#a major piece of his original plan decided he wasn’t feeling it and left to farm instead
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fancy-rock-dove · 2 years ago
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Feel like MXTX also had this thought.
And then wrote TGCF about it.
Au where wei wuxian post revival manages to slip away and start a new life, most likely a normal and easy one as a farmer, and lan wangji asks to stay the night at his place while out nighthunting completely unaware that it's wei wuxian yet. Everything's going fine but lan wangji can't help but feel a whole mix of emotions due to how similar this man is to wei wuxian and wei wuxian is busy freaking out because lan wangji is in his house. It all comes to a stop when, while doing some menial task, wei wuxian starts humming wangxian and lan wangji just looks at him like "....huh?" While wei wuxian is blissfully unaware. Cue wangxian hijinks where wei wuxian is thinking he's doing such a good job at hiding his identity (he's not) and lan wangji is eternally confused but completely dead set on staying with wei wuxian.
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luci-in-trenchcoats · 3 years ago
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If I Fell For You (Part 15) - Trouble In Paradise
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Summary: The reader is enjoying settling into her newfound children’s book career and shares how important the bracelet she gave Jensen is to her. A rainy day allows the reader to enjoy her shift into motherhood despite all of the bumps that go with it. But not everything is smooth sailing for the happy couple...
Masterlist
Pairing: Jensen x nanny!reader
Word Count: 5,600ish
Warnings: language, angst, mention of past abuse, nightmares, major angst
A/N: Uh oh. Big uh oh. Please enjoy and let me know what you think!
________
Two Weeks Later
“Honey bun,” sang Jensen as he stepped into your home office you’d set up in the small reading room in the house. “Must you work today?”
“I do occasionally have to work on that drawing thing,” you said. He pouted and laid out on the daybed, picking up a copy of the third book. “Give me another hour to finish with these pages.”
“Can I hang out and watch you draw?” he asked.
“Knock your socks off,” you said. You picked up your stylus again and went back to your pad, Jensen sitting up and watching from the other side of the room. “You can sit closer if you want.”
He got up and pulled over a chair, crossing his legs in it.
“I basically draw using my stylus and this pad and it shows up on my laptop screen,” you said.
“We could get you a better screen, like your own separate work computer. I know your stories are picking up a lot of steam.”
“I’m okay for now. All I need to do is finish illustrating this book and my five book deal is done and ready for print,” you said.
“Can I make a request?”
“I would love to put in a giraffe for Zepp but the story takes place in the woods,” you said.
“Baby giraffe? Maybe just in the background?” he asked.
You backed out of your current page and went to the last two where the foxes and wolves were playing with their friends. You tapped on a tree and erased it, sketching out a loose shape.
“Look up a giraffe for me?” you asked. He tapped away on his phone and pulled up a picture. “Thanks.”
You drew a picture of a rough giraffe, softening it some before adding colors.
“You’re really good at that,” he said.
“The characters are easy. Backgrounds can get boring,” you said. You went back to your original set of pages and worked quietly, Jensen watching carefully. “Yes?”
“Just wanna spend time with you is all,” he said, resting his head on your shoulder.
“Okay, baby,” you said. You worked for another hour, Jensen asking the occasional question but mostly staying silent and close by. After you sent off the pages for review you turned to him, Jensen offering a soft smile in return. “All set with work for the day.”
“Awesome,” he said.
“Where’s the munchkins?”
“A movie,” he said. You ran your fingers through his hair and he leaned into it. “Tell me a secret.”
“A secret? I don’t think I have too many of those left from you,” you said. He opened his eyes and looked at you through his lashes. “What?”
“You said you got this on vacation,” he said, holding up his wrist, the bracelet you’d put on him two weeks ago still there. “When we were down there, I was talking to Ray and he kinda implied it wasn’t just a souvenir.”
“I was upset that day when he bought it for me. It meant I was safe was all,” you said.
“How long after did your mom…”
“A few months. She went on bed rest after that trip.”
“Y/N, I know when you’re holding back, honey. I would never judge or tell anyone anything. You know that.”
“You got hurt because you lost someone and you got hurt and it sucks right? But it’s kinda like something happened and then you heal from it right?”
“Yeah…” he said. “What don’t I know?”
“You know how anxious you were to get in the car and drive down to the beach?” you asked as he nodded. “You’ve never been afraid of a person, Jensen. It’s like that feeling...but everyday and you’re expected to live your life normally when you constantly have that over your head.”
He was quiet, glancing past you as the room grew darker from some passing clouds outside.
“Canada wasn’t the first time you saw your father since you were adopted, was it,” he said.
“You wouldn’t believe what a good lawyer and shitty laws will do for a piece of shit like that,” you said.
“You were a kid.”
“With zero physical evidence. Everything was circumstantial. So he got out and he came to apologize or some bullshit and Ray decked him.”
“The more I learn about Ray, the more I like him.”
“My mom kicked him in the nuts.”
“I really like that woman,” he said. You smiled and he moved his chair closer, pulling you into his lap. “I don’t mean to make you talk about your dad. I was curious was all.”
He went to take off the bracelet when you put a hand over it.
“I don’t want to remind you of something bad, sweetheart.”
“Like I said, I was upset. Very upset and in public and I went down to the beach to try to hide away. Ray bought that for me and told me I was safe when he put it on me. All it means to me is that you’re safe.”
“What about you? What do you have?” he asked quietly. You cocked your head and moved your hand to rest over his chest. “Alright, sort of a dumb question.”
“Not dumb,” you said, trailing your fingers down his chest.
“Guess you’ll just have to stay as close as humanly possible.”
“I don’t have a problem with that,” you said.
“Do you have a restraining order against your father?”
“No but that’s only because Ray managed to get him kicked out of the country. He found some loophole law. He was born in the Yukon so technically he’s not American and he got him kicked back.”
“Scratch that. Ray is my new favorite person,” he said. “If only we could send him someplace we’ll never visit like...a deserted island. Or Hell.”
“I appreciate the thought but I’m not scared of him anymore,” you said. “I am however afraid our plans of lunch at the brewery are going to get rained out.”
“We can enjoy ourselves right here. I’ve never heard a complaint yet about my grilling.”
“You know what? I got the perfect idea.”
“Okay,” said Jensen, sliding the foil packet off the grill and onto JJ’s plate. You’d decided to have lunch on the grill, sitting out under the covered back patio off the playroom. It was pouring rain but you were plenty dry there. “Chicken, marinara sauce and cheese. Then we got chicken, ketchup and baby carrots for Arrow. Zeppy wanted to try barbecue sauce and onion which sounded good to me and then Y/N went for the salmon and lemon.”
You helped the twins open up their foil packets and get their food on their plates, dicing up the chicken for them before going to your own plate.
“Daddy,” said Zeppelin while he chewed on a big piece of chicken. Jensen hummed and worked on his own food. “Can we play race cars after lunch?”
“Sure,” he said, JJ shaking her head.
“I don’t wanna play cars,” she said. Zeppelin stared at her and his bottom lip wobbled. “You’re a cry baby.”
“JJ, that’s rude,” you said, Jensen glancing at you and nodding. “Apologize to your brother.”
“Sorry,” she mumbled. 
“We’re gonna play cars after lunch and you’re welcome to join,” said Jensen. “Your brother goes along with what you girls want to play quite a bit so I think you can do the same for him.”
“I still don’t wanna play cars,” she mumbled.
“You play cars with the Padalecki boys all the time,” you said.
“Not little kid cars,” she said. “He doesn’t know how to play right.”
You saw Zeppelin getting upset again and sighed.
“There’s no wrong way to play,” you said. “Zepp’s littler than you. You gotta be the big sister and do what he wants sometimes.”
“Mom would have played dress up,” she grumbled. “Not stupid cars.”
“Enough,” said Jensen. “You’re old enough to know better.”
“I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Your brother wants to play cars. We played horses all morning long and you barely let him have a turn at that so like I said, we’re gonna play what he wants and you are welcome to join us but if you don’t want to, you can play something else,” he said. 
“Baby,” she said under her breath. Jensen didn’t catch it but you did.
“JJ you’re in timeout after lunch. Ten minutes,” you said. 
“I didn’t-”
“You just called him a baby. You want to make it fifteen?” you asked.
“You’re not my mom! You can’t give me timeouts,” she said.
“Half an hour now,” said Jensen. She stared at him and he shook his head. “Eat your lunch.”
Zeppelin spent half of it crying quietly and JJ barely touched hers before she was following Jensen inside. You threw your head back and sighed before you went inside to get some tissues. When you came back out Arrow was hugging him tightly.
“Let’s clean you up, buddy,” you said as you squatted down beside them. She let go of him and you wiped off his face and helped him blow his nose. “Feel better?”
“We can play dress up,” he said. You picked him up and hoisted him on your hip. 
“We’re gonna play cars. Arrow, do you want to play with us?” you asked. She smiled and nodded. “Hey how about you go wash your hands and then you can bring out the bucket of cars and we’ll play out here. How’s that sound Zepp?”
“Okay,” he said. Arrow went inside and you carried him around as you collected the trash and threw it in the bag you brought out. You tied it up and left it in the corner to put in the bin later before you you walked to the edge of the covered patio, rain coming down at a decent rate. “Y/N you’re my mom right?”
“I’m one of your moms,” you said. “I’m gonna adopt you that way everybody can know I am though.”
“Cool,” he said softly, resting his head on your shoulder. “Mom can we play in the rain?”
“Hear any thunder?” you asked. He shook his head. “See any lightning?”
“Nuh uh,” he said.
“Then we can play in the rain all you want,” you said. You walked out to the grass and spun around with him, getting a giggle out of him. “Did you hear that?”
“Hear what?” he asked. You spun around again and he laughed.
“There it is again!” you said. He giggled and you spun around a few times until you were dizzy and took a seat. He hugged you and kissed your cheek as you noticed Jensen leaning against the post of the patio. He was smiling and you hopped up with Zeppelin, waving him around in the air until you were back under cover. You set him down and he ran over to Arrow, picking out his favorite cars from the bucket and handing her some. 
“Well that might have been one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen,” he said. 
“You took a picture, didn’t you.”
“Oh several,” he said. He glanced back at the twins and then at you. “It clicked for you just now didn’t it.”
“Being a mom? Yeah.”
“You didn’t look to me on how to discipline JJ and you made him feel better and you made him laugh. You went full mom there and I’ve kinda been waiting for that.”
“I know it’s just playing they’re arguing over but I just hate...there is so much of you in him,” you said.
“I know and that feeling will never go away but it means you love ‘em and loving them is my only requirement for us working so this was actually a really good thing.”
“Those two are so sweet,” you said.
“It’s the twin thing. Oh what fun we have to look forward to when they are teenagers and they lie to us for one another,” he chuckled.
“Yeah but I’ll take it. Did you really give her a half hour timeout?”
“Fifteen minutes. She needs to share more and he doesn’t like confrontation so he goes along with what she wants but it’s not her road or the highway.”
“She’s been a little…”
“I know. Since we told them about the engagement,” he said. “We gotta talk to her on her own.”
“Let me take a crack at her first?” you asked.
“You got a hunch?”
“I don’t think having a mom again is a problem. I think the idea of losing a mom again is.”
“That makes sense considering she was attached to your hip before all this.”
“I’m gonna go see if I can get to the bottom of this. Now go play cars,” you said. He kissed your cheek and you headed inside, drying off some with a towel in the laundry room before you went up to JJ’s bedroom. You knocked and cracked open the door, catching her splayed out on her bed. “JJ. Can we talk?”
She rolled and put her back to you. You sat down on the edge of her bed and took a deep breath.
“You know your brother did what you wanted all day. You have to share,” you said. She didn’t say anything and you lay back on the bed, turning your head. She rolled back the other way and you sat up. She rolled again and you tilted your head back. “JJ do you want me to be your mom?”
“No,” she mumbled. 
“Are you lying?” She didn’t move and you sat back, her face scrunched up. “Are you scared if I’m your mom something bad will happen to me?”
“I don’t want two dead moms,” she said. 
“I have two dead moms,” you said. She blinked her eyes open and sat up. “My first mom, I never met her. She died giving birth to me.”
“You only had a dad when you were born?” she asked. You nodded and pulled her into your lap. “Did he get married again?”
“No. My dad was very mad my mom died. He took that out on me. He was a bad guy. He went to jail and I got adopted by my mom when I was your age. Ray was her boyfriend. He acted like he was my dad in a lot of ways. I was sixteen when my mom died. I understand it hurts, sweetie, and that it’s scary and you don’t ever want to feel like that again.”
“I thought if I was bad you and daddy wouldn’t...and then I don’t have to feel bad again.”
“I am so sorry honey but you can’t stop that feeling from never coming back. The only way you could not get it would be to not love anyone or anything and that’s not a life at all. It’s the price you pay for loving someone. Your mom was an accident. But Daddy is young and I’m even younger and I promise you will not have to feel that way about me for a very, very long time.”
“How long?”
“How about fifty years?”
“Fifty years? That’s forever,” she said. 
“I’ll give you fifty years if I can be your mom and you stop picking on Zepp. Deal?”
“Okay. I’m sorry I made him cry.”
“I’m not the one that needs an apology,” you said. “Now do you want stay in here all by yourself or do you want to come play with us?”
“I can play?” she asked.
“Absolutely,” you said. You got up and carried her down on your back, setting her down to let her run off out to the porch. Jensen got up from his seat and held up a finger, ducking back inside to where you were.
“That’s what I like to see,” he said as she gave Zeppelin a hug and he handed her a car.
“I did have to promise not to die for fifty years.”
“Fifty? You got off easy. I had to promise a hundred after the accident,” he chuckled. “I should have noticed she was scared.”
“I have more experience being a scared little girl than you do. I got experience with letting people get close again too,” you said.
“How’s that working out for ya?” he smirked.
“He’s lucky he’s hot,” you said. He threw his arm over your shoulders and grinned. “Do you want to get married in the fall?”
“This fall?” he asked.
“Can we pull it off that fast?” you asked.
“Yeah. We don’t have to book a venue which is the hardest part. I don’t see why not. What’s the rush?” he asked.
“It’s easier to adopt them if we’re married,” you said. “I don’t really want to wait longer than we have to if that’s alright.”
“I’d say let’s go drive down to city hall and get a justice of the peace right now if I knew my mother wouldn’t kill me for it. How about I call up the lawyer and ask him to start prepping the paperwork as if we already were so it’s all set to go,” he said.
“You have a lawyer?” you asked. “They’d do that?”
“Y/N, honey. My taxes alone frighten me not to mention I own a business with employees and what qualifies as a business write off still confuses me and wait you don’t have a lawyer for your book deal?”
“Should I have one?” 
“Greg is your lawyer now,” he said. “He’s good. He’ll do all the paperwork for us.”
“Oh good cause all the forms online were confusing the hell out of me,” you said. He shook his head and pulled you in close. 
“Silly goose,” he said, a loud boom of thunder shaking the house. “Let’s get the crew inside before it pours.”
“Who wants to build a fort?” you asked that afternoon. JJ jumped up and down on the couch and Jensen walked in with an arm full of blankets and sheets. Three little hands shot up and Jensen lazily tossed the blankets on the couch, covering the three of them.
“Hm, where’d those three munchkins run off to…” he said, Arrow ducking her head out first, hair all in her face. Jensen giggled and she rolled her eyes, the other two climbing out. “Alright. I’m gonna grab clothes pins and a few more things. You guys start designing.”
You stood back and let JJ organize, figuring out her first choice of blanket for a roof was too small. Jensen returned with a bag of clips, some twine and the step ladder, wrapping his arms around your waist and resting his head on your shoulder.
“How they doing?” he whispered.
“Picking out the roof,” you said, Arrow rushing over and grabbing his hand as Zeppelin climbed on JJ’s back and held up a sheet over the two of them with one hand. You smirked and she let out another eye roll.
“Daddy, can you pick up Zeppy so then he can put the blankie up? I told them they’re too small,” she said.
“Sure,” he said. “Tell me where you want it to go.”
Twenty minutes later the family room was covered with sheets, tied off to the stairs, chairs, the ceiling fan after Jensen broke out the larger ladder to get up there and assured you it wouldn’t bring the whole thing crashing down. 
“Can we sleep in here tonight?” asked JJ. 
“I don’t see why not,” you said. “There’s plenty of room on the couch. We’ll bring down your comforters when it’s bedtime,” you said.
“Can we watch Cars?” asked Zeppelin, glancing at JJ. 
“Okay,” she said. She gave him a hug and picked him up, Jensen smiling to himself as he looked on.
“Can we get pizza for dinner like a real sleepover?” asked Arrow. 
“We did cook up all the chicken at lunch,” you said, giving Jensen a side eye.
“Yeah we’ll get one,” he said. “Why don’t you turn on your movie okay? We’ll be right there.”
You let Jensen pull you into the kitchen, smirking as he picked you up and sat you on the counter.
“Seems like today’s crisis has been averted,” you said.
“I’m sure they’ll go back to tormenting each other tomorrow but I’ll take it,” he said, reaching into the drawer next to you, pulling out a menu. “So. You interested in pizza?”
“Oh that looks interesting,” you said, taking the pamphlet out of his hand and tapping at a special. “One cheese, one speciality, boneless wings and garlic bread? My little carb loving heart is in love.”
“She’s not the only one,” he said, leaning up on his tip toes and kissing you. 
“Are you coming?” groaned JJ from in the fort. You shook your head and Jensen kissed your neck, even nibbling before he pulled back. You smacked his chest and he set the menu down, giving you a wink.
“We’re coming in right now. Don’t wait for us kiddo.”
You woke up sweating, Jensen shushing you, arms wrapped around you. You took a deep breath and caught the clock said it was almost three. You turned in his arms and buried your head in his chest, his hand rubbing up and down your back.
“You’re okay. Bad dream is all,” he said softly. You nodded and started to relax, flinching when there was more thunder. “Hey, it’s okay. Nothing’s gonna get ya.”
The thunder shook the house and you tensed up. Jensen pulled the covers over both your heads and you crammed in as close as humanly possible when more thunder hit.
“Honey look at me. Please look at me.” You lifted your head and saw a horrible face in front of you, a scream ripping out of your throat.
“Y/N,” you heard as you woke up absolutely drenched, Jensen’s hands on your face. “Honey, talk to me. Can you hear me?”
“Night terror,” you said quietly. 
“Yeah, JJ used to have them. I didn’t know adults could get them,” he said. 
“Can I have a cold washcloth? And some water?” you asked. He got out of bed and padded into the bathroom in his boxers, settling back into bed and handing you the water. You drank it down while he wiped off your face and neck, running it over your head. “Thanks.”
“You okay?” he asked. 
“Mostly feel embarrassed.” He frowned and you put the glass on your nightstand, staring down at your sweaty shirt. 
“Should I call Ray?”
“It was a stupid nightmare. I’m fine,” you said.
“You were sat up eyes wide open and talking and shouting and I couldn’t wake you up,” he said. “I know adults really shouldn’t be getting night terrors so maybe something triggered you or something during the day.”
“I know my triggers and I know when it’s just a stupid nightmare. Back off,” you said. You got out from under the hot covers and went outside to the balcony, the air nice and cool from the storm earlier. The slide of the door was loud in the the quiet and you rubbed your arm. “I’m sorry.”
“I’ve seen you have nightmares. That was a lot worse,” he said.
“I thought I saw someone watching the house earlier.”
“What?”
“It was the neighbor’s kid, the teenager. It was his friend and he came over late but I thought...it freaked me out. That on top of thinking about the fact my father is not rotting in a jail cell most likely sent me over the edge,” you said. He walked in front of you, resting his hands on your arms. “I’m okay. Needed some air was all.”
“Alright. Tell me if something like that happens again?” he asked. You hummed and he gave you a kiss. “Okay, sweetheart. Let’s head on back to bed.”
“What do you mean?” you growled into the phone the next evening. Jensen lifted his head from his book in the family room and you walked away, stepping out to the private patio area on the side of the house. “That’s not possible.”
“It’s been fifteen years. He has every legal right to be in the country.”
“In the country! He got an apartment seven minutes from where I live!” you said. “I have little kids here, Finn. Tell me there’s something I can do.”
“I can get a restraining order-”
“That doesn’t mean shit to him. I need him fucking deported. I need him gone.”
“Y/N, you know me. I have never agreed to it but he paid his debt as it was assigned and he quietly followed the law. He did what he was supposed to and I’m sorry but until he does something, I can’t do anything besides help you and your fiance’s family get a restraining order.”
“So until he does something horrible again, I can’t do anything about it.”
“Y/N.”
“No Finn. I appreciate the heads up but...I have to go.”
You hung up and squeezed your phone tight. He knew where you lived. He was minutes away and there was absolutely zero help until something went wrong. You sat on a bench and bounced your leg. Nothing could go wrong. You couldn’t let anything go wrong. Who knew what the son of a bitch would do to any one of them.
You stopped bouncing your leg just as you heard the door open. You lifted your head and stood, spinning around to Jensen standing there.
“Everything alright?”
“Actually no.”
“Who was on the phone?”
“My ex,” you said, swallowing. You crossed your arms and thought of the things Jensen had told you about acting and getting in character and all that. You were gonna destroy him. Fuck you were going to end up shattering him into a thousand pieces he’d never put back together. 
You couldn’t really lie just to keep them away from him, could you? 
You saw Arrow run past in the house and made your face hard. Broken heart but safe kids was worth it.
“I thought you didn’t talk to him anymore,” said Jensen. You turned up your chin and he smiled. “You are the worst actress in the world. Who was it really?”
“I think we’re moving too fast and I want to take a break and I would appreciate it if you gave me my space to figure this out on my own.”
“Uh, what?” he said. You brushed past him and he followed you in, all the way up to your bedroom. You got out a bag and he flipped it shut. “What the hell is going on? Who was on the phone?”
“My boyfriend,” you said. He stared at you and you sighed. “You’re a great guy but I’m sorry. I can’t do the house and kids thing. I want to go see the world and not be tied down and you’re just...you’re too damn old for me.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Maybe you should have trusted your first instincts when you saw me and Doug,” you said. He stared at you while you shoved some clothes in a bag. You slung it over your shoulder and he caught the backside of it. You took off your ring and put it on the table by the door, Jensen dropping his hand. “I just can’t do this anymore. It wasn’t you. I’m sorry. I really need to go.”
______
A/N: Read Part 16 here!
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marveldc-imagines-hub · 2 years ago
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Pathetic (Steven Grant x Reader)
Summary: Steven gets called into work and it interrupts your day date, so you spend the day hanging around his flat. You decide to plan a nice evening for the two of you to make up for it, only for Steven to come home sad after an upsetting encounter.
Word Count: 5,113
Warnings: Sad and insecure Steven :( Also there’s a lot of lead-up in the beginning and possibly inaccurate representation of cooking times. This takes place maybe a little while after the series (no major spoilers); Marc and Jake are both mentioned but aren’t present. I’m still trying to better educate myself on DID so I can write the Moon Knight men properly, so if I made any mistakes on the subject, please feel free to correct me! Also friendly reminder that all of my Readers are gender neutral unless explicitly stated. :)
A/N: I see people calling Steven pathetic quite a bit and I know it’s usually in an endearing way but it still makes me a little sad every time because he’s just like. a dude. trying to do his thing. and Going Through It. That doesn’t mean I’m mad at people who call him that or anything, I just Feel Things whenever I see a post doing it, so I thought I would write something about it. Also I have like five half-written pieces in the works right now and less than a week until my final semester of college starts, please save me, lmao.
Ko-Fi | Commissions
~~~~~
Spending the day at Steven’s flat while he was at work had been surprisingly nice. Originally, the two of you had had plans to go out for the day–have a picnic, walk around town, maybe do a little window shopping; there was no set plan, just the two of you enjoying each other’s company–but Steven had been unknowingly scheduled to replace another worker at the museum gift shop. The two of you found this out very unceremoniously when your morning of sleeping in had been interrupted by Steven’s phone scaring you awake and him getting yelled at by Donna for being late. Steven was quick to scramble out of bed and while he was bustling around getting dressed and apologizing profusely for the day out interruption, you simply threw on one of his sweaters and hopped up to prepare a quick breakfast and lunch that you handed off to him with a peck on the nose as he dashed out of the door.
You didn’t live with Steven but you spent almost all of your time at the flat, so hanging out there all day wasn’t particularly jarring. Being there by yourself did feel a little strange though, as most of the time you were there was also spent with Steven himself, either cooking or reading or snuggling together. You hovered around the kitchen and front door for the first few minutes after Steven left, unsure of whether or you should head home because he wouldn’t be home until much later in the day, but eventually settled on enjoying your alone time in the quiet space. Steven hadn’t told you to get home safe or that he would call or visit you later anyway, which were things he normally did when you were expected to part ways, after all. It wasn’t long until he confirmed that you were welcome to stay either; assumedly after he made it to the museum, you received a text from him, thanking you are the coffee and lovely breakfast and telling you to take your pick of whatever was in the kitchen. 
So you made yourself a bowl of cereal and snuggled up in Steven’s favorite chair, providing you with a view of the outside world through the nearby window as well as the pleasant company of his pet fish, Not-Gus. After that, you took a shower; Steven always smelt fresh and clean in the ways of sandalwood and tea tree oil, and something about the idea of smelling like him for the day made you smile. When you stepped out into the steamy shower and realized all you had to wear for the day were yesterday’s clothes or the pajamas that your boyfriend let you borrow, you found a dark pair of his jeans that more or less fit you and one of his shirts–dark yellow with thin off-white lines in a vaguely plaid-like pattern–that you knew would be a little too big and thus had perfect tucking-into-jeans potential. 
You didn’t spend the entire day indoors, which you later felt a little bad about because Steven certainly had to. Still, since your plans for the day went a little awry, you decided to make up for it in a nice dinner. There wasn’t much in the flat’s kitchen, so you went out and picked up groceries, and even stopped by your own place to pick up a couple of things in case Steven wanted you to stay the night again. That was often the case, so it wasn’t odd to assume it would be the same today.
Back at the flat, you tidied up for a while. Steven was a bit of a hoarder of books and interesting trinkets, so his place always looked like a bit of a mess, but you still took the time to sweep the floors, fluff throw pillows and straighten blankets. At some point between straightening some precariously leaning stacks of books and chatting with Not-Gus as you fed him, you turned on music to sing along to. Your final touch to finish cleaning up was hanging a small windchime made of colorful pieces of glass that you found at a market near the window with a little romantic note attached for Steven to find later. You smiled every time it would cheerfully harmonize with you and the music playing when a breeze caught it, or reflect a kaleidoscope of dancing colors throughout the flat as the sun shined through.
You eventually ran out of things to tinker with or clean, so you found a comfortable place in Steven’s chair and picked up a book to read until evening drew closer. When the two of you weren’t actively buying little gifts for each other every time one of you saw something that reminded you of the other, you liked to send quotes or pictures of novel passages, usually of romantic or interesting information nature, to each other. Since Steven was busy and couldn’t respond as he might usually, you decided to have some fun with the concept. You happened to pick up a romantic novel from Steven’s collection–he was an awkward hopeless romantic at heart and he’d get flustered if you ever said so to his face–so you went to work snapping pictures of sappy lines and fluffy excerpts to flood his messages and greet him after work with. 
The day’s golden hour set in. When enough light filtered through the window to give you a headache from squinting at your reading, you set the novel aside and got up to prepare dinner. The plans for an entire day together was ruined, so you originally wanted to make the evening grand enough to make up for the time lost. Unfortunately, there was a lack of cooking ware and space in Steven’s flat, and he, understandably, quickly became stressed when things in his home, his safe space, got too out of sorts. 
Organized disorganization, he would say about his place. It might look chaotic to anyone else entering his flat for the first time but he knew exactly where everything was and he liked it how it was. It only became a problem when it got out of hand for him.
The last thing you wanted to greet him with after a long unexpected day of work was a stressful home situation and you toned down your grand ideas as a result. The dinner idea that you finally settled on was perhaps a little silly and definitely a little cheesy but when it popped into your head, it just wouldn’t un-stick; you would create an indoor picnic to make up for the picnic that you’d missed out on this afternoon. The dishes took some brainstorming and tutorial videos, but once you had them down, you were roasting veggies for rainbow collard green wraps and chopping peppers for a black bean and bell pepper salad. Fruit was added to the mix in the forms of a smaller fruit salad and vegan fruit tarts for dessert, and any pieces of fruit or vegetables that were left over were cut and turned into pretty garnishes or added to a snack board that could be munched on after the main meal was over or simply eaten tomorrow. Drinks were a little trickier for you to come up with and you almost settled on simply a bottle of wine but it felt like it didn’t quite work with the theme. You quickly skimmed through some recipes online and then found yourself making last-minute mocktails with fruity and minty flavors.
There was the occasional lull in food prep when you were waiting for something to cook or set and that’s when you took to setting the scene. You hadn’t come up with the picnic idea while out grocery shopping or you would have also bought a plaid blanket or tablecloth for the aesthetic alone. You poked through Steven’s collection of bedding until you found a light blue bedsheet instead, which you spread out in the middle of the flat’s floor. Not wanting to sit on the otherwise hard floor, you also put down a few throw pillows in a little nest of sorts for the two of you to snuggle in while eating. It dawned on you that you also that you also didn’t have a picnic basket–somewhat ironically, considering a picnic was one idea for the day anyway–to make a show out of pulling the finished dishes out of, but Steven did have a wire basket on the counter where he kept fruit when he had it; you emptied it and made a little display of all of your dishes in it, using tea plates or small cups to hold the items. This display basket would be your introductory piece that you would offer to Steven before showing him the real event, so it stayed on the counter while you carefully plated the actual dishes on the plates and bowls that had the most outdoorsy feel to them. You carried the plated food to the blanket, leaving extras on the counter in a buffet of sorts to go up and grab seconds, then sought out some various items–a plushie of Ra, the Egyptian sun god; your necklace that Steven gifted you a while back with a pendent of Ken, a love goddess, on it; a few pretty stones that Steven kept displayed on a shelf; a couple of books with covers that had a field and a sunny sky on their covers and whatever else you could find–to decorate the space a little more.
You didn’t notice a lack of sun the room or the sky until you walked to fridge to get the mocktails you had stored there and had to blink the brightness of the light away. You carefully sat the drinks, served in glass jars with fruit and mint garnishes floating on top, on the counter and looked around the darkened flat before making your way over to the light switch by the front door.
Just as you reached the light switch, you heard footsteps and the jingling of keys approaching. You scrambled back from the door and grabbed the drinks to take to the floor setup, where you practically flung yourself onto the pillows after once again carefully setting the drinks down. Then you remembered the display basket you left on the counter and jumped back to your feet, sliding on the hardwood floor in socks to get back to the kitchen area and grab the basket. You spun to run back to the door to have yourself and your basket there to greet Steven as he walked in but you slammed your hip into the counter’s corner in the process and found yourself coughing out a breath that you didn’t know you were holding instead, clutching your display for dear life.
The front door opened with a click and whiny grumble as Steven stepped inside. The light was flicked on and your boyfriend of roughly a year took a look around, finding the picnic setup on the floor first and you in the kitchen last. You would have considered this whole entrance and reveal a mission failed if it weren’t for the fact that Steven looked like an abused puppy with his hunched up posture and restless hands and big, sad eyes, which quickly became a bigger concern for you.
Your heart was filled with pride about your dinner plans one moment and shattering into pieces for Steven the next. You immediately went to comfort him about whatever had gone wrong with the day but the movement was more of a hobble due to your aching hip. When you opened your mouth to speak, all that you could manage was a pained, “Hey.”
“Hi,” was all Steven said back at first, slowly. He looked around the flat again in reverse order–you, the basket in your hands, the buffet, the picnic–and his expression slowly changed from depressed to bewildered. You knew if you didn’t question him now, it would be difficult to get him to talk about his feelings later, but you just couldn’t make your mouth move faster than his. “What’s all this then?”
You limped your way over, holding out your arms with the display in your hands like some food-bearing zombie. Steven noticed your odd walk and immediately met you, hands carefully finding your waist in hopes of steadying you, healing you. “Goodness, [Y/N], what have you done to yourself?”
You snorted, then replied through gritted teeth as you wiggled your basket at him, “Happy anniversary.”
The expression shifted again and you knew whatever chance you had had to ask him about what went wrong at work had passed; you would have to pry it from him later. Now Steven looked like he was melting in the best way. Whatever tension his body had been holding faded as he stepped as close to you as he could without disrupting your display, which he looked at with mixed awe and glee. A crooked, dopey grin slowly blossomed on his face and almost made you faint in the process, and his hands restlessly danced along your sides, your arms, your hands, until they reached the basket; then they danced back in the opposite direction and found your hips. You winced at the fingers on your newly tender flesh and Steven offered a sympathetic slight furrow of his brows, though try as he might, he couldn’t get his smile under control.
Before he could get too worried, you gave him a shake of your head and reassuring smooch on the cheek for good measure. “Don’t worry about it, just slammed into the counter trying to get to the door before you got in. I’ll be fine in a few.”
“You’re sure?” The hand that rested on your bruising hip played with the waist of your jeans there. It was taking all of his control not to untuck your shirt, unbutton your pants, and check the area for serious injury. If he did that, then you’d have a whole different problem on your hands and you refused to let all your hard work of the day go to waste.
He could take care of you after dinner.
“I’m sure,” you promised, quickly slipping out of his grasp and holding out your display of dishes to him once again. In a much cheerier voice this time, you repeated, “Happy anniversary!”
“A year already, look at us,” Steven murmured, wonder edging his voice. He took the wire basket to closer inspect what you had made and reached in to grab the collard green wrap as you took him by the arm and led him to the pillows to sit.
“Since you got called in today–”
Steven interrupted, a frown replacing his grin for a few moments, “I am so sorry again, love. I swear I had no idea–”
You kissed his frown to quiet him, then gave him a warning look as he went to talk again immediately after; he has already apologized a billion times this morning. When you were sure that he would let you speak, you went on, “Since you got called in today–which wasn’t your fault–and our plans kind of went out the window, I wanted to make sure that we still sort of, kind of did something nice for the day. Behold, our indoor, nighttime picnic! Et voilà.”
