babies. cursing the cruel way in which the world seems to rip away all that brings him joy. 
“you, uh…ready to go?” he clears his throat, pulling away from her, turning his head to hide a pained expression. 
“yeah. let me just grab my wallet.”
“leave it,” he commands, “you won’t need it.” 
a slight look of surprise forms on her face, morphing into a smile as the implication seeps in. 
“just wait for a second,” she turns to walk to the stairs, “it’s on my nightstand.” 
carmen grabs her wrist with a “hey,” stopping the girl in her tracks. 
“what did i just say?” he chides lowly. “leave it. let’s go.”
she turns to face him, taking in his serious expression. stern and handsome—it makes her want to push. but she figures she can save it for later, after she wins. 
“yes sir,” she responds, gazing up at him endearingly. 
he’s almost a little surprised at her obedience. feels himself puff up a little at the name. 
without another word, he opens the door and offers his arm. she takes it happily. 
-
the entire date ends up being a lot fancier than she ever would have expected. 
carmen had explained to her, as they rode in the back of the private car he had ordered, that he wanted to make tonight really special. partially to make up for the fact that he hadn’t been gentlemanly enough to take her out on a proper date before tonight, but mostly just because he wanted to spoil her with some good food before she leaves. 
“now, uh…i know you said you didn’t wanna go to my restaurant. but i was thinking we could just stop in so you could see it.”
“n-no, i do wanna go,” she asserts quickly, “i’d love to see it. i was just a little…embarrassed.”
he lets out a small chuckle at this.
“you don’t need to be. i’ll get us a private table and everything.” he nods, reaching over to rest a hand on her thigh. “no one will bother us.”
“yeah?” it sounds promising. 
“yeah, baby. i’ll take care of it.”
he pulls out his phone to make a call. 
it makes her stomach flutter a little bit.
when they arrive, she’s a bit taken aback by the bear. she already knew it was a nice place—though she wasn’t expecting the type of michelin star dining that leaves people speechless. 
they’re seated the moment they walk in, and escorted to a table near the back of the restaurant, slightly hidden by the thick foliage of a potted plant. 
carmen pulls her chair out for her, pressing a quick kiss to her cheek before sitting down across from her. 
“this is…it’s beautiful in here, carm.” 
“yeah?” he can’t help the boost her words give him, looking around a bit, “you think so?” 
“it’s incredible,” she nods, “i had no idea it would be so fancy.” 
he lets out a small chuckle at this, placing his hand atop hers. he goes to thank her, but is interrupted by the greeting of their waitress. 
the girl smiles in reply, feeling bad for the clearly nervous employee that has to serve the big boss. 
they order signature cocktails that cost so much the prices aren’t even listed on the menu. she supposes this follows the premise that if you have to ask for the price of something, you can’t afford it. it makes her grateful for her wallet left atop the nightstand. 
“what’s the first thing you’re gonna do when you’re back home?” he asks, taking a sip of the old fashioned he had ordered. it’s easier to talk about when he’s not thinking about how soon it’ll be a reality. 
“go to the beach,” she responds quietly, after a moment, “and get in the water. even if it’s freezing cold.” 
“yeah?” a smile forms on his face at the mental image. 
“yeah, i uh…like chicago. but i really do miss home. and i miss my friends.”  
“totally.” he gives her a knowing nod. 
“carmy, do you-” she sighs, fidgeting with her ring, “can i call you? when i’m back?” 
“you fuckin’ better.” he responds quickly. 
the girl smiles at the sternness of his response, and reaches out to touch his hand. 
“okay,” she nods, “good. cause i’m gonna miss you.” 
“yeah, it’s…it’s not gonna be easy.” understatement of the year. “it’ll work out though. i’ll come visit you or somethin’.” 
and despite the weight of the circumstances, she smiles at this, and brings his hand up to her lips, placing a slow, tender kiss to the side of it. just wanting to show her appreciation. “you’d like it, i think. it’s really different from here.”
“yeah?”
“mhm. and my friends would freak meeting you.”
“why’s that?” he raises his eyebrows. 
“cause i mean, look at you. i’d probably have to fight them off.” 
carmen lets out a soft laugh at this, shaking his head in disbelief. “y’know, i’ve thought the same thing about you? just wanna keep you to myself.” 
she smiles, and moves from kissing his hand to kissing his fingers. 
carmen rests his thumb on her cheek, tightening his jaw as she moves onto his middle finger. how she places another kiss, pressing her lips to him, holding his wrist gently and looking up at him through her eyelashes.
the sight is kind of erotic. 
“you, uh…” he clears his throat, shuffling forward in his seat, “you giving up on our game?” 
“no,” she has this innocent look on her face, like she doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing, “this is PG.” carmy feels the immense urge to shove his fingers in her mouth and make her suck. 
“nothing about that is… stop,” he grunts as she softly bites him. it’s clear that she’s trying to get him to fold. and she’s right on track so far. 
“fine. you’re no fun.” she pouts, releasing his hand and sitting straight. 
“i’m not gonna lose to you.” 
“yes you are,” she smiles, resting her chin in her hand. 
his eyes flicker down to the strain of her breasts against the neckline of the dress. maybe he is. 
“nah.” he shakes his head. “no way.”  
her gaze roams over him, and she bites at her lip. 
“well i might. you look so slutty in that suit.” 
“i-…what?” 
“you heard me.” 
“i look…slutty?” there’s a perplexed expression on his face. 
“super slutty. you’re so getting it when we’re home.” 
“jesus,” he exhales a laugh, averting his eyes from her face, “you drunk off that one cocktail?” 
“no!” she smiles, rolling her eyes. “i just thought you’d wanna know. i can't stop looking at you. you’re giving me dirty thoughts.” 
he meets her eyes again with a smile, and puts his hand flat on the table, reaching out for her. when she gives him her hand, he glances at the red nail polish adorning her fingers. 
“i, uh… i can't stop looking at you either.” he runs his thumb over her skin. “i’m…crazy about you. you know that, right?” 
“i know,” she purrs, softly raking her nails over his skin softly, looking at him through her eyelashes. 
it him feel a little feral. he takes a deep breath in through his nose. 
“so, you can give up on this stupid challenge already?” his tone is low. 
“no way,” she pouts, “i want my prize.”
“yeah?”
“yeah. and don’t forget this was your idea in the first place.” 
he goes to defend himself when he’s cut off by a familiar chuckle. 
“well, shit, welcome back!” 
the girl freezes, staring straight ahead at carmen. the voice is easily recognizable. she hesitantly turns her head to put the name to a face. 
“richie,” carmen greets unenthusiastically, giving him a small nod. 
“you just can’t get enough of us or what?” richie chuckles, glancing at the girl quickly. he does kind of a double take, snapping his head back to her with wide eyes. 
she sheepishly meets his gaze, trying to not crumble under the intense look he’s giving her. 
“this is, uh…” carmen narrows his eyes at the man, “this is my girlfriend, -” he introduces her name. 
richie blinks slowly, like he’s trying to process, repeating her name. testing how it feels in his mouth.
“uh, nice to-…nice to meet you. i’m richie.” he thrusts his hand forward. 
“nice to meet you, richie,” she smiles, giving him a gentle shake. this is the most intense eye contact she’s experienced in a while. the silence is tense, and he’s staring at her with this perplexed admiration. 
“you’re…wow,” richie chuckes, “do you have an older sister or something?” 
“jesus christ, richie! go fuck off back to the front you asshole,” carmen snaps, face growing slightly red. “hey, i’m sorry about him,” richie apologizes to the girl, “he forgets that this is a nice establishment where we don’t use crass language.” his eyebrows are raised as he smooths his jacket. 
she opens her mouth to respond, but carmy’s scolding cuts her off, snapping at the man to go do his job and “stop fucking around”. 
“hey, i just wanted to come introduce myself to your lovely date,” richie puts his hands up in defense, “can i get you anything else, sweetheart?” he asks the girl, “you want another one of those?” pointing to her cocktail. 
“maybe after dinner, thank you,” she responds politely. 
“ahh okay, i like the manners! you could teach your little boyfriend over here a thing or two.”
the man has a goofy charm about him, and although carmen is getting more irate by the second, she’s amused. 
“i’m trying. but he’s kind of stubborn.” her eyes flicker over to carmen, giving him a playful smile. his frown softens at this. 
“ha! don’t i know it! last week he-”
“richie,” carmy interrupts, “can you go check on our order?” 
“carm,” the girl groans. they didn’t place their order yet. he gives her a pleading look to just go along with it. 
and whether it’s the use of his nickname or the intonation of her voice, this look of recognition washes over richie’s face and his eyes widen. he looks at carmy, then back at her. a laugh bubbles out, and he slaps a hand over his mouth, clearing this throat. his face is red.
the girl almost dies of embarrassment on the spot, knowing exactly which dots are connecting in his head. 
“okay! yeah. well. nice meeting you. i’m just gonna…” he gestures behind him, backing away with a stifled grin on his face. 
when she looks back at carmen, his head is in his hand and his eyes are tightly shut. when richie is out of sight and he finally looks back up to her, there’s a pained looked on his face. 
“i’m-…jesus christ, i'm sorry about that.” he exhales. 
the girl feels dumbfounded by the situation, and doesn’t know what to say. 
she tries to keep it in, but bursts into giggles. there’s a brief look of surprise on the man’s face which forms into a small smile. he’s giving her the kind of bewildered look that says “i’m glad you found that funny because i was about 3 seconds away from getting physical”.
she rests her head in her hand, trying to take deep breaths and stop her laughing. it doesn’t really work. 
carmy’s expression of bewilderment softens and he begins to grin watching her. 
she finally gets control over herself and straightens, huge smile on her red face, wiping a stray tear from her eye with a big sigh. 
carmen thinks it’s probably the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen. and there’s this sharp pain in his chest that feels like love but also like loss. like he’s discovered this secret to life that’s about to be stolen and never given back. 
his thoughts are interrupted by their waitress setting plates down in front of them. she introduces the dish, and tells them that chef sydney plated it specially for them. 
the girl has a big smile on her face, as she raves about how nice everything is, but carmy can’t help but feel a bit sad for the rest of the night. 
-
they return home hand in hand. the chill november air smells crisp like winter. leaves in the gutters rustle with the gentle breeze. 
as they walk from the car, she wraps her arm around his and leans in, resting her head on him for a moment. 
he turns his head and smiles at her. 
“i don’t know if i ever told you this…but uh,” he glances over her face, “you’re really beautiful.” 
“thank you, carmy” her soft smile grows, “i think you have told me.” 
“not enough.” he’s kind of in a trance, pace slowing as he watches her face. she giggles and pulls him forward to the entrance. 
the doorman of their building lets the two in, giving a small smile watching the young lovers laugh, that gleam of infatuation shining bright over their faces. 
as the elevator doors close, and she turns to face him, their laughs slowly cease. they stare at each other intently. 
“stop doin’ that” he mutters lowly.
“doing what?” 
“you keep looking at my lips.” 
