#Thanks to all the adults around them failing to protect them!

[pupperish]

I think people need to realize that Killua and Gon are pushed to be the worst versions of themselves during the Chimera Ant arc

[inuyashaluver]

Firstly wanted to say thank you for your fics, they NEVER disappoint 🫶

And I wanted to request something with Grace Clinton, maybe a soft/hard launch with a non-footballer gf?

girlfriend - grace clinton

grace clinton x reader

description: in which your girlfriend is tired of keeping the love of her life a secret, thus, you get a special invitation to her debut with her national team

warnings: nothing really!! not proofread because its me

a/n: STOPPP, thank you so much for the love and support you are so incredibly sweet, please enjoyyyyy, i'm rusty like don't mind me AHHAHAH, clearing out my drafts and requests as we speak!!

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you and your girlfriend, grace, long story short are soulmates. you have known grace pretty much your entire life and have never felt such a huge amount of love for anyone as much as you did with her. 

grace has always been in love with you, she doesn’t remember a time where she hasn’t been. and that just sums up your entire relationship, completely and utterly in love.

—

you and grace have known each other ever since you were 7. you were both placed in the same class at school, grace known for her class clown personality while you just smiled at her antics while working on your studies.

you two gravitated towards each other quicker than ever expected, being the best of friends until you were both 17 and grace finally asked you to be her girlfriend. an absolute surprise to not only the both of you, but everyone else around you. 

while grace was playing football, you were her biggest cheerleader on the side, her ‘lucky charm’ as she loved to call you. you did absolutely everything together, the best partner for life.

in your adult lives, you moved in together, grace playing football while you were in veterinarian school. it worked so well, it was so effortless, so easy and it was absolutely the best.

—

you had the privilege of being able to travel around the uk as grace joined different clubs, and grace was so incredibly grateful for you. 

something to know about your girlfriend, she was incredibly private. grace hated the thought of you being a secret but she was so protective.

she often had nightmares of you being found by crazy friends and getting harassed, and that was why she kept you private. her work and social life completely separate.

you didn’t mind it, you and grace were secure amongst yoursleves and within your relationship to not find it offensive. you both loved each other and that was all that really mattered.

all her teammates, your friends and family knew about your relationship and knew how much you meant to each other, and that was enough for both of you.

there were subtle hints here and there, people knew grace had a partner, she just didn’t want to give anyone details. both of your instagrams had soft hints towards your relationship, but nothing too obvious or completely out there.

you would come to every match without fail, always waiting for her at the end of the match.

—

she spots you sitting in the stands, clad in her jersey with a proud smile on your face as you watched her sign things and take photos with fans. she felt herself grow shy at the pure look of admiration on your face.

when people began to leave, she smiles over at you, you smile at the girl, nodding your head flirtily as she gave you a cheeky wave with a wink.

she gestures to the tunnel, meaning to follow her to the back later on. you nod, laughing at her cheeky antics, you pucker your lips up jokingly and she rolls her finger in a circle to hint for you to hurry up so she could say hello.

you wait for her in the carpark, perched up against your shared car, she rushes out excitedly, clearly out of breath but she smiles so brightly when she sees you, her most favourite person in the entire world.

you open your arms out to her expectantly and she walks into them with a relieved breath, hugging you around the middle tightly.

“hi, baby” she whispered in your ear, her lips giving you a subtle kiss on the shell of your ear. “hi, gracie girl”, you chuckle, rubbing your hands up and down her back before you pulled apart, puckering your lips up at her teasingly. she smirks, her hand cupping the underside of your jaw to pull you into a loving kiss. 

“i missed you” she breathes out against your lips, you smile, pecking them, “i missed you too, baby, two hours is way too long” you chuckle mockingly, kissing her a little longer this time.

she smiles in the kiss, drawing you in closer with her hands on your waist, “two hours felt like two days” she mocks, giving your hips a gentle squeeze as she walked you to the passenger side of the car, opening the door for you and closing it once you were seated.

“you played so well today, gracie baby” you smile at her when she puts her seatbelt on, she grins so sheepishly, cheeks pink no matter the time or place when it came to you.

“cause you were there” she shakes her head in your face, kissing your lips tenderly before she grabbed your hand to hold as she drove.

—

when grace got transferred to tottenham, things fast tracked. 

“baby, it’s only fair” grace groans, flopped on top of you as you were under the covers in the early hours of the morning. “gracie, i love you, but please, no” you beg, speaking up from under the blanket.

she sighs, smushing her face into your stomach over the blanket, “babe!” she yells, muffled by the blankets, you rip the blankets off your face, giving her your best scowl when she looked up at you from the movement.

“please, no, it’s too early” you exclaim, grace smiles at you, clearly amused by your attempt at anger on your features. “you got to pick dinner, and the movie last night” grace reminds, “i knew you let me pick because you wanted something,” you tutt, shaking your head.

she gasps, her hand clutching her chest, “i would do no such thing!” she moves up to straddle your waist as you hold yourself up by your elbows.

“my ass” you whisper, letting your girlfriend press a sweet kiss to your lips, “please” she pouts. her hands moving the blanket off you to hold your waist, kissing you again. you hum against her, clearly her little plan had worked.

“please come to training” she whispers, her words fluttering over your lips. you roll your eyes fondly, nodding and letting your girlfriend kiss your cheeks repeatedly, pulling you up from the bed excitedly.

the girl had already picked out your clothes, that’s how confident she was that she could get you to come to training with her. her separation anxiety was real.

you laugh when you see the ‘clinton’ hoodie on the top of the pile of clothes, shaking your head but putting it on anyway.

and when you both arrived at training, and you were seen in the training video wearing that hoodie, the questions and speculation were growing tenfold. who was this girl grace brought to training?

you and grace had been chatting after all the bombarding questions reached both of your phones. and you both decided, maybe it was time to put your relationship out in the open. although you both had your worries, you just didn’t want to hide anymore. 

and so after careful deliberation, you and grace would make your relationship official in her debut match for the senior lioness team.

—

grace was so jittery in her hotel room this morning, aggie had to message you that your girlfriend was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. you call her and she picks up a couple seconds after you press the call button.

“baby” she breathes out, clutching onto the phone as she talked to you, “hi, babe, you okay?” you ask her, phone on speaker as you get ready for the game. “i’m okay, just nervous” you hum at her words, “and that’s okay, baby” you remind her and she instantly calms down.

“yeah, i know” she sighs, “i miss you, i can’t wait to see you tonight” she grins, fiddling with the ends of her shorts. you giggle into the phone, “i miss you too baby, i’m very excited to see you” you both chatter back and forth before you hung up.

“i better see clinton on your back, babe, i love you!” she calls out into the phone before she hangs up, getting rushed onto the bus. you laugh, already wearing the england jersey with your girl’s name on the back. like you were a rooke, tsk.

—

you sat with her family in the stands, understanding why grace was so jittery. you watch her train and she looks pale, there’s so much riding on this. she wants to do well, she needs to do well. she needs to impress you.

she waves at you shyly when she spots you, you smile at her brightly, holding your hands up in a heart shape to make her giggle, and it thankfully works. she mimics your gesture, making you giggle as well. you both calmed down after that.

—

the match concludes and she does extremely well, the look of pride on both of your faces was infectious. you cheer loudly when they do a lap of appreciation. and like usual, when she completes her signatures and pictures and walks over to the friends and family section. 

she smiles up at you from the bottom of the pitch, ushering with her hand to come down to where she was.

you smile at her shyly, walking around others to reach her, and when you do, you don't think you’ve ever seen her smile so brightly. “hello, beautiful” she pulls you in by your waste to hug you tenderly, kissing your cheek before she rests her head on your shoulder to feel closer to you. 

“hi, superstar” you hug her tightly, the barrier making it a little difficult but you both didn’t care. she pulls back to look at you, to really look at you. she may have just debut and reached one of biggest goals of her life, but you’re really the best achievement in her life.

“you’re sure about this?” grace questions, eyes flickering between your own in concern, you smile softly, brushing a stray hair from her forehead and tucking it tenderly behind her ear.

“i’m sure, lovey” she smiles at your words, breathing out happily as she took in your appearance before she placed her hand onto your jaw.

she pulls you into a soft kiss, tame for the public but so incredibly meaningful. you hear the distant cheering of everyone, but it's drowned out with feeling grace’s lips move with yours. it lasts for a couple seconds before she pulls away, resting her forehead on yours.

both of you smile, holding each other tightly, slightly in shock that you were both now official to the public. “finally” she teases, pinching your hip, you laugh, hitting her arm softly before leaning in to peck her lips.

you both see people holding up phones, chattering and talking about the two of you but you both really didn’t care. you had each other and that is all that matters.

though, what you both didn’t expect was the overwhelming amount of support you both gained out of this. the worry was honestly for nothing.

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you know the drill - pretend it’s you!! ily celin

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graceclinton_x: she's a big softy

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[shower-phantom-ideas]

Bruh emotional support ghost kid? Well thats what they are calling him

Suicide cases in gothem are about to fucking plummet boiz cause this one weird blue eyes, black haired boy is now heading to your location.

How does he know where to be? Having a bad day and are all alone? No the fuck your not cause don’t turn around now but theres some shiny blue eyes coming at you from that dark ally. Oh shit hes here to drop some information about you and your lost loved ones that he should know. Oh god the closure. How could you have been afraid on this sweet, creepy, boy who just helped you find your way.

Meanwhile Danny is chillin in Gothem cause the GIW hate it there (none of they equipment actually functions in Gothem so it’s either super haunted or actually not haunted at all). Then all of a sudden he gets approached by a random ghost begging for his help because their sweet baby girl is about to do something horrible. Oops now all the ghosts are following their most loved ones around just to make sure they are there to rush to Danny for help when all else fails. Now hes getting to fulfil his protection obsession double time because one hes helping protect people from themselves and two hes protecting everyone in Gothem by stopping people from becoming villains for revenge. Plus he gets to see first hand how hes making a difference because all those people he saved are sending him some good vibes from all across Gothem.

Thank god he followed Jazz around so much to slightly absorb some of her phycology knowledge over the years. Plus it was actually pretty interesting so she gave him her old text books. Shes also helping him deal with the rare events where he can’t save someone. Just a moment too late or he stops them but they later succeeded in the hospital. Neither are his fault. Now only if he could convince his core of that.

Anyway why Gothem you ask? Amity Park would have been just as good tbh but imagine Batmans face when he finally gets to be face to face with the emotional support ghost boy. Why is he here? Bruce is fine. Batman is fine. Hes not gonna do anything crazy. It’s just a hard time of year. Around their death always gives him grief. But hes an adult and can manage it.

“You know they are so proud of you.” The boy states. As if it’s clear as day, even though it’s Gothem and never a clear day. Batman blinks at him, stunned for a moment. “What?” This boy can’t possibly know that. No one will ever know that, Bruce can only hope. “They see their home, full of such life. That big house that felt so empty, so cold, to them as well for years. Then you filled it with Family and Love like they had always wanted for you. They are so proud of what you have turned it into. Somewhere full of life and warmth.” A small smile graces his face as finally “you have made your parents so proud” and its all he can do to contain himself. Emotions are running high and sue him because he really did need to hear that ok. The boy suddenly looks to Bruces right with a confused face “aren’t all basements like that though?” Before Bruce can even get a word in hes gone. Just vanished before his eyes.

[colourstreakgryffin]

HELLO! If you are taking requests can you do a Dazai Osamu! Reader with Alastor, Lucifer and Husk? Both romantic and platonic please. If you are uncomfy with it its perfectly fine!

Hehe! Okay. I actually haven’t gotten Lucifer or Husk yet and I like both of ‘em! I’ve written about this character before, Dazai Osamu but since it’s different, I’ll try it but i am sorry, I can’t manage over six over six-to-seven headcanons for the three boys in both platonic and romantic so just romantic it is! I hope that’s okay!

Alastor

Romantic

Alastor feels like he has to have you on a leash 24/7 and whilst it’s annoying, he wouldn’t mind being near you all the time. You’re a cunning and sophisticated person but you’re also quite suicidal and lazy at times so he has to have a eye on you all the time to ensure he won’t walk into you trying to make a joke, out of stabbing yourself

Alastor is quite protective. You’re a suicidal maniac and you even openly say to him you want to properly die with him, die with a handsome man and he is repulsed by this idea so he has to always cling you onto him to control your very bad habits and bad mannerisms. He will get you over them eventually, as your boyfriend, he cares about your health and he is thankful that you reciprocate

Alastor is glad when you’re more into your funny, caring state. When you’re more of an approachable and good person. Because then, it’s a golden opportunity to bond with you and not act as your damn suicide prevention police. He much prefers when you’re not fantasising and being picky about how you get erased then fail to complete these processes

Alastor’s quite impressed by your skills. You’re the strongest and youngest mafia leader back in your human life and your current sinner life so you have the passion you act you don’t and you’re more mature then you behave as. He is proud when he can watch you take charge and lead around the Hotel with your own knowledgeable being the main guide

Lucifer

Romantic

Lucifer is a goofy sweetheart so you bet your ass that he is very good at keeping you passive and giggling, away from your dark mind. You’re always smiling and joking around with the King of Hell since he can handle you very well. He is as caring but he treats you like you’re made of glass. Something he won’t stop doing until your obsession over suicide dies out

Lucifer likes how mysterious you can be. You’re not entirely open, which he understands whilst being immensely open himself. He will just have to win your trust and your ability to express yourself over time as your new partner. You’re dark and enigmatic, if not the opposite of Lucifer and it’s a wonder why he likes you so much and he could write a book about why he likes you

Lucifer loves how committed and willing you are. You’ll do even the most shady things for him and he always feels both extreme pride and the extreme desire to scoop you up in his mighty six wings to kiss your face off. You’re so loyal and you do so much for him, it’s not a surprise that he sticks to you like he’s glued onto your hip

Lucifer is actually quite protective to you. He doesn’t want you touching even the smallest weapon, even if you’re an adult as well but because of your mental issues and how suicide trigger-happy you are. At least, you do have a good sense of humour and have a fun-loving side through how much you tease people, it’s adorable! Lucifer does like them, it, for some reason, soothes him hearing you play around more genuinely

Husk

Romantic

Husk is a grumpy, quiet but yet patient and considerate man. He may be older but he is still caring and makes a wonderful partner. Especially for this carefree and relaxed soul, one who expresses their suicidal tendencies quite a lot. Husk knows about your suicidal desires and for that, he has such a sharp’s tiger eye on you

Husk(in reality, of these three boys) is the most healthy to date. He is gruff and emotionless on the outside but compassionate and gentle on the inside, he is a Tsundere at best and he doesn’t mind being stern with you when you’re falling down a rabbit hole or trying to harm yourself like it’s some comedy show. You’re life is beautiful and you need to see that

Husk relates to you a lot, on deep levels. You’re both lonely, you’re both lazy, you’re both basically done with everything but you have each other, you both hide your real selves and your genuine personality under a armour of behaviours, so Husk acts as the proper one for you two. He tries to encourage you to join him whenever-wherever and to try put your wits and intellect to good use. He’d feel so proud of you if you did

Husk always sticks around you. He never leaves you alone, he doesn’t want you hurt so he takes you to bed with him, he cuddles you to his side whenever you’re both walking, he even comes into the bathroom with you. He does it for many reasons, mainly because he feels so comfortable with you

[jennifer-jeong]

Fluff + Mild Angst | JJK Men x GN!Reader What Made Them Fall For You?

Itadori Yuji, Fushiguro Megumi, Gojo Satoru

SUMMARY Headcanons on what makes the JJK pookies fall for you <3

CONTENT NOT SPOILER FREE (includes manga and anime spoilers), fluff, gender neutral reader, men falling for reader, reader is a sorcerer, CHARACTERS ARE 18+

AUTHOUR NOTES YOU ALREADY KNOW WHAT TIME IT ISSS Yes I’m back with this prompt because I love it so much and it basically summarizes my little daydream storylines I have in my mind about each character. Also note that I’m not caught up on the manga (but I do know all the spoilers hehe) so I apologize if any of this is inaccurate! (Yes I believe Gojo’s coming back so please pretend like the angst in his part isn’t alluding to his death being permanent. His body was successfully recovered and I’m coping with that fact)

ITADORI YUJI

I think Yuji would start to fall for you because when you first learned about Sukuna and Yuji being his vessel, you swore right then and there that you’d beat Sukuna’s ass and save Yuji. He was shocked at first because while that is the plan, no one had ever said it out loud to him like you did, and no one specifically ever said “I’ll save you.” He didn’t take it in a romantic sense but ever since you said it, he’s been getting closer and closer with you. You two always have a great time together and Sukuna never fails to make Yuji flustered by popping out and saying some random vulgar or violent jumble of words.

Yuji enjoys the lightheartedness you bring into his life, it’s refreshing like a spring breeze. It’s been much needed in his life recently and he appreciates your unplanned but good timing. He doesn’t like to worry people with his emotions because he’s such a genuine ray of sunshine. But, he will tell you about them when he finally breaks from time to time because he knows you’ll coax it out of him anyways. He tells you about his childhood and his grandpa and it breaks your heart that he sounds so content with his simple life despite barely having anyone close to him. You tell him that he’s so loved by everyone around him and he thanks you. It’s just that his death is constantly looming over his head and he has no idea what’s in store for him or his new loved ones. He wants to save everyone so badly and sometimes forgets about himself. That’s why he’ll never forget your promise to save him. He trusts that if he loses himself in some sort of sacrifice, that you’ll somehow rescue him. And that’s also why he’ll never break his silent promise to protect you for as long as he lives.

FUSHIGURO MEGUMI

I think Megumi would start to fall for you because of the care you put into everything you do, especially in how you treat others. You never fail to notice and treat your allies' wounds, even when they’re convincingly pretending like they’re fine. You always prioritize civilians during missions. You haven’t missed how his shikigami all have different personalities and different places they like to be pet. And you never miss it if Megumi’s feeling upset, you can somehow just tell by looking at him, even when others think he just looks mad like usual. Megumi knows your care for the little things is just how you express your desire to help others. The two of you mirror each other in that way. Megumi is the epitome of sacrificing oneself to protect their allies and it makes him smile when you mention that to him because he knows you’re exactly like him in that sense.

Megumi feels so relaxed around you because you just seem to understand him without needing him to explain. He’s gotten used to bottling everything up since he was young. He’s been forced to be an adult since he was a kid, understanding things that children shouldn’t even know about. It’s made his life feel cold, devoid of the warmth a child typically receives in their youth. He’s felt betrayed by all parental figures, his dad, his mom, and his step-mom. Even though Satoru tried his best and Megumi appreciates him, he couldn’t fully repair what he didn’t break. Megumi only really had his sister Tsumiki, but now even she’s unreachable and cursed. His life has warmed up slightly as he’s got found family now, but it’s really only you that makes the burning sun shine like it should in his life. As a sorcerer, he’s always worried that more lives will be taken from around him, especially yours. But he likes to joke and think that with the two of you constantly sacrificing yourselves for the other and getting stronger, you might just be okay.

GOJO SATORU

I think Satoru would start to fall for you because you don’t treat him like “the strongest,” you treat him like he’s human, like he’s just Satoru. Satoru has always faked a smile and you’ve always been able to figure him out. He’s been through so much and always struggled to make meaningful connections because of his powers. His family putting immense pressure on him as a child definitely didn’t help his emotional state either. He’s been so lonely his whole life and just as he starts to create a found family with his friends, he loses them. He doesn’t know what to do other than smile to make sure that those that are still alive don’t worry about him. But you see straight through him, you always have, and it comforts him. You’re the same age as him so you’ve been through it all with him since he started at jujutsu high. He started to fall for you at the start because even before all the additional trauma, you already wiggled your way past his emotional walls. He was always clearly too excited to see his friends, had so much love to give, and hated being alone. You thought it was obvious that he was hiding something and you approached him, asking if he was ok and if he wanted to talk about it. At first, he just laughed it off but as the months passed and your friendship grew, the more and more comfortable he was with telling you about his struggles.

Even now, you’re the only person he confides in about everything. You’ve always helped him back onto his feet after the world knocks him down. He might be the strongest sorcerer in the world, or maybe ever. But in his world, he’s never actually been stronger than you, you’re always the one helping him up anyways. He loves that you don’t treat him like most do. You’ve never catered to him or let up on lecturing him just because he’s strong. Additionally, you also never failed to make sure he felt loved, because you always knew that he was still just a kid on the inside that was forced to grow up too fast. Satoru fell for you willingly but has held off on confessing to you because he’s too scared to indulge himself while there’s still danger in the world. He wants to make the world safer for you, whether he’s there to see it with you or not. But he’s pretty sure he will, he is “the strongest” after all.

|| MASTERLIST <3 || Thank you for reading! ||

[earfqwake]

Not sure if you only write for the Adult trio but if not, do you think you could make a version of big brother illumi x sister reader but instead of illumi it's Killua? Like, in the fic Y/n was originally supposed to be Killua's (But it was Illumi who mated with her instead) So could it stay like that? Again idk if you even write for him so it's fine if you can't do it! Thanks <33

Alpha Killua/Brother X Omega/Sister Reader Part 1

okay so like kind of the same basis as the illumi story just different as in reader actually is mated to killua this time, he is aged up and so is reader okay ? okay 🫰

tw: slight obsession from killua and yes incest !!! don’t read if you don’t want to. brother sister relationship though this part doesn’t contain anything explicit as it’s depicting their relationship growing up. will be multiple parts because i have a lot to say.

Light can’t exist without Dark.

When Kikyo Zoldyck found out she would be having twins she crossed her fingers and prayed to a god she didn’t even believe in that this would be the one, the heir of heiress of the family. Imagine the families surprise when two white haired babies were birthed on July 7th. Even Silva who rarely showed emotions other than stoicism was pleased at this moment in time.

Well Y/n, their new baby girl had half white hair and half (Y/H) colored hair but still this was the first time in the lineage Zoldyck history something like this happened. Though all that mattered is that Killua was born, both a male and with a full head of white hair. Since birth the two were inseparable, only fully calming their cries when they were near eachother.

At dinner they sat next to eachother always and if they didn’t the other would be visibly more upset. They napped together in random spots around the mansion always being found in the most peculiar places. Under Silvas Desk, Inside the kitchens cabinet, Underneath the staircase. And they shared a room by choice, until Silva forced them to have separate rooms at the age of 8. He needed to end their codependency as soon as possible. That didn’t stop them from sneaking into each others beds most nights.

Must have been fate, that such a blessing had occurred. Or so they’ve been told time and time again, but no one could break their bond that’s for sure. The pairs parents decided that they were more than likely going to end up as soul mates, promising strong pups no doubt.

Even though they were too young to have understood, Killua was relieved to hear this. No one would be good enough for his little sister, even tho he was only minutes older than you he never failed to remind you. He didn’t care much for other girls anyways none of them were as special as you.

They were polar opposites, Yin and Yang, but they fit together perfectly. Y/n was the sweetest most sensitive person, even though she was strong she had such a big heart. Too big of a heart for an assassin to have. A heart that Killua vowed to protect, he was his sisters keeper. The latter was more assertive and dominate than his sister, always leading them into trouble and taking the fall should they ever get caught.

“Where are they off to now?” Mumbled Kikyo as she frantically searched the forrest around the mansion for the twins. Only to find them running circles around Mike the enormous guard dog who didn’t seem to mind their company. Kikyo almost fainted when she saw your pretty blue gown now dirty from playing outside with your brother. You were her only girl so she was terribly overprotective of you.

