#a pair of jeans my mother got in the 70s is still in use

[justkending]

Moral of the Story. Chapter Four.

Summary: Marrying too young out of highschool leads to a naive and failed marriage. Now 10 years later, word comes that the divorce was never actually completed. Bucky and Y/N have to come back together after all this time to settle what wasn’t all those years back. Passive attitudes, miscommunicated endings, and reminiscing of old loves and lives all comes back for the two.

Pairing: Bucky x Y/N

Word Count:

A/N: 

Chapter Four:

Bucky groaned as the alarm blared throughout the room. Rolling over to his side, he threw his head into the pillow. That didn’t stop the beeping like he had hoped, so with a groan he pushed up, smacking the red numbers that screamed at him. He rolled back onto his back and blinked up at the bare ceiling.

Today was the day…

_________________

Y/N couldn’t seem to sleep at all, so she woke up early at 6:30 jumping into the shower. Having the extra time, she took it to have a nice long soak in the hot water. The schedule of the day running through her mind.

The chance of them running into each other was practically at 100%. They had a time frame of 9-10 to get in and sign what they needed. Mr. Murdock said something along the lines that it would take about 30-45 minutes to get everything finalized and copied. 

So yeah… Within an hour frame of needed 30-45 minutes of signing shit and getting multiple copies made, meant Bucky and her would most likely be sitting next to the other as it was done. 

She let out a tired and irritated moan as she finally decided to turn off the water. She had it running for so long, her hands were prunes and the water was becoming lukewarm. The world was telling her to suck it up and move on with the day. 

____________

The car ride there was dreadful. Every stop light just elongated the inevitable meeting. Every turn brought him closer to the terrifying reunion. 

He was running early to begin with, but after hitting traffic from a wreck, he was now running just a few minutes behind. So weaving through the people who didn’t understand New York traffic was his specialty in showing up in time. 

____________

She stopped at the coffee shop by her house before really heading to the attorneys office. The car ride to the place was easy and smooth on her end. From coming from the outskirts of Brooklyn, the inner city traffic was avoided for the most part. So she was there early. She even had a second to sit in her car and drink the latte she had bought. Something about Brooklyn latte’s was 10x better than anything California had.

Maybe it had something to do with the fact they actually had cold weather to pair the hot drink with, whereas where she now lived, the lowest low in temperatures was 70 degrees. 

________________

Getting there with just 3 minutes to spare, Bucky rushed out of the car and walked with a hint of speed to the door that read Nelson and Murdock Law Firm. 

No sign of Y/N yet, but as he walked in, he heard a shout from the street that caused him to turn as soon as he walked in. He didn’t have a second to register what the shout was about as he took two steps in and ran straight into someone’s back. 

“Whoa!” he said, using his hands to brace himself on the mystery person's shoulders, and the other person making the same exclamation. “Oh God, I’m so sor-”

Before he could finish the apology, the women turned showing the face of his matured high-school-sweetheart. 

“Oh,” he let out in a breathy turn. He could tell just from past experience with her, she had a snarky comment on her tongue at the run in, but upon seeing him, the words died on her lips. “Hey.”

She looked great. Like, really great after all these years. Not that she wasn’t a beautiful gal to begin with, but you never know how someone’s going to age. However, she looked almost the same. 

Sure, she had aged some, but just like a nice bottle of the finest wine in all the vineyards of California. Maybe that was her secret given her new home. 

Her Y/H/C hair was styled in loose curls. It was voluminous with a healthy shine to it. She had on an off white, canvas dress that cinched at the waist with buttons going down it. And she had a layered gold necklace going down her chest where the buttons were undone. She looked both professional yet casual at the same time. 

Bucky realized he had been staring when she awkwardly looked around her trying to not pay attention to his analyzing eyes. 

“Hey,” she said, letting out a deep breath. 

She didn’t miss how good he looked either. Even in those facebook pictures that she had found the night before, the ones she found him just as attractive, they didn’t do the real man justice. His hair was just as long as the most recent picture his mother had posted, and he looked more muscular than she ever remembered. The scrubs didn't do his build justice. 

He was wearing a navy blue v-neck tight fitting t-shirt. A brown leather jacket that looked as though it was tailored specifically for him and him alone. And lastly, he had on a pair of jeans that of course, fit in him all the right places. 

There was a very awkward silence as they stood there not knowing what else to say. Neither now looking at the other, but instead looking at every little inanimate object item in the office. 

After what felt like eons of the most tense silence to exist, Bucky was about to speak up again, but was cut off from another person running in late.

“Oh, gosh. I’m so sorry guys,” the voice sighed, out of breath from what they presumed was running to get there on time. “Foggy was supposed to pick me up and we were going to ride together, but he got food poisoning last night, so I had to take the train last minute.”

The man had dark brown hair, a nice suit, and a pair of sunglasses on even though it was overcast today and the sun was barely peeking through the heavy clouds. 

“Foggy?” Y/N asked with a tilt of her head. 

Bucky turned back looking at her with the same question on his mind, but watching the small action of confusion brought him back 10 years. God, it had been so long he had almost forgotten the little mannerisms she had that he found adorable. And damn her for still having that adorable action. 

“Oh, right. Franklin Nelson. My co-attorney,” he nodded. “We’ve been friends since we were in college. Friends call him Foggy.”

“Oh, I see,” Y/N nodded with a kind smile. 

“Anyway, I won’t bore you with my morning chaos. I’m sure you two are ready to get this over with and go on about your day,” he smiled, and pulled a walking stick out from around him as he closed the door. One that neither had realized he had been holding until now. “You two much be James and Y/N. It’s nice to meet you, I’m Matthew Murdock.

“It’s nice to meet you Matthew,” Y/N replied sweetly.

“Yes, thank you for helping us out,” Bucky nodded, placing his hands nervously in his pockets. 

“It’s my pleasure. I’m so sorry about everything that you guys are having to fix,” he said apologetically. But I’m sure you guys want to go about your day, so please, right this way,” he motioned to the door that was across from them. 

Bucky and Y/N both shared an impressed look on their faces as they watched him maneuver through the office gracefully. 

They followed close behind him and once they were seated in the chairs in front of the desk, Bucky began to fidget in his spot. Sure the office had been redone and really didn’t look much like it had all those years ago, but the layout was the same. And all it was doing to him was bringing back memories he hated trudging back to the surface. 

He subtly looked over at Y/N and saw her sitting in perfect posture watching Matthew as if if she were to look at him and only him, then she wouldn’t have to face Bucky. 

Why did he expect anything less? Of course she hated him just as much as she had all those years. She was probably dreading this meeting just as much as him. That small speck of hope that maybe they could be somewhat normal and civil upon meeting again after all this time, completely faded at that point. 

“Ok, this really shouldn’t take all that much time since Foggy and I went ahead and wrote up all the things that needed signed and double checked. So we should be able to breeze through all this,” Matthew nodded, bringing up a thick file that looked as though it had tabs on the side organizing them. 

Y/N looked over wondering just how he knew the difference between documents and noticed on each tab, there were bariel markings along them. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, out of all places to live, why New York? It’s got to be hard getting around such a crazy busy city given.. ” Bucky asked, but didn’t finish not sure how to word it. Y/N snapped her head in his direction and smacked his arm. “Ow!” Bucky jumped, sending her raised eyebrows. “What the hell?”

“I’m assuming you’re asking because of this,” Matthew laughed casually as he pointed to his glasses. “Don’t worry. You would be surprised just how often I get asked that.”

“Yeah, it was just a question,” Bucky pouted toward Y/N while rubbing his assaulted arm. The two falling back into their old behaviors rather fast. 

“I wasn’t always blind. I mean I have been for a good chunk of my life, but I’ve lived in New York my whole life as well,” Matthew went on to explain as he moved papers around. “If anything it would be harder for me to get around if I moved any place else. I know this place like the back of my hand.”

“That’s impressive,” Bucky nodded, getting comfortable in his seat. 

“Eh, it’s either learn or get bumped around the sidewalk of a place full of people who don’t give a second glance to anyone who’s in their way,” Matthew shrugged. “Oh, I need to go grab something before we start.”

He maneuvered through the room leaving the door open as he went across the office. Tension filled the air as they were left alone for a second time in the past 5 minutes. 

Y/N was sitting straight forward, her eyes wandering here and there around the meeting room, but careful not to go over to Bucky’s side of the room. He looked down seeing her hands were fiddling in her lap. She was tapping her thumbs together while his leg bounced up and down.

Bucky had opened his mouth to start to say something, but even he wasn’t sure what was about to come out. Lucky for him, Matthew came back in and went back to his seat. 

“Sorry about that. I thought I had it all, but needed to get some pens and one last paper I left on the printer last night.”

“You’re fine,” Y/N said professionally, but kindly. “I have one quick question, if you don’t mind.” Matthew nodded her on with a soft smile. “What exactly happened to Hammer after all this chaos was discovered?”

“Oh, yes. He, uh, he will not be an issue to anyone else to put it lightly. His license was revoked and terminated and he is currently on trial for money laundering and malpractice,” he answered. 

“Serves him right,” Bucky mumbled, and instead of getting a smack to the arm, Y/N nodded in agreement. 

“Ok, if you two are ready, let’s begin,” Matthew smiled before grabbing the first set of papers. 

The two straightened in their seats and the process began.

After a few minutes of just signing, Matthew started to make notes of updated information for the two. 

“Ok, Mrs. Barnes, sorry, Y/N,” he corrected quickly. “What is your line of profession at the moment?”

“I work at Horizon Labs in L.A. It’s a company a friend and I from college started up. I’m a Sustainable-Conscious Financial Advisor for a lot of smaller businesses as well as some bigger ones we recently just became partners with,” she answered. 

“Horizon Labs, huh?” Matthew said with an impressed look. Bucky turned to look at her as she lightly blushed. “I think I listened to a podcast about them. You guys help companies use recycled goods and find energy efficient technology, right?”

“We just redirect them to people who can help them get those resources. It’s practically just connecting the companies that would work great together in helping the environment,” she nodded humbly. 

“That’s amazing,” Matthew smiled. “We need more people and companies like that.”

“Thank you.”

He made note of that on a computer. “I’m assuming with all that, you have to be a little too busy for a second job, right? I don’t need to make note of another?”

“Uh, actually,” she added, Bucky’s already focused eyes on her quirked at her response. “I just invested in a Woman’s shelter with another friend of mine. I haven’t really got to do much with it, but it is a second job as of lately.”

“Wait? Nat?” Bucky caught on.

“Uh, yeah,” she nodded almost shyly. Probably the second time out of this whole meeting that she actually made eye contact with him. “My company works with them in getting some of the resources and items they need for the shelter. I talked with Nat and I invested into it some to help with some with their financial advisements.” 

“Wow, th-that’s,” Bucky faltered. “That sounds like you,” he said with a breathy laugh thinking about how maybe she really hadn’t changed all these years. That being one of the ‘reasons’ they had broken it off, how people change and all. But that’s a story for another time.

Y/N didn’t show a response to his words, but she did take them in. 

“So you run a woman’s home and you run a well-off business that promotes eco-friendly resources for the environment?”

“Well, I don’t run the woman’s home. That’s all my friends doing. I just help where help is asked if I can,” she answered once again humbly. No sense of egotistical pride hinted in her explanations or answers. 

“That’s extremely impressive Y/N,” Matthew gushed some, and Bucky noticed the smallest form of attraction come off the lawyer. He straightened at that. “I’ll make a note of it. And you Mr. Barnes. What is your occupation?”

Bucky relaxed his shoulders and focused back at the issue at hand. Trying to not get jealous of something that wasn’t even his to be jealous of. 

“I’m one of the head occupational therapist at Stark Theracorp,” he answered. Now it was Y/N’s turn to look at him intrigued. “I run the geriatric occupational therapy floor and manage our equipment and employees. ”

“Two very impressive people in the work field from what I’m getting,” Matthew chuckled some as he made the notes. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have to ask about income from the both of you for the record. If you want to write it on a paper and hand it to me you can or if you are comfortable saying it outloud that works too. Either way, I’ll have Foggy add it in later to the finalized papers.”

“Wait, so we aren’t finalizing it today?” Y/N asked, somewhat shocked. 

“Did Foggy not tell you?” Matthew asked. “I thought he reached out to you before this meeting.”

“I don’t believe so,” Y/N shook her head. 

“Well, the reason this one is so quick is because I just need a few signatures and updated notes on you two. After that, I’ll make the altercations for the official papers and I’ll send those to you both on their own to get the final signature. You can either bring them to me here, fax them, or have them sent via mail after you signed off on them.”

“Oh, I see,” Y/N nodded. The look of defeat in her posture and facial expressions.

It hurt Bucky a little seeing her reaction to it. Did she really want to get away from him that bad? Was he that much of a nuisance in her life? I mean, yeah, they were supposed to be divorced 9 years ago, but he didn’t want it then and it still hurt seeing just how much she wanted it now. 

“That’s not an issue is it? I’m terribly sorry for the inconvenience,” Matthew apologized. 

“No, no. It’s ok,” she said in reassurance to him. But she let out an almost bitter laugh before she spoke again. “We’ve been married for the past 9 years apparently. What’s a few more days?”

“I guess that’s true,” Matthew laughed with her. 

Bucky rolled his eyes discreetly. He really hated how she was reacting with all this. It wasn’t surprising, but doesn’t mean it hurts any less seeing how badly she wanted out of the situation.  

“Mr. Barnes, are you ok with that?” 

“I’ll survive a few more days, I guess,” he returned just as bitterly as Y/N. The two looked at each other one more time, but this time, anger and annoyance was clear on both of their faces.

If you would like to be tagged in this series, please send an ask! It keeps things more organized for me. If you comment, I most likely will not add because I loose them:)

- Tags will be closing soon.

Moral of the Story Taglist:

@taylormobley @ximaginx @vicmc624 @leyannrae @lonerlovescompany @jessyballet @angstysebfan @tita127 @semistablecentenarian @im-a-light-child @alyssahowden @studiesinspanish @natyvwe @rebekahdawkins@fanfictionjunkie1112 @millennial-teenybopper @scotlandasshole @aquariusbarnes @shinykoalacat​

Marvel Tags:

@thejourneyneverendsx​ @death-unbecomes-you​ @heyiamthatbitch​ @lizzymacy555​  @srrymydood​ @xa-dia​ @redhairedfeistynerd​ @morganclaire4​ @connie326​ @captain-asguard​ @mollygetssherlockcoffee​ @teenagedreams-bucky​ @shower-me-with-roses​ @pham-tastical @livstilinski​

My Lovelies forever:

@natura1phenomenon​ @lauravicente​ @kakakatey​ @traceyaudette​ @notyourtypicalrose​  @laneygthememequeen​ @awesome-badass-cafeteria-sauce​ @sandlee44​ @thorne93​ @thefaithfulwriter​ @essie1876​ @greyeyedsmile14​ @capsiclehan​  @xostephanie​ @averyrogers83​ @awesomenursingstudent​ @gh0stgurl​ @cs-please​ @carls1022​ @jjlevin​ @rainbowkisses31​ @anise-d-castle6​ @deannotmoose​ @their-bibliophile​ @kitkatd7​ @willowbleedsonpaper​ @mariaenchanted​ @snffbeebee​ @couldabeenamermaid​ @rebekahdawkins​ @alyispunk​ @princess-annna

Bucky Barnes Tags:

@chloe-skywalker​ @charmedbysarge​ @jbarness​ @bellamy-barnes​ @katiaw2​ @aikeia​ @stopjustlovethemcu​

[my-emotional-self]

Toxic Love Chapter 6

Pairings: Steve Rogers x Reader, Bucky Barnes x Reader, Steve Rogers x Reader x Bucky Barnes

Summary: Finding out your soulmates were Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes was one thing.  But when someone from your past comes back to haunt you, you have to figure out if a relationship with two super soldiers is something you really want to pursue or if you’d rather go back to your comfortable single life.

Series Warnings:  18+, Swearing, Angst, Fluff, past mentions of rape, self-harm, attempted rape, domestic violence, stalking, death threats, possible Dark!Steve?, Steve will be an asshole a LOT in this series but I don’t know how dark it will get, explicit sexual content, mental health issues, kind of A/B/O dynamics but not really (no they are not actual wolves, more like the hierarchy), mentions of suicide, flashbacks of suicide, nightmares

A/N: There will be no taglist for this story!  I apologize in advance!

After Steve and Bucky helped you get everything unpacked, the three of you enjoyed some take-out. Pizza to be exact.  Well, the same pizza you had earlier with them.  You had been craving it for the last two weeks and your stomach was very happy.  

“Did you make your grocery list yet?” Bucky asked as he took care of the cleaning up.  

You couldn’t help but laugh. As you were unpacking the few items you had for your personal kitchen, you began playing with the screen on the refrigerator.  You couldn’t believe the high tech gadget and while it took you nearly an hour, you finally figured out how to add groceries to the list.  

“I did.  I’m surprised I was able to figure it out, it only took me about an hour,” you responded.

This made Bucky full out laugh.  “An hour? That’s actually impressive.  It took Steve here almost a month to figure it out before he finally gave up and asked for help.”

Trying to hide your smirk, you turned to look at Steve.  He had a scowl on his face as he was looking at Bucky.  “Let’s not forget I was frozen for 70 years.  I’m still trying to learn all this damn technology.”

Leaning over you pressed a kiss to Steve’s temple.  “Don’t worry about it Steve.  Other than my gaming setup, I’m not too big on technology either.”

~~~

“Dad, I’m home!” you called out to your father as you shut the front door to the run down farmhouse.  It was just the two of you now ever since your mother’s death one year ago today.  You didn’t want to go to school, you wanted to stay home.  Stay in bed.  But your father said it would be best to try and continue on like it was any other normal day.  It would never be a normal day.  Ever again.

As you turned the corner and into the living room, you saw him. Your father.  Dead.  Hanging from the wooden ceiling beam with a noose around his neck.  “Dad?” you choked out, not believing that this was happening again.  “No. No, no, no, no, NO!” you screamed as you ran to him.  Upon touching his leg you knew it was too late.  Way too late.  He was so cold to the touch.  It had been hours since he committed suicide and you weren’t here for him.  

“Why dad!  WHY DID YOU DO THIS!  DON’T LEAVE ME PLEASE!  DON’T LEAVE ME ALONE!!” you cried and begged but it was no use.  He too was now gone.  

~~~

You jolted awake by the feeling of hands on you.  Your breathing was ragged and you were dripping in sweat.  Both Steve and Bucky on either side of you; their eyes filled with worry.

“Are you alright?” Steve questioned.  

“How..did you…get in…here,” you replied as you tried to catch your breath.  These kinds of nightmares always made you feel like you had just ran a marathon.  

“F.R.I.D.A.Y alerted us that your heart rate was going through the roof.  You scared us half to death with your screaming doll,” Bucky spoke quietly in the dark room.  “You feel warm,” he said as he placed the back of his flesh hand over your forehead.

Shrugging him away as nicely as possible, you got out of bed.  “I’m fine.  I’m just going to take a cool shower.  Thanks for coming to check on me though.”

Inside the confines of your bathroom you opened the medicine cabinet and took out a couple of bottles. Filling up a glass of cold water, you placed the pills in your mouth and downed the entire glass.  

It had been months since you last had a nightmare.  To be honest, you thought they were finally done with, until you realized the todays date. Of course.  It was the anniversary of your parents’ death.  How could you have forgotten?  Oh right.  You had met your soulmates and spent the entire day moving into your new place.  Now you felt guilty for even forgetting in the first place.  