“i really want to kiss you.” she bites at her lip, eyes fluttering as she keeps staring. 
carmy exhales harshly at this, clenching his fists to keep his hands to himself. 
she leans forward, bringing her face closer to his. he smells so fucking good, looks so handsome in his suit, she’s tempted to just tear him apart with her teeth. 
“do it,” he challenges quietly, their lips so close. 
she almost gives up on the challenge, leaning just a little closer, then-
ding
saved by the bell, literally. the elevator doors open to their floor. 
she gasps softly at the noise, pulling away from him, face feeling hot, core tingling. 
she had complained earlier, but this challenge is fun.
they hurriedly make their way to the door of their unit. 
the girl stumbles in her heels and almost face plants, but carmy catches her, wrapping an arm around her waist and preventing her from falling. 
without warning, he hoists her up, trying to throw her over his shoulder. 
“carmy!” she yelps, “put me down!” secretly hoping he doesn’t. 
he hoists her up some more, and she folds over his shoulder, dangling upside down, laughing harder than  she has in a long time.  
“you’re too clumsy,” he teases, hand securely gripping onto the back of her thigh, walking them the last 20 feet to their door. with his free hand he retrieves his keys, unlocks the door and nudges it open. 
he only puts her down once the door is closed behind him, and she wobbles on her feet when he does so, gripping onto his arms for stability. 
her face is rosy from the blood rushing to her head, and she has a girlish smile on her face as she looks up at him. 
“you’re strong.” 
he just smiles softly, gazing down at her. 
“can you make me another one of those moscow mules?” 
“yes, chef!” she returns, kicking off her heels and walking towards the kitchen. 
he runs a hand through his hair, sighing longingly, and follows, sitting on one of the barstools opposite the counter where she stands. 
“put on some music?” she asks softly, turning on the kitchen speaker. 
“what do you want me to play?” he opens his bluetooth and connects. 
“i dunno. something romantic.” the girl has a sweet smile on her face, measuring out the vodka for his drink. 
he shuffles an oldies playlist—the songs from the 1940s/1950s that sound like real love. like loving and being loved unconditionally. like settling down and coming home to each other every day.  
“good choice,” she compliments, cracking open a ginger beer. “i love this kind of music.” a frank sinatra song plays softly. 
“me too. it’s kind of nostalgic.” he thinks of the old black and white movies he would watch with his mom.  
“here,” she hands him the cold drink, garnished with mint and lime. 
“thank you,” he has a small smile on his face, taking a sip. it’s bubbly and refreshing. 
she clicks the speaker up a few notches, and hums along, putting away all of the drink materials. 
carmen loves the sound of it. 
the girl saunters over to him and perches herself on his lap, hand circling behind his neck. 
his arm wraps around her back as she steals his drink to take a sip. 
“good, huh?” he praises, dragging his thumb along the fabric of her dress. 
“it’s okay,” she sets the cup down, “not as good as the michelin star cocktail i had earlier.” 
“i disagree.” 
“oh really?” she has this smile of disbelief. 
“mhm. this could be award winning, easily.” 
“you’re just saying that.” 
“no. m’serious.” his hand rests on her knee, and he rubs it along her leg softly. 
she just smiles at this, and leans in to pepper kisses along his cheek and jaw. the first song fades into the next. 
“wanna dance?” she smiles against his skin.
“dance?” 
“yeah. slow dance with me.”
“i, uh… i don’t know how.” 
“what do you mean you don’t know how?” she giggles, standing up from his lap. “come here.”
he slowly joins her in the living room, a bashful expression on his face. he’s never been able to dance. it’s always made him feel stupid. but even so, he approaches. 
this love of mine goes on and on. 
she takes his hand and gently puts one on her waist, holding the other. she loops her other arm around his neck. carmy finds his nerves are almost immediately eased. 
they sway gently. the light is low and an ella fitzgerald song resonates through the room. it’s slow, and kind of sad. but still romantic. 
though life is empty since you’ve been gone.
carmen closes his eyes and rests his forehead on hers, suddenly feeling overwhelmingly sentimental.
his arms wrap around her further, and he pulls her closer. the music has an old fashioned grainy sound to it that makes it sound sweet. 
she leans in to kiss his neck, chest pressed flush against his. she feels a surge of warmth throughout her chest. feeling grateful. relishing the moment. resting her head against him. 
the two just sway gently, taking light steps ever so often. 
it almost felt as if they were playing pretend—both dressed in their nicest clothes, tipsy off of $20 cocktails, swaying to the romantic music. pretending the end isn’t in sight. 
i ask the sun and the moon. the stars that shine. 
he pulls back to get another look at her face. tries to ignore the way his throat tightens. 
what’s to become of it, this love of mine?
the girl’s gaze is longingly fixed on his handsome face. 
“i really did have a wonderful time tonight,” she whispers.
he gives her a smile, but it looks kind of sad. 
“i’m glad.” 
“i don’t really know how to say this, but…” she drops his hand and wraps both arms around his neck, getting a bit closer, “i…i’m really happy i met you.” 
he releases the breath he didn’t realize he was holding, eyes flickering over her face. he really wants to kiss her. 
“i-…you know i’m never gonna be able to stop thinking about you?” 
“i know, carm. i won’t either.” she hates how sad he looks. “but it’ll get easier, yeah?”
“yeah.” it’s gotta be the biggest lie he’s ever told someone.  
“i love you, you know?” her confession comes as a whisper. 
“i know, baby,” his tone is low, and he tightens his grip on her hips, like he’s afraid of her disappearing, “i love you too.”
what’s to become of it, this love of mine?
the song fades out slowly, and for some reason the music stops all together. the silence is thick, and the two lovers stare at each other with a palpable tension. 
her eyes dart down to his lips.
“i um…i think i give up.” she whispers. 
his brows furrow. before he can ask her what she means, the girl leans in and presses a firm, sweet kiss to his lips. and as innocent as the gesture is, it makes the air feel hot. makes it feel heavy. gives him goosebumps all over his arms. makes him groan.
almost instantly, carmen grabs the back of her head and pulls her against his lips, desperate to get more. he really does try to match her slow pace but he just needs it. he slips his tongue into her mouth, not even realizing how bad he needs it until he tastes her. 
the girl reciprocates for a moment, a small smile forming at the unexpected ferocity. her hands come to his chest and she eases herself away from him, feeling him chase her lips. 
“slow down,” she teases, helping to alleviate some of his hunger with a gentle kiss, a small grin on her face. 
she’s really good at using his words against him, he thinks to himself. 
“you look pretty,” the girl says in a low tone, eyes raking over the lipstick she’s left smudged over his pouty, swollen lips. slutty is probably the more accurate term. 
“pr-…what?” his brain stutters. 
the girl swipes her thumb over his lips and shows him the red stain, before leaning forward to pepper gentle kisses along his cheek, jaw, down to his neck. 
it surprises carmen when she keeps moving downwards, threading her fingers into his tie and loosening the knot, kissing and nipping at every inch of skin she can find. she moves eagerly, but gently—really savoring the way he tenses and shudders from the light touches. this time feeling as if she holds the power. 
the girl drops to her knees, smiling up at his look of wide-eyed shock as she fumbles with the buckle of his belt. 
“w-what are you doing?” he rasps, clearing his throat. 
“what do you mean?” she’s looking up at him innocently, slowly undoing his button and zipper.
“you, uh…you don’t have to.” he’s fixated on how pretty she looks down on her knees for him, “i know we made that bet, but if you don’t want to,-”
she pulls his briefs down to expose his cock and cuts him off with a breathy moan. it springs from confinement, tip red and throbbing. the sight alone is enough to send heat pooling between her legs, and she hungrily dives forward to lick a single stripe up the side of it. 
carmen lets out a low groan, still surprised by how enthusiastically she dove to her knees—her droopy eyes, the satisfied grin on her face looking up at him—it’s as if she didn’t even care about the challenge. like it’s prize enough just to please him. 
the girl softly grips his cock, leaning in and planting kisses teasingly along the length of it. making her way to the tip. it twitches in her hand. she flattens her tongue against the head of his cock and just pauses there for a second, looking up at his twisted brows and red cheeks with an amused expression. trying to gauge him. 
carmen intently watches her—pink tongue, manicured nails, looking up at him through her lashes. he lets out a guttural groan when she swirls her tongue around the head of his cock. 
the girl takes a breath and dives forward to take him into her mouth. 
“jesus.” his hand comes to card through her hair, pushing it out of her way as she hungrily takes him in. 
he’s thick and heavy in her mouth. she gives a few bobs of her head, coating him in her saliva, trying to find what makes him tick. tasting his distinct flavor and pressing her thighs together to try and chase some relief. 
“fuck, that’s-,” he exhales sharply as she moves her head up and down the length of his shaft, saliva coating his skin, beginning to stick to his pubic hair, “that’s good. keep doin’ that.” it’s more of a plea than a command. 
she doesn’t, though, instead easing her mouth from his cock, watching as a string of spit connects them as she pulls back with a soft giggle. 
he knows he’s completely fucked for her when his erection twitches at the noise. he rakes his eyes over her flushed face and chest. the way her lipstick is smudged across her spit-glossed lips. 
“keep doing what?” she asks teasingly.
“you-…stop fuckin’ playing with me,” he rasps exasperatedly. 
the girl smiles at his tone, and leans forward to give gentle kitten-like licks over his throbbing head. 
“m’not-” a kiss, “playing with you, carmy,” another kiss, “i’m just…enjoying myself.” she gently jerks the length of him, opening her mouth, bumping him against her tongue with every few strokes. she finds herself getting aroused trying to push his buttons like this. 
“you’re-mmh…you’re gonna fuckin’ get it if you don’t stop.” 
“you want me to stop?” she asks sweetly, “okay.” she drops her hand and sits back on her heels, watching as his erection bobs up and down. 
carmen’s gaze darkens, jaw clenched. 
“you-…” he scoffs, “i can see right through what you’re doing.”
“oh yeah?” she tests, “what am i doing?” 
“you’re trying to get me to get rough with you.”
bingo. she kind of wants a face fucking. 
“no i’m not.” the girl bites at her lip unconvincingly. 
“yes you are. and i'm not going to.” 
“wha-why?” she pouts, scooting closer to him. his cock brushes against her cheek. 
“not like this. i don’t wanna hurt you.” he reaches forward to brush a piece of hair behind her ear, letting his hand trail over her face. 
“you won’t,” she whines, eyes darting between his face and his raging erection. it’s big, so maybe he will. but she doesn’t care. “i can take it.” 
“you like to argue,” he grumbles, taking ahold of her face, squeezing her cheeks together slightly. she looks so cute like this. 
“carm,” she whines, “i can take it. promise i can. please?” 
carmen releases her face, trailing his hand behind her head and gripping her hair. with his other hand he fists his cock and gently eases it forward, rubbing the tip against her slick, pouty lips. 
“open,” his tone is low, and he slowly pushes himself into her mouth when she complies. he goes until he feels restriction, and pulls back. 
the girl lets out a sound of disagreement at this. 
