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ohbo-ohno · 1 year ago

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Kinktober Day 12 - Somnophilia

Soap x Reader - 5.5k (on ao3)

summary: Your doctor offers to help you get home after your lasik eye surgery. (Reader POV & Johnny POV)

cw: noncon sex, drugging, kidnapping, briefly mentioned lasik eye surgery (no description past one mention of a scalpel)

note: tysm to ceil for giving me this idea <3 i did a few google searches on lasik eye surgery and tried to mention the actual feelings as little as possible, and also the drug johnny uses is probably literally impossible but its fic so who cares lol

“And… how long did you say I have to wear these?” You ask, tentatively touching the glasses resting over your eyes.

“Och, not long at all. Just until tonight, then you come in for a check-up tomorrow afternoon and I’ll let you know what other care you’ll need.” Dr. MacTavish replies, big hands adjusting the frames and pushing them up your nose.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking, but are they usually painted like this?” You’d hardly been able to see post lasik-surgery - mostly just big swaths of color - but you feel far more vulnerable with the sunglasses on, their blacked out lenses leaving you entirely in the dark except for the blurry light around the rims.

Your doctor’s laugh is low and comforting, his hand patting you on the shoulder before you hear him moving away. “Of course. Not all optometrists use them, but I’ve found for patients like you they have the best results.”

“Like me?”

“Yes,” another chuckle, and the sounds of what you assume are tools being put away. “Patients who struggle to be good and sit still during their surgery.”

“Ah.” You feel your cheeks go hot in embarrassment. “I really am sorry about that…”

“No need,” he reassures, his hand coming to rest on the back of your neck. You can’t help but jerk a little, the glasses slipping down your nose. “Oops, don’t be losin’ those, bonnie.”

Your cheeks go hot and you have to fight the urge not to reach up and fix them yourself since his hand gets their first. He rights them quickly, then taps the tip of your nose with a finger. “There you go. Let’s keep those where they should be, hm?” He gives the nape of your neck a squeeze, his palm warm and rough, and you do your best to nod without awkwardly dislodging him.

“Now, do you have a ride home?”

You suck your teeth a little at that. You hadn’t known you’d be wearing the dark glasses after - the care plan you and Dr. MacTavish had discussed beforehand had made it seem like you’d be able to ride the bus home, but you’re not comfortable doing that in your blinded state.

“Ah, not right now,” you start, tangling your fingers together in your lap to avoid rubbing at your itchy eyes. “But I can probably call a friend-”

“Nonsense,” Dr. MacTavish dismisses, moving away from you and back to whatever he’d been moving before. “You’re my last patient of the day, how about I give you a ride home?”

“Oh,” you start, startled at his offer. “Oh, that’s… no, that’s alright, Doctor. I’m sure one of my friends could-”

He interrupts you with a tsk, and suddenly there’s a hand at your elbows guiding you up, then just one as he walks you out of the office. “No, that won’t do. We need to get you home and in bed as soon as possible - it’s not good for you to be keeping your eyes open so much after surgery, you know.”

“Oh, really?” You gasp a little, letting him guide you. “Should I be keeping them closed? I don’t want to make anything worse…”

“You’re doing just fine, bonnie, no worries.” The hand on your elbow squeezes as you come to a stop, and you hear the sound of something being written on. “I’ll take good care of you now. C’mon.” What must be a pen is dropped onto what you can only assume is the front counter, and you’re guided forward again. “We’ll have you safe at home in no time.”

Dr. MacTavish’s car is nice - the seats aren’t cracking at all, the air conditioning works to cool the interior quickly, there’s a faint minty smell - but it disconcerts you more than you might’ve expected to be left completely blind in an unfamiliar environment, and with someone you don’t know past a professional relationship.

You give him your address after he buckles you in (you swear his hand brushes your chest, but it doesn’t linger and you don’t want to accuse him of something unfounded just because of a slight touch) and he doesn’t bother to input it into the GPS, tells you he already knows where the neighborhood is.

You haven’t felt so vulnerable in a long time. Even around the edge of the glasses, all you can see are blurs of color, and you feel oddly exposed without the ability to see. Your eyes itch and sting, and it takes conscious effort not to rub the feeling away.

You lift a hand to rub them without even thinking but before it’s even halfway to your face Dr. MacTavish grabs it, pinning it to your thigh and making a low noise of dissent. “No rubbing now, lass, you know the rules.”

The heat creeping up your neck is entirely involuntary, and you tuck your free hand beneath your leg to resist the urge to squirm. “Right, of course, I’m sorry Dr. MacTavish.”

“Johnny, lass, no need for titles off the clock.”

You try to make a vague noise of understanding but end up sounding a bit like a bird, your hand clammy beneath his. He gives you a squeeze, but doesn’t let go. You’d ask him to move but… well, you don’t want to make things awkward when he’s your only way home at the moment and you figure he’s just helping. So you try to relax your fingers, and zone out to the sound of him humming along to the radio.

“Here we are,” he announces eventually, the car slowing to a stop before he turns into your driveway. “Nice neighborhood, hen. Very safe.”

You try to laugh casually and cringe when it just comes off as awkward - you’re unsure how to naviagte small-talk when all you really want to do is curl up in bed and sleep. “I just moved here recently, but it seems to be a pleasant area. I certainly don’t have any complaints.”

Dr. MacTavish - Johnny - hums in response, turning the car off and getting out to come to your side. He unbuckles you quickly and again there’s a little voice in the back of your head that says his hand lingered by your waist for just a few beats too long. But his fingers don’t venture anywhere appropriate, and you tell yourself that you’re seeing something that isn’t really there.

He keeps a hold of your elbow as he guides you up the stairs and into your building. He pauses and then a moment later you hear a ding, and the clear familiar sound of an elevator opening.

“Oh,” you say, shocked as he tugs you forward. “I had no idea the elevator was fixed - it’s been out of order since I moved in.”

“Really?” You hear press a button.

You stand there in silence for a moment, eyebrows furrowed, before you feel the elevator start to move.

“Um, Dr Ma- Johnny, what floor did you pick?”

There’s a pause before he answers, and the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

“Och, silly me,” Johnny laughs, the sound echoing in the metal walls. “Force of habit, bonnie, I picked my floor in my building. What’s yours?”

You try to laugh it off, but the way his fingers tighten almost imperceptiably against the crook of your elbow has you sounding a bit too stiff. “Four, please.”

“Four,” he hums, and you hear him press another button.

The ride up is a bit awkward, at least from your perspective. Johnny makes no attempt at conversation past the occasional hum along to the music, and you’re a little too on edge to worry about small-talk right now.

Calm down, you insist to yourself. He’s just being polite. Making sure you get home safe. You’ve got to stop seeing the worst in people.

You take a deep breath and force yourself to relax.

There’s a slightly uncomfortable silence when the door opens for the first time, both you and Johnny just waiting for it to close and take you to the proper floor.

The doors are much quicker to open the third time, and you figure Johnny must live on the third or fifth floor in his own building for you to have gotten to your floor so quickly.

“What’s your apartment number, lass?”

You tell him, and his hold loosens slightly against your arm. There’s a part of you - the part still a little cautious for reasons you can’t quite name - that relaxes when the path he takes is familiar. Only a few steps, apartment on the right side of the hall.

“Let me get my keys,” you mumble, tugging your arm away from his and pulling your keychain out of your pocket. You’d opted not to bring a purse to your surgery, thinking you’d be riding the bus home mostly blind, so you’ve got virtually nothing to dig through before offering your keyring up.

They’re taken, you hear the familiar jungling soun, and then you’re being guided into your apartment by a firm hand placed at the small of your back. You can’t help but sigh deeply in relief, the familiarity of your home a comfort when you still feel so unachored without your sight.

“Very cute place you’ve got,” Johnny compliments, a smile audible in his voice.

“Thank you.” You hesitate just a moment before going on, unsure of how to phrase your next sentence. “And thank you for all the help getting home, Doctor, I really do appreciate it.”

A.k.a., I’m safe, you can leave.

“Aye, of course!” Johnny says, sounding almost offended like you were implying he wouldn’t usually take his patients home. Another part of you relaxes - he probably does this for every patient he sees at the end of a workday, you’re certainly nothing special. “Now, let’s get you settled nice and snug in bed, and then I’ll be on my merry way.”

“Oh, you really don’t have to-”

“Nonsense!” You’re cut off as he drops a heavy hand onto the nape of your neck, ignoring your slightly dramatic flinch and guiding you forward. “I’ve gotten you this far, would be a shame if I left you now and you took a tumble, hm?”

“I think I can get around my own apartment well enough, “ you try to protest, a little huff of offense escaping without your permission.

“Well, now we won’t have to test that theory.”

He moves quickly and just seconds later you’re sort of shoved onto your bed - almost oddly high off the ground, but you chalk it up to the way you stumble onto it.

Johnny scoops your feet up, laughs a little at your yelp and lays you out on the bed. You blink up into the dark glasses, a little gobsmacked at the sudden shift and odd amount of manhandling from the doctor.

“Do you have any pain meds, love? We wouldn’t want you wakin’ up in the middle of the night, all uncomfortable and hurt. Something light, like Advil or Tylenol?”

“Um, yes,” you stutter a bit, pushing yourself up onto your elbows and glancing up at where you hear his voice. “In my bathroom, on the counter. But Dr. MacTav-”

A hand presses into the center of your chest, forcing you back to the bed with a little oof before your hear him walk away. “Johnny, lass! What’ll I have to do to get you to call me the proper name, hm?”

His voice is almost jovial, and you hear him muttering to himself a bit through the open door of your bathroom before he returns. You hear water running for a moment, and then his shoes on the carpet of your bedroom as he comes back.

“Here,” he says as he grasps your hand, holding it palm open and dropping two pills into it. “And you had a spare cup in the bathroom, so you won’t have to swallow dry.”

“Thank… thank you, Doc- Johnny, truly, I appreciate it.”

You swallow dryly, suddenly thankful for the glass of water. The pills are small in your palm, familiar but there’s something in the back of your head screaming at you. You run your fingers over them absentmindidly, the stinging itch in your eyes growing.

Johnny scoops an arm around your shoulders, helping you sit up a bit and guiding the glass to your lips. “Here you are, lass, quick sip.”

You listen, then pop the pills into your mouth and swallow them with the water.

“Good girl,” Johnny hums, his voice vibrating through your side. His hand squeezes the shoulder in his grasp, and you shudder out a breath at the odd… intimacy? That doesn’t quite feel like the right word, but affection feels too distant for how close he holds himself.

You’re guided back down, head resting on a somewhat-flat pillow, and Johnny moves down to the end of the bed to take off your shoes.

Now that you’re resting in bed, it hits you how exhausted you are. The past few days of worrying over your procedure, the actual stress of the surgery itself, and the odd tension you’ve carried since all leave you feeling drained entirely once your head hits the pillow.

“We’ll get these shoes off so you’re nice and comfortable,” you hear Johnny say, his voice a little muffled now that you’re nearly half-asleep already. “Tired, lass?”

You only hum a bit, curling onto your side once both of your shoes are off, the sound of them thudding on the carpet almost silent. Your nose scrunches a bit as you get your first scent of the pillow. It doesn’t quite smell right, the lingering air of shampoo is definitely not one you’re familiar with.

There’s a shift of weight against your back, then a hand stroking over your head.

“Just sleep, bonnie. I’ll watch out for you.”

There’s a part of you, still awake enough, that thinks that isn’t right. But the more major part of you is already asleep.

———————————————————————

Johnny can’t help but smile as he watches you sleep. The little trail of drool dripping from your lips onto his pillow, the soft sounds of your breathing, the twitches to your expression as you dream.

You’re truly adorable. He’d known it as soon as you came for a consultation about the surgery, and every moment spent after has only cemented that in his head. Even the way you tensed and squirmed in his chair while he was working was cute, your desperation to be good and listen overpowering your fear of what he was doing.

He reflects on the day as he gets undressed, folding his clothes on your dresser. You’d been very nervous, and even his most soothing tone and friendly conversation topics hadn’t done much to help. It’s natural - nobody’s ever at ease with a scalpel held over their eye - but he’d still felt a little dissapointed that his presense wasn’t of much help calming you down.

But it’s alright. You’ll learn very soon that you can trust him.

It was easier than he’d expected to get you back to his home. You’re far too trusting, apparently - another reason it’s for the best if he keeps an eye on you - and past some clear tension in your stance, you hadn’t fought him once or even tried to make sure he had taken you to the right place.

Johnny’s certainly not going to complain, though. His plan had been half-baked at best. Honestly if you’d even put up a slight bit of resistance, he probably would have taken you back home - your home - and gone back to the drawing board.

He can’t help but smile a bit. The fact that you hadn’t fought at all is just more proof that this was meant to be.

He climbs over your body, his naked skin brushing against your clothes. You don’t shift at all as he rolls you to your back, your face still relaxed in sleep. His smile grows.

“Pretty girl,” he coos, brushing a hand over your face. “Can you hear me?”

Nothing. Not even a twitch.

It’s easy to push your shirt up your stomach. He doesn’t take it off, not quite willing to risk that much movement while the drugs could still be settling in.

God, the way you’d just taken his pills with no hesitation, with just complete and total trust in him to do right by you. It makes his cock stifen against your stomach, the way you’d just listened and trusted him.

He moans as he finally pushes your shirt up to your collarbones, the sight of your tits bringing him to full hardness almost immediately. You’d dressed up for him, soft white lace wrapped around your beautiful chest.

He ducks down to suck a peak into his mouth, tonguing at a nipple through the fabric. He groans a bit at the taste of your skin, muted as it is, and quickly tugs down the cup of the bra to get a real bite of you.

He could lay there at your tits for hours, he just knows it. He kisses his way across your chest, gives your other nipple some love and thumbing at the first with a free hand. He forces his movements to stay soft and slow, resists the urge to bite and leave a ring of teeth marks around your areola.

“Taste so good, baby,” he whispers as he pushes himself up, admiring the shiny spit across your skin. He rubs it in a little, spreading himself across any place his lips hadn’t touched. “Gonna let me get a taste of your pussy too?”

Obviously you don’t respond. Still, Johnny smiles down at you and moves to pet your stomach.

“Yeah, I know you will. Just wanna be a good girl for me, hm?”

Of course you do, he already knows you’ll be good to him - be good for him.

It’s easy to wrap his hands around your waist and flip you gently to your stomach. He guides your head to the side and pulls your hair away to make sure he can get a good view of your pretty face, leans down to give you a soft kiss on the cheek and breathes in the scent of your bodywash and shampoo.

Your pants are easy enough to get off, and he forces himself to tug them all the way off both legs before even looking at your sweet little ass. He’d been staring at any chance he could all day, had kept his eyes glued to your backside for the entire elevator ride up to his apartment when he was sure you couldn’t see his leering.

Now he can’t help but groan aloud when he kneels over your thighs, the sight of you vulnerable and limp beneath him almost too much to handle.

“C’mon, spread your knees for me, lass,” he mutters, slowly moving your legs to the side and moving between them. He’s careful as he props you up onto your knees, folding them beneath you and making sure to balance you with one hand on your hip so you don’t fall to the side.

He’s nearly drooling as he gets his first sight of your core - lips just slightly spread, pretty pink pussy peeking out at him. It’s almost too much, he has to give himself a few quick jerks just to lessen the ache building in his cock.

“Look at you,” he says on a sigh, dipping his head low enough to breathe in your scent. He hikes your hips up a little higher to keep you at the right angle, quickly shushes your little noise of discontent at the shift.

“It’s alright, you’re ok,” he reassures, petting over your hip a few times to calm your unconscious mind. “Just wanna make you feel good, pretty thing. You got nothin’ to worry about.”

He licks you, from clit to ass, to help you calm down a bit more. It works - your body goes a little more limp in his hold, your back arching more easily into the position he wants. He licks you several more times, groaning as he tries to cover every inch of your cunt, tasting every piece of skin he can. He lays his tongue flat at first, then uses the tip to make sure he doesn’t miss a spot.

“So good,” he moans, burying his face into your center and just breathing there for a moment. There’s a little bit of slick beginning to drip from your hole, but not much. He licks it up anyway, savoring the taste and promising to feast later.

He stays glued to your clit for a bit, taking the little bud between his lips and running the tip of his tongue over it again and again until he finds the exact spot that makes your thighs twitch, the pattern that has you whining every other breath.

Johnny moves back up, laps at the sweet nectar dripping steadily from you now. Every little flick of his tongue arouses you more, and no matter how long he keeps his mouth on you he knows he’d never run out of your taste.

It’s with only a bit of reluctance that he pulls away. He spreads both of your cheeks with his palms, admiring your two tight little holes and the sheen covering your most sensitive spots. He’d like to give your ass a few smacks, paint it red and watch you squirm, but he’s not sure how much sensation he can give you without pulling you from the drugs’ hold.

Which is also why he tucks a few fingers into your cunt, just to stretch you out. He’d like to fuck into you without any prep at all, watch your pretty face scrunch up as you’re spread on the thickest cock you’d ever taken (and he knows he’s the biggest you’ve had). Maybe you would even cry a little, blink teary eyes up at him and ask him to slow down.

He groans at the image, scissoring his fingers inside of you to prepare you as quickly as he can.

It’s easy to ease himself forward and line his cockhead up with your little hole. He knows another finger would’ve been a kindness, but with how his cock throbs between his legs he’s not sure he’ll make it very long once he’s finally inside of you.

So he taps the tip against your leaking hole, snorts quietly when the thought pops into his head that he’s almost knocking on a door, then slowly lets himself sink inside of your heat. He’s stares transfixed at the way your body opens for him so easily, a smooth coming together that he wishes he never had to look away from.

He keeps a secure grip on your hips, letting gravity do most of the work as his hips push forward steadily. His head rolls back on his neck, mouth hanging open and grunts spilling from his lips as your tight heat envelops him further and further.

He pauses halfway in to take a breather, just so he doesn’t come before his balls even meet your clit. Your body’s grip on him is unlike anything he’s ever felt, and he knos he made the right choice in bringing you home with him.

It’s hard, but Johnny manages to control himself and keep from fucking you too roughly. His thrusts are long and slow if a little extra harsh, and he stares down at your scrunched up little face and imagines all the filthy ways he’ll have you in the coming weeks.

You shift on your knees when he hits a particularly nice spot, little whines pouring from your throat on exhales. His thrusts nearly punch the air from your body, and he finds himself breathing in sync with you as he loses himself more and more to the pleasure.

He slips a hand from your waist to your clit as he gets closer. It would be awfully selfish of him to leave you needy after getting himself off, and he’s not about to deny himself the tight clench of your body as he brings you to climax.

It takes a little bit of trial and error to figure out what feels good for you - he can’t quite discern the difference between a nose scrunch of frustration and one of pleasure - but the steady pumps of his hips and the constant motions against your clit quickly bring you to the edge.

Your cunt tightens deliciously around him as you finally come, but the true beauty is in the way you go absolutely boneless beneath him. He has to firm up his grip on your waist just to keep you from sinking flat on the bed, huffing a laugh as he thrusts just a bit faster, just enough to get himself there too.

He lets his head fall beside yours as the two of you ride out your climaxes together, staring wide-eyed at the way your face relaxes into the pleasure. He leans forward enough to mesh your lips together, messily forcing your mouth open and licking at your tongue.

It’s not the best kiss - he has to do all the work, and he ends up soaking both of your chins in spit - but he relishes in it anyway. Your first kiss together is something he knows he’ll want to remember for years to come.

He hardly notices as he slips from your body, tingles shooting through every nerve leaving him mostly unaware of his body’s functions. He hardly has the energy to make sure he doesn’t crush you beneath him, instead laying beside you and tucking you into his chest.

“Thank you, bonnie,” he whispers into your hair, pressing a kiss to the crown of your head. “That was fantastic. Can’t wait to do it again, maybe you’ll do a bit more next time, yeah?” He laughs a little at his own joke, snuggling you close to him and letting his eyes shut slowly.

———————————————————————

You’re not sure how long it’s been when you wake up next, but you can tell immediately that something isn’t right.

First of all, you’re half naked. And you can tell you’re half naked because your legs are being cradled by someone else’s naked legs. And you know for a fact that you didn’t bring anyone home with you.

Except… it occurs to you slowly as you finally blink stinging eyes open, except you did. Dr. MacTavish brought you home.

And you let him into your apartment. You just handed your keys over to a man you hardly knew, let him guide you right to bed without any sort of fight.

Your head pounds with a vengeance, right behind your already hurting eyes.

You let him give you pills, too. You remember that, though it’s the last thing you remember. He asked where your pain meds were and you didn’t even bother to check that he’d given you what you expected. You just swallowed them with water, like this was a man you could trust.

The slight soreness between your thighs tells you that you couldn’t.

The tears that begin to gather in your eyes hurt, which makes you want to cry even more. You can’t hold back a sniffle, then a hiccup, then what sounds more like sobs than anything else.

You bring your hands up to cover your mouth, briefly recoil and the weight over your torso.

You can’t bring yourself to look, but you know who’s in bed with you.

Johnny wakes up just minutes later, shifting and making a soft sound of confusion. It must not take him long to put the pieces together because it only takes him a few seconds to start cooing, his rough palm cupping your face over your own hands.

“Lass?” He hums, and from your peripheral you see his brows furrow. It’s only a slight comfort that you even can see. “What’s wrong?”

That almost gets a laugh out of you. You nearly choke on the sound, spit catching in your throat. “What’s- what’s wrong?”

He sighs, like he already knows. Of course he knows. He has to know.

“Don’t be upset.” He leans a little closer, and to your horror you feel him press his lips against your forehead. “You can be awake next time, yeah? Then you won’t feel so left out.”

“Left out,” you echo, a strain of horror making its way into your voice.

“But only if you can be good,” he clarifies. “No fighting me now. Just keep being good for me and you can stay awake, alright?”

“Good…” You feel like a robot, but the combination of your headache and the absurdity of your situation leaves you unable to process what’s happening.

It processes much faster when you feel one of his hands slide up the shirt you’re - by some miracle - still wearing. It’s instinctual to jerk up the bed and away when he goes straight for one of your breasts.

“Get- get off me!” Your voice is nearly a shriek, the pitch sending a shock of pain up your skull.

You don’t make it very far in your tiny escape attempt, Johnny quickly hefting himself above you and pinning you down with his weight.

“Now, lass,” he scolds, face set in a frown that you can’t tell is sarcastic or serious. “What did I just say?”

You can’t make yourself speak, fingers trembling beside your head as you stare up at him with wide eyes.

“C’mon,” he goads, dropping his weight a little lower. “Just gotta do one thing for me to stay awake, tell me what it was.”

“I’m not-” you gasp a big breath, blinking up at the man above you. “I’m not fucking calming down! Get off of me, you freak, how dare you-”

“Alright!” He nearly shouts, drowning you out. “That’s enough of that. Back to sleep with you, I think. We’ll see if you can handle participating next time.”

He’s leaned to the side before you can really register what he’s said, scooping two little white pills into his palm and coming back over you.

“Open wide,” he taunts, lips curled into a small smirk as he holds his closed fist above your mouth.

Every instinct in you says to scream and shout, to fight back. But he’s got you pinned with your arms stuck between the two of you, unable to lift your hands and cover your mouth, so you clamp your lips as tightly shut as you can to keep him out.

Johnny only sighs, like you’re making his drugging terribly inconvenient. You squeeze your eyes shut to block out his face, praying that you’ll open them and this will all just be a terrible nightmare.

“Really, lass?” He complains, his free hand reaching up to pinch your nose. Without anything to hold him up, you’re nearly crushed beneath his body weight. “Very mature. I can pinch far longer than you can hold your breath, y’know. You’re making this difficult for no good reason.”

Your eyes fly open at that, glaring up at him with what you hope is a scathing look.

He only laughs.

“Very cute,” he hums, rubbing his nose against your cheek. Your chest burns from the lack of air. “I think you’ll be just perfect to keep around the house. You’ll brighten this place in all the right ways, won’t you?”

Your eyes well with tears as black stars begin to dance across your vision. Completely against your own will, your lips part and you suck in a deep breath.

Johnny doesn’t waste any time - you nearly choke on the pills as they fly down your throat with the air you desperately inhale. You nearly choke, hacking with tears streaming from your eyes, but Johnny just holds a hand over your mouth and brings you both up enough to harshly pat your back.

“There you go, you’re ok,” he mumbles in your ear, rubbing the place he’d slapped as your chest heaves with desperate breaths. The pills leave an uncomfortable lump in your throat, and you reach up to rub at it as if that will make it any better.

He stays like that, holding you close, for several long heartbeats.

“Good girl,” he hums, lips pressing to your temple and the sound rumbling through the contact. “I hope you won’t make me do that next time, I’d much rather you be awake for this next part.”

He lays you back slowly, and you distantly wonder what on Earth he’s given you to knock you out so quickly. Already your eyes feel heavier and you’ve hardly swallowed. You try to keep your eyes open as long as possible, which leaves you staring up at Johnny as he hovers above you.

“It’s not the worst thing, though,” he whispers, hand cupping your cheek and thumb passing your undereye. “I don’t mind having you like this, soft and sweet for me.”

Your eyes finally flutter shut just as you feel your legs being nudged apart.

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runningfrom2am · 1 year ago

Note

could we get a blurb where rafe saves reader at a party?

it's gets a little handsy for her with some of his friends and one of them tries to go too far and rafe saves her?

thank you for this request omg!! i hope it lives up to your expectations (even tho its a little long to be a blurb oops-) and i'm sorry this took me so long!

get the fuck off her - r.c.

pairing: rafe x fem!kook!reader

wc: 2.4k

tags/warnings: angst, comfort, implications of attempted sa, intentional use of lowercase, violence (kinda), some generally triggering stuff so please if any of this is upsetting for you please go read something else!

requests (currently closed- feel free to send whatever but it will be a while before I get to them!)

nav/masterlists

"you're not funny kelce, has anyone ever told you that before?" you raise an eyebrow at your friend, talking loudly over the blaring music as you cross your arms over your chest.

"actually no, that's a first." kelce replies snarkily, mocking your posture. "you're lying though, babe- i know you think i'm hilarious."

you roll your eyes, a smile still present on your face. your pupils are blown, lids drooping slightly as you immediately forget the interaction and sway with the music.

"c'mon, you know you love me." kelce chuckles, stepping closer and placing his hands on your waist. you laugh, brushing his hands off smoothly.

rafe is biting into the rim of his plastic cup as he watches, previously enjoying a sip of whatever jungle juice someone had left on the counter. he's watching closely, and though you laughed it off, he knew you well- and he knew you weren't a big fan of being touched. kelce should know better too.

it's only a matter of minutes before it happens again, topper approaching the group and slinging his arm over your shoulder which you don't even process with the concoction of substances mixing in your bloodstream.

"rafe, man, your sister's a bitch, bro." topper whines, leaning into you further.

"that so?" rafe chuckles, watching topper's arm slide down to your back.

"yeah, she's leading me on, then fucking off and leaving me high and dry." he explains vaguely. "i bet you wouldn't do that to me, would you, sweetheart?" he says to you, hand sliding lower, lower, until his fingers reach the bottom of your shirt and the skin of your back.

"i don't think it's personal, top. have you tried talking to her about it?" you suggest, wrapping your arms around yourself, subtly holding the hem of your shirt down.

topper rolls his eyes, leaning closer to make sure you hear him as you lend him your ear. "i just hate talking though... don't you?" he says, lips brushing over the skin of your neck.

"you're drunk, top..." you laugh nervously, very briefly making eye contact with rafe standing across from you in the small circle you've created.

"hey, what'd he say?" rafe asks over the music, brow furrowed with the instant rush of sobriety.

you smile nervously at him. "nothing... he's just being weird." you chuckle, shaking your head and trying to move away. "i'm gonna go get another drink. i'll be back." you squeeze out of toppers grip and walk off through the crowd towards the corner where you hid your cooler.

you bop your head along to the mac miller song that started on your way over, humming along to the tune and laughing a little at other people chanting along to the lyrics. you quickly grab another drink out of the cooler before shoving it back in the mostly empty cupboard and closing it again.

"she's not gonna fuck you, bro. i'll tell you that right now." rafe shakes his head at his friend, taking another sip of the overly sweet drink.

"have you seen her? it's well worth the shot if the worst she can say is no." topper laughs, and rafe clenches his jaw, looking again over the crowd to try and keep an eye on you. "the best she can say is absolutely, and she's into me, i can tell."

"oh, can you now?" rafe mumbles, eyes landing on you at last as you close the cupboard and crack open your can. if you had any feelings for any of the boys you regularly hung out with, it was a secret to him. you were a puzzle to him, despite your friendly and sometimes flirty personality.

"yeah, but she's not gonna let me hit with you clowns around. i'll be back, or not." topper laughs, pushing back through the crowd in the direction of you.

rafe decides to let him go. you could make your own decisions, and clearly, you were going to say no, and topper would come sulking back in a few minutes after striking out. he watched as topper made it up to you, starting a conversation. you were laughing, and he figured that was a good time to let you handle yourself.

except for a few moments later, when he looked up from his conversation with kelce and another girl that appeared by his side, to see you with your back to the wall in a corner, topper standing over you.

"hey, i think we should get back to the guys..." you chuckle nervously, taking a step back and hitting the wall.

"why? i told them we'd be a while." topper smirks, hands once again finding your waist and sliding under the hem of your shirt.

"well i didn't, i said i'd be back and-"

"get that stick out of your ass, won't you? we're having fun." he insists, leaning down over you and brushing his lips over your jaw.

you bite your lip nervously, scanning the room to see if there's anyone near enough to talk to to pull yourself out of this situation. "top, please, i don't want to do this can we just head back?"

"i know you want to give me a shot, you won't regret it..." he mumbled against your skin, hands sliding up farther under your shirt as the sound of your heartbeat echoed over the music in your ears.

you panic, trying weakly to just push him off at this point and create any kind of distance between the two of you as his hands press into your skin. "please don't topper, you're drunk..." you say, but it comes out whinier than you intended. the disconnect between your mind and your body is showing, and you can see that as you're fumbling to get your hands to reach his shoulders just enough to get him to back off. you didn't need to, when a moment later he was pulled back with a force unforeseen by either of you.

"get the fuck off her, man."

it's rafe, and he's angry. you've seen him like this before, sure, but the look behind his eyes is new as he shoved topper away, dropping the grip he held on the back of his shirt. "rafe, c'mon." topper chuckles, adjusting his shirt and rubbing the front of his neck where the fabric had dug into his skin.

just as quickly, rafe's fist was gripping the front of his shirt again, getting face to face with him. "no, she was literally pushing you off and you didn't take that as a no?" rafe's forehead is almost pressed to toppers as he backs him into the kitchen island.

"rafe!" you shout, voice shaky as you try to get his attention. "let him go, it's fine."

rafe looks back over his shoulder at you, standing with your arms crossed tightly over your stomach. he sighs, dropping the fabric before turning to you. "you okay, y/n/n?" he asks, shaking out his fist.

you nod shakily, pulling your shirt back down from where it had ridden up with the disturbance.

"you sure?" he asks again, looking you up and down with concern drawn between his brows.

you continue to nod, looking around now for where topper had put down your drink when he took it out of your hand to back you into the wall. "i'm fine... just, yeah. it's fine." you chuckle awkwardly.

"no, it's not. come on. i'll walk you home, yeah?"

"rafe, c'mon, she said it's fine. she can stay longer." kelce interjects, having followed him over.

rafe throws his hands up in frustration as he turns to his friends. "shut the fuck up, kelce! i'll beat the shit out of both of you. seriously, i don't give a shit." he turns back to you. "c'mon, i'll grab your bag. lets get you out of here."

as rafe leads you away, you avoid eye contact with his friends, arms still crossed to quell your shakiness. rafe pulls your cooler bag back out of the cupboard and throws it over his shoulder before guiding you to the door. you're relieved to feel the cool sea breeze hit your skin, you didn't even realize how stuffy it was and how claustrophobic you felt until you got outside and you could finally breathe again.

"seriously, are you okay?" rafe asks again, feeling nervous that you only said it was fine before because there were so many people around. he's still tense, angry, but he's making an effort to seem calm since now he's alone with you.

"yeah, uh, yeah. fine." you nod softly, staring down at your feet as you make your way to the sidewalk. "just... a little shaken up, i guess."

rafe adjusts your bag over his shoulder, then proceeds to rub his hand over his forehead. "i'm sorry, that was shitty."

"it happens, unfortunately..." you laugh awkwardly, trying to shrug it off.

rafe looks down at you as you walk, still avoiding eye contact with him. "has top done that before? i'll go back and-"

"no! no, he's never done that before." you assure him. "i don't know, like, going to a party around a bunch of people you kind of know and kind of don't know is never... comfortable. it's hard to get comfortable and then when you do something like that happens and-" you laugh to yourself. "sorry, i shouldn't rant to you about this."