As you stripped of your sweat soaked clothing, you hopped into the shower.  The water mixed with your tears as you quietly sobbed and asked your parents for forgiveness.  

~~~

When you got out of the shower, Steve and Bucky were no longer in your room.  Instead, you found a little note on your pillow.  

We didn’t know if we should give you space or wait for you so we will let you make that decision.  Let us know if you need us to come back tonight.  Try and get some sleep sweetheart.  

Steve and Bucky

Even though the note was sweet and thoughtful, you knew instantly that you would not be getting any more sleep tonight.  

By eight in the morning you were still awake and scrolling through social media when a text from Bucky came in.  

Bucky: Breakfast in the communal kitchen?  Everyone would like to meet you.

Oh god.  You were dreading this part.  You had already met Natasha, but to meet everyone else all at once? Anxiety began to creep over you. It wasn’t that you didn’t want to meet them, it was that you had anxiety about meeting people for the first time.

Y/N: Just give me a few minutes and I’ll be ready

Jumping out of bed you headed for the closet to try and figure out what to wear.  Was this casual?  Or was everyone going to be wearing their pajamas?  Did you want to dress to impress them?  Or did you want to be yourself?  You went with the latter, figuring if you were going to all be living under the same roof, they might as well get to know the real you.  

You put on a pair of black skinny ripped jeans and a plain forest green t-shirt.  Slipping your feet into your comfortable black flats, you were about to head out the door when you took a look at yourself in mirror.  Steve would blow a fuse at the dark circles under your eyes.  So you quickly placed some concealer under your eyes.  

Steve and Bucky were waiting for you in the kitchen and the three of you headed down to the communal living area.  They didn’t ask you about your nightmare and you were grateful for that.  

The elevator doors opened and for once, your stomach growled at the smell of breakfast in the morning. You loved breakfast food, but you weren’t big on eating in the morning.  Now breakfast for dinner, that was something you could eat every night.

Steve cleared his throat and everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at the three of you. Instantly you felt your face heat up.

“Everyone, this is our soulmate Y/N,” Steve spoke loud and clear.  He began pointing everyone out for you.  “That’s Tony, Pepper and Bruce.  You know Natasha of course and right there is Clint and Darcy.  Thor and Jane are still on Asgard but you’ll meet them another time.”

You awkwardly waved.  “Hey everybody.”

Tony was the first to come up to you and he shook your hand.  “Tony I can’t thank you enough for my rooms here.  They are perfect.”

He waved his hand like it was no big deal.  “Please. My gift to you.  And that is why I pay my interior designer the big bucks. She knows what she’s doing.  Now, if you need anything, anything at all, just ask F.R.I.D.A.Y and I’ll make it happen.  Happy to have you here kiddo.  Maybe you can keep those two out of trouble huh?”

“I’ll try,” you chuckled.

Just then Bruce came up and the two of you exchanged quiet ‘hellos’ before he and Tony were off to their lab, food and coffee in hand.  

“Hey, now that you’re here, maybe Cap will stop being such a grouch all the time now that he’ll get laid,” Clint blurted out and as quickly as the words left his mouth, Natasha smacked him upside the head.  “What? It’s the truth.  No offense Steve but you have been a real crab ass the last few months.”

“Shut up Clint!” Darcy spoke as she shoved him out of the way.  “Hi there.  I’m Darcy. Darcy Lewis.  Just ignore him.  He doesn’t think before he speaks.”

In that moment, you knew you were going to be good friends with Darcy.  “Nice to meet you Darcy.”

“Now I hear that you game, is that correct?” she began to say as the two of you piled food onto your plates and sat down.  

The morning didn’t go as bad as you thought.  The only downside was that it now seemed Steve was in a bad mood because of Clint’s big mouth. At least you were getting to know Darcy and Pepper and they both were really nice.  

Darcy asked you a lot of questions about your job and gaming.  She had even asked if she could sit in on a night that you worked so she could watch everything.  Of course you said she could.  Hell, it would be fun to have Darcy there.  

You were starting to get tired after not getting much sleep so you excused yourself and went back to your room.  Tonight would be the first night that you will be working at the tower and you wanted to try and get some rest.  You had a feeling it was going to be a long night.  

“Is everything alright sweetheart?” Steve’s voice startled you just as you were about to open your door.

“Jesus Steve, don’t sneak up on me like that,” you replied with a hand on your heart.  

“I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to.  I just wanted to make sure you were feeling alright.  Especially after last night is all.”

Dropping your hand from your chest, you gave him a tight smile and put your arms around his narrow waist, pulling him in for a hug.  “I’m ok Steve.  Just a little tired is all.”

He placed his chin on your head and held you in his arms.  You felt safe against him.  Like nothing or no one could ever hurt you.  You were starting to realize that maybe single life wasn’t what you truly wanted. Single life was just something that you had become accustomed to over the last year.  Maybe being in a relationship again would be better for you.

[doiefy]

yellow // na jaemin

genre: fluff, angst, soulmate!au, slice of life pairing: jaemin x gn. reader (feat. lucas) warnings: none word count: 1.4k

a (possibly non-canon?) epilogue to blue that i’ve been meaning to write for weeks and finally got around to. and just in time for my lovely beta reader @neojaems’ birthday!! hope you have an amazing day and thank you again for all your support while i was writing blue. love you bub <33

would definitely recommend reading blue before this (it’s a long one, but also my baby). there’s a lot on soulmate mechanics and the other characters here that probably won’t make sense without the context of blue.

You never realized how much you missed Seoul.

It wasn’t the busyness you missed—the hustle and bustle of city life was ever-present in Hong Kong where you’d moved to three summers ago—nor was it really the people you had to leave behind. And as a matter of fact, you hadn’t even thought much of Seoul while you were gone, too caught up in hectic schedules and settling into your new job. Only when you arrived in the Incheon Airport did you notice a certain emptiness being filled with the familiarities of your mother tongue, the sights and smells of your city, your home.

You supposed your home was no longer limited to just a city though, not when the love of your life had eagerly dropped everything to be next to you. Home was in his arms.

After everything, after Jungwoo and Mark and Donghyuck and Jaemin… it seemed so unreal. You’d reread the test papers again and again, struggling to decipher some of the intricate characters of a language you were still so clumsy with, scared you would wake up from some fantasy the universe had so cruelly shoved into your head. God knows how long you sat there, fingers tracing over the coloured stripe at the top of the page. But you never found a mistake in the results. You never woke up to the coldness of an empty bedroom. Your test had come back yellow.

The morning after your arrival in Seoul, you woke up just before sunrise, to comforting arms around your waist and the faintest sounds of morning traffic outside. You lay there for a few minutes, and when you realized there was no chance of you falling back asleep, slipped out of bed.

“Where are you going?” You heard Lucas murmur softly as you slipped into a pair of jeans and a sweater, his voice swallowed up by the pillows.

“Just taking a walk. Might grab us some breakfast while I’m at it.” You leaned over to press a gentle kiss to his forehead, brushed a few pieces of his brown hair aside. “I’ll be back in a bit.” He mumbled something in reply before promptly burying his head back into the duvet, and you felt the corners of your lips turn upwards fondly.

It was cold out; much colder than what you’d become accustomed to in Hong Kong. Autumn was upon you, and the cold wind swept away the scarce bit of warmth that’d accumulated in your layers of clothing. You made your way down the street towards the Han River, where you could watch the sunrise. The park was relatively empty at this hour; you could spot only a few joggers making their morning laps and a group of kids on the basketball court, passing a ball back and forth between them. You used to come here with Mark in the 70s, long before the city built sidewalks and fences and recreational centres, when there were only small paths leading down to the riverbank and an elderly man offering boat rides at the dock.

The leaves at your feet scattered, parting for you as if you were a gust of wind rushing past. They skittered along the sidewalk, rolled and tumbled over themselves, collected in piles next to the brick fences of the park and in the muddy puddles of the main road. The breeze danced by your side, laughing mischievously in your ear while trying to grab the cap you wore on your head.

Someone was sitting in your usual spot: the carved wooden bench by the waterfront that Mark had shown you years ago. You’d brought Donghyuck and Jaemin here, and you made a note to show Lucas as well when you took him on a tour of the city. But for the time being, you awkwardly made your way past him to look for a different spot. Until you recognized him.

He was just as you’d met him some eight or nine years ago—dark eyes, fair skin, a fitted black sweater and wool coat, his hair now dyed black and swept back neatly. He looked a bit older, more rugged than you remembered, weathered by age. A surge of memories washed over you and you stopped, wondering if you were seeing correctly.

“Jaemin?”

He looked up, shocked, confused. The two of you stood there for a moment, unmoving, as if both uncertain of what to say. You were suddenly aware of the blue pendant hidden beneath your shirt, the way the coldness of the glass pressing against your skin brought back memories of purple irises, glasses of wine, softly whispered words in the early morning hours.

“What are you doing here?” Jaemin asked, smiling as he invited you to sit down. “I haven’t seen you in years.” There was a certain sadness to his voice, and you couldn’t help but feel an unsettling bit of guilt in your chest. It was only inevitable that you drifted apart, you supposed, when your phone calls and text conversations came to a stop, when you began to busy yourselves with your own lives.

“I just got back. Last night,” you explained, sitting down next to him. Perhaps the decision to move back to Seoul was a bit abrupt, now that you thought about it. At least, abrupt enough that he didn’t hear about it through your friends.

“Hong Kong just wasn’t for you?” He raised a brow. “I heard it’s a beautiful city.”

You giggled, shaking your head. “It’s lovely there, Jaem.” The old nickname came naturally, and you didn’t know how to feel about it. “But I never intended to stay that long anyways. It wasn’t a permanent thing. It was just to…”

“Catch a break. Get away from all the changes here.”

You gave him an amused look. “How did you know?”

He smiled sadly. “You left so suddenly, I figured there was something bothering you… Mark getting married. Doyoung’s passing.” A pause. When he spoke again, his voice was small. Far from disappointed or bitter or sad, but quiet, thoughtful, in a way that reminded you of Jungwoo. “And me.”

“Not you, Jaem,” you murmured, looking wistfully out at the water and now reminiscing the summer you’d spent here with him. “Seoul is just… too many memories, too many emotions. Sometimes I need time away from all the reminders. To find some sort of calm.”

“Did you find what you were looking for then?”

For a moment, you thought he meant Lucas, and you wondered how he could’ve possibly known. You laughed, nodding.

“Yes,” you said. “And among other things. I found him. My soulmate.”

There was a moment of surprise before his face lit up with a genuine smile. Some time ago, maybe he would have thrown his arms around you in a bone-crushing hug. Some time ago, he might have taken your hand, told you he was thrilled for you, kissed you on the cheek, whispered something only the two of you could understand. But as much as your mind drifted to those times, you were content with what it was now.

“Oh my gosh, you found them,” he repeated excitedly as he held you at an arm’s length. “What’s he like?”

“He’s, well—” You paused for a brief moment before continuing shyly. “His name is Lucas. And… he’s wonderful, Jaem. He’s funny, he’s kind, he’s smart… I got lucky.”

“Not lucky,” he corrected you, beaming. “You deserve each other.” He sighed, and his eyes glazed over, the way they did whenever he broke away from the present reality to visit some moment in the past. “You deserve so much, Y/N. So much more than what I gave you, you know?”

“Don’t discredit yourself like that,” you chided him lightly and he laughed, shaking his head.

“I’m happy for you. Really.”

Happy that the universe finally gave you what you needed most, his eyes seemed to say. Happy that after all these years, you still remembered him. So many unspoken words, but there was no need to vocalize them—you sat there in comfortable silence, and you knew. It almost felt like old times: wordlessly watching the sun rise over the city, watching the world come alive from slumber. Knowing that you were in two different worlds, yet not quite apart either. Your paths would continue to diverge; you would return to the boy asleep at home and he to the girl waiting for him, you to your life and he to his. But the diverging of two lines could only mean that they’d intersected at some point in the past.

The sky glowed golden above you.

[extremelyblackandwhite]

innocence - 02

PAIRING: bodyguard!bucky barnes x innocent actress!reader

WARNINGS: age gap

A/N: i’m still stunned at how many of you are enjoying this story. thank you so so much for your support. much love xx

NEXT CHAPTER

Bucky always woke up at 5AM and waking up at 5 AM was already considered a victory for him - to sleep through the night. Once the digital clock flashed 5 AM in electric red, his eyes were wide open, the sight of constant darkness being the only thing he could see. His routine was precise, as precise as time itself and it barely changed - gym then a dark cup of coffee followed by reading whatever coffee side table book Steve would linger around.

Y/N, unlike him, didn’t have a precise routine. She enjoyed routine but her mornings were always her own time, away from everything. On her free days she would try to wake up by at least 10. After she was fully awake she would turn on the TV in her bedroom and turn on the kettle for a nice tea. She would then lay in bed, surrounded by her blankets and dressed in an oversized cardigan while some random show played.

Bucky’s mornings were always filled with people coming in and out, that was life living in the Avengers headquarters. Some mornings he thought about moving into the apartment in Brooklyn but that would just upset Steve. Heck, he didn’t even know Bucky had bought the apartment, it had been an impulse buy and he would go there every week to check on it. However, Brooklyn wasn’t as close to Y/N’s in SoHo so he guessed he would stay. Y/N’s mornings on the other hand were quiet, too quiet. It was just her, just her in a two bedroom apartment in the middle of wealthy SoHo.

      - Morning, Buck. - Steve, like always, walked into the kitchen, coffee mug saying number one dad in hand. He always had this smile that Bucky couldn’t find the words, a smile that was almost glad that he was still alive yet pitiful. The pure look of someone who’s been burdened, a mother to a child’s look, one she didn’t want. - Excited for guarding your first client?

      - Feels more like guarding property. - he mumbled over the dark coffee, chugging it all before anymore questions could be asked. 

It shouldn’t be a hard day, he thought to himself, mostly looking after her if she decided to go out for anything. He had looked into her profile, she was an easy target. Almost always wearing heels, flowey clothing, things that wouldn’t help her if someone was after her. Anyway, looked like an easy job, easier than saving the world.

Meanwhile, Y/N was laid in the middle of her covers, remote in hand as she skimmed through the channels. Looking around she noticed the loneliness she was in, the empty walls decorated with her own choosing but still empty. No sounds, too quiet. 

She rose from the bed, big socks touching the cedar wood floor as she padded up to the kitchen. The agency had had everything decorated and the fridge stocked but as she opened the door she couldn’t find a single thing she wanted to eat. Disappointed, she closed the fridge, leaning against it to look at the rest of the flat. It was quiet, too quiet, filled with the sounds of quiet if that was even a physically possible thing. She let herself slide down the fridge front, sitting on the floor as she thought about what to do. She didn’t have her script yet, or at least more than two pages of it and going outside was the least thing she wanted to do today.

Y/N was about to fall asleep on the ground against her fridge, she heard footsteps. Quickly, she got onto her feet, rushing over to the door so fast she almost slipped. Pushing the peep hole away she put herself on her tippy toes to see if one of the neighbours was home.

     - Y/N, are you staring out the peep hole? - the person whose steps belonged too was definitely better than any neighbour. Quickly, she unlocked the door, pushing the metal that held it shut to the wall and opened it to see Bucky in a much more casual attire than before. Red henley with some loose dark jeans looked better in her opinion. - If you hear someone it’s always a terrible idea to use the peep hole. Almost always let’s them know someone’s in.

     - Then what are peep holes for? - Bucky playfully rolled his eyes but not before observing what she was wearing. She looked more comfortable. - Do you wanna come in? 

     - Miss Olson said I am to wait outside your door until you want to leave the apartment.

     - What if someone broke my window and took me?

     - Trust me, Y/N. I would know and would win that fight. 

     - You sure you don’t wanna come in? I could cook you some breakfast. Whatever you like. - she had that shine in her eyes, Bucky couldn’t explain it. He just knew it didn’t felt forced but she surely was nervous judging by the pushing of her oversized cardigan’s sleeve to cover her hand. - The agency filled my fridge with so much food I don’t know what to do with it.

     - I’m not a breakfast kind of person, Y/N.

     - Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. - her small hand came to rest over his wrist, pulling at it so he would go inside. He found it amusing how someone who was much shorter than him, head barely hitting his collarbones, would try to move him. Although, surprising wasn’t the fact that he moved but the fact that she touched him, she touched the Winter Soldier.

Bucky wasn’t a kid anymore, he wasn’t naive and he lacked Steve’s “all good” view of the world so he knew what people thought of him. They thought he had been of use but at the end of the day he had been the Winter Soldier for 70 years. They didn’t dare touch him but her she was inviting him into her home and touching him as if he were an old friend.

Once he got in, he immediately looked at everything. There were fake flowers everywhere in little glass jars, if they were broken and she were trying to escape she would get hurt, too many windows and not a lot of mirrored surfaces, people could look in. 

     - Would you like some pancakes? French toast? - her voice interrupted his inspection. - My mom was a cook, I can cook pretty much whatever you want. Can’t promise it will be as good as a cook’s but it’ll be edible.

     - You really don’t need to feed me, Y/N. - his gaze returned to her apartment, open doors everywhere.

     - I just thought ... since you’re going to be around a while we should be friendly with each other. - she looked down at her feet before looking up again, head slightly looking to the side. - I don’t know anyone in here, I didn’t even pick this apartment so I thought I would at least get to know you.

She felt ashamed, heat seemed to radiate from her cheeks to her whole body. Back at the theatre everyone knew each other, they all had show themed hoodies and would say hi whenever they came in and left but things in Hollywood were different. In her first movie she had made friends with only one cast member who still spoke to her but everyone else did their job and returned to their lives without a single hello. She thought that maybe knowing Bucky would make having someone constantly in her life a bit easier but she understood his position.

Bucky himself seemed to read that all on her face and as he did a thought popped into his head “they are gonna eat her alive”. 

     - Let’s try that French Toast. - she smiled at his answer, once again pulling his hand towards the kitchen. It was spacious for a SoHo flat, with cut edge technology and also a very visible knife set. He would have to tell her to put that somewhere else. 

She on the other hand quickly assembled all she needed, placing it on the marble countertop, a happy grin on her face as she started to prepare the meal. It reminded him of memories he had tried to suppress.

     - Mum’s a cook, why are you an actress? - those memories were still memories he wasn’t ready to get back and as such he reckoned speaking with her would keep it out. 

     - I don’t really know how to explain it. - she smiled, pulling a few hair strands behind her ear. - My mum took me to a musical after I didn’t get cast in the nativity play. It was Phantom of the Opera, I just remembered that chandelier rising and crashing and the energy of the performers. There was just ... that was time stopping and rushing at the same time. And the look on the performers faces as they finished a piece, god it was just, I had never seen and I don’t think I have ever seen such passion in someone’s face. 

Bucky moved his head ever so slightly, she seemed to be lost in her own memories, a daydream gaze washing over her features. He wondered what it was like to have memories to be proud of.

     - I’m sorry, I must sound like a sap. Why do you become a bodyguard?

     - I like a challenge.

     - That’s what you told me yesterday. - she placed a beautiful set plate in front of him. Beautiful things make beautiful things, that’s what his mother once told him. Maybe she was right.

     - What can I say, I’m not that interesting. 

     - I don’t know if that’s true. - she added a coffee cup to the French Toast, before pulling a chair. - You know, if I’m at home you don’t need to be outside my door, you can come in.

     - I wouldn’t want to intrude on your personal space.

     - It’s not really my personal space. The agency bought the flat and decorated it themselves so I guess it’s just the space I live in. I don’t really know the city yet so you’re mostly waiting outside for nothing. - she shrugged.

    - How long have you been in New York?

    - A little over 5 months. I was in California during my last movie and prior to that I was living in Haymarket in London. How long have you been in New York?

    - I was born in Brooklyn, about half hour away from here. Lived here my whole life ever since ... at least the part of it I could control.

Bucky waited to see that pity look, the one everyone in the team seemed to give them whenever they looked at him but she didn’t. She merely wrapped her hand around his, caring smile of someone who almost looked proud he existed or proud he was alive. They’re gonna eat her alive, he thought to himself once again.

    - Hey, you could show me around. - she suggested, jumping from the high chair onto the floor.

    - I don’t hang around SoHo, Y/N. 

    - Well, you could show me Brooklyn. Isn’t Coney Island in Brooklyn?

    - You wanna go to Coney Island? - he chuckled. - I don’t think your agency would enjoy that. Too public.

    - They don’t need to know. - she smirked playfully. - If you don’t tell them they won’t know.

    - You’re a celebrity, trust me you’ll be noticed. 

    - You said on your CV you were good at blending and disappearing into a crowd. Please, I’ll get you whatever you want in Coney Island.

    - Whatever I want? - he furrowed his eyebrows at her and she nodded. - Alright, Y/N.

taglist: @disasterbii @lookiamtrying @buckysteveloki-me @nsfwsebbie @americasass81 @jamesbarnesappreciationclub @lostinthebeans @mariahthelioness29 @buckyandsebastian @peaches-roses-sins @theadorasabditory @sipsteacasually @tonystankschild @saiyanprincessswanie @booktease21 @noiralei @learisa @everythingisoverrated @uglipotata72829 @naturalthrone22 @husherstan @mandiiblanche @vicmc624 @newyorkgoddess​ 

[benevolentsam]

They hit up a Goodwill a week before Sam's 16th birthday. It's kind of an apology, since Dean and their dad would be gone again before April let out. Sam tried not to care. She'd buried the anger she felt when John had told her, spent so long scubbing a blood stain out of one of his shirts that she'd ripped a hole in it. Nothing she couldn't fix, but she hadn’t bothered. He hadn't asked about it, so she would worry about it later. Worry about her actual birthday later. Dean was taking her shopping and she couldn't remember the last time she had something new. A whole $25 dollars to spend on herself. The shelves were full of crap she'd never wear. There were knitted sweaters that just seemed too homely for someone without a home. Colourful tees, too bright. Sam liked dark colours, liked when the boys at school called her a witch. Maybe they'd seen The Craft one too many times. But if they stayed away from her, Sam didn't care. And when she saw the navy blue slip dress, she had to have it. It was worn in places, the fabric just a bit too thin, but Sam could sew it up if it tore. When she held it against herself, it rested perfectly. Maybe a bit big for her spindley body but. It was perfect enough. "Dean, look!" Dean frowned when he saw the dress. He had his fingers on another Metallica shirt, they slipped away. The space between them, only an aisle, felt like an ocean. "You know how Dad feels about dresses, Sammy," Dean said. And maybe he was right, because John was always funny when Sam dressed like a girl, but she still wanted it. Flashed Dean her prettiest eyes. "You know boys'll just try 'nd look up your skirt?" "It comes to my calf, I think it'd be a bit obvious if they tried," Sam laughed. Dean didn't. He worried his lip, frowned, forehead crinkling. "I'd wear a shirt under it, you know?" But Dean obviously wasn't convinced. So she hung the dress back up on the rack and went to look at jeans. Hoped there was a pair that fit her better than Dean's hand-me-downs. There were some other gems in the store. She found a Hole tape for her Walkman. There were some pulp crime novels that she could fill up her time with. A pair of blue jeans and a few worn out band tees. Punk bands from the 70s, stuff she barely recognised from the radio. And of course she bought Dean his new Metallica tee. She hoped he'd wear it when he was away on his next hunt, think of his little sister spending her sweet 16 alone. Maybe she was a little bitter. Tried harder not to care. And when they got in the Impala, Dean let her put in her new tape. He paused before he started the ignition. They sat, Sam waited but Dean didn't seem to want to move. Then- "I'm sorry, Sammy, I shouldn't have got snappy with you in the store." And was ready to forgive him, it's okay forever poised on the tip of her tongue. But Dean was thrusting something in her hands. "I'm sorry." Sam was holding a dress. The dress. It felt so soft in her hands. She flung her arms around her brother, hugged his neck so tight she accidentally choked him. "Thank you," she whispered. And she whispered it again and again until Dean was sick of hearing it. "Yeah, yeah, kiddo. Just don't tell Dad how much we spent because I had to five finger discount that." And they were back to their usual routine. Dean was frowning, trying to look cool. Like he didn't care about his little sister at all. Sam was smiling, trying not to think too far ahead. Like she didn't care her brother would be leaving in a couple of days. Again. She wore the dress the next day. She had school, and afterwards her and Dean were going for milkshakes and a movie. She wanted to look her best. Wanted to feel pretty, just once. So she wore the dress, Led Zeppelin shirt underneath, and combat boots. She pulled her tangled hair back, half up half down, clipped tight and out of her face. And maybe she was pretty. John was awake as she stepped out of the bathroom. Sat on the sofa cleaning his guns. He pulled a face when he saw his daughter. "Sammy, sweetheart, you look so... pretty," he said. There was a bottle of whiskey by his foot, not even 8am. He paused for a minute while Sam stood there, arm stretched across herself to hide her stomach. "You uh... You look just like your mother." And bile rose in the back of Sam's throat. So much so that she wanted to get changed. Rip the dress off and never wear it again. But Dean was stood by the door, car keys in hand and ready to go and Sam couldn't be late for school but God. She felt sick. She climbed in shotgun, bit back tears. "You do look pretty, Sammy," Dean said. "But you don't look like Mom. Don't even have the right hair colour. Dad's just sentimental, ya know?" Dean was laughing. Not a real laugh, but one to fill up the awkward space. And Sam was nodding, because she needed so desperately to believe him. "I know you’re not used to it, but it suits you. And if any guy gives you crap or creeps on ya, point ‘em out to me when I pick you up and I’ll kill ‘em. ‘Kay?" "Okay?" "Sam, you look good. Very... you." "Thanks, Dean." Because like Sam is all she really wanted to be.

@fascra

[wiypt-writes]

Riding On

Ch 18-Home Run

Summary: Frank’s competitive side comes out to play during an event at Mary’s school, and then he and Fliss get their first child free evening in well over 6 months.

Warnings:  Bad Language words, Smut (NSFW, 18+)

Pairing: Frank Adler x Fliss Gallagher

A/N:  Special thanks to @sweater-daddiesdumbdork​ for her little drabble which was posted as part of her Birthday Celebrations which I used in here.

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Fliss Gallagher and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Riding On Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Chapter 17

Taking more than her share, had me fighting for air, she told me to come, but I was already there 'Cause the walls start shaking, the Earth was quaking, my mind was aching and we were making it. And you shook me all night long, yeah, you shook me all night long

February 2020

Fliss watched as Frank adjusted the blue Red Sox hat on his head slightly, the baseball bat hanging loosely in one hand before he took up position, turning slightly to the side, his long fingers curling around the handle.

"Five bucks says he misses..." Bill spoke and Fliss gave him a dig in the ribs.

"No chance Poppa B" Mary laughed from where she stood in front of Fliss "Frank's got a wicked swing."

Fliss saw Frank who was laughing at something that one of the school teachers who was current performing the role of catcher before his face suddenly warped into one of utter concentrate as the pitcher wound up. Sure enough, a second or so later Frank swung the bat forward and with a satisfying cracking sound he connected with the baseball and set off at a sprint. Fliss and Mary cheered along with the rest of the crowd who had gathered to watch and Frank rounded first base, then onto second as the other guy positioned there had also started to make his way home. Frank made it to 3rd easily, and then Fliss spotted the expression on his face change as he glanced around and set off at a sprint clearly going for home. The gathered crowd started to yell as the ball came flying in towards the catcher but Frank was there just that little bit faster, dropping into a slide and his boot hit the little square marked out as home before the ball. He jumped up, a huge grin on his face as the other parents on the team all cheered and congratulated him, various other yells ringing out around the little playing field, Fliss, Mary, Bill and Verity joining in. 

"Told ya!" Mary shouted as she jumped up and down. "Home run!"

Fliss looked up at her dad who was chuckling as he watched Frank who was now doubled over, hands on his knees, catching his breath. He wiped at his dirty jeans, which were covered in the orange dust from the school playing field and glanced over towards them, shrugging playfully. 

"Well considering he said he would rather stick hot pins in his eyes than play in the Staff v Parents game he looks like he's enjoying himself." Bonnie grinned as she gently placed a hand on Fliss shoulder, leaning over to pull a face at Alex. The 6 month old baby grinned and waggled his arms furiously letting out a loud giggle, a stream of drool trickled down his chin and Fliss wiped it away with the bib round his neck.

"Well Mary called him a chicken." Fliss snorted, gently running a hand down Alex's flushed cheek, thankful he seemed to be in a temporary respite from his teething pain. "Said he was only refusing to take part because he was scared he wasn't good enough. And let's face it, he's not one to back down from a challenge is he?" 

Bonnie laughed and then someone called her away. Apologising she headed off and the family turned their attention back to the game. It finished about 20 minutes or so later when the last batter was caught out, but it didn't matter as the Parents had won anyway. They all let out a little cheer, before the two teams congratulated one another and dispersed, Frank making his way back over to where his family was stood. He chuckled as Mary ran towards him and he swung her up with a little huff and she tipped his hat back to look at him. 

"You're all sweaty." She pulled a face and Frank rolled his eyes as he set her down.

"Yeah, well it’s in the 70s and I've been running." He shrugged, dropping a kiss to Fliss' cheek.

"Hey babe...Ruth. She teased and Frank chuckled before he smiled at his baby boy.

"How's he feeling?"

"He seems OK." Fliss shrugged, looking at him. "Mind you, I've not tried putting him down yet since he stopped crying."

"Let me take him for a bit." Frank said and Fliss passed him over, Alex immediately reached up for his cap. Frank jerked his head out of the way and Alex let out a noise of protest until Fliss handed him his teething ring from his buggy. They baby grabbed it and instantly jammed it into his mouth, chomping away whilst babbling to no one in particular. Frank dropped a kiss to his head as they walked over the field, making their way to the little refreshment tent where a few if the other parents all turned and cheered as Frank walked in. He grinned, flushing a little at the attention and nodded to Rosie's mom and dad as they wandered over to talk to them. Fliss glanced around and caught the eye of one of the other moms who she recognised as being the one who'd been chatting shit about Frank and Mary last June. She narrowed her eyes a little, staring the bitch out and the other woman hastily averted her gaze and making Fliss smirk.

"Stop it." Frank warned in her ear and she turned to look at him, her best innocent expression in her face.

"Stop what?"

"You know full well what." He arched an eyebrow and Fliss shrugged.

"She's a bitch." she offered as justification and Frank merely rolled his eyes, adjusting Alex slightly in his arms, turning the baby so his back was pressed to his chest, one strong arm under his butt, the other hand pressed over his little belly so they small boy could look round the tent. He waggled his arms and legs excitedly as he saw Bonnie who waved her fingers towards him and smiled as she passed with a box in her arms, heading towards the small table set out at the front. 

The rest of the gala passed fairly quickly. It had been pulled together as a way for teachers and parents to bond, a little bit of fun one Friday afternoon in February. And according to the Principal as she spoke, it was going to be a yearly thing from now on. The Staff V Parents Baseball Trophy was handed to the captain of the parents’ team, a tall dark haired man whose daughter was in first grade who grinned and teased the staff members about how good it would look in the cabinet in the entrance hall with the word Parents engraved on the plate for at least the next 12 months, and then there were a few individual trophies handed out. One for best catch which went to the 3rd grade tutor, best display of acrobatics which went to Rosie's dad for his specular trip over his own feet as he ran to 3rd base, most animated player which went to the school's janitor who had been ferociously rallying his team all afternoon and then finally the Top Slugger trophy which to Fliss' delight was awarded to Frank for his absolute peach of a hit and home run. Frank let out a little groan as his name was called and everyone in the tent turned to face him. He accepted his trophy with one hand, Alex still held easily to his chest with the other and declined to say much other than he'd had fun and it has been a nice afternoon, thanking everyone who has organised the day, before cheekily quipping it was about time Bonnie did some actual work, which earned him a slap upside the head when she was walking past him later. 

Eventually it was time to leave and they made their way back to the cars. Mary retrieved her stuff from Frank's truck, handing it to Bill who tossed it into his Range Rover before Frank then handed Bill a changing bag for Alex as Fliss picked him up from the stroller so Bill could collapse it.

"Sure you don't mind dropping Mary off at Roberta’s?" Frank asked as Bill popped the stroller into the trunk and closed it.

"Not at all, it's on the way." Bill smiled watching Mary give Fliss a hug goodbye before she turned and did the same to Frank. 

"Behave." He said sternly and she rolled her eyes.

"I always do."

"Huh must be just us you're a pain in the ass for." Frank shrugged, earning him a little dig in the stomach from Mary. He huffed a breath, grinning as she clambered into the back of the car. 

"One down...one to go." Bill muttered to where Fliss was holding Alex to her, gently kissing his head.

"Yeah and something tells me this one's gonna be a little more awkward to get in your car." Frank sighed and Bill chuckled. Frank turned to him "I know I don’t need to ask but..."

"He'll be fine." Bill smiled "travel cot and baby monitor all set up."

Frank gave a nod as Bill clapped him on the shoulder and they both turned to Fliss who was now talking to her mother in a worried tone as Alex was starting to grumble.

"You know, I'm not sure..."

"Stop. Now." Verity looked at Fliss, giving her a significant look and Fliss knew why. Her mom and dad taking Alex overnight was a trial run for a few weeks’ time when she was planning to take Frank away for the weekend as a birthday gift. It was more a trial run for her than Alex, mind, as she was still ridiculously clingy to him, a fact she knew and was actively trying to get over. 

"He's teething Fliss, not dying." Bill looked at her. 

"I know that" Fliss replied hotly "but he's a little grouchy and he's in pain..."

“So we'll dose him up with medicine, give him cuddles and let him sleep." Verity responded simply.

"Love, we've done this before remember? And we had 2 of them with Charlie and Joel." Bill chuckled as Fliss chewed on her lip.

"But what if he won't settle? I mean he's only just cut his first one and..."

"Honey, we're 15 minutes away." Frank soothed. 

“Yup, any issues we'll call and bring him straight back." Verity nodded. Frank looked at Bill who gave him a small wink which he understood perfectly. There was no way Alex was coming back tonight, even if he was grouchy. Frank knew Bill and V would just take it in their stride to give them their first child free night in well over 6 months. 

Fliss took a deep breath and nodded. "Ok, I know I'm flapping...I'm sorry..." 

She moved to the car and gently placed him in the car seat before Frank stepped forward to take it from their truck to Bill's. Once it was secured, he dropped a kiss to his head and moved so Fliss could so the same.

She stepped back, closing the door and Frank gently pulled her right hand away from her left where it had begun to worry at the knuckles, the way she always did when she was a little panicked. He laced his fingers with hers, thumb gently stroking the back of her hand in slow, comforting arcs, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"Ok, we'll see you tomorrow." Bill smiled as he opened the driver’s side door. "And try to enjoy your night alone yeah? Ill permit one text an hour to check up otherwise I'll sever all communication."

Fliss rolled her eyes but stayed silent. Frank didn't miss the way her fingers squeezed around his as they waved goodbye to Bill's car as it pulled out of the space next to theirs. 

"So, what do you-" Frank stopped dead as he looked down at Fliss who has just burst into tears. "-oh honey!" He chuckled, as she pressed her face into his t-shirt, his arms wrapping around her, gently rubbing her back over her pale blue top. 

"I know I’m being stupid but I can't help it." She sobbed "He's my baby Frank and he has a sore mouth and he's been all grouchy and..."

"Yes he is, yes he does, and yes he has." Frank pulled back, cupping her face in his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs "But your mom and dad will be fine. The last few nights after his feed and some Orajel he's settled right down, and if he doesn't they've got the Tylenol. He'll be fine, I promise." 

Fliss nodded and Frank dipped his head, giving her a soft kiss. "Now, we got the rest of the afternoon and the entire night to ourselves...and dare I say it a lie in tomorrow morning." He grinned, turning to open the passenger door for her. "Do you wanna go out for a few drinks or..."

Fliss wrinkled her nose "is it bad I just wanna do nothing?" Frank laughed as Fliss shrugged "I mean I have a book that I haven't opened in like a week, I've got a bottle of pinot in the fridge..."

"So you wanna curl up on the window seat and not be disturbed?" Frank arched his eyebrow.

"Well, not all night." Fliss shook her head "but maybe for an hour or so when I finish the yard."

"Ok, well, let's make a deal." Frank's hand dropped to her hips "We take our own time till say 7 ish and then sit down for dinner and a movie."

"Oh my god, perfect" Fliss groaned. Frank shook his head as he snorted.

"When did we get so pathetic that we get our first child free evening in 6 months and you're gonna spend it reading about some lame ass British Detective and I'm gonna be screwing with boat parts?"

"Ok first off there is nothing pathetic about Detective Super Intendant Roy Grace and second off...will you be greasy?"

Frank's head fell back as a loud rumble of laughter erupted from his chest. When he looked back at Fliss she shrugged and he arched an eyebrow.

"You're terrible, you know that?"

"Not my fault you're such a dirty boat daddy."

"Dirty boat daddy?" Frank scoffed as he raised an eyebrow. "What the fuck..."

Fliss grinned as she traced Frank's bicep with the fingers of her right hand "You're my baby daddy...and you get dirty on boats..."

"You don't half talk some shit at times." He snorted and Fliss poked her tongue out, catching it between her teeth as she smiled.

"You love it."

 "I love you." He bent down pressing his lips to hers before he stepped back "Now come on, I got some grease to smear up my arms."

"Can you wipe some on your face too?" Fliss asked as the climbed in the truck. Frank merely rolled his eyes with a smirk in response.

 ****

 Fliss stretched her legs out as she reached the end of her chapter, Thor giving a little annoyed huff as she jostled his head from where it was laying in her lap as they sat curled up, snuggled into the cushions on the large window seat.

"Sorry boy." She chuckled, scratching behind his ears as she glanced outside over the garden. It was dark out, the various garden lights strung up on the fence illuminated the panels which separated their private space to the large garden that belonged to the next house along. They’d really lucked out on this property. The house itself was set into almost 2 acres of land, and not to mention the 8 that now belonged to Sandybrook Stables after they’d purchased the additional 3 at the back. Which reminded Fliss, she really should get the architect onto the re-design.