While you sat on one of the pillows, Steven fluttered nervously around the edge of the bedsheet, as if he were scared that the entire thing would disappear should he step foot onto the fabric. After a couple of minutes, you realized that he needed a little bit of a push, so you caught his arm holding the wrap that he was now nibbling on and gently coaxed him to sit next to you. He looked shocked, face frozen in giddiness; you decided to help him further by snagging the basket from his hands to be the centerpiece of the setup, then tugging his jacket off of his shoulders. Steven came back to his senses bit by bit and popped the last of the display wrap into his mouth before shimmying his jacket off and tossing it over a nearby stack of books. 
He eyed the food and licked his lips but still hesitated to grab anything until you did so first. You went for the mocktail, leaning back on your free hand as you took a sip, and Steven quickly snagged another wrap. He took a bite, hummed happily, and cast a questioning look your way. “You cooked ‘n’ everything?” 
You offered a proud grin in return. “Sure did! Got bored so I picked you up some groceries, looked up some vegan recipes.”
“Magic,” Steven practically purred as he ate away, “pure magic.”
“Did you get all my messages, by the way?” You asked.
Steven quirked a brow and, with cheeks puffed out after shoveling a couple of spoonfuls of bean and pepper salad, pulled his phone from his back pocket. His shoulders instinctively hunched as he rested his elbows on his knees and flipped through his messages and you fought the urge to reach over and try to relieve the tension in them. You tried your fruit salad as you watched him chew and read and fought a growing smirk as you saw a flush appear on his cheeks and ears.
“Love,” he mumbled once he was free to talk again, “there’s at least a hundred messages of romance snippets here.”
“I read fast, and that was after ” you replied with a shrug. You sat up properly again, only to lean on Steven’s shoulder as you flung your arms and around his neck and smooshed your face against the side of his. “Also I looove you.”
Your boyfriend’s happiness faltered slightly then and you were reminded that you needed to ask him what was wrong before he completely shut whatever it was out. It was almost like the falter hadn’t happened at all, though, because then he was making a sound between a snort and a chuckle as he craned his neck to lightly kiss your temple.
“Well, I should hope so, all things considered,” he said, setting his phone aside again. “I love you too. And all of this is bloody amazing, by the way.”
“Yeah? You like it?”
“Like it? Try bloody love it. Only second to you.”
Your cheeks warmed at the compliment and you made a pleased sound in response as you picked up a wrap of your own to try. You thought about teasing him a bit, casually pointing out the fact that you were wearing an outfit made exclusively of his clothes today or that your scent currently matched his, but the worried voice in your head insisted you had something better to do. “So, how was your day?”
Steven cleared his throat a bit as his gaze, which had previously been trained on you or your gift to him the entire time, danced away altogether. He ducked his head, shielding his eyes from you behind thick, loose curls and visibly leaned away from you like he would get up and run away if it weren’t an impolite thing to do. He knew that he couldn’t run from you, though—never you—so he tried to deflect instead, “How was your day? It looks very tidy in here, you must’ve spent the day cleaning. Oh, look, you even made the bed.”
You huffed a sigh and narrowed your eyes at him; you felt a pang of satisfaction as he began blushing again, this time flustered from being under your scrutinizing gaze. “Steven, you’re not answering me. You walked in looking miserable tonight, I just want to know that you’re okay.”
Steven looked at you again and your heart almost broke for him all over again when all you saw were big, brown pools of hurt staring back. He shifted his position, twisting to face you better as he grabbed one of your hands to fiddle with. He looked down at where the two of you were now joined, hiding his face again. “My love, my angel, my gift from Ken, it’s our anniversary. My workday was like any other, I promise. I don’t want to drudge up silly things and ruin the night that you worked so hard on.”
You frowned. It was awful that Steven felt like his feelings weren’t worth talking about. It was something you had tried to work on with him time and time again, not always successfully. Steven found it very easy to hide away within himself. But him pushing down his negative feelings until they seemed to go away, or simmering in them until they added to the insecurities he already had, wasn’t the way to happiness, was it? 
You simply weren’t having it this time. You crooked a finger of your free hand underneath his chin and dragged his gaze up to look at you once more. “Steven, your feelings are not silly, and even if they were, that doesn’t mean you should be ashamed of hiding them. We’re partners, you and I. That means we’re supposed to be here for each other.”
Steven sat there quietly. He continued to play with your fingers and glanced away from you every few seconds but never made any real moves to pull away from your hold on him. 
“Please,” you softly pleaded, “talk to me.”
It took a few moments longer but Steven eventually sighed and accepted his fate. He glanced away again and when he looked back this time, his face wrinkled with shame. His voice was almost too quiet for you to hear when he spoke again. “D’you think I’m pathetic?”
You blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“Pathetic,” he mumbled a little louder, “Do you think I’m pathetic?”
You felt like a deer caught in the headlights of a car, staring at him incredulously. “What? Of course not. Why would I think you’re pathetic?”
”My job,” he listed, and with every suggestion he deflated more and more until he was practically a ball of sad mush sitting next to you, “my lack of social skills, my talking to myself, my living situation, my—“
You pulled your hands back to wave them at him whilst shaking your head. “Stop, stop. Steven, where is this coming from? Did Donna say something? I swear to the gods, I will wring her neck.”
Steven quickly shook his head and even though most of his face was hidden from the way he was curled in on himself, a twitch in his cheek informed you that he had briefly smiled at your comments. However, it was quickly gone again and the man flopped onto his side on the mound of pillows to stare off into space past you. That is, until something caught his eye. “Did you buy me a wind chime?”
“Later,” you said pointedly. You lied down on your side as well so your partner had no excuse but to look at you again. “Steven.”
He made a whiney noise from deep in his throat before finally confessing, “I decided to leave the museum for lunch today and saw my golden statue mate while out ‘n’ about. Decided I sit ‘n’ chat for bit— Y’know, since I haven’t done it in a while. Was just sitting and talking there and some folks walked by and called me pathetic.”
“I will kill them.”
Another small break in Steven’s sad shell as he breathed a short chuckle. “Not to my face or anything. I don’t think it was meant to be mean either. I overheard it. ‘Look at that man talking to the statue performer. Sweet pathetic man.’ Or something.”
You cupped Steven’s cheek in your hand and ran your thumb along the sad lines there, willing for them to go away. “Oh, my love, I’m sorry. That’s awful rude of them.”
Steven shifted closer to you and lightly nuzzled your palm. He closed his eyes forc a long moment and when he opened them again, they were wet with unshed tears. “Anyway, I started thinking about it and— I am kind of pathetic, aren’t I? At least in some sense. I mean, I’ve been working the same dead-end job for years, my boss doesn’t treat me with any respect. I–I had the chance to find a new one when I got fired but I came back when they called me, like a hopeless animal or something. I can barely ask out a person and when I do, I chicken out or miss the date completely by days. I don’t have very many friends—“
“Steven, jesus, stop,” you said, and this time it was stern enough to freeze him completely. You took a moment to blink your own frustrated tears away before taking a firm hold on his face. “You’re not pathetic, Steven. Say it.”
Steven simply blinked at you.
“I’m serious,” you said with a glare, “say it. Say you’re not pathetic.”
“I’m not pathetic?”
“You’re not. Now say it again.”
“I’m not pathetic.”
“Now say it again and say it a billion times, and say it every single time a bad thought like that pops into your head because my god—“ You had to pause. Your blood was boiling and your hands were shaking and Steven was looking at you with an expression on his face that you just couldn’t figure out. You were holding his face tight enough that your were squishing his cheeks a bit, not that he seemed to mind in the slightest, but you released your grip anyway to card your fingers through his gorgeous dark hair as you took a breath.
All of him was gorgeous, really. Not just his hair. His face was stunning; he had a jawline that could kill and a nose that was perfect to peck in the morning to wake him up for nuzzle your own against. His eyes were beautiful, such a dark shade of brown that they were almost black but still carried all of the emotions that he also happened to wear on his sleeve in the most endearing way. He always lifted one side of his mouth a tad more than the other whenever he smiled or made a face, which, paired with the slight gap between his two front top teeth, left you breathless even with the silliest expression. His hands were often restless but when they had a task to do, they did it better than anybody else, and no one would know it because he often hid under bulky clothing but you knew his body like nobody else and you would happily attest to its perfection. Not to mention that all this was just a vessel for his heart and mind and goodness, his heart and mind—
Your hands settled on the sides of Steven’s neck, steady once more. He couldn’t quite hold your gaze when you looked him in the eyes but that was fine with you—you both struggled with eye contact sometimes. You knew he was hanging onto your every word and by the way his eye never lingered away away from you for too long. It almost seemed like you’d captured his attention more than whoever had caused this plague to his day.
“Steven,” you said, “anyone who calls you pathetic doesn’t know shit about you. You’re kind, you’re caring, you’re gentle, and those are wonderful qualities. You’re one of the most intelligent, goofy, nerdy people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and I love it. And truly, your mind is amazing. You’re definitely not as awkward as you like to think you are either; I’ve seen you tell stories of Egypt to children for hours and go toe-to-toe with an asshole who tried to show up a tour guide— Do you remember that? Incredible. And your flat is charming and homey and I love being here with you, and sure, your job isn’t exactly what you want to being doing but you’re still damn good at it, and if I hadn’t walked in to buy some of those nasty gummies a year ago, we never would have met, so I am grateful every day— And, about that whole asking out thing—“
You broke off as Steven’s hands found either side of your face and pulled you to him. His lips quickly covered yours and you groaned softly, somewhat gratefully; you had started to ramble, which could have easily led to a mess to nowhere if someone didn’t stop you. Your and Steven’s lips played together perfectly, and the sound the two of you made harmonized like beautiful music chords. A little moan escaped you as he gently tugged on your bottom lip with his teeth. His hands roamed your neck and shoulders, while yours found themselves tangling in his hair again.
The two of you parted only to breath and neither of you spoke until a while later. You simply held each other, basked in each other’s presence, appreciated each other.
“Guess I’m not so bad if I’ve found you, am I?” Steven murmured finally. The tone of his voice sounded like it was meant to be a bit of a tease but his grateful gaze that danced across your face held the truth. “I’m doing my best.”
Steven often spoke in questions, especially when discussing his feelings, and you learned over time that he expected validation in the form of answers. To him, a lot of what he did and said wasn’t worth its weight until someone else confirmed it, so it made your heart swell to hear him firmly state he was doing his best. 
You smooshed your face against his and said back, “You aren’t bad at all, or pathetic. You’re perfectly perfect and your best is wonderful. I’m very lucky to have you.”
Steven’s cheeks warmed against your skin and he giggled a bit as the two of you kept your faces squished together for a few moments longer. Then he pulled away to look at you properly, thumbs gently brushing across your cheekbones. His eyes were wide but no longer sad. They were bright, little flecks of gold noticeable in the dark brown with how close your faces were, and so full of love for you. 
“S’pose we should finish our date night then, yeah?” He asked. The one corner of his mouth quirked up a bit more than the other when he gave you a bit of an exaggerated questioning look. It took everything in your power not to tackle him and simply have your way in the pillows.
“Probably,” you agreed instead, “I made fruit tarts for dessert.”
You could take care of him after dinner.
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fific7 · 3 years ago
Text
Ticket to Ride - Part 1
Billy Russo x Reader
A/N: Inspired by The Beatles song of the same name. This takes place in my S1 Punisher AU with Arrogant!Billy in attendance. Billy gets a taste of his own medicine.
Warnings: 18+ NSFW due to sexual content, including oral, between consenting adults* in some chapters. Drinking and swearing.
*Irl, please don’t go wild in the country without protection.
(My photo edit)
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𝕀 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕀'𝕞 𝕘𝕠𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 𝕓𝕖 𝕤𝕒𝕕, 𝕀 𝕥𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕜 𝕚𝕥'𝕤 𝕥𝕠𝕕𝕒𝕪, 𝕪𝕖𝕒𝕙
𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕘𝕚𝕣𝕝 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥'𝕤 𝕕𝕣𝕚𝕧𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕞𝕖 𝕞𝕒𝕕 𝕚𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕨𝕒𝕪
𝕊𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕖
𝕊𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕖
𝕊𝕙𝕖'𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥 𝕒 𝕥𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕖𝕥 𝕥𝕠 𝕣𝕚𝕕𝕖 𝕓𝕦𝕥 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕠𝕟'𝕥 𝕔𝕒𝕣𝕖
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
You were grabbing armfuls of clothes out of the wardrobe and dumping them into the three massive suitcases you’d laid open on the floor. If any of your friends had seen you at that point, they’d have said you looked like a woman possessed.
Finally, the wardrobe was empty of your clothes, and you moved on to the chest of drawers and then the bathroom. The contents were shovelled into a couple of large backpacks, as were various other bits and bobs from bedside table drawers and shelving units. In a surprisingly short space of time, you’d packed up everything that belonged to you in this damned apartment.
That left you just two very quick things to do, and you could then somehow get all this luggage downstairs into the lobby and get the hell out of Dodge.
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The receptionist at the airport hotel you were booking into looked at the amount of luggage you had with you, and studied your face again carefully. No doubt she was wondering if you were a celebrity. Obviously deciding that there was an outside chance that you were but she just hadn’t recognised you, you were given an upgrade on the room without even asking for one.
Plopping down onto the bed once you’d got into your room, you rummaged around in one of the backpacks until you found your laptop, connecting it to the hotel WiFi. Opening one of the major airlines’ websites, you began scrolling through the destinations offered from JFK.
So many to choose from!
Now to plan your getaway.
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Billy Russo got back home really late. He was going to be in trouble, no doubt about it... he hadn’t even texted because he hadn’t wanted to face any questions about what he was doing and when he’d be home.
Opening the apartment door, he was surprised to find it in darkness. Oh... had she gone to bed already? That wasn’t a good sign. He switched on the lights and immediately noticed a sheet of paper and a photo frame lying prominently on the kitchen island.
Walking over, he didn’t even have to pick up the note to read it. There was only one word, printed large.
“Goodbye.”
His stomach knotted and then he looked at the photo frame lying next to it. The photo was the one which was usually on the bedside table, a favourite of his.... she was sitting on a bar stool and he was behind her, his arms right around her. Both laughing into the lens as the photo was taken.
The photo was still in the frame, but it was torn in two.
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
Finally, by the next morning you’d decided on London. You’d never been, and quite honestly wanted to lose yourself in another big city. Flight booked, an AirBnB apartment booked for two weeks and you didn’t need a visa, so you were all set.
Now just one more thing to do. You opened up the box containing your new mobile phone and fitted the SIM card into it. After about twenty minutes of entering contact details and various apps onto it, you took your original phone and called Karen.
Her bored voice answered so you knew she was already at work, but she perked up when she heard your voice.
“Hi honey! How’re things? Wanna meet up for lunch today? I’m bored and I need a good gossip.”
You were a freelance copy writer and so you were your own boss. There were one or two assignments you were currently working on, but you could work from anywhere you could get a WiFi connection, so that wasn’t a problem.
“Uhhh, sadly not darling, I’m flying to London this afternoon.” You could hear her intake of breath, then she squealed, “Oh you lucky woman, how’d you manage to land an assignment like that?”
You gave a bitter little laugh, “I’ve left Billy.”
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
Billy had sat on his sofa for a long time after he’d seen the note and photo. At first he’d just had to sit down, overwhelmed, as he had the most horrible feeling that his world was crashing down around his ears.
She was the one person who made him feel safe and loved. But he knew only too well that he’d been walking the line recently what with the situation at Anvil and having to keep Madani sweet. He hadn’t actually crossed the line, but he’d had to make sure she thought that he would, and soon at that. Would he have crossed it? He’d need to get back to himself on that question.
Of course he’d mentioned none of this to his girl. But obviously - somehow - he mustn’t have done a very good job at being discreet because she’d guessed something was up. And left him.
He’d poured himself a large whisky and downed it in one, before going over to the window and looking out forlornly at the city lights. Then he called Frank.
When he heard the gruff growl on the other end of the line, he said, “She’s left me, Frankie,” and realised how hoarse his voice sounded.
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“What?!” screeched Karen. You hadn’t divulged your recent secret fears to her, hoping against hope that you were wrong when you’d started noticing little things over the past few weeks. But now you gave her a full rundown of it all.
More and more claims of ‘working late’ and ‘being very busy at work’.
Alcohol on his breath after he’d been on these ‘working late’ evenings.
A distinct smell of CK’s Eternity from a jumper he’d left crumpled up in a corner on the bedroom floor when he’d been out extra late one evening.
The final straw? You almost laughed when you thought about it, as it was such a cliché. A smear of dark red lipstick on the inside collar on one of his otherwise pristine white shirts. And another unmistakable whiff of Eternity.
You’d never be able to wear that damn perfume again.
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Frankie had been suitably sympathetic to start with, but had then begun to berate Billy for being ‘a stupid asshole’ once he’d explained what he’d been up to with Madani. “I didn’t sleep with her!” Billy grumbled, “....just messin’ around. You know we need to know what she knows.”
“Yeah, but women ain’t stupid, Russo! Were you goin’ home reeking of booze and another woman’s perfume?” Billy said nothing at first, just grunted but then said, “Maybe. Yeah.. probably.” “See!” said Frank, “...you’re a stupid asshole!” “I mean, she didn’t even challenge me on it!” Frank started laughing, “So that makes it her fault, huh!? You’re a piece of work, Russo.” “No, no.... I just meant, aren’t you supposed to have arguments about that kinda stuff first? She just up and left me!”
“I don’t blame her,” said Frank, “...and you know she’s not the type to take any BS from you, Bill. She probably thought it wasn’t worth her time listenin’ to you tryna give excuses for the inexcusable.”
Billy was reminded by this that one of Frank’s pet peeves was infidelity. “But I didn’t cheat!” said Billy forcefully. “Whaddya do, kiss her?” “Yeah.” “Feel her up a bit?” “Mmhuh.” “That’s cheatin’ in my book, Russo.” Billy realised he was hanging his head in shame, and quickly looked up and out of the window again.
“I dunno what to do, Frankie.”
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
You’d given Karen your new number and told her on pain of death not to pass it on to anyone, even Frank and especially not to Billy. She’d assured you she wouldn’t, and neither would she tell them where you were headed.
She’d been fuming at Billy, and you wouldn’t like to be in his shoes the next time she happened to meet up with him. Her rage had been quite spectacular and she was really, really pissed that Billy hadn’t even tried to contact you. You didn’t say anything to her, but secretly you wondered if he’d actually spent the night with his side piece on this occasion and hadn’t even seen your note yet. Jealousy and anger began to take over and you stood up abruptly, determined that thoughts of that douchebag weren’t going to invade your brain.
You took the SIM card out of the phone, shut it down and tucked it away in one of your bags. Gathering all your stuff together, you began to get ready to leave the room..
Can’t wait to get on that plane, you thought.
»»————————————-———- ⚜ ———————————-————-««
Frankie rang Billy back a couple of hours later. “Micro tracked her phone,” he said without preamble. “Where is she? At Karen’s?” Billy asked anxiously. There was a pause, then, “Nah, Bill. She’s at JFK. And her phone’s switched off now.”
Billy, standing next to the window again, yelled, “Fuck!” before leaning his head against the cold glass. “Can Micro find out which flight’s she’s booked on, Frankie?” “He can try, but it’ll involve some hacking so it might take a little longer.” He paused again, before continuing, “And avoid Karen. She’s out for your blood.”
Billy sighed, “She’s spoken to her?” “Yeah, course she has, Bill. She knows more than she’s tellin’ me of course, but I’m not even gonna try askin’ her. Waste of time.” “It’s okay, I get it, Frankie. I wouldn’t ask you to. But if she does say anythin’.....” “I’ll let you know,” Frank finished the sentence for him and hung up.
Billy looked out of the window and then up into the sky. She wanted to get away from him so badly, she’d got a plane ticket and was about to fly.
He just prayed he’d be able to find her before she took off.
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@blackbirddaredevil23 @galaxyjane @omgrachwrites @behindmyeyes-insidemyhead @ourloveisforthelovely @swthxrry @odetostep
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no-pucks-given · 4 years ago
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TYSON JOST | LIGHT MY WAY HOME
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A/N: More than 12.000 words later, more than a month after the initial request from Taylor popped up in my notifications. What a freaking ride. My longest fic I've ever written, and maybe even my favourite one. Thank you, to everyone who hyped me up, send me inspo and send me sweet asks. I couldn't have done this without all of you. Special thanks to @dumb-and-dunner, @chicagoblackhawkslover96, @heybarzy and Chrissy (who doesn't have Tumblr unfortunately).
Warnings: Angst, ‘can I strangle him yet?’ Tyson, swearwords, some major character development and (how could I not?!) a happy ending.
Also: Gabe and Melissa Landeskog play a big part in this fic, so if you aren't comfortable with them, you might want to skip this one.
Word Count: 12.1K
Requested: Yes.
The NHL lifestyle, or the ‘popular’ lifestyle was attractive to all young, hormonal boys. You’d known that for a long time. You stood by Tyson’s side when he got drafted into the wicked world of the NHL. Parties, drinking, sex, training until you can barely move, fights, games, wins and losses. It all had it’s charms, but it also had its dangers. Just like any other guy Tyson wanted to experience it all, the whole package,
You assumed you fell under that ‘whole package’, you were his girlfriend for a reason, right? And you did, for a while. You partied together, came home together, did everything together. But the moment Tyson became older and ‘known’ outside the regular hockey fans, that title didn’t mean much anymore. He became more and more the type of guy you didn’t fall in love with, the type to take you for granted, the type to enjoy the attention of other people, other women in particular. You weren’t the jealous type, you didn’t want to claw out the eyes of every woman that looked at him, but you were at a breaking point. Maybe you were jealous, you weren’t jealous of those other women, you were jealous of the attention Tyson gave them. Attention he should’ve been giving to you, his freaking girlfriend.
You were however the loyal type, the type to come home after a long night. And that’s exactly where things went wrong with Tyson. While you were waiting for him at home with a meal, a warm bed or just simply anything else, he was out. You had no idea where he was exactly, he was simply ‘out’, whatever that might mean. You tried to talk to him, you tried to make him see that this wouldn’t end well for either of you, but he simply waved off your concerns, shrugged his shoulders and moved on.
How do you talk to someone who rediscovered himself? How do you talk to someone who thinks he’s on top of the world? How do you save someone from the downfall of success when they don’t want to be saved? You knew one day he’ll come down from this high, one day he’ll realize that he screwed up. One day he’ll come to the conclusion he let something special slip through his fingers, and for what? Fame? Drinks? A rush of adrenaline? One day. But you knew that it wouldn’t be today.
However today is the day that you’re done. Absolutely fed up with all the bullshit excuses Tyson has been feeding you, all the coming home late or not even coming home at all. You have no idea what he’s been up to these last months, he’s barely home. Even when he’s home it’s like he isn’t really there. You can’t even remember the last time the two of you slept together or the last time you actually went to bed at the same time. Breakfast together? A lifetime ago. A lazy day together? Can’t remember. Date night? Months, months ago. Even thinking about it pisses you off to no end, the pain and hurt slowly making place for a new emotion: anger.
It’s frustrating to say the least. You love and take care of him like he means the world to you, and he does. Tyson on the other hand seems to take you for granted, or forgets you’re here at all. It seems like you’re talking to a brick wall instead of your boyfriend. No matter how hard you try, your words have no impact, your tears don’t make him feel anything. It’s like he’s a totally different person. You barely recognize him anymore these days, he feels like a stranger inside the body of the man you love. It feels like you’re both living your life, besides each other instead of with each other. It hurts, that’s for sure.
Like any other day you’ve prepared dinner, put it on the table and sat down on one of the chairs. All you can do now is wait, wait and pray he’ll show up this time. You even texted him, begged him to come home and simply eat dinner with you for a change. Of course you didn’t get a response, of course it’s complete radio silence from his side. God, you were desperate at this point, you don’t even try to deny it.
With every passing minute your hope disappears little by little. You stare at the food on the table until it’s completely dark outside, no sign of Tyson. Hours passed and you barely noticed it, it isn’t until you try to stand up and your muscles ache from sitting in the same position for a long time that you realize how much time actually has passed. “Fuck this, why am I even trying anymore?” you mutter to yourself, shaking your head. This isn’t worth it, it hasn’t been for a long time. Maybe, just maybe you’re finally ready to admit it to yourself.
Deciding to choose yourself over Tyson is a major decision, one you probably should’ve made sooner. It doesn’t matter, what does matter is that you’re choosing you now. You make the split second decision to just grab your stuff, just the necessary stuff. You remember Gabe’s offer, at the time you waved it off with a smile, pretending it wasn’t as bad as it might look to the outside world, but now? You want nothing more than to take him up on his offer. So what’s stopping you?
Even though you were excruciating calm this whole time, the moment you step into your bedroom, or Tyson’s bedroom, you break. This is real, this is really happening. You grab your bags, filling them with some of your stuff. Some clothes, some toiletries, your makeup, everything you might need. It’s a tough job, it’s even harder when you almost can’t see past the tears. At some point you lose track of things you did and didn’t grab, just shoving random items into your bag.
You let out a frustrated sigh, your body sinking down on the floor. In your hands the box containing all your high school love letters, all the small gifts you made each other. Tyson was quite handy, who would’ve thought that? You smile at the memories, sorting through the box. You frown at the feeling surging through your body, is this how heartbreak feels? Looking down at the contents of the box you sigh, wiping away the tears streaming down your face. Why couldn’t life be as simple as it used to be? It shouldn’t be this hard, right? You grab your prom picture between your fingers, smiling sadly at the two people in the picture, both smiling like they just won the lottery, both utterly in love with the other. How time can change..
You throw the box on the bed, maybe it will remind Tyson what the two of you had was special, maybe he’ll realize what he’s about to lose. If it doesn’t, well, it’s his loss. Hauling your bags downstairs is a full workout, you intended to bring ‘just the essentials’ but you have way more important stuff than you originally thought. You aren’t planning on returning to this house any time soon.
Shutting the car door after you loaded in your stuff gives you some form of relief. You let out the breath you’ve been holding in. You made your decision, it’s time to follow through now. You make your way back inside, and into the kitchen. Cleaning up all leftovers from dinner, which obviously is a lot more than you expected. Although.. did you really think he would show up? You shake your head again, putting the leftovers into the fridge. After you finish the dishes you retreat back to the living room, falling down on the couch with a loud sigh. All you can do now is wait.
You could’ve just left and never look back, but that isn’t your style. If you’re going to leave, you’ll do it the right way. You won’t leave without giving him a piece of mind, letting him know he fucked this up for good. You try to focus on the movie playing on the screen, but your heart keeps beating harder and harder, at this point you wish you would’ve just left instead of waiting for Tyson to show up. God, why did you have to do it the right way? Because you know, deep down, you would’ve wanted him to do it the same way. It’s the humane thing to do, it’s only right after spending such a long time together.
The front door opening brings you out of your thoughts. Honestly you don’t even know what time it is, but frankly you don’t care. All you want right now is to get this off your chest and leave. Tyson’s eyes widen when he comes face-to-face with you, surprisingly he doesn’t seem that intoxicated. You suspected he went out, but at this point he could’ve been anywhere.
“You’re still up,” Tyson says, walking past you and flopping down on the couch.
“Yep, and you missed dinner,” you counter, crossing your arms. Tyson simply shrugs his shoulder, clearly not caring enough to explain his absence. “I texted you to make sure you would be here,” you say, even though you know it doesn’t make a difference.
“Yeah, I was busy,” Tyson answers, looking down at his phone.
You almost feel the need to chuckle, to start laughing at his stupid behavior, but this is anything but funny to you, it fucking hurts. “I’m done, Tyson. I’m fucking done,” you say, shaking your head, trying so hard to keep the tears away.
Tyson looks at you with dull eyes, no emotion visible on his face. “Then go to fucking bed, I really can’t deal with your problems right now,” he sighs, turning his head back to the phone in his hand.
Right now, at this moment you know you made the right decision. This isn’t behavior of someone who’s in love, this isn’t even behavior of someone who loves. “You don’t have to deal with me anymore, because I’m leaving. I’m done, we’re done,” you tell him, emphasizing the last part. Tyson’s eyes shoot to yours, the panic clearly written all over his face now.
“No, we’re not. You can’t break up with me, y/n!” he almost shouts at you, standing up from the couch.
“Yes, I can and I will. You don’t get to act like you care all of the sudden, Tyson. You haven’t acted like a boyfriend in months. You haven’t given me any reason to stay, so I won’t. I’m done with whatever this is,” you say, waving between the two of you. Tyson grabs your wrist, tears starting to pool in his eyes. He opens his mouth to say something but you cut him off. “No. No. You don’t get to do this. It’s over. You put on quite a show, but I can’t say it was very entertaining. This curtain fucking closes right now, show is over. You can act like you care, but I know by now that you don’t,” you tell him, ripping your arm out of his grip.
You walk over to the front door, keeping your head high. Now is not the time to break down, your time will come. You hear Tyson behind you, muttering how sorry he is, excuse after excuse leave his mouth. You open the door, turning around one last time to look at Tyson. “Don’t tell me you’re sorry, ‘cause you’re not,” you say while shaking your head. You close the door behind you, not looking back at what you’ve left behind, only looking forward to what’s yet to come.
It’s when you’re in your car mindlessly driving around when you realize you have nowhere to go. You forgot to call Gabe, and it’s probably way too late now. You quickly check the time, 2am, shit that’s late. You doubt he’s still awake, you feel bad for even thinking about waking him up. Two young children, both of them under the age of 2, and being a professional hockey player probably cost him enough energy already, you don’t need to add to that. “He did say I could always call him when I made my decision,” you say out loud, more to convince yourself that it’s okay than anything else.
You easily find Gabe’s contact, immediately pressing the dial button before you change your mind again. The line only rings twice before Gabe picks up. “I’m guessing you either finally broke up with him or there’s a fire somewhere,” Gabe says from the other side of the line. You chuckle, shaking your head. “And since you’re calling me and not the fire department, my guess is on the first one,” Gabe continues, trying to make you smile some more.
“I did it, I broke up with him, couldn’t stand to be there any second longer,” you sigh, brushing your fingers through your hair.
You hear Gabe’s sigh of relief. “I’m proud of you, y/n. I know this isn’t what you had in mind, but it’s better like this, I promise.”
Gabe turned into one of your best friends over time, Melissa is the older sister you never had and you love their children like they’re your own. Gabe and Melissa welcomed you into their family immediately after meeting you. You hadn’t expected to make friends and you definitely didn’t expect to make friends with the captain and his wife, but you’re so grateful you did. The support you receive from them is overwhelming, you couldn’t wish for better friends. So when Gabe first made you this offer, you were thankful he did, although you were still convinced at that point that Tyson would change.
“Uhm, you know.. that offer you made me? Is that still on the table?” you ask, praying he’ll say ‘yes’, praying you don’t have to sleep in some random hotel tonight.
“Of course, the guestroom is already prepared. Melissa expects you to be here as soon as possible, apparently she ‘really needs to cuddle her little sister’,” Gabe chuckles, you can almost hear him rolling his eyes at his wife.
“Thank you, Gabe. I owe you,” you say softly.
“You don’t. You’re family, y/n,” Gabe says, and you know he means every word he just said. Family. “Now get your ass over here, before Melissa starts a search party,” Gabe chuckles, making you laugh some more, because you know she would. You quickly say your goodbyes, promising you’ll be there in a few minutes. It’s just a short drive from your apartment, or Tyson’s apartment now, to Gabe and Mel’s place.
You kept up your appearance, keeping the tears at bay, but the moment you step out of your car and into Gabe’s arms you’re done. “Come here, I’m so sorry,” Gabe says softly, his hands rubbing soothing circles on your back.
You stand there for a few minutes, simply crying on your best friend’s shoulder, until Melissa squeezes herself between the two of you. “Hush, I need some sister time. Why don’t you grab her stuff?” she says, smiling sweetly at her husband.
Gabe sighs dramatically, sending a wink your way. “Whatever you say, wife.”
Melissa pulls you close to her, an arm around your waist, her head resting on your shoulder. “Come on, I’ll show you your room,” she softly says, leading you into the house. You’ve been here so many times already, but never like this. You’ve never been in a situation like this before, you’re not sure how to handle this. “I can hear the wheels turning in your head. It will be okay,” Melissa says, rubbing your arm soothingly. You sigh, shrugging your shoulders, not sure what to say.
Melissa leads you to your room, pushing you down on the bed, while she takes a seat on the edge of the bed. “I know you’re probably exhausted, but do you want to talk?” Melissa asks softly, her face showing nothing but compassion.
You lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about all that has happened. “I don’t even know what to say, Mel. I don’t even know how I feel right now. I’m just so...” you trail off, not knowing the right words to describe everything that you feel and think right now.
“Confused, relieved, mad?”
You sit back up, looking back at Melissa. “All of the above, I guess? It hurts, but I’m glad I did it. But I also regret it, because I love him, you know? I’m mad he didn’t try harder for me, for us,” you say, trying hard to keep the rush of tears away.
Melissa wraps her arms around you, pulling you close to her. “I know, sweetheart. It will take time, but you’re going to be okay.”
You sigh, knowing she’s right, even though it probably will take more time than just ‘some time’. You did just end a long relationship, it will take a lot of patience and time to work through that. “Thank you, Mel. For letting me stay here,” you mumble against Melissa’s shoulder.
“No need for that. You’re my sister, remember?” Melissa smiles at you.
Gabe softly knocks on the door before opening the door. “Brought your bags, thought you might need them before you go to sleep,” he says, smiling at the sight before him. Your friendship might be unconventional, but he couldn’t care less what other people think about it. Gabe absolutely adores the sister bond you and Mel share, he hoped the two of you would get along, so this? Picture perfect.
“Thanks, Gabe,” you smile at him.
“Do you mind if I steal my wife from you?” Gabe asks, making you and Melissa laugh out loud.
“Nope, she’s all yours,” you chuckle, waving at their retreating backs when they walk out of the room.
You strip out of your clothes, pulling on a sweater. You sigh, realizing you packed some of Tyson’s sweaters out of habit. His smell infiltrates your senses, making it damn hard to keep your emotions under control. It’s right this moment you know exactly how you feel. Heartbroken. The realization that your relationship with Tyson is really over doesn’t give you the satisfaction you hoped for, it doesn’t give you peace, it just fucking hurts. You simply feel hollow, even though deep down you know this was the right choice, this was what needed to happen. You know damn well why you feel so empty, you gave your heart to Tyson a long, long time ago, never expecting to be in a situation you might get it back. You don’t want it back, but you might need it back.
