#about karen calling one of them in the middle of the night just to hear their voice to calm down

[stiffyck]

Can we talk about how Karen definitely has some sort of PTSD because you can't just wake up one day with a knife and bloody hands and a dead coworker on your carpet one and then be fine. You don't get arrested and then almost strangled to death while in custody and be fine. You don't get kidnapped and threatened and then kill someone in self defense and be fine.

Oh my god can we PLEASE talk about Karen and her trauma oh my GOD.

[inkskinned]

they don't see it, because it is around them like air. to them, it would have to be through movies, through magazines. they think it happens outside of life, like it must be selected to be interacted with.

but you discovered in the fifth grade that you couldn't wear shirts with words on them, it was an excuse for someone to look at your chest. you were catcalled before you were in middle school. sometimes you look at that memory and deny it - surely that can't be right, you were young. but you were in a skirt, so maybe that was a natural byproduct. it was a skirt from that place "justice by limited too" - a store literally for kids. it was popular around then. you wore that skirt twice and then never again.

you can't wear headphones, because what if a man wants to talk to you? there's a guy on the internet who complains that women shut themselves off from being approached. at night, you often keep the headphones positioned but with the sound off, just in case you need to hear something behind you.

you learned at 12 that you can't make eye contact, don't acknowledge the aggression. just walk faster and hope he picks on somebody else. don't wear your hair like that. do not park next to that kind of car, park an entire cityblock away if you must.

you can't go to the museum, you're sitting and tying your shoe when he approaches you and mentions that nobody understands art anymore. that in the whole world, it's just you-two. you have no recourse for eating a meal (it's rabbit food if it's salad, and someone will roll their eyes, eat a sandwich. it's pick-me behavior if it's a burger, we get it you're a cool girl). if you like mushrooms you are cottagecore, which is cheesy. if you like video games you're an egirl (similar to a pick-me). boys do not get categories, but if you point out the categories are sexist, you are told okay but these girls really exist.

it is somehow developing, a little undercurrent that you've been uncomfortable with. the nickname "karen" went from being "a white woman that uses her whiteness as a weapon, particularly against people of color," to now mean "any woman raising her voice or being even a little upset." the reappropriation of a term used specifically to call out white women for their racism has set your skin on edge. now it is just another version of "bitch," one that can be said on television. recently you saw a woman get called a karen because a drunk driver sideswiped her, and she screamed when it happened. the comments on the dashcam video all say "why do women always scream about everything." "when has the world ever been bettered by women screaming." "this fucking karen. she deserved to get hit."

in the sitcom, it's a joke that the wife is furious; slamming her hands down into the sink. i do everything around here, might as well do this too. in your house, your father is always in-his-office. before you know better, your first boyfriend is the type to say it's just easier for you. you used to beg him to take you on dates. he used to make a big deal about it, about the sacrifice of effort, even if you were the one who did most of the planning.

someone on the internet makes a "POV: the most boring person you've ever met" where he puts a towel on his head and just talks like a normal person. his impression of a boring woman is just a woman that is talking about her pretty-average life without exaggeration.

you are sometimes actually sad in the reverse, because actually you did used to struggle to pay attention in conversations. you were also easily bored of normal things, your adhd pinging off of every radio tower in the vacinity. it took time and therapy and patience, and now you delight in the small things about your friends. you like having them show you their organizational systems and talk about their taylor swift tickets. you are entertained by them because you learned to be, even though your brain is structured to only be excited by novelty. you kind of hate the idea that the reason your father will never actually pay attention to you is that you're no longer interesting. eventually the shine wore off, and you were just a person, not a spaceship. he never learned how to just, like, form an actual intimate friendship. it was always at a distance, this sense - emotional closeness was too much. (and yes. he's homophobic).

you're already tired of whatever the fuck is happening with the words "divine feminine", a rancid take that is basically just a rebranding of the patriarchy in action. what the fuck do they mean "being small and delicate and needing protection" is feminine. the words they are looking for are that they want a partner, not that their desire for equivalent support is relegated to gender. the human desire for community is not actually gendered at all. also, what fucking wolves are these "divine masculine" men even battling. fuckken taxes? shouldn't their "desire to protect" also mean "protect you from emotional neglect", or are all emotions off-limits (and how sad would that be. that's a horrible bar to set.)

and they tell you it's really not bad actually, because it's just there. they suggest you get off the internet or you stop reading that book or you stop thinking so hard about the movie or you stop just-being-a-feminist because honestly it's a killjoy sort of thing and then you tilt your head to the side and there's that little siren in the back of your head. if things were actually fine, being a feminist wouldn't put a stop to anything, it would go completely unnoticed, because you wouldn't have any comment to make about any of this

but you are ruining your own life, they tell you. also, girls don't sit like that. also, all girls are catty. also, all girls are bad drivers. also, all girls just need a cute bracelet and an iced coffee.

you do like iced coffee, is the thing. when you close your eyes, the world around you has this strange note to it. and once you hear it, it never stops ringing.

[chvoswxtch]

all i need is you

pairing: matt murdock x fem!reader

summary: following the morning after matt's run in with elektra, you have a lot of decisions to make about your future together.

warnings: swearing, angst, explicit sexual content (minors pls dni), mentions of pregnancy

word count: 8.2k

a/n: y'all have been requesting a sequel to please don't be mad for almost 6 months now, & I apologize it's coming so late. there were a lot of things y'all wanted to see happen in the sequel, & I took all of that feedback to heart & incorporated as much as I could in a way that made sense to me. i've been working on this for months, & it was really important to me to create something you guys would really love & be happy with. thank you to everyone that even wanted a sequel, & for being so patient. as always, feedback is welcomed/appreciated!

[part one]

It was almost crazy to think that just over a year ago, you thought your relationship with Matt Murdock was over for good. 

When you had awoken that following morning by his side, head clear of the rage and lust induced haze you had been captured in, all that was lingering was a heart heavy with hurt and stinging with betrayal. You had silently collected all of your belongings, pressed one last kiss to Matt’s lips, and granted his peaceful sleeping form one final glance before leaving your spare key on his entry table and disappearing into the twilight. 

All of his words still echoed in the back of your mind, but so did his actions. The promise of marriage was eclipsed by the cherry lip stain on his collar. The prospect of a family was diluted by the scent of an expensive perfume that didn’t belong to you. The vow of faith and love was broken by yet another lie. 

You loved Matt, more than you had ever loved anyone, and more than you ever thought you could love another person. You knew deep down that he was a good man. You tried to believe that he would never intentionally hurt you. But it had gotten to the point where you couldn’t ignore the ache he left in your chest. 

You needed time to try to forgive him. You weren’t even sure if you could forgive him at all. The cut he’d made ran deep, and you couldn’t decide if it was because he’d made it with her blade, or if it was simply his own that had been slicing away at the same spot over and over and over. Regardless, you needed time. Time away from him; to heal, to think, to decide. 

But Matt Murdock had never been a man of patience.

For two endless weeks your phone constantly lit up with his name, filling up with messages containing apologies and desperate pleas. You started arriving early to work and left later than usual to throw him off your schedule. You had the receptionist bypass all his calls and made security aware that he was not welcome in your office. You ignored all the usual spots that he knew you frequented, and especially the ones you went to together. For the first time in over a year, you locked all your windows to ensure he couldn’t slip through in the middle of the night. You blasted music through your headphones so you didn’t have to hear the pain in his voice as he called out your name, fist banging away at your front door so hard you were certain he was going to actually break it down. 

It was torture. Even though he had been the one to wrong you, a piece of you felt guilty. You could hear the terror and remorse in his voice when he stood outside your door, begging for forgiveness, chanting your name over and over as if you were the deity he worshiped and needed absolution from. It left a bitter taste in your mouth to be yet another person to turn your back on him, but through the wave of your sadness came the tide of anger, reminding you that he had done this. He had forced your hand. He made a choice, and you had to make yours. 

The guilt from also having to ignore Karen and Foggy weighed heavily on your chest. They knew what had happened. You had just as many sympathetic voicemails and unanswered texts from them asking if you were okay, and if you wanted to talk. You hated not being able to lean on them when you were at your most vulnerable. They were your family just as much as Matt was, but you couldn’t talk to them or be around them. They just reminded you of him. A huge part of you resented him for that, for making you feel like you couldn’t go to the two other people you loved most in this world for comfort because of what he did. You had spent the past few years building your entire life around Matt, and he had selfishly sent it crashing to the ground, leaving you completely isolated beneath the debris.

For two long weeks, you felt trapped beneath a heavy blanket of depression you couldn’t seem to find your way out from. 

And then she happened. 

How Elektra had managed to break into your apartment when Matt couldn’t, you weren’t sure, but the day you came home to find her in your living room with a bag of your things packed by her feet, you were stunned silent.

“I need you to come with me.”

“What? Why?”

“Because Matthew is an idiot and he’s put you in danger. We need to go. Now.”

She didn’t even give you a chance to hesitate, gripping your overnight bag into one hand, and forcing you out your door with the other. The ding of the elevator dropping you to the lobby seemed to wake you out of whatever trance she had put you in, and you stared at her in confusion as you stood firmly outside the metal doors.

“I don’t understand. What are you doing here? Where are we going?”

“I’ll explain when we get there. We need to move.”

“I don’t-“

“Listen. You don’t know me. You’ve got no reason to trust me. But right now, I am trying to save your life. So if you’ll please-“

“Why?”

Elektra paused for a moment as she looked at you. The annoyance on her perfect features vanished slowly, taking in the pain and confusion that were clearly plastered on yours. 

“Because you’re important to Matthew, which means you’re important to me.”

Elektra filled you in on everything the moment she had secured you away in a penthouse uptown that was registered under an alias. What she and Matt thought were the Yakuza had ended up being a much older and sinister organization called The Hand. They were into some freaky cult shit that you didn’t quite understand, but you got the gist that they were powerful, and extremely dangerous. They were also everywhere. They had tracked her and Matt, and a man named Stick that had trained the two of them, back to Matt’s apartment the night after the gala. They had been tracking him ever since, and because he had continuously been going to your office and apartment, they knew all about you. 

She even told you the truth about how she had met Matt, and how it had all been a set up by Stick to bring him back to their side; to fight the war that he had been warning them both about. 

“I don’t know what Matthew has told you about me. Probably nothing good. But I need you to know…I did love him. That’s why I left. I realized…he wasn’t like us. He would never be like us. He was too…good. He didn’t belong with Stick and I. I didn’t want to be the one to put that light out inside of him. I didn’t want anyone to. I didn’t mean to cause any trouble between the two of you the night of the gala. I wasn’t aware that he hadn’t told you that I was in town, or what we were doing. I swear I was only trying to protect him.”

There was a glimmer of regret dancing along Elektra’s waterline, and you could see her own pain shadowing the faint smile on her lips. 

“You weren’t the one that lied to me.”

Elektra blew out a breath as she took a seat in front of you, dragging her teeth along her bottom lip as she nodded.

“Matthew always has pure intentions. I know that. But for someone who is incredibly intelligent, he’s also a complete dumbass. He tries so hard to do the right thing…but he doesn’t stop to think about if he’s doing it the right way. Look I don’t…I don’t know anything about the two of you, and I’m not telling you what to do, but I can tell you that he is absolutely in love with you.”

“So…you didn’t come back to New York for him?”

“For his help, yes. To rekindle whatever we had, no. But for the record, even if I had, I wouldn’t have stood a chance in Heaven or Hell against you.”

There was something oddly comforting about Elektra’s words and the timid smile on her lips. It eased some of the tension pent up in your body, and you felt a little lighter as you let a deep exhale out through your parted lips. Nibbling on your bottom lip, you glanced over at her as you anxiously twisted a ring around your index finger.

“I…thank you. You…you didn’t have to…do all of this. I hate to even ask anything of you when you’re already doing so much for me but…can you just…not tell Matt I’m here? I’m not ready to talk to him yet.”

Elektra flashed you a pitiful smile as she gave a slight nod of her head.

“Of course. It’ll be our little secret.”

It only took Matt three days to figure out that Elektra had been hiding you, and as he burst through the front door of her penthouse, he was absolutely incandescent. 

“You have got to be fucking kidding me. You’ll have a sleepover with her, but you won’t talk to me?”

“Watch your tone, Matthew.”

Elektra glared over at Matt, tightening her grip on the knife in her hand that was hovering over a cutting board filled with various ingredients. 

Matt furiously tore off his glasses as he angrily pointed his finger in her direction, the top of his lip curling up into a menacing snarl.

“I don’t want to hear shit from you after you-“

“I protected her because you led the Hand right to her. You’re fucking welcome by the way.”

Elektra let out a deep angry exhale as she turned to face you with a sour pout on her lips. She gestured her head in Matt’s direction with a quirk of her brow.

“I can get rid of him if you’d like.”

“Excuse me?”

“I wasn’t speaking to you, Matthew.”

Sighing heavily as you let go of the whisk in your hand, you pushed the large bowl of batter forward on the kitchen island and wiped your hands off on a small towel. Rubbing your hands over your tired eyes, you waved your hand dismissively towards Elektra.

“It’s…it’s fine, Ellie. I’ll deal with him.”

Elektra eyed you for a moment before shooting another glare in Matt’s direction. She dropped the knife onto the cutting board, wiping her hands off on the same towel before clasping them together loudly.

“Right, well, I’ll leave the knife out just in case. Remember the three main areas I taught you to stab. I’ll be upstairs if you need me.”

After you watched Elektra disappear upstairs into her bedroom, you turned around to face Matt. His eyes were absolutely wild with rage and his face was morphed into complete disbelief as he blanched at you.

“Ellie? Since when the hell is she Ellie?”

“Since she’s the only one around here that tells me the truth about what the fuck is going on.”

Matt clenched his fists at his sides as he stared blankly over at you, and you watched as a muscle feathered in his jaw. 

“What did she tell you?”

“Everything you didn’t.”

You could practically feel the anger radiating off of him in waves, but you had more of a right to be pissed off than he did. Matt shoved his hand into his pocket, producing a shiny silver object that he held out in front of him between his thumb and index finger.

“What is this?”

Crossing your arms over your chest, you arched one of your brows as you looked at him.

“A key.”

Your key. 

Matt’s nostrils flared as he clenched his jaw, quickly crossing the distance between you to stand directly in front of you.

“Don’t get smart with me. Do you have any idea how it felt to wake up that next morning and you were gone? All of you, your things, everything gone? And to find this on the table? Not even-“

“I’d imagine it was as shitty as you coming home covered in red lipstick and smelling like your ex lover's perfume. Or as shitty as finding out you lied about where you were and who you were with, and that you kissed her and lied about that too.”

Matt ran his hand through his hair quickly in annoyance before dragging it roughly down his jaw, shaking his head as he flung his arms up in the air with frustration.

“Goddamnit Y/N, we talked about that! We worked through it. Then you just…disappeared and ignored me for weeks. You won’t return any of my calls, you won’t open the door, I can’t even-“

“We didn’t talk about anything, Matt! You kept trying to justify your actions and completely ignored how I was feeling. We didn’t work through anything. You manipulated me and we fucked. That is not working through it.”

Matt sighed with exasperation as he stared at you incredulously. 

“I did not manipulate you. Fuck, I told you that I wanted to marry you and have a family witn you-“

“In the middle of sex, Matthew! I don’t know if you even meant that, or if it was a heat of the moment thing. And don’t you dare say you didn’t manipulate me. You took advantage of the fact that I was frustrated and that you hadn’t touched me in weeks. You knew I would give into you. How do you think that makes me feel? That you completely ignored my feelings, manipulated me into sex for forgiveness, and filled my head with all those promises knowing that our relationship was in a bad spot. I can’t trust a word that you say because you can’t seem to stop lying to me.”

Matt’s anger evaporated the second he tasted the salt of your tears in the air. He hung his head between his shoulders in shame, shifting his weight from one foot to the other as the severity of your words nestled in the silence. Letting out a soft sigh, Matt’s tongue darted out to quickly wet his lips.

“You’re right.”

His hazel eyes were more clear without the cloud of vexation, and you could see the way they glistened with regret. Matt’s plump lips fell into a frown, and guilt seemed to tug the rest of his features down like gravity.

“I’m sorry. I swore to you that I wouldn’t lie after I told you the truth about me. I broke my promise to you, I betrayed your trust, and I disrespected our relationship. I’m so sorry, sweetheart. I never, ever meant to hurt you. I didn’t want you to get mad that I was working with Elektra. I didn’t think…I wasn’t thinking. I wasn’t considering your feelings. I shouldn’t have kissed her. I could’ve come up with another diversion. All of this could’ve been avoided if…if I had just told you the truth.”

Matt let out a shaky breath as his blank eyes glanced upwards, closing for a moment as he clenched his fists by his sides. A stray tear slipped past his lashes when he opened his eyes again, slowly lowering himself onto his knees before you as he reached for one of your hands to hold.

“I have been…absolutely fucking miserable these past few weeks, and that’s my own fault. I know that. I have hated not getting to feel your touch, or hear your voice, or be able to tell you how much I love you. I am so fucking sorry if I ever made you question how I feel about you, but Y/N I meant every word that night. You are the love of my life. You do belong with me. I do want to marry you and start a family. I swear to God, I will do whatever it takes to earn your trust back and your forgiveness. Just tell me what I have to do sweetheart, and I’ll do it.”

It broke your heart to see Matt look so distraught. It stung even more than he was on his knees begging for forgiveness instead of asking you to spend the rest of your lives together, but there was an undeniable conviction in his voice. It soothed the pang in your chest slightly to finally hear him acknowledge his fuck up, and apologize for it instead of getting defensive. Elektra had melted away the insecurity you had felt with her confession, and the frightened look that shattered Matt’s face showed you just how scared he was to lose you.

There was still a lot of work to be done on your relationship. It wasn’t going to be fixed overnight, and Matt was going to have to put in a lot of effort to earn your trust back, and prove to you just how much your relationship mattered to him. But you were in love with him, and you knew there was no one else for you but him.

“You can start by taking care of this…”Hand” shit. I’m not loving the fact that I’m being hunted by zombie ninjas because of my idiot boyfriend.”

Matt’s ears instantly perked up, and a lopsided hopeful grin stretched across his lips.

“I’m still your boyfriend?”

“For now. You’re dangerously close to being replaced by Elektra, though. She’s always bluntly honest, and her bed is way nicer.”

You never in a million years thought that your boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend would fight just as hard as he would to keep you safe, but Elektra had. She protected you from The Hand just as fiercely as Matt did, nearly giving her life for you both, and now she was securing the last button on the back of your wedding dress and staring at you in the mirror with a knowing smirk. 

The morning you slipped out of Matt’s apartment heartbroken and desolate seemed like a lifetime ago as you prepared yourself to meet him at the altar in just under an hour. 

“What’s on your mind, little dove? Got cold feet?”

Elektra quirked one of her dark brows as she stared at your reflection with her signature smirk. Karen had left the two of you alone to go check on Matt and Foggy, and she was helping you with your finishing touches. 

After helping save New York, Elektra had stuck around, and to both of your surprises, and certainly to Matt’s, you two had become very close. The more you got to know the more vulnerable side of her, the more you felt for her. She wasn’t the villain that everyone had painted her out to be. She had been a scared little girl, manipulated with a promise of something resembling a family, only to be broken down and molded into something to orchestrate death and destruction instead. It wasn’t unlike what Stick had done to Matt. As a matter of fact, it was worse. 

“If I said yes?”

Elektra hummed quietly as she moved your hair off your shoulder, leaning in to rest her chin on it as she wrapped you up in a hug from behind with a grin on her lips. 

“Ever been to Paris this time of year? It’s beautiful. We could be at a private air strip before anyone even knew what happened. Matthew is fast, but he can’t outrun a Maserati.”

A grin broke out across your lips as you giggled, squeezing onto Elektra’s arms when she winked. You had never been more sure of anything in your life than you were sure that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with Matt Murdock. Both of you knew that. But you also both knew he was eavesdropping just on the other side of the church, and it was incredibly easy to rile him up.

As if on cue, Foggy suddenly burst through the door and pointed a finger at Elektra with an expression of pure irritation on his face. 

“Whatever you’re telling her, knock it off. You’re scaring the shit out of him, and he’s already convinced enough as it is that she's not gonna walk down that aisle.”

“Oh relax, Franklin. Girls got to have their fun, yeah? Besides, I thought they called him the man without fear.” 

Foggy rolled his eyes as he shut the door behind him, walking over to shoo Elektra away as he stood behind you and adjusted your veil down your back.

“Yeah, until it comes to her. Go head to head with the Punisher who's notorious for using automatic weapons with sticks? Sure. Take on a weird cult of ninjas that can’t die and like to use really sharp swords also only with sticks? Why not. Fuck it, let’s use every goddamn tall building in Hell’s Kitchen for parkour practice. But ask the woman I’m ridiculously in love with to marry me and put up with my shit for the rest of our lives? That’s where the devil seems to tuck his tail between his legs.”

Matt had been an absolute nervous wreck the night he proposed to you. He had brought you to the same restaurant that he had taken you to for dinner on your first date, and was fidgety the whole time. Every time you asked if he was okay, he swore up and down that he was, and you figured there was just something overwhelming one or several of his senses. But then you noticed that despite it being mid November, he was sweating as you walked hand in hand through Central Park, and his hand kept nearly slipping from yours. Finally, you stopped and turned to face him, placing your hand on his chest to steady him.

“Okay, what’s going on with you?”

“N-Nothing, I’m fine. Let’s keep-”

“No, you aren’t. You’ve been acting strange all night. You’ve been anxious and fidgety, and now you’re sweating.”

“It’s hot-”

“It’s November, Matthew.”

Matt’s lips parted slightly as he went to protest, but nothing came out. He was usually good at coming up with excuses on the spot, but whatever was going on with him had seemed to completely take over his mind. A soft sigh slipped past your lips as he averted his gaze to the ground, watching as he clenched his fist by his side. You took a step forward to place your hands gently on his cheeks to cradle his face.

“Matty, please talk to me. Is something wrong?”

“No, no nothing…nothing is wrong.”

“Then what is going on? What’s got you so worked up?”

“I’m not worked up-”

“Matthew.”

Matt let out a sigh of defeat hearing the tone in your voice, his tongue darting out to quickly wet his lips as he attempted to flash you a reassuring smile.

“Can we just keep walking please? There’s something I wanna show you.”

There was evident excitement in Matt’s voice, but it didn’t resonate with you. The way he kept dodging your questions was beginning to put you in a sour mood, conjuring up a bitter taste of realization that he was on the cusp of breaking an oath he had sworn to keep. Dropping your hands quickly from his face, you shook your head in frustration as you turned around swiftly to walk ahead without him.

“You promised me you wouldn’t do this anymore.”

You only made it two steps forward before Matt blurted out a confession laced with full blown panic.

“I’m in love with you.”

Immediately pausing, you turned around to look at him in complete confusion.

“I know that, Matt.”

Matt let out a heavy exhale as he rushed forward and took your hand into his, scrunching up his nose as he shook his head quickly.

“No, I…I mean…that I’m…fuck, this isn’t going right.”

Matt pinched the bridge of his nose as his lips pursed into a frown, and you eyed him curiously as you gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

“What isn’t going right? What are you talking about?”

“Will you just…come with me? Please? I really need to show you something.”

Matt’s face was twisted in what looked like agony, and the desperation in his voice made you nervous. You didn’t think you had ever seen him look so…terrified, not even that night at Elektra’s when he thought you were going to leave him for good. You allowed Matt to guide you further through the park, venturing off down a path only he seemed to know, and stopping once you reached a gate that was covered in ivy. He pulled a key from his pocket to unlock it, and pushed it open with a slight creak, gesturing for you to enter first with a timid smile.

A shocked gasp flew past your lips as you stepped inside. It was an isolated garden, completely closed in by ivy covered walls, lit up only with various strings of white twinkle lights and the glow of the moon. To your delight, there were several plants and flowers in full bloom, and the whole scene looked like a vibrant painting you would hang on your wall. 

“I hear this place is beautiful.”

Turning around to face Matt, you noticed that he had taken off his glasses, and was apprehensively turning them over in his hands over and over. The timid smile was still plastered on his lips, but his eyes were nearly blown open with distress.

“I…it’s…I don’t even know how to describe it. How…how did you find this?”

“Karen did. It’s technically private property owned by the city, but Brett owed me a favor.”

The puzzlement on your face only grew as you stared at Matt, a soft laugh leaving your lips as you gestured around.

“Is this why you’ve been acting so weird? You didn’t think I’d like the surprise?”

Matt’s eyes darted back and forth blankly as he dragged his teeth along his bottom lip, swallowing thickly as he placed his glasses into his jacket pocket and took a few cautious steps forward.

“I…I hoped that you’d like it.”

“Matty, I love it. It’s so beautiful. But you didn’t have to be so nervous to show me this. You could’ve taken me to a random alley and I still would’ve loved it.”

Matt let out a breathless laugh as he shook his head, clicking his tongue against the inside of his cheek as he smiled softly.

“Then it wouldn’t have been special.”

A furrow formed between your brows as you looked at him, trying to decipher all the cryptic pieces he was laying in front of you.

“What wouldn’t have?”

Matt was silent for a moment as he fixed his gaze on your face, tilting his head to the side ever so slightly as he studied you. Finally letting out a deep breath, he reached out to take one of your hands, brushing his thumb delicately over your knuckles as a slow smile spread over his lips.

“I told you, I’m in love with you.”

“And I’m in love with you, Matty.”

Matt took a step closer as he brought his other hand up to cradle your face, a tender smile on his lips as he rubbed his thumb soothingly over your cheek. You couldn’t tell if it was the reflection of the lights in his eyes, but they looked glossy, almost as if he was about to cry, and it made you squeeze onto his hand tighter.

“You…are the first person that has ever truly understood me. The first that’s ever accepted and loved both sides of me. You’ve never shied away from one, or favored the other, or asked me to choose. You haven’t given up on me, even when I’ve given you plenty of reasons to. You are the best part of my day. I can’t tell you how…how happy it makes me to know that when I come home at night, you’re there waiting for me. And no matter what kind of day I’ve had, or how rough of a night it was, it…it doesn’t matter, because you’re there. You give me a reason to make it home. I can’t tell you how much I love that I get to fall asleep holding you and listening to your heartbeat, and start every day hearing your voice and kissing your lips. I have never felt as…happy…and light as I do with you. I want to spend the rest of my life feeling this way. I want to spend the rest of my life ending every night with you and starting every morning with you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So-”

Matt let out a shaky breath as he slowly dropped his hand from your face and tightly held onto your hand. You were already in tears from Matt’s words before, but the moment he dropped down onto one knee before you, the floodgates opened and a choked sob caught in your throat as your other hand flew up to cover your mouth.

“Y/N Y/L/N, will you marry me?”

“Oh my God, Matty…yes…yes!”

Matt blew out a shaky breath of relief as he closed his eyes for a moment, the tension in his shoulders evaporating right in front of your eyes as he let his head drop. You couldn’t help but laugh as you stared down at him in perplexity.

“Did you think I was going to say no?”

Matt rubbed his hand down his face to wipe away his own tears, letting out another breathless laugh and sniffling as he looked up at you with a goofy grin on his lips.

“Figured I had a fifty-fifty shot.”

Lips splitting into the biggest smile you had ever seen, Matt quickly rose to his feet and grabbed your face, capturing your mouth in a deep kiss as you gripped onto his jacket to hold him close. All of a sudden he quickly pulled away and shoved his hand down into his pocket.

“Oh shit, uh…sorry…I…here.”

Matt laughed nervously as he pulled a small velvet black box out of his pocket, opening it to reveal the ring inside. Your mouth fell open as a gasp escaped, and you gripped onto Matt’s forearm as fresh tears welled in your eyes.

“Matty…”

“Do…do you like it?”

“I…I love it. It’s…it’s perfect. How did you-”

“I had some help.”

Glancing up at Matt through your teary eyes, you watched as a bashful smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Pulling the ring from the box, Matt gently grabbed onto your wrist with a shaky hand, and carefully slipped the ring onto your finger. It fit absolutely perfectly, and you stared down at it in awe as it dazzled beneath the lights. You were overwhelmed with so many emotions, and you didn’t know what to do other than grab Matt’s face and pull him down for a searing kiss. 

The two of you gripped onto each other as if you were afraid the other might disappear if you loosened your grasp even the slightest. You were a flurry of lips and teeth, trying to devour the other’s desire, consuming the taste of happiness together. Matt laid you down in the soft grass of the garden floor and made love to you right there, intertwining his hand with yours that wore the symbol of his love and promise to you.

A burst of laughter ripped through your chest at that memory of Matt’s nervousness as you covered your mouth, staring at Foggy knowingly in the reflection of the mirror. Elektra’s mouth split into a huge grin as she rolled her eyes, pressing a quick kiss to your temple and giving Foggy’s shoulder a squeeze on her way to the door.

“Alright, alright. Let me go do damage control. I’ll see you both out there. Oh, and Y/N, darling?”

You turned your head to look over at her as she paused in the doorway.

“Yeah?”

A warm smile tugged at the corners of Elektra’s mouth as she stared over at you, leaning her head briefly against the door. 