"no, by all means." rafe replies, urging you on. "you can tell me anything."

"thanks, but i think i'm done." you grin, arms wrapped tightly around yourself as you walk.

"does that actually happen to you like... often?" he asks after a few moments of silence.

"not often, and its never been that scary- i guess?" you explain. "just sometimes, some guy will touch me or say something and i just get this feeling in the pit of my stomach that something is wrong and it's hard to shake. it sticks with you. more often than not if you say no they'll retaliate, either get mad or spread lies about you or whatever. so i just kind of.. freeze. when you don't know what to do, sometimes you don't do anything and you just have to laugh it off. it is what it is, i guess."

"right." rafe nods, deep in thought over what you had said. "so what i'm hearing, is that you never actually slept with devin?"

you laugh at this, tone still slightly wobbly. "i told you i didn't, remember?"

"ah, yes. you did tell me that." rafe remembers how sitting at the country club bar together just weeks prior he had asked you about this rumour and you denied it, shaking your head as you sipped on a virgin daiquiri. "i didn't really believe it anyways. devin's a prick."

"he really is." you agree, looking up now at the sky. "thank you, by the way," you add, looking over at your friend now for the first time since you left. you're met with confusion in his eyes as he returns your gaze. "for, like, rescuing me."

"i shouldn't have had to. that was fucked." rafe shakes his head. "don't thank me, that's so... twisted. if topper could have gotten through his thick skull that maybe you're not into him-"

"he thinks i'm into him?" you laugh, eyes wide now.

"well, hopefully not anymore." rafe chuckles. "but knowing him, he still probably doesn't get it. i'll talk some sense into him."

"please do." you sigh. "he won't believe it from me, apparently."

"honestly, i don't think i can look at him for the next week." rafe admits.

"tell me about it."

another few moments of silence follow. "you know, you don't have to hangout with us. if we make you uncomfortable we can keep our distance."

"you're the only one who never has." you smile at him. "surprisingly." you add teasingly, bumping your shoulder against his arm.

"what's that supposed to mean?" rafe chuckles, already knowing it was a joke.

you just shrug in response. "you know, you're whole 'bad boy' rep you've got going on."

"i can still be cool and like... not make girls uncomfortable. that's actually kind of the point."

"that's a good point." you agree. "the girls do flock to you."

rafe rolls his eyes at this, smiling as he shakes his head. "not that... that's what i want. it just kind of happens."

"so you get it?" you giggle, feeling the shakiness you previously had finally slightly subsiding.

"well, no. when i tell them to fuck off they... you know, fuck off." he laughs.

"ah- what a pleasure that must be." you joke, stopping as you're now standing in front of your driveway. "thanks for walking me home. it was hard to breathe in there."

rafe stops too, looking down the long driveway to your house. "of course, anytime." he nods, looking at you for a moment before he realizes you're waiting for your bag. "shit, sorry..." he laughs, dropping it from his shoulder and handing it back to you.

"all good." you grin, taking it and putting it on.

"well, I've got to get going. i have a guy to beat up, so..."

as he turns away, you speak to him again. "rafe, don't." your voice is quieter now, and as he looks back at you he sees the tears welling up in your eyes. "please." you add, so softly he's sure if he didn't see your lips moving he wouldn't have heard it. "it'll just make it worse... i just want to forget about it."

"okay, hey, hey- i was kidding. i won't touch him." rafe is quick to backtrack, holding a hand out to grab your shoulder but he hesitates, dropping it again. "are you sure you're okay?"

that's when the floodgates open, and your hands are flying up to your face to cover it as you start to sob. the shock had worn off by now, and the reality of what could have happened was setting in. rafe didn't know what to do, looking around to make sure no one could see. "y/n... what can i do?" he asks, and all he wants to do is pull you into his arms and tell you how safe you are, that everything is okay, but he knows touching you probably wouldn't be wise.

you can't answer. you can hardly breathe as you feel your chest tightening. you try and laugh, wiping your eyes and looking up at him. you wish he wasn't seeing this. you shake your head, deciding to just sit down on the grass.

rafe sits next to you, tucking his knees up to his chest like you had, crossing his arms over top. "you're safe, y/n/n." he tells you, leaning his head on his forearms and watching you. "can i stay with you?"

at this you just move a little closer, leaning your forehead onto his shoulder instead. he freezes up, just for a second, before moving so he can brace his hand on the ground behind you. "I've got you. i'm not going anywhere..."

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#rafe cameron #rafe obx #obx fanfic #outer banks #rafe fic #obx #rafe fanfiction #rafe x reader #rafe imagine #outerbanks rafe #rafe cameron fluff #rafe cameron x reader #rafe outer banks #rafe x you #rafe cameron x you

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amsgrey · 1 year ago

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Domestication

Kia Ora! It's been forever since I posted anything and it feels like forever since I've had the motivation to sit and right, but this came to me all of a sudden and I wrote it in like two hours so it might suck (not that I care) but no more writer's block!! Ka Pai!!!

synopsis: A Typical night with the Bastard of the Barrel. Or, the Bastard of the Barrel behind his locked door.

warnings: major fluff yall, not proofread yet because we all know I suck at that, I can't think of anything else oops

Kaz was almost always reading in his spare time, from ledgers to novels to the latest Ketterdam newspapers on stocks or whatever else the press thought worthy of ink. Every night when you climbed the stairs to his room, you would find him busy reading through one thing or another.

Tonight was no different. When you finally got off your shift in the Crow club, you found Kaz sitting on his bed with a book in hand. You let out a sigh, toeing off your worn boots and walking to the basin to wash your hands and face.

"How's the club?" Kaz asked, not taking his eyes from the page.

You splashed water in your face, "Plenty of Pigeons.”

You dried your face and joined Kaz on his bed, leaning against the headboard, mirroring his own pose.

"How was your day scheming?"

Kaz turned to look at you, entirely unamused by your cheeky smirk.

"It was fine," He replied, slowly.

The two of you sat silently, enjoying the quietness for a while. For the last few weeks, you had been staying in Kaz's room more and more. You had jokingly told him it was because his bed was bigger and more comfortable, but you both knew it was because you enjoyed waking up beside one another.

You noticed Kaz must have cleaned while you were away, tidying off his desk and drawers. Kaz was a stress cleaner, you had learnt. He liked this space to be tidy, everything in its rightful place. You learned rather quickly to keep things where they were meant to be.

"I cleared a drawer," Kaz said suddenly, you turned to look at him with a frown.

"Okay?"

Kaz put his book down on the table beside him, "For you."

It took a moment for his words to register, Kaz watched as your eyes lit up and a grin spread across your face.

"For me?"

He nodded once.

You leaned forward, gently placing your hand in his, "Have I finally succeeded in domesticating the Bastard of the barrel?"

Kaz made a big show of rolling his eyes, "It's one drawer."

You shrugged, cheekily replying, "One more than I had yesterday."

Kaz had been a lot better with touch lately, in the safety of his room, where no one other than you entered. It took months, years, to get to this point. With your hand in his, mindlessly rubbed circles with his thumb, tracing a pattern only he knew.

"What are you reading?"

Kaz had yet to put his book down, holding his page with a finger wedged in the pages. He opened to where he was, displaying the tiny cramped print for you to see.

"A book about stocks," He said.

"Oh."

"Oh?"

You giggled, "Sounds... boring."

Kaz gave you an annoyed side glance and went back to reading. Admitting defeat, you unthreaded your fingers from his and slipped off the bed. You padded over to Kaz's chest of drawers, well aware that he was watching you in between the words on the page. You pulled open the draw, seeing that Kaz had cleared you a space. A smile broke across your face again, pleased at the sight in front of you. Kaz's drawers were heavy and sometimes finicky, much like all the furniture in the Slat. You lifted the draw a little and slid it back into place, making sure it was shut tight like Kaz had it before.

Instead of returning to Kaz, you opened the next drawer down. Sliding it open as carefully as possible, the drawer revealed pristinely folded shirts and tunics. You ran your fingers over the fabric, almost all of Kaz's shirts were soft and clean, he took such care of his clothes and appearance. It was one of the reasons you loved him, his attention to detail and his immense care for the small details. You found the shirt you were after, one that he never wore but kept folded neatly in his drawer for you.

You unbuttoned your own shirt, it smelt of the Crow Club. A strange redolence of beer, jurda and the distinct smell of the wooden tables after years of use. You lay your dirty shirt over the back of Kaz's desk chair, making note to add it to your own washing in the morning. You pulled on Kaz's shirt, immediately greeted by his scent that was woven through the threads. Kaz shirt felt like pure silk after spending the day in your scratchy blouse, the fabric soothing away any irritation left on your skin.

You looked over your shoulder at Kaz for a moment, spying him nose-deep in his book again. You both knew he wasn't actually reading.

You rid yourself of your belt next, one that you had pinched from Nina months ago. You undid the buckle and carefully laid it over the chair, trying to keep your belongings in one space. You did the same with your skirt and tights, leaving you in almost ready to slip into bed.

You rounded back around the bed, pulling back the covers and slipping underneath. This was your nightly routine now, you slipping under the covers before Kaz, promising to stay awake with him and almost always falling asleep anyway. Kaz loved it, you knew. He would pretend to be exasperated, watching you yawn and fade slowly, but after you fell asleep he would put his book away and watch you rest peacefully.

Curled up under the covers, you watched him read. Watching his eyes scan the page and his lips ghost the words as he read. Sometimes, when he got invested, he would make comments to himself out loud. Oftentimes, "Saints Sake," or "Fool," depending on who or what he was reading about. If you were lucky, Kaz would read quietly and the furrow in his brow would ease, smoothed away as he relented to his book. Those were your favourite moments. Watching the Bastard of the Barrel vanish and Kaz Reitveld appear again. Each time, you cherished them like it was the last.

You shifted again, pulling the blanket over your shoulder to keep your warmth trapped. Kaz's eyes shifted over to you, a silent question within them.

"Read to me?" You whispered.

Kaz smiled, a gentle, loving smile that sent butterflies to your stomach and tingles down your spine.

"Of course."

Kaz took one hand from the book, finding your own under the cover.

You didn't care about how boring the current stock market was or whatever it was Kaz was reading, but you loved hearing Kaz read to you. The sound of his voice, calm and patient after a dangerous and tumultuous day. The sound of his fingers drumming on the hardcover, a steady beat. When he turned the page, he would hang on to the last word of the page, so as to not forget what it was.

You loved every part of these nights with every part of your soul.

As you started to relax more, your mind sinking into sleep, you pulled his hand to your chest, pressing your lips to his knuckles and whispering, "I love you, Rietveld."

Kaz placed his book away, blowing out the lantern and joining you under the covers.

"I love you too," He whispered, his lips pressed to your hairline.

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dinofromspac3 · 1 year ago

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Hi! Could I have 10,11 and 12’s reaction to alien reader? Perhaps realising their supposedly’human’ companion is very obviously in a human form. And that they aren’t themself, human?

I’m thinking maybe they convince reader to show their alien form more, or etc in general!

Maybe have readers alien form have yk, multiple arms? Or multiple eyes!

Sorry if this is to specific!

I absolutely love this idea! I sort of made into head canon form, I hope you don’t mind<3

Also, thank you for being my first request!

Enjoy <3

(also I think I may have only done what you actually asked for 12… oops)

Doctor Who Masterlist

10th Doctor

You’ve been traveling with the Doctor for a while, and you feel like he’s opened up to about some pretty serious stuff.

You’re happy that he’s come around to trusting you, but you can’t help but feel terribly guilty for hiding your true identity.

You were a Stask. A shape-changing lifeform that allowed you to pass as human for many years.

Your true form, however, was a grey-skinned, six-eyed, humanoid, with long white hair.

The longer you traveled with him, the more it ate away at you. Until one day, you couldn’t hide it any longer.

You left your room on the TARDIS and went to find the Doctor. He was easy enough to find, he was almost always in the console room. And if he wasn’t he was usually in the library.

“Um, Doctor?” You spoke up, calling his attention to you. You were nervous. What if he hated you for this? No, you mustn’t dwell on such things.

“Y/n!” He replied enthusiastically. He took a few steps towards you, but stopped in his tracks when he saw your face and your stature. “Y/n? What’s wrong?”

“I… I have something to tell you,” you expressed, as you fidgeted with the hem of your shirt.

“What is it? What happened?” He pressed, growing more concerned.

No matter how many times you stammered, and started over. You just couldn’t seem to get the words out.

He stared at you, his face full of worry. He could tell something wasn’t right, but he wasn’t sure why. And didn’t like not knowing.

You took a deep breath and did the only other thing you could think to do. You changed back to your true form, right in front of his eyes.

Your hair went white, and your skin back to its dull grey that you never liked. It was one of the reasons you never stayed in your true form.

His eyes went wide for a moment before his face scrunched up in total confusion. “What?!”(WOT!?) He exclaimed.

“Please don’t be mad!” You winced at his reaction, holding your hands out in front of you.

“You’re a Stask,” he pointed out the obvious, clearly dumbfounded by it all.

“Yes…”

“But-but-but what!?” He said again.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner,” you began dejectedly. “I understand if you want me to go.”

“Go? Go where?” The Doctor asked. Seriously, after one big shock, it takes a minute for his brain to reboot.

You just shrugged.

He shook his head, sympathetically. “No, I don’t want you to go.”

“Really!?” You felt your heart swell at that. He didn’t want you to leave, he was just a bit surprised.

11th Doctor

You’d been traveling with the Doctor for over 2 years now. Ever since he saved your life when you were trapped on that 54th century space shuttle.

The crew was human, so you’d disguised yourself as a human to avoid awkward stares. As your true form had deep violet skin, 5 inky black eyes, and pointed ears.

Your species was called Anziks. Of the many shape changer races in the universe you were not one of them, however, your people had the most advanced Shimmer technology in 3,000 neighboring galaxies. It was almost undetectable and much more comfortable than most others.

Of course, you had been wearing one when the Doctor found you. And you had been wearing it since, only taking it off when you were alone in your room on the TARDIS.

Often on your adventures you’d make passing remarks or jokes about how “humans are silly” and remembering things from your home planet. The Doctor never seemed to notice, at least he didn’t let on that he did.

Even with Anziks’s advanced Shimmer technology, it still got stuffy and little difficult to breathe after wearing it for a long period of time.

Today it was particularly bad.

The Doctor was rambling on about something, you really couldn’t say what. You had dismissed yourself quickly, heading straight to your room.

Immediately when you entered your room, you dropped the shimmer, and your deep indigo skin faded back to view, along with your ears and eyes.

You could’ve sworn you shut the door, but the next thing you knew you turned around after taking a breath, only to freeze completely, like a deer in headlights.

The Doctor stood there, a strange metal box he was holding, clattered to the floor.

“Doctor!” You practically screamed, as you quickly put the Shimmer back on, hoping somehow he’d forget.

But it was no use, he’d seen it. You’d been caught.

“Y/n?” He sputtered out, pointing at you. “No! No, no, no, no!”

“I can explain!” You blurted. “I swear I can explain! P-please don’t be angry!”

The Doctor opened his mouth to speak several times, each time with a new hand gesture, but he wasn’t really making any progress on saying anything.

You sighed, still feeling a little like you were choking in your Shimmer. And so you dropped it again, allowing the Doctor to see you how you truly looked.

His mouth snapped shut as he gaped at you.

“I don’t know why I hid it,” you admitted. “I’m sorry.”

“S-so y-you’re a-a-a—“ he stammered.

“An Anziks,” you finished for him. “I’ve been wearing a Shimmer. At first it was just for the job, to keep people from staring at me.”

“Then… we got stranded, and hunted by those Kruuls…” You explained. “and then you came and rescued me and I… there just wasn’t a good time.”

“I see,” he said, his face still slightly pale from the unexpected news.

“Are you angry with me?” You asked, hopeful he would say no.

And to your delight, he shook his head, and relief washed over you like a warm blanket of water.

He smiled and said, “It’s just nice to finally see you.”

12th Doctor

You’d only been traveling with the Doctor for a couple of months.

He was strange, and wonderful and kind, but still you were nervous to tell him your secret.

Today, you decided to confess to him, before the lie went on for too long.

You walked into the TARDIS console room, where he was reading a book on the second level. He noticed you come in but he didn’t look up.

“Doctor,” you said, taking a few more steps toward him. “I have something to tell you.”

He still didn’t look up. He licked his finger, and turned the page of his book. “Okay,” he said.

You let out a sort of shaky sigh at his aloof attitude. “Doctor, I think you should put the book down for a moment. It’s a bit… serious.”

He looked looked up at you, realizing how serious you were being, and decided to close the book as set it on the table next to him. He waited for you to continue.

You took a deep breath, before looking back at him. “I am… not human.”

He stared at you blankly, and you cringed at what that could mean.

“That’s it?” The Doctor asked, taking you completely off guard.

“W-what?”

“I mean, no offense, Y/n,” he continued. “But you’re not exactly good at hiding it.”

Now it was your turn to stare blankly at him. He’d known? How long had he known?

“So tell me,” the Doctor smiled at you. “Where are you from?”

“I…” you started, wanting to question him, but instead answered his question. “Scravikos 5.”

“Ah, Scravikos 5,” he repeated warmly. “So, you must be hiding that lovely second set of arms then?”

“Um… yes,” you said, still completely dumbfounded that he knew all along. “H-how long have you known?”

“Oh, I knew right away,” he scoffed. “It was very obvious.”

“But… you never said?”

“Why would I?” The Doctor questioned.

You shook your head, and shrugged. “Because I lied to you, I suppose?”

“Oh really it was nothing,” he waved off your reasoning. “How long have you had your arms tucked away?”

“About 8 months,” you responded. You had crashed landed on Earth a few months before you met the doctor, and you’d hidden the only thing that was your dead giveaway that you weren’t human.

Well, that must be terribly uncomfortable,” he sympathized. It was a little, and you silently tilted your head in agreement. “Well, you don’t need to hide them here,” he said, urging you to be comfortable in your own skin again.

“Oh, you mean…” you started, eyes wide in surprise at his acceptance, although truly you weren’t sure why you were surprised. He just nodded.

At that you allowed your second set of arms to sprout out of your back. With them out again, it felt instantly easier to breathe.

The Doctor smiled, and you smiled.

And you never hid them again, save for a few choice time period adventures.

#doctor who #doctor who x reader #doctor who x y/n #11th doctor x reader #11th doctor #fanfic #10th doctor #10th doctor x reader #12th doctor #12th doctor x reader

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flyingfabio · 7 days ago

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@flyingfabio presents…

⭐ THE 2024 MOTOGP FRAUD AWARDS ⭐

i thought about doing an introduction but really the title is self-explanatory and i can’t be bothered. supposed to be an humorous post. biased i guess.

in the first category… ✨MANUFACTURERS & TEAMS✨

DUCATI. promising a seat before retracting your offer to the guy who ultimately won the championship for you over your number one guy and will take the number 1 to another manufacturer is quite the achievement. i don't want to hear the 'but who is the real loser because jorge martin is going to a worse bike blabla' crowd. i don't care. that's loser behavior and poor management from ducati but hey. *casey stoner voice* at this point who is surprised it's typical from ducati. big fat bonus fraud point for delaying ride height devices ban until 2027 so us fans can fully enjoy processions races until then. thanks guys!

KTM. poured millions into motogp and have not won a dry race since 2021. manage their finances worse than the worst crypto bro. will probably pay its riders with pennies and make them race with carboard bikes next year. bonus fraud point for being the ugliest looking bike on the grid.

APRILIA. the "yes i do the cooking (the riders) yes i do the cleaning (the riders line up)" brand. yes they DO have the only non-ducati win this season which should automatically avoid them the fraud status but alas we can’t ignore the rest of the season which was dire. for god’s sake hey needed 758 bikes to crash for aleix to win a SPRINT in BARCELONA where aprilias are supposed to fly. they are so lucky they will have jorge martin on their bike next season. HOWEVER very much a double-edged sword as he could further expose the fraud status of the bike if he’s not able to challenge for wins as the current world champion.

YAMAHA & HONDA. summarized in one picture each.

honourable mention goes to… GRESINI RACING SOCIAL MEDIA ADMIN. if i got ten dollars every time i had to see a cringy AI-assisted movie poster edit this year… if only it were just that and not also the passive agressive replies to people questioning them photoshopping black people hairstyle on gresini team members because that’s supposed to represent lewis hamilton. bonus fraud point for not issuing a single professional statement when the team fucked up with the title sponsor.

in the second category… ✨RIDERS✨

PECCO BAGNAIA. winning 10 11 races and not winning the championship because the bin it gene is still going strong after years. it's about time it bit him in the ass.

MAVERICK VINALES. sorry eden i said i didn't plan to put him here because the man is the only one on a non ducati to have a won race on a sunday. BUT i remembered something. how the hell do you leave a factory aprilia to go to a satellite ktm on your own free will.....

FRANCO MORBIDELLI. nepotism is one hell of a thing eh.

MARCO BEZZECCHI. karma is one hell of thing eh. 'marquez? i put him fifth behind pecco, martin, enea and me' all it needed was a new michelin rear to humble him. cinema!

JACK MILLER. jack's specialty is backhanded comments about riders who are objectively better than him before immediatly proceeding to flop in a stellar fashion. 'i was faster than a guy who just renewed for 12 million.' congrats jack you finished behind said guy while being on a better bike and now you're basically riding as a test rider to develop a bike so that guy can win again.

in the last category… ✨REST OF THE PADDOCK✨

STEWARDS. listen. taking a fraud-o-meter in the stewards room would be like taking a radioactivity meter in chernobyl. at so many occasions they have shat the bed this year i can't list them all. not giving penalties because 'oops we didn't see' or seeing bubbles after putting a wheel in a bin with water. fortunately next year we'll be free of freddie spencer. hallelujah!

TV DIRECTION. could be summed up by dorna filming the same guys separated by two seconds for 20 laps be like: 'yooo this shit is fire!'

MICHELIN. we've been NEEDING a new front tire for YEARS but no these guys went and introduced a new rear tire (AGAIN) that favours a bike that was already dominating. great job lads!

PEOPLE BEHIND THE MOTOGP REBRAND. between the soulless logo and the absurd slogan i think we've hit the fraud jackpot.

#motogp #i probably forgot things but i want to be done with this #finished writing this while drunk soooo #elie.txt

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crushsblogstories · 24 days ago

Note

Hello, first of all I apologize for any mistakes, English is not my first language. Can I request a Gilbert Blythe x reader headcannons where he is grumpy and jealous of the reader for some reason? I really admire your work and I'understand if you don't want to do it, thank you

Sorry for the superrrrrr late upload.. I set the timer COMPLETELY wrong.

Hope you enjoy! ̤̮

WARNING(S)!

None of these are my characters!

I wrote it. Plot is the requester's.

Jealousy!

Pronouns! Not specified

Note(s)! Louis is a random character I came up with. The food eaten are infact things that were served back then.

NOT PROOF READ

REQUEST/CREDIT!@isa172736637 thanks for the request! Gave me motivation

My blanket is so soft and warm.. whats that light?

My eyebrows furrow and my face scrunches as I regrettedly open my eyes. It's morning. I don't really want to get up, but as I look around the room I spot my chalender, its November 18th, not a special day really, but me and Gilbert planned on going to Charolettetown for lunch and walk around the rest of the day.

I sit up and swing my legs to the edge of my bed, the tips of my toes touching the cold floor and curling at the shock. With a big sigh, I stand up and head downstairs. No ones home.. Weren't they visiting Diana's family later today? I head to the living room and check the mini clock.

"10:20!?" Slept in a bit there.. Oops.

I head to the kitchen and start making eggs and toast but they were taking to long to cook so I decided to choose an outfit. By the time I did my food was ready to flip and I headed back upstairs to start a bath. It'd have to be a quick one.

I ate, bathed, brushed my teeth, washed my face, styled my hair, and just as I put my outfit on there was a knock at the door. Oh no. I'm not done..

I quickly choose jewlery and any other accessories I want, spray on my perfume/cologne and rush to the door.

"Hello?" There wasn't really a question as to who was at the door but I said it like that nonetheless.

"Sorry for running late, I know we said we'd go at ten (10:00) to be there at eleven thirty (11:30) the latest.." Gilbert fixed his shirt and coat, he was nervous with the apology. I couldn't be mad, I was behind too.

"What time is it now?" I ask,

Checking his wrist watch Gil replies, "Eleven fourty..? (11:40)" he says sheepishly.

"Lets go then, before we're even more behind," I say, putting on my shoes and closing the door behind me as I begin walking.

The ride to the train station was calm, we talked about what most people would call nonesense as per usual. Me and Gilbert get on the train, and again, talk about nonesense the whole ride to Charolettetown.

"Where do you want to eat?" Gill asks as he helps me off the train.

"I could go for something warm.. Potato-ham casserole?"

"And some stew?" He adds.

I nod in delight and we make our way to 'Dine & Dish.'

The food was filling and as we make our way out of the we begin to pass the shops.

“Do you need anything from the shop, darling?” Gilbert asks, his voice warm against the cold air. His hand brushed against mine, a small but affectionate gesture.

“I was thinking of getting a new ribbon for my hair,” I reply. “Perhaps a blue one?” I smile at the idea.

Gilbert smiled as well, though I noticed a flicker of something in his eyes. “Blue suits you,” he said, but there was a slight tightness to his words. I couldn’t place it, but I didn’t give it much thought as we reached the general store.

The doorbell clinged as we entered, and I greeted Mrs.Maron, the shopkeeper, who was busy stacking jars of preserves.

"Good afternoon miss!" I smile as I take in the sent of smelled of cinnamon and dried herbs.

Gilbert wandered off to the hats, and I found myself near the ribbon stand, scanning the assortment of colors.

I noticed a boy, perhaps a few years older than me, so a 'young man' would be the proper phrasing.

I internally roll my eyes at the grammar my mother instilled in me.

He was standing just a few feet away, his back to me as he sifted through some rolls of fabric. I must’ve been staring because he turned and flashed me a smile.

“Miss, I couldn’t help but notice how lovely you look today,” he said, his voice smooth, with just the hint of flirtation.

I smile, “Thank you, sir. You’re very kind,” and turn back to the ribbons.

He didn’t stop there, though. “You’re far too modest. A woman like you should be wearing something far finer than those humble ribbons.” His gaze swept over me, a little LOT too slowly.

Before I could muster a reply, I noticed Gilbert from across the room. He was looking at me, but there was something different in his expression now. His brows were furrowed, his lips had set in a thin line. I could see the tension in his posture.

The 'young man' must’ve noticed too, because he looked past me and locked eyes with Gilbert. His smile faltered just for a moment, but then he straightened up, as if challenging Gilbert silently. I swear felt feel the air shift.

Great.

Gil makes his way towards me and the boy. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude,” the stranger began said, though the words felt far from sincere. “I was merely admiring the fine taste of your companion here.”

'Didn't you say I shouldn't buy these ribbons?'

There was no mistaking the sudden coldness in Gilbert’s eyes, nor the sharpness in his tone as he stepped infront of me.

“I’m certain my companion doesn’t need your admiration, sir.” Gilberts tone and voice was.. Well you know.. (˶•̀ ,<˶)

The young man held up his hands in mock surrender, a grin still playing at the corners of his lips. “Of course, I meant no offense.” He gave a half-bow, then turned back to the fabric stand, clearly not interested in furthering the conversation.

Gilbert didn’t immediately speak, but I could feel his presence beside me, like a thundercloud looming just overhead. I tried to offer him a reassuring smile, but he didn’t return it. His jaw was tight, his eyes dark with something I couldn’t quite place—was it anger? Or something else?

“Gilbert,” I said softly, reaching for his hand, trying to defuse the tension. “It’s ok. He was just being, friendly.” Even I don't belive what I'm saying.

He didn’t look at me right away, but his fingers curled around mine, a little too tightly. “Friendly?” His voice was rough, the word coming out like it didn’t quite fit in his mouth.

Uh oh.

“He was trying to flirt with you. And you... you let him.”

I felt a pang of guilt, though I hadn’t done anything wrong. “I didn’t mean to encourage him,” I said quickly. “I didn’t—”

“I know you didn’t,” Gilbert sighed, his voice softening just a little. He finally turns to face me fully, his eyes searching mine. “I just... I don’t like the thought of anyone else thinking they have the right to speak to you like that.”

Jealousy. That's what it was.

“You know I only have eyes for you.” I look up at him, grabbing both of his hands.

For a long moment, he just stared at me.

“I know,” he whispered. “I know.” And with that, a smile creeps up on my face, his growing soon after.

The rest of our time in the shop was quieter. We didn’t speak of the boy again, but I noticed Gilbert’s hand stayed close to mine, a subtle but constant reminder of how deeply he cared. He didn’t want to share me with anyone else, and in that moment, I couldn't help but smile at his slight jealousy.

When we left the store, there were slightly less people out.

Gilbert took my hand again, his touch more gentle this time.

“I think I’ve had enough of town for today,” he said, his voice soft but decisive. “Let’s go to my house, love. I'll bake you something, yeah?”

He ended up burning the cookies and I tought him how to make cupcakes instead. Cooking is more his thing anyway.

A/N - Hope you enjoyed and this is what you had in mind!

#gilbert blythe #gilbert x reader #fanfic #anne with an e #x reader #gilbert blythe x reader #request

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white-wolf-buckaroo · 9 months ago

Text

Chapter 3: We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium

Third chapter of my daughter of Ares fic! Back at age 12 here. I got a bit carried away with this... this episode of the show was actually really good so I wanted to make it justice. Hope you enjoy!

Word count: 12300 ish words (oops)

Warnings: none I can think of <3

Fic masterlist here!

Emily threw her dagger against a panel of wood, angry. She retrieved it, walked back to where she had been sitting, and threw it again. Annabeth sat beside her on a fallen tree trunk, watching her let out her anger with the knife.

“You can’t be mad at me forever” she told Emily, arms crossed over her chest “I already told you that I’m sorry. And I told Chiron that you had nothing to do with it”

“He still thinks that I helped you shove Percy in the lake. And that I let Clarisse almost kill him” she huffed, picking up her dagger again. She traced the Greek letters engraved in the metal with her fingers, trying to calm down “And I would have if you hadn’t stopped me!”

“He survived, that’s what matters. And thanks to all of what happened, he has been claimed. It’s a win-win situation, if you ask me”

“I don’t see where there is the win for me. Chiron has never been mad at me… well, except that one time I accidentally started a fire inside my cabin, but that was on accident! Now he probably thinks that I’m bullying Percy or something, and that I’m becoming just like Clarisse”

“He doesn’t think that”

“If he doesn’t why did he ask us last night to meet him first thing in the morning in the big house” Emily put the dagger back in its stealth, frowning “He’s going to make us clean the stables for a week or… clean the kitchens for the rest of the summer!”

“Chiron’s not going to do that”

“How do you know? He did punish the Stolls once making them repaint the whole outside of the Hephaestus cabin”

“After they covered it in bright pink paint at the beginning of the summer, that’s an important detail”

Emily was about to reply, but the door to the big house opened, revealing Chiron and Mr. D; they both walked out to the porch, Mr. D looking pretty displeased at having to be awake this early. He had a diet coke in his hand, taking regular sips from it so to not fall asleep.

“Annabeth, Emily” Chiron trot over to them, both girls standing up out of respect “Thank you for coming”

“Let’s make this quick, I want to go back to sleep” complained Mr. D, taking off his sunglasses. He sighted, signalling at the two kids “Annie bell, Ellie, did you two push the water boy into the lake?”

“I did it” spoke Annabeth, taking the lead before her friend could; she knew that Emily wasn’t pleased at her or her actions, but she would definitely take the blame on her as well if she let her, so that Annabeth wouldn’t be punished that much “Emily wanted to stop me, she has nothing to do with it”

“But me not stopping her makes me just as guilty” Annabeth looked at Emily sideways, doing a face of ‘what are you doing!’, although she couldn’t hold her back anymore “We’re both deeply sorry”

“It was me who did it, though”

“True, but I let you do it”

“It’s cute, your loyalty to one another” Mr. D took a sip from his diet coke, chuckling to himself “I guess as camp director I’m the one who has to set out the terms of your punishment… but you know what? What you did was hilarious. Do it again. That’s your punishment. Aye, let’s go back to bed”

“I’m afraid we still have other matters at hand, Mr. D” Chiron looked down at him, the god sighting again “The rest of the selected heroes will arrive soon to the pavilion. We have to go meet them”

“I hate this place… gods, I need a drink” mumbled Mr. D, shaking his head. He really only wanted to go back to bed “Just another terrible day at camp half-blood”

He walked away heading to the pavilion, leaving Annabeth and Emily alone with the centaur.

The fact that Mr. D had decided to not punish them was a relief, true, but who they were really scared of disappointing was Chiron: he had been practically raising them since they started living at camp, and the prospect of letting him down seemed terrible.