You realize it’s morning when the light softly shines into your room. You sigh, knowing damn well you’re lucky if you slept more than an hour this night. Rolling over you look at the clock on the wall, 9 am, perfect. Deciding it won’t do you any good if you stay in bed any longer, you force yourself out of bed and into the shower. The hot water warms your cold skin, soothing your sore muscles. All the twisting and turning you did all night surely didn’t help the way you feel right now. Why couldn’t life be a bit easier by simply letting the shower wash away all of your hurt, all of your pain? A fresh start, a clean slate.
You slip on some skinny jeans and a soft sweater, not in the mood to even think about doing your makeup. You dry your hair, before making a quick ponytail out of it. You walk down stairs, the chatter and laughter greeting you as soon as you walk into the kitchen. “Morning, guys,” you say, smiling at all the happy faces before you. A round of greetings sound throughout the room.
“How’d you sleep?” Gabe asks you as soon as you sit down next to him with a bowl of cereal.
“Can’t even tell you, suddenly it was 9 am,” you chuckle, shrugging your shoulders at Gabe’s raised eyebrow. “Do you have any idea where my phone is?” you ask Gabe, knowing he grabbed all your stuff out of your car.
“Uhh, I do, but I don’t know if you really want to look at it,” Gabe says, scratching the back of his head before pointing towards the kitchen counter. It’s your turn to raise your eyebrows, walking over to where Gabe’s pointing at.
You unlock your phone, quickly checking your notifications. “Oh damn,” you mutter, looking at the absurd amount of missed calls and messages left by none other than Tyson himself.
You sit back down next to Gabe, dropping your head on your arms. “What do I do now, Gabe?” you groan. “Why does he care all of the sudden?”
Gabe rubs his hand over your back before answering your question. “Because he lost you, y/n. He never thought he would.” You turn your head towards Gabe letting his words sink in.
Gabe gets ready to leave for practice shortly after you settle on the couch with Lucas in your arms. The little man has a fascination with your hair, maybe it’s all babies who have that, but you like to think that you’re special. “Don’t pull out all y/n’s hair, baby boy,” Gabe chuckles, giving his boy a soft kiss on his head. He gives you a kiss on your cheek, softly squeezing your shoulder. You open your mouth to say something, but Gabe cuts you off. “I know what you’re thinking. Don’t worry about it, I’m his captain, but I’m your friend, okay? Just relax, make sure Lucas doesn’t puke on you and go do whatever it is that you women do all day,” Gabe chuckles, knowing you better than you know yourself. You mouth a quick ‘thank you’ to him, wishing him good luck with practice before he runs through the house trying to find his girls to kiss them goodbye.
“Your daddy is a good guy, you know that, Lucas?” you smile at the baby on your lap. Lucas coos, his hands grabbing onto the strands of your hair. “Your daddy and mommy make me feel so loved, even though their children like to see me in pain,” you joke, trying to free your hair from Lucas’s small hands. “Buddy, you’re way stronger than you look,” you mumble, when Lucas pulls on your hair again.
Melissa laughs out loud the moment she walks into the living room. “How many times did I tell you that you need to keep your hair away from him and his grabby hands?” she says, expertly freeing your hair from her son’s fists.
“Apparently not enough times,” you chuckle at her. Melissa joins you on the couch, while Linnea Rae plays on the ground with some of her toys, happily showing you what she got every now and then. It’s times like this that you’re extra grateful for Melissa and Gabe, the way they welcomed you into their family has been nothing but perfect.
“So, what’s going through that pretty head of yours?” Melissa asks, while scrolling through series to watch on Netflix.
You shrug your shoulders. “I don’t know, I’m kind of worried about practice, I think? I don’t want to put Gabe in this position,” you say, keeping your eyes on Lucas.
“You know Gabe would do anything for you, huh? You don’t know how many times he came home utterly frustrated by the way Tyson treated you. He never said anything, because you were still with him, I can’t promise you he will stay quiet this time,” Melissa says, squeezing your shoulder. “He’ll be fine, this isn’t Gabe’s first rodeo.”
You look at Melissa, who simply gives you a wink. “I know, I know. I just don’t want him to get in trouble or anything,” you say, smiling back at her. You trust and know Gabe, so hopefully there won’t be a lot of trouble today.
“If he does though, he probably deserves it.”
Gabe surprises you all with some takeaway when he gets home from practice. It’s been nice eating with other people for change, it’s been way too long. The amount of lonely dinners has been through the roof lately. Gabe nudges you with his elbow, causing you to look up at him. “No frowning at the table.”
Melissa rolls her eyes at her husband while you just stick out your tongue at him. “Sure, dad,” you say, causing Melissa to almost choke on her bite of food before she lets out a loud laugh.
“Yeah, dad. Leave us alone,” Melissa laughs, winking at her husband. Gabe shakes his head at you and Melissa, a grin plastered on his face.
It’s during dessert you find the courage to ask about Tyson. You weren’t sure if you needed to ask Gabe, you weren’t even sure if you wanted to know anything, but now you know you do. “So, did anything happen during practice?” you ask him, playing around with your spoon.
Gabe shakes his head, giving you a small smile. “Not much, just some chirping. Told him I’m his captain and he needs to fucking focus on practice. That seemed to do the trick,” Gabe says, shrugging his shoulders, continuing to eat his dessert.
You look across the table at Melissa who has the same expression on her face as you. Not convincing at all. ‘Sure,’ Melissa mouths at you from across the table. You shake your head at her, furrowing your eyebrows at Gabe’s statement. ‘Nope,’ you mouth back at her, finishing your dessert. You decide to let it go, you don’t even know why you care so much. You shouldn’t, right? You broke things off with Tyson, so why do you care so much what he does and thinks? The answer to that question is pretty simple the longer you think about it. Because you still love him, that’s why.
You thank everyone for dinner and dessert, promising to cook something from them later this week. Right now all you can think about is your bed and a decent night of sleep. God, that sounds like a true dream right now. You strip out of your clothes, crawling into the soft and cozy bed. It doesn’t take long before you fall asleep, showing just how exhausted you truly are.
The weeks that follow are filled with all kinds of activities, the 5 of you falling back into a comfortable rhythm, surprising you considering the situation you’re in. It isn’t every day you take in the ex-girlfriend of one of your teammates, or your best friend, whatever way you want to see things. When you aren’t working you spend a lot of time with the kids, trying to make things easier for Melissa and Gabe whenever they are busy or simply need some time for the two of them. You happily take on some of their care, even if it’s as simple as making sure they get their food in time. Honestly they are two of the sweetest children you’ve ever come across, they always find ways to make you laugh, even though most of the time it isn’t on purpose.
It’s been quiet around the house tonight, Melissa went out with a few of her friends, while she left Gabe and the kids with you. Apparently she needed some ‘alone time’ which didn’t include kids, and definitely didn’t include Gabe after he mentioned he wanted some ‘alone time’ with her as well. You love their friendly bickering, the love they have for each other visible in everything they do. So when Melissa gave her husband a dirty look and flipped him the bird the only logical thing to do was to start laughing at their exchange. “Have fun with them, sweetheart!” Melissa had yelled at you when she walked through the door, leaving the four of you behind.
Together you decide to just have a movie night. It’s late enough for both children to be asleep already, yet early enough to squeeze in a full size movie marathon. “Gladiatorrrrr!” Gabe exclaims excitedly while scrolling through the movie selection on Netflix, pausing on his all-time favorite movie.
You groan, covering your face with your hands. “Please no, have mercy, Gabe,” you laugh, knowing damn well you’re going to sit through this movie again. How many times has it been already? 12? You wouldn’t even be surprised. This dude really loves his movie. You look at Gabe from between your fingers, seeing the look on his face which makes you groan even more. “Fineeee, one more time, Gabe. One more time,” you whine at him, secretly enjoying his taste in movies, something you don’t plan on telling him ever.
It’s a little after 10pm when the doorbell rings. You look at Gabe, who looks just as surprised as you are. “It’s a bit early for Mel, don’t you think?” Gabe asks, furrowing his eyebrows.
“Definitely, unless she drank the whole bottle of champagne again,” you chuckle, thinking back at one of the craziest parties you’ve ever been to with Mel and Gabe.
“Oh God, please don’t remind me of that,” Gabe shudders at the memory of that night, standing up to see who’s on the other side of the door.
Gabe hates to say that he isn’t surprised to see Tyson’s face as soon as he opens the door. Honestly he had expected him at his door days, maybe even weeks ago. The moment Tyson found out you were staying with Gabe he broke, Gabe expected him to fight, to yell, to scream, he expected him to do anything except cry. Which is exactly what Tyson did, breaking down in the middle of practice. For a moment the whole place went quiet, only Tyson’s cries echoing throughout the building. No one knew how to act, no one knew what to do, until Gabe realized he’s the captain for a reason. On and off the ice. It was a weird experience, one Gabe still feels extremely conflicted about. He comforted his teammate, his friend, while his other friend was at his home, utterly heartbroken, trying to get over the guy who was bawling his eyes out on the ice.
After Tyson got over the initial shock the anger took over, just as Gabe expected. It made him almost drop the gloves, something he tried to avoid, not wanting to hurt Tyson. He let him say his things, things that absolutely didn’t make any sense, until he got everything out of his system. “Now can we continue this fucking practice, Jost?” Gabe told him after everything calmed down. Gabe tried to avoid the Tyson/y/n topic as much as possible after that, not wanting to get in the middle of things more than he already was. Until tonight apparently.
Gabe raises an eyebrow at the boy before him. “Why are you here, Tyson?” Gabe sighs, already knowing the answer to that question.
Tyson looks around, eyes flickering from left to right, clearly uncomfortable being here. “I, uh, can I talk to y/n? I know she’s here,” Tyson asks, scratching the back of his head before putting them back in his pockets.
Gabe shakes his head at him. “You can’t, if she wants to talk to you she will find a way to contact you. As long as you don’t get your shit together and prove to me, but most of all to her, that you’ve changed, I won’t let you anywhere near her,” Gabe declares, starting to get annoyed with the way Tyson acts. There’s no way he lets him close to you until you feel like you’re ready to see him again, no way.
Tyson opens his mouth, but Gabe gives him a look that immediately shuts him up again. “I’m saying this as your captain, and definitely not as your friend right now. Go home and leave her the fuck alone. You had your chance, you fucked up and now you have to deal with the consequences. How you deal with those said consequences is up to you, but I suggest you leave now and think about everything you did and didn’t do, okay?” Tyson nods his head, turning around to walk back to his car.
When he’s a few steps away from his car he turns around, smiling sadly at Gabe. “She’s my home, Gabe. Home doesn’t feel the same without her. You out of all people should understand that.”
Gabe chuckles low, shaking his head at his clueless teammate. “I do. I do know what home feels like, but I never, never choose anyone or anything over my ‘home’. Never. You sure as hell did, time after time,” Gabe says frustratedly, before shutting the door, leaving behind an even more frustrated Tyson.
You didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but you caught the sound of Tyson’s voice when you walked to the kitchen, grabbing some more popcorn. You didn’t mean to listen to their conversation, but it felt like you were glued to your place, unable to take another step, unable to do anything but listen.
Gabe walks back into the room, the look on your face immediately letting him know you know. “How much did you hear?” he asks softly, approaching you slowly.
“Enough,” you whisper, before breaking down, no longer able to keep the tears locked away, no longer able to keep your emotions to yourself.
With two steps Gabe is in front of you, grabbing the bowl of popcorn you held onto between your trembling fingers. He guides you back to the couch, urging you to sit down, which is a true challenge for someone who can barely feel the ground they walk on. Gabe wraps his arms around you the moment you sit down, allowing you to cry onto his shoulder as much as you want and need. He whispers sweet nothings while softly brushing your hair out of your face, making sure you have room to breath. Time after time Gabe proves what kind of friend he is, always making sure to be there for you when he’s needed, always doing things with the best intentions. Even if it’s just holding you until you calm down, even if it’s just speaking the truth against Tyson, even if it’s just simply being there for one another.
“Sooner or later he would’ve realized what he lost, what he gave up for an evening of clubbing or God knows what. Apparently it’s sooner rather than later, however make sure you make him work for it, if you ever decide you want to give the two of you another chance,” Gabe softly advises you, when you finally calmed down a bit.
“I will, you know I love him, Gabe. But I don’t know if I should?” you mumble, not sure if it’s a question Gabe has the answer to.
“Sometimes the heart wants what it wants. If he’s serious about you, he will work his ass off to earn back your love and trust, I promise you,” Gabe comforts you, after knowing Tyson for so long he’s positive he knows that Tyson goes above and beyond to get what he wants in life.
Maybe it’s Gabe’s comforting words, maybe it’s knowing deep down Tyson still cares, maybe it’s your own strength, but for the first time in a while you feel a tiny flicker of hope, a little bit of light at the end of the dark tunnel. Maybe, just maybe this was all worth it, maybe this is what needed to happen to get better and move forward. Maybe this is how it was supposed to go.
It’s a weird feeling, knowing your ex still cares about you, but also knowing you aren’t ready to let him back into your life like that. You don’t feel like you’re capable of seeing him yet, let alone talk to him. The need to know how he’s doing, how he’s holding up grows, but also confuses you. It’s simply a weird and confusing situation to be in. Choosing between two, maybe even more ways to handle this, while also waiting for Tyson to make a move, which he obviously can’t since you don’t want to see him or speak to him, is a hard task. A task that will require a lot of thinking. You just need a bit more time to gather your thoughts, give all of your confusing feelings a place, while making sure you put yourself first, you need to put yourself first this time.
So when Gabe invites you to one of his home games a few weeks later you say ‘yes’ right away. It seems like the perfect time and place to see Tyson from a distance again, without putting too much stress on yourself, you can just watch and enjoy the game, you don’t have to force anything. Of course your seats turned out to be way closer to the ice than you expected them to be, although... what did you exactly expect with Gabe? You know he’s been talking to both of you, kind of acting like some sort of messenger. He tried to keep it casual, just slipping in some information during a conversation, but you noticed what he was trying to do. Frankly you’re thankful for his meddling.
Steadily your heart starts to beat faster and faster the more players appear on the ice to warm up. When Gabe appears you aren’t surprised to see Tyson close to him, knowing Gabe they probably had a little chat before they went on the ice. Tyson’s eyes shoot to yours the moment he’s close by, completely forgetting the ability to skate. You gasp when he lands on his ass on the ice, earning himself a round of laughter from the people around him, including Melissa and you. Gabe skates over to him, extending his hand and helping him upright again, but not before clearly telling him he’s ‘a dumbass’. Now that’s something you can agree on.
You know Tyson has something up his sleeve when he skates off to the bench, clearly busying himself with something you can’t see. After a few more stolen glances at each other Tyson skates closer and closer to you, until he’s right in front of the glass. His left hand catches your attention, until he gives you a small and almost shy smile. “Look at him, he’s blushing!” Melissa whispers next to you. You shoot her a quick ‘shut up’ look, before you focus your attention back on Tyson.
Tyson shows you the puck in his gloved hand, mouthing to you to catch it. It takes him two tries before the puck lands on the other side of the glass, safely in your hands. Tyson gives you one last quick smile before he skates off to get ready for the game. Melissa nudges you softly, bringing you back from your thoughts. “So, what’s on there?” she asks, knowing damn well you haven’t even checked.
“I don’t know if I want to look, Mel,” you tell her honestly. Melissa gives you a sad smile, throwing her arm around your shoulders.
“Let’s look together?” she suggests. You don’t know why you’re so nervous, how much can you actually write on a puck? He seemed happy to see you, so there’s no need to be nervous that it’s a bad thing. You look at the puck, turning it around in your hands so you can read the whole thing. ‘Talk after the game?’ is written on the puck, you immediately recognize Tyson’s handwriting and his little smiley face, or.. something that should resemble a smiley face.
“That wasn’t that bad, right?” Melissa asks softly, squeezing your shoulder.
“What if I’m not ready?” you ask her, a question that has been on your mind a lot lately.
“Then you take a step back, you don’t have to prove yourself to anyone, you don’t have any obligations. But he’s trying, y/n. You’ve heard all of Gabe’s stories, you’ve seen it yourself just now. It can’t hurt to at least talk to him.” You think about Melissa’s words, she does have a point there. Talking is something you should’ve done ages ago, or at least Tyson should’ve done that. So this is progress, he’s at least trying this time, that’s more than he used to do.
It’s hard to keep the smile off your face, you can’t even pinpoint why exactly you’re smiling. Whatever the reason is, it’s a good feeling to smile again. The game sure as hell plays a big part in it, the guys are on fire, scoring goal after goal, never giving the puck away for long. There’s barely any time for you to give Tyson a thumbs up, indicating you’re up for a talk after the game. Whenever you look at Tyson when he’s off the ice he’s smiling, whether it is to himself or to one of his teammates, that smile won’t leave his face.
You follow Melissa down to the locker room after the game is over. You’ve done this so many times, but this time it couldn’t be more different. You greet all the girls who are patiently waiting on their man, getting enough comforting words from them to last you a lifetime. When the door to the locker room opens you come face-to-face with Mikko, someone you haven’t seen in a while. Mikko’s face lights up when he spots you outside the locker room. “y/n! I haven’t seen you in so long,” he says, while hugging you tightly.
“I missed you too, goof. It’s great to see you,” you smile at him, wiggling out of his iron grip. Dude’s definitely stronger than he looks.
“Between you and me, Tyson’s a good kid, he just needed to grow up a bit,” Mikko whispers against your ear, before leaving you alone again.
You raise your eyebrow at Melissa, who just shrugs her shoulders. Weird. After a few more minutes Gabe and Tyson appear in front of you, both of them joking around. Tyson nervously looks around, not sure if he should come any closer. Gabe hugs you swiftly before throwing his arm around his wife���s shoulders. “Make sure you bring her home safely, Jost,” Gabe warns him, before quickly saying goodbye to both of you.
You watch them leave, your mouth agape by the way they just left you here. Rude. “Did they just really do that?” you ask no one in particular, still shocked by their actions.
You turn around, looking back at Tyson, who still appears to be nervous. Is he nervous to talk to you? Why would he be nervous? It’s just you. “Hi there,” you smile, looking up at the man in front of you.
“Hi beautiful, it was nice seeing you tonight,” Tyson softly says, giving you a small smile.
Your insides flutter with his use of words, it’s nice hearing them even though you’re not completely sure if he means them the way you hope he does. “It was. You played great, I had a lot of fun,” you say, smiling at the proud look that crosses Tyson’s face for a moment.
Tyson leads you back to the rink, which is now completely deserted, thinking it would be a nice place to chat. For a while the two of you fall back into small talk, ‘how’s life?’, ‘how’s work?’, all that bullshit. You know Tyson and you are avoiding the actual topic that needs to be discussed, or topics? Whatever it is, there’s a lot to talk about. “I missed it here, I forgot how much I loved being here,” you tell Tyson, looking at the lights that lighten up the place, thinking back at the memories full of fun and happiness you both created here.
“I missed you, baby,” Tyson blurts out, completely catching you off guard.
Your eyes shoot back to his, you feel the panic rising inside your body. “Tyson...,” you start, warning him he’s walking on thin ice here.
Tyson’s face falls a bit, seeing the anxious look on your face. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that,” Tyson groans, rubbing his face harshly, utterly frustrated with himself and the situation.
It’s quiet for a minute, both of you completely lost in thoughts. “Why is this so hard? We used to be able to talk about anything and everything. What changed, y/n?” Tyson wonders out loud.
You feel a painful pang in your heart, because you know damn well what changed. “You did, Tyson. You changed,” you almost whisper, the truth behind those words more clear than ever before.
You watch as Tyson’s whole composure changes in the blink of an eye, in just a split second he goes from the ‘happy’ guy to the guy who’s just as heartbroken as you are. “I did, didn’t I?” Tyson whispers, the tears pooling in his eyes. “I fucked this up, how could I be so stupid?” he mumbles, burying in face in his hands. “I’m so sorry, I regret this more than I could ever admit to you. I’m so sorry, baby,” Tyson cries, trying to keep his eyes focused on you. It’s hard to keep your own tears at bay when the guy you love so much has a breakdown in front of you, so you don’t. You just let them fall.
You don’t make a move to comfort him, you do give him room to let it all out, give him time to gather his composure again. “I looked through the box, the one you left on our bed?” Tyson says, his voice still broken, still thick with emotion. You nod your head, it was something you hoped he would do. “I had no idea you kept all of that throughout the years,” Tyson smiles weakly at you. “It made me realize what a moron I have been these past few months, maybe even longer,” he continues, shaking his head in disappointment. You listen intently at him, this, this is what you hoped for all this time: realization.
“I’m not telling you that you weren’t a moron, because you absolutely were. But I’m glad you came to the same conclusion.”
Tyson chuckles at your statement, giving you half a smile. “I know, I’m a dumbass. I’m a dumbass for acting this way and a dumbass for letting you go. Any guy would be on top of the world with you by his side, and I just let you slip through my fingers,” Tyson tells you, finally showing he knows he’s been a fool all this time, he knows he let something special go.
“Is it too late for us? Can you give us another chance?” Tysons asks you, his eyes flickering between you and the ground.
You sigh softly, knowing this question would come. It’s something you gave a lot of thought, something that crossed your mind daily. “I don’t know, Tyson. I really don’t know. You really fucking hurt me, you know? I can’t just look past that, I need to heal from that,” you tell him. Tyson nods his head, a guilty expression on his face. “You made me feel worthless every single day. You didn’t even give me a second of your time day after day. All you cared about was being away. Being away from me?”
It’s right that moment Tyson interrupts you by grabbing your hands. “No. No. That’s not true, you need to believe me,” he tells you as fast as he can.
“But how can I believe you when you never gave me a reason to? Your actions showed me exactly that, Tyson. I need answers, I need to know why,” you exclaim, starting to panic again, your anxiety taking over.
“Easy, baby. I’ll tell you everything you want to know, everything you want, but right now I need you to breath. Breathe, baby,” Tyson says softly, trying to calm your shallow breathing back down to normal. “Listen to my breathing, try to follow the way I breathe.” You do as he says, following the rise and fall of his chest, gaining back control of your own breathing.
“I’m sorry,” you apologize, while Tyson just shakes his head at you, letting you know it’s okay. “Can you take me home, Ty? We can talk later, okay?” you ask him, suddenly feeling the need to crawl underneath the covers of your bed and just simply sleep for a while.
“Anything you want, y/n,” Tyson says, leading you out of the room and back to his car. You’re pretty sure he mumbled something under his breath, something very closely resembling ‘your home isn’t there, it’s with me’.
The drive to Gabe takes longer than expected, giving you more time to think about Tyson’s earlier question. You still need and want to know how he spent his nights, where he spent his nights, and why he acted like you didn’t exist. That conversation might need to wait until another day, you aren’t up for any more information, any more realizations, you still need to process everything you heard, saw and felt today.
Tyson stops the car in front of Gabe’s house, looking back at you with hopeful eyes. You know he still hopes he gets an answer to his earlier question, and you want to give him at least that. “You need to show me you changed, Tyson. Show me you changed for real and I’ll try to get past everything that happened. I can’t promise you anything,” you tell him softly, meaning everything you just said.
Tyson nods his head, a smile of relief on his lips. “I will, I promise you I will show you I changed and that you’re everything to me. I promise, baby.”
So that’s exactly what Tyson does the next few weeks, every free moment he tries to show you just how much you mean to him, without smothering you. Whether it’s taking you out for dinner, although you’re still waiting for Tyson to actually make you dinner by himself one day, to small coffee dates and fresh flowers at work. It’s been a lot to process, a lot of adjusting to this ‘new’ Tyson, or rather seeing the ‘old’ Tyson again. And you missed him, God you missed him so much.
Tyson seems happier, more at peace with himself these days, it’s a pleasant change. Often you wondered what was really going on inside his head, but you stopped trying after he waved it off again, and again, and again. The late night phone calls, or facetiming during road trips have become a habit again, something you didn’t think you would ever experience again with him. You still take things slow with Tyson, deciding to rather allow yourself to slowly start trusting him again than diving head first into a relationship again. Maybe it will never come that far again, you don’t know how the future will look like for the two of you, but for now it’s enough.
You come face-to-face with a smirking Melissa when you get home from yet another ‘iced coffee and donut’ date, even though you’re pretty sure Tyson isn’t allowed to eat any donuts. “Oh no,” you groan at Melissa’s expression.
“It’s time we have a little sister-sister conversation, don’t you think?” she asks you, ushering you into the living room.
“Do we?” you groan again, not in the mood to handle whatever Melissa wants to talk about now, because you already know it’s either about you, Tyson or you and Tyson.
Melissa flops down on the couch, patting the place next to her, indicating for you to sit your ass down. “Did you already talk to him about it?” she asks, straight to point in pure Melissa-style.
You let your head fall back against the cushions, sighing loudly. “I didn’t. We’re doing great, we’re having fun. I’m going to ruin it if I start asking questions again.”
Melissa stays quiet for a minute, trying to figure out the right way to approach this sensitive topic. “You know you deserve the truth, right? You can’t rebuild a relationship when not everything’s on the table, sweetheart,” Melissa says softly, knowing you’re struggling with this.
“I promise I’ll talk to him after the road trip, I don’t want to create any unnecessary negative energy before,” you promise Melissa, although she gives you a ‘who are you trying to fool here’ look before switching topics.
A few days later you find yourself back at Tyson’s place. It’s weird being here, knowing you don’t live here anymore. Nothing changed, absolutely nothing, Tyson kept everything the way you did, whether it’s out of laziness or out of hope you’ll come back on day. Either way it’s weird coming back to a place that’s no longer your home. You came here to talk, nothing more nothing less. You promised Mel you would, and if you’re being honest with yourself it’s time to know the truth, time to reopen old wounds and finally get some answers. You’ve grown closer and closer to Tyson, without knowing everything, without knowing you’d be able to forgive him if he ever made a misstep. It’s time.
Tyson has been a nervous wreck ever since you called him last night after he returned from the road trip to St. Louis. He knew this was coming, but he prayed you would simply forget, even though he knows that’s not fair at all. He can’t excuse his behavior, and he won’t, not anymore. You deserve nothing but the truth, the full truth. He’s not proud of it, but you leaving him opened his eyes, showed him he really needed to change. Tyson feels like that’s something he truly did, he changed for the better, he can only hope you’ll feel the same way. He can only hope you’re still on the same path after tonight.
“You did great these last games, Ty,” you smile at him. You’re proud of the way he’s been performing these last couple of games, he really stepped up his game.
“I know you didn’t come here to talk about my performances on the ice, so can we please skip the pleasantries?” Tyson sighs, catching you completely off guard with his rather harsh approach. “Fuck, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way, I’ve just been so fucking nervous since you called me,” Tyson curses, frustratedly brushing his fingers through his curls.
“You’re right though, I did come to talk. I think it’s time we lay all our cards on the table,” you tell him, nodding at your own answer.
You nervously bite on your lip, playing with the cup of water in your hand. It isn’t every day you ask your ex these questions. Questions you want the answers to, question you maybe don’t even want to hear the answers of. “I need to know if you cheated on me, Ty,” you blurt out, keeping your eyes on the ground, not wanting to see the look on Tyson’s face.
“Look at me, baby,” Tyson says, urging you to look up at him. “I never cheated on you, I wouldn’t do that to you. I promise.”
You shake your head at him, not knowing what to do with these emotions surging through your body. “It doesn’t make sense, Ty. Where were you all those nights? Where were you every time I lay in bed alone waiting for my boyfriend to come home? Waiting if he actually comes home this time or stays out all night again? Where were you?” At this point you’re past the civil conversations, past the friendly banter, you need answers, you need to know why he did what he did. The reason doesn’t even matter at this point, you need to know why. Why did he leave you alone so many nights, worrying about his well being, worrying about if he would come home at some point?
“Fuck, y/n! I know I fucked up, I know I did. But I swear on everything, I swear on my career, I swear on you that I never, never, touched another woman. I never kissed another woman, I never even danced with another woman, I did not cheat on you,” Tyson exclaims, hoping, praying you hear what he’s saying, that you’ll believe him. He didn’t do anything with another person, it was always you, it still is only you and he’ll do everything in his power to prove that to you every damn day.
“Then where were you, Ty? If you weren’t with another woman, then where the fuck were you every night you didn’t came home? Please enlighten me, because I’m so lost, so fucking lost,” you say, feeling utterly frustrated with yourself, with Tyson, with this shitty situation.
Tyson takes a deep breath, placing his cup back on the table. “Shitfaced drunk to the point I couldn’t even remember my own name, or so stoned I saw freaking elephants running all around town. Spending my money on unnecessary shit at clubs and bars, all to forget, trying to forget the fact that I had a perfect girlfriend waiting for me at home, while I did stupid shit. Fuck, this sounds even worse out loud than in my head,” Tyson groans, burying his face in his hands.
“But...,” you start, before Tyson cuts you off.
“I felt ashamed and guilty, y/n. Ashamed I let it get that far every time, guilty I didn’t tell you, guilty I didn’t come home again. One of the guys would just take me back to their place out of sympathy, letting me crash on their couch, trying to sleep off my haze.”
You try to come up with words to say, with anything but nothing comes out, you just feel.. empty? “I don’t understand, Tyson,” you say, at this point not even sure what you don’t understand.
“I tried, y/n. I tried to just come clean, but I couldn’t when you were so nice all the time, I couldn’t when I knew you would hate it, hate me. You know I’m a fucking lightweight, that makes it even worse. But those are no excuses, there aren’t any. I fucked up,” Tyson sighs, giving you a sad smile, “I couldn’t face you, I didn’t know how to show you my vulnerable side without letting it change the way you saw me. I didn’t want you to see me any different, but I didn’t notice I changed until you packed your bags and left me standing in the doorway.”
You’re absolutely speechless, there are so many things you want to say but you can’t form any sentences, any words. You just stare at him, your mind racing with an unlimited amount of thoughts. “Are you okay, baby?” Tyson asks softly, reaching out to put his hand on your arm.
You shake your head from side to side, wiping away the tears that spilled out. “I’m not okay, I’m definitely not okay,” you tell him. “I feel terrible knowing you didn’t feel like you could come to me, like you couldn’t talk to me. I’ve always been your biggest supporter, nothing would’ve changed that, Ty.”
Tyson gently wipes the tears away from underneath your eyes, scooting closer to where you’re seated. “Come here, baby,” he softly says, opening his arms for you. You hesitate for a second, not knowing if this is the right thing to do. Fuck the right thing, you definitely need a hug right now, and judging by Tyson’s facial expression he needs one as well. You lean forward, putting your arms around his neck, breathing in the familiar scent of his body. How long has it been since you hugged each other? You can’t even remember, way too long. Tyson closes his arms around you, pulling you as close as possible to his own body.
“I missed this, Ty. I missed you,” you confess, the feeling of his arms around you, the feeling of Tyson, bringing back so many memories, so many happier times.
“I know we still have a long way to go, but I hope we’ll do this together. I can’t even tell you how great it feels to have my arms around you again, even if it’s just for a moment,” Tyson says, after you both let go of each other.
“We do, but I’m in if you’re in, Ty,” you agree, wanting nothing more than to work through the issues you still have. It’s time to forgive, time to let go, time to change and time to move on.
“I’m all in.”
The talk you had with Tyson that Wednesday evening did wonders for the both of you. You still had a long way to go before you were even remotely close to where you used to be with Tyson, but the most important thing was that you were working on things. Slowly, but steadily the two of you worked on trusting each other again, telling each other important things again, just simply working on being in a healthy relationship again. Although the word never came up, you were nowhere near ready for that commitment, so you settled on something less intimidating. Friends.
It was supposed to be a regular, normal Friday evening with just Melissa and the kids. Gabe and Tyson were playing one of their most important games this season, both of them begged you to come, but it was too late to find a babysitter. Not wanting to be by yourself there and leaving Mel alone, you decided to sit this one out as well, promising to cheer them on in front of the tv. It’s the least you could do. So there you are, seated on the couch wearing your Jost jersey for the very first time again, just as you promised. Weird, like nothing ever changed, even though the exact opposite is true.
You’re bouncing a giggling Linnea Rae on your knee, looking down at her adorable mini jersey. “Look it’s your daddy!” you exclaim excitedly, pointing at the closeup shot of Gabe.
“Daddy!” Linnea Rae giggles just as excited.
You catch Mel softly smiling at your little interaction with her daughter, enjoying the love you share for each other. It’s been a blessing to have you around here, the way you care for her children, but also for her and her husband has been phenomenal. Mel couldn’t wish for a better friend, for a better sister than you.
“Oh no,” you whisper when Tyson gets slammed hard into the glass. Melissa grabs your hand, squeezing softly.
“He’s going to be fine, he’s a tough guy,” she says, trying her best to comfort you. And he is, like the tough guy Tyson is, he gets up again, shaking off the hard hit. The game continues and you’re glad Tyson is fine, skating like he didn’t just get squeezed between a glass wall and a 200 pound hockey player.
All goes well until Gabe decides the best place to smack his stick is directly against Tyson’s face, again. “Not his face, Gabe! Not his fucking face again!” you yell at the screen, thanking Mel for already putting the kids to sleep.
“Shit, that looks bad,” Melissa almost whispers, squeezing your hand again.
You don’t know many things for sure in life, but you sure as hell know Tyson will be spotting a black eye for weeks. But like the tough guy he already proved to be, he just goes on with the game, trying his absolute best to work as hard as he can, giving himself completely to the game, anything to get his team the victory.
“That’s the second time you gave my man a black eye, Gabe. Why do you keep hurting him?” you whine the second Gabe walks into the living room. For a moment the room stays awfully quiet, until you realize what you just said. “I really said that, huh?” you ask, fighting to keep the smile off your face.
“You sure did. But I’m sorry, it was an accident. Again,” Gabe chuckles, shrugging his shoulders.
“Uhu, again,” you say, rolling your eyes at your best friend.
