#a slight change in olis ways

[neiptune]

santa, boy, you're the worst

cw: 3k wc, female reader, suggestive if you squint, oliver aiku is the most infuriating idiot you know and this holiday season you unfortunately discover he just so happens to also be maddeningly soft and generous at the community centre where he volunteers as santa for children in low-income families

“Here, this is where you can get changed”, Chiyo smiles kindly as she guides you into a small room filled with dusty boxes and christmas decorations, “thank you so much for doing this, we really needed some help this year”.

“Don’t mention it, I was really hoping you’d find a spot for me”, you take off your backpack and place it on an old table, “are you absolutely sure I’m going to be fine? Eiko said I just needed a costume but I’ve never-”

“Absolutely”, she vaguely gestures with one hand, “just follow Santa’s lead. He’s the one who’s good with kids”.

“I’ll just put this on, then”, you jut your bottom lip out, still not entirely convinced. She smiles again.

“I’ll leave you to it. We’ll be in the main hall!”.

They made a new elf costume just for you. Despite Eiko having a dreadful cold being a big bummer, you’re happy a few coincidences aligned to finally allow you to make something meaningful of the time you’d usually spend home, moping underneath a billion blankets.

There are no mirrors in the room, therefore you can only hope the costume looks good enough. You feel a bit ridiculous but, apparently, the hat is mandatory.

You leave your phone in your backpack and take out all the plastic bags filled with food instead: when you called her to inquire about what you could bring, Chiyo explained that they were all set with gifts but could’ve used some additions to the buffet. You brought all the alternatives for the kids whose gluten intolerance makes it hard to enjoy yummy snacks: carrot cake, peanut butter cookies, brownies, pizza, so many quiches. The previous day was spent cooking and baking but you wouldn’t have had it any other way.

The main hall is filled with colorful christmas decorations and a table so long, filled with so much food. Chiyo spots you right away and rushes to help you carry all the bags.

“I got this, you can go help Oliver”, she efficiently starts pulling out the containers and you’re flabbergasted for a second.

“Who?”

“Santa! They already started, go, go!”, she indicates the other end of the hall, where a guy in a Santa costume sits on a chair and all around him there’s a numerous group of children on the floor, fawning over him. A giant bag filled with what you can only guess are gifts, is placed at safe distance from pouty lips and grabby hands.

You make your way to them with a big smile, only slightly tense at the corners because you only know one guy with that name but what are the chances? He’s the most insufferable person you’ve ever met. A constant flirt with anything that moves, way too confident for his own good, so unfairly attractive and quick witted. What would he even be doing here, so close to the holidays? No, it must be another Oliver.

The way Santa spots you and instantly opens his arms, warm and welcoming, tells you otherwise. Fuck. You’re now close enough to recognize eyes no one in their right mind would be able to ever forget.

“If it isn’t my favorite helper!”, his tone is jovial and deep, a perfect representation of a jolly Santa. Suddenly, so many little heads whip around to look at you.

“Hello!”, you excitedly wave, “nice to meet you, everyone!”.

“She’s not the elf from last year”, as you position yourself right behind Oliver’s chair and next to the gifts you’ll later help him distribute, a little boy furrows his brows with a slight pout. Before you can come up with something to say, Santa ho-ho-hos his way into the conversation.

“That’s exactly right, Kenji. She’s my side piece”.

You choke on your own spit. A little girl politely raises her hand and Oliver grants her permission to ask her question.

“What’s a side piece, Oli?”.

Oh, god. This is so much worse than what you could’ve anticipated.

Once more, he doesn’t allow you to reply and the grin underneath his fake beard is nothing short of infuriating.

“It’s an elf who helps when my other helpers are too busy”.

“So she’s your side elf? Is she as nice as the other?”.

He shifts in his seat and you quietly sigh, still smiling awkwardly to the children curiously checking you out, prepared for another jab.

“She’s the best”, Oliver turns to look at you with a small wink, drinking in the surprise written all over your features, “why don’t you introduce yourself, side elf? My kids are great, they’re gonna love you”.

There’s really no time to ponder over the words, how sweet they sounded. He’s only been with them for what, a few hours, and is already so protective of them? If he’s faking it, he really is one hell of an actor.

You attention soon shifts to the little, curious faces staring back at you and the thought of Oliver is pushed to the back of your mind. You’re there to make the afternoon special for those kids and you’ll give it your all, whatever it takes.

He ends up being right, they are great. So intelligent, affectionate and welcoming. You introduce yourself and it only takes a few minutes for them to accept your presence completely. There’s an odd sense of familiarity in the way they climb onto Oliver’s lap one by one, sometimes wrap their arms around his neck. They play with his silver beard as they answer questions about what they asked for christmas and he leans down to whisper secrets to their ear from time to time, to either make them laugh or put them at ease.

Some of the younger children grow restless after a while and you patiently placate small quarrels, pick up kid after kid while they wait for their turn and jokingly twirl until they’re giggling against your shoulder, the fabric of your costume squeezed by little fingers.

“Does Oli really work for Santa?”, Riko asks. She’s been in your arms for a while now and you balance her better against your chest with one arm, your other hand wrapped around Kenji’s.

“He does. We’re both in direct contact with him”, you smile.

“Do you ever go to his workshop?”.

“Sometimes we have to, yeah. Santa always gives us so many cookies and big glasses filled with milk”.

Riko hums, enraptured.

“Will I smell as good as you if I eat so many cookies and drink big glasses of milk?”.

Surprised, you fail to come up with an answer for a moment. Then you melt into a chuckle.

“But you already smell sooo good, Riko! I could eat you!”, she squeals with a laugh when you take a fake bite out of her cheek and Oliver turns to look at you both as he helps another little girl down from his knees.

“Trying to eat my kids, are you?”, he grins.

“Just this one for now”, you jokingly wink and Riko giggles once more. Kenji reclaims your attention by pulling at your hand.

“You have to do the thing”.

Lips still curled into a smile, you tilt your head to the side.

“The thing?”.

He nods, solemn.

“Oh, right”, Oliver snaps his fingers, “the thing. Let my elf go, Riko, we have to perform”.

“We have to do what now?”, as you carefully let the little girl down, Kenji slips his hand from yours.

“Santa baby”, Oliver pats his knees and, horrified, you realize it’s an invitation for you, “it’s their favorite song. We did it last year too”.

You let out a nervous laugh.

“I’m not a great performer-”

“C’mon, side elf! You gotta do it!”, Riko’s palms press to the small of your back and, as she pushes you towards an awaiting lap, you don’t have the heart to ask her to stop calling you that.

Oliver welcomes you onto his knees like you belong there, one arm instantly wrapping around your waist and the other on your thighs. He’s warm, solid underneath you. It’s the closest you’ve ever been to him and you hate that you’re suddenly tempted to pull him even closer.

“No one told me about this”, you murmur between gritted teeth, tense smile causing a low chuckle to vibrate in his chest.   

“You’ll be fine”, the hand resting on your hip gives it a light, playful squeeze, “it’s acapella, by the way. Give it your all”.

You’re still smiling but fail to entirely conceal the glare as you try to position yourself better against him. Whether he does it istinctively or not, Oliver tightens his hold around your waist.

All chatter stops and, between hushed but still excited whispers coming from the group sitting at your feet, you start humming the familiar tune.

“Santa baby, just slip a sable under the tree for me. Been an awful good girl”, you briefly turn to the kids and give them an exaggerated wink that makes them laugh, “Santa baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight!”, you twirl part of Oliver’s fake beard around your pointer finger and when you meet his gaze, it’s surprising how serious it is. Time to get up, for your own sanity.

While he is supposed to keep up the act and match both your goofy tone and exaggerated motions to make the song playful and appropriate for children, he just keeps looking back at you with something unreadable in those dangerous eyes of his.

“Think of all the fun I missed!”, you dramatically drop to your knees and grab his arm, “think of all the fellas that I haven’t kissed!”, he finally seems to be shaken from his weird stupor and gasps loudly, looking back and forth between you and the giggling audience.

“Next year I could be just as good, if you check off my christmas list?”, you pout as Oliver shakes his head no, feigning disappointment. A few kids whine in fake sadness.

“I want a yacht and really that’s not a lot… right?”, you beg for their approval and it makes you chuckle that they erupt in agreeing cheers right away, “been an angel all year!”.

“Santa baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight”, with a deep sigh, you desperately squeeze his hand for a moment before getting up once more and continuing your performance around the audience with a skip in your step, hands behind your back as you sway and twirl around them.

“Please help me ask him, everyone!”, you implore, “so hurry down the chimney tonight”. They do join you in your plea, to which Oliver audibly slaps a hand to his forehead.

“Hurry down the chimney tonight”, you slowly approach his chair once more and the playfulness in his stare seems to vanish once more, fingers twitching on knees you don’t sit on, “hurry, tonight”, with a small smile, you twirl one last time and then bow deeply as the audience immediately starts clapping at the end of your performance.

“Oli, I want a yacht”, Riko pouts and her sister next to her giggles.

“I’ll see what I can do, sweetheart”, he smiles, then looks at you once more, “wanna help me give out this year’s gifts? Maybe we’ll find a yacht somewhere”.

He doesn’t even get to finish the question: in a matter of seconds, you’re both surrounded by exuberant little kids who are way too excited to find out what Santa’s helpers have in store for them this holiday season. The youngest of the group, six year old Tsumugi, raises her little arms and Oliver bends down to pick her up, balancing her on his leg.

You didn’t think the community centre would be able to put together enough funds to get… all those presents. There are so much. Enough for each child to get three or four. Clothes, audio book players, lego sets, tablets, dolls, water marbling kits, headphones, books. An entire, separate bag is filled with signed soccer uniforms. You discreetly glance at Oliver, busy helping Hiro unwrap his third present.

You remember very few details about the blue lock project, from which some of the current top players of the globe suddenly came out years ago. You know he was part of it at some point and of course you remember his past as captain of the former U-20 team. Oliver is still one of the best known soccer players in Japan and clearly he is friends with those guys. But the fact that he went out of his way to make sure he had all those uniforms for these kids, stirs something in your chest.

As you hand out the shirts, little squeals make you smile.

“Riko, this one’s from Nagi”, the little girl practically snatches it from your hand, “wait, don’t push, there’s one for each of you! Who asked for the Kaiser one?”.

“Oli, will you keep your promise next year?”, Tsumugi, still in his lap, rests her head on his shoulder as she hugs a new teddy bear to her chest. He hums, one hand rising to boop her nose.

“You have my word, sweet girl. I told Yoichi you wanted to meet him and he was so sad he couldn’t make it today. He promised he’ll come next time”.

“Look what he sent you”, with a grin, you hand her the shirt Isagi signed for her. The way her eyes light up makes you wish for Eiko to be sick once more, the following year.

It’s the evening when parents slowly start arriving to collect their kids and thank everyone for the organization. You and Chiyo welcome them by the door and offer warm cups of tea. Those who are not in a rush are more than welcome to eat something despite the buffet having been more or less devoured by now.

As soon as you’re alone with Chiyo once more, the last remaining parents shaking hands with Oliver as they say goodbye, you deflate in a chair. Your legs hurt, you didn’t eat anything and you feel so tired but also immensely rewarded.

“It was fun, wasn’t it?”, with a smile, Chiyo pushes a water bottle towards you.

“So fun. You were right, he’s good with kids. Remembered all their names and everything”.

She chuckles.

“Well, I’d hope so. He comes every year”.

You stare back.

“Every year?”.

“Yeah, since forever. And he always gets so many extra presents for them, never accepted a single yen back”.

You sip on your water, unable to come up with something to say. Oliver Aiku, the same unbearably smug idiot who’d pissed you off endlessly each time you had the unfortunate chance of meeting him thanks to your cousin Shuto, seemed so different today. Patient, caring, attentive, fun. So generous.

You watch as parents bow to him and he bows back, ruffles their kid’s hair, laughs when Tsugumi hugs his legs. This is not good, not good at all, judging by the way your heart fumbles in your chest as he meets your gaze from across the room.

The elf costume is shoved into your backpack but the drawings and notes some of the kids made for you are placed on the table right next to it as you put on your coat. You’ll keep them in your hand, against your chest and underneath the warm fabric if you must, in case it’s still snowing outside. You’d hate for anything to happen to such precious cargo.

“You know, Riko has a point”, the gravelly voice so close to your ear makes you jump, “you really do smell good”.

“Try taking a shower”, your intention is to turn around with a scowl but the second you do, your back is pressed to the table as he leans forward and rests his palms on the rough surface. The sharp inhale you take makes him smile.

“Nah, I think it’s really just you”.

You stare back for a moment, then clear your throat, trying your best to not appear intimidated.

“Who knew you were so good with kids. They love you”.

Oliver pulls back, leaving you enough space to put a safe distance between your bodies.

“Well, who knew you were such a great cook. How long did it take to make all that food?”.

Much to your irritation, a smile threatens to appear on your lips. He deflects when complimented? Fuck. Off.

Your mind traces back to how protective he was of them. My kids. It’s sickening, really.

“You didn’t eat anything all day”, the softer tone catches him off guard for just a second, “take some leftovers”.

Oliver hums, something flashing across his features so quickly you may have imagined it. Then, he starts unbuttoning the red velvet jacket he’s still in.

“Don’t be so thoughtful, it’ll make me hard”.

Astonished, you look at him.

“What are you doing?”

He discards the jacket with a grin, hat and fake beard already discarded before entering the changing room.

“You didn’t think I’d leave in this, right?”.

“You could’ve waited until I left the room”.

Oliver rubs his chin in exasperating, fake pensiveness.

“Yeah, I could’ve”, his signature smirk makes you want to punch him in his handsome face, “but there’s this girl I like. Maybe if I impress her, she’ll finally give me a chance”.

You chalk the heat rising to your cheeks up to the thermostat temperature being too high. When you murmur a confused, hasty goodbye and attempt to make your leave, drawings safely tucked underneath one arm, Oliver gently wraps a hand around your wrist.

“It’s snowing. Let me give you a ride”, the way his thumb tentatively grazes the sliver of skin underneath your sleeve makes you shudder. He does it again, intentional, serious eyes boring into yours to make sure he's not crossing a boundary. Your mouth feels dry.

“Wait for me?”, Oliver offers, gentle. There’s no trace of his previous teasing and you’re painfully aware of how long the silence is stretching for, a weird vibration to the moment laced in your aching hesitation.

Another beat passes before you relax under his touch.

“I’ll be outside”.

[daisyblog]

Kiss Me

Too Young Masterlist Summary: YN and Louis get cosy on a night-out.

Warning: smoking, alcohol, protected sex

Lottie had nagged YN for weeks to join her on her night out with Louis, Niall and some other mutual friends they all had. YN had tried to use every excuse but Lottie had an answer for each of them. 

Like brother like sister, YN thought! 

After her Mum had coaxed her around saying it was important that she was just YN sometimes and not just a Mum, she agreed. Gemma had offered to look after Arthur as she lived in London and knew YN wouldn’t want to be too far away from him. 

YN was hoping Harry would join them but he had flown out to America a few days prior to meet up with Jeff. 

Since YN and Harry’s conversation at Jay’s house a few weeks ago, YN had tried to be a little more open minded about her situation with Louis. Nothing had changed between the two but she was trying to let her walls down and not be so guarded around him. 

YN couldn’t help but think back to earlier in the evening, when they were both at Louis house getting ready. 

After having Arthur, YN was aware that her body had changed. She was never one to think too much about her appearance, but since that one comment, “Looks like you’re taking a little longer to lose the baby weight.”  from another mum in a baby class she took Arthur to, she felt like she was always conscious about how she looked. 

So when YN pulled up her jeans, she couldn’t help but notice the way they squeezed at her hips. 

Louis noticed YN’s sour expression when she walked into the living room. “You alright darlin'?”. 

“I just hate how I look…my jeans don’t fit and..and I just feel ugly!”. YN took a long breath after she got it all off her chest. "I don't know if I should come Lou.".

Louis wanted to tell her he thought she was beautiful. Her eyes were piercing and one of the first thing he noticed about her all those years ago. How he admires her petite body, because without it he wouldn't have his precious little boy.

He reluctantly walked closer to her, lifting her chin with his thumb and finger. "You're stubborn, strong willed , and a pain in my arse..but the word ugly does not describe you, love!".

There was only a slight gap between them now. If either of them moved an inch, their chests would be touching. Almost like they could both feel the atmosphere change, their eyes met. Louis' hand was now on YN's cheek, hiding the now blush that had appeared at the realisation of how close they were.

YN nervously gulped back her nerves when she saw Louis eyes flick down to her lips, only to move back to meet her eyes again. Time stood still as they both felt themselves being pulled closer. But the sound of Louis' phone ringing made them both jump apart, YN busied herself with filling up her small clutch bag and Louis reached for his pocket.

"It's Lottie!". Louis internally thanked his sister for ruining his moment...good timing Lotts!

---

The group had been at the club for just over an hour when Louis turned and noticed that YN was stood in the corner alone. He looked around to see Lottie and a few of the other girls dancing together. He excused himself from his conversation with Niall and Oli.

"Did the sun just come out? Or did you smile at me?". Louis knew what he was doing using the cheesy line. YN shook her head and rolled her eyes, as she let out a small giggle. "Ah I knew that would make you laugh!".

"You've been spending too much time with Harry, his cringey jokes are rubbing off on you.". YN spoke a bit louder over the music.

Louis wore his famous smirk on his face. "Ey not even Harold could have thought of that one.". He raised his eyebrows so his eyes wider. "Anyway why are yeh not dancin? You love to dance.".

YN only shrugged her shoulders as she watched Lottie spin in around, a drink in her hand as she enjoyed herself. "I don't think I've drunk enough for that yet.'.

"Well we're about to change that..c'mon love!". Louis reached for her hand and walked them back over to where Niall and Oli were stood at bar. "A round of vodka shots please!". He shouted over to the bartender.

---

YN had forgotten what it was like to go out and drink. She could feel her muscles loosen each time she took an extra sip of her drink or when one of the boys gave her another shot of vodka. She had found herself becoming closer to Louis, her hand either in his or his arm draped around her shoulder.

Niall had teased them a few times when he noticed their position. “Hey the last time you were both out drinking you had a baby nine months later…I hope you’ve brought protection this time Tommo!”.

YN only rolled her eyes at the teasing and cuddled further into Louis’ side. “Oh fuck off Horan!”. Louis playfully spat back, but noticing how close YN had gotten to him.

“C’mon I want to dance!”. YN slurred slightly, her words coming out slower than usual. She pulled at Louis hand as they pushed through the crowd to the dance floor.

Louis was taken back at YN’s sudden boost of confidence, as she moved her hips back into him to the rhythm of the club remix playing in the background. As YN began to let loose, Louis couldn’t help but lose control of himself and could feel the excitement that was being hidden by his jeans.

“I’m going for a smoke, do you wanna come?”. Louis spoke into YN’s ear, hoping she would go with him. When YN nodded, Louis pulled them out of the crowd and hurried towards the club door. The cool air hits their warm skin, as the breeze surrounds them.

Louis takes a cigarette out of the packet and hands it to YN, lighting it for her before doing the same with his own white stick that sits between his lips. YN takes a drag before taking it from her mouth blowing the smoke out which sat between her and Louis. He waved his hand to try and get rid of the smoke as he coughed.

“Fuck, you’re smoke got in my eye”. Louis rubbed his eye with his knuckle, noting how YN was full off giggles. “What’s so funny?”.

“I’ve got deja vu”. YN spoke, taking another drag as she held her cigarette between her fingers. “How did the conversation go again? Oh yeah your eyes are pretty”.

Louis wore a smirk. He knew the tension was thick between them but this time it was different, he didn’t want to cross a line now they had Arthur to think about. “You’re a fucking tease, you know that?”.

YN leaned against the wall after she discarded her cigarette. “Who said I’m teasing?”. She started directly into his eyes. “Kiss me!”.

Louis didn’t need to be told twice. He moved his body closer so YN was between him and the wall. His lips found hers like it was a habit. YN’s arms wrapped themselves around his neck, whilst Louis pulled at her hips desperate to feel her close.

”Fuck” Louis mumbled against her lips, their mouths moving together as one. “I’ve missed you”.

“How about we go back to yours and you can show me how much you’ve missed me?”. YN spoke against his lips.

---

Together they moved as one through the front door of Louis house. Moans, grunts and drunken giggles could be heard as they messily moved through the house before landing on Louis bed.

Clothes were blindly removed and thrown to the side, their lips desperately looking for eachother whilst their hands were wandering bare skin.

“You’re so fucking beautiful.” Louis whispered as his lips left soft pecks down her neck. Goosebumps covers YN’s skin as an affect.

Silence surrounds them as Louis prepares to line himself up but YN quickly stopped him. “I think you’re forgetting something pretty boy!”.

“I thought we made beautiful babies though”. Louis teased as he reached over to the night stand to grab the foil packet, and rolling the condom down his length.

“We do but that’s for future us”. YN spoke as Louis gently pushed himself inside of her, both releasing a moan of pleasure from the action.

“Fuck me, you feel so good!”. Louis grunted as he moved in and out with a steady pace.

YN was trying to hold back her moans but failed. “Uh…uh…fuck…go faster!”.

The room was filled with grunts, moans and the sounds of pleasure as they moved around as one. After some time of swapping positions and pleasuring the other, they both came undone with relief leaving their mouths.

Later on they were both cuddled together, legs tangled in between the sheets. “I’ve been meaning to ask you something”. Louis spoke gently, not wanting to disturb the calmness.

“Yeah?”. YN continued to draw invisible patterns on his bare chest, as she soaked up the moment between them.

“I want us to be a family…like a proper family…and I want us to be together…you know like give things a go!”. Louis rambled, not naming much sense.

“Are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” YN teased, as she sat up slightly to face him.

“Oi don’t be fucking cheeky!”. Louis couldn’t help but smile as he tickled her hip causing her to giggle. “But yes I’m asking you to be my girlfriend”.

YN leaned in so their faces were almost touching, lips close enough they could feel each other breathe. “I thought you’d never ask!”. Their lips met for the umpteenth time that evening.