“What other heroes?” Annabeth frowned “What is happening, Chiron?”

“It’s about our newest camper, Percy. He’s inside the big house now… in the attic”

“He went to see the Oracle?” Emily piped up, her eyes widening “He’s going on a quest!”

No one ever left to go on a quest before visiting the Oracle and hearing what she had to say about it – a quest wasn’t a quest if she didn’t say so. Emily had never seen the old lady, but she had heard things from her about Luke, who had been on his own quest not so long ago: her form looked kind of like an old Halloween decoration, creepy and dusty, but her spirit residing inside was as wise as in ancient days.

“It’s happening, isn’t it?” both Emily and Chiron could sense Annabeth’s hope radiating off of her; she was convinced that this was going to be her chance “This is the quest you promised me”

“Percy will have to choose two fellow demigods to accompany him on his journey. If the fates think that this is your destiny, he will choose you” Chiron put a hand on her shoulder, smiling fondly at the girl “And I’m glad to say that if it’s the case, you are more than ready to embark on a journey like that. I know my opinion as camps’ activities director doesn’t count much… but I’m proud of you, dear Annabeth”

“Thank you, Chiron. It matters, really”

“Now go, girls. Mr. D will surely already be at the pavilion. Wait there for me an Percy to arrive, and we’ll start the selection ceremony”

“Wait, both of us?” confused, Emily raised her eyes up to meet Chiron’s “Me too?”

“You are one of camp’s most formidable warriors, Emily. Of course. I’ve selected the best of the best, and you couldn’t be missed among that group”

“But I haven’t been alone outside of camp in years. I wouldn’t know how to get anywhere, or move around, or help, or…”

“Those are fears you shouldn’t face until the right moment, Emily, not beforehand. If Percy chooses you to go with him, I’m sure you will be an excellent companion”

“You sure?” the centaur nodded “Thanks, Chiron” he had a soothing aura around him that always helped to calm her insecurities. He was the best “Hold on… Percy’s quest, what is it even about?”

“I’m afraid to tell you that… troubling times are ahead. Zeus’ master bolt has been stolen. If it isn’t returned before the summer solstice, in one week, there will be war”

“But what does Percy have to do with that?”

“Well, for starters, he is a forbidden child. Considering who his father is, and that he has been claimed just now, when the tension between Poseidon and Zeus is growing more and more every passing day… The suspicions about who is the thief fall all upon him”

“I thought he has only just found out that he is a half-blood. He can’t be the thief, it’s ridiculous”

“Until proven otherwise, he is the most probable candidate. That’s why he has to go retrieve the bolt, and return it to its rightful owner”

“But who could have the bolt? Who would be interested in a war?”

“Well, both our parents are the deities of war” Annabeth grimaced, shrugging “Although… If I had to pick between Ares and Athena, I think it would most probably be Ares. No offense”

“None taken. I… I don’t know, like… who knows what he’s up to” Emily huffed, playing with a rock on the floor tossing it around with her foot “And why a war between Zeus and Poseidon? I get it, they aren’t the best of friends… but they have other siblings who could have stolen the bolt”

“Hades” muttered Annabeth “He’s always been put behind his other siblings, and he’d be stronger than Zeus and Poseidon if he had the bolt”

“That’s true” Chiron seemed stressed, but he was good at not showing it. Emily and Annabeth were better at seeing the signs, because they had known him for half of their lives now “Percy will have to head to Los Angeles and enter the underworld to get the master bolt back, before the lord of the dead starts a war”

“I’m sure some gods would like it if he failed to do so” Emily made a face, huffing.

“The Gods may have their flaws, child, but also their virtues. They are powerful beings who have been around for ages, yes, but every living being that roams earth never stops learning, including them. All of us can fail, do wrong, but also learn valuable lessons, and become stronger thanks to it” now he put a hand on her shoulder, reassuringly “And you, my dear Emily, have your father’s strength and resilience. Not because you were born with it, but because you’ve fought hard all your life, just like him. Never forget that although our steps can falter, the journey does not end there”

The selection ceremony started soon after.

All selected demigods for Percy to choose stood in the pavilion. Apart from Annabeth and Emily, there was also Luke, his brother Chris, Clarisse, and other half-bloods known in camp for being the strongest or smartest fighters.

Clarisse stood on Emily’s left side, and on Annabeth’s right, between the girls; when Chiron announced that two demigods had to be chosen to join Percy on the quest, Emily wished that if Annabeth was truly chosen in the end, she wouldn’t have to deal with her sister.

She doubted she’d have to, though. Percy didn’t like Clarisse. She had been nothing but mean to him, so it was pretty obvious that she’d stay in camp. Percy would probably choose Luke as well – they had mingled well over the past few days.

“Time is short” warned Chiron to Percy, turning then to the rest of the Demigods “I have selected our most compelling half-blood candidates, from which you will choose two to join you on this quest, and ensure that we succeed-“

“Annabeth”

Percy made his first choice even before Chiron could end his speech, or even start presenting each of the candidates; customarily one waits to at least hear a name or two before choosing, but not Percy.

“This thing, Zeus’s master bolt… we need to get it back, right?” the centaur nodded to Percy’s words ”And it’s gonna be hard to get, right?”

“Extraordinarily”

“And if the mission required someone to push me down a flight of stairs for it to succeed… you’d want someone who won’t hesitate when they do it”

Emily looked over at her friend, eyebrow raised; the whole ‘shoving Percy into the water’ incident had left a mark on the boy.

“Then it’s set” Chiron looked over at the daughter of Athena, announcing the final resolution “The first quest-mate shall be Annabeth Chase”

Her dream had come true.

What they didn’t expect, was Percy’s second choice.

Before Chiron could introduce him to the other candidates, he interrupted him again:

“I’m only going on this quest if Grover can come too”

The centaur looked baffled, alongside Mr. D, who stood to his left.

“Satyrs don’t go on quests, Johnson” said the god of wine, looking at the boy “You’re supposed to choose two demigods, not one demigod and a satyr”

“He’s been my protector for the last months, so I want him to come with me” he insisted, firm in his decision “I’m not going if he’s staying”

Mr. D looked at Chiron, and after a few seconds the centaur turned back to Percy, grimacing:

“Percy, a quest is undertaken by demigods. Satyrs are loyal creatures, and I understand your reasoning, but we would be much more comfortable if you chose two demigods to join you instead of just one”

“But I’m not only choosing Annabeth” he replied, looking then at the girl from the Ares cabin who had defended him every time since meeting each other “I choose Emily as well”

Everyone’s gaze turned to her, making Emily feel a bit uncomfortable, but she brushed those feelings away quickly, standing proud on her spot while Chiron announced her as the second quest-mate.

They allowed Grover to come as well in the end. Percy wanted someone he could completely trust, and both Annabeth and Emily could comprehend the boy – in this crazy world he had been thrown in, Grover was the only one somewhat ‘familiar’ to Percy. Both girls were also thrilled to be going together on the quest, so they understood why Percy wanted his own friend to go on the quest with him as well. He trusted the satyr.

Besides, Grover would definitely pack the best snacks.

The rest of the day went by in a haze, preparing for the upcoming trip. Emily filled her backpack with her essentials (some spare clothes, weapons… the usual), and she even went over to the Hermes cabin to ask Luke to take care of her beloved Teddy bear while she was out of camp.

“Are you sure you want to leave it here?” the bear was more of a relic from the first years Emily had spent at camp, from a time where she was younger, but she couldn’t give it away. It was the last thing she had left from her mom, after all “You know how my siblings can get”

“I also know you won’t let anyone do anything to it… and I don’t feel comfortable leaving it in my cabin without me there to protect it from Clarisse”

“Fair enough”

Emily also met up with Grover and Annabeth during the afternoon, to plan how they would start their journey – they wanted to include Percy in the planning as well, but he was somewhere in the woods doing some last minute sword-fighting training with Luke.

“So, who will take the lead?”

“We could vote” suggested Emily “Who votes for Percy?”

“It’s not like I don’t want him to lead” Grover bit his lip nervously after raising his hand on impulse, but then pulling it back down “You guys are more experienced than him”

“I agree”

“Then we girls lead” added Annabeth, looking at Emily for confirmation “Together”

“I’m surprised you’re sharing the team captain title with me, Annie”

“Let’s say you’re my second in command”

“See? There it is. I knew it”

The next morning, right before leaving for the quest, Emily and Annabeth met up in front of the big house, where Percy and Grover would also join them to get one final talk to Chiron before leaving. However, before any of the boys showed up, Luke made his way towards them, smiling fondly.

“You didn’t think you were leaving without saying goodbye properly, weren’t you?”

He engulfed both of them in a bear hug, taking time for each of his girls; they were the closest thing to real siblings they had. Sure, each of them had a bunch of brothers and sisters in their cabins… but their bond was stronger.

“You both take care of each other out there, you hear me?” he had a hand on one of Emily’s shoulder’s the other on one of Annabeth’s, looking alternatively between their faces “You are the strongest girls I know. You can do this”

“We’ll miss you” pouted Emily.

“I’ll miss you too” he ruffled her hair softly, and gave her another side hug.

“I wish you could come with us”

“Me too, Annabeth” Luke grimaced sadly at the girl, but he pinched then one of her cheeks, trying to get her to smile again “But I’m glad that you will at least have each other. I know you will be fine”

After one last hug to each of them, Luke went back to his cabin, and soon after both Percy and Grover appeared with their backpacks, ready to go.

Percy had received a visit from Luke before leaving as well, to say goodbye, and to give him a last farewell gift: a pair of flying shoes Luke had originally received from his dad. They came to life after saying the word ‘Maia’, growing feather wings from the strings of the sneakers – they resembled Hermes’ own flying shoes, able to lift up whoever was wearing them.

Saying goodbye to Mr. D was easy, not so much to Chiron, but the worst was definitely saying goodbye to Thalia.

Annabeth had it the hardest: Emily let her stand by the tree the time she needed, telling both Percy and Grover that they still had to wait for a moment until the girl was ready. Grover immediately understood, but Percy… not so much.

“She’s really gonna miss that tree, huh?”

“When Annabeth first arrived here with Thalia and Luke, they were being chased by monsters” explained Grover “Agents of Hades. Sisters. Furies”

“Mrs. Dotts?”

“Who is Mrs. Dotts?” Emily didn’t know who they were talking about.

“She was our Algebra teacher at Yancy school. Yes, that was Alecto. Back then… Thalia turned back to fight to buy her friends some time. Her Satyr protector tried to stop her but she wouldn’t listen. So, at the last moment… Zeus intervened to save her life, and changed her form”

Emily remembered that day clearly. It had been a terrible night, filled with insecurities and uncertainness because of what had happened to Thalia.

“The most powerful being in the universe’ best idea to safe his daughter’s life… was to turn her into a tree?”

“She was the bravest demigod I ever knew” Annabeth had walked back to them, catching the last bits of their talk “She fought valiantly to safe us all”

“And she met a hero’s fate” added Emily, solemnly.

“She met a pinecone’s fate”

He had not just said that.

“Dude…” muttered the Ares’ girl, eyes growing big “Chill”

“Forbidden children are always in danger, even the strongest ones. Even Thalia” it was obvious that Annabeth felt personally victimized by Percy’s comment, and let’s be honest, she had all the right to do so “And you are not Thalia. Do exactly as I say, and maybe you survive this. Are we clear?”

She didn’t give him any time to answer, as she turned her back to Percy and started walking past the limit of the pine tree.

“You should probably apologize sometime about that comment of Thalia’s tree” Emily patted Percy’s shoulder, awkwardly “I… uh… I’ll go with her”

Emily caught up with Annabeth, as the boys lingered behind a few more seconds:

“Does she think she is in charge?” Percy referred to Annabeth, frowning.

“Technically, they both are. Who did you think would be?”

“I guess I assumed we’d do a show of hands or something… you know, democracy”

Hero’s quests are world-defining events. They have made and broken empires, altered the course of human civilization, changed the balance of power on Olympus… it’s a sacred thing, and to be charged with one is to be in conversation with the gods themselves.

It wasn’t like burning offerings, or praying to them. The gods handed out the missions for them to complete, because they were the only ones able to do so. It as an honour, and a privilege.

Although after being sat in an old uncomfortable bus for half an hour in the backseats right beside the toilet (the worst seats ever), and a huge guy using the restroom for most of that time, Percy thought that there was no way that scared smelled as bad like that.

“We’re soldiers on a mission. It’s not a vacation”

“Thank you for clearing that up”

After leaving camp, the three demigods, plus the satyr, had made their way to New York city to grab a bus that would take them through the country. Chiron had given them their bus tickets, albeit Percy hadn’t expected this kind of ride if the matter was so important.

“If this is so important, why didn’t Chiron spring for plane tickets? Or good smelling seats at least? This seems kind of… low priority, doesn’t it?”

“The smell hides us from the monsters” explained Emily. She was seated with Annabeth, in the window seat, while Grover was by Percy “It makes it more difficult to track us”

“And it isn’t just the monsters who are gonna be trying to stop us” Grover thought someone would have told Percy this, but apparently not “You’re a forbidden child. Zeus might decide to take a shot at you himself. The sky is his domain”

“We’d basically be serving you up on a silver platter to try to travel through it”

“That would’ve been a good piece of advice someone could have mentioned before leaving camp… but yeah, no one did” Percy sighted. He stayed silent for a few seconds, while his eyebrows slowly furrowed “If me travelling through the country is so dangerous because I’m a forbidden child, why did they sent me in the first place?”

“To exonerate you. Everyone thinks you stole the master bolt, so the best way for you to prove Zeus otherwise, is to return the bolt to him yourself”

“That sounds like a lame excuse to me” he huffed, grimacing “You both are much more skilled than me” it was true; both Annabeth and Emily were far more trained than Percy “It would’ve been just as good if you guys went to L.A. to get the bolt and then back to New York to return it. You could even take a plane if I wasn’t there to go faster”

“I may not be a forbidden child like you, but I don’t think Zeus is all that fond of me either” replied Emily “He doesn’t like Ares’ children. I’m by far not Zeus’ favourite grandchild, so I also wouldn’t be safe in the sky. Annabeth would have a shot, though, only because her mom is Zeus’ favourite kid”

“I still wouldn’t risk it” commented the girl, looking out the window.

“Let’s just say Zeus won’t get a ‘world’s best grandpa’ or ‘best uncle’ mug anytime soon”

The bus made it out of New York and stopped in New Jersey at a tank station; most of the passengers stood up to go stretch their legs, buy goodies or use the bathroom, leaving Percy, Annabeth, Emily and Grover sitting in the backseats.

“I’m gonna go get us some snacks” announced Annabeth, unbuckling her seatbelt. Percy wanted to tag along, but the told him no “You’ll stay right there”

“But it smells terrible back here. You’re not the only one who wants to escape this”

“Remember, the monsters won’t smell you here” Emily raised up from her seat as well, joining Annabeth “That’s where we want you”

“I wanna vote” Percy looked at Grover for support “Who thinks that we should all go get to breathe fresh air and buy our own snacks?”

“There’s no voting”

“Chips and sodas okay for you guys?”

“I don’t think you should just get to decide we don’t vote” Percy ignored Emily’s question, going back at Annabeth.

“I’m sorry to hear that”

“Okay… Then I wanna vote on whether you get to decide we don’t vote”

“Grover, please, can you help your…” but Grover interrupted Annabeth before she could finish her demand, clapping slowly “… friend?”

“I really don’t wanna be a tiebreaker” said the satyr, still clapping “I have a better idea”

“Oh, gods, please not this” muttered Emily, but it was too late. Grover started to sing:

“Oh, golly, the road’s gettin’ bumpy ‘cause I got me some friends who just can’t along! Oh, dear! When the team’s gettin’ grumpy the trick to gettin’ through it is singin’ this song-“

Percy cut him off before he could go any further.

“Dude, what are you doing?” he shook his head, trying to make Grover take the hint that he should stop.

“It’s the consensus song. Verse two encourages us to say nice things about each other! You get a few rounds in and you’d be amazed at how disagreements just kind of… fade away”

Emily looked at him unimpressed, slowly shaking her head as well; in all of her years in camp she had grown to love many things there, but the consensus song? Maybe it was her rebellious, aggressive Ares side, but she hated that song. If someone sang it to her at camp to try to solve a disagreement, she would end up punching said someone in the face before they could even start the second verse.

For once, even Annabeth and Percy agreed, looking at Grover just as unimpressed as Emily did. An uncomfortable silence fell upon them.

“Chips and sodas okay then?”

The boys muttered ‘yes please and ‘whatever’, and with that both Annabeth and Emily exited the bus. Emily heard Percy muttering defeated that the voting system was broken, and she almost laughed.

The store at the tank station was huge, or at least, that’s what Emily thought when they entered it. She hadn’t been in any kind of store in years, and she didn’t really remember much of how they were when she was little. Now, at twelve years old, she marvelled at the different aisles, and especially, the candy section.

“Which one do you think Percy and Grover will like the most?”

“Would it be too obvious if we got Percy blue candy?” Emily grabbed some blue chewing gum, showing it to Annabeth “You know… for Poseidon”

“I got it” Annabeth rolled her eyes, but there was a little smile on her face “Do you thing the blue ones taste different than the orange ones?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t had candy since I was six, except that one time the Stolls brought some at the beginning of the summer, and it was yucky”

It was a tough choice to make. Both of them hadn’t tried most of the candies and chocolates they saw in that aisle, and if they had, they didn’t really remember what they were like or what they tasted like like.

“We can grab blue candy for Percy... Green ones for Grover, and red ones for you” Annabeth handed Emily some reddish gummy bears, and the girl thanked her “And some white ones for me. Then we can share and try them all”

Did they end up leaving that aisle with their hands full of too many sweets? Absolutely. Did they think it was too much, or that they could have grabbed less? No, not really. Chiron probably wouldn’t have let them get so much candy, but the wasn’t there to lecture them.

They also grabbed the chips and sodas, of course – it was what they had went to grab originally anyways. The cashier looked them up and down, staring wide eyed at the mountain of candy, chips, chocolates and sodas they left on the counter.

“Oh, Annie, I want a slushie”

“You aren’t five years old, you don’t need one”

“You don’t buy slushies because you need them” she looked at her friend making a face that represented the word ‘duh’ “Hey, you grabbed those chocolate-marshmallow bars even though I didn’t want to. Let me have my own treat”

She did get a slushie, a red one which supposedly tasted like strawberries; having been living at a strawberry farm for six years, Emily could tell that this was definitely not what strawberries tasted like. But it was full of sugar, so she was drank it anyways.

While Annabeth was paying, a woman walked behind the girls, and both of them tensed up.

Just as monsters could sense demigods, trained half-bloods learned to recognize the aura of a monster. Not literally, of course, but Emily and Annabeth had strong intuitive feelings, and even though it could not look like it, they were extremely aware of their surroundings. They knew that if they weren’t, they would be much easier to kill.

The mysterious woman stopped in front of a shelve to their right, and their suspicions grew stronger when she slowly turned her face to them, smirking.

It’s true that monsters are most likely to sense a more powerful demigod, like forbidden children, but it isn’t power exactly, that draws them. It’s more complicated than that. It’s kind of like how bees smell one’s fear: what a monster senses depends on the monster. Some sense inadequacy, the need for glory, shame… if a demigod has to confront one, the monster will attack wherever their armor is the weakest. Nothing will stop them, not even death.

Emily walked a few steps behind Annabeth, slushie in hand; if things got tough, she could easily access her bracelet and use her throwing knife; whereas she was completely visible, Annabeth had her Yankees hat on, hiding in plain sight. The bus was starting to get packed again with all of the passengers making their way back, and as Emily passed by the front row seats, she got that feeling of uneasiness again – especially when she walked by a woman holding a newspaper.

The key to not get surprised by a monster, was to spot them first.

“If you guys were better at your job, we might not have noticed you here so easily”

The woman folded her newspaper together upon hearing Emily’s words, holding a serious look on her face. The girl was still taking sips of her slushie, eyes focused on the woman.

“If Thalia were better at hers there might not be a family of squirrels making her their home”

“That’s a low blow, even for a monster”

“Is that why Hades sent you here?” Annabeth’s voice joined the conversation after hearing Thalia’s name, although she was still wearing her hat. The woman, the monster, couldn’t see her, alas she didn’t know where she was, even if she could sense her “To gloat over a job you almost did right once?”

“How things have changed… You’re not the frightened little girl I came for all those years ago” she looked back at Emily, expression unreadable “And you don’t seem so tough as I had expected at all”

“Don’t kid yourself. I wasn’t that frightened”

“And I can still kick your ass back to the underworld if you decide to make the wrong move”

The monster chuckled, amused.

“Maybe so, maybe so… Either way, now it would seem that you’re both exactly what they say you are. The pride of Athena’s offspring, and Ares’ most treasured child. Perhaps the most formidable demigods children alive”

“You won’t get to us by trying to manipulate us using our parents” Emily scoffed, definitely not buying it – and also not letting her face show how she had felt after the woman said that she was known as Ares’ most treasured kid “What do you want? If you were here to kill us you would already have tried”

“I’m here to collect your friend” she looked back through the gap between the seats, to where Percy sat unaware of what was happening.

“Collect him? For what?”

“Oh, I don’t question orders. ‘Bring him in, quick and quiet’. That is what I was told” she turned back to Emily, as she couldn’t see Annabeth, but her next message was for the both of them “Lure him off this bus where I can take him quietly away from so many eyes, and your quest goes on unimpeded an unburdened. You and I know he isn’t gonna be of any help to you, and maybe even a hindrance”

“We’re not going to do that” said Emily, firmly.

“Are you not?” the woman raised an eyebrow, looking at the girl’s side and then back to her “Where did your invisible friend go then?”

Emily tried to feel Annabeth by her side, but the hallway seemed empty. There was no body heat beside her like a few seconds ago, and she frankly couldn’t tell where the girl had went.

“Some children must learn the hard way” muttered the woman, sighting “It was a pleasure to meet you, daughter of Ares”

The monster began to transform before her eyes, her clothes and hair mutating into her true form: her once grey updo turned red and feathery, and her black coat along her red shirt grew feathers as well, covering her whole body up until her hands, where there were now long and sharp claws. Out of her bag two wings emerged, like big bat wings, hitting the top of the bus as they unfolded fully.

It was a fury. And where was one, there were always other two.

They had to leave now.

“Percy!” Emily shrieked, starting to get away from the creature “Run!”

In order to get the fury to back off, Emily threw her slushie at her, still full of ice and red liquid, hitting her in the face.

Both Percy and Grover perked up from their seats, and upon seeing what had made Emily scream, they both shot up, aiming for the emergency window behind them to try and open it. When they finally succeeded, the glass fell off of the bus shattering against the ground, and a security alarm went off. The driver ordered through the megaphone that everyone should exit the bus, and everyone started to stand up, slowing down Emily, but also the fury that was making her way to her.

“Emily let’s go!”

She turned to Percy, still looking for Annabeth – where was she?! She couldn’t have really considered the fury’s proposition, couldn’t she? No, her friend wasn’t like that. Emily would never accept, and neither would Annabeth… right?

A shriek coming from outside pierced through the air. Flying in the direction of the bus was another fury – she flew straight through the open window, almost hitting Percy and Grover, causing them fall to the ground.

“Hey!”

Annabeth appeared out of nowhere, and she threw a knife at the monster, who screeched when the metal hit her in the chest. The fury vanished, transformed into dust, and the knife fell on the ground.

“We’re done here, let’s go!”

She grabbed Emily’s arm, yanking her to the open window. Leaving their bags and the snacks behind, all four of them climbed out of the bus – Percy had grabbed the box with Luke’s shoes before leaving, though, and he was now holding it against his chest while they ran. The fury on the bus had been stopped temporarily by all the passengers that were making their way out of the vehicle to the front exit, and the other one who had attacked them was gone.

However, there weren’t just two furies – they were three sisters.

The third one attacked when they were all outside, screeching above them. She flew downward in Percy’s direction with her arms stretched out, terrible claws aiming for his face. He didn’t have enough time to react, turning around to see her almost catching him, when a throwing knife hit her in the middle of the back between her wings.

Emily had been the last one to climb out of the bus, so she had been behind Percy when the third fury had tried to snatch him. He had already started running, so he was a few meters away (alas, the fury wasn’t close as well), so she grabbed her bracelet, and it transformed into her magical weapon. She threw the knife hitting the monster right where she aimed to, and the next thing that happened was that the fury crumbled to dust.

“Come on!” she screamed, picking up her weapon, back to running again “We have to go!”

Ears pumping with the beats of their rushing hearts, they ran to the woods, hiding from the monster left behind. They didn’t stop until they were far enough to not see the tank station, or any building at all, deep inside the forest.

They had no food, or water. Their bags, left behind. They had nothing, except Luke’s shoes, and what they already had on or carried with them.

“This sucks” mumbled Emily, trying to regain her breathe.

As they were now at a ‘safe distance’ they stopped running and switched to walking, trying to recompose themselves but still keep going.

“Somewhere up ahead this turns into a Satyr path” Grover looked far ahead, as if trying to see it.

“What’s a Satyr path?”

There was so much that Percy didn’t know… it was starting to become concerning.

“It’s a road through the wilderness. Satyr explorers use them. Harder to track us”

“That’s… great” Percy still seemed uncertain “But if we stay in the wilderness, how are we gonna find a phone?”

“Why do you want a phone?”

“So we can call camp” it was pretty obvious to him “T-to get help. You know… because we’re lost?”

“We don’t need help. We’re fine” replied Annabeth.

“We’re still alive” added Emily, shrugging “That’s what matters”

“But we haven’t even gotten to Trenton! And we’re wandering through a forest. I didn’t even know they had forests in New Jersey, but we’ve found one!”

“It’s literally called ‘The Garden State’” Emily looked back at him, frowning “What did you expect?”

“I don’t know, but… I would say we’re the opposite of fine”

“We were sent on a quest by the Oracle… by the gods” said Annabeth “What’d you think, it would be easy? It’s supposed to be hard. That’s why only certain people are chosen. If we call camp, we’re basically saying it was a mistake to choose us”

“I’m… completely comfortable with that” Emily knew that Percy’s comment would only make Annabeth more mad. As her best friend, she knew that under that tough leader exterior, was the girl who had dreamed to go on a quest for years. Calling camp, was telling Chiron wrong, and with that, he would be disappointed in them. They couldn’t let that happen “Everyone makes mistakes”

“Why are you so afraid of who you are?”

Annabeth stopped walking, and she turned to Percy, scowling.

“What?”

Grover and Emily looked at each other, quickly picking up the tension rising between their friends.

“You know what’s interesting about this particular satyr path?”

“What so interesting about it, Grover?” Emily’s voice sounded nervous, because she was. If they started fighting again, it would only slow them down.

“It’s actually the one my Uncle Ferdinand took when he set out on his own quest”

“That’s such a cool fact, Grover!”

But Percy and Annabeth ignored them completely:

“What was that supposed to mean, ‘afraid of who I am’? I’m not afraid”

“Yes, you are. You aren’t just a kid. “Just a kid” doesn’t do what you did to Clarisse back at camp. “Just a kid” doesn’t have Hades sending top lieutenants to retrieve them. You know, you are part of something so much bigger than we can understand right now. We have to move forward, whether you like it or not. Whether you want to or not”

“If you don’t want to call camp, fine. Then, at least… let’s call your mom”

“Excuse me?”

If they thought things were gonna get rough, now they definitely were.

“Athena? Your mother. I’d call my father, but we aren’t exactly on speaking terms, because of the lifelong neglect, you know. Or we could call Emily’s dad. You both seem close to your parents. Why don’t we ask them for help?”

“Grover, will you explain to your friend that he needs to pull himself together?” Annabeth was tense. Very much so. Emily knew that she wouldn’t be able to collect herself much longer.

Percy looked at Annabeth, studying her face… and then he realized something.

“You can’t ask her, can you?” he had hit a button. He could see it “When was the last time she talked to you?”

“Grover” Annabeth insisted, but the satyr couldn’t stop him.

“I don’t know why you keep pulling him into this” Percy stood closer to Grover “He’s on my side, just as Emily’s on yours”

“What makes you think that?”

“Because he’s my protector, it’s his job, and she’s your best friend!”

“He was my protector first!”

“First?” he muttered, confused “… What do you mean, ‘first’?”

They both looked at Grover, who looked at Emily, out of words, and then back to their two friends:

“It’s very exciting… getting to walk in Uncle Ferdinand’s footsteps” he completely avoided the confrontation. Typical for satyrs “Next best thing to getting to talk to him again”

There was a frown on Percy’s forehead… he looked at the ground, thinking, and then he spoke up again:

“Thalia, Luke, and Annabeth had a satyr Protector” his eyes locked on Grover, almost accusatively “That was you” Grover couldn’t hold his gaze, which was enough conformation “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Do you guys smell that?”

That was not the answer they had expected. Grover seemed absent, starting to look around, sniffling. Emily did too, although she didn’t have the senses of a satyr – if he had caught the scent of a monster, they would need to be ready.

It wasn’t a monster what he had smelt, though.

“Grover, I’m not kidding-“

“No, neither am I. Just shush…” he continued to sniffle, concentrated “Hamburgers”

“What?”

He took the lead, walking ahead following the satyr path. He was still using his heightened sense of smell to find the way, and Percy, Annabeth and Emily could only follow him.

“Grover, what are you doing?” asked Annabeth, confused.

“Somebody’s making hamburgers, in the middle of nowhere, on a satyr path. Whoever it is… they’re from our world”

They reached a clearing, only it wasn’t a clearing, but a road. It led to a building surrounded by dozens of statues. It wasn’t gnomes or frogs, though, as in other gardens with statues – these were monsters made out of stone.

“Oh, come on”

Emily frowned at Annabeth’s comment, but then she saw the huge sign on a pole that said ‘Aunty Em’s Gnome Emporium”.

Dear gods this was bad.

“What is it?” asked Percy.

“Aunty ‘Em’ has a garden full of petrified stone folks. Yeah… this is someone from our world, all right. Anyone wanna guess what ‘Em’ is short for?”

Her nervousness was justified – no daughter of Athena would want to be in the presence of that specific monster. There wasn’t time to play guess, though. Before they could leave and run for their lives (again), a fury landed a few feet behind them: it was the only surviving one of the three sisters, Alecto.

Percy handed the box with shoes over to Grover, taking out a pen from his pocket. Emily saw it transform into a huge celestial bronze sword, the same one she had seen him fighting with before, once he took the tap off. She also unsheathed her own weapon, this time her dagger, just as Annabeth did with hers.

“You should have accepted my offer when you had the chance” said the fury, staring at the two girls.

“Offer? What offer?”

Percy looked at both Annabeth and Emily, but they didn’t move their eyes from Alecto, watching her every move.

“Not today, friends” the voice of another woman joined them. It came from the house, now behind them, and upon hearing it, the fury immediately looked away, covering herself with the help of her arms and her wings “Not on my doorstep”

Footsteps approached the group slowly, and while Percy looked behind him to locate the mysterious woman, Annabeth, Grover and Emily quickly looked away as well, closing their eyes just to be sure. He did too when he realized, although not completely understanding what was happening.

“If you have something to resolve, why not come inside and I’ll help?” she kept on talking, now closer to them “Alecto! Will you be joining us?” the fury only closed her eyes tighter, turning her head even more, as if the sole sight of the woman’s eyes could harm her “No… well I wouldn’t think you would” She turned her attention back to the children, who also weren’t looking at her “She won’t bother you as long as you’re with me. But it isn’t as though she’ll leave either, not if it means reporting that she failed to retrieve the son of Poseidon”

“How do you-“ said boy squinted his eyes open, too intrigued to refrain his impulses.

“Percy, no!” whispered Emily, grabbing his arm.

“A forbidden child has been claimed, how long did you think that secret would keep?” the woman’s voice was calm, almost soothing, but Emily knew that it was only a trick to lure them to her, to confuse them, and trap them “It’s a pleasure to meet you, son of Poseidon…” their skin crawled, and fear embarked them as she spoke “I’m Medusa”

Oh no this was definitely bad.

“Percy don’t!” warned Annabeth “She’s a monster”

“We all choose who we make our monsters” commented Medusa “But right now, that one ahead of you wants to tear you limb from limb, whereas I am offering you lunch. The choice is yours”

They heard how she walked away, and soon after the door to the house opening and closing again. They were safe, sort of, for now.

“I think we can trust her” blurted Percy, suddenly. A chorus of ‘what?’, ‘dude!’ and ‘no!’ were heard as a response, but he stood firm to his opinion “I can’t explain it, I just… My mom used to tell me her story. And the point was always that she isn’t what people think. And I definitely trust my mom”

Emily remembered her own mother, and the almost vanished feeling after so long of trusting someone blindly as much as she did with her. It made her sad, but she could also understand Percy better.