“hey.” carmen chides firmly, “you’re gonna take what i fuckin’ give you.” he watches the way her eyelids flutter at his stern tone. the way she shifts her body overtop her heel.
the girl lets a sigh out through her nose and tries to exercise patience as the man slowly rocks his hips forward and back, never breaching the halfway point. remaining gentle and delicate in his motion. 
when she tries to sink her mouth further forward, he grips her hair and harshly tugs her back. her yelp is muffled around his cock. 
“what, baby? that hurt?” his tone has a mocking edge to it. “thought y’said you could handle it.” he pulls himself out of her mouth so she can respond. 
“i can.” her voice trembles. face is red hot. panties soaked with slick. 
“yeah?” he slaps his cock against her cheek, “gonna be a tough girl for me?” 
“yes,” she pleads, eyes fixated on him, enthusiastically embracing his shift of dominance.  
to her surprise, carmen steps away from her. he’s giving her this look as if he’s about to devour her. silence, for a moment. like he’s thinking. 
“take off your dress.” 
she blinks, processing the request for a moment. after she shoots up and undoes her zipper, she hastily shoves the fabric down her body, letting it pool around her ankles before stepping out. and by the time she’s about to get back on her knees, carmen’s own clothes are on the floor next to hers. 
the man graciously rakes his eyes over her nude body, thanking each and every saint he could think of. grabbing her and pulling her in for a frantic kiss before she can sink back down to her knees. he can taste the fruity remnants of lime and mint on her lips from the cocktail she had at the restaurant. 
the girl eagerly accepts his kiss, slipping her tongue into his mouth, swallowing the small groan he releases. 
“wanna taste you again,” she pleads in between kisses. 
“yeah?” he bites at her lip.
“y-eah,” she gasps, surprised at how firmly he had nipped her. 
carmen pulls away with a final kiss, moving to sit on the couch. he spreads his knees apart and locks eyes with the girl, a silent beckon to come. 
she obeys, of course, and sinks down to the floor in between his legs, resting her hands atop his strong thighs. it’s only moments before she’s eagerly diving forward to take him into her mouth again. 
carmy just watches her, savoring the moment. savoring how her tongue swirls around him and how she keeps going lower and lower. how her face gets redder and how she stares up at him with blown pupils. it’s surreal—almost dreamlike. 
he gathers her hair in a haphazard ponytail, using his grip to push her a little further down. make her move a little faster. he can tell she likes it, too, by the way her moans vibrate around his cock. 
carmen pulls her back by her hair, forcing her to take a breather. his eyes rake over her flushed cheeks and pouty lips. she looks like a little doll, and the juxtaposition of her pretty face with the filthy position drives him fucking crazy. 
“stick your tongue out,” he tells her gruffly. 
and she does, showing him her tongue and gazing up at him through her lashes. 
carmy takes a firm hold of her face with his free hand and spits into her mouth. then eases his cock back inside. 
it’s enough to make her want to cum on the spot. 
the girl takes him in deeper than she had yet, almost hitting the back of her throat. and despite her gag, she continues to enthusiastically bob her head, desperate for more. 
it’s so enjoyable, in fact, that she trails her hand down between her legs, beginning to circle her swollen clit just to alleviate some of the heat she felt. and it feels so fucking good just to have that added touch that her body goes a little limp, jaw goes slack. 
she gives carmen complete control of her movements, tethered to him by the tight fist wrapped around her hair—consciously focusing on relaxing her throat as tears brim her eyes. 
“jesus christ, that’s good, baby.” he shifts forward, filling her mouth with more of his length. watches in mild enjoyment as she gags around him. 
“just relax,” he soothes, moving his free hand to caress her face, dragging her back by her hair. 
the girl takes a sharp breath in as soon as she can, tears beginning to slip down her cheeks. her fingers are drenched with slick arousal, staring carmy in the eyes, lips parted as continues to eagerly rub circles over her clit. 
“fuck me,” he strains, watching her play with herself, unaware of her desperation until that moment. the sight looks like it’s straight out of a porno. “you having fun down there?”
she nods her head eagerly, wiping some saliva from her chin with the back of her hand, leaning forward to try and take him back into her mouth. 
carmen gives her hair a little tug, keeping her in place. 
she glances up to give him a questioning look.
“come give me a taste.” his eyes glance down to her lips. 
a small smile forms on her face as she processes his request. she gingerly leans forward, careful to not earn another tug, and licks a long stripe up his cock. 
carmy loosens the grip on her hair as she goes to stand up, enthusiastically accepting her tongue into his mouth to taste himself. 
there’s something about the ferocity of the kiss that makes him feel like he’s on the verge of finishing all over his stomach. he takes deep breaths trying to push the feeling away. and that’s before he feels the wet heat of her pussy rubbing against the tip his length. 
the girl finds herself so desperate for release she begins to rock against his erection, letting it glide through her wet folds, gauging his reaction to see if he’ll stop her. 
and he doesn’t, instead groaning into her mouth and grabbing her ass. 
so the girl positions her wet hole over his cock, and slowly begins to sink down, letting out a gasp at the stretch. 
“fuck,” the two chant in tandem, hers as a whimper and his as more of a gruff exhale. 
carmen marvels about how perfect the stretch of her wet hot cunt feels around him as she eases herself down until she’s flush with his lap. 
they just stare at each other for a second in this feral, pupils-blown kind of frenzy, mouths both agape at the sensation of his cock nudged so deeply within her. how she’s not even moving and it’s just so hot and wet and deep and fucking good. 
carmen’s hand sides up her back, thumb pressing into the dip of her spine. his face is hot and his cock is throbbing and his mouth moves faster than his mind can.
“m’keeping you here with me,” he almost growls, pressing his fingers into her skin, eyes locked on hers. doesn’t miss the way she flinches a little at the words. 
the girl grips the sides of his face, and leans forward, pressing her forehead against his, closing her eyes and shakily exhaling as she rocks her hips back and forth against him. 
carmy says her name. it comes out strained. his hands grab her ass and he pulls and pushes her, intensifying the gentle rocking motion. 
the girl presses her lips to his, hoping to quiet him with a kiss. hoping to forget about it and just enjoy the moment. but she feels him call her name again, this time against her lips. the girl begins to softly bounce herself on his lap, jostling his length inside of her. 
“hey,” he exhales in between her eager kisses. “i didn’t mean-” another kiss, “-you just feel so good and i-”
“carmy,” she whispers softly against his lips, “be quiet baby. just-mmh… let’s just enjoy it.” 
carmen groans into her mouth as she rocks her hips against his again, hand coming to the small of her back. and it’s definitely enjoyable. it’s just hard to not think about it ending. to not plead with her for just a little more. 
the girl takes his scrunched face and nod as a gesture to keep going, so she shuffles her knees in a bit and begins slowly riding him. one hand touches his firm chest, the other trailing her kisses from his jaw to his neck. 
“jesus christ,” is what slips from his mouth, as he feels her gentle bites, allowing himself to relinquish that control he holds so dearly, for just a moment.
when she pulls back from his neck, her face and chest are flushed, nipples perked, and she’s pushing her breasts out trying to get him to look.
but his eyes just remain fixed on hers, like he’s trying to memorize her blown pupils and color of her irises. 
“is it okay?” she asks breathily as she keeps rocking her hips, feeling unexpectedly nervous under his intense gaze. 
“you’re so fuckin’ beautiful,” he mutters immedietly, as if he doesn’t entirely process her question. 
and even though they were this far along, the girl finds herself feeling shy at his sincerity. she goes to deflect as she usually does to compliments that fluster her. 
“n-no, i-”
“-you are. my pretty fuckin’ girl. never gonna let you outta my sight,” he almost growls. 
and by this point her body is hot and her pussy is throbbing and she’s finding the words that come out of his mouth so incredibly tempting. the implications less serious under the blanket of lust. so her lips part in a moan and she presses her hand to his chest and begins to ride faster, easing off then re-impaling herself on his cock. his hands come up to cup her breasts, ghosting thumbs over her nipples. 
“yes, carm.”
“yeah?” 
“mhm. love how you touch me.” 
she shuffles her feet under her knees, angling herself to be able to bounce a bit more comfortably. 
“you feel so-fuck… so good, you know that?” carmen grits, face scrunching at the new sensation.  
her stomach flutters at his praise, eyes raking down his form beneath her. his flushed skin. the way the muscle of his shoulder bulges out a little as he’s grabbing her like his life depends on it. 
“feels so big,” she whisper-cries.
“yeah? is it too much?” 
“n-no. so good. m’so full.”
his eyes glance down to where their bodies are connected. watches her ride him for a moment. groans at the way she becomes nearly all the way flush with his hips. 
“so good at that,” he grits, mesmerized by the way her sticky arousal clings to his pubic hair. “take me so good. you like feelin’ full, huh?” 
her mouth just falls open in response, eyes screwing shut as she feels him reach forward to circle her clit. the added pleasure only spurs her on, beginning to eagerly ride him, breasts bouncing in front of his face. 
“holy shit,” she cries, surprised how easily she feels her orgasm building, nails leaving crescents on the skin of his shoulder. 
“you close already, baby?” he whispers with a small, knowing grin on his face. “m’barely touching you.”
she just moans in response, unable to open her eyes, bucking her hips more wildly by the second, movements becoming sloppier, needier. 
“just keep-ah…just stay right there,” she pleads, savoring his slick, feather-light touches to her clit, feeling tears well up in her eyes. 
“right there?” carmen eases his fingers back slightly at the sight of her tears, and it’s just enough pressure to keep her on edge. 
“y-yeah, i’m…just please-” she cries pathetically, breaths becoming frantic, a static feeling tingling through her body. “please, carmy, m’gonna cum. just a little more.” 
and he can’t help but just marvel at her. the twisted expression of pleasure on her face. the stray tear that slips down her cheek. it’s probably the most erotic thing he’s ever seen. 
as a thank you for the next year of jerk-off material, he lets her have just a little more. watches with enjoyment as she finally comes unraveled with this loud, primal cry. feels the sting of her nails against his chest and bicep. 
the man holds her hip with his free hand, thrusting up into her as her movement falters and she slumps forward. 
“carm, i-” she gasps, body becoming overstimulated, thighs trembling.
“i got you, baby. i got you.” 
“it’s-ah!”
“one more second, pretty girl, m’almost done. can you hold on for me?” 
“y-yeah,” she cries, desperately grabbing onto him for dear life. there’s this overwhelming heat surging through her body. her lips feel numb and tingly. but she holds on and takes it like a big girl. 
“you’re fuckin’ gripping me.” he strains, eyebrows twisted up in pleasure.
the girl isn’t able to respond through her jagged breathing, instead leaning forward to hungrily kiss him again.
“y’gonna have to move in a sec,” carmen warns, gripping her hips with bruising force. 
“no,” she begins to move her hips against him, meeting his thrusts halfway.
carmy groans, eyes nearly rolling back into his head. “what do you mean no?” he strains. 
“want it in me.” 
“jesus, fu-” he exasperatedly exhales, “can’t baby. you know i can’t.” 
they lock eyes, pupils blown. 
“please. wanna feel it.” her plead comes in between desperate breaths. 
“what, you want a baby or something?” the man asks her, partially in disbelief and partially in a fiery haze of lust. 