Killua, like always hid you behind him as his mother threw a fit, because god forbid kids try be kids. “It was my fault mother, Y/n didn’t want to leave the garden but I took her out with me.” Which truthfully wasn’t a lie, you tried to warn Killua that Mama wouldn’t be happy but he said he’d leave you behind so you ran after him with teary eyes. But you had fun so a little punishment was worth seeing you smile.

Though he couldn’t always evade you from being punished he always tried. It meant the world to you that he would be willing to protect you no matter what. You wanted to be brave like him and you tried to, but your heart was just too soft. Hiding your tears and frowns didn’t work with Killua, he couldn’t just ignore it like the rest of his family.

When he would sneak into your room routinely sometimes he would catch you sobbing. Either because your punishment was too harsh, or you felt bad for having to kill your target. Your body sore from being attacked during a day of training, tears fell from your eyes as you sensed him enters your room. “I don’t want to do this Killua.. I’m trying to be strong for Mama and Papa but it hurts.” And he’d hold you and soothe you until you slept peacefully. Only then could he shed tears for you.

And he knows he shouldn’t like it, but you always cried the hardest for him and him alone.

“Onii!” She’d cry out and hug him after seeing the cuts and bruises he would have on his body after hours of pain resistance training. He didn’t cry much anymore, but it sure did hurt, though he’d never admit it to you. Hugging her closer, he couldn’t help but give you a tired smile. “I’m fine Y/n, see.” But she only whimpered and stayed in his embrace she knew he was lying. “Such a crybaby..” He sighed as if it troubled him, yet nuzzled his head into her soft hair.

Killua didn’t like seeing his sweet little sister cry, training was hard on her. At age 12 he begged his parents to opt her out of training, if he were to inherit the family business he didn’t want his sister to have to kill and possibly be killed that wasn’t a risk he was willing to take. Silva and Kikyo denied him this request, so he and Y/n ran away together to take the hunter exam.

————————————————————————

It sent us on such a journey, meeting many different people and making friends ! Real friends, we were never allowed to make any friends back on Kukuroo Mountain so imagine their surprise to see a boy their age also taking the exam. Y/n was infatuated with Gon, calling him her friend, staring at him, laughing at his jokes and it made Killua feel a bit jealous. Before Gon he never had to share Y/n’s attention before other than with his younger siblings.

“What’s the matter Onii?” Y/n questioned during the second phase of the hunter exam, they broke off from walking with Gon and the others because Kil grabbed her and rushed off into the fog without saying. He said nothing and just focused on navigating through the fog with a firm hold on her hand. Even if he was upset he wasn’t going to let anything bad happen to you.

“Are you mad at me…? What did I do wrong?” Tears starting to form in her eyes. Chest tightening at the idea of upsetting her brother. Sighing he glances at her before staring ahead again. “It’s stupid… I just don’t want you to replace me with Gon.” Voice barely a whisper he confessed his feelings to you, only you could make him vulnerable.

You hug his arm and smile up at him noticing the slight blush on his serious face. “Don’t worry Killu-nii, he’s our friend, but you’ll always be my best friend okay? It’s always going to be me and you, we came here together and we’re going to leave here together!” How could he be so naive, she’s just so sweet and she always put Kil first. Smiling Killua nodded and when they met up with the group there were no more issues with jealousy. Y/n would never leave her brother.

And eventually they both arrived back to Kukuroo Mountain after parting ways with Gon, both holding Allukas hands. During their trip the pair having learned nen and being capable users were certainly much stronger than when they left.

Ironically Y/n developed a nen ability that made her able to use her tears to heal others, mainly for the sake of Killua who she couldn’t stand seeing injured. His heart was floating when she explained the reason why she developed this secondary ability. And selfishly enough he didn’t just let her heal just anyone with her gift, if he didn’t feel they were worthy of your time or tears they could rot in hell for all he cared. Y/n trusted Killuas judgement though and didn’t question how he assessed who she should or shouldn’t heal.

The twins were great fighters naturally but with the added ability of nen they were a unstoppable duo, just as Silva had predicted. Yet Killua saw the dangers of nen with his own eyes witnessing what it did to Gon.

————————————————————————

Again he came to his Father directly with the same request that fell upon deaf ears last time. This time around however, Silva agreed only if Killua were to become an assassin and continue the family business. A steep price for your safety but he needed to know you would be safe.

It hurt him more than any method of torture to see her sad but deep down a small part of him loved that she cried for him. She was someone who cared and always showed it, making sure to kiss each of his visible cuts. “There all better, right Kil?” She’d smile at him and he went weak for it every single time.

At puberty is when you find out your sub race, whether you’re a alpha, omega, or a beta. Killua obviously was an Alpha. Stubborn and a born leader, if he wanted something he was going to have it. And you? No doubt your an Omega, naturally submissive in nature listening to your parents and following after your brothers every word. Always nurturing and caring for him and your younger siblings. So it went without question when you both presented as your said roles.

The two of you were walking side by side in the forest surrounding the mansion straying very far from your home. “See I told you didn’t I, Y/n.” He said with a toothy grin his canines nice and sharp. I nod and smile sweetly at my brother, “I didn’t doubt you Killu-nii !” He called long before we could confirm what we were.

Recalling all the times he would tease you, “You have to be be an omega! Why else are you such a big baby!” Only eliciting a pout from me and he laughed poking my cheek with his finger. “I think it’s cute, don’t worry when we’re older I promise to take care of you and your moody feelings, I’ll be a good Alpha.” His voice sounded serious like he was trying to convince me and he only laughed again as I hid my smile and blush.

“Wait up, Kil!” I ran briskly after him as I shake myself out of that memory. He was much taller than me now, and stronger. And he grew his hair out into a long messy mullet, looking more and more like Papa as we got older. (He only grew his hair out because he got jealous when you would braid and play with Illumis long hair, but he’ll never admit that. Ever.) You changed too, your curves becoming more prominent especially with the training you did. Your beauty only increased as time passed your mother making sure to always keep you dolled up.

And boy did Killua enjoy it, always telling you how pretty you are and being sure to do small things for you like brush your hair or pick outfits out for you.

Grinning mischievously Killua only goes faster, disappearing into the greenery surrounding you.

I huff and puff as I search everywhere for him in the area we’re in. “Come on Kil! I’m not going to play with you right now.” But he doesn’t budge from his hiding spot probably thinking it’s funny. Fine two can play at this game! I pretend to be upset and sigh turnin around to head back home alone. “Fine I give up. I’m going home now Kil.” I barely get three steps back in the direction we came from when I feel his arms wrap around me from behind.

I jump slightly and weakly attempt to escape his arms feigning as upset but he won’t budge. “Where do you think your going hmm? I was only joking Y/n don’t be such a crybaby about it.” He snickers when I go lax in his arms holding me there for a moment before spinning me around so he can see my pouty face. “Y/nnnn? Don’t be like that, you do this to me all the time.” He drawls out my name as he looks me over.

Leaning closer to him I give him my sad eyes and he squishes my cheeks. “Such a baby.” He mumbles looking at my lips before looking back into my eyes. He drawls forward so our noses are touching gives me a bunch of small pecks on the lips. Furrowing his brows when I don’t reciprocate his affections he mumbles on my lips “ I‘m sorry Y/n.” Sweet moments like this are regular between you especially when you’re far from home like this.

I smile and feel my cheeks heat up under his hold on me. And he knows he has me right where he wants me. My arms extend as I place them over his shoulder loosely. Instantly he accepts this by pulling me in closer, his hand on the small of my back. Placing kisses all over my cheek he still speaks in a low tone, “You forgive me?” I nod my head basking in his affections but still not reciprocating his touches. His voice sounds desperate as he pulls me back far enough to get a good look at me again. “Why aren’t you kissing back then?”

i smile sheepishly and pretend I’m going in to kiss him but flick him on the forehead. Now it’s his turn to pout as I laugh and slip from his grip running through the forrest. Smiling himself he chases after me, “Hey! I knew you were faking it you big baby.” Secretly though he’s relieved that your back to your normal cheerful self, and you’ll be sure to make up for it when he catches you.

Your laughter rings throughout the forest as Kil catches up to you giving you a wolffish grin and pulling you in closely waiting for you to finally give him a kiss. 🦋

————————————————————————

Zeno watched the two leave the mansion, shaking his head before facing his son Silva. “It’s only a matter of time now before they give into their instincts. You shouldn’t let that boy run around with her without supervision or we will be expecting pups sooner than later.” Silva only sighed watching as they disappeared into the forest line, his father was right. Regardless of how stern he was Zeno had a soft spot for the little girl and so did Silva.

Not that it wasn’t anticipated by the family that the two were doting on each other already. But it was too soon for you two to fully mate you had to wait until you were 18. Only then would you know if the two of you were truly meant to be together. He would have to get you on heat suppressants in the mean time and have Killua sent away during ruts. Taking necessary precautions, you two weren’t little kids anymore.

𝓽𝓸 𝓫𝓮 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓾𝓮𝓭

-𝓴

[ruewrote]

𝑔𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑎 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑒.

PAIRING: dad!rickgrimes x olderdaughter!reader WARNINGS: none GENRE: angst / fluff SONG INSPIRATION: half return by adrianne lenker WORD COUNT: 1018 REQUESTED: yes

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you remember when the apocalypse started. you remember the screams of your classmates, of your best friend as she was torn apart by walkers. you remember going home and finding it empty. no mom, no carl, no dad.

the first couple of weeks alone were tortuous. no sleep and when you did you kept a tight hold on the hunting knife that you’d found in a discarded survival backpack in an abandoned car close by.

most nights ended up with you crying yourself to sleep, your hand covering your nose and mouth silencing your sobs. it was horrible, you hated being alone. well at least now you did. wanting nothing but to take back all the times you purposefully locked yourself up in your bedroom, wanting nothing more than to be back safe with your family.

over the course of a month you went back between the safe place you’d been staying at to what used to be your home. seeing if there was any sign of life, to see if they’d show up but they never did so you walked. not sure exactly where you were going but you did. sleeping in abandoned cars, searching for food and water in every house you could find.

it was a constant struggle to survive, but as the months went on you had only gotten stronger, less afraid. finding techniques to not get bitten, quickly finding out that it helped to kick out their feet from underneath them and stab in the head.

over the times that you had come across other people, it was mostly other smaller groups, you’d help them in any way that you could. 

your heart broke for the last couple you bumped into, finding out that they had their toddler with them too. they were out of food and nearly out of water, everyone who was still alive was struggling but you at least offered them your last pouch of squeezable fruit and a spare bottle of water.

the two thanked you repeatedly, wishing you well as they made their way out of the rundown shop, doing one last look around the building, really finding nothing before leaving too.

days turned to weeks as you stayed in the same pattern, kill, ration, sleep, survive. 

the food that was once in your bag were now just scattered empty wrappers and the almost empty bottle almost felt heavy in your hand, tipping the last of its contents into your mouth. finding that it wasn’t even enough for it to be a whole swig, making you quietly groan to yourself. 

the road in front of you begins to blur, feet faltering as you fall onto the concrete, knees scraped in the process.

trying to use your arms to push you up, nothing. slowly giving up as the black dots start to appear, that’s when you hear the echo of somebody’s voice? and the groan of walkers close by as you completely pass out.

when you awoke you were greeted by aaron and deena, explaining what happened and where you were. soon after you recovered they interviewed you, offering you a spot in their community and you accepted right away.

who were you to say no to a place like this? walls, food, clean water, all you had to do was do runs and protect the town. 

as the months went by you turned out to be a strong assent to the group, being reg and deenas right hand woman even when being one of the youngest adults there.

it didn’t take you long to get into a routine, making friendship with your neighbours, it almost felt like it did before that fall.

as much as you were grateful that you were lucky enough to find alexandria, you couldn’t help but think about your family. 

missing the way your mom used to hug you after a failed math test, missing the way carl would dedicate his drawings just for you, the way your dad used to playfully ‘embarrass’ you in front of your friends. 

your hands dig into the soil as you reminisce, plucking out the vegetables that were fully grown. well that was until you heard the slam of the front gate.

your brows furrowed as you pushed yourself up to investigate the new group of people that stood beside aaron. walking closer to get a better look, taking your gloves off as you did so.

even just by looking at them you could tell they’ve practically been through hell and back out there, the leader still had his back to you, but you could tell that he was almost sizing aaron up, it stopped you in your tracks when he turned around.

even with the big beard and grown out hair you knew it was him. “d..dad?” his eyes soften as they met your own, it didn’t take you long to bound up to him, wrapping your arms around his shoulders and his around your back.

sobbing into his shirt as you held onto him tightly, worried that he’ll disappear again if you let him go, “i didn’t think i’d ever see you again.” 

pulling out of the hug you noticed carl, “oh my god! look at you, you're all grown up now!”, engulfing him in a hug with a huge grin on your face. 

later on that evening you asked about your mom, and he explained everything. telling you about shane and judith.

you couldn’t say you were surprised about how shane acted, he had his moments when you’d once known him. you couldn’t help but be distraught about how your mom passed.

after a few weeks goes by and it feels like you were never apart at all, you had his back when you went out on runs together, taking carl under your wing since you were his age when all of this had first started. it was often that you looked after judith, she kept you on your toes but also kept your spirits up on the tougher days.

after all this time you were as close as you could be to peace.

comments and reblogs are appreciated ♡

© ruewrote 2024.

[paddockbunny]

Repeat Offender

Summary : Charles is recently single and quickly finds himself in a "friends with benefits" situation with none other than his ex-girlfriend's best friend.

Rating : 18+, Mature

Pairing : Charles Leclerc x Reader

Word Count : 7, 345

Trigger Warnings : 18+, Mature & Adult themes, Angsty, FWB situation, PinV sex, Unprotected sex, Oral (female receiving), slight choking, c*m talk & language

Authors Note : Firstly, I had around five or six requests for a newly single charles or rebounding charles so I've amalgamated them all into one. Thank you for the inspo to all of those who requested something to do with this. I'm trying out some first person stuff on this one so although it's labelled as "reader" YOU are in fact the author/reader if that makes sense. I also don't mention Charles' ex by name and that is very much on purpose as I keep my blog as IRL WAG free as possible so none of my stories will feature any of their names, hope you can all understand why. Anyway, this is LOOOOOONG so it has not been proofread yet.

You know when you wake up but your not fully awake yet, you’re like conscious but not alert? Well, that was exactly how I was feeling as the room was ever so slightly spinning and the faint memory of strawberry daiquiri's and vodka shots were beginning to flash across my eyes. So was the deafening sound of the music, the ache in the arches of my feet from stupid heels and the feeling of hands creeping around my waist pulling my ass against a firm crotch while dancing. Then as I slowly crept more and more into consciousness I felt the slight ache from my thighs kick in and the feeling my body had been through it.

Finally, after summoning up the energy to do it, I managed to open my eyes. They felt heavy and dense and I realised there was no way I had made it home because I had slept in my make-up - and regardless of whatever state I was in I would always manage to stumble into the bathroom to at least wipe most of the night out greasepaint off of my face so the fact it was still firmly in place meant the worst. As my vision was struggled to focus I wriggled around in a rather comfortable bed and attempted to pull myself up without a wave of nausea lash upon me. Exactly how much did I fucking drink last night? But then as eventually my eyes concentrated on something and a very loud groan reverberated from my throat. The familiar bright coloured art work that hung from the white wall across from the bottom of the bed was like a vicious, unwelcome enemy. I had studied it far too many times to count and each time it got worse and worse. It was like the eyes of T. J Eckleburg in The Great Gatsby, but instead of the judgment of an inanimate object upon American society, this horrendous painting was judging my piss poor decisions of the night prior which lead me to waking up in this damn bed, once again. And as my stomach lurched I had to force myself to make sure I was in the bed of the man whom the awful painting belonged to.

At an almost glacier pace my head began to turn. Crawling up the sheet clad outline of a pair of calves, knees and up to big, broad thighs and into the covered - yet barely - crotch. The outline of his cock almost visible through the white cotton that was practically failing to protect his modesty. His hips were next, then the outline of abs which yeah ok - I can admit it, I’ve traced with my tongue before so sue me. Then I couldn’t do it any longer. I was just drawing things out. I snapped my head immediately up to his and yup! It was Charles.

“Oh fuck!” I groaned loudly and with an eye roll I drew my hands over my face. Listen, you might be thinking “he’s fucking hot as hell, probably an incredible shag and I’d love to know how big his cock is” but, it’s all the other stuff that goes along with these nights of drunken yet passionate sex with Charles that makes me sick to my stomach each time I wake up here. You see Charles had so much awkward baggage that spilled over into my own life and I really went through several stages of self loathing when I left his apartment and had the embarrassing walk of shame home the next day. “Good morning to you too.” He scoffed loudly but by this point I knew he probably felt as guilt-ridden and dismayed as I felt.

Silence had momentarily befallen us. All I heard was the quick typing of his thumbs hitting his phone screen. It was almost annoying. That incessant tap, tappy tappy tappy, tap, tap as he typed whatever was in his head into a text or whatever he was doing. I couldn’t help it, I rolled my eyes and thought how likely it was that he was probably texting one of his friends telling them how the pair of us had hooked up AGAIN! Most likely he was asking for their advice on how to get me out of his bed. Not that he needed any because there was no way in hell I felt like staying. I wanted to get out of here as badly and he wanted to kick me out. Just as I moved to sit upright a bit more and try search for my stomach lurched and I had to take a few deep breaths not to feel the effects of last nights alcohol. Something which unfortunately Charles noticed and as he asked if I was suffering from a the dreaded hangover, sarcasm laced thick in his voice.

“Why does this always happen? Why do we do this?” I sighed while letting out a long, drawn out exhale. The question hung in the air and I could feel Charles’ eyes suddenly burrowing into the side of my head. I knew there were words teetering on the tip of his tongue and could practically hear his brain working out a response that sounded appropriate for me but thankfully, he remained in silence. There was no doubt he would have been regretting whatever things happened last night as much as I was and yet, he didn’t seem particularly consumed by guilt. He seemed rather carefree right now so scoff I closed my eyes in an attempt to piece the puzzle together remember what the fuck happened last night.

The music was far too loud but the fourth fruity cocktail I currently clasped in my hand made me rather immune and numb to it. I danced just like all the other girls out in the middle of the crowded dance floor. Hips swaying side to side in time with the rhythm. Hair swishing around without a care in the world. Feet aching in stupid stilettos. To have looked at me in that moment anyone would be forgiven for thinking I was a party girl. One of those glamorous girls always out on the town, partying, blowing cash (boys and snow* too probably) but really I hated going out. I hated the stress of finding something to wear, doing the whole routine of make-up and hair and then feeling like I was in the middle of a cattle market. At least the men in Monaco happened to be rich and therefore no girls spent a dime all night from all the free drinks that would get bought. And the fact that someone in my group always seemed to know someone else in another and that meant VIP was inevitable. And I mean come on, who wouldn’t want to be sat in VIP?! Which was funnily enough, where Amelie was pulling me in the direction of and then I sighed when I saw why.

Sat in a booth was none other than Charles and his gang of buddies that I really wish would have been anywhere else in the world tonight and not in this nightclub. As soon as he looked around and saw me heading toward him I swear he rolled his eyes.

“Fucking hello to you too Charles.” I thought, muttering under my breath while I and rolled my own eyes back at him sarcastically. And that was when my mind flashed back to the last time we saw each other. It had been at that shitty dinner where I actually felt sorry for him having to sit the whole night flashing googly eyes at his ex girlfriend hoping she would notice him even though the night before he had had his cock shoved down my throat, me! The one he spent the entire time ignoring. But the thing was, I knew one thing he didn’t and that was she was already moving on with someone who might have been too close too home for him to even comprehend. Yet, with his attitude I said nothing and allowed him to remain in purgatory. Sad thing was, she never even so much as glanced at him the whole meal. Then I remembered what happened after, once everyone had drank heavily and shared cars home. It hadn’t been the first time (nor the second, third or fourth and was actually more like the eleventh or twelfth) that Charles had put the moves on me and I stupidly succumbed to his seductions. But now as I reached the table the thought of his hands being between my thighs, his fingers caressing my desperate clit with the door to his apartment wide open behind us in an utterly voyeuristic display - one that I would never have pegged him as the type to enjoy - danced teasingly through my thoughts. He slid into the booth a little more and nodded in the direction of the now vacant faux leather seat beside him for me to sit in. He looked good tonight and for once that wasn’t the alcohol in my system talking. He seemed to be in good spirits and I figured he must have been celebrating a good race. It was neutral ground so I thought it was something I could talk to him about. When I went to open my mouth to do exactly so, my words were swallowed by his; “Have you seen her recently?” Your mouth parted slightly before closing. You had to bite your tongue before you said something to the effect of “fuck off” or “fuck you” and quickly shook your head to respond to him. Then loudly from across the table one of his friends shouted loudly “shots” and thankfully it distracted Charles from pushing the conversation toward her like he wanted.

Several shots were taken and yet another strong strawberry daiquiri was being drunk while having as everyone sat at the table has as much of a conversation as possible over the loud thumping music. I raised my voice as I leaned forward to answer one of the questions Charles’ friends had asked me. We had met before and yet he did that typical male thing of forgetting who I was and therefore I had to tell him all over again much to my slight annoyance and dismay. But as I was explaining what I did for a living, I stuttered when suddenly I felt the flesh of soft fingertips ghost up and down my bare naked thigh. The action almost made me brake my calm, collected exterior. He couldn’t be serious? We had barely spoken since I sat down nearly an hour ago and as his thumb stroked up and down the skin of my inner thigh I glanced at him. He wasn’t even paying attention, he was doing it just for the sake of it, because he could. And so without a single thought I decided it was time to go and dance again. I wanted to put distance between him and I because we would only end up doing what was by now becoming a habit and falling into bed together.

As I grabbed Amelie and pulled her back to dance with me, I could feel the familiar pulsating throb from between my thighs at the thought of Charles. I tried to push the thoughts of him out of my brain as I began dancing and yet, it was a pointless task as all I kept thinking about was how badly I needed him and how he melted all of my annoyed thoughts of him away with a simple touch of his damn hand. The worst part was, just as Amelie and I settled into moving our bodies one of Charles’ friends rudely pushed between us. I was just about to argue and tell him to get lost when I suddenly felt hands creep around my waist. I didn’t need to look to know who they belonged too and I realised the intrusion in between me and my dance partner had been orchestrated.

“Running away from me?” Charles purred against the side of my neck. Why did he do this? Every single time we saw each other he always got underneath my skin. I hated him for it but I felt powerless against him and his cocky seduction techniques. His hands gripped my waist tighter as he pulled me back so I was flush against him. Our hips moving side to side while he got all the friction of my ass grinding against his crotch. “We said the last time was the last time.” “No. You did.” His words were more direct than I would have expected them to be. Almost like he was annoyed at me for implying I was about to turn him down - as if I could if I wanted too, just having the teasing action of his clothed cock so close to where I wanted it would have had me making a public embarrassment of myself right here in a nightclub. And without warning he used those lingering hands to turn me around to face him. “Let me take you home.” “No, Charles. We cannot keep doing this.” The sheer fact that when I spoke to him he was looking at my mouth instead of in my eyes made me want to kick him in the shin for being so vexing. But right as I was trying to convince myself to stand my ground against him he cast his eyes across my body and fuck, the things it did to me when he looked at me like that. “Charles, we’re playing with fire….”