Taglist:@jillsvalentinex @itsmytimetoodream @peterholland04 @youcan-nolonger-run @chronicallybubbly

[mcytscienceside]

what kind of infection are these guys facing? Is it a classic zombie virus or something else entirely? Is there anyone so far who is completely gone?

Love the art, by the way

Ty so much for the question!! :D Happy to see people interested in this au!! @gearstorm actually has written up a whole document describing the infection from Pix's pov! I'll put the first part here but if anyone wants more information surrounding infection levels and the strange glitch itself it will be under the read more! --- Glitch Infection Journal Section 2; The glitch By Pixlriffs

Entry #1 stages, symptoms and tracking

It would be good to keep written documentation of what we refer to by many names, but mostly the glitch infection. Because we don't know where it came from, or why, or even how it works beyond observation. 

This ‘infection’ is a glitch that gets into the very core of a player's being and changes their mental and emotional state, only affecting the physical appearance slightly in late stages. We initially thought that those without symptoms were glitch free but using my watcher powers, I've taught myself and Mumbo how to see the infectious code separate from the player code it infects. And now we know that we all have it, but early stages are asymptomatic, treatable but not curable yet, and thankfully not yet contagious. Unfortunately it is also imperceivable without looking directly at the player's code, which is why it's so important that I maintain constant watch of the others with my powers.

I have made a scale to refer to it with. Who had it first and how they got it to the point of being contagious is unknown as most of the server had it by the time we were aware of it. 

A scale of 1-10, here is what each number means.

0, no one but Hermes is completely clean of the virus. He was lucky enough to not go near anyone who was infected to the point of being contagious when this started and has been kept safe since.

1-2, the infection is treatable. It will never go down to 0 unless we find a cure, but it will only go up when around those at 4 or higher and go down with isolation from those whom are contagious. Though it seems other factors affect this. I have no definitive proof, but the current hypothesis towards it is your physical health has something to do with it. Supporting this, is I have been sitting at 2 for some time now without going down but I am also recovering from severe injuries. Meanwhile Joel is suffering in the mental health department but his levels go from 1.5 to 1 at the same rate as Oli who is better off then both of us. 

3-3.5, you have gone past the point of natural recovery. I have yet the chance to observe if 2.5 is too far but do not wish to test it. This is when you'd first notice something is wrong, Shelby having been able to tell without my Sight, but it is subtle according to her. Like a slight itch or pinching in your chest. Easily missable if you weren't paying attention for it. You are unlikely to experience changes to personality at this stage and are not contagious. But your infection will now increase no matter what you do. Proximity to those who are contagious affecting the speed of your own level of infection at this stage remains untested.

4-5, early stages of the infection taking noticeable effect. You are now contagious. Your sanity decreases quickly and significantly, personality changes leading to inability to express empathy and masochistic behavior, and slips of memory occur frequently. As well as violent urges but these seem slightly less common depending on will power. Not being aware you are infected greatly increases vulnerability to these urges.

6-7, Most infected at this stage are unable to recognize bonds and connections to other players, exceptions occurring when the connection was built during early stages of sanity lost in which case they seem to become dependent on each other willing to do anything to protect what little they now hold dear. Players act in cruel and violent ways they never would have done before they got infected, such as building deadly traps and attacking one another on sight. Screaming matches, psychological manipulation, and violent attempts to protect their perceived territory are common.

8-9, all previously mentioned behaviors become even worse. Conversation only occurs when the infected is trying to manipulate you or harm you emotionally or mentally. Depending on what behaviors they have developed as forms of violence, they are likely to try to capture you either for crossing territory, being perceived as a threat, or in worst cases simply for being seen. And will not hesitate to torture you how they see fit when they have you. Their memories seem to become selective at this point, falling to madness and only knowing lust for violence and torment.

10, the only one so far I've seen at 10 is Jimmy. But opposite to Joel's Lore powers, Jimmy is connected to the powers of Law. The order of the world. Truthfully I do not know the extent of his power, but what I do know is the server is sick. Joel tells me Jimmy is likely reflecting the world itself rather than being infected the same way the others are. Fortunately, the world itself does not seem to count as being near contagious stage infection. Unfortunately, Jimmy himself is still contagious. Learned the hard way when we lost Shelby. He acts the most cruel of all the infected server members. I hope that when we find a cure, he doesn't remember what he's done. I don't blame him for what happened and don't want to see him blame himself.

[sassydjbob]

Tennessee Orange - Part one

Lando's family owns a ranch in Tennessee and Martin is an aspiring singer/songwriter who wants to save money and needs a change of scenery.

Inspired by Cowboy Lando during the Austin GP week.

Songs I used as inspiration: You look like you love me - Ella Langley feat. Riley Green Love you for a long time - Maggie Rogers LEVII'S JEANS - Beyoncé feat. Post Malone All to myself - Dan + Shay

ao3: SassyDjBob

note: English is not my first language. I am not from Tennessee and I don't live on a ranch, so it's not meant to be realistic and just used for a work of fiction. Credits to the owners and songwriters of the song lyrics used in the fic.

YOU LOOK LIKE YOU LOVE ME

Mornings weren’t Lando’s favorite time of the day, if someone asked him, he would probably say it’s his least favorite time of the day. He valued his sleep, a lot. So the idea of having to wake up early almost every day for the next few months did not fill Lando with excitement. 

“Lando come on! He will arrive soon and I need you to pick him up from the train station in town!” were the first words Lando heard this summer morning and he groaned into his pillow. 

After refusing to leave his warm and comfortable bed for another two minutes he finally got up and ready for the day. When he entered the kitchen downstairs, he saw his parents having breakfast and sister having breakfast. 

“Why can’t Oli pick him up?” he asked while grabbing a toast and egg that his mom prepared for him. 

“Because Oli has his own family now. You know he is busy with Mila, I don’t want to bother him” Adam, his dad, replied while reading his daily newspaper. 

Lando rolls his eyes at that and scoffs “So I get stuck with these tasks now?”

Adam finally looks up from his newspaper to look at his son “Lando, don’t be like that. It won’t kill you to drive to the train station and pick up our new help for the summer. Please don’t make a big deal out of this.” he tells his son with a kind, but serious expression. 

“Who is this new guy anyways? I don’t know anything about him. Please don’t tell me it’s another one of these weirdos that play a harmonica every morning” Lando says with a slight whiny tone, not bearing the thought of being stuck with another Luke, like last years summer help, that woke him up every morning before sunrise to play his harmonica outside.

Adam laughs at his sons statement and shakes his head “His name is Martin. I think he is just a few years older than you. It will be nice to have someone close to your age here this summer, don’t you think so?”

“Yeah, maybe” Lando mumbles and thinks about the guy, Martin, a normal name. Would he get along with Martin? Will he be annoyed by him? He didn’t expect the guy to be close to his age, normally the summer helps were much older than him. Maybe he could befriend Martin and actually have a decent time during work this summer, the thought of that made him smile.

He suddenly realizes that he has no idea what Martin looks like “How am I meant to know who he is at the train station? And please don’t say I am meant to hold up a poster with his name on it, because there is no way in hell I will do that.”

Lando’s mom and sister, both called Cisca, chuckle at the thought of Lando holding up a sign like that waiting for Martin. “I told him you would wait at the bakery there, I’m sure it won’t be too crowded at this time” Adam tells him. 

“Ugh, he better show up on time. I won’t wait forever. If he doesn’t show up after 10 minutes I am driving back home.” Lando announces and leaves the kitchen. 

“Thank you!” his dad calls after him added by a “Be nice and polite!” from his mom.

-

The drive to the train station takes around 30 minutes and Lando jams to his favorite songs on full volume, like he always does when he drives his car. If there were two things in life he loved, among some other things, they were definitely driving cars, or cars in general, and music. He often just drives around with music blasting, to set his mind free and to relax.

The thirty minute drive went by quicker than expected and Lando finds himself at the train station, praying that he won’t stand around like an idiot waiting for someone that is late or, even worse, not showing up. After parking the car he walks to the bakery his dad told him to wait at, wondering if he should get himself a sweet treat. That bakery had really good croissants and now that he is thinking about them, he is craving one. 

Just when he decides to get one, his train of thought gets interrupted when he sees someone standing next to the entrance of the bakery. Lando feels his heart stop for a second when he looks at him. There was something about the guy that made Lando’s breath hitch, something that made him suddenly feel very warm, on this chill summer morning. 

He realizes that he stopped in the middle of the way when someone bumps into him and he curses under his breath. He was just about to continue walking to the bakery when it suddenly dawns on him why he is walking to that bakery, not to get a croissant, but to pick up the new help for the summer, Martin. When the realization hits him that that guy in front of the bakery could be Martin, he stops walking again. He suddenly panics, he doesn’t know why. The thought of that being Martin has him feeling nervous, but also excited.

His heartrate picks up again and his hands feel sweaty. How is he supposed to walk up to him now? Should he just say his name or wait for him to say something? What if that isn’t Martin and it’s just a random guy that he will never see again? Lando would be very disappointed if that wasn’t Martin. He suddenly feels extremely overwhelmed by the situation and doesn’t realize he is standing in the way, again, until someone bumps into him, again. This time though the automatic “sorry” doesn’t leave his lips, instead a loud and embarrassingly high pitched yelp does. 

At first he doesn’t even realize why he reacted like that until he suddenly feels something burning his skin and when he looks down at himself he can see hot coffee staining his left arm, the side of his shirt and jeans. He curses under his breath and looks to the woman who is now holding an empty cup of coffee “I am so sorry, I didn’t see you standing here” she says with an apologetic look on her face. 

Lando smiles weakly “Nah it’s okay I shouldn’t have stood there, it’s alright” he says with an awkward look, truly feeling stupid for getting so distracted. 

“Do you happen to have a tissue or something?” he asks and looks down at his arm and clothes that are soaked in coffee. 

“Let me check, I don’t know if I have any in my bag” the woman replies and starts looking around in her bag. 

He nods and waits, trying hard not to cringe at the feeling of the hot coffee now starting to dry onto his skin. 

“It seems I must have forgotten to pack any, I am so sorry” she apologizes. 

Lando was just about to reply that it’s fine when he gets interrupted “Here you can have these” a soft voice says. 

He looks to see where that voice is coming from when he sees the guy from the bakery standing next to him, holding tissues out to him. Lando’s heart stops, again, and he doesn’t know how long it takes him to process the guy’s words, but he knows it was too long because the guy holds his hand out closer to Lando, to offer again. 

“Oh, thank you” is all Lando manages to get out and grabs a tissue from the strangers hand. He slowly moves to wipe some of the, now almost completely dried, coffee off his arm and starts blushing when he feels the guy’s eyes on him. 

“I really have to leave to catch my train, again, I am so sorry about this” the woman says with a sorry look on her face. 

“It’s okay, have a good day!” Lando replies and waves goodbye to the woman. 

“Are you okay?” the stranger asks and looks at him with concern in his eyes. 

Lando stops waving and turns to look at him, to really look at him for the first time, up close. He can’t describe the feeling that washes over him. There is something about that guy, that just pulls him in, that is captivating. He realizes, he must be staring like an absolute creep and clears his throat before speaking. 

“Umm yeah, might suffer from severe fourth degree burns, but other than that I am fine” he manages to get out with an awkward chuckle. 

The stranger also chuckles and Lando notices how his eyes almost close and crinkle and the side, the sound is so heartful but soft and also silly, it’s like music to Lando’s ears. 

“I’m glad, that looks nasty. I hope the coffee won’t stain too much” the stranger says with a genuine and soft voice. 

“It’s okay. These aren’t my best clothes, so the loss wouldn’t be too bad” Lando smiles. 

The guy nods, looks around and then looks back to Lando “Do you happen to know if there is more than one bakery in this train station? I was meant to meet someone at a bakery, but I am not from here and have been waiting for quite a while, that I am now wondering if I got the wrong one” he says and scratches the back of his head while looking a bit confused and lost. 

Lando too mesmerized by the stranger’s face and voice, doesn’t immediately get what the guy is talking about “No there is only one. Wait a second! Are you Martin?” he asks and watches as the guy’s eyes widen.

“Yes! Are you Lando?” he asks with a wide smile on his face. 

Hearing his name coming from Martin’s lips, might be his favorite thing in the world right now and he wants to hear it again. 

“That would be me” Lando smiles back. 

Martin’s smile gets bigger if that’s even possible. “Nice! I am so glad I found you. I was getting a bit worried I got lost or that you wouldn’t show up” Martin laughs. 

“Did you have to wait long? I thought I was on time, my dad told me when to be here, maybe he messed up the times” Lando says with a worried look on his face, feeling bad for making Martin wait. 

“No, it’s okay. It wasn’t that long. I am glad we found each other. Thanks for picking me up” he says and all Lando can think of in the back of his mind is that he is also glad they found each other. 

They make their way to Lando’s car that’s parked outside and Lando feels almost giddy at the thought of Martin spending the entire summer with them. When they reach the car Lando turns to Martin to help him put his stuff in the back, when he notices a guitar case. 

“You play the guitar?” he asks curiously. 

“Yes! Been playing since I was a kid” Martin replies eagerly. 

“Oh sick! I always wanted to learn but never got the chance to” Lando sighs. 

“I could teach you. It’s not that difficult” Martin smiles at him and Lando feels excitement rushing through him at the thought of Martin teaching him to play the guitar. 

He nods eagerly “That would be mint! Thank you.”

After all of Martin’s stuff is loaded into the car they get in at the front and Lando starts the drive back home. He put his playlist from earlier back on but doesn’t turn the volume as high as if he was driving alone. 

“So… what brings you to a random ranch in Tennessee this summer?” he decides to ask Martin, curious to know why he is spending their summer with them. 

“I am trying so save up some money for my career in music and thought a change of scenery and nature would be nice” Martin replies while looking out the window to watch the scenery as they are leaving town. 

“Oh! So you don’t just play the guitar as a hobby? What kind of career are you set on?” Lando asks with curiosity, not expecting Martin to be a serious musician. 

“Singer/Songwriter, I guess. I write songs and come up with melodies all the time, mainly on the guitar, sometimes on the piano, but I obviously can’t take that one with me everywhere” Martin chuckles and drums his fingers against the side of the car, as if he already had a new melody in mind. Lando glances over briefly and feels amazed by Martin. 

“That’s so nice! Will we get to hear any of your stuff? Or are you gatekeeping that for a special time?” he asks. 

“I can play you some of my stuff. Back at home I did some shows or people’s weddings. I am happy about any audience” Martin smiles softly. 

Home, Lando realizes he has no idea where Martin’s home is “Where are you even from? I don’t think my dad mentioned” he asks. 

“I’m from New York City” Martin says casually. 

Lando almost slams the brakes, when he hears Martin say that and looks over at him with wide eyes “What?! You are from New York and want to spend your summer in freaking Tennessee?!” he says loudly. 

Martin chuckles at Lando’s outburst “Well technically me and my family from Amsterdam, but we moved to the States when I was little. And yes, I do want to spend my summer here in Tennessee” he smiles. 

“Wait wait wait, this is too much information at once. You’re dutch?” Lando asks, not being able to process everything Martin is telling him. 

“Yup” Martin says softly. 

“Okay but if you’re from New York City why the fuck would you spend your summer here?” Lando asks, honestly confused about what Martin wants here. 

Martin chuckles again, amused by Lando’s reactions “As I said, I wanted a change of scenery. New York can be a bit much and overwhelming at times. Don’t get me wrong, I love it there, but I’ve felt a desperate need to escape the big city and buildings to just be somewhere calm to clear my head. My family and I used to spend our summers on a ranch in Texas when I was younger and I remember these as my favorite summers. The freedom of not seeing a building, just nature and the horizon, feeling so free on a horse. I missed all of that” he explains softly.

Lando nods but stays silent for a short while thinking about Martin’s reasoning. He can’t relate to Martin at all. All his life Lando has wanted nothing more than to live in a big city, to see the world, so he can’t really understand that someone would willingly want to spend their summer on the countryside of Tennessee. 

“Can’t say I can understand, but everyone their own I guess” Lando says in a slightly teasing tone. 

“Have you ever been in New York?” Martin asks curiously. 

Lando lets out a laugh at that question but then sighs and shakes his head “Nope. Sadly not, it’s on my very long bucket list. I hope one day I can be there with my camera.” 

The sad and yearnful undertone is barely there but Marin catches it and looks at Lando with soft eyes “Camera? Are you into photography?” 

“Umm yeah. I am by far not a professional and don’t have the equipment for that either, but I love getting out and taking pics, capturing moments and spots others might ignore and walk past. One day I want to travel the world with my camera and capture every corner I can find” Lando says with yearning and hope in his voice, Martin smiles at that. 

“You should come visit me in New York one day, one of my best friends, is a photographer, I think you would like him” he offers Lando. 

“We haven’t known each other for an entire hour yet and you are already inviting me? What if I turn out to be a total weirdo or asshole? You can’t know if you will like me yet” Lando replies with a teasing look. 

Martin lets out a small laugh “Well then my first instinct and judgement would have to betray me, because I already like you and I don’t think that will change” he says seriously. 

Lando’s heart stops at Martin’s words and he looks over at him for a second too long, before looking back at the road and gripping the steering wheel a bit tighter than before. 

“I feel flattered, hopefully I don’t make you regret saying these words” he says, back to teasing Martin. 

“I hope so too” Martin replies and Lando smiles at him.

-

After a smooth ride to the Norris ranch and a warm welcome from the family, Lando shows Martin where he would stay for the next few weeks. The small cabin next to the main house is mainly used for the summer helps, no matter how many times Lando has begged his dad to let him move into the cabin. His brother recently moved into the bigger cabin, slightly further from the main house, with his wife and kids, while Lando was still stuck living in the main house with his parents and sisters. 

“So this is all yours for the summer. There is a bedroom, bathroom, living area and kitchen, though my mom will probably beg you to eat with us all the time anyways. Make yourself feel at home I guess” Lando says to Martin, who looks around with amazement. 

“I’ll have all of this to myself?” he asks looking at Lando in disbelief. 

“Yup” Lando pops the p at the end. 

“Wow, this is much more than I could have ever expected. Thank you” Martin says with a grateful smile. 

“Don’t thank me. It’s my dad’s decision” Lando shrugs his shoulders. 

“Where are you staying? Is there another one of these?” Martin asks him. 

“Yeah, there is another one that’s slightly bigger, my brother and his family live in it. I am still stuck with my parents. I thought I would get this one after returning from college, but my dad is set on keeping this one for the helps during summer” Lando explains. 

“College? What did you study?” Martin asks curiously.

“Business and Photography. Made a deal with my dad that he would support my photography hobby, if I also major in something useful and help run the ranch and family business later on with my brother” Lando replies. 

“Oh wow! And you said you weren’t a professional. But it’s very loyal of you to come back to your family, instead of pursuing your dreams” Martin says, truly admiring Lando for that. 

“Yeah, well… they sacrificed a lot for me, so I could study photography and I will forever be grateful for that. And I could never leave my family. My dreams will have to stay dreams” Lando smiles weakly.

“I get that and I am sure they respect you a lot for that. I am also a big family guy, but I also believe in following and chasing your dreams. I don’t want to be old and grey one day regretting not chasing my dreams and thinking about what could have been, the “what if”, you know?” Martin explains in a way that makes Lando almost nostalgic about something that isn’t even lost yet. 

It’s not like Lando has fully given up on his dreams, but since he finished college he never paid them much thought, not daring to be hopeful about fulfilling them one day, but now here is Martin, a guy he has known for two hours, reminding him of what he truly wants in life.

He clears his throat before answering “Yeah, I know�� Maybe an opportunity will come up one day” he decides to shrug it off for the moment. 

Martin shows him a sympathetic and understanding smile. 

“Okay, you probably want to start unpacking and getting settled in, so I’ll leave you be. I will probably be outside at the stables, so you can just come find me whenever you’re done” Lando says and starts leaving. 

“Thank you!” Martin says and Lando stops to look back at Martin once again and sees him show a smile that is so warm that it makes Lando’s warm up as well.

-

Martin’s first weeks on the ranch pass by like a breeze. It’s spent with lots of giggles, especially when Martin manages to fall off a horse, even though he swears that he has never fallen off one before, but Lando teases him endlessly and Martin knows that he will never live this down. 

As quickly as the first weeks pass, it also feels like a lifetime to Lando and Martin, who fell into an easy rhythm. They could both swear they have known each other for much longer than just a few weeks. There hasn’t been one uncomfortable or awkward moment of silence between them. Lando’s parents watch with amazement as they see their son, form a pure and genuine connection with Martin. There is barely a moment these two don’t spend together, giggling and laughing at the smallest things. Martin fits into their family, as if he had always been a part of it, never skipping a breakfast or dinner with the entire Norris family. 

“Hey Marty! Watch this!” Lando yells over to Martin, who is currently saddling his horse, and tries, but fails miserably to get his water bottle with a lasso. Martin can’t stop laughing as he watches him try multiple times until he finally gives up with a sheepish smile on his face and just grabs the bottle from the ground. 

“A for effort!” he yells at him with a grin on his face. 

Lando grins back at him “Thank you! I think so as well. Next time I will get it!”

Martin laughs at that “You sure will!” 

“Okay boys! Let’s get ready!” Adam tells them and they finish saddling their horses. 

Lando swallows when he sees Martin put his cowboy hat on and getting on his horse. He can’t stop staring at Martin on that goddamn horse, he has seen Martin on a horse before, but there is something about him in this exact moment, that makes Lando’s throat extremely dry. Maybe it’s the way the sun is shining and how the light is falling perfectly on Martin, that it creates an almost unreal glow on his skin. All that Lando can think about is how he wishes he had his camera with him right now so he could capture this and it’s in that moment that he realizes that he wants nothing more than to take pictures of Martin, because nothing in the world has captivated him and stolen his breath like Martin. 

“Lando! You coming or what?” his dad interrupts his thoughts and he feels slightly embarrassed when he notices Martin, his dad and his brother staring at him with a questioning look. 

“Yeah, I’m coming” he says and quickly walks past Martin to get to his own horse. 