“yes-!” she gasps. and even though a baby is probably the last thing she wants, there’s this inexplicable urge that overtakes. that revels in the idea of being linked with him forever. 
“yeah?” he’s shocked by her answer, but not dissuaded, “you want me to put a baby in you?” 
“yeah, carm. want your baby. wanna stay here with you.” the girl finds herself coming up on a second orgasm, relishing the way his cock perfectly nudges against her g-spot. 
“fuckk,” he groans, face growing hot at her words, “you want that? really?” studying her expression for any trace of hesitation. finding none. “cause i’ll give it to you.” and he’s dead serious. he’ll buy a ring for her tomorrow if she wants it, he thinks to himself. 
“yes, i want it,” she cries, “cum in me, please.”
and between the desperation of her plead and her breasts bouncing right in his face, it takes him about 5 more seconds before he erupts. 
his cock twitches, body stiffens and he lets out a guttural moan, grabbing onto her hips with a bruising force. 
and the feeling of his hot cum inside of her is enough for the girl to fall over the edge for a second time, tear-soaked eyes rolling back into her head, a whitehot bliss surging through her body. 
the two lovers are overcome with the sensation, sexes pulsing rhythmically in sync, graciously sharing orgasms with each other. 
carmen’s eyes are scrunched shut, brows furrowed and lips parted. 
the girl’s head falls to his shoulder, shakily breathing through the feeling. trying to come back down to earth. 
they just stay there for a moment, panting. recovering. 
she finds that she can hear his heartbeat. zones into the rhythm. listens as it gradually slows.
carmy wraps his arms around her and nuzzles his face into her hair, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. 
when she finally pulls back after a few minutes, she plants a gentle kiss to his lips. 
“you good?” he asks against her mouth. 
“so good.” and so full and so warm. she never wants to move. 
but like all good things, they must come to an end. so the girl begins to slowly ease herself off his cock. and suddenly realizes what just happened. 
“oh shit.” 
“what?” carmen opens his eyes. watches as his cum slowly drips out of her. tries to take a mental picture. 
but the girl quickly reaches over to grab a tissue off the coffee table, frantically wiping away the surplus of the stickiness leaking from her core. 
“why didn’t you pull out?” her tone grows a bit frantic. 
“wha-cause you fuckin’ begged me not to.” he shakes his head, trying to comprehend her question. 
“i-…” she stutters, exhaling, “fuck, carmy, i’m not on birth control!” 
he has this perplexed expression on his face, blinking slowly and trying to rationalize her response. “you…did you not want me to? m sorry, i-”
“-no, i know i told you to. i just-…i got caught up in the moment i guess.” between the release of her orgasm and the weight of her previous request, the girl finds herself fighting the urge to cry. 
carmen must seem to notice this, because his hardened expression softens a bit. he quickly tries to think of something comforting to say. 
“want me to take you to get a plan b?” 
nice, carmy, he thinks to himself. he’s never been good at responding fast under pressure.
“yeah.” her response comes as a whisper. comes with a single tear. she turns her head away from him and embarrassedly tries to wipe it away. 
“hey,” he says tenderly, going to hold the side of her face, turning her back to face him. just studies her face for a moment with furrowed brows, trying to think of what to say. “you…you know i’d support you, right? if you…whatever you decide.”
“really?” it’s hard for her to believe him. 
“yes, really.”
“you’d want a baby?”
“if that’s what you want.” he has the most genuine expression on his face, eyes locked with hers. he watches another tear roll down her cheek and adds, “seriously. i’m all in.”
she’s shocked by his sincerity. it doesn’t make anything easier, either. just makes everything feel more confusing. 
“i’m…carmy, i can’t.” her words come out as a kind of sob. 
“that’s okay.” he reassures wholeheartedly. he doesn’t know why he feels just a little disappointed. 
“but i want to.” the girl plants her hands on his bare chest. “it’s just…you’re older than me. you’re ready for that kind of thing. i’m…such a mess, i can’t even imagine being a mom yet.” it comes out choked, the tears just keep falling. 
“i get it.” he nods. “really. you don’t have to explain yourself.” he rubs circles with his thumb along her hip. “i just wanted you to know. it’s your choice.”
“you’d wanna have a baby with me?” she wipes at her cheek. 
“yeah.” he nods, brows furrowed. “of course i would.” 
and just for a moment, the girl lets herself fantasize. lets her brain entertain the thought of having a family with him. of just leaving everything in california and starting new. of being so selfish and doing what she wants, just this one time. 
the thought is so tempting she finds it hard to distance herself from. to rationalize. 
she wouldn’t be a good mom. a good wife. not right now. she still has so much to learn about herself. so much to still figure out. 
after a moment, she finally speaks. 
“can you take me to cvs?” 
carmen nods, and reaches up to wipe the last of her tears away. 
he ignores the gnawing feeling of loss. has to remind himself it’s the loss of a fantasy. 
the loss of something that never existed. 
-
“fuck me.” she drops her bag to the ground, frantically opening pockets and unzipping zippers. “carm, i think i left my passport on the-“ 
“-no you didn’t.” he fishes in his back pocket for the booklet and hands it over. “here.”
the girl lets out a sigh of relief, staring up at the man with this perplexed, amazed expression. 
“thank you.” it comes out in a sort of whisper, and when she goes to take it from him, their fingers brush against each other. 
“you, uh…you only got an hour left.” he runs his hand through his messy hair. “y’should probably go find your gate.” 
“yeah.” she stands. her bag remains on the ground. “okay.” 
the two just stare at each other for a minute, locked in this trance-like state. 
“you know, i-”
“-do you think we-” 
their words overlap. 
“i’m sorry, you go-”
“-no, go ahead.” carmen nods, a small smile on his face. 
she takes a deep breath, piecing together what she even wants to say. 
“just…thank you. for everything. and i’m gonna miss you.” her words don’t do it justice. there’s so much more she wants to say. 
he nods, swallowing harshly. his fingers fumble for the piece of paper folded up in his pocket. 
“i, uh…listen. i know you’re gonna be busy, and…want to focus on other things, which i get. but, uh…i was thinking, if you wanted…no pressure…uh,”
“what is that?” she interrupts, curiosity getting to the better of her, pointing to the folded up paper he holds. 
“it’s uh…it’s a plane ticket. well, a voucher.” he hurriedly explains, “from LAX to ORD. i was thinking if you ever had a weekend free or something…” he trails off, trying to gauge her reaction. hoping he’s not overstepping. 
she takes deep breaths—having promised herself earlier that she wouldn’t cry. but the moment she goes to open her mouth to speak, a sob comes out. she claps her hand over her mouth. closes her eyes as she feels carmen’s arms instantly wrap around her. 
“hey,” he soothes, kissing the side of her head. “c’mon, don’t cry. you’re gonna make me cry.” his voice wobbles a bit.
the girl burrows her face into his chest, staining his shirt with tears. 
“i don’t wanna go-!” she cries, clinging onto him as if her life depends on it. 
“i know.” he nuzzles his nose into her hair. “i know, pretty girl. it’s gonna be okay.” his throat burns. face feels hot. and as much as he hates it, tears brim at his eyes. he told himself he wasn’t going to cry. 
and so they just stand there, holding each other. ignoring the shuffle of the crowd around them as people queue into the security line. 
ignoring the grainy announcements over the pa system. 
ignoring the fact that it would’ve been so much less painful had they never gone so far. 
for a moment, it feels like the world around them stops. the passage of time, the priority of leaving, all of it. 
just for a moment. like they’re back in the living room and ella fitzgerald is playing. 
“don’t forget about me,” she pleads into the fabric of his jacket. 
“i don’t think i could if i tried.”
at this, she places a soft kiss onto his neck. “i’ll miss you.”
“me too,” carmen chokes out, grabbing at her waist, her hips, trying to memorize the feeling of her body against his. 
and as the girl slowly tries to pull away, he holds her a little tighter, trying to turn his head so she doesn’t see him cry. 
“carmy,” she whispers soothingly, reaching up to wipe a tear from his face. 
“just, uh…call me when you land, yeah?” he brushes the gesture off, feeling all too vulnerable under her sympathetic gaze. 
“okay.” she rubs his cheek. 
“alright. i guess you should go get in line, then.” he goes to step back. 
“wait.”
the girl pulls his face in and presses one last kiss to his lips. it feels like they lock together. like the perfect fit.
and carmen just melts into the feeling, letting out the smallest of groans into her mouth. it’s her taste, her smell, everything. for a split second he debates giving up on his dreams. selling the restaurant and following her to california. raising babies and laying in the sand and swimming in the ocean no matter how cold it is. 
she slowly steps back, leaving him wanting just a little more. 
“i love you.” she softly reminds him, holding his hand. 
he nods, pressing his lips together and looking away from her. feeling so stupid for the tears that burn his eyes. 
“i love you too.” 
the girl takes another step back, letting her hand fall from his. picking up her bag and giving him one last good look. imprinting into her mind his messy curls and handsome face. 
and it feels like there’s nothing left to say, really. 
so she turns and walks away from him. towards the security checkpoint doors. taking deep breaths and wiping at her cheeks. she’s about to push through the doors.
don’t look back. do not look back. 
she turns to look back at him. and he’s still there, standing in the same place she’d left him. his hands are in his pockets. jaw is clenched. just watching her with this look on his face that makes her want to dive into his arms and tell him she’ll stay. 
the girl raises her hand. gives him a small wave. he returns the gesture with a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. 
and with that, she pushes through the doors. 
in a way, it feels like she’s leaving home. not returning home. 
for the entire flight, she stares out the window in complete silence. thinking about the last few months. biting back more tears with every new thought. 
she gets back to san diego around 6 in the evening. takes a taxi to the beach that’s a mile from her house. 
sends carmy a picture of the waves rolling in, the sky stained a pinkish orange. 
within a few minutes, she receives a heart on the photo. 
he doesn’t send anything else. 
it does feel good to be home. the girl has to continually remind herself of this over the next few weeks. it feels familiar. feels safe. 
but along with the joy of being back home, there’s this underlying feeling of grief. a gnawing in her chest whenever she lays her head down at night. 
she feels haunted by carmen, in a way. 
her brain plays cruel tricks on her—mistaking any white man with curly brown hair at the supermarket for him just for a split second. 
stalking his instagram. his restaurant’s instagram. his restaurant’s employee’s instagrams. trying to keep up with him. 
she doesn’t call him. doesn’t text. 
and carmy doesn’t either. 
she opens their message thread ever so often just to make sure she didn’t miss his notification. types out messages and deletes them and stares at the heart he’d left on her picture. 
she convinces herself that if he wanted to call her, he would’ve. takes his silence as a message. 
on christmas day she has one cranberry cocktail too many and finally gives in. navigates to her contacts and presses on the phone icon next to his name. 
and the line rings. and rings. and rings. and right before she’s about to hang up and drown herself in more cranberry cocktails, the line picks up. 
“hey,” comes carmen’s voice through the phone. it’s so good to hear that the girl blanks out for a minute, not even sure of what to say. “hello?” he asks into the silence. 
