#The leg day chicken deserves better than I could give him

[vxnillabxn]

hiii👋 i'd like to request the lads men's reaction to being picked up! sometimes i feel like some writers underestimate/ don't acknowledge how physically strong mc is. although the guys weight isn't specified i feel like she could easily pick up a well-fit man 😌

your writing is amazing and i'm always amazed by your posting frequency (and quality)! hope you're doing fine and stay hydrated!! 💞

𐙚˙⋆.˚ mainfive! x fem!reader ꒰੭

𐙚˙⋆.˚ fluff, just a teeny tiny bit suggestive! ꒰੭

𐙚˙⋆.˚ sfw! ꒰੭

𐙚˙⋆.˚ do not translate/copy/repost! ꒰੭

﹙♡﹚mc is not dainty nor frail AT ALL, she can kick ass while having HEART ISSUES!!! mc, we love you over here ��� thanks for requesting! this was so much fun to write~ and i tried to keep it light and a bit funny, too! (fem!reader in mind, but no fem!pronouns used!)

𐙚˙⋆.˚ caleb! ꒰੭

you were lazily sprawled on the sofa, with one of your legs dangling and swaying with boredom.

caleb was hugging said leg loosely, scrolling through his phone as he too wanted to entertain himself.

or both of you, preferably.

“no way,” he suddenly mumbles, looking up at you from his phone. “pips, look.”

he shows you an advertisement for a weightlifting contest back in linkon city.

“30k diamonds for the winner? geez… i might as well try!”

you say confidently, suddenly sitting up to look over his shoulder.

he turns to you and smiles.

he knows you are strong, as you two arm wrestle to choose who gets to keep the last braised chicken wing —though he always lets you have it no matter the outcome.

“well, you'll have to lift a lot of weight, though. don't you wanna' practice a bit more, pipsqueak?”

you shake your head with a big grin on your face.

“i have my own way of training!”

and you didn't lie.

later that day, as he was cooking for both of you, you decided to take him by surprise.

he already knew you were behind him, obviously. he's used to your sneaky attacks, and he can also catch your scent whenever you're nearby.

he expected you to scream, to poke his sides, to tickle him.

but what he didn't expect was for you to wrap your arms around his back…

for a moment, he smiled lovingly.

…for a very, very brief moment.

soon enough, his feet left the ground. the spoon he was holding fell from his hand, and you easily took him away from the kitchen, just to walk a few steps to the left.

you put him down and sigh loudly.

“ha! not bad at all, huh?”

he's silent.

he has been relocated, now standing in front of the sink.

well, yeah, he knew you were capable of doing whatever you put your mind and body into, and you seemed very eager about the competition.

but he just… didn't think he'd be your training equipment.

“hm! the salad needs more dressing, though. but the gravy is awesome! keep it up!”

you softly pat his arm and leave him alone in the kitchen after tasting what he was working on before you “attacked” him.

why didn't he come up with this training method instead?

he could lift you up or do planks with you prettily sitting on his back.

but right now? he actually does want you to keep using him —not only to train, though—. after all, he's better than the small dumbbells you have stored away somewhere in your house back in linkon.

and he… low-key loved to have your body pressed to his, even if it was for a few seconds.

“pips, wait! let me help you set up your training routine!”

and there he goes, running after you.

he'll make sure you practice a lot; taking him from one side to the other, and having those pretty and strong arms of yours tightly secured around him.

and he also will train in case you back out for whatever reason.

he wants you to have your well-deserved 30k diamonds, even if he plans on giving them to you for your efforts anyway.

𐙚˙⋆.˚ rafayel! ꒰੭

you two decided it was a good idea to go on a date by the docks.

on a holiday.

with famous people holding meet-and-greets.

it was packed with people, to say the least.

but he had your fingers tightly intertwined with his, and he kept you close as he rambled about the different antiques that caught his eye.

you were sharing snacks, drinking iced tea, enjoying the fresh sea breeze…

everything was going relatively well.

until someone recognized rafayel from the interviews and magazines he had appeared in during the month.

and scandal ensued.

“oh my gosh, look over there!” you could hear a whiny voice, followed by squeals and gasps.

obviously, as there were other famous figures around, people assumed he was here to meet some of his fans, too.

in no time, you had a crowd of people running towards him —or rather, towards both of you, as you clung to his hand for dear life.

“cutie, you're breaking my bones.”

“raf, let's go.”

“no, but i can't be that rude!”

it was a hushed discussion between the two of you until the people got closer.

too close for comfort.

he patted down his pockets, and suddenly…

“wait, i forgot to bring a pen—!”

he couldn't even finish his sentence as he was thrown over a shoulder like a potato sack.

well, your shoulder, to be precise.

he gasped and held onto you as you managed to run and dodge the crowded streets.

you didn't stop until you reached a narrow street with little to no people around.

and you finally took a deep breath before setting him down.

“i told you we needed to leave.”

you say once you catch your breath.

he was stunned.

in fact, he was looking at you with surprise, amusement, and fear.

first of all, wow.

second of all, wow —wink, wink—.

third of all, you're his precious bodyguard, true.

but he didn't expect you to be that efficient, let alone carry him around and run as if he were nothing but a purse to you.

“if you wanted me all to yourself, you should've just asked, cutie.”

he whispered, pulling you close.

you had a deadpan expression on your face.

“we're going back home, raf.”

“wait, but i have coupons for fried shrimp cakes!”

and he pouted his lips just a little bit; enough for you to sigh.

“...fine. but we'll make it quick, okay?”

you finally held his hand again, and the two of you started to walk back to the docks.

after a brief silence, he spoke with a cocky grin.

“were you jealous?~”

and that was it.

that was the last straw.

you turned on your heels and dragged him back, not before stating firmly:

“we're going home!”

he protested, of course. but he could see from the corner of his eye a hint of something similar to jealousy in your eyes.

and he just smiled, letting you order him and guide him around.

he might ask you to carry him around —like the prince he is— more often, now that he knows you're pretty much capable of doing so.

𐙚˙⋆.˚ sylus! ꒰੭

you two were on a mission.

…

okay, only you were on a mission, and he decided to join you, as he wanted to spend the night together.

things went downhill; he started throwing hands, and you were also fighting. let's just say you two were winning.

until the “bad guys” called for backup.

and being outnumbered —which usually wasn't an issue— became dangerous.

sylus was composed, honestly.

he was panting, he was sweaty…

but he wasn't worried or tired.

you, on the other hand, wanted to retreat. things were looking ugly, you felt a weird pressure in your chest, and you knew you were exceeding your limits.

he knew it too.

“sylus, let's go!”

he looked back at you, ready to approach.

but he was surrounded.

and when he was about to simply attack back, with no issue at all, you grew impatient.

you ran toward sylus, pushed and yanked away some of the men around him, and lifted him off the ground.

quite easily, you might add.

his expression was clearly a mix of surprise and amazement, yet you didn't have enough time —nor was it the appropriate time or place to laugh about it.

you carried him toward his parked motorcycle outside, and you sat him down on the front with a thud, before sitting behind him and wrapping your arms around his waist.

“go, go, go!”

you urged him, and he didn't think twice.

the engine roared on the empty, dark street, and you two disappeared in seconds.

back at his place, you two were oddly quiet.

no teasing, no bickering…

he took you straight to the bedroom and made sure you were okay.

he checked for injuries, no matter how small or shallow.

he also checked for scratches and then leaned down to hear your heartbeat, checking if it was okay again.

you did the same with him, naturally.

though, of course, he had no visible injuries anymore.

“so, sweetie,” he began, pulling you on top of him as he sat down on the bed. “was that really necessary?”

you tilted your head, a bit puzzled.

“you mean… was retreating necessary? i think it was, sy.”

he looks at you, and then his lips curl up.

“that is not what i'm talking about. think again, kitten.”

you frown, but you realize in seconds.

right.

you carried this man's 6'2 body, and pretty much handled him like a life-sized ken.

“ah… well, drastic measures were needed, i guess.”

he hums, both acknowledging and reflecting on your words.

“i see. i guess i will have to rely on you more than i expected to.”

you look up at him, before nuzzling against his chest.

“yeah, no. don't expect me to carry you around whenever you get yourself in trouble.”

his chest grumbles slightly as he laughs, and he kisses your forehead.

“when i get in trouble? why, sweetie… i thought we were a team.”

you simply blow a raspberry in response, but you know it's true.

even when he willingly got his nose all up in your business, you couldn't deny how fun it was when he helped you out.

and, come to think of it… now that you know how easily you can manhandle him, maybe you'll be able to sneak up or surprise him.

seeing his shocked face and wide eyes, even if it was just for a few seconds, was the highlight of your “failed” mission.

𐙚˙⋆.˚ xavier! ꒰੭

poor xavier wasn't able to sleep his daily… uh, 10 to 11 hours? was it more? you don't remember.

being undercover was usually fun, especially if you two got assigned together.

however, you two had to disguise yourselves as college students, with uniforms and all.

and, naturally, in order to remain unsuspicious, you had to follow an average student's routine and stay on campus.

and that meant waking up early, going to lectures, acting like everyone else, acquiring the same stress levels…

how fun!

you had no issue at all. in fact, you were reminiscing about those good times back in college.

xavier, however, was really good during lectures, but he was constantly yawning. the lack of sleep was defeating, and he wanted nothing more than for the fluctuations to disappear.

on the bright side, you two got to spend more time with each other, walk around campus, and imitate all those lovey-dovey couples you saw.

one day, you two had an atrocious project to work on. thankfully, you got to work in pairs, so you had fun doing it all day long.

unfortunately, he ended up passing out in your dorm, and the rules were quite strict about having people over after 10 p.m.

you didn't want to bring unnecessary attention to yourselves and potentially ruin everything, so you tried to be the perfect student.

so, as a perfect student would do, you tried to wake him up.

once. twice.

you tried poking his cheeks, shaking him, pulling some strands of his hair… but he was literally gone.

was he even breathing?

you sighed and stepped back, trying your best to come up with a solution.

and the only thing you could think of was taking him out yourself.

after stretching your arms and taking a deep breath, you lifted him bridal style, trying to move as quietly as possible across the hallway.

it took you some minutes, but you finally arrived at his door. you needed his key, but you had to put him down.

…

ah, he shifted.

his eyes fluttered open.

he looked up at you, then down at the floor, and finally at his closed door.

he took out his keys, stretched his arm out to open the door, and closed his eyes again to keep sleeping.

you were speechless.

he didn't even question how you were able to carry him so easily; he was delighted, actually. being in your arms, lulled by your scent and your ragged breathing…

this little demon.

you got inside his dorm room, and debated whether to throw him on his bed, or carefully place him down.

you chose the latter.

you knew he needed to sleep, and… he looked adorable with his head tilting back and his legs dangling from your arms.

before you could return to your dorm, he took your hand.

“thank you.”

he softly said, before going back to sleep and snoring softly once again.

“anytime, xav.”

you smooched his forehead and finally left to your own room, when you felt a light tapping on your shoulder.

a professor.

“excuse me, what part of 'no visits after 10 p.m.' did you not understand? come with me, immediately.”

ah, dang.

well, here goes your mission.

you can't complain, though. it was fun while it lasted.

𐙚˙⋆.˚ zayne! ꒰੭

“can we please exchange caaaards?”

you begged, holding a ridiculous “1” orange card, as well as a “2” green one.

zayne sighed, shaking his head.

“we've exchanged cards thrice already.”

you huffed, putting your cards down.

“come on! my luck sucks today! pretty pleaseeeee?”

he looks up at you, then down at his cards.

“...no.”

how dare he?

“i'll buy you tons of stuff before we leave, i promise!”

he still doesn't budge. rather, he gestures at you —gently— to keep playing, as it is your turn.

“fine. i'll win the next two rounds! just you wait!”

and so you two keep playing, and… it isn't looking good at all for you.

whenever you spot a colored cup and you want to place the same colored card, he does it first.

and it is always a “6”.

a doubled “6”.

“oh, this game is rigged!”

there is a soft smile on his face before he shakes his head.

“it is just a game. i can always let you win.”

“no! i'll win with my own blood, sweat, and tears!”

and so the last round begins.

and you finally, finally pick up good cards!

a “5”, a “6”...

yes, you're optimistic about your chances.

however, you don't notice when your blue “6” card falls out of your hands, and when it is your turn to play, you can't find it anywhere.

“hey love, did you take my card?”

he looks at you, then back at his deck.

“i did not.”

he shifts just a bit, and you frown, a bit suspicious.

“you sure?”

he nods once again, reassuring you. his gaze seems sincere, but his body language?

he hid your card under his seat.

you're certain.

—the poor card is under you, actually.—

“stand up,” you say, and he gives you a questioning look. “...please.”

he shakes his head.

“i do not have your card, love.”

“well, if you don't have it, there's no problem if you stand up, right?”

he leans back and arches one eyebrow.

oh, he wants war?

he'll have war.

you stand up and look at him, before putting both your hands under his armpits and lifting him up, like you would with a toddler.

he freezes, and you freeze too when you see that your card isn't under him.

you eventually put him back down, fixing his coat and glasses for him.

“uhm… sorry, zaynie, i thought…”

you soon notice your missing card on the floor, and you feel even more guilty.

he is silent, processing the information; the way you lifted him as if he were as light as a feather, the way you put him down just as easily…

well, naturally, he knew you trained constantly.

but he trained too, so he was solid and very tall.

and he never pictured something like this happening.

ever.

“so, uh… you won… three times in a row! yay!”

you smile awkwardly.

he just stands up, grabs your hand quietly, and guides you outside the playroom.

“wait, hey! no, i'm sorry! are you mad? i was only playing, love!”

“i hope your offer is still up.”

ah, buying tons of stuff for him before leaving?

but that was only valid if he exchanged cards with you!

“hey! that's not—”

he looks at you with a stern look on his face…

but with a cute, blushy, and pink nose.

did he actually like what happened?

or is this a punishment for being a brat?

he'll probably just ask for coffee or sweets anyway, so why not apologize the way he wants you to?

especially since he is still holding your hand, a bit tighter than usual… and with a warm, slightly sweaty palm.

you just hope he doesn't give you a lecture later —and that he doesn't teach you a lesson later at night, either. cof, cof.

[ccalhoun]

≻ ┄┄ ♡ ┄┄ ≺

freddy yeti x gn!reader

plot synopsis: reader has an eating disorder, freddy notices and decides enough is enough waiting for you to eat

warnings: angst + fluff, gn reader, written with male reader in mind but everyone deserves some freddy comfort, detailed talk of eating disorders, lowercase intended, written within one sitting and no beta reader... enjoy..!

note: trying to get back into writing because i feel guilty not posting... sorry my poor fanfic malnourished children i'm trying + rather short because i'm out of practice

sensitive subject matter beneath the cut

≻ ┄┄ ♡ ┄┄ ≺

you took a deep breath as you stood up, knowing you couldn't avoid eating forever. it had only been a day or two.. maybe three? since you last ate, you had some... veggies? fruit? chips? you hardly remembered eating, mentally checking out every time you had to.

your body was heavy, you were winded at every corner, you needed a real full meal. you grabbed your dateviators and dorian kindly opened your door for you, knowing all too well of your eating habits. you grabbed onto the stairs railing while you walked, your legs unsteady.

the walk to the kitchen felt eternal. you were nearly out of breath. you swiftly took a seat at the table, your heart beating out of your chest from using energy you don't have. you smiled at freddy as he greeted you, staying seated and refraining from speaking.

"hey, cool kid!" freddy greeted happily, instantly noticing the state of your health. he tried to not bring it up, not wanting to make you uncomfortable or upset with him. every time you walked past him, avoiding his gaze, he called you over to 'talk', bringing up some food that was about to expire, so you better eat it now before it goes bad. he doesn't say anything when he sees cam eating the same thing he gave you. freddy just notes it and remembers so next time he can give you more to eat.

"you look like you need some protein, why don't you order some chicken breast and ill make some chicken alfredo? sounds good, huh?" freddy's tone friendly as ever, not talking down or talking to you like you're a clueless child, just sounding like a friend with a good dinner idea. as much as you wanted to say no and insist it was fine, you were nodding before you could realize it.

freddy smiled, walking over and rubbing your back. freddy hadn't made it known to you, and he's glad he hadn't, yeti's had stronger senses than most other mammals. big man, big organs. he could hear your heartbeat when you were at the bottom of the stairs, he could smell how exhausted and overexerted your body was. you couldn't really hide anything from him. freddy cleaned some dishes while you put together a quickcart order, he insisted you stayed sitting down and who were you to argue?

you waited on the couch with koa and freddy, letting telly pick something to put on, and before you knew it there was a knock at your door and a notification from your phone. you got up and grabbed the two bags, dorian closing behind you and freddy taking the bags from your hands.

"why don't you go chillax with koa, cool kid? i've got the cooking!" freddy gently insisted, knowing if you were in the kitchen you'd be worrying about how much oil he's putting in, or how much butter he uses, or the calories in the pasta sauce... he loved you, but it was worrying and hard to deal with without being blunt about how in your own head you are.

he walked you back to koa, giving koa a look that could only mean 'i'll maul you if they leave this couch cushion again' before going in the kitchen. his shoulders dropped once he was out of your sight. he got to cooking, with help from river and stefan, trying to avoid thinking about how dire this really is. because, it's okay now. freddy wasn't going to give up and let this happen anymore. if he has to cook you five hundred meals he will, as long as you're eating them.

before he knew it, he was finished, a delicious hot meal ready to be eaten, he plated some up and brought it out to you, "here you go, buddy, eat up!"

it smelt delicious. your stomach had been growling from the small hints of smells that would float into the living room, you took it and thanked freddy, though he just sat down on the couch next to you, not exactly watching you, but definitely there to make sure you actually eat it.

freddy wouldn't admit this but he was almost surprised when you actually started eating, taking small bites with pauses between them, but it was progress, and he was so proud. koa was proud. and though there were no words spoken while you ate, you could feel the tenseness in the room melt away as everyone eased up on their worries about you.

"taste good, cool kid?" he asked after a while, finally looking at you and noticing you ate half of your plate. half. half! his heart was leaping with joy. he could help you. maybe this will show you it's okay to need help, and if not now then maybe after the 10th meal he makes. maybe the 30th. maybe the 100th. he decided in that moment he was seriously going to commit to helping you, no matter what it took.

"yeah, thank you freddy," you spoke quietly, but he could hear more energy behind your voice, some life behind it for once. you were gonna be okay, and he would do anything to help you get there.

≻ ┄┄ ♡ ┄┄ ≺

[cupcakewebkinz]

Lazy Berry Day

❦ It's just a short fic about the gang taking care of an overly exhausted and sick Sprout, nothing more than that. Really short but really fluffy, buddy finally gets his much deserved sleepy day yay!!! ❦

ʚɞ Caretaker Shanon au is mine!! ʚɞ

ᰔᩚ @soupiestzilla some free Sprout snuggles, and a lil bit of Shanon lore lmao ᰔᩚ

────── « ⋅ʚ♡ɞ⋅ » ──────

It was just an average day, Vee was playing guitar, Shelly fast asleep beside her, neither expecting any company. Though when the door opened, Vee stopped playing and looked over, smiling at the unexpected but always welcome guest.

"Sup Sprouty?" She asked, then froze.

"Dude you look like shit-"

"Gee thanks..." Came the raspy reply, the sickly berry in question soon sitting down on the chair he always sat in and slipped off his shoes, curling right up as he always did with his tail over his feet and arms around his legs, soon using his knees as a pillow.

"I'm serious, you look like you ran a marathon, then watched someone die- dude lay the fuck down before I drag you to bed." Vee demanded, mostly out of worry, but Sprout just shrugged it off.

"I'm fine Vee..." He raspily replied, making the robot stand right up, put her guitar down and walk right over. She then attempted to make him budge, but she failed, as he was larger than her- curled up- being stubborn and just not letting her win. Sprout just watched her try though, finding it rather amusing.

"Vee-"

"I'M DRAGGING YOUR SICK ASS TO BED AND YOU'RE LETTING ME!"

"Vee stop..."

"I'M NOT LETTING YOU SUFFER!! GET TO BEEEEEEED!!!"

"Vee."

Sprout very gently stopped her and moved her away, then patted her head gently. Vee huffed, but before she could say anything, Shanon walked out of her room. She was casually dressed, hair up in a messy bun and looking like your average middle aged mom about to head to the grocery store. Because she was.

"Hey I'm- Oh sweet mother." She said when she saw how tired and sickly the berry looked. His face was pale, sweaty, he was shaking, his voice was near gone and he had glassy, tired eyes. He needed a mom, and Shanon- was definitely a mom.

"Come here, I'll call off of work and make you some soup. Just tell me what you want honey." She gently reassured as she walked over, picking Sprout right up and carrying him off to the kitchen like he wasn't a grown man. Sprout was stunned into silence, not expecting this whatsoever, and so was Vee.

"Well damn... She really is a mom..." Vee mumbled, soon deciding to follow them into said kitchen curiously. Shanon was just there, holding Sprout in one arm and taking care of the soup in the other. It was her homemade chicken noodle soup, the soup she always made for Shelly when she was feeling down.

"You don't have to worry honey, we'll take care of you today, we'll make sure you're all better in no time." Shanon softly reassured, getting a sleepily confused look from the berry.

"But... Why..? Shouldn't I... Be cooking..? That's my job..." Sprout replied, making Shanon give him a kiss on the forehead gently.

"Jobs don't matter when you're unwell, it's okay for someone else to cover for you when you feel like death. We'll take care of everything, I promise, it'll be okay. Now, did you want the cherry medicine or the grape?" Shanon asked, getting a shrug from the berry. He was obviously unsure of how to react to any of this, just like the other toons, he seemed a bit uneasy about the tender care and gentle motherly affection as well. This wasn't a problem for Shanon though, she just nodded and put the medicine aside, then gave him a box of tissues.

"That's okay, you can take some later, clean yourself up instead. It'll feel better. Ginger Ale or Sprite though?" She asked, getting another shrug.

