#Small kitchen ventilation
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symphonylimited · 1 month ago
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marrelica · 5 months ago
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Love making sataraĆĄ in the august evening <3
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hooddepot01 · 2 months ago
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Commercial Kitchen Hoods - Hood Depot Inc.
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wileys-russo · 10 months ago
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filling the void (4) II a.putellas x sister!reader
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prequel one two three
filling the void (4) II a.putellas x sister!reader
you looked up from your coffee as the front door opened, your sister walking through and pulling her headphones down around her neck clearly having gone for a run.
"bon dia hermana." she greeted as you only nodded, sipping on your coffee and breathing a small sigh of relief when alexia headed toward her bedroom.
when she returned a few minutes later her headphones were gone and she'd taken off her runners, padding her way into the kitchen to make herself a coffee and start breakfast.
as you sat at the bench drifting away into your own world alexia was stuck in her head just as much as you were, between worries for eli and worries for you her mind was a mess, only worsening after your confession last night.
a confession which you were praying to every and all god that alexia wouldn't bring up, already incredibly embarrassed about your outburst at the hospital you didn't think you'd handle having to confront anything else head on right now.
olga could sense the tension in the room before she even entered, needing to head off to madrid for a few days for work she'd spent most of this morning worrying about what might happen while she was away but alexia had been firm that it was important she still go.
"hola pequeña." the older girl greeted you as you sent her a smile, alexia glancing over her shoulder in surprise when you didn't make any comment on the use of the nickname, though really she should figure she'd lost the right to battle you about that anyway with her behavior lately.
"amor you called jona sĂ­?" olga murmered, alexia nodding and stealing a kiss when you weren't looking as if you were still a child, the captain having taken the next two days off from training to make sure she was around with everything going on.
"two days, more if i need them." alexia murmured, olga smiling appreciatively knowing how hard it was for her girlfriend to take time off, her work ethic just as dangerous as it was admirable at times.
both girls turned their heads as you awkwardly cleared your throat, alexia wordlessly raising an eyebrow as your fingers drummed anxiously against the ceramic walls of the coffee mug clenched tightly in hand, the beverage itself now long gone luke warm.
"can you take me home please? i have work at nine." you asked quietly, alexia hesitating for a moment as if unsure of a response. "you don't want to come to the hospital?" your sister asked carefully, olgas hand moving to rest on top of hers on the counter.
"i have to work." you answered again, a little firmer this time. "hermana if you call your boss and explain i am sure that-" alexia tried again as you shook your head. "i have to work. i have my routine and i need to be home to follow it, all my things are there. alexia can you please take me home?" you stood abruptly, jaw clenched as you smoothed out the clothes you'd been wearing for the last near twelve hours.
as alexia opened her mouth her girlfriend gently tapped a finger against her knuckles in a silent warning. "i can take you on my way to the gym nena." olga stepped in with a smile as you nodded, alexia watching you hurry away to the bedroom to grab your phone and house keys.
"why does she not want to-" alexia frowned as her girlfriend shook her head, cutting her off. "leave it ale. you need what you need, and fresa needs what fresa needs." olga warned softly, hand tracing the catalan's sharp jawline which tensed but none the less the blonde nodded.
"do you want-" "i'll cook something when i get back before my flight mi vida, go see your mami." olga kissed her cheek, alexia sending her a small smile and pecking her lips a few times in silent appreciation before you returned.
"ready to go?"
~
"-no there's still no update, she's still not really awake yet and she's still on the ventilator." alexia explained with a sigh, on her way back to the car and on the phone for what felt like the hundredth time today, having swallowed the bullet and starting to reach out to close family members to let them know what happened.
"tĂ­a i promise as soon as she is awake and less high risk i will call you right away, for now she is not allowed many visitors. alba and i only saw her for a few minutes today and we were waiting for hours." alexia fished her keys out of her pocket and hummed, the rapid spanish on the other end of the line the same thing she'd heard all day.
"sĂ­ fresa is okay, alba and i are looking after her." alexia spoke on autopilot despite the way the words felt like ashes in her mouth, an incoming call having her rapidly finish up the conversation, abruptly hanging up and clicking accept.
"hola hermana." alexia sighed tiredly, holding the phone between her ear and shoulder as she paid for her parking and rolled her eyes at the high price but tapping her card none the less.
"were you picking fresa up from work?" alba asked, a slight worry to her tone as alexia frowned, stopping in her tracks. "no. she said you were picking her up, olga dropped her off this morning." alexia answered, hurrying to her car.
"well thats what i thought too. but i am here, the clinic is closed and she is not here, nobody is." alba replied, having left the hospital a couple of hours ago. "mierda. maybe she took the bus? i can go past mami's house now to check if she is there." alexia decided, promising to keep alba in the loop as she hurried out of the parking garage.
alexia wasn't sure to be relieved or annoyed when she pulled into the driveway and noticed the house lights were on, the blurred shadows of a figure moving behind the drawn curtains could be just faintly seen.
knocking on the front door a few times alexia tapped her foot, frowning when the door only opened a slight crack and your head poked out. "what?" you asked, a little bluntly as your sister seemed taken aback.
"alba went to pick you up from work and you were not there, we were worried." alexia started as you rolled your eyes, still refusing to open the door properly. "i finish early on mondays." you answered.
"oh, i didn't know." your sister frowned as you scoffed slightly. "why would you alexia? i'm surprised you both even know where i work." the older girls cheeks flushed a little with warmth.
"hermanita-" 'don't, please." you cut her off before she could speak, not in the mood for the conversation you knew she'd want to start right now.
"pack a bag then, you can stay with me again tonight." your sister forced a smile as you gave her an odd look as if she'd grown a second head. "why?" though when all you received in response was a knowing look, your eyes rolled once more.
"alexia, go home. i am fine here by myself, i have work tomorrow again and i already told you i have a routine." you sighed trying to close the door, frustration growing as the blondes foot wedged in the way.
"then i will stay here, i still have some things in my room." the girl persisted as you shook your head. "you don't need to, and i don't want you to." you replied sharply, though you winced as something thudded behind you.
"oh but you are fine by yourself? who is here with you." alexia's demeanor switched as you kicked at her foot and attempted to shove the door closed but to no avail as your sister easily overpowered your attempts and pushed it open, nearly sending you to the floor as she marched in like a mad woman.
"who is that!?"
you scrambled to your feet and quickly snatched up the four year old who went running toward your sister, sitting her on your hip as alexia stared at you wide eyed and in shock.
"whose niña is this?" alexia stammered out as you sighed and closed the front door. "this is sofía." you introduced, alexia's face softening a little at the shy gap toothed smile the small girl gave her.
"sof this is alexia, she's mi hermana." you introduced back, alexia giving a small wave and melting even further at the way sofía tucked her head into your neck. "since when are you shy pequeña?" you teased, a giggle sounding as you poked at her stomach.
"okay sof, how about you go watch your show while i finish dinner and talk to alexia. if you need anything you come get me or just yell out, vale?" you placed her back down as she immediately hid behind your leg, peeking out at alexia who gave her another wave.
"vale." the four year old chirped, tugging on the hem of your shorts as you bent down to her level, something whispered in your ear making you laugh and tickle her again as she giggled and raced back off to the living room.
"she's one of my friends daughters, her baby sitters sick so i offered to watch her." you explained to your sister who nodded, a little dumbfounded as she followed you back to the kitchen.
"have you been here alone with her all day?" alexia asked with an air of concern as you stirred whatever you were cooking, which your sister wouldn't deny smelt leagues better than anything she made herself these days.
"no, just a couple hours. elena does night school monday through wednesday to get her doctorate, whenever her baby sitter isn't free i watch sofĂ­a. normally i'd go to her house but with everyone going on she thought it might be better if i had sof here." you spoke quietly, glancing over your shoulder every couple of minutes to check in on the tiny brunette giggling away at a brightly coloured kids show on screen.
"you look after her by yourself?" alexia asked, shock hardly disguised as you rolled your eyes moving the sauce off the heat and huffing.
"yes alexia, believe it or not i can keep another human being alive for a few hours. i've had enough practice looking after myself!" you snapped, pausing to close your eyes and take a breath.
"i don't want to argue in front of her. i told you i'm fine, you've seen i'm okay, go home alexia, your home." you sighed, turning your back to her again after you'd peeked at the living room over the top of her head.
"fresa i also don't want to argue." your sister started a lot softer as you began to dish up dinner. "you know i want to fix this, alba and i want to fix things." alexia promised as you stayed silent, though before either one of you could speak a new voice piped up.
"you're really tall. way taller than my mami!" alexia jumped a little in surprise as sofĂ­a now stood next to her looking up in wonder. "is dinner nearly done?" she shot now next to you, tugging again on the hem of your shorts as you looked down with a soft smile.
"nearly. you hungry?" you questioned as the four year old nodded enthusiastically. "so hungry!" she groaned dramatically sagging against your leg as alexia smiled, suddenly slammed back into the memory of when she and alba would look after you at that age and you too would never leave her alone when she was trying to cook.
one memory in particular sat heavily with the captain as she watched you teasingly shove sofĂ­a away and take a test mouthful of the food, groaning loudly and happily as the girl hit your leg and huffed opening her mouth wanting to try for herself.
it was another night where both her parents were working night shifts and a sixteen year old alexia had been left to look after her sisters, alba hidden away in her room taking another one of her teenage angst my life is awful i hate everyone naps she so adored at that age.
alexia had been at training all afternoon, currently playing at Levante, and received the news from the coach that she wouldn't be starting this weekend which now made three weeks in a row.
it had put a dampen on the girls mood significantly, feeling quite lost as to what else she could do to prove herself. she already stayed back, arrived early, trained at home, worked on her skills in every way possible she could but still, nothing seemed to be good enough.
it hadn't helped that with eli only recently picking up night shifts you were still adjusting to the change in your routine, used to your papi not being around after dinner but missing your mami, which lead to you being even more clingier than usual.
"fresa!" alexia huffed as she turned and nearly stepped on you as you hovered by her feet after being sent away a few minutes ago, hugging her leg and refusing to let go no matter what.
"fresa please let go." alexia asked as nicely as she could manage, temper rapidly becoming shorter and shorter as you refused to listen to a single word she said.
first it had been refusing to take a bath, hiding under alexia's bed right against the wall where she couldn't reach you and even going as far as to bite the tip of her finger as she finally grabbed a fistful of your shirt and pulled you out.
next it was trying to drown her in a tidal wave of soapy water when she finally got you into a bath, soaking the clothes she'd not long changed into after her own shower.
but still alexia managed to hold her tongue, speaking to you softly and encouragingly as eventually you sat down and allowed her to wash your hair.
but then you'd ran around half dressed and still wet for half an hour, finding endless amusement in the way your older sister just couldn't catch you, giggling and screaming with delight as alexia resisted the urge to kick you like a football when she finally scooped you up and forced you into the rest of your pyjamas, towel drying and braiding your hair so it was out of your face.
well braiding it as best she could as you'd squirmed and wriggled and kicked, whining that alexia didn't do it right and that it was too tight and then it was too loose and that only your mami knew how to do your hair right.
a full blown tantrum over your hair which took alexia a good half an hour to calm you down again had seemingly tired you out as your sister left you on the sofa with your favourite movie on.
alexia now an hour later than planned started on dinner, stress building as it rapidly neared your bed time and the brunette feared any more disruptions would only worsen your behaviour.
she'd gotten halfway done with dinner before you grew bored of your movie, alexia's attempts to wake up alba to help only resulting in a shoe flung at her head and a door slammed in her face as she resisted the urge to strangle the younger girl.
it seemed the cure to your boredom was to latch yourself firmly to your eldest sisters leg, curling around her like a monkey as no amount of shaking or begging had you letting go.
with all of that happening alexia had almost burned dinner, patience now a thin veil as she firmly yanked you off her leg and placed you down, shooing you away and promising dinner was almost done.
though of course you hadn't listened and immediately returned to hover under her feet now bringing a toy crane your papi had gifted you. and it was the small piece of plastic alexia had stepped on with barefeet, causing her to trip and a hand to shoot out to stop herself from falling.
that hand falling on the stove had meant another wave of pain rocked her body as she hissed and saw red, nearly tripping over you once again as you made noises with your mouth and sat on the floor between her legs refusing to move.
"why do you have to be such a pain! why can't you listen! i said to leave me be and you hover under my feet and trip me and do not go away! go away fresa!" alexia had lost it at this point, flying entirely of a dangerously unbalanced handle as she yelled.
but all of that anger drained from her body in a millisecond like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over her head as she watched your eyes well up with tears, crane clattering to the floor.
"no no no hey pequeña-" alexia cooed softly immediately dropping to her knees and reaching for you but you were gone, sprinting away as fast as your small legs could take you as alexia's heart broke and she stood, quickly pulling the pot off the stove and running after you.
she checked your room first in all the usual hiding places but came up with nothing, calling out for you and begging you to come out, apologizing over and over but even in her own room she couldn't find you, worries growing with each passing second.
alba's door now locked she knew that was out of contention, and her body flooded with relief as she stepped into her parents bedroom and caught sight of your leg in the mirror where you'd wedged yourself under their bed.
"fresita." alexia called out softly, her chest aching at the sniffles which could be heard from your hiding spot, the older girl sitting cross legged on the floor and begging you to come out with no luck.
you refused to say a word bar the tiny sniffles and hiccups that left you, sounds of pain which were much too large for a body as tiny as yours as alexia's own flooded with guilt for her outburst.
"hey fresa ven aquĂ­. nena i am so so so sorry for yelling, i didn't mean it promesa. please come out, lo siento mucho hermanita please." alexia continued to beg, leaning down to peer at you under the bed as you caught her eye with another sniffle, rolling over so you were facing the wall and tucking into yourself even tighter.
with a sigh alexia ran a hand through her hair, jumping as a hand landed on her shoulder, surprised to see alba now stood behind her. she frowned a little as the younger girl sat beside her, pulling something from her pocket and placing it just under the bed.
"fresita." alba cooed, voice thick with sleep as you turned under the bed, spotting your favorite chocolate bar sat a few feet away.
as alba noticed your tiny hand reach out for it she placed a finger on top, pulling the treat a little further away as you frowned and wiggled closer, though again it was tugged just out of reach.
this game of cat and mouse continued for a while until the chocolate bar sat on the floor between your sisters and eventually your head peeked out from under the bed cautiously, both older girls smiling down at you.
you watched them for a moment as neither of them made any move to reach for you, aware one sudden movement could be all it took for you to reatreat again.
when they didn't move you slowly wiggled the rest of your body out, reaching for the chocolate and snatching it, both your sisters holding their breath but sighing quietly as you sat up and didn't seem inclined to return under the bed.
"i'll go finish dinner." alba murmured as you struggled to open the chocolate, alexia sending her a grateful smile as she disapeared out of the room.
"do you want me to open it pequeña?" alexia asked softly as you nodded, shuffling a littler closer as your sister took it from your outstretched palm and opened it, handing it back.
as you took a bite this time alexia reached for you, relieved when you put up no fight as she sat you in her lap, arms protectively wound around you and her face buried in your hair.
"tickles!" you huffed as alexia exhaled tiredly, wriggling around as your sister smiled and turned you in her lap, grabbing under your arms and standing you up so you were both eye to eye.
"fresa. i am very very very sorry for yelling and for if i scared you, i am not mad at you." alexia promised as you nodded and her thumb swiped at the tear tracks under your eyes with a pained smile.
"sorry i tripped you." you whispered out, looking down guiltily as alexia's finger tilted your chin back up so your eyes locked with hers once again.
"its okay hermanita, i know you did not mean to. you just miss mami, sĂ­?" you nodded at that as alexia tugged you into a tight hug, peppering kisses along the crown of your forehead.
"i miss her too fresa, but we will get better at this, we will." alexia promised, cradling your head as you nodded into her chest. "but sometimes when mami is not here and i ask you to do something, i need you to do it, vale?" alexia murmered as you pulled your head back.
"vale. sorry ale." your bottom lip wobbled again as alexia was quick to catch the rogue tear with her finger, kissing your cheek repeatedly and carefully standing still with you held tightly in her arms.
"the kitchen can be dangerous sometimes fresa, especially sat on the floor or attached to my leg like a little monkey." alexia warned tickling at your stomach as you giggled and a wave of relief washed over her seeing you smile again.
"you're just my best friend ale and i don't know what to do without you." you mumbled tiredly with a yawn as your head slumped on her shoulder, fatigue clawing at you as it was now past your normal bed time as alexia melted and almost cried, exhaustion hitting her as well.
"oh mi precioso fresa you are my best friend too. forever and ever and ever nena, promesa."
"my mami stabs people! what do you do?" sofĂ­a was now stood back next to alexia, smiling up at her clearly no longer as shy as the older girl was flung into reality, blinking a few times as she adjusted and tuned back in.
"elena works with me at the clinic." you quickly clarified with a small amount of amusement seeing the mild horror flicker through the older girls eyes as she registered what sofĂ­a had said.
"i play football. do you like football?" your sister dropped down to the girls level, the two of them chattering away and before you could blink suddenly sofĂ­a was tugging her away to the living room with her.
you glanced over a few minutes later to see the two of them sat cross legged on the floor, alexia trying to teach sofĂ­a some sort of clapping game as you sighed and dished up a third bowl of the meal.
"dinner is done." you called out, ensuring the stove was fully off as within a blink there was an eager four year old climbing up into her chair as you chuckled and handed her a fork.
"you may as well stay, i know olga is the cook anyway." you gave your sister a small smile as alexia did her best not to let a grin overtake her face as she sat down across from the two of you and you slid her a fork.
"gracias fresa." alexia smiled as sofĂ­a paused mid mouthful to give you a curious look. "she calls you strawberry." the brunette pointed out as you nodded. "she does, thats my favourite fruit." you poked at her nose as she huffed and smacked your hand away.