“You are the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.”

You pursed your lips slightly as your face twisted up faintly into an expression of gratitude, returning her smile with one of your own.

“Thank you, Ellie.”

Elektra flashed you a quick wink, closing the door behind her to leave you alone with Foggy.

“She’s right, you know. You do look beautiful.”

A smirk tugged at the corner of your mouth as you looked at Foggy in the mirror, arching one of your brows quizzically.

“Did you just agree with her?”

“That stays between us. This is a one time thing.”

Laughing softly, you turned around to pull Foggy into a tight hug, sighing in relaxation as his arms came around you to hold you securely to his chest. There didn’t seem to be anything that a hug from Foggy Nelson couldn’t fix. All of the pent up nerves seemed to dissipate from the warmth of his embrace, and you suddenly felt a million times lighter.

“Thank you.”

“You don’t have anything to thank me for.”

“I have everything to thank you for.”

“Well in that case, I think Foggy would be a great name for your future kid.”

A deep laugh rumbled in his chest as you giggled, pulling back slightly to peer up at him with a grin.

“I’ll put in a good word.”

After Foggy left you alone to go rejoin Matt and the others, you stared at your reflection in the mirror, smoothing your hands over your dress for the millionth time. A part of you was still in disbelief that today was the day you were marrying your best friend. Matt had sworn to not take the second chance you had given him for granted, and had been treating it as if it were sacred. He opened up to you about everything now, even the rough nights that plagued his thoughts, and the horrors he desperately wanted to protect you from. There wasn’t a single thought or emotion he hid anymore, and he’d even gotten better about finding balance between each of his lives. That wasn’t to say that you both didn’t struggle from time to time still, but your relationship was the healthiest it had ever been.

A knock against the door tore you from your thoughts, and a smile quickly spread across your lips at the sight of the figure leaning against the doorway.

“Hey big guy.”

Frank’s mouth split into a grin as he looked at you, giving a slight nod of his head in your direction.

“Hey darlin’.”

Turning away from the mirror to face him fully, you swallowed thickly as you smoothed your trembling hands down the sides of your dress and gestured to it.

“I look okay?”

Frank cocked his head to the side as he smirked, taking you in with his eyes as he took a few steps forward to stand in front of you.

“You kiddin’? You’re gonna knock Red on his ass.”

You didn’t hardly have any family outside of the chosen one you had made with Matt, Foggy, Karen, Elektra, and Frank. When you’d let it slip to him that you would be walking down the aisle alone, Frank instantly offered to be the one to walk you. He confessed that it would probably be the closest he would ever get to walking his own daughter down the aisle, and you graciously accepted without hesitation. 

A smirk curled at the corner of your mouth as you let your eyes wander over his large figure, finally meeting his deep brown curious eyes.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you so…”

“Dressed up, yeah yeah. Don’t get used to it.”

“I was gonna say not covered in blood.”

Frank let out a deep chuckle as he shook his head slowly, looking down at you with a dazzling grin on his lips.

“Figured I could behave for a few days so I didn’t mess up your pretty dress, yeah?”

“How generous of you.”

As the processional music started to play, the nerves you felt earlier returned full force, and you gripped onto Frank’s arm tightly as the reality of the situation started to sink in. This was actually happening. Matt was waiting for you on the other side of these doors, and in just a few moments, he would finally be your husband. Tears started to form in the corners of your eyes as your emotions started to catch up with you, thinking about everything the two of you had gone through together, and how it had all led up to this moment. Frank’s lips brushed against your cheek as he bent down to whisper into your ear.

“You say the word, and I’ll get you outta here. No questions asked, yeah?”

Gripping a little tighter onto his arm, you leaned into Frank’s embrace as a shaky breath left your lips.

“Where would we go?”

“Wherever you want, darlin’. I could hide you places even he couldn’t find.”

You swore you heard Matt groan loudly on the other side of the door, and you couldn’t help but giggle as you dipped your head back to look up at Frank. Taking a deep breath in, you exhaled slowly through your parted lips and nodded with a soft smile.

“I’m ready.”

Frank gave a slight nod as he leaned in to kiss your forehead, dropping his left eye in a wink as he smiled.

“Attagirl.”

“Frankie?”

“Yeah, sweetheart?”

“Don’t let me fall, please.”

Frank wrapped his right arm tightly around your waist, holding onto your hand with his left one as he squeezed it gently.

“Never.”

»»———　　———««

“As absolutely beautiful as you are in this dress, it’s time for it to come off.”

“You don’t wanna leave it on?”

“I’d love to, sweetheart, but it’s kind of in my way. Besides, it’s so pretty, I’d hate to ruin it with all the things I wanna do to you, Mrs. Murdock.”

A soft gasp left your lips as Matt gently sucked on that sensitive spot on your neck below your ear, and you could feel him grin against your skin when your heart skipped. He had taken every opportunity throughout the evening to call you that, or refer to you as his wife. Every time it hit your ears, a buzz of serotonin flooded your bloodstream and left you hazy.

“And what, exactly, is it that you wanna do to me, Mr. Murdock?”

Matt’s fingertips brushed lightly along the exposed skin of your bare back, causing a shudder to course through you while his nimble fingers delicately tugged the zipper of your dress agonizingly slow down your back. His stubble tickled against your cheek as he nuzzled your jaw, inhaling your scent deeply while leaving open mouthed kisses down the column of your neck.

“Fuck a baby into you.”

Gripping tightly onto his suit jacket, you were suddenly taken back to that night over a year ago when he’d first made that promise, and his words from that night flowed through your ears. 

I’m gonna marry you someday, Y/N.

I will put a ring on your finger tomorrow. 

I will put a baby in you tonight.

A fresh wave of mixed emotions glossed over your eyes, and Matt slowly pulled back to stare blankly down at your face with an expression of concern as he cradled your face in his hand.

“What is it, angel?”

“Nothing. It’s nothing.”

Matt tilted his head to the side slightly as his honey hazel eyes gazed down at you, tongue darting out to quickly wet his lips before they pulled into a timid smile.

“Was it the wedding you always wanted?”

Bringing your own hand up to cup Matt’s jaw, you pulled him in closer to touch your foreheads together as you whispered softly.

“Of course it was, Matty. You were the groom.”

Matt had been continuously asking you the same question all night, wanting to make sure you were absolutely happy with the biggest day of your lives. Honestly, it had been perfect. Karen had taken over as your unofficial wedding planner, and between her, Marci, and Elektra, you’d hardly had to lift a finger. Getting married in a church wasn’t a huge deal for you since you weren’t religious, but you knew how much it meant to Matt, and you offered to marry him in his church where his parents would’ve married. It was small and intimate, exactly what you both wanted.

The second you stepped through the open doors with Frank, Matt immediately started to cry. You were only a second behind him as soon as you saw him, the two of you gripping onto each other’s hands as Father Lantom led the ceremony, bringing everyone in attendance to tears as you exchanged your heartfelt vows. Matt had captured your lips in a deep kiss as soon as Father Lantom uttered his name, and he lightly smacked him over the back of the head with his bible to remind him that he was in church when the kiss started getting a little too heated for the house of God. Maggie had simply laughed, reminding Father Lantom that Matthew was indeed Jack Murdock’s son.

The reception was held at Josie’s where you had first met Matt over two years ago, courtesy of Karen. Foggy had drunkenly climbed onto the bar to deliver his best man speech which only drew further tears out of everyone from laughter by telling the most embarrassing story he could conjure about Matt from college, and also from the passionate gratitude he showered you in for making his best friend the happiest he had ever seen him.

Matt told me once he thought you were an angel created by God himself, and sent down from Heaven just for him, exactly when he needed you. I believe that’s true. There’s no other explanation for how perfect you are for him. Thank you for bringing my brother the happiness he’s always deserved. I love you both.

Karen could hardly contain her own tears as she spoke fondly about you and Matt, bringing even Frank and Jessica to tears with her sweet words.

I knew the night you met Matt that you loved him. I could see it in your eyes. Thank you for loving him the way that you do. I can’t tell you how happy it makes me as your best friend for you to end up with someone like Matt. Because I know he will take care of you, and protect you, and love you with everything he’s got, and I know you’ll do the same for him. I’m just so happy my two favorite people found each other.

“Today was the happiest day of my life. A day I never honestly thought would come, but I’m so happy it did, and I’m so happy it was with you. I wouldn’t change anything about it. I mean…apart from everyone offering to help you runaway, but.”

A loud laugh slipped past your ears at the annoyed look on Matt’s face, countered by the smirk that was threatening to spill across his lips. You gently squeezed his cheeks to purse his lips into a pout, leaning in to kiss them softly.

“You know they were joking.”

“No, Frank and Elektra were serious. They were actually gonna smuggle you out.”

Giggling softly, you shook your head as you leaned in to press your lips against Matt’s softly once more.

“Well I didn’t run, did I?”

Matt let out a deep exhale through his nose, shaking his head slowly as he pressed his forehead against yours.

“No. Still not sure why you didn’t.”

“There was cake.”

Matt rolled his eyes as he pushed himself up above you, and you giggled uncontrollably as you grabbed onto his tie to pull him back down towards you.

“I’m kidding! You know someone has to keep the Devil in line.”

Matt clicked his tongue against his cheek, narrowing his eyes slightly as he cocked his head to the side and stared down at you with a light smirk.

“That the only reason, then? Because you’re the only one that can?”

“I can think of a few more. Now, I thought you were helping me out of this dress?”

“I was.”

“Then be a good husband, Matthew, and help your wife.”

Matt’s eyes darkened considerably at the sultry tone of your voice, and a devilish grin took over his mouth as your beloved dimples settled in his inner cheeks. He was careful as he slipped the silk gown down your body, laying it carefully over the dresser before attacking your body with kisses once again. You frantically clawed at his jacket and dress shirt, blindly making quick work of his belt, already panting just from the idea of having your husband inside of you. There seemed to be a silent understanding between the two of you that neither of you had the patience for foreplay tonight, and all you both wanted in that moment was to be absolutely consumed by one another. 

As Matt settled between your spread thighs, a wash of nerves made you shiver, and you found yourself placing your shaky palm on his chest over his heart to get his attention.

“Matty…did you…are we…you really want a baby with me? Right now?”

Matt tilted his head in confusion as he let his eyes blankly wander over you, placing his palm flat on the pillow by your head as he leaned in closer towards you. You and Matt had been talking more seriously about starting a family after you got engaged, and you stopped taking birth control a few months before the wedding to make sure it was fully out of your system for when you two were ready to actually start trying.

“Of course I do. Why? Did you change your mind?”

“No! No no, it’s not that. I just…you aren’t going to miss it? I mean…the city means so much to you, Matty, and-”

“Hey, you mean the most to me. You’re the love of my life, sweetheart.”

You wrapped your fingers around Matt’s wrist as he held your face, nibbling at your bottom lip as you let out a shaky breath.

“I know, baby. I just…I know how much you need that part of yourself-”

“Not anymore. All I need is you. I’m still protecting the city, and the people in it, everyday. I’m still helping people. But New York doesn’t really need Daredevil anymore. It has people to protect it, like Luke and Jessica. And Colleen, Danny, even Frank and Elektra. You need me. And the one thing I care more about protecting and keeping safe is you, and our family.”

“I just don’t want you to wake up one day and regret hanging up the suit, or feel any kind of resentment-”

“Sweetheart, listen to me. I could never regret anything with you. How could I feel even an ounce of resentment when you’re offering to give me the greatest gift in the world that I’ll never be able to repay you for, hm?”

Matt carefully wiped a stray tear away from your eye as you reached up to gently grab onto the back of his neck, pulling him down so that his chest was flush to yours as you whispered softly.

“I just want to make you happy, Matty.”

“You do, angel. Everyday. You are my happiness. Now, can I please make love to my wife?”

Matt took his time as he entered you, peppering kisses on every inch of your body he could find, moving his hips lazily as he fucked into you slowly to ensure you both felt everything. Interlacing your fingers together, he held your hands above your head and squeezed them tightly, repeatedly whispering into your ear how much he loved you, how beautiful and perfect you were for him, and how badly he wanted you to give him a baby. Matt pulled your legs tightly around his waist, angling your hips to reach the most delicious depths within you, spilling his seed into the deepest layer of your garden to plant the foundation for the family you both so desperately wanted together. 

Neither of you could get enough, and Matt fucked you sweetly and slowly several more times into the early hours of the night until your bodies simply couldn’t take anymore. He refused to withdraw himself from you, keeping his soft cock nestled within you, preventing any ounce of your future he had emptied into you from slipping out as he wrapped his arms around you from behind. Matt placed his palm over your lower belly, absentmindedly stroking his thumb in slow circles over the first home your child would have.

“I love you so much, angel.”

“I love you so much, Matty.”

Matt was here. Matt loved you. Matt was yours.

tags: @yarrystyleeza @little-miss-dilf-lover @neverlandcity @charmedkim @queenofthenoobs @stilldreaming666 @messymissy @dark-academia-slut @strawberry1042 @thychuvaluswife

[irondadfics]

Happy Halloween! 🎃

in honor of spooky day, here is a list of all the Halloween fics we’ve collected, plus, a couple of my own personal favs.

Trick or Treat (or Traumatize) by awesomesockes, whumphoarder

Peter is thrilled when he finally gets permission from Tony to throw a spooky celebration at the compound for the team. Unfortunately, wherever the Avengers are concerned, things never go quite to plan.  Or, in which Hulk destroys a mannequin factory, Tony gets sued by his boarding school childhood rival, and Peter accidentally chops off his own finger.  Happy Halloween!

Pumpkins & Stitches by Marvelous_Writer

In which Happy babysits Morgan and Peter while Pepper and Tony are out on date night. With Halloween only a week away, they decide to carve pumpkins... which probably wasn’t the best idea. Whumptober Day 22: Stitches

Who’s calling? by frostysunflowers

Just as he’s fantasizing about what kind of dessert he’ll make after eating some pizza, something smothered in chocolate sauce and sprinkles, Karen patches through another call from MJ which he accepts with a laugh already bubbling in his chest.  ''I’m almost done - '' ''Did you just call here?'' The abrupt tone jars him. ''What? No? Why do you - '' ''You swear?'' ''Yeah, yeah, I promise, what’s going on?'' or A wholesome Halloween night takes a rather sinister turn.

Of bright autumn days and things that go bump in the night (series) by frostysunflowers

Halloween/fall themed fics featuring plenty of fluff, feels and seasonal shenanigans!

The Prank by blondsak

“Kid, you couldn’t be scary if you tried.” A pause on the other end. “Is that a dare?” Tony rolled his eyes. “Tell you what, if you actually manage to scare me, I’ll get you and Ted movie premiere passes to that upcoming Star Wars film you keep going on about.” “No way! Um, okay, I gotta think… you just wait Mister Stark, I’m going to freak you out so bad!” “I’m shaking in my boots, Pete,” Tony replied with a smirk before hanging up.

Monster Mash by Marvelous_Writer

The Stark family gets invited to a Halloween party at the Compound, only Peter fails to mention that he’s sick.

To Infinity… and Beyond! by superhusbands4ever

Halloween in coming up and after watching a certain toy themed movie, Peter knows exactly what he wants to be. He's just going to need a little bit of help. Tony would like to submit this as proof that he will do anything for his son. Including dressing up as a toy cowboy.

Double, Double by YellowDistress

Peter had thought it was turning out to be a productive Halloween. Until he caught the 'Freddy and Jason' wannabes stealing a car.

Matchstick by chaoticlywise

For Halloween, Tony invites Peter to the Compound to spend some time with him and the other Avengers. However, it doesn’t go as planned when Happy, Peter and Tony get in a car crash in the middle of nowhere. Tony doesn’t think it can get worse until a rustling in the woods catches his attention.

13 nights of halloween by killerqueenwrites 

13 halloween prompts, from spooky to angsty to fluffy.

13 nights of halloween (series) by icymapletree

(a series of Halloween prompts)

the symbiote one by justjellyjackal

Peter Parker is finally living an almost normal life. Sure, memories of past villains abound, and present villains are on the horizon, but he’s fine for the most part. That is, until the most notorious symbiote of them all shows up, ready to take on and over the world, Peter at his side and in his control. It’s almost Halloween, but the scariest thing isn’t always the monsters outside, but the ones within.

Vein Drain by ciaconnaa

The next thing Peter registers is being on the ground. He can hear Michelle swearing but it sounds muffled. There’s a firm jostle to his shoulder before her cold hand is cupping his cheek. “Pete, wake up.” He blinks a few times and comes to in time to notice a nurse putting a pillow underneath his head. Michelle is hovering over him, slight worry pinching her features except for her mouth, which is stuffed with those fake vampire fangs. “I think you took too much blood, Miss Dracula,” Peter sighs, covering his arm over his eyes in shame. or; Peter Parker faints at Midtown's annual Halloween themed blood drive. Tony Stark gets called to pick him up.

Ned the Dumbwaiter by whumphoarder

Peter gets horribly sick on Halloween night and his very overwhelmed Guy In The Chair attempts to take care of him. But when both boys find themselves in over their heads, Tony takes over. (Alternative title: Spooky Pukey)

too sick for clowns by Hailfire_73

“Where do you think you’re going?” Peter’s shoulders dropped, and he turned to see Mr. Stark standing at the bottom of the staircase, wearing his pajamas with an Iron Man robe. His slippers were the Spider-Man ones Peter had gotten him last Christmas as a joke, but Peter was too sad and bitter about having a flu on the most magical night of the year to be happy he was wearing them.  “Just for a drive,” said Peter. “A drive?” questioned Mr. Stark. “It’s almost two in the morning.” “Mr. Starkkkk,” he said, also too sick to care about having to resort to whining. “I just wanna be spooky.”  “Whatever virus that’s working its way through your system is already spooky enough, kid.” OR Tony catches Peter trying to sneak out to go to a Halloween party when he has the flu and is supposed to be resting.  whumptober day 5: failed escape

An MIT Halloween by bethy_277

Peter is a college student at MIT and Tony brings Morgan up for some trick-or-treating.

monster mash by porcelaincarnival

It's Halloween and Peter has the perfect plan for a great night. It's a shame that the world doesn't work that way.

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Peter Parker by sentient_bees

The Starks take on treat-or-treating.

how things change by iron_spider

this is Part 15 of the I love you more than anything (bio dad au) series

May still feels like she’s in an alternate reality, sometimes. She looks at Tony and expects to see Richard, but then she remembers when she is, who’s here and who’s not. She has to admit to herself that she likes Tony, that he’s better than she thought he was, and she likes what he brings out in Ben. Ben never really seemed to mesh with Richard, but Tony, despite being multiple tax brackets above them, gets Ben talking like May used to see him do in high school. It’s nice to see. It’s really, really nice for him to have a friend. She trails behind them and takes pictures, and doesn’t let her mind wander. Instead, she just admires how Tony is out here in a monkey costume—one of the most famous men in the world, walking the streets in a monkey costume, purely because his son enjoys it.

Purple Peter Eater by sdottkrames

Comfortember prompt 1: rescue Halloween is interrupted by none other than Flash Thompson, and when he’s mean to her big brother, Morgan has something to say about it. After all, even superheroes need rescuing sometimes

You Broke Tony by whumphoarder

Peter stumbles into the tower one evening, clearly injured and in need of assistance. Cue a very agitated and sleep deprived Tony trying to make sense of what happened.

No Monsters Allowed by KatinaMoon

No. No. No. No. Tony's heart stops. That can't be- It isn't- There aren't supposed to be real monsters out on Halloween. No fucking ghouls in their carefully staked and selected cul-de-sac. Demons handing out candy to children. Vampires come back from the abyss to hurt his kid all over again. 

Sweet Victory by KatinaMoon

"What is it?" She squeaks, plowing into him and wrapping her arms around his legs. "A zombie?" "No, no," he assures quickly, straining to hear. There's the muted sound of what might be footfalls. "No zombies, remember? Your dad said so-" And, to be fair, it's not a zombie that steps through the tall corn grass in front of them. It's a goddamn killer clown.

One Sweet Trick by Winterturtle

“It’s either this or metal bikini.” Tony sighed, determined to preserve at least some of his dignity. “Why are we doing this again?” The puppy eyes were gone in an instant, replaced with a look of pure excitement. “Because we’re trying to reform you! To show the public that the villain Iron Man is gone and is instead replaced with… uh…,” Peter’s face scrunched, “anti-hero Iron Man? I don’t know. Hero doesn’t seem to be the right word to describe you.”  ~~~ Villainous prompt no. 17 "There is NO WAY I'm wearing this lame outfit-" "Wear it right now or I'll tell everyone how you tried to set me on fire."

Friendly Neighborhood Craft Project by whumphoarder

Through a convoluted series of events, ten-year-old Cassie Lang is in New York and missing a costume on Halloween. Peter, his aunt, and his long suffering mentor all come to her rescue, hot glue guns a-blazing.

[fetchen]

i think uh gretchen and karen are gay and in love so here’s some of my headcanons about it :3

<3-before they got together, karen was incredibly clingy with gretchen and gretchen only (as i mentioned before, karen is just a very touchy person but gravitated toward gretchen)

<3-karen heard gretchen when she was singing “what’s wrong with me?” and went on a very long and heartfelt rant about how there’s nothing wrong with her

<3-that’s when gretch realised she had feelings for her best friend c:

<3-they literally share everything like if gretchen gets a coffee half of it will be drank by karen

<3-karen loses her things a lot so gretchen’s come to have extras always

<3-they make collaborative spotify playlists :3

<3-they’re always clinging to each other during sleepovers at regina’s and regina is a really big hater about it

<3-they had their first kiss after cady’s party

<3-gretchen was so upset about jason and karen was there for her the whole time

<3- “i dunno why you like him so much. you’re like…really nice and smart and pretty. but he’s so…not nice to you.” among other compliments

<3-gretchen could not believe that karen really felt that way about her

<3-she kinda just stared at karen for a few seconds

<3-they made out very passionately after that (gretchen kissed karen first even though she was terrified to)

<3-it took gretchen like a day after that to tell karen she actually liked her

<3-they were each other’s dates to the spring fling c: they weren’t official yet at that point

<3-when they started dating, karen asked gretchen, “does this make you or me the boyfriend?”

<3-gretchen calls karen “mama”, “(mi) amor”, or “kare-bear” if she’s feeling particularly corny and karen calls gretchen “gretch” always

<3-they have movie nights with regina, cady, aaron, janis, and damian and whenever someone picks a horror movie karen gets scared so easily that she just huddles up to gretchen the whole time

<3-gretchen absolutely loves karen’s big brown eyes like there might actually be nothing she loves more in the whole world

<3-karen loves biting gretchen like not in a sexual way she just thinks gretchen looks so edible she will bite her very softly all the time

<3-gretchen will absentmindedly do that thing with her thumb when she and karen are holding hands and it kinda drives karen crazy

<3-they do that cheesy couple thing where they rest their foreheads together like they’re about to kiss and everyone else hates it (affectionately)

<3-karen had feelings for gretchen for a while and made it painfully obvious but just never said anything

<3-gretchen is a lesbian (i’m kinda projecting with this one) jason was just her comphet fr

<3-karen is pan (this is semi canon/confirmed by avantika)

<3-gretchen has insomnia and often calls karen in the middle of the night just to hear her voice

<3-gretchen sometimes has panic attacks and karen is the only person who knows exactly how to calm her down

<3-gretchen picks at her cuticles and karen brings her colourful bandaids and holds her hands to prevent her from doing so

<3-gretchen gets quite jealous easily,, mostly due to being a very anxious and insecure person

okay . i’m done thank u for coming to my ted talk ^w^ (i have more please ask me about them if you want)

[towriteloveontheirarms]

I want to speak to your manager (modern!Criston Cole x reader)

synopsis: On a late-night adventure to McDonalds the fries you are given are cold. Deciding to stand up for yourself you ask the kid at the counter for the manager. Who would have thought that what you get is so much more than just some fresh, hot fries?

warnings: age gap (reader is in her early twenties), smut, making out, oral sex (m receiving), p in v, afab reader

word count: 2.4k

taglist: @hopelesswritergall @urmomsgirlfriend1 @bucknastysbabe

(If you want to be tagged for a specific character/fandom or in general let me know in my asks, comments or DMs)

A/N: Thank you @bucknastysbabe for this cursed idea💜 it was so fun to write this and expand the alternative universe of fast food restaurants that you have lowkey created now lmao and also the other fics that are soon to come

Dividers by me

Writing your bachelor thesis had to be the worst experience of your life. And the worst part about it was, that it was a hell of your own making. At first you had struggled to find a topic to write about and when you finally did, your procrastination set in hard. Cursing yourself for all of it, you close and push away the laptop in front of you, rubbing a hand over your face. Attempting to calm down by taking a few deep breaths, you get interrupted by a loud and quite frankly painful rumbling deep in your stomach, reminding you of the fact that you had skipped every meal since breakfast and one look at the clock revealed that it was currently the middle of the night. Great, you think to yourself. Grabbing your keys, phone and wallet you make your way down to the car to drive to the next spot that was still open. McDonalds. Waiting in line you ignore the cashier bickering with a customer about their order by finding something to eat. Despite the grumbling in your stomach nothing really calls to you, except for the fries. So, when you get called up to order a portion of fries and a milkshake will have to do. Sitting down in one of the seats in the back, you take a few fries into your hand and dunk them into the vanilla milkshake. They feel quite cold already, but when you bite down on them it's not only the cold of the milkshake that fills your mouth. Perfect. Just perfect.

For a moment you ponder just accepting your fate, but then decide to stick up for yourself. You deserved some fresh fries. You deserved some warm food when you ordered it. Though you still felt sorry for the kid you are about to ask for the manager. If there was something you hated, it was the possibility of being seen as a Karen. Ugh, alright. For the sake of some hot fries, you motivate yourself to get up and walk up to the counter again.

“What can I do for you?” The kid with long silver hair asks in a flat, but still polite tone.

“Hey, um I´m really sorry to do this, but um the fries your coworker just gave me are ice cold. Would it be possible to let me speak to your manager, please?” You grace the blond with an apologetic smile, though both of you are aware it doesn't do anything to change your request.

"Yeah, sure. If you wait here for a moment, I'll go get him." The blond turns to get his manager.

"Thank you. I'm sorry." You smile apologetically again.

You aren't sure how long it takes or how long it is supposed to take until the person you asked for gets to the front, but the waiting makes your foot tap and your palms sweat. When the tall, tan man steps around the corner however, your entire bodies movement stops at once.

Your lips part slightly, and you are sure to hear a quiet, high pitched “Hoo” fall from them. Embarrassed by the sound that just left you, you pull your lower lip between your teeth.

“I´m the manger, Criston Cole. What can I help you with?” There is faint, but very captivating dornish accent swinging in his formal voice. "I-I..." You stumble over your words at the gorgeous dark eyes and the handsome stubble looking back at you. "Well, I really hate to be this person, but I just came in and the fries one of your employees gave me was almost freezing cold." "I am so sorry, I pride myself on having employees that are competent enough to not have this happen. Let me get you a new portion right away.” Cole promised, his dark eyebrows pulled together tightly in thought of who he might need to talk to.

“Thank you so much. And I am sorry I interrupted your day with this matter. You sure have more important things to do.” Your cheeks begin burning as you apologise to him as well.

"Oh, no. There is no reason to apologise. If anything, it helped to make any future experiences here more pleasant." He narrows his eyes at the short haired blond that initially served you. Letting him know he was in trouble though it was met with a cocky smile and an air of indifference. "Can I do anything else for you?"

You don´t know what happens when he asks this, but suddenly there courses only adrenaline and desire through your system. The almost pitch-black eyes that look back at you have you in a trance. The equally dark curls enticing you to run your fingers through them.

Without thinking about it too much, you all but blurt out. “When do you get off?”

Criston´s eyes widen for a second. When the surprise has ebbed away however, he eyes you up and down.

“In about an hour. I´m parked directly by the back entrance, meet me by my car then.” His dark eyes roam over your body once before he gives you a wink and disappears back into his office.

Woken up from the trance his eyes had you in, you stand there for a moment longer, perplexed as to what just happened. When the realization does sink in, a happy little grin spreads on your lips. Bitten back by the lower lip between the teeth to not make you look like an entire idiot. Sitting back down in the corner, you eat your fresh fries and kill the rest of the time by scrolling through your phone.

You don´t have to wait outside for long. Only a few minutes after you reach the car, the bac entrance door opens to reveal the man you were waiting for. Criston opens the passenger side door of the vehicle for you and then takes his place in the driver’s seat.

Immediately his large, warm hand cups your cheek to pull you closer, his lips locking with yours. The hungrily crushing together body parts make your breath hitch and closed eyes flutter. The silk of his shirt feels smooth underneath your own finger pads, which crumple it the moment Criston begins mouthing at your neck. Sucking at the skin to leave his marks and arouse you further. The hand that is not on your cheek to move your head around as he pleases, comes up from your hips to toy with your breasts until it heaved from panting breathes. He connected his lips to yours again, the hand from your cheek now laying in the back of your neck, squeezing it ever so lightly sending a shock of electricity down your spine. You moan into the kiss. A breathy sound of absolute perfection that makes his already hard cock twitch in the uncomfortably tight pants. His tongue then licks over your lower lip to silently ask for entrance, being granted it straightforwardly. Your lips open for your tongue to come out and play with his. The two muscles dancing together and exploring the others mouth, while one of your hands lays on the bulge between dark haired man's legs. Almost instantly he begins to rub against the palm in search of friction. This time it is him who groans into the caress of tongues.