"I really don't understand what's going on..." Sprout whispered, wiping his face off with a tissue before sniffling. Shanon nodded, taking the box away from him gently before handing him a sprite, figuring it would be better for him to try first since it was a familiar flavor. He sipped it curiously, and Shanon smiled.

"Just taking care of my toons boy, it's what I do. Whole reason why I became a handler, ya know? I'm teasing, I actually didn't have any idea what I was doing, I was just curious about the museum. Then I met Shelly and all of a sudden, it all just made sense. Haven't stopped taking care of people since, I actually work at a daycare now, even though I'd kill for a paleontology job. Maybe in universe I work with fossils, eh?" She explained, well, tried to. Sprout just looked at her like she spoke a lot of nonsense as he drank the soda he was gifted, shivering as he pulled up the hood of his red sweatshirt.

"I'm kinda cold..." He mumbled, making her gasp, then shake her head.

"Burrito time."

"What-?"

"Blanket burrito." Shanon's simple reply was, getting a confused blink in reply.

"I'm sorry what-?"

"You'll understand, you'll be toasty. Just gotta finish the soup base first or my mom will haunt me for centuries for messing up her soup recipe." Shanon stated, going right back to the soup. Sprout just nodded in agreement, somehow understanding that part. He curled up against her and closed his eyes, coughing a little into her Jurassic Park shirt. Shanon didn't even blink, she was so used to that by now. She just kept making the soup, giving the sick berry gentle love here and there, reminding him that he wasn't alone anymore. He slowly dozed off to it, and eventually was fast asleep with his face buried into her shoulder, arms tight around her, tail just loosely hanging out from under her arm. He looked more like a lost toddler than anything, and Shanon just held him like he was her little son, and not the tallest toon of the bunch who was always taking care of everyone else instead of them taking care of him. Vee was stunned as she sat on the counter, amazed by her mom magic. Shanon didn't care, she just was making soup.

"Seriously, did all of you work when you looked like you were sick as hell? Seriously?" Shanon asked after making sure Sprout was out cold, and Vee just nodded. Shanon froze, then took a deep breath, shaking her head a little before adjusting Sprout a little. The berry didn't even flinch, he just stayed napping against the first person to tend to him when he was sick.

"I swear if anyone forces any of you to work like this, I'm going to finally loose it. Never letting that happen again... Now... Do you think he'd prefer the fuzzy red blanket or the really soft green one that feels like a cloud?" She asked, making Vee smile.

"The warm blue one, he likes feeling warm."

"I forgot we had that one, I'll get it."

Within the hour, Sprout was a bundle of blankets on the couch, cradled in Shanon's lap and being loved on by the human. Vee was loafed on their laps, purring and vibrating gently, like a real cat would be. Shelly had put her favorite dinosaur plushies around him and was currently sewing a new one- a strawberry themed stegosaurus- just for him. Sprout was asleep, full of soup and motherly love, fully resting with his arms loosely around Shanon and his head rested on her shoulder. He may never understand what all happened that day, but he was honestly quite cozy anyways. They were all like that for hours, just silently close together, all watching Sprout's every move to make sure he was okay. Vee often sitting up and wiping his face off of sweat, Shelly bringing Shanon cups of tea to make sure she was hydrated. They took care of each other now...

Until they all ended up falling asleep too, all being found in a big sleepy cuddle pile when Sam inevitably came over with Cosmo to find out where Sprout even was. He was still snug against Shanon, but by that point, she was cuddling him back with her head resting against him too. Vee was a puddle of love, melted on Sprout's lap, purring up a storm. Shelly was a little dinosaur ball on the other side, one hand clinging to her mom's shirt, the other was being sleep nibbled on by the fossil. Sam was stunned by the sight, having absolutely no words to explain any of their emotions at what they were witnessing. They just took a picture on their phone, then chuckled and patted Cosmo's head.

"I guess he's well rested, isn't he?"

"Yeah... Should we just... Let him sleep here tonight..?" Cosmo asked softly, and Sam just nodded.

"Go on and get cozy, I'm going back home. Goodnight." Sam casually replied, walking out like they weren't just stunned by the sight of the cuddle pile. Cosmo just stood there and stared, having no idea what to do, until he walked over and carefully sat down beside Shelly, as she woke up just to cuddle with him and get cozy, then fall asleep again. Cosmo giggled before he got comfortable, holding one of his best friends close as he stayed up and just watched the dinosaur documentary that was on the TV. He eventually did fall asleep in the pile though, and they did get a nice Polaroid picture of them all sleeping together. Just- it wasn't from Shanon this time. It was their favorite little theif, Gi, who took it. Instead of stealing the camera though, she just put it on the coffee table and put the picture of them all sleeping on the fridge, then left out of the kitchen window silently.

She committed chocolate theft from three different gas stations that night.

But at least Sprout got to rest through his cold... Right?

[timenvoy]

[ZIP-WIRE] - The newest advancement in outdoors-y tech, someone’s rigged up the very first two-seater harness. Ever wanted to go careening over the forest with nothing but a line of rope and a stranger to hold? There’s never a better time than now.

Escaping the noise of the city and its resort, the Wanderer felt most at home in the wilderness. Under the cover of the woods, his run-ins with obnoxious humans were few and far between, though one time he spooked some campers in the middle of the night. What did they call him, again? Some sort of stupid name, not worth remembering… "Large leg?"

When he heard screams from a distant cliffside, he thought someone else might have suffered the same fate. His morbid curiosity led him to the zip line; seeing that the cause for terror was something so mundane curbed his enthusiasm. Humans sure love scaring themselves over nothing…and what's with the double-rider setup?!

He sat in a nearby tree, silently watching guests pass by. There was entertainment value in the horrified looks on riders' faces, though many chickened out, and others still were up here hunting for the "large leg" instead. It quickly became tiresome.

The Wanderer was just thinking of leaving when a certain green-eyed face came into view on the trail. Huh. As Sethos neared his perch, he couldn't resist a taunt, eyes gleaming from behind the leaves. "Well, well, if it isn't a certain flightless insect. Don't tell me you're here to take to the skies with this ridiculous contraption--gliding would be easier. For some reason, it requires two people…"

A disgruntled pause, then a realization. "--And don't expect me to join you! I already have a better way down."

After what felt like an odyssey in search of a creature he wasn't even sure it was real or not at this point, Sethos had decided to take a well-deserved break from all of the madness he had encountered in recent days. The resort had been his first stop, Choca Beach his second, and now his comeback to the Bigshell Eco Park for redemption. Hopefully, with no unwanted surprises along the way. . . right ?

His peace lasted for half an hour as it didn't take him long to hear screams from afar. Was this place cursed or was this sheer misfortune finally catching up to him ? Whatever it was, he couldn't turn his gaze away from it. His own constitution forbade him from ignoring it, and so the desert dweller went to check things out. At first, his mind returned back to the monster in question, another possible encounter that would roll in motion another investigation. However, once the brunette drew closer, what he found was nothing like the monster he had imagined.

As it turned out, the screams he'd heard came from the fear and thrill of those riding the newest zip wire. An activity he had noticed during his first visit to the area, though at the time, it hadn’t caught his interest.... until now.

Wasn't it interesting ? A new method to explore this eccentric place. Sure, gliding would be easier, perhaps even faster. Nevertheless, it wasn't about the speed it possessed but about the fun it gave them. And what could be a very effective way to spot Largeankle. He could give it a try, actually, he will give it a try ! Gotta enjoy what this place could offer for once.

Approaching the trail got him right to the instructors and those who awaited for their name to be called. Getting a turn was the easy part, getting a partner might be the hardest as this activity was meant to be conquered by two individuals. Sethos could ask anyone, his friendliness paired up perfectly with his charisma. And truth to be told, he would have done so if A CERTAIN SOMEONE hadn't called out for his attention.

That familiar tone of voice made him perk up as that taunt so peculiar of his got him shifting his gaze right where the puppet sat. ❝ As perceptive as always, hat guy. ❞ An eyebrow raises just as a smile, running into a friend was always a welcoming surprise despite being called a flightless insect along the way. ❝ Actually, I am. It looks fun ! Might be the only chance I get on these vacations so why not ? Plus, now that I know you're here I can rest easy knowing that if this thing fails, someone will catch right on time. ❞ Hands set on his hips, a laugh comes out to ease the mood. Wanderer keeps talking and Sethos keeps hearing, it's then that he's reminded of an essential he's still missing; "it requires two people", wanderer had said, not knowing what this had provoked. A domino effect that ends on his own doom.

Realization struck like a spotlight clicking above his head, his eyes sparkled and his mouth opened eagerly. WELL, WELL, WELL.

❝ Was that your subtle way of asking if you could join me ~ ? ❞ It wasn't, IT WASN'T. But there's no way he was letting go of this chance when the solution to his problem was sitting right in front of him. ❝ Haha, you don't have to play hard to get ! C'mon, get down from that tree and join me already. ❞ Wanderer's biggest mistake was opening his mouth and he now had to pay for it. ❝ Or don't tell me you're afraid of heights ? If that's the problem, I promise I won't tell your classmates. ❞ Oh he knew the wanderer was everything less afraid of heights but this tease of his is part of a not very convincing plan to get him to accept once and for all. An innocent grin pairs up with his words. ❝ Don't worry, if you're actually afraid I can ask someone else. ❞ And now, we wait for the cat to fall on the trap.

[boygiwrites]

Harley D. Dixon 5

An amazing edit inspired by this story! (Cred to Cora_Line99) Harley D. Dixon's Pinterest Board! Harley D. Dixon's Playlist!

📖Chapter List.

Author's Note. This is our CDC chapter, so TW for mention of suicide in this one. It's a little graphic.

And it might be better to go in blind, but if you'd like the second TW, please check the first tag on this post.

Other than that, please enjoy reading!

Glenn exhales, "Would you look at that?"

The sun is rising.

Last night I was a dying dog and today I am Harley Dixon.

Me, Dad and Glenn are on the roof of the parked RV, watching the sky give birth to the sun, knowing that I got hundreds more sunrises waiting for me; that the worst is over, like Rick said. The morning is as fresh as peeled summer fruit, and it's all ours. I'm reminded of special breakfasts on our old porch, where my Uncle Merle and my Dad would be scooping burnt scrambled eggs into their mouths, and I'd be in Dad's lap, sipping on a box of orange juice. We had them whenever I won an award at school. I feel like I've won every award in the world.

Glenn is the one sitting next to us, now, in this new version of day-break. He fills the outline of where a ghost of a brother and an Uncle used to be. We're sharing a secret bag of old freeze-dried cherries, while everyone else sleeps. They're a small luxury, like the sun. We can make happiness out of anything.

It all feels right.

"One hundred percent mold free, this time. I swear," Glenn says, ripping the bag open and pouring me the first cherries.

"They better be," Dad jokes. "First time was free."

"Next time, you'll beat my ass?" Glenn guesses.

He looks like he's realizing his legacy is always gonna be the guy who can't make jerky.

"Damn straight."

We knock our plastic bowls together, smiling.

"To Harley."

"To Harley."

"To me!"

"What a mess this whole thing was." Glenn shakes his head, chewing. "I know I already said it, but... I'm really sorry."

"Ain't your fault you can't cook." I giggle.

"Gee, thanks." He laughs. "I guess I deserve that."

"Just learn to salt the damn meat, China." Dad says. "Then we can talk."

"Okay, okay, okay." Glenn puts his hands up, but he's still grinning. "I suck at cooking. I get it. Are Dixons always this mean?"

Me and my Daddy answer, yes, at the same time.

"Good to know." Mumbles Glenn.

"The night I got scratched," I muse, my fingers painted with crayon-red cherry juice. "You was the first person after my Dad to reach the tent."

I remember people saying that Glenn could outrun a cheetah if there were enough supplies behind the finish line. The thought makes me laugh again. When you ain't big, you gotta find other ways to elbow your way through danger. Sometimes a good brain and better legs are all you need. Sometimes people like me and Glenn get to win, too.

"I guess so." Glenn's smiling shyly. "But only because Rick was too busy reloading. And Shane was up the back. And, well, I guess— When we first got back to camp, people were saying that you were gone. That you were missing, or dead, or— We didn't know. Your Dad, he just took off into the woods. Just, vroom, y'know? Like, gone. I thought if I was gonna be like anyone, it should be him. So, I went running, too."

Dad leans over and grips Glenn's shoulder; shakes it. A gesture that says, Man to man, I respect you. Maybe even, Brother to brother.

It takes a lot to earn my Dad's respect, if you ain't his blood.

"You all looked like you was boutta faint." I snicker, 'cause it's funny now.

"W-we all thought it was too late." Glenn tries to laugh. It's been hard, I guess, bottling up that night until now. "When we first saw the tent."

I see flashes of wet eyes, and teeth, and spiders.

"I did too," I confess.

My Dad turns me around in his lap, then, and bounces his knee a little. "But I woulda never let that happen, chicken, y'hear? And I ain't never gonna let that happen. I'd have to be dead, 'fore a walker laid his hands on you." He frowns, looking me dead in the eye.

"I hear." I nod. "It was just really scary."

"C'mere, babe."

He pulls me down to his chest — his heart — and I curl up there, where I know nothin' will ever get me.

"For the record, I was about to faint." Glenn mutters.

I throw a cherry at him and he dodges it, grinning.

"I knew it!"

We all sit like this for a long while, with the sun and the rustling wheat as our friends, snacking on our sour fruit. Then they start talking again, a notch deeper, a notch outta my league. Adult to adult. I realize they must think I'm asleep — It is the ass-crack of dawn, after all — so I don't interrupt.

"I didn't mean it like that, you know." Glenn tells my Dad. "You can protect your own. I get that."

"Don't tell me what I already know, kid."

"I just..." Glenn starts, but then there's nothing.

In this long moment, I think Glenn is going to leave down the ladder, 'cause it's what anyone else would do.

People like me and my Dad — People who hoard supermarket coupons, and talk real nasty, and get called hillbillies — don't mix well with people like Glenn. People pretend there isn't, but there's an invisible cut-off on who deserves what in life, and it ends right after people who only gotta work one job. Glenn's smart, and he prolly ain't never had to go hungry to pay his water bills, not once in his life. He prolly ain't never been to jail, or snapped a squirrel's neck, or re-used the same bottle of hand soap forty times over. He's like the rest of 'em. Rick and Lori. Shane. The kids in my old classes. Their parents on parent-night. We can work well together but anything else is askin' too much.

But we're family now, right? I think Glenn might leave, but—

"Well, for what it's worth, I couldn't do it." Is all Glenn says.

He doesn't leave. In fact, I hear him settling further into his chair. It's what Uncle Merle would have done.

My Dad pauses. "Do what?"

"Look over my shoulder all the time. Worry about someone else every time I hear a gunshot. Walk around knowing I have that much to lose." Glenn sounds lost in thought, but then he surfaces. He ends his list with a simple, "Be a parent."

My Dad sighs, debating whether or not to go along with this.

"That ain't all there is to it." He eventually says.

"No?"

"Nah. It ain't some curse." Dad says. "I hear a gunshot? Sure, first thing I'm thinkin' 'bout is Harley. But that's the way it's meant to be."

"I just don't think I'd be able to handle it." I imagine Glenn gazing out at the sky. "These past few days have been stressful enough."

"Yeah, well that's why I got a kid 'n you don't." Dad's being a bit of a smart-ass. Then, he answers seriously. "You got a kid? You gotta be ready to die for 'em. But it ain't just sittin' around, waitin' to do it. It's the opposite. Every day I wake up, and I do it for her. I do everythin' I do for her. After that baby's born, who you were, what you liked doin', any plans you had — That's over. Suddenly, yer life ain't the most important thing you got, no more."

I've never heard my Dad talk like this. I wish our lives were worth the same, but I guess it don't work that way.

"And who were you?" Glenn asks, knocking back a cherry. "Before Harley?"

"A nobody. Drunk bastard with drunk-bastard friends." Dad scoffs.

"Well... That's good, then?" Glenn's guessing. "Sounds like she changed you for the better, man."

I can't imagine my Dad being anybody other than my Dad. The day I came into the world, so did he. There's nothin' before that.

"It's hard." Dad admits, prolly for the first time ever, to Glenn. "I love 'er, but it's hard as shit. Some days I wanna pull my damn hair out."

"You must have been going crazy during... everything."

"Oh, you think?" Dad jokes. "You ain't seen me fuck up that walkie?"

Glenn bursts out laughing. "It hit the RV when you threw it out the window. Scared the shit out of Dale."

I have to try really hard not to laugh. I'm meant to be pretend-asleep!

"You got any nieces, or anythin'?" Dad asks.

"No." Glenn answers. "My sisters were either too interested in their careers to have kids, or... Too young."

Glenn's sisters aren't here. Blood does everything it can to stay together. Dad taught me that. That means his sisters are both young and dead.

"That's gotta be tough, man." Dad sighs.

"No, it's alright. Sometimes I can pretend they're out there, together. Happy." He pauses. "What about you? Nieces? Nephews?"

Dad actually laughs a little. "Fuck no. Not from my side, at least. Guy like my brother ain't meant to spread his seed around. Ain't right."

Glenn starts laughing, too. "I guess not."

"Nah, Harley's my only girl." My Dad says. I feel him start playing with the end of my ponytail.

"You know, when you first showed up in camp, I thought she was Merle's." Glenn says, then quickly, "No offence."

"No shit?" Dad scoffs.

"No shit. I thought you looked too young to have a kid."

An unspoken joke makes them both laugh all over again.

"Yeah, well, I was real busy in my teen years."

I got no idea what that means, but it must be funny. Their conversation tapers from chuckling into a warm silence, and then it's just us and the sun again. It clips over a candy-colored cloud, and I can hear car doors opening and shutting, and loud yawns from down below. We're gonna be on the road again soon. I might not need a cure anymore, but we still need water, food, and walls, and the CDC's got it all. I hear someone shouting, alright, people, time to start heading out, and then a whole bunch of shuffling. The day isn't just ours, anymore.

My Dad stretches, groaning, and I pretend to be woken up by it.

He pinches my cheek. "Look who's here."

"Hey, Harley." Glenn smiles, packing up. "You enjoy the cherries?"

"Uh-huh," I smile back. "Thank you."

"No problem." He says. "There's actually some left over, if you want it."

He holds out the bag while I dig my hand into it.

I think it's funny how me, the man who made me, and the man who almost killed me are all friends, now. I learnt in science class that the more pressure you put on a rock, the more compact the molecules get. I think we're the molecules. It's bittersweet.

"Not too many." Dad warns. "You're still sick, remember? Don't want you messin' up my truck again."

"I remember," I promise, shoving a handful of cherries into my mouth. I also remember him sayin' he don't give a damn 'bout the truck.

Someone shouts out the radio channel again.

"Time to see this thing through, then." Rallies Glenn, but he looks nervous.

We say goodbye to the sunrise.

"Dad, is that—?"

"That's the CDC, alright."

We reach it by early morning. It's a monster of a building. It's like a big, white buoy in the middle of the ocean, saying, Come here, I'll keep you afloat. We ease to a stop and then we just look at it, 'cause it's all we can do. The CDC, right before our eyes. It's really there.

"It's bigger than I thought." I think aloud.

Dad just grunts, wary. "Stay close to me."

Our new walkie chimes, and Rick speaks to everyone when he says, "This is it, people. Leave your things. We're gonna walk up."

Why does the air feel so cold?

My Dad pulls both me and his crossbow out the truck, and then the whole group — one tired, beaten, hopeful force — are slowly making our way to the building. We walk through a silent field. I wish it could speak to us; tell us what it's been through.

We pass torn bags of sand and littered bullet shells. I think there's something here that we're not seeing, not yet, like a sleeping beast at the back of a cave, and when we find it, we're gonna be sorry we ever looked. We weave through big, black piles of clothes. The clothes are full, I realize. Full of hands, and legs; all white, all dead. They're bodies. They still have their human faces; they're still them, just dead, and they're studded with the bullets that the shells came from. The story tells itself, on behalf of the ghosts. They give their blood back to mother nature, dripping into the grass. I gasp. From head to toe, I go cold. My Dad shields my face, but I've already seen 'em. They're already nightmares.

Rick leads us. He leads us past trucks and barriers and blockades. Every sign the universe gives him to turn back, he ploughs through, chin up.

Maybe he's brave. Maybe he's stupid. Maybe he was designed to be both. Maybe we're walking to our deaths.

Nobody speaks. If they do, the bodies might wake up, and the graveyard we're intruding on will realize it doesn't want us here.

A crow squawks from its post on a dead soldier's helmet. If I spoke bird, I'd hear, Turn back.

We have to do this. It's what everyone's thinking, as they manage one foot in front of the other. Just one more step, and after that, just one more step. I take in the group, 'cause they ain't dead, and it's a little less awful to look at.

Morales, rifle up. Eliza, Louis and Sophia, three baby ducklings under their Mommas' shaking wings. Dale and Shane, polar opposites but in this moment, exactly the same; with their steely gaze and steady hands. Jacqui and Andrea, holding hands; two girls in women's bodies, walking through a world that wants to eat them. I catch Carl's eye. He catches mine, over the violence spread out before us. I watch him send me a thumbs up, which does nothing but turn me colder — colder than ice, colder than I've ever been — before my view is blocked for a second time, by Glenn. I'm sandwiched in; hidden, protected. I squeeze my eyes shut and hope I'll get to open them again. My Dad leads me by the shirt over the grass. I trust him.

My shoes hit something tougher, louder — Cement. Rock? Our footsteps echo, now. Are we really in a cave?

It goes double-dark, through my eyelids. Please don't leave us, I beg the sun nicely, We need you.

I squeeze my Dad's hand. He squeezes back.

Then I hear a rumble, like thunder, and I peek out from behind my Dad. It's Rick, banging on roller shutters. We all clench closer together, a fist ready to fight. Nobody does it on purpose, but me and all the other kids are pushed toward the middle. Rumble, rumble, rumble. Rick goes from one door to another to another, until he's shook down the entire row.