Reaching for her phone she gave a yelp as she realised what time it was. Almost 8pm. They’d gone well over an hour later than they’d agreed, and given that there was no sign of Frank, he too had clearly forgotten. She stood up, fired her mum a quick message and then called their favourite Italian, ringing through an order for delivery. The guy on the phone was apologetic, saying it would be at least 45 minutes before it arrived but Fliss assured him it was no bother. No sooner had she put the phone down than her mom sent her a message back which was a picture of Alex fast asleep in the crib at her parents, his little cheeks still slightly red, but he looked peaceful. Satisfied everything was ok, she bit her lip before she smiled to herself and pulled open the fridge, tossing a 6 pack into a cool box. Instructing Thor to stay she headed out the back door and round the side of the pool and out of the garden onto the main front area. The garage door was open, the light from inside streaming onto the gravel driveway and the low tones of AC/DC hit her ears as she approached along with Frank’s curses.

The reason for his cursing was simple. No matter how much digging into the boats engine, or twisting his hand at impossible angles, the mother fucking part still wouldn’t come out. Snarling in frustration, he yanked his hand out, and grabbed a wrench, hitting the metal against it, cursing “You son of a bitch, you’re coming out of there whether ya wa like it or not. I’ve been fahking with you all God damn night!”

Fliss climbed the ladder next to the boat and snorted as she set down the cooler on the boards of the deck, arching a brow. It wasn’t often that Frank lost his cool, but when he did, he usually turned a bit Boston.

“You alright Sailor or should I be worried?” she spoke, perching on the edge. Frank fell back on his heels, grabbing a rag to wipe at his grease-covered hands and looked round at her, his brow beaded with sweat.

“If you got a beer in that cooler there, then you got nothing to worry about.” His eyes were hopeful and Fliss leaned forward, popping open the top and drawing out the six-pack. Smiling, Frank pushed himself to a stand and took one, removing the cap and draining a good third of it in one go. “Confirmed, nothing to worry about now Cowgirl!”

Fliss grabbed herself a beer and watched as Frank stepped closer, his hands resting either side of her thighs as she sat perched on the edge of the hull. “You get bored reading already?”

“Well I’d read enough anyway, but then realised the time. Baby its gone 8.”

“Seriously?” Frank frowned and then sighed as Fliss nodded. “Shit, sorry, I lost track o’time.”

“It’s ok, I did the same.” Fliss shrugged “Guess a child free few hours really is a treat.”

Frank smiled softly “We should probably order dinner.

Fliss smirked “Already done, we got like…40 mintues.” she wrapped her hands around Frank’s neck and tugged him closer.

“Whoa whoa baby, I’m covered in shit.” He gave a laugh as he protested slightly.

Rolling her eyes, she snorted. “No, if you were covered in shit, it would be because I worked you for a day at the stables. You Frank…” Her voice lowered, and her eyes turned hooded, leaning up to his lips, whispering against them. “You are covered in grease, and that makes me so unbelievably hot for you, that if you don’t fuck me on this deck, I won’t forgive you.”

“Enough said, consider yourself fucked on deck Baby,” Frank smirked, catching Fliss’ lips. At that point the music changed and flicked over from Whole Lotta Rosie to You Shook Me All Night Long, Frank’s favourite song and he smirked against her mouth as he began to sing the first verse, all the time keeping his lips a mere centimetre or so away from hers.

“She was a fast machine, she kept her motor clean, she was the best damn woman that I ever seen, she had the sightless eyes, telling me no lies, knocking me out with those American thighs…”

“Err British thighs, thank you.” Fliss corrected him. Frank simply arched an eyebrow and pulled her easily off the edge of the boat she was leaning against. She giggled as she wrapped her legs around his slim waist, leaning in to press her lips to his in a slow kiss as he walked them over to the benches at the rear of the boat. The kiss remained soft, teasing licks, a slow pace, but it was no less intense than a furious one, if anything it felt more powerful than normal, the pair of them truly alone for the first time in months. With each steady, deliberate tangle of their tongues, Fliss could feel everything. The heat, the spark, the butterflies swarming inside of her stomach.

In an easy, graceful moment Frank turned and sat on the edge of the bench, his hands letting go of Fliss’ hips as she straddled him, reaching up to cup the sides of her face, holding her still while his mouth had its way with hers. Pulling back a little he softly bit her lip, drawing a groan from her mouth and he grinned, resting his forehead against hers.

“What the fuck was in that book you were reading?” he asked and Fliss laughed

“Rape, murder…” she pondered, before she grinned wickedly “A police man in a uniform with handcuffs…”

“So is it the Uniform or the handcuffs that have got you all worked up Pretty Girl?”

“Neither, it’s the dirty, boat Daddy that I’m currently straddling”

At that Frank tipped his head back in a loud laugh, his hands brushing Fliss’ hair back off her face. “I fahkin love you.” he chuckled, as she pressed her lips to his again.

“Good job.” She mumbled against his mouth “Seeing as you’re the father of my kids…and you’re marrying me.” She added as somewhat of an afterthought.

Kids. Plural.

Frank glanced at her, her eyes shining against the lights of the garage and he smiled softly, his chest tightening a little with emotion. Mary’s adoption had only been finalised a few weeks prior, the ink probably still wet on all the documents but in their mind it had been a done deal months ago, from the moment they’d made the decision. Still, it stirred all kinds of warm feelings in his chest when he heard her say it. She smiled, reaching up to brush her hands through the longer strands of hair on his head before her fingers delicately danced down over his shoulders, his strong arms before she gripped at the hem of his T-shirt. He raised his arms allowing her to pull it off, before she dropped her head and chained open mouthed, warm kisses across his collar bone.

Happy to let her take charge for a moment, Frank tipped his head back sighing as she nipped up his neck to his jaw, her mouth skating over the stubble of his beard before she met his mouth again and this time the kiss was fierce. In a flash, Frank fisted his hand in the loose t-shirt she was wearing, yanking it over her head, giving a soft groan as he realised she was wearing no bra. His large hands spread over her back, pulling her snug against his chest, his fingers sliding up and down her spine causing her to shiver a little, letting out a soft moan that morphed into that oh so familiar whimper he knew and loved.

“I could listen to you make that sound for days,” he muttered and Fliss smiled against his mouth, kissing him again. A few seconds later, deciding to push things a little as Fliss seemed to be in a demanding mood, Frank pulled back, his bright blue eyes almost icy with intensity and issued a single word instruction. “Strip” Fliss felt her stomach bottom out with excitement when his demand registered. She swallowed and stood between his legs, slipping down the shorts she was wearing, Frank’s eyes watching her as she then slid down her panties, her gaze never once leaving his face. When he finished looking her up and down as she stood naked in front of him, his eyes met hers a look of pure, unadulterated wonderment and appreciation on his face.

And it was all for her.

“Like what you see sailor?” she bit her lip, her skin tingling with excitement as Frank arched an eyebrow.

“Like you wouldn’t believe…” his hands reached out and grabbed her hips as he stood up, pivoting them so that the back of Fliss’ legs pressed against the bench he had been sat on. His hands slid up, thumbs brushing the underneath of her breasts as he kissed her once more, softly, before he pulled back, his lips gently sucking at that spot on her delicate neck, his teeth nipping at her skin.

“Wanna turn around and get on your knees for me baby girl?” he whispered his question. Fliss looked at him, wide eyed, and he noted that where there had at one time been a slight apprehension in those deep browns at being put in such a position, now there was nothing but excitement, and he wasn’t quite sure when that had changed. But it had, and he loved it. He loved the fact she trusted him, that she was happy to simply be pliant in his hands.  She nodded and turned, kneeling on the bench in front of him, bending over, gripping the back with her hands. Frank reached out, gently manoeuvring so she was positioned where he wanted her to be and then stepped back, biting back the groan that bubbled in his throat at the site of her there, ready and waiting.

Fliss’ head was spinning. She couldn’t see him, but could feel him behind her. He wasn’t touching her yet, but he didn’t have to. Just the fact she could feel the heat of his gaze and his presence was enough to send her into a freefall. Every inch of her skin felt like it was on fire, the ache between her legs intensifying with each passing second. Then she heard a soft thud—Frank dropping to his knees, she assumed, but the gentle press of his mouth to the inside of her left thigh was still a shock, even though she knew it was coming. She inhaled sharply and Frank paused, his hands sliding up the outside of her thighs.

“You okay?” He asked, his voice low with desire. “Yeah.” Fliss’ breath was equally loaded and she let out a sigh as his mouth traced a line of kisses up her thigh, then he moved to do the same to the inside of her right. Her eyes closed, Fliss breathed in slowly in an attempt to steady herself, to stay calm and collected. She was ridiculously close already and his mouth hadn’t even touched that part of her body yet. When his tongue finally made contact, she lost all semblance of cool. Her eyes flew open and she let out a loud cry as the tip of his tongue swirled against her made. It was mere seconds but she was already panting, her hands curling around the back of the bench, the feel of his beard scratching against her was almost too much. Frank fucking her with his mouth, from behind, on the deck of the boat, in their garage was the single hottest thing she had ever experienced, and she wanted it to last as long as possible. Frank however, seemed to have other ideas. Whilst he kept the slow, steady rhythm with ease, he let out a low hum, something he knew would send her wild.

“Fuck,” she whined. “Frank, I…” His tongue swirled faster, his hands gripping the outside of her thighs tightly as she felt the pressure inside her turn white hot. When he slipped his finger inside her she gasped, his mouth matching every gentle but firm thrust his hand made.  It all resulted in a sensation so heavenly, it was agonizing and it spread from between her legs to the farthest reaches of her body, until she could take it no more. With a loud cry she came, hard, pushing back onto his face and her knees buckled slightly, her hand slipping on the wooden rail of the bench, her body and mind completely gone. Frank stood up, giving her a moment as he quickly shed his jeans and boxers before his hands gripped her hips and he bent over to kiss her neck. “You good?” he asked and she gave a hum of satisfaction as she turned her head to look at him, her brown eyes meeting his as she nodded. “Jesus Frank…” she stuttered and he smirked, his grin slipping slightly as she reached back and gripped him in her hand, a choked little grunt escaping his own mouth as her palm tightened around his now throbbing cock. His hands dropped to her hips and he pulled her backwards and up slightly, manoeuvring her so she was exactly where he needed and with smooth, fluid thrust forward he slid slowly into her, the deliberate languid pace allowing her to feel every glorious inch of him. “Lissy,” he growled, and that was the last word he uttered as he thrust into her over, and over, screams and cries and grunts filling the air in the large garage, echoing slightly off the walls. As his hands tightened on her hips, Fliss knew he was close and so was she. He let go with his right hand, dropping it round between her legs to palm her clit and the warm press of his hand combined with the steady rhythm of his thrusts sent Fliss over the edge again and just as a low growl ripped from Frank’s throat, orgasm number two spiked through her. Only this time when she lost it, she was a complete mess.  Every single muscle in her body cramped and quivered as she tensed in front of Frank, bucking violently until she sagged forward, her sailor’s arms wrapping around her as he gave a few more deep thrusts before he shuddered, his arms tightening their hold and he groaned loudly, his hips faltering as he came with a surge that brewed right from his feet. They both remained still for a second until Frank slowly and gently pulled away. He pressed his lips to Fliss’ lower back, showering her in gentle kisses, as he made his way up her spine before he reached the crook of her shoulder. Fliss’s eyes were still closed but her face sported a sated smile as she let out a hum of satisfaction.  Picking her up, Frank sat down on the bench so she was cradled in his lap, reaching for the tartan blanket that was draped over the seat a few down and he wrapped it around them both, kissing her hair line.

“Suppose that’s one way to christen the boat.” She eventually spoke and Frank chuckled.

"God bless the good lady Felicity...and all who sail in her." He retorted, giving a little salute. Fliss snorted and slapped his arm.

“You’re such a wanker.” She shook her head and Frank laughed, kissing her gently”

“You love it, honey.” “No, I love you. Which means I put up with all your wanker-ish traits because I have no choice.”

****

 Once Frank had showered he made his way downstairs dressed comfortably in a pair of sweats and t-shirt. Fliss had already laid the take-out boxes on the counter so he parked himself down on one of the stools as Fliss handed him a beer, taking a glass of wine for herself. They talked as they ate, Fliss teasing Frank about getting him a display cabinet for his baseball trophy to which he snorted and told her he wasn't intending on making it a habit. Once they'd finished their food, they cleared the dishes and Frank made his way to the sofa whilst Fliss let Thor out into the yard as he was pawing at the door. 

Frank absentmindedly flicked through the news channels, pausing at a report on Trump's latest activity and the reaction to a stupid tweet he had made regarding guns and he shook his head, scoffing in disgust.

"I dont know why you watch anything about him." Fliss called as she shut the door "it just winds you up."

"His brain is a fucking scribble" Frank retorted, "I mean...just look at him Fliss!"

"I'd rather not!" She called back, shooing Fred down from where he had hopped up onto the kitchen counter. 

"President of the free world and he's an absolute tool." Frank continued his chunnering as he stretched out, his legs on the coffee table and his arms extending quite forcefully behind his head as he yawned. Unfortunately, Fliss had chosen that exact moment to cross the room ready to wrap her arms around him from behind and as she bent to do so the back of Frank's closed left fist connected with the top of her left cheekbone, just in the outside corner of her eye, and she gave a yelp of surprise. As soon as it happened Frank jerked his head round and as he saw Fliss recoiling from the accidental blow his blood ran cold.

"Shit..." he sprang over the back of the couch, ignoring Thor who was now growling furiously at him. "Oh my god, Lissy, I'm so fahkin' sorry..." 

She straightened up blinking, her hands falling to his biceps as he gently cradled her face. "Frank its fine, you just caught my eye a little that’s all, it won't even bruise."

"Well, maybe not but..."

"Did you-Thor!" Fliss yelled at the dog, turning to look at him "Stop!" The German shepherd fell silent and flopped his butt down on the floor, his dark amber eyes still fixed on Frank, as Fliss turned back to him. "Did you mean to do it?"

"No, of course not..."

"Then there you go. It was an accident." She smiled, "it wasn't even hard enough to bruise, trust me, I know."

"That's not funny." Frank said quietly and Fliss sighed.

"It wasn't meant to be." She shook her head as Frank's eyes roved her face, utter dismay across every inch of his own. "Frankie..."

"Baby, I'm so..."

"Stop apologising." She said softly "it was an accident. Nothing more." Frank looked at her again before she stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. "Please don't."

"Don't what?" He asked

"Worry that you've hurt me, or scared me. Because you haven't." She shook her head "would you be this bothered if I didn't have the history I did?"

Frank hesitated. Of course he'd be bothered about hitting his girl, regardless of it being accidentally, but she was right. He wouldn't feel the concern he did has she not been subjected to the abuse she had suffered previously. He gave a little sheepish shrug and Fliss shook her head again, smiling.

"I'm not made of glass Sailor, I'm not gonna shatter over something like this. Not anymore." She took his hand in hers, pressed a kiss to his knuckles and then let go. Frank dropped it to his side, curling both hands on her hips as her arms slid up round his neck. "Can we forget this now and snuggle up with a movie?"

Frank nodded "ok, sounds good..."

After a little deliberation and poking around the channels Fliss’ eyes lit up when she realised that one of the channels was now dedicated to James Bond, the next movie showing being Skyfall, one of her favourites.  However, fifteen minutes in Frank felt her head growing heavy against his chest as they lay sprawled on the sofa. He glanced down to see her eyes closed, her lids fluttering slightly, lashes laying against her cheeks as she slept. With a smile he pressed a kiss to her head, his hand gently resting around her back as she lay snuggled into him. It can’t have been much more than twenty minutes later when he too felt his eyes growing heavy, the exertion of the day finally getting to much for him and he nodded off, both of them waking with a jolt when the music for the end credits kicked in and Fred hopped up onto the back of the sofa before landing on Frank’s chest by Fliss’ head with a loud purr.

“Jesus Fred…” Frank grumbled, pushing him off as Fliss sat up, blinking. “Fucking one eyed bastard.”

Fred glared at him and slunk off, jumping up onto the armchair where he curled up, his tail flicking.

“What a rock and roll lifestyle we lead.” Fliss stretched slightly as she yawned and Frank shrugged.

“Well we had a busy day.” “Even busier evening.” She quipped and Frank chuckled, his hand rubbing at her back before she stood up, her hands rubbing at her eyes. With a heave Frank swung his legs off the couch and he too stood, pulling his girl into a hug.

“You go up, I’ll sort Thor check the doors.”

She gave him a quick peck and then left him to it, padding tiredly up the stairs. She headed into the bathroom to clean her teeth and was just climbing in between the soft sheets when Frank walked into the room, Thor behind him, the dog flopping down with a sigh into his basket. Fliss’ eyes fell to the empty bassinet and she suddenly felt a little pang for her missing baby, but she knew from the various texts and the conversation she’d had with her parents earlier that he was perfectly fine so she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

It wasn’t long before Frank joined her in bed and she shuffled over to him, tossing her leg over his as he kissed her forehead, his hand sliding up the back of her sleep cami, palm warm against her skin.

“Love you.” He yawned and she smiled.

“Love you too.” She sighed contentedly, her eyes closing as they both drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

 *****

Frank woke the next morning to an empty bed. With a stretch he rubbed his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. Of course it would be too much to hope Fliss would be able to lay in. And then he turned over to check the time and did a double take. It was almost 10 am.

“Fuck!” he gave a little chuckle. Guess he’d been a lot more tired than he thought. Swinging his legs out of bed he padded into the bathroom, sorted his bladder out and went about the rest of his normal morning routine before he grabbed a t-shirt and a pair of sweats and headed downstairs. He paused in the doorway to the large family area, watching as she was stood at the stove, dressed in one of his button downs. It skimmed the curve of her ass, ending in the middle of her thighs and he smiled as he watched her move. He couldn’t quite remember the last time he saw her like this in the kitchen, it was certainly before Alex was born, most likely on one of their kid free Friday nights that had abruptly halted when he’d arrived, not that Frank would change a thing about it mind, but it was still nice to have it back, even it if was just for one morning.

He thought back to the first time he saw her dressed in one of his shirts. It was a Saturday in his old apartment, not long after they'd started dating. He found her in the kitchen much like she was now, making a coffee having woken early and not wanted to disturb him. He remembered thinking it was the first time a woman had ever done that, made herself at home, because in fairness she was the only woman that had lasted longer than a night in 8 years. It had stirred something in him then, a feeling of contentment, much like the one he was feeling now. His life had changed dramatically since she’d walked into it approximately 2 and a half years or so. In some ways the time had flown by, in others it felt like a life time when he considered everything they’d been through, both of them so far from the people they had been, yet so similar too.

With a smile he stepped into the room and walked over to her, and the fact she didn’t jump when he wrapped his arms aroud her from behind told him she’d been well aware of his presence in the doorway for a while.

“I thought we were supposed to be having a lazy morning complete with lie in” Frank’s hand gently brushed Fliss’ wild locks off her neck before he pressed a kiss to her skin

“I did.” Fliss smiled “I didn’t wake up until 8:30. Normally your son has me up at 6.”

“Our son.”

“When he wakes me up at 6 am he’s your son.” She turned her head to glance at him. “Dad’s gonna collect Mary and drop them both off at half past midday ish.”

“Well then, you really could have stayed in bed.” He pouted and she chuckled.

“Once I’m awake I’m awake…” she shrugged “No point staying there.”

“You should’a woken me up, I could’a given you a good reason to stay put.” His lips pressed more kisses to her neck and Fliss laughed, swatting at his head playfully.

“I’ll burn breakfast.”

“So?”

“I’m hungry.”

“So am I.”

“I meant for food.” She turned in his arms and he shrugged playfully giving her a deep kiss.

“Morning honey.” He smiled against her lips and she let out a little chuckle.

“Morning hot shot.” She grinned, patting his chest “you wanna set the places and pour us a coffee each? This is nearly done.”

Doing as he was told, Frank stepped back, grabbing cutlery and placing it on the breakfast bar before he made them both a coffee and grabbed the orange juice and a couple of glasses. As he set it all down on the side, Fliss dropped two plates of pancakes, bacon and eggs on the place mats and Frank gave a little groan of delight.

“You didn’t have to do this.” He looked at her.

“It’s just breakfast” she shrugged “Plus, thought it would be nice, just the two of us. And I wanted to talk to you.”

“Sounds ominous.” He arched an eyebrow as she sat next to him.

“No, not really.” She shrugged “I was just thinking yesterday a little. I wanna go back to work Frank, like full time. I’m ready.”

“Okay.” He nodded, “That’s fine. Did you think I was gonna protest or something?”

“No, I just wanted to discuss it, remember, we said we would do that after last time?”

“Liss, this is different.” He said, shaking his head as he cut into a pancake. “He’s almost 6 months old now, we’ll be weaning him soon.” “Yeah, I was thinking I can start pushing up the hours and then when he’s fully converted onto solids, which by the way, I’m not looking forward to those nappy changes…” she wrinkled her nose and Frank laughed, popping a piece of his breakfast into his mouth “well, when all that’s done then I’m back to full time.”

“Like I said, if you’re ready then fine.” Frank looked at her, hi hand dropping to her knee. “Guess we should start looking for a childminder huh?”

“Mum said she’d help out but I don’t want her to have him all the time, she’s got her own life. But I was thinking she could maybe have him two days a week, as she’ll sulk if I don’t let her have him some time.” Fliss shrugged “The other days, I thought we could speak to the one that Bonnie’s sister uses. She’s not far from Mum and Dad.” “Yeah, ok. Get her number and we’ll go meet her.” Frank agreed, shovelling more of his breakfast into his mouth.

“I also wanna call the architect that Steeby knows” Fliss added, taking a bite of food “Start getting the plans drawn up for the expansion. I’d really like to have that completed by the wedding. We got nearly 7 months. I think it’s doable. The additional stables won’t take long, or the lunging pen and the paddock move. The big job is gonna be the extension to the office and tack room but…again, a couple of weeks and Dad reckons it’ll be done. He doesn’t think that it’ll be much over 12 weeks in total if we get the right guys on the job.” Frank nodded “Well, the land is already ours so, go for it.”

“Yeah?” Fliss smiled and Frank returned the gesture, squeezing her knee.

“Yeah, let’s do it. Get the designs drawn up and some quotes for the work.”

“I love you.” Fliss beamed, leaning over to kiss him softly and he smiled, his nose bumping hers slightly.

“That’s because I’m a very lovable guy” he grinned and Fliss snorted, pulling back.

“Suppose so.”

They ate their breakfast and once the dishes were over they both retired to the sofa, Frank flicking on the news channel, Fliss picking up her book again, Fred curling up behind her head on the sofa back, Thor jumping up beside her. Frank gave a grunt and a huff, pushing the dog’s huge paw off his thigh before he flopped down, head in his lap. It was lazy, comfortable and remained that way until at midday, Fliss headed upstairs to pull on something a little more substantial than Frank’s shirt, much to his chagrin. When she came down dressed in a pair of breaches and a polo shirt little over 20 minutes later he smiled at her.

“You got a class this afternoon?”

“Yeah I’m taking Mary’s one at 2.” She said. “But I need to ride Cap  beforehand and then Bronson needs working and Heidi could do with a walk round the trail too, her back leg keeps swelling up.” “Still bad?”

Fliss wrinkled her nose as she crossed to the fridge “Nothing unusual for her age, the vet said it’s a touch of arthritis which is why I don’t school her any more. It tends to go down when she’s done a bit of walking. If I take her for half an hour hack round she’ll be fine. It’s when it stops going down that I’ve got a problem, but I don’t even want to think about that.” She shook her head, pulling the water out of the fridge. “I can’t imagine my life without her.”

“She’s certainly been with you a long time.” Frank looked at her and Fliss nodded

“20 years this year.” She sighed “Hard to believe really. She was the first horse I ever owned, best one I could have hoped for.”

“How long do you think Mary has with Monty?” Frank asked, declining Fliss’ offer of a glass of water. “I mean till she outgrows him.” “She won’t” Fliss shook her head “I can still ride Monty, he’s a welsh cob. Chunky, she’ll be good with him until he drops. But I do think she’ll be looking for something a little more advanced as well in a couple of years, when Monty needs to slow down again, but we can cross that bridge when we get there.”

“Oh, great.” Frank rolled his eyes and Fliss laughed as she sat next to him.

“Behave, it’s not like it costs anything to keep another.” “I’m referring to the advanced bit.” Frank looked at her “Still scares the crap out of me when she sails over those damned fences.”

“She’s good at it.” Fliss shrugged “If she gets placed in the final competition next month she’s got third place over all. She wins it, then she’s gonna take second. Not to mention the fact that she’s basically already won the Junior Rider class. Not bad for a first season.”

Frank smiled proudly, but before he could say anything else the back door opened and Mary skipped inside, her voice carrying over the room.

“That’s just not true Poppa B and you know it!” She sing songed and Bill rolled his eyes as he carried Alex’s car chair inside.

“Is so.” He nodded “I know someone it happened to.”

“Nah ah!” she shook her head “When you swallow gum it can’t physically wrap around your ribs as when you eat it goes down to your stomach. It’s impossible.”

“Smart ass.” Bill chuckled as Fliss stood up, crossing the room.

“Hi!” she smiled, before she beamed down at Alex who grinned and started to thrash his legs and arms about at the sight of his momma, screeching. “Hi baby, I missed you!”

“What am I? Chopped liver?” Mary looked at Fliss who laughed, and pulled her into a hug.

“And you, dur!”

“You have a good time?” Frank asked as Mary flopped next to him.

“Yeah, we had fish tacos.” Mary smiled “They were well nice.” “Fish tacos.” Frank made an approving noise in his throat.

“Yeah and then we watched some more of The Mandalorian. And I had hot chocolate and went to bed.” Fliss, who now had Alex cradled in her arms, turned to face them both. “Sounds better than my night.” She quipped giving Frank a wink as he raised an eyebrow.

“Oh does it?”

“Why does something tell me I don’t wanna know?” Bill asked and Fliss turned to look at her dad, an innocent look on her face.

“I don’t know what you mean.” She chuckled “I just helped Frank with some stuff on the boat.”

“Sure you did.” Bill rolled his eyes before his eyes twinkled cheekily “Hope you scrubbed the deck afterwards.”

**** Chapter 19

[what-is-your-plan-today]

Riding On

Ch 18-Home Run

Summary: Frank’s competitive side comes out to play during an event at Mary’s school, and then he and Fliss get their first child free evening in well over 6 months.

Warnings:  Bad Language words, Smut (NSFW, 18+)

Pairing: Frank Adler x Fliss Gallagher

A/N:  SURPRISE!!! Turns out I can’t stop writing these two for long. Updates going forward on this probably won’t be as regular as they were but…it’s not really on hiatus anymore. It wasn’t really on hiatus at all to be fair as I’ve been writing this one since I posted the last!

Special thanks to @sweater-daddiesdumbdork for her little drabble which was posted as part of her Birthday Celebrations which I used in here.

Chapter Song:  You Shook Me All Night Long by AC/DC 

Series Masterlist //  WIYPT Masterlist

Taking more than her share, had me fighting for air, she told me to come, but I was already there, 'Cause the walls start shaking, the Earth was quaking, my mind was aching and we were making it. And you shook me all night long, yeah, you shook me all night long

Fliss watched as Frank adjusted the blue Red Sox hat on his head slightly, the baseball bat hanging loosely in one hand before he took up position, turning slightly to the side, his long fingers curling around the handle.

"Five bucks says he misses..." Bill spoke and Fliss gave him a dig in the ribs.

"No chance Poppa B" Mary laughed from where she stood in front of Fliss "Frank's got a wicked swing."

Fliss saw Frank who was laughing at something that one of the school teachers who was current performing the role of catcher before his face suddenly warped into one of utter concentrate as the pitcher wound up. Sure enough, a second or so later Frank swung the bat forward and with a satisfying cracking sound he connected with the baseball and set off at a sprint. Fliss and Mary cheered along with the rest of the crowd who had gathered to watch and Frank rounded first base, then onto second as the other guy positioned there had also started to make his way home. Frank made it to 3rd easily, and then Fliss spotted the expression on his face change as he glanced around and set off at a sprint clearly going for home. The gathered crowd started to yell as the ball came flying in towards the catcher but Frank was there just that little bit faster, dropping into a slide and his boot hit the little square marked out as home before the ball. He jumped up, a huge grin on his face as the other parents on the team all cheered and congratulated him, various other yells ringing out around the little playing field, Fliss, Mary, Bill and Verity joining in. 

"Told ya!" Mary shouted as she jumped up and down. "Home run!"

Fliss looked up at her dad who was chuckling as he watched Frank who was now doubled over, hands on his knees, catching his breath. He wiped at his dirty jeans, which were covered in the orange dust from the school playing field and glanced over towards them, shrugging playfully. 

"Well considering he said he would rather stick hot pins in his eyes than play in the Staff v Parents game he looks like he's enjoying himself." Bonnie grinned as she gently placed a hand on Fliss shoulder, leaning over to pull a face at Alex. The 6 month old baby grinned and waggled his arms furiously letting out a loud giggle, a stream of drool trickled down his chin and Fliss wiped it away with the bib round his neck.

"Well Mary called him a chicken." Fliss snorted, gently running a hand down Alex's flushed cheek, thankful he seemed to be in a temporary respite from his teething pain. "Said he was only refusing to take part because he was scared he wasn't good enough. And let's face it, he's not one to back down from a challenge is he?" 

Bonnie laughed and then someone called her away. Apologising she headed off and the family turned their attention back to the game. It finished about 20 minutes or so later when the last batter was caught out, but it didn't matter as the Parents had won anyway. They all let out a little cheer, before the two teams congratulated one another and dispersed, Frank making his way back over to where his family was stood. He chuckled as Mary ran towards him and he swung her up with a little huff and she tipped his hat back to look at him. 

"You're all sweaty." She pulled a face and Frank rolled his eyes as he set her down.

"Yeah, well it’s in the 70s and I've been running." He shrugged, dropping a kiss to Fliss' cheek.

"Hey babe...Ruth. She teased and Frank chuckled before he smiled at his baby boy.

"How's he feeling?"

"He seems OK." Fliss shrugged, looking at him. "Mind you, I've not tried putting him down yet since he stopped crying."

"Let me take him for a bit." Frank said and Fliss passed him over, Alex immediately reached up for his cap. Frank jerked his head out of the way, spinning his cap back to front, and Alex let out a noise of protest until Fliss handed him his teething ring from his buggy. They baby grabbed it and instantly jammed it into his mouth, chomping away whilst babbling to no one in particular. Frank dropped a kiss to his head as they walked over the field, making their way to the little refreshment tent where a few if the other parents all turned and cheered as Frank walked in. He grinned, flushing a little at the attention and nodded to Rosie's mom and dad as they wandered over to talk to them. Fliss glanced around and caught the eye of one of the other moms who she recognised as being the one who'd been chatting shit about Frank and Mary last June. She narrowed her eyes a little, staring the bitch out and the other woman hastily averted her gaze and making Fliss smirk.

"Stop it." Frank warned in her ear and she turned to look at him, her best innocent expression in her face.

"Stop what?"

"You know full well what." He arched an eyebrow and Fliss shrugged.

"She's a bitch." she offered as justification and Frank merely rolled his eyes, adjusting Alex slightly in his arms, turning the baby so his back was pressed to his chest, one strong arm under his butt, the other hand pressed over his little belly so they small boy could look round the tent. He waggled his arms and legs excitedly as he saw Bonnie who waved her fingers towards him and smiled as she passed with a box in her arms, heading towards the small table set out at the front. 

The rest of the gala passed fairly quickly. It had been pulled together as a way for teachers and parents to bond, a little bit of fun one Friday afternoon in February. And according to the Principal as she spoke, it was going to be a yearly thing from now on. The Staff V Parents Baseball Trophy was handed to the captain of the parents’ team, a tall dark haired man whose daughter was in first grade who grinned and teased the staff members about how good it would look in the cabinet in the entrance hall with the word Parents engraved on the plate for at least the next 12 months, and then there were a few individual trophies handed out. One for best catch which went to the 3rd grade tutor, best display of acrobatics which went to Rosie's dad for his specular trip over his own feet as he ran to 3rd base, most animated player which went to the school's janitor who had been ferociously rallying his team all afternoon and then finally the Top Slugger trophy which to Fliss' delight was awarded to Frank for his absolute peach of a hit and home run. Frank let out a little groan as his name was called and everyone in the tent turned to face him. He accepted his trophy with one hand, Alex still held easily to his chest with the other and declined to say much other than he'd had fun and it has been a nice afternoon, thanking everyone who has organised the day, before cheekily quipping it was about time Bonnie did some actual work, which earned him a slap upside the head when she was walking past him later. 

Eventually it was time to leave and they made their way back to the cars. Mary retrieved her stuff from Frank's truck, handing it to Bill who tossed it into his Range Rover before Frank then handed Bill a changing bag for Alex as Fliss picked him up from the stroller so Bill could collapse it.

"Sure you don't mind dropping Mary off at Roberta’s?" Frank asked as Bill popped the stroller into the trunk and closed it.

"Not at all, it's on the way." Bill smiled watching Mary give Fliss a hug goodbye before she turned and did the same to Frank. 

"Behave." He said sternly and she rolled her eyes.

"I always do."

"Huh must be just us you're a pain in the ass for." Frank shrugged, earning him a little dig in the stomach from Mary. He huffed a breath, grinning as she clambered into the back of the car. 

"One down...one to go." Bill muttered to where Fliss was holding Alex to her, gently kissing his head.

"Yeah and something tells me this one's gonna be a little more awkward to get in your car." Frank sighed and Bill chuckled. Frank turned to him "I know I don’t need to ask but..."

"He'll be fine." Bill smiled "travel cot and baby monitor all set up."

Frank gave a nod as Bill clapped him on the shoulder and they both turned to Fliss who was now talking to her mother in a worried tone as Alex was starting to grumble.

"You know, I'm not sure..."

"Stop. Now." Verity looked at Fliss, giving her a significant look and Fliss knew why. Her mom and dad taking Alex overnight was a trial run for a few weeks’ time when she was planning to take Frank away for the weekend as a birthday gift. It was more a trial run for her than Alex, mind, as she was still ridiculously clingy to him, a fact she knew and was actively trying to get over. 

"He's teething Fliss, not dying." Bill looked at her. 

"I know that" Fliss replied hotly "but he's a little grouchy and he's in pain..."

“So we'll dose him up with medicine, give him cuddles and let him sleep." Verity responded simply.

"Love, we've done this before remember? And we had 2 of them with Charlie and Joel." Bill chuckled as Fliss chewed on her lip.

"But what if he won't settle? I mean he's only just cut his first one and..."

"Honey, we're 15 minutes away." Frank soothed. 

“Yup, any issues we'll call and bring him straight back." Verity nodded. Frank looked at Bill who gave him a small wink which he understood perfectly. There was no way Alex was coming back tonight, even if he was grouchy. Frank knew Bill and V would just take it in their stride to give them their first child free night in well over 6 months. 

Fliss took a deep breath and nodded. "Ok, I know I'm flapping...I'm sorry..." 

She moved to the car and gently placed him in the car seat before Frank stepped forward to take it from their truck to Bill's. Once it was secured, he dropped a kiss to his head and moved so Fliss could so the same.

She stepped back, closing the door and Frank gently pulled her right hand away from her left where it had begun to worry at the knuckles, the way she always did when she was a little panicked. He laced his fingers with hers, thumb gently stroking the back of her hand in slow, comforting arcs, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"Ok, we'll see you tomorrow." Bill smiled as he opened the driver’s side door. "And try to enjoy your night alone yeah? Ill permit one text an hour to check up otherwise I'll sever all communication."

Fliss rolled her eyes but stayed silent. Frank didn't miss the way her fingers squeezed around his as they waved goodbye to Bill's car as it pulled out of the space next to theirs. 

"So, what do you-" Frank stopped dead as he looked down at Fliss who has just burst into tears. "-oh honey!" He chuckled, as she pressed her face into his t-shirt, his arms wrapping around her, gently rubbing her back over her pale blue top. 

"I know I’m being stupid but I can't help it." She sobbed "He's my baby Frank and he has a sore mouth and he's been all grouchy and..."

"Yes he is, yes he does, and yes he has." Frank pulled back, cupping her face in his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs "But your mom and dad will be fine. The last few nights after his feed and some Orajel he's settled right down, and if he doesn't they've got the Tylenol. He'll be fine, I promise." 

Fliss nodded and Frank dipped his head, giving her a soft kiss. "Now, we got the rest of the afternoon and the entire night to ourselves...and dare I say it a lie in tomorrow morning." He grinned, turning to open the passenger door for her. "Do you wanna go out for a few drinks or..."

Fliss wrinkled her nose "is it bad I just wanna do nothing?" Frank laughed as Fliss shrugged "I mean I have a book that I haven't opened in like a week, I've got a bottle of pinot in the fridge..."

"So you wanna curl up on the window seat and not be disturbed?" Frank arched his eyebrow.

"Well, not all night." Fliss shook her head "but maybe for an hour or so when I finish the yard."

"Ok, well, let's make a deal." Frank's hand dropped to her hips "We take our own time till say 7 ish and then sit down for dinner and a movie."

"Oh my god, perfect" Fliss groaned. Frank shook his head as he snorted.

"When did we get so pathetic that we get our first child free evening in 6 months and you're gonna spend it reading about some lame ass British Detective and I'm gonna be screwing with boat parts?"

"Ok first off there is nothing pathetic about Detective Super Intendant Roy Grace and second off...will you be greasy?"

Frank's head fell back as a loud rumble of laughter erupted from his chest. When he looked back at Fliss she shrugged and he arched an eyebrow.

"You're terrible, you know that?"

"Not my fault you're such a dirty boat daddy."

"Dirty boat daddy?" Frank scoffed as he raised an eyebrow. "What the fuck..."

Fliss grinned as she traced Frank's bicep with the fingers of her right hand "You're my baby daddy...and you get dirty on boats..."

"You don't half talk some shit at times." He snorted and Fliss poked her tongue out, catching it between her teeth as she smiled.

"You love it."

"I love you." He bent down pressing his lips to hers before he stepped back "Now come on, I got some grease to smear up my arms."

"Can you wipe some on your face too?" Fliss asked as the climbed in the truck. Frank merely rolled his eyes with a smirk in response.

*******

Fliss stretched her legs out as she reached the end of her chapter, Thor giving a little annoyed huff as she jostled his head from where it was laying in her lap as they sat curled up, snuggled into the cushions on the large window seat.

"Sorry boy." She chuckled, scratching behind his ears as she glanced outside over the garden. It was dark out, the various garden lights strung up on the fence illuminated the panels which separated their private space to the large garden that belonged to the next house along. They’d really lucked out on this property. The house itself was set into almost 2 acres of land, and not to mention the 8 that now belonged to Sandybrook Stables after they’d purchased the additional 3 at the back. Which reminded Fliss, she really should get the architect onto the re-design.