"when she was your age all she wanted to eat was strawberries, for every single meal." alexia added on pulling a stupid face at the girl who giggled. "you can't do that silly!" sofĂ­a shook her head at you.
"can too, and strawberry milk." you grabbed a napkin and sofĂ­a's chin in your hand, wiping the copious amount of food which missed her mouth away as she whined and tried to push you off.
again alexia was hit with a wave of nostalgia, vivid memories of when she sat in your chair and you sat in sofia's, the smile fading from her face as her stomach churned with guilt, somewhat grateful for the small four year olds constant chatter meaning neither you or alexia really had to interact much.
"alexia do you have a football? can we play?" sofĂ­a grabbed your sisters hand once she was done helping you clear the table, hitting the catalan with the best puppy dog eyes she could muster not unlike you did all those years ago when you were determined to get your own way.
you caught her eye and the slight raise of her eyebrow, pausing for a moment before sending the blonde a curt nod. "i'll wash up." you declared, dismissing her attempts to offer help as sofĂ­a pulled impatiently on your sisters hand.
"sĂ­, i have lots of footballs nena. ven conmigo and you can choose one!"
~
you'd been keeping a close eye on the pair as they raced and chased one another around the backyard, the summer evening sun starting to fade fast as you dried and put away the last plate.
you'd like if you said it hadn't shocked you a little to see your at times quite awkward sister be so open and care free with sofĂ­a, you having caught her earlier chase the small girl around the backyard pretending to be a football eating monster.
you'd be lying to yourself if similarly to alexia watching their interactions didn't bring up any thoughts or feelings toward your own childhood but in no state of mind to unpack that just yet you squashed it deep deep down and refused to acknowledge it.
you were stood on the back steps just about to call the two of them in now the sun was near fully set when it happened.
all it took was a misplaced step and suddenly sofĂ­a was falling head over heels, skinning her knee on the brick retaining wall of the small vegetable patch in the corner.
alexia's sisterly instincts kicked in as she raced across to comfort the now crying girl but you beat her to it, quickly lifting sofĂ­a up and into your arms as you bounced her up and down.
"hey hey hey nena its okay! you're okay. just a little fall sof, you're okay." you repeated over and over, your sister watching on a little dumbfounded as you hurried inside, alexia grabbing the football and following.
"hey you're a big girl right? big girls get skinned knees! its all a part of growing up sof." you sat her down on the kitchen counter as her cries turned to hiccups and she nodded.
"its okay to cry though nena, its good to cry sometimes! never let anyone tell you you're not allowed to. sometimes tears can be happy as well!" you kept the girl engaged as you cleaned her knee, poking at her stomach and making jokes, her giggling distracting her from the alcohol swab wiping away at the small graze.
"now, i need someone really really special to help me make a very important decision. anyone?" you asked, holding something behind your back and making a silly face, sofĂ­a nodding eagerly as her hand shot into the air.
"anyone? does anyone want to help?" you pretended not to notice, looking around as the four year old huffed and alexia smiled softly hovering nearby watching the interaction. "me! me me me!" sofĂ­a chanted impatiently as you sighed.
"i guess nobody wants to help!" you threw your hands up and turned to go as a small hand grabbed a fistful of your t-shirt and tugged. "oh! do you want to help me sof? why didn't you tell me!" you teased, jabbing playfully at her sides as she squealed and kicked at you.
"i will help." the girl nodded as you did the same. "okay. mickey mouse, or goofy?" you held up two different plasters as sofĂ­a's face lit up and she instantly pointed to the goofy one.
asking her to sit still for a moment you carefully applied the plaster over the small graze, kissing the top of her knee and standing up straight away. "all fixed! i think we do not need to cut this off...yet." you grabbed her foot and inspected her leg with a frown.
"hey!" the brunette gasped as you pulled a shocked face and ruffled her hair, picking her back up again. "bath and bed." you pinched her nose as she groaned but made no move to fight, going limp in your arms as you smiled and kissed her cheek.
"i'm just gonna..." you jolted a little admittedly having forgotten alexia was still here as you noticed her, your sister nodding in understanding.
"don't go yet! i wanna say goodnight." sofĂ­a yelled to alexia over your shoulder as the girl promised she wouldn't and took a seat on the sofa, exhaling as she did so, head swamped with a tidal wave of memories, only worsened as she stared around at her childhood home.
alexia hadn't realised how long she'd been trapped in her own mind but what felt like mere seconds later a body was latched to her leg and you were waiting in the hallway, arms crossed and a large wet patch on your shirt where the four year old had gotten a little too enthusiastic with the plastic duck she always had with her.
"buenas noches alexia. it was fun playing with you!" sofĂ­a smiled a little more tiredly now, climbing onto the sofa and hugging the older girl tightly who perhaps clung on a second or so too long, flashes of when it was you hugging her goodnight still lingering at the back of her mind.
"it was very nice to meet you nena, remember drive through!" your sister pretended to kick a ball as sofĂ­a giggled and copied the action before waving and racing back to your side as the two of you disappeared again.
when you returned around fifteen minutes later now changed into dry clothes and the four year old sleeping peacefully in your bed it wasn't a surprise to see alexia curled up on the corner of the lounge watching something.
you didn't say anything at first as you settled at the opposite end, a somewhat uncomfortable unspoken tension filling the gap between the two of you.
"i assume you are staying the night then." you spoke up first, knowing alexia well enough that when she had her mind set on something it was near impossible to change it.
"sĂ­." your sister confirmed as you gave a small nod. "you are very good with her." the blonde commented next, throwing you a small look as your own eyes stayed fixated on the tv.
"as kids go she's pretty easy." you gave a shrug, tucking your knees up to your chest. "everything you do with her, i used to do with you." and there it was.
"alexia-" you started with a small sigh. "no, fresa i know. we don't need to speak about it, i just wanted to say it. she reminds me a lot of you is all, and i miss it sometimes." alexia admitted, nervous that with one wrong word it might send you recoiling into yourself and off to your room, worsening things.
a beat of silence paused and alexia took that as a silent cue you were done, turning her head back toward the tv.
"sometimes i miss it too."
you'd spoken so quietly you weren't even sure if your sister had heard you, grateful that if she did she chose not to comment on it, the two of you sitting in silence that albeit awkward was a little less tense watching television.
alexia looked up from where she was getting some water in the kitchen at a soft knock at the door, watching you hurry over to pull it open, an unfamiliar girl just visible through the window as alexia leaned against the counter.
no words were exchanged as you lead the girl inside and the two of you returned a moment later, sofia back in her mothers arms as the girl who didn't look much older than twenty two or three loaded her into a carseat.
when she returned to speak with you alexia hadn't meant to eavesdrop and overhear, she really hadn't.
"thank you so so much for this chica, she adores you and i appreciate you." elena sighed pulling you into a hug as you assured it was no problem and you were always happy to help out if needed.
"please don't give me that look." you sighed after you told her you'd see her at work tomorrow. "mateo said you could have the whole week off and with pay! why are you working?" elena told you off firmly but not unkindly.
"i like working." you justified with a shrug, the older girl not buying it as she raised an eyebrow and you deflated a little. "i can't see her like that el, i can't." you whispered out, voice on the cusp of cracking as alexia's eyebrows furrowed from where she stood within earshot.
"she's your mami amiga she would want you there with your sisters, supporting each other through this. not stabbing grumpy old men with low iron!" elena teased with a soft smile as you barely cracked one of your own.
"your sisters are trying, sĂ­? let them try, i am sure that they love you very much." elena promised as alexia was taken aback at her words, the jealousy which had been simmering at the surface of the comfort this stranger was providing you instead of her, easing a little.
"i know. but i can't see her like that, i can't." you repeated with a shake of your head. "why?" elena asked softly, a hand sat on your shoulder with a gentle squeeze as you shook your head.
"you can talk to me about anything chica, you know this. we all love you and are here for anything you need!" your friend encouraged gently, alexia's grip on her glass tightening as she heard the unmistakable sound of you choking back a slight sob before the next words you whispered shattered her heart completely.
"because the last time someone i loved when into hospital, he never came back."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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novlr · 16 days ago
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Any tips on how to describe indoor spaces so they feel real and match the vibe of the story without throwing in too much detail?
Getting interior scenes just right is all about finding the balance between setting the mood, showing the unique personality of your story world, and keeping the plot moving. There are lots of ways you can use senses, action, and background to set a scene, all of which can work seamlessly with the type of story you want to tell. Here are some tips on how you can achieve that:
How does it look?
Lighting: does your space contain the soft glow of lamps, harsh fluorescent lights, or natural light?
Use colour and textures like peeling paint, plush velvet, or sleek marble.
Size and scale: is it claustrophobically small or impressively grand?
Architectural features: does the space have high ceilings, crown mouldings, or exposed beams?
Furnishings: are they modern, sparse, antique, or cluttered?
Style and decor: what style is represented, and how does it affect the atmosphere?
State of repair: is the space well-kept, neglected, or under renovation?
Perspective and layout: how do spaces flow into each other?
Unique design features: describe sculptural elements, or things that stand out.
Spatial relationships: describe how objects are arranged—what’s next to, across from, or underneath something else?
How does it sound?
Describe echoes in large spaces or the muffled quality of sound in carpeted or furnished rooms.
Note background noises; is there a persistent hum of an air conditioner, or the tick of a clock?
Describe the sound of footsteps; do they click, scuff, or are they inaudible?
Include voices; are they loud and echoing or soft and absorbed?
Is there music? Is it piped in, coming from a live source, or perhaps drifting in from outside?
Capture the sounds of activity; typing, machinery, kitchen noises, etc.
Describe natural sounds; birds outside the window, or the rustle of trees.
Consider sound dynamics; is the space acoustically lively or deadened?
Include unexpected noises that might be unique to the building.
Consider silence as a sound quality. What does the absence of noise convey?
How does it smell?
Identify cleaning products or air fresheners. Do they create a sterile or inviting smell?
Describe cooking smells if near a kitchen; can you identify specific foods?
Mention natural scents; does the room smell of wood, plants, or stone?
Are there musty or stale smells in less ventilated spaces?
Note the smell of new materials; fresh paint, new carpet, or upholstery.
Point out if there’s an absence of smell, which can be as notable as a powerful scent.
Consider personal scents; perfume, sweat, or the hint of someone’s presence.
Include scents from outside that find their way in; ocean air, city smells, etc.
Use metaphors and similes to relate unfamiliar smells to common experiences.
Describe intensity and layering of scents; is there a primary scent supported by subtler ones?
What can you do there?
Describe people’s actions; are they relaxing, working, hurried, or leisurely?
Does the space have a traditional use? What do people come there to do?
Note mechanical activity; elevators moving, printers printing, etc.
Include interactions; are people talking, arguing, or collaborating?
Mention solitary activities; someone reading, writing, or involved in a hobby.
Capture movements; are there servers bustling about, or a janitor sweeping?
Observe routines and rituals; opening blinds in the morning, locking doors at night.
Include energetic activities; perhaps children playing or a bustling trade floor.
Note restful moments; spaces where people come to unwind or reflect.
Describe cultural or community activities that might be unique to the space.
How is it decorated?
Describe the overall style; is it minimalist, baroque, industrial, or something else?
Note period influences; does the decor reflect a specific era or design movement?
Include colour schemes and how they play with or against each other.
Mention patterns; on wallpaper, upholstery, or tiles.
Describe textural contrasts; rough against smooth, shiny against matte.
Observe symmetry or asymmetry in design.
Note the presence of signature pieces; a chandelier, an antique desk, or a modern art installation.
Mention thematic elements; nautical, floral, astronomical, etc.
Describe homemade or bespoke items that add character.
Include repetitive elements; motifs that appear throughout the space.
What is its history?
Mention historical usage; was the building repurposed, and does it keep its original function?
Describe architectural time periods; identify features that pinpoint the era of construction.
Note changes over time; upgrades, downgrades, or restorations.
Include historical events that took place within or affected the building.
Mention local or regional history that influenced the building’s design or function.
Describe preservation efforts; are there plaques, restored areas, or visible signs of aging?
Describing indoor spaces doesn’t have to feel like a chore. Focus on the details that matter most, tie them to the mood or characters, and let your readers fill in the blanks. A well-crafted space not only sets the scene but builds your character's relationship to it. Use sensory language, background, and action beats to tie it into your narrative, and don’t be afraid to play around with motifs and contradictions, depending on who is experiencing it!
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holysmokesblog · 2 months ago
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The Gray Reunion
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Vi x reader
Words: 1.5k
Warnings: Violence, mentions of illness, blood, slightly spicy kisses ;)
Summary: In the midst of the chaos, you struggle to help the people of the Lanes. The truth behind the disaster sparks a confrontation that will test your bonds
Note:English is not my first language, sorry
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In the past few hours, your modest apartment had turned into chaos. At least a dozen people had knocked on your door seeking help, intoxicated by something you hadn’t seen in years.
They could barely fit into the small living room, which also served as your kitchen and bedroom, waiting for you to help them, coughing out toxic fumes. Everyone expected you, just as your father had done in the past, to help or offer a solution, but you were completely lost, fumbling with medical supplies that had been stored away for years.
"The gray," murmured an older woman who was holding her husband as he struggled to breathe.
"That’s impossible," you replied. "We haven’t had problems with that in years, the ventilation system..."
"Then there must be a leak," she interrupted, raising her voice before a violent cough cut her off. You watched as her hand was splattered with blood. She inhaled deeply before continuing, "I’ve been through this before, but we don’t have the years on us anymore. Your father treated it countless times. Doesn’t he have notes somewhere?"
You sighed in defeat. "I’ve lost most of Dad’s things over the years. All I have left is what you see." You placed the stethoscope on a child’s back to listen to his breathing. "There’s nothing I can do. We just have to wait for the lungs to clean themselves... and stay far from the leak."
A collective groan arose from the people packed into your small space. "And how are we supposed to do that? We live there! Where can we go?" Various complaints began to rise.
"I wish I had an answer for you, but I don’t. We just have to wait until they repair the leak."
"They’re not going to fix it! It’s those damn enforcers! They’re killing us to get to Jinx!" Another wave of murmurs rippled through the room.
You tried to remain calm. Could that be true? Were the people above really capable of poisoning everyone just to catch Jinx? Those above had taken so much from you already that it seemed entirely plausible. But then an image came to mind—Violet. She was in Piltover now, and she would never let this happen, not to the place that had been her home for so many years and still was yours. Right?
You continued your work, trying to calm the rebellion brewing in your living room, tending to the most severe cases of nosebleeds and eye hemorrhages. But there wasn’t much more you could do. Around three in the morning, the last person finally left.
Exhausted, you collapsed onto your bed, utterly defeated. Chances were, all the patients you’d seen today would return tomorrow with new symptoms. It was impossible to recover from the gray while constantly exposed to it. You knew that if it was a crack, it would take years to fix. And if it was intentional, if they were hunting Jinx... that would also take time. There was no way they’d catch her.
A knock on the door kept you from falling completely asleep. You cursed under your breath—new patients. Your father’s voice echoed in your mind, reminding you how he wouldn’t rest until he’d helped the last person who needed him. You repeated the phrase to yourself before getting up to answer the door, only to be met with a great surprise.
Vi stood there, but the most shocking thing was her outfit. She was dressed as a full-fledged officer, an enforcer. You couldn’t suppress a gasp of utter disbelief. You had spent years of your life together; you knew her story as well as your own, and never would you have imagined the possibility of her wearing something like that—not even as a joke.
"I’m truly surprised," you murmured. She scoffed in irritation. You stepped aside to let her in, and she dropped her new, heavy gloves onto your floor. You bit your lip to keep from scolding her.
The past few days had been madness: Vi’s return, the search for Jinx, and your responsibilities trying to honor your father’s legacy had left you with barely a moment to breathe.
"Lots of patients?" she asked, trying to start a conversation.
"Too many," you replied, collapsing onto the bed again. She still stood awkwardly in the middle of the room. "You can lie down if you want... Unless you’re scared of dirtying that pretty uniform." She let out a short laugh before lying down next to you.
"I’ve barely seen you since you came back... I don’t think I ever got to tell you how happy I am that you’re here... Despite everything."
"Yeah, I suppose the first hug you gave me said it all."
"I mean it, Vi," you said, turning to face her. "Everything got so hard, but now you’re here, and I feel like things will get better."
She smiled faintly. "Yeah, we just have to fix a few things, and everything will improve." She propped herself up to sit beside you. "You look really pretty," she added. "Those dark circles suit you."
You couldn’t help but laugh. For just a moment, all the bad things disappeared. It was just the two of you in your small apartment—no Jinx, no gray, no problems in the Lanes. Just you two. Without thinking, you leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to her lips. She froze for a moment.
"I thought you missed me," she teased.
"I did."
"That’s not a reunion kiss. This is." Without warning, she leaned over and kissed you deeply. You welcomed her eagerly—it was like a breath of fresh air, something rare where you’d grown up. The kisses grew more intense, and your hands wandered over her torso and back. Vi positioned herself on top of you, using her hand for support on your pillow. But she quickly pulled it back.
"What’s this?" she asked.
You looked to the side, confused, and saw a large bloodstain. You hadn’t even noticed it. You sighed. "I’m really sorry." You sat up slightly, but Vi didn’t move off you. You grabbed the pillow and threw it to the other side of the room. "It’s been such a complicated day with the ventilation cracks."
"Yeah, don’t worry. I’m not at my best, either."
"Doesn’t seem like it." You kissed her intensely again, and she adjusted immediately.
"When all this is over, we should go on a real date. Like dinner and all that cheesy stuff."
You laughed against her lips at her failed attempt at romance. "I just hope it’s soon."