Guns are raised. We step back, together.

It's like knockin' on doors on Halloween. We don't know what creature's gonna answer. Maybe nobody.

"Anybody home?" Glenn mutters.

We stretch our silence for as long as we can stand it. There is no answer.

Newly determined, or maybe offended, or scared, or maybe all three, Rick beats down all the doors again like he hates 'em.

"Hey!" He calls out. "Whoever's in there, open up!"

"Nobody's here, man!" T-Dog shakes his head, but he ain't got no proof.

"Then tell me why you think all the damn shutters are down?" Rick snarls, and it's like we're in the parking lot again, and I'm scared.

And I should be.

"Walkers incoming!" Shane shouts.

Suddenly, my Dad and Glenn are whirling the other way, facing our new enemy. I grab onto the back of Dad's belt, and when I peer out between their elbows, I see one, two, six, twelve dead bodies lumbering to their feet, all dressed in military green, and dented helmets, and layers and layers of crusty black blood and loose skin. The other kids start to cry, but not me. I can't cry, 'cause I can't breathe. I hear a slicing fwip, and then one of the dead soldiers drop to the ground like the only thing holding him up were strings. An arrow marks his second deathbed.

"We can't fuckin' stay here, Rick!" My Dad's yelling. "You led us into a death-trap!"

I'm grabbing onto the back of Glenn's shirt, now, 'cause my Dad's stomping off to confront Rick and Shane. I hide my nose in my knuckles. Death-trap, I'm panicking, Death-trap. A week ago, I'd be standing here alone, but I got Glenn now. I don't know how I know that, but I do. I got Glenn.

"Glenn, I'm scared." I whine to him, and there it is, I'm crying. I think of happier things, like cherries and the sun.

"I— I know." Glenn puffs, 'cause he's scared, too. "I know."

He lets me grab his hand. It's what Uncle Merle would have done.

"Death trap or not, we're here for a reason!" Dale's arguing. "Rick made a call! We all did!"

"You want us to phase through the fuckin' doors, old man?" Dad spits. "We're stuck out here! My daughter's stuck out here!"

"Running out of time here, guys!" Jacqui's worrying.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Are those gunshots, now? Bullets are last resorts. Last resorts are only for when you're gonna die. Are we gonna—?

"Are we gonna die, Glenn?"

"No." He hurries to answer, gripping me tighter. "N—No."

"We need to leave!" A woman — Carol? — cries.

"She's right." Lori. That's Lori. "This close to the city? It's too dangerous!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Fort Benning." Shane looks like he's 'bout ready to bolt, bouncin' from foot to foot. A trapped animal. "We can do it. It's still an option, Rick."

"Is it?" Glenn's shouting. "It's a hundred twenty-five miles away!"

"No fuel? Two sick kids?" Morales is shakin' his head, no, no, no. "It's impossible!"

What do we do? No, no, no. We can't leave, but no, no, no, we can't stay, neither.

"What do you wanna do, then?" Shane argues back. "What you wanna do?"

"That's it! We're done here!"

My Dad shuts the whole thing down with one angry shout, locking his hand around my wrist. He tugs me away, and for a moment, the group is tugging itself along behind us, back to the street and the cars. We're a unit again — in the wind, goin' anywhere; scared, flimsy. We take one step, and then two, and we make it all the way back to the grass, before—

"Wait!"

It's Rick.

He ain't budged. Brave or stupid? Is he nuts?

"The camera." He tells us, breathless. "It moved."

All three.

"You imagined it." Dale decides, 'cause he'll say anything to get Rick to move. "How could it have moved?"

It's a lost cause — a last-ditch attempt.

The arguing re-ignites. I hide myself again, 'cause I'd rather be anywhere else.

Rick's shouting that he saw it, he saw the camera move, and his voice hits the concrete and closes in on us, just like the field. Fwip. Bang. Bang. Bang. Each burst of noise is a ticking hand on a dyin' clock. The bodies are picking themselves up faster than we're dropping 'em. Glenn's got a knife out, now, and Shane's pleading with Rick, who's gone nuts, Man, listen, the place is gone, it's gone, it's gone, it's gone. Rumble, rumble, rumble. Fwip. Bang. Crying; shrieking, from me, from the other kids, from Lori, and Jacqui, and the air as it's cut in half by bullet after bullet after bullet. Please, we have two sick kids out here, someone's begging.

"You're killing us!" Rick tells the camera. "You're killing us!"

My Dad fists the back of my shirt and he's pullin' me away, stronger than before. I think he's saying, Fuck it, we can make it on our own; leave the bastard. This must really be rock bottom. We were on our own for weeks. He must be thinking that we can do it again. I can see Glenn struggling to decide whether he should stay with the group or follow his feet, which are already trying to run after me and my Dad. I see Jacqui doin' it, too, and then Andrea, and then Carol.

A body topples over in our path, arrow up its nose. This is chaos.

Cherries and sunlight. Cherries and sunlight.

Then—

Behind us.

A gentle rumble, rumble.

We all whip around.

The doors — They're opening. They really are.

Even Rick looks like he can't believe it. We watch them open, mouths agape, like a bunch of idiots — A portal, to another world.

At first, we think there's a catch. Nothing comes without a catch. Do we go in?

But then there's another bang, and we're reminded that we're as good as dead if we stay out here any longer. We're on the move again, but this time, we're walking into the big, white mouth of the big, white monster, praying, Please don't be worse than it is out here, please don't make us regret this. We stay close together as the doors roll back down, sealing us in. We can breathe again, but only slightly. Would I rather take my chances with the dead soldiers, or with the unknown? I'm not sure. Now it's really happening, I don't think any of us are.

"Electricity." Jacqui whispers in cautious wonder. Electricity is like a myth.

Rick nods toward an archway. "Let's keep moving."

We trickle into the belly of the beast — Down a hallway, and into a lobby with the tallest damn ceiling I ever saw. Papers are thrown all over the floor and the computers at the reception desk are all upturned, but it's pin-drop silent. It's like being in a museum for an old extinction event.

"Hello?" Rick calls out, and if there's a scary creature in here, I sure hope it eats him first. "Who's in here? Who opened the doors?"

The silence answers.

"I did."

I jump outta my skin. Dad gets himself in front of me, but I peek around his waist. There's a man at the top of the stairs. He looks like he's been here for a long, long time. Like those lonely boys in Lord of the Flies, where they'd been on an island for so long that they started going a little crazy. He's wearing a regular t-shirt. I wonder where his lab coat is, if he's a scientist. This is a building for scientists.

"What did you mean by 'sick'?" The lonely-crazy-man calls down to us. "You said you had two sick kids. Is anybody infected?"

The whole group hardens at this question. They all glance back at me. I can see our journey in their eyes.

Rick's smiling, and this time, it looks right.

"You don't know the half of it." He turns back around, chin up, like always. "No. Nobody's infected. Thank God."

Dad puts a hand my shoulder.

The scientist doesn't share the same enthusiasm.

"I'm not sure He's around, anymore." He muses, vaguely sad. Then, "Why are you here? What do you want?"

I've never been good at words, but Rick is, 'cause he comes up with the perfect answer. One he knows we'd all agree on.

"A chance."

And maybe some water. After all we been through, that can't be too much to ask. We must look like a pathetic, begging mess, 'cause that's what we are. I know I am. My hair's made outta knots and grease, just like Lori and Andrea's. We're covered in beatings from the road, like bruises from Jim's fists and eyebags from sleepless nights. We left our quarry for this. We left our fish, and our tyre swing, and we left Jim. This can't be for nothing.

The man, who stands high above us, a judging eye, takes us in. "That's asking an awful lot, these days."

All Rick can say is, "I know," and pray it works.

I think of wet eyes, teeth, and spiders while we wait for his decision.

"You'll submit to a blood test." The scientist tells us. "That's the price of admission."

A breath leaves us all.

"We can—" Rick's nodding. "We can manage that."

That's it? A blood test?

I find myself grinning, and I tug on my Dad's hand. We look at each other. He's smiling, too, just a little. We all are. The scientist doesn't know it, but he's just saved our lives. We're tired and we're dirty and we've been through Hell these past couple days, but a blood test — We can manage that. We can manage anything.

"I left one door open. If you have stuff to bring in, do it now." He says, from his perch. "Once these doors shut, they don't open."

We tell him we understand.

This place is like a magical castle.

After we give up our blood, the scientist takes us on a tour. 

Jacqui was right. We got electricity. But apparently, we also got hot water.

If electricity's a myth, then hot water is a damn hoax. I can't wait to have a shower tonight. I used to hate showers, but that's just one of them things now that I can't believe I ever hated, like spinach. I been so hungry before that I'd dream about spinach. Glenn and Lori groan like they've bitten into a big, juicy steak when they hear 'bout the showers, and we all laugh. When I ask him, the scientist says that he isn't wearing his lab coat because he only wears it to make himself look cool. He says that now that we're here, he'll have to put it back on. It makes me giggle.

I run ahead with the other kids, and we all reach a long line of doors, where the scientist says we'll be staying.

The tour is complete!

We all pick rooms to stay in and then we unpack, like we're in a hotel, and it's exciting. None of us have been to a hotel in years.

"Hey, Harley!" Sophia pops her head out the next room over, holding a bar of soap. "Look! Soap!"

I hold out mine. "I got one, too!"

Behind Sophia, Carl pops his head out. "Me too!"

And behind him, like two little owls, Eliza and Louis appear. "Us, too!"

We dash back into our rooms. Me and my Dad's room got two double beds, and I ain't never had a double bed before, so I climb on it, and I jump up and down to test it out. It don't even squeak or nothin'. Dad watches me from where he's emptying one of our back packs.

As I try touch the ceiling, I tell him, "This place is awesome!"

"Harley, come down from there 'fore you crack yer head open." He orders, like a party-pooper.

I do what he says, 'cause I don't wanna ruin the day by getting spanked. "I'm gonna have a real-life shower."

"That's right." He shakes out the yellow shirt with the dinosaurs on it. He chucks it at my head, smirking. "Get ready, then."

I grab the brush that Sophia's letting me use first and a pair of purple pyjama pants from my Dad. I take myself into the bathroom. At first, the water's like straight lava on my skin, and I yelp. Dad asks if I'm alright, and then he comes in to fix the water for me. The lava settles back down, and I scrub and wash and sud myself up until I'm almost as red as a lobster. It's the best shower I've ever had. I was getting so sick of using baby wipes and river water to wash myself. When I step out of the real-life shower, the whole room is steamed up. I draw a smiley face into the mirror just 'cause I can, and then I brush out all my hair. I smell like strawberries. I dress in my cozy pyjamas and socks.

When I come out, my Dad re-does my buttons, 'cause apparently I did 'em all wrong. I stand between his knees while he re-orders 'em.

"He said there's a games room here." I smile.

"Maybe you can scope it out after dinner." Dad says. "You gotta be hungry by now, right?"

"Oh, I forgot 'bout dinner!" There's just too many wonders to keep track of in this place! "We gotta hurry!"

My Dad loops the last button.

"Come on, come on, come on!" I nag, pulling him off the bed and out the door.

"Damn." He chuckles. "People are gonna start thinkin' I ain't feedin' you."

"I bet there's gonna be steak!"

This is the best day ever.

We reach the CDC's little cafeteria, which is in total darkness to save energy, except for a spotlight above the biggest table. Makes it feel even more special. I hear clinking forks and plates, and I think these are the two happiest days I've ever had. Me and Dad take seats next to Carol and Sophia. As potato salad — Yes, potato salad. That's almost as good as soap — and greens and meat get passed around, I'm reminded of our fish fry. My Dad is here with me to enjoy it this time, and there are walls to protect us, instead of trees. We're clean. We're safe. We're alive.

"Just tell me when." Carol tells T-Dog as she pours him some wine, while everyone is getting settled in at the table.

Carol pours for a long time and T-Dog does not say when.

People start laughing.

T-Dog gives in and goes, "Okay, when, when, when."

"Thought I was gonna be there all night." Carol scoff-chuckles, sitting back down.

When I look around, I see one big family having dinner together, and I see people I'd almost forgotten about under all that dirt.

"Hey, after the past few days we've had, I think we deserve it." Rick's smiling, holding up his hands.

"I'll say." Lori snickers.

Dale suddenly stands, glass in hand. "How about we dedicate this meal to Harley?"

Rick puts down his napkin. "I think that's a perfect idea."

I giggle under all the attention as everyone rushes to agree, finding their glasses. I hide my face behind my Dad's arm. He peels himself away, smirking, and everyone's got something to say about my red face when I'm no longer hidden. I smack Carl when he tells me I look like a tomato, and everyone's doubled over with laughter, again. It's my favorite sound ever, I decide.

Before we can toast, my Dad butts in.

"Hang on. Old man, how's about that watch you carry around?" He asks. "It got a date on it?"

"I wish," Dale smiles, "But the battery died yesterday. Why? Is there something I'm missing?"

"I reckon it's almost July, right?" Dad looks around.

Is he gonna say what I think he's gonna say?

I start grinning.

Rick nods, "I reckon so. It's probably been about a month since everything went down."

"Harley was born in July. Twenty-second. Eight years ago. Ain't that right?" Dad ruffles my hair, and I giggle, 'cause I'm just so full of happiness that I feel like I'll never be anything else again. He raises his glass; wraps a hand around my shoulders. "Close enough, am I right?"

"Absolutely, that's close enough!" Lori shouts, clapping her hands; rushing for her glass. "My God, this is perfect!"

"We got ourselves a birthday dinner, here, people!" T-Dog whoops, raising his, too.

Rick lifts his glass above his head, and it's official. "To the birthday girl!"

"To the birthday girl!"

Clink, clink, clink.

More cheering. Two toasts in one day. I must be the luckiest girl in the whole, wide world. I bump my glass of water into Dad's glass on my right, and Sophia's on my left. After the scare with the scratches, this celebration means ten times more than a regular birthday would. There's no cake here, or number-candles, but I don't need any of that to make this moment special. I got Glenn singing an off-key Happy Birthday, and I got Jacqui giggling, God, shut that boy up, and I got Sophia hugging me, and I got another year and a whole lotta more days I get to live, with everyone at this table; with my Dad. And when Rick leans over the table, I even let him give me a high-five!

"Eight." Rick raises his eyebrows at me while he sits back down, pointing at me. "Almost double digits."

"You're almost my age!" Grins Carl.

"Good luck." Lori dramatically whispers to my Dad.

He gives me a look. "Listen to me, you ain't allowed to grow any more after this, okay?"

I can't help if I grow!

"Okay, Dad." I laugh. "I promise to be eight forever."

"Good girl." He says, gulping down more wine.

"Hold up." T-Dog sticks his palm out. "This is a birthday party. You know what that means, right? We need to hear at least one embarrassing story."

"Good idea." Jacqui gasps.

Dad makes a big show of scoffing. "Damn, which one you want? I got thousands."

What a traitor!

"I mean, we have all night, here." Shane shrugs, grinning like a little smart-ass. "I'm up for a story-time. How 'bout y'all?"

"Let's hear it," Morales gestures at my Dad.

"Alright." Dad sits back in his chair, crossing his arms. I try leaning over to cover his mouth, but he bats me away, and everyone is already laughing and the story ain't even started yet. "How 'bout— Okay. Okay. Damn, this is a good one. 'Bout when she was five, we bought Harley this skateboard—" Everybody's going, Oh God, 'cause they see where this is going. "Uh-huh. We took 'er down to the skatepark near our house, and there was a bunch of other lil' kids there — 'bout her age — and I'on know how she did it, but these kids were all convinced she was this master skater who was gonna show 'em how it's done. She was coachin' 'em, I think. Showin' off her new board. End of the day, she finally goes to show 'em a trick — 'Member, first day at this damn park — and everyone's watching and—" He claps his hands, smack. "Falls flat on 'er fuckin' face, in front of all of 'em."

Ugh, why'd he have to go and tell that story?

Rick covers his mouth 'cause he's trying not to laugh, 'cause I guess he values whatever dignity I got left but Shane, he's clappin' and trying not to spit his food out, 'cause he's actually a big smart-ass. I'm laughing behind my hands, like Sophia. Glenn's resting his forehead on the table, and he's shakin', so I guess he's laughing, too. When he sits upright, he's crying, and Jacqui's gotta beat his back 'cause he's choking a little bit.

"I'm alri—" He coughs. Then he keeps laughin', which makes it worse. "I'm alright."

"Hey, I ain't even fall that bad!" I defend myself.

He chugs Jacqui's water to save himself.

"Wait—" Lori's chuckling. "Five years old?"

"Yep," Dad goes back to eating. He's satisfied with the damage he's done.

"Pretty brave for that age." Lori tells me, putting on an I'm impressed face.

"Damn, that's pretty bad." T-Dog's shaking his head. "Sorry, girl, but I'm glad I asked, 'cause shit!"

"Leave the poor girl alone." Carol giggles, quietly.

Shane looks off into the darkness, pretending there's a crowd. "Anybody got a skateboard?"

"Oh, shut up." Andrea smiles. "Settle down, or Lori's gonna have to pull that photo out."

"May I ask a question?"

We're all so isolated in this pocket of happiness, celebrating the end of our troubles, that when the scientist speaks, I think we're all a little spooked. Smiles freeze and fade. Glasses lower. Heads turn. We're not the only people in the world, we're all realizing. We'd forgotten all about the reason we came here. That's what potato salad does to people, I guess.

The conversation dies off like a guillotine sliced it in half.

"What were you going to toast to?" The scientist asks, and his voice is like a soft, chilly breeze in a forest. I'm not even sure he was sitting there the whole time. Maybe he's supernatural, and he teleported. That makes me scared. "Before you figured out it was her birthday?"

And just like that, the dinner turns awkward. 

Rick clears his throat. "Well, if I'm being completely honest, here, Harley is the reason we came out to the city in the first place. I know I told you that nobody here was infected, but there were a couple days where... we weren't sure. Harley got scratched. We left looking for a cure."

The scientist's eyes roam over to my face, but then they don't leave.

"Now we're on the subject," Shane decides to break the silence, frowning, "How about you tell us what exactly happened here, doc?"

Rick mutters, "We don't have to do this right now, Shane."

"Wait a second." Shane sighs. "You said it yourself, just now. This is why we came all the way out here, right? Figure out what happened? Put all our eggs in one basket, and uh—" He laughs a laugh that tells me nothing is funny here. "Instead we found him. We found one man, talking in riddles. Why is that, you think?"

The scientist tanks the insult. "When things got bad, people just... left, to be with their families. The rest bolted."

I remember just how shocked I was at the size of this building when I first saw it creeping up the windows. It's way too much space for one man. There must have been hundreds of scientists working in here, and now it's just a shell. A cave for a lonely monster.

"Every last one?" Shane whispers, squinting; disbelieving.

The scientist falters, for just a moment, and I can see old pains on his face. "No. Some couldn't face leaving. They... opted out."

The tables goes from quiet to silent. Opted out. I know what that means. It's another one of them things adults say to butter up the truth, and it means killing yourself. I squeak, then, like I've been kicked in the ribs. I hide behind my Dad, who cradles the back of my damp hair, but you can't hide from words once they're in your head. Suicide. Dead, but not an accident — On purpose, with pills, or a gun, or a— a— a bridge. Something snotty gets caught in my throat like a fish-hook, and I'm crying now, at my own birthday dinner. Somebody drops their fork in defeat.

"There was a rash of suicides." Mutters the scientist, immune to his own story; numb. "In a matter of days, I was alone."

"Why didn't you leave?" Asks Andrea.

Carl is crying too, now. I wish I could make him feel better, just for a moment, but I can't.

"I just kept working." Smiles the scientist, but it's not right— It's just muscles, pulling his droopy face upward. "I just wanted to do some good."

Good.

The word reaches up into the ceiling, and leaves us at the bottom, sitting in its echo.

"There is no cure here." The scientist says.

The dinner is over.

Everything comes crashing down as fast as it went flying up.

We were on top of the world just a few hours ago. We were invincible. We had the news that I wasn't going to die in our veins, and then we had hot water and soap and potato salad, and each other. We had hotel rooms and a birthday dinner. But now we just have a dead end and a long list of regrets. There is nothing here for us besides showers, lights, and ghosts. I feel like a trapped animal. I'm a hamster in a maze, going around and around and around, and I can't get out. A rash of suicides. That thing I thought was hiding somewhere, it's this, and it's out, and I'm sorry we ever looked. Please don't let it be worse than it is out here, I remember, Please don't make us regret this.

After what feels like hours, the hallways I'm running down end. I see the game room.

I run inside and corner myself under the table. A cloth hides me from the world outside, and if I pretend hard enough, I can take myself right out of here and into a nice, safe pillow fort, instead. Like the ones I used to make back home. I can be someone else. If I'm in my head, I'm not here.

But then I hear the door open, and it's just a wooden table again, and I'm in the CDC.

"Harley?" It's my Dad, 'cause of course it is. I moan into my hands, crying so hard I'm not getting enough air. "You in here?"

I don't want to be found. I want to be lost.

The cloth lifts.

"Baby, what's wrong?" My Dad asks, but I know he already knows. How could he not know?

There are lots of words that remind me of my Momma, like sunshine, and cigarettes, and the worst — Suicide.

"Get out." I tell him, using my feet to push him away. "Get out."

I should've learnt my lesson back at the quarry, on that night I hit my Dad, but I don't care. I just wanna hurt something. I'm hurting. A rash of suicides. I can't stop hearing it, and I can't stop seeing it — Over and over again, the night on the bridge. Opted out. Suicide. Killing yourself. 

Pills, guns, ropes.

Bridges.

"Baby, I know." Dad's saying, grabbing my kicking feet. "I know. Come out. I don't want you thinkin' 'bout this, so come on out."

"I can't help it!" I sob, 'cause I really can't. Something that is too big for my body is happening to me, and I can't stop it.