Gabe grins at you, flopping down on the couch next to Mel. “I’ll try not to hurt his pretty face again, okay?” Gabe laughs, shaking his head at you in a playful way.
“Is it weird if I, you know.. went over to check up on him?” you ask your friends, suddenly insecure about the thought of just showing up at his door.
Gabe gives you a soft smile. “I’m absolutely convinced he’d love that, y/n,” Gabe says, pulling Melissa closer to him.
“I know he would, sis,” Melissa agrees with her husband.
“Fine, okay. I’ll be back in a few. Don’t enjoy yourself too much,” you tell the two lovebirds before finding your stuff and almost running out of the front door.
You’re giddy the entire drive to Tyson’s apartment. This could go two ways, either it goes extremely well or this backfires completely. You’re hoping for the first one. Seeing Tyson get hurt gave you some realizations. One of them is that you absolutely hate to see him hurt, and you want nothing more than to be there for him, care for him, to tell him everything will be alright. Which brings you to your second discovery of the evening: you still love him, you’re still completely and utterly in love with Tyson. You can’t, really can’t imagine your life without Tyson in it. It’s your turn to tell him you need him, tell him you don’t want to do anything without him, tell him you still see a future together.
You pick up his favorite comfort food on the way over, cake. You know his nutritionist will hate you for this, but he deserves a treat after taking a stick to the face. You chuckle to yourself when you think of the small cake you bought, it’s stupid and childish, but you love it. The fun you already had makes it absolutely worth it. You park in front of the building, hopping out of the car and quickly making your way over to the floor Tyson occupies.
You rummage around in your coat pocket for the lighter you bought alongside the cake. Quickly placing the cover back into the bag, and lighting up the ‘2’ shaped candle. You snicker to yourself, enjoying this way too much. You knock on the door and patiently wait for Tyson to open up. You hear Tyson approaching, making it harder and harder to keep your composure.
The moment he opens the door his face shifts from slight annoyance, to confused, to happy, and back to confused again. “y/n?” he asks softly, looking between you and the cake, confusion clearly written all over his face.
“Happy second black eye!” you yell, before bursting out in laughter.
Tyson can’t help but join you in your laughter, if there’s one thing he loves about you, it’s your wicked sense of humor. “You really are something special, aren’t you?” Tyson chuckles, shaking his head softly at you, a smile playing on his lips.
“You tell me, Jost,” you say, giving him a wink before walking past him and inside his apartment.
“So you bought me a cake?” Tyson asks you, looking over your shoulder to the cake on his kitchen counter.
“I sure did, thought you’d deserved a treat after what Gabe did to you, again,” you laugh.
“He sure likes to hit me in the face with things. But thank you, this really means a lot to me, baby,” Tyson softly says, squeezing your hip with one of his hands, before grabbing two plates. While Tyson cuts the cake you look for something to drink, deciding water will do for the night.
You flop down on the couch next to Tyson, immediately bringing the fork with a piece of cake to your mouth. “Oh God, that’s so good,” you moan out, you picked some killer cake.
“Don’t make those noises, please,” Tyson groans, stuffing his face with cake.
“I’m sorry I picked such a good freaking cake, mister,” you laugh, nudging him with your foot. Tyson rolls his eyes playfully at you, grabbing your foot with his free hand before you can nudge him again and again.
“Movie?” Tyson asks after you both finished your plates, although Tyson finished the last few bites of your piece. Like he said he’s a needy and hungry man.
“Sure, but just something light and funny, Ty. Nothing dark,” you tell him, knowing he’d love to scare you throughout some horror movie.
While Tyson scrolls through the movies, you make yourself more comfortable on the couch, laying back against the cushions with your feet against Tyson. He looks at you, scanning your body, clearly thinking about something since his eyebrows keep furrowing and relaxing.
“Come here, Tyson,” you softly say when he finally picks a movie to watch, opening your arms for him. His eyes shoot to yours, like he can’t actually believe you just told him that. He gives you a quick smile, before moving towards you, laying down beside you.
He rests his head against your chest, just like he used to do so long ago, his arm wrapped around your waist. “Is this okay?” he asks you, making sure you aren’t uncomfortable, even though you’re the one who suggested this.
“It’s perfect, Ty,” you reassure him.
Halfway through the movie you can’t resist the temptation to run your fingers through his curls any longer. Tyson groans softly when your nails rake over his scalp, sending chill through your body. “That’s so good, please never stop doing that,” he groans out, pulling you tighter against him.
“I wasn’t planning on it, Ty,” you tell him, smiling at the way his eyes shoot to yours.
“You aren’t? Are you serious?” he asks you quietly, eyes still locked on yours.
“I am, love. I came to the conclusion that you’re worth all the risks in life. You’re my light, my guiding light in darkness, my light at the end of the tunnel,” you say, leaving a soft kiss on his forehead. You try to express your emotions towards Tyson, trying to make him feel what you felt when you came to the sudden realization he’s worth taking a risk.
“What does that mean, baby?” Tyson asks you softly, an uncertain smile on his lips.
“It means I’m willing to give us another shot, another go. I want to try again, Ty.”
You can’t help the smile that forms on your lips when you look at Tyson’s face, the realization setting in, the happiness and the gratefulness spreading all over his face, the relief flooding through his body.
“How does that work?” Tyson asks again, clearly trying to rid himself of any insecurities, any questions he has. You gladly take those insecurities away from him.
“A clean slate, completely starting over again to give us both a fresh start. How does that sound?” you ask him.
Tyson nods at you, the happiness radiation off him. “A fresh start, I like the sound of that,” Tyson muses. The changes on his face fascinates you, it seems like he goes through a whole range of emotions in just a few minutes. Until he reaches one you know all too well, mischief. He looks at you, the familiar glimmer in his eyes tells you he’s definitely up to something. He sends you a soft and sweet smile, that almost melts you into a puddle right there and then. “Hi, I’m Tyson,” he says, extending his hand to you. You can’t help the laughter that bubbles out of you, this is exactly how Tyson is. Funny, charming, an absolute dream.
“You’re a goof, you know that?” you tell him, softly shaking your head at him, but the big grin on your face tells him you loved that. Tyson intertwined his fingers with yours, squeezing softly. When he doesn’t make any other moves you take matters into your own hand, slowly leaning in and softly pressing your lips on his. The familiarity, the rush of emotion flooding through your body hits you like a ton of bricks. The feeling of his lips against yours light something deep inside of you, and just like that you finally feel complete again.
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unwrittenlibrary · 4 years ago
Text
Fine Line
Summary: There’s a fine line between love and hate and you’re not too sure which side you’re on with Harry anymore. Part Two to What Kind of Man 
Words: 5.0k
Warnings: I said this in the first part & will repeat it. This is purely fictional. This in no way reflects how I feel Harry would handle this situation in reality. I’m really using Harry as a character. DO NOT READ THIS if you feel the situation of cheating and staying together will impact you strongly or offend you. That is not what I want when reading my story. 
Notes: I urge those uncomfortable with cheating to avoid this. I also urge those who dislike this kind of writing to avoid. I came up with this story at a point in my life where my parents were divorcing, I was going through a break up and was lost. I’ve decided to finish this story because I put so much effort into it for it to end unfinished feels wrong. I can’t speak for anybody and how they would handle this situation. 
Thank you for 1000 followers. That is crazy! 
-
You’ve got my devotion. 
But man, I can hate you sometimes.
...
You sunshine, you temptress.
My hands at risk I fold.
-
April. 
The first two sessions had gone by in relative silence. You weren’t sure what to say to answer the therapists questions. You weren’t sure you even wanted to talk at all. 
“Y/N.” You look up startled out of your thoughts. “Do you feel like talking today?” Her eyes are kind and understanding. Her degrees hang behind her head and you zone in on them. Dr. Walsh had been the only therapist who could take you on in April. Any others that you called had informed you their next opening for new patients wasn’t until the end of May. 
You supposed it could have been worse. So far, Dr. Walsh had come across as kind and understanding of your hesitance. She had never forced you to talk and had only tried to get you involved on your own accord. 
“What would we talk about?” You ask instead of ignoring in silence like you had the past two sessions. You can see Harry turn his head to look at you out of the corner of your eye, but you remained focused on the two degrees hanging behind Dr. Walsh’s head. 
UCLA. “What year did you graduate?” You ask before she can answer your original question. “From UCLA.” 
“We can talk about whatever you want. How you two met. Your kids.” You raise an eyebrow and she smiles. “1996.” 
“I thought we were supposed to talk about our issues. Why would we talk about our kids or how we met?” You answer her question. You can tell Harry’s eyes are moving back and forth between the two of you, like he’s unsure if he should get involved in the conversation. 
Dr. Walsh shakes her head. “Sometimes the best place to start is with what makes you two happy. You’re here to work on your relationship, right?” 
The two of you nod. “Then I’m not worried about starting with the most painful part of your relationship. I want to learn about it. If I can learn about your relationship then I have more knowledge on how to help you repair it, if that’s what you want.” 
“Okay.” You agree. You feel some of your tenseness fade away. You were here for a reason. “We went to UCLA too.” 
She nods. “You did? Were you studying the same thing? Is that how you two met?” 
You look down at your fidgeting hands and let out a laugh. “Not quite. I was a creative writing major and Harry was political science. We met in a World History course our sophomore. It was a general requirement class.” 
“Yeah.” Harry nods as if the memory is coming back to him. “Professor Ward.” 
“Mind if I sit here?” You look up and your breath hitches. He was handsome. That was your first thought. Bright eyes and a sweet smile that could take anyone’s breath away. 
You nod hastily. “Yeah. It’s all yours.” You move your notebook over so he has a bit more room on his half of the table.
“Thanks.” He drops his books on the table and flops down into the chair. “Harry.” He reaches a hand towards you and you meet him halfway. 
You offer your name up easily and his smile brightens. “What brings you into a World history course?” He asks quietly as the last bit of students rush into the few seats left up front. 
You smile. “Creative writing majors have to take one broad history course before focusing on any history of writing courses. Ward’s class was the only one with openings that didn’t start at eight.” 
“Creative writing. That’s cool.” Harry’s spinning the pen in between his fingers. “You want to be a writer?” 
You smile nervously and nod. “That’s the goal. What brings you to Ward’s World History?” 
Harry laughs softly. “I’m a political science major, this is just a required gen ed.” 
“Political science. What’s your plan with that? Am I sitting next to a future senator?” You give him a teasing smile. 
“Lawyer.” 
You shrug, “Senators have to start somewhere.” The professor comes in and that halts the conversation from going anywhere else. As Professor Ward goes over the syllabus you see a piece of paper slide across the table towards you. You look over at Harry, but he’s looking ahead with a smirk on his face. 
You unfold the paper and there is a number written in messy handwriting taking up the small page. 
“Bold.” You whisper to him and he shrugs. “I can tell we’re gonna be good friends.” He whispers back. 
“So you both liked each other right away?” You look up as you're dragged out of the memory of meeting Harry. 
“Yeah.” You breathe out. “I think so.” 
“Definitely.” Harry agrees. “I’m lucky I was running late that day. The seat next to her was the only good seat left. Plus, she helped edit all my essays. I was a shit writer before her.” 
You smile softly at the memory. “Y/N?”  You look up and Dr. Walsh is watching you closely. 
“That class sucked.” You can’t help but let out a laugh. “We had so many essays. He’s right, he was a shit writer before me.” 
You finally spare a look over at Harry and he’s watching you with soft eyes. “That was our first semester of sophomore year. We were attached at the hip after that.” You look back down at your hands. 
“Did you guys start dating right away?” She asks.
“Pretty much. We started dating right before winter break.”  Harry answers for the both of you. 
She nods as she eyes the clock on the wall. “Does that memory still make you happy?”
You nod. Your memories hadn’t been ruined. But that didn’t really mean anything when you could barely be in the same room as Harry now. “Of course. But… Things are different. We’re not twenty-somethings with no responsibility. We’re parents. Partners. We’re supposed to have each other’s back. And now it feels like we don’t.” 
Harry looks over at Dr. Walsh as she studies you. She was obviously taking in your words and processing a response to them. “I think the biggest question you need to find the answer to is, do you want to fix this marriage?” She finally says looking pointedly at the distance between you two. 
You pause and mull over her question. “Can we fix it?” You ask quietly. 
She shrugs. “I can’t answer that for you. It’s my job to help you find the answer, not give it to you. What I can tell you is; Sometimes people walk out of this with a new appreciation and love. Sometimes people realize it can’t be fixed. Nothing is wrong with either, it’s just up to you two to figure out which one it is.” 
You look over at Harry and find him watching you with hopeful eyes. You knew he wanted to and felt like you both could fix this. 
But you weren’t sure. “I don’t know.” 
-
The drive home is silent for the most part. Music playing softly from the radio as you stare out the passenger side window. 
“I don’t know what to say.” Harry says as he pulls the car into the driveway. He puts it into park but doesn’t turn it off so the music is still playing as he turns to look at you. 
Gemma’s car was parked behind your own. You see the curtain move slightly which is a telltale sign that a child was peeking out the window. It quickly falls back into place when your eye catches Serena’s. 
You shake your head and look back down at your lap. “What is there to say?” 
Harry shuts his eyes and you see his grip on the steering wheel tighten. “I want to fix this. I’m trying. Do you want to fix this?” 
You let out a humorless laugh. “Don’t try and guilt me, Harry. I didn’t cheat, you did. This… This mess isn’t my fault and it shouldn’t be my job to fix it.” 
“I’m not trying to guilt-“ He cuts himself off and takes a deep breath. “That was a shitty thing to say. I know. I just want to know if we’re gonna make it through this. If you think we have a chance.” 
You look over at him with watery eyes. “I don’t know. All I can think about is you fucking another woman while I was home with our kids. Telling them that you were just busy. That we would have dinner tomorrow. Or maybe the next day.” 
Harry flinches like you’ve hit him. You turn away but don’t stop talking. “I know a month may not seem like a long time in the grand scheme of things. We’ve been together for seventeen years, so what’s a month?” You laugh humorlessly. “But how long have we been distant? How long have you been staying late and missing dinners?” 
“I don’t know.” Harry whispers and you see him clench his eyes in an attempt to stop tears from falling.
“It’s been months, Harry.” You look around the yard. Your and Persephone’s plants needed maintenance. “We had Jack and then everything changed. We stopped date nights. Family game nights faded from existence. We stopped having sex. I… I don’t know what happened.” 
Harry doesn’t say anything so you sigh. “I’m trying, Harry. It may not seem like it to you, but I’m trying.” You unbuckle yourself and move to get out of the car. 
Harry reaches out and wraps his hand gently around your wrist. “I know.” He stresses the word. “I know you are.” 
You nod and the two of you just watch each other for a moment. You break away from him first. “I’m sure the kids are peeking out the window. We’ve been out here long enough.” 
The both of you climb out of the car silently. The door flies open by the time you reach the second step of your front porch. 
“Mama!” Oliver comes flying out towards you. “Mama. Never leave us again. Baby Jack is crazy.” He grips you tight and you laugh, the tension immediately leaving your body as you hug him back. 
Gemma comes to stand in the entrance with Jack on her hip. She gives you a weak smile and you smile back. “Come on, I’m sure Aunt Gem is dying to go home after watching you crazy lot for two hours.” 
Gemma leaves quickly handing Jack off to Harry and giving you and Harry both kisses on the cheek. “Let me know about spring break, Y/N!” She calls as she rushes out your front door. 
“Spring break?” Harry asks as he bounces Jack in his arms. 
“We’ll talk about it later.” You say sparing a glance down to Oliver, who’s still attached to your leg. Harry nods before moving towards the living room. Oliver follows behind him and you’re left in the front hall alone. 
You take a deep breath before following them. 
-
Harry sleeps in the guest room. You can’t bring yourself to allow him back into the room you two shared. 
His clothes remain in his half of the closet though and his toiletries had remained in place on the bathroom counter, so you saw him every night before going to sleep. 
Dr. Walsh had suggested the two of you used this time to try and reconnect. “You don’t have to sleep in the same bed yet. It’s completely normal for you to need time apart, Y/N. But I do want you two to talk before bed every night, I know you have four kids and it may be your only true alone time to reconnect emotionally before you ever do anything physically, even just sleep.” She had offered at the end of your session after you had admitted you weren’t sure how you felt about Harry and your relationship now. “This is a good way to figure out if you can still see yourself together.” 
You loved him. You didn’t need her to help you answer that question. He was the father of your children. You had over a decade of amazing times together. But you couldn’t look at him without your chest aching. 
“What was Gemma talking about spring break?” Harry sits on the lounge chair you two had placed in the corner of your room. Jack’s bassinet used to be next to it, but he had recently moved into his own room. 
You sit on the end of your bed with your arms crossed over your chest. “Olly has been asking if we could go to Disney World. I was talking to her about maybe surprising him and Serena for their birthday since it falls during the kids break this year.” 
“That sounds really nice.” Harry smiles and you nod. “I’m sure the four of them would love it. I can put in for the week tomorrow. I have a bunch of paid time off I need to use up.” 
You look up at him with wide eyes. “You want to go? We haven’t been on vacation since the beach trip before Jack was born.”
Harry’s face turns stoic. “Of course I want to go. I told you I was going to spend more time with guys.” He walks towards the dresser you have pushed against the wall. “Here, pull your laptop out, let's book this now so we can get a good room.” 
You gape at him. It had only been an idea you were considering for the twins birthday. Although, it was coming up and you were running out of time to make a decision. 
“Are you sure you can get the time off?” You ask instead of listening to his direction. 
Harry nods resolutely. “Can I?” He points next to you and you nod. You lean over to your nightstand, where you had left the computer the night before while writing. 
You push it open. “I’m gonna go get Persephone.” You stand up and hand the laptop to Harry. “She can help plan some stuff with us, so we know what these young kids want.” You give Harry a weak smile and he nods. 
You shake your hands out as you make your way down the hall towards your eldest daughter’s room. You knock softly on the door, “Seph?” 
“Come in.” She calls and you push the door open. She’s got her show paused and is curled into her comforter. “What’s up, mom?” 
“Can you help your dad and I with something?” You ask hesitantly. “I know it’s late, it’ll be quick.” 
Persephone gives you the same dimpled smile Harry has, “Of course. I was gonna be up binge watching this show anyways.” She unwraps herself from the blanket and grabs her phone before following you back to your bedroom. 
“Hey, lovebug.” Harry gives her your favorite smile. One he’s somehow reserved solely for you children. Soft and bright while his eyes shine proudly. 
“Hi, daddy.” She plops herself down next to him and rests her head on his shoulder. He presses a kiss to her forehead and the smile that spreads across Persephone’s face is contagious. 
You take a seat next to her, so she is squished in between the two of you. “You know how Olly has been asking about Disney?” You ask quietly. You and Harry had put the twins down an hour ago, but Oliver was known to sneak away from his room for a cuddle with you. 
She nods instead of verbally answering and Harry pulls up the booking website. “Your mom had the great idea to surprise the twins for their birthday.” 
“Really?” Seph asks excitedly. Your family trips usually consisted of beaches or visiting grandparents. The last time you had been to Disney was when it was just the three of you. You weren’t sure she could even remember most of the trip. 
You bump her shoulder softly with an excited grin. “Really. Jack is old enough that he can get probably through a day there without screaming his head off. Aunt Gem said that she could come to help watch him so you three can have fun.” 
“That sounds awesome!” She lifts her head from Harry’s shoulder and looks at you happily. “What did you need my help with?” 
“Picking out where to stay. You guys are the focus of the trip so we want you to stay where you want to, not us.” You gently take the laptop from Harry and place it in her hands. “So tell us your top three and then dad and I will pick from there so you still get to enjoy some of the surprise aspect.” 
She scrolls through the website for a few minutes while the three of you sit there quietly. You glance over at Harry hesitantly. He’s looking down at your daughter with bright eyes. 
You quickly look away when his eyes move up to meet yours. “Okay. I added the three I liked the most to your favorites! Did you guys need anything else?” 
You both shake your head. “Just keep this a secret. It’s going to be a surprise.” You smile excitedly at your eldest. She had grown so much, but seeing the childlike shine of excitement in her eyes brought you a bounty of joy. She was still your baby. 
Persephone nods before handing the laptop back over to Harry. She presses a kiss to both your and his cheeks before hopping up and making her way towards your door. 
You give her a confused smile when she pauses and turns back around to face you again. She takes in a nervous breath before speaking. 
“It’s really good to be all together again.” The words are quiet and fearful. “Um. I love you guys. Goodnight.” She turns on her heel and bolts out the room and back down the hall. 
You gnaw on the inside of your cheek and look down at your lap. “I’m sorry.” Harry whispers. His tone is similar to her’s. Quiet and full of fear. “I love you all. I know I hurt you, but you are all my world. Those kids are what I’m most proudest of.” 
“I know.” You look over at his lap. His hands curled tightly around the laptop still open in his lap. “I never doubted how much they meant to you Harry. I know how much you love those kids.” 
You want to reach out and pull his hand into yours. Something you usually did when Harry was scared or nervous. But you kept your hand firmly planted in your lap, unable to give him that forgiveness. 
“I was never afraid of you not loving them. I was-“ You stop unsure of what to say. What were you afraid of? “I was afraid that I had given so much and you still wouldn’t have chosen me.” 
Harry looks over at you with sad eyes and you let out a humorless laugh. “Harry, I’ve never regretted having Persephone so young. I’ve never regretted being home. But, I just want you to show that… that you appreciate me.” 
“I do appreciate you.” Harry says quietly. “I’m so sorry I’ve made you feel like I don’t.” He places the laptop in the empty space in between you. You watch as he works through what to say, his tension clear in his eyes. 
“But…” He trails off like he’s still unsure of what to say. “I’m here. I want to be here. I want to show you that I appreciate you.” Harry takes a deep breath and places a hesitant hand on your back. “As long as you’ll have me.” 
You take a deep breath. “Let’s focus on this... I want the twins to have a great birthday and for Seph to have a great spring break. Things have been tough for them too. We can figure the other stuff out later.” 
Harry doesn’t say anything, just nods and pulls the laptop back towards him. You can tell he wants to though. That he wants to talk this out and get in deep.
You just can’t bring yourself to do it. 
-
“A family vacation can be very cathartic for couples struggling.” Dr. Walsh gives the two of you a kind smile after you reveal what you had planned for your kids. “But, it can also bring about stress at being in such a small space for such a long time. Especially when you’re still struggling to communicate.” 
“I’m really trying.” You say quietly, on edge at the idea of you and Harry bringing about any stress on a trip meant to be for your kids. “We both are. I think.” 
“I know.” She gives you an understanding look. “You guys do your homework. You said it yourself, your nightly conversations aren’t painful anymore. But talking about small things is only the beginning of strengthening your communication.” 
“So you want us to talk about the affair?” You ask. “The big thing.” 
She shakes her head. “Eventually. Sweeping it under the rug or ignoring it can only cause more tension. But there are other things I’m sure you want to talk about as well.” 
“Like what?” Harry asks. He glances over at you before looking back at Dr. Walsh. 
“Anything either of you felt was an issue.” She explains. “Big or small. Anything you think contributed to your distance. Try to remember, you’re not placing blame.”
“Not even for the affair?” Harry sighs and you shut your eyes. “How can I not place blame? That’s not my fault.” 
“No.” She agrees. “I’ve never agreed with placing blame for something like that on the victim. Do you want to start with talking about it?” 
“No.�� You shake your head. “I just wanted to make sure we’re not finding all these so-called small issues so we can then excuse the cheating. I won’t do that.” You say disdainfully. 
“We don’t expect you to.” She glances over at Harry. He looks pained but he nods in agreement. “Of course not.” He says quietly. 
You take a deep breath in before nodding. “Okay, then where do we start?” 
“A lot of times, affairs feel like they come out of nowhere. They do.” She gives you an assuaging look. “But it’s also important to remember that there were issues before it and they’re still there to be worked through. We want to work through the big problem, but oftentimes couples work through that but not other things and end up separating.” 
You nod and take a deep breath trying to think through issues. Things had felt perfect during your pregnancy with Jack. 
You were excited, a fourth child and it was a boy, you and Harry had been hoping for another boy. Harry had even planned the small family vacation to the beach so you could enjoy time together as a family of five before it became six. 
“We argued.” You say quietly. The family vacation slips from your mind as your exhausted tears come to your memory. “Um. I had Jack and I was exhausted and we argued. It was barely even an argument.” 
“He still won’t eat?” Harry asks, coming into the bedroom. He was still in his suit from court and you feel angry heat flush through you at how put together he looked. How well rested and up he looked. 
You shake your head silently. Harry seems to not notice your tense jaw as he pushes his way into the closet to find clothes for the night. You turn to look down at Jack laying restlessly in your arms. Tears rush to your eyes as you stand and place Jack in his bassinet and finally get a look at yourself in the mirror hanging next to the closet door. 
You hadn’t showered since Persephone had left earlier the previous day and after running around to get the twins settled with Gemma and taking care of the baby all day you felt tense and gross. 
Harry comes out and smiles kindly as he watches you step towards the ensuite. “Can you watch him for a moment? I need a shower. I feel gross and it’ll help me relax. My nurse said getting tense makes it harder to breastfeed.” 
Harry looks down at his watch. “Something more important?” You ask before he can get a word out. “No. Just- I was supposed to hop on a conference call with Jeff, I’ll reschedule.” Harry tries to change the tone of the conversation, but you’ve already seen red. “Y/N, go shower.” 
“I’m sorry.” You say instead of moving. “I didn’t mean to inconvenience you with your child for half an hour.” You know you don’t mean the harsh words and that you’ll probably regret them all after you’ve taken a break but- “I’m home all day with him, but fuck if I ask you to watch him so I can shower.” 
Harry’s eyes widen at the cold tone. He crosses his arms defensively across his chest as he takes a step back from you, even though he was already several feet away. “I never said I was inconvenienced. You asked a question and I answered honestly. I don’t have a problem spending time with my own child, Y/N.” 
Your turn on your heel and stock into the ensuite and slam the door shut behind you. You hear Jack begin to fuss more and Harry’s whispers as he presumably picks the baby up. There wasn’t a time in the fifteen years you’ve had children that you’ve ever thought Harry didn’t want to spend time with his kids. You still didn’t. But the exhaustion and stress that you felt with Jack was unlike anything you’d felt before and Harry hadn’t seemed to notice. 
“It felt like you weren’t paying attention.” You say quietly. “It felt like you had no idea what was going on.” Dr. Walsh trains her eyes on you as Harry’s eyes flick around trying to figure out what argument you were talking about. 
“I’m sorry.” You say quietly. Jack is curled in your arms as he eats and a weight has been lifted off your shoulder. You feel shameful at the words that had slipped out in an attempt to make Harry notice how upset you were. “I know you’re not inconvenienced by our kids.” 
Harry turns his head to look at you. He had been silently typing out emails as you fed Jack, upset but refusing to leave your side. “What’s wrong?” He asks as he slams the laptop shut. 
You want to tell him. How stressed and anxious you felt. How much tougher being with Jack was than any of your other children. How insecure it made you feel. You should tell him.
But. 
“How could I tell you all that and not sound like I’m angry at our child? Not sound like an awful mother?” You choke on the words. 
Harry stares at you with what looks like pity and you turn away. You didn’t want pity. You wanted help. You wanted him to understand. “You don’t sound like a horrible mother. You sound tired.” 
“What stopped you from telling him this?” Dr. Walsh prompts gently as you and Harry fall into silence. Her eyes flicker to Harry as he watches you with the same sad eyes. 
You shrug. “I just wanted him to notice. I wanted to feel like he still noticed me.” You let out a breath. “We love Jack, but Jack wasn’t exactly planned. We weren’t sure if we wanted a fourth and had only just begun talking about it. When I found out I was pregnant and figured out how excited I felt, I knew I wanted to keep him.” You explain to the therapist carefully. “We decided that we wanted him, but he would be our last one.”
You think of the doctors appointments and heavy warnings that a fourth pregnancy could wreck havoc on your body. 
“But I’m not twenty-three anymore and the pregnancy was really tough on me. And Harry knew. So he took care of the kids when I couldn’t and he planned vacations for me before I gave birth and it-” You breath catches. “It felt like you didn’t care anymore once I had him because I wasn’t in danger anymore. But Jack is stubborn and I was struggling.” 
Harry takes in a shaky breath and reaches out to steady your trembling hands. 
It’s a start. You guess. 
-
“I didn’t realize how tough Jack was on you.” Harry says quietly that night. You had been dreading sitting in the awkward silence. 
You shrug. “Babies are tough. Persephone was tough because we were so young. Serena and Oliver were tough because they were twins.” Your baby monitor makes a sound and you glance over to see Jack stretching his arms. 
You sigh and stand up. “Jack was… Jack was tough in a way I wasn’t expecting. Maybe it was because I had four kids all of the sudden or because you started working more. I was exhausted all the time.” 
You leave before he can say anything in response, but you know he’ll follow you to Jack’s room. You push the door open quietly and hear Jack’s soft giggles. 
“Hello, handsome.” You whisper as he looks up at you. “What’s got you awake?” 
You pick him up gently and bring him over to the rocking chair placed in the corner of the room. Harry leans against the door jam. 
You rock back and forth with Jack in your arms and Harry watched with gentle eyes. You look up as Harry begins to speak quietly. “I wish I could take everything back. Just… Redo this past year.” 
You look down at Jack and run a gentle finger over his cheek. “You can’t. You don’t get redos in real life.” 
The room is silent as you rock your baby back to sleep and Harry watches. 
-
We’ll be a fine line.
-
Notes: Title song Fine Line. This is really a filler for the next piece, I needed April to get to May :/
A few things; I have them staying together written. While this has been my plan since I begun writing this part & the next, if it’s something people wanted, I could do two different endings.
Like I said, I wrote this at a low place for me and had always imagined it as some type of closure that I never got from my parents situation or from my ex. Cheaters suck. But, some people do work through it. Some people can’t. That’s the beauty of our autonomy, we decide. I got a lot (and I mean a lot) of messages urging me to be mindful of impressionable people who may read this piece & with that I want to say; Your situation is not this one. Some cheaters will always be cheaters. This is not in anyway trying to convince you that a toxic relationship is okay. Or that cheating is okay. Please remember this is fiction and not meant to do anything other than entertain you! This is a piece I wrote & a piece whose ending I choose. Thank you for reading. I love every single person who read What Kind of Man and thought, I want more of this person’s writing.
(please do not be mean to me, I write for fun & am very emotional thank u)
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ogravensimp · 3 years ago
Text
She is a Constantine
The one day this shitty hotel decided to have an out of order elevator', Zed cursed as she looked up to only see a beige trenchcoat coat fluttering like a flag as it raced up the far too many flights this overpriced building had installed.
"John! Aren't you just being paranoid?" Zed shouted after the man in front of her as she attempted to keep up with him, as well, also trying to get answers out of him—which is a hard enough task as it is when she actually has his attention.
They were supposed to focus on purging some low-level demons set loose when a couple of civilians somehow managed to dig up the original copy of the highly dangerous, "Grimorium Verum". Well, they managed to get the book, but they also attracted the attention of John's good ol' friend, Papa Midnite; who has been giving them quite a hard time but John managed to knock him out.
Zed believed that they did quite well against him but somehow he said something before he fell that set John running without a word back to the hotel room they rented.
"John!", she called out once again as they finally reached the floor they were staying on, but she only saw the tail of his trenchcoat as he took a sharp turn around the corner, "seriously, you are being very-"
She cut herself off when she also reached the room they were staying in, only to find the door thrown off the hinges,"-...paranoid."
John was already inside, his back to her as he worryingly looked around at the ransacked room that had been perfectly fine when they left. Zed knew it wasn't the mess that had him anxious, it was the lack of a certain half-demon whom they had left watching some pony cartoon on the now overturned couch. The show was even still playing, but not even a tuft of the girl's purplish hair to be found.
"I should have known he'd just trace the magic back here, how could I just live her alone with the one thing Papa Midnite will kill for!" While it seemed John was talking to her, Zed knew he was actually berating himself, "Fuck, if he touched even a hair on her head I swear-"
"John," Zed softly approached him, wanting to calm the magician before he jumps so far to a conclusion that she or common sense won't be able to reach him anymore, "Papa hates your guts, yes but you and I know he'll never kill a child."
"What about his goons? Midnite distracted us and sent them here and I'm sure his goons would do anything not to fail him. ", John retorted as he began to scratch his hair with enough force it's as if he actually wanted to rip it out.
"She might still be here."
John finally turned to face her and Zed could now fully see the panic on his face. To a normal person, John looked irritated at most but Zed has been around him long enough to start to see the cracks in his poker face of sarcasm, "Look around Zed! If she was here, I'd fucking sense her!"
Zed felt a bit offended at his outburst, she didn't even know John had left the grimoire here! She thought the whole reason Papa was hexing them to next week was to get it off John but this seemed to be another of Constantine's genius plans gone wrong.
Putting her hands on her hips, she stood her ground, "And who's fault is that John? How could you just leave one of the most sacred dark-magic books with a child who thinks a show on the magic of friendship is the pique of entertainment?!"
John was never one to admit he was too blame chose to fight back, "I didn't know! I'm not fucking omnipresent! That's why I put up the bloody wards!"
"And look what good those did," Zed huffed as she folded her hands, "now they have the grimoire and have done god knows what with Raven."
"um..."
"Think I don't know that Zed because newsflash, I do!"
"Well, how do you plan to fix it!"
"...actually..."
John moved towards what was left of his books on the table and picked up a piece of chalk, "I don't know, fuck, I can try to trace her magic. She has a naturally high amount of it, it'll be easy to find."
Zed followed after him, her anger now replaced with worry, "Maybe if I'm near something of her's I can get a vision, where's that teddy of her's that she's always with? The one that Nun made?"
A small pair of hands held out the purple bear in question, "here you go Zed."
Zed accepted it gratefully, "Thank you, Raven."
And then there was silence in the room.
Zed looked at the doll in her hand and then at the small face looking up at her and then back at the doll, then back at the face and this charade continued for a while till she shouted, "Raven!", causing the little girl in question to giggle.
This sound alerted John who looked up from the symbols he had already begun drawing on the floor. Before Zed could even move, John had rushed past her in a beige coloured blur and had the half-demon up in his arms in a well-deserved hugged.