-

“You should come to this bar with me tonight!” Lando says as he walks into Martin’s cabin.

It didn’t take long for them both to feel comfortable enough to have Lando just barging in unannounced on a regular basis. Martin, who is currently sitting on the sofa with a bunch of notes spread out in front of him, looks up from the one he was currently scribbling on and smiles at Lando.

“Don’t we have to get up early tomorrow? I wouldn’t want to make a bad impression on your dad…” Martin voices his concern with crinkled eyebrows. 

“Nope” Lando pops the p at the end and smiles brightly.

“Dad told me we have tomorrow off and besides that I am sure you could never disappoint him, he loves you” Lando tells him. 

“Oh that’s nice, then yes of course!” Martin agrees happily. 

“Mint! Be ready in like an hour” Lando says and leaves as abruptly as he came, Martin smiles to himself watching as Lando skips out of the cabin.

-

Lando is leaning against his car when Martin steps out of his cabin an hour later. He is wearing blue jeans that perfectly hug his hips with a casual shirt tucked into them and a beige cowboy hat on his perfect curls. There is something about the way Lando is leaning against the car with his hips slightly popped to the side that makes Martins mouth dry. As much as he has grown to love Lando’s curls and often wonders what they feel like, if they are as soft as they look, he will never get over seeing him with the cowboy hat on and swears that it makes Lando’s face look even more perfect. He has to stop his train of thought, shows Lando a smile and finally makes his way over to him. 

Lando also shows him a cheeky smile “You ready?” he asks and moves off the car to open the door to the passenger side for Martin.

“Yes” Martin breathes out and has to stop himself from blushing. 

He gets into the car and tries to be chill about the fact that Lando opened the passenger door for him, Lando is a nice guy, a gentleman, he probably always does that for everyone and it doesn’t mean anything special. Lando hops onto the drivers seat and starts the car. 

“So where is this bar you are taking me?” Martin asks and watches Lando put his arm around his seat to look back as he reverses the car out of the driveway, he watches as Lando skillfully moves the steering wheel with one hand and Martin could swear he is about go insane, because this is another thing that has been driving him crazy lately: watching Lando drive, or more specifically watching him steer the car with one hand. 

“It’s in town, so like a thirty-minute drive. Near the train station where I picked you up” Lando replies before looking over with a cheeky grin and adding “It’s a karaoke bar and you are going to sing a song with me!” he says excitedly. 

Martin feels all color drain from his face “What?!” he exclaims and looks over at Lando who is giggling at his reaction. 

“Oh come on, you have been here for more than two weeks and still haven’t performed anything for me. And I get it if you want to keep your songs to yourself, so I thought karaoke would be perfect! You don’t have to perform something of your own. And I love karaoke! We can sing something together” Lando says with so much excitement that Martin has no other choice but to agree. 

“Yeah okay” he says and the smile on Lando’s face is totally worth it.

-

They arrive at the bar and Lando leads the way with an excited and determined look on his face that makes Martin chuckle. Lando orders them both a drink at the bar and turns to Martin “I already know which song we are going to sing” he says with a big grin on his face. 

“Oh, do you?” Martin asks. 

“Yup” Lando nods his head excitedly. 

“And which one would that be? Do I get a say in this?” Martin questions with raised eyebrows. 

“Nope” Lando shakes his head and takes a sip of his drink to stop his grin from showing. 

“Do I even know the song?” Martin asks with a bit of a panicked voice, scared that he will embarrass himself in front Lando and everyone else in this bar. 

“I am pretty sure you do I would be surprised if you didn’t” Lando tells him, but Martin doesn’t feel reassured and starts to pray that he knows the song. 

“I will go request it now because it always takes a while. Be right back” Lando says and walks to someone near the stage. 

When he gets back they find a table to sit at. “You do this regularly?” Martin asks curiously. 

“Not as often as I would like to. During college me and my friends would hit up a karaoke bar pretty often, but since I graduated and got back home I haven’t really been” Lando explains and Martin notices a nostalgic look on his face when he mentions college and his friends.  He wants to ask about it but decides a karaoke bar is probably not the best place to do that. 

“Then I feel honored to be here with you tonight” he smiles at Lando and watches as Lando’s face lights up again. 

“Cheers to that” Lando says and raises his glass. 

“Cheers” Martin clinks his glass with Lando’s and they both smile at each other as they take a sip. 

They watch other people sing karaoke and get amused when most of them completely miss the notes and Martin cringes when some even lack even any kind of rhythm. He smiles when he catches Lando quietly singing along to most songs. He almost forgot that Lando put them on then list as well until their names are suddenly being called “Next up are Lando and Martin!”

Lando looks at Martin with excitement and stands up immediately. “Come on!” he hurries Martin over to the stage.

Lando hands him a mic and that’s when he remembers that he still has no idea what song they are about to sing when the familiar sound of a guitar and piano start playing. He looks at Lando who is grinning widely and then to the screen in front of them to confirm if he recognized the song correctly. 

He looks back to Lando who starts talking the first part “I was all but 22, I think at the time. I’d been out on the road, lonely at night. And it’d been a while, so it was on my mind” he has to stop himself from laughing when Lando suddenly does a spot on country accent and starts singing directly to him. 

“Well I saw him walk in, with his cowboy hat and I thought to myself, I could use some of that. His boots like glass on a sawdust floor, huh. Had moves like nothing I’d ever seen before” Lando absolutely dramatizes every expression on his face and moves his body perfectly to emphasize every word. 

“So I walked right up and I pulled him to the side. I handed that man a beer and looked him in the eyes” Lando now stopped right in front of Martin to look him in the eyes and continues “And I said: Baby, I think you’re gonna wanna hear this. Then I told him” he then closes his eyes to give it his all and sings “Excuse me, you look like you love me. You look like you want me to want you to come on home. And baby I don’t blame you for looking me up and down across this room. I am drunk and I am ready to leave. And you look like you love me”. 

Martin watches with amazement as Lando moves so freely on the stage and does a little dance while singing, totally feeling himself. Lando then moves to stand more the side to give Martin the stage and Martin doesn’t have time to think, almost missing the start of his part. 

“Well I was down at the local beer joint with a few of the guys. When this cute little country boy caught my eye” Martin didn’t really plan that lyric change, it just slipped out, but he catches Lando stopping his little dance moves for a second when he glances over to him to see his reaction. 

“And boy let me you, he was the prettiest thing I’d ever seen in a pair of boots. Well he walked right up to me, handed me a beer. Gave me a look like lets get out of here and that’s when I realized that he was every cowboy’s dream come true” Martin glances back over to Lando and notices a new look in his eyes, an emotional one. 

“He told me this right here, he said” he finishes his solo and looks back to Lando to sing the chorus together. They sing together in harmony and the smiles couldn’t be bigger on both of their faces. Lando dances around Martin, moving his hips and shoulders in a way that makes it hard for Martin to focus. 

“So if you ever see a man in a cowboy hat and you think to yourself, I could use some of that. Don’t waste your time. Just give him this here line. Goes a little like this” Lando sings and puts his Cowboy hat on top of Martins head with a wide grin on his face. 

Martin looks at him caught off guard by his action, but quickly recovers when Lando winks at him before starting the chorus one last time. It’s like every other person in that bar doesn’t exist while they are singing to each other, in their own world, feeling weightless in time and space for the moment. 

“You look like you love me” they finish the song, not hearing the clapping from the crowd in front of the small stage, not caring that everyone is looking at them, they only have eyes for each other right now and while the last note of song plays they smile widely at each other before being snatched out of their moment “Thank you to Lando and Martin! What a performance that was!”

They share one last look and then leave the stage to go back to their table. “That was amazing! Your voice is amazing!” Lando beams at Martin and pulls him into a side hug. 

“Thank you, yours wasn’t too bad as well. Sure you don’t want to consider a career in singing?” he replies. 

Lando smiles brightly at him “Nah. I am not built for the life in public, on a stage” he shrugs. 

“I get that, but I think the world would love you” Martin says wholeheartedly. 

“Really?” Lando whispers and smiles shyly. 

“Yes. I think no matter what you end up doing, as long as you do what you are passionate about and stay true to yourself, the world won’t have a choice but to love you for being you” he says, meaning every single word. 

“Thank you” Lando whispers with a blush on his face, looking down at his hands. 

Martin takes one of Lando’s hands making him look at him again “I mean it. Every single word” and when says it he doesn’t just mean the conversation they just had and he hopes Lando knows that. 

“You do?” Lando breathes out. 

“I do” Martin replies, never having meant these two words more than in that moment. 

Lando looks at him with so much emotion in his eyes, Martin can feel himself getting lost in his ocean eyes that show so much depth, so many layers and he wants to discover them all. 

“Do you wanna go for a drive?” Lando suddenly asks him. 

“Yes” Martin replies. 

They both stand up and walk out of the bar. When they reach the car Martin remembers that he still has Lando’s hat on that he put there during the song. 

“Wait. I still have your hat. Here” he takes it off and wants to give it back, but Lando laughs and shakes his head. 

“Don’t you know the cowboy hat rule?” he asks. 

“The what rule?” Martin asks with a confused look on his face. 

“If you wear the hat, you have to ride the cowboy” Lando says and shows him a cheeky grin before getting into the car. 

Martin almost chokes when the words leave Lando’s lips, he stands there frozen “You coming or what?” Lando yells from inside the car with a laugh. 

Martin takes a deep breath to regain his composure and gets in the car. Lando starts the car and drives away from the bar, Martin actually has no idea where Lando planned on driving. Unlike the other times Martin has driven with Lando, there is no music playing this time, it’s completely silent in the car. The only sound that could be heard was the one the car made as it passed through the streets. Martin notices another abnormality, Lando keeping both hands on the steering wheel. Normally he would only use one hand and keep the other one resting, but this time it seems like he is gripping the steering wheel tightly with both hands. Martin can feel the tension in the car building up. Lando who seemed so confident and carefree when they left the bar is suddenly refusing to look at him, seeming tense. 

“Where are we driving to?” Martin asks after a while, deciding to break the tension. 

He sees Lando rearranging his hold on the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white from the tight grip “A spot I want to show you” he mumbles. 

“Okay” Martin replies with a soft voice. 

-

Their performance in the bar made Lando feel more alive than ever, the rush he got from singing to Martin, with Martin, was indescribable. And then Martin changed the lyrics, he sang boy instead of girl and he stared into Lando eyes while doing so and Lando swears he was about to faint on that stage. It sparked something in Lando, hope. The entire time, since Martin arrived, he didn’t dare to have hope. He didn’t dare to make himself believe that Martin might reciprocate his feelings. 

Lando could be honest with himself, he fell head over heels for Martin. From the moment he saw him at the train station, not knowing who he even was, he has been falling. Every moment he has spent with him since then made him fall even deeper. Every smile of Martin, every laugh, made Lando’s heart skip a beat. He suddenly loved waking up early, eager to start the day, to see Martin. When his dad wanted to give him days off, he made up excuses of wanting to help more. Every night he lay in bed, thinking about Martin, dreaming about Martin. But whenever he thought of Martin, he never let himself have hope, there was no way Martin liked him like that, so when Martin changed the lyric and looked at him like that it threw Lando off. For the first time he felt hope. Hope that Martin might like him back, that there was a chance.

When they went off the stage, he felt so much joy and happiness, he couldn’t believe what just happened and then Martin went even further and said the things he said. That the world would love him, just for being himself, that he meant every word. Lando couldn’t help himself, but to wonder if Martin not only meant the words, he said off stage, but also the ones on stage. He felt overwhelmed by all these new revelations and possibilities, so he suggested the one thing he always does when he gets overwhelmed: a drive to his favorite spot. 

He doesn’t know what confidence overtook him when he told Martin about the cowboy hat rule, maybe it was the adrenaline from performing on stage or the adrenaline Martin made him feel, but as soon as he started driving all the confidence left him again. He started doubting everything, maybe Martin didn’t mean anything like that and Lando just completely misinterpreted everything. He suddenly felt stupid for getting his hopes up, for misreading the situation. What if he embarrassed himself in front of Martin? He didn’t dare to look at him. So after parking the car Lando sits in his driver’s seat for a few moments when they arrived at their destination. He can feel Martin staring at him, probably confused by his behavior. 

“What is this place?” Martin speaks, breaking Lando’s spiraling thoughts. 

“It’s ummm, it’s my favorite spot to go to when I need to clear my head” he replies in a soft tone, still not daring to look at Martin. 

“Oh” Martin says. 

“It’s stupid. We can leave if you want to. I don’t know why I brought you here” Lando says, feeling even more stupid. 

“No! Please, I want to stay” Martin says immediately.

“Show me, please” he adds softly. 

Lando finally looks over to him “Okay” he whispers. 

They get out of the car and Lando takes the blanket he always keeps in there and moves towards the cargo bed. He spreads out the blanket “I like to sit here and watch the view, at day you can obviously see much more, we are on top of a small cliff, but at night it’s nice to watch the stars and just enjoy the calm” he explains to Martin, who is smiling at him and moves to make himself comfortable on the blanket. 

“It’s nice. Thank you for showing it to me” he says. 

Lando nods at him and then also sits down. The back of the car doesn’t leave them much room, so when Lando sits down next to him, their arms are pressed together. He can feel the heat radiating off of Martin’s body that always seems to be hot. They are quiet for a few minutes, enjoying the view and each other’s presence. After a while Lando can feel himself getting cold and silently curses himself for only wearing a shirt and not bringing a jacket, it might be summer, but the nights get cold. In an attempt to warm himself up he rubs his arms and curls forward a bit, making Martin look at him. 

“Are you alright?” he asks with a concerned look. 

“Yeah, just a bit cold. Forgot to bring a hoodie or jacket” Lando says with a slight shiver. 

“Come here” Martin says and without hesitating wraps an arm around Lando to pull him close and starts stroking his arm, feeling his cold skin. Lando’s heart skips a beat when Martin pulls him close and starts touching his skin. Martin’s warm hand almost burns his cold skin, but it’s a nice and comforting burn. He can immediately feel his body warming up and relaxing, leaning his head on Martin’s shoulder, embracing the warmth and closeness he has been craving. 

“Better?” Martin whispers after a few minutes, moving his head to look at Lando who smiles up at him with soft eyes. 

“Yes” Lando whispers back. 

“Thank you” he adds. 

Martin gives his arm a gentle squeeze. 

“In the bar, you said you meant every word. Is that true?” Lando finally gets the courage to ask. 

“Yes” Martin replies without hesitating. 

He moves his other arm that isn’t around Lando to gently grab his face and make him look at him. Lando feels frozen when Martins face is so close in front of him, when he feels him softly caressing his cheek and looking deeply into his eyes. 

“You drive me crazy Lando” Martin whispers and at the sound of his name Lando’s eyes flutter shut and he moves his face closer into the palm of Martin’s hand. 

“I thought I always knew what I wanted until you were right in front of me and since then there hasn’t been a second where you don’t consume every thought of mine. It’s been almost painful to be so close to you every day without having you. It’s been torture.” Martin continues to whisper.

They are so close now that Lando can feel Martin’s breath on his face. He doesn’t know if it’s even possible, but he pulls Martin’s head even closer by pulling on his neck, the tip of his fingers buried in Martin’s hair. 

“Please” Lando whimpers and moves even closer to rub his nose against Martin’s cheek. 

“Please what?” Martin asks and rubs his thumb over Lando’s lower lip, whose lips part the second he touches them. 

“Kiss me” Lando breathes out shakily and then it doesn’t take longer than a second and Martin’s lips are on his. They are softer than he could have ever imagined and the only thing allowing him to breathe again is the moan he lets out when Martin’s hand finds its way to his curls and gives them a pull that sends electric shocks through Lando’s body. He doesn’t know or care how much time passes as they kiss each other as if their lives depended on it, they actually might, or how they got into this position, but he suddenly finds himself straddling Martin’s hips being pulled in for another kiss.

“Mhhmm” he moans again and then forces himself to pull away so he can catch his breath and look at Martin. 

Martin who is laying beneath him with messy hair, swollen lips and a lazy smile on his face, Lando is sure he looks exactly the same. He rests his hands on top of Martin’s chest and smiles down at him “Hey” he says softly. 

“Hey” Martin breathes out and puts his hands on top of Lando’s to give them a gentle squeeze. 

“What took you so long? You muppet” Lando tries to say with an accusing tone but fails when he starts giggling, feeling high after the makeout. 

“What took me so long?! I had no idea if you wanted this!” Martin tries to defend himself and fakes an offended face. 

Lando lets out a scoff “You had no idea?! I could not have been more obvious Marty!”

“Obvious?! In what way?” Martin asks, confused by Lando’s revelation. 

“Marty… I started doing my brothers chores just so I could spend more time with you, I went with you to your cabin after dinner every night, I literally tried to spend every second of my day with you, trying to impress you in every possible way. You muppet!” Lando says, a bit frustrated that apparently, he wasn’t obvious enough. 

After a few seconds of the realization hitting him Martin giggles and moves his hands to rest on Lando’s hips. 

“What’s so funny” Lando whines at him. 

“I guess I really was a muppet” Martin smiles at him. 

“Yes you were!” Lando says. 

“I was doubting myself the entire time! I thought you weren’t into me” he adds with a pout. 

Martin squeezes his hips in an effort to reassure him “I’m sorry. I guess I didn’t want to overstep or make things weird between us or your family. I was an idiot for not realizing” Martin apologizes softly. 

“Forgive me?” he asks cheekily. 

“I guess there are ways you can make it up to me” Lando smirks at him and moves down again, his face inches in front of Martin’s.

“Oh really?” Martin breathes out heavily. 

“Mhmm” Lando hums, eyes fixated on Martin’s lips. 

“I’m all yours Cowboy” Martin whispers.

[fritz-federleicht]

Maid dress/ Oliver Sykes x reader

Summary: Oli asks you to put on a maid dress

Warnings: dirty talk, your ass is seen briefly

Words: 953

"Honey I have something for you." Oli enters the room and holds something out.

"What's this?" You take it. Oli grins proudly.

"Please put this on."

"Oli where did you get that?" In your hands is a far too short black and white maid's dress. You run your fingers over the soft fabric.

"I saw it on a website and thought it would suit you." He takes the dress from your hand and holds it in front of your body. You look down at yourself. "It's so short." You say listlessly.

"Oh yes it is." He says dirty and winks at you with a cheeky grin. You punch him in the chest. He pouts.

"I'm not wearing that. Forget it!" You shake your head.

"Why not? You'll look beautiful in it."

"No!"

"Oh come on." He follows you, "I'll dress it after you." You stop aprubtly at this statement.

Slowly, you turn around. "You're putting it on?"

Oli nods hesitantly. "Yes." You giggle, the thought of Oli in that little dress is just wonderful, you stand in front of him laughing.

He crosses his arms. "So you'll do it?"

You gasp and straighten up with tears in your eyes. "Mhmm."

Oli wipes the tears away with his thumbs. "Thanks honey, that means a lot." He gently kisses your nose.

"Me too. After all, I'm going to see you in that beautiful way too short dress." Now you're grinning cheekily at him.

He hugs your waist and whispers in your ear. "I'll do anything to admire you in it." You take a deep breath. Oli kisses your temple, grinning. "So now you know what you have to do."

You roll your eyes and take the maid's dress from his hands. You want to go into another room to change, but Oli clasps your wrist.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to change."

"You can do that here too." You give him a death stare, immediately he lets go of you.

"I'll be right back." You leave the room.

Shortly after, you enter it again. Oli has made himself comfortable on a chair. When he sees you, his eyes open wide. His mouth is open in amazement.

You are so embarrassed by the situation that you turn around. And because the dress is really not that long it slips up. For a short time your ass is visible. Quickly you tug the skirt and blush. Olis staring look burns in your back.

You slap your forehead inwardly. Why did you let yourself get involved?

"Wow it fits perfectly. Your body is...a work of art." Oli motions. "Why don't you turn around?"

You shake your head. Oli stands behind you, spinning you in his arms.

Your red face stares against his chest in shame. He puts his finger under your chin, forcing you to look at him.

"You look beautiful." His eyes full of adoration.

You screw up your face. "But why did it have to be a dress like that? Couldn't it have been a nice long summer dress?" You emphasize the word long.

Oli shrugs his shoulders. "With a long summer dress, I wouldn't have caught a glimpse of your beau..." You press your hand over his mouth.

"Don't you dare keep talking. This is so embarrassing." You feel him placing light kisses on your palm. His eyes plead for forgiveness.

A slight smile settles on your lips. "You're sweet, but don't think I forgot. Now it's your turn!" You release your hand from his mouth.

Immediately, he starts to contradict. "Do I really have to? Wouldn't you rather keep that dress on? You look stunning in it." He pulls the skirt apart to admire it's beauty.

"No I don't. You have to keep your promise. Come on, I did it too even though I didn't want to."

Oli lowers his head. "Alright." You clap your hands and go to change.

Afterwards, you press the dress into his hand. While you sit down on the chair, Oli takes off his t-shirt and pants.

"Y/N the dress won't close." He whines. You grin. He stands in front of you with his arms bent, his black underpants peeking out.

"Honey, it fits perfectly. Your body is a work of art." You repeat his words and burst out laughing.

He stares at you with an emotionless look, waiting for you to calm down again. Unfortunately, it makes the whole thing even funnier.

At some point he starts to smile slightly.

You stand up laughing, your hands run over his arms until you lace your hands.

"No really honey, you look wonderful. It's the size. If it is a few sizes bigger you can perform like this at the next concert." By now you've calmed down, the tears of laughter still glistening on your cheeks.

"You always cry when you're happy." Again he wipes your tears away with his thumbs. He looks down on himself. "I think it's kind of good."

You look him seriously in the eyes. "Now you can admit it. You actually ordered it for yourself so you could try it on, but you saw that it was too small and turned it on me."

"No I didn't. It was for you." He combs his fingers through your hair. "You can keep it, you don't have to wear it in public. There are still other opportunities, after all." He winks at you.

"Why are you so filthy today?" You just turn around and leave him standing there in his maid's dress.

He calls after you. "I'm always like this Y/N, always."