“I’m going in” he said, serious “You guys do what you want”

He took the first step, and after looking at the house and back at the fury, Grover followed him.

“What are you-“

“Annie, we should go with them”

“Are you crazy? You know I can’t go in there! She’ll kill me!”

“And if we stay out here, that fury will eat us!” she glanced at the monster, who only huffed at her comment “Come on, trust Percy for once. I’m doing it”

“You’re trusting him more than me?”

“I’m not saying that” she replied “I just don’t want to die, and right now, we have more chances to live going inside than staying here. We won’t let anything happen to you. I promise”

Medusa’s house was decorated in an old fashioned way, in a style from a few decades ago. There was a huge dining room, with a big table set for many people to eat. There were plenty of sweets, desserts and other sugary dishes, and it looked almost as if they had entered the candy house of the bad witch from Hansel and Gretel’s tale.

“Thanks for coming” said Percy, after they joined him and Grover inside.

“This isn’t the same for me as it is for you” Annabeth felt nervous, and it was showing. Emily grabbed her hand in hopes of comforting her, but it was rather difficult, especially when Medusa came out of the kitchen to the dining room again.

“You’re concerned I would hold a grudge against you simply because you are a daughter of Athena?” she sounded almost hurt, not offended, but genuinely concerned about Annabeth’s thought on her. Emily had to remind herself that she couldn’t trust what Medusa tried to pretend to be, but what her gut told her about who and how the monster was “You shouldn’t be. We’re not our parents, after all. And you and I might have more in common than you think”

None of them were looking at her, too petrified of catching a glance of her eyes even under the veil of her cream coloured hat. She was wearing a matching dress, that looked like it was from a different decade, like the rest of the house.

“Please, sit and eat” she insisted, signalling to the table.

The boys sat down, but Annabeth didn’t dare to move, and Emily remained loyally by her side.

“So if you’re not a monster what are you then?”

“A survivor”

“You must be a little more than that” Percy served himself some food, and Grover was already munching on something “There’s a Fury out there that seems terrified of you”

“Because she knows what I think of her” Medusa sat down on a stool by another table, crossing her legs elegantly “I don’t like bullies. When one shows up on my doorstep, they end up spending a lot more time there than they planned for… I know you can understand me. None of you like bullies. Isn’t that right, Emily?”

“How do you know my name?” she blurted out the question impulsively before she could refrain her tongue. Thinking before talking wasn’t a skill she had mastered yet.

“A demigod child like you draws attention easily. Not many of you are brought to camp half-blood by their godly parents themselves, let alone if said parent is the God of War. He isn’t particularly known for taking care of his offsprings… not like he cared for you”

“You know nothing about my dad”

“Maybe not, but I’ve been around for some time now… and I’ve heard many stories about your father. He has a reputation he seems to be very proud of” she smiled softly at the child “I’m sure you want to make him proud, don’t you?”

“Of course” she answered, firmly.

“And has he ever shown that sentiment to you? For any of your achievements? For you going on this quest?”

Emily remained quiet, her jaw tense and her eyes on anything but the woman before her.

“He’s… busy” she mumbled.

“I’m sure he is… You know, I’ve had a few experiences myself regarding the gods… and I’ve even had the pleasure to receive a gift from them, which is a privilege not many of their adepts have had” she smiled sweetly, almost humanly “The gift the gods gave me is that I cannot be bullied anymore”

“What my mother did to you wasn’t a gift” replied Annabeth, with her arms now crossed “It was a curse”

“You are loyal to your mother”

“Yes”

“You stand by her?”

“Always” Annabeth shrugged, as if it was obvious.

“You love her?”

“Of course I do!”

“And so did I” Medusa’s tone was nostalgic, still sweet, but also with a hint of sadness “Do you know the story of how I came to be this way?”

“I do!”

All of them looked at Grover, who had answered between bites to his food. He looked up from his plate when he noticed how everyone had turned quiet, blushing slightly.

“Do you?”

“Do I?” he answered back, uncertain.

The bell inside a clock started tolling as Medusa told her tale:

“Athena was everything to me… I worshiped her. I prayed to her. I made offerings… She never answered. Not even an omen to suggest she appreciated my love… I wasn’t like you, sweetheart. I was you”

Medusa’s worship to the gods and the demigod’s worship to them were terrifyingly similar. What made them different from her, a monster? Fact is, she wasn’t a monster in the past. She became one… because of the same gods she adored.

“I would have worshipped her that way for a lifetime… in silence” she continued, her tone still somber “But then one day, another god came, and he broke that silence” she turned her head to Percy, smiling again “Your father. The Sea God told me that he loved me. I felt as though he saw me in a way I had never felt seen before… But then Athena declared that I had embarrassed her and I needed to be punished. Not him. Me”

Her voice, full of sadness, narrated how Athena had decided that Medusa should never be seen again by anyone who would live to tell the tale.

“That isn’t what happened” Annabeth fought back, although she already knew Medusa’s story, and also that what the woman had told them was exactly what had happened. The loyalty to her mom, though, made her retort “My mother is just. Always”

“The gods want you to believe that. That they are infallible. But they only want what all bullies want: they want us to blame ourselves for their own shortcomings”

“That is not what happened. And you are a liar”

Percy, Grover and Emily looked at Annabeth in disbelief, not giving credit to her words: how could she so blatantly talk back to a monster nonetheless, if they didn’t have any way of escaping after releasing her wrath? What was she thinking? The consequences would be horrible! Deadly!

Medusa’s red lips tensed up, just like the rest of her body. Emily watched her discretely, scared of looking too much but also scared of watching too little, and saw her look back to the kitchen, shaking her head.

“Something’s… burning” she sighted, standing up. Her indifference to Annabeth’s words was just as horrid as if she had screamed and lashed out on them “Would you give me a hand in the kitchen, Percy? I think lunch is ready”

The boy looked at his friends, who were all shaking their heads ‘no’, but after Annabeth’s outburst, Percy wasn’t in the mood to listening to her, so he stood up, and followed the woman inside the kitchen.

“Grover” Annabeth called him, stopping her mid bite” Get ready to run”

“What was that what you just did?!” Emily forcefully turned Annabeth to her grabbing her shoulder, signalling frantically to the door that led to the kitchen “Are you really that keen on dying young?!”

“She was insulting my mother” she defended herself, angry.

“And she could also have turned us into stone!” Emily’s heart raced nervously “First the fury, now this…”

“What about the fury?”

“On the bus. Alecto’s offer. You considered it”

“What if I did?” she shrugged, looking away from Emily. She was ashamed of that she had really thought of accepting the fury’s proposition.

“You aren’t like this!” Emily shot back, frustrated “Stop letting your insecurities get to you! I know you want to complete this quest at all costs, but we have to trust each other! And that includes not selling your quest-mates to the first monster that offers to take them away just because they get a bit on your nerves!”

“But I didn’t, right?” Annabeth huffed “I’m sorry, okay?”

“Just… don’t do stuff like that again. And I’m not only referring to almost giving Percy away to Alecto, but also talking back to a monster who could literally kill us with only looking at us”

“Okay, okay…” she sighted, grimacing “I’m sorry, Emi”

“Apologies accepted” Emily hugged her friend, but a cough from Grover made them separate “What is it?”

“Percy’s been in there for too long, hasn’t he?”

They all looked to the kitchen entrance warily, and right a second after they heard small footsteps making their way towards their direction, and the squeak of the door’s hinges as it started to open. All three of them looked to the ground, stealing glances to the door, seeing a hand ever so slowly perking out… and then they recognized Percy’s green flannel shirt, and they let out a sigh of relief.

“We have to leave, like now” he said, whispering so that Medusa wouldn’t hear him. He grabbed the box that held Luke’s shoes, which he had left on the dining table, and he made his way to the entrance when Emily’s hushed voice stopped him.

“Alecto is still outside, we’re trapped!”

There was another option though: the door that led to the basement. Annabeth had located it after entering the house, already forming an escape plan in case things got tough (which was to be expected). They could hide there, and look for another exit – maybe a window, or another door. Anything was better than waiting there for their deaths.

“Grover, grab those shoes and leave the box, carrying things will only slow us down” Annabeth instructed, and the boy did just as she said. She led the way to the basement, and they made their way down the stairs quickly, away from Medusa.

In the dark, they waited – it wouldn’t be possible to hide forever, but they had at least gained a little time.

“Put the shoes on” Emily suggested to Grover “Come on, I’ll tie the laces tight so they don’t fall off”

“You know the word to activate them?” the satyr nodded, groaning when Emily pulled the cords too tight. She mumbled ‘sorry’, before Annabeth shushed them “Quiet… she’s upstairs”

They could all hear her. Medusa’s steps resonated over them as she walked around the dining room, surely looking for them. A sense of dread invaded the heroes when they heard how the monster’s steps approached the entrance to the basement, and how she opened the door – it creaked like the ones in horror movies, creepy, horrifying.

As Medusa started to make her way downstairs, fire erupted along the staircase, travelling all the way down to them, and following ahead. It lighted the basement, revealing the cream coloured stone walls, and a terrifying sculpture that made Percy scream when he saw it.

It was the statue of a woman, captured mid-scream, fear in her features. She wasn’t the only one, though: the fire began to lit up dozens, if not hundreds of torches, illuminating an enormous ancient cavern full of Medusa’s victims.

Not wasting any time, they ran. Away from the monster, ahead into the cave.

“There’s four of us and only one of her” said Grover, panting “If we split up she can’t be watching us all at once”

“I don’t think it’d be that simple”

“It could be” he insisted, stopping them; they were standing behind some huge wooden transport boxes, partially hiding for now “Here’s the plan: I’ll get in the air, I’ll draw her attention. As soon as you hear me say “Maia” you guys start to-“ he hadn’t thought it through, obviously, because once he said the magic word, the shoes listened and grew feathers, starting to fly. In a matter of two seconds, Grover was high up in the air, flying far into the darkness above them “Oh boy! Okay! Um- off! Down!”

None of it worked. And he was gone.

“Great” muttered Emily, looking at where Grover had disappeared to “We’re screwed!”

“We’re in need of a new plan, but not screwed” they kind of were, though.

They didn’t have time to think of one, though, as Medusa’s voice reached their ears. They ducked as fast as they could, listening how she moved forward to their position:

“We are not our parents, until we choose to be. And you three, have chosen” her footsteps echoed against the walls, her feet dragging against the dust on the ground “A daughter of a self-righteous mother, who chose self-righteousness for herself” Annabeth squinted her eyes, trying to find an escape, finding none “A daughter of a selfish man who lives herself out to please him, pushing herself to limits only for his approval” Emily crawled behind a wooden box, trying to be as quiet as possible “And you…” Percy sat on the ground, legs bend to his chest, listening to the monster “You could have shown your father what it means to stand up for someone you love. You could have chosen to save your mother instead of doing your father’s bidding… If none of you will help teach these lessons, then perhaps you should be the lessons”

Medusa’s voice wasn’t sweet and caring as it had sounded before, no. Now it was cold, still smooth, but also carrying a sizzle typical from… snakes. It gave them chills, especially with her now being this close.

“When I ship your statues to Olympus… maybe that will get my point across even better”

They had to move fast, or they’d be dead in seconds. Annabeth nudged Emily’s leg, and when she got her attention she signalled to her invisibility cap. The girl nodded, and she watched her friend disappear before her eyes.

Emily turned to where Percy was, but he was starting at the opposite site to hers. She threw a little rock at him, hitting him on the leg silently, and he looked over – she mimicked Annabeth putting on her invisibility cap, and him taking out his magic pen-sword keeping while keeping his eyes closed, all of that quickly before Medusa reached their position.

Percy nodded, obviously nervous, and she watched him close his eyes like she had instructed, reaching for his pen. The soft golden glow of the weapon grazed his scared features, but he held the sword tightly, firmly, brave as he was.

“Stand up” commanded Medusa, walking straight to Percy. The glow of the celestial bronze had also given away his position, revealing himself to the monster “Let’s have a look at you”

Gathering all the courage he could master in that second, Percy shot back to his feet, whimpering and trembling in fear, feeling Medusa right by his side. She started to caress his cheek and his hair gently, terrifyingly close to him, when a cry above them startled her.

It was Grover! The flying shoes… they were still flying, and he was still not controlling them.

“I didn’t really think this through!”

He blindly dive-bombed into a wooden box, shattering it completely, practically at Medusa’s feet. A rock hit her from behind then before Grover could accidentally catch her eyes, followed by others coming from the darkness, and Emily ducked before Medusa could spot her, having distracted her enough though: Annabeth took off her hat, standing by Percy’s side, and she put in on Medusa’s head, making her invisible!

“Now!”

Without thinking, Percy raised his sword up to where he knew the monster’s neck was, and he sliced through it completely, decapitating her. The head, still invisible, fell off the body, making a ‘thump’ noise as it hit the ground. It rolled a few feet away, leaving a mark on the gravel… and then it stopped, and it was all over.

“Are you okay?”

Percy didn’t answer. Instead he walked forward slowly, moving his foot around… until he hit Medusa’s head. He scoffed in disgust, and picked it up, while at the same time Emily helped Grover to get back up – he was still a bit foggy from his fall, but he would be fine.

“Aw, man” complained the son of Poseidon, groaning.

“That’s gross” muttered Emily; Percy had the head in his hands, still invisible “Wait, guys… We can use the head to get rid of the fury”

“Kill the monster using the head of a gorgon?”

“Well, you wouldn’t be the first Perseus to do so” said Annabeth “Come on, I’ll go with you”

While Emily remained by Grover’s side, helping him recover, both Annabeth and Percy made their way up to the dining room again, which seemed oddly human and quiet now having been under the house in the huge cavern full of statues.

“You want me to take it from here?”

“Non, no. I got it”

Percy and Annabeth stood in front of the entrance, looking for Alecto – as expected, she was still outside, waiting for them to come out if they managed to escape Medusa.

“Just make sure it’s pointing in the right direction before you take my hat off”

“Good tip” he nodded, and she muttered ‘okay’ in response. Percy looked at the door then, and back to the girl, signalling it to her with a shake of his head “My hands are kinda full with the head so…”

“Of course, sorry”

Annabeth opened the door for him, and taking a deep breath in, Percy walked outside. Annabeth watched him as he slowly approached the fury, who spread her wings now that it was evident that Medusa wasn’t around.

Alecto screeched flying up in the air, claws reaching out for Percy, when the boy took the Yankees cap off of the gorgon’s head, raising it up high into the air. The fury had no time to close her eyes or to escape, and with just a glance, she turned into stone; her statue fell to the ground, breaking into pieces as it hit the asphalt.

Percy stared at the petrified monster’s face, putting the hat quickly back on Medusa’s head. Breathing heavily he turned back to Annabeth, and smiled softly.

While they took care of the fury, downstairs, in the cavern, Emily had managed to fetch some water for Grover, and he was feeling much better now.

“This place is huge” the satyr said, looking around “And the ceiling too. I didn’t even reach it”

“This whole place is probably enchanted” she bit her lip, feeling curious, turning back to Grover “Do you want to explore a bit?”

“It can be dangerous”

“Yeah, and fun” she giggled, starting to wander around “Come on! The gorgon’s gone, let’s look at this place”

There were thousands of statues scattered around the cavern, may of them humans, but also mythical creatures, and even other monsters – although it seemed as if Medusa had kept the most terrifying looking ones outside in her yard. They found a table packed with papers, ink, pens and packing material, and a register book for orders; it seemed like Medusa had even been making money out of her condition.

Emily regretted a bit dragging Grover with her around the cave when she found him looking at the statue of a satyr. Percy and Annabeth descended the stairs back to the basement then, and they found them at the same spot, Grover still looking at the statue.

“Uncle Ferdinand” he muttered.

Oh, no.

“Grover, I’m so sorry” Emily put a hand on his shoulder, eyes looking sad.

“This is as far as he got on his quest… We aren’t even to Trenton” he sighted, defeated “But look at him” Grover chuckled softly, even smiling a bit “He’s not like the others, he… he doesn’t look afraid”

Emily squeezed his shoulder, and he smiled in her way. Clearing his throat, Grover asked Percy and Annabeth if they had gotten rid of Alecto using Medusa’s head, and they confirmed it.

“Uh, we probably should get going. It’ll be dark soon”

“But what are we gonna do with the head?” asked Percy “I just took down a Fury with it, and I wasn’t even trying. We can’t just leave it for someone to find”

“You want to take the head with us?”

“No, no. Leave the hat on, and bury it here, in the basement. That ought to keep it safe”

Both Grover and Emily looked at Annabeth in concern, but after looking at the ground for a few seconds, she just nodded, accepting.

“But your hat…”

“It’s alright, Emily” she shrugged, looking back at Percy then “Now, can we talk about the bigger issue here?”

“What bigger issue?”

“Medusa telling you ‘You could have saved your mother’? Like you had discussed it already?”

“Wait, Percy, is your mom still alive?” Emily thought she had died the night the minotaur attacked, this didn’t make sense.

“She’s with Hades. I appreciate your concern, but-“

“Guys, just please…” Grover interrupted them, shaking his head “Stop”

“Oh, I’m concerned” followed Annabeth, ignoring Grover’s ask “What are you actually doing on this quest? And why did I have to hear about this from Medusa?”

“Okay, while we’re at it” shot back, Percy “Alecto saying ‘You should have accepted my offer’? What’s that about do you think?” he accused not only Annabeth, but also Emily “And why did we have to hear it from the Fury?”

“Enough!”

All three demigods looked at the satyr, who really had had enough of their bickering.

“The hat was a gift from her mother. It’s the only thing she’s ever possessed that connects them. That ought to matter to you” he told Percy, solemnly “And Emily never even thought about accepting Alecto’s offer”

“Okay, but how are we gonna make sure this thing is safe?” Percy held the invisible head up, frowning

“I don’t know yet! And you” he turned to Annabeth, who seemed surprise to get a lecture from him, but she would have to go through it anyways “His mom’s alive. Can you imagine how confusing that must be for him? Feeling like he may have to choose between the fate of the world and the fate of the only person who’s ever cared about him?”

“Why are you talking like this?” asked Annabeth, voice small.

“Because all day Emily and I have been trying to keep this quest on track without upsetting either of you! But maybe… Maybe things need to get a little upsetting before they move forward”

“Grover’s right” added Emily, arms now crossed “You guys can’t keep fighting all day. We’re a team! We need to get along to complete this quest!”

“Annabeth asked you a question back in the woods and you never really answered” Grover looked at Percy again, who’s features had turned hard at his words “What are you so afraid of?”

“I don’t know”

“I think you do. You’ve been fighting with us all day-“

“Because the Oracle said one of you would betray me, okay?” silence fell upon them at the revelation “She said… ‘You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, and you shall fail to save what matters most in the end’. That’s the rest of what she said to me. And that’s because I chose Annabeth… because I couldn’t imagine we’d ever be friends. I chose Emily, because she is loyal to Annabeth, and I never thought she would choose my side before hers, so we would also never become friends. And I chose you” he looked into Grover’s eyes with intensity “Because I thought if I can count on anyone to be on my side, no matter what, it was you. And now, I’m feeling so… alone! I don’t know what to think or who to trust. I’m just… a kid”

The silence felt heavy after his words. Hearing what Percy thought of them, his real reasons to choose them to accompany him on this quest… it was a tough bone.

“I didn’t mean it that way”

“It’s okay” commented Emily, almost shyly “I… I’m loyal to Annabeth, yes, but I also stand to what’s right for me. And I trust you, Percy. I’d never betray you”

“Alecto offered to help our quest if we gave you up to her” explained Annabeth.

“What did you say?” asked Percy, curious.

“We killed her sisters”

“Medusa… she offered to help me save my mom if I turned on the three of you”

“And what’d you say?”

“Well… I cut off her head”

They chuckled, feeling the tension dissolving and the air getting lighter.

“None of you chose to be demigods” said Grover “We didn’t choose this quest. But we can decide that as long as the four of us are together, none of us are gonna be alone. And if we can’t do that, we might as well just head back to camp right now”

“I’m not doing that” replied Emily instantly “Not until completing this quest. I can’t go back and have Clarisse mocking me all day” she complained “Please guys, don’t let that happen”

“We won’t” assured Percy, smiling at her “I think I’ve got a better idea for what to do with the head”

He guided them to Medusa’s work table, and he began looking over her register book:

“Hermes express!” he exclaimed “Medusa ship’s these things all over. Some of it even goes to Olympus”

“Percy” began Annabeth, wariness in her voice “You can’t ship Medusa’s head to Olympus!”

“Why not?”

“Because the gods won’t like it”

“At all. Like, ‘at all’ at all”

“Guys, that’s what you do with dangerous stuff. Like batteries, you just send’em back where they came from”

“This is a bad idea. They will see this as impertinent”

“I am impertinent” he replied smugly, starting to put the invisible head inside a carton box, while Annabeth muttered ‘but we’re not!’. He ignored her “Look, Medusa tried to derail our quest. She’s got serious beef with your mom” he pointed to Annabeth “When you look at it that way, this seems kinda like tribute or something, doesn’t it?”

“That’s taken like from really far, Percy”

“Yeah, but… this way, at least-“ he reached inside the box, grabbing the Yankees hat while quickly closing the package “This way, part of your mom is still with us”

He handed the hat over the table back to Annabeth, and after considering it, she accepted it back, thanking him.

“Here, let me help” Emily walked around the table, and aided Percy with the tape to secure the flaps of the box.

“This isn’t exactly what I meant by choosing each other” said Grover nervously “There are actual dangers involved here that cannot be…”

He didn’t finish his sentence though, as Percy interrupted him by starting to clap his hands in a rhythm they recognized a few seconds into the melody.

“You’re gonna sing the song, aren’t you?”

Not this again, thought Emily.

“Oh golly, the road’s getting’ bumpy-“

“Whatever”

“Please stop”

“Consensus!” Percy sang, not remembering the lyrics but making it up.

“Let’s make a pack, please” Emily perked up, having finished closing the box “Never come back to Aunty Em’s Garden Gnome Emporium… and never sing that song ever again”

A chorus’ of ‘deal’ resonated inside the cavern, and soon after they were all giggling and chuckling. The quest could go on.

----

Taglist: @strawberryys-stuff @ladysybilchronicles @kyuupidwrites @nhloversblog @beansficreblogs @priyajoyyy @zeeader @lightsgore @gengen64

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albertasunrise · 2 years ago

Text

Oops Baby - Juggling Act

Masterlist

Summary: Being best friends with Frankie meant movie nights, drinks with the guys and a shoulder to cry on when you got your hear broken. He is head over heels for you but you don’t feel the same… yet a drunken mistake will tie your lives together forever!

Relationships: Frankie Morales x Reader

Warnings: Like AO3 I choose to give none. Read at own risk. 18+ (So... I know this took a while. Just been so unmotivated lately so been struggling to write. Hopefully with this is worth the wait. I'll be introducing a new plot twist this chapter to look out for that 🙊)

Series Masterlist - Part 1

Two months had passed since you'd told Frankie that you were pregnant. He had been a little slow to forgive what had happened that night. You had hurt him. Taken advantage of his attraction to you and it was something that you'd never forgive yourself for.

The rest of the group had also been slow to forgive your transgressions. You hurt one of them. You hurt all of them. But as the weeks went by, you did your best to prove to all of them how truly sorry you were.

Ben had been your biggest supporter.

"So how are things?" Ben asked as he sipped at his black coffee "You and Frankie getting on better?"

"They're better." You replied as you placed your mug on its saucer "He's been helping me with a few things. Started looking at prams and cribs."

"That's positive." Ben gave you a warm smile as he leaned over to give your hand a friendly squeeze.

"Yeah." You conceded, nodding as you fiddled with the rim of your drink.

"But?" Ben pushed and you looked at him like a deer in headlights.

"But?"

"There's clearly something that you're not telling me." The blonde scoffed and you let out a long sigh as you leaned back in your chair and rubbed your bump.

"He uh… Well, he suggested that he move in with me after the baby was born." You stated, "To help with the baby and stuff."

"So?"

"So… What if his feelings for me start to cause issues?" You questioned "I want to have feelings for him… I mean he's what every woman dreams of but I dunno… Just don't feel the same way he does." You finished with a shrug.

"Frankie's a big boy." Ben chuckled as he downed the last of his coffee and motioned for the waitress to top him up "I'm sure he can handle himself."

"I guess." You replied, sighing as you leaned forward to take another sip of your own beverage "Just don't want to lose him again."

"Then don't fuck him again." Ben snorted and you glared at him as you flipped him off.

"Smart ass."

…

Frankie opened your front door with the key you'd had cut for him as he carefully balanced the takeout. He noted you were nowhere to be seen when he stepped inside so he called out to you whilst placing the takeout down on the table.

"In here." You replied from your office.

Frank placed the last container down before going in search of you. He could hear commotion coming from inside the spare room you had turned into an office a few years back so pushed the door open to you dismantling furniture.

"What the hell are you doing?" Frankie shrieked as he stepped further into the room.

"I wanted to get a head start on the nursery." You replied with a shrug.

"So you thought you would start dismantling heavy furniture on your own?" He growled, grabbing your attention.

"I'm pregnant Frankie… Not disabled."

"You shouldn't be doing this sort of thing on your own." He snapped "What if you hurt fell?"

"Frankie-"

"I'm just… I don't want you to do stuff that will risk the baby."

"Why would I risk the baby?" You scoffed and Frankie practically growled your name out as he replied.

"I get you are used to living alone and being independent but you are four months pregnant with our baby." He continued "If you would just read that book I got, you'd know that you shouldn't be lifting heavy shit like furniture."

You felt a pang of guilt at this statement. You deliberately ignored the book Frank had gifted you. You thought he was just being a know it all but now, seeing how he was pleading for you to listen to him, you realised that he was just trying to help.

"You're right." You sighed as you pushed yourself to your feet "I'm sorry."

"I got us take-out." He stated, changing the subject and you practically growled in delight.

"Thank god… I'm starved." Sprinted to the table, sighing in delight at the smells that greeted you.

"Got you your favourite." He piped up as he pushed the container towards you with some cutlery resting on top.

"Thank you, Frank."

The two of you then sat and ate as you showed each other different ideas for the nursery. You had found an all-in-one crib, the changing station at the end with drawers beneath it and the crib. Frankie showed you a chair he could that he felt would be great for you when you breastfed and a few dials he liked also.

"Helicopters?" You chuckled "What if we have a girl?"

"What… Girls can't like them too?"

You rolled your eyes at his statement but grinned when he stuck his tongue out at you in response. You loved how things were finally starting to ment. That you were starting to get the old Francisco back.

"You thought any more about me moving in here for a bit when the baby's born?" He asked between mouthfuls.

"I have." You replied simply.

"And?"

"And I just had one concern." Frank's brows pulled together in confusion as he looked up at you.

"Which is?"

"You have feelings for me Frankie." He went to say something but you stopped him in his tracks " I just… I don't want things to get weird between us."

"It won't be a problem." Frankie replied as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I'm seeing someone." He replied plainly.

"Oh." You replied, a little shocked at his this news affected you.

"Yeah, I uh… Well, I met her a few days after you told us about the baby." He elaborated as a love-sick smile filled his features "I uh… Well, I didn't tell anyone cus it's still new but… Well, things are starting to get a little more serious so-"

"And she's okay with you moving in with the random chick you knocked up?" You scoff.

"She knows the situation and respects the fact I want to be involved… Want to help… Also, you're not some random chick!"

"How heroic." You grumbled, taking Frank by surprise.

"What?"

"Sorry… Nothing, just the hormones." You grumbled, trying to swallow past the lump in your throat.

"Are you jealous?" Frankie scoffed and you snorted.

"No, I'm not." You snapped "Just surprised you started dating when you're expecting a baby is all."

"Well, it's not like anything's ever going to happen between us." He stated as he forked more food into his mouth "I need to move on so that's what I'm doing."

"Right…" You trailed off, feeling tears sting at your eyes as you finished the last of your food in silence.

When the plates were washed and cleared away, you answered Frank's question. You knew you were going to need help when the baby came.

"Yes." You said as you opened the door for him as he went to leave "I would appreciate it if you moved in for a bit after the baby comes."

"Great." Frankie replied as he beamed at you and kissed your cheek "It's gonna be great."

You watched him practically skip to his truck. Your fingers touched where he'd kissed you just moments before. You were so confused by these feelings you were suddenly feeling for a man that four months ago, you'd slept with and rejected. You blamed the hormones.

You couldn't suddenly have developed feelings for him surely?

…

In the month that followed that evening, you and Frankie managed to clear out the office and start to paint it ready for the baby. You had your 20-month scan and after endless arm twisting and puppy-dog eyes from Frank, you agreed to learn the sex.

You were laying on the examination table, staring at the ceiling as the examiner prepped the machine for the procedure. You weren't exactly sure why you were so nervous. The baby had been active all morning, much to your chagrin and everything had been perfect on your last scan. Yet you couldn't help but worry that something might pop up.

"So, we ready to see how baby's getting on?" The doctor asked as she squeezed the gel onto your swollen tummy.

"Definitely!" Frankie replied. He was practically vibrating with excitement.

The doctor got to work looking for your little miracle. Finding them quickly and turning the screen so that you and Frankie could see the life you'd created together.

"Looking good mummy and daddy." Said the doctor sweetly as she grinned at you both "Did we want to learn the sex today?"

"Yes." Frank rushed out and you smirked at him, knowing how desperately he wanted to know.

"Let's have a look then." She said as she started to move the probe around, taking measurements as she went.

"Please be a girl. Please be a girl. Please be a girl." Frankie uttered under his breath, his hands enveloping yours as he stared at the screen awaiting the verdict.

"Well. She's measuring perfectly." The examiner stated and your heads shot up like Meerkats.

"She?" You asked and the doctor nodded.

"It's a girl?" Frankie squeaked and the doctor grinned.

"I can say with 90 per cent certainty that you are having a healthy baby girl."

Frankie choked back the sob that threatened to escape him at the news that he was going to have a daughter. He'd hoped from the moment that you'd told him you were pregnant that it was going to be a girl and his wish had been granted.

"Happy?" You asked, pulling his attention away from the screen and to you.

"Elated."

The doctor printed some pictures for you and sent you on your way with more tips for the last leg of your pregnancy. Frankie couldn't stop staring at the pictures as you left the building and made your way back to his truck, narrowly missing a lampost as he walked.

"Eye's up Morales." You teased as you guided the man to the car.

"I just… Just look at her." He gushed. His eyes were the size of saucers as he studied the pictures in his hands.

You smiled as you walked up beside him, resting your head on his arm as you both admired the pictures together. She was so clear. Her hands waving in front of her and her legs kicking. The first scan had been emotional but this one had just brought it all into focus. In four more months, you were going to be a mum.

"Can't wait to show everyone at the bar tonight." Frank said, pulling you from your thoughts "Ben's going to be stoked."

After a few more moments of wonderous staring, Frank finally helped you clamber into the car before getting in himself. You had loved the fact your appointment had fallen on drinks night so when you had suggested to Frankie that you surprise them with the news that night, he'd leapt at the chance. You had come up with a plan for how you were going to tell them. You just needed to set it up when they were out of earshot.

Frank dropped you home before making his way back to work and so then, with the rest of the afternoon off, you started to put your plan in motion. Come 6 it was time to leave. All three of the boys had offered to pick you up but you had declined. Wasn't like you could drink anyway.

Arriving at the bar, you managed to avoid the Miller brother's gaze as you snuck over to Fish who was standing waiting for you. With a quick hug and a peck on the cheek, you relayed your plan to him, smiling when he then passed that onto the barman whose attention he shortly grabbed. Then, when everything was in place, you walked with Frank as he carried the tray of drinks over.

"Ahhhhhh, that's what we want." Ben cooed as he helped Frank unload the tray before pouring everyone a glass.

"Who's the extra glass for?" Will asked. Something you hadn't noticed until he had pointed it out.

"That would be for me." Piped up an unfamiliar voice and you turned your head to seek it who owned it.

The was a pretty woman. Medium height with dirty blonde waves and striking eyes. She smiled shyly at you all as Frankie stood to throw his arm around her shoulders.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Mary." He said proudly "Mary this is everyone." He chuckled "The blonde Labrador over there is Benny… The more reserved blonde there is Ironhead-"

"Will is fine." The older Miller interjected.

"And this lovely lady here is Titch." He finished with a smile.

You gave her a wave, trying your best to hide the turmoil you were feeling with a smile. At first glance, she seemed nice. A little on the shy side but pretty in a girl-next-door kinda way. She wasn't stick thin. On the curvier side but her dress sense did nothing but accentuate her best features in all the right ways.

"So this is mummy to be." She piped up and she held her hand out for you to shake "I'm so happy to meet you. Frankie's told me all about you."

"All good I hope?" You joked and she grinned and nodded.

"Of course."

"Here, sit with me, baby." He purred as he pulled a chair up next to him, smiling sweetly when she popped herself down and leaned in to kiss him.