“So? We’ll both burn together.” He shrugged nonchalantly. And I suddenly realised how we were no longer dancing and simply standing staring at each other while everyone else around us continued. In a regular situation - when alcohol wasn’t coursing through my body clouding my judgment - I would have felt self conscious but right now all I could think about was the fact he wanted me so badly he was out here making bold declarations. For a second the fact his first words to me earlier were about his ex girlfriend entered into my mind and a fleeting crushing feeling passed through my soul. He just wanted me to release his tension, not because he ACTUALLY wanted me. I zoned out briefly as I thought of how bad I always felt the next day and considered if I was strong enough to do it again. But as I was contemplating his hand travelled up to my neck and he made me look at him and I was gone. I wanted him to make me feel good.

How he managed to get us both out of the nightclub so easily I had no idea. His hand was wrapped around my wrist guiding me past hordes of people and out toward an exit. It took all but two minutes until we were in the back of a car heading back to his. It seemed too swift to me, too well thought out and I realised that he was so arrogant because he knew I would say yes and probably pre-arranged the car to pick us up. In that second I knew I should have been so pissed off and angry that he would think I was that easy but I let it slip again because I knew I was using him as much as he was using me. I liked the momentary, fleeting high he gave me. I was like a drug taker, he was the drug, and I was willing to take the short hits when I could. So I was every bit as bad as he was. Charles normally didn’t behave to politely in the back of the cars we took as we went back to his. His hands would be roaming, following suit with his mouth. He always made sure to light the match inside of me before we even got to the safety of his apartment. The fact he could be caught out, someone could tell, seemed to always be the furthest thing from his mind and so tonight, it was different. He sat further away and kept his hands very much to himself. And when I couldn’t help but glance across the car toward him and watched as his jaw seemed to clench I swallowed while nerves buzzed through my brain.

As soon as we got to his apartment building Charles called for the elevator and I couldn’t help but feel the same attitude radiating from him. It was the same attitude he had in the car and I thought about turning on my heels and leaving immediately. I didn't even know how to read him. Which meant I was so caught in the thought of trying to work him out that I missed the ding of the lift stopping on the lobby and sliding open. It wasn’t until Charles practically purred my name and held his hand out for me from inside the elevator that I snapped back into reality due to the look that filled his eyes. You knew it all too well. It was self assured, cocky confidence. He knew I couldn’t turn him down, I couldn’t turn his cock down, I craved it and what he could do with it too much. And so when my high heel clad feet crossed the marble floor and passed the iron thread hold of the lift I felt the surge of excitement buzz throughout my body.

The pair of us rode the elevator is silence but my hand remained firmly gripped in Charles’ and his thumb was delicately running over the back of my knuckles. It would be almost fucking romantic if there was any smidgen of a “normal” relationship between us. Now that I had registered the buzz of excitement I also felt the more steady and familiar hit of anxiety that went with it. It was pre-sex anxiety - that realistically I had no reason to have, this wasn’t my first rodeo (certainly not with Charles) but I still had it anyway. The silence would have been deafening to anyone else but right now I was kind of thankful for it. I didn’t want to chat because if I did I would feel guilt and I really didn’t want to feel guilty about what my body craved and desired above all else. The short ride up to Charles’ apartment ended when the lift door slid open and he gently pulled me out behind him. Fuck, I wish I had drunk more. Alcohol would have banished the unfair apprehension I was feeling. I leaned against the wall while Charles opened the door with his key. The curve of his shoulders made my mouth water. The thought of kissing his thick, strong neck while hearing the sound of pleasurable moans escape him sent a pulsating ache through my core. He pushed open the door and held it there with his hand, waiting for me to enter his abode first, ahead of him. And I mustered up all the confidence I could manage to saunter past him and glide into the hallway. The millions he took home from his career driving in fast circles paid off. Charles home was beautiful but like always, I wasn’t here to appreciate it.

Charles hands on my bare arms reminded me of that. He pressed against me from behind and I could feel his semi hard cock already straining against his jeans and I tried desperately to hold it back but a gasp escaped passed my lips as he moved my hair to the side to expose my neck to him. Fuck. The feel of his lips as they pressed delicate tender kisses against my flesh had my mind whirling. I pushed back into him more, instinct completely taking over, and a low groan rolled out of his parted lips and sent tingles up and down my spine. It was dangerous to have allowed myself to think it but I gave in and thought about how it would feel to have been his - properly, as a girlfriend - for all but a few fleeting seconds.

When Charles hands moved from my arms to my waist and I wasted no time. The alcohol came rushing back to me and I turned to him at breakneck speed. My lips finding his immediately. As my hands slowly glided upon the skin of his neck holding him to me. When I let out a small moan it was the sign he needed to start pushing me backward till my back pressed against a cold wall and his tongue pushed into my mouth. He tasted like the liquor he had consumed and as his tongue ran teasingly across my bottom lip he followed it with his teeth and it brought another moan from me, like he knew it would. Charles’ hands left my waist and I felt them slip down to my legs. His fingers skimming the outside of my thighs. I knew he wanted to push my dress up. He was growing impatient and that became very obvious when he yanked me away from the wall and pulled me through his house to his bedroom. The familiar surroundings welcomed me like a sneaky comrade. The walls practically smirked as I was pulled in by Charles. I could become accustomed to these plush surroundings if he saw me as more than a just a hook-up but that was a fucking dumb idea.

My dress was off faster than I knew what was happening. It was around my ankles on the floor and Charles was already making fast work of removing his shirt. His eyes hungrily fixed on my bare chest. He was practically wolf like as his eyes remained on my skin the whole time. I would have blushed if I had been less confident. “Take them off.” It was the first time he spoke since we had left the club. “You heard me.” He flashed his eyes down toward the thin scrap of black lace material that could barely behold the name of underwear. As my eyes travelled down to where his hands were working on ridding himself of his jeans I realised I wasn’t ready to allow him to have all the fun. “No.” I stated. “Take them off me.” My stomach flipped and I watched as a smirk disappeared from his face as quick as it appeared.

“That’s how you want it huh?” He abandoned trying to remove his jeans and his hand suddenly went to my neck and held me firmly before he used it to push me backward on to the bed. My heart hastily quickened. It hammered against my rib cage so quickly it began to hurt. I looked up at him full of expectation but he wasted no time in hooking his fingers around the sides of the only material left on my body and roughly pulling them down my legs and off completely. I watched Charles as he took me in. His eyes casting over and lingering in all the important areas. I bit my bottom lip as my own eyes mimicked his and I took in his perfectly sculpted chest and then his defined muscular abs. The lines on his hips that were line a tempting signal down toward his now erect cock, standing to full attention. He watched me watching him and cockily laughed. “Go on.” He tilted his head and I knew exactly what he was referring too. He wanted head. He wanted me to blow him. And I would have, I would have blown him till my jaw ached and throat couldn’t take anymore, but I reminded him that he wasn’t getting full control.

Much to Charles surprise, I pulled my ankles up and put myself on full display for him. I played him at his own game. If he wanted me to go down on him he had to do it first. I held his gaze and so when he laughed again I wasn’t so sure he was as willing to be a giver as much as a taker, but within a few agonising moments he proved me wrong. Charles was down on his knees and instantly pulled your legs up so you could rest them on his shoulders. And although it was something of an embarrassing confession to make, all of the times we had had sex, Charles had never gone down on me. Not once. So now that his head was between my thighs, mouth so tantalisingly close, eyes locked on to mine, I held my breath in anticipation. Charles gently ran his fingers up and down my dampening folds. I swallowed the breath that was caught in my throat as Charles finally licked a slow, teasing stripe that followed the pattern of his fingers moments earlier. He repeated the action over and over again. Using it to torment me. My hands grabbed hold of the sheets, fingers entwined in the high thread count duvet, when Charles began to pay attention to my pulsating, throbbing clit. Small, short flutters were mixed in with strong kisses. And then a loud exhale left my lips as he pushed two of his fingers inside me.

“Char….” I couldn’t get his name out. My breathing was erratic and all I could think about was what his mouth was doing. As his tongue continued lapping at my clit, his fingers curled up inside of me and Charles immediately found and started massaging that magical spot that made me gasp. And he continued even when I shoved my hands through his hair and gripped on for dead life. My eyes squeezed tightly shut as I felt the first high of an orgasm fast approaching. Swear words were all I could manage. My mouth going between wide open to get as much air as I possibly could and tightly shut with my top teeth digging into my bottom lip practically drawing blood. I was almost so lost in the beginning of the wave of euphoric pleasure that I missed the moan Charles made as he felt my walls start to convulse around his fingers. Fuck. How and why did I not beg for him to do this to me sooner? He was far too good at it. It was borderline obscene how good he was at it. And totally criminal that he had never gone down on me before. Right as I felt every nerve in my body begin to be ignited with the high of a climax Charles removed his mouth and in its place used the fingers of his other hand to draw rapid circles against my clit. The motion made me loose complete control of my mind and his name burst free from my mouth as wave upon wave of ecstasy crashed upon me. The high was undeniable. It took hold of my body and I felt myself quivering as he slipped his fingers out of me, covered in the product of my orgasm.

“Look at me.” Charles voice came quietly but strongly and I did as he requested. I opened my eyes and looked down at where he still remained, between my thighs. He held my stare as he ran the fingers he had brought me to orgasm with back up and down my now dripping folds. A small tremor shuddered through my thighs as he did so. And then with my eyes trained straight on his he raised his fingers to his mouth and licked them. It took a second to register the feeling that I felt in that moment but as he raised to his feet and I saw his cock rock hard, with its purpling tip already leaking pre-cum, I knew it was one that filled me with unashamed excitement. “Turn over.” He demanded and I relinquished the control I had won earlier so easily. Not because he wanted me too but because I wanted too. There was nothing in the world I wanted more than for Charles to fucking rail me into oblivion. I turned and got on all fours on the bed. Ass facing him. It was a position I had come to realise was one of his favourites. Sure he liked watching my boobs bounce as I rode him cowgirl and sometimes if he was feeling slightly more tired he’d fuck missionary, but Doggy was his favourite (like most guys). The momentary lapse of concentration earned me a firm thwack of his hand against the round flesh of my ass. I yelped and lunged forward and I felt the enjoyment radiating off of him. I doubted she let him do that, I doubted she would have enjoyed it. I moaned and after I wiggled my hips around a little he did it again so that a more audible whimper left my mouth.

“Fuck me…” I knew it was what he wanted to hear so I gave it to him. “Please, Charles….” I added more good measure and sure enough, he pulled my hips back and immediately ran his leaking cock over my sensitive folds to collect the mixture of his spit and my juices.

As he lined up at my entrance and pushed the head of his cock inside of me, teasingly slowly, I pushed back for more. It was an action that I knew he would have enjoyed and he groaned as he gave me more of himself. His hand splayed on my lower back and forced me down into the mattress more so I arched for him and then he gave me all of himself. He bottomed out and the stretch from his girthy cock had me once again gasping and gripping the sheets. He stalled for a moment - savouring the feeling no doubt - before he began moving. Slow at first. A steady but slow rhythm that I needed, rather than wanted, to quickly increase. Charles moaned loudly and paused for a second only to surprise me completely. “Your pussy is so fucking perfect. You, are so fucking perfect.” I knew he didn’t mean it in THAT way - he didn’t like me like that, I knew that and he didn’t even need to verbalise it - but his praise made me feel good all the same. I wriggled my hips again to urge him to move and when he did his pace increased. It increased until I was a panting writhing mess. I loved how big he felt at this angle and how he would alternate between giving me quick, short spanks and pulling my hair. And honestly I truly had to focus so I didn’t cum just yet. His cock continually hitting my g-spot could have made me see stars but I didn’t want to give in yet. I wanted more of him so I urged him on my moaning his name over and over and over again through heavy sighs. His hand wrapped itself around my hair once again and this time he pulled me back so my back was flush against him.

“Say my name again.” His voice was lower than I had ever heard it before. Lower than I ever thought possible. The hand that had been wrapped around my long hair was now around my throat, holding my in place against his body as he continued thrusting up into me. I couldn’t focus on words. I just kept thinking about Charles’ lips being on my neck and feeling how fast my heart was going through the vein they lingered upon. His teeth grazed the flesh and his name whimpered across my lips a few times before he finally called me a “good girl” and I almost lost my mind between that and the angle his cock was at. He had to know how close I was. He had to feel how my pussy tightened around his cock and I was beginning to struggle to keep going. His teeth sunk into my shoulder and he groaned as I couldn’t stop the orgasm that came thrashing down upon me. I grabbed his arm so tightly my fingernails would leave marks upon his skin. My whole body convulsed as finally I let go and let the climax take hold of me. The high Charles had given me seemed to be otherworldly and stratospheric. It took me to another fucking planet and none more so than when he groaned, gripped my hips and held me down in place while he himself, found release. I could feel the pulse of his cock inside of me as his hot, milky cum poured out of him. The feeling was insurmountable. The twitch of him as he filled me up seemed the prolong my orgasm even longer and when the shakes that ravaged my body became too much, I couldn’t keep my knees from giving way and so finally fell forward against the bed again. All I could hear was Charles and I’s heavy, exhausted breathing.

As Charles settled down beside me on the bed he ran his hands up and down my back. It was a rather tender, sweet motion for someone who had just railed me into oblivion but I didn’t mind it. Suddenly as I found myself lying still - still recovering from those two incredible orgasms - I felt the alcohol from earlier catch up on me. The room seemed a bit spiny and I really didn’t want to throw up anywhere in Charles all white apartment. But then - right on queue - with his breathing still laboured Charles asked if I wanted anything and suggested a towel and a glass of water. Not to sound like a broken fucking record but this was new, he had never done this before. He had never really spoken after we had fucked so this was totally left field. I nodded and said both would be nice if he didn’t mind.

“Ok, be right back.” I listened to his words but stayed in the same position as I had earlier - mainly because I was scared of being sick and because now I was completely exhausted but also because I didn’t want Charles’ cum to leak out of me and go all over his extortionate sheets. I thought the action of him going to get me things would have been nice for a normal, regular girl (y’know, one he was dating) but seemed unusual for him to extend such gestures to me, his fuck buddy, his hook-up, his piece of ass. When he finally came back clutching an ice cold glass of water and a warmed damp towel for me to clean up with I expected him to hand me my dress as well. But my dress remained on the floor and he stared down at me while I drank from the glass. “Let me.” He motioned when I went for the towel. Charles took the glass from me and placed it on the floor before crouching down there himself. I was about to question him, ask him what he thought he was doing, when he lifted one of my legs and slowly parted them. My breathing all but stopped as he dabbed at my slightly red, a little bit tender pussy with the warm cloth. I let out an unsteady, unsure exhale of air as he watched his cum slowly seep out of me.

“Hmmm….” He purred “I should have told you my pull out game is weak.” He chuckled and in that singular moment he made me laugh. He sat back on his heels and laughed with me and all of the nervous energy in my body disappeared. All I could focus on was the sound of his laughter and how much I liked it and in a different life I would have wanted to hear it every single day for an eternity.

I rushed to try and find my dress, hoping that he hadn’t torn this one like last time. I wanted to spend the least amount of time naked in front of him as possible now snapshots of last night began coming back to me. Charles observed from his place in bed. Watching me as I sprinted around to get back into last nights clothes so I could leave. As the sunlight streamed in through his window it bathed us both in the cold harsh reality of the day and it was very much bringing a self loathing vibe along with it. Suddenly a wave of riotous nausea flashed upon me and my head felt like it belonged in a vice. Through clenched teeth I rubbed my forehead from the searing pain screaming throughout it

“Can I get you painkillers?” His voice had turned soft and was rather strange because it wasn’t what I was used too from him - or was that the narrative my own brain made up for me to believe he was a metaphorical bad guy? “Don’t do that, Charles. Don’t be nice to me.” “Why?” He acted so innocent and I knew he was putting on a front, there was no way he could be so stupid. “Because!” I practically shrieked, “I’m your ex-girlfriend’s best friend and we can’t stop fucking each other.” “I think you’ll probably be her ex-best friend if she finds out about us.” FUCK! He really didn’t need to hit me with the reality stick right now. The smugness was almost woven through his voice and I had to restrain myself from throttling him. But in reality the cold light of day made me feel angry and disappointed with myself, something I doubted he felt about this situation at all.

“That’s not going to happen.” I snap back at him. “Because there is no “us”, there never will be an “us.” Your voice lowered and you knew it sounded sadder than you intended. It didn’t stop Charles from continuing however. “Right…..” he rolled his eyes “until you’ve had too many strong cocktails and vodka shots and then you won’t be able to say no. Just like you always.” With his words lingering in the air I had to fight the urge to yell at him that I was never the instigator and he was the one who always came after me. I desperately wanted to fucking correct him and scream at him that he used me to forget about his ex, about Ferrari, about all the pressures of the life he leads and that it was HIM that sought ME out, not the other way around. But for some unknown reason, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I didn’t want to start an argument with him. I pulled on my dress hurriedly once I found it, no longer wanting to be so naked in front of him. All I wanted was to get the embarrassing walk of shame back to my apartment over already. I busied myself from the silence by looking for my shoes and I almost missed Charles getting out of bed and getting dressed.

“I’ll give you a ride home.” I heard him say as I pulled up the covers and found my black heel under them at the bottom of the bed. I now felt uncomfortable in his presence after the last words he spoke. Instinctively I told him; “It’s fine, I’ll call an Uber.” “I’m not suggesting. I’m telling.” He stated bluntly and this was new, this had never happened before. He was rarely awake when I slunk out the door of his apartment - because it was always his apartment or hotel room never mine - so this was completely foreign to me. “If you’re sure.” I half expected him to say of course he didn’t mean it, laugh, explain he was messing and to call that Uber immediately. But he just nodded and picked up my other heel from beside the door and held it out to me. I tried to avoid his eyes. I didn’t want him to see any emotion at at all behind mines so I took the shoe and shoved it on to distract myself.

We didn’t speak the whole ride to my apartment. The silence was only somewhat uncomfortable but for some strange reason things felt rather calm. Sitting in the passenger seat of Charles’ Ferrari - which I had never before sat in - felt somewhat surreal. I was hyper aware that the seat still practically bore another girls name. It still belonged to her and he would have her back without so much as blinking. I kept my eyes on the roads as Charles expertly drove the expensive luxury vehicle around them. Hoping the red lights would turn green as soon as we approached them.

“I do like you, y’know?” Came abruptly from Charles mouth when we turned onto my street, my apartment building in sight. I thought my ears were deceiving me so I broke my trance and glanced at him. “I know you probably think you’re just a rebound or….” He trailed off as he put the blinker on to pull over into the lane he could stop in to let me out. I could see the front door to my building and I had never seen a more welcome sight. “…but it’s not like that.”

I was desperate to ask what it was in fact like, what exactly he thought was going on but thankfully he brought the car to a stop and I could finally jump out and escape the awkwardness. There was this uneasy feeling in the car that hit me like a led balloon and right in the middle of my chest. I hated it. I wasn’t used to it, especially not with Charles. I was used to feeling annoyed, frustrated and fuck, disappointed by him. The first few times we fucked I’d have said I felt used but that went away because I enjoyed our trysts as much as he did. And besides I didn’t need validation from him. I didn’t need him to need me. But then right now, as I waited to get out of the car with my hand on the door handle, it hit me how badly the words he had just spoken were actually all the things that I craved and desired above all else and it was startling. Then Charles said my name so gently, totally unlike he had ever said it before, and I couldn’t bring myself to look at him. “I’d like to take you out sometime, properly. On a date.”

But before I knew what I was even doing I pulled the handle, pushed the door and started getting out of his car. He yelled my name so I would stop and for a second I did but I couldn’t bring myself to do it, to fall for him. “You know that can’t happen, Charles.” I managed to say in something struggling to be above a whisper “you don’t want me, you don’t even really like me, you’re still in love with her.”

The elevator ride up to my apartment felt like it took an eternity. The words he had spoken rang throughout my head as if a bomb had gone off and I was momentarily deaf. Fuck him. Fuck his bullshit and fuck how I fucking felt right now because of him. I was right for telling him that he was wrong and he still loved his stupid ex but it hurt because being with him always did. Being picked up and dropped all the time hurt. I wanted to be one of those girls who would have fallen for his words, whose stomach flipped when he told them he liked them, but I wasn’t and mines didn’t. I knew it was just about sex. I wasn’t his type. I wasn’t right for him. I’d never be his girl….and yet as the doors opened to my floor, I couldn’t wait till the next time I could fall asleep beside him and hate myself for it the next day.

*snow = cocaine

[rainybyday]

Hedera Helix (For Real this time)

P1 | P2

It ended with a hug. 

For better or worse, Jazz always knew that she would leave her family at one point. One day she will grow up to be an adult who will apply for college and finally leave her hometown away from the craziness that was her parents. Of course, she planned to call Danny more often than her parents, come back to help him with his college journey, and have an open door for him to visit her once she gained a job and an apartment. 

She just never expected him to leave her first. 

As the eldest sibling, there was always the instinctual need to protect her brother. Yes, she would get mad at him, yell at him, or even tease him but she would always drop everything if he is ever in danger. Her responsibility as an elder sibling was more than just blood to her, more than what her parents were to her.

She loves her parents, she truly does, but they weren’t good parents. Yes, they gave her food and clothing, encouraged her hobbies, and paid attention to her academic scores but they weren’t there. They didn’t tell her stories of the tooth fairy but instead of ghost essays and grave markers. They didn’t wait to hear about her new obsession with unicorns before explaining how they would dissect one. She didn’t even get to show off her grades in peace before they praised her intelligence in Science, not remembering how she told them how much she struggled in English class. 

She understood her parent's priorities were never about her but what would become of her. Not Jasmin the girl who made a mommy and daddy friendship bracelet but Jasmin the women who will carry their legacy. 

She didn’t want that for her brother, so she raised him to be someone free. She finger-painted with him on the sidewalk, taught him how to pillow fight, and played astronauts and aliens with him. She made a cardboard rocketship for him for Halloween, woke him up with a happy birthday song first thing in the morning, and caught fireflies with him. She paid attention to every little achievement and hugged him as much as she could. 

Danny was her baby brother, sibling, and her baby boy. He was everything to her, and even as a high schooler stressed with earning money on the side with her college career coming up she still will drop everything for him. 

And the day she found out that he was protecting her instead of the other way around broke something inside of her. 

She failed, in some twisted form of negligence and teenager carelessness she had lost her brother in more ways than one. 

And now she is losing him again, this time, she doesn’t know when she might see him again. 

God she didn’t want to cry, not now. She just needs to hold it in. Just for another minute and then she could cry once he was out of sight. 

Just give her one more minute. 

Only a minute and then she can let go. 

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

It was windy today, a nice breeze on a warm spring day. The echo of windchimes drifted about, and the sound of background chatter, and the rustling of trees greeted her again on this calm Sunday. 

Jazz took a moment to sigh, a heavy thing as the smell of musk and willow wood drew her back to memories she always conflicted with. 

Home, she was home again. The same day, same time as always. 

And as always she carried two baskets with her as she walked down the streets, waiting for the same occurrences that always happened ever since Danny left. 

It didn’t take long before a teenager spotted her with their friends. They waved at her with a smile and Jazz returned it with one of her own. Like clockwork, she greeted them, handing them each a blue petunia before heading off once more.

(Blue petunias, the sign of trust and serenity. A sign of hope that has yet to be lost.)

(Just like him.) 

Taking a cue from this, more people approached her as she handed them all a single petunia each. Adults politely thanked her, children were giddy as they showed their friends their gifts, and teenagers teased each other by tickling each other with soft petals. Whenever someone approached her she always handed them a petunia from the basket on her left. 

The basket on her right was never touched, yet it was noticeable when the flowers started disappearing slowly over time. Jazz didn’t panic, instead, she only smiled and gave well wishes to those who chose not to be seen. 

A long walk later, she finally arrived at her original destination with a hint of relief. As much as she was glad to give out her flowers, it was also exhausting to socialize with so many people. 