Reaching for her phone she gave a yelp as she realised what time it was. Almost 8pm. They’d gone well over an hour later than they’d agreed, and given that there was no sign of Frank, he too had clearly forgotten. She stood up, fired her mum a quick message and then called their favourite Italian, ringing through an order for delivery. The guy on the phone was apologetic, saying it would be at least 45 minutes before it arrived but Fliss assured him it was no bother. No sooner had she put the phone down than her mom sent her a message back which was a picture of Alex fast asleep in the crib at her parents, his little cheeks still slightly red, but he looked peaceful. Satisfied everything was ok, she bit her lip before she smiled to herself and pulled open the fridge, tossing a 6 pack into a cool box. Instructing Thor to stay she headed out the back door and round the side of the pool and out of the garden onto the main front area. The garage door was open, the light from inside streaming onto the gravel driveway and the low tones of AC/DC hit her ears as she approached along with Frank’s curses.

The reason for his cursing was simple. No matter how much digging into the boats engine, or twisting his hand at impossible angles, the mother fucking part still wouldn’t come out. Snarling in frustration, he yanked his hand out, and grabbed a wrench, hitting the metal against it, cursing “You son of a bitch, you’re coming out of there whether ya wa like it or not. I’ve been fahking with you all God damn night!”

Fliss climbed the ladder next to the boat and snorted as she set down the cooler on the boards of the deck, arching a brow. It wasn’t often that Frank lost his cool, but when he did, he usually turned a bit Boston.

“You alright Sailor or should I be worried?” she spoke, perching on the edge. Frank fell back on his heels, grabbing a rag to wipe at his grease-covered hands and looked round at her, his brow beaded with sweat.

“If you got a beer in that cooler there, then you got nothing to worry about.” His eyes were hopeful and Fliss leaned forward, popping open the top and drawing out the six-pack. Smiling, Frank pushed himself to a stand and took one, removing the cap and draining a good third of it in one go. “Confirmed, nothing to worry about now Cowgirl!”

Fliss grabbed herself a beer and watched as Frank stepped closer, his hands resting either side of her thighs as she sat perched on the edge of the hull. “You get bored reading already?”

“Well I’d read enough anyway, but then realised the time. Baby its gone 8.”

“Seriously?” Frank frowned and then sighed as Fliss nodded. “Shit, sorry, I lost track o’time.”

“It’s ok, I did the same.” Fliss shrugged “Guess a child free few hours really is a treat.”

Frank smiled softly “We should probably order dinner.

Fliss smirked “Already done, we got like…40 mintues.” she wrapped her hands around Frank’s neck and tugged him closer.

“Whoa whoa baby, I’m covered in shit.” He gave a laugh as he protested slightly.

Rolling her eyes, she snorted. “No, if you were covered in shit, it would be because I worked you for a day at the stables. You Frank…” Her voice lowered, and her eyes turned hooded, leaning up to his lips, whispering against them. “You are covered in grease, and that makes me so unbelievably hot for you, that if you don’t fuck me on this deck, I won’t forgive you.”

“Enough said, consider yourself fucked on deck Baby,” Frank smirked, catching Fliss’ lips. At that point the music changed and flicked over from Whole Lotta Rosie to You Shook Me All Night Long, Frank’s favourite song and he smirked against her mouth as he began to sing the first verse, all the time keeping his lips a mere centimetre or so away from hers.

“She was a fast machine, she kept her motor clean, she was the best damn woman that I ever seen, she had the sightless eyes, telling me no lies, knocking me out with those American thighs…”

“Err British thighs, thank you.” Fliss corrected him. Frank simply arched an eyebrow and pulled her easily off the edge of the boat she was leaning against. She giggled as she wrapped her legs around his slim waist, leaning in to press her lips to his in a slow kiss as he walked them over to the benches at the rear of the boat. The kiss remained soft, teasing licks, a slow pace, but it was no less intense than a furious one, if anything it felt more powerful than normal, the pair of them truly alone for the first time in months. With each steady, deliberate tangle of their tongues, Fliss could feel everything. The heat, the spark, the butterflies swarming inside of her stomach.

In an easy, graceful moment Frank turned and sat on the edge of the bench, his hands letting go of Fliss’ hips as she straddled him, reaching up to cup the sides of her face, holding her still while his mouth had its way with hers. Pulling back a little he softly bit her lip, drawing a groan from her mouth and he grinned, resting his forehead against hers.

“What the fuck was in that book you were reading?” he asked and Fliss laughed

“Rape, murder…” she pondered, before she grinned wickedly “A police man in a uniform with handcuffs…”

“So is it the Uniform or the handcuffs that have got you all worked up Pretty Girl?”

“Neither, it’s the dirty, boat Daddy that I’m currently straddling”

At that Frank tipped his head back in a loud laugh, his hands brushing Fliss’ hair back off her face. “I fahkin love you.” he chuckled, as she pressed her lips to his again.

“Good job.” She mumbled against his mouth “Seeing as you’re the father of my kids…and you’re marrying me.” She added as somewhat of an afterthought.

Kids. Plural.

Frank glanced at her, her eyes shining against the lights of the garage and he smiled softly, his chest tightening a little with emotion. Mary’s adoption had only been finalised a few weeks prior, the ink probably still wet on all the documents but in their mind it had been a done deal months ago, from the moment they’d made the decision. Still, it stirred all kinds of warm feelings in his chest when he heard her say it. She smiled, reaching up to brush her hands through the longer strands of hair on his head before her fingers delicately danced down over his shoulders, his strong arms before she gripped at the hem of his T-shirt. He raised his arms allowing her to pull it off, before she dropped her head and chained open mouthed, warm kisses across his collar bone.

Happy to let her take charge for a moment, Frank tipped his head back sighing as she nipped up his neck to his jaw, her mouth skating over the stubble of his beard before she met his mouth again and this time the kiss was fierce. In a flash, Frank fisted his hand in the loose t-shirt she was wearing, yanking it over her head, giving a soft groan as he realised she was wearing no bra. His large hands spread over her back, pulling her snug against his chest, his fingers sliding up and down her spine causing her to shiver a little, letting out a soft moan that morphed into that oh so familiar whimper he knew and loved.

“I could listen to you make that sound for days,” he muttered and Fliss smiled against his mouth, kissing him again. A few seconds later, deciding to push things a little as Fliss seemed to be in a demanding mood, Frank pulled back, his bright blue eyes almost icy with intensity and issued a single word instruction. “Strip” Fliss felt her stomach bottom out with excitement when his demand registered. She swallowed and stood between his legs, slipping down the shorts she was wearing, Frank’s eyes watching her as she then slid down her panties, her gaze never once leaving his face. When he finished looking her up and down as she stood naked in front of him, his eyes met hers a look of pure, unadulterated wonderment and appreciation on his face.

And it was all for her.

“Like what you see sailor?” she bit her lip, her skin tingling with excitement as Frank arched an eyebrow.

“Like you wouldn’t believe…” his hands reached out and grabbed her hips as he stood up, pivoting them so that the back of Fliss’ legs pressed against the bench he had been sat on. His hands slid up, thumbs brushing the underneath of her breasts as he kissed her once more, softly, before he pulled back, his lips gently sucking at that spot on her delicate neck, his teeth nipping at her skin.

“Wanna turn around and get on your knees for me baby girl?” he whispered his question. Fliss looked at him, wide eyed, and he noted that where there had at one time been a slight apprehension in those deep browns at being put in such a position, now there was nothing but excitement, and he wasn’t quite sure when that had changed. But it had, and he loved it. He loved the fact she trusted him, that she was happy to simply be pliant in his hands.  She nodded and turned, kneeling on the bench in front of him, bending over, gripping the back with her hands. Frank reached out, gently manoeuvring so she was positioned where he wanted her to be and then stepped back, biting back the groan that bubbled in his throat at the site of her there, ready and waiting.

Fliss’ head was spinning. She couldn’t see him, but could feel him behind her. He wasn’t touching her yet, but he didn’t have to. Just the fact she could feel the heat of his gaze and his presence was enough to send her into a freefall. Every inch of her skin felt like it was on fire, the ache between her legs intensifying with each passing second. Then she heard a soft thud—Frank dropping to his knees, she assumed, but the gentle press of his mouth to the inside of her left thigh was still a shock, even though she knew it was coming. She inhaled sharply and Frank paused, his hands sliding up the outside of her thighs.

“You okay?” He asked, his voice low with desire. “Yeah.” Fliss’ breath was equally loaded and she let out a sigh as his mouth traced a line of kisses up her thigh, then he moved to do the same to the inside of her right. Her eyes closed, Fliss breathed in slowly in an attempt to steady herself, to stay calm and collected. She was ridiculously close already and his mouth hadn’t even touched that part of her body yet. When his tongue finally made contact, she lost all semblance of cool. Her eyes flew open and she let out a loud cry as the tip of his tongue swirled against her made. It was mere seconds but she was already panting, her hands curling around the back of the bench, the feel of his beard scratching against her was almost too much. Frank fucking her with his mouth, from behind, on the deck of the boat, in their garage was the single hottest thing she had ever experienced, and she wanted it to last as long as possible. Frank however, seemed to have other ideas. Whilst he kept the slow, steady rhythm with ease, he let out a low hum, something he knew would send her wild.

“Fuck,” she whined. “Frank, I…” His tongue swirled faster, his hands gripping the outside of her thighs tightly as she felt the pressure inside her turn white hot. When he slipped his finger inside her she gasped, his mouth matching every gentle but firm thrust his hand made.  It all resulted in a sensation so heavenly, it was agonizing and it spread from between her legs to the farthest reaches of her body, until she could take it no more. With a loud cry she came, hard, pushing back onto his face and her knees buckled slightly, her hand slipping on the wooden rail of the bench, her body and mind completely gone. Frank stood up, giving her a moment as he quickly shed his jeans and boxers before his hands gripped her hips and he bent over to kiss her neck. “You good?” he asked and she gave a hum of satisfaction as she turned her head to look at him, her brown eyes meeting his as she nodded. “Jesus Frank…” she stuttered and he smirked, his grin slipping slightly as she reached back and gripped him in her hand, a choked little grunt escaping his own mouth as her palm tightened around his now throbbing cock. His hands dropped to her hips and he pulled her backwards and up slightly, manoeuvring her so she was exactly where he needed and with smooth, fluid thrust forward he slid slowly into her, the deliberate languid pace allowing her to feel every glorious inch of him. “Lissy,” he growled, and that was the last word he uttered as he thrust into her over, and over, screams and cries and grunts filling the air in the large garage, echoing slightly off the walls. As his hands tightened on her hips, Fliss knew he was close and so was she. He let go with his right hand, dropping it round between her legs to palm her clit and the warm press of his hand combined with the steady rhythm of his thrusts sent Fliss over the edge again and just as a low growl ripped from Frank’s throat, orgasm number two spiked through her. Only this time when she lost it, she was a complete mess.  Every single muscle in her body cramped and quivered as she tensed in front of Frank, bucking violently until she sagged forward, her sailor’s arms wrapping around her as he gave a few more deep thrusts before he shuddered, his arms tightening their hold and he groaned loudly, his hips faltering as he came with a surge that brewed right from his feet. They both remained still for a second until Frank slowly and gently pulled away. He pressed his lips to Fliss’ lower back, showering her in gentle kisses, as he made his way up her spine before he reached the crook of her shoulder. Fliss’s eyes were still closed but her face sported a sated smile as she let out a hum of satisfaction.  Picking her up, Frank sat down on the bench so she was cradled in his lap, reaching for the tartan blanket that was draped over the seat a few down and he wrapped it around them both, kissing her hair line.

“Suppose that’s one way to christen the boat.” She eventually spoke and Frank chuckled.

"God bless the good lady Felicity...and all who sail in her." He retorted, giving a little salute. Fliss snorted and slapped his arm.

“You’re such a wanker.” She shook her head and Frank laughed, kissing her gently”

“You love it, honey.” “No, I love you. Which means I put up with all your wanker-ish traits because I have no choice.”

*******

Once Frank had showered he made his way downstairs dressed comfortably in a pair of sweats and t-shirt. Fliss had already laid the take-out boxes on the counter so he parked himself down on one of the stools as Fliss handed him a beer, taking a glass of wine for herself. They talked as they ate, Fliss teasing Frank about getting him a display cabinet for his baseball trophy to which he snorted and told her he wasn't intending on making it a habit. Once they'd finished their food, they cleared the dishes and Frank made his way to the sofa whilst Fliss let Thor out into the yard as he was pawing at the door. 

Frank absentmindedly flicked through the news channels, pausing at a report on Trump's latest activity and the reaction to a stupid tweet he had made regarding guns and he shook his head, scoffing in disgust.

"I dont know why you watch anything about him." Fliss called as she shut the door "it just winds you up."

"His brain is a fucking scribble" Frank retorted, "I mean...just look at him Fliss!"

"I'd rather not!" She called back, shooing Fred down from where he had hopped up onto the kitchen counter. 

"President of the free world and he's an absolute tool." Frank continued his chunnering as he stretched out, his legs on the coffee table and his arms extending quite forcefully behind his head as he yawned. Unfortunately, Fliss had chosen that exact moment to cross the room ready to wrap her arms around him from behind and as she bent to do so the back of Frank's closed left fist connected with the top of her left cheekbone, just in the outside corner of her eye, and she gave a yelp of surprise. As soon as it happened Frank jerked his head round and as he saw Fliss recoiling from the accidental blow his blood ran cold.

"Shit..." he sprang over the back of the couch, ignoring Thor who was now growling furiously at him. "Oh my god, Lissy, I'm so fahkin' sorry..." 

She straightened up blinking, her hands falling to his biceps as he gently cradled her face. "Frank its fine, you just caught my eye a little that’s all, it won't even bruise."

"Well, maybe not but..."

"Did you-Thor!" Fliss yelled at the dog, turning to look at him "Stop!" The German shepherd fell silent and flopped his butt down on the floor, his dark amber eyes still fixed on Frank, as Fliss turned back to him. "Did you mean to do it?"

"No, of course not..."

"Then there you go. It was an accident." She smiled, "it wasn't even hard enough to bruise, trust me, I know."

"That's not funny." Frank said quietly and Fliss sighed.

"It wasn't meant to be." She shook her head as Frank's eyes roved her face, utter dismay across every inch of his own. "Frankie..."

"Baby, I'm so..."

"Stop apologising." She said softly "it was an accident. Nothing more." Frank looked at her again before she stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. "Please don't."

"Don't what?" He asked

"Worry that you've hurt me, or scared me. Because you haven't." She shook her head "would you be this bothered if I didn't have the history I did?"

Frank hesitated. Of course he'd be bothered about hitting his girl, regardless of it being accidentally, but she was right. He wouldn't feel the concern he did has she not been subjected to the abuse she had suffered previously. He gave a little sheepish shrug and Fliss shook her head again, smiling.

"I'm not made of glass Sailor, I'm not gonna shatter over something like this. Not anymore." She took his hand in hers, pressed a kiss to his knuckles and then let go. Frank dropped it to his side, curling both hands on her hips as her arms slid up round his neck. "Can we forget this now and snuggle up with a movie?"

Frank nodded "ok, sounds good..."

After a little deliberation and poking around the channels Fliss’ eyes lit up when she realised that one of the channels was now dedicated to James Bond, the next movie showing being Skyfall, one of her favourites. However, fifteen minutes in Frank felt her head growing heavy against his chest as they lay sprawled on the sofa. He glanced down to see her eyes closed, her lids fluttering slightly, lashes laying against her cheeks as she slept. With a smile he pressed a kiss to her head, his hand gently resting around her back as she lay snuggled into him. It can’t have been much more than twenty minutes later when he too felt his eyes growing heavy, the exertion of the day finally getting to much for him and he nodded off, both of them waking with a jolt when the music for the end credits kicked in and Fred hopped up onto the back of the sofa before landing on Frank’s chest by Fliss’ head with a loud purr.

“Jesus Fred…” Frank grumbled, pushing him off as Fliss sat up, blinking. “Fucking one eyed bastard.”

Fred glared at him and slunk off, jumping up onto the armchair where he curled up, his tail flicking.

“What a rock and roll lifestyle we lead.” Fliss stretched slightly as she yawned and Frank shrugged.

“Well we had a busy day.” “Even busier evening.” She quipped and Frank chuckled, his hand rubbing at her back before she stood up, her hands rubbing at her eyes. With a heave Frank swung his legs off the couch and he too stood, pulling his girl into a hug.

“You go up, I’ll sort Thor check the doors.”

She gave him a quick peck and then left him to it, padding tiredly up the stairs. She headed into the bathroom to clean her teeth and was just climbing in between the soft sheets when Frank walked into the room, Thor behind him, the dog flopping down with a sigh into his basket. Fliss’ eyes fell to the empty bassinet and she suddenly felt a little pang for her missing baby, but she knew from the various texts and the conversation she’d had with her parents earlier that he was perfectly fine so she closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

It wasn’t long before Frank joined her in bed and she shuffled over to him, tossing her leg over his as he kissed her forehead, his hand sliding up the back of her sleep cami, palm warm against her skin.

“Night honey, love you.” He yawned and she smiled.

“Love you too.” She sighed contentedly, her eyes closing as they both drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

*****

Frank woke the next morning to an empty bed. With a stretch he rubbed his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. Of course it would be too much to hope Fliss would be able to lay in. And then he turned over to check the time and did a double take. It was almost 10 am.

“Fuck!” he gave a little chuckle. Guess he’d been a lot more tired than he thought. Swinging his legs out of bed he padded into the bathroom, sorted his bladder out and went about the rest of his normal morning routine before he grabbed a t-shirt and a pair of sweats and headed downstairs. He paused in the doorway to the large family area, watching as she was stood at the stove, dressed in one of his button downs. It skimmed the curve of her ass, ending in the middle of her thighs and he smiled as he watched her move. He couldn’t quite remember the last time he saw her like this in the kitchen, it was certainly before Alex was born, most likely on one of their kid free Friday nights that had abruptly halted when he’d arrived, not that Frank would change a thing about it mind, but it was still nice to have it back, even it if was just for one morning.

He thought back to the first time he saw her dressed in one of his shirts. It was a Saturday in his old apartment, not long after they'd started dating. He found her in the kitchen much like she was now, making a coffee having woken early and not wanted to disturb him. He remembered thinking it was the first time a woman had ever done that, made herself at home, because in fairness she was the only woman that had lasted longer than a night in 8 years. It had stirred something in him then, a feeling of contentment, much like the one he was feeling now. His life had changed dramatically since she’d walked into it approximately 2 and a half years or so. In some ways the time had flown by, in others it felt like a life time when he considered everything they’d been through, both of them so far from the people they had been, yet so similar too.

With a smile he stepped into the room and walked over to her, and the fact she didn’t jump when he wrapped his arms aroud her from behind told him she’d been well aware of his presence in the doorway for a while.

“I thought we were supposed to be having a lazy morning complete with lie in” Frank’s hand gently brushed Fliss’ wild locks off her neck before he pressed a kiss to her skin

“I did.” Fliss smiled “I didn’t wake up until 8:30. Normally your son has me up at 6.”

“Our son.”

“When he wakes me up at 6 am he’s your son.” She turned her head to glance at him. “Dad’s gonna collect Mary and drop them both off at half past midday ish.”

“Well then, you really could have stayed in bed.” He pouted and she chuckled.

“Once I’m awake I’m awake…” she shrugged “No point staying there.”

“You should’a woken me up, I could’a given you a good reason to stay put.” His lips pressed more kisses to her neck and Fliss laughed, swatting at his head playfully.

“I’ll burn breakfast.”

“So?”

“I’m hungry.”

“So am I.”

“I meant for food.” She turned in his arms and he shrugged playfully giving her a deep kiss.

“Morning honey.” He smiled against her lips and she let out a little chuckle.

“Morning hot shot.” She grinned, patting his chest “you wanna set the places and pour us a coffee each? This is nearly done.”

Doing as he was told, Frank stepped back, grabbing cutlery and placing it on the breakfast bar before he made them both a coffee and grabbed the orange juice and a couple of glasses. As he set it all down on the side, Fliss dropped two plates of pancakes, bacon and eggs on the place mats and Frank gave a little groan of delight.

“You didn’t have to do this.” He looked at her.

“It’s just breakfast” she shrugged “Plus, thought it would be nice, just the two of us. And I wanted to talk to you.”

“Sounds ominous.” He arched an eyebrow as she sat next to him.

“No, not really.” She shrugged “I was just thinking yesterday a little. I wanna go back to work Frank, like full time. I’m ready.”

“Okay.” He nodded, “That’s fine. Did you think I was gonna protest or something?”

“No, I just wanted to discuss it, remember, we said we would do that after last time?”

“Liss, this is different.” He said, shaking his head as he cut into a pancake. “He’s almost 6 months old now, we’ll be weaning him soon.” “Yeah, I was thinking I can start pushing up the hours and then when he’s fully converted onto solids, which by the way, I’m not looking forward to those nappy changes…” she wrinkled her nose and Frank laughed, popping a piece of his breakfast into his mouth “well, when all that’s done then I’m back to full time.”

“Like I said, if you’re ready then fine.” Frank looked at her, hi hand dropping to her knee. “Guess we should start looking for a childminder huh?”

“Mum said she’d help out but I don’t want her to have him all the time, she’s got her own life. But I was thinking she could maybe have him two days a week, as she’ll sulk if I don’t let her have him some time.” Fliss shrugged “The other days, I thought we could speak to the one that Bonnie’s sister uses. She’s not far from Mum and Dad.” “Yeah, ok. Get her number and we’ll go meet her.” Frank agreed, shovelling more of his breakfast into his mouth.

“I also wanna call the architect that Steeby knows” Fliss added, taking a bite of food “Start getting the plans drawn up for the expansion. I’d really like to have that completed by the wedding. We got nearly 7 months. I think it’s doable. The additional stables won’t take long, or the lunging pen and the paddock move. The big job is gonna be the extension to the office and tack room but…again, a couple of weeks and Dad reckons it’ll be done. He doesn’t think that it’ll be much over 12 weeks in total if we get the right guys on the job.” Frank nodded “Well, the land is already ours so, go for it.”

“Yeah?” Fliss smiled and Frank returned the gesture, squeezing her knee.

“Yeah, let’s do it. Get the designs drawn up and some quotes for the work.”

“I love you.” Fliss beamed, leaning over to kiss him softly and he smiled, his nose bumping hers slightly.

“That’s because I’m a very lovable guy” he grinned and Fliss snorted, pulling back.

“Suppose so.”

They ate their breakfast and once the dishes were over they both retired to the sofa, Frank flicking on the news channel, Fliss picking up her book again, Fred curling up behind her head on the sofa back, Thor jumping up beside her. Frank gave a grunt and a huff, pushing the dog’s huge paw off his thigh before he flopped down, head in his lap. It was lazy, comfortable and remained that way until at midday, Fliss headed upstairs to pull on something a little more substantial than Frank’s shirt, much to his chagrin. When she came down dressed in a pair of breaches and a polo shirt little over 20 minutes later he smiled at her.

“You got a class this afternoon?”

“Yeah I’m taking Mary’s one at 2.” She said. “But I need to ride Cap  beforehand and then Bronson needs working and Heidi could do with a walk round the trail too, her back leg keeps swelling up.” “Still bad?”

Fliss wrinkled her nose as she crossed to the fridge “Nothing unusual for her age, the vet said it’s a touch of arthritis which is why I don’t school her any more. It tends to go down when she’s done a bit of walking. If I take her for half an hour hack round she’ll be fine. It’s when it stops going down that I’ve got a problem, but I don’t even want to think about that.” She shook her head, pulling the water out of the fridge. “I can’t imagine my life without her.”

“She’s certainly been with you a long time.” Frank looked at her and Fliss nodded

“20 years this year.” She sighed “Hard to believe really. She was the first horse I ever owned, best one I could have hoped for.”

“How long do you think Mary has with Monty?” Frank asked, declining Fliss’ offer of a glass of water. “I mean till she outgrows him.” “She won’t” Fliss shook her head “I can still ride Monty, he’s a welsh cob. Chunky, she’ll be good with him until he drops. But I do think she’ll be looking for something a little more advanced as well in a couple of years, when Monty needs to slow down again, but we can cross that bridge when we get there.”

“Oh, great.” Frank rolled his eyes and Fliss laughed as she sat next to him.

“Behave, it’s not like it costs anything to keep another.” “I’m referring to the advanced bit.” Frank looked at her “Still scares the crap out of me when she sails over those damned fences.”

“She’s good at it.” Fliss shrugged “If she gets placed in the final competition next month she’s got third place over all. She wins it, then she’s gonna take second. Not to mention the fact that she’s basically already won the Junior Rider class. Not bad for a first season.”

Frank smiled proudly, but before he could say anything else the back door opened and Mary skipped inside, her voice carrying over the room.

“That’s just not true Poppa B and you know it!” She sing songed and Bill rolled his eyes as he carried Alex’s car chair inside.

“Is so.” He nodded “I know someone it happened to.”

“Nah ah!” she shook her head “When you swallow gum it can’t physically wrap around your ribs as when you eat it goes down to your stomach. It’s impossible.”

“Smart ass.” Bill chuckled as Fliss stood up, crossing the room.

“Hi!” she smiled, before she beamed down at Alex who grinned and started to thrash his legs and arms about at the sight of his momma, screeching. “Hi baby, I missed you!”

“What am I? Chopped liver?” Mary looked at Fliss who laughed, and pulled her into a hug.

“And you, dur!”

“You have a good time?” Frank asked as Mary flopped next to him.

“Yeah, we had fish tacos.” Mary smiled “They were well nice.” “Fish tacos.” Frank made an approving noise in his throat.

“Yeah and then we watched some more of The Mandalorian. And I had hot chocolate and went to bed.” Fliss, who now had Alex cradled in her arms, turned to face them both. “Sounds better than my night.” She quipped giving Frank a wink as he raised an eyebrow.

“Oh does it?”

“Why does something tell me I don’t wanna know?” Bill asked and Fliss turned to look at her dad, an innocent look on her face.

“I don’t know what you mean.” She chuckled “I just helped Frank with some stuff on the boat.”

“Sure you did.” Bill rolled his eyes before his eyes twinkled cheekily “Hope you scrubbed the deck afterwards.”

[boys-from-santacarla]

If you’re still doing the matchups do you mind? -May Taurus born on Beltane

-Witchy af and I love to collect flowers and dead things

-I dress pretty grungy with ripped jeans, crop tops, and plaid shirts. Sometimes with converse, sometimes combat boots. I have a few punk jackets I’m putting together and my next one will be vampire themed.

-I’m a professional body piercer so I’ve got a decent amount of tattoos that I’m collecting all the time and some pretty obvious facial piercings. My ears are asymmetrical and I always have studs in 2/3 of my lobes and a dangly earring (coyote tooth today) in the last one.

-I never ever shut up. I even talk in my sleep, but temper wise I’m fairly chill until pushed too far. My ADHD makes a lot of things seem iMpOrTaNt so I’m kind of a spazz. Definitely more of a mom friend though and always watching out for my friends. Not big on drinking and I don’t smoke but I love hanging with my friends when I can. I’m also a very big on reading…I may or may not be encroaching on 500 books in my way-too-small-for-this-shit apartment.

-In terms of size/body type I’m plus size but I’m working on being ok with my body image.

-Music ranges from classical to heavy metal to swing music so I don’t have a set taste but I have a huge vinyl collection and a deep passion for 80’s music and late 70’s surprisingly (definitely a huge fan of Blue Öyster Cult, The Doors, Pink Floyd, etc).

SORRY THIS IS SO LONG F*CK MY BAD

Notes: It wasn't that long, don't worry, dude. Well, thank you so much for the request! I really hope this is ok. Give feedback to it if you want :)

Maybe not what one would expect, but I can see you going out with...

Michael

This is why

If you had met him before Santa Carla, he might have made fun of you for your "mumbo-jumbo crap", but his skepticism disappeared after meeting the boys, and grandpa has taught him and Sam about nature and a few old rituals from the place, so now he's more open-minded. He is not really what you would call a Wiccan expert, but he will share with you his interest in these things. Oh, and will definitely give you one or two stuffed animals or just weird paraphernalia from his grandpa, just for the love of being annoying.

He will give you some of his shirts if you happen to like them, too. He likes your style because it is similar to his' but better. See, this man just puts on whatever happens to be clean or at least decent to go out with. But he's still trying to look more punk and you are the perfect educator for this, so he will ask you to help him with that and with the leather jackets thing because he only has the one he used to impress the boys with.

After his first piercing, and after seeing you look all badass and cool with yours, he is desperate to get new ones. Will be around you almost begging to have you do his new piercings. If you oblige, you're gonna deal with a beaming, loving Michael for a whole week. He will like them so much he's gonna talk and brag about them with everyone, even random strangers because he can't stop the excitement. If he comes across some awesome rings or jewelry in general, he will buy a pair for you two to match together.

I'm not gonna lie, he never really felt attracted to plus-size women, but there is something about you that makes him look at you in awe.

At first, he was only attracted to your personality, but the more you two spent time together the more he wanted to be 24/7 talking and joking with you. Then, your tough-looking style contrasting your personality is practically what did it for him.

Let me just tell you that when he decided to flirt with you, you had to hear some awfully heinous pick-up lines.

If you are working on changing your appearance, he is going to be there for you to give you sweet words and motivation. He decided a long ago it didn't matter how you looked; you were perfect for him, but he is supportive.

There's no day he won't tell you your tattoos make you look hot.

Honestly enjoys passing his time with you. The incessant babbling keeping his brain working and all the shared laughs are special for him.

Michael does some weird shit from time to time, and is a total disaster for decision-making and taking care of himself, so you will have a boyfriend to cuddle with, and a 5-year-old boy to look after.

Gurl, you are going to be besties with Sam. Damn, you two can have such a fun time just messing around and irritating Mike. It is really fun when you three go out to play at the boardwalk or just stay at home playing monopoly or whatever you feel like doing.

He will be like Michael with the piercings thing because he wants to look as awesome as you and all the other cool weirdos in Santa Carla. He is even accepting to trade some of his best comic books for an ear-piercing.

Also, Lucy is going to be extremely loving and supportive of you guys. Oh my god, I can't imagine this and not smile. Mrs. Emerson is the best mother-in-law you are gonna have. Chitchatting with you about everything, helping if you and Mike fight (not crossing any lines of course), giving you girly advice, and just basically caring for you like family.

As for the music, the long conversations about those legendary riffs and bands, and the extrasensorial experiences listening to those 40-hour-long Pink Floyd solos are gonna be extremely entertaining and enjoyable with the Emersons. And I'm saying it in plural because you can discuss and lay back to listen to "Secret Treaties" either with Sam, or Michael, or both at the same time.

[hobicomeholla29]

Cuff me if you can - Part 1 - KTH

Pairing: Dad! Street Racer! Taehyung x Judge! Reader

Genre: Fluff/ Slight angst/ Crack

Word Count:5k

Warnings: Mentions of domestic violence/ Cursing/ Mentions of bribing/ Probably incorrect use of legal terminology/ Incorrect legal procedure/ That’s all for this chapter. Oh! unedited!

Rating: PG13

A/N: Well hello again beautiful people! Thank you for taking the time to read this! This sieres are part of BTSghostie writer event for the month of september. Dynamite Dads!

Summary: Kim Taehyung and yourself, live your lives on the opposite side of each other. Yet that doesn’t mean that you can’t meet in the middle.

Masterlist

Getting out of your car, the cool morning breeze caressed what it could of your exposed skin. The walk from the parking lot to the courthouse wasn’t long, but the chills that ran through your body made it feel like it took a little over the usual 5 minutes.

The sun shined like every morning, yet today it felt different somehow.

Maybe it was wishful thinking, but it felt as if today would be the beginning of something new or different, and that was a lot to say for someone like you.

“Morning judge y/n!”

“Morning”

Your job placed you in a position where you were always in the eyes of criminals and felons that were either angry, moody, violent, sad or careless  ­—and any other word you can come up with, when thinking about wrongdoers who are finally facing the law­­— forcing you to try seeking for positivity in other aspects of your life.

 Since you were a child, you always had an itch that annoyed you every time you had to be in the presence of an unfair or unethical situation and couldn’t do anything about it.

 It is positive to say that you got it from your mother's strong moral views on righteousness, honesty, and integrity.

 And so a dream came up to you, a dream you had expressed to your parents at the tender age of 5 while watching cartoons one cold morning, your parents discussing the latest incident on that morning's newspaper on the other side of the room.

 "I want to put all those kwiminals in jail"

 There was something fulfilling about being able to help people get justice for the wrongs that were done to them, something about making the corrupt, nefarious, and unlawful pay. Your dream never wavered, the sole thought of what the future would hold made you buzz with excitement during your teenage years and still did now in your adulthood.

 It was present during your entire life, you weren't afraid of speaking up when a witness was needed in an unfair situation in school, whether you were putting yourself in a position against a classmate or a teacher, all that mattered was that the problem was solved in a fair manner.

 Yet, even though you kept steadfast loyalty towards your beliefs, it sometimes got you in trouble, as not everyone sees good in someone openly voicing their wrongdoings. Leading you to sometimes being labeled as a snitch —and no one wants to befriend a snitch—.

 Nevertheless, you pushed through, finally meeting people that shared your views in college.

 It was nice to be able to have a conversation with people with the same mentality and strong feelings towards justice as yourself —not saying that you didn't encounter people who were walking this path just for the money.

 And finally, after graduating from law school with two of your closest friends by your side, you decided it had been way too long of a peaceful ride for the evildoers and it was time to get with it.

 "Good morning Y/n!" A voice spoke loudly from behind you.

 "Morning Guk! How was your weekend?" It was always nice to see Jungkook 1st thing in the morning. For some reason, his cute bunny teeth always gave you life.

 Jungkook was one of your friends from college AKA best friend #1. He had the face of a baby with the wisdom of a 70-year-old man –who would have thought.

 His words towards you were always of encouragement or offerings of helping you with anything you needed –just like in college.

 He was methodical with his work, always studying his cases with a careful eye and with discipline. Some hated it, stating he took way too long to make final judgments, however, there wasn't a ruling that Jungkook had ever issued where the victim had been left to suffer the mischief without the guilty paying the price.

 "Pretty calm actually, taking into consideration that I had the Kang case on Sunday" The younger of your friends exhaled "That man has got to get a grip on his life, this is his 3rd showing" He made a pause as if bringing up some memories from the case, however, he quickly returned to the present "How was yours?"

 "It was quiet; abnormally so, thus my wild guess is that this week I'm going to be assigned as many cases as possible."

 "I know that feeling. The impending doom crawling towards you in the shape of Jimin dropping them on your desk."

 “Yep…” You sighed bracing yourself for the upcoming day.

 Briefly talking about other uninteresting subjects and your mundane lives –like, when was Seokjin going to invite both of you out for lunch— you both eventually parted ways to your own chambers.

 "Good morning Judge Y/n"

"Morning Jimin, you look refreshed!"

 Jimin —your perky judicial secretary— was the earthly version of an angel mixed with a dutiful fairy, you sometimes wondered how he even managed to hold up that 1,000-watt smile all day while dealing with you.

 You had been working together for 3 years now and every year they decided to rotate the secretaries, you prayed they wouldn't change him for someone else.

 "I am! Thanks for the days off, they really helped!"

"Don't mention it bubs. What do you have for me today?" You asked as your heels clicked on the tile making your way behind your large rectangular Victorian style oak desk, Jimin quickly trailing behind you with a stack of folders in his arms.

 "These four are for today and these four are for tomorrow" he said as he divided them into two groups in front of you. "I'll have the ones for Wednesday and Thursday ready by tomorrow" he concluded with a small nod and a smile of accomplishment on his plump lips.

 "Thanks, Jimin. What would I do without you?" you smiled up at the younger man, who smiled wider and turned to leave to his own desk a couple of feet away from yours.

 Finally, mentally prepared to start your day —after mindlessly scrolling through your phone for 20 minutes— you unlocked your computer and began reading through the files that Jimin had left on your desk labeled ‘Monday’.

 "Another asshole, who thought he could get away with a hit and run..." you muttered to yourself, as you reviewed the first case.

 The following trials were for a domestic violence case and 2 robberies.

After reviewing the files, you began transcribing some of the information on your computer, adding personal notes based on the evidence that had been collected for each case and saved it all for its intended use in the next 2 hours.

"Since no one likes a slacker, I might as well go through the ones for tomorrow as well."

As expected, there was another case of robbery, one for theft, a case for assault and last but not least a misdemeanor for street racing. 

After an hour of transcribing that called for a well-deserved break, you stretched your arms above your head, sighing softly as the tension was released.

 "Judge... would you like some tea? I'm on my way to the Cafe"

"Ugh Jimin, I love you, why are you so sweet, I'll come with." As you both picked up your belongings and were about to head out to the small cafe across the street, an unforeseen visitor arrived abruptly, startling both you and your secretary.

"Oh, so you're both slacking off now. I thought that was a Y/n thing?"

"I- No judge- we-" Poor Jimin couldn’t even complete a sentence, his mind still in a jumble as a result of the sudden barge into your chamber.

"Seokjin, shut up.” You cut your eyes at his comment. “We are going to the café. You either come with or move out of the way." You laughed a bit while pushing past your best friend #2, making your way out.

Oh, how lucky were you to be able to have them working near you.

 Back from the cafe and ready to face all cases for the day, you walk to your chamber accompanied by Jimin who helped you wear your black robe, both quickly headed to the courtroom for your first trial right after.

Monday had gone by smoothly; all cases being addressed as they should and all sentences set in place.

Tuesday was a better day, the morning had been less chilly than the day prior and you could read a bit before your hearings of the day, since you had proactively  reviewed the cases of today, yesterday.

After the third time hearing it today, a fourth was just unnecessary, however entering the courtroom for the fourth time on that day, you heard the bailiff announcing your arrival.

 “All rise. This court is now in session.” Shuffling could be heard, a sign of everyone in the room getting on their feet. “Honorable judge Y/n L/n Presiding.”