The sound urges you on, to fiddle with the belt and button of the pants, until finally you can pull them down just enough to free his cock from its tight confines. Pulling away from his hungry lips, you sit a bit further back on the car seat, to bend forward more comfortably. The hand that Criston previously had rutted himself against now took the base of it as your lips placed little pecks and kitten licks to the already with pre cum beaded tip. As you do so the hair that frames your face falls forward like a curtain. Just as it falls it is pulled back by his hand threading into it, giving it a light tug in the process, just as you wrap your lips around his length, taking it in until your lips almost reached the fingers at his base. The action coaxes a moan from you, which in turn heightened his pleasure as it vibrates through him. Concentrating on breathing through your nose and accommodate his size in your throat, you begin to bob your head up and down in a steady rhythm.

“Shit, your mouth feels so great around my cock.” Criston rasps above you.

Letting him guide your head, you relax your jaw a little further and lick up the vein on the underside of his dick. Wet slurping and light gagging sounds fill the vehicle as you hollow out your cheeks to suck on the sensitive tip.

“You´re so eager… fuck… I don´t think I´m gonna last long if you continue like this.” He growls and whines.

The sounds go straight to your core, to leave you craving for more. You communicate as much by whining around his length. It is the most desperate sound he has ever heard. The dornish man's cock twitches in your hold and to your surprise you get pulled off it only seconds after. Looking up, you see his head had fallen back to rest against the seat. His hair is mussed by his own hand running through it repeatedly in the heat of the moment and somehow the affected state, the way his chest heaves, makes him look even better than before.

“I want to feel you inside of me. Now.” You beg him in the sweetest tones he had ever heard.

“Yeah? Are you that desperate? You need my cock that bad?” The questions escape him with the cockiest and simultaneously sexiest smirk you have ever seen in your life.

“Fuck, yeah. I need your cock so badly.” You plead while mouthing at his neck.

“Well, if you´re asking so nicely, how could I say no to that.”  Criston puts his seat back to make more space for the two of you and then pulls you onto his lap by the hips.

There is no patience left between you two. The air is thick with your mutual need for release and filled with the light scent of sweat and the promise of what´s to come. In the blink of an eye your panties are ripped off and Criston sinks himself into you.

“Oh seven… You´re tight.” He gasps, letting his head fall back against the seat’s headrest once more.

“Shit, you´re stretching me out so well. So big.” You whine back.

You set an almost painfully slow pace when you begin to bounce on his lap, until you get used to his size. The whimpers from your lungs getting muffled by the hollow of his neck.

When the pain in your core subsides, your hips automatically begin to rock against his harder and faster, which he takes as a sign to meet your thrusts. If there was any reason to doubt how good of an idea this was before, it is all gone now. Criston hits a point inside of you that no one has ever reached before, making your eyes roll back and your moans to become hoarse as you bury your face in his neck. The sensations of him bullying your sweet spot become overwhelming fast. Your legs tremble at his sides and the movement of your hips falters fast as he steadily drives you towards the sweet relief of orgasming. The only way you can keep up the rhythm of meeting Criston´s thrusts is by the help of one of his hands supporting your backside and using the chance to massage your ass cheeks.

With some strength you can lift your head again, looking at him through hazy eyes and tightly knit eyebrows. Both of your mouths hang open to make way for heavy breaths and the sounds of the pleasure you each give and receive.

When you look up at him it is like two magnets are pulling you two together by the lips. In that moment the two of you are made purely of electricity. Pushing, pulling and nibbling on the other´s lips, every kiss breathes life into you that is robbed by every new thrust into your burning core.

“Don´t stop. ´m so fucking close. Gods… so good.” You babble helplessly through the fog that clouds your brain.

“If there is a heaven I´m buried in it right now.” His words make your eyelids and inner walls flutter. “Fuck, I can feel you´re close.”

“Yes, yes. So close.” The words that leave your mouth don´t even register in your brain anymore. All you can feel is the fire burning through your body. Screaming for sweet release.

“Come for me then. Soak my cock with your juices.” Criston growls near your ear and as if they aren´t enough he takes your earlobe between his teeth to nibble on the sensitive skin.

One last time your inner walls flutter around his dick, before you do as he commands. Arching your back until your breasts press against his chest and sinking your nails into his shoulders, dragging them down to leave red streaks under the silk shirt, you let the pleasure wash over you. Trembling and shaking uncontrollably.

In the last moments of clenching around his length, you bring Criston to his own peak. Milking him for everything he´s worth, until his seed flows back out of you while you ride out your orgasm.

Underneath you Criston leans his head back to fully expose his neck, eyes squeezed shut tight and whining at the sensitivity. When both your bodies allow you to rest again, you lay against his chest for a moment, before your legs carry you onto the passenger seat. Even though they are still trembling. Looking into the mirror you do your best to wipe the sweat from your forehead and fix your hair. As you do so, you struggle to find the right words for the situation.

“That was…” You try to speak but cut yourself off with a deep breath.

“Yeah.” Criston agrees.

“So, uh…” You still wrestle with your mind for words as it slowly comes back to reality, while pulling down your dress to hide the fact that your panties fell victim to your shared passion.

“I´d like to see you again.” Criston offers after tucking away his now soft length.

“Really?” Surprise flits over your face for barely a second. “Yes, I´d like that too. Very much.”

“Great, why don´t you give me your number and I´ll give you a call some time?” The dark-haired man implored, holding out his phone for you to type in your number.

With idle fingers you take the device to do just that. Before you get out to go back to your own car, you grace his cheek with one last chaste peck.

“Call me.”

[bookshelf-dust]

the hurt is good

part i part ii part iii part iv part v part vi

billy hargrove x fem!reader

word count: 4,252

warnings: swearing, anxiety, loneliness, a smidge of angst, karen wheeler and her goons as well as mentions of the way they treat billy, hurt, comfort

a/n: hi!!! alas, behold!! i’ve been working on this very slowly for like the past week. but i think i’m pretty proud of this part. thanks for sticking around to read each of these and for encouraging me to try something new. i really hope you enjoy this part. love you bunches!! <333

before you read, listen to: angeleyes by ABBA and/or tiny dancer by elton john

————

The bedsheets are cold everywhere that your body isn’t. Each time you that you rub your feet together you feel the chilly fabric and scramble back to the warm spot you’ve created.

You flip onto your side, reaching for the phone on your nightstand. You punch in a number. A number you think you might remember for the rest of your life.

You wipe your cheek as you maneuver to your back, receiver pressed to your ear.

You stare up at the ceiling, feeling the warmth of tears at your hairline from the change in position. You can’t get them to stop.

The phone’s barely rung before he picks up, and you notice that it’s one in the morning.

“Hello?” Billy’s voice sounds like he hasn’t used it in awhile.

“Hey. It’s me,” you say.

“Figured. No other dumbass would call my number at fucking dark-thirty.”

You can’t find it in you to laugh, though you feel in your chest that you would’ve if you weren’t so stuck.

“Were you sleeping?” you ask, though you know he wasn’t. Not with the speed at which he answered the phone.

“No. What’s the matter?” he inquires.

You sniffle, and Billy sits straight up on the other side of the line.

“Y/N?”

You take a shaky breath, steeling yourself.

“I miss you.”

Billy has to take the phone away from his ear for a second. He runs a hand down his face and blinks. Hard.

No one has ever said that to him.

I miss you. I miss you.

Composing himself, he responds. “Oh yeah?”

“Billy.” Your tone is stern, though not quite pleading.

“You wanna know somethin’?”

“Sure.”

“I miss you more,” he tells you.

“Please don’t make this a competition, Hargrove.” Now you speak a touch more pleadingly.

Billy laughs, and it makes you smile.

You wish you could see him. See the way his eyes squint when he chuckles, or the way he tosses his head back and cackles.

“So you just miss me? That’s all?” He changes the subject.

You stop for a second. No. That’s not all.

“Yeah,” you say, though it’s not very convincing—to you or to Billy.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” You pause shortly before continuing. “I-I just wanted to hear your voice is all.”

Billy’s grin dissipates. Something’s wrong, and he can feel it. He goes to speak, but you beat him to it, perhaps sensing that he’d dig for more. You hadn’t meant to sound so sad.

“I’m gonna try and get some sleep, okay, Billy? Will you do the same for me, please?”

You ask because he’s told you he doesn’t sleep well a lot of time. And sometimes, when you look at him, you can see it.

The rings under his eyes. The way he holds himself.

Billy hates that you’re not telling him something. Something that’s made you call him in the middle of the night, something that he thinks has made you cry. He thinks that because he’s never heard that particular kind of sniffle before. You sound so tired.

He doesn’t want you to cry or to be upset. Billy Hargrove cares about you more than he’s ever cared about himself. He even finds that he wants to. For you.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll try. But only if you promise you’re really going to rest.”

“I promise, Billy,” you say.

“Okay. Goodnight, Y/N.”

“Goodnight, Billy.”

When you set the phone down, your tears have stopped, though you remain awake, staring at the wall, your thoughts enveloping you.

You really hadn’t meant for him to catch that you’re upset. You hadn’t even meant to call him. You just needed him a reminder that he was there.

Earlier, you’d been straitening up your room when you found yourself going through old boxes filled with pictures or badges or cards. And you’d found a couple of photographs with you and your old friends. Some with your small group of middle school friends, but also some with Nancy.

Suddenly you’d found yourself very overwhelmed. You felt fear wash over you like when you’re at the beach and you try and jump the waves but miss.

You’d been afraid that Billy might leave you like everyone else.

You don’t want him to leave you. You want him to stay.

————

“You know you can invite Billy over whenever you want, right?”

Your mother sits on the living room floor. She’s decided to alphabetize your VHS tape collection. You have no idea why.

You’re spread out on the couch, watching her. “Is this a trick?”

She turns to face you and smacks a hand to her chest. “What? No!”

The smirk she’s sporting says otherwise, and you give her a look that makes her relent. “I just feel like you’ve been really quiet lately. I can tell you’re anxious. And I see the way Billy helps that.”

She shakes your copy of The Sound of Music for you to see. She knows how you feel about Mr. von Trapp. You grin sweetly.

“And I see the way he looks at you. The way you look at him,” she says.

“Mom.”

“Honeybee, I’m serious,” she tells you, voice soft as ever. “I can tell that you feel safe with him. That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you.”

“I know.”

You’re quiet for a minute. You wonder if Billy’s busy today. You would like to see him, though you always want to see him.

“I’m gonna go call him, okay? Maybe he could come over this afternoon and stay for dinner?”

Your mother gives you an enthusiastic thumbs up as you stand, and you watch her eye Gene Kelly for a minute too long before you head for the phone.

————

Billy doesn’t have any plans today, he tells you.

“I was thinking we could hang around for awhile and you could eat with us? My mom said she might even make cookies.”

Billy’s laugh is gravelly and sends a shiver straight down your spine. “Cookies, huh? Yeah, alright.”

“So it’s the cookies that do it for you then?” you ask, feigning offense at his agreeing only after you mentioned treats.

“Should there be something else that sweetens the deal?” He’s teasing you now.

“You tell me.”

“I was thinking maybe this girl I’m talking to would be a good addition.”

“Oh?” You twist the phone cord around your hand.

“Yeah. She’s a real pain in my ass, but I kind of like her, so I keep her around.”

“She sounds nice, I guess.” You’re so glad he can’t see you.

Billy hums. “You guess? I think she’s pretty damn sweet herself. I guess I don’t even really need the cookies. She’s more than enough for me.”

————

Billy opens the car door and grins at the sight of you���especially since you’ve decided to sit in the backseat with him, leaving the passenger seat empty.

Your mother realized that she not only had nothing to cook for dinner, but also no supplies for cookies, so she decided you could just scoop Billy up, take him along to get groceries, and then drag him back home.

Billy couldn’t really believe the gesture. But even if it was odd, this entire premise of being part of someone’s plans or being cared for, he found himself enjoying it.

Your mother turns the radio up a little, allowing a buffer for the both of you to talk to one another, that way she can’t really hear you.

Billy looks you over. He’s still worried about you after that phone call. He notices your knee bouncing and reaches over, slipping his hand over it and tucking his fingers snugly underneath it.

The bouncing ceases. You put your hand on top of his, run your fingers over the lines and creases in his skin, the engravings on his ring.

“Is it the store?” he asks tentatively. He figures going out is what’s got you a little nervous.

You look at him and nod. He lifts his other hand, dragging the pad of his thumb along the slope of your nose, which you wrinkle in response.

He smiles at you. Each and every smile that he gives you feels like it’s special. Feels like it’s meant just for you.

You grab his hand, freeing it from over your knee so that you can hold it properly. When you’re successfully doing so, he gives it a squeeze.

Your mother pulls into the parking lot and you’re looking for spots, not paying attention to Billy.

You feel him raise your clasped hands, and then you feel the warm press of his mouth. You turn to him, though he’s already looking at you. He lets his lips rest against the back of your hand for a second longer, and then he releases you down so he can unbuckle himself.

You’re practically burning on the way into the store, despite the fact that there’s a chilly wind blowing every which way that should be preventing that.

Your mother grabs a cart and then digs around in her bag for the list she made. She rips it in two and gives one half to Billy. “I’m trusting you not to let her sneak unnecessary things into the basket.”

“How do you know I’m not going to do that?” Billy counters, eyes dancing around the little scrap of paper.

“Well it’s fine if you do. I’ll make a little corner for you to keep snacks.”

“Are you kidding me?” you start. Your mother winks at you, and walks off, pushing her cart away with her.

You go the other direction, snatching up a basket. “I can’t believe this,” he hears you mumble.

Billy laughs behind you. “Keep it up, Hargrove. Keep it up.” That only makes him laugh harder, and then he plants his forehead between your shoulder blades, his hands going to your sides.

“You’re just mad she likes me more,” he says into your back before righting himself.

“I’m not even allowed to have a ‘corner of snacks.’ You’re such a dick.”

You move away from him, but not before snatching the list so you can see what you’re supposed to be retrieving.

He takes it right back from you. “I’ll share with you.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

You grab hold of his bicep and he takes that as having earned your forgiveness, though it’s not for long, because you can’t actively reach for groceries whilst holding onto him.

He opens the fridge door while you grab milk, gets things from the top shelves that you can’t reach, picks out all the ingredients for chocolate chip cookies.

He doesn’t actually end up grabbing anything for himself; he can’t fathom letting your mother spend money on him like that.

You turn a corner, in search of your mom. You’re now holding the basket with both hands because it’s much too heavy, and you’d like empty it out into her cart.

She scoots into the other end of the aisle and you rush to her, relieving yourself of the groceries.

“She wouldn’t let me hold it,” Billy tells your mother.

“I have muscles,” you state, pretending like you’re not slightly out of breath.

You wander down a little ways in search of pretzels. Billy follows you a few seconds later, having paused to ask if your mom needed him to get anything else.

“Billy?” You hear him walk up behind you.

“Y/N?”

“Can you get those for me? The stick ones? Please?” You’re pointing upwards. Normally, you’d scale the shelf, but with him here that seems unnecessary.

“Sure.”

He stretches upwards, his shirt riding up, and you catch a small stretch of his stomach. You wonder what it feels like. Probably softer than his hands.

On the other end of the aisle, your mother looks back and forth between her list and the groceries in her cart, scratching things off as she goes. She’s nearly finished.

There’s a hubbub of voices from behind her, but she chooses to ignore it. It sounds like soccer moms. She’s never been one, and never wanted to be.

“Nicky!” A voice she recognizes snaps her out of her stupor, and she takes a deep breath, preparing herself.

Karen Wheeler. And from the sounds of it, a couple more moms from her group.

Nicky lost all claims to being in said group when you were in middle school. She couldn’t take the obsessive PTA meetings and activities that just made it look like these mothers actually cared about their children, when everyone knew they didn’t.

Nicky pushes her glasses up into her hair, caps her pen, and turns.

“Hi, Karen. Pamela. Tiff.” She makes eye contact with each of them in turn and offers a stiff smile.

“How are you? How’s Y/N?” Karen asks.

“I’m just fine.” Nicky’s head darts towards where you stand with Billy. She smiles at the two of you.

He’s got his fingers hooked in your belt loops, and you’re playing with the cuff of his sleeve, occasionally brushing your thumb against the skin of his wrist. You look happy.

“Y/N is doing just fine, too. Really well in school. I’m very proud of her.”

Nicky turns back to Karen, but her eyes are glued on you. More specifically, on Billy.

“Is that Billy Hargrove?” Karen seems to realize that sounds off, and covers. “His sister, Max, is friends with Mike.”

“Oh, I see,” Nicky says, appraising the looks on her and the other women’s faces. She doesn’t like the way they can’t seem to stop staring at Billy.

They’re looking him up and down, looking at him like he’s an object, like he’s this sex symbol.

Pamela turns to face Nicky. “Is he with her?”

“Would it matter if he was?” Nicky suddenly finds herself very angry and unwilling to put up with these women.

Pamela looks shocked, but it’s Tiff who pipes up. “I just thought that he’d be with someone more…mature. Y/N’s so quiet. So…anxious.”

Nicky tosses her pen in her bag. “What the hell is wrong with you? Billy is eighteen years old, and the three of you are looking at him like he’s good enough to eat. Last time I checked, you all had children the exact same age. If by mature you mean yourself, then shit! If you can’t see what’s wrong with that, then I don’t know what to tell you.”

Billy hears your mom raise her voice and holds onto your waist a little more firmly. You look up when he does.

“What gives you the right to assume you know what kind of relationship he wants to be in?” your mother continues. “He’s a fucking kid, Tiffany, and so is my daughter.”

“She might be quiet but there isn’t a damn thing wrong with that, and neither is there with being anxious. It’s clear to me that the three of you don’t know the first thing about what life is like for teenagers these days, even if you were one once. And I’m sorry that you’re so unhappy in your marriages that you think it’s okay to prey on Billy. Get a fucking divorce.”

Nicky grabs hold of her cart and pushes it towards the both of you, cocking her head to the side in a swift motion that tells you both to follow her.

“You two get everything?” she asks, continually walking.

“Yeah,” you tell her.

“Then let’s get the hell out of here.”

————

You notice, as you’re starting to help your mother make cookies, that Billy keeps pushing his hair out of his face. Having already secured yours away from any possible encounters with ingredients, you decide to help him.

“Come with me,” you say, wiggling your fingers in front of his. He grabs hold and let’s you lead him to your bathroom.

He thinks about the last time he was in here, about you cleaning him up.

You pull the cabinet open and get a scrunchie, stretching it over your fingers to show him. “This okay? I could tell it was buggin’ you.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Billy blushes a little at the idea of you having your hands in his hair, and you pretend not to notice.

You reach up, gathering all of his hair at the base of his neck. It’s softer than you expected, though you can feel the product in it, and the little bit of frizz that’s fought back.

Your nail grazes his neck, just slightly, and it makes him shiver. You tie his hair up into a bun. There are a couple shorter pieces hanging out at the front, and you make him face you so that you can push them behind his ears.

You twist one curl around your finger and then tuck it away. You look into his blue eyes, and he’s staring at you like…no. He couldn’t feel that way, could he?

Though maybe he does. Maybe he’s got the same ache for you that you’ve got for him.

Before he can think too much about it, Billy cups the back of your head and leans in, placing a kiss on your forehead.

“Thank you,” he mumbles against your skin, and then he’s giving you another one.

His lips are warm and soft, and you feel the press of them long after he’s pulled back.

You can feel him rubbing his thumb against the back of your head, and you lean into his touch. “You’re welcome.” The smile you give him makes him feel like he might actually die.

When you’re back in the kitchen, your mother has already got a batch in the oven, but she’s set everything else out for the two of you to make one.

“I wanted there to be at least a couple edible ones,” she says.

You turn to Billy. “Are you hearing this? She doubts my skills.”

“I don’t blame her,” he says teasingly, looking at Nicky, who laughs sickly sweet.

“You know what? I’ve had enough of this.” You feign wiping tears from your face and go to stomp away, but Billy just grabs hold of you instead, gently pulling you towards the counter.

“Don’t go, I need you.”

Your mother takes that as her queue to give you two some time.

Nicky knows. She knows that Billy is falling in love with you, if he’s not already there.

She thinks you feel the same, but she also knows you.

————

Billy seems to have made himself quite comfortable where he sits cross legged against your headboard. He’s already eaten his share of cookies, but he’s glad to wait as you finish yours.

You’re sitting at the end of the bed, facing him. When you finish your cookies, you sit up and move towards him, reaching to set your napkin on your side table. When he sees you go to move back, he grabs hold of your hand.

“Sit up here with me.”

You comply, positioning yourself beside him, and when you’re sideways so that you can look at him, he pulls your legs into his lap, resting his hands on your calves.

He’s only quiet for a second before he speaks again. “Are we gonna talk about it?”

“About what?” You adjust the pillow behind your back.

“Y/N. You know what. You don’t just call me at one in the fucking morning, sounding like that, and then expect me to forget about it.”

“You could tell then I guess?”

“That you were crying? Yeah. You think I don’t pay attention to stuff like that?”

“I don’t know,” you shrug, avoiding his eyes.

“Well I’ve been worried about you all day, and don’t say I didn’t need to be.”

Billy raises his voice just enough to be serious, though he’s not yelling. You can tell he’s a little frustrated with you though.

“Please talk to me. I opened up to you about my fucking dad, Y/N. You have to let me in.”

Your eyes well up, but you push those feelings down, pulling yourself away from Billy and sitting up on your knees. He looks upset at the loss of you splayed across him.

“I was having a rough night, and I freaked myself out,” you start.

“Billy, you’re the first friend I’ve had in a long time.” He nods, urging you on.

“I found all these old pictures, some with friends from middle school, but some with Nancy too.”

“Wheeler?”

“Wheeler,” you confirm. “When I was middle school, I had a couple of friends, and we would do everything together, you know? We’d plan out our futures, even if it was just talking about high school and dumb shit like that. But I always felt like the odd one out, you know? I was freaked out about high school. They weren’t. I was shy, I was wary. I didn’t want things to change.”

“But they did. And we got to high school, and I lost all of them. They all found their own groups, and I just didn’t. I did find Nancy, though. We were both in the library at the same time, and we just clicked? We got really close and I felt safe with her.”

“We knew everything about each other. I felt like her family was my family, that kind of thing. But then she met Barb, and then Steve,” here your voice breaks, and Billy fucking hates it.

“Nothing bad happened. We just started seeing each other less, and I’d call and she’d be busy. It got one-sided. Billy, it was like she forgot about me.”

He extends his hand, and you take it. Those tears you’d been fighting win, spilling over slowly and then all at once.

“And I’ve had a hard time getting over that, even if I tell my mom that I’m fine. Really, I’m not mad at Nancy. I just feel so…insignificant. It hurts, knowing I’m so easy to forget, Billy. And I saw all those pictures last night, and then I thought of you and I got so scared all of the sudden.”

“It’s like everyone I’ve ever let in has left me behind. And I’m scared you’re going to forget about me too. And I don’t think I’ll recover from that, Billy. Because I need you.”

You stop then, and a sob rips free from your throat, though Billy can tell you didn’t want it to. “I’m sorry.” You try to apologize for your state.

He sits up on his knees too, and pulls you into his arms. You bury your face in his neck and he lets you, because he knows exactly how you feel. He thinks about his mother for a second, but let’s that go.

Billy’s hands move steadily over your back, doing their best to soothe you. He carefully guides your face from his shoulder, ensuring you look at him.

“I’m not going to forget about you, Y/N. I fucking swear. I could never. You are not anywhere near insignificant, and you’re not anywhere damn near easy to forget.”

“I’m so sorry that all of happened to you, and I can’t explain any of it, because everyone’s got their own shit going on. But I can tell you that you didn’t deserve it. And I can tell you that I need you too. You make me want to stay in this shithole. You make me want to be better.”

“Yeah?” Your voice is quiet, and you look so young, so fragile. It’s killing him.

“Yeah.”

The both of you are quiet for awhile, sitting with each other, Billy waiting until your breathing has steadied, until he feels your hiccuping stop.

“Billy, if I ask my mom, and she says it’s okay, will you stay the night?” You grin as you ask.

He laughs at that, and you can feel the vibrations of it where your face is shoved into his chest. He remembers the joke he made about that one of the first times you hung out.

Shit, he thinks. He really needs to tell you.

“Yeah, I will.”

You hop up, rubbing your face dry, and then excitedly make for the door. You hold up your index finger. “I’ll be right back.”

He hears you patter to the living room, the mumbling of your and your mother’s voices.

When you return, you’re giddy.

“My mom said you can stay the night, Billy.”

He laughs so hard that he falls onto his back, the spring in your mattress making him bounce a little. He’s fucking cackling at you, and it only makes you do the same.

————

That night, after Billy has made sure Neil and Susan will be gone awhile, after he’s sat and waited for Hopper to pick up Max and take her back to theirs to be with El, and then packed an overnight bag, he’s back in your room.

In your bed. With you.

“My bed is much warmer with you in it, I must say.”

Billy smiles at you, and even let’s you play with the pendant around his neck. “I’m glad,” he says. “Guess that means I’ll have to spend more time in it then.”

You turn your face into your pillow, and he chuckles.

“Come here, baby. Let me hold you.”

Baby.

You scoot closer to him, and he scoops you up in his arms.

“I’m never going to forget about you.” He says it into your hair, his breath warm on your scalp.

“I believe you.” Billy kisses your forehead again, and you feel safe. He feels like he could be your forever home.

————

please let me know if you liked this! feedback is always appreciated!! comments and reblogs mean more than you know. <33

[d1xonss]

Desert Rose

Chapter 48 ~ In Sickness and In Health

✧ Pairing : Daryl Dixon x Rose

✧ Era : Season 4

✧ Word Count : 6.6k

In this chapter ~ Things only seem to grow darker as Tyreese makes a shocking discovery; a murder that had happened in the middle of the night. Not only does the disturbing scene cause an ugly argument, but it leaves Rose with a shocking realization that something’s not right.

Frozen. That's all I could feel. Completely frozen in shock as I looked down to the dead bodies that laid in front of me. When I woke up this morning, I was trying to have a more positive outlook on today, a fresh start if you will as I didn't want to let my worries get the best of me because of the serious illness being passed around. But then it all came crashing down when Tyreese called a few of us up to where he found two bodies outside that had been burned to a crisp.

But the bodies weren't just any random people from the community; they were Karen and David. My heart immediately broke for Ty, and I could see it in his eyes how much he was hurting, losing her in such a horrible and gruesome way. So much for the positive outlook.

It had been completely silent nearly minutes, nobody knowing what to say. Though Tyreese was clearly filled with anger and rage at whoever did this to them and I honestly didn't blame him. However, I knew we needed to be careful about how we approached this because although Ty was like a big teddy bear, he looked like he could fuck someone up with just his pinky. No one wanted to say the wrong thing.

"You found them like this?" Rick finally broke the silence.

Tyreese turned to look at him, "I came to check on Karen...and I saw the blood on the floor. And then I smelled them."

I cringed as I could clearly tell talking about it was getting him worked up, before he then started to yell, "Somebody dragged them out here and set them on fire! They killed them and set them on fire!"

The man then slowly turned to Rick and took a step towards him very suddenly. This caused both Daryl and I to simultaneously perk up at the sight, but one look from Rick told the two of us to not get involved. But this wasn't my first song and dance when it came to putting a man in check, I could do it then and I sure as hell could do it now. Though I didn't want it to result in anyone getting hurt.

"You're a cop," he said in an oddly calm tone, "You find out who did this and you bring them to me, you understand? You bring them to me!"

Daryl then stepped towards him and placed a hand on his arm, trying to reassure him that we would figure this out, but Tyreese quickly swatted him away, keeping his eyes on Rick the whole time.

"I need to say it again?" he asked.

Rick shook his head, "No. No, I know what you're feeling. I've been there. You saw me there; it's dangerous."

"Karen didn't deserve this!" he yelled, "David didn't deserve it! Nobody does!"

My heart raced a little faster upon seeing how close he was getting to Rick, instinctively taking a risky move and placing a hand on his shoulder, "Ty-"

But then man didn't let me finish, turning around swiftly to grab me by the shirt and quickly pushed me up against the wall behind me, "I ain't going nowhere!" he yelled.

My eyes were wide as I tried to process his fast actions, hearing both Rick and Daryl start to yell in protest, walking up to the two of us quickly with the intention of tearing Tyreese to shreds from what he had just done.

But before either of them could touch him, I quickly held a hand up for them to stop so no one else would get involved. In all honesty he didn't hurt me at all, and I wanted to prevent this fight from brewing further, knowing I had to be smart about my next move as I saw the look he had in his eyes. The man was obviously blinded by utter rage, ready to tear anyone down that tried to be civil.