As she entered, she noticed how the sound of her footsteps should have been the only sound in the graveyard, but there were also sounds of whispers in the wind, a hum vibrating all around, and the distant prayers of visiting residences. 

To think that this part of town was once empty and eroding into nothing, now transformed into a clean and cherished part of Amity’s history. 

A hum of content passed through her lips as she walked with a purpose. It only took her a moment before she saw the grave she came to visit in the first place. Another moment was used to place the rest of the blue petunias on the grave before the Jazz sat down besides the grave. 

“Hey, Danny,” Jazz greeted. “I’m back! Missed me?”

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

Blue eyes snapped open with a bubble of joy radiating from the boy turned man. Making himself comfortable on the plush chair he sat on the man smiled into the empty air. 

“Hey, Jazz. You know I always miss you.”

P1 | P2

Hi! finally did it! I finally remade Hedera Helix into the direction I wanted! I know many of you were looking forward to have a second part of this story but to be honest, the first additon of it all felt so fourced and I hated it. And i mean HATE. So i decided to redo the whole thing into something I can have fun into making!

And I did! I love it! I hope everyone else is excited for this new remake of Hadera Helix as well as I am because I have never been so happy right about now!

Just-

Also- before I go on I want to address this before anyone might think anything funny.

"Danny was her baby brother, sibling, and her baby boy."

I know the "baby boy" line might make it seem as if Jazz is the one parenting Danny and is seen as a parental figure and it does. Kind of. The situation I am trying to portray is how sometimes when siblings are left without a parental figure majority of their lives they all turn to their elder sibling as a replacement for their parental figure. Not because they believe they may be their new mom or dad but because they need someone to care for them.

This is an actual situation that has happened to many families before and even to mine. I am the eldest of three siblings and once my family hit a financial struggle that forced my dad to work all day and my mom all night, making only 1-3 hours of their time spent on us. So this made me the main figure in my siblings' lives which affected me and them, to the point that they even called me Mom. Thankfully the situation only lasted three years and they no longer call me Mom and see me as their sister only. But sometimes we do slip so their effects linger.

So using my own experiences I used that to create this line as a way to express the negligence that both Danny and Jazz faced in this story. I hope that makes sense.

[whoahoney]

An Attempt at a One Night Stand Pt. 2

Eddie Munson x SingleMom!Reader

Part 1 Part 3

Summary: The night has come and Reader is meeting Eddie at the Hideout for another evening of fun, but will Eddie leave with the seven digits he’s set out to get?

Content warnings: fem/AFAB!Reader, adult themes (alcohol, bar scene) and situations (minors DNI), smut (fingering, protected p in v sex, nipple play, edging, hair pulling), angst, idiots afraid of getting hurt.

A/N: I hope this meets everyone’s expectations! Once again, the attention this story has received is mind blowing, thank you all so much 🥺����

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

It had been one week since she saw Eddie, not that she was paying super close attention or anything. He did find his way into her head at the most random times, though.

When she was cooking dinner for her son, the steam from the pot hit her face gently, reminding her of the way his breath felt against her face when he panted insatiably.

When she heard Hellraiser or any Ozzy on the radio, she couldn’t help but smile and turn it up louder, chuckling as she spotted Danny flipping his long brown hair side to side in the rear view mirror.

When she would lay on the couch late at night to watch some movies Robin brought, she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d seen them, or liked them. But then she reminded herself that was ridiculous and continued to fail to not think about Eddie Munson and his stupid pretty face and his stupid pretty dick.

Y/n tried to take care of her urges herself, but her toy just wasn’t cutting it for her this time. She couldn’t wait for Friday to come.

“Y/n! Are you getting ready for tonight?” Mollie shouted into the mouthpiece of her phone as she painted the top coat of her nails. The sun was setting which meant Stella would be around to pick everyone up for the evening.

“Yes, Molls, I’m getting makeup on as we speak.” Y/n said, referring to her strategic eyeliner, mascara, and chapstick trio, hoping the only thing that’s smudged tonight is her mascara, if he’s into that sort of thing.

“I hope you aren’t wearing much! Also, are you planning on wearing a dress? Cause I was thinking you should totally—“

“I’ll see you soon, Molls.” She said with a sigh behind her smile before hanging up the phone around the corner on her nightstand. She turned her attention back to the mirror, and let out a deep breath as she looked over her appearance.

She let her hair down around her face, combing her fresh curls out until they were touchably soft. She smoothed the front of her dress that she was debating on changing just to stick it to Mollie, but she knew they agreed for a reason. The black mini dress against her skin hugged her in all the right places, a contrast from the t-shirt, jeans, and converse she wore last week.

She straightened the thin straps that hung on her shoulders and leaned over to fix her breasts. She took a step back and debated on taking off the fishnets before she put on her black docs, when Robin came running into her room with Danny on her back, pretending to be a Pegasus.

“Mommy! Check out Robby’s wings!” He shouted, holding onto Robin’s band shako. The tall hat and feather led Danny to dream up the idea of a flying unicorn, which Robin quickly told him that there was such a creature called a Pegasus, which brought them to run around the house for the last 15 minutes.

“Whoaaa! They’re so strong, too!” She chuckled, leaning up against the doorframe and crossing her arms to give them her full attention.

“Neighhhh, I’ve been workin’ out.” She trotted around the room like a horse as the child squealed in delight. “Do you think I should nix the fishnets, Robin the Pegasus?”

“Depends!” She began as she sat Danny on the bed to watch Looney Tunes and then joined Y/n in the bathroom to speak lowly, “Are you hoping to take them off while you’re out?” She wiggled her eyebrows as she mirrored Y/n’s previous position against the door frame.

Y/n rolled her eyes and blushed furiously as she nodded. “Aren’t you going to the same bar—” Robin gasped with wide eyes, “Is it the same dude??” She covered her mouth in anticipation. Y/n waited a moment before nodding, Robin gasped again followed by a quiet giggle and happy dance complete with clapping. “Oh my god, you have a date?? I knew this day would come, oh my god. Who is he??” She rushed, grasping Y/n by the shoulders.

Y/n shook her head, “No, uh-uh, not a date, I just told him I’d come see his band play again.” She shrugged.

“His band? Y/n, aren’t you going to the Hideout?!” Robin questioned. Y/n froze, avoiding Robin’s look in the mirror, preparing for the tsunami of happiness that is Robin when she is excited.

“Holy fucking shit!” She exclaimed, looking like a kicked puppy when Y/n shot her a disapproving look and then looked behind her to Danny who was completely oblivious to the bad words flying behind him.

“I’m so sorry,” She momentarily clasped her hands over her mouth before taking them back off and continuing, “It’s Eddie, right? Is it Eddie Munson? I’m friends with him! That’s my boy! We went through the end of the world together.” She lowered her voice at the last part, Y/n knowing about the spring of ‘86, but not specifics, Robin having a hard time explaining the whole thing calmly and linearly.

“Eddie’s a good guy, Y/n, maybe the best. Y’know he’s always reminded me of—“

“Yeah. Me too.” Y/n gave a pained and tight smile. Robin winced, not meaning to strike any nerves. “Is-Is that why you like him, maybe?” She asked quietly, looking at her nails.

Y/n sighed and hopped up on the counter to face Robin. “Yes, and no. Yes, because he’s playful and witty and dorky like Adam. No, because Eddie is…”

“Unhinged?” Robin suggested, making Y/n laugh and nod, “Yeah, unhinged. I feel like Eddie is so wild and daring, but I don’t feel like that when we talk, like, I feel safe? I don’t know. But that feeling, that safe feeling is similar to how.. how things felt with Adam. Not the same—and not like I want it to be the same, cause I don’t.” Y/n rushed, Robin nodding and stepping closer to her friend. “No, I know. I know, Y/n/n, I don’t think anyone in the world could love Adam the way you do. Things are allowed to feel similar without being the same, you know? You aren’t—You aren’t cheating on Adam. You’re with Adam forever, dude, whether you feel it or not.”

“No, I do. But it feels so wrong. Like I already had my chance at true love. What if I’m just wasting our time if I decide to go through with this? If I decide to continue to see Eddie, if he’ll see me.” She added with an eye roll.

“You’re kidding, right? I’m surprised he didn’t follow you home like a lost puppy after last week now that I know ‘bar guy’ is Eddie! He’d jump at the chance to date you properly, Y/n/n.” Robin shrugged.

“You’re missing one thing, though, Robs: my son? That complicates a lot, if you didn’t know.” Y/n gestured to Danny who was now jumping up and down on the bed mercilessly. “Little boy, you better stop jumping before you fall down and hurt your arm again!” Y/n called from the bathroom, only turning her attention back to the mirror after he landed on his bottom and laid down on his stomach to watch the TV longer.

“Eddie would love Danny, are you kidding me?! They’d make the best of buds, and you mean to tell me he isn’t the slightest bit interested in the fact you’re a mom??” Robin shrugged as if the answer were simple. “No, he’s not, cause he doesn’t know! That’s not exactly information I share with the guys I meet when I’m out.” She sprayed her favorite perfume in the air before walking through it and turning off the bathroom light and walking past Robin into the bedroom.

“Wait, he doesn’t know? Are you gonna tell him?” Robin asked with wide eyes following after her. Y/n stood next to the tv, Danny panicking as she placed her hand on the knob to turn it off. “C’mon, squirt, we’re going to the living room til I gotta go!” She heaved the boy onto her hip as he calmed, laying his head on her shoulder while they walked, his mother leaving a peck on the top of his head.

“I don’t think I should until I know for sure what I wanna do with this situation, you know?” She asked as she placed Danny on the couch and turned on the tv for him. Robin was at a loss for words as Y/n put on her regular denim jacket. The familiar sound of Stella’s horn sounding from the driveway told her now was the time to kiss Danny bye.

“I love you, buddy, I’ll be back after Robby tucks you in bed, alright?” She said with a ruffle to his hair. Danny grabbed his mom's face with his small hands and planted a kiss on her head as she had done for him. “Love you too!” He said cheerily.

Robin nodded to Y/n in agreement at her previous statement as Y/n slipped on her shoes and tied her laces quickly. “Since it’s Eddie and all…keep the fishnets on, unless you’re, like, super attached to them, then don’t.” Robin said simply and then flashed a smile before opening the door for her, “Have fun!”

Y/n balked then rolled her eyes on her way out, “The chicken and vegetables are in the oven! Take it out when the timer goes off, and make sure he eats at least, like, three bites of his veggies, please!” She called as she opened the car door. Robin nodded, gave her a thumbs up and closed the door.

She took the opportunity to turn and look at her friends in the car, Kathy and Mollie beaming from the backseat and Stella smirking behind the wheel avoiding eye contact the best she could. “What?” Y/n asked exasperatedly.

“Nothing! You just look really good. Like, really good.” Kathy said, biting back a smile. “I mean, thanks, but what’s the big deal?” She looked down at her outfit once more, feeling self conscious and naked without the cover of her jeans and ringer t-shirt. “It’s too much, isn’t it?” She shook her head, her hand poised on the handle ready to get out and change at lightning speed.

“Oh, uh-uh, you look amazing, you’re wearing the dress!” Stella said as she dove over the center and pushed the lock down. Y/n scoffed and crossed her arms, thinking for a moment and sighing. “It’s not too much?” She asked quietly.

Her friends looked amongst each other and smiled, “Not at all, the denim and combat boots offset it perfectly! I do think he’s gonna blow his load when he sees you, if I’m being honest.” Mollie mumbled around a cigarette as she tried to light it.

The car erupted into cackles, “Mollie, oh my god!” Kathy blushed and covered her little virgin ears. “Oh, c’mon, Kath, you remember the way he looked at her when he was on stage during Hellraiser?? He wanted to devour her on the spot!” She exclaimed and handed the cigarette to Y/n to puff.

Y/n fiddled with the radio as the girls carried on, theorizing how many shots Gareth will try to do and how many times Jeff wins a game of Quarters. “It’s because he has bassist hands!” Kathy sighed dreamily. “Ope, Kath, looks like you got a little drool there.” Y/n turned and teased, sending another blush onto the timid girl’s cheeks.

“On a real note, though,” Y/n said as she took a drag, her backseat friend leaning in eagerly. “Go for it, ask him out. Jeff sounds sweet as can be. He’d be dumb not to.” She shrugged before turning back around to face the windshield.

Her friends in the car shared a look in the rear view mirror, hoping her encouragement to Kathy meant she would encourage herself the same. “Turn it up! Turn it up! Listen!” Mollie exclaimed, patting the back of Stella’s seat for attention. Y/n jumped and obliged her, ready to see what the fuss was about.

Dio’s Holy Diver filled the car as everyone looked at Y/n. Y/n crinkled her brow in confusion, “What about it? Did you finally give Dio a chance?? Is this your way of telling me I was right??” Y/n asked smugly. “Noo… you really don’t know?” Mollie asked incredulously.

Y/n searched the air for answers, coming up with nothing. “What is it??” She shrugged. “Well I guess we can’t blame you for not seeing the back of your boy much, but the whole back of his vest is a Dio album cover patch. Did you really not see it??” She asked as Y/n’s jaw dropped. “Oh god, I bet if she knew he liked Dio last week she would’ve spent the night.” Mollie said with a smirk, leaning back in the seat.

“Oh my god, she so wouldn't!” Kathy defended with a roll of her eyes. “But she could tonight.” Y/n caught her mumble to Mollie, the two bursting into snickers in the back seat. “Shut up!” Y/n turned quickly, weakly fighting off a smile threatening to break across her lips at the prospect.

Robin would stay the night with Danny if she phoned, she knew that. But she couldn’t help but worry tonight wouldn’t be like last week, that the illusion would be shattered and she’d be back to bar hopping next month, settling for some townie that paid ample attention to her for the evening to bone.

A small sick feeling crept into her stomach as they got closer to their destination, the fading deep blue of the sky sinking into black felt ominous though she was surrounded by love and light.

“Y/n/n, you good? Y’know we can bail if you want, find somewhere else to go, come back next week with an excuse?” Stella mumbled before they pulled into the parking lot sparse with old cars and beat down trucks.

Y/n shook her head, knowing she wanted to see him, that if the illusion was shattered it should happen now. Instead, she opened the car door, the rest of her friends following her lead. “Molls, can I have another cigarette?” She asked timidly. “Of course you can!” Mollie cooed like a mother. “Here you are!” She said, extending her hand with the single cigarette and yellow lighter for Y/n to take.

They walked into the establishment together, her hands shaking a little as she brought the cigarette up to her lips. She held the door open, having her friends walk before her as a last effort at putting off seeing the face that invaded her every thought since she left him last. She could hear the buzz of the electric instruments humming as she entered the hazy bar that was aglow with neon lights, just like last time.

The stage lights flashed on, revealing Corroded Coffin still setting up. “Oh good, we’re just in time!” Stella commented as she took off her jacket and hung it off the back of the chair she occupied last week. Y/n gave a half smile in response, worried if she opened her mouth she’d throw up. “I’ll just get you a drink, huh?” Stella asked, getting up and patting her shoulder before joining their other two friends at the bar.

Y/n sighed, now alone and even more vulnerable with her thoughts. She kept her eyes on the written-on table, different colors of pens and drawings etched into the old woodwork.

“Come here often?” Sent a jolt through her body as her head shot up to see Eddie Munson leaning on her table with two drinks and a warm smile. She clenched her jaw and gave into the smile he gave her as he set the glass in front of her and pulled up a chair, scooting next to her but keeping a safe distance.

“I don’t, but I figured I’d come back since this band I like is playing.” She shrugged, taking a sip of the clear mystery drink that turned out to be… water?

She shot him a quizzical look and looked at the drink in front of her. “I didn’t see you drink any water last week, just wanted to make sure you’re hydrated, you know?” He shrugged as her friends returned, drinks in hand. Their first drink of the night was a classic whiskey and coke, the fizzy drink making her eyes light up in delight, which made Eddie chuckle as the rest of the band joined them.

“Hey, ladies! What do you say we throw one back together before we go on?” Gareth asked as the group collectively agreed. Gareth and Jeff scrambled to the bar to grab four more drinks for a quick cheers. When they returned, the band each grabbed a glass, the group gathering around the table to tap their drinks together with a satisfying clink and tilting their glasses back til the dark liquid was gone and they were left with nothing but bitter tastes in the back of their throats and screwed up faces from the kick of it.

“I’m so glad to see you back, I can’t tell you how many times this last week Eddie was stressing about your girl, here.” Gareth teased lightly, a friendly smile on his lips as he sipped his chaser, sputtering when Eddie hit his arm too roughly, the girls biting back smiles. “We gotta get up there, bud.” Gareth said, wiping his mouth with his bare hand and then drying it on Eddie’s shoulder on his way past. Eddie sent Y/n a look with a shy smile, “I’ll, uh, be back later?”

Y/n nodded softly, “I’ll be here.” Her response brought a smile to his face, his eyes glittering just as they had a week prior as he nodded and walked to the stage, not trying to hide his glances back at her on his way.

“Try not rock too hard, girls.” Gareth said cheekily into the microphone as he settled on his stool and flipped his hair, which made Eddie and Jeff roll their eyes. “See you later, Kath.” Jeff smiled pointedly at the sweet blushing girl, who sent him a shy wave as he took his place with his bass. Grant never said much, but his skills as a rhythm guitarist were undeniable. The guy took the place to Eddie’s left and plugged his guitar into the amp, scratching out a riff to check the sound, and earning a rowdy cheer from the table in the back center.

The heads of the band members turned their attention back to the girls in surprise, not used to people actually paying attention to them up there. Small smiles erupted as the boys looked at each other. “Hell yes, Grant, let’s GO!” Mollie shouted as the other girls whooped and hollered.

Eddie turned and said something to the group before walking up to the mic and looking at his girl in the crowd. “This one’s for all the Johnny Cash fans in the room.” Y/n scoffed at the guitarist, her cheeks feeling awfully warm. “As always, ladies and gents, we are Corroded Coffin.” He said into the mic before Gareth counted them off and Eddie launched into the intro.

Kathy was simply mesmerized by Jeff and his bass skills, the low rumble of the chords he played making it harder for her to breathe, and then suddenly, self consciously squeezing her thighs together. Gareth entered heavy on the drums to Eddie’s satisfaction, a smile on his lips as he nodded; dancing around the little space he had on stage and masterfully dodging electric cords as he did.

Y/n’s jaw dropped as she recognized the intro to Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash playing, just in their own style. She chuckled at his freeness, the way he bit his lip and thrashed his head until it was his time to sing, and oh, did she love hearing him sing.

“Love.. is a burning flame.. And it makes.. a fiery ring.” He looked up at Y/n at her table, her smirk still visible in the dim light of the bar.

“Bound by wild desire..” He sent her a wink, his smile growing when he saw her avert her eyes down and blush before taking another drink of her water. “I fell into a ring of fire..”

“I’m getting another round, you want?” Stella asked before she made her trip back to the bar, Y/n nodding and mouthing, “Shots!” To which Stella’s eyes lit up as she gave her friend a thumbs up.

“I fell into a burning ring of fire, I went down down down, and then flame went higher..

And it burns, burns, burns, the ring of fire.. the ring of fire..” He sang to her directly as her shot showed up on the table in front of her, a clear and tempting liquid she knew for sure this time wasn’t water. She took a whiff, her brows pulling together as she looked at her friend next to her, “Vodka? You’re dangerous.” Y/n commented before looking back to Eddie who was shredding a guitar solo on his knees, his gaze now cast on his guitar in his lap.

“C’mon, let’s go by the stage to do it, he hasn’t even seen your full outfit yet!” Mollie urged with two shots in hand as the rest of the group flocked to the edge of the make-shift stage with the handful of regulars that didn’t mind the rowdy boys once a week.

“The taste of love is sweet.. when hearts like ours meet..” Eddie took in her full appearance as she walked towards him; drink in hand and her jacket halfway off one shoulder, and suddenly became very thankful for the guitar covering his front.

He stopped strumming to take the mic with him as he crouched to her level, “I fell for you like a child.. ohhhh… but the fire went wild.” He sang with theatrical movements, which she rolled her eyes at but couldn’t deny the smile his antics caused.

“Shots! Let’s go! Knock ‘em back, girls!” Stella shouted over the music, everyone tapping their glasses against one another to down the fire like medicine, waiting for the desired effects to kick in.

Y/n began to feel warm soon after the second drink, discarding her jacket with her glass back at their table, Mollie grabbing her hand immediately after and spinning her around the dance floor, sending the two of them into a fit of giggles as Eddie continued singing. “I fell into a burning ring of fire, I went down, down, down and the flames went higher and it burns, burns, burns.. the ring of fire, the ring of fire..” He kept his eyes on her spinning frame, stepping in time with the drums and following her friends' lead with ease, like it was something they’d done a million times, which they probably had.

The girls danced around the floor together, attracting the attention from the other bar patrons enjoying the change in music for the night as well. A few older gentlemen asked Kathy and Mollie to dance, which they obliged since they weren’t creepy, guiding them in fun partner dances around the floor as they laughed in merriment.

Stella volunteered to stay at the table and watch purses and drinks, ready to drink her glasses of water before they drive home in a couple hours. Eddie was eager to get off stage after the first song, opting into only playing two instead of the regular five for tonight even if it meant getting paid significantly less.

He sauntered over to where Y/n was seated with Stella, the latter nudging her arm and nodding at Eddie quickly approaching. He assumed his previous seat and scooted a smidgen closer with a satisfied smirk on his lips as he watched her intently.

“Hey.” He beamed.

“Hi, Eddie.” She giggled as Stella stood up and patted her shoulder, joining Gareth by the stage to chat.

“Y-You look really pretty tonight—not that you didn’t last time. You’re, just.. really really pretty all the time—not that I see you all the time either. I haven’t seen you since the last time I saw you—oh dear god.” He clenched his jaw with a tight smile, giving her a nod before booking it back to the stage in embarrassment when she caught his arm. “I was hoping you’d think so.” She murmured, her hand staying on his arm as his other hand came to lay on top of it.

“Yeah?” He asked as if she told him she brought him a present. He looked her over once more, nodding in approval, “So this is for little old me? You sure know how to make a guy feel special, sweet girl.” He leaned forward more, biting his lip in intrigue.

Y/n loved the way he looked, legs spread on either side of the chair; forearms resting on the back, holding her hand tenderly.

“How’ve you been?” He asked, his brows raising in interest. Y/n sulled up, taking a sip of her half gone water and nodded, “I’ve been good! Busy. And you?” She asked, taking another sip.

“Uh-uh, sneaky thing. We’re talking about you tonight.” He smirked, reaching for his water cup. “What was the best part of your week?” He asked with a shrug before he took a drink.

‘Danny sang his first song all the way through by himself.’ She thought.

‘Not now, later, when you’re more alone.’

“I, uh, got to have birthday cake on Wednesday.” She nodded.

‘At a child’s birthday party where Danny sang his first song by himself.’

Eddie smiled, “The simple things, right? Birthday cake’s the best, especially with that whipped cream frosting they pile on three inches thick! I love a good supermarket birthday cake.” He nodded contently as if he just finished a slice himself.

“What about you? The best part of your week?” She asked.

“Wayne and I went out to dinner in the city to celebrate his raise, got to have appetizers and drinks at a place without a sticky table, Y’know? All the garlic bread you can eat, it was heaven.” He shook his head indulgently.

“Food really lights you up, doesn’t it?” She asked. “Oh, god, yes, I love food. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks—hey, you’re doing it again.” He pointed at her and narrowed his eyes. “Do you do this on purpose or are you that bad at talking about yourself?” He asked.