"H— I know. Just come out." He's begging, and now he's not just holding my feet, he's pulling 'em; pulling me, out from underneath my hidey hole and into the world, even though I want to stay in here forever. He's trying so hard to bury something that's still alive; something that has teeth and jaws, and is eating me from the inside out. He don't wanna see it, and he don't wanna hear it, and he don't wanna deal with it. I wish he'd curl up in my make-believe pillow fort, and hide from the world with me. I wish he'd understand. "You don't gotta be under there. Come out, right now."

Some days I wanna pull my damn hair out.

He's getting angry again. He's holding himself back from something very nasty that lives inside him.

"No," I'm begging him back; begging him to just listen. "No, I don't wanna come out. I don't wanna—!"

I anchor myself to the table leg. We're an unstoppable force and an immovable object, colliding head on for the first time, ever, and it's a disaster. That night at the quarry was nothing.

Furious, my Dad rips the cloth off the table and boxes of puzzles go toppling over onto the floor, breaking into a million little pieces that used to be happily fused. Newly exposed, he easily ducks under and locks his hand around my wrist. I scream, and I close my eyes so I don't have to see my Daddy like this, 'cause it ain't him anymore. He pries my little fingers off the table, one by one by one, and ow, ow, ow, it really hurts. I'm yanked away, and then he's dragging me out by the ankles, shouting—

"Stop actin' like this. You ain't a baby." I hook myself onto a second leg, and he's wrestling with me all over again. "Stop! Mind yer damn father, girl!"

I'm not a baby, but I wish I was, 'cause we were happy back then.

"Stop!" I sob, kicking at him. "J— Leav— Just leave me alone!"

"I ain't leavin' you alone — You know why?" He's seething down to me. "'Cause you need a damn spanking. That's why."

I think back to an hour ago, when I thought I'd only ever be happy for the rest of my life. What a stupid thing to think.

Don't make it any worse, his voice is warning me, from all the times he's done this before.

But it can't get any worse.

In one big pull of strength, I'm forced out from underneath the table once and for all, where I felt safe and small and alone, into the light of the game room where I feel naked, again, for all to see. My face is raw and wet and hurt, and I think one of my buttons got torn off by my Daddy when he was grabbing for me, even though he was the one to fix them before dinner, and on that night in the RV, to show me he loves me. He yanks me to my feet by the armpits, 'cause I can't stand on my own no more, and he crouches to get in my face.

"This is your last fuckin' chance, and then I'm gonna have to take my belt off." He warns me.

"I miss Momma." I whimper.

His face softens, but it's gone so quick I'm sure I imagined it. "Harley," He grinds out, "Stop this."

"You killed her!" I cry, scared, but braver than I ever been at the same time. "You made Momma kill 'erself! You made 'er jump off that bridge!"

I tried so hard to be like my Daddy, but I can't. I can't hide things like he can.

I don't care if he belts me after. I just want him to know. I want him to know that I know, and that I ain't never gonna forgive him. I'd take a thousand beatings just so I could scream the same thing up at him, until my throat bleeds, until I'm nothin' but a voice, until my Momma comes back. People who kill themselves don't wanna come back, but maybe this time, if I was a good enough girl, she might want to. I'd get on my knees, and I'd beg her, and I'd say, Please Momma, I need you. Please Momma, please. Me and Daddy can't do it on our own. She didn't love my Daddy, and my Daddy hated my Momma. He never said it, but I always knew he did. I saw it when he dropped me off at her house; how he didn't wanna leave me with her. I heard people say my Momma was sick in the brain, and that she was a bad Mom, but I loved her.

My parents might be forever separated, but on my face, they are still together. I got my Daddy's flat mouth and my Momma's green eyes. I am proof that hate can create love. I don't feel so loved right now, though. I feel like I'm nothing. I feel like when my Daddy said he loved me, he was lying.

And there it is, my Daddy's hand going for his belt, 'cause I chose to say the worst thing I could think of.

I don't wanna get beat, but sometimes it don't matter what little girls want.

"I want you to think about the way you're speakin' to me." My Dad, the same one that was crying in my baby photo, shouts in my face. "I don't know why you gotta be like this, Harley. I don't know why you gotta make me do this. You were havin' such a good day."

"I'm sorry—" I'm sayin' now. "I'm sorry, Dad."

"You shoulda thought about that before you started bringing this shit back up again. After this, never again, okay?"

He pulls me down into his chest, yanking the back of my shirt up to the base of my neck. I wait for the whip, and the burning sting afterwards.

I can take it. I'll just close my eyes and wait for it to be over.

But before it can come—

"Woah! Hey!" A man's shout. "Hey, hey! Stop!"

The whip doesn't come. I can catch my breath. 

Under my Dad's arm, the one that's in the air, poised to beat me, I see a man in the doorway. I almost can't make him out, but there he is — It's officer Shane. The room seems to slap him in the face, like he can't believe what he's just walked into. He's scared to step inside, in case the moment breaks and my Dad chooses to beat me, anyway. Shane's a bastard cop, and it's his job to save people. I never thought I'd be needing saved from my Dad. I still don't think I need saving. I brought this on myself. I wish he'd go away, so it could be over with.

My Dad stands up, his whole body clenched with muscle ready to punch.

"I'm gonna ask you put that down, man." This is the first time I'm hearing Shane's police-man voice. "And to step away from her, okay?"

I feel embarrassed.

I'm kneeling on the floor, grabbing onto the side of the sofa, tryna hide myself again. I don't belong here. I don't want Shane to see me like this. I wanna be the little girl he caught frogs with, not a ball of hurt and tears. Suddenly, this isn't a games room anymore. It's a wolf's den, and I got two of 'em right in front of me, circling each other, ready to bite. I scuttle further into the corner, like if I shrink myself enough, I can just disappear into the floor.

"You ain't askin' me shit, officer." Dad whispers, real nasty. "Ain't no rules, no more. Not so tough, now."

"I'm not gonna ask you again, man." Officer Shane warns, stepping very slowly into room.

He moves toward us, inch by inch, like a man inside a lion enclosure.

"You don't gotta." Dad spits. "Door's right there."

"You're hittin' on little girls, now, Daryl." Shane huffs that mean laugh again. "Sorry, buddy, but that's my business. Come on. Step away."

If Shane had his gun in his holster, his hand would be on it. But we left all our weapons in the bedrooms before dinner. He stretches his fingers; tilts his head. I realize he don't need a gun. He's gonna fist-fight my Dad if he don't do what he says. My Dad, sensing this, chucks his belt on top of the broken puzzles, and stretches out his fingers, too. They're one wrong word away from beating each other to a pulp.

I wanna beg 'em to stop, but my voice is burrowed somewhere deep inside my body, and I can't reach it. 

"We don't have to do this, Daryl." Shane's half-way into the room, now. When did he get that close?

"Sure we don't." Dad snarls. "You gonna hit me? Go ahead."

Shane shakes his head. "That's not somethin' I wanna do, man. But you know I will. Step away."

A hiccup I didn't give permission to leave my mouth cuts through the room. Shane glances at me. I don't know who I'm supposed to root for.

"'Step away', huh? Step away from my own daughter?" My Dad scoffs.

Shane glances from me to my Dad, and I can see him start to realize that this angle won't work on my Dad. He holds out his hand. Something about the way he's looking at me is saying, You don't have to be afraid, but I am, and I don't wanna move. I feel like this is my fault. I watch as he flicks his fingers a little, brows raised. "How 'boutchu come over here, Harley, huh?"

Dad blocks me with his body before I can even think about it. "Hey, don't you fuckin' speak to her."

His eyes are back on my Dad. "Just tryna do what's best for everybody, here, Daryl."

My Dad cracks one of his knuckles. "Nah. Nah, I don't think you are. You got it all twisted."

"Don't think I do."

"Yeah?" Dad goads, and every second, I wait for one of them to swing. I can't stand it. "What is it you think you walked in on, then, huh?"

I think my Dad's waiting for the swing, too, 'cause he's so confident that he'll win that he wants officer Shane to try him. He wants to punish him. He wants to show him what happens when you insult a Dixon, 'cause protecting the name is more important than protecting his own body. I think about the way my Dad busted Rick's cheek; How Ronnie's Momma ain't recognise him when my Daddy was done with him.

Shane must be thinkin' the exact same thing, 'cause he starts goading my Dad right back.

"I think I walked in on you beatin' the shit outta your own kid, first of all." Shane shrugs, like it ain't his fault it's fact, and he keeps going when he notices my Dad's breathing get heavy. He's enjoying this. A smile splits his face. "I think we been worrying 'bout Jim this whole time, we been worrying 'bout the wrong man. How 'bout that? You wanted us to be so focused on him, we forget about the real monster."

"That right?" Dad side-steps Shane when he reaches the edge of the coffee-table.

"Sounds right to me, man." Shane says. "Lemme ask you this, Daryl. What is it you think I walked in on?"

I wonder where everyone else is. I wonder if at any second, one of them is gonna walk in.

"It don't matter what I think." Dad shouts, suddenly, and I shriek like I've been struck by the belt. "It's my damn business. It's my damn daughter."

"Yeah, I betchu wish it was." Shane huffs out a chuckle. "Don't want your secret gettin' out, right?"

Shane's like a wriggly little worm, needling my Dad where he don't wanna be needled.

My Dad's patience finally runs out.

He rears back to swing at Shane's head, and his fist is caught and twisted, and I hear Shane grunt in pain, and this is it, so I close my eyes—

Wait.

My eyes are open. That don't make no sense. Why is it so dark? Why can't I see?

I realize that the fight has stopped, and I feel like we've all forgotten about it and are waiting for something to happen.

There's a single murmur throughout the room.

"Was that the power?"

Author's Note.

Cliff-hanger! Mwahahha.

So, obviously, the last scene in this chapter is pretty brutal. I'd like to share why I made the decision to have Daryl act this way, because it could be a shock for some.

For starters, I think it's plausible for a number of reasons. Merle being a bad influence on Daryl, his unhealed childhood trauma and how that affects how he parents his child, and his unhealthy habit of bottling up his emotions, etc.

It's not pretty, I know, and I kind of hated writing that scene, but that brings up my second point. For the sake of the themes and arcs I want to give this story, it was necessary. This story just couldn't exist if it didn't have this scene. I've got, like, three different key subplots linked to it. Maybe you can even guess what they are, because two of them have been hinted at/set up already. They're only going to get more prominent from here on out.

So that's the explanation for anybody who wanted or needed it. You'll see all this play out in the coming chapters, anyway, but I just wanted to provide this in the mean time. :)

Rant over! Phew. Everybody take a sigh of relief.

On a more positive note, everything else in this chapter was a total joy to write! These poor guys deserve some happiness 😌

Hope you enjoyed reading, and as always, please consider sharing your thoughts! Sending love :)

[gangstalkerbarbie]

you know that post thats like "some pets are like roommates either in their intelligence or their general vibe"?

a handy guide as to what that means based on animals I've known

A Zoology of Roommate Animals

• a dog is like some guy that lives here and works for your parents but has at best a functional utilitarian concept of you, or a guy you worked construction with that comes over for beers sometimes

• a cat is like a temporarily embarrassed wizard that likes you and is under an impression that she is the one doing you a favour by allowing you to live with her. Alternatively a cat is the older sister that thinks she's personally responsible for your whole life and will go to bat for you against G-d Himself if she has to

• a cow is like the cool mum next door ive honestly never had a problem with any cow in my life. shes like over caring about what people think, shell take a huge piss in broad daylight, but also fundamentally she is a gentle soul

• a goat has the soul of a jewish seminary girl looking for love. having been one i can elaborate but i shant

• a sheep has the soul of a biblical prophetess or perhaps your burnout girlfailure roommate who's still holding on, somehow, because she's going to be better, she has to. everyone says they're dumb but they're actually very clever and have beautiful tortured souls. they're only slightly duller than pigs who are frighteningly close to/overlapping with humans in the same way bears are. no one is allowed to slander a sheep to me they are my sisters and would dutifully keep house with me if they were human people I lived with

• a bear is like a whole ass neighbour you could have on a lake. the only thing separating him from maurice who you see fishing in his folding chair all day every day you're there is the folding chair and the manual dexterity to spin a reel. he has an iq overlapping some of the high strung guys with anger issues and low skill jobs you might know but no hate in his soul, and if this doesn't fill you with sapient to sapient love of bears nothing will

• a horse is the chillest guy you've ever known but he has a Backstory and some sort of veteran ptsd so sometimes random events set him off and he breaks all the crockery

• a pet donkey is like that guy but where that guy was infantry the donkey was a submariner, so that but +5 int and double proficiency in tweakology

• chickens are like if the old ladies that sit in flocks on benches outside high rises were animals

• peafowl are like if they were also deeply put-upon, long-suffering local drag queens

• rats are like if they let tweens have micronations. a grown male rat of any status is a stoner roommate who always has snacks locked and loaded for you and a grown female who has reproduced is like if the most responsible, executive woman you know lived in a little nest made out of straw and kapok fibre. females who have never had children are like the freewheeling wine aunts of rats. spayed females are femcels unfortunately (not their fault, usually they can't tell familiar from unfamiliar individuals) but they make up for it with bottomless love when they remember who the fuck you even are. give them extra sunflower seeds they are victims of science and deserve it

• ferrets are like if meddlesome little cousins you're responsible for were a little tube of shoestring guts on tiny little legs. even when they're grown they have this charming kind of loser vibe about them that 100% is why the romans domesticated them. that's just a hapless dumbass who lives inside your home but unlike his human equivalent he will never spend your money on weed or, heaven forfend, crack. ferrets have the spiritual level of an enlightened crack fiend, the kind that ostensibly has it under control but still compulsively takes apart appliances. he's stopped badgering reddit about how he's a consulting private detective though

• rabbits all have the souls of nepo babies, dead theologians, trans tumblr schizoposters and bpd girlbloggers. they have a completely internal set of rules they expect the world to run on but will never negotiate or mention, and their reactions when those rules are violated range from snubbing to hostility to just actually keeling over and fucking dying they're such gniesbert mein scheisshund animals. if there was a non-rat rodent that might one day have internal religious law it would be the rabbit. as a roommate this is the kind of roommate you usually don't keep long but if you do you're a real one and you're going to change her world

[doctors-journal]

17 November

I had the day off today, so I went into town with Justin. He specifically wanted me to come along, and he was clearly nervous. He rambled a bit through lunch. Afterward, we went to a theatre, this one a little outside the West End. I thought we were going for a matinee, but it turns out we came in in the middle of a dress rehearsal of a rock opera.

When we arrived, there was a woman on the stage, front and centre, in a white dress shaped like a bell, belting out a ringing ballad. I saw her glance our way for just a moment as we entered, but her voice didn’t falter, and Justin motioned for me to stop. We stayed up in the back until the song finished.

Justin applauded. The sound echoed around the mostly empty theatre, but he didn’t stop, even as the woman slid off the stage and strode over to us.

As she reached us, the first thing she did was slap Justin across the face.

I protested and was about to intercede, but Justin waved me off. “It’s well deserved,” he said, even as he rubbed at his reddened cheek.

When that was done, she immediately turned on me with a wide, disarming smile. “And who are you? Don’t tell me he’s got you thinking you’re doctor Watson?”

“You’re…?”

“Katherine,” she sang out her name. “I’m not surprised he hasn’t told you about me; Sherly and I were the best of friends, through auditions and heartbreak, until he vanished one day without a word, but all that’s water under the bridge now, is it, Sherly?” She turned on him with a piercing glare. “You know, I was half expecting you to show up, back from the dead, after three years—it would be just like you—but, darling, you overshot.”

Justin hung his head.

She turned abruptly serious. “Give me one good reason not to throw you back out on the street now.”

“I’m sorry, Chris, I should have come to see you sooner,” he said.

“Sooner? You should’ve answered the door when I came by your flat and knocked for hours! You and Sam weren’t even that close!” She abruptly turned back to me. “And after months of nothing, the last I saw of him, he was being hauled away by the coppers—just so you know what you’re getting into, loverboy.”

“My name is Solomon,” I tried to cut in, but she ignored it.

“He knows,” Justin said.

It was clearly the wrong thing to say. “Oh, he knows, does he? And do enlighten the class? What’s the big secret that you could only trust to your precious little Boswell, so he can tell the world on your behalf?”

“My own seven-percent solution.”

That seemed to break through Katherine’s larger than life anger, and she gasped no less theatrically, her hands over her mouth. “You didn’t! Morphine or cocaine?”

“Both.” To me, he said, “That’s how it started.”

“You really are that stupid! So, Sherlock Holmes, a jailbird, and not even for gross indecency.”

“No, I never went to jail, my old man pulled some strings and got me out of his hair for good in the deal.”

“Of course he did,” Katherine drawled. “So, what’s it been since rehab? Touring the world, picking up a Watson of your own? Don’t bother telling me you just got out because I heard from Eric that you and loverboy here dropped by one of his shows a few months back since you were too chicken to come to one of mine. You really should have known better, you know he can’t keep a secret for his life.”

“What else? I tried to be Sherlock Holmes.”

“Ah yes, the real detective, too good for us pretenders of the stage. How did that turn out for you, hotshot? Is that why you’re here, tail between your legs? Your big city plans didn’t pan out and now you’ve come back to make do with second best, your sobriety companion in tow?”

“No, well yes, but…” I saw Justin’s remorse struggling with his frustration at Katherine’s unyielding tone.

I know it wasn’t really my place to intervene in their argument—clearly they have a lot of history—but I had to interject, “I’m not his sobriety companion. He’s here because he’s been doing better.”

“Aw, you are his loyal Watson,” she said just shy of mockingly. “You really think you’ve fixed him?”

“I have a name and it’s not Watson. And I didn’t fix anything. He figured it out himself.”

“No,” Justin said, “Chris is right, I haven’t figured anything out, I’ve come back tail between my legs to throw myself at your mercy having failed catastrophically at trying to catch a non-existent Moriarty and flung myself head first into a relapse, only to be rescued by my intrepid baby sister.”

Katherine smiled. “That’s more like it. I always did like that girl. Does this mean you’re ready to face the music?”

Justin gave a belaboured sigh. “If that’s what it takes to make it up to you.”

“You’d better have been taking good care of those pipes. And I bet loverboy here has just heard you on that dreadful violin—you’ll thank me later. I’ve got just the role for you; young, brooding, you even get a sensual dance with death, and if that goes well, maybe I’ll give you a starring role in the homoerotic Dracula retelling I’ve been thinking about for next.”

“I am humbly at your service,” Justin said with a sweeping bow.

“Good, see you at rehearsal first thing tomorrow. Now, I must be going, my people await.” She gave us a little wave, and swept off, back to the stage, where people had been glancing our way with increasing frequency.

I was still reeling a bit as we went back outside into the grey afternoon. “She sure is…”

Justin laughed, all of the previous tension suddenly turned into elation and I had to hurry to keep up with him as he strode down the street. “Even on a bad day, Chris is something else.”

“Chris?”

“Short for Christine,” Justin sang, just like how Katherine had sung her actual name. “If I have to be Sherly, then she gets to be Chris.”

“I see…”

“She’s usually not like this, though even she can’t deny that she’s a bit of a prima donna even on a good day. It’s not quite fair that I introduced you when I knew she’d be furious. I just didn’t feel ready to face her alone.”

“I can’t blame you.”

Justin laughed again, bright and overflowing, though he quickly sobered to just a rueful smile. “Not that she’s wrong about any of it. I owe her so much; she really was my dearest friend and I disappeared without so much as a goodbye because I was afraid I’d die without having a chance to prove that I could be Sherlock Holmes—and you saw how that went. I wasn’t even that close to Sam.”

“To who?”

Justin looked up, toward the sky. “That’s what started it all. Our friend Sam died in a car crash, and I realised I didn’t have forever, and then I got my hands on some morphine and it all spiralled out…”

Unsure what to say, I squeezed his hand.

He smiled and swept his arm around my waist, pulling me closer.

“So, you’re going to be in a musical?” I asked.

“It’s only fair. Chris was always trying to get me to sign up. And it has been some time since I’ve been on the stage… I wonder what the role Chris has me playing is. She certainly knows how to pick them; I can’t say no to a sensual dance with death.”

“Should I be jealous?”

“Never. In fact, I don’t suppose you can dance?”

I had to give him a look. “You should’ve seen me at the school disco.”

“Well, it’s never too late to learn,” Justin insisted, taking both of my hands as though he was going to attempt a twirl right there on the street.

I could only laugh.

[wdym-i-have-too-many-plushies]

I just imagined a buff chicken, I want draw a buff chicken, but with scrawny human arms and buffffff legs

[anime-grimmy-art]

What do you do when there’s not much to an AU? You make up your own stuff, ofc. And as is per usual when I make Character Designs, I make up a shit ton of lore too.

The ramblings under the cut, but what I’m really interested in, is what you guys think. Do you guys have any headcanons/ideas for this AU? Let me hear them! Also, if you don’t wanna read on tumblr, here’s the Google Docs link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/151yshHxnb_--P6eMKkwkI2dee9xC_Llb/view?usp=sharing

Before I get into the characters’ roles, here’s some general facts and backstory of their town:

- Basically, it’s Undertale meets Harvest Moon / Stardew Valley. Well, kinda. I at least used that approach for coming up for the jobs for the characters. You know, how there’s always a general store, a doctor, a smithy, etc.

- The usual story of a HM game is that you come to a town that’s way past its glory days and you, as the player/farmer, help them get back to that. The “backstory” of the town is that that already kinda happened. I’ll get into it more in the character description, but basically when Asgore was still mayor, the town got really popular. Then yadda yadda, a certain tragedy happened, two kids died, and the town suddenly got very bad publicity. There was a lot of stuff going on back then, bad reputation being spread and also a lot of law stuff, cos, you know, supposed child murder ‘n all, so Asgore made the decision to shut off the town to ppl from outside. This was in the interest of most monsters living there, because as fun as it is to have a lot of people coming there, most just wanted to live a quiet life. Not everyone was happy with that though, so many moved away from town and some others are trying to get the town back on its feet. But more on that later.