"It will be," she declared confidently. "Once they catch Jinx, everything will get better, and life in the Lanes will change—just like Vander always wanted."
Vi’s hands slipped under your shirt as you shared another passionate kiss, but her words lingered in your mind.
"Wait, wait, no," you said, pushing her slightly so she moved off you.
"Oh, do you want to take control, doll?" she teased.
"Did you have anything to do with this?" She looked confused, so you pushed her again to sit beside you. "The gas? Was it you?"
Vi stayed silent, hesitant to answer.
"Is this some kind of joke? You’re poisoning us just to catch your sister?" you shouted, furious.
"Hey, hey, it’s not like that... I mean, yes, but not how you think."
"You bitch," you spat, jumping out of bed. "Do you even understand the damage you’ve caused?"
"Listen to me. We used the gray to clear the streets, to keep people safe," she tried to explain.
"Used? Who’s ‘we’? You and your new enforcer friends? Well, you didn’t protect anyone!" You exploded. "Do you have any idea how many people you hurt? At least fifty came here today!"
"She’s a murderer! She killed half the council, she—"
"She’s not a traitor," you cut her off sharply.
The room fell silent as you watched Vi clench her fists in anger. You’d struck a nerve.
"Did you really do this for her? Or did your new enforcer friend convince you?" you spat, unable to hide your disgust.
"Don’t call her that!" Vi’s hands grabbed the collar of your shirt, pushing you against the wall.
You stayed inches apart for what felt like ten seconds before she let go, though she didn’t step back. Her heavy breathing mixed with yours, and you could smell the perfume from her uniform—a scent impossible to find down here.
"Get out of my house," you whispered.
"You have to understand—"
"Get out!"
Vi sighed loudly, grabbed her heavy gloves from the floor, and walked to the door. You opened it for her, stepping aside. She crossed the threshold without meeting your gaze but stopped in the doorway.
"I hope your new friend is worth it." She didn’t turn around, just kept walking down the dark street, away from your home.
You couldn’t stop the tears from falling.
What had you expected? Nothing had stayed the same over the years.
You locked the door before collapsing into bed. Tomorrow would be another hard day in the Lanes.
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rottenpumpkin13 · 13 days ago
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all the soldiers plus cloud get stuck on the soldier floor because the elevator breaks how does everyone react
Sephiroth: Calm, cool, collected, the picture of professional composure. Can he do anything about the situation? No. Will freaking out solve anything? Also no. He's sitting cross-legged on the floor, meditating, reaching a state of transcendent peace, all is well. The chaos around him might as well be happening in another dimension.
Sephiroth, after discovering that Professor Hojo is also on the 49th floor: Attempting to use the window as an escape route while Lazard and Angeal hold him back, calculating the probability of surviving a 49-story fall versus spending one more minute in the same vicinity as Hojo.
Angeal: Not worried at all. The 49th level has showers, a kitchen, a fully stocked fridge in the break room and enough rations to survive a small apocalypse. He's treating this literal hostage situation like it's a luxury camping retreat. Has apparently been preparing for this exact scenario his entire career, with his office resembling a doomsday prepper's paradise. There's medical kits, pillows, blankets, emergency flares, three different types of water filtration systems, and what appears to be a small herb garden. Has produced his guitar and is insisting everyone share their feelings around his makeshift "campfire" (a desk lamp turned sideways).
Zack: Full blown freakout. He's mildly claustrophobic and the idea of being stuck anywhere sends him into crisis mode. He's banging on the elevator doors screaming "LET ME OUT!" while trying to pry them open. He's holding up posters to the windows with "S.O.S." written in various sizes and colors. Attempting to flag down pigeons as potential messengers. Keeps trying to send morse code with the office lights to passing helicopters, despite it being broad daylight. Had to be physically restrained from attempting to punch through the elevator doors with his "face first" strategy. He's drafting his will and doing stress-induced squats in the corner, and Angeal has to physically hold him down while another SOLDIER assists him with paper bag breathing. Has already gone through the office's entire supply of paper bags.
Genesis: Freaking out like Zack but with 300% more determination. He is a free man, a SOLDIER of destiny, and no mechanical malfunction shall imprison his spirit. He has maps of the ventilation system complete with annotations and escape routes. He's rounded up a group of Seconds who are either brave or just really bad at saying no. He's going to prison break this bitch with style. Last anyone sees Genesis, he's disappearing into the vents like a determined raccoon in a red leather coat.
Genesis, after falling through a weakened section of the ventilation system and crashing through the ceiling panel: Breaks his wrist.
Cloud: He's not even there anymore. He managed to pry open the door to the stairwell an hour ago and is currently in his bunk in the barracks, chilling.
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wendichester · 13 days ago
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hey!! i hope you're having a good day/afternoon/night! i just wanted to say i really like your writing and hopefully it isnt too much to submit a request.
if not, i was wondering if you could make a dean x reader imagine where reader is a person of color with dreadlocks? possibly reader feels insecure about her hair (coming from experience) and dean comforts her?
thank you for reading my message!
đ“ˆ’ă…€Ś‚ㅀ𐙚 àŁȘ ⭒ pretty,
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summary. sometimes, all we need is dean's comforting words
pairing. dean winchester x reader
wordcount. 505
notes. i really hope i did this justice. thank you for trusting me to write something so personal and beautiful. love you đŸ©·
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You sit on the edge of your bed in the bunker, fingers idly twisting at the ends of your dreadlocks. The low hum of the ventilation system fills the silence, but it does nothing to drown out the nagging thoughts swirling in your head.
You’ve always loved your hair—or at least, you used to. It’s a part of you, a piece of your identity, and something you worked hard to care for. But some days, like today, the weight of the world’s stares and comments creeps in, making you feel like you don’t belong. Like you’re too different.
A soft knock at the door pulls you from your thoughts.
“It’s open,” you call, your voice quieter than usual.
Dean steps in, his expression warm but curious. He’s holding two beers, but the way his green eyes narrow slightly when he looks at you tells you he’s already picked up on your mood.
“Thought you could use some company,” he says, holding out a bottle before sitting beside you.
You take it with a small smile, twisting the cap off and taking a sip. “Thanks.”
Dean doesn’t say anything right away, just watches you with that quiet intensity of his. It’s like he’s trying to read your mind, to piece together what’s bothering you without making you say it.
“What’s goin’ on?” he asks finally, his voice soft.
You shrug, fiddling with a loose strand of hair. “Nothing important.”
“Bull,” he says, leaning back against the headboard. “Talk to me, sweetheart.”
You sigh, your fingers stilling. “It’s just
 my hair,” you admit, the words feeling strange and heavy as they leave your mouth. “Sometimes I feel like
 like it makes me stand out too much. Like people look at me and think I don’t belong.”
Dean frowns, setting his beer aside. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” he says, his tone firm but not unkind.
You glance at him, surprised.
He shifts closer, his hand reaching out to gently take one of your dreadlocks between his fingers. “Your hair’s badass,” he says, his voice softening. “It’s unique, just like you. And it’s beautiful.”
Your throat tightens at his words, tears prickling at the corners of your eyes. “You really think so?”
“I know so,” he says, his green eyes locking with yours. “You’re stunning, inside and out. Don’t let anyone make you feel otherwise. Hell, if someone’s got a problem with your hair, they can come to me with it.”
You blink back the tears threatening to fall, a soft laugh escaping you. “When did you get so good at this whole comforting thing?”
Dean grins, his hand moving to cup your cheek. “I’ve got my moments.”
You lean into his touch, the warmth of his palm grounding you. “Thank you,” you whisper.
“Anytime, sweetheart,” he says, pressing a kiss to your forehead. “Now, how about we head to the kitchen? I’m pretty sure I can find us some pie.”
You smile, and your heart is lighter than it’s felt all day. “Pie sounds perfect.”
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want be part of the taglist.ᐣ ⋆.˚ ★— @iloveeveryoneyoureamazing ⋆ @deans-daydream ⋆ @ariasong11 ⋆ @ambiguous-avery ⋆ @krabog ⋆ @itsdearapril ⋆ @nymphet-quenn ⋆ @bluemerakis ⋆ @titsout4jackles ⋆ @lyarr24 ⋆ @hauntedrose555 ⋆ @chevroletdean ⋆ @dulcescorderitas ⋆ @blackmarketfruitrollups ⋆ @impala67rollingthroughtown ⋆ @rulesareshadesofgrey
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thisapplepielife · 9 months ago
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Written for a @astrangersummer.
Who Wears Short Shorts?
Week #1 Prompt: Short Shorts | Word Count: 1469 | Rating: M | Pairing: Steddie | Characters: Eddie, Steve, Robin | CW: Mild Sexual Content | Tags: Post S4, Everybody Lives, Eddie POV, Platonic Stobin, Silliness, Fluff, Hair Removal, Getting Together, Blame it on Nair Fumes
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Letting himself inside, Eddie looks around, and the house seems empty, even if Steve's car is in the driveway. He pauses, and he's pretty sure he hears the faint sound of music coming from upstairs.
"Hey! Steve?!" Eddie screams, and waits. Nothing.
So, he climbs the staircase, and that's when he hears that the music is coming from the bathroom. He can also hear Steve and Robin talking, arguing, laughing.
When he gets to the doorway, he's very confused.
Very, very confused.
"What exactly is going on here?" Eddie asks, looking back and forth between Steve and Robin, both standing in the bathroom, wearing short shorts, white lotion slathered all over their legs, "And what's that smell?"
Eddie pulls his shirt up over his nose. It smells like some of the chemicals that Wayne sometimes comes home smelling like after a shift at the plant.
It's caustic. Burning his eyes and nose.
Robin wiggles her leg in his direction, "Nair."
"Hold still!" Steve chides her, trying to get her to stop moving without messing up the application.
"Nair," Eddie repeats.
"Nair," Steve confirms.
"And
"
"Who wears short shorts? We wear short shorts! If you dare wear short shorts, Nair for short shorts!" Robin and Steve both sing-song together, loudly, over the already loud music, waving their arms, legs kicking up together into a kickline, the idea of not moving around, obviously long forgotten.
And, oh. Steve's limber. 
Flexible, and Eddie has thoughts he's not supposed to be having right now. 
He feels insane as he reaches over and turns the music down, maybe a first, in his whole lifetime. He's not supposed to be the normal one in any situation. This is wrong. So wrong.
Like, he gets it. He watches TV. He knows what Nair is. Sort of. In theory. He definitely knows the commercial jingle. But he doesn't understand why this is happening right now. He thought they were going swimming. Not, whatever this is.
"You're using Nair? Why?" Eddie asks, because it smells like something that shouldn't be used by humans without proper ventilation. Maybe gas masks. 
"Robin was curious, so I'm showing her how to do it," Steve says, like that's a normal thing for him to say.
"Okay, sure. Of course. New question, why do you know how to do it?" Eddie asks, as he mourns the loss of Steve's leg hair, that Steve is currently in the process of burning off with that eye-wateringly stinky cream. 
"Swim team," Steve says, like that's an explanation. It's not. It's really, really not.
"Swim team," Eddie repeats.
"Yeah, for like, all that aerodynamic shit," Steve says, and Eddie can't help it. He smiles. 
The kitchen timer dings, loud and shrill, in the small room. 
"Is that so?" Eddie asks, leaning against the door jam, watching as Steve wipes the cream off of Robin's legs with a washcloth. Then forces her legs into the tub, one at a time, as he rinses them off. And Eddie can't tell if it worked or not, it's not like Robin's legs were all that hairy to begin with, at least not as far as he's ever noticed. 
But, Steve. Steve's legs are hairy, just like the rest of him, and Eddie's curious. Morbidly, so.
Robin is running her hand over her legs, and Eddie watches as Steve just stands there, grinning at her.
"See?!" Steve says, excited.
Then she coughs.
"I'm gonna go get some fresh air," Robin declares, and Eddie wishes she'd bring a little in for the rest of them, honestly. This bathroom needs a window, desperately.
After she goes, Eddie looks back at Steve, "What about yours?"
"Takes a little longer, my hair is way more thick and coarse than hers," Steve says.
And, yeah it is.
Eddie doesn't want to admit, even to himself, what he thinks about all that body hair Steve has.  But he definitely has thoughts about it. Lots and lots of thoughts.
"I'll do you next," Steve teases.
"The hell you will. I like my leg hair right where it is, Harrington."
"Suit yourself then," Steve says dryly, and he finally starts wiping down his own legs. 
And yeah, he's losing hair up to his knee. Well, some of the hair. A little of it. Honestly, it seems very hit and miss as he wipes it away. Most of his leg hair just looks a little melted, singed, curled. 
Damaged, not removed.
"Is it not working?" Eddie asks, curious what the plan is here.
"Well, it's not perfect," Steve laughs, and it looks pretty bad, but Steve doesn't seem to care, as he adds onto his thought with a breezy, "Oh well."
"Are you just gonna leave it like that?" Eddie asks. Because, honestly. No.
Steve just shrugs, "I guess I could shave them."
And Eddie is pretty sure his brain short circuits, because the next thing that comes out of his mouth is totally against his will, "Can I shave them for you?"
Steve stops, looks at him, then laughs, shrugging his shoulders, "Sure. Okay."
Eddie isn't sure why he asked that, and he feels like his cheeks are on fire. Steve reaches into the medicine cabinet, producing a razor and a can of shaving cream, handing them both to Eddie. Then he plugs the tub, runs some water, and wets his legs with a washcloth, before sitting down on the closed toilet seat. 
Oh shit. 
Shit, shit, shit.
"You want me to
?" Eddie asks, trailing off, waving his hand holding the shaving cream towards Steve's legs.
"You're the one that asked," Steve says, teasing him.
Eddie swallows, kneeling in front of Steve, squeezing some of the shaving foam onto his palm, and then runs it up Steve's leg, applying it, stopping when he gets to the knee.
Steve pulls up on his shorts, his already very short shorts, making them even more indecent, "Might as well go on up."
Eddie's dick twitches at the idea, but he nods, getting some more shaving cream and rubbing it up onto Steve's thighs.
Then he holds the razor in a slightly shaky hand, "You sure you want me to do this?"
Steve shrugs, "It'll grow back."
Eddie nods. That's not exactly what he was asking, but he grips Steve's foot in his hand, and starts running the razor upwards, gently. Trying to be careful. One stripe in, he leans over and rinses the blade off in the tub, looking back up at Steve's face. 
And then keeps shaving, getting everything off his lower legs, before pausing, then just forges ahead. In for a penny, in for a pound.
He puts Steve's heel on his shoulder, giving him access to the underside of his thigh, and he's fully hard in his own shorts now, and he really hopes Steve won't notice. He's sure this isn't supposed to be that. He's not supposed to be getting off on this.
But he is. He really, really is.
He's such a goddamn pervert. 
Then he sees it. The hard line of Steve's cock, pressing against his shorts. His tight shorts.
Eddie drops the razor. It clatters to the tile, and he laughs nervously as he reaches to pick it up.
What is he doing? What are they doing right now? It's madness. It's the fumes. They've gone to their heads. They've lost critical brain function, the both of them. That must be it. It's the only explanation. 
Robin turns back up in the doorway, and they both turn and look at her. It must look crazy, Eddie between Steve's thighs, his leg hoisted up, covered in shaving cream.
"Oh, ew. No," she says, and disappears just as fast as she'd arrived, slamming the door behind her as she goes. 
Steve chuckles, and Eddie gets back to work. Shaving, rinsing. Over and over, until Steve's legs are both bare. 
It's weird, but Eddie can't help himself, and he runs his hand up Steve's calf, slow. Exploring. 
And Steve moans. 
Oh, goddamn. 
Eddie suddenly raises up on his knees, sending Steve backwards, off-balance, falling against the toilet tank. 
"Am I reading this wrong?" Eddie asks, chest heaving. Both of his hands clutching Steve's wet, smooth thighs.
Steve shakes his head, pupils blown wide, and Eddie runs his hand up, cupping Steve through his short shorts. Leaning forward, pressing against Steve, contorting Steve's body, as Eddie leans close enough to kiss him.
And he does, lips barely brushing, lightly, and it isn't lost on Eddie that he put his hand on Steve's dick before they even kissed. 
Steve leans forward, surging into him, kissing back. Hand coming up to press against the back of Eddie's head, pulling him closer. 
And Eddie's sure he'll die right here, for real this time.
If not from the lingering toxic fumes, definitely from Steve.
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If you want to write your own, or see more entries for this challenge, pop on over to @astrangersummer and follow along with the fun! 🌞
Notes: There are lots of different versions of the Nair "short shorts" commercials, but here's one from the 70s, if you're unfamiliar.
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piracytheorist · 9 months ago
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The Forgers' Kitchen
It's very interesting to me to spot small differences between manga and anime in Spy x Family, considering how closely and faithfully the anime adapts the manga. That way, small differences stick out and sometimes I have the need to document them and share with the world!
So in the manga, the kitchen is basically a long room, with an opening on the wall that connects it to the dining area and living room.
The stove is at the far end, with the fridge on the left side.
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Above the stove is a simple ventilation fan, with a cord to turn it on and off. The fridge has separate doors for the main fridge and the freezer. Comparing it to the height of the counters, it looks like it may have a base that makes it higher, judging also by this screenshot here.
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It looks like to the left are the counters, and the red circle is where the fridge is. A quick search for "60s fridges" gave me this
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so it's entirely possible Endo saw something like this that inspired him for the fridge design.
Finally, the sink is across the fridge, right by the opening in the wall.
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A cool design, if you ask me. Washing dishes can be way more pleasant if you're facing a window or open space in general, than facing a wall.
The anime follows the design pretty closely, with two basic differences; the placement of the fridge and stove, as well as the design of the fridge.