“She’s that bad at talking about herself.” Stella chided as she returned to the table with Gareth following behind. Y/n stuck her tongue out at Stella who mirrored her expression, sending the both of them chuckling. “You guys want another before you get back at it?” Stella asked before she went to the bar, Gareth following closely behind as he shared a knowing look with Eddie that went missed by the two girls they were referring to.

“That sounds perfect, how about—“

“Tequila?” Eddie asked her with his eyebrows raised, two questions in one seemingly. Stella looked to Y/n for a simple answer while Eddie waited with a lip between his teeth, playfulness hiding his worry. “Gimme a double.” She said, her eyes flickering to Eddie’s, who’s eyes rolled back into his head blissfully, Y/n smiling at his antics as usual.

Gareth looked confused before his friend explained, “I love tequila, it’s my new favorite.” Eddie shrugged, the answer good enough to send Gareth to the bar behind Stella.

“I was hoping I’d catch you in a.. tequila mood.” He smirked, his boyish blush flooding back to his cheeks. His eyes trailed down her sitting figure, her dress hiked up past her mid thigh, and her sexy fishnets that had caught a couple runs since she got in the car.

“How could I wear a dress like this for you and not be?” She winked at him this time, his smile only growing as if he’d never been flirted with before.

“Here we are, one double shot of tequila, m’lady.” Stella handed the taller shot glass to her friend as she passed, the other friends gathering to acquire their own, more bubbly and giddy now that the festivities of the night had begun.

“Where’s the salt?”

“Where’s the limes?”

Eddie and Y/n asked in unison, their eyes avoiding one another and every other one of their friends who were so tempted to tease. Gareth almost did but was quickly interrupted by Stella placing a hand on his shoulder and asking him if he’d help her get the desired limes and salt.

“Amateur, shit, am I right?” Eddie joked quietly, nudging her arm with his and leaning closer to her, close enough he can smell the perfume she chose for tonight. Eddie could almost feel his eyes dilate when the scent hit him. The sweet aroma made him want to turn and bury his face in her neck and hair and leave sloppy kisses there. He felt the front of his jeans tightening as he imagined her sticking her tongue down his throat in front of all these people.

He snatched his gaze away as she giggled at his joke, suddenly realizing his face was so close to hers. Stella and Gareth returned with a plate of limes and a tall salt shaker.

“Everybody get some salt, get some lime, we’re doing this correctly, thank you!” Stella announced, Gareth smirking at her take-charge demeanor.

Y/n and Eddie were the first ones ready, her heart warming when he leaned over and grabbed two limes for the both of them. Mollie passed Y/n the salt. Eddie watched as Y/n sprinkled a nice and thick little line on her hand and quickly held out his own next to her so she could set him up. Without a thought she obliged him, chuckling without meeting his eye.

“Alright, party people, one, two, three!” Mollie declared, everyone racing to get theirs done the fastest though they couldn’t beat Eddie and Y/n, who took the shot in sync with one another no matter how fast each were trying to go while giggling the whole time.

“And she had a double!! Amazing, really.” Eddie said in awe as she sat her glass upside down on the table and wiped her mouth with a smile she stopped trying to get rid of.

“Alright, sweetheart, I’m gonna go play you one last song and then I’m completely yours.” He smiled earnestly, his sparkling eyes taking in her whole face for any sign of the thoughts circulating her head as he placed his hands on her shoulders, hoping she’d touch him too.

Y/n sighed, the warmth of his hands on her shoulders already electrifying. It took everything in her not to pick his hands up and kiss them before pulling his lips in for one to send him on his way. But she didn’t.

She nodded with a soft smile, “Sounds like a plan. Try not to rock too hard.” She teased, Gareth turning dramatically around in his stool on stage when he heard his advice repeated. Eddie looked content with her answer, the regular dreamy smile lingering on his lips as he made a forward movement, as if he were going to kiss her forehead or nose. His effort stuttered as he decided to turn on his heel and walk to the stage, clenching his teeth and shaking his head at himself.

‘Not yet, dude, what the hell.’

Y/n’s breath caught in her throat the same way it would’ve done had he actually kissed her. She watched him the whole time he walked away, hopping back up on the platform that held them up only a few feet higher than the floor.

“Did he just kiss you?” Mollie inquired quietly with a new drink in hand. Kathy and Stella’s necks cranes around from the table to get Y/n’s reply. She shook her head, “No, but I think he was about to. I-I think he changed his mind.” She shrugged with a small smile.

“Are you glad he didn’t?” Kathy asked, confused. Y/n sat back down and allowed her smile to grow. “No, I think I would’ve liked him to, but I don’t think any guy has overthought kissing me before. Especially not over the forehead.”

“He was going to kiss your forehead?” Mollie gasped, a couple old men turning in their chairs to see what the fuss was about as Y/n nodded sheepishly.

“Well you better give that boy a forehead kiss tonight, Y/n, or so help me God—“

“Oh my god, Mollie, okay, okay. Don’t have to tell me twice to kiss the cute little rockstar’s forehead.” She mumbled, settling into her seat as the alcohol took route in her bloodstream, finally back at the same level of sobriety she was at when she met Eddie the first time.

“You must have a little thing for him, or something.” Stella muttered in the chair next to her behind her glass like a secret. Y/n blushed and blamed it on the alcohol to save face from her own self.

“I just might.” She shrugged one shoulder and turned her attention back to Eddie who had just approached the mic again. “This last one’s for the coolest chicks in Indiana.” He said, the girls erupting into howling cheers.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Y/n debated through the entire song on whether or not she wanted to tell Eddie more about herself that night, fighting the temptation to call Robin and tell her she was gonna give it a shot and see if Eddie wanted to take her back to his place for the night, but knew it was best if she didn’t. She couldn’t rush into anything too quickly no matter how easy it felt.

He’s thoughtful, respectful, ornery, laid back, there’s gotta be something, something wrong with this guy that he’s really good at hiding. I mean this is only the second time I’m meeting him, what if I let him take me somewhere and he murders me??

“Earth to Y/n.” Mollie waved her hand in front of Y/n’s face, “What? What’s up?” She shook her head of the thoughts plaguing her and took a sip of the beer she ordered after a whiskey.

“We asked if you were feeling okay.” Stella spoke up, nudging her friend’s arm with a worried look in her eyes. “Yeah, I feel great, it’s just… he seems too good to be true, right? Like, is it just me? A-Am I thinking about it too hard??” She whispered urgently, her hand resting against her forehead to block her distress from the boys at the front of the room.

The girls looked amongst each other and to the lead singer, who played the Metallica solo with care, stealing glances at the object of his affection when he could.

“I don’t think so, Y/n/n.” Kathy said with a smile and a shake of her head. “I’m with Kathy, you said Robin knows him, right? Wouldn’t you say Robin’s a good judge of character?” Mollie asked while she was bobbing her head to the beat.

Y/n shrugged in contemplation, “I mean, yeah.” She thought back to Robin mentioning ‘the end of the world’ as she referred to it, how Eddie went through it with her. Y/n looked back at him, pure joy on his face as he stood close to Grant while they strummed and picked together, just messing around and jamming during the transitional points of the song.

She wondered how he handled the murders, the blame, the running and hiding. She wondered about the blank spots that her friend was unable to fill, the shared horrors they’d seen and if he had to sleep with a light on like Robin did.

She wanted to let herself let go, to feel safe and small in the palm of his hand, finally able to put her trust and belief and time into someone.

“No one said you had to marry the guy. Y’know you can date casually, right? If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. Simple!” Stella shrugged matter of factly.

Y/n looked like a fish out of water at the suggestion, one that wouldn’t seem all too wild to a regular person with regular and normal relationship habits and views, but Y/n had been practically married to her first boyfriend the majority of her teen years. How is she supposed to let anyone go so easily once she’s let them in?

“Yeah, simple.” She muttered and took a swig as the song ended. Eddie held a gleam of eagerness in his eye, freeing himself of his strap around his neck and hopping off the stage with his guitar in hand. “Here comes your boy.” Mollie muttered to her lap, Y/n’s head snapping up to meet his smiling gaze striding up to her.

“How’d you like it?” He asked the table, though kept his eyes on Y/n. The girls collectively agreed and smiled, throwing out compliments that made his cheeks and ears pinker than they were from being winded as the rest of the guys joined the table.

“The guitar solo—mind melting.” Y/n commented with a coy smile and taking a sip of her drink. Eddie nodded approvingly, “Thank you, thank you.”

Gareth stood behind Stella’s seat and rested his hands gently on the back before looking down at Y/n. “Hey, Y/n/n, why don’t you help Eddie here take his guitar to the van out back? I know he’d appreciate it so much.” He cooed with a saccharine smile that sent the table into poorly repressed snickers.

“Y’know, Gareth, I think that’s the best thing I’ve heard come out of your mouth.” Y/n answered, tilting her drink all the way back to finish it. Eddie’s eyes went wide as he looked at his best friend next to him, who sent him a wink as the girl stood from her seat and sent Eddie a look with her brows raised, “C’mon.” She said, taking his free hand and pulling him along, refraining from glancing back at his lovesick gaze to avoid further teasing from their friends.

When they got outside and reached the light pole they’d stood under previously, Eddie spun her around and gently pulled her close by her waist, his eyes fixed on hers with earnesty. “Hi, angel.” He said to her quietly like that was the first time he had greeted her that evening.

“Hi, Eddie.” She pushed a curl behind his ear, a move that made him blush again and avert his eyes to his black boots that happened to closely resemble her own, placing his hand over hers to keep it in place a moment longer.

“Can I ki—“ His request was interrupted by her lips crashing onto his, a low groan rumbling from his throat as he melted into her touch, almost forgetting he was holding the neck of his guitar in one hand as he tried to pull her closer.

He pulled back reluctantly, sprinkling pecks all over her mouth before he pulled back for good, “I need both arms to hold you, come on, I’ll tuck her in, then it’s just you and me.” He joked, throwing his arm over her shoulders and walking with her around the building.

Eddie couldn’t help but feel like a real rockstar leaving a gig with a groupie under his arm, not to mention the hottest. He grazed his fingers across her back and trailed them down her arm as he let go, opening the back doors of the van and immediately spotting the open guitar case.

“Here you go, baby.” He muttered, placing the instrument gently inside the velvet lined case and kissing his hand to run across the strings before closing it. “You really know how to treat your women, don’t you, Munson?” She asked, crossing her arms and admiring the sight.

“I strive to be a gentleman, what can I say?” He asked, moving the case up on its side to lean against the wall of the van. That’s when she noticed the added pillows and blankets it had rested on top of. Eddie busied himself by straightening the blankets, spreading another out on top to cover up with, it seemed. There sat a solid row of bed and throw pillows up against the back seat, the warm dim lighting set the mood greatly.

“Were you expecting some company?” She asked, her question freezing him on the spot before he turned around with alarm in his wide eyes. “I, uh, just assumed—I shouldn’t have thou—I’m so sorry,” He rambled, getting ready to shut the doors of the van and walk her back to the front when she walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his middle, again, freezing him on the spot.

“Eddie…” She cooed, swaying them gently from side to side, then raised up on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to the side of his neck. “Y-Yes?” He asked in a whisper. “Is this for me?” She asked softly next to his ear, a lip between her teeth as he shivered.

He turned to her, nodding, his fingers finding her waist and sliding his hands up underneath her jacket and roaming the curves her dress hugged so well. He felt his member throb the more she touched him and the more he touched her.

Her fingernails scratched his chest satisfyingly, the feeling sending another vibration up his throat as he nuzzled his nose into her neck and pulled her close. The smell of her warm skin was intoxicating, bewitching him and pulling him further under her spell. “You know, you’re all I’ve thought about since the moment I laid eyes on you.” He said through messy kisses to her neck, her knees growing weak at the sensation, the sentiment pulling a careless moan from her lips.

Eddie took the noise as encouragement, his movements becoming more deliberate and quick. “C’mere.” He growled, turning them around to the van and reaching to grab just underneath her ass to encourage her up and into the back.

She scooted back until she was all the way in, unlacing and kicking off her docs in the process while Eddie hopped in and shut the doors. She set about taking off her jacket as Eddie turned to take off his boots, smiling at her in wonderment as he did. She waited for him, sat on her calves with her hands in her lap. Eddie crawled over to her and took in her appearance; her tits peeking out of the top of her dress, the fish nets on her legs that begged to be ripped off.

“What do you think about?” She asked breathlessly as his lips hovered over hers.

“W-what?”

“When you think about me?” She asked, allowing herself to look deep into his eyes instead of making herself close her eyes or look away, she wanted to see him—to learn him.

Eddie smiled adoringly and set about kissing her jaw, chin, neck, and shoulders chastely; laying her down into the nest he created for them to hopefully spend the night. “I’ve thought about what you’d look like sleeping in my bed,” he chuckled against her skin.

Y/n softly gasped, egging him on. “I’ve thought about what I’d make for your breakfast in the morning,” he whispered below her ear against her neck, “and how you look when you wake up all sleepy and squinty eyed, I’ve wondered if you’re a morning person or not,” he sighed, slipping his fingers into hers and holding them beside her head again.

“Eddie..” She moaned, her mouth searching for his lips, “Do you think of me?” He asked, his front grinding into her middle as he hitched her leg around him, letting his hand greedily run up her thigh, dragging his fingers along the threads of her tights.

“Of course I do.” Y/n whispered, her free hand finding the side of his face. He leaned into her touch and sighed contently, his body going limp on her. She smiled as he unlaced his fingers from hers and wrapped his arms around her underneath him, caging her body in with his, though she wasn’t complaining.

“Oh, how I missed you, sweetheart.” He whispered, pressing his nose into the crook of her neck to smell her perfume and groaning as it filled him. She wrapped both legs around his torso as he settled in planting kisses on her in between the praises: ‘I swear, you’re the girl of my dreams’, ‘Been thinkin’ about the ways I wanna make you feel, baby..’, ‘Such a pretty girl..’

Y/n revelled in his voice, touch, and scent, gasping softly and arching her back, her legs turning to mush. “I love these.” He breathed with a smile, sticking his fingers through a few of the holes to squeeze her inner thigh better, making her lurch and giggle into him as he put his mouth against hers.

She mewled into his open mouth, whimpering as he echoed her sound back at her. “Tell me what else you think about, baby.” She said to him, throwing her inhibitions to the wind, ready to take a step.

Eddie’s lips smacked against hers, smearing their wetness across their mouths before disconnecting to answer her, her lips immediately honing in on his throat, licking and kissing as he struggled to get the words out, “It’s stupid, it’s-it’s- nothing sexy, really, it’s all purely domestic—“

“Tell me, Eddie.” She urged, sliding her hands under his shirt to rake her nails down his front, lightly enough to make him stretch like a cat and rut his hips into hers. “Oh, shit, baby, uh, I, think about what you look like when you make dinner, ahaha—“ he chuckled nervously, hoping it didn’t come off mysoginistic. Y/n bit her lip to repress a moan, feeling pathetic at the thought of him eating his own dinner and thinking of her.

“Or, or, or, getting ready for bed, I wanna know what your hair smells like when you just washed it, if you’re a bath or shower person, if you’re one of those girls that likes to wash their hair in the sink or not.” He mumbled as her lips reached his and she flipped them over to grind her hips down on him.

“You are such a sweet boy.” She whispered, finally sliding his shirt up his chest until he took it the rest of the way off then returning his hands to her waist, lightly digging his fingers into the thin material of the black dress.

This was the first time Y/n had enough light to notice Eddie’s fading scars, one wrapping around the back of his neck, another hidden underneath the dragon piece he had on his side. She ran her fingers over the edges of the marred skin, careful not to touch too much. Eddie froze giving her a chance to explore, and hoped she wouldn’t ask too many questions or be hindered by them.

She looked up at him with eyes that saw him, whether he understood the extent or not, he knew that much; that she saw him.

She placed tender kisses that traced the edge of the trail up to his neck, her tongue being awful generous. “Tell me more, I wanna hear it all.” She whispered next to his ear.

“I thought about you at the grocery store.” He blurted out as his eyes fell closed, his breathing running ragged. Y/n giggled, her hands roaming his chest between them, “Which section did it for you, huh?” She asked playfully, looking up at his face as his eyes opened. Her hands reached around the back of his neck to rest.

“It was the cereal.” He sighed, stroking her hand with his and looking between both of her eyes and then her lips. Her heart warmed and couldn’t help but chuckle before bringing him back in for a kiss, moaning into his lips as his hands found her ass to squeeze.

“Why cereal?” She asked, pausing her kisses.

“Uh, I just—I was wondering what kind you buy, and how I’d want to have it for you so I could, make you a bowl after we—“ he stopped at the sound of her slipping the straps of her dress down her shoulders until she could push the top of her dress down to her waist, his smile returning to his face instantly.

“After we.. what?” She teased, his eyes unmoving from her chest in awe.

“Oh god, how I’ve missed you guys.” He said to her breasts. “You guys? You’ve personified my tits already? Do you really think you know them like that?” She asked, leaning up with a smile as her sat up with her, attaching his lips to her nipple and sucking immediately, “Oh, fuck, Eddie.”

“If I ‘don’t know them like that’, how come they look so happy to see me?” He asked, his face resting in between them as his hands pressed them to his cheeks with a sigh. Y/n threw her head back and laughed on his lap, her pussy throbbing when he bounced her unexpectedly, watching and feeling her tits jiggle in front of him and sending a shockwave to her clit that rubbed against his screaming erection trying to escape his jeans.

“Oh, baby girl..” he growled in disbelief, letting go of her breasts and watching her on top of him. “I can’t believe I get to touch you again.” He whispered in awe before dragging his fingers up her thighs and grabbing onto the netting more fiercely, lightly scratching her skin as he did. “And these little things.. oh god.. it’s like you know me. I wanna, ugh—“ He said roughly, unable to finish his thought because he simply couldn’t resist mouthing and lightly gnawing the soft, tender flesh around her nipple.

“What do you wanna do with them, Eddie? Tell me—I wore them for you, tell me what to do with them.” She whined wantonously.

“ ‘wanna rip ‘em off you, baby..” he said lowly, his fingers curling up around the netting on the backs of her thighs, the tension making the threads dig into her skin deliciously as she whispered in anticipation, “Do it—Do it, Eddie, rip them off me, anything you want.” She mumbled against him excitedly, almost drunkenly.

Eddie pulled away to look in her eyes, hoping she wasn’t joking or exaggerating. “Yeah? You want me to?” He asked in disbelief. She nodded, a pathetic ‘mhm’ slipped from her lips as his hands slipped up to her breasts again, lightly grazing his fingertips over her skin to make her whimper.

“You wanna turn around for me, sweet girl?” He whispered into her ear, his hot breath rolling over her and making her weak as she nodded. Y/n released her grip on him and turned with the assistance of his hands, swiveling her hips, her palms meeting the blanketed floor of the van eagerly.

Eddie kept his tongue tucked between his teeth through a satisfied smirk, undoing his belt and unzipping his pants to give himself some relief, “Have you been treating this sweet pussy right since you’ve been gone?” He asked, bending over her back and hiking up her skirt around her bum, running a loving hand down the swell of it as he spoke, his other hand coming down to wriggle underneath hers, encouraging her fingers between his.

Y/n looked back at him with a look so desperate it was almost a pout and shook her head. “Aw, honey, no one else to fill you up the way you need?” He asked, dripping with mockery.

“I didn’t want anything else, Eddie.” She whispered, reaching back to cover his hand with hers. Eddie keened at her words, his dick jumping at the thought of her only being satiated by him, no other able to do what he was capable of.

“Oh, you did it. You really did it.” He said through clenched teeth, gripping the back of her tights as she arched her back, her ass pushing back onto him as he said so. “What are you gonna do about it? You gonna give me what I need?” She asked seductively, rubbing her back side against his groin, satisfied when she felt his solid member through the denim.

Eddie pulled the netting that covered her apart, much more than he meant to, really. He meant to tear the crotch out, enough to fuck her in her pretty outfit, but instead he ripped them clean in half, the mesh falling around her on the floor. Eddie realized then that she hadn’t worn any panties, the sight of her on her hands and knees and almost bare for him sent his dick pulsing.

Eddie hurriedly shoved his pants down his thighs, his cock slapping his stomach and brushing her ass on the process. Y/n bit her lip in anticipation, hearing his sounds as he moved around behind her.

“C-Can I get you naked, baby? I’m sorry, it’s just now that I got you like this, I just—I wanna see you. I wanna see all—“

She interrupted him by sitting back on her heels and unzipping the back of the dress to shove it down with the waistband of her now useless tights and returning to her previous position with her back arched and her hair loose down her back.

“C’mon, Eddie, show me what else you been thinking about.” She said, nudging his hard cock with her bare ass once more before he grabbed her hips and snaked a hand to her clit, playing with her bud gently before pressing a finger inside of her, a sigh of relief leaving her lips.

“Oh, yeah, that’s it.” He smiled at her dropped head. “You feel—ugh, I missed, I missed the way you feel.” She preened, his rhythm as he played her pussy absolutely impeccable.

“Is that your way of saying you missed me?” He asked next to her ear, bringing his other hand to cup her breast and play with it slowly. Y/n didn’t answer, only turned her head to slot her lips over his and lick his top lip, collecting his sweet taste on her tongue and bringing it back to savor before kissing his lips again.

Eddie breathed a hum against her, his pelvis grinding against her as she pressed back against him, their movements getting more intense the more they fell into rhythm with one another. “C-Condom?” She asked, reaching back to grab his hip.

Eddie reached over to the corner of the van, under a couple pillows to pull out a pack of condoms, the top of the box unopened. Y/n heart melted at the sight and sound of him opening the new box that he definitely purchased for them for tonight.

“20 pack, huh? That’s mighty ambitious for one night, don’t you think?” She asked with a smirk in her voice, sitting down on her side as she watched him unwrap the package and roll it onto his length. “Well, sweetheart, that’s because I plan on using most of these in future, you know?” He asked, his hand grazing up the side of her leg and tapping her hip as a signal to flip back over.

Y/n bit her worried lip, half wondering if he meant for them to be used on other encounters or if he put 20 condoms worth of stock into their connection. Instead of thinking about it too much, she focused on the way the heat between them felt when he leaned over her again to fondle her chest with both hands and rut against her backside a little bit longer, his hot breath teasing her ear as he licked and nibbled her earlobe, his fingers antagonizing both nipples at the same time and leaving her pussy dripping with little attention.

“Eddie..” she sighed, tilting her head to allow him further access. He gazed at the side of her face, eyes closed and mouth agape in hot pleasure. Eddie left a damp peck on her neck, “You gonna let me have your phone number after this? So maybe I can use more of these bad boys?” He chuckled dryly into her skin, referring to the condoms she worried about so shortly before, as if he could read her mind.

Y/n cracked a smile, her eyes opening just a touch before replying, “Fuck me first and then I’ll decide.”

Eddie grinned, gathering her hair in a ponytail and leaning back up. Y/n thought nothing of the tension she felt at the back of her head until she felt him wrap it around his hand, pulling a small gasp from her as he smeared her arousal around her weeping slit to enter her.

Y/n cried out as he pushed in, using her hair to pull her body back onto his cock, the air stolen from him as soon as he was buried inside of her. “Oh my god, Angel, I missed you, I missed you so much.” Eddie preened as he began to thrust lazily. He loosened his grip on her hair, keeping a light grasp on the end of the pony tail he gathered and playing with the ends absentmindedly.

“Eddie, you feel so good, please go faster—I’ve needed you so bad.” She urged, bouncing her ass off of his pelvis as he froze, watching her jiggle as she fucked herself on him.