[danielxwhitechapel]

Who: Danny Whitechapel x @bloodofthewitch​ Where: House of the Horn God Shop What: In search of specific ingredients he needs for a spell of a local witch - yes, to cause hell upon Damien - Daniel is sent to the shop on the errand run. Annoying, but whatever. What the vampire didn’t expect was to run into a ghost of his past.

The Anderson coven was known for being extremely large and exceedingly powerful. Danny had grown up in that world - long before Damien had turned him against his will. It was another reason he had been so bitter about it. Daniel had planned to extend his life to be with the other but things had changed. Regardless of that, however, his heritage meant that he had extensive knowledge of magic and spells. It’s what gave him more of an advantage than Damien realized. 

Sure, his sire had his home bound by magic so he couldn’t cross the threshold, even if he had already been invited in, but that didn’t mean that the spell couldn’t be outdone. It was a theory but one Danny was interested in. This spell took a lot of ingredients and his witch buddy had sent him an errand run for the things they needed. Normally, Danny would have scoffed back at the audacity but for once, his filter kicked in and he did as he was told. 

Look for Oliver at House of the Horn God. The instruction had made Daniel pause when first given - a moment of deep shock rendering the vampire comatose. What were the odds that this would be the same Oliver? He had deemed it impossible but now, as he stood outside the shop, there was no way to deny it. Oliver’s intoxicating scent invaded Danny’s nose - so deeply familiar and never forgotten but yet, he refused to believe it. 

Danny didn’t love the way normies do. He couldn’t -  and he was aware of that to a degree. It’s why his marriage worked - they were equals and loved in similar ways. It was a rarity whenever he did find himself liking someone - let alone loving them. It had only happened with Syd since his turning. That is until he ran into Oliver Sanders - a young witch that was the embodiment of sunshine. Olive got under Danny’s skin and he doesn’t know how it happened but it did. Thankfully, his marriage had allowed for such a relationship to even happen but there had been times Daniel wished Syd had just said no. They had been together for five years some hundred years or so ago but despite being happy, Danny knew one thing - he could never give Oliver what he truly wanted. 

In the rarest show of selflessness and slight empathy - a fact he’d deny later on and gag over - Danny had let go of Oliver and, for his own sake, had a witch erase his memories of their time together. An act to save Oliver from further pain. He hadn’t seen the young witch since and he had assumed the other had long passed - Daniel had grieved him, in his own way, for a decade and though he hadn’t pined for long, Oliver never strayed much from his mind. 

The vampire’s feet finally carried him into the store and he had to hold his breath to not be overwhelmed with Oliver’s scent - fuck, he had always smelled so good. Keen eyes searched through the store, and it took him a second before he finally spotted the witch. It was his Oliver. Oli looked the same as he had a century ago - sweet, innocent, beautiful and those doe eyes Danny adored were still his biggest weapon. If he hadn’t been holding his breath, Danny swore it would have been stolen. His pipsqueak had always disarmed the vampire in a similar way only his husband had the capacity to do. Clearing his throat, Danny approached the counter and tried to clear his head. Was the spell still intact? Did Oliver still not remember them? “Hey there, sweets. Mind lending me a hand?” Danny asked, placing the list of things he needed on the counter and giving Oliver the most charming smile he had - the same one that had made the other fall for him all those years ago.

[leah-lil31]

Run

CHAPTER 2

That morning we were gathered at a wall marked A where Olie explained we will be practicing and the sight of Levon was exciting and made her smile.

“Walter up there will be training yall one of our best guards.” Olie explained. Walter looked down and waved at us from above, and so did Levon.

“We have to go up there?” I questioned.

“Yes, don't worry about this wall and especially that rail is safe.” Olie reassured me with slight chuckles.

Walter explained a couple of rules and what not to do with a gun and demonstrated that sound can be reduced with a silencer also known as a sound moderator. Nobody looked more concentrated than Alex though. Walter turned around and gave him a signal and he took half of us to train us and see how much we learned. 

“Relax your shoulders, aim, and shoot.” Leven said. “Here.” He said grabbing, pushing my hand down and moving my finger to the trigger. 

I pulled the trigger expecting a loud sound for some reason, I closed one eye as Levon watched me and I hit the Junkie in the head and watched him fall on the asphalt. I tried again. relax, aim, and shoot. I thought to myself before pulling the trigger once again. 

“There, there, let's not show off now.” Alan said. 

“Okay.” Levon said. I handed over the gun with a smile. “No y’all are to keep the guns on you at all times and only use it when you have caught yourself in some trouble.” Levon said 

“Walter is here to show you what to do next.” Levon said, pointing at Walter.

Levon and Walter trained us one by one and showed us where to put our guns and how to hold them when you're not shooting or about to shoot something. After Olie came back around an hour later to give us an interview. Later that would tell him what job would suit us, 

********************

“Has your mind changed about here?” I asked Alan. 

“I haven’t thought about it. I've been talking to…other boys here.” He said looking down.

I could tell he was lying. She didn’t want to admit that he actually liked the place“Wow, looks like you have actually made some friends.” I said acting shocked.

“Very very funny Locklin," he said. “I saw the way you were looking at Levon.” Alan pointed out he seemed to have been watching us yesterday or maybeI was looking at him in some way but he  knew. “What do you mean?” I asked, acting like I had no clue what he was talking about as my face turned red in embarrassment.“You know what I'm  talking about.” He said with a teasing smile as he turned to watch his friends play.

“Hey Alan, catch.” One of the boys threw a ball at him. Alan briefly threw it back and ran off to go play football with his friends, a game they taught him to play.

 I was happy to see that he found other boys his age with him being 16. Locklike was one year younger than him but he sometimes seemed to be younger than her sometimes. 

“You did well at training for it to be your first time.” Levon said sitting down where we were sitting yesterday and looking at me with a smile and then booking back with a straight face.

“Thanks.” I said before turning to look him in the eyes trying to give him the look he gave me yesterday. “I know we just met yesterday. But I can’t be the only one feeling a connection in the air when we're together? Right?” Levon said. He didn’t get a chance to finish before we got called to eat.

Everyone lined up and Olie passed them their food one by one as the person went over to the next to receive a drink. Locklin thought it was nice how everything worked out in the place Locklin was told by Olie in the interview when she had referred to the place they were in as a placethey called the place Safe. Locklin liked the way things ran around here. It was nicely organized if you had to put a word on it. She couldn’t help but wonder what was on the other side of the wall that was keeping them safe but the unrevealed side of the wall, she wanted to know more she wanted to know what it was like in their world. She had unanswered questions and she couldn’t be the only one to wonder. I soon forgot about the questions after lunch and dinner. After forgetting about that I was excited to see Levon sitting in the same spot as they were yesterday. She walked over to him and sat down right next to him. She looked over at him with concern to see that he seemed sad. “What’s on your mind?” I asked.

“A lot really.” He responded, looking me in the eye’s and then gazing back at the sunset ahead of them. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” I asked him.

He was looking over at the different shades of orange and pink in the sky and I couldn’t help but watch along with him. “Me and my sister got into an argument.” He said. I couldn’t help but notice that he clenched his fists when he said that but he still kept his attention on the colors.“She's going to start going on runs,” He paused. “Runs are things we do when we start running low on food and other resources. We have lost people and…I guess I'm just scared that something like what happened to our brother will happen to her.” He finished.

“I’m sorry.” I said. I’ve never been good at the topic of losing people so I kept my words short whenever the topic was brought up. “Have you ever lost someone?” He said looking over at me. “No, well at least not that I remember.” I said pushing all the words out trying to finish the sentence. We sat in silence for a little bit. It was almost as if he felt regret from asking that question. “Imma go go with her,” he said. “We're always looking for new people considering that we're going on a rerun. It should be safe for you to go and I'm sure Olie wouldn't mind if he heard how good you did at training today.”He said looking back at me. I couldn’t say no to those eyes. “A rerun?” I asked, with a cocked up eyebrow that I did when I was confused. “We're going to places we have already cleared.” He said moving his eyes to my left then right and then looking at my lips. “I like you,” He blurted out. “I… like you too.” I said. He leaned in and gave me a kiss on my cheek, it was dark then again I was sad hearted to realize that it was time to say goodnight once again. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” He said, getting up, still maintaining eye contact. “Night” He said before turning his head and talking down the hill. 

********************

Waking up the next morning I had to hurry up and find Olie before they went on their run. I rushed out the door to see what I guess was them getting ready. I ran down to the huge trucks with empty crates on the back of them and ran up to Olie. I just startled him.

“Hello, you're in a hurry.” He said. Turning a round and booking me in the eyes before backing up a little. “Levon told me how well you did yesterday at training for it to be your first time shooting a gun.” He said with a raised eyebrow.

“Can I go on a run, with y'all today?” I asked, trying to catch my breath.

“Er,” he said, looking back at Levon and then at me again. “Consider since we're just going over the clear areas.” He said scratching his hand and turning around back at you guys helping them get ready.

After a little bit we were ready to go. I was nervous from what Levon said yesterday and I kept going over the fact that runs were dangerous. Why did he want me to come with him if it was so dangerous? I questioned myself, I still got in the truck of course I did. On the road he talked about his sister, bringing up her name. Her name was Luisa. They looked almost identical from the way he described her. “She was the woman I had seen teaching the little kids when we first came here.” I mentioned looking over at him, he was keeping his eyes on the road but glanced over every now and then looking at me. 

“About what I said yesterday,” He said looking over at me looking out the window.

 I couldn’t help but watch as the Junkies followed the car with limps, their faces looked contorted, some of them having skin ripped off their faces and limbs. I felt my stomach twist in disgust. 

“You’ll get used to it.” Levon said with a smile.

“Who could get used to a smell like this?” I asked, scrunching my nose. 

He looked at me holding his gaze with a smile. The truck came to a stop as Levon pulled over on the side of the road as the car in front of him did. “Are you okay?” He asked while pulling a machete out of his leather sheath just after stepping out of the truck. The truck looked old and the paint was a little scratched and I couldn't help but notice a dent that stood out to me. 

“Okay ladies and gents.” Walter said, "Stay together and shoot to kill.” He said holding his hot gun in his hand while pointing to the ground. 

Everyone started to walk toward the window in front of the store, some going around the sides of the building. Levon walked over to a glass window and knocked on it. “Wait.” Levon said, looking through the window putting both of his hands on the side trying to block out the light from the sides. After a few Levon reluctantly walked to the glass door and opened it ”Clear.” He announced and they all walked into the store and started to grab the things like medicine and other things. “Do you need anything in particular or can you handle yourself?” Levon said, looking over to me with a straight face. “I’m good.” I said looking over and pointing the flash light to try to see if they had anything that caught my eye. I started to walk around to look around more.

“Get down!” I heard a man yell and gunshots as I ducked down and covered my ears from the loud sound.

I crawled over to peek my head around the shelf and out the window to see what the issue was. “Get down on your knees!” The man repeated. I could feel Levons presents behind me as he was right behind me.

“You don’t have to do this.” Walter said, gradually getting down on his knees and placing his weapon on the ground and putting his hand in the air. 

I searched to see if there was anyone else there. Junkies started to appear from the bushes behind them. “The gunshot probably is going to attract the Junkies, we need to hurry up and get out of here.” Levon said, leaning his back up against the shelf. “Yeah they're starting to make their way here.” I observed. Focusing my attention on what was going on. “Look, give me what you have and nobody has to die.” He said as some other guards started to come up from behind him “I need to get closer.” I stated. Tying my hair up into a ponytail and then looking at Levon who was already looking at me. I crawled to the other shelf that was right one foot away from the one I was behind. A gunshot went off again and I closed my eyes and covered my ears with my hands again, then opened them. I was — alive.  I thought about moving my hands from my ears. I peeked my head out on the side of the shelf to see that his body was lying on the ground, and Walter got up before picking up his gun and signaled  me and Levon that it’s time to head out. “What was that!?” Levon said, grabbing Walter's shoulder and turning him around. “You're the one that said stay together.” Levon said his tone sounded serious and the way he looked in Walter’s eyes with anger. 

“Tavis couldn’t be the only one standing out here.” He said, looking up at Levon. 

 “He seems smarter than you so why not.” Levon said, giving him a nudge on his shoulder still maintaining eye contact and the same tone.

At that point everyone was watching to see what was going to happen and they held eye contact until Levon turned around and looked at me before walking back to the truck, and I followed. “He’s smarter than this.” Levon said shutting the door and messing with the gears and pulling out the parking lot before Walter could.

*******************

When we got back Alan was waiting for me to tell him what had happened considering that he was asleep when I left the house. “How was it?” He asked with his arms crossed. “You could have woke me up to tell me that you left.” He stated in a serious tone. “Well, I’m fine.” I said walking past him and avoiding his gaze. I rolled my eyes and walked past him and back to our house. I reached for the door handle though realizing I needed to wash my hands from the amount of dirt that was on them. I rushed up the stairs and into the bathroom to turn on the water and upon doing so I couldn’t help but look in the mirror and remember what had happened to my back. I lifted up the back of my shirt and turned around to see an X symbol on my back. Damn I thought as I looked into the mirror I put my shirt down and turned to face the mirror again. I took my hair down and looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't recognize myself. I looked at my brown hair and pale skin that was somewhat tan, I looked at my green eyes and the freckles on my face. Why does he like me? I thought to myself, removing my hand from my face and slamming the door behind me. I went to the only place I knew not only knowing that would be where I would find Levon but also where I could clear my head from my thoughts. “Hey Locklin, I’m sorry I put you in that situation today.” He said, putting his hand on his head and removing it while looking at the ground then at me. “I was wondering if I could go on more runs?” I said looking him in the eyes. “I wouldn’t mind. Levon saying you did well, keeping calm in a situation like that is impressive.” He said as a grin peaked on the side of his mouth. “Levon will be training you telling you all the things you need to know and how to act in a situation and what to do if you have any question you can report to him” He said with a straight face before walking off and telling me to have a good day. “Hey gorgeous,” Levon said, looking over at me sitting down on the edge of the cliff. Yale was stirring a huge pot beyond us and walked off. “Yale got a job?” I asked walking over and sit down next to him. “Yeah she’s our main cook.” He said not even looking over to her but focusing all his attention on me. “Why do you like me?” I said, tucking my hair behind my ears and looking at him with a straight face “Your beatiful.” He said leaning in and I felt my face turn red but I didn’t break eye contact with him weirdly. He got closer and stroked my cheek before leaning in to kiss me, and I kissed him back.

[scnsualforalphas]

Oliver did not even want to entertain the idea that Malik was simply using him, not for one second. While some might have called him naive, he was at least not naive enough not to realize it was a thought that should seem obvious to many people looking at this dynamic from the outside. He had been crushing on his brother's best friend for however long he could remember, basically since he'd started developing such urges in the first place. And besides all the playful teasing, Malik had always felt way out of his league; be it because of their age gap, the size difference, the vastly different levels of experience or the other's general promiscuous ways, Oliver had never honestly expected his schoolboy fantasies to turn real. So now that they had, maybe he was in fact gullible to be falling head over heels for a guy whose history clearly indicated that the young blonde would be dropped quickly and harshly, with Malik moving on to the next fresh piece of ass once he was bored of fucking Oli's. But whether it was naiveté or a deeper understanding of a connection that others might not see or understand, he simply refused to believe that Malik just sweet-talking him was even remotely a possibility. If he had not been before, Oliver was hopelessly devoted to the older male the moment he'd been deflowered by that impressively large cock, the moment that hot seed had flooded his previously virgin hole.

He was excited, yet oddly shy still, when washing the larger man's muscular body, almost as if he was cautious of doing anything wrong that would cause Malik to change his mind after all. However, it became undoubtedly clear that this was needless worry when the other returned the favor, and Oli found himself whimpering and moaning in pleasure both from the shameless strong hands of Malik, groping him and fingering that well-fucked and cum-filled hole, as well as those oh so sinful words whispered and groaned under the running water, dirty and possessive claims that Oliver was all too eager to confirm with needy nods - he was Malik's girl now, and the pride about that title outweighed his slight bashfulness when he realized just how public their lovemaking had been, blushing when the gym attendant reacted so awkwardly to their resurgence from the showers.

His heart was racing the entire time they drove to Malik's place; he had not been here all that often before, and the absence of his brother made it feel so very different. Being alone with Malik like this had Oliver giddy, nervous in the best way. He was truly the other's girl now, and as he nervously bit his lip with a nod when Malik told him to stay in the car, he nearly swooned when the passenger door opened and he took the taller man's hand. Seeing both a new gentlemanly side in the other, intertwining so seamlessly with the macho daddy that had Oli's youthful libido run high, was getting him excited in so many different ways. There barely was a moment to acknowledge that he was entering Malik's home with just the two of them present for the very first time, before he already was lifted off his feet, gasping in surprise and pleasure as he felt himself trapped between the wall and the other's muscular body, both of their shirts being ripped off and discarded, Oliver moaning eagerly into the hungry kiss as the passion exploded between them like it had been years, not minutes, since they last got to touch and kiss. The younger male's eyes lit up with happiness as Malik once again called him his girl, only for a deep arousal to be added to his gaze when the other added another title. His pussy. Oli could feel said pussy twitch with eagerness, the taller man's warm load still inside him, his entrance slick and tight, hot with need to feel the cock again that had taken his virginity and made any other's attempts to compete surely futile. Moaning and panting in blissful arousal, Oliver held on tightly to the other as he carried him through the house, the passion and lust too much to even make it to the bed. A whimper coming from the blonde's pink lips as he felt his Daddy's hardening member against his plump rear, feeling how hungry Malik was again already for his pussy. "I'm ready, Daddy", he promised, his voice hoarse, eager, probably not even exactly knowing what he was in for but fully certain that he wanted nothing more, had never wanted anything more than to be fucked by Malik, for the other's words to come true. "Your girl", he repeated with a proud smile. "I'm your girl... your pussy", he added, flustered.

To anybody looking in on the scene, they wouldn't understand the connection that had been forged between Malik and Oliver. It might seem extremely sudden or nonsensical, and those who maybe knew of Malik and his promiscuous ways and overtly machismo tendencies would argue that he was just saying and doing what he needed to do string Oliver along, that they had only just had a spur-of-the-moment hookup, how could that mean anything? But what he and Oliver knew in this shared, intimate moment - in a way that Malik couldn't fully explain - was that it was a moment that had been years in the making. Years of stolen glances and covert flirtations - an intimate dance between two people who were very much interested in one another but both playing it safe so that should the other not reciprocate, they had an easy exit. Things were made complicated by Oliver's older brother, Malik's closest friend. There had always been a chemistry between them- Malik tried his best to hide it, convincing himself that he was just enjoying the other's schoolboy crush on him, and although he enjoyed the attention and sometimes blurred the lines when he let himself get a little carried away with the other, deep down he knew that Oliver longed to be devoted to him, and Malik yearned to have someone who worshipped him like that and who he could devote himself to in return.

God, just the way Oli looked at him made him want to take the other then and there again, to brand him all over as his and protect him from anything and everything in the world that might ever dare to dim that glow. Years of yearning between them boiling to the surface. But Malik kept his composure, softly praising the other as he washed him off, clearly enjoying being able to freely roam the bigger male's full figure. When Oli finished, Malik took his own turn to wash the other, but his hands were far more shameless than the shorter male's had been. He let his arms wrap around the other, his hands grabbing at Oli's plentiful backside and kneading the muscle there, stealing small kisses from the other and also letting some of his fingers delve deeper and massage the other's well-fucked and still-slicked hole, murmuring sweet nothings and dirty declarations of how the other belonged to him in the most sinful ways. They finally finished showering, hardly able to keep each other's hands or lips off one another but Malik found the strength for both of them and lead them out of the shower. A gym attendant who had obviously been listening in on them cleared his throat and quickly scampered away and Malik laughed softly, clearly unashamed and never having worried once about the possible repercussions of their semi-public act. About twenty minutes later the two were dressed and jumping into Malik's truck, they spoke fondly and flirtily the entire time, Malik keeping the air between them light and playful, and ten minutes later Malik was pulling up outside of the house he had inherited from his parents. "Stay," he said to Oli simply as he climbed out of the large vehicle before walking around and opening the door for the other, taking his hand and then allowing him out. It was clear that he very much intended to treat the other exactly like he'd described, like his girl.

Malik lead them to the front entrance and the door was barely closed and Malik's bag had scarcely hit the ground before he lifted Oli up in his massive muscular arms and kissed him hungrily, lightly slamming the other against the nearest wall as he ripped both their shirts off in turn, needing to feel his skin against the other's more than anything else right now. "All mine," he grumbled softly, "My girl," he managed between passionate kisses as he now carried the other to his bedroom, "My pussy." With the heat and passion erupting between them, there wasn't any way he'd be making it to his bedroom and they tumbled onto the couch, Malik making sure to keep Oli on top of him, grinding his already re-hardened member against the other's voluptuous backside. This was the first time Oli had been in his home without his brother present- the first time the two of them had ever been truly alone, even without someone in the very next room and about to return. It felt sinfully good to kiss and touch and use Oli how he pleased now- his hands and lips and body almost moving of their own accord, like all of him had been planning, pining and waiting to have this opportunity with the shorter male. "Baby ... I kn- I know I just took your v-card but ... fuck ..." he breathed between kisses, "I hope you're ready because I'm fucking you until we both pass out," he promised.

[daisukefmd]

hey guys, it’s oli here, late as ever. sorry to be so tardy to the party, but work’s been kicking my ass for the past week ;-; but fortunately i have today and tomorrow off, so i’ll be around to plot and get some threads going! below the cut, you’ll find his background info, how he came to be an idol, present day stuff and everything in between. if you’re interested in plotting, just drop a like and i’ll shoot you a dm!