"Tyreese," I spoke calmly, "Come on." I said, watching his face slowly soften as he came to the realization at what he just did, regret filling his features as he looked at me.

But then Rick had to open his big fat mouth.

"Hey, we know what you're going through," he said slowly as he walked closer to us, "But you need to calm down-"

Tyreese then let go of me in one swift motion, shoving Rick back harshly as his guard was raised once more, "And you need to step the hell back!"

Rick tried to remain calm as he backed up a few steps, "She wouldn't want you being like this-"

Okay seriously? Of all the things he could've said.

In a split second, Tyreese punched Rick square in the face before he could get another word in. Yep, saw that one coming. Carol quickly yelled at them to stop but the man hit him again to really get his point across, Daryl attempting to step in and break them up. I rocked back and forth on my feet as I knew I shouldn't step in and get involved, but it got to a point where I could no longer just stand back and watch.

I quickly moved forward to break them up, grabbing Tyreese by the arm and swung it around behind his back, making sure not to break it. He struggled in my grasp, causing me to press my foot onto his back to knock him against the cold concrete ground on his stomach, pinning both of his hands behind his back. He kept squirming in my hold as he tried to get back up, but I put more pressure on his wrists in response, causing him to groan out in pain and slowly stop his movements.

Everyone grew oddly still catching their breaths, thinking the man below me was starting to calm down with how steady his breathing grew. But then out of nowhere, he kicked back to hit me in the stomach so I would fall off of him, knocking the wind out of me as I fell on my back gasping for air. He then took the opportunity to stand back up on his feet, but he wasn't stable for very long as Daryl grabbed a hold of him and shoved him against the wall, laying a few hits him before the man could even process what was going on.

"That shit ain't gonna fly with me." Daryl spoke lowly as he punched him again, firmly holding him in place.

Tyreese then found his strength again and shoved him off while Rick got his second wind, coming up and knocking him across the face, a certain coldness to his expression as he did it without a second thought. He then knocked the man to the ground, getting on top of him to punch him repeatedly, my eyes widening at how fast everything escalated.

Daryl huffed as he stepped in again, trying to pull Rick back as he saw he was about to get carried away, but he instantly fought back, shoving him hard enough to where he stumbled and nearly hit the ground. That alone was about all I could take before I was scrambling up to my feet again, moving in to stop him before he beat the man to death.

I rushed over and gripped him by his shoulders, pulling him back, "Hey, stop!" I yelled but he swung back and knocked me in the jaw with his elbow. Though it stung badly, I didn't ease up.

"Get off of me!" he screamed at me and knocked his elbow back again to hit me square in the mouth. My head jerked back at the impact, seeing Daryl beginning to storm up to the two of us out of the corner of my eye. But he didn't get the chance to do anything before I suddenly snapped.

I yanked him off of Tyreese in one fell swoop, so fast that he landed on his ass. I then kicked him in the stomach so he would be lying flat on his back, pinning him down so he wouldn't get back up. Placing one of my knees on his chest, I pushed down as hard as I could so all the air would leave his lungs, raising my hands to his shoulders, slamming him down to the ground to get him to stop struggling and pay attention.

"I said stop!" I screamed at him.

The moment he finally looked me in the eye, guilt was written all over his face. It all fell silent, the only sounds being heard was my ragged breaths and Tyreese's sobs from a few feet away as he cradled his beaten face, grieving the loss of his girl. I took another deep breath before I slowly got off of Rick, seeing he wasn't moving anytime soon.

I stood to my full height to see Carol looking absolutely horrified whilst Daryl seemed like he was about ready to explode. I cringed at the familiar taste of blood in my mouth, moving my hair to spit it out onto the ground before wordlessly walking back into the prison, feeling too worked up to utter a word to any of them as all I wanted now was to get cleaned up.

My eyes stayed down as I blew through the common room, squeezing past a few people as I went straight for the supplies. Grabbing a few things that would clean my hands as I knew for sure my knuckles were littered with cuts and blood. It was like I had tunnel vision as I completely ignored everyone around me, trying to get over the dramatic scene that had just unfolded.

Once I brushed past the curtain into my cell, I quickly began to rinse my hands off with the cold water, hearing it splatter all over the floor as I used the cloth to wipe the drying blood off my skin. It still felt like my heart was racing out of my chest as I worked, mentally preparing myself as I poured some rubbing alcohol on the fresh gashes. My teeth clenched together as I tried my best to not move as they cleaned the bloody mess, but I still hissed in pain as the sting progressed.

But I stopped my movements suddenly when I felt a presence lingering at the entrance of the cell, feeling his eyes boring into me with concern. The man wordlessly sat down beside me, and I looked over at him expecting him to say something. But he didn't.

He gestured to the water and washcloth in my grasp and I handed it over to him silently. He used the rag to softly clean any remaining blood I had left on my face, not even realizing it was there to begin with. My eyes watched his face as he worked, his expression stoic and serious as he couldn't meet my gaze even if he wanted to. When he got closer to my jaw where Rick nailed me, I winced the smallest bit, obviously bringing it to his attention.

He pulled his hand away with a heavy sigh, "M' sorry...I wasn't fast enough."

I shook my head, trying to stop him from blaming himself even more than he already was, "Don't. I had it covered."

"But m' the one who's supposed to protect ya, not the other way around." he grumbled seriously.

"You did protect me. I don't know what Tyreese would've done if you weren't there to stop him. Plus I can handle Rick any day." I attempted to joke.

But he didn't laugh. In fact, his face only hardened further. "I threatened to kill him." he mumbled quietly.

My eyes widened slightly as I heard nothing but complete honesty behind his tone, "Why?" was all I could ask.

"Because he fuckin hurt ya Rosie, he was way outta line. Woulda done the same to Tyreese, but that asshole was cryin too damn loud ta hear me." he said.

"He's hurting." I gently reminded him.

"Yeah, and now so are you." he said harshly, "He don't got the right to do that, not even when shit like that happens."

I nodded my head, "I know, I know..." I assured, "But I'm fine love. I'm fine."

I wasn't fine. I was trying really hard to make it seem like everything was okay, but it wasn't. I felt off. I had felt off since this morning, but I couldn't exactly tell what it was. Sudden exhaustion washed over me, but a part of me wanted to blame it on the beatings I just did on two full grown men. Though in the back of my mind I knew that it was something else. Nonetheless I tried to give him a reassuring smile, but he still had that worried look in his eyes.

"Ya already got a bruise right here." he said, pointing towards his own jaw so he wouldn't hurt mine.

I brushed my fingers against the place he motioned towards and flinched a little at the pain, but I've dealt with much worse. I shook my head at him, silently telling him it was no big deal. But he huffed at my stubbornness, leaning in to carefully place a few gentle kisses on my lips before staring into my eyes apologetically.

"M' sorry." he said again.

"Stop...stop apologizing, it's okay." I assured while placing my hands on either side of his face, "I'm going to go get something to eat, I'll be right back."

We both stood up at the same time, "I got it, what do ya want?" he asked softly.

"My legs still work you know," I joked, lightly pushing him back down on the bed, "I'll be back in a minute."

And I left the room quickly after that, leaving no time for him to argue further. I made my way down the stairs and went to find some granola bars to tide me over before lunch, grabbing a few extra in case Daryl wanted some before heading back towards our room in a flash. Though as I was passing Hershel's cell, a few hushed voices from inside caught my attention and made me slow to a stop, pausing to listen.

"You okay?" Hershel asked.

There was a moment of silence, "It hurts." Rick's voice mumbled a reply.

"I wasn't talking about your injuries." the older man clarified.

Another pause, "I hurt her." Rick said simply, another silence passing as Hershel apparently didn't know what to say.

My feet were planted firmly in place as I waited for him to say more, taking a step to leave it alone until he finally spoke up again, causing me to stop. "I didn't realize what I was doing, I just blacked out. Didn't snap out of it until she was on top of me, screaming at me to stop. And then I saw the blood on her face..." another pause, "I didn't- I didn't mean to." he finished sadly.

His voice tugged a little at my heartstrings, Hershel eventually finding his voice to respond, "Then you tell her that."

"I can't," he spoke, "Daryl kicked my ass after she left, told me he'd kill me if I ever even breathed too close to her again. I...I know she's fought before, she was a cop, she had to. But...I never thought that I would be the one to fight her."

I hovered there a moment longer, coming to the realization that Daryl had left out that little tidbit that he did more than just threaten the man. It shocked me, but it didn't at the same time.

Hershel sighed deeply, "Daryl was worked up, and with good reason. I'm sure soon enough, you'll go back to being the three musketeers. Just give them time."

When Rick stayed silent, I took this as my cue to leave. The truth was, I didn't want to be angry at him and now I knew just how guilty he felt. But the things he did to Tyreese and I was fucked up no matter the reason. I knew I would need a little while to cool off, but Daryl was a whole other story. I didn't know how long he would hold this grudge.

Hours went by before there was another urgent council meeting that needed to be held, discussing what should be done about the many others who were now sick with the virus. As I trailed inside the library to gather around the space, it surprised me to see Rick there standing in the corner with his arms folded over his chest. I couldn't even remember the last time he showed up to one of these things, knowing that it had to be important enough for him to want to show up.

I sat myself down at the larger table as everyone got settled, Glenn's eyes finding mine from across the space. Though he only took one look at me before his eyes grew a bit wide, "Jesus Ro, what happened?" he asked, gesturing to my face.

My eyes involuntarily flickered towards Rick before shaking my head at him, "Nothing."

He didn't look the least bit convinced, but I gave him a pointed look as if to say I would tell him about it later and he seemed to get the message after that. Though I also didn't miss Michonne's eyes glued onto me as well, her body language screaming at me as if she was dying to know what happened, yet she kept her mouth shut. Nosey assholes.

"It's spreading." Hershel announced, "Everyone who survived the attack in cellblock D, Sasha, Caleb, and now others."

"Jesus." Daryl muttered.

"So, what do we do?" Carol asked.

I somehow couldn't force myself to focus on what Hershel was saying, his voice was like a slight ringing in my ears. All I could think about was how hot the room had suddenly become, and I was far from having hot flashes, so it kind of worried me. I didn't want to assume the obvious as I sat there perfectly still, the last thing I wanted was to get sick. Especially if this could be the thing that kills me. My mind spiraled as my throat began to dry up in a matter of seconds, I knew something was definitely wrong.

"But what do we do to stop this?" Carol's voice broke me out of my trance.

"There is no stopping it. You get it, you have to go through it." Hershel said sadly.

The sound of that made me start to panic a little more, "But it just kills you." I stated a little harsher than I meant to.

"The illness doesn't, the symptoms do." he corrected, "We need antibiotics."

"We've been through every pharmacy nearby, and then some." Daryl said.

"That veterinary college at West Peachtree Tech, that's one place people may not have thought to raid for medication. The drugs for animals, they're the same we need." Hershel said.

Daryl looked to be deep in thought for a moment before shaking his head, "That's fifty miles, too big of a risk before, ain't now. M' gonna take a group out." he stood, swinging his crossbow over his shoulders before gently nudging me, "Ya up for it?"

"Oh...yeah, maybe." I spoke hesitantly as my gaze stayed down on my hands.

He took in a breath like he was going to question me, but Michonne stepped in, "I'm in." she said confidently.

"You haven't been exposed; Daryl has. You get in a car with him-" Hershel warned.

"He's already given me fleas." she joked before glancing toward me, "I don't even want to know what it's like sleeping next to him." she spoke sarcastically.

I snorted and covered my hand over my mouth to try and hide how hard I was laughing, earning a light shove from Daryl as he scoffed at her words.

Hershel chuckled as his actions before quickly pulling himself together, "I can lead the way, I know where everything's kept."

There was a slight pause before Daryl voiced his concern for the older man, "When we're out there, it's always the same. Sooner or later, we run."

Hershel nodded in understanding, "Then I can draw you a map instead. But there are other precautions I feel we should take."

"Like what?" Carol asked.

"There's no telling how long it'll be before Daryl and his group return. Wouldn't it make sense for us to separate the most vulnerable? We can use the administration building, separate office, separate rooms." Hershel explained.

"Who is the most vulnerable?" Glenn asked.

Hershel looked around, "The very young."

I looked at him in worry, "What about the old?"

He turned towards me and flashed me a reassuring smile that I couldn't help but sigh at. I knew he was willing to risk a lot to help these people, but I didn't want him to. None of us did. He was too stubborn to step down however, and with Dr. S sick he would have to be even more help to everyone who was infected since he was the only other person here with medical experience.

I shook my head, stepping out of the room as the decision had been made, the older man scurrying off to plan a route for the group. I silently decided to take a walk outside, wanting to try and clear my head from the constant talk about the many people slowly dying around us. At a certain point, it was too much to handle.

I knew Daryl would want some sort of an explanation as to why I was hesitant about going with him, when usually I can't wait to get out from behind these gates. But I didn't want to tell him about my worries that I had caught it, because if I did, I knew he would absolutely lose his mind. And I especially didn't want to tell him right before he went out on that run, not wanting to worry him further.

So, I decided to just keep to myself for a little to be on the safe side. Or at least that's what I planned to do until my thoughts cut short when I heard footsteps approaching from behind me, turning around to see Tyreese approaching with a single, small flower held in his hand.

He stepped towards me hesitantly, waiting to see how I would react before he finally spoke, "I'm sorry." he said gently.

My eyes saddened as I took a look at his face, noticing his swollen eye and busted lip. "Don't be." I reassured softly, "I'm so sorry about Karen."

He stepped a little closer as he handed me the small daisy, a smile stretching across my face as I gratefully took it from him before he continued, "I just want Rick to get off his ass and find whoever did it. So we can kick them out, kill them...hell I don't even care anymore, I just want them gone."

"Yeah, don't we all." I nodded, "They may have wanted to try and stop the sickness from spreading, but killing our own is not the way to do that. No matter how desperate we are."

"Yeah..." he agreed, a moment of awkward silence passing before he spoke again with a hint of dread and sadness in his tone. "I'm so sorry Ro, I never meant to hurt you-"

"It's okay." I said, offering him a small smile.

He shook his head, "No, it's not. Not only did I lose the woman I love...I thought I lost a friend too."

My heart nearly broke. "Stop...you're not going to lose me, okay? I forgive you." I reassured him. It took him a moment before he finally nodded his head and sighed a little in relief. "But if you try any of that again? I will kick your ass." I joked.

A slow smile broke out onto his face, I even got him to chuckle, "Okay, fair enough."

"But really I'm fine, okay? I'm fi-"

My words were suddenly cut off as I broke out into a sudden coughing fit, feeling the familiar tickle in my throat. I struggled to catch my breath as mu lungs felt like they were burning from the inside out. I dropped the flower in my hands and covered my mouth to turn away from the man in front of me as I attempted to catch my breath.

Though my eyes widened when I felt a splatter of liquid come out of my mouth once the coughs had finally stopped, looking down to see the thing coating my hand was blood. I gasped lightly and shut my eyes before they could fill with tears. I caught it.

I then felt Tyreese's hand on my shoulder, but I instantly backed away from him, "S-Stop, I-." I stuttered out in a panic, the words getting caught in the back of my throat.

He gave me a worried look, a look that spoke a volumes as he tried to reach out to me again despite my protests, "Come on...we have to get you to cellblock A."

Swallowing thickly, I nodded and tried to walk around him to get there myself, but I couldn't seem to walk in a straight line even if you paid me to do so. Ty noticed and gently wrapped an arm around my waist while his other held one of my shoulders.

I shook my head, "No Ty, I can't get you sick."

"I ain't gonna get sick, I'll be fine. Let's just get you there, okay?" he said softly.

My eyes pleaded with him, but I knew he wouldn't budge. So, I slowly nodded and allowed him to guide me into the building, silently knowing there was no convincing him otherwise. It was a long, slow, and painful walk as the illness suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks, and I had never felt weaker in my life. Nothing could've prepared me for that. And nothing could silence my ever-growing thoughts, not even Tyreese's reassuring words.

The dark tunnels made me shiver as we neared closer towards the place I was dreading, "You want me to get Daryl?" he asked the moment we approached the door.

"Hell no." I said immediately, "I don't want him to know."

The man looked a bit uneasy at that, "Ro...he's going to find out eventually. Nothing's going to prevent that."

I sighed heavily, "Just try...please? I don't want him to freak out while he's out on that run...I'll tell him when he gets back."

He opened his mouth as if he were about to protest again, but another coughing fit hit me, turning my head away from him as I covered my mouth. The taste of blood filled my mouth again as I couldn't help but spit it out onto the floor, before looking back at Tyreese's concerned eyes.

"Please." I said again, my voice only coming out as a pathetic whisper.

He then hesitantly nodded his head, "Alright, I'll try. You just...just worry about getting better alright?"

"It's not me I'm worried about," I huffed, "It's everyone else in there. I'll be fine... and if I don't...make it, so be it."

He shook his head at me, "Don't say that, we're gonna get the meds you guys need."

My ears perked up at that, "You're going on the run?"

"I am now." he spoke confidently, "I need you and Sasha to survive, I won't let you die."

I gave him a small smile, "Okay." I said before turning back to enter the cellblock, "See ya later." I said over my shoulder.

"See ya later." he spoke sadly.

As soon as the heavy door slammed shut behind me, I felt uncomfortable in the cold room. The cellblock was filled with coughing and crying, and some were just barely hanging on. The atmosphere was more dark, more depressing, as if God himself knew what this room was made for.

I felt like I was sweating and shivering at the same time, not knowing where to go as every room I passed was occupied with at least one person. My legs shook as I stepped up the narrow staircase to the second level, my eyes searching for an empty room so I could lay down. Though the first cell I walked past, I saw Hershel kneeling down helping someone.

"Hershel." I said weakly to get his attention.

His head whipped towards me at the sound of my voice and his face said it all. He looked scared for me, and that's how I knew I looked like shit.

He quickly got up, "Oh sweetheart..." he said sadly.

"I'm okay. I just want to lay down, get looked at." I breathed.

He nodded and put an arm around my shoulders to support me, leading me into an empty cell. I sat down on the edge of the bed as he started to check everything and anything under the sun. Breathing was hard, which is something I never thought I would say, but even Hershel looked concerned after he listened to my lungs, and yet somehow I knew this wouldn't be the worst of it.

I could practically feel my lungs filling up with fluid quicker than I ever expected, leaving me with even less hope that I could make it. Even less than when I first walked in here. As soon as Hershel was done looking me over, I heard a voice come from the entrance of my cell. A voice that I dreaded to hear.

"Hey." he muttered, and I glanced up to see Glenn, looking terribly ill and it brought a deep frown to my face.

"No." I whispered.

He chuckled dryly, "Yeah. Didn't expect to see you in here."

"I could say the same about you." I said worriedly.

Hershel stood back up from his place as he finished, telling the both of us to rest before he left the cell and Glenn didn't hesitate to come in and take a seat next to me, "How're you feeling?" he asked.

"Like shit." I said simply, "You?"

"Ditto."

The tickle in my throat then grew, causing me to cough harshly once again, leaning over so I would be further away from him. Not that it really mattered however. He gently rubbed my back as I heaved, coughing up more blood onto the floor by my feet and feeling disgusting after the crimson fluid came out of my mouth.

I slowly sat up again to catch my breath, feeling his widened eyes on me without even having to look as I brushed him off. "I'm fine."

He scoffed, "Right, and I'm actually a white guy." he said sarcastically.

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion as I looked back at him, "What?"

"Figured we were just telling lies, I thought I'd join in." he said simply with a shrug of his shoulders.

I laughed lightly at his joke with a shake of my head, hearing him eventually join in too as he rubbed my shoulder soothingly. "Y'know I'm surprised Daryl isn't breaking down that door right now to see you." he said suddenly.

My lips pressed together as I let out a breath of air through my nose, closing my eyes with sudden regret that he caught onto quite quickly. "Wait, you didn't tell him?" he asked in disbelief.

"No," I admitted shamefully, "I didn't want him to worry while he's out on that run."

He sighed, "Ro, he's going to worry anyway...he has to know."

He was right. I knew he was right. But there was nothing I could do about it now, he and I both knew that. All I could do was scoot backwards until my backside collided with the wall, feeling him copy my actions as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders, resting his head on top of mine. We sat in silence, hearing the sound of people coughing, and the feeling of death lingering in the air. The idea of the things going on around me made me cringe, but we were okay. We were both still okay.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* DARYL POV ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

My hands were covered in oil and grease as I checked one of the cars we planned on taking out for the run, making sure everything ran smoothly. Michonne stood at my side as she packed up the trunk, talking briefly as the two of us worked. A part of me was glad she stuck around this time instead of running off like she always did now, but even so, I understood. The need to track down that son of a bitch, hell I would always understand, but I was just surprised at how she didn't give up. Almost as if she had a feeling he was still out there.

"So, it's just going to be you and me like the good old days." she commented with a small smile.

I nodded as I wiped my hands off on a dirty rag, "Yeah, and Bob. Still feels like we could use another person."

"What about Rose?" she asked.

I shrugged with a small huff, "I asked her to come, but she seemed weird bout it...I dunno. But either way I gotta find her before we head out."

"Why?"

I glanced back up at her from over the hood of the car, shrugging again as if I was a little embarrassed to admit it, "I never leave without sayin goodbye."

She seemed to understand what I meant without me having to say the actual words out loud, nodding as she moved on and didn't linger on it thankfully. "M' gonna try and find her, then we'll head out, alright?" I said as I closed the hood with a slam.

"I can go." a voice suddenly called from behind me, and I turned to see Tyreese standing there with a few weapons and a backpack slung over his shoulders, ready to go.

"Nah," I said simply as I looked away from him, placing the black rag back in my pocket.

"You said you needed another person," he continued as he stepped up closer, "I'll go in Ro's place."

I turned back to glare daggers at him, "Ya talk to her?"

He nodded, "Yeah, I apologized for...everything happened. And she told me she wasn't up to going out this time."

I shook my head, "Nah I don't buy it. She woulda told me first." I said before brushing past the man and back towards the prison to track her down.

"Daryl." he called out, but I ignored him. I could barely look the man in the eye let alone believe that she actually spoke to him, accepted his apology after what went down this morning.

"She's sick."

This stopped me dead in my tracks, my body ridged as I stood still for a long moment. My head eventually whipped back around to look at him, trying to decipher if he was lying. But when I made eye contact with him, I could instantly tell he wasn't. He looked genuinely concerned, and deep down I knew he wasn't spitting out bullshit anymore. And the look on Michonne's face really sold it for me.

I stormed back over to him quickly, "What?" I asked with edge to my tone.

He took in a breath, "She's sick." he repeated.

"How do ya know?" I asked, agitated.

"Because I took her there myself." he said.

I scoffed at the man before rocking back and forth on my feet, looking anywhere but his eyes, "Why the hell didn't she tell me then?" I asked, emotion beginning to fill my voice no matter how much I didn't want it to.

He sighed, "She didn't want you to worry, she asked me not to say anything. But I knew you had to know about it."

I shook my head, my hand coming up to run across my face stressfully as I didn't utter another word, before stalking off towards cellblock A. I couldn't believe she had actually got sick, and she didn't tell me about it. She didn't understand how much I constantly worried about her, regardless if she was in any kind of danger or not. And if I didn't get to see her one last time before I left, and she...no, no way. I wasn't gonna think like that- I couldn't think like that. She wasn't going to die. I couldn't let her die.

My hand pounded on the door loudly the second I stormed up to it, "Hershel! Where the hell is she?!" I yelled so he could hear me.

A few seconds passed by like hours before the old man finally made his way down the stairs, heading towards the large window to the right and I didn't hesitate to follow his actions.

"She's okay, she's resting." he informed me.

"I wanna see her." I said impatiently.

He shook his head sadly, "Daryl...I don't think you do."

I was taken off guard by his answer, seeing that the man truly meant what he said, but I didn't care, "Yeah I do, lemme see her." I demanded.

He thought for a moment before nodding his head and walking back up the stairs to go find her. I started to pace back and forth in anticipation of seeing just how sick she was going to look. In all honesty, I wasn't sure if I was ready to see her like this, but I knew I had to before I left. I was just all the more motivated to get out of here so I could get back to her quicker, and get her the meds she needed. She wouldn't die. She would be just fine.

Soft and hesitant footsteps approaching the window is what stopped me in my tracks and I slowly looked up to see her standing there. My breath caught in my throat at the sight of her. She looked so tired and pale, a complete one eighty from how I saw her a few hours prior, and I couldn't even imagine how shitty she was feeling. I walked closer to the window and she managed to give me a small smile.

"Hey." she said weakly.

I shook my head at her, "Don't. Don't even try that. You didn't tell me- why the hell didn't ya tell me?"

"I didn't want you to freak out...I didn't want you to worry-"

"I'll worry anyway," I interrupted her, "Ya shoulda told me."

She was silent for a few seconds, and I could see tears forming in her eyes, "I'm sorry." she whispered. I shook my head again at the overwhelming emotions beginning to resurface, but she continued, "Listen to me, if I don't make it-"

"Stop," I snapped, "Yer gonna be just fine. You ain't gonna die."

"Daryl." she said in a stern tone.

"No, you ain't dyin! Yer my world, I can't-" my voice broke as I swallowed thickly, letting out a heavy sigh, "I can't live without ya."

She shook her head, "You can." she whispered, so softly I almost didn't hear her.

"Nah, I can't." I argued as I stepped closer to the glass, "M' leavin right now to go on that run, and I'll be back in a few hours. Yer gonna be fine."

I kept saying that phrase over and over again, but at this point I was trying to convince myself more than I was trying to convince her. I needed her to be okay.

She smiled softly, "I love you." she whispered.

"Yer gonna make it." I said.

"I love you." she repeated once more, the tears now threatening to spill down her cheeks.

I could've broken down right there at the sight of her like this, but I didn't. I couldn't. I needed to focus and get out there quickly so I could make it back as fast as possible. I couldn't even think about losing her, not for one second.

Another sigh passed through my lips as I desperately tried to keep it together, "I love ya more. More than anythin."

"I know." she nodded.

I nodded back, "M' gonna-"

"Go." she finished for me, seeing a single tear fall down her cheek, and that was all I needed to see to know that she was convinced she was going to die. I saw it in her eyes that she didn't have any hope for herself. It pained me greatly to see how sad she looked, as if this was the very last time she would see me. But it wasn't. I was going to make sure of that. So, I sprinted back towards the car to get on the road without another word.

Everything was going to be fine.

~ Thanks for reading!

Taglist - @justareader95 @hayley1998 @ryoujoking @sipsthecoffee @winterassassin1804 @marsmallow433 @catlalice @writingstreetspirit

[mags-writes]

Sunlight || Part III

Summary: frank offers his shoulder for you to cry on

Series Warnings: canon typical violence, canon typical swearing, first time writing x reader, no use of y/n, no beta readers we die like ray nadeem

Pairing: frank castle x fem!reader

PROLOGUE/MASTERLIST || PART I || PART II || PART III || PART IV

Three weeks had gone by. Three weeks of you and Frank dancing around each other while trying not to tip off Matt that there was something going on.

But was there? Frank seemed so in control over every fiber of his being that you doubted anything was actually going on. Then there were the days that he got home before Matt. He would stand behind you, towering above you, and give your shoulders a rub with his rough hands. He handled you like glass, like if he moved too suddenly you'd bleed. He'd help you cook dinner and tell you how beautiful his lunch was that afternoon, that the only thing missing was your company. He'd pick up when you started getting a cramp in your hand from cutting up enough vegetables for three people and rub his thumbs in soothing circles to make it go away. Then Matt would walk through the door.

Something was going on. That was for sure, even if you doubted it sometimes.

The first time you saw Matt leave the apartment in the middle of the night, you kept your breathing even and didn't move a muscle. You weren't surprised when Frank's phone woke you up a couple hours later and he left in a hurry as well. The next day when you woke up to Matt with a frozen bag of green beans to his jaw, you scolded him like an older sister. The topic of Daredevil had never come up in your mind until then. You didn't know if it was even him to start off with and if it was then who else knew? Did Foggy and Karen know like back in your dimension? Did Frank?

Matt lied straight through his teeth with a guilt-ridden expression. He fell down the stairs. Allegedly.

Other Matt tried that lie once. Only once. Before you ripped him a new asshole. And it led to you becoming his girl in the chair. It also led you to own your own firearm after some kidnappings put you in the hospital once the bad guys found out Daredevil was running around with an earpiece.

You stopped what you were about to say, Frank rounding the corner after hearing your voice echo through the apartment. You took a deep breath and accepted the gracious gift of hindsight.

"If you're lying to cover up the fact that you got punched by someone-" You were about to start a rant again when Frank chuckled.

"Who'd be cruel enough to punch a blind guy?" He said, coming closer and taking the bag off of Matt's face. "What'd you do? Fall down some stairs again?"

Oh.

Oh, Frank knows. That's why he calls Matt 'Red'.

You willed yourself for the love of god to play it dumb. Like you didn't just put the pieces together. One man before you was blind, but despite being a walking lie detector, he wouldn't be able to see your face. The other, while he admitted to being dense, could read people better than you could ever hope to.