“fuck you,” she blurts out, clapping a hand over her mouth as soon as the words leave. it was just the first thing that came to mind. 
after a stunned silence, she hears him give a surprised chuckle, followed by a “merry christmas to you too.” carmen grabs his jacket and opens the door of his mom’s house, stepping out into the cold, snowy night. 
“you never called me.” 
“i, um…i didn’t think you wanted me to,” the man responds truthfully, “you never responded.” 
what? he never sent anything to respond to. 
“respond to-…” she scoffs, “what, you ‘liking’ my message?” 
“yeah,” he feels a little embarrassed hearing it out loud, “yeah, i guess i can see what you mean. i, uh…sorry. i was actually just thinking about you.” 
his admission sends butterflies through her stomach. she rolls her eyes at the feeling. 
“yeah, well merry christmas. and i hope you get coal.” her face feels hot. “and i miss you.” the last part spills out without her permission. 
he gives her another soft laugh. 
“yeah, i deserve coal. and i…i miss you so fucking much,” he admits, watching his breath freeze in the air in front of him, “you still liking it out there?”
“it’s alright.” her response comes softly. she plays with a loose thread on her sweater. 
“yeah? your mom doing okay?” 
“i guess. as okay as she can. is yours?” 
carmen exhales, half humorous, half exasperation. “yeah. as okay as she can.” he had been called a bitch more times than he could count tonight, actually. but he keeps it light. 
the girl just hums in agreement at this, and a brief silence settles between them. he’s the one to eventually break it. 
“you, uh…you think about coming out anytime soon?” god, he wishes he had a cigarette. “still got your room empty.”
“yeah, i have.” it’s all she’s been thinking about. but she tries to stay nonchalant. “maybe after new years.” 
“great, yeah.” his heart pounds a little faster at her words. “no pressure, just…yeah. i’d love to see you.”
“okay. i’ll um…i’ll let you know,” she tells him softly, feeling an overwhelming urge to cry. 
“okay.”
“merry christmas, carmy.”
“merry christmas.” he shuffles from side to side. “stay in touch, yeah? it was really good to hear from you.”
“yeah, i will. you too. goodnight.”
“wait, i uh-” he wants to tell her he loves her. 
“hm?” she puts the phone back up to her ear. 
“just, um…take care of yourself, yeah?” he can’t seem to muster up the courage.
“i will.” 
“okay. good.”
“i…i’m gonna feel stupid for saying this, but i love you, carm.” 
he gets this feeling of relief and pain all in one. “i love you too.” so much. “thanks for callin’.”
“goodnight.”
“yeah, night.” 
the line disconnects. and it feels better than before. 
hurts still, yes. 
but better. 
the girl finds herself staring at the ceiling that night, just thinking. about her family, her career. about carmen. finds solace in the way that gnawing feeling is replaced by a fluttering. a hopefulness. 
and what is love, if not unconditional and everlasting? 
she drifts off to sleep with warm cheeks and the image of his goofy smile at the forefront of her mind. 
-
a/n: ow. 
really hope you enjoyed this series :) these two i hold so near & dear to my heart and i thoroughly enjoyed watching this story fold out along with you. thank you all so much for your patience with the process & for your kind words!!! xoxox
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yanderedrabbles · 23 hours ago
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Misery - Part Three
Based on Misery by Stephen King
Stuck in the mountains, you foolishly decide to drive through a blizzard. The man that drags you from your wrecked car brings you to his cabin and patches you up. But as the snow piles up outside, you start to suspect that your rescuer's intentions may be far from pure.
Previous Chapter
After Andy left, you managed to change out of your clothes. The flannel shirt he gave you was worn down just enough to feel cozy and the smell of his cologne still lingered 'round the collar.
You settled against the headboard and almost dozed off before he came back. He'd taken off his jacket and carried a pile of firewood in his arms. He dumped the logs in the fireplace and stood up, revealing a wife beater and arms thick with muscle. You were right about his strength - his body was just further proof of it.
"Sorry 'bout that. I should have brought some in last night but well..."
He turned to you, dusting his hands. "I got a good look at the situation outside. You might not wanna hear it but we're totally snowed in. Phone lines are down too."
"Oh. I didn't realise it was that bad."
You felt a dull sort of trepidation. Andy had been nothing but kind to you, but being stuck out in the mountains frightened you.
"Any idea when things will open up again?"
He sat down in the chair beside your bed and stretched out. For a second, the only thought in your head was how dangerous and lean he looked. His dog tags caught the light and winked at you.
"Hard to tell. We're far off the beaten path. Only folks nearby are the Roydmans and they're a good few miles off. 'Sides, snows too deep to drive through so even if they clear off the main road, we ain't getting there anytime soon."
You felt your heart sink. "Do you think I need to go to the hospital?"
He raised a brow and skimmed his eyes across your body. "It ain't looking pretty, but I reckon you can handle it."
"Hurts like hell though."
"Sorry princess, but it'll take a while for this sort of hurt to heal. Best I can do is give you something strong for the pain."
Your ankle still throbbed mercilessly and hearing him say that made you all the more aware of it. You searched desperately around the room for a distraction.
The room was much larger than you realised, with a panelled wood ceiling and big bay windows. From your position, all you could see was the sky.
It was comfortable and starkly clean. Oh God, was this his room or a guest room?
"I haven't kicked you out of your room, have I?" you asked, suddenly unsure of yourself.
He grinned and rubbed his jaw. "I reckoned you needed a nice bed far more than I did."
"Shit, I'm so sorry!" Your hands fluttered to your lips. You felt terribly guilty. "I can't imagine how much I've put you out."
He waved you away. "It gets awful quiet up here. You have no idea how nice it is to have company."
His eyes dropped to the shirt you were wearing. "Real nice."
He reached up to play around with his dog tags and you finally noticed the tattoo across his forearm.
"Semper Fidelis?"
"Always loyal."
He reached forward and let you inspect his arm. You took hold of his wrist and traced the tattoo with your fingertips. The words themselves were small and neat, but the rest of it was an intricate pattern of barbed wire that wound round his forearm.
"Did it hurt?"
"Tell you the truth? It stung like a bitch."
He was watching your face and when you looked up at him, your eyes met. Those eyes on the other end of a gun would have sent you running for the hills. You pitied the soldiers that faced off against him.
You let go of his arm and swallowed.
"When did you get it?"
He let his forearm rest next to your thigh.
"When I was deployed for the first time."
He was close enough that you caught the scent of his cologne and the sweet smell of pine from the wood he chopped.
"How did you end up in the Marines anyway?"
"I've got you curious, do I?"
You felt yourself blush. "Maybe a little."
"Hmm." He rubbed at his jaw, like he was trying to rub away a smile.
"Maybe I'll tell you about it someday. For now though, you need to take some tablets and get some sleep."
"But what about you? I've kind of colonised your bed."
"First thing you learn in basic is to sleep standing up. I'll be fine sleeping on the couch. 'Sides, I ain't the one who went crashing off the road less than a day ago."
He reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a blister pack of tablets.
"These are Novril. They pack a hell of a punch, so I expect you to sleep through the rest of the day. Best thing you can do right now is rest, got it?"
"Yes sir."
He dropped two shiny white pills into your open palm.
"Good girl. Now drink up."
He passed you a glass of water from the nightstand. The tablets left a slightly bitter taste behind, but you hurt too much to mind it.
Outside, the snow started up again.
You smiled at him. "How am I ever supposed to repay you?"
He studied you for a second.
The shirt you borrowed was missing a few buttons near the top and gaped open just a little at your tits, but you were too drowsy to notice.
He grinned that slow, lazy smile of his. "I'm sure you'll think of something, princess."
You hadn't fully realised just how intimate this all was. You were wearing his clothes. Sleeping in his bed. Entirely reliant on him to take care of you.
He stood up and shook his head.  "You must be hungry. Any requests?"
"Nope. I'll take anything at this point."
His eyes flickered to your chest and then quickly away. "I can make you regret that real fast, y'know."
"Come on, you can't be that bad of a chef."
He huffed and shook his head. "You just sit pretty and I'll be back."
He returned with a bowl of oats sprinkled with brown sugar. His fingers brushed yours when he handed it to you and he lingered for a second longer than needed.
"I'm afraid it's all hospital chow until you're stronger. It's too bad - I make a mean flapjack."
You played around with your spoon and then gave in. Plain oats or not, you needed your strength.
Andy was quiet while you ate, watching the snow swirl across the window.
He tugged at his dog tags again and spoke up, "Does anyone know you're out here? A boyfriend, a sibling, anyone that knows where you were headed?"
You carefully put your empty bowl down on the nightstand. With the tablets, the pain was mercifully retreating. Not gone, never entirely gone, but a tiny bit more manageable.
"No. I wanted to surprise a friend but they don't know I'm coming."
You felt unnaturally drowsy for this early in the day. He must have noticed it because he stood up and gently pressed at your shoulders.
"Lie down and I promise you'll be out like a light soon enough."
You listened to him and found your eyes drifting shut as soon as you hit the pillow.
"Y'know." Your voice was muffled by your pillow. "You're a really great guy."
"Thanks, but save that until after you're better, yeah?"
He pulled the duvet higher and carefully tucked it around your shoulders.
"Not a soul knows you're out here?"
You hummed in agreement. You were almost entirely asleep and barely felt the hand that drifted across your forehead, gently pushing the hair off your face.
"Just you and me, princess."
You didn't hear it, but there was a strange note to his voice. Fear, maybe. Or longing. Hard to tell, with how similar they can be.
Next Chapter [coming soon]
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eelclaw · 14 hours ago
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the protagonists of the broken code. who's rootspring
i am tbc's number 1 hater! negative thoughts below
shadowsight: other characters sometimes acknowledge that he was manipulated by ashfur, but the narrative puts all of the blame for the ashfur situation on him, neglecting that (a) he did exactly what he was supposed to do as a healer (obey and take messages from a starclan cat), and (b) the codebreaker hysteria was far more a product of clan culture than the actions of a single apprentice. he isn't treated like the victim that he is, and it is frustrating and not cathartic.
bristlefrost: what the hell does she even do. what does her spy arc accomplish or contribute (like mother, like daughter). she finds out that bramblestar isn't bramblestar far too early. she's so perfect and she has no flaws and she's so empty. i want her to be worse. how much more interesting would she be if she was sneaky and selfish? if she was loyal to the imposter because she truly believed in what he was saying? not to mention how she reciprocates rootspring's feelings with literally zero warning, and ceases to have what little character she'd had to begin with. i genuinely don't care that she dies, they did nothing to make her an engaging character. miss bristlefrost, i'm sorry they did you so bad.
rootspring: first rootpaw thinks he's weird because of his father. i hate this because i hate tree. later, rootpaw thinks he's weird because he can see ghosts. so they give him this "i just want to be normal" deal, and the clans suddenly pretend that ghosts are silly and not real. sure, rootspring and tree are the first clan cats with this specific power. and i get that the clans have very rigid beliefs, and they are afraid of anything that contradicts those beliefs, and that's interesting! but ghosts have been appearing to clan cats all the way back to tpb. fireheart tries to kill clawface at one point and he senses spottedleaf's spirit beside him, there to avenge her death. so rootspring's issue is stupid and he's nothingburger to me.