On to the characters:

I’m just gonna start with the skelebros, cos it’s their fault in the first place I got so invested.

Basically, they are what the player is in hm/sdv. They just showed up one day, took over the abandoned farmhouse and began their life there. The two came to town way after it was “closed” and since then a new mayor has opened the possibility for new residents to move in. Their farm helps the economy of the town a lot and the mayor, like usually in hm games, is trying to use that to make the town more known again. The skelebros aren’t really working towards that goal however.

So, now a bit more detail on them individually.

Papyrus:

- The design is mostly based on what’s “canon” in this au.

- He works mostly on the fields and is in charge of the crops. Their fields aren’t spectacularly big, but still big enough to plant a few dozen rows of veggies. 

- Paps also helps out a lot in town when he has the time. He helps Asgore with his plants, he goes fishing with Undyne, helps Toriel carry crates around and so on. This is inspired by the part-time job mechanic in HM ToT.

- Unbelievably, in this AU Pap is not an absolutely awful cook. Since he helps out at Muffet’s and Grillby’s a lot, they tend to show him some tricks to cooking. Even though Pap’s not a big fan of the greasy or overly sweet cooking those two do, he picks up a lot.

Sans:

- Again, design mostly based on the “canon” look. Maybe a bit more baggy.

- This is finally an AU this dude gets to rest. Since there are no resets and he doesn’t have to see his bro die again and again, for once in his life, he’s not a sad ball of depression. He’s just a chill and lazy dude that loves to make puns. Though, since he’s not too experienced with the feelings of loss, helplessness or grieving, he still tends to hide behind puns and fakes smiles if he does feel bad.

- Sans is in charge of the animals on the farm. Papyrus begrudgingly gave him that role since Pap’s loud demeanour and hectic movements usually scare the animals. Sans’ relaxed attitude draws the animals to him naturally and even if Pap mostly finds him sleep against a tree, in a stack of hay or on one of the sheep, the animals are always fed, healthy and relaxed, so Sans seems to be doing his job.

- Sans always has a small chic sit inside his hoodie or hat. Is it always the same one? Who knows, maybe.

- Sans also, somehow, can produce eggs out of thin air. Grab into his hoodie pocket, in his pants pocket, in his hat, in his slipper, there’s suddenly always an egg there. On good days he can even make butter or cheese appear. 

Gaster:

- He’s literally just a scarecrow in this. Though, if you ask any of the bros why they designed their scarecrow that way, they won’t have an answer.

Frisk&Toriel:

- Frisk is mostly based on what I wore myself as a kid in summer. Just a loose shirt with a cappy. Toriel basically has her ut gown, just with an apron on top.

- Frisk just appeared outside the “magical” forest one day. Napstablook and his cousin found them and brought them to Toriel, who has been taking care of them since.

- Toriel runs the general store in town, but also often takes care of the few kids that still live there.

- Frisk usually helps out in Toriels store, plays with the other kids or sits around at Asgore’s. They’re notorious for nabbing small snacks, mostly from Asgore’s plants. You’ll always find them munching on something. 

- Frisk was in town before the skelebros. Since they’d moved in, Frisk often went to spy on their farm. After a small incident with angry chicken, Frisk got to know the two better and now they see them as something between brothers and uncles.

- But Frisk honestly gets along with everyone. Just like in UT, they’ve not only been adopted by Toriel but literally everyone.

- Toriel and Asgore’s relationship is not as bad as in the main game, since, you know, Asgore didn’t kill literal children, but there’s still tension between them. Back when Asriel and Chara died and the whole thing with the bad rep for the town began, Toriel felt betrayed by Asgore focusing more on the town than giving their deceased kids the grieving they deserved. They’re not divorced, but Toriel still moved out and said needed space to think. Now that Frisk is in the picture though, the both of them are slowly coming to even ground and may even be able to talk things out and clear up the uncertainty of their decisions.

Asgore:

-Asgore has his UT Ending / Deltarune clothes, just with a gardener’s belt.

- He’s the previous mayor of the town, but after all the crap that happened, he stepped down from the position. Now he has his own little shop and sells seeds, saplings, homegrown veggies and fertilizer. So, basically what e.g. the Marimba Farm is in HM AP

- His main customer is Papyrus and they’re on friendly terms. Asgore is worried about how much and how hard Pap works, so he often gives him a discount. 

- Since his family’s past tragedy, Asgore is kind of nervous around kids. So, when he first met Frisk, he hoped they’d not visit him too often. But to his chagrin, Frisk took an instant liking to him and spends a lot of time at his shop (and steals eats the fresh grown veggies). Now, he’s really grateful for that, because for one, he loves Frisk as dearly as he had his own children, and also because now the tension and mistrust between him and Toriel seem to grow smaller day by day.

Undyne&Alphys:

- I gave Undyne a pretty basic fisher’s outfit. Alphys basically has Elli from HM’s outfit, just a bit more doctory stuff added. She still has her canon lab coat too.

- In essence, Undyne and Alphys have 2 completely different jobs. Alphys is the resident doctor and Undyne runs the fish market.

Two things. Yes, I know Alphys is more a mechanic than a doctor, she fits the aesthetic though, so she’s the doc now. And no, Undyne being a fisherwoman is not cannibalism, think of it more as a shark hunting smaller fish.

- The reason I lump them together is because they act as the local “smithy”. Alphys is still really tech savvy in this (I mean, Mettaton is still part of this AU), so she takes on most problems with electronics and stuff. For Undyne, I didn’t want to lose her Royal Guard’s Captain image, so she’s really good at handling tools (and weapons, but Al doesn’t let her make them anymore). So basically, if there’s a broken tool, you can be sure that either Undyne or Alphys can fix it.

- As for relationships, those two are still an item. Alphys is still really shy and a shut-off, but since Undyne and Pap become best friends, she gets to know the skelebros better. She and Sans especially get along well, since most of the time Undyne and Papyrus are let loose, they sit back and talk about science-y stuff. (no, Sans doesn’t have a background in science but he’s still into sci-fi)

- Alphys has a bit of a strained relationship with both Asgore and Mettaton.

Back when Chara and Asriel died, it was because of “illness” (maybe poisoning?). Alphys feels awful because with her back then limited knowledge on medicine she couldn’t help the two. Asgore doesn’t hold anything against her but Alphys can’t help but feel guilty.

Alphys still built Mettaton’s body in this one. The two had a really big disagreement, because Mettaton hated the fact the town was going to close, and he couldn’t understand how Alphys could feel otherwise, even more so endorse the idea.

Mettaton, Napstablook, Mad Dummy/Mew Mew:

- Napsta and Dummy are pretty self-explanatory, they got straw hats. Mettaton’s outfit is a bit of a joke cos it’s a play on “work at the top and party at the bottom”. The tie has two different sides, one with the yellow red pattern, the other completely red. His “top part” is the business part, because when he’s on tv or in the mayors’ office, you don’t usually see his feet. The bottom is his party/dance part, cos his dancing/entertainment channels mostly feature his legs. 

- Mettaton, still a robot, Napstablook and Mad Dummy are all still cousins in this AU.

- Originally, they all lived and worked at the Blook Farm, the Animal Farm of this AU. Mettaton, however, despised that simple live and after befriending Alphys and her building him a body, he left the Farm to pursue bigger things. 

- Mettaton runs the local tv network. From weather to game shows, he does it all. He also runs the tailor shop in town that sells his designer clothes and merchandise. After Asgore stepped down, Mettaton also took over the role of town’s mayor and now works towards making the place more known again. Not everybody is happy with him doing that though.

- One of those people is the Mad Dummy. He can’t stand people anyways and he always claims that history would just repeat itself.

- Since the whole family is made of ghosts, they have different dummies and scarecrows they can use to take care of the animals. To mock Mettaton and kinda get back at Alphys for giving MTT such an opportunity, Mad Dummy found the blueprints for the Mew Mew robot and now modelled one of their scarecrows after it. 

- Napstablook isn’t fond of taking over obejcts like his cousins do, so he mostly takes care of the snails. Somehow, he can interact with them even when incorporeal. 

Muffet&Grillby:

- The two of them run the Inn together. Muffet cooks in the daytime and makes desserts, Grillby manages the bar in the evening. 

- The two still can’t really stand each other but working together like this benefits them both because their rivalry just spurs them on more.

- Even though Grillby is a patient person, somehow Muffet is the only person who riles him up enough to retaliate. (Well, maybe except for Sans, he’s a strong second).

So, basically everything between those two is a challenge in some way. Even if Papyrus doesn’t notice, even his cooking lessons are a challenge for them. 

- Even though they’re constantly bickering, after working together for so many years, there’s a strange level of respect and trust between them. Even if back when they first started this business, they’d pour salt into an already open wound, nowadays they’d know better and just take a step back from the other or even comfort the other (on very rare occasions only). 

Asriel&Chara:

- They be dead. Kinda.

Some Characters that’d live in that town too but that I haven’t made designs for:

- Gerson is the original smithy of the town. He’d grown up in a family of smiths, but he’d always had an appreciation for the sea. That’s why, when the town became more deserted and Undyne had a good enough skill level as smith, he took up the Captains hat and now mostly spends his days out on sea. He also ferries people to places if they need him to. Oh, and just like in canon, Undyne learned most of her skills from him.

- Burgerpants is a poor dude Mettaton basically kidnapped when he was trying to get fame in the city. Now Burgerpants works wherever MTT needs him to, be that as cameraman for the tv shows, cashier in his tailor shop or his slave secretary in the mayor’s office.

- MK is Frisk’s best kid friend. MK’s parents are in charge of shipping the goods out of town and paying the individual people. MK’s the one that usually collects the goods at the end of the day.

- Other than that, there are only a few people in town. I’d imagine the older folks or the really young families stayed in town after it was closed. I think the librarby dude would still run the library. Some Snowdin residents like the stone family or the dogs also might still live there. 

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

The Demigod From Asgard - Steve Rogers x Reader (Part 63)

Summary: To cheer everyone up Steve decides to make chicken noodle soup with interesting outcomes

Word Count: 4.4k

Warnings: Angst! Language! Fluff!

Dividers by @firefly-graphics​

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 63: Chicken Noodle Soup

In the days following the mission in the Alps Fury had agreed to give the team, and most importantly you, some time off.

You were all staying in a townhouse in a small town in northern Italy. It was one of the nicer safe houses you’d stayed in. Something Steve was grateful for because it gave you somewhere to completely relax.

Steve did everything he could to make sure that you were okay. Especially since you had completely closed yourself off from him and the team. Your appetite was barely there, you spent more of your time pushing your food around your plate than eating it. Steve was worried that you’d end up making yourself sick.

Nat and Sam told him that he was doing everything he could. This was something you had to deal with in your own time and all he could do was support you. He couldn’t help but feel helpless.

You were sat wrapped up in a blanket in the bay window of your bedroom staring down at the street below. Watching as the locals went about their day without a care in the world.

Your eyes fell on a young couple on the streets. You watched them laugh as they held and swung their hands. At one point the guy stopped walking while the girl carried on. The guy then pulled the girl back to him wrapping his arms around her kissing her forehead making her laugh. They brush noses before kissing each other with wide smiles on their faces.

Before you realise you had to look away, tears fall down your cheeks as the overwhelming sense of guilt overcame you. Steve had been perfectly caring not only since the mission but since he rescued you from the raft. Yet all you’d done was pull away from him time and time again.

You sniffled wiping away your tears when you spotted Steve standing in the doorway. You could see how sad he looked as he watched you making you feel even more guilty. You had to advert your gaze looking down at your lap.

Steve doesn’t say anything, he just walked over and sits down by your feet putting a hand on your knee.

“I’m sorry” you whisper wiping away your tears.

“What are you apologising for, you have absolutely nothing to apologise for,” Steve said shaking his head.

“I do, you keep being so sweet making sure I’m okay and all I’m doing is pushing you away and making everything difficult” you sigh looking away as you wiped away your tears with shaky hands.

“No you’re not, everything you’re doing is completely normal after everything you went through, especially after last week” Steve reassures rubbing the side of your leg.

“I just hate feeling this way, I thought it was all over that I could move on, I was so happy in Asgard then I’m suddenly back at square one because he got the better of me and fuck… I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t arrived when you did” you sniffle as more tears fall.

“You are not back at square one again, far from it, this is just a bump in the road, yes it’s a nasty one but it won’t be forever,” Steve says reaching out to take your hand.

“Because you are so strong doll, no matter what that little voice inside your head is saying, because you are here right now, you survived it and came out stronger. You were the one who spotted him reaching for the gun, if you hadn’t then we don’t know what could have happened, even when you felt like you were at your weakest you were fighting to keep everyone safe because you are that strong” Steve tells you squeezing your hand.

“And it is all over now, that piece of scum is rotting in a Wakandan prison for the rest of his life, while you get to live your life however you want, you get and deserve to be happy” he continues.

“Thank you Steve, I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you” you sniffle giving him a small smile.

“I’d do anything for you, and remember it's okay for you not to feel okay yet, take it as long as you need and we’ll all be there for you the entire way” Steve smiles reassuringly.

“Thank you” you sigh and smile thankfully.

“C’mere” Steve smiles holding his arms out.

You shifted so you were sat next to him, chuckling gently when he then pulls you onto his lap. He wraps his arms around you tightly resting his chin on your shoulder as he kissed your neck. You couldn’t help but smile turning your head as you cupped his cheek resting your forehead against his.

“I love you” you whisper.

“I love you too princess so so much” Steve smiles gently, leaning in to gently kiss you.

“How are you feeling now?” Steve asks after a moment.

“Much better, thank you” you smile resting your head against his chest.

Later that evening you were all sat in the living room watching a movie together. You smiled as you glanced around even though you were missing many people it felt like the old movie nights you use to have at the tower. You snuggled further into Steve’s side feeling yourself fall asleep in the safety of his arms.

Halfway through the movie, you all jumped when you hear the doorbell ring. You all glance around at each other not sure what exactly to do.

“Is anyone expecting someone?” Sam asks as he looks around at everyone.

“Maybe it's Fury? I’ll go check” Nat says standing up as she goes she grabs a knife from under a table hiding it behind her back.

You, Steve and Sam all waited for Nat to return or to jump into action. Of all the scenarios you were picturing you weren’t expecting her to return followed by Wanda and a tall blonde man.

“Wanda… who’s this?” You ask slowly as you sit up.

“Apologises Mrs Rogers for my appearance but I thought it best to disguise myself,” the man says and your eyes widen as you recognise his voice.

“Vision?” Steve asks furrowing his brows in confusion.

“Pleasure to see you again Captain” Vision smiles as the disguise melted away to reveal his true appearance.

“I’m sorry if this seems blunt but weren’t you trying to shoot us out of the sky a few months ago?” Sam asks “can we really trust you not to rat us out to Ross?”

“You can trust him, we’ve been communicating for weeks now,” Wanda says making your eyes widen.

“What? How?” You ask in surprise.

“I can’t really explain it but through this”  Vision says tapping the mind stone.

“Right okay” Steve mutters nodding slowly.

“Doesn’t necessarily mean we can trust you” Nat says crossing her arms.

“I know but I hope my actions in the past few months speak on my behalf, if I was to tell Ross about your position I would have done so already,” Vision says.

The four of you glance at each other sceptically. You really wanted to trust him, but you couldn’t help but feel nervous.

“You can trust him I promise,” Wanda says taking Vision's hand making Steve raise a brow.

“Okay” you sigh nodding your head.

“Thank you, and I want to express my deepest apologies for the events at the airport” Vision nods gratefully.

“How’s Rhodey?” Sam asks.

“He’s recovering, Stark built him supports so he can walk again,” Vision says as everyone moves to sit back down.

“So will you be staying with us now?” Steve asks as he puts his arm around your shoulders.

“No, I plan to return to the compound, I feel I would attract too much attention to your group so this will be the last time you’ll see me” Vision explains weaving his fingers together.

“We thought that I could meet up with him alone?” Wanda says sitting forward.

“I don’t see a problem with that, we’ve all had time away, you’ll just have to promise to check in so we know nothing has gone wrong,” You say glancing up at Steve.

“Deal, we’ll check in as often as you need to” Wanda agrees.

“Great well it's great to see you Vision,” Nat says everyone humming in agreement.

You all relaxed as the movie restarted. You shifted back into Steve’s side, wrapping your arm around his waist. Steve smiled as he pulled you closer and kissed the top of your head. As the movie played you couldn’t help but watch Vision and Wanda and how much closer they now were.

Once the movie was done everyone made their way to bed, vision following Wanda back to her room. You and Steve glancing at each other when you noticed.

“So Wanda and Vision,” Steve says as you climb into bed next to him.

“I think it’s cute” you smile shuffling closer to him.

“How long do you think it's been going on?” He asks as he wraps his arm around you pulling you closer so your head was resting on his chest.

“I don’t know, I think it was a gradual thing, they’ve always had this connection but I don’t think they acted on it until after the accords,” you say thinking out loud as you run your fingers over his chest.

“Modern-day Romeo and Juliet” Steve hums.

“Hopefully without the tragic ending,” you agree glancing up at him.

“We wouldn’t let that happen,” Steve says looking back down at you.

“Yeah, we’re family” you agree with a sigh resting your head back on his chest.

The 5 of you ended up staying in the Italian safe house for another week. Your mood had considerably gotten better over the week but you still felt lethargic and not completely yourself. So to help cheer you up Steve decided to cook the one meal he could.

Chicken noodle soup.

He visited a small deli a few blocks away to grab everything he needed and started cooking.

“Whoa who let Steve cook?” Nat comments as she walks into the kitchen.

Steve sighed as he glanced over his shoulder “don’t worry Nat this is the one meal I can cook” he tells her.

“Forgive me if I don’t believe you” Nat smirks as she grabs a beer from the fridge.

“Fine but you better apologise when you realise how nice this actually is,” Steve says pointing at the simmering pot.

“Sure” Nat laughs as she walks back out of the kitchen.

Once it was ready Steve called out for everyone to come and grab a bowl.

“You made Chicken noodle soup?” You smile when you realised he was the one cooking.

"Yep, I wanted to help lift your spirits” Steve smiled as he passed you your bowl.

“Spirits definitely lifted” you smile reaching up to kiss him quickly before grabbing your bowl and sitting down at the table.

Nat, Wanda and Sam soon appeared albeit a lot more hesitantly as they took their bowls and sat down. Steve watched as Sam and Nat exchanged a glance before they took their first sip. Steve couldn’t help but smirk at the surprised look on their faces.

“I’ll take that apology now Romanoff” Steve smirks.

“Smugness doesn’t suit you Rogers” Nat retorts making everyone laugh.

Steve couldn’t argue though, he was feeling pretty smug that he’s proven them wrong. Even if this was the only meal on earth he could cook. He glanced over at you smiling when he saw you smiling at him. He reached out to take your hand squeezing it.

The next morning Steve ended up waking up before sunrise so he decided to go out for a run before the streets got too busy. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been out running but the sun was just rising as he got back to the safe house.

As he made his way through to the kitchen he ran into a very pale-looking Nat.

“Of course, you’d be fine, stupid serum” she grumbles when she spotted him.

“What do you mean? Are you okay? You look terrible” he comments his brows furrowed in concern.

“No Steve, you gave us all food poisoning, should have guessed this would happen with your cooking” Nat huffs in annoyance.

“Oh god Nat I’m so sorry, the chicken from the deli must have been off or something” Steve apologises.

“Even Y/N is sick, you took down an Asgardian” Nat says gesturing to the stairs.

“I’m so sorry, I’ll make it better I promise” Steve promises.

“You can promise never to cook again,” Nat says pointing at him.

“Deal, I won’t even step foot in the kitchen” Steve agrees.

“Good, now go because I can see you want to go check on Y/N and I don’t want to vomit in front of you” Nat grumbled, Steve quickly turned on his heels and ran up the stairs.

When he ran into the bedroom you shared he instantly heard you throwing up in the bathroom. Rushing into the bathroom he found you hunched over the toilet.

“Shit” he mutters.

He quickly knelt beside you holding your hair out of the way and rubbing your back. Once you stopped being sick you pushed yourself away from the toilet sitting down on the floor opposite Steve.

“Nat wants the murder you” you mutter as he passes you a glass of water.

“I know I ran into her downstairs, I’m so sorry I made you all sick” Steve apologises shaking his head.

“It's okay, I know you didn’t do it on purpose”, you say with a weak reassuring smile.

“I’m still sorry, how you feeling now?” Steve asks.

“Little better, I’m just tired but I don’t trust myself not to be sick again, I don’t think I should move from this spot just yet” you sigh shaking your head slightly.

“Okay, not a problem we’ll stay here until you feel comfortable enough to move,” Steve says standing up.

“You don’t have to stay with me Steve,” you say shaking your head as you look up at him.

“I want to, the only time I’ll leave your side is to make sure the others are still alive, the rest of the time I’ll be nursing you back to health,” Steve says earning a weak smile from you.

“Thank you Stevie” you smile.

“It’s nothing, now stay there while I grab a couple of things,” Steve says bending down to kiss the top of your head before heading out of the bathroom.

After a few moments, Steve reappears with a blanket and cushions. He gets you to sit on the cushion before draping the blanket around your shoulders. He then sits down beside you pulling you into his side so your head was resting on his shoulder.

“Get some rest princess,” he tells you gently.

“M’kay” you hum already falling asleep.

Like promised Steve spent his time nursing you and the others back to full health. Encouraging you all to eat, getting you fresh glasses of water and cleaning up after everyone. He had to throw out a potted plant when someone didn’t make it to the toilet. Thankfully the others were fit and healthy by the following day, but you still felt unwell days later.

You had stopped vomiting by the second day but you still felt nauseous at random points in the day. By day 6 you were fed up with resting as Steve told you to.