BACKGROUND

he’s the youngest of five children and he was born in kobe, japan. he’s always been a little bit on the more quieter side of things. his preschool teachers used to try to tell his parents that he was antisocial and wouldn’t interact with the other kids, but the truth was just that he was quiet and shy. his whole family is quiet and shy too, something his teachers found out when his parents came in for their meeting about daisuke. he was definitely a wall flower while he was growing up, which was pretty difficult to believe given the fact that he was always the tallest person in his class ever since he was a little kid. despite his height, he always managed to fade into the background.

he continued to fade into the background until he was about thirteen years old and he was scouted by a label in japan for his height and visuals. he was thrust into training, where they discovered that he had a pretty decent singing voice and they decided to make him the main vocal of that group. it was supposed to be an idol super group (think akb48 but with a bunch of guys instead). unfortunately the company lost more money than they gained and they ended up shutting down and his group disbanded before he could gain any real recognition with the public.

he had only been out of the group for a week before bc found him and asked his parents if they could take him to south korea to be in an idol group they were debuting. it didn’t take much to convince his parents, and a month later he was being shipped off to south korea. he arrived at the end of the summer in 2014 and officially joined bc entertainment as a trainee. 

being a foreigner made forming connections and bonds with others difficult for him as well. it didn’t help that he was socially awkward and tended to stick to himself when he wasn’t training or sitting through lessons. his first year and a half as a trainee was spent more or less on his own, which took a huge toll on his mental health at the time. he was lonely, but he had never really learned how to reach out and form friendships with one another. it didn’t help that he was so far away from his family, whom he had never spent more than a few days from at a time.

the year and a half mark brought along not only stronger korean language skills, but a certain comfortability being in south korea. he had grown used to it by then, and while he would have preferred to be home with his family, he had figured out a way to cope by just burying his negative feelings deep down until he didn’t really acknowledge them anymore. not the healthiest way to cope, but it was all he could do at the time. fortunately, on the brighter side of things, he had formed a handful of friendships that made being away from his family a little easier for him.

he had began to grow a little weary that his debut would never come because he had been a trainee for over two years, but then bc told him that he’d be participating in cloud6. usually, daisuke isn’t a competitive person, but he couldn’t lie and say that he didn’t give his all on the show. he knew that his personality fell flat, so he worked hard to make sure that his talent more than made up for his more subtle and underwhelming persona.

while he was praised by many for his hard work ethic and strong voice, he was attacked by just as many for being boring, some hateful comments even taking shots at his cultural background. while that was something he had been expecting, he wasn’t stupid enough to believe that everyone would be accepting of a foreigner, it did hit him very hard. he just wanted to sing and there he was, being attacked for something that he couldn’t even change.

despite all of that, he ended up ranking in third place on cloud6 and ended up debuting in cloud. he was happy to make it to the end, but he was also a little hesitant in his happiness because he was met with such criticism when his ranking was announced. people accused the show of rigging and giving daisuke his spot, and it made him question his own ranking for quite some time.  was his spot given to him? did he really earn it? those were thoughts that ran through his mind consistently, and still do whenever he’s in a particularly bad place mentally.

cloud’s success was a source of happiness for daisuke for a while - still is, however not as much. he was glad that they were being well received, but as the years dragged along, he couldn’t help but crave more. he wanted to start dipping his toes into other aspects of the entertainment industry, mainly creating his own music. he had learned a lot from the industry, and he wanted to step out of the realm that cloud had created for him and try out something new. he was given the opportunity to do so with his debut album and solo releases so far. however his next album will be completely his sound, different from anything cloud’s released before, and he’s excited that bc’s letting him experiment a bit more. 

DAISUKE’S OFFICIAL IMAGE 

while cloud’s overall image might be bright and refreshing, daisuke’s personality and persona don’t really fit into that category. on stage, he’s more than capable of putting out that vibe during performances, however once he steps foot off stage, he’s retreating back into his real self - quiet and reserved. despite bc trying consistently to bring him out of his shell during his trainee years and the first few months of cloud’s career, they eventually found an image that could work for him. daisuke’s job in cloud is to be the buffer. he’s the calm, cool and collected one. the mediator. he’s literally and figuratively the middle child of cloud. he balances the group out really well, adding a personality that’s the opposite of his group members’.

he’s marketed as mature, intelligent and hard working. the voice of reason in the group. respectful, the kind of guy your parents would trust their daughter with. a lot of cloud’s fans have even called him “regal” because of how he carries himself and speaks. the general public sees him as a strong vocalist, one of the better ones of the current k-pop generation, but they don’t know much about him aside from that. most of the time he makes headlines is because of his singing, and bc likes to keep it that way. there’s a slight air of mystery around him that makes him interesting enough to pay attention to. bc does have a habit of using that to their advantage whenever they can, and so far it has worked for daisuke. a lot of people are, surprisingly, drawn to his quiet demeanor and hard working attitude.

OTHER INFO

some people are a little intimidated by him because he’s not really smiley and he’s super tall (he’s about 6′5″) but he’s really not a bad guy. he’s just really quiet and shy, but if you can make your way through his shell, you’ll have a great friend. he loves his group members, although it may not seem like it because he’s not really affectionate, but he’s happy with them.

most people are shocked whenever he sings because his speaking voice is so deep and then he sings and that voice comes out of him lmao not to mention his physical appearance contradicts his singing

he knows that his stage name is ‘dai’ because it’s probably to make it easier for koreans to pronounce, but he hates it lmao he hates nicknames and pet names and anything of the like.

while he’s still a quiet guy that prefers to keep to himself, he’s not as much of a pushover as he used to be. he has a voice for himself, and he speaks up for himself when he needs to. 

[wreckofawriter]

Kid

Pairing: Oliver Wood x Reader

Word Count: 3,600

Warnings: None, swearing

Summary: Being the kid of Puddlemore United means that all the team mates see you as one, and in Oliver's case that means the girl he fell in love with does too

A/n: Ok in love this idea, but I'm pretty sure I butchered it. Any way reader is like 22, Oliver is 19 and reader moved from America to play for Puddlemore.

Oliver could feel his heart racing far too fast for comfort. His face was flushed with excitement and nerves. He could see his breath in the air and feel the chilled wind fill his lungs as he puffed in and out. 

And then he could see her. The quaffle was stuck under her arm as she ducked around a streak of blue. She was going to make it to him. 

His senses heightened a stern look of concentration finding a home on his features. She was close now. But he knew what was going to happen. She had done it twice already. She was much better at shooting right than left. She would make to shoot left, lastsecond changing her course.

So he did the same, jerking left before racing towards the other hoop. He could see you out of the corner of his eye awaiting for his pass. 

She did just as predicted. Oliver moved left before speeding to the right hoop hitting the quaffle with his broom towards you. You caught it easily sending him a grateful smile before darting the other way. 

Oliver watched you go in amazement, a small smile finding his lips as he watched you dodge the other team with ease. A slight sigh escaped his lips the world around you falling away. 

"Wood!" Willams shouted bringing the boys attention back. "Keep your head in the game! We can't afford to lose." 

You didn't.

Puddlemore United was now in the Britsh and Irish league finals. Oliver had reached the ground before you and you had flown straight into him tackling him to the ground with a hug. 

"Yes Oli!" You shouted as the crowd around you cheered, "You're amazing!" 

Oliver's face was set aflame by your touch, his heart beating so quickly he though it might fall from his chest. 

"Amazing Kid!" You laughed before standing to go congratulate the others. 

The nickname you used stabbed through him like a shard of glass and he felt his heart sink in attempts to avoid it.

He stood up brushing off his uniform and grabbing his broom as he watched you jump on to the back of Benjy with a sharp pain of envy. 

"At least their the same age." He mumbled to himself their win suddenly meaning nothing as the overwhelming reality of his desperate love life became obvious. 

"You know your only three years apart." 

Oliver jumped turning beside him to see Jocelid Wadcock, their seeker, beside him. 

The boy scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably attempting to avoid her persistent eye contact, "I'm sorry who are you talking about?"

Jocelid rolled her eyes smiling, "We all know you have a thing for y/l/n." 

Oliver felt his face heat up again, "W-what?" He swallowed harshly. 

"Please Wood, it's so obvious that the fans even picked up on it, and their denser than bricks." 

Oliver dropped his act in sudden fear "Does she know?!" Panic edged from his voice in an uncomfortable wave as the pair slowly made their way back to the changing room. 

"No, no, of course not." Jocelid laughed, "Y/n may be one of the smartest girls I've ever known, but she's even more dense than the fans, especially with feelings." 

"Thank Merlin." The Keeper breathed out in relief.

"Just tell her soon, she wouldn't believe any of us." 

"Ok- wait. What?!" 

Jocelid laughed before speeding up and  leaving Oliver behind. 

"I'm telling you this is a great idea." You huffed, "it's been so long since we've had a break." 

"Y/n you know if you go anywhere there are going to be fanboys following you around like lost puppies." Your manager Deverill explained. 

"What if we go to a muggle bar?" You questioned hopefully.

The manager sighed. You had been pestering him about a celebration since before you had even won, and you were very prisitant. 

"Please?" You widen your eyes, pouting your lips and raising your eyebrows. 

Oliver who had been behind Deverill choked on his water at the adorable pout that had taken you visage. 

Deverill sighed, "Fine." 

You squealed loudly leaping into a hug. 

"But." 

Your excitement stopped just as quickly as it started. 

"Oliver can't drink." 

"What?! We could just pretend he's 21, a simple flick of the wand an-" 

"Uh-uh." Deverill shook his head, "I can not have the golden boy of our team getting caught drinking under age." 

"But-" 

"Its okay y/n." Oliver cut in, "I don't need to drink anyway, I've got you to entertain me." 

"You sure Oli?" You asked.

"I'm sure." He grinned back encouragingly.

"You're the best Kid." You smiled standing on your toes and ruffling his hair. 

Oliver felt his heart clench at the everlasting nickname, casting his eyes downward to avoid your gaze. 

You didn't seem to notice, bouncing away to spread the good news.

Oliver was the third to arrive. He didn't know why, but an overwhelming sense of nerves flowed through him like a river through its bed. 

The truth was you had never really hung out outside of quidditch related events. No one on the team had. So the idea of just going to a bar with you seemed nerve wracking. 

He sat down at a booth already occupied by Willams and Jocelid. He made small talk mostly talking about past matches or upcoming ones. Soon others arrived and Oliver occupied himself by glancing nervously at the door. 

Jocelid who was seated beside him glanced at his bouncing leg and bit back a smirk. "You okay Wood?" 

"Um what? Oh yeah I'm fine." He lied eyes turning quickly towards the doors as he heard them open. 

"Ahhh." Jocelid sighed, "I understand now. Your nervous to see y/n." 

"What- I'm- No-" He tried to formulate a sentence, but the words wouldn't fall into place as they normally would. He bit his tongue angrily, pausing before taking a breath and attempting to cool his cheeks which seemed to have been light aflame. "Why does she call me Kid?" He finally managed.

Just then the door swung open and your giggle graced his ears. 

Jocelid smiled, "Because you let her." And with that she stood to greet you. 

Oliver huffed turning to face you. His breath caught in his throat when his eyes locked with your deep y/e/c eyes. 

You were adorned in a simple peach dress who's loose skirt fell just above your knees, a denim jacket on your shoulders as you stood an extra 3 inches off the ground because of your matching wedges. 

"Hey Kid!" You yelled across the small room bouncing just as easily over to him in your heeled shoes as you would in sneakers. 

Jocelid glanced at him silently begging him to say something. 

"H-hey." He stumbled lightly over his words, blushing as you ruffled his hair. 

"Look!" You exclaimed, "I don't have to stand on my toes to do this anymore, I should wear these all the time."

Oliver was sure, if you touched his cheeks you would have burnt your finger. His heart was erratic and he couldn't breathe properly. It was like your intoxicating scent had caused him an allergic response.

"Wow Oli, your hair is so soft." You mumbled quietly, completely intrigued by the smooth texture of his brown locks. 

Oliver almost fainted, he attempted to open his mouth to thank you but found his lips had been glued shut by some unknown force. 

Your eyes dropped from his head to his to his soft brown eyes. Your piercing gaze froze the poor boy and he gasped quietly as if the air had been sucked from his lungs. 

Y/e/c started into brown for just a moment too long and Oliver fought the incredible urge to glance down at your lips. He lost. His eyes flicked downwards, a peach lipstick stained your lips, which bore a small smile, they looked so smooth, so soft, so kissable. His mind clouded with thoughts of how they would feel, on his own, how they would feel grazing his skin. 

He tore his eyes back upward to meet your own, which seemed to hold a new emotion he was much less accustomed to. He flushed brightly still unable to tear his gaze from yours. 

"Partner up people they've got a pool table!" Benjy bellowed from the other room and you both suddenly realized you weren't alone in the world. 

You squealed one excitement, suddenly back to your usual hyperactive self. "Awesome! Oli, you can be my partner." 

"What the hell is a pool doing in a bar?" He asked, attempting to move on from the moment you had shared as easily as you had seemed to.

"No silly, a pool table." You giggled snatching Oliver's hand and dragging towards a second warmly lit room. "Its a game, you'll like it." 

"Oh." He mumbled feeling quite stupid. 

Oliver was unsurprisingly amazing at pool. He had never even touch a pool cue before yet once you showed him how to do it. He was unstoppable. 

"What the hell Oliver." Adams huffed half impressed half aggravated as the keeper sunk his fourth ball in a row. 

You on the other hand, who had worked through three martinez and was working on a fourth, screeched with joy. Jumping from the table you were seated on stumbling. 

Oliver cursed dropping his cue and rushing towards you catching you before you hit the ground. 

You were unfazed by the close call and instead wrapped your arms around his neck snuggling in as close to him as possible. "Your amazing Kid!" You yelled into his chest. 

"This tournament is a bust" Adam's complained, "Wood and America are unstoppable, even when one of them is piss drunk." 

"I am not piss drunk!" You exclaimed pushing Oliver away from you as if to prove it. Unfortunately you tripped again swearing, "I'll just take off my shoes." You slurred bending down to do so. 

A series of whistles and calls came from the bar as you did so. Oliver gave the men who sat there a confused glance before tracing their eyes which now lay on your half exposed ass. 

"Fuck y/n!" He cursed scrambling over to you and turning you around, "How about you sit down on the booth and I'll take off your shoes?" He offered turning his head to glare at the men sitting at the bar. 

Some just rolled their eyes, one flipped him off. Oliver's anger strengthened, he lead you over to the booth. 

"I can do it Kid." You mumbled. 

Oliver felt his hair stand on end as you let the nickname he hated so much slip past your lips. Jocelids words echoed in his head. Because you let her. It's not like he handed youhis nickname along with his heart, they just seemed to go hand and hand, "Its fine it's faster if I do it." He sighed as he slipped off your wedges. 

"That's what she said." You giggled.

Oliver smiled softly helping you back to your feet. "You good?" He asked. 

"Great." You laughed, bouncing away from him. 

"Hey!" Willams yelled excitedly, "What if we had America and Kid play each other?" 

There was a chorus of agreements throughout the small room. 

"Don't call me that" Oliver huffed. 

"Why not U.S over their gets to?" He smirked. 

"You see he's not in love with you though." Adams cut in. 

"I am not-" he sighed deeply, "Whatever, it's not very fair, y/n's smashed." 

"So she's kicking our asses." Jocelid chimed. 

"Yeah your not scared of me are you Oli?" You questioned suddenly appearing beside him. 

"Alright fine, just don't get mad when it's a short game." He shrugged. Grabbing his cue from the ground and heading to the table. 

"I do intend it to be short." You smirked. 

"Alright love birds let's stop with the pathetic attempt of trash talk and get to the game." Benjy cut in handing you your cue as Oliver reset the table. 

Behind you you could hear arrangement of bets being made, "I need a coffee." You murmured. 

"On it." Jocelid spoke, "I've got 20 gallons on you y/n/n I don't intend to lose." 

"Twenty!" Oliver shouted from across the table. 

"Oh yeah Kid. You haven't seen this girl play yet, she's gonna wipe the floor with you." 

"Don't call me-" 

"Yeah, yeah I know." She scoffed before darting out the door. 

"You wanna break?" You offered attempting to clear your head. 

"Sure." Oliver shrugged again. He bent over the table and you almost choked as a strange realization hit you. Oliver was hot. You had always known he was cute, but now as his blue button up shirt stretched over his muscular shoulders you began to take in the reality of his physical form. 

Of course being pretty drunk you didn't keep this to yourself, "Damn Kid when'd you get hot?" 

Your words processed through Oliver's brain just as he shot and he was in such shook his grip slipped and the break couldn't even qualify as such. 

Oliver couldn't have cared less about the game anymore, "W-what did you just say?" 

"Nothin' your just hot." 

Flames erupted onto the boys cheeks as you shrugged. 

"My turn!" You gasped excitedly moving on completely from your conversation.  

Oliver stayed where he stood staring at the spot which you had occupied moments before, trying to calm his heart which was racing uncontrollably.

"Don't let the girl get in your head!" Willams shouted from the booth. 

Oliver snapped back to reality shaking his head lightly and switching his gaze back to you. 

You bent over the table carefully closing one eye and setting up your shot. Oliver tried not to be distracted by the way the tip of your tongue poked from between your lips, or the way the short dress you were wearing revealed your upper thighs as you bent to align your shot.

The clink of the cue hitting the other balls brought him back and he watched as two stripes fell onto their place. 

You sat back up smirking. "That's how it's done." 

Oliver smiled looking down, "It's your shot again." He chuckled.

"Oh right!" You exclaimed before walking back around the table. 

It went back and forth for a while, you still ahead two balls, Oliver caught up quick but once you go some coffee in you you managed to keep a lead. 

You still weren't yourself though. You found yourself watching Oliver with a close interest. You found yourself wondering what he looks like without that button up on. It didn't help when you passed closely by him and you suddenly caught a whiff of his cologne. Alcohol was nothing next to the intoxicating scent he emitted. You suddenly found yourself edging towards him. You shook your head as another crude thoughts filled your brain. 

"I have got to stop drinking." You mumbled.

The game ended as intense as pool gets. Both of you were down to nothing but the eight ball. You had lost your lead when Oliver had "fallen" (pushed by Willams) onto you right before the shot. You were given another one but you couldn't seem to focus. 

You swore watching where the cue landed, it was a ridiculous shot and you growled in frustration. You contemplated your best move before sighing and muttering a defeated, "Fuck it." Under your breath. 

You lined up your shot, biting your lip and shooting. The 8 bounced off of the felt across from it and thunked lightly into the bottom right corner. 

You cheered Jocelid laughed running and hugging you as Willams cursed. You pulled from your hug and turned towards Oliver. 

He suddenly looked so different, not like a kid, but a man. He was smiling slightly. "Good game y/n." He spoke sticking out his hand. 

"Good game Kid." You responded, taking his hand in yours. 

You almost jumped at the electricity that seemed to transfer from the touch. Oliver looked unfazed.

You expected the strange feeling to wear off, they would be gone and a hangover would replace them, but that wasn't the case. You had gone to practice that day with a headache and a fluttering feeling in your stomach. Practice helped clear your mind as you focused on nothing but the quaffle. 

After practice was a different story. You landed easily on the ground, a breath of air releasing you as your feet came in contact with the ground. You had decided to take an extra hour to work on maneuvers, considering your last game you had had some pretty close calls with bludgers. 

You walked into the locker rooms expecting it to be empty, but your eyes went wide when you say it wasn't. 

Your broom clattered to the floor, a hot rush climbing to your cheeks. Your heart thumped loudly rattling your ribcage as wings took flight in your stomach, making you want to vomit. 

Oliver stood in front of you bright red, his hair dripping as a white towel was wrapped around his waist. You traced his chest, slamming your eyes shut once you realised what you were doing. 

"Oh Merlin, I-Im so sorry, I was just, and I thought it was empty, so sorry again Kid." The nickname left your lips feeling funny, like a puzzle piece that didn't quite fit.

Oliver's expression of embarrassment seemed to be captured lightly by frustration. 

"Why do you call me that?" He asked.

You tilted your head in confusion attempting to keep your eyes at his own.

"Kid. Why do you call me Kid?" He repeated.

"Umm I," you paused unsure of your answer, "You're younger than me, it's just a nickname." 

"I'm only three years younger than you." He had taken a step towards you and now it was becoming far more difficult to keep your eyes above his neck. "I'm not just some kid." 

"I know Oli," You blushed eyes flicking down then up quickly.

Oliver groaned through his teeth, "I don't think that you have ever called me by name either." Frustration had oberwhenemed his embarrassment and it was as if he had forgotten the emotion entirely. How come you couldn't just see him as a person? Why were you so insistent that he was a kid?  Was he truly that juvenile?

You weren't sure what to say, Oliver had now come closer to you and you quickly realized that his infatuaing scent was not cologne but his shampoo. And now his hair damp freshly washed, he smelled of it so strongly your head spun. You stumbled for a sentence, but you seemed to choke miserably on your own hot embarrassment. Finally you scenes, "I didn't m-mean to make you seem weak or childish in front of the team, it was just a nickname." 

Oliver chuckled biting his lower lip, "I don't care what they think." He explained 

"Then?-" 

"Because I care what you think." He whispered. 

You resisted the urge to shudder, your stomach was doing flips and you weren't sure if you wanted to run straight at the keeper or far away from him. 

"What is it going to take to change the way you think of me? He asked, his voice was deep and husky. He was now so close you could have reached out and touched him. Your heart was either beating so fast, its beats were inaudible or had stopped completely.

"What's it going to take?" 

Apparently that was all it took. You couldn't handle it anymore, whether he meant to or not he was driving you completely insane. You were sure your mind would have melted if you had been held under that tension for even a moment longer. You took as step forward grabbing the nape of his neck and slamming his lips onto yours. 

Fireworks didn't explode, fire didn't rage, sparks didn't fly. Quite the opposite happened. All of that tension and frustration was suddenly released and the world went still. 

Nothing existed but you and him, your hands tracing down his bare chest as you bit lightly on his lip. He moaned and you took it as an opportunity to slide your tongue between his lips. His taste was overwhelming, mint and sweat mixed making you crave more. His hands closed around your waist tightly, his heart finally beating at a normal speed as you stood in his arms. 

You pulled apart gasping for air, your lips swollen. A light blush took your features and Oliver couldn't help but feel his heart soar at the sight.