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This time, the fridge is at the far end, with the stove on the wall next to it, across the sink which is again facing the opening in the wall. The fridge is also of a different design, being the single-door type, I'm guessing with the freezer being inside it and smaller, like this.
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And a small difference too. This time for ventilation there's a range hood (I hope that's the right word, I actually never had to use that word in English before so I never learned it, haha) instead of a simple vent with a fan.
It looks like the stove has three hobs, while in the manga it has four. It does, after all, only have three switches for the hobs in the manga. Though it has seven switches in the anime, with the one in the center being further from the other ones. That's a little peculiar, since the switches for the hobs would usually be close to each other, with the hobs for the oven a little further away, if there's any distance at all. In both cases, however, they are gas hobs and the stove is quite spacious!
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Almost ridiculously spacious, I'd say XD Look how small Yor looks in front of it, it almost looks like it's two stoves merged together, with a combined oven space!
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A few more details:
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Note the Bondman magnet on the fridge! I do find the placement of the utensils weird, since they're mostly needed during cooking so you'd need them right by the stove. On the left side of this screenshot, behind Loid, you can see another small appliance. Judging from the above anime screenshot, it's missing from the anime. I checked later episodes too, and it's still not there.
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At first I thought it's a microwave since it seems to have a glass window, but it looks too bulky, so I think it may be a countertop dishwasher. After all, the buttons are above the window, where dishwashers usually have them, while in microwaves it's usually next to the window. A quick search shows designs of such dishwashers that include windows to see inside, (though not from the era Spy x Family is inspired from, but I can get behind artistic liberties!).
I'm not super familiar with kitchen designs from that era, but it's certainly interesting to spot all the small details! Reminder that I don't read manga chapters that haven't been animated yet, so please don't spoil me for any further developments!
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littlewigglers · 9 months ago
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Okay I’ve never asked on tumblr but I just found your page and I’m OBSESSED!!! I want to get/make a Vivarium/bioterrarium for millipedes and isopods and I can’t WAIT!! Please please if you have any advice at all, I’d love to hear it! Where to get supplies, the buggies themselves, how to handle them, what do you do if they get sick, how much space to they need for how many there are, etc? Your buggy babies are so cute!!
First off thank you! I love all my little guys as well <3
I ramble kinda a lot so I'll put this under a read more.
For advice I'm still very much a novice when it comes to keeping but I'll tell you what I can!
For tanks I got my glass ones second hand or ones made my the store I buy used to buy my millipedes from, you'd be surprised how cheap you can get a nice big one! For Acrylic THESE are the ones I've had the best luck with not warping BUT they sometimes have kinda blurry parts on the plastic, but still I'd say good for the price if you can't afford glass. I tape up some of the ventilation holes to keep more moisture in.
For soil that ISN'T bought from a specialist stores(Sometimes I can't afford it) I use Peat free compost, paired with leaves and rot wood I buy off ebay stores that sell bug/reptile products, I mix them together with some water and leave them in a tub for 1 week to soften up the leaves. Some people go out and get their own leaves and wood but I'm not really in an area to do that so I can't give advice on that. It's important to keep it moist BUT NOT WET!
Heat mat! You want one to put on the SIDE of the tank and not under it, just one would be enough. I have a timer plug for mine so they're on a few hours a day on and off all day. If you REALLY wanna spoil them then I've seen a few people use reptile headlamps.
For moss and plants I again just buy it off ebay in sheets and give it a cheap over to make sure there are no hitchhikers on it before I put it in the tank. It needs watered and looked after for a while for it to take to the tank. Carpet moss is mostly for looks while sphagnum moss is used to keep moisture in areas and should be water/sprayed often. I have a little fern plant in my tank rn they seem to leave alone. I know a lot of people use fake plants as well for decor!
You should make a point to put a little temp and humidity monitor in your set-ups as well. The special reptile ones can be expensive so I just but the little ones you put in rooms and have had no issues with them.
Don't forget to give them hides! Cork wood/bark or coconut shells are nice and cheap. You can also use man made items just make sure they can handle the moisture and aren't made of anything toxic to your new friends. Also give them little sticks and things to climb up on. Just make sure the lid is secured so they can't escape.
For food I just use kitchen scraps like carrot peel, cucumber, apples and melon, give them a cuttlefish bone and some dried tiny shrimps in small amounts once a week or so, but you can also use fish flacks instead. But remember! Leaf litter and rot wood is meant to be their main diet for most species.
For the millipedes I would recommend Ivory millipedes as a good starter one, they're lovely in colour and are often up top, hardy as well, and usually you can get them captive bred which I've had much higher survival rates with vs wild caught. For each species you'll have to look up their needs yourself though, there isn't a 100% catch all set up for all species. Woodlice/isopods I'd suggest dairy cows as they're lovely and also very easy to get a hold of. I will say species of Armadillidium(roly poly/pill bugs) are my fave and I'm very biased and want 500 of them.
For handling just be gentle! I wear gloves in a lot of my videos but that because I've incredibly sensitive skin and can't stand soil under my nails. The worse they can do to you is them staining your skin(not all species), or give you a little nibble. Make sure if you're handling to wash your hands off BUT be careful what hand soaps you use! Wash hands after as well some can be toxic to bugs from what I've heard.
For tank size hmm that's hard, usually you want soil as deep as their body but that can be hard, 10-15cm is what I aim for my BIG boys and 7-10cm for my others, deeper is better but sometimes you'll also just never see them again! You'll want a tank at least a few times longer than your pets body or at least big enough for them to filly stretch out in if you get really big millipedes like giants and a 120cm tank is just kinda unrealistic haha.
I do not have a lot of advice for if they get sick sadly, it's kinda of hard to tell honestly and usually when you can it's too late. I would just say don't beat yourself up too much if some pass away sometimes bugs just do that especially if you don't know their history.
Where to get them depends on where you're from and what you want. A ton of reptile/specialist stores will have wild caught which isn't great but they will have the largest range of species and usually also sell all the stuff you need to tank care of them. Ebay is where I've gotten most of my captive bred and I just message people if I've questions about their bugs there.
I think that's everything I can think of,
Again I'm a big novice when it comes to bugs, @onenicebugperday and @crevicedwelling likely know way more than me, though idk if they're open to questions but they likely already have a lot of info on their blogs.
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fortheloveofwonderland · 6 months ago
Text
Rusty | Chapter 23 | S.R
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Previous Chapter | Next Chapter
A/N - penultimate chapter.
Summary - Spencer’s navigates being in alone in the ICU with his ghosts. Luke tries and fails to get through to him.
Pairing - Spencer Reid / Fem! Reader
Category - strangers to friends to lovers | angst | smut minors DNI
Warnings - hints at sexual activity (m/m), swearing, DID, talk of antipsychotic medication, a lot of internal monologging, mentions of urine, UTI, respiratory problems, suicidal ideation, mention of past sexual assault, past near relapse, heavy talk of hospital related things.
WC - 6.6k
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Chapter 23 - Only the Lonely
It was unlikely you would have been able to sleep given everything that was running through your exhausted brain. With Spencer back on the ventilator in the ICU, succumbing to multiple personalities when he was awake, the fear was consuming.
You still hadn’t seen him, not even stepped in the room while he was sedated. Your time left together was getting shorter by the day and you knew it would soon be over. You shouldn’t be wasting a second away from him, but you couldn’t bring yourself to face him yet. 
Even if your mind hadn’t been awash with thoughts of him in the hospital, you wouldn’t have gotten much rest anyway, given the activities taking place in your guest room next door. Luke and Grant had been going at it all night long, their moans and the banging of the headboard enough to wake the dead. 
Copper had been perturbed by it too, deciding to sleep in bed curled up with you and occasionally barking if the noise got too loud. The men next door didn’t seem to notice.
You stifled a yawn as you leant against the kitchen counter, sipping coffee from a mug cradled between your hands. Copper was eating his kibble you’d put down for him and would no doubt need letting out for a good run considering he’d mostly been cooped up in the house for the last few days.
You needed to sort the horses too, Willow and Rusty had been extremely neglected recently and you were sure they both needed out of their stable for an hour or so to meander in the field. 
You heard footsteps on the stairs and you braced yourself to face one of the men staying in your guest room. You sipped more coffee as Grant strolled into the room, a small, slightly sleepy smile on his lips. 
“Morning,” he nodded his head at you.
“Morning, coffee?” You motioned to the freshly brewed pot and empty mugs on the counter.
“Please, I’m plum tuckered.” He headed past you towards the coffee and poured himself a mug.
“Hmm I can imagine.” You barely hid the bitterness from your tone.
Grant slid into one of the stools at the counter with his coffee and looked a little guiltily down into it.
“Ah, I guess we weren’t all that quiet, huh?” 
“Oh you were the very opposite of quiet.” You clucked. “I mean don’t get me wrong it sounded incredibly hot the first time but after the third it was a little grating.” 
Grant’s cheeks flushed red and he still wouldn’t meet your eyes. He continued staring down into his mug. 
“I’m sorry. This is your home and with Spencer the way he is
it was inconsiderate.” He mumbled. 
“Don’t sweat it, it’s okay. Can’t say I blame either of you, a couple of handsome studs.” You teased and when Grant looked up at you winked at him. 
“You know he doesn’t know about our kiss, right?” Grant whispered. 
And I assume you don’t know about my kiss with Luke. Jeez this is like a fucking soap opera.
“I figured as much. Don’t plan on telling him, don’t worry.” 
“Thanks.” Grant smiled softly, raising his mug to his lips. “I, uh
can I be honest with you ‘bout summin’?” 
“Uh, okay?” Your brow creased. 
“I know your name isn’t Elizabeth Parker. You’re that girl that Luke’s old partner has been hunting. The fugitive.” His words almost caused you to choke on your coffee.
You coughed a little, staring at him in wide eyed horror. 
“I
I’m sorry?” You choked. 
“I saw a file in his office. How does this work? Why hasn’t he arrested you?” Grant leant his elbows on the counter. 
“We have a deal.” You huffed out a breath. “He can take me in once he helps Spencer. Once I know he’ll be okay, Luke can slap the cuffs on me.” 
“Holy cow,” Grant pulled a face. “You must really love him.” 
“I do.” You nodded, trying not to look at the ring adorned on your finger. “I want him to be okay, I want to know that he’s going to get better. I don’t care what happens to me after that.” 
You sniffed back tears as you heard another set of feet on the stairs and you focused back on your coffee and not on the pain in your chest at the thought of leaving Spencer. 
Luke traipsed into the kitchen and offered you a small smile before sidling up to Grant and wrapping his arm around the other man. You turned away to give them a moment's privacy, not able to look at them like this without hearing the sounds they’d made last night. 
You heard some whispering transpire between the two of them before Luke cleared his throat.
“Uh, sorry about last night.” He spoke, his words heavy with guilt. 
“Just, uh, try to keep it down next time?” You turned back to him with a shrug. 
“Duly noted.” Luke blushed slightly. “So, uh, the hospital called and said Spencer is exhausted. He was up half of the night vomiting. They gave him medication through his IV for the UTI but he’s still struggling to empty his bladder and it's causing him a lot of pain. 
“On top of that his lungs are extremely sore and even with the ventilator it’s likely still putting pressure on his chest. They’re worried about the state of his lungs. He’s developed some scarring and it could lead to any number of respiratory illnesses. But Doctor Ryan was able to carry out some more neurological tests this morning and he was pleased that he doesn’t appear to have any brain damage or deficits. He’s still a little hazy in places but they think that could be a symptom of the DID.”
“So it is DID?” You asked, clutching your mug tightly.
“Doctor Vikram believes so. But she can’t say for sure if it’s permanent or just a causation of his sudden lack of medication combined with the alcohol. She has some new meds she wants to try him on - olanzapine - it's an antipsychotic used to manage symptoms of DID. It blocks some dopamine receptors in the brain, correcting the overactivity of dopamine. But they want to get his respiratory distress controlled and have him breathing on his own first. So he may have a few more days where he’s unsure of who he is and even who we are.” Luke took the mug Grant was offering him and sipped from it. 
“So we could do him more harm than good?” Grant asked, looking up at his boyfriend.
“Possibly,” Luke nodded sadly. “I didn’t tell either of you this but when he first woke up, he thought I was
he thought I was one of the men who abused him in prison.” 
Grant clutched Luke’s arm, looking at him with a sorrowful expression. You pouted, putting your mug down before you smashed it and wrapping your arms around your waist. 
“Jesus,” you hissed. “Luke I
that must have been horrible for you.” 
“It, uh, was not great.” Luke down played it. “But he’s sick, I understand that. I have to understand that.” 
The three of you fell into a stilted silence after that, letting it all wash over you. You had to take the good with the bad, try and focus on the fact there could be a light at the end of a very long tunnel for Spencer. 
***
The haze of sedation hung around him, clawing to every corner of his fractured mind. He wasn’t entirely pacified, but not yet completely in tune with his surroundings. 
The first thing he became aware of was the tube in his throat, threaded down his airway. His initial reaction had been to remove it but he’d reminded himself he was in the hospital, it was supposed to be there. Thankfully the sedative medication he’d been prescribed stopped him from panicking at the strange intrusion.
He could feel the air being pushed into his lungs via the ventilation machine and down through the tube. His natural instinct was to try and breath on his own but the machine wouldn’t allow it. Sometimes he would feel ready to take another breath but couldn’t until the ventilator was ready to pump that beautiful oxygen into him. 
He was hooked up to so many machines he couldn’t move more than a few inches without tugging on a wire here or a tube there. He was being fed liquid or medication, he wasn’t sure, through his IV in the crook of his arm, the suprapubic catheter was still lodged in his stomach.
There was something in his nose too which he could only assume was sending nutrition to his painful stomach. The little tacky pads on his chest were hooked up to the heart rate monitor which was beeping steadily, probably because he couldn’t succumb to his fear while sedated like this. 
He’d gagged initially when he’d come around after the general anaesthetic. He’d tried to cough, tried to speak but of course he could do neither. The doctor - Doctor Wells he thought he remembered - explained everything to him although a lot of it got lost in his foggy brain.
Gave me diuretics to clear the fluid in my lungs. Sedated. Ventilator. Need to monitor my blood, oxygen levels, and respiratory rate. Other things. She said other things

Can’t move without help. Nurse will sit me up. Might make me walk. Something about bronchoscopy? Multiple of them, frequent. A camera down my throat to check my lungs. 
I know what this is. Think, think Reid. You know exactly what this is, Doctor Ryan said your brain wasn’t soup so just think

ARDS? Acute respiratory distress syndrome? Even with treatment only 25 to 40 percent of people survive. If I’m one of the minority it’s likely I won’t ever retain full lung function. I’ll need physical therapy. Might never live a normal life again. 
Goddamn my stomach hurts, why does my stomach hurt so much? Am I still not fucking peeing properly? More comfortable than the one in my dick though, that’s for sure. 
You had surgery, it hurts because you’re probably bruised around the incision site. Don’t need to urinate, don’t think so anyway. Must have been. Must be working. 
No wait. Fuck, no I do need to go. Feels like my bladder is vibrating. What the fuck do I do? How do I make this thing work? 
He ran his fingers over the tube he could feel beneath his gown, trying to convey to his bladder and the catheter that he needed them to work together. 
What is happening, what is happening? Is it
oh my gosh its leaking
no that’s gross, it hurts! Oh so gross, this is a living hell. Someone please just put me out of my

The door opened and a nurse he didn’t recognise walked in. He made eye contact with her, frantically pointing at his stomach. She frowned at him a little, coming closer to the bed.
“Is everything okay?” She asked softly. 
He whined around the tube in his throat, pointing again at the catheter insertion site beneath his gown. The woman followed his hands and rolled down the bed sheet, rolled up his gown and Spencer tried not to be embarrassed about being naked from the waist down but it was ingrained in him.
“Oh it’s okay, it’s just a little leakage. It might happen from time to time as you get used to the catheter.” She cleaned him off before going about replacing the dressing holding the tube in place. 
Time to time? No, no please this should never happen!
“You’re probably experiencing bladder spasms which is a normal symptom of your UTI. It will pass, sweetie, the antibiotics will just take a little time.” 
Normal? How the hell is any of this normal? 
She finished redressing his incision before standing back and smiling at him. 
“Aside from the bladder discomfort are you okay? Can I get you anything?” 
A shotgun with one bullet or a bottle of your strongest pills? How the FUCK am I supposed to answer you? 
He simply shook his head against the pillow, closing his eyes as he no longer wanted to partake in this incredibly one sided conversation. 
Soon he heard her leaving, humming as she went. When Spencer opened his eyes again the tears came streaming out. 
Is this just my fucking life now? Am I destined to forever be hooked up to a series of machines? Can’t eat, can’t talk, can’t even having a fucking a piss out of my cock. 
Jesus Christ why am I not dead? How the fuck did I end up here? I was alone, how could I have survived? Someone must have

As the realisation started to present itself in his thickly veiled brain, those eyes he remembered seeing when he’d been spitting up water and turned onto his side, the door opened again and suddenly Spencer found himself looking into those same eyes that had saved him. 
Luke? Luke, are you really here? Luke please tell me I’m not dreaming. Luke! 
“Hey, you.” Luke croaked as he stepped into the room. “Wasn’t sure you’d be up for visitors but I couldn’t stay away. You mind me being here?”
Mind? Do I mind? Of course I don’t mind! Oh Luke this is so horrible, you have no idea. I feel like I’m trapped inside my own body, I hate it, I HATE IT. Please stay, please don’t ever leave.
Oh right, I can’t speak. 
Spencer shook his head instead. 
Luke smiled sadly and padded across the room, he slid into the chair next to the bed and Spencer rolled his head to the side to look at him. 
Spencer’s fingers twitched at his side, alerting Luke’s attention. He looked like he was trying to mime something, holding a pen? Writing?