bramblestar: the arc really depends on me giving a shit about what happens to him. which i don't.
i think bramblestar is unintentionally a bad person and a great character. he proves himself by rejecting tigerstar, but he's still deeply insecure. he makes mistake after mistake (conspiring with tigerstar; hesitating to save firestar from the fox trap; forsaking his children after finding out they're not biologically his; using his power over squirrelflight as a warrior, deputy, and leader to control her), and for none of these mistakes is he held accountable (no thunderclan cat except leafpool learns that he plotted with tigerstar; he is allowed to remain deputy; his children think he was the best father ever; in every situation, squirrelflight seems to bear the consequences of his actions).
in other words, bramblestar gets chance after chance to redeem himself, and he keeps fucking it up. again, that's interesting! there is a story here about how difficult childhoods affect adults, and how powerful men are not held responsible for hurting people. except that's not how he's written. he's written as a completely good person, a brave and noble leader, and all of the clans respect him and they need to get him back.
there's a crazy amount of bramblestar worship in this arc. even rootspring, a brand new skyclan apprentice, thinks about how important bramblestar, the thunderclan leader, is, and how all the clans wouldn't be the same without him. i can't take it seriously.
graystripe: graystripe also got a crazy amount of worship. i couldn't stand reading every few paragraphs about how great he is.
side note: shadowsight, bristlefrost, and rootspring all want the same thing. they advocate against killing bramblestar's body. wouldn't it be more interesting if the protagonists had different perspectives and opinions? if they wanted different things? for example, it makes sense that shadowsight wouldn't want bramblestar dead. he feels like the only way to make up for his mistake is to recover bramblestar alive. but bristlefrost could be in favor of killing bramblestar, because the only way to make up for her mistake (supporting the imposter) is to get rid of him. putting our protagonists at odds would generate some interesting conflict.
conclusion: i also have problems with ashfur (why does ashfur try to stir up trouble with codebreaking which will certainly get him caught when he could just take over bramblestar's body and live quietly with squirrelflight), tigerheartstar, mothwing, starclan, the dark forest insta-death water, firestar possessing rootspring, the pacing (oh my god! they were debating whether to kill bramblestar for like three books! and for three more books they were running in circles in the dark forest!), etc. but i've already written a lot and i'm out of steam lol.
let me finish by saying these are kids books, and i'm not expecting them to be the cream of the crop, but there are a lot of writing choices which are incredibly misogynistic and/or make no sense from a narrative standpoint. i still have a soft spot for this series though. dammit. okay bye
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daisymbin · 3 days ago
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"you used to love me " with mingyu x fem! Reader💗
of course! thank you for requesting 🥰
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second chance prompt #44: "you used to love me."
mingyu had gotten used to the coldness in your voice. it wasn't always like this—there was a time when the sound of your laughter had been his favorite thing, when your touch had felt like home. but ever since the breakup, you had a way of cutting him down with sharp words and pointed looks, leaving him wondering where everything had gone wrong.
he didn't know why you hated him now. or at least, why you acted like you did.
“don’t you have anything better to do than linger around here?” you snapped one evening, your tone biting as mingyu hovered near your desk at the shared workspace for a project.
his brows furrowed. “i was just asking if you needed help. no need to bite my head off.”
“well, i don’t,” you replied curtly, your eyes fixed on the papers in front of you.
he clenched his jaw, forcing a polite nod. “got it.”
it wasn’t the first time you’d brushed him off like this. at a mutual friend's party, you'd made a snide comment about how “clingy” he used to be, loud enough for him to hear. when you’d run into him at the grocery store, you muttered something about how “some people just don’t know when to let go” before walking away without so much as a glance back.
but this time, it was different.
the final blow came on a late afternoon, after yet another tense encounter. mingyu had tried to make small talk, asking about your day, and you snapped, “why do you even care? you didn’t care enough when it actually mattered.”
his chest tightened, the words hitting him harder than he expected. for a moment, he just stared at you, his lips parting as if to say something but no sound coming out. finally, his voice broke through, soft and pained.
“you used to love me, you know,” he said, his eyes locking onto yours. “you don’t have to be like that... you don't have to be so mean.”
your breath caught, and for a moment, you faltered, but you quickly masked it with a scoff. “that’s in the past.”
he didn’t reply, just nodded slowly, shoulders heavy as he turned and walked away.
a few days later, you found yourself at the park for an outdoor charity event, mingyu nearby as usual, volunteering for the setup. you tried to avoid him, keeping your distance as much as possible.
but then you heard the commotion.
a crash, followed by a string of startled voices. you whipped around to see mingyu sprawled on the ground near a pile of fallen equipment, holding his arm awkwardly.
“gyu-ah!” you shouted as panic coarses through you, rushing over before you even realized what you were doing. he groaned, trying to sit up, but you dropped to your knees beside him, your hands trembling as they hovered over his arm.
“what were you thinking?” you snapped, but your voice cracked with worry. “you could’ve gotten seriously hurt!”
“im fine,” he said weakly, offering you a small, strained smile. “just a scratch.”
“a scratch?” you repeated, your voice rising. “mingyu, you’re bleeding!”
tears pricked your eyes as you fussed over him, checking his arm for more injuries. mingyu's eyebrows burrowed as he watched you in silence, his heart twisting at the sight of your panic.
“you’re always so reckless,” you muttered, your voice breaking as you pressed a clean cloth to his arm to stop the bleeding. “why do you always have to act like nothing matters? why can't you take better care of yourself? you scared me.”
he blinked, taken aback. “you were scared?”
“of course i was scared!” you snapped, tears spilling over now. “do you think i’d just stand there and do nothing if something happened to you? i—”
you stopped, realizing what you were about to say. your hands froze, still pressed against his arm, and you refused to meet his gaze.
“you still care about me,” mingyu said softly, his voice filled with quiet wonder.
you swallowed hard, shaking your head. “i... i don’t...”
“you do,” he pressed, leaning closer despite the pain in his arm. “you wouldn’t be like this if you didn’t.”
you bit your lip, fresh tears welling up. “what do you want me to say?” you asked in exasperation and frustration, your shoulders shaking. “what do you want me to do? why can't you just.. why do you keep making me worry? why can't you just stay away? why do you have to make moving on from you so hard? why cant you just let me be mean and hate you? its so much easier to just hate you than—”
mingyu could only watch helplessly as you choked over your sobs. his heart broke at your words, guilt washing over him. “i’m sorry,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “for everything. for making you feel like you had to do that just to protect yourself. i... i didn't mean to," mingyu says defeatedly, "i know i probably don’t deserve it, but.. i miss us.”
your breath hitched, and he reached out hesitantly, his fingers brushing against yours. “i don’t want to hurt you again,” he continued, his voice soft and vulnerable. “but if there’s even the smallest part of you that’s willing to try again... i’d do anything to show you how much i still love you.”
you looked up at him, his sincerity clear in his eyes, and for the first time in a long while, the wall you’d built around your heart began to crack.
“i hate you,” you muttered as your fist balled and hits his chest, "i hate you so much," your voice trembling as the tears now fall freely.
still, mingyu smiled through his pain, knowing what this means. “i love you,” he confesses, "I love you so much,"
"I hate you," you repeat, your fist going up to hit his chest again.
this time, mingyu catches you by your wrist, "you hate me as much as you love me, sweetheart." at this, your eyes only waters more because you know he's right; you dont actually hate him.
mingyu's grip on your wrist loosened, his hand sliding down to intertwine with yours. his gaze softened, but he didn't let go, holding onto you like you were his lifeline.
"you hate me, but you're still here," he murmured, his voice trembling as he let out a bitter laugh. "you’re crying because of me, you’re still holding on, too."
your lips parted to argue, but nothing came out. the truth sat heavy in the air between you.
"stop it," you whispered instead, your voice wavering.
he shook his head, his free hand brushing against your cheek, wiping away a tear that had slipped down. "i love you," he says again softly, his thumb lingering on your skin. "i’m not asking you to forgive me right away. i’m not even asking you to love me again—"
"gyu-," you interrupted, your chest tightening at the vulnerability in his voice.
he smiled faintly, shaking his head. "no, just let me say this," he said, his voice quiet but firm. "all I'm asking for is a chance. a chance to show you that i can do better. that i can be the man you deserve to have by your side."
your heart pounded in your chest, his words hitting you with a force you weren’t prepared for. your walls wavered, the cracks growing wider with each syllable he spoke.
"and if you can’t," mingyu continued, his voice breaking slightly, "if you can’t give me that chance, i’ll walk away. i’ll leave you alone for good if that’s what you want."
you stared at him, your throat tight as tears threatened to spill again. his honesty was overwhelming, and for a moment, you hated how much you wanted to believe him.
"you used to love me," he voice soft & hoarse, it almost broke you. "and i know i messed it up. but if there’s even the smallest part of you that still does, just... let me fix it."
the silence between you felt deafening. your heart screamed at you to take the risk, but your head begged you to protect yourself.
you searched his face, looking for any hint of insincerity, but all you saw was him—raw, open, and so clearly in love with you that it hurt.
"you’re an idiot," you muttered, your voice breaking, but your grip on his hand didn’t falter.
mingyu let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, his lips curving into a relieved, almost disbelieving smile. "i missed hearing you say that," he said softly, pulling you closer.
you rolled your eyes, a weak laugh escaping you despite the tears still clinging to your lashes. "don’t push your luck."
"never," he said, his voice full of quiet determination as he pulled you into a gentle embrace. "i promise."
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lloydskywalkers · 2 days ago
Text
drywall
went to go work on raising hell and ended up missing Skylor, so!! I will always have so many emotions about s8/9 and the aftermath of it, here's another gallon of them.
Two months after they’ve taken back the city and the street lights are finally starting to work again, Lloyd shows up at the restaurant an hour past closing time, sporting a spectacularly bruise and enough blood across his gi to make the Ninjago City Blood Drive team’s day. 
“Hi, Sky.” Lloyd waltzes — or attempts to, it’s more of a stumbling collapse — right in as if nothing’s amiss in the slightest. “Sorry, I’m, uh. Was in the neighborhood and I wasn’ sure…where else t’ go.”
Skylor, still frozen over a stained tabletop with her dishtowel in hand, stares at him. 
All things considered, she should be fully prepared for something like this. It should practically be in her restaurant’s training manual, that at some point you’ll end up confronted with a bloody, half-dead ninja in your door. But given how slow the past few weeks have been, coupled with the sheer exhaustion of dealing with the lunch rush and the dinner rush and the late-night somewhat-inebriated people rush, her guard is apparently down enough to leave her reacting with a simple, useless, “Oh god.”
“Tha’s my grandfather,” Lloyd says. There’s blood at the corner of his mouth — coupled with the bruising, Skylor thinks (hopes) it’s simply from split skin or a bitten cheek, instead of crippling internal bleeding. 
Crippling internal bleeding is enough of a concern to finally spur her into action, dropping her towel and rushing over to help Lloyd finish stumbling through the door. She spares a moment of thanks, that there’s even a door at all — repairs in the city have been slow, since Harumi’s brief reign of terror, and the insurance provider is still holding out on her. 