"Oh my sweet blackbird, I'm so glad your ok,", John yelled while he spun Raven around and pressed warm kisses to her small cheek causing more giggles to escape Raven's throat.
This was an odd scene for Zed who was quite used to the silent little girl who hexes old ladies that try to pinch her cheek or pat her head.
In fact, the first time Raven allowed physical contact with Zed was when she held her hand in a crowded street one time, and while Zed knew it was only so the tiny demon wouldn't get lost in the much taller crowd, she still felt like some chosen saviour.
So Zed just really couldn't help the tinge of jealousy she felt knowing that John is an exception to this 'no-touch' rule whenever he pleases while she can only relish in the crumbs.
Raven must have sensed her feelings cause she turned to her and smiled— an expression Zed felt fit her angelic features more than the usual deadpan expression.
Giving a soft smile back herself, she placed a hand on the girl's soft face(which fortunately went unhexed), in a tender gesture and asked, "Rae you gave us a heart attack, where were you?"
The dark-haired girl just tilted her in confusion before replying with a simple, "the closet." and pointed in the direction of said object.
Both Zed and John looked at the small cabinet that she was implying and couldn't help but be entertained as it was such a childish yet genius choice of hiding.
But the entertainment didn't last long as they realized something would have had to cause her to go into hiding.
Setting her down on the table, John and Zed immediately began to check her pallid skin for any injuries and to their relief, there was nothing major. The only damage to her delicate skin was a bruise on her knee but that was enough for John to demand a full breakdown of what exactly happened so he can know how many bones of Midnite he needs to break.
After 10 minutes, Zed and John had the full story of what happened while Raven nibbled on a chocolate bar she rightfully earned.
"So let me get this straight, you sensed about four guys approaching here and before they arrive, you grabbed Mr Teddy here, ran into the cabinet and stayed there till you heard us arguing, and you only bruised your knee cause you bumped yourself when crawling in?" John confirmed.
"Yep."
"You should've grabbed a phone and called us or something,", Zed muttered as she rubbed a chocolate stain off the girl's chubby cheek, "what if they saw you? Next time teleport to me and John immediately, got it."
Looking down, Raven softly replied, "Yes Zed."
"Oi, lay off her," John joked as he placed a big hand on her head, lightly messing up her dark-purple locks much to Zed's annoyance cause she is the one that combs her hair out every morning but before she can complain, John sighs, "Shit, Midnite still has the Grimoire, just great."
Zed was going to sigh with him when Raven let out a sheepish, "well...", reaching for the toy that Zed had been holding onto, she wrapped her hands around it and after some muttering, a ray of purple surrounded its form and it transformed into the exact tome that John and Zed had worked so hard to find and keep safe, "...I had been practising glamour spells before the guys arrived and thought this would be a great time to test it and I guess it worked."
Her wide violet eyes looked up at them as if looking for praise and they really did want to give it to her but they were just so shocked by her to speak.
John was the first to react and a wide grin broke out on his face, "You are a Constantine!"
He relaunched his attack of hugs and kisses to Raven's temple, this time Raven acted annoyed and tried to push him away but her blooming blush and the sound of a few lamps exploding betrayed her and showed her real emotions.
Zed still only looked at the book in her hand, remembering how it had felt and weighed the exact same you'd expect a knit teddy bear too. She just couldn't wrap her head around how such a young girl was already so talented with magic that it would put some adults to shame but before she could stay on the topic the sounds of Raven's voice brought her back.
"Ew, let go of me!" She whined as she used her small hand to try and push John's face away but that would not deter him and instead, he laid a lick to her palm which only infuriated her more as the window near them cracked, "GROSS!"
Zed couldn't help the laugh that escaped her. Those two were really something. Dropping the book on the table, she went to go save her little Raven away by pulling her away before she ends up blasting John through a room— so maybe she's actually saving John.
As for her previous question, the answer was simple:
She's a Constantine.
____________________________________
"Now, what's the meaning of this?" Papa Midnite's voice was deep and loud to achieve its purpose in causing shivers to run down his lackey's spine as he held up a purple, knitted bear with different sized buttons for eyes.
One of them managed to gain some confidence and he dropped to the floor at Midnite's feet to plead for himself and his brethren, "Papa, I swear, it was definitely the book you asked for, we don't know what happened!"
Papa growled, "I know that, I'm wondering how all you managed to get tricked. Not even by Constantine himself but by a child!"
"But there was no kid there we checked everywhere, honest Papa!"
Midnite just sighed as he fell back onto his seta, rubbing the bridge between his nose as he contemplated whether to get better men or if he simply was the only one capable of doing things right around here.
As he grumbled, the purple toy in his hands caught his eyes.
He thought it was just the supernatural world being bored when he heard that the John Constantine adopted a little girl but this doll proved the rumours through.
If this child was also as terrifying as the rumours say, it was best Papa met her soon before another card to Constatine's deck is added in which he cannot compete with.
part 2 soon? probably but only cause I wanna right midnite & raven interaction
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theoreticslut · 4 years ago
Text
"Why do they hate me so much?”
pairing: fred weasley x reader x george weasley (*might change)
requested: no
word count: 3k
warnings: mentions of cheating, SFW
A/N: i’m attempting an enemies to lovers kind of story, but i’m not sure if it’ll really come across as that. if you haven’t noticed i kinda just write and whatever comes out, comes out. As i mentioned above the pairing of the story might change as I’m still working on it. right now its heading in the direction of both the twins, but that’s not how i originally wanted it to go, so we’ll see. I hope you guys like what I have so far, I do want to make this into  a small series so if you have any comments and/or suggestions please let me know - i would love hearing your thoughts! Xx
Taglist: @justmesadgirl @xuckduck @yikesyikesyikes95 @filipi-yes @aestheticwh0r3 @siredkai @matsuno-nadeshiko @msmarklee1213 @immajustreadwritereblog
 ^ let me know if you’d like to be added/removed!
“You pig-headed prats!” You holler, huffing as the infamous weasley twins ‘successfully’ pull off another prank, you as their target yet again.
“Oi, sweetheart. That’s a bit harsh for such a pretty lady.” Fred smirks.
“Shove off, weasley.” You hiss as you push through the two who were standing in front of you.
If you spent another minute near them you feared you’d find yourself in detention for a month. The two redheads had a way of thoroughly getting under your skin.
You’re not entirely sure what you’d done to them, but for the better part of two years now you had been the butt of many of their pranks. You’ve had everything from an itching charm put on your robes to mini fireworks exploding out of your books to the most recent of having your wand tampered with to cover you in slime instead of whatever spell you were trying to cast.
Besides that, the two had been beyond irritating to talk to. You could always find them laughing and joking with others, but they seemed much kinder than they were to you. That’s not to say that they were rude or mean to you in anyway, but their jokes and smart replies were definitely not what you needed after having been pranked.
“Y/n! Ohhh, what happened?” Your friend hermione called as you entered the common room, immediately sensing how pissed you were.
“The twins happened.” You grumble, gritting your teeth.
“I don’t know why they keep pranking you! I’ve talked them multiple times about it and I thought they had finally gotten it through their heads that it wasn’t funny.”
“Don’t worry about it, hermione. I think they were just born bloody annoying. It’s what they do and they know they’re good at it, so why stop? It’s not like we plan to be friends or anything any time soon anyway.” You huff, making your way up to your dorm.
“I know, y/n. I know. Just....let me talk to them again. I’ll make sure they stop. It’s not fair to you. Even harry and Ron get annoyed at them for it.”
“You don’t have to do that, ‘mione. I’ll just...start ignoring them, maybe that’ll get them to stop. They’re not worth my time of day anyway.”
“Alright, y/n. Well, let’s get you cleaned up. You are going to need help getting this out of your hair.”
~.~
“You two need to stop this prank thing against y/n. I’ve told you over and over, it’s not funny anymore. Do you know that it took at least five washings to get that slime out of her hair? Five!”
“Oh stop harping us, hermione. It’s not like we’re hurting her any.” Fred says, dismissing her disapproval.
“You’re not hurting her, but you’re certainly annoying all of us.” Ron says through a mouthful of breakfast.
“Why should we stop? It’s fun and honestly pretty great to get a rise out of her.” George smiles.
“Don’t you think she wonders why she’s being targeted? She is our friend, too, and you hardly prank any of us. Don’t you think she might feel a bit frustrated? Don’t you think she wonders why you two have such a vendetta against her?” Hermione pushes, becoming annoyed herself with them.
“We’ll bring it in a bit, but we’re not stopping. She’s just too easy to prank.” Fred finally offers.
“I wish you would stop completely. It’s honestly not fair to her in the slightest.” Hermione sighs, giving up for the time being.
The twins are stubborn and she knows she better take what they give her for now before they revoke their compromise to bring it back completely.
~.~
You groan to yourself as you listen to Professor Binns drone on about history. This was by far your least favourite class, even more so when you’ve had the week you’ve had.
It started monday when you woke up to a surprise visit from Aunt Flo to which you were very unprepared for. You had been meaning to get some more pads and tampons but had been so busy it had left your mind. Not only did it inconveniently arrive, it was also being a major witch this month. As soon as it hit you felt you were going to be sick. The amount of nausea you felt on top of how crampy and achy you were. You honestly felt like you had been run over by the hogwarts express.
Tuesday you had been surprised by a last minute exam that Snape decided to give out. Normally that wouldn’t be a problem, except this really was not your week and hadn’t been able to remember the potions you were being quizzed on. You had just barely passed when you normally received the higher marks that snape rarely gave out.
Wednesday you had just had a very rough day. Everything you had tried to do backfired and you ended up creating more hassle for the professors and your friends than would normally be expected. You spent the day just feeling completely useless, which continued into thursday.
Then, so far today, you woke up late and forgot your tie which earned a deduction of house points. You had spilled a bunch of ingredients in potions which earned even more deducted house points and complete embarrassment. You felt completely disgusting today even though you’ve showered and still looked put together. And most recently, just after lunch you had found your boyfriend has been cheating on you.
To put it lightly, this was just a really bad day at the end of a very rough week. The only thing you’ve been able to be grateful for is that the twins have seemingly stopped pranking you.
They still made smart remarks that you were trying your best to ignore, but for the time being you haven’t found yourself in the middle of one of their pranks.
You’re not sure why, but at least you haven’t had to deal with them on top of everything else this week.
You had managed to get all the way through to dinner where you sat very tiredly. Hermione knew you’ve been having a rough week as you were roommates, but she wasn’t sure what exactly had been happening. You hadn’t been wanting to talk about it. Harry and Ron, however, could tell you were in no mood for anything else even without knowing you’ve had a rough week.
Unfortunately, the twins did not get the memo that this was not your best week and had decided today was the day they’d prank you after leaving you alone for a couple weeks. 
they had been planning out how to do so for a few days now and were proud of what they had come with. therefore, It came as quite a surprise to the both of them when you broke out crying after setting a smoke bomb to go off when you lifted your fork.
The food had just been revealed to start dinner when you picked up your fork to grab a piece of ham from the platter in front of you.
Before you could realize what happened, the smoke bomb went off, completely covering you in soot and catching the attention of many of the students in the great hall.
Without being able to hold it in, you had started crying as Fred and George were laughing.
“What have I ever done to you? I’ve tried being nice and it always blows up in my face, quite literally right now.” You sigh, choking on your tears as you stand up from the table to leave.
Fred and George stop laughing when they hear you, their smiles dropping when they realize you had been crying. They watch as you hurry off, hoping to Merlin this encounter wasn’t being listened to and watched by everyone.
“Look what you two have done now! I told you to knock it off with all these pranks. You can’t ever listen though, can you Fred. George.” Hermione states, fuming at the red-headed twins as she gets up and follows after you.
“Oh bloody hell.” They both sigh in unison, slumping into the table.
“Bloody hell is right.” Ron says. “You really don’t want Hermione mad at you.”
“We’re not worried about hermione, mate.” Fred says, keeping his eyes on the door that y/n had left through.
“We just wanted to get her to smile.” George sighs sadly.
~.~
“Y/n!” Hermione calls as she catches up with you in the hall back to the common room.
“Please go, hermione.” You sniffle, wiping at your eyes.
“I’m not leaving my best friend out here crying all alone.” She huffs, crossing her arms as she looks at you.
“I know you had a bad week, but what’s happened? It must’ve been real bad if you break out crying like this, y/n.” She says after a minute or two.
“I’m just so tired, ‘mione.” You cry, shrinking into yourself in front of her.
you felt pathetic yet you couldn’t bring yourself to stop crying. you had been hiding it away all week and you just couldn’t do it anymore.
“Tell me what’s happened.” She urges, pulling you into a hug, her heart breaking for you. she cared for her friends more than anything, but it really broke her seeing you so upset. you were usually such a literal ray of sunshine to everyone around you, that it was painful to see you carrying so much pain.
“I’m so tired and achy and nauseous. All because I’m a bloody woman. I’ve been so unfocused that I’ve lost us so many house points. Well, more than I ever have,” you sob as hermione leads you over to a bench by the window.
“I practically failed that exam snape gave us this week and I made such a mess of his ingredients. He was so furious, hermione.” you whisper, your terrified eyes meeting hers as you recall the way he fumed over your mishap.
“I was so embarrassed. I’ve never done that terribly in his class.” you mumble.
“I’ve been nothing but a hassle to everyone around me this week and I just - I feel so bloody disgusting. It’s honestly no surprise I found my boyfriend cheating on me.” You sigh, crying more.
“He did what?!” Hermione gasped, sighing as you cry harder.
“He’s been cheating on me, ‘mione. For like two months at least! I feel so dumb and used. I really liked him, ‘mione, and he just....he just used me!”
“Take a breath, y/n. We don’t need you getting sick.” hermione urges, noticing how you’re choking for air through your sobs.
“A-and now I’m covered in soot all because the twins have something against me. I don’t know what I could have done! Why do they hate me so much?” You cry.
Fred and George frown as they hear you recount your week, having left dinner to come after you and apologize. They truly had no idea. If they did they wouldn’t have set up that smoke bomb.
“We really messed up, Fred.” George sighs, not being able to take his eyes off you as you cry in hermione’s arms.
“Yeah, we have. Come on, let’s go apologize and try to fix this.”
They make their way over to you and hermione who shoots daggers at them.
“Y/n, we’re sorry. We-“
“Would you two get out of here? You’re some of the last people she wants to see right now.” Hermione states, knowing that the twins are beyond sorry and just want to make sure you’re all right, but taking your emotional needs as her priority.
she knew that they had a bit of a crush on you even though they had never said a thing on the topic. it wasn’t hard to miss, however, when she noticed how often they’d stare at you from across the room, smiling dumbly to themselves and zoning out. it was quite adorable, actually, but she did wonder how they ever thought pranking you was the way to your heart.
“We didn’t know you’ve had such a bad week.” Fred sighs, ignoring hermione.
You start crying harder at the mention of your week. You just wanted it to end. you wanted to curl up in your bed, tucked tightly into the blankets and listen to some comforting sad songs while you cry.
“Fred, George, go back to dinner. I’m taking y/n to our room. She needs to be left alone for awhile.” hermione orders, helping you to stand even though you don’t want to. all your energy has been drained from your body so even lifting an arm to wipe at your tears felt like it was the most difficult task in the world.
The twins sigh, but nod, knowing it’s the truth. Having them around wouldn’t help anything, but they felt so guilty. they just wanted you to understand that they don’t hate you, but rather the complete opposite.
They had never wanted to upset you when they started pranking you. In fact they both saw you as a friend and had a bit of a crush on you that they couldn’t understand. Sure you were beautiful, beyond kind, and a little bit of a fireball, but you were just a girl. neither of them were quite sure when they had started feeling and thinking it, but even though they tried to tell themselves that you were, they knew deep down you weren’t just some girl.
They really aren’t the greatest with their feelings though, especially when their beyond confused with them, and decided pranking you was the best way to show that they liked you. They never prank you to be mean, they just want to make you laugh and see you smile.
~.~
Hermione had gotten you into bed after having you shower and change into some comfy clothes.
She had left to go get herself some dinner and promised she’d be back soon to see how you were holding up.
You had told her not to worry about bringing anything back for you. Instead you were just going to curl up and go to sleep.
You heard a knock on your door and sighed. You didn’t really want to talk to anyone, even hermione. You hummed out however to notify the person on the other side of the door that you were listening.
You hear your door creak open a bit and hear some footsteps enter.
“Y/n? Uh, Fred and I brought you some dinner. Hermione said you didn’t want anything, but you can’t just not eat.” You hear George say, cautiously stepping over to your bed. his voice was filled with concern which you thought odd, but couldn’t care enough to think about too long.
You hear Fred shut the door but you don’t bother looking at either of them. You’re far too numb to care at this moment.
“Y/n?” George asks after not getting a response. he didn’t think you were sleeping, but he wasn’t sure.
“Thanks. Just, set it on my trunk. Or my night table. I’m not really hungry right now.” You mumble, still not bothering to look at either of them.
“H-how are you holding up?” Fred asks, fidgeting in his place.
“Why do you care? You’ve never cared before. Either of you.”
Both the twins sigh, looking at the other with guilt written all over their faces. they’re well aware how they come across to you, but it was truly a complete misunderstanding.
“We know we made you the target of our pranks more often than not, but we weren’t trying to be mean. We just, we really wanted to make you smile. Make you laugh.” Fred sighs.
“Did quite a job at it, huh?” You ask, still staring straight ahead. You don’t have the energy to turn to look at them. And truthfully, you didn’t really want to.
“We-we’re sorry. We had no idea how bad of a week you’ve had. We, uh, we heard you tell hermione everything.” George states, rubbing the back of his neck.
“It doesn’t matter that it was this week.” you deadpan, “It’s the fact that I’ve never once enjoyed your pranks on me. It was pretty obvious, so why would you continue?” You ask, getting a bit irritated at the two twins.
“Well, uh. I-I don’t know. We’re dumb.” Fred answers.
“No, you’re not. You both are so brilliant that I’ve been jealous of you at times, but you just don’t care about school. You’d rather use all your brilliance on tormenting poor classmates or make a girl cry than apply yourselves to classes.”
You knew you weren’t being fair, but you were fed up with everything. You wanted to be left alone. you couldn’t handle socializing, much less able to handle these two trying to make up for what they’d done for years only after you broke down crying.
“No, we never wanted to make you cry. Merlin we feel so guilty that we did.” Fred tries to argue, but is promptly cut off.
“So you really don’t care, do you? You’re just trying to make yourselves feel better.” You say, finally looking over at them, a fire blazing behind your eyes. Both of them look like deer caught in headlights, not sure whether to stay put or run and in which direction if they did.
You watch as Fred gulps nervously as George opens and closes his mouth trying to find the words to not make things worse.
Even though they can’t meet your eyes, mainly because they’re scared of the anger within them, they notice just how awful you look. Not in the sense that you’re unattractive, because Merlin even now you were gorgeous, but awful in the sense of how absolutely heartbroken you look. It truly looks like your soul has been ripped from your body and your heart crushed to pieces.
Your eyes are bloodshot and puffy, your nose red from blowing it into the rough tissues on your bedside table, tear tracks etched into your cheeks almost looking like spilled ink that had run across a piece of parchment.
They can see how tired you are, and how much sadness you’re still holding in. They wish more than anything that they could comfort you, but you were making it very clear that you didn’t want them here.
“Can you please just go? I don’t really feel like keeping company.” You sigh, turning back away from them.
They both nod, even though you can’t see them. Turning to walk away, they stop to look over your form once again. They’ve never seen you so heartbroken and it scared them. You had been a light in their lives, happiness radiating from inside you  constantly spreading warm that reached deep into their souls. it hurt seeing that light extinguished.
“We’re really sorry, y/n. For everything.” George sighs, him and fred leaving you to yourself.
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dreamescapeswriting · 3 years ago
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Together ~ KNJ [Request]
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WORD COUNT:5.3k
PAIRING: Namjoon x Reader
GENRE: College AU, friends to lovers, angst, fluffy ending,
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A single cough erupted from one side of the giant lecture theatre that you were sitting inside of causing everyone to stare over at the kid that coughed. He blushed deeply but anyone would with around 100 students sitting and staring at you because you coughed. All of you were just sitting there waiting eagerly for the exam to end. Tapping pens could be heard as you glanced around at everyone, it was the final exam and it appeared as though everyone had already finished and was just waiting for the bell to ring. All you wanted to do was race out of the lecture hall and out into the hot summer weather to tan for a while but you had to sit there, in silence until the test was finished otherwise the whole year of learning would have been for nothing. 
All the hours of countless cramming for tests would have gone to waste so you sat there. Staring forward at the chalkboard and around 60 students heads since you were right at the back of the hall.
It was finally the end of your first college school year and you were looking forward to the next eight weeks of pure bliss, not having to worry about waking up early for lectures or staying up all night studying for a test. It was going to be the best summer vacation you could ever possibly want, you already had what you were going to do planned out. No one was going to be in the dorm house that you shared, they all had their own plans so you arranged to stay inside for the first week, catching up on everything that needed to do before deciding to relax, binge watch shows and do whatever you wanted.
"Pencils down and close your booklets, if you have no finished you're exam don't worry. I'm sure you can make it up when you repeat this year," You looked at the woman at the front of the room, she was a woman in her early 40's with a Karen haircut, she'd been brought in when your original tutor for the course left to have a baby and never bothered coming back. It was a surprise to you that you even knew half of the questions on the exam, the teacher was useless you practically taught yourself late at night reading through the books and countless research articles online. 
"Single file lines! You're adults, we shouldn't have to tell you how to behave!" She screamed as people began rushing to get out of the hall, you stayed behind not wanting to get trampled in the herd of people.
The room was silent again apart from the shuffling of papers as Mrs Kim collected all of the papers. Leaning behind yourself you began packing things into your bag not noticing that your best friend was lingering up behind you. 
"Boo!" He yelled out as he placed his hands on your shoulders and shook you a little making you cry out in surprise. 
"Joonie," You whined as you saw the surprised look on Mrs Kim's face as she heard a sudden noise come out of nowhere. 
"Sorry Mrs Kim, I've come to steal my best friend." He practically pulled you free from your chair and dragged you out of the hall and into the hallways where people were talking amongst one another.
"I'm not even going to ask how it went, you're my best friend and I already know you've passed," He said in a matter-a-fact tone as he wrapped an arm around your shoulder and that was when you knew he wanted something. The two of you had been friends since you could walk and talk you knew exactly what he was up to when he was flattering you. 
"Whatever it is, no. I'm not doing it, I'm not driving you, I’m not doing a late assignment for you, I’m not going to pick you up late from a party and I'm not going to kill someone for you," You went through everything so you didn't leave a single thing out but Namjoon tutted at you. 
"I am offended that you would even think for a second that I was trying to get something out of you," You stood still as you looked at him with a blank stare, 
"Okay fine I need something," He grumbled pulling you with him as he walked out of the main campus building.
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Back at the house, you waited for Namjoon to tell you what it was that he wanted, the whole walk home he'd been avoiding the question or distracting you with something else. The house you lived in was huge, it had around nine bedrooms in total all with their own bathrooms and two main bathrooms. It used to be an old mansion home but it was renovated when a college was built nearby and rented out to groups of college kids. The last year you'd been living there with Namjoon and six of his college buddies, all of you got along which was perfect, no awkward meetings in the hallways or kitchen.
"You can't just tell me you need something and then not say anything," You told him as you picked up a slice of pizza from the box and began eating it. This was what he did when he wanted something, he would try to bribe you with food or do something nice for you, you'd known him long enough that this meant he was going to ask for something big.
"You're not doing anything in the summer, right?" You put down the slice of pizza and brushed your hands onto a napkin as you got up to leave. You already knew what he was going to ask and you weren't interested, 
"No way, there is no way of me going on that stupid trip." You told him as you began heading for the staircase wanting to go to bed but he grabbed your wrist. 
"You're my best friend, we're supposed to look out for one another," He whined as he looked at you, his large brown eyes turning into puppy-dog eyes as he attempted to persuade you.
It was the summer vacation he and some of his friends had been planning to take together,
"Kyong is going and I don't want to be alone with her," He told you as he looked at you, tugging on your wrist as he waited for you to say something. Mi Kyong, his ex-girlfriend that practically ripped him apart and left you to stitch him back together again. Cheating on him so many times in the relationship you wondered how he stayed with her for as long as he did. To you, she was the devil in disguise but to Namjoon she was and would always be the love of his life. 
"I'm weak if I go near her I'll break," That wasn't a lie, you knew that if Namjoon even stayed in the same room as her alone she would somehow manipulate him back into her life only to break him up into pieces yet again.
"I thought Jungkook and the boys were going," You sighed thinking about how your perfect relaxing time was going to be ruined by going out to some log cabin in the woods.
"They're taking their dates...Please...We'll have fun I promise and you can bring books...Music, painting gear...Whatever you want," You knew he was never going to let it go so you nodded slowly at him, at least this way you could keep a close eye on him at all times. 
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The two of you were back in the living room, pizza slice in your hand as you were ready to curl up and watch Grey's Anatomy together,
"There's just one thing," He called out, you turned to stare at him pizza slice in your mouth waiting for him to continue.
"You have to pretend to be my date." The pizza slice slipped from your hands and onto the white leather sofa as you stared at him. 
"What?" Your voice cracked thinking that maybe you'd heard him wrong or he was just trying to joke but he shook his head. 
"You have to pretend to date me, nothing major just...A cuddle and holding hands," You stared at him feeling your heart pounding against your chest at the thought of doing something like that was Namjoon. He wasn't the type of friend that cuddled or held hands with anyone so suddenly doing that bought back all of the feelings you had for him that you had repressed. You never wanted to admit your feelings for him and when you moved into a house together for college you pushed them down so deep you thought you'd gotten over him. 
"And share a room, which we've done before it's not a big deal." He mumbled as he began watching the screen. Not a big deal? To him maybe it wasn't a big deal but to you, it was bringing up all of the repressed feelings you'd hoped you had been over.
"Y-Yeah, no big deal." You mumbled staring at the screen as you suddenly didn't feel like eating anymore. 
"I gotta go pack," You said suddenly, leaving the pizza with Namjoon and rushing up to your bedroom. Slamming the door and looking around as you thought about all of the things you didn't have for a summer vacation, tomorrow was going to be an impromptu shopping trip as early as possible. 
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The car pulled up outside the large home and you thought it was some kind of joke until everyone began pulling their bags out. You took Namjoon by the hand and stared at him, 
"I thought you said it was a cabin in the woods," You whispered turning to look at the large mansion behind you which was defiantly not a small cabin in the woods.
"No, I said it was a home in a remote area." The remote area part was right, the ride had taken you almost four hours to get out here and it was in the middle of the woods but it was not a home of any kind. It was huge and modern. All of it was an open plan area with large floor to ceiling windows. The walls were white and black and that was just the outside. 
"I couldn't let my boys slum it for the summer," Kyong's voice said as she trailed her hand along Namjoon's back, you watched as he tensed up. The original plan was for him to be in the car with her but you managed to get Jimin and his girlfriend to swap with you both, riding along with Yoongi and his girlfriend instead. 
"It's costing me almost 650,000,00₩, for the month. I know you're only here for a week but I decided I would stay." Everyone seemed to have their eyes glued onto the building as they stared at it, 
"Nine bedrooms so I'm afraid Y/n might have to be on the sofa," She said in a condescending tone but that was when Namjoon wrapped his arm around your waist and drew you closer to him. Sparks felt as though they were shooting off your body and you hoped no one picked up on the fact that you were so shy from the small touch. 
"Actually she'll be in my room since we're together." He stared at Kyong as he said it and the smile on her face was wiped away, leaving a shocked look as she tried to think of something to say in response. 
"Really? You and Y/n- Wow...I never would have thought your taste would have changed that much," You knew it was an insult but you chose to ignore her, pulling at Namjoon's hand. 
"Come on babe, let's go find a good view." You cooed, pulling him into the front door and hoping that Kyong would finally leave him alone now that she heard you were dating, that way you wouldn't have to go through the butterfly feelings every time he touched you, even a little. 
"Babe?" Namjoon chuckled as he walked behind you, he'd never heard you call him anything besides Namjoon or Joonie, or if he was in trouble, Kim Namjoon.
"You need it to be convincing, right?" A smirk played on his lips while you had your back to him, he let you lead him through the house to try and find a room for the two of you but it was huge and you thought you might have needed a map to find your way around. 
"Here," Namjoon laughed pulling you into a large bedroom, your bag dropped from your shoulder. 
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The bedroom had its own sitting room so you weren't going to have to worry about sitting downstairs where Kyong would bother you. There were large glass windows leading out onto a balcony that looked as though it had grass on it.
"Why does the balcony have furniture, there's no door-" You stopped speaking when the glass doors that you originally thought were windows began to move and open up, folding into the walls so you could walk out onto the small balcony area that looked over a giant pool on the ground floor. 
"This place is incredible," You breathed out as you laid your hands on the balcony railing, looking over at the woods that were just beyond the house. 
Namjoon was looking around the room, an ensuite was connected to it all white marble. A walk-in shower and a corner bathtub with jets.
"Hey I-whoa," Namjoon stopped as he looked at you and the view wondering where the windows had gone.
"So that's what that switch did," He chuckled softly as he thought back on the switch he had flicked on the wall.
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The night came sooner than expected, you'd spent most of the day unpacking everything you'd bought along with you and planning what you were going to do the next day and now everyone was gathered in the kitchen. 
"I made us all a pasta dish, I figured it would be nice for the evening," Not for one second did you believe that Kyong had cooked the pasta, mostly because there were take out containers in the bin but also because Namjoon told you about the last time she tried to cook. She almost burnt her entire dorm down just trying to use a rice cooker. 
"Are you really going to eat all that?" Kyong questioned as she watched you piling pasta onto your plate,
"I mean pasta is known to bloat us but I guess you're obviously not bothered about looking bloated." Namjoon was suddenly by your side ready to take over for you, 
"Y/n looks perfect, so why don't you just focus on yourself," He ordered, taking your plate and his over to tone of the many dining tables that were in the home. 
"Ignore her, she's just trying to get under your skin." He reassured you as he smiled weakly, you knew he still had feelings for her but it was nice to see how much he was stepping in for you when he needed to.
"What did you ever see in her?" You mumbled as you began eating some of the pasta, trying not to let her lingering words bother you so much. It wasn't as though you and Namjoon were really dating, it didn't matter what you looked like anyway. If a person didn't love you for who you really were then that person didn't deserve the time of day. 
"I'm not sure, I think I was looking in the wrong direction," He laughed as he watched you eating, smiling as he couldn't help but look at you. All the years he'd known you he had been hopelessly in love with you but never realised until it was too late. Until you both in college and busy with everything else to deal with one another, he never wanted to ruin the friendship that he had with you.
"What?" You questioned as you noticed how much he was staring at you, 
"Nothing...Did you bring my favourite book with you? I might sit by the pool with you tomorrow," He was trying to change the subject and distract his own mind from thinking about you in that way.
"Do you have spare blankets over there?" You asked Namjoon later when you were back in your room, 
"Yeah but I don't think you'll need them, it's summer." He chuckled looking up to see you standing over at the sofa in the bedroom getting ready for bed. You were dressed in one of his old football shirts from high school and a pair of shorts. Namjoon's mouth nearly fell open, he'd seen you in his clothes before but this was something different.
"I meant because I'm on the sofa, I can't sleep without something covering me," You laughed awkwardly when you felt how much he was beginning to stare at you, you shifted your weight from one foot to the other. 
"Why are you on the sofa? We have a huge bed right here," He laughed pointing at the large California King Bed that was in the room but you never would have thought that he would be okay with sharing with you. 
"You want to share a bed? You? Mr Kim Namjoon who hates being cuddled?" You laughed as you slowly made your way over to the bed, pulling back the covers a little. 
"Don't worry, it's not as if I'm going to cuddle you in the night." It wasn't something that worried you though, it was a thought that excited you.
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The next morning Namjoon bought breakfast up to you on the balcony, telling you that he and the boys were going to go for a hike. 
"Sure, sounds good...Get some good photos," You told him as you bit into the apple he'd bought up to you, he smiled just watching you. That morning he'd woken up before you to find himself wrapped around you, one arm draped over your waist while your legs tangled together under the thin sheet you had both chosen to sleep in. 
"I will, what are you planning on doing today?" The plan was to sit in the bedroom and avoid Kyong as much as possible but you knew it wasn't going to happen, 
"I'll sit by the pool and read...Maybe go for a swim or bike into town." There was a small village just down the road, it was almost a two-hour walk but maybe an hour on the bike if you were lucky. 
"Sounds like a good idea, maybe I can ride with you later. We can get some snacks to bring back," Agreeing with him you couldn't wait for the day to pass just so you could spend some quality time with him but right now you were looking forward to curling up beside the pool. 
"Have a nice time," You whispered to Namjoon as you stood by the back gate of the house, all of the boys were getting ready to leave on their hike, the girls staying behind. 
"Wait!" You turned around to see Kyong rushing over in hiking boots, a coat and some short shorts that were going to do nothing to protect her from the bugs and nettles that could get her out there.
"You're going too?" You questioned as you looked from her to Namjoon, it was clear he had no idea it was going to happen. 
"Yeah. Me and my boys going for a long hike. It'll give me and Joonie a chance to chat." Hearing your nickname for Namjoon roll out of her mouth made your blood boil and you wanted nothing more than to trip her up but Namjoon looked at you and you instantly felt calmer. 
"Baby please come with me, it won't be the same without you." Frowning you stared at him wondering what he was doing when he pulled you close to him by your waist, leaning his face down so close to yours that you could feel his breath on your skin. 
"Fine, let me change..." You looked at him going to leave when Kyong scoffed at the pair of you, 
"Not even a kiss goodbye?" It was obvious that she didn't believe you and Namjoon were truly dating and you knew Namjoon wanted her to believe it so you grabbed him back the back of the neck and kissed him. The moment your lips touched it felt as though your legs had turned to jelly and you were about to fall but Namjoon held you steady, holding you by the waist as he pulled you closer to him enjoying the kiss between you. For that moment no one else was around you, it was just the two of you as you finally kissed for the first time, your heart hammering against your chest as if it was trying to escape. 