“Oh, shit, baby,” he sighed, adjusting his grip onto her hips, the metal of his rings and his fingertips digging into the supple skin. “You have no idea how good it feels to hear you say that.” He laughed as his thrusts picked up to double speed, his smugness showing out as she moaned carelessly with her mouth wide open, already louder than she was last week.

“Oh, I think I do.” She managed before his fingers set about circling her clit again. “Yeah? You been thinking about me? You been trying to do what I do for you?” He asked down by her ear again, his nose pressed into the side of her head.

She nodded miserably, her eyes closed as her throat gave a weak ‘uh-huh’ in response as he pressed deeper on her clit. “You been saying my name? When you touch yourself thinking about me?” He teased. She nodded again to his surprise. “You think about me like I think about you?” He asked quieter, as if he asked for a sidebar during sex.

Y/n’s eyes fluttered open, turning her head to look at him again and leaning her forehead onto his before nodding. Eddie’s hungry eyes turned soft and warm, “Yeah?” He asked, his thrusts picking back up. “Tell me, sweetheart. I wanna hear about it, please?” He asked sweetly.

Y/n scrunched her eyes shut as he sat up again, using her hips to control their pace, keeping her from rocking back into him and satiating herself without indulging him first. “Uh.. I thought about—I thought about you when I watched Children of the Corn.” She struggled, Eddie’s movements stopping as he howled with laughter.

“I’m so—I’m sorry, y-you thought of me during a movie? That’s so cute, Princess. And a Stephen King horror? I’m impressed. What did you think about?” He asked, resuming his thrusts into her and leaning down to kiss her shoulder.

“I was thinking about if you’d seen it, if you’d liked it, i-if you’d watch it with me if I had your number to call you—“

“Of course I would, baby, you wouldn’t even need a phone—“ He sped up sloppily, pushing them both to the limit very quickly and unexpectedly, the wet slaps between them building with the pleasure in her stomach until he abruptly slowed down, his breath quickened.

“You just gotta walk outside and holler my name, I’ll be there in five seconds.” He panted out as he caught his breath. Y/n smiled, her eyes too heavy to open for the moment. “What else, baby? I wanna hear it all..” He spoke in a gravelly whisper, squeezing her hips in his hands again and starting another fair pace so she could talk.

“I, I—fuck. I had a dream about you.” She said, his strokes getting faster the more he liked what she said.

“Tell me.” He muttered.

“Uh, y-you were in my bed. You were in my bed and we were—oh god, Eddie, please make me cum.” She sighed desperately, tears collecting in her eyes as her climax approached and faded again as he stopped his movements against her.

“You gotta tell me, baby, what were we doing, huh? Were we goin’ at it? Were we sleeping? What is it, baby, tell me.” He urged, his hand slipping back down to her clit, his other reaching for her nipple to tweak and bother until she answered properly.

“I was—you were laying under me, on my pillow, and you were, ugh, you were so, fuck—“

His strokes to her pussy were enough to melt her brain, Eddie catching onto her powerlessness and slowing his movements, “Sorry, baby, I got excited.” He muttered against her hair in a kiss.

Y/n took a breath and continued, “You were so cute, just laughing and being.. you, and I just kept kissing you. Over and over and everywhere, and when I woke up I—“ she stopped, remembering what happened after the fact she realized she was by herself in her bed, yet again, and feeling alone and empty as ever.

“What?” He asked, his circles becoming more frivolous on her front, her orgasm creeping up on her steadily. “Uh, I, uh, don’t remember.” She muttered, rocking back against his dick. “C’mon baby, tell me.” He urged quietly, his arm wrapping underneath her and pressed her back to his chest as he did.

She shook her head, “Please, Eddie, I can’t take it much longer, please. Please, please, make me cum. I’ve wanted you so bad.” She whined, his pace picking up and posture suddenly straight.

“Don’t worry, I won’t make you wait anymore, baby, I’m gonna take good care of you, okay? Sweet girl with such a sweet— little—cunt.” He punctuated each word with a thrust, his smile returning when her sounds slipped from her open mouth.

“I wanna kiss you when I cum, Eddie.” She mumbled to him over her shoulder, her head weak from the pleasure coursing through her veins. The words from her mouth almost made him lose it himself, though the low groan he released seemed to curb the impulse.

Eddie stopped and pulled out of her, holding her hips steady as he turned her around to face him, her body feeling weak as she panted against him, leaning into his chest for a moment before they began again.

“C’mere, sweet girl. You wanna lay down for me?” He asked, nodding to the pillows below. She took a deep breath and nodded, her flushed skin making Eddie smile. She settled below him on the pillows, her eyes unreadable.

“Can I have this here?” He asked quietly as he hitched her leg over his shoulder and took her hand in his, laying it against the pillow. Y/n nodded, a sweet and relaxed smile stretching across her face, assuring him once more and giving him a smile of his own.

“Can I have this here?” She echoed, gently pulling his dick near her slit. Eddie chuckled heartily and nodded, “Yeah, baby, you have whatever you wa—uhhh—ohhh shit.” He groaned as she wrapped her other leg around his ass and pushed him inside of her until he was buried in her once again.

“I want you to fuck me, Eddie, and don’t stop, okay? Please, please, please,” she begged as he got rough with his movements, unafraid of slamming his hips into her the more she cried out for him.

“Just—like—that—oh—my—gooo—odd..” he fucked the words out of her lips with every thrust, his hand flying back down to her clit when her head fell back, her hair down in front of her shoulders, framing her pretty face and tits for him. He wanted to leave wet kisses all the way up the path of her torso, but decided he would the next time he got to fuck her.

“Yeah, baby, lemme hear it.” He whispered, rubbing her clit with more pressure on her mound as her walls began to flutter and construct around him, giving him the signal to start thrusting faster again as she came. “Eddie, fuck—kiss me, kiss me!” Her eyes opened, locking on his immediately as he dove down to encompass her lips with his own as he fucked his own orgasm into her quivering cunt, their lips wet and gasping for each other.

They stayed kissing long after their orgasms were over, just waiting for the other to pull back and end it, though neither of them did. They breathed through their noses against each other, their hands wandering one another’s hair and skin.

Eddie pulled the sheet over their bodies, the linen creating a tent above them as he wrapped his arms around her body and laid on top of her, her legs wrapping around his middle like a puzzle piece. They kissed once, twice, three more times, before parting and finding each other’s necks, burying themselves to hide away.

“You’re like a dream, you know that?” Eddie breathed, stroking her lower back with his fingers as his lips moved against her collarbone as he spoke. Their chests were pressed flat against one another, the hammering heartbeats taking time to sync. Y/n shook her head, her nose grazing the skin covering his jugular. “I’m far from it, Eddie, but you sure make me feel like I’m in one.” She smiled against him.

Eddie pulled back to kiss her forehead, her nose, and then her lips again, “Y’know you could spend more time here in dreamland if you gave me your phone number.” He sighed, his nose still resting against hers.

Y/n closed her eyes and drew her brows together like a curtain, the words and thoughts fleeing from her mind as soon as she wanted to use them. “What? What is it?” He asked, backing up to look at her better, removing the sheet from their heads.

“It’s not—I wasn’t, I don’t give my number to guys I meet at the bar,” she stumbled out, sitting up and holding the sheet over her chest, the exposure too vulnerable now. Eddie’s eyebrows raised, leaning back to listen and sit next to her.

“But I also don’t come back for seconds, like ever. Truly, the men in the bar scene of Indiana aren’t anything special, but.. but you are.” She shrugged. “I do wanna give you my number, Eddie, I just—”

BANG BANG BANG

“Yo, love birds, we gotta get going!” Gareth’s voice rang from the outside of the van, several pairs of hands battering against the two doors at the opposite end of the cab. Y/n and Eddie jumped, the boy diving to the mound of their clothes and tossing them to her lap as they hurriedly searched the pile and tugged on their clothes.

Y/n zipped up her dress as Eddie buttoned his jeans, tossing him his shirt as she grabbed her shoes to pull on and lace the quickest she could as they listened to the echoing laughter from outside.

She slung her jacket around her shoulders, fixing her hair and collar as Eddie pulled his shoes on but not bothering to lace them. They looked at each other in silence before Eddie reached out to smooth her hair and wipe the runny mascara from beneath her eyes. “Perfect.” He mumbled, his forlorn look breaking her heart as he opened the doors.

“About time! You know time doesn’t stop when you’re in there, right?” Mollie teased with a cigarette between her fingers. Y/n rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, turning to Eddie.

“You gotta pen?” She asked him, a smile reaching her eyes as his lit up. “Does anybody have a pen?!” He turned and hollered to their friends occupying the alley.

Jeff immediately held up a pen as the others searched their jacket and pants pockets, the girls looking in their wallets and purses. Eddie caught the pen with ease, holding out his hand patiently, his eyes never leaving hers.

She carefully wrote out the numbers, making sure to write clearly and roundly. “Calling after.. 8.. works the best. But… if you call before then.. I think I could manage.” She bit her lip as she placed the pen in his hand, melting at the smile he sent her; as if nothing else on the planet mattered more.

Eddie leaned down and gave her one last strong and lingering kiss, his hands wrapping around her waist and squeezing as her arms found his neck.

The headlights of Stella’s car flashed them twice, ceasing their kiss, “C’mon, Y/n/n, we can’t keep your boy waiting!” Mollie yelled over the engine noise, her words sending an atomic bomb to Eddie’s heart.

His heart stopped in that moment, looking from the car to the girl in his arms. “Your boy?” He asked, releasing her and stepping back, the look in his eyes now replaced by one of unfamiliarity, as if he were looking at a stranger. Y/n shook her head, panicked, “Eddie, no, that’s not it—“

“I should’ve known—you know, you could’ve just fucked me the one time and let me have that to hold onto, but no, you had to come back here, and make me feel like somebody, and make me think we’re gonna be something, give me, what, a fake number to call when you have a boy at home? I dunno, man, I thought we had a connection or something—guess that’s just me being naive or whatever. Anyway, I gotta go, see ya, Y/n.” He said, turning on his heel and burying his hands in his pockets as he stalked off to the front of the building.

Y/n stood with her mouth open, her stomach feeling like she just got punched. Instead of chasing after him, she scoffed and paced to the car, opening the door roughly and closing it, taking care not to slam it.

“What was that??” Kathy asked, worried. “Before I could tell him about Danny, Mollie mentioned my boy.” Y/n clenched her jaw and turned to Mollie, whose eyes went wide with shock, sputtering out apologies. “Y/n, I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking, I-I can go talk to him! I can explain—“

“No, Molls, it’s okay. He wasn’t willing to hear me out, he can fuck off. It doesn’t matter.” She said, her walls raising with her arms across her chest and a stone look set on her face.

The car was silent, the girls looking amongst one another for words to give in order to fix the situation for their hurt friend. Instead, they drove home, Dio on the radio, their friend wordlessly leaving the car and entering her home without a glance back.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

A couple days later, Robin stood at the Family Video counter with Steve, the store phone between them as they listened intently to Y/n’s voice recount the events of Friday night over the receiver.

Steve made reactive facial expressions and mouthed questions like ‘Danny who?’ Or ‘Eddie? Our Eddie?’ while Robin took care to keep her hand over the mouthpiece to avoid blowing Steve’s eavesdropping operation, besides, what kind of friend would she be if she didn’t let him in on the family drama, especially since it involves Eddie.

“—He didn’t even give me the chance to tell him my boy isn’t a man! Can you believe that? I mean, if I had a man why would I be trying to explain myself?” She vented exasperatedly over the phone. Steve looked up through the windows at the parking lot noticing the familiar black van parking and elbowing Robin to notice.

Robin gasped as her eyes narrowed on Eddie’s approaching figure, holding a stack of movies to return. Robin set her jaw determinedly, “Y/n, I’m gonna have to call you back—yeah, a customer's coming in and I have half a mind to rip him a new one.” She hung the phone up as the bell rang, her eyes trained on Eddie with a cold fierceness he’d never seen before.

“You sure have a lot of guts coming in here after what you did.”

“Hey, Robin.. you okay?” He asked tentatively.

“I’ll be fine, I just take it pretty personally when it comes to my family.” She shrugged, accepting the pile of returns he sat in front of her and tossing them in the return pile. “Uh, Robs, you gotta check those in.” Steve said, pointing at the pile that would soon get a late fee if not checked in properly.

“I’ll decide later if I wanna check them in or not.” Robin snapped, her eyes unwavering from Eddie’s as he stood confused, looking at Steve for help. Steve raised his hands in surrender, “Hey you fucked her cousin, not mine!”

Eddies eyes widened, looking back at Robin in shock. “W-w-wait, Y/n is your cousin??” Eddie shook his head in disbelief as Robin shook her head, “No, actually she’s not. Her son is though.” She nodded matter of factly as the information set in for Eddie.

“Her, what??” He asked.

“You remember my cousin Adam? His picture’s, like, everywhere in my mom’s house?” She asked, leaning forward.

Eddie nodded, remembering the circumstances of Adam’s death, yet still confused as to why this has anything to do with Y/n.

“Adam and Y/n were together, like forever. As long as I knew Adam, I knew Y/n—I’m talking practically married, Ed,” She implored, her eyes filling with emotion. “When Adam died, Y/n was pregnant with my nephew, Danny.” She said quieter as Eddie’s eyes shifted to the counter in front of him, his brows drawn together in thought.

He clenched his jaw in disappointment with himself, flipping his hand over and looking at the space the phone number occupied before he furiously scrubbed it in the shower through angry tears that night.

“She started going out a year after Danny was born, but hasn’t been interested in anyone since Adam.. til your sorry ass showed up.” She scowled, crossing her arms over her chest again as he looked up at her sorrily.

“I-I didn’t know, I-I just, when I heard she had a boy to get home to I—“

“—Assumed the worst and left to save face before you started crying like a little bitch? Yeah, I know, she told me everything already. You really hurt her, you know? Do you have any idea how much it took for her to go see you again?” She shook her head at him, noting the worry in his eyes as he took a lip between his teeth and tapped his rings on the glass anxiously.

“C-Can I have her phone number?” He asked.

Robin thought for a moment, grabbing a pen and a post it note, “I’ll do you one better,” she scribbled down an address and handed it to him. “She’s off work today, no plans. Go talk to her.” Robin said simply, grabbing the stack from the bin to check them in properly.

“W-what? Just show up at her house? That’s crazy, Robin.” He held the note and shook his head incredulously.

“Give me the note.” She held her hand out, writing a short note on the back ‘I sent his sorry ass! -Robin’ and handing it back to him. “Here, now she’ll know you aren’t a creep. Now go apologize to her and make her smile again!” She urged, shoving him away from the counter as Steve escorted him the rest of the way to the door.

“You got this, Munson, apologizing for being an idiot is half of your part in the relationship.” Steve closed the door behind him and smiled to himself as he watched the boy jog to his van and peel out of the parking lot.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Y/n sat outside on the lawn next to the driveway, clad in shorts and a tank top, a rainbow of chalk dust covering most of her skin as she watched Danny scribble over a flower garden she drew for him.

“Look it, mama, I color your flowers!” He gestured to the ground like Vanna White showing a new car on Wheel of Fortune. Y/n made a show of being surprised at the new colors covering her artwork,

“Oh my goodness, they’re so lovely! How about the sunshine? Can you draw one for the flowers?” She asked, handing him a yellow chalk. He took it with a smile and a tongue between his lips as he did his best to draw a circle for a sun.

As she admired the ever changing silhouette of her son’s face, she heard the squeak of breaks coming from the curb behind them, in front of the house. She turned, her jaw dropping at the sight of the black van she was well acquainted with parking in front.

“Danny, come here, I have to go in the house real quick.” She said hastily scooping the boy up and holding his head to her chest as she took quick steps to the sidewalk, “Mama, you’re so fast!” He giggled as she picked up her pace when she heard her name come from Eddie’s mouth.

“Please, can we talk?” He asked louder as she ran inside the house. Eddie’s heart pounded at the sight of her with her child, the boy’s curls and converse clad feet burned in his mind’s eye for whatever reason.

He took a steadying breath and shut the door, walking across the grass and up the porch steps to knock on the door, only half expecting for her to answer.

After a moment he debated walking back to the van and hoping she’d show up at the bar some other Friday, when the knob turned and the door opened enough for her to stick her upper half out, the sounds of cartoons playing from inside.

“Can I help you??” She asked, ferocity burning in her eyes. “B-Before you get angrier, I have a note—from Robin,” He said carefully, as if she were an animal that had him cornered. Eddie took the note from his pocket, holding it out to her and avoiding her eyes as she snatched it up.

Y/n sighed as she read Robin’s familiar writing, knowing she wouldn’t send Eddie to her house for a weak reason. “Okay, let’s hear it.” She shrugged, opening the door slightly wider.

“Okay, well, uh, I’m not sure if Robin’s told you much about my status here in good ‘ole Hawkins, but, uh, no one, and I mean no one, is a fan of me. I’ve been labelled the town freak since I moved here, I don’t have many friends, I repeated senior year three times, I receive part of my income from selling weed, I live in a trailer with my uncle because we’re so broke it’s sad, and I spend most of my time organizing games for a group of high school nerds to play for a few hours on a Thursday night. I am not a prize, I am not someone that gets female attention easily, and then suddenly, there’s you. Singing to my music, smiling at me, laughing at my jokes, making me laugh—listening to me, oh my god, you’re great at that. And you wanted me. I was fully prepared for you to laugh in my face when I asked if I could buy you a drink, let alone get to have the time we had together—twice! Ugh. I just—when I heard ‘your boy’ I assumed—“

“I know you did—“ She said, her breath catching.

“—I was scared.” He whispered, shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head. “It’s not an excuse, but I just felt so.. disposable.. when I heard that. W-When I said I thought we had a connection I meant it, truly. And I still do. If you’ll accept my apology, cause I’m so deeply sorry that I didn’t listen to you, that I jumped to conclusions, and accused you of being anything less than honorable. You’re amazing, really. Even more so now than I thought you were before..”

Y/n breathed deeply, her eyes shining with tears, as she listened to him. “So what now?” She asked.

“Now, I wanna show you how sorry my sorry ass is and make it up to you. Take you on a proper date, hear about the rest of your life.” He gestured to the house, his eyes glancing behind her to the head of curls he caught outside.

Her son’s wide brown eyes stared into him with a bewilderment that matched that of Curious George. “Especially this part.” He smiled, looking from her back to the boy. Danny walked up to his mother’s leg, holding it and peeking out timidly, though not scared.

Y/n placed a loving hand on top of Danny’s head, unsure of what to do. She didn’t want to be the mom that introduced her kid to everyone, though she knew it wouldn’t hurt if they kept it strictly friendly in front of Danny.

Eddie looked hesitant, like he wanted to do something but didn’t know if he had permission, looking from her back to the boy again, comparing their faces and trying to see what parts of her were in him.

“Uh, Danny, this is my friend Eddie, can you say hello?” She asked, bending down to talk to him, Eddie following suit without a thought.

“Hi, Yeti.” Danny said with a quiet smile and looking down at his shoes, anywhere but Eddie’s face. Eddie smiled anyway, recognizing that tendency in himself immediately. “Hey, Danny, it’s nice to meet you!” Eddie greeted the shy child.

Danny avoided his eyes, “Sorry, he can be a little shy.” Y/n explained as her son hugged her thigh tighter.

“Oh, no worries, I was too. I won’t bother ‘em,” he assured, standing from the ground. “Robin mentioned hanging out with her nephew a couple times now that I think about it.”

Danny’s eyebrows shot up, “Robby?” He asked.

“Oh, yeah, I’m friends with Robby, she’s the coolest!” Eddie nodded, looking at Y/n for assurance he was on the same page as her son, she nodded, poorly repressing a smile. “Do you play dragons with Robby, too?” The little boy asked with wonder in his eyes.

Eddie raised his eyebrows this time, “Oh, do I? I play dragons all the time! You play dragons?” Eddie asked, his heart strings tugging as the boy nodded eagerly, loosening his grip and looking up at his mother.

“Can Yeti come in and play?” Danny asked, looking from his mom to his new friend in the doorway. Eddie froze, suddenly feeling as if he overstepped, worried he made it weirder as soon as things started to look up for them.

“Uh, baby, I dunno if he has time today, but, uh—” she looked up at Eddie with the same wide, nervous eyes that he wore to look at her with. “—Maybe we could ask our new friend if he wants to come in for dinner tonight..?” She shrugged as she stood up to her full height.

The silence between them was thick, every other noise around them buzzing more than they should; the cicadas, the tv, the distant traffic noise— it was all suffocating.

“I would love to come over and have dinner.. and play dragons.” He said with an unstoppable smile looking between the two prettiest people he’d ever seen. Y/n bit her lip and guided her son out of the way to open the door further, stepping aside to let Eddie in.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Danny quickly led Eddie on a tour of the house, starting with his room. He introduced ‘Yeti’ to his toys, pointing out all of his hung up artwork scattered about the walls, images of dragons, unicorns, fairies, and knights on grand adventures. Eddie couldn’t help but wonder how much of the artwork belonged to Y/n, and where his little brain heard about such creatures and travels.

“This is the bathroom, but make sure you put the seat down and wash your hands or else mama gets frust-ated.” Danny said seriously. Eddie snickered at the information, nodding at the three year old, “Got it, buddy.”

Danny would stop at every shelf to explain the significance of the people in the frame or what the artwork in the movie posters depicted, including names of knick knacks and if they were allowed to play with them or not.

“We can’t have these, though, they’re very ‘portant.” He’d said while holding a ceramic frog that he’d had Eddie hand him, Eddie holding a similarly styled duck with alarm, “We’re not supposed to have these??” He collected the frog from Danny’s outstretched arms, his head shaking ‘no’ as Eddie returned the small figures to their places and ushering the child away quickly.

Y/n got a kick out of watching Danny run Eddie around, but she was even more thrilled when Eddie kept up, showing interest in each thing Danny thought to show him and asking questions even if they went unanswered by the scatterbrained toddler.

“Welcome to the family room!” He announced, bringing the tour back to the front of the house.

Eddie scanned the room, looking into the kitchen at the angel cutting food at the counter, her eyes flashing up to his with a small smile as he felt a tug on his hand to look at the pictures on the mantle.

“That’s my Gigi! And Robby, and mama, and my daddy!” Danny pointed to the smiles in the dusty gold frame, scrubbing his small index finger over the glass to see everyone clearly.

“Oh yeah? You sure look like your dad, don’t you?” Eddie asked. Danny nodded, “Do you look like your dad?” Danny asked. Eddie puffed his cheeks out, thinking about the old man’s face the last time he saw him, before he drove away from the Forest Hills trailer park eleven years ago.

“Kind of, but my uncle tells me I look a lot like my mom.” He mentioned, unaware Y/n was busy in her head figuring out what parts of Eddie belonged to his mother, and then wondered where she was.

Danny nodded, “Where is your mom?”

Eddie balked, his head snapping up at the silence of Y/n’s knife against the cutting board. She stood behind the counter with a similar expression to Eddie, the two silently drowning in embarrassment.

“Uh, I’m not sure! I never really had one, but that’s okay! Sometimes people don’t have moms, you know? Keeps things interesting! I have an Uncle Wayne instead of a mom and dad.” He shrugged. Y/n released a breath she was holding, the tension melting from her shoulders as her heart warmed at his explanation.

“Ohhh, right! Like I don’t have a dad, I just have a mom instead.” He replied eagerly. Y/n’s jaw dropped at her son’s words and rushed around the counter, her chest tight and head empty of words to say to either of the boys in her living room.