You took your seat and announced to everyone that they could do so too. You took the files that the bailiff handed you and began reading the case.

 “Good morning everyone. Today's hearing is for case 3476, the city vs Lee Simon, Kim Taehyung and Jean Reynolds” you announced.

 “Lee Simon, Kim Taehyung and Jean Reynolds, all three of them, age 26, accused of trespassing private property, injury of a third party and driving over the speed limit, while being timed against each other. All of it initiating from 25th avenue to Map of the Soul street.” You concluded.

“How do you plead?”

“Innocent” “Guilty” “Innocent”

 Internally, you wanted to laugh, but you knew your position required for you to remain serious and focused. It wasn’t the first time a group of friends split due to being involved in a situation they weren’t expected to be in, and it wouldn’t be the last.

 “Seeing that you have different views, let us review the information presented.”

Videos and pictures from street cameras were shown, as well as footed from a dash camera in a hidden police vehicle.

 “Evidence shown so far, seems to portray all three of you as guilty, and the witnesses are yet to come in, excluding the owner of the vehicle you crashed into while running against each other as well as the owner of the private property you drove through.”

 You watched all three of them carefully as you gave them a run through of how this case was going on for them. Two off them looked indifferent, like someone who has done it before, did it this time and will probably do so again.

A chance was soon to be given to all three of them to express why they believed they were innocent, however another piece of evidence was brought in.

“According to this report sent in about your record, you are all repeat offenders, meaning that your options are limited; paying for the legal fees and community service, paying for the legal fees and 1 year jail time or paying for the legal fees, suspension of your driver’s license, a fee of $10,000 and a possibility of impoundment of the motor vehicle used in the crime.”

 "I am going to admit I was there, but I did it for a specific reason, your honor."

"And what reason could that be?"

“Can I approach the bench?”

“Permission granted." The man in question slowly approached you, eyes never wavering from yours.

"I needed the money your honor. I have a daughter..."

"Says here, that you have been detained before and gave out the same reason, so why should we let you off easy Mr. Kim?"

 “So… there is no way we aren’t paying the legal fees -I take it?” the one with the tiger-like eyes spoke up, a small smile playing on his lips as he did so.

“No” the frown on your face was so pronounced, that no area was left for more of his attempt to banter.

“Do I get the easier outcomes if I plead guilty.”

“That’s a possibility...” Now you know why he pleaded guilty. He’s not new to this.

“I have a daughter your honor… I can’t go to jail” He said before you were able to add to your previous sentence.

“That’s for me to decide, however, can’t she stay with a family member?”

“She only has me…” his eyes turned gloomy as he directed his gaze to the floor Infront of you. Should you even trust that action. It could be staged for all you know.

It annoyed you the way how the immediate mention of a child felt like a tool he was using to soften the blow of your possible verdict. However, it still got under your skin and you felt your hard-exterior crumble, allowing your feelings to take over and think about the poor child that would have to deal with an uncomfortable situation.

“How old is your daughter Mr. Kim?”

“four” His demeanor changed entirely the moment he found more time to speak about the hypothetical child he had.

“Who is she with at the moment?”

“A friend”

“Everyone back to their seats…”

You were so predictable. Jungkook would have never softened for something like that.

He would have given him 2 years in jail, taken his car, taken his driver’s license and custody of the child as well, for not being a suitable parent. But no, you had to be like Seokjin, soft hearted and taking people’s feelings into consideration. Bleh.

 “Based on the evidence collected. I am ready to provide a verdict for this case. Lee Simon and Jean Reynolds you are sentenced to serve 6 months of county jail time, pay a fine of $5,000 plus all legal fees and your license will be suspended for 6 months. Kim Taehyung, you are sentenced to a fine of $3,000, suspension of your driver’s license for 6 months, paying the legal fees and community service for 6 months.” You stated re arranging the documentation on your desk and setting them aside.

“Please take them. Mr. Kim shall be escorted to the officer’s department in order to have his rules set in place.”

“Thank you.” A voice said to you right after. You didn’t have to turn to know it was Kim Taehyung, however you did so. He was flashing you a large square smile. It wasn't 1,000 watts like Jimin’s but it was still warm and different, even a bit playful if you looked at it for long.

“That daughter of yours better be real.” You muttered before collecting the final documentation and exiting the room.

But not before hearing.

“Didn’t know they had such pretty judges in here, I should get arrested more often.”

You should have put him in jail. Or maybe not.

It’s funny how you haven’t been able to get your mind to stop remembering his cheeky squared smile and that aura of a playful child in a large man. It's been 2 weeks now.

Yet you can’t forget him walking up into your courtroom with all that confidence, as if he owned the place.

“Ugh”

“Everything ok?”

You gasped loudly, not having heard Jimin enter the chamber as you mindlessly rolled your mouse around and thought about the man who you sentenced to community service a couple of weeks ago.

“You nearly killed me Jimin!” you voiced a little louder than you should have, the fright still showing in your tone.

“I'm sorry" poor kid, all he did was be nice all day.

“You're fine, I just didn’t hear you come in” you answered, returning to aimlessly move your mouse and stare at the open word document on your computer screen.

“Oh! I see. Well in your favor, I was trying to be quiet. Anyways, what are you doing here so early judge y/n?” leave it to Jimin to always worry about others.

“I thought I could… focus on something else by working a little, but the chambers triggered my distractions even more…” You tried internally to not bring it up, but you knew you had to tell someone about it.

About the fact that maybe you might have an itty-bitty tiny crush on a man you barely saw for a span of 40 minutes and convicted for a crime. You are so lame.

Jimin moved around his desk -you assumed- arranging all of his documents for the day and bring his computer to life.

“and what is it?” he asked you after a couple of minutes of comfortable silence.

“What is what?”

“The distraction that's caught your attention, what is it?” his eyes stared at you widely, they looked so earnest and kind. Just wanting to help you with whatever inconvenience you were having.

“Um… well… you’ll probably think it's dumb"

“I promise I won't” he answered so fast, it felt like he was expecting you to decline opening up to him.

“Well…. I… kinda-have-a-small-crush-on-a-man-I-barely-know-and-could-be-a-scofflaw.”

Your sentence had come out abruptly and in such a rapid fire, that you could see the cogs turning in Jimin’s head as he connected all the things you had said and laced them together.

“Did you just say scofflaw?”

“Is that all you caught from my sentence?” flabbergasted, that's what you were with his reaction.

“No, but… really? scofflaw? Not even judge Harry who's 78 uses that term anymore.”

“Not the point Jimin…" frustrated at the weird turn the conversation had taken, you pinched your nose bridge, trying to figure out the young man's train of thought .

“Ok, ok. But is it one of the guys from a couple of weeks ago. The street racer ones?”

“How do you-"

“Eva from the reception said that, Joyce from finance told her that, Hyerin from chamber 5, saw them being called in on their hearing day and that they were all —her words, not mine— as hot as a super-sized bag of flamin hot Cheetos.”

 Now that’s stuck in your mind. Jimin was definitely not helping.

 “Curse you, procrastination!”

 Grocery shopping should have been done weeks ago. But you were tired, and sleepy and distracted and everything in between that could keep you from doing the boring task that  buying your own food was.

 Walking through the aisles in the grocery store, you could hear a little girl talking her —probably parent's— ear off.

 Not paying too much attention to her, you were barely able to catch a couple of words here and there as you walked around picking up what you needed.

 "Fishies would be a good pet because I can't hu't it if I hug it awound his house"

"Why can't I see my own eyes?"

"Can we get vanilla this time, stwabewies we'e yuck!"

"How do clouds float? Why don't they fall?"

"Look! Look! A toy!"

 She sounded so excited and the little lisp with her R's was the cutest, you thought.

 You were almost done with your list, only missing some meat or poultry and a pound of potatoes, —'cause you've been craving gratin potatoes for a while and you were done living a life without them.

 Making your way to the missing items, you could once again hear a conversation going on between the little girl and the other person, but this time the adult with her spoke. It was a grave voice, very deep and somewhat familiar, yet not enough to put a face to it.

 "You are not having a pet, until you understand the responsibilities that come with taking care of an animal" The voice answered the little girl sternly. You could imagine the man's face voided of any emotion and trying to maintain a serious visage. Probably trying to teach his daughter a lesson.

Again, the voice sounded familiar, giving you a tingling sensation in the back of your mind. However, in your distraction, the links that attempted to connect in your mind remained ignored.

 You continued rolling your cart, hastily turning around each corner; ready to pick up what you were missing and bolt home to make the delicious meal you have been craving for.

 However, you were suddenly stopped by another cart that crashed right into yours as they rushed towards you from around the corner.

 "Oof, My bad" - "Oh no! I'm so sorry!"

 You both said in unison.

 “Oh...” Came the immediate reaction from both of you, as you noticed who the person you had bumped into was.

 "So, the whole you having a daughter wasn’t a lie after all"

 "You offend me your honor." Was his reply as he chuckled a bit to himself "But I guess I am not a good example of what a decent human or father should be like..."

 "Oh Hush! We all make mistakes. Even some that land us in Jury or court" You giggled a little trying to soften whatever thought had him thinking he was the worst human ever to walk on this earth.

 Of course, he had made a mistake —a couple of them at that—   but it wasn’t murder, and he was attempting to make an income for his family.

 "What's her name?" You asked him as you both watched her eyeing the fish tank you assumed she saw the fish at before.

 "Yoonah. But she prefers to be called Nah-Nah" His voice mellowed. You looked at him with a smirk on your face, but all you got was the sight of a man watching his daughter with the fondest of gazes. So much love could be found in his eyes, he was proud and filled with warmth. The small smiled that decorated his features said it all.

 “Is she your only daughter?”

 Your question brought him back to the present.

 “Oh, yeah – she is” Was his curt answer. The tone he used made you feel a bit guilty, as if you were way too into his business, so you decided to cut it short.

 “Well it was nice meeting you outside of court Mr. Kim –and little miss Yoonah as well.” Were your final words as you waved your hand swiftly and left to finish your shopping, missing entirely the smile that graced his lips when he heard you address his little girl.

 For some reason, you hoped to see them one more time before you left the store, just to make sure they were ok —even though there was nothing dangerous at a grocery store.

 --

After so much fussing and so many tantrums, Kim Taehyung was finally tired out.

It could be seen from a mile away, just by watching his shoulders slightly slump and Yoonah grinning up at him with a content expression.

 Naturally, the best view of your day was Kim Taehyung walking out of the grocery store with four bags on one shoulder and a small plastic bag in his right hand, filled with water and two gold fish swimming peacefully.

So much for the sterned voice he had back there.

 You lingered a little more on your way to your own car, head turning slightly to your left, just to watch him interact with his daughter. You are sure you look like a creep, but it was so endearing, you couldn’t help yourself.

He kept her close by while he loaded the trunk with groceries and tickled her sides while placing her in her car seat. N sight of a father that didn’t care for his daughter or an irresponsible parent. Yeah, that was going to be your excuse for staring longer than needed.

 Yet what was a little more time for you, was enough to give him a full view of you watching them both with something in your expression that he couldn’t read, but whatever it was, had his heart racing a little more than it should for somewhat of a stranger that could put him in jail.

You’re not sure if it’s one of those times where once you meet someone one time, you end up seeing them everywhere.

How is it possible that on a chill evening in the park, while you were enjoying a slow-paced stroll and a hot chocolate in your hands, you see him again. You are about to start thinking that maybe he is following you and in addition to committing his past crime, he is also a stalker.

But he couldn’t be. He’s not even looking at you. From your short distance from him, you can see his eyes trained on something else. A fond smile decorated his lips as if whatever held his attention was above everything in this world.

From this angle you could appreciate his profile. A very handsome man you should say.

His eyes slowly crinkle into smaller half-moons in favor of his now growing smile taking more space. His teeth now baring and the apple of his cheeks flexing.

Oh! what a sight.

What would it feel like to poke them? you thought to yourself.

Yet, your legs had other plans and were already in action. Your brain had already sent signals to your arms and fingers to poke all soft parts that it came into contact with.

You are a judge, for goodness’s sake, touching someone without their authorization is battery. What are you doing?

 Yet right before you were able to do so you heard her.

“Daddy!” The soft giggles that followed filled the air that surrounded you. You turned your head to the direction of the sound and just in time you caught the sight of a little girl running from the playground into Taehyung’s arms.

Before you even turned to him, he was already catching her, squeezing her tightly in his embrace.

“Did you see that daddy? I did it!”

“Yes, you did princess! And you were amazing! Best cartwheel I have ever seen!”

The little girl giggled and squealed as Taehyung blew raspberries everywhere around her.

 When she finally calmed down, her eyes met yours and her head tilted in questions.

“It’s the groceries lady daddy!”

Turning to look at who his daughter was pointing at, he met you, only 3 steps away from him.

“Jud- Judge Y/n?”

“Hi again Mr. Kim, seems like we keep bumping into each other.”

“So it seems.” Today his smile was a careless one or was it a content one. Either way they were still that remarkable boxy smile.

“Nice to see you again miss Nah-Nah.” You greeted the little girl that had noticed you first and a hearty giggle left her body in return.

“What brings you here?” Asked the man that you had somehow forgotten was by your side or maybe you were just trying to ignore the strong tiger eyes that bore into you by entertaining a conversation with his cute daughter.

“Daddy, can I go to the big slide?”

“Not, without supervision Nah-Nah.” He answered so seriously, it reminded you of the voice in the grocery store.

“But daddy, I am a big gu’l now”

“Nah-Nah…”

“Daddy…” he sighed so loudly; you couldn’t help but laugh at his odyssey.

It was Deja vu from the grocery store and fish all over again. All that big father talk for nothing. He was so whipped for his daughter.

“Ok, let’s make a deal…”

“Yes!”

“You can go to the big slide, but if you get an ‘owie’, I want you to get up and dust off just like big girls do. Ok?”

“Yes, daddy.”

“Ok, princess. Go on”

Not a second went by after his sentence and little Yoonah was already off to an adventure with the rest of the kids in the park.

“She is so precious”

“Thank you”

You both stayed in a comfortable silence, staring into the distance in the direction Yoonah had left of. However, that peace was cut by the man standing near you.

“So, are you following us now your honor?” That playful smirk of his was back, alerting you quickly that he was just attempting at a friendly banter with you.

“Hmm, maybe I am, but I’ll never let you know.” You said winking at him.

He laughed so loud at the action, that you could not hold back a laughter of your own.

“So you do have a sense of humor” He stated after calming down.

“I do, when I am outside of my line of work.”

“Understandable…”

Once again, a comfortable silence fell between you both as you watched his daughter running around filled with glee, playing with other children.

“So, who were the ugly judges you encountered before me?” Now it was your turn to start the conversation and again he laughed. Who would have thought you were this funny.

“So, you did hear that.”

You definitely did and deep within you hoped he meant it. Even though it wasn’t the time or place for his flirting.

“Maybe…”

“I meant it… just in case you were wondering.”

Yes, you were!!!

“Oh! I- umm… Thank you.” You could feel your face heating up, however you refused to end the eye contact you were keeping up since your conversation began.

“Anytime… Like honestly. Any. Time. And every time. I’ll repeat it every time I find it necessary.” He said his smile growing with each word that he sent your way. And you, well you weren’t one to back down on a flirting challenge.

“And how is that possible, if we don’t see each other all the time?” you asked, acting coyly.

“I might have a solution for that, your honor.” Welp. Now you got yourself into something.

Two weeks had gone by since that day.

Two weeks after Mr. Kim had asked for your number and invited you for ice cream with Yoonah, under the excuse of a thank you for not sending him to jail. Needless to say, you quickly corrected his statement to not have him think this was a favor you had done for him, but a decision you had made based on evidence and circumstances surrounding the case.

It had also been a week since Mr. Kim changed from that name to Taehyung.

The mocking that came with you saying his given name for the first time was endless.

“Awww, so no more Mr. Kim?”

“Shut it Taehyung!”

[rizlowwritessortof]

Never Look Back

Bethany Rae Cooper didn’t realize when she met the Winchesters in her family’s bar and grill that her life would never be the same. But she’s always believed that everything happens for a reason, even if it’s not exactly what you were expecting…

“Bethany Rae!  Get your butt back in here!”  Beth heard her stepfather’s voice clearly through the front door as she strode angrily away from the bar, her long dark ponytail swinging with each step.  "Beth!  I mean it!“

"I’m out of here, Rick.  I’m done.  See you around,” she shouted back, unlocking her dingy-white beat-up ‘65 Ford Fairlane and climbing behind the wheel, slamming the door.  She threw up a cloud of dust as she backed up and tore out of the dirt parking lot, fishtailing a little as she hit the main road.

Her thoughts flew furiously as she drove.  Seriously!  Did Rick and her mom think she was going to let them treat her like a child forever?  She was twenty-freaking-five years old, and they had the nerve to try and tell her who she could go out with!  The guys that left about a half an hour before her were both–well, hot, with that sense of danger around them that seemed to draw her like an alcoholic to his whiskey.  And when the one who introduced himself as Dean had asked her to leave with him, her mother had come unglued and ordered them out of the bar.  Actually, unglued was an understatement–she had never seen her mom so upset, and accusing her of overreacting just made things worse.  Dean had slipped her his cell number as he left, winking, and she had stuffed it into her pocket so her mother wouldn’t see.  Beth reached for her pocket–the scrap of paper was still there.  She smiled defiantly to herself, then reached for the ipod and cranked some tunes, driving a little too fast as usual and letting the music wash over her, fitting her angry mood.

She came to a screeching stop in the driveway of their faded two-story house, slamming her car door and walking with determination to the front door.  She took the stairs two at a time, grabbing a suitcase from her closet and throwing clothes into it with abandon.  She filled a duffle bag with more, then grabbed a box and added her CD’s, laptop, a few books and pictures, and anything else she could think of on the spur of the moment.  She had threatened before, but this time she was really leaving, and she wanted to be gone before her mother or Rick had a chance to catch up to her.  She loaded her car quickly, then left her small Midwest home town in her rearview mirror, not even caring about a destination.  All she cared about was getting away.

She thought with frustration of the two years she had been gone from home, free, pursuing what she wanted to do with her life.  It had been two–no, three years now.  Nursing school.  She did well, too–and then her mom had the heart attack, and she came home to help out, then let them guilt her into staying to help run the bar and grill.  Gave up her dream to help her family, and in return they tried to run her life.  Well–no more.

It was already 1 a.m., and she knew she needed to find a motel room for the night.  Hopefully they wouldn’t follow her out of town.  They’d think this was just a tantrum, and by the time they realized differently, they hopefully wouldn’t be able to find her.  Not that she didn’t plan to let them know she was all right–just not for a few days.  She spotted the motel sign, lights partly burned out, about 30 miles from Lovell, just on the edge of Greybull, and pulled into the parking lot.  She walked into the office, reaching for the cash in her pocket, and stopped dead as she met the green gaze and wide smile of Dean Winchester, who was standing near the front door.

“Well–look who just crashed our party, Sammy,” he said, his voice husky and warm.  "Beth, right?“

Beth felt herself blush a little, nodding with a half smile.  "Yeah.  And you’re Dean, and you,” she said, turning towards the taller man, “are Sam.”

“Right,” Sam answered, nodding with a friendly smile.  "I take it you continued that shouting match with your mother after we left.“

"You have no idea,” she answered, shaking her head as she stepped up to the desk.  "Single room, please.“  She registered and paid for her room, then turned to face the brothers, who stood waiting for her to finish.  Dean’s smile was gone from his face, and she looked at him quizzically.  "Something wrong?”

He shook his head, squinting a little as he looked at her.  "Look, I didn’t mean to cause trouble for you.  Didn’t even know that was your mother, in fact.  I hope you’re not burning any bridges here.“

She looked back at him, one hand tucked into the back pocket of her jeans.  "Don’t worry about me.  This has been coming for a long time.  Tonight was just the last straw.”  They walked out of the office together, grabbing bags from their vehicles and heading for the doors to their rooms, which were next door to each other.  

“Want to come in for a drink?” Dean threw the invitation over his shoulder as he entered their room, then turned to wait for an answer.

She stared at him, tempted for a moment, but then smiled and shook her head.  "Look, no offense, but I don’t really know you guys.  But thanks for the offer.“

The smirk was back on Dean’s face, and it made her heart falter a little.  "Smart girl,” he countered, and Sam smiled as he waved goodnight, closing the door behind them.  

Beth entered her room, throwing her bag on the bed and shaking her head at the hideous early-70’s decor.  She dead-bolted her door and headed for the shower, hoping it wasn’t too disgusting.  She was pleasantly surprised at the cleanliness, which helped somewhat to make up for the ugly.  She put on an old threadbare t-shirt and a pair of shorts, brushed through her long dark hair, and crawled into bed, sighing with relief and exhaustion.  It didn’t take long for her to drift off to sleep, deciding that morning would be soon enough to figure out where she was going.

A loud crash jolted Beth from a deep sleep, and she lay there, not sure if she had really heard it or if she had been dreaming.  She squinted at the alarm clock, which read 4:23; then another crash and a muffled shout startled her completely awake, her heart pounding.  The sounds were coming from next door, Sam and Dean’s room, and she scrambled out of her bed, heading for the door.  She stepped outside, planning to knock and ask them if they were all right, but the door was standing wide open.  She moved aside barely in time to avoid being flattened by a body flying out of the opening, and stood open-mouthed as Dean looked up at her, his face bloodied.  "Get back to your room!“ he ordered harshly, launching himself up from the ground and rejoining the chaos inside.  Beth backed up, her eyes wide, and did as she was told, listening, horrified, to the noises coming through the walls.  

A few seconds later, it seemed as if the silence was deafening in contrast.  Beth debated with herself, but concern for the men next door won out, and she left her room again, going to their door.  Sam was slowly getting up, while Dean was–holy crap, he was pulling a knife from the body he knelt next to on the floor.  A small sound escaped her lips, before she had time to clap her hand over her mouth.  Dean’s expression as he looked towards her frightened her almost more than the scene before her, and she turned and ran back to her room, Sam’s voice calling out her name behind her.  She grabbed her phone, shaking with shock, and heard Sam calling her name, banging on her door.  "Beth, please–just let me talk to you.  I need to explain what’s going on.”  He sounded very calm, but she was scared out of her wits.  

“Leave me alone!  I just saw your brother stab someone!  I have to get the police!”

“No, Beth–please.  Just let me explain.  Please.”  She was hesitating, and she didn’t understand why.

“How do you explain him pulling a knife out of someone’s body?”

The next voice she heard was Dean’s.  "Beth–open the door.  We need to talk.“

"No freaking way!  You are not getting in here!”  The door flew inward with a crash, and Beth backed away with a small shriek, dropping her phone and backing into the wall.  The panic she felt was so intense she was seeing spots before her eyes, and she could hear Sam’s voice trying to calm her.

“Beth, please listen.  We’re not going to hurt you.  Just calm down and let us explain.”  Sam walked towards her slowly, stopping to pull a chair out from the small table nearby.  "Please, Beth.“  He nodded towards the chair, and Beth peeled herself from the wall and perched there, ready for instant flight.  She glanced, terrified, at Dean, who sat on the bed next to his brother, staring at the floor, the muscles in his jaw working.  He picked that moment to look up, and she was relieved to see that the murderous, chilling expression he had worn earlier was gone.  He looked frustrated and tired, and he spoke softly to her.

"Beth, I know this is going to be hard to believe, but what we just killed in there–they were demons.”

Her dark eyes widened in disbelief.  "Demons.“  She turned her gaze to Sam, who looked back at her calmly, and nodded as he answered.

"That’s right–demons.”

“Demons?  Like 'The Exorcist?’”

Dean’s voice was quiet but tense.  "Yeah.  Demons.  Head-spinning, pea soup-spewing, pain-in-my-ass demons.“  His cell phone rang just then, and he grabbed it roughly from his pocket, standing and moving to just outside the door of her room.  "Bobby–got anything?”

Beth looked at Sam again, her mind reeling.  "Sam, seriously?  Those things are real?  I mean, I thought they were, but not here.  In hell.  Where they belong.“

"They’re real.  Unfortunately.  And their boss is kind of pissed at us.  He thinks we have something that belongs to him, and he wants it back.” “Satan is pissed at you?  That’s great.”

“Not Satan.  Crowley,” Dean answered as he entered the room.  "Bobby’s got nothing right now, Sam.  But he’s working on a better way to hide us from them.  Apparently he’s found a way around our hex bags.“

"Crowley?!”  Beth’s voice was incredulous as she stared back at Dean.  "Hex bags?  You guys are seriously yanking my chain.“

"No, we’re not.”  He met her gaze full-on, and she almost flinched.  "I know how crazy this sounds, believe me.“

"If those are demons, why don’t they disappear when you kill them?”

“This isn’t 'Charmed,’ sweetheart.  They don’t disappear.  At least the bodies they’re possessing don’t.  What we have in there,” he nodded towards their room, “is what’s left of the poor sons of bitches they possessed.  Most of the time the only thing keeping the bodies alive are the demons inside.  They just wear them like a rental tux for the prom.”

A single tear was making its way down Beth’s face, and she brushed it angrily away.  "You’re telling me that those things can get inside anybody?  Every person I meet could really be a demon?  They just stroll around up here like they own the place?“

"Look, we’re not trying to scare you, Beth.”  Sam spoke in a soothing voice, but she looked at him, eyes wide with fear.  

“Really?  You’re scaring the crap out of me.  Good job.”

Dean approached the table, pulling the other chair out and sitting down in front of her.  "Beth, I’m sorry.  I wish you had never seen any of this.  But you have to believe us, we are the good guys.“

"How do you know those things aren’t going to possess you?  How do you…”  Dean’s hand went to the neck of his t-shirt, and he pulled it down to reveal a symbol tattooed on his upper left chest.  She looked over at Sam, who was doing the same.

“Anti-possession symbol,” Sam answered quietly.  "We had amulets, but we figured in our line of work, we needed something more permanent.“

"And what exactly is your line of work?” Beth asked, her voice shaking a little.  She looked up into Dean’s green eyes, and was surprised to see a brief flash of vulnerability, quickly masked.

“We’re hunters.  We hunt demons, and monsters, and ghosts.  Whatever evil thing we run across.  We try to save as many people as we can.”  He looked back up at her, unflinching, waiting for her reaction.

Beth stared back at him, her eyes wide.  A few seconds passed before she shook her head, closing her eyes for a moment.  "You guys have to be crazy.  That’s the only explanation.“

"Well, darling, I suppose you could be right.  But what they just told you is the truth.”  Beth almost fell to the floor as she leapt from her chair and whirled around to see where the sarcastic voice was coming from.  Dean’s chair hit the floor as he stood, an angry sneer on his face.

“Crowley!"

"Good.  You know me, and I know you.  Now tell me, who is this charming new friend of yours?”

“Where did you come from?” Beth stammered, backing up by the headboard, as far as she could get away from this new threat.

“Hell, darling–and I need to get back.  You can’t find good help these days.”

“Then you should go, don’t you think?” Dean growled.  "And she has nothing to do with this, or with us.“

Crowley’s brows raised, and he threw a disbelieving look Dean’s direction.  "Really?  Seems like you were all getting rather cozy together.  Breaking the ice, as it were.  And she does look like your type, Dean.”  After a few seconds of silence, he sighed impatiently.  "All right.  I can see we’re getting nowhere like this.  Why don’t you just tell me where it is, and we can avoid any more unpleasantness for the time being.“

"Screw you,” Dean ground out between clenched teeth, barely getting the words out before Crowley sent him flying with a wave of his hand.  He crashed against the far wall, landing with a thud and a grunt of pain.  Sam took a step towards the demon before Crowley spoke again.

“Really, Moose, do you think that’s wise?”  He looked towards Beth, who was still cowering by the bed.  "You try to raise them right, teach them how to behave, and this is the thanks you get.“  He twisted his hand in the air, clenching it into a fist, and Sam cried out in pain, dropping to his knees on the floor.  

"Stop it!  What do you want?!” Beth screamed at him, running to Sam’s side.  Crowley flashed an evil smile, and released Sam, who leaned back on the bed, breathing heavily.

“I like her, she’s got spirit.  Hope she can keep it.”  Crowley folded his arms and continued.  "Now, boys, I grow tired of this little game.  Where is the Colt?“

Dean was sitting up slowly across the room.  "We don’t have it, you brain-dead dick.  Remember a couple of years ago, the hunters that killed us and sent us to heaven?  They cleaned us out.  Haven’t been able to find them since.”

Crowley sighed again.  "Lovely.  I think you Winchester boys had better get your priorities straight.  I need that gun.  And you need me to take you off my most wanted list.  Sounds like a fair exchange, don’t you think?“  He tilted his head and grinned, then focused on Beth, who still knelt next to Sam.  "It’s been a pleasure meeting you, ducks.  I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other again soon.  I look forward to it.”  As she gazed back at him, quaking with fear, he vanished.

“Sam, are you all right?” Beth asked quietly.  Sam nodded, and she rose to cross the room, kneeling next to Dean, who was leaning back against the wall under the windows.  "Dean?  How about you?“

Dean looked at her, his brows drawn together in frowning disbelief.  "I’ll be fine.  Sammy, my shoulder’s dislocated again.  I could use a hand.”

Beth stood and moved away as Sam came to help his brother.  She grabbed the ice bucket from the dresser and headed out to the ice machine a few doors down from their rooms.  She was only gone for a moment, but as she drew near her door with the ice, Dean came flying out towards her.  A look of pure relief crossed his face, followed by another frown as he grabbed her arm and pulled her into the room.  "What the hell were you doing?“

"Getting some ice for your shoulder!  Why the hell are you yelling at me?”  She jerked her arm from his grasp, her dark-lashed eyes spitting fire back at him before she turned to go to the bathroom for a towel.  She made an ice pack and, despite her anger, positioned it very carefully on his shoulder.  He raised his other hand to hold it in place, glancing up at her with an abashed expression.  

“Thank you,” he muttered, then fired off a glare at his brother, who stood behind Beth, trying unsuccessfully to smother a grin.

“You’re welcome.”  Beth’s voice was short, but her hands were gentle as she put them on his face, tilting it to one side, then the other as she examined the cut on his forehead and one on his lip from the previous demon fight.  "These need to be cleaned,“ she murmured, turning to go back to the bathroom for the first aid kit and a clean cloth.  Sam cleared his throat, and Dean shot him a murderous look, but his brother turned his back, shoulders shaking with silent laughter, as Beth approached.  She took the warm washcloth and cleaned the cut on his forehead, then his split lip.  He spoke softly as she dabbed antibiotic ointment on his forehead.

"You clean up after a lot of bar fights?”

“A few.  And I went to nursing school for a couple of years, just didn’t get to finish.”

“Dean.”  Sam’s voice held a warning, and Beth looked down at Dean’s face in time to catch a leering grin.  

Beth looked at him sternly.  "Really?“  But the corners of her mouth teased at a smile in spite of her efforts to stifle it.

"Could have used you in a couple of hospitals I’ve been in,” Dean teased, and Beth shook her head as she gathered up the first aid supplies.  "So, when do I get my sponge bath?“  That earned him a wet washcloth in the face, and Beth walked to the bathroom to put away the kit.

Sam shook his head, a disgusted look on his face.  "Jerk.”

“Bitch,” Dean retorted, tossing the wet rag at him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

[xmxisxforxmaybe]

1998

Summary: Once your brother left for college, it became clear to you that Rami was going to make you Scott’s replacement. And as his replacement, you could expect two things.

One: Rami would continue spending more time at your house than his own.

Two: It was only a matter of time before Rami Malek talked you into doing something that could get you grounded for the rest of your life.

A/N: This fic is basically porn for the best decade EVER: the 90s. @the-real-ramimalekpeen​ I hope this does your request justice 💛

Wordcount: 7106

Warnings: All the characters are underage (17) so I will warn for drinking, smoking cigarettes, and PG-13 making out. Honestly though, by today’s standards, this fic is wholesome as fuck—welcome (back) to the 90s, bebes 💛

Considering it was after 9:00 pm on a school night, Rami Malek had no business being in your bedroom.

 Except that Rami Malek, one half of the legendary Malek Twins, was always at your house.

 His best friend, who also happened to be your brother, had just gone off to college. At first, you thought Rami still hung around so much because he was scared about doing the same next fall, but then, a part of you began to wonder if he really did miss your brother that much.

 Scott was the first real friend Rami made when he and Sami came to your school as freshmen. At first, they didn’t appear to have a thing in common, but after a few months, Rami and Scott were inseparable. By the end of Rami’s first year at Notre Dame, everyone joked that Scott was actually Rami’s twin, not Sami.

 One thing all three of the boys had in common, though, was their penchant for mischief. It wasn’t that they were bad. They were energetic, charming, and had decided to dedicate most of their high school experience to testing the limits placed upon them by authority figures.

 After Scott had left and the time Rami spent at your house did not diminish, it became clear that to Rami, you were now your brother’s replacement. And as his replacement, you could expect two things.

 One: Rami would continue his tradition of eating dinner more times a week at your house than his own.

 This didn’t bother you because your parents loved Rami—they loved him so much they didn’t protest when he insisted on doing the dishes on the nights he ate with you. That was a win in your book because it meant you had one less chore.

 However, Rami’s new focus on you did prompt a rather uncomfortable conversation with your mother.

 One night after he had gone home, she knocked on your bedroom door and fixed you with that look as she took a seat on the edge of your bed. She sharply inhaled then asked if you and Rami were dating. Because if so, she and your father needed to set some boundaries about the times Rami could and could not be at the house.

 The mixed look of shock and horror on your face made her laugh, but that initial reaction was quickly replaced with anger. Scott had girls at the house all the time and your parents had never said a word. In that moment, it became clear that your brother was afforded more freedom just because he was a boy. It was total garbage!

 So, for the next few weeks, you stewed in quiet rebellion, outraged by the clear gender discrimination being doled upon you by your OWN parents, and when you confessed as much to Rami, he flashed you the famous Malek grin and you knew you were in for expectation number two: It was only a matter of time before Rami talked you into doing something that would get you grounded for the rest of your life.

 A few nights later, you were watching TV in the living room and doing homework (you were doing homework while Rami seemed to be practicing his origami skills) when a paper airplane flew directly into your face and bounced off your forehead.  

 “Hey!” you yelled, glaring at Rami while you rubbed at the spot where the point hit.

 He was already leaning forward, an apology tumbling from his lips which seemed pretty insincere considering he was also trying to stifle his laughter.

 “What is this?” you asked as you picked up his paper airplane from the spot where it had landed, the bright colors of the paper catching your eye.

 After you unfolded it and realized it was a flyer for a local band, your stomach began to flutter.

 You looked up at Rami who looked like the cat that ate the canary. He nodded vigorously at the question on your face, then began to talk in a low, rapid voice.

 “Got it all worked out. I’ll come over for dinner. Sami will meet us with the car after your parents are in bed. You don’t have to do anything other than follow my lead—and not get caught.”

At 17, music was everything.

 You loved listening to live music, and as long as the concert was at an all-ages venue, you were allowed to go unchaperoned. That was great, if you wanted to see mainstream music, but since focusing his attention on you, Rami had turned you on to the joys of underground rock bands.

 Instead of listening to another shitty recording, Rami was presenting you with the opportunity to see a live show.

 Feeling giddy, you slammed your notebook shut and you and Rami spent the rest of the evening ironing out your plan. By the time he left to go home, you felt like it was foolproof.

 * * * * *

 The band was playing at a dive bar just outside of West Hollywood. Rami said the crowd would be fun—mostly college kids, partying it up on Thirsty Thursday. The plan was to hang out, watch TV until your dad gave you the look that meant it was time to kick Rami out, but instead of him leaving, you would call out your goodnights and he would sneak upstairs to your room and hide in your closet.

 After you had said goodnight to Rami, you went back into the living room and tried to swallow all of your excitement. After fifteen minutes of fidgeting, you told your parents you had a big test in the morning and wanted to go to bed early.

 They smiled and said goodnight, your mom following you up the stairs to take a bath and settle in with her book.

 You went into the bathroom and followed your nightly routine, making sure not to rouse any suspicion, and when you finally climbed into your bed and turned off your lamp, Rami popped out of the closet.

 “Are they asleep yet?”  

 “Shhh,” you hissed, clambering to the end of your bed and knocking into him as you stood. “Dad just shut off the TV.” “Sami’s waiting,” Rami said glancing at his watch even though it was too dark to see anything more than a blob of black on his wrist.

 “I’m aware of the plan,” you whispered as you ignored his fretting and flipped on the closet light to pick up the outfit you had set aside earlier.

 You paused in your movement and hurriedly flicked off the light. Straining your ears, you heard your dad walk by your room and you only released the breath you had been holding when you heard his door click shut.

 You flicked on the closet light again, and almost pulled your pajama top off in your haste before realizing that Rami was staring at you. When you turned to look at him, he motioned for you to hurry up, his eyes growing larger as if the bigger they got the more hurried your movements would become.

 You threw up your hands and harshly whispered, “Turn around!”

 Rami blinked stupidly, his mouth popping open as he realized you needed to change. If you could have seen his cheeks, you would have seen that they were the same color of red as the squares of plaid on his shirt.

 “S-sorry,” he stuttered as he turned away, his head hanging down as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his oversized jeans.

 With a tsk of dismissal, you shimmied into your favorite LEI jeans with the flared bottoms tattered perfectly from dragging on the ground. You had opted for a fitted, light blue, long-sleeved tee that just showed off a bit of your stomach because the v-neck also showed off your cleavage. You thought about grabbing the flannel you had stolen from your brother, but it was still warm enough out not to need it. Besides, there was sure to be something in the boys’ car if you needed it.

Sitting on the floor, you pushed down the top of your thong, knowing it was peeking out as you settled in to do your makeup.