“You want to write?” Luke asked and Spencer nodded. 
For lack of a pen and paper, Luke pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the notes app before handing it to Spencer. Spencer fumbled a little with it, his hands weak and shaky. It took him a few minutes to write out a simple message before showing the screen to Luke.
Why are you here? 
“Uh, Y/N called me.” Luke rolled his lip between his teeth.
Spencer’s eyes grew wide and the heart rate monitor picked up to show his signs of distress. Luke gently placed his hand on Spencer’s shoulder, thankful the young man didn’t try and push him away this time and didn’t seem to think he was someone else.
“It’s okay, Spencer, just breathe.” Luke realised his error as soon as he said it Spencer attempted to type out another message while his heart continued to race.
Can’t breathe, machine is doing that for me. 
“Yeah, that was a dumb thing to say. Sorry. But don’t panic, please.”
Spencer frowned back at the phone and typed furiously. 
How can I not panic? Why would she call you? Why would she put herself in danger like that?
“Spence, it’s all gonna be fine, I swear. You just need to focus on yourself right now.” Luke tried to calm him.
Little hard to do that when you’re going to arrest my fiance. 
Luke sucked in a deep breath at the sight of the word fiance. Clearly he still had a few things to work through. 
“Everything will be fine, I promise you.” Luke smiled shakily.
You saved my life? 
“Uh, I guess so. Do you remember anything?” 
Spencer frowned deeply at the phone, fingers still trembling and causing him to make multiple mistakes which he insisted on correcting before showing Luke.
Kinda remember you being there when I was on the floor in the bathroom. Everything else is a blur. Not sure what’s real and what’s not.
Luke nodded slowly, inhaling shakily. 
“I was here when you first woke up, I think you thought I was someone else.” Luke glanced down at his lap and Spencer frowned in confusion. 
He wasn’t even sure when he first woke up, his dreams and his reality blurring into one. Was he awake when he thought he was here? When he ripped off what he thought were restraints but must have been
his catheter. He was awake then, but who was
oh.
Frantic tapping at the phone caused Luke to look back up at Spencer’s pinched brows and his flying fingers.
Oh fuck Luke I am so sorry. I was delirious. I wasn’t with it. I’m so, so sorry. 
“It’s okay,” Luke waved a dismissive hand. “Don’t worry about it cari
Spencer.” 
Are the rest of the team here? 
“No, they’re on a case. I didn’t think you’d want them to see you like this either.” 
Thank you. Where is Y/N? What happened after she left the ranch?
Luke inhaled again before telling Spencer everything he knew of what had transpired to lead you to New Mexico where he met you and the deal the two of you had made. He ended things with saying you were back at the ranch taking care of the horses but he could call you if he wanted to see you.
Spencer shook his head. He didn’t want you to see him like this, even less than he wanted the rest of the BAU to see him like this. His tears rolled down his cheeks as he slowly typed out another message. 
I love her Luke, please don’t take her away from me. 
Luke’s lips puckered, his eyes sad and downturned as he took the device back which Spencer was handing over to him.
“Just don’t worry about it for now, you have to focus on yourself. Are you, uh, are there any
voices right now?” Luke dared to ask.
Spencer closed his eyes tightly and shook his head. 
“Good, that’s good. I know Doctor Vikram wants to give you some medication to help but maybe they’ll go away before then. Perhaps it was just temporary and maybe they’re gone now?” 
Spencer nodded, rolling onto his back and keeping his eyes shut tightly. Oh how he wished Luke was right. But he knew he wasn’t.
“Lying is a sin, boy.” 
“Just because you can’t talk right now, doesn’t mean they won’t find out. You’re as crazy as your mother, and crazy always finds its way to the surface.” 
Goddamnit, please? Please just let me rest. I just want to rest. 
“He really does look similar to me, aye cariño?” 
Stop please, please don’t call me that? You ruined my relationship with him, was that not enough? Do you have to ruin all my memories of him too? 
“Spencer? Spence, are you okay?” Luke’s voice cut above the racket in his head and he opened his eyes suddenly. Luke was standing, leaning over him. “Your heart is racing again, is everything okay?” 
Spencer lifted his hand, made a grabbing motion and thankfully Luke realised what he meant and handed him back his phone. A few moments later he turned the screen back to Luke and the words staring back at him on his own device shattered the older man to his core.
For the rest of his life, Luke Alvez would never get over reading those words typed at the hand of the man he still held so much love for. If his own heart rate were being monitored, the machine might just malfunction given how frantically his heart beat seeing those gut wrenching words looking back at him. 
Nothing is okay. I wish I were dead. 
***
“Still not sold the old ranch?” Grant’s voice carried across the stable from where he was filling Rusty’s food trough. 
You glanced up from where you were shovelling hay in the next stall. 
“How could you possibly know that?” You cocked an eyebrow at him. 
“My place hasn’t sold, it was an educated guess.” His lip quipped at the corner. 
“I guess people just aren’t in the market for all that land these days.” You sighed wistfully. “I’m gonna miss this place.” 
“I don’t think you gotta worry about that, little lady.” He walked out of the open paddock, past you towards Willow’s where he started replenishing her food. 
“What do you mean?” You followed him with your eyes curiously. 
“Contrary to popular belief, me and Luke did find some time to do some talking last night. All he wants is for Spencer to be happy and he knows you make him happy. I’m not making no promises or nothin’ but Luke’s a softy, a romantic at heart. I think you might find yourself able to stay here longer than you planned.” Grant smiled knowingly at you but it only added to your confusion. 
“I’m a fugitive wanted by the FBI. He’s not just going to give me a pass because I’m in love with Spencer.” You scoffed, leaning against the fence that separated you. 
“You willingly put yourself in danger for him. You put Spencer’s needs above your own freedom. It might not be ethical or hell even legal, but Luke is a kind soul and he can be awful forgiving if he wants to be.” 
“Don’t say things like that.” You sniffed back your tears that had suddenly accumulated. “Don’t say things like that and get my hopes up. It’s his job to arrest me. He’s not just going to let that slide.” 
“Hmm,” Grant shrugged. “Whadda I know, I’m just a simple cowboy?”
He smiled at you before turning away and going back to his task at hand. You stared at the back of his head as he acted as if nothing had happened. 
You couldn’t get your hopes up. There was no way Luke was going to let you off the hook for murdering your step father and escaping prison. 
But he had proven he would do just about anything for Spencer. Would that go as far to include allowing you to get away so the two of you could have a life together? 
You couldn’t even let yourself entertain the idea for fear of everything coming crashing down around you. 
***
Time is moving so slowly. Does time always move this slowly? Need something to do, a book or a chess board or something. Anything. I’m going to lose my mind. 
The nurse comes in every half hour give or take. It’s been twenty two minutes since she was last here, suctioning my airway. God I hate that, makes me feel sick. Makes me want to cough but I can’t cough because of this fucking tube.
Checks my blood, my oxygen levels. Checks my heart rate and my respiratory rate. Medicine every few hours, that horrible aerosolized spray through my breathing tube. Hate it. Hate everything. 
Doctor comes every hour. When was the last time she was here? Probably give me another bronchoscopy, maybe take some tissue samples. 
I’m so tired. Didn’t I just sleep? Why am I so damn tired? How long has it been since Luke was here? Hours, it’s been hours. Days? Guess he’s not coming back. 
Spencer had well and truly lost track of time. His medicine had him in and out of hazy sleep and he had long ago passed the point of knowing what day it was. In reality he had been back on the ventilator for six days, and just because he didn’t remember seeing Luke again after his first day back in the ICU, Luke had been to visit every day.
Most of the time Spencer would sleep during his visits but even when he was awake he was never lucid, and never Spencer. One day Luke had an entire conversation via his phone's note app with Cat Adams. Another he had a very confusing exchange in which Spencer flitted between Benjamin Merva and Raphael. 
The most horrifying experience had transpired yesterday when Spencer presented solely as one of the men who had attacked him in prison.
He’d gone into hideously gory details about the assaults he and his partners had inflicted upon Spencer. Luke wanted to smash his phone into tiny pieces by the time the man who wasn’t Spencer typed out, don’t you remember how good he is at sucking cock? Ay dios mio, it should be illegal. 
It had taken everything in Luke’s power not to vomit reading those messages typed by Spencer’s hand but not his mind. 
You and Grant went with him everyday but Luke was the only one who braved going in his room. 
“You told him you wanted to die, of course he’s not coming back, estĂșpido.” 
Oh god not you again. Why are you always here? Send someone else, Tobias, Cat, even my dad. Not you, please. 
“I’m always going to be here. Why would I ever leave you?” 
I can’t do this, I can’t spend the rest of my life seeing you., hearing you. I thought it might be temporary, but you’re never going away are you? 
“I’m not going away because you don’t want me to go away, cariño.” 
Please stop calling me that. Please? 
Tears snuck from his eyes as he laid there in the shell of a useless body, allowing his breathing, the one thing he’d always been in control of, be dictated by a machine. 
This was an all time low for Spencer Reid. If he couldn’t even do something as simple as pull oxygen into his lungs, what was the fucking point of anything? 
“You did this to yourself. I told you, suicide is a sin and you’re being punished for trying to take the cowards way out. It’s God’s will.” 
Tobias? Tobias, please don’t leave. 
God I never thought I’d say that. 
“How many times did you think about doing that after what we did to you? How many times did you want to kill yourself after prison, querido?” 
No, no I didn’t. Wouldn’t let you win, couldn’t let you win. 
“Hmm is that why you brought that dilaudid two weeks after you were released? Just enough to end it all. Woulda taken it too if you hadn’t found that ring. He saved your life and he never even realised, hijo de puta.” 
A phantom memory encased him then, the dilaudid vials in one hand, needle in the other. He’d been looking for something to use as a tourniquet when he’d opened a drawer and found the ring box hidden inside. 
He never told Luke that he’d seen it and no surprise, Luke had never given it to him. But it had been enough for him to want to try. He’d flushed the dilaudid down the toilet before Luke had any idea. 
It was my fault. All my fault. Would have married him in a heartbeat. Still would, wouldn’t I?

No. No I wouldn’t. I love him, I’ll always love him. But she’s the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. 
“Not gonna happen now though is it? Because of you, you idiota. Because of your stupid decision to stop taking your meds she had to seek help from the only person she could. And now he’s going to arrest her and you’ll be all alone again. Well, apart from me. I’ll always be here, mi corazón.” 
Goddamnit I wish you wouldn’t be. How do I make you go away? 
“I’m a part of you. I’m in arraigado - ingrained - in you. I’m just as much a part of you as you are me.” 
Fuck, this is so unfair. Fucking Christ the nightmare will never be over, will it? 
“Shh cariño, it will be okay.” 
Spencer’s tears continued to roll down his hollow cheeks, focusing on the discomfort in his dry throat at the tube lodged inside it. 
He laid there in his husk of a body, listening to the steady beep beep beep of the heart monitor, the loud pumps of the ventilator as it kept him alive when his uncooperative lungs wouldn’t work for themselves. 
The almost imperceptible drip drip of the IV as it delivered antibiotics and fluids to his spent frame. The soft spasming of his stomach as the catheter worked constantly to remove every drop of liquid from his bladder before he could even register the need to urinate. 
How long could a person live like this? At least when they had him in a coma he wasn’t aware of all these things being done to him, wasn’t coherent of his total lack of autonomy over his own body. 
This must be what hell is like, surrounded by ghosts and being able to do nothing about it. Maybe I am dead after all, maybe this is just what death feels like. 
The door opened almost right on cue and the doctor walked in, followed closely by a nurse. He knew the drill by now and laid back and allowed it to happen, not that he could do much else. 
“Are you feeling okay, Doctor Reid?” Doctor Wells asked as she glanced at his vitals. 
By way of communicating he tapped the bedrail once. Once meant yes, twice was no. It was a lie and they probably all knew it. 
The nurse set up next to his bed, a small silver tray of instruments. A catheter was threaded down inside of his breathing tube so she could suction out any mucus that might have gathered in the tube and impede the machine's ability to do its job.
As always, he gagged at the intrusion, tried to cough but couldn’t. He laid back and took it, hating the way it felt and knowing he would never get used to that sensation even if he was on this machine the rest of his life. 
After suctioning came the medication, the spray which was administered down his tube and also made him gag furiously. He knew the bronchoscopy was coming, that was why Doctor Wells was here. She finished noting down his vitals before she turned to him with the tiny camera in hand. 
“We’re just going to take a few more tissue samples okay?” 
Tap. 
He closed his eyes while she went about her business and tried to ignore the way it made him want to vomit. It was all over in no more than five minutes but Spencer hated every second of it. 
“Your respiratory activity has been improving greatly, I’m hoping once we get the results back from these samples we might be able to start weaning you off the ventilator. Does that sound good?” 
Tap. 
The nurse was cleaning him with a damp cloth, he always tried to go to another place for this. His dissociations usually happened so easily he wasn’t even aware of them but this was one mortifying task his brain would not let him detach from. 
She moved him around like a goddamn rag doll manoeuvring him so she could remove the clothes he’d been dressed in, he assumed brought in by Luke in a last ditch attempt to help Spencer feel something akin to human. 
He had to admit it was better than the scratchy hospital gown, his flannel pyjama pants were soft and cosy and the t-shirt he wore he had a suspicion was one of Luke’s old FBI Academy shirts although he couldn’t really see it over all the equipment he was plugged into. 
He could have been more help, he could move his limbs and make the whole thing slightly less degrading but he didn’t. Instead he allowed her to lift his shirt, wash under his grossly smelling armpits, over his chest, around his catheter insertion and then his neck. 
Replacing the shirt she gave the same gentle attention to each of his arms, careful not to disturb his IV port. 
It was what came next that Spencer found incredibly dehumanising. 
The sheet was removed from the bed and his pyjama pants tugged down his legs. The way in which she cleaned his genitals, lifting his sad, flaccid penis as she wiped the cloth in those hard to reach places made him shudder. 
It felt like a violation and tears never failed to leak from his eyes but there was nothing else he could do. 
It was clinical, of course it was, she was a professional. But it didn’t stop Spencer from screaming internally at what his ravaged brain perceived to be an assault. 
Stop touching me! I don’t want it! Don’t want it! Please stop touching me! 
They’d noted early on that this part of the cleaning ritual caused his heart rate to skyrocket. It was understandable given what they knew about his traumatic past. No one had said as much but the doctors had all seen his full medical history, including the reports from Milburn infirmary. 
All they could do was to try and keep him calm, Doctor Wells mumbled soothing epitaphs while the nurse went about her business in an attempt to distract him. Judging by the heart monitor, it never worked. 
Finally she was finished and redressed him, covering his lower half with the sheet and steadily his heart rate lowered again once he was no longer being touched. 
“We want to try and get you moving, is that okay? We don’t want you to develop bed sores or for your muscles to atrophy.” 
No, no please don’t make me move. I’m so tired, so, so tired. Don’t want to move, just leave me here to die. 
Tap. Tap. 
“Doctor Reid, I’m sure you understand that once we can get you moving and off the ventilator you will have a lot more freedom. You might be able to wash yourself. The swelling in your urethra is settling nicely too, you might even be able to use the bathroom. But you won’t be able to do any of those things if you don’t first let us help you move.” Doctor Wells was no nonsense. He liked that about her. 
She’s right, dumbass. You wanna be stuck in this bed forever? At least once you’re back on your feet you can put yourself out of this godforsaken misery once and for all. 
Tap. 
“That’s what I thought.” Doctor Wells smiled. “Okay, we’ll start by raising the bed and then we’ll help you up okay?” 
Tap. 
Doctor Wells nodded to the nurse who was suddenly back at his side, pressing the button on the side of the bed to raise it. 
Spencer felt the bed shudder and jolt a little before his top half was being lifted so he was in more of a seated position. 
From this angle he had a direct line of sight out of the window into the corridor. A set of beautifully familiar eyes were staring back at him, hidden deep inside an oversized hood.
He blinked multiple times in quick succession as he tried to ascertain whether or not he was imagining things. But he wasn’t. You were really there. 
His heart monitor started frantically beeping again and Doctor Wells glanced from the machine to Spencer with a frown on her face. Spencer was staring out the window, one weak arm raised a few inches off of the bed as he tried pointing to the apparition in the window.
He made a pathetic whimpering sound through his tube, trying to explain without his words what he was trying to communicate. 
Tap tap tap. Tap tap tap. 
Please someone get her, I need her, please someone understand. 
Doctor Wells looked out the window and saw you standing there, arms hugging your waist. It was the first time you’d ventured out of the waiting room, the first time seeing Spencer since you’d found him in the tub. 
Doctor Wells nodded to the nurse to wait a moment while she made her way across the room and out of the door. Spencer stared dumbly through the window as he watched the two of you conversing but couldn’t hear what was being said.
Your body trembled and he saw you shake your head a few times. He felt more of his own tears falling. 
“She doesn’t want to see you, of course she doesn’t. She hates you, you put her through hell. She wants nothing to do with you.”
Then why is she here? 
He closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the pillows, not wanting to know what was going on. He’d only be disappointed and he’d dealt with far too much disappointment in his life. 
“She’ll never look at you the same. She hates you, she’s terrified of you. You tried to kill her, do you remember?”
No, no that wasn’t me! That was you, one of you, not me. I would never
I love her. I wasn’t myself, wasn’t me. I would never hurt her.
“You were very much you when you threw her up against the wall and slapped her, Spencie.” 
I didn’t
didn’t mean to. I was a wreck, my mind wasn’t working properly. I didn’t mean to hurt her. 
“But you would probably do it again. You aren’t well, you can’t be trusted to be around her. She’s too good for you.” 
The voices were once again blurring into one loud tone, he couldn’t decipher who was who. 