“Danny, that is an.. astute observation..but you do have a daddy, he just couldn’t be here, that’s all.” She managed to keep her voice steady and casual as she looked at her confused little boy. “Ohh, right, that’s what Gigi told me.”

“I’m sorry—” Eddie shook his head in a whisper as she stood and looked at him with wide eyes. “No, no, I’m sorry—he tends to ask the questions no one else wants to.” She shrugged with a tense smile, leaning over to turn on the television, hoping Sesame Street would be on by now.

“Hey—those are the best kinds of people, very honorable and caring, too.” He nodded assuringly, putting her nerves to rest in the easy way he could. Y/n sighed and nodded back to him, walking back to the kitchen counter and pulling out a stool for him to sit on next to her as she cut vegetables.

Eddie’s cheeks warmed as he left the family room to sit on the seat reserved for him. “Take off your jacket, stay a while.” She nudged him with her elbow as she placed another zucchini on the board. Her shoulders tensed again, her demeanor much more focused and rigid than before. Eddie understood more now why she needed to get out once a month—though Eddie planned on changing that if he could help it.

Before he could lay it in his lap, Y/n held out a hand for his jacket. He handed it to her, watching her quick steps to the coat rack by the door, hanging it on a branch of the tree the stand imitated.

Eddie sent her a smile on her way back, his eyes glittering in the dimming daylight as he rested his chin on a content hand. “What?” She scoffed through a blushing smile, setting up her skillet with zucchini, oil, and seasonings.

Eddie shrugged, “I just didn’t think I’d get this far when I decided I needed to know you.” He said and then sighed.

Y/n looked at him for a moment then away with a shake of her head. “You scare me.” She said like a woman unafraid and dusted her hands of the excess spices.

Eddie looked almost offended, though he hoped she was joking. “Not you, too.” He said hopelessly. Y/n crinkled her brows at him as she turned to put the pan in the oven. “I, mean, like, I can’t… figure you out.” She said as she set the timer.

“What’s there to figure out? I say everything I think.” He asked with a shrug.

“Exactly, no one does that. What’s your game here, Eddie, for real, this time.” She asked with suspicion narrowing her eyes.

Eddie shook his head and sputtered for a moment. “I’m just doing what you’re doing, ba—Y/n, shi—crap! Ugh! I’m sorry.” He muttered with a hand clamped over his mouth. Y/n giggled and shook her head at him for the thousandth time, leaning over the same warm stove that made her think of him a week ago this day.

“All I’m trying to say, is that I like you, I like who you are, a lot.”

“And who am I?” She asked curiously.

“You’re kind, and determined, and funny and beautiful. You shoot tequila like a champ, your music taste is top tier, you don’t like feeling vulnerable, and that’s okay, I used to not like that either, but-but I think you could be, with me. I hope you could.” He shrugged his shoulder, nervousness creeping in.

“I know you’re a hard worker because you work two jobs and you’re a single teen mother, and I respect the hell out of that, truly! And I like your kid, he’s cool as he—eck. Cool as all get out, really. That’s gotta mean you’re a good mom, having a good kid like that and all. And if it’s cool with you, I’d like to hang around here every once in a while—with my friend Danny and his pretty mom.” He smiled, speaking quieter at the end of the sentence.

Y/n’s eyes glanced to the living room, her son perched on a mound of pillows, sucked into the tv with a blanket covering him. She looked back to Eddie and stepped over to the fridge, away from the doorway Danny was visible through, and nodded at him to leave his seat.

Eddie’s eyes lit up, his quiet smile growing more eager as he bound over to her, her smile sending butterflies rushing through his body as she pulled him in for a relieving kiss. He tried so hard to keep from smiling as her hands found his hair, burying her finger at the nape of his neck while his hands grabbed at her arms and then her waist to pull her closer for the short and passionate embrace.

When she pulled back, she kissed his forehead once before walking over to stir the sizzling pan, Eddie taking his seat happily; sitting and watching her cook just like he’d imagined a week ago, this day.

Part 3

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taglist (I’m sorry if it didn’t allow me to tag you!)

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[ralibo14]

TPN Brainrots part 1:

Another TPN manga panel redraw, but this time everyone goes down with me (because it's sad).

Also part one of my 'wonderful' tpn theories and head canons. It'll be long😅. There will be manga spoilers so please, read at your own risk😊.

First character I go through is... Ray.

He is one of the most complicated characters I ever saw (all tpn characters are, tbh). I always thought that people who have photographic memory are so lucky. Ray showed me that it's both a blessing and the curse.

Like in the picture above. You can clearly see that the first 2 kid waving at his direction. It's strange to know that there was a time when the Trio were one of the young kids and not the older ones. My first head canon is that Ray tried to save more kids, not just Emma and Norman when he was younger. When the blond haired boy leaves (first panel) he looks like he is about to cry (also the Trio is around 4 or 6) but when the other kids get 'adopted' Ray keeps his head low most of the frames (I'm convinced that when the second kid left he was already working as Isabella's spy.)

Ray coloration explained:

Purple eyes are self explanatory to me. I started draw him with purple eyes as soon as I found out he is Isabella's son. Purple in the hair and freckles? Well... I'm still very, very convinced that Leslie didn't die (at least not when he left the House). I always think about his situation, like what Norman got into with Lambda. The Ratri-clan is big but they need outsiders, to be soldiers, scientists, etc. And since girls from the Houses can only become Sisters and Moms... maybe some boys can become scientists and soldiers. (I can't believe I'm writing this but think about Andrew🤢... he was 100% not Ratri yet he could become an adult). So by this logic I believe Leslie could grow up too and (because I'm a sucker for happiness) he met Isabella again at some point.

Ray turning away:

On the second frame he is not looking at the girl who is leaving, but to the opposite direction. Why? Notice something else? Yes, Norman is missing too. Gilda has her winter jumper on so I figure Norman got sick again. Ray priorities his friends safety over everything else.

Also notice how Emma and Norman slowly get into the middle of the frame while Mom/Isabella get out of it? Pretty strong metaphor. It's the perfect example of 'Blood related family ≠ real family'. And while I'm a RayEmma shipper (obviously aged up version) I would never forget about Norman. He is as important to Ray as Emma. This Trio sticks together no matter what.

(older manga colouring ⬇️)

Now onto the hearth breaking stuff:

Ray's relationship with Isabella:

This deleted scene with Ray and Ayshe lives rent free in my head. Like there are two people with similar family situations and the one who lived int the middle of nowhere with a demon parent thinks positively about their parent, while the other, who grew up in a comfortable home like space with a human parent, thinks the opposite.

"But to me, she was always a monster"– Ray.

Like ufff... This sentence hits real hard. And it's low-key true from Ray perspective. He studied and read all the books in the House, not because he was interested, but because he had to. Norman is a genius, Emma learns real fast, Ray does everything he can to always get max points on his tests. But he also secretly planning his friends excape. Collects scraps of technology to build the device which makes them able to excape, plans his own 💀 carefully, so no one else will get hurt and on a top of that he is 'spying' for Isabella. Sacrifices people he wanted to protect. I can't imagine that inside panic when he didn't get max scores to that one test. I'm sure he was happy because Norman and Emma got their regular scores, but deep down he felt like he failed.

My head canon here is that Ray always gets nightmares if he is alone or in an unsafe place. And 'thanks' to his perfect memory his nightmares build up from actual memories (like we see that in the Seven Wall Arc). Also he doesn't get sick often but when he does... it's like a memory fuelled fever dream, with hallucinations and etc.

Ray's healing journey starts after the Jailbreak Arc. As soon as Mom is not around anymore, he ever so slowly starts to let down his guard and starts to show more and more emotions. His relationship with Yuugo/Mister is like a greatest archivment in his case. The playful, sarcastic 'arguments' and the way he openly said his opinion on things in front of Yuugo and Lucas. Shows how much he changed and opened up.

Isabella on the other hand... her change of heart and feelings were a mistery almost to the very end. To be honest I hated her most of the time, until the Back to Grace Field Arc. (Older manga colouring again⬇️😅)

Two things in this page which are very important.

1: Ray's guard is up again in no time, when he sees Isabella, while her emotionless mask is cracking. This is the first time we get a little inside of how she really feels about Ray.

2: Flashback of the two most important things that connects them. The song and the way they were forced to sacrifice others to stay alive.

The lullaby is very important, because it's calming and feels very intimate (like a normal parent-child relationship should be).

You also can't convince me otherwise that Ray didn't hummed this lullaby at least once in the B06-32 shelter to help the youngest kids fall asleep.

And now... onto the last picture. Their goodbye.

Saddest part ever! Never forgiving for this decision.

Ray and Isabella were never allowed to talk even two short sentences with each other without any consequences. In the House they had to play their assigned roles. Then they didn't see each other for almost 2 years. Finally they had to save half of the team from getting unalived... And they moment they would have time the last twist happens... leaving us with a sad ending.

Epilogue and Human World Arc...does little to compensate. Although I can't get over the fact that Yuugo's, Conny's and Isabella's 'ghosts' helped Ray found Emma in the Human World.

Speaking of finding Emma. My last head canon for Ray is the following;

When they found out that Emma lost all of her memories from the Demon World. Ray couldn't help himself but whisper a "I wish this happened to me". And everyone looks at him with an understanding smile thinking he blames himself for this... But in reality he really just selfishly thought (only for seconds) that he could forget everything happened on the other side.

Okay. That's all. Sorry for the supper long post and I'm forever thankful if you read through my brainrots 🥰😘. Also let me know if I should cover more characters like this. I'll obviously do Emma and Norman but if there any other characters you want to see please let me know🥰🤩💖.

[jongbross]

hi again and sorry for more request 😭 suddenly it came to my mind. could you write a married couple, baekhyun is 7-8 years older than her (if it's okay for you- and of course legal) and she wants a baby so bad but, baek is not ready or not want because of his wife. his wife has already graduated and he worries about her. but two of them have a big fight because of misunderstanding. some sad tears and hugs please! (You can write one of them for two request) thank you so much! 💓

pairing: byun baekhyun x reader word count: 1086 genre: angst with a happy ending warnings: arguing, mentions of pregnancy, tears, baekhyun trying to be a good husband but failing (depends on your point of view though) a/n: the angst we wanted to badly!!!!! thanks for requesting <3

it was breaking his heart to see you like that. baekhyun could see your tears falling from your eyes, arms protectively wrapped around your body, hugging your stomach.

it's not that he didn't want a baby - he wanted it, so badly. just... not now.

baekhyun already had to live with that tiny little feeling of guilt, as he always thought he had stolen your youth. he was much older than you when you two started to date and, even though it was legal, he knew that part of him was wrong for wanting you.

you were young, in the glory of your 20 years; he was an adult already, turning 28 and thinking about what he wanted for the future. you had so much to live yet, people to kiss, drinks to try, places to go; he already had a good career, had already collected some heartbreaks, and knew exactly how he liked his whiskey.

it was kind of selfish of him, baekhyun always thought. how he loved you so much and wanted you to grow and live and experience things, but how he still couldn't let you go, because he needed you and craved for you like he never did with anyone else.

when you got into college, baekhyun promised himself that he would be the best husband - he would support you, but also give you enough space to live that part of your life. and he did, you know? from taking you to bed at 2am because you were still trying to finish that project, to getting up at 3am because you got drunk at a college party. he did his best, stayed beside you through it all, and was there to applaud you when you graduated, years after.

he wanted a baby with you. god only knows how many nights he went to sleep picturing both of you having a family together, living happily ever after. but gosh, he was doing fine in allowing you to live, how could he agree to having a baby when you just started the career you wanted so much?

"is it...", you tried to speak, but had to take a moment. "is it because my body will change?"

"what?"

"because, you know... i'm not a little girl anymore. my body has already changed so much from when we started dating, but if this is the problem, then..."

"y/n, please", baekhyun's soft voice stopped you. "it has nothing to do with you. believe me when i say that it's not about you."

"then it's about who? us? you don't love me anymore?"

baekhyun sighed, heart breaking just at the mere mention of those words.

"it hurts me that you could even consider that..."

"then tell me the reason!", you said, this time a bit louder, emotion getting the best of you and tears still filling your eyes. "because i've dedicated my whole life to you, and i truly want to keep doing that and making both of our dreams of becoming parents come true. so why won't you let me?"

"exactly because of that", he said, defeated. "because you already did way too much for me. you took care of me, you loved me, held me when i was sick, when i was sad... you did everything when you should be out, living your life while you're young, not here with me. and i'm so grateful for that, please don't ever get me wrong - i love you so, so much it hurts, and i wish i could give you the world in return for all you did. and i feel like i can finally give you at least half of it now, as you're finally working where you've always wanted and being happy. i can't ask you to put that aside now just because i wanna be a dad... i-i just can't."

when baekhyun finally took a deep breath, his tears also started to fall. he had told you before, about the guilt he carried all these years, and you knew it would never pass - no matter how much you tried to reassure him.

"you get so blind trying to protect me sometimes, that you forget to ask me what i want", you mumbled just loud enough for him to hear.

getting up from the couch, you walked over to where he was, sitting down on the floor in front of him. baekhyun tried his best not to look at you, as he knew he would lose everything the moment he did - all his composure, all the feelings he was still trying to hold back.

you knew your husband, so you just went as far as laying your head on his knee, eyes focused on his face even though he was probably counting how many books you two had on the shelf as a way to not burst into tears.

"i chose to live with you. i was young, yeah, but i knew what i was doing", you began. "and i've never, ever regretted that choice, not even once. because the love you have for me is exactly like the love i have for you, baek. we're what, 8 years into our relationship now? and i'll never get tired of reminding you that. i love you, i always will. i appreciate the way you try to take care of me, but even though i'm younger than you, i know what i'm doing. so if i say i can have a baby now, then it's because i truly do."

baekhyun closed his eyes for a second, and through his beautiful lashes, more tears fell.

"but what about..."

"don't worry about my job", it was your time to stop him. "i have everything figured out, and i know it's the perfect time for us to try. you were the one who taught me how to be organized and how to make plans. have some faith in me, love..."

"i do", he opened his eyes to look at yours. "i trust you with my life."

"then let's try. let's become parents, put a little baby into this world as a way to tell everyone how much we love each other."

like a baby himself, baekhyun pouted and, suddenly, he crumbled in front of you, crying and sobbing. you quickly got up, sitting on his lap and pulling him in for a hug.

"i love you", baekhyun whispered to you.

"i love you so much", you whispered back. "there's no one in this world i would rather make my dreams come true with."

[mooseonahunt]

Introducing (a few of) My OCs

Beneath the cut: a version of them without their names, a version with their identities, relationship diagrams, and a little bit about their story

If you have trouble reading anything, just let me know and I’ll clarify!

First things first, something that you might have noticed are the symbols beneath a few of their names. The characters who have those symbols (Okiltran/Oki, Naidra, Arpos) aren’t human, so that writing is their names in their language (I’m still tweaking their alphabet, but I have it down for the most part.) Another thing, this story (as of today: 06 Sep 2024) takes place around the 1820s in northwestern Arizona (which was Mexican territory at the time).

Okiltran is a noble from his planet who went into human studies (anthropology) instead of following his parents’ career paths. He became pretty renowned in his field, so he was able to apply for an expedition to study humanity on Earth, but when he got here, he was separated from his team. Although strictly forbidden, he entered human society and mingled with people nearby– the first one being Bernardo.

Bernardo, a horse farrier working at a ranch, discovered early on that Oki wasn’t human. Instead of fearing him, however, he struck a deal with him. If Oki agreed to marry him, Okiltran could have a place to stay among humans for further research and Bernardo would finally get the local townsfolk to quit pestering him about settling down. Oki agreed, but over time they gradually caught feelings for each other until their love wasn’t fake anymore.

Justice is a mutual friend (although Bernardo is reluctant to admit it). He’s a USAmerican trader/merchant who set up shop in the town this story takes place in. He’s friendly with all the townsfolk, but he likes to think he’s much closer to Bernardo and Oki than anyone else until Naidra and Arpos enter the picture.

Naidra is Oki’s childhood friend. He was actually hired as a body double for Okiltran in case any assassination attempts were made on the young lord’s life when they were children (high class culture ruthless and willing to sacrifice another child to protect their own). After Oki no longer needed a body double, Naidra was reassigned to mercenary work and they didn’t see each other again until years later on Earth. As adults, the love and camaraderie they had as children was reignited, and they still consider themselves to be best friends. Having been raised as cannon fodder, Naidra is more than willing to kill and be killed for his loved ones since he sees that as his life’s purpose anyway.

Arpos is a scholar and a noble much like Okiltran, but she’s much more in tune with rules and regulations. She was also Oki’s betrothed until he went to Earth and failed to keep contact. It was an arranged marriage with no feelings from either side, so she was more peeved about Oki breaking the law to be with humans than she was about breaking the engagement without notice. Her dedication to customs and laws made her very antagonistic, but while on Earth, she gradually mellowed out and learned that some rules shouldn’t be taken so seriously.

That’s all for now so :) I’ll answer any questions you might have. Thank you for your interest if you’ve made it all the way down here <3 I appreciate it <3

[burning-academia-if]

Bonus Short Story: Zoe

Word Count: 4.6k

Summary: Snapshots from the life of a child who used curiosity to escape loneliness.

CW: brief mentions of transphobia

A/N: Thanks again for one hundred reviews and enjoy Zoe's backstory! It's the lightest of all of them, and also has some fun lore bits tossed in lol

Zoe hadn’t always been their name, and sometimes they wondered if they’d gotten it right. Their old name isn’t relevant to the story, except in the very beginning. When, at a very young age with a vocabulary so limited that they had to mime with their tiny hands the concepts they were trying to tell adults about, the sound of it had felt wrong. They didn’t have the words for why either.

In books and shows and movies, sometimes characters took on fake names for fake identities and Zoe started doing the same. They ran through names, some so utterly ridiculous it brought more joy then concern to any adult listening. Others made eyebrows draw together and wordless frowns burn their throat.

It was why, when they uttered the name ‘Zoe’ and it only got cursory shrugs they lunged for it. Gripped it with their hands. This time, maybe, people would take them seriously. This time, maybe, people wouldn’t laugh at the name they chose themself. This time, maybe, people would respect the one thing that belonged to them. But that wouldn't be until the end of youth. When it already felt far too late.

//

Zoe's mom and dad hadn't ever cared, at least. The two of them would call Zoe whatever name they wanted as seriously as they would have the name they'd originally given. There had never been any expectations for them to grow out of it, and their mom was the one who went to the teachers and told each one Zoe was allowed to write down whatever name they wanted. No teacher would tell them otherwise.

It was easy to grow, in the house they did. It was harder to grow anywhere outside of it. School was full of watching eyes that questioned everything Zoe did. They had failed every social interaction they'd ever been in and elementary school was a haphazard of pitfalls that lead straight to being the 'weird kid.'

Their little brother was different. From the moment he was born, everyone found him charming. Brighter, cuter, easier. He didn't question everything and go through names like packs of candies. Others might have been irritated, but Zoe was five years older and from the moment they'd set eyes on him decided it was their job to protect him. They didn't want him to know what it was to escape to a library to hide the way they were crying over being left out during recess again.

At home, Zoe would sit in the grass in the small garden their mom had, watching bugs flutter about. She wouldn't say a word, hair wrapped up in a bandanna, braids falling down her back and dark skin gleaming in the spring sun. Her hands were nimble as she turned the earth, covering seeds with soil.

It'd take minutes, it'd take hours, for them to finally talk, "I don't want to go to school anymore, ma."

"And why's that sweet pea?"

There was a butterfly, small and white, fluttering against the wooden fence. Lost and too early to the season. Their own body felt too small for them, ribs squeezing all their organs. Maybe it felt the same. Escaped from it's cocoon early to search for a way to be free in a different kind of form. To stretch its wings and go as far as it could before being devoured.

They were eleven now, at the end of elementary school. They couldn't imagine middle school, weren't ready for the new challenges it would come with when they hadn't even managed to overcome a single one they'd encountered in school so far. Their toes curled into the grass, rolling around words on their tongue.

"It's like...it's like everyone was born with a script to a movie except for me. I don't get the words I'm supposed to say, or why what I say is wrong. It's like...like..." Their face scrunched up, not knowing how to explain the wall they were always banging against. At how they tried to mimic how everyone spoke and interacted with each other and missed the steps each time.

Their mom set her tools down and turned to look at them, "Is this about your name again?"

"No! I mean, kinda? All the kids already thought I'm a freak because I don't use the name you and pa gave me and maybe that's where everything went wrong. Maybe I showed up wrong and so now, no matter what I say it'll be wrong. I don't know how to get the other kids to like me. I'm too scared to keep trying. I go to school and there's no one to talk to and I'm so lonely and I'm so...lonely..." Tears pricked their eyes and they buried their face in their knees. Curled themself up tight so they didn't have to see the look of pity on their mom's face.

A door slid open, and a body, tiny, crashed into theirs. They gasped, teetering over onto the grass, arm flinging out to cradle their brother without a second thought. He wrapped his arms around their middle, eyes squeezed tight.

In a daze, they looked over and saw their dad with a twist of a smile in apology and a gentle one on their mom's face. Their brother said, louder then he probably realized, "No no no. You're sad. Being sad isn't fun."

"It isn't." They said, trying not to laugh. To cry. They didn't want to talk to another soul again. They didn't have a choice.

//

They couldn't use magic, either, which felt like another mark in a sea of marks against them. When they'd gone to do the required assessment at thirteen, it'd been a whole lot of nods and 'hmms' and other things that made them feel like they were a specimen under a microscope.

"You have a stronger magical presence, but it certainly isn't something you have access to."

Didn't they know. Between their constant failures of connecting to kids at school and trying to talk with other magicians, their inability to be anything had been a barrier in all ways. Everyone knew luck magicians weren't seen as real magicians, and in the rare instances Zoe was forced to go to any gathering related to them was met with the distant look of otherness or pity.

Their mom and dad had shrugged it off. Their dad commenting how it was a better assessment then his own and their mom saying her magic might as well have been the equivalent of a luck magician's with how weak it was. It wasn't that Zoe minded, at least, not in the way everyone thought they would.

They minded in that it was another addition to the wall that existed between themself and others. Middle school was harder than elementary in all the ways they expected. All lunches ended hiding in a teacher's classroom or the library, words getting tangled together when they tried to talk. They managed the bottom tier of friends, the kind you exchange a few meaningless words with during one class. At this point, they thought of giving up.

After the confirmation they were a magicless magician, they went home and laid on the grass outside and watched the clouds roll by listening to the sounds of cars rolling past or echoes of neighbors floating towards them. They thought of their little brother, the exact opposite of them in every way. They thought of their unborn sibling, two months out from its due date. They thought of all the ways they wanted someone to mirror them. They couldn't be the only one that was so, so lonely.

//

The Ripley siblings had stretched by one. Zoe, the quiet one who could never find their tongue. Elijah, who was as charming as ever and growing quicker then anyone could blink. And now Lia, the little sister who was more quiet than Zoe could ever be.

Like Zoe and their habit of always changing names, their mom took Lia being non-verbal in stride. She spent an hour each day on ASL lessons and Zoe would sit with her, fifteen and the same as ever in all ways, learning each sign. They would practice together, and then go to show dad when he was back from his part time job, separate from the tea shop they owned. Doctors had said she was young, and it might just be delayed at only two years old. Their mom would rather be safe than sorry, and learning a new language never hurt anybody.

The new studies was something to throw themself into. Another way not to think of anything else. Just them, them, them. Always them. Their world was too big for one. Too big for just their family, as much love as was there. They didn't think there would be anything else for them.