"Whatever," You mumbled, throwing your hands up and going around them both to start your normal routine of making your coffee that had been laid out by Frank and making them lunch. "Bro code, I get it."

"Sweetheart-"

"No, it's fine." You interrupted because if you didn't then you'd fold like a lawn chair. "Have each other's backs. That's what friends are for."

You heard Frank sigh and one of them walk away.

"Hey," Frank said, putting both of his hands on your shoulders and coaxing you to turn around. You put up a little fight, stirring your coffee before Frank put more pressure and you relented with your eyes down. "Hey, hey. Look at me, hm? Look at me."

You huff, snapping your eyes up with a hint of anger.

"He forgets I know what it looks like when he lies." You said.

"Okay, so what do you think happened?" He calmly asked, and you knew exactly what he was doing.

"I don't know!" You brought your hands up in front of you. "But it's the same shit excuse the other Matt gave me every time he showed up with a beaten-up face and a limp."

Frank frowned, probably turning over the question of why Matt hadn't told you his secret.

"When did your Matt become 'other' Matt?" You froze, not expecting that question in the slightest.

You stuttered, stumbling over your words, starting a sentence and breaking off at the first word before shutting your mouth and intently looking at his chest. It wasn't hard, he was tall enough that you fit perfectly under his chin and your head rested against his chest.

You took in a sharp breath. "I don't want to go back." Frank reached out, putting his hands on your biceps, squeezing comfortingly and you brought yours to his chest, scrunching the material of his work shirt in tight fists. "All of you take for granted how safe you are here. You don't get it, I've looked up all the bad guys from my dimension, and nine out of ten times they're not here. I'm safe here."

"What about your Matt?" Frank asked, frowning like he didn't quite get it. "He's like your brother."

You look back at him at that. Matt was in his room, most likely listening in. If you said what you wanted to say then he would hear. You stuttered slightly again, getting frustrated that you couldn't get the words out.

"He doesn't see it that way." You finally got out, avoiding Frank's eyes again and you lowered your voice as tears started to gather. "He's been more Catholic whore than having Catholic guilt these days. He went through Clair and Karen and nothing's been the same since. I turned him down and I thought that we had moved passed it but right when I was brought here he brought up the topic again. I-Frank, I'm not safe there-I don't want-"

You started to cry then, sniffling and fighting off the tears as hard as you could.

"Hey, hey." Frank soothed, putting his hand behind your head and bringing you to his chest, rubbing your back with the other hand. "It's okay, doll. You don't wanna go, you don't have to."

"What if he shows up? What if he comes here and-"

"I won't let him." He squeezed tighter. I won't let him take you from me. "I won't let him make you do anything you don't wanna do."

Frank nearly sighed in relief when he remembered he was supposed to be convincing you that Matt wasn't Daredevil. Your use of 'other Matt' had thrown him so harshly that he couldn't stop his curiosity. He wondered for a moment that if you had been hiding that detail from them all then what was it like with Karen and Foggy?

You pulled back suddenly, wiping at your face and groaning for a second before shaking your head and looking up at him.

"Okay. I'm fine." You said. "Go drink your shit coffee." You started lightly pushing him away. "Go, I've got lunches to make."

Frank took a hold of your hands with a small smile, giving the upside of your palms a kiss each to the scars you refuse to tell him about that sat in the middle. Your face softened at that. A small smile fought its way to your face as he then leaned in to kiss your forehead. You had to quickly turn back to your coffee at the look he gave you, a look that he had been giving you more and more frequently, especially around Matt.

Not long later you finished up their lunches and they were sitting on the couch waiting patiently for you to bring it to them before they left. Just as usual you walked over to Matt first, him reaching out for the container and putting it in his bag then you moved to Frank who did the same. This time Frank stood first, giving you another kiss on the forehead and saying his goodbyes which confused you as Matt was usually the first out the door.

You cast a look down at Matt who by now was twiddling his thumbs as he waited for Frank to leave. Once the door was closed and Frank's heavy steps had faded he stood up.

"I'm sorry about before." He said earnestly, and you knew he was telling the truth. "I didn't mean to stress you out."

"I just-" you cut yourself off, pausing and thinking for a moment, remembering that he had absolutely heard everything you tearfully confessed to Frank. "I don't want you to lie to me."

"And I don't want to lie to you." He came forward, bringing you into a hug that you went into comfortably.

"Does it have something to do with a case?" You asked into his chest. "Are you in danger? Do we need to call the police?"

"I'll explain everything to you tomorrow night." He said as if he had just decided it at that moment. Like he was desperate to make you happy. "I promise."

He kissed the top of your head. Memories of your brother's all doing the same rushing to the surface of your mind. Memories of Matt doing the same when you were growing up. You never told him your brothers did that, never told him what it meant for him to do it. Never told him that other Matt had stopped.

"I'm not going to be coming home tonight." He said, pulling back.

"What?" You frowned harshly and he could hear it in your voice making him wince.

"Tomorrow night, remember?" He put both of his hands on your shoulders to calm you. "I just have to take care of some things tonight and hopefully it'll be sorted by tomorrow."

"And if it's not?"

"Then you'll hear about it." He said with a smile.

"What? On the news?" You said stressed again.

Matt laughed, bending down to pick up his bag.

"Let's hope not." Was his answer.

[salamandergoo]

STWG Prompt: Ugly Christmas Sweaters

"I'm not wearing this."  Nancy held out the sweater in her hands with a sneer of disgust that she didn't even try to hide.  "This is horrendous.  An abomination.  The worst thing I've ever laid eyes on, and I'm not putting it on!"

"Yes you are."  Mike shouldered her bedroom door open, already wearing his matching monstrosity.  It made him look smaller, like he was hunching over in some unnatural way, and the light reflecting off of the glitter looked odd against his face.  "Because I'm wearing it.  And if you don't wear it to the party, too, I'm jumping into the quarry."

"Uh, no you're not."  Nancy picked up a pillow from her bed and threw it at him.  He yelped and flailed to try and hit it away from himself.  He managed to miss the pillow completely, but one of his swinging arms knocked her jewelry box off her dresser and sent earrings scattering across her carpet.  "Mike!" she yelped.  "Come on!"

"I'm sorry!"  The pillow had landed at his feet after hitting him in the chest and glitter had settled onto the pillowcase.  He kicked it aside and dropped down onto his hands and knees to start gathering earrings up.  "I didn't mean to knock your shit over."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure you didn't."  She glared at him as she rounded the bed to start picking them up with him.  "Just be careful with those monkey arms.  And mom can't make me wear the sweater."

"That's what I thought."  Mike dumped a handful of earrings into the jewelry box carelessly, making Nancy's eye twitch.  "I wasn't going to wear it either, I was going to wear the perfectly normal red sweater that Will likes."  She couldn't help a little smile at the casual mention of his boyfriend, the way he talked about it like it wasn't a big deal, but she knew it was to him.  "But then mom brought in the big guns.  And I folded."

"The big guns?"  Nancy cast a not-quite-subtle glance at her closet, thinking about the guns she kept hidden away in it.  "What kind of big guns are we talking?"

"You'll know it when you see it.  Try not to get too drawn in, I'm worried you might not be able to walk it back after it catches you."

"Can you stop talking in riddles?  I'm pretty sure you stopped DMing your little DnD games years ago."  She carefully put her earrings back, nudging a finger through the ones Mike had already put in to try and pair them up properly.

Mike rolled his eyes.  Nancy didn't see him do it, but she could feel it.  There was a certain shift in the air and she was pretty sure she could hear it too.  "Whatever.  See if I ever help you again."

"Help me?"  She looked up at him in surprise.  "You barged into my room and threw my earrings on the floor!  That wasn't helping me with anything!"

"I did not!  You're the one who started throwing things!  I didn't mean to knock it over, but you already know I have bad hand-eye coordination!  It's basically your fault."

"Oh my god, if you hadn't come in here in the first place, it definitely wouldn't have happened!  You're so annoying and such a pain in the ass for no reason!"

Before Mike could say anything else, their mom stood in the doorway and looked down at them.  "What are you two doing?  Nancy, why aren't you dressed?  We're leaving for the Sinclair's in five minutes!"

Nancy picked up her jewelry box and got to her feet.  She hoped they hadn't missed any, with her lick, she'd find them with her bare feet in the middle of the night.  "I am dressed, mom.  This is what I'm wearing to the party."

"Put your sweater on, I got you kids matching sweaters for a reason."

"Mom-"

"Honey, it's your last Christmas before you leave us to go to college."  Karen stepped into the room and put her hands on Nancy's shoulders.  "Won't you give me this one thing?  We can call it your Christmas present to me."

Nancy clenched her teeth together and looked at Mike over her shoulder.  He lifted his hands in a brief motion, acting like he'd done so much to prepare her for this moment.  She sighed and bit her lip.  "I don't know, I mean... Jonathan got me this shirt, you know?"  He hadn't.  It was a blouse she'd had since the beginning of sophomore year.

"Nancy, sweetheart."  Karen frowned.  "Holly, would you come here, please?"

Oh no.  Oh no, this was the real big gun, wasn't it?

Sure enough, Holly came running in, all three foot four of her, dressed up in the very same awful sweater as Mike.  There was going to be glitter in her carpet until she moved out.  Holly immediately grabbed a handful of Nancy's skirt and smiled sweetly up at her.  "Mommy said we're going to match!"

Shit.  Holly was a pain in the ass sometimes, yeah, but not as much as Mike was, and she was way cuter about it than Mike.  "I- I guess we are," she said weakly.  There was no defense against this.  A demogorgon could burst through her wall, and it would be no match for Holly's big blue eyes.  "Do you like the sweaters...?"

Holly nodded, her hair bouncing in the neat pigtails it had been tied into.  "It's pretty and shiny!"

"I..."  Nancy looked to Mike, but he only shrugged again and left the room.  The little traitor.  "I guess I need to get changed then," she relented.

Holly let out a happy little noise and hurried out of the room, Karen smiling and following her.  She shot Nancy a look that said she knew exactly what she was doing.  But Nancy had faced monsters, she could deal with an ugly, uncomfortable sweater for one evening, couldn't she?

[luchicm04]

lost in the forest - part 39

Masterlist

Summary: The cat is out of the bag.

Pairing: Senju Tobirama/Original Female Character

Tag: #lost in the forest fic

posted on ao3

Word Count: 3.7k

Overall warnings: canon-typical violence, adult content, time skips, angst

A spectacular view is what greets her during that cool night in the middle of a large garden that gives her false tranquility and a deceptive view; sipping part of her hot drink sitting in a perfect seiza under the nearest tree is the only thing that calms her, away from the sight of the maids. 

Karen has been forced to complain at this point under the Daimyo’s agreement, apparently to keep up the appearance of his true objective after her excuse of presenting various shinobi topics of a possible village that he did not know Hashirama was thinking about and that according to the formal addition of the Nara clan and the two extra allies, firm foundations could be laid for a ninja community. 

Scandalous according to the rest of the nobles who see this as stupid while others see the usefulness of being able to hire better shinobi with so few processes. The Hyūga will show up the next day due to the initiative of this supposed village... at least it will give her more chances to get their attention again and deal with what Izuna told them. 

“You know you should not be in the middle of the garden at night.” Tobirama doesn’t scare her. The girl has gotten used to him coming and going as he pleases in these two days, although she knows he’s not the real one. He looks naturally similar... a doubt that she always carries since she learned about shadow clones. 

The benefits it would bring to her workload if she could do three more... Why don’t they use it to make the paperwork more enjoyable?, she questions mentally, blinking at the man. “I didn’t want to be inside,” the woman states, coming out of her daydream to answer her future husband just for the pleasure of it. 

Plus, he gives her a ‘don’t get too sidetracked’, typical of a paranoic shinobi. 

“Mmm... Are they bothering you again?” He is serious in his point. The bitter shinobi is aware of the problems that the faithful assistants of the Daimyo’s main wife have caused because of the spreading rumors about her as the possible lover of the infamous man. 

Something that has not been clarified and is in Shinji’s interest; the wretched leader gives her more attention so that they focus on the fact that she is a ‘lover’ than on the facade of his true plan in the shadows. 

“Not much. They’ve distanced themselves since Shinji-sama called them out,” she shrugs, unaware that she has had to change maids too many times in these two days to remember them, and that they all happen to be sent by that lady. 

Karen assumes it’s a plot that, if it weren’t for the Daimyo’s protection, it would be difficult to deal with... Living among women is very hard. 

“I am glad to hear that. Just tell me if something happens...” 

“I’ll tell you,” the woman rolls her eyes at her fiancé’s exaggeration. “By the way... will you be done soon?” She changes her last words subtly to English at the thought of being overheard by any of the people around. She doesn’t have guards as such, but there are helpers and the garden, although huge, could have listeners. 

Karen had never felt so unsafe... and she hadn’t even lived in a safe country per se. 

Ironic. 

“I do not know,” the man admits, sticking with the foreign language causally. 

The woman frowns at this comment. “You don’t know, or you don’t want to tell me?” 

“...” Tobirama stands like a statue at her side. 

“...It’d be good if you consider sharing stuff with me once in a while, you know? It’s annoying to be oblivious to everything that happens with my escorts.” Irritated, she takes a sip of her drink without losing the rhythm and elegance forced in her bones; her native language flows naturally and quite casually. 

He just snorts without showing anything on his face, but she can almost see the glint in his eyes that she ignores. “It is a shinobi matter. I do not think it is of your interest.” 

“You are my companions... sometimes I feel alone about that, though,” she growls unwillingly remembering how much it frustrates her that they don’t confide in her. “I’m not asking for secrets... just something, like... it's going well, we’re almost done, or it’ll take a little longer.” 

The albino looks at her. “It has taken a while...” 

“Do you think you’ll be back tomorrow?” 

“No.” 

“Uh... did it get complicated?” 

“A bit,” the shinobi comments critically and reluctantly. 

She shrugs, less annoyed by such a brief summary of his daily life. “Okay.” 

“Are you worried?” 

“Of course. You are my comrades.” 

The albino doesn’t say anything else. “If the clone explodes... that will mean something is happening,” the man simply admits. 

“Explode?” Karen blinks hard imagining the worst-case scenario. She stays quiet to sigh, leaving her with the doubt in her mind. 

“Hashirama has sent a report,” he comments returning to the local language, changing the subject without answering her. He could have at least given her some clues as to what exactly he means by explode, she thought to herself; she supposes it’s not the same for someone who hasn’t seen action movies. 

The girl sighs and sips her tea, remaining spontaneous at the mention of the clan leader. “Did he?” 

“The Nara, Akimichi and Yamanaka have begun to settle down.” 

“So soon?!” She frowns at the urgency of this. Only yesterday she was informed of the confirmation of said clans’ move and the blatant use of the possible village in the meeting with the nobles in front of the Daimyo. A hot topic she has been weighing since she read this in a letter the day before. 

“We are shinobis,” the man reminded with no kindness as if it were the most obvious answer. 

“Uh... I know, but it seems too soon considering how long it took the Uchiha and Senju to do so.” 

“They left that same day to see the area,” Tobirama recalls at that casual point in the story before settling into the new land. 

The construction and every problem they went through for the adaptation; even now, it is something difficult to overcome. 

“Besides, the Nara clan is a natural strategist. They see the usefulness of moving as soon as possible,” the albino continues his explanation lightly. 

“Yes, Hashirama told me when we saw the contract.” 

“Hm.” 

“Well... I suppose when we get back, we’ll see progress.” She feels excited about some kind of change around her and meeting new people who, although shinobi, she is curious to contact. Plus, the dealings with the leaders of those clans were mostly carried out by Hashirama himself. 

She has never seen them face to face. 

As if guessing her emotion, Tobirama adds with no casualness in his tone, “They are shinobi. You do not have to trust them easily.” 

“I know they are shinobi, just... the more people around, the more different perspectives there are,” the woman admits with an audible pout. “What are they like?” She’d rather ask now before being surprised by things that are so normal for them, like when she first saw Madara’s red eyes or Hashirama’s wood. 

Even the red eyes and white hair of her fiancé were once to be feared, in those days of dark adaptation... when she was somewhat foolish. 

“...” Tobirama blinks hard. 

“Come on... do they have blue hair? ...Or striking purple?” She remembers the colorful hues of some characters that her sister was a fan of, about that story whose name she doesn’t remember well. Knights of the... something. The man rolls his eyes. 

“Not here,” he states not being subtle, just when one of the maids has the courage to interrupt their conversation. She looks pale, a little distraught; although she had noticed before the line between shinobi and civilians, it is so noticeable now how terrified they are of Tobirama. 

She sighs and casually stands up, being helped by the shinobi who shoots out his hand to support her up. “Thank you,” she calmly accepts, watching the girl fidget on her spot. “Do you need something, Shumire-san?” she asks, recalling the name of said helper. Or is it Tanako? 

“I-I am Akane, ma’am?” the maid corrects bowing her head mannerly, not avoiding glacing at her fiancé who snorts to give an ‘I’ll be around’ gesture that Karen doesn’t question. Both he and Izuna remain hidden, taking advantage of their fame to not socialize or deal with simple civilians. 

“Oh, pardon my mistake,” the woman says belatedly, taking a step forward and ignoring the girl¡s tension and her squeal of surprise at her friend’s disappearance. It’s been a while since she saw that reaction, although she doesn’t remember very well if she got just as scared. 

Those days were hollow, so she just tries to forget... she has no desire to deal with this shock. 

Because she hasn’t dealt with this many civilians before... not for a long time. 

──

The meeting of the nobles is early; they gather at 9 sharp in a fairly large room at the end of the hall where she is staying. Karen walks with her head held high despite the evil looks of various high-born men who whisper, not at all pleased, giving her dramatic and lustful glances that she tries to ignore. 

No one makes physical contact, nor has anyone attempted to approach her since the Daimyo casually mentioned her engagement to the infamous white assassin, a respectable whinobi whose fame, although bloody, caused her to be taken seriously. 

It’s not like he asked Tobirama to kill whoever bothered her... However, Shinji was casual in subtly stating that he would do it, including his sufficiently irritated wife. 

A threat as firm as his position within the council, despite the coup that is surely brewing under the shadow of some hypocritical ally. Still, Karen sits right next to the imposing man who smiles softly at her with a “good morning”. 

“Good morning.” The only woman in the meeting responds to the Daimyo and then looks at the rest of the chamber, who twist their mouths at her normal greeting. “Where I come from, it is polite to greet back,” she says with disappointment without paying attention to the bitterness of the other men, of which very few speak back. 

They are surely the ones who have a better perception of her... other than the simple whore who rose by means of her body. 

Scandal. 

“Do not worry, they have manners... they are just not in the mood today,” Shinji mocks with a solid look at the others, who tense up at the not-so-firm threat of a leader capable of executing if he deems it prudent. 

The girl has heard it from the few assistants who come close; how infamous he can be even though he has only shown her a diplomatic and mischievous side, but she has learned these days that not for nothing he is the leader of this country. 

“I imagine,” Karen agrees to look at the scrolls on her desk, thus beginning the easy meeting between political, economic, diplomatic and social issues that she easily maneuvers through with the little she has learned, standing out as always for her way of handling the topic that is only managed by men. 

A foolishness of Shinji... to keep the cover of his goal of keeping her with him. 

And not to unravel what is hidden under their noses... 

──

Toshiba is the second cousin of the current leader. A shy boy who gives her blushing glances when he tries to approach her about complicated matters they addressed at the meeting. Shinji gives him a careful gesture... she sees that in his eyes he always reflects confidence from some story they both share from the past. 

Very few receive that type of look from him, even though he works alongside one of his half-brothers, one who survived a purge years ago, just when he was promoted to Daimyo; a family/political drama that she knows about briefly, without detail since she is a foreigner. 

“I-I...” the boy tries with slight hesitation just as he stops her at the exit with several scrolls in hand and a series of exaggerated motions that a child of his age should not have, much less in the nest of vipers that is this place. 

“You can speak naturally,” the civilian doesn’t scold him but comments while standing up to her full height despite the difference in centimeters. 

He blinks for a few seconds in amusement, putting aside his shy appearance a little, which makes her arch her eyebrow at this brief shadow that he shows. “W-well, I wanted to know about the financial topic you mentioned... Does it have to do with the economy?” 

“It does,” the woman accepts. Ehen the subject was introduced in the meeting, some were fascinated because of the ease with which she explained it and presented the benefits within the process that is carried out among civilians. Others dismissed it when they saw the example in the shinobi village... Something that she is sure she can share, and it is not off-limits. 

Just like diplomacy and shinobi stuff, finance is naturally exposed when there’s an economy, so there’s no secret to it. 

“So... if finances are managed by farmers, merchants and the soldiers themselves... can stability be achieved?” 

“Of course. As long as there is no external issue that harms it,” Karen states with ease, keeping her hands hidden under the large sleeves of her elegant yukata, one that she brought by chance that was mysteriously supplied to her. 

She is sure Tobirama is aware of the deficiency of her clothing, something he has begun to realize in light of her own role as a cover... The man is remarkably efficient. 

A positive thing for the woman who smiles at the look of the person who questions her. “You know, Toshiba-san, you do not have to doubt too much and ask ahead. I am just a servant of this advice,” she clarifies before her position which, although subtle, stays intact. 

“I-I... Well, I know you possess a lot of knowledge. I would like to debate some terms.” The man stands firm, his eyes showing a rare flame that is reflected in his docile appearance. 

“I do not think so, Toshiba-kun.” Shinji squeezes his shoulder at the highly motivated younger relative. “Her fiancé is very jealous of having his wife with a man... in her room.” 

“I did not say in her room!” The blushing cousin raises his hands, throwing away part of the scrolls due to such a mischievous comment from said leader. She understands that there is an etiquette that she must maintain as a noble lady, so she bows. 

“I apologize, but I do not think it is possible to meet with you, Toshiba-san. And, Shinji-sama, do not bother your relative with threats of that kind,” the woman sighs elegantly, arching her eyebrow at the leader who approached from where he was arguing with some guards regarding security. 

A flourishing topic due to the raids that are beginning to take place. 

“Oh, not at all... I just do not want my adorable cousin to end up missing,” the Daimyo shrugs. “Because I will not get you involved if Tobirama-san defends your virtue.” 

Karen wants to hit herself in the face for such a shameless comment. It is obvious that he lost her decency a few days ago when he started talking freely, but it is her fault for giving him that confidence in exchange for his favor towards the possible shinobi village, causing a laugh to come out of the amused leader. 

She doesn’t want to get too involved, so she bows to say goodbye at the initiative of doubts on the part of her benefactor’s relative. She sighs... unaware that she has caught the attention of those shadows and whose leader was closer than she expected... noticing from afar how the eyes of Shinji’s half-brother were looking at her. 

Coincidence? She doesn’t know... It’s better to remain oblivious and innocent of knowing that something is going on under the darkness of this brilliant country. 

Karen thinks positive. 

──

Her heart was in an uproar just as she had been talking casually to Tobirama that night and he had dramatically exploded into a smoke bomb that made her cough loudly with terror in her eyes from remembering her fiancé’s words. 

‘If the clone explodes... that will mean something is happening.’ 

Which makes her get up just in time to look around at that door that opens onto the beautiful view of the garden. She feels attentive; her heart is still racing even though minutes have passed since her partner’s clone disappeared. She has a lump in her chest at the sight of nothing happening. 

Nevertheless, she has a presentiment... just as the door is opened. 

“Akane-san?” she questions when she sees a woman speeding through the door. Her clothes are somewhat disheveled and her frightened eyes search for her. “What’s going-” She doesn’t finish asking when a warm blood stain crosses her face. 

She stays in shock, standing in the middle of the room, wiping her face of the crimson color of the young girl who falls headlong like a sack of potatoes. “Well... I am glad to see you here,” someone calls just as they come out from behind the back of the body of the girl who she had previously seen alive. 

“Toshiba?” There are no suffixes. Karen looks still without completely thinking about what she has just witnessed... She saw someone die for the first time! And the knot in her stomach falls so hard that it makes her blink more times to recover. It is so different from what happened in the Senju compound when they tried to invade them. 

“Ho... I see you remember my name.” Infamous and without any signs of his typical kindness, the boy takes her chin with a half-smile. When did it come to this? Why is she surrounded by samurai and shinobi? Where did they come from? 

She has so many questions... but they are all stuck in the shock that remains unwashed... She saw someone die! Her mind is in chaos. 

“I think now... you are the shy one,” the Daimyo’s cousin mocks quicky, caressing her cheek without subtlety. “Tell me... do you prefer your life to your position?” 

“What do you mean?” Karen comes out of her stupor, hitting the hand of the one who shamelessly mocks her despite being pointed at with a kunai. Her gaze is fixed, angry... pissed off! “WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!” 

“Wow... now, you are the woman who surprised me. Answer me this... Is it true that if I kill you, that shinobi will come?” The Daimyo’s relative laughs. “It has been problematic dealing with them...” He looks at his nails, giving the silent order to arrest her. 

The girl feels the samurai at her side tighten his grip on her waist as the kunai is replaced by a katana that pierces her neck just inches away from cutting it. She gulps, sweating coldly; she is now sure they are not planning on selling her... 

Karen doesn’t say anything. Toshiba just cackles. 

“I suppose your stupidity is because of the idea that you will be saved... but, you know, you should not trust the shinobi. They are treacherous and sell themselves for the higher bidder,” the insolent man points out to those around him. Ninja who show nothing on their faces with various clothes and appearances that seem exotic. 

Although she is sure they are not Uchiha, Uzumaki or Senju. 

“What do you think?” He has the nerve to run his index finger across her cheek again and end up on her cleavage. “Will he come?” he chuckles just to look beyond her clothes where her chest rests unsettled. “It is a shame that you have already been defiled by one, but I will not get bored if I have fun with you... right?” 

If it weren’t for the fact that the atmosphere became tense in seconds with an essence and the thunder of the ground for a few seconds, it would be another story. However, she takes advantage of the carelessness to do something crazy with the little training she might have had. Karen feels a cut on her neck... the scream of Toshiba from behind ordering her to be caught. 

But the followers don't catch her... Something stops them just as the building that had previously housed her explodes behind her, falling directly into something warm... She gets scared, tries to flee but the stranger takes her by the arms with a firm gesture. “Calm down,” he orders with a hoarse voice that she didn’t think she would feel so much relief upon hearing. 

The girl opens her eyes and stops kicking to see those red eyes that, although tired and beaten, give her the best flat gesture that makes her almost cry. She hugs him... she doesn’t avoid doing it when she thought the worst as it happened in a short time. “There is no time for this.” As always, breaking the moment, the man sighs to take her and jump away of what would be several kunai. 

“Hey asshole! I know you’re relieved to see her, but it would be nice if you could help me!” Izuna shouts from somewhere in the beautiful courtyard just to feel the pull in the air. There’s wind... She tries not to scream because of the speed with which they move in complicated movements that would be difficult to describe as she can’t see but imagines by the many unexpected turns. 

She wants to throw up. 

“Karen... close your eyes and bear with it,” Tobirama orders to cling to her form. She doesn’t complain about his tone, much less the way he grabs her, because she knows it’s not the best time to ask stupid questions... The woman swallows hard. 

“Y-yes,” she encourages herself to say to do what was indicated seconds apart since this is not the best experience, and no roller coaster compares to this. 

For a civilian... being in the middle of a battle is not the most essential thing, nor the historical value of witnessing a coup d’état of this magnitude. 

A/N: As you can see, this has already exploded; a very difficult thing to guess when they believed the real ringleader was someone else. At least Tobirama arrived in time given how annoying his fiancée is by calling the attention of the leader of the coup... Ironic, since she is a simple civilian, but her political courage and good head are notable. 

Izuna, on the other hand, will have plenty of material to blackmail the infamous white assassin... something he will not waste judging by the desperate way he never thought he would see his former rival. Especially when they noticed that the coup d’état had exploded right in the Daimyo’s main building. 

But what happened? Where is the Daimyo? Will they win? I don’t know... we’ll see in the next chapter. 

Thank you for your likes and comments. 

Author-chan out! 

[i-kylie]

anon: I don't know if you've watched shameless, but do you know when Karen got hit by a car and went to the hospital? Can you make a version where this happens to curtis sister and the gang comes to visit her??

-<3

Darry blames hisself for the whole thing

You asked him to go out that night and he said no

You really wanted to go, so you snuck out

You were left for dead, but thankfully some adults (probably soc or middle class) found you and brought you to the hospital

Everyone didn’t find out til the next morning

It was a Sunday, it seemed that everyone had a late shift or no work that day

Even Dallas was around the at morning

Soda had asked Pony to get you up

“She’s not there..” “quit playing go get your sister”

You weren’t there

Everyone started to panic

The phone started to ring

Darry went to answer

Pony was like “you don’t care? You probably drove her to this point!”

He felt bad and apologized for that statement later.

“She’s in the hospital.”

The gang all found a way to get there in one piece

Only guardian was allowed for the first visit

And oh god, Darry’s face when he saw you in critical condition.

Your hair was cut short on one side for stitches

You looked horrible

You were in a coma

He left the room not wanting to hear what the doctor diagnosed you with

The gang looked at him with curiosity when he came back

He started to cry

The doctor came back and soda begged to see her

He only let siblings this time.