She is too good for me, of course she is. But I would never hurt her again, I wouldn’t, I WOULDN’T.
“It doesn’t really matter either way. She’s going to prison and you’ll never see her again.” 
He didn’t hear the door open again over the barrage of voices in his head screaming for attention. He didn’t realise Doctor Wells had returned until he felt a soft hand on his forearm, immediately silencing all of the yelling and throwing him into a deep quiet. 
The hand on his arm wasn’t sheathed in a latex glove like he’d grown used to from the doctors and nurses. It caused him to still, his heart monitor betraying his viciously thumping heart. 
He knew that soft touch, he would know it anywhere. It was emblazoned in his mind, solidified to his memory. He swallowed around the tube and almost gagged at the feeling. His forehead creased deeply in thought.
Y/N, is that you? Princess, are you here? Please say something, let me know it’s really you.
As if you could somehow read his thoughts he heard a breath being sucked in and then your shaking voice met his ears.
“S-Spence? Spence, it's me. Can you o-open your eyes?” 
Yes, yes I can do that. 
Slowly he lifted his lids and there you were at his bedside, gently brushing your fingers against his arm and staring down at him from the large hood hanging around your face. It didn’t take his full brain capacity to figure out why you were hiding yourself in this way. 
More tears fell from his tired eyes and he tried to smile at you but it was just a little too much effort. He wanted to speak, needed to speak but the apparatus keeping him alive dictated he couldn’t. 
Instead he shuffled a little, rolling his arm on the bed so his palm was facing upwards. You glanced at it with a soft frown but it didn’t take long for you to realise what he meant. You cautiously slid your hand in his, his weak fingers curling around your own as his heart monitor continued to beep frantically.
His fingers twitched against your hand, you didn’t understand why. You didn’t realise that he was trying to communicate with you the only way he knew how. His fingers tapped and brushed against your own in a strange series of what seemed to be dots and dashes, as though he was trying to tell you something. 
He knew you didn’t understand morse code, but he allowed himself to pretend as he spelled out the only thing he wanted to say to you in that moment. 
dot-dot. dot-dash-dot-dot. dash-dash-dash. dot-dot-dot-dash. dot. dash-dot-dash-dash. dash-dash-dash. dot-dot-dash. 
I love you. 
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@kalulakunundrum @katrina0-0 @bakugouswh0r3 @prettyboyandthefangirl @zooni92802 @babyspiderling @pleasantwitchgarden @djsjjsjsjsjsnsnsns @bringitonhomejohnb @chineray1234
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theyhavetakenovermylife · 1 year ago
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Can you please make one of Muntant mayhem x reader? I bet you will do a awesome job on it! By the way love your content! <3
Beauty in the Bodega: part 1 (Fluff)
MM!Leonardo x reader
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Part 2
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A/N: Thank you so much!😊💕💕 I’ve actually been wanting to write for Mutant Mayhem for some time now, but I just haven’t had any ideas until now💚 Inspired by when Mikey comments on Leo’s crush on April with: “Here he goes again”, and Donnie’s: “Every girl, man”, implying that MM Leo has had quite a few crushes in the past💙😏
Hope you enjoy!💚🐱
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During a grocery run to the nearest bodega, Leonardo sees a girl that makes his heart skip and his insides feel warm.
Warnings: Spelling and Mutant Mayhem cuteness💙
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The sewers beneath New York City were a chaotic blend of echoes as the four brothers moved stealthily through the shadows. With a memorized grocery list in hand, they moved silently and stealthily, just like their father had taught them to, each of them knowing exactly what to get.
Leonardo led the way, his keen eyes scanning the surroundings for any signs of trouble. His younger brothers, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael, followed closely behind, their ninja senses sharp as they navigated the labyrinthine tunnels, until they made it to the familiar ladder that led them to the world of the humans.
As they reached the surface, the brothers climbed the nearby fire escape before sprinting across the roof, until they found themselves on top of the building that housed the small bodega. Leo surveyed the area, ensuring it was safe, before nodding to his brothers. With practiced ease, they slipped in through the ventilation system.
In the vent just above the store, the four turtles found themselves staring down at the mostly empty store. The only human being, the ever absent minded cashier at the cash register, who was busy with a very infuriating crossword, mumbling about a word that was causing them a lot of problems.
With a quick nod from Leonardo, the brothers crawled out of the vent and split up to cover more ground. Donnie took care of the toiletries, while lip syncing to the music playing in the bodega. Raph was busy finding kitchen and cleaning supplies, while Mikey was digging his way through the best junk food. Leo found himself in the snacks aisle, contemplating the various options. He remembered what his father had told him before they went out. Make sure the Doritos were party sized. Party sized Doritos. Remember that Leonardo.
The bell above the entrance to the bodega rang, altering the cashier and the brothers to a new presence in the small store. All four of them knew what that meant - hide. With lightning fast speed Donnie disappeared up into the vent, Raph found a spot among the cleaning supplies, and Mikey hid up above on top of the long lamps. Leo stayed on the ground, hiding behind the shelves, relieved when he realized that the cashier still hadn't noticed them.
Through the shelves, he caught a glimpse of the person who had just entered the bodega, and his heart almost stopped at the sight, making him drop the Doritos bag. Of course he had expected a human, but he had not expected one looking like you did. Your presence, seemingly ordinary yet captivating, drew Leo's gaze. He couldn't help but watch as you moved through the bodega, selecting items with an easy grace.
You came into the store, humming to the music that was playing in your headphones, totally oblivious to the eyes of Leonardo that were watching your every move.
Leo’s brothers, scattered throughout the store, noticed his distraction and exchanged knowing glances. Raphael, spotting Leo's fixation, smirked and made eye contact with Donatello, who joined in the silent communication with a playful grin.
Leo tried to regain his composure, tearing his eyes away from you for a split second, as he moved to a different shelf, before you managed to see him. His heart was beating, not just from the fear of getting caught by a human, but the thought of how close you were to him. But as you moved away to a shelf further away, Leo couldn’t help but follow along, making sure that he was staying hidden.
Leo watched as you gathered your things before walking up to the cash register. You placed your stuff in front of the cashier, waiting as they groggily started scanning your items. Leo and his brothers used this as an opportunity to get the last they needed, before hurrying back into the vent, all while the cashier was focused on your items.
With all of their groceries in bags, they hurried through the vent and up onto the roof, just in time to see you leave out the front door of the bodega with your newly bought groceries, once again humming to the music in your headphones.
“It feels like / Skuba duba dabda dididaj / Skuba duba dabda dididaj / I love you / Another cliche baby”, you sang along, doing a little dance as you walked.
Leo watched you with a smile, his heart skipping a beat at the sight. There was just something about humans, especially the ones like you, that just warmed his heart. Carefree, dancing and singing down the street, without having to worry about who was watching. How he wished he could do something like that, with someone just like you.
Raphael couldn't resist a teasing comment, hitting Leo’s arm when he saw him staring after you. "Well, well, look who's got heart in his eyes again. Leo, you've got a thing for grocery shopping now?"
Donatello joined in, smirking. "I think I saw a spark between Leo and that cereal box".
Michelangelo laughed. "Maybe it's love at first sight. Or should I say, love at first snack?", he said and pulled out a pack of oreos from his bag, causing both Donnie and Raph to hold their stomach in laughter.
Leo tried to brush off their comments, a faint blush visible under his mask. "It's nothing. Let's just go home".
“Booooooring”, Donnie groaned out loud, as he followed Leonardo’s lead back to the sewers. But his brothers weren't about to let him off the hook that easily.
As they made their way back home through the sewers, Leo’s brothers continued to tease him, comparing you to all the other girls that have caught his attention over the yes. Was it really so bad that he dreamed of getting a girlfriend one day? All human teenagers his age did the same, so was it wrong of him just because he was a turtle.
As they were about to round the corner before the entrance to their home, Leo stopped in realization. He had forgotten the Doritos.
“Oh shit”, he mumbled, before giving his bags to his brothers.
“Yo, what’s happening, man?”, Raph asked in confusion.
“I forgot the Doritos”, Leo said in a hurry. “Tell dad I’ll be back in a minute! I’ll hurry!” And with those words Leo was down the sewer before any of his brothers could protest.
Leo made it to the ladder and pushed the sewer cover off, only to stop dead in his tracks. Right in front of him on the alley floor was a perfect party sized Doritos bag, with a note taped to it.
Leo’s first thought was that he should run. The fear that a human had caught him burning in his throat. But he didn’t run. Instead he looked around to make sure he was alone, before he reached out and grabbed the bag, bringing it down to the sewer. Once at the foot of the ladder, Leo took a look at the note taped to the bag. It was hard to read with his shaking hands, but he managed.
“Hey stranger! I think you dropped this at the bodega, so I thought I would bring it to you. (Y/N) <3. P.S. You and your friends are quite noisy once you get up on the roof;)”.
Leo felt like fainting. A human had brought him the Doritos that his dad had asked him for. Not just any human, but you. The pretty human from the bodega.
Heat creepy up his cheeks, as he took the note and hid it in a pocket on his belt. Thinking back on Raph’s comment, Leo couldn’t help but giggle a little. He might have a thing for grocery shopping now.
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A/N: MM Leonardo with his crushes gives me “Cliche Love Song” by Basim vibes. Also the song used💕
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oneshotnewbie · 1 year ago
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Would you be okay with writing a Maya x Carina x daughter!reader?
Maybe a sick fic or some comfort
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ᕚ---ᕘ
The first thing you felt was pain as unbearable as a thousand jackhammers smashing in your skull from the inside and pinning you to the ground. You could not even open your eyes, your lids heavy. Your mouth was dry, even after several liters of tea you had already consumed for your sore throat that felt like the desert and its sharply cutting sand. Your limbs completely cramped and heavy.
A cold breeze blew around your stomach, only a light wool blanket draped over your body to keep you warm and protected. But with every movement you tried to take, the coldness inside increased and made you shiver violently. You felt weak and feverish. "Honey, you gotta take this" a soft voice whispered and you slowly opened your eyes and blinked in confusion to adjust to the unusually bright and diffused light.
Your mother, Maya, was kneeling on a piece of crumpled bedspread on the floor, looking worriedly at your pale face before placing her hand on your forehead to feel the temperature while smiling sympathetically. Slowly and carefully not to inflict yourself even more pain, you peeked at her hand. In it, she held a small bottle that should bring you relief, the label with various herbs telling you that it had to be medication. "This will help bring down your fever."
You rolled your eyes suspiciously, not caring about the accompanying pain for a brief second. It was the most disgusting drug you have ever had to take in your life and your mothers knew full well that you hated it. However, it was the only thing that always helped you get back on your feet and get fit. "Ew, I do not want that."
"Eppure lo prenderai, bella." (And yet you have to take it) said the gynecologist who had appeared behind you and strolled across the entire living room to open the window and ventilate the room. She returned with a tray containing a freshly set teapot, a new cup and a plate of rusks. Carina carefully poured a cup of steaming chamomile tea and placed it on the table next to the couch before taking a rusk in her hands and breaking it into small pieces so that you could eat it more easily.
You pushed your head softly back into the pillow and pressed your back against the edge of the couch. Quickly, you grabbed the blanket and pulled it over your head. You heard a giggling from your side and within a few seconds, it was gently pulled back down. Two loving pairs of eyes met your flushed face. "I do not want to take this, it tastes disgusting."
Maya and Carina looked at you intently. The brunette gently strokes your tousled hair and whispers soothing words while the blonde already dripped the brown liquid onto a tablespoon. Frowning, you looked between both of them with puppy eyes, but even they no longer attracted them. The firefighter extended her arm and placed the edge of the spoon against your lip, waiting for you to accept it.
You knew it was high time to take the medication before they would take you to the hospital. Besides, you were lucky that your throat was so sore you could barely taste the bitterness. Still, you struggled with the slimy texture and wrinkled your nose as a defensive stance. Panting, you flop back onto the sofa. "Throat lozenges would have worked too,"
"No they would not," both chuckled. Maya rose from her position and bent down to kiss you gently on the forehead. With quick steps she hurried away to let the used cutlery disappear into the sink while Carina helped you eat the rusks while smiling lovingly at you. She quietly told you a story about her childhood in Italy with her little brother to make you forget the fever and the pain.
Without further ado, she carefully picked up your legs and dropped down next to you, your legs now resting on her lap. "Would you like me to warm you some soup?" the blonde called questioningly from the open kitchen, waiting for your answer. But the answer did not come, instead you grimaced sharply and hastily shook your head."I think your daughter is saying no,"
"It is your daughter too, Carina."
"Yes, but she definitely inherited the stubbornness from you," exhausted, you snuggled deeper into the blanket and tried to make the slightly bizarre taste in your mouth disappear. Tiredness, which you had so wonderfully repressed until now, slowly returned to your body. You tried desperately to shake it off but not a shred was averted. "Are you cold, mi amore?"
You nodded and the brunette felt you tremble under her touch. "I am freezing." She was worried, you had already been couch-locked for two days, the flu ravaging you and sapping your energy without any progress towards improvement. "Maya, can you bring another blanket. Please?"
"It is already on the way," the woman addressed made her way straight to the bedroom, occasionally taking a look into the living room. Your eyes fluctuated between half open and closed and if she was lucky, she would be able to spend a short time with you before you would fall into a deep, sound sleep once again. "And a hot water bottle?"
You had been in and out of sleep for days, barely awake for a few hours before your body shut down completely once again. On the one hand this was good, your body trying to beat this miserable disease. On the other hand, you had hardly eaten anything or moved from your place for days.
The headache slowly subsided, just as your cramped limbs became looser. For a few minutes you listened to the streams of sounds spreading through the apartment as you lost your thoughts. You kept feeling like you were on the verge of falling asleep until you opened your eyes again.
Eventually you gave up and totally surrendered to the feeling.
Just then, the firefighter came back into the center of the apartment and looked at her sleeping daughter. "Oh, she fell asleep?" she murmured and carefully draped the second blanket over you. She carefully placed the hot water bottle under the blanket and found its place on your stomach. The brunette raised an eyebrow and hesitated with her answer before she leaned forward and looked into your sleeping face. "Yes, the medication always makes her quite sleepy."
Smiling and silent, she sat down on the other sofa element and gently placed a hand on your head. She carefully stroked your hair and looked at the screen of the television, on which she concentrated on until you woke up once more. Maya had no intention of leaving your side.
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lillaydee · 2 months ago
Text
One More Try Part 4
Landlord Joel Miller / Reader
They say a woman is tested when her man has nothing. But a man is tested when he has everything. What happens if you both passed the test, but your partners did not?
WARNINGS:
Unplanned Pregnancy, Soft Joel (The Last of Us), SO MUCH FLUFF, Joel Needs a Hug (The Last of Us), Alternate Universe - No Cordyceps Outbreak (The Last of Us), Protective Joel (The Last of Us), Joel is Bad at Feelings (The Last of Us), Hurt Joel (The Last of Us), Reader was pregnant before meeting Joel, Slow Burn, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Mentions of Miscarriage (Not OC), Landlord Joel, No Outbreak AU
SERIES MASTERLIST
Part 3
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You were feeling restless. Tired, but restless. Was that the right word? Restless? Like something was missing. You had something you desperately needed to do, but you cannot think what it was. You went about your days working, cleaning, eating, resting, writing, filling every single moment doing something. But still, there was this nagging feeling that there was something you needed to do.
Joel, Tommy and Maria had gone up to your study and gotten your files, books and little knick-knacks. You were officially working from home, no longer paying the rent for the study. Baby Bean was doing well, your cramping and bleeding had stopped, but you were still advised to take it easy, doctor’s orders, as Tess said, and Joel took that to meaning that you were not to move much at all. He spent hours arranging and rearranging your room to make sure that you needn’t take more than ten steps getting from one place to another. Not that he needed to, your room was already small.
You and Joel had spent every night together. He made sure you have breakfast before he left for work, making sure you have enough kissy stock to last you until lunch, came back with lunch and more kisses, before leaving again until it was dinner time. His own apartment had basically become a port for him to shower and get dressed, he even did the cooking in your small kitchen rather than his own, much bigger, better equipped and well-ventilated one.
After dinner, he took you out around the building for short walks, his hand always on you. You would tell him about your work, and he his. His workshop was really doing well, and he was always making something new, telling you all about them, showing you blurry and wonky pictures of the progress.
When you did your writing at night, Joel was always within a touch away. He kept you company, silently reading whatever he was reading, sometimes on the loveseat, sometimes on his stomach on the bed, but most of the time, he was just sat on the floor next to your table, leaning against the bookshelf he built, one hand on his book, another massaging your feet absentmindedly.
Your favourite time, though, was when you both lie in bed, just holding each other, breathing each other in. He would always end up with his head on your upper belly, hand on your bump, telling Baby Bean what he had been up to that day, your hand stroking or scratching his head as he did so. And when he’d finished, he would turn his attention back to you, kissing you breathless before you both would just be lulled to sleep.
The first time you had kissed, you were weak in the knees. A few days after that, as you were both laid in bed, the kisses turned more serious. When he finally explored your mouth with his tongue, you felt faint. You understood then why he hadn’t done that the first time you kissed. You would have lost consciousness for sure. The way that man licked into your mouth, as if his life depended on it, left you dumb. The one time he kissed you like that while you were doing your writing one night, you were so flustered and dazed you were unable to function. You had since put your foot down, no more kissing like that when your work was involved. How the fuck were you supposed to complete your writing if your whole body was tingling and your panties uncomfortably wet?
And that was all with his hands firmly over your clothing, at non-PG-rated- areas.