 “I’m dressed,” you said as you began to swipe on some frosted blue eye shadow.

 As you pumped your mascara, Rami whined, “Can’t you do that in the car.”

 “In the pitch-black car?” you bit back as you scraped a bit of the eye shadow into one of your empty make up containers before dribbling clear lip gloss in to mix it up. As you dabbed it on your lips, you smiled at the perfectly muted but still-frosty compliment to your eye makeup.  

 Smacking your lips together with a pop, you quickly wrapped two small chunks of your hair up in two messy knots and secured them with tight, clear gumbands. You adjusted your chocker, then slipped into a pair of black, chunky shoes.

 You grabbed your wide, black belt and looped it through your jeans as Rami paced, the swishing of his jeans starting to drive you a little crazy as you rushed over to fix up your bed so it looked like a lump of a human was still in it.

 After situating your colorful hemp purse across your torso, you softly said, “Okay. Let’s go.”

 Rami stopped pacing and looked you over before giving you a half smile. “You look good.”

 “Until my parents catch us doing this and skin me alive,” you countered as you flicked off the light.

 Rami grinned, his teeth flashing in the dark. “They won’t—promise.”

 “Your promises have, like, an 83% failure rate,” you argued as you pushed past him and opened the window as quietly as possible.

 “Fine—I swear on Sami’s life we won’t get caught,” he whispered before he scrambled out of the window and on to the roof.

 He held out his hand and you took it while you climbed out after him. Your eyes looked toward your parents’ room, and your heart hammered as you were sure their light was going to flick on at any second.

 “That mayyybe gives us odds in the ballpark of 70 - 30,” you whispered when you turned your eyes back to Rami, quickly pulling away as you realized you were still holding his hand.

 He stifled a chuckle as he crept toward the farthest edge of the roof, and when a ladder appeared, you knew Sami was below.

 “Go ahead,” Rami rasped, holding on to the top of the ladder as you swung your legs over and began to cautiously climb down.

 When you got closer to the ground, you felt Sami’s hand on your calf as he whispered, “Hey, Y/N—you good?”

 “Yeah,” you whispered back, a wave of ease sweeping through you when you finally touched the ground.

 “Cute,” Sami smiled as he gave one of the twists in your hair a little tap.

 You smiled back before turning your attention to Rami as he hopped off the second to last rung. With a practiced ease, he pulled the ladder from the roof without making a sound and laid it flat behind your mother’s rose bushes. The ladder was completely hidden, and you quickly realized that the boys had done this many times before.

 The three of you jogged to where Sami had parked the car, and since you had followed him to the driver’s side, he opened up the back door so you could climb in. When Rami settled into the passenger seat, he let out a whoop of success. The three of you laughed, and you knew you had to ask, “How many times did you two sneak Scottie out of the house?”

Sami snorted and started the engine, while Rami shrugged his shoulders and turned his hands over, feigning ignorance.

 “I see how it is,” you said, narrowing your eyes at Rami’s profile until he quickly turned and shot you a wink that was more like a blink.

 You giggled, “One eye is a wink, you dork!”

 Sami’s shoulders shook with a silent chuckle as he turned up the radio and you settled back in your seat to bask in the joy of being with your friends; it was well worth the trepidation you had felt about sneaking out on a school night, and as you watched Rami’s smiling profile, lit up by each street lamp you sped past, you felt a sudden flush of pleasure that he had gone through so much trouble to give you this night.

 As soon as you were on the 101 heading out of the Valley, the boys both lit up. Rami offered you a cigarette, expecting you to decline, so when you said, “Why not?” he choked as he was inhaling and Sami’s eyes flashed up at you from the rearview.

 “Um, this is my night of rebellion, okay? I may as well do it right,” you explained as Rami put your cigarette between his lips, lit it, then passed it back to you.

 He watched with interest as you smoothly inhaled, then blew a stream of smoke out in his direction.

 “What? You think Scott and I never partied together when mom and dad went outta town? Who do you think got me drunk for the first time?”

 “How old?” Sami asked, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiled, his cigarette dangling from his lips as he relaxed back into the driver’s seat having just switched lanes.

 “14. Got me fucked up on screwdrivers of all things. I couldn’t drink OJ for a month.”

 The boys burst into laughter, then Rami explained that Scott had done the same thing to them.

 “Sami was so hungover mom thought he had the flu.”

 “And you weren’t hungover because you puked your guts out in dad’s hedges. I still don’t think he knows why that one turned brown and died.”

 “Shut up,” Rami grinned as he lightly punched his brother’s shoulder.

 “I’m driving asshole,” Sami murmured around his cigarette.

 “At least I don’t look like one,” Rami countered, making you roll your eyes and take another long drag of your cigarette.

 Because you didn’t smoke often, you already felt the sweet lightheadedness that came after a few pulls. You ashed out of the crack in your window and breathed in the cool air that was flowing from the boys’ open windows, contrasting deliciously with the heat of the smoke as it trailed down your throat.

 “Fight nice, boys,” you called up to the front, before immediately regretting your interruption because they both teamed up to rag on you.

Twins, you thought as you countered their attacks as best you could.

 Maybe it was the effect of the nicotine, or the natural high of sneaking out with the Malek brothers, but watching Rami from the back seat, you began to think of him as more than just your brother’s friend, and now, your friend. There was something about him, something about the way he made you feel that didn’t feel like any of your other friends.

 And speaking of other friends, you looked at the back of Sami’s head and watched his eyes in the rearview mirror, but that thing, that chemical pull of attraction wasn’t there. When you glanced over at Rami, you felt it.

 You let your gaze ping-pong between them, testing out your fledgling feelings. With a frown, you turned away from both of them and watched the cars in the parallel lanes, wondering if it was even worth figuring out.

 “Helloooo,” Rami called, squeezing your knee to pull you out of your thoughts.

 “Huh? What did you say?”

 “I asked what you thought of Stacy.”

 “Stacy Browning?”

 “Duh. She’s like the only Stacy in our English class.”

 “What about her?”

 “She’s supposed to be here tonight.”

 “Rami’s got the hots for Staaacyyy,” Sami sing-songed as he signaled and took the exit for West Hollywood.

 Rami didn’t refute his brother and something mean bubbled out of you as an image of Stacy, laughing and pushing into Rami’s side as he wrapped his arm around her waist, his fingers just resting above the pocket on the ass of her jeans, flashed through your mind.

 “Sami has a better shot than you any day of the week. Isn’t that how it usually works, Ram?”

 You watched as the hurt twisted across Rami’s face, but your attention was drawn to Sami’s laughter as he guffawed, “Ooooh—harsh!”

 You laughed, looking anywhere but at Rami, who half-heartedly joined in.  

 What you said made you feel sick, like an aftereffect of a violent action.

 What the fuck, Y/N? you scolded yourself.

 “Is this the turn?” Sami asked, growing serious as he navigated the crowded streets and started looking for parking.

 “Yeah—park anywhere you find a spot. The bar’s like a block, maybe two that way.”

After a few more minutes, Sami found a spot and parallel parked with an easy precision.

 “Good thing Rami didn’t drive,” you teased, trying to get him to look at you like he had before you’d hurt him.

 Instead, he hopped out of the passenger side and slammed the door shut.

 Sami opened your door, and chuckled as he said, “Fuck—there are at least three trashcans that have unclaimed relatives lying in the morgue thanks to him.”

 You laughed and looked over at Rami who had a soft smile on his face. He shook his head, “Fuck you guys.”

 You skipped over to him and poked at his ribs. “Come ooon—we know you didn’t mean to destroy the entire trashcan-family on Woodbridge Street. It was an honest massacre because you forgot which pedal was the break.”

 “Like the first time I drove EVER!” Rami defended, finally turning to smile at you.

 “And who doesn’t even have their license?” he shot back, his face coming dangerously close to yours as he picked on you.

 “Like, excuuuse me for having an older brother! How keen do you think mom and dad were to let me drive after Scottie nearly got arrested for speeding—twice?”

 “Oh, shit,” Sami said. “I remember that second time—”

 The twins launched into a retelling of the story, one you’d heard a thousand times, but it made Rami laugh, his face back to its normal, jovial disposition. As you walked, your head turning between the boys as they spoke, you relaxed knowing it wasn’t in Rami’s nature to dwell on something negative. By now, he had probably dismissed your comment as a joke.

 The bar came into view and there was no mistaking it for a nice place. The neon signs made it look more sinister than hip, and the trashcans outside were overflowing. However, the crowd queued at the entrance was just as Rami had described—college-aged kids, smoking, talking, and laughing as they paid their cover and ducked inside, the noise spilling into the street each time the bouncer opened the door.

 Instead of joining the line at the entrance, Rami led you and Sami down an alley that was a little too dark for your liking.

 “Rami?” you questioned, and he reached back for your hand, linking his fingers with yours.

 After a few more steps, Rami stopped and released your hand. He reached up and banged loudly on the unmarked, steel door.

 An older man, probably in his 50s, pushed open the door and flooded the backstreet with light. You squinted as you were assaulted with the brightness and the smoke that wafted out.

 “Malek. My man,” he rasped as he fist-bumped Rami. “And Malek Número Dos. What’s up bros?”  

 Sami greeted the man in the same fashion as his brother, and then the man noticed you.

“Switchin’ it up tonight, huh? Bringin’ a girl ‘stead of leavin’ with one?”

 You raised your brow and crossed your arms, that same feeling from earlier creeping through your chest and into your gut.

 “Scott’s little sister,” Rami explained, and the older man chortled and gave you a full, lingering look.

 He nodded with what you deemed to be approval and he fished out three paper bracelets from his pocket.

 “Keep her outta trouble, yeah?” he said with a slow, lecherous grin.

 “You can count on it,” Rami answered, giving him a tight, but still friendly smile as he turned to you, instructing you to hold out your wrist.

 You watched as he positioned the neon orange band, then peeled back the tape.

 “Too tight?”

 “Nah. It’s good.”

 Maybe it was nothing, but Rami’s thumb lightly stroked the spot where he had just stuck the band in place and when you looked up, he was watching your face.

 You smiled at him, a slow, sincere grin and when he returned your look, it felt like you were swallowing honey—sticky and sweet, the warm feeling slid down your throat and made your cheeks feel hot.

 Sami cleared his throat.

 “Someone wanna do me?” he asked as he waved his bracelet in front of your faces.

 Rami shot him a vicious look, but Sami just stuck out his wrist and waited.

 “We meet right out front after the show. Not in the alley.”

 You and Rami both just looked at him, and Sami prompted, “Okay?” as if he were dealing with two teenaged idiots instead of also being one himself.

 “Yeah—meet out front,” Rami said dismissively, his eyes willing Sami to get lost, but he was already slipping away down the hall and out into the bar.

 “You ready for this?”

 “Just—just don’t leave me alone, okay?” you said, thinking about the way Rami’s guy had looked at you.

 “Of course not,” Rami said with a reassuring smile. He lowered his voice and continued, “Let’s put some distance between us and Crazy Carlos.

 “Crazy Carlos?” you hissed.

 “No one calls him that to his face,” Rami assured you, then laughed at the way your eyes widened.

Once you were mixing into the crowd, the noise level ratcheted up and you were forced to yell into each other’s ears.

 Rami’s eyes scanned the bar, once, twice, and you couldn’t help but wonder if he was looking for Stacy.

“Wanna get a drink?” you asked loudly, leaning into his body to get closer to his ear.

 “Yeah! What do you want?”

 “Just a beer!”

 Rami nodded and led you to the bar. You tried to take up as little space as possible and when you spotted a couple leaving their hightop along the wall, you tugged on Rami’s flannel to get his attention. He turned back to look at you and you pointed to the table. He nodded and watched as you darted over and took a seat.

 Instantly, your hand landed in the waste of someone’s spilled drink and you huffed in disgust as you wiped your hand on your jeans. You looked around for Sami, but it was impossible to see through the throng of drinkers and the haze of smoke.

 “You okay?” Rami yelled, taking the seat across from you and sliding your bottle toward you.

 “Stop treating me like a baby! I’m the same age as you!”

 Rami rolled his eyes, but his lips were drawn into a smirk as he took a swig of his beer.

 You took a drink, too, and watched him comfortably lean back into the wall so he could face the room and check out the crowd, your mind immediately flashing back to that image of Rami and Stacy, laughing, touching.

 “She’s not good enough for you,” you said through gritted teeth.

 “What?” Rami asked, leaning forward as much as the table allowed.

 “She’s not good enough for you!”

 Rami shook his head, still unable to hear you. With a huff, you slid off your chair and rounded the table to stand between his spread legs. You rested one hand on his thigh as you leaned into his ear and yelled, “Stacy! She’s not good enough for you!”

 Rami moved back, raising his eyebrows, as he sat up straighter on his stool.

 “Not exactly what you said in the car,” he answered, your eyes watching his lips so you could make out what he said.  

 Scanning his face, you wondered if he could see that you were sorry.

 Just as you leaned in to apologize, the lead singer whistled into the mike and made you jump. Rami’s eyes danced with laughter as he took another swig of his beer, and both of you turned your attention to the band.

 “Hey, you drunk motherfuckers—you ready to put a little shimmy in your jimmy? A little rock in your cock?”

 The crowd cheered, and you felt Rami stand, his front pressing into your back as he lightly pushed you into the crowd. He kept moving until you could see the stage, then he moved to stand beside you, his arm resting against yours.

 The first two songs were great, and you knew that sneaking out had been completely worth it. The band was good, really good, and you expected you’d be able to say you’d seen them live before they made it big.

 As the songs played, you and Rami both moved along to the music, heads bobbing and bodies shifting as much as the limited space allowed. Every now and then, you’d shoot a grin at each other, and when the third song began, you realized your beer was long gone.

 You thought about shoving the empty bottle in your pocket, but Rami read your mild distress and leaned in to tell you to save his spot.

 He shuffled through the crowd to get rid of your empties, and you widened your stance to save his spot, then refocused on the band.

 Before the third song was over, Rami was back, and you mouthed thanks. He gave your hair twist a tap, just as Sami had done earlier, making you smile and shake your head.

 After the next song, the bassist and lead guitar put their instruments down and the drummer disappeared.

 “You’re fuckin’ animals and I love it! But those guys need a drink so I’m gonna slow shit down with a song I wrote a few years back.”

 When the acoustic number began, you were shocked the lead singer’s gruff voice was so low and smooth. As he crooned, people swayed lightly with their faces trained on the stage. You don’t know whether it was you who moved closer to Rami or Rami who moved closer to you, but somehow, you found yourself standing partially in front of him, just close enough for his hand to creep around your waist. You smiled without looking at him and stepped into his touch, pulling his other arm to wrap around your waist as you leaned back into his chest. He laced his fingers across your stomach and leaned into your hair, both of you swaying in time to the soft music.

 As you stood together, like a couple, your mind began to race. Everything became too much and not enough at the same time. Rami’s grip was too loose and too tight. The singer’s words were too soft and his guitar was too loud. The shadows cast on the stage were too dark and the spotlight was too bright.

 And when you felt Rami’s chest vibrate into your back as he sang along under his breath, it felt too harsh, but when his pinky lightly stroked the exposed flesh on your stomach, it felt too sensitive. Your body was a tingling mess at his touch, so you took back some control. Your arms were already resting over Rami’s, but your thumb found his and you touched him gently, back and forth, in a mirror of the way his little finger was still sliding over the exposed skin of your midriff.

 Rami’s mouth crept closer to your ear and you shivered as his breath rustled your hair. You wanted to crane your neck, turn into his body and give him the angle he needed to kiss you, but you were still at war with feeling too much and not enough at the same time.  

 When the song ended, the singer thanked everyone, then encouraged you all to grab another beer while he took a piss. You felt a profound loss when Rami relaxed his grip and let his arms slide away from your waist and to your hips.  

 “Want another beer?” he asked into your ear as he gave your hips a squeeze before he dropped his hands.

 “Sure—yeah,” you lied.

 You turned to watch him disappear into the crowd and almost immediately, Rami’s warmth against your back was replaced with a new but identical one.

 “Having fun?”

 You whirled around, your mouth popping open slightly before snapping shut.

 “Wipe that shit-eating grin off your face, Sam—are you drinking?” you asked, bending slightly to sniff at his cup.

 “It’s water, dumbass. They only have two more songs.”

 You narrowed your eyes at Rami’s twin as he continued to look at you, clearly waiting for you to confess your secret. You didn’t know if he had seen the two of you during the last song or if he was just acting on a hunch, but you were not about to confess your feelings to Sami before you told Rami.

 Even though that was exactly what Sami wanted.

 The same blueish eyes as Rami’s bored into yours, but neither of you spoke.

 You decided to answer Sami’s original question in a breezy tone, “By the way, yeah, I’m having fun. Are you having fun?”

 He narrowed his eyes in response.

 “Because I think this is the most fun I’ve ever—"

 “Just tell him!” Sami interrupted with a huff.  

 “There’s nothing to tell,” you insisted, crossing your arms and stepping toward him as someone bumped into you.

 “Stop lying.”  

 “There isn’t,” you insisted, hating the way Sami was smirking at you over the rim of his water cup.

 He took a drink, then said, “Guess I’ll let Stacy know she’s free to come ov—”

 “She’s here?!?” you panicked, your eyes darting in the direction Sami had been looking.

 His laughter rang out over the din and you whipped your eyes back to his.

 “Nothing to tell, huh?”

 Your nostrils flared as you pinched at his side, knowing he was ticklish. He jumped away from your fingers, chuckling as he made his way back to his friends. You watched him go, making sure he was lying about Stacy.  

 Right before the band packed back onto the tiny stage, Rami shuffled back into his spot beside you and handed you a beer.

 You greedily drank, thirsty from the smoke and eager to unwind your nerves after Sami’s taunts.

 Rami watched you drink and smiled at you over the lip of his bottle in an identical grin to his brother’s earlier teasing smirk.

 “Easy, killer.”

 Swallowing, you reminded him, “This is still my night to let loose, right?”

 Rami pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and bobbed his head in a slow nod, his eyes filled with something you couldn’t read.

The band started up again, actually playing three more songs so you got to bask in a silent satisfaction that Sami had been wrong about one thing. As the band bid goodnight, you were wired.

 The set had been incredible, and you wanted to say so to Rami, but he was already nodding his head toward the exit. As you navigated through the crowd, you grabbed on to the edge of his flannel. It was last call, and as you passed by the bar, it was almost too crowded to toss your empty bottles on to.

 When you were finally outside, you couldn’t stop babbling to Rami about how great the music was, even though your ears were severely ringing. He punctuated your excitement with several toldja sos, his eyes watching the crowd for Sami.

 “I just love this feeling, ya know?” you exclaimed, bouncing on your toes and taking a cigarette when Rami offered.

 “Imagine how it feels for them—the performers.”

 You looked at Rami through the haze of his exhaling smoke and your eyes danced over his familiar, yet altogether new face. How could you have never seen just how attractive he was?

 “Rami. I . . .” you dropped your gaze and flicked your cigarette nervously, wondering if you should just confess like Sami told you to do.

 “Wanna thank me for draggin’ you out on a school night? Making sure you had a great time? Being the perfect friend? I assure you, all this I know,” Rami finished with a smug look, his round cheeks hollowing as he pulled on his cigarette.  

 “That’s just it. Are we . . . friends? I mean,” you floundered for a moment, your eyes landing anywhere but on his. “Don’t you just hang with me because you miss Scott?”

 Rami laughed.

 “Are you for real? In case you haven’t noticed, you don’t exactly look like your fuckin’ brother.”  

 Your eyes landed on Rami’s just in time to catch the way they dragged over your body, top-knots to toes and back again.

 “You like the way I look?” you asked, your voice so low you almost couldn’t hear it over the ringing in your ears.

 Flicking your cigarette to the ground, you stepped toward Rami, wetting your suddenly dry lips.

 “Yeah. Thought that was obvious,” he said, his eyes half-lidded but still commanding as his blue-grey irises darkened when his pupils grew just a bit wider.

 “Not to me,” you answered, shaking your head slightly as Rami’s hands came up to your waist, his ring and pinky fingers settling against your bare skin.

 His eyes were almost shut. Your faces moved closer and Rami’s tilted slightly to the right—

 “Ready to go?” Sami asked, jangling the car keys obnoxiously next to your ears, startling you and Rami apart.

 “Jesus Sam you fucking cocksucker,” Rami cursed, running a hand through his curly hair as he glared at his brother.

 “Not interrupting, am I? Because there’s nothing to interrupt, right?” he questioned you with an arrogant lilt.  

 “Nope! Nothing at all!” you shot over your shoulder as you stalked off in the direction of the car.

 The boys quickly followed, and Sami snickered, catching you and slinging his arm around your shoulders.

 “Have a good night, Y/N?”

 “For the most part,” you grumbled.

 Sami released you and you fell into step next to Rami.

 His hands were buried in the pockets of his jeans and he kept his eyes to the ground as you walked. You kept checking your peripheral to see if he was looking at you, but he wasn’t.

 The drive back was relatively quiet, Sami turning up the radio to drown out the ringing in his own ears. As you leaned back in the seat and watched the blurry skyline, Sex and Candy came on the radio and you tried not to think about Rami as John Wozniak’s deep voice reverberated through the car; you tried not to think about how close you’d come to kissing him and about how badly you didn’t want this night to end before you did.  

Mama this surely is a dream Yeah mama this surely is a dream

 * * * * *

 “Need help with the ladder?” Sami asked as he put the car in park.

 “Nah. We’ll manage,” Rami answered as he got out.

 “Goodnight, shithead. Thank you for driving,” you snapped before you opened your door.

 “Better kiss him goodnight before Stacy does,” Sami said, looking at you in the rearview, puckering his lips so he could make a loud smooching noise.

 “Stacy doesn’t live on my roof!”

 “You ne-ever knooow,” he sang.

 “Oh my god,” you said, smiling in spite of wanting to slap him.

 Sami cackled as you opened the door, his lighter hissing as he lit another cigarette.

 “I hate your brother,” you muttered on the walk back to your house.

 “What did he say?”

 “It’s not the what. It’s the way. Like he knows every fucking thing there is to know in the world.”

 “Well . . . usually he does.”

 “I know,” you sighed in defeat. “So can I hate him for that?”

 “Absolutely,” Rami chuckled.

 The streetlamps lit your way, but once you reached the edge of your lawn, Rami made sure you stayed on the perimeter of the dusk-to-dawn light. He wedged the ladder out from behind the roses, then set it up, stepping on the bottom rung to make sure it was steady.

 “Go ahead. I’ll follow to make sure you can get your window open.”

 Climbing steadily, you had to stifle a laugh thinking about how often your brother had done this, and done it stinking drunk. The effect of the two beers you had drank were long gone, but the thrill of what you were about to get away with still hummed beneath the surface of your skin.

 That . . . and Rami’s presence.

 As he stood up when he stepped off the ladder, your eyes locked and sent a fresh wave of butterflies to assault your stomach. Clearing your throat, you shuffled to your window. Rami followed, slowly and quietly working it open. As you waited, you were overwhelmed by the scent of him—the remnants of the bar, his fading cologne, the shampoo he used in his hair—all of it swirled together into something that was more intoxicating than a hundred beers.

You ducked into your room as soon as the window was open, and the sleeve of Rami’s shirt brushed against your arm as he helped you, his fingers featherlight on your shoulder before trailing down to the exposed skin of your lower back as you moved away.

 You kicked your discarded pajamas from earlier toward the gap at the bottom of your bedroom door, made sure it was locked, then flicked on the light in your closet, pulling the door mostly shut so there was just enough brightness to see Rami as he stood in front of your window, hands back in his pockets as he crossed and uncrossed his feet while leaning against the window sill.

 “Thanks for tonight,” you whispered, closing the distance and letting the last energy of the band spur you on to make your move.

 “Yeah. Of course,” Rami murmured, his eyes finally meeting yours.

 You were so close now, all one of you had to do was lean into the other’s lips, and somehow, you just knew it had to be you.

 Your hands shaking slightly, you rested them on the top of his chest, the smooth fabric of his black long sleeve shirt warm under your touch.

He shuffled, awkwardly pulling his hands from his pockets so he could rest them on your waist, his fingers nervously ticking over the skin on your lower back.

 You glanced from his lips to eyes, and when your eyes flicked back to his lips, he sucked in a breath.

 Then, you kissed him.

 He was stiff and uncertain at first, but as you leaned into him, your body flush with his, he relaxed, opening to exhale as he kissed you back, his tongue the first to swipe over your lips. You opened for him and when your tongues twined, it was electric—a culmination of everything that had been building between the two of you.

 Moaning into his mouth, you grabbed the sides of his flannel and pulled him toward your bed, backing up until your legs hit against the mattress. You broke free from the kiss with a smacking sound before you pulled Rami on top of you.

 You both silently giggled as he settled between your legs, his weight heavy, warm, and so fucking welcome on top of you.

 Rami’s lips pressed into yours again, and soon you were exploring each other’s mouths with fervor. One of your hands had snaked around his torso while the other was thrust into his thick curls, urging his mouth to keep moving against yours.

 He held himself up with one arm, but his other hand was roaming—sliding under your shirt to clutch at the soft skin of your side, then moving up to cup your breast over your bra.

 With a sighing moan, you wrapped your legs around his waist and slid your own hands under his shirt to clutch at his hot skin. You rubbed across his abdomen and over his chest before moving around to lightly scratch across his back.

 Only when you felt the hardness underneath his jeans grinding into your crotch did you regain some semblance of what the hell you were doing.

 With one final buck of your hips that drew an obscene, entirely too loud moan from the back of Rami’s throat, you gently pushed him away.

 Both of you were panting, swiping at your mouths to clear away the excess saliva.

 Rami sat back and slid off your bed, adjusting himself as he stood.

 “Holy shit,” he breathed.

 “I think we better say goodnight,” you said as you scrambled up.

 Rami moved back to your open window and turned before he ducked out.

 “Goodnight,” he said with a megawatt grin that lit up his entire face.

 “Goodnight,” you said, your face split into the same grin.

 He leaned in and sweetly kissed the smile from your face.

 Your eyes had only just barely opened again, and he was on the roof, ducking down to whisper, “See you at school,” his face lit by that grin again as you watched him shuffle to the edge of the roof and down the ladder.

 When the top of the ladder disappeared, you shut your window then dove onto your bed and gurgled with excitement into your pillow.

 Senior year was definitely going to be a year to remember.

[goldenmazzello]

Lay all your love on me | Part 2

(I don't own this gif. Credits to the owner)

Warning: Alcohol, anxiety, angst, hungover, languague, mixed feelings, flashbacks. 

W/C: 5k.

Masterlist

~

Although you were all exhausted from your last day on set, you were going out and have some fun and celebrate. You needed this. You all needed this. So when Ben suggested to go to a new bar for some drinks all of you enthusiastically agreed, especially because you, Joe and Rami were coming back to the US tomorrow.

Now, you were at your hotel room getting ready for your last night in London. You chose a little black dress with embroidery black sequins all over it, it also had a nice cleavage that left nothing to the imagination. That was your favorite dress, you felt absolutely confident when you wore it. You put on a pair of black high heels, you were almost ready.

Suddenly, you heard a knock from the door and gave a glance to the clock that was hang on the wall. Fuck. You were late and you hadn't done your make-up yet. You weren't used to wearing a lot of make-up, you prefered having a good skincare routine but since you've had eye bags from the exhausting week on set and your skin wasn't helping due to your PMS pimples, you decided to slightly cover them.

You opened the door and Joe was standing there, wearing a white dress shirt, a pair of black jeans, a leather jacket and a pair of black boots. He looked stunning.

"Wow, you look..." You both said at the same time and laughed. You moved your sight to the floor with blushy cheeks.

"Are you ready?" Joe asked while studying you with a curious expression from the door frame.

"Hmm...do we have time?" You played with your hands, nervously. "I mean, I've haven't done my make-up yet, but I promise it won't take more than 5 minutes. Please Joey." You looked at him with puppy eyes, trying to convince him. He chuckled.

Joey. You were the only person who called him like that. You thought that maybe his mother called him like this but no, you were the only one and Joe found it pleasant. He got annoyed when someone who wasn't you used that nickname.

"Okay, you are already pretty but anyway, you can do it, we have like 10 minutes." He checked his watch as he entered the room and sat on your bed.

"Thank you!" You hugged him and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. He could feel your scent. His heart began to beat hard like a hammer. He swallowed.

You grabbed your makeup bag which was a few inches away from the bed on a table and started to apply your red lipstick quickly. Joe was following every movement. You bent over the table to have a better look of your face in your little mirror to apply concealer and Joe couldn't help but fixate his eyes on your thighs and then, your ass. it wasn't the first time he did it, but that little dress allowed him to have a perfect view of your long legs and he couldn’t resist. 

"I'm ready!" You turned around and faced him, he was silent and pretended to look at the window. "You okay?" You walked towards him and grabbed his hand.

"Y-yes, I was just...thinking about our flight" He lied. You rubbed his hand gently and sat by his side. You'll be the death of him.

"Sure? You look...tense" You said worried.

He nodded. "I'm tired but I not going to stay in bed in our last night in London." He tittered.

"Okay, let's get going!"

~

The bar was overcrowded, something to expect for a bar that opened two weeks ago. There were some tables and chairs lined up against the walls and others were just packed into the middle of the room. It was kinda dark, since the lights were red colored, but it was perfect, you still could see people’s faces. Music from the 70s, 80s and 90s was playing at the background.

As you sat at the table, you could notice that it was full of bottles that Ben and Gwilym had brought, since they were the first of the group to arrive.

“Well, you really want us to celebrate tonight Ben.” You raised an eyebrow while looking at them. Ben giggled. 

“Of course!” He said as he grabbed a glass and poured champagne on it. “Where are Rami and Lucy?” 

“Here!” They shouted from the door and walked towards the table. “What the hell...we’re only six in here. why is the the perfect amount of alcohol for the entire bar?” Lucy asked, blinking. 

“Your blonde friend wants us to be shit-faced.” Replied Gwylim and took a sip of wine. Ben shrugged. 

You raised your drinks and Ben began talking "Cheers for this movie and everything that will come with this!"

"Cheers for us guys!" Rami shouted.

Bohemian Rhapsody was a very promising movie. It was one of the most anticipating of the year worldwide, so maybe it will lead to awards nominations such as the Oscars and it also will give all of you more recognition. The best was yet to come.

An hour later, you’ve already drunk half of what was on the table. it was going to be a long night.

There was a tall blonde girl leaned on the bar counter, who was gazing at your table. She was having a drink with a straw that made her lips look big. Maybe, she was doing it on purpose.

“Hey, that girl is trying to get your attention.” Ben elbowed Joe and he looked at her. 

Your eyes rapidly moved to Joe, waiting for his next move. 

“Go and have fun.” Gwylim blinked. 

“I don’t know, I don’t think she’s looking for me.” Joe commented.

Joe wasn’t interested at all, especially since you were on his thoughts all day. But maybe, if he tried to talk to other women he could keep his mind occupied for a bit. Whatsmore, he has been in a forced celibacy for the past months due to filming so it could be an opportunity.

"Are you kidding me? Joe, she's been staring at you for like the last five minutes." Gwilym said. "Go and invite her a drink, do something!"

Joe hesitated for a minute until he put his phone in his pocket and went with her.

You didn't know why, but something made you feel sick to your stomach. Why were you feeling like this for Joe? He was your friend and you should be happy for him. Did you...like him? It wasn't a secret that he was very attractive, but you never thought about him as your lover.

Your not-so-sober state was making you feel so nauseous. You were also tired from your last days of work which were stressing and hadn't been eating properly because you were busy. This wasn’t going to end well. 

You stopped drinking and sighed. There was a growing unease running through your veins, you couldn't take it anymore. You rushed to the bathroom. Fortunately, you were the only one in there. You locked yourself in an individual loo and pressed your forehead against the door, breathless. You closed your eyes and tried to catch your breath, but you felt as if the sharp point of a knife was stabbing you in the chest. The feeling of your heavy pounding heart and a persistent tightness in your shoulders were taking over you. You began to count, one, two, three, four to remove the explosion in your brain that was sending your thoughts spiraling out of control. You couldn't put into words the way you were feeling.

A few minutes later, your breath was becoming normal. You stayed there, trying to recover.

You thought it wasn't going to happen anymore, or at least tonight.

On the other side of the bar, Ben noticed that you were gone. He looked for you desperately, but he couldn't find you anywhere.

He immediately went to the bar counter where Gwilym was standing there, laughing out loud, he has just moved his hand on Joe's head and disheveled him, showing off his perm. Joe wasn't happy at all but the girl just laughed and continued talking.

"Guys, I can't find (y/n) anywhere." Ben explained.

Joe's eyes widened. he apologized with the girl and looked for you. Gwilym followed him.

"Why don't we tell Lucy to go and see if she's in the bathroom? She might be there."

"It's a good idea but, where is Lucy?" Joe moved to the crowd where Rami and Lucy were rocking their bodies to some 80s love songs.

Joe explained her what happened and she went to the bathroom. Rami helped the boys.

What if someone hurt you? what if you were in danger and you couldn't ask for help? Joe couldn't stop thinking about the worst case scenario. He felt a twinge in his chest.

As Lucy entered the bathroom, she looked under each door and felt relaxed when she saw your black high heels there.

"(y/n)? (y/n), are you okay?" She knocked the door.

She sent a message to your group chat.

Lucy: I found her, she's in the bathroom. Don't worry.

"Yes, absolutely." You opened the door and she almost jumps. Your eyes were red and your mascara was running on your cheeks.

"What happened? Did someone do anything to you?" She hugged you tight and you hugged she back even thighter.

"No, no. I'm just...I don't know, I was feeling anxious but I think I'm better now." You moved to the mirror and opened the tap water. You washed your face.

"Was it for anything in particular? What were you doing when you started feeling like that?"

You explained the situation and she hugged you again. “I’m here for you, don’t worry.” She said sweetily. You smiled. 

You came back and the guys sighed in relief.

"She's okay, don't bother her." Lucy warned them. Joe sat beside you and put his hand on your shoulder.

"Do you need anything?" Rami asked.

"Give me that." You snatched the wine bottle off his hands.

The blonde girl showed up again. She whispered something on Joe's ear and gave him a piece of paper. Then, she blinked at him and left the bar.

"Man, what's on the paper?" Ben was dying to know about it. Joe gave it to Rami. Ben stucked out his tongue.

Rami opened it. "Ohh, what a heartbreaker you are, Mr. Mazzello." He gave it back to him. Joe held it in his hands as he read.

"I really liked your perm. If you fancy doing something after the bar, let me know 64788433"

Joe tore the paper and took a sip of wine. Ben, Rami and Gwilym's jaw dropped. You felt relieved. "What?"

"I can't believe you're wasting such an opportunity!" Ben said with a wide eyed face.

"She's not my type." He continued drinking.

He didn't feel like leaving you. He felt alarmed by your state, you were his friend and he wan’t going to leave you when you were feeling like that.  Although he didn't know what happened to you, he could notice you were tense. He would do anything to make you feel better.

"Dude, you're mad. It's your last night here." Rami insisted. Joe didn't care.

"And, what about you? Did you find anyone for tonight" Gwilym asked you, mischivously.

You almost choke. "W-What?"

"You know, a one-night stand.” He moved up his eyebrows. You giggled.

"I'm not much into that, I'm more classic, you know." You confessed.

"Come here, I'm gonna find you a hot date!" Lucy begged you.

"It's okay Lu, I wanna be on my own tonight." You smiled gently.

~

It was 2 a.m, you were all a mess and there were like 3 more hours ahead. Oh shit.

“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming to our place tonight.” Yelled a man from the little scenario, holding a microphone. ”It’s 2 a.m and that means, It’s karaoke time!” He raised his arms and people clapped excitedly. “We invite you to come here with a partner and give us a performance! Who will be our first duo tonight?” 

“Here! These pretty girls right here are going to sing first.” Ben jumped from his chair and pointed at you and Lucy, who gaped at you. 

“Oh no, shut up Benjamin!” You tried to sat him back to his place but it was impossible. 

“Come on girls, let’s go!" The man encourage both of you. Everybody turned their heads to your table. You swallowed.

"Are you sure?" You asked Lucy and she shrugged.

"I guess we have to do it, we have no choice." She said in a small panicky voice as the whole bar was waiting for you to go.

"Fuck, then let's do it."

You rapidly took two more shots of vodka so as not to be so conscious of what you were going to do and walked towards the scenario with her. As you got out of your chair, Joe followed your body with his eyes. He swore no one ever looked so good in a dress and it hurt him to know he couldn't have you that night.

Ben took out his phone from his pocket and started to record, maybe it would end up posted on Instagram.

"So, to who do we owe the pleasure tonight?" The man handed Lucy and you microphones.

"I'm Lucy and she's my friend (y/n)." Everybody clapped and there were some whistling. For a second, you regretted wearing that dress.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Lucy and (y/n)!" He yelled, leaving the scenario.

You both moved to the little screen you had in front of you. Lucy chose Wannabe by the Spice Girls.

You took a deep breath and started singing. "Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want." You moved your head to Lucy's direction.

"So tell me what you want, what you really, really want." She sang and held your hand. You both started moving your hips from side to side following the rhythm of the music, trying to remember some moves from the music video.

The boys were singing and clapping from the table, totally enjoying it. You started to feel more comfortable and to enjoy it too.

"If you wanna be my lover." You both sang the last line of the song and hugged. You quickly came back with the boys while you heard clapping again.

"You girls nailed it!" Rami gave Lucy a quick peck.

"I still hate you, Ben. You better be careful, I'll kill you." You blustered annoyed. He mocked you. 

"Please tell me you're going to sing with me!" Joe put his best puppy face that made it hard to deny anything.

"Yeah Joe, when pigs fly!"

Two hours later, you and Joe were on the scenario, you were totally sloshed.

"Purple rain, purple rain. I only wanted to see you underneath the purple rain." You both sang from the top of your lungs. Joe had his arm around your waist and you had yours around his neck, moving backwards and forwards, trying to dance.

"For you Ben, I'll ruin my voice for you!" Joe pointed at Ben, who was trying to hide behind Gwilym.

Joe lost his balanced and fell to the ground, but that didn't stop him for singing. Screaming.

"I only wanted to see you underneath the AHHHHHHHH PURPLE RAIN, PURPLE RAIN, UHHHHHH." He grabbed your leg like a kid.

"Okay Joey, it's enough." You burst out laughing and helped him up.

~

As fast as you opened your eyes, you closed them. A merciless sunbeam was squirting straight in, making the oppressive force in your head go deeper. You turned around and checked your phone, 12:30 p.m, you had to be at the airport in exactly five hours. 