“We’re starting to run low on supplies” Nat comments as she opens one of the cupboards.

“I’ll go to the shops” you volunteer standing up from the kitchen table.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Steve says taking your hand to stop you.

“Yeah I’m fine, some fresh air will do me some good,” you say with a reassuring smile.

“Okay, do you want me to come with you?” Steve asks.

“No it's fine I’ll be more inconspicuous on my own,” you say shaking your head.

“Any special requests? Bottle of wine?” You ask as you shrug on your jacket.

“Could you um get me some tampons?” Wanda asks you quietly.

“Of course, not a problem” you smile as you grab your bag “see you in a minute”

Walking through the small supermarket grabbing the food you all needed along with a couple of extras just to spoil yourselves. The last thing you needed to grab was the tampons for Wanda.

As you picked up a box you went to grab some for yourself since you were probably due a period soon. As you put the box in your cart you started to wonder when your last period even was. The last few weeks had been so hectic you were struggling to remember. The most recent one you could actually remember was the first week you and Steve were in Asgard. Your eyes then landed on the selection of pregnancy tests.

“Shit” you mutter to yourself as you bit your lip.

Was there actually a chance you could be pregnant? The more you thought about it the more it made sense. The fatigue and the nausea. The missing period. This really wasn’t a good time to be pregnant though. You and Steve had agreed to hold off on starting your future. You were goddamn internationally wanted criminals right now. Could you really raise a child like this?

You tried to convince yourself that you were wrong. That it was just stress or that you had just simply forgotten your last period.

“Fuck” you mutter grabbing a test and chucking it into the cart.

As you left the shop you put the pregnancy test in your handbag so nobody would spot it when you brought the shopping in.

Walking back into the safe house you were instantly greeted by Steve who helped you by taking the bags from you.

“You okay you look like you’re worried about something?” Steve asks furrowing his brows in concern.

“Um yeah just uh tired” you lie as you rub your forehead.

“Go lie down then, we can unpack the shopping” Steve smiles putting his hand on your shoulder.

“Okay thank you,” you say forcing a small smile.

Steve smiles back down at you kissing your forehead before you step away to head upstairs. Once upstairs you make your way straight into the bathroom pulling the pregnancy test out of your bag. Opening the box you read the section of instructions that were in English. Taking a deep breath you then set about actually taking it.

Once you were done you set it on the side face down. As you waited you began to pace with the bathroom. Trying to work out exactly what to do if it was positive. Your mind instantly turned to Steve, who currently had no idea of the life-changing test that you were currently waiting on.

You started to wonder whether he should be here to see the results with you. If it was positive he should be here to see that, but if it was negative then you could just carry on as normal. But you were worried about how he would react, what if he panicked like you currently were if it was positive. What if he was disappointed it was negative and you had to see that heartbreak. But you still wanted him beside you. You couldn’t work out what to do, your head started spinning and you had to sit down. You ran your hands over your face and up into your hair jumping slightly when you heard Steve knock on the bathroom door as he slowly opened it.

“Hey, you okay?” Steve asks crouching down in front of you.

You glance up over at him, biting your lips as you tried to work out what to say.

“I- I brought a pregnancy test” you mutter.

Steve’s eyes widen slightly at your admission. His mouth opened and shut for a moment before he cleared his throat.

“What- what did it say?” He asks slowly.

“I don’t know, I haven’t looked… I’m honestly- honestly too scared to” you admit looking down at your lap.

Steve nods before shuffling to sit beside you. The two of you sit in silence for a couple of minutes as the prospect sank in.

“Why are you scared?“ Steve asks after a moment.

“Because this is huge and it’s something I know we both want but we said we’d wait and we’re on the run and we can’t possibly raise a child like this,” you say starting to ramble as tears started to collect in your eyes.

“Hey, hey, hey it’s okay take a deep breath,” Steve says taking your hand and squeezing it.

“I’m sorry” you sniffle wiping away your tears.

“Don’t apologise, you have nothing to apologise for” Steve says getting you to look at him.

“Yes okay this isn’t the best time but honestly there’s no such thing as a good time to start a family,” Steve tells you.

“We’re criminals Steve, this is the longest we’ve stayed in one safe house how on earth are we supposed to raise a kid like this” you scoff shaking your head.

“We’ll work it out, look let’s just take this one step at a time,” Steve says gently.

“What do you want the results to be?” Steve asks.

You pause resting your head against the wall as you think about what your answer would be.

“I- I think I’d want it to be positive,” you say eventually looking over at Steve.

“I’d want it to be positive too” Steve agrees squeezing your hand.

“And I know that outcome would be more difficult… but we’d work it out, we’ll stop and settle down like we talked about in Sudan” Steve suggests shrugging his shoulders.

“We could go to Wakanda,” you say thinking out loud.

“Exactly, we’ll figure this out, we always do” Steve smiles nudging your shoulder gently.

“We do make a good team” you sigh resting your head on his shoulder.

“Ready to find out if our team is getting bigger?” Steve asks gently.

“Yeah are you?” You ask lifting your head to look at him.

“Yeah, let's do this” Steve nods taking a deep breath.

“Okay,” you say taking your own deep breath before reaching up to grab the test.

You hold it in your lap as Steve wraps his arm around you supportively. You take a deep breath as you turn the test over, your breath hitching when you see the small plus sign.

“Woah” Steve mutters under his breath.

“We’re gonna have a kid,” you say quietly as you look over at him.

“We’re gonna have a kid” Steve repeats a smile growing on his face.

“You’re gonna be a dad” you smile as tears start falling once more.

“Are you’re gonna be a mom” he chuckles pulling you closer so he could kiss your forehead.

“I love you so much” Steve mutters shaking his head gently “both of you”

“I love you too” you smile cupping his cheek and bringing his lips down to yours.

“So what are our next steps?” Steve asks once you pull away.

“Well we should probably see a doctor, find out how far along I am and make sure everything is okay,” you say your hand moving to rest on your stomach making Steve smile.

“Okay, so I guess we should go to Wakanda, it would be the safest place with the best doctors,” Steve says, you humming in agreement.

“To Wakanda we go” you smile.

“Shall we go tell the others?” Steve asks nodding his head in the direction of the door.

“Sure” you agree with a smile taking his hand and letting him pull you up from the floor.

The two of you walked down the stairs hand in hand, finding the others relaxing in the living room.

“There you are, we were about to crack open the wine without you,” Nat says as you and Steve sit down on one of the couches together.

“Do you want a glass Y/N?” Nat asks as she stands up to go grab the bottle.

“No I’m good,” you say shaking your head.

“Oh c’mon you brought it, you have to have a little bit” she coaxes.

“I don’t think it would be a good idea” you reason shrugging your shoulders.

“Are you still feeling ill?” Sam asks his brows furrowing as he sits forward.

“Yeah, we actually all need to talk about that” Steve says glancing around at everyone.

“What’s wrong?” Nat asks glancing between the two of you.

You glance around spotting Wanda who was hiding a small smile as she sat sideways in her chair.

“Nothing’s wrong, well I guess it depends on your definition of wrong, but we’re very happy,” you say looking over at Steve who was failing to hold back his own smile.

You couldn’t help but smile back before looking back over at Sam and Nat’s confused faces.

“I’m pregnant” you announce smiling back over at Steve.

There was silence for a moment as the news sunk in.

“Oh wow, congratulations guys” Sam smiles shaking his head in disbelief.

“Thank you, we know it isn’t the best time but we’ve wanted this for a while now so we couldn’t be happier” Steve smiles squeezing your hand as he smiles over at you.

“Were you guys trying or was this just a happy accident?” Wanda asks.

“Happy accident, guess with everything that’s been going on and all the moving about protection probably wasn’t used to its full advantage,” you say clearing your throat slightly.

“Yeah, you guys definitely weren’t practising abstinence” Sam commented making your jaw drop.

“Sam!” You laugh.

“What! The walls in these safe houses aren’t the thickest and you guys aren’t exactly quiet, I should send you my therapy bill!” Sam laughs shaking his head.

You laugh along with him especially when you noticed how Steve had suddenly gone red in the face. As you laughed along you realise Nat hadn’t said anything.

“You okay Nat?” You ask gently.

“Yeah, sorry I was just thinking about the logistics, does that mean you guys are gonna head off on your own,” she asks keeping her face neutral.

“No, you guys are our family and we’re gonna need you more than ever now if you’ll help that is”, Steve says reassuring her.

“Right now the plan is to go to Wakanda and get everything checked out and then we’ll go from there” you explain.

“But Steve’s right, we’re gonna need all the help we can get, you two are the closest I have to sisters so I’m gonna rely on you a lot when Steve’s breathing ends up annoying me” you add making Nat crack a smile.

“Fine, but if it's a girl you have to name it after me” she smirks.

“Deal” you agree easily knowing that it was something you already considered.

Sharing is caring so please reblog if you enjoyed this and maybe even leave a comment to make my day!

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

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[finelinevogue]

Can you do something where Y/N is sick and Harry has to take care of her please?

i actually had written something similar to this before so i present you a lengthy blurb;

You were pretty sure if you got invited in to hell it would feel something like this.

Hot. Sticky. But chilled.

You had come down with a concerningly high temperature. Along with the added luxuries of a deafening headache, cold sweats and an upset tummy. Your body was burning all over, as if it had just been freshly cooked in the oven but you felt colder than ice. It was a confusing juxtaposition, but there it was.

You'd called Harry, since he was in the studio recording his new music and asked him to come home early. You didn't even get to the reasoning of why he should come home before he hung up, telling you he was already vacating the premises. You hated to be that needy girlfriend who had to call about nearly everything, but Harry loved it more than anything. He loved the fact that you needed him. It gave him purpose, apparently .

You couldn't work out whether you regretted asking him to come home, or whether it was a blessing. It was a very fine line.

It was a blessing because, he looked after you like a mother would her child and made sure he stood by your side any time you found yourself lurched over a toilet. He made you chicken soup from scratch and even tested it to make sure it wasn't too hot, or salty - despite being a vegetarian himself. He even made you honey and lemon tea, which he had to run to the store for the honey. When you say run, you mean run. He didn't want to leave you alone at all, so he put on his running shoes and sprinted to the shop and back. However, it was a slight regret because of how fussy he was over you. He loved it to bits - nursing to your every need.

You truly believed you didn't deserve Harry. He was just too kind and pure for his own good. You were unarguably lucky. Laying on what felt like your death bed, didn't feel so lucky though.

It was now 10 pm and you could hear Harry turning on the alarm for downstairs, the loud beeping noise preventing you from sleep. That's all you'd done all day. Sleep. You thought it'd be more magical than it was. It was just uncomfortable though, because of how cold and hot you were.

Your much better looking other half trudged through the bedroom door within a minute of the alarm going off. He was only wearing checkered pyjama bottoms and a white t-shirt and yet he made it look like Gucci Runway 2021.

The jingling of keys signalled Charlie was also present. Charlie was your 2 year old Golden Retriever. He was beautiful. When you and Harry has moved in together 2 years ago you'd managed to persuade him to get a dog. Within a few weeks of moving in you had a 5 month old puppy running around your house. He was your best friend, no doubt about it. He was also ridiculously photogenic.

"Hey Chaz!" You cooed as Charlie walked over to your side of the bed, where you were snuggling down under the sheets. You reached out your hand to give him some loving and attention. You could tell by the small smile and sparkling eyes that he was one happy boy.

"Alright, buddy. Let's leave mum alone." Harry came behind Charlie to manoeuvre him into his bed, which was in the corner of the room. It was more like a big cushion. He started to whine after being forced to leave you - having not seeing you all day. Harry was strict in keeping him downstairs so not to disturb you whilst you were sleeping.

"H it's alright, let him on the bed. He can curl up on my feet." You sympathised with Charlie, as you always did, hating to hear or see him upset. Harry was like the 'bad-cop' when it came to parenting Charlie, because you were too sweet to say no to him.

"You're one spoilt boy, aren’t you?" Harry messed around with Charlie, before telling him he could get up on the bed to see you. Charlie leapt on the bed and wandered over to give you all the kisses he could, before Harry came to calm him down - as you really didn't have the strength.

"I missed you too, Chaz." You quietly laughed, not wanting to set your headache off even more.

"You gonna let me kiss mum now?" Harry rhetorically asked, but as he came over to you Charlie laid down on you so your face was buried underneath his body. You could feel him panting with his adorable tongue out above you, as he hid you from Harry.

"Someone's jealous."

"Feeling like a bloody third wheel over here." Harry tutted and you laughed until you got hot with the movement.

"Harry? Can you move him please?" You whined as you tried to shuffle around.

"Okay Chaz. Let's let mum get some sleep, alright?" Charlie is slowly removed from you and ends up curled on top of your feet, keeping them warm for you.

Harry slipped into the covers and shuffled his way over to you, putting the back of his hand over your forehead and hissing quietly at the simple touch.

"Baby you're so hot." Harry complained.

"I know." You teased with a wink at him, taking his worry out of context and turning it into a flirting compliment.

"Oh piss off!" He chuckled and wrapped an arm around your waist to bring you closer. "What am I going to do with you, baby?" Harry then planted only a few delicate kisses to your lips - not wanting to overwork you and your tired body.

••••

You woke up with drowsy eyes to find you're in bed alone.

Your throat was incredibly dry and your whole body was sticky from sweat. Your pyjamas were damp and your face looked like it'd just been drowned in a rainstorm. It was disgusting. Still, you brought the duvet up to cover yourself more, as you let out a dramatic shiver. Why was it so cold?

Mixed into the background noise you could hear the cheering of crowds and it really confused you, until you looked at the wall and noticed the football was playing on re-run on the TV. Manchester United Vs Manchester City. You hated that you knew that just from their football uniforms, but that's what you get for living with a football-crazed boyfriend.

You noticed Harry emerge from the bathroom, a washing up bowl in his arms. He came and sat down in bed, the bucket of water to his side. "What are you doing?" You quietly asked, peering up at him through tired eyes.

"Oi, you're meant to be sleep y’minx." Harry told you off.

"I can't. I'm too uncomfortable. I'm hot, but i'm cold. I also find it hard to sleep without you next to me." You huffed out in annoyance.

"My poorly baby." He leant down to kiss your forehead, "c’mere, baby." He urged.

He helped you move, seeing as your body was really weak, so you could lay down against Harry’s body. He was sat up against the headboard as you nestled down between his legs, your back to his front. It was a lot more comfortable than before - probably because Harry was closer to you. Charlie noticed the disturbance and waited for you to stop moving around, before maintaining the job of guarding your feet.

Once he was happy in his position he fell asleep again, making you jealous of his ability to do that. Especially now.

"Why's the football on?" You asked, motioning towards the TV.

"Had to keep myself awake somehow." He explained, but it only made you more confused.

"Why?"

"So I can take care of you, y’muppet." His words actually melted your heart - more than chocolate could melt on your forehead right now.

After you'd settled, Harry reached into the bucket and drained out a cloth. He made sure all the excess water was cleared before moving it away from the bucket. You hummed in appreciation when he placed it against your forehead, rotating it to the back of your neck also in order to relax and cool you. It made you realise just how hot you were.

"I think i'm dying, Harry." You groaned as the nausea came over you again. Harry kept a firm hold of the cloth on your forehead, dabbing gently and careful to not let any water drip down into your eyes.

"No you're not, baby." Harry gave you a light-hearted laugh.

"Well, living shouldn't feel as shitty as this H." You grumbled, not appreciating his lack of understanding.

“Then just let me take you to the chuffing hospital!" He exclaimed, making Charlie stir slightly.

Harry had been demanding you go to the hospital all day and all evening, but you were too stubborn to go. That, and you were terrified of hospitals - more terrified of needles and blood than anything else. However, you were starting to reach the point where you were giving in to his request, though. It was becoming unbearable to sleep and harder to breathe. You were worried for yourself.

"I don't like it." You pouted like a child, as Harry wrung the cloth through the fresh water again.

"I don't care whether you like it or not, Y/N, I really think we should go. More like need." Harry insisted and you could tell he wasn’t giving up without a fight. You didn’t want that either.

You hated how he was right.

It was only going to get worse from here, and you didn't really want to be alive when that was going you happen, so going to the hospital to get checked over and drugged up seemed like the best option to go for. The more sensible option.

"Fine." You finally accepted, Harry slinking his arms tight around your waist after discarding the cloth in to the bucket. He nuzzled his head into the crook of your neck and planted an abundance of kisses there, your skin burning just to the touch.

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you." He repeated in-between kisses.

•••••

It took 20 minutes to get in to the car. 20 minutes.

All because Charlie was reluctant to letting you get up and go. So Harry had to dress you into a more appropriate attire, with a dog sat on your lower body. It was then half an hour later that you were in the hospital.

The hospital was quiet at this time of night and for that you were grateful. It was obviously a night where little numbers of people were doing silly things to get themselves hurt. There was the odd patient for a minor cut injury and there were a couple of people in for burns. There was even a woman in because she accidentally superglued her hand to a bottle of superglue - ironic, but painful.

You sat patiently on Harrys lap, waiting for someone to escort you to a cubicle. You were freezing cold, to the point where your teeth were chattering - your outside body was giving off the opposite temperature. You tried to get as close to Harry's warmth as possible, pushing your body against his.

"You're alright baby." Harry shushed you, as you let out a small tremble.

"If I do die—"

"Which you won't." Harry chuckled.

"I know, but if I did I want you to know that I love you." You told him. Even though he's heard you say it a million times before, it still made his heart flutter as you spoke each word.

"I love you, baby." He kissed the side of your head. "But you're going to be just fine, so no more talking about you dying okay?"

"Why? It's only a natural thing." You pointed out.

"Sure, but I don't want to think of a world without my girl living in it. So zip it before I make you."

You never thought of dying as a world without Harry before now and it wasn't the time to start thinking about it either. It was a horrible thought and you understood why Harry didn't want you speak about it. That world would be so dark and empty and you hated thinking about it.

Harry was called to the front desk to fill in some forms for you, since your hands were too cold and shaky to do it for yourself. He accidentally wrote 'Styles' as your second name, before realising his mistake and scribbling it out.

“Shit.” Harry went red in the face and chuckled over his silly mistake. His hand was shaky and you smiled at how he got so flustered over something so simple. You rested your hand on top of his, bringing his attention to you.

“One day.” You told him and he leaned to give you a kiss on the lips. You couldn’t help but feel like his lips were a future promise to make sure he wouldn’t have to scribble out his second name the next time it was written next to yours.

The doctor saw you shortly afterwards and you thanked your lucky stars that there was no injections or removal of any blood involved, Harry sticking with you the whole time. Turns out you were suffering from a moderate fever, but the doctor said with good rest it should pass. The doctor had given Harry permission to make a big fuss over you - explaining how he was going to love it and you were going to hate it - and to make sure to come back with even the slightest worsen of the fever. You got given a prescription list of various medications that you'd need to take over the next week or so. After collecting the drugs, you were back in the car on the way home.

"Told you you weren't going to die." Harry smiled, happy to have you still by his side, whilst holding your hand over the gear console.

"Unfortunate for you, I guess."

"Will you shut you, y’bloody nuisance. You know I can't do life without you, Y/N." He spoke softly, squeezing your hand tighter to assure you that he's going nowhere.

"Same here." You smile at him and he smirks back at you with his dimple-loving smile.

"You’ll always be it for me, baby." Harry speaks, before you drift back off to sleep.

Happily.

[checkingoutforheroes]

B.A.B.Y PROTOCOL.

Part 1.

Avengers x fem!reader

Pt. 2

Genre: Minor angst, more fluff.

Warning: Language! (cursing here & there)

Words: 1746

Synopsis: This takes place in Avengers: Age of Ultron. When The Avengers were at the rock bottom, Nick Fury and advised by Maria Hill, to initiate the B.A.B.Y Protocol. 

Main MASTERLIST

The Avengers gather in the lab after one of an ugly half made robot command a few of the Legionaries to attack them. Currently they are finding out about what or who attacked them. Some of them cleaning their wounds and Thor going out to track the Legionaries. Bruce the only one who starts first. “All of our work is gone. Ultron cleared out every research that we do. He uses internet as an escape route.” Natasha turns and lean her body to a table to say what she’s found. “He’s been in everything. Fails, surveillances. Probably know about us more than we know about each other.”

Holding his right wounded arm, Rhody said “He’s in the internet, he’s in your files. What if he decides to access to something a little more exciting?” By that, Maria has thought something. “Nuclear code.” Natasha looking at them “Nukes? He said he wanted us dead.” Steve interrupt her “He didn’t say dead. He said extinct.” “He said he killed somebody.” Clint said but Maria ask back. “But no one else in the building.” Their conversations cut by Tony. “Yes there was.” He displays JARVIS damaged simulator form and all went silent except Bruce, he checks on JARVIS.

Thor come in angry and straight to choke Tony. Being choke, Tony try talk to Thor “Come one. Use your words buddy.” Thor lift him up a few inch above the floor. “I have more than enough words with you Stark.” Steve walks closer, breaking them. “Thor. The Legionaries?” Thor update them about the Legionaries have the scepter and they have to retrieve it again. For the first time after the attack, Dr. Chow speaks. “You build this program. Why he’s trying to kill us?” Tony just laugh at that question and Bruce disagree. “Tony, this might not be the time to-“ Tony cut his sentences. “Really?! Bruce. We didn’t create a murder bot. Remember New York?” Everyone move their head down facing the floor remembering that event and Tony continue. “A hostile army of aliens charging through a hole in space. We’re standing 300 feet below it. We’re The Avengers. We can bust arms dealer all day but that up there, that’s, that’s the endgame. How do you guys planning on beating that?” Steve looking at him “Together.” “We’ll lose.” Tony say and Steve still with his answer “And we’ll do that together too.” He looks at everyone and gives the order. “Thor’s right. Ultron trying to draw us out. We start tonight. Do whatever you can to find him. The world is a big place, make it smaller.” Maria stand from her chair. “I’ll escort Dr. Chow to airport. I’ll see you guys in the afternoon.” They all nods and both of them walks out of the lab.