Pony couldn’t look at you

Soda forced hisself to.

The gang wanted answers or to just see you

Since none of the curtises could hold it together

The doctor finally let them

Everyone went in this time

Your brothers needed to face the truth again

The state they saw you in broke them

Dallas and Steve began demanding the nurses to tell them what happened

“All we know is that a couple brought her in at around midnight, she was looking way worse.”

Twobit was confused why you weren’t waking up

“She’s in a coma.” The doctor said

Darry decided to wipe them tears and be the guardian he was supposed to be

“What do you think happened to her?” He asked.

The doctor sighed.

“From the surgeries we put her in, I can infer that she was hit by a car. At fast speeds… I think it was a planned attack.”

Dallas left then in anger

He wanted to find who did that to you

They all had to leave because visitation was over

You didn’t wake up for two days

The hospital called and they all made it there

They came in the room and you looked delirious and confused

“Hey it’s me Darry” “what?”

Everyone became confused as well

“She lost some of her memory temporarily. We predict it to come back in.. a week at most.”

“So she doesn’t know me?” Pony asked.

The nurse nodded.

It was a lot for everyone

Your healing process was long, but everyone stuck around to help

You gained your memory in a week and a half which was very hard for everyone

Months later Steve would joke about how you were when you didnt remember shit

By that time, it was okay to joke about

❤️‍🩹

[wandafiction]

Triple Chocolate Brownies - Just Us Chapter 61

Warnings: None

Word Count: 5391

Series List | Chapter 60 | Chapter 62

================================

We are still about 20 minutes away from the house, the car ride has been filled with silence apart from the music from the radio. It's not an awkward silence but it is also not comfortable and it's made me shuffle about a few times when we come to red lights and stop signs. The silence seems to be making this already long journey even longer. It may be Sunday but the traffic and annoying amount of taxis beg to differ. See me and Wanda both live in Manhattan, my town house is on the upper west side while Wanda's apartment is literally across the park from me on the upper East side. My penthouse is all the way down in the Hudson yards area. Vision and Karen both live in downtown Brooklyn, now don't get me wrong it's a nice place but it just means I have to go over the damn bridge and through the day time traffic to get to my place.

So, yeah, here we are stuck behind yet another taxi who has decided to stop in the middle of the road only 10 minutes down from the house. I turn to look at the boys quickly, Billy is in the passenger seat and Tommy is sitting behind me. They are quietly bobbing their heads to the music, taking in their surroundings yet none of us have said a word. Once the taxi finally moves out the way I take a deep breath and decide to break the silence that's strangling us.

"I'm sorry about last night, boys. I shouldn't have said what I did to your father, especially not in front of you two." I don't really know why I'm apologising because in my mind I did nothing wrong, but I still kind of disrespected their dad in front of them. "I hope I didn't cause any issues between you and him after I left."

"It's okay. You did nothing wrong, it's dad who should be apologising." A let out a small laugh at Tommy's words. "What?"

"Nothing but that's exactly what your mother said." 

"Yeah I don't want to see what happens with dad with two angry women shouting at him."

"Yeah me neither Billy." 

We finally manage to get onto the street with a row of extravagant townhouses, I see from the corner of my eyes the boys looking out the window in awe of the place. I pull up right outside my house, luckily all the neighbours are understanding and park mostly in front of their own places. I turn the ignition off and let the boys have a moment to take it all in, but they are now looking at the cars that are parked up more than the houses. 

"When mom said you were rich, I didn't think she meant this rich. No offence." 

"None, take Billy. It's a lot to take in so why don't we head inside and I can show you around." The boys both nod at me as I start getting out of my car. 

I stand on the sidewalk as the boys turn in a circle a couple of times looking up and down the road at the row of houses and line of expensive parked cars. I turn around when I hear the closing of the door behind me, and smile when I see my favourite neighbour of all time walking down her front steps. 

"Good morning Miss Ajak." She makes her way down to me, holding her arms out towards me so I make my way over and hug her.

"How have you been my darling?" Ajak leans backwards resting her hands on my sides to look up at me. And when I mean look up, I mean look up because she is even smaller than Natasha but it has never stopped her from giving me one of her big mama bear hugs...as she likes to call them.

"I am very well thank you. How are you? Last time I saw you was a couple months ago, I must say being single has done wonders for you. You are glowing." 

"Oh stop your going to make me blush." She says dramatically fanning her face with her hands. "So are you going to introduce me to these handsome young men behind you, or not." 

"Of course." I turn back around to face the boys, resting my arm on Ajaks shoulder. "Boys this is my neighbour Miss Ajak, Ajak this is Billy and Tommy Maximoff." 

The boys hold out their hands which Ajak happily takes, shaking both of them with a firm grip. She looks between me and the boys with a raised eyebrow, then taps her finger against her mouth as she thinks quietly to herself. 

"I didn't miss something did I. Like I didn't travel to the future by accident, because last time I checked you were single and did not have two boys hiding around somewhere. Or is this like a magical pregnancy where it just happens one day and the next you're giving birth and then they grow up too quickly for your liking. I mean they look to be in their teens, I've not missed that much of your life have I." I laugh out as I jokingly shove her away, and she just comes back at me hitting my arm.

"No Ajak you didn't go through multiple dimensions and end up in a different universe. These are the twin boys of the woman I am currently dating." Ajak looks up at me with a small amount of shock.

"You're dating again?" She lets out an impressed hmph. "Good for you. How long have you been dating?" 

"Just over a month." 

"Wow." She prolongs the wow, her accent making it sound kind of funny. "And she already trusts you with her boys. What's next? You say I love you to each other."

"That has already happened, Miss Ajak.' Tommy finds the perfect time to pipe up and he and Billy laugh to themselves as Ajak moves a few steps back to look at me directly with raised eyebrows.

"How long were you dating before you said it?"

"Hey, their mom said it first." I raise my hands in fake surrender.

"How long?"

"Ur, just around the 3 week mark I think."

"My god you are useless lesbians aren't you. Always moving so quickly." Ajak says with a joking tone, but also some seriousness behind it. "Next you will be moving in together."

"Woah, woah, I don't think we are at that point yet."

"Why not? Mom has given you draw and wardrobe space, and you are getting a key cut this week." Tommy high fives Billy as he keeps adding to the things Ajak can mock me for.

"Oh I'm not a useless lesbian, but I'm practically living with my girlfriend but won't admit it." Ajak mocks as she turns to the boys. "I like these two, they like dropping you in it."

"Oh yes they do. Their mother gets the same treatment too." 

"Well I'm glad to see you happy. Now I'm off to see Sersi and Ikaris so I best get off. It was lovely to meet you boys, and good to see you again Y/n."

"It was lovely to meet you Miss ajak." Her eyes widen slightly as she looks between the twins.

"Do they always do that?"

"If you mean speak at the same time like it was rehearsed, then yes. Yes they do. I'm still getting used to it."

"Well, have fun with that Y/n. See you again soon I hope." 

"Yes see you soon Miss Ajak say hi to those two love birds for me."

"I will. Bye darling." With that Ajak gets in her car and drives off and I turn to look at the boys.

"Right time for a house tour." 

The boys follow me as I open the gate and make my way up the stairs fiddling with my keys to make sure I get the right one. I turn around to see Billy closing the gate back up, as I insert the key and give it a few turns till I hear the click of the door unlocking. I push the door open, using my arm to wave the boys inside as I hold the door for them. I smile when they both thank me and move into the entrance hall, while I turn around to close the door and put the chain across. I move into the entrance hall to see the boys taking their shoes and coats off, putting them out of the way on the racks provided.

"Welcome to my humble abode. We will do a quick house tour, there isn't anywhere you can't go, except for my room of course." I wave the boys to follow me as we enter the kitchen. "Okay so this is the kitchen, obviously, and through the door there is what they call a breakfast room but in reality I added extra storage. Then we also have the garden through the french doors ahead of you, there is a pantry and a toilet just behind us through those two separate doors there." 

"Is that a set of stairs in the not breakfast, breakfast room?" Tommy's head is leaning to the side to look through the room to the small spiral staircase.

"It is, it's just another room above it which I use as another pantry honestly, but if you follow me up the main stairs we can head up to the parlor." I start walking up the stairs as the boys move around the first floor slowly taking it all in.

"Parlor. What's that?" Billy turns to look at me with questioning eyebrows.

"So basically the living room, dining room, then something called a gallery on the floor plan but it's basically just a large landing. And through the dining room is the extra pantry that has those sets of stairs down to the 'not breakfast, breakfast room' as you called it." 

The boys follow me into each one of the rooms, taking in the decor of the house and the artwork on the walls. Most of the house follows the same theme of dark interior so mostly black and greys, but with white carpets or light oak floor boards. There are 6 floors, a basement and a roof. The top two floors both have a terrace on them, and all together there are roughly 7 bedrooms and something like 11 bathrooms in total. So it's a big ole townhouse. All the toilets and bathrooms are light themed though with most of them having an exquisite white tiled and marble design to them. The boys run their hands over the long l-shaped couch and the two armchairs before both landing on the charcoal colored swivel love seat. They both laugh out when I give it a small spin, before stopping it and spinning it back the other way.

"Okay so it's just gone 12 now, do you boys have any ideas on what you want to do?" I ask when my mind  comes up completely blank apart from playing gaming consoles but we can't do that all day.

"Can I bake brownies?" Tommy asks timidly and I enthusiastically nod my head.

"Of course we can, I've got plenty of ingredients to make whatever. Will you be joining us Billy?" 

“Yes please, we haven’t made brownies in forever!” Billy starts excitedly bouncing on his feet, the longer I spend with the boys the more of their mother I see in them and it's so cute.

“Okay well we need to decide on what brownies you boys want to make first.” I question as me and Tommy join his brother at the bottom of the stairs.

“Triple chocolate brownies!” They both say simultaneously 

“Okay well then, Tommy could you grab out the dark, white and milk chocolate from the pantry over there. Billy, could you get the flour, cocoa powder and caster sugar from the ‘not a breakfast room, room’ please and I will grab the eggs and butter.” The boys go to search their given areas for the few ingredients while I set mine on the counter and move to preheat the oven. “So do you boys know how to make them or am I going to have to teach you?”

“Here is the chocolate Y/n and to answer your question you are going to have to teach us. We haven't baked in a couple of months.” I nod in response as Billy reenters the room holding the small bags of ingredients.

“Okay, so if I instruct you on how to make them and what to do, then I can just do the oven part. Sound good?” They both hum in agreement and I move to get the scales out of the cupboard. 

“So what's first?” Tommy asks as he starts opening the different bags of ingredients.

“Okay so we need to melt the butter and dark chocolate together which we can do in short bursts in the microwave. Just measure out 150 grams of each for me Tommy. Once he has finished with the scales Billy if you could break three eggs into a mixing bowl and add 250 grams of sugar to the bowl and then mix them all together until you deem the mixture fluffy.”

Both boys start on their respective jobs, and it's amazing to see Billy just waiting patiently for Tommy to finish with the scales as he struggles to break the chocolate up and get roughly the right amount. A fond smile grows on my lips, when Billy resets the scales to 0 when Tommy cant figure it out reminding me of how I am with my brothers and sisters and it is so sweet to see two teenage boys just getting along. Once Tommy has measured out the butter he moves over to the microwave, setting it at 10 seconds and placing the mixing bowl in. I turn back to look at Billy as he quietly hums to himself as he measures out his two ingredients. Hearing him hum to himself makes me aware that it is rather quiet and I connect my phone to the kitchen's bluetooth sound system and play the top 40. 

I have heard the microwave ping a couple of times already so make my way to Tommy who is dancing to the music and checking his mix of ingredients. I give him a thumbs up when I see it all melted together, laying a kitchen towel down for him to put the hot bowl on.

“Y/n where is the whisk?” I turn to Billy to see him searching the draws for something to mix his ingredients.

“Above your head hanging over the island.” Billy stands up looking behind him seeing all the hanging pots, pans and utensils.

“Thank you. So fluffy yeah?”

“Yup, nice and fluffy for me please. Tommy while your brother does that can you cut up the other chocolate for me. We need about 75 grams of the milk chocolate and 50 grams of the white.”

“No problem. Are you just going to stand there and make us do this all?” I raise my hands in defence.

“Hey you two wanted to bake triple chocolate brownies, and didn't know the recipe. I am the cook book and master chef, you are my little trainees. These are the best chocolate brownies you will have ever made, so yeah I'm just going to let you do it all because once you know how to make them you won’t need my help.”

“Well that answers that then.” Tommy jokes as he looks over to see his brother's progress.

“Does this look fluffy to you Tommy?” Billy tilts the bowl so Tommy can double check and gives his brother a reassuring nod. “Okay what next Y/n.”

“Okay now add that into the bowl with the chocolate and butter and give it a good mix until it's all completely mixed together.”

“Could you mix this one Tommy my arm is hurting me already?”

“Fine, pass it here.” Billy passes the bowl off to his brother and takes a seat at one of the kitchen stools.

“Would you boys like a drink at all, I have just realised I haven't actually offered you one yet.” I turn the coffee machine on, looking through the selection of pods I have here so I can make myself a drink.

“Do you have hot chocolate?” Tommy asks as he stands beside me with the mixing bowl and whisk  in hand.

“Of course. So one hot chocolate for Tommy, what about you billy?”

“Hot chocolate for me too please.”

“Okay so two hot chocolates. That looks about mixed now so you can add 75 grams of flour and 40 grams of the cocoa powder to the mixture, give it all a good stir till it looks like a batter and then we can get to baking it.” I explain as I move around the kitchen to make the boys their hot chocolates, using the pods that go with the coffee machine to make them. As I turn around to see the boys progress as the coffee machine does its job my face is met with a large cloud of white, and I hear the boys snickering . I use my fingers to clear the white substance off my eyes, opening them only to be met by the twins faces who are laughing hard and loud, their cheeks red. “Oh you're in for it now.”

Both boys make a run for it as I grab two handfuls of flour, and chase after them. They run around the counter together, occasionally bumping into one another as their laughs fill the kitchen, drowning out the music that was playing. I change tactics, so instead of chasing the boys around and around the kitchen island I use my height to bend as far over it as possible and throw the flour at them as they continue to move.Tommy stops dead in his tracks, which causes billy to slam into the back of him and both boys fall to the floor not so graciously. I move around the counter grabbing the bag of flour, but look in the bowl first to make sure they actually put it in there. When I confirm they did and an evil smirk grows on my face, the boys scramble to get up but I am too quick. I put my hand in the bag of flour and dump another load of the stuff over them, as they continue to try and get up and run away. Just as i think i've won, Tommy manages to scrabble to his feet opening up his arms wide before they close quickly and his hands close in on the bag. He used such force that the flour jumps not only out of the bag and covers me, but the bag splits and flower lands all over Billy too. 

Billy coughs and splutters, wiping his hands on his face to get the pile of flour off of it, as Tommy bends over with laughter and tears streaming down his face. I'm still standing there in a small state of shock, my mouth agape as my eyes flick between Tommy and Billy. I finally breathe out a laugh and use two fingers to wipe at my eyes, again, and dramatically shake them to the side. 

"This is so funny. I mean look at you two." Tommy slaps his knee as he laughs and I join in now finding the situation completely hilarious.

"Okay, well before we make any more mess." My words broken between laughs. "We need to add the chocolate bits then we can bake them." 

"I will do it." Tommy chucks the chocolate chunks in as I help Billy off the floor, giving his clothes a small wipe down with my hand. 

Once Tommy is happy with the mixture, he moves over to grab his now finished hot chocolate and adds another pod in to make Billy's drink. All the while I pour the mixture into the tray spreading it out evenly before placing it in the oven. I grab the whisk that we have been using and spin around on my heels and flick it in Tommy's direction causing the mixture to splatter all over him. His jaw slacks open, his eyes looking me up and down in shock and I hear Billy start to laugh behind me.

"Oh this is war." Tommy says with a playful tone to his voice as he grabs out a wooden spoon and darts to the mixing bowl. 

Before I have time to grab it, he wraps his arm around it and stirs the spoon around it a couple of times. When I see the lump of mixture sitting on the spoon my eyes go wide and I start to back up slowly. 

Everything happens in slow motion.

Tommy flicks the lump of mixture towards me and I see it coming flying towards me so I do the only thing I can think of and duck down, my head turning as I watch the mixture with my eyes. My eyes go wide when I see it connect with a satisfying plop again Billy's head as he tries to turn to avoid it too late. Tommy drops the spoon into the bowl and places it on the side as he struggles to control his fit of giggles, while Billy collects the mixture from his face and throws it back at Tommy.

It sails past Tommy's head and hits the white cupboard, and we all watch it slowly slide down before it falls off and lands on the floor. There is a beat of silence before we all start laughing together, all of us with tears streaming down our faces. 

I gain control of myself, while the boys are still trying to calm down, and grab some wipes so I can clear up the floor. As I start to clean up, I hear clanking behind me so I look around to see the boys collecting all the used stuff and putting it in the sink. Billy starts to fill the sink up with hot soapy water, as I make my way to the bin and chuck away the wipes and mixture we were chucking around. Tommy comes up next to me grabbing a few wipes himself as he starts to wipe down the kitchen island, and I wipe down the other counter tops and cupboard. 

When we are nearly done, the song on the playlist changes and I see Tommy start to dance to himself and Billy start to mime to the words. I smile to myself as they both start dancing around the kitchen, shuffling around the tiled floor in their socks doing funny moves like the running man and the robot. It doesn't matter that it's not in time with the music they are having fun. I turn to my phone and hit the back button, which causes the boys to groan about it, but when they hear the music start again and sew me grab a wooden spoon to use as a mic they smile at me. I also grab Tommy's hand and pull him towards me so we can dance.

(Everybody talks - Neon Trees)

Hey baby, won't you look my way?

I can be your new addiction

Hey baby, what you gotta say?

All you're giving me is fiction

I'm a sorry sucker and this happens all the time

I found out that everybody talks

Everybody talks, everybody talks

I hold the spoon to my mouth as I start singing out loud, the twins join in but only quietly. All of us shuffling around on our feet in time to the music.

It started with a whisper

And that was when I kissed her

And then she made my lips hurt

I could hear the chit chat

Take me to your love shack

Mama's always gotta back track

When everybody talks back

I pull Tommy in and move my arm upwards so he spins under it, and then he spins back the other way. I sway my hips to the beat and look up to see Billy doing a two step heel sort of shuffle as he moves around the kitchen.

Hey honey, you could be my drug

You could be my new prescription

Too much could be an overdose

All this trash talk make me itchin'

Oh my, my shit

Everybody talks, everybody talks

Everybody talks, too much

It started with a whisper

And that was when I kissed her

And then she made my lips hurt

I could hear the chit chat

Take me to your love shack

Mama's always gotta back track

When everybody talks back

Never thought I'd live

To see the day

When everybody's words got in the way

I put the spoon down and grab both the boys hands and start spinning them under my arms, I smile wide as I see them laughing. The lift both their arms up and I duck as I shuffle under them, then spin them under my arms to untangle us

Hey

Hey sugar, show me all your love

All you're giving me is friction

Hey sugar, what you gotta say?

I pick the spoon back up and stop dancing and decide to pretend like I'm singing at a concert as I hold the spoon in two hands, mimicking what it's like to use a mic stand. And smile as the boys continue to dance around the kitchen in their own worlds, and now singing more confidently than they were in the beginning.

It started with a whisper

And that was when I kissed her

And then she made my lips hurt

I could hear the chit chat

Take me to your love shack

Mama's always gotta back track

When everybody talks back

I hold the spoon in one hand, and lift the other one up to point out into the kitchen moving my wrist up and down in time with the beat. My head bops to the left and right in time to the sway of my body, and I watch as the boys sing comically to each other as they roll their shoulders in time with the beat.

Everybody talks

Everybody talks

Everybody talks

Everybody talks

Everybody talks

Everybody talks, back

It started with a whisper (everybody talks, everybody talks)

And that was when I kissed her (everybody talks, everybody talks)

Everybody talks

Everybody talks, back

I drop the spoon as I let out a small boom and bow as the boys give me a round of applause laughing at my antics. I then stand up straight and give them a small round of applause and they bow towards me and one another. We are all heavily breathing from dancing around the kitchen, a thin layer of sweat covering our foreheads. I open up my arms and the boys both engulf me in a hug.

"That….was...so...fun." I huff out between puffs of air.

"It was."

"It was very fun." 

Me and the boys are brought back to our surroundings when the timer on the cooker goes off, I ruffle their hair before letting go of them. They follow me as I grab an oven mit, turning the oven off as I open the door and the smell of brownies fills the room. I hear the boys take in a deep breath and let out a happy sigh at the smell.

"Right boys, we need to let these cool then we can cut them up and have a couple. I will also make some sandwiches so we have something proper to eat for lunch and not just brownies. Now while we wait for them to cool, I think a shower is in order."

"A shower sounds great but we didn't bring any spare clothes with us. You know we didn't plan on a food fight." Billy says as he motions between the three of us who are covered in flour and mixture.

"Good point. Billy you are nearly my height so should fit into one of my shirts and sweatpants, don't worry everything is clean and mostly from the mens section anyway. Tommy, my clothes are probably a bit big, but you can just roll them up. Sound good?" 

"Sounds good." 

"Perfect. So you two both use one of the showers on the fourth floor. All the rooms up there have bathrooms so it doesn’t matter which one you go into. I will go to my room to clean off. Meet back down here and we can have lunch. Your mom shouldn't be too much longer with Vision and we can do something together." They both nod and disappear upstairs, me following closely behind until I get to my floor. "This is me, there should be some clothes in the drawers upstairs for you guys."

"Okay thank you Y/n." Tommy smiles as he disappears up the next flight of stairs.

"Yes thank you Y/n. The past 2 hours have been really fun. See you downstairs." Once Billy disappears I make my way into my room and head to the ensuite.

It took me a while to shower off properly because I ended up with flour in my hair, which was a pain to get out. But I finally managed to get it all out so now I'm walking around my room looking for some clothes, with a towel wrapped around my bottom half; and another towel hanging over my shoulders. Just as I am pulling my underwear up my legs, my phone goes off and I smile at the name that lights up the screen. I press the answer button and tilt the camera so they can see my head and neck only.

W: Hi baby

Wanda almost squeals in excitement.

Me: Hey princess. What's got you so excited?

W: Nothing apart from seeing your face, and your neck .

Wanda's eyes search around the phone.

W: Are you naked?

Me: Uh, no, well half naked. I have a towel wrapped around my bottom half.

W: Uh huh. Where are my boys?

Me: They are either upstairs getting changed, or downstairs waiting on me.

W: Why would they be getting changed?

Me: We baked brownies and it turned into a flour throwing war.

W: Well now the half naked ensemble makes sense. I want brownies.

Wanda pouts at me like a little child.

Me: Well why don't I send you the address and you come here. We can do movie night here if you want.

W: Are you sure baby? You mentioned in passing that it was yours and Sarah's house and I don't want to intrude on that if you're not ready.

I smile at how considerate she is. It's true me and Sarah bought this house together, fully expecting to have a future and multiple children. 

Me: It's okay princess, you can come over. This place is special to me and I want you to come. That's if you want to come over.

W: Of course I do. Send me the address and I will be over as soon as possible.

Me: Okay. I love you Princess.

W: Love you too baby.

I hang up with a smile on my face, now deciding to get into comfy clothes as I don't have to go anywhere. I send Wanda the address as I am getting changed, and I can hear the faint laughter of the boys coming from upstairs. 

With everything that's happened in the past, and the pain and hurt I went through I am glad I am still here today to be able to experience this. I wanted this with Sarah so badly, and she did too but when she died I thought I would never get my wish of a family or a future with someone. Not like the future that I saw with Sarah. But here we are. 

I have Wanda. 

I love Wanda.

I have the boys, who I love so much. 

I have a family in them.

They are my family.

I just hope they all see me as part of there's as much as I see them a part of mine.

================================

[jonathanbyersphd]

A Very Late WIP Wednesday

The first couple of days bleed together. Joyce stayed in bed, and Jonathan came by with small meals insisting she had to eat something. Their house was proverbial Fort Knox, no one went in or out. That was until Karen sent Nancy along with a casserole and for a briefest second at the dinner table Jonathan had a look in his eye that she's seen before but she couldn't remember when.

The next week the boys went back to school, she went back to work and found out that the town was once again well aware of her latest tragedy before she had the chance to tell them. They buried Bob's ashes on a Tuesday, that much she's sure of. Afterwards, in the church hall, she walked in on Nancy consoling Jonathan and it felt like she was watching herself stand there motionless. Begging herself to do something to comfort him. Before she could, Jonathan quickly dried his tears, stiffened his upper lip and straightened up. He even asked her if she was ok, and she felt so ashamed she cried.

The next day she cleaned the house in a rage while the boys were at school. When she realized all the drawings were long gone the anger truly took hold. It was all so fucking unfair. Owens got to survive and Bob died. Bob died. Bob was dead and she couldn't move to Maine now even if she wanted to. It was like a bomb went off and she was left to pick up the pieces of her life but she can't even manage to do that. 

At some point one of Will's drawings found its way to the refrigerator. "Bob Newby Superhero" it shouted at her every time she double checked the fridge for a Demogorgon in the middle of the night. 

Eventually, the days blurred into weeks so quickly that it was Thanksgiving before she knew it. Time is funny like that. Jonathan, of course, made all the sides and the only reason they ended up with a turkey is because Hopper had enough foresight to buy them one. 

Something about sitting down to holiday dinner with her boys finally snaps her out of her grief-fueled daze. And it's with a mix of horror and guilt that she realizes the only reason their house is still standing is because of Jonathan. But if he resents her at all it doesn’t show. 

Truthfully, she really doesn't remember much at all. It comes back in small flashes, Will seizing, Bob, Mike carrying Will out, Nancy stabbing him with a poker to get that thing out, but nothing ever sticks around long enough for her to make sense of any of it. 

The next morning, Will begged to go sledding with Mike, Lucas and Dustin like they do every Friday after Thanksgiving she cautiously caves. She made sure he packed his supercomm and sent Jonathan along with him for good measure. Which neither of them seemed too thrilled about but she's not about to let Will go off on his own. 

They're still gone when she gets home from work and she tries not to panic. It's only six or so, and sure the sun went down an hour ago but there could be a perfectly logical explanation as to why they're still out. She makes herself a leftover sandwich and picks at it while trying to find something to watch that isn’t the news. She doesn’t watch the news anymore. She’s about to give up and just go lay down when she hears Jonathan’s car pull up.Joyce doesn’t hear him turn off the car but a few minutes later  He unlocks the door and makes a beeline for his room. 

“Hello?” She calls out, confused by his odd behavior. 

“Oh uh hey” he responds walking back into the door frame of the living room.

Jonathan left the front door ajar and the wind blows in, she wraps a blanket around herself to try and warm back up. Her stomach suddenly churns. 

“Where’s Will?” she realizes

She envisions him crashing into a tree and bleeding out in the passenger seat of Jonathan’s car 

“Oh I left him at Mike's” Jonathan explains.  

She stares at him wide-eyed. 

“I didn't think it was a big deal.” he mumbles, glancing down and up again.

“You couldn’t have asked first?” she cries a little too loudly

“I’m.. I’m sorry…. they were all just really excited and.. and I think Mike got some new video game but I’m picking him up in a couple hours” Jonathan reassures 

“A couple hours?” she presses, suddenly tense

“Yea” he shrugs.  

“What could possibly be so important that you need to be alone for that long?” she shrieks. 

Jonathan stares, then he starts getting well fidgety. He takes a couple of breaths trying to start talking and then stopping again. But the only noise is the drone of the tv, the car outside, and his fidgeting. She’s about to ask again, but she reminds herself to be patient while he finds his words. 

“I'm uh… Well I'm um…the thing is…” he stammers, nervously. 

The thing about Jonathan is that while he's just as earnest as Will, his thoughts are more like a puzzle or maybe a maze. Either way, it's… challenging for him to express himself as freely as Will does. And while Joyce really hates to think of him as the harder one to parent, right he's not making it any easier. She maintains eye contact and starts counting. If after fifteen seconds he doesn't say what he wants to she'll start asking leading questions. Gently coaxing him out of his shell. 

“I'm going out with Nancy” he spits out all at once when he’s almost lost her attention. 

“Nancy?” she asks

“Yea” he nods 

“Nancy Wheeler?” she questions slowly, making sure that they’re on the same page. 

“Yea, Nancy Wheeler” he says softly with a smile. 

It’s not that she doesn’t like Nancy, not in the slightest but well the two of them are an odd pair. When she found them together last year it made a little bit of sense, what with everything else going on. But she’s really not sure what the two of them are doing hanging out without a threat of monsters. At least she hopes there’s no threat of monsters. Jonathan’s still rocking on his heels in the doorframe waiting for her to say something.

“Well have fun” she resigns, because she has so many questions but no idea where to start. 

“Thanks… uh I gotta go, she's waiting for me.” he informs 

“Waiting for you?” she asks 

“Yea uh in my car” he answers 

“Your car?” she blinks at him

“Yea” 

“You left her in the car?”