You couldn’t remember neither coming back to the hotel nor falling asleep. As you sat up bed with a rather unpleasant feeling, you felt a shiver down your spine, the room was cold and you were still wearing your black dress. You felt a wave of nausea and ran to the bathroom. You ended up bent over the toilet, puking your guts out. You haven’t been like this in months. The last time you were like this was last year when your ex broke up with you. When you finished puking, you struggled to lift your head up, but the head throbbing was making it impossible. You rested your head in your hands and began to rub your temples, trying to massage away the headache. It was pointless. You felt you were going to die in about five minutes. 

You looked at your face in the mirror, your mascara was running on your cheeks and your red lipstick was smeared, you looked terrible. After cleaning up your face with a damp cloth, you turned on the shower and tossed your dress and your underwear. You felt really gross. The drops of water running down your body felt warm and you enjoyed it. After a long shower, you got changed into your comfiest clothes and finished packing. 

While you were drinking water, your phone buzzed. Joe was calling. 

“Hey, how are you?” Asked Joe with a husky voice. He might have just woken up. 

“I feel like shit, I’m never drinking again.” You protested. Joe laughed. 

That's what everybody says waking up with a terrible hangover and then, they drink again and repeat it over and over again.

“We both know that’s a pretty unconvincing lie.” 

“Well, I’m not drinking any soon. That sounds better?” 

“Absolutely.” You nodded, smiling. “Can you come to my room? I can’t move and I feel I’m about to pass out if I don’t drink water soon. Please, I’m gonna die, don’t let me die!” Joe screamed, being totally dramatic. 

“You aren’t gonna die, Joey. I’m on my way.” You hang and walked towards his room. You knocked the door and Joe cursed, he had to get out of bed. 

“God, I can’t even walk.” Joe said as you entered the room. He jumped back to bed. “Come here.” 

“Are you sure?” You asked, walking on his direction. 

“Of course, come here, I’m gonna die.” Joe pouted. You rolled your eyes and lay in bed. 

You called room service and they brought you bottles of water and some snacks. 

“Joe, you have to take short sips of water.” 

“I’m thirsty.” 

“I know but it would get worse.” You squeezed his bottle and now, his face was wet. You laughed out loud. 

“You’ll regret it.” He left the bottle on the nightstand and started to tickle you. 

“Please, please, please, Joe, stop or I’m gonna throw up the water, please stop” You begged between laughs. Joe stopped and you sighed in relief. 

“Well, I see you aren’t feeling so bad after all.” 

“Kinda, but I wanna stay here until we head to the airport.” He moved close to you. 

“So do I.” You placed his head on your chest and hugged him. Joe felt he was going to die. 

Never had he been this close before. He didn’t want to move because he was practicaly on your boobs. He tried to avoid any dirty thoughts but his view wasn't helping. When he felt your fingers through his hair, he closed his eyes.

Joe wished this was part of his routine. You and him, waking up together on the same bed, him, giving you kisses all over your face and body. He wanted to kiss you so bad. He liked to think that your lips were as soft as a cotton. He hoped someday he’ll find out if he was right.

"You know," said Joe, breaking the silence. "I think you've never told me, but how did you find out about Queen?" Joe questioned.

It was a rainy cold saturday afternoon. Boredom had taken over you, so you decided to sit on your computer while your mom was baking a delicious banana bread while your dad was working on a project for his job, you assumed that he had become a workaholic because no one would ever dedicate so much time to his job on a free day.

"Can you look for a song on YouTube? It's awfully noiseless in here." Your dad said stretching his back, he had been sitting for like 5 hours.

You knew that your dad liked The Rolling Stones so you clicked on Start me Up music video. When it finished, you checked on YouTube's suggestions. Queen - I Want to Break Free. You knew that Queen was a well-known British band but you've never listened to any of their songs.

"Dad, mom, do you like Queen?"

"Yeah, well, I used to listen to them a lot when I was young." Your dad told you.

"One of my favorite songs by Queen used to be I Want to Break Free." Your mom said as he took out the banana bread out of the oven. It smelled amazing.

"That's the one YouTube suggested me."

You watched the music video while eating what your mother have just cooked. What a pretty girl, you thought when a blonde schoolgirl appeared in the kitchen. A few months later, you realized it was actually Roger Taylor.

"I can't believe you thought he was actually a girl." Joe couldn't stop laughing.

"In my defense, some people in the 70s thought he was a woman."

"And then what happened?"

"Then, there wasn't a day in which I didn't listen to Queen, and nowadays it's still that way. I really love them. They helped me through difficult times and they still do.” 

He smiled. “It’s crazy how every person has at least a memory of Queen in their lives. I remember that Bohemian Rhapsody was the first song I downloaded on Napster.” You interrupted him. 

“Which is ilegal.” 

“Shh, don’t tell Brian and Roger.” You giggled. “And then,” he continued. “When I directed Undrafted, I would drive every morning listening to Somebody to Love and it gave me good vibes for the day. It was great” 

You talked for like two hours about Queen. Now, you were on Joe's chest. "What are your plans for the next days?" Joe started to play with your hair.

"I'm staying in New Jersey with my family, you know, it's been a while since I've seen them. And the other week I'm having an audition in New York for a theater play."

"Great, what is its name?"

"It's Romeo and Juliet. A classic. I really hope I'll get this, otherwise I don't know what I'll do." You sighed.

"You'll get the role, don't worry about it, you are wonderful." Joe grabbed your hand and you rubbed his.

"Thank you. And what are you up to this week? Any meeting or something?" You inquired.

"Not yet. I'm going to visit my family and some friends and of course I'll wait for you to free so we can start with our To do list in New York." He smiled sheepishly.

"I can't wait for it!"

"Hmm, I was meaning to ask it earlier but anyway, what happened last night?"

You were frozen. You tried to find the exact words to explain him you were feeling anxious and that you didn't know the reason why. He let you know that you could always count on him.

A few minutes later, Joe fell asleep, he was still holding your hand. You stared at him for like an eternity and thought about how you felt last night. You weren't sure about your feelings as something more than a friend. You loved him with all your heart, he had become someone you really cared for, you were together all the time and you knew that it would still be like that from now.

He had a peaceful look in his face that made your heart melt. You were grateful that you were going to spend a few days in your hometown where you will have enough time to clear your mind.

~

After a week at your parents' home, you came back to your apartment in New York and now, you were getting ready for your audition. You kept reading the script over and over again while you were on your way in the taxi.

While you were waiting in the queue to enter the theater, your phone buzzed. It was a message.

Joe: Good luck sweetie!

You were beaming from ear to ear.

~

Joe finished cooking one of his specialties, meatballs with spaghetti, his favorite food. His friend Aaron was about to come in any minute. It was a long time since they last reunited, especially because they were busy with their acting careers.

The doorbell rang and Joe opened the door of his house. Aaron Tveit was standing there, holding a bottle of wine and some cans of beer happily.

As they ate, they talked about their lasts projects and brought up some memories of Joe's movie, Undrafted, in which they were co-stars. When they were about to finish the delicious supper, the doorbell rang. They looked at each other.

"Is it really the doorbell?" Aaron asked, confused.

"Yes but, that's strange, I'm not expecting anyone."

Joe opened the door and his gaze flickered over your presence. 

“I wasn't expecting to see you until tomorrow, what a lovely surprise!” His smiled disappeared when he noticed you were weeping. "What's wrong?" 

“Sorry I came out of the blue but I really need you.” When you leaned over the frame of the door trying to enter his house, you saw he had a guest. "Oh, sorry, I didn't know you had people tonight. I can come tomorrow morning." You moved backwards. 

“Don’t leave, (y/n).” He grabbed your arm. “You can join us.” You hesitated, “Please, stay.” 

You entered his house and he took you to the kitchen, not before telling his friend he would be back in a minute. You sat on the counter and he stood in front of you. “Tell me, what happened?” 

“The audition...” You played with the edge of your shirt, avoiding his gaze. “It was awful, they treated me so unkind...and obviously I didn’t get the role.” 

“I’m so sorry, (y/n).” He embraced you in such a tender and warm way that made you feel safe immediately. He rubbed your back and whispered sweet things in your ear, sending shivers down your spine. 

You couldn't lie, in the days you spent away in New Jersey, Joe couldn't leave your mind. He was there, 24/7 and you couldn't stop talking about him to your family. Your mom only needed two hours to say you were having feelings for him, despite your denial. 

“Forget about that.” He took you to the dining room, where his friend was with his phone. As he saw you were coming, he left it on the table and smiled.

"(y/n), he's Aaron. Aaron, she's (y/n)." Joe introduced each other. Aaron was a brown haired man with beautiful blue eyes. He seemed to be in his mid 30s, just like Joe.

You remembered seeing them on tv, he was in Gossip Girl!

"It's nice to meet you, Joe talked about you a lot!" He admitted. Joe blushed and you smiled.

Did he really talk about you with his friends?

Joe insisted on serving you a plate of food and you acepted it. An hour passed, now you felt better, Aaron was so friendly.

“I’m having an audition on friday for a musical, If you like, I’ll give you the script.” Aaron said while you were having a sip of wine. 

“What is it about?” 

“It’s a Broadway musical based on the movie Grease. I think you’ll like it. They are looking for someone to play Sandy Olsson." 

You almost choke. “B-Broadway? Oh God. I don’t know..” 

Broadway. It was a tempting proposal, but you weren’t sure if you were going to be acepted to play a role in a such an incredible musical, especially after your failed audition from today. 

“Hey, why don’t you give it a try?” Suggested Joe. “You have nothing to lose. It’s a big opportunity, you should definitly go.”

“And you still have time to prepare for this.” Aaron unlocked his phone and asked for your number. “I’ve just sent you the script. Don’t worry, I can help you if you want, you can call me at any moment and I’ll try to help you. Tomorrow I’ll send you the adress and everything you need to know. And if you want, I can pick you up and we can go together.” 

“That would be nice, thank you.” You smiled. 

“So, that’s a yes?” Joe asked expectantly. 

“Yes!” 

Joe was absolutely happy for you. However, his mind was being cruel.

“Joey, are you listening to me?” You asked him. He rubbed his eyes. 

“Sorry, I think I’m falling asleep. What were you saying?” 

“Can I stay here tonight?” 

“Sure!” 

He had to do something, too much love will kill him. 

[rparchivechill]

Meet the Family - 1

She gave him a little nod before going to clean up the living room, she found her spray for her tables and the rags to clean them off, she immediately got to work with cleaning off the coffee table and dining table sense she already had the table cleaner out. He headed to the kitchen, washing the dishes from last night (he doesn't believe in dishwashers), and taking some wipes and wiping down the table. Basic stuff. He just hoped they were able to finish before her family was over. They finished all the cleaning and she went into her room, putting on a lovely blue dress with little white polka dots and a sky blue ribbon around her waist. She walked back out into the living room, “Babe you gotta get dressed because they’re gonna be here in 20 minutes.” hhhh, pretty 70’s wife vibes// "Huh? Okay... What should I wear? It's your family, and I wanna make a good impression-" He muttered the last part, chipping the tips of fingertips. He only did that when he was very, very nervous. He used to do it a lot, but luckily he was able to hinder it. (he'd be a mess over that dress if he wasn't so scared of her family) “Hmmm.. Maybe a dress shirt and jeans?” She said, it seemed like that would be the appropriate stuff to wear. "Yeah, I can do that." He said, heading to her room to grab some of his clothes he'd stashed in her closet. He grabbed a light yellow dress shirt with some a nicer pair of jeans. He shut the door, changing quickly and heading out to meet with Lemonade. "How do I look?" He asked her. "Should I change the shirt?" Lemonade put and hand over her mouth, “My love, you look perfect.” She said finally, he looked great in the complimentary colors, not to mention they matched pretty well. He smiled, giving her a big, dopey grin. "I'm glad." He replied, with his cheeks threatening to flare a bright yellow. He finally got a good look her. Wow. If he wasn't yellow already, this definitely sealed it. "You... You look beautiful, you know?" He said, almost whispering. He walked over to her, almost in a trance. She blushed a yellow to match his and smiled back, she was so happy she could cry. “Awww, babe.. you are just too swe-” The doorbell suddenly rang, oh lord they were here. “Crap..” Was all she mutter out as she rubbed her temples. THEY COULDNT HAVE WAITED ONE MORE SECOND- AJDHFJADFHJDA "Oh, frick!" He muttered, whipping around to see the door. He quickly ran to the kitchen sink to wash his face, and hopefully wash off the blush. Wiping his face with a towel, he then ran to the door. "I got it." He unlocked the door. (DUN DUN DUNNNN) And there was Whiskey, he stood a few inches taller than Dex. “And who are you?” He asked, before Dex could reply Lemonade squeezed through. “Daddy, hi! It’s nice to see you!” She hugged him so he’d forget about Dex for a moment because she knew DAMN WELL he was gonna be hard on him. “Oh hi, pumpkin!” He hugged back and smiled. Wine pushed past her husband. “Hey! Where’s my hug?” She said and Lemonade quietly hugged her. “Hi Mama!” SORRY I HAD TO EAT LFNAKFNWKFNRJ ALL GOOD He kind of just... stood there, waiting for someone to notice him. He didn't want to draw any attention to himself at all. He knew Lemonade told a few of her sister about him... but the parents! Oh, God, the PARENTS! He's screwed! She let go of her mother and gestured to Dex, “This is my boyfriend, Dex.” She smiled, hoping her parents would be calm and collected, her mother offered her hand for him to shake. “Nice to meet you!! My name is Wine, I heard a lot about you!!” Looks like one of the sisters snitched. KAHDJHSDJFDH SNITCH Speaking of the sisters, they all came flooding in and surrounded Lemonade, giving a huge group hug. IKR, THOSE LITTLE BUTTHEADS// "H-Hi, yes, I'm Dex. Dex Khorii." He said to Wine, shaking her hand with his good hand (as he still had a cast on his left, sadly). "I- I hope you heard only good things...!" Oh boy this was not going to go well. She smiled, “Yes, lots of good things actually!” The dad didn’t say anything and moved to sit down on the couch, it would take a lot for Dex to get on his good side. Wine whispered to Dex while Lemonade was dealing with her sisters, “Sorry about my husband, Lemonade has always been Daddy’s little girl so he is very protective.” She informed him. He smiled in return. He shut and locked the door, before Wine told him what she did. "Oh, okay. Thank you for telling me, ma'am. I hope I'll be able to convince you and him I'm good enough for your daughter." He never felt so formal. (formal mans) She pat his good shoulder, “No convincing needed on my end, I can tell you are a good enough for her. Call it a ‘gut feeling’.” She said before going to sit down with her husband who was talking with the youngest daughter. Lemonade was talking with Champagne and Sweet Tea, they both finally noticed Dex and came over to him. “Hi, I’m Sweet Tea!! It’s nice to finally meet you!” She gave his good hand a shake. Dex was in for a long ride. Champagne was quieter with new people so she smiled and gave a little wave to him. (ohh poor dex) "Hello! It's nice to meet you too, Sweet Tea." He said shaking her hand. He faced Champagne, with his hand out. "Hi...! What's your name?" Champagne had spaced out, for a moment, she was clearly nervous like he was. Sweet Tea put a hand on her shoulder and whispered something to her and Champagne nodded. “I’m sorry, my name is Champagne.” She said while shaking his hand, she was definitely one of the sisters that had anxiety. "Nice to meet you!" He said, smiling. He hoped he would be able to know these two better. "Uh..." (and i can see champagne and dex being best friendos god i want that to happen KADHFUGJSHDHFEJD) it would take a while because she’s not too good with new people but if she gets comfortable she’s a very sarcastic (and equally funny) person// (that's a nice rp idea imma write that down) Champagne smiled a little and retreated over by the youngest and the parents, it wasn’t his fault, she was just too shy in the moment. Sweet stuck by them though. “So how have you been? Are you healing well?” She asked, Lemonade went over to some of her other sisters while they talked. it would be so fuuuuun ^^// "I've been doing well, for the most part... And yeah. It was hard, in the beginning... wait how do you know I...?" (he forgot about his cast but he's thinking about the other injuries mainly) She gestured to his lover, “I’m the second oldest and her main outlet for anything, she called me when you where passed out in the hospital. No one else knows about what happened if you’re worried about that.” She kept a smile on her face. “I’m also less likely to spill the beans so there’s that too.” She giggled a little. yeah she knows everything anyway tho// they are the oldest sisters so theu are closer bc they can relate to each other more, the other’s are too young// they*// He breathed a sigh of relief while lightly clutching his chest. "Phew, thank goodness. I'm glad she can count on you!" He leaned in. "I'm worried your dad will kill me if I go and try to talk to Lemonade if I need anything from her-" He said in a low tone. Sweet Tea laughed, “Yeah, you’re screwed.” Before he lost his head she spoke again, “Just kidding, he’s a grump but you’ll be fine. He was like this when I introduced him to my boyfriend for the first time.” She said to reassure him. “Just act how you normally would, as mean as he will be, he’s just testing you to see if you’re a good guy. I was going to keep quiet about you but Champagne accidentally said something to them without thinking, she feels pretty bad about it too.” So that’s why she was scared to talk to him, not only did she have social anxiety but she accidentally snitch on him. (oh champagne nooooo) she was backed into a corner about it and she doesn’t like confrontation so she caved.// (I NEED TO GIVE HER A HUG ASAP) "Oh, no! Oh goodness, she shouldn't feel sorry. It's probably a good thing they know anyways." He felt bad that she felt bad about him. “It’s okay, just be nice to her and she’ll get comfortable eventually. She’s quite the talker when she’s comfortable.” She said and spotted Lemonade who was pushing her other sisters over. The youngest was 17 and looked quite confident and calm, the other looked a little more shy like Champagne and she was only a year older. “Heya! I’m Boba and this is Margarita!” She introduced herself and her sister for her. "Hello, I'm Dex. Nice to you both!" He replied, offering his hands to both. The hand in a cast included. Woo boy, this is a lot of people. At least the Mr. Whiskey hadn't came yet and absolutely crushed him. Boba shook his hand, But Margarita didn’t, “Sorry about her, should doesn’t like being touched.” She said because her sister was going to just say nothing if she hadn’t. “H-Hi, s-s-s-sir..” She stuttered out, she must have had a speech impediment and that’s why she didn’t talk much. There was only one sister left to meet and that was Grape Juice, oh boy was he in for a treat when he finally talked to her. "Oh, apologies!" He told Margarita. "I'll remember that. It's good to meet you," "...And you!" He turned to Boba when he said that. Boba smiled, “Same to you!” She went over to where the rest of the family was but Margarita stayed for a bit longer. “Th-Thank y-y-y-you for b-b-being g-good to L-L-Lemon-n-nade.” She stuttered out before leaving, the only people by him where Lemonade and Sweet Tea who were talking to each other. "No problem," He said to Margarita Should he just... wait again? That worked out pretty well. But then again he wanted to make a good impression on the parents. Specifically, THE parent. all good!// Lemonade saw Grape Juice coming over to them and tapped Dex on the shoulder to get his attention, “Babe one of my sisters is coming over and she’s a bit like your sister if you get what I mean.” Grape was like Reah in the sense that she would snap his arm off if he hurt her sister. "Oh, okay. Bracing for impact!" He said, laughing nervously under his breath. If she was anything, ANYTHING like Reah... Oh goodness. Ohhh. Goodness. He prayed he wouldn't have both arms in casts. Grape juice came over and hugged her sister, “It’s so great too see you!!” Lemonade hugged back but gave Dex a worried look. She let go and looked at Dex. “Oh.. it’s you.. great let’s have a friendly little CHAT!” She tugged him away from Lemon and over in the kitchen. “Listen, I’ll make this super quick for you, hurt my sister and you’ll have more than that arm in a cast, mkay?” She said through gritted teeth. “Now, YOU are going to have to talk to my dad one way or another and he won’t be NEARLY as nice as I’m being.” This was her being nice?? JHDFJZHfsdc "Y-Yes ma'am! I-I'll go over there right now! I promise I would never hurt your sister. I-In fact, I protected her from someone who wanted to-" He clapped a hand over his mouth. He had said too much. Oops. "W-Well, I'm going to go introduce myself to your father, now!" He slowly started walking over to the couch. Hopefully Grape Juice wouldn't grill him about what he said. (oh she will) yes she fucking will// She looked very pissed now, no more secrets now! She grabbed him by the shirt collar and pulled him back to the kitchen. “Someone who tried to WHAT?!” She said in a whisper-yell tone, she looked furious that he was hiding something. “And don’t even think about lying because if I think for a second that you are being untruthful I’m going to her about this.” "Uh- Uh- UIh- I don't know if I should say anything right now, since we shouldn't be dwelling on stuff like this- maybe later-" She tugged on his shirt collar, with flaming in her eyes. "OKAY-okay! S-Someone tried to... get b-busy with her at a concert while I got a drink... BUT I stopped him! T-That's part of the reason why I have this cast... But please don't tell anyone else! I don't need the whole household knowing this... yet..." He said that all in one breath, and he tried to step away to take a breather but gave up. She went quiet, it was almost scarier than when she was talking. “..Thank you.” She said simply before walking away, it seemed like that was enough to get her off his case for now. She was very grateful but would never say it all out loud. (DAMN) kkgjaigjwjg, cold as ICE// "O-Of course-" He muttered quietly, although she had already left by then. He decided he'd take his chances and rip the band-aid off. Time to meet the dad. He made his way over to the couch. Whiskey was laughing with his family until Dex came over, he looked him up and down. He didn’t say anything until his wife bumped him with her elbow. “Hi.. Dex.” He mumbled begrudgingly, he already knew his name so there was no point in an introduction from Dex. This was going to be rough.. JHADJFHDJ I DONT KNOW WHAT TO SAY BESIDE DEX GOING HELLO oh well kdksjvnejf having him have to break the ice is so funny though "H-Hello, Mr. Whiskey, sir-" He started. "Uh- I just wanted to introduce myself to you since I already did to everyone else... But you seem to already know who I am, so-" He glanced in the direction of the kitchen. It never looked so inviting until now. He just wanted to run, but obviously that's not happening any time soon. Whiskey stood and offered him a hand, “Just call me Whisky.” He was going for a hand shake, god only knows what was going on in this man’s head "Yes sir, Mr- I mean Whisky," He replied, looking up to meet eyes and shaking his hand. He was super tall, and seemed very strong. OH GOD OH GOD AAAAAA THIS MAN IS GOING TO CRUSH HIM. Oh well, "f to pay respects", as they say. (LOL) f// Whiskey had a very strong grip, but surprisingly didn’t crush his hand. “So, you got a job?” He asked, everyone went back to talking except for Sweet Tea and Lemonade, who both watched worriedly. (OH SHIT I DIDNT THINK OF THAT) (LMAO IF HE SAID NO-) HED LOSE ALL RESPECT HE MIGHT HAVE GAINED AND WOULD HAVE TO START FROM SQUARE ONE// "Y-Yes, sir. I majored in the arts. I sing and play piano, as well as violin. I'm a little less talented in visual arts, though. .. .But got out a year earlier from my collage." He's probably sweating by now. "I do some performances, and I plan when I get older to start with bars, and work my way up, sir." He chipped his fingers behind his back, hoping that Whiskey would approve of him. (art boi.) much love uwu// He paused, his silence was way scarier than GJ’s. “Huh, so are you working freelance then until you can become big?” He asked, seems like he was okay with him wanting to become an artist. ‘A year earlier? Alright, at least he’s a hard worker and knows how to hit the books.’ "Yes, sir." He said, answering his first question. "I appreciate the s-statement, sir. My sister and I both graduated in the top 5% of our classes." (reah majored in music and criminology) “Wow, that’s great!” He didn’t smile yet but he seemed glad that Lemon’s boyfriend wasn’t some idiot schmuck. Lemonade and Sweet let out some sighs of relief, he was doing good amd and impressing him.* “So, how did you meet my daughter?” they both smort so he has some more respect for him now// (LMAO) "We ran into each other by a café. I'm very nearsighted, and I ran into a pole... She helped and healed me, so I took her to the café and we hit it off there." He moved to Whiskey's right and sat down in a soft chair next to him. lovelydrawz Whiskey laughed a little, “Did she pay for herself? She normally hates when people pay for her.” chilljammer He smiled a little. "Actually, I was able to pay for her this time." “Wow, she really just let you?” He asked, genuinely surprised. "I... I think so." He said. He never really bothered to ponder that particular event. “Huh, you must be special then.” He sighed, “I’m sorry for being so harsh.. Lemonade’s my oldest and we’ve always been close, so I get a little upset when she gets a boyfriend.” He put his hand on Dex’s shoulder, “You are a good man, take care of her for me.” He finally smiled a little. He was being nice, Dex just seemed like a really genuine and kind guy so it was hard to not like him. "It's no problem, sir! My sister, Reah, is like you. But like her, you're a pretty great person!" When he put his hand on his shoulder he tensed a little, but not too much. He gave Whiskey a small determined grin. "Yes, sir!" Whiskey nodded and sipped the beer he was given by Lemonade, everyone had their own drinks and she also put out some snacks for the guests. Speaking of Lemonade, where is she? She wasn’t in the room anymore! Dex seemed to have noticed, and was actively looking for her too. "I'll be right back." He was kinda hungry, but that could wait. He left the living room and went to check her room for her. She was sitting on her bed, looking very tired. She wasn’t facing him because she was on her side of the bed so she didn’t notice that he entered the room. She looked a little sad but wasn’t crying, just kinda bummed out. He walked in. "...Lemonade? Are you okay?" He walked over to where she was sitting and sat down next to her. She sighed and leaned against him. “Yeah.. just a little tired from all the people, do they need me for something?” She asked, thinking he came in to find her for the family. He put his arm around her. "No, I just wanted to make sure you're okay." "Your family is very colorful. So many different personalities..." Lemonade smiled, “Yeah, it’s a sea of goofballs in my family. I think you made a pretty good impression with my dad.” She said, happy for him. "Thank God I did. I was so scared..." He replied, squeezing her a little in his half-hug. She giggled, “What were you guys talkin about?~” she teased. "Stereotypical stuff I'm sure you heard. If I have a job, what I majored in, stuff like that." “Oh! He really respects people with an education because he never got the opportunity to get a better one.” She explained. “His parents were very poor so it was hard to afford good schooling.” “That’s probably why you started to warm up to him.” "Oh, okay! Interesting... I'm sad he couldn't get a good education himself..." “It’s alright, he’s happy now and that’s all that matters.” She kisses his cheek. “He found love with my mother and that was enough to push him forward.” His face lit up a little when she kissed him. "That's good for them. Really good," He said. "But we should probably get back out there. Are they staying the night or...?" “They will be leaving soon, they aren’t staying the night.” She said before standing up, “Maybe you and me can just lay around for the rest of the day after they leave, yeah?” She offered him, no way he would pass up and evening of cuddles. "Sure, that sounds great!" He said, giving her a small kiss on the forehead before getting up and holding out his hand. "C'mon, let's go and then we can do whatever you want." Lemon blushed and nodded, “M-Mhm!” She was a little flustered, she was always the one that kissed HIM, not the other way. He laughed, and took her hand, pulling her to her feet. "You're always so cute when you blush," he cooed. She blushed more and when he pulled her up she accidentally stepped a little to close. She stepped back a little, “Let’s just go, you dingus.” She said as she continued to hold his hand. "Of course, your majesty," He replied, walking out with her.

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Once Bitten, Twice Stupid prt.63

Lance nearly turned back to Platt twice, and he was pretty sure he would have had Allura not come with him for the day trip home. He was taking Blue home ahead of returning on the weekend. His precious princess curled up in Allura’s lap, after working her way out of her carrier. Filling up at Balmeria, he was relieved to see Rax working rather than Shay. He didn’t want to put Shay in any kind of awkward position with Hunk, nor did he know how to explain his absence to her. Allura was trying her best to keep his spirits up, pointing out various things as they drove, or singing the words wrong to the songs on the radio. Lance nearly felt as nervous as he did the first time he drove out to see the house he’d call home.

Parking in the drive, Matt and Rieva couldn’t help messing with him. He’d barely cut the ignition and climbed out the car before the pair of werewolves were bounding out the house, knocking him down and dragging” him by the hem of his jeans towards the front steps

“Really? Out of every single way you could have greeted me, this was your best idea? You two are lame”

There was more laughter in his tone than he’d intended. Matt and Rieva both letting go of his jeans in favour of body flopping on top of him. The offensive smell of wolf not nearly as offensive when he felt they’d actually missed him

“Oh, no. Lance, I’m afraid I’m going to have to tell Keith your cheating on him. Look at you”

Allura giggled, raising her hand to cover her mouth. Blue taking he opportunity to jump and run away towards the open door. His princess didn’t have time for such “goings on”

“I love how you rush to help”

“Who you end up under is completely up to you”

“You wouldn’t think so. Now, will you two get off? The gravel’s itchy”

Matt and Rieva turned back, Lance covering his eyes

“Guys! Clothes!”

Matt didn’t care

“You know you love it. What’s not to love?”

“Your ugly arse junk forever imprinted in my head?”

“Here how he talks to us?! Blah. Keith can have you if you’re going to be like that”

“He did and he has and he will. Now go get dressed!”

Waiting until Matt and Rieva moved away, Lance uncovered his eyes to find Allura staring down at him

“Need a hand?”

“I wouldn’t say no. Remind me again why I decided coming back was a good idea?”

“I’m still not quite sure myself. They seemed to have missed you”

Allura helped him up, Lance then brushing the loose gravel off his body

“They’re a menace! Matt needs to be neutered! I hope you hear that!”

“Oh dear. I don’t think he’ll take that well”

From inside came a yelled “Fuck you!”

“He didn’t. He’s just lucky I haven’t taken his mangy arse to the vet yet. Then again, he’d probably like a thermometer stuck up his arse”

Looping her arm through his, Allura was still giggly

“I’ve never neutered a werewolf before. Coran may have. Perhaps we should enquire when we return?”

“Yep. And I want tracking collars for the pair of them. I’m surprised they didn’t graffiti the town sign and edit the population to say “plus one vampire”. He’s as bad as Pidge. No. He’s worse. He should know better by now”

“You know, I’m sure we could change that sign if you really wanted?”

“I think I’ve caused the town enough dramas. Let’s head in. I bet my poor house needs therapy. Is that a thing? A house needing therapy?”

“I don’t see why not? Though that would mean discussing what you and Keith have been up to here”

Lance pulled a face

“Why do you do this to me? You know I miss him as it is”

“I do. He really is very fond of you. I’m sure you moving back here will leave him missing you even more”

“You know we talked about it. I’m not hunter material”

“I don’t know. I think you’d make an excellent hunter. You’re very perceptive and very kind”

“If you ask Keith, I’m kind of an idiot”

“Yes, well... You do have your moments”

Lance gaped at Allura, Allura giggling again. Sighing dramatically, he started leading her towards the house. Why did everyone he knew have to be so weird? And why was if after all the years that he finally not keeping his walls so high was giving him everything he ever needed? Maybe because now he had a group of friends that were all weird like him, he was starting to see that maybe... just maybe... he liked himself more than he thought... and maybe he liked company more than he thought too.

*

Inside the house wasn’t the mess he’d expected. It smelt heavily of horny wolf, but everything seemed in order as he flopped down on his sofa. It smelt suspiciously clean... Like Rieva and Matt had cleaned it knowing he’d smell more than he was suppose to. Walking into the room, Matt ignored the perfectly open seats in favour of sitting right next to him. Normally he would have headed straight to the kitchen to make tea for Allura, but he had a finite amount of courage to work with. Shoving Matt away from him, Matt laughed

“I know you missed us. Curtis told me all about the talk you had with him”

“Curtis is cursed. It’s rude to use that against him”

Matt shrugged

“A man’s gotta do, what a man’s gotta do”

“And how’s that working out for you?”

“Pretty good”

“Oh, so you have a brilliant plan to make Pidge loves us again?”

Matt groaned, flopping sideways on the sofa

“No. She’s totally holed up. Hunk isn’t even talking to me. I think she’s making boards about us”

Lance flopped against Matt, sighing as he did

“That sounds like her. I miss our gremlin”

“I know. I have no one to play video games with anymore. What’s the point of having all these wolf powers if I can’t cheat in video games”

“What’s the point of being immortal if my second family hates me?”

“I don’t hate you, bro”

“I don’t hate you either”

Very awkwardly they fist bumped before both of them sighed.

Allura stood, hands on her hips, staring down the pair of them

“I’m ashamed of the pair of you right now. Have you tried talking to Pidge?”

“She’s ignoring us”

Matt replied, Lance nodded

“Then make it so she can’t”

Geez. Why hadn’t they thought of that?

“This isn’t a movie. We can’t just show up outside her house with a boom box and win her back”

Matt snorted

“Dude, you’re so fucking old”

“Shut up. You’re nearly as old”

“Oh, says Mister ‘70s over here”

He didn’t ask to be this old. He didn’t even know how he got to be this old. One moment he was 20, stumbling through life. Next moment he was 44, stumbling through life and now figuring out dating

“You got the reference! Dude, you’re her biological brother”

“She told mum to tell me we weren’t talking. Mum said she was worried about our influence on her”

Pidge was fierce . Colleen was ruthless

“Your mother scares me”

“Try being her son“

Allura clapped her hands, drawing attention back to her

“Will you two please get over yourselves. Pidge is a human in possession of information she is ill equipped to deal with. Now, Lance, if Keith were to stop talking to you, how would you reconnect?”

“He’s probably turn into a bat then go bury himself”

He didn’t know, but if Keith stopped talking to him, Matt was most likely right about what would come next

“Pretty much”

Allura sighed at the pair of them

“You’re not helping by joking”

“Matt’s right. I get emotional and then I’m a bat. Keith keeps me grounded. I’ve gotten better at not being a bat”

“Dude. You were so much cooler as a bat”

Lance huffed

“Says you. Keith says too, actually”

“Maybe you could turn into a bat and I could post you to Pidge?”

Now Matt was being ridiculous. They were being ridiculous. Keith suggested going to talk to her instead of relying on Matt, Lance was reaping what he sowed

“And have her experiment on me. No thanks. Allura, I know you want to help, buuuuut maybe we can talk about something else?”

“I’m trying to help”

“I know you are, but Pidge needs space. I’ve told her I’m coming back next week. Why don’t we just hang out today? We can practice hairstyles and do face masks?”

Matt made a a high “ooohing” noise, Lance sitting up, before shoving at him

“Shut up. It’s not like that”

“I didn’t say anything”

“You did. I’ll have you know, I’m going on a mission with Allura”

Matt sat up, expression skeptical

“And what mission is that? To find your balls. Wait, nope, Keith’s got you by them”

He’d rather Keith have them... and that didn’t quite make sense. Matt talking about his balls felt awkward. He wasn’t a smell mutt to be neutered

“I’ll chop yours off. I may or may not have been thinking about this, and having Allura here probably means she’s thinking the same thing and I’m only just putting this together, so thanks for that Allura. Rieva, we have a question for you. Have you ever heard of a vampire named Lotor? Or his family?”

*

Lance was barely home an hour before driving the four of them back to Platt. Rieva had indeed heard of Lotor, but she’d heard more about Zarkon and Honerva, telling them enough that Lance now knew coming home had been a bad idea, as wherever Lotor went, his mother was sure to have sent someone to watch his every move. Hastily they’d packed, Rieva insisting they weren’t safe in Garrison for the one being. Lance throwing together all his precious belongings, before rounding up Blue who wasn’t impressed at all. Rieva was shaken that Lotor was here, Lance certain there was a more personal reason that she wasn’t telling them. The only thing he could think of was that it somehow related to the death of her biological parents... And if Zarkon and Honerva were involved, he couldn’t fault her for being overly cautious. Matt had messaged Pidge to tell her to stay indoor and stay away from crowds, Lance’s undead heart frozen in fear for her and Hunk, and their families. He’d never wanted them roped into this, and now the whole issue was getting out of control.

Parking where Allura instructed. They entered the bookshop through a side entrance Lance has barely used. Practically sneaking their way through to the elevator to avoid drawing attention to themselves. Rieva didn’t know much about Lotor, not personally, she’d heard the rumours having grown up in Europe. Lotor was the son of a fae gone mad and a vampire who’d been twisted by his ego. Not a great combination for a child during the years of formations of self. Lotor had to know his mother sent someone. Maybe he’d thought he’d slipped them? Or maybe he’d paid them off? Or maybe Honerva wasn’t actually keeping tabs on him. From what Rieva said, she’d been a gifted and amazing scientist, using both magic and science to test human limits... and amazingly okay about sacrificing human pets for her research.

Reaching the reception area beneath ground, a strong weird scent of something unknown hung in the air. Familiar and not. And not completely unwelcoming. The scent making his teeth and nails ache, as suddenly he was falling onto his hands and knees, body screaming at him something he couldn’t decipher. Opening his mouth, nothing came out. Heat flushing through his body as his arms gave out and the world became so much bigger than it had been. Whatever the fuck was happening now, he didn’t like it...

Matt grabbed him by the collar, Lance finding himself pulled to his feet too fast. Covering his mouth to prevent himself from throwing up, he swallowed hard. That’d never happened. 44 years and he’d never felt like he had right then

“Fucking shitty vampire scents. What the hell, dude?”

That was vampire. Sniffing again, his stomach rolled. Submit. God. That’s what that feeling was. His body wanted to submit to something. Heat beginning to boil in his belly... no... not here... not here and not now...

“Matt, let him go. Lance... you’re okay. Allura, I’ll take him to his room. Lance, is there anything I can get you?”

“Curtis...”

Curtis’s name came out pained and strangled. Curtis could handle his bouts of heat... Rieva might have offered to take him to his room, but he wasn’t safe with her. He wasn’t safe because his body wasn’t listening. He didn’t... Grunting as a heat wave slammed into him with enough forced to make his knees buckle, tears came to his eyes. Keith was the one who made him feel like this. Not some random vampire... and Keith didn’t make him feel like he had to get on his hands knees and stick his fucking arse out to be bred like this... well... he did, but not so viciously like his head was behind held down and a heat shoved in every opening

“Okay. Allura call Curtis, then call Keith. We all need to talk, but right now Lance needs his boyfriend”

“Keith and Shiro are out...”

People really needed to stop saying Keith. Horny Lance had little control over all things Lance and what he wanted done to him

“I’m... okay... just... please get Curtis...”

This was mortifying. He was mortified. A single whiff and this happened. Maybe he was off guard? He had to be after what Rieva had and hadn’t said? Honerva was evil. The Blades knew about her and were yet to stop her. If she came here people would start dying at an alarming rate... Oh... god... shoot him now... he could smell horny Matt and dear god... he wanted something in him...

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #320

we on a spree today!