 Next morning.

A young girl wearing her café’s uniform walking with a headphone on her head. While walking, she notices a guy snatches a bag from a lady. That lady screaming asking for help while her baby crying to see her mother in terror from across the street. You bring down your headphone and chase that guy. Thanks for your training, you almost keep up that guy until he stuck in an ally, nowhere to go.

“You wanna give me the bag or I’ll take it from you?” You said. Looks like he’s stuck.

“Fast legs.” He said.

“I had trained before.”

“I’m not a bad guy.”

             “Well, good guys don’t snatch a bag from people especially in front of their baby! You gave me the wrong impression though. Now, give me the bag and go.”

             “I’d like to see you take it.” “You asked for it dude.” You move forward and fight him hand to hand combat. Actually, you are a bit surprise by his technique. He’s not so bad but you have been train by a professional back in the academy.

You’ve been caught one day and some guy wear uniform took you somewhere. You thought it was a juvenile school because you are just 15 that time. Turns out it was S.H.I.E.L.D. They gave you test by test and found out that you good at combat and a little bit good at common sense. After you graduated, work job by job. Gang to gang. Mob to mob. You can’t do that kind of job anymore. You want to be good and yes, you did stop working with the dark. You washed your hands and works at Donut Do It. It’s not your vibe but it is fine for your fresh start. After you slap that guy, you hear a woman voice call your name that has been long unspoken by anyone including you.

 “Baby.” A woman called.

             “Normal people doesn’t know that name.” You said while choking that guy.

She said “Maybe because you’re not a normal girl.”

             “What do you want Maria?” You ask that woman.

You immediately know who he is. Fury. “Oh God, not you too. Okay, for the record, honestly, I haven’t commit any crime that violated the laws.”

“You.” A deep voice man said.

You can hear Maria smirk when she asks you “Are you sure about that?” “…today. You didn’t let me finish. I didn’t commit any crime, today.” You said. Fury tell you to let that guy go and you look at that guy “You’re with them?” He tries to answer even you’re still choking him. “Y.. YE.. Yes!” You release him and slap him real hard right across his face. “That’s for wasting my time. Fuck off.”

Fury look disbelievingly at you. “Was that necessary?” You look back at him “What? Caressing lightly on his soft cheek?” Maria interject “That’s the opposite of what you did.” You try again just to tease her. “Okay. I, tap his soft cheek?” Maria raise an eyebrow at you “Try again.” You surrender. “Fine. I just 180-degree angle slapped him. He’s a trained agent for God sake. He’ll be fine.” You turn around about to walk back to your work place and Fury stop you.

“And where do you think you’re going young lady?” He asks you.

             You turning back. “ Work. Turns out I have a job now papa bear. Thanks for the recommendation letter though. Now, will you excuse me, I have go to work. Hope to never see you two again. Babai.” Again, Fury stops you. “You are not going to that Donut Do It.” You tilt your head to him. “I told you I work there and I’m going. If you two want donut, you know where to find it. Mention my name and you’ll get 30% discounts.” Maria’s face changes when she talks this time. “This is serious and urgent, Baby.”

“We are gathering as many as best agents that we have, and you are one of the best, Baby. Come with us and we’ll brief you.” Fury said and you stop him from saying any further. “Look, I’m gonna stop you right here papa Bear. That is where you are wrong. Aren’t you guys seen my record? I know what good is but I’m far away from good. There is still red blood stain painted on my hands that I could never leave. Even if I wash it thousands time, it won’t come off. What makes you think I’ll do it?” You feel your left chest aching but you ignore it.

Maria answers you. “Because everyone deserves a chance to be and do good. To start over. Yes, you can’t wash that much blood on our hands but this is the chance for you to do something good in your life. A do-over. You actually do something good after the academy. Take out those mobsters down, those gangs. You went inside to get the intel and you burn them to the ground and made those cities safe. Then, you just proof us again just now by caught that robber.”

             You huff and look down on your feet. “You set that up.”

Maria look at you. “But you didn’t know that. Yes, Baby. We’ve seen your record. Detail. You are far away from where you are before the academy. Or after. I mean you did killed people.” You crunch your eyebrows at her “Hey!” Fury turn to talk. “Help us this time. After that, it’s all up to you. We are no longer bugging you. You are no longer in our record. I’m not wasting my time coming here if we don’t need you.” “I thought you miss me.” Fury huff and talk to Maria “I’ll wait in the car.”

             “He never begging. That kind of begging, what he did. Is it that bad?” I ask Maria and she nod with worry face. “Earth level threat. That’s all I can say right now. Come with us to tower and we tell you more.” You let out a long sigh. “Me? Out of all agents, me?” Maria walk closer to you. “Please Baby.” You’re now messing with her. “It Earth level threat and you want a baby to involve? What kind of adult are you? Put a cute baby in danger like that. Unbelievable.” She smiles more than earlier. “The kind of person that will make sure there will be chicken drumets and spaghetti carbonara every day for your meal.”  You silently look at her and playfully sigh and she knows you better. “Caramel pudding and fluffy pillow too.” The ache in your chest getting hard to ignore now. You ask Maria some time and turn back from her. You bending, breathing like your doctor teach you and massage your chest a little. Must be from running earlier.

“Hey, are you okay?” Maria ask, worry if you are sick, but yes you are sick.

             “Yeah. Just shock. Did you say fluffy pillow? You ask her, not wanting to let her know first. They need your help, that’s what you are going to do. Help as much as you can. She let out a giggles and wrap her arm around your neck. “Yeah, you are coming with us, like it or not.” You both walk toward their car where Fury is waiting. “How many pillow though?”

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Thank you for spending your time reading this. Feel free to reblog or ask me anything, thank you in advance!

Part 2 is coming!!

[jkknight98]

Cell upgrade

Dream really should have known better than to annoy a already hangry warden, but Sam was all to happy to comply with the green man’s wishes. I hope you guys enjoy this story and remember to drink water and eat something today. Have fun reading birdies~

Cell Upgrade

Warning: soft vore

“Come on Sam, I know I don’t deserve much after everything I’ve done, but even you have to admit I’m due for a reward for good behavior.” Dream’s voice was almost like a blade stabbing through Sam’s ears as he laid on the unused bridge as he looked at the man across the pool of lava, both his arms and front legs crossed as he listened on in annoyance, for the biggest villain on the server; he didn’t listen.

“ We already went over this once before Dream, you’re staying here in the cell you designed for Tommy, it’s exactly what you deserve, and you haven’t done anything for a reward, you tried to escape with Techno.” Dream gave an indignant squawking sound while Sam just rolled his eyes and let out a hissing sigh that caused a puff of smoke to escape from his mask, he really didn’t want to do this today. His visits were really just a kindness at this point since Dream no longer had Techno to talk to, eternal solitude was a punishment no one deserved, but the green man was pushing his patience. He really didn’t know why he didn’t tell Quackity that Dream didn’t escape, was it the real fear that came from the man’s voice, or was it the dark voice in the back of his mind that whispered how it knew exactly what the duck hybrid would do, that thought made him shiver despite the raging heat around him. Speaking of the man, he really needed to visit Los Nevadas at some point today, and he also needed to work with Foolish. He really didn’t have the time to listen to Dream ramble right now.

“ I’ve said it once and I’ll say it every time you ask, I am not letting you out of this cell.” His voice was followed by a low hiss and Sam had to take a few deep breaths to calm down and have his skin not glow anymore, his stress isn’t usually this bad to the point of exploding in a long time, but today was definitely not his day-

Gurll~

Especially now that his stomach was aching because he didn’t take the time to eat anything before he came to visit the prison, why couldn’t Dream just be happy to eat the potatoes and just let Sam leave and go about his day,” and come on Sam, couldn’t you get me something better than potatoes, surely steak farming would be easier-,” Sam just blocked out the yammering as he brought his hand up to rub his face, why did he have to say anything about steak. His stomach gave another low rumble as he just blankly stared at the man, why couldn’t he just shut up for once in his life, Sam would give anything to shut him up so he could leave. The lower stomach gave a much deeper rumble that Sam had to reach back and rub at the offending organ, he didn’t understand why that one was so upset, it never made a fuss if he ate enough to fill his upper one. The organ gave another almost demanding growl as he looked up at Dream, is that what it wanted?

Sam brought a hand up to rub at his neck and chin in thought, completely ignoring anything Dream was saying at this point, and just hummed quietly to himself. It wouldn’t be completely impossible since the man was barely half his size and he did swallow a whole melon with no difficulty on a dare, plus he did have full control over his internal systems so he could keep things inside himself unharmed (he was once very desperate to get a pair of chickens back to his base that he swallowed them down and they were completely fine when he let them out later) so the smaller man would be perfectly fine during his..’ transport’. The sound of his communicator buzzing cemented the idea in his mind as he turned to read it quickly.

Quackity: Hey Sam did you forget that you were supposed to meet me here at Las Nevadas?

Awesamedude: No I didn’t forget, I just had some things that I needed to clear up that took longer than expected, I won’t be much longer.

Quackity: You better, we have some important things to talk about.

Sam sighed as he put away his communicator and moved to stand, shrugging his shoulders as he went to remove his chest plate, it would be too restrictive for what he wanted to do, as well as his mask. It was a bit strange to be without the two, but after the deed was done, he could easily put them back on,” Alright Dream, you really want to be moved to a new cell, fine.” He stood on his feet and moved to send the bridge across, trying his hardest not to smirk at Dream’s dumbfounded expression, like the man didn’t expect that he would win the argument. Sam was going to enjoy watching that expression change.

“Sam.. you’re really moving me??” Sam only nodded as he sent the bridge across and watched as Dream hesitantly stepped on it, looking for any tricks that could come from his sides as the bridge slowly made its way back towards Sam. That’s the moment when Dream noticed the difference in the warden as he stepped onto the steady ground,``Wait, why did you take off your chest plate and mask, you never take those off?”

Sam only hummed as he placed a hand on Dream’s shoulder, feeling how thin the man had become from his time here, but he still would do. “ They would make your transport to your new cell difficult, no need to make a tight squeeze even tighter right?” He smiled when Dream gave a hesitant nod and made the man walk a few paces towards a wall not answering the questions until they were right next to the doorway and Sam shoved Dreams back hard into the obsidian wall, placing his hands around the man’s arms and using his front legs to cage the smaller male, giving no room for escape.

“Sam what the fuck!” Sam ignored the outcry as he brought his face down to Dream’s, wrinkling his nose at the slightly unpleasant smell, but quickly slipped out his tongue to lick at the man’s cheek. The grim was pretty nasty at first taste, but there was an underlying musky flavor that made his chest rumble in a predatory sort of glee, his mob side delighting in getting a player to devour. “Sam?” Dream looked utterly horrified at his actions, and his eyes darted downwards to his lower half as his stomach let out a demanding growl since he took the first taste,” You can’t be serious.”

Sam just smiled as he licked his lips, letting his feral side take over more,” You wanted a cell upgrade Dream, you don’t have to worry so much since it’s going to be temporary, plus you’ll actually get to leave the prison.” Sam opened his mouth wide, his lips and jaws distending more downwards into a more creeper-like visage, before shoving the shell-shocked face inside. He rumbled at Dream’s taste as he got more access to it, his sensitive tongue feeling the face contort and his mouth vibrating from the muffled yelling. Once he was satisfied with licking the face he lifted the man higher and shoved the shoulders inside his mouth, feeling the strange sensation of the crown of Dream’s head entering his throat.

Sam did realize he had a problem when he took his second swallow, Dream couldn’t bend like he wanted to and he could feel the man having a hard time breathing, time to speed this up. He moved his hands down to the man’s hips and used his strength (not that he needed much due to how light he was) to lift him into the air, making Dream flail his legs in panic. Gravity made things easier as Sam started to give heavier swallows as Dream’s head and shoulders entered his first stomach, making the skin start to swell as more of the man was shoved inside, and thrash widely when Sam was able to bring down a hand to adjust the form to make things easier for the next step. Sam couldn’t help but snicker at the idea he must look like a pelican gulping down a particularly wriggly fish. It soon was to the point that only the twitching feet were left outside his mouth, leaving him a little disappointed that it ended so quickly, but he decided to have a bit more fun by licking at the ticklish soles; making more thrashes and now laughter. He was kind enough to not do this for long as he lifted a hand and slowly press downwards until his mouth closed over his own fingers and a hard swallow dragged the last bit of the most notorious villain was sent down his gullet.

Sam brought a hand up to his mouth to muffle a loud belch as the other rested on his distended stomach, the green skin and short hair rippling as he could feel both hands and feet trying to kick out, but the efforts were for naught as the feeling was just pleasant for Sam. “Nice try Dream, but struggling won’t help you.” He laughed heartily as the thrashing increased, using both hands to press down on the man, sighing as his stomach clinched the man into a near immobile lump, making Dream yell in terror. He wasn’t done yet though, as nice as it felt to have Dream in his upper stomach, his lower stomach gave a demanding growl as it wanted what it was due. “ Alright alright, prepare to be moved to your actual new cell Dream.” He ignored his prisoner as he began to rhythmically press on his upper stomach, giving a satisfied sigh as he felt the change, Dream thrashing with new vigor at being technically swallowed a second time. Sam watched as his upper stomach quickly flattened and nearly stumbled when all of the weight was dropped into his middle, throwing off his balance as Dream took advantage of the extra space to struggle, stimulating the nerves in new ways that made Sam have to lean against the obsidian walls for a quick moment. Looking down Sam was thankful to see that the movement was way less noticeable in his lower half, the minuscule movement being a stark contrast to what he could feel inside, but it would make things easier once he left the prison.

He slowly made his way back to where he left his armor and took some delight in laying down and compressing his ‘passenger’, “ Alright Dream, I really don’t think I need to tell you why you should stay still in there once I get to Las Nevadas,” He smiled widely under his reapplied mask as he felt all movement freeze inside,” Quackity would be very interested if he noticed anything.” He slowly stood and began walking back towards the portal, pausing just enough to pat at his stomach before stepping through the portal, feeling satisfied in more ways than one, he would almost be sad to let Dream out later. He didn’t have to let him know that though.

`@’

Foolish couldn’t keep the confused look off his face as he watched Sam converse with Quackity about who knows what in the future of the desert country, he was acting a lot happier than usual, and a bit more well-fed if Foolish looked harder at his lower half. If feeding the creeper-taur put him in a better mood to work with, he needed to keep that little fact in mind. There was one thing that really sent his head reeling, however.

He heard early on from Quackity about Techno and Dream’s escape from the prison so he didn’t expect to find any sign of the white-masked man, but he couldn’t find an explanation for why the moment Sam accidentally belched into his face that made their shared boss laugh and the man to flush in embarrassment, he caught the fresh and clear scent of Dream mixed with the smell of Sam’s insides….

Was that minuscule movement really part of his imagination?

[mysticalrambling]

Hey there hope you are doing well🥰🥰🥰Saw you were open to blurb request...can you please write a fluff related to my second steve rogers x reader story...where the reader forgives steve after his tiresome efforts to win back his family..Like can you write about how a domestic sunday willl be in their lives Steve's, reader's and Ollie's? how they will enjoy breakfasta and Steve enjoys the day with his wife and son❤❤❤

A/N: This is basically an alternative ending to Regretting his Decisions. The original one basically ended in all angst so I hope you guys like this as well. It is totally different from the first one. Just something new :)

Regretting His Decisions (S.R)

Steve Rogers AU (Fan fiction Masterlist)

Summary: Steve and reader come together after she forgives him for all the things that he had done in the past. Now, they are spending a Sunday together with their son, Oliver. It is all fluff.

Warning: None. Fluff all the way.

._._._._._.

There were times when you thought that you shouldn’t have forgiven Steve because society thought that you were in a toxic relationship. They thought that he shouldn’t have come back into your life as he chose Peggy. But Tony told you the real reason. Peggy had hijacked the time machine and Steve had to spend his whole life in the past to rebuild that time machine. That’s why he didn’t come back to you.

However, Steve came back to you like he promised he would. He got Scott to help him reverse the past and become his old self. He was going to choose you and that’s what mattered the most. Your husband knew that the things he did in the start of your marriage were cruel and he didn’t deserve you. But he had suffered a lot and he was truly in love with you. That’s why you gave him a chance. You deserved to be happy as well and your family needed a proper chance.

At first, your interaction was just limited to Oliver and you lived separately even though you knew the truth. It was hard to forgive him for the things he had actually done like belittling you or abandoning you. But as time progressed, you saw how he was with your son and how he treated you with nothing but respect.

Steve gave you as much space as you needed and he was there for you when you needed him. He was there when your library burnt down during a fire hazard. He was there to console you when your parents suddenly died in a car crash. He was there when Ollie broke his arm while playing football. He was always there and that’s what got you to eventually open up to him. You finally asked to try again and for him to move into the house. Your family was happy and that’s what mattered. Other people can go to hell.

“Stevie, mommy needs pancakes.” Your three year old was sitting on the counter with his legs swinging back and forth. He was currently arguing with his father about your breakfast preference because apparently he knew you better than your husband.

“No, Mommy loves waffles. You want pancakes so you’re telling me to make them.” The little boy had been up for the past two hours because he had a nightmare. He always wanted to cuddle with his father afterwards and now, he was angry. “I’m your dad, buddy. Not Stevie.”

“But Mommy calls you Stevie.” He whined as he jumped in his place. Steve was quick to hold him in his place before he could fall. Oliver was never afraid to get hurt because he healed too quickly. The serum running through his veins always made him feel like a super hero. In a way, he was but Steve was always worried about him.

“She can do that. Not you.” At this point, he was just messing with his son.

“I can, Stevie.” Oliver asserted his point.

“Okay, buddy. Can I call you Ollie then?” This was going to get interesting, really fast.

“No! Mommy calls me that name only.” Giving him a pointed look, Steve laughed out loud. “Okay, daddy. I get it now.”

“Good boy. Now, let’s start making the breakfast.” Tying an apron around himself, he started taking out all the ingredients.

It was Sunday so you didn’t have work today. You always slept in late on Sundays and Steve always made sure that you got your much needed rest. A twelve hour job and a hyper three year old sucked out most of your energy so he didn’t like to disturb you for anything. Morning breakfast was your family’s tradition.

Steve didn’t know how to cook properly but you never complained. His burnt french toasts are better than any five star chicken steal and that was saying a lot. You loved him too much to ever say that you didn’t want to eat the breakfast made by him. It was such a sweet gesture that you teared up whenever you saw them entering the room with a tray in their hands.

“Baby, you have to hold on to the vase tightly.” Your husband’s hushed voice filtered through the door and woke you up from your deep slumber. Footsteps echoed through the wooden floor and soon the door opened.

“Mommy!!! Look I made you breakfast.” Jumping on the bed, he completely forgot about the vase of pink flowers and dropped them on the bed.

“Oh, thank you, baby.” Oliver’s knee accidentally hit you in the stomach and knocked the breath out of your lung. Gasping, you slightly cradled your child, “Be careful, bubs.”

“Sorry, mommy.”

Laughing, Steve corrected his son, “Oliver, we both made the breakfast and I did most of the work.”

“I beat waffle mixture.”

“You dropped it all on the kitchen counter. Not the same thing, baby.” He got up on the bed but still was not a match for his father’s height.

“I made it. I’m better than you.”

Interrupting them before Oliver truly got angry, “My baby is better than everyone. Stevie, don’t tease him.”

“’kay, darling.” He raised his hands in surrender and joined you both on the bed.

Steve was thankful for his little family and he tried to spend every waking moment with them. He didn’t want to miss the special moments so he made sure to take time off from missions. Nothing was more important than his family. There was still regret in his heart for treating you like crap in the early years of marriage. He would never forgive himself for the heinous acts that he committed. He will spend every moment making it up to you.

Finishing the breakfast with a lot of teasing and jokes, you went to get ready for the day. Meanwhile, your husband took Oliver to his room and gave him a shower. Oliver was a total boy in the sense that he ran away from the idea of shower. Only Steve could make him sit in a tub long enough to actually bathe him and by the end of it, no one knew who actually showered. Steve would emerge out of the washroom with water dripping down his hair and drenched clothes.

Today was no different. ”Help this little devil with his clothes while I go change.”

“Aw. Thank you, babe.” You tried to hold in your laughter when you saw his condition but you couldn’t help it.

“Next time, you’re doing it.”

“Sure sure.” Pecking him on the lips, you went into Ollie’s closet. He always said this but he was there to take your son before you could even think about taking him to shower. He would never admit it but he liked this chore. It was a bonding time for him and Oliver.

For today you all agreed that it would be best to just relax around the house. With the upcoming Hydra missions, the media had been loitering around your house to have an interview with Steve. You both decided that the best way to attain some privacy would be to stay home.

“Incredible, please!” The little boy sitting on your lap looked at you with puppy dog eyes that you didn’t have the heart to refuse.

“But we have watched that movie a hundred times.” Steve whined from his place on the couch.

“Not a hundred times, daddy. Just seven times.” Counting on his fingers, he showed you both eight fingers instead of seven.

“That’s eight fingers, baby.” You put one of his fingers down and squished his cheeks. He was too cute for his own good. “And we can watch it one more time but that’s it.”

Steve knew that he would be outnumbered in this match so he just gave up. At this point, he knew the dialogues by heart. But he preferred this over being lonely. He stocked up on all the snacks a day before so you were all set for a movie marathon. It was going to be really fun.

In between the movie, Oliver made you sing all the songs and you all cried when Mufasa died. Even Steve had slight tears in his eyes. Fate was cruel to the Lion King and he could never think of leaving his family alone. It was too much but then the happy ending always brought him joy. This movie truly was a true roller coaster.

“I wanna watch Boss Baby now.” The little boy demanded as soon as credits rolled in.

“Okay, boss.”

“He truly is the boss, isn’t he?” You looked down at the snuggled up child on the couch.