“Yea” 

Leaving Nancy Wheeler in the car in the dead of winter, what is he thinking? It’s not like him to be inconsiderate. 

“Jonathan” she scolds “Let her know she can come in next time” 

“Right, right yea I will” he nods, making his way back out of the house as quickly as he came in. 

[bellaxgiornata]

Life Worth Living [Chapter Five]

Pairing: Matt Murdock x Original Female Character

[You can find the full summary and chapter list for this series here]

Warnings/tags: 18+ for this series; contains fluff, angst, violence, PTSD, smut (Contains our beloved Defenders and lots of plot twists)

Word Count: 9.7k

a/n: This is a very long chapter and will forever be one of my favorite early chapters in this series. I love flirty Matty in this one and you should know that if I can work Matt and flirting over pool into a fic, I'm going to. You also finally get a bit of a glimpse at what Olivia can do... Anyway, feedback is always appreciated!

It was Saturday night, two nights after I’d run into Jessica and Trish. Jessica had texted me over the past couple of days, keeping me up to date on Hope’s case and her struggle to find witnesses. She'd also told me about the apology Trish had broadcast on Trish Talk yesterday morning, the day after challenging Kilgrave on air and he'd called in. 

I remember listening to the show, hearing his voice over the radio for the first time in years. I hadn't been able to fall asleep for more than an hour at a time the past few nights since. I'd barely eaten, too, having lost my appetite with his reappearance in my life. And because I'd been spiraling, I hadn't left my apartment in the past two days either, unconsciously avoiding Matt, Foggy, and Karen. Matt hadn't had any other night time check-ins; since I was barely sleeping I wasn't having nightmares. 

Currently I was sprawled out on my couch, staring at some awful sitcom, not exactly watching it. My eyes were burning and slightly bloodshot from the lack of sleep over the entire week. There was a half eaten slice of toast I had long since abandoned on a plate in the middle of my coffee table, which was a mess with dishes that had piled up. 

A rapid succession of hard knocks at my front door caused me to stiffen on the couch. My fingers gripped the cushions roughly as I held my breath. 

Did he find me already?

“Olivia! Where the hell have you disappeared the last few days!” Foggy’s boisterous voice called from the other side of my front door.

The tension slowly eased out of my muscles as I carefully sat up on the couch. I glanced down at the sweatpants and oversized black tee-shirt I was wearing and frowned. I looked a mess, but I didn’t have time to dress to answer the door for Foggy. With a huff I made my way to the front door where Foggy had taken up banging again.

I swung the door open to be greeted by Foggy’s beaming face–which immediately fell when he actually took in the sight of me.

“Holy shit, what happened to you?” he breathed out, eyes wide.

Karen suddenly appeared next to Foggy, Matt being pulled along beside her. Her eyes grew wide as well when she began scanning me up and down, her mouth parting a little in surprise.

“What’s wrong?” Matt asked quickly, voice full of concern.

“Jesus–you’ve got a bandage on your forehead and…shit, are those bruises on your neck?” Foggy gasped. “Did someone choke you?”

Matt’s jaw snapped shut instantly. From my place at the door I could see the muscles twitching as he ground his teeth. Karen eyed me with a sorrowful gaze, her focus lingering on my bruised neck for a few moments. I let out a sigh, rubbing a hand across my face. 

“I’m fine, just had a terrible past few days,” I assured them.

“But were you attacked?” Foggy pressed.

“Yes, but it was a…misunderstanding,” I explained.

Foggy’s eyes narrowed at my words; Karen raised a brow at me questioningly. Matt still remained clenching his jaw, his hands gripping his cane so hard his knuckles were turning as white as the object itself.

“How does someone attacking you turn out to be a misunderstanding?” Foggy shot at me.

I waved a dismissive hand quickly, as if I could wave away their worry. “Look, don’t worry about it. I’m fine, I’m handling it.”

“That certainly makes me feel better,” Foggy said sarcastically. “Did you go to the police?”

I raised a hand, pinching the bridge of my nose. “I’m trying to. When I…can.”

“Why can’t you now?” he pried.

I took a deep breath, fighting back the frustration. I didn’t want to drag the three of them into this. They didn’t need to be on Kilgrave’s radar.

“Because the problem…requires evidence, which I imagine you can understand, being lawyers,” I told him. “And until I have that, I’m…dealing with it.”

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Matt said, his tone dark. “Whatever you’re doing, it doesn’t sound safe. You shouldn’t be dealing with it, especially not alone.”

“I’m not…I’m not alone,” I said slowly. “I have help. And I’m…” my voice trailed off, searching for the words. “I’m sort of the only one able to deal with this.”

“What does that even mean?” Foggy pushed. "You're being cryptic and it's scaring me."

I exhaled slowly, opting for a bit of the truth. 

"Some P.I. was looking for someone, someone I…used to know. They thought I might’ve had information, but I didn’t," I explained. "Now I'm sort of helping them. That's all."

Karen looked skeptical but remained quiet at my explanation. Matt’s jaw muscles had stopped ticking, but his head was tilted to the side and I could tell he was intensely focused on me behind his dark glasses when I felt that telltale prickle along my skin. It was Foggy who continued on.

"But the bruises?" 

"I was on a run, had my earbuds in. They grabbed me to talk, I freaked out and attacked them first," I explained with a shrug. "They were just trying to defend themselves too. Like I said–just a misunderstanding."

"Alright…" Foggy said slowly, not looking entirely convinced. 

"So uh…" I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Why is it that you're banging on my door after nine?"

"We were going to go to Josie's," Karen told me. "We thought you might want to come out."

"Planning to stay out until the sunrise?" I questioned them cautiously. 

"No," Karen said with a laugh. "I don't think Foggy could handle that again."

"Hey!" Foggy exclaimed, affronted. "I did just fine that night, thank you!"

I grinned at the pair before my eyes slid back and landed on Matt behind them. He was smiling but it almost looked forced. I hadn't spoken to him since the night he'd come over and then disappeared on me before I'd woken up. 

"Would you like to join us?" Matt asked slowly, one of his brows raising.

I glanced down to what I was wearing, a frown covering my face before I looked up, taking note of their clothes. Matt and Foggy were wearing button down shirts, ties, and dress pants with nice winter coats covering them. Karen was in yet another nice dress with a black pea coat, her face made up and her hair neatly pulled back in a bun. Meanwhile, I was pretty sure there was a smear of peanut butter somewhere on my shirt, a hole forming at the left ankle of my sweatpants, and my hair was a tousled mess.

"I'm sort of a mess right now…" I answered, voice trailing off.

Karen smiled wide, catching my eye. "We can wait, if you want to change."

"Yeah, we'd love for you to come out with us," Foggy assured me. “Josie’s is just a dive bar, you don’t need to get dressed up. We just had some office work for a new case we worked on today so,” he said, waving a hand at their attire, “we haven’t really changed.”

Clearing my throat, I stepped aside from the doorway. "I'll just change quick, if you want to wait inside?"

Foggy quickly rushed past; I could feel him surveying the state of my apartment without even seeing him. Karen slipped in past me, guiding Matt inside. His hand briefly brushed against my arm as he stepped past me and I wondered if it was intentional or not. Closing the door behind them, I followed Karen and Matt down the entry hall into the living room.

I shifted awkwardly as Foggy and Karen eyed the coffee table littered with empty water glasses and coffee mugs; the piece of lone peanut butter toast forgotten on the table. I quickly grabbed the plate, biting my lip awkwardly.

“Sorry, wasn’t planning on company,” I muttered as I rushed to empty the toast in the trash before tossing the dish in the sink. As I made my way through the living room, I briefly mumbled out, “I’ll just be a minute,” before darting down the hall and towards the bedroom.

Sliding the door closed behind me, I made my way to the dresser, grabbing the brush atop it and quickly combing through my long, blonde hair. It was a tangled disaster and I frowned as I tried to tame it, giving up when the waves wouldn’t straighten out. I made my way to my closet, opening the door and quickly selecting a pair of dark denim skinny jeans and an oversized, cream colored sweater. I slipped out of my sweatpants and tee-shirt, pulling up the jeans before slipping the sweater on. Stepping back towards my closet, I grabbed a black leather jacket and tugged my arms into it. Making my way back to my dresser, I quickly applied some mascara, a bit of concealer to cover the dark circles under my tired eyes, and a faint bit of perfume–for some reason I felt like I could still smell the traces of peanut butter which must’ve gotten into my hair.

I paused, placing the spray onto the dresser and eyeing my reflection. I didn’t look nearly as put together as Karen but definitely better than I had before. My eyes traveled down to my neck, the angry bruising looking a little bit lighter today. I lifted a hand, my fingertips gently tracing the bruises with a frown. I had no way to cover those and I refused to use my abilities to heal them–not that I could now anyway, considering I'd have to explain why they'd disappeared. With a sigh, I pulled some hair forward and tugged my jacket tighter around me. It was the best I could do. 

Exiting my room, I heard the sound of muffled voices. The three of them suddenly quieted when I appeared in the living room. 

“Maybe you should convince Matt to get a dog and you can share it,” Foggy said as he rose from the couch. 

My eyes narrowed playfully at Foggy as Karen giggled behind a hand.

“Are you implying I’m lonely, Nelson?” I asked him.

“Of course not…” Foggy answered, his tone not quite believable. "It certainly doesn't look like you've been in your apartment, alone, for days on end or anything…"

“I’m pretty sure that’s not how service dogs work, for starters,” I told him. “And also–I’m pretty sure I already said I’m partial to cats.”

“Then maybe you should get a cat,” Foggy urged. 

“Thinking I should get a head start on being the lonely cat lady already?” I teased him, leading the group towards the front door.

“Oh, well, no–that’s not what I meant,” Foggy fumbled.

I laughed lightly, opening the front door and stepping aside so the three could exit. This time Foggy was leading Matt instead of Karen, who muttered a ‘thank you’ as she passed by.

“I’m just teasing, relax,” I told Foggy, locking the door behind me as I exited. “Besides, I’ve already considered getting a cat. Just haven’t exactly gotten around to it.”

“Maybe you should,” he continued. “I hear they lower stress levels.”

I rolled my eyes, jamming my hands into the pockets of my leather jacket as we stopped in front of the elevator doors.

“Alright, I’m feeling personally attacked now,” I joked. “Can we focus the topic of discussion to something other than me? You said you guys had a new client?”

“Oh! Right, yeah, that guy who came in that morning you were at the office,” Foggy said, perking up. “Can’t really go into details because, you know, client confidentiality and all. But we got a case! A paying one.”

I smiled, watching as the elevator doors flew open and stepping inside behind the group. I found myself suddenly beside Matt, who had dropped Foggy’s arm now.

“That’s great, really,” I told them.

“That reminds me, Karen,” Foggy said, turning his attention to her. “I wanted to ask you about that file from earlier.”

My gaze darted down to my feet as Foggy started discussing some case-related files with Karen. For a moment I wondered if going out to a bar with them was really the best idea, but then I quickly scolded myself. I couldn’t stay inside my apartment hiding forever. Besides, I wouldn’t be alone and tonight should hopefully be fun. And, if I was being honest with myself, I missed all three of them.

A hand gently squeezed my shoulder and I jumped, eyes darting upwards. Matt was looking in my direction, his brows raised just above his dark glasses. I noticed the elevator had reached the lobby, Karen and Foggy holding the doors as they continued their deep discussion.

“You alright?” Matt asked me quietly.

“Yeah, I uhm…yeah,” I said, shaking my head. “Just spaced out for a moment.” 

The left side of Matt’s lip curled up at me, his brows lowering. “You mind if I walk with you? I think those two are in the middle of some very boring office talk, and I’ve sort of had enough of that for one Saturday.”

Nervously I shoved a few strands of hair behind my ear, nodding. Immediately realizing he couldn’t see the gesture, I smiled sheepishly and answered, “Yes.”

His warm hand slid from off my shoulder, slipping underneath my arm until he could firmly hold onto my bicep. I fought the shiver that ran down my spine, chewing my lip anxiously as I led him out of the elevator, his cane tapping along the floor as we moved. 

“How far is the bar?” I asked curiously, trying to combat the silence as we made our way through the lobby behind Foggy and Karen.

“About a block and a half,” Matt told me. “Not far.”

When we stepped outside, the cold chill of the night immediately bit at my face and I unconsciously leant into Matt. 

“Cold?” Matt asked me.

My heart sped up at the sudden closeness of his lips to my ear, his warm breath brushing against my skin. I swallowed hard.

“Yeah, just a little,” I answered. 

Without hesitation, he removed his hand from its place around my bicep, instead wrapping it around my waist and pulling me in towards him as we walked. I could feel the hard muscles of his chest against my side now; the warmth of his body seeping through my leather jacket. I could smell the scent of cedar and clove again, something I hadn’t realized I’d missed until just this moment. The feeling that often arose in my stomach around Matt suddenly reared its head, causing my breath to catch briefly on my next inhale.

Matt’s nose brushed against my temple, his lips lightly grazing my ear as he leant in beside me, whispering, “Is this okay?”

I blinked hard, clenching my hands tightly into fists in my jacket pockets. For the briefest moment, I almost stopped on the sidewalk, overcome with a strong urge to grab him by the coat and pull his lips to my own. Immediately I pushed the thought away.

“Yes, but,” I answered, voice weak. I tried to calm down before continuing. “Isn’t this harder for me to help guide you?”

A very light chuckle warmed the side of my face from his breath. His mouth was back near my ear again, lightly skimming his lips against the sensitive part of it as he spoke.

“I know these streets very well,” he assured me. His voice was deep, almost a whisper; a conversation just between us as Karen and Foggy were forgotten ahead of us on the sidewalk. “I’ll be fine.” 

There was a beat of silence between us, my mind entirely focused on the feel of Matt’s nose lightly brushing against the top of my head.

“You smell nice,” Matt muttered.

A snort escaped me at his compliment before I shot him a look. He was smiling in my direction, his eyes crinkling at the corners. I very badly wanted to rip those glasses off of his face to see him better.

“What?” he asked curiously, a smile lingering.

“I’m pretty sure there’s peanut butter somewhere in my hair,” I said with a chuckle, my cheeks burning in slight embarrassment.

Matt’s nose nuzzled against the top of my hair for a moment again. My eyes fluttered closed at the gesture; it wasn’t one I’d experienced before–something so sweet and affectionate–and neither were the butterflies that suddenly broke loose in my stomach.

“There’s definitely peanut butter in your hair,” he agreed, his tone teasing.

I laughed lightly along with him, rolling my eyes. “Great. Well, I’m glad you enjoy it. Is it making you hungry?”

“Maybe…” he said, his voice barely audible.

Something about the way he said the word caused a warmth to suddenly erupt low inside of me. I stiffened as I felt Matt’s hand suddenly tighten against my waist. He cleared his throat before speaking again, but I noticed a slight waver in his tone as he did.

“You smell like coffee though,” he murmured. “And a mix of something citrus and floral. Mandarin?” he questioned lightly, brushing his nose against the top of my head again. “And…hibiscus?”

I expelled a breathy laugh, feeling a little lightheaded from this conversation. “You’re good,” I whispered back. “Clearly you know your scents.”

Matt hummed in response, a slight grin permanently fixed on his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but was quickly cut off by Foggy.

“Welcome to Josie’s!” he exclaimed, gesturing dramatically at the entrance to the bar.

Breaking out of the private bubble Matt and I had been in, I glanced up. There was a red neon sign on the front window, displaying the name of the bar. The sound of old rock music was drifting out onto the sidewalk. 

Foggy held the door open for Karen to pass through, and then gestured for Matt and myself. Matt’s hand slid from around my waist and back up to my bicep, his warm hand curling around it as I led him inside. I followed behind Karen to the bar, Foggy coming in behind us. 

The bar was indeed a dive bar; it was dimly lit with neon signs and a few strings of lights around the ceiling. The walls were a dark wood paneling reminiscent of the seventies and there were a few old gambling game machines placed precariously about. A lone pool table sat vacant near the front window with the neon sign. I was surprised to see there were a handful of people here; it wasn’t crowded but it certainly wasn’t empty. 

I rested my arms against the bar top beside Karen, feeling a pang of sadness as Matt released his grip on my arm. Foggy was gaining the attention of Josie behind the bar to order drinks as I continued to survey the room. 

The three immediately ordered beers when Josie finally appeared. As she started placing the bottles on the bar, the older woman now stared at me expectantly.

“Oh, uh, water please,” I ordered.

“No!” Foggy and Matt both shouted in unison.

I jumped at their unexpected reaction, my eyes widening. Karen only giggled beside me, shaking her head.

“You do not drink the water at Josie’s,” Foggy warned me dramatically. “There’s something wrong with the pipes. You can… see the bacteria and rust in it.”

“That’s why we always order our drinks neat,” Matt added.

“Alright then…”I said slowly, turning back to the expectant Josie as she rested both hands on the bar. “Just a coke, then.”

“No ice!” Foggy tacked on.

I shook my head, laughing, as we threw some cash on the sticky bar counter.

“Not drinking tonight?” Karen asked me curiously as we waited for my coke.

“I don’t drink,” I admitted. “I prefer to be in full control of my…mental faculties.”

"Not a problem!" Foggy exclaimed, clapping a hand on my shoulder. 

I thanked Josie as she placed my drink on the counter a moment later. My eyes wandered up to the television behind the bar. Despite the muted voices I could see they were talking about the man in the mask, an enlarged, grainy cellphone image of him on the screen. Karen followed my gaze, her eyes landing on the news.

"What’s your take on him?" she asked me curiously.

I shrugged in response, watching as she took a pull from the beer she'd ordered. She shot me a look, shaking her head.

"No, you've been here for a couple weeks now," she pushed. "You've had to have heard about him. Seen the news. Form some sort of an opinion."

"The mysterious Devil of Hell's Kitchen," Foggy said, whispering the vigilante's name. "Now I'm of the opinion we shouldn't let people go around punching criminals–that's illegal and all. But Karen thinks he's a hero."

I glanced at Karen, watching as she pushed some hair behind her ear and stared down at the beer bottle in her hands. Her fingers were peeling the label on the bottle absently.

"He did save my life once," she told me. "And he's been going after only criminals. Not killing anyone." She shrugged. "I think he's doing good."

My attention turned to Matt who was quietly taking a drink from his bottle, his eyes shielded by his glasses. He was leaning against the bar towards us, but he was facing the rest of the bar and the patrons in it. Foggy followed my gaze and threw his arm around Matt, causing his attention to return to our group.

"Matt here claims to not pay attention enough to form an opinion," Foggy told me, shaking Matt a little by the shoulders.

I quirked a brow at him curiously as I took a sip of my drink. "You've lived here longer than me, and you want me to believe you don't have an opinion?" I asked him curiously.

Matt sent me a charming smile as he said, "As a lawyer, I don't condone criminal acts. But he also saved one of our friends, so," he shrugged. "I don't have an answer."

"So what about you?" Karen asked, nudging me curiously. "What's your take?"

My eyes focused on my glass on the bar in front of me. "Honestly, I haven't given it much thought, but," I admitted, noticing the way Matt leaned forward in interest as I spoke, tongue darting out to wet his lips, "I've seen some of the footage they've shared of him on the news. You can't exactly deny that he's…skilled." I winced as Kilgrave’s face came to mind. "There's definitely worse things he could be doing instead of helping the people of Hell's Kitchen."

"So you approve of what he's doing?" Karen pushed.

I shrugged slowly before taking a drink of my coke. "Sure, I guess. At least he's not hurting innocent people."

"You know what? The pool table is open," Foggy said, pointing his beer bottle at the table. "Let's go play a game. We can do teams." He turned to me with a smile and a wink. "I'll be nice and take pity on you and give you Matt."

My brow rose questioningly at his words and the way Karen hid a laugh behind her hand. " Give me Matt?" I asked him.

Matt scoffed, a faux look of offense crossing his face. "I'm a human being, Foggy, you can't just give me away to people."

Foggy grabbed Matt by the arm, leading him toward the pool table. I pushed off the bar beside Karen, eyeing her curiously. She leant in beside me and whispered, "Matt is actually really good at pool."

"Buddy, I'm giving you an in to play with the girl you clearly like," Foggy pointed out matter-of-factly.

My cheeks flamed at his words and I ducked my head, biting my lip. Karen bumped my arm, catching my gaze. She sent me a questioning look, eyebrows raised. She tilted her head towards Matt and then back at me, an expectant look on her face. I chewed the lip caught between my teeth, eyes slightly wide at her silent question. Very slowly I shrugged in answer, shooting her a sheepish look. Her mouth twisted slowly into a knowing smile. Matt and Foggy carried on, entirely unaware of the exchange that just took place.

"Well when you put it like that," Matt countered with a low chuckle. 

"Plus I figure Olivia could use the help," he added. A smirk crossed his face as the pair reached the pool table. "Though I suppose that means you can't pretend you need so much help as you usually would."

Matt’s lip curled into a mischievous smile as he turned towards Karen and I. "I still need help finding the cue ball," he pointed out.

I set my drink on the table next to the pool table; Karen shrugged out of her coat and I followed suit. My brow furrowed as a thought hit me and I turned towards Foggy who was helping Matt out of his coat before taking off his own. 

"Wait, you think I'm bad at pool?" I asked him. 

Foggy hesitated before he placed the coats at the table Karen and I had claimed. A frown crossed his face as he eyed me curiously. 

"You're…not?" he asked tentatively.

I smirked at him before shaking my head, heading towards the rack of pool cues and grabbing two.

"I lived in Anchorage for a few years," I explained, turning back to face our little group. "The main social activity was going to bars–to play pool and throw darts." I waved a hand at the bar around us. "This is my element, Nelson."

"Aww, damn it!" Foggy whined.

I laughed, crossing over to Matt and swapping out his beer for the pool cue.

"You're going down, Nelson," I threatened playfully. 

"Go easy on me, I'm just a poor lawyer," Foggy joked.

"Consider it payback for the comment about me being lonely and needing a pet," I teased back. 

"Ohhh," Karen said, rubbing her hands together as she headed towards the cue rack, "Maybe we should make a bet."

Foggy grunted, rounding on Karen. "Did you not just hear the poor lawyer part?"

"What's your bet, Karen?" Matt asked her, ignoring Foggy.

She chewed her lip and let out a thoughtful hum before a large grin appeared on her face, her eyes landing mischievously on me. My eyes immediately narrowed in response. 

"Losers buy the next round," Karen answered slowly, her eyes still reflecting a playful glint as they continued to match my guarded ones, "and winners…kiss."

My mouth dropped as I gaped at Karen. She just giggled in response, feigning innocence. Foggy offered Karen a high five, which she enthusiastically returned.

"Those sound like good terms," Matt responded with a grin. "I accept."

I held up a hand quickly. "Okay, explain to me why there's a stipulation on the winners?"

She shrugged casually, grabbing her beer from off the table and bringing the bottle to her lips. "To make things more interesting," she answered innocently before taking a drink.

Foggy stepped forward, holding his hand out towards me. "Do you accept the terms?"

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head as I reached out and shook his hand. "Fine," I muttered.

"Let the record state Olivia shook on it!" Foggy declared to the bar as Karen laughed. His attention returned to me as he released my hand. "Now you either win and kiss my handsome friend there, or intentionally try to lose and wound him deeply, madam." 

I laughed awkwardly, unable to hide my amusement and nervousness at Foggy’s playful bluntness. 

"And I would be so deeply wounded," Matt agreed beside me, his face serious as I glanced at him. But then slowly his mouth tugged up at the corner, a devilish smirk took its place on his face. I couldn’t help but stare at his lips as he whispered, "I promise I won't bite." He reached up, sliding his dark glasses slightly down his nose just enough to shoot me a wink before he slid them back up.

I swallowed hard, glancing away and avoiding whatever look Karen was surely shooting my way. 

"How about you and Karen break," I offered, trying to keep my voice steady. "Give you both a fighting chance."

Foggy racked up, adjusting the balls in their appropriate places before sliding them to center and removing the rack. He waved a hand towards Karen suavely, bowing his head a little as he did.

"Ladies first," he said.

Karen bowed good-naturedly in response. "Thank you, sir," she responded before making her way to the front of the pool table.

Holding my cue between both hands, I watched as Karen lined up her shot as she bent over the pool table. Carefully, she slid the cue back before quickly snapping it forward. The cue ball barreled forward and knocked into the balls with a crack , sending the balls scattering around the table. The solid purple four sunk in the back corner pocket as she righted. 

Matt leaned close to me, whispering, "Was it a good break? I heard something go in."

Keeping my eyes on Karen as she moved around the table, looking to take her next shot, I answered, "Pretty decent break. She pocketed one; we're stripes."

"That's good," he whispered back. "Stripes are lucky for me."

I watched as Karen almost got another ball in the pocket, just missing by an inch. Turning my attention on Matt, I asked, "Why does that feel like it's just a line?"

He only grinned back.

"Alright love birds," Foggy teased. "You're up."

I huffed at his comment, rolling my eyes as Matt let out a breathy chuckle. He cocked his head and gestured towards the table.

"Ladies first, right?" he asked smoothly.

"If you insist."

I left his side, making my way around the pool table and pausing in front of the white cue ball. Lightly tapping a finger against the cue in my hands, I surveyed my options for a moment. Eventually I leaned over the table, lining up my shot and finding the right angle to hit the ball. I sucked in a breath as I pulled the cue back between my fingers, releasing it at the same time I released the cue. The white ball flew across the table and knocked into the solid Karen had just knocked near the side pocket, pushing it further away now. The cue ball bounced back against the bumper before flying across to the other side of the table, slapping into the solid green six which in turn sunk the striped blue ten into the pocket.

As I strolled across the side of the table to take my next shot, I caught Foggy’s wide mouthed stare and Karen's surprise.

"How'd she do?" Matt asked his friends.

"I think it's safe to say she knows what she's doing," Karen responded. 

I smirked as I leant over the table again, aiming the cue ball and knocking it easily into another striped. It slid right into the pocket as I sauntered over to the cue ball again.

"You guys are going to annihilate us," Foggy groaned. "How much time did you spend playing pool at the bars in Anchorage?" he called over to me.

I hit the cue ball, watching as it rolled its way across the table and sunk another stripe before I glanced up at Foggy with a smug smile.

"Well I don't drink, so… a lot?" I mused aloud. "But I'll show some mercy," I joked as I took another shot, intentionally leaving the cue ball in an awkward position for Foggy.

“Thank God for small mercies,” he mumbled sarcastically as we passed by each other.

I grinned, grabbing my coke from off of the table and finishing it. Foggy took his time lining up his shots, managing to land a tricky shot and sinking a ball, but missing on his next turn. 

“Your turn buddy,” Foggy told Matt as he took his place beside Karen.

I stepped away from the table, crossing the two short strides to stand beside Matt. Gingerly I grabbed his forearm as I told him that the cue ball was on the opposite side of the table. As we passed by Karen and Foggy, I swore I heard Foggy lean in to Matt and whisper a “you’re welcome” as Karen giggled.

I stopped in front of the end of the table, Matt pausing beside me. “So,” I told him, sliding my hand down his forearm to catch the back of his free hand in mine, gently guiding it forward onto the table towards the white ball, “the cue ball is right here.” I paused as I held his hand against the ball, noticing how his head tilted close to me, his brows furrowing in thought as he paid close attention to my voice. “It’s about six inches to the left of the back middle pocket; about a foot from the back bumper. You’ve got a pretty clear shot at your ten o’clock to sink the eleven in the middle left pocket.” My eyes darted around the table, taking in other options.

“Or?” he asked softly, slowly leaning over the table and readying his cue.

Tentatively, I guided him along the table, one hand on his with the cue, the other on his waist as I turned him just a fraction. 

“Or,” I told him, not entirely sure how good he was at pool, “If you hit the cue ball to your four o’clock, hard enough to bounce the bumper, there’s another striped perfectly lined up with the back left corner pocket near us.”

“Hmm,” Matt hummed in thought. “Thank you.”

My hands slowly slid off of him and I took a couple of steps back, crossing my arms across my chest and studying him curiously. His head tilted in a few different directions around the table for a moment before he leaned further over lining up his shot. It was at that moment I realized I had the perfect view of his ass and I tried–I really tried–not to check him out but my eyes dipped down for one appreciative moment. When I glanced up, I saw Karen smirking at me from across the pool table. I raised a hand, trying to cover the silent laugh that escaped me. The movement caught Foggy’s attention and he momentarily sent me a questioning look, to which I shook my head in response to. Karen bit her lip, trying to fight back her own laugh. The sound of Matt hitting the ball broke the moment and I glanced down at the table, watching as the balls scattered. He’d chosen the more complicated shot and succeeded. 

“Good shot,” I praised him, slightly impressed as I made my way back beside him.

He turned his face towards me, grinning wide. “Maybe I just really want to win.”

“Flirt,” I teased him back as I guided him by his forearm towards the cue ball again. 

“Is it working?” he asked me curiously.

I grabbed the back of his hand again, guiding it towards the cue ball as I reminded him, “I don’t date flirts. Cue ball is here, just in front of the back left pocket.” His hand touched the ball as I leaned in just over his shoulder, eyeing the potential shots. “You’ve got a good shot at another stripe, directly across the table in the corner right pocket. The ball is about…” I paused, gauging the distance, “four inches to the left of the pocket.”