Now as frustration drained from his body as blood would from a wound, embarrassment found its place. He suddenly became very aware of his lack of clothing, and you hand which still rested lightly on his chest felt white hot. 

His own cheeks flushed brightly taking a step back and scratching the back of his neck, "I ummm, uhh, I'm sorry, I didn't-" His search for a sentence was cut short as you lightly placed your hand on his arm. 

"You know your kinda stupid right?" You giggled. 

Oliver felt a fresh wave of red coat his cheek in a wave of heat. 

"I kissed you dumbass, what do you have to apologize for?" 

"Umm, I just-" Oliver suddenly felt trapped, you had kissed him? Why couldn't he seem to process that? 

"Well are you gonna kiss me this time or  do I have to do it again?" You smirked. 

Oliver couldn't help the small smile that crept onto his face as he leaned forward and reconnected your lips. 

Taglist:

@accio-rogers

@roslea

@k3nz-doodl3

Masterlist

[theelliottsmiths]

So anyway, Mein Herz Brennt Making of liveblog, one of my favourites

First of all, I do take any use of piano MHB as a slight towards my tiny hands. -1 point

I really would love to visit this place, it's beautiful

I love that Oli introduces it and then Till is straight in there talking about murder and stabbings. Trust that to be what intrigues him. I feel like 'smells like murder' isn't a direct translation but that's purely because I spent like ten minutes trying to work out what words he says. It rhymes, which is suspicious.

Oh this was before he let his chest piercing reject all the way out in the grossest way

When schneider says Krankenhaus it sounds very Geordie and I'm convinced that kind of thing is why Auf Wiedersehen, Pet was created

Richards eyes light up when he's talking about the room he's in and it's one of those looks where it's just. I would love to listen to anything anyone has to say when their eyes have that sparkle.

"the scavengers had already been here" cue Paul talking about his criminal past thieving from there. See, another example everyone forgets of him being the biggest bastard of them all. The smile is a front.

One of my favourite ever Rammstein things is the combined joy and mockery from Paul when Richard is revealed to be wearing the bird mask and it wiggles as he nods. He looks like a little black cockatoo. Richard looks embarrassed to be wearing it but Paul is having the time of his LIFE.

The way is echoes in his mask makes him sound like he's clucking

Flakes glasses perching in his cone make him look like that sesame Street doctor or scientist

They all suit this make up so much and I wish they'd consider it as a stage look

Peck. Not intimidated.

Considering the nightmares Till has/had, ouch

Richard looks so much like a little vampire prince but like, a character from what we do in the shadows. He makes his own smokescreen entry/exist and everything.

Melanie!!!

Richard has many tendons in his neck huh.

The sounddd. I used to always be curious as to whether or not people in music videos were making the sounds it looks like they're making and now I know and I'm uncomfortable. This and also later when till does the heart

His laugh is never what I expect it to be

That uh. That doesn't look like he's in pain the way the injection sounds implied. At all. Not that I'm complaining but it gives mixed messages.

I'm so sure Richard is the only one I've ever heard use the word quasi. It makes sense for him if true but maybe I only notice because of the tone he uses? His is quite a punchy nasal tone it might just be more noticeable.

Till with kids is always the most adorable wonderful thing. He's really helping to keep them relaxed despite the creepiness of the stuff they're shooting.

"if you look at the cover then you'll recognise a morbidity to the whole thing" till, my darling, do you think people don't already ~see the morbidity~?

I googled and the lady doesn't pronounce renaissance with a g like Till does and that interests me. In fairness I have to assume it's like in Norwegian how words like restaurant are pronounced with a g sound because it's closer to the French sounds? It's not like we in English donut the French way either but the Google translate lady does. This is why I always suspect that when I'm learning a language I'm learning the language wrong and at some point I'll find out there's a Real, For Adults version if the language that's totally different. This is irrelevant. Accents are fun and I like being able to notice them.

It feels so strange seeing this knowing what Eugenio did

Paul taking pictures because he knows better than them

Something about a child saying "ah yes, I know Till and Flake very well" is hysterical.

You can feel the dismay and disapproval radiating off till as he tries to be diplomatic about the Spanish understanding of linear time. He struggles to find a positive and only comes up with the fire walls. "It should have gone out before we filmed anything because they were fucking around with the playback so long but it didn't" is his only compliment.

The German word for French is wild.

Do they know they could have hired an interpreter? Interpreters existed in 2012 I know this

This whole thing with Melanie is beautiful you can't deny that the arm Eugenio made with then was lovely.

Till in the dress with Melanie in his lap. I don't off the top of my head remember seeing it in either video so I simply must assume that it was just what he was wearing that day when he showed up. She's so tiny on his knee I'm glad they're still friends.

"you're left in a state of trauma when everyone stares at you all the time" did this need to get so heavy? It's interesting that he focused more on her voice than her appearance there, though in fairness it's pretty high

They all love her so much and it's totally understandable.

Mit rock n roll und cola trinken

I have to skip the screaming the secondhand embarrassment is too much.

Part 2

Again, this liveblog is so long

Sometimes Oli speaks like his body isn't used to talking.

I want, so badly, to know if Richard was having memories of his dreadlocked youth The tiny cup in his elegant hand is so pleading and then you look left and. It sure is something.

Are they freckles or acne scars across Tills shoulders?...cute. The first set of arm/chest wounds, not so much. I do spy his lil tummy scar

Richard does look like he almost swooped in for a kiss and then changed his mind because of the camera. Paul turns his head that way and then Richard tries to save with a step back and face rub (his own). Just saying.

The fact that a few of them have taken pictures on their personal phones warms my soul it's such a nice reminder that they're good friends outside of work and My Heart

Schneider and Paul ready at a moment's notice to be Dumbasses. J'adore.

What if Zoran was more of a background character tho actually

God, schneider is beautiful. An ethereal, pure beauty that exists no matter how he's being styled.

See okay how is flake almost taller than Oli right now he's not even doing his standard open legs and swan spine thing

It must be so hard to find Oli sized clothes. Flake is also tall and slim but he's a lot more leg, whereas Olis height seems largely to be torso. I have to assume a lot of his stuff is tailored or custom made now.

I always forget about the marks on tills back when he's in the nightmare dress

The child staring with great confusion at a bright red flake reading. I would love to know what his favourite books are.

The childs plural poking and prodding at a very patient Oli, who gracefully bends his spine in ways I've never seen a human do before. I wonder if he's ever dressed up as Lurch from the Addams family.

The actress playing the woman in this half is so beautiful and has a power her younger counterpart lacked when she was threatening him with her weapon.

I am a dummy and was like weird why is Paul speaking Norwegian. I know full well he wasn't saying unnskyld because I've heard Germans say their equivalent before and I assume Entschuldigen either sounds like that fast or shortens so what the fuck, rhi

Till guiding people through him murdering them is truly one of life's greatest pleasures. They trust him so completely. I would like to watch them dance the elegance would be astounding.

Paul lurking watching with what I choose to see as pride as till slaughters an old woman.

Paul being critical (again, as always, rightly so) of the hallway mouthing the lyrics decision.

"for this in prepared to make compromises" he says, hating every bitter word of it

I would like to know what he wanted to say about till and then see him get into trouble over it.

I would like to see till in a bouncy castle. He's adorable jumping into the comfy pit I want to see him in a bouncy castle. Child, utter child.

Paul takes every opportunity to say how hot he thinks they all are and I love that about him. Sometimes your friends are all hot and everybody needs to understand that fact.

Their approaches to pretending to play cello are all so uniquely them. Flake and Richard are taking the time to try and understand what they're being told, whereas Paul just fucking. Lays into it, attracting the weirdest looks from Oli. Richard looks beautiful with that cello and I think he should learn to play. For fun not for work. It's not just that he looks so handsome, but I think that's the easiest way to convince him. I think he'd be good at it, and not being the lead at something might be good for him.

I appreciate that Oli is skeptical because yeah they do all look like they've never held a cello before.

They do, however, all look lovely in their dresses. I'm trying but actually I can't not say that Schneiders little sternum dip makes it seem like he has breasts in that dress and it's a good look for him.

Till singing it in such a high voice, more like his speaking voice, is both interesting and lovely. Oli is trying... So little compared to the others. Laughably incorrect

Why yes, I am laughing at the sheer length of the spikes. They're just... They're so fucking long. So long.

Paul is actually probably the best one there, ironically. They're all comically out of time. They're professional musicians. I know they aren't used to bowed instruments I do understand and I don't want to be uncharitable but also they are struggling. I want to see cellists react to this.

Pretty dresses! And the nightmare but with the most awful and worst fingers! Like the Grinch but goth.

Both Schneider and Richard had the same neverending shoot idea and I am Intrigued.

Till waiting for Schneider with the umbrella :)

Wir brennen! Paul is always so happy to play with fire.

[misteria247]

The meeting room was crowded with gods and goddesses of all sorts, their voices booming over one another as they fought to speak to one another. Among them sat the Trickster God himself Loki, who watched them all with a hint of annoyance as he sucked on a sucker. The meeting had been a last minute idea and every god and goddess was to attend it, leaving the poor trickster stuck with his less than friendly acquaintances. Sitting next to him was the Goddess of destruction, Kali. The young woman was glaring at her fellow immortals, looking ready to snap at them should they not get the meeting started. With only a moment to spare the meeting had finally been called to order, the room falling silent.

"I know that this meeting has been called together on short notice but I've been informed by a.....contact of mine of a situation that has occurred."

The God known as Odin spoke, his voice loud and demanding the uttermost attention. The Trickster bit back the urge to sigh while Kali scoffed a bit.

"Well pray tell what is the situation Odin? I have places to be and offerings to collect."

Another God spoke out irritated by the abrupt summons. Odin shot the god a look and was about to retort when the doors to the meeting room burst open, a fierce wind accompanying it. The room went into a dead silence as a familiar figure strolled into the room. The Trickster stiffened as his golden hues landed on the figure and he couldn't help but bite back the curse that wanted to come out. There among the immortals was none other than Death. Loki swallowed hard and the other gods and goddesses began to whisper in slight panic or fear.

"What's he doing here?"

"Has he come to slaughter us all??"

"How could Odin involve him?!?"

Voices echoed in the room. Death paid no attention to them, instead calmly making his way to Odin's side to take the stage. Death's blank stare flickered over to Loki and narrowed, his eyes holding a knowing look in them. The Trickster shivered slightly.

'He knows....oh dear Father he knows.'

The thought whispered in his mind making him sweat. To his relief the reaper didn't say anything about him but rather looked away to stare at the rest of the room.

"The situation he was addressing is one of uttermost importance. One that should it not be fixed will be disastrous to us all."

Death said his voice a raspy rattle. The room seemed to be holding its breath waiting for the reaper to continue.

"The Goddess Life has been taken from her post.....by a Winchester."

Death finished. The room erupted into chaos within moments, the voices now even louder than they were previously. The Trickster sat in his seat stunned and feeling sick to his stomach. He knew who Life was, he knew about her role from the moment of her creation. He knew about the Winchesters and what they were to bring in the future. The thought of Life being with a Winchester......

'We're so screwed.'

He thought as he realized just how bad this could get should Life continue to remain running around with one of the starters of the apocalypse.

"So what does this have to do with us??"

Kali asked knocking Loki from his thoughts to pay more attention to what was happening.

"I'm asking for your assistance. Bring me the Goddess Life, and you shall be spared from my scythe."

Death stated simply, not bothering to sugarcoat what would happen should they refuse to help him. The gods and goddesses went quiet as the threat hung in the air. After a beat of silence Odin finally spoke up.

"We will help retrieve her."

He said his voice grave and slightly rocky. At this point Loki had heard enough and with a flick of his hand he replaced himself with a clone and disappeared from the meeting. Once out of sight he snapped out his wings, the golden feathers glistening slightly before taking off into the night. He had to get to Life and the Winchester first before his fellow immortals got to them first.