"I'll go and change," You whispered as you pulled away, your voice was hoarse as you stared at him biting down on your lip as you hoped that would happen again. 
"I'll wait here," His voice was almost as hoarse as yours as he watched you run back into the house, his eyes never leaving your body until you disappeared. 
"Well, that was a nice performance," Kyong mumbled but Namjoon didn't hear her, he just waited for you to return. 
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The week was almost over and you were enjoying your time there more than you originally thought you were going to. You and Namjoon spent a lot of time with everyone else which meant pretending to be a couple most of the time, holding onto one another, kissing him whenever you had the chance. It started to feel as though you were pretending anymore and that this was really happening, even if you knew deep down inside that there was nothing to this. That it would all be over as soon as you got back to your dorms but for now you were going to soak up as much of his attention as you could get for yourself. 
"I don't like being blindfolded Joonie, it makes you think you're up to something," You whined as he continued to walk you through a bumpy area, you could hear gushing water and footsteps but that was all. He let out a deep laugh that seemed to echo around wherever you were and you whined again, 
"Relax, here-" He began to untie the make-shift blindfold and you let your eyes adjust for a second to see that you were somewhere you'd never seen before. It was a cavern that had a pool of water inside, flowers spreading over the walls of the cave, the walls and ceiling seemed to have silver reflecting on them because of the water. 
"Hot springs," He said with a smile, bending down to touch the water as it began bubbling, your mouth almost dropped open at the sight. 
"I didn't bring a bathing suit, you didn't tell me what we were doing," You laughed softly as you looked at him and then to the pool behind him, it looked as though it was going to be relaxing. 
"Is it deep?" He shook his head in answer to your question, 
"Probably reach your shoulders, there are some rocks just under the water we can sit on and relax." He promised as he began to unbutton the white shirt he was wearing, you gasped and turned away not wanting to make him uncomfortable. 
"I didn't bring a bathing suit. I'll wear my underwear, it's just the same," He said as he looked at you, hoping that you would do the same but not once saying what he wanted out loud. 
The two of you sat there side by side in the water just enjoying the peace and quiet, Kyong had done nothing but follow the two of you around all week long leading you to "pretend" you were both together for as long as possible.
"This week has been one of the most amazing times of my life," You told him as you rolled your head over to look at him, your gaze meeting his as he smiled at you. You didn't know if it was the low lighting or just because our feelings for him were resurfacing but his eyes seemed to sparkle, as though they had a golden hint to them.
"Even with all this pretending, that's been going on?" He questioned as he looked at you, biting down on his lip as you shrugged, 
"There's been one thing that's bugging me all week." He sat up straight making you do the same as you watched him, tilting your head to the side as you waited for him to elaborate on what he meant.
"I don't want to pretend...I want to be yours and I want you to be mine." Closing the distance between your mouths, you kissed him. At that moment it was clear that everything you had been feeling that week, the sparks, the butterflies, was all real. Everything you felt for him he felt the same for you and it excited you. He placed his hands on your waist lifting you up and placing him on his lap under the water as you continued to make out in the hot springs. 
His teeth biting down softly on your bottom lip as he asked for entrance, which you gladly granted him, letting your hands wander into his hair as you tugged him closer to you. 
"We're not pretending?" He questioned as you pulled away to catch your breath, you shook your head desperately, 
"Never again," You whispered before reconnecting our lips with his, going back to your steamy make-out session in the water.
Namjoon left soft kisses on your shoulder as the two of you laid naked in the bed, looking out at the night sky as you cuddled with one another. The two of you had made it back late after your make out in the hot springs and continued your session in the bedroom where it lead to more. 
"I'll go get us a snack," He chuckled as he heard your stomach growling, even if it was almost 3 am you were hungry from the activities you had both done together. 
"Thanks," You kissed him softly as he changed into a pair of shorts and a white shirt, disappearing out of the door and leaving you alone with your thoughts.
Letting out a small excited squeal you laid back against the pillows and smiled to yourself, you never thought this day would come and now it had, you couldn't contain yourself. Everything you had ever wanted was becoming a reality.
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Time passed and Namjoon still wasn't back with your snack, you figured he was going to cook something so you laid there for a second, trying to rest a little before he came back not expecting to fall asleep within seconds of closing your eyes.
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Waking up alone the next day you frowned to yourself, he was supposed to be beside you,
"Joonie?" You called out as you changed into some leggings and a baggy shirt thinking maybe he had gone for an early walk or something. You headed down to the kitchen shocked to see Kyong nursing a hangover but that wasn't the part that shocked you. The part that shocked you was that she was dressed in nothing but Namjoon's shirt, the one he had put on the night before to go and make a snack for you. 
"I made this, drink it." Namjoon's voice called out to Kyong as she smirked at you, turning her head to look over at him and that was when you saw the deep purple bite marks up and down her neck. At that moment it felt as though your whole world was falling apart as you put it all together, dressed in his shirt, he was looking after her and she was covered in marks.
"I-I can't believe it," The glass Namjoon was holding slipped from his hand and smashed against the floor, the green liquid splashing all over the white floors and cabinets while Kyong smirked. 
"Y/n, it isn't what it looks like." You scoffed at him, rushing back up the stairs towards the bedroom as you began throwing clothes into your bag, trying to get some money together as he begged you not to overthink it. 
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"It's not what it looks like," He pleaded as he stood in the way of the door so you couldn't leave the bedroom, 
"Was she dressed in your shirt?" You questioned as you stared at him, his eyes widened with panic,
"Yes, but-"
"Was she covered in hickies?" You asked him again, cutting him off. All you needed were the answers you knew exactly what had happened. He fell back into her arms the way he always did, crawling back to her every time.
"Yeah, but that-"
"You didn't come back last night, were you or were you not with her?" His face fell and he didn't answer, tears rushed to your eyes as you pushed past him heading down the stairs and in the direction of the front door. 
"You can't just leave, we're miles away from home." He called out as he chased after you, Kyong holding onto his arm as she whined at him not to yell anymore. 
"That's my problem to deal with," You mumbled as you threw your bag over your shoulder and took one of the bikes, heading to town was the best plan for now. Once you were there you could figure out where to go by Kyong groaned at you, 
"They're for people staying on this holiday." Locking eyes with her you threw the bike onto the ground before heading down the long driveway, ready to start your long walk back into the town. 
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"Y/n!!" Namjoon yelled as he chased you down the road, grabbing you by the hand as he made you look at him.
"You have to let me explain, I know how it looks." At this point your tears were already rushing down your face as you looked up at him, you thought that he would be the one person you could trust in the world. He knew how much it hurt to be cheated on and yet he still did it to you, was it even cheating? Were you nothing more than a fling for him? 
"What was it? I was just there until she decided she was jealous enough to take you back? Or were you both in on a joke about it, she knew I had a crush on you and thought she could get kicks out of it?" He didn't blame you for being angry but he held your arm as he tried to make sure you listened to him.
"You thought, I can't screw my ex so why not fuck my best friend over instead?" Namjoon's eyes watered as he stared down at you waiting for you to finish,
"How could you ever think I would hurt you like that?"
"Because you did-"
"No. I didn't. I went down to get you food last night and I found her, drunk and on the floor covered in her own vomit." You pulled a disgusted face as he explained what had happened, leading you over to a rock as he sat you down beside him. 
"She was covered in her own vomit, along with bite marks, hickies. She said she'd been into town for drinks and got a taxi back. I changed her into my shirt and took her to bed but she wouldn't go to sleep without me there," You looked at him, feeling bad for accusing him of doing the one thing you knew he hated her for doing to him. 
“I sat beside the bed the whole night, I didn’t get into bed with her, I just wanted to make sure she was okay.” He sighed and you realized how much you must have overreacted.
"Joonie..." You breathed out as you felt bad for everything, 
"I know what it looked like but I would never do that to you. I'm in love with you, always have been and always will be but I loved her too...She may have hurt me but she's still a person and someone I once cared for so I wanted to make sure she was okay," That you could understand, you knew how deeply Namjoon cared for everyone he met so you weren't going to hold that against him.
"Now, please...Come back so we can drive home together..." 
"Together?" You questioned as he locked your hands together, linking your fingers with his, 
"As a couple?" He questioned looking at you, making you smile brightly as you nodded your head. 
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Tagline: @lyoongx  @mitzwinchester @rjsmochii @taestannie @sw33tnight @innersooya @sweeneyblue1 @jin-from-the-block @acciocriativity​ @mwitsmejk​ @anxiousbobatea​ @justbangtanthingz​
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beatleszeppelin · 3 years ago
Text
You're A... Inexperienced Chapter 2
Summary: On watch one night you find out some thing that Daryl has never done. And you offer him some experience.
Category: Friends to Lovers, Eventual Mild Smut, just a good ol’ time
Paring: Daryl x reader (second person)
Warnings/Includes: General Walking Dead grossness, Smut (but not in this chapter), swearing, use of weapons, non-graphic hunting, mention of past child abuse, (let me know if you see anything else)
Word count: 3k
Chapter 1 Masterlist
Chapter 2 Naked in a Lake
The next few days were fairly uneventful. Seeing Daryl only in passing. He stayed outside when you were in; you stayed outside when he stayed in.
Not even shifts brought you together. Since the fall of Woodbury, there have been plenty of new people taking shifts to give you all a break.
Most of your time was spent helping with the kids in the library when Carol was too busy doing important things to “babysit”. Or you occasionally helped out at the farm on the south side of the prison. Rick and Hershel had started it over the past few months, and already it had yielded some fine meals.
Those meals were also made courtesy of Daryl, who went out into the woods on the daily, not going far, but far enough to be out all day and come back with a belt full of squirrels and rabbits by night. You had no idea how he did it or how far he went, but he seemed to be used to the days of solitude, in nature alone.
That was all until he planned to go out a bit farther, only for a couple days, but that was more that he had been gone in a while, more than anyone had been alone for a while. When he shared these plans, you decided that you would go out hunting with him, you know, because there is safety in numbers, (and you were dying to see what he spent so much time doing everyday).
So when morning came, and it was time to leave you brought your bag and followed him to the gate. He squinted at you being blinded by the morning light that rose over the prison. “I’m coming with you, is that alright?” You asked him knowing that he couldn’t argue. You awaited his response, but it never came, instead he had the gate opened and held his arm out like a gentleman letting you lead.
You guys walked past the spikes that guarded the outside of the gates, just as the queens guards once did outside of Buckingham palace. Kicking rocks and dust clouds along the path, walking went fairly slow. Not much to say, not much to do this early in the morning. You hadn’t even waited for Carl and Carol’s shift, which normally signified morning, to start before you had left. (You were sure he had said good-bye to them, Rick, and Judith the night before though. He was good like that.)
When the sun, which was barely peering over the land when you left, had risen enough to give you a long shadow, stretched out in front of you; you decided it was time to eat. Taking the backpack off your shoulders, and unzipping it when it was in front of you, you pulled out a small loaf of bread. You broke it in half and handed some to Daryl. He gnashed into it like a rabid dog, grunting a thank you in between bites.
You nibbled off bites as you walked, trying to savor it as something to do. The scenery of trees and a dirt path was getting old. You couldn’t understand how someone could go out along this path all day every day.
It was hot, too. Hot and sweaty. By mid-day you felt as though you were dragging, lifting your legs in a pedantic manner. Daryl’s hair was stuck to his forehead, and he had stripped his poncho, just left in a cut off flannel. He seemed to be perfectly fine in the heat though, barely even touching his water.
You wonder if he stayed outside a lot before as well. There’s something about him that makes it so hard to imagine him in his house, in a domestic setting. Did he do the dishes, and make himself food? Was his room clean, did he make his bed every morning before work? Did he have a job? What did he do? But you know that wondering these things will only pass the time, because there is no way he’d ever casually mention his previous life.
People had tried guessing, to no avail. Beth’s new boyfriend, Zach, was the leader of the guessers, being followed by the children, and you’ve even discussed it with both Michonne and Carol before. It would really take something special to make him confess his stories to someone, who knows who could get that close to him though.
You spent the majority of your walk picturing him in an office setting, wearing a tie and answering phones. Or at a gas station glaring at little kids who try to stuff candy bars up their sleeves, scaring them into obeying the law.
Mechanic seemed to fit best. Not a sleazy mechanic that finds more things to break to get
some extra cash, but one that spends day and night tracking down an original piece to some old beat up motorcycle. He wouldn’t charge extra for labor, cause he’d be doing the thing he loved most. He would treat each bike as his own, tirelessly making it perfect until the finishing pieces were in their exact place, like the sprinkles on a sundae.
“Gonna cut into the woods, right here.” He nodded, directing you.
“Oh yeah, sorry,” you said, snapping out of your little daydream. “Ya’ okay?” He ducked down, meeting your eyes though his hair.
“Yeah, I’s just thinking.”
“‘Kay, just watch out in here. Can’t make too much sound.”
You walked through the dense forest, making as little noise as you possibly could. Heel, toe; heel, toe. Only cracking branches and crunching leaves every few steps, listening to Daryl’s deep steadying breaths in between.
He taught you how to lay traps, and snares; different knots and when to use them. By the end of the day you could set your own, with the reassurance that he would help kill whatever you caught. No matter how many walkers you would kill, and how much bad shit you’ve seen. It still felt weird killing animals to eat.
The trapping, and mapping out your paths came to an end as night fell. The darkness made it too difficult to achieve the superb knots you were tying, and the sub par snares that Daryl would set, so you two decided to call it a night, sleeping in shifts back to back.
The next day went the same, but it was now time for the actual hunting. You left the killing to Daryl, using your lack of a silent long range weapon, like the crossbow as an excuse. You guys sat up wind, and out of the line of sight of any animals that may pass. It was quiet, and you understood why he liked it.
Hunting wasn’t all killing like you had imagined; hunting was 99% sitting quietly in nature, 1% killing.
You can’t lie about the fact that when a deer came into sight, you closed your eyes and didn’t open them until you heard the click of the trigger on the crossbow. You didn’t want to see the animal die, but you can’t feel bad about how many people that deer could feed.
Daryl took care of the dirty work, cleaning, and “prepping” the deer to be taken home. You sat by and watched.
Once the task was complete, you started back for the prison, hoping it would cut some of the time of the walk back tomorrow. This time was cut short by the approaching darkness of night.
You two set up a small camp to spend the ever closer night. And with cans on strings, as tripwire, and your backs to each other, you two felt it was safe enough to get some rest, that was until the cans rattled.
The sounds of metal clanking, shook you from your not so deep sleep. You whipped around to see a walker reaching over your barricade of tangled fishing wire and old soda cans. It stumbled over and grabbed Daryl's boot, luckily he tied up his pant legs with cords to keep from being scratched. You scrambled over to a half awake Daryl and pulled his knife from his pocket, stabbing it into the undead's brain. He nodded graciously as you handed his knife back. You both sat still in the early hours of the morning, breathing heavily until your adrenaline died down.
Your eyes stung from lack of sleep, but it was nothing compared to how Daryl looked. His eyes were puffy, and had dark purple craters around them, and what little you could see of his eyes were bloodshot. His hair stuck up in every which direction, the bangs that normally cover his face, were defying gravity, and exposed his forehead.
“You can sleep, but let's face each other this time,” you planned.
“You sure?” he said groggily.
“Yeah, if you saw yourself, you’d be sure too.”
He scoffed, and pulled his vest out as an acting pillow, tucking one arm under it, and laying his head down. He fell asleep shortly, and you watched.
The expression he made was soft, and innocent, less like a child and more like a puppy that tired out running in a field all day. He subconsciously held his thumb to his mouth. He breathed heavily through his mouth, with quiet snores escaping occasionally.
You didn’t sleep at all that night, you couldn’t let anything disturb the peace. You weren’t tired, though, you actually felt like you had gotten a full night’s rest.
The two of you started home at the crack of dawn, with dull yellow light illuminating the grass you stood on. You took to the woods for your trek home, rather than the long road you took to get there.
Halfway through the day you happened upon a lake that looked beautiful, a direct juxtaposition to everything you had been used to seeing. The water sparkled, and light refracted off the ripples in every which direction. Birds made chirping sounds that echoed through the dense forest, and made a song through the trees.
Daryl grabbed a plastic bottle, and some of the sandy silt that covered the edge of the water, making a makeshift water filter. As he did so, you took off your shorts and threw them aside, wading into the water. The water was greenish, but you could see your feet, and the dust clouding around your steps. The water was warm enough to not give you the chills, but cool enough to be refreshing.
Once the water hit your hips, you took your shirt off and threw it a few feet away from Daryl, joining your shorts, and shortly after your bra. You watched him finish his contraption and fill it.
“Should have some water in an hour or so…” he looked up and saw you, then quickly looked back at his bottle.
“Maybe we could catch a fish or something, too,” you said, smiling at his back. “You should join me in here.”
“Nah” he shook his head.
“Yeah, when was the last time you got cleaned up?”
“I ain’t gonna, someone needs to be a lookout.” He looked up at you, standing his ground. “Anyway, I gotta piss.”
He started walking away and you yelled to him, “Yeah, sure you do, Dixon.” You splashed his way, but he had already walked behind the trees.
A noise came from your left, behind a couple of thick trees. Two walkers stumbled out, slipping on the sandy hill. You didn’t have any weapons on you, and getting back over to your clothes seemed like a death wish. They were closer to the clothes and things than you were. Daryl didn’t even have his crossbow with him, it was in the pile next to the water filter.
You yelled for Daryl, hoping he’d get back before the walkers could reach you. You yelled again, and it drew their attention. They were about at the edge of the water now, and you were fucked… but a whistle came out of the woods.
Daryl showed up and whistled loudly to catch the attention of the dead walking toward you. It worked. They started toward him at a slow pace, and you ran over to the pile of stuff. You picked one off with the crossbow. Daryl tripped backwards on a rock, and the walker stumbled towards him, wishing to bite into the leg that was trying to kick it backwards. He grabbed the rock, lifted it over his head, and smashed it down onto the walker, and hitting it again smashed his head open, covering Daryl in it’s blood. He leaned back and dropped the rock. He took a second to catch his breath.
“Hey, thanks” You said to him as you were naked and dripping like a wet dog.
He sighed and raised his eyebrows. Which you will take as a “no problem.”
Daryl’s hair dripped with blood, guts, and rotting chunks of flesh. His shirt was wet, red, and sweaty. The muddy sand covered his pants and hands, leaving him dirtier than before.
“I guess you have to join me now” you said, still mostly naked.
He begrudgingly kicked off his boots, and slid his vest off down his shoulders, letting it drop on the floor. He started walking to the edge of the water, when you had to stop him.
“What, NO!” You said haulting him, “You are not still wearing your socks.”
He took off his socks, and his pants. He walked into the lake, a couple feet in and the water hit the bottom of his shirt.
You never took Daryl as the type of person to not be okay with taking his shirt off, but here he was: standing in a lake with his shirt on, contemplating whether he should take it off or not. He stood there for a couple seconds before looking at you, and when you gave him a reassuring smile, he took it off. He looked good with it off, you didn’t see a problem, until he turned around.
He whipped around fast to throw his shirt on land, and as he did, you saw his back. He was covered in scars. Yeah, some could be new, from fighting, from surviving, but you take it he’d been surviving for a lot longer than the rest of you had.
The slashes that riddled his skin were old. He could have gotten most of them when he was still a kid. You swallowed hard, he turned and faced you but neither of you met each other's eyes. He got quiet. And as his hand pensively rubbed the back of his neck, as he thought about what you must think of him.
“Hey, come on in the water’s fine,” you said to ease the tension.
It seemingly worked, because the next thing he did was dive under, swimming to you in a second. The water rippled along the path he had swam, and broke around his emerging body. You met his eye. He nodded to you as a thanks, and you shook your head back at him in a no problem kind of way. This practice had become routine, it was easier than constantly owing thanks to the other person for some trivial task such as saving their lives.
He broke eye contact and looked down, “Still gotta piss.”
You snickered. Then stepping back a couple of feet you gestured for him to go right ahead.
He looked at you, head cocked a little, and then the realization hit and his ears turned bright red. He turned around, and you got a better look at his scars. Some were short slashes, some longer, and others crossed over each other. You couldn’t fathom the person that would hit a child, let alone Daryl; Daryl was sweet, and could never have done something that deserved this treatment.
He finished up and faced you, but didn’t meet your eyes. You got a look at him, the man that just pissed in the pool in front of you, his ears were red as well as his cheeks making a bridge across his nose. The blush trailed down to his upper chest in splotches, like watercolors splaying out.
He chewed the corner of his thumb and said, “Ya’ know, I used to piss the bed as a kid.”
“I mean we all did,” You said. “Come here.”
He complied, “Nah, I mean ‘til I’s like 8 or so.”
“Bend over,” you told him.
He leaned back and you started washing his hair for him, detangling it with your fingers, and picking things out of it like you were monkeys.
“I remember a couple times it happened, had to sneak out late at night and do my laundry in the bathroom, so no one’d hear me. But this once, my dad wasn’t home so, I didn’t get… but my mom had this whole ‘nother way of doing it. She took my clothes. Pinned me down, Merle helped. She put a diaper on me, made me sleep outside.”
“When you were 8?” You cupped some water and dumped it over his head.
“Uh huh, made me wear ‘em to school, too. Under my clothes. Said if I took ‘em off she’s gonna tell my dad, so I didn’t.” He went back to biting his thumb.
“That shouldn’t have happened to you,” you said, moving to wash his shoulders.
He shrugged, and flinched away when you ran your finger over a scar on his back.
“You know, stress and trauma cause children to start wetting the bed later on in childhood, it's called enuresis, it wasn’t your fault,” You splashed water on his shoulders, noticing the freckles made by the sun.
“Done?” He asked, standing up straight.
“What?”
“Am I done?” he asked and shook his hair out like a dog.
“Yeah, you’re good.”
Daryl quickly made his return to land, you however stayed in the water until the filter was done giving you each a bottle. Every once in a while you catch him glance over at you floating naked in the lake, but his eyes would quickly divert.
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gwynrielendgame · 4 years ago
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Gwynriel one shot
I wrote another fanfic before this one. Each can be stand alones, but I wrote this one awhile ago with the intent that this specific scene happens before the mate bond snaps into place for them. I like the idea of the necklace causing major drama, but I also think Gwyn is a levelheaded person which is where the inspiration for this scene came from. Enjoy!
Nesta had insisted on a dinner party for Gwyn's birthday. Gwyn hadn't wanted a celebration. This day had been one shared with her sister. The sister she had failed. She no longer found this day worth celebrating. She was not worthy of this day. Not without her sister by her side. She found she couldn't deny Nesta though. Not when her and Emerie bounced off chattering excitedly about the night they would plan for her. Even the house flickered with excitement.
Gwyn stared at her reflection. It was so different than what she was used to. She borrowed one of Nesta's more modest dresses for the occasion. It was still much tighter than her priestess robes and showed much more of her collar bone than her fighting leathers had. She left her hair down, mostly to cover the parts of her shoulders that the dress didn't. The final adornment to her ensemble for the night was the dainty necklace given by an anonymous friend.
Gwyn smiled at the memory of Clotho handing her the necklace. Gwyn hadn't realized why the piece of jewelry was important to her. Just that it was. The evening would be fine she reassured herself. She would not allow her thoughts to stray to Catrin. Catrin was gone and she had to accept that. Gwyn stifled a laugh at the memory of previous birthdays. Catrin was a notoriously bad gift giver and even though she knew Gwyn better than anyone, her gifts were never sentimental. One year she got Gwyn a book of songs which would have been wonderful if Gwyn did not already have that exact same book. A book that she had shown Catrin out of sheer excitement when she originally got it.
Gwyn found herself walking up the stairs to the house of wind. She stopped right outside the dining room. She just needed one moment to compose herself. A shadow whipped out as if to alert her of Azriel's presence. She smiled at the shadow before turning to the Shadowsinger. His face was unreadable per usual, but he was staring at her with a new sort of intensity.
"I just needed a moment before the chaos ensues." Gwyn felt the need to explain why she was staring at the door to the dining room. Azriel nodded his head in understanding. He knew better than anyone how overwhelming his family could be.
"Happy birthday Gywneth." He gave his normal smile as he said the words. It was the only smile he gave out. Could barely call it a smile considering it was the smallest upturn of the corner of his mouth. It was enough to ease the anxiety blooming in Gwyn's chest.
"Thank you." She planted a large smile on her face and opened the door to the dining room. She was immediately bombarded by her two best friends.
"I knew that dress would look amazing on you." Nesta smirked. Gwyn had outwardly refused the dress at first. Claiming it would not look half as good on Gwyn as it did on the more petite Archeron sister.
"You look beautiful Gwyn!" Emerie gushed. She looked as though she was going to cry and Gwyn couldn't help but poke fun at her.
"Are you going to cry, mother?" Gwyn's light jesting was returned with an elbow to the ribs.
"We are going to warn you now though, you can't open your gift until tonight. We are all sleeping in the library. I already have it set up for the three of us." Nesta was giving Gwyn the warm smile that always made her feel accepted. She had found a sister in Nesta. Their relationship was different than that of the one with her twin yet it made Gwyn's chest squeeze happily. Her relationship with Emerie was much the same. She knew tonight would be draining and wanted nothing else but to go to her room alone after this dinner. She never could deny Nesta and Emerie especially when they teamed up like this.
"Sounds fun!" She emphasized the words, trying to make herself sound excited.
"Happy birthday Gwyn!" Cassian shouted from where he stood across the room. He lifted his drink to her. Suddenly a wine glass appeared in her hand. She whispered her thanks to the house.
"Gwyn you look lovely!" Feyre walked over to give Gwyn a hug which was ultimately awkward since Nyx was resting on her hip and he just wanted to pull Gwyn's hair. Rhysand appeared next to Feyre. He also lifted his glass to Gwyn.
"Nesta demanded extravagance for you and I couldn't exactly say no. Only the good alcohol for tonight." He sent the priestess a wink. Once again the thought of her sister crowded her mind. Those thoughts were always ready to remind her of what she deserved. Good wine was not one of them.
"Thank you everyone. It means a lot." Gwyn made sure to make eye contact with everyone. She truly was grateful for the effort and she wanted them to know that.
"Well, let's eat." Amren drawled.
Rhysand wasn't joking when he said Nesta demanded extravagance. Her and Emerie had created such a feast that Gwyn couldn't control the shock etched on her face. The item that caught her eye was the fish. Parmesan crusted flounder. It was a rarity growing up the way that they did. Gwyn couldn't stop the giggle that escaped her.
"This was my sister's favorite! When we were younger they served this on special occasions and Catrin would pick it up whole and would pretend the fish could talk." The table had gone quiet. Probably recognizing that any discussion of her sister was taboo. That didn't seem to stop Elain from inquiring. Though Gwyn questioned how much anyone told her. From their few interactions, Gwyn gathered that there wasn't much information the girl was included on.
"Where is she? Your sister?" Elain was genuine. She wasn't trying to be malicious. No one had clued her in and Gwyn couldn't fault her for that. Nesta seemed to think otherwise though. The death glare she sent Elain would have had Amren feeling nervous. The room was quiet enough to hear a pin drop.
"She, uh, died." Gwyn didn't like saying the words aloud. They made her feel her lack of control too completely. Elain bit her lip. She was about to respond when Gwyn's necklace seemed to grab her attention. The tension was so thick Gwyn thought she might be suffocated if she didn't try to relieve it.
"What was she like?" It was Feyre who finally spoke up. Gwyn didn't want to talk about Catrin. Not to people who openly judged Nesta for her perceived failings. She looked over to her two friends. Nesta was concerned, but Emerie was giving her such a soft, supportive look that Gwyn responded. She figured at the very least Nesta would never allow anyone to openly judge her.
"She was adventurous and ridiculously beautiful. We were opposites in almost all aspects. We couldn't go a day without fighting. But she was my person. We never really belonged any where, being part nymph, part high fae, we were shunned everywhere. But we always fit in with each other. We always belonged with each other." Gwyn closed her eyes. She was imagining Catrin's face, her smile. Catrin had always been the fun sister. Life was never dull with her. Gwyn was extremely aware that everyone was staring at her. She wished it would stop.
"The mini Pegasus would have loved her." Emerie said. Only the three best friends understood, but it made Gwyn laugh all the same.
"You still would have been the favorite though." Nesta sighed. She had tried to win the Pegasus over, but there was no swaying it from Gwyn's side. Luckily the conversation changed after that. Gwyn, Emerie, and Nesta were in a heated debate about which romance author was the best when Mor set a present in front of Gwyn.
"You didn't need to get me anything." A blush of embarrassment rose to Gwyn's cheek. The beautiful female was notoriously bad at gift giving which only made Gwyn more excited to open the gift. If only to pretend it was Catrin giving her the present.
"I promise you, you'll wish that to be the case once you see what's inside." Cassian smirked as Mor rolled her eyes. Indeed, the gift was unnecessary. Gwyn stared for awhile with pursed lips, perplexed, before responding.
"What is it?" Cassian, Rhysand, and Azriel howled in laughter while the rest of the table looked amused.
"It's enchanted shampoo. The smell never fades!" Mor looked so excited despite the amusement from the rest of the table. It reminded Gwyn so much of Catrin that it wasn't hard to find a genuine response.
"Thank you Mor. I love it." She sent her a small smile in hopes of appropriately expressing her gratitude for the present. Azriel placed something in front of Gwyn next. She looked at the Shadowsinger with surprise. She hadn't expected a gift from anyone, let alone the most closed off of the Illyrian males. She began to unwrap it when Elain spoke again.
"I hope it isn't another regift, Az. That would just be unoriginal." The words were spoken as a joke, but the intense stare the two shared had Gwyn pausing her opening. Most of the table sent the pair a questioning look. It wasn't until Elain glanced at Gwyn's necklace again did she understand what Elain had said.
The necklace around Gwyn's neck was meant for Elain, but for one reason or another Azriel had given it to Gwyn. Perhaps he actually intended the necklace to be given to Clotho who regifted it yet again to Gwyn. She didn't really mind one way or the other. She decided it didn't make much difference. Until this moment she hadn't even realized the necklace was from Azriel. She allowed herself to wish for only a moment that the Shadowsinger gave the necklace to her himself without it being meant for Elain originally. Now she would admit that the silent conversation between the two of them unnerved her in the slightest. Gwyn allowed a smile to curve on her lips.
"I hope it isn't a ribbon either. I would find that unoriginal as well." The joke did as Gwyn anticipated. Azriel chuckled along with Nesta, Cassian, and Emerie. Azriel hadn't thought of the potential backlash when he regifted the necklace to Gwyn. He had been holding his shadows back all evening. He didn't want his family to know the lack of control he had on them in Gwyn's presence. The second the joke left Gwyn's lips, his shadows danced toward her. He couldn't help but feel relieved that she wasn't upset. He quickly gained control of his shadows again and nudged Gwyn to continue opening the present.
It was a dagger. Gwyn smiled softly at it. To the rest of the group, it would appear to be a simple gift. It meant much more to Gwyn though than any necklace ever could. Azriel had spent many lessons going over daggers with her. They spent hours talking about different metals and styles and weight distribution. The dagger in her hand was perfect, exactly what Gwyn had discussed would be her preference in a dagger. She analyzed every inch of the dagger before coming across the engraving. She laughed a heartfelt laugh upon reading it.
"I know it's not a sword, but I couldn't think of any other name that best represent you." Azriel was giving Gwyn a true smile. She realized that was the true gift of the night. Seeing how beautiful his face looked when a full blown smile graced it.
Nesta threw her head back in a cackle while Emerie and Cassian groaned at the carving.
"What is its name?" Rhysand quirked one eyebrow while looking at Azriel. What could he have possibly named the dagger to elicit this type of response.
"Silver majesty." Gwyn stood from her chair and swung her arms around Azriel in a hug. It was an awkward hug considering he was still sitting down, but it had her heart beating faster and not all together unpleasantly. Azriel too found that the hug shot a thrill into his shadows. It had them curving around her in a hug as well.
"That is the most ridiculous name I've ever heard." Amren muttered as she gulped down her wine. Gwyn didn't care. She thought it was perfect. She realized in that moment, the dull ache left behind by the death of her sister lulled while the shadows danced around her.
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maxwell-grant · 3 years ago
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Any thoughts on Darkman, the Liam Neeson movie? I heard it was originally going to be a Shadow movie.
I love Darkman very much, but I've realized recently that this love comes with some pretty bittersweet feelings at the story behind it.
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Michael Uslan: I was going to produce a Shadow feature film with Sam Raimi, but Sam got consumed by back-to-back movies and we ran out of time. We were headed in a good, period piece direction and managed to do so without relying on yet another bout with Shiwan Khan. I later had another major director passionate to do The Shadow, but a person at the company wanted to do a modern day TV series instead, which ultimately did not go... - comment saved from a post in The Shadow Knows Facebook group
For those of you who only now got into The Shadow or don't remember, for much of the early 00s, when The Shadow basically had no current projects and Conde Nast was taking down webpages and fan content left and right, the only things that kept this "fandom" alive were occasional fanfics (many of which are gone now), and the dim light in the horizon that was the rumors that Sam Raimi was finally going to make his Shadow film. Dig back on The Wayback Machine for Shadow web page and you're gonna see this as consistently the only thing they had to look forward to in regards to the character. These rumors floated around for over a decade, at one point Tarantino was even supposed to direct it, but he confirmed in 2013 that it wasn't going to happen. At least, not with him at the helm.
The project has been dead for a while now, and Conde Nast seems to be shuffling around plans for the character, and I deleted my Facebook months ago so I haven't kept up with any news, although it seems the James Patterson novel wasn't received too well, so I'm not sure what other plans they have in the pipeline.
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Back in the 1970s, after the release of Richard Donner's Superman and in line with The Shadow's pop culture resurgence, thanks to the paperback reprints and the 70s DC run, there were plans to make a Shadow feature film, and there were quite a handful of scripts being tossed around for the following years (Will Murray states most of them were horrible), several names attached to the project at one point or another. The plans died down a bit following Gibson's death and only really picked up again after the 90s, and of course we all know that the 1994 movie came out with spectacularly bad timing. From what I recall, it seems Sam Raimi wanted to make his Shadow film in the 80s, was unable to secure the rights, and then just made his own version, which would go on to be his first major motion picture.