Would you rather be twice as smart or twice as happy? Give me the happiness, please. What happened the last time you cried? I was having a PTSD episode. What happened the time in your life when you were the most nervous to do something? I think the most nervous I've ever been was in elementary school when I won the D.A.R.E. essay contest and had to read my paper in front of the whole 4th and 5th grade in the gym. There may be something else, though, there's just a LOT of instances where I've been an anxious mess. What was the greatest television show of all time? Meerkat Manor, man. I canNOT wait for it to resume, I believe this summer. What one thing would you be most disappointed if you never got to experience it? Maybe petting a meerkat, particularly a descendant of a Meerkat Manor character, Flower Whiskers in specific. I would cry, and that is a promise. I am just... so thankful for those little creatures. Because of them, I've met so many irreplacable friends and developed a hobby that was a way to dump my creativity into since I was what, 10 years old? What celebrity would you trade lives with? BITCH let me be Amy Nelson (Mark's gf) for OBVIOUS REASONS. Haha on a serious note though she is an INCREDIBLE person that I'm so glad Mark found. :'''') What story do your friends still give you crap about? Nothing, really. What is your weirdest dealbreaker? I'unno... define a "weird" dealbreaker. I find mine to be pretty reasonable. What’s the first thing you’d do if you were the opposite sex for one day? Well, look at myself in a mirror? See how I look. What is the weirdest quirk your family has? We have this thing where we say "I love you mostest period" at random to imply we love the other person more than they could love us, indisputably. How old is the last person you kissed on the cheek or lips? On the cheek, it was either my niece or nephew, who are 4 and 6. The person I last kissed on the lips is 22. Do you own a pair of skinny jeans? Not anymore, no. I don't wear jeans. Do you think you could live with your best friend? I would fuckin LOVE to. Do you have someone who you can be your complete self around? I'm most comfortable with myself around Sara. What were you doing when you found out Michael Jackson was dead? I was swimming in the pool while Dad was grilling lunch. The last person you kissed, was it a drunken or sober? Sober. Have you ever introduced yourself with a name other than your own? Online, I've introduced myself with my account name, but generally, I say I'm Brittany. Are any of your siblings married? I don't know about the half-sister I don't know, but two are married, and one is engaged. Do you use an umbrella when it rains? Not usually, no. When was the last time you had a lot of fun? A lot of fun? That's one damn good question. Probably not since I last hung out with Sara. The last time you cried, who was there to comfort you? I was alone. What was your most recent reason for smiling / laughing? I chuckled at something in a John Wolfe video. Are you attracted to the last person you talked to? Um, that would be my mother. So no. Do you like your middle name, or does it embarrass you? It's pretty, but I hate having it. It's one of the most common white chick middle names ever. Are your toenails painted? No; I don't paint my nails. When was the last time you couldn't stop laughing? Why? Probably a funny YT video, I dunno. Any ways in which you're very different from the person you love/like? We have some differing political views. Why did you first kiss the last person you kissed? The timing felt right and I love(d) her. Has anyone seen you kiss the last person you kissed? Yeah. Who was the last person’s voice you heard? Besides via YouTube, my mom's. Who do you get along with best in your family? Mom. Have you ever been kissed in a car? Yeah. Is there anyone in your life that knows right away something’s wrong with you? Oh, absolutely my mother. Has your phone ever gone off in the middle of a class at school? Oh god no, I'd die. The last time you washed your hair, did you use conditioner? I never do. It adds oil to your hair, and mine is naturally oily enough. Do you prefer light or dark jeans? DARK. Do you have an item of clothing that reminds you of someone? Tell me about it, and the person it reminds you of. I have a good handful of those. When you listen to music, do you generally sing along, or just listen? I just listen, usually. Do you have any of your exes as friends on Facebook? Yeah. Does more than one person like you? *shrug* You log into Facebook and see the red ‘1’ notification next to the message icon. Who do you want it to be? I fucking hate that my answer is "Jason." If your hair is long, would you ever think about having it cut short? Or, if it’s short, would you like to grow it long? As far as I'm concerned, my hair will never be long again. I love it so much more short. What if you were told that your life has to stay exactly as it is right now, and nothing will ever change? How would you feel about that? I'd... honestly probably kill myself. I don't know that with certainty, but yeah. I'd be pretty damn devastated. What’s the most expensive thing you own? Probably my snake. Name something you really can’t wait for? MAY!!!!!!! GIMME MY TATTOOOOOOOO!!!!! What do you want in your future? E.g marraige, kids… A great career, a healthy and permanent relationship, lots of pets, adventure, life satisfaction... Got any major celeb crushes? m a r k e d w a r d f i s c h b a c h Do you have any glow-in-the-dark items in your room? If so what? No. Have you ever stalked anybody? Yeesh, no. If you could be on any TV show, which would it be and why? I'll just hypothetically say I WANTED to be on television for this, because irl, I don't. Ummm. I guess That '70s Show, because I love the '70s, and it'd be so cool to have a big group of friends like that. What is your favorite brand of hairspray? I don't use hairspray. What is the last thing you tripped over? Our doorstep, lmao. Do you were glasses or contacts? If so what color are your frames/contacts? I wear black-rimmed glasses. Do you like stickers? If so what kinds do you like? Yeah. I used to collect them as a kid and put them all over my dresser. Do you like coloring? Yes. What is in your backyard? Some bushes and a shed. Maybe a tree. I've been out there like, once. Do you own a globe? No. What is your favorite wild cat? Snow leopards are the prettiest, imo. As animals in general, I find lions the most interesting. How many continents have you been to, and which ones? I've never left North America. How many continents has your best friend been to, and which ones? She hasn't, either. How many continents has your dad been to, and which ones? Same as above. Have you ever been so terrified that you felt paralyzed? Yep. What’s a place you have a strong emotional connection to? The community college I first went to. Particularly where Jason and I took his senior prom pictures. Who was the last relative you visited? Grammy, before she passed away. My uncle was with her, too. Do you ever wonder what kind of person you’d have turned out to be if a certain event never happened to you? Oh, certainly. I wonder all the time what would have happened if Jason didn't leave. I could still be horribly depressed, or dead, considering ultimately, the event led to me finding the help I so desperately needed. Or maybe I'd be perfectly happy with kids and know how to be an actual adult. I was only a teenager, and yet with him, I never felt more mature and just... capable. When you’re home alone, do you still shower with the bathroom door closed? Yes. Have you ever bought something really expensive and ended up returning it? I don't believe so. If you could have anyone’s singing voice, whose would you choose? Amy Lee is the brazenly obvious answer. What are your top 3 favorite genres of music? Metal, rock, indie. Same general category, I know, but it's almost all I listen to. Is there anything you’d like to say to your last ex? We're best friends, and I talk to her regularly, so I can tell her anything. Where did you buy your dishes from? No clue. We've had the same plates and bowls I think my entire life. Do you think Mars will be colonized in your lifetime? No. Have you ever been on a ship? Boats, yeah. I think ships are just the really big ones, right? Sails and all? Do you ever take intentional breaks from checking/posting on social media? No. Who was Van Halen’s better singer - David Lee Roth, or Sammy Hagar? David Lee Roth. He's an arrogant bastard, but boy can he sing. Which fictional character has the most memorable quotes? I don't know. Maybe the Joker. Do you watch The Office? Gossip Girl? Grey’s Anatomy? None of 'em. Name someone you know with a birthday in December: Sara! What color was the last vehicle you were in? White. What is your dad’s name? Kenneth, but he's just called "Ken." When was the last time you slept in a bed with someone else? Not since I last visited Sara. Do you have any indoor pets? Both my pets are indoors. How do you feel about teenagers claiming to be in love? It's entirely possible. I was; nobody could EVER convince me I wasn't. Are you dating anyone? If so, for how long? No. Do you know anyone with Down's Syndrome? I think so? What animal that is endangered is your favorite? Oh yikes, I don't know. I don't really know every endangered animal, y'know, and I love all animals SO much. Maybe elephants or tigers. How do you believe the Earth and life on it was created? I feel like there was SOME sort of ultimate intelligence that created the universe, but I don't know anything about it/him/her/whatever. Then I believe in evolution. Basically, some sort of conscious creation, and then let life do its thing. What’s your religion? I don't have one. You could say theism, but is that even a proper religion? Do you like your teeth? No. During my worst depression, I was very bad at taking care of them, and now they have a yellowish tint. Have you considered getting contacts that change your eyecolor? What color? Oh yes, I've wanted to have more sapphire blue eyes. Do you wish you lived somewhere else? Yes. Living in the suburbs just isn't my jam, but it works for right now. What’s the craziest color you’ve seen on a house? I think I've seen a pink house before? Don’t you hate the texture of lotion on your skin? Yes. What’s the prettiest cat you have seen? There's this brown British Longhair with beautiful green eyes that I adore on social media. Name's Smoothie. What is your favorite doughnut? Chocolate frosted or glazed. Do you have a hot tub? If so, where is it located? No. What is your favorite party game? Man, I don't even know popular party games, haha. Do you or your parents rake your yard? Neither of us do. No matter where we've lived, ever since Dad left, no one rakes. Do you buy drugstore make-up or high-end make-up? We always buy drugstore makeup. What’s the last good love story you read? I don't think I've read a love story since The Notebook. Do you own a lava lamp or disco ball? No, but I wish I had a lava lamp. When was the last time you went to the roller rink? It's been many years. Do you own a kaleidoscope? No. I did as a kid, though. Have you ever made an inspiration board for your room? No, but I absolutely plan to once I get a big enough board to hang on the wall, and my "office" is cleaned out. I want that room to be full of motivation. Who is the best-looking male celebrity? Take a wild guess. Where would you like to travel to next? Yellowstone. I want to spread Teddy's ashes there in an area with wolves to rest in his roots. Less importantly, I want to take looooooaaaaaaaddddddsssss of photographs. Where are three places you go to relax? Just my room, really. If you became famous, would you change your name to something exotic? No. What color is your favorite pair of shorts? I don't wear shorts, ever. List five items on your current wardrobe wish list. I've wanted a black, studded leather jacket since I was in high school. I also really want big, spiked leather boots, too. Then there's tons of band tees I want. Who makes great song covers on YouTube? JONATHAN YOUNG!!!!!!! GO!!!!!!!!! LISTEN TO HIM!!!!!!!!!!! Who is one of the best songwriters? Otep Shamaya. Painting or drawing? I strongly prefer drawing. Painting that shows brushstrokes or painting that looks like a photograph? The latter. The former can be quite stylistic, though. First thing you wash in the shower? My hair, but if you mean my actual body, my chest. Brown or white egg? I don't even know the flavor difference. Favorite time of year? October-December. Do you own a gun? I legally can't due to a suicidal history. Have you ever been in a castle? Excluding the Disney World castle, no. Are you a clingy person when it comes to relationships? I honestly am. Have you ever been bitten so hard that there teeth marks were there after? I mean, I've had hickeys before. Would you ever date a disabled person? (Be honest) Yes. If you found a baby randomly by itself what would you do? Call the cops and stay with it until they arrived. What is the most personal question you have ever been asked? I'd rather not repeat it. When was the last time you wished time would move faster? Literally every waking moment of my life. It's so sad, thinking about it. I'm just rushing my life away. Are there any owls in your room (as decor, of course)? No. If you’re not straight, who was the first person you came out to? Sara. Do you enjoy hearing birds chirp? I do. Have you ever hiked a mountain? No. Where did you meet your first crush? School. Who is your favorite little girl? My sweetheart niece. What is your favorite song by the last band you listened to? Oh boy, don't make me pick. Does your best friend have kids? No; she doesn't want any, either. Where did you go the last time you drove for longer than an hour? The beach, I think. If you were pregnant, would you want a boy or a girl? Hypothetically, a girl. How often do you get fountain drinks from a gas station? Rarely, but every now and again. Who is your favorite character in your favorite movie? Mufasa. What junk food can you never pass up? Donuts came to mind first. But I think that's because I'm craving donuts, haha. Have you ever had a UTI? Yeah, multiple. I don't drink nearly enough water. I've had one so bad my kidneys hurt like a bitch. What's the last color you dyed your hair? Red.

[singeramg]

Midnight: Chapter 15

Pairing: Clark Kent/ Metahuman! Black! OFC!

Rating: E or M, NC-17 whatever just not for under 18

Warnings: Smut! ( Finally what I promised right?) 

A/n: Okay as as mentioned above this chapter does contain smut, if its not your thing skip to the end. I give a brief summary in my ending author’s note. Please don’t blow me up talking about you weren’t warned.

Catch up HERE! 

Midnight: Chapter 15

*Flashback*

  “Come on Clark you gotta tighten up my dude. This shit is not cute.”

I was standing in the bedroom to his room at his mother's house, in jeans, yellow t-shirt 70′s writing of the words BOSS, across the chest, my silver hoop earrings and freshly applied cherry carmex. Mrs. Martha had called to to come drag Clark from his self imposed shut down, so instead of a quick mall trip by my lonesome, I was here.  He and Lois broke up two weeks ago and he went from optimistic to wanting to follow her to the assignment she picked up overseas (and I told him that might be a bad idea if Superman got a rep for stalking women) he was now in the depression stage. Martha has enough of him not coming out of his room (he also couldn’t go back to the apartment he shared with Lois.) and requests for chocolate and junk food.

Apparently I was the big guns, and I had no clue how bad it was until just now standing in the doorway to the room. It literally had enough empty bottles to become a recycling plant. He was giving me teenage boy vibes and this was a grown ass man.

The part of me that wanted Clark for myself was kind of happy that he and Lois weren’t together but a bigger part of me was crushed for my best friend. I knew how much he loved her, how he planned on proposing to her next month on their anniversary. I could feel how upset he was and I wanted him to feel better. 

 “Gia what are you doing here?”

 “I came to figure out why my best friend has been dodging my phone calls for two days the. I find out he is back at home with his mother and is doing his best to become part of the furniture.”

  “I’m sick Gia.”

I stare at him pointedly. 

  “Kiss my ass your sick....That would work if you were human Clark. You can’t catch a goddamn virus. Now if you had told me a stomach ache I might have believed you. Get your lying ass up dude!”

I walked into the room, and sat at the foot of his bed. He had the covers pulled over his face. He had reached the grief stage and it was not good. I started pulling on the covers trying to inch it down and it worked for the whole of two seconds before he put a stop to that. 

  “Gia I just want to be left alone.”

 I raise an eyebrow and look around in the chaos.

  “If this room is any indication to go by you cannot be trusted to be left to your own devices.”

“Giaaaaa.” He groans out and I stifle a giggle, because I know he is in pain but the whine he did was kinda hilarious.

“Kaaaal.”

I copy his tone and then he sighs and pulls the cover tighter. It was my turn to sigh. I kick off my shoes, and walk over to the opposite side of the bed that Clark was laying on.

I focus all my energy into my hand and yank at his cover, having just enough force to pull it away, however I don’t yank it completely off of him, choosing to slide in next to him.

Clark’s big blue eyes look about as sad as I had ever seen him and his hair looked slightly overgrown and he was growing a beard, only clothed in a pair of shorts. Laying down next to him, I  reached up to his face, because the face of the strongest man in the world did not look like the strongest. 

 “Clark you have got to come face the world sometime.”

 “Does it have to be today? The world is probably the reason she left. I was so busy saving it that I bet she didn’t want to stay around.”

 “Yes boo it has to be today. You can’t sit in here day after day, it won’t make her come back. I’m not saying it isn’t hard to get over something like this but the first step is to try.”

“What if I don’t want to try?”

 “Well I guess we could lay here all day? I mean I may or may not start doing my Britney Spears impressions, then maybe I’ll move on to Miley Cyrus, because I know just how much you love that Party in the USA song, then maybe a little “Girl on Fire” by Alicia Keys....”

He doesn’t move

“ Ooh baby, baby, ohh Baby baby” 

 “Okay okay. I’ll get up just please no singing.”

I start laughing as Clark flips the covers back, and gets up. I knew he absolutely could not stand those songs and/or artists. I couldn’t help but look him over, his body just as fit as ever, slightly jealous that he could spend multiple days eating and drinking nothing but crap and still look like you could grate cheese on his abs. 

-“Stop it Gia.”- I told myself because I knew I couldn’t go down that road of thinking.

   “So now that you got me out of bed what do you want me to do.”

-‘Get back in.-’ Says my inner-thoughts. Outwardly I say

 “I think you need a day out. Get dressed Kent. I’ll wait for you downstairs.”

I pull myself from his bed and start walking, slightly tripping over something on the floor.

“Oh and you need to clean up this mess before we leave, Ms. Martha is not about to chew me out for your mess. No sir.”

“M’am yes M’am.” He says with a look that didn’t scream America Golden boy, but something that was up to no good. 

He says cheekily and half ass salutes in my direction. I toss up my middle finger in his direction and start singing, ‘She’s just a girl, but she’s on fire...’, much to his annoyance,  and close the door to his room on the way out, knowing he can hear me all the way down the stairs and even is whisper, which annoys him even worse...

*Later that night*

 “Clark you are such a cockblocker!”  

We were standing near the exit outside of a bar in Metropolis. We had been there about an hour and a half, Clark had a couple of beers while I sipped on a drink. I left him at the table to get us another round and some shots when a good looking guy walked over to me. He was tall, fit and looked like he kept himself together with a neat fade all waved out and a swagger about himself. Also his emotions were quite even keeled. Which was nice and rare for a change of guys coming up to radiating all the emotions of someone only looking to bone. He introduced himself as Terrance, and I gave him my name. We were talking for all of 10 minutes when Clark walked over to where we were standing, and I had just finished laughing at something Terrance had said, Clark puts his hand on my lower back and says

  “Gia darling I’ve been looking for you. Did you get the drinks? Oh who is your friend?”

I glared at him and then said “This is Terrence, Terrence this is my friend Clark.”

Clark shakes his hand but I can tell he puts just a little too much force behind it because the guy winces ever so slightly and Clark emotions go from protective, jealous to pleased.

I fight the urge to roll my eyes and instead look at Terrence.

  “It was cool to meet you both, I’ve got to get back to my friends.”

He was scurrying away before I could even say goodbye. It was then that I dragged Clark outside.

  “What do you mean Gia?”

  “Don’t play dumb with me Alien boy.” I say the last part in a whisper and poke him in his chest.

  “I didn’t do anything.”

 “So you are going to act like you didn’t just almost break ole’ boys hand in there?”

At this he laughs slightly, but it was at least more of a genuine laugh than I had gotten from him in a few weeks.

  “I wasn’t going to break it. I just wanted to see how he held up. If he even wants the potential to be in your life he’s got to pass muster.”

  “Your muster. He passed mine just fine.”

  “You would have chewed him up and spit him back out Gia. Besides he wasn’t worthy I mean he didn’t even have his pants pulled up all the way.”

 “I told you if it’s done right is called swagger. Anyway. Like I said you are a cockblocker.”

 “Sure, you will be thanking me later from saving you from a bad decision.”

I did some kind of cross between a growl and groan and turned away starting to go back inside realizing Clark wasn’t going to get it. He stops me by gently grabbing my arm.

  “Gia wait.”

He pulls me backward to him again, I end squarely folded into his arms, with his front pressed to my back, face in the curls I left down for the night. I ignore how good this feels, the smell of him, the strength corded through his arms as he holds me tightly.

  “I am sorry Gia. I guess I just don’t want you to leave me. Tonight was supposed to be about the two of hanging out, helping me get over a heartbreak. I just didn’t want my best friend to leave me to drink alone.”

He says next to my ear and I fight off a shutter. I respond by taking a deep breath and saying.

  “I wasn’t going to leave you Clark, what kind of best friend would I be if I let you drink alone?”

I did my best to be mad, but with the way he wrapped his arms around me, the small yet sweet words he used, I was putty. He didn’t have to know how turned on I got by the sound of his voice and honestly I didn’t want to figure out why my heart was racing. If I stayed like this any longer he would figure out it wasn’t from anger.

So I pulled away from him and turned back faux mad and said

  “Come on Kent bring your ass, next round is on you...”

 One hour later:

We walked into my apartment, glad that I hadn’t left it a mess before heading over to see Clark. He trailed behind me, holding the box of cookies from the late night cookie place not far from my house. 

  “I still can’t believe we stopped for cookies at 12 in the morning.”

 “Come on Clark you know there is nothing better than a warm cookie late at night. How many times have you snuck one of your mom’s cookies at night when she was sleeping.”

He ponders

  “Touché. I didn’t even know that place existed.”

  “Yes, it’s fairly new but still awesome. My coworker told me about it and I went one night.”

I didn’t tell him my first time going was the night he showed me the ring he got for Lois and I ate way too many cookies and some vanilla ice cream then had a pity party I threw for myself.

He shakes off his jacket and I cut on a lamp in the living room. He goes over to my couch and plops down, carefully as not to break it. He opens the box of treats and starts to eat one. One of the types I picked out, even though he didn’t ask for that one when specifically asked.

I came back with bottles of water from my kitchen to find the travesty in my living room.

  “Oh hell naw! You are seriously about to get put the fuck out dude! I know you are not eating my peanut butter chocolate chip cookie.”

“There’s like 3 in here.” He shrugs not giving a care in the world and looking down at his phone.

“Yep and all three were mine Kal-El. Now I’ve got to fight you...”

At this he looks up and notices I have red energy balled up on my fingertips. He has half of the cookie left and offers it to me sheepishly, I almost knock it out his hand but that would be too much of a waste so I grab it and eat the rest and wave my hand at the tv.

  “It is so easy to forget you have powers Gia. That you are like me in some ways, but then you do little things like cut a tv on with a wave of your hand or try to kill me and I remember.”

  “I’ve been trying to tamper my use but honestly I just don’t want to look for the remote.”

  “Good reason. Now since I’m not ready to go home yet and you promised me a movie. What’s on?”

I flicked through Netflix, choosing to cast some action flick I’d been meaning to watch, knowing that anything sappy would just make Clark sad again. I put my feet on the coffee table in front of me, relaxing into the cushions finally. Honestly I wanted to put on pajamas but currently they all consisted of Clark’s shirts and short-shorts (if I even wore those) it wouldn’t be appropriate to wear around him, nor did I want him to take them back. So I stayed in my clothes and Clark had come out of his shoes, socks and the glasses he didn’t need. In a surprise move however instead of sitting straight up on his end of the couch, he lays down, head in my lap. 

Most of the time it was Lois he laid on like this or I fell asleep on his shoulder on accident, never fully intentional. I didn't jump up, instead my hands flew up to his hair and pushed it back. He emits relaxed energy and settles further in my lap. I briefly wondered how long had it been since he allowed himself to be cared for? 

We watched the movie and I polished off two cookies and we were about halfway through when an intimate scene came on in the film. My heart rate picks up slightly as the faces on scene blur slightly and I let my mind wonder to what it would be like if that was me and Clark. 

  “You know I can hear your heartbeat right?”

I push at his head playfully and he sits up, but he is much closer than before because of how  he had moved to put his head in my lap. He is smiling one of those megawatt smiles and I Want to punch him kinda but I also want to kiss him. The thought only arouses me further and I want to disappear into the couch.

  “It’s a perfectly natural reaction to the movie.”

 “Sure, this isn’t because you find Sebastian Stan attractive or anything. Sure.”

He takes a large slip of his water, smug.

  “Hey I’ve got to take my kicks where I can get them. Since someone that shall remain nameless kept scaring the guys away from me all night.”

 “All of them were looking at you like a piece of meat.”

“ Did you ever think that I wanted them too.  I mean come on, a girl has her needs.”

 “Yes, but that doesn’t mean you have to sleep with some guy you barely know because he shows you some attention.”

I look at him hurt. He had no clue I was still a virgin but that didn’t give him the right to imply I was whoring myself out to any and everyone. Even if I did he still had no right to judge me.

 “Do you really think that low of me Clark? That I sleep with everyone?”

He immediately radiates guilt and regret.

  “No I didn’t say that.”

 “You implied it. I..I think I’m going to head to bed. You can let yourself out now Kal.”

I say and realize maybe that was one of the reasons he could never see me the way I saw him. This whole time he thought I was a hoe. I get up from my position on the couch, and as my face and eyes burn from embarrassment and sadness I walk to my room, but Clark is faster, stopping in front of me to keep me from the entrance to my bedroom.

  “Clark move.”

I say, moving very quickly to the anger stage.

  “Gia wait. Please I’m sorry. I swear I wasn’t thinking of you like that. It was bad wording...”

  “If it came out that easy then you were already thinking it.”

   “I wasn’t! Honest!”

I roll my eyes and focus my energy into my hand again, having practiced just enough strength to move Clark even if he wasn’t willing. I was proud of myself when he actually moved and I had enough time to get into my room, close and lock the door.

  “Fucking Jackass.” I whisper to the empty room.

 I don’t wait to hear the door close, settling on a hot shower to get all the grime and dirt off of me from sitting in a smoky , sweaty bar half the night. I chastised myself the entire time I was in the shower looking back on all the times we laughed together, me possibly making a sex related joke or dirty throw away comment and realizing he had been thinking that of me the entire time. I grabbed an old shirt and shorts for bed, glad that bras were not required for being in your own home. I cut off the light to en-suite bathroom and jumped nearly a foot finding Clark sitting in my accent chair next to the now open window.

  “Goddamnit  Kal-El you scared the shit out of me. How did you get in here?”

   “You should really keep your windows locked, I mean there are so many weird folks out here that could want to hurt you. Trust me I hear most of them.”

  “Well I can deal with most creepers just like I thought I had dealt with the one standing in my room right now.”

I say, waving my hand toward the lamp next to my bed that comes on to illuminate his face. I can feel that he’s sorry and then desire comes right behind the sorry emotions.

  “Are you wearing my shirt?”

Clark asks me suddenly, with his head turned slightly, almost in confusion and I take note as I looked down, that it was one of his royals shirts and it fell about mid-thigh, which regrettably hid my shorts.

  “I may or may not have borrowed it a while ago, but anyway that is off topic. Why are you still here?”

He comes from the other side of my bed rather quickly, but his gait is not relaxed, it is more of a proud quickstep. I called it his ‘determination’ look, and now I was nervous. Was he mad for me borrowing...stealing the shirt? His emotions didn’t read mad however. In fact they were the exact opposite, the intensity of them made me rub my thighs together slightly.

 “I was here to make you listen to my apology because you are being stubborn again and you know exactly how much I hate you being mad at me so I was going to volunteer servitude and grovel shamelessly but now I am not so sure.”

I could feel the tension in the room and I was sure I was just making it awkward for myself. So I crossed the room, away from him, and headed to my dresser, going to a drawer where I kept other nightwear that didn’t belong to Clark. I didn’t have many options but I certainly didn’t want to look at him. I bent down to get a new shirt from the drawer, quickly skipping over the other 6 shirts that belonged to him. 

 “So what aren’t you sure about Clark? I don’t give apologies for stealing a comfy shirt. Like you want it back or something? I mean at least let me toss it in the wash first.”

Grabbing a purple tank top that I hardly wore, I stood back up, jumping at the slight of Clark directly behind me in the mirror.

 “Oh I think I want it back but not after you’ve washed it.”

I haven’t turned around, choosing to stare at him from the mirror. Our eyes are locked and my face feels warm again, I fiddle with the shirt in my hand as lust begins to roll off of Clark in waves. In direct reaction to both of our emotions  swirling around I feel myself grow wet.

  “You know I’ve been looking for this shirt all over.”

 Clark steps close enough that I feel the warmth he radiates on my back. He doesn’t break eye contact as he pulls me backwards, I gasp feeling his hardness poke me in my back, seeing as he was quite a bit taller than me. He leans down his hand still on his waist, and sniffs, I let myself melt closer to him, so unsure of myself or what exactly was happening but unable to stop it. He pulls away from my hair and sniffs again.

  “You know Gia, one of the perks of being an ‘Alien boy’ as you like to call me, is that my sense of smell is fantastic. Do you have any clue what I smell now?”

I shake my head, too nervous to say the wrong thing and ruin whatever was happening.

  “I smell nothing but you. I can smell how aroused you are and it’s driving me crazy. Usually it’s faint, covered by your clothes and body washes, I can ignore it, chalk it up to you thinking of someone else. This time I can’t.”

  “Clark I am...”

  “Please don’t say you are sorry Gia. I don’t want you to be. What I want is my shirt back, now are you going to take it off or should I rip it? Although I have to say I’m partial to the first because I want more opportunities to take it off of you in the future.”

I feel my breath leave my lungs and it is almost embarrassing how quick I reach down to the hem of the shirt and pull it upwards. We were still standing in the mirror with my back to him, but with the shirt off and no bra, everything was on display. 

Clark delicately runs his fingers down my bare arms, then leans down and his lips meet my shoulders, kissing toward my neck where the junction of my shoulder and neck meet. His hands move to the front of my body, a light touch to my stomach and upwards. The mirror reflects as his large hands grip my breasts and squeeze. I moan out as my eyes drift shut, and my head falls back into his shoulder.   I grind myself backward against his hardness and he releases his own moan against my ear. His fingers from one hand drifts over a darkened nipple and then down space between my breasts, trailing down my stomach.

  “I could leave as you requested Gia, but I know you don’t want that do you?”

“No. Please stay.” I say and I free myself from his grasp as I turn around. He was still wearing the glasses so I pulled them off, sitting them on the dresser without breaking eye contact with his blue eyes that are blown so wide they are almost black. I reach up, and pull him down by the collar of his shirt, finally kissing him the way I had been dreaming about forever. 

He doesn’t break the kiss, only leans down to pick me up and my legs automatically wrap around his waist. He walks over to my bed, laying me down and following with him on top, my legs automatically opening to make space for him between them.  He stops kissing me to pull his shirt off revealing the glorious chest I had seen more times than I could count, but never in this context. I reach down to pull at my own shorts, but he stops me.

  “Allow me.”

I nod at him still nervous to speak much. I watch him pull my shorts and panties off and he stares at the glistening mound between my legs. 

  “So wet,  I bet you would leave a puddle if I picked you up.”

  “A..aaand what will you do about that Kent?”

I taunt him nervously, but it’s not as clear as it would be normally. The smirk he sends in my direction would have melted my panties if I had been wearing them, it screamed dirty. 

  “Guess I’ll have to clean it up won’t I?”

He says and leans down to kiss me again, my hands fly up into his curls, and meanwhile his hands drifts from my hips downwards to my thighs, his hands are warm and they skim up my thighs teasingly. His fingers don’t stop at my thighs and they finally land at my center., meanwhile he stops kissing my lips and his kisses begin to drift down my body. Warmth soon encloses one of my nipples, teasing me until it is taunt with his wet tongue, and one of his long digits enters me slowly. 

“Oh Clark” 

I groan and shift to look down. He takes it as encouragement and moves over to my other nipple and after a few more minutes he adds another finger, stretching me. My hips arch into his hand and as he moves them in and out I can feel myself shuttering around his fingers. I want more inside of me than just his fingers but I was still nervous about all of this. I had fooled around before, made it this far with exactly one guy before him but everything felt new with Clark. Before I had always been in control  of how I felt and what was being done, but I felt like I had none of that with Clark. He doesn’t stop kissing my chest, down my stomach, his lips meeting his fingers. 

This was new to me and as his lips made contact my hips lifted off the bed. My thighs try to drift shut, but of course Clark doesn’t allow that to happen, now using both hands to hold my thighs open, and my hands move back to his head again, desperately wanting to keep him there, with his tongue dancing around my clit.

 “Oh my god Clark!”

 “You taste so good Gia. I could stay down here and worship at the fountain of you forever.” 

My eyes roll shut again, his words making my juice flow even more, which he drinks up with a chuckle against me, the vibrations only driving me further into my pleasure. When he stops eating me out I glare at him like he’s gone mad, I had been so close. Did he not just say he wanted to drink from me forever? 

I glare at him, probably more like a pout I figured since he only laughs again. 

 “Such an attitude for someone who wants to cum.”

 “Clark, where are you going?”

I am afraid he’s finally changed his mind about all of this. 

 “I am not going anywhere beautiful. Everything I need is right here in this room.” He begins unbuckling his jeans, I watch as they slide down his thick thighs revealing his length which I immediately get intimidated by. He is long and thick and I wonder how that plans to fit inside of me? Clark’s eyes follow my eyes to where I had been staring.

 “Where is the famous Gia courage? Don’t think you can handle me?”

I can’t meet his eyes and look around the room. I was actually nervous about this moment. 

 “Actually...I don’t know if I can...I..”

Clark’s eyebrows furrow as he notices that I am no longer looking like I am going to pounce on him, but instead looks like I’m ready to bolt. Instead of climbing on top of me he lays next to me.

 “Gia why are you so nervous? You know I would never hurt you right?”

I nod and pull one hand across my chest covering myself, feeling more self conscious the longer he looks at me. I am staring at the wall opposite him.

 “I am just nervous that’s all. I’ve ne--- I have never done THIS before okay?”

He doesn’t say much for a moment and I just know he is about to get up and get dressed because somebody that looks like Clark doesn’t want someone inexperienced like me. Why would they? He had to notice all of the women at the bar staring him down all night. He had his pick and those women probably knew what to do and could give him a lot more pleasure than I could. 

Clark’s hand comes up to my face, fingers delicately touching, turning it so that I could look at him.

  “Gia. Are you saying you are a virgin?”

 “Fresh as the fallen snow on a mountain top. Kinda blows your “Gia is hoe” theory doesn’t it?”

I joke, trying to relieve the awkwardness of the room, but Clark doesn’t laugh with me.

 “ I’ve never thought that about you and please don’t deflect this... seriously. Are you sure about this? I mean that you want to do this with me?”

I nod. My mouth was too dry to speak, but Clark wasn’t letting that slide.

 “I need words from you Gia.”

The command is simple and direct but a turn on nonetheless. I don’t let it show outwardly however. 

 “Yes Clark. I’m sure. I trust you with this part of me.”

He searched my eyes for a lie, but I knew he wouldn’t find any. His demeanor changes as he kisses me, and his fingers find my opening again. He spends more time opening me up, and he swallows almost every gasp and moan from my lips, then drops back down creating a suction with his lips around my clit that send me soaring.I begin to cum around the fingers tapping that spot inside of me that make me writhe about on the bed. 

Once I come down from the high of my orgasm, I find him staring at me again, if I could I’d blush over the intensity of his gaze. 

  “You are breathtaking Gia.”

He turns and grabs his wallet from the jeans that had been unceremoniously dropped to the floor, producing a condom from inside. I can’t watch him put it on, and I know he can hear how fast my heart is racing again. Clark glides over my body and my legs open wider to make space for him again.

 “I promise I will never intentionally hurt you, but this may hurt slightly based off of what I’ve been told love.”

I brace my hands on his strong shoulders.

 “ It’s okay. Like I said I trust you.”

I feel his length slide in between my folds gathering the wetness there, before slowly guiding  himself inside of my welcoming body.  At least I thought it was welcoming, it felt like I was trying to push him out, and it felt like forever before he came to a stop. He stares at me and kisses me again, full engagement of his lips and tongue as he pushes forward, which makes me break the kiss to gasp into his mouth and whimper through the pain. I don’t even realize my face is wet until Clark wipes my face with the hand that is not holding him upwards. 

  “Breathe please Gia baby.”

I feel my chest rattle as I settle into the pain. Clark is whispering sweet nothings in my ear, and as the pain abates I cue him to move.

He moves out again slowly and as he sets a pace, the pain drifts into pleasure and my nails can’t dig into his back, as his skin doesn’t allow it, so they glide across his back. His hands glide down my body touching every part he could find.

 “Ugh Clark Faster.” 

The overwhelming sensation builds and I flutter around the hard flesh as it moves in and out of me. Clark is definitely holding back and I can tell as he thrusts me through my orgasm. The second one of the night for me and none for him. I start to feel that maybe this is a penance for him, maybe it me, or maybe even a mistake to him. His desire hadn’t gone away, as he was still hard inside of me.

 “Clark, is there a reason you haven’t… you know.”

His face is hovering above mine, his smile is wide following my question. I feel embarrassed considering I couldn’t even use the right words, despite him being inside of me at the current moment.

 “I’ve already asked you to use your words Gia.”

He pushes forward suddenly and I make some cross between as gasp and moan.

“ Fuck.”

“ Well that's a word. A dirty word, but word nonetheless.I’ll give you what you want.” 

He teases me.

 “I didn’t think anything else expressed that properly.” 

 “No? I think I can get a few more words out of you tonight. Then again as long as my name is one of them you can say whatever you want baby.”

His hands slide up the back of my thighs, ending behind my knees. He pulls them up and thrust downwards, deeply into me. My arms lock behind his neck and he obliges me to pull him down into a kiss. He thrusts harder and faster, his lips swallowing my groans and cries as we both hear how wet he is inside of me. He was so deep inside of me and I relished in the groans into my ears. 

I gave completely into the feelings of the moment, feeling Clark inside of me transcending the moment. As I flutter around him again, and he moves us higher and faster, I realize that us ...like this was what I had been waiting on…

*End flashback*

That night had been one of magic, at least at the time. Clark had taken his time and thoroughly taken me apart, and put me back together. Despite my later ramblings I never regretted that it had been him, and not just because of our son. I haven’t asked Clark if the condom broke and if it did he never told me.  I never regretted it because at the time it had been everything I didn’t know I needed and I seriously doubted it would have been that good with anyone else. 

The drive back to the manor was long but it gave me time to think. I needed to think about what I could say to Clark. How do you admit to someone that you’ve loved them like forever? One could guess you would just say it, but I didn’t know it would be that simple. I was about halfway home when a shadowy figure appeared in the middle of the road. It causes me to slam my breaks and I find myself spinning in a circle, then I was rolling, where it came to rest against a tree.

I cough roughly looking around for my phone and I am grateful that I was wearing a seat belt. I can feel that I am in extreme pain, blood dripping from my face, but with the smell of gasoline in the air. I can’t stay in this car or I will die. I use heat energy to create a blade to cut my seat belt since it jammed from the impact. I crawl myself from the driver's seat, ignoring the searing in my hands as the broken glass digs into them.   

 “Fuck.”

I say, noting that my ankle feels like it’s on fire again indicating some sort of injury. Coughing I try to see my way to the road for help as the car begins to smoke. My heart clenches as the shadowy figure walks toward me with nothing but hatred and determination on its heart.

I try to scramble away and try to toss a hasty shield but I’m too weak to manage it. 

The figure grows closer and closer, it laughs. Surprising me by being light and feminine.

It comes close enough as the car, that I had moved away from explodes. It pulls off the hood to reveal a familiar face.

 “Waa...Tracy?”

 “Long Time no see Gia. It’s time to come home.”

And with that she punches me in the face, and everything fades to black...

A/n: Boom.

No but really I truthfully need feedback on this one, because I like reading smut, but hate writing it. Had to get that Superababy here somehow huh? 

SUMMARY: Flashback of the night Kalen was conceived! Gia is forced to crash her car and is taken by someone by the name of Tracy who is familiar to Gia.

As always thnk you for reading, commenting and reblogging! You all rock! The taglist is open! 

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@romyr4​ @bloodyinspiredfuck​ @p3nny4urth0ught5​