"So why are we only meeting this lovely lady now?" Ben pushed, his eyes glancing at you and noting how uncomfortable you looked.

"Well, Frank wanted to make sure this was something serious before introducing me to you all." She teased "Y'all obviously very important to him."

"Damn right." Will piped up, grinning at the look he got from Fish.

The table erupted into twenty questions for the next half an hour. Everyone but yourself wanted to know everything there was to know about Mary. Glancing at his watch, Frank noted it was time so coughing to grab your attention, he changed the direction of the conversation.

"Well, I think Mary's had enough interrogating for one evening." He joked, noting that the barman was preparing their surprise "Don't you guys wanna know how the scan went."

"Oooooh!… I do I do I do!" Ben answered as he positively bounced in his chair "How was it? Everything okay?"

"Everything is perfect." You replied with a smile. Glad to be off the subject of Mary for a while.

"We actually have a little surprise for you all." Frank piped up when he spotted the barman walking towards them.

"What is it?" Will asked excitedly.

"Is it twins?"

"No, it's not twins." You chuckled "We would have known that months ago if it was."

"What is it then?"

"Special order for ya." Said the server as he placed three cocktails down on the table.

"There's gotta be a mistake." Ben started "We wouldn't order pink coc…" The younger Miller trailed off as he shared a look with his brother before looking up at you and Frank "Really?" He squeaked and you nodded.

"Someone mind clueing me in here?" Will piped up and you chuckled wetly.

"They're having a girl." Ben replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Shit, that's awesome!" Will cheered as he stood up to hug you both "Congratulations."

"This is great news baby." Mary cooed as she kissed Frankie sweetly "I knew that's what you wanted."

For some reason. The fact she knew he wanted a girl before you made you want to scream. This was supposed to be your journey to share with him. Yet you knew you had no right to be jealous of her.

Frank had offered himself to you and you had rejected him.

You didn't even feel like that for him.

"Ugh… This little princess is using my bladder as a trampoline." You pipped up as you pushed yourself to your feet "Back in a few."

With that, you made your momentary escape. Desperate to get away from the happy couple for a while. After relieving yourself, you snuck outside for a moment. Needing another few minutes before rejoining your party. You breathed in the crisp evening air and willed the tears that threatened to spill.

"Titch?"

Frankie's voice made you jump and your hand grasped your chest as you willed your heart to slow.

"Jesus Frank." You grumbled, "Nearly gave me a heart attack."

"Sorry." He replied, "You okay?"

"Mhmm." You nodded, not trusting yourself to speak.

"Titch… What's wrong."

"Nothing I just…" You sniffed as you tried to pull yourself together "I just wasn't expecting you to bring her tonight of all nights."

"Why are you crying?" You growled at his question, not wanting to answer it but knowing he wouldn't drop it if you didn't "Titch?"

"Seeing her with you hurts!" You growled "There! Ya, happy? Seeing you with her has made me sad and I don't understand why."

"Titch-"

"I just hate the idea of you being together… This is supposed to be our journey and then I learn that she knew you wanted a girl before I did and…"

"You had your chance to share this journey with me Titch." He stated plainly and you nodded, knocking the traitorous tears loose.

"I know that." You growled "I just… I don't understand what I'm feeling right now."

"Come inside." You nodded, following him in wordlessly and rejoining the rest of the party.

"Everything okay Titch?" Ben asked when he noticed your eyes were red.

"Yeah… Just these damn baby hormones getting the better of me." You chuckled, leaning into him in a way you hoped would be reassuring.

"Man, those steaks look incredible." Will piped up as he eyes the food that had been delivered to the table across from yours.

"Fuck I miss steak." Frankie grumbled.

"Can't have it at all?" Ben asked, his voice taking on a sympathetic tone.

"Doc said to avoid it. I guess a steak once in a while won't kill me." Fish shrugged "I guess that's what you get for fucking up your heart with drugs." He joked, trying to lighten the tone.

"We all turned to shitty methods to cope man." Will said, remembering his own poor choices after he'd gotten out "Maybe save the steak treat for your birthday though."

"Sounds like a plan!" Mary agreed and she wrapped her arm around his and pulled him close "Your heart may be delicate baby… but you aren't where it counts." She finished with a wink, grinning at the growl this elicited from her boyfriend.

"Gross." Ben groaned, earning himself the finger from the happy couple.

"I should get going." You said suddenly, rubbing your belly and feigning a yawn "Baby is draining me, body and soul."

"Awe." Ben pouted, earning a kiss on the cheek from you.

"Night everyone."

You said your goodbyes and left. Glad to escape. You didn't understand why seeing Frankie and Mary together hurt so much. You should be happy that he found someone. He deserved to be happy and yet you found you couldn't be.

Then it dawned on you as you put your car in park.

"I have feelings for Frank!"

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hearted-anon · 6 months ago

Text

headcanon that Changbin’s thighs are something that he’s really insecure about, which is why he rarely so often sits on the other members laps. He enjoys when the others seek comfort in him, but never likes it when he’s the one who has to sit on others, despite enjoying it to the max.

the other members know this well, and enjoy making him feel less secure with what they enjoy most.

this was 588 words, wasn’t supposed to be that long but oops.

“Changbin~ C’mere.” Changbin heard a voice echo throughout the hallways, snapping to its source in an instant. He was met face to face with the leader, who was patting his lap with a comforting smile, arms wide as an invitation. Changbin’s heart sank, he wanted to so bad, dash into Chan’s arms and sink into his lap, let his hair be run through and comforted, but he couldn’t.

He was too heavy, thighs too big to accommodate to Chan’s wants.

Noticing the younger’s obvious hesitance, the older pouted, pulling out the cutest puppy eyes ever to beg Changbin over. Curse him for knowing that Binnie will never not give in to puppy eyes, he’s fallen victim to them no matter how many times it’s been used, even Minho had started using that tactic to get his way.

Waddling over, poor Bin was simply standing in front of Chris, refusing to move or sit down completely onto the older’s lap. He gulped, watching the arms of comfort that he so desperately wanted, but knew he couldn’t get due to his size and weight.

“Bin, if you don’t sit down, I’ll make you. You’re not too heavy alright?” Chan insisted, making Changbin cave with a long sigh. Slowly, he placed himself onto Chan’s lap, arms wrapping around his waist tenderly that made him melt. Chris smiled happily, enjoying having the member in his lap like his favourite stuffie.

All was well, till Changbin made the wrong decision to try and get up. He squirmed slightly at first, not enough to be noticeable. Then he outright tried to push his legs of Chan, making him grumble in annoyance. The leader pushed his thighs back down, before continuing to snuggle into his neck with a content sigh.

Then it happened again, and this time the older wasn’t so lenient. Grabbing the younger’s thighs, he instantly squeezed and scribbled all over them without mercy, still squishing them to force changbin to remain nicely seated onto his lap.

“WAHAHAHIT! HYUNG NOHOT THIS! PLEHEHEASE!” Changbin begged through boisterous cackles, but Channie had no reply, simply continuing his torture over his favourite doughy thighs. He loved to admire every part of his members, even if they needed some persuasion for it. If Changbin wouldn’t listen to his instructions, he’ll make sure he would.

“Hm? Thighs are so pretty aren’t they? Seated on my lap so prettily, tell me you look pretty.” The leader demanded, shooting a stern glare to the rapper in an instant. Changbin flushed under the praise, shaking his head rapidly in denial of the older’s sweet words. He regretted it as fast as he did it though, feeling the fingers slip to the underside of his thighs, scratching tortuously gently with blunt nails.

“AAHAHAHHA! HYUNG! HYUNG PLEHEHEAHAHA!” Changbin screamed for mercy, pounding at the older’s back as his face was muffled into Chan’s shoulder, kicking out his legs in a futile attempt to ward off the fingers.

“Nah ah, tell me what I want to hear.” Chan replied with a soft smile, not letting up in the slightest. He enjoyed seeing Binnie so flustered, so happy that he was getting the body appreciation he deserved, maybe he would do this more often.

“I-I’M PREHEHEHETTY! STAHAHAHAP PLEASE!” With that, Chan let up, rubbing soothing circles onto the rapper’s back as he heaved for air. His legs dangled off Chan’s lap lazily, too worn out to even move himself off the older’s lap.

Maybe next time Changbin would think twice before getting off someone’s lap…

#lee changbin #..?#ler channie #ler skz #technically #I love them #stray kids tickle #kpop tickle #skz tickle #let me out #body appreciation #:((((

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hongcherry · 1 year ago

Text

pretty please (stay with me) || c.sc | 4 (m)

“After being assigned a fashion show for your big senior project, you set off to find volunteers to make it successful. However, when you meet Choi Seungcheol and his unfriendly clique through your volunteers, you realize they’re an unwanted package deal you can’t escape from. Can you handle Seungcheol’s obnoxious friends, and can he handle your brash behavior?”

🍒 Pairing: businessMajor!Seungcheol x fashionMajor!Reader (f)

🍒 Rating/Genres/AUs: M(18+); Slice of life (!!!), slow burn, drama, fluff, angst, smut; Unrequited enemies to lovers, strangers to lovers, college au

🍒 Warnings: General tws + alcohol consumption/drunk character, one physical altercation (not domestic abuse; not between mc&Cheol), name calling not in bed (whore, bitch), vomit, joke about murder | [smut warnings] soft sex, messy sex, protected sex, oral (m & f), face fucking, gagging, light breast play, cum swallowing, light cum play, spit play

🍒 WC: 12.1k

🍒 Betas: Sarah, Indi, Kelly, Freya 💝

🍒 Author’s Note: I am SO sorry I haven't replied to some of your responses to the last chapter. Something big happened IRL that made me want to withdraw from people for a while. Though, I've read the feedback and appreciate all the sweet words! I promise to reply to them soon. Anyway, lots of stuff happening in this chapter, so please enjoy more drama 😬💖

also read here: AO3 | Wattpad

seventeen masterlist | main masterlist

previous chapter \\ series masterpost // next chapter

“Hold still!” you urge as you try to hold the fabric in place.

Mingyu squirms above you, tiny giggles escaping his mouth. “It tickles!”

“I’m going to stab you with this needle if you keep moving,” you explain and peer up at him.

“I’ll tell your boyfriend you said that,” he grumbles and calms his movements. His hands clench as he tries to resist the need to move.

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” you reply, annoyed. You adjust the fabric on him, then slip in a needle to keep it in place.

“I’m sure Seungcheol won’t be happy to hear that,” he mutters.

Your eyes narrow, poking another needle in.

“Ow!” Mingyu cries and moves away from you. “That was on purpose.”

You raise your eyebrows. “Was it? I think you just moved wrong.”

“I didn’t move at all!” he argues.

You ignore his complaint and point back in front of you. He sighs, obliging to your request.

You had met Mingyu at his apartment to try out the outfit you made for him. For the most part, it fits nicely, but there are a few adjustments that need to be made.

You hear keys rattling at the door and peer your head to see who’s coming. Wonwoo and Seungkwan stroll in. They stop mid-sentence when they see you.

“Hey Yn, we didn’t know you’d be here,” Seungkwan greets. You turn away from them and attend to Mingyu again.

“Surprise,” you say, although with no enthusiasm in your tone.

“What’s going on?” Wonwoo asks while setting down his camera bag. He tosses his keys next to it and walks to the kitchen.

“Yn’s stabbing me with needles because I brought up her boyfrie—Ow!”

“Oops,” you shrug. You quickly pin the fabric in its new spot. You didn’t think it'd take this long, but Mingyu kept fidgeting.

“You have a boyfriend?” asks Seungkwan.

“No,” you reply curtly. “Done. Now, go take it off, so I can make the changes.”

“Finally,” Mingyu replies and leaves without another word. He probably doesn’t want to be poked with another needle.

“Who was he talking about then?” Seungkwan wonders.

“No one. How are you guys?” you ask in hopes to change the subject. You start repacking the bag you brought.

“Pretty tired, but that seems to be the normal life of a college student,” Seungkwan says with a chuckle.

“How’s the project?” Wonwoo chimes in, a glass of water in his hand.

You stand up from the floor and adjust your clothes. “It’s going,” you answer with an exhale.

“Are tickets on sale for it yet?” he questions. You pause in grabbing your purse from the couch.

“You’re going to go to it?” you ask, not expecting him to come. It doesn’t seem like his thing.

“Of course! We’re all planning to come—Shit, wait, was that a secret?” Seungkwan stops himself, his hand coming up to his forehead as his mouth opens.

“Dude!” Mingyu calls as he emerges from the other room. He hands you the garment, eyeing Seungkwan.

“Blame Wonwoo! He brought up getting tickets,” Seungkwan whines and sends a slender finger in Wonwoo’s direction.

“No one told me we weren't supposed to tell Yn,” Wonwoo huffs.

“Seungcheol’s going to rip you all a new one,” Mingyu tsks.

“Seungcheol?” you question and look at the tall man.

Has Seungcheol been planning for all of them to come to your show?

“Uh, a d-different Seungcheol. Not the one you know. Kim Seungcheol! Not Choi Seungcheol. Youdon’tknowhim,” Mingyu rambles, words rushing together. His gaze is darting around the room—landing on anything but your eyes.

“I see,” you say slowly. You know they’re aware you don’t believe Mingyu’s lie.

“Please don’t say anything to him,” Mingyu pleads, his lower lip sticking out in a pout. He’s such a big puppy.

You sigh, fixing your bag on your shoulder. “Say what to who?”

“Precisely.” Seungkwan smiles.

You make your way to the door, turning after you open it.

“I'll text you when we can meet again, Mingyu,” you inform him.

“Alright. Bye, Yn,” he replies. They all give you a wave as you exit their place.

You aren’t sure what to do with knowing Seungcheol is coming to the show. More unexpectedly, you don’t know what to do knowing he’s arranging for his friends to come too. You aren’t even sure if your father and Seoah will come. You’ll like to say that you don’t care if no one you know shows up. As long as scouts come and are amazed by your work, that’s all you need. Though the more you grow fond of these people, the more you want them to be your friends and support you like how Dae supports you. Beyond that, you want Seungcheol to support you—to be proud of you. Even though you aren’t supposed to know about his attendance, it gives you a sudden boost of motivation to do better. Not only for yourself but for your friends so they can be proud to say they know you.

You arrive at Dae’s fully prepared to have a sewing partner for the night. However, you end up with a shot glass in your hand at a bar.

“To almost being done with this project,” Dae declares, her glass rising in the air.

“What you said,” you reply. You clink your glass against hers, tapping it on the counter, then tipping your head back as you drown the alcohol. The burning in your throat is temporary, and you turn in your seat to look around while it settles. The place is crowded, as expected on a Friday night.

Dae had worked for twenty minutes before she let out a frustrated puff of air. She claimed she was tired of staring at fabric and needed a break. You suggested she go rest on the couch, but her idea of taking a break was different from yours. Despite your protests, Dae dragged you from her home and got a ride to her favorite bar. You used to accompany Dae here a lot, but you were never a drinker, and you often had to tend to your family most nights. Thus, your trips became less frequent.

Although Dae’s goal is to get drunk, yours is not. You’ve taken two shots and plan to call it a night. You don’t want to spend the night babysitting Dae, but it seems you have no choice. She’s dragged you from one bar to another—ordering a drink at each. She’ll offer you a sip, and each time, you shake your head.

The occasional person will slither up and offer to pay for your drinks. It’s annoying because you don't need to cater to boosting a stranger’s ego. They always want something in return, and you’re not going to give them anything.

You decline politely the first time, sternly the second, and bitchy the third. The ones who get the third “no” are less thrilled to hear it, but that doesn’t bother you. You are fully prepared to use your heels as a weapon if one gets too offended. Luckily, that hasn’t had to happen so far.

“Hm, ‘tis one tastes like… ‘otton ‘andy!” Dae exclaims excitedly as she takes another sip. You watch her redden-face light up for the nth time while drinking this one. “’ou should try it!”

You force a smile and shake your hand, telling her no. Her face drops.

“But you wuv ‘otton ‘andy,” she whines and slides the drink to you. Her eyes become glossier the longer you refuse the drink. “I pwomise ‘ou’d wuv it!”

You glance at the drink. It’s a pretty blue color and looks appetizing. Sighing, you raise the glass to your mouth. You let the liquid touch your lips, then set it down. Your tongue darts out to taste it. You have to admit, the small drop you get does taste good.

“Delicious,” you hum, giving her a big smile. Her body straightens quickly, and you grab her arm when she leans a little too far back.

“Shee!” she beams.

“Finish it, so we can go,” you instruct, moving the glass back. There isn’t much left. She shakes her head.

“You!” she answers.

“You deserve it more. You’ve been working hard,” you say. Her brows suddenly tilt down, mouth in a deep frown. She looks like she’s about to cry.

“’ve been! Gawd I’m sh-o tired, but I ‘ave to do goodth,” she says and puts her head on the table, although harder than she means to. You wince at the loud thud. “Can’t let ‘tis go to ‘atse.”

You place a hand on her back, rubbing soothing circles. “It won’t. Someone’s going to come and see your work and offer you a job. You’re talented, Dae.”

Her head lifts up, bobbing slightly at the weight. “Yeah?”

“Yes,” you answer, and you mean it. You don’t compliment her work as much as she does yours. It’s always easier not to mention it instead of risking a heartfelt conversation. Those always make you feel weird. “You’re not top of the class for no reason.”

She shakes her head. “’ou’re top of ta class.”

“I didn’t say you were the only one up there,” you tease gently, causing her to giggle.

“’m glad ‘ou think that o’ me,” she answers with a loud sigh. “It’s ‘ard to be compar’d to ‘ou.”

You try to hide your frown. She rarely mentions how being associated with you affects her. Sure, you’ve guessed before, but you’ve never brought up the topic. Partly because you’re afraid of the answer. You don’t want to hear how you’ve made her feel insecure. You don’t want to know all the troubles you’ve indirectly or directly put her through.

Although it will be easier to talk about this when she’s intoxicated since she may not remember it, it isn’t right.

“Don’t compare. You have talents I don’t have,” you say.

“’ike?” she wonders, but you shake your head.

“We can talk about it when you’re sober,” you explain. After making sure everything is paid for, you gently help her down the stool.

“’ne’ore bar!” she begs, hands holding your arms tightly.

“One more,” you repeat, “but a small drink this time,” you bargain.

“Ye’sh!” she shouts, throwing her arms up and tripping over her feet. You reach out quickly and steady her. Once she’s balanced again, you carefully walk toward the exit. You lean Dae against you to try to get her to stop swaying as you walk to the next bar.

“’ey! Whadd’s ‘at?” Dae quickly points to the floor, reaching down before you can stop her. The fast movement combined with the shift in weight has her falling to the floor. You instinctively reach out to ease her fall, but it’s no use. She’s on the floor before you can blink. There is laughter behind you, but you ignore it. It isn’t the first time someone’s fallen over from being drunk on this street.

“Fhuck!” Dae whines and stares at her hands. There are a few concrete burns on them, but nothing antibiotics and band-aids can’t fix.

“I think we’re done for the night,” you say and offer a hand to her.

She repositions to her hands and knees, reaching up to grab your outstretched hand. However, her supporting arm isn’t strong enough to hold her weight, and the sudden tug on your hand as she falls again forces you to the floor. You hit her head on the way down, yelping at the feeling and letting go of Dae to caress the area. Additionally to the thud, there is a crack as you fall.

For a second you think you broke something. Though, besides the soreness on your hands, knees, and head, nothing feels broken. You move your legs to rest in front of you only to see one of your shoes has lost its heel piece.

The giggles behind you grow louder.

“How pathetic,” a voice laughs. It’s familiar, but you dismiss it to be someone you heard in one of the bars you went to.

“Really,” another person adds.

You dust off your legs, seeing matching red on your exposed skin. Dae’s sudden loud voice makes you jump.

“’ere it is!” Dae announces happily. Her hand comes into view, and in it is a coin. Your shoulders sag.

All this for a coin.

“You’re going to spend that on buying me a new pair of shoes,” you huff, removing your heels. It isn’t ideal to walk barefoot, but you don’t feel like hobbling your way around.

“No!” she cries and moves the coin from you quickly. Her movement is too big and quick, and you have to grab her again before she falls backward. You swiftly tug her upright.

“Just stop moving!” you growl and tighten your hold on her to keep her still.

“Wait, is that Yn?” someone says behind you. At the sound of your name, you glance over your shoulder. As if your night can get worse.

Hajun sputters, a smile growing at the sight of you. “Oh my god, it is. No wonder they are so pitiful.”

“Both of them,” Hana giggles.

“Of course, you befriend those similar to you. It’s only right they’re friends.”

Your eyes narrow on them, hand twitching as you fight the urge to chuck your non-broken heel at their faces.

“Isn’t that right?” you scoff. “You’re both pieces of shit and friends. Wow! Truly a match.”

You clasp your hands together, voice going higher as you pretend you’re elated for them.

“Says the whores who are on the floor. It’s where you belong anyway,” Hajun replies, arms crossing over her chest.

“And you know where you belong? Beaten and bruised in the hospital. I can help with that,” you threaten and start to stand up to do just that. However, there is wetness spreading on your lower half accompanied by gagging. You gasp at the sensation and look down to see what happened.

Your night definitely just got worse.

Dae has emptied her stomach and looks like she’s about to do it again. You scramble up and move aside, grabbing her hair to hold it back as you try to block out the sound of her hurling. You hate that you can feel her vomit trailing down your legs now that you are upright on your knees. The thought alone has you almost joining her.

“Oh, this is just perfect,” Hana laughs.

“Where’s my phone? I need a picture,” Hajun says and pats her body in search of the device.

“A picture of what?” a new voice questions. Joshua walks from behind them. Great.

“That,” Hajun replies with a laugh. You quickly glance down, letting your hair fall into your face so he can’t see you. You don’t need more people who know you see your current situation.

“Leave them alone, guys,” Joshua says. You start to panic when you hear footsteps. Though, the person doesn’t get far.

“You’re right, we should just go,” Hajun answers. “Come on.”

There's a shuffling of feet before footsteps occur again, but away from you this time. You sigh internally and turn back to Dae.

“You okay?” you question.

“I-I thwink you’re right. ‘hat was-h the las’bar,” Dae groans, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

“Let’s get home,” you instruct and grab her hands slowly. You don’t want her to throw up again from moving too fast.

“Where did they go?” another voice asks from afar.

“They said they would wait outside the door.”

Your body tenses at the voice. You are imagining it. Your brain is just choosing the worst time to think of him. It’s all in your head.

“Over here!” Hana calls out.

You steadily stand up with Dae, her arms gripping yours tightly.

“Easy,” you speak calmly. Your gaze drops to your discarded shoes on the floor. You want to pick them up, but you’re afraid of letting go of Dae. Sighing, you decide to leave them.

“’m shorry,” she mumbles as you take a step forward. You want to find a bench you can both rest on as you wait for a ride.

“Ah, they’re over there, let’s go,” the first voice says.

“Just wait a minute. They look like they need help.”

No. No, you don’t need help.

“Where are you going? They’re fine!” Hajun calls out. You turn Dae around and start the other way.

The feet are jogging toward you now. You have no other choice but to prepare to see the last person on your desired visiting list. There’s no way you can transport yourself and Dae away before he reaches you.

“Hey, do you need a han—C-Cherry?” Seungcheol stutters when he comes next to you. You slow in your steps, reluctantly looking up to see him.

“No. We’re fine,” you reply sternly. Despite your answer, Seungcheol puts an arm around Dae to offer more support. You stand your ground and don’t let her go.

“Who-sh ‘erry?” Dae wonders.

“No one,” you tell her and then look at him, “Seungcheol, let her go. I’ve got her.”

“What’s going on?” Joshua’s face suddenly pops up behind Seungcheol. Seungcheol stops walking, and unless you want to play tug-o-war with Dae, you have to stop too.

“Yn?” he asks, shocked. Then his gaze goes behind him. He makes a disappointing noise. “No wonder they wanted us to leave so fast.”

“What are you talking about, Shua?” Seungcheol questions. He still hasn’t let go of Dae.

“Ha—” Joshua starts but stops when Hajun’s voice sounds.

“Oh my, is that Yn? Oh no!”

Hajun appears in front of you. Your first instinct is to punch her; that’s evident in the way your hand fists in a ball at your side.

“Are you okay? Do you need a ride?” she looks at you with a worried expression. Your mouth drops slightly at her unexpected reaction. A few minutes ago she was a devil, but now she is an angel? Since when does she pretend to be nice?

“’uck off,” Dae mumbles. You let out a silent laugh and glance at her. She looks exhausted and dizzy, yet her eyes are on Hajun.

“M-me? But I’m just trying to help.”

“Oh, really? How does taking a picture of us help?” you wonder.

“What picture?” Seungcheol questions.

“I don’t know what she’s talking about,” Hajun answers, looking at him innocently. Your gaze moves to Seungcheol briefly. Did he say something to her, or is she trying a different tactic to get his sympathy?

“Yes, you do,” Joshua says.

“Shua! No, I don’t,” she whines and gives him a sad expression.

You do not have time for her games.

“Can you all just go away? I’m trying to get Dae home,” you sigh.

“Hm, ‘hat’ould be nice,” Dae mumbles.

“You’re right. We’re sorry to be bothering you. Come on, boys. We have another place to be,” Hajun concurs, gesturing to the rest of the group who lingers a few feet away.

“You guys can go without me. I’ll help them get home,” Seungcheol says. You whip your gaze to him, eyes narrowing in hopes it’ll make him leave. Though, your threatening glare has no effect on him.

“I’ll help, too,” Joshua adds.

“W-what? But we need you guys. They’ll be fine,” Hajun pleads.

Seungcheol chuckles dryly. “I doubt you need us to watch a movie.”

“For fuck’s sake, all of you leave now!” you growl, a headache sprouting. Your clothes are damp, your feet are aching, and your patience is gone.

“I’m not leaving,” Seungcheol says.

“Yes, you are. Go away!” you snap and shove at his arm that is on Dae.

“Don’t talk to him like that,” Hajun hisses and pushes you as if to get you back for shoving Seungcheol.

Oh, you are so over this girl.

Knowing Seungcheol is still holding Dae, you slip away from her and take a step toward Hajun. You reach out quickly when she tries to move away.

“Let go, psycho!” Hajun cries, innocent voice gone and back to how it normally is. You grip her arm tighter when she tugs on it.

“Remember what I said? Beaten and bruised in the hospital, bitch,” you snarl, fully preparing to swing a fist at her disgusting face.

Someone suddenly pulls you away, forcing your hand to let go of her.

“You’re such a fucking freak,” Hajun growls.

With all your might, you push away from whoever is holding you. You only have one thought in mind as you accost her again. Needing to act fast, you don’t hesitate to reel your hand back before connecting your palm roughly against her cheek.

Hajun shrieks loudly and places a hand on her face in surprise.

“Yn!” you hear Seungcheol scold but ignore him.

Hajun lunges toward you, but before she can do anything, you’re grabbed and twirled around to face the opposite direction. You stumble forward in their grasp when Hajun bumps into you both, unable to stop her momentum. You figure Seungcheol is the one who stops you, but when you raise your eyes, you see him still holding Dae, who is quickly falling asleep. Your head snaps up to see Joshua behind you.

“If you don’t let go of me, I will claw your eyes out,” you warn him. Joshua’s eyes widen at you before peering at Seungcheol.

“This is what turns you on?” he asks Seungcheol.

“What?” you and Hajun say in unison. Seungcheol glares at Joshua but says nothing of it. If you weren’t so occupied with the situation at hand, you may have let that sink in more.

“Don’t tell me you like her!” Hajun scoffs.

Seungcheol’s jaw clenches as he averts his gaze from Joshua to Hajun. “Go with the others.”

“Are you serious, Cheollie? You can do better than that. She’ll just make your life miserable,” Hajun exasperates.

You glance up at Joshua, battling your eyelashes at him. You change your tone to sound sweeter. “If I say pretty please, will you let me go? I promise to leave one eye in.”

“Charming,” he answers with a small laugh and then flickers his gaze back to Seungcheol. “I see the appeal now.”

“Shua!” Hajun screeches, betrayal in her voice. You send her a smirk and shrug. She looks like she is ready to lunge at you, but Joshua still stands between you two.

“Joshua, can you give me your keys?” Seungcheol asks. Joshua digs out his keys from his pocket with one hand, keeping the other around you in case you decide to escape. He tosses them toward Seungcheol and he catches them with ease. Seungcheol doesn’t say anything else as he picks up Dae in his arms, then walks down the sidewalk.

“Cheol!” Hajun calls out. He pauses to peer back.

“Go with the others, Hajun. I’m not going back,” he replies before continuing his walk. You stare at his back, a little dumbstruck that he’s actually helping you rather than leaving you for his friends.

Joshua releases his hold and begins to follow Seungcheol. He stops when you don't move.

“I’m not dumb enough to leave you together. Let’s go, Yn,” he says and grabs your wrist.

You open your mouth to get the last word, but the look of utter betrayal on Hajun’s face is satisfying enough. Thus, you let Joshua pull you away from her.

When you arrive at Joshua’s car, Seungcheol closes the door after putting Dae inside. She’s passed out now. You place a hand on the handle, ready to climb inside, but Seungcheol stops you.

“Now’s not the time to be chivalrous, Cheollie,” you say, voice a little mocking at the nickname Hajun uses for him.

“You’re not going with him,” he answers firmly.

Seungcheol puts his focus on Joshua and says, “Text me when you get home safely. Thanks for taking care of her.”

“It’s no problem. See you guys!” he replies and gets in the driver’s seat.

“He’s taking Dae to her home? I should go, so I can take care of her,” you explain and take a step toward the car. Seungcheol grabs your upper arm and pulls you away.

“No, he’s taking her to his. She’ll wake up confused, but she’ll be safe. Now, let’s go,” he answers. He lets go of you and walks in the other direction.

“Go where?” you huff, watching Joshua drive off for a few seconds before jogging to catch up. He doesn’t reply. You roll your eyes and keep following him.

A sudden pain in your foot has you gasping, wrapping a hand around it, and looking down to see what you stepped on.

“Stupid rock,” you mumble while glancing down at the damned stone.

“Where are your shoes?” Seungcheol asks, stopping a little ways ahead. You would have thought he’d noticed earlier, but you guess he was more focused on other stuff.

“Ruined,” you shrug and gently put your foot down. You start walking again, limping as you go. It isn’t bleeding, but the area is a little sensitive.

Seungcheol takes a few big steps toward you.

“Didn’t I tell you not to walk barefoot?” he questions before picking you up without warning. Usually, you would whine, but your feet are aching from the rugged terrain so you let him carry you.

“Hm, did you? I guess I didn’t hear,” you answer, snaking an arm around his shoulders.

Seungcheol doesn’t reply, his focus in front of him. Like before, he rests you on his shoes while he opens the door.

“I don’t want to ruin your car,” you say, gesturing to the throw up on your clothes. You’re sure you’ve already ruined his clothes, but you’re nervous about being trapped in a small area with him now.

“I don’t care. Get in,” he replies. You hesitate long enough for Seungcheol to gently nudge you.

“Alright, alright,” you murmur and climb in. Despite your worry about dirtying his expensive car, you can’t stop your body from sinking into his comfortable seats. You’re tired mentally and physically, so it feels nice to finally sit down.

You expect Seungcheol to lecture you about anything and everything, but instead, he remains silent as he drives off. The tense quietness has you shifting in your seat. You look at Seungcheol, noticing the way he is tightening and untightening his grip on the wheel. Due to his short-sleeved shirt, you can see the way his muscles are flexing at the action.

Your gaze trails down his forearms, stopping when you spot the two bracelets you and Seoah made him. Your lips start to curl into a smile at seeing them. Although you had secretly hoped he’d wear them, you weren’t sure if he would. You feel a small sense of pride fill your chest before you remember the predicament you are in.

The grin quickly drops as your eyes go back to his face—jaw clenched and eyes firmly on the road ahead.

“You can’t be mad at me,” you say to break the silence. “She had that coming. You should be rather proud, actually. I’ve been wanting to do that for a long ti—”

“What were you doing out there?” he asks. You stop, eyebrows knitting together at his strange topic change.

“W-what? We were just drinking. Well, Dae was. I was just there to be a good friend,” you answer.

“Where was your ride?”

“I was about to call one,” you say.

His lips dip lower than they already are. “You shouldn’t use those services. They’re dangerous.”

“Oh, right. I’ll call my private chauffeur next time,” you reply sarcastically.

“You can call me,” he says as if it’s the obvious thing to do.

You laugh. “You’re the last person I would call.”

“Why is that?” he questions and looks at you finally. The red light shines an eerily glow on his face.

You shrug and peer away, not wanting to see him so…. disappointed? Mad? Dejected?

“You’re not my friend.”

“I’m not your friend?” he repeats with a scoff. At the green light, he drives again.