Even after making Darkman, Sam Raimi still wanted to make The Shadow. I guess that's ultimately the bittersweet part for me. I imagine the current state of Shadow media would be significantly better if Sam Raimi, who was a fan of the character and the pulp version (and even knows of The Shadow's connection to Houdini and stage magic), got to make his Shadow film, years before Blood & Judgment, years before Burton's Batman made it impossible for a Shadow film not to be compared to it, in a time period where it wouldn't have had to compete with The Lion King and The Mask for box office. And second, I have been drawing up my plans for Shadow projects for, what, 5 years now? And I have just barely got my foot off the door as a filmmaker. Sam Raimi had a decade-long career as a cult filmmaker before he got turned down, and decades later, after becoming a household name in charge of Marvel's biggest icon, the project still fell through. It doesn't exactly get my hopes up, y'know.
I love Darkman, it's the best Shadow film that doesn't technically star the real Shadow, and it works pretty well on it's own regardless of that association, but I do get pretty sad looking at it from the outside, because I just can't help but think on what it could have been.
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In some aspects I do think the film benefits from not being about The Shadow proper, because it means Raimi got the freedom to do whatever the hell he wanted. The character of Darkman already existed separately from Sam Raimi's plans for a Shadow film, already carrying off the Phantom / Universal Monster influence, and what Raimi did was basically combine the two ideas together.
He took the basic iconography of The Shadow, a terrifying urban crimefighter in coat and slouch hat, and add in other Shadow traits like his mastery of disguise, his disfigurement, and that wonderful scene where he's invisibly running circles around a panicky triggerman while laughing maniacally, a moment which definitely feels like Raimi taking a second to indulge himself to do what you can call The Classic Shadow Scene with a character he's, for the most part, succesfully convinced us (and Conde Nast's lawyers, most importantly) isn't supposed to be The Shadow.
But then he filters these through his own influences and style to make him a new character, so instead of a mysterious mastermind with lots of resources and a enigmatic background, instead he's a disfigured and psychotic scientist with a vengeance against those who made him that way. He's like Night Raven, in the sense that he's built off traits that The Shadow has, but develops them differently to the point he stands on his own as a character. It's The Shadow combined with The Phantom of the Opera, filtered through a 1930s Universal Horror lens, played for greater tragedy and a dash of Evil Dead 2 wackyness.
He hides away in trashed up ruins and bickers with a cat, he has fits of rage that make him endanger innocents, he has a doomed love affair, and sometimes he gets so batshit he gives us hilarious moments like "TAKE THE FUCKING ELEPHANT" and "SEE THE DANCING FREAK! PAY - FIVE - BUCKS! TO SEE THE DANCING FREAK!". Moments that really show why he was such a good fit for Spider-Man despite the liberties he took with the source material.
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I think the big thing that helps to make Darkman works as a property in it's own right is also that, ultimately, these influences are ultimately at the forefront of it, and the core of it works on it's own. Darkman is a believable, engaging character in his own right, one who tells a story that would be more at odds with The Shadow proper. 
In some aspects, Darkman tries to be The Shadow, he is forced to become The Shadow by literally picking the clothes off a dumpster after he escapes the hospital, and it's a miserable, wretched existence, in a way rather befitting his status as a legally safe knock-off. He is a creature of nightmare who lost his face and takes on a dozen others to fight crime by turning terror against them, except he is still just a man in the end, and no man was ever supposed to live like this.
Raimi was also inspired by the Universal horror films of the 1930s and 1940s because "they made me fear the hideous nature of the hero and at the same time drew me to him. I went back to that idea of the man who is noble and turns into a monster".
He originally wrote a 30-page short story, titled "The Darkman", and then developed into a 40-page treatment. At this point, according to Raimi, "it became the story of a man who had lost his face and had to take on other faces, a man who battled criminals using this power"
A non-superpowered man who, here, is a hideous thing who fights crime. As he became that hideous thing, it became more like The Phantom of the Opera, the creature who wants the girl but who was too much of a beast to have her
I decided to explore a man's soul. In the beginning, a sympathetic, sincere man. In the middle, a vengeful man committing heinous acts against his enemies. And in the end, a man full of self-hatred for what he's become, who must drift off into the night, into a world apart from everyone he knows and all the things he loves.
For the role, Raimi was looking for someone who could suggest "a monster with the soul of a man"
It's the fact that Darkman is ultimately played for vulnerability and tragedy that really sets him apart. While I wouldn't go far enough to say The Shadow is a man with the soul of a monster, still, the difference in presentation is still there when it comes to these two. The Shadow is The Other, Darkman is You. Darkman is the victim of extraordinary circumstance that affects his life, The Shadow is the extraordinary circumstance that affects the lives of others. People react to The Shadow, Darkman reacts to people (and rather poorly).
One is the man who takes off his skin (or yours, staring back at you) to reveal the weird creature of the night ready to prowl and pounce and cackle at those who think they hold power over it's domain, and the other is the monster who falls apart bit by bit until you are left staring at the broken man within who has no choice but to be something he was never supposed to be.
The Shadow is The Master of Darkness. Darkman weaponizes the dark, but in the end, he's still just a man, lost within it. Not everyone can be The Shadow, and you would most likely turn into Darkman if you tried.
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quirklessidiot · 4 years ago
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Title: filthy rich [3/3]  Pairing: millionaire!sakusa kiyoomi x y/n [filthy capitalist au] Genre: mystery, major angst ahead, thriller, mafia!au-ish
Synopsis: Just run, Y/N. Don’t look back.
Warnings: dark and yandere themes, toxic relationships, mentions of violence, shady business, class differences, mentions of rape, smoll breeding kink, unwanted pregnancy, mentions of abortion, and sakusa being a manipulative bastard 
Notes: 
Im disappering again for a week or two so as a parting gift, here ya go, im starting a bokuto fanfic soon and posting the reboot of notice me soon too hnnng thanks for the wait guys uwu
A sorta realistic take on a yandere is harder than it looks kssjdn omg anyways here yall go the long awaited last chapter of filthy rich. I’m not sure if I should put like a one shot sequel but so far im marking this series completed. Thanks for sticking by!
previous || series masterlist || blood son [sequel;one shot]
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You run your hands through your hair and shut your eyes tight, the quietness and stillness of your shared apartment was something to bask on before you put on a fake mask of happiness. It had been exactly two months since you found out about the birth control switch and the medaide agenda. 
In the span of those two months, you had grown more observant towards your boyfriend’s actions and you knew that it wouldn’t be anytime soon until he actually notices that you were onto him. 
You let out a shaky breath as you recollected some weird things you’ve seem to have noticed, how his brows would furrow when he’d receive a call indicating that something was up and it was serious or how you visited your ex-boss one time a week or so ago along with Kenjiro since you wanted to see how he was doing.
“...Well, he just didn’t come home and sold the place. Apparently he was in a rush to move or something because of family matters so I didn’t exactly see him.” the neighbor gossiped to you two.
“Y/N?”
You jump on your spot as you hear that dreadfully familiar voice.
“Hey,” You greet, walking up to him, you decide to do your usual hug but stop when you notice a small red stain on his necktie, the tie is dark blue and although it wasn’t obvious from afar, it definitely was up close. Your brows are furrowed together, this time in pure curiosity, “Did you get hurt? It’s unlike you to get messy.”
You notice the quick shift of attitude in his eyes, you were seemingly getting good at observing his emotions these days and it looked like he panicked for a second there.
Odd.
“A friend of mine had gotten hurt a while ago, you remember Atsumu Miya?”
A vivid image of a blonde man crossed your mind, he was another conglomerate friend of your boyfriend, another person to be weary of to add to the list, “Oh, is he alright?” you asked, trying to keep it casual as you untie his tie for him as usual.
“Yes. He’s awfully clumsy. You don’t need to worry.”
“Oh…” You mumbled, “by the way, I visited my ex-chief.”
“Ex-chief?”
“Mhm.” you hummed, “You know, my boss from before? Me and a few co-workers decided to visit him since he was a really good boss. Turns out he just left without telling anyone, poor man.”
“Sounds unpleasant. Did you know why he quit?”
“No.” You shrugged as you take the tie out and place it on the side, “He suddenly just quit his job and moved, neighbors said it was also because of family matters. It’s kinda weird because as far as we knew, he didn’t have a family.”
“Would you like me to look into it?”
You almost stiffen when he slithers his arms on your waist but you didn’t want to give away any suspicion, “No. I don’t want to pry. Hopefully he’s enjoying his retirement.” You sighed, turning towards him with a tight smile, “Now what would you like for dinner? I was thinking Mediterranean? I need to lose some weight since I’ve been feeling bloated for a while.”
He leans in for a soft kiss on your temple, “Mediterranean would be fine. Would you like anything else? We could order more.” he hummed, his lips slowly started to dangerously hover on top of yours.
“No, it’s fine.” You give him a quick peck and wiggle your way out of his arms, your stomach doesn’t feel well these days. Whenever you were near Sakusa you had the urge to throw up your innards despite having an empty stomach.
You don’t notice the dangerous gaze on your behind as you pick up the phone for your take-out.
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Sakusa hasn’t felt you in a long time and it’s driving him insane, he wants to feel your heat, your body, and everything in between. He wants to fill you up and see you pregnant with his children. He wants everyone in the world to know you were his and his only.
Yet he can’t do that.
You’ve ignored his affections these past few weeks and it had been driving him insane to the point where he had to ask one of his men to put an eye on you to see if you had been cheating on him or seeing someone else.
Yet you hadn’t.
Your routine was the same old one and Sakusa is digging his nails deeply into his skin in his office one day with his tie uncharacteristically untied. Miya Atsumu sits across him, taking a sip from his flask, “Ya look like shit.” the blonde points out.
“Fuck off, Miya.”
“Heard from your cousin that you’re not getting laid by your girl these days.”
“You better be thankful that you’ve got men behind you or I’d be shooting your fucking brains out for saying that.” Sakusa spats, his dark gaze pointedly looking at the blonde across him.
“You should just find someone else then and not yer prude of a-”
“Keep telling me ideas like that and maybe I might just shoot you and chop your body up until it looks fuckin’ unrecognizable.”
Atsumu raises his hands up, signaling that he was giving up, “Gee, omi-omi. I was just giving my advise. It’s so easy to drop her.”
“I don’t want to drop what’s mine.”
“You’ve got issues.” He chuckles, “Haven’t you been switching out her pills and fucking her raw for the last couple of months? I bet yer ass you got her pregnant on that before but ya just don’t know it. Getting her pregnant would definitely secure her spot in her life. Woman’s nuthin’ without ya.”
“She’s...she’s not showing…”
“When was the last time ya two went at it?”
“Two months ago.”
“Ya poor boy.” Atsumu sighs, shaking his head, “Ya sure you don’t want to take a break from being a loyal boyfriend for one night? i bet Y/N wouldn’t notice.”
“And no one would notice if you fucking disappeared. I’ll make sure of it, now get out.”
You may not have been the sharpest tool on the shed but you know that someone’s been tailing you these past few days, you’re not stupid. You could only come to the conclusion that it was Sakusa who was doing such things but you couldn’t get why.
Something just didn’t make sense. It felt like you were missing an important piece in the puzzle, med-aide and the switch of your pills and now a hidden tail?
You furrow your brows together in deep thought  as you sat down next to a teenage boy on his phone, you decided to take the bus today to the grocery store, surprisingly the one tailing you wasn’t around today.
Your eyes slowly shift towards the boy’s phone, it seemed like he was playing a video game.
An otome game, to be exact.
You felt your lips twitch up, you remembered those games a lot growing up. The graphics seem to have massively improved now by the looks of it, “...That looks interesting.” You tell the teenage boy who turns to you in surprise.
“Oh, thanks.” the blonde replied quietly.
“Is that a new otome game?”
“Kind of.” He blinks, his gaze returning back to the screen,  “It’s sort of a remake of the yandere simulator from back then.”
You feel your shoulders tense up.
“A yandere?”
“Yeah.” The blonde nods, “The girl’s awfully creepy in the game, she stalks him, does things to get him. The player has to catch her in the act and evade her at the same time.”
“Oh…” You blink, “I-uh, this is weird… but what’s a yandere again?’
“It’s someone obsessively in love with you. They’ll do anything to have you stay by them.” He says, pushing on a button but suddenly the screen turns red and you feel shivers run down your spine as you hear him curse and the words ‘you’re caught’ appear on the screen.
“W-what happened to your character?”
“He died. Nothing much.” he mumbles, “If the Yandere knows they can’t have you, they’ll kill you.”
You immediately went pale as soon as you heard that. Maybe, just maybe you were being paranoid. He wouldn’t go to that extent, would he?
“How did your character escape the yandere in the game?” 
“Well, I haven’t finished the game yet but based on some anime’s and manga’s I've usually read. They either killed to get away or they moved so far away where they wouldn’t be seen so I think the creator might have the same ending.” The blonde said, he slowly looked to your side, “You’re looking awfully pale, ma’am. Are you alright?”
“Yeah, j-just remembered a horrible game I played back when I was your age.” You gulped in, “Nightmares, you know? The yandere tried to get my character pregnant and tried to get in her way of moving out of the country.”
“Sounds like a very realistic one.”  He mumbles, “What did your character do?”
“I wasn’t able to finish it.” you whispered, loud enough for him to only hear, “I couldn’t really find a way out.”
“The developers of the game must’ve made it hard for you. Maybe your character should’ve ran away,” he advised, “Or better yet, you should’ve killed him.”
“I-well, I don't think there were options like that.”
“Well if I were you and there was no option for killing, I’d run. Far, far away. Change my identity and all that.” he exits the game and stuffs the phone back in his pocket, you get a good look of his cat-like eyes and immediately feel a shiver on your spine with the next words he say, “I mean its a game but you wouldn’t wanna loose and get your character killed, right?”
“R-right.”
The teenage boy hops down without even saying goodbye and you have a scary realization that you can’t break it off like you originally had planned. You needed to run, run far as you can and get lost.
The words that the teenage boy says echoes in your head for the next few days, from that point on, realization dawns upon you that, nothing is certain now. You couldn’t trust anyone, you couldn’t let friends and family be involved in this. Sakusa Kiyoomi is a powerful man so you needed to be careful with how you were going to disappear.
You continue to act nonchalant and the same as you try to lay out your plan but you knew that you had only a week or so to complete this for it to successfully work.
Sakusa Kiyoomi wonders what he should do to save the relationship, he’s tried everything in the book that he could think of but you remained the same. Was this the end of the relationship? For real?
He could never stomach the idea of having you leave him.
It’s eerie that day, something felt different when he came home to an empty apartment. It looked the same yet something felt very, very different. Apparently the apartment guards said you were here since your car hadn’t left the driveway and they hadn’t seen you go out.
He checks out your side of the closet, your clothes remain there untouched and your toiletries were there too. He scans the fridge for your notes but nothing is stuck there. He suddenly feels like something cold was dumped on him.
It couldn’t be, right?
Right?
He runs to every room, checking every nook and cranny and when he finally reaches the last room which was the bathroom, nothing is there.
Everything was in its place except you.
Where were you?
Your bank account remains untouched, your wallet and phone was left in the apartment. It was as if you were returning home, the very least. Komori tells him to calm down, saying that they’re letting the best people find you around the city, they don’t rule out that someone might’ve had the audacity to touch you.
Whoever took you would be given hell to pay, that’s for sure. Was it the triad? Kkangpae’s? Or opposing yakuza’s? Oh, they’ll definitely have their heads on the platter if they tried to harm a single hair on your head.
Sakusa doesn’t even hesitate to notify the police about you already despite the memorandum that twenty-four hours is needed to consider a person missing, it's nothing a little money can fix.
“I hope we find her soon.” Your aunt sighed, “I’ve notified her parents about it. It’s definitely weird that she’d leave all her valuables behind.”
Hinata and Natsu sit there next to their mom, completely sad and worried, “I’ve hired the best people for it already, obaasan. We’ll find Y/N.” Sakusa replies yet his thoughts are in a complete frenzy now.
And find you they did.
No stone was left unturned. He made sure of it. Yet after a month of relentless searching. Nothing came up, it seemed like you had just vanished and Sakusa Kiyoomi had turned the whole underground world upside down for you but nothing came up.
Some say that you disappeared and ran away but that was immediately ruled out, no security cameras saw you in and out during that day and it would be impossible for you to just leave without security cameras on you. The guard had exclaimed that despite the blackout that day, the generators only took a few minutes to power up so they’d definitely catch you on camera in case you ever exited the building (along with the guards since they knew exactly what you looked liked) plus the clothes and such were still there, left untouched.
Some said you died, it was definitely impossible for you to just vanish without a single trace after all since everyone was looking for you.
Yet no one dared to say it in front of the boss, not if they valued their life.
The billionaire had dried out his connections to find you. What good was it to be the most powerful and richest man in the country if he couldn’t find you? Life had no meaning now, you were gone. It felt like a part of him was ceasing to function.
Sakusa Kiyoomi was a dead man walking now.
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Unknown to the whole world, you’re in a small town with little to no signal. Your hair is chopped unevenly and your skin is darker from the repeated exposure under the sun, your life is simple and mundane now yet you’re happy.
For the first time in months, you actually felt free.
You shut your eyes tight, the events that transpired this past few months replayed  in your head. Your escape was definitely done as carefully as you can and you didn’t even know if you’d succeed since you weren’t a master in that sort of thing.
You recalled that it was a week before you ran away, a few days after you met that kid in the bus. Someone from the electric company had come to inform you that there was a scheduled black out in the city that day during the afternoon and you felt something bubble up in you. That was the day you’d put your plan into motion.
You knew that the longer you delayed your plan, the harder it would be to escape.
You had a few minutes to actually put your plan to work. The camera’s on the hallways would cease to function for a few minutes according to the guard downstairs as he did a protocol on the building (apparently the generators were quick). So that morning after Sakusa left, you placed only a few clothes and the stash of money you had been carefully hiding in a garbage bag and chopped your hair short in an uneven manner. Burning all the remaining hair on the fireplace and the black hair color that you use with it. The maid uniform that you stole on your floor and a fake name plate that you made was on and you were good to go.
The minute the black out started, you took the garbage bag and walked out. Taking the stairway used by the caretakers, you made sure to just look down and never directly up at the camera’s pretending to work.
When you finally made it out of your building. You let out a stiff sigh and put down the bag, it was only the beginning. If you thought the same way as Sakusa Kiyoomi, you could only imagine that you needed to be more careful from this point on.
You take the newly bought duffel bag that you strategically hid behind some boxes. Thankfully when you had placed it yesterday afternoon, it hadn’t been touched. 
You put on a pair of shorts and a baggy shirt with cheap shades and stuffed the maid uniform in the duffel bag along with your belongings in the garbage bag. You take the other route that led to the busy streets. It was easy to look like a tourist and seemingly blend in the crowd, from that point on, you only had one destination in mind.
When you were younger, you vividly remember an acquaintance telling you about this small town outside of Tokyo where her grandparents were from. It was only an hour away via plane and when you went down another few hours via bus yet if you took the bus route all in all, it would take a few days.
Since it was far, only a few busses actually went there and since you had to leave within the day, you decided to just take the bus nearest to that town and take another bus when you arrived there.
The plan smooth-sailed from that point on.
Except for one minor detail.
You open your eyes and look down at your now small bump. The monster who almost had you trapped left a parting gift, you grip your garden hoe tightly.
A big part of you wanted to kill it.
Yet every time you try to, you hesitate.
The moment you arrived here, you had to pretend to be a weary and poor widow. You just didn’t expect to be a weary and poor expecting widow. You let out an uncharted sigh at the thought, it was hard enough to be alone here with little to no money. 
This child had the demon’s blood in it.
Yes, you may have gone free from his cage but in truth with his seed growing in your stomach day by day, you started to feel quite the opposite.
taglist [thanks for your support ilyasm skkss im so sorry for updating late too :(]
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[can’t tag you guys uwu just make sure ur tags are open :<]
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miraculouswolf99 · 4 years ago
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Breaking Into The Watchtower Part 2
Part 2, and the final part, of my Miraculous-Justice League crossover. Prepare for a long one, readers.
*****
After recharging, the masked teens all gathered back in front of the heroes. Since the ones that had used their powers had to recharge, their power effects lifted from Dr. Fate and Superman. It allowed both heroes to be free once more. The Justice League and Young Justice all returned to their seats. If Wonder Woman was honored to meet them, then they should hear them out before deciding what to do with them.
The group was about evenly split to be on either side of who seemed to be the leaders of their group. The ladybug and butterfly girls as well as the wolf and black cat boys.
“Introductions would certainly be the best way to start,” the ladybug girl said. “My name is Ladybug and I am one of the leaders of the Miraculous hero team of Paris. Right next to me is my partner, Cat Noir.”
The black cat boy nodded at the heroes.
“My name is White Wolf and I am the co-leader of the Miraculous team along with Cat Noir, Ladybug, and my partner Beautifly,” the wolf boy motioned to the butterfly girl when he mentioned her.
“Pleasure,” she nodded to the heroes like Cat Noir.
“With us are all of our team members,” Ladybug motioned to the rest of the heroes. “To my right is Vulpix, Emerald Shell, Queen Bee, Tigress, Lady Unicorn, and Shadow Cat.”
“To my left is the rest of our team,” White Wolf says. “Viperion, Ryuko, Ocean Mage, King Monkey, Gladiator, and Bunnix.”
All of the other heroes nodded when they were introduced.
“For three years, Paris has been terrorized by a terrorist known as Hawkmoth and as have come to personally ask for your help,” Beautifly says.
Ladybug then stepped forward and took the yo-yo off of her wait. She opened it and typed in a few commands. A hologram appeared out of it, like the holographic screams and projectors that the league uses. Ladybug put her yo-yo on the ground so that the others could use their weapons/communicators to control the images that are seen. Cat Noir took out his staff and used it to punch in a command. The hologram then showed images of a few of the miraculous. The most well-known ones, such as the ladybug and black cat as well as the moth/butterfly.
“The miraculous are an ancient set of jewelry enchanted and bonded to gods known as the kwami,” Ladybug explains. “Each piece, along with the kwami that it is bonded to, represents a specific aspect of magic. Creation, destruction, illusion, protection, and more. But that is specifically the miraculous of ancient China, where most of our miraculous come from.
“The miraculous that are used by myself, Beautifly, Tigress, and Gladiator use miraculous that originate from ancient Greece,” White Wolf says. “Our representations are more general but also more specific at the same time. Mine represents Winter’s Hope, as in the hope that comes when you know and hope about how the frost protects the earth before it gives way to the flowers of spring. Beautifly’s represents Spring Love, coming from the original belief of flowers and Spring being associated with love.”
“My miraculous comes from the mystical creature miraculous, where each represents a magical creature and what their core is all about,�� Ocean Mage said. “Mine is the miraculous of the mermaid.”
The Justice League paid close attention to what the group was saying. Most of Young Justice was looking at Kid Flash, who was glaring at the teen heroes. He was probably itching to yell at them that “magic wasn’t real” because of his extreme disbelief in it. But the Flash was next to him and making sure that he did not let his former sidekick’s delusions interrupt the Miraculous Team.
“So, it would be a magical threat, right,” Aqualad guessed. “That would be the only reason why the miraculous would be called into action, correct?”
“Exactly,” Beautifly answered the Atlantean.
Cat Noir punched in a command into his baton and the hologram changed. It now showed an image of Hawkmoth. 
“He looks like a Mexican wrestler reject,” Red Hood said.
Most of Team Miraculous had to hold their hands over their mouths to stop them from bursting into laughter and ruining their aura of seriousness.
“This is the terrorist that we have been fighting,” Cat Noir says. “He showed up about three years also, almost four. He has been using the stolen butterfly/moth miraculous in order to turn unsuspecting people into superpowered villains.”
“How can he do that,” Flash asked, curious. “What exactly is the power of his miraculous?”
“The power is originally known as Empowerment,” Cat Noir said. “The miraculous are not meant to be used for evil, so Hawmoth has turned the power into Metamorphasis. He uses it to sense those that are feeling intense negative emotions and takes advantage of them in order to turn them into his villains. Anger, sadness, betrayal, heartbreak, anything negative.”
“His goal has remained the same for the entire time that he has been active,” Viperion says. “He desires to obtain the ladybug and black cat miraculous.”
“What is it about those two that he specifically wants them above all the others,” Black Canary asked them.
“The ladybug and black cat are the most powerful of the ancient China miraculous,” Ryuko tells the league. “They’re the complete opposite of each other with the ladybug being creation and good luck while the black cat is destruction and bad luck. When you combine them, the person wielding them is given the power to bend reality in order to make a wish.”
“So this guy is terrorizing your city just to make a single wish,” Green Arrow raised an eyebrow.
“Must be something that can not be obtained any other way or he is just really desperate for a quick solution,” Red Arrow said.
“If it was a simple wish, there would not be much of an issue,” Ladybug says. “But because the ladybug and black cat need each other to balance the other, the wish itself would also require balance.”
Viperion was the one to put in the next command. How he was able to do that with a harp, none of them ever asked. Three more images appeared, replacing Hawmoth’s. Pompeii, the Black Plague, and even the Salem Witch Trials.
“All of these things were caused by a wish,” Superman sounded skeptical.
“There are many examples of magic throughout history,” White Wolf says. “You just have to know where to look.”
Vulpix took his turn to speak. He used his flute to point at specific images when he was talking about them.
“In Pompeii, someone wished for their family to not be killed by disease,” Vulpix said. “But that ended up causing a volcano that wipes out a majority of the city and most of its population. A man’s wife was sick and he wished for her illness to go away. But then the illness spread since it left one person and turned into a plague. Last was a miraculous holder that was deeply afraid of being discovered and wished to never be accused of using magic. But then dozens upon hundreds of innocent people were convicted and executed during the witch trials.”
“The balance is why the wish is so dangerous,” Emerald Shell says. “Everything that is wished for usually ends in disaster. Even those with pure intentions are not spared. But since Hawkmoth definitely is planning on using the wish, it is either for something extremely wrong or just extremely selfish. Either would end in hell on Earth.”
“It’s so hard to believe that a wish could do all of that,” Black Lightning was shocked.
“Magic does that,” Beautifly says. “It makes the impossible turn possible.”
“If it is the miraculous of ancient China that Hawkmoth wants, why not use the others you have access to,” Red Tornado asked. “It is the logical choice to keep the miraculous that he desires out of his reach. You do have access to the ancient Greek miraculous, given White Wolf, Beautifly, Gladiator, and Tigress.”
“We wish it was that simple,” Lady Unicorn said.
“The problem is that the powers of Hawkmoth’s miraculous can only be undone by the ladybug miraculous,” Ladybug says. “And since the ladybug and black cat have to balance each other, both have to be active at the same time or neither of them can be active. I am the only one that can purify his akumas and then fix all the damage that they cause with my Miraculous Cure.”
Queen Bee typed a command into her top. A video replaced the images of the disasters that the wish caused. The video was from the Ladyblog and it was of the first akuma attack. It showed Ladybug casting her first-ever cure and everything being fixed by it.
“This was only the first of Hawkmoth’s attacks,” she said.
“There is also the added issue that the Greek miraculous also have a wish tied to the most powerful ones,” White Wolf says.
“They do,” Wonder Woman did not know about the Greek miraculous since neither she nor any other Amazon came into contact with them.
“As we have said, the wolf and butterfly miraculous are each themed by elements of Winter and Spring,” White Wolf says. “So you know that would leave the other two seasons. Those two exist in the power of Summer’s Heart for the songbird miraculous along with the Wildness of Autumn for the panther miraculous. Combining all four seasons gives the same wish ability as the combined ladybug and black cat.”
“But there is still the balance issue even with a different set of miraculous,” Tigress added. “Magic always comes at a price. That is the universal law of magic.”
The Justice League all nodded, most of them understanding the price that could come when you use magic. The Young Justice team remembered Zatanna explaining her powers to them when she had first met them. She had said that the power of her spells usually has to come from within, meaning that the more powerful spells would seriously drain her energy. Plus, there is also the known fact that Dr. Fate was never controlled by who wore the helmet. They were like a coat that the lord of order would put on in order to be active. Zatara was still in there but the price he paid was only being able to see his daughter once a year.
“So, what exactly is it that you need from us,” Batman asked the teens.
He was surprised to have heard about the villain in Paris before. Sure, he rarely ever left Gotham unless it was an international emergency, but this was a serious problem. If this villain, or any villain, got their hands on the miraculous, it would be a complete hell on earth. Lord knows what disaster would happen if the Joker made a wish.
“We actually have been requesting help for years,” Queen Bee glared at the league. “Ladybug has called, Cat Noir has called, even the mayor of Paris has called. You all brush us aside and have even told us to stop calling the League to trick them with ‘such an unrealistic prank.’ It’s ridiculous, utterly ridiculous.”
“While Queen Bee could have been a bit more diplomatic, she is correct,” Ryuko says. “The miraculous are not so unrealistic when you have magic-users like Zatanna as a part of the League while also having Dr. Fate, whose helmet inhabits a lord of order that possesses whoever wears the helmet. That is not unlike the miraculous, only slightly different.”
Guy Gardner looked particularly embarrassed by that. That made the rest of the league realize who had been ignoring their calls for help, waving it off as a prank. You would think that someone with a powerful piece of jewelry himself would believe in the miraculous.
“As much as it pains us to admit, we no longer know what to do,” Cat Noir says. “Hawkmoth has been growing in power ever since Heroes Day almost two years ago. That was also the first time that his partner revealed herself.”
Vulpix was the one that typed in the command this time, into his flute. The hologram changed to show Mayura. The elegant woman looked even more dangerous with her fan allowing only access to her deadly gaze.
“This is Mayura,” Emerald Shell said. “She appeared on Heroes Day and foiled the closest time that the team had ever come to defeating Hawkmoth. She wields the peacock miraculous, which grants the power of Emotion, which allows her to make inanimate objects into guardians. Only they are now called sentimonsters. They are a monster created by a person’s negative emotions just like Hawkmoth’s akumas. While she is not as common as Hawkmoth, the two of them do combine their powers to give akumas a powerful allie.”
Emerald Shell typed in a command and pictures of some of her sentimonsters appeared around the image of Mayura. The moth creature that she usually gives Hawkmoth, Refleckdoll, the lollypop monster, and Feast.
“Why does she not appear as often as Hawkmoth,” Martian Manhunter asked.
“From our own research, and from what our kwami have told us, the peacock miraculous is broken,” Ladybug says. “In an effort to repair itself, it takes away the energy and life force of the person using it. Each time that Mayura transforms, she is risking her life.”
“You think she would actually risk her life just for Hawkmoth to succeed,” Captain Atom asked.
“Mayura has shown to be loyal to a fault,” Shadow Cat said. “The fault being that she is loyal to Hawkmoth. We also suspect that whoever she was had also allowed herself to be akumatized into Catalyst on Heroes Day in order to give Hawkmoth the needed power-up that he needed to do what he did.”
“What exactly did he do,” Green Lantern (John) asked.
“Catalyst gave Hawkmoth a power boost that he used in order to use his power on a massive level, allowing him to become Scarlet Moth,” Beautifly says. “He akumatized almost everyone that had previously been victimized by him. Dozens of his akumas flooded the streets while more of his akuma waited for others to feel negative emotions to infect them as well if they were not under the control of the mind-controlling akumas like Darkblade or Queen Wasp.”
Queen Bee shifted a bit at the mention of her second akuma form, but she got her composure back quickly.
“Hawkmoth had been able to accomplish that when he used a previous akuma to create an illusion of Ladybug being akumatized and killing Cat Noir,” Gladiator said. “All those people feeling the same negative emotion of fear and hopelessness was what allowed him to akumatize so many people at once.”
He typed in a command and the image of Mayura and her sentimonsters were replaced by a clip of what had happened during the parade played.
“And ever since Heroes Day, Hawkmoth has been getting a lot worse,” White Wolf says. “His akumas used to be a lot easier and were relatively harmless to even those affected by them. Like Princess Frangrance only hypnotized those that smelled her perfume and Silencer only took people’s voices. But then you compare that to Syren and Stormy Weather, both have caused natural disasters. Hawkmoth is getting deadly in his desperation for the miraculous.”
He typed in a command and the image changed to show the range of akuma that have happened over the years. Harmless ones like Mr.Pigeon, deadly ones like Queen Of Hearts, and natural disaster ones like Syren.
“We can deal with the akumas,” Ladybug says. “But with Hawkmoth constantly sending them out, we have no time or energy to put toward finding him and taking him and Mayura down for good.”
“Do you have any suspects,” Nightwing asked.
“We had a promising suspect in fashion designer, Gabriel Agreste,” Ocean Mage said. “He lives a secluded life away from people, butterflies are pretty common in a lot of his designs, and there was also that a lost grimoire had also been found in a secret vault by his son.”
“But we had to cross him off the suspect list when he was akumatized,” Tigress says. “But even our only suspect for Mayura puts him right back in the suspect pool.”
“You mean his assistant, right,” Red Robin was looking at the holographic screen over his glove, same as Oracle. “Nathalie Sancoeur.”
“She had had multiple doctor’s appointments ever since this Heroes Day you told us about,” Oracle continued for him. “And every time it is for the same thing. Dizziness, fatigue, constant headaches, and multiple coughing fits.”
“Yes, she is his assistant,” Shadow Cat answered. “She has also shown that she is incredibly loyal to Gabriel no matter how inhumane the things that he wants his son to do are. His diets and constant photoshoots should never be given to a teenager.”
“He also has a motive,” Cat Noir looked to be the most reluctant out of all of them on this topic. “Gabriel Agreste’s wife vanished about six months before Hawkmoth appeared and many assume that she is dead by now. He could desire to use the wish to either bring her back or to bring her back to life. Either would probably cause the balance to cause something horrible to happen.”
“If you suspect those two, do you also suspect Agreste’s son, as well,” Red Robin asked.
“That is the thing that we want to avoid,” Shadow Cat says. “Most of us know his son or have met him because he was targetted by an akuma. Adrien is known as the Sunshine of Paris. There is no way that he is involved even if those two are behind it.”