'Father help me this is going to be a pain in the ass.'

~~~~~

Sam Winchester looked over towards the passenger seat an amused smile on his face while he drove through the countryside. His partner Olidia was singing to the radio, her window rolled down as she took in the fresh air. The sun shore brightly, adding a nice touch to the peaceful atmosphere in the car. The duo were heading towards a new destination, the open road stretched out in front of them.

'I've got that old time Rock and Roll~!'

Olidia sang her heart out bringing a small chuckle out of Sam. It was amusing to the witch to see the Goddess have fun. Ever since the two of them were forced to run from hunters and other creatures Olidia had been trying to experience everything she'd never got to when she'd been living in her forest. One of those experiences had been listening to music from different time periods and she'd taken quite a liking to them. The young man watched as his friend enjoyed herself, a fondness warming him. Seeing the young woman having a great time made him happy. Feeling his eyes on her Olidia flickered her dark brown eyes towards him and gave him a bright smile.

"What's up?"

She asked her voice chipper. Sam quickly shook his head a slight blush coming onto his cheeks from embarrassment at having been caught staring.

"Nothing just got lost in thought."

He responded with a smile. Olidia just gave a small nod of understanding before going back to singing her song. The hunter took a moment to spare one last look at her, noting the way the sun made her long curls glow auburn, and the freckles that decorated her pale cheeks. Her outfit which had once consisted of outdated togas and plants weaved into her hair was now nothing more but a plain t-shirt and a pair of well worn jeans and cowboy boots. Yet even with the simple new look he couldn't deny that she was beautiful. And seeing her being so bubbly and cheery made him want to protect her. Olidia was his family at this point just like Dean was and the witch would be damned if he allowed anything to happen to her and her chipper smile.

'I'll keep you safe Oli. That's a promise, even if it kills me you'll be safe.'

He'd keep her safe, just as she'd done for him. She was his family after all, and he loved her just as much as she loved him. As Sam's eyes flickered back to the road he failed to notice that Olidia looked back at him, taking him in. The goddess noticed how messy his long brown hair was from the wind and the way the sun made his eyes light up in their hazel glory. Sam looked like the perfect picture of happiness and it made her heart soar in joy. Just like Sam, seeing the hunter looking at peace made Olidia just as happy if not even more so. It wasn't often that the witch was so at peace. Between trying to get John off of their trail and the hunts he still went on with her assistance, the young man had barely anytime to truly relax and enjoy the world around him. Which was why Olidia had made it her personal mission to give Sam as many happy moments as he'd given her.

From the moment Olidia had met the kind hearted Winchester, he'd made her happy. Sam had opened up a doorway to a whole new world of possibilities that she never dreamed of having. All of her life she'd known nothing but her forest and Death who came to visit occasionally. She never knew anything else other than the sheltered life she'd lived. Up until she'd met Sam and started to teach him in the ways of nature and magic, Olidia had never realized how truly alone she'd felt. The isolation of being in her home, the longing to be apart of the world that she helped keep alive. It was unbearable, the emotions she'd buried for so long coming back to the surface. Then Sam appeared, in all of his awkward tall glory. A man who just like her felt isolated and longed for something more than what he had. For the first time in her long life Olidia felt like she belonged somewhere. No longer was she the only one who didn't belong, but rather she'd found her place and it was at the side of Sam Winchester.

'I wonder if you truly realize how much you changed my life. How much you made my long existence finally feel like it's worth it.'

She thought quietly as she turned her gaze back outside to watch the world pass her by. Olidia would do anything to help Sam and keep him happy. He was her best friend and her family. Smiling softly to herself she began to sing to the next song, only this time Sam's voice joined hers making her small smile bloom.

'I'll do everything I can to keep that smile on your face Sam. I'll have your back and keep you safe just as you've done for me, I swear it.'

With that promise locked away into her heart as well as the promise locked away in Sam's own, the two continued onwards towards their destination, unaware of the plans that was in store for them.

*I honestly don't even know. Okay so I've grown to really like this concept and I've been dying to do some writing practice because I've got literally things mentally planned out somewhat for my two Azul x Reader series and my two Malleus x Reader series however I've been having trouble figuring out how to make it make sense if you catch my drift. So I decided to just go with this and get some practice in so I can actually get my brain cell to cooperate with me shdhdhfhh. Anyways y'all probably know who the lovely gentleman in the beginning was lmfao. Anyways if any y'all read this I hope you enjoyed it!*

[whichwaytowonderlandep]

Evermore | Ch. 1

Pairings: (Yoongi/Reader)

Genre: Romance, Angst

Words: 3,638

Tags: Beauty and The Beast AU, Modern au, eventual smut, drug mentions (sort of)

Series: The Disney Series

Chapter One

Your hand flew out of the sheets, flying across the side of the bed blindly before you finally made contact with the annoying device that had decided to wake you up at the ungodly hour of six in the afternoon. Too early for you. 

You let out a loud groan, feeling slightly buzzed as the hangover from last night comes at you in full force. The sounds of the cars running and the people having fun outside of your apartment building filtered into your small and run down apartment. 

You don’t remember much of last night, having completely checked out of your body as the night progressed, you continued to work the streets until the ungodly hour of three in the morning. 

You get up from your bed, bones cracking as you smack your dry lips together. One of your hands comes up from under the covers as you push your tangled hair out of your face. The warm air coming from the fan in the corner doing little to stop you from sweating like hell while you slept during the day. 

You knew your roommate must’ve been here during the day by the leftover weed smell that continued to linger in the air coming from the kitchen. You ignore it, already having been used to the smell before you move to the bathroom. 

Your eyes instantly meet your unruly hair as you really take a look at yourself, seeing all the makeup from last night still on your face — smudged and not at all pleasant looking. 

You decide to get ready for the night, taking a long cold shower as the knots that had formed under all that stress and that hard as a rock bed wasn’t helping make matters any better. 

The heavy metal music and the sound of cars honking filling in the silence as you got ready in the sluttiest clothing you could find in the shared closet you and your roommate, Olivia had. You had promised her to finally join her tonight, after weeks of asking you finally agreed to join her and maybe make some money on the side while you were at it. 

A tight, black dress that landed too far from your knee but that still left something to the imagination. Your makeup was done heavy — black eyeshadow and eyeliner, as well as dark red lipstick coloring your lips as you made your way out of your apartment… through your window. 

It’s not that your door didn’t work well, it was the people behind said door that you were wanting to avoid. Your rent was due soon and your front door neighbor had this thing about grabbing your ass every time he saw you. So, climbing out of a three story apartment window and into your fire escape seemed like the safer choice of the two at the moment. 

You make your way down the street, heels clicking loudly as your hips sway side to side. The dirty streets of the city were filled with late night party goers, drug addicts looking to score and ladies of the night looking to make a quick buck. Your smile flirts with the man you pass, throwing small waves at the ones who almost break their neck to get a glimpse of your ass. You break out in a giggle as one of them trips over his friends.  

Your hair bounces on your shoulders as you quickly make it down the street, catching sight of your friend’s bright purple hair. “Oli!” You shout her name as you stand a few meters away from her, waving your arms around as you try to get her attention from the other side of the street.

Olivia Alvarez was an old friend from the days before you became a college drop out — her following you right along. What mostly attracted you to her was her loud as fuck personality and her will to give less fucks in any situation. “I’ll talk to you later baby, my girl is here.” She pats the guy on the ass, startling him slightly before moving to wrap her hands around you as you ran towards her. 

“I haven’t seen you since yesterday!” You exclaim, hugging her tightly. You let go of her as you wrap a hand around her shoulders. “Where have you been, buddy?” 

“Oh you know…” Oli wiggles her eyebrows, making an action zip her lips and throwing the key away. “A lady never reveals her conquests.” She whips her hair around as she wraps her arm around your waist. Her height making it possible for her to lay her head on your shoulder with no problems — leading the both of you to stand at the corner of the street. 

“Manny was looking for you again last night” you say, watching her smile quickly disappear from her lips. “Told him you left the country… again.” 

“Yeah, well next time you see him, tell him that I died.” Oli ‘s heavy Argentinian accent coming out as memories of him come to mind. “And that my body was cremated, that you scatter my ashes into the ocean so that I may find my way back home and blah blah blah” 

You chuckle at her dramatic ways, finally separating from her as the catcalling around the two of you becomes even more noticeable. “You’ll be fine, just avoid him for a couple of more days and he’ll get bored… eventually.” 

“So what are we doing tonight?” You change the subject quickly, trying to keep the mood a happier one. 

“We are going to hit a couple of clubs, meet some new friends and have the best fucking time if our lives” Oli counts each one of them on her fingers, reaching into her jacket’s pocket and pulling a small plastic bag of different colored pills. 

Your smile only wavers slightly as she pulls two of them out, offering one of them to you before shoving the other one into her mouth. 

You eye the one in your hand, not sure how taking random drugs is going to get you through the night without making a plethora of horrible decisions. It would sure as hell make it a whole lot easier. “Come on (Y/N)” Oli says in a mocking manner, “Live a little!” 

You smile, a slight grimace on your lips before taking the pill into your mouth. 

Right, (Y/N)... it’s time to live a little. — you think to yourself, already regretting what was going to happen tonight. 

//

Min Yoongi couldn’t be even more than happy to get the hell out of that party. If it could even be called a party. His fingers twirl around the emerald ring on his left hand. His face showing no emotion as he took another long sip of his watered down tequila — he had no plans on getting drunk tonight, but as the night went on he was going to quickly change his mind. His black hair crazily moving to the California breeze as he leans on the glass railing overlooking the bright city lights. 

All he wanted to do was to go back to his hotel room and take a nice long and well deserved nap. But no, he had to stay here in the middle of a city where he knew absolutely nobody. Where he was only asked by his company to appear for appearances sake. 

“Hey grumpy!” A loud voice startles him as a taller body crashes into his. Hoseok’s blinding smile moves to the corner of his eyes, a hard pat on his back. “What the hell are you doing out here when the girls are all inside?” 

He would have almost forgotten about Hoseok’s presence if it wasn’t for the way he would constantly come outside and check up on him every couple of minutes. 

“You’re missing out, man!” Hoseok continues as Yoongi gives him an uninterested glare before moving his gaze back to the city. “Why don’t you just come back inside, I might even have the right girl for you.” THe younger man chuckles. 

“Not interested” Yoongi grumbles, already knowing where this was going. He had seen it all before, the parties, the glamour, the celebrities — hell, he has lived in the spotlight most of his life and there was nothing he had grown to hate more. He drinks what was left in his glass, hoping that the younger male would finally take the hint. Unfortunately, that was still not the case. 

“Oh stop being such a grump! I know you used to like to party!” Hoseok whines as he leans over the railing, trying to get Yoongi to meet his eyes. “I want my best bro back” 

“You know, I’m doing just fine with this bottle for myself” Yoongi points to the bottle sitting on the ground beside him. “I was also having a great ass time, so why not let me continue doing that?” With a grim smile, Yoongi looks back at the scenery in front of him. 

Hoseok gives him one last smile before wrapping his arm around the giggling girl beside him. He had always known Yoongi to be the biggest grump he had ever met — nothing mean that he said was ever taken to heart. Hoseok, even after everything they’ve been through, would still consider him one of his best friends. 

Hoseok lets out a deep sigh as he realizes the older man isn’t really in the mood to party so he reluctantly takes his keys out of his jacket, placing them on the flat railing before taking his leave.”Don’t scratch it” Hoseok yells back before disappearing from the patio and into the lively atmosphere. 

Yoongi takes one look at them, his tongue pushing against his cheek as he places the bottle on the metal railing with a thunk, grabbing onto the keys before he makes his way down and through the backyard — possibly avoiding every person he possibly could. 

His mind was slightly buzzed from the alcohol, nose red from the cold and his body feeling only slightly heavy, and yet, nothing was stopping him from climbing into the front seat of Hoseok’s car and pulling off into the dark road. 

// 

You’re extremely sweaty, a little bit hot and definitely feeling like you might pass out any second. At the same time... you felt euphoric, high on life and you would admit a little bit horny. Olivia and you had found yourself gaining free entry to one of the nearby clubs, stepping onto the dance floor as soon as the two of you arrived. You had some idea of what Oli might have given you, making a note to ask her tomorrow if she had any more. 

The strobing lights made you dizzy and the vibrations coming from the surrounding speakers were beginning to give you a heavy migraine. You stop dancing as you feel someone pull at your hand, looking back with your fuzzy vision you see Olivia’s wild hair in your present view.  You could hear her saying something, although it sounded like nothing but gibberish to you. 

You don’t know what she said, but your hazy mind was able to put two and two together as you saw her smirk at you before turning around and grabbing onto some random guy’s arm. She has found a client for tonight and from here on out you were flying solo. 

You’re no longer paying attention to her as you see her making her way out of the club, instead your eyes start scanning the rest of the barely lit club. As a high-end escort, Olivia knew the clubs where all the rich, married and very lonely trophy husbands and CEOs liked to hang out and relax. It was her hunting ground. 

The men in her life didn’t last very long but from the moment they met her, they could only assume they were done for. Once she had her claws on him she wouldn’t let them go until she got bored or she got a large sum of money from them. Olivia gets bored very easily. 

You hadn’t been okay with the idea when she had first suggested you joined her while she worked, knowing rent was due next week and you barely had enough food to last you the next few days. So, you took her up on her offer. To let her teach you her ways of manipulation. 

You lick at your dry lips, feeling lost and alone as you no longer have someone familiar around you. You push your hair back as you step off to the side, your body starting to feel sore as you move towards the crowded bar. You try to find an empty spot, looking as the poor bartender gets pulled in all directions — the idea that you would possibly get a drunk any time soon is long gone as you unwrap your jacket from your waist and head towards the exit. 

The fresh air hits you with full force as your body cools down. You could still hear the loud music thumping from inside the club as you move through the empty alleyway. Your mind is still a little fuzzy as you put on your jacket, getting the last of your cigarettes from the inside of your jacket. 

You stumble out of the alleyway, fighting to make your lighter work as the wind starts to pick up as you step onto the street. You groan out loud, shaking the lighter in your hands as if that would make it magically work. “Stupid thing better work, I just bought it last week!” ‘

You weren’t really paying attention as you kept on walking, the migraine you had back at the club making its presence known. You were not looking at your surroundings, or at the empty and wet street as your boots slap against the puddles and you were certainly not aware of the very bright lights coming down the road at a very alarming speed. 

Yoongi looks up at the road, the bright red jacket shining as the headlights of the car he was driving hit you. His foot slams down on the brakes, his heart beating a mile a minute before the care fortunately stops only inches from your body. He did not need a criminal record. 

 Your startled eyes meet his as you drop your lighter to the cold, wet asphalt with a clink. It would be a lie if you said that you didn’t almost pee your pants. After the initial shock wears off, you feel relieved and then, you feel only anger. It could be the drugs talking or it could be the alcohol that made you act way out of character. 

“Are you fucking kidding me?! You almost ran me over!” You angrily yelled as you slam your hands against the hood of the very expensive-looking car. Hair falling all over your face as you try to take through the tinted windows, trying to get a look at the culprit’s face. You stumble around, your boots not helping out the matter. 

You didn’t have to wait long before the man stepped out of the vehicle, anger apparent on his face as he made his way to the front of the car. “You didn’t scratch it, did you?” He ignores you as his eyes scan the hood, looking for any kind of scratches. “Are you serious right now? You could’ve killed me and you’re worried about your fucking car?!” 

He lets out a sigh of relief as he makes his motives there are no scratches on the car. “Key word, almost.” he mumbles, not sparing you a glance as he gets back in his car. 

“Uh, no you dipshit. I could have died.” You continue on, following him to his window —smacking your hands on it as you try to get his attention again. It seems as if you succeeded as he rolls the window down all the way. 

“Please don’t touch the window, I don’t want it to get filthy” The man says as he looks at you up and down with nothing but a bored expression plastered on his face. 

“Way to be rude, asshole” You mumble, leaning against the car. Your head leaning towards the window as you try to maintain your balance— your stomach starts to feel kind of funny, but the feeling of anger is still surpassing anything else that you could possibly be feeling. 

“I could be splattered in front of your car and you only car if your precious car doesn’t have a scratch on it.” You continue mumble, “It’s exactly how people like you are ruining our country!” There it is again, that funny feeling in your stomach. 

“You mean drug-addicted prostitutes like you aren’t?” Yoongi finally looks your way, an eyebrow raises as he gives you a skeptical look. He knew he was judging you without even knowing you but he was stressed enough as it is and you were the closest thing he could take his frustrations on you. Some stranger he might never get to see again. 

He can tell by the way your eyes widen and your mouth opens in a little gasp that he had offended you, he could feel guilt bubbling up in his chest as he realizes that he offended you deeply. He doesn’t let you see he feels that way as his face and demeanor becomes cold again— pushing the button to close his window, cutting your words as you continue cursing him out. 

You continue to tap on the window as you hear the sound of a revving engine. The rude motherfucker thinks he can get away with anything just because he has money. The  migraine and the feeling  you had in your stomach is something that you can no longer keep pushing down and as you throw up the little food you had managed to eat that day onto the side of his very slick and very clean car you knew that you had fucked up. You smirk as he parks the car once more, wiping at your lips. You take a step back as you watch him angrily get out of the car with eyebrows furrowed and disgust clearly showing on his face. 

You don’t get to live in the moment for long as your vision becomes blurry and your eyes catch only the glimpse of the headlights as your world becomes dark and you hit the ground with a loud thud. 

Yoongi instantly turns around, his eyes searching for your body before he finds you passed out in the middle of the road. “For fuck’s sake…” He mumbles angrily to himself.  For once, he was glad that he got lost on a road with little to no traffic at all. He takes one more look at the vomit on the ground, feeling queasy at the sight of it. He skips over it, careful to not get it on his very expensive shoes as he squats down next to your body. 

“Hey, stupid...Wake up.” Yoongi says as he nudges your shoulder, hearing soft snores coming from under a mountain of hair. He pushes you fully on your back, your hair falling back onto the wet concrete as he sees the peaceful look on your face -- along with some of the vomit still present on your chin. “Why does shit like this always happen to me?” Yoongi has an inquisitive look on his face as he looks around his surroundings, the cold air making his breath visible in front of him as he notices no one around the surrounding area. He could easily leave you right where you were, get in his car and just get the hell out of there. Another part of him is telling him to at least move you to the sidewalk, to the ‘nice’ and ‘comfortable looking garbage so that you at least don’t get used as a speed bump. 

And yet, something in his consciousness tells him that he was human not too long ago and while you were rude to him… he couldn’t just leave you to rot in the middle of nowhere. He had no idea where you had appeared from and as he gently patted the pockets of your jacket he could tell you didn’t have a cellphone or anything he could call your loved ones with. He could always call the police, but he’s sure he wouldn’t be able to explain the scene in front of him or how long they would take to actually get there. 

“Mom…” He hears you mumble in your deep sleep. 

“Hey..Wake up. You can’t stay here…” Yoongi tries one more time and as you offer no more words, he finally makes up his mind. He unbuttons his silk jacket, moving to place it on your legs before he moves his arms beneath your knees and your shoulders. “Damn, could you be any heavier?” He complains, adjusting you as best he could in your arms before moving back towards his vehicle. He struggles with opening the back door as he tries to not drop you, he ends up using his leg as he hooks his foot onto the handle and struggles to open it. Succeeding after a few minutes, finally placing you into the back seat. He steps away, making sure all of your limbs were inside the car before he slams the door—  hoping that it would wake you up and you could go on your merry way, but as he watches your unmoving body still sleeping in his back seat he knows that it was a futile attempt. 

“Fucking…..” He grumbles in annoyance as he skips over the vomit on the asphalt, getting into his car and driving off. 

Masterlist>>

[mortemersgf]

dangerous waters

distant shores: oliver x f!mc and edward mortemer x f!mc (jade hearst)

summary: jade puts her relationship with oliver at risk when she rescues edward and henry.

warnings: violence (threats)

tags: @crazynutella​ @princess-geek​ @bitchloveskcbaseball​

‼️ PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION DEMANDING JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD‼️ Justice for George Floyd

Jade moans in pain, curling herself into a ball. Her stomach aches so much it hurts to breathe. She was knocked out cold when the soldiers tossed her in the room. Her arms and legs are tied together with thick ropes, and if that isn’t enough, her eyes and mouth are secured with bandanas. Deprived of sight and speech, Jade focuses on her hearing.

It’s eerily quiet where she is. There’s no muffled voices or shuffling footsteps outside her door. Jade can’t tell if that’s a good sign or not. She could either be guarded heavily by skilled soldiers, who don’t move or breathe or speak, or someone has left her in an abandoned part of the ship where no one ever drops by. Either way, she’s not liking it. It smells of damp wood and sawdust where she’s at, making her nose wrinkle with distaste. Jade suddenly misses the smell of Henry’s cooking and Charlie’s rum.

With a deep breath, she grunts and pushes herself up into a sitting position. She begins to scoot along the wooden floorboards in her bindings, making sure to stick close to the wall so she can feel for a door. Her stomach twinges with pain as she moves. Every couple of seconds, she has to stop to take a breath. Everything is going to be fine. Charlie is going to come soon. The crew is more than capable of rescuing us, she tells herself.

Jade pauses and tugs at her mouth restraint using her shoulder and cheek but to no avail. With a frustrated sigh, she relaxes against the ship’s wall and inhales deeply. I’ve got to find Edward. For all I know, they’ve let him bleed to death already.

Just when she’s about to scoot again, she hears the sound of boots clicking against wood. It seems to grow louder and louder by the second.

“Nrrngg! Mrmm!” Jade murmurs. She erratically stomps her boots, hoping whoever is out there is kind enough to pop in and relieve her of her restraints. The ropes are starting to dig into her skin, but as as soon as the thought arises, it vanishes. She sighs. Please. They are not going to spare me a glance. They’ll probably add more ropes. So she slumps against the wall again, counting down the days until Charlie and the rest of the crew bust in and sweep her, Henry, and Edward back onto the Revenge.

The clicking stops. There’s the sound of wood creaking and a door swinging open. A small gust of wind follows after.

“Nhhmg?” Jade straightens up against the wall. Her hands ball up into fists, alert.

“Ah, here you are,” someone with a familiar British accent says. “I was looking all over for you.”

Oliver!

She catches the faint smell pinewood as his arms brush against her cheeks, working away to undo her bindings.

“Nmhhph—ha… Oliver!” Finally free of restraints, Jade takes a couple of deep breaths and grabs at her red wrists. Her jaw feels cramped and her head aches with dull throbs.

The pain feels familiar. It reminds her vaguely of how she feels after her classmates plummet her with accidental punches and slaps to the face in stage-fighting class. Though usually she’d be tucked in bed under her soft covers with an ice pack pressed to her cheek by now.

She winces and looks up at Oliver.

He’s in his uniform, his sword sitting by his hip. Seeing the blade evokes the memory of him thrusting it into Edward’s shoulder, prying out a cry of pain from the captain. It makes Jade rigid with fury, but she blinks, forcing herself to shove the recollection into the depths of her mind.

Oliver gives her a lopsided smile as he untie the ropes that bind her legs together. The man before her seems so different now. She doesn't know if she can ever see him the same again, and she doesn’t know if she wants to.

He’s acting as if nothing happened, and that angers Jade. The same hands that are untying me are also the ones that hurt Edward. Do not forget that. She feels the onset of hot tears pooling in her eyes and lets out a frustrated huff. Tentatively, in a small voice, she asks, “Where is he?”

Oliver stiffens for a slight moment before saying, “One would usually say ‘thank you’ when someone does them a favor, but because it’s you… I’ll make an exception.”

He drops the thick ropes, the smile on his face fading away when he sees the cold look on Jade’s face. She has to physically stop herself from bursting into laughter at what he said.

“You want me to thank you for releasing me? Should I also thank you for stabbing my captain? Keeping me captive in this room for who knows how long? Letting your men kick and punch me in the stomach so hard it hurts to breathe? Because in that case, thank you. Thank you very much, Oli—no, Lieutenant.” Jade spits.

She pours all the hurt, all the betrayal she feels into the words, hoping Oliver realizes that what he did is unforgivable. She stands, ignoring the way his face crumples into an apologetic look.

Oliver takes a step closer, his fingers brushing against her jawline. With a small sigh, he pulls away and drops his hand. “Jade, I… I apologize deeply for everything. I wasn’t aware they treated you so awfully. I will reprimand them all. Harshly”—he taps the hilt of his sword—“With a sword, if you’d like.”

“It’s not going to change anything, so forget it.” Jade mutters.

She wants to thank him and kick him at the same time, so she does neither, choosing to stretch out her limbs instead. It’s been hours, maybe a day, since she was thrown into the little, dark room. She can’t remember. Time is hard to keep track of when the only thing she can think of is Edward’s well being.

Jade surveys her surroundings, trying to find the best way out. Her hand drifts down to her side where her sword and pistol should be. And of course, they got confiscated. She mutters a curse under her breath.

Oliver watches her move. He takes note of the way her eyes flit to the door every now and then and discreetly steps in front of her, blocking her from the exit. He takes off his hat and runs a hand through his hair, looking slightly on edge.

“Why did you lie to me?” he asks, his voice low.

Jade shifts her gaze to him. She stares at him for a long moment before shaking her head and saying, “We’re not going to do this right now, Oliver.”

“I told you I was a lieutenant in the Royal Navy that night, but you didn’t mention a thing about you and Captain Mortemer being friends. Or on the same crew, for that matter.”

“Because I’m loyal to him! Edward—”

“Edward? I see the two of you are friendlier than I expected.” The jealousy in his voice is thick.

Jade heaves a deep sigh, not wanting to continue the conversation. There’s no point. 

Oliver, however, starts to pace around, nodding to himself. Finally, he stops and looks at her, a sharp look in his eye. “He’s a pirate.”

“So I’ve heard,” Jade scowls. “Why do you care? You didn’t even acknowledge me when I first appeared on your ship.”

“I had to capture Edward.”

“By stabbing him when he’s distracted because you know you can’t beat him?”

A hurt look flashes across Oliver’s face before he conceals it with a humorless laugh. “It was a dishonorable move, but had there been any other way, I would’ve taken it. I don’t understand why—”

“You don’t need to,” Jade snaps, cutting him off.

An uncomfortable silence settles between them. The sunlight that floods through the window behind her highlights the dust that’s floating around. It captures her attention. The specks land on the ground, her shoes, and the sacks of potatoes in the corner of the room. It’s everywhere. Jade focuses on everything else instead of the man standing in front of her.