But the door was a good thing to prioritize, she thinks, bolting it firmly behind them. 
“Sorry, again,” Lloyd murmurs. His jaw is working in the tight way it does when he’s biting back pain, his bottom lip bruised and bleeding. Skylor’s stomach twists. 
You’d think, after all she’s been through, she’d be more accustomed to seeing the people she cares about in pain. That she’d be desensitized enough, to fight back the aching nausea and the gnawing desire to look away. 
Or maybe she’s just a coward. That would track, she thinks. 
“Shush,” she says instead, maneuvering Lloyd further into one of the nicer booths, careful of the blood that’s…everywhere. “What did you do to yourself this time, huh?”
“I didn’t do anything,” Lloyd grumbles, his voice steadier now that he’s sitting down. Unfortunately, he’s only paler under the yellowy restaurant lights, and the blood looks about ten times worse. “I just…slipped. A bit.”
Slipped. Skylor could smack him, if he wasn’t already hurt. 
“Lemme see, then.” She bends down to where she can tug the folds of his gi back, trying to trace the blood to a source. She finally finds it — an ugly wound in his left shoulder, several long gashes across his forearm. A knife, maybe. Possibly a sword, but it looks close-up and quick. It’d need to have been quick, for whoever was wielding it to land this many hits. 
Or Lloyd would have to be sloppy. 
Lloyd gives a stifled, shuddery exhale, a dangerous preamble to tears. Skylor pauses, just for a moment, and deliberates. 
She’s got Nya’s number, carefully keyed into her phone ever since she and Kai started visiting the noodle house. There’s no doubt in her mind that she’d want to know about this — and there’s less doubt that Kai would want to know. if anything, she’s surprised he hasn’t burst through the restaurant doors already, summoned by whatever sixth sense he has that goes off when Lloyd’s in danger. 
But Skylor also knows there’s got to be a reason that Lloyd came here, despite his claims. Just as there’s probably a reason he didn’t call Kai or Nya, or any of the others. 
And perhaps she feels just a little proud, that Lloyd’s chosen her to come to. 
It’s quickly lost in the blood that coats her hands as she begins patching the wound in his shoulder, but the feeling’s there nonetheless. 
It’s a nice feeling, being relied on. Being trusted. 
“Who got you this bad?”
She speaks up mostly to break the quiet. Lloyd isn’t quite like Kai, who likes talking simply to fill a space, but she knows he isn’t fond of silence, either. It’s one of the things they share in common. 
“No one.” Lloyd sucks in a breath as she draws the bandage tight across his shoulder, wrapping it beneath his arm and back over. His eyes close briefly as she ties it off, forehead scrunching up, before he lets out another shuddery exhale. “Some guy, uh — guy on the way home, near the subway. I had answered a call earlier, and I guess — ow, hey—” 
“Sorry,” Skylor winces, as she finishes dumping antiseptic across the slashes on his arm. “It hurts less if you aren’t expecting it.”
“That’s a lie,” Lloyd says, pointedly. 
She shrugs. “So, random subway mugger?”
Lloyd looks away, his cheeks darkening. It’s a relief, to see any color in his face at all. “Sort of.”
He leaves it at that, lapsing back into silence. Skylor looks down, focusing on the butterfly stitches she’s placing across his arm. Were it anyone else, she’d have panicked for actual stitches, but Lloyd heals with an uncanny quickness. She remembers Nya complaining about it, back during the Resistance — how Lloyd threw a fit when his skin healed over the stitches, and they’d had to cut him open all over again. 
She’d probably throw a fit of her own, to be fair. 
“Well, if you see him,” she says, reaching for the roll of bandages. “Point him out. I could use a punching bag.”
Lloyd’s lips quirk, a ghost of a smile. 
“Thank you.”
It’s quiet enough she might’ve missed it, if they were any further apart. Skylor doesn’t miss the meaning, either. She simply shakes her head, wrapping another layer around his arm. 
“I’m just glad you came to someone,” she says. “Instead of half-assing it yourself.”
Lloyd’s fingers twitch. “I wouldn’t do that.”
“Uh-huh.”
She can’t pretend she doesn’t understand. Her childhood is filled with fun little memories of patching herself together, hiding wounds from Clouse or her father in an attempt to convince them she was better than she was.
Not that the people Lloyd is hiding from are anything remotely like her father, of course, but there’s an overlap between people you fear and people you love, and trying to convince them you’re stronger than you are. 
“That should do it,” she nods to herself, surveying her work. She feels unusually proud of herself — Skylor’s never really stayed with a team long enough to have many chances to patch people up. It’s rarer that people are so open to her touching them, once they’ve learned what her power is. The ninja are an exceedingly kind exception, but it still makes her feel warm, being given this kind of trust. 
She glances up, eyeing her patient. Lloyd’s still pale, but it’s far better than the ashy color from earlier anymore. “Anywhere else?”
“No.” Lloyd stares at the strip of bandages across his arms, shoulders hunched over on himself.
“I have Nya on speed dial, you know—”
“Its just a few scrapes,” Lloyd rolls his eyes. “It’s nothing.”
Skylor sighs. “Lemme see.”
Lloyd grumbles, but he lets her grab his arm again, wincing as she dabs antiseptic over the smaller cuts. There’s nothing serious — just a few nicks and scratches, the kind you get from eating the ground mid-fight. He’s got one uglier scrape, but it’s about as nasty as a skinned knee, and easily eclipsed by the scar it bleeds through. 
Her fingers falter. She knows this scar — she was there when Kai struggled to patch the wound it once was, back on her father’s island. It’s an ugly, jagged scar, a testament to how Kai’s hands had shook as he’d tried to be gentle. 
In hindsight, it had been a terrible moment. Kai wasn’t sure if Lloyd had picked up the wound from the underground tunnels, Chen’s cultists, or his own brief slip into the madness of the staff. Lloyd wouldn’t say where it was from, even if either of them had been much for talking. And Skylor had been an awkward, purple-scaled fixture next to them, holding the medical kit while the others planned how to kill her father. 
And yet, it was the lightest she’d ever felt. 
Skylor bites her lip. 
She’s never told Lloyd, what exactly he’d meant to her. He likely has no idea, what he’d represented when she’d first met him. 
The son of one of Ninjago’s greatest villains — and people loved him. 
Kai loved him. 
If Lloyd could overcome the hurdle of his parentage and choose to live the way he wanted, if people could look past the dark stain of his legacy and love him anyways, then maybe—
He’d been hope, when she needed it most. And Kai had lived up to that hope, taking Skylor’s half-formed, frail dream and fueling it into a blaze.
Her eyes close, briefly, and she shivers. 
“Are you okay?”
Blinking her eyes back open, she comes face to face with Lloyd’s concerned expression. She shakes her head, looking away. 
“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Embarrassment pulls at her. “Just a bit of…aftershocks. You know.”
Lloyd frowns, clearly not knowing. “Aftershocks,” he repeats. “From…”
His eyes go wide, only for his expression to immediately crumple. “Oh.”
Skylor waves her hands. “It’s not bad,” she reassures him. “I can barely feel him — his power — anymore. Just pins and needles in my hands sometimes, that’s all. Totally…totally normal.”
She hopes. Garmadon’s power had burned, in the way bitter cold feels against your skin, so a bit of numbness is pretty decent tradeoff, if she says so herself. 
Lloyd looks down, expression shadowed and hidden. Skylor could curse herself — she knows better, than to bring up—
“Here.” Lloyd’s suddenly holding his hand out, looking at her earnestly. It’s an almost childish expression of sincerity, one that makes him look much younger — a little more like the Lloyd she met on her father’s island, who beamed when his father ruffled his hair. 
Her chest aches fiercely, and Skylor holds out her hand before she can hesitate. Lloyd takes it carefully in his own, and she watches in fascination as the low shimmer of green engulfs her fingers. Lloyd’s power is as gentle as he is — nothing like the ravaging purple storm that was his father’s. 
“Oh,” she says. “That’s nice.”
Lloyd makes a humming noise. “I’ve been practicing. H-his power doesn’t get along with mine, that much. So it kinda…makes room. For whoever’s stronger, at the moment.”
Skylor fights back a shudder. Realistically, she knows she shouldn’t feel ashamed, that Garmadon overpowered her — he’s Garmadon. The reminder of how his power felt still stings, though. 
It’s a reassurance, that Lloyd’s power is stronger now. His element, if you can even call it that, is probably the one she’s the least familiar with — she’s never tried to copy Lloyd’s power. She isn’t entirely sure if she could, or if she should. Dipping into Garmadon’s power was dangerous enough. Skylor isn’t stupid enough to pretend she has the willpower to meddle with the power of the FSM’s family much more than that. 
“It feels like cheating, kinda,” she finally says. “That fighting fuels his power. How are you supposed to fight back?”
Lloyd shrugs, letting her hand go. “You don’t. You get really good at dodging.”
Skylor leans forward, propping her chin up in her palms. “That’s stupid.”
“Well,” Lloyd’s lips twitch, just the slightest bit. “That’s Garmadon, so.”
His expression immediately fractures, and Skylor can spot the battle in his eyes as he tries to grasp for composure. Her teeth worry at her lip.
She should really call Nya, now. Or try to track down Kai’s number. Or anyone else — it’s nearly two hours past closing, the kitchen’s still a mess, and Lloyd’s blood is all over her dishrags. Lloyd himself is hardly in better shape, the ghostly pale of his skin reminding her horribly of when she first saved them from the Sons of Garmadon, and Skylor is—
Not enough. 
She ought to know that, by now.
But the fact still stands, that Lloyd came to her. A part of her clings to that, and another selfish, awful part of her, the part that festered on her father’s island for so many years, the part that still flinches beneath the weight of her last name — well. 
Misery loves company, is probably the best way to put it. 
“I should…I should probably get going,” Lloyd says, uncertainly. He doesn’t make any move to get up, though, still small and weary where he’s hunched up in her booth. 
Skylor stares at him, and thinks of sitting for hours on the edge of her father’s island, staring at the sun on the water until her eyes ached. 
“Hey,” she says, a bit breathless, twisting her fingers together. “Wanna go skip rocks?”
Quite fairly, Lloyd stares at her like she’s lost her mind. 
They end up on the rickety end of one of Ninjago City’s abandoned docks anyways, a mismatched selection of somewhat flat rocks spilling out of a Chen’s to-go bag. Lloyd’s left arm is tied up in a mangled sort of sling they fashioned from Skylor’s old sweatshirt, leaving him to turn a rock over in his right hand awkwardly. 
“So, funny thing,” he says. “I don’t, uh. I’m not very good at this.”
“That’s okay,” Skylor says, sifting through the rocks they’ve gathered. “I’m not, either.”
“Yeah?” Lloyd sounds hopeful. “I mean, you at least know the trick to it, right?”
“I don’t,” she shrugs. “I’ve never…I’ve never skipped rocks before.”
Lloyd stares at her. 