“We also do not want it to be true because that would also mean that Mr.Agreste put his own son in danger by sending akumas after him,” Lady Unicorn added. “It would also mean that Adrien would probably have his life destroyed if those two really are behind the attacks.”
“I am sure that he would greatly appreciate you all standing up for him,” Wonder Woman smiles at the teen heroes.
Robin had been staring at the group the entire time. He was not only the only blood son of the world’s greatest detective, but he also had a trained assassin’s eye. He noticed things that others didn’t. Like there was an unspoken bond and closeness between the black cat boy and the wolf boy. The other obvious couples seemed to be the horse and tiger girls as well as the dragon girl and snake boy. The fox and turtle boys were also definitely together.
“Is there anything else,” Superman asked.
The teens shared a look with each other. It seemed that this part was probably something that they had discussed before. Ladybug nodded to Cat Noir. He typed in a command and the image of a civilian girl appeared. 
“Why does this girl have sausages on her head,” Red Hood asked.
Most of Team Miraculous did not even try to hold in their laughter this time. But they had to soon get back their composure since this was a very serious situation.
“This is Lila Rossi, daughter of an Italian diplomate,” Ladybug said. “She has been akumatized almost fifty times. She is mostly akumatized as Volpina, which is a poor copy of Vulpix and his powers. But she also has been akumatized into Chameleon, which is an akuma that can shapeshift into anyone or anything that she kisses, as well as Miracle Queen, which can create illusions that can hypnotize people. We believe that she is working for Hawkmoth since Volpina is the only akuma that could have created the illusion on Heroes Day.”
“Why does that make her a suspect,” Green Arrow asked.
“Because I didn’t purify Volpina’s akuma that day,” Ladybug says. “And since Hawkmoth had to akumatize another person into Catalyst after the illusion that was created, that meant that she was akumatized and didn’t tell anyone.”
“There is also that the mayor’s daughter, Chloe Bourgeois, sent us this,” Queen Bee types in a command.
Next to the image of Lila appeared a video that was obviously taken on a cell phone while a person was hiding. It showed Lila running toward an akuma and literally jumping up to snatch it out of the air. She then placed the akuma into the necklace that she was wearing and actually smirked as a glowing butterfly outline appeared over her eyes.
“Because of Chloe’s previous reputation of being a bully and a spoiled brat that likes getting others into trouble, she knew that only we would actually believe her when she gave us this video,” Ladybug says.
“There is also the fact that Lila is a pathological liar that puts on a sweet and innocent front that makes it almost impossible for people to see her as the horrible person that she really is,” Emerald Shell of all people basically growled.
“Lila has spent years telling tall tales about being Ladybug’s best friend,” Vulpix said. “As well lies about musicians like Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale, comic book artists like the writers of the Miraculous Adventures comic, fashion designers like Style Queen and MDC, as well as Adrien Agreste himself. Anyone that has ever called her out has had their lives ruined.”
“More research into her revealed that at every single school that Lila has ever attended, there has been either a suicide, a deadly accident, or a person getting greatly injured,” Viperion says. “All of them have been about kids that were once popular and loved, but their lives went to hell once Lila attended their schools.”
“You believe that this Lila girl is behind all of these things,” Superboy asked.
“We connected everyone that we could that was connected to her past victims,” Gladiator said. “They all said the same thing, that Lila came to the school with tales of grand adventures and their friend or child realized that she was lying. Then she would start whispering lies about these kids to all of her loyal listeners. She would make up stories about them bullying her, threatening her, stealing from her, talking behind their backs, anything that she could think of.”
“She would turn everyone that she could against them,” Ocean Mage crossed his arms. “Friends, teachers, principals, even family. There were those that killed themselves over the bullying they received, but it was actually worse for those that were too strong for that. Lila would then either cause an accident that would kill them or injure them in a way that broke them even further.”
“Take a look at this,” Tigress made an image appear of a kind-looking boy that looked to be from Spain from the background of the image. “This is Mateo Santiago. He went to the same school as Lila when she was in Spain. He was once a popular boy that had a gift for singing. He won countless youth singing contests all over Spain. When he heard Lila’s tales, he did his research and found her to be a liar. But just like all the others, she turned everyone but his family against him. But Mateo remained strong and did not let her or anyone get to him, confident because of how much he performed in front of others. So, Lila took that away from him.”
“See, Mateo was allergic to fish,” Beautifly took over the story. “It gave his throat a bad reaction, so he stayed away from it to keep his vocal cords safe. But one day, Lila managed to get into his locker and pour fish sauce all over his lunch salad. So when lunch came, he had an allergic reaction. He was taken to the hospital and the procedure that saved his life also damaged his vocal cords. He would be mute for the rest of his life. All of that because he knew Lila was a liar and tried to expose her.”
“Lila has been trying to do the same in Paris as well,” White Wolf says, making an image of a Chinese-French girl be exchanged for Mateo’s. “This is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Lila’s latest victim. See, Marinette is a fashion design hopeful and has already designed for those like Jagged Stone, Clara Nightingale, Adrien Agreste, and even been noticed by Style Queen herself for a simple hat. Since she has her own connections, she knew right away that Lila was a liar.”
“You may notice from any research that you do that Vulpix, Emerald Shell, and Lady Unicorn have not always been those that wield the fox, turtle, and horse miraculous,” Cat Noir says, making images of three previous holders appear next to Marinette’s picture. “This is Rena Rouge, Carapace, and Pegasus. They were the previous holders of those three miraculous.”
“Did something happen to them,” Red Arrow asked.
“Lila happened,” King Monkey crossed his arms. “These three used to be friends of Marinette’s. Especially Rena and Carapace. But then Lila came along and Marinette tried to expose her. Lila managed to sway half of Marinette’s class into being her attack dogs to attack Marinette even if Lila looks even the slightest bit upset.”
“Marinette is a sweetheart,” Shadow Cat added. “She was the class president, got some of the best grades in her class, does charity work, babysits, helps her parents in their bakery, and has always bent over backward to help others. But Lila took most of that away with her lies. She probably would have destroyed Marinette if not for her having loyal friends.”
“Marinette has been the victim of physical, mental, and emotional bullying for years because of Lila,” Cat Noir looked ready to hiss. “But she remains positive the entire time. She’s transferred classes, has gotten a new phone number, and even uses a secret identity when she designs to keep Lila from claiming her designs as her own.”
“Lila has also chosen to act as a spy for Gabriel Agreste,” Ladybug’s fists were clenched tight. “She has used her lies to get close to him and he uses her to try and separate Adrien from ‘bad influences.’ Which is basically just Lila using more lies to try and isolate Adrien so that he would only have her. Adrien actually stays away as best she can, especially since she is sexually harassing him, but his father always gives them photoshoots together. She constantly threatens him by saying that with one word, Adrien will be back under house arrest by his father no longer letting him leave the house.
“Between her causing akumas, being akumas, Hawkmoth, and Mayura, we need help,” Beautifly says. “There must be something that you can do to help us.”
The league all shared looks with each other. These heroes have obviously been doing a great help if Paris is still standing, but they also look so tired and in dire need of their help.
“We’ll help,” Robin tells the heroes before the league actually answered.
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just-dreaming-marvel · 4 years ago
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I’m From Brooklyn, Too ~ 143
OUT OF TIME MASTERLIST
I’M FROM BROOKLYN, TOO MASTERLIST
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< previous chapter
Word Count: 2,785ish
Summary: The plan is finalized and the team begins to get the Stones.
Warning: tread carefully and don’t hate me
Notes: You must read Out Of Time in order to understand this. The chapter numbers continue from Out Of Time. (gifs aren’t mine)
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Y/N woke up in the morning, tucked into her bed. Alone. It wasn’t all that surprising, but that didn’t make it hurt any less. She slowly got ready for the day and met everyone out in the conference room. She sat away from the group as they began to go over the Tesseract and the Mind Stone. The original Avengers, except Y/N and Thor, talked about the two Stones together, having shared experiences with both Stones.
“Y/N,” Steve called. “Anything to add?”
She rubbed her hand nervously. “Nope,” she responded, clearly not okay. “You guys covered it all.” She stood up. “You guys continue, I’m just going to go get some air.”
Y/N quickly left, leaving the others to share worried glances. She made her way to her bedroom and out to the balcony. Sitting down on one of the chairs, she put her head in her hands.
“Hey,” Steve greeted, coming to sit beside her. “You okay?”
“No,” Y/N responded. She bit her bottom lip and looked up at the sky. “I… I’ve screwed everything up.”
“What? How?”
“I’m still in love with Bucky… and Tony knows.”
“Y/N, I—“
“Don’t say anything, Steve. Nothing you can say could make this any better. I’m in love with Bucky. And I’ve ruined my daughter’s family. And you’re angry at me for keeping secrets, which you don’t even know the half of.”
“What are you talking about?”
“I-I can’t… I can’t do this right now.” She stood up, Steve following.
“No. I need an explanation.”
“You need an explanation? Well I need a break. Can we just go back in there and focus on the task at hand? We need to finish going through everything before I decide to run home and never leave my child’s side again.”
“You can’t just ignore this.”
“Oh, I can. And I have been for years. There’s nothing more you can say, Steve, to make me say anything else.” The twins stared each other down. “Drop it, Steve. We should go back inside before people start doubting me more than they are.”
Steve huffed and left for where the others were. Y/N took her time going from the balcony and into her bedroom. Tony was there when she walked in.
“I heard,” he commented. “He’ll come around.”
“No he won’t,” Y/N said. “I’ve broken his trust. Just like I have yours.”
“Y/—“
“You don’t have to lie, Tony. I know that I hurt, too.”
Tony sighed. “That’s true. But that doesn’t mean I won’t fight side by side with you until I can’t anymore.”
“I don’t deserve you.”
“That’s true.” He waltzed over and offered her his hand. “Let’s stick together, shall we?” Y/N took his hand and Tony pulled her up. 
~~~
The team has spent a majority of the day listening to everyone talk about the Stones. They had also tried to piece together a final plan, but they were struggling to do so. Y/N was with a majority of the team in the kitchen and dining area when Tony, Natasha, and Bruce came rushing in.
“There’s 3 Stones in New York!” Natasha exclaimed.
“What?” Steve questioned, furrowed brows.
“In 2012, during the Battle of New York,” Bruce began explaining, “there was the Space Stone, the Mind Stone, and the Time Stone.”
“Holy shit,” Y/N gasped.
“We’ve figured it out,” Tony said, smiling proudly at Y/N. “We’re going to get them back.”
“Did you happen to figure out a plan?” Steve wondered.
“We did,” Natasha said.
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The plan and assignments were quickly given out and explained. 
2012 - New York City
Mind Stone: Steve
Space Stone: Clint, Natasha, and Scott
Time Stone: Bruce
2013 - Asgard
Reality Stone: Thor and Rocket
2014 - Morag and Vormir
Power Stone: Nebula and Rhodey
Soul Stone: Tony and Y/N
“Alright, we have a plan,” Steve said after everything was discussed. “Six Stones, three teams. One shot. Get some rest and we’ll meet up bright and early in the morning.”
Everyone nodded and broke off to go do their own things. Tony came over and pressed a kiss to Y/N’s temple. 
“I’ll meet you in our room,” he whispered. “I have something I want to do before.”
“Are you okay?” She asked.
“I’m fine. Go call Morgan and I’ll catch up.” 
He gave her one last forehead kiss before heading off. Y/N began making her way to her room when Steve stepped in front of her.
“Can I help you?” She asked.
“Can I trust you?” Steve asked, gruffly.
“What?”
“You’ve been keeping secrets, still are. I need to know that I can trust you to successfully do the job that needs to be done.”
“You can’t be serious, Steve.”
“I am very serious.”
“I can’t even believe you right now. You really doing this now? After everything?”
“I just need to know that I can trust you. You have secrets and your secrets have secrets, and I know that I don’t even know everything yet. And I’m your brother.”
“You have secrets too, Steve. But why am I getting all the heat? One of your secrets even forced me on the run and was one of the causes of my miscarriage. Yet you don’t see me pushing you about it. Let it all go.” She turned around. “I’ll get the job done, Captain. I always do.”
~~~
“I’m so glad you had fun today, Mo!” Y/N smiled at her daughter on the screen. “That makes me so happy.”
“Are you and daddy having fun?” She asked, sitting up more in her bed.
“Always,” Tony answered loudly, coming into the room and sitting at Y/N’s side.
“Daddy!”
“Hey, sweetheart! You being good?”
“Of course!” She giggled. “When are you two coming home?”
“Soon, sweetheart, soon.”
“Hopefully just a few more days,” Y/N clarified. 
“I miss you guys!”
“We miss you too, honey.”
“It’s bedtime though,” Tony said. “We love you and we will talk to you tomorrow.”
“Love you 3000!”
Y/N hung up and began nervously twirling her phone in her hand. Tony could tell that she was nervous about tomorrow. He moved so that he was sitting in front of her.
“We’re going to be fine,” he said.
“You don’t know that,” she responded quietly, avoiding eye contact.
“No, I don’t.” Tony moved so that he was in her line of sight. “But I do know that both of us will do whatever we have to, to get the Stone and come back to Morgan.”
She met his gaze with teary eyes. “I’m terrified.”
He grabbed her hand. “I know.” 
He leaned in, kissing Y/N softly and yet passionately all at once. She quickly kissed back, moving her hands to hold onto the back of his neck. Together, they moved so that Y/N was lying down and Tony was over her.
“Are you okay with this?” Y/N whispered against Tony’s lips.
“Of course,” he replied. “We might not come back tomorrow, right?”
“Right.”
“Let’s live like it’s our last night.”
~~~
Everyone was suited up and had their needed gear before they headed to the platform. They all headed onto it as Bruce stopped at the control panel.
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“Five years ago, we lost. All of us,” Steve began a speech. “We lost friends… We lost family… We lost a part of ourselves. Today, we have a chance to take it all back. You know your teams, you know your missions. Get the stones, get them back. One round trip each. No mistakes. No do-overs. Most of us are going somewhere we know. But it doesn't mean we should know what to expect. Be careful. Look out for each other. This is the fight of our lives. And we're gonna win.” Tony and Steve gave each other a look. “Whatever it takes. Good luck.”
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“He’s pretty good at that,” Rocket made a comment to Scott.
“Right?” Scott responded, excitedly.
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“Alright. You heard the man. Stroke those keys, jolly green,” Tony said.
“Tractors engaged,” Bruce informed.
Rocket came over and handed his shrunken ship, the Benatar, to Tony. “You promise to bring that back in one piece, right?” Rocket questioned.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, Ratchet,” Tony responded. “I’ll do my best.”
“As promises go, that was pretty lame.”
Everyone was in their place as the center of the platform opened. Natasha turned to Tony and smiled.
“See you in a minute,” she said. 
Tony gave a small smile back before they all shrunk and entered the Quantum Realm. Rhodey, Tony, Y/N, and Nebula landed on Morag. Looking around, Y/N felt a strong buzzy in her head. She groaned, holding her hands to her ears.
“Y/N?” Tony called, concerned. 
He put a hand on her back. She began gasping as she could feel the Stones connect with her.
“What will happen, must happen,” the Stones gravelly voice entered her head. “We will stop you, until it’s time to stop him.”
“Y/N?” Rhodey tried.
“Th-the Stones,” Y/N panted, softly. “I can feel them again… We—we’re connected.”
“Are you going to be okay?” Tony asked.
“Yeah… I got it.”
Giving Y/N unconvinced looks, they all worked to get the Benatar to its normal size. Nebula flew it up so that they could lower the smaller ship inside it.
“Alright. Bring it down Blue,” Rhodey said, guiding Nebula. “Right on that line. That’s it. Down, down.”
“Hey, can we hurry it up?” Tony asked.
“Guys, chop-chop,” Y/N pushed. “Come on. We’re on a clock.”
“All that, is really helpful,” Rhodey responded as Nebula finished lowering the smaller ship. 
Y/N smiled as she walked up and hugged Rhodey. “Take care, okay?”
“Yeah. As long as you take are of him.”
“Always.”
“Take that Stone and come back,” Rhodey pulled away. “No messing around.” 
Y/N nodded and walked back so Tony could give his friend a hug. Nebula landed the Benatar and exited it.
“Hey. You got this,” Tony told Rhodey, pulling back from their hug.
“Let’s get it done.”
“Yes, sir.” Tony walked over to meet Y/N on the ship’s ramp.
“You guys watch each others’ six.”
Y/N flashed Rhodey another smile before Tony and her disappeared into the ship. Y/N could tell that being in the Benatar was bringing back memories for Tony. He walked up to the front seats, running his hand down one of them.
“You okay?” Y/N asked.
“Always,” he replied, flashing a brief smile.
Y/N followed Tony’s lead in piloting the ship. Getting off of Morag, Tony had the ship speeding off. Y/N and Tony looked at each other.
“It’s a long way from Malibu,” Tony commented.
Y/N laughed. “That seems like forever ago.”
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It didn’t take too long for them to arrive at Vormir. As they landed, they took in the planet. It was sandy, yet there were ponds littered everywhere. The only thing that stood out was the large mountain like structure, not too far off.
“Under different circumstances, this would be totally awesome,” Tony commented.
“I thought you hated space?” Y/N questioned.
“Oh, I do. Doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate it.”
Tony suited up in his Iron Man armor before the couple exited the ship. The shrunk the ship back up and stored it in one of Y/N’s pockets. The two walked to the mountain and up it.
“I bet the raccoon didn’t have to climb a mountain,” Tony commented.
“Technically, he’s not a raccoon, you know,” Y/N replied.
“Whatever. He eats garbage.”
“Welcome,” a voice interrupted.
Tony’s helmet swiftly covered his face and he lifted his armored hand up, as Y/N aimed her gun up at the man.
“No,” she gasped when she saw the man’s voice. “Red Skull.”
“Y/N, daughter of Joseph,” the floating man continued. “Tony, son of Maria.”
“How the hell did you get here?”
“The Stones have chosen me as a guide. To you, and to all who seek the Soul Stone.”
“Oh, goodie. You tell us where it is,” Tony ordered. “Then we’ll be on our way.”
“Ah, if only it were that easy.”
Red Skull began floating away. Tony and Y/N shared a look before following after the hooded man. They were led to the edge of the cliff.
“What you seek lies in front of you,” the guide explained. “As does what you fear.”
Y/N peeked over the edge. “The Stone is down there,” she said. “I can feel it.”
“For one of you. For the other… in order to take the Stone, you must lose that which you love. An everlasting exchange. A soul, for a soul.” Then he disappeared.
“Where the hell did he go?” Tony asked, spinning around to look at him.
“A soul, for a soul,” Y/N whispered. She was dazed.
Suddenly, the Ancient One’s voice from many years ago was in her head, "The Soul Stone is the most hidden and unknown out of all the Stones. Very few know it’s location, or the powers it possesses. I don’t even know it’s location, but I do know the price it requires to retrieve it… A soul for a soul.”
Tony’s helmet disappeared back into his suit as he noticed Y/N’s expression. “Y/N?” He slowly came up to her. “Y/N? What’s going on?”
“I’m so sorry,” she tried not to cry as she teared up. She looked at him, shaking her head slightly. “I should have never let you come here. I’m so sorry.”
“Why are you sorry?”
“One of us has to die in order for us to get the Stone… That’s why Nebula’s sister never came back from here… Thanos sacrificed her.”
“No.” Tony shook his head. “No. Maybe he’s making this shit up.”
“No. I know he’s not. I… I was warned years ago, I just didn’t understand it then… Tony, I am so sorry.” A tear trailed down her cheek. “Please tell Morgan that I love her.”
“No, no, no, no. You are not going to be the one to do this. If anyone is going to sacrifice themselves, it’s me. You were meant for more, and our daughter needs you.”
“She needs you too. I can’t let you do this.”
“You don’t have a choice,” Red Skull interrupted. “You are what ends this once and for all. The Stones will not let you sacrifice yourself, or stop the necessary sacrifice.”
“See?” Tony shot out his hand, pointing to the guide. “Even he knows. I have to be the one to do this.”
“No.” Y/N let the tears fall freely now. “No. Morgan needs her father.”
“Not as much as she needs her mother.” Tony stepped closer, cupping her cheeks. “I have to do this. Let me be the hero she thinks I am.”
“You’re already a hero, Tony… to so many people, but no more than Morgan and I.”
“This will just seal it then.” He brushed some fingers against her cheek. “I love you, Y/N Rogers-Stark. Always have, always will.”
“I love you too.” Tony pulled her in for a heated kiss, slowly turning them so that his back was facing the cliff. “I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry.”
“I know. Here…” He tapped his chest, his suit disappearing into the reactor before he took it off his chest and handed it to Y/N. “You’re going to need this more than I will.”
“Tony—“
“Give it to Peter or Harley. Maybe make them fight for it. Or, keep it for Morgan. We both know that no matter what, she’ll follow in our footsteps.” He pulled her in for another kiss. “I’ll say hello to AJ for you.” Pushing Y/N away slightly, he caused her to stumble back and fall. “I love you. And remind Morgan that I love her 3000.” 
“Please, Tony, I—“
“It will be okay. I promise.”
He looked in her eyes before letting himself fall back over the cliff.
“NOOO!” Y/N screamed, crawling to the edge of the cliff. 
She looked over just as Tony hit the ground. Blood immediately began pooling around his head and drooling out of his mouth. Y/N bowed her head and sobbed.
“No,” she cried out. “Tony… No…" 
A boom in the sky sent Y/N suddenly appearing in a pool of water. Still sobbing, she felt something in her hand. She opened her hand to reveal the Soul Stone. Clutching it close to her chest, she began sobbing more and a voice filled her ears.
“You are free to stop what is coming… It is time.”
next chapter >
It had to happen. Sorry guys. Please don’t hate me.
I appreciate all likes, comments, asks, and reblogs! Thank you for all the positive support!
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reinersbb · 4 years ago
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𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐆𝐄𝐓 [𝐉𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐊𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐢𝐧 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 / 𝐌𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐍 𝐀𝐔] Chapter One- Pumpkin Spice
DISCLAIMER: I do not own AOT/SNK or the characters.
WARNING 18+: Heavy Sexual Themes/SMUT, Alcohol Consumption, Drug Usage, Profanity, Violence, and Some Uncomfortable Themes.
Click away now if you’re uncomfortable with anything listed above.
The fresh mid-October air plunged into your lungs after inhaling deeply through your nostrils as soon as you broke through the doors belonging to the lecture hall. Though the temperature outside was brisk, the sun was still shining above brightly. The white blotchy clouds were condensed together almost like puzzle pieces that were yet to fit together.
You were grateful for perfect weather on a day like this, and couldn't help but smile to yourself out of pure bliss. Because in all honesty, being stuck inside of lectures for the majority of the day wasn't ideal, but you sure were paying good money for it.
Pinching at the thin cotton material of your jacket, you pulled the fabric closer against your body when a gust of wind whipped past you. Maybe you should've thrown on a thicker jacket, but it's not like you took the initiative to check the weather for the day ahead when your attention was focused on making it out of your dorm room before being late for your eight am. Stopping at a large water fountain that was positioned perfectly center in the intersection of two walkways, you took a slight step with your left foot to turn and look around at all of the people floating about. Awkwardly searching for a particular face in the crowd as the sound of water gently overlapping played in your ears from the old fountain. Today, you had plans to hang out with your boyfriend, the plan was to meet up with him at this exact location. 'Maybe he's running late...' When another two minutes passed of you keeping an eye out for his familiar face, and there was still no sight of your boyfriend, you pulled out your phone to see if he'd sent you a text of his whereabouts or any piece of information. A clear notification screen surprised you, maybe even worried you just the slightest bit, but you shoved that hollow feeling down deep inside of you to tried to ignore it. 'Okay, maybe I should just text him.' Today 15:04 Where are you?✓ Your message had been sent, all you had to do now was play the very annoying waiting game. 'He wouldn't just ghost you for no reason without an explanation.' You tried reasoning with yourself. Your eyes tore away from your phone screen, deciding it was better to distract yourself with something instead of aimlessly waiting around for who knows how long. With only one glance around the perimeter, you elected that a nearby coffee cart parked further down away would be your means of distraction. What's a better distraction than caffeine? As you closed in on the dark oak wooden coffee cart, you couldn't help but notice a familiar face standing behind the cash register. The young man stood slumped over, a disengaged expression on his face, almost as if he were frowning. You lifted a brow quizically, taking the last few steps of your stride towards the cart. The man with blond hair and prominent sideburns perked up behind the register as you stood adjacent to him, "(L/N), is that you?" "Yeah, hey, Thomas! I didn't know you worked here. It's been a while since we've last spoke, how have you been?" You smiled, reminiscing in the few friendly memories you shared together. Thomas was in your German class at the beginning of the semester until you decided to drop the class and swap your minor out for French instead. There hasn't been much or any conversation between the two of you since then. "I just started two weeks ago, and about that..." the slight smile he'd managed to put on his face when you originally approached the cart faded away momentarily, "not so good actually," his cheeks flushed out of embarrassment and his smile kept wavering. "What happened? Are you okay?" You asked, genuinely concerned about your friends' feelings. "My girlfriend broke up with me yesterday," he admitted with a sigh. "Mina?" You asked and Thomas nodded, "that must suck, weren't you and her together for a while?" You could remember the few mentions of his ex-girlfriend in some of the conversations you had together before. "Since junior year of high school, she was my first girlfriend," his light brown eyes fell to the counter. "It was so... all of a sudden. She didn't even tell me why, but, in all honesty, I think it was for another guy," his fingertips tapped away at the counter anxiously. Hearing Thomas tell you about the recent breakup with his ex made your stomach twist and turn into knots for some unknown reason. There was suddenly a burning temptation to check your phone, but you refrained from doing so. "I'm sorry to hear that, and I wish there was something I could say to make you magically feel better," you shot him a sympathetic smile when he finally lifted his eyes to look up at you. "You know, I kind of feel a little bit better talking to you about it," Thomas admitted with a meek chuckle. "Anyways," he flicked the brim of his visor, "enough about me, is there anything I could get you?" He suggested to the menu of drinks. "Surprise me?" A small grin pulled at his lips, "on it." You couldn't help but notice how Thomas's emotions seemed to have pulled a full one-eighty compared to when you saw him standing idle behind the counter just a few minutes ago. "Here you go, one large pumpkin spice latte from our seasonal menu," Thomas reached over the counter, handing you a rather large paper cup, "careful, (L/N), it's hot." You accepted the latte with slight hesitation, "thanks, how much do I owe you?" You were struggling to reach your wallet inside of your purse when Thomas said, "don't worry about it, the drink is on me." "Are you sure? Because I can-" "Think of it as thanks for talking to me," Thomas showed a genuine smile while plucking a napkin from a dispenser to give to you, "just in case you need one of these." "Fine, but I'm paying for my next drink," you said, but still feeling reluctant to just walk away without paying for the drink. Quickly, you reached into your purse, feeling around for any loose money lying about. After a few seconds, you swiftly inserted a few crumpled bills and loose change into the nearly empty tip jar without even examining the tip amount. Thomas laughed after watching your efforts, "see you around, (L/N)." "Bye! Thanks again, Thomas," you sipped on your hot beverage as you steadily walked away from the coffee cart. When you passed by someone looking down at their phone, it reminded you to check yours to see if there was any response from your significant other. To no avail, there were no new messages on your lock screen, only a single notification that alerted you of a spam email message. You tabbed into your text messages once again because the curiosity gnawed away at your insides. Today 15:02 Where are you?✓✓ Immediately you felt your heart sink through your chest as you noticed that he'd definitely read your message. The same annoying worrisome thoughts intruded your mind once again, and this time it was difficult clearing them from your headspace. Today 15:09 Floch?✓ Unfortunately, the smile you had plastered on your face quickly faded away. You groaned under your breath, casually placing the hot beverage just at your lips, the scent of various warm spices tickled your nose as you precariously watched the chat bubbles appear then disappear, and reappear once again. The hot liquid almost scorched your mouth as you anxiously drew in a sip, and then another, all while waiting for his response. A sense of bile rose through your throat as the chat bubble disappeared and finally a response from Floch appeared. You read the message over and over again, trying to decipher if there was some hidden intent behind it. Floch❤️: I'm at your dorm building The page stilled for a moment when the second message of his came through. Floch ❤️: We need to talk 'We need to talk... that could only mean one thing.' In a complete utter panic, and with every intent on running to your dorm room, you forced your phone into the depths of your pocket. You carelessly cut a sharp right, the thoughts in your head running rampant as you headed for your dorm to see what it was exactly your boyfriend wanted to talk about. Your mistake was forgetting to double-check for any people around you before taking off into a sprint. Because now you came into contact with what felt like a slab of concrete in a head-on collision. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. The fresh latte flew from your grasp and tumbled onto the sidewalk, splashing you with its scorching hot liquid mid-process. Your purse fell from off of your arm as you landed flat on your back in front of everyone, and your victim had fallen to the ground with you- wait- on top of you? "I'm so fucking sorry," you hissed at the burning sensation from the drink, but also at the pain you felt from falling onto your back, the contents of your backpack digging into you. Hovering above you was a man dressed in a heather grey tracksuit. In one ear was an earbud, while the other earbud was detached and dangling in your face from the neck slit of his hoodie. A few pieces of his hair fell over his forehead and the sides of his face. You swore you could hear the faintest music pumping through his earbuds. You blinked a few times, unsure if you were seeing things clearly as he pushed himself off of you and held out a hand for you to take. Without another word, or any hesitation whatsoever, you placed your hand into his and he firmly clasped it, pulling you up onto the solid ground. The two of you bumped into each other but you promptly took a step back after you found your equilibrium. "I hope I didn't crush you, are you alright?" "Huh?" your eyelashes fluttered together rapidly, snapping yourself out of the weird trance you were in. The unnamed man chuckled dryly, "are you okay? That was quite a nasty fall. I hope I didn't break you or anything," he said with a hint of amusement in his voice, but overall it seemed that he was genuinely concerned about your well-being. "Oh, yeah, I'll be okay," you said, taking a look at your ruined jacket and shirt that was damp and beginning to grow cold from the latte, "shit." His intense light brown eyes stared down past your feet, examining the spoilt cup of coffee and the rest of the scene itself. "Here," he scooped up your purse from off of the ground for you. You awkwardly accepted your purse from the man and readjusted both straps of your backpack on your shoulders. As he stood in front of you, you couldn't help but stare at him, fully taking in his features. He was tall. Much taller than your boyfriend. His long jaw was sharp and perfectly lined with facial hair. His hair was long and a nice shade of light ash-brown and seemed to be shaved on the sides like an undercut. But, it was hard to tell since locks and strands of his hair were sporadic from the fall. Some pieces of his hair were stuck to his forehead from a thin layer of sweat. It was now that you realized how his chest was rising and falling rather rapidly with quick heavy breaths. It seemed that he'd been on a jog before you came crashing into him, at least it would explain the outfit. "Again, I'm sorry for running into you like a crazy person," you breathed out an anxious breath, "but I have to get going now, I have somewhere to be." You snatched the littered coffee cup from off of the ground and shoved it into the nearest wastebasket as you cleared the scene. You could've sworn that you heard the man calling out to you, but you refused to turn around, leaving him in the same exact spot of the incident. All you wanted to do was get to your dorm, talk to your boyfriend, and change clothes. **************** "Hey babe," you said uneasily as you saw Floch standing outside of your dorm. Floch had his back pressed against the door, his eyes glued to his phone, and his face was expressionless as the blue light fanned over his skin. When he heard your voice, he slowly tucked his phone away into his front pants pocket. Forwarding his attention to you, you opened your arms widely to greet him with a hug, but at the last second, you decided against it due to your damp top. "What the hell happened to you? You look like shit," he said with a slight chuckle as he examined your appearance. His words stung a great amount, causing you to bite at the inside of your lip, but you ignored him. "I fell on my way over here, my latte spilled on me in the process," you groaned, remembering the incident that happened not even ten minutes ago. "Do you want to come inside and talk while I change out of this mess?" You asked, heading for the door with your key. "No, I wanted to make this quick actually," he exhaled uneasily. "Okay," you wrapped your arms around your chest, holding onto yourself tightly. Your pulse quickened at the suspense, and the air around you could be cut with a knife while you waited for him to speak. It felt like an eternity had passed until those dreadful words left his lips. "There's no easy way for me to say this, so I'm just going to come right off the bat by saying that I think we should break up and see other people." Those dreadful words felt like the ripping of a bandaid, that or a complete slap to the face. The horrible predictions you tried to ignore happened to be true. Oh, how you wished you were wrong. You stared at him like a deer caught in headlights, trying to make sure that you heard him correctly. "Wha.. what?" you croaked, your mouth was dry. The silence was deafening, and the ringing sensation buzzed your ears. You watched as Floch's mouth moved, but no words could be heard over the persistent ringing in your ears. Floch gracelessly went for a hug, and even though you wanted to hug him- cling onto him and try to talk things out, he'd already let go of you. The bitter scent of citrus, the smell of him, plagued you and almost brought you to your knees with a wave of emotions following along with it. "I'm sorry," you were finally able to hear him once again. "Floch... can't we just step inside my room and talk things over?" You didn't want to sound like you were begging for him to stay, but you didn't just want to break up as if your relationship meant nothing either. "Are you sure about this?" You and Floch had been dating for not as long as Thomas and Mina were dating, but you two were going to be going on three months whenever the next month arrived. The two of you met on your first day at university, somehow he charmed you in a dorkish-way and the rest was history. And all this time you were thinking that you were in love with him. "(Y/N), it's been fun, but I think we'd just be better off going separate ways," Floch took two steps back as he stared at you, but your eyes weren't on him, but rather at his feet. "Again, I'm sorry for this." The sounds of footsteps grew distant until there was no more sound left, as your eyes stayed nailed to the spot where he once stood. He was gone. For good. You blinked an infrequent amount of times, only being pulled out of your hypnotic state when the sound of people walking down the hall caught your attention. As soon as you looked up to examine the hall, you made contact with some girl who was blatantly staring at you. Ignoring the unknown girl, you turned to your door and fumbled with the lock and key for more than a handful of tries. But eventually, you pushed through the oak door with a breeze you closed it behind you. As soon as you were alone in the dimly lit room is when a wave of emotions overcame you and the tears began rolling uncontrollably.
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