“I’m guessing you’re not going to tell me where Edward is,” she says, breaking the quiet.

Oliver refuses to meet Jade’s gaze, looking pointedly away. “No, I’m following orders.”

“Can you at least tell me what you’re planning to do with him?”

He doesn’t answer.

“You can tell me,” Jade coaxes, taking a step towards him. “I’m only one person. I can’t take down dozens of armed men on my own.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. You seem like you’re capable of many things.” Oliver speaks coolly, a cold glint in his eyes. The Oliver from the tavern, the one laughing and shielding her from the navy officers, feels like a figment of her imagination now.

Jade’s hands involuntarily curl up into fists. This is it. I can’t take him down, but I know—I hope he’s not going to hurt me.

He adjusts his hat, turning away to leave.

“Taking down the Royal Navy is going to be one of them,” Jade blurts, “so step aside because I don’t want to hurt you.”

Oliver stops in his tracks. He turns around, jaw set. But his voice is soft as he speaks. There’s a hint of remorse in his gaze. “Nor I, Jade.”

Jade opens her mouth to retort but stops short when she notices shadows passing behind her. She spins around upon hearing the clanging of metal and gruff voices speaking quickly, tiptoeing a bit in order to look out the window. What she sees makes her stomach churn with dread.

Henry is getting shoved along by two soldiers. They force him to his knees next to a bloodied Edward, who’s leaned against a pole and shackled with chains.

“What’s going on? What’s happening to them?” Jade demands. She faces Oliver, eyes wide.

“Admiral’s orders,” he says, “Captain Mortemer and the other man are to be publicly executed in London. They’re taking the boat home.”

“Are you here to escort me, then? Am I joining them?”

“No. No, you’re… staying here.”

“Staying here,” Jade repeats. She narrows her eyes. “How did that come to be?”

Oliver swallows, visibly unsettled. He casts a look at the ground before opening his mouth to explain. “It’s selfish of me, but I couldn’t bear letting you die for something you had no part in, so I—”

“Stop.” Jade cuts him off before he can say anything else. She leans over, clutching her aching stomach. She hasn’t eaten, but she thinks she’s going to hurl. This can’t be happening. “Can I…” Her voice cracks. She digs her teeth into her lower lip and takes a deep breath.

“Can I at least say goodbye?” she asks, her voice steadier.

Without waiting for an answer, she pushes her hair back and brushes past Oliver. Jade flings the door open, sprinting down the hallway onto the main deck. An absurd plan forms in her head as she screams for the crewmen to stop. Oliver trails after her. He doesn’t hear it, but she mumbles, “Sorry.”

Outraged soldiers cry out with irritation as Jade squeezes past them, shoving away crewmen who’re handling Edward too roughly. One of them grabs her by the arm, but Oliver halts him with a glare.

“Miss Hearst,” Edward breathes. He moves his chained arms, longing to run his hands through her hair and caress her cheek. Jade holds his face in her hands gently, pressing her forehead against his. Their chests rise up and down with relieved breaths seeing each other alive.

“I’m here, Edward. Everything’s going to be okay,” Jade whispers. “I… I have a plan. Just trust me, okay? I’m not going to let them take you away.” She pushes his matted hair back, her touch light and careful. Blood and dirt soak his tattered clothes but even then, he looks handsome.

Please, please, please, please… Jade knows exactly what she’s praying for. A miracle. She wishes all of their pistols are empty of bullets. She wishes their blades are dull. She wishes a mutiny would erupt right now. She wishes Oliver would call the whole thing off. She wishes she has more time.

Edward shakes his head, his face twisting into one of pain and worry. He grunts as a sharp pain shoots through his shoulder. With gritted teeth, he mutters, “Don’t do it. Don’t risk your life for me.”

“I told you back at Tiburon that I’d be very upset if something happened to you, so I’m doing this. I can’t let you die.” Jade mumbles.

Her thumbs are growing numb with fear as she rubs slow circles into Edward’s skin. She brushes her nose against his, angling her head until her lips fit his. She tastes copper from his blood as she kisses him. With a shaky sigh, she pulls away just far enough to take in the pained expression on his face. She presses another kiss to his lips, harder this time. Edward groans, leaning forward so their chests are flush against each other.

“This is not how I imagined our first kiss to happen,” Jade says, breathless.

“Aye, me neither…” Edward chuckles bitterly.

Oliver clears his throat. He stands there, stiff as a log, as he watches the two. When Jade looks at him, all she sees is a stony faced lieutenant who looks like he’s about to lose his patience any moment. She decides then, that the Oliver from the tavern was indeed a figment of her imagination. It’s easier this way.

“It’s time,” he says.

Jade nods, pulling away from Edward with a sniff. She glances at Henry. “Are you okay?”

“Aye, lass. They bandaged Captain’s wound but shackled him up like he’s a thief. Buncha scurvy dogs.” he says. Henry looks up at one of the navy officers and spits at him, earning a repulsed yelp from the officer.

Jade rises, giving Oliver a pleading look. He tentatively lays a hand on her shoulder, saying, “I’m sorry it has to end this way.”

“Oliver,” Jade says, burying herself in his chest. Her hands skim down his sides. “I’m so sorry.”

She unsheathes his sword, swinging it around until it’s pressing against his neck. Her grip on the hilt is so tight her knuckles are white, and her nails dig into her palm. Nevertheless, she stands tall and keeps her other hand on his shoulder to keep him in place.

Oliver’s crewmen dart forward, but Jade takes a couple of steps back, pulling the lieutenant tight against her body. “Take another step and your esteemed lieutenant is gonna get hurt. Very. Badly.”

They stop in their tracks and look to Oliver for instructions. His breaths are shallow, and he speaks slowly, “You’re not going to hurt me.”

“Release Edward and Henry, and I promise you I won’t.” Jade cocks her head at the officers who were about to load the them onto the boat, saying, “You heard me.”

They make quick work of freeing the two men of their restraints before scrambling away. Jade lets out a small sigh as she watches Henry prepare to launch the boat.

Edward grimaces, touching his wound. “Drop the sword, Miss Hearst.”

She drops her hand to her side but keeps her hand wrapped around the handle. 

A navy officer sprints forward with a yell but Oliver growls, “Stand down.”

He spins around, snarling, “But Lieutenant—”

“I said. Stand. Down.” Oliver’s voice shakes as the last two words leave his lips. Something along the lines of rage and helplessness fill his eyes as he watches Edward wrap Jade into a tight embrace.

“‘Tis going to be alright…” Edward murmurs into her hair.

Jade swallows, solace filling her body from head to toe. She indulges in the hug for another moment before facing Oliver. “When you realize the Admiral is nothing but a sorry excuse for a human being,” she says, stepping onto the boat, “find me. I’ll buy you all the drinks you want and apologize to you again.”

Oliver touches his neck gingerly. The look strung on his hardened face is icy enough to send shivers down her spine.

She flashes an apologetic look at him, not that it’s any use. “Until then… I hope we don’t run into each other again.”

[oliverhqs]

✧ °˖ — ( casey deidrick. cis-male. he/him. ) looks like oliver carmichael just signed back in at the front desk. word around is, that they’re only staying at the northern star because his family took their annual family vacation to their manor and he decided this year he didn’t want to stay amongst his insufferable relatives for the duration of the trip, so he found somewhere much more relaxing to stay instead while he explores ireland by himself. apparently the twenty-seven year old can be a bit apathetic & opinionated. but their open-minded & relaxed personality usually makes up for it. i hear they like to play piano, paint, and read in their free time. it makes me think of them as a quiet mid-afternoon walk on the italian countryside, staying up throughout the entire night in a dimly lit room talking about books, philosophy, love, and the stars, & well loved sheet music sprawled all over the floor and desk.

hello potential, friends !! i’m late the to party as usual but this ball of anxiety goes by the name of rue ( she/her pronouns ) and i’ll be playing Angsty Boi™, oliver carmichael. if you would like to hit me up for plots / scream about connections all night long, please give this a big ole like and i’ll come bouncing like a happy ferret in the snow to your DMs !! under the cut, you’ll find a brief biography and stats about oli’s life. you can find all my connections here though if you want to check those out. can’t wait to start interacting !!

+ disclaimer: slight talks of cancer and mental health are mentioned below. read at your discretion.

layer one: the stats.

NAME. oliver alexander carmichael.

ALIAS. people usually just call him by oliver but sometimes oli makes an appearance.

TITLE. over time, he has proudly deemed himself an obsessive pizza addict, artistic nutcase, or one of the missing dead poets society members.

AGE. twenty-seven years old.

GENDER IDENTITY. cis-male.

PRONOUNS. he/him.

SEXUAL ORIENTATION. predominately panromantic demisexual. it isn’t so much so that luca is completely disinterested in sex (he’s got a perfectly good libido, thank you very much), he just doesn’t find himself sexually attracted to people based on physical appearance or initial impressions. instead he finds personality, intellect, and existing emotional attachment considerably more compelling. the idea of intimacy with somebody he’s not close with rather repulses him.

CURRENT RESIDENCE. he currently lives in east village in new york but he travels quite often for his job, so residency usually fluctuates depending on how long he stays there. 

BIRTHPLACE. new york city, new york.

NATIONALITY. american.

RELIGION. he was raised roman catholic but converted to spiritual agnosticism when he was eighteen. he views that universal ethics and love are far more important than claims about any deity and trivialize the arguments supporting or rejecting such claims. to oliver, it doesn’t matter which religion someone might follow, nor does it matter whether or not someone believes in God. what matters is what someone does, not what they believe. he has his parents’ full support in his switch even though the rest of his family practices catholism.

SPOKEN LANGUAGES. english (fluent/main), french (fluent/2nd main), italian (still learning but can understand it quite well).

EDUCATION. graduated with a bachelors in music therapy and minor in visual arts at brown university.

PROFESSION. works as a freelancing artist in his spare time as he work full time as a music therapist.

layer two: about.

When someone hears the name Carmichael, they automatically think of words like prestigious, wealthy, and perfect. And who wouldn’t? With the father being a State’s Attorney and mother owning her own real estate business, you had to think like that. In the public eye the Carmichael family was flawless. Lilian was the always supporting wife who thrived in raising money for fundraisers and showing off her cooking skills and David was being a husband who brought home piles of money and was devoted to his family. Everyone wanted what they had. Oliver Carmichael was born into a world where perfection was of the utmost importance. The Carmichael family are one of those prestigious families that has always been full of wealthy and high-class snobs, and Oliver’s parents were no exception. He grew up learning how to be charming and handsome, and aware of his superiority over those of inferior to him. Oliver’s childhood years consisted of him sitting restless at various fancy parties and dinners, while his father kept him from all the treats so that he would grow up to be fit and strong. Oliver’s father was always cold and emotionally isolated from him; only after a perfect son to show off to the world.

He has a brother, who is three years younger than him, named Nathaniel. His relationship with his brother, however, is a bit estranged just like with their father. As much as he loves his brother and wishes they could see eye-to-eye, sometimes they tend to butt heads often. Whether that might mean your typical sibling arguments or full-on blown out fights, they just can’t seem to see get along.

As a young, restless little child, Oliver sought escape from his shallow, chilly life in the form of a friend. His friend taught him that there was such thing as warmth and friendliness, told him lots of stories of Greek mythology, and he learned that his father had been lying about “tactless individuals” being horrible people. However, when his father found out about his associations with his friend, within a week, the boy mysteriously disappeared. Since then, Oliver kept all his unapproved-of friends to himself. Unfortunately, as time went on, Oliver grew up to become a lot colder and more isolated like his father—leaving the feeling of pure joy of meeting that friend he met long ago, had vanished. With his family situation being completely dysfunctional and rottenly horrible, he never experienced what being happy was all about.

Sometimes calling someone selfish is a gross exaggeration, but in Oliver’s case its right on-point. Eventually in his early teens he became distracted, always preoccupied with his own affairs and matters of interest. Whether it was schoolwork, his multiple and usually explosive relationships, or his many existential crises, Oliver was one for waving people away and turning the conversation back on himself. This wasn’t necessary out of narcissism or some hidden agenda: Oliver genuinely doesn’t know who he is. Perpetually fidgeting and restless, it’s not uncommon to see him rapidly flicking a cigarette lighter, or playing with his hair, or bouncing on the balls of his feet. In high school he’s brilliant: it’s that simple. He is the golden boy. Prone to spilling into intellectual spiels - and labelled a know-it-all - he internalized everything, memorizing tiny details, eyes skipping here and there. His intelligence is among his most useful traits and is by far the thing he values most about himself. Much of his ego is built around the confidence that he is effortlessly smarter than almost anybody he encounters. Knowledge is power, and he weaponizes his superior intellect, using his brains more than brawn to protect himself and intimidate the people he doesn’t care for.

Although his parents were the bane of his experience 100% of the time, his mother wasn’t all that insufferable when she had her moments away from his father and not trying to be this pristine ‘perfect’ woman beside her husband. In fact, throughout his childhood she often encouraged Oliver’s belief in extraordinary things and hoped he had carried it throughout his life growing up. His mother had always made him promise to have courage and be kind to others, for—as she explained to him—kindness has power, and that she would see him through all the trials that life could offer, in life and death. Cancer/mental illness TW—when he was thirteen, his mother had been diagnosed with cervical cancer. Upon hearing the news, Oliver’s whole world clasped.

Not only was he at a pivotal stage in his life where everything was changing and becoming more stressful ( becoming a teenager, starting high school, going through puberty ), the only important person who had actually showed him any kind of love in his life had be claimed by the deadly disease altogether. So many thoughts and feelings were going through his mind at the time, that he ran himself physically sick and had experienced his first panic attack. He has since been medically diagnosed with panic disorder. Thankfully the cells on his mother’s cervix were diagnosed at precancerous stage and the doctors were able to treat it because it developed and spread. However, that didn’t and doesn’t stop Oliver from being in a constantly state of panic every time his mother so much as feels pain or coughs due to irrelevant reasons. The entire year had changed him and his family for a while.

Despite issues with his own family, Oliver has a lot of personal of his own he deals with. He is capable of enduing tremendous hardship. Though he may not handle difficulty in the healthiest or best way, often repressing emotion, he mostly like emerges on the other side. He doesn’t know how to express his emotions in a diplomatic way, but rather fumbles it all up and starts to ramble. Rarely opens up because of this. He usually distracts himself from his insufferable emotions with hobbies such as playing the piano, painting, and reading some of his favorite classics. After he moved out the house at eighteen to pursue college and became more independent, he started to come into his own style with his wardrobe. To put it simple, he’s like a hippie dippy child of the universe. No joke. No seriously, his place at home is full of sensual shit and art. It’s getting out of hand and somebody needs stop him soon. He strongly believes that art is an umbrella term that relates to expressing of oneself—not just through photography and painting—and that everyone has the freedom to express themselves however they please. Because of his beliefs, he chooses to break gender roles like bread and wears whatever the fuck he wants because yolo. His appearance pretty much represents his hippie dippy lifestyle with him wearing all sorts of hipster shit. His clothes can be very flowy like, but don’t let that fool you. He doesn’t miss the opportunity to represent his upper class within his style, so he does dress to impress, let me tell you. His hair color changes sometimes too depending on his mood but it’s generally never too eccentric.

After he graduated high school, he furthered his education at Brown University where he majored in Music Therapy and minored in Visual Arts. At the age of twenty-one he graduated and about 6 months later started working as a freelanced artist while working at children’s hospital as a music therapist.

[smuggsy]

IN PLAIN SIGHT / Chapter 3 A Band of Brothers Story (1) (2) + read it on AO3. Taglist: @gottapenny​

The nervousness of the arrival, the prostpect of being turned away by Lieutenant Nixon despite previous arrangements and the impromptu marathon she’s been made to run uphill make her scrunch up her nose at the smell of the dining place. She isn’t the slightest bit hungry.

She does down that glass of water within a couple of seconds though.

Luz (George, as he’s untroduced himself) watches her do it with an amused smile from the opposite side of the table. Alex Penkala still has that arm of his thrown over her shoulder.

“Where’d you learn to shoot like that?” he inquires, picking up another nearby glass of water - this one half full - and handing it over to her.

She shrugs as she swallows it all down in one go. Christenson is standing nearby, she doesn’t catch the sympathetic look he throws at her when she places the second glass back on the table noisily.

“I jus’ learnt” she provides, choosing to omit the fact that what they’ve just witnessed outside has been nothing but sheer luck. She’d just aimed to where she thought the glass was standing - which doesn’t mean she isn’t an actual avid shooter, but there is a limit to all human ability and getting a target off range in pitch dark with an M1 is the limit to her human ability. “My old man - he’s a good shot.”

“You from New York?” Skip leans over the table with a cigarrette between his lips and a friendly face, he squints at her. 

A slight and desinterested nod from her has him celebrating his right guess.

“Whereabouts?” Penkala asks, cocking his head casually, stealing the cigarette right from his friend’s mouth and getting a smack on the head for it.

“Brooklyn. Are there any apples?” She stands up with the intention of finding that out, getting a piece of fruit or anything that isn’t too oily or savoury - no proper dinner for her weak stomach tonight. No sooner has she got on her feet than Alex Penkala is pushing her down again, his never-leaving arm over her shoulders the culprit.

“Hey Perconte!” he whistles right on her ear, and she shrugs him off with annoyance. “An apple for the Big Apple boy!”

She turns around to see a short black-haired guy rolling his eyes and rumagging behind him on the other side of the kitchen counter.

“I ain’t your butler Penkala, why don’t you come’n get it yourself?!” he barks back.

“Hey! It’s for Oli here, c’mon!”

“Well he got legs, don’t he?”

Olivia fights down a sigh and stands up, then a hand coming from her right throws a green apple upwards in front of her for her to catch - which she does, albeit rather sloppily.

“Thanks.”

“So you had like, camouflage training n’ all that?” the apple-giver asks, he isn’t the tallest man around by any chance, his hair is slightly ruffled, his eyes are rather blue-ish. He takes a seat to her right, blocking the only way out of affectionate Alex Penkala’s embrace.

“Yes, concealment, observation… A lot of standing still and sitting still and lying still” she almost laughs at their scowls and groans of feigned boredom. “Weather conditions, map reading-”

“We do map reading!” Muck chimes in.

“Weather?” apple man frowns to her left. “Really?”

She turns to him and takes a bite off the fruit.

“Wind and temperature can cause a bullet to miss its target, you gotta take it into account before you pull the trigger” she explains.

“Sound to me like an excuse for being a shitty shot” Private Guarnere interrumpts from the corner. Olivia isn’t one to judge people on first encounters, but he surely is a grumpy one: he’d snatched his bag back from her hands with as much an unfriendly manner as Sobel had done. “What if it’s too hot? Won’t your ammo melt right down?”

His teasing prompts another wave of laughter among the men on the table, Olivia stops herself from rolling her eyes.

“I didn’t know you needed to study metheorology to get in the army” Muck joins in.

“Well, it’s just a couple of lessons…”

“Should’ve been running, boy” Guarnere smiles once again, mockingly. “You need a couple o’ lessons on that!”

Another round of laughter has her taking a rather hasty bite from her apple and she stops trying to explain anything else to them - most of the group disbands soon after, heading outside for a smoke or a game of cards. Private Martin - the apple private - takes a look at her filthy looking hair and sweaty collar and tells her to go get a shower before he leaves, as if she hasn’t been considering it already. As if she’d just go to sleep with that grim all over her neck and face.

On her table only a redhead remains - minus one Popeye, who had been asleep through all the commotion and still now hadn’t batted an eye opened once.

“How come you the only company in tonight?” she gestures towards Don, pretty sure that’s what Skip had called him earlier before he stole his pack of Lucky Strikes and sprinted off with Penkala on his tail.

Don snaps his head up from his letter a few seconds later and gives her a tired look.

“Sobel’s favourite hobby, revoking our weekend passes” is what he says before he turns back to his paper. He’s clearly not in a talkative mood and she needs to hit the showers and carefully plan her whole approach - so she leaves him and sleepy Popeye to make each other company.

“See you, then…”

“Malarkey” he offers with a monotonous voice, not looking up. “Donald.”

“Right. Night.”

Once outside, she stands there like an idiot, turning left and right unsure of where to go. Last time she saw her muffle bag it was on Sobel’s office steps, being left there as she ran after him to beg for a chance to prove her worth. She isn’t particularly keen on the idea of returning there to retrieve her belongings - doesn’t want to have to face him again, lest he change his mind and send her walking to the nearest bus station. I suggest you go back to whatever shithole you came out of and repeat whatever shitty training you got.

Fortunately, her inner worries dissipate soon as she catches sight of Lieutenant Winters, approaching with steady pace and both her bag and rifle thrown over his shoulder.

The fact that he’s smiling before he reaches her already makes Olivia take a liking to him.

“Private Brown” he acknowledges, and she stands straight. “At ease.”

“Sir” the takes her things off his hands with a nod. “Thank you, sir.”

“You got a bed yet?”

“No, sir.”

“Let’s find you one” he sends a distrustful look to the cloudy sky and starts walking. “That was quite an impressive showdown back there.”

“Thanks…”

I was lucky to hit that glass at all.

“You definitely lifted the mood, make a couple of friends already, I assume?“

"Yeah, I think we bonded alright…" Penkala’s a bit clingy, though. But Christenson’s pretty decent.

"I’m sure you did” he nods.

Olivia stares at his expression for a little too long before she understands it. Jesus, do the the C.O’s hate Sobel as well?

She can definitely tell Winters isn’t a fan by a long strech. It’s the smile that he’s unsuccessfully trying to fight down what gives him away.

“Here we are, there ought to be a couple of spare beds in here.”

She follows him inside, where two idle soldiers stand to attention soon as they catch sight of their superior, a couple of cards helplessly flying to the ground in their haste to get off the bed.

“At ease,” Winters immediately says, and Olivia drops her things by the second bed to her right. Someone’s definitely been sent home. “This is private Brown” Winters waves a hand in her direction as her two fellow troopers resume their game.

“Yeah, we know” one of them - looks a tad bit older than the rest, she thinks - sends a friendly smile her way.

Winters doesn’t try to supress his smile this time, he turns to her and gives another short nod.

“All in order?”

The sheets smell like dust and the cot looks as uncomfortable as she knows them to be. 

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. Sleep well then, I’ll see you in the morning.”

She salutes him before he’s got a chance to turn around and leave without waiting for it. She can see he’s not that kind of officer. Not the Sobel kind of officer. More on the Campbell side, she considers, but she doesn’t let her thoughts wander in that direction yet. She  saw him a couple of hours ago, surely she can’t be getting all nostalgic already?

“Heard ya gave Sobel a hard time over a glass” one of the soldiers on the bed comments, looking at her as the other one watches his own cards in deep thought. 

“I guess so” she shrugs, not quite sure where she stands with these two. She can’t go making assumptions this early, she’s already managed to get on her Captain’s bad book so nothing good will come out of her celebrating the incident. Can’t quite join in on the joke, not yet.

There’s a laugh.

“Ya guess?" 

She stops unpacking her belongings - a book and a small notebook all she’s brought along from home - and turns around. 

The one who smiled at her earlier stands up and approaches. She meets him halfway, ready to shake his already outstretched hand.

"Sargeant Lipton” he says, and boy isn’t she glad she didn’t let herself get too excited about mocking Sobel now. “Welcome.”

“Thanks. Oliver, which you already know…" 

"Everyone’s gonna know it by tomorrow boy” blondie adds with his thick southern accent.

“That’s Bull” the sargeant points behind him. “He’s friendlier than he looks” he adds under his breath before smiling kindly again and returning to the bed. “Ain’t that right, Bull?”

“What’s that?”

Olivia returns to her task - mostly turns around to hide the smile that creeps onto her face as she gathers up a change of clothes.

“What did you say? That ya gonna lose this round again? Damn right you are.”

Maybe she’ll get lucky. Maybe her platoon’s not that bad. Maybe. Maybe it’ll all be nice and well.

Except for the going to war bit, that is. 

※ ※ ※

The first good thing that happens to her in Camp Toccoa is finding the showers empty. She doesn’t wait around to see that change - in fact, she probably breaks a record, quickly handling the soap with one hand and keeping a towel in the air with the other, blocking any incomers’ view from her cubicle.

She’s in the farthest corner but that does nothing to put her mind at ease. She’s done before two whole mintutes have gone by and returns to the barracks with her hair still damp.

She knows she got lucky today, with most of the camp empty; still, she pushes that thought away in favour of getting some very much awaited rest.

And she’s out before anyone else, probably. 

Which - if she weren’t so exhausted - would also make her a bit uneasy: first day, bunch of guys in close proximity, hot as hell that she can’t cover herself with anything lest she draw more attention than she’s already getting for being the new one. 

Not that there’s much to cover up anyway - but then again, her lack of volume up there is nothing but helpful in a situation like this. Bandages can only do so much. Again: she’s too tired tonight to pay any of it any mind.

Just before she drifts off she seems to hear Mike somewhere near, saying something along the lines of… dirt and sleeping, and penises.

“Jesus Penkala, grow up -”

“Shhh, you grow up” Skip answers in his friend’s behalf, standing close behind.

“How would you like it if I put a rat on your face while you slept?”

“I’d kick ye in the balls - we’re not putting it in his face now shut up” Skip continues to whisper, as his blue-eyed friend squats down and places the tiny animal next to Oliver’s right foot.

“Where did you get a rat, anyway?” Don takes a bite of his Hershey bar as he stands at the foot of the bed, stance quite relaxed and looking not the least bit remorseful. 

“I did!” Comes the unnecessary loud answer from the third bed opposite. 

Alex stops frozen in his half-risen position at the sight of the new sniper mumbling in his sleep.

“Damn it, Perconte!" 

"Shhhhh!”

“It was in that dirty-old kitchen” Frank adds, voice unlowered.

“Should’ve saved it for the stew” Joe mumbles, before he turns over on the bed to face Liebgott, who’s been chewing that gum for at least an hour now and is watching the macabre plan unamused. “Right, Joe?”

Liebgott doesn’t have time to answer, but he does roll his eyes as a high-pitched scream echoes through the room, followed by an outburst of laughter and one John Martin rising up from his slumber with a curse.

“Here we go” Joe mumbles, resuming his writing, uninterested.

“For fuck’s sake, can’t we have one quiet night?!”

“Aw, come on, Johnny…”

Olivia can feel her hair sticking out in various directions and she’s blinking into focus when Martin comes over to take the rat off the cot, looking like he’s about to fish out his bayonette and stick it in someone’s throat.

“Wait!” She snaps.

Meanwhile, that trio of devils is barely holding it together at the sight of her sleepy and terrified face - undoubtedly the pranksters. 

She stumbles over to Martin and cups her hands next to his.

“I’ll take it” she says, shaking her head, as if that’s going to make her slurry words less slurry. 

Private Martin lets the tiny animal fall on her hands with an unhappy grunt - it stops squeaking in pain and quickly scurries over her arm. She grabs it again.

“Everybody go to fucking sleep!" 

"Hey, it’s still early!” Frank protests, just now getting comfortable with a book on his lap. 

Olivia sends a killer glare to both Skip and Penkala when she walks past them to set the rat free outside. They’re still enjoying themselves when she comes back in.

“Real mature guys, nice” she makes a face and rolls her eyes. “You pull something like that again and my finger may just slip next we target-practise” she warns, still half-asleep, word filter not really on.

Luckily, they know she means nothing by it. 

“If I hear one more word-” Martin starts again.

“Alright, grandpa!”

“Yeah, Johnny, we’re in bed, we’re in bed, see?” Alex insists, as he jumps on his (very far away, Olivia notices with joy) cot.

She doesn’t drift off for another thirty minutes after that. Whoever’s on her left seems to be quite dead - which leads her to believe it’s Popeye, if the golden hair is anything to go by. On her right, a dark-haired soldier she hasn’t met turns over and meets her eyes and points a finger gun at her a couple of seconds before someone turns the lights off.