//

"Ughh, I'm too old for my sibling to babysit me, ma." Elijah groaned, ten years old and already speaking with the attitude of a teenager. The look mom threw his way made Zoe throw a hand around his shoulder, more in warning then camaraderie.

"Ignore him, I got him. Besides, Lia's appointment is only an hour."

"You bet I'll ignore him. Keep talking like that and we'll see where that lands you." She reached out, pressed a kiss to Zoe's cheek and then Elijah's despite his protesting and groaning.

The second she was out the door, dad and sister in tow, he shoved their hand off him, "You don't gotta cover for me. I'm not that small anymore."

"...You're ten."

"And you always treat me like a kid! You and mom and even dad when he's not careful." They raised their hands, deciding to concede, but the flicker of irritation showed it didn't help their case. "You never even let me help you."

Zoe's brow furrowed, "I don't need help with anything...? And even if I did, it's not your job to—"

"Because I'm too young to make you happy. I at least know when you're sad. Better then mom does." Elijah stormed away in a whirlwind and Zoe blinked before hurrying after him.

"Wait, Eli!" They skidded out into the hallway, calling after him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!"

"Yes there is!"

"And I don't want to talk about it."

"But..."

"I don't!" And he whirled around, and there was a sea of violent, rushing past Zoe like wind during a snowstorm. It shoved them backwards, and they fell. Their eyes went wide as the chill of it wrapped around the whole room, spilling through the house. Magic.

Magic?

Zoe's words were barely a whisper, "You're...a heart magician?"

Since when? They searched through the confines of their memory, and tried to pull up any instance where he'd been acting strange or when something had been off. They came up blank, but as the last of the magic faded away, they understood why. As dramatic a display as it had been, there was nothing destructive about it. Strong, yes, but more desperate to heal and mend then destroy.

They pulled themself up, and found Elijah's eyes wide, "Don't tell mom. I'll tell her. I just...I can't be the only one who can use magic like this. All the other magicians are so...mean. Isn't that part of the reason why you're sad?"

"What? No. No, no, no. Hey listen, being a magician is a gift alright? Come here, it's ok." They weren't sure how to go about this. It wasn't an experience they'd ever gone through, suddenly wrapped up in magic.

His feet remained glued to the floor, eyes bright and shining. The false anger persona falling away until he was just a kid all over again, "No. I could have hurt you. I could have..."

"I'm fine, aren't I?" Zoe held out their arms, tried for a smile they were never good at wearing. "You knocked me over, it's fine. A solid gust of wind could do that with how scrawny I am."

They waited for him, until he eventually took a step. And then one hesitant step became two and then a lunge and then he crashed against them in a tight hug and Zoe wrapped their arms around him and they thought it not fair for him to be so young and trying so hard to figure out their pain while hiding his own.

Zoe hugged him back, arms not as sure as his. Never as sure. Their thoughts were racing. They knew nothing about magicians or magic or creatures of magic. They didn't even know anything about themself. But they knew the path Elijah was going to walk was going to be vastly different than their own. They needed to learn.

//

It was an excuse, maybe, to ignore their constantly endless problems and questions for their own life. High school was fine. It was the same routine as middle school. They had friends they talked to in certain classes and spent lunch hiding in classrooms and libraries. The key difference now was that they had after school pass times.

It still involved libraries and holing themself away in study rooms, but still.

The most frustrating thing was West Myers was not where one would find information on magicians easily unless they ventured onto the campus of Vales Grove University. Zoe didn't want to do that because they were a luck magician. They could already picture some heart or soul magician college students looking at them like a lost child. So they made do.

It was maybe the hundredth visit to the rundown public library that something noticed them. The library was on the edge of the north side of town. From here, the woods crept in, always yellowing grass spilling over the edges and thin trees watching anyone who would look back. Zoe had never paid it much heed, until their sixteenth year when the woods got tired of waiting and watching.

"BOO!" Zoe jumped near ten feet in the air, feet stumbling over each other, bag slipping half off their shoulder. By some miracle they managed to stop it from dropping to the ground and spilling out its contents. Their heart was going a thousand miles an hour in their ears. A strange, round, green creature was floating in the space near them giggling to itself. "Ooh, I did it! I did it! I scared a magician."

Their expression collapsed into their default blank calm. No words passed their lips.

The creature kept going, "Hey hey, don't be mad! It was all in good fun. Here, here, an apology."

Tiny arms with little nibs on the end reached out and there was a dandelion in its hands. Zoe stared, "Does this cost anything?"

"No no, it's an apology. It's what I owe you. A wish." They reached out a hand and instead of placing the flower in their palm, the creature settled into it instead. It felt soft, like an old cotton shirt that's been through the wash many times. "I always see you. Looking. Longing. What's your name?"

Zoe searched their memory for the name of this creature. There were hardly any magical creatures in the region; the local magician council had a firm distaste for them that kept most at bay. It wasn't information they needed often but this was a common enough one. A regular earth sprite. Maybe once a forest sprite, specifically, but the endless drought had shifted things in the region. What once should have been vibrant green was now a muted brown.

The things were harmless enough. Maybe. So they offered their name.

Immediately, the creature shook its head, "That doesn't fit right, does it?"

Zoe blinked, "Well...I mean..."

"Don't mind, don't mind. Humans that feel like you...are always in flux. Like the seasons. I'll call you that if you wish! My name is Jolly right now!"

At this point, they finally had the realization to look around. Humans couldn't see anything related to magic. Zoe must look wild, talking and stammering into their hand like this. The talk right names and wrong names was throwing them for a loop. What was their name? They'd stopped jumping through names like t-shirts in middle school. How did this creature even know that? And the most pressing question of all.

"What do you even want?" The creature nestled further into their hand at the question.

"Hmm, company? In exchange, you want answers to things, yes? I'll help you navigate magic. In return, allow me company!" Zoe pressed their lips together, but before they could deny the request, it suddenly hopped out of their hand. "Come, come. I know where they hide information. Follow me."

And despite all reservations, they did.

//

West Myers was stranger than Zoe had originally thought. Jolly had proven to be a great guide, and also their first real friend. Zoe sat at the counter of their parents tea shop, binder and notes spread out around them. The air conditioning strained against the summer heat, and Jolly dozed softly in a spare teacup.

The first thing Zoe had learned was that the borders of West Myers did not end at the town. It extended into the woods, and stopped miles in. The second thing Zoe had noticed was that the reason why they had been struggling to find anything was because those records had been removed.

Jolly had said magicians didn't want the general public to know of any events related to them, and so most information would be removed. Thankfully for Zoe, the woods remembered everything as well as the dead did. It had said that Vales Grove had stood for a relatively short time, which in sprite terms meant at least a hundred years, and it's founders had been odd. Liars. Cheats.

It hadn't provided more information on them, and Zoe had gotten the sense it'd been nervous. They didn't press it and it didn't matter, they knew what they were looking for now, and they knew how to look.

Bent over pages, they jerked as a door suddenly slammed open.

Snapping to attention, their brother raised an eyebrow, "Ma would have your head if she caught you not paying attention."

"Sorry, just..."

"Not to mention if she saw Jolly here." Eli's voice pitched high into singsong, "Wake up, wake up. I brought snacks."

Like clockwork, Jolly snapped it's eyes open, hopping up into the air, "Sugar snacks?"

Eli held out a box and poured a couple of sour candies into his hand, offering it up to it. Jolly practically cheered, diving right for it and gathering them all on its arms. He laughed, flinching away slightly at the sensation of it in his hands.

Zoe sighed, fighting a smile, "You're spoiling it too much."

"And you don't?" Eli threw back, coming to lean against the counter. His eyes skipped over the set up, unseeing for a minute as it was how Zoe normally looked at work. Eli sometimes swung by when he was walking home from a friends' house. Zoe couldn't tell if it was because he wanted to bother them or he actually wanted to visit them. Maybe it was both.

His hands snatched something from the table before Zoe could blink, "Is this a brochure to Vales Grove?"

Zoe paused, "Oh, yeah. That's likely where you'll be attending college so I just...checked it out."

They'd hated the visit, hated the atmosphere, hated the way they were spoken to the entire time. Still, they'd gone on the tour and taken all the information packets and had went online to fill out the application anyway.

Eli frowned, "You're hiding something from me again."

"What, no. I mean, you're going to have your magician assessment next year and I just...wanted to know how things worked with all that."

"I know you're lying."

They flinched, and it was Jolly who answered, falling back into its teacup, "They're going to attend! They're curiosity got to them!"

Zoe went still and so did Eli. He paused, eyes narrowing as he looked at Zoe. He was twelve now, still so young but as perceptive as ever. His voice was as soft as it was simmering, "Curiosity killed the cat. Are you forcing yourself to go because of me?"

"No, actually." Zoe's voice rushed out the next sentence before Eli could cut them off. "It was, at first. At least, I just wanted to know what to expect to help you if you needed it. But, you know, something's...really weird about this town and that school. Now I'm doing this because I want answers."

"Answers to what...? What's so weird about this place? It's just normal suburban weird, you know?" Eli handed Jolly another candy without thinking as it reached for more. "What you should be doing is finding some place where you can finally make a friend, and that isn't Vales Grove."

"Jolly is friend!"

"A human friend. No offense Jolly."

"It's fine, it's fine."

Zoe frowned, shook their head, and then thought better of it, "Listen I know that I'm...not the most social, but hear me out first. Look." They spun their binder, brimming with various papers and printouts and envelopes. Eli raised an eyebrow, but let Zoe go on. "What's weird is that there's barely anything magical in our entire region."

"But that's because—"

"Wait. Just. Hear me out. Magic is attracted to magic, right? And if magic is attracted to magic, then places where there's a lot of magicians should attract all sorts of things, but it doesn't. The only reason Jolly is here is by accident, but in other places, it's different. Take, I don't know, Foxglove for example. That whole town is the country's epicenter for magic and it's brimming with every magical thing you could imagine."

Eli frowned, popping more candy into his mouth with a shrug, "It's also the source of so much trouble all the important magicians in the region warn us about it."

"Sure, two worlds constantly colliding will do that but...humans are allowed to know about magic. Magicians aren't forced to hide what they are. The Council of Foxglove doesn't force people to forget things or erase memories of peoples' friends." Zoe pulled at the purple tab and opened up to a series of hastily written notes. "And it isn't just Foxglove. Look at this. Everywhere I was able to sneak information on is the same. And all of these records are so well hidden and for what?"

"Well..."

"This is all weird, Eli. Not just West Myers or Vales Grove University, but this whole region." They pushed the binder towards him.

Their brother pursed his lips, handed the rest of the candy to a very excited Jolly, and wrapped his hands around himself, "Alright. So things are weird. What are you going to do about? This only makes me think you should get out of here as soon as possible even more now."

They shook their head, "I...it...it doesn't feel right."

There were so many other things they wanted to say. It wasn't just the absence of magic but the presence of death. So much death. They wondered how no one was drowning in it. And if there was anything known to combat death, it were heart magicians. It was the thing Eli was. It was the thing Zoe was sure their new little sister was showing signs of being.

"It doesn't feel right because you've only ever known this town, sib. You keep closing off your world before you even let yourself try for something else." Eli shoved himself back from the counter. "Look, all that is super weird, though. Like, you better not fall into a conspiracy weird. But if this is what you want to do, go for it."

Zoe's shoulders relaxed, "...Don't tell mom?"

"So she can kill you? Nah, you can have the college conversation with her yourself. Good luck. Also, speaking of, the only reason I stopped by is because we needed some garlic from the store. Mom'll pay you back."

"Got it."

Eli raised his hand, walked a few steps back and paused. Zoe thought he was going to say something, but he only gave a goofy grin as goodbye and ducked out the door. The quiet that followed was only broken by Jolly's munching. Zoe leaned back in their chair, and wondered if Eli was right.

//

When did they settle on the name Zoe, anyway? When did they lung for it with all their might? It was when their childhood was already over. It was right before the summer they started college. Somewhere in the whirlwind of applications and parental arguments and throwing themself into a new thing and a new thing and a new thing, it came to them.

"It's Zoe." They said, suddenly, a week before they were slated to start college. Their mom and dad stopped whatever they'd been saying. "My name, I think."

"Zoe." Their mom said, with a smile. "I like it."

"Better than when you were insisting we all call you Guardian Heart when you were five." Their dad laughed, and their next words felt heavier. Their dad's joke didn't even get through to them.

The thing about their nature was that they'd run from one thing they were afraid of to another thing. They were afraid of magic and the Council and the university, and suddenly the fear of themselves was washed away, "I don't...think I'm anything. A boy or a girl or...anything."

They were clumsy, trying to find how to articulate it in the moment. It'd been easier to tell Eli, who had barely blinked at the news. It was impossible now, even though they knew their parents wouldn't reactive negatively. They'd always gone with them and let Zoe do whatever they wanted. They knew that so why?

Why was their chest caving in and why was their vision blurry?

Hands wrapped around them, and they buried themself into their mother's shoulder. Why were they crying? Because inside their stomach something twisted and wished that maybe it wasn't true. Oh, it would be so much easier if it wasn't true. Their mom held them tight and they imagined years of scornful eyes and disappointed frowns and they wanted to have something in them that wouldn't elicit such reactions. In another body with a different soul, they wouldn't have spent a whole childhood alone.

And so they wept for pieces of childhood forever lost to them.

//

"You can't come with me to college, Jolly!" Zoe huffed, trying to find just where the second shoe of their favorite pair went.

Jolly hopped around them, "But you changed! You changed! Your aura is so beautiful. Like grapes!"

They snagged it out from under their bed and threw it on, "I don't even want to know what it means to have an aura like grapes. Listen, I don't want anything to happen to you. And besides, this is something I choose myself. I have to face it myself."

Jolly collapsed on their bed, a pout on its face, "It'll be fine! Nothing strange there. Not for you."

"Better safe than sorry. Bye Jolly, I'll tell you how to goes later." And they were out the door and catching the bus.

And Jolly would be right. That first day was as anxiety inducing as everyone else's first day of college. And then the first year went by and the next and, save for a few missteps, everything was calm. Everything was peaceful. The years stretched on and they found a way to grow into it all.

They knew everything about Vales Grove, and they knew nothing.

They knew everything about themselves, and they knew nothing.

Everything was the same, until their last year of college, when nothing would be the same again.

[ayyyez]

For whichever Naruto characters you'll get inspiration for: how do they think they would do babysitting vs how they actually do. Who'd be overconfident and fail miserably? Who would avoid it at all cost but turn out amazing? Who is bad with kids and knows it? Who'd be a supernanny?

A/N: oh yeah, sure thing my friend! These were fun to do. Thanks for sending in a request!

TAGS: babysitting headcanons, fluff, soft headcanons, hehes, gremlin Madara

CHARACTERS: Neji Hyuga, Shisui Uchiha, Shikamaru Nara, Madara Uchiha, Tobirama Senju

NEJI HYUGA: Okay so genin Neji would not be thrilled at the prospect of babysitting. He'd also be a little cocky thinking he'd have no problem wrangling a bunch of kids. He underestimates these trouble makers however and has a woeful time dealing with their "backtalking" and "incessant questioning of authority." That's him— he's the authority. Neji sweetie they're kids. Won't lose them though with his Byakugan and kind of scares them into behaving with his demeanour.

Teen/Adult (Jonin) Neji now is a lot more mellow and less harsh. He's going to be a lot softer and understanding. Is actually less confident with the task but does a lot better. Bends down to the kids level to talk to them. Treats them the same way he does adults in the way he talks to them but his tone his gentler. Is patient with their questions. Reads to them. Teaches them life lessons.

Don't tell anyone but he gives them piggybacks.

SHISUI UCHIHA: The best damn babysitter you could ask for and he knows it too. If you tell him though he'll get all bashful about it. He's so good with kids! Talks and plays with them like he is one. Being around kids helps him reset and forget his troubles. He can't help but want to protect them and their childhoods. Because of this just wants to show them the best time.

Kind of sneaky about the games he teaches. The games teach them strategy and how to think on their feet. Real world shinobi skills to help them learn how to hide and escape if they ever need it. Shisui also picks the littler kids up and zooms them around. Piggyback rides and races. Rolling down hills. Lots of laughter and fun.

Always letting the kids win and encouraging them when he can.

SHIKAMARU NARA: Doesn't matter when this is Shikamaru's always going to think it's going to be a drag babysitting. He's going to look for the easiest way to mind these kids. Think smarter not harder is his motto. Doesn't think he'll do a terrible job nor exceed expectations. He's there to tick a box. What he doesn't expect is to be kept amused by the kids. Having back and forth banter. The kids telling him "jokes" and stories.

Ha. So maybe babysitting isn't so bad. The kind of babysitter who is like 'Alright, I'll give you some treats if you don't tell your parents.' Totally has a secret pact with the kids. Teaches them all sorts of cool things. As long as they don't have to go anywhere or do anything too annoying.

The kind of babysitter the kids think are cool.

MADARA UCHIHA: Do not let this man babysit your kids. He's a terrible influence (affectionate). I don't mean big bad Madara either I just mean regular gremlin Madara. He's going to have your kids running wild and promoting their chaos. He has a complex where he both thinks he's the best babysitter in the world and thinks he's also going to fail big time.

Okay in all seriousness though he's good for kids who have a lot of energy and need to run around. He'll match their energy and do what they need to do to get all of that out. Won't bring any negativity to the table either. Just encourages them to go go go. And is behind them the entire time. Doesn't care about the mess either. Those kids want to roll around in mud? Alright mud fight it is. It's war baby. Takes those wargames very seriously. The kids call him sir and everything lol.

He encourages chaos in order to keep that watchful eye on them. He actually does an alright job.

TOBIRAMA SENJU: Great teacher. Terrible babysitter. Terrible with teensy children. Good with school level children in a teaching environment. But he just can't babysit. He's so bad with children that aren't his own or his students. He's just so awkward. You know how people hold toddlers like they're wild creatures with their arms completely stretched out in front of them? That's him holding them.

Everything becomes lectures when he talks to them and he's so theoretical and awkward at connecting and knows it. He honestly chooses to just not babysit.

I want to point out though he is really good at teaching children when they're his students. When they're old enough to somewhat take care of themselves and he just has to teach them the rest and theres time to make a connection—he can't explain it—it's just different. Like tweens he's good with tweens. Genuinely enjoys seeing the next generations flourish he just doesn't have those babysitting skills.

[sepublic]

            After Thanks to Them and its whole theme of Death and Wanderers, I like how For the Future has this consistent theme of Vulnerability, Adolescence, the role of Adults, and Failure.

         Like, there’s the obvious storylines with Willow and Luz, who refuse to show vulnerability and don’t forgive themselves over failure and weakness, don’t want to accept love out of shame. There’s the resolution of people accepting others into their life, admitting they need help, instead of maintaining this isolating sense of being a powerful individual.

         Boscha? She’s deadly terrified of being vulnerable and couldn’t protect Cat and Amelia, and that’s something Kikimora can latch onto, like smelling blood in the water. She tells Boscha she can’t show weakness around her fellow students and must be an iron-fisted dictator to compensate, while also acting as the toxic adult that Boscha craves guidance from.

         The Collector? Perhaps our most vulnerable antagonist of all, sure he has the most godlike power, but the episode repeatedly emphasizes that he’s still a kid. A scared, lonely kid who doesn’t want to be left by himself and even meekly asks for the companionship of a plush to protect him. A kid VERY vulnerable and open to the threat of Belos, who creeps into his bedroom when he’s asleep, and then manipulates the child as a puppet. He’s been failed by the adult Collectors in his life, who slaughtered potential Titan friends, as well as by King’s dad, who imprisoned him.

         Even Belos himself counts; This is easily the most vulnerable we’ve ever seen Belos, his lowest point. Sure he was but a mere drop between Seasons 2 and 3, but here we really get to see just how much this dude is suffering, how much his body is falling apart. Turns out he CAN’T fully recover like we’d feared, his limbs are trailing behind Philip, eventually tearing off.

         We see exposed bone, we see how Belos struggles and how he’s haunted by visions of Caleb and the Grimwalkers he killed, it’s a rather humane depiction of his grief. Belos isn’t sound neither physically nor mentally, which is a far contrast to how he’s usually been depicted, cool and collected and always with a plan. Belos is free-styling here and making up stuff as he goes along, and while he’s pretty good at it, he’s clearly at the end of his rope here in regards to his plans, with four hundred years building up to the Day of Unity wasted by an eavesdropping assistant with a grudge.

         Likewise we have Hunter; He is traumatized by the loss of Flapjack, so he builds up a wall of aggression directed at his abuser in order to cope and feel less helpless. He NEEDS to feel in control and like he’s doing something, like he has agency and is enacting power against another, but that just isolates him from the others. It concerns Willow, and Hunter’s own walls merely encourage hers as well.

         When Hunter reiterates to Willow and Gus how much they mean to him? He’s lowering his defenses, admitting vulnerability. Admitting he’s scared and he isn’t the macho, aggressive hero out to avenge his best friend that he was pretending to be. He needs help, he NEEDS Willow and Gus. And he cares, deeply. As does Willow, who conceals herself in an armor of thorns in denial of her pain, afraid it’s a betrayal of her growth into a stronger person.

         Camila too! Camila is trying not to show how scared and freaked out she is by the Boiling Isles, because she needs to be a strong parent for Luz. She feels that she has failed Luz (who’s trying to be mature in looking after her mom), so Camila has to make up for it by being the supportive mother she needs, even trying to engage in combat with Kikimora, only to be endangered in the process. But in the end, Camila supports Luz not by being the tough and implacable adult who hides everything and worries Luz to no end as Eda did…

         No, it comes from Camila admitting that she too has made mistakes. That she’s struggled and tripped and stumbled, just as Luz has. And this confession of her own vulnerability inspires Luz, because she realizes her mother DOES truly relate to and understand her pain. And knowing that her mom can overcome this, gives Luz the hope to do the same for herself, and realize she’s not isolated; She can share her vulnerabilities with someone!

         Plus the running parallels of the Collector and the students at Hexside being chaotic and dangerous, but ultimately… they’re also vulnerable, they need help. They need an adult or someone to look after them, someone to rely on, and without that things just fall apart. The episode ends with the Collector feeling deeply betrayed and hurt, used, all over again, so he begins to retaliate with genuine anger this time. Boscha admits her need for Amity, and ultimately accepts that she needs help and allows the other students to work with her in taking down Kikimora.  

         Belos? Fundamentally a scared child who lost Caleb, the person who looked after him. His precious caretaker, and his entire crusade against witches, the grimwalkers, are all an extension of Belos not wanting to admit how scared and lonely he is. Willow sobbing as she admits she misses her dads, it’s an admittance that all these kids are still kids.

        Sure, there’s the power fantasy of kids being able to have agency and do something, but TOH also reminds us that it’s nice and necessary to have someone to rely on and look after you; Being able to obliterate any enemy doesn’t feel like much if you don’t have any friends, if whatever adults you do allow are toxic, like Terra or Odalia. Hence the running theme of adults who DO understand and care and ultimately come around (be it Camila or the veneration of Bump, Eda and Lilith consoling King), as well as that search for a place of belonging.

        And it makes sense. The empowerment of these types of stories, where the kids conquer the big villains? Find a family they can truly call as such? It’s because people are still hurting and need help and that’s okay. You can forgive yourself for that. People like Boscha and Belos of course struggle with becoming too co-dependent, but that just furthers the lesson of vulnerability being something you have to healthily acknowledge and deal with in order to survive. Admitting weakness is, paradoxically, a strength in and of itself. Characters come to term with their failures as parents, protectors, and leaders, while others feel haunted or punished no matter how hard they try.