“Yes, he is.” Ruffling his hair, Steve gave his son an adoring smile.

The whole day, you kept going through movies that were demanded by Oliver and around five, you all fell asleep on the couch. It was a really good nap and you woke up before both your boys. You made them dinner because you wanted to eat proper food. Steaks and broccoli was the best option so you went with it.

“You made dinner?” The two hands snaking around your waist startled for you a second but you relaxed when you heard his voice.

“Yeah. Got up before you guys so just thought to start working on dinner.” You kept your hands on the side of his face while he nuzzled his face in your neck. He was extra clingy today and you loved that about him.

“Okay, I loved spending time with you both today.”

“We both did as well. I love you.”

“I love you too.” You were interrupted before you could kiss your husband.

“I’m hungry!” Oliver came waltzing into the kitchen and Steve picked him up.

Both of you looked at each other before saying it together, “We love you, Ollie.”

“Family hug!” Your son was demanding and you both would never deny his wishes. Your family was too cute and you loved them too much.

Hope you guys enjoyed it!!

._._._._._.

A/N: Tell me if you guys enjoyed it. I am open to blurbs and requests so feel free to send in asks. Love you guys!! And tell me if you want to be added to my tag list.

Tag list: @peculiarpenman, @kalopsia-flaneur, @justile, @agnesk, @caanyoonmoon, @nostxlgia18

Like, comment and reblog.

._._._._._.

[lengthofropes]

POVs series

Part 4: Dean

words: 2,2k; rating: teen and up

summary:

Dean’s POV, since Cas is gone, then got back from the Empty.

Intentionally written as scattered thoughts.

Slowly, from grief, to the ending that they both deserve.

————————————-

1. What shapes me? Lines of my bones, enveloped within my skin, so tensed and fragile. The tremble of my hands in the morning, as I try but can’t find you next to me. My old clothes, my new clothes. Corners of my house.  My car’s seat upholstery. Soft recoil of my revolver. Food on my plate. Blood in my arteries. My “yes”s and my “no”s and cracks in my voice, as I say so.   - I’d drive. - Far away. From here, but where to? I’d watch the sun goes up and down, up and down, throwing it’s rays into side mirror. Lightening the road or leaving it in darkness, disturbed only by the headlights. I’d listen to the sound that air makes, sliced in half by the windshield. I’d listen to the purring of the engine under the hood, gratefully fed with gasoline. Too bad, it’s not clamorous enough. I’d pay dearly. With money, with time, that’s left. With anything. For something so loud, that could muffle my inaudible screams into nowhere. - I’d drive. But where to? - I don’t know where to. -

keep reading under the cut  -  or  -   read on AO3

2. I can’t drive alone. I keep seeing your gaze on my right. I see it, when I look into the rear view mirror too. Like you’re still here, around, waiting to say something. Or just sitting silently, pervading the air with the appeasement of your presence. Looking at me.   How long will it take me to forget how your eyes looked like? How long will it take me to forget what you saw in me? How can I? Now, that I believe in everything you’ve said. - How warm your touch was. - How good does it feel to be “finally free”, remind me? I don’t like the price. -

3. I’d like some certainty, you know? To come to terms. But I keep thinking “If only..” I keep asking “What if..?”  So many of those. Like there are other paths, and it all could’ve work out differently. They throw me back days ago, then months ago, then years. All my life, since the day I’ve met you. I keep searching for the answer, for the exact point, the moment, when I could’ve say something, do something. And you’d still be here.

“If”s are draining me. They are the lump in my throat, big and barbed. Sometimes it grows so big, it blocks the air from getting into my lungs. And in times like these I wonder, maybe I should just stop breathing at all? Still easier, than to accept your absence. - What if. What if. What if. - And you’d still be here. Here. -

4. Prayers never got me any good. Except of those, that were for you. But you can’t hear me now. You can’t hear at all. I know, it’s no use, I know it’s not possible, I know… I know. But I keep doing this, I keep begging. Not for a solace, not because of compassion. For fairness. Because. You took yourself away from me. It’s not fair, it’s so not fair. How could you do this to me? It’s not fair, can you hear me? It’s not fair! It’s not… - Come back to me. - Bring him back to me. - I don’t know if it is a prayer, I just repeat it over and over. Maybe I’m hoping these words will lose their meaning, if I’ll bounce them against every wall? Every wall of every empty room. I wander around them at night. You stood here, you smiled there, we had an argument, sitting in these chairs. And here, here you touched my shoulder. - Come back to me. Please, come back to me. -

5. How come, it’s been months already? I counted the seconds; they aimlessly wandered around, and then, having nothing else to do, gathered into minutes. It took more courage for minutes to gather in hours, but they did anyway. Hours slowly built up the days, and every seven days made it into a week. - I know, how time works. I’m just not sure, it works for me. - It’s not a straight line, I think. It’s more like a quagmire, and I’m drowning. I looked at myself in the mirror again this morning, as I do every day. I look closely, I check, I perceive. Hey, you’d be proud of me, you know? Little by little, I merge my usual “I” with your vision of me. Because this is the best way to remember you - to live by your last words. - I’d like to tell you, how YOU changed me. [ X ] -

6. Light is blinding me. Heart grew so big, it filled all of my chest, not sure, if there’s a place left to breathe in. Please, let it be real. Please. Please… Not another happy dream, that turns into nightmare, when I’m waking up. Please. - I see you. - Same room, same spot. You. Alive. Your hands are cold. You’re so weak, you can’t stand by yourself, you can’t even speak. But before you passed out, you looked at me. You looked at me, and I saw my own eyes reflect in yours. And that was enough to believe this is real. - I don’t remember… I… - Someone’s shaking my shoulder and saying my name over and over again. I’m sitting on the floor, holding you in my arms. My fingers hurt. I must’ve clutched them into your trench coat too tight. I have no idea how long I’ve been sitting like this. But yes… yes… Sam’s hand is on my shoulder and he’s right, his voice is very quiet, but he’s right. We should get you out of here. We should put you in bed. - I nod. I’m not sure I can speak. -

7. It’s so quiet. - You lay. You rest. You sleep. I’ll watch over you. It’s my turn now. The room is still. Only movement is your chest’s slow ups and downs, as you breathe. It’s just air, nothing more, right? How can the sound of air, filling the lungs, be the most soothing sound in the world? But it is. - It’s our air. We share it. - And I’m crying. I’m crying and I’m crying and I can’t stop. -

8. Sam came back from the store, I stand in the kitchen, taking out groceries and stuff out of the shopping bags. Among everything, I see he bought a super glue, I have no idea, what he needs this for. This is so stupid, this is so fucking stupid, it’s pathetic… but I can’t keep my eyes of it. “Use super glue to strongly bind 2 surfaces together”. I want to come into your room, I want to sit beside you, while you’re still sleeping. I want to smear that goddamn glue all over you, from head to toe, and put myself on top of you, as like I’m the other surface. “Assemble parts and hold together with pressure for 15 seconds or until set”, the directions say.   Or, there’s gotta be sewing kit here somewhere? I want to thread a needle and sew you to me. With such large and strong stitches, I darned Sam’s pants like that when I was a kid, I know these stitches are reliable, believe me. Or use a duck tape. Or shove us both into the bottle and threw it away into the ocean. - It’s been two days and nine hours, since you’re back. Someday, I’ll be able to leave your room, leave you out of my sight, and don’t feel growing panic in my chest. - Someday, I’ll believe you’re back for good. For good. For ever. Not today. -

9. Your bare legs are sticking out of your robe. You are strong enough to walk around the bunker, and, of course, the first thing you did is get to the kitchen. Oh, you woke up hungry and just wanted to make yourself a sandwich, I see… You are not cold, but you are sitting on a chair, constantly adjusting this stupid robe, wrapping yourself in it tighter. You weirdo. You know who you remind me of? A cold little sparrow on a twig, who keeps on ruffling the feathers to keep warm. Those legs are sticking out… - I place a huge bowl of hot chicken soup in front of you. “Eat!” I say. “Or I’m gonna start feeding you with a spoon, I swear!” You mutter something dissatisfied about peanut butter and jelly under your nose, but I won’t even listen. "Eat!” I say. Seriously, you didn’t want to wake me up?? So nice of you! Next time consider my near heart attack, maybe? You look sorry and giving me those puppy eyes, and I swear I want to smile so bad. Not just smile, really. To laugh with my full chest, easy and warm. - You breathe. You sleep. Now you eat. Should I ask questions? You’re here. You’re okay. You’re getting better. - You’re getting better. -

10. Your hair smell of my shampoo. Your hair. Smell of my shampoo. Your clothes are my old ones, but they fit you so good. Soon, when you’re well enough, we’re gonna drive some place nice and buy you your own. It’s selfish, probably, but I want it to happen as late, as possible; not your recovery, of course, your new clothes, I mean. - You look mine in my clothes. - Your hair smell of my shampoo. I’ve realised it just now, when you fell asleep on my shoulder. I forgive you, we’ve seen this movie two times already, it’s okay. And I can pretend I’m still watching it, while shamelessly wander my eyes over you, curled in a ball, covered with soft plaid. - I dare to kiss the top of your head, I dare to cover your knuckles with my palm, carefully, not to wake you up. - You are so warm. -

11. Do I deserve you? - Do I? Your presence in my life. You. All of you. So pure, so perfect. So selfless. I’d say you are full of light, but it’s not quite so. Because you are the light. God, I’m so scared. It starts in my fingertips, they ache, like being pinned with needles. Needles get into my blood flow and make my whole body shiver. - It took me way too long to understand, but I see now… it’s not about you, it’s about me. I know, I know! I remember everything you’ve said. I remember how I tried to believe it, to understand, to accept, to let it all inside me and keep it there. Your simple truth, that I actually mean something. Mean so much. To you. Fucking everyday morning exercises. Look and repeat, look and repeat to self all over again, “you are loved, you are loved, you are loved…” until not scared of the meaning. But… is this enough? What you feel about me? What I feel about you? To deserve you? Do I deserve you, do I? Do I? I… - But you’re kissing me back. - And you shiver too. Are those my needles got into your veins or are those yours? Jesus, do you have the same idiotic thoughts in your head?? God, we are both so clumsy, so stupid, so fucking stupid! We were so dumb, we are both so dumb! We are… We… - WE. - And I’m kissing you. I’m kissing you. I deserve it. I deserve you. I do. -

12. To feel the pulse on your neck with my lips. To smile, when your stubble tickles my ribs. To hear your shuddered inhales right next to my temple. To hold you, closer than ever, and not be afraid to. - It’s something about the heat of your skin, that makes me feel belonged. Safe. -

13. - You told me, you want to grow old with me. -

14. It’s quite hot, but windy today. You rolled the window down, and fresh air immediately filled up the car. We’re driving back home from the grocery store. You’re texting to someone and smiling. Tell them “Hi” from me. We’re listening to the new mixtape you’ve made. It’s awful, by the way. 90’s? Seriously?? Oh, don’t hurt yourself rolling your eyes back. Ok…Okay! I’m shutting up! You’re taking two milkshakes out of the bag, one for you, one for me. We argue on who’s gonna cook today. We drive past the small tidy houses with green yards and gardens, talking over each one of those. Someday, soon, yeah, most likely. That one with blue shutters? Yeah, I like it too. - In between of shifting the gears, I hold your hand. I love you. - Days are like this. -

15. Hello, my name is Dean Winchester. White male, early forties’. I don’t try to recognize myself in a mirror anymore. I don’t ask questions. - I’m just here. - Yeah, there’s grey in my hair, quite a bit, but still. These are my arms, my shoulders, hands. I used to know my hands as lethal, strong and fast, and I’ve always thought, that’s enough for male hands. I mean… they are, yes. But now I’d add, they are full of care, also. Even gentle. They are good for so many things, I didn’t even realize they are so good. [ X ] - This is my face. Here are my freckles and there are my wrinkles. - This is my skin; I live in it.

- It finally fits me. -

__________________________________

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[letsloveimagines]

Title: Forever

Pairing: Corpse Husband x female!reader

Requested by: Anonymous

Request: How about one where Corpse proposes? With flowers and everything! Like he went out of his comfort zone to propose to you in public because he felt like you deserved it!

Word Count: 2225

Warnings: luff and some swearing

Note: The images doesn’t belong to me, all the credits go to the respective creators. I only made the collage. Also, I will not make anything to make Corpse uncomfortable, if he ends saying he doesn’t like fanfiction about him, I will delete this.

                                                           ♦⋅☆⋅♦

The little black box, with that important thing hidden inside, weighed in the pocket of his dark jeans as he headed for her condo. Corpse's breathing was fast, his hands were shaking immensely, and his heart was beating fast, so fast that it seemed to want to escape his chest.

He strode, always faster than anyone, avoiding people who came in the opposite direction as far away as possible. The further away the better.

Swallowing hard feeling a lump in his throat, Corpse looked at the sky, which at that moment was a sea of red, orange and yellow, indicating that it would not be long before dark and for the moon to replace the sun.

Grabbing his phone and watching the time, he quickened his pace even more, playing with the rings on his long fingers and feeling his back cold with the nervous sweat.

He was ready, however, and he was sure that Y/N was the one. Since that day they met at the small cafe, he knew she was his forever. That day Corpse had risked going out for the first time in a very long time, trying to win even though he knew he would never really be able, at least not as he almost did now with her. That red-haired employee looked at him bored - certainly tired and dissatisfied with his own life, but who wasn’t? - his deep voice stuttering nervously as he tried to place the order. He succeeded there, and the minutes that it took the employee to complete it were truly terrifying. He said a small thank you, handed over the money, and in the moment he took the cup his hands were shaking so much that he thought he was going to drop it. Everyone was looking at him, Corpse was able to feel their gaze and there was nothing he wanted to do but disappear from there. But then an angel came up to him, gently touched his hands assuring him that everything was fine, and offering him a big, beautiful smile that made him dreamy for the rest of the day. Cliché he had the notion of that, but so incredibly good that remembering it makes him feel butterflies in his belly.

The memory was long enough to reach its destination, and the nerves tripled at the moment he saw the condominium of white and brown buildings. He was quick to send a message to let her know that he was already there, and it didn't take long to receive one in exchange of her saying she was going down as fast as she could.

Corpse took a deep breath, leaning against the wall with the white paint a little chipped and in need of a new coat of paint, and reached into his pocket feeling the velvet box stroking his fingerprints. It was still there, safe and heavy with all hopes for a bright future.

"Hey, love." Y/N’s sweet voice sounded nearby, along with the sound of her elegant footsteps.

"Hey, babe.." Corpse greeted pulling the mask away slightly - he couldn't get out without it, even on that very important day - and kissed his girlfriend's black-colored lips (she started to like seeing herself in black since they were together). It was a gentle kiss but full of longing and security, and especially full love. Her lips tasted like blackberries, which he loved, and the black lipstick helped to highlight the beautiful features of her face that only left him even more enchanted. How he was lucky enough to have someone so wonderful in his shitty life? This was something that Corpse questioned every day…

Y/N's eyes were bright when they pulled away and she smiled sweetly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I missed you."

"As did I, baby. Where do you want to go?"

"I thought it would be good for us to take a little walk."

"Are you sure? We can stay home if you want to, or if you don’t feel comfortable." Oh, how he loved her. Y/N was so understanding and attentive, and if she was another girl, she would have left his sorry ass a long time ago. And yes, Corpse was uncomfortable being on the outside, in plain sight, but it was something he wanted to do for her.

"I'm sure, let's go. It will be dark soon."

Y/N was quick to get to his left side, interlacing their fingers when they joined hands, Corpse's bigger hand practically swallowing hers.

Without further ado they began to walk calmly, Corpse remembering to slow down knowing that it would be difficult for his girlfriend to keep up with his hurried pace.

"I was thinking that we could go to dinner at that restaurant that you like." He informed her. It was a small and quiet restaurant, and they had been there before. It had gone well and without any problem. That was how he wanted it that night.

"Sure, I'd love it as long as it's okay with you." Y/N looked at him again with an uncertain look.

Corpse stroked her small hand. "I'll be fine as long as I'm with you."

The pink tone on her cheeks and the passionate smile with which she presented him made it all worthwhile.

On the way to the restaurant they talked about their days. Y/N told him how it had been a little busy day (she was a graphic designer) and she had already finished the cover of a fantasy book, and given it to the writer when he decided he wanted to change something at the last minute. She managed to do so, but not without feeling that she would tear her hair out in frustration. Corpse pulled her closer to him and assured her that everything was fine, that she was great at what she did and that better days would come.

He was telling her about the two-hour stream playing with the friends he had made, and the music he was writing, when they finally arrived.

They went in, asked for a table further away and without much trouble went to sit in their seats, with the menu on the wooden table waiting for them. There was no need to look though, whenever they went there they asked for the same thing, so that's what they did. She ordered spaghetti bolognese and for him just a vegetable soup with chicken. To accompany, they ordered a small bottle of wine. Corpse's left leg swung quickly, while discreetly touching his pocket.

"Is everything alright, baby?" She asked at the same time that the food was being served.

"Yes, don't worry."

Y/N didn’t stop looking at him with concern, but she did not insist. While they ate they were talking about nothing and everything, enjoying the feeling of being in public in what had been a long time. The restaurant was almost empty, with just another couple at a distant table with their backs to them, which made him more comfortable. It was small with the floor, tables and chairs all in wood, with brick walls with a rustic effect, and small iron lamps lighting the place almost lovingly.

Time passed and Corpse's nervousness only grew. They ate and drank wine, enjoyed dessert, and were happy and smiling.

Corpse was helping Y/N to put on the black leather jacket - her outfit consisted of comfortable shoes, red pants and a cute black tank top, as well as the delicate shamrock necklace he had given her on their one year anniversary -, when she questioned him curiously. "We are going home now?

"Let's go out for a little while." The beautiful girl's surprised look did not escape him, even he was surprised that he was succeeding to do that.

They left the restaurant after paying and ventured into the city, holding hands and full of soft words. Every now and then, Y/N would lift his hand to her lips and give a small kiss on the skin full of protruding veins.

The stars shone in the middle of the night, the moon was full and round, high and illuminating the path to the park. There were wooden benches every few meters, tall street lamps peeking out near the trees and the round lake by the children's swing. Y/N used to go there in her childhood.

They sat on the grass by the lake, their feet immersed in the cold water that reflected the moon. They were silent for a moment, completely at peace watching the couple of swans swimming nearby, gently cutting the water and with their long white necks almost intertwined.

It was now. Now was the moment.

"Y / N…"

"Yes, Corpse?" She looked at him with the stars shining in her eyes, and leaving him speechless.

Corpse’s heart sped up, blood pounded in his ears and his hands trembled when he opened his coat and removed the flower he had protected in the inner pocket. The black rose was in perfect condition, sparkling with the small silver particles that embellished the petals.

He handed it over to Y/N, who accepted her happily with a smile almost as big as his love for her.

"Oh, babe, it's beautiful! Thank you so much."

He smiled shyly, with extremely sweaty palms, and watched as the girl in front of him admired the flower, without knowing that she was also being admired by him.

"I do not deserve you." He said at last, immediately regretting it seeing her smile fading.

"What are you saying?"

"I-"

"Babe, you’re really scaring me right now. What's going on?" Y/N's gentle hands came to his face, taking off his mask (which was fine by him because he trusted her absurdly, and they were alone), and caressed the skin of his cheeks with concern.

"Let me talk before I turn myself into a coward once again. I don't deserve you, I have a full sense of that, you're too good for me and kinder than anyone will ever be. I'm not a religious person, my life didn't allow me to be , but since we’re together I pray every day that you would not wake up one day, and realize that it’s not me who you want by your side."

"It will never happen, you are everything I ever wanted." She whispered.

"I am not... but you are what I always desired." He smiled. "You take my problems when you shouldn't, you help me and you take care of me. I can talk to you about everything because I know my secrets with you are safe. You support me when I doubt myself, and you do it all without asking for anything in return. "

"I just want your love."

Corpse kissed her, feeling the soft brush of her lips against his. Just a simple kiss from her was enough to calm him down for good. "You already have it." He assured her, then touched the velvet box and took it out of his pocket. Y/N's shocked sigh filled the air, and she raised her hands to her mouth. "And I know that I will never be enough, that I will never be good enough... But I will try. From sunrise to bedtime I swear to love you and try to make you happy every day. And if one day I don't, I know that I wasted the best thing I have in my fucking life... "

The tears overflowed from her eyes, sliding down her face in rivers of happiness. "Corpse…"

Corpse opened the box showing her what he had been hiding for several months. It was a simple ring - too simple for her in the boy's opinion, but that was how she liked it - made of silver with an oval diamond in the middle, flanked by two smaller ones in square shape, and many smaller ones around it, embellishing the circle.

"Y/N…" He sighed deeply, more sure than ever in his life, even though trying to control his anxiety. "Do you want to marry me?"

The girl threw herself at him, hugging him tightly and crying in his chest. "Yes, yes! Of course I do! Of course I want to marry you."

He laughed happily and deeply, smiling so much that he thought the corners of his lips must reach his ears. He kissed the top of her head, inhaling her perfume and murmuring how much he loved her... But mainly thanking her for loving him.

After a few minutes of laughter and sobbing, Y / N walked away with red, wet cheeks and slightly swollen eyes, but looking more beautiful than ever.

"How long…?"

"Much too long." Gently he took her hand and stuck the engagement ring on her left ring finger, where it glowed as if it belonged there. "I should have done this a long time ago."

"It's beautiful." Y/N said in admiration. "I love you."

"Not more than I love you."

They shared another kiss, this one longer than the others, and left their foreheads gently touching each other, with their eyes closed and wanting to record the moment forever in their memory.

"Thank you." He whispered.

"I’m the one who should be thanking you…"

"I knew you were forever. I've known it since that day at the cafe."

"Yes…" Y/N agreed. "Forever."

                                                           ♦⋅☆⋅♦ Tag List: @breathygasps @unicornblood4ever @jay-jay-love @mintchip17