You stay silent this time.

“So, I invite you to dinner—twice—”

“Actually, the first wasn’t really a dinner,” you say.

Seungcheol takes a deep breath, and you can tell he’s trying not to get any more frustrated. You bite the inside of your cheek and fiddle with your clothes. He waits to see if you will say anything else before continuing.

“I drive you places. I pay for your food, I let you stay at my place. All because I’m what? A stranger to you?”

“I—Well,” you mumble. You don’t have anything to say to that because it’s true. He did all those things. It’s unlikely a stranger would do that. Maybe some of them once, but not multiple times like he has.

“Hey, wait, this isn’t the way to my house,” you observe outside. The area isn’t familiar to you.

“Hm,” he hums.

“You’re not about to murder me and chop up my body in little bits, right?” you ask, worried.

“No,” he answers. “That’ll take too long. I’d just—”

“Cheol!” you interrupt, not wanting to hear him actually say those words.

“Kidding,” he says.

He takes a long inhale, releasing it after a few seconds. You stay silent for the rest of the car ride. There is a strange part of you that wants him to rest his hand on you like he usually does, but that isn’t appropriate right now. Not to mention, most friends don’t do that.

You recognize the neighborhood as you near his apartment. It’s clear he had set his mind on coming here, so there isn’t a point in demanding he takes you home.

Seungcheol leads you directly to his bedroom with his hand in yours. He drops it once he stands in front of his closet. Watching him silently, he shuffles through his clothes before plucking off an item from its hanger. He quickly moves to his dresser and grabs two more pieces. He brings them to his bathroom, setting them on the counter. You follow him slowly. You hate how quiet he was. It’s unnerving.

“Shower and meet me in the living room,” he instructs. When your mouth opens, he quickly adds, “No arguing.”

“I-I was just going to say okay,” you explain. If it wasn’t for the stench of Dae’s vomit, maybe you would have argued. Though right now, you’re just eager to get out of your clothes.

“Good,” he replies. He leaves the room, shutting the door behind him.

The feel of hot water running down your sore body has you sighing out. Even his water pressure is perfect against your body. You could’ve stayed in there for hours, but you don’t want his water bill to soar, and you don’t want to turn into a wrinkly rat. With both these in mind, you finish hastily.

The clothes he has picked out are a hoodie, boxers, and shorts. You disregard the part of your mind that’s silently freaking out about wearing his clothes.

They are clothes. Just clothes.

It’s not a big deal.

Granted, most things are never a big deal, but you always make them out to be.

You dry your hair as much as you can before silently walking out of his room, seeing him dressed in shorts and a long-sleeved sweater. He must have changed while you were showering. He glances up when he hears the floors creak, eyes dropping down to your exposed skin.

“Are you cold? Should I get you pants?” he asks and starts to stand up. You put out a hand.

“It’s okay,” you say and sit down a good ways away from him. You tuck your legs under you, leaning sideways into his couch so you can look at him.

“You could’ve taken me home,” you say quietly.

“My place was closer,” he says as if that really makes a difference. You hum and cast your eyes on your lap.

“You can go back to your friends if you want. I’m fine now.”

Seungcheol exhales a breath. “What happened before I showed up?”

You play with the hem of the hoodie as you speak.

“Dae got drunk. She fell and took me down with her. Your friends showed up, and said some insulting stuff, as always. Dae threw up. Then you came.” Your answer is short and concise. There’s no reason to go into extreme details. He knows how his friends speak about you. At least how they did speak about you.

His eyes flicker over your body, stopping on your knees with a frown. There are small scratches from when you fell, but they don’t hurt much. They just feel like tiny paper cuts.

“Oh, Shua said he arrived at their place safely. Dae’s sleeping in his room right now,” Seungcheol informs. You nod.

“I’ll have to tell him thanks later,” you reply.

There is silence for a moment.

“Why did you hit Hajun?” Seungcheol asks. He watches you attentively, eyes roaming your face.

You try to stop the scoff from escaping, but you fail. “I think the question you should be asking instead is, ‘Why did you wait so long to do it?’”

Seungcheol purses his lips as he stares at you unamused. You sigh. You aren’t expecting him to bellow a laugh, but you at least hoped for… something less scolding.

“As I said, she wasn’t saying nice things, and she put her hands on me. I was tired of her bullshit. Are you mad at me because of it?” you ask. Even though you expect him to say yes, you hope he says no. You don’t want him to be mad at you. Especially when you feel you are in the right.

Seungcheol runs a hand through his hair, gaze tearing from yours momentarily. You eye the way his hair falls back into place easily. It’s almost mesmerizing to watch.

“I don’t know,” he finally answers.

“I see,” you say and readjust yourself on the couch. You let your legs dangle off the furniture while your back rests against the cushions. It hurts to see he still isn’t completely on your side. Even though you’re the one he left with, you can tell she is still in his mind. Your heart twists painfully at that.

“You should know if I were given the option, I would still do it again,” you further explain. No reason to make yourself seem like someone you’re not. You can call out how fake she was when she acted concerned, but what’s the point? Tear her down to boost you up? He probably already thinks badly of you. Maybe it’s better if he hates you. Easier, even.

You’re not sure what else to say, and he seems to be lost in his own thoughts. You carefully rise to your feet.

“I’ll take the guest bedroom,” you announce. You take four steps before Seungcheol speaks.

“I’m not mad at you.”

You turn to look at him and then answer, “It’s okay if you are. I hit your friend. It’s understandable to be upset with me.”

“I should be,” he starts, “but I’m not.”

“And why is that?”

“Because I know how she treats you.”

Ah, so he is aware.

“That’s nice,” you mumble, unable to hide the sass in your reply.

“I don’t like it.”

You shift your weight. You feel like what he said is a joke.

“Really? Because you seem to have no problem with it.”

“That’s not true,” he argues.

“It’s not? But you always let it happen.”

“I don’t. I can’t control what they say every time. I’m sorry they do that to you, but—”

“You’re not sorry. No, you can’t control their voices, but you can control who you befriend,” you reply.

“I can’t just drop them as friends,” he sighs.

“Why not? You really want to hang out with people who talk nothing but crap about me?” You don’t understand him. Some sentences make it seem like he’s on your side, and some seem like he isn’t. Does he really care about you?

“I’ve known them for a long time. We’re in group projects together. I see them too much to just cut off ties,” he reasons.

You nod. You get it. There is more to lose if he leaves them. Why is he even talking to you in the first place? He isn’t helping with your project and you don’t have history, so there’s no purpose to be around you.

“Then stop talking to me,” you suggest.

“What?” Seungcheol asks, taken aback.

“I can’t be around you when you’re friends with them. They’ve always got shit to say. You befriend people with similar attitudes,” you say, recalling what Hajun and Hana had said earlier. You don’t like them, but they were right about one thing.

“What makes you think I see you any different than them” you add. “Hell, you could be talking shit about me too. Do you all laugh about me in those little study rooms?”

“You really think I would do that to you?” he questions. His lips are set in a frown; he sounds hurt. Seungcheol leans forward to rest his elbows on his bent knees.

“I don’t know. You don’t really stick up for me when they do,” you say.

He sighs loudly, head in his hands, as he takes a few breaths. He’s in the same mental position as when he was in the café—torn between two different groups of friends.

You don’t want him out of your life, despite thinking differently when you first met him, but you don’t know if you can tolerate his friends much longer.

Your words are spoken softly, yet sternly. “When I leave in the morning, I don’t want you contacting me anymore.”

The sentence is similar to what you told him in the café, but this time, you will make sure that truly happens.

Seungcheol’s head pops up as you are turning around. You anticipate for him to call out or to rush to stop you, but none of those things happen. You make it to the spare bedroom and shut the door without Seungcheol’s interference. You hate that is the case. Though maybe it means it’ll be easy to go the next day.

There is a movement to your left, and you jump back in surprise. You turn only to see your reflection in a mirror. Goodness, you are so out of it. Your eyes linger on yourself. Your hair is slightly damp from the shower. Your makeup is mostly gone, but you can still spot a few smudges on your skin you couldn’t get off earlier. You look so different than what you are used to, but that is probably due to the change of attire.

You can’t remember the last time you wore a hoodie—a proper one. Not some fancy one that was more for style than actual comfort. His hoodie is soft inside and smells like a mixture of his detergent and cologne. It’s an interesting combination, but it makes you smile nonetheless. One which you force down when you catch sight of it in the mirror.

Seeing yourself look so ordinary in his home has those unwanting, imaginary thoughts creep in once again. They are dangerous. You know that, but oh, are they so easy to get lost in.

The vision calls this place home, where you can steal as many of Seungcheol’s clothes as you want. He would get onto you each time, but you know he’d secretly like seeing you in them. They would not only be different from your habitual style, but they would also be his.

His clothes on his girl.

Something that only he would see because while you’d enjoy wearing his clothes, you still would refuse to be seen in such casual wear beyond his humble abode.

Your heart yearns for that life.

Though as you turn off the light and climb into the bed, you let that fantasy get eaten by reality.

You’re not sure how long you’re asleep, but you stir when you feel the bed dip with an unknown weight. It moves closer, and you shiver when you feel something cold rest on your bare waist where the hoodie has risen. Then it holds you firmly while something shuffles in the bed closer. You register the weight to be a person’s, and you imagine it is Seungcheol.

The person presses you against their body, tucking your head into their chest as they rest their head on top of yours gently. The hand on your waist trails up your bare back. It rubs your skin softly, making your body sink further into the mattress. You keep your eyes closed, not wanting to wake from this dream your mind has created. If you aren’t able to have Seungcheol in the real world, at least you can have him here.

You don’t realize the tears rolling down your cheeks at first, but then you feel something tenderly swipe against your cheek. At first, you think it’s your own hand, but you don’t recall moving it.

In your dream, Seungcheol coos at you quietly. His hand is still sweeping across your back.

“I’m so sorry, baby,” he says, voice so soft that it feels like it’s a few feet away. You inch closer to hear it better.

“You want me to leave you,” he continues.

Goodness, why does he sound so far from you?

Your hands rise to the chest in front of you, hands fisting the person’s shirt. You’re afraid they’ll leave you.

“But haven’t you realized I can’t do that? You were confused when I told you I wouldn’t leave you even if I could,” Seungcheol pauses to take a breath, almost as if he’s pondering on if he’s ready to disclose this information.

“I can’t leave you because I… I like you. More than just an acquaintance, or a friend.”

You clutch the shirt harder, pressing your head deeper into his body. You want to hear this outside your dream so badly.

You squeeze your eyes shut harder.

You wish you could see his face staring at you with his warm eyes. To see his pretty lips stretch into a smile as he tells you everything you want to hear. Things you’re too afraid to ponder because it would make them more real.

“Shh, don’t cry,” he whispers and presses a kiss on the top of your head.

The feelings whirling in your chest are too much to bear. The dream has dug deep in your mind to pull out these pushed-down thoughts. Your mind has outdone itself with its imagination. You need to wake up before you fall harder for the man in your dreams. You ease your grasp on his shirt as if readying yourself to be pulled to reality.

Then reluctantly, your eyes open.

You fully anticipate seeing tear-stained sheets and darkness in front of you, but you just see the scenario your dream mustered. You blink several times to rid the memory. However, nothing works.

Your mouth opens in shock. Your heart was racing already, but now it’s beating so fast you think it’ll burst from your chest.

Seungcheol lies beside you, watching you closely.

“C-Cheol?” you whimper, mind foggy with what’s real and what’s your imagination. “You’re r-real?”

Your body is in fight or flight mode. The moment had felt so vulnerable; it was as though he had invaded your mind. As if he knew your deepest thoughts, and that terrifies you.

He stares down at you, face only half illuminated from the moonlight that creeps in through his blinds. “I’m real, Cherry. I’m right here.”

You both stare at each other. You can’t hear his heart palpitate over the sound of yours, but you can feel the quick rise and fall of his chest against your palms, which are still pressed against his body.

Your eyes flicker down. In the dim light, you can make out two small wet circles on his clothes, indicating that he was really there to hear you cry. The dream was not a dream. You feel embarrassed at having cried in front of him.

Then it all comes flooding back clearly. His words. His caressing. His tender tone. You wanted nothing more than to hear him say he wanted you. Because no matter how hard you tried to burn those thoughts from your mind, they always flickered back to life.

You don’t know when it happened.

You’re staring at him with puffy eyes one second and then have his mouth pressing against yours the next.

There is no gentle brushing of the lips this time. You’ve had enough of being interrupted. You need to feel him against you. You need his touch in the ways you’ve dreamt of before. From the way Seungcheol grips you tightly and kisses you fervently, you have a feeling he thinks the same.

The taste of his lips has you dizzy. When he glides his tongue against your lip, you unhesitantly grant him access. Despite the quick start of the kiss, he slows his movements when his tongue meets yours.

Your hands reach up to run through his locks while Seungcheol flips on his back, pulling you on top of him. His hair feels soft as it glides between your fingers, and when you run out of hair to grab, you tug on the ends.

Seungcheol moans into the kiss, hands moving to your ass and squeezing. It has your hips pressing against his body, and you whine when your clothed clit brushes him.

You pull away with a gasp. Your hands go to rest on either side of his head. Some of your hair falls into your face, and Seungcheol is quick to tuck the strands behind your ears. You don’t need to hear him say he wants to see your face. That’s evident in the way his eyes never leave yours. You take in his swollen lips and tousled hair—all because of you.

That’s all you think of as you dive back down again, tongue finding his easily and gliding together smoothly. He’s finally yours, at least for now.

Seungcheol keeps one hand on your ass while the other trails up your body. It slides under the hoodie and grips one of your bare breasts.

You mewl at the touch, arching your back into his large hand. He massages the flesh gently for a second before he moves the hand on your ass to do the same to your other breast. Your body is warming rapidly. Your heart never calms with each new feel of him.

When you pull away to catch your breath the second time, you sit up and pull the hoodie from your body. Seungcheol rests his hands on your lower back. He watches silently in awe, feeling your back arch as your naked body is exposed to him.

“So fucking pretty,” he murmurs, quickly propping his body up with one hand to get closer. The other reaches up to the back of your neck to pull you down to him. You hum against his lips as you straddle him, hands playing with the hair at the nape of his neck. Your arousal is pooling in your panties, and you need to do something to relieve some of your need.

Seungcheol groans, hands immediately going to your hips when you start grinding against his crotch. You hold onto him tightly, using him as leverage as you rub your clit against him. He pulls away from the heated kiss to remove his shirt. As he tosses the material somewhere in the room, your hands quickly press against his taunt torso. The force at which you do so has him falling back onto the mattress unexpectedly, his hair fanning around his head. He laughs, eyes turning into half-moons and dimples coming out to greet you—making your body warm for another reason.

“S-sorry,” you giggle, hands still on his chest as you lean over him.

You can’t see him clearly, but the weak light cast causes a portion of his muscles to be outlined. Although you’ve gotten some hints about his build when he wore specific clothes, they don’t do justice to how fit he is.

“Are you going to give me another compliment, baby?” Seungcheol teases when you continue to stare; his voice is lower than before. It isn’t as deep as when he first wakes up, but the sound still goes straight to your core.

You squeeze your legs around his body, and he smiles at your reaction, grabbing your wrists. He guides your hands down his torso, forcing you to sit up gradually. You hold your breath as your gaze follows your hands south. You feel his toned body under your hands. Even though he doesn’t have a slender body, he is buff and muscular, and you find that much sexier.

“I don’t need your ego any bigger than it already is,” you protest.

Seungcheol stops guiding your hands when you reach the waistband of his shorts. He lets go of your wrists and moves his hands to rest on the top of your thighs.

“But I gave you one earlier,” he pouts. Full on pouting like he is a toddler who is getting denied candy. You curse him silently for looking so cute when he does that.

You huff with false irritation, folding quickly. “Fine. You look handsome.”

Instead of smiling, he keeps the same expression. He doesn’t say anything, and you roll your eyes at what he wants.

“And hot,” you continue. This gets his pout to ease slightly. He’s annoying, so you play with the strings of his shorts. It has his face contorting in surprise. Though once he realizes you’re just trying to get out of giving him more compliments, he pouts again. What a big baby… A big baby who you can’t help but fall for more despite his needy childish behavior at the moment.

“And sexy,” you murmur, curling your fingers over the top of his shorts and underwear.

Slowly, you begin to slide both pieces of clothing down. “And alluring.”

“Alluring?” Seungcheol asks quietly, trying to keep his gaze on your face, but it keeps going back to your hands. “T-that’s new.”

You hum, biting the inside of your cheek when your eyes catch sight of his hard length. The wetness between your legs grows while you slide his clothes off.

“N-nothing about my personality?” he teases softly. Once the material is on the floor, you look at his face. He looks like he’s trying to keep his thoughts coherent.

You smile sweetly at him, a hand trailing up his thick thigh. “How could I forget, hm? You’re beyond obnoxious.”

Before he can reply, your thumb is spreading his pre cum across his tip. Your hand then wraps around the base of his dick. Seungcheol curses under his breath as his eyes widen slightly.

“You’re so annoying,” he gruffs.

“One of my many talents,” you reply teasingly and then lean down.

You kiss his tip gently, eyes flickering up to see his face. His jaw clenches when your tongue licks from the base to his tip gradually. You repeat this action, forcing the smile from your lips with each sharp inhale Seungcheol takes.

His head pushes back on the pillow when you take him in your mouth, lowering yourself until his tip barely touches the back of your throat. Each bob of your head has his cock hardening more. He’s thick, and from the way your mouth stretches around his shaft and from how your hand can’t close all the way, you can’t stop the aching between your legs.

“Shit, Yn,” he breathes out, hand coming up to press down on your head. A louder moan sounds from him when his tip hits the back of your throat for a second. You gag at the sensation and pull away, pumping his length as you take a short breather.

“You’re doing so well, baby,” he praises, voice gentle and caring. His hand reaches down to swipe at the spit covering the corner of your lips. “You think you can do that one more time?”

Nodding, you lower yourself again. You start moving your head up and down on his cock, but eventually, Seungcheol starts thrusting his hips up shallowly. You hollow your cheeks and hum around him, earning you a moan from above at the vibration.

This time when he hits the back of your throat, you stay still. The hand at the base of his dick moves, and you hold his hips instead. Seungcheol draws out another curse when his dick goes farther down your throat. Your nose brushes his pelvis, but he pulls you off before you go all the way down.

Both of you are breathing heavily. Seungcheol’s eyes watch as a string of saliva connects you to his cock. His hand comes up again, breaking the connection as he smears the spit across your cheek. It feels utterly dirty what he does, but your thighs press together at the action.

“Come ‘ere,” he murmurs and guides your body up to his.

He kisses you passionately and holds you close as he slowly flips you over. His lips are still on yours when your back rests on the mattress. The kiss lasts a few more seconds before he breaks it off to trail kisses down your neck. Your eyes close as you angle your chin to give him better access.

While Seungcheol kisses your neck, his hands roam your body. Eventually, one of his hands finds your clit, and you jolt when he starts rubbing circles. Seungcheol nips and licks at your skin, causing you to moan out when he bites a little harder. His hand trails from your bud to your core. He groans quietly against your skin while feeling your damp panties. He rubs you through the material, which has you squirming under his touch. You need to feel him directly—not over your stupid underwear.

“Cheol, take them off,” you whine and move his hands to the top of the material. He adheres to your demand and swiftly pulls the boxers off.

Seungcheol’s mouth opens slightly at the sight of your drenched folds. The coldness of the room has you shivering. Before you can say something, he lowers his head while grabbing your ass and lifting your hips. Once you are close enough, he licks up your slickened lips.

A gasp leaves your mouth at the feeling of his warm tongue against you. He laps at your juices a few times before flicking his tongue against your clit. Your eyes are stuck on him between your legs, completely enraptured at the sight. Quiet gasps leave your mouth as he sucks your bud. He hums happily at your sounds, and then he trails his tongue up your slit, the tip of his tongue prodding your entrance for a second, earning a cry when he simply goes past it.

Seungcheol climbs over you before he can touch your clit. He finds your mouth quickly, forcing his tongue inside. He’s gathered some of your arousal in his mouth, and from his quick actions, he accidentally gets some on the outside of your mouth. However, the grin against your lips tells you it probably wasn’t an accident. You are beginning to realize Seungcheol likes it messy.

One of his hand's toys with your clit again. The sensation doesn’t last long because he moves south. He slides his fingers between your folds a few times, coating them with your wetness, before slipping one inside. There’s no friction since you’re dripping with how aroused you are. You moan into the kiss, and Seungcheol’s smile grows.

He pumps his finger several times and then pushes in another. The slight stretch has you reaching up to grip his sides. He breaks the kiss, eyes staring down into yours as he continues sliding his fingers in and out.

You whimper when he inserts a third, your nails digging into his sides while holding eye contact.

“You’re going to feel so good around me,” Seungcheol thinks out loud.

You moan at his words, thinking back to how big he is. The stretch you’re feeling is only an introduction to what’s to come.

Seungcheol leans back so he can get a better view of your pussy. He aligns his fingers horizontally as he pulls out slowly, causing you to stretch more around his digits. As soon as he slips out, he spreads your folds to see your entrance. Seungcheol gathers some of his spit in his mouth before letting it drop onto your cunt. Then without warning, he rubs your pussy—starting slow but soon speeding up.

“Ah, s-shit,” you cry, hands fisting in the sheets. Your legs move to close, but he presses his other hand down on one to keep you spread.

“You’re making such a mess, baby,” he coos. You can feel a few drops of your arousal mixed with his spit land on the inside of your thighs from his bruising touch.

Just when you are about to plead for him to stop, he pulls away. His eyes are glued to your dripping cunt.

You’ve never felt as needy as you do now. Your eyes fall to his cock, erect and ready to be used. You swallow harshly and reach out greedily. Seungcheol takes your hand, kissing the back of it softly. His eyes are blown out, his hair tangled, and his chest heaving slightly.

He climbs from the bed, and when he gestures for you to come closer, you obey quickly. Seungcheol picks you up, making your legs wrap around his waist as he walks to his bedroom.

You lean down to kiss his neck, but that doesn’t last long, and you feel yourself falling back onto his mattress.

While the rest of the lights in the apartment are off, his side table’s lights are on. You take the opportunity to eye his figure again. His broad chest and muscular thighs have you squeezing around nothing. There’s a part of you that just wants to caress his body all night long; however, the ache between your legs tells you to do that another time.

“Don’t cry,” he says softly when you whine as he moves away from you. “Just gonna’ grab a condom.”

You nod, less sad at knowing what he’s doing. You move farther up his bed as he gets the packet. After securing the condom, he climbs over you.

He presses his lips against yours again, hands trailing all over your body. You let your hands do the same against his skin. It feels so nice to just feel him like you want. Each passing second has you eager for him. You put your hands on his hips and push them toward yours.

“Please, Cheol,” you beg quietly against his mouth.

“I’m really a good influence on you, hm, Cherry?” he playfully replies, lowering his hips until you feel his cock brush your pelvis. You press your body up and move your hips so your clit rubs against his length.

“B-be quiet,” you huff.

“I don’t think you want that,” he says. He grips his cock and rubs it along your folds to coat it in your arousal.

Your arms wrap around his neck, hips bucking.

“Do you want me?” he asks. His eyes bore into yours, the tip of his cock at your entrance.

You nod. “Yes.”

“And what do we say when we want something?” he questions. You roll your hips greedily, but he moves his dick to keep you unsatisfied.

You whine and lean your head back. “Stop playing games, Cheol.”

“That doesn’t sound right,” he tuts calmly.

You know he isn’t going to do anything unless you say what he wants. Whining again because you’re really annoyed with him, you pout. “Please.”

“Hm, close. What do pretty girls like you say when you want something?” he rephrases.

This arrogant man.

“Pretty please,” you concede.

Seungcheol smiles wickedly above you. He presses the tip against your entrance again but doesn’t fully push in. He gives just enough pressure to make you feel a slight stretch.

“That’s exactly correct,” he murmurs and finally slides inside slowly. “My pretty girl.”

A moan erupts in your throat at the feeling of his cock. You don’t know when you closed your eyes, but they open quickly when you realize you can’t see Seungcheol.

His brows are slightly touching, mouth open in concentration.

“T-tell me if you want me to stop at any time,” he instructs as he suppresses a groan.

“Okay,” you mutter. “Keep going. Please,” you beg when he pauses.

He nods and lowers his hips more, pushing more of himself between your walls. A curse falls from your lips when he goes deeper. He continues gradually until he is flushed against you.

Seungcheol rests his forehead on yours as he lets you adjust to his size. You feel so full.

“You doing okay?” he wonders.

You giggle, hand moving to rest on his cheek. “Yes. You feel so good.”

He tilts his chin so he can press a quick kiss to your parted lips.

“A compliment and I didn’t even have to ask,” he gloats and continues before you can reply, “Do you want to keep going?” he asks softly.

“Y-yeah,” you stutter, the need for him to keep going overpowering the need to sass him.

Seungcheol smiles down at you for a second before dragging his hips back, then forward again. He repeats those actions, each time getting a little harder. It has your body jolting up the mattress, but you don’t care. You just need him to continue.

“Doing so well, baby,” he whispers.

“You can go f-faster,” you say. Your hands trail down his torso until they rest on his sides.

“You sure?”

You nod, leaning up to press a reassuring kiss to his mouth. Seungcheol’s eyes are staring down at your chest but quickly snap up at the feel of your lips. He chases your lips after you pull away, slotting his mouth on yours once more. He slips his tongue in your mouth, and you welcome him happily.

Suddenly, Seungcheol’s thrusts speed up.

You pull away from the kiss with a small cry, hands gripping his sides tightly.

“Fuck,” you rasp.

Seungcheol sits up, moving one of your legs to rest against his front while the other lays upon his thigh. He places his hands on your thighs and then snaps his hips into yours rapidly. His eyes are locked onto where he slides into you, watching the way your pussy stretches for his cock.

Your hands move up to rub your breasts, back arching off the mattress when you twist your nipples between your fingers. Your eyes are half open with your lips parted. The feel of his thick cock dragging against your walls, combined with the pinch of your nipples, has you moaning nonstop.

“Shit, baby, you look so sexy like that,” Seungcheol growls, eyes watching your hands intensely.

The compliment has you mewling and clenching around his dick.

“You like looking sexy for me, hm?” he asks, subduing his moan.

You mumble a “yes,” hands pushing your breasts together to give him more of a show.

Seungcheol chuckles softly, lips spreading in a big grin, and slows down his hips. He’s breathing heavily, but he doesn’t stop. Your hands move from your breasts to grip the sheets.

“I would love to have you naked in my bed every day so I could admire you,” he continues. The word “admire” has your heart beating a little faster and a smile on your face. Seungcheol’s own lips tilt up in a grin at your reaction. He turns his head, giving your leg a tender kiss.

Seungcheol glides his cock out of your pussy slowly, and then when just the tip remains, he slams back in roughly. Your breath gets caught in your throat at the power of his hips, walls squeezing around him for a moment. He groans at the feeling.

Seungcheol’s eyes trail from your face to your breasts. They move each time he pushes his length back inside, and it has him gripping your thighs harder. Your skin starts to sting under his touch, but the pleasure between your legs outweighs the pain.

As if reading your thoughts, he eases his grip and carefully moves the leg against his chest to the side so you are spread wide for him. He leans over you, gradually lowering himself so his body is fully on yours. There’s enough pressure to feel his skin flushed on yours but not enough to suffocate you. He moves his hips slowly now. They are shallow thrusts, but he still feels heavenly.

“You sound pretty when you sing for me,” he murmurs, head tucking into the crook of your neck.

Your arms readjust so they enclose around his shoulders. You also wrap your legs around his lower back to keep him close, holding him tightly as you get lost in the way he presses you into the mattress with his body. Your heart clutches at how intimate you feel with him. This type of gentleness is so different from what you experience with him. It’s nice. You wish you can feel it again in the future.

Giggling at his compliment, “T-that’s cheesy, babe.”

You feel him grin against your neck.

“It’s the truth. I love hearing you,” he replies against your skin. It tickles, causing you to squirm beneath him, but you don’t move much since you’re pinned under him.

“I’m close, Cheol,” you whisper into his damp hair. He nods to let you know he heard you. He stays against you for a few more seconds, and you hold him gingerly as he continues rutting into you. You store the memory of his loving embrace in your mind for safekeeping.

Seungcheol slowly leans up. He plants a soothing kiss on your lips before adjusting himself for better leverage. His shallow thrusts steadily get deeper, and his pace increases in speed until he is nearly pounding into you. One of his hands moves to rub tight circles against your clit. A string of moans leaves your mouth as he pushes you closer to your release.

Seungcheol moans when your cunt squeezes his cock.

“God, you’re going to be the death of me,” he husks.

Even though you don’t say anything, your body is conveying how close you are. Seungcheol’s quick pace grows a little frantic, a little desperate as a hand still plays with your bud.

His name leaves your lips when you come, legs shaking slightly as your orgasm courses through you. Seungcheol slows his thrusts as he eases you from your high.

“That’s it, baby girl,” he praises quietly as your body starts relaxing on the mattress. Gently, he pulls out and removes the condom.

When your eyes refocus, you see Seungcheol sitting up on his knees, a hand pumping his shaft. Even though tiredness is taking over your body, you move so you are in front of him on your hands and knees. You remove his hand and replace it with yours.

He watches silently, mouth falling open when you wrap your lips around him again. Hollowing your cheeks, you bob your head quickly while your eyes watch him above. He rakes a hand through his slightly wet hair before bringing that hand down on your head. He slides your hair from your face, then begins to move his hips.

The sound of you taking him in your mouth fills the room. Seungcheol whines, pushing your head farther and letting out a moan when he hears you gag. He pulls you off him, and you gasp for air once you can.

“Almost there,” he informs you before lining himself at your lips again. You nod, making Seungcheol smile as he pushes his dick between your lips.

You breathe through your nose as he fucks into your mouth. Tears start forming at the corner of your eyes when he hits the back of your throat continuously. Seeing his blissful expression has a sense of pride blooming in your chest. It feels good knowing you are bringing him so much pleasure.

“Fuck,” he gasps and pulls away suddenly. You cough when you inhale too quickly. Seungcheol’s head leans back as he slides his hand up and down quickly on his cock. He waits until you’re better before he brings his tip to your lips. You open your mouth, ready for him to use your throat again, but instead, he keeps his dick resting against your parted mouth. Understanding his plan, you stick your tongue out. His eyes stare down at yours. He looks so sexy with a sheen of sweat covering his skin. His forehead is exposed, and his face is scrunched in concentration.

Your name leaves his mouth as a curse when he comes. You moan quietly, eyes closing when you feel his cum land on your face and tongue in spurts. Seungcheol is panting above you, and as you open your eyes again, you see he never tore his gaze from your face.

You go to close your mouth when he’s done, but he stops you—hand cupping your jaw and fingers digging slightly into your cheeks to keep your mouth open. The fierce gaze he wears is one of authority, and fuck, does that have you squeezing your legs together more.

Slowly his cum trails down your tongue, dangling from the tip before it falls onto the bed’s cover. The urge to close your mouth is strong. Even though Seungcheol is holding your mouth open, his grip isn’t strong enough to really stop you if you want to close it. However, you want to please him, so you push down the feeling and stare at his face.

His eyes follow his cum gliding off your tongue, biting his lip at the sight. Goodness, he’s just breathing, but he looks so attractive.

You force down the moan you want to make at knowing Seungcheol gets off on being messy. You want him to make a mess out of you more.

“My good girl,” he whispers. He gathers the cum that landed on your face and moves it on your tongue. He releases the grip to let you close your mouth, staying silent as he watches you swallow the substance.

He leans down and gives you a lasting kiss for a reward before climbing off the bed. He leaves to grab a warm washcloth to clean off the residue on your face. The affectionate smile he dons is contagious, and you stare up at him contently as he cleans you carefully. Once he is done and the towel is discarded, he comes back.

“Move up, Cherry,” he instructs gently as he nods to the other end of the bed. You follow his order quietly. In one hard tug, he pulls the cover from the bed. He dumps it in the corner of the room and then grabs another from his closet.

“Now, lay down,” he says. Once you are in position, he flicks his wrists to open the cover in the air, letting it float down onto your body.

You giggle. “You could’ve just unfolded it first.”

“But wasn’t that more fun?” he replies with a grin.

He climbs in next to you after switching off the lights, hands finding your body quickly. He lays on his back, one arm wrapping around your shoulders while the other rests on his chest. You press your body against his side and bring a hand up to his chest, intertwining your hands together. You watch as he shakes your hands together playfully.

“I think I had more fun earlier,” you belatedly reply.

Seungcheol chuckles. “Is that so? Did I fuck you that good, Cherry?”

You squeeze his hand at his words, not sure why his question has you suddenly feeling shy. Maybe it’s because you’re still feeling a little in the clouds, and your normal bratty self hasn't yet reemerged.