You tried sneaking his hand beneath your shirt once, desperate for his touch, but he said no. You were not cleared for sexual activities after that scare yet, and he assured you that if he were to start, he wouldn’t be able to stop. So, no. During one particularly feisty make out session on your part, you had somehow ended up on his lap, the delicious friction between your legs told you that you had been grinding on him something fierce. The next thing you knew, he had stopped kissing you, lifted you up and firmly deposited you on the bed before mumbling something about needing a quick shower, pointedly keeping his front away from you and leaving the room as if it was on fire.
The restless feeling that had been haunting you started that day. And here you were, still restless a few weeks later.
See, the thing was, normal women your age would just take care of it. But you were in a relationship for ten whole years with a man who saw women touching themselves as needy, effectively cheating on him with yourself, even though you were often left hanging without finishing whenever the two of you had sex. So, over the years, you had just gotten yourself used to the idea of not doing it anymore. And although you didn’t think Joel was someone who was self-centred enough to think that way, this thing between the two of you being so new, you didn’t want to risk it.
So, you were determined to take good care of yourself, so that Tess could give you some good news at the next appointment. You had never been this jittery before. You couldn’t stop tapping your legs. Joel sat next to you in the waiting room, hand on your thigh, his own legs tapping restlessly alongside yours.
Both of you were quiet when Tess manoeuvred the wand on your belly, and the now familiar whoosh-whooshing of Baby Bean’s heartbeat filled the room. Your eyes were always fixed on the monitor, Joel always holding your hand through it, and when the two of you looked at each other, both sets of eyes were always brimmed with tears, but your faces lit with happy smiles. This time round, your eyes locked for longer than it ever did during one of these sessions. He leaned in, and kissed you so tenderly, his tears fell on your cheek, mingling with your own.
“Would you like to know your baby’s sex, Mom, Dad?” her eyes looked away from the monitor for a bit, an excited smile on her face.
You looked at Joel, your smile unwavering. He looked excited, but somehow held himself back, and told you that this should be your decision. You looked at Tess and nodded.
“Congratulations, you are having a girl!”
Joel’s hand tightened around yours. His lips found yours again, before leaving them to litter your entire face with little kisses.
Tess said something about giving you two some alone time and left.
Joel was quiet. Too quiet. You looked at him and asked if he’s okay.
“You’re having a girl.”
You nodded, beaming at him.
“Thank you for letting me be here,” he said, a little choked, kissing your hand.
“Of course, I want you here. You will be a part of her life, as much or as little as you want, but you are definitely a part of my life, so yes Joel, I want you here.”
He kissed you again, saying thank you over and over.
After the checkup the two of you sat with Tess in her office listening to her instructions and recommendations. Joel’s feet were back to restless tapping, and so were yours.
“Do you have any questions?” Tess asked. And you couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Can I have sex?”
Tess laughed out loud, Joel’s feet had stopped tapping, his face red now, but his eyes were fixed on Tess’s, looking hopeful.
“Yes. Just, be careful.”
You both heaved a sigh of relief. And Joel’s feet tapped even harder and faster.
Throughout the wait for your next appointment, the supplements, the journey home, his hand around yours tightened, both hands almost white by the time you got home. He helped you off the truck and was contemplating lifting you up to get to your destination faster when one of the hot student bodies interrupted you two, asking Joel to come over to look at her stuck window. Her eyes looking you up and down, before locking at the way Joel had his hands on you. Her flirty smile faltered a bit, but she regained composure, even going so far as posing a little bit in her skimpy outfit for Joel.
You kissed him on his cheek and told him you will see him after. You started toward the stairs, but he lifted you up and deposited you on your front door, before going back downstairs to get his tools, telling the young woman he will be right there.
---
Joel fixed the window in no time at all, his young tenant sitting on her bed, watching him work, complementing him on how quickly he worked, how talented he was, and how good he looked doing his work. She had always been one of the few that flirted so openly with him, never shying away from telling him outright that she was always available if he felt a little
 restless. He had always ignored these advances with a small smile, before leaving. He had always been uncomfortable around women; it’s why he had never made any moves on any of them.
All his life, it was always the ladies going after him. He was shy, quite the opposite to Tommy in that way. He had always been told that he’s a grump, so the idea of flirting with someone terrified him. So, he had always sat back and let Tommy take the lead.
When Laura asked him out, he couldn’t believe someone as good looking and outgoing as she was would even pay attention to him. When she had started acting out, he stayed, endured it all, thinking that he could never get anyone better than her, that he loved her, and that this was just a rough patch.
The reality was, he was the only one to had ever made the effort in their relationship. She moved in and became a princess. No housework, no cooking, no job, and she was more than content for things to stay that way. He tried everything he could to make her happy. But at the first moment of hardship, even one that didn’t exactly leave him destitute, she bailed. He didn’t see it then, but he certainly did now. She was the fair-weather girlfriend. She wanted him for his looks, for the easy life he had promised her. Once things hit a bump, she looked for a way out. She was only staying with him until a better option came along.
When all came out in the open, Joel didn’t fight for her. All the frustrations he had felt throughout their relationship left him empty. She used that as an ammo, telling people that he never loved her, why wouldn’t he fight for her, adding that he had abused her, controlled her. She even told their friends that he was sterile, and that was why she slept around. Most of the friends didn’t believe her, thankfully, but Max’s words at the hospital confirmed to him that the rumour had the effect Laura wanted it to have.
Joel didn’t care, he lived privately anyway, preferring to keep his business to himself. He had given up all hopes in having a family, a woman to share his life with, fearing that his gentle soul would be taken advantage of again. He planned his life solo, not seeing or even wanting any prospect of him ever being with someone again. He didn’t think he could survive it if he was ever treated like that one more time.
But then he met you. And he found himself pulled to you, even when he was determined to stay away. And stay away he did, keeping to himself, only helping when Tommy asked him to. The only problem was that Anita Miller raised him right. He was raised to help those in need. So, he helped. He helped take you to the hospital when you collapsed. He helped when the doctor mistakenly thought he was the father of your newly discovered baby and wouldn’t let Maria stay with you since she was not family. He had never thought to correct them, or even Tess when she kept referring to him as Dad. He helped when you were scared during that first ultrasound session, holding your hand through it.
But when the ultrasound came on the monitor, he forgot that he was just helping. This was something he was looking forward to experiencing, twice, with Laura. He was denied by the miscarriage the first time, but cruelly ignored and held out on throughout the second – and even though he now knew why, the longing he had gone through for experiences like this back then, thinking he was going to be a father made him forget that this woman whose hand he was holding was a stranger to him, and that the baby he was staring at on the monitor was not his. Heck, you were two days post break up. For all he knew you were going to go back to your ex. But he couldn’t help the emotions that overwhelmed him, and he leant down, and kissed you on the temple, his eyes brimming with tears.
He helped when you needed your hospital bill paid. He helped when he refused to take your money for it, knowing the situation you were in. He helped when he watched you every morning and night walking to and back from work. He wanted to help further, drive you, but he had to remind himself, he was a literal stranger to you. Why on earth would you get in a car with him? But he started noticing how much later you were coming home. A pregnant woman, walking miles and miles alone in the dark. Still, he was worried about scaring you, pushing you away. So, he settled for waiting for you to get home safe, escorting you to your front door, desperately averting his eyes from the way your hips swayed when you were going up the stairs in front of him.
Every time he went to visit his mama or even called her, he couldn’t shut up about you, not even realising he was doing it. Julia from 1A gave him a cheque today. Julia from 1A walked to work today. Julia from 1A walked home in the middle of the night today. Maria sent Julia from 1A home today. It took him a while to realise how creepy and stalkery he had become, parroting your movements to his mama, but every time he looked up, his mama was always beaming at him.
When you didn’t come home one night, he got worried. He called Maria, and she took him to your study, where you had fallen asleep. Relief flooded his system. He decided that you two had known each other enough for you to accept a lift from him, cancelling dinner with his mama one night when you were late. She understood, her smile can be heard through the phone line, telling him she was proud of the kind man he had become. That’s where it all started, though. The smell of your perfume lingering in his truck. Your quiet hums to the radio. The smile you gave him every time when you thank him. Your stubbornness in ensuring him you will be fine, no, you didn’t need his help, no, you can walk the few miles, no, exercise was good for you and the baby, no, you didn’t need his money, no, you could take care of yourself, Joel.
Tommy and Maria caught on quickly, seeing how alive he became whenever your name was mentioned, even more when you were around. Their suspicions were confirmed when Maria suggested a trip to the farmer’s market, and Joel jumped at the opportunity. The Joel that had spent his weekends over the last few years moping around at home or his mama’s, who never needed anything from the darn farmer’s market, everything’s expensive anyway. Spending time with you that day had brought him back to life. He liked spending time with you. Laughter and conversation flowed easily, and he found himself wanting to spend more time with you, if you would allow it, of course.
Seeing Laura at the parking lot that day, along with the man she cheated on him with, holding the hand of the little girl he had thought was his, almost derailed him. But somehow, your presence in the truck with him, silently giving him his space to go through whatever was going on in his head settled him. Laura was in his past. She cannot hurt him anymore.
And seeing you and his mama hugging on his couch in his living room the next day solidified his instincts on you further. His mama had never hugged Laura, and certainly never laughed with her the whole time the two of them were together, and Laura was never a willing participant when it came to his family events. And Holy Shit, you could cook! By the time he walked you home that day, he had come to the realisation that he would very much like to see more of you. That he was indeed attracted to you. That he was falling in love with you. Not that he would tell you, or anyone for that matter.
But when you called him crying, bleeding, in pain, all secrecy was lost. Everyone could see how panicked he was for your well-being. How much he had come to care for you. He was a wreck. He was so thankful no one decided to make fun of him during that time, and even more thankful that you seemed to be reciprocating his feelings for you. He found himself willing to protect you at all costs when Max made his unwelcomed presence. When you asked him about Laura, rather than shut down, he told you everything. And instead of looking at him like a loser, a wimp, a stupid man, you embraced him, and tried your best to make him feel better. You didn’t shy away from his touch, instead welcomed it. Holding you had helped him so much, never had he slept better in his life. He was so thankful he had found you and was even more determined to help make your life better, the way you had made his without you even realising it.
So, when he learnt that you needed an office set up at home for the foreseeable future, he got to work. Truth be told, he was nervous. What if you had laughed and scorned him for his efforts like Laura did? Those few minutes you didn’t speak when he delivered the furniture were among the longest of his life. Did you like it? Did he go overboard? Should he not had done this?
But then you kissed him.
He was so happy he could’ve floated away. He will never be as happy as he was at that moment, he thought. There is no possible way he could get any happier.
And then you let him touch your baby bump and introduced him to your Baby Bean.
Oh, Joel was floating on air.
It was not just the fact that you let him, it was the trust you had for him. That you would let him be involved in your baby’s life so early on, when the woman he thought he was in love with held him back as if he was the leper.
He spent the next few weeks kissing you so much his lips were practically melded unto yours, taking every opportunity to talk to Baby Bean, feeling as if his life was finally on track.
But he wanted more. He wanted you. All of you. If you knew the things he wanted to do to you, you might see him as a pervert. He wanted you so much he had to keep his hands on certain parts of your body only, knowing full well that if he got started, he would never be able to stop. When was the last time he even had sex? He was sure he was drunk, and she was calling him Jack. Or was it Jay? Juan? No, Javi. Yeah, that was it. She was screaming for Javi, and he was so distracted and found the whole thing so ridiculous he couldn’t even finish.
He wanted his first time with you to be perfect. And you were not cleared for sexual activities after the scare. He had managed to hold back, but you were sure not making it easy on him. He found you so sexy. The sounds you made when he kissed you made him wonder what other sounds he could pull from you. The way you move against him, trying to get him to feel you up, grinding against him
 oh
 the amounts of cold showers he had to take. The only refrain he had left was the fact that sex could be unsafe for Baby Bean.
So, he held back.
But today
 today

Today, he found out Baby Bean was a girl. And you told him that he would be in her life. He had often worried that he was overstepping, going to these appointments with you, being there for you during these sessions. He was fully aware that he was not the father, a fact that was so casually thrown at him by your ex, and by his own, twice. But your insistence that he stayed, be included
 it overpowered the anger and humiliation he felt when those facts were thrown in his face. All he wanted was to be allowed the opportunity to share this beautiful journey with you. He will take whatever you will allow him to have.
Which, after Tess had given you the all-clear, was you. All of you. He was ready to break down the doors if that meant getting to devour you faster.
But here he was, in one of his units, his very young, beautiful and persistent tenant now standing in front of him in her short shorts and bikini top, caressing his arms and bicep, telling him he did such a good job, how lucky she was to have such a strong, handsome landlord to rely on, how she wished he would let her pay him back, batting her eyelashes at him, her fingers trailing from his arms to his stomach, trailing dangerously close to his belt buckle.
He went around her, told her the window was fixed. He needed to get back now. And he reminded her that she only had one more month on the lease of her short-term rental and shut the door behind him.
She was hot, sexy, and more than willing to give herself to him. They all were. But Joel only had eyes on one person.
All he wanted to do was get back to you.
---
Joel practically tossed his toolbox in his apartment before running up to your apartment, taking three steps at a time. He knocked impatiently, not wanting to just barge in even though he had a key. He was digging in his pocket to get it when the door opened, and he was met with his Mama, Maria, Tommy, Frank and Bill in your tiny room, all holding glasses of sparkling cider, a toast to Babygirl Bean.
It took Joel all his will not to curse in frustration.
But then he saw you, your face all pink and glowing from happiness and excitement.
So, he walked in, took the glass Tommy offered him, and joined in on the toast. Everyone was so excited, his Mama already planning to crochet some pink stuff, Maria talking about a baby shower nearer the time, Frank practically vibrating at the prospect of having a baby girl to spoil (just think of all the pink!!). And then Tommy suggested they all go out to celebrate, his suggestion garnering some very enthused cheers and agreements, him completely oblivious to Joel glaring daggers at him.
The seven of you gathered at a small Italian place, merrily eating and drinking the night away. You couldn’t be happier, knowing for sure now that you were not alone in this. Anita had solemnly declared to Babygirl Bean that she was to call her Nana, and that she, Auntie Maria, Uncles Tommy, Frank and Bill will take care of her too, and that she was so loved.
Joel froze a little at this declaration. His name was not mentioned as one of the uncles. Did his Mama mean he would be the dad? He didn’t want you to think he had unashamedly suggested to his Mama that he had considered himself the father figure, although if he was honest with himself, he would want nothing more.
Your heart did skip a beat when Anita excluded him from the list of uncles. You were divided – one part of you wanted Joel to be listed in that list so that Joel wouldn’t think he was being pressured into taking the dad role, but your heart would prefer it if he wasn’t in the list. You wanted Joel to be more than an uncle. But what if he didn’t see this that way? You might scare him off. What man who had been through what he had gone through would want to be responsible for some strange man’s baby?
But you were just too happy to think about that. You were in his arms. You were having a girl. And you will take that for now.
By the end of the night, you were exhausted. You had eaten too much, even with Joel’s help, and the excitement had tired you out. Your belly was uncomfortably tight, and you had to focus to breathe. You hugged everyone goodnight, Tommy and Maria sending Anita home. You fell asleep in Joel’s truck as soon as he shifted into reverse.
---
***SMUT ALERT***
As I have said before, I am not a smut writer, and am quite shy about writing about sex, so again, sorry if the smut is not smutting.
You woke up early the next morning. Too early. You had fallen asleep far too early. You didn’t recall getting out of the truck. Joel must’ve carried you again. You were starting to worry about the man’s back. Sure, he’s strong, and you were much smaller than him, but you were also growing by the day. You would hate to be responsible for him throwing his back out. You stretched your body, and a pair of hands tightened around your torso, one below your breasts, the other on your bump. Joel nuzzled your neck, mumbling that it was far too early for you to wake up. Stay in bed with him, he whispered, before going back to snoring softly. You turned around to face him, and he rolled onto his back, pushing the duvet off the bed, pulling you against him, your head resting on his chest, one foot over his. He was still asleep.
You took the opportunity to study his face. He was so beautiful. Fine lines were beginning to show on his face, all representing some point of his life. His happiness, worries, fears. You traced his eyebrows with your finger being careful not to touch him. You went down his nose, his lips, his scruff, and by the time your finger got to his chest, you couldn’t help but place your finger on him. Just a straight line. Barely touching his shirt, but you loved the warmth that radiated from his body to it, slowly drawing circles on it. Your eyes went ahead of your finger. There was a noticeable bulge going on under his sweatpants. A bulge that was growing into a tent. He was still snoring softly, his lips, face, arms relaxed.
That restless feeling was back. And you were going to do something about it this time. Praying to God he didn’t wake up, you traced your finger down his slight belly, and traced the outline of his manhood lightly over the sweats.
His fingers around you tightened. His breath hitched. You looked up at him. He was watching you, his sleep mussed eyes dark, waiting to see what you were planning to do next. He’s definitely awake now.
You let your finger continue its journey. Just a gentle trace up and down, up and down, and his breathing got heavier and heavier. His eyes closed involuntarily. His mouth slightly opened. You got up slowly, nudged his legs open, settled yourself between them, and looked at him one more time, this time for permission. He didn’t move. His eyes locked on yours, his arms by his side where you were seconds ago, and he gave a slight nod.
You lowered his sweatpants, just enough to free the reason it was tented.
Shit.
All this time?
Damn, Miller. Who knew?
Well, you suspected. But seeing it in person?
It’s extremely intimidating.
You wanted so badly to just go to town on him. Ravage him like a popsicle. It was perfect, just standing there proudly against his tummy, staring right back at you.
But you were feeling cheeky.
So, you just traced the sensitive underside of his length ever so lightly with your finger, up and down, up and down, your other hand doing the same to his heavy, heavy balls.
His whole body seized. His breath out of control, his fingers clutching the bedsheets.
Oh
 you had never felt so powerful.