“Easy,” Matt mumbled.

Again, I let go of him and stepped back, watching once again as he appeared to take in the table despite his lack of sight. Then he lined up his shot for a moment and sunk the ball. Matt stood up, smiling.

“Did that go in, Foggy?” Matt joked. “I couldn’t see.”

I giggled as Foggy exasperatedly rolled his eyes at his friend. “Yes, Matt,” Foggy answered in a deadpan. “You know it damn well did.”

I led Matt all the way to the other side of the table where the cue ball now sat, once again guiding his hand to the ball and directing him to where the last stripe sat and the obstacles in his way before I left him to take his shot. Honestly, I didn’t expect that he’d be able to make it–that shot would be tricky even to me. But my mouth dropped in shock when I watched him hit the ball and it jumped over a solid, smacked into a bumper, and then rolled into the final stripe, pocketing it.

“Should we get drink orders ready?” Foggy joked. “Seems like we lost already.”

Karen laughed, playfully swatting Foggy’s arm. Matt turned towards me, a wide grin still spread across his handsome face.

“What do you think, should I give them a chance?” Matt teased.

I snickered at his question, stepping towards him to guide him yet again to the cue ball.

“That’s on you,” I answered simply.

I lined him up and directed him to where the eight ball now sat on the table. It wasn’t a remotely difficult shot at all. When I laid out the table for him, he paused for a moment in thought as I stepped back.

“Eight ball, right corner pocket,” Matt called out.

I saw Foggy roll his eyes as Karen sent me a quick wink, downing the rest of her beer. I blushed, focusing back on the game. Matt hit the ball and it easily rolled across the table, knocking the eight ball into the right corner pocket. 

“Alright!” Foggy exclaimed, clapping his hands as Matt turned around from the table. “Another beer for you and another coke for the lady?” 

“Sure,” Matt agreed, his focus in my general direction now.

I swallowed hard, glancing at Foggy and nodding quietly. Karen waggled her brows at me before linking her arm around Foggy’s.

“We’ll be at the bar, grabbing the next round,” Karen told us, tugging on Foggy’s arm.

As they began walking away, Foggy called back, “Remind me to never put you two on a team together!”

I chuckled as I watched them retreat to the bar, sliding past a few patrons as they went. 

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” Matt said, appearing in front of me now, “but we did just win, correct?”

I smiled, eyes darting up to the bar ceiling. 

“Yes.”

“And the bet was that the losers had to buy the next round, correct?” he asked next.

My eyes slid down towards my hands, which were now playing with the hem of my sweater. 

“Yes.”

“So Foggy and Karen are off fulfilling their end of the bet, but–correct me if I’m wrong here,” he said again, holding up a hand and looking very serious, “but wasn’t there another part of that bet? For the winners?”

Slowly my gaze shifted up towards Matt, his serious expression fighting to remain on his face. 

“...yes.”

He raised a hand to his chin, rubbing against the stubble there as if deep in thought.

“Something about…” he made a face as if trying to remember, “the winners kissing?”

I rolled my eyes, not even bothering to fight the grin on my face anymore. 

“Yes.”

His lips twisted into a matching grin, his tongue darting out against them for a moment. My eyes followed the movement.

“And you did agree to it, right?” he teased.

I chuckled, shaking my head.

“Yes, Matt.”

He took a step closer towards me, leaning in and whispering, “I just wanted to check.”

His hand rose, his fingertips grazing my jaw before he slid it further up, cupping my cheek lightly. My breath caught in my throat as he leaned closer, using his hand to tilt my face up towards him as his other hand suddenly gripped my waist, drawing me closer. Instinctively my hands flew up, resting against his solid chest to brace myself at the movement. The rough pad of his thumb briefly swiped over my cheekbone, caressing it a few times as I swallowed hard, eyes slowly drifting closed. My heart was pounding in my chest and I was almost positive Matt could hear it with how close he was to me.

It was another moment before his lips brushed lightly against mine for the briefest second and I unconsciously found my own tilting up to chase after his. A single huff of amusement left him at the gesture before he closed the distance, bringing his mouth to mine. His lips were warm and surprisingly soft against my own, which stood in contrast to the pleasurable rasp of his stubble against my skin. The hand on my cheek carefully made its way down, gingerly sliding down my chin and towards the back of my neck as he drew me in closer, our lips still working against each other slow and sweet. With a mind of its own, my right hand slid the rest of its way up his chest to wrap against the back of his neck, fingernails lightly raking against the bare skin there. The hand at my waist gripped tight in response, his fingers pushing into the fabric of my sweater. 

After another moment he pulled away, leaning his forehead lightly against mine. I struggled to even my breathing, a heat igniting within me at the absence of his lips. I wanted more; more of his mouth, more of his skin, more of his body against mine. It was an ache I’d never felt before. But as my eyes fluttered open and were met with my own reflection in his dark glasses–which I so desperately wanted to rip off of his face yet again–I recalled where we were and why we’d kissed in the first place.

My hands immediately released the grip they’d had on him as I anxiously stepped back. In turn, Matt’s hands slid from their place against my waist and my neck, our foreheads pulling apart at the distance. I swallowed hard a few times, trying to collect myself as I blinked rapidly. When I glanced up at Matt, his breathing was a bit uneven as well but I noticed him shoot me a small, almost sad, smile. The expression confused me, causing my brows to crease together, but before I could say anything, we were interrupted by Foggy and Karen returning.

“Alright, so this round,” Foggy said as he handed Matt a fresh beer, “it’s guys against gals.”

Matt’s expression quickly recovered at the sound of Foggy’s voice, and he raised the beer to his lips before saying, “Sounds like it’d be a bit more fair.”

I found myself staring curiously after Matt for another moment, trying to decipher the look on his face, before Karen appeared beside me, holding out a full coke with a soft smile on her face. I shook my head, snapping out of my thoughts and shooting her a smile.

“Thanks,” I told her, accepting the drink. “Wanna wipe the cocky smiles off their faces?”

“ Always ,” Karen answered with a grin.

The next game began with many taunts and playful name-calling before we’d eased into other topics of conversation. It was unexpected when I was taking my shot that Karen brought up a new topic.

“Did any of you listen to the last few episodes of Trish Talk?” 

I paused, my body freezing as I was trying to line up a shot.

“Yes,” Foggy answered immediately.

Matt shook his head. “No, I don’t generally take an interest in that show,” he admitted.

Foggy quickly cleared his throat. “Yeah, I mean. I was just listening in to that case she was talking about on there the other day. It was interesting, you know, from a lawyer’s perspective.”

“What case?” Matt asked curiously.

I had been lining up my shot again when Karen answered.

“Hope Shlottman? The girl who claims some guy named…Kilgrave? Mind controlled her to kill her parents,” she told him.

My hand slipped as I took the shot, his name causing my hands to immediately slick over with sweat. The cue ball barely rolled along the table not hitting a single ball. I swore I saw Matt’s head turn towards the pool table at my fumble.

“I can’t believe Hogarth took on that case,” Foggy said. “It still baffles me.”

“Why?” I asked, trying not to sound too curious as I made my way back over towards the group.

“Because she only takes winners,” Matt answered. “Cases that are a guaranteed win. Ones to make her firm look good.”

“And this one,” Foggy continued, “is…just strange. There’s video footage of her… committing the crime ,” he said, unable to say the word ‘murder.’ “And then she wants to…what, maybe plead insanity? I guess? Because she can’t really be intending to argue some man mind-controlled her to do it.”

I cleared my throat, trying to sound casual. “How would one even go about doing that, assuming, you know, someone did do that?”

Foggy sent me a weird look as Matt’s brows rose behind his dark glasses. I cleared my throat again, awkwardly this time, as the weight of their expressions lingered on me.

“I mean, hypothetically, of course,” I continued quickly. “I’m just curious. Since you guys are, you know, lawyers.”

“Well…” Foggy started, pausing as he thought, staring down at the beer in his hands. The pool game was long forgotten now. “I suppose witness testimonies would help. But like… a lot of them. Better if they were from reputable people.”

“What about…a recording? Of the man using his ability?” I asked.

Matt’s brows furrowed at my question as his head tilted further towards me, but he remained silent as Foggy answered. I could practically feel his intense focus on me, the hairs prickling along the back of my neck.

“You’d probably need reputable witnesses at the taping. The more the merrier,” he told me, tapping his chin thoughtfully. “Because someone could always doctor a tape to make it look like he could mind control people. So you’d need to make it credible. Hypothetically, of course.”

“Yeah,” I said, swallowing thickly. “Hypothetically.”

“But it was a weird episode,” Foggy continued. “Trish doesn’t usually talk about that sort of stuff, and she sounded like she believed it. Especially when she apologized the following day on her show to the man. As if he actually exists.” “That’s what I thought was weird,” Karen agreed. "Why would she apologize? Unless he…does exist. Maybe threatened her…"

I downed the rest of my coke swiftly, setting the glass on the table beside me. My hands were shaking and I tried to still the movement by gripping the soft fabric of my sweater.

"You feeling alright, Olivia?" Matt asked me curiously.

My head spun towards Matt, wiping my sweating palms against my jeans now. I forced a smile on my face though I was sure Foggy and Karen could see how tense it was.

"Yeah," I answered him quickly, voice a little high. I cleared my throat before adding on, "I'm just going to find the restroom."

"I'll come with you," Karen offered abruptly, setting her drink onto the table. She grabbed my arm and led me forward. "I'll show you where it's at."

Karen led us through the bar towards the back, where there was a sign for the bathrooms. We entered the women's restroom and I bolted for an empty stall. I used the bathroom, lingering for a moment to compose myself, before heading out and washing my hands. I could feel Karen’s eyes on me as she dried off her hands on a paper towel.

"How was it?" she finally asked me.

I glanced up at her, our eyes meeting through the dirty mirror. My breath caught in my throat–did she know?

"How was what?" I asked her.

She rolled her eyes, ripping off a sheet of paper towel and crossing the bathroom towards me, holding it out to me. 

"The kiss?" she prompted.

I grabbed the paper towel from her, drying my hands off. I released a breath, my shoulders relaxing. A flush crept over my cheeks as I remembered the way his hand had cupped my cheek, his thumb gently caressing my skin; the strength of his chest underneath my hands, all hard muscle. I could still remember the feel of his soft lips moving so slowly against my own, the faint taste of him that had lingered for a brief moment after. My jaw clenched as I recalled the warmth of the bare skin on his neck under my fingers and the way his grip tightened on my waist when my nails had lightly dragged across the back of his neck.

"That good, huh?" Karen asked when I didn't answer.

I laughed nervously, her voice pulling me back to the present. Tossing the paper towel into the garbage can, I nervously tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.

"It was…" I paused, exhaling slowly. "Yeah, it was good," I confessed. "Especially considering it wasn't, you know, an actual kiss."

Karen’s brows raised. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, it's because it was part of the bet," I told her. "For the game. Not like…it was supposed to mean something. I'm sure he does that all the time."

She frowned instantly, shaking her head with a sigh. "Foggy must have gotten into your head," Karen said. "I know I haven't known them for too long, but Matt has mentioned you a few times. I know he's asked Foggy about you, too, because he's told me. Matt's definitely interested, but he thinks you're not."

Crossing my arms across my chest, I glanced away, my mind racing back to the other night when Matt had come to check on me. The way he'd seemed so upset about me thinking he was the type of guy who slept around. Then I remembered the sad smile I'd seen on his face after he'd kissed me and frowned.

"I'm not good with relationships," I admitted hesitantly. "I've only had one and it was…bad, real bad. I don't exactly know how to do the whole relationship thing. And I'm not too interested in trying again at the moment." Under my breath I muttered, "Certainly not with someone who seems to easily flirt with every woman he's attracted to."

Karen mimicked my posture, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't think Matt is like that," she said slowly. "He's sweet. A good guy. If he wasn't genuinely interested he wouldn't be pursuing you. And Foggy said he's not seeing anyone else. He told me, and I quote, 'the guy is smitten'." She leaned forward, a large smile on her face as she emphasized again, " Smitten. Matt Murdock is smitten with you."

A small smile crossed my lips, but it vanished quickly when I remembered that not only did Matt not really know me, but I was also actively trying to help Jessica and Trish prove that my ex was in fact capable of mind control. And not only that, but he was someone who had forced Jessica and Hope to commit murder, along with so many others who had done equally horrible things because of him. The guilt of that weighed heavily on me, but when Kilgrave found out I was in Hell's Kitchen–because he would soon–I knew those around me wouldn't be safe. I couldn’t willingly put Matt in further danger, it would be terribly reckless.

"It…it can't happen," I said firmly. "Not right now, at least."

Her blue eyes narrowed at me suspiciously.

"So you do like him?" she questioned.

"I mean…I don't know him too well," I told her slowly. "But he's sweet. And funny…and so incredibly, unfairly attractive that it's painful."

Karen giggled, pointing an accusatory finger at me. "I saw you checking out his ass while we were playing pool!"

I laughed with her, holding a finger to my lips and shushing her between laughs. "That's our secret!"

Karen grinned, raising a hand and making a cross over her heart before pretending to seal her lips.

"He likes you though," she said when the laughter died down. "Maybe give it some thought before you completely say no."

I opened my mouth to answer but the buzzing of my phone cut me off. Sliding a hand into my pocket, I grabbed my phone and fished it out. The name on the screen read 'Jessica.' I frowned before taking a step back from Karen.

"I have to take this, I'll be out in a minute," I assured her.

She nodded before turning to leave. I waited until she was out of the bathroom before I answered. 

"Jessica?" I asked. "Is something wrong?"

"Not more than usual," she greeted quickly. "Look, I managed to get my hands on the Sufentanil tonight. Don't ask me how, it's not important."

"Why do I feel like you stole from a hospital?" I muttered.

"Because I did, not the point," she continued on. "Can you meet us tomorrow? Trish and I have a plan to capture him. I can explain it all tomorrow, but…" she hesitated, sounding vulnerable suddenly. "I could really use your help. If you can really do what you say you can, we could really use you if this goes south."

"Whatever it takes, right?" I reiterated. "I'll be wherever you need me."

"Great," Jessica said, the word coming out like a sigh of relief. "My apartment tomorrow morning at 8? You remember where it is?"

"Yeah, I can be there," I assured her.

There was a pause, a beat of silence over the line.

"What?" I asked her.

"Thank you," she whispered.

"Don't thank me, I told you that," I reminded her, guilt roiling in my gut. "I should have done something sooner, I'm fixing it now. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

I hung up, sliding the phone back into my pocket. Pausing for a moment, I took a calming breath before exiting the bathroom. I maneuvered my way through the crowd, spotting Karen sitting with Matt and Foggy over by the pool table where I'd left them. As I began passing the bar, something caught me by the arm and I stumbled to a stop. I swore I saw Matt stiffen at the table across the room before I turned to see who'd grabbed me.

"You could do a lot better, baby," the man holding my arm said in a low rumble. "You and that blonde." His head gestured towards Karen and I felt my fists clench at my sides, his hand still wrapped around my wrist. "A nerd and a blind guy…" He shook his head, eyes traveling down to rest on my chest as he bit his lip.

I wrenched my wrist free of his grip, glaring at the large, slightly inebriated man on the bar stool. I snapped my fingers up by my face twice. 

"Eyes up here, asshole," I snapped at him.

His eyes slid back up to my face, a dark expression forming on it. 

"Mouthy," he growled, rising from the barstool and towering over me. "Should teach you a better use for that mouth of yours."

"Sit your ass back in your chair," I snarled, voice lowering dangerously, "before I teach you a better use for yours."

With a sneer, the man balled his meaty hand into a fist and swung it backwards. A collective gasp sounded around us as he aimed a punch at me, but I caught his hand instinctively the moment it flew forward, snatching it the second it was mere inches from my face. The man froze, brow furrowing. 

"No fighting in my bar!" Josie's voice boomed from behind the counter.

I clamped my hand tighter around the man's fist, eyes narrowing. I could feel a tingling sensation starting from my temples and behind my eyes before vibrating down towards the hand gripping the man's fist. I ducked my head, letting my hair fall forward to cover my face a little as I spoke.

"You should sit down," I ordered in a harsh whisper, my voice coming out with a faint vibration through the air, "apologize, and return to your drink. You don’t want to cause a scene."

The man gaped, his mouth opening and closing like a fish, dumbfounded. His fist suddenly lowered, hand dropping to his side as he sat into his chair again.

"I'm sorry about that," he muttered, brows furrowed as he spun back around in his chair, his attention back on his drink as he scratched his head.

I stood still for a moment, waiting for the telltale vibration to dissipate before I glanced past him, spotting Josie watching me curiously from behind the bar. The people standing directly beside us were also staring now. I cleared my throat and shrugged casually. 

"Guess he didn't want to make a scene," I explained simply before turning and walking away. 

Foggy interrogated me the moment I neared the table. 

"What the hell was that?" he questioned immediately.

"Are you okay?" Matt asked with a voice as tight as his grip on the table.

"I'm fine," I assured Matt before facing a flabbergasted Foggy and a very pensive Karen. "Just a drunk guy who realized it wasn't worth starting a fight and getting kicked out." I waved a hand, trying to downplay the situation.

"What an asshole," Foggy grumbled, glaring at the guy at the bar. "I'm sorry, Olivia. But hey," he said, shooting me an apologetic smile, "Matt and I would have kicked his ass for you. I don't know how well, mind you."

I laughed, mentally noting the way Karen was staring at me with a calculated gaze. "I appreciate it but I can handle myself."

"Obviously," Karen said as she pointed towards the bruises on my neck, "since you survived whatever that was."

I forced the smile to remain on my lips as my eyes darted to my coat. 

"I should probably get back home, it's getting late," I announced, making my way towards the jacket. "Thanks for inviting me out though, it was good to get out for a bit."

Matt abruptly rose from his chair, a charming smile on his face. "Let me walk you home."

"Oh you don't have to–"

"I insist," Matt cut me off. "Besides, we're going the same way."

[magicalqueennightmare]

Sins & Amends Chapter 44

Billy Russo x Female Reader (60 part story)

This follows pre- the punisher into the storyline of daredevil, punisher season 1 and beyond

This is NOT Canon Billy. This is decent human being Billy left with bad options over worse decisions

This was also posted to A03 under: WaywardGaPeach. That account and this one is the only place you'll see me post this. If you see it on any other platform/account know it's not me.

Chapter Summary/ Warnings: A new life comes into your crazy little family

You decided to take a couple days off after finding out and just told Chief Michelson you were sick. In truth you just needed time to adjust.

After Frank's harsh initial reaction he'd switched into more of a protector/ planner mode. You didn't even know the sex of the baby yet and the man was making lists for what furniture you'd need and telling you it was about time you got a car.

You sat next to Karen, both of you wearing a smile as the two of you watched Frank and Curtis measure out your spare bedroom to decide where a crib could go. 

"Frank! I mean I'm pretty sure it's got somewhere to sleep for a while" Karen teased running a hand over your stomach. He raised an eyebrow at her "Very funny. I'm not saying we need to buy it now but Y/N you remember how insane it was bringing Lisa how from the hospital" 

You nodded and felt a flicker of hope at the simple fact that he was actually talking about one of the kids unprompted. "I remember Frank but Karen does have a point. We'll get everything ready in time hell I still have people that don't know"

He glanced up from his fourth cup of coffee and grinned "If you mean David and Sarah, I already called them" "Frank!" Karen scolded but you couldn't find it in yourself to be mad. Frank was smiling, that's what was important. 

"Oh shit!" You said suddenly and everyone turned to look at you. "I gotta tell Alice!" 

"Are you still going to be working on the rig?" Frank asked as you stood to hunt your cellphone. You shrugged "Protocol says I have a choice to either go on dispatch duty till the baby's born or stay on rig. Guess it all depends what the obgyn says after my first appointment"

You hit Alice's number and walked into your kitchen, trying to block out the conversation in your living room but catching enough to know Frank and Curtis was planning to meet with Matt and Dinah to officially accept the offer she'd laid out.

The phone rang twice before Alice answered "About time! Chief called to say Jessie will be partnered with me tor the next couple days, meanwhile I'm freaking out thinking something is wrong with you" you chuckled nervously "Well um the doctor did find something out"

"What?" She nearly screamed and you could hear Kenzie in the background so you said "Put me on speaker so I can tell you both" "Ok" you heard her click it over so you took a breath then said "Turns out I'm pregnant"

"Oh my god!" Was all Kenzie said. Alice on the other hand cracked up laughing "Well it'll be a good looking kid. Helluva attitude but good looking" "Geez thanks Alice" you replied but was relieved that now everyone close to you knew. Her voice got serious then she said "We're here for you no matter what"

Chief let you stay on rig until you were a week shy of the halfway point. He then informed you Alice would keep Jessie as a temp partner until you could come back and that you'd be working dispatch.

Frank took the deal from Homeland, Curtis and David took the job offer so that meant Frank was officially back from the dead. He said it was because he wanted to make sure he could be there for Karen, you and the baby no matter what.

The most comical thing that you found about being pregnant was the stares you'd get from the bodega owner when you'd come waddling in behind none other than the punisher in the middle of the night because a craving hit so Frank had come over to take you to the store. You'd teased more than once "I think I'm hurting your reputation Frank" he'd shrugged and patted your stomach "That's my niece or nephew so it's worth it"

The day you went for the gender reveal ultrasound Karen went with you. You laid back on the bed and reached for her hand. She squeezed yours gently as the tech started moving the wand around "Well mama, we got fingers, toes and oh look at that" you and Karen glanced at the screen so she circled one area "You got a little girl on the way"

Karen practically squealed "Frank was hoping it was a girl too" she admitted after a moment. You simply laughed and shook your head.

A few weeks later Karen, Sarah,and Leo took you out for the day while Frank, Curtis , David and Zach went about turning your spare bedroom into a nursery "one that can move up with her in size" Frank had added at your look.

You counted yourself as unbelievably lucky. Yeah Billy wasn't able to be with you and would probably never even meet his daughter but you and her both had an entire village behind you. Your daughter's family consisted from vigilantes to reporters to ex NSA analyst and damn near everything in between.

The closer you got to your due date the less amount of time you got to spend alone. Someone was always with you. You couldn't blame them even Frank backed down when Karen gave marching orders.

You had gotten Alice and Kenzie to come over to help you frame photos for the family wall you'd added to the baby's room. "This is a good photo of you and Maria" Alice smiled looking at the photo. Maria was practically hanging off your neck and was mid laugh. It was one of the times Frank and Billy had come back unexpectedly early and she had been deliriously happy that Frank wouldn't miss Christmas that year.

"Yeah it is. God I miss her" you answered with a small smile then reached for another stack of pictures "I want to make sure the baby has everyone I consider her family represented. That's why I asked for a shot of you two. Me and Alice have been partners for so many years. Seems only fair" 

It took the three of you a couple hours to frame all the photos you wanted up and to arrange them around the room so they didn't look too cluttered. 

You stepped back to look at the finished product and smiled. You, Billy, Frank, Karen, Curtis and Maria and the kids were represented the most then there was some of the Liebermans, Matt and Foggy then Alice and Kenzie. "I can say one thing. This kid has one hell of a family waiting to meet her" Alice teased throwing an arm over your shoulders.

A knock from the door drew all of your attention so you checked the time "That would be Frank and Karen" Kenzie glanced at your belly for permission so when you nodded she laid on hand on it then leaned down to talk to the baby "Bye little bit. Maybe your mommy will pick a name before you're born so you won't just be listed as babygirl Y/L/N-Russo"

"It's just gonna be babygirl Russo. I have a lot more issues with my last name than his" you admitted so she shrugged then changed it to "Well then little bit hopefully mommy picks a name so you're not just babygirl Russo"

You swatted playfully at her "Alice get your wife"  Alice kissed your cheek then grabbed Kenzie's hand "C'mon baby. We don't provoke the pregnant lady" 

The day you hit thirty nine weeks you had decided to go to the bulletin to have lunch with Karen. You were walking up the steps and heard Ellison "Need a hand?" You looked up to see he was offering his arm so you gladly took it. "Thank you!" He nodded and walked with you inside.

You hadn't even made it to Karen's office when a pain hit severe enough to double you up. "Y/N?" When you didn't reply he looked at the nearest person "GET PAGE NOW!" 

Karen came running around the corner about the time another pain hit you and you felt liquid run down your leg. You looked down to see you were now standing in a puddle of water "Oh fuck Karen this is it" you managed to get out but she was already pulling a chair under you and calling an ambulance with Ellison's phone while she called Frank with hers.

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

Alice and Jessie happened to be on the ambulance that responded. She sat in the back monitoring your contractions on the way "See? Little bit wanted auntie Alice even if I was at work!" She teased making a pained laugh escape you "She could've asked to call you!"

By the time you got to the hospital the waiting room looked like a frickin circus. Matt, Foggy and Marci were there fresh from court from the looks of it. Frank and Curtis were there with Dinah and Sam in tow who had apparently drove them. Curtis was on the phone with David trying to convince him he didn't have to come yet.

When they spotted you and Karen all eyes turned towards you as your obgyn Dr Lynnette Erickson came out the double doors and took in just how many were there with you. "Miss Y/L/N only two can accompany you into delivery" you grabbed Karen's hand then glanced at Frank "What you say Frankie?" He nodded and quickly got to the other side of the bed as they pushed you away.

Dinah and Sam were telling Curtis  they'd call to check in and Alice hollered she'd come after shift.  That was the last you heard out the waiting room.

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

Frank stepped into the hall while Karen helped you change into a gown then he came back in and stood at the head of the bed watching the doctor and nurses mill around with his patent Punisher glare in full swing. "Easy Frank. They're here to help me" you reminded him with a pained smile and he nodded "Yeah they better"

An hour later Frank was sitting in the bed behind you supporting your body against his own while Karen helped you through the breathing. "One more push and she'll be out mama" Dr Erickson said and Frank leaned up to whisper in your ear "Come on sweetheart. You got this. You're more badass than any marine I've ever met. One more push. You can do it"

Frank helped you sit up further and Karen moved down to help hold your legs as you gave one final hard push and was rewarded with a shrill cry filling the room. After a moment one of the nurses handed you a tiny pink bundle. "Congratulations. What's her name?" 

You glanced between Karen and Frank who were standing at your side in awe of their niece "I was thinking Addison Elizabeth Russo" Frank's eyes teared up a bit when he heard the middle name but he nodded "Maria would've loved that" the nurse smiled and said "I'll write it in her chart. Do you want me to tell everyone waiting?" 

Frank shook his head "Give us three a few minutes then I'll go collect the nutjobs one at a time" the nurse laughed and said "Well congrats. I can tell already Addison is a very loved little girl" "That she is" Karen agreed with tears in her eyes.

Addison or Adi as you planned to call her was beautiful. She had your nose but Billy's dark eyes and mouth. God she was going to look just like him. You'd never felt more whole than staring at her.

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

Once you were moved into a regular room Frank headed out to deliver news and to bring a couple people back at a time to meet the newest member of your little family.

"I wish Billy could've been here" you confessed and Karen kissed your forehead "I know you do. I promise you won't be alone in any of this" you smiled at her as Adi cooed slightly in your arms.

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

Despite the fact that you were exhausted and wanted to sleep it was a comical experience seeing everyone meet her.

Curtis was a pro at holding babies. She curled right up to him and nearly fell asleep "She knows who's gonna be her favorite uncle" he'd teased with a wink towards you when Frank shot him a look. 

Foggy was nervous and let Karen direct him how to hold her but looked so cute smiling down at her. You realized Matt was standing back so you said "Get up in here Matt. Come meet her" he sat on the edge of the bed so you laid her in his arms. He gently ran his fingertip across her face "She's beautiful Y/N"

The Liebermans were a family unit and it showed. Sarah held Adi while David, Leo and Zach met her. "She's so little!" Leo whispered and you grinned "By the time she's up a size you'll be needing a baby sitting job right Leo?"

Alice and Kenzie barely made it under the wire before visiting hours ended. Alice just sat there smiling at her "You did amazing Y/N! She is gorgeous!" 

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

Once everyone else had left you thought you'd be alone overnight but Frank pulled out the cot in the corner of the room. "What are you doing?" You asked and he glanced over his shoulder at Karen and smirked  "I'm staying kid. You were there for Maria when she had newborns. I'm gonna be here for you. Me and Karen already set up a schedule so you always have help. Sarah has offered to watch her when you go back to work and for any overnight shifts we bought a portable crib for our place"

You felt yourself tearing up again and didn't know if it was hormones or what. "Thank you both" he shrugged "We stick together sweetheart. Kind of what we do"

You took a deep breath then said "That does lead into my next question" they exchanged a look then Karen said "What is it?" You looked at Adi sleeping peacefully then at Frank then at Karen. "Will you two be her godparents?" 

"Really?" Karen asked with a broad smile. When you nodded she pulled you into a hug then Frank hugged you both "This a yes?" You asked after a moment and Frank groaned "Christ, yes Y/N we'd love to be her godparents"

@intothesoul

@weallhaveadestiny