“I had fun too,” he adds when you don’t reply. “I would do it again.”

“Yeah?” you wonder, hopeful eyes glancing up at him. It’s definitely something you won’t oppose if the opportunity arises in the future, and you are happy to know he feels the same.

“Yeah,” he echoes.

A grin spreads on his face upon seeing your expression. He leans down, giving you one last kiss as if promising to keep his word. The act has you wanting to kick your feet as you giggle, but you suppress the desire to do that.

Instead, you snuggle against him more as you let your body begin to melt into his. Comfortable silence fills his room, and you can feel sleep consuming you slowly.

“Sleep well, baby,” Seungcheol says quietly and unravels his hand from yours to move your hair from your face. You peer up at him, smiling.

“Goodnight, Cheol.”

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abeautylives · 2 years ago

Text

a/n: This is a little different than my other works, Nic is my first original character but I couldn’t resist continuing their story. I’d say it’s necessary to read Something About You before you dive into this one!

pairing: Jakexfemale!OC

word count: 14.7k (oops)

summary: Bound together by family, pushed apart by stubborn resistance, what can he do to make her feel his love?

warnings: 18+ minors stay far away, language, drinking, mentions of sex, BIG ANGST, explicit sexual content, unprotected penetrative sex, oral (m. and f. receiving), fingering, edging, light choking, not fluffy but a lot of love, JOSH WEDDING

“I’m really no good at dancing, maybe I should just sit this one out.” She’s already tugging him toward a small dance floor, a distinct sway in her step that has his eyes drawn to the way it’s making her ass move.

“Don’t worry, I’ll do most of the work, handsome.”

Most of the work winds up consisting of pressing her body against his until he’s trying to hide his hard-on, but once her ass is pushed into his hips it’s game over.

Back leaned into his chest, she cranes her neck to whisper into the warm skin of his cheek, “You wanna take me home, pretty boy?” The way his hands are gripping her hip bones tells her everything she needs to know, that yes, he absolutely does but his reply tells her that he’s not ready to give her the upper hand.

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Back in the booth, his hands find her body often, one creeping its way from her knee to her thigh before it’s tucked between them, the other reaching across himself to touch her arm or place fingertips to her jaw, turning her face to his.

Outside the bar, she pulls him in and he doesn't resist, lips finding each other in the dark as others try not to observe.

In his bedroom, he watches her eyes go wide once he’s bared to her but he’s sure that she is the most enticing thing held within these four walls, soft curves and a sharp tongue and all his for the night. He sucks a hiss through clenched teeth and a tight jaw when her fingers, small and delicate compared to his own, wrap themselves around him.

Into his ear, she’s whispering again. “You gonna fuck me, Jake?”

“You think you can handle me, babe?”

Her fingers release him to trail over the length of him, base to the tip, certainly not a short journey.

“I know I can, but can you handle me?”

Looking back, the correct answer was probably no. But it hadn’t stopped Jake from trying, for a while. Months, actually, until things went south between his brother and her best friend. She’d chosen sides, as she should have but even though Jake had chosen the same side, she had still deemed him guilty by association.

By the time Josh had come to terms and his senses, with Jake’s assistance, she had moved on. By the time Josh had invited him to a “family dinner” to meet Little Sam, Jake had moved on.

“Josh, it’s gonna be fine. Plus, I’m great with kids. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

His brother is frantically flitting between his living room and kitchen, watching the food on the stove and moving furniture fractions of an inch in an effort to make them “safer”.

“I’m not worried about you. This is my kid we’re talking about, I have to make sure he can’t get hurt.”

It’s still kind of strange, hearing Josh refer to himself as a dad, but Jake has no problem taking the credit for pushing him to that decision.

“He’s not a baby, he’s four years old. And I’m still pissed you didn’t let me come to his birthday party, by the way.” Sam had been introduced to the remaining Kiszka brothers via stories and photos, and Jake had even called to wish him a happy birthday, but the whole situation had still been new.

“Yeah, well, he was still getting used to having me around. We figured one Kiszka was plenty for the time being. And Nic was there…”

Nic. Nicole. Best friend to the love of Josh’s life, honorary aunt to his child. Jake’s one that got away. Sort of.

“I’m an adult, I can handle being in the same room as someone I used to hook up with.”

“Well thank god for that, because she’s coming over with them.”

Jake had been deep inside her, fingertips digging into her thighs, listening to her moan incoherent words from above him, her hips rolling in his lap when her phone rang. And rang, and kept ringing until she reached over him to grab it from her nightstand. He’d groaned when she slid off of him and climbed from his lap to sit on the edge of the bed, but he could hear the sobbing breaths coming from her phone before his started ringing from the floor, still in the front pocket of his discarded jeans. He’d left the room to make sense of his brother’s yelling before he too was crying over the line.

That morning hadn’t been the last time they spoke, but it was the last time they fucked. They had argued, mildly, on their counterparts’ behalf before Jake came to realize that he wasn’t fully landing on his brother’s side. He’d told Nic as much, tried to get her back in his bed, but when she started to ignore his calls he also realized that she’d never been his to claim.

“Great. Can’t wait. Stop moving that fucking table please.”

Josh’s nervous energy is crawling its way under Jake’s skin until he’s feeling the same way. What if Nic doesn’t want to see him, or worse, what if Sam doesn’t like him? Part of his worry dissolves as the little boy bounds through the front door and runs straight for Josh, yelling his name. Jake watches his twin crouch to Sam’s level and then scoop him off the ground and swing him around.

“I missed you bud! Hey, someone wants to meet you.” With Sam on his hip, Josh turns in Jake’s direction. “It’s Uncle Jake!”

Sam’s mom makes a strangled noise that she tries to cover with the back of her hand over her mouth. Uncle is not a word they had discussed, but there are matching wide grins on the faces of the men in front of her, one holding her child and the other reaching his arms out for him.

“Uncle Jake!” Sam is giggling wildly as he’s transferred onto Jake’s hip and Jake is tickling his side, laughing out Little Sam!

“Well that’s cute.” Nic’s voice cuts through the laughter as she stands back to observe, arms crossed over her chest. When Jake’s eyes land on hers, they’re already narrowed in his direction but there’s a small smile gracing her lips and it doesn’t look forced. He knows that if she’d let it stretch just a little further, let her teeth peek through, it would be beautiful.

“I’m not cute, I’m hamsom. Mommy? I’m hamsom right?”

“Yeah, me too. I’m not cute, I’m handsome.” Jake’s eyes are still watching Nic’s face closely, “Right Nicole?”

“Fishing for compliments now, Jake? Doesn’t seem like your style.”

Josh is quick to remove himself from whatever is about to occur between the two of them, taking Sam from Jake’s arms and telling him he’s got a surprise waiting in the living room, grabbing his girlfriend’s hand to pull her that direction.

“You may be right, but I seem to recall having received that particular compliment from you once or twice before. It’s okay to admit it, babe.”

“Don’t.” She sounds serious, so Jake swallows his next retort. “Look, it’s been like, almost a year. We can be friends, right?”

My twin brother has practically adopted your best friend’s kid as his own.

“Yeah, sure. Friends who’ve known each other biblically.” Did not mean to say that.

Her eyes roll hard but it only reminds him of watching them roll back from above her, her body being pushed closer and closer to his headboard.

“Grow up. I’m begging.”

“I like it when you beg.” God, shut up.

He can’t seem to help himself around her. It’s been so long since they’ve shared the same space, and it turns out that he can’t handle it as well as he’d told his brother that he could. He doesn’t try to call her back when she sighs and turns away from him to step toward the living room.

He does try to call her a few days later. And the day after that, and the day after that. When she finally answers, it’s not without a huff of frustration and a sharp what can I do for you, Jacob?

It’s an interesting question, what can she do for him? Why is he even calling?

“I’ve just been thinking about you.”

She laughs and the sound crawls into his ear, bounces around his brain and triggers a rush of dopamine, despite it not being particularly joyful. He can feel his lips set into a grim line when her laughter becomes boisterous at his expense.

“Why is that so funny, Nic?”

“Why is it so funny? Seriously? Tell the truth, Jake. What have you been thinking about?”

He considers honesty for a moment, considers telling her he wishes he’d spent more time getting to know her than he did getting her naked, but he tells her the truth she’s expecting instead.

“I’ve been thinking about that thing that you do with your tongue, when you-“

“I knew it. Isn't there anyone else you can call when you’re horny?”

Another interesting question. Of course there is, any number of women that would’ve answered the first time he called and probably been on their way before he even mentioned a need for a warm body wrapped around him. But…

“No one’s as good as you.”

“I know that, Kiszka. Ya know what? Sure. Be here in half an hour, before I change my mind.”

Forty-three minutes later, her legs are thrown over his shoulders and he’s inches away from tasting the arousal glistening on her skin. Her hips are already moving, seeking him out while he watches her writhe, her hands sunk into his hair trying to pull him in. Before they succeed, he murmurs up to her, his breath teasing over her cunt that’s begging for him.

“Hey Nic?”

“What.” He’s looking up the length of her body from the floor, laid out against her couch, her head thrown back and her arms flexing as her muscles work to draw him closer. When he doesn’t respond, her head snaps up to find him smirking between her legs.

“I missed you.”

“Please occupy your mouth before you say something else stupid.”

He lets her pull him in as her head falls back again, his tongue lapping over her core in broad, savoring swipes. It’s been a while since he’s had her like this, but he remembers that even though she likes sex a little rough, she likes this done soft and slow. She won’t admit it, but he’s always gotten the feeling that she likes to be treated delicately despite the tough girl shtick. The way she’s whimpering his name, lost in the way his tongue is rolling over her clit, tells him that he’s probably right.

Drawing her slowly toward release, he can feel when she’s close as her hips start to move in tandem with his mouth and he resists pulling away to ask her to let go, to cum for him, because he knows that she will. It won’t be for him though, it’ll be because she wants it and she’s going to have it.

When she reaches that peak, the tumble to the other side of it is as leisurely as the journey toward it, and the string of quiet words slipping from her lips no longer includes his name. Her grip in his hair loosens until she lets her hands fall to the cushions at her sides. He doesn’t stop moving his tongue and lips over her until she places a palm against his forehead and pushes him away.

“M’not done, gimme one more.” She yelps as he moves back in and sucks her clit past his lips. The second comes quickly and hits harder than the first, and this time she can’t keep his name from digging its way out from her throat. The desperate cry is like a fist to his chest, knocking the air from his lungs.

Rising from his knees, he stands and lifts her nearly limp body from the couch and into his arms. She doesn’t resist throwing her own around his neck and allowing him to carry her down the hall and into her bedroom, and when he lays her against the sheets and pushes her to flip to her stomach, she knows he wants her on her knees.

Instead of complying, she rolls back over and finds a look of confusion contorting his face.

“I’m feeling generous, Kiszka. Come kiss me.”

His eyebrows shoot up his forehead. She hadn’t allowed him to kiss her when he’d arrived, not on the lips but she’d let him drag his across her skin as he’d removed her clothes. He doesn’t question her reassessment now as the remainder of his own clothes hit the floor, and once he’s naked he’s quick to settle himself between her legs and press his lips to hers.

Her hands make their way from a light grip on his hips to splayed out at the top of his back, her palms making a slow journey to their destination as her mouth opens to him.

They’ve done this dance before and they both know why she’d extended the invitation, so when he reaches between their bodies to grip his cock and run the head of it through the slick moisture still leaking from her cunt, she sighs against his lips. He doesn’t break away to ask if she’s ready, if she’s sure, her body tells him everything he needs to know as he slips inside it.

Slip is not quite the word, he’s rocking his body into hers as he eases inside slowly.

“Jesus, Jake…”

He grunts in response, against the side of her neck as he sinks in to the hilt.

“We both know how well you can take it, babe.” He pulls his hips away in retreat before snapping them back into her. “So take it.”

A long, low moan pours past her lips, drawn out by his words and the quick rhythm he’s setting. Once he’s moving inside her, the urge to chase down his own end is consuming him. She’s tight, wet and hot and meeting his thrusts, pushing up to him from the mattress.

“Jake…”

The sound of his name causes him to falter mid-stroke but when he finds his stride again, there’s urgency and desperation driving his muscles.

“Jake…” She’s looking for a response but he can hardly hear her through the sound of blood rushing in his head. “Jake.”

“What baby?” His tone carries authority but the tremor in his voice and the wild look in his eyes as he lifts his chest from hers is very telling.

“Slow down.” She lifts a hand to push the hair away from his face, tucks it behind his ear and draws her fingertips down the side of his neck. “Slow down…”

“What?” She may have whispered it, and he may be confused by her command but he heard it clearly and his body obeys as her fingers travel over his collarbone.

“Are you about to cum?” One of her eyebrows is quirked up as if she’s actually asking, as if she doesn’t know the answer. His hips have slowed and every inch of him feels it when she clenches around him.

“Fuck, yes, I’m there I’m gonna-“

“Don’t.”

“What?”

“Don’t do it, Jakey. Not yet.”

He thinks to himself that she must be joking, he’s literally seconds away and she’s telling him not to, in that deep drawl she’d used on him the first time they met. His eyes are squeezed shut as his head drops forward and his hips slow to a stop.

“Good boy.” It elicits a soft whimper that he doesn’t allow to escape his mouth. “Now fuck me slow, make me cum again first.”

She hums against his lips when he lifts his head and presses them hard against hers, the hum turns into another soft moan as he rocks into her before propping himself up and breaking the kiss. Shifting onto his knees, he brings a hand under her jaw and squeezes until it drops open, his thumb pressed onto her tongue in a small display of what remains of his dominance. Unwilling to give up her own, she closes her lips and sucks, swirls her tongue over the pad of his finger before releasing it as a groan ripples from his throat.

Her back arches softly as soon as he touches her over sensitive skin and he’s silently praying that it means she’ll cum for him quickly, he’s already barely hanging on. Drawing light circles over her clit and moving his hips slowly, his bottom lip is tucked tight between his teeth when she starts murmuring below him.

“Just like that, you’re so good for me aren’t you?” She’s watching him closely, taking in the way his eyes are shut tight again and his breathing seems barely controlled. She lets her own eyes drift closed as he continues to do exactly what she’d demanded of him, fucking into her almost sweetly as he draws her closer and closer to a third orgasm.

“C’mon babe, cum for me please, I can’t-“

“Don’t you dare. I’m almost there, just keep going.”

Something akin to a strangled sob leaves his mouth but she starts to meet his thrusts again with her own and he can feel her body clamping down around him as he adds pressure to the swirls he’s painting between her legs.

He holds his breath when it breaks, when all of her muscles go taut and her back leaves the bed, and he keeps moving his thumb over her though he has to still his hips to stop himself from breaking with her. Aside from one soft call of his name, she lets it roll through her quietly and when she reopens her eyes, he’s motionless.

“Jake…” It’s a quiet call that he’s sure he can feel the vibration of through the thick air between them. His own eyes open and focus on her face, flushed and beautiful, and the breath he’s been holding rushes from his lungs. “Go ahead and let go for me.” Her lips turn up into a soft smile. He lowers himself over her and pulls a kiss from them before resting his forehead against hers.

Already peering over the ledge, he rocks his hips into her twice before he falls. He lets his body collapse onto hers, she runs her fingers through the dampened strands of hair at the base of his neck when his face tucks into hers. He trails a line of kisses over her shoulder before slipping himself from her cunt and rolling to lay beside her, one arm extended up to rest beneath his head.

They both stay silent for a while, listening to each other breathe into the otherwise still air. She breaks the silence first.

“Hey, Jake?”

“Hm?”

“I kinda missed you too.”

As time passed, it morphed into a here and there situation reminiscent of how it had begun. With no rules, no labels, nothing but a palpable need for one another. All appeared as the definition of casual, but as he’s been known to do, their shared nephew changed things.

“Uncle Jake?” The tiny voice calls up to him from the floor of his brother’s living room while a, quite frankly, weird cartoon plays on the tv.

From his place on the couch, Jake replies, “Yeah buddy?”

“Is Auntie Nic your girlfriend?”

Jake’s head shoots up from its reclined position against the cushion. “What? Who told you that?”

Sam is turned away from the tv now, eyeing his uncle with the type of curiosity only a five year old can express. “No one.”

Straightening to sit and lean forward, elbows resting on his knees, Jake initiates a staring contest with the little boy in front of him. His little face, so similar to his mother’s, gives nothing away. “Why are you asking?”

“Well is she?”

No. Not really. I mean, not at all. Maybe, if I asked her to be. Wait, why am I about to debate this with a preschooler?

“No, Auntie Nic is not my girlfriend.”

“Well how come I saw you kissing her? Like a buncha times.”

The question is innocent enough. He’s certainly kissed her a number of times, probably with the kid around but suddenly he feels like a kid, caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“Ya know what Sam, that’s an excellent question but you should mind your own business. You’re worse than your dad. Watch your show.”

Sam simply shrugs his shoulders and turns back to the screen, but Jake finds that he can focus on its contents even less than before as his mind races.

Jake: What are you doing tonight?

Her reply is not immediate, but it rarely is.

Nic: hmmm that depends

Jake: On what?

Nic: oh a number of things, lover boy

Nic: but if you’re offering to buy me a drink and make me cum, then I’m free as a bird

He’s watching her flirt with the bartender, as she always does. Pretty sure that they’ve hooked up before, he tamps down the bubbling jealousy that’s warming his cheeks but she notices the pinkish hue.

“Something wrong, Jake?” She knows the answer but loves to see him squirm.

“Nah, but do you have to flirt with her in front of me? Don’t even have the decency to wait until I turn my back.”

“Is decent a word you would really use to describe me?” There’s laughter in her eyes as she smirks into her beer and sets it down on the bar.

He moves in, crowding her space and pushing her back against the wood, face close enough to hers that she can feel his words float across her lips. “Give it a rest, babe. I know you have it in you to be sweet to me.” He pauses to press a kiss to her cheek, another to her jaw before nudging the tip of her nose with his. “Be a good girl and stop giving fuck me eyes to your ex-girlfriend while I’m around.”

She likes it when he’s a little territorial, made clear by the way her pupils dilate and her hips move forward to push into his, but they truly never let one another maintain a grasp on the upper hand for too long. She leans closer and flicks the tip of her tongue over the hoop in his earlobe before whispering, “She was never my girlfriend. I don’t do girlfriends. Or boyfriends. I think you know that.” Pulling back to take in his expression, heavy eyelids paired with perfect lips slightly turned down at the corners, she finishes with a clipped “babe”.

Their time at the bar doesn’t last longer than two drinks. Her statement had felt like a challenge and he could feel his body’s objection to it crawling beneath the surface of his skin. In her apartment, with her body pressed between his own and the front door, he can feel that objection bleeding from his pores as it spills from his mouth on a ragged breath.

“You’re mine. Say it.”

Her reply is a soft whine as his tongue and lips play against the skin just behind her earlobe.

Whispering into it, he requests again, “Say you’re mine.”

“Jake…” The hesitation in her voice is apparent and it cuts through him like a knife. “I can’t.” Even as her words reject him, her mouth seeks his out and he lets it find him. With lips pushed together and fingers wrapped in one another’s tangled hair, his body objects again as he uses his grip to pull her face away.

Her cheeks are flushed and her chest is rising and falling with heavy breaths as his eyes search hers. She doesn’t push him away, doesn’t let her hands fall from their home in the hair at the back of his head.

“Nic…” Her eyes bounce around his features and he watches as half-lowered lids open wide at his next words. “I’m yours.” Her mouth opens and closes again as she offers nothing in return, but it doesn’t deter him. “I think… I’m in lo-“

She cuts him off, pulling him back in and coaxing his lips apart to slip her tongue over his. He knows she doesn’t want to hear what he wants to say, knows she doesn’t want to say what he wants to hear, so he drops it. For now. Mouths still connected, he bends enough to grip the backs of her thighs and lift her into his arms.

Neither speaks as he carries her to her room, they stay silent as he lowers her to stand in front of him, no words are needed or exchanged as they pull and push the clothing from each other’s bodies with not-so-subtle urgency. When she tugs him forward and spins him to lay across her bed, only to kiss her way down his body until she’s wrapping her lips around him, he replaces the words he wants to say with words of desperate encouragement.

She’s good, the best he’s ever had, really but a lot of it stems from the sheer amount of time they’ve spent just like this. Just as he’s become attuned with exactly what makes her toes curl and eyes roll back, she’s honed her skills to his preferences and right now his fist is wrapped tightly in her hair as she takes him to the back of her throat.

“Shit, just like that.” His hips flex upward, pushing his cock even deeper which only causes her to moan around him and his grip to tighten until he’s pulling her hair at the roots. The sharp sting of it has her lifting hooded eyes to his face, only to find he’s already watching her with a devilish smirk on his lips. “You’re beautiful like this, ya know.”

It draws a chuckle from her that ripples around him and breaks her rhythm.

“Keep going babe, wanna keep watching you.” The hand locked in her tresses moves her until she’s bobbing over him again. Neither of them have any desire for him to cum this way, her need to feel him inside her is dripping from between her legs as his own need is throbbing against her tongue, but when she can’t wait any longer she has to fight against his hold to pull off of him.

He sits up to tug her to the mattress but she doesn’t let herself land there, instead she crawls over him until she’s straddling his hips.

“Baby, let me make you cum.” He’s offering his mouth or fingers to get her off, but he makes no moves to slip her out of his lap as he watches his hands trail up her thighs to skim over her hips before running them up her ribcage. They land just below her breasts and he rubs the pads of his thumbs over the soft skin there. His eyes are pleading with her to let him, but she finally speaks up only to inform him that she has slightly different plans.

“You will, I want you inside, want you to cum with me.” Pushing him to lay back again, she slides herself over his dick, painfully hard and resting against his lower stomach, to emphasize the need she’s expressing. One of his hands falls from her torso to grip himself as she lifts to hover over him, the other finds purchase on her hip. A small, whimpered fuck falls from his lips as he lines himself up and finds her soaked and slick, and he watches as he slides through it before she sinks down around him. Hands braced against his chest, she doesn’t waste time allowing either of them to adjust to the feeling before she’s rocking against him.

He lets her set the pace at first and is surprised when she keeps her movements slow to start. She’s thrown her head back and he’s dragging his eyes down the expanse of her throat, considering the possibilities. Without thinking too hard about it, he reaches a hand up to wrap loosely around it. When her head snaps up and their eyes meet, his hold on her throat tightens just slightly but his grasp on her hip turns bruising.

“Jake…” His name pushes past the light restriction of his fingertips as her body picks up speed. He questions her with the quirk of an eyebrow. “Harder.”

“That’s my girl.” At her command, he squeezes a little tighter and uses his grip to pull her down to him. Her lips pucker and attempt to meet his, but he holds her just out of reach and revels in the confusion flitting across her face. “My girl. Say it.” Punctuated with a sharp thrust, it comes out as a demand.

Lost in the feeling of him and a little less coherent than she’d been while pressed against her front door, she nods her head and hums in response. It’s close to what he’s after and he pulls her in for the kiss she’d been searching for as a reward. Meeting the roll of her hips with his own thrusts from the bed, another particularly sharp one rips a long, low moan from her chest that he swallows when it passes from her lips to his. She squeals when he releases her neck to wrap an arm around her and switch their positions, a pleasant, bubbling giggle floats up to his ears as her back hits the mattress. The warmth of it spreads through his chest before her legs are wrapped around him with a heel digging into his ass, spurring him to fuck her harder. Her sweet laughter turns into gasping breaths and huffed curses that fill the air in the room, alongside the sound of damp skin against skin.

He doesn’t press her again for the words, satisfied enough with the way his name sounds tucked between raspy expletives as she forces them past his fingers that have wrapped themselves around her neck again. Every time he adds enough pressure to silence her, he feels her cunt squeeze him in response. Interesting.

Through gritted teeth he tells her to tap him if it’s too much. Her head nods enthusiastically but he loosens his hold. “Tell me you understand.”

“Yes, I understand, keep going…” Her own hand comes up to push his fingertips into her skin, her body reacts in kind.

“Fuck, good fucking girl…” He’s fucking into her with deep, steady strokes and she’s sucking him in, greedy and determined to take everything he’s got to give. Confident that she’ll stop him if she needs to, but praying that she won’t, he digs his fingers in until her mouth is hanging open on a silent gasp and her body is clamped around him.

Rivulets of sweat are running down the center of his chest, her own is coated in a thin sheen of it and he briefly wonders if it’ll always be like this. Messy and covetous, will he be chasing after something he can’t have, forever? Shaking the thought away, he drops his head to watch where he’s moving inside her then runs his gaze slowly up past her flexing stomach, watches her tits bounce every time his hips slam into the backs of her thighs. When his eyes land on her face, her lips are forming words he can’t hear.

She doesn’t signal for it but he loosens his grip, she drags air into her lungs until she can rasp out another request. “Don’t stop, cum with me please!” Her own hands are wrapped around his biceps, fingernails marking his skin but she pulls one away to slide it down her torso until her fingers are spread around him between her legs, collecting her own arousal to draw up and swirl over her clit.

The whine that slips out is cut off in her throat as he gives her what she asked for. He can feel the effect of it as every part of both of their bodies seems to tighten, he can feel them reaching a breaking point.

It happens simultaneously, which he’d been pretty sure wasn’t actually possible until this moment but just as he’s about to tell her he can’t hold on any longer, her back arches violently and he’s cumming just as hard. A feral growl rumbles from deep in his chest as his hand leaves her throat so that both can grab onto her hips, pulling her into him over and over. As soon as it can be freed, his name spills over from her lips like a torrent that she couldn’t stop if she tried.

Even as it washes away, she’s murmuring it as if she has no control and it calls him to quiet her with a kiss. Her murmurs turn to a whimper against him as he drops his body and rolls them over the mattress until she’s draped over him and trailing her lips over his cheek and across his jaw. With his dick softening and still tucked inside her, she nuzzles her nose against the crook of his neck and gets comfortable.

“Babe, that was-“

“Shhh…” The air rushes past her teeth and hits the damp skin of the side of his neck, where his pulse is still pounding. “I have something to say.”

She typically says whatever she wants without preface or warning, he doesn’t ask her to continue though his curiosity is piqued.

“I’m probably a little in love with you too.” A grin that he can’t help spreads wide across his face as she props herself up to look into his eyes. “It’s kind of embarrassing, don’t tell anyone.” Her own sort of soft, lopsided grin forms on her lips and he thinks that she’s even more beautiful like this than she is with his dick in her mouth. He doesn’t want to ruin whatever is happening in this moment, but he knows he’d regret it if he didn’t at least ask.

“Can I say it?”

Her eyes roll but her smile remains. Her shoulders lift just slightly in a hesitant shrug and her chin drops with a barely-there nod and his heart feels like it’s about to beat through the solid wall of his chest. With a hand lifted to cradle her jaw, he makes sure she can’t look away.

After a deep breath in through his nose and out past his lips, he says it confidently.

“I love you.” It feels good, even as she tries to laugh it off. “Be with me.”

Her laughter stops as the smile slips from her face. “Jake, I-“

“Don’t say you can’t, why can’t you? You already are… no, please don’t Nic.” She’s pulling away, shifting off of his lap and the bed and running to the bathroom before he can get a grip on any part of her to keep her there.

He waits, defeated and anxious for a few minutes but she doesn’t emerge. Dragging himself from her bed, he pads across the room and knocks softly at the bathroom door as he rests his forehead against it.

“Can I come in? Please?” A mumbled yeah, sure comes from the other side so he opens the door slowly to find her staring at herself in the mirror, hands braced against the counter. “Nic I’m sorry, I just thought, I don’t know, you just told me you love me too. I’m confused…” Standing in the doorway, afraid to somehow make things worse by moving closer, he watches her face in the mirror as her stare doesn’t move from her own eyes. Silence falls over the small space as he holds his breath and waits.

Finally, she turns her body to face him. He’s never seen her look so unsure of herself, her normal self-confidence has been wiped from her features and even her posture. “What if this doesn’t work, Jake?”

“It does, it’s been working for almost two years. What are you afraid of?” He takes a hesitant step into the room.

“It’s bigger than just us. What if we fail, and we have to spend the rest of our lives avoiding each other at family dinners and birthday parties and, and all the other bullshit. Your brother is going to marry my best friend, I know it. She is literally a sister to me. If this doesn’t work, we have to deal with that forever.”

Another slow step and a half brings him close enough to reach out to her. He wraps his arms around her and pulls her in, she allows it but doesn’t reciprocate. Whispering into the hair covering her ear, he pleads with her.

“We won’t know if we don’t try. Are you not even willing to try?” She pulls away, swiping shaky fingers under her eyes. “I love you-“

“No, stop saying that. Fuck, I should not have let you say that. I think maybe you should go.”

“You’re not serious.”

Her head is nodding as she places a palm on his chest to put distance between them. Tears slip down her cheeks as she backs away further.

The despair he’s feeling turns into a hot anger as she reaches for the towel hanging on the wall behind her and wraps it around her naked form, hiding herself from him.

“Don’t do this. I get it, if you need to think about this. I get it, I do. But you’re about to send me away and shut me out, I can feel it. Don’t fucking do this, Nic, please!” His voice raises until he’s yelling, until it breaks with a sadness that feels like it’s crushing him. She’s stoic, unmoving and unreactive. “Fuck!”

He runs his hands up through his hair, pushing it back before running them down over his face as he tries to regain control over his emotions. With eyes closed, he pulls a few grounding breaths into his lungs before opening them to look at her again. An arm is crossed over her chest, she’s successfully closed herself off but their eyes connect.

Broken already, he tries one more time. It sounds pathetic even to him. “Baby, please.”

There’s regret on her face but she simply shakes her head and sniffles, as if she has the right to be hurt by her own actions. “I’m sorry…”

Two words, small and quiet, hit him so squarely in the chest that he almost stumbles backwards. He keeps moving that direction, turning to leave the bathroom and slamming the door closed behind him, shutting her in as he pulls his clothes on. She hears the bedroom door close with a bang, followed by her front door.

He’s gone.

Jake: Hey

Jake: Josh told me not to bother. They both did actually. But I know you’re going to be at Sam’s party and since you haven’t answered ANY of my calls I just wanted to tell you that I’ll do this however you want to

Jake: If you want to ignore each other, fine. If you want to pretend nothing ever happened, fine but can you at least give me a heads up so I know what you expect of me

Two of Sam’s birthdays have passed since the day he walked out of her apartment. Jake had conveniently “fallen ill” the day of the sixth birthday party, which had been only a few weeks after their relationship that never was had ended.

He knew it would be like this. As soon as he’d made it into his car, after pounding his fists against the steering wheel and one primal yell fueled by hurt and frustration, he knew that they would suffer the exact consequences she claimed she wanted to avoid.

Their nephew turned seven a few days ago, and the party is tomorrow. A year has flown by without her, and Jake had never been more grateful for a grueling tour schedule that kept him busy and focused on the only thing that mattered to him before he knew her.

He’d called, many times in the first couple of months and then sporadically in moments of weakness in the following year. She never answered. He’s not expecting an answer now, but somehow he’s been able to evade her presence up until their inevitable reunion tomorrow and he has no idea how he’s supposed to behave or how he’s going to react.

Hours pass, and by the time he’s lying in bed he’s given up hope that she’ll respond. He almost misses it when the faint sound of his phone vibrating breaks his concentration on the words he’s reading. The book is tossed aside immediately as he stretches to grab the phone, her name gracing the screen.

Nic: hi

Nic: i can be normal if you can

That’s it? That can’t be it.

Jake: Define normal

Nic: just act like an adult jake

It’s vague but he supposes he understands, even if her first words to him in thirteen months only serve to piss him off. He locks the screen and throws the phone back to the side table where it bounces and falls to the floor. It stays there for the night.

The next day is filled with tight, close-lipped smiles and nervous glances from his twin, eyes begging him to keep his cool. Fate or something crueler eventually pushes them together as they find themselves alone in the kitchen. She’s there as he closes the refrigerator door and the beer he’s holding nearly slips from his hand.

“The fruit punch not strong enough for you?” Leaned against the counter of the island, she offers him a smile that fails to reach her eyes. He offers nothing in return. Her proximity and the lack of another human buffer sets him on edge, and a year’s worth of missing her tightens his throat. Be normal.

Clearing his throat of emotion, he opens his mouth to reply but stuns them both in the process. “I can’t do this.” Her eyes widen in surprise but he’s even shocked himself with the truth of it. He can’t do this, time hasn’t changed him, other women haven’t changed the way he feels. “I’m sorry.”

Rather than cause a scene over it, he steps away from her to leave through the back door and rejoin the party.

They don’t see each other again for months.

Josh had finally proposed, which of course pushed Jake and Nic into their obvious roles of best man and maid of honor. Once engaged, however, Josh and his future bride decided they couldn’t wait much longer to become man and wife and the impending wedding date was looming over Jake’s head.