“It’s not that weird,” she huffs, fighting back the urge to hide. “I mean, I never really had the chance, but I aways thought — I grew up near the ocean, and all these lakes, so I always thought it’d be fun to, y’know, skip rocks, since I didn’t really have…anyone else, to…”
The rest of the sentence is about to turn even more humiliating, so it’s a relief when Lloyd interrupts her. 
“I haven’t either.” 
He immediately flushes. “That’s why I’m not good at it.’Cause I’ve never actually skipped rocks.” 
“Oh.” Skylor looks at their bag, then back up at him. “Well, cool. We’ll both suck, then.”
“How hard can it be, anyways?” Lloyd says, sorting through their rocks. “You just find a flat one, right?”
“Yeah,” Skylor says. “Then you sort of just, frisbee it. I think.”
“Hm.”
“You haven’t thrown a frisbee either, have you.”
“Oh, like you have.”
Skylor presses her lips together, snorting. “Was wondering when your snark was gonna show back up.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Do you not remember half the stuff that came out of your mouth, back at the tournament?”
“You would’ve been out of your mind too, if you had to herd the guys around then — also, bold words coming from you, ooh, how dare you call me a traitor, even though it’s totally dead-on—”
“That wasn’t even close to what I said, and also—” Skylor snatches a smooth rock before Lloyd can, hefting it up. “It’s not like I was gonna admit to you all I was a traitor. That defeats the whole purpose of betraying. Lying my way out of a corner was the smart choice.”
“You’d be surprised,” Lloyd mutters, as Skylor flings her rock across the water.
They both watch as it splashes sadly, sinking instantly like, well. A rock. 
“Okay,” Skylor cringes. “That was a warm-up.”
Several warm-ups later, neither of them have made any progress whatsoever, save to torment whatever fish are hanging out on this side of Ninjago City’s harbor with relentless rock barrages. 
“This is ridiculous,” Lloyd huffs, watching as his rock all but torpedoes into the water. “What’s wrong with us, that we can’t get one stupid rock to skip?”
“Maybe it’s in the wrist?” Skylor flexes her hand, angling it one way then another. She winds ups, throws the rock out, and — nope. 
“I think we’re getting worse,” Lloyd remarks as Skylor sputters, wiping the seawater that splashed up from her face. 
She can’t help but agree. They’re down to a few rocks left, and neither of them have made any progress, much less skipped a single rock. At some point, they give up altogether, seeing who can throw their rock out the furthest instead. 
“This one’s going…” Lloyd raises his arm, closing one eye and squinting as he angles higher. He finally pauses with his hand pointing upwards toward Ninjago City. “Right through that weird oval thing on Borg Tower.” 
“Don’t hit it too hard,” Skylor says. “They just got it back up last week.”
“I’m not hitting it, it’s going through it, weren’t you listening?”
“To you? Nah. I’ve heard you suck at public speaking.”
“Wow, after you forced me into the live broadcast and everything—”
As if to emphasize his distress, Lloyd takes a running start, hurling the rock forward. They watch as it arcs across the skyline, before plummeting somewhere in the harbor. 
“So close,” Skylor murmurs. 
Lloyd flops on the ground with a dull thump, legs sprawling in front of him as he leans back on his elbows. Skylor’s makeshift sling isn’t doing much at all anymore, though it looks like he doesn’t need it to.
That, or he’s hiding pain stupidly well. Which wouldn’t be surprising, if disappointing. 
“Defeated,” he mourns. “Overthrown by rocks.”
Skylor dusts gingerly at the ground before sitting next to him. “They sure got the best of us, this time.”
“Maybe it’s a learning curve,” he says. “That or we missed, like, the optimal rock-skipping development time.”
“Mmh. Maybe we need to recruit a teacher who actually had a decent childhood.”
“If you find someone, lemme know.”
They both laugh, breathless and hollow, because they’re not much else they can say, to that. 
Lloyd sits up suddenly, pulling his knees to his chest. His arms wrap tightly around them, eyes glued forward. Instead of asking, Skylor follows his gaze to the skyline of Ninjago City, the darkened scars left behind by Garmadon and Harumi painfully pronounced this late at night. 
It couldn’t have been longer than two weeks, could it? Their rule over the city?
It feels like years.
She can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for the others — can’t imagine what it was like, ending it. 
It pains her, but Skylor doesn’t remember much of Garmadon’s defeat. She’d thrown everything she had into controlling his power, and when it had snapped back on her, ravaging through her like a cloying poison, everything had gone dark and hazy. 
It kind of sucks, because she’d done all that just to miss the most important parts, but…it is what it is.
What she does remember, besides Nya’s steady voice and Dareth’s panicked yelling, is the blazing warmth that was Lloyd carrying her.
That and his painfully bony shoulder digging into her stomach. 
“I was trying not to get us crushed,” Lloyd mutters, cheeks turning pink. “Sorry my shoulder wasn’t up to cushion-y standards.”
“And I’m trying to say thank you,” Skylor sighs. “But seriously. Put something on those bones.”
“Meh meh meh,” Lloyd mocks. There’s a lack of his usual energy in the action, the dullness to his eyes only made worse by the bruise-like circles beneath them. But it’s still very Lloyd — a flash of the friend she knows. 
“I really do mean it,” she says. “Thank you. For carrying me out of there. For saving me.”
Lloyd stares at her with dark eyes. Not as dark as they were, back when he’d lost his power, but the glow is almost entirely absent.
“You shouldn’t—” he bites off, frustrated. He tosses the rock he’s holding, up and down. “It was never a question.”
He glances at her. “Besides,” and there’s the closest she’s seen to a real smile. “You saved us first.”
Not nearly soon enough, she thinks. 
She should’ve told him, should have asked — should have let him know how it felt to watch her father fall deeper into madness, told him what it felt like to lose hope — what it meant, to move on. 
To cut ties, before they strangled you. 
“How are you,” she says, as gently as she can. Then, because gentle doesn’t always get you through the walls they build— “For real. Not how people want to hear you’re doing, or the answer you think they want. How are you.” 
Lloyd stiffens. There’s a flicker of fear in his expression, his mouth moving on instinct. 
“I’m doing okay.”
Tremors lace through his hand where he holds the rock, shuddering fingers tracing over the rough surface. 
“Okay as I can be.” He looks down, the rock slipping from his fingers as his arms wrap around himself. “I know that isn’t the answer you want, but I don’t…”
He looks back up, the lights of Ninjago City misty in his eyes.  
“I don’t know what people want me to say,” he whispers. 
Skylor wishes he’d screamed it. Wishes he’d snap, wishes he’d find the anger where it simmers inside him and turn it outwards against the world, rather than violently projecting it inwards like a masochistic missile all the time. Anything at all, instead of this hollow brokenness. 
It reminds Skylor a bit too much of—
Well. 
“I know I — things are—” Lloyd swallows. He pauses, raising his hand to scrub at an already-bloodshot eye. “Everything happened so fast. It was like — like getting hit with a bus, then another bus, then she — put the bus in reverse and ran me back over, and I never really had the chance to…to…”
“To get back up?”
Lloyd nods. He picks absently at a bloodstained patch on the leg of his gi. “And I know that’s just a stupid metaphor, but getting back up is…it’s really—”
Lloyd’s pulling threads loose now, tugging hard enough that he’s likely to start unraveling holes in his gi. 
“Can I tell you something? Something that’s not…not so good.”
“Hey, you know me.” Skylor elbows him. “I’m an expert at not-good.”
Lloyd’s eyes are a little too knowing. “You’re really not.”
And she’d turn a mirror on him, if she could. “What is it, then?”
Lloyd looks away, one unusually-sharp tooth gnawing at his lip. 
“I know my dad — my dad I used to have — he loved me. I know he did.” Lloyd sounds, rather devastatingly, like he’s trying to convince himself. “But now that he’s…now that he’s like this, and after everything that happened, I almost wish — I almost—”
He cuts off, covering his face with his hands. “Never mind.”
Skylor stays still, her gaze fixed ahead on a dark spot in the city skyline. If it were her, she’d want—
Lloyd’s voice is a muffled whisper. “I wish he’d never loved me at all.”
Skylor lets out a long, shaky breath. 
Lloyd gives a dry, horrible kind of laugh. “That’s terrible, isn’t it? It’s so selfish, it’s — I’m a horrible person, for thinking that way. But it — it hurts now, to think that — that maybe, now that I’m different — and her — that even my dad—” 
“It hurts,” she murmurs. “To lose it. To think that it’s your fault.”
Lloyd brings his arms over his head, the bandages on his left arm a stark white in the dimness as he buries his face in his knees. Curling up, as if he can make himself small enough the world will finally forget he exists. 
Skylor’s…familiar. 
But then again, is she? 
She swallows. Her father was one thing, but if — if he came back now, after she’s worked so hard to move on — at the height of his madness, what would she do? 
She’s out of her depth, as she’s always been.
But there was a reason she answered the call so fervently, a reason she followed Lloyd without hesitation. Skylor doesn’t put much stock in the Green Ninja, doesn’t put much in any kind of prophecy. But she does care, very much, about Lloyd, and she thinks that’ll take her a bit farther.
“You know.” She looks down, running her finger over their last rock. “You were one of the first people that gave me any hope that I could change. That, uh, someone could love me.”
Lloyd startles, emerging just enough that she can see the green of an eye. “Huh? Me?”
She nods. “Back on my father’s island, during the tournament. I was convinced that…that after everything I’d done, with who I was, there wasn’t a chance I’d find someone who loved me.”
Lloyd frowns, lowering his arms so he can look at her fully. “But I didn’t — Kai was the one who reached out to you. He was the one that saw you. I didn’t…I didn’t really do anything.”
“Yeah. He did. But he reached out to you, first.”
Lloyd stares at her, eyes wide. Skylor smiles at him. “You were good. No matter how bad your family had been. And it…it had been okay, for you.” 
The mistiness returns to Lloyd’s eyes as he looks back to the skyline, his lip caught tightly between his teeth. 
“We’re doing okay, right?” Skylor pulls her own knees up to her chest. “You and me. I mean, we helped, a lot. We fought back for the city. You did a lot more than me, obviously, but—”
“Don’t say that,” Lloyd sounds pained. “Don’t compare it, like I’m — I do a lot more harm than good, sometimes.”
“You don’t say that,” Skylor snaps. 
Lloyd flinches. She bows her head, staring down at her feet. 
“We’re good,” she says, hating the way her voice wobbles. “We’re different.”
It’s occurring to her, how cold it is out here on the water. She hopes Lloyd doesn’t get home with a cold, on top of everything else. 
“We’re different,” Lloyd echoes.
“Yeah.” Skylor swallows. “That has to count for something, right?”
Lloyd makes a small noise, but it isn’t one of disagreement. There’s a rustling as he reaches for the bag, then holds out their final, sad rock. 
“Wanna give it the last try?” He gives her a crooked, half smile. “Make it count?”
Her fingers close over the rough surface, cold against the warmth of his hand. 
The brightness of the sun against water on her father’s island in her eyes, Skylor flings the rock as hard as she can, far enough that it’s swallowed entirely by the harbor darkness. 
If she tries, she can imagine it skipping, just once, across the freezing waters. 
She tells herself, it counts anyways.
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