You really wanted to tease him more. But you yourself were feeling a bit too desperate for him right now. You wet your lips, gathered as much saliva as you can in your mouth, and repeated the tracing action from his balls to his tip, this time, with your tongue.
You weren’t sure who moaned louder. Him, or you. Either way, his hand found your head, his body stiff from trying not to push himself on you. His other hand was now white knuckles from fisting the sheet. You made sure no part of that beautiful, supremely well-endowed gift he had was left unexplored, wanting to savour the moment before you give in to your desire to just wrap your lips around him. He was so hard it had to be painful.
“Baby
” he begged. “Please
”
“Please what, Joel?”
“Please
 I don’t think I can handle you putting your mouth on me. It will be over so quickly
 please baby
”
“Good,” you said, “More for me in round two.”
He visibly shivered.
He whimpered as you wrapped your lips around his thick head, tongue savouring his dripping precum, he groaned loudly when you move down his length, taking more of him, slowly, carefully, he genuinely screamed when his tip hit the back of your throat.
“FUCK!!! Baby, please
 I’m gonna cum
 please
”
You wrapped you hand around what was left out of your mouth, massaging the length of it, your other hand cupping his balls rolling them between your fingers, before pulling gently, your mouth continuing to suck him dry.
He exploded. His balls pulled up so tight, his length twitching angrily in your hand and mouth, and you swallowed him as he released himself, taking more of him as he did so. The whimpers he let out made you clench so hard you swore you came along with him. His whole upper torso was red, his neck taut, his jaws clenched, and you had never seen him so sexy.
When he hissed from oversensitivity, you let go of him, sat on your knees between his legs, and made a show of dabbing the corners of your lips off his spilled cum, before licking your fingers clean as elegantly as you can, your eyes closed.
The next thing you knew you were on your back, him hovering over you, kissing the breath out of your lungs. He really didn’t hold back. His hands roamed all over your body, all the parts he had denied himself, going under you shirt, your shorts, getting handfuls of your bare back, your ass, his lips going from yours to your jaw, your ears, your neck, the friction from his scruff making your entire body erupt in goosebumps, your nipples perked up, your sensitive nub aching for his touch. He clutched at the hem of your shirt, looking to you for permission. You bit your lower lips in anticipation before helping him get rid of the offending material.
Once the shirt was off, though, he slowed. His eyes took in your naked torso. Your breasts, your belly, marveling at the sight. He took his own shirt off, before placing both his hands on your swollen belly. He leaned down and whispered,
“Good morning Babygirl Bean. If you’re thinking of waking up, I’m gonna need you to stay asleep a bit longer, okay? Cause the things I’m about to do to your Mommy
 you are nowhere near old enough to see or even hear.”
You didn’t even have time to laugh, he was back on you. He kissed you so languidly, slowly, passionately, you had trouble remembering anything but him. He continued the slow kisses away from your mouth, licking your jaw, your neck, your collarbones, his hands gently massaging your sensitive breasts. You hissed slightly when his massage got a little rough, and he got the message, replacing his hands with his mouth, gently tracing your peaks before taking them in turn into his mouth, flicking his tongue on them until you were squirming underneath him.
He licked every inch of your belly, murmuring stay asleep, stay asleep over and over, and your whole body was shaking with laughter, his eyes cheeky on you before he himself succumbed to a giggling fit. He kissed you again, his hands roaming on your back, you sides, your belly, before pausing at your waistband, fingers hooked.
“Can I?”
“Please
”
He took your sleep shorts off, along with your soaked panties, his body immediately dropping between your legs, and took a deep inhale of your scent, his eyes closing.
“Fuckkkkkkkk



.. baby
”
He took your thighs with his arm and placed them over his shoulders, peppering kisses all around your weeping entrance, taking more and more deep breaths as he did so. You were squirming, trying to pull him up, telling him you wanted him inside you, you had waited long enough, but he stilled your hips, telling you that you got your breakfast, now it’s time he had his. The way he was looking at you left you shivering. With one more kiss at the top of your mound, he gave in, and devoured you.
Your back arched so high you were floating off the bed, his name came out involuntarily. His tongue laved every crevice of your fold, going inside you, drinking you up, licking your walls as if looking for treasure. When he finally, finally wrapped his lips around your nub, you screamed, your legs shaking, your breathing hitched. He sucked at it, gently at first, before increasing his tempo and suction, flicking his tongue at it as he sucked and sucked, and just as you were tethering on the edge, he inserted his fingers into you, stroking you hard and fast, and you fell, hard.
You must have blacked out. Your body felt numb. Your ears were ringing. Your vision was blurry. Fuck. You had never come that hard in your life. Your body was still shaking. He was slowly licking at you, fingers still going in and out of you, making sure you can savour your high. Your body jolted with every stroke, and he was clearly enjoying seeing you like this, a smug look on his face as he got up and crawled his way back up to your lips.
He kissed you nice and slow, allowing you the time to catch your breath, studying your face, peppering you with kisses all over. Once you’ve calmed down, he asked if you were ready for him. You took his beautiful face in your hands and kissed him again. And again. And again. You raised your feet up to his hips, toes hooked onto his waistband, pushing his sweatpants off him fully.
He leaned over to get the condom he had stashed in your nightstand in anticipation for this moment, but you stopped him. You wanted to feel him. All of him. You both were clean, and it’s not like he could get you anymore pregnant. After asking you if you were sure, he lined himself up with your entrance, and pushed in. Slowly, surely, not wanting to hurt you. You took him in, inch by inch, your lips melded with his, eyes closed, until the two of you slowly but surely became one.
Joel stilled when he bottomed out. His face in your neck, breathing heavily. Gimme a second, he said. You breathed him in, stroking his back, until you couldn’t wait anymore, begging him to move. He lifted his head up, kissed you breathless, and took his first stroke.
He made love to you. His strokes were slow, patient, controlled, calculated. Each time he moved you felt your breath get stolen from your lungs. His chest brushed against yours, his lips never leaving your skin, his hands wrapped tightly around your back and your hips, lifting you towards him. He wanted to be as close to you as possible, having waited for this moment for what felt like forever. The two of you complemented each other, your bodies moulding perfectly, even with your baby bump in the way.
With each stroke he took, the two of you found yourself climbing higher and higher. Your breaths becoming more and more erratic. Both of you moaning, groaning, pleading, complimenting, how good you both made the other felt, how long you have waited for this, how right this felt, until you both couldn’t take it any longer. His strokes got more desperate, his hips rutting himself deeper and deeper, your hips canting to meet his, and you both stilled with ecstasy so high, you were floating in the clouds, arms around each other, lips melded, breaths mingled, bodies tense, eyes shut, until he collapsed on top of you.
You both laid like that for a while, catching your breaths, your bodies sweaty from exertion, a euphoric smile on both your faces. It was a while before he spoke. “I know I’m squishing Babygirl Bean and her Mommy,” he mumbled into your neck. “But I don’t think I’ve come that hard, twice, ever. I’m not sure if I can move. It’s been a while.”
You both giggled, until he kissed you again, still inside you, not wanting to leave this new favourite place of his.
But your blissed stupor was quickly interrupted.
By Babygirl Bean.
She kicked you so hard both of you jumped, Joel losing his balance getting off you he fell off the bed. Both of you stared at your belly as if it was about to jump up and attack you.
“Did you feel that?”
“Yeah”
“Has she ever?”
“No, this was the first,” your hands quickly landed on your belly, and Joel’s much bigger ones joined them.
You two waited with bated breaths, minutes feeling like hours.
She kicked again.
“Oh my God!!!”
And again.
“Oh, that was a big one. Does it hurt?”
“No, just weird
 but
 a good weird.”
You two waited again, but it seemed Babygirl Bean had gotten her message across and had gone back to sleep.
Joel held you in his arms.
“Do you think she just wanted me to get off her Mommy?”
You laughed so hard you snorted. He lost it too, laughing with you, arms tightening around your naked body, no longer careful where he placed them now.
“No Joel, she loves you, I don’t think she minded. She just wanted to remind us that she’s here with us.”
He went still, and then turned you to face him, his soft eyes brimming with tears.
“You really think she loves me?”
“Of course she does. You talk to her every day, why wouldn’t she?”
“And you don’t mind this?”
“Why would I? I mean, I lo
” you stopped yourself. It’s too soon. It’s not right to force that on him.
He smiled, kissing you again. He lowered himself to your belly, rubbing it, kissing it gently. “I’m sorry I squished you Babygirl Bean. I’ll be careful next time okay? You sleep now. I love you
”
He made his way back up to you. You wanted so badly to ask him about his declaration of love to Babygirl Bean, but instead, you ran your hand through his sweaty hair and asked him, “so
 there will be a next time?” while looking at him cheekily.
“I mean, if I have it my way
 yeah
 unless
 you didn’t find that experience to your satisfaction?”
“Oh
 it was very much to my satisfaction.”
“Good, cause we’ll be doing that again,” he kissed you, “and again”, another kiss, “and again.”
He deepened the kiss, and the next time came a lot sooner than expected.
---
By the 7th month, you were feeling a lot better. Well, as good as a pregnant lady can feel. No more nausea, at least, despite your growing belly, and feeling like a duck whenever you walked. You and Joel were practically living together, taking turns sleeping at your place and his. Anita, Maria and Frank had taken to buying Babygirl Bean every single pink outfit they saw, as if other colours do not exist. There were baby clothes everywhere in your small apartment. You were beginning to worry how the baby will fit in there. There was barely any space for you to walk around as it was.
You were checking your bank balance online one day and noticed something off.
“Honey?” looking over your shoulder at him, who was sat on the kitchen counter, fixing some thingamajig you could never identify.
“Hmm?”
“Have you not been cashing my cheques?”
“What, for the hospital bill? I told you I don’t want it,” he said, eyes still fixed on his work.
“No, I meant for the rent and utilities.”
He stopped working. His head fell to his chest for a bit, and you saw him noticeably take a long deep breath before he turned and spoke to you. “No, I haven’t. Not for a few months now. Not since we started being
 together
 officially.” He was averting your gaze.
“What? Why?”
He stood up, washed his hands, took a kitchen towel and dried it. You took a deep breath, knowing that he was stalling.
“Well, you’re my girlfriend. I live here too, most of the time, so why would I charge you rent?”
“Joel
 you can’t do that
”
“And why not?” He was on the floor now, turning your chair towards him, your feet in his lap.
“Because you make a living through rent honey
 I can’t be a burden to you like this. I refuse,” you said, pinching his thigh with your toes a little bit to drive your point home. “If this keeps up, you will be losing money cause I will keep living here and you are not charging me for the unit you could be making money off. That’s not good landlord-tenant etiquette, you know.” You were positively pouting by this point.
He rose up to his knees and kissed the pout off your face.
“Then move in with me.”
“What?”
“Move in with me. Then I can rent this unit out. And your worry about me losing money on this unit is solved. And I get to come home to you for real. Move in with me,” he said, too matter of fact to be joking.
“Joel
 isn’t it too soon? We’ve only begun seeing each other
”
“I don’t measure the successes of my relationships by how long I’ve been with someone baby. We were with our exes for almost ten years and look how everything turned out. And yet, I have never felt this way about Laura. We are older now baby, wiser, hopefully. The way I see it, we already live together. So why not make it official?”
“You do realize that I wouldn’t be moving in alone, right? There’s someone else moving in with me?” you said, pointing at your ever-growing belly.
“Good. That way I get to see my Babygirl Bean whenever I want, watch her grow up,” he said, hope in his voice, before giving your belly a kiss. “Please say yes. You don’t have space for a baby here anyway. Please?” he rested his chin on your belly, eyes looking at you with so much hope and pleading you could melt.
You didn’t even have to think for long.
“Okay.”
The was his face lit up made your heart grow ten sizes.
“Yes?”
“Yes!!!”
He got up and pulled you to your feet gently, before hugging you tight, kissing you breathless.
“You’ll move in with me?”
“Yes, Joel, I’ll move in with you.”
He kissed you long and deep, his fingers beginning to roam places.
Of course, Babygirl Bean made her presence known. Joel dropped to his knees, and whispered to her, “You hear that Babygirl? You’re moving in with me!” She kicked again. “See? She approves!”
“No
 she just kicked my bladder. I need to pee.”
---
You were watching Joel, Tommy, Maria, Frank and Bill move your stuff down to your new home. You knew it was too soon, but honestly? You didn’t care. Joel had made you feel safer than you have ever felt. Anita was keeping you company, cold glasses of lemonade in one of your hands, a battery-operated fan in the other, on chairs that were placed under the awning of the main door to the building, the door left open for ventilation. Being in your third trimester during the height of summer was not ideal. But Joel was taking every precaution, installing AC in every room in his apartment so you would be more comfortable. You had tried to help with the move but got shooed off like a cat trying to steal food when you so much as tried to get upstairs.
“You know, you would have a better chance at getting pregnant again before this one is born than have Joel let you lift a finger,” Anita said, rubbing your arm.
You smiled shyly, “He has been spoiling me a lot,” you said, blushing a bit.
“He’s happy,” she looked at you with such loving eyes, you couldn’t help but feel as if your own late mom was here. “You make him happy. I cannot thank you enough for that.”
“He makes me happy too,” you looked at Joel, who was coming down the stairs, one of your suitcases in his hands, winking at you.
Shit, you still blush every time he did that.
Joel came back out, taking a small sip from your lemonade, before kissing you softly. “Not many to go. Should be done in a few hours,” he said.
“I can help Maria pack,” you tried.
“Nope,” another kiss. And another on your nose. You couldn’t help but giggle. This man makes you feel like a schoolgirl again, having the biggest crush on the school jock. He got on his knees and kissed your belly, your hand in his hair, slightly sweaty and unkempt from working all morning.
“Joel?” a voice from the parking lot called out.
The three of you looked to the source. Joel stood up; his face unreadable.
“Laura.”
---
Part 5
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novlr · 1 year ago
Note
how to describe? Houses, rooms, interiors, palaces, etc?
Creating immersive descriptions of indoor spaces is more than just scene setting—it’s an invitation to the reader to step into your world. Describing the interior of buildings with vivid detail can draw readers into your narrative. So let’s explore how to describe interiors using multiple sensory experiences and contexts.
Sights
Lighting: soft glow of lamps, harsh fluorescent lights, or natural light.
Colour and textures; peeling paint, plush velvet, or sleek marble.
Size and scale: is it claustrophobically small or impressively grand?
Architectural features: high ceilings, crown mouldings, or exposed beams.
Furnishings: are they modern, sparse, antique, or cluttered?
Style and decor: what style is represented, and how does it affect the atmosphere?
State of repair: is the space well-kept, neglected, or under renovation?
Perspective and layout: how do spaces flow into each other?
Unique design features: describe sculptural elements, or things that stand out.
Spatial relationships: describe how objects are arranged—what’s next to, across from, or underneath something else?
Sounds
Describe echoes in large spaces or the muffled quality of sound in carpeted or furnished rooms.
Note background noises; is there a persistent hum of an air conditioner, or the tick of a clock?
Describe the sound of footsteps; do they click, scuff, or are they inaudible?
Include voices; are they loud and echoing or soft and absorbed?
Is there music? Is it piped in, coming from a live source, or perhaps drifting in from outside?
Capture the sounds of activity; typing, machinery, kitchen noises, etc.
Describe natural sounds; birds outside the window, or the rustle of trees.
Consider sound dynamics; is the space acoustically lively or deadened?
Include unexpected noises that might be unique to the building.
Consider silence as a sound quality. What does the absence of noise convey?
Smells
Identify cleaning products or air fresheners. Do they create a sterile or inviting smell?
Describe cooking smells if near a kitchen; can you identify specific foods?
Mention natural scents; does the room smell of wood, plants, or stone?
Are there musty or stale smells in less ventilated spaces?
Note the smell of new materials; fresh paint, new carpet, or upholstery.
Point out if there’s an absence of smell, which can be as notable as a powerful scent.
Consider personal scents; perfume, sweat, or the hint of someone’s presence.
Include scents from outside that find their way in; ocean air, city smells, etc.
Use metaphors and similes to relate unfamiliar smells to common experiences.
Describe intensity and layering of scents; is there a primary scent supported by subtler ones?
Activities
Describe people’s actions; are they relaxing, working, hurried, or leisurely?
Does the space have a traditional use? What do people come there to do?
Note mechanical activity; elevators moving, printers printing, etc.
Include interactions; are people talking, arguing, or collaborating?
Mention solitary activities; someone reading, writing, or involved in a hobby.
Capture movements; are there servers bustling about, or a janitor sweeping?
Observe routines and rituals; opening blinds in the morning, locking doors at night.
Include energetic activities; perhaps children playing or a bustling trade floor.
Note restful moments; spaces where people come to unwind or reflect.
Describe cultural or community activities that might be unique to the space.
Decorative style
Describe the overall style; is it minimalist, baroque, industrial, or something else?
Note period influences; does the decor reflect a specific era or design movement?
Include colour schemes and how they play with or against each other.
Mention patterns; on wallpaper, upholstery, or tiles.
Describe textural contrasts; rough against smooth, shiny against matte.
Observe symmetry or asymmetry in design.
Note the presence of signature pieces; a chandelier, an antique desk, or a modern art installation.
Mention thematic elements; nautical, floral, astronomical, etc.
Describe homemade or bespoke items that add character.
Include repetitive elements; motifs that appear throughout the space.
History
Mention historical usage; was the building repurposed, and does it keep its original function?
Describe architectural time periods; identify features that pinpoint the era of construction.
Note changes over time; upgrades, downgrades, or restorations.
Include historical events that took place within or affected the building.
Mention local or regional history that influenced the building’s design or function.
Describe preservation efforts; are there plaques, restored areas, or visible signs of aging?
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