For his brother’s sake, he had pushed his feelings aside to make it through an engagement party and a rehearsal, though almost everyone seemed to be irritated with him when he couldn’t bring himself to offer her an arm to loop hers through as they practiced their walk back down the aisle after the bride and groom. When they arrived to the dinner following, Josh pulled him aside as the others mingled and placed drink orders at the bar.

“I need you to get it together, please, for all of us.”

Jake sighs deeply and pushes his hair back, running his fingers through it slowly as he considers his words. “I know. I will. I’m sorry Josh, it’s just…” Another sigh escapes as he trails off.

“Just what? It’s literally thirty seconds as you walk down the aisle.”

“I’m afraid to touch her.” His voice is weak and his eyes are tired as he raises them to meet his brother’s. “What if I can’t let her go?”

Understanding softens Josh’s expression as he assesses the man in front of him. Jake has never told the tale, after all this time, and has only ever expressed that they had been sleeping together until one day, they weren’t. He had seemed more angry than upset and Josh figured that things had ended in some kind of screaming match, he’d seen their strong personalities cause them to butt heads before.

But now he can see clearly what his twin has been hiding from him. Pain.

“You love her.” Jake drops his chin to his chest and his eyes to the floor for a moment before nodding his head and shooting Josh a look that says yeah, unfortunately. “I don’t get it, what happened?”

“We don’t have time to get into this right now, let’s go-“

“No, I’m making time. Why aren’t you together?”

Jake stays silent and lets his eyes scan the room until they find her. With a drink in her hand, she’s laughing with his little brother and her best friend, a light in her eyes that he wishes he could bask in but he can’t even get close enough to feel its warmth.

“She was scared. That it wouldn’t work, and we’d end up exactly how we are now. Avoiding each other at every turn.”

Josh looks on as Jake takes this time to watch her while she’s unaware, he’s already formulating a plan, turning over the words that he plans to say to his future wife later tonight. This is fixable, he thinks, and he owes it to his twin to meddle in a way that only family can.

“I think this is going to be okay, Jake. I can feel it. But you have to make it through the ceremony tomorrow and for the love of god, just take her arm and walk down the aisle when it’s over.”

He did it. The ceremony went off without a hitch, a small outdoorsy affair, it was exactly what Jake would have imagined for his twin. Emotion was high and he found himself wishing Josh would’ve allowed him to wear his sunglasses like he’d wanted, especially when he met their mother’s eyes and found tears spilling over from them to roll down her cheeks that she dabbed at with a tissue. Would he ever experience this from a groom’s point of view? He’s not hopeful.

Panic rises in his chest as Josh kisses his bride and their son moves to stand by his side. They walk back down the aisle as a family, Sam’s hand in his left and his other clasped around his wife’s, Jake can’t see their faces but he’s sure they’re all wearing bright smiles. They’re happy. He’s happy for them.

He tears his eyes away from them to meet Nic’s, her own are misty but also swimming with nerves, he’s sure that she thinks he’s about to fuck this up somehow. Willing his feet to move, he takes the steps to meet her and extends his arm to her. Her eyebrows lift in surprise and he’s almost offended that she didn’t believe he could do this, as if he would do anything to ruin what had been a pretty perfect day so far. When she loops her arm through his, they fall in step with each other to move down the aisle. She speaks softly through the smile she’s wearing for the cameras and other guests.

“You look good in a suit, Kiszka.”

He feels it when his own smile, also put on for show, relaxes into something genuine. “I know I do.”

It makes her laugh, the sound of it makes his skin crawl but not in aversion. His entire being craves it, he needs to hear it every day for the rest of his life. “Heaven forbid you actually button your shirt though, huh?”

“That wouldn’t be very rock and roll of me, now would it?” She does it again, let’s a small chuckle slip from her lips and he wishes he could taste it.

Josh was right, thirty seconds or so and they’ve reached the end of the aisle, he should let her go as they keep walking to follow the couple and prepare for the countless photographs that need to be taken, but he had also been right. He can’t let her go.

Instead of pulling away from him though, she lifts her other hand to wrap it around the arm that hasn’t released her. What the fuck?

They do eventually separate, but not before the newly married couple sees the way they’ve remained attached outside of the performance required to complete the ceremony. Josh and his wife exchange a knowing glance.

With the groom’s side of the wedding party accustomed to dressing up and taking pictures, the session of photography goes as quickly as it can, but by the end of it Jake is itching for a drink. Knowing there’s still more of a show to put on before he can actually relax, he pulls out the flask that he’d tucked into the interior pocket of his suit jacket as they’re led to where they’re all meant to wait for their entrance to the reception.

“Care to share? What is it, whiskey?” Her voice floats to his ears from beside him and he glances in her direction as he takes a long pull of the burning liquid. He passes the flask to her as he sucks a hiss through his teeth after swallowing it. Their fingers touch as she takes it from him, the contact burns as well and the heat spreading through his chest is mirrored by the heat that travels up his arm.

He waits to speak until after she’s thrown her head back to take a shot, barely flinching as she swallows. Once again, he’s shocked by his own words. “You really can’t blame me for falling for you.”

“What?”

He keeps his tone casual, knowing now is not the time or place to start this conversation but not finding it within himself to care anymore. Even as the wedding planner is moving people around, getting them in position to enter the tent encompassing the party, he can’t stop himself.

“You shoot whiskey without so much as a grimace, you’re unapologetically yourself at all times, you look painfully beautiful in that dress and I know you’ll somehow be even more stunning when you take it off.” Her jaw has dropped slightly as he takes her arm and loops it through his again, they’re moments away from being led to their grand entrance before the bride and groom but he’s not finished.

“You’re kind of a pain in the ass and you’re so fucking good to the people you love.” He means that, he knows she would do anything for his now sister-in-law, his nephew, even his brother. “Everyone but me.”

Her eyes nearly bulge out of her head but at that second, they’re being pushed forward as they’re announced to the guests. He paints a wide smile onto his face and leads her through the center of the space as she shakes the shock away and replaces it with another smile for the cameras. The more reserved twin, he’s got nothing too entertaining planned for their introduction and he’s shaken her enough that she can only follow along as he leads her to her seat at the wedding party’s table. Before moving to his own, he leans in to whisper directly into her ear.

“We’ll finish that conversation later.”

Really, he’s not even sure that that’s true. She may never speak to him again, but he pushes it out of his mind to make it to his next drink. Fortunately, one is brought to him as he watches his brother sway through his first dance with his bride. He finishes it without even tasting its contents and sips from his flask through the bride and groom's thank yous until another is brought around before dinner.

Josh leans in to him as he starts to pick at the meal. “Don’t you think you should slow down on the whiskey there, Jake? You still have to give a speech.”

“I’m fine, I’m not gonna ruin your moment Josh.”

“It’s not my moment I’m worried about, but if you piss her off,” he jerks a thumb in the direction of his wife, “I’m gonna let her beat your ass.”

They share a laugh but Josh is dead serious and Jake knows it. He sips his fresh drink slowly and takes long swigs from his glass of water between bites of his food.

Nerves take over as he’s called to give his speech and he pulls his sunglasses from where they’ve been hiding in his pocket for most of the day. As he slips them onto his face he mouths a sorry down to his twin. The speech is short, sweet and heartfelt and the glasses serve their purpose to hide his eyes when they become glassy. He can’t bring himself to look at Nic as she delivers her own words about love and relationships, but unfortunately he can’t stop himself from hearing them. She may be speaking about the love shared between two different people but all he can hear is what could have been, what should have been theirs.

As soon as he’s able to, he excuses himself from the table to find a moment alone. Sure that he won’t be missed, he hides on the outskirts of the celebration until a few people make their way toward him lighting cigarettes as they walk. The perfect excuse to keep his distance for a little while longer, he asks if he can have one. Once it’s lit, he thanks them and moves away, wanting continued solitude for the next seven to ten minutes.

About three minutes in, as the nicotine is buzzing between his temples, the solitude is disrupted. His eyes are closed but he hears the footsteps approach, they open just as she tugs the cigarette from his lips to place it between her own and take a drag. He watches the smoke float to the darkened sky as she blows it upward and keeps the cigarette between her own fingers.

“You don’t smoke, Jake.”

“Neither do you, Nicole.”

Her expression is soft as she reprimands him. “I hate it when you call me that.”

“Yeah, that’s why I do it.”

She huffs out a quiet laugh before taking another drag and handing the cigarette back to him. Their fingers graze each other again as he takes it and this time he’s positive that she feels the sting of it, pulling her hand away quickly.

“You really do look lovely, I meant that.. earlier.”

Her head tilts to the side as she takes him in, but she can’t read his eyes behind the dark lenses. “Is there more that you wanna say, pretty boy? Now’s your chance, I need another drink and then I’m gonna dance my ass off for the rest of the night.” There’s a playfulness behind the smirk on her lips and dancing in her eyes, but he thinks her question was serious and requires an answer.

“There’s over a year’s worth of things I wanna say. I’m not sure you’re ready to hear them.” Tossing the butt to the ground, he stamps it out with the toe of his shoe and shoves his hands into his pants pockets, a feeble attempt to keep them off of her.

She tries her hand at surprising him with her reply. “There’s no time like the present.”

“Ha, you asked for it.” Thankful that he’d chosen a relatively secluded little spot to hide away in, he crowds her space until she’s backed into the trunk of a tree.

“Jake, what the f-“

“No, you wanted this and I do have some things to say to you.” He’s not touching her, won’t touch her until she wants him to, but one of his hands is braced against the tree just over her shoulder and only a few inches of space separates their bodies. His other hand comes up to slip the sunglasses from the bridge of his nose and he folds them and slides them back into his pocket. She doesn’t look away as his eyes bore into hers but her chin juts forward in defiance.

“Go ahead then.”

He takes a few breaths and hopes that any one of the thoughts racing through his brain will come out cohesively.

“I love you.” She flinches as if he’d pulled back to slap her. “I don’t care if that hurts. I’ve spent every second since I walked out of your fucking bathroom hurting. Months on the road didn’t take it away, fucking other people didn’t take it away. Every single one of them was you when I closed my eyes, but not one of them could compare.”

Her head nods slowly in understanding, wearing a brave mask that’s slipping as her eyes shine in the light that’s reaching them from the tent.

“I haven’t stopped being yours, not for a moment, probably since the night we met. How can you not see that?”

When her hands come up to slide over the bare skin of his chest and tuck themselves just under the edges of his shirt, he thinks she’s going to push him away again, his head drops in defeat. At least he tried.

“Look at me.”

When their eyes meet again, his are unbearably sad and her breath hitches as a single tear escapes and he lets it roll.

“Is it too late?” One hand slides up his chest, over the soft skin at the base of his neck until her fingers are nestled in his hair.

He sniffles and swipes his thumb over the track left behind by the tear he’d let slip. “For what, Nic?”

“For me to try for you.”

“Please don’t fuck with me right now.”

“Baby…” The soft pet name squeezes his heart, but does nothing to dispel the renewed fear of rejection. “I’ll probably never be able to tell you how sorry I am. And what would apologies even be worth, at this point? Can we… I don’t know, can we start over?”

His head is shaking as he grips her wrist to pull her hand from his hair, he grabs the other to remove that hand from his chest but once both of her hands are held tight in his, he tells her, “No.”

“No?”

“No. I can’t start over. I’m so fucking deep in love with you, I can’t start from the beginning. I want everything with you. I want what they have, I want more. If you can’t-“

She cuts him off with her lips, pushed against his so hard that it hurts as she rips her hands from his to throw her arms over his shoulders. He’s slow to react, unsure if this is real until his palms are running up the exposed skin of her back and a fist is wrapped in the loose curls that hang there. He presses her into the tree behind her with his hips as her mouth opens to him and he tastes the desperation on her tongue.

Mind reeling, he’s strongly considering fucking her here, against a tree while his brother’s wedding reception is in full swing not all that far away. It wouldn’t be the first time they’ve done it with the very real risk of getting caught and it’s pretty clear that her thoughts are similar as he feels one of her legs raise until it’s hitched over his hip.

As soon as his fingertips sink into the thigh that’s wrapped around him, a throat clears behind his back.

He pulls his face from hers, breaking the kiss and startling them both into awareness of their surroundings, but he doesn’t release his hold on her leg and he’s suddenly unsure if he’d imagined the sound or not.

“Ahem, umm, your presence is being missed over here guys. Both of you.”

Her thigh slips from his hip as she cranes her neck to see the elder Sam smirking behind the drink he’s sipping. Jake still doesn’t move away from her, not willing to let the moment end yet.

“Please tell me my little brother is not standing back there when I could be inside you right now, tell me I’m imagining that.”

Her laughter rings out into the night, loud and sincere and he finally feels whole again. “Nope, dear Samuel is definitely there and has ruined the mood. Unless you want him to watch.”

Taking half a step back, allowing her to smooth out her dress, he adjusts himself in his pants and huffs out, “Fuck no, he doesn’t get to see what’s mine.” Her head whips back up at the statement but he only grins mischievously. “You’re mine. Say it.”

She only thinks it over for a second before her smile stretches wide, blinding him with how bright it is. “Yeah, Kiszka. I am yours. Now come dance with me.” She grabs him by the hand to lead him past Sam before he can reply, he snatches the drink from his little brother’s hand as they pass and downs what remains in one gulp. Avoiding anyone who may have questions about where they’ve been, he discards the empty glass on a table as she tugs him directly onto the dance floor.

“You know, I’m really no good at dancing.”

“You know I’ll do most of the work, handsome.”

As the song he’d swear he’s never heard before in his life comes to an end, he lets her walk in front of him to the small bar and he’s only got a hope and a prayer that his friends and most of his family can’t tell that he’s rock hard. He keeps her close as they order their drinks and as they wait, he feels a familiar hand grab onto his shoulder. Turning his head without moving his body away from her, he finds Josh with what might be the stupidest looking grin he’s ever seen, nearly splitting his face in half.

“Joshua, how’s married life treating you?”

“Fucking fantastic. What’s going on here?” Never one for subtlety, he places his other hand on Nic’s shoulder. “I heard you two were about to defile each other under a tree. At my wedding? Animals!” He’s drunk and happy and Jake doesn’t have the heart to be annoyed with him.

“I wouldn’t trust your resources, Josh.” Nic is giggling as she tries to cover for them, Jake smiles at the sound of it.

“Ah, but I do trust them. And it looks like you trusted my instincts. Didn’t I tell you?” Before he can further elaborate, he’s being pulled away to fulfill some other duty required of the groom. The look of confusion on Jake’s face makes her eyes roll but she doesn’t seem disturbed by what his brother had said.

“What does that mean, what did he tell you?” She takes a long drink from the glass that’s been placed in front of her before answering.

“They’re quite a pair, those two. A formidable team. They ganged up on me last night after the rehearsal dinner.”

The rehearsal dinner. Where Jake had told his twin the truth and Josh had returned with a suspiciously confident “this is gonna be okay”.

“Ganged up on you how?” His stomach is already churning over whatever she’s about to tell him. She can see apprehension written plainly on his face.

“Your brother had some pretty… pointed questions for me regarding the way things had ended between us. Did you really not tell him anything?” He simply shakes his head in response. “He seemed sort of mad at me. He said he didn’t know that I had… hurt you.”

He lets his head fall back for a moment before lifting it to return his eyes to hers. “Okay. But the fact that I was hurt wasn’t a surprise to you. So what else did he say?”

“After I told him the short version of what had happened, I told him that I had been in love with you, and that scared me more than anything else.”

Staying silent, he lets had been run through his head until blood is rushing in his ears. Had been, had been, she had been but she’s not anymore.

“He told me I'd fucked up. And he asked me if I still had feelings for you.”

“And?”

“Will you dance with me?” The question comes out of left field and he watches with wide eyes as she chugs the rest of her drink and grabs his hand. Before he can object, he’s being pulled to the center of the dance floor and they’re quickly surrounded by couples wrapped up in each other as soft notes from a piano ring through the air.

Her arms loop behind his neck and she twirls a lock of hair around a finger as his hands come to rest at her hips.

“I’m not done with this conversation, Nic.”

“I love this song. Do you like Adele or is that like, too mainstream for an extremely cool rockstar like you?” The string lights over head are making her eyes sparkle as she continues to avoid his words.

“I do like her. Guilty pleasure, and all that.” The lyrics to this particular song would threaten to bring him to his knees right now if he dared to listen.

Their bodies sway softly as she smiles at his admission, and he can feel eyes on them but he’s not sure from which direction. “Nic, what did you say when he asked if you still had feelings for me?”

“I told him the truth of course. Am I not always brutally honest?”

He pulls her closer, hands moving around her waist and palms flat on her lower back. With his lips close to her ear, he’s sure that from the outside it looks like they’re having a sweet moment. “Stop doing that, tell me what you fucking said.” He feels her fingers tighten in his hair and her hips push forward into his.

Directly against the shell of his ear, she breathes the words. “I never stopped loving you.”

He lowers his lips to her shoulder and presses a soft kiss there before pulling back to look at her. The lights that had been sparkling in her eyes before are dancing off of the tears that are about to spill over. “I’m so sorry I didn’t know how to let you in. I still don’t know if I do, but I’d like to try.”

“Say it again.”

“I love you, Jake.”

“God, I love you too. Say it one more time.” His grin probably matches the incredibly idiotic one his twin was wearing just a few minutes ago at the bar, but he doesn’t care. He doesn’t care about how he looks, he doesn’t care about anyone else under this tent, he truthfully doesn’t even care that this is someone else’s wedding. This is their moment.

Her own smile stretches slowly, his is wildly contagious and she’s positive she’s never felt anything like this before. “I love you.”

His hands slide up her back until they’re both tangled at the back of her head and he pulls her in to solidify this as a memory he will hold onto forever. Their lips meet softly, tentatively, as if it’s the first time. Melting into it, they continue to sway to the music as the rest of the world falls away. As the final notes slip through the space, he breaks the kiss just to press two more to her lips, another to her cheek and a final one to her forehead before he rests his own against it.

“Uncle Jake! Uncle Jake!” Little Sam is running toward them, though of course he’s not so little anymore. He’s definitely going to be taller than Josh. Jake doesn’t bother kneeling to his level as he slides to a stop, almost crashing into their legs.

Jake reaches a hand out to ruffle it through Sam’s hair, almost as long as his own, but Sam instantly takes offense and runs his own fingers through it to put the strands back into place.

“What’s up, dude?”

Sam looks them over quickly, takes in the way Jake’s other arm is still wrapped around his aunt. He reaches up to tug at Jake’s sleeve covering his bicep, waves him down as if he has a secret to tell. Jake obliges and leans down as Sam cups his hands around his mouth next to Jake’s ear.

“Is Aunt Nic your girlfriend now?”

Jake straightens as he laughs at the little boy’s question and his overall innocence. “Why don’t you ask her, bud.”

“Okayyyyy, Auntie Nic, are you guys boyfriend and girlfriend?”

It’s her turn to laugh for the same reasons, and as she meets Jake’s gaze he’s got his eyebrows lifted as if he too is awaiting the answer.

She pretends to think about it, a hand brought up to cup her chin. “Umm, yeah. Yeah, we are. Is that cool?”

“Yeah! Are you gonna get married too?”

“Okay that’s enough questions, run along you little heathen! Where are your parents?” Jake takes him by the shoulders and turns him away, shooing him along to run back across the dance floor.

“Kids, am I right?” Her cheeks are a rosy pink and she’s still smiling as he takes her hand and pulls her off the dance floor in the opposite direction that he’d sent the kid off to. “Where are we going?”

“We’re leaving.”

“I don’t think we’re supposed to leave this early, we’re like, part of the wedding.”

“Don’t care. We’re leaving.”

“Okay? My place or yours?”

“Mine. My bed is bigger, and I have plans for you. A lot of lost time to make up for.”

His words are rushing out of him as he tugs her along, they’re practically running as they reach one of the cars that are waiting specifically for the wedding party. He opens the door for her and she climbs inside without hesitation though she does have questions. “Jake, what’s the hurry?”

He pulls her in for a lingering kiss as soon as his ass hits the seat next to her and murmurs against her skin as he trails his lips over her jaw and they land on her shoulder. “I need to be inside you, need to hear you tell me you love me when I make you cum, I fucking need you.”

Breathless and hoping the driver is minding his own business, she whimpers confirmation that she needs him too. He offers his address over his shoulder and tells the guy to drive. He briefly wonders if it will always be like this, if he’ll ever actually believe that he’s lucky enough to have her, if he’ll ever get used to the feeling of being loved by her.

He hopes that it’ll always be like this.

It’s nearly impossible to keep his hands off of her but somewhere in the back of his mind he knows that if he takes it too far in this backseat, someone in his family will find out about it and he’ll never hear the end of it. She hasn’t bothered trying and her left hand has been roaming his lap since the car started moving. By the time they’re pulling into his driveway, his entire body is thrumming with impatience, his fingertips are tingling with it.

She exits first and he pats himself down, looking for his wallet. Fuck.

“Hey man, I left my wallet there, I don’t have any cash on me.”

“Sir, you’re actually not required to tip me. I was hired to drive you home.”

“Sure, but nobody’s paying you to hear.. um, what you heard. I'm sorry about that.”

The driver, clearly a professional, hardly bats an eye as his gaze meets Jake’s in the rear view mirror. “I’ve heard worse, sir. Have a good night.”

That’s good enough for him and he’s bounding out of the backseat and jogging up the driveway to meet her at his front door. “Babe, I left everything back there, we have to go in through the garage.”

They’re both giggling at the eagerness that had him completely forgetting his belongings, including his keys, but she reaches out to pull him in by the lapels of his jacket as they wait for the garage door to roll open. “Kiss me, you idiot.”

“Your idiot.” Their lips meet and hers open to him instantly, her tongue skating over the fullness of his bottom lip until his own slips out and against hers. Neither of them registers the silence right away as the garage door stops moving, and the material of her dress at her hips is being bunched into his fists as his fingers scramble to gather it until the cool night air is breezing over the skin of her thighs.

“Jake…” She pulls away to get his attention, but it’s been refocused on the skin at the base of her neck and his teeth graze over the spot. “Jake.”

He still doesn’t respond so she pushes him off of her and turns to walk into the garage. Dazed, he follows after her and watches as she slides the thin straps of her dress over her shoulders. As she reaches the door and enters the house, she’s shrugging her arms free of the fabric but the door slamming shut behind her stops her movements and nearly causes her to jump out of her skin. When she whips around to scold him, the look on his face steals her breath.

His eyes are dark, nearly black in the absence of light inside the house. His lips are ever so slightly parted but she watches as he presses them together before slipping the tip of his tongue over the bottom one then tucking it between his teeth.

“Please don’t take that dress off before you get upstairs. Let me do it.”

She nods in response and turns away again, he trails after her slowly, allows her to take her time when she pauses to brace herself against the wall and lift each foot to unfasten the straps of her shoes and kick them aside. He toes his own off and leaves them behind as she makes her way through the dark house, up the stairs and into his bedroom where she turns to face him as he crosses the threshold. She’s expecting him to take her into his arms, but he moves past her and clicks on the small lamp on one of the nightstands, illuminating them in a soft glow.

Confused when he sits on the edge of the bed, she moves to stand between his spread legs and his hands find her body immediately. Wrapped around her back, his arms pull her closer until he’s pressing kisses into the skin of her chest just above the neckline of her dress and she buries her fingers in his hair. Silently, he reaches up to finish what she’d started, finding the tiny zipper at the center of her back and tugging it down until the dress is hanging open down to the soft swell of her ass. He lifts his eyes to hers but lets them drop to follow the path of the material as it slips, revealing her breasts and then her stomach, until it slides past her hips and pools at her feet. Dragging his gaze back up, he takes in every freckle, every mark that he’d thought he’d be forced to forget about.

A little overwhelmed, he sucks a deep breath in through his nose and releases it from his mouth before looking up at her face. “I- God. I can’t believe you’re here right now.”

His hands are roaming over her bare skin, fingers tucked under the lace at her hips and he takes another shaky breath as he pushes her underwear down past her thighs and watches them land, circling her ankles.

“Jake?” She pets over his hair and tucks some behind his ear to coax his face back up. “You okay?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m good. I didn’t think I’d ever be this good again.” Maintaining the eye contact, smiling up at her, he slips a hand between her thighs and finds her skin already slick. She hums at his touch and ends on a soft whimper as he runs two fingers through her arousal. “How are you so wet already, I haven’t even done anything?”

“Why does your dick get hard when all I’ve done is dance with you?”

It makes him laugh, a low chuckle that shakes his shoulders. “I don’t think that’s exactly the same thing.” Before she can offer a retort, his fingers between her legs push just barely past her entrance, tucked just inside her cunt. Her body reacts, hips pushing forward and fingers tightening their hold in his hair. “Want more?”

“Everything, I want everything.”

Slowly he pushes into her until his palm is pressed against her clit, her hips rock into it as his other hand reaches back to grip a handful of her ass, pulling her in until he can wrap his lips around one of her nipples. Tongue swirling over it, he lets her fuck herself gently on his fingers, considers pulling them out and skipping foreplay but the quiet sounds she’s letting out are making his dick throb in his pants. Popping off of her nipple, he grazes over it with his teeth to hear the little whine that he knows will follow.

“Baby?” God, that feels good. She hums in question before he curls his fingers forward, snatching a low moan from her throat. “Need to get my mouth on you, taste you. Please.”

“Whatever you want.”

He’s not greedy but he does like the sound of that. Slipping his fingers from her, he slides them up and flicks the tip of one over her clit, laughs when she yelps. Standing from the bed to wrap her in his arms, he whispers into her hair covering her ear, “All I want is you.”

The Nic that he knew before would have scoffed at that, probably made an exaggerated gagging noise, possibly even wrapped her hands around her throat for emphasis. But the woman pressing kisses into the side of his neck does none of those things as she shrugs his arms off of her and starts to push his jacket from his shoulders. It hits the edge of the mattress and slides to the floor as he scoops her up rather unceremoniously and tosses her onto the bed, where she props herself up on her elbows and plants her feet as laughter rings through the room.

Before he joins her there, he pops the two buttons holding his shirt closed and lets it fall to join her dress and his jacket. As he places his hand over the button at his waist, her eyes lock onto it. He watches her watching him as the button comes undone and the zipper comes down and her legs seem to fall open of their own accord. He rushes to push the pants and briefs off of his hips and step out of them.

She stops him with a hand placed on his shoulder as he scrambles to lay between her thighs. Unsure of what’s happening, he hovers over her and waits for an explanation.

“You look different.” Time has passed and it has changed him, just a little.

“I am different.” Physically, maybe. He hasn’t bothered to take much care of himself in the past year, but mentally he’s very different. “You look the same.” He comes to rest on his stomach, face inches away from what he needs so badly until he moves in and places a kiss directly to her heated skin. “Perfect.”

Wrapping his arms around her thighs on either side of his head, he finally, finally, gets a taste. It’s addictive and he’s been chasing this high for too long, he forgets for a moment that there’s a goal in mind as he opens his mouth over her and sucks her in, pressing his face into her cunt until he’s struggling to breathe. It doesn’t matter, he could die like this and it would be exactly how he’s meant to go. He wants to take it slow, just how she likes it but it’s just not going to be possible and when her hips buck against him and the tip of his nose catches her clit, her sharp gasp tells him that this is just fine.

He pulls away to take a breath and her thighs are already trembling in his grip as he lowers his face again and licks a long, broad stripe through her and sucks her clit past his lips. Rolling his tongue over it, a groan rumbles up from his chest as her hands sink into his hair and pull him in until she’s grinding against him.

She’s cursing and murmuring his name, when he opens his eyes to look up at her she’s already watching him. “Fuck. You’re beautiful like this, ya know. Ohhh…” Her attempt at cheekiness is disrupted as he flicks the tip of his tongue over her. Her back arches from the mattress when he does it again, so he keeps doing it. He does it until she’s writhing against his sheets, until her legs close around his head, until she’s telling him that she’s right there, gonna cum, don’t stop.

Just before she falls, right before it breaks, she lets it go. “I love you, I fucking love you- oh fuck.” He growls into her, that was better than he could’ve imagined. He needs that forever, and he plans to get it at least one more time tonight. His own hips are rocking into the bed beneath him, searching for any small amount of relief as he laps at her softly until her body relaxes. When her legs fall away from him, he’s quick to crawl over her and capture her mouth with his, slick with her release.

Their tongues swirl together and she groans at the taste of herself on him before he pulls back and rests his forehead on hers.

“I love you too. Let me show you.”

She nods her head and presents him with a soft, close-lipped smile that he thinks he’s maybe seen before, but he doesn’t remember it looking like that. As he leans back and reaches between them to run himself through her core, he takes a deep breath and tells her so.

“I was wrong.” He lines himself up with her. “You do look different.” He pushes in and drops his eyes to watch the head disappear into her body. “You look happy.” He pulls his hand away to wrap both of them around the small of her waist. “Are you happy?”

She breathes out as he pulls her onto him slowly, stretching her around him. “Are you, Jake?”

He sighs deeply as he sinks in and bottoms out. “Happier than I’ve ever been.”

A hand reaches out to wrap itself around the back of his neck and she pulls his body down to cover hers, nose to nose she tells him, “Me too.”

When their lips meet, he pulls his hips back and withdraws as slowly as he’d entered before delivering a deep stroke.

“Oh, shit Jake…”

“I know, I know,” He strokes into her again, again as he builds a fluid rhythm, “but you take it so well. So fucking perfect.”

She’s whining as he tucks his face into her neck and whispers more words of affirmation, her legs lift to wrap around him but she doesn’t press him for more, this is exactly what they both need. Something that they’ve never done. Not like this. They simply enjoy it for what it is as he brings the tips of his fingers to skim over her jaw and draws them down her throat and over her collarbone. She releases a content sigh when they dance over the curve of her breast and continue their journey down her ribs and past her stomach. When his palm slides over her hip and lands high on her outer thigh, he slips his hand underneath her body and holds tight to the softness of her ass.

He can’t help it when uses the leverage of his grip to pull her to him and thrusts sharply.

“Yes, again, do it again.”

Of course he does as she commands, and without realizing it he’s sped up his pace. They’re slipping against each other, mostly his fault as he seems to be running hotter than he ever has and nearly all of their skin is touching. He has to lift himself away, releasing her backside to prop himself up on his hands, allowing him to roll his body into his thrusts.

“Baby, I’m close, I’m sorry. I can’t-“ He pulls a deep breath in and blows it past his lips. “I can’t help it. You feel so fucking good.”

“Shh, don’t be sorry, cum with me.” She runs her hands over the sticky skin of his back.

Her words surprise him, she hasn’t given him any sign that she was close. He’s not discouraged by that, they’d been riding a steady wave of pleasure that just happened to start its break over him. She surprises him again when he feels her squeeze his cock.

“C’mon, fuck me a little.” There’s a cocky smirk on her face and he returns it as he starts to fuck into her with purpose. “Justlikethat,” it rushes from her lungs on one breath and she’s tightening around him, her fingernails digging into his skin.

The wave crashes so abruptly that he can’t even offer her a warning other than a grunted fuck as he spills over. Through the rush of it, he can feel her nails drag down his back and suddenly her body contorts as it bows and lifts from the bed and his new favorite phrase flows from her lips to his ears.

I love you, I love you, I love you.

The full, comprehensive relief that he feels in this moment is unreal. He’ll never forget it.

He resists dropping his body to hers as the wave slips away in retreat, instead he pulls his hips back slowly, wincing at the sensation. He intended to stretch out beside her but his release is already dripping from her and he watches gravity pull it toward the sheets until she reaches out to tug him down to the bed. Landing on his back, his chest is still heaving as she rolls into his side and runs her fingers through the slick sweat that’s pooling just below his sternum.

As he works to calm his breathing, she speaks.

“This feels good. It feels right.”

Covering her hand on his chest with his own, he grabs onto it and lifts it to his lips, kisses the tip of each finger. “Yeah… yeah it does.”

They fall back into comfortable silence, their hands intertwined and held over his heart. After a few minutes, she asks if he wants to take a shower with her.

“Mm, yes. But not yet.”

“You’re sticky.”

“Don’t care. We have time.” He kisses her hand again and shifts to roll to his side, propping his head up onto his fist to face her. The blush on her cheeks and chest is fading, her hair is disheveled and strands of it are stuck to the side of her neck. She’s beautiful. “We have all the time in the world. Forever, I hope.”

Her breath catches but she doesn’t push him away. She moves over him until his back is pressed to the mattress again, hands braced on either side of him, her face hovering over his, she nudges the tip of his nose with hers. “You think you can handle forever with me, pretty boy?”

He grabs her and pulls her in, rolls their bodies until he’s nestled between her legs and he’s looking down at her. Her eyebrows shoot up as she feels him getting hard again, pressed against her thigh.

“I know I can, but can